Slow day here in the coal mines. What’s on your mind? Is there anything you think I should be paying attention to that I’m not? Those of you who don’t have paid subscriptions, here’s an excellent opportunity to do so. You will get access to all my paid posts, you’ll be able to join in with the comments, and you’ll be able to peruse my archives at your leisure.
The subject has popped up in comments streams before, but I’d like to see something written that truly examines how the Second Amendment as interpreted by SCOTUS, has overwhelmed the First Amendment stifling protests and increasingly expression contrary to right wing dogma. It has also
Imposed on the Declaration of Independence assurance of the pursuit of happiness (I now have to check myself in the presence of legally carried guns, etc). I think the awareness is there but there is not enough in literature that discusses and defines Second Amendment oppression of freedoms.
Well, What's on my mind tonight is the Supreme Court. It is an anomaly among our otherwise democratic institutions: a presidential appointee to the Court needs only the approval of a Senate majority to begin a lifetime on the Court. That process is glaring anomaly among our otherwise democratic institutions. Presidents tend to appoint young ideologues to the Court rather than accomplished jurists. Learned Hand, perhaps our most renowned judge, was never appointed to the Court.
The Court sabotaged Reconstruction just a few short years after the Civil war ended. It took nearly a hundred years for us to partly unwind that travesty.
The court stepped in and declared George W Bush president even though subsequent forensic analysis proved that Bush did not win the election and should never have swerved as President.
The Court effectively granted personhood to corporations.
With its Citizen United and related Opinions the Court effectively legalized bribery of elected officials.
More recently the Court revoked women's right to decided for herself to continue a pregnancy.
I will stop there.
The Supreme Court is a dangerous anomaly in our democratic system of government. It is out of control, the justices have way too much power and are abusing it.
I would like to hear some ideas about how we fix this. Any suggestions ?
GIFT IDEA!! A subscription is the perfect Christmas/Hanukah/Kwanza gift for a high school or college student in your life. Actually, it is perfect for any of us with half a brain who would be enriched by having Lucian fill in the other half.
Nov 28, 2022·edited Nov 28, 2022Liked by Lucian K. Truscott IV
I'd be interested in knowing where all these young shooters are getting the money to buy all the guns and ammo they come to these public spaces just dripping with. I didn't have that kind of cash or access to credit cards when I was that age! Every time there's a news report on how many AR-15s and Glock pistols and hundreds of rounds of ammunition some bozo psycho kid brought to a school or store or club or wherever, I think, "How did he BUY all that?"
With regards to the Second Amendment, I would like to know why the "Originalists" side step the phrase "A well Regulated militia." I think if you to have an assault weapon, join the National Guard.
I am not anti gun, but I think guns should be licensed similar to motor vehicles. There should be mandatory training, qualification and liability insurance requirements. Their should also be mandatory safe storage requirements to prevent children and anyone not "licensed" from gaining access to them.
I asked our good pal MTG what she'd ask for, and she wrote back in crayon: "What this country needs is a full reveal of the menace of the Jewish space lasers that are zapping us with Covid vaccines from the Moon -- and why the Commie Socialist Hippie Democrats from Mars are behind this so they can turn our babies into drag queens and then devour them."
I'm hearing that some republithugs think Donny shouldn't run again because he can't win. That's a start but I'd be much happier if they were saying he can't run again because he shouldn't win.
Nov 28, 2022·edited Nov 28, 2022Liked by Lucian K. Truscott IV
I love all the political coverage and insights you supply. But to me, the massive elephant in the room is the climate crisis. Given that most of the world understands it's a crisis and requires immediate, BIG action, why for example did the U.S. representatives to COP 27 sign on only for another *voluntary* loss and damage fund to compensate developing countries for the extremely destructive climate-driven disasters they are now experiencing (such as massive floods of one third of Pakistan) BUT those U.S. representatives and other developed countries refused to tie it to a commitment to reduce the use of fossil fuels. Part of the answer is revealed in a recent New York Times article, "Inside the Saudi Strategy to Keep the World Hooked on Oil" (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/21/climate/saudi-arabia-aramco-oil-solar-climate.html) which details the comprehensive and relentless lobbying campaign by the Saudis to sabotage meaningful action on climate change. Because money. But what else is going on here? I want to see all the inside dirt on who exactly, in addition to the Saudis, is selling down the river our children, our descendants, all our coastal cities, our glaciers, our crops, our coral reefs, our peace, plenty, and water supplies, and all the species that have survived to the present and are barely hanging on, on this our one and only fragile blue-green home. Whoever it is, they are committing crimes against humanity and the planet, and they need to be outed by name, in full detail. Thanks!
You can always write about your early years in NYC. We are the same age & your stories are the stuff of my dreams at that time in my life. I even interviewed with the CIA as a senior at the U of Ala in 68. I ended up w/ great adventures in Europe & Saudi Arabia but NYC will always be the dream. Barefoot in the Park said it all.
Help us better understand how Christianity is being weaponized to further ultra right-wing causes. They pretend like their main issues are abortion and un-biblical issues like racial equality and gay marriage, lamenting the erosion of our “American religion”. They’re happy to turn a blind eye to pure-evil despots who claim to be Christian (some of their sheeple claim Trump is odious but sent by God!). But the real agenda is that Xtian Nationalists want to give rich white men total control, they have loads of $$$ to spend, and can easily dupe and milk their poorer followers for every penny they’ve got.
Several fine books have been documented this, most recently by Katherine Stewart (The Power Worshippers), but it’s not a connection that is being made in the media. Most people have no idea.
Lucian, I so appreciate your focus on the challenges we have ahead of ourselves to bring us together as a citizenry focused on caring for each other rather than trying to find ways to assault our differences. As I watch and read the comments on guns, I am also stunned by the report on how Chechs have decided to both agree that all citizens can own guns and still have an ability to oversee the responsible ownership of these. What do we do to try to change the conversation from taking away guns to owning them responsibly and assuring that individuals who are dealing with serious mental health challenges are protected from owning them? I am not a person who believes we should all own guns. On the contrary! I abhor guns. But given the politically charged discussions about guns, I wonder if we could find a way to talk about owning them and having a responsibility for having them safely. So maybe I am just deluded. So depressing to see the prevalence among folks who are clearly dealing with mental health problems that are not solved by having a gun. Have we lost our ability as a society to deal with broader issues of health and safety rather than positions on self centered rights of ownership?
To me the most under covered story about the Russia v Ukraine violence is the violence Russia is inflicting on its own soldiers. Their conscripts are so poorly equipped they are like zombies and dying of hypothermia. They send wave after wave of bodies against highly defended non strategic targets. The total contempt they have for their own soldiers is worse than what they are doing to Ukrainians. Injustice is injustice even against Russians
The subject has popped up in comments streams before, but I’d like to see something written that truly examines how the Second Amendment as interpreted by SCOTUS, has overwhelmed the First Amendment stifling protests and increasingly expression contrary to right wing dogma. It has also
Imposed on the Declaration of Independence assurance of the pursuit of happiness (I now have to check myself in the presence of legally carried guns, etc). I think the awareness is there but there is not enough in literature that discusses and defines Second Amendment oppression of freedoms.
Well, What's on my mind tonight is the Supreme Court. It is an anomaly among our otherwise democratic institutions: a presidential appointee to the Court needs only the approval of a Senate majority to begin a lifetime on the Court. That process is glaring anomaly among our otherwise democratic institutions. Presidents tend to appoint young ideologues to the Court rather than accomplished jurists. Learned Hand, perhaps our most renowned judge, was never appointed to the Court.
The Court sabotaged Reconstruction just a few short years after the Civil war ended. It took nearly a hundred years for us to partly unwind that travesty.
The court stepped in and declared George W Bush president even though subsequent forensic analysis proved that Bush did not win the election and should never have swerved as President.
The Court effectively granted personhood to corporations.
With its Citizen United and related Opinions the Court effectively legalized bribery of elected officials.
More recently the Court revoked women's right to decided for herself to continue a pregnancy.
I will stop there.
The Supreme Court is a dangerous anomaly in our democratic system of government. It is out of control, the justices have way too much power and are abusing it.
I would like to hear some ideas about how we fix this. Any suggestions ?
GIFT IDEA!! A subscription is the perfect Christmas/Hanukah/Kwanza gift for a high school or college student in your life. Actually, it is perfect for any of us with half a brain who would be enriched by having Lucian fill in the other half.
I'd be interested in knowing where all these young shooters are getting the money to buy all the guns and ammo they come to these public spaces just dripping with. I didn't have that kind of cash or access to credit cards when I was that age! Every time there's a news report on how many AR-15s and Glock pistols and hundreds of rounds of ammunition some bozo psycho kid brought to a school or store or club or wherever, I think, "How did he BUY all that?"
You are the point of our spear, Lucian; your deeper dives both supplement and complement.
With regards to the Second Amendment, I would like to know why the "Originalists" side step the phrase "A well Regulated militia." I think if you to have an assault weapon, join the National Guard.
I am not anti gun, but I think guns should be licensed similar to motor vehicles. There should be mandatory training, qualification and liability insurance requirements. Their should also be mandatory safe storage requirements to prevent children and anyone not "licensed" from gaining access to them.
I asked our good pal MTG what she'd ask for, and she wrote back in crayon: "What this country needs is a full reveal of the menace of the Jewish space lasers that are zapping us with Covid vaccines from the Moon -- and why the Commie Socialist Hippie Democrats from Mars are behind this so they can turn our babies into drag queens and then devour them."
Always looking forward to your next report!
I'm hearing that some republithugs think Donny shouldn't run again because he can't win. That's a start but I'd be much happier if they were saying he can't run again because he shouldn't win.
Just how poorly educated are white Republican voters?
I love all the political coverage and insights you supply. But to me, the massive elephant in the room is the climate crisis. Given that most of the world understands it's a crisis and requires immediate, BIG action, why for example did the U.S. representatives to COP 27 sign on only for another *voluntary* loss and damage fund to compensate developing countries for the extremely destructive climate-driven disasters they are now experiencing (such as massive floods of one third of Pakistan) BUT those U.S. representatives and other developed countries refused to tie it to a commitment to reduce the use of fossil fuels. Part of the answer is revealed in a recent New York Times article, "Inside the Saudi Strategy to Keep the World Hooked on Oil" (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/21/climate/saudi-arabia-aramco-oil-solar-climate.html) which details the comprehensive and relentless lobbying campaign by the Saudis to sabotage meaningful action on climate change. Because money. But what else is going on here? I want to see all the inside dirt on who exactly, in addition to the Saudis, is selling down the river our children, our descendants, all our coastal cities, our glaciers, our crops, our coral reefs, our peace, plenty, and water supplies, and all the species that have survived to the present and are barely hanging on, on this our one and only fragile blue-green home. Whoever it is, they are committing crimes against humanity and the planet, and they need to be outed by name, in full detail. Thanks!
We are approximaste co-evals (1947-48). I really enjoy your stuff. You inspire me to keep my mental edges sharp.
Keep mining that coal seam and enlighten us continually. Thanks for your efforts to build a decent world.
You can always write about your early years in NYC. We are the same age & your stories are the stuff of my dreams at that time in my life. I even interviewed with the CIA as a senior at the U of Ala in 68. I ended up w/ great adventures in Europe & Saudi Arabia but NYC will always be the dream. Barefoot in the Park said it all.
Help us better understand how Christianity is being weaponized to further ultra right-wing causes. They pretend like their main issues are abortion and un-biblical issues like racial equality and gay marriage, lamenting the erosion of our “American religion”. They’re happy to turn a blind eye to pure-evil despots who claim to be Christian (some of their sheeple claim Trump is odious but sent by God!). But the real agenda is that Xtian Nationalists want to give rich white men total control, they have loads of $$$ to spend, and can easily dupe and milk their poorer followers for every penny they’ve got.
Several fine books have been documented this, most recently by Katherine Stewart (The Power Worshippers), but it’s not a connection that is being made in the media. Most people have no idea.
Lucian, I so appreciate your focus on the challenges we have ahead of ourselves to bring us together as a citizenry focused on caring for each other rather than trying to find ways to assault our differences. As I watch and read the comments on guns, I am also stunned by the report on how Chechs have decided to both agree that all citizens can own guns and still have an ability to oversee the responsible ownership of these. What do we do to try to change the conversation from taking away guns to owning them responsibly and assuring that individuals who are dealing with serious mental health challenges are protected from owning them? I am not a person who believes we should all own guns. On the contrary! I abhor guns. But given the politically charged discussions about guns, I wonder if we could find a way to talk about owning them and having a responsibility for having them safely. So maybe I am just deluded. So depressing to see the prevalence among folks who are clearly dealing with mental health problems that are not solved by having a gun. Have we lost our ability as a society to deal with broader issues of health and safety rather than positions on self centered rights of ownership?
There are so many good suggestions from subscribers above...I can’t think of anything to add at the moment. By the way, Ruby has my vote if she runs.
To me the most under covered story about the Russia v Ukraine violence is the violence Russia is inflicting on its own soldiers. Their conscripts are so poorly equipped they are like zombies and dying of hypothermia. They send wave after wave of bodies against highly defended non strategic targets. The total contempt they have for their own soldiers is worse than what they are doing to Ukrainians. Injustice is injustice even against Russians