Political Randomness

[Paingod]

How many times do we need to say ANTIFA isn't a group? It's Anti-Fascist.

I'm pretty sure these dudes are ANTIFA as well.

[Carpet_pissr]

I'm sure there are people left who call themselves Republican and believe in fiscal conservancy, smaller government, lower taxes - and not racism, hatred, ignorance. They're not voting for Trump or the spineless vultures like McConnell, Graham, and Collins. I'm not sure what else to call them. Are they Independents now? Moderates?

There are plenty. Ben Sasse is one that was in the news recently (but more often than not, these types are just quiet). Probably a lot of those involved in or that support the Lincoln Project. Personally I just call them "the old GOP" collectively, as it no longer really exists in a recognizable form from even 5 years ago.

In case someone didn't see his comments on a townhall to his constituents, here are some choice quotes from his answer about not supporting Trump more:


"I don't think the way he's lead through COVID has been reasonable or responsible, or right," Sasse said.

Sasse continued that Mr. Trump "kisses dictators' butts," citing how the president "ignores that the Uighurs are in literal concentration camps in Xinjiang" and "hasn't lifted a finger on behalf of the Hong-Kongers."

"The United States now regularly sells out our allies under his leadership, the way he treats women, spends like a drunken sailor. The ways I criticize President Obama for that kind of spending; I've criticized President Trump for as well. He mocks evangelicals behind closed doors. His family has treated the presidency like a business opportunity. He's flirted with white supremacists," Sasse said.

[TheMix]

Flirting? I think we are WAY beyond mere flirting.

[Isgrimnur]

How many times do we need to say ANTIFA isn't a group? It's Anti-Fascist.

I'm pretty sure these dudes are ANTIFA as well.

Actually, those were anti-imperialists. The anti-fascists were on the other side of the world.

[stessier]

How many times do we need to say ANTIFA isn't a group? It's Anti-Fascist.

I'm pretty sure these dudes are ANTIFA as well.

Actually, those were anti-imperialists. The anti-fascists were on the other side of the world.

In fairness, a fair number of those guys got their stripes as antifascist before becoming anti imperialist.

[Daehawk]

Maybe they are true antifa but these asses today that refer to themselves as antifa are nothing but angry mobs who use the name to be violent, steal, vandalize, attack people and places and incite rioting to get attention. Thugs.

I see a total difference in these ...

[Isgrimnur]

Maybe they are true antifa but these asses today that refer to themselves as antifa are nothing but angry mobs who use the name to be violent, steal, vandalize, attack people and places and incite rioting to get attention. Thugs.

How much active research did you put in to come to this conclusion?

[Daehawk]

Maybe they are true antifa but these asses today that refer to themselves as antifa are nothing but angry mobs who use the name to be violent, steal, vandalize, attack people and places and incite rioting to get attention. Thugs.

How much active research did you put in to come to this conclusion?

Clear as your eyes unless you ignore them.

[Jaymann]

Maybe they are true antifa but these asses today that refer to themselves as antifa are nothing but angry mobs who use the name to be violent, steal, vandalize, attack people and places and incite rioting to get attention. Thugs.

I'm sure you don't support Fascism. Sounds a lot like:

[Isgrimnur]

So, none.

Forming decisions about a group based solely on what comes across your news channels and feeds is a good way to be manipulated by propaganda.

[Daehawk]

Well those are not fake videos of people in armor and hiding their face that attack people and places and burn and steal. How can you fuss and denounce one side when you dont your own side? Im betting a lot of people vote for that idiot in the WH because so many on the left support or ignore the crimes on their side? I may be Democrat and hate what I see from the GOP but I also hate assholes who do this stuff in the name of peace and love. I dont like Trump. I dont like antifa. I support abortion but I also support guns. I support law and order. Civility. Rights of all not a few or those I pick. You cant pick and choose what laws to break to get your way.

These so called antifa are just using the name to get attention and support. They are simple attention whores and violence seekers. If theres a real law abiding antifa pls link to them so I can read up on them. What I see isn't what I agree with. Where else would you like me to get your 'truth' at? Maybe go to one of their protest? Im sure not all are crazy or violent but you cant say you dont see the same things I see and claim its all candy and Oreos surely?

[Isgrimnur]

Start here

[Paingod]

These so called antifa are just using the name to get attention and support. They are simple attention whores and violence seekers. If theres a real law abiding antifa pls link to them so I can read up on them.

The problem is that you're equating just rioters with Antifa. Trump doesn't. As far as he's concerned, every peaceful protester out there is Antifa, from moms with strollers during daylight vigils to angry mobs roving the streets after curfew, firebombing police cars.

Antifa is a concept. They are all Antifa. Just not the way Trump wants them to be.

Violent mobs are angry Antifa. Peaceful protesters are calm Antifa. I'm sitting at my desk being incognito Antifa.

[The Meal]

What Is Antifa, the Movement Trump Wants to Declare a Terror Group?

President Trump has blamed anti-fascist protesters for inciting violence at protests and tried to link “far left” activists to his mainstream Democratic opponent, Joe Biden.

By Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs and Sandra E. Garcia
Sept. 28, 2020


As President Trump and his Democratic opponent Joseph R. Biden Jr. enter the final stretch of the presidential campaign, a loosely affiliated group of far-left anti-fascism activists, known as “antifa,” has been the focus of a series of misleading rumors and false claims.

Seeking to assign blame for the protests against racial injustice that spread across the United States this summer, President Trump has said that the United States would designate antifa as a terrorist organization. The president’s critics noted, however, that the United States does not have a domestic terrorism law and that antifa, a contraction of the phrase “anti-fascist,” is not an organization with a leader, a defined structure or membership roles.

Rather, antifa is more of a loose movement of activists whose followers share some philosophies and tactics. They have made their presence known at protests around the country in recent years, including the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017.

Mr. Trump has also sought to tie Mr. Biden to “radical left” groups, including antifa — even though Mr. Biden opposes defunding the police, has repeatedly condemned violence and property damage associated with the protests, and has called for “arsonists and anarchists” to be prosecuted.

TRUMP AND ANTIFA
The president has said he would declare antifa a terrorist organization.


Who are the members of antifa?

It is impossible to know how many people count themselves as members. Its followers acknowledge that the movement is secretive, has no official leaders and is organized into autonomous local cells. It is also only one in a constellation of activist movements that have come together in the past few years to oppose the far right.

Antifa members campaign against actions they view as authoritarian, homophobic, racist or xenophobic. Although antifa is not affiliated with other movements on the left — and is sometimes viewed as a distraction by other organizers — its members sometimes work with other local activist networks that are rallying around the same issues, such as the Occupy movement or Black Lives Matter.

Misinformation about the group often spreads through personal networks online. In many cases, false or misleading claims appear first in a tweet, Facebook post or YouTube video before they are shared through community texting networks, Facebook groups or the neighborhood social networking app Nextdoor.


What are its goals?

Supporters generally seek to stop what they see as fascist, racist and far-right groups from having a platform to promote their views, arguing that public demonstration of those ideas leads to the targeting of marginalized people, including racial minorities, women and members of the L.G.B.T.Q. community.

“The argument is that militant anti-fascism is inherently self-defense because of the historically documented violence that fascists pose, especially to marginalized people,” said Mark Bray, a history lecturer at Rutgers University and the author of “Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook.”

Many antifa organizers also participate in more peaceful forms of community organizing, but they believe that using violence is justified because of their views that if racist or fascist groups are allowed to organize freely, “it will inevitably result in violence against marginalized communities,” said Mr. Bray, whose defense of the anti-fascist movement incited criticism and generated support at Dartmouth College when he was a lecturer there.


When did the movement begin?

Although the Merriam-Webster dictionary says the word “antifa” was first used in 1946 and was borrowed from a German phrase signaling an opposition to Nazism, more people began joining the movement in the United States after the 2016 election of Mr. Trump, to counter the threat they believed was posed by the so-called alt-right, Mr. Bray said.

One of the first groups in the United States to use the name was Rose City Antifa, which says it was founded in 2007 in Portland, Ore. It has a large following on social media, where it shares news articles and sometimes seeks to dox, or reveal the identities and personal information of, figures on the right.

The antifa movement gained more visibility in 2017 after a series of events that put a spotlight on anti-fascist protesters, including the punching of a prominent alt-right member; the cancellation of an event by a right-wing writer at the University of California, Berkeley; and their confrontation of white nationalist protesters in Charlottesville who turned violent.


What distinguishes antifa from other protest groups?

Mr. Bray said antifa groups often use tactics similar to anarchist groups, such as dressing in all black and wearing masks. The groups also have overlapping ideologies, as both often criticize capitalism and seek to dismantle structures of authority, including police forces.

How have politicians and others reacted?
The movement has been widely criticized among the mainstream left and right. After the protests in Berkeley, Calif., in August 2017, Speaker Nancy Pelosi decried “the violent actions of people calling themselves antifa” and said they should be arrested.

Conservative publications and politicians routinely rail against supporters of antifa, who they say are seeking to shut down peaceful expression of conservative views. These critics point to moments during which purported antifa members have been accused of sucker-punching Trump supporters.

But overblown fears and false claims about antifa can be dangerous in and of themselves. In Oregon, for example, after a wave of misinformation about left-wing activists intentionally setting fires began to interfere with firefighters’ efforts to contain the blazes there, law enforcement officials begged people to “STOP. SPREADING. RUMORS!”

Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a professor of history at New York University who studies fascism, said she was worried that antifa’s methods could feed into what she said were false equivalencies that seek to lump violence on the left with attacks by the right, such as the killing of a protester in Charlottesville by a man who had expressed white supremacist views.

“Throwing a milkshake is not equivalent to killing someone, but because the people in power are allied with the right, any provocation, any dissent against right-wing violence, backfires,” Professor Ben-Ghiat said in an interview last year.

Between 2010 and 2016, 53 percent of terrorist attacks in the United States were carried out by religious extremists — 35 percent by right-wing extremists and 12 percent by left-wing or environmentalist extremists, according to a University of Maryland-led consortium that studies terrorism.

Militancy on the left can “become a justification for those in power and allies on the right to crack down,” Professor Ben-Ghiat said. “In these situations, the left, or antifa, are historically placed in impossible situations.”

Many links to supporting information in the original.

[Daehawk]

Thanks Ill check the link.

Well if thats true then I just hate and disagree with criminals. That should cover law breaking thugs and not include the groups I usually dont get to see in public and in the news.

[LordMortis]

There is a 100% chance that texting me your political speech (or calling) on behalf of a candidate will not me leave me with a better opinion of your candidate or you party.

[Smoove_B]

I'm sure it's just a total coincidence, right?

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison donated $250,000 to a super PAC supporting Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) reelection campaign as his company closed in on a coveted position as TikTok’s US technology partner.

FEC documents show that Ellison made the $250,000 donation to the Security is Strength PAC on September 14th. The Security is Strength PAC has bought ads exclusively in support of Graham’s political ambitions, including his 2015 presidential campaign and his current reelection bid for the US Senate.

Hmmm

Sen. Graham was reportedly pivotal in arranging the deal, although it’s unclear if he had any influence over the specific companies involved. In an interview with Vanity Fair in August, Graham said that he personally called Trump to suggest that he find a US company to purchase the platform in order to remedy the administration’s concerns over the app’s relationship with China. “Let Microsoft or somebody buy it, put it in American hands and allow the platform to survive and thrive because so many people enjoy it,” Sen. Graham said he told Trump over the summer.

“If TikTok is saved, you can thank me,” he said.

[LawBeefaroni]

I'm sure it's just a total coincidence, right?

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison donated $250,000 to a super PAC supporting Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) reelection campaign as his company closed in on a coveted position as TikTok’s US technology partner.

FEC documents show that Ellison made the $250,000 donation to the Security is Strength PAC on September 14th. The Security is Strength PAC has bought ads exclusively in support of Graham’s political ambitions, including his 2015 presidential campaign and his current reelection bid for the US Senate.

Hmmm

Sen. Graham was reportedly pivotal in arranging the deal, although it’s unclear if he had any influence over the specific companies involved. In an interview with Vanity Fair in August, Graham said that he personally called Trump to suggest that he find a US company to purchase the platform in order to remedy the administration’s concerns over the app’s relationship with China. “Let Microsoft or somebody buy it, put it in American hands and allow the platform to survive and thrive because so many people enjoy it,” Sen. Graham said he told Trump over the summer.

“If TikTok is saved, you can thank me,” he said.

Ellison also worked Trump over. He's a well known supporter.

[Daehawk]

A fool and his money are soon parted.

[Daehawk]

Kirstie Alley says she supports Trump's reelection because 'he's not a politician'

I guess she feels fine doing this as at 69 she has no work she'll ever do.

Actress Kirstie Alley on Saturday endorsed President Trump for a second term, writing on Twitter that "he's not a politician."

So thats your only reason for voting for him because he is not a politician? Everyone can already see that. What about the shit he has done to us and the world? I cant think of anything good he has done. He has helped divide us, the world laughs at us, he separates children from family at the border, he supports racism. He is all about HIM and no one else matters.

The "Cheers" and "Look Who's Talking" actress, who also endorsed Trump in 2016, took to the social media platform to declare her approval of the incumbent president's job performance.

"I'm voting for @realDonaldTrump because he's NOT a politician. I voted for him 4 years ago for this reason and shall vote for him again for this reason," she tweeted. "He gets things done quickly and he will turn the economy around quickly. There you have it folks there you have it."

So she makes the same mistake over and over I see. And gets things done quickly? Like what? All the above mentions stupidity? Repealing beneficial things like ohhhhh net neutrality, environment protections, and on and on. He has had 4 years to turn this economy around and done nothing. Ya he is sooooo quick. Why if you didn't know better you'd think he was an evil old elderly guy who is greedy and egotistical......if you didn't know better.

I did like one responder...

Shelly Long was way funnier than you.

[YellowKing]

I couldn't stand Kirstie Alley even before I knew she was a Trump supporter.

I don't get the "one issue voter" thing.

"Yeah this car has an awful safety record, one of the highest repair rates in the industry, the handling absolutely sucks, and it's terrible on gas."

"Then why'd you buy it?"

"Because it's red."

[Daehawk]

Ya you get the worst convict in a prison who is a former child abuser and wife beater to teach your kids because they are not a teacher.

[Defiant]

I don't get the "one issue voter" thing.

"Yeah this car has an awful safety record, one of the highest repair rates in the industry, the handling absolutely sucks, and it's terrible on gas."

"Then why'd you buy it?"

"Because it's red."

Perhaps it would be easier to get if you didn't use a flippant issue to represent that issue? Perhaps you should consider it as "yes, it's super expensive and yes, it's terrible on the environment, and yes, it was made in a Chinese sweat shop, but it has the highest safety."

[Jaymann]

I'm pretty sure an endorsement by a washed up Kirstie Alley will further erode Trump support if anything.

[malchior]

https://twitter.com/RandyRainbow/status ... 9347924992

[YellowKing]

Perhaps it would be easier to get if you didn't use a flippant issue to represent that issue? Perhaps you should consider it as "yes, it's super expensive and yes, it's terrible on the environment, and yes, it was made in a Chinese sweat shop, but it has the highest safety."

I like your analogy for anyone other than Trump.

[Max Peck]

Is the car Trump? And is "highest safety" abortion or guns? Or just control of the Supreme Court?

[Isgrimnur]

It's more that the contents of the box are the actual size of the picture on the box.

[dbt1949]

I find it odd that the republicans say they are for less government but are for more government keeping tabs om everybody.
I think the main thing they are against is logic.

[LordMortis]

I find it odd that the republicans say they are for less government but are for more government keeping tabs om everybody.
I think the main thing they are against is logic.

The party of individual responsibility, private arbitration, and decentralized government is now the party of Law and Order, Federal Hit Squads, and concentrated federal executive power unless it comes to COVID.

[Isgrimnur]

CBS News

Dozens of voters in a heavily Democratic county in Florida and across several states reported receiving emails on Thursday appearing to come from a right-wing group threatening to "come after" them unless they vote for President Trump.

But an examination of the messages, now under investigation by state and federal authorities, shows they were sent via servers located overseas, raising questions about their origin amid concerns about voter intimidation just two weeks before Election Day. Early voting began in Florida on Monday.

Democratic voters in Alachua County, Florida, began receiving the email on Tuesday morning, and voters in Alaska and Arizona also reported receiving the message. It appeared to come from the right-wing group The Proud Boys, and showed a "from" address of "info@officialproudboys.com."
...
While at first glance the email seems to come from an account under the domain of a website affiliated with The Proud Boys, a review of the source code embedded in seven emails shows the message originated from IP addresses linked to servers located in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Estonia.

The IP addresses don't establish that the senders are based in those countries, since the messages could have been routed through the servers from nearly anywhere, according to Dmitri Alperovitch, the co-founder and former chief technology officer of cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. He noted that the messages were sent via a "cloud infrastructure provider in Saudi Arabia called 'Saudi Executive Cloud.'"
...
Enrique Tarrio, a Proud Boy leader, said Tuesday that the group wasn't involved, and that he didn't know who sent the emails. He said he's been in contact with the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections, as well as the FBI. Tarrio said he believes the emails were sent by "somebody that's not very fond of us."

[Isgrimnur]

The normally irrational Jeffrey Toobin.

CNN

Jeffrey Toobin, CNN's chief legal analyst and a renowned reporter for The New Yorker, has been sidelined at a pivotal moment in the run-up to the presidential election.

The reason: He exposed himself during a Zoom call with colleagues in what he says was an accident.
...
"I made an embarrassingly stupid mistake, believing I was off-camera," Toobin said. "I apologize to my wife, family, friends and co-workers."

"I believed I was not visible on Zoom," he added. "I thought no one on the Zoom call could see me. I thought I had muted the Zoom video."

[malchior]

This is one of those stories that makes you cringe. Some outlets are really soft peddling the exposure element. And some others are not and explaining in graphic detail what Toobin was up to...

[Isgrimnur]

Spoiler:

[Unagi]

he was just playing the role of the courts.

Two people on the video call told Vice the virtual gathering was part of an election simulation last week that included New Yorker notables such as Jane Mayer, Evan Osnos, Masha Gessen and Jelani Cobb, as well as producers from the magazine and WNYC public radio.

The two sources said that at one point, it looked as if Toobin was taking another call and lowered his camera, and that’s when they saw him getting to work — on himself.

It was unclear what, if anything, others on the virtual call saw.

During the simulation, Osnos had been playing the role of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, Gessen was President Trump, Mayer represented establishment Republicans, and Cobb stood in for the Democrats, the sources told Vice.

Toobin was supposed to be playing the part of the courts, while Andrew Marantz represented the far right, Sue Halpern was the left and Dexter Filkins stood in for the military.

[Daehawk]

Old folks and their silly use of the Information Super Highway.

[Freyland]

he was just playing the role of the courts.

Two people on the video call told Vice the virtual gathering was part of an election simulation last week that included New Yorker notables such as Jane Mayer, Evan Osnos, Masha Gessen and Jelani Cobb, as well as producers from the magazine and WNYC public radio.

The two sources said that at one point, it looked as if Toobin was taking another call and lowered his camera, and that’s when they saw him getting to work — on himself.

It was unclear what, if anything, others on the virtual call saw.

During the simulation, Osnos had been playing the role of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, Gessen was President Trump, Mayer represented establishment Republicans, and Cobb stood in for the Democrats, the sources told Vice.

Toobin was supposed to be playing the part of the courts, while Andrew Marantz represented the far right, Sue Halpern was the left and Dexter Filkins stood in for the military.

Election simulation, erection stimulation..... close enough.

[malchior]

Jeez. Everyone in Trump's orbit is just pure garbage. Also this is upsettingly close to how Russia probably destroyed America.

Rudy Giuliani seen in compromising situation in upcoming Borat film

The reputation of Rudy Giuliani could be set for a further blow with the release of highly embarrassing footage in Sacha Baron Cohen’s follow-up to Borat.

In the film, released on Friday, the former New York mayor and current personal attorney to Donald Trump is seen reaching into his trousers and apparently touching his genitals while reclining on a bed in the presence of the actor playing Borat’s daughter, who is posing as a TV journalist.

Following an obsequious interview for a fake conservative news programme, the pair retreat at her suggestion for a drink to the bedroom of a hotel suite, which is rigged with concealed cameras.

After she removes his microphone, Giuliani, 76, can be seen lying back on the bed, fiddling with his untucked shirt and reaching into his trousers. They are then interrupted by Borat who runs in and says: “She’s 15. She’s too old for you.”

Representatives for Giuliani have not replied to the Guardian’s requests for comment.

This article has that amazingly British sense of understatement. This passage and that last sentence...*chef kiss*.

Word of the incident first emerged on 7 July, when Giuliani called New York police to report the intrusion of an unusually-dressed man.

“This guy comes running in, wearing a crazy, what I would say was a pink transgender outfit,” Giuliani told the New York Post. “It was a pink bikini, with lace, underneath a translucent mesh top, it looked absurd. He had the beard, bare legs, and wasn’t what I would call distractingly attractive.

“This person comes in yelling and screaming, and I thought this must be a scam or a shakedown, so I reported it to the police. He then ran away,” Giuliani said. The police found no crime had been committed.

Giuliani continued: “I only later realised it must have been Sacha Baron Cohen. I thought about all the people he previously fooled and I felt good about myself because he didn’t get me.”

Viewers may be less convinced that Baron Cohen, reprising his role as the bumbling reporter Borat Sagdiyev, and Maria Bakalova, who plays his daughter, Tutar, had no success.

[Daehawk]

I think a few years ago aliens abducted me and put me back on the wrong Earth. I swear.

[El Guapo]

*Can* Guiliani's reputation get lower?