I really do just want to crawl into a hammock on a tropical beach somewhere and stay there until something is resolved. By something, I mean until Trump is in jail, or until Kyrsten Sinema decides what she wants and the infrastructure bills can pass. Something.
I’ve been thinking about the phrase “all publicity is good publicity.” Sinema and Manchin are putting that to the test. I honestly didn’t know anything about Kyrsten Sinema, other than her being a Democratic senator from Arizona, until this year. I suspect that’s true of most Democrats around the country. Now I bet she’s about as popular with most Democrats around the country as Mitch McConnell. I’d wish for her to accidently fall into a volcano somewhere, but she’d be replaced by a Republican.
Same thing with Joe Manchin. I knew Manchin was a conservative Demcrat, but until this year I never felt a strong urge to gouge out his eyes with my thumbs.
The recent pattern has been that somebody announces that some part of President Biden’s agenda has become acceptable to Manchin, causing a brief flurry of optimism. The next morning, headlines announce that Manchin says he can’t support whatever that was, after all, leading to a big collective sigh and a “never mind.” And this is followed by editorials that blame progressives for the gridlock.
The talkings heads on MSNBC keep trying to persuade us that the bills Manchin has gutted are still good bills. Maybe, in the sense of being better than nothing. But I don’t want to hear any more about this or that being cut out to get Manchin’s vote. I’m done. Just let me know when it’s all over.
Meanwhile, white Virginia parents have been whipped into a frenzy over threats that their children’s public schools might be teaching children about racism. This could cost Terry McAuliffe the election next week. So stupid.
I recommend Negril, Jamaica. The non-peak time to visit is November thru very early December.
I’d wish for her to accidently fall into a volcano somewhere, but she’d be replaced by a Republican.
sEnema got elected as a democrat supporting many of the things she is now opposed to. Arizona is not bright red any longer and a democrat who is not corporately owned could get elected. sEnema sold her soul to corporate money after she was elected.
Why do state Democratic Parties keep pushing uninspiring, clintonesque, corporate candidates? McAuliffe is still from the DLC corporate wing of the party. He ran the early part of his candidacy separating himself from Biden's policies. He ran the later parts of his campaign as "I'm not tRump". Totally uninspiring.
State D Parties go with DLC because DLC has money. DLC built institutional infrastructure (Polling, Consultants, etc), which they use as bait to get State Parties to accept & push DLC candidates. Unfortunately, DLC Consultants are mostly coastal neoliberals who think they know more about states than the people who live there. Josh Marshall (who Maha often quotes) at Talking Points Memo has been (rightfully) harping on this for years.
Justice Democrats (AOC & "Squad") are slowly building up to challenge the DLC, and Bernie has been building for years. IMO, it's better to donate to them rather than individual candidates (except inside your own State).
Not sure if you realize you see more of what Manchin and Sinema are about because the bill in question is a reconciliation bill. What does that mean? It means there is no filibuster to hide behind. Essentially the filibuster is a shield both sides can hide behind. They can say, "I would've voted for that bill, but…filibuster!" Now the S&M team can't hide behind it and everybody is seeing the true selves of Manchin & Sinema.
The problem isn't Manchin or Sinema. The problem is that we need them to get anything done. If we had prevailed in 2020 with more than a razor-thin majority, then a few defections wouldn't matter.
I put January 2025 on my calendar. That's my deadline for getting out of the country.
The playing field keeps getting more uneven, as is depicted in the cartoon. The elite and especially the corporate elite struggle to find places and ways to buy more status and power. Sure they can brag they own even a couple of Democrats. It is what all are up against. No one said the rules would be fair and there would not be cheating. Look at the cheating on the world stage.
Russia holds and controls energy supplies it is using to put nations in it's pocket not just Senators. Some countries undercut other countries to give tax havens to international companies. Right now Brazil has an unpopular *Populist and Trump clone who is selling out his own country and killing his own people with COVID misinformation Trump style. Of course there is the race to join the elite nuclear club by several players, which even gets the attention of Republicans. None of this is social and fair. All of it is to the detriment of the well being of the masses and a drain on common resources not just in this country but in the world.
China is thriving because it's government understands that all its citizens must share both the burden and the benefit of it's success. When you have only one political party you have only one to blame when things don't work. (No hiding behind a filibuster.) Lately it sees a treat from a rise in power of the corporate elites and has taken steps to rein them in. We in the United States struggle even with two parties to have one that can deliver to all it's citizens. Many citizens hide behind the Republican party to avoid any burden of citizenship or the welfare of the group, The Republicans constantly try to exclude many citizens from any common wealth or common responsibility yet laden others with taxes, poor law enforcement, sub-standard wages and tell them that they are better off than the Chinese because they have more freedom. Now the Republicans are even trying to take away the right to vote for groups that tend not to accept their rules for an ever more tilted field of play.
It is quite possible that China and the United States are both in excess, with China too focused on the common wealth and responsibility of all it's people and the United States too focused on individual freedom and the empowerment of the corporate elite.
When you have a nation who has a significant minority who are too burdened by taking a vaccine to help in stopping a raging lethal pandemic then we certainly lack even minimal levels of social responsibility needed to have a working nation. This is the United States. Russia has a majority that is not vaccinated according to reports, is in deep medical crisis, and has used the word social in it's name. Go figure.
* You would think that Populists would favor policies that are of benefit to the general population rather than policies and propaganda that harm and exploit them and make them eventually unpopular. Then they cheat to stay in power.
I'm just glad that Jayapal and the rest of the CPC are holding strong on not passing the bipartisan bill until they get a firm commitment from Manchin/Sinema. Because you just know the moment that passes the house they will start up again with their "Much taxes" "Too deficit" scam on BBB.
America is on life-support.
We're facing another civil war – potentially.
We've been in a "cold civil war" for 156 years – since Lee's surrender at Appomattox. If you want to say it started when the Reconstruction Era was murdered in its crib in the late 1870's, I won't put up a fight.
Race-based slavery is our country's original sin.
And racism is tearing this country apart to this day.
But sadly, racism, is not the only thing tearing this country apart.
There are also a plethora of other bigotries in action: Against women, LGBTQ, minorities, seniors, young people, AND A WHOLE LOT OF OTHER ETC, ETC, ETC'S…