And yes I am almost caught up on the crazy news, just another 36 open tabs to go. All on one window for once. Well that was days ago

A federal court blocked Florida’s new drag show law, ruling the state’s effort to bar children from attending “adult live performances,” is overly vague and likely unconstitutional. The decision Friday by U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell comes only a day after another federal court overturned another Gov. Ron DeSantis-backed law prohibiting gender-affirming care treatment in Florida from being covered by Medicaid. “This concern rings hollow, however, when accompanied by the knowledge that Florida state law presently and independently… permits any minor to attend an R-rated film at a movie theater if accompanied by a parent or guardian,” Presnell ruled.  “This statute is specifically designed to suppress the speech of drag queen performers,” Presnell wrote in his 24-page decision. “In the words of the bill’s sponsor in the House, State Representative Randy Fine: (the legislation) will protect our children by ending the gateway propaganda to this evil – ‘Drag Queen Story Time.’” 
Paddycakes2001  Melissiaan hour ago
From the transcript of the court hearing:
THE COURT: The plaintiffs accuse you of invidious discrimination in violation of the 14th Amendment. How do you answer?
STATE’S LAWYER: That’s the point, Your Honor.

mkbear68 4 hours ago
Well, this was expected and they knew it, but it plays to the base and gets donations, but it puts real people at risk.

Gustav220 hours ago

GladysKravitz20 hours ago

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TheDonkeyHotay20 hours ago

The female version of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers

Moms for Liberty is an American conservative organization that advocates against school curriculums that mention LGBT rights, race, critical race theory, and discrimination, while multiple chapters have also campaigned to ban from school libraries books that address gender and sexuality issues. The group began by protesting COVID-19 protections in schools, including mask and vaccine mandates.

Moms for Liberty has been criticized for harassment, for deepening divisions among parents, for making students’ education more difficult, and for having close ties to the Republican Party rather than being a genuine grassroots effort.

The group was labeled an “anti-government extremist” organization in 2023 by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Formation January 1, 2021
Founders Tina Descovich, Tiffany Justice, Bridget Ziegler
Headquarters Melbourne, Florida, U.S.
Area served United States
Membership 70,000

Melissia8 hours ago

It was very obviously discrimination, and it’s obvious from the arguments they put before the court that this has nothing to do with any form of concern for anything other than brazen politics and just flat out hatred of a minority group.

SkokieDaddy – wiener dog dad Melissia8 hours ago

So he earned his hate bona fides AND now that the law is struck down, he gets bonus victim points.

Darreth Melissia7 hours ago

Bingo. This is performative art for their target voting bloc (evangelicals) who vote solid Red in every election like clockwork. Dems don’t have the equivalent. There’s literally nothing on the Left that’s anything like the consistency of the Right when it comes to voter outreach.

What, me worry?8 hours ago

Good. I hope that all these hateful and cruel laws are struck down. The slave states want to make laws that health care workers don’t have to give LGBT people medical assistance at ALL if they have “deeply held” religious beliefs against us. It’s time we are considered to be human beings, not just another theocratic political football. If you prick us, do we not bleed?

The_Wretched6 hours ago

Historically, (like 2 years ago, not 20), law in the US doesn’t let you single out a group, especially a disfavored group, and pass laws against them. Nice to see some vestiges of that core idea are still here.

And note that THOMAS is the #1 cheerleader for getting rid of ‘equal protection’.

And yet republicans never debate about the cost, while claiming $300 for the poorest people with children a month is obscene and we can not afford it. The Pentagon fails every audit, and I just watched where they are overcharging thousands of dollars a piece for a trash can that they use to charge $300 for. Yet Manchin says we need to cut social security. Hugs
Brooklyn Albert18 hours ago
I see the handiwork of the likes of Scott Lively and his ilk, spreading the gospel of hate and their twisted comprehension of history to African, Caribbean, and Latin American countries.

Chucktech Brooklyn Albert18 hours ago

It’s all part of the relentless march of Christian hegemony. Brought to you by the filthy pestilence that is American Christianity

BeccaM kaydenpat18 hours ago

Authoritarian advocates, whatever their form, need some “other” to be dehumanized and oppressed. When everybody more or less has the same race and culture in a country, they then cast about for some other way of differentiating for the purposes of fomenting hate. Sometimes it’s by religion, sometimes by ethnicity, but if those are relatively homogeneous, they’ll go for LGBTQ status or political identity.

For example, in America in the 1950s, they did both of those latter, along with racist bigotry: People perceived to be not-straight and those who were accused of being socialist or communist. All three were targeted for systematic oppression.

Gianni17 hours ago

It stuns me that these leaders are so focused on sexuality and making gay people pay for their sexuality with severe punishments and even death. Why is this even on their minds? Is being gay causing some sort of great turmoil in their countries? Are they trying to undermine their governments? Are they just living their lives like everyone else? So much angst over gay people. He contradicts his own statements in just one paragraph. “Gay Africans don’t exist.” – “kick LGBT people out of Kenya completely,” Well, which is it? Who gets kicked out if they don’t exist in the first place? Screwy like the radical Christians that foment this hatred.

Serene Pumpkin Gianni17 hours ago

Some of them genuinely seem to think that the existence of LGBTQ people threatens the continued existence of the human race, because not enough people are breeding.

Kenya has 53 million people in an area the size of Texas. Underpopulation is not a serious issue there.

You may recall that DeSantis previously cosplayed as Tom Cruise in a gubernatorial campaign ad titled “Top Gov.”

Snownova2 hours ago

He does know Vader eventually kills Obi-wan right?

clay Snownova2 hours ago

Are you implying that DeSantis is directly coordinating with a campaign PAC? Why would a Republican do something so illegal?

carrot festival2 hours ago

Wow, did he pick the wrong character.

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Sarah carrot festival2 hours ago

He’s as evil as Grand Moff Tarkin, but without the charisma.

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Mike in Houston 21 hours ago
This will certainly help Florida schools in recruiting top intellect — both in students and teachers. /s

Dwight Williamson DaddyRay21 hours ago

Why does everyone always assume his hare brained schemes for publicity are gonna work . He lost a lawsuit yesterday .

Rambie Dwight Williamson21 hours ago

Right, this is more about keeping his name in the news cycle and pandering to the MAGA’t base.

JoeMyGod Mod3 days ago
You may recall Eric Metaxas for the time he sucker-punched a passing kid on a bicycle on his way into the White House for a Trump event and then lied about it even after video surfaced. It’s what Jesus would want.

Elagabalus JoeMyGod3 days ago

Punching a kid – It’s what Jesus would want

Read the full article. Andersen, who lost a lawsuit to get on the ballot, has not so far been accused of wrongdoing. As you can see in his campaign clip below, he ran on a promise to end pandemic mandates.
Earlier this week Kennedy claimed that chemicals in drinking water are turning children transgender and that WiFi radiation causes brain cancer.

JoeMyGodMod4 days ago

Really amazing how millions of African kids got hold of poppers.

Hank: NO MORE WoW!!! 4 days ago
“The magnitude of the value of the Bible as a literary work outweighs any violence or profanity which may be contained in the book,”
So, will they do the same for ALL books??? or just the ones, they deem fit???

https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/the-show-must-go-on-judge-sides-with-organizers-in-lawsuit-orders-city-to-allow-drag-show-in-st-george

“Public spaces are public spaces,” U.S. District Court Judge David Nuffer wrote. “Public spaces are not private spaces. Public spaces are not majority spaces. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution ensures that all citizens, popular or not, majority or minority, conventional or unconventional, have access to public spaces for public expression.”

In his 80-page ruling, Judge James M. Moody Jr. of Federal District Court in Little Rock said the law both discriminated against transgender people and violated constitutional rights for doctors. He also said that the state of Arkansas had failed to substantially prove a number of its claims, including that the care was experimental or carelessly prescribed to teenagers.
The law is extremely broad, which actually creates a host of other complications. A group of lawyers previously told The Dallas Morning News that the measure could restrict performances by artists such as Madonna and Miley Cyrus, which often feature sexual dancing.
The text could even affect bachelorette parties, if they involved sex toys or other paraphernalia. The new changes could even impact cheerleading and criminalize sexual conduct between consenting 17-year-olds (17 is the age of consent in Texas).
Movie screenings and art history classes could similarly come under fire. And of course, the law will affect its original target: drag performers, Pride parades, and transgender people just trying to live their lives.
Lawsuits against similar bans are planned or already underway in other states. In Florida, the Orlando outpost of Hamburger Mary’s sued the DeSantis administration last month.

Guy Johnson4 days ago

No more Saturday cartoons…

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Dwight Williamson4 days ago

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Doug1054 days ago

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https://www.propublica.org/article/samuel-alito-luxury-fishing-trip-paul-singer-scotus-supreme-court

Justice Samuel Alito Took Luxury Fishing Vacation With GOP Billionaire Who Later Had Cases Before the Court

Big win today as for the first time in 24 years, a House Republican majority voted to begin impeachment proceedings against a current president.

https://www.wbtv.com/2023/06/23/concord-man-arrested-charged-with-hate-crimes-years-harassing-neighbors/

“Kentucky law prohibits the Attorney General from using or attempting to use ‘his official position to secure or create privileges, exemptions, advantages, or treatment for himself or others in derogation of the public interest at large,’” the letter, which was sent out Friday afternoon and obtained by The Daily Beast, said.
Walters, who was appointed state secretary of education by Christianist Gov. Kevin Stitt in 2020, faced calls to resign in 2022 after it was revealed that a Koch-funded group that advocates for privatizing public schools was paying him $120,000/year.
Stitt rejected calls for Walters’ resignation and attempted to reappoint him again earlier this year, but the state Senate refused to allow him to hold the elected superintendent and appointed secretary of education posts at the same time.
Yves R. Mektin 3 days ago edited
Well, Oklahoma does have the second lowest high school SAT scores in the whole country*, so maybe tots and pears will help.
* West Virginia is the only state that did worse

ConnieHinesDorothyProvine Joe in NM3 days ago

All those states compete to see who can lead the fastest race to the bottom. Apparently, Louisiana has the lowest life expectancy in the country (Hawaii has the highest).

Joe in NM3 days ago

So he doesn’t like the 1961 decision…toots, the SC ruled on this a bunch of times. And don’t throw that ‘found fathers’ shit around, they did NOT. Under gawd my ass. ;(

Thomas Jefferson penned the wall metaphor in a letter to the Danbury Baptists in 1802. He celebrated the First Amendment for “building a wall of separation between Church & State.” The Supreme Court has endorsed this view many times. First in 1878. And then again “in 1947, 1948, 1961 (three times), 1962, 1963, 1968, 1973, 1977, 1982, and again and again in countless concurrences, dissents, and lower court opinions,” according to a recent law review article. The wall metaphor nicely sums up the relationship.

Wintercat Joe in NM3 days ago

“For it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.”

– Thomas Jefferson

Buford Joe in NM2 days ago edited

I thought Article 11 of the 1796 Treaty of Tripoli did a handy job of summarizing what The Founding Fathers™ thought of Christianity in America, since it passed in the US Senate unanimously while being signed by many of the actual founders –

Art. 11. As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility, of Mussulmen (Muslims); and as the said States never entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mahometan (Mohammedan) nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.

rednekokie Joe in NM3 days ago

Not to forget the Treaty of Tripoli – the first treaty entered into by the United States – and having constitutional power — which states that the United States has no national religion.

Per Florida Politics, the “groomers” slur was first popularized by viciously anti-LGBTQ former DeSantis administration spox Christina Pushaw, a registered foreign agent for the nation of Georgia and his current “rapid response” campaign director. Pushaw began pushing the term early last year during the start of the “Don’t Say Gay” campaign.
sfbob  Jack3 days ago
“Groomer.” Noun. Definition (per DeSantis):
1. A person who does something you disapprove of or who says something you disagree with.
2. A person who believes in providing factual, age-appropriate information to children on topics pertaining to sexuality, sexual orientation, gender, and gender identity.

danolgb3 days ago

Remember the meme, “Everything I don’t like are Nazis.” Now it’s “Everything I don’t like are groomers.”

What an insult to victims of real sexual abuse.

weshlovrcm3 days ago edited

There’s something wrong with people who are consumed with “grooming” and “groomers.” Normal people don’t obsess over this vile subject.

dagobarbz, fine Italian shoes weshlovrcm2 days ago

What amazes me is, while they’re howling about grooming, they manage to completely ignore the ones actively doing it and getting busted for it weekly, the churches.

https://www.politico.com/minutes/congress/06-23-2023/house-gop-confederate-name-fight/

The GOP friction stems from a push by Rep Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) who publicly revived the discussion by trying to prevent funding in an energy and water development bill from being used to rename Army Corps civil works projects that are named after the Confederacy or an individual who served in the Confederate military.

“One of the things that is irritating a few of us: a certain member from Georgia is wanting to re-bring up the Confederate base names,” Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) told POLITICO.

Bacon said he told the Georgia Republican that he would “would fight him” on trying to prevent funding from going toward renaming. (Clyde’s amendment doesn’t mention military bases.)

Bacon led that effort in the House to create the process for renaming the military assets.

He noted on Friday that he recounted to Clyde about how African-Americans have thanked him for his work on renaming the Confederate assets. In a separate statement, Bacon added that the issue was settled in 2020 and that he didn’t think it was “wise to re-litigate” it.

“Confederate generals fought for a cause that we know was wrong and violated their oaths to Constitution. Most of the 10 that bases were named for were also terrible generals. … Finally, some were affiliated with racist actions after the war. Most of these bases were named around WW1 and done to placate the Jim Crow elected leaders at the time,” he added in the statement.

Pollos Hermanos ✓ᵛᵉʳᶦᶠᶦᵉᵈa day ago
GOP: “Democrats were the party of The Confederacy.”
Also GOP: “Don’t you dare take away honors to The Confederacy!”

Doug105 Pollos Hermanos ✓ᵛᵉʳᶦᶠᶦᵉᵈa day ago

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Hank: NO MORE WoW!!!a day ago

Being a Fan of the Confederacy means……. (Take your pick)

#1

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#2

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#3

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another_steve Hank: NO MORE WoW!!!a day ago

I don’t know the “official thinking” of American historians on point, but I believe much of what we’re seeing today with respect to the Republican Party is 160 years of simmering resentment by the South regarding its loss in the 1860s Civil War now coming to the surface.

Trump “tapped” into it. “Build the wall” was metaphor for “keep the coloreds out.” His embrace of rabid racists, including neo-Nazis, is a “message received” by the Republican base.

They miss the old plantation days, the good old days. When the coloreds and the women knew their place and there was no “deviance” like drag queens and trans people.

JimmyCinChitown Hank: NO MORE WoW!!!a day ago edited

In Germany, Nazi paraphernalia like swastika flags, et all, as well as neo-Nazi political parties are officially banned by law. (Germany doesn’t have a First Amendment).This is the reason that German Nazis fly Confederate flags. You are known by the company you keep.

RealityBass 2 days ago
Remember when we were expected to believe that Trump was so rich that he would use his own funds to campaign, didn’t need to raise money, therefore he was incorruptible? Good times.

JackFknTwist RealityBass2 days ago edited

What a liar.
He said he would use his own money. Just like everything else about him, – a lie, a scam, a con, a fraud …..from getting someone to sit his exams to his 2016 campaign to his subversion of a democratic election.

His whole life has been devoted to scamming. He has never earned an honest buck. It’s all been about the underhand deal, the stiffing people and companies what they are owed.
Now there is no way around not paying his lawyers.
they won’t act for him without being paid up-front. But Giuliani can fuck off, he’s gonna be hung out to flap in the wind.

The roads to cultural shifts and change….

If you pass (new term is blend in) you are accepted, if not you are rejected. That is bigotry. Hugs

Conservatives Are FURIOUS That Indiana Jones Punched Nazis

@jeffbo8748
1 day ago
The fact that conservatives are angry at a movie for saying “Nazis bad” is really fucking scary. What the fuck is going on?

Chris Christie Argues Against Banning Minors From Transitioning: A Decision ‘Made By Parents, Not By the Government’

https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/x3oNXduD

https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/x3oNXduD

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) this week took aim at Republican governors who want to ban gender transitioning for minors during a Fox News interview.

On Thursday, Fox & Friends host Brian Kilmeade asked Christie, a 2024 GOP presidential candidate, “Your thoughts about the push in Florida and Arkansas to make it illegal to do it for kids under 18?”

“Brian, you know, I just don’t want to see our government getting more and more intrusive in everybody’s life, getting bigger,” Christie replied, adding:

I don’t think anything can replace parents when you’re talking about major decisions that are needs to be made by our children. And I will tell you this. I want all parents out there to think about something. How many other decisions do you want the government making for you in your home regarding your kids? I don’t want any of those decisions made by the government. Parents are the ones who love their children the most, who care about their children the most, who understand their children the most. And parents should be the ones making these decisions.

“So if a 14-year-old comes home and says, I really want to start switching genders, that’s the parent’s decision?” Kilmeade asked.

“I’ll tell you, it’s more of a parent’s decision than it’s a governor’s decision, for goodness sakes, Brian, you really think that Sarah Huckabee Sanders should be making this decision for children in Arkansas?” Christie insisted.

“I love Sarah. I think she’s a great person and a really good governor. But I don’t think she would ever allow the government to substitute her judgment as a mother for their judgment. And that’s what I’m saying. I would want any government official coming in and telling me what decisions I could help my child through and how I should do it. And I want those decisions to be made by parents, not by the government,” Christie concluded.

Watch above via Fox News.

 

U.S. court strikes down Florida transgender health rule

https://www.reuters.com/legal/us-court-strikes-down-florida-transgender-health-rule-2023-06-22/

 
A person holds up a flag during rally to protest the Trump administration's reported transgender proposal to narrow the definition of gender to male or female at birth in New York
A person holds up a flag during rally to protest the Trump administration’s reported transgender proposal to narrow the definition of gender to male or female at birth, at City Hall in New York City, U.S., October 24, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File photo

June 21 (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Wednesday struck down a Florida rule and a statute that banned state Medicaid payments for transgender healthcare, marking the second defeat in two weeks for anti-transgender legislation in the state.

U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle declared the state’s practices invalid, saying they violated the constitutional right to equal protection under the 14th amendment in addition to violating the federal Medicaid statue and the Affordable Care Act’s prohibition of sex discrimination.

The injunction was expected after Hinkle on June 6 partially blocked Florida from enforcing its recent ban on people under 18 receiving gender-affirming care such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy.

U.S. district court judges elsewhere have blocked state laws banning gender-affirming care in Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana and Oklahoma.

Republican lawmakers introduced more than 500 bills restricting LGBTQ rights this past legislative year, passing more than 70, according to Human Rights Campaign. Twenty states have passed laws banning gender-affirming care for minors.

Sponsors of the laws say they want to protect children who are being misled by parents and doctors and might regret their gender transition.

Hinkle in his 54-page ruling said “many people with this view tend to disapprove all things transgender and so oppose medical care that supports a person’s transgender existence.”

“The elephant in the room should be noted at the outset. Gender identity is real. The record makes this clear,” the judge wrote after a two-week trial.

The plaintiffs were two transgender adults, August Dekker and Brit Rothstein, and two transgender minors who filed under pseudonyms.

The defendants were the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) and its secretary, Jason Weida, who did not respond to an after-hours request for comment.

The AHCA had approved Medicaid payments for the plaintiffs, but in 2022 the executive office of Governor Ron DeSantis ordered the AHCA to conduct a new analysis and reversed course. The AHCA “retained only consultants known in advance for their staunch opposition to gender-affirming care,” the judge found.

“The new … process was, from the outset, a biased effort to justify a predetermined outcome, not a fair analysis of the evidence,” the judge said.

DeSantis is running for the Republican nomination for president and has promoted his record of aggressively fighting progressive policies, including LGBTQ rights.

More of the craziness.

“There are tens of thousands of studies that show the horrendous danger of WiFi radiation.” – Robert Kennedy Jr., speaking on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Yesterday Kennedy claimed that chemicals in drinking water are turning children transgender.
This is what the right wing media does now, enrage their thuggish followers to find and attack anyone they disagree with. Brownshirt gang enforcers. We have seen this before in history. Hugs

heleninedinburgh34 minutes ago

I’d just like to point out that kids being trans is not, in fact, bad.

Colonel Fred Puntridge  kuiaratamenai a minute ago

“I never drink water. Fish fuck in it!” –attributed to WC Fields

band💋 boatboy_srq9 minutes ago

“First they came for the frogs, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a frog.”

TomKitten196036 minutes ago edited

Many trans people have brothers and sisters who are cis-gendered and remain so. They grow up in the same environment, drinking the same “toxic” water. It ain’t the water, honey. And it ain’t a “problem” that you can (or need to) solve by throwing your stupidity at it.

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/misguided-republican-hearing-jan-6-rioters-matters-rcna90010

What’s weird is when members of the majority feel the need to hold their own fake hearing. Politico reported:

…Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), joined by a handful of others from the conference’s right flank, hosted an event last week with former Trump acting assistant attorney general Jeffrey Clark, people charged in relation to Jan. 6, defendants’ family members and allies. The event featured a veritable kitchen sink of conspiracy theories as well as rehashed false claims, including that the 2020 election was “stolen” and that the Jan. 6 committee “doctored” video.

Just so we’re clear, this was not an actual congressional hearing. The far-right Floridian, however, wanted it to be perceived as one. Gaetz pretended to be a chairman, recognizing members and witnesses, alerting participants to when their time had expired, and explaining that the “testimony” could be used in official proceedings. (That last part was true but irrelevant: Anything can be used in official proceedings, including the blog post you’re reading now.)

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Hunter M14 hours ago

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The employee told the court the priest urged workers to “get the sins out,” and asked employees if they had stolen from the employer, been late for work, had done anything to harm their employer, or if they had bad intentions toward their employer.
“Juneteenth becoming a federal holiday is a nationalized race hustle. Why do Blacks need their own national independence day? We used to have a red, white, and blue independence day on July 4th. Now, we have one based on the melanin content of your skin.
“These people will not be stopped unless you say no more. Appeasement does not work. It’s a middle finger to the promise of 1776, You are going to have to choose.” – Charlie Kirk, who days ago called Juneteenth “pagan garbage.”

Randy503 StarGmoma day ago

He’s getting more and more extreme. I predict within a year he will be calling for the outright enslavement of black people, and the extermination of all LBGTs and anyone living in poverty.

Octoberfurst Randy50321 hours ago

I totally agree! He is becoming more and more extreme by the day. I’ll bet he is just dying to say “the N word” out loud. Next thing you know he’ll be having a swastika flag in the background and explaining why the Nazis were “misunderstood” and were actually brave Christian patriots. Kirk truly is a miserable POS!

beb Octoberfurst11 hours ago

He’s in a rat race to be the most extreme commenter on the Internet. That’s why he has to become ever extreme. Of course win or lose, in a rat race you’re still a rat.

SkokieDaddy – wiener dog dada day ago

I certainly want a white man to tell me how racist Juneteenth is. /s

Harveyrabbit 🐱a day ago

“Now, we have one based on the melanin content of your skin.”

Riiiight.

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Jonathan  Joe in NMa day ago
Thom Hartmann wrote the other day that after Trump requested the lists of the employees (spies) and had repeated unrecorded conversations with Russian diplomats, Kisylak, and others, the CIA had to pull agents and there was a silence in our intelligence operations, it’s suspected Trump turned them all over to the Russians.
Many were killed, or disappeared.

Niblet58 Joe in NMa day ago

That and a whole lot of other info. He asked for a list of the US spies and I bet you he turned it right over to our enemies in Russia, North Korea, China, etc.

A Washington Post investigation found that more than a year would pass before prosecutors and FBI agents jointly embarked on a formal probe of actions directed from the White House to try to steal the election. Even then, the FBI stopped short of identifying the former president as a focus of that investigation. A wariness about appearing partisan, institutional caution, and clashes over how much evidence was sufficient to investigate the actions of Trump and those around him all contributed to the slow pace.
CaliJABa day ago
Republicans are attempting to do the same thing to our justice system that they did with the media. They cried media bias again and again until it got to the point they started received special treatment. It became unbalanced in favor of them. Now, if Republicans commit crimes the FBI won’t investigate them. That whole fake elector scheme … the FBI won’t do shit about it. If it was Democrats, they would have been charged on day one.

robirob CaliJABa day ago edited

But they received special treatment from the start! All the right wing does is claim victimhood and blame socialist liberal bullies for having to take drastic action based on made up lies like the election was stolen, Hunter Biden’s laptop, Critical Race Theory or Drag Queens, Gays, and Trans grooming children. And when they go against media outlets like Fox News or the FBI they just let the right wing mob call them names without repercussion. Now there’s right wing talk about defunding the FBI and Pentagon departments, and I assume they will just roll over and keep asking for a belly rub from the right wing and afterwards start an investigation into Hillary’s emails or Hunter Biden’s laptop.

crewman CaliJABa day ago

It’s why Comey tripped over himself in a Rush to “go public” with a nothingburger investigation into Hillary right before her election, an act which is widely viewed as costing her the election. And it’s probably why Mueller lacked umph to boldly go where he needed to go

The law is extremely broad, which actually creates a host of other complications. A group of lawyers previously told The Dallas Morning News that the measure could restrict performances by artists such as Madonna and Miley Cyrus, which often feature sexual dancing.
The text could even affect bachelorette parties, if they involved sex toys or other paraphernalia. The new changes could even impact cheerleading and criminalize sexual conduct between consenting 17-year-olds (17 is the age of consent in Texas).
Movie screenings and art history classes could similarly come under fire. And of course, the law will affect its original target: drag performers, Pride parades, and transgender people just trying to live their lives.
San Francisco is definitely facing problems, but you could surely find a similar scene in Miami.
Boreal2 hours ago
Clearly he’s never walked around in Florida.

unsavedheathen2 hours ago

I have lived in Dallas for 25 years(OMG, I’ve lived in Dallas for 25 years) and in that time, Texas has existed under complete Republican domination.

Also in that time, I have seen men defecate on the streets of Dallas and drugs being bought, sold and used on the streets of Dallas. I have seen tent encampments of hundreds of homeless. I have seen those encampments bulldozed. There are beggars on every median at every major intersection citywide.

I don’t know how they keep a straight face when they point at SF and sneer. At least there’s a beach.

TnCTampa2 hours ago

This bullshit about crime etc appeals to the voters, The people that actually go and vote in every election. It also appeals to the independents. The GOP is going to have them so afraid of out of control crime by “those people” that come the election they will run to vote for desantis. Democrats going to have to turn out in even greater numbers than the last election to defeat these people… thats what worries me the most

SKan hour ago

The price of living is out of whack. Rents are way too high. The people the GQP pander to are the same ones who cause the problem. A perfect example of why it’s like this; developers who are based in one city (or country) own blocks of land in other cities and countries. One block = one apt complex, which is of course “luxurious” and overpriced. This means people who actually live in the city don’t have the money or leverage to make their home town better. It’s very complicated. This is a broken down version of of a broken system.

Those amendments, along with a third to evaluate staffing levels within the Defense Department’s so-called diversity, equity and inclusion office, offer an early sign of some of the pending disputes as conservatives target what they call “woke” Pentagon policies.
Specifically, Rep. Mark Alford’s amendments, shared with CQ Roll Call ahead of their formal introduction, would bar DOD from using any fiscal 2024 dollars for its working group aiming to counter extremism or for the deputy inspector general post lawmakers previously created seeking to root out extremism in the military.
Thurgood Stubbs 3 days ago
You have to be a real dipshit to be in a union and vote Republican.

stretchdad Thurgood Stubbs3 days ago

I know of three highly-unionized professions that tilt heavily conservative: firefighters, police, and airline pilots. And I’ve heard them talk shit about unions in other industries even though they share the very same concerns: wages, staffing levels, working conditions, etc.

Perfect exemplars of the “I’ve got mine, fuck you” mentality.

“All we were doing was promoting literacy and providing kids with cute, good stories,” drag queen Juicy Garland said. In the videos, people are yelling, banging on the windows and doing Nazi salutes while holding a sign that says, “defend white communities,” all while a drag performer was inside reading books to families.
The group “seeks to form an underground network of white men who are willing to fight against their perceived enemies through localized direct actions,” according to the Anti-Defamation League’s website. “Off our streets!” NSC-131 members shouted repeatedly. Police at the scene said it was unclear whether or not they were armed. No arrests were made.
The men wearing hats with the number 131, said story hour was intended to “groom” young children, and continually shouted slurs at people walking in and out of the cafe. Teatotaller doesn’t get this reaction every time they host a Sunday story hour, but in November it was swarmed by the Proud Boys while the same guest, Juicy Garland, read stories.

‘Til Tuesday 🎧 Blue Bear DJ 🎸a day ago

The story says police were at the scene but I’m guessing they were reluctant to do anything against their fellow officers.

amandagirl15701 ‘Til Tuesday 🎧 Blue Bear DJ 🎸a day ago

Yep

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Well-funded Christian group behind US effort to roll back LGBTQ+ rights

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/19/alliance-defending-freedom-lgbtq-rights-america

Advocacy groups condemn Alliance Defending Freedom as ‘a danger to every American who values their freedoms’

person holding a pride flag above people's heads

Glaad said: ‘The ADF is simply an anti-LGBTQ group trying to abuse levers of government to push discrimination and keep their warped sense of control.’ Photograph: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

With the US besieged by a rightwing culture war campaign that aims to strip away rights from LGBTQ+ people and others, blame tends to be focused on Republican politicians and conservative media figures.

But lurking behind efforts to roll back abortion rights, to demonize trans people, and to peel back the protections afforded to gay and queer Americans is a shadowy, well-funded rightwing legal organization, experts say.

Since it was formed in 1994, Alliance Defending Freedom has been at the center of a nationwide effort to limit the rights of women and LGBTQ+ people, all in the name of Christianity. The Southern Poverty Law Center has termed it an “anti-LGBTQ hate group” that has extended its tentacles into nearly every area of the culture wars.

In the process, it has won the ear of some of the most influential people in the US, and become “a danger to every American who values their freedoms”, according to Glaad, the LGBTQ+ advocacy organization.

Members of the far-right Patriot Front at a rally in Washington in May.

Through “model legislation” and lawsuits filed across the country, ADF aims to overturn same-sex marriage, enact a total ban on abortion, and strip away the already minimal rights that trans people are afforded in the US.

Under the Trump administration, the group found its way into the highest echelons of power, advising Jeff Sessions, the then attorney general, before he announced sweeping guidance to protect “religious liberty” which chipped away at LGBTQ+ protections.

The organization counts among its sometime associates Amy Coney Barrett, the supreme court justice who the Washington Post reported spoke five times at an ADF training program established to push a “distinctly Christian worldview in every area of law”.

ADF is engaged in “a very strong campaign to put a certain type of religious view at the center of American life”, said Rabia Muqaddam, senior staff attorney at the Center for Reproductive Rights.

“[The ADF campaign] extends to abortion, it extends to LGBTQ folks, to immigration, to what kind of religion we think is America, what kind of people we think are American,” Muqaddam said.

“It’s as dramatic as that. I think we are in a fight to preserve democracy and preserve America as a place where we do tolerate and encourage and empower everyone.”

ADF was founded in 1994 by a group of “leaders in the Christian community”, according to its website. Among those leaders was James Dobson, the founder of the anti-LGBTQ+ Focus on the Family organization who has said the 2012 Sandy Hook mass shooting, in which 20 children and six adults were killed, was a “judgment” from God because of declining church numbers.

Its leaders remain involved in niche interpretations of Christianity. Kristen Waggoner, the ADF chief executive, also serves as legal counsel to Assemblies of God, a church which encourages worshippers to speak in tongues and believes in “divine healing” – the power of prayer – as a medical tool.

Over the past two decades, ADF has been a main driver in dozens of pieces of rightwing legislation and lawsuits.

The organization is currently behind the lawsuit 303 Creative, Inc v Elenis, which the supreme court is expected to decide this month, and which could chip away at LGBTQ+ rights. It’s a case that is classic ADF – a seemingly manufactured issue which the group has managed to chase all the way through the American legal system.

The plaintiff, 303 Creative, is a website design company. 303 Creative has never made wedding websites, but its owner, Lorie Smith, claims her first amendment rights are being impinged because, if she were to start making wedding websites, she would not want to make them for same-sex couples – which would violate Colorado’s anti-discrimination laws.

Another ADF obsession is abortion. It was involved, Muqaddam said, in crafting a 15-week abortion ban in Mississippi – which prompted a legal case that found its way to the supreme court – eventually resulting in Roe v Wade, which guaranteed the right to abortion, being overturned in 2022.

“Alliance Defending Freedom has been instrumental in the dismantling of Roe and the ongoing efforts to eliminate abortion nationwide,” Muqaddam said.

“They enacted a law that they knew was unconstitutional, they enacted it for the purpose of generating case after case after case to push it out to the supreme court until they found a court that was sympathetic to their argument,” Muqaddam said.

She added: “I think that’s exactly what is happening in the LGBTQ context as well. Their goal is to limit individual rights as much as possible.”

The ADF website shows the breadth of its involvement in rightwing culture wars. The organization touts its work opposing abortion, on opposing same-sex marriage and opposing trans rights.

“We advocate for laws and precedents that promote human flourishing by recognizing the important differences between men and women and honoring God’s design for marriage between one man and one woman,” ADF’s website reads.

But Emerson Hodges, a research analyst at the SPLC, said what ADF is really doing is attempting to “undo LGBTQ social and legislative progress”.

“They go under the guise of religious liberty, and religious freedom. What that means, though, is this religious liberty to discriminate and the religious freedom to invalidate LGBTQ individuals,” Hodges said.

Worryingly, there are signs that ADF, and other groups like it, are growing in influence. As Republican politicians and rightwing media fan the flames of an extremist culture war, NBC reported that donations to ADF, which is a registered non-profit, more than doubled from 2011 to 2021.

As it has grown in influence, ADF’s “model legislation” has found its way into state legislatures across the country, as the group attempts to strip away LGBTQ+ rights, and the rights of trans people in particular.

They’ve worked to ban the right to choose, and are in cahoots with other extremist groups to oppress marginalized people

Glaad

“Just about every anti-LGBT legislation that you’ve seen probably in the past decade was probably copied or paraphrased off of a model legislation built by Alliance Defending Freedom,” Hodges said.

“They provide legal advocacy support, litigation and policy models for government officials.”

An article on ADF’s website states that it is a “biblical truth” that “men and women are physically different”, and the organization has duly worked to prevent trans people taking part in women’s sports.

The group sued a school district in Minnesota in 2016, and in 2021 a judge in Connecticut dismissed an ADF lawsuit which sought to prevent transgender athletes competing in high school sports. The same year, ADF backed a lawsuit brought by a teacher in Virginia who had said he would not use a transgender child’s preferred pronouns because that would amount to “sinning against our God”.

In April, ADF, which did not respond to a Guardian request for comment, filed in Oregon on behalf of a Christian woman who wanted to foster children, but said she would not agree to “respect, accept, and support … the sexual orientation, gender identity, [and] gender expression” of a child placed with her, the Statesman Journal reported.

“[ADF’s] obsession with targeting LGBTQ people is unhinged and drastically out of touch with supermajorities of Americans who support LGBTQ people and laws to protect us from discrimination,” said Sarah Kate Ellis, the president and chief executive of Glaad.

“Everyone should understand the truth: the ADF is simply an anti-LGBTQ group trying to abuse levers of government to push discrimination and keep their warped sense of control.

“They’ve also worked to ban the right to choose, and are in cahoots with other extremist groups to oppress marginalized people. ADF is a danger to every American who values their freedoms – to be ourselves, live freely, and be welcome to contribute and to succeed in every area of society.”

Ron DeSantis Is All In—on Creating an American Autocracy

His plan to outflank Trump would scale up the calculated system of repression he designed in Florida.

New Hampshire officials investigating protest outside drag story hour in Concord

https://www.wmur.com/amp/article/new-hampshire-white-supremacist-protest-drag-story-hour/44257286

Attorney general’s office identified the protesters as members of NSC-131, which the Anti-Defamation League calls a neo-Nazi group


Hannah Cotter 
 

News Reporter

https://d-12915471552529622588.ampproject.net/2305252018001/frame.html

There is a video at the link.   Notice these people were saving children by scaring them by, people are yelling, banging on the windows and doing Nazi salutes while holding a sign that says, “defend white communities,  Hugs

CONCORD, N.H. —

The New Hampshire Attorney General’s office said it’s looking into an incident outside of a café in Concord.

Cell phone video shows a group of people protesting outside of the Teatotaller on Sunday while the café was hosting its monthly drag story hour event.

“All we were doing was promoting literacy and providing kids with cute, good stories,” drag queen Juicy Garland said.

In the videos, people are yelling, banging on the windows and doing Nazi salutes while holding a sign that says, “defend white communities,” all while a drag performer was inside reading books to families.

“I’m sure that was a lot more scary than anything else for the children that were here,” Liam Magan, Teatotaller general manager, said.

This Teatotaller location just opened up a year ago, and they started hosting these events in November.

But the owner said this isn’t the first time they’ve gotten pushback.

“It’s not the first time. It’s not the second time. It’s not the third time,” said Emmett Soldati, owner of Teatotaller. “But the truth is that we have been doing this kind of programming basically since we have existed in the state of New Hampshire, which is over a decade. And at the end of the day, we are going to continue doing programming that the community loves.”

The attorney general’s office has identified the protesters as members of NSC-131, which the Anti-Defamation League calls a neo-Nazi group, and said its civil rights unit is looking into the incident.

Juicy Garland, the drag queen who was reading at Sunday’s event, said this reaction won’t stop her from doing what she loves.

“I will be back and we will continue to do these,” Juicy Garland said. “If anything, I’m only more encouraged by these people to continue doing what we do.”

Teatotaller management told News 9 that safety is their main priority and that they hope this type of reaction won’t stop people from wanting to come here.

Management said they’re not letting protesters stop them from hosting more events like this in the future because they say there’s a need for more inclusive spaces.

Police said no arrests were made on Sunday.

Teatotaller says it won’t be influenced by Neo-Nazi protest outside of Concord cafe

https://www.concordmonitor.com/NSC-131-protests-drag-queen-story-hour-at-Teatotaller-51362496

These people claim that a person in a costume reading to kids is harmful to the kids, yet think screaming white supremacist Nazi gang thugs is fine for the kids.  It terrifies them, which is the point.  Cause the kids and parents so much fear they won’t go to these events.  As I posted about this the other day, the police were there but did not interfere with the acts of intimidation and terrorism on the part of the Nazis.   Hugs

Juicy Garland reads a children’s book to customers upstairs at Teatotaller while NSC-131 protests outside. Jacqueline Cole / Monitor staff

Members of NSC-131, a neo-Nazi group in New England, protest story hour outside Teatotaller cafe in downtown Concord. Jacqueline Cole / Monitor staff

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Teatotaller in downtown Concord, a “queer, hipster oasis” cafe. Jacqueline Cole

More than a dozen masked men clad in black chanted Nazi salutes as they stood outside Teatotaller cafe Sunday on Main Street. Meanwhile, drag Queen Juicy Garland read story books to a small group of children and parents upstairs, seemingly unfazed.  

The men, who did not give their names, identified themselves as members of the neo-Nazi group NSC-131 and held a banner declaring, “Defend White Communities.”

Teatotaller describes itself as “an oasis of queer, hipster, tea, coffee, and pastry goodness.” The cafe opened in June of 2022 and is a beacon of color and inclusivity.

Its bright pink door and “you are loved” pride flag are hard to miss in downtown Concord, but on Sunday they were partially blocked by members of NSC-131 (Nationalist Social Club), a neo-Nazi group with chapters throughout New England. The group “seeks to form an underground network of white men who are willing to fight against their perceived enemies through localized direct actions,” according to the Anti-Defamation League’s website

“Off our streets!” NSC-131 members shouted repeatedly, facing the glass windows of the cafe. Police at the scene said it was unclear whether or not they were armed. No arrests were made. 

In addition to police, community volunteers wearing neon yellow “peacekeeper” vests encouraged offended onlookers to disengage.

Upstairs at Teatotaller, Juicy Garland read “Florence and Her Fantastic Family Tree”by Judy Gilliam to the group who went for Sunday reading hour. One family of three listened to the story, wearing matching shirts that said “proud of my family.”

The men wearing hats with the number 131, said story hour was intended to “groom” young children, and continually shouted slurs at people walking in and out of the cafe.

The protesters did not stop Teatotaller from continuing with their business as usual, despite protestors’ strong, deep chants and visible presence on the sidewalk.

One man, who identified himself as Ted, walked back and forth between the cafe tables and the protesters. He said he was there because he heard about the protest and wanted to protect the children inside Teatotaller.

Teatotaller doesn’t get this reaction every time they host a Sunday story hour, but in November it was swarmed by the Proud Boys while the same guest, Juicy Garland, read stories.

Teatotaller issued a blanket statement in response to events outside the cafe:

“Only recently has there emerged a small band of self-identified white supremacists who have disrupted these events to gain clout. They have not and will not deter us from continuing to provide a safe and enjoyable environment for all Granite Staters to be proud of and recognize they belong here.”

Inside its vibrant exterior, the cashier served coffee and vegan treats to customers and chanted along with the protesters in jest, humming, “off our streets,” while he swiped a credit card.