1) The first manipulation is the illusion of choice. You think you have two parties representing different visions for America but both parties are funded by the same billionaires, vote for the same surveillance bills, approve the same defense budgets, and serve the same corporate interests. The choice you are given is which color tie the puppet wears, not who controls the strings.
2) The second manipulation is emotional hijacking. The news does not inform you, it activates you. Every story is framed to trigger fear or anger or disgust because those emotions bypass your rational thinking and make you easier to control. You are not watching journalism. You are being subjected to psychological operations designed to keep you in a constant state of agitation.
3) The third manipulation is tribal sorting. The algorithm learns what makes you angry and feeds you more of it until your entire worldview is shaped by outrage at the other side. You are sorted into a tribe not because you chose it but because keeping you tribal keeps you predictable and profitable.
4) The fourth manipulation is false scarcity. You are told resources are limited and the other tribe is taking what belongs to you. Immigrants are stealing your jobs. Welfare recipients are draining your taxes. The other party is destroying your healthcare. Meanwhile the billionaire class has more wealth than any humans in history and could solve most of these problems tomorrow if they wanted to.
5) The fifth manipulation is memory holing. Stories that threaten powerful interests get buried or forgotten within days. Exposed crimes result in no consequences. Historical context that would help you understand the present is never taught. You are kept in a perpetual present with no past to learn from and no future to plan for.
6) The sixth manipulation is controlled opposition. The voices you think are fighting for you are often funded by the same interests they pretend to oppose. The outrage merchant on your side of the aisle is playing a character designed to keep you engaged and angry and tuned in while nothing ever actually changes.
7) The seventh manipulation is the Overton window. The range of acceptable opinion is artificially narrowed so that anything outside it seems extreme. Ideas that were mainstream fifty years ago are now treated as radical. Ideas that serve elite interests are treated as moderate common sense. You are not choosing your beliefs from the full range of human thought. You are choosing from a menu they wrote.
8) The eighth manipulation is learned helplessness. You are shown so many problems with no solutions that you eventually give up and accept that nothing can change. This is intentional. A population that believes resistance is futile does not resist. They scroll and complain and feel superior for understanding how bad things are while doing absolutely nothing about it.
9) The ninth manipulation is identity capture. Your political affiliation becomes your identity, and any attack on your party feels like an attack on you personally. This makes you defend politicians and policies that harm you because admitting they are wrong would mean admitting you were wrong, and your ego will not allow that.
10) The tenth manipulation is the most insidious of all: you are manipulated into believing you are too smart to be manipulated. Every person reading this thinks the manipulations I described apply to other people, the stupid people, the brainwashed people on the other side. That certainty is itself a manipulation. The moment you believe you are immune is the moment you become most vulnerable.
I think I have an idea- what do you think?? Instead of calling our representatives over and over, I’m going to choose five red state GOP senators and email them 50 times each of the last murder and tie up their social media! It’s cold outside Minnesota- give it a shot, let’s rock and roll!
Targeting Fox advertisers one by one with a letter/email/Facebook/Instagram barrage of postings, protests outside their corporate offices AND a nation wide boycott would also be effective.
Please, please, please contact Idaho’s disgusting Senators and House Representatives- they are card-carrying 2020 election deniers and 100% fotus loyalists, not loyal to their constituents. They have a deaf ear to me and usually add legal mumbo jumbo in their answers; maybe you can get them to listen to you.
Senator Crapo (takes months to reply) (202) 224-6142
Have heard variations of this forever, primarily to dissuade people from voting or to vote for some third party candidate. In our system of democracy, how we 'count the votes', It is extremely difficult for a third party candidate (or 'independent') to win. It has happened, but the usual result is to enable the party you MOST want to defeat, to win.
The fundamental premise is that there is no difference between the two parties, and that everyone is equally corrupted by donations. Here is a clue, actually look at the dollar amounts donated by WHICH corporations to which candidates. When you get into the specifics the claims that "both parties are funded by the same billionaires" starts falling apart. Look at what the parties actually vote for. Look at the specifics of what those laws do. Do NOT look at the opposition party for information on which side stands for what, unless they bring FACTS that you verify.
Objectively Trump is BAD. Objectively Trump LIES most every sentence he speaks. Objectively Trump has committed more crimes in a month than every prior president did in their entire lives. Objectively, the vast majority of Republicans in congress have supported Trump and allowed his violations of the law and the Constitution to go unchallenged.
Are Democrats perfect? by no means, but this appeal to 'Absolutes' is like declaring that since a mouse and an elephant are both smaller than the moon, they are therefore the same size.
If you want to get the change you want, vote for the party whose policies AND track record comes closest to what you want. Then push them to go further. Voting for neither, or voting for a third party candidate that will not win, thereby increasing the odds the worst party wins is doing exactly what the poster wants. Because the people supporting the other side are not listening to such noise, and they win when you don't vote. And you lose, because you demanded perfection.
Agree here. Wanting perfection will get you nowhere. Work to get the leaders that more closely align with your vision. Politics is a long game and hard. I’m just hoping that trump doesn’t last 2 more years, cause I don’t want to lose this country.
This explanation is exactly right. Douglas describes the politics we live with. We vote for the better party (Democrats) and make them do more. And reform the systems that are weak and can be exploited. We have to vote but also do more than just vote and forget until the next election.
You should hear what the republicans have to say about you, it’s basically a 180 from everything you’ve written because they’ve been exposed and radicalized by media that only points out the democrats sins while never mentioning any from their own party or spinning them to be virtuous. And guess what, you experience the same, just the opposite. The media plays both sides like a fiddle, activating them with anger and keeping them engaged and clicking and seeing red, hating their neighbor.
As for voting, here are two alternatives to fix the system:
Just freakin' vote for DEMOCRATS. Not perfect. Tough shit. We get thing done that help us working people. Once we are in a position of power, we can afford to move back to the Left ( you know the goal posts have been moved Right, right?) But the Ivory Tower people refuse to vote for anything less than PERFECT. And why do they feel this way? Because the (conservative owned) MSM tells them nothing about what Democrats accomplish. I'm so sick of Libertarian and Third Party people costing us elections. Then there's the 'I'd never vote for a Woman' crowd. They should all just move to Iran.
And then there is the "I won't vote at all" crowd. Assuming they do not want to live in the Fourth Reich, they need to get to the polls and vote Democrat.
And your elections need to be verified. Rigging has become endemic.
Actually I have watched the other side. I am trained professionally in logical thinking and dealing with reality. I am also by nature a follower of the teachings of Jesus. I can usually only watch a limited amount of the right wing media before having to stop because I had to take time to sort out all the assumptions, all the verifiable lies, all the hate, all the innuendos and assumed guilt by association. I have studied Trump's speeches. I took particular pains to study one of the defense arguments in his first impeachment and found it to be nothing more than an appeal to emotion based on repeating certain words together.
I do agree, they say the same thing. This is known as 'projection'. I am not concerned with the various host's opinions, I am concerned with facts, with reality, with honest arguments and positions based on something other than hate or fear.
Yes, the left certainly talk about various fears, which is unsurprising when Trump objectively does horrible things, from his own mouth. When I watch videos, from multiple angles. When I watch the same tired highly edited video for months showing 'Portland burning' when there was no evidence of it being REMOTELY as bad as depicted.
When Republicans cleanse themselves of Trump and his ilk, and do penance for a decade or so, I will consider them redeemed. Until then... there is a reason we put criminals in jail.
Question, why would I trust YOU and follow links that you provided? "youtu.be" is not "youtube".
I do support 'instant runoff' elections, and they are growing in popularity, as they allow for the viability of third party candidates. If you were to simply push for money out of politics and instant runoff elections, you would have more credibility. The rest of your rant is not helpful to any real solutions.
Question, why would I trust YOU and follow links that you provided? "youtu.be" is not "youtube".
It is youtube, they have multiple domains, that is just the shortened version for sharing. Here are the longer ones, the videos come from CGP Grey - one of the best educators on youtube - and they are excellent:
The Sermon on the Mount, Excerpts from an Entrancing Analysis, Part 1
Over 2,000 years ago, on a quiet hillside in Galilee, something happened that would echo across every generation. The wind stirred through the olive trees. A crowd gathered, restless, farmers, mothers, zealots, beggars, all drawn by rumors of a man unlike any other.
Not a king, not a rabbi like the rest, not a soldier or a prophet calling for war, but a carpenter from Nazareth, a man who would speak, and the world quietly, irrevocably would begin to turn. And then he sat down. No throne, no platform, just a rock and a voice.
And with that first word, blessed, the ground beneath the old world began to crack. What followed became known as the sermon on the mount. But it was never meant to be just a sermon. It was a revolution of the heart, a collision between heaven's values and earth's assumptions. And if you really hear what Jesus said that day, it will challenge your ideas of strength, success, justice, even what it means to follow God.
So why does this message still matter? Because in a world like ours filled with anxiety, division, betrayal, and noise, Jesus didn't just teach us how to live. He revealed the kind of people God calls blessed. And it's not the rich, the powerful, or the loud. It's the poor in spirit, the peacemakers, the ones who mourn, the merciful, the forgotten. You're about to see why Jesus said that the meek, not the dominant, will inherit the earth, and how that one phrase still breaks every rule the world believes about power.
What Jesus taught on that hillside was meant for you right now. And the question is no longer whether you've heard his words, but whether you're ready to live them. He opened his mouth and began to teach them, saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
With that one sentence, Jesus overturned everything the world thought it knew about blessing. In that moment, Matthew 5:3, Jesus wasn't just giving comfort. He was redefining reality because the crowd that stood before him had lived under Roman oppression. They had been taught that blessing looked like wealth, status, or religious perfection.
But Jesus looked at the broken, the outcast, the humble, and called them blessed. Blessed are the poor in spirit, not the arrogant or self-sufficient, but those who recognize their deep need for God, the ones who come to the throne not with trophies, but with empty hands.
Jesus says that's where the kingdom begins. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5. Now, this is where the crowd likely froze because meekness was not a virtue in that world or in ours. It sounded like weakness.
But in Jesus' kingdom, meekness is controlled strength. It's the waror trained to move only at its master's command. It's having the power to retaliate and choosing instead to love. Then Jesus begins to describe the kind of people who not only receive grace but reflect it, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers.
He paints a portrait of a kingdom citizen not defined by domination but by transformation, not by outward power, but by inward purity. And just when it seems like blessing means comfort and reward, Jesus drops the last line. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. Matthew 5:10.
Blessed not despite the persecution, but in it. Because when you live like this, you will not fit the world system. And that Jesus says is exactly where the kingdom begins to shine. ...
[And here he completes the Law of Moses]: You have heard that it was said to those of old, "You shall not murder." But I say to you, Matthew 5 21. Here it is, not a change in the law, but a piercing of the heart behind it. Jesus says that anger, the kind that simmers and stews, is the root of murder. That insults and bitterness are not lesser sins, but early signs of a life disconnected from love.
In other words, it's not just about what your hands do. It's about what your heart harbors.
And he doesn't stop there. You have heard that it was said, "You shall not commit adultery." But I say to you. Matthew 5 27. Now he addresses lust. Not just the act, but the intent, the glance that lingers, the imagination that wanders. He isn't adding rules. He's revealing how deeply holiness reaches. not to restrict us but to set us free from the things that silently corrode our souls.
Jesus is peeling back the layers. And in doing so, he shows us that God's law was never meant to be just behavior management. It was always about love, love for God and love for people. That's why he says, "Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:20.
That would have landed like thunder. Because the Pharisees were seen as the gold standard of righteousness. But Jesus is pointing to something higher. Not more rules, but more depth. Not stricter performance, but deeper surrender. This is not a heavier burden. It's a different kind of righteousness. The kind that only begins when we stop trying to impress God and start letting him transform us from the inside out.
Now Jesus says something that doesn't just stretch the mind, it confronts the heart. You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. Matthew 5:43-44. This isn't a metaphor. He means it. In a culture built on honor and revenge, where Roman soldiers could strike you with impunity and the Zealots dreamed of violent revolution, Jesus wasn't just challenging personal grudges. He was undermining the very system of retaliation that defined their world. and ours.
Because if we're honest, loving our enemies is still the command we avoid. It sounds beautiful until it costs something. Until the enemy has a name, a face, a memory, until forgiveness feels like injustice, until blessing the one who hurt you feels like betrayal.
But listen to what Jesus says next. That you may be children of your father in heaven. Matthew 5:45. This isn't about being nice. It's about becoming more like God. Because our father, the one we claim to follow, sends his reign on the righteous and the unrighteous. He gives breath to those who praise him and to those who curse his name.
His love is not reactive. It's redemptive. And that's the model Jesus gives us. Not weakness, not silence in the face of abuse, but a love that refuses to mirror the hatred it receives. A love that breaks the cycle of retaliation by choosing mercy instead of vengeance.
Because anyone can love those who love them. Jesus says even the most corrupt people do that. But enemy love, that's divine. Because Jesus isn't giving us suggestions. He's describing what kingdom people look like. And this is at the center of it. Not just loving our family or friends. Not just being kind to those who agree with us, butlearning how to extend compassion where it's least deserved. Because that's exactly what God did for us
I do not hate Trump, but I can recognize something dangerous and take steps to protect myself and others.
I do not hate Trump, but I can spot a con-man, and a liar and a person without any of the standards you just listed.
You do not need to hate in order to oppose, or are you saying that the police can only oppose the criminal actions of those they hate?
I am glad you have found your 'teacher' on Youtube, but I prefer to hear your arguments, not theirs.
Being imperfect, I have difficulty loving Trump when I see him violate the ten commandments, embrace the seven deadly sins.... when he spreads hate and division, discrimination with lies. So I imperfectly rest with not hating him. Perhaps I will consider better of him after he is no longer a danger, when much of his damage has been healed. But I do not think I could ever trust him, no matter how many right wing media channels proclaim him to be righteous.
As an atheist and former christian I dig what Jesus had to say and live my life by those ideals but tell that to the so-called "christians" on the right and they'll tell you you're making it up! Christianity is the most malleable religion ever! It can include anything from genocide to self-sacrifice! That is why I believe god made us …after we made him!
1) The first manipulation is the illusion of choice. You think you have two parties representing different visions for America but both parties are funded by the same billionaires, vote for the same surveillance bills, approve the same defense budgets, and serve the same corporate interests. The choice you are given is which color tie the puppet wears, not who controls the strings.
2) The second manipulation is emotional hijacking. The news does not inform you, it activates you. Every story is framed to trigger fear or anger or disgust because those emotions bypass your rational thinking and make you easier to control. You are not watching journalism. You are being subjected to psychological operations designed to keep you in a constant state of agitation.
3) The third manipulation is group sorting. The algorithm learns what makes you angry and feeds you more of it until your entire worldview is shaped by outrage at the other side. You are sorted into a group not because you chose it but because keeping you within that group keeps you predictable and profitable.
4) The fourth manipulation is false scarcity. You are told resources are limited and the other group is taking what belongs to you. Immigrants are stealing your jobs. Welfare recipients are draining your taxes. The other party is destroying your healthcare. Meanwhile the billionaire class has more wealth than any humans in history and could solve most of these problems tomorrow if they wanted to.
5) The fifth manipulation is memory holing. Stories that threaten powerful interests get buried or forgotten within days. Exposed crimes result in no consequences. Historical context that would help you understand the present is never taught. You are kept in a perpetual present with no past to learn from and no future to plan for.
6) The sixth manipulation is controlled opposition. The voices you think are fighting for you are often funded by the same interests they pretend to oppose. The outrage merchant on your side of the aisle is playing a character designed to keep you engaged and angry and tuned in while nothing ever actually changes.
7) The seventh manipulation is the Overton window. The range of acceptable opinion is artificially narrowed so that anything outside it seems extreme. Ideas that were mainstream fifty years ago are now treated as radical. Ideas that serve elite interests are treated as moderate common sense. You are not choosing your beliefs from the full range of human thought. You are choosing from a menu they wrote.
8) The eighth manipulation is learned helplessness. You are shown so many problems with no solutions that you eventually give up and accept that nothing can change. This is intentional. A population that believes resistance is futile does not resist. They scroll and complain and feel superior for understanding how bad things are while doing absolutely nothing about it.
9) The ninth manipulation is identity capture. Your political affiliation becomes your identity, and any attack on your party feels like an attack on you personally. This makes you defend politicians and policies that harm you because admitting they are wrong would mean admitting you were wrong, and your ego will not allow that.
10) The tenth manipulation is the most insidious of all: you are manipulated into believing you are too smart to be manipulated. Every person reading this thinks the manipulations I described apply to other people, the stupid people, the brainwashed people on the other side. That certainty is itself a manipulation. The moment you believe you are immune is the moment you become most vulnerable.
That is a good question. I wonder what the pros and cons are for staying registered a democrat (thinking of helping the right candidates during primaries) or independent (so your party affiliation isn't clear). I would like to hear more on that too.
Feel free to copy and paste and use whatever word you'd like, the important thing is to get this out there. The author is not known - i thought it was another substacker but he admitted that is not the case.
Betsy: you can copy,paste & edit, but then you wouldn't be sharing the original truthfully. You don't have to "like" every word someone uses, but you do have to respect their thoughts & their written use of them.
jan, sweetie, someone already edited it for me and i shared it. that’s the difference. you decided to spend your time hating. someone else helped me and i shared important info as a white person without the use of a word i should never use. stop infighting and HELP OTHER PEOPLE, JAN
She would be respecting herself. Unless you have respect for yourself, it’s rare to have respect outside of yourself…(outside of your circle of control)
Problem with your theory is both sides are NOT the same. Trump & Republicans are evil & Trump & his regime are the most corrupt in history & are turning America into a fascist country, we will end up like Venezuela ourselves, as they take & take from the people to make themselves & the 1% even richer than they are. Its a sickness, they can never get enough money & power. Democrats may not be perfect but do your homework, check facts of how they vote vs the GOP. Which side actually helps YOU & your family more? Who fights for YOU? Who fights for people to keep their health insurance affordable? Who wants to take care of the disabled? Who wants to keep people in their jobs instead of firing thousands of career government workers? Who fights for people to keep & be in unions & for a fair liveable minimum wage? Who fights for climate change policies & doesn't deny its happening which is causing your home insurance to increase & many insurance cos pulling out of many states altogether? If you can't get properly insurance, you can't have a mortgage! Banks won't allow it. Which party blocks representatives elected by their constituents from entering ICE facilities? They're always talking about "transparency" yet they don't let them in even with a court order from a JUDGE! So which party is shredding the CONSTITUTION EVERY DAY! Which party LIES to your face & tells you to not believe your eyes but to believe what THEY are telling you? Alex Pretti's gun was taken off him BEFORE 10 shots were put into him. He had a legal gun, which Republicans fight for everyone to have. Its was legal to have it & he never once touched his gun! He was shot to death, not 1 bullet, 10 bullets! Alex was trying to help a woman who they brutally shoved to the ground. He was being a gentleman, trying to help that woman, that's all. Bovino saying they have "highly trained" officers! 47 DAYS is highly trained? WHAT? Why was Renee Good shot through her driver's side window multiple times after being shot already from the front? Which party fights for civil rights, women's rights? Which Supreme Court allowed unlimited amounts of money to rule elections & which one gave the "Executive" unlimited power & immunity from any crimes while President? Who took away women's Health care & has forced Planned Parenthood to close? How does treating women as 2nd, or 3rd, class citizens help you or our country? Some far right radical Republicans even talk now about taking women's right to VOTE away! That's a FACT! They say women should "submit" to their husbands on all & every thing! I mean, WTF is going on here? Are those ppl insane? YES they obviously are! Are we living back in the 1700's? The Republicans do want to keep us divided, its easier to do what they want that way. So look at the FACTS & TRUTH, do not listen to the PROPAGANDA party. The parties ARE NOT THE SAME L, PERIOD.
You should see what the left writes about you - they think you are as evil as you see them. See points #2 #3 #9 and #10 for why this is.
All you see is your side’s virtue and their side’s amplified evil. That is all they see of you, just in reverse. This is a playbook, it is as old as time, and it will render us obselete should we fail to recognize amd overcome it.
“Just when you think you’re immune, you become most vunerable”. Here is one reason of many why the right hates you and we all need to get over the sins of both parties and unite or doom will follow:
——
Obama's policy and dire warning on immigration: "Those who enter our country illegally, and those who employ them, disrespect the rule of law. And because we live in an age where terrorists are challenging our borders, we simply cannot allow people to pour into the United States undetected, undocumented, and unchecked. Americans are right to demand better border security and better enforcement of the immigration laws" —President Obama
Why the man said this:
Bloomberg: Headline: Venezuela's Violent Deaths Fall to 22-Year Low on MigrationText: Venezuela's rate of violent deaths dropped to its lowest level in more than two decades following years of massive migration as both criminals and victims fled the nation's economic crisis. —Archived Uneditable Source: https://archive.is/JOaY9
——
“We must learn to live as brothers or we will perish together as fools.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that” —Martin Luther King, Jr.
Those that hate ppl on the left, the ones who accept ALL people are the correct & truthful ones though. We are conspiracy theorists & believe in science. Where would society be if science didn't exist? We are right, the fascist regime who is killing our country in multiple ways are WRONG. Its not more complicated than that!
COMMENT! However when the scenario reaches up into the higher levels of state,country, and world gov.s. 99% of us would be scared to see&know the full picture, if we could comprehend it?
The solution is to get local, get self-dependent, get the common unity back in community by building webs of resilience with your neighbors, get control of your school boards, mayors amd sherrif's office, and town councils (the last places we still hold all of the cards), get a garden in your lawn no matter how small, a single tomato plant is better than nothing, get a well (water is your most important resource hands down), get ready, get moving, get doing, and, if so inclined, get God.
Detailed:
Don't build a bigger fence to keep our your neighbor, build a bigger table.
The only winning move is not to play their sick game. They thrive on our energy and fear, angst, doubt, and dread they stir in us. The one thing these emotional vampires hate the most is for their manipulation and terrorism to get ignored. Cut down your TV & internet usage by 97%, go local, and all of their terror goes away meanwhile we become stronger as they flail around in angst. Here’s how:
Civilization, goes and old maxim, is never more than three meals away from barbarism—once the food deliveries stop, so does law and order. Therefore, the baseline of preparedness is as follows:
Put all your support behind your local farmers, then become your own. A garden in every lawn should be standard. You can no longer trust anything from a corporation, so cutting out reliance on a retailer is a good place to start thinking about your resiliency. ‘Incorporated’ City water isn’t viable either for its quality or reliability, so wells must be dug (there is no resource more important in your life than clean water, hands down).
Beyond that, begin ending your dependence on their enslavement protocol Federal Notes by creating local currencies and discovering the lost art of bartering, and again start - these cannot be emphasized enough - stitching together webs of alliances with your neighbors for resiliency, defense, and resource sharing (they might grow what you do not and vice versa)—put the “common unity” back in community, and get control of those town councils, mayor and sherrif offices, and school boards (the few places we still hold all of the cards) and get your kids out of them. Finally: stop eating, listening to, and watching things that are bad for your mind, body, and spirit, and, if so inclined, spend a good chunk of your time on your knees each day.
Finally: Fear not. Live your life. Find your happiness. Turn your back on those who would gleefully turn it into misery. Win the game by refusing to play theirs.
All of the above is a recipe for success and if everuone did this, we would take the world back in a groundswell. Let's get to work building a future worth living in, together, because if we do not, Harari & Co (who believe the "Snow Crash" dystopia they are building all around us is a good thing in their sick dark triad mind) will ensure we will not have one:
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WEF Head Yuval Harari, NYTimes Interview: thinking about all this, puts it this way: “Utopia and dystopia depends on your values.” … The useless class he describes is uniquely vulnerable. “If a century ago you mounted a revolution against exploitation, you knew that when bad comes to worse, they can’t shoot all of us because they need us,” he said, citing army service and factory work.
Now it is becoming less clear why the ruling elite would not just kill the new useless class. “You’re totally expendable,” he told the audience. … “We don’t need you. But we are nice, so we’ll take care of you.” —Archived Uneditable Source (worth reading in full): https://archive.is/rWLoO
"The useless class" is the natural result of the ongoing industrial revolution, with AI being the latest accelerant. It is why Capitalism is inherently unstable and needs major modification at this stage. Without workers you do not have customers. Without customers you don't need workers. This is known as a positive feedback loop (Non-Stable).
But sure, just try and pretend that we can easily transition to a non-technological agrarian society with no real downside. I am an engineer and study medieval history ... it was not pretty.
Looks to me like you are encouraging people to brace for the 'post-collapse' of the world economy. If you have not studied how our world economy works and how dependent we are on it, that may not sound so bad. It's worse.
Even aside from all the damage Trump is inflicting on this nation, that is NOTHING compared to what happens when the economy collapses. If we are LUCKY, the rest of the world's economy will survive (not easily because the US is a key part of it all, and not just talking about money) and we may have a chance to recover... but the same things that affect us affect others as well.
Summary, it will be a mess.
There is a quote I like to use: "It is not a matter of life and death, it is more important than that" This class of problems clearly includes politics, because both sides are NOT the same and never have been.
Democracy works, as long as people believe it works, with or without elections. The power ALWAYS belongs to the people, they just have to realize it and assert it.
The bad guys win when the people hide, cower and tune out, ignore what is going on, because then the bad guys get to do everything they want. This is why the standard playbook is to pit one group against another, such as poor working class people against immigrants. That way nobody is paying attention to all the real damage being done by the rich and powerful.
The solution is to get local, get self-dependent, get the common unity back in community by building webs of resilience with your neighbors, get control of your school boards, mayors amd sherrif's office, and town councils (the last places we still hold all of the cards), get a garden in your lawn no matter how small, a single tomato plant is better than nothing, get a well (water is your most important resource hands down), get ready, get moving, get doing, and, if so inclined, get God.
Detailed:
Don't build a bigger fence to keep our your neighbor, build a bigger table.
The only winning move is not to play their sick game. They thrive on our energy and fear, angst, doubt, and dread they stir in us. The one thing these emotional vampires hate the most is for their manipulation and terrorism to get ignored. Cut down your TV & internet usage by 97%, go local, and all of their terror goes away meanwhile we become stronger as they flail around in angst. Here’s how:
Civilization, goes and old maxim, is never more than three meals away from barbarism—once the food deliveries stop, so does law and order. Therefore, the baseline of preparedness is as follows:
Put all your support behind your local farmers, then become your own. A garden in every lawn should be standard. You can no longer trust anything from a corporation, so cutting out reliance on a retailer is a good place to start thinking about your resiliency. ‘Incorporated’ City water isn’t viable either for its quality or reliability, so wells must be dug (there is no resource more important in your life than clean water, hands down).
Beyond that, begin ending your dependence on their enslavement protocol Federal Notes by creating local currencies and discovering the lost art of bartering, and again start - these cannot be emphasized enough - stitching together webs of alliances with your neighbors for resiliency, defense, and resource sharing (they might grow what you do not and vice versa)—put the “common unity” back in community, and get control of those town councils, mayor and sherrif offices, and school boards (the few places we still hold all of the cards) and get your kids out of them. Finally: stop eating, listening to, and watching things that are bad for your mind, body, and spirit, and, if so inclined, spend a good chunk of your time on your knees each day.
Finally: Fear not. Live your life. Find your happiness. Turn your back on those who would gleefully turn it into misery. Win the game by refusing to play theirs.
All of the above is a recipe for success and if everuone did this, we would take the world back in a groundswell. Let's get to work building a future worth living in, together, because if we do not, Harari & Co (who believe the "Snow Crash" dystopia they are building all around us is a good thing in their sick dark triad mind) will ensure we will not have one:
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WEF Head Yuval Harari, NYTimes Interview: thinking about all this, puts it this way: “Utopia and dystopia depends on your values.” … The useless class he describes is uniquely vulnerable. “If a century ago you mounted a revolution against exploitation, you knew that when bad comes to worse, they can’t shoot all of us because they need us,” he said, citing army service and factory work.
Now it is becoming less clear why the ruling elite would not just kill the new useless class. “You’re totally expendable,” he told the audience. … “We don’t need you. But we are nice, so we’ll take care of you.” —Archived Uneditable Source (worth reading in full): https://archive.is/rWLoO
the Heritage foundation took a big hit a months ago, when Carlson interviewed Fuentes, and a Heritage guy. They all started in-fighting. Cato institute is all fighting among themselves too.
False. Some Dems are spineless cowards, but most are good people. Your both-sides argument is pure garbage. We’ve tried to get the Billionaire money out of government, but we are always overpowered. The GOP played the long game, taking control of the courts, while we were busy governing and fixing the economic disasters left behind by the Republicans.
You're absolutely right Linda Z. Meidas is cutting off their nose to spite their fast. Yes we do have some terrible dems. But many try to do the right thing, even as I wish they be louder about it
Right now, we are still privileged to have these substacks as truth- tellers and as forums for our solidarity, information sharing, emotional support, etc. It is crucial that, if nothing else, we help financially support these substacks, as well as give small amounts to some of the candidates in 2026. Can you imagine life in The Trump regime without any truth-tellers... I can't - the thought is too stark and horrifying...
Yes it is Deanna. You can draw a straight line from this discovery over a century ago:
From the Congressional Record, January 27, 1917:
JP Morgan, Steel, Shipbuilding, and “powder” interests hired 12 high-ranking newspaper execs to determine how to “control generally the policy of the daily press” throughout the entire country.
Answer: They found it was only necessary to purchase the control of 25 of the greatest papers. …the policy of the papers was bought, to be paid for by the month; an editor was furnished for each paper to properly SUPERVISE AND EDIT INFORMATION…. This policy also included the suppression of everything in opposition to the WISHES of the interests served.
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To this
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Comcast owns NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, Universal Pictures, and dozens of cable channels. Disney owns ABC, ESPN, Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, National Geographic, and just absorbed most of 21st Century Fox. Warner Bros Discovery owns CNN, HBO, the DC universe, and a sprawling empire of cable networks. Paramount Global owns CBS, Showtime, MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon. Sony controls a massive chunk of the music and film industry. And News Corp, the Murdoch empire, owns Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and newspapers across three continents.
Your local news station that you think is independent? Probably owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which controls nearly two hundred television stations across America and forces them all to read the same scripted editorials. Your favorite newspaper? Bought up by a hedge fund or a billionaire who wanted a mouthpiece. Your streaming service? Owned by one of the six. Your social media feed? Curated by algorithms designed by Silicon Valley billionaires to keep you angry and engaged and clicking.
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The Game is rigged folks. Time to unite against the liars and looters behind the curtain who care only for more power and money for themselves less for everyone else.
When the right wingers during the GW Bush years bought up and destroyed Knight-Ridder News, it was game over for investigative reporting. Then they even bought the Washington Post. We have to push hard to get the truth out. Reaching John Doe is a nearly impossible task. As long as there's Fox and Friends to stuff his brain.
You can draw a straight line from this discovery over a century ago:
From the Congressional Record, January 27, 1917:
JP Morgan, Steel, Shipbuilding, and “powder” interests hired 12 high-ranking newspaper execs to determine how to “control generally the policy of the daily press” throughout the entire country.
Answer: They found it was only necessary to purchase the control of 25 of the greatest papers. …the policy of the papers was bought, to be paid for by the month; an editor was furnished for each paper to properly SUPERVISE AND EDIT INFORMATION…. This policy also included the suppression of everything in opposition to the WISHES of the interests served.
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To this
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Comcast owns NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, Universal Pictures, and dozens of cable channels. Disney owns ABC, ESPN, Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, National Geographic, and just absorbed most of 21st Century Fox. Warner Bros Discovery owns CNN, HBO, the DC universe, and a sprawling empire of cable networks. Paramount Global owns CBS, Showtime, MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon. Sony controls a massive chunk of the music and film industry. And News Corp, the Murdoch empire, owns Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and newspapers across three continents.
Your local news station that you think is independent? Probably owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which controls nearly two hundred television stations across America and forces them all to read the same scripted editorials. Your favorite newspaper? Bought up by a hedge fund or a billionaire who wanted a mouthpiece. Your streaming service? Owned by one of the six. Your social media feed? Curated by algorithms designed by Silicon Valley billionaires to keep you angry and engaged and clicking.
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The Game is rigged folks. Time to unite against the liars and looters behind the curtain.
In a way, CNN, CBS, Fox… are the fake news media. Corporate and facial controlled fake news media. Republican could stop all of this tonight. 16 republicans and all of the Democrats could stop all of this tonight if they wanted to!!
The super rich get that way, generally, because they hoard wealth. They are greedy, and there is never enough money to fill that hole in themselves. This makes them easy to manipulate if you are a corrupt, lawless president wanting something from them.
Some of the billionaires are indeed evil, who feel they win if everyone else loses. Others are just victims of their greed, and we should solve the problem for both groups by limiting how much a person can own. Sure, let those with the most have a luxury life, but clearly they do not need billions of dollars to live their best life.
For decades the Donor Class has enjoyed the majority of the financial returns from the (formerly) booming US economy. And thanks to Citizens United their voices have only gotten louder on the hill. Putting an end to CU would be a great start.
Dear Lord! I wrote" older," didn't check before I sent, I was so wound up all weekend. I meant people of my generation, boomers get their news from TV!! LOL
Robin, I just thought of you and our conversation a few days ago when I saw this article. It's about celebrities who tip well and some who don't. I saw Billie Eilish as a no tipper, and I'm going to give her a pass if that is true, because she donated 11 million dollars through her Changemaker Program to support climate and food justice, a move that gained significant attention when she called out billionaires for not doing enough during an awards speech in late 2025. Thought you might enjoy this.
Camille, I just love you. Thank you so much for this. Loved reading about the super generous ones 50-100% tips. Could not love Daniel Day Lewis more than I do."Thank you darling" and a 50% tip. 💕💕💕
I despise Oprah. (Even in the 1990s she was friends with RFK Jr <insert vomit emoji my cheap kindle fire doesn't have. That cheap fuck Bezos> She is the BIGGEST phony ever. I respect her so much coming from a terrible childhood and working hard and becoming a media mogul and a self-made billionaire. I loved her when she first started but the richer she got the more horrorible the stories got. How poorly she treated her staff at her company Harpo, she unleashed Dr Phil and Dr Oz on us, and billed Kamala $1 million for appearing at the DNC. Disgusting. All her bullshit about empowering others. She"s a multi-billionaire sailing the seven seas with Gayle and her billionaire friends on their yachts. I don't begrudge them making money, but be generous and kind. These big tippers in these articles are like that all the time. They aren't doing it to impress or put on a show. It's just how they are. No one would know if it wasn't for articles like these. I'm sure many of them came from humble beginnings and lean times themselves.
I have no idea who Benson Boone is but $1000 tip! What a sweetheart. I don't get Billie Eilish, and I know you told me she donated $11 million somewhere, but one thing has nothing to do with another. "food justice". You're going out to eat, someone is serving you, working hard to earn a living and you can't leave them even $20 bucks? You know who also used to be so incredibly generous? Sandra Bullock. If there was something in a paper about a tragedy or something catastrophic or someone in need? She thought nothing of giving $1 million. Quietly. George Michael too. He deserved angel wings. Mostly everything he gave was anonymously. But another disgusting one to wait staff was "sweet, genial" fucking PHONY James Corden who had that late night show and used to do those great videos singing in the car with lots of celebrities like Adele. He and his wife treated a waitress so poorly at a restaurant for making a mistake on an order that they BANNED him. I don't think it was even over a tip, it was that he was abusive. Famous restaurant and famous owner. Uh uh. Over and out! Don't let the door slam you in the ass on the way out. It made the papers.
Oh, I'm glad you liked it, I thought of you instantly and then how our computers eavesdrop on our conversations!
I was very surprised about Oprah, I would have thought her generous. That million she says she charged for the TV crew, btw, would be the same as someone making 100k shelling out $38 bucks, so not very generous at all. Don't like James Corden, he seems very arrogant so no surprise there.
I keep hoping more celebrities will use their speaking power and money to help democracy, that's why I watch Kimmel's monologues daily, he talks about what Trump is doing every day. The lack of counter messaging really upsets me, there are things that only our side sees and while I don't have significant hopes of Republicans changing their tune, they at least need to know how gullible and stupid they are so if, big if, it affects them, they know just what they did and didn't do to right the world for their kids and grandkids.
Cheap wealthy people are disgusting. Helping others feels so much better than overstuffing yourself with more material things you don't need and makes a big difference to someone else. If the situations were reversed, how would they like struggling for bare necessities? Hope there's justice here, now or afterwards or maybe they get reincarnated like someone they screwed over, that would be sweet.
Anyway, thanks for your sweet comment and I'll certainly keep you in mind for future articles. Take care!
I tried to send you the link in the article highlighted in blue last night but I couldn't copy the entire link. about the other cheapies. Liz Taylor and Richard Burton. $1.00 😱
Billy Joel. I think the minimum 20% What a disappointment.
Elvis, the King. $5000.
And of course, as I told you, the winner...JLo😂 Naomi Campbell who was one of the models who wouldn't get out of bed for less than, $10,000 a day, probably because she was on her back half the time with the rich Russian Oligarch boyfriend and I think ran in Epstein's circle too.
My mother used to say "if they don't get it in this life, they will in the next" but since no one has ever reported back, I want to see it in the only life I think I'm getting...this one.
Yes Camille, I so enjoyed to talking to you. I haven't looked out my window since this morning with the snow...hang on...several inches...but nothing like the time years ago when I tried to cross my street to get to the deli on the other side and couldn't because it came up to my thighs. Stay safe and warm. You're here and so am I. We will talk again! 😘
Thanks for your reporting. I was absolutely disgusted that CNN aired Kristi Noem’s entire press conference where she fabricated the entire incident today. BTW — new subscriber here.
Kristi Noem is a rehearsed liar and keeps spouting the same garbage every time ICE violates the law. She is brought out for justification purposes. But nobody is buying the lies except gullible MAGA. She, DT, Miller and all the many sycophants will go down in historical records as the worst traitors we have ever seen.
I was disgusted with Jake Tapper and the coverage he was giving. I can’t even stomach watching that network anymore. Video doesn’t lie and there are now many angles to show what truly happened.
Imagine the things they've done that didn't get captured on camera! I'm starting to think that we have death camps. We definitely have a gestapo. I'm terrified!
There’s virtually no oversight on detention centers. The few elected officials who managed to tour one of the places spoke of inhumane living conditions, maggots in the food, and little to no medical attention for detainees-the description fits my criteria for a concentration camp well enough-of course, out right brutality was concealed, but I have no doubt it is employed, considering what ICE is capable of on the streets, in public, in broad daylight.
I suspect some of those little kids that are in detention with their parent will be trafficked into sexual slavery. I believe it is a pretty good money maker: and that this occurred during the felon's first term as well, when he demanded children be separated from their parent. :( This country and magas do not protect children...they protect the offenders. :(
This was very early following what happened. I’m all for accurate non biased new sources which definitely appear to be nonexistent but the left and right are so far apart it’s disgusting. On many occasions I’ve had to flip the channel due to their cow towing. The last 2 years have not been what I’ve come to expect and trust of them.
Mine have already filed suits and impeachment articles. And I can proudly say not one of our Oregon reps voted for that damned bill. Keep pushing, people.
Nice to know there are some elected folks that are honest and fighting. I've not had representation since Anne Richards left the governorship in Texas. The people running for office here, join their name with the felon, and, due to gerrymandering, they don't have to worry about a non-maga winning. I'm hoping they are wrong, but they probably are not. :( Too many magas living in rural areas that only listen to Fox.
I look at houses in OR and WA and dream of moving away from the red area and state that loves this regime. Since I'm old, I'll probably die here, as a 2nd class citizen. Everything I fought for in the last 50 years has been overturned or is in the process of being destroyed. Wish people had listened in '15 that he was a danger to us all. :(
MSNOW and Medias Touch are the only sources I trust. I left CNN a long time ago. Now CBS. The sad thing is, MAGAS/repubs NEVER hear the truth from their news sources. Truth telling never happens. They are lies and lies and propaganda. Thankful there are a few sources out there to get the truth and correct information!!
Wow, I must have extraordinary eye vision, because I saw 5 different videos from 2 different points of view, and I saw NO gun pulled, a man come to the assistance of a woman on the ground, him being tackled, pepper sprayed, beaten, his gun removed by a man in a gray coat and then shot.
Maybe I can get a job as a reporter since I seem to have some sort of acute vision and an uncanny ability to see through bullshit.
I am literally watching CNN right now and they are in no way questioning if Alex did anything wrong. You ALL need to stand together and work out a plan to continue to push on the Epstein files. Do NOT get divided. That is when Trump and Miller win.
Not surprised but I’m deeply furious! It takes you back to the day of January 6, 2021 when CNN called the insurrectionists “Trump Supporters" and “Protesters!” They didn’t call them what they actually were! Fuck CNN! Fuck them ALL!
Seems FOX is getting a pass here since they have been behind Trump from the beginning…Only MAGA watches them and believe the lies…My Aunt lives in Mississippi and believes everything they say…CNN has been showing updated footage and the proof that this man was aggressively attacked and murdered…
I don’t agree because even a member of Meidas, Adam Mokler was on CNN’s Abby Phillips which has a panel of Democrats and Republicans giving point of view about present day subjects…He was spectacular in his view against the comment from a Republican…You have your opinion and I have mine but I do go to Meidas for details…
I saw CNN parroting the regime spin at 6pm live! By that time it was damn clear that Alex wasn’t waving a gun at ice. So many videos going viral all afternoon clearly show what occurred which was basically an execution. I’m so disgusted I could spit nails.
Yes - so disgusted with CNN lately. Anderson Cooper should be ashamed to still work for them. Only MSNOW has any balls at all with what's going on now.
Main news have become traitors. This whole thing is caused by billionaires.
To reiterate in case someone missed this:
Here is the modern mechanism to achieve this:
Ten Ways the 1% Are Manipulating You Right Now
1) The first manipulation is the illusion of choice. You think you have two parties representing different visions for America but both parties are funded by the same billionaires, vote for the same surveillance bills, approve the same defense budgets, and serve the same corporate interests. The choice you are given is which color tie the puppet wears, not who controls the strings.
2) The second manipulation is emotional hijacking. The news does not inform you, it activates you. Every story is framed to trigger fear or anger or disgust because those emotions bypass your rational thinking and make you easier to control. You are not watching journalism. You are being subjected to psychological operations designed to keep you in a constant state of agitation.
3) The third manipulation is tribal sorting. The algorithm learns what makes you angry and feeds you more of it until your entire worldview is shaped by outrage at the other side. You are sorted into a tribe not because you chose it but because keeping you tribal keeps you predictable and profitable.
4) The fourth manipulation is false scarcity. You are told resources are limited and the other tribe is taking what belongs to you. Immigrants are stealing your jobs. Welfare recipients are draining your taxes. The other party is destroying your healthcare. Meanwhile the billionaire class has more wealth than any humans in history and could solve most of these problems tomorrow if they wanted to.
5) The fifth manipulation is memory holing. Stories that threaten powerful interests get buried or forgotten within days. Exposed crimes result in no consequences. Historical context that would help you understand the present is never taught. You are kept in a perpetual present with no past to learn from and no future to plan for.
6) The sixth manipulation is controlled opposition. The voices you think are fighting for you are often funded by the same interests they pretend to oppose. The outrage merchant on your side of the aisle is playing a character designed to keep you engaged and angry and tuned in while nothing ever actually changes.
7) The seventh manipulation is the Overton window. The range of acceptable opinion is artificially narrowed so that anything outside it seems extreme. Ideas that were mainstream fifty years ago are now treated as radical. Ideas that serve elite interests are treated as moderate common sense. You are not choosing your beliefs from the full range of human thought. You are choosing from a menu they wrote.
8) The eighth manipulation is learned helplessness. You are shown so many problems with no solutions that you eventually give up and accept that nothing can change. This is intentional. A population that believes resistance is futile does not resist. They scroll and complain and feel superior for understanding how bad things are while doing absolutely nothing about it.
9) The ninth manipulation is identity capture. Your political affiliation becomes your identity, and any attack on your party feels like an attack on you personally. This makes you defend politicians and policies that harm you because admitting they are wrong would mean admitting you were wrong, and your ego will not allow that.
10) The tenth manipulation is the most insidious of all: you are manipulated into believing you are too smart to be manipulated. Every person reading this thinks the manipulations I described apply to other people, the stupid people, the brainwashed people on the other side. That certainty is itself a manipulation. The moment you believe you are immune is the moment you become most vulnerable.
EXCELLENT!!! True and extremely frightening............
https://open.substack.com/pub/meidastouch/p/shame-on-cnn-cbs-and-all-of-them?r=vi7e0&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay
I think I have an idea- what do you think?? Instead of calling our representatives over and over, I’m going to choose five red state GOP senators and email them 50 times each of the last murder and tie up their social media! It’s cold outside Minnesota- give it a shot, let’s rock and roll!
Great idea. We all should! Thanks!
The four current Republican U.S. House members representing Minnesota are Brad Finstad, Tom Emmer, Michelle Fischbach, and Pete Stauber.
Also protest at Fox. To their donors.
Targeting Fox advertisers one by one with a letter/email/Facebook/Instagram barrage of postings, protests outside their corporate offices AND a nation wide boycott would also be effective.
Thanks for the info. We ALL need to get. them out--and NOT wait until November. It will definitely be too late then.
They may reject your email if you do not live in their state. I cannot aven contact a state rep by email if I am not in his district.
Please, please, please contact Idaho’s disgusting Senators and House Representatives- they are card-carrying 2020 election deniers and 100% fotus loyalists, not loyal to their constituents. They have a deaf ear to me and usually add legal mumbo jumbo in their answers; maybe you can get them to listen to you.
Senator Crapo (takes months to reply) (202) 224-6142
Senator Risch (202) 224-2752
Rep Fulcher (202) 225-6622
Rep Simpson (202) 225-5531
Have heard variations of this forever, primarily to dissuade people from voting or to vote for some third party candidate. In our system of democracy, how we 'count the votes', It is extremely difficult for a third party candidate (or 'independent') to win. It has happened, but the usual result is to enable the party you MOST want to defeat, to win.
The fundamental premise is that there is no difference between the two parties, and that everyone is equally corrupted by donations. Here is a clue, actually look at the dollar amounts donated by WHICH corporations to which candidates. When you get into the specifics the claims that "both parties are funded by the same billionaires" starts falling apart. Look at what the parties actually vote for. Look at the specifics of what those laws do. Do NOT look at the opposition party for information on which side stands for what, unless they bring FACTS that you verify.
Objectively Trump is BAD. Objectively Trump LIES most every sentence he speaks. Objectively Trump has committed more crimes in a month than every prior president did in their entire lives. Objectively, the vast majority of Republicans in congress have supported Trump and allowed his violations of the law and the Constitution to go unchallenged.
Are Democrats perfect? by no means, but this appeal to 'Absolutes' is like declaring that since a mouse and an elephant are both smaller than the moon, they are therefore the same size.
If you want to get the change you want, vote for the party whose policies AND track record comes closest to what you want. Then push them to go further. Voting for neither, or voting for a third party candidate that will not win, thereby increasing the odds the worst party wins is doing exactly what the poster wants. Because the people supporting the other side are not listening to such noise, and they win when you don't vote. And you lose, because you demanded perfection.
Agree here. Wanting perfection will get you nowhere. Work to get the leaders that more closely align with your vision. Politics is a long game and hard. I’m just hoping that trump doesn’t last 2 more years, cause I don’t want to lose this country.
And that takes everyone with a functioning brain to VOTE Democrat.
I hope he doesn't last two more days!
This explanation is exactly right. Douglas describes the politics we live with. We vote for the better party (Democrats) and make them do more. And reform the systems that are weak and can be exploited. We have to vote but also do more than just vote and forget until the next election.
Hi, I've followed you. I look forward to following you back.
You should hear what the republicans have to say about you, it’s basically a 180 from everything you’ve written because they’ve been exposed and radicalized by media that only points out the democrats sins while never mentioning any from their own party or spinning them to be virtuous. And guess what, you experience the same, just the opposite. The media plays both sides like a fiddle, activating them with anger and keeping them engaged and clicking and seeing red, hating their neighbor.
As for voting, here are two alternatives to fix the system:
Why Your Vote Doesn't Count: https://youtu.be/s7tWHJfhiyo [6:30mins]
The Mathematically Superior Voting System: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y3jE3B8HsE [4:26mins]
Just freakin' vote for DEMOCRATS. Not perfect. Tough shit. We get thing done that help us working people. Once we are in a position of power, we can afford to move back to the Left ( you know the goal posts have been moved Right, right?) But the Ivory Tower people refuse to vote for anything less than PERFECT. And why do they feel this way? Because the (conservative owned) MSM tells them nothing about what Democrats accomplish. I'm so sick of Libertarian and Third Party people costing us elections. Then there's the 'I'd never vote for a Woman' crowd. They should all just move to Iran.
And then there is the "I won't vote at all" crowd. Assuming they do not want to live in the Fourth Reich, they need to get to the polls and vote Democrat.
And your elections need to be verified. Rigging has become endemic.
Actually I have watched the other side. I am trained professionally in logical thinking and dealing with reality. I am also by nature a follower of the teachings of Jesus. I can usually only watch a limited amount of the right wing media before having to stop because I had to take time to sort out all the assumptions, all the verifiable lies, all the hate, all the innuendos and assumed guilt by association. I have studied Trump's speeches. I took particular pains to study one of the defense arguments in his first impeachment and found it to be nothing more than an appeal to emotion based on repeating certain words together.
I do agree, they say the same thing. This is known as 'projection'. I am not concerned with the various host's opinions, I am concerned with facts, with reality, with honest arguments and positions based on something other than hate or fear.
Yes, the left certainly talk about various fears, which is unsurprising when Trump objectively does horrible things, from his own mouth. When I watch videos, from multiple angles. When I watch the same tired highly edited video for months showing 'Portland burning' when there was no evidence of it being REMOTELY as bad as depicted.
When Republicans cleanse themselves of Trump and his ilk, and do penance for a decade or so, I will consider them redeemed. Until then... there is a reason we put criminals in jail.
Question, why would I trust YOU and follow links that you provided? "youtu.be" is not "youtube".
I do support 'instant runoff' elections, and they are growing in popularity, as they allow for the viability of third party candidates. If you were to simply push for money out of politics and instant runoff elections, you would have more credibility. The rest of your rant is not helpful to any real solutions.
Question, why would I trust YOU and follow links that you provided? "youtu.be" is not "youtube".
It is youtube, they have multiple domains, that is just the shortened version for sharing. Here are the longer ones, the videos come from CGP Grey - one of the best educators on youtube - and they are excellent:
Why Your Vote Doesn't Count: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7tWHJfhiyo [6:30mins]
The Mathematically Superior Voting System: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y3jE3B8HsE
As a fellow Jesus follower, you may like this:
The Sermon on the Mount, Excerpts from an Entrancing Analysis, Part 1
Over 2,000 years ago, on a quiet hillside in Galilee, something happened that would echo across every generation. The wind stirred through the olive trees. A crowd gathered, restless, farmers, mothers, zealots, beggars, all drawn by rumors of a man unlike any other.
Not a king, not a rabbi like the rest, not a soldier or a prophet calling for war, but a carpenter from Nazareth, a man who would speak, and the world quietly, irrevocably would begin to turn. And then he sat down. No throne, no platform, just a rock and a voice.
And with that first word, blessed, the ground beneath the old world began to crack. What followed became known as the sermon on the mount. But it was never meant to be just a sermon. It was a revolution of the heart, a collision between heaven's values and earth's assumptions. And if you really hear what Jesus said that day, it will challenge your ideas of strength, success, justice, even what it means to follow God.
So why does this message still matter? Because in a world like ours filled with anxiety, division, betrayal, and noise, Jesus didn't just teach us how to live. He revealed the kind of people God calls blessed. And it's not the rich, the powerful, or the loud. It's the poor in spirit, the peacemakers, the ones who mourn, the merciful, the forgotten. You're about to see why Jesus said that the meek, not the dominant, will inherit the earth, and how that one phrase still breaks every rule the world believes about power.
What Jesus taught on that hillside was meant for you right now. And the question is no longer whether you've heard his words, but whether you're ready to live them. He opened his mouth and began to teach them, saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
With that one sentence, Jesus overturned everything the world thought it knew about blessing. In that moment, Matthew 5:3, Jesus wasn't just giving comfort. He was redefining reality because the crowd that stood before him had lived under Roman oppression. They had been taught that blessing looked like wealth, status, or religious perfection.
But Jesus looked at the broken, the outcast, the humble, and called them blessed. Blessed are the poor in spirit, not the arrogant or self-sufficient, but those who recognize their deep need for God, the ones who come to the throne not with trophies, but with empty hands.
Jesus says that's where the kingdom begins. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5. Now, this is where the crowd likely froze because meekness was not a virtue in that world or in ours. It sounded like weakness.
But in Jesus' kingdom, meekness is controlled strength. It's the waror trained to move only at its master's command. It's having the power to retaliate and choosing instead to love. Then Jesus begins to describe the kind of people who not only receive grace but reflect it, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers.
He paints a portrait of a kingdom citizen not defined by domination but by transformation, not by outward power, but by inward purity. And just when it seems like blessing means comfort and reward, Jesus drops the last line. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. Matthew 5:10.
Blessed not despite the persecution, but in it. Because when you live like this, you will not fit the world system. And that Jesus says is exactly where the kingdom begins to shine. ...
[And here he completes the Law of Moses]: You have heard that it was said to those of old, "You shall not murder." But I say to you, Matthew 5 21. Here it is, not a change in the law, but a piercing of the heart behind it. Jesus says that anger, the kind that simmers and stews, is the root of murder. That insults and bitterness are not lesser sins, but early signs of a life disconnected from love.
In other words, it's not just about what your hands do. It's about what your heart harbors.
And he doesn't stop there. You have heard that it was said, "You shall not commit adultery." But I say to you. Matthew 5 27. Now he addresses lust. Not just the act, but the intent, the glance that lingers, the imagination that wanders. He isn't adding rules. He's revealing how deeply holiness reaches. not to restrict us but to set us free from the things that silently corrode our souls.
Jesus is peeling back the layers. And in doing so, he shows us that God's law was never meant to be just behavior management. It was always about love, love for God and love for people. That's why he says, "Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:20.
That would have landed like thunder. Because the Pharisees were seen as the gold standard of righteousness. But Jesus is pointing to something higher. Not more rules, but more depth. Not stricter performance, but deeper surrender. This is not a heavier burden. It's a different kind of righteousness. The kind that only begins when we stop trying to impress God and start letting him transform us from the inside out.
Now Jesus says something that doesn't just stretch the mind, it confronts the heart. You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. Matthew 5:43-44. This isn't a metaphor. He means it. In a culture built on honor and revenge, where Roman soldiers could strike you with impunity and the Zealots dreamed of violent revolution, Jesus wasn't just challenging personal grudges. He was undermining the very system of retaliation that defined their world. and ours.
Because if we're honest, loving our enemies is still the command we avoid. It sounds beautiful until it costs something. Until the enemy has a name, a face, a memory, until forgiveness feels like injustice, until blessing the one who hurt you feels like betrayal.
But listen to what Jesus says next. That you may be children of your father in heaven. Matthew 5:45. This isn't about being nice. It's about becoming more like God. Because our father, the one we claim to follow, sends his reign on the righteous and the unrighteous. He gives breath to those who praise him and to those who curse his name.
His love is not reactive. It's redemptive. And that's the model Jesus gives us. Not weakness, not silence in the face of abuse, but a love that refuses to mirror the hatred it receives. A love that breaks the cycle of retaliation by choosing mercy instead of vengeance.
Because anyone can love those who love them. Jesus says even the most corrupt people do that. But enemy love, that's divine. Because Jesus isn't giving us suggestions. He's describing what kingdom people look like. And this is at the center of it. Not just loving our family or friends. Not just being kind to those who agree with us, butlearning how to extend compassion where it's least deserved. Because that's exactly what God did for us
Parts 2 & 3: https://substack.com/@tritorch/note/c-197845098
Nice, But nothing new to me.
I do not hate Trump, but I can recognize something dangerous and take steps to protect myself and others.
I do not hate Trump, but I can spot a con-man, and a liar and a person without any of the standards you just listed.
You do not need to hate in order to oppose, or are you saying that the police can only oppose the criminal actions of those they hate?
I am glad you have found your 'teacher' on Youtube, but I prefer to hear your arguments, not theirs.
Being imperfect, I have difficulty loving Trump when I see him violate the ten commandments, embrace the seven deadly sins.... when he spreads hate and division, discrimination with lies. So I imperfectly rest with not hating him. Perhaps I will consider better of him after he is no longer a danger, when much of his damage has been healed. But I do not think I could ever trust him, no matter how many right wing media channels proclaim him to be righteous.
As an atheist and former christian I dig what Jesus had to say and live my life by those ideals but tell that to the so-called "christians" on the right and they'll tell you you're making it up! Christianity is the most malleable religion ever! It can include anything from genocide to self-sacrifice! That is why I believe god made us …after we made him!
can anyone edit this to get rid of the white use of the word tribe? i’d love to share this but that’s not my word to use
For you Betsy (make sure to credit TriTorch,
Ten Ways the 1% Are Manipulating You Right Now
1) The first manipulation is the illusion of choice. You think you have two parties representing different visions for America but both parties are funded by the same billionaires, vote for the same surveillance bills, approve the same defense budgets, and serve the same corporate interests. The choice you are given is which color tie the puppet wears, not who controls the strings.
2) The second manipulation is emotional hijacking. The news does not inform you, it activates you. Every story is framed to trigger fear or anger or disgust because those emotions bypass your rational thinking and make you easier to control. You are not watching journalism. You are being subjected to psychological operations designed to keep you in a constant state of agitation.
3) The third manipulation is group sorting. The algorithm learns what makes you angry and feeds you more of it until your entire worldview is shaped by outrage at the other side. You are sorted into a group not because you chose it but because keeping you within that group keeps you predictable and profitable.
4) The fourth manipulation is false scarcity. You are told resources are limited and the other group is taking what belongs to you. Immigrants are stealing your jobs. Welfare recipients are draining your taxes. The other party is destroying your healthcare. Meanwhile the billionaire class has more wealth than any humans in history and could solve most of these problems tomorrow if they wanted to.
5) The fifth manipulation is memory holing. Stories that threaten powerful interests get buried or forgotten within days. Exposed crimes result in no consequences. Historical context that would help you understand the present is never taught. You are kept in a perpetual present with no past to learn from and no future to plan for.
6) The sixth manipulation is controlled opposition. The voices you think are fighting for you are often funded by the same interests they pretend to oppose. The outrage merchant on your side of the aisle is playing a character designed to keep you engaged and angry and tuned in while nothing ever actually changes.
7) The seventh manipulation is the Overton window. The range of acceptable opinion is artificially narrowed so that anything outside it seems extreme. Ideas that were mainstream fifty years ago are now treated as radical. Ideas that serve elite interests are treated as moderate common sense. You are not choosing your beliefs from the full range of human thought. You are choosing from a menu they wrote.
8) The eighth manipulation is learned helplessness. You are shown so many problems with no solutions that you eventually give up and accept that nothing can change. This is intentional. A population that believes resistance is futile does not resist. They scroll and complain and feel superior for understanding how bad things are while doing absolutely nothing about it.
9) The ninth manipulation is identity capture. Your political affiliation becomes your identity, and any attack on your party feels like an attack on you personally. This makes you defend politicians and policies that harm you because admitting they are wrong would mean admitting you were wrong, and your ego will not allow that.
10) The tenth manipulation is the most insidious of all: you are manipulated into believing you are too smart to be manipulated. Every person reading this thinks the manipulations I described apply to other people, the stupid people, the brainwashed people on the other side. That certainty is itself a manipulation. The moment you believe you are immune is the moment you become most vulnerable.
thank you so so much!!!
No trouble at all, happy to help.
Why isn't there a massive push for everyone to register as independent?
This! Especially since Elon has your registration info...
That is a good question. I wonder what the pros and cons are for staying registered a democrat (thinking of helping the right candidates during primaries) or independent (so your party affiliation isn't clear). I would like to hear more on that too.
Feel free to copy and paste and use whatever word you'd like, the important thing is to get this out there. The author is not known - i thought it was another substacker but he admitted that is not the case.
ok understood, thank you for the quick response
Betsy: you can copy,paste & edit, but then you wouldn't be sharing the original truthfully. You don't have to "like" every word someone uses, but you do have to respect their thoughts & their written use of them.
lmao i do NOT have to respect everyone’s thoughts and written words if they include colonizer bs
Then, Do Not Share at all if it gets your delicate panties in a twist!
jan, sweetie, someone already edited it for me and i shared it. that’s the difference. you decided to spend your time hating. someone else helped me and i shared important info as a white person without the use of a word i should never use. stop infighting and HELP OTHER PEOPLE, JAN
Absolutely inappropriate Jan. Commenting without respect is the underlying reason Alex Pretri is no longer with us.
She would be respecting herself. Unless you have respect for yourself, it’s rare to have respect outside of yourself…(outside of your circle of control)
bye, Jan!
I agree with you Betsy! Maybe "strong group sorting"
Problem with your theory is both sides are NOT the same. Trump & Republicans are evil & Trump & his regime are the most corrupt in history & are turning America into a fascist country, we will end up like Venezuela ourselves, as they take & take from the people to make themselves & the 1% even richer than they are. Its a sickness, they can never get enough money & power. Democrats may not be perfect but do your homework, check facts of how they vote vs the GOP. Which side actually helps YOU & your family more? Who fights for YOU? Who fights for people to keep their health insurance affordable? Who wants to take care of the disabled? Who wants to keep people in their jobs instead of firing thousands of career government workers? Who fights for people to keep & be in unions & for a fair liveable minimum wage? Who fights for climate change policies & doesn't deny its happening which is causing your home insurance to increase & many insurance cos pulling out of many states altogether? If you can't get properly insurance, you can't have a mortgage! Banks won't allow it. Which party blocks representatives elected by their constituents from entering ICE facilities? They're always talking about "transparency" yet they don't let them in even with a court order from a JUDGE! So which party is shredding the CONSTITUTION EVERY DAY! Which party LIES to your face & tells you to not believe your eyes but to believe what THEY are telling you? Alex Pretti's gun was taken off him BEFORE 10 shots were put into him. He had a legal gun, which Republicans fight for everyone to have. Its was legal to have it & he never once touched his gun! He was shot to death, not 1 bullet, 10 bullets! Alex was trying to help a woman who they brutally shoved to the ground. He was being a gentleman, trying to help that woman, that's all. Bovino saying they have "highly trained" officers! 47 DAYS is highly trained? WHAT? Why was Renee Good shot through her driver's side window multiple times after being shot already from the front? Which party fights for civil rights, women's rights? Which Supreme Court allowed unlimited amounts of money to rule elections & which one gave the "Executive" unlimited power & immunity from any crimes while President? Who took away women's Health care & has forced Planned Parenthood to close? How does treating women as 2nd, or 3rd, class citizens help you or our country? Some far right radical Republicans even talk now about taking women's right to VOTE away! That's a FACT! They say women should "submit" to their husbands on all & every thing! I mean, WTF is going on here? Are those ppl insane? YES they obviously are! Are we living back in the 1700's? The Republicans do want to keep us divided, its easier to do what they want that way. So look at the FACTS & TRUTH, do not listen to the PROPAGANDA party. The parties ARE NOT THE SAME L, PERIOD.
You should see what the left writes about you - they think you are as evil as you see them. See points #2 #3 #9 and #10 for why this is.
All you see is your side’s virtue and their side’s amplified evil. That is all they see of you, just in reverse. This is a playbook, it is as old as time, and it will render us obselete should we fail to recognize amd overcome it.
“Just when you think you’re immune, you become most vunerable”. Here is one reason of many why the right hates you and we all need to get over the sins of both parties and unite or doom will follow:
——
Obama's policy and dire warning on immigration: "Those who enter our country illegally, and those who employ them, disrespect the rule of law. And because we live in an age where terrorists are challenging our borders, we simply cannot allow people to pour into the United States undetected, undocumented, and unchecked. Americans are right to demand better border security and better enforcement of the immigration laws" —President Obama
Why the man said this:
Bloomberg: Headline: Venezuela's Violent Deaths Fall to 22-Year Low on MigrationText: Venezuela's rate of violent deaths dropped to its lowest level in more than two decades following years of massive migration as both criminals and victims fled the nation's economic crisis. —Archived Uneditable Source: https://archive.is/JOaY9
——
“We must learn to live as brothers or we will perish together as fools.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that” —Martin Luther King, Jr.
Those that hate ppl on the left, the ones who accept ALL people are the correct & truthful ones though. We are conspiracy theorists & believe in science. Where would society be if science didn't exist? We are right, the fascist regime who is killing our country in multiple ways are WRONG. Its not more complicated than that!
“I tried to follow the science, but it kept leading me back to the money.”
“When money $peaks, the truth is $ilent.”
There is a reason the US dollar symbol, is a snake wrapped around a rod.
Yeah, OK Buddy. You sound like a lunatic. Science is SCIENCE, has nothing to do with money. Science is science.
You ARE "out there on the perimeter" alright - - way way out there!
This is why I'm an unaffiliated
Ind voter! But I agree with this
COMMENT! However when the scenario reaches up into the higher levels of state,country, and world gov.s. 99% of us would be scared to see&know the full picture, if we could comprehend it?
What's the answer...that's my question?
The solution is to get local, get self-dependent, get the common unity back in community by building webs of resilience with your neighbors, get control of your school boards, mayors amd sherrif's office, and town councils (the last places we still hold all of the cards), get a garden in your lawn no matter how small, a single tomato plant is better than nothing, get a well (water is your most important resource hands down), get ready, get moving, get doing, and, if so inclined, get God.
Detailed:
Don't build a bigger fence to keep our your neighbor, build a bigger table.
The only winning move is not to play their sick game. They thrive on our energy and fear, angst, doubt, and dread they stir in us. The one thing these emotional vampires hate the most is for their manipulation and terrorism to get ignored. Cut down your TV & internet usage by 97%, go local, and all of their terror goes away meanwhile we become stronger as they flail around in angst. Here’s how:
Civilization, goes and old maxim, is never more than three meals away from barbarism—once the food deliveries stop, so does law and order. Therefore, the baseline of preparedness is as follows:
Put all your support behind your local farmers, then become your own. A garden in every lawn should be standard. You can no longer trust anything from a corporation, so cutting out reliance on a retailer is a good place to start thinking about your resiliency. ‘Incorporated’ City water isn’t viable either for its quality or reliability, so wells must be dug (there is no resource more important in your life than clean water, hands down).
Beyond that, begin ending your dependence on their enslavement protocol Federal Notes by creating local currencies and discovering the lost art of bartering, and again start - these cannot be emphasized enough - stitching together webs of alliances with your neighbors for resiliency, defense, and resource sharing (they might grow what you do not and vice versa)—put the “common unity” back in community, and get control of those town councils, mayor and sherrif offices, and school boards (the few places we still hold all of the cards) and get your kids out of them. Finally: stop eating, listening to, and watching things that are bad for your mind, body, and spirit, and, if so inclined, spend a good chunk of your time on your knees each day.
Finally: Fear not. Live your life. Find your happiness. Turn your back on those who would gleefully turn it into misery. Win the game by refusing to play theirs.
All of the above is a recipe for success and if everuone did this, we would take the world back in a groundswell. Let's get to work building a future worth living in, together, because if we do not, Harari & Co (who believe the "Snow Crash" dystopia they are building all around us is a good thing in their sick dark triad mind) will ensure we will not have one:
----
WEF Head Yuval Harari, NYTimes Interview: thinking about all this, puts it this way: “Utopia and dystopia depends on your values.” … The useless class he describes is uniquely vulnerable. “If a century ago you mounted a revolution against exploitation, you knew that when bad comes to worse, they can’t shoot all of us because they need us,” he said, citing army service and factory work.
Now it is becoming less clear why the ruling elite would not just kill the new useless class. “You’re totally expendable,” he told the audience. … “We don’t need you. But we are nice, so we’ll take care of you.” —Archived Uneditable Source (worth reading in full): https://archive.is/rWLoO
"The useless class" is the natural result of the ongoing industrial revolution, with AI being the latest accelerant. It is why Capitalism is inherently unstable and needs major modification at this stage. Without workers you do not have customers. Without customers you don't need workers. This is known as a positive feedback loop (Non-Stable).
But sure, just try and pretend that we can easily transition to a non-technological agrarian society with no real downside. I am an engineer and study medieval history ... it was not pretty.
Looks to me like you are encouraging people to brace for the 'post-collapse' of the world economy. If you have not studied how our world economy works and how dependent we are on it, that may not sound so bad. It's worse.
Even aside from all the damage Trump is inflicting on this nation, that is NOTHING compared to what happens when the economy collapses. If we are LUCKY, the rest of the world's economy will survive (not easily because the US is a key part of it all, and not just talking about money) and we may have a chance to recover... but the same things that affect us affect others as well.
Summary, it will be a mess.
There is a quote I like to use: "It is not a matter of life and death, it is more important than that" This class of problems clearly includes politics, because both sides are NOT the same and never have been.
Democracy works, as long as people believe it works, with or without elections. The power ALWAYS belongs to the people, they just have to realize it and assert it.
The bad guys win when the people hide, cower and tune out, ignore what is going on, because then the bad guys get to do everything they want. This is why the standard playbook is to pit one group against another, such as poor working class people against immigrants. That way nobody is paying attention to all the real damage being done by the rich and powerful.
Solutions:
The solution is to get local, get self-dependent, get the common unity back in community by building webs of resilience with your neighbors, get control of your school boards, mayors amd sherrif's office, and town councils (the last places we still hold all of the cards), get a garden in your lawn no matter how small, a single tomato plant is better than nothing, get a well (water is your most important resource hands down), get ready, get moving, get doing, and, if so inclined, get God.
Detailed:
Don't build a bigger fence to keep our your neighbor, build a bigger table.
The only winning move is not to play their sick game. They thrive on our energy and fear, angst, doubt, and dread they stir in us. The one thing these emotional vampires hate the most is for their manipulation and terrorism to get ignored. Cut down your TV & internet usage by 97%, go local, and all of their terror goes away meanwhile we become stronger as they flail around in angst. Here’s how:
Civilization, goes and old maxim, is never more than three meals away from barbarism—once the food deliveries stop, so does law and order. Therefore, the baseline of preparedness is as follows:
Put all your support behind your local farmers, then become your own. A garden in every lawn should be standard. You can no longer trust anything from a corporation, so cutting out reliance on a retailer is a good place to start thinking about your resiliency. ‘Incorporated’ City water isn’t viable either for its quality or reliability, so wells must be dug (there is no resource more important in your life than clean water, hands down).
Beyond that, begin ending your dependence on their enslavement protocol Federal Notes by creating local currencies and discovering the lost art of bartering, and again start - these cannot be emphasized enough - stitching together webs of alliances with your neighbors for resiliency, defense, and resource sharing (they might grow what you do not and vice versa)—put the “common unity” back in community, and get control of those town councils, mayor and sherrif offices, and school boards (the few places we still hold all of the cards) and get your kids out of them. Finally: stop eating, listening to, and watching things that are bad for your mind, body, and spirit, and, if so inclined, spend a good chunk of your time on your knees each day.
Finally: Fear not. Live your life. Find your happiness. Turn your back on those who would gleefully turn it into misery. Win the game by refusing to play theirs.
All of the above is a recipe for success and if everuone did this, we would take the world back in a groundswell. Let's get to work building a future worth living in, together, because if we do not, Harari & Co (who believe the "Snow Crash" dystopia they are building all around us is a good thing in their sick dark triad mind) will ensure we will not have one:
----
WEF Head Yuval Harari, NYTimes Interview: thinking about all this, puts it this way: “Utopia and dystopia depends on your values.” … The useless class he describes is uniquely vulnerable. “If a century ago you mounted a revolution against exploitation, you knew that when bad comes to worse, they can’t shoot all of us because they need us,” he said, citing army service and factory work.
Now it is becoming less clear why the ruling elite would not just kill the new useless class. “You’re totally expendable,” he told the audience. … “We don’t need you. But we are nice, so we’ll take care of you.” —Archived Uneditable Source (worth reading in full): https://archive.is/rWLoO
Excellent. That applies to every one of us. If this was accepted across the board, the divine among us would shrink. Ty.
That's why we need new parties, right? There are town meetings all around the country thinking of What Ifs? Should we add that to discussions?
Number 9 is the same with religion
You are on to something their brad but it also works in reverse:
Apex Game Theory Meet the Sentient World Simulator: Where A Version of U is Acting Out Ur Life: https://old.bitchute.com/video/RP73kmMz64Vc [12mins]
Don't forget the cult behind the curtain....The Heritage Foundation!
Money from Russia!
Money or leverage of photos of Trump mis-behavior in Moscow hotels.
the Heritage foundation took a big hit a months ago, when Carlson interviewed Fuentes, and a Heritage guy. They all started in-fighting. Cato institute is all fighting among themselves too.
KKK-NAZIS
And ALEC www.alecexposed.com
False. Some Dems are spineless cowards, but most are good people. Your both-sides argument is pure garbage. We’ve tried to get the Billionaire money out of government, but we are always overpowered. The GOP played the long game, taking control of the courts, while we were busy governing and fixing the economic disasters left behind by the Republicans.
You're absolutely right Linda Z. Meidas is cutting off their nose to spite their fast. Yes we do have some terrible dems. But many try to do the right thing, even as I wish they be louder about it
Darn, it’s those billionaires again…
Right now, we are still privileged to have these substacks as truth- tellers and as forums for our solidarity, information sharing, emotional support, etc. It is crucial that, if nothing else, we help financially support these substacks, as well as give small amounts to some of the candidates in 2026. Can you imagine life in The Trump regime without any truth-tellers... I can't - the thought is too stark and horrifying...
A waking nightmare 😫
Yes it is Deanna. You can draw a straight line from this discovery over a century ago:
From the Congressional Record, January 27, 1917:
JP Morgan, Steel, Shipbuilding, and “powder” interests hired 12 high-ranking newspaper execs to determine how to “control generally the policy of the daily press” throughout the entire country.
Answer: They found it was only necessary to purchase the control of 25 of the greatest papers. …the policy of the papers was bought, to be paid for by the month; an editor was furnished for each paper to properly SUPERVISE AND EDIT INFORMATION…. This policy also included the suppression of everything in opposition to the WISHES of the interests served.
----
To this
----
Comcast owns NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, Universal Pictures, and dozens of cable channels. Disney owns ABC, ESPN, Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, National Geographic, and just absorbed most of 21st Century Fox. Warner Bros Discovery owns CNN, HBO, the DC universe, and a sprawling empire of cable networks. Paramount Global owns CBS, Showtime, MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon. Sony controls a massive chunk of the music and film industry. And News Corp, the Murdoch empire, owns Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and newspapers across three continents.
Your local news station that you think is independent? Probably owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which controls nearly two hundred television stations across America and forces them all to read the same scripted editorials. Your favorite newspaper? Bought up by a hedge fund or a billionaire who wanted a mouthpiece. Your streaming service? Owned by one of the six. Your social media feed? Curated by algorithms designed by Silicon Valley billionaires to keep you angry and engaged and clicking.
----
The Game is rigged folks. Time to unite against the liars and looters behind the curtain who care only for more power and money for themselves less for everyone else.
When the right wingers during the GW Bush years bought up and destroyed Knight-Ridder News, it was game over for investigative reporting. Then they even bought the Washington Post. We have to push hard to get the truth out. Reaching John Doe is a nearly impossible task. As long as there's Fox and Friends to stuff his brain.
These are the agents of the oligarchy formed for tyhe benefit if a few dozen men with Donny Despot as their useful idiot.
This feels like sarcasm and is rather inappropriate.
The most relevant post yet!! The greedy billionaires that fund these bastards are the true enemy!?
Look at who OWNS the MSM.
You can draw a straight line from this discovery over a century ago:
From the Congressional Record, January 27, 1917:
JP Morgan, Steel, Shipbuilding, and “powder” interests hired 12 high-ranking newspaper execs to determine how to “control generally the policy of the daily press” throughout the entire country.
Answer: They found it was only necessary to purchase the control of 25 of the greatest papers. …the policy of the papers was bought, to be paid for by the month; an editor was furnished for each paper to properly SUPERVISE AND EDIT INFORMATION…. This policy also included the suppression of everything in opposition to the WISHES of the interests served.
----
To this
----
Comcast owns NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, Universal Pictures, and dozens of cable channels. Disney owns ABC, ESPN, Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, National Geographic, and just absorbed most of 21st Century Fox. Warner Bros Discovery owns CNN, HBO, the DC universe, and a sprawling empire of cable networks. Paramount Global owns CBS, Showtime, MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon. Sony controls a massive chunk of the music and film industry. And News Corp, the Murdoch empire, owns Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and newspapers across three continents.
Your local news station that you think is independent? Probably owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which controls nearly two hundred television stations across America and forces them all to read the same scripted editorials. Your favorite newspaper? Bought up by a hedge fund or a billionaire who wanted a mouthpiece. Your streaming service? Owned by one of the six. Your social media feed? Curated by algorithms designed by Silicon Valley billionaires to keep you angry and engaged and clicking.
----
The Game is rigged folks. Time to unite against the liars and looters behind the curtain.
Yet we do have a weapon. Our vote. While we still have one…
Right after I read this Meidas, I opened the following email:
<https://broligarchy.substack.com/p/death-squads-execute-second-dissident>
"Death Squads Execute Second Dissident
Or what the US press would say if this was happening on the streets of a 'shithole' country overseas" [Carole Cadwalladr]
I guess folks ARE noticing . . .
Thanks
In a way, CNN, CBS, Fox… are the fake news media. Corporate and facial controlled fake news media. Republican could stop all of this tonight. 16 republicans and all of the Democrats could stop all of this tonight if they wanted to!!
Insane and bored billionaires: I’ve followed Meidas for time and that’s their next order of business tackle the huge issue at the “top”
If anyone is interested Meidas inspired me to start doing some of my own work. The billionaire problem is real!
https://open.substack.com/pub/frontierpioneer/p/the-billionaire-problem-how-elite?r=7411k0&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
The sign up link isn't working.
Strange. Do you mean the link to that particular article? Or something isn’t working with my page?
I clicked the other link, in your comment, and it worked. 😊
And the AI and social media they profit from.
thank you so much!!!
Yes exactly - evil billionaires have caused all of this,
all bc they'd rather watch everyone die than pay taxes.
They label peaceful protestors as radical, violent left. Trump regime are doing everything they can to incite martial law and stay in power.
Thank God we have MTN who give us the truth.
The super rich get that way, generally, because they hoard wealth. They are greedy, and there is never enough money to fill that hole in themselves. This makes them easy to manipulate if you are a corrupt, lawless president wanting something from them.
Some of the billionaires are indeed evil, who feel they win if everyone else loses. Others are just victims of their greed, and we should solve the problem for both groups by limiting how much a person can own. Sure, let those with the most have a luxury life, but clearly they do not need billions of dollars to live their best life.
So much for equality ethics and morals
Yes,You are right!
"Three great forces rule the world: stupidity, fear and greed." ~ Albert Einstein
These are the people who are ruining our lives.
https://www.opensecrets.org/elections-overview/biggest-donors
If the people let them.
For decades the Donor Class has enjoyed the majority of the financial returns from the (formerly) booming US economy. And thanks to Citizens United their voices have only gotten louder on the hill. Putting an end to CU would be a great start.
PLEASE keep up your work, Meidas Touch. Your voice is crucial right now
Unfolded people only watch tv😩and they vote!
What is an unfolded person.
Dear Lord! I wrote" older," didn't check before I sent, I was so wound up all weekend. I meant people of my generation, boomers get their news from TV!! LOL
It has been an extremely difficult day. My children and grandchildren live in Minneapolis and I’m quite frankly terrified!
My heart goes out to all of you - from a fellow Minnesotan
🙏❤
Robin, I just thought of you and our conversation a few days ago when I saw this article. It's about celebrities who tip well and some who don't. I saw Billie Eilish as a no tipper, and I'm going to give her a pass if that is true, because she donated 11 million dollars through her Changemaker Program to support climate and food justice, a move that gained significant attention when she called out billionaires for not doing enough during an awards speech in late 2025. Thought you might enjoy this.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/laurengarafano/best-and-worst-celeb-tips
Camille, I just love you. Thank you so much for this. Loved reading about the super generous ones 50-100% tips. Could not love Daniel Day Lewis more than I do."Thank you darling" and a 50% tip. 💕💕💕
I despise Oprah. (Even in the 1990s she was friends with RFK Jr <insert vomit emoji my cheap kindle fire doesn't have. That cheap fuck Bezos> She is the BIGGEST phony ever. I respect her so much coming from a terrible childhood and working hard and becoming a media mogul and a self-made billionaire. I loved her when she first started but the richer she got the more horrorible the stories got. How poorly she treated her staff at her company Harpo, she unleashed Dr Phil and Dr Oz on us, and billed Kamala $1 million for appearing at the DNC. Disgusting. All her bullshit about empowering others. She"s a multi-billionaire sailing the seven seas with Gayle and her billionaire friends on their yachts. I don't begrudge them making money, but be generous and kind. These big tippers in these articles are like that all the time. They aren't doing it to impress or put on a show. It's just how they are. No one would know if it wasn't for articles like these. I'm sure many of them came from humble beginnings and lean times themselves.
I have no idea who Benson Boone is but $1000 tip! What a sweetheart. I don't get Billie Eilish, and I know you told me she donated $11 million somewhere, but one thing has nothing to do with another. "food justice". You're going out to eat, someone is serving you, working hard to earn a living and you can't leave them even $20 bucks? You know who also used to be so incredibly generous? Sandra Bullock. If there was something in a paper about a tragedy or something catastrophic or someone in need? She thought nothing of giving $1 million. Quietly. George Michael too. He deserved angel wings. Mostly everything he gave was anonymously. But another disgusting one to wait staff was "sweet, genial" fucking PHONY James Corden who had that late night show and used to do those great videos singing in the car with lots of celebrities like Adele. He and his wife treated a waitress so poorly at a restaurant for making a mistake on an order that they BANNED him. I don't think it was even over a tip, it was that he was abusive. Famous restaurant and famous owner. Uh uh. Over and out! Don't let the door slam you in the ass on the way out. It made the papers.
Now I'm going to be googling this all night 😂😂🙏❤
Oh, I'm glad you liked it, I thought of you instantly and then how our computers eavesdrop on our conversations!
I was very surprised about Oprah, I would have thought her generous. That million she says she charged for the TV crew, btw, would be the same as someone making 100k shelling out $38 bucks, so not very generous at all. Don't like James Corden, he seems very arrogant so no surprise there.
I keep hoping more celebrities will use their speaking power and money to help democracy, that's why I watch Kimmel's monologues daily, he talks about what Trump is doing every day. The lack of counter messaging really upsets me, there are things that only our side sees and while I don't have significant hopes of Republicans changing their tune, they at least need to know how gullible and stupid they are so if, big if, it affects them, they know just what they did and didn't do to right the world for their kids and grandkids.
Cheap wealthy people are disgusting. Helping others feels so much better than overstuffing yourself with more material things you don't need and makes a big difference to someone else. If the situations were reversed, how would they like struggling for bare necessities? Hope there's justice here, now or afterwards or maybe they get reincarnated like someone they screwed over, that would be sweet.
Anyway, thanks for your sweet comment and I'll certainly keep you in mind for future articles. Take care!
I tried to send you the link in the article highlighted in blue last night but I couldn't copy the entire link. about the other cheapies. Liz Taylor and Richard Burton. $1.00 😱
Billy Joel. I think the minimum 20% What a disappointment.
Elvis, the King. $5000.
And of course, as I told you, the winner...JLo😂 Naomi Campbell who was one of the models who wouldn't get out of bed for less than, $10,000 a day, probably because she was on her back half the time with the rich Russian Oligarch boyfriend and I think ran in Epstein's circle too.
My mother used to say "if they don't get it in this life, they will in the next" but since no one has ever reported back, I want to see it in the only life I think I'm getting...this one.
Yes Camille, I so enjoyed to talking to you. I haven't looked out my window since this morning with the snow...hang on...several inches...but nothing like the time years ago when I tried to cross my street to get to the deli on the other side and couldn't because it came up to my thighs. Stay safe and warm. You're here and so am I. We will talk again! 😘
Thanks for your reporting. I was absolutely disgusted that CNN aired Kristi Noem’s entire press conference where she fabricated the entire incident today. BTW — new subscriber here.
Welcome. Glad you found MTN
Kristi Noem is a rehearsed liar and keeps spouting the same garbage every time ICE violates the law. She is brought out for justification purposes. But nobody is buying the lies except gullible MAGA. She, DT, Miller and all the many sycophants will go down in historical records as the worst traitors we have ever seen.
I was disgusted with Jake Tapper and the coverage he was giving. I can’t even stomach watching that network anymore. Video doesn’t lie and there are now many angles to show what truly happened.
Imagine the things they've done that didn't get captured on camera! I'm starting to think that we have death camps. We definitely have a gestapo. I'm terrified!
There’s virtually no oversight on detention centers. The few elected officials who managed to tour one of the places spoke of inhumane living conditions, maggots in the food, and little to no medical attention for detainees-the description fits my criteria for a concentration camp well enough-of course, out right brutality was concealed, but I have no doubt it is employed, considering what ICE is capable of on the streets, in public, in broad daylight.
I suspect some of those little kids that are in detention with their parent will be trafficked into sexual slavery. I believe it is a pretty good money maker: and that this occurred during the felon's first term as well, when he demanded children be separated from their parent. :( This country and magas do not protect children...they protect the offenders. :(
Central Minneapolis is one.
That’s not true. Tapper had McCabe on and they destroyed the regimes narrative. I’m no fan of cnn but they stepped up this time
That's right Sherry. He and Erin Burnett went on for hours showing multiple videos and bringing in experts who disputed DHS
I’m glad to hear that.
This was very early following what happened. I’m all for accurate non biased new sources which definitely appear to be nonexistent but the left and right are so far apart it’s disgusting. On many occasions I’ve had to flip the channel due to their cow towing. The last 2 years have not been what I’ve come to expect and trust of them.
Jake tapper … flushed his reputation down a golden trump crapper.
CALL YOUR SENATORS and REP NOW (leave a voicemail) and DEMAND that Trump be * Impeached * Convicted * Removed.
Mine have already filed suits and impeachment articles. And I can proudly say not one of our Oregon reps voted for that damned bill. Keep pushing, people.
I may have to move to Oregon. Beautiful country with it sounds like beautiful with Representatives that vote for the voices of their constituents.
Nice to know there are some elected folks that are honest and fighting. I've not had representation since Anne Richards left the governorship in Texas. The people running for office here, join their name with the felon, and, due to gerrymandering, they don't have to worry about a non-maga winning. I'm hoping they are wrong, but they probably are not. :( Too many magas living in rural areas that only listen to Fox.
I look at houses in OR and WA and dream of moving away from the red area and state that loves this regime. Since I'm old, I'll probably die here, as a 2nd class citizen. Everything I fought for in the last 50 years has been overturned or is in the process of being destroyed. Wish people had listened in '15 that he was a danger to us all. :(
Sorry to here your situation in Texas.
Texas senators are NOT listening! They are hiding while they spend their super pac money and insider trading stock buys!!!
They haven't listened for decades. :( And, they no longer have to worry about being elected, due to the over-gerrymandered cheating. :(
I called mine today- I’ve had enough of this!!
1-202-224-3121 just ask by name or state
Thanks for that Pam
202-224-3121
how about add Imprisoned???? I contact Cancun ted and do-nothing cornball in TX every week multiple times to no avail.
What about MS NOW? When watching them and CNN on a split screen, they certainly put CNN to shame.
MS NOW has been on the scene all day. Clearly not holding back.
I usually have MS Now on all day once the Kneebenders Joe and Mika are off of the air!
Yeah. They blew it when they kissed the "ring".
I was just saying that too...
MSNOW and Medias Touch are the only sources I trust. I left CNN a long time ago. Now CBS. The sad thing is, MAGAS/repubs NEVER hear the truth from their news sources. Truth telling never happens. They are lies and lies and propaganda. Thankful there are a few sources out there to get the truth and correct information!!
I never watch mainstream news! It’s a waste of my time! If I want the truth, I know where to go!!!!!
Yes, I have given up on corporate news. Independent news is my first go to now for truth.
https://www.memberstatuscoup.com/home FYI in case you dont kn about them
I’m with you as well, I don’t watch mainstream news, MeidasTouch and the Substack providers are where I get the truth from!
Add Status coup to that list if not on it already
https://www.memberstatuscoup.com/home
Wow, I must have extraordinary eye vision, because I saw 5 different videos from 2 different points of view, and I saw NO gun pulled, a man come to the assistance of a woman on the ground, him being tackled, pepper sprayed, beaten, his gun removed by a man in a gray coat and then shot.
Maybe I can get a job as a reporter since I seem to have some sort of acute vision and an uncanny ability to see through bullshit.
Yes, Camille. You have "Anti-Bullshit Vision".*
*Not available at Walmart.
Automatically disqualifies you from any corporate media job. Or GOP position.
😁
Former Asst DA (Manhattan) here. That was murder, pure and simple………
I am literally watching CNN right now and they are in no way questioning if Alex did anything wrong. You ALL need to stand together and work out a plan to continue to push on the Epstein files. Do NOT get divided. That is when Trump and Miller win.
And the most recent video they are showing clearly show an agent pull out his gun without pause and shoots him. No debate.
Not surprised but I’m deeply furious! It takes you back to the day of January 6, 2021 when CNN called the insurrectionists “Trump Supporters" and “Protesters!” They didn’t call them what they actually were! Fuck CNN! Fuck them ALL!
Seems FOX is getting a pass here since they have been behind Trump from the beginning…Only MAGA watches them and believe the lies…My Aunt lives in Mississippi and believes everything they say…CNN has been showing updated footage and the proof that this man was aggressively attacked and murdered…
CBS is the "new" Fox. The MAGAts will be glued to them soon enough! CNN is too late! I stopped watching them after Jan 6.
I don’t agree because even a member of Meidas, Adam Mokler was on CNN’s Abby Phillips which has a panel of Democrats and Republicans giving point of view about present day subjects…He was spectacular in his view against the comment from a Republican…You have your opinion and I have mine but I do go to Meidas for details…
I’m so sorry that I can’t support you financially right now - as soon as I can, I will!!
I was going to say same thing
I saw CNN parroting the regime spin at 6pm live! By that time it was damn clear that Alex wasn’t waving a gun at ice. So many videos going viral all afternoon clearly show what occurred which was basically an execution. I’m so disgusted I could spit nails.
So was ABC - Same fucking parrot! LOL
Same.
Yes - so disgusted with CNN lately. Anderson Cooper should be ashamed to still work for them. Only MSNOW has any balls at all with what's going on now.
Cooper is one of the most privileged people in this country. He doesn't care about anyone. He's a fraud too.
Agree completely, our MSM is absolutely complicit