hey, watch it or I will throw my maple syrup laden toque at you and then say "sorry" hehe
Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
US US politics 2025
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hey, watch it or I will throw my maple syrup laden toque at you and then say "sorry" hehe
Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
I am literally shaking as I just read George Conway's BlueSky posts this morning and am so frightened for the US and as we sit above it for us as well - the tariffs are bad enough but Elon's hijacking of the US government is scary.
bsky.app
Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
George Conway (@gtconway.bsky.social)
Recovering lawyer who may relapse at any moment. Contributor, The Atlantic. President, Society for the Rule of Law. Contributor, The Contrarian.
bsky.app
Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
I'm trying so hard not to panic. I'm seeing so much stuff out there about the tariffs, social security and Medicare. All I do is Google and research and try to make sense of it all before buying into all of it point blank. But it's getting really hard wading through the mire and muck.
For OT I did some very repetitive work and got to listen to Youtubes, a lot from professor of economics Richard D Wolff.
I'm definitely going to be making changes, and am going to start a thread of prepping, only basic spending, and changing up savings
It's so very depressing, but as he and others point out, it should be been challenged a lonnnngggg time ago . We were too willing to complain about not getting ahead, not making enough to beat inflation, and now it's all come to roost
So are we still not panicking yet?
"Billionaire Elon Musk’s team yesterday took control of the Treasury’s payment system, thus essentially gaining access to the checkbook with which the United States handles about $6 trillion annually and to all the financial information of Americans and American businesses with it. Apparently, it did not stop there.
Today Ellen Knickmeyer of the Associated Press reported that yesterday two top security officials from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) tried to stop people associated with Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, from accessing classified information they did not have security clearance to see. The Trump administration put the officials on leave, and the DOGE team gained access to the information."
"Public policy expert Dan Moynihan told reporter Elliott that the fact these people “are not really public officials” makes it hard for Congress to intervene. “So this feels like a hostile takeover of the machinery of governments by the richest man in the world,” he said. Law professor Nick Bednar noted that “it is very unlikely” that the engineers “have the expertise to understand either the law or the administration needs that surround these agencies.”"
heathercoxrichardson.substack.com
"Billionaire Elon Musk’s team yesterday took control of the Treasury’s payment system, thus essentially gaining access to the checkbook with which the United States handles about $6 trillion annually and to all the financial information of Americans and American businesses with it. Apparently, it did not stop there.
Today Ellen Knickmeyer of the Associated Press reported that yesterday two top security officials from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) tried to stop people associated with Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, from accessing classified information they did not have security clearance to see. The Trump administration put the officials on leave, and the DOGE team gained access to the information."
"Public policy expert Dan Moynihan told reporter Elliott that the fact these people “are not really public officials” makes it hard for Congress to intervene. “So this feels like a hostile takeover of the machinery of governments by the richest man in the world,” he said. Law professor Nick Bednar noted that “it is very unlikely” that the engineers “have the expertise to understand either the law or the administration needs that surround these agencies.”"
February 2, 2025
Billionaire Elon Musk’s team yesterday took control of the Treasury’s payment system, thus essentially gaining access to the checkbook with which the United States handles about $6 trillion annually and to all the financial information of Americans and American businesses with it.
heathercoxrichardson.substack.com
Not that it's gonna help, but I am imploring everyone I know to boycott US made goods as far as possible.
That man is a menace.
That man is a menace.
I am officially panicking. This is huge, and it's going to have global implications, not to mention how he could eff up the entire Social Security/Medicare/Medicaid landscape. This affects nearly half the population of the U.S. What galls me is that just about everyone who has a job pays into this system. They act like all of these programs are handouts. WE pay into them for our entire working careers. Any other person who did this would be arrested and charged with cybercrimes. This is just unimaginable.So are we still not panicking yet?
"Billionaire Elon Musk’s team yesterday took control of the Treasury’s payment system, thus essentially gaining access to the checkbook with which the United States handles about $6 trillion annually and to all the financial information of Americans and American businesses with it. Apparently, it did not stop there.
Today Ellen Knickmeyer of the Associated Press reported that yesterday two top security officials from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) tried to stop people associated with Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, from accessing classified information they did not have security clearance to see. The Trump administration put the officials on leave, and the DOGE team gained access to the information."
"Public policy expert Dan Moynihan told reporter Elliott that the fact these people “are not really public officials” makes it hard for Congress to intervene. “So this feels like a hostile takeover of the machinery of governments by the richest man in the world,” he said. Law professor Nick Bednar noted that “it is very unlikely” that the engineers “have the expertise to understand either the law or the administration needs that surround these agencies.”"
February 2, 2025
Billionaire Elon Musk’s team yesterday took control of the Treasury’s payment system, thus essentially gaining access to the checkbook with which the United States handles about $6 trillion annually and to all the financial information of Americans and American businesses with it.
I read about this in the wee hours, as I had a busy Sunday, but this kept me up for a few hours. I was literally sick to my stomach. And from the comments I read on Heather Cox Richardson's take on this, it seems the cult is OK with it, as they keep thinking it will get better at some point, that America will be great again once the dust settles. When the dust does settle, there will be such an increase in homelessness and poverty the likes of which we haven't seen since the Great Depression. These people are delusional.
I agree that boycotting U.S. made products is a good idea, as money is the only thing these criminals understand, but the problem is, the bulk of the population can't afford the increased prices of non-U.S. products that the tariffs will cause. And this is a result of the ever-widening wealth gap in this country. I will do my best to boycott what I can, that's for sure. I'll need to take inventory of what I buy and see who makes it.
Re the tariffs, why on earth would you antagonize neighbors who've been our allies for forever! The U.S. and Canada in particular have enjoyed a pretty peaceful co-existence for a good long time. Neither country has had to worry about military action from the other. It's a luxury that many other countries don't enjoy. All because you want to just what, exert your power because you can? I don't get it.
I guess it's far easier for us non-US folk to boycott.
I cancelled Amazon Prime and DisneyPlus earlier. Gonna keep Netflix until I've finished Night Agent
And of course, next year we are planning to go electric with a new car....Tesla is now on the DO NOT EVER BUY list. It will probably be Korean or Japanese.
Totally agree on Tesla! No way I want to give that egomaniacal idiot one penny if I don't have to! Luckily, I don't have Prime anymore, but I have ordered from Amazon, which I'm going to try NOT to do going forward. It's difficult but not impossible. That evil empire has killed so many other retailers. I haven't ever subscribed to DisneyPlus (I worked for Disney, the parent company of ESPN), and I'm still angry that they laid me off in 2018, lol.I guess it's far easier for us non-US folk to boycott.
I cancelled Amazon Prime and DisneyPlus earlier. Gonna keep Netflix until I've finished Night Agent
And of course, next year we are planning to go electric with a new car....Tesla is now on the DO NOT EVER BUY list. It will probably be Korean or Japanese.
after I posted yesterday I then watched the following video and it didn't make me feel any better.... I think the world, as we know, may be about to change and we just have to protect ourselves where we can and keep in mind what it is important - our family and friends and temper our reactions to stay in empathy and compassion for ourselves and those that matter - I am still hopeful that Disclosure will help to realign people's priorities and bring us cheap energy and eventually higher consciousness in general - raise the energy levels and let love prevail
Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
Lou
Forum Legend
Keep in mind that I'm naturally an optimist.
Not surprisingly, things are much worse than I expected.
To keep my spirits up I focus on that things have been bad before and the US and world rebounded. (See 1930s)
If you haven't done so yet listen to Rachel Maddow's podcast Ultra and Ultra S2.
The other thing I keep in mind is that stuff like this is like a pendulum. After a swing to the right - things usually normalize. In just two years we will have Midterm elections. Although US citizens have proven to be gullible and stupid - I can't see them re-electing republicans with the way things are going.
Not surprisingly, things are much worse than I expected.
To keep my spirits up I focus on that things have been bad before and the US and world rebounded. (See 1930s)
If you haven't done so yet listen to Rachel Maddow's podcast Ultra and Ultra S2.
The other thing I keep in mind is that stuff like this is like a pendulum. After a swing to the right - things usually normalize. In just two years we will have Midterm elections. Although US citizens have proven to be gullible and stupid - I can't see them re-electing republicans with the way things are going.
I appreciate your optimism. But two years is plenty of time to do irreparable damage. Not to make this about me, but I'm worried that this breach will lead to cuts in Medicaid. My dad relies on Medicaid for permanent nursing home care, as do thousands of others. If that funding suddenly gets cut, he would have to pay $17,000 a month to stay at the nursing home, which, of course, he (or I) doesn't have, hence the need for Medicaid. This is just one example of the harm that can be done by this idiot. He has no compunction of making a nearly 90-year-old man, who is somebody's father, brother, uncle or friend, homeless. He has no humanity. This incessant drive to punish people who aren't rich is demoralizing.
Re: the elections. I would not be surprised if that idiot somehow finds a way to corrupt voting. I still find it hard to believe that you-know-who won the election.
I haven't been able to click on that. I would lose my house if I lost Social Security. Or I would somehow have to find a job in a business world that doesn't want to hire older people. Yeah, it is definitely downright frightening.
Same. I have a very small pension. SS is our main/only income.
I usually try to buy locally produced products and I don't know which, if any, are U.S. affiliated but as far as I can I will avoid anything produced by U.S. owned companies. Trump is hacking off the whole world with his tariffs, his insults, his demands etc. He has demanded Denmark hand over Greenland, put tariffs on goods from China, Mexico and Canada, cut funds to South Africa, blaming them for doing exactly the same thing he is doing, he has insulted the U.K, and Europe but wants the U.K. to side with him against Europe, he wants to rename places to make them American. The man is a deranged, narcissistic psychopath and I feel so bad for all of you who live in the U.S. who have intelligence and morals for having to put up with him and Musk destroying your country.
I was expecting Trump to be even more wacked-out than he was in his first term, since he can't serve a third term anyway- but even so, I'm surprised. (Annexing Greenland??! Re-naming the Gulf of Mexico?!... Okay, I heard some other statements that he wanted to purchase Greenland, and only if Denmark agreed to this, but still... Mostly, I'm surprised I haven't heard anything lately about impeaching him. That was attempted TWICE in his first term, but it definitely looks to me like there's a far more solid case for it this time around.
I don't know if it really matters, but maybe an appreciable number of people voted more against Kamela Harris than for Trump.
I don't know if it really matters, but maybe an appreciable number of people voted more against Kamela Harris than for Trump.
I feel like our last few elections have been more about voting against a candidate than it was voting for them.
Been listening a lot to Richard D Wolff, Heather Cox Richardson, and the Fifth Column.
What's so disturbing is just how much this was foreseeable. rump didn't win by the popular vote, he won by lack of voters that were sickened by having two parties to choose from, so willing to work together to f' us over time and again. Democrats were far more worried of anyone being called a "socialist" than the maga facism
The great depression was quite different than this, though so much will be needed to tighten our belts, and bond with neighbors
I am stocking up on non perishables, and doing what I can to psych myself into gardening. I'm thinking indoor hydroponics
Pretty much trying to stop buying. Taking money out of IRA to pay off credit and get this house paid off, unsure about allocations
Hopefully I'll be ok at my job, although we have been told OT is pretty much cut
