Random Politics Thread

[Totenkindly]

Absolutely insane.

Recording reveals new details on controversial DOGE employee

Less than three years before Elon Musk tapped him to help overhaul the US government, Edward Coristine, then 17, was the subject of a heated dispute among executives at cybersecurity firm over his alleged leaking of company information.

www.yahoo.com

 

[The Cat]

You'd think with all that money the man could afford to buy a heart or a clue.
Get rid of the unelected illegal President Musk.
Pass it on...​

 

[The Cat]

DOGE has recieved 40 million dollars so far dispite telling the american people they are unpaid. They are fleecing you, they are breaking the world you have built. Where is your national pride now?

 

[Red Herring]

The current cover of Der Spiegel:

"BETRAYED - First SELENSKYI, soon us? The USA's radical turn away from its allies"

 

[Kingu Kurimuzon]

We need mass protests. I’m talking millions. Protests that would make the 2020 Floyd protests look like small get-togethers. Weeks long, no…Months long protests. Whatever it takes.

 

[Kingu Kurimuzon]

 

[Red Herring]

We need mass protests. I’m talking millions. Protests that would make the 2020 Floyd protests look like small get-togethers. Weeks long, no…Months long protests. Whatever it takes.

I am rooting for you guys. Several here on the forum have mentioned the media underreporting the protests. So I checked what I could find. However, the articles I saw all mentioned "thousands" or sometimes even "hundreds" protesting (in Los Angeles in presidents day!). Even those sympathetic to the cause didn't show photos of huge crowds but rather details of a handful of people. Apparently about 1000 people showed up in Boston on presidents day.

Now, that isn't nothing but it is far less than during the first term.

When we recently had protests against the center-right cooperating with the far-right during a vote in border controls there were 250.000 people demonstrating in Munich alone. 160.000 in Berlin. 65.000 in Hamburg. Those are bigger cities than Boston, but still ..

 

[The Cat]

I am rooting for you guys. Several here on the forum have mentioned the media underreporting the protests. So I checked what I could find. However, the articles I saw all mentioned "thousands" or sometimes even "hundreds" protesting (in Los Angeles in presidents day!). Even those sympathetic to the cause didn't show photos of huge crowds but rather details of a handful of people. Apparently about 1000 people showed up in Boston on presidents day.

Now, that isn't nothing but it is far less than during the first term.

When we recently had protests against the center-right cooperating with the far-right during a vote in border controls there were 250.000 people demonstrating in Munich alone. 160.000 in Berlin. 65.000 in Hamburg. Those are bigger cities than Boston, but still ..

here's also a lot of people posting about "the short notice" and people "being afraid to take time off work" But the scuttle but seems to be pointing to adding more protests. People are scared, and theres a lot of conflicting information on the ground, and just people not knowing usually because politics scares them. There's also growing discussions of occupy movements on some of the places I look to see what people are talking about. I'm feeling more optimistic than I was this time last week. But its still an "invisible war" of information. I've been taking deep breaths and plunging into the state sponsored ministry of truth type news broadcasts and they're pulling out every brainwashing propaganda trick in the book. The MSM media manufacturing consent on over drive. It's kept me hopping just getting people I know news of what's actually going on. And the FEAR of "Oh my god its happening here." Is causing a lot of people to double down on denial that things are bad. The other end is the people who are gonna resist acknowledging that they got scammed.

People are more tuned into the idea of class warfare now than many did even six months ago. Its all grass roots, but its there and kicking. As long as Americans keep trying to get the truth out to their friends and families and community networking. Its gonna take the left using the Right's community building playbook. Start putting together bbq's. Combat propaganda with community.

 

[The Cat]

Pass it on...​

 

[ceecee]

Maybe the establishment Dems shouldn't have went to war with the left - literally the ONLY people that know how to handle these motherfuckers. But if I get one more text or person that thinks Indivisible is going to save them or putting a sign on their grass is going to help - I seriously have not one second to spare for these husks.

 

[Red Herring]

 

[Coriolis]

Maybe the establishment Dems shouldn't have went to war with the left - literally the ONLY people that know how to handle these motherfuckers. But if I get one more text or person that thinks Indivisible is going to save them or putting a sign on their grass is going to help - I seriously have not one second to spare for these husks.

So who do you see doing something that is actually effective?

I am actually hoping churches and other faith groups will step up. For all the talk of the MAGA folks wanting to impose a Christian theocracy, their actions do not align at all with the example of Jesus. We've seen people for years trying to avoid dispensing medical care, providing legal services, and vaccinating their kids on "religious grounds". As AOC pointed out in her famous rant, using faith as a tool of hate and bigotry. Time for Christians who really follow Christ - and other faith leaders - to insist on their right to practice their faith by caring for the stranger, the imprisoned, the marginalized.

 

[Totenkindly]

Heard from a friend today that HER friends at the FDA (in MD) who just got fired recently now has been rehired. Which is good for her, although it's hard to tell what will stick long term.

But basically it's just a total chaos clusterf out there right now.
Which I think we all knew.

They are just throwing shite into the wind at this point and seeing what sticks to things.

 

[Virtual ghost]

Pope Francis' health is 'critical,' Vatican says

 

[Totenkindly]

ROFLMAO

Since the e-mail (including the return address) has been posted to the Internet, for the "Report five things you did this week" demand that OPM sent today to fedgov (or we'll supposedly be fired for missing the deadline), there's a ton of people across the United States who do not work for fedgov sending in a list of whatever five items they want to send.

I can only imagine what people are sending.

They MIGHT have installed some kind of screening up for a "Gov" suffix on the senders, but... considering how incompetent prior attempts were, I doubt it.

edit: it's not an uncommon address: HR at opm dot gov.

---

EDIT 2 (Sunday): Reading a lot of responses that non-gov people posted online of the five items they sent to OPM's HR dept. LMAO, it's bringing the feels....

 

[SensEye]

Regarding widespread protests, I think it is still too early. Many Americans still support Trump (not just the MAGA types but in general) and it is only one month in. There is quite a bit of upheaval now, but things are not that serious yet. Trump's immigration crack down and even most of his attempts to get fraud/waste under control are even correct from a policy perspective (although his implementation leaves a lot to be desired). So these thing remain popular with the electorate at this time.

I think the first real bell weather will be when an obvious constitutional violation gets to the supreme court. If they somehow let Trump have his way despite no legal basis (one hopes they won't but we will have to wait and see), it will be time for Americans to become really afraid. Another possibility is Trump ignores the court and then the US Marshal service (or whomever is supposed to enforce the courts will) refuses to act. SCOTUS has already made the president pretty much above the law.

If this kind of stuff happens, people may be galvanized to take to the street in large numbers. Also, all his crazy tariff stuff and his wild inconsistency and unpredictability should have negative economic consequences as well. That will also hurt his popularity. It will all take some time though for the average person to clue in. Months or maybe a year or two even.

The Democrats still appear dazed and confused as well, which is certainly not helping.

 

[Red Herring]

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/feb/21/trump-scientific-research-climate

Yes, forbidding research or even mentioning the words "climate change" will surely make it go away. Like forbidding talk about "women in society" will make women disappear.

This goes far beyond eliminating woke. It is state mandated denial of reality.

Folks, if you are working or planning to work in scientific research - come to Europe.

 

[Virtual ghost]

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/feb/21/trump-scientific-research-climate

Yes, forbidding research or even mentioning the words "climate change" will surely make it go away. Like forbidding talk about "women in society" will make women disappear.

This goes far beyond eliminating woke. It is state mandated denial of reality.

Folks, if you are working or planning to work in scientific research - come to Europe.

As the joke goes: every time you get into an argument with person who believes that the Earth is flat you should tell them that they are currently breathing in atmoSPHERE.

 

[The Cat]

Musk and Trump: The Doom that came to America.​

 

[Totenkindly]

Doesn't change anything in a concrete way, but pretty emboldening.

Wish they would put it a bit lower to make it harder to remove, if it's still there.