The inevitable end result of our last 56 years

[Joe Bauer]

7 hours ago, Mark Stevens said:

 

Curious though, if Obama sent unidentified mercenaries to break up the Bundy "protest" would you equally shrug your shoulders and tell Obama it's OK to do whatever necessary to defend federal property and restore "order?" 

Where were similar secret identity baton swinging, pepper spraying and tear gas and projectile firing Federal troops when the November 22nd, 2,000 Miami-Dade County Brooks Brother's protests turned into a Government Bldg. charging, entering and door/window pounding riot?

So physically aggressive and threatening it "terrified" all the government employees in and around that facility.

The riot shut down the whole legal endeavor...through sheer violence and intimidation.

Did "any" of those charging, pounding, trespassing and physically threatening protesters get man handled or arrested by full military combat adorned troops?

And it is totally officially known that the Repub's main dirty trickster Roger Stone organized that violent protest and paid the participants to travel from other places to participate in it.

Why is it that right wing sentiment protests never get the same super aggressive baton, pepper spray, tear gas response more liberal left wing ones do?

And please don't say they aren't ever as threatening as left wing protests. Remember the Charlottesville, North Carolina protests by the Neo-Nazis just a couple of years ago where an unarmed young woman was run over and killed by a member of this far right group?

Edited July 28, 2020 by Joe Bauer

[Mark Stevens]

1 hour ago, Joe Bauer said:

Where were similar secret identity baton swinging, pepper spraying and tear gas and projectile firing Federal troops when the November 22nd, 2,000 Miami-Dade County Brooks Brother's protests turned into a Government Bldg. charging, entering and door/window pounding riot?

So physically aggressive and threatening it "terrified" all the government employees in and around that facility.

The riot shut down the whole legal endeavor...through sheer violence and intimidation.

Did "any" of those charging, pounding, trespassing and physically threatening protesters get man handled or arrested by full military combat adorned troops?

And it is totally officially known that the Repub's main dirty trickster Roger Stone organized that violent protest and paid the participants to travel from other places to participate in it.

Why is it that right wing sentiment protests never get the same super aggressive baton, pepper spray, tear gas response more liberal left wing ones do?

And please don't say they aren't ever as threatening as left wing protests. Remember the Carolina protests by the Neo-Nazis just a couple of years ago where an unarmed young woman was run over and killed by a member of this far right group?

This part of the point is was trying to make. 

Even those situations were handled by clearly identifiable members of law enforcement. Not a camouflaged, masked, unnamed, with a complete lack of regalia...person.

Where's the due process? 

[Cliff Varnell]

6 hours ago, Jeff Carter said:

I don’t know if it was “inevitable”, but to label a law professor a “fascist apologist” for compiling a timeline of objectively truthful information is certainly an indication of some form of “decline” in critical faculty.

Let’s do a deeper dive into Jonathan Turley’s apologia for Trumpian fascism.

More willful blindness by the media on spying by Obama administration

https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/509002-more-willful-blindness-by-the-media-on-spying-by-obama-administration

<quote on>

The Washington press corps seems engaged in a collective demonstration of the legal concept of willful blindness, or deliberately ignoring the facts, following the release of yet another declassified document which directly refutes prior statements about the investigation into Russia collusion. The document shows that FBI officials used a national security briefing of then candidate Donald Trump and his top aides to gather possible evidence for Crossfire Hurricane, its code name for the Russia investigation.

It is astonishing that the media refuses to see what is one of the biggest stories in decades. The Obama administration targeted the campaign of the opposing party based on false evidence. </q>

What’s truly astonishing is Turley’s ignorance of the traditional independence of the Justice Department in general and the FBI in particular.  

The FBI was noisily investigating Hillary Clinton’s e-mails also, which no one claims Obama ordered.

Turley cont’d:

<quote on>
The media covered Obama administration officials ridiculing the suggestions of spying on the Trump campaign and of improper conduct with the Russia investigation. When Attorney General William Barr told the Senate last year that he believed spying did occur, he was lambasted in the media, including by James Comey and others involved in that investigation. The mocking “wow” response of the fired FBI director received extensive coverage. </q>

Apparently Jonathan Turley (or Jeff Carter either) couldn’t bother reading the Inspector General report from December of last year.

https://www.factcheck.org/2019/12/how-old-claims-compare-to-ig-report/

<quote on, emphasis added>

On Dec. 9, the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General released its report on the FBI’s counterintelligence investigation into whether individuals associated with the Trump campaign were coordinating with Russia’s interference in the 2016 election. That report contradicts some of the claims the president, and other Republicans, have made over the years about the investigation, but it also supports at least one assertion.

Republicans, including President Donald Trump, have claimed that the FBI’s Russia investigation was sparked by a dossier compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele. But the IG report said that “Steele’s reports played no role in the Crossfire Hurricane opening.”

•   Trump repeatedly has accused the FBI of illegally spying on his campaign. But the IG report “found no evidence that the FBI placed any” confidential sources or undercover agents in the Trump campaign or tasked any such sources “to report on the Trump campaign.”
• Trump has accused the FBI of obtaining a surveillance warrant of former campaign aide Carter Page under false pretenses. The IG report didn’t find “intentional misconduct,” but it did find at least 17 “significant inaccuracies and omissions” in court applications for Page’s warrant.
•   The IG report also debunked Trump’s claims that the investigation was motivated by political bias on the part of FBI staff. The report found no “documentary or testimonial evidence that political bias or improper motivation” influenced the opening of the investigation or decision-making during it.

...The FBI investigation, the report said, was launched based on information from a “Friendly Foreign Government” about George Papadopoulos, a Trump campaign foreign policy adviser, claiming the Russians had damaging information on Hillary Clinton.  </q>

Turley cont’d:

<quote on>
The new document shows that, in summer 2016, FBI agent Joe Pientka briefed Trump campaign advisers Michael Flynn and Chris Christie over national security issues, standard practice ahead of the election. It had a discussion of Russian interference. But this was different. The document detailing the questions asked by Trump and his aides and their reactions was filed several days after that meeting under Crossfire Hurricane and Crossfire Razor, the FBI investigation of Flynn. The two FBI officials listed who approved the report are Kevin Clinesmith and Peter Strzok.

Clinesmith is the former FBI lawyer responsible for the FISA surveillance conducted on members of the Trump campaign. He opposed Trump and sent an email after the election declaring “viva the resistance.” He is now under review for possible criminal charges for altering a FISA court filing. The FBI used Trump adviser Carter Page as the basis for the original FISA application, due to his contacts with Russians. After that surveillance was approved, however, federal officials discredited the collusion allegations and noted that Page was a CIA asset. Clinesmith had allegedly changed the information to state that Page was not working for the CIA.

Strzok is the FBI agent whose violation of FBI rules led Justice Department officials to refer him for possible criminal charges. Strzok did not hide his intense loathing of Trump and famously referenced an “insurance policy” if Trump were to win the election. After FBI officials concluded there was no evidence of any crime by Flynn at the end of 2016, Strzok prevented the closing of the investigation as FBI officials searched for any crime that might be used to charge the incoming national security adviser.

<\q>

 

Turley’s intellectual dishonesty is egregious.

From fact-check.org article:

<quote on>
Strzok was directly involved in decisions to open the cases on Page, Papadopoulos, Manafort and Flynn, the report stated, but “he was not the sole, or even the highest-level, decision maker as to any of those matters.”

  Bill Priestap, then the assistant director of the FBI’s counterintelligence division, ultimately made the call to open the cases “and evidence reflected that this decision by Priestap was reached by consensus after multiple days of discussions and meetings that included Strzok and other leadership in [Counterintelligence Division], the FBI Deputy Director, the FBI General Counsel, and a FBI Deputy General Counsel.” </q>
 

Where’s Turley’s proof that the FBI investigation was politically motivated?  Was any part of the Russian Collusion story given significant media coverage before the election?  No.  It’s an empty accusation.

Turley:

<quote on, emphasis added>
Documents show Comey briefed President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden on the investigation shortly before the inauguration of Trump. </q>

Shortly before?  How could Obama have ordered a politically motivated investigation into Trump shortly before he left office??

Turley:

<quote on>

When Comey admitted the communications between Flynn and Russian officials appeared legitimate, Biden reportedly suggested using the Logan Act, a law widely seen as unconstitutional and never been used to successfully convict a single person, as an alternative charge against Flynn. The memo contradicts eventual claims by Biden that he did not know about the Flynn investigation. Let us detail some proven but mostly unseen facts. </q>

Do tell, Mr. Turley, do tell...

<quote on>
First, the Russia collusion allegations were based in large  part on the dossier funded by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee.</q>

That’s a big fat lie oft repeated by big fat l-i-a-r-s.

[W. Niederhut]

4 hours ago, Douglas Caddy said:

Police: 'Umbrella Man' was a white supremacist trying to incite George Floyd rioting

Police say the suspect has been identified, but no charges had been filed as of Tuesday afternoon. 

 

https://www.startribune.com/police-umbrella-man-was-a-white-supremacist-trying-to-incite-george-floyd-rioting/571932272/?fbclid=IwAR0V0d050rV9dDnmZNRpq8srf9jhbLylJN-7KsA8dije4TP-MUpq6x_YabM

This doesn't pass the sniff test.

1)  Why has the story of "Umbrella Man" been blacked out of the M$M for the past two months?

2)  Why has the Minneapolis PD still not released any details about his name-- other than claiming that he was not Officer Jacob Pederson-- after saying nothing for two months?

3)   Why was he wearing a gas mask, before the MPD started attacking the George Floyd protesters with tear gas?

4)  Why was he carrying that goofy umbrella?

[Ron Bulman]

57 minutes ago, W. Niederhut said:

This doesn't pass the sniff test.

1)  Why has the story of "Umbrella Man" been blacked out of the M$M for the past two months?

2)  Why has the Minneapolis PD still not released any details about his name-- other than claiming that he was not Officer Jacob Pederson-- after saying nothing for two months?

3)   Why was he wearing a gas mask, before the MPD started attacking the George Floyd protesters with tear gas?

4)  Why was he carrying that goofy umbrella?

I just saw the story 

 

1 hour ago, W. Niederhut said:

This doesn't pass the sniff test.

1)  Why has the story of "Umbrella Man" been blacked out of the M$M for the past two months?

2)  Why has the Minneapolis PD still not released any details about his name-- other than claiming that he was not Officer Jacob Pederson-- after saying nothing for two months?

3)   Why was he wearing a gas mask, before the MPD started attacking the George Floyd protesters with tear gas?

4)  Why was he carrying that goofy umbrella?

I just saw this from a different source.  Hells Angel first caught my attention, then Aryan Cowboy Brotherhood.  I could see him wearing the mask to cover his face to help lessen the chance of identification.  Maybe there's more coming on the story, like an ID or arrest.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/umbrella-man-caught-on-viral-video-at-george-floyd-protest-is-suspected-white-supremacist-report/ar-BB17i9Tq?li=BBnb7Kz

[David Andrews]

Apparently stupidity is a death wish among candidates now:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jul/28/trump-covid-19-briefing-hydroxychloroquine-video

"Donald Trump has praised as “spectacular” a doctor who wrongly dismissed the use of face masks to combat the coronavirus as well as reportedly claiming that alien DNA is used in medical treatments and some gynecological problems are caused by people dreaming about having sex with demons."

[Bob Ness]

11 hours ago, Mark Stevens said:

This part of the point is was trying to make. 

Even those situations were handled by clearly identifiable members of law enforcement. Not a camouflaged, masked, unnamed, with a complete lack of regalia...person.

Where's the due process? 

There is no intention of due process in a majority of the incidents in Portland. That's why they have little Green Men running around without identifying their affiliation to LEO. I don't disagree with the idea of the Feds keeping idiots from defacing property I just think they're doing crowd control with an extra emphasis on intimidation just like Trump has demanded and encouraged.

[Bob Ness]

1 hour ago, David Andrews said:

Apparently stupidity is a death wish among candidates now:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jul/28/trump-covid-19-briefing-hydroxychloroquine-video

"Donald Trump has praised as “spectacular” a doctor who wrongly dismissed the use of face masks to combat the coronavirus as well as reportedly claiming that alien DNA is used in medical treatments and some gynecological problems are caused by people dreaming about having sex with demons."

Gives anyone in their right mind a clear indication of what Trump's working with. Adderall and Clorox with a UV wand up his keister. I wonder if that's what is causing the mini strokes? Which is it? The chicken or egg? Maybe the strokes make him listen to bat sh!t crazy woman and do the cocktail? Dunno.

[Steve Thomas]

‘Nobody likes me’: Trump bemoans the fact that Dr Fauci is more trusted than he is

https://www.rawstory.com/2020/07/nobody-likes-me-trump-bemoans-the-fact-that-dr-fauci-is-more-trusted-than-he-is/

“He’s got this high approval rating,” said Trump. “Why don’t I have a high approval rating?” He added that “Nobody likes me. It could only be my personality. I don’t know.”

#WhyIDontLikeTrump

https://twitter.com/search?q=%23WhyIDontLikeTrump

Is now the #1 Trending topic on Twitter as of 07/29/2020

Steve Thomas

[Steve Thomas]

How can we have sunk so low?

We've gone from JFK and Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama to a President who recommends injecting bleach into your body, brags about being able to repeat five words in a row, and is promoting a witch doctor?

What the #$%^ happened?

Steve Thomas

[Richard Price]

I think it is the result of at least two idealogies:  (1) the "Godfather's" success at getting people in the "family" into legitimate business bringing with them their corruption, manipulation and dedication not to the country, but to themselves and their "family".  I am not talking about the Sicilian/Italian mob specifically, but of the adoption of their system by those in criminal enterprises.  (2) those in the elite category in our country (formerly robber barons) who through their wartime connections and collusion found inspiration in the NAZI system of propaganda that fit in with their plans to continue making money and manipulating the system in their favor for long term power.  It's corny, but I've always said, "If you leave the one bad apple in the basket, it will ruin the entire basket of apples.  In a reverse ratio to the premise with actual apples, the closer to the top the "bad apple" is, the harder to remove it and the more it spoils.  Naturally life is more complicated than that simple scenario, but at some level I think this applies.

[Douglas Caddy]

16 hours ago, W. Niederhut said:

This doesn't pass the sniff test.

1)  Why has the story of "Umbrella Man" been blacked out of the M$M for the past two months?

2)  Why has the Minneapolis PD still not released any details about his name-- other than claiming that he was not Officer Jacob Pederson-- after saying nothing for two months?

3)   Why was he wearing a gas mask, before the MPD started attacking the George Floyd protesters with tear gas?

4)  Why was he carrying that goofy umbrella?

I cannot give answers for 1 and 2.

3) He was wearing a gas mask to disguise his identity as cameras were everywhere and in fact one did catch him in the act of destruction.

4) He was carrying the umbrella again to disguise his identity from cameras posted at different places and angles, even from above. Again one camera did catch him.

This is not the end of the story. Law enforcement knows who he is and is proceeding accordingly.

[Joe Bauer]

1 hour ago, Richard Price said:

I think it is the result of at least two idealogies:  (1) the "Godfather's" success at getting people in the "family" into legitimate business bringing with them their corruption, manipulation and dedication not to the country, but to themselves and their "family".  I am not talking about the Sicilian/Italian mob specifically, but of the adoption of their system by those in criminal enterprises.  (2) those in the elite category in our country (formerly robber barons) who through their wartime connections and collusion found inspiration in the NAZI system of propaganda that fit in with their plans to continue making money and manipulating the system in their favor for long term power.  It's corny, but I've always said, "If you leave the one bad apple in the basket, it will ruin the entire basket of apples.  In a reverse ratio to the premise with actual apples, the closer to the top the "bad apple" is, the harder to remove it and the more it spoils.  Naturally life is more complicated than that simple scenario, but at some level I think this applies.

Extremely coherent assessment imo.

[Ron Ecker]

The Cult of Selfishness is Killing America

From the article:

“You see, the modern U.S. right is committed to the proposition that greed is good, that we’re all better off when individuals engage in the untrammeled pursuit of self-interest. In their vision, unrestricted profit maximization by businesses and unregulated consumer choice is the recipe for a good society.

“Support for this proposition is, if anything, more emotional than intellectual. I’ve long been struck by the intensity of right-wing anger against relatively trivial regulations, like bans on phosphates in detergent and efficiency standards for light bulbs. It’s the principle of the thing: Many on the right are enraged at any suggestion that their actions should take other people’s welfare into account.

“This rage is sometimes portrayed as love of freedom. But people who insist on the right to pollute are notably unbothered by, say, federal agents tear-gassing peaceful protesters. What they call “freedom” is actually absence of responsibility.

“Rational policy in a pandemic, however, is all about taking responsibility. The main reason you shouldn’t go to a bar and should wear a mask isn’t self-protection, although that’s part of it; the point is that congregating in noisy, crowded spaces or exhaling droplets into shared air puts others at risk. And that’s the kind of thing America’s right just hates, hates to hear.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/27/opinion/us-republicans-coronavirus.html

 

 

[Kirk Gallaway]

52 minutes ago, Douglas Caddy said:

I cannot give answers for 1 and 2.

3) He was wearing a gas mask to disguise his identity as cameras were everywhere and in fact one did catch him in the act of destruction.

4) He was carrying the umbrella again to disguise his identity from cameras posted at different places and angles, even from above. Again one camera did catch him.

This is not the end of the story. Law enforcement knows who he is and is proceeding accordingly.

The forum sort of jumped to judgment on that, even though we were offered no more information other than Pederson and the intruder had similar foreheads. It was another sort of "too easy" conclusion like George Bush in Dealey Plaza after the assassination!