Ted Lieu: The first step towards fascism is when the free press cowers in fear.

[highplainsdem]

Link to tweet

[Lovie777]

1. K & R........................

[50 Shades Of Blue]

2. Or pragmatism.

[Keepthesoulalive]

6. How is it pragmatic ?

If he’s elected he’ll go after them. He never forgets things or people he feels have wronged him, this is not good for anyone who believes in this country.

[50 Shades Of Blue]

21. Regardless, WaPo is being practical and not taking any chances.

[edhopper]

28. The Press

is not supposed to "play it safe".

That is the road to fascism.

[Keepthesoulalive]

29. Bezos and crew are not on our side

They don’t give a fig about fairness , democracy or any of the other things decent people stand for. They are the enemy. This does not bode well for any of us because we don’t know who to trust.

[kimbutgar]

46. He also has a bunch of government contracts and he doesn't want to jeopardize just in case the orange turd

Gets back in.

Shame on Bezos, I’d love to boycott the company but they carry things you just can’t find in stores anymore.

[unblock]

30. Is running away from a bee just being "practical" or "pragmatic"?

If my wife kills me for the insurance money is that just being pragmatic because well, it would certainly help pay the bills?

Yes, you are technically correct in a denotational sense.

But throwing out the negative "fear" and replacing it with a neutral "pragmatic" is pretty much making the same mistake these two newspapers are making. We are right to condemn bezos for enabling fascism and I would hope you would join us in that.

[50 Shades Of Blue]

32. Oh I forgot this -

/S

[unblock]

36. Ah well, that is most definitely pragmatic

[Amaryllis]

64. WHat does this mean?

[MiHale]

74. Old bulletin board symbol for sarcasm.

[Mr. Mustard 2023]

67. Their mission is to speak truth to power...

...so no it's not pragmatic. It's cowardice caused by a sociopath's (Bezos) need for power. Breaking your mission which has allowed your business to gain millions of customers in the blink of an eye isn't pragmatism, it's a loss of business acumen. In this case it's a man with so much power, he's lost touch of why he became so rich and powerful in the first place. He created a business which served his customers well. He just told his customer base he doesn't care about them. That is not pragmatism it's out of touch arrogance.

We'll see what happens, but to give your customers the middle finger is exactly why we darned liberals keep screaming that billionaires are a failure of policy and society.

[TomSlick]

62. Cowardice is always the pragmatic answer.

Honor, duty, and courage are never pragmatic. Standing up for democracy against wanna be tyrants is never pragmatic.

[NotHardly]

72. You misspelled capitulation.

[Kid Berwyn]

3. Ours acts like it's OWNED by fascists.

Because it largely IS owned by fascists.

Otherwise, Russia Russia Russia and the missing Top Secrets of Mar a Lardo would have put Donnie the Traitor in prison long ago.

[kysrsoze]

10. Exactly. We all know who owns the Washington Post, and the LA Times.

[MadameButterfly]

51. who owns the LA Times?

[DENVERPOPS]

54. Both

who got exceptionally humongous tax cuts by Trump and Republicans..........and hopefully for more by not displeasing Trump if he wins.........

The print media wants to play both sides, to not lose readers.....LOL None of the Trumphumpers read.....they watch Fox News.

Boy, will the U.S. Media get crushed if Trump gets in office again. He will substitute something Similar to State Owned Media in Russia, formerly called Pravda, and the print media, and much of cable, TV, Radio, etc will be out of business.......

[dalton99a]

4. Kick

[LoisB]

5. Look no further than the owner.

[wnylib]

7. Historian Timothy Snyder warned about giving in to

authoritarianism because you fear and anticipate what they might do IF they get power before they actually have it.

In his book, On Tyranny, Snyder says that giving in before the authoritarians have taken power, or before they have given a decree on something when they actually do have power, enables them to get stronger and more powerful.

He advises to go on with upholding and living your values the same as usual to make it harder for authoritarians to seize control or to exercise power even if they do manage to get control.

[YodaMom2]

12. It's called "anticipatory obedience"

[wnylib]

16. Yes, that's exactly what it is. And such obedience hands over

power on a silver platter to the authoritarians.

[MadameButterfly]

52. Italians rolled over to Mussolini without a fight.

Germans gave in to Hitler's threat of shutting down the governnment. They imagined it would be better to give in than fight. Big mistake.

[ReRe]

43. Exactly!

I wrote that down. Cousin to "goin'-along-to-get-along".

[BaronChocula]

34. This must be the "Darkness"

Democracy dies in

[Old Okie]

45. Fear

Judging by how many posts here are about people afraid to admit they are Democrats; they have been very successful.

[wnylib]

65. Each situation is different. Sometimes it is prudent to

avoid making yourself a target if you know that it would trigger a life threatening reaction.

In the days of the abolitionists, if you were a conductor on the underground railroad, would you make that public knowledge and harm not only yourself and your family, but also the people who put their trust in you for their safety?

Today, if your next door neighbors are unhinged, armed MAGAs intent on killing off the "enemies within" in protest of a Harris win or in support of a Trump win, would you put a Harris/Walz sign on your lawn? Or would you choose to protect your children from being harmed?

Your sign would not likely persuade people (especially not your nutty neighbors) and would only bring harm to you and yours. In the case of Bezos and the Washington Post, what he says in his newspaper has the potential for broad influence. The cost to him or to his newspaper could be financial, and that could be temporary if his endorsed candidate wins. In a worst case scenario for him, if he endorses Harris and Trump wins, he has the means to protect himself by relocating, hiring security, or leaving the country. The average citizen does not have those options. But the average citizen can donate and can vote.

We each do what we can.

[erronis]

70. Here is Dr. Synder's video from today about "Obeying in Advance"

https://snyder.substack.com/p/obeying-in-advance

[wnylib]

71. Thanks. I could not play the video but I read the article.

This should be an OP where it will get more attention.

[Bev54]

8. So true, cowards through and through.

I am embarrassed for them, if they had a woman at the top, there would not be such cowardly behaviour.

[TommyT139]

33. ...if they still had a woman at the top...

May Katharine Graham haunt their nightmares.

[sarisataka]

9. The paper that stood up to Nixon

cowers before Trump...

[Hekate]

13. For those of us old enough to remember Nixon, this is a nauseating moment

[enigmania]

15. Indeed

[BattleRow]

24. Don't forget Helen Thomas and Hearst news

They drummed her out of the corps for her relentless pursuit of the truth.

[majdrfrtim]

11. A failure to provide *any* endorsement

*is* an endorsement of SphincterLips.

[Random Boomer]

14. Canceled my subscription

Cowards. Traitors.

[PeaceWave]

17. It doesn't help that many of our media outlets are now owned by foreign nationals.

Fox owned by an Australian national. The LA Times owned by a South African national. Tik Tok owned by a Chinese national. They aren't "cowering in fear." They're aiding and abetting.

[Trust_Reality]

20. Holy crap! No wonder we have media problems.

I only knew about FOX.
What about the Wall Street Journal?

[haele]

38. Owned by Fox.

So, owned by Murdoch.

Here's the big elephant in the room. Very few large "American Businesses" and "American Organizations" are American anymore.

They are owned by Investors who profit internationally and are literally removed from any national interest, because they are more used to being citizens of "the world" than citizens of their "home" city, state, or country. They can go anywhere they want to feel comfortable and not be bothered with mundane domestic issues. They can pretty much indulge in any whim they want at the spur of the moment. They can live wherever they want in the type of home they want, and hire the help they need to not get stressed out trying to manage personal life while they do what they "need to do" to keep the life they believe they deserve. Their sacrifices are minor, because they have the money to throw at whatever might trouble them and make most of their problems go away.

They're not trapped in the real world that requires most of what an average employed individual makes to just keep a roof over their head, much less sufficient food, basic utilities, medical access, or reliable communications and transportation. Where individuals have to make staggeringly hard and life-changing choices and sacrifices for either themselves or the things and people they care about. Where abject failure happens often; where that hard pavement is awfully close when one stumbles or gets pushed by external forces.
No, the ownership class doesn't really care about the basics of living ordinary people have to deal with. Heck, most of the time they don't even really care about how their businesses actually operate. For the most part, their primary concern is the profit (monetary or emotional) their product makes them - and anything that could be a liability to that profit. Everything else is a luxury they might indulge.

Haele

[The Unmitigated Gall]

76. We've lost our media.

It’s been on a downward slide since Reagan, but with this news it seems to have flown off a cliff.

I won’t give them a penny.

[Trust_Reality]

18. "Toward" fascism?

I think it is "of fascism". Or "into fascism".

[Cirsium]

19. Complicit

They aren't afraid. They are complicit.

[BattleRow]

23. Freedom of the press? Really?

How about freedom FROM the oppressive presstitutes?

[Klarkashton]

25. Owners just can't come right out and say "We want or fucking tax breaks to stay in place"

[Magoo48]

26. The American press has cowered before tfg for a decade.

Fearless, investigative journalism is almost extinct. Smothered by profit-mad, corporate billionaire ownership, over and over again.

[travelingthrulife]

68. We're all trapped in the oligarch's mad 'capture the flag' game

A handful of people making our lives a dystopic nightmare for fun and dollar tokens.

[Freethinker65]

27. ✅

[mobeau69]

31. "Give me liberty or not. Either way I'm good with it."

Fucking cowards.

[Farmer-Rick]

35. I think I'll cancel my Prime subscription

Doing nothing IS taking a stand ...a cowardly, fearful stand, but a stand none the less.

[JT45242]

37. Fear or overlord greed?

Is it because the editor is afraid or because the owner wants tax cuts?

My guess is the latter. Hell the owner could be full on fascist who does not udenrstand that fascists eventually eat and steal from their big money backers.

In the end -- all the power would devolve to Thiel or Eloon and my money is Thiel since he picked Vance... unless of course Vance becomes autonmous

[haele]

40. So far as I can see, Musk is heading to a Ketamine OD.

He's motivated by vanity as well as greed. Vanity will win, and he's never going to make it to the throne.
Thiel is colder; I think he's actually the stronger personality, his motivation is purely greed - for power and money.
Wouldn't be at all surprised to find out Thiel -and others we don't know about - are actually wealthier than Musk, once one includes the finances he might have hidden in the banking that's done on the Dark Web.

Haele

[kimbutgar]

48. I'm hoping for that ketamine overdose sooner rather than later

Like how about tomorrow or in the next week!

[Martin68]

39. Very disappointed.

[TygrBright]

41. They're not 'cowering in fear'. They're PREENING IN MISOGYNY. n/t

[hadEnuf]

55. They are willing to help a new Hitler gain power just to protect their bottom line.

This is not the free press whatsoever. They are just money-grubbing corporate whores.

[Initech]

42. Democracy isn't "dying in darkness", it's being murdered in broad daylight.

[usonian]

44. Standing up for democracy is not a guarantee that it will hold. That's why we fight daily for it, but

Appeasing a madman is a SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY of death and destruction.

MADAM President, or MADMAN President.

[Efilroft Sul]

47. A fellow traveler on Mastodon said that "Democracy Dies in the Darkness" is now WaPo's mission statement.

[aggiesal]

49. Same thing happened at the LA Times ...

Los Angeles Times editorials editor resigns after owner blocks presidential endorsement
https://www.cjr.org/business_of_news/los-angeles-times-editorials-editor-resigns-after-owner-blocks-presidential-endorsement.php

I'm considering cancelling my WP subscription.

[miyazaki]

50. Afaic, they just endorsed Trump.

- Same with the LA Times. Such stalwarts of the American Way .

[ReRe]

58. Afaic?

define please. I'm a dummy.

[miyazaki]

59. as far as im concerned.

[ReRe]

60. Ah

Thanks. You're a friend and a scholar !

[debm55]

53. Agree what is going on in this country?

[ReRe]

56. Welp....

....there goes the First Amendment. He (DJT) thinks.

This is one more reason for everyone who believes in Free Speech to vote for Harris/Walz 2024!

Shame on The LAT & Wash Post.

[spanone]

57. Bezos the Coward. trmp must be grinning.

[drmeow]

61. They aren't cowering in fear from Trump

They are cowering in fear because their owners actually want Trump to win but they know if they endorse him a huge chunk of their readers will stop subscribing - because the Trump supporters don't tend to read and/or subscribe to the mainstream media!

[kerry-is-my-prez]

63. Bezos is selling a shit load of Amazon stock. He quit being CEO a while back.

Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) founder Jeff Bezos is selling another portion of his stake in the company, which comes years after stepping down from the CEO role.

What Happened: Bezos departed from Amazon’s c-suite in 2021, a role he held for the 27 years since the company was founded. The Amazon founder now serves as the e-commerce giant’s executive chair. He’s been selling a portion of his Amazon stake this year.

Bezos sold $8.5 billion in shares in February. A Tuesday SEC filing by Amazon shows Bezos plans on selling 25 million Amazon shares valued at $4.93 billion.

The new sale would bring Bezos’ total sold to around $13.4 billion in stock in 2024. Bezos owns around 9% of Amazon shares, according to a report from the Financial Times.

-snip/

He’s not really in charge of that company. He only owns 9% of the stock and I haven’t heard of any family members who own any stock - who can team up with him. He is no longer CEO and probably not the Chairman of the Board. The chairman of the board and board members can veto anything the CEO does and can fire them.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/jeff-bezos-sell-5-billion-185303024.html#:~:text=A%20Tuesday%20SEC%20filing%20by,report%20from%20the%20Financial%20Times.

[70sEraVet]

66. "Cowering in fear" is exactly what I thought when Army officials....

turned over a nearly completely redacted report on tRump's Arlington Cemetery 'visit'.
Seems like fascism has already won.

[mdbl]

69. The term "free press" will no longer apply if Rump is voted in

It shows the owners of the WaPo and LATimes are just plain fascists intent on destroying our news sources.

[Pacifist Patriot]

73. The first problem is the premise that billionaire owned press is in any way "free."

[SupportSanity]

75. Lesson 1 from Tim Snyder - steps to avoid Tyranny - "Do not obey in advance"

Fear is a great motivator. Endorse Kamala but Trump wins?
Avoiding the dilemma creates another dilemma.
Better to piss off everyone else but certainly don't piss off Trump.

[SupportSanity]

77. Remember, Always trust multi-billionaires.

[Bayard]

78. K&R

[uponit7771]

79. Yep