Category Archives: Uncategorized

Norway says it will keep supplying fuel to US navy after company calls for boycott | Reuters

https://www.reuters.com/world/norway-says-it-will-keep-supplying-fuel-us-navy-after-company-calls-boycott-2025-03-02/

«Haltbakk Bunkers CEO Gunnar Gran confirmed to Norwegian newspaper VG that the company made a decision not to supply the U.S. military, but said the move would have a “symbolic” impact as it didn’t have a fixed contract.»

Hungary, checks and balances

Saw a post on Mastodon from someone in Hungary saying that it’s now a soft dictatorship. They cautioned us not to let Trump/Musk get rid of our checks and balances.

https://social.coop/@judell/114091295390017218

Our checks and balances are built in to our constitution, by and large (apart from Congress ceding power to the President over the years and the Supreme Court becoming owned by the Right).

So, we’d need a constitutional convention to erase our checks and balances. Unlikely, right?

Not so much. A number of states have already officially called for a convention over the years, without rescinding their votes. And it’s unknown if recesion is even effective, legally.

So, like Project 2025, there’s a body of people on the right who have planned for a convention for *years*. And they want to make it happen. And that’s where the bad decisions of the Supreme Court could be enshrined permanently or good decisions overturned. Where Congress could be made into a rubber stamp. Where the Federal government could be dismantled with *no* option of rebuilding. Where the right of private militias to own complete military weapon systems could be written into unchangeable law. And on and on. There are no rules for what a constitutional convention can’t do.

We cannot be caught flat-footed. “It can’t happen here” is simply not true.

https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/some-democrats-fear-a-runaway-constitutional-convention-has-threshold-already-been-met

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convention_to_propose_amendments_to_the_United_States_Constitution

Lady Libertie on MAGA FAFO and what’s next

https://ladylibertie.substack.com/p/fafo-the-maga-meltdown-is-here-and

«So what do we do when these newly-bewildered GOP voters start realizing they got conned? How do we handle the Great Republican Panic of 2025?

With care.

Yes, it’s tempting to scream, “WE TOLD YOU SO” and let them marinate in their bad choices. But that doesn’t flip votes—it just sends them running back into the arms of Fox News. Instead, we need to be the cool, collected voice of reality.

A little sympathy goes a long way: “Yeah, it sucks that your mom lost Medicaid. Let’s talk about how we fix that.”

Help them connect the dots: “It’s not just bad luck, it’s GOP policy. You deserve better.”

Offer a way out: “You don’t have to stay loyal to people who are screwing you over.”

Because here’s the truth: We don’t need all of them to wake up. Just a few percent. 3.5% to be precise. That’s all it takes to flip an election, dismantle Trumpism, and start rebuilding what these ghouls have burned down.»

Fairness doctrine – Wikipedia

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairness_doctrine

I never liked Ronald Reagan. He did a lot damage to this country, and it’s continuing to unfold.

One of the things I blamed him for was ending the Fairness Doctrine and thus enabling the growth of Fox News.

But… I don’t think the FCC has jurisdiction over cable, and Fox  managed to get themselves into the standard cable bundle. And now cable itself is dying (except as an internet service provider). So I wonder if we’d be in the same situation today even if Reagan hadn’t killed the Fairness Doctrine.

One could argue that Fox was able to legitimize themselves before broadcast really died, and that’s how they wound up in the standard cable bundle, but, really, who watches them any more but Boomers and older Gen Xers? Everybody else is on Twitter and Facebook and their favorite far-right podcast or other website.

“You were lied to” is still correct, but I think it might be independent of Reagan.

Chop Wood, Carry Ukraine 🇺🇦

https://chopwoodcarrywaterdailyactions.substack.com/p/chop-wood-carry-ukraine

«if everyone who voted for Kamala Harris gave $10 we’d raise 750M.»

The EIN for the 501(c)(3) is 872080907. They don’t cover military expenses (which Ukraine definitely needs), but it’s all fungible. Your contribution to hospitals and de-mining frees up more of their funds for things that go bang.

(I just posted this directly to Mastodon because stupid WordPress strips links out of posts. 😡 Not much of a POSSE solution, is it?)