Happy Solstice!

Regarding "Keeping the lights on?"...

It was bad enough already that Donald Trump has been acting as our effective president, and that seems to have already been the case going back a year or so with the way he's been able to pull the strings with Congress. But now it looks like Elon Musk has usurped Trump to become our new effective president.

The great irony is that the one American who Trump allows to control him just happens to be:
A. An African American.
B. A one-time illegal immigrant, or an undocumented migrant, to use a more neutral term.

I hear people say it's just a good thing Musk can never be elected president since he's not a natural-born citizen. And then I hear other people say, don't be so sure with our current Supreme Court. Of course, it's clear now that Musk doesn't need to be elected to wield the power of the office. Will that be enough to satisfy his insatiable ego?

For those who believe that the unraveling of our federal government and our economy will somehow eventually chasten and restrain Musk, clearly these people don't understand how the guy operates. If Trump is the chaos candidate, Musk is the chaos capitalist. And from his completely selfish standpoint, that's not entirely irrational, as Naomi Klein's 2008 classic, "The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism", should remind us.

plutocracy #kakistocracy #kleptocracy

Since The Stranger won't cover this news (as Seattle's "only" newspaper... yeah, sure...), I guess that falls to the commentators:

https://spdblotter.seattle.gov/2024/12/18/detectives-investigating-homicide-in-the-university-district/

SPD (and the Seattle Times) have released the name and photos of the suspect in the murder of the Metro bus driver. The details speak for themselves.

"Sugar In The Tank" is awesome, thanks!

I just now realize some more great ironies about the one American who Trump allows to control him:
C. He's only our nation's biggest EV mogul.
D. His business interests are inextricably tied to China.

Of course, as if any of this ever had to make sense.

For those people who voted for Trump because of inflation and inequality, talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.

For those people who simply couldn't bring themselves to vote for Kamala Harris because of one of a thousand different dealbreakers, talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.

Sometimes you just have to realize, people are gonna do what people are gonna do.

Signed,
Someone who was never a Kamala Harris fan either

"Get your flu shots, kids: Vaccination rates are down across the country, but we’re really taking the cake here in Washington. Child flu vaccination rates are down 15.9 percentage points—more than double the nationwide decline."

These vaccine shots aren't mandated, and shouldn't be mandated (others are and should be). That doesn't mean its not a good idea.

"Her sister told the paper that Blinken 'essentially said he wouldn’t be doing anything.'”

What exactly would the sister have Blinken do? They have called for an independent investigation by the U.S. How exactly would that work. The death occurred on non-U.S. Territory. We have no subpoena power for witnesses or physical evidence. We don't even have the right to put investigative personnel on the ground.

Portland considers Spray Paint a controlled substance like Sudafed. Seattle should do the same.

Restitution won't cut it, because unless they don't sleep, these Artistes haven't got jobs - they're painting when the Express Lanes are closed. One tagger who got caught a couple years back was estimated to have done 300K damage in the ID.

@2: it was covered in Slog the morning it happened.

If you don't hate taggers, you're not a progressive.

First CM, then Han Han, then Ashley, then....
TS seems to be really cleaning house. It's OK, every company that unionizes and has big salary increases dumps the dross to save $. Soon nothing but "guest" editorials and articles (and maybe everout and a bunch of drink and food ads to pay the bills). Enjoy!

Ha-Ha Phoebe. You should make a bumper sticker out of that zinger :-) Love to DOTCOM, you killed that Dearborn exit sign on I5N! PS I think graffiti is pretty, makes the city feel like real people live here.

@1, Trump is able to do so, because unlike Harris and the Dems, he is perceived as being able to deliver votes to change an outcome for a Congressional seat (most likely a primary result). He has just shown he can create a red shift in Hispanic, Black, and working-class voting blocks.

Progressives haven't been able to show the capability to market their ideas to voters in a way that creates a similar blue/progressive shift.

In January, Trump will have the additional threat of the veto and use of the Federal bureaucracy to bring Republican Caucuses to heal; however, that is not nearly as effective as being able to say to an incumbent Republican, you will get the Liz Cheney treatment and be primaried into the political wilderness.

Like Ronald Reagan, he can make Congress Members phones and emails break. Reagan did it in a bipartisan, folksy, grass roots way. Trump can do it with MAGA's, solely to Republicans.

We are in for an awful four plus years, although I hold some hope for Republicans losing the House in 2026.

@7 by "$300k damage" do you mean cost to repaint the surfaces Ennui Gray? What if, hear me out, they just didn't?

@6 the US giving even the appearance of caring that a foreign military murdered one of its citizens has a less than zero chance of potentially causing said military to be a little more discriminating, or could at least increase the US ability to exert pressure on our ally to act in accordance with international law. But of course the US doesn't care about either or those things, or their dead citizen and his family.

@7: lol, almost all of them work.

Rest in paint, G-Rider and Moer.

@10, Noisy Creek, a privately held corporation, has to break-even and run a margin, like other corporations.

They can't magically expand payroll and wages, without becoming insolvent, just like other corporations.

Go figure!

@12 "Progressives haven't been able to show the capability to market their ideas to voters in a way that creates a similar blue/progressive shift."

What are you talking about about, haven't you heard progressives led by former Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant singlehandedly killed the Harris campaign. Progressives like Nader and Stein are the most unstoppable force in US politics, constantly defeating Democrat presidential candidates.

BTM is still around? Unless some new kids have stepped in, those guys are pushing 50.
AARP ads are gonna get wild in the next few years.

So did anyone else just read that Musk has endorsed the AfD party in Germany? I am so glad I didn't jump on the Musk wagon. Personally, he always seemed creepy to me. He is looking more and more like the real-world manifestation of Sheev Palpatine with politics liking his world view to shaping the world into a global version of apartheid (funny Musk is S. African too, how ironic... wah-wah-waaaaaah....) I go hide under bed for next four years now.

@15 "They can't magically expand payroll and wages, without [slightly reducing CEO and shareholder compensation], just like other corporations."

Fixed it for you

@16, That would be an anti-blue/progressive shift.

@17: Bruh, BTM is all over the city, time for you to log off and go outside, lol.

I don’t know about 50, but a lot of those dudes are in their 40s. I think Moer (see @14) was in his 40s

@19, I often do the math on some of these publicly held corporations. They have hundreds of thousands of employees. When you run the math, you discover that if you wiped out the entire C-Suite of Executives and redistributed all of that pay to the workers, it works out to 25 cents to 50 cents per hour.

That doesn't mean that CEO's and their C-Suite Teams produce value commensurate with their salaries, but as a piggy bank to improve the standard of living of the people that work for them, the math just doesn't work.

Where halving the salaries of the C-Suite could make a difference is in R & D. More R & D could increase productivity or come up with something that makes the products or services of the company more revenue intensive per worker, and allow wage gains that could make a difference.

@20 imagine if instead of fighting it Dems leaned into the will of the voters that, to hear them tell, consistently swing the elections. But no, much better to keep running out Blue Jeb Bushes.

@23: Sawant spent at least ten years telling everyone she would “work with” the Democrats when they did absolutely every last thing she wanted — and gave her all of the credit. (Near the end of her time in office, she could barely prevent the most left-wing electorate in Seattle from recalling her.) That may sound like a formula for unstoppable nationwide success to you, but somehow I doubt it would get many votes, even from the rest of Seattle.

@24 you're the one who keeps saying her campaigning was the deciding factor in the election, is that not true?

@13: they're not painting exclusively on freeway retaining walls, as you're no doubt aware.

if they've all got well-paying jobs, great. happy to hear that. they'll be able to afford the restitution.

The only minority groups Trump gained ground with were Latino, Asian, and “other” (probably middle eastern as they are not formally counted as an ethnic group). Black voters broke even and (white) blue collar workers have been voting republican for years. Democrats actually made modest gains with white voters overall.

What’s still unclear from the numbers is whether there was a shift in support for republicans or a collapse in voter turnout for the candidate who campaigned more for the disaffected republican vote than for anyone left of center. The electorate in every election is a different population of voters and there were millions fewer this year compared to 2020. The takeaway may not be that Trump “gained” those demographics (they still heavily favored democrats) but that democrats failed to appeal to them. That certainly seems to be the case with the Muslim vote but it’s still too early to say.

https://www.nbcwashington.com/decision-2024/2024-voter-turnout-election-demographics-trump-harris/3762138/?amp=1

‘The sun
will set at
4:20 pm today.’

I do believe
I Shall celebrate*
Its (possible) return
to Sanity at That time

and keep the Darkness
that is trumpf II (hope-
fully) at Bay for at
least Some little
while.

wish me (US) luck.

Happy Solstice!

& happy Shutdown.

@25 -- ah, let wormmy
argue Both Sides:
it's his 'gift.'

*with a wee puff

“If you don't hate
taggers, you're
not a progress-
sive.” --@9

if you Love
Brutalism you’re
definitely a Regressive.

Hide that Concrete
(or make it transparent
& illuminate it from Inside),
Taggers. your Art is vastly More
Important ~ even tho they’ll call you

Terrorist.

In the I didn't see this one coming category, ultra progressive moneybags Nick Hanauer, who has never met a tax he didn't like came out this morning and pissed all over Inslee's proposal for a wealth tax. Without his support I would guess that proposal is DOA.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-venture-capitalist-nick-hanauer-rips-inslee-wealth-tax/

@27 et al

Still waiting for
the vids reversing
the 'cleaning' process*
to unveil the Art beneath

'restitution'?
well, Maybe, if it's over-
covering Decent architecture

*like when the Bombers suck up
the bombs from the Firestorms,
fly them back, unloaded, then
carefully unbuilt, their com-
ponents ending up craftily
hidden, buried Deeply
underground.

@27 - Art has nothing to do with it. Tagging isn't graffiti, it's vandalism. Graffiti can be art, but unless it's commissioned by the property owner, it too is vandalism.

don't we ALL own
that freeway concrete?

then let's Commission
their Brilliance.

hmmm

I seem to be
Ignoring the Advances
freeway architecture art's been
making. DON'T COVER THE GOOD
shit, taggers. just the oodles of Brutality.

apologies.

@32 ~ omg

Underpass Art
& Parks: 15 Fun Projects
Reclaiming Disused Urban Space

Climbing walls, skate parks, art installations, theaters and even miniature marinas take advantage of the cathedral-like spaces beneath highways and bridges, revitalizing formerly disused and depressed square footage in urban areas.

In cities around the world, underpasses are often fenced off, strewn with trash and generally unappreciated, but these intervention projects reclaim the space in fun and creative ways that benefit the community.

See:
https://weburbanist.com/2017/04/12/underpass-art-parks-15-fun-projects-reclaiming-disused-urban-space/

we just
gotta get Rid
of the noxious Fumes

@31 Yes, we all do own the public spaces, and as part owner I'd like to see the vandals have their asses tossed in jail and then let out to spend some time cleaning up their mess. I bet most co-owners of these spaces would vote the same way!

@34 -- I Bet they would!

Toronto’s Underpass Park is not only the most extensive park to ever be built beneath an overpass in Canada, but one of the most unusual parks of its kind throughout the world.

Transforming a derelict and underused space into a new urban neighborhood feature and pedestrian passageway, the park turns what was formerly a barrier between the north and south parts of the community into a connection.

Murals by world-renowned graffiti artists, playgrounds, sculptural installations, sports fields and other amenities draw locals in to engage with the space on an unprecedented level.

see again:
https://weburbanist.com/2017/04/12/underpass-art-parks-15-fun-projects-reclaiming-disused-urban-space/

omg! “world-renowned graffiti artists”? omg!

@28, Seattle curmudgeons don't want a wealth tax to raise revenue. They want the wealth tax to do to Seattle, what it has done to Norway. They want to clean out all the tech and other entrepreneurs.

https://www.thefp.com/p/why-i-left-norway-unrealized-gains-tax

It's a good thing the German's have gun control to prevent mass attacks.

https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/magdeburg-germany-christmas-market-deaths-12-20-24/index.html

@mr magoo
well then perhaps
we might concentrate
the Billionaires into a single
Enclave or two and be Rid of their

Sickness
forever.
great
post!

@37,

How many times could you possibly need to have it pointed out to you that isolated incidents aren't statistics? I'd kill to have Germany's murder rate in this country, which is 7 times less than ours.

Has a shrink ever looked into Harrell's obsession with graffiti? Was his childhood home repeatedly tagged even though his father would paint over it every time?

@40 or is hunting after "graffiti crime" red meat for his conservative constituencies?

@39, I would kill to have their murder rate as well.

The difference is not driven by the availability of guns.

If you compare non-gun murders and assaults in both countries you come up with a similar differential in rates.

So the U.S. "solution" to the differential is a reductionist, simplistic, non-data-driven "answer" to the problem that really isn't.

Criminologist James Alan Fox from Northeastern has noted that the differential in rates persists, even when guns aren't involved in the murder or assault. He has noted that not just in his research, but even here in Seattle on KUOW.

@40. No shrink required. He's probably simply pursuing it because 1) it's a staple component of "broken windows" theory of law enforcement. 2) he probably sees it as a comparatively easy place for an optics win.

But why are you so upset over it?

@26 "they're not painting exclusively on freeway retaining walls, as you're no doubt aware."

Sure but the "removal" process tends to be consistent regardless, and results in something--in my opinion at least--no less ugly

https://www.mattmccormick.art/subconscious-art-of-graffiti-removal/

@45 "it's a staple component of "broken windows" theory of law enforcement ... why are you so upset over it?"

Probably because "broken windows" has been debunked so it's largely a waste of money?

@44: yes, cleanup does look like shit - even if the building has applied an anti-graffiti coating. brick, stone, and concrete are all porous.

btw, I found the story that i referenced earlier: 2022, EAGER/Casey Cain was the writer, and his damage was estimated at 200K. he got sentenced to 80 hours cleaning up graffiti. he was also seriously burned in an encampment fire, FWIW.

https://komonews.com/news/local/prolific-seattle-tagger-graffiti-80-hours-cleaning-up-vandalism-art-washington-community-service-eager-capitol-hill-malicious-mischief-king-county-prosecutors-enforcement-harborview-medical-center

@44's rather Brilliant. gracias

try as it Might
Capitalism cannot
cover over Humanity's insa-
tiable NEED for artistic self-Expressionism

B. how many Graffiti Artists
'moonlite' as graffiti
cover-uppers?

let the In-
Filtrations
Commence.

So I see one of our resident right-wing influencers, thirteen12, is out in force today, spending the copious amounts of time he apparently has to make seven posts so far. Including this @23: "@20 imagine if instead of fighting it Dems leaned into the will of the voters that, to hear them tell, consistently swing the elections. But no, much better to keep running out Blue Jeb Bushes."

thirteen12, let's not be disingenuous. The absolute last thing you want is for Democrats to actually listen to voters.

And sure enough, thirteen12 and his fellow right-wing influencer here, averagebob, can't help themselves but go after Bruce Harrell for his trying to prosecute vandals rather than letting Seattle turn into a caricature of failed West Coast liberalism to provide endless fodder for the right-wing media ecosystem. Well, here's a little thought. You can question Mayor Harrell's motives all you want, but the simplest answer is, he is merely following the will of the voters.

It doesn't matter how many hundreds of of comments you make, you don't speak for Seattle voters any more than anyone else of us does.

keep to the Center
don't rock the boat
Billionaires're our
Friends that's all
she wrote.

@48 "thirteen12, let's not be disingenuous. The absolute last thing you want is for Democrats to actually listen to voters."

Of course I do, most voters want what I want:

https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2024/4/29/much-of-congressional-progressive-caucus-agenda-popular-with-swing-state-voters

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/ballot-measures-deliver-big-wins-progressive-policy-priorities-rcna179308

Unfortunately the corporate lackeys at the DNC do not

thirteen12, unfortunately, this will have to be my last comment on this thread. I have a job and I simply don't have the kind of time or professional involvement that an influencer like you apparently has to have this sort of research handy.

But it's quite telling that you are citing polls and ballot measures rather than elections for office. As if conducting a poll that tells you exactly what you wanted to hear constitutes listening to voters about why you lost an election. As if ballot measures and elections for office are the same thing.

thirteen12, this must be the perfect election cycle for you. Democrats completely lost federal power, and you can ratchet up the pressure even further to ensure they are further and further marginalized. There's a reason you have the sort of message discipline you have.

BTW, you're always welcome to urge our elected officials here in Seattle to legalize vandalism. I'm sure that's a real winner.

@51 what type of job do you have that allows you precisely enough time to write a four paragraph reply but not to know anything about the topic you're commenting on?

good Luck 13Twelve.
(‘spose they’re Hiring!?)

moving On

nyt:
House Sends Stopgap
Funding Bill to Senate Hours
Ahead of Shutdown Deadline

Dec. 20, 2024, 8:40 p.m. ET; 15 minutes ago

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/12/20/us/government-shutdown-trump-news

and

nyt: G.O.P.
Spending Hawks
Defy Trump on the Debt
Limit, Previewing More Clashes

President-elect Donald J. Trump is known
for his tight grip on members of his party,
but the rare rejection of his demand to
suspend the debt limit reflected a
disconnect that could
plague his policy
agenda.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/20/us/politics/gop-spending-hawks-trump-debt.html

[Uncle Shummer says it's a Go].

Excellent.
already tng with
the overreach. is he
gonna assassinate a few
of ‘em, teach the rest a Lesson?

B. why Must The donold
WAIT till J/20? It’s a Ridiculous
Rule and No One’s EVER been so
Poorly-treated. Does his mean he’s
gotta Wait till then before terminating
his Enemies? He’s pretty Busy fascsitting.

ii!ii
donold.

(wonder if MUX'll
Impeach him)?
(still Plenty
of Time).

@53
sorry:
fascistting
plus, he's Elon's
'right hand man' an
MUXXY's gots NEEDS, bro

@25: There were many deciding factors in the 2024 elections (duh). Whatever effect it had, Sawant's campaigning for Trump most certainly did not help Harris win. As Sawant spent ten years 'representing' an electorate which might vote 25% for Trump at the very most -- an electorate which went for Harris in a huge way -- it might be nice for the Stranger, and supportive commenters here, to admit Sawant stumped for Trump, and to consider what her actions mean in the context of all the words she ever spewed. But you lack both the integrity and intestinal fortitude to examine what you really supported all those years, and why you fell for it. Of course you're angry at anyone who mentions your gullibility, but as you're not going to take any responsibility for having supported Sawant, you'll just have to whine in impotent rage whenever anyone mentions what she really did, and try to twist our words to escape their obvious implications. (That effort is also failing.) Trump will again be a disaster for America and the world, but this time, every time the Stranger (or supportive commenter) mentions just how bad he is, it will also be a reminder of who helped to get him there. Enjoy!

What remains is Sawant stumped for Trump, and in so doing, nicely exemplified Horseshoe Theory. That's what you really supported all of those years -- not the agenda she constantly preached, but rarely did anything to advance.

The reason Harrell talks about Grafitti is because it's one of the top complaints that come through council offices, the mayor's office, and the Customer Service Bureau. It's as simple as that. If the pro-grafitti crowd were large and vocal, he'd be giving out spray paint.

Of course, if the police would get over their hurt feelings and actually started patrolling, the graffiti might be reduced. But then they'd also start enforcing the speed limits, and no one wants that.

@43 So protecting tenants through policy is "political theater" but prioritizing the prosecution of taggers and graffiti artists is an "optics win" and "broken window" claptrap?

You seem more upset about my comment (or may be I should say 'comments') than I am about Harrell's demagoguery

To be sure some of these taggers should take art lessons. That'll punish them!

@48 the most suspicious part of it is how all the people you claim to be "right wing influencers" advocate for actual left wing politics

they're calling for only thee most
middle of the road trepidity
when advocating for those
to the left of Mussolini

we wouldn't wanna
overexcite the very
far Far FAR 'right.'

it's Wormtongue
Brainiactics aka
let's let the 'd'
nc Decide:

our
Portfolios
Must Be Protected.

so STFUA.
cancel culture
for the Masses

it's NEVER
the fault of those
shoving their milquetoast
middle of the road corporate types

down our throats and their
deflections're merely key
to a conscience free
from Culpability

see also:
bibi and his
keep outta prison
gambit cum Genocide.

@57: Do these laws actually protect tenants, though? If the laws don’t really protect tenants, but the sponsors and supporters of the laws loudly make that claim, then the claim really is just “political theater,” isn’t it?

For example, Sharon Lee, head of the Low Income Housing Institute, recently claimed abuses of eviction moratoria were harming attempts at building more affordable housing. (https://www.thestranger.com/news/2024/05/28/79529050/seattles-winter-and-school-year-eviction-moratoriums-could-be-on-the-chopping-block)

If that is true, then those “tenant protections” may actually result in fewer affordable units. It’s hard to see how that protects tenants.

@58: The point you keep missing is her implied claim: you’re doing such an obstreperously bad job of advocating for left-wing policies, you actually are (or are functionally indistinguishable from) right-wing ‘agents saboteurs’.

@56: No, it's even simpler than that. The mayor doesn't want the city looking like a dystopian dump.

I don't know what "hurt feelings" you think the police have. You're probably just saying that because 'ACAB' is a bit extreme for you.

@55 that's a lot of ad hominems just to avoid answering the simple question posed: "did losing the support of leftists like Sawant cost Dems the election, and if so shouldn't they cater more to the left if they hope to win." Feel free to take another crack at it, if you have the "integrity and intestinal fortitude."

drag us to the 'center'
the abyss opens wide
justify the mediocrity
it Can't be genocide

@63, The biggest shifts in voting behavior were among independents and union workers. Union workers have not been fans of the Progressive social agenda.

@63: Yeah, you're really insistent that if the gun jammed, then the assailant didn't really attempt murder. It doesn't work that way. Sawant stumped for Trump, which, at the very least, didn't help Harris -- and therefore helped to elect Trump. You're free to address Sawant's actions any time you like.

How could Democrats possibly have won the support of Sawant? She spent a decade calling them sellouts, corporate stooges, traitors, etc. As I wrote, her version of working with someone was having that person always immediately follow her orders. Full stop. Her agenda was deeply unpopular even in Seattle, so your constant unsupported claim it would have been popular elsewhere doesn't deserve any more than the dismissive response I've already given.

Also, even if Sawant could somehow have supported the Democrats, how many votes would they have lost from accepting her support? That's another obvious question you won't answer, or even consider.

Finally, it's great to see Sawant's supporters fully embrace her critics' point: she's totally ineffectual in advancing her agenda. Please do keep pounding that point.

@50 Anyone that uses the term "corporate lackeys" deserves to not be taken seriously. Let me guess, you want to "eat the rich" too?

@8 Slog didn't cover that the suspect is a homeless person, nor did Slog publicize the pictures of the suspect that the SPD put out there to help find the guy. But nice try.

@61 This is your claim; "If the laws don’t really protect tenants,"

This is what lee said: "Lee told The Stranger that LIHI supports strong tenant protections and called the exclusion of renters with income a “narrow exception” to the moratoriums, not a repeal". In other words, Lee wanted to exclude tenants who could afford the rent from a winter/school year eviction moratorium that protects tenants.

You are a deceitful jackass, and almost all of your comments amount to distortions and/or lies. It is painful to watch how much garbage you spew.

@66 "Sawant stumped for Trump"

Liar. It's be accurate to say that Sawant stumped for Stein in swing states, which was helpful to Trump but you can't help yourself. You humiliated yourself so many times spewing corporate propaganda fruitlessly against Sawant during her several election successes, including the repeal, that you are now attempting to depict her in the worst light possible even if it means blatantly lying.

Needless to sat that I am NOT going to spend the entire weekend battling your continuous stream of lies and distortions.

@68,

I know this is a herculean ask and I truly apologize for placing such a monumental burden on your shoulders, but if you were to take 45 seconds and go back to check on the Slog's reporting, you would find that the suspect hadn't been identified at the time the story was reported.

@70 -- "We are not in a position to win the White House. But we do have a real opportunity to win something historic. We could deny Kamala Harris the state of MI. And the polls show that most likely Harris cannot win the election without MI."

Kshama Sawant, 10/7/24.

Rather than calling others a liar, perhaps you should take a look in the mirror.

@72 and? She acknowledges Stein won't win the White House but that she could win MI as some polls showed Stein doing quite well with Arab voters.

Giving a speech for Stein in MI is not "stumping for Trump" no matter how much you morons claim it is.

@72: At most, Sawant wanted to spoil the election for Machavellian reasons - but that doesn't even remotely add up to "Sawant stumped for Trump".

@73 -- just say you — like Sawant — support Trump and stop wasting all of our time.

@74 -- it requires truly hurculean levels of intellectual gymnastics to say that explicitly advocating for Kamala Harris to lose so Donald Trump can win does not mean you want Donald Trump to win, but whatever helps you sleep at night I guess.

@76: I'm sorry that you don't get the distinction between hoping Trump wins to feed a counter movement or whatever as opposed to believing in his MAGA politics.

Nevertheless, she would look lovely in Mar-A-Lago adorned with one of her trademark scarfs posing with Donald with his thumb up.

@69: Nothing you wrote contradicted my point. Lee clearly said the eviction moratoria, as currently structured, were threatening LIHI's ability to build more affordable housing. Again, if that is true, then those “tenant protections” may actually result in fewer affordable units. It’s hard to see how that protects tenants.

With any policy, a periodic review of results is necessary to ensure the policy is working. If the policy's results prove detrimental to the long-term goals of the policy, then praising the policy is actually worse than merely "political theater," it's outright deception. (And, when the policy intends to provide housing to the most vulnerable among us, it's extremely cruel deception.)

In that headline post, Lee's claim immediately received hostile dismissive responses, including from the Stranger -- but no data to invalidate her concerns. When the experienced head of a local affordable-housing provider raises a concern about the policy, the proper first response is a willingness to investigate those concerns with a healthy skepticism. Immediate refusal to credit those concerns at all, along with snide attacks upon the provider for expressing them, shows a severe unwillingness to examine policy goals against results. Again, that's far worse than mere "political theater."

Harris ran a Shite campaign
the "d"nc's now done it
Thrice -- keep up with
your Deflections and
they'll fucking Do
It Again.

@75 It takes an authoritarian to say that calling to vote for a 3rd party in order to build an alternative to an inadequate duopoly is the same as campaigning (stumping) for your opponent in the duopoly, and a mental midget for believing that forever invoking the lesser evil is a winning strategy as recently demonstrated (not that you'll learn anything from it)

For the record, I always said that people should vote for Harris in swing states even though i repeatedly complained about Harris' rightwing turn on multiple fronts and Democrats' tone deafness regarding the economic hardship encountered by a majority of Americans

@79: Nobody deserves to be madder at the DNC than Bernie Sanders.

@77 "hoping Trump wins to feed a counter movement"

It's not what Sawant says and I doubt she believes that. She says that building up the Stein vote would contribute to building an alternative to the duopoly that she wants to break. She explicitly called to vote against Harris and against Trump, which is of course disappeared by the partial quote artists. Her MI speech is on youtube if anyone really needs to know what she actually said rather than regurgitate DNC propaganda. There is plenty to disagree about what Sawant says without making shit up and forcing down our throats the duopoly that delivered Trump for a 2nd term.

@79 "they'll fucking Do
It Again."

Given the DNC much prefers Trump's pro-corporate policies to Sanders' anti-corporate policies, they'll do it as often as necessary in order to protect the status quo.

@81 -- "Nobody
deserves to be madder
at the DNC than Bernie Sanders."

bingo
well Bernie

And those favoring
Bernie's Policies which
is in Fact MOST of the Electorate

they've
gottta
LOTTA
Nerve

calling themselves
democratic. But
then again they
Never put it to
a Vote: LLC,
bitches. lol

@77, @80: Why all of this supposed confusion about what Sawant wanted? She stated very clearly:

'At a rally in Michigan last week, Sawant called the state “ground zero to punish Kamala Harris and defeat her.”'

(Seattle Times, Oct. 16, 2024, p. A7)

No one should find this surprising. Punishing another woman for daring to defeat her formed the basis for one of the charges of malfeasance on Sawant's Recall ballot. Sawant led a vandalizing mob to the family home of a political opponent, a move more appropriate for the boss of a crime syndicate than for an elected official in a liberal democracy.

@82: "She explicitly called to vote against Harris and against Trump, which is of course disappeared by the partial quote artists."

Those bastards!

'"Sawant gave a blistering speech, assailing the two-party system, but focusing her ire on the Democratic Party and Vice President Kamala Harris.

'“Kamala Harris deserves to lose 1,000 times over,” Sawant said, blaming her for the deaths of tens of thousands of people in Gaza.'

'Speaking to about 150 people at Washington Hall in the Central District, Sawant accused Harris of being “more pliable and controllable” by Wall Street interests.'

Feel the symmetry!

@82: 'She says that building up the Stein vote would contribute to building an alternative to the duopoly that she wants to break.'

"This is Stein’s third presidential campaign. She got about 1% of the national vote in 2016 and less than 0.5% in 2012. She also ran for Massachusetts governor in 2002 and 2010, coming nowhere close to victory either time."

Ok, given Sawant's record of accomplishment on the Seattle City Council, we can understand how she looked at those numbers and saw wildly unbeatable success. But those of us with this thing called memory recall that 'building up the Green Party' was the exc-- REASON given for voting Nader in 2000, fortified by statements about how the two parties are functionally the same. (See, for example, the two parties' identical attitudes on Roe v. Wade.) As one can easily see from Stein's numbers, the Green Party has been built into an unstoppable juggernaut by such brilliant tactics. (Well, ok, at least when compared to Socialist Alternative, and Workers Strike Back.)

the 'd'nc
cannot abide
socialism for Any-
one other than the Wealthy

and they themselves
obviously and as long
as we keep Asking for
nice things they're just
gonna give us bushes &
h. clintons & eltrumpfsters
& bidens (pulling a Ruth Bader
Ginsburg, SABOTAGING Kamala's
shite Campaign) & More eltrumpfsters

this is
UTTER
Futility
we\they
are running
Outta TIME

may have run.

Power
is Never
given. it is
only Wrested.

nyt:
Homeless Woman
Going Into Labor Is Cited
for Violating Camping Ban

Body-camera footage shows an officer from the Louisville Metro Police Department in Kentucky detain the woman, who gave birth later that day.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/21/us/kentucky-woman-pregnant-homeless-police.html

yeah
let’s just
Schweep our
Billionaire’s refusal
to pay Their Fair Share

to where, exactly: St. Fucking Elsewhere?

Remove the Symptoms
Or FIX THE FUCKING PROBLEM?

Hint: Whilst they’re not Both
the Same fucking Thing
DOing the Latter will
FIX the Former.

@86: “eltrumpfsters”

Sawant isn’t a Democrat. She’s been extremely clear about that for a very long time.

Imagine her actually paying the slightest bit of attention to you. Do you really want to run the risk of displeasing her?

wtf
wormmy're
you even talking about?

btw

that's a rhetorical query
you inconsequential
nincompoop

aka

my
little
Trolly.

'"Sawant gave a blistering speech, assailing the two-party system, but focusing her ire on the Democratic Party and Vice President Kamala Harris."

Which party has been overseeing and abetting genocide in Gaza when most of their supporters are anti-war? Which party could and should have made a difference and instead chose to participate to the murder of 10,000s of innocents while gaslighting an overwhelming majority of Democrats and independents about whether they could do anything about it. Did anyone expect Republicans to do anything other than what they did?

'“Kamala Harris deserves to lose 1,000 times over,” Sawant said, blaming her for the deaths of tens of thousands of people in Gaza.'

Morons like you have been laughing at people who were telling you that supporting genocide would be very costly to Democrats and now you still deny it. You chose to support Israel in spite of public opinion and now you blame public opinion for holding Democrats accountable. Your crass stupidity is the problem here.

'Speaking to about 150 people at Washington Hall in the Central District, Sawant accused Harris of being “more pliable and controllable” by Wall Street interests.'

This I disagree with Sawant but the point still stands that Democrats are essentially as responsible as Republicans for the neoliberal policies that led to grotesque inequalities unseen in a century and ultimately led the party of FDR to be deserted by working people

"Feel the symmetry!"

is this your entire argument? You are pathetic. Why should there be symmetry when everyone already knows that someone like Sawant of course is against everything that Trump stands for, when there is a lot more pressure on anyone on the left to explain why they aren't campaigning for Democrats. You also regurgitated a biased article that failed to cite her comments about Republicans and the GOP

far right propagandaists
like our dear Wormtongue
here're Counting on our ignoring
what's right in front of our faces: the
undemocratic power of top-down Corps
and their undying support of Israel's soon-
to-be Omnicide from rampant disease starvation
elemental exposures snipers 2,000 lb bunker bustin'
bombs indifference from those swayed by Wormtongue
and his histrionic insidious and never-ending Justifications
for bibi's little keep-the-Fuck-outta-Prison gambit gone Mad

and their Lackeys in the 'Democratic' partay.

They've
GOTTA Blame
Sawant. we cannot
be Allowed to look at
to See who it Is who's ac-
tually Running the Show or
their house of cards'll come a'
tumblin' down. it's all propped
up by lies and those unprepared

or too frightened to See who. we. are.

perhaps
Thedonold'll
help remove the masks.

@83 "Given the DNC much prefers Trump's pro-corporate policies to Sanders' anti-corporate policies, they'll do it as often as necessary in order to protect the status quo."

This right here is the whole problem. Dems couldn't campaign on an economic plan that helps working people because they don't actually care about working people just corporate profits--just like Republicans. They couldn't campaign on bringing peace to Gaza because they don't actually care about Gazans just arms deals and maintaining a strategic alliance in the region to preserve the US military empire--just like Republicans.

Harris lost because Sawant was saying what millions of voters were thinking and it shows in the dramatically decreased turnout. Tensorna and them are ranting at the canary in the coal mine for lying down on the job.

"Welcome to the world of oligarchy"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79KDKWEOJ1s

It’s quite possible the Trump presidency will bring peace to Gaza more swiftly than a Harris presidency would have.

The collapse of the Assad government, the humiliating rout of Hizbollah, and Iran’s evident intimidation in the face of Israel’s elimination of its primary air defense systems will all place enormous pressure on Hamas. Hamas was always counting on a widespread Middle Eastern alliance against Israel to step in on its behalf, and it’s now clear that will not happen this time. Hamas will fight alone.

Hamas’s final hope was that the Americans might restrain the Israelis, but with Trump returning to office, that hope will likely be dashed as well. Trump’s victory appears to have put the final nail in the coffin of Hamas’s strategy. I predict Hamas will now be looking to cut the best peace deal they can and get to work rebuilding their forces in preparation for some future effort.

So, happy news, there is good reason for hope! AverageBob in particular must be over the moon at the imminent prospect of peace in Gaza! 😉

@95 I certainly welcome a stop to the inhumane mass murdering of Palestinians but I also know that Palestinians won't stop dying due to the complete destruction of infrastructure in Gaza over the last 14 mos and a return to apartheid on steroid that will take place in occupied territories. It takes a special kind of military propagandist like thumpus to claim that this is the kind of peace for which we should "be over the moon"

"So, happy news, there is good reason for hope! AverageBob in particular must be over the moon at the imminent prospect of peace in Gaza! 😉" ~--@🛴

and sometimes
the messenger can
take the piss out of it

looks like wormmy's
found his Voice.

where Is he
standing back
or standing bye

snidely whiplashing
himself in droll ant-
icipation of seizing
the Last Comment

the highly-coveted
@99 -- aka the
Last Word.