donwest84.bsky.social
@donwest84.bsky.social
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The Kremlin tries to look like the returned Cold War power that the USSR was, but it's a pale shadow of what it used to control, let alone of the Warsaw Pact. TL;DR, the population gap between the Kremlin and NATO has grown by 5x since the Cold War, and the economic difference has grown by 7x.
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What are the odds the ballroom always had stages of atrocities to be revealed whenever Trump needed a distraction?
Didn't cook long enough.

We used to ask for presidents with DC expertise. Vietnam and Watergate changed that. Now we demand outsiders with executive experience, not systems expertise. Biden was the most accomplished federal manager in 50 years because he was the only expert.
Nobody tell President Fuckwit where the targeting intelligence for long range missiles comes from. And whatever you do, don't let Secretary of Defense Dick Whiskey lose track of this morning's case of rotgut
Transferring, then keeping against his will.
Reposted
The only solution here is impeachment. A Declaration of Independence style list of Trump's high crimes and misdemeanors, from looting the US Treasury to deprivation of constitutional rights to demolishing the White House to murder on the high seas to usurping the reserved powers of Congress.
Awful: Trump's $230 million shakedown from DOJ can be paid to him confidentially at first, without the public ever finding out about it until later, Rep Jamie Raskin tells me.

Raskin will formally demand full communications between WH and DOJ on this.

New from me:
newrepublic.com/article/2021...
Trump’s Vile New $230 Million Shakedown of DOJ Just Got Even Worse
It’s bad enough that Trump wants—and DOJ will likely fork over—this tribute payment. Now, get this: It can probably be done at first without even being revealed publicly.
newrepublic.com
Reposted
I've seen a few coups firsthand. Traffic control is one of the first services deployed.

As an LA resident, I'm deeply disappointed that Trump has failed in even this most basic expectation of any aspiring autocrat.
I've seen a few coups firsthand. Traffic control is one of the first services deployed.

As an LA resident, I'm deeply disappointed that Trump has failed in even this most basic expectation of any aspiring autocrat.
We could go back to the Iron Man movies. Stark proudly announces he's privatized defense. Won't hand over his designs. He makes a drunken mess of everything and we're still meant to trust his capable judgment.
We shouldn't have billionaires because that level of wealth accumulation is inherently unhealthy for democracy and necessarily creates power imbalances among the public. It's not a "what if" scenario, the existence of "billionaire" as a wealth category is already a huge problem.
billionaires should not be allowed to exist because the downside of "one of them loses their mind" is simply too dangerous for a functional society

also, having a billion dollars tends to make you lose your mind
The whole point of democracy is so one person's derangement does not become everybody's problem. It's social hygiene. The fact the richest men in the West are a mix of grotty twelve year olds and deranged apocalypse fanatics is a problem, and we should be honest about it.
I just got shouted down by Batman stans for pointing out that "masked vigilante using military hardware to extrajudicially punish self-perceived wrongdoers without a warrant" describes ICE. Yup, comics haven't set us up well for this moment.
As a Pitt alum, thank you for what you've done for PA and for the US.

I noticed today that Trump’s latest grift perfectly matches federal cuts from PA public schools. I'd love to hear your opinion on this.

bsky.app/profile/donw...
What a coincidence, Trump is demanding exactly as much from the DOJ he controls as he cut from public schools in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania.

www.yahoo.com/news/trump-a...
How about children in PA? Do you put Pennsylvanian children over a grifter stealing their tuition?
What a coincidence, Trump is demanding exactly as much from the DOJ he controls as he cut from public schools in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania.

www.yahoo.com/news/trump-a...
What a coincidence, Trump is demanding exactly as much from the DOJ he controls as he cut from public schools in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania.

www.yahoo.com/news/trump-a...
Reposted
What a coincidence, Trump is demanding exactly as much from the DOJ he controls as he cut from public schools in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania.

www.yahoo.com/news/trump-a...
What a coincidence, Trump is demanding exactly as much from the DOJ he controls as he cut from public schools in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania.

www.yahoo.com/news/trump-a...
Vance and Musk stumped for AfD because Germany solved the MAGA problem and they don't want the US to import the solution. Don't let Nazis into the party. We already see the impact here as Republican refugees of MAGA swing left. We can have nice things, too. But not by appeasing Nazis.
Trump has never been scrupulous about paying contractors for services rendered.

This time I don't feel bad if he stiffs them. Let's see them embrace the bad publicity of seeking damages for not being paid to maul an historically significant landmark.
I'm certain that DeSantis will see this and hop on the successes of the marketplace of ideas.
Reposted
"The money is amazing—he just gives it to you when you show up, and says, 'Here is the cash. Thanks, my faithful protesting employees. My name is George Soros. This is happening in real life, you are not dreaming, and this is not an insane lie your president is making up.'"
The Perks of Being a Professional Protester
George Soros is at every protest with a huge sack of cash. The money is amazing—he just gives it to you when you show up, and says, “Here is the ca...
buff.ly
Reposted
the symbolism of “Trump destroying the White House for a overpriced luxury vanity project, during a government shut down, days after a historically-large mass demonstration against his regime called “No Kings”’ would be rightly viewed as laying it on a little thick if it was in a work of fiction
Setting aside how wrong Dixon is, let's not forget that Batman is a masked vigilante using military equipment to violently and extrajudicially assault people he decides are criminals. Batman kinda belongs in ICE.
Let's leave the Canadians out of this.
On the one hand, yes. This is a disaster.

On the other hand, Ahmed Chalabi's record of corruption was worse. He just had nice suits.

I honestly can't see a difference between Trump and Bush other than Bush being less unpresentable (though the least presentable POTUS in generations at the time).