Art meets and imitates life squared in new Comedy series inspired by Trump and Produced by the Obamas
Barack and Michelle Obama are producing a sketch comedy series for Netflix inspired by Trump’s 2016 presidential win and transition. The Obamas’ production company “Higher Ground” will bring in U.S. comedian to host the show, which has been titled, “The G Word with Adam Conover”. Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions has a multi-year agreement to produce films and series (both scripted and unscripted) for Netflix.
Click to see “The Fifth Risk” and help Independent Bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
The streaming series is loosely inspired by the book “The Fifth Risk” by Michael Lewis. Written in 2018 his book is about the narrative of the Trump administration’s botched presidential transition, and takes us into the engine rooms of a government under attack by its leaders through willful ignorance and greed.
Interestingly, Barack Obama was himself a topic and participated, to some degree, in the transition and it is interesting to imagine what, if any, insight he may have been able to ad to the comedic potential of the subject matter.
The Federal Government manages a vast array of critical services that are meant to keep us safe and underpin our lives, from ensuring the safety of our food and drugs and predicting extreme weather events to tracking and locating black market uranium before the terrorists do. Trump’s lack of interest or ability in managing the transition, let alone the Government itself, is the basic fodder for the comedic premise.
BoJack Horseman treatment could yield fantastic and funny results
Adam Conover confirmed the news on Twitter; “Very happy to finally be able to share this news: I’m creating a new comedy series for Netflix about the federal government. It’s called The G Word, and I can’t wait to share it with you.”
Conover is known for “Adam Ruins Everything” and “BoJack Horseman” and will use his comedic chops to blend sketch comedy with documentary elements, as the focus of the show is, in normal times, a pretty serious one, the government.
Netflix’s press release shared a little more light into what the show will bring to viewers:
”Using fast-paced visual comedy, Conover reveals the profound power and complexity of the U.S. government, introduces viewers to the heroic civil servants who make it work, and takes an incisive satirical look at its shortcomings.”
NETFLIX PRESS RELEASE
Filming is set to begin sometime early 2021, during the same general time as Barack Obama’s former vice president Joe Biden will be taking office as the 26th President.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Above: Photo Collage showing the 4 Georgia Senate runoff election Candidates & Mike Pence
Critical Georgia Senate race seeing possible coronavirus impact early
After a campaign event for the upcoming Georgia run-off election that will decide which party controls the senate, and where Ms Loeffler was seen with primarily “unmasked” crowds, she tested positive on Friday. An initial, less reliable, test was “inconclusive” earlier in the day.
Though often seen wearing a mask in public, and wearing one during a post-rally series of meetings with a line of voters who had, lined up to greet her.
According to the New York Times, After her initial “rapid test” came back negative, she was “cleared” to appear at event on Friday, including a Rally that also had Georgia Senator David Perdue and Mike Pence in attendance. The second test was a so-called P.C.R. test, considered more accurate, was positive.
Ms Loeffler and Mr. Perdue are facing a runoff election in January against Democrats Dr. Raphael G Warnock and Jon Ossoff, respectively. The runoff is certain to attract intense national attention, due to the fact that, if Democrats are able to prevail in both cases the Senate will have a 50 – 50 split with VP-elect Kamala Harris as a tie-breaker, effectively putting the Democrats in a position to marginally control both the House and Senate.
…No surprise, yet another of the Trump clan has covid-19
Asymptomatic but in quarantine, one more of the anti-mask Trump crew has been added to the list of those that have tested positive for the Covid 19 virus. It’s unknown whether the public would have been informed by either Trump Jr. or the White House without the story from Bloomberg broken.
“Don tested positive at the start of the week and has been quarantining out at his cabin since the result, He’s been completely asymptomatic so far and is following all medically recommended COVID-19 guidelines.”
Spokesperson for Donald Trump Jr.
Also On Friday, a White House aide who is also Rudy Giuliani’s son Andrew Giuliani, put out a tweet that was also positive. In addition, an aide to aides to VP Mike Pence, including, Hannah McInnis, was also positive surrounding to the Bloomberg article. Other aides of the VP were previously infected, such as his press secretary and chief of staff. Pence himself has not yet announced any positive diagnosis.
It’s unknown whether the public would have been informed by either Trump Jr. or the White House without the story from Bloomberg broken. This is a developing story and will be updated as news breaks.
As follows, a list of various other Republican establishment figures that have tested positive as well;
Melania Trump (First Lady)
Ronna McDaniel (Republican National Committee chairwoman)
Hope Hicks (White House communications aide)
Kellyanne Conway (Former White House counselor)
Bill Stepien (Trump campaign manager)
John Jenkins (University of Notre Dame president)
Chris Christie (Former New Jersey Gov.)
Nick Luna (Director of Oval Office operations)
Karoline Leavitt (White house assistant press secretary)
Chad Gilmartin (White House press office staffer)
Kayleigh McEnany (White House press secretary)
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah)
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.)
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.)
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
The former POTUS gave a scathing, hilarious interview on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
In Barack Obama’s latest book “A Promised Land” he writes how the Navy Seal team was charged the take-down of Osama Bin Laden. On the late night show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!”. During an appearance to promote his book, the former President laughed with the host as to what steps might be needed to get Trump out of the White House come January.
Jimmy Kimmel asked the former POTUS if there was “a place somebody could hide in the White House if they knew they were going to be removed” — and Obama jokingly responded, “Well, I think we can send some navy seals in to dig him out,”.
Jimmy also noted that Obama’s new book is 701 pages long, and asked if he had purposely made the book so long so Trump wouldn’t pick up it. Obama made reports that he planned, at least initially to write a 500 page memoir within a years time, then, he instead wrote a whopping 700 pages. It will now be the first of an anticipated two set volume, as the book ends with the Bin Laden episode in May of 2011. Watch the video clip above to hear Barak’s response that hilariously roasted the soon-to-be-booted current resident of 1400 Pennsylvania Ave.
Obama’s book went on sale on Nov. 17, 2020; the memoir sold 890,000 copies in the U.S. and Canada in the first 24 hours of release, setting a record for publisher Crown, an imprint of Penguin Random House. “A Promised Land” continues to hold steady at #1 on Amazon and as one of the top leading non-fiction bestsellers since its release.
My memoir, A Promised Land, is out today. I hope you’ll read it. My goal was to give you some insight into the events and people that shaped me during the early years of my presidency. Most of all, I hope it inspires you to see yourself playing a role in shaping a better world. pic.twitter.com/hdZysCpCN9
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable odyssey from young man searching for his identity to leader of the free world, describing in strikingly personal detail both his political education and the landmark moments of the first term of his historic presidency–a time of dramatic transformation and turmoil.
Obama takes readers on a compelling journey from his earliest political aspirations to the pivotal Iowa caucus victory that demonstrated the power of grassroots activism to the watershed night of November 4, 2008, when he was elected 44th president of the United States, becoming the first African American to hold the nation’s highest office.
Reflecting on the presidency, he offers a unique and thoughtful exploration of both the awesome reach and the limits of presidential power, as well as singular insights into the dynamics of U.S. partisan politics and international diplomacy. Obama brings readers inside the Oval Office and the White House Situation Room, and to Moscow, Cairo, Beijing, and points beyond.
We are privy to his thoughts as he assembles his cabinet, wrestles with a global financial crisis, takes the measure of Vladimir Putin, overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds to secure passage of the Affordable Care Act, clashes with generals about U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, tackles Wall Street reform, responds to the devastating Deepwater Horizon blowout, and authorizes Operation Neptune’s Spear, which leads to the death of Osama bin Laden.
This beautifully written and powerful book captures Barack Obama’s conviction that democracy is not a gift from on high but something founded on empathy and common understanding and built together, day by day.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Above: Snippet Video of Rudy Giuliani Dripping / Press Conference Video
Though these clowns are a stale putrid joke, all citizens must, nevertheless, remain vigilant, no matter how hard it is to take them seriously
Rudy Giuliani’s dripping head took center stage at his self-congratulatory press conference where he continues the string of fantasies regarding alleged voter fraud that he and his team have been claiming.
Speaking from the podium alongside the other Trump campaign lawyers, Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis, Rudy began with attempts to appear sane, only to have his planned “show” devolve into a caricature of his own twisted image. He not only burst into an out-of-body “My Cousin Vinny” moment but then was seeming to literally melt, with sweat and what appeared to be hair-dye-goo dripping profusely down his head and the sides of his face.
After all the court cases cut short and nearly laughed off the docket, the gang that cries crooked and tries to prove that their own manipulation was a mirage, while at the same time inventing fraud and malfeasance at every turn by anyone that did not vote for Trump.
Although the vast majority of sane individuals in the country are seeing this as a clown show and distraction, more than any real threat, the seriousness that lies beneath is not insignificant. Every day that goes by is another day that Trump ad his cronies are able to twist and turn through various lies and false accusations hoping to find something that sticks, just enough, to get to the Supreme Court, where they believe the cronies they just appointed there, for this very purpose, will ultimately bail them out and start utter chaos.
Highly unlikely, since, I mean, look at these guys, but Nixon and his henchmen got away with many, many crimes in plain sight, for years, before finally being brought down. Although we are all sick and tired of Trump and his infected, demented, corrupt band of idiots, it’s not advisable to stand-down just yet.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Nothing in the memoir can compare to the chaos and carnage of the lame-duck-disaster of today
The 44th President, Barak Obama’s memoir, “A Promised Land” comes out today, November 17th. And what better time than now as 45 (aka Trump) is nearing the end of his term, than to reflect on the better days, when the nation had an intelligent, articulate, drama-free leader in the White House. Includes and updated preface – looking forward to the future, when President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn in.
This will mark Obama’s third autobiography. His first book, “Dreams from My Father” published back in 1995 and The Audacity of Hope in 2006. In Promised Land, he focuses on his children, political life starting out in Chicago, his rise to the nation’s top elected office and events leading up to the killing of Osama bin Laden. Readers will get an insider account of Obama’s thinking during this political journey, as well as a look inside his personal life.
Obama made reports that he planned, at least initially to write a 500 page memoir within a years time, he instead wrote a whopping 700 pages. It will now be the first of an anticipated two set volume, as the book ends with bin Laden in May of 2011.
My memoir, A Promised Land, is out today. I hope you’ll read it. My goal was to give you some insight into the events and people that shaped me during the early years of my presidency. Most of all, I hope it inspires you to see yourself playing a role in shaping a better world. pic.twitter.com/hdZysCpCN9
To read more information Barak Obama’s book, please see publisher details below. His book is available for purchase as of November 17, 2020. Click here and help independent bookstores, also available on Amazon and Walmart.
A Promised Land
A riveting, deeply personal account of history in the making–from the president who inspired us to believe in the power of democracy
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable odyssey from young man searching for his identity to leader of the free world, describing in strikingly personal detail both his political education and the landmark moments of the first term of his historic presidency–a time of dramatic transformation and turmoil.
Click here to See “Shade“ in Paperback and Hardcover versions and help Independent Bookstores. Also Available on Amazon.
Obama takes readers on a compelling journey from his earliest political aspirations to the pivotal Iowa caucus victory that demonstrated the power of grassroots activism to the watershed night of November 4, 2008, when he was elected 44th president of the United States, becoming the first African American to hold the nation’s highest office.
Reflecting on the presidency, he offers a unique and thoughtful exploration of both the awesome reach and the limits of presidential power, as well as singular insights into the dynamics of U.S. partisan politics and international diplomacy. Obama brings readers inside the Oval Office and the White House Situation Room, and to Moscow, Cairo, Beijing, and points beyond. We are privy to his thoughts as he assembles his cabinet, wrestles with a global financial crisis, takes the measure of Vladimir Putin, overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds to secure passage of the Affordable Care Act, clashes with generals about U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, tackles Wall Street reform, responds to the devastating Deepwater Horizon blowout, and authorizes Operation Neptune’s Spear, which leads to the death of Osama bin Laden.
A Promised Land is extraordinarily intimate and introspective–the story of one man’s bet with history, the faith of a community organizer tested on the world stage. Obama is candid about the balancing act of running for office as a Black American, bearing the expectations of a generation buoyed by messages of “hope and change,” and meeting the moral challenges of high-stakes decision-making. He is frank about the forces that opposed him at home and abroad, open about how living in the White House affected his wife and daughters, and unafraid to reveal self-doubt and disappointment. Yet he never wavers from his belief that inside the great, ongoing American experiment, progress is always possible.
This beautifully written and powerful book captures Barack Obama’s conviction that democracy is not a gift from on high but something founded on empathy and common understanding and built together, day by day. Click here and help independent bookstores, also available on Amazon and Walmart.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Accepting defeat is obviously creating cognitive dissonance is this aberrant individual
For the second time in as many days, Trump spat-out a wannabe concession – first in a speech, correcting himself mid-sentence, and then in a tweet – or two tweets to be exact… This penchant for involuntary honesty is beginning to look like a symptom of pending mental collapse, indeed, many have called for activation of the 25th amendment to remove him from office due to mental incapacity.
Though in each case he “corrected” himself: on twitter, after first conceding by tweeting “He won”, clearly referring to President-elect Joe Biden and then deleting that tweet and adding “because the election was rigged”.
As Proud Boys throw a Stand Back & Stand By Pity Party in Washington, Trump drives through the procession on the way to golf & then tweets out the weakest concession in American History.
While in his speech he implied that there would soon be a new administration in town, then proceeded with the usual rants about voter fraud and tampering and so on. This behavior is, as has been the case throughout the past four years, either calculated or insane or some combination of both.
The speculation of his possible calculations would be amusing if not, once again, regarding a deadly serious subject and situation. He seems to be milking this bizarre refusal to concede by collecting donations, which are also being diverted to cover his campaign debts (with a disclaimer shown to donors indicating that anything under $8000 is fair game for him to divert) and also, as is his typical modus operandi, hanging ever-so-desperately onto the spotlight and dominating the news cycle.
Crazy like a fox or just an A**hole?
Beyond this he appears to be consolidating the bizarre 70 million plus “fans” for his next run (from prison?) in 2024, when he will be 78, approximately the age of President-elect Biden currently. And, as if that were not enough, he appears to be auditioning for the much-speculated future media empire – Fox-news-on-steroids that he has been rumored to be wanting to launch from exile.
All of that is, at least partially, true and yet there is very little sense to any of us paying attention, apart from the whole “he has the nuclear football thing”.
His niece Mary Trump warned us that he would act out to an extreme degree based on his inability to mentally process any kind of failure or loss (even though he has failed and lost almost continuously throughout his life, just maintained a state of denial during the process), ad yet it is hard to believe that it has gone on and come so far already.
Unless the idea of removing him using the 25th amendment is successful it appears that this will continue all the way to January 20th and will just get more and more insane along the way. Naturally anyone who is not equally delusional – potentially upwards of 100 million Biden voters and those that abstained from voting, is dreading this, the uncertainty and the disgusting show of contempt for our democracy and system of government.
In the end we will all be glad to survive his egomaniacal melt-down intact and begin the process of moving on from the four years that are worse than wasted by this sick, sad, malignant clown of an individual. Survive and begin to repair the damage they wrought.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
As twitter explodes with Memes and tributes to those that stepped up, the story is halfway: grand finale is yet to come
Georgia has flipped from Red to Blue. This, in case you were wondering, is big and unusual, and has not happened since 1992. Twenty-eight years ago, when Bill Clinton won the state, it was a different time and a different electorate. This year it was new voters, many under 35 that stepped up and shifted the count away from Trump and the Republicans. Black, Latina and Asian voters are on the rise and traditional white voters as a percentage are shrinking, currently just below 53%.
This is a snapshot of what the entire country is moving towards as the racial make up of the country becomes ever more diverse and inclusive. This shift was already well underway during the eight Obama years and will not stop just because Trump and his backward looking followers wish it was so.
Georgia’s heroism is set to be an ever more meaningful theme as it needs to flip again, or else the Biden administration will be severely hindered by another Republican majority, which would lead to a repeat of the problems Obama had during his tenure.
The focus on Georgia is not going away anytime soon, of course…
The run-off election for the two, suddenly insanely valuable Senate seats is already about to ramp up into the fight of the century. In a sense the races are even more important for the Republicans to win, as control of the Senate is the last chance to wield power over the next four years.
“Let me be clear, those who come to Georgia with the intention of voter fraud will be prosecuted,” said Secretary Raffensperger. “We thoroughly investigate every single allegation of voter fraud. Anyone is welcome to move to the state named the No. 1 place to do business. However, let me warn anyone attempting election mischief: If you illegally participate in our elections, you might be spending a lot more time in Georgia than you planned.”
— Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger
Don’t think for a second though that the importance is not clear to the Democrats across the country. Warnings from the Georgia Secretary of State that moving there temporarily to vote in the January Runoffs is illegal were deemed necessary; that’s how serious it is being taken across the country.
Today, before all of that gets started – let’s salute the heroes of Georgia, led by Stacy Abrams, who will certainly run for Governor again, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, the 50,000 that worked to collect and count the ballots and most of all the voters in the now-flipped-into-bright-Blue State.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Melania Trump has been an unconventional and controversial first lady. Melania, 50, born in Slovenia is the first foreign-born FLOTUS in nearly 200 years, also the first for whom English was not her first language, and the first to be a president’s third wife.
Since her husband lost the election, social media, and Twitter in particular, has been abuzz with speculation and thoughts on her possible divorce and future, almost certainly, sans DJT. There were even tweets showing a moving van parked in Front of the White House with captions alluding to her wanting to leave the premises asap.
I’m taking this live shot of the White House, with a moving truck outside, as a good omen. pic.twitter.com/Uz4SuoU94N
With her stoic facial expressions and sometimes questionable fashion choices (the infamous “I Really Don’t Care Do U” jacket), the first lady has largely been out of view and is known for being aloof, preferring to avoid being in the public eye.
Click to See “Melania and Me” and help Lynxotic and Independent Bookstores. Also Available on Amazon.
Previously unknown personal information has recently been revealed about the soon to be ex-FLOTUS, with the September 2020 release of the tell-all book Melania and Me by Stephanie Winston Wolkoff. The former senior advisor to the first lady gave readers a first hand account of personal and quoted phone, email and text conversations between the two.
There was said to be audio recordings, dubbed Melania Tapes that the author kept to ensure she could back up all details in her book 100%. The book included salacious and juicy details about her relationship (often tumultuous) with Trump’s daughter, detailing the “Operation Block Ivanka” plan to keep cameras out of frame from Ivanka during the inauguration.
Wolkoff even alleges that the Trumps had separate bedrooms within the White House and was a “transactional marriage”. Another former White House official, Omarosa Manigault told Daily Mail “Melania is counting every minute until he is out of office and she can divorce,” she continued “If Melania were to try to pull the ultimate humiliation and leave while he’s in office, he would find a way to punish her.”
Moving on, while hubby stares down potential prosecutions?
With Joe Biden declared President-elect on Saturday, November 7th, Donald Trump, as he promised he would do, is not accepting that he lost the election and refuses to concede. He continues to toss-out allegations of “illegal votes” (even though there have been no indications or evidence of voter irregularities or fraud).
Trump has begun his attempt to fight his election loss through legal battles and more than likely will drag out any and all legal actions until he will be forced to leave the White House at the end of his term. A coup, though unlikely, is also being discussed in the media.
Soon, Melania will also have to start the process of vacating the White House and look to what her future will be after January 20th, 2021. Whether she continues alongside Donald Trump or not, the American People (at least 2/3 of them) are more than ready to say… Bye Bye!
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
President-Elect Joe Biden and President Donald Trump disagreed on many points during their respective 2020 campaigns, but their most divisive opposition might have been on climate change. While Trump is an open climate denier who rolled back environmental regulations and posed no plan to combat the issue, Joe Biden vows to make it a central focus of his presidency.
Biden ambitiously promises to work towards 100% clean electricity in America by 2035. He also aims for carbon neutrality by 2050, which will keep global temperatures within 1.5 degrees Celsius of pre-Industrial averages.
Further, he has vowed to reenter the Paris Climate Accords, likely immediately following his inauguration. Getting back into Paris will rekindle America’s clean energy aspirations on the international scale, reopening conversations with other carbon emitting powerhouses like China and the European Union as we strive for a healthier planet.
First thing I will do as president is rejoin the Paris Climate Accord and rally the world to push our progress further and faster. #LJ19pic.twitter.com/oo1jgDBk0M
On that same international note, Biden also plans to follow up on (and perhaps inflate) an Obama Administration pledge of $3 million to the Green Climate Fund— a U.N. project helping developing nations create clean energy infrastructure. The first billion was already paid while Obama was in office, but since Trump came to power in 2017, the U.S. has not contributed a single penny.
This demonstrates that many of Biden’s environmental plans are contingent upon political cooperation now and in the future. Surely, he can set the seeds for fifteen or thirty year plans, but in order for them to have longevity, he will need consensus with his colleagues and successors, many of whom reside across the aisle.
Restoring environmental safeguards Trump abolished is Job 1 but may prove an uphill battle
Click to see “Humans” and help Independent Bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
Similar to the Obama Administration, Biden will have to work with and through a Republican Senate to pass environmental laws. While the President-Elect can enter international agreements and revoke many of Trump’s deregulation policies from a solely Executive standpoint, his overall plan involves creating green jobs, decreasing dependency on fossil fuels, and investing in sustainable clean energy. The whole lot will cost $1.7 trillion and need approval from Congress.
Luckily, for all of its turmoil, the 2020 election taught America that climate change is no longer a superfluous issue in the minds of voters. According to the Sierra Club, tangible heat waves linked to global warming may have swayed Arizona to go blue this year.
Meanwhile, even capitalistic institutions are seeing the economic viability in green energy, as several automakers have backed California’s push for electric vehicles. Independents, Republicans, and Democrats alike are all starting to notice the unavoidable scientific evidence. For politicians to remain relevant, they can no longer ignore or deny such a bipartisan topic.
Of course, this is an optimistic viewpoint. After all, it was just four years ago when America elected Donald Trump. Since then, he’s managed to retract over a hundred environmental regulations.
Evidently, Biden’s election does not mean that America immediately becomes a nation united in conservation efforts. However, it’s a clear step in the right direction. Unlike many other presidents before him, Biden has a plan for climate change, and his election suggests that prioritizing the environment will be a political priority for many campaigns to come.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Almost exactly four years ago to the day, on November 8th, 2016, Trump shocked America and the world by defeating Hillary Clinton. There was already a sense of foreboding among many, based on having witnessed Trump’s behavior during the campaign and throughout his public life before entering the political arena as a candidate.
The full extent of the danger and menace he would come to embody and represent was something that unfolded, nonstop, during the years he clutched onto power like a rabid dog.
Click here to see “The Truths We Hold” and help Independent Bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
Like traumatic witnesses to a heinous crime, many of us who have wished for the day he would be defeated are experiencing a mixture of relief, elation and post-traumatic-stress on the news that his (first) day of reckoning has finally arrived.
On the announcement that Joe Biden had won Pennsylvania and its 20 electoral votes, and would be the 46th President of the United States, jubilant celebrations broke out across the country.
Starting around noon on Saturday, November 7th, the various news outlets began to confirm that the threshold of 270 electoral votes required for victory had been surpassed by the Biden-Harris ticket.
Unbridled joy almost instantly swept across the land, at least among the nearly 75 million that voted blue, and likely among many of those some 70+ million that did not take the time, or were unable, to mark a ballot.
Unlike other political victory celebrations, this was not a “lesser of two evils” situation for any of those mentioned in the previous paragraph. Some of the internet memes, like the brilliant “America Endgame” video mash-up that mythologizes the election as an Avengers inspired clash between ultimate good and almost unspeakableevil.
The clip, for many, was an emotional and inspirational confirmation of what they had been feeling for fourteen-hundred and fifty-nine days as a dark shadow of racist ignorance and hate cast a shadow across our lives.
Looking ahead: days to reflect, heal and rebuild
Next we must all begin to take the sudden feelings of empowerment and democratic vindication and apply that energy toward reclaiming and rebuilding all that the would-be tyrant had spend 4 years undermining and trying to destroy.
No small task, no easy road, but, nevertheless, a chance to learn from this close encounter with a near-collapse of our system and what it has meant throughout the best moments of our history.
The damage wrought by the 1,459 days of terror-tweets, and more dangerously, the behind-the-scenes dismantling of the skeleton that holds our system upright, can finally begin to be reconstructed and reclaimed.
Symbolically, the ending of our participation in the Paris Climate Accords, which ended, literally, hours before Trump’s loss was announced, marks the end of an era of destruction, and the beginning of one pointing firmly toward a possible future of survival and repair. Biden has pledged to re-join the accords as his first act as President.
And now for the 70 million + souls that, who, out of a susceptibility to propaganda and the spell of a fascist cult of personality, voted for Trump, the avalanche of lies will go silent (other than from the sycophants that remain in positions of power). Next, the country and media can, hopefully, allow real facts and information (remember those?) to flow again and reclaim at least some minds where possible.
Sadly after more than 4 years of hard-line indoctrination, only individuals under a certain age or who were only partially damaged, will be receptive to any kind of a return to a more civil national discourse.
These are all thoughts for a later date, but for now a well deserved moment of relief and celebration, and thank our stars for the 75 million of us that rose up and made it possible for the chance of a better future to emerge.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Made in secrecy during the past 6 months with interviews from administration insiders
The election is exactly three days away. The United States, in the past week, has recorded 500,000 new covid cases, which is the worst week ever. Therefore, this would seem the perfect time to watch, for free, the documentary “Totally Under Control”, which details the failures of Trump and his administration to handle the crisis.
Currently streaming on Hulu, for those that have a subscription, it is also available in case you don’t have a Hulu subscription, for free until November 3rd. Click here to watch for free.
Just when it seemed like 2020 could not get any stranger, President Donald Trump announced via Twitter on October 2nd that he and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for COVID-19. In what some would see as a ‘karmic’ coincidence, within twenty-four hours of this breaking news, Neon media dropped a trailer for the new documentary “Totally Under Control,” which focuses on the President and his administration’s unsuccessful response to the coronavirus.
“Totally Under Control” is the second Trump-focused project from documentarian Alex Gibney. Earlier this year, the director released “Agents Of Chaos,” an HBO mini-series centered on Russian involvement in the 2016 election. Gibney is also responsible for the 2010 Oscar nominated doc, “Client 9: The Rise And Fall Of Eliot Spitzer” and the 2007 Oscar winner, “Taxi To The Dark Side.” Most of his films take on timely topics through an investigative lens. “Totally Under Control” will be no different.
Unsurprisingly, Gibney latest movie condemns the Trump administration, as it chronicles how the President handled the coronavirus across the first half of 2020. Its synopsis states:
“On January 20th, 2020 the US and South Korea both discovered their first cases of COVID-19. However, nine months later, the novel Coronavirus has claimed the lives of over 200,000 Americans and caused staggering economic damage, while in South Korea, there were no significant lockdowns and, in an urbanized population of 51 million, only 344 lives have been lost. Where did we go wrong?”
The film aims to answer this question and shed light on America’s complicated, corrupted, and fruitless reaction to the global pandemic. To do this, Gibney uses news footage from the past ten months— much of it showing Trump’s early, woefully dismissive thoughts on the coronavirus before it hit the United States.
He also interviews experts from doctors, to scientists, to government officials, all of whom agree that the current administration’s reaction to COVID was absolutely abhorrent from the start.
The trailer plays out like that of a disaster movie, beginning with former Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority leader, Rick Bright explaining, “The scientists knew what to do for the pandemic response. The plan was in front of us, but leadership would not do it.” Bright goes on to recall how he tired bringing this vital information to the public, but was consequentially fired from his federal position.
As the trailer unfolds, the music gets more and more intense. The interviewees retell the all-too-familiar 2020 story of how COVID got worse by the day and the United States government did nothing to combat it. Meanwhile, quasi-apocalyptic images of ubiquitous ambulances, omnipresent sirens, medial personnel in hazmat suits, restless political rallies, and so on flash across the screen.
All the while, Trump’s voice comes in and out with infamous phrases such as “It will disappear,” “It will be wonderful,” and most egregiously, “I don’t take responsibility at all.”
Art imitates life as covid disbeliever enters hospital after contracting virus that affects ‘almost nobody’
Today, these statements are more ironic than ever before, as Trump himself has been checked into the Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland for COVID. The diagnosis occurred just two days after the first presidential debate, where Trump continued to downplay the coronavirus in favor of reopening the country.
“Totally Under Control” will be available On-Demand starting October 13th and will stream on Hulu starting October 20th. Although the film focuses on current (and ongoing) events, it is not the first piece of media to tackle the coronavirus, and it surely won’t be the last.
official trailer – “Totally under control” / youtube
Most articles on 5G since the Apple iPhone 12 launch event on October 13th have been looking in the rearview mirror to predict the future: 5G will “disappoint” due to the slow buildout, technical limitations of the format, and various issues with all the competing systems and carriers, and these arguments are casting doubt on the much touted potential.
This perspective misses the point on so many levels it’s difficult to know where to begin to unpack the myriad of misunderstandings.
Much of the technical discussion has been focused on the various flavors of 5G and the associated limitations and advantages of each. The fact that the fastest 5G, which goes by the sub-category moniker millimeter wave, is not instantly available everywhere for the 5G capable iPhones, and that they will not be in the hands of most consumers before next year, has been met with feigned shock and bewilderment.
And further, they highlight the confusion mounting over the various providers and the various flavors: 5G, 5G E, 5G UW or 5G+ as they are designated by “service indicators” on the iPhone 12 itself. Verizon Communications Inc., T-Mobile US Inc. and AT&T Inc. each have their own systems they have developed and are building out – looking for a piece of the 5G market, expected to be around $1.15 trillion by 2025.
First and foremost – since Apple and iPhone are the leader of all innovations in the marketplace – not necessarily by the sheer number of handsets sold, but by the focus on increasing technical and aesthetic quality and appealing to the top demographic, not to mention the majority of early adopters, it is precisely the fact that, until now, the iPhone 5G handset did not yet exist, and for that reason the buildout is not further along.
The fact that in real-world tests it is already performing at up to 7 times the fastest previously available connections, was coupled inevitably with the caveat; physical locations where these speeds can be accomplished are currently hard to find.
Due to the technical issues with this ultra-high speed version of 5G, the inability to travel more than very short distances and the lack of ability to penetrate obstacles or walls, the possibility to get these amazing speeds are, at present, more likely to be found in outdoor locations.
This is, admittedly, an odd conundrum, but you can be sure, with the upcoming massive increase in competition for ISP customers, it is one that will find at least some viable solutions very soon. There are many billions at stake for those that can find ways to improve this issue.
“Standing in front of a camera store in South of Market, I got 5G speeds reaching 2,160 megabits a second, which was 2,900 percent faster than 4G. Even where it was a tad slower — behind the Safeway parking lot in the Marina district — the 5G iPhone drew speeds of 668 megabits a second, which was 1,052 percent faster than 4G.”
– Brian X. Chen for the New York Times
The carriers have not had the market to build for and needed to be pushed by a huge influx of iPhone 12 owners. Then, meaning now, they will begin to compete with one another for that extremely lucrative group of users. And that rising competitive battle is not the only one looming on the horizon.
Regardless of the ultimate time frame of the build-out, there is an obvious and very meaningful conclusion that we can reach here: 1 year from now things will look very different in the options available for those who want to work and play with the help of a faster internet connection (meaning, obviously, everybody).
As can be seen from the chart above (source: fastmetrics) in early 2020 the US ranked 13th in desktop download speed while mobile speeds ranked even worse coming in at #33 (various sources have US at #10 for fixed broadband). Liechtenstein is nearly 4x faster, on average, than the US. Also note that the highest average is one-tenth to one-twentieth of the eventual “ideal conditions” speeds of 5G.
The future of connectivity can only get better and faster from here. And with the power of Apple, the iPhone 12 and that huge affluent user base the improvements will begin soon and quickly accelerate to a fever-pitch by next year’s iPhone launch. (Will they call it the iPhone 13?)..
Snowden may indeed receive a pardon and shortly after a bunk-mate in the form of the same soon-to-be ex-President
Trump says so many crazy things on any given day, it is easy to let any one particular thing just float on by and get ready for whatever the next outrageous or just wacko thing that comes out of his mouth.
Ascribing some kind of motivation is often a fools errand of second convolution logic that leads to a parlor game of either elevating this mental-midget to a “very stable genius” or trying to follow clues as to his source for the “idea” (like what was aired on Fox News in the 12 hours prior to his tweet or crazy proclamation).
The idea he came up with of leaving the country, after he loses to “the worst candidate in the history of politics”, is not one of those run-of-the-mill , dime-a-dozen utterances. No. It is a very real concern that appears to be weighing heavily on his mind, and that he feels the need to discuss with thousands of his closest friends (the audiences at his super-spreader rallies).
If there is a genius to Trump, it is his ability to go so far beyond the pale that even those that know his predilection for bizarre suggestions and actions have not followed his twisted logic quite as far as he is about to take it.
Floating the idea of a Pardon for Snowden was Clue #1
The backward inverted idea of a pardon initiated by Trump for someone he once called a “traitor” is pure, simple Trump-ian thought at it’s most absurd. All Snowden needed to do to become Trump’s new friend was to hang out for a while with Trump’s other friend; Putin. So, as is so often the case with the most obtuse and simultaneously transparent maniac, one only has to connect the dots to reach a simple rock-solid conclusion: Trump is shopping for a post-election-loss safe-haven and joining Snowden in Moscow is his very first choice.
Now, never mind that Snowden is not a Trump supporter or sycophant, his proximity alone, to Putin, in Trump’s bent mind, makes him an ally of sorts. And if pushed, I am certain Trump would somehow use this thought process to link Wikileaks, which he “loves” when they leak Democratic dirt, and Assange, though strange bedfellows don’t begin to cover that trio of compatriots.
The phrase: “Banana republic” comes to mind
This prediction, written on this very parchment at 21:21 on October 21, 2020, is herby put forth – however, in fairness, it is actually at least 3 predictions.
First, that Trump will lose Bigly on or around November 3rd. Second, that he will opt for plan c, after his wannabe civil warriors fail to show up for any dubious would-be battles, and leave the USA forthwith. Third that he is already entertaining offers but has Moscow very high on his list, since the shit-hole countries, that he bad-mouthed on the way up the ladder of infamy, do not have an interest in harboring him.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Internet giants finally receiving long overdue legal scrutiny
After months of investigation and inquiry, the United States’ Justice Department has formally accused Google of illegally sustaining a monopoly over search and search advertising in America. The Department filed the lawsuit on October 20th in the U.S. District Court, beginning what could be a turning point in the Internet economy.
Republicans and Democrats alike have been watching big tech companies for a while now, scrutinizing the big four—Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon – as they’ve grown into corporate behemoths and played cat-and-mouse with American antitrust laws. Only now is the federal government (along with over forty states and jurisdictions that have investigated Google) finally making a move to attempt to keep these juggernauts in check.
Antitrust laws essentially make sure that American businesses cannot develop into illegal monopolies. Monopolies are illegal if they are established or maintained through improper conduct, sfor example, exclusionary or predatory acts.
Conventionally, the laws protect consumers from situations where a single company holds all of the supply. In the current digital age, though, most of these services are nominally free to consumers. Nevertheless, they can still become hegemonic at the expense of competition.
Because the site’s ascendency has left consumers with the impression that they are unaffected, superficially, Google personnel have long been able to refute the fact that they hold a proper monopoly. However, given that eighty percent of Internet searches go through Google, many politicians (and users) suspect something legally dubious at hand.
As is also the case with Amazon and Facebook there are, like an iceberg of crimes hiding beneath the waterline, these giant firms are engaged in many practices are highly anticompetitive. The behaviors, however rampant, have either gone unnoticed or, in a purported attempt to bolster internet commerce in a general way, have been intentionally overlooked by governing bodies for decades.
In order for the case to effectively convict Google on antitrust laws, the Justice Department must prove two things. First, that Google has dominance over search. Second, that it actively stifles competition in the search market through deals with other companies.
The fact that Google has dominance over search is quite hard to argue against nowadays. To sell the second part of the case, however, the DOJ will have to look into Google’s business behaviors and deals with other companies such as Apple.
Google essentially pays Apple up to $11 billion to be the default search engine on all iPhones, iPads, and Macs. This is just one example of Google buying its way to the top of the market and making sure that other search engines do not stand a chance.
Of course, Google denies doing anything illegal or sidestepping antitrust laws. The company argues that users actually retain choice when it comes to search engines, but people consistently go to Google for quality. As for the deals with companies like Apple, Google likens it to a cereal brand paying a grocery store for a better spot on the shelf. To Google, it’s simple business.
The courts, however, might not find it quite so simple, as many politicians are reframing antitrust laws in their perspective toward the case and the online marketplace.
This is not the end of the story but barely the beginning with many revelations yet to come
American antitrust laws, and how they are applied, are severely outdated. Most of them were written over a century ago when computers (let alone the Internet) were hardly a concept. Despite a few public outings where tech moguls have had to answer before Washington, the Federal government has not taken much action against these massive modern institutions. Exceptions include a 2001 antirust case against Microsoft for maintaining a monopoly over PC software and a former near-trial against Google when the Federal Trade Commission investigated the Alphabet Inc. for antitrust in the early 2010s.
Meanwhile, other countries have been far more active in holding big tech accountable. The European Union enforces much more timely antitrust policies, and has brought three cases against Google in recent years.
In America, however, Google has been riding off of the free market since its very conceptualization at Stanford University in 1998. The same could be said for Amazon, or Facebook and their respective, nearly mythic, ostensibly humble origins. While this nation’s laws and economy give companies the unique ability to grow, thrive, and expand into global phenomenon, they also have a duty to protect the people and even the playing field when those same companies abuse freedom or gain too much power.
This case will not be a short ride. It will likely take years, but such is the slow, magnificent, changing tide of justice and progress.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Rules that favor the sane are clearly unpopular with the chief of interruptions and accusations
The final Presidential debate, currently scheduled for Thursday October 22 will have 90 minutes divided into six fifteen-minute segments. Each segment will have 2 minutes of time for each candidate to speak, guaranteed without interruption, before the topic is “discussed” in open debate format.
Trump, whining to reporters last night disagreed with virtually everything about the debate: “I will participate but it’s very unfair that they changed the topics and it’s very unfair that again we have an anchor who’s totally biased.”
During an hour long interview with “Fox & Friends” he went further:
‘This was supposed to be a foreign policy debate, and new all of a sudden we’re talking about things that are not foreign policy. And, frankly, it was a change that they made that was far bigger than the mute button, I mean, frankly. But they made a change, and it shouldn’t have happened. It shouldn’t have happened”
During Barack Obama’s two terms, Pete Souza was with the President during more crucial moments than anyone else — and he photographed them all. Souza captured nearly two million photographs of President Obama, in moments highly classified and disarmingly candid. Obama: An Intimate Portrait reproduces more than 300 of Souza’s most iconic photographs with fine-art print quality in an oversize collectible format.
Some are already speculating that Trump will scream and yell and wave his arms during the time that his mic is muted. Alternatively, he could choose to cancel, which appears to be unlikely at this late juncture. Apparently, while the last debate was all about talking over, interrupting and generally trying to disrupt the proceedings, this time it will be about complaining outside the actual performance itself. I guess we’ll all have to tune in to see.
“We realize, after discussions with both campaigns, that neither campaign may be totally satisfied with the measures announced today. We are comfortable that these actions strike the right balance and that they are in the interest of the American people, for whom these debates are held.”
– The Commission on Presidential Debates
In addition to the 2 minutes of time each is given to speak without interruption there will be an attempt made to calculate the time one candidate loses due to an interruption by the other candidate will be credited back to the candidate that was interrupted.
Since Trump interrupted three times as often as Biden in the first debate; 71 times vs. 22 by the former Vice President, it was always unlikely that these rules would be welcomed by the Trump campaign. The bizarre strategy of “winning by interruption” will have far less potential in the new format.
The groundwork has been laid to choose to blame and mock the commission and the moderator or simply refuse to attend
On Monday a complaint in advance was already sent to the commission by Bill Stepien, Trump’s campaign manager:
“It is completely unacceptable for anyone to wield such power, and a decision to proceed with that change amounts to turning further editorial control of the debate over to the Commission which has already demonstrated its partiality to Biden,” said Stepien.
Additionally, the Trump campaign appears to be unhappy with the topics that were announced by the debate commission and in the same letter quoted above attempted to steer the debate topics away from the Covid-19 pandemic and into “foreign policy” and other issues.
All the grousing could be a set-up for a last minute cancelation by the Trump camp, as has been speculated.
That would likely only benefit Biden, and speed-up the need for Trump to find a country that would host him in exile.
However, as of last night this quote from Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien still stands: Trump “is committed to debating Joe Biden regardless of last minute rule changes from the biased commission in their latest attempt to provide advantage to their favored candidate.”
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Now more than Ever Democracy needs an Informed Populace to Survive
After the recent alleged murder of a police officer by a “Boogaloo Boy, the indictments in a conspiracy plot to kidnap and murder the Governor of Michigan (Gretchen Whitmer) and with Trump “inciting the Proud Boys” during the Presidential debate saying, “Stand back and Stand By” (rather than condemning them and telling them to stand down), many of us are very wary of the possible dangers to Democracy swirling around the 2020 election.
These threats, although likely impotent, are still very real. So now would be the perfect time to consult history, and those who are experts on history, in order to know more about the potential dangers of fascism and wannabe dictators to democracy and the democratic rule of law.
Book burning is impossible Today but the Truth is still being Attacked from all sides
Just as Trump cries and whines daily about “fake news” a term originally coined to describe his penchant for constantly lying, Hitler wanted to banish history from the minds of his German subjects by exhorting them to set libraries ablaze in bonfires meant to banish all but his mandated “truth”. Those bonfires are, to this day, a symbol of absolute evil, no less so than concentration camps and mass murder.
Fortunately there are recent classic as well as new, important titles coming out at this critical time. While many in the masses might be easily fooled into admiring those that primp and preen and bluster like Mussolini once did, or attack a designated “other” group like Hitler (the Jews) and Trump (Mexican immigrants and other asylum seekers as well as the imaginary threat of ‘antifa’) anyone who has studied history, and in particular these books, will know that the path to freedom, justice and real democracy lies and the exact opposite direction. Always.
The Origins of Totalitarianism begins with the rise of anti-Semitism in central and western Europe in the 1800s and continues with an examination of European colonial imperialism from 1884 to the outbreak of World War I.
Arendt explores the institutions and operations of totalitarian movements, focusing on the two genuine forms of totalitarian government in our time–Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia–which she adroitly recognizes were two sides of the same coin, rather than opposing philosophies of Right and Left.
From this vantage point, she discusses the evolution of classes into masses, the role of propaganda in dealing with the nontotalitarian world, the use of terror, and the nature of isolation and loneliness as preconditions for total domination. Click here to see “Origins of Totalitarianism” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
Click here to see “Rigged” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
Russia’s interference in 2016 marked only the latest chapter of a hidden and revelatory history. In Rigged, David Shimer tells the sweeping story of covert electoral interference past and present. He exposes decades of secret operations–by the KGB, the CIA, and Vladimir Putin’s Russia–to shape electoral outcomes, melding deep historical research with groundbreaking interviews with more than 130 key players, from leading officials in both the Trump and Obama administrations, to CIA and NSA directors, to a former KGB general.
What Americans should make of Russia’s attack in 2016 is still hotly debated, even after the Mueller report and years of media coverage. Shimer shows that Putin’s operation was, in fact, a continuation of an ongoing struggle, using familiar weapons radically enhanced by new technology. Throughout history and in 2016, both Russian and American operations achieved their greatest success by influencing the way voters think, rather than tampering with actual vote tallies. Click here to see “Rigged” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
With the end of the Cold War, the victory of liberal democracy seemed final. Observers declared the end of history, confident in a peaceful, globalized future. This faith was misplaced. Authoritarianism returned to Russia, as Putin found fascist ideas that could be used to justify rule by the wealthy. In the 2010s, it has spread from east to west, aided by Russian warfare in Ukraine and cyberwar in Europe and the United States.
Russia found allies among nationalists, oligarchs, and radicals everywhere, and its drive to dissolve Western institutions, states, and values found resonance within the West itself. The rise of populism, the British vote against the EU, and the election of Donald Trump were all Russian goals, but their achievement reveals the vulnerability of Western societies. Click here to see “The Road to Unfreedom” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
Click here to see “Fascism” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
A Fascist, observes Madeleine Albright, “is someone who claims to speak for a whole nation or group, is utterly unconcerned with the rights of others, and is willing to use violence and whatever other means are necessary to achieve the goals he or she might have.”
The twentieth century was defined by the clash between democracy and Fascism, a struggle that created uncertainty about the survival of human freedom and left millions dead. Given the horrors of that experience, one might expect the world to reject the spiritual successors to Hitler and Mussolini should they arise in our era. In Fascism: A Warning, Madeleine Albright draws on her experiences as a child in war-torn Europe and her distinguished career as a diplomat to question that assumption. Click here to see “Fascism” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
An explosive exposé of the right’s relentless campaign to eliminate unions, suppress voting, privatize public education, stop action on climate change, and alter the Constitution.
Behind today’s headlines of billionaires taking over our government is a secretive political establishment with long, deep, and troubling roots. The capitalist radical right has been working not simply to change who rules, but to fundamentally alter the rules of democratic governance.
But billionaires did not launch this movement; a white intellectual in the embattled Jim Crow South did. Democracy in Chains names its true architect–the Nobel Prize-winning political economist James McGill Buchanan–and dissects the operation he and his colleagues designed over six decades to alter every branch of government to disempower the majority. Click here to see “Democracy in Chains” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
Donald Trump’s presidency has raised a question that many of us never thought we’d be asking: Is our democracy in danger? Harvard professors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt have spent more than twenty years studying the breakdown of democracies in Europe and Latin America, and they believe the answer is yes. Democracy no longer ends with a bang–in a revolution or military coup–but with a whimper: the slow, steady weakening of critical institutions, such as the judiciary and the press, and the gradual erosion of long-standing political norms. The good news is that there are several exit ramps on the road to authoritarianism. The bad news is that, by electing Trump, we have already passed the first one.
Drawing on decades of research and a wide range of historical and global examples, from 1930s Europe to contemporary Hungary, Turkey, and Venezuela, to the American South during Jim Crow, Levitsky and Ziblatt show how democracies die–and how ours can be saved. Click here to see “How Democracies Die” and help independent bookstores. Also available on Amazon.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
The Wannabe Emperor’s Clothes are on Full Display and growing more revolting by the day
Trump’s penchant for propaganda has taken a steroid filled-turbo-charged turn for the worst. In the build-up phase to his now obvious plans to contest any election result other than a Trump win, initially during protests in Portland and Washington DC (The violent state initiated street clearing [bible-holding stunt]), we began to point out the incredible comparisons with [Mussolini and Hitler]. These comparisons are now fully accepted by the [main-stream media].
That an imaginary “organization” that has as it’s creed to fight fascism (which is what America fought against in WWII) could be painted as the ultimate enemy (I guess Mexican rapists are out of style) is even more bizarre. Meanwhile, Trump continues to paint himself as some kind of Fascist-Hero, at the same time hugging American flags at every opportunity.
Worth mentioning that these are a collection of shots from Triumph of the Will. Meaning, the @WhiteHouse's film is playing out in real-time. But the shots on the right are scattered throughout the first ten minutes of the two-hour-long propoganda film.
Disinformation, Propaganda and Possible lead up to “False-flag-Op”
Even more disturbing is the success his massive, foreign backed, disinformation campaign has had, most of all in rural areas, in convincing actual Americans that he and his “Reality-TV-Fascist” approach is actually some kind of twisted patriotism. One that they should adopt, cheer-on and defend with assault rifles, if it does not succeed in taking over our democratic system completely by November 3rd.
We have already moved on from “awaiting the outcome of the election” to planning and / or fearing the outbreak of insane right-wing fascist violence when he loses. The big question is, who will there be to fight?
There is no “antifa” to speak of. There’s no need to protest (except by Trump fans) if he loses. And the police, FBI and Government in general have no right or reason to treat angry Trump supporters who protest any differently than BLM protestors, angry over the murder of innocent black people.
One retired, raving-mad-reality-TV-star can’t topple our Democratic system, even with foreign assistance, right?
If they incite or commit violence against anyone, unprovoked, they will be arrested. Since there will not be millions of people insane enough to follow their “leader” into certain defeat and likely incarceration, the crowds, if there are any, will dwindle and fade. There will be, no “enemy” to fight against.
They can continue to hate Biden and Democrats, even hate democracy, but that hate, just as was the case during eight years of Obama in the White House, will amount to little more than racist grumbling and sad idiotic hate for hate’s sake.
Naturally, if Trump takes his Nazi-Fascist campaign to the level of treasonous criminality (assuming he hasn’t already) and follows the 1930s script further to setting fire to the equivalent of the 1933 [German Reichstag fire] – then blaming it on “antifa” so he can declare a state of emergency – this will be an overly obvious coup attempt, conveniently happening just before an election he is certain to lose, and would be dealt with accordingly.
In the case of this madman-on-steroids nothing can be ruled out, but day-by-day, even the most extreme escape-routes seem to be disappearing for our Orange Maniac “leader”.
Writing and singing parody send-ups, this 17 year old is adding joy where depression reigns
Looking back on 2020 from a safe future distance, mostly it will still look like the dumpster-fire insanity that it feels like in real-time. But one strange thing might actually be a reason to wax nostalgic. Anti-Trump inspired creativity.
Tik Tok, YouTube, and even Twitter have given outlet and opportunities to vent and for the more creative among us to express frustration and outrage in a way that creates a kind of beauty, or at least entertainment.
A young YouTube creator fits this description and has already built a following for her parody songs that showcase her lyrics and vocals. While the election itself looms and the news and rhetoric builds to an apocalyptic climax, something that has a quality of soothing truth could easily get lost in the dim and chaos.
Therefore, we are embedding a few of her videos and a bit of biographical info that can introduce you to a break from the storm of insanity, while still staying on topic. After all this is the most important election of our lives…
We reached out to 17 year old student, musician and actor, who joined YouTube in August 2020 after coming across one of her videos. She goes by the name “SongBird” and started what she described as “a fun and creative project”, while at home to quell the boredom that can come while being on lockdown during the pandemic.
In the short time she’s been online she has gotten over 320k views and 5.7k subscribers. Her videos are thoughtfully produced and her attention to details in her lyrics, vocals and overall performance serve as both inspiring and entertaining.
She sings simple truths on Trump and his administration without channelling any hate or unnecessary divisiveness. She is a talent and an obvious rising star. Below is the interview:
When did you begin singing and writing songs?
I have been singing all of my life, and it is one of my favorite things to do. I have been lucky enough to be in quite a few musicals and shows, and I love to perform. I began writing parodies in earnest very recently, but I have been sketching out parodies for a long time, and I love to play with rewriting songs I know well.
What led to you deciding to do parody songs related to the 2020 election?
I am really inspired by the work of Randy Rainbow, and I thought I would try my hand at this art form. He has helped me pay more attention to the news and politics and shown me a creative way to raise awareness while having fun at the same time.
I am very passionate about the environment and very upset at all the things this administration has done, from withdrawing from the Paris Accord to gutting the Migratory Bird Act.
Trump’s treatment of women and his handling of the pandemic have also been infuriating. Although I am not old enough to vote in this election, I want to encourage everyone who can to vote in November since our democracy depends on it.
How do you put together the songs – is each one written then performed weekly?
I usually hear about some dumb thing or crazy lie that Trump has said recently, and I mentally scroll through the songs I know and look for a song that might fit. When the right song clicks, it is so exciting.
I often start with the refrain, and then my mother has to endure me walking around the house all week, singing bits of my parody. I also sometimes stay up very late writing. I am a full-time high school student without a lot of extra time during the week, so I tend to polish and film these videos on weekends.
For the visuals, I do not have any video editing skills or applications, but I wanted a way to use pictures, so I decided: why not use a totally easy low-tech approach: large printed photos of political figures on sticks. Over the weeks, I have improved the design of the pictures on sticks, making double-sided ones that I can spin around, which has been a lot of fun.
The fact that I can’t edit the videos forces me to do it in one take, which sometimes means 30 takes to get it right (this was true for He Will Hurt God). Sometimes, as in the case of Vlad Guy, it clicks more quickly, like about 10 takes.
Anything else you want to add?
I mostly made these recordings as a fun assignment for myself to keep me happy during quarantine, and I never thought the videos would leave my circle of friends.
My mind is blown by all of the views, subscribers, and encouraging comments from viewers around the world. Randy Rainbow has brought me so much joy, and it makes me so happy to think that, through these parodies, I am able to bring laughter to people in a similar way in this difficult time.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
Top aid is the next on a growing list of those infected from Trump’s inner circle
Due to the outbreak of positive test result in many who work in the White House, Miller was already self-isolating, working remotely for the last five days. He was tested daily during that time and said that he had tested negative for the virus every day through Monday. His wife tested positive for COVID-19 in May. She just happens to be Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary Katie Miller.
As we reported in previous articles, this, it can be loosely surmised, is an ongoing extension of the numerous cases that appear to have an origin in the SCOTUS super-spreader event held at the White House Rose Garden. That event has been responsible for at least 14 known cases and has been dubbed the “Rose Garden Massacre”.
Others from the White House inner circle that have been previously announced as having tested positive include:
Melania Trump (First Lady)
Ronna McDaniel (Republican National Committee chairwoman)
Hope Hicks (White House communications aide)
Kellyanne Conway (Former White House counselor)
Bill Stepien (Trump campaign manager)
John Jenkins (University of Notre Dame president)
Chris Christie (Former New Jersey Gov.)
Nick Luna (Director of Oval Office operations)
Karoline Leavitt (White house assistant press secretary)
“Covita” shoots campaign ad on the White House Balcony jacked on steroids and behaving like a cartoon
The reactions to the latest and most bizarre, and many would say, disgusting, campaign photo-op continue to pour in. The Lincoln Project, a well known Republican super-pac, founded by George Conway, who’s wife Kellyanne and possibly daughter have both tested positive for covid-19 (see video at end of article), put together several ads and Twitter videos pointing out the extreme, irresponsible and tasteless implications of Trump claiming to have “learned so much about coronavirus”.
In a second clip, which has since gone viral, playing video recovered during the video shoot for his misguided campaign ad, Trump can be heard and seen gasping for air, since steroids only mask the underlying medical issues but do nothing to cure or improve them. This is a creepy and disconcerting view of what is really going on here.
While the world gasps at his “insane” behavior, Trump gasps, literally for air, in full view of cameras while pretending to be superman and trying, yet again, to downplay the virus that has killed nearly 210,000 in the US alone. Will he have a relapse before the next debate, which he swears he is planning to attend?
While it may be from the added delusions, brought on by steroid side-effects, it’s clear that Trump wants to spin his own infection into some kind of massive political victory that will propel him, miraculously, into four more years of power. Sadly, and just plain sad, it is more likely to propel him into a pine box.
Who would have thought that the ultimate October Surprise would be one that Trump is, ultimately, unleashing on himself. Any shred of believability that he might have had, after his constant 4 year long history of lying about everything, is now gone for good particularly regarding anything related to Covid.
The breaking news that the top US general, Mark Milley, who is Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman is now quarantining, due to exposure to a top Coast Guard official, who tested positive for covid-19, is not helping matters. Several members of the Pentagon’s senior leadership are quarantining leading to the press continuing to speculate about how this looks to foreign adversaries.
Mounting positive test results among Republican elite is leading to possible dark news ahead
Take it from Herman Cain, who died of coronavirus after attending Trump rallies where masks and social distancing were scarce to none. When asked if he thought Cain, at that point already deceased, caught it at his rally, Trump replied “No, I don’t think he did”.
A humbling Herman Cain/coronavirus timeline:
6/24: Attends Trump rally, maskless 7/2: Tests positive for Covid-19 7/10: Says he’s improving 7/15: Says his doctors seem happy 7/27: Says he’s really getting better 7/30: Dies
A word with no direct English translation trends as ‘joy at the misfortune of another’ follows Trump’s coronavirus infection
Twitter and social media have been ablaze with ‘schadenfreude’ since approximately 1am EDT on Friday when both POTUS & FLOTUS tweeted that they had contracted covid-19. Dictionary and google searches for the german term for this base human feeling is going off the charts.
While the initial reaction could be said to go far beyond “joy” into the level a bloodlust for this reviled figure to suffer, it is, at the same time an inevitable outcome as a reaction to his own crude, cruel and pro-violence tendencies. Not to mention the blame he is, for the most part rightly, receiving for the more than 200,000 deaths so far from the coronavirus pandemic.
While it is dangerous, and in many ways disappointing, to see the so-called left who are virulently opposed to Trump, failing the test of being above base human instincts. By the same token, many argue that the things that Trump has done, or often refused to do, such as implementing a serious nationwide plan to minimize the spread of covid-19, are far worse than mere schadenfreude or happydancing to his misfortunes.
Yet, with his staunch support and refusal to denounce the right-wing extremist hate group The Proud Boys only days ago at the Presidential debates, and his refusal to commit to accepting independently certified election results at that same venue, it is easy to understand why so many millions on social media would be proclaiming a lack of sympathy for his misfortunes.
While The Trump spreads digital disinformation the public wants to vent and protest, without restrictions
The venting of strong options on social media is a paradox of sorts, Twitter threatened to ban all accounts that tweet a wish or hope that Trump would lose his battle with the coronavirus and die. However, after a backlash from public figures, such as AOC and the so called “squad”, who have received almost constant death-threat tweets from Trumps supporters while Twitter did nothing, Twitter backed off and announced that they would shutter some accounts but take a look at the data and behavior on a case by case basis.
The other side of the paradox is that social media venting may be preferable to violence in the streets. Unless, of course, the constant tweeting of schadenfreude and worse actually does lead to increased physical actions from either the far right or left.
The contentious explosion of Social Media political free speech across all platforms
In some ways Tik-Tok is turning into a more entertaining version of twitter’s political war zone. With prepackaged music backgrounds available to spice up your post – including anti-Trump anthems such as ‘f$ck Donald Trump’ (2 versions) it’s easy to create meaningful yet highly entertaining protest posts and share them with over 1 billion members.
No wonder Trump wants to ban the service. And the right wing have their own ‘hell on earth’ Parler to put up endless posts congratulating themselves on all the wonderful accomplishments of the wannabe fascists and super-spreaders.
And to add to the confusion, the potential that Trump will be inactive for a period of time has put the Tik Tok deadlines for a US merger in doubt. From casual observation Tik Tok becoming more political, once known as a site for amateur dance-offs and silly challenges, older and more like a short-clip educational and DIY destination.
Indeed by recent count 38% of US users are above 30 years of age, and with a set of advanced software tools to craft short clips, a maturation of the content appears to be happening at a very rapid pace.
Made in secrecy during the past 6 months with interviews from administration insiders
Just when it seemed like 2020 could not get any stranger, President Donald Trump announced via Twitter on October 2nd that he and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for COVID-19. In what some would see as a ‘karmic’ coincidence, within twenty-four hours of this breaking news, Neon media dropped a trailer for the new documentary “Totally Under Control,” which focuses on the President and his administration’s unsuccessful response to the coronavirus.
“Totally Under Control” is the second Trump-focused project from documentarian Alex Gibney. Earlier this year, the director released “Agents Of Chaos,” an HBO mini-series centered on Russian involvement in the 2016 election. Gibney is also responsible for the 2010 Oscar nominated doc, “Client 9: The Rise And Fall Of Eliot Spitzer” and the 2007 Oscar winner, “Taxi To The Dark Side.” Most of his films take on timely topics through an investigative lens. “Totally Under Control” will be no different.
Unsurprisingly, Gibney latest movie condemns the Trump administration, as it chronicles how the President handled the coronavirus across the first half of 2020. Its synopsis states:
“On January 20th, 2020 the US and South Korea both discovered their first cases of COVID-19. However, nine months later, the novel Coronavirus has claimed the lives of over 200,000 Americans and caused staggering economic damage, while in South Korea, there were no significant lockdowns and, in an urbanized population of 51 million, only 344 lives have been lost. Where did we go wrong?”
The film aims to answer this question and shed light on America’s complicated, corrupted, and fruitless reaction to the global pandemic. To do this, Gibney uses news footage from the past ten months— much of it showing Trump’s early, woefully dismissive thoughts on the coronavirus before it hit the United States.
He also interviews experts from doctors, to scientists, to government officials, all of whom agree that the current administration’s reaction to COVID was absolutely abhorrent from the start.
The trailer plays out like that of a disaster movie, beginning with former Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority leader, Rick Bright explaining, “The scientists knew what to do for the pandemic response. The plan was in front of us, but leadership would not do it.” Bright goes on to recall how he tired bringing this vital information to the public, but was consequentially fired from his federal position.
As the trailer unfolds, the music gets more and more intense. The interviewees retell the all-too-familiar 2020 story of how COVID got worse by the day and the United States government did nothing to combat it. Meanwhile, quasi-apocalyptic images of ubiquitous ambulances, omnipresent sirens, medial personnel in hazmat suits, restless political rallies, and so on flash across the screen.
All the while, Trump’s voice comes in and out with infamous phrases such as “It will disappear,” “It will be wonderful,” and most egregiously, “I don’t take responsibility at all.”
Art imitates life as covid disbeliever enters hospital after contracting virus that affects ‘almost nobody’
Today, these statements are more ironic than ever before, as Trump himself has been checked into the Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland for COVID. The diagnosis occurred just two days after the first presidential debate, where Trump continued to downplay the coronavirus in favor of reopening the country.
“Totally Under Control” will be available On-Demand starting October 13th and will stream on Hulu starting October 20th. Although the film focuses on current (and ongoing) events, it is not the first piece of media to tackle the coronavirus, and it surely won’t be the last.
