Grover- I get the sense that Doug's role is providing public representation for a pretty interesting group of people. So who does he represent? Well in the past few weeks, that's been the Podestas, and now, Antifa. Do you recall who else he has represented?Obviously, the (formerly-mainstream) corporate legacy media. Even more specifically, he reads one of NYT/WaPo or watches one of CNN/MSNBC (or possibly ABC/CBS). He doesn't even suspect that everything he believes is absurd lies designed to turn him into a political weapon (that we call NPCs) against all majority groups that they can categorize and the forces of decency/morality and dignity/freedom, not to mention the pillar of the freedom underlying Western civilization (which we/he are/is programmed to hate), which is freedom of speech.
(Natural News) Kyle Rittenhouse is an American hero. Just 17 years old, he stood his ground when viciously attacked by violent Black Lives Matter thugs who were trying to beat him to death. Using an AR-15 and his wits, he managed to shoot three of his attackers, killing two of them and saving his own life in the process. For this, he has been arrested and absurdly charged with First Degree Murder, while all the rioters, looters, arsonists and BLM thugs are of course set free and seemingly never charged with serious crimes.
The lying left-wing media is of course distorting all the facts about this incident, leaving out details about the BLM attackers. Instead, they are pretending that Rittenhouse just spontaneously “opened fire on a crowd” without any reason whatsoever. That’s totally dishonest, malicious reporting by the treasonous left-wing media, which distorts everything and lies without remorse.
Here are the facts about the Kenosha shooting that the lying left-wing media refuses to report:
[…]
Consider how insane it is now with local authorities charging him with first degree murder. Really? Premeditated murder? It’s a joke. Absurd. Officials refuse to charge rioters, arsonists, looters and homicidal maniacs with anything, but they single out this young man with an attempted murder charge for his acts of self-defense?
This is the real injustice in our society: Innocent people get charged with crimes while the real criminals go free.
This entire incident could have been avoided if cops had been doing their jobs in the first place. But they are ordered by Democrat mayors to back down and allow chaos to unfold. So if cops won’t do their jobs, then guess who that responsibility falls back onto? The people.
It’s time for patriots across the country to rise up and peacefully protest in defense of Kyle Rittenhouse, a courageous young man who achieved what all the cops in the country couldn’t do: He finally engaged and killed some BLM terrorists who were engaged in acts of extreme violence.
[read the full analysis HERE]
^ But these people are of course portrayed as innocent victims by the ever-increasingly-blood-filled MSM…
tbp, So, you have one kid with no such criminal history and 3 guys with somewhat thug backgrounds. I am not one to say that history will dictate right and wrong. But 3:0 is pretty overwhelming.
So, police spot gun on ground dropped with clothing bundle by bicyclist, and immediately open fire// really police? Really? Fatal use of force for traffic infraction
The last time I logged in here, it was with some distress that Chris Martenson’s offered approach to dealing with the pandemic was to rush out and get personal masks. People generally interpreted what I wrote as so nihilistic that I must be suicidal; I felt it was neither nihilistic nor suicidal, but certainly filled with justifiable despair regarding the global and national situation.
It is very disturbing to me to hear about how “the left” is out to get people. I have a perhaps unsophisticated view of the situation in which we all find ourselves. I think concentrations of wealth and power are problematic and tend to seek to gather ever more wealth and power to themselves.
But where we differ from one another seems to be on where the power is.
I think, simply, that the power is in the hands of the 0.01% who own vast amounts of our public companies, that the people in the 0.01% control politics but tend to be Republican, and that they are well aware that the way in which they have obtained their wealth and power was by theft of commons and, eventually, capture of government.
When I look for culprits, I tend not to look for groups of people who are complaining that they are subject to police brutality, or who complain that the income of working people has not come close to keeping up with the productivity gains of the past couple of generations. Instead, I look for those to whom all those gains have flowed, and I assume that those people have learned the standard political art of setting the people on the bottom rung of the ladder against those who would like to grab that rung.
These culprits seem to me to be following a predictable script, one which has been presented throughout history. For those who have climbed to the second rung from the bottom of the ladder, and who have established personal supplies of masks, I’m not at all sure what to say. Congratulations? Because to me it seems like the problem is larger than COVID. Years ago, I’d thought Chris Martenson put the problem more clearly than anyone else I’d encountered, in his crash course. Now, I just don’t understand the politics of the group he’s attracted.
But I never do. It just always seems disheartening and sad.
In my unsophisticated view, I believe the folks on the bottom rungs of the ladder, guided by the 0.01%, put a narcissistic, racist, sexist sociopath in charge of the country, and we are now reaping what they sowed. I can find nothing in my heart able to understand anyone who voted for that POS, and when I look for dangerous fascists, my search has landed in the Oval Office for three and a half years now. I’ve lost interest in convincing anyone that this is the case, just as I don’t have interest in convincing anyone that the Earth is closer to a sphere than to a pancake. I just hope the sphere-believers win.
Surely you jest!! MSM left wing! Hows does CNN, the NYT and Fox stack up against say Counterpunch, The World Socialist Website or Democracy Now. That rabid leftist NYT’s is a centrist corporate run newspaper.
I just joined because and I found Chris and Adam to be 2 of very smart individuals of the highest ethics and integrity.
I was shocked to read the level of vitriol expressed by many posters on this thread. I’m sure C and A would not give succor to the rantings of these fanatics even though I think they have a capitalist orientation.
Another Richard Wolff clip. I ask the folks to watch this clip, and then offer some feedback that use reason and logic to deconstruct his arguments.
By the way he is a great orator with a PHD from Yale after attending Harvard and Stanford.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J93bZSt8Wuo
I must say I agree with you mjtrac. There is a fairly strong thread of support for law and order (a valid and necessary focus in the short term if we don’t want to burn everything down and kill a bunch of people). But regardless of which powerful entities are either fomenting or tacitly supporting the unrest, if we don’t look deeper at the root causes, it will come back to bite us in a bigger way next time. I also hold if we avoid the trap of “team blue = bad implies team red = good” or vice versa we will see the big picture more clearly. I hold that the issue of wealth inequality that Chris and Adam have been hammering is one of the major roots of this crisis. There are others, that stem from the misguided priorities of the entire society (acquiring stuff, getting rich, perhaps to cover over a deeper fear of and discomfort with death), and the trauma we pass from generation to generation.
I too am dismayed by the level of vitriol, lack of empathy, and jumping to conclusions based on insufficient data on this thread. It is possible to come down firmly on the side of stopping looting and violence while looking for deeper causes. This all didn’t come from nowhere and it certainly didn’t come solely because of shortcomings of the perpetrators.
That’s very diplomatic of you, but realize you have to stand up to thugs. It’s like you are saying that you have to look at the root cause of why victims feel brutalized by the mafia–when it comes to the protests. I am speaking from the black perspective here. It’s abundantly clear that since Trump with his pro “law and order” stance took office, the cops got the message. It was a terribly uneven system before, but now it’s open season on them.
davefairtex wrote: I get the sense that Doug's role is providing public representation for a pretty interesting group of people. So who does he represent? Well in the past few weeks, that's been the Podestas, and now, Antifa. Do you recall who else he has represented?Dave, I've been trying to figure Doug's motives since he and I squabbled over Popular Mechanic's version of 9/11. If I remember correctly, Doug was convinced that their take was correct because there is no way that that group of writers could conspire to write the wrong thing. You may know that Doug is highly allergic to any and all conspiracies theories! Doug has different standards for establishing truthiness. If it goes along with his general thoughts and feelings (like the Popular Mechanics book,) he not only gives it a pass, he becomes a cheerleader. On the other hand, anything that disagrees with his gut needs to have strict documented coverage for him to even consider it. Even then, I doubt he would really change his mind. For instance, AE911Truth.org funded a forensic engineering study to determine if the official story on WTC 7 could explain the building's collapse. Their peer reviewed take was that the building did not come down due to fire. Will Doug bother to read the report and change his mind? I doubt it. First off, the engineering is too hard for him to understand, even though the main report really doesn't belabor the calculations. Those are placed in appendices. Doug just doesn't want to challenge the original conclusion he drew while watching MSM. It's uncomfortable to know that you've been lied to. After all, the wars in the sandbox have killed millions and cost us over $6 trillion so far. We went over there theoretically to avenge the destruction on 9/11. I suppose it is better to spend more resources and kill more people than to question the events of 9/11. At least then, deep state believers can pretend they're justified. So, who does Doug represent? I really don't know. I can pretty much count on him supporting big government regardless of the issue. That doesn't mean he represents them. I think he would be what Stalin considered a "useful idiot." Grover PS - Doug, feel free to correct me if I've mischaracterized you. I'm basing my thoughts on our interactions at PeakProsperity. Usually, when the conversation gets in the weeds and goes in a direction against your preselected conclusion, you quit responding. That saves you from having to confront yourself and change your conclusion to match reality. Based on your actions, it's really hard for me not to think you're a coward.
I really don’t think it is “the left” doing any of this. The marxists are just being used as pawns.
My evidence? Mr Biden is getting donations from the banksters at 3:1 over the supposedly pro-corporate Bad Orange Man. Why do we think that is? Are they just stupid, our bankster overlords? Or is some deeper game afoot?
In a real marxist play, banksters would be zeroed out. So clearly, it has nothing to do with marxism. The banksters are the best-connected group there is. So, watch what they do, and you will know what is really going on.
If Team Blue really wanted the radical left option, they’d nominate Bernie Sanders. He might even win - without cheating. But - what passes for “the left” - call it the Corporate Left - is deathly afraid of the actually-left Senator Sanders. The Corporate Left had to rig the 2016 primary to oust him then, and they did much the same (using different tactics) in 2020.
No. This “marxist” effort is all about seizing power back from the Bad Orange Man, for the corporate interests standing behind Corporate Team Blue. No more, no less. All these violent marxist agitators will be made to disappear the moment power is regained. The local police will not be defunded - they’ll seize the agitators, who will get the message rapidly that their time is now past.
They are just a means towards an end, as are all these “black lives” folks.
For the Corporate Left, black lives do not matter in the slightest, as we saw during Obama’s term. They are just pawns in this struggle, to be used and then discarded once power is achieved.
Again, look at what the banksters are doing. That will tell you everything you need to know. There is nothing marxist about this attempt to seize power. Its just one set of corporate interests looking to protect globalism, eternal war, unlimited low-wage immigration, Pharma profits, and - perhaps - vaccines for everyone (with a nod to Mr Gates) using Antifa/BLM as pawns.
You really think a bunch of billionaires would be funding a real marxist movement that would end up chopping their heads off?
Just my sense.
Dave,
Agree, up to a point. However, it is the current administration who stand to benefit the most from the protests and feelings of fear. Those sitting on the fence will go full “law and order.” This is no mistake. The flames are being fanned.
Democrats did nothing for Blacks or the underclass while they were in power. Unfortunately, black or white, if you are not part of the upper 5% you won’t be faring any better under Trump, post election. That’s when the gloves come off.
Biden is the new Hillary Clinton and not to be trusted either, though he may be the least worst, in terms of domestic policy.
AP-
Unlimited immigration: corporate left
Jobs Outsourced to China: corporate left
Eternal War: corporate left
Surveillance State: corporate left
Did I miss anything?
Oh - deliberate destruction of small business, transfer of wealth to Amazon: Corporate left.
The one iffy issue is sickcare. There again, Sanders and his “cheap drugs from Canada” bill was voted down by 10 corporate lefties in the Senate. So let’s put:
Sickcare at 20% GDP: corporate left
Note: “mainstream republicans” (corporate right) are right there alongside the corporate left on most of these items - except for maybe small business destruction. I’m looking at you, Lindsey Graham.
I do not think Trump is for endless war. Nor unlimited immigration. Nor jobs outsourced to China.
But he is definitely for law & order. I think you’re right about that. I’m just not sure his FBI is behind him on that one.
The 911 Truth movement was co-opted by the same people who co-opted the original tea party movement. Somehow the truth movement became this monster, this deranged angry beast. Some of the members became or are so unhinged they became involved with Q-anon, a feverishly retarded, cryptic mess of nonsense that openly supports the military. HTF did that happen?
How did a profoundly anti-establishment and genuine search for truth morph into the hard right nightmare of the Trump cult?
Stephan Calcott,
“PHD from Yale after attending Harvard and Stanford.”Three Strikes and You’re Out! Ivy League Elitist institutions have been churning out our “leaders” that are running this Shit Show. to Wit: GW Bush, Barack Obama, Larry Summers, John Bolton, John Kerry ...ad infinitum Not only have have they forfeited integrity of admissions process with their inbred political legacy admissions, they are guilty of corrupting the raw intellectual potential of our youth with their insular group think indoctrination and promotion of their Neo Liberal, Keynesian, CFR etc agendas While they’ve long been a breeding ground for the Deep State nexus of big Wall St Finance and the CIA and friends, now with the culmination years of indoctrination of critical theory and it’s associated SJW cultural Marxist ideologies, these Elite institutions have midwifed the managerial class for the hordes of useful idiots running amok and burning our cities and attempting to enforce group think through terror and intimidation, like Maoist’s in the cultural revolution. But make no mistake it is the elite billionaire globalist corporatists class that is funding and promoting this leftist array of socialists, Marxists, Communists and assorted revolutionary Larpers, pretenders and opportunistic criminals. Do the math on that and draw your own conclusions. For every Adam Taggert or Chris Martinson that attends an elite school but ultimately achieves escape velocity from the Borg and pursues a path of moral and intellectual integrity there are far more that fill the hallways of power and man the levers of our American Imperium. So while Richard Wolf ideas may have merit, you do him no honor by touting his scholastic pedigree as an appeal to authority. Furthermore I can’t help but notice that you and other left leaning ideologues are always so shocked and offended that people on the ‘Wrong’ side of the spectrum have strong opinions and post here in this hallowed ground of intellectual inquiry. Your disdain and intolerance of opposing views to the orthodoxy that you subscribe to is reflective of the current zeitgeist of the left which by definition is anti intellectual. You will not advance your understanding of things, appreciate nuance and come closer to truths if you are not able to entertain opposing views. mm
Dave, Again, I don’t disagree with nearly all points you’ve made. Except endless war. Through data collection of Cambridge Analytica, the brains behind Trump (Steve Bannon) knew exactly how to position his message and the actions of his administration to ensure he got elected. War comes in the second act. Overt war may be limited to the domestic sphere
I will use ‘they’ when referring too Trump now, as he is not acting purely on his own.
-most people view globalism as economic, but it is also about geo-political control. It’s two pronged. We have had American dominated new world order, one world government for decades. China threatens that.
–The American pols, right and ‘left’ do NOT want multi-polarity and frame it as an anti-globalist stance. They are pulling away from China, economically, as they intend to f*** them up really badly, to maintain geostrategic military advantage.
–The U.S. can’t be so reliant on China economically when they have to war against it, either through proxies or purely by driving it to its knees economically.
—And Iran? Looks like everything is lining up there for full on war, which will please Israel and impact China’s oil supply.
You really have to wait until the second act of this tragic play to get a sense of where things will be going
MJ, I respect your beliefs about the 0.1 % taking advantage of everyone else. Thank you for that. You also believe:
I can find nothing in my heart able to understand anyone who voted for that POSMeaning Trump. Do you think this would have been a reason for voting for him:
America voted in a first term senator from Chicago to be president because he was the only one to vote against going to war in Iraq, a war that cost our young people of that generation so dearly, cost our treasury up to $10 trillion, and maybe a million dead Iraquis, all because of false information about weapons of mass destruction as attested to by the lies Colin Powell testified to in front of the United nations. However instead of stopping the carnage the Obama administration with Hillary at the State Department continued to add to the the destruction of the Arab world with the removal of Gaddafi, financing the Arab Spring civil wars, attacking Asad in Syria, allowing Erdogan to sell ISIS oil in Turkey, with support from John McCain financing ISIS in the early years, sending $ billions of frozen funds to Iran, and targeting hundreds of Arab leaders with drone attacks. Now along comes candidate Trump who as a Democrat and private citizen said he was also against the Iraq war and who wanted to use the economic and military power of the United States for peace and bringing jobs back to America. In the primary Republicans didn’t decide on some theorist with a Harvard pedigree (probably a good thing). They went for a pit bull. You can judge for yourself whether violence has been reduced in the middle east, whether the threat to America and from North Korea is more or less, and whether Iranian adventurism is being restrained. What do you think, MJ? If you voted for Hilary wouldn't you be voting for someone who supported terrible wars and destruction in the middle east costing much more in human suffering than whatever you are concerned about with the so-called 0.1%?
Hey Doug:
You say that Democrat leaders have loudly condemned the violence in our streets. Really?
I just got through reading both Biden’s acceptance speech and Harris’ acceptance speech at the DNC. Neither one of them said one word condemning the violent riots. Not one word.
Neither Biden, nor Harris or any other Democrat leader have said one word about the violent group that surrounded Senator Rand Paul after the RNC. Paul says he believes that he and his small group would have been murdered or badly hurt if the police had not been there to protect them.
So if you have evidence to support your statement, please provide it.
I do think that some Democrats will start decrying the violence now…after months of violence about which they said nothing at all. They think the continuing violence is linked with the left/Democrats in the public mind and that it will lose them the election. Yes and yes.
That’s integrity and commitment to principle for you.
Thanks for your question. The answer is no.
I can understand why someone might not want Hillary Clinton as President. They might have a reason that I would understand but disagree with, such as objecting to her position on, say, abortion. They might believe, as you do, that Secretary Clinton made choices in foreign policy that were disastrous.
However, I cannot understand how anyone could vote for a multiply-bankrupt, demonstrably racist, demonstrably sexist, demonstrably deceptive real estate developer as President of the United States, or for someone who got draft deferments due to a disappearing disability as Commander in Chief of the United States Armed Forces. Since being elected, I think Mr. trump has amply demonstrated why that seems like a bad idea to me.
Offered a choice between Hillary Clinton and Mr. trump, I cannot find any justification whatsoever for voting for Mr. trump. Nor can I understand how a responsible citizen could have declined to vote, on the grounds that both choices were unacceptable.
In Chris Martenson’s podcasts on COVID, he has repeatedly described the importance of using integrity as a yardstick. I agree with him. You, perhaps, think that the current President has more integrity than the candidate who lost to him. I do not believe that; in fact, I do not believe there are many people of demonstrably lower integrity than the man who currently endangers the nation.
MJtrac,
I can think of one reason for making that odious choice. Hillary, a demonstrable Sociopath, (see Qaddafi death cackle video) was on record as supporting an immediate No fly zone in Syria, Where Russia, an ally of Assad, and legally invited into the country already had command of the air and superior Anti Aircraft and and EW systems already in situ as a function of their effective campaign of putting down the US, Israels, Saudi and Turkey’s rabid rainbow of Salafist head-chopper proxy armies
Trump was against that.
Which kind of fall under the whole preventing Nuclear War Armageddon thing!
mm