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Posted
History never repeats but it rhymes. 

Bingo.

Are we EXACTLY like Germany in 1933? Of course not.

But does that mean that we’re “nothing like Germany in 1933?” Nope. That’s a wildly irresponsible and myopic thing to say.

Again, this was a few years ago. My entire family of four visited the German history museum in central Berlin. They do NOT whitewash the 1900-1945 series of exhibits. Very matter-of-fact, featuring contemporary news pieces and the like, showing EXACTLY how it all came about.

All four of us went through at our own pace. We then reconnected outside, where each of us indecently said that was the scariest thing we’d ever fucking seen, because the parallels were glaring.

We are absolutely heading down that road. We just careened past a sign saying “authoritarian state, 20 miles ahead,” and some folks are saying “see, we’re not in an authoritarian state!” Maybe not this minute, but for FFS the signs plainly say it’s not that far ahead, and we’re in a car with the pedal to the metal.

The time to stop it is now (really, many yesterdays ago)….it is not “once we get there.”
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Posted
8 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

The time to stop it is now (really, many yesterdays ago)….it is not “once we get there.”

Right. Which is why I vote in every election and encourage others to do the same. But now I'm being told we aren't going to have elections (ones that matter, anyway) and that voting doesn't matter.

Now what?

Posted
Right. Which is why I vote in every election and encourage others to do the same. But now I'm being told we aren't going to have elections (ones that matter, anyway) and that voting doesn't matter.
Now what?

Now what?
What the German people should have done in 1933, instead of not just going along with it but actively joining the team: be sand in the gears for the regime at every possible turn. I’m talking all the way down to sitting through a green light if an ICE vehicle is waiting behind you. Everything from big down to tiny.
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Posted
44 minutes ago, troph said:

well, the first thing I would consider is re-arrange your local friend group, because they will be much better at this than I for what you can do locally. Quick google shows a few restaurants, bars, lodging providers, therapists, gyms, etc. are openly supportive and accepting. I would look those places up and first, support them with your dollars, and second get to know the staff and owners and try and get into their community. Most people who are openly supportive are eager to meet more openly supportive people and you can actually just strike up the conversation about what are the comings and goings on around JC, what else can we do, are there any organizations, etc.  Often times there are support groups, get togethers, etc.  This may not yield exactly what you want but it gets you plugged in and there's no better place to do that than in your own back yard.

As for organizations to support - here are the Texas orgs I would consider (some of which I am intimately familar with but I'd rather not say my involvement publicly I can answer questions privately though):

* Equality Texas - this is the premier Texas LGBTQ+ organization in the state. They are the group that ran trans ads during Abbott's state of the state address. This organization is well funded and focuses exclusively on LGBTQ+ issues, and let's face it right now that's almost exclusively TQ issues.

* Texas Freedom Network - this organization is a fierce advocate at the Texas Capitol and does a fantastic job energizing Texas youth to get out the vote (not good enough mind you, but one of the best). TFN is unique in that they focus on religious freedom (freedom from religion mostly), public education (one of the lone progressive voices at the SBOE hearings), as well as LGBTQ+ rights and reproductive rights. A small organization, but a great one with a unique cluster of issues they fight for.

* Out Youth - this organization focuses on LGBTQ+ youth in their journey, I don't know much about them but one year we volunteered to do light handyman and clean up work in one of their houses. They have a community center approach but with a traditional home where youth can come and find a safe place. we donated a xbox that summer and scrubbed the snot out of their house, painted, repaired, etc. It was a good time and it's a more granular approach to helping.

* Lifeworks - this organization is more broadly focused on ending youth homelessness in Travis County, but that necessarily means LGBTQ+ kids and young adults. LifeWorks is about to break ground in the coming months on a new 120 unit housing complex dedicated solely to helping homeless and at risk youth transition to adulthood with dignity and opportunity. This organization also offers "wrap around" services including job training, education support, trauma counseling, peer support, life skills, housing assistance, help setting up apartments with all the goods and wares needed, etc. A real thought leader in the national movement to end youth homelessness.

* Kind Clinic - this is one of the last standing organizations providing trans and LGBTQ+ healthcare without fear (well maybe some fear). I don't know about volunteer opportunities, but they do accept financial donations and contributions.

* Texas Observer - I've mentioned them anytime someone posts their articles. One of the only progressive, long-form, investigative journalism magazines focused solely on Texas. They accept donations starting at $5/month and their print magazine is a steal of a subscription. They also accept larger donations. If for no other reason, supporting the Observer to get the magazine is a great way to stay abreast of unheard of and unreported travesties in Texas (and in some case hope).

Nationally, Human Rights Campaign (they have a local Austin committee that is active), GLAAD, Lambda Legal, ACLU, Planned Parenthood (also in Texas), could all use financial support. But for being active locally, those are the organizations I know about.  I also hate to say this, but trans specific organizations are not very effective imo. I think the organizations that are focused on more than just T issues do better.

 

Co-sign on Equality Texas. Angela Hale (Board Member, Past President), spouse of (D)Texas State Rep. Jessica Gonzales(sp?), long-time Chief of Staff for fucking Greg Abbott when he was Texas Attorney General. Used to be a Rep., now full on D.  If I were looking to get involved and to try to be impactful, I'd look at what Angela is doing and pitch in. 

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Posted
Just now, Brisketexan said:


Now what?
What the German people should have done in 1933, instead of not just going along with it but actively joining the team: be sand in the gears for the regime at every possible turn. I’m talking all the way down to sitting through a green light if an ICE vehicle is waiting behind you. Everything from big down to tiny.

Do you think most people who oppose Donald Trump are willing to get arrested for it?

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Posted
33 minutes ago, troph said:

as a member of a group that has been front and center of this litmus test bullshit, I'm more than willing to take a back seat so long as progress isn't reversed by dems but left as is (of course we have to regain the ground lost), but the dems need to be middle class and working class focused, period, end of story, nothing else matters.

let me qualify - optics, campaigning, talking points, etc. nothing else matters. I actually think about the only thing LGBTQ+ folks need right now is for the fucking Equality Act to be passed modernizing the Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity (among other classes of people). If attacked on that, the message is clear, "we do not believe anyone should suffer discrimination because of who they are in a modern democratic world and the US should lead the world in this respect. Okay, now back to the issues that impact working families in their day in and day out lives..."

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Posted
1 hour ago, troph said:

* Texas Observer - I've mentioned them anytime someone posts their articles. One of the only progressive, long-form, investigative journalism magazines focused solely on Texas. They accept donations starting at $5/month and their print magazine is a steal of a subscription. They also accept larger donations. If for no other reason, supporting the Observer to get the magazine is a great way to stay abreast of unheard of and unreported travesties in Texas (and in some case hope).

 

they've also been annoying tf out of fb maga by sharing pictures and post after post of beautiful images of the GULF OF MEXICO 🇲🇽 ❤️ 😄

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Posted
1 hour ago, troph said:

well, the first thing I would consider is re-arrange your local friend group, because they will be much better at this than I for what you can do locally. Quick google shows a few restaurants, bars, lodging providers, therapists, gyms, etc. are openly supportive and accepting. I would look those places up and first, support them with your dollars, and second get to know the staff and owners and try and get into their community. Most people who are openly supportive are eager to meet more openly supportive people and you can actually just strike up the conversation about what are the comings and goings on around JC, what else can we do, are there any organizations, etc.  Often times there are support groups, get togethers, etc.  This may not yield exactly what you want but it gets you plugged in and there's no better place to do that than in your own back yard.

As for organizations to support - here are the Texas orgs I would consider (some of which I am intimately familar with but I'd rather not say my involvement publicly I can answer questions privately though):

* Equality Texas - this is the premier Texas LGBTQ+ organization in the state. They are the group that ran trans ads during Abbott's state of the state address. This organization is well funded and focuses exclusively on LGBTQ+ issues, and let's face it right now that's almost exclusively TQ issues.

* Texas Freedom Network - this organization is a fierce advocate at the Texas Capitol and does a fantastic job energizing Texas youth to get out the vote (not good enough mind you, but one of the best). TFN is unique in that they focus on religious freedom (freedom from religion mostly), public education (one of the lone progressive voices at the SBOE hearings), as well as LGBTQ+ rights and reproductive rights. A small organization, but a great one with a unique cluster of issues they fight for.

* Out Youth - this organization focuses on LGBTQ+ youth in their journey, I don't know much about them but one year we volunteered to do light handyman and clean up work in one of their houses. They have a community center approach but with a traditional home where youth can come and find a safe place. we donated a xbox that summer and scrubbed the snot out of their house, painted, repaired, etc. It was a good time and it's a more granular approach to helping.

* Lifeworks - this organization is more broadly focused on ending youth homelessness in Travis County, but that necessarily means LGBTQ+ kids and young adults. LifeWorks is about to break ground in the coming months on a new 120 unit housing complex dedicated solely to helping homeless and at risk youth transition to adulthood with dignity and opportunity. This organization also offers "wrap around" services including job training, education support, trauma counseling, peer support, life skills, housing assistance, help setting up apartments with all the goods and wares needed, etc. A real thought leader in the national movement to end youth homelessness.

* Kind Clinic - this is one of the last standing organizations providing trans and LGBTQ+ healthcare without fear (well maybe some fear). I don't know about volunteer opportunities, but they do accept financial donations and contributions.

* Texas Observer - I've mentioned them anytime someone posts their articles. One of the only progressive, long-form, investigative journalism magazines focused solely on Texas. They accept donations starting at $5/month and their print magazine is a steal of a subscription. They also accept larger donations. If for no other reason, supporting the Observer to get the magazine is a great way to stay abreast of unheard of and unreported travesties in Texas (and in some case hope).

Nationally, Human Rights Campaign (they have a local Austin committee that is active), GLAAD, Lambda Legal, ACLU, Planned Parenthood (also in Texas), could all use financial support. But for being active locally, those are the organizations I know about.  I also hate to say this, but trans specific organizations are not very effective imo. I think the organizations that are focused on more than just T issues do better.

 

Can't give enough rep to this post and people actually being spurred to become more involved.  I'm inching out of my cowardly fetal position but if all that is happening causes people to grouse and panic less and actually get into the tranches with helping and giving and caring, there will be some kindness and growth under the surface. 

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Posted
3 hours ago, Hank Kingsley said:

My first reaction to this was to roll my eyes, even as a Buttigieg fan and supporter. 

But his temperament and speaking ability is unmatched right now within the Democratic Party, and some sort of consistent appearance in front of a camera is probably a good idea. It won't come off as hysterical or insincere when Pete is explaining the damage already caused by Trump/Musk/GOP.  We need a voice of reason. 

Exactly. It doesn't have to be Pete doing it, but he'd be a logical choice given his ability to calmly paint a clear picture and relate topics in easily understandable language. The party needs a place people can go to for news and a focus.  I'm not hung up on who they would choose to do that job. I'd prefer it to be one person, but they could even do it on some kind of rotating basis. The main thing, however, is that it needs to be done and could be a great tool imho.

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Posted
45 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

Do you think most people who oppose Donald Trump are willing to get arrested for it?

That's it. Most of us are very comfortable. It's human nature not to fiddle with that too much.

I think this is why opposition must be unified in great numbers acting at the same time. What if we all decided not to pay taxes on time? Delay for a month, maybe. What if we all boycotted Amazon for two days? What if we all decided to stop all automobile traffic for two hours one day in every city?

Those are all things that could be done in unison making it unlikely that many participants will be arrested. Many willing to be arrested could be in the forefront.

Note that these are things that demand little from the participants. The greatest physical exertion would be sitting in your car for a few hours. 

Just trying to be realistic about what large numbers of people might be willling to do. 

We could all wear ribbons, but that's become embarrassingly impotent.

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Posted
That's it. Most of us are very comfortable. It's human nature not to fiddle with that too much.
I think this is why opposition must be unified in great numbers acting at the same time. What if we all decided not to pay taxes on time? Delay for a month, maybe. What if we all boycotted Amazon for two days? What if we all decided to stop all automobile traffic for two hours one day in every city?
Those are all things that could be done in unison making it unlikely that many participants will be arrested. Many willing to be arrested could be in the forefront.
Note that these are things that demand little from the participants. The greatest physical exertion would be sitting in your car for a few hours. 
Just trying to be realistic about what large numbers of people might be willling to do. 
We could all wear ribbons, but that's become embarrassingly impotent.

My wife wears her clergy collar at every protest/demonstration she has taken part in, including in DC and Tornillo. And, she decided a while back to opt in to being a member of the group willing to be arrested. Because make the regime arrest clergy.

That’s one thing. There are 10,000 others. Others of us use our law licenses to throw sand in the gears (I won’t discuss how I do so here). Use the unique/uncommon privileges and skills you have first, those have the most value.
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Posted
4 hours ago, Fudge Nuggets said:

Dude, there ain't going to be any acknowledgement of any opposition once the fascist takeover is fully done.

There will be, but it'll be more of the rhetoric we have now.  I've been to Vietnam.  I've been to Cuba.  Their museums sound like the GOP has sounded for the last 50 years.  Imperialist  Lib running dogs are evil!

Same song, different verse.

Posted
2 hours ago, wildcat09 said:

Damnit, I guess I gotta check in over the weekends more. I totally missed Ana praising JD Vance for complaining to Germany that they're too mean to their nazis. That's the good shit right there.

I wouldn’t say you were missing it 

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Posted
3 hours ago, David Dennison said:

I don't think so, but then again, I don't buy into the Hitler metaphor. I don't think it's particularly helpful or historically apt. The United States in 2025 is nothing like Germany in 1933.

Other than being ripe for the taking, with a population pleased as punch to go along, no, not much alike in any anological perspective 

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Posted
2 hours ago, David Dennison said:

I'm not joking at all. I like Pete, but his past in management consulting gives me pause. I probably wouldn't vote for him in a primary. I'd 100% vote for him if he won the nomination, though.

How long will this pogrom last?  He ditched McKinsey long ago.  The grudge and grievance line is over yonder.

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Posted
8 minutes ago, nbmishoid said:

How long will this pogrom last?  He ditched McKinsey long ago.  The grudge and grievance line is over yonder.

For as long as he's in politics. He'll never be my first choice among Democratic candidates.

But is it really a pogrom if you'll vote for the man after he wins the nomination?

 

Posted
5 hours ago, David Dennison said:

I will always believe the embrace of neoliberalism by Democrats is one of the main reasons we lost the working class.

 

The largest voting bloc in the Democratic Party is working class.

Posted
3 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

What on earth? I didn’t say anything about the *white* working class or BLM.  They abandoned the entire American working class, which is to say that Democrats have abandoned the class interests of minorities disproportionately. That’s quite a projection, though- curious how to got there. 

Anyway, do you disagree with the point that progressives have essentially substituted social issues for the working class economic interests that used to be at the center of the party coalition? 

Well the problem I have had with the Democrats is that we do have this core of corporate Democrats and a depressing amount of just straight traitors who get elected saying they are going to help the poor and advance progressive causes just to betray us. Obviously Obama is the main example of this with how he bailed out the big banks instead of the people back in 2009. The social issues are a great way to obscure this. Which is frustrating to me because I do care a lot about those issues, and they get hijacked by big business to distract us from their regressive actions. Even Elon Musk pretended to be leftwing this way.

I disagree that progressives have necessarily done this, but rather that is the corporate and moderate game to pretend they are still allies to the left.

But despite all of this Joe Biden did do more pro-union and pro-labor things than any President in a long time and things like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau were good for the working class. So despite everything the Democrats are still better so I vote for them.

But yeah they have largely been bad on working class economic interests. The party is loaded with traitors, turncoats, and false friends.

Posted
Just now, Satchel said:

The largest voting bloc in the Democratic Party is working class.

But not as large as it used to be, and that's one of the reasons we have a second Donald Trump administration. It's also one of the reasons we had the first Donald Trump administration. 

 

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Posted
4 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

But not as large as it used to be, and that's one of the reasons we have a second Donald Trump administration. It's also one of the reasons we had the first Donald Trump administration. 

 

That’s not why we have a second Trump administration, or a first one, for that matter.

Posted
1 minute ago, Satchel said:

That’s not why we have a second Trump administration, or a first one, for that matter.

It's absolutely one of the reasons why. Those votes matter in tight elections.

Posted
16 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

It's absolutely one of the reasons why. Those votes matter in tight elections.

The working class people who voted for Trump don’t care about the price of eggs as much as they support Trump’s ability to make them feel secure.

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Posted (edited)
33 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

But not as large as it used to be, and that's one of the reasons we have a second Donald Trump administration. It's also one of the reasons we had the first Donald Trump administration. 

 

Yeah. Well...the working class support for the Democrats has been shaky ever since 1968. Nixon drew them all away. As you say, Reagan drew tons of workers by promising them that success for the rich and corporations would mean prosperity for them. 

And ultimately the Democrats have only had mixed success at getting them back. It doesn't help that many of them just adopted Reagan's line instead of fighting back against it.

But with all the money and thus power concentrated into such a small group of corporations and individuals that I have a hard time seeing the Democrats really become a Union first working class party again, though I do want to give Joe Biden some credit for at least doing a little bit of that for all the good it did him.

But I also don't really see any other party being able to do that for that reason. A political party would have to just refuse all large donations and live off peanuts to do that.

Edited by Valmy77
Posted
2 minutes ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

I don't think there is a better image to sum up this admin
 

SEI_240367151-50eb.webp

At first I thought "this isn't Trump's America, that's in Toronto". I keep forgetting Canada is the 51st State.

Posted
6 minutes ago, gernblansten said:

At first I thought "this isn't Trump's America, that's in Toronto". I keep forgetting Canada is the 51st State.

yeah, but i'm blaming everything shitty on these guys bc why not. also, american company, so yeah, it's his fault

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Posted
6 minutes ago, Pancho said:

Not a good look to have her on the court. which donor is she attached to?

 

 

IMG_0513.jpeg

It's true. No conservatives are fat.

Posted
45 minutes ago, Valmy77 said:

Yeah. Well...the working class support for the Democrats has been shaky ever since 1968. Nixon drew them all away. As you say, Reagan drew tons of workers by promising them that success for the rich and corporations would mean prosperity for them. 

And ultimately the Democrats have only had mixed success at getting them back. It doesn't help that many of them just adopted Reagan's line instead of fighting back against it.

But with all the money and thus power concentrated into such a small group of corporations and individuals that I have a hard time seeing the Democrats really become a Union first working class party again, though I do want to give Joe Biden some credit for at least doing a little bit of that for all the good it did him.

But I also don't really see any other party being able to do that for that reason. A political party would have to just refuse all large donations and live off peanuts to do that.

Man, we really swallowed trickle down whole, didn't we.

Furk.

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Posted

President Huff and Puff going to the Supreme Court to petition them to approve that he can fire the head of the federal watchdog agency. This world be a poorly written comedy, if it wasn't real life.

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Posted
4 hours ago, David Dennison said:

Bill Clinton, the man who gave us welfare to work and the crime bill, was "generally progressive" on social issues?

Relative to the coalition that elected him? Absolutely. And his wife even more so. 
 

and for what it’s worth- you’re looking at the crime bill from the perspective of a white progressive in 2025, not the resident of a high crime neighborhood in 1994. 

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Posted
37 minutes ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

I don't think there is a better image to sum up this admin
 

SEI_240367151-50eb.webp

What kind of dei was this? Black? Brown? Blind and armless? 

Posted
Just now, Bozo_Casanova said:

Relative to the coalition that elected him? Absolutely. And his wife even more so. 
 

and for what it’s worth- you’re looking at the crime bill from the perspective of a white progressive in 2025, not the resident of a high crime neighborhood in 1994. 

He promised gays in the military and got us "don't ask, don't tell." Weird for a guy that publicly ran on, and was elected with the expectation of, gays being allowed to serve in the military and delivering DADT and being considered ahead of his voters. I was there, I remember the gays in the military discussion.

I seem to recall lots of progressives in 1994 being against the crime bill, but I cannot vouch for their skin color.

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Posted
14 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

Relative to the coalition that elected him? Absolutely. And his wife even more so. 
 

and for what it’s worth- you’re looking at the crime bill from the perspective of a white progressive in 2025, not the resident of a high crime neighborhood in 1994. 

Yeah, we're never going to agree on this. Bill Clinton was a centrist Democrat from a southern state and he governed that way. Both of those bills were disasters, but what probably did more political damage in the long run was the fact that he signed NAFTA.

Posted
18 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

Yeah, we're never going to agree on this. Bill Clinton was a centrist Democrat from a southern state and he governed that way. Both of those bills were disasters, but what probably did more political damage in the long run was the fact that he signed NAFTA.

I agree with the impact of the policy,  but thats completely different from how he was perceived at the time. 
Second, however, I think we agree fundamentally that Bill (and Hillary) Clinton were fundamentally oriented to serve corporate interests and affluent college grads, and to the extent that they were interested in the middle class non-college graduate skilled labor force, it was in the form of expanded government services and job training. 

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Posted
36 minutes ago, Valmy77 said:

I seem to recall lots of progressives in 1994 being against the crime bill, but I cannot vouch for their skin color.

Some were, but working class people in high crime neighborhoods were broadly in favor of it. The bill was a disaster, but that and DADT were more in line with legacy Democrat coalition social politics than NAFTA or the repeal of Glass Steagall.

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Posted
8 minutes ago, DaysOff said:


I'm always confused when our debt does, and doesn't matter.

It only matters when they want to cut your benefits.  Not the ones that enrich them.  

Posted
24 minutes ago, DaysOff said:


I'm always confused when our debt does, and doesn't matter.

Doesn't matter:

1980-1992

2000-2008

2016-2020

Also, college football only matters 1939, 1984-1994 ya stupid sip!

YARN | that includes the Chiclets but not the erasers. | The Jerk (1979) |  Video gifs by quotes | a7265b3b | 紗

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Posted
5 hours ago, David Dennison said:

Do you think most people who oppose Donald Trump are willing to get arrested for it?

We may not realize it yet, but we might need an American Navalny to galvanize around and save the country.



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