Colorado court rules on Trump ballot access: A privilege a s**tbag such as he *never* should have had to begin with

Luke Gronneberg/Sidney Daily News

Concerning the Colorado ruling: An individual of dubious character such as Donald Trump should never have been legally sanctioned to vie for the presidency in 2016, nor yet in the year 2024, given all that hath transpired. Henceforth, stricter qualifications should be imposed on a federal level to attain the privilege of the ballot. These qualifications may encompass examinations of mental competence, civic knowledge, moral rectitude, a minimum amount of government experience, background checks conducted by multiple law enforcement and national security agencies, and mayhap even the mandate of prior military service, at least for male aspirants. I have also firmly concluded that some of these same prerequisites should be met to qualify for the right to cast a vote: We are compelled to renew our driver's licenses every few years. Wherefore not introduce a voting license resting upon, at the very least, passing a rudimentary civics exam? Those who support this nation-killing jackal bear responsibility for the consequences. The year 2016 revealed the truth, and the COVID pandemic confirmed it – people at this historical moment are truly this horrible and stupid; the trend has worsened exponentially since then with no signs of improvement in the foreseeable future. Get me off this sinking ship.

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Sleepwalking into tyranny: Trump blatantly refuses to rule out abusing power if returned to the White House. Do Americans care?

Charlie Neibergall/AP

{AP 12/06: ‘Trump declines to rule out abusing power to seek retribution if he returns to the White House.’}

President Biden’s campaign manager: ‘Donald Trump has been telling us exactly what he will do if he’s reelected and tonight he said he will be a dictator on day one. Americans should believe him.’ Amen, but the real question remains: doth Americans still hold regard for the rights and freedoms of any other than themselves? Care they not if they themselves are stifled and oppressed, as long as the bread and circuses keep coming? The peril is indeed palpable and dire, yet I perceive that pleas for democracy and the rule of law fall upon deaf ears with the common American. From the four troublesome years wherein Trump was sitting president, and from the scourge of COVID, and from the memories of 9/11, and from the multitude of school shootings suffered over recent decades, and from the insurrection of January 6, people hath learned nothing!. 

Madness hath been normalized, honour and integrity are scoffed at, and the populace hath grown insensate. Meanwhile, every other post upon my timeline is venerating a pop music star, most renowned for composing ditties about her foolish ex-paramours, as if she were a deity. When will people start getting serious? We find ourselves in a murky abyss, strolling unconsciously - even knowingly and gleefully in all too many cases - towards despotism. Should President Biden not be reelected in 2024, then turn off the bloody lights, for it shall be curtains for us. Heed the president’s warnings, heed Liz Cheney’s warnings, heed the admonitions of all who still dare to trumpet the alarm. 

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Decency hath forsaken this abode. In a country fraught with ludicrous partisanship and division, denizens from both the left and the right forsake our allies, and, instead, warmly clasp hands with our most malevolent adversaries

Pray, where doth sanity and virtue reside in this bloody country? Much of the American left doth point accusing fingers at Israel in the face of assault, with too many openly applauding Hamas; all disseminating untruths they fervently wish to embrace. The true hues of Jew-hatred are becoming manifest on each side. Most of the American right doth lay blame upon Ukraine for the onslaught, with many boldly extolling Vladimir Putin and reproving (the Jewish) Mr. Zelensky; all spreading falsehoods. Extremes in both factions (arguably the majority of everybody now, the centre hath witherered) do heap blame upon the victims of terrorism, oppression, and anti-semitism. And how quick are each extreme to lay blame upon President Biden, the actual grown-up and decent, sensible human being in the room? Left and right, they cheer on the literal murderers, terrorists, and despots of their choosing, performing and thinking as their leaders dictate.

In these times, I am thoroughly repulsed and oft find myself in solitude with my steadfast beliefs. Uphold Israel, champion Ukraine, and cease the dissemination of propaganda and fabrications, predominantly spawned in the troll factories of St. Petersburg and Beijing, be it from the left or the right. If a bumbling soul and a virtual cripple such as I can discern these matters, what ails everyone else? Alas, I detest these times, and they will become darker still. Aye, far darker. Lunatics of all persuasions are steering us not merely toward a domestic civil conflict but straight into World War III. A lamentable state, indeed. Nick work, #Murica, nation of f**king imbeciles.

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

A few words for the leader of the Roman Catholic church regarding the prelate’s meetings with Israelis and their opponents

Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square. Photo: AP Photo/Andrew Medichini

AP: Pope meets relatives of Israeli hostages and Palestinians in Gaza and sets off firestorm over words - Señor Bergoglio, and all those who have need to hearken so: This war shall cease only upon the complete obliteration and dismantling of Hamas. Israel engages in battle for its very survival, it has the right to exist. As for the denizens of Gaza - much akin to adherents of #Cult45 in the 'red' states, only on a greater scale - suffer under the oppression wrought by their own kin. Cease this equivocation, bothsidesism, for it hath only contributed to the proliferation of the antisemitic rhetoric that is reaching an intolerable extent. 

I do perceive Islamists and their accomplices, as well as all who form #Cult45 in #Murica, as greatly resembling each other. The Arab Muslims dwelling in Gaza and the West Bank endure hardship for the reason that many amongst them were long since indoctrinated to accuse Jews, Christians, and anyone but their actual oppressors for their wretchedness. Especially in rural domains, the diverse factions constituting the Trump alliance suffer due to their consistent voting against their own welfare. I harbor little compassion for those who lend their support to the Fascist Trump and the traitorous modern GOP, nor do I possess much pity for most 'Palestinians.' Ye have all brought these miseries upon thyselves, and, alas, upon the rest of us as well.

Pray for peace as thou wilt, Pope Francis, but relative tranquility shall only arise through the utter destruction of the agents of death - chiefly Hamas, and all the other bands of Jihadi terrorists that ply their trade in the region. Peace for Israel shall emerge from the crucible of conflict, and none have the authority to pass judgment upon Israel for it. Across centuries, Jews have waged battles for their very survival in every corner of the globe they've dwelt. The Holocaust ought to stand as the ultimate admonition, yet multitudes in this world yearn to reenact its horrors, and their unholy numbers swell. There exists no moral equivalence; Israel must prevail, whatever the cost!

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Grand Prix auto racing on the streets of cities: How and by what right is such an event permitted?

A Grand Prix race in the nighttime streets of Las Vegas, with a scarlet race car hurtling past a grand, multicolored, and illuminated globe-shaped edifice. Upon the structure, the words 'Welcome to Las Vegas' are boldly emblazoned. The car is cornering swiftly, and the scene is bathed in the vibrant hues of the city's neon lights. Photo: Mike Blake/Reuters.

Grand Prix auto racing on the streets of cities; in this instance, Las Vegas. But how and by what right is such an event permitted? Pray tell, is this not a prime example of crony capitalism, where a private entity, with the blessing of the city's authorities, is granted the power to shutter public roadways, forcing them to be repaved not once but twice, for the sake of a mere spectacle? Such actions not only disrupt the normal flow of trade and commerce, but also severely curtail the freedom of movement of the city's inhabitants. Indeed, tales abound of workers on the renowned Strip who were forced to endure hours-long waits in parking garages, their workday extended by this arbitrary closure. Yet, one wonders, were the citizens of Las Vegas consulted in this matter? Did they clamor for this Grand Prix, a race that would bring with it the disruption of their daily lives and the expenditure of millions for infrastructure repairs? All for the sake of a noisy and dangerous contest of automobiles, whose economic benefits remain dubious at best? 

I declare this a flagrant violation of the civil liberties of Las Vegas residents, nay, of any city that is subjected to such an absurdity. Such a spectacle should find no place in a free and just society. 

Do peruse the esteemed Neil deMause's blog, 'Field of Schemes,' wherein thou shalt uncover the unscrupulous tactics employed by professional sports organizations to exploit the public's goodwill, most often with the complicity of self-serving politicians who eagerly thrust their cities and states into the path of financial ruin. A veritable awakening to the machinations of these avaricious entities. 

As a steadfast devotee of sporting contests, I find myself wrestling with an internal turmoil, torn between my enduring passion for the games and a growing disdain for the shameless commercialization that has engulfed them. This pervasive pursuit of profit has permeated every facet of the sporting realm, from the incessant barrage of ever-goofier television advertisements to the outrageous demands made by teams upon public funds. Such excesses have reached a point where our daily lives are disrupted and our hard-earned tax dollars are diverted into the coffers of millionaires and billionaires, all in the name of perpetuating these grand spectacles. This has transformed our nation into a veritable 'United States of Entertainment,' a realm where the pursuit of amusement has eclipsed all other values. Alas, this trend is but a harbinger of further excesses to come.

{READ ‘Vegas Grand Prix claims $1.2B in positive impact from closing down local businesses for a week’ from Field of Schemes 11/21}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

#OTD 1923: The infamous Beer Hall Putsch unfolded in Munich, a foreshadowing of what is happening to #Murica today

Bundesarchiv

#OTD 1923: The infamous Beer Hall Putsch unfolded in Munich, a Nazi coup d’etat bid against the Weimar government, quelled by the next day. Yet, its chief plotter, Adolf Hitler, was foolishly sentenced to but five years in prison, and freed after a mere nine months. No need to recount what followed, for we all ken the horrors that came to pass when this madman seized power in 1932. Or do we? For in our dear #Murica today, a leader who, in office, too led a failed coup, yet faces no true justice for his sedition and treachery, at most, a mere slap on the wrist. Clearly, America and much of this world hath not well heeded the lessons of history. Willful ignorance and malice that led so many in Germany to embrace Hitler, and the same holds true today in America with Donald Trump and his adherents. In 2024, cast thy vote as if thy lives and nation hang in the balance, for truly, everything is at stake this time.

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

The left-hand washing the right-hand: The epidemic of anti-Israeli and anti-Jew sentiment on the hard-left helps no one of goodwill, only tyrants

The anti-Semitic, anti-Israel faction of the Democratic Party must be silenced without delay, beginning yesterday. We have literal Nazis with designs on reclaiming the White House, and they hold a potent position in Congress. Half the land doth mindlessly lament President Biden's age, the enduring presence of COVID (as I have personally encountered of late), and a multitude of other quandaries. Yet these left-wing nutjobs wouldst instead point accusatory fingers, espouse conspiracy theories, and weep for repressive individuals who would not hesitate to slay them (and the rest of us) without a second thought. Verily, if these leftists are to extend their sympathy to a bunch of Islamist barbarians, why do they not shed tears for the plight of the ordinary Trump-supporting fellow (#Cult45)? Those fools probably hate any American to the left of Attila the Hun more than any Islamist half a world away, yet these bloody leftists cry for these foreign murderers. In a circuitous manner, here is precisely what hath transpired: The left-hand once more washes the right-hand, and all of you expressing support for the ‘Palestinians’ - however well-intentioned or not one may be - are falling for these lies, hook, line, and sinker. You are helping Donald Trump to reclaim the White House, and thine hands art stained with blood! Cast not Israel as a scapegoat, nor lay blame upon the Jews. #StandWithIsrael and stand against barbarism and repression. 

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

The Munich Agreement in our time

German Federal Archives

#OTD 1938: The vile and genocidal Munich Agreement was inked, as Neville Chamberlain, Édouard Daladier, Benito Mussolini, and Adolf Hitler did conspire and scheme to barter away Sudetenland's soil devoid of the Czechs' consent. This treachery paved the way for the Nazi invasion of Poland and World War II’s direful morass. In our time, voices too numerous clamor, both near and far, urging Ukraine to yield to Putin and Russia vast amounts of territory. Many doth point their fingers at Ukraine’s gate, laying blame at their door of fate, and whilst they extol Putin, the murderous dictator in his might. Assuming, in their feeble and faithless way, the American folk return Donald Trump to the White House in 2024, a perilous chance looms that America will align with Russia in their ongoing grievous design upon Ukraine. Let us, then, extend gratitude to President Biden and his steadfast stance in valiant defence of Zelensky and Ukraine; instead of ceaseless grumbles and cries about the financial cost, for history warns that appeasing dictators is a path always lost and far more costly. As the Great Man stated in his blunt refutation of Chamberlain, ‘you chose dishonour and you will have war,’ and that is the foolish path America hath found itself on now. I am simply astounded by these times we must endure, and what people's tragic folly and malevolence does obscure. It is likely this wretched state will worsen ere the dawn that will dispel this endless night and bring forth hope reborn.

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

America grows numb to Donald Trump and his antics

Carolyn Kaster/AP

In my own view - at least were this a logical time and place - it is past due for President Biden to admonish and remind the American populace regarding the grievous mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic by Trump. Mayhap, reminding the populace incessantly of what a tumultuous period it was may prove the most effective means to restore some semblance of rationality. Regrettably, none wish to converse any longer regarding the COVID pandemic. However, Trump's inadequacy in handling the matter ought to constitute a central theme of the President’s campaign: Trump's incompetence in addressing the COVID crisis alone - pretending he did not collude with the Russians to influence Hillary Clinton's defeat, ignoring the detrimental impact of his trade policies on the economy, forgetting his with meeting Kim Jong Un and professing to have 'fallen in love,' and even disregarding the events of January 6 - should render him unsuitable to ever again hold office. 

But do Americans still place importance on competence? Furthermore, do they retain concern for preserving the constitutional and traditional norms of our republic? Do Americans of today truly care for the truth at all? Do they hold their own rights in regard, or are they content as long as someone else faces retribution? At this moment, America finds itself in a collective state of darkness, and with time, our society will crumble entirely as individuals descend into a state of despotic insanity. Every society throughout history that has experienced such a progression - as exemplified by Germany between the World Wars - has met with defeat and annihilation, without exception. Excerpt from this fine and timely article - 

‘I don’t know that Trump won’t determinedly try to shatter major constitutional precedents once back in office. But I suspect a lot of voters who haven’t thought this through, or who feel obliged to prioritize differently, are willing to take a calculated risk that he won’t in order to rationalize voting for him for kitchen-table reasons.

‘No wonder, then, that so many of us have grown uncomfortably numb about his illiberal nonsense. What else can we do? The right-wing electorate that craves his brand of politics will abide after Trump passes from the scene, and the swing voters who decide elections seem open to accepting a paradigm shift toward post-liberalism in exchange for a slightly better economy. There’s nothing to be done. What choice do we have but to get used to it?’ 

{Read ‘Uncomfortably Numb: Trump’s getting worse. Not enough people care,’ by Nick Catoggio via The Dispatch 9/26}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Anti-vaxxer movement continues to rise, vexing the White house and anyone with common sense, decency, and sanity

Had we not a complete faction of backward, tin-foil hat-wearing rascals in our midst, mayhap we could begin to enact laws of true substance to coerce the obstinate to abide. (Or, for that matter, to commence a firm repression of these conspiracy theorists - offenders of the First Amendment - who do disseminate such refuse.) Purposeful and rebellious foolishness reigns supreme. Without any hyperbole, I verily believe the stubbornly and hatefully foolish do intend and fervently desire to eventually bring about the deaths of the rest of us. {Politico 9/20 - The anti-vaccine movement is on the rise. The White House is at a loss over what to do about it.} 

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

The response of America to two distinct media scandals involving modeling work with lesbian themes, and the implications it holds regarding our society

#OTD 1983: Vanessa Williams is crowned the first black Miss America. She would be stripped of the crown following the publication of lesbian-themed softcore photos from her modeling portfolio. In 2016, many of the same people who called for Vanessa Williams’ head took no issue with the wife of a swindler - a white Eastern European lady who likewise had done lesbian-themed modeling work - becoming First Lady of the United States. In all fairness, Vanessa Williams did recover from the scandal and forge a prosperous singing career. Nevertheless, this narrative does not present a particularly flattering portrayal of the values and inclinations of this nation.

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Has anything changed? Thoughts on the 60th anniversary of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing

AP

#OTD 1963: KKK terrorists perpetrate a bombing upon the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, AL, which resulted in the death of four children and inflicted injuries upon others. Sadly but tellingly, particularly since a certain Donald J. Trump entered the political arena with his venomous rhetoric, it hath been irrefutably demonstrated that the kind of mindset that impelled these Klansmen to commit such a heinous deed still persists; and is far more widespread than most of us have been willing to acknowledge or confess.

We all do recall the terror of June 17, 2015, when a white supremacist did slay nine congregants at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina. America has scarcely progressed any further in terms of enlightenment regarding matters of race, and is just as prone to violence and deliberate ignorance as it was in 1963. If anything, in the era of Trump, we appear to be regressing, which is a genuine affront to the memory of all those innocent souls who suffered torment and perished solely due to the color of their skin. {CNN 9/15 - 60 years after 4 little girls were killed in a KKK attack on the 16th Street Baptist Church, memories of the lives that were taken live on} 

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

What fresh hell is this? Latest CNN poll has President Biden and Donald Trump essentially tied in a likely 2024 match-up, with considerable majorities of Democrats declaring their desire for an alternative candidate

Julio Cortez/AP

CNN - Biden faces negative job ratings and concerns about his age as he gears up for 2024

What a collection of malcontented and deluded fools the inhabitants of these United States are becoming. Disloyal Democratic voters fret over President Biden - thoroughly misled by a treasonous media, and also by the president's grandstanding political adversaries - whilst the right-wing half of this land pleads for Fascism. In the meantime, President Biden's actual track record hath been one of accomplishments. The mere preservation of stability in this decaying realm is an achievement in itself. Left or right, the American populace craves and demands amusement in their politics, and that is the genuine reason why President Biden doth not enjoy greater popularity than he currently possesses. Is this who we truly desire to be? A congregation of monkeys within a zoo flinging excrement at one another, insisting that we be spared from boredom even for a fleeting moment? 

Even after enduring the myriad trials of the past few years - a pandemic, a violent coup attempt, economic turmoil, riots, and so forth - it is evident that America finds itself in a state of sheer hostility and a heedless disregard for truth and morality. We have come to esteem our frivolous diversions and causing harm to others above all else; even above the very existence of our republic; even above the state of our very souls. As the writer of this piece in The Bulwark doth declare, our political landscape hath devolved into 'a twisted reality show that elevates outrage, insults, and cruelty in a spirit of sadistic fun,’ and we take pleasure in it as such. Should Joe Biden not be re-elected in the year 2024, and Donald Trump re-ascend to power, it shall signify the end. History shall chronicle the people of these United States in this era as being equally self-destructive and bereft of virtue as those who dwelt in Sodom and Gomorrah. I do not mince words when I declare that I am filled with shame to be an American in our present age. But not of our president.

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

What the bloody hell is happening here?

Believe it or not, in these suburban outskirts of Boston, a family of Trump supporters and rustic folk hath taken up residence. Moreover, they have chosen the high school's driveway situated behind my dwelling as the ideal locale for their two young lads to heedlessly navigate their motor bikes. On this very day, I found myself outdoors indulging in a cigarette, and these two youths descended the gentle incline behind my home, mere feet away from where I was standing, seemingly intent on demonstrating their skills before me. Without a second thought, I raised my voice to them: "Gentlemen, be careful! Be careful!” They gazed upon me with vacant countenances, as if never before having received admonishment in their young lives (which may very well be the case). Following this, I loudly urged them to depart, saying and with an almost demonic gleam in my eyes, "go, go!" And indeed, they did depart without a word. Never did I explicitly forbid them from riding their scooters - though such a notion was implied - but only sought to instill in them the importance of circumspection and an end to their ostentatious displays. I derive some satisfaction from the notion that perchance, I succeeded in instilling a modicum of fear in these young scamps, and their rustic father can disregard my sentiments. Yes, good people, even here in Massachusetts, we find ourselves in the company of the unsophisticated. To them, I say, may they be cast aside, for they are the scourge of society.

Visit Stop the Idiocracy, @Sunking278 on FACEBOOK and TWITTER; @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS. And @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world.

Hath the United States of America deliberately forgotten COVID?

CDC

Is there a notable 'forgetting' taking place amongst the public concerning the pandemic? I find myself here in contemplation, casting my thoughts back to our state three years past: Most every enterprise shuttered, masks adorning the faces of all in public, and a large portion of the nation turned the act of complaining and whining into a cottage industry. The NBA and Stanley Cup playoffs contested in the month of August within empty arenas, the artificial hum of crowd noise accompanying baseball and football games played before sparse or nonexistent spectators. The utter lack of leadership from the incumbent president, a leader bereft of any discernible plan, viewing the pandemic merely as a diversion from his populist and slanderous escapades. Concurrently, the extensive protests for racial justice unfurled against the backdrop of the COVID scourge and the aftermath of George Floyd's untimely demise. It was an exceedingly distressing period, one that I ardently believe should not slip into oblivion. Indeed, the transient surge in emphasis on the act of hand washing remains a practice applicable at any time and in any circumstance, yet I hear scarce mention of it nowadays. In fact, due to widespread defiance regarding mitigation measures, we now find ourselves a less hygienic and more squalid nation. Nurses and physicians face disdain, basic cleanliness is met with scorn, and in the advent of the next pandemic or epidemic, it is probable that a sufficient portion of the general populace will disregard public health mandates. Irrespective of the trauma endured, a nation that willfully forgets and obstinately marches forward, pretending naught occurred, is destined to replicate its errors. Thus, it is doomed to failure.

[Visit Stop the Idiocracy, @Sunking278 on FACEBOOK and TWITTER; @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS. And @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world.]

Junior GOP presidential hopefuls make noise about slashing Social Security and Medicare

AI generated image

As I have grown older and further away from the absurd right-wing populism and conspiracism of my younger years, I see more clearly that one need not be a Communist or a Marxist - or even think of oneself as any variant of a ‘socialist,’ which I never have and still do not - to understand that rich and civilized nations should have basic safety nets in place to prevent its citizens from going into poverty. European nations typically take far better care of their seniors and vulnerable, and their living standards (by and large) only continue to rise or stay at a high level, while America’s living standards have been plummeting in recent decades. In this country, we have only the most basic of social safety nets for citizens, and even that is far too much for many Republicans and their enablers. Earlier this year, during the contentious debt ceiling negotiations, more than a few House Republicans and especially those in the ‘freedom caucus’ were growing quite bold in their proposals to suffocate and drain Social Security and Medicare. Three of Donald Trump’s 2024 GOP rivals - namely, Ron DeSantis, Mike Pence, and Nikki Haley - are again testing the waters in hopes of bringing public opinion around to incrementally ending these vital programs. 

Younger Americans are already having an extremely harder time, all across the board, in getting ahead in life than previous generations, and they are going to have nothing to fall back upon when they reach their senior years. And I hate to say it, but I sense that many in the ‘Boomer’ generation (so long as they are still getting theirs), along with some of the more callous among my generation (Gen X) and even among the ‘millennial’ generation (who will suffer themselves) are quite okay with all that. That callousness is what the likes of Pence and DeSantis are counting on. And Donald Trump as well, even if he at least has enough sense to know it is still bad for business to hint at anything that would threaten senior citizens and the vulnerable. {WP 7/22: Trump's GOP rivals open door to cutting Social Security for younger people}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Lowlife pseudo-country music star stirs controversy with video shoot at an infamous Tennessee courthouse

Beginning seven years ago, with the emergence of Donald Trump as the ultimate populist demagogue, this former right-winger was left with no recourse but to finally stop giving all these people the benefit of the doubt when it comes to most anything. In particular, in matters of race, religion, and morality. The assclown musician Jason Aldean and his people chose a particular courthouse with a sordid history for his video shoot as a dog whistle to his neo-Confederate fans and white nationalist populists everywhere. Let us be real, those types are by far the largest consumers of this kind of trash modern ‘country’ music, and Jason Aldean certainly knows this clearly and capitalizes. Trump has taught his little grifters quite well in the game, but how difficult can it be when there are millions and millions of Americans so gleefully willing to be gaslit and swindled by con-men who say or imply the sort of things they want to hear. Especially any rhetoric stating or implying that blacks must be kept in line. Do read this article from the Washington Post and the harrowing account of what happened at the Maury County Courthouse in November of 1927. {WP 7/19}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Elon Musk: The epitome of our self-destructive and malevolent age

AI generated image

It still boggles my mind that the ‘richest man in the world’ is such an unholy idiot. Either that, or he is a sadist. I am offended that he has ruined what was the single most effective communications platform we had. Post-Trump and post-COVID, it really should no longer surprise myself or anyone else the lengths some will go to in order to hurt and control others. Elon Musk literally spent $44 billion - many times what Twitter was worth at the time of the transaction - in order to declare himself King of the Trolls, to play mind games with people, and quite possibly to deliberately destroy the platform altogether (if it was deliberate, he is succeeding in grand fashion.) Millions in #Cult45 routinely vote against their own economic interests because their hatred of fellow Americans and foreigners is all consuming. None of it makes any logical sense, but logic and common sense no longer live here and ours is not an age of reason. No, we really should not be surprised that the likes of Musk and Trump will hurt themselves, and their acolytes will hurt themselves, in order to hurt the rest of us worse. Never, however, can people of goodwill allow all of this insanity and degradation around us to be normalized. We must continue speaking out against it, for however long as necessary - which is going to be the rest of our lives, I am afraid. (Follow my new account on Threads, @arthurnewhook.)

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and @arthurnewhook on POST and THREADS.

Hell on Earth: The hottest day in world history, and it is only going to get hotter

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So far as is known and for as long as records have been kept, the earth has never had a hotter average temperature than it did on July 4. For the longest time, like the good little right-wing ignoramus I once was in the pre-Trump days, I rejected any notions that the earth’s climate was changing or that man was at fault. The evidence eventually became too much to ignore or downplay any longer, and now it appears as though the most severe and damaging effects of climate change are beginning to ravish the earth years ahead of some of even the most dire forecasts and projections. It is clear now, we are seriously f**ked and the time to save ourselves has passed. {AP 7/04}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

Are we seriously going to allow our history to be rewritten, real-time information to be suppressed, and the voices of reasons to be silenced? (Spoiler alert: Yes)

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A legitimate crisis of nightmarish, dystopian proportions unfolding right now: The 2020s will be remembered - that is, if they are remembered with any degree of accuracy, or if the earth is still standing - as an era of extreme crisis. And the biggest crisis of all is the ‘crisis of trust,’ where everything is becoming a facade and nobody will be allowed to think for themselves anymore. Not that most Americans have bothered to think for a long time now, but we are now moving into something that is beyond Orwellian - or beyond anything Huxley could have envisioned - and it is already too late for any hope of stopping it. All hands are dirty, and I genuinely believe myself cursed to be living in these times. An excerpt from a must-read Ted Gioia piece: ‘Folks have been dumping their crap into our information flows for a long, long time. Big corporations and institutions are the worst offenders—they actually get rich by polluting our data streams. But individuals are adding to the raw sewage too.’ {Ted Gioia - Thirty signs you are living in an information crap-pocalypse 6/30}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

‘A Massachusetts father and son were sentenced Monday in federal court to prison time after being found guilty of what prosecutors called a "ten-percenting" scheme involving dozens of convenience stores’

Jesse Costa/WBUR

As one who used to sell lottery tickets, the Massachusetts State Lottery is far more trouble than it has ever been worth. Sure, the schools get extra money, yadda yadda yadda, but the Lottery creates enough crime and addiction to offset whatever positive benefits it brings. Gambling ruin lives, and I saw and heard of some horror stories. The same, of course, can be said of alcohol, marijuana, cigarettes, television, pornography, and so forth, and we all (should) know that just banning things has never been a feasible solution. Yet while the state government regulates those other vices, the Lottery is unique in that it is a wholly state-run ‘sin stock’ enterprise. State and local governments have no place policing the morals of private individuals and enterprising, but what legitimate place do they have in actively promoting vice and enabling people to recklessly burn money? {WCVB 5/22}

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Fulton County, GA: Inmate digs hole into wall; not to escape but to assault another inmate in a separate cell, using a makeshift weapon ‘from parts of the dilapidated building infrastructure.’ {ABC News 5/22}

Startup venture to give away 500,000 ‘free’ TVs, with a second screen that displays non-stop advertising and cannot be disabled by the user - It has long been a chore in the United States to avoid advertising, and soon it will be rendered unlawful for anyone to opt out of being advertised to. That is where we are heading. {Variety 5/15}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

#NeverTrump #NeverDeSantis: Ukrainian-American voters angry at the GOP’s 2024 forerunners for their pro-Putin stances

Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP/Getty Images

Republicans are really shooting themselves in the foot by doing or saying anything that will curry favor with their party’s toxic and compromised leader and his toxic supporters. Or, for that matter, being reflexively against anything President Biden supports. FTA: ‘The votes of Ukrainian-Americans - traditionally a Republican-leaning bloc - could have an outsize impact on the 2024 general election, according to some lawmakers, strategists and advocates, plus a Reuters analysis of U.S. census data.

‘While the number of Americans who identify as being of Ukrainian descent is relatively small at about 1 million, they are densely distributed in a string of unusually competitive areas where their votes could potentially be decisive.’ {Reuters 5/20}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

School avoidance: Students refusing to go to school a growing crisis post-COVID

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'School avoidant behavior, also called school refusal, is when a school-age child refuses to attend school or has difficulty being in school for the entire day. Several mental health experts told USA TODAY it has become a crisis that has gotten worse since the COVID-19 pandemic.' The only reason I was not one of these kids was out of extreme fear of authority (most of all, my parents), along with outright ignorance that I even had any option of opting out. Back in the ‘80s and early ‘90s - at least in my area - even the most rotten kids still did not dare cut classes on any sort of regular basis. One time, late in senior year, we took off in some kid’s car to eat lunch at a local pizza joint, and were relieved that we didn’t get caught. I may have snuck out of a pep rally or two, but that was about the extent that I would ever dare ‘play hooky.’ In retrospect, I should have just said ‘f**k it’ and not have cared. For all the good earning decent grades, dutifully following the rules, and dealing with my a**hole peers ultimately did me; I may have even turned out a more healthy person than the one I became. Still, I would not want to be a kid today for anything, and I do not blame these ones for pushing back against the hellscape they were born into. {USA Today 5/15}

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Colorado man attempted to evade DUI arrest by switching seats with his dog. {BBC 5/16}

Total jackasses caught on camera riding their bicycles inside Boston’s Tip O’Neill tunnel during Friday rush hour, forcing drivers to slam on their brakes. {WHDH 5/16} 

Self-checkout kiosks are now asking customers for tips, prompting some to ask if ‘tipping culture’ has gone too far. {Deseret News 5/16}

Twenty percent of Canadians polled say medically-assisted suicide should be legal to any adult, for any reason. {National Post 5/16}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

President Biden, Speaker McCarthy both insist that the U.S. will not default on its debts

Joshua Roberts/Reuters

Neither very convincingly. Anybody on a fixed income, spend as little as possible right now, and prepare to be scapegoated on an epic scale. A projected seven million workers will lose their jobs, and will also be scapegoated. The country is going straight to Hell. {CNBC 5/17}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

DHS issues memo to government and law enforcement agencies warning that violent threats against gays, lesbians, and transsexuals are on the rise

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America has never really been the ‘live and let live’ country most of us would like to believe that we are. Perhaps some of us are seeing this truism more clearly now, in this post-COVID, post-Trump, and post-truth hellscape we are navigating; where large portions of our fellow Americans are violently rejecting liberal democracy, and liberal democratic values. A renewed moral panic has been whipped up against the LBGTQ community, and I would have to advise that many of us who are not in that community will nonetheless be targeted (or already have been) by extremist homophobes. Think of the witchcraft hysteria that my Puritan ancestors shamefully engaged in during the 17th century (a great-grandmother of mine was actually hung in early Hartford, CT, after accused of being a ‘witch’ because the community did not approve of her remarrying at age 72; her husband was also hung right alongside of her.) #Cult45 is eager to punish anybody not standing with them, and I have a feeling a lot of us are about to be deemed ‘witches’ of sorts (or ‘groomers,’ or any number of aspersions) in our new 1692. {ABC News 5/15}

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‘Russian authorities will launch construction of a village outside Moscow for conservative-minded Americans and Canadians next year, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Thursday.’ {The Moscow Times 5/11}

David Smith: As Trump’s lies and scandals deepen, the GOP responds as usual - with silence. {The Guardian 5/13}

‘OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman delivered a sobering account of ways artificial intelligence could “cause significant harm to the world” during his first congressional testimony, expressing a willingness to work with nervous lawmakers to address the risks presented by his company’s ChatGPT and other AI tools.’ {WP 5/16}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

Insane prices for new and used vehicles amid inventory shortages, and in a post-pandemic economy, have Americans driving their older cars for longer periods of time

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‘The average age of a passenger vehicle on the road hit a record 12.5 years this year.’ Even after automakers are able to return production to pre-pandemic levels, all of the other costs that go along with car ownership are only going to continue going up, so I do not foresee this trend ending anytime soon. The basic necessities of modern life are being rendered unaffordable and unattainable for the average person, and America is the most car-dependent nation on earth. Public transportation is virtually non-existent outside of major cities (or even within certain urban areas.) Infrastructure is collapsing all around us. How are people going to get anywhere when owning a car is no longer possible? Horse and buggy? {AP 5/15}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

‘Tiredness of life’ has become more common among seniors in Western countries

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As Republicans move to end Social Security, is it any wonder there are not mobs with pitchforks outside out of every local GOP headquarters in this country, when the elderly and disabled are of such an overall low priority? FTA: ‘The fact that this problem is common enough for researchers to debate it may suggest that modern life has shut older people out of western society. Perhaps elders are no longer revered for their wisdom and experience. But it’s not inevitable. In Japan, age is seen as a spring or rebirth after a busy period of working and raising children. One study found older adults in Japan showed higher scores on personal growth compared with midlife adults, whereas the opposite age pattern was found in the US.

'Surgeon and medical professor Atul Gawande argues that in western societies, medicine has created the ideal conditions for transforming ageing into a “long, slow fade”. He believes quality of life has been overlooked as we channel our resources towards biological survival. This is unprecedented in history. Tiredness of life may be evidence of the cost.' {The Conversation 5/03}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

‘A federal judge in Virginia has ruled that a law banning licensed federal firearms dealers from selling handguns to young adults under 21 violates the Second Amendment and is unconstitutional’

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What a country: Those between 18 and 21 cannot legally drink, or buy cigarettes and marijuana, or gamble, or even rent a car. Owning firearms, though? Perfectly fine. Shipping them off to war? No problem there. I am not a gun grabber by any means - nor am I necessarily advocating young people engage in the vices listed above - and the judge probably made the constitutionally-correct legal decision, but those are some glaring and blatant double standards right there. {AP 5/12}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

House Republicans tacitly admit they have no found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing in their witch hunt against President Biden and family

Haiyun Jiang/NYT

Bulls**t artists in the extreme. And they can and will continue to get away with it because their base literally demands to be lied to (as proven by the recent debacle with Tucker Carlson and Fox News, and that is merely one example.) They will continue to spend taxpayers dollars on fruitless investigations and hearings, and their propagandists and the rank-and-file will continue to harp on and on about the stupid laptop. And it is all too possible the American people will reward them for it at the ballot box in 2024, given that the smear campaign being waged against President Biden from many different fronts has been largely effective. Facts just do not matter anymore to all too many Americans, and that is why we are in the sorry state that we are in. {NYT 5/11}

Charlie Sykes on CNN’s ‘town hall’ event featuring Trump: A ‘moment that captured the thorough degradation of both our politics and the media.’ {The Bulwark 5/11}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook. 

Justice Clarence Thomas reversed his long-held position on ‘Chevron defense doctrine’ after his wife was bribed by a far-right special interest group

Diego Radzinschi/ALM

Do not let any of this go down the memory hole. Uncle Thomas and his friends on the high court represent at least as serious a threat to liberty as Trump, DeSantis, any Republican congressman, or any of the myriad of assorted nationalist populists compromising #Cult45. {The Lever 5/09}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook. 

Spineless Speaker Kevin McCarthy still will not call on proven fraud George Santos to resign from the House, even after Santos is indicted on federal charges

Andrew Harnik/AP

Republicans appear poised to stop at nothing in their war with President Biden over the debt ceiling limit. Cutting aid to veterans, and Social Security and Medicare recipients, trumps (pun intended) any ethical considerations. FTA: ‘While an association with Mr. Santos may be a political drag on Republicans, the impact of his resignation would pose a challenge for leadership. With a slim majority in the House and a fight over the debt ceiling looming, Mr. McCarthy cannot afford to lose Mr. Santos’s vote. The speaker only narrowly passed a bill last month to raise the debt ceiling in exchange for spending cuts, with no Republican votes to spare and Mr. Santos in the “yes” column.’ {NYT 5/10}

Florida: ‘Conservation groups across the Southeast United States are urging Gov. DeSantis to veto a bill that would allow the use of radioactive fertilizer waste in road construction across the state.’ {WFTV 5/08}

Louisville, KY: U.S. Labor Department fines three McDonald’s franchises for child labor violations. {AP 5/03}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

Liberated from direct Russian occupation, the enemy continues to shell the city of Kherson from just across the river

Finbarr O'Reilly/NYT

‘Death is everywhere’ and most of the city’s population is gone. The remaining populace needs more than just prayers, as many of them are older, disabled, mentally ill, or otherwise unable or unwilling to leave. #StopPutin #StandUpForUkraine {NYT 5/10}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

Another in a long string of mass shootings in America: Gunman kills an ‘unknown number’ at Dallas-area outlet mall

KARE

One way or another, this has to stop. FTA: ‘A gunman stepped out of a silver sedan and began shooting people at an outlet mall in the Dallas suburb of Allen, Texas, on Saturday, killing an unknown number and sending hundreds of shoppers fleeing in panic in the latest gun violence to strike the country.’ {AP 5/06}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

Newton Minow, FCC chief during JFK’s administration, dies at age 97

AP

An advocate for quality television programming who famously called the medium ‘a vast wasteland’ in speech to broadcasters in 1961. The world could use a man like Newton Minow right about now. May he rest in peace. {AP 5/06}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

Confessions of a former evangelical and die-hard Republican Trump supporter

Mark Wallheiser/Getty Images

Essential reading in trying to understand the brainwashed mind, and how intertwined the Republican Party and radical (re: perverted), fundamentalist Christianity in #Murica are. FTA: ‘I wasn’t looking to destroy the Conservatism that had surrounded my life since birth. I wasn’t looking to blow up the very thing that brought comfort, protection, and insulation from the outer chaos of the world. Conservative fundamentalism does that. It’s (sic) offers safety. It promises to bring law and order to chaos and messy things.’ Many of us - myself included, and I am trying - need to learn to stop seeing the world through a ‘conservative lens,’ and instead through a ‘Jesus-centric’ lens. {Kevin Young 4/27} 

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

American children take a giant leap in the march toward complete and total idiocy

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Doesn't matter what the circumstances are, our children are becoming dumber by the day. The vast majority of people in any given time in history have been of below average intelligence, but how is our society going to function in the future when there are no longer any exceptions to a world of imblices? When literally every last person is an idiot? FTA: '‘Scores in U.S. history and civics for eighth-graders are down across the U.S., according to recent results from the assessment known as the "Nation's Report Card." This year's history scores are the lowest recorded since the assessment began in 1994, and the new data mark the first-ever drop in civics.’ {NPR 5/03} 

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.