The Destruction Of American Civilization

Trump Musk's ongoing demolition of the federal government, combined with disastrous economic policies and the detonation of our long standing alliances essentially amounts to the beginning of the end of American Civilization. We used to be the world's leading superpower. Once Trump is done with it, our country will be a hollow shell of what it used to be. I can't imagine that there aren't some Republicans out there that are quietly opposed to this destruction of our once great country.

America was never perfect, but it was often good and occasionally great. So maybe this is the twilight of American democracy, with Trump and Musk breaking the country into pieces to sell off the spare parts, sort of an American version of what happened when Putin and the Oligarchs came to power in Russia. Except that, unlike Russia, American has a long history of democracy and prosperity. We have a lot to lose. Unless someone does something drastic to stop Trump Musk soon, I fear that this could be the beginning of the end for American Civilization.

US Army General Warned Us About Musk

This is from an article back in December 2024 that was reposted on Facebook by Occupy Democrats. It is a little old but worth re-reading and reconsidering, I think.

BREAKING: Renowned former U.S. Army Lieutenant General Russel L. Honoré sounds the alarm about the "national security risk" posed by MAGA billionaire Elon Musk — and he didn't hold back.
America can not afford to ignore this...

"Mr. Musk’s business ventures are heavily reliant on China. He borrowed at least $1.4 billion from banks controlled by the Chinese government to help build Tesla’s Shanghai gigafactory, which was responsible for more than half of Tesla’s global deliveries in the third quarter of 2024," the general writes in an Op-Ed for The New York Times.

"China does not tend to give things away," he adds. "The country’s laws stipulate that the Communist Party can demand intelligence from any company doing business in China, in exchange for participating in the country’s markets."

According to Honoré, this means that China could demand that Musk hand over sensitive materials due to his close proximity to the Trump administration, using his businesses as leverage.

"The last thing the United States needs is for China to potentially have an easier way of obtaining classified intelligence and national security information," writes the general"

"The question now is whether the incoming Trump administration will take this risk seriously," Honoré adds.

"The fact that Mr. Musk spent a quarter of a billion dollars to help re-elect Mr. Trump does not give the incoming White House the license to look the other way at the national security risks he may pose," he writes.

"If Mr. Trump and his appointees mean what they say about getting tough on America’s adversaries, then they will act on this matter without delay. There is too much at stake to ignore what’s right in front of them," concludes Honoré.

He is absolutely right. Musk's dream of being a corrupt oligarch who rules over America cannot be allowed to endanger us all. He must be investigated immediately.

Intolerable Oppression

I wonder how much oppression we must suffer before the American people rise up? The tyranny of Trump Musk is not going to be stopped by conventional democratic means. This is an authoritarian takeover of our democracy. It is an extreme situation that may require an extreme response.

The Declaration of Independence states:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.—That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,—That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

An Argument For Blue State Secession

This is an older article from the New Republic in 2017 but it is even more relevant in the age of Trump 2.0-

It is Time for a Bluexit- by Kevin Baker

For more than 80 years now, we—the residents of what some people like to call Blue America, but which I prefer to think of as the United States of We Pay Our Own Damn Way—have shelled out far more in federal tax monies than we took in. We have funded massive infrastructure projects in your rural counties, subsidized your schools and your power plants and your nursing homes, sent you entire industries, and simultaneously absorbed the most destitute, unskilled, and oppressed portions of your populations, white and black alike.

All of which, it turns out, only left you more bitter, white, and alt-right than ever.

Some folks here in self-supporting America like to believe that there must be a way to bring you back to your senses and to restore rational government, if not liberal ideals, sometime in the foreseeable future. Everyone seems to have an answer for how to do this. Every day another earnest little homily finds its way to me over my internet transom: “Think locally, act globally,” or “Make art and fight the power,” or the old Joe Hill standby—“Don’t mourn. Organize."

To which I say: Don’t organize. Pack.

Not literally, of course. Not even the good people of Canada should have to stomach a mass migration of moping American liberals mumbling, “Live locally … make art.” What I mean is that it’s time for blue states and cities to effectively abandon the American national enterprise, as it is currently constituted. Call it the New Federalism. Or Virtual Secession. Or Conscious Uncoupling—though that’s already been used. Or maybe Bluexit.

The rest of the article is at the link.

https://newrepublic.com/article/140948/bluexit-blue-states-exit-trump-red-america

Strategies For Resistance

This is an edited repost of a post that I made back in January. I thought that I would repost it here--

I am posting this thread in the hopes of compiling a list of possible Strategies for Resistance against the Trump Regime, especially in regards to the attempt to freeze the Federal Government. I would like to hear everyone's best ideas for Strategies of Resistance. How do we best resist what is happening? What are your thoughts? We all know that we have a problem. What are some ideas for a solution? I would like to hear your ideas.

Here are some ideas--

--One idea that I have heard of is a National Strike. That is no work, no travel, no purchases. A complete strike and total boycott. If millions did this for just one day it would send a strong signal of resistance. Many millions voted for Kamala Harris. Those millions have massive economic powers and resources. If a significant proportion of the population engaged in a National Strike, I think that it would send a powerful signal of Resistance. And it would make a great story that the Media could not ignore. It would be on the nightly news and everywhere else. So that is one idea.

---Another idea is one kind of media strategy. It seems that Medicaid might be cut at some point. We need news and online media to cover those affected. It is not just patients that will suffer. Many Doctors and Nurses will not get paid if Medicaid is cut or frozen. Hospitals may be short staffed or lacking supplies and medicines. Health care professionals that are affected need to be interviewed and the message needs to be repeated throughout the media. Hospitals depend on Medicaid and Medicare for about 58 percent of their inpatient stays. So cuts to Federal Programs will harm Hospitals and the entire health care industry. It will damage the economy. This needs to be reported on local news, national news, online, and in alternative news venues. The Trump cuts are dangerous threats to the entire economy, including the health care sector.

---Federal supports to the poor, the sick, the elderly, and the disabled are threatened. If the elderly or disabled are in danger of being thrown out out of care facilities that needs to be broadcast widely. That at least might shock Americans awake. So that is another possible story that should be covered in traditional and alternative media. If the local news and the national news do not cover these kinds of stories, we need to swamp the local stations and the big networks with phone calls and e-mails demanding they cover these stories, or we will organize and mobilize a boycott of their networks or news outlets.

---This is a National Emergency. Trump's actions are illegal and unconstitutional. We need Democrats to come out in the media and say just that. We have to call this situation out for what it actually is. Soft language does not work. Tough language is called for. Followed by tough action.

---We also need State Government in Blue States to step in and protect citizens that are being threated with cuts. For example, federal rent supports may be threatened. Democratic Governors and State Legislatures should pass moratoriums on evictions of tenants in these programs. So if these programs are frozen or cut, the tenants will at least be secure in their homes and apartments until we can resolve these issues and these cuts.

---Another example is State Attorneys General. They can and will bring lawsuits against these unlawful federal cuts and freezes. We have to support these actions and push the story to be covered in all media.

---Democratic State Governors and Legislatures should perhaps consider passing resolutions demanding the return of their citizen's federal tax dollars back to the States in the form of block grants. If the Federal Government is going to misuse or withhold Federal Tax Monies that are paid by the citizens of their States, then these monies should be returned to the States, so that the State can provide their citizens with the services that are being cut by Trump.

---For example, cuts to the CDC and NIH can be offset by funding a State's Department of Health. Even if this strategy is not very realistic and the legislation is not implemented, I think that attempting to pass such laws or resolutions would be good optics in the Media War against the MAGA Regime. If States demand their money back, that is another good media story. Democrats in Congress could also propose the same legislation in Congress demanding that Federal Tax monies be returned to the States in block grant form. Again, it would be stopped in the MAGA Republican Congress, but the attempt could be used to generate a story in the Media that Trump is ripping off taxpayers in Blue States and not providing services or funding to taxpayers.

Anyway, those are a few ideas. I am sure that there are probably many more good ideas out there. What ideas do you have about Strategies for Resistance? What do you think of some of the ideas suggested here in this post? I would very much like to hear from the people here in DU. We know we have a serious problem on our hands with the Trump Regime. The question now is- what are some possible solutions? What actions can we take to fight back? Please post your ideas below in the comments.

Trump Musk Treason

Trump and Musk are enemies of the Constitution. They are willfully and repeatedly violating it. That is treason. Feds take an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. We do not take an oath to a president or a leader. Our loyalties are to the Constitution and Democracy. Just because Trump was elected does not allow him to subvert the law and shred the Constitution. Criminal violation of the Constitution is treason. The Trump Musk Regime has broken the law, usurped the powers of Congress, illegally destroyed federal agencies, and disregarded the judicial branch. This is all a willful violation of the Constitution. They show no signs of stopping and will probably escalate. Trump has repeatedly violated the Constitution and this renders his Presidency null and void. We have the legal right and the moral obligation to remove him from office.

A Legal Basis For Resistance

A legal basis for lawful Resistance and Rebellion--

The powers of the President and the Executive Branch derive from the Constitution. If the President and his Agents are acting in an illegal and unconstitutional manner, then their authority is null and void. No illegal or unconstitutional action can therefore be "official", and the Supreme Court doctrine that asserts a President can commit illegal actions while in office is defunct and should be once again challenged in the courts and in the streets, if necessary.

A relevant excerpt from the Declaration of Independence, the founding document of our Nation--

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness."

Our lives, our liberties, and our pursuit of happiness are being threatened by this rogue fascist regime. We have the right to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government. If they are going to subvert the law, violate the Constitution, and destroy our government, we have the right to resist and to establish a new government. We are the people and we do not consent to this false and despotic regime.

New York AG Letitia James Interviewed On MSNBC

Social Security Town Hall In The Villages Florida

The Villages is a very large retirement community in Florida. My mother and my stepfather retired there many years ago. My mom has since passed away, but my stepfather still lives there. It is a fairly conservative place, but if you mess with their Social Security, watch out. You may wake the grey panthers.

Trump Musk Treason

It is not just that Trump and Musk hate the Constitution. They are willfully and repeatedly violating it. That is treason. Feds take an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. We do not take an oath to a president or a leader. Our loyalties are to the Constitution and Democracy. Just because Trump was elected does not allow him to subvert the law and shred the Constitution. Criminal violation of the Constitution is treason. The Trump Musk Regime has broken the law, usurped the powers of Congress, illegally destroyed federal agencies, and disregarded the judicial branch. This is all a willful violation of the Constitution. They show no signs of stopping and will probably escalate. Trump has repeatedly violated the Constitution and this renders his Presidency null and void. We have the legal right and moral obligation to remove him from office.