From Pine View Farm

Culture Warriors category archive

The Fifth Columnist 2

The Arizona Republic’s Laurie Roberts is less than pleased at how Arizona state senator Wendy Rogers has embraced fascism.

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Still Rising Again after All These Years 0

At AL.com, Roy S. Johnson decodes de code.

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A Notion of Immigrants 0

At the Roanoke Times, Jeanne Larsen highlights Republicans’ hypocrisy.

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Still Rising Again after All These Years 0

As I have mentioned before in these electrons, Dr. William Shade, one of my history professors back in the olden days when I was a young ‘un, was found of saying, “History is irony.”

In the midst of a larger column focusing on a notion of immigrants, AL.com’s John Archibald notes such an irony (emphasis added):

The history the (Confederate–ed.) battle flag represents is less about the Civil War than it is the rebellion against civil rights and Alabama’s rewriting of history. It was flown as a way to fight desegregation, to glorify the past and justify the actions of ancestors who went to war against their own country rather than to release people from slavery.

Alabama is so afraid of “divisive concepts” that it won’t let students study the sins associated with that flag. But counties can run ‘em up the flagpole and call that history.

Follow the link for context.

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Dis Coarse Discourse 0

Grung_e_Gene notes that coarse discoursers dislike it when others remind them of the coarseness of their discourse.

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Establishmentarians 0

The EFF reports on an establishmentarian copywrong.

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Republican Family Values 0

Nickolas Kristoff details the deception. A snippet:

In attacking Democrats and Kamala Harris, Republicans have been making a legitimate point: One of our major political parties has worked to undermine America’s families.

The problem? While neither party has done enough to support families and children, the one that is failing most egregiously is — not surprisingly — the one led by the thrice-married tycoon who tangled with a porn star, boasted about grabbing women by the genitals and was found by a jury to have committed sexual assault.

Follow the link for his bill of particulars.

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American Taliban 0

Armed Muslim militant labeled

Click to view the original image.

H/T Juanita Jean.

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The Privatization Scam 0

And it is a scam.

You can voucher on it.

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The Bully’s Puppets 0

Robert Reich looks at how the rich and powerful use misdirection plays to get even more rich and powerful and expresses hope that persons are finally catching on. An excerpt; follow the link for the rest.

The bullied are still there; Trump is still exploiting their anger.

For nearly a decade, Trump has channeled that anger into racism, nativism and misogyny. He has encouraged his followers to feel powerful by bullying those with even less power: poor Black and Latino people, immigrants, LGBTQ+ people, Muslims, families seeking asylum, undocumented workers, pregnant women who can’t afford to travel to a state where abortions are legal.

This bullying game has been played repeatedly in history by self-described strongmen who pretend to be tribunes of the oppressed by scapegoating the truly powerless, but who are actually fronting for the rich and powerful.

In reality, Trump and his lackeys work for the oligarchs — cutting their taxes, rolling back regulations that protect the public but that cost the oligarchs, and dividing the rest of us into warring factions so we don’t look upward to see where most power and wealth have gone.

The good news is that Americans are catching on.

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“History Does Not Repeat Itself, but It Often Rhymes”* 0

At Der Spiegel, Lothar Gorris und Tobias Rapp hear a disturbing rhyme.

______________

*Mark Twain.

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The Unswayables 0

Werner Herzog’s Bear offers a theory as to why Donald Trump’s cult is so loyal to a man who has repeatedly demonstrated that he is loyal to no one and nothing. Here’s a bit (emphasis added):

What I have come to realize in my interactions with Trump voters is that they don’t really care about anything he does. I know that sounds obvious, but the reason isn’t. They don’t care not because they are hypocrites (a tired accusation) but because they believe in what he SYMBOLIZES, not who he actually is.

Trump and his MAGA slogan symbolize the maintenance of all kinds of hierarchies. His name on a sign means support for men in charge, white people in charge, LGBTQ people in the closet, Christianity assumed, and immigrants deported. While not all Trump supporters fit all of these categories, each has at least of one these hierarchies in mind when it comes to their support. Trump could indeed shoot someone on 5th Avenue and not lose support because what he does is literally meaningless. All of his meaning is symbolic.

I commend the entire piece to your attention.

(Missing link found.)

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Republican Family Values 0

School building with sign in front reading,

Via Yellowdoggranny.

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Still Rising Again after All These Years 0

The New Secesh decide that, if all else fails to bring back the Confederacy, let’s craft a Way-Back machine?

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A Notion of Immigrants 0

David debunks de bunk.

Aside:

This conspiracy theory is, indeed, laughable from the git-go, as David points out.

But it’s not really about elections.

It’s about rallying the bigots and racists who are Trump’s base.

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Republican Thought Police 0

Vengeance is ours,” sayeth the Republican Thought Police.

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A Notion of Immigrants 0

The Arizona Republic’s E. J. Montini highlights the hypocrisy. A snippet:

Donald Trump is able to go to the U.S. border with Mexico and rail about a crisis because he made sure there was a crisis to rail about.

Earlier this year, Republicans in the U.S. Senate bowed to Trump’s demands and killed a bipartisan security bill introduced by Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, Republican Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma and Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut.

(snip)

The bipartisan bill was not bad for border security. It was not bad for those looking to stop the flow of illegal drugs. It was not bad for those working to solve the asylum problem. It was not bad for the border patrol, since it included more officers and enhanced security.

In essence, the bill was not bad for America, just the opposite.

The border security bill was only bad for one thing — Donald Trump’s campaign..

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Criminalizing Camping 0

Emma talks with investigative reporter and journalist Rebecca Burns about the right-wing’s effort to punish homeless persons for being in this new gilded age.

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The Dystopian Duo 0

Caption:  X-Men.  Image:  Elon Musk and Donald Trump as superheroes Hate-man and Weirderine.

Click to view the original image.

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The Privatization Scam 0

Devilish-looking creature labeled

Via Job’s Anger.

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