April 21, 2020

Right-wing populism vs the medical profession - It's time to amplify and feed into this feud

I am of the mind that we need to do more than just vote, I've seen others say the same. While the Trump Administration may not be a dictatorship (yet), it still has the weaknesses of one. So we're here, this is it, this is how we do it. If you're looking to do more than vote for Joe Biden in November, then you need to be here, reading this, and understanding how we make this happen.

Doctors, nurses, EMTs, and hospitals are in the game, not of their own choice, but they are in it. Anti-vax conspiracy theories, maligning the profession by saying they are too weak to handle immigrants and refugees, a right-wing populist president who thinks he knows more than them, and now blocking them and even blocking ambulances.

Yes, this will be about defending doctors, nurses, and EMTs... but now there is a way to attack right-wing populism, to attack the right-wing authoritarian mindset that swept the US. But to do that, we can't just be observers here, we need to play a role. We need to encourage this divide.

I propose:
* Let's start here on DU. We need to keep a running tab of posts here that reflect this divide. Examples include this and this one too. And of course, can't forget about this. Make sure the morning crowd knows about any anger, make sure the evening crowd is on it too. Make sure the nite-owls know too, let's talk about this simmering here first.
* Get social media outside of DU; Twitter, Facebook, whatever there is. You don't have to do a lot, just make sure it's known. "Make it viral", so to speak
* Get to real-life outside of the internet, make sure people know... Let's summarize this as "medical professionals are angry..." angry with Trump, angry with this Open Up protesters, angry with right-wingers, angry with Republicans. People of the medical profession vs...
* Side with medical professionals
* Hammer it in that Republican/Trump/right-wing populist lack of knowledge of virology and lack of knowledge of public health and desire to "own the libs" led to this. Repeat it to the point of irritation that right-wing incompetence and petty goals created a mess and now it will be up to medical professionals to clean it up.

This can be it, this can be a non-violent uprising against the right-wing populist/nationalist regime if we are ready to participate in it.

April 21, 2020

There are more important things than living...

... So let's have "open borders"; no limits, no quotas. Every refugee, every immigrant, legal or illegal, shall immediately become citizens. Not good enough for you? How about declare every single person on Earth an American citizen right now with all the rights and privileges that come with that. There are more important things than the citizenship process or is living not as important as that process?

... So let's urge every millionaire and billionaire to drain their bank accounts to near completion. Sell off their assets for quick cash. They then turn a lot of that cash into giant effigies and the use rest to fund so that we have like, I don't know, giant hedonistic Burning Man festivals... and with billions of dollars, this could go on for a while, maybe indefinitely. Why have money sitting in the bank or in the Cayman Islands when you could be known for setting the US down a path of revelry and partying? There are more important things that living paycheck-to-paycheck or is living not as important as the paycheck-to-paycheck rat race?

... So let's end the war on drugs. It'll help with the thing above. There are also more important things than busting potheads and putting people who may not have the means to get income in the 'accepted' ways in prison. Living is certainly more important than the war on drugs, right?

... So let's have intersex equality, have the government recognize a third gender, and make it illegal to have 'corrective surgery' for intersex infants. A constructed male/female dichotomy and enforced heteronormativity is certainly nowhere near as important as living, right?

... So let's declare the executive branch no longer necessary for running the US government, maybe say that the current executive branch is no longer representative of Article II of the US Constitution. I'm pretty sure that living is more important than pretending that a demented reality TV host actually represents the US and her hundreds of millions of people...

April 8, 2020

We should give up, there's nothing we can do

GOTCHA!

The past 4 years have been heartbreaking at times, but there have been good things as well.

In 2016, Trump discussed a Muslim database. Remember that? That didn't happen. I'm not Muslim but I was ready to put a "I'm Muslim" armband on. I thank God that was never implemented, maybe there's a secret one, but there is certainly no "See a Muslim? Report them" page on the government.

We don't have Trumpcare... which I'm pretty sure would be insurance companies having a denial quota for poor people if they want extra tax cuts.

Joe Arpaio, Roger Stone, and Michael Flynn are still criminal idiots.

The Trump administration has been cruel to GLBTQ Americans, but people are still coming out, people are still proud to be who they are. Doesn't matter what Trump says or does, the larger part of the country (Both in numbers and being the bigger people) still stands with GLBTQ Americans.

A landslide reversal to the Trump agenda, he's not getting EVERYTHING he wants, because of the House majority. This came with a diversity and new voices we've never seen before. That was because of us.

Trump is impeached. Removed? No. But his administration will forever have that asterisk on it. The same things they said about Clinton being 'marked' with impeachment, all of that applies to Trump as well, and that will NEVER go away. That was because of us.

Pretty much her first day on the job, Rep. Ilhan Omar did the unthinkable, she made Elliott Abrams... a Trump, Bush, and Reagan toady admit that one of Reagan's misadventures in El Salvador (A horribly bloody massacre) wasn't a good thing. Maybe there will finally be some justice for the dead and the survivors.

And as I've personally found out, working for change is messy and sometimes you won't make friends while you're doing it. But as I've said before, and I will say it again, it was... Worth it!

So I will never stop advocating for and participating in activism, working outside the system and in ways that are not 'approved', and being a pest, especially to those in power. But there's one more thing we can do this November, and you know what that is...

April 8, 2020

When Obama was president, I had a savings account

When Obama was president, the one time I was laid off, I knew when I would resume working and that is when I resumed working.

When Obama was president, my city wasn't under a quarantine.

When Obama was president, I didn't have family members fearing a virus would kill them.

When Obama was president, I could go to the park, or stores, or the mall.

When Obama was president, I didn't need to wear a mask so I wouldn't get a virus.

...

So yeah, tell me again how you "suffered under Obama" and I, as one of those 'libs', can now "suffer under Trump"

I really want to hear that.

April 7, 2020

Run the government like a business - Which business exactly? I looked...

Using glassdoor.com and searching reviews, I looked and found that a lot of the things companies doing the same things the Trump Administration does leaves employees unhappy, applicants scratching their heads about the process even if they get the job, gives ways to mismanagement, and leads to a perception from customers and other stakeholders that the company is not worth doing business with.

1st search: "His son-in-law"
Reason for inclusion: Trump put his son-in-law Jared in charge of some sort of middle east peace plan, in some sort of coronavirus task force, and is in charge of the logistics of distributing ventilators for some reason despite the lack of experience in any related subjects.
Gems that stick out:
"There haven't been any raises in 5 years, except for the chairman and his son in law"
"nepotism and favoritism by the owner and his son in law is rampant and so common place"
"We arranged a second lunch interview attended by his son in law, unbeknownst to me at that time, who is also an outside Account Manager"
"entirely dependent upon whether the managing partner, his protege, and his son-in-law like you. Firm is inexorably stuck in the past and allergic to growth."
"CEO is the most impatient person I've dealt ever, his son in law is the CKO (chief knowledge office, what a joke)"
"WORST MISTAKE EVER: Owner hired his son-in-law to be national sales manager. It was the "wet blanket on the fire." Incredible micro-manager,"
"if you are one of the 20 or so people that are relatives or family friends with the former owner you'll do ok since his son-in-law is President."
"Met with the "owner" and his son in law. Really creepy process."
"The CEO was paranoid about people knowing what the company earnings were other that the CFO who was his son in law."
Not a lot of positive references.
See for yourself: Link

2nd search: "Doesn't actually do anything"
Reason for inclusion: The administration has press secretaries who don't give briefings to the press. One went her entire time without giving a single one.
Gems that stick out:
"Leadership Doesn't Actually Do Anything, Rampant Favoritism, Lazy Work Ethic"
"One female associate who doesn't actually do anything there purely to make it look less sexist"
"megalomaniac that will constantly pile work on top of you but doesn't actually do anything other than go to meetings and take smoke breaks."
"HR is a joke and doesn't actually do anything for workers. Everyone... is kept in the dark re: what they can and should be compensated in order"
"CEO is hardly ever here, and when he is, he doesn't actually do anything but plan his next vacation."
Huh, having someone in a position just to fill it doesn't seem to lead to positive outsomes.
See for yourself: Link

3rd search: "The acting manager"
Reason for inclusion: The administration has made it a practice to employ "acting secretaries" instead of secretaries who would need to be vetted by and approved by the Senate. For the sake of "running the government like a business", let's equate secretaries to department managers.
Gems that stick out:
"When I was hired, I was told by the acting manager that there would be management/key holder positions soon becoming available but the " (Page is also titled AVOID THIS COMPANY)
"The acting manager had anger problems and eventually quit; poor management.”
"When I finally decided for myself to contact HR for my paperwork because the acting manager had no idea what was going on"
"The acting manager doesn't pay attention to hours worked and there's a lot of overtime to be given."
"and had to play catch up Each store has many managers who are all the acting manager at different times; often creating confusion and conflicting directions"
"The acting manager they brought in was a very hateful person and was the reason I gave my 2 weeks."
"the junior district manager who had told me to “hold in my period” when he was the acting manager, then wrote me up for getting upset"
"Its like if you are favorite of your manager then you will be the acting manager as he will also listen to you"
"The acting manager made a 9 months pregnant staff member sit on a cement floor instead of in a chair because "chairs are for our VIPS""
"from the till and left because of that and harassment from the acting manager and me not willing to pick up anymore shifts than I already had"
"The acting manager is very unprofessional. A team leader got away with putting a service users picture on social media, and she still remains in"
When you rely on acting managers to be your managers, it does not seem to get a lot of positive results.
See for yourself: Link

4th search: "Conspiracy theorist"
Reason for inclusion: Trump is, as it is well known, a conspiracy theorist. Birtherism made him the front runner to get the Republican nomination. Deep state and was convinced he was bugged. He gives winks and nods to QAnon and Pizzagate. Promotes anti-vaccine conspiracy theories and Alex Jones. Also promotes anti-semitic conspiracy theories about "globalists" and George Soros. White nationalists with asinine conspiracy theories of "white genocide" and "cultural marxism" that people only seem to invoke off the Internet when they're about to go on a mass shooting seem to love him.
So, what's it like working for a conspiracy theorist? Do you really need to guess?
"Cons. The owner is a paranoid conspiracy theorist. Its very unfortunate really. He will pull you away from jobs to show you some youtube video"
"the work environment is extremely toxic, most notably the owner/operator Jon Westerlund is a narcissistic conspiracy theorist, that thinks everyone is out to get"
"He is also a conspiracy theorist which is rather unnerving. They do not offer annual raises or reviews because they think they can get away with it."
See for yourself: Link

If you think the Trump Administration is running the government like a business, then you need to raise your expectations on what a good business is.

April 7, 2020

The "Make America Great Again" Challenge is over. The year Trump voters need to live in is 1799

1799, everyone!

For background, I wrote this in 2018:

1799 - Valentine Seaman, physician and anti-slavery activist, brings the smallpox vaccine to the US, inoculates his own children, sees they work, and begins a free vaccination program in New York

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine_Seaman
https://web.archive.org/web/20180913015235/http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/thematic-maps/quantitative/medicine/medicine.html

Got a disease that's not stopped by antibiotics or a vaccine and we're also running low on sedatives to put people under while they're on ventilation. So it looks like conservatives have chosen life in America in 1799.

A life where you get sick and and antibiotics, vaccines, and anesthesia can't help you? Bold. But sorry, Republicans, it looks like you still have to deal with those scamps, Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, in the House.

April 7, 2020

Trump voters: We want to return to a US without immigrants, feminists, Muslims, or uppity minorities

Actually got... A return to a US with a disease and no antibiotics and no vaccinations to combat it.

When you wish to return America to some "past glory", be careful what you wish for, for you might get the past reality.

April 6, 2020

Quick question: How many lives is the "halo effect" cognitive error worth?

Trump, Navarro, Jared have some money so that means they're automatically smart and that means they're automatically experts when it comes to COVID... as they see it.

This is why we're not telling them to just shut up, anyone else saying this; there would be a general strike. These morons would be marched out of the White House in handcuffs.

Soooo... having money means "smart"? Having money means "you need to listen to this person"? This effect - How many lives is it worth losing over exactly?

April 5, 2020

There needs to be a mass movement to bar employers from asking what your qualifications are

When the economy comes back and people are putting in applications and employers start putting "Hiring" signs on front doors; there also should be a movement to discourage and even bar employers from asking how you are even qualified for the job you are applying to.

Jared Kushner and the administration started this oh-so-wonderful trend with the whole "that's a nasty question" kind of response, so I say that we need to keep it going.

Jared Kushner has no experience in diplomacy or foreign affairs, but that didn't stop him making a middle east peace plan. Jared Kushner has no experience in public health, epidemiology, logistics around medical supplies, etc.; but that definitely didn't stop him from becoming the guy in charge of the response and the head of the coronavirus task force.

Last time I checked, we're a country of equality under the law. I'm not a generally unqualified person, I've got two degrees in sociology and a background in customer relations, I'm pretty good at those things... So judging by the logic we've seen, that if you're qualified in A, then you MUST be qualified in B, C, D, E...

So if I want to be the director of surgery at the local hospital or the chief officer at the power plant, and you're the employer, then you shouldn't care about what my fake news-created "qualifications" are or my "work history", you'll only be talking to people who are biased against me. You should care about my winning smile, that I applied to this job opening more times than everyone else, and the fact that I walked in, tazed security, sat down at a desk, and started doing the work. Isn't the ability to wing it the only thing that matters today?

And since people are so enthralled by the idea of non-politicians going into political positions, there will be a demand for it, I'm sure. If you're a not-firefighter, I'm sure the people who are thrilled by not-politicians becoming the potus will also be thrilled by you becoming a firefighter, right? Right?

Well, wish me luck everyone, I've decided to become a manager at the store across from me, and I'm not just going to apply, I'm going to get it... lest they are part of the deep state conspiracy against me if they even think of asking how I'm qualified to be manager and then they can expect to get sued.

April 1, 2020

While issues of infrastructure and preventing pandemics may not be all that fun and exciting

Compared to, say, making your administration's priority about exposing the "Ancient Deep State Conspiracy" against you, fighting the One Je-Globalist known as Emmanuel Goldstein- I mean George Soros and his control that reaches into everything from Antifa and Black Lives Matter to why Muslims are your neighbors, and giving winks and nudges to Birthers, QAnon and their conspiracy theory about the Democratic Party being a Pizzeria-running Satanic Cabal with George Soros and/or Ilhan Omar at the helm, and white nationalists with their conspiracy theory about white people being replaced because they are really afraid of not being in the majority for some reason, like being a minority means you're second class or something... Anywho...

The issues in the title are a reflection of... REAL LIFE.

Remember that going forward, America. Thank you.