Politics

Trump’s first criminal trial is about election interference; framing it as “hush money” hides this.

April 18th 2024

This hush-money framing does the case a disservice. It makes it seem lurid and less consequential than those involving the constitutional order of government or divulging intelligence secrets. It presents an intimate, tidy, and contained narrative, which also is false.

Criminality piles-up around Truth Social. Is DJT the first political stock?

April 5th 2024

Fraud and insider trading may be just the start. There’s a tie to perjured Biden bribery testimony, and apparently one inside trader make a large loan to Truth Social. Get the details.

Dave Wieneke DOA Funny

Yes, body count is exactly what it takes to make some kinds of changes

August 21st 2022

As we think about taking-on inaction on larger topics, such as global warming, it is not only fair to ask “how many must die before we get serious” – it may be *the* essential question to ask.

GOP’s deal with the Devil leads to this week’s fatwa against the FBI

August 13th 2022

This week the GOP issued a fatwa to violently oppose the FBI. From former President, to official and media the call was amplified, in a party which has waited for generations to ‘use the guns’. This isn’t random; it is not hidden, and its not over.

Deception creates its own harm: Facebook shouldn’t know if you’re ovulating; voting shouldn’t be rooted in lies

January 14th 2021

Facebook gained the ability to see if users were ovulating, but the FTC put an end to this practice….because deception causes marketplace harm. Perhaps it’s time for voters to have consumer protections similar to what they enjoy in commerce from the FTC.

This hellish week is the fruit of an administration of rage

June 2nd 2020

Trump isn’t the one who killed George Floyd by pressing a knee to his neck. Police brutality against African Americans — and racism generally — has plagued us for centuries. But Trump uniquely fueled fury, with bigotry, dismantling police reforms, and encouraging aggression in violent speech.

COVID19 is Trump’s Chernobyl

May 23rd 2020

HBO’s Chernobyl miniseries has glowed with an unexpectedly long half-life for me. It illustrates the political and cultural rot that comes when people believe that truth must align with their leader’s wishes. It’s been echoing for me as a cautionary parable applicable to President Trump’s response to the Coronavirus.

The week a gun rally in Virginia became a Trumpy version of MLK’s dream

January 21st 2020

This year MLK Day mixed with a gun-rights rally, the American culture war, and real mass shootings. I’ve said that America’s greatest export is non-intentional irony, but nothing this week seemed to lack intent.

The week raising the smoking age, extending family leave, and funding research on gun violence was obscured by history

December 22nd 2019

Along with the healthcare-related news in the headline, there’s also a description of research showing the psychiatric impact of school shootings on classmates.

Christina Kirchner: memories of the corrupt leader ascending in Argentina again

October 27th 2019

Twain noted, “History doesn’t repeat itself but it often rhymes.” As Argentina starts a new verse in its history, its worth remembering the form of its last stanza shaped by Christina Kirchener.