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We Have Miles to Go Before We Sleep [1]
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Date: 2022-07-12
Instant gratification and political change don’t exist on the same Venn diagram. As much as we’d like to snap our fingers and magically fix all the legislative and judicial dumbfuckery republicans have perpetrated over the last 60 years, that’s not the way the system was designed to work. No matter how much we twitch our noses and expect to disappear every redhatted enemy of decency and compassion, that’s not going to happen either.
Forces of darkness have infiltrated our political system. They’ve managed to indoctrinate millions of glassy-eyed cultists, turning them into mindless shells, endlessly regurgitating inane, insane and most importantly, debunked talking points. Rationality, common sense, and critical thinking are anathema to the rigidly enforced group-think mandated by party over country misplaced loyalty. Hatred and bigotry are encouraged. Violence is praised. The conservative side of the political system has painted a very bleak picture of itself.
In Russia, Putin treats his citizens as cannon fodder — sacrifices at the altar of his ambition and ego. Here, our republican party happily aspires to turn our country into another Russia; a place where a corrupt group of oligarchic capitalists are attempting to finance the destruction of democracy.
Just look at the current apparent value set of the republican party:
Celebrate and honor rank stupidity
Deify avarice
Embrace deceit on an heretofore unseen scale, dwarfing all previous historical efforts to bamboozle and defraud
Encourage violence, cruelty, bigotry, misogyny, homophobia, etc.
Pretend that a Christofascist theocracy is good for America
Take away the safety net of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security
Deny science
Defy precedent and the clear will of the majority
The entire republican brand is submerged in a vast ocean of mediocrity, intolerance, and deception.
Yet, they are here, stumbling about among us, They have to be accounted for. Our best approach is to make them inconsequential by overwhelming them with our numbers. The Maga crowd has nothing real to offer. Their ranks are not expanding. But, we can grow our numbers. Every person we drag off the couch and into the voting booth is one more nail in their political coffin.
We need to keep in mind that actual real world problems cannot be resolved in 44 minutes plus commercials. Quick fixes and easy answers for complex systemic problems are a myth. We have words like strive and persevere for a reason. So the next time you hear someone complaining about Merrick Garland or Joe Biden not doing enough, fast enough for their liking, remind them that politics is not about whining and moaning; it’s about doing the hard work, organizing and building support, one voter at a time.
We often repeat stirring words like: “In order to form a more perfect union,” “Eyes on the prize,” “We shall overcome,” “I have a dream,” or “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.” They all phrases that counsel patience; that invoke a sense of purpose; an unwavering commitment to a future that shines brightly, unencumbered by the failures of today. They are messages from those that came before us that our work is not yet done. We still have miles to go before we sleep.
So, let’s get going.
We have the power. We have the ability. We can and we will do this.
Slava Ukraini!
Remember the Children
Screw you, Samuel Alito
The late night lineup were running repeats, so here’s a little ditty from the Parody Project to get us started.
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Aw, what the heck here’s another.
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There’ll be more news shortly (10 AM Eastern from the J6 Committee), in the meantime:
A Schedule Change
You might want to reprogram your DVR.
x Confirmed from multiple sources. The expected J6 Thursday prime time hearing is being rescheduled. Why? Being told - it's due to more information the committee is/has gotten.
Asking but not yet clear if Cipollone, his 8 hours of deposition last wk plays a role in this change.
https://t.co/GOzmX5CDSb — Lisa Desjardins (@LisaDNews) July 11, 2022 Text: Confirmed from multiple sources. The expected J6 Thursday prime time hearing is being rescheduled. Why? Being told - it's due to more information the committee is/has gotten. Asking but not yet clear if Cipollone, his 8 hours of deposition last wk plays a role in this change.
A Parade of Prevaricators
I’m puzzled why the republicans insist on pushing such abysmal candidates. I guess they don’t have a very deep bench.
Wonkette: Liz Dye: ARE YOU OKAY, HERSCHEL WALKER? DO YOU NEED TO FIND A POLICE MAN OR A GROWN UP?
We are beginning to suspect that Herschel Walker, the Republican Senate nominee from Texas Georgia may be slightly unprepared for prime time. Whodathunk that a guy who announced his candidacy as he revved his car engine inside the garage of his Georgia Texas home might be a couple pecans short of a full pie! Georgia Public Broadcasting reporter Stephen Fowler flagged the footage from a Hall County GOP meeting in a park where WABE reporter Rahul Bali was nonetheless blocked from observing Walker work his magic on the crowd. Almost like the candidates handlers know their guy is nucking futs! But then those goobers from the local party posted it on Facebook anyway. Doh! ✂️ This is a person who lies so readily about everything, from the number of children he's fathered to being high school valedictorian, that you almost believe it along with him. Well, you don't believe that it's literally true, of course. But you believe that he himself may be so hopelessly confused that he actually thinks he was a police man-war hero-astronaut-business tycoon.
People: Juliana Perri: Pa. Senate Candidate John Fetterman Trolls Opponent Dr. Oz with 'Welcome Home' Banner Flying over Jersey Shore
Pennsylvania Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate John Fetterman is trolling his Republican opponent, Dr. Mehmet Oz. Fetterman, the current lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, is questioning the legitimacy of Oz's run in the state, as Oz has long been a resident of New Jersey. The famous TV doctor, 62, only became eligible to run in Pennsylvania after moving into a home owned in the state by his in-laws — a fact Lt. Gov. Fetterman, 52, has repeatedly pointed out. In a 30-second campaign ad, Fetterman said, "This is John Fetterman. It's a fundamental choice that we have here. I only got involved in politics to make my town, then Pennsylvania a better, safer place. He just moved here to run for office."
Huffington Post: Ben Blanchet: GOP Senator's 'Mass Murder' Ad Quickly Removed After Highland Park Shooting A Republican senator reportedly wanted an awkwardly inaccurate radio ad about the cause of the “latest mass murder” off the air after the Highland Park, Illinois, shooting on Monday. The campaign of Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), who is seeking reelection, wanted the ad that downplayed gun violence stopped after the mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade that left at least seven people dead and dozens of others injured, according to emails detailed by The Intercept. “The latest mass murder in America didn’t involve guns,” the ad begins, then it talks about the 53 people who were found dead or dying in a sweltering tractor-trailer left on the outskirts of San Antonio on June 27 in an apparent migrant smuggling operation. Chickens Coming Home to Roost Roast I think karma has hired an orchestra to drown out all of tfg’s whines.
Raw Story: Bob Brigham: Trump cancels rally — will instead spend day testifying under oath: report
Former President Donald Trump has canceled a scheduled event in North Carolina due to a subpoena in New York. "Former President Trump and his adult children, Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr., are scheduled to testify under oath on July 15 as part of a probe by the New York attorney general into his finances, a court filing revealed Wednesday," Axios reported.
Cassidy, Part Two
When Sarah testifies, I wonder if we’ll see another steady drumbeat of republican testicles retracting?
Slate: Molly Olmstead: Who Is Sarah Matthews?
In a hearing on June 28, Cassidy Hutchinson shocked the public with some of the most damning testimony yet on former President Trump’s connection to the Jan. 6 insurrection. It turns out that she isn’t the only twentysomething staffer Donald Trump should be concerned about. Last week, CNN’s Katelyn Polantz and Ryan Nobles reported that a 27-year-old former staffer named Sarah Matthews has been subpoenaed by the committee and voluntarily agreed to testify. That could happen as early as Tuesday, July 12, CNN reported. So who is this second young witness? Should we expect a testimony as dramatic as Hutchinson’s? While it’s hard to answer the latter question with any certainty, Matthews did have high-level access as deputy press secretary. She wasn’t in as central a location as Hutchinson was, physically, but working from the press office, she still sat down the hall from the Oval Office and would have been witness to a number of conversations involving senior officials.
What Happens When Your Main Argument for the Fall Evaporates
The republican fall message has been all about the cost of gas. I wonder what they’ll take about next? I think we’re heading back to Hunter Biden soon.
Salon: Brandon Gage: Fox News is now complaining that falling fuel prices are bad for gas station owners
Fox News hosts complained on Monday's edition of America Reports that gas prices are declining too quickly, despite having sung with the chorus of conservatives across the country that has been demanding that President Joe Biden do everything in his power to ease the pain at the pump. Congressional Republicans in May unanimously voted against legislation that would have curtailed price gouging by fossil fuel producers. But for Fox and its right-wing audience, all is still bad, even as consumers finally get a break.✂️ Anchor Martha MacCallum then chimed in, opining that lower costs of fuel are bad for "mom-and-pop" gas station owners. "It is, it is, and the point was made over the weekend – I believe it was The Wall Street Journal – that gas prices are actually coming back down historically faster with the price of oil than usual, and it just goes to show you what an incredible risk/reward calculation has to happen on the part of those small, independently-owned, most of them, mom-and-pop gas stations. It's a struggle for all of them," said MacCallum.
I Think The Guy Weaving This Tangled Web of Deceit Needed a Lot More Practice
I can’t stop smiling. I just can’t. I think the odds are he ends up ratting out everyone he knows.
Daily Beast: Jose Pagliery: Steve Bannon’s Gambit May Have Just Put Him in New Legal Jeopardy
What started as a Steve Bannon public relations stunt may have just ended as a spectacular self-own. After nine months of refusing to answer the House Jan. 6 Committee’s questions—and fighting off related criminal contempt charges in court—the right-wing provocateur is suddenly dangling an offer to finally testify. The gambit is supposed to make the Justice Department look bad. But doing so on the eve of trial risks having him incriminate himself before Congress, then get convicted the very next week.✂️ But on Monday afternoon, a D.C. federal judge knocked down every conceivable defense the right-wing media personality could present at his criminal trial. When Bannon’s lawyers argued that the politicians on the Jan. 6 committee must be forced to testify at trial, the judge questioned why Bannon’s lawyers couldn’t just ask committee staffers. When his lawyers asked for permission to tell a future jury that Bannon was just following his lawyer’s advice when he didn’t show up to Congress, the judge said no. And when they argued that the trial should be delayed, the judge told them to come back prepared for the final showdown next week.
A Little Bit of Andy
I don’t think I can do a roundup without including something from Andy.
The New Yorker: Satire from the Borowitz Report: Tucker Carlson Accuses Biden of Lowering Gas Prices
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—In a blistering takedown of the President, Tucker Carlson accused Joe Biden of cynically leveraging the power of his office to lower gasoline prices. “For weeks, Biden has been saying that he’d do something about the price of gasoline,” the Fox News host said. “Now, lo and behold, gas prices are lower. Joe Biden has been acting in plain sight.” “The American people aren’t dumb,” Carlson continued. “When they fill up their tanks, they notice that it costs less. They can tell that something’s going on, and they’re not going to put up with it.”
The Sands of Electricity March On
Innovations like this keep giving me more and more hope we can effectively address climate change.
Good News Network: Andy Corbley: Innovative ‘Sand Battery’ is Heating Small City, Storing Green Energy for Months at a Time
A town in Finland is using sand to store heat from renewable energies to provide home heating during winter. Water heating can only store 100°C of heat, obviously, while sand can reach 500°C, or nearly 1000° Fahrenheit. Tens of thousands of cubic meters of sand are heated from the generation of electricity with solar panels or wind turbines. Packed tightly in insulated silos, the sand can retain this heat for months without losing it. For Finns living through a 5-month long winter, it’s a vital load off the power grid.
Musical Interlude
There’s something new from Playing for Change’s Songs Around the World
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Music from Ukraine
And we’re back to Dakha Brakha, recorded after the start of the war.
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The Lighter Side
x “I am willing to serve as caretaker Prime Minister because that’s frankly less ridiculous than the idea of Boris Johnson hanging around a minute longer” #YesWeCat #LarryForPM pic.twitter.com/TsEpTqP1rm — Larry the Cat (@Number10cat) July 7, 2022
Editorial Cartoons to Inspire Your Continued Involvement
Steve Sack retired from the Minneapolis Star Tribune earlier this year. But, he’s still keeping his toe in.
x Steve Sack, The Minneapolis Star Tribune (Retired) @ThatSteveSack pic.twitter.com/8kOTJYnX34 — Editorial & Political Cartoons (@EandPCartoons) May 28, 2022
x Steve Sack, The Minneapolis Star Tribune (Retired) @ThatSteveSack pic.twitter.com/330MLKGiIt — Editorial & Political Cartoons (@EandPCartoons) May 25, 2022
Closing Notes
From the famous concert at the Pyramids in Giza, Egypt, September 1978, we’ll end today with an ethereal Looks Like Rain.
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