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Celerity
Celerity's Journal
Celerity's Journal
February 24, 2023
https://thebanter.substack.com/p/oh-secession-shmacession
WASHINGTON, DC – Majorie Taylor Greene is a member of Congress. I wanted to lead with that sentence because her membership in this elite club of 535 politicians illustrates so many of the existential problems facing democracy. It shows how willing some Americans are to line up in support of a shrieking eel just as long as she shrieks the sounds those Americans want to hear. The problem is: when she says things, they can sometimes resonate beyond just idle blurtings. That’s what concerns me about her endorsement of secession. In case you missed it, Greene said the red states should secede from the blue states because something something woke mob. Later, Sean Hannity also made a case for secession, noting that it would result in:
https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1628224107593474048
Sure, the federal government would be smaller – but it wouldn’t be the federal government for the states that seceded. They’d have to start their own government, and good luck with that, morons. By the way, the “The United States of America” is taken. Secessionists don’t get to take the nation with them. That’s not how it works.
Meanwhile, here are a few other things Hannity and Marj should know about secession. The seceded states would be, by definition, separating from the United States, which means they’d be rejecting its Constitution. They’d also be rejecting the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem – to be clear: completely abandoning the United States, its symbology, and its traditions is far worse than taking a knee during the Anthem. In other words, secession is the most extreme rejection of all things American – the very suggestion of it should be defined as profoundly unpatriotic.
Secession would also lead to the balkanization of America. Once secession occurred, and is thus codified as legal among the separatist states, the newly formed red state nation – say, Confederacy Part Two – would subdivide and subdivide under legalized secession until it was reduced to a collection of municipality-sized nations with zero power to defend itself or establish a viable economy. Or let’s say South Carolina decides to secede from Confederacy Part Two, would the new secessionist government go to war to keep South Carolina as part of its fledgling nation? Maybe. Likewise, the remaining parts of the U.S. might also be hesitant to lend economic support, especially if secession leads to another civil war.
snip
Oh Secession Shmacession
The “The United States of America” is taken. Secessionists don’t get to take the nation with them. That’s not how it works.https://thebanter.substack.com/p/oh-secession-shmacession
WASHINGTON, DC – Majorie Taylor Greene is a member of Congress. I wanted to lead with that sentence because her membership in this elite club of 535 politicians illustrates so many of the existential problems facing democracy. It shows how willing some Americans are to line up in support of a shrieking eel just as long as she shrieks the sounds those Americans want to hear. The problem is: when she says things, they can sometimes resonate beyond just idle blurtings. That’s what concerns me about her endorsement of secession. In case you missed it, Greene said the red states should secede from the blue states because something something woke mob. Later, Sean Hannity also made a case for secession, noting that it would result in:
https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1628224107593474048
Sure, the federal government would be smaller – but it wouldn’t be the federal government for the states that seceded. They’d have to start their own government, and good luck with that, morons. By the way, the “The United States of America” is taken. Secessionists don’t get to take the nation with them. That’s not how it works.
Meanwhile, here are a few other things Hannity and Marj should know about secession. The seceded states would be, by definition, separating from the United States, which means they’d be rejecting its Constitution. They’d also be rejecting the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem – to be clear: completely abandoning the United States, its symbology, and its traditions is far worse than taking a knee during the Anthem. In other words, secession is the most extreme rejection of all things American – the very suggestion of it should be defined as profoundly unpatriotic.
Secession would also lead to the balkanization of America. Once secession occurred, and is thus codified as legal among the separatist states, the newly formed red state nation – say, Confederacy Part Two – would subdivide and subdivide under legalized secession until it was reduced to a collection of municipality-sized nations with zero power to defend itself or establish a viable economy. Or let’s say South Carolina decides to secede from Confederacy Part Two, would the new secessionist government go to war to keep South Carolina as part of its fledgling nation? Maybe. Likewise, the remaining parts of the U.S. might also be hesitant to lend economic support, especially if secession leads to another civil war.
snip
February 24, 2023
https://www.russiamatters.org/blog/russia-ukraine-war-report-card-feb-23-2023
Report Card
Change in control of Ukrainian territory
Since Feb. 24, 2022:
Russia: +25,000 square miles. 11% of Ukraine. Area equivalent to Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut combined.
Ukraine: 0. Ukraine has not taken any territory controlled by Russia before the 2022 invasion.
snip
The Russia-Ukraine War Report Card, Feb. 23, 2023 - Who's Winning and Who's Losing What
https://www.russiamatters.org/blog/russia-ukraine-war-report-card-feb-23-2023
Report Card
Change in control of Ukrainian territory
Since Feb. 24, 2022:
Russia: +25,000 square miles. 11% of Ukraine. Area equivalent to Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut combined.
Ukraine: 0. Ukraine has not taken any territory controlled by Russia before the 2022 invasion.
snip
February 24, 2023
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2023/feb/23/ozy-media-founder-carlos-watson-arrested-fraud-charges
The founder of the startup Ozy Media was arrested on Thursday on fraud charges, more than a year after the troubled digital company shut down after losing millions of dollars.
Authorities say Carlos Watson misled investors and lenders to prop up the financially struggling company, conspired to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, and committed identity theft with his role in the impersonation of several media executives.
Police arrested Watson at a Manhattan hotel. Earlier this month, two of the company’s top executives pleaded guilty to fraud charges, including Ozy’s former chief operating officer, Samir Rao, who allegedly impersonated a YouTube executive during a pitch to a potential investor.
Between 2018 and 2021, Watson and his business partners attempted to defraud investors and lenders of “tens of millions of dollars through fraudulent misrepresentations and omissions” about the company’s debts and other key financial information, authorities say.
snip
Ozy Media founder Carlos Watson arrested on fraud charges
Media company was shuttered in 2021 after huge losses and COO’s alleged impersonation during pitch to potential investorhttps://www.theguardian.com/media/2023/feb/23/ozy-media-founder-carlos-watson-arrested-fraud-charges
The founder of the startup Ozy Media was arrested on Thursday on fraud charges, more than a year after the troubled digital company shut down after losing millions of dollars.
Authorities say Carlos Watson misled investors and lenders to prop up the financially struggling company, conspired to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, and committed identity theft with his role in the impersonation of several media executives.
Police arrested Watson at a Manhattan hotel. Earlier this month, two of the company’s top executives pleaded guilty to fraud charges, including Ozy’s former chief operating officer, Samir Rao, who allegedly impersonated a YouTube executive during a pitch to a potential investor.
Between 2018 and 2021, Watson and his business partners attempted to defraud investors and lenders of “tens of millions of dollars through fraudulent misrepresentations and omissions” about the company’s debts and other key financial information, authorities say.
snip
February 23, 2023
The EU must not only ensure that Ukraine can attain a just and lasting peace but support the embedding of universal norms.
https://www.socialeurope.eu/the-only-way-to-end-the-war
Russia’s war against Ukraine, as with almost all wars, will end at the negotiating table. But negotiations cannot start until Ukraine’s territorial integrity has been restored. Since a change of heart in Moscow is unlikely in the short term, the faster that Ukraine gets the means to force Russian troops to return to Russia and stay there, the better—for Ukraine and the rest of Europe.
We should all aim for a swift conclusion to the fighting. But, paradoxically, to bring about that outcome, we must make clear to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, that we will stay the course, doing whatever it takes for as long as it takes, so that he sees there is no point in endlessly sending young Russians into the meat grinder that is the Ukrainian front. Putin will not win this war. In fact, he has already lost it. But he could prolong it or create a semi-frozen conflict if Ukraine is deprived of what it needs to expel Russian forces. For any peace to last, it must be just. And to be just, it must respect Ukraine’s international borders, its democracy, its statehood and its right to choose its own destiny.
‘Total enemy’
This is crucial, because Russia’s justification for its aggression is based on the denial of Ukrainian statehood. Such claims are born of a Russian nationalist and imperialist ideology that rules out the very idea of a distinct Ukrainian identity. Russia defines Ukraine’s people as what the Nazi jurist Carl Schmitt called a ‘total enemy’, which must not be merely defeated but erased—not for what it does but for who it is.
This is Russia’s justification for torture, abduction of children, burning Ukrainian books and countless war crimes. The violence unleashed on Ukrainians because they are Ukrainians is comparable to Stalin’s great terror, when millions of innocent people were killed for being ‘class enemies’. Stalin’s terror ‘worked’ precisely because targeting innocent people forced everyone into total conformity with the will of the state. This is totalitarianism.
snip
The only way to end the war
The EU must not only ensure that Ukraine can attain a just and lasting peace but support the embedding of universal norms.
https://www.socialeurope.eu/the-only-way-to-end-the-war
Russia’s war against Ukraine, as with almost all wars, will end at the negotiating table. But negotiations cannot start until Ukraine’s territorial integrity has been restored. Since a change of heart in Moscow is unlikely in the short term, the faster that Ukraine gets the means to force Russian troops to return to Russia and stay there, the better—for Ukraine and the rest of Europe.
We should all aim for a swift conclusion to the fighting. But, paradoxically, to bring about that outcome, we must make clear to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, that we will stay the course, doing whatever it takes for as long as it takes, so that he sees there is no point in endlessly sending young Russians into the meat grinder that is the Ukrainian front. Putin will not win this war. In fact, he has already lost it. But he could prolong it or create a semi-frozen conflict if Ukraine is deprived of what it needs to expel Russian forces. For any peace to last, it must be just. And to be just, it must respect Ukraine’s international borders, its democracy, its statehood and its right to choose its own destiny.
‘Total enemy’
This is crucial, because Russia’s justification for its aggression is based on the denial of Ukrainian statehood. Such claims are born of a Russian nationalist and imperialist ideology that rules out the very idea of a distinct Ukrainian identity. Russia defines Ukraine’s people as what the Nazi jurist Carl Schmitt called a ‘total enemy’, which must not be merely defeated but erased—not for what it does but for who it is.
This is Russia’s justification for torture, abduction of children, burning Ukrainian books and countless war crimes. The violence unleashed on Ukrainians because they are Ukrainians is comparable to Stalin’s great terror, when millions of innocent people were killed for being ‘class enemies’. Stalin’s terror ‘worked’ precisely because targeting innocent people forced everyone into total conformity with the will of the state. This is totalitarianism.
snip
February 23, 2023
https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2023/02/gop-gubernatorial-candidate-says-satan-is-sitting-in-libraries/
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry (R) described efforts to ban what he has characterized as “sexually explicit” books from public libraries as “an absolute battle between good and evil.” The Republican who is running for governor and has spearheaded efforts to ban books in the state spoke last Friday at a gathering of pastors hosted by Tony Perkins, president of the anti-LGBTQ+ Family Research Council, in Baton Rouge.
“Our libraries are not a place for Satan to sit,” Landry said, according to an email from Perkins about the event. “Those libraries belong to you.” Landry asserted that while the First Amendment protects the availability of books on library shelves, those books should not be available to everyone. He also claimed that “evil and the devil doubled down,” following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Roe v. Wade, comparing aborting a fetus to letting a child see books he thinks are inappropriate. “Now that [the Left] can’t stain those children before they’re born… they’re working on them while they’re alive.”
Earlier this month, Landry released a report that included a list of books that his office characterized as “sexually explicit” or inappropriate for children. The list included The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer, Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, The Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison, and other books by LGBTQ+ authors and writers of color.
Landry has claimed that his efforts, including setting up a tip line for people to report books, are not about banning books or targeting specific groups. Instead, he claims he wants libraries to institute policies so that parents have more control over the books their children can access, according to the Lafayette Daily Advertiser.
snip
GOP gubernatorial candidate says Satan is sitting in libraries
He described efforts to ban LGBTQ+ books as “an absolute battle between good and evil.”https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2023/02/gop-gubernatorial-candidate-says-satan-is-sitting-in-libraries/
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry (R) described efforts to ban what he has characterized as “sexually explicit” books from public libraries as “an absolute battle between good and evil.” The Republican who is running for governor and has spearheaded efforts to ban books in the state spoke last Friday at a gathering of pastors hosted by Tony Perkins, president of the anti-LGBTQ+ Family Research Council, in Baton Rouge.
“Our libraries are not a place for Satan to sit,” Landry said, according to an email from Perkins about the event. “Those libraries belong to you.” Landry asserted that while the First Amendment protects the availability of books on library shelves, those books should not be available to everyone. He also claimed that “evil and the devil doubled down,” following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Roe v. Wade, comparing aborting a fetus to letting a child see books he thinks are inappropriate. “Now that [the Left] can’t stain those children before they’re born… they’re working on them while they’re alive.”
Earlier this month, Landry released a report that included a list of books that his office characterized as “sexually explicit” or inappropriate for children. The list included The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer, Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, The Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison, and other books by LGBTQ+ authors and writers of color.
Landry has claimed that his efforts, including setting up a tip line for people to report books, are not about banning books or targeting specific groups. Instead, he claims he wants libraries to institute policies so that parents have more control over the books their children can access, according to the Lafayette Daily Advertiser.
snip
February 22, 2023
Label: Estrus Records – ES121
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Yellow Transparent
Country: US
Released: Jun 1990
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock
The Mono Men - Stop Draggin' Me Down (Full Album) 1990
Label: Estrus Records – ES121
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Yellow Transparent
Country: US
Released: Jun 1990
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock
February 22, 2023
Former president Donald Trump visited East Palestine, Ohio, on Wednesday to tour the area where a Norfolk Southern train derailed in early February, leaving behind an environmental disaster that has left residents fearful of contaminated air and water. In short remarks given during his visit, Trump chided the aid the United States has sent Ukraine to defend itself against Russia’s invasion, saying he hopes that the U.S. government will have “some money left over” to help rebuild East Palestine after the derailment.
“I sincerely hope that when your representatives and all of the politicians get here — including Biden — they get back from touring Ukraine, that he’s got some money left over,” Trump said, noting that the country has provided billions more in aid to Ukraine than Europe. “That’s a big difference, wouldn’t you say?”
While Congress has approved more than $110 billion in aid to Ukraine since the war began last February, the Pentagon has reported that, since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the United States has committed more than $24.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine.
Trump joined other Republicans in criticizing the federal government’s decision to continue approving aid for Ukraine. But other Republican leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), recently doubled down on their promise to continue supporting the country. He and more than 30 senators attended a conference in Germany last week to show in a bipartisan manner that congressional support for Ukraine hasn’t waned.
snip
East Palestine OH: Enervated Putin-puppet Trump shills out for master Vlad on US Ukraine funding
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/02/22/biden-warsaw-trump-train-palestine/#link-7ZQ4M5GM7ZFDDONQFAYATS3KJYFormer president Donald Trump visited East Palestine, Ohio, on Wednesday to tour the area where a Norfolk Southern train derailed in early February, leaving behind an environmental disaster that has left residents fearful of contaminated air and water. In short remarks given during his visit, Trump chided the aid the United States has sent Ukraine to defend itself against Russia’s invasion, saying he hopes that the U.S. government will have “some money left over” to help rebuild East Palestine after the derailment.
“I sincerely hope that when your representatives and all of the politicians get here — including Biden — they get back from touring Ukraine, that he’s got some money left over,” Trump said, noting that the country has provided billions more in aid to Ukraine than Europe. “That’s a big difference, wouldn’t you say?”
While Congress has approved more than $110 billion in aid to Ukraine since the war began last February, the Pentagon has reported that, since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the United States has committed more than $24.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine.
Trump joined other Republicans in criticizing the federal government’s decision to continue approving aid for Ukraine. But other Republican leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), recently doubled down on their promise to continue supporting the country. He and more than 30 senators attended a conference in Germany last week to show in a bipartisan manner that congressional support for Ukraine hasn’t waned.
snip
February 22, 2023
WASHINGTON — The White House is firing back at Republicans following the toxic East Palestine, Ohio train derailment, blaming the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress for undoing Obama-era rail safety measures designed to avert such disasters.
The aggressive rebuttal came as former President Donald Trump visited East Palestine on Wednesday and Republicans increasingly attack the Biden administration, especially Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, for its response to the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern freight train derailment that unleased toxic chemicals.
“Congressional Republicans and former Trump Administration officials owe East Palestine an apology for selling them out to rail industry lobbyists when they dismantled Obama-Biden rail safety protections as well as EPA powers to rapidly contain spills,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement to USA TODAY.
Among safety rollbacks cited by the White House, the Trump administration withdrew a 2015 proposal to require advanced braking systems on trains carrying highly flammable materials, ended regular safety audits of railroads and scrapped a proposal to require at least two crew members on freight trains.
snip
White House blames Trump administration and Republicans over East Palestine, Ohio spill
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/02/22/white-house-blame-trump-gop-east-palestine-spill/11322623002/WASHINGTON — The White House is firing back at Republicans following the toxic East Palestine, Ohio train derailment, blaming the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress for undoing Obama-era rail safety measures designed to avert such disasters.
The aggressive rebuttal came as former President Donald Trump visited East Palestine on Wednesday and Republicans increasingly attack the Biden administration, especially Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, for its response to the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern freight train derailment that unleased toxic chemicals.
“Congressional Republicans and former Trump Administration officials owe East Palestine an apology for selling them out to rail industry lobbyists when they dismantled Obama-Biden rail safety protections as well as EPA powers to rapidly contain spills,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement to USA TODAY.
Among safety rollbacks cited by the White House, the Trump administration withdrew a 2015 proposal to require advanced braking systems on trains carrying highly flammable materials, ended regular safety audits of railroads and scrapped a proposal to require at least two crew members on freight trains.
snip
February 22, 2023
https://progressivepost.eu/dossier/unbroken-ukraine-365-days/
https://progressivepost.eu/the-cost-of-victory-coping-with-the-prospect-of-ukraines-lost-generation/
https://progressivepost.eu/navigating-the-time-and-shaping-the-future/
https://progressivepost.eu/one-year-of-war-in-ukraine-solidarity-starts-locally/
https://progressivepost.eu/why-would-a-ukrainian-victory-be-essential-for-social-democracy/
Unbroken Ukraine. 365 days
https://progressivepost.eu/dossier/unbroken-ukraine-365-days/
One year of war has not broken Ukraine and its people. Unexpectedly, the country has withstood Russian aggression. Its cities are the object of strikes and carry the deep scars of the bombing. Some have been captured by the Russian armies and others have been liberated by the Ukrainian forces. The Ukrainian population is suffering the consequences of Russia’s unprovoked invasion. Millions of them have left Ukraine and searched for rescue in the EU or the neighbouring countries, others are internally displaced or enduring the consequences of the conflict at home. But despite the destruction and the suffering, Russia has not bent the will of Ukraine, which enjoys the complete political support of the EU and its member states. With this dossier, the Progressive Post wants to mark this tragic first anniversary by looking above all at the Ukrainian people and at the way the country’s politics and society will be changed forever by this war. We also look at the reconstruction, which will need the EU’s support and that will take decades to be completed. Finally, we look at ourselves, the progressive family, and how this conflict has impacted European Social Democracy.
https://progressivepost.eu/the-cost-of-victory-coping-with-the-prospect-of-ukraines-lost-generation/
https://progressivepost.eu/navigating-the-time-and-shaping-the-future/
https://progressivepost.eu/one-year-of-war-in-ukraine-solidarity-starts-locally/
https://progressivepost.eu/why-would-a-ukrainian-victory-be-essential-for-social-democracy/
February 22, 2023
https://thebanter.substack.com/p/tucker-carlsons-dominion-text-messages
In November 2020, Dominion Voting Systems filed a defamation lawsuit against Fox News for $1.6 billion. The lawsuit alleged that Fox News spread false claims about Dominion and its role in the 2020 presidential election, causing irreparable damage to the company’s reputation.
The lawsuit alleges that Fox News hosts and guests made false statements about Dominion, including that its voting machines were manipulated to switch votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden, and that the company has ties to Venezuela, Cuba, and China. Dominion asserts that these claims are baseless and defamatory. Fox News has argued that its coverage of Dominion and the 2020 election was protected by the First Amendment, and that it was reporting on a matter of public concern. However, Dominion aims to prove that the network acted with actual malice, meaning that the network knowingly spread false information.
The ongoing lawsuit has taken a dramatic turn with the recent release of text messages sent by several of the network's high-profile hosts. These messages, submitted as evidence in the lawsuit, show definitively that the network knowingly spread false information about the voting systems company. The legal ramifications could be catastrophic for Fox News, but more than that, we now have incontrovertible evidence that the network is actively undermining democracy in America and propagandizing its audience with fake news.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the most damning evidence comes from the network’s most insidious and powerful operator, Tucker Carlson. Carlson’s text messages aren’t just incriminating though, they undermine the entire basis of the persona he projects to his audience on a nightly basis — and thus his employer’s entire programming agenda.
Tucker’s texts......
snip
Tucker Carlson's Dominion Text Messages Brutally Expose The Fox News Fraud
Carlson’s text messages aren’t just incriminating, they undermine the entire basis of his persona, and Fox News's.https://thebanter.substack.com/p/tucker-carlsons-dominion-text-messages
In November 2020, Dominion Voting Systems filed a defamation lawsuit against Fox News for $1.6 billion. The lawsuit alleged that Fox News spread false claims about Dominion and its role in the 2020 presidential election, causing irreparable damage to the company’s reputation.
The lawsuit alleges that Fox News hosts and guests made false statements about Dominion, including that its voting machines were manipulated to switch votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden, and that the company has ties to Venezuela, Cuba, and China. Dominion asserts that these claims are baseless and defamatory. Fox News has argued that its coverage of Dominion and the 2020 election was protected by the First Amendment, and that it was reporting on a matter of public concern. However, Dominion aims to prove that the network acted with actual malice, meaning that the network knowingly spread false information.
The ongoing lawsuit has taken a dramatic turn with the recent release of text messages sent by several of the network's high-profile hosts. These messages, submitted as evidence in the lawsuit, show definitively that the network knowingly spread false information about the voting systems company. The legal ramifications could be catastrophic for Fox News, but more than that, we now have incontrovertible evidence that the network is actively undermining democracy in America and propagandizing its audience with fake news.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the most damning evidence comes from the network’s most insidious and powerful operator, Tucker Carlson. Carlson’s text messages aren’t just incriminating though, they undermine the entire basis of the persona he projects to his audience on a nightly basis — and thus his employer’s entire programming agenda.
Tucker’s texts......
snip
Profile Information
Gender: FemaleHometown: London
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Current location: Stockholm, Sweden
Member since: Sun Jul 1, 2018, 07:25 PM
Number of posts: 43,240
