Democratic elections have always been messy; democracy itself is inherently messy. And there have probably always been shenanigans to be found in the process. But the “election” of George W. Bush was probably one of the most egregious election scams we’d seen up until that time. Bush lost the popular vote by 540,000 votes. But things got really strange in Florida, where George’s brother, Jeb was Governor.
GOP Voter Suppression in Florida
Governor Jeb Bush instructed his Secretary of State Katherine Harris to purge the voting rolls of thousands of voters.
12,000 eligible voters – a number twenty-two times larger than George W. Bush’s 537 vote triumph over Al Gore – were wrongly identified as convicted felons and purged from the voting rolls in Florida, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. African Americans, who favored Gore over Bush by 86 points, accounted for 11 percent of the state’s electorate but 41 percent of those purged.. Rolling Stone
But that didn’t stop the voter suppression efforts. The fact that voter suppression had been used to successfully “elect” a United States president was not lost on the Republican party.
Donald Trump, a man who lost the popular vote by nearly 3 MILLION voters and yet has been installed in the White House, is a very unpopular person, both in the United States and world-wide. There are huge protests at his radical executive orders, massive resistance to his fringe far-right ideology, and challenges to his lies and policies in the public and in the courts. This man is desperate to “win” rather than govern. And he needs something to help him “win”.
Donald Trump needs a distraction, a way to unite people behind him, and a way to consolidate his power. Donald Trump and the GOP NEED a terrorist attack on the United States.
Increasingly, more people are echoing the fear that this administration will orchestrate ( or allow) some type of “terrorist attack”. We all certainly hope one does not happen; innocent people should not pay the ultimate price in an authoritarian regime’s grab for power. There are known steps usually taken by authoritarian and fascist regimes to maximize their control in any “event.” So before such an event happens, we need to communicate these to as many people as we can:
Be ready for the administration to call for arrest or internment of certain people.
Be aware of manipulation. Don’t fall for their political theater and hyper-patriotic rhetoric.
Do your best to think critically and rationally. They’ll be counting on people to be frightened and angry.
We’re going to need to stand together in unity. The administration will try to divide us and turn us against one another. Don’t let them. We’ll need to be skeptical, caring, and level headed… and #Resist the power grab that would follow such an attack.
What benefit would this administration get from an attack?
It’s that time again! The presidential election brings the crazies out of their basements and think-tanks to compete in the “BS Email & Social Media Follies”.
Lots of people have asked me how to go about fact-checking, so let’s discuss it here.
First, let’s take a look at fact-checking, and a few tips on how to spot a BS email or post.
How To Spot a BS Email or Post
A BS Email claims to be factual, rather than opinion. And it is full of fake “facts”, quotes, and lots of hyperbole. A false message often contains a tiny grain of truth. This is done to give “cover” or deniability to the liar, and it also gives lazy readers a false sense that the entire message must be true. Let’s not be lazy readers, my friends! If something is just too “on the nose”, or fits a political narrative a bit too exactly, don’t forward or re-post it until you’ve checked it out.
If a quote seems out of character for the person to whom it was attributed, check it.
Always suspect emails with giant font, a lot of exclamation points and ALL CAPS!!!!!!!!! (If you can imagine someone hysterically yelling the message, definitely check it.)
If the post or email quotes a known propagandist or propaganda organization, be suspicious. (There are some individuals who have made a very good living twisting words, telling outright lies, and especially, selling hate and fear of “the other”. They often refer to themselves as “real Americans” and other people as outsiders. Always fact-check anything these people say.)
There are several types of people who contribute to a “successful” BS email or social media meme:
The despicable people who knowingly create these emails and posts, and who don’t care that they’re terrifying our elderly and uneducated, since their goal is to gain votes through deceitful manipulation.
The above mentioned elderly, who came from a time when creating a fake TV “news” station or building a website based on false “information” would be considered shameful. Yes, there was a time when a reporter strove for honesty and tried to be impartial. After all, the airwaves belong to the U.S. citizens, and a person using these airwaves had an ethical obligation to help educate and enlighten citizens, not outright manipulate them. Sorry, that time is long gone. (You cannot blindly believe what you see on television or read in an email or see on a website.)
The uneducated, who do believe what they read or see without fact-checking.
All of the above people, who forward BS emails to vast numbers of people, continuing the cycle of dumbing-down the country.
A great example: Today an email came forwarded to me printed in GIANT BOLD COLORED FONT and of course, lots of exclamation points!!!!!!: the better to scare you with, my dear.More
Anyone who’s read this blog for any amount of time knows that I’m an enthusiastic Bernie supporter.
Bernie — plus a HUUUGE turn-out for Progressives in the Senate and House — could mean a GREAT change for the citizens of this country:
Imagine an economy designed to actually serve the citizens instead of only the elite.
Imagine FDR’s Second Bill of Rights becoming reality.
Imagine getting money out of politics and having an actual democracy.
Imagine the end of “too big to fail”, breaking up the big banks, and ending monopolies — especially that of our of our media institutions, so that the citizenry could have a chance to hear diverse opinions and values.
Imagine single payer health care, freeing us all from the profiteering insurance, medical and pharmacy complexes.
Imagine restoring our infrastructure, with the federal government creating good jobs as the CCC and other government programs that lifted our citizenry out of poverty in the 1930s.
Imagine our country getting very serious about cleaning up our environment, tackling it like we did the race to land on the moon back in the 1960s.
Imagine our taxes actually being spent on making ALL our lives better, creating more EQUALITY and SERVICES for ALL — instead of subsidizing multinational corporations, polluting corporations, Big-AG, and “defense” contractors.
Imagine restoring the tax rate on the wealthy plutocrat/polluter class to what it was during Eisenhower, when the US economy created the biggest middle-class in history: with unions insuring good wages, good benefits, vacation and retirement for the workers who actually built this country.
It is because the taxes they collectively pay are used to provide each member of their society with high quality health care, high quality education, and social services. More
It’s time for a real discussion on verifying and confirming, my friends. Every one of us needs to have some basic critical thinking, reasoning, and researching skills — because if we don’t, liars will twist our thinking.
Think I’m exaggerating? Look at what Fox “news” has done to nearly a third of US citizens. Pundifact (by Politifact) found Fox “news” broadcasts the truth 18 percent (15 of 83) of the time for the statements they checked. Of that 18 percent, only 8 percent of what they said was completely “True.” The remaining 10 percent was rated as “Mostly True”.
Yet their cult-like followers will listen to Fox and only Fox. Roger Ailes’ plan to manipulate the minds of the public (“People are lazy. With television you just sit—watch—listen. The thinking is done for you.”) has worked beyond his wildest dreams. But this article isn’t about Fox. It’s about your trusted friends and relatives. Sorry.
Don’t trust those memes you see on your friend’s facebook feed.More
If you are seeking shelter right now, Text SHELTER + your ZIP code to 43362 (4FEMA) to find the nearest shelter in your area.
Today we are witnessing one of the largest hurricanes in recorded history. Cuba has been hit terribly hard, Haiti has
Lower East Side, Sandy
been devastated (again), and as of this writing, New York and the Eastern Coast are being battered by Hurricane Sandy which has joined with two other weather systems to create a huge and problematic storm affecting 50 million people
“Approximately one-fifth of the US population is in the path of this terrifyingly massive storm. We watch helplessly as wind batters, rain drenches, flood waters rise, fires rage and electrical power goes out.”
Occupy volunteers set up this amazing tool for other volunteers to register services or request help, and supply a variety of ways for virtually anyone to get involved in any capacity. It is highly ironic in these times of “Enemy of the State” and “Domestic Terrorism” accusations against activists that when the proverbial shit hits the fan, we step forward, unpaid, to perform civic duties in true demonstrations of patriotism and humanitarianism. .-OccupySavvy.com
When you take shelter – please, please, take your companion animals with you; Pets are welcome at all NYC hurricane shelters. (Please have them leashed or in carriers.)
And be safe.
Meanwhile… perhaps this will put the words, “climate change” back into the conversation.
The alarm keeps going off. We open one eye, then hit snooze and doze off again.
It’s time for us to Wake Up, and Grow Up. It’s time for us to take responsibility for the environmental damage we’ve done, and take a clear eyed look at the consequences we’re beginning to reap. And it’s time for us to make big changes.
And by the way, allowing a vulture capitalist who vows to end FEMA and demonizes unionized government employees — thousands of whom are risking their lives to save strangers tonight — is NOT the way to go.
Another crazy reich-wing email was sent to me recently by a relative. It’s entitled “White House Visitors” and ominously claims that “scores of known radical Islamists have made hundreds of visits to the Obama White House, meeting with top administration officials.”
So, what’s he talking about? Perhaps he meant this President:
Reagan invites the Taliban to the White House for TeaMore
they’re terrifying our elderly and uneducated, since their goal is to gain votes through deceitful manipulation.
Anyone who’s read this blog for any amount of time knows that I’m an enthusiastic Bernie supporter.
crazyemailsandbackstories 