4th of July

I had a group of friends, and they emailed regularly. The rise of Trump killed the group. They argued and quit the group. 

There's a guy who lives above me, works at a grocery store, who's a libertarian, doesn't want government. He thought Obama was as corrupt as anyone else.

Night doorman across the street agrees with him. Denies the obvious difference in corruption.

Retired bus driver across the street thought Trump was being persecuted legally with frivolous cases. 

Jewish fellow in the park didn't think 700k people died from Trump's inaction around Covid. "Maybe".

Albanian woman in the park said, "you have the right to guns, right?"

Cote d'Ivoire woman thought the protests in Portland meant the January 6th insurrection was just a protest. She moved to Hungary with her mixed race children. They recently protested Orban saying don't celebrate pride with a massive turnout. The current regime likes Orban. 

Italian-American woman neighbor, who thought vaccines were bad, moved to Texas.

Irish-American woman who converted to Judaism moved to Idaho. She loved Trump.

Polish woman in the park said to forget Musk's two sieg heils. 

Senate passed the apocalypse bill, that's going to wreak havoc on America. Now only the House stands in front of it.

Trump is talking about exporting people he doesn't like from the country. Doesn't matter if they're citizens or if they were even born here, or fought for the country. 

We're truly looking at a horrible society of nightmares. 

HCR: "Just after noon today, the Senate passed its version of the budget reconciliation bill. All Democrats and Independents voted no. Three Republicans—Susan Collins of Maine, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina—joined the Democrats in voting no. That left the bill at 50–50. Vice President J.D. Vance cast the deciding vote, pushing the measure through the Senate and sending it back to the House to vote on the changes made by the Senate. From the reporters’ gallery above the floor, CNN’s Sarah Ferris heard Senator Angus King (I-ME) yell to his Republican colleagues: “Shame on you guys. That was the most disgusting vote I’ve ever seen in my life.” The measure cuts taxes for the wealthy and corporations and offsets those cuts in part by slashing Medicaid and food security programs for low-income Americans."

USA 1776-2025 RIP. I'm a third in denial, third minimizing and a third really really really angry. Only anti-social nihilists can applaud these moves. Call your Representatives, that's our only last hope. Protest on Saturday. Lots of people's dying words will be, "I blame Trump." Repetition compulsion, he's provoking another great depression. Hard times ahead, more violence.

Zohran Mamdani

Zohran Mamdani has won the Democratic primary for Mayor of NYC. Usually the democratic primary winner, wins the race. The time Giuliani won as a republican was when there was a referendum for Staten Island to succeed from NYC. So basically the people who didn't want to be in New York City elected Giuliani into office.

Zohran Mamdani (33) was born in Uganda, to Indian parents. Move to Cape Town when he was 5. His mother is a filmmaker (1991) film Mississippi Masala, starring Denzel Washington and 2016 Disney film Queen of Katwe) and his father is an academic at Columbia, who studies colonialism, was expelled from Uganda under the dictator Idi Amin. He's from Queens, he's in the State Assembly. Moved to NYC when he was 7. Went to Bronx Science, then Bowdoin College in Maine with a bachelors in African studies. Mamdani worked as a prevention counselor and cricketer, and attempted a career in hip hop (video). He worked on a few political campaigns and then ran himself. His district includes Astoria and Long Island City. 

The amount of weird stuff coming out is crazy, lots of fairly racist, islamophobia and against democratic socialist nonsense. Trump is against him, so that's the biggest endorsement you can give. To me, it makes people look really bad. 

Cuomo is going 3rd party, along with Adams, so it's going to be Adams, Cuomo, Curtis Sliwa and our man Zohran Mamdani. To me, anyone but Zohran Mamdani is a wasted vote. Zohran Mamdani will win in a landslide. There was unprecedented young voter turnout, hopefully that amazing trend continues. 

Cuomo and Adams are crony capitalism, which we're tired of. Silwa is wacky vigilanti pretending to be law and order candidate, running for the attention, knows he can't win. Actually if the DINOs who don't like Zohran Mamdani voted for him, he could get a little closer, but I'm pretty sure those 3 split their votes. And then there's the candidate for the people, who is savy and wise beyond his years and hopefully turns out to be a good leader, and can fight the negative press against him. De Blasio was slammed by the press and cast as bad, and he's one of the best mayors we've had in a long time. 

USA bombs Iran

If there was some mechanism for holding leaders accountable for murder, I would love that.

The current regime has done many harmful things, I could see this coming, with the tacit support of jingoistic New York Times. It's been quite a disillusioning time for this old fellow.

Links:

Heather Cox Richardson

I'm not going to link the Times which seems to think amplifying Taco Bone Spurs lies is valid journalism. 

Guardian

Disappointing New York Times

The top article on the left of the page is "A U.S. Attack on Iran Would Show the Limits of China’s Power" (NYT)

To me this is disgusting, exploring the potential benefits to harming another country by having a war with another country. It's disgusting.

I think I need to cancel my subscription.

"China has much to lose from a runaway conflict."

Um, the world, USA has too much to lose from conflict.

Iran versus Israel

Iran presents itself as innocent, attacked for no reason. 

Israel doesn't even care anymore what others think. Not even it's own people. 

USA and Russia are corrupt and bankrupt, supporting this proxy war is the hight of their corruption and desire to distract.

Iran deserves nuclear weapons because they stop people from attacking a country. Who wouldn't want that? Iran is not righteous attacking Israel. Israel is not innocent or blameless.

Israel is involved in a long term racial, social, religious survival in hostile territory with lots of history, and many slights. How to make Israel safe?

The corrupt and incompetent regime in the USA is the opposite of helpful. Russia never pretended to be a helpful and unselfish nation. 

And yet somehow we seem to be headed for war.

I can't help but think of the social media that got right wing people to think a vote for the left would inevitably lead to war. Another "I told you so," won't help.

My spirituality says you don't harm other, you don't kill others such that I aspire to a plant based diet. War is out of the question.

My brain can analyse the situation, see where Iran is coming from, Israel is coming from, the region is coming from, the "super powers" coming from. What is the most helpful perspective? Fight war with everything you've got, wage peace as a puny individual? The Buddha couldn't spread enlightenment to prevent war in his time. Is it selfish to just take care of yourself. We're interconnected, puny, but maybe peace ripples can grow.

Is it possible for Iran to point to Israel's wrong?

Is it possible for Israel to develop their own ideas of safety, and preservation?

Can't the USA inveneve as they see it in world affairs, even if we're currently under a corrupt regime?

Can't Russia pursue it's interests vigorously, according to their traditions?

The playbook

Here's the playbook. 

Step 1. Announce some horrific policy attacking vulnerable populations, like that Transgender have to give their sex of birth, not their identity. Then try to implement it--he and his regime are wildly inept at how government works and they see that as a strength. 

Step 2: Get blocked by judges. He fights the block, a few steps perhaps or quits and gives up with the PR victory of terrorizing and imaging he's powerful. 

Step 3: Move onto more successful gifts and terrorizing. The terrorizing proves he's powerful and scary and if there's a money tree to shake, he'll shake it. TV channels and government give him money for considerations and to be left alone in his protection rackets. 

He's a sheep in wolves clothing, he's the emperor in no clothes, he's the little boy who can't persuade the military to like him. 

Protest Saturday

 Big protests Saturday (article)