I began a tutoring job yesterday, and met my charge, a 12 year old girl, for the first time. I was asking her lots of questions to find out more about her and when I asked if she had any fears, I was thinking...spiders, the dark, clowns. Her words chilled me. "Shootings," she said. "I don't want to be anywhere near a shooting." That says it all. Instead of protecting our children we are leaving them in fear.
Thank you for sharing that, Carol. My heart hurts for this girl, and all the 12-year-olds out there that worry and fear a mass shooting at their schools.
I tutor Math to grade schoolers through our public school system and a local nonprofit.
The school system requires criminal background checks for all personnel and volunteers which are rechecked each year. You have to be buzzed in at the front door and check-in at the front office which scans you driver's license and prints a grainy photo on a name tag.
But none of these steps would do much to stop a determined shooter who was intent on shooting up the school with an automatic weapon. Or, as has tragically happened, a disturbed student bringing a gun from home in their backpack.
My friends with a five-year-old moved first from Arizona to California. They then moved to Portugal. Why? They were afraid their little girl would get killed in kindergarten. Other friends became right-wingers and moved to Texas when their granddaughter had to go through a metal detector every time she entered and left her elementary school. I think the fear of gun violence, on the part of many everyday Americans who know it is prevalent in our country because of the failure of Congress to make effective laws against it, has turned many normal people into MAGA-supporting extremists, in the mistaken belief that right wing politics will protect them and make them safe. They think, erroneously I believe, that progressives have opened society too much to people they think are violent. They don't seem to attribute the gun violence to extreme GOP thinking about the bogus "right to bear arms" argument, the NRA lobby, or the basic hate-filled bias of the people currently controlling the GOP. Another amazing discrepancy of the twilight land we're all living in.
Christina, you are right about MAGA extremists thinking our society was "opened too much to people they think are violent." I posted on Twitter X about the decision, asking why the GOP was fighting for "unborn" children, but ignoring the major cause of death of "born children." I got a Comment from someone whose feed was very MAGA: "Tell blacks and the Alphabet Mafia to stop shooting people.
Stop pretending you care about reducing gun violence when you won’t even admit who commits the violence."
I started looking for statistics and all I could find was how much higher murder rates are in black urban communities. Even though there were many reasons caused by racial prejudice, I didn't think that would help the discussion, so I just asked if he would share his sources. Meanwhile, do you have any ideas? Thanks!
Thanks, Terry. I spent years working as a communications director in non-profits. A major learning: people don't respond to facts. Statistics. Reason. (Some do, of course, like the people on this blog.) But the majority of Americans rely, however, erroneously, on their instincts or their feelings. We need to appeal to instincts and feelings. There's a huge, racist instinct that black Americans, Latino Americans, non-white Americans, are violent and "bad." We need to message and counter that, not with "facts," but with emotion and instinct. Not sure what that looks like at the moment. The right wing is very good at doing this. The progressives are pretty bad at it. An example is Biden's communications team. They are mostly silent. They seem ineffective to me in using feelings and instinct to persuade Americans of the wonderful job Biden is doing. Once in a while they put out a fact. Even your response to the Comment person...you asked for his sources. You didn't ask "Why do you feel this way?" I think asking people "What do you like about Trump?" would give us lots of information about how to combat these positions. Instead of just trying to "prove," using facts, why they are wrong. It's not about the mind with these people. It's about their hurt, their anger, their fear.
Brilliant!! And thank you! I'm very used to talking about feelings in person, but somehow it didn't seem right when they're putting out such "alternative facts" on social media. I'm committed to having respectful conversations on social media, so I'm going to take your advice, and see what happens! Blessings,
The reason I wear a Biden T-shirt on every grocery run (and beg all fellow Dems to do so too… ) is because I believe we need to create a feeling of enthusiasm and inevitability. Make Biden support a badge of honor. All it takes is a few to make that FEELING snowball.
And I no longer blame Biden’s Comms for the lack of support. Listen to Decoding Fox News and you’ll hear what MAGA hears. It would not matter if Biden’s message was laser focused, they don’t report on his accomplishments. Every minute is about Dems destroying the country. https://open.substack.com/pub/decodingfoxnews?r=4j5a4&utm_medium=ios
And as Robert Hubbell points out all too frequently. Every positive NYT headline is followed by a Subhead that asks “but will inflation mean Biden must lose???”
Hold the MAGA Republicans accountable for blocking gun safety reforms as mass shootings surge Stop the Sale of Bump Stocks:
Take action: Sign this Sandy Hook Promise Petition. Explore mass shootings and the Republican politicians for where they took place. Who were the biggest MAGA recipients of gun lobby donations.
I hesitate to comment as I fear putting my fears into words. Could this be the plan all along? I keep hearing about the right wanting to start a civil war; some have said it will be a blood bath. Imagine if you will thousands of the right with machine guns.
My thoughts exactly. It is conceivably unconscious but it is pretty visible now. Carnage is what they want, carnage will allow an authoritarian a reason to stay in power.
It is beyond disgusting and total maga thinking. Can you even begin to remember what Sandy Hook parents had to endure with their pain identifying their child with pieces blown away by a weapon all those maga guys love. Now the Supreme Court magas need to be put in the same tragic world personally they just approved again. The carnage is unspeakable anytime but kindergartners never deserved what the GOP loves to ignore.
Clarence Thomas swore an oath in order to be seated as a Justice. In his absolute lie in this case, regarding the funcion of the trigger, he violated that oath, for which he has now made himself subject to impeachment.
Under the Administrative Procedure Act, the agency is supposed to do fact finding. If they failed to do it, the remedy would have been to remand for a hearing. It's like NONE of the justices went to law school.
Exactly. Let's not fool ourselves, as so many of us did with Dubya, into thinking that they are stupid. Clarence and Sam are corrupt and evil men strategically, coolly, and brilliantly executing a nightmare agenda. Just think what they could do if they had any morality or compassion at all.
They have very selective hearing. You can go to Ivy law schools and emerge untouched by liberal/honest/humane thinking. Tom Cotton is another good example.
Yes, Ransom. He lied and Trump lies every time he opens his mouth. And The New York Post willfully lied when they labeled a front page photo of President Biden at the G7 meeting turning to greet personnel of the U.S. mlitary of which he is the Commander-in-Chief, as "Meanderer in Chief," foisting the lie that Biden is a frail, confused, old man, when the photo really shows a man singularly aware of his responsibility and his role in our country. Thomas should be impeached for lying, but for many the truth does not matter. But this latest will make no difference and more will suffer and die. And Democrats will fear the obstructionist wrath of the likes of J. D. Vance and do nothing about Thomas's lies and corruption, and when he's not lying he is stupid. Sadness all around. We should have listened to Anita Hill and even without her testimony, Thomas showed the character and acumen of aninjured 14-year old, a ploy perfected by the outrage of Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing that he was being asked tough questions about his behavior or Alito's hauteur about questions about his wife's fondness for insurrectionist flags. I cannot but rant before such despicable, behavior and idiotic thinking.
Yes. Many of us were outraged when Clarence put one of his pubic hairs on Anita Hill's Coke can, as someone with, as you say, "the character and acumen of an injured 14-year-old"--attempting to flirt with her. I would only perhaps change your charitable "injured" to "severely damaged." Simultaneously, as he was depositing his pubic hairs and despite these warning signs, he was nominated and appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States. Both he and Sam are acting out their deep psychological disorders, against the 350 Americans who live here, and by extension the other 8 billion on the planet whom America has historically supported. We won't be able to help anyone, much less ourselves, if they dismantle our government as they are assiduously doing. It's the equivalent of a planet-wide mass shooting. The danger is ever clearer. We must re-elect Biden and gain four years to undo this horror. It's unfolding noticeably now, but there's still time to turn it back. Do something today. Make a call. Write a letter. Give more money. Talk to a neighbor. Run for office. Make some noise.
Amen. Alito and Thomas are a disgrace. I wouldn't want to sit next to either of them or their pal Trump in my high school cafeteria. You know though, as I think about your good comment, I realize neither Alito, Thomas, nor Trump are the puppet masters. They are outsiders who want to hang with the "cool kids" -- the rich, the powerful, and the WASPish. Thomas is still smarting from not getting all those offers after law school to prestigious white shoe law firms and is happy to do the bidding of whichever rich person will tell him his achievements of mind are not fifth rate....remember when Thomas scarcely spoke for years on the court. The man lives in small-minded fear. Alito's father is an immigrant from one of the poorest regions in Italy, Calabria, and had a life as a teacher and for many years a small cog in the administrative state the one son Sam wants to dismantle, and Sammy loves to pick up honorary degrees and praise from Catholic colleges which have the same chip on their shoulder when people question their legitimacy. He can only react with scorn and hauteur. And Donald? Jeez. He fears hess never looks comfortable around other people who secretly have contempt for him, even when they are singing Happy Birthday. His niece had him pegged. He fears he's a loser and will assert to his last breath any lie that will shield him from that attack. You can say I am being an arm-chair psychologist, but I've been around guys like this all my life and when someones try to figure out what makes them tick. These guys have no guilt, no inner lives that we can see, no suspicion that they might be wrong, and those rich people who are pulling the strings don't give a hoot about them or their position. These guys dfdfdkffkfthink they are in control and notice how people keep praising Trumps strength and command when there is nothing there. He's an empty suit. Many people are catching on. As you say, "Do Something Today." We must
en-courage one another, fight the self-talk of despair and work for the day is short.
Field Team 6 (www.fieldteam6.org) uses a multi-platform approach (phone-banking, text archade, BYOP texting, writing postcards, and "Social Storming" to register Democrats or Democratic-leaning voters in swing states and districts. (They also provide training over Zoom to register voters in person). I have been writing postcards to unregistered women in House district NC-01. Check out this epidode of PoliticsGirl with FT6 founder Jason Berlin here:
Again, call Durbin 202 224 2152, Raskin 202 225 5341, AOC 202 225-3965, or Goldman 202-225-7944. Call them today, right now. Leave a message. Tell them to impeach Sam and Clarence. Tell them Americans need their help because we can't do it ourselves by voting. Tell them (especially Durbin) to get off their butts and do more.
What a Supreme Court terrible decision regarding bump stocks.
The triumph of the abstract over the real, the theoretical over the actual, choosing death over life. The legal equivalent of “How many angels are there on the head of a pin?” The Six Supremes have their heads stuck in the clouds, while some accept lavish unreported gifts to fly and cruise and snooze. I held a much lower position (family/child custody mediator in the California Superior Court system), and was held to a much higher ethical standard, that included avoiding even the appearance of bias. The majority of the Supreme Court have let the word “Supreme” go to their heads, accountable to no one.
When I litigated against the SEC, I would frequently meet government lawyers in conference rooms across the country to take depositions. The hosting law firm would usually bring in a platter of sandwiches for the lawyers and witnesses. One SEC trial lawyer would gladly accept a sandwich and chips, then reach in his pocket, pull out a ten-dollar bill to pay for the sandwich and chips, and ask for a receipt. That is how most federal employees conduct themselves.
I did inspections for the feds, and in the US companies would know better than to ply us with food. In Europe however, they tried. I always paid them back. They’d protest, I told them buy candy for your staff!
We seem to be at the point where SCOTUS rulings seem preordained. All that isn’t fully predictable is the rationalizations the SCOTUS majority concocts for their rulings.
To use a metaphor of the ice berg, the rulings are the tips of the iceberg. What is below the surface. I have one hypothesis: the Catholic judges are echoing the traditional Catholic conservative positions, overt and covert, that a researcher can find in various Catholic bishops statements. I’ll give an example re IVF in another message. Much has been written about Evangelicals for Trump. Similarly much could be written about Catholics (not all) for Trump. E.g. See Pro Publica articles on Leo Leonard. I write as one from a very Catholic background, who has evolved beyond.
While I have not, yet, evolved beyond. Catholicism. Ultra conservative Catholic are in no way REAL Catholics, they are a Sect. Pope Frances is trying to deal with them. It's those DAMN pro lifers that have become cult members that have been swallowed whole.
Thank you Robert. Truly. My younger brother was murdered on Nov 22, 1984 in New Orleans. Not in a mass shooting, but that doesn’t matter. A gun is a gun, and Mark has been dead for almost 40 years. He was 17. Your title is the right one. I agree with Jill. My heart goes out to all of the victims of mass shootings and individual shootings and to the heartbroken families and friends who are left behind. Thank you for this piece today. Thank you, thank you.
As I had already mentioned in another Substack, the Sandy Hook child victims should have been graduating this month from high school with their classmates. When nothing changed in this country in the years after Sandy Hook, I despaired of any definitive action being taken, ever. The SCOTUS ruling sadly seems to confirm that pessimistic opinion. I hope that somehow though there will be change seen in my lifetime.
JustRaven, Thanks for that extra perspective. The class of 2024 is smaller than it should be. I hope the graduating 18-year-olds vote with their former classmates in mind.
I hope someone is organizing a compassionate effort to make sure that graduating class is all registered and all educated about the crucial importance of casting a vote, and, in this case casting a vote against gun violence by voting for Pres. Biden.
I am sickened this morning. The only silver lining I see is that with this decision and others no doubt to come soon, the court will send at least a few hundred thousand more votes our way in November.
Thank you, JustRaven. What a chilling reminder of the callous disregard for human life our country has. And one wonders how the SCOTUS majority can balance their reification of weapons of war with their desire to elevate a cluster of human cells to holding unalienable rights? Needless to say, I am Supremely disturbed by this latest travesty of justice by SCOTUS.
I’ll be the first to put a target on my chest. I’ll be wearing a Biden Tee and Grocery shopping for some protest juice boxes at My Florida Publix. Why Juice boxes? because that’s what bump stocks will put holes in all too soon. It’s bad enough my 9-year-old has to do active shooter drills.
Why grocery shopping in Biden Tee? It’s a media strategy for Dems to be visible en masse. Nearly 500 Tees have sold since Robert Hubble first elevated that concept. There are 143 grocery shopping days until 11/5. That’s a lot of eyeballs on a $30 message that the SCOTUS can count their days.
🛒👕
If you’re as angry as I am,
Shopping while Blue feels like doing something.
And you can do it EVERY TIME you get angry with MAGA, proud of Biden, or need spaghetti sauce.
Ok, I bought one. I live in Arizona. I genuinely have a faint worry that someone might shoot me because I'm wearing it. But I am thinking we may have to go to the ramparts soon anyway. I guess I am willing to put my life on the line for my country (Yes, I think it's that important.) Especially if it gets big media headlines if I get killed! -;)
I was afraid of that too. So for my first few Biden Shirt Grocery trips in January I wore a Santa hat too… because… who would shoot Santa?! Anyway 50 trips later. In Florida. Not a single negative response. And zero bullets. Trust it will be okay. It will.
I can very well remember how the Republicans and other conservatives under a more liberal Supreme Court, used to screech, moan and froth at the mouth about the Court "legislating" from the Bench. Now that they have their purchased partisan Supremes, how odd that we hear absolute silence from the RWNJ's about activist Justices and legislating from the Bench. Clarence Thomas should be summarily impeached for his opinion which is based on what he knows very well is a fabricated LIE about the way a bump stock functions. What utter scum that man is.
Six SCOTUS INjustices...Yup--you are quite correct. Each and every one of them should be hauled off to a REAL court where they would be prosecuted by honest, knowledgeable lawyers in front of a jury of people who have lost loved ones from gun violence.
"The Court is inflicting ... injury on ... Americans[,] ... denying the dignity and personhood of women[,] ... disenfranchising the descendants of enslaved people[,] ... threatening the climate[,] ... making society a more violent, dangerous place where everyone can carry a machine gun."
All of this in retaliation for our attempts to hold them accountable, perhaps?
True, but absent a firm majority, the attempt won't even be made. Such a majority could also legislate appropriate restrictions to replace the regulations that have been struck down.
I lived in Newtown, CT till recently (Sandy Hook is a section of Newtown).
I went a step further in a post I made on FB (I rarely make political comments there anymore - I leave that to Twitter)
What I said:
*Warning* - political post (and I'm not saying it how I would like to say it).
For deaths from people using bump stocks, certain Supreme Court Justices should be indicted for accessory to murder. Basing their decision on an out-and-out lie by unethical Justice Thomas is disgusting, despicable, and contributing to the insane amount of gun violence in the U.S.
Today’s Edition was very powerful and the outrage was significant and rightfully so. To a layperson like myself the decision yesterday was another example of MAGA supported justices bending and ignoring the law to make it fit their conservative and paid for agenda. This decision is another in a line of decisions that are not supported by a majority of Americans and in a way is giving the finger to the American voter. Decisions like this highlight the frustration and feelings of despair felt by many because we don’t see any clear actionable way to correct the problem. We are stuck. What does have to happen is the Democratic Party must use these decisions as a battle cry and get voters to respond to the message “ elect me and together we will fix the Supreme Court. “. We need to win not only the presidency but down ballot races and secure an overwhelming majority. The Supreme Court needs to be on the ballot.
There is no question in my mind that the vicious Thomas has been bought by the gun lobby - why else would someone be as craven as this to allow machine guns to enter our fragile democracy / he truly is a scourge to our nation !
If only we had listened to Anita Hill. Or to the woman who accused Kavanaugh. These people are reprehensible, and they don’t care. They have their lifetime appointments. I hope the Dems will sweep, and at least cut their funding or limit what cases they can hear. Of course, packing the Court would be my first choice. But I’m a realist………….
Yesterday was truly a day of mourning with the SCOTUS decision.
It is frustrating that so many local voters are unaware of legislation our state representatives are sponsoring/supporting to provide citizens access to weapons of war. Please research and contact your representatives about proposed legislation, write Letters to Ed, and share with your circle and beyond.
Some of my Florida legislators often refer to the “grooming” of our children.When I’m confronted with the “horrors” of the drag show story hours I like to point to the gun manufacturer, Wee1Tactical ,that produces the JR-15, an assault rifle for children.
A voter laughed at me when I stated this was the true “grooming”of children. She didn’t believe there was a JR-15.Well, it is truly unbelievable.How did we get here ?
We've been "grooming" our students for mass shooters. Period. As a teacher, I went through the drills knowing full well there was nothing in my 80 year old classroom that would protect my kids. Our room was maybe 10 yards from the front door and another 15-20 yards from the street. Two wood glass-paned doors, very small closet with a wood door. As my principal admitted "performative"
I began a tutoring job yesterday, and met my charge, a 12 year old girl, for the first time. I was asking her lots of questions to find out more about her and when I asked if she had any fears, I was thinking...spiders, the dark, clowns. Her words chilled me. "Shootings," she said. "I don't want to be anywhere near a shooting." That says it all. Instead of protecting our children we are leaving them in fear.
Thank you for sharing that, Carol. My heart hurts for this girl, and all the 12-year-olds out there that worry and fear a mass shooting at their schools.
I tutor Math to grade schoolers through our public school system and a local nonprofit.
The school system requires criminal background checks for all personnel and volunteers which are rechecked each year. You have to be buzzed in at the front door and check-in at the front office which scans you driver's license and prints a grainy photo on a name tag.
But none of these steps would do much to stop a determined shooter who was intent on shooting up the school with an automatic weapon. Or, as has tragically happened, a disturbed student bringing a gun from home in their backpack.
And life just got easier for mass shooters and harder for teacher and students.
My friends with a five-year-old moved first from Arizona to California. They then moved to Portugal. Why? They were afraid their little girl would get killed in kindergarten. Other friends became right-wingers and moved to Texas when their granddaughter had to go through a metal detector every time she entered and left her elementary school. I think the fear of gun violence, on the part of many everyday Americans who know it is prevalent in our country because of the failure of Congress to make effective laws against it, has turned many normal people into MAGA-supporting extremists, in the mistaken belief that right wing politics will protect them and make them safe. They think, erroneously I believe, that progressives have opened society too much to people they think are violent. They don't seem to attribute the gun violence to extreme GOP thinking about the bogus "right to bear arms" argument, the NRA lobby, or the basic hate-filled bias of the people currently controlling the GOP. Another amazing discrepancy of the twilight land we're all living in.
Christina, you are right about MAGA extremists thinking our society was "opened too much to people they think are violent." I posted on Twitter X about the decision, asking why the GOP was fighting for "unborn" children, but ignoring the major cause of death of "born children." I got a Comment from someone whose feed was very MAGA: "Tell blacks and the Alphabet Mafia to stop shooting people.
Stop pretending you care about reducing gun violence when you won’t even admit who commits the violence."
I started looking for statistics and all I could find was how much higher murder rates are in black urban communities. Even though there were many reasons caused by racial prejudice, I didn't think that would help the discussion, so I just asked if he would share his sources. Meanwhile, do you have any ideas? Thanks!
Thanks, Terry. I spent years working as a communications director in non-profits. A major learning: people don't respond to facts. Statistics. Reason. (Some do, of course, like the people on this blog.) But the majority of Americans rely, however, erroneously, on their instincts or their feelings. We need to appeal to instincts and feelings. There's a huge, racist instinct that black Americans, Latino Americans, non-white Americans, are violent and "bad." We need to message and counter that, not with "facts," but with emotion and instinct. Not sure what that looks like at the moment. The right wing is very good at doing this. The progressives are pretty bad at it. An example is Biden's communications team. They are mostly silent. They seem ineffective to me in using feelings and instinct to persuade Americans of the wonderful job Biden is doing. Once in a while they put out a fact. Even your response to the Comment person...you asked for his sources. You didn't ask "Why do you feel this way?" I think asking people "What do you like about Trump?" would give us lots of information about how to combat these positions. Instead of just trying to "prove," using facts, why they are wrong. It's not about the mind with these people. It's about their hurt, their anger, their fear.
Brilliant!! And thank you! I'm very used to talking about feelings in person, but somehow it didn't seem right when they're putting out such "alternative facts" on social media. I'm committed to having respectful conversations on social media, so I'm going to take your advice, and see what happens! Blessings,
You couldn’t be more right. Facts don’t matter.
The reason I wear a Biden T-shirt on every grocery run (and beg all fellow Dems to do so too… ) is because I believe we need to create a feeling of enthusiasm and inevitability. Make Biden support a badge of honor. All it takes is a few to make that FEELING snowball.
BeantownStrong.org
And I no longer blame Biden’s Comms for the lack of support. Listen to Decoding Fox News and you’ll hear what MAGA hears. It would not matter if Biden’s message was laser focused, they don’t report on his accomplishments. Every minute is about Dems destroying the country. https://open.substack.com/pub/decodingfoxnews?r=4j5a4&utm_medium=ios
And as Robert Hubbell points out all too frequently. Every positive NYT headline is followed by a Subhead that asks “but will inflation mean Biden must lose???”
The guy is going uphill against the wind.
Hold the MAGA Republicans accountable for blocking gun safety reforms as mass shootings surge Stop the Sale of Bump Stocks:
Take action: Sign this Sandy Hook Promise Petition. Explore mass shootings and the Republican politicians for where they took place. Who were the biggest MAGA recipients of gun lobby donations.
https://thedemlabs.org/2024/06/14/stop-the-sale-of-bump-stocks-sign-this-sandy-hook-promise-petition/
I hesitate to comment as I fear putting my fears into words. Could this be the plan all along? I keep hearing about the right wanting to start a civil war; some have said it will be a blood bath. Imagine if you will thousands of the right with machine guns.
My thoughts exactly. It is conceivably unconscious but it is pretty visible now. Carnage is what they want, carnage will allow an authoritarian a reason to stay in power.
It is beyond disgusting and total maga thinking. Can you even begin to remember what Sandy Hook parents had to endure with their pain identifying their child with pieces blown away by a weapon all those maga guys love. Now the Supreme Court magas need to be put in the same tragic world personally they just approved again. The carnage is unspeakable anytime but kindergartners never deserved what the GOP loves to ignore.
Linda, I agree. I hesitate to think this way too. I've heard rumblings along these lines recently.
Done.
Clarence Thomas swore an oath in order to be seated as a Justice. In his absolute lie in this case, regarding the funcion of the trigger, he violated that oath, for which he has now made himself subject to impeachment.
He violated his oath. Period.
As Robert notes, Lucian laid it down perfectly.
Under the Administrative Procedure Act, the agency is supposed to do fact finding. If they failed to do it, the remedy would have been to remand for a hearing. It's like NONE of the justices went to law school.
Sure they did and they got paid off and corrupted.
Exactly. Let's not fool ourselves, as so many of us did with Dubya, into thinking that they are stupid. Clarence and Sam are corrupt and evil men strategically, coolly, and brilliantly executing a nightmare agenda. Just think what they could do if they had any morality or compassion at all.
Are you including justices Kagan, Sotomayor, and Brown-Jackson as part of the ‘all’?
No
I hate to say it, but most of them went to Harvard (my law school) or Yale. Maybe they didn’t listen well.
They have very selective hearing. You can go to Ivy law schools and emerge untouched by liberal/honest/humane thinking. Tom Cotton is another good example.
Tiger Woods missed another cut at a Major...the U.S. Open. That's what happens when you think playing golf with Donald Trump is a good idea.
Cruz also was there. They are revolting against the liberal Harvard education maybe.
They are revolting, it's true.
Yes, Ransom. He lied and Trump lies every time he opens his mouth. And The New York Post willfully lied when they labeled a front page photo of President Biden at the G7 meeting turning to greet personnel of the U.S. mlitary of which he is the Commander-in-Chief, as "Meanderer in Chief," foisting the lie that Biden is a frail, confused, old man, when the photo really shows a man singularly aware of his responsibility and his role in our country. Thomas should be impeached for lying, but for many the truth does not matter. But this latest will make no difference and more will suffer and die. And Democrats will fear the obstructionist wrath of the likes of J. D. Vance and do nothing about Thomas's lies and corruption, and when he's not lying he is stupid. Sadness all around. We should have listened to Anita Hill and even without her testimony, Thomas showed the character and acumen of aninjured 14-year old, a ploy perfected by the outrage of Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing that he was being asked tough questions about his behavior or Alito's hauteur about questions about his wife's fondness for insurrectionist flags. I cannot but rant before such despicable, behavior and idiotic thinking.
Yes. Many of us were outraged when Clarence put one of his pubic hairs on Anita Hill's Coke can, as someone with, as you say, "the character and acumen of an injured 14-year-old"--attempting to flirt with her. I would only perhaps change your charitable "injured" to "severely damaged." Simultaneously, as he was depositing his pubic hairs and despite these warning signs, he was nominated and appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States. Both he and Sam are acting out their deep psychological disorders, against the 350 Americans who live here, and by extension the other 8 billion on the planet whom America has historically supported. We won't be able to help anyone, much less ourselves, if they dismantle our government as they are assiduously doing. It's the equivalent of a planet-wide mass shooting. The danger is ever clearer. We must re-elect Biden and gain four years to undo this horror. It's unfolding noticeably now, but there's still time to turn it back. Do something today. Make a call. Write a letter. Give more money. Talk to a neighbor. Run for office. Make some noise.
Amen. Alito and Thomas are a disgrace. I wouldn't want to sit next to either of them or their pal Trump in my high school cafeteria. You know though, as I think about your good comment, I realize neither Alito, Thomas, nor Trump are the puppet masters. They are outsiders who want to hang with the "cool kids" -- the rich, the powerful, and the WASPish. Thomas is still smarting from not getting all those offers after law school to prestigious white shoe law firms and is happy to do the bidding of whichever rich person will tell him his achievements of mind are not fifth rate....remember when Thomas scarcely spoke for years on the court. The man lives in small-minded fear. Alito's father is an immigrant from one of the poorest regions in Italy, Calabria, and had a life as a teacher and for many years a small cog in the administrative state the one son Sam wants to dismantle, and Sammy loves to pick up honorary degrees and praise from Catholic colleges which have the same chip on their shoulder when people question their legitimacy. He can only react with scorn and hauteur. And Donald? Jeez. He fears hess never looks comfortable around other people who secretly have contempt for him, even when they are singing Happy Birthday. His niece had him pegged. He fears he's a loser and will assert to his last breath any lie that will shield him from that attack. You can say I am being an arm-chair psychologist, but I've been around guys like this all my life and when someones try to figure out what makes them tick. These guys have no guilt, no inner lives that we can see, no suspicion that they might be wrong, and those rich people who are pulling the strings don't give a hoot about them or their position. These guys dfdfdkffkfthink they are in control and notice how people keep praising Trumps strength and command when there is nothing there. He's an empty suit. Many people are catching on. As you say, "Do Something Today." We must
en-courage one another, fight the self-talk of despair and work for the day is short.
Federal marshalls protect Clarence Thomas and Alito. Who or what protects us from Thomas and Alito?
Our votes!
The most important asset we have. Mobilize 80 million non voters to pull the lever as their weapon.
Also, please help register new voters.
Field Team 6 (www.fieldteam6.org) uses a multi-platform approach (phone-banking, text archade, BYOP texting, writing postcards, and "Social Storming" to register Democrats or Democratic-leaning voters in swing states and districts. (They also provide training over Zoom to register voters in person). I have been writing postcards to unregistered women in House district NC-01. Check out this epidode of PoliticsGirl with FT6 founder Jason Berlin here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVUsBHUBvS8&t=8s
Again, call Durbin 202 224 2152, Raskin 202 225 5341, AOC 202 225-3965, or Goldman 202-225-7944. Call them today, right now. Leave a message. Tell them to impeach Sam and Clarence. Tell them Americans need their help because we can't do it ourselves by voting. Tell them (especially Durbin) to get off their butts and do more.
Ok now what?
Along with the others joining the opinion.
Thomas, Alito, and Gorsuch. They all bring a stain on the previously revered Supreme Court.
The image I have is red blood
“SHAME” written on their robes.
Mr Hubbell’s summation was hard to read, it was so angering. It must have been infuriating to write.
Kavanaugh, Barrett, and Roberts as well. The so-called "Chief" Justice is our country's greatest disappointment. No spine. No integrity.
...and he was made "Chief Justice" by George W. in 2005. Please read: https://www.vox.com/21211880/supreme-court-chief-justice-john-roberts-voting-rights-act-election-2020
As usual, you brilliantly put into words my outrage, fear and pain. Thank you! Thanks too to your managing editor.
What a Supreme Court terrible decision regarding bump stocks.
The triumph of the abstract over the real, the theoretical over the actual, choosing death over life. The legal equivalent of “How many angels are there on the head of a pin?” The Six Supremes have their heads stuck in the clouds, while some accept lavish unreported gifts to fly and cruise and snooze. I held a much lower position (family/child custody mediator in the California Superior Court system), and was held to a much higher ethical standard, that included avoiding even the appearance of bias. The majority of the Supreme Court have let the word “Supreme” go to their heads, accountable to no one.
When I litigated against the SEC, I would frequently meet government lawyers in conference rooms across the country to take depositions. The hosting law firm would usually bring in a platter of sandwiches for the lawyers and witnesses. One SEC trial lawyer would gladly accept a sandwich and chips, then reach in his pocket, pull out a ten-dollar bill to pay for the sandwich and chips, and ask for a receipt. That is how most federal employees conduct themselves.
That’s a high standard, and discipline!
I did inspections for the feds, and in the US companies would know better than to ply us with food. In Europe however, they tried. I always paid them back. They’d protest, I told them buy candy for your staff!
Lawyering at its worst, abstract word-play disconnected from life in the real world.
We seem to be at the point where SCOTUS rulings seem preordained. All that isn’t fully predictable is the rationalizations the SCOTUS majority concocts for their rulings.
To use a metaphor of the ice berg, the rulings are the tips of the iceberg. What is below the surface. I have one hypothesis: the Catholic judges are echoing the traditional Catholic conservative positions, overt and covert, that a researcher can find in various Catholic bishops statements. I’ll give an example re IVF in another message. Much has been written about Evangelicals for Trump. Similarly much could be written about Catholics (not all) for Trump. E.g. See Pro Publica articles on Leo Leonard. I write as one from a very Catholic background, who has evolved beyond.
While I have not, yet, evolved beyond. Catholicism. Ultra conservative Catholic are in no way REAL Catholics, they are a Sect. Pope Frances is trying to deal with them. It's those DAMN pro lifers that have become cult members that have been swallowed whole.
I doubt that even Pope Francis would go as far as these crazy two are going.
Thank you Robert. Truly. My younger brother was murdered on Nov 22, 1984 in New Orleans. Not in a mass shooting, but that doesn’t matter. A gun is a gun, and Mark has been dead for almost 40 years. He was 17. Your title is the right one. I agree with Jill. My heart goes out to all of the victims of mass shootings and individual shootings and to the heartbroken families and friends who are left behind. Thank you for this piece today. Thank you, thank you.
Thank you for sharing the memory of your brother.
https://takeaction.sandyhookpromise.org/a/ads-assault-weapons
As I had already mentioned in another Substack, the Sandy Hook child victims should have been graduating this month from high school with their classmates. When nothing changed in this country in the years after Sandy Hook, I despaired of any definitive action being taken, ever. The SCOTUS ruling sadly seems to confirm that pessimistic opinion. I hope that somehow though there will be change seen in my lifetime.
JustRaven, Thanks for that extra perspective. The class of 2024 is smaller than it should be. I hope the graduating 18-year-olds vote with their former classmates in mind.
I hope someone is organizing a compassionate effort to make sure that graduating class is all registered and all educated about the crucial importance of casting a vote, and, in this case casting a vote against gun violence by voting for Pres. Biden.
I am sickened this morning. The only silver lining I see is that with this decision and others no doubt to come soon, the court will send at least a few hundred thousand more votes our way in November.
My thoughts as well. JustRaven notes that nothing changed after Sandy Hook and that is deeply disturbing.
Thank you, JustRaven. What a chilling reminder of the callous disregard for human life our country has. And one wonders how the SCOTUS majority can balance their reification of weapons of war with their desire to elevate a cluster of human cells to holding unalienable rights? Needless to say, I am Supremely disturbed by this latest travesty of justice by SCOTUS.
I’ll be the first to put a target on my chest. I’ll be wearing a Biden Tee and Grocery shopping for some protest juice boxes at My Florida Publix. Why Juice boxes? because that’s what bump stocks will put holes in all too soon. It’s bad enough my 9-year-old has to do active shooter drills.
Why grocery shopping in Biden Tee? It’s a media strategy for Dems to be visible en masse. Nearly 500 Tees have sold since Robert Hubble first elevated that concept. There are 143 grocery shopping days until 11/5. That’s a lot of eyeballs on a $30 message that the SCOTUS can count their days.
🛒👕
If you’re as angry as I am,
Shopping while Blue feels like doing something.
And you can do it EVERY TIME you get angry with MAGA, proud of Biden, or need spaghetti sauce.
Tee shirts here:
DemsMakeLifeBetter.org
BeantownStrong.org 💙
Ok, I bought one. I live in Arizona. I genuinely have a faint worry that someone might shoot me because I'm wearing it. But I am thinking we may have to go to the ramparts soon anyway. I guess I am willing to put my life on the line for my country (Yes, I think it's that important.) Especially if it gets big media headlines if I get killed! -;)
I was afraid of that too. So for my first few Biden Shirt Grocery trips in January I wore a Santa hat too… because… who would shoot Santa?! Anyway 50 trips later. In Florida. Not a single negative response. And zero bullets. Trust it will be okay. It will.
Thank you. That helps. I may also get a Santa hat, though. Love that idea.
Our Law Enforcement guardians are already
fearful of being “outgunned”. ( I remind you of the cowering in Uvalde and the delayed response at Pulse.)
Let us encourage Police organizations to chime in with concern —and outrage.
I can very well remember how the Republicans and other conservatives under a more liberal Supreme Court, used to screech, moan and froth at the mouth about the Court "legislating" from the Bench. Now that they have their purchased partisan Supremes, how odd that we hear absolute silence from the RWNJ's about activist Justices and legislating from the Bench. Clarence Thomas should be summarily impeached for his opinion which is based on what he knows very well is a fabricated LIE about the way a bump stock functions. What utter scum that man is.
Don’t blame only Clarence Thomas. Five other SCOTUS members signed onto his Opinion.
The entire SCOTUS majority is culpable.
Six SCOTUS INjustices...Yup--you are quite correct. Each and every one of them should be hauled off to a REAL court where they would be prosecuted by honest, knowledgeable lawyers in front of a jury of people who have lost loved ones from gun violence.
Yes – they are accomplices in gun deaths and injuries.
And a great judge like Merchan!
You are exactly right on the title. Thank you, Robert and Jill. "Someone must speak for the dead… and the grieving."
"The Court is inflicting ... injury on ... Americans[,] ... denying the dignity and personhood of women[,] ... disenfranchising the descendants of enslaved people[,] ... threatening the climate[,] ... making society a more violent, dangerous place where everyone can carry a machine gun."
All of this in retaliation for our attempts to hold them accountable, perhaps?
Hold them accountable by sweeping the election. Register more Democrats to increase the members of SCOTUS.
https://www.fieldteam6.org/
There is NO guarantee even with a majority the court will be expanded.
True, but absent a firm majority, the attempt won't even be made. Such a majority could also legislate appropriate restrictions to replace the regulations that have been struck down.
No, that's exactly what they were groomed and put in place for by the Federalist Society.
Your title is exactly accurate.
I lived in Newtown, CT till recently (Sandy Hook is a section of Newtown).
I went a step further in a post I made on FB (I rarely make political comments there anymore - I leave that to Twitter)
What I said:
*Warning* - political post (and I'm not saying it how I would like to say it).
For deaths from people using bump stocks, certain Supreme Court Justices should be indicted for accessory to murder. Basing their decision on an out-and-out lie by unethical Justice Thomas is disgusting, despicable, and contributing to the insane amount of gun violence in the U.S.
And what about the Justices who joined his opinion? He couldn't do it alone. He needed at least 4 others to go along with his lie.
That's why I wrote "Justices" - plural - "certain Supreme Court Justices"
Of course, most of those are usurpers and not legally on the Court (in my opinion).
accessory to murder ✅
Today’s Edition was very powerful and the outrage was significant and rightfully so. To a layperson like myself the decision yesterday was another example of MAGA supported justices bending and ignoring the law to make it fit their conservative and paid for agenda. This decision is another in a line of decisions that are not supported by a majority of Americans and in a way is giving the finger to the American voter. Decisions like this highlight the frustration and feelings of despair felt by many because we don’t see any clear actionable way to correct the problem. We are stuck. What does have to happen is the Democratic Party must use these decisions as a battle cry and get voters to respond to the message “ elect me and together we will fix the Supreme Court. “. We need to win not only the presidency but down ballot races and secure an overwhelming majority. The Supreme Court needs to be on the ballot.
Democrats must find the strength and conviction to get rid of the filibuster and blue slips, should we keep the Senate.
We need a large majority to make that happen
There is no question in my mind that the vicious Thomas has been bought by the gun lobby - why else would someone be as craven as this to allow machine guns to enter our fragile democracy / he truly is a scourge to our nation !
He did not do it alone. The gun lobby is very rich and generous.
He did not do it alone: *five other members of SCOTUS signed onto Thomas’s Opinion.*
I think Thomas is still an angry black man with power and it’s his way to tell all of us to “ go f**K yourself.
If only we had listened to Anita Hill. Or to the woman who accused Kavanaugh. These people are reprehensible, and they don’t care. They have their lifetime appointments. I hope the Dems will sweep, and at least cut their funding or limit what cases they can hear. Of course, packing the Court would be my first choice. But I’m a realist………….
Yesterday was truly a day of mourning with the SCOTUS decision.
It is frustrating that so many local voters are unaware of legislation our state representatives are sponsoring/supporting to provide citizens access to weapons of war. Please research and contact your representatives about proposed legislation, write Letters to Ed, and share with your circle and beyond.
Some of my Florida legislators often refer to the “grooming” of our children.When I’m confronted with the “horrors” of the drag show story hours I like to point to the gun manufacturer, Wee1Tactical ,that produces the JR-15, an assault rifle for children.
A voter laughed at me when I stated this was the true “grooming”of children. She didn’t believe there was a JR-15.Well, it is truly unbelievable.How did we get here ?
I’ll be shopping while BLUE today. Join me….👕🛒
We've been "grooming" our students for mass shooters. Period. As a teacher, I went through the drills knowing full well there was nothing in my 80 year old classroom that would protect my kids. Our room was maybe 10 yards from the front door and another 15-20 yards from the street. Two wood glass-paned doors, very small closet with a wood door. As my principal admitted "performative"