1/ I was thinking about the differences between the Dems and GOP and something clicked, bringing the failures of this era into focus:
The Democratic Party is absolutely terrified of power. They're perennial permission seekers and incapable of acting in their own self interest.
2/ In contrast, the GOP gets off on power and abuses it relentlessly. They don't even feign asking for forgiveness anymore.
Both parties have unhealthy relationships with power and this dynamic won't change until the Dems stop asking for permission before using their power.
3/ Permission seeking is the opposite of taking charge. There are several simultaneous crisises and action is needed to save lives.
When power isn't used humans become hesitant and tentative. The Dems are scared to flex, which begs the GOP to take the power back next cycle.
4/ This doesn't mean Dems should abuse their power, but they need to stop sitting on their hands. Asking for permission to do something you're allowed to do demonstrates a lack of confidence.
It also leaves an opening for right-wing media to chime in with disapproval.
5/ The answer is for Dems to stop asking for permission. It makes them look like children.
They need to be bold. Instead of asking, they need to reframe and say "We have this authority, so this is happening".
That's a lesson Dem Leadership needs to learn.
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1/ Trump doesn't care about legacy, family, or duty. He sure as fuck doesn't care about the law, or even money (he knows the illusion of money is just as good).
Trump only cares about himself, and his only motivation is power. An illegitimate "win" is a win to him.
2/ Imagine Trump playing a video game.
He'd try for 30 seconds, get destroyed, and quickly resort to cheat codes to get by.
After celebrating his ill-gotten victory, he'd quickly realize that he's empty inside. There would be no sense of accomplishment.
3/ From here it could go in two directions. He gets bored of the game and does something else, or he plays again.
Because he has no interest in developing any skills, he would continue to cheat using more elaborate codes.
He'll never be satisfied, so he'll continue to escalate.
When I'm infuriated by the state of things and the attempts to normalize this madness, I like to revisit this @sarahkendzior essay and do some self-reflection.
"Authoritarianism is not merely a matter of state control, it is something that eats away at who you are. It makes you afraid, and fear can make you cruel. It compels you to comply and accept things that you would never accept, to do things you never thought you would do."
"You do it because everyone else is doing it, because the institutions you trust are doing it and telling you to do it... and because the voice in your head crying out that something is wrong grows fainter and fainter until it dies."
I'm pretty sure Kush is working with bad actors in Israel to orchestrate a false flag terror event on Jan 6th (blaming Iran) so that Trump can finally use those nukes he's dreamt about his whole life.
1/ Russia hopes to seize on the warming temperatures and longer growing seasons brought by climate change to refashion itself as one of the planet’s largest producers of food.
No country may be better positioned to capitalize on climate change than Russia.
2/ Russia has a large land mass and is neighbors with the largest global population fending off climate displacement.
Russia's crop production is expected to be boosted by warming temperatures, even as yields in the United States, Europe and India are all forecast to decrease.