Jan 6 Rioter Describes Booze Soaked Radicalization

 New Hampshire Public Radio has this fascinating interview with Jason Riddle, who served 90 days in jail following the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol. Mr. Riddle, who has rejected a pardon from Trump, describes the personal circumstances that contributed to his MAGA radicalization: 

"I'm a recovering alcoholic. At the time, I was not recovering. I would combine alcohol with my politics and I'd put it online too. I spent a lot of time on social media in the comments section arguing with strangers about nothing. And it just became more or less my identity. The less I had a life, the louder I was about being a Trump supporter. And instead of trying to figure out what was causing these problems, looking at myself, I blamed other people and politics. That's easy to do. And I fit right into the MAGA circle"

The interview offers a glimpse of the riot from a rioter's perspective and how he was treated as something of a celebrity in jail - by other inmates and by staff. Courage, common sense, and sober reflection seem to have turned him away from the MAGA movement.

Does the Media Go Easy on Trump's Mental Health?

           Trump rolls out his golden sneakers merch, available for $399.  (MSN photo credit)

In a recent opinion piece by professor, author and former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, Reich suggests the media is not sufficiently reporting on Trump's questionable mental health. Reich is not alone in his concern for Trump's mental stability. 

A leading psychiatrist, Dr. Lance Dodes says the evidence for Trump's dementia is overwhelming. Former Johns Hopkins University Medical School professor and psychologist John Gartner, has said Trump is "showing unmistakable signs strongly suggesting dementia." 

Trump's own father Fred suffered from dementia.

Although not a psychiatrist or psychologist, former Trump aide Omarosa Manigault Newman advisor wrote in her book Unhinged that Trump, while in office, was suffering serious mental decline falling "from quick-thinking Apprentice host to a lonely, befuddled president who rattles around the White house with rage and confusion."  

That seems to match up pretty well with Trump's current public statements and behavior. 

Switcheroo Trump Now Loves Electric Cars

Trump has apparently changed his mind about electric vehicles (EVs). Now, he's not talking about EV supporters needing to "rot in hell" (see previous post below). What accounts for the change of heart?  Could it be that Elon Mush has endorsed Trump and, set up a super political action committee to help him  called  "America PAC?" Doesn't this suggest it's all about money and endorsements? Is this the way to decide what's best for our nation?

From the Business Insider article

"I'm for electric cars. I have to be because, you know, Elon endorsed me very strongly," Trump told the crowd. "So, I have no choice."

Simple as that.  If  you publicly support Trump and give him money, he'll change his political position give you what you want, or so it would seem based on Trump's words, "So I have no choice." Really? What else would this guy give away for money and endorsements?

According to this Forbes report, CNBC reported some potentially illegal shenanigans on the part America PAC. From the Forbes article:

"The PAC came under scrutiny after CNBC reported Friday a link on the group’s website directing supporters to register to vote for the most part doesn’t actually do so, but rather just collects information about them.

CNBC discovered if a user lists a zip code in a battleground state, the website leads them to a detailed form asking for much more personal information than if they report being in a non-competitive state—in which case they still aren’t actually registered to vote, though for some non-battleground state zip codes the PAC does lead them to an official voter registration link."

To lead voters to a web site where they think they are registering to vote but they really aren't sounds like trouble and has sparked an investigation by the Michigan's Secretary of State and Atorney General. 

Trump Suggests e-Vehicle Methodists and Catholics Should "Rot in Hell"

According to Business Insider, Donald Trump isn't happy with those who support electric cars and wishes they would "rot in hell." I wonder if Trump has any electric carts on any of his golf courses. I bet he does. 

Trump's particularly harsh and baseless judgement (the Bible doesn't take a position on electric cars) would apparently apply to the Washington-Baltimore Conference of the United Methodist Church. Given that their parking lots are pretty much empty six days out of the week, they decided to install e-car charging stations at more than 600 churches! 

And Trump's not just implicitly telling Methodists where to go and what to do when they get there. The Catholic Diocese of Worchester, Massachusetts is encouraging parishioners to support driving and charging e-vehicles. 

Perhaps a sign of how out of touch Donald Trump is with energy and world affairs, and how poorly informed he is, generally, Pope Francis Himself has two Volkswagon ID.3 Pro Performance models and has directed the entire Vatican City State fleet to purchase electric vehicles and be carbon-neutral by 2030.  

Photo credit: Aleteia.

Not Trusting Our Institutions: How Did We Get Here?

Former Reagan White House official and one-time nominee for Labor Secretary (she withdrew after it was discovered she employed an undocumented worker) Linda Chavez has an opinion piece The Most Worrisome Effect of Russia's Election Meddling in the New York Post arguing that the worst aspect of Russian meddling in the recent presidential election is the erosion of public trust in our democratic institutions.In conclusion, Chavez makes what seems to me to be a a very reasonable point:

"Democracy can only exist as long as the people trust its institutions. The greatest calamity of this election cycle has been the weakening of that trust" - Linda Chavez.

Team Putin appears to have succeeded in hacking American (and world) confidence in its own election process, its intelligence agencies, and its freedom of the press. They didn't accomplish this on their own, however. They've had some help along the way, such as:

"In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem." - Ronald Reagan

One thing seems clear: when each of our major political parties is in power, they call for trust. When they are out of power they attack the other side in increasingly bitter and nefarious ways.

In the present crisis, partisanship is not the solution to our problem; partisanship is the problem.

How do we fix it?

1. Start by recognizing both sides, Republicans and Democrats, are complicit in problems facing ordinary Americans.

2. Read and listen to a variety of news sources, i.e., consider other opinions that do not conform to our own biases.

3. Engage in constructive change activities. Don't tune out and drop out.

4. Keep calm; keep working.

Is Trump Preparing to Stiff China?

President-Elect Donald J. Trump (DJT) has promised to "rebuild our depleted military" and spend a lot of money building new infrastructure. Where will he get the money?

Trump's recent phone call with Taiwan's President has angered the People's Republic of China (PRC) leaders who've made it clear that a "two-China" policy would be unacceptable. U.S. relations with China are already deteriorating before DJT takes office. What are we to make of this?

Trump has a history of using bankruptcy  and stiffing contractors as part of his business practice.

How much does the U.S. owe China? Over $1 trillion.

Suppose China-U.S. relations continue to the point DJT calls for sanctions and puts a stop to payments on our Chinese debt. Suppose such a move doesn't scare the hell out of the rest of America's debt holders and throw the international financial markets into a fit. What are the other risks?

Remember when the U.S. pulled out of Iraq and left a lot of weapons in the hands of the Iraqi military? Those weapons ended up in enemy hands. A similar situation has been created by U.S. corporations setting up industrial facilities in China, which now has an excess of industrial capacity.

If DJT forces a "showdown" how much can U.S. policies actually hurt China? The fact is, if the U.S. wanted to beat down the Chinese economy, it's probably 20 years too late. China leads the U.S. economy in manufacturing and agriculture.

Everybody the U.S. can sell to, China can probably sell to at a cheaper price.

If it loses market share, how will the U.S. rebuild its industrial capacity?

Do we need to revisit 1939 to find the answer?

Robert Reich Comments on Washington Post's Silly Attack on Sanders

Former Labor Secretary and prolific author Robert Reich is out with an article solidly defending Senator Bernie Sanders against an absurd attack from the Washington Post (WaPo). The article is Why the Washington Post Attack on Bernie Sanders is Bunk.

Evidently, the WaPo thinks Sanders' plan for extending public funding beyond K-12 to include college would mean a government takeover of colleges. I don't think the WaPo writer has ever filled out a FAFSA or has much of idea the way colleges are currently influenced by outside money, as Robert Reich points out. 

It's true that Bernie Sanders wants to raise taxes on corporations and the wealthiest Americans to rebuild the American Middle Class. We're going to see those corporations and wealthiest Americans mount an enormous campaign against him.