aggienaut: (Default)
Aggienaut ([personal profile] aggienaut) wrote2020-06-02 07:36 pm

Not With A Bang But A ... Creepy Speech

   Another for-posterity post.



   America is burning. If I have this chronology correct, Last night Trump vowed to use the military to stamp out the protests he himself has been fomenting. His word choice during his short speech is creepy and chilling. He accuses protestors of "crimes against God" among many other things. Don't get me wrong, obviously there's a police brutality and racism problem that is not directly related to Trump, I mean, it existed long before he was a public figure, but his encouragement of racist attitudes has not helped the behavior and his criticism of the protests has definitely fomented stronger protests. Mobilizing the military seems like any reasonable person could see is NOT the way to de-escalate this.

   Take note too that he specifically says he'll send in the military "if a city or state refuses ... then I will deploy the United STates military and quickly solve the problem for them." -- whatever happened to the party of States Rights?

   He delcared "Antifa" a terrorist group, which, to quote what the fuck just happened today (a great daily roundup I like to read every morning), "Antifa, however, is not an organization and does not have a leader, membership roles or any defined, centralized structure. Further, if antifa were a real organization, current law only permits the State Department to designate foreign organizations as terrorist groups. The U.S. does not have domestic terrorism statute." Antifa is just a loose term self-applied to people who are adamantly against fascism, and to my knowledge no one has ever done anything more terroristic under the antifa name than vow to punch nazis in the face, which I'm pretty sure we're all in favor of. I'm pretty sure declaring it unlawful to be anti-fascist is the very definition of fascist.

   Anyway, after this press conference in which Trump declared war on the American people, he apparently went across the street, where he had his security detail clear peaceful protestors away from a church using tear gas and pepper spray so that he could have a photo op in front of it while brandishing a bible. The local episcopal bishop responsible condemned Trump's use of the church, noting that while there "he did not pray," and just used it "as a backdrop for a message antithetical to the teachings of Jesus and everything that our churches stand for."

   And then, and THEN, that evening as protests swelled in front of the White House (again, I'm assuming there's usually protests there when tehre's somtihg national like this, but being as teh White House wasn't directly involved in George Floyd's death, if the president had responded with empathy and a good faith desire to improve things, the White House wouldn't itself be a target of protestors), Trump felt cmopelled to hide out in the underground bunker under the White House and turn off all the White House lights. I assume they took this latter measure so no one could get a good photo of the White House in the background with protestors in teh foreground.

   Someone on facebook speculatively asked if this was "the Storming of the Bastille or the Burning of the Reichstag" -- I think it's both. I think we have a president who thinks getting the Bastille stormed would be the perfect excuse to burn the Reichstag.



Meanwhiel Coronavirus seems to have completely fallen out of the news.
   In Australia there are 493 active cases (9 new lat 24 hours), and 102 total deaths (last death May 23rd)
   In the US there are 1,137,340 active cases (22,153 last 24 hours), and 106,927 deaths (730 last 24 hours)

[identity profile] maadmike.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 10:32 am (UTC)(link)
It is interesting for me how this modern case of protests in USA is similar to our Russian 1917 revolution, when the intelligent Russian people were telling this and that and openly or secretly were sympathizing to revolution, thinking that something has to be changed... to better. I could assume they were told that we - Russians will see the paradise if afford to destroy our regime... but in reality Russians had got nothing positive at all - more stromng regime, wars, dictatorship, absence of common law...
So, my opinion that if you want to make something good it will never emerged with bad things like stealing, beating, destroying. All violation if law do only one thing - multiplying the violation of law...
Yes, USA has a long history of racism - indigenous fellas massacre, exploitation of Africans, explotation of all tge countries after through the multiple wars and orange revolutiins, yes, yes and yes but anybody between Americans are talking about it?
No, nobody care about racism at all... all cates about their life and thier problems like... level of living, free medicine, good salary, free education and nobody want to work for that purposes, to work hard and cheap, day agter day... Of course it is much more easy to go and take crying out loud how people earning things you want are racist, sexists, stupid bunch if idiots not worth to have the privileges they have...
There are people as between whites as between blacks which are willing to get things for free, to force others to work for them, yes I dare to say that capitalism is not a system pretending to any equation and anybody in USA are speaking about that? Speaking about working together day after day for lawful changes in all the problematic spheres?
Instead whay I see is a standart fight between American elite... when democratic governors are not acting fast and strong to stop the violation of law to throw a shade on nowadays authorities before the nrw election. The problem here that they could lose the grip on masses... This the miain problem here because when it will be too late all will pay for their stupidity...

[identity profile] daphnep.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 12:36 pm (UTC)(link)
Add that a lot of cities have had cops shooting teargas and rubber bullets at peaceful protesters, including (and perhaps even specially targeting) medics and press, that rioting and looting is rampant, and that many of our cities have called out the National Guard, and you’ve got it.

[identity profile] newlifeinstpaul.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 01:33 pm (UTC)(link)
Welp, if you believe God made the White Race Superior, than they're crimes against God.
Seems simple enough.

[identity profile] livejournal.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 01:33 pm (UTC)(link)
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[identity profile] pondhopper.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 02:41 pm (UTC)(link)
He stopped short of declaring Martial Law.

Even though I am far away (as you are) from my birth country, it's gut-wrenching and knowing that a racist (among other things)is in charge...all my words are gone (and that rarely happens).

[identity profile] ravenfeather.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 02:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Here they are combining the two "crises" with one escalating the other. It is all sickening.

[identity profile] chocolate-frapp.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 03:08 pm (UTC)(link)
God, Trump is such an asshole.

[identity profile] nick-101.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 04:44 pm (UTC)(link)
Trump is evil.

And a coward, too.
Edited 2020-06-02 16:44 (UTC)
ext_36740: (Oy by onthefringe)

[identity profile] jaiden-s.livejournal.com 2020-06-02 09:50 pm (UTC)(link)
I've been so terribly depressed over the state of my country today. It's awful and I feel nauseated.
mdlbear: (distress)

[personal profile] mdlbear 2020-06-03 02:38 am (UTC)(link)
What's going on here is frightening and disgusting.

[identity profile] richaarde.livejournal.com 2020-06-04 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, you got all that right.

At least Presidents Obama, Bush Jr, and Carter all made presidential statements to try to undo some of the damage.

[identity profile] emo-snal.livejournal.com 2020-06-04 03:04 am (UTC)(link)
Even GW Bush, who was generally seen as a conservative ogre at the time, and obviously no longer needs to publicly weigh in on these things, has come out publicly in support of the protests. Honestly he seems like a saint compared to Trump and it's mind boggling to remember that he was once regarded as "the worst"

[identity profile] richaarde.livejournal.com 2020-06-04 03:14 am (UTC)(link)
I’ve had to reassess my scale at which chief executives are measured. Bush Jr is up to “mediocre” now.