monitoring Trump and relevant contemporary events

@Lash,

Lash wrote:

Great! You predict the NRA will support a tighter national registry like Trump vowed to enforce??

Trump is almost certainly referring only to the bill that the NRA recently gave Congress permission to pass.

This looks insane. It's not. Or more accurately, yes it is insane but it's strategic.

Quote:

This year’s Conservative Political Action Conference began 472 days after the 2016 presidential election. Its first day ended with jeers for Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Ben Shapiro, a conservative pundit and college campus speaker, told attendees Thursday afternoon that President Trump had ensured that Clinton “will never be president of the United States.” The chant started within seconds: “Lock her up! Lock her up!”

Recall in 1984 the projection of a fabricated Emanuel Goldstein character. That Hillary is real is unimportant here. What is important is the use of human tendencies to need a simple enemy, a cliched scapegoat to keep a population distracted and their fears/angers/hatreds focused away from the creators of such propaganda.

Do read the whole piece from Dave Weigel

0 Replies

@BillW,

more charges this morning

Quote:

JUST IN: New criminal information filed against Rick Gates. It includes two counts, conspiracy and making a false statement. Still no hearing scheduled, but this is usually the harbinger of a plea https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/4386213/2-23-18-Gates-Information.pdf …

9:21 AM - 23 Feb 2018

1 Reply

@oralloy,

Sometimes, I think it’s time to take these mammoth, powerful organizations/lobbies down a notch.

I’ve thought it about Planned Parenthood before, definitely the media. The NRA needs to have a street fight with the American people and get some teeth knocked out. I’m going to look into what I can do to be a part of it.

Of course, if they weren’t able to buy crooked politicians, they wouldn’t be so powerful.

A high rating from the NRA should be a ticket out of Congress.

3 Replies

@ehBeth,

https://www.wsj.com/articles/ex-trump-adviser-richard-gates-expected-to-plead-guilty-in-mueller-probe-1519401401

__

apparently the criminal information can only be filed with the agreement of the defendant

1 Reply

@blatham,

Symantec has now cut ties with NRA

1 Reply

@blatham,

Cue Eddie Murphy Laugh.

No, he's not a commie, but he is a political weasel. He had the gall to go on CNN's extended version of Orwell's 2 Minutes of Hate and attack Dana Loesch when he knew the extent to which he and his office failed these students.

Anyone who is defending this guy or, worse, applauding his diversionary tactics is a political tool.

His office, his deputy, the local police and the FBI failed these kids. It couldn't be clearer.

Initially, I was willing to give the FBI a pass, but the information made known since then clearly demonstrates a massive systemic failure.

Anyone who is attacking the NRA and "gun-nuts" and ignoring the monumental failure of the government is a political tool.

2 Replies

@Lash,

Quote:

Of course, if they weren’t able to buy crooked politicians, they wouldn’t be so powerful.

A high rating from the NRA should be a ticket out of Congress.

Hear hear!!!

A nice secondary effect will be that no one will have to listen to oralloy's lame defense of the NRA and the 2nd "commandment".

1 Reply

@ehBeth,

and

Quote:

@hsu_spencer

Former Trump campaign official Rick Gates has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of false statements in deal with special counsel in probe of Russian election interference. http://wapo.st/2CF7tM8

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@Lash,

The concept is that no one would know which teacher was armed...certainly not the students.

No teacher should be required to carry a weapon and any who volunteers to do so needs to be vetted and trained.

Israeli teachers carry sub-machine guns over their shoulders and I don't believe they have had even one incident where a teacher fired on students.

0 Replies

@ehBeth,

can't keep up

apparently even more charges against Gates in the last few minutes

Shocked

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NPRVerified account

@NPR
3m3 minutes ago

Rick Gates is set to appear in federal court 2 p.m. today as part of his plea change, NPR's Carrie Johnson reports.

Justice Department special counsel Robert Mueller filed new documents with more detail about the change to Gates’ status. New court filing contains two charges:

NPRVerified account

@NPR
3m3 minutes ago

The document says Gates lied to the special counsel and the FBI about a March 2013 meeting that was attended by Paul Manafort, an unnamed senior lobbyist and an unnamed member of Congress. Gates allegedly lied that he was told by Manafort there were no discussions about Ukraine.

@NPR
3m3 minutes ago
More
Both men performed lucrative work for the pro-Russian government in Ukraine, and that when that work dried up, they allegedly resorted to fraud and money laundering, according to previous court charges.

2 Replies

@Finn dAbuzz,

I agree that the FBI, local law enforcement, the parents, and yes-the school, were contributors to the result. They should all be investigated and people should be fired. The adoptive parents should face public censure.

The school suffered the brunt, obviously, no need for more punishment—but we need to learn from their mistakes.

This guy gave every possible sign. Cops were called how many times on this kid?? 20? He shouldn’t have been allowed near guns.

————————

Finn, I wanted to make clear that I only blame the NRA for fighting any small common sense changes in gun law that would decrease gun deaths. If you’ll notice, the changes I propose don’t even outlaw a type of weapon.

I really think keeping assault rifles out of the hands of SSRI users and violent offenders will dramatically reduce gun deaths. The NRA’s foot soldiers in Congress make sure that doesn’t happen. They are more to blame than the FBI et al.

4 Replies

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DWvSQuGVwAALC68.jpg:large

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@hightor,

hightor wrote:

You're welcome — I've been quite reticent to make any claims about the actual effect of meddling and whether it depressed the Clinton vote but it's really starting to look as if that may have been the case.

But, that is a major Repuplican ploy every election, to depress the Dem vote,. They would conclude this to be a job well done!

0 Replies

@Lash,

Lash wrote:

This guy gave every possible sign. Cops were called how many times on this kid?? 20? He shouldn’t have been allowed near guns.

What laws could the cops have used to keep him away from guns?

1 Reply

@hightor,

hightor wrote:

Quote:
The difference between a serf and a free man.

More like the difference between a free man and a mercenary. I don't see unlimited access to firearms as the apotheosis of freedom. In fact, I think it barbaric.

Guns are used to squelch freedom.....

0 Replies

@ehBeth,

ehBeth wrote:

Rick Gates has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy

Conspiracy takes more than one person. Conspiracy is the charge for colluding. Conspiracy to do what? This is significant!

0 Replies

@maporsche,

The first one I consider is the FBI tips on this kid from a couple of sources. If they’d followed up, found the weapons and paraphernalia that drew a straight line to the plan to murder kids at school, he would have been arrested and 17 kids would be alive today.

Another law (in a few states, proposed for more) gives cops who are called to a domestic situation the right to remove guns. The person has to make application to have them returned. I agree with the sensibility of this law.

The cops were called to the residence many times. The ability to separate that kid from guns during any of those domestic violence calls would have saved kids.

The proposed law was in process in FL at the time of the shooting.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/national/health-science/five-states-allow-guns-to-be-seized-before-someone-can-commit-violence/2018/02/16/78ee4cc8-128c-11e8-9570-29c9830535e5_story.html

1 Reply

@Lash,

Lash wrote:

The first one I consider is the FBI tips on this kid from a couple of sources. If they’d followed up, found the weapons and paraphernalia...

Follow up how? Found weapons how? They'd need a warrant to enter his home. They'd need a warrant for wiretapping. What tip would have been enough for a warrant?

Quote:

Another law (in a few states, proposed for more) gives cops who are called to a domestic situation the right to remove guns. The person has to make application to have them returned. I agree with the sensibility of this law.

Me too. But that law was/is not in effect. Additionally, I don't think this law would have done anything to this kid either. He got in trouble for punching a kid who he got in a fight with. Jesus, how many times does that happen in your teens....(a lot with some boys).

I don't believe that there are many laws that would have allowed law enforcement to do much of anything.

2 Replies

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