The reason we have laws* against bribery is that companies will absolutely bribe politicians at the very first opportunity if it is good for the bottom line, because they see it as a sound business decision, not a civilizational betrayal.
/1
One wonders, if you take away Orlando, does the average fall?
Trump hyped a huge autism announcement for months then followed through today with a press conference where his brain leaked out of his ears for an hour while he couldn't pronounce "acetaminophen" and yelled "DON'T TAKE ASPIRIN" over and over.
Congratulations, America.
Conservatives love to darkly say stuff like “you aren’t prepared for what’s next, we’re not going to be moderate anymore, you have no idea what you’ve unleashed” and then cry like babies when you call them fascists
The highest spikes here are due largely to Trump's tantrum that Bolsonaro got prosecuted.
Donald Trump’s new $15 billion lawsuit against the New York Times spends four pages celebrating the settlements by ABC and Paramount. This is what capitulation gets you: more of the same sorts of attacks.
I'm sure Trump has already moved on from his "call". I think Reuters can move on from this latest bit of trumpian nonsense as well.
The president is intentionally killing non-combatants who pose no direct threat in violation of domestic, international and military law and his VP and chief policy adviser are promising an authoritarian crackdown on his political opponents. Just today.
Democracy and the rule of law are on the line
Cancel culture = asking people to use correct pronouns.
Not cancel culture = getting people fired coz they weren’t sufficiently sad about a dead Nazi YouTuber.
He did the meme.
Evergreen:
I ignored the murder of Melissa Hortman. Here’s why I’ll be talking about the murder of Charlie Kirk all day today.
by most liberal pundits
Charlie Kirk was a horrible bigot who spewed dangerous conspiracy theories and misled many young people. He marched for Trump’s authoritarian agenda. None of this justifies violence or murder. Political violence only escalates and makes us less safe.
Sadly, we dont have a leader but an arsonist.
At this early stage, Pritzker.
/4 But it’s perfectly reasonable to point out that the people who will wave the bloody shirt over this — the people who support Charlie Kirk — are evil hypocrites who endorse and excuse violence every day. Refraining from celebrating doesn’t mean tolerating bullshit.
bsky.app/profile/thre...
They keep losing in court because everything they’re doing is illegal
Trump's dictator moves like calling in the national guard or ballooning the ice budget are designed to enrage you, but also to desensitize you to his authoritarian behavior. As Rick Wilson says, we can't let that happen:
Not sure whose fault it is primarily that most people don't seem to know that the president is basically a manager whose job is to carry out the will of Congress, and not The Country's Boss
“Mr. President, JD Vance says he’s ready to take over for you as soon as you die. Any comment?”
(1/X) Sometimes people ask "why does this supposedly reasonable Republican back Trump or why does this centrist spend all of this time attacking the left at a time when the right is destroying the country?"
The answer is simple: it's because they're assholes.
Gavin Newsom holds mirror to Maga by trolling Trump on.ft.com/4mUmm3L
If the government can’t force Cracker Barrel to change its logo back, I’m going to become an even bigger libertarian.
"J Michael Luttig, who served on a federal appeals court for 15 years, put the criticism starkly. 'The chief justice is presiding over the end of the rule of law in America,' Luttig told the Guardian."
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
"...reading his essay in the age of generative artificial intelligence provokes a queasy familiarity."
Some of us were touting Prof Frankfurt's book back in 2016, the beginning of the age of "alternative facts"
Generative AI models are skilled in the art of bullshit - on.ft.com/4jh44aE via @FT
HBO's Chernobyl called it correctly:
"What is the cost of lies? It's not that we'll mistake them for the truth. The real danger is that if we hear enough lies, then we no longer recognize the truth at all."
Could this be, at long last, our "have you no sense on decency" moment?
So far, the best read of 2025.
Given the aberdeen "news" today, I'm guessing next week's will be even better.
You may not understand why, but the healthcare insurance and PBM contracts YOU have signed for Tesla, SpaceX , @X, along with CEOs of other big companies , have more impact on healthcare costs and quality of care in this country, than anything you can do with DOGE
