Dr. X's Free Associations

A.M. Shot

What Trump Hath Wrought

WaPo:

U.S. authorities charged an apparent leader of the Oath Keepers extremist group, Thomas Edward Caldwell, 66, of Berryville, Va., in the attack, alleging that the Navy veteran helped organize a ring of dozens who coordinated their movements as they “stormed the castle” to disrupt the confirmation of President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral college victory.

“We have about 30-40 of us. We are sticking together and sticking to the plan,” co-defendant Jessica Watkins, 38, an Army veteran, said while the breach was underway, according to court documents.

“You are executing citizen’s arrest. Arrest this assembly, we have probable cause for acts of treason, election fraud,” a man replied, according to audio recordings of communications between Watkins and others during the incursion.

[...]

Some messages, according to the FBI, included, “Tom all legislators are down in the Tunnels 3floors down,” and “Go through back house chamber doors facing N left down hallway down steps.” Another message read: “All members are in the tunnels under capital seal them in. Turn on gas,” the FBI added.

Reader Photos

Snapped by FLGator on Sanibel Island. Biking through the wildlife preserve.

Trump Has Lied For More Than 4 Years About A Health Plan That Doesn't Exist, A Wall That Wasn't Built, And Elections That Weren't Rigged

To support Trump you must lie to yourself about the obvious implications of what your eyes see and your ears hear or bury your head in a right-wing propaganda bubble where you are never confronted by reality. To begin, we have four years of Trump lying about a health care plan, "second to none," that he is just about to unveil, "file" or "sign."

And since the video above, he continued lying about a health care plan into the last months of his 2020 campaign:

Related: About that "big, beautiful wall" to seal the 2000-mile border with Mexico, the wall that Mexico is going to pay for? We have about 15 miles of new border wall constructed where there had been no wall previously and some 450 miles of repaired or replaced wall, none of which is a wall and none of which was paid for by Mexico. There are other types of barriers. The 2000-mile border with Mexico is still largely without a wall or any man-made barrier.

In the end, the promises of Trump's two campaigns and his four years in office were nothing but a blizzard of absurd lies supported by propaganda machinery and a gullible political cult that, for the most part, still buys into his lies.

You might think that Trump's lying about health care and a wall for over four years, right up to the bitter end of his administration, might give some of his supporters a clue that more than four years of Trump's carping about rigged elections was all just another big lie, but cults cling to lies long past the point of all evidence and all reason, even dying for the lies of con men and lunatics they've turned into idols.

The damage that has been done to this country by this deranged con man, Donald Trump, and his gullible cult is incalculable. How we go forward with 1/3 to 1/2 of our voting citizenry completely unwilling or unable to face and accept even the most basic, most black-and-white truth in the political sphere is beyond me.

Speaking of the supporting machinery of Trump's con, QAnon adherents are saying that Joe Biden will move back to Delaware and turn the government over to AOC on January 21. And when Thursday passes without AOC taking charge of the United States, the cult will simply move on to the next conspiracy theory because they don't do evidence or reality.

God help us.

 

Reader Photos

From A bear:

3 of the last 4 times I have been by the boat ramp 1/2 mile down the beach, there have been people swimming there... Today, recorded water temp 46.4F , air temp 48.5 F

Vaccine Rollout Is Running Slow

We've got 1.13 million COVID19 vaccinations to date out of a US population of 328 million. So, 0.003445% of the population or just a hair over 1/3 of 1 percent of the population has been vaccinated. The overwhelming majority have only received the first shot.

This week, Trump said he would order the release of a huge stockpile held in reserve but it turns out that there is no reserve. Whether incompetence, dishonesty, or both, Trump is a failure to the very end.

Biden has announced a national effort to get the vaccine out, to be funded with $400bn. The effort will be led by Lt General (Ret) Russell Honoré, who cleaned up the botched Katrina response. The plan is to use the defense production act, set up more vaccine sites, and use FEMA and the National Guard. More below.

Here are the key parts of President-elect @JoeBiden's Covid-19 vaccination plan. pic.twitter.com/NAwvKYOCz0

— Benjy Renton (@bhrenton) January 15, 2021

Trump's Blackshirts: "Kill him with his own gun"

A DC Metro police officer describes the vicious attack he endured at the hands of Trump's DC seditionists.

Trump's Terrorists

Terrorism: The unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

Lindsey Graham warned Democrats that they should not pursue a Senate trial because it would invite further violence. So Graham has effectively designated The Capitol attack by Trump supporters as terrorism.

Javanka

You & I have paid $100,000 for a special Secret Service toilet rental because Jared Kushner & Ivanka Trump would not allow their security detail to use any of their six bathrooms @washingtonpost reports. They would even sneak over to the Obamas before thathttps://t.co/IjuDVLWHms

— Brendan Keefe (@BrendanKeefe) January 14, 2021

These arrogant grifters can't be gone soon enough. I look forward to each of them sharing wall-hung stainless steel toilets with unpleasant bunkmates in New York.

You & I have paid $100,000 for a special Secret Service toilet rental because Jared Kushner & Ivanka Trump would not allow their security detail to use any of their six bathrooms @washingtonpost reports. They would even sneak over to the Obamas before thathttps://t.co/IjuDVLWHms

— Brendan Keefe (@BrendanKeefe) January 14, 2021

These arrogant grifters can't be gone soon enough. I look forward to each of them sharing wall-hung stainless steel toilets with unpleasant bunkmates in New York.

Pretending It Wasn't What It Was

In response to this:

Ben Shapiro tweeted this:

Literally every regular human I know owns zip ties. This is like Pauline Kael on steroids. https://t.co/qEHC1uedgB

— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) January 13, 2021

These are flex cuffs for handcuffing:

These are zip ties:

Perhaps the authorities should check basements and locked sheds at the homes of everyone Ben knows.

Merkel Criticizes Trump's Twitter Ban, But There's A Huge, Irreconcilable Catch

Newly elected Republic,an Rep, Lauren Boebert:

Angela Merkel, the chancellor of Germany, came out and said that she found banning President Trump from Twitter “problematic”.

Merkel is certainly not a friend of Trump.

Why is it that the rest of the world can see what liberals in America can’t?

A terrible precedent was set.

— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) January 11, 2021

Irish Times:

Angela Merkel, German chancellor, has sharply criticised Twitter’s decision to ban US president Donald Trump, calling it a “problematic” breach of the “fundamental right to free speech”.

[...]

But Dr Merkel said through her spokesman that the US government should follow Germany’s lead in adopting laws that restrict online incitement, rather than leaving it up to platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to make up their own rules.

Merkel thinks the US government should follow Germany's lead and leave it to government to restrict speech rather than private entities. But the German notion of free speech is different from freedom of speech in the US. A broad swathe of constitutionally protected speech in the United States can be prosecuted in Germany, including "Nazi speech," personal insults, insults against ethnic, religious groups, gender or sexuality. To follow Merkel's recommendation would be unconstitutional in the US, both because it would violate the First Amendment rights of the owner of a platform like twitter, and because German style government restrictions on speech clearly move into territory that would also violate the First Amendment restrictions on government power to regulate speech.

So Merkel may think the German system would be better for the US, but she is either speaking hypothetically or doesn't understand enough about US law to appreciate that the German approach wouldn't be possible without a constitutional amendment (not going to happen) or an unexpected and radical departure from the way SCOTUS has interpreted the First Amendment (also not going to happen).

The intervention highlights a key area of disagreement between the US and Europe on how to regulate social media platforms. The EU wants to give regulators more powers to force internet platforms such as Facebook or Twitter to remove illegal content.

Trump Supporters Drag Police Officer Down Stairs And Beat Him With A Flagpole

Horrific new video obtained by CNN shows a MAGA rioter (in white hat and backpack) grab a DC Metro officer and pull him down Capitol steps where he is stomped and beaten with an American flag pole.
At one point they sing the Star Spangled Banner pic.twitter.com/XXJMxanGXp

— Bill Weir (@BillWeirCNN) January 10, 2021

Below: Cop screaming as he's being crushed by crowd trying to force it's way through a doorway.

While we have seen videos of the Capitol Police running away, opening barriers and taking selfies, there is another side to the story. These Capitol Policemen, decked out in riot gear, are fighting to the death to keep the rioters out, one crushed in the doors #CapitolRiots pic.twitter.com/6E24C9iQFR

— Cyrus Sanati (@BeyondBlunt) January 8, 2021

Below, a crowd tries to smash its way through a doorway, and a woman is shot dead as she attempts to climb through a window in the barricaded door.

Former Midland, TX Mayor Gleefully Admits To Felony Invasion of the Capitol, B&E And Burglary In The Speaker's Office

Meet Jenny Cudd from Midland Texas "WE did break down @SpeakerPelosi's office door and somebody stole her gavel and I took a picture sitting in the chair flipping off the camera and that was on Fox News" @FBI pic.twitter.com/3s3aWgOJ9G

— Cleavon MD (@Cleavon_MD) January 8, 2021

I'll admit, I'm harder on criminals who enjoy considerable privilege in their lives, especially politicians. Too often, they are driven by a sense of entitlement rather than hopelessness, desperation, or despair.

Fox News Scares the daylights out of audience, then pleads for sympathy

Ainsley Earhardt: “There are 75 million people that voted for President Trump. And they are scared. They are worried about what the future of this country looks like. They are confused and heartbroken that their candidate didn't win and they don't want to be forgotten.” pic.twitter.com/OcqMYGjJtG

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 8, 2021

How cute. Fox News spent years scaring the bejeebers out of its audience with distortions, lies, and apocalyptic predictions, and now a Fox News host pleads for understanding because their audience is scared.