i think there's a bit of a disconnect as to how respect is earned. most people would respect a credential, a degree, having run a successful business, or having experience in political campaigns or activism.

Don Harris is an advertisement here, and there is no respect for advertisements here because this website is purportedly "ad-free"... except in "reality," it isn't ad-free as long as Don Harris is allowed to advertise his bullshit here without abatement.

now where's kick with that quote?

I have none of the credentials normally listed in a bio. No degrees, no years of running a successful business and no experience in political campaigns or activism. I am simply an average person that has been working and living at survival mode. But I have the only credentials that I believe really matters. I am a citizen and I have an idea that may improve our political system. ~ Don Harris

So to recap:

There is no respect here for:

- Advertisements
- Self-described "average" people claiming their nonexistent superior knowledge regarding.

:)

have you read some of the articles on conservative outlets? they may not think it's LIKELY that the election will be overturned, but they do think it's possible, and they are still hanging on to that hope.

JL

. . . and you probably need to get out of NY for a change.

Fat Donny knows that he lost and that it's not going to change. He needs to be able to say that he would have won had he not been cheated. His cult members are willing to get COVID and die for him, but they're not confused about who will be president on January 21st.

I generally agree, but I think respect in context of a forum comments section also comes from making coherent arguments and backing them up, not to mention a certain level of decorum. I don't have to agree to earn my respect, but backing your stuff up is critical. Michale, pre-Trump, had my respect even though I rarely agreed with him because he used to at least try to back up his arguments and they used to be more or less coherent. This last year or so as he declined, not so much. Don on the other hand...

i think there's a bit of a disconnect as to how respect is earned. most people would respect a credential, a degree, having run a successful business, or having experience in political campaigns or activism.

now where's kick with that quote?

I have earned respect.

Really? That does not come through in the comments. Opposite actually...

No matter whether I am looking in a mirror or not I am accurate in my description of reality.

Well, you certainly think you do. The rest of us, not so much. You have been here for what? 6 years? How many candidates have met your requirements? Zero. How many supporters do you have? According to your website: 4. Didn't it used to be 10? Wow, just bowled over by your success!

For someone that diligenly posted the numbers of covid deaths before the election you sure seem to have changed your tune now.

Really? How? At the time I gave my reasons I thought the US response to the pandemic was bad. That has not changed. At all.

Pelosi could have done much more to get more relief. She could have pushed for BMI. She could have not stopped 1200 dollars before the election just because Trump wanted to put his name on a check.

And do you have anything to indicate McConnell would have even considered the bill? It's all nice that you want Pelosi to pass all these bills but if the support does not exist in the Senate and with the President or it can be negotiated through reconciliation with a senate bill it's just a waste of time to feed your base...

That is why 80% pf citizens and a majority of Republikillers want the big money out.

But even if that statistic is true it does not mean they would find your answer the correct one.

We can do better and the first step is recognizing reality and leaving the cult.

But that would require you learn web tech, update your website and give a reason for people to visit. We all know you won't do that. Hell, the link in your user name still goes to vouchervendetta and that change is easier than hitting the refrigerator for munchies.

Wake up. Wise up. Rise up.
Put down the bong. Get to work.

yes... and... ?

JL

Respect is earned.

Yes it is. Something you have yet to do with most commenters here.

It is earned in part by recognizing reality.

Completely agree. You might want to have a serious look in the mirror on that one...

...are corrupted by big money despite the ample and undeniable evidence. (For just one of many examples- around 350,000 citizens dead and many more severely affected by the pandemic)

...ample and undeniable evidence...

With "ample and undeniable evidence", you should be able to post some of it finally, yes? Or is this more like Trump's election shenanigans, all boast, no follow through?

I'm going to call bullshit in the covid deaths unless Can you come up with a reasoned argument on this? I think covid deaths have nothing to do with money in politics and everything to do with Trump disassembling anything he can of Obama's, in this case the white house pandemic response team, and feeding his poor judgement on re-election strategy. If Trump had advocated mask use, stood back and let Fauci handle it, then made a mint selling the MAGA crowd branded face masks, we would likely be in a completely different situation. Trump would have also likely won re-election. There is a single reason we are not in line with the rest of the world on covid mitigation, and that reason is named Trump.

And cults are made up of some people that know they are in a cult and manipulate others that are true believers.

And which are you of your cult of one?

I mean you have become a perfect example of what a left wing Trumpateer would look like. You even fit the demographic.

On a plus side, Netgear armor has finally let you out of it's internet purgatory. 6 months is a pretty big screw up in controlling a website.

I'm just saying that there are a lot of Americans who don't like the Republicans or the Democrats and they saw and still see something in the way Trump operates that they like and that they think will make America strong.

For me, the common ground is that I want to see a strong America, too. I think the world needs strong American leadership. The question is how does America provide that leadership and that is what is worth discussing.

I think we sorely need people here who can present clear arguments about America's global leadership and why they supported Trump on that basis, for example.

Even if people who believe the 2020 presidential election was compromised should be welcomed here and treated with respect - and be presented with cogent arguments that lay out a persuasive case that there was not substantial vote fraud in this election.

My point is that if America is going to work towards a less divisive and mean-spirited politics then voices from all sides need at least to be heard in a respectful manner and allowed to make their case in a forum like this.

So, you actually believe that tens of millions of people are dim-witted enough to believe that the presidential election result will be over-turned? Like they're just generally cult members who believe everything Dear Leader tells them?

Who exactly do you think JL was referring to when he said: "they really do still believe they're going to overturn the results of the election."? That's the "they" I'm referring to. It's pretty clear to me who/what Mark Meadows is. I don't know who else was on that call with them, but it isn't a generalization to call them criminals and cult members at this point. It's the eyes wide open truth.

If we can't show a little respect for each other at a site like this, then what is the point of our being here?

Here's some common ground that we should all be able to agree on: Fat Donny is a good con man.

Since the only apparent defense for the crime he committed on that tape is to plead insanity and say he believes his own lies, I'm sure he's pleased to know that you believe that he believes.

Everything he says is a lie. Everything.

As far as "they" goes, cult members don't use critical thinking. They do what they're told.

I haven't forgotten about you, Don. I have been burried in tax work since before the first and I've got to get on top of it before I address your substantive arguments in favor of One Demand, so be patient.

Nope, wasn't a bender worthy of the name.

Trump didn't lose this election by a lot. And, if he wasn't his own worst enemy he could easily have been re-elected.

I think there is more common ground among people of all political stripes when it comes to the corrupting nature - perceived or real - of big and dark money in politics that both parties are a part of.

I think there is a lot of common ground around the notion that the challenges - domestically and internationally - that are of most importance to all of us and our planet may not be met so long as special interests and big money interests have such a strong hold on political parties and politicicans.

I think that is a pretty good starting point for a reality-based discussion and debate here at Chris's blog and one which would certainly attract newcomers of all political persuasions to these comments sections and we would all be the richer for it.

I think we have a pretty good forum here that is more open to diverse views than most political sites, to start with.

What would make it better is if we would all try to challenge our own viewpoints and ways we go about discussing things and try to understand where other viewpoints are coming from.

This is how we find common ground and a basis for constructive debate and discussion.

Yeah, it was Cheney's idea.

And, many Americans - perhaps half the country - have grown disenchanted with Republicans like Cheney and the rest of the Republican and Democratic co-signers.

So, where does that leave us?

what does it take to get all surviving former defense secretaries (including cheney and rumsfeld of all people) to have to write a letter to the military not to get involved in politics. admirable that they all signed on, but what does it say about our military that such a letter is even necessary?

JL

It would be nice to see more diverse voices here who help us dig deeper into what it is that is really dividing Americans and whether finding common ground or even an agreed upon starting point can be found in the wake of all that has happened over the course of the last four years and, indeed, over the last many decades.

There have been dozens of court cases lost and election certifications by Republican administrations and even a Supreme Court case - decided by all nine justices, three of whom were appointed by Trump - that have gone against the president and his claims of vote fraud but, apparently, that is not enough for the president and many congressional Republicans.

If it wasn't so distressing on its face, it would be laughable.

My takeaway is that there are many Americans, half the country, perhaps, who see this very differently from most of us. I wish we had someone among our group who could help us understand how America moves forward from here without tearing itself apart.

that's behind a wpaywall. care to quote the relevant paragraphs?

JL

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-raffensperger-call-transcript-georgia-vote/2021/01/03/2768e0cc-4ddd-11eb-83e3-322644d82356_story.html

Listen to the recording if you get a chance... it is outrageous!

I just discoverd a beautiful voice and will highlight it at the next CW Sunday Night Music Festival and Dance Party.

Let's make it a night of new discoveries ...

I used to be a cat person, too ... Fluffy and, later, Boots. Heh.

An early childhood memory, fairly vivid ... Fluffy came home one day, all bloodied ... was in a fight, I guessed and knew just who with ... then that other cat from a neighbour house down the road appeared and I started yelling at it and then chased it, with a broom, down our driveway and down the street ... all the while with Fluffy running beside me as if to say, what on earth do you think you're doing!

There is hope ...

we kind-of just did.

@cw,

here's another blehert title, directed straight at the management.

http://www.blehert.com/bookstore/catbook.html

I hope we don't forget how to deal with a virus before it causes an epidemic or pandemic and have to go through all of this again.

on reagan rolling in his grave: i'll give a link to dean blehert's commentary on his poem, written while reagan was still alive (but forgetting things). i couldn't find a link directly to the poem, so with apologies i'm re-posting it below. blehert is a wonderful poet and author, so i hope his words are generally appreciated.

http://www.blehert.com/essays/onforgetting.html

Lest We Forget - by Dean Blehert

Ronald Reagan is alive but forgetting things.
Soon we will forget Ronald Reagan. It is said
that what we forget we must repeat. We will
forget Vietnam (he helped us) and have to do it
again. We will forget the Holocaust and have
to do it again. We will forget slavery and
have to do it again. We will forget religious
intolerance and racism and ignorance and greed
and cruelty and have to do them again. We will
forget ourselves and have to do them again.
We will even forget forgetting and have to
forget again. And so we will have to do
Ronald Reagan again. He will die and be forgotten,
but when we need him, once again Ronald Reagan
will be alive for us, forgetting things.

a.Yup, she's a dynamo.

2.Smarmy is spot on, cold as an undertaker, without the charm.

c.Damn you, CW...three 4 three. A not objectionably fit naked woman will always win the day, given the chance, we'd all make love, not war'...

4. So much choice, so little time.

e. That and reportedly referring to servicemen/women as losers for putting themselves in harm's way for their country.

6.Trump getting in his own way is the tale of the last four years... As we knew it would be. He's wrung about as much stupid out of his time in office as time allowed...

g.Left-wing Fascists, take a bow.

8. Without question, a double dip.

i. The delightfully liberal idea of universal dosh, oh my.

10. He's such a toad. How did this happen?

k.Suppressing your own voters rarely augers well.

12. For Trump, allowing Bob Woodward within earshot. Trump's scopolamine.

m. Rip, Terry Jones, Sir Sean, Alex, Chadwick, Kirk...Vera, Chuck, and Dave...

Send me a postcard, drop me a line
Stating point of view
Indicate precisely what you mean to say
Yours sincerely, wasting away
Give me your answer, fill in a form
Mine forevermore
Will you still need me, will you still feed me
When I'm sixty-four?

14. nuff said

o.It was what it was/is.

16. His first instinct is to lie, his second is to spin into a double-down.

q.Yup, a profile in courage, to be sure. There's a few more recent, not quite matured truth-tellers among the GOP, Adam Kinzinger is growing on me.

18. Cough...like this is even a catagory this year.

s.see above

20. People's common sense. Trump never really stood a chance here, he was universally loathed and never expanded beyond his base. Elections in the US seem to balance out up and down the ticket.

u.Judges, once picked, need no favours.

22. One each for Georgia, Moscow Mitch dances on a razor's edge. Trump kids dodge jail, Nunez closet egress, Lindsey butters up Biden, and Trump, the boil on the arse of American politics, retreats into the obscurity from whence he came.

besto for things to come

20/20 hindsight.

LL&P

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/politics/pro-trump-lawyer-lin-wood-said-he-might-actually-be-second-coming-of-christ-lawsuit/ar-BB1coh6V?ocid=msedgdhp

LL&P

"Whew! Thank Gawd that 2020 is finally over!"

This is an "absolutely bet everything -- even your bitcoin -- in fact, bet even your Weigantia contribution" category bet!

My question is, how effectively or ineffectively Democrats throw some version of "deficits are never an issue when Republicans give the wealthiest a tax cut. Let's return the top marginal rate to 91% if you're so concerned."

I love living here in Country-Cali but it's been four long years that we've been living with Reagan grave rolling noise pollution.

A very solid McLaughlin set to finish off the year!

One miss: Operation Warp Speed. Trump supplied a snappy title to something he had nothing to with - and that very likely includes the snappy Operation Warp Speed label ...some staffer thought that up. Molecular Biology is responsible for the rapid rollout of vaccines. Trump’s genuine contribution to the battle plan was summer, sunlight and bleach. Pathetic and stupid. Trump’s Super Spreader Rallies helped spread the virus more quickly....and the virus didn’t even give him any money!...although it almost certainly crashed at his hotels.

https://youtu.be/o0C7_c8ylvk

It will be interesting to see where the Republican Party goes in the coming months. Consider that many, many 'esteemed' Republicans publicly endorsed Biden. And yet, 74+ million voters decided they wanted to re-elect the 'Stable Genius'. If 'the base' is beholden only to Trump, where does that leave every other Republican elected official and state party apparatus?

Also, too late for this column is the news that Dawn Wells died - of COVID-19 related causes. We can add "and Mary Ann" to the list of entirely-unnecessary deaths, because our President refused to publicly acknowledge a deadly virus in the early months of 2020.

a little disappointed that none of my nominations bore fruit. still, much respect to all your decisions, especially the scarcity of what i consider "cop-out" winners, like "the american people" or "physics." excellent explanations for all winners.

JL

God help us.

Destined For Political Oblivion

and (most amusingly, from John From Censornati) Kanye West

Nope. That was andygaus. I chose Mike Pence.

How, indeed! Heh.

And, a very big CONGRATULATIONS on reaching another fundraising goal! You have an unbroken record in that department, no!?

Speaking of 2020 coming to an end, I just came across this at my favourite radio station and can't resist sharing...

2020, 24 hours to go

Comment if you get it! :)

And the upshot is:

There has never been a president of the United States, or any other American politician at any level, so completely and utterly corrupt on moral, ethical, legal, financial, intellectual, cultural, racial, religious, political, and existential grounds, as Donald Trump.

Man, I forgot one for "15 Minutes Of Fame":

Lisa Desjardins' cat, for her adorable cameo (and VERY loud meow) in the middle of one of Lisa's zoom reports on the PBS Newshour.

HOW could I have forgotten that one?

:-)

-CW

I really think Trump is such a master of legal delay tactics that if it does happen, it won't be before 2022, at the earliest....

-CW