A lot is saw it coming. The ones who bent the knee to the wolves in sheep’s clothing will one day look in the mirror and hate what they see! I’m from the generation who will always fight against injustice. But this new stealth war of the techno-oligarchs along with the far right coalition is something that I cannot see winning against because of the power of social media. To me it will be more like global guerrilla warfare. We will not capitulate but resort back to norms via town hall meetings, where the internet has no access. I just don’t see the sane people who want to preserve our constitutional rights, being able to tame the AI techno-Oligarch beasts. Unless we hold onto our democratic process of free elections without interference from techies who know how to rig voting machines. Any other thought on how we can move forward or will we all be subjugated to the Trump/Vance/Musk rule?
Oliver Burkman has an excellent newsletter and he always - for me at least - manages to give much needed advice, when needed.
His last news letter addressed issue of news & corporate social media. He recommend what you are already thinking: "...."the way you want the world to be” is something you can live, here and now, not just something for which you advocate or argue."
Quote from newsletter:
"One very good way to tell that your centre of gravity is out of whack is when it feels like you spend a lot of time inside the minds of far-off strangers. As the philosopher [Byung-Chul Han points out](https://direct.mit.edu/books/book/4905/In-the-SwarmDigital-Prospects), the internet – contrary to the dreams of its hippie pioneers – hasn’t created a flourishing, supersized, wonderfully democratic public sphere in which we all get to constructively debate the issues of the day. Instead it _erodes_ the public sphere, by connecting our minds directly to the unedited neediness, rage or fear inside everyone else’s minds, which in turn trigger such reactions in us.....
And, yes, returning your centre of gravity to your immediate world means doing all those things you already know you ought to be doing – removing news notifications from your phone; spending time in nature; considering a return to printed news, and so on. **But it also means remembering that “the way you want the world to be” is something you can live, here and now, not just something for which you advocate or argue. Your immediate world isn’t only somewhere you come to recharge, before heading back to the arena. It is the arena."**
Without guard rails or restraint from his own party, it is quite possible that we will see a complete reshaping of the world order, essentially flipping the historic relationships fashioned over years amongst our traditional allies in times of both war and peace, replacing those relationships with an alliance between the United States and Russia that posits that Western Europe is to be viewed now the same way we have historically viewed Russia (and before it, the Soviet Union). Trump is the puppet that Hillary Clinton warned us about back in 2016 (recall Trump's response, "No puppet...no puppet...no you're the puppet"), dancing on strings manipulated by Putin, singing out Putin's own propaganda talking points and helping to spread Putin's disinformation campaign, calling Zelensky a "dictator" and incredibly claiming that it was Ukraine that invaded Russia. That members of the Republican members of the Senate who have borne first hand witness to the atrocities committed by Putin's forces, proclaim their undying support for Ukraine and Zelensky while standing amongst the ruins of Kyiv and then turn tail and run upon returning home tells us all we need to know about the fate that awaits Ukraine, Western Europe and perhaps the world as a whole should alliances be reshaped.
“The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction and the distinction between true and false no longer exist.”
I wonder if the Democrats were able to provide security for the normal GOP members? They are terrified I am sure for their lives and the safety of their families. Gates or Cuban could cover that easily until Donnie, Elon and Johnson are in jail. RESTACK!
When I worked in data security, we attended cyber-security conventions - Black Hat being a favorite. Today’s shenanigans make me wonder if Anonymous (the decentralized, international activist and hacktivist collective) would be open to taking down Twitter (X) for good. The silence following that shut-down might wake our politicians up.
I've actually been thinking about this a lot, moreso over the past year. My focus has been on the relatively small risk of physical danger from charged up miscreants and the much longer shadow it casts. Second place was the primary threat. That has become more tangible since Musk's explicit threats, though it still shouldn't matter as much. For most of this short century, a tour in Congress has been an internship for a job on K street that would pay you real money so losing an election vs resigning shouldn't be a catastrophe.
I was de-emphasizing the effect of mean tweets because I could not really believe it mattered that much. But you're right, it does. Mean tweets, canceled RW media appearances, people not returning your calls. These are the things that have paralyzed our institutions; the fear (!!?!!) they create being so great that no opposition can overcome inertia enough to even organize a bucket brigade.
Excellent essay. Depressing but true. Cowardly Republican politicians fear getting primaried more than they fear a Putin controlled USA foreign policy. This is beyond immoral, it is treason. We must keep fighting to get truth told, to get mass resistance to a Russian asset president and his billionaire co-dependent.
Mike, how do you know that "fear of mean tweets" is the determining factor here? I'd suppose that there are more compelling reasons for the Republican Senators to fear standing against Trump (and Putin).
A lot is saw it coming. The ones who bent the knee to the wolves in sheep’s clothing will one day look in the mirror and hate what they see! I’m from the generation who will always fight against injustice. But this new stealth war of the techno-oligarchs along with the far right coalition is something that I cannot see winning against because of the power of social media. To me it will be more like global guerrilla warfare. We will not capitulate but resort back to norms via town hall meetings, where the internet has no access. I just don’t see the sane people who want to preserve our constitutional rights, being able to tame the AI techno-Oligarch beasts. Unless we hold onto our democratic process of free elections without interference from techies who know how to rig voting machines. Any other thought on how we can move forward or will we all be subjugated to the Trump/Vance/Musk rule?
Along the lines you suggest, Adele, I'm beginning to concentrate on getting our Community Council up and running again.
Oliver Burkman has an excellent newsletter and he always - for me at least - manages to give much needed advice, when needed.
His last news letter addressed issue of news & corporate social media. He recommend what you are already thinking: "...."the way you want the world to be” is something you can live, here and now, not just something for which you advocate or argue."
Quote from newsletter:
"One very good way to tell that your centre of gravity is out of whack is when it feels like you spend a lot of time inside the minds of far-off strangers. As the philosopher [Byung-Chul Han points out](https://direct.mit.edu/books/book/4905/In-the-SwarmDigital-Prospects), the internet – contrary to the dreams of its hippie pioneers – hasn’t created a flourishing, supersized, wonderfully democratic public sphere in which we all get to constructively debate the issues of the day. Instead it _erodes_ the public sphere, by connecting our minds directly to the unedited neediness, rage or fear inside everyone else’s minds, which in turn trigger such reactions in us.....
And, yes, returning your centre of gravity to your immediate world means doing all those things you already know you ought to be doing – removing news notifications from your phone; spending time in nature; considering a return to printed news, and so on. **But it also means remembering that “the way you want the world to be” is something you can live, here and now, not just something for which you advocate or argue. Your immediate world isn’t only somewhere you come to recharge, before heading back to the arena. It is the arena."**
https://ckarchive.com/b/4zuvhehpp24m4t6ovveola6g9z777s5
they already hate what they see. that's why they get so hopping mad when people with actual consciences remind them of what they're looking at.
Without guard rails or restraint from his own party, it is quite possible that we will see a complete reshaping of the world order, essentially flipping the historic relationships fashioned over years amongst our traditional allies in times of both war and peace, replacing those relationships with an alliance between the United States and Russia that posits that Western Europe is to be viewed now the same way we have historically viewed Russia (and before it, the Soviet Union). Trump is the puppet that Hillary Clinton warned us about back in 2016 (recall Trump's response, "No puppet...no puppet...no you're the puppet"), dancing on strings manipulated by Putin, singing out Putin's own propaganda talking points and helping to spread Putin's disinformation campaign, calling Zelensky a "dictator" and incredibly claiming that it was Ukraine that invaded Russia. That members of the Republican members of the Senate who have borne first hand witness to the atrocities committed by Putin's forces, proclaim their undying support for Ukraine and Zelensky while standing amongst the ruins of Kyiv and then turn tail and run upon returning home tells us all we need to know about the fate that awaits Ukraine, Western Europe and perhaps the world as a whole should alliances be reshaped.
“The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction and the distinction between true and false no longer exist.”
― Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianisme
I wonder if the Democrats were able to provide security for the normal GOP members? They are terrified I am sure for their lives and the safety of their families. Gates or Cuban could cover that easily until Donnie, Elon and Johnson are in jail. RESTACK!
Would certainly be worth it
I've been wondering about that too. Or GoFundMe their security.
When I worked in data security, we attended cyber-security conventions - Black Hat being a favorite. Today’s shenanigans make me wonder if Anonymous (the decentralized, international activist and hacktivist collective) would be open to taking down Twitter (X) for good. The silence following that shut-down might wake our politicians up.
Day 1,092 of Putin’s 3-day conquest of Ukraine.
https://regionalextensioncenter.blogspot.com/2022/02/vladimir-putin-launches-war.html
Related: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/trump-congress-political-violence
I've actually been thinking about this a lot, moreso over the past year. My focus has been on the relatively small risk of physical danger from charged up miscreants and the much longer shadow it casts. Second place was the primary threat. That has become more tangible since Musk's explicit threats, though it still shouldn't matter as much. For most of this short century, a tour in Congress has been an internship for a job on K street that would pay you real money so losing an election vs resigning shouldn't be a catastrophe.
I was de-emphasizing the effect of mean tweets because I could not really believe it mattered that much. But you're right, it does. Mean tweets, canceled RW media appearances, people not returning your calls. These are the things that have paralyzed our institutions; the fear (!!?!!) they create being so great that no opposition can overcome inertia enough to even organize a bucket brigade.
https://open.substack.com/pub/neverclosetheinquiry/p/45-a-collection-of-thoughts-on-ukraine?r=5wrb1&utm_medium=ios
Excellent essay. Depressing but true. Cowardly Republican politicians fear getting primaried more than they fear a Putin controlled USA foreign policy. This is beyond immoral, it is treason. We must keep fighting to get truth told, to get mass resistance to a Russian asset president and his billionaire co-dependent.
Yawn
My new favourite word: pusillanimity, which my late mother defined as moral cowardice.
Mike, how do you know that "fear of mean tweets" is the determining factor here? I'd suppose that there are more compelling reasons for the Republican Senators to fear standing against Trump (and Putin).
Because social media is the "reality" in which politics now exists. It's really not unique to this. It's a ubiquitous phenomenon and serious problem.
Do you agree with the perception that they may also fear for their lives, and for the lives of their families?
Sure.