Today's Tweet

"We can disagree & still love each other, unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression & denial of my humanity and right to exist."

— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) November 11, 2016

Keith

NEW VIDEO: A calm explanation to his supporters: Why @realDonaldTrump Needs To Resign Now. pic.twitter.com/PHCe0u83wO

— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) January 23, 2017

One From Slate

William Saletan - Slate:

A Morally Empty Man Gave A Morally Empty Speech

Trump’s narcissism and cynicism seemed boundless. He said blacks had stayed home on Election Day “because they liked me.” He implied that the agency in charge of enforcing immigration laws had supported his candidacy: “ICE endorsed Trump.” He suggested that Phyllis Schlafly, the conservative activist who died last year, had endorsed him out of sheer opportunism. Trump, speaking of himself, paraphrased Schlafly this way: “I don’t care what exactly he is. He’s like an unknown quantity. But he is gonna win.” Trump said Priebus had made the same calculation. In Trump’s mind, these people didn’t care what sort of person he was. They just wanted power. And he admires them for it.

On Friday, a morally empty man gave a morally empty speech. There was no talk of humility, no acknowledgment of enduring prejudice, no plea for decency. Instead, Trump railed against foreigners and “a small group in our nation’s capital” that “has reaped the rewards of government.” In place of Bush’s praise for mosques, Trump spoke of Islam only as a source of terrorism. The man who ran on a platform of “take the oil” fumed that American wealth had been “redistributed all across the world.” He accused countries of “stealing our companies and destroying our jobs.”

This is why Trump is unworthy of your respect. It’s not because he didn’t win the popular vote. It’s not because of his party or his policies. It’s not because of Russia. It’s because of who he is. For all his faults, even those that turned out to be disastrous, Bush was a decent man. He believed in something greater than himself. Trump doesn’t.

With Apologies To Mr Truman

Sarah Cooper - on psychological warfare:

“But reporters were clapping and laughing, they loved it.”  — a commenter defending Trump’s first press conference.

“But members of the CIA were clearly laughing at his jokes and clapping, so what he was saying couldn’t have been inappropriate.”  — CNN pundit defending Trump’s CIA speech where he talked about his war with the media, in front of a memorial to men and women who lost their lives in actual wars.

The clapping and laughing you hear in both instances are Trump’s own people. They are sycophants who he brings to cheer him on and make it seem like what he’s saying is being well-received. And it’s working.

The laugh track was invented to cue the audience to the jokes and encourage laughter in response. But it has another effect: if you hear people laughing and you’re not, you start to question if maybe there’s something wrong with you for not getting it. You might even impulsively start laughing just to fit in, not because you think anything is funny. In fact that’s how these fluffers work — one person initiates a clap and suddenly everyone thinks there’s something to clap for. And then everyone is clapping. For no reason.

It's business and it's politics. It's the business of politics, and the merging of politics with business, wrapped in the flag and blessed by the church. The result is the institutionalized hyper-corruption-on-steroids called Fascism. In that system especially, if you wanna friend, buy a dog.

I won't be forgiving of willful ignorance. I won't be tolerant of Alternative Facts. I won't be quiet about it.

And while I'll always try not to be deliberately unkind to you, understand that I'll fail in that regard on occasion, because I won't treat you like a child by tiptoeing around your delicate sensibilities.

I'm really not trying to be an asshole about it - it just seems like too many people are trying to make it impossible for me not to be.

So put all of this under "Sorry-Not-Sorry-But".

If you come in here without a helmet,

you might leave with some brain damage.

A Tweet

Don't worry guys, our lawmakers are looking out for us... pic.twitter.com/EefyBOoAuU

— Patt Kelley (@pattkelley) June 13, 2016

The Balls

In 1993, the Clintons attended 14 inaugural balls.

Laura & W went to 8 of 'em in 2001.

And the Obamas had 10 in 2009.

Trump had 2, and they were lightly attended - Trump's 2 itty-bitty sad little balls.

*Is any of this true? Who gives a fuck - this is the Post-Truth World of Alt-Fact.
It's not a question of True vs False. The only thing that matters now is what you choose to believe at any given moment.
And that's how the bad guys get power; and how they stay in power.

Short Toon Dump

The March(es)

In case you were wondering about that accapella thing that happened yesterday in Washington.

Quiet --MILCK

Beating Trump

The guy goes out of his way looking for rakes to step on.

@realDonaldTrump 30m were watching to see if you did a nazi salute or tripped down the stairs

— kristyan benedict (@KreaseChan) January 22, 2017

@realDonaldTrump here are some of my views: pic.twitter.com/tPSEEEQWfc

— #TheResistance (@AynRandPaulRyan) January 22, 2017

@realDonaldTrump who told you to say this? Can they be president?

— Sean Hartofilis (@BeachPillows) January 22, 2017

What A Country

I'm not one for sloppy sentimental patriotism. But I saw this on Facebook today, and something kinda popped in my brain (sometimes I think it may be a stroke when that happens, but anyway...).

The US National Anthem isn't exactly 'the people's song', cuz it can be a real bitch to sing it.  But this is not the joint where we only do the easy shit.  We do the hard things - and we do those hard things by choice.

It's just possible that we're gettin' back to where we're at least willing to do the hard work of democracy again. And if we can do that, the rest will follow.

What You Think Is Real

No, Mr Trump

Climate Change is a real thing

You as POTUS - now there's a hoax

Aziz Ansari

Today's Tweet And GIF

Freedom of expression is an awesome thing.

Internet… thank you pic.twitter.com/EFMys3tQWV

— Layne Theory (@ThisIsLayne) January 21, 2017

At Langley

Now What?

So, Trump's in the Oval Office now, and in that first big official briefing, did everybody roll their eyes when he asked, "So what's the real story on that whole Roswell alien thing, huh?" - like he's the first one who ever came up with that (except he prob'ly wasn't joking).

Second - how disappointed is he that there really is no such thing as The Big Book Of Secrets?

Which brings us to number three - will there be a call to Alex Jones? Like: "Dude, you really are a fuckin' idiot - none of that shit's true."

Yeah - prob'ly not. And the Press Poodles prob'ly won't ask him about any of it either.

Just wonderin'.