Trump canonizes Charlie Kirk, the right blames “the Left,” Britain sacks Mandelson, and America shrugs off another school shooting while inflation and incompetence pile higher.
It is really difficult to write the truth, however necessary, about an assassination of a young man and father. Charlie Kirk was a provocateur selling his brand of hate in a bottle, much like the snake oil salesmen of yore, but he wasn't selling a cure was he? He was selling his own tried and true remedy against peace and love: chaos and hatred. I am sad that he got shot like that - in that traumatizing way for all to see - sad for the witnesses. I just read someplace else this morning (might have been you, Mary) that mass shootings have become so common in America that 1 in 15 people have been a witness to one. Is that possible? Since the ILA of the NRA was formed, this country has been sold a load of bullshit - 400 million guns worth of pure manure. those people have destroyed the political careers of many good persons in the name of keeping Americans safe by arming as many people as possible. But 400 million guns later, do you feel safe?
Let us mourn, again, for 9/11. Not heroes, just those of us lost from extremism. Ask not for whom the bell tolls…
And again, ENOUGH. I am certainly not a Kirk apologist. There is a dreadful irony to his assassination. Karma, if you will. Condolences to his family. But the hagiography from Trump and his minion is pathetic, performative. The flag at half mast? A Medal of Freedom, further debased as a political token? Before the gun smoke dissipated, Trump was expounding in divisiveness and the violence of the “radical left.” So, we enter the thoughts & prayers cycle. The Right ignores the school shooting in Evergreen, CO. There was no half-mast for the MN legislature woman, Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, who were shot and killed. There was only a snide comment from Kirk when Paul Pelosi was assaulted.
And we are walking on egg shells. No to violence, most certainly. But for the media to observe Kirk contributed to the divisiveness, a guarded silence. Incredibly MSNBC fired Matthew Dowd for uttering the truth of Kirk. Katy Tur, as I read now, facing calls for her being fired for uttering the simple truth, Kirk was no choirboy.
Enough to violence. Enough to celebrity for those who promote division. For the GOP, some reflection re: this President. The better course, condemn rhetoric like the “radial left,” the “vermin,” and all the other derisive comments from the WH. Focus on victims from the Sandy Hook children to Charlie Kirk as casualties, not causes.
and for those who really understand trump, i suspect that Charlie Kirk is better for him dead than alive... he knows there will be more Charlie Kirks to rise and speak, and now, like with the trans woman who shot through the church windows, he has renewed license to create a bigger enemies list, to go after anyone he wants and to work up his followers into a foaming-at-the-mouth frenzy... mob mentality, and will turn them loose on the rest of us. what's more, is that they know that no matter what they do, they will be pardoned by trump and possibly idolized by his followers.. this was all predictable, this was all preventable. as a nation, we were too self absorbed, too ignorant of history, economics, and psychology to avoid it. now we are living it and how it will all end no one knows, but it will not be pretty. we have become a 3rd world nation with a first world (for the moment) economy. and yet we all fall in line and go along to get along...
I feel your anger and frustration and share it. I am sick and tired of lies being shoved down the throats of Americans through social media. Could we get every decent person and media to stop providing eyes on Twitter/X? Why not a mass boycott. Just step away and let them all fight among themselves.
would love to see that... would love to see more people vote with their pocketbook and stop supporting some of these companies that support this regime and help propagate the misinformation, the lies, the hate... especially the misinformation on the environment...
Democratic officials, major Democratic donors and federal judges who stand up for the rule of law need to buttress their personal security details now.
Wired magazine has recapped the details of the past day’s Trump regime and MAGA propaganda targeting the “radical left”, and it’s terrifying.
Despite no evidence of the killer or motive, alarming calls for violent revenge against Democrats and other Trump opponents - many identified by name - have been pouring out from MAGA officials, influencers and enablers.
This despite the reality that most political violence comes from the “radical right”, not “left”. In 2022, data compiled by the Anti-Defamation League showed right-wing extremists committed approximately 3/4 of the 450 political killings from 2012 to 2022, with more than half connected to white supremacists.
This cancer of violence must be stopped before the tragedies compound.
Plus - There are and will be violent lunatics across the political spectrum. The real issue is that violent lunatics have too easy access to guns in this gun-worshiping society.
Our politicians should be asking "Is this the life we want?"
Thank you Mary. I felt your heart in this post. Today is a difficult day to be an American. While there is much to be thankful for compared to some countries, our country struggles from all the political changes this year appearing to put us on a course of implosion. With the memory of 9/11 attacks where our country was attacked from abroad, to have attacks internally from people in power, people responsible for creating a monster who continues to this day to disenfranchise most Americans…well again, it is a difficult time to be an American
Unfortunately in Britain, Starmer just welcomed the president of Israel and proudly shook his hand outside number 10 Downing Street where he lives. It's a disgrace.
You put in an appreciative word about the UK sacking their Ambassador, Peter Mandelson (who used to be known as the "Prince of Darkness" a few years back) but things over here are looking somewhat bleak, as there appears to be a sufficient supply of people with half-formed brains willing to consider Nigel Farage as a potential Prime Minister. All you need to know about him is that he is Trump's best mate and has distinctly 'Trumpian' ideas about how our Country should be governed.
It is really difficult to write the truth, however necessary, about an assassination of a young man and father. Charlie Kirk was a provocateur selling his brand of hate in a bottle, much like the snake oil salesmen of yore, but he wasn't selling a cure was he? He was selling his own tried and true remedy against peace and love: chaos and hatred. I am sad that he got shot like that - in that traumatizing way for all to see - sad for the witnesses. I just read someplace else this morning (might have been you, Mary) that mass shootings have become so common in America that 1 in 15 people have been a witness to one. Is that possible? Since the ILA of the NRA was formed, this country has been sold a load of bullshit - 400 million guns worth of pure manure. those people have destroyed the political careers of many good persons in the name of keeping Americans safe by arming as many people as possible. But 400 million guns later, do you feel safe?
Let us mourn, again, for 9/11. Not heroes, just those of us lost from extremism. Ask not for whom the bell tolls…
And again, ENOUGH. I am certainly not a Kirk apologist. There is a dreadful irony to his assassination. Karma, if you will. Condolences to his family. But the hagiography from Trump and his minion is pathetic, performative. The flag at half mast? A Medal of Freedom, further debased as a political token? Before the gun smoke dissipated, Trump was expounding in divisiveness and the violence of the “radical left.” So, we enter the thoughts & prayers cycle. The Right ignores the school shooting in Evergreen, CO. There was no half-mast for the MN legislature woman, Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, who were shot and killed. There was only a snide comment from Kirk when Paul Pelosi was assaulted.
And we are walking on egg shells. No to violence, most certainly. But for the media to observe Kirk contributed to the divisiveness, a guarded silence. Incredibly MSNBC fired Matthew Dowd for uttering the truth of Kirk. Katy Tur, as I read now, facing calls for her being fired for uttering the simple truth, Kirk was no choirboy.
Enough to violence. Enough to celebrity for those who promote division. For the GOP, some reflection re: this President. The better course, condemn rhetoric like the “radial left,” the “vermin,” and all the other derisive comments from the WH. Focus on victims from the Sandy Hook children to Charlie Kirk as casualties, not causes.
and for those who really understand trump, i suspect that Charlie Kirk is better for him dead than alive... he knows there will be more Charlie Kirks to rise and speak, and now, like with the trans woman who shot through the church windows, he has renewed license to create a bigger enemies list, to go after anyone he wants and to work up his followers into a foaming-at-the-mouth frenzy... mob mentality, and will turn them loose on the rest of us. what's more, is that they know that no matter what they do, they will be pardoned by trump and possibly idolized by his followers.. this was all predictable, this was all preventable. as a nation, we were too self absorbed, too ignorant of history, economics, and psychology to avoid it. now we are living it and how it will all end no one knows, but it will not be pretty. we have become a 3rd world nation with a first world (for the moment) economy. and yet we all fall in line and go along to get along...
I feel your anger and frustration and share it. I am sick and tired of lies being shoved down the throats of Americans through social media. Could we get every decent person and media to stop providing eyes on Twitter/X? Why not a mass boycott. Just step away and let them all fight among themselves.
would love to see that... would love to see more people vote with their pocketbook and stop supporting some of these companies that support this regime and help propagate the misinformation, the lies, the hate... especially the misinformation on the environment...
Democratic officials, major Democratic donors and federal judges who stand up for the rule of law need to buttress their personal security details now.
Wired magazine has recapped the details of the past day’s Trump regime and MAGA propaganda targeting the “radical left”, and it’s terrifying.
Despite no evidence of the killer or motive, alarming calls for violent revenge against Democrats and other Trump opponents - many identified by name - have been pouring out from MAGA officials, influencers and enablers.
This despite the reality that most political violence comes from the “radical right”, not “left”. In 2022, data compiled by the Anti-Defamation League showed right-wing extremists committed approximately 3/4 of the 450 political killings from 2012 to 2022, with more than half connected to white supremacists.
This cancer of violence must be stopped before the tragedies compound.
Brilliantly discussed.
Plus - There are and will be violent lunatics across the political spectrum. The real issue is that violent lunatics have too easy access to guns in this gun-worshiping society.
Our politicians should be asking "Is this the life we want?"
You've said it all this morning, Mary, and all I have to add to this truthful writing is, I'll share it! Thank you for this difficult message.
Thank you Mary. I felt your heart in this post. Today is a difficult day to be an American. While there is much to be thankful for compared to some countries, our country struggles from all the political changes this year appearing to put us on a course of implosion. With the memory of 9/11 attacks where our country was attacked from abroad, to have attacks internally from people in power, people responsible for creating a monster who continues to this day to disenfranchise most Americans…well again, it is a difficult time to be an American
Unfortunately in Britain, Starmer just welcomed the president of Israel and proudly shook his hand outside number 10 Downing Street where he lives. It's a disgrace.
You put in an appreciative word about the UK sacking their Ambassador, Peter Mandelson (who used to be known as the "Prince of Darkness" a few years back) but things over here are looking somewhat bleak, as there appears to be a sufficient supply of people with half-formed brains willing to consider Nigel Farage as a potential Prime Minister. All you need to know about him is that he is Trump's best mate and has distinctly 'Trumpian' ideas about how our Country should be governed.