The fact that the entire country isn’t halting everything to address this is the problem. American exceptionalism and complacency has largely landed us here. We now have a US president openly threatening genocide and a non existent opposition party that can only seem to pen strongly worded letters of condemnation as opposed to taking any real action. The steady and rapid decline of this nation has been harrowing to watch, even more harrowing is watching the populace go about life as if nothing is happening
As a start... Dem leadership could denounce the Gaza genocide, stop voting to supply Israel with weapons, clearly oppose Trumps unprovoked attack on Iran as a war crime and state the truth that Israel is the only known nuclear threat in the middle-east.
What 'real action' are you calling for Democratic Party leaders to pursue? Without some defections from GOP pols in Congress, Democratic Party leaders in Congress have little-to-no power to block anything that Trump wants or needs from Congress--apart from his special request for an additional $200B for the war. And Dem Party leaders have roundly criticized and pledged to oppose extra money for the war in Iran. Beyond that and challenging Trump's budget proposals over the next 4 or 5 months, there's not much the Dems can do to end the war in Iran or shut-down the DHS.
You just described a system where your claiming the Democratic Party has no ability to oppose the actions of the party in power. Your current stance is that the helpless Dems are unable to do anything because of the big bad system. Meanwhile at every turn the Conservative Party weaponizes said system repeatedly as they change the definition of the rule of law by the minute. The pathetic liberal mindset of helplessness is why we are here. The blue no matter who crowd is the apparatus that holds up fascism.
The democrats have the ability to creatively establish barriers as a collective but they continue to hold the pail of fascism and carry the water for a fucking pedophile dictator.
The rules and the system have clearly reached its limit, the democrats need to get off those complacent asses and hold the White House hostage until something is done. Use every apparatus of interruption possible to stop the madness.
Simply claiming boo hoo they are helpless is a fucking joke and I’m tired of these fucking moral platitudes constantly touted by these weak ass liberals.
The system is the problem. Full stop
This duopoly of supposed “choices” we get to make is a product of two wings of the same bird funded by the same groups that have allowed genocide to become morally acceptable to the population of this country.
It would make no sense for the “entire country” to “halt everything.” That would cause bigger problems. Perhaps you should take your own advice though and halt writing comments on the internet.
You’re right continuing along as we have been is the answer. Just put that head down and focus on serving capitalism. No need to worry about what’s going on outside.
Thanks for your ignorant input and horrendous attempt at an insult
“You’re right continuing along as we have been is the answer. “
There is no “we” to continue along anything.
“Just put that head down and focus on serving capitalism. “
I don’t recall suggesting people do anything other than not ”halt everything.” Not halting everything isn’t “serving capitalism.” Oh, and I suggested you take your own advice. That also isn’t a suggestion to “serve capitalism.”
“No need to worry about what’s going on outside.”
There would be even more reason to worry if people halted everything.
“Thanks for your ignorant input and horrendous attempt at an insult”
I see you have not taken your own advice and you continue to write on the internet. Are you “serving capitalism” by continuing this conversation with me?
Every hour we work, we add more resources and power into the system that allowed the threat of genocide. The appropriate response to that threat, by the people on whose behalf it was made is: "No. We will lie down and die in the street before we allow this. We will starve and burn down our own house before we allow the commission of such evil in our name. No."
It would not cause bigger problems. There are no bigger problems. Because if we do that, America is already dead.
And the simple fact that the DNC is not screaming that message from the rooftops of twitter, and CNN, and both Chambers; that they haven't reached out to the unions, sympathetic businesses, 50501, the Black Panthers, and every sane activist group in the country to make it happen; is all we need to see to know they are not committed to the fight. We're not fighting capitalism, anymore. We are fighting cruelty. We are fighting evil. And as of Tuesday, that is not sensationalist rhetoric, anymore.
(Well, alright, threatening to release smallpox on the world might be bigger... threatening to nuke Yellowstone and kick that off early would certainly be bigger... you see what I'm getting at, here.)
Thank you for building upon my original point, this is well stated and further expands the conversation. You fully understood the original point I was making so thank you for that
One correction: Congress cannot work with unions to organize a strike per the NLRB & Taft-Hartley Act. But I don’t see any restrictions on working with employers or non-unionized employees. Also, there’s certainly nothing preventing the coordination of aid to strikers who may need assistance to hold out. We have the May Day GS in the works for ‘26 & ‘28, but that’s only a day. I really feel like we can hit harder.
Bravo, another masterpiece! That said, had anyone else suggested we nuke a country with a population of 93 million simply because the president is throwing a tantrum—the regime he bombed decided not to kowtow to his demands, he would be removed from office pronto.
Furthermore, had this been any other president, we’d pass go and forget the 25th or impeachment; he’d be relegated to a rubber-room at Bellevue!
And if anyone is wondering whether it’s Trump’s dementia that’s kicking in; think again! He’s always had a screw loose: remember when he told us to drink bleach during COVID. Or how about we nuke a hurricane to disperse it!
And if anyone was still wondering whether our new messiah is smarter than all the generals and admirals combined? Seriously, are there any people still wondering????
Lastly, the only question I have left is, “How the hell did we get here?” It’s a rhetorical question, no need to answer! IMHO…:)
Trump's always loved The Bomb and pressured the Pentagon to seriously consider ways the US could use it. Anyway, he needs to be removed from office before he uses it.
Like herding cats. We can't afford to grin at the appellation Dems have used when the party scatters under fire. We need two Dem minority leaders to work in concert to strong arm every member to work as one. As one they can apply a great deal of pressure, move hard, publicly, loudly against GOP silence and intractability. As one they can flood their respective floors with measure after measure demanding an end to this presidency. They will capture public attention and maybe some respect. It needs to happen before one of DJTs crazy notions becomes too massive to reverse. And p.s. Keep calling out every AIPAC contribution Dems accept.
I would add one thing to your interesting and encouraging article. Maybe, just maybe, the reality of the bombing of residential areas, schools, hospitals, bridges, universities, sacred, and UNESCO heritage sites, deaths of children and civilians is getting out via independent, non-mainstream media. Maybe the citizens of this nation are learning to read between the lines of the establishment, both media and government. That is truly encouraging.
Trump is the only President who didn't go to Congress for authorization. And he is the only one who has been obviously manipulated by a foreign government.
I know you don't think that, but your only argument against it is to claim that he has agency, thereby implying he's impervious to manipulation and any claims otherwise are anti-Semitic.
In other words, you're not approaching the topic in good faith, you're approaching it with a bias to defend Israel.
Trump's agency doesn't preclude him from being vulnerable to manipulation anymore than his obsession with his own legacy does. His agency and obsession with legacy are non-sequiturs to his potential for being manipulated.
It's a terrible argument and if that's the best you can do, it all but confirms the idea that Israel has manipulated him.
I'm not sure a) how a bad argument from a random Jewish person confirms Trump manipulated him and b) that I'm claiming anyone is antisemitic. (Well now I am, after that comment).
There isn't a single moment when the Roman Republic ended and Augustus was made emperor, in fact I don't think he was ever given the title. He simply absorbed the powers and responsibilities of other offices to such an extent and for such a period of time that Rome, including the Senate, became habituated to having one man in charge.
Watching a president destroy the government through DOGE and then wage war without Congressional authorization after all these decades of creeping authoritarianism feels like we're doing the same thing.
I nearly misunderstood the word, virality, in this reporting. Rather than being viralized- forwarded and reinvented online- I read, virility or virile. Merriam Webster says virile is masculine performance. But maybe either word will do!
In the early days of Trump as politician, he was asked who was his favorite author; PT Barnum, he said. " I never met a sucker I didn't like," said Barnum. Like Barnum, Bibi never met one either, until now.
Remember that Dem video by Mark Kelly and Elissa Slotkin and the other Dem veterans in Congress warning our soldiers that they have an obligation to the Constitution to NOT obey illegal orders? If this does not qualify, then what does? And if our soldiers disobey, and they are court martialed by Hegseth? Well, if I were a soldier facing this now, I would rather be court martialed then commit a war crime killing tens of thousands doing it. No wonder Hegseth is running a massive purge of the generals who obviously are screaming over this. Our soldiers must be going through hell. People may blast me for saying this, but we, as a nation, are the BAD GUYS here. Israel is the tail wagging the dog. I am ASHAMED to be an American now.
I am dismayed at the American people. As I have mentioned, I am on the street daily demonstrating against Zionism and for liberty and justice for all. Since the start of this insane war I have written my signs accordingly. The primary sign marks every day (now 38) that the war has been running and that it is pointless, purely a protection of ethnic cleansing Israel.
Today I was at a commuter railroad station at a busy intersection. Hundreds of cars passed me and well over a hundred commuters coming home at rush hour. I received a few horn honks of approval but of the pedestrians passing me I saw blank faces and received not one comment of approval on this day when Trump threatens a catastrophic attack on a country that did all it could to avoid conflict but got it anyway.
What does it take to get Americans vocal and on the street? I saw no evidence that this was not just another workday like any other. Where is the outrage over liberty and justice for all going to war to defend ethnic cleansing? Is everyone intimidated by the thought that they might be falsely called an antisemite? Zionism has completely cowed we the people who fear job loss, or a promotion denied, or doxxing, or simply being known by neighbors to stand against Israel.
Most distressing of all is that I remain all alone, one American vocal out in public denouncing Zionism and standing for the foundation of our country. 19 months out daily I have been doing this with no intention of stopping because I owe it to my country. Has even ONE other person seen this display of freedom of speech and decided to do likewise? Not one. I specifically call out retirees like me who could be doing this on streetcorners everywhere, free of the threat of job loss or student status being denied, Boomers who have lived the life and should feel not just a responsibility but an obligation to stand up for America but are not.
I love my country, but I am ashamed of the apathy of we the people who gave not a peep when Joe Biden declared himself a proud Zionist while fully supporting genocide, now continued by Trump with the additional favor to Israel of war on Iran. AMERICANS, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!
Okay, tonight at 8:00 PM. This ends one way or another. Not the war, but Trump's rhetoric. One of two things will happen. Trump will do the wrong thing and bomb the shit out of Iran or he will say that someone, he can't say who, reached out and started to deal (a lie). I pray to the Goddess for the latter. But either way this is something to consider. We cannot, let me repeat CANNOT, occupy Iran. The population is equal to combined Iraq and Afghanistan and much more sophisticated. When we invaded Iraq The Rand Corporation was asked to do an analysis of how many soldiers it would take to "occupy" Iraq. The answer was one soldier for every twenty-five Iraqis. Based on those numbers and places like Fallujah George W. Bush (it wasn't Barrack Obama) pulled out of Iraq as fast as he could. Fast forward to today 92 million divided by 25 equals 3.7 million soldiers just for Iran. Our total active, guard and reserves are 2.1 million. This war was doomed from the get go. There is absolutely no way for TACO Trump to save face. Our blowhard in chief and and his lackey of defense are going to be the laughing stock of the world. Unfortunately they are dragging the rest of us along with them.
I strongly disagree. Trump is now thinking about his legacy. As of now , he only has two options. He makes a peace treaty that shows him a win, or bombs Iran into winning and hope history judges him favorably. He's not going to cry uncle here.
Trump is getting old, but I suspect he still remembers the Iran revolution and viscerally feels the embarrassment. I suspect that is what caused this whole war to begin with, not Israel.
If I were a conspiracy theorist, I would suggest (like David Cole) that the Greenland stuff was meant to prime the base for a war.
One of the MAGA members in Wisconsin actually referred to Iran's "attack on the USA" 46 years ago which was their overthrow of the Shah (installed by the CIA) as justification for continuing the war.
The fact that the entire country isn’t halting everything to address this is the problem. American exceptionalism and complacency has largely landed us here. We now have a US president openly threatening genocide and a non existent opposition party that can only seem to pen strongly worded letters of condemnation as opposed to taking any real action. The steady and rapid decline of this nation has been harrowing to watch, even more harrowing is watching the populace go about life as if nothing is happening
As a start... Dem leadership could denounce the Gaza genocide, stop voting to supply Israel with weapons, clearly oppose Trumps unprovoked attack on Iran as a war crime and state the truth that Israel is the only known nuclear threat in the middle-east.
Tech has made it possible to wage real war without a draft.
What 'real action' are you calling for Democratic Party leaders to pursue? Without some defections from GOP pols in Congress, Democratic Party leaders in Congress have little-to-no power to block anything that Trump wants or needs from Congress--apart from his special request for an additional $200B for the war. And Dem Party leaders have roundly criticized and pledged to oppose extra money for the war in Iran. Beyond that and challenging Trump's budget proposals over the next 4 or 5 months, there's not much the Dems can do to end the war in Iran or shut-down the DHS.
You just described a system where your claiming the Democratic Party has no ability to oppose the actions of the party in power. Your current stance is that the helpless Dems are unable to do anything because of the big bad system. Meanwhile at every turn the Conservative Party weaponizes said system repeatedly as they change the definition of the rule of law by the minute. The pathetic liberal mindset of helplessness is why we are here. The blue no matter who crowd is the apparatus that holds up fascism.
The democrats have the ability to creatively establish barriers as a collective but they continue to hold the pail of fascism and carry the water for a fucking pedophile dictator.
The rules and the system have clearly reached its limit, the democrats need to get off those complacent asses and hold the White House hostage until something is done. Use every apparatus of interruption possible to stop the madness.
Simply claiming boo hoo they are helpless is a fucking joke and I’m tired of these fucking moral platitudes constantly touted by these weak ass liberals.
The system is the problem. Full stop
This duopoly of supposed “choices” we get to make is a product of two wings of the same bird funded by the same groups that have allowed genocide to become morally acceptable to the population of this country.
Bravo, Sean. I couldn’t say it any better. The Democrats always with an excuse.
I feel your outrage and thank you for that excellent summary!
The Dem leadership sees doing nothing as a winning strategy.
Unfortunately so true
Thank god they saved the filibuster under Biden, to not use it now!
It would make no sense for the “entire country” to “halt everything.” That would cause bigger problems. Perhaps you should take your own advice though and halt writing comments on the internet.
You’re right continuing along as we have been is the answer. Just put that head down and focus on serving capitalism. No need to worry about what’s going on outside.
Thanks for your ignorant input and horrendous attempt at an insult
Have a great day buddy
“You’re right continuing along as we have been is the answer. “
There is no “we” to continue along anything.
“Just put that head down and focus on serving capitalism. “
I don’t recall suggesting people do anything other than not ”halt everything.” Not halting everything isn’t “serving capitalism.” Oh, and I suggested you take your own advice. That also isn’t a suggestion to “serve capitalism.”
“No need to worry about what’s going on outside.”
There would be even more reason to worry if people halted everything.
“Thanks for your ignorant input and horrendous attempt at an insult”
I see you have not taken your own advice and you continue to write on the internet. Are you “serving capitalism” by continuing this conversation with me?
“Have a great day buddy”
That would be hard if I halted everything.
Every hour we work, we add more resources and power into the system that allowed the threat of genocide. The appropriate response to that threat, by the people on whose behalf it was made is: "No. We will lie down and die in the street before we allow this. We will starve and burn down our own house before we allow the commission of such evil in our name. No."
It would not cause bigger problems. There are no bigger problems. Because if we do that, America is already dead.
And the simple fact that the DNC is not screaming that message from the rooftops of twitter, and CNN, and both Chambers; that they haven't reached out to the unions, sympathetic businesses, 50501, the Black Panthers, and every sane activist group in the country to make it happen; is all we need to see to know they are not committed to the fight. We're not fighting capitalism, anymore. We are fighting cruelty. We are fighting evil. And as of Tuesday, that is not sensationalist rhetoric, anymore.
(Well, alright, threatening to release smallpox on the world might be bigger... threatening to nuke Yellowstone and kick that off early would certainly be bigger... you see what I'm getting at, here.)
Thank you for building upon my original point, this is well stated and further expands the conversation. You fully understood the original point I was making so thank you for that
Teamwork makes the dream work.
One correction: Congress cannot work with unions to organize a strike per the NLRB & Taft-Hartley Act. But I don’t see any restrictions on working with employers or non-unionized employees. Also, there’s certainly nothing preventing the coordination of aid to strikers who may need assistance to hold out. We have the May Day GS in the works for ‘26 & ‘28, but that’s only a day. I really feel like we can hit harder.
Completely agree brother. We must match the energy of the oppressors
Not buying it.
See the fatman on the flying trapeze, but don't look too close!
Bravo, another masterpiece! That said, had anyone else suggested we nuke a country with a population of 93 million simply because the president is throwing a tantrum—the regime he bombed decided not to kowtow to his demands, he would be removed from office pronto.
Furthermore, had this been any other president, we’d pass go and forget the 25th or impeachment; he’d be relegated to a rubber-room at Bellevue!
And if anyone is wondering whether it’s Trump’s dementia that’s kicking in; think again! He’s always had a screw loose: remember when he told us to drink bleach during COVID. Or how about we nuke a hurricane to disperse it!
And if anyone was still wondering whether our new messiah is smarter than all the generals and admirals combined? Seriously, are there any people still wondering????
Lastly, the only question I have left is, “How the hell did we get here?” It’s a rhetorical question, no need to answer! IMHO…:)
Trump's always loved The Bomb and pressured the Pentagon to seriously consider ways the US could use it. Anyway, he needs to be removed from office before he uses it.
Very true, and mostly likely because he craves and covets ultimate power (nukes).
Additionally, he craves three things in the world more than anything else: money, adulation and power—Not necessarily in that order!…:)
Like herding cats. We can't afford to grin at the appellation Dems have used when the party scatters under fire. We need two Dem minority leaders to work in concert to strong arm every member to work as one. As one they can apply a great deal of pressure, move hard, publicly, loudly against GOP silence and intractability. As one they can flood their respective floors with measure after measure demanding an end to this presidency. They will capture public attention and maybe some respect. It needs to happen before one of DJTs crazy notions becomes too massive to reverse. And p.s. Keep calling out every AIPAC contribution Dems accept.
I would add one thing to your interesting and encouraging article. Maybe, just maybe, the reality of the bombing of residential areas, schools, hospitals, bridges, universities, sacred, and UNESCO heritage sites, deaths of children and civilians is getting out via independent, non-mainstream media. Maybe the citizens of this nation are learning to read between the lines of the establishment, both media and government. That is truly encouraging.
i feel like an extra in a horror movie.
Trump is the only President who didn't go to Congress for authorization. And he is the only one who has been obviously manipulated by a foreign government.
Trump has agency.
So does everyone else. Are you saying that manipulation doesn't exist?
I don't think Trump was manipulated by Israel here. I think he thinks that this is his legacy.
I know you don't think that, but your only argument against it is to claim that he has agency, thereby implying he's impervious to manipulation and any claims otherwise are anti-Semitic.
In other words, you're not approaching the topic in good faith, you're approaching it with a bias to defend Israel.
Trump's agency doesn't preclude him from being vulnerable to manipulation anymore than his obsession with his own legacy does. His agency and obsession with legacy are non-sequiturs to his potential for being manipulated.
It's a terrible argument and if that's the best you can do, it all but confirms the idea that Israel has manipulated him.
I'm not sure a) how a bad argument from a random Jewish person confirms Trump manipulated him and b) that I'm claiming anyone is antisemitic. (Well now I am, after that comment).
So your reading comprehension isn't high enough to understand what's being said to you.
At no point did I say Trump manipulated you.
Read it again, and when you can accurately reply then I'll consider you worth the conversation.
There isn't a single moment when the Roman Republic ended and Augustus was made emperor, in fact I don't think he was ever given the title. He simply absorbed the powers and responsibilities of other offices to such an extent and for such a period of time that Rome, including the Senate, became habituated to having one man in charge.
Watching a president destroy the government through DOGE and then wage war without Congressional authorization after all these decades of creeping authoritarianism feels like we're doing the same thing.
I nearly misunderstood the word, virality, in this reporting. Rather than being viralized- forwarded and reinvented online- I read, virility or virile. Merriam Webster says virile is masculine performance. But maybe either word will do!
In the early days of Trump as politician, he was asked who was his favorite author; PT Barnum, he said. " I never met a sucker I didn't like," said Barnum. Like Barnum, Bibi never met one either, until now.
Oh no, is that a niche internet word? I thought it was common use
You were right. I was wrong.
The war isn’t done yet!
Brilliantly written.
:)
I hope the world doesn't end tonight.
You write about Amerikka Ken but we in the 'outer world' would love to see America annhiliated.
Ill educated Amerikkans.......ill educated Amerikkans............
You are going to devastate Iran..............why?
US hasn't won a war since Grenada.
The 'hate' towards Americans is growing.
Remember that Dem video by Mark Kelly and Elissa Slotkin and the other Dem veterans in Congress warning our soldiers that they have an obligation to the Constitution to NOT obey illegal orders? If this does not qualify, then what does? And if our soldiers disobey, and they are court martialed by Hegseth? Well, if I were a soldier facing this now, I would rather be court martialed then commit a war crime killing tens of thousands doing it. No wonder Hegseth is running a massive purge of the generals who obviously are screaming over this. Our soldiers must be going through hell. People may blast me for saying this, but we, as a nation, are the BAD GUYS here. Israel is the tail wagging the dog. I am ASHAMED to be an American now.
I am dismayed at the American people. As I have mentioned, I am on the street daily demonstrating against Zionism and for liberty and justice for all. Since the start of this insane war I have written my signs accordingly. The primary sign marks every day (now 38) that the war has been running and that it is pointless, purely a protection of ethnic cleansing Israel.
Today I was at a commuter railroad station at a busy intersection. Hundreds of cars passed me and well over a hundred commuters coming home at rush hour. I received a few horn honks of approval but of the pedestrians passing me I saw blank faces and received not one comment of approval on this day when Trump threatens a catastrophic attack on a country that did all it could to avoid conflict but got it anyway.
What does it take to get Americans vocal and on the street? I saw no evidence that this was not just another workday like any other. Where is the outrage over liberty and justice for all going to war to defend ethnic cleansing? Is everyone intimidated by the thought that they might be falsely called an antisemite? Zionism has completely cowed we the people who fear job loss, or a promotion denied, or doxxing, or simply being known by neighbors to stand against Israel.
Most distressing of all is that I remain all alone, one American vocal out in public denouncing Zionism and standing for the foundation of our country. 19 months out daily I have been doing this with no intention of stopping because I owe it to my country. Has even ONE other person seen this display of freedom of speech and decided to do likewise? Not one. I specifically call out retirees like me who could be doing this on streetcorners everywhere, free of the threat of job loss or student status being denied, Boomers who have lived the life and should feel not just a responsibility but an obligation to stand up for America but are not.
I love my country, but I am ashamed of the apathy of we the people who gave not a peep when Joe Biden declared himself a proud Zionist while fully supporting genocide, now continued by Trump with the additional favor to Israel of war on Iran. AMERICANS, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!
Okay, tonight at 8:00 PM. This ends one way or another. Not the war, but Trump's rhetoric. One of two things will happen. Trump will do the wrong thing and bomb the shit out of Iran or he will say that someone, he can't say who, reached out and started to deal (a lie). I pray to the Goddess for the latter. But either way this is something to consider. We cannot, let me repeat CANNOT, occupy Iran. The population is equal to combined Iraq and Afghanistan and much more sophisticated. When we invaded Iraq The Rand Corporation was asked to do an analysis of how many soldiers it would take to "occupy" Iraq. The answer was one soldier for every twenty-five Iraqis. Based on those numbers and places like Fallujah George W. Bush (it wasn't Barrack Obama) pulled out of Iraq as fast as he could. Fast forward to today 92 million divided by 25 equals 3.7 million soldiers just for Iran. Our total active, guard and reserves are 2.1 million. This war was doomed from the get go. There is absolutely no way for TACO Trump to save face. Our blowhard in chief and and his lackey of defense are going to be the laughing stock of the world. Unfortunately they are dragging the rest of us along with them.
I strongly disagree. Trump is now thinking about his legacy. As of now , he only has two options. He makes a peace treaty that shows him a win, or bombs Iran into winning and hope history judges him favorably. He's not going to cry uncle here.
Trump is getting old, but I suspect he still remembers the Iran revolution and viscerally feels the embarrassment. I suspect that is what caused this whole war to begin with, not Israel.
If I were a conspiracy theorist, I would suggest (like David Cole) that the Greenland stuff was meant to prime the base for a war.
One of the MAGA members in Wisconsin actually referred to Iran's "attack on the USA" 46 years ago which was their overthrow of the Shah (installed by the CIA) as justification for continuing the war.