At one time, a number of countries in Europe were thinking about leaving the EU. Then Britain did, with terrible economic effect. Few now want their own Brexit. A number of countries have been drifting to the far right. I think they're now looking at America and may well back away from fascism.

The explosion in mental health diagnosis is because it is now better understood. A benefit for those diagnosed is that they can make sense of differences and so cope and integrate better. A danger is that they excessively claim rights and assign duties, thereby alienating others.

Dolly Parton represented the real America, bringing together different people to share and find mutual understanding and collaboration. This government is the opposite. It amplifies and demonizes difference, thereby fracturing America and setting the table for another bloody civil war.

Once, the left and right could converse, exploring and settling differences in the frame of a national identity. But then competition for power arose within each group, with purity contests that polarized society. Both sides took the nation as their own, thereby claiming the moral high ground.

Three ways to win an election: 1. Declare emergency (terrorist attack, corruption, etc) & cancel/delay election 2. Destroy opponents (propaganda, scandal, etc) 3. Deflect voters (can't vote, danger, etc).

Apathology: The pathology of inaction, even if it kills. An extreme lethargic paralysis where we cannot be bothered to do that which we know desperately needs doing. Related to bystander apathy, only here we are not helping ourselves.

Or even, matching dollar for dollar, rename Lake Michigan as Lake Canada!

CALL TO ACTIVISM@calltoactivism.bsky.social · 2y ago

🚨 BREAKING: Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says he’s going to rename Lake Michigan to “Lake Illinois.” EPIC TRUMP TROLL!!! 🤣

Hegseth as president would be a shoo-in for continuity Trumpism. Crazy, corrupt bullshitter who is rather too fond of his own image. It would need a wholly broken electoral system, though. If it's possible, I suspect he's hated even more than Trump.

Ron Filipkowski@ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 2d ago

I called it. That is why he’s been traveling around the country doing political rallies at taxpayer expense in the middle of the week.

It's the Republican Magic Money Magnet game. A Republican walks by. Money flies out of your wallet and sticks to them. Hey, you say, give me back my money! They ignore you, attack you, or sue you.

Katie Phang@katiephang.bsky.social · 2d ago

NEW: A Florida grand jury finds the DeSantis Administration misappropriated $10 million in taxpayer funds when it diverted the money to the Casey DeSantis’-related nonprofit, Hope Florida Foundation. I track the money flow in this outrageous corruption and grift! youtu.be/JDOh1GUZrfs?...

It's Trump. It'll all end in failure, tears and blame. It's Trump. He always wins an inevitable lost game.

The Associated Press@apnews.com · 2d ago

BREAKING: President Trump says the U.S. has entered a deal with Venezuela to take control of 65 billion barrels of its oil reserves.

Dictatorship Part 2: 5. Create chaos. Outrage, violence, lies, etc. 6. Dominate. Blame, terrorize, corrupt, etc. 7. Seize power. Promises, subterfuge, coercion, etc. 8. Consolidate power. Dismissals, centralizing, lawfare, etc.

Dictatorship Part 1: 1. Find a common grievance and amplify it. Immigration, crime, affordability, etc. 2. Blame the state. Corruption, conspiracy, incompetence, etc. 3. Only I can fix it. Powerful, outsider, moral, etc. 4. Build a savior cult. Rallies, hierarchy, promises, etc. ...

Oh look, Canada has its own Hormuz!

Are you surprised? Nor me.

Trump – named worst U.S. president – puts out chart listing himself as number one

President Trump remains popular with Republicans, though his approval ratings are low overall and historians tend to rank him as one of the worst presidents in history

independent.co.uk

Trump has a talent for headlines that outrage. So I won't be outraged. Not about 'renaming' a lake. But definitely about how he is grinding America into the rough. Almost as if Russia was paying him to do so. apnews.com/live/trump-i...

Live updates: Trump signs order to rename Lake Ontario to 'Lake America'

President Donald Trump signed an order Thursday to rename Lake Ontario to “Lake America” in the U.S. as he intensifies a trade war with Canada. He renamed the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America" i...

apnews.com

Goodbye, Dolly. I am surprised by how sad I am at your passing. There should be a hall of fame for good people, to show us how to live and maybe motivate those with riches and power to help others more.

Belief is truth, but truth is not belief.

Goodbye, Dolly. She was a good person in a deeply troubled land.

Radio Free America@radiofreeflorida.bsky.social · 5d ago

“Find out who you are and do it on purpose." - Dolly Parton #RadioFreeAmerica #politics

Gestapo Of course Enjoy the cries Of cruelty

The Guardian@theguardian.com · 6d ago

ICE’s tactics look increasingly like torture | Judith Levine

Two key human drivers are fear and desire. There are more, but these are powerful and often negative in effect. In extreme and very selfishly, fear and desire become terror and greed. You might notice how powerful people use these to control people.

The Art of the Deal: 1. Convince them you are trustworthy or just coerce them into agreement. 2. Then screw them. It's a zero sum game. You win, suckers lose. Actually, this just creates a long line of mortal enemies.

America is a land of isolated communities, living in bounded bubbles. It is no surprise when one group's views are reported as representing 'Americans', much to the surprise and annoyance of other groups.

The only way to get energy without heating the world is renewables. Solar, wind, waves. We have enough of these. This should be our future and the greatest gift we can give to our grandchildren.

Trump does 'free' adverts for a donor at press corps tour of WH improvements.

Some people will max out every credit card they can get, then wriggle, deflect, delay, and otherwise avoid paying back their debts. Which is Trump's lifetime MO. Then when you have government debt plus billions in tax and tariff revenue at your disposal, it's just like a massive credit card...

NPR@npr.org · last wk.

The U.S. debt has surpassed $40 trillion. And, a new census report on noncitizen voting that President Trump is touting has ties to a think tank aligned with him, raising concerns among experts. n.pr/4ijVECA

For me, communism is a great idea. But there's one problem: human nature. To achieve goals, even socialist ones, people seek greater control. And then, at some point, it goes to their heads and they become dictators. Very few can withstand the temptations of authoritarianism

For MAGA voters, Trump was the great white hope. He spoke their language. He shared their bias and grievances. But he failed, deeply, on all his promises of prices, jobs, wars and more. So they'll go back to bitterness and just not voting. And hating politicians all the more.

Jon Cooper@joncooper-us.bsky.social · last wk.

Why Trump’s plummeting approval ratings are even worse than they look New data shows Trump’s die-hard followers are vanishing.

If I say I'm Catholic, it says I'm not Protestant. It can also imply I'm anti-Protestant. Similarly, I can imply being anti-Islamic by saying I'm Christian. This is not often true and context matters. However, you can see extremists grabbing the Christian label to excuse Islamophobic rhetoric.

The 2008 crash was driven by an overheated market for risky, little-understood subprime mortgages. The next financial crash could be in the overheated, risky, little-understood AI market. There's big money, big spend, big competition, and a lot of hope. Stand back! bsky.app/profile/thea...

The Atlantic@theatlantic.com · 9mo ago

If the AI revolution fails to materialize as expected, the financial consequences could be ugly, Rogé Karma argues: “The last time the economy saw so much wealth tied up in such obscure overlapping arrangements was just before the 2008 financial crisis.” theatln.tc/IXjh5rc9

AI Data Centers are becoming political. Locals see vast buildings which gobble power, drink lots of water, and offer few jobs. Republicans are mostly siding with the companies, Democrats with the locals. It's a big mid-term issue. (And this is not just in America. It's happening worldwide. )

Republicans reportedly fear datacenter backlash could cost them Ohio Senate seat – as it happened

Jon Husted campaign reportedly concerned that rival Sherrod Brown successfully channelling outrage over energy-guzzling facilities

theguardian.com