Monday, October 31, 2022

The idiot Clarry Thomas

 Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Hot Topics With THE PEW" went up Saturday.


another pew


Two things today.  First, Clarry Thomas.  Each day he proves how unfit he is to serve on the bench.  Today, it's this:


“I’ve heard the word diversity quite a few times, and I don’t have a clue what it means,” he told an attorney representing the University of North Carolina who tried to explain the educational benefits of diversity in defending the school’s admissions program.

Thomas, the court’s second Black justice and a longtime affirmative action critic, said he didn’t “put much stock” in North Carolina Solicitor General Ryan Park’s argument “because I’ve heard similar arguments in favor of segregation too.”



I'm sorry but if a grown adult does not know what the word "diversity" means, then it's time to remove them from the bench.  Cognitive problems explain a great deal when it comes to Clarry Thomas.

Next topic.



Over 500 literary figures have signed an open letter demanding Penguin Random House shut down a book deal with Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett valued at $2 million over her vote to overturn Roe v. Wade.

In the letter, the progressive signers claimed that while they "care deeply about freedom of speech," they also believe it is important for publishers to uphold their own dedication to the First Amendment with a "duty of care."

"We recognize that harm is done to a democracy not only in the form of censorship, but also in the form of assault on inalienable human rights," the letter states. "As such, we are calling on Penguin Random House to recognize its own history and corporate responsibility commitments by reevaluating its decision to move forward with publishing Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s forthcoming book."



That is censorship and people should be ashamed of themselves.

I will not be buying the book.  I will also do what I always do when I come across books like this, bury them behind other books.  But she has every right to be published and to try to stop her from being published is censorship.

You don't like the book?  Don't buy it.  But don't worsen the climate by trying to intimidate a publisher into not publishing a book.  That doesn't help anyone. 

 

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

 Monday, October 31, 2022.  On Halloween, the snapshot is a plethora of treasures, a grab bag of them.


Starting with Eric London (WSWS):

The decision by the entire congressional slate of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) members and DSA-backed representatives to rescind a letter to Joe Biden calling for peace talks with Russia increases the likelihood of direct conflict between the US and Russia and raises the risk of nuclear war.

The DSA’s endorsement of US imperialism’s war against Russia in Ukraine is not a break with the DSA’s history. On the contrary, it is the latest (and most dangerous) iteration of the organization’s pro-imperialist political essence.

Less than 24 hours after 30 of its members published the letter to Biden last Monday, the House Progressive Caucus issued a statement not only rescinding the letter, but calling for prosecuting the war “until Ukrainian victory.” A week has passed the letter signed by DSA members Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Cori Bush (D-MO) and Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) was withdrawn, and none has made any statement about the cowardly reversal or even tweeted on the subject. 

On October 25, the WSWS contacted Ocasio-Cortez’s press office and asked, “Does Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez oppose the decision by the leadership of the Progressive Caucus to withdraw the letter calling for a negotiated settlement to the war in Ukraine? If so, we’d like to give her the chance to say so on the record.” The congresswoman’s office acknowledged receipt of the question but did not give an answer.

DSA-endorsed Ilhan Omar has spoken publicly about the 24-hour reversal, claiming she withdrew her signature from the original letter because of “timing” and because “the letter was a response to intel we were getting” in late June, evidently from the Pentagon and CIA, about the danger of escalation. This explanation is disingenuous, since the danger of nuclear war has only increased, with Biden declaring earlier in October that the world is on the verge of “Armageddon.” In reality, the DSA slate withdrew their signatures because Nancy Pelosi told them to on behalf of Wall Street and the military.

Significantly, Omar responded to questions about her reversal by attacking opponents of war. In a series of tweets, she said those who claim the DSA members are “war mongers” for rescinding their signatures are merely promoters of Russian “internet disinformation.”

Omar re-tweeted a thread by a Huffington Post reporter denouncing “the fringe [for] attempting to suggest… that progressives who support Ukraine—the vast majority, from Bernie to Ilhan & AOC—are war-mongers.” She also pledged to vote for additional military spending for the war, even as the Biden administration does next to nothing to provide support to tens of millions of Americans confronting rising inflation, poverty and the ongoing spread of COVID-19 in their schools and workplaces.

Bernie Sanders, (I-VT), another DSA-backed candidate, was asked about the initial letter calling for negotiations: “I don’t agree with that, and they don’t agree with it apparently,” he said, perhaps not intending the insult.

The call for war until “Ukrainian victory” is indistinguishable from the position of the most extreme elements of the military-intelligence apparatus of which the DSA is a part. In fact, their silence places them to the right of figures like Ro Khanna (D-CA), a member of the Progressive Caucus who represents Silicon Valley, who defended the letter and called for negotiations.

The only semi-official attempt at damage control by a DSA leadership body on the 24-hour reversal was issued by the DSA’s International Committee via its Twitter account on October 28.


If we could, we'd quote it in full.  It's riveting and it's an important -- especially when it goes into the historical aspect.  


You can also refer to Eric London's Twitter feed.





 

There's a lot to cover every day so, for the record, we're not interested in the wealthy bisexual who let what he hoped was rough trade into his highly secure home for a tryst only to be attacked.  So sorry, let others fret over that story. Yes, it is my neighborhood but, as a neighbor said on Saturday, "We've all told our sons not to go in that home when his wife's not there."  Yes, we have and for good reason.


Speaking of rollover boys, Denny Kuccinich.  I love how Aaron Mate is never weighed down by facts or reality.  Which is how he can take THE GRAYZONE and lie that Denny Kay "led Congressional opposition to the Iraq War."  That would be news to so many who lived through that reality.  But of course Aaron Mate's War On Women demands that he erase all their efforts and award wishy-washy Denny Kay with a year book credit he never earned.

US House Rep Maxine Waters was the chair of the Out of Iraq Caucus, for example, not Denny. Along with Maxine, Lynn Woolsey and Barbara Lee led on that.  Not Denny Kay.


Denny Kay caved on Iraq and did so at the 2004 DNC convention.  I know, I was there and got stuck cleaning up his mess.  A Denny Kay supporter wailing at how Denny had just betrayed Iraq and I was left to calm her down and explain to her that a Kucinich always caves.  


Years later, Dennis would loudly and repeatedly -- and rightly -- say that ObamaCare was not universal care for all and that he would not vote for it.  But Barack needed his vote so they took a little planetrip together and 'brave' Denny, when he got off the flight, noted he would now be voting for ObamaCare.  On the flight, Barack had told him how they could redistrict Denny out of office.  Stupid Denny then went along with Barack only for them to redistrict him out of office.


That's brave Denny Kay, that's the man Aaron pimps today.  By the company they keep, please remember, by the company they keep.  And also remember that Denny's done nothing in the nearly ten years since being out of Congress . . . except cash those checks from FOX NEWS.  


At some point, Aaron Mate might need to explain why he repeatedly ignores women and strips them of their accomplishments.  Then again, he's on the faux left and they never have to face much reality, do they?


Like Aaron, Twitter thinks it can get away with a great deal.





Note the second Tweet above.


As we pointed out on Saturday, Twitter is censoring this image. (click on "VIEW TWEET" above if you don't believe me):



Of that photo, they say, "The following media includes potentially sensitive content. Change settings"


And that's the sad world that we live in, that photo is censored.  



 AFP notes, "A gas tanker exploded in Baghdad on Saturday night killing at least nine people and injuring 13 others, security forces said, adding that it was an accident."  KURDISTAN 24 adds, "Prime Minister Mohammad Shia’ Al-Sudani and President Latif Rashid have both asked for an immediate probe into the deadly incident."  Why a probe?  Maybe they're not sure if it was an accident.  NEWS 84 MEDIA states, "Officials said on condition of anonymity that it was unclear at this time whether the explosion was due to a technical fault or a targeted attack. The blast came two days after Iraq’s parliament approved a new cabinet in a long-awaited vote, which was described as a major breakthrough in de-escalating ongoing political tensions in the country."


In other news, Chenar Chalak (RUDAW) reports:                                                                             

The mother of a former opposition bloc head in the Kurdistan Region parliament told reporters on Sunday that medical reports have concluded that her son was “poisoned” and that he is receiving treatment abroad, in light of repeated remarks from the bloc denying the seriousness of his illness.

The New Generation Movement (NGM) last week alerted Kazim Faruq, former head of the bloc, that he must stop accepting his salaries as an MP and “return the money which he has received for the last year and seven months” due to his inactivity.

Faruq’s family responded to the comments of the NGM, telling Rudaw and other media outlets that the reason the MP has not been seen publicly is because he has been receiving treatment in hospitals abroad for several months, without specifying where he is being treated.

“We took him [Faruq] abroad… and they [foreign doctors] told us your son has been poisoned,” Akhtar Ahmad, Faruq’s mother, told reporters in front of her house in Sulaimani on Sunday, noting that the family cannot reveal where the MP is because they can no longer tell “who is an enemy and who is a friend.”


Twitter has several Tweets about this development including:


Of course, if you go back a month, you'll also find this:



Meanwhile, THE PEOPLE'S DISPATCH notes The October Revolution:


This October marks the third anniversary of the 2019 popular protests in Iraq. On Tuesday, October 25, a large number of people gathered in the Tahrir square in capital Baghdad and paid homage to the people who were killed in the protests. They raised slogans in support of what has been termed by the protesters as the Tishreen movement.  

The countrywide protests in 2019, rooted in the long-term grievances of people against successive governments, went on for months. Before the global COVID-19 outbreak forced them to end, the protests were successful in forcing the then government led by Adil Abdul Mahdi to resign, putting the ruling classes on the defensive and pressing for reforms.  

Caretaker prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, who came to power in May 2020 after months of uncertainty, had promised to deliver on some of the major demands raised by the protesters, including rebuilding the economy and punishing those guilty for the deaths of over 600 people including protesters and others. 

Three years down the line and with a new government on the horizon, none of these promises have been met. This is likely to lead the vast majority of pro-reformers pushing for their demands in the coming days. 

Economic and political aspects of the protests 

The 2019 protests were one of the largest in Iraq’s history since the 2003 US invasion. Long-term grievances regarding inefficiency of successive administrations and the widely perceived corruption among the ruling establishment were at the center of the public anger. In their slogans, the protesters repeatedly denounced the failure of the system created under the supervision of the US occupation in tackling the issues faced by the people, such as rising poverty, unemployment, and basic services delivery. 

At the time of the protests, the official rate of poverty in the country of approximately 40 million people was rising. Even before the pandemic hit in 2020, the poverty rate had risen to above 31%. Oil-rich Iraq witnessed an unprecedented rise in poverty during the COVID-19 outbreak. While the government claimed that the poverty rate was coming down after the pandemic, a large number of Iraqis are still forced to live a life as paupers.  

Since oil revenues make up the bulk of Iraq’s federal budget – around 96% – the economy remains vulnerable to market fluctuation. 

Iraqi youth, who make up the majority of the population, were at the center of the 2019 protests. The unemployment rate among the youth – fresh graduates from the university and others – was above 40% at the time of the protests.

The majority of Iraqis were forced to live without the basic amenities such as power, sanitation, and health care. Protesters claimed that these failures on the economic front were the result of inefficiency and corruption of the ruling elite. They also pointed to structural reasons such as the system of Muhasasa or sectarian quota based on distribution of political posts for this inefficiency and corruption.


We'll wind down with this from Ms. Magazine:


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Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Hot Topics With THE PEW" went up Saturday.  The following sites updated:


Posted by at

Thursday, October 27, 2022

Impeach him

 Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Psychic Hillary's Pre-Emptive Denial."


psychichillary

 

I love that comic.  You did get the phone number, right?  The numbers on a phone would spell it out T-R-A-V-E-L-G-A-T-E.

 

 Remember yesterday's "Impeach Clarence Thomas"?


 



jake_iw@yahoo.c.../Inbox

stan rebecca mike ruth elaine

Oct 27 at 8:45 PM
PrintRaw message
Common Ills <common_ills@yahoo.com>
To: Jake Whatley <jake_iw@yahoo.com>




"We are so honored and proud to have brought Nancy Drew's iconic determination, individuality and resilience to life in a years-long collaboration with incredible creative talents in front of the camera, behind the scenes and among our studio and network partners," showrunners Noga Landau and Melinda Hsu Taylor said in a statement Wednesday.

"Our hearts are full of gratitude, knowing that we are able to bring this chapter to a close with intentionality, inclusivity and kindness -- and of course with plenty of sleuthing twists, supernatural scares and star-crossed romance along the way. We are especially indebted to our wonderful fan community, whose connection with our themes and stories has meant the world to us. Season 4 will be a worthy and resonant payoff for their continued love and support."


I wasn't a fan of the show but I wasn't meant to be.  It served its target audience well and had a strong following.  The cancellation is just further proof that DISCOVERY doesn't know what it's doing and should never have been allowed to merge with WARNER BROS.

They are throwing away their brand and they have nothing to replace it with.  It's awful.

PEACOCK should be worried too.  GIRLS5EVA is moving to NETFLIX.  ONE OF US IS LYING, THE VAMPIRE ACADMY and MACGRUBER.  So far that is really it for PEACOCK shows worth watching.  GIRLS5EVA wasn't great but it was watchable.  (And they made a big mistake by losing Vanessa Williams after season one.)  NETFLIX will get to carry seasons one and two but season three will be exclusive to NETFLIX.

Big mistake for PEACOCK.  What about NETFLIX?

I'm hoping this is good news for NETFLIX.  If you missed it, NETFLIX (wrongly) thinks 3 seasons is enough for a TV show.  That's what they've moved to.  Since they are taking on GIRLS5EVA in its third season, I am hopeful that this means that they will be moving away from that three seasons only nonsense.  Their biggest streamer -- in all their years of streaming -- remains GREY'S ANATOMY and look at all the seasons that has.  Some shows should last no more than three seasons but it is a huge mistake to do that with every show.  (Especially when your season is only eight episodes.) 




update to '' from yesterday, 'the hollywood reporter' notes:




Matthew Perry is apologizing for passages in his forthcoming book, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, that reference Keanu Reeves.

Among the excerpts that have been posted online from the memoir, which hits stands Nov. 1 from Flatiron Books, are ones in which the Friends alum opens up about his own struggles with substance abuse and laments that his former co-stars River Phoenix and Chris Farley were lost to addiction while Reeves “still walks among us.”

In a statement shared to media outlets including People, Perry said, “I’m actually a big fan of Keanu. I just chose a random name, my mistake. I apologize. I should have used my own name instead.”



what a liar.  he trashes keanu twice in his book and now wants to claim he's 'a big fan.'  he's only issuing his weak statement because backlash is taking place.  

i don't understand how he thinks he can get away with this.  what he did was 'witchy' at best.  he's exposed his true self.  he went to the trouble of writing those insults at keanu and now he wants to act like he was playing and pull a 'woopsie!'  and we'll all be fooled?

matthew, you're not that good of an actor.


Laws are supposed to exist for a reason.  Why have them if they're not applied?  Some people are above the law apparently -- people like Ron Klain.  Who?  WIKIPEDIA explains:


Ronald Alan Klain (/ˈkleɪn/ KLAYN; born August 8, 1961) is an American attorney, political consultant, and former lobbyist serving as White House chief of staff under President Joe Biden. A Democrat, he was previously chief of staff to two vice presidents, Al Gore from 1995 to 1999 and Biden from 2009 to 2011. He was also appointed by President Barack Obama as White House Ebola Response Coordinator after the appearance of Ebola virus cases in the United States, serving from 2014 to 2015.[3] Throughout 2020 he worked as a senior advisor to Biden's presidential campaign.[4][5] Following his victory, Biden announced on November 12 that Klain would serve as White House chief of staff.[6][7]

He's served in the White House from 1995 to 1999 and against from 2009 to 2011.  And he's a lawyer.  And he's a lobbyist.  

Grasp that.

Because he broke the law.  THE DAILY MAIL explains:




In the letter, Galindo-Marrone wrote that Klain violated the Hatch Act's 'official authority prohibition' and also its 'solicitation prohibition.'

'Strike PAC's message thanking President Biden served to further the group's nationalized strategy of promoting Democrats as the party that delivers on its promises to voters. By retweeting this message, Mr. Klain used his official Twitter account to promote a partisan political group's interests and, therefore, OSC has concluded that he violated the Hatch Act's use of official authority prohibition.'

'In addition, Strike PAC's tweet constituted a solicitation for political contributions because it encouraged others to buy the group's merchandise. A political contribution is defined as any gift, subscription, loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value, made for any political purpose (i.e., to promote or oppose a partisan political group),' Galindo-Marrone continued.

'The sale of Strike PAC's merchandise supports the group's objective of electing Democrats, and so the purchase price is a political contribution for purposes of the Hatch Act. Thus, Strike PAC's tweet solicited political contributions, and because Mr. Klain retweeted this message, he also violated the Hatch Act's solicitation prohibition.'




OSC found that Klain violated the Hatch Act, but wrote in the letter that they will not pursue disciplinary action.

'We understand that he promptly removed the retweet upon being notified of this complaint. Accordingly, we have decided not to pursue disciplinary action and will close this matter.'

'Mr. Klain has been warned that if in the future he engages in activity prohibited by the Hatch Act while employed in a covered position, OSC would consider such activity to be a willful and knowing violation of the law that could result in disciplinary action,' she concluded.

Last year,  the Office of Special Counsel found that members of the Trump administration - at least 13 - repeatedly violated the Hatch Act, including White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.



Unacceptable.

And it goes to the corruption that Americans despise.

He knew the law, he broke it.  He didn't delete the Tweet until the complaint came in."

He is a public official and needs to be held to the law.  He should have honestly been fired.  He's a 61-year-old crook.  And the fact that he wasn't punished goes to how there is no accountability and to Joe Biden's own corruption.

The law is the law -- it's not a guideline.

And then there's this:






Politico founding editor John Harris claimed that Democrats are so nervous about losing their congressional majority in the upcoming midterm elections that many of them are already pointing the finger at one another and asking, "Why do we suck?"

In a column for Politico Magazine, titled, "Democrats Debate Themselves: Why Do We Suck?," Harris described these pessimistic Democrats as performing "an autopsy on a living patient."

Although the editor opened his column with the acknowledgment that Democrats haven’t lost anything yet, he noted that there are "Plenty of prominent party voices" who are preparing to incur losses. He wrote, "Many Democrats believe there is already sufficient evidence to make the question unavoidable: What the hell is our problem?"

The author provided several examples of these anxious Democratic Party leaders doing some "soul-searching," as he later described in his piece. Citing a recent interview of former President Barack Obama on the "Pod Save America" podcast, Harris noted that Obama thinks the party has gone "too woke."


Rule of thumb, if Barack says it, he's wrong.  As for being 'too woke,' what party is he speaking of?  What politicians are too woke?  I'm not seeing it.  Give us some names, Barry.  

They suck but they suck because (Fraud Squad) they have no backbone.  They suck because they refuse to hold their own accountable -- like Klain getting away with breaking the law.  Or, for that matter, Hunter Biden.  When a majority of registered voters think there needs to be an investigation into Hunter Biden and Joe's not doing it, the Democratic Party is on the wrong side of the people.  So sorry if you can't grasp that.

Then there's sending $65 billion to nazis and racists in Ukraine while Americans suffer. 


THE GOLDBERGS?  Adam through a tantrum because Dave Kim dared try to grow up.  Adam needs to grow up.  This is getting really bad, really, really bad.  In other news, Bev challenged Geoff but in the end even she had to admit he was good with the new baby.  (His child.)

If I don't offer more than that it's because the Adam story was way too much.  It's embarrassing. 





THE INDEPENDENT notes the following about Jon Stewart:






Stewart made clear he thought the situation was a clear case of corruption during a recent episode of his podcast, The Problem with Jon Stewart, Mediaite reports. He spoke with British reporter Gabriel Gatehouse about politics at large. During the conversation, Mr Gatehouse criticsed attempts in the media to downplay the Hunter Biden laptop story.




“Turned out that not only was it real, but the FBI had the bloody laptop all this time. Hadn’t really looked on it. Hadn’t figured out — And then it took the establishment media in the US the New York Times and the Washington Post, let’s say the kind of, you know, the big boys… It took them nearly two years to go through the laptop as you expect they would do,” Mr Gatehouse said.

[. . .]

Stewart agreed that the president’s son having a position on the board was corruption: "To me, that’s corruption, straight off the bat.”

He went on to say that Hunter Biden’s connections to the holding company were a much bigger issue of concern than whatever was contained on his laptop.

“It’s not even that, I’m not surprised. It’s that it’s corrupt on its face,” Stewart said. “I don’t need a laptop with like a hint of circumstantial evidence. Now tying Joe Biden to it, that’s gonna take some digging.”

Stewart said that "the idea that nepotism would allow much larger amounts of money to flow into the hands of people unqualified to be in the positions that they’ve been accepted because you think those countries are trying to buy influence — yeah."

"Welcome to the f****** world," he said. "And I think it’s a huge problem on its face. Forget about any secret laptop."



Staying on the topic of corruption and Hunter Biden, NEWSWEEK notes:





A majority of voters believe that allegations surrounding President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, should be investigated by Congress, according to a new USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll published Thursday.

While 75 percent of the poll's 1,000 likely midterm voters surveyed between October 19 and 24 said an investigation would happen if the GOP gains control of the House, 52 percent believe such a probe is "warranted." Eighty-four percent of Republicans and 22 percent of Democrats support a congressional probe.














Cunningham, who let out a “wow” before his response to the governor’s remarks, broke down why he believed McMaster was taking the state backward.

“It’s 2022, and Gov. McMaster wants to ban same-sex marriage. ... We have politicians that have been in government so long and have become so calcified in their beliefs, and Gov. McMaster has been a politician literally longer than I’ve been alive. And he’s been taking our state backwards the entire time,” Cunningham said. “Gov. McMaster has been leading South Carolina into the 1950s since the 1980s.”

Cunningham later said he doesn’t think it’s the government’s role to get in the middle of who you are and who you love. McMaster replied that he didn’t care who anyone loves but that marriage should be a “special institution” reserved for one man and one woman.





Title 28, Section 455 of the United States Code is the federal statute that applies to Thomas. It provides: “Any justice, judge, or magistrate judge of the United States shall disqualify himself in any proceeding in which his impartiality might reasonably be questioned" or his spouse "is known by the judge to have an interest that could be substantially affected by the outcome of the proceeding."


The statute says "shall" — meaning, this is not discretionary. Congress has imposed on federal judges a mandatory duty to disqualify themselves if their impartiality might be reasonably questioned. It does not matter whether Thomas issued Graham’s desired stay or denied it; he wasn’t supposed to rule at all.

Unfortunately, the statute includes no method to enforce it. Obedience to the law thus depends upon the honor of the justice or judge. Any justice in Thomas’ position who was concerned about the Supreme Court’s legitimacy — or his own integrity — would have recused himself.

 

The best thing that could happen for the country and for justice would be for Clarry Thomas to be impeached.


 

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

Thursday, October 27, 2022.  A lot of silence . . . 



We're going to start with an important event that we also noted yesterday.  





The Congressional Progressive Caucus on Tuesday withdrew a letter that mildly expressed support for diplomatic negotiations to end Russia's war on Ukraine as the document's 30 signatories faced a torrent of criticism and hysterical backlash from fellow Democrats, party leaders, and pundits on social media.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), the chair of the CPC, said in a statement that the letter addressed to U.S. President Joe Biden "was drafted several months ago, but unfortunately was released by staff without vetting"—a line that was widely seen as Jayapal throwing her staff under the bus.

"As chair of the caucus, I accept responsibility for this," she added. "Because of the timing, our message is being conflated by some as being equivalent to the recent statement by Republican Leader McCarthy threatening an end to aid to Ukraine if Republicans take over."

"The proximity of these statements," the CPC leader said, "created the unfortunate appearance that Democrats, who have strongly and unanimously supported and voted for every package of military, strategic, and economic assistance to the Ukrainian people, are somehow aligned with Republicans who seek to pull the plug on American support for President Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian forces."

Jayapal said that narrative—peddled by one Democratic leader who Politico granted anonymity to slime their colleagues as Putin apologists—could not be "further from the truth."

"Every war ends with diplomacy, and this one will too after Ukrainian victory," Jayapal continued. "The letter sent yesterday, although restating that basic principle, has been conflated with GOP opposition to support for the Ukrainians' just defense of their national sovereignty. As such, it is a distraction at this time and we withdraw the letter."

[, , ,]

Late Monday, in the face of growing backlash, Jayapal issued a statement purportedly aimed at "clarifying the position" of the letter, which was endorsed by a number of peace groups including Just Foreign Policy, Win Without War, and the Friends Committee on National Legislation.

"Let me be clear: we are united as Democrats in our unequivocal commitment to supporting Ukraine in their fight for their democracy and freedom in the face of the illegal and outrageous Russian invasion, and nothing in the letter advocates for a change in that support," Jayapal said. "Diplomacy is an important tool that can save lives—but it is just one tool."

Erik Sperling, the executive director of Just Foreign Policy, told The Intercept Monday night that "the shrill response to this utterly moderate letter exposes that war proponents are scared of an open debate about the range of potential approaches to address this escalating conflict."


Jayapal's an idiot -- Mike named her Idiot of the Week -- and there's a lot of stupidity at play here so its hard to know where to start.

But to start anything, you have to know -- so let's start there.  Yesterday, we noted WSWS's article on this.  Today, we note COMMON DREAMS.  And?

THE PROGRESSIVE should just fold shop.  It should just shutter its doors.  It claims to be:  "A voice for peace, social justice and common good."  Yet if you read it in the last years, that really comes across like a punch line, doesn't it?  They haven't stood for peace -- or anything -- in forever.  They're so fluffy that they make IN STYLE look like an investigate outlet.  They always have time to rot your brain, but THE PROGRESSIVE has no time to deal with reality and what happened is reality.

THE NATION?


Joan Walsh offers "DO WE REALLY HAVE TO CARE ABOUT MISERABLE WHITE PEOPLE?"  No, Joan, we don't have to care one bit about you.   Geoffrey Marx, apparently believing he was contributing to THE NATIONAL ENQUIRER, hands in "I WANTED A BOYFRIEND.  MY LIFE COACH TOLD ME TO BECOME A COMMODITY."  Hairball Dave Zirin jerks off to "Is Portland About to Have Two Supporter-Owned Soccer Teams?" -- the universal answer being, of course, come a nuclear war, Dave's scribbles will come off even worse.  John Nichols lands yet again on his knees in front of the DC, fully ready to demonstrate that he has no gag response with his usual nonsense that has no weight or meaning.  

This was an important moment, The Fraud Squad backing down yet again.

This was an instructive moment.

But you don't know about it if people don't cover it.

THE PROGRESSIVE, THE NATION, IN THESE TIMES and COUNTERPUNCH have elected to ignore it.  

Why?

VOTE VOTE VOTE!

Voting matters!!!!

Not if you don't hold politicians accountable.  Not if you just vote and then go silent.

Which is what political parties want.  It's natural, they need your vote.  That's all they want.  Then leave them alone and let them do the job they mistakenly believe that they're smart enough to do all on their own.

They need to be called out and they need to know that this is not acceptable.

We're getting closer to the brink of nuclear war, this is not acceptable.

And it is not acceptable that supposed 'independent' media like THE NATION, et al can't cover this as the big story that it is.

JACOBIN's worthless.  They won't cover it.  They've pimped this war all along.  Just like some on the 'socialist' left pimped the Iraq War.  A friend pimped it, self-identified as a Socialist.  I told her it was the worst mistake of her life.  She's had some fawning since her death but no real scholarly piece.  When that day comes or when a biography is written about her that her daughter doesn't screen, they'll have to deal with her stupidity of calling for the Iraq War.

Ukraine is popular with the Bette Midler crowd on Twitter.

It's not popular with the American people.

The letter the Fraud Squad issued was weak.  But it was also stupid.  In terms of being stupid, the most ignorant part was leaving out the financial cost.  Over $65 billion already pledged, another $50 billion about to be.  The American people do not like that.  As the country suffers from inflation and you can honestly spent $100 at a grocery store and leave with only two bags (as e-mails to the public account continue to note), the American people are tired of billions going overseas.

Many remember that Barack Obama, when he was president, talked of how Ukraine really wasn't an American issue, didn't have impact on this country.

It's a war of choice.  We don't need to be involved.  And considering the regime in Ukraine is racist and neo-nazi, we shouldn't be giving them a dime.  

Nor should we have instigated this conflict, but we did.

In one year, our politicians are willing to give over $110 billion to Urkaine?

While we suffer at home?

Progressive caucus, that was the first point you should have made.

The stupidity is all around.  

The only thing more shameful is the silence.


Iraq’s Prime Minister-designate Mohammed Shia Al Sudani is expected to submit his Cabinet list to Parliament on Thursday for approval, as squabbles over government posts continue between political parties.

If approved, it will end the longest political deadlock over the formation a new government in Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein’s regime.

At its height, that stalemate turned bloody when clashes broke out between Shiite militias in Baghdad's Green Zone, the heart of government that contains Parliament and foreign embassies. Dozens of people were killed and wounded.


BROS is streaming in the US and playing around the world.  





There's been a non-stop, right-wing attack on the film in the US and it's an attack on LGBTQ+.  You could help prove them wrong by seeing the film.  We'll be writing about that at THIRD so I'll just leave it at that for right now.


Let's wind down with this from MS. MAGAZINE:

 



The following sites updated:













 

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