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Such a clear example of the conflicts embedded deep into our systems. In this case voting system.
What is lost in this maelstrom of Trump(ism) and its nonsense, so well called out by @GabrielSterling, is the underlying fact that partisans are in control of what should be a


non partisan function.

As welcome is the pushback the office of the Sec State of GA is, it is only barely sufficient. And when coupled with the equally sever problem of voter suppression, including purging the rolls, shutting down voting locations, all aimed at minority

populations, making it unnecessarily difficult, sometimes impossible, for these citizens to register their vote...When the larger issue is taken into account it is clear that we, and GA, are still reeling from ancient social problems.

As good as @GabrielSterling has been re this extreme Trump lying and BS...it is only because Trump is so very far out of sync with reality and facts that he falls outside even the very generous boundaries of what voter suppression is officially sanctioned. That itself is amazing

So, appreciate that, thankfully, there actually is a line that some people, even in their partisan positions of power, will not cross.
And then recognize that in this tweet is embodied the substrate of the problem....

A non partisan function is being administered in a partisan
Trump's call to @GaSecofState highlights the intersection of "Trickle Down Pathology", the emasculinization of the rule of law, and a gaslighting technique I describe as "the manipulation of the interaction timeline".

To review: 1)Trump attempted to extort election fraud....1/


2) @GaSecofState, perhaps as a result of wanting to protect himself...as well as American Democracy...learned his lesson after taking a phone call from @LindseyGrahamSC, refused to take Trump's first 18 phone calls (attempts to commit voter fraud). 2/

3) Finally, relenting, and taking Trump's call...... Raffensperger recorded the call and publicized it only after Trump attacked him and the process.


Predictably, Trump and the Right Wing Echo Chamber immediately went into gaslighting mode in an attempt to "manipulate the interaction timeline". Here is a breakdown of how it works: 4/


....5/....https://t.co/0BBwgMNWQD
It's important to note how deeply rooted & completely canonical these kooky ideas are in the US far right, & how dangerous it is that a sitting president is giving legitimacy to them. It's like Father Coughlin, the John Birch Society, and Geo Lincoln Rockwell had an orange baby.


Thanks (I think) to @z3dster for bringing this batshit tweet to my attention.

There's a long history of the American center-right and center-left laughing at this kind of stuff. It is indeed laughably ludicrous. But it's important to know that to millions of people, this is their truth. This is how they see the world. And now the President is condoning it.

One hallmark of fascism is that it defines "communism" as its enemy. One can be opposed to communism without being a fascist. But it's impossible to be fascist without being obsessed with the existential (and often hysterically overblown) threat of communism.

Every significant, US variant of fascism has depicted itself as a movement of Christian patriots defending the US from anti-American enemies of Christ. One can be a Christian and/or a patriot without being a fascist, but fascists almost always call themselves Christian patriots.
30 December 2020 #MAGAanalysis #Overturn

Comments on @OptimisticCon's Article - Part 2

We'll pick up with Slide 6 shortly, but we have a couple of stops on the way to make first. Here we go!
1) Lots of politicians talking about the "Sanctity" & "Strength" of our "Institutions".

While failing to acknowledge that for a huge swath of Americans, that faith in those same Institutions has been impaired or destroyed.


2) President Trump didn't create this lack of faith. Nor the anger and distrust.

It has long been there, brewing and gathering strength. Precisely because of actions from those same Institutions.

The reactions from the Media & DC to Trump's term solidified those beliefs.

3) We just learned that the IC downplayed the role of China in the election for political purposes.

"Some of our career people, even CIA management, were politicizing China

4) The intentional distractions from China through a laughable focus on false claims of Russian-Collusion did irreparable harm to our country.

To date there has been one conviction for an institutional attempt to impair - even bring down - President Trump's administration.

5) Justice delayed is justice foregone.

Why is it that Justice seems to so lean heavily in one direction?

And why do people pervasively believe the Institutions protect their own?
My catch all thread for this discussion of AI risk in relation to Critical Rationalism, to summarize what's happened so far and how to go forward, from here.

I started by simply stating that I thought that the arguments that I had heard so far don't hold up, and seeing if anyone was interested in going into it in depth with


So far, a few people have engaged pretty extensively with me, for instance, scheduling video calls to talk about some of the stuff, or long private chats.

(Links to some of those that are public at the bottom of the thread.)

But in addition to that, there has been a much more sprawling conversation happening on twitter, involving a much larger number of people.

Having talked to a number of people, I then offered a paraphrase of the basic counter that I was hearing from people of the Crit Rat persuasion.