Trumps Indictment: Historical and Future Implications II
Josh said:I have read all these postings with interest. Two things spring to mind.
1).Technology is a form of power (extending human 'reach'). As ever with every new technology, it is sold to the general public under the ideology of "Technology=Progress" -- and the devil take the hindmost. The 'hindmost' is now rearing its ugly head with all the various channels of technology-amplified media disinformation, word-twisting, and disingenious claims regarding 'the right to free speech', etc, etc.
If you track the development of the idea of "a horseless carriage" you find a similar 'story', but over a longer time-frame of 140 years, and counting. The results of introducing new technologies are rarely accurately predicted - and those who did were called 'Luddites', 'anti-technology', or simply regarded with pity as people who were psychologically a bit dumb and were incapable of moving with the times.
Having a nephew and neice at the front end of I.T research, working on what's to come in about 5 years' time, I would say the power of technology-amplification of human intentions has far outstripped the psychological maturity required to handle such power (a point (warning) made by Jacques Ellul in the 1950s {ref: The Technological Society}).
(If this is off-topic, I apologise. I'm beginning to think things through to give a talk on technology for a local "Philosophy-Café" initiative -- I'm just having some initial thoughts). :))
You hit the nail on the head ( italicized ). And, no, it's not off-topic - it all relates to the global issue of politics at hand and how IT is being used to facilitate agendas in ways the general masses cannot understand.
2).Being married to a German, and having just got back from Germany yesterday, I hope current political power-struggles in America are a salutary lesson to Brits in particular before they (well some) keep on bleating the old narrative of blaming the Germans for letting Hitler come to power -- conveniently forgetting that the Treaty of Versailles (after WW1) made it virtually inevitable that some new dictator would arise (The Germans were not allowed to take any part in the negotiation of the Treaty, and they were forced to sign it at the end. It required ruinous financial compensation up until the 1990s. Several million Germans died of starvation after the WW1 as a result - a very little known fact. And then the same happened again after WW2 due to various sanctions). History is written by the winners, as we all know.
I suggest that disenfranchisement from the political process (as is the case in most countries) will eventually lead to Trump-like scenarios with their ideologically-driven supporters touting patriotism, God, and freedom-talk as their ethical basis for actions, including violence. And that's what we see in America now.
The overall answer to all this is to massively decentralise power (in all 'advanced' countries). Essentially the exact opposite is happening, despite technology 'giving voice' to 'minority' opinions.
Again, nail on the head. Thank you so much for weighing in. This is much bigger than just America.
Rew said:Indeed.
Agreed.
1).Technology is a form of power (extending human 'reach'). As ever with every new technology, it is sold to the general public under the ideology of "Technology=Progress" -- and the devil take the hindmost. The 'hindmost' is now rearing its ugly head with all the various channels of technology-amplified media disinformation, word-twisting, and disingenious claims regarding 'the right to free speech', etc, etc.
If you track the development of the idea of "a horseless carriage" you find a similar 'story', but over a longer time-frame of 140 years, and counting. The results of introducing new technologies are rarely accurately predicted - and those who did were called 'Luddites', 'anti-technology', or simply regarded with pity as people who were psychologically a bit dumb and were incapable of moving with the times.
Having a nephew and neice at the front end of I.T research, working on what's to come in about 5 years' time, I would say the power of technology-amplification of human intentions has far outstripped the psychological maturity required to handle such power (a point (warning) made by Jacques Ellul in the 1950s {ref: The Technological Society}).
(If this is off-topic, I apologise. I'm beginning to think things through to give a talk on technology for a local "Philosophy-Café" initiative -- I'm just having some initial thoughts). :))
You hit the nail on the head ( italicized ). And, no, it's not off-topic - it all relates to the global issue of politics at hand and how IT is being used to facilitate agendas in ways the general masses cannot understand.
2).Being married to a German, and having just got back from Germany yesterday, I hope current political power-struggles in America are a salutary lesson to Brits in particular before they (well some) keep on bleating the old narrative of blaming the Germans for letting Hitler come to power -- conveniently forgetting that the Treaty of Versailles (after WW1) made it virtually inevitable that some new dictator would arise (The Germans were not allowed to take any part in the negotiation of the Treaty, and they were forced to sign it at the end. It required ruinous financial compensation up until the 1990s. Several million Germans died of starvation after the WW1 as a result - a very little known fact. And then the same happened again after WW2 due to various sanctions). History is written by the winners, as we all know.
I suggest that disenfranchisement from the political process (as is the case in most countries) will eventually lead to Trump-like scenarios with their ideologically-driven supporters touting patriotism, God, and freedom-talk as their ethical basis for actions, including violence. And that's what we see in America now.
The overall answer to all this is to massively decentralise power (in all 'advanced' countries). Essentially the exact opposite is happening, despite technology 'giving voice' to 'minority' opinions.
Again, nail on the head. Thank you so much for weighing in. This is much bigger than just America.
Rew said:Indeed.
Agreed.
It turns out the special purpose grand jury of Fulton County, Georgia, created in May 2022 to investigate the attempt to disrupt the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, recommended criminal charges against more people than the 19 the traditional grand jury indicted in August. Their report, published today, shows that a majority of the 23-person special grand jury also recommended the state bring charges against South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham and the two Georgia senators in early 2020: David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler.
The special purpose grand jury also recommended charges against Trump lawyers Cleta Mitchell and Boris Epshteyn, Trump advisor Michael Flynn, and all the false electors.
In most of the votes, it appeared there was one staunch vote opposed to bringing charges against anyone associated with Trump.
Also today, U.S. district judge Steve C. Jones for the Northern District of Georgia denied the request of Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows to move his prosecution to federal rather than state court. This is important. Meadows had argued that the crimes for which the Fulton County grand jury indicted him were part of his duties as a federal official. If the judge had agreed, the removal of his case to federal court would have enabled Meadows to argue that his case should be dismissed because his actions were part of his official duties. But the judge determined that Meadow’s actions were part of his work for the Trump campaign and thus could stay in state court.
To make his case, Meadows testified himself, a high-risk step that now leaves him, as legal analyst Harry Litman of the Los Angeles Times put it, “in a very bad place. He gambled heavily on winning & then getting immunity. Now his ability to cooperate w[ / either Jack Smith or Fani Willis is a) of much less value & b) possibly even off the table. He is in a world of hurt.”
Meadows has already appealed.
Other defendants, including Trump himself, were hoping their cases would be removed to federal court, but the decision in Meadows’s case does not bode well for them.
It would be a shame if the growing legal troubles of the Trump conspirators overshadow the work of the Biden administration on the global stage this week as it seeks to counter the power and influence of China by supporting other countries in the region. Vice President Kamala Harris took the lead in a visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, where she participated in the U.S.–Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.
[ ASEAN . . . ]
[ New Delhi, India, for the Group of 20 (G20) Leaders’ Summit. [ . . . ] ]
[ G20, Corona, BRI, China, Hanoi, Vietnam [. . . ] ]
[ G7 [ . . . ] EU [ . . . ]
[ China ]
[ BRICS ]
[ Hanoi, Vietnam [. . . ] ].”
[ Russia and India's Lunar Probes [ . . . ]
Russia’s crashed. ]
—
Notes & full context: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/september-8-2023
The special purpose grand jury also recommended charges against Trump lawyers Cleta Mitchell and Boris Epshteyn, Trump advisor Michael Flynn, and all the false electors.
In most of the votes, it appeared there was one staunch vote opposed to bringing charges against anyone associated with Trump.
Also today, U.S. district judge Steve C. Jones for the Northern District of Georgia denied the request of Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows to move his prosecution to federal rather than state court. This is important. Meadows had argued that the crimes for which the Fulton County grand jury indicted him were part of his duties as a federal official. If the judge had agreed, the removal of his case to federal court would have enabled Meadows to argue that his case should be dismissed because his actions were part of his official duties. But the judge determined that Meadow’s actions were part of his work for the Trump campaign and thus could stay in state court.
To make his case, Meadows testified himself, a high-risk step that now leaves him, as legal analyst Harry Litman of the Los Angeles Times put it, “in a very bad place. He gambled heavily on winning & then getting immunity. Now his ability to cooperate w[ / either Jack Smith or Fani Willis is a) of much less value & b) possibly even off the table. He is in a world of hurt.”
Meadows has already appealed.
Other defendants, including Trump himself, were hoping their cases would be removed to federal court, but the decision in Meadows’s case does not bode well for them.
It would be a shame if the growing legal troubles of the Trump conspirators overshadow the work of the Biden administration on the global stage this week as it seeks to counter the power and influence of China by supporting other countries in the region. Vice President Kamala Harris took the lead in a visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, where she participated in the U.S.–Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.
[ ASEAN . . . ]
[ New Delhi, India, for the Group of 20 (G20) Leaders’ Summit. [ . . . ] ]
[ G20, Corona, BRI, China, Hanoi, Vietnam [. . . ] ]
[ G7 [ . . . ] EU [ . . . ]
[ China ]
[ BRICS ]
[ Hanoi, Vietnam [. . . ] ].”
[ Russia and India's Lunar Probes [ . . . ]
Russia’s crashed. ]
—
Notes & full context: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/september-8-2023
Hmmmm. . .
[ At the Group of 20 (G20) meeting today in New Delhi . . . ]
In late July the New York Times noted that since 2019, billionaire businessman Elon Musk has steadily taken over the field of satellite internet, infrastructure that is hugely important for national security. In just four years Musk has launched into space more than 4,500 satellites—more than 50% of all active satellites. This means that Musk’s Starlink is often the only way for people in places hit by disasters or in war zones to communicate. [ . . . ]
The privatization of the functions of government in the U.S. has given a single man the power to affect global affairs, working, in this case, against the stated objectives of our own government. [ . . . ]
On Friday the Internal Revenue Service announced that increased federal funding under the Inflation Reduction Act and the help of artificial intelligence will enable a new push to go after 1,600 millionaires who owe at least $250,000 and 75 large businesses with assets of about $10 billion apiece that owe hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes. [ . . . ]
This week, as a fight over funding the government by the end of the month looms, the implications of the parties’ different visions of government could not be clearer.
Source Notes: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/september-9-2023
[ At the Group of 20 (G20) meeting today in New Delhi . . . ]
In late July the New York Times noted that since 2019, billionaire businessman Elon Musk has steadily taken over the field of satellite internet, infrastructure that is hugely important for national security. In just four years Musk has launched into space more than 4,500 satellites—more than 50% of all active satellites. This means that Musk’s Starlink is often the only way for people in places hit by disasters or in war zones to communicate. [ . . . ]
The privatization of the functions of government in the U.S. has given a single man the power to affect global affairs, working, in this case, against the stated objectives of our own government. [ . . . ]
On Friday the Internal Revenue Service announced that increased federal funding under the Inflation Reduction Act and the help of artificial intelligence will enable a new push to go after 1,600 millionaires who owe at least $250,000 and 75 large businesses with assets of about $10 billion apiece that owe hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes. [ . . . ]
This week, as a fight over funding the government by the end of the month looms, the implications of the parties’ different visions of government could not be clearer.
Source Notes: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/september-9-2023
Abracadabra said:Aww, shucks did my little wordplay touch a nerve.
Good to know I haven't lost my touch. They're all my own words, btw.
No wonder America's empire is a ruined house of cards when extremists of whatever persuasion think they have all the answers while presenting different versions of the same 'facts'.
Did I say facts, when I meant ideas, silly me. Well, you got yours and I got mine but unless y'all wake up and quit the backyard bickering I'm afraid there won't be a system to fret over.
There will be no winners or losers more than a handful of shit slinging politicos who frittered the time we have left until you and your opponents will be astonished to realize we're all passengers on the same planet.
Trump, Biden, you, me, Uncle Murdoch, Auntie Oprah, Bill Burns and Christopher Wray will have to get in a lifeboat together in order to survive. God help us all.
And no need to reply I'm too busy elsewhere writing about what really matters.
Word play magic is correct... I will reply because it is my country under occupation. Sick people in administrative power are sexualizing kids, censoring free speech and arresting political opponents...Our Constitution and Bill of Right was written specifically to prevent authoritarians from gaining a foothold. That is... when it is applied but coward political puppets are letting it happen via media and university activists that are NOT elected. I understand your lack of concern since it is not your country. Why are foreigners posting so much about my country? I am curious
Good to know I haven't lost my touch. They're all my own words, btw.
No wonder America's empire is a ruined house of cards when extremists of whatever persuasion think they have all the answers while presenting different versions of the same 'facts'.
Did I say facts, when I meant ideas, silly me. Well, you got yours and I got mine but unless y'all wake up and quit the backyard bickering I'm afraid there won't be a system to fret over.
There will be no winners or losers more than a handful of shit slinging politicos who frittered the time we have left until you and your opponents will be astonished to realize we're all passengers on the same planet.
Trump, Biden, you, me, Uncle Murdoch, Auntie Oprah, Bill Burns and Christopher Wray will have to get in a lifeboat together in order to survive. God help us all.
And no need to reply I'm too busy elsewhere writing about what really matters.
Word play magic is correct... I will reply because it is my country under occupation. Sick people in administrative power are sexualizing kids, censoring free speech and arresting political opponents...Our Constitution and Bill of Right was written specifically to prevent authoritarians from gaining a foothold. That is... when it is applied but coward political puppets are letting it happen via media and university activists that are NOT elected. I understand your lack of concern since it is not your country. Why are foreigners posting so much about my country? I am curious
runaway-mindtrain said:
Word play magic is correct... I will reply because it is my country under occupation. Sick people in administrative power are sexualizing kids, censoring free speech and arresting political opponents...Our Constitution and Bill of Right was written specifically to prevent authoritarians from gaining a foothold. That is... when it is applied but coward political puppets are letting it happen via media and university activists that are NOT elected. I understand your lack of concern since it is not your country. Why are foreigners posting so much about my country? I am curious
I post for the same reason you do. If America falls the west follows.
The kalergi is definitely in effect.
Word play magic is correct... I will reply because it is my country under occupation. Sick people in administrative power are sexualizing kids, censoring free speech and arresting political opponents...Our Constitution and Bill of Right was written specifically to prevent authoritarians from gaining a foothold. That is... when it is applied but coward political puppets are letting it happen via media and university activists that are NOT elected. I understand your lack of concern since it is not your country. Why are foreigners posting so much about my country? I am curious
I post for the same reason you do. If America falls the west follows.
The kalergi is definitely in effect.
Perhaps backyard perspective works wonderfully as blinkers but I'm afraid the point you have missed is the one we should all be concerned about. It transcends countries and nationalist ideals. Unless we pull our finger out pronto and all start working together for our own survival we are facing an extinction event. When mountains start throwing rocks and the Seattle fault line fractures there will be no room for constitutional debate in America or anywhere else. Now if you'll excuse me gentlemen I have a poem to finish.
Future implications
For us
We the people
Is very very Simple
If people don't DEMAND
A NEW
UPGRADED MODERN
SYSTEM
TO CUT DOWN CRUPPTSION
LIES AND GREED
IN GOVERNMENT
We will Continue to have
NO JUSTICE
NO RIGHTS
A slow Destruction
Of Our FREEDOMS
NO REAL DEMOCRACY
NO
PEACE
ON OUR STREETS
IT'S THAT SIMPLE
For us
We the people
Is very very Simple
If people don't DEMAND
A NEW
UPGRADED MODERN
SYSTEM
TO CUT DOWN CRUPPTSION
LIES AND GREED
IN GOVERNMENT
We will Continue to have
NO JUSTICE
NO RIGHTS
A slow Destruction
Of Our FREEDOMS
NO REAL DEMOCRACY
NO
PEACE
ON OUR STREETS
IT'S THAT SIMPLE
And I know I can always count on young Ajay's continuing unwavering support as we approach the darkest doom laden hours ahead. I offer him my sincerest thanks for the way he continues to hang on my every word. If only there was room for him in the shelter.
Abracadabra said:And I know I can always count on young Ajay's continuing unwavering support as we approach the darkest doom laden hours ahead. I offer him my sincerest thanks for the way he continues to hang on my every word. If only there was room for him in the shelter.
Hey! Thanks for the 'young ajay', old Abracadabra! Appreciated👍
Are you an enviromental/political activist, then, or is writing a poem as far as your opposition goes to the causes of global warming?
Just askin'.
.
Hey! Thanks for the 'young ajay', old Abracadabra! Appreciated👍
Are you an enviromental/political activist, then, or is writing a poem as far as your opposition goes to the causes of global warming?
Just askin'.
.
I suggest everyone watch the documantary "Behemoth", available in full here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXAOnIrNsYs
...
... and then comment from a clearer perspective about what really matters.
(I speak as someone who, on leaving school, started off life as a coal-miner in the U.K Lancashire pits in January 1974). I can hardly get my head around the scale of the destruction to feed the capitalist-driven degenerative phase of our current age.
More than ever we need mature leadership in politics but we are likely to get more and more extreme authoritarianism, using the climate crisis as an argumant for 'strong leadership' to sort it all out. Oh how many times we have been there before. That's why Trump-watching on this thread is so important.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXAOnIrNsYs
...
... and then comment from a clearer perspective about what really matters.
(I speak as someone who, on leaving school, started off life as a coal-miner in the U.K Lancashire pits in January 1974). I can hardly get my head around the scale of the destruction to feed the capitalist-driven degenerative phase of our current age.
More than ever we need mature leadership in politics but we are likely to get more and more extreme authoritarianism, using the climate crisis as an argumant for 'strong leadership' to sort it all out. Oh how many times we have been there before. That's why Trump-watching on this thread is so important.
