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Katashi_itto
Katashi_itto's Journal
Katashi_itto's Journal
January 29, 2016
Refuge Update 11:54am Jan 29 2016
January 29, 2016
(Posted in Primaries too. Cause I couldn't make up my mind where this went.)
I wanted to make a couple related observations about this Donald Trump debate drama.
First, an admission.
When I heard last night that Trump was pulling out of the Fox News GOP primary debate I was quite certain he had every intention of finally attending tomorrow night's event. The point was simply to engineer 48 hours of cable news drama, begging by Fox News, all topped off by Trump finally deigning to attend the event after all the other players had been sufficiently humiliated. But unless the man is managing a far better bluff than I can imagine, that is clearly not the case. It also seems clear it was never the case. I see no evidence that Trump fumbled this gambit or boxed himself into a non-attendance he didn't intend. Being a no show was the plan.
I can't say that I know how this is going to play out for him. But I thought this was an important moment to revisit an issue I've discussed in various posts going back over a dozen years. In the present context I would put it like this: Pundits and political obsessives tend to get distracted by process and policy literalism. But politics generally and especially intra-Republican political battles are really about demonstrating dominance - not policy mastery or polling leads but a series of symbols and actions that mark the dominating from the dominated.
I've seen various people say, 'Well this is awful for Trump. He's missing his opportunity to make his closing argument to Iowa caucusgoers!' But that's not getting what's happening. Maybe this will be a disaster for Trump. But it won't be because he missed out on 15 minutes of airtime.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/the-trumph-of-the-will
The Trumph of the Will
(Posted in Primaries too. Cause I couldn't make up my mind where this went.)
I wanted to make a couple related observations about this Donald Trump debate drama.
First, an admission.
When I heard last night that Trump was pulling out of the Fox News GOP primary debate I was quite certain he had every intention of finally attending tomorrow night's event. The point was simply to engineer 48 hours of cable news drama, begging by Fox News, all topped off by Trump finally deigning to attend the event after all the other players had been sufficiently humiliated. But unless the man is managing a far better bluff than I can imagine, that is clearly not the case. It also seems clear it was never the case. I see no evidence that Trump fumbled this gambit or boxed himself into a non-attendance he didn't intend. Being a no show was the plan.
I can't say that I know how this is going to play out for him. But I thought this was an important moment to revisit an issue I've discussed in various posts going back over a dozen years. In the present context I would put it like this: Pundits and political obsessives tend to get distracted by process and policy literalism. But politics generally and especially intra-Republican political battles are really about demonstrating dominance - not policy mastery or polling leads but a series of symbols and actions that mark the dominating from the dominated.
I've seen various people say, 'Well this is awful for Trump. He's missing his opportunity to make his closing argument to Iowa caucusgoers!' But that's not getting what's happening. Maybe this will be a disaster for Trump. But it won't be because he missed out on 15 minutes of airtime.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/the-trumph-of-the-will
January 29, 2016
I wanted to make a couple related observations about this Donald Trump debate drama.
First, an admission.
When I heard last night that Trump was pulling out of the Fox News GOP primary debate I was quite certain he had every intention of finally attending tomorrow night's event. The point was simply to engineer 48 hours of cable news drama, begging by Fox News, all topped off by Trump finally deigning to attend the event after all the other players had been sufficiently humiliated. But unless the man is managing a far better bluff than I can imagine, that is clearly not the case. It also seems clear it was never the case. I see no evidence that Trump fumbled this gambit or boxed himself into a non-attendance he didn't intend. Being a no show was the plan.
I can't say that I know how this is going to play out for him. But I thought this was an important moment to revisit an issue I've discussed in various posts going back over a dozen years. In the present context I would put it like this: Pundits and political obsessives tend to get distracted by process and policy literalism. But politics generally and especially intra-Republican political battles are really about demonstrating dominance - not policy mastery or polling leads but a series of symbols and actions that mark the dominating from the dominated.
I've seen various people say, 'Well this is awful for Trump. He's missing his opportunity to make his closing argument to Iowa caucusgoers!' But that's not getting what's happening. Maybe this will be a disaster for Trump. But it won't be because he missed out on 15 minutes of airtime.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/the-trumph-of-the-will
The Trumph of the Will
I wanted to make a couple related observations about this Donald Trump debate drama.
First, an admission.
When I heard last night that Trump was pulling out of the Fox News GOP primary debate I was quite certain he had every intention of finally attending tomorrow night's event. The point was simply to engineer 48 hours of cable news drama, begging by Fox News, all topped off by Trump finally deigning to attend the event after all the other players had been sufficiently humiliated. But unless the man is managing a far better bluff than I can imagine, that is clearly not the case. It also seems clear it was never the case. I see no evidence that Trump fumbled this gambit or boxed himself into a non-attendance he didn't intend. Being a no show was the plan.
I can't say that I know how this is going to play out for him. But I thought this was an important moment to revisit an issue I've discussed in various posts going back over a dozen years. In the present context I would put it like this: Pundits and political obsessives tend to get distracted by process and policy literalism. But politics generally and especially intra-Republican political battles are really about demonstrating dominance - not policy mastery or polling leads but a series of symbols and actions that mark the dominating from the dominated.
I've seen various people say, 'Well this is awful for Trump. He's missing his opportunity to make his closing argument to Iowa caucusgoers!' But that's not getting what's happening. Maybe this will be a disaster for Trump. But it won't be because he missed out on 15 minutes of airtime.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/the-trumph-of-the-will
January 28, 2016
"Hi America! I'm sure glad to be Back!"
The American teenager derided for a defense of “affluenza” in the killing four people while driving drunk arrived back in Texas on Thursday, where he faces detention, after being deported from Mexico.
Ethan Couch, 18, was seen with his hands behind his back being escorted by uniformed officers through the Dallas-Fort Worth airport. He was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and had grown a beard.
He fled to Mexico with his mother in December after a video emerged on social media that likely showed him in violation of the probation deal reached in juvenile court that kept him out of prison for causing the deadly crash in 2013.
Couch will be placed in a juvenile detention center. He faces a detention hearing on either Friday or Monday, at which a judge will determine whether to transfer the case from the juvenile system to the adult system, said a spokeswoman for the Tarrant County District Attorney’s office.
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/01/mexico-says-affluenza-teen-ethan-couch-deported-en-route-to-dallas/
2016 Previous Next U.S. NEWS ‘Affluenza’ teen Ethan Couch back in Texas after being deported from
"Hi America! I'm sure glad to be Back!"
The American teenager derided for a defense of “affluenza” in the killing four people while driving drunk arrived back in Texas on Thursday, where he faces detention, after being deported from Mexico.
Ethan Couch, 18, was seen with his hands behind his back being escorted by uniformed officers through the Dallas-Fort Worth airport. He was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and had grown a beard.
He fled to Mexico with his mother in December after a video emerged on social media that likely showed him in violation of the probation deal reached in juvenile court that kept him out of prison for causing the deadly crash in 2013.
Couch will be placed in a juvenile detention center. He faces a detention hearing on either Friday or Monday, at which a judge will determine whether to transfer the case from the juvenile system to the adult system, said a spokeswoman for the Tarrant County District Attorney’s office.
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/01/mexico-says-affluenza-teen-ethan-couch-deported-en-route-to-dallas/
January 28, 2016
Following a traffic stop that ended with the death of LaVoy Finicum and the arrests of Ammon Bundy and other anti-government militants, Ammon Bundy sent a message through his lawyer that it was time for the occupation to end.
“To those remaining at the refuge, I love you. Let us take this fight from here. Please stand down. Go home and hug your families,” Ammon Bundy advised in a statement. “This fight is ours for now in the courts. Please go home.”
Cliven Bundy, however, disagreed with his son, and called on the remaining militants to fight on.
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/01/defying-his-own-son-cliven-bundy-rallies-oregon-militants-to-fight-to-the-end/
Defying his own son, Cliven Bundy rallies Oregon militants to ‘fight’ to the end
Cliven Bundy, father of militant leader Ammon Bundy, defied his own son on Thursday and called on armed occupiers at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge to stay and fight.Following a traffic stop that ended with the death of LaVoy Finicum and the arrests of Ammon Bundy and other anti-government militants, Ammon Bundy sent a message through his lawyer that it was time for the occupation to end.
“To those remaining at the refuge, I love you. Let us take this fight from here. Please stand down. Go home and hug your families,” Ammon Bundy advised in a statement. “This fight is ours for now in the courts. Please go home.”
Cliven Bundy, however, disagreed with his son, and called on the remaining militants to fight on.
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/01/defying-his-own-son-cliven-bundy-rallies-oregon-militants-to-fight-to-the-end/
January 28, 2016
By the time Wayne Simmons went on Fox News last March for what would end up being his final appearance, viewers knew what to expect. "This president clearly has absolutely no idea what he is talking about," Simmons said of President Obama's handling of ISIS. Simmons had made guest appearances on Fox more than a hundred times as a "former CIA operative," and certainly looked the part: white mustache, neck bulging out of his dress shirt, a handshake "so hard, he can crush you with it," as one Fox host put it. Beyond offering his expertise as an intelligence officer, he had become particularly adept at serving up hawkish red meat to the network's audience. "We could end this in a week," he went on, suggesting that the United States run "thousands of sorties" against ISIS. "They would all be dead."
Simmons was largely anonymous when he first appeared on Fox, in 2002, but he soon became a regular face on the network, alongside a cast of retired military officers who, like Simmons, had been recruited into the Pentagon's "military-analysts program." The initiative invited retired officers who had made names for themselves as television-news commentators to attend regular briefings from Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and to make trips to Iraq and Guantanamo Bay. In 2009, The New York Times won a Pulitzer Prize for its report on how the Pentagon used the analysts to build public support for the war in Iraq. The program disbanded, and many of those involved tried to distance themselves from it. But Simmons boasted of his connection as a way to bolster his bona fides, even mentioning it in his Amazon author biography. In 2012, Simmons co-wrote The Natanz Directive, a novel about a retired CIA agent called back for one last op. When the book was published, Rumsfeld contributed a blurb: "Wayne Simmons doesn't just write it. He's lived it."
But according to prosecutors, Simmons was living a lie. Last October, the government charged him with multiple counts of fraud, saying he had never worked for the CIA at all. Prosecutors alleged that Simmons used his supposed intelligence experience not only to secure time on Fox and an audience with Rumsfeld, but also to obtain work with defense contractors, including deployment to a military base in Afghanistan. He was also charged with bilking $125,000 from a woman, with whom prosecutors say he was romantically involved, in a real-estate investment that did not exist. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and his trial is scheduled to begin February 23rd. If convicted, he will likely face several years in prison.
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-rise-and-fall-of-a-fox-news-fraud-20160126#ixzz3yZBlnAZ4
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
The Rise and Fall of a Fox News Fraud
Wayne Simmons used CIA credentials to get on TV and work with the Pentagon, but prosecutors say it was all a lieBy the time Wayne Simmons went on Fox News last March for what would end up being his final appearance, viewers knew what to expect. "This president clearly has absolutely no idea what he is talking about," Simmons said of President Obama's handling of ISIS. Simmons had made guest appearances on Fox more than a hundred times as a "former CIA operative," and certainly looked the part: white mustache, neck bulging out of his dress shirt, a handshake "so hard, he can crush you with it," as one Fox host put it. Beyond offering his expertise as an intelligence officer, he had become particularly adept at serving up hawkish red meat to the network's audience. "We could end this in a week," he went on, suggesting that the United States run "thousands of sorties" against ISIS. "They would all be dead."
Simmons was largely anonymous when he first appeared on Fox, in 2002, but he soon became a regular face on the network, alongside a cast of retired military officers who, like Simmons, had been recruited into the Pentagon's "military-analysts program." The initiative invited retired officers who had made names for themselves as television-news commentators to attend regular briefings from Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and to make trips to Iraq and Guantanamo Bay. In 2009, The New York Times won a Pulitzer Prize for its report on how the Pentagon used the analysts to build public support for the war in Iraq. The program disbanded, and many of those involved tried to distance themselves from it. But Simmons boasted of his connection as a way to bolster his bona fides, even mentioning it in his Amazon author biography. In 2012, Simmons co-wrote The Natanz Directive, a novel about a retired CIA agent called back for one last op. When the book was published, Rumsfeld contributed a blurb: "Wayne Simmons doesn't just write it. He's lived it."
But according to prosecutors, Simmons was living a lie. Last October, the government charged him with multiple counts of fraud, saying he had never worked for the CIA at all. Prosecutors alleged that Simmons used his supposed intelligence experience not only to secure time on Fox and an audience with Rumsfeld, but also to obtain work with defense contractors, including deployment to a military base in Afghanistan. He was also charged with bilking $125,000 from a woman, with whom prosecutors say he was romantically involved, in a real-estate investment that did not exist. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and his trial is scheduled to begin February 23rd. If convicted, he will likely face several years in prison.
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-rise-and-fall-of-a-fox-news-fraud-20160126#ixzz3yZBlnAZ4
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
January 28, 2016
Bird Refuge Feed 9:16Am update
January 28, 2016
...And then there were four. Remaining Terrorists contemplate their fate.
David Fry the Streamer for the Bundists.
He states they are down to four and that they really can't leave because more charges will be filed against them anyway no matter what the do.
He sounded depressed.
January 28, 2016
A new poll finds that young female voters support Bernie Sanders by an expansive margin
The media of late has been banging on the drum of the "Berniebro." Don't let that man-bun fool you, America: The Berniebro is an unrepentant mansplainer, who backs Sanders with a level of devotion matched only by his self-righteousness: "The Berniebro knows a secret," the Atlantic mocked. "The only reason you, and every other Facebook user, haven’t supported Bernie yet is your own willful ignorance." The Berniebro is also said to be an avatar of latent sexism among progressive men toward former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. As Salon argued, "A chunk of Sanders support with his young male cohort comes from guys who really don’t cotton well to the idea of women in power."
Sidebar
Bernie SandersBernie Sanders' Political Revolution »
For all the attention this band of unpleasant men with mommy issues attracts, you might assume they're core to Sanders' support among young progressives. But a new poll from Rock the Vote is turning that conventional wisdom on its head. Yes, there's a big gender gap among young voters backing Bernie Sanders. But it's not among men. Voting-age women under the age of 35 now favor Sanders by 20 percentage points over Clinton. You read that right: Young female voters support Bernie Sanders by an expansive margin.
The poll, published Monday in USA Today, was conducted among more than 1,000 young adults by the polling firm Ipsos. Sanders leads broadly among voting-age millennial Democrats and Independents: 46 percent to 35 percent for Clinton. But Sanders' advantage among young, voting-age men — a modest 4 percentage points — is barely outside the margin of error. Far from being a drag on on Clinton's candidacy, this poll suggests, young men are the demographic keeping her in the hunt among millennials.
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/move-over-berniebros-a-wave-of-young-women-is-boosting-bernie-sanders-20160112#ixzz3yYfCOqK3
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
Move Over 'Berniebros': A Wave of Young Women Is Boosting Bernie Sanders
Yes, there's a big gender gap among young voters backing Sanders, but it's not among menA new poll finds that young female voters support Bernie Sanders by an expansive margin
The media of late has been banging on the drum of the "Berniebro." Don't let that man-bun fool you, America: The Berniebro is an unrepentant mansplainer, who backs Sanders with a level of devotion matched only by his self-righteousness: "The Berniebro knows a secret," the Atlantic mocked. "The only reason you, and every other Facebook user, haven’t supported Bernie yet is your own willful ignorance." The Berniebro is also said to be an avatar of latent sexism among progressive men toward former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. As Salon argued, "A chunk of Sanders support with his young male cohort comes from guys who really don’t cotton well to the idea of women in power."
Sidebar
Bernie SandersBernie Sanders' Political Revolution »
For all the attention this band of unpleasant men with mommy issues attracts, you might assume they're core to Sanders' support among young progressives. But a new poll from Rock the Vote is turning that conventional wisdom on its head. Yes, there's a big gender gap among young voters backing Bernie Sanders. But it's not among men. Voting-age women under the age of 35 now favor Sanders by 20 percentage points over Clinton. You read that right: Young female voters support Bernie Sanders by an expansive margin.
The poll, published Monday in USA Today, was conducted among more than 1,000 young adults by the polling firm Ipsos. Sanders leads broadly among voting-age millennial Democrats and Independents: 46 percent to 35 percent for Clinton. But Sanders' advantage among young, voting-age men — a modest 4 percentage points — is barely outside the margin of error. Far from being a drag on on Clinton's candidacy, this poll suggests, young men are the demographic keeping her in the hunt among millennials.
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/move-over-berniebros-a-wave-of-young-women-is-boosting-bernie-sanders-20160112#ixzz3yYfCOqK3
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
January 28, 2016
Red Hot Chili Peppers will "Feel the Bern" by headlining a Los Angeles concert fundraiser for Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders. The rock veterans will perform February 5th at Theatre at Ace Hotel, Loudwire reports.
Killer Mike Introduce Bernie Sanders at Atlanta Rally »
Tickets, ranging from $40 to $2,700, will go on sale day of show at 10 a.m. PST via AXS. Sanders – who proudly relies on grassroots fundraising and refuses campaign donations from Super PACs or corporations – has earned widespread support from the music community.
In September, all four Chili Peppers signed a letter of endorsement posted on the senator's website. "Bernie Sanders is the only remotely reasonable candidate for President of the United States," bassist Flea tweeted the previous month.
Members of Vampire Weekend will join Killer Mike (an outspoken Sanders supporter), Foster the People, Josh Hutcherson and more at "Students for Bernie," a Sanders rally scheduled for Saturday, January 30th at University of Iowa Field House. The event is free and open to the public.
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/red-hot-chili-peppers-headlining-bernie-sanders-fundraiser-concert-20160127#ixzz3yYd1TUFA
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
Red Hot Chili Peppers Headlining Bernie Sanders Fundraiser Concert
Members of Vampire Weekend, Killer Mike, Foster the People scheduled for separate Iowa rally, "Students for Bernie"Red Hot Chili Peppers will "Feel the Bern" by headlining a Los Angeles concert fundraiser for Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders. The rock veterans will perform February 5th at Theatre at Ace Hotel, Loudwire reports.
Killer Mike Introduce Bernie Sanders at Atlanta Rally »
Tickets, ranging from $40 to $2,700, will go on sale day of show at 10 a.m. PST via AXS. Sanders – who proudly relies on grassroots fundraising and refuses campaign donations from Super PACs or corporations – has earned widespread support from the music community.
In September, all four Chili Peppers signed a letter of endorsement posted on the senator's website. "Bernie Sanders is the only remotely reasonable candidate for President of the United States," bassist Flea tweeted the previous month.
Members of Vampire Weekend will join Killer Mike (an outspoken Sanders supporter), Foster the People, Josh Hutcherson and more at "Students for Bernie," a Sanders rally scheduled for Saturday, January 30th at University of Iowa Field House. The event is free and open to the public.
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/red-hot-chili-peppers-headlining-bernie-sanders-fundraiser-concert-20160127#ixzz3yYd1TUFA
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
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Gender: MaleCurrent location: New Orleans
Member since: Wed Jul 20, 2011, 10:14 AM
Number of posts: 10,175
