#and has a track record of support for israel and so it DOES matter. it DOES. and refusing to acknowledge that is turning on your peers

[howldean]

welcome to single-issue voting you’ve come to understand what single-issue voting is

[madamemachikonew]

It's sad that you've chosen to bring politics into your blog. Innocent people in Israel and Palestine are both being affected by the actions of terror groups, so why are saying "Free Palestine" and ignoring the suffering of millions of Israeli Jews, Muslims, Christians, Druze, etc?

I didn't bring it into my blog though. Somebody sent unsolicited fake propaganda to me. I simply responded to that. Your ask once again brings the politics into my space and expressly seeks commentary, under the protective veil of anonymity.

As a half-Palestinian (based overseas) with branches of family on both sides of the border, I don't owe you or anyone else any explanation for not wanting my family to be ethnically cleansed by genocidaires, their culture and history erased, and having what precious little remains of their land stolen from under them to hand over to extremist settlers who literally want them dead (irrespective of whether they are Muslim, Christian or Druze) because of a destructive ideology.

And so you ask me 'why are you saying "Free Palestine" [...]?'

Asking for Palestinian civilians not to be murdered in cold blood or forcibly displaced does not equate advocating violence against other people or ignoring their suffering. Expressing objections to the actions of a government or apartheid ideology does not equate hostility or indifference towards ordinary civilians living under that government or support for terror groups.

So you are extrapolating and drawing a false equivalence because I didn't include an exhaustive list of every group you wanted in a freaking hashtag; classic 'I like pancakes' 'So you hate waffles?' fallacy. Your ask is akin to replying 'All lives matter' to a BLM post.

But it remains an incontrovertible fact that at the present time, Palestinians of all religions are being massacred and having buildings flattened at a wholly disproportionate rate to other civilians in the immediate region, in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law. The military machine is being funded by some of the world's biggest superpowers and civilians have nowhere to flee or access to resources. It's like medieval siege warfare but on a national scale. There is also a massive disparity in the quality of life for civilians in Palestine compared to those in Israel due to long-standing obstructive practices concerning access to basic amenities, border control and import control. For many years it has been for all intents and purposes an open prison. "Free Palestine" encompasses allowing them to have basic living standards and human rights on a par with their neighbours at a very minimum.

I say a very minimum because I am well aware of how many ethnicities and religions are treated as second class citizens in Israel by its apartheid regime, including some of its own Jews (eg. branches of Judaism that don't support or recognise the current State as politically or theologically valid). If you want to see Israel's track record for treating its own Jews of Arab or African ethnicity, look up how naturalised Israeli-Ethiopian Jews regularly suffer racial discrimination and the frankly stomach-churning Yemenite Children Affair.

The apartheid has been going on for generations and needs to stop. And I am so very tired of having to justify asking for my family to be recognised as human beings without having some sort of accusation thrown at me.

This is the last post on this matter.

Anon asks will be closed for the foreseeable.

[songsforthepierce]

Album Showcase: The Sickness - Disturbed

Update: I have decided instead of deleting the review to update that I do not endorse the band Disturbed anymore. The review does not reflect my current views on the band. The lead singer David Draiman supports Israel and even signed one of the bombs. Beyond disgusting and vile. I cannot stand this zionist and his disregard to the humanity of Palestinians. Instead go donate eSims to Gaza, share and donate  to various fundraisers, do daily clicks, etc. For any Disturbed fans finding this, I am sorry you had to find this out about the band though I suggest that while you be sadden by his lack of compassion towards Palestine that you can move on from the band and support better metal bands. I get metal fans at times can be very dickish about not caring about politics and just want to listen to good music regardless of the artist but the music here doesn’t matter. Human lives are more important. Long live Palestine, from the river to the sea.

Back in high school I was friends with this guy who hated Disturbed and I never fully knew why. All I remember was him saying all their songs sounded the same and at one of their live performances they sucked. I haven’t seen this guy in years and I don’t really care for his opinion on the band (or his opinions in general at the time). This is one of my memory associations I have with Disturbed besides “It was that nu metal band I would listen to some of their songs back in high school”.

content/trigger warning for some light discussions to mentions of domestic abuse, and racism. Oh and ableism since this album does I guess touch on like mental illness (?) and like going uh...insane.

So the album cover is of some man or humanoid...flesh...thing...and it has a label saying this is “The Sickness”. I know that is the album title but I am just gonna assume this is the name of this being as well. Are they like an SCP or something? That is my best guess. Also the description beneath the title...I wonder if that’ll be relevant?

Doing research on this it made me realize I actually didn’t know much about Disturbed besides them being a nu-metal band. The band formed in Chicago in 1994. The guitarist, bassist, and drummer were originally part of a band called Brawl. They had a singer by the name of Erich Awalt but he left not long after recording their demo. So they advertised for a new singer in the Illinois Entertainer. David Draiman answered the ad and joined the band. This album was their debut released back on March 7th, 2000. Even though it was released in 2000 they recorded this from November to December of 1999. I guess it took them awhile to record. I would usually go more into the process here but I actually will save that when we talk more about the songs and near the end. So I should say that I am only familiar with five songs on this album. Actually let me correct myself, growing up I only listened to two songs from this album and a year or two ago I listened to three more of their songs through an unlikely source. Also before you ask, I do not remember how I first heard about the band.But before going further I should at the very least mention that around the early 2000s nu metal was getting big and for the metal community at the time a lot of metal elitist types HATED nu metal. I get there were some acts that weren’t good but like every metal genre has good to mid to bad bands. Nu metal is not like an outlier in this. Based on the fact I only would listen to a few Disturbed songs growing up I want to see if the rest of the album has some hidden gems that were overlooked.

Track 1: Voices

The starting track is something. At first I didn’t consider it that strong but then I had to remember this was early in nu metal so this would actually be unique for the time...maybe. I will say that David Draiman does have a unique voice delivery though there is something about how he sings that reminds me of something...it’ll come to me later. So this song is uh about the mental state of the narrator. That he is going through some psychosis. Apparently in the early days of the band’s live performances David would be wheeled onto the stage in a straitjacket and muzzle, before breaking free to perform the track. Uh...hmmm...the early 2000s were sure a time for this sort of deal. I am gonna take a good guess that nowadays he doesn’t do that when he performs the song. Oh and this song became a single and got an official music video. I don’t understand why this song got a music video and was somehow a hit-HEY the main guy in the music video is listening to a Disturbed song! And it is one of the tracks I genuinely like. Though that changes into well Voices. I know I could talk about the plot of the music video being about an overworked office worker but I am more focused on the fashion of both the band and the audience. Mainly because that type of fashion I remember from when I was a kid to teen. That and David’s outfit is cool and I wish I had it.

Track 2: The Game

Okay, now this track I like the energy behind it. The more tech to dance-like sound mixed with metal really works here. The rhythm and pace are steady and keep building. I can understand why this became a hit. Funnily, I first heard this around two years ago when I was watching the old Funimation dub of Dragon Ball Z: Cooler’s Revenge. I was caught off guard when I first heard it there since I hadn’t watched that movie in YEARS. But it weirdly worked for the movie. Nowadays it is not used for the newer Funimation release of the film. Probably for licensing reasons. As far as I could find this song did not get a music video. Weird. So the song is about...actually I didn’t think about it until now. When I read the lyrics what it seemed like it is about a lady biting off more than she can chew with someone and this has deadly consequences. According to David,

“speaking about the manipulative nature of most people. That you should be cautious when playing with another person’s emotions or someone may make you accountable at some point in time.” 

Ah, yeah that makes sense I guess. This is a decent track and I do prefer it over Voices but nothing has really gotten me like “Oh I really like this track a lot” emotion yet.

Track 3: Stupify

Oh my god this track. Okay so I love this track. I genuinely thought this track would be later on in the album but no it is number 3. I first heard this in the end credits of Funimation’s Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug which this was the SECOND Disturbed song in the movie but the third song from the band to be in a DBZ movie. This makes me wonder of there are some Disturbed themed DBZ amvs. I know there are a TON of Linkin Park ones so there has to be some. This track along with Fear and The Game was what made me want to listen to the whole album. I know I could sit here and analyze the lyrics but the song is called “Stupify” and the beginning lyrics are,

Yeah, bringing you another disturbing creation From the mind of one sick animal who can't tell the difference And gets stupified

Do really expect me to find anything deeper in this song? This song isn’t meant to be deep and I am satisfied with that. I find it really funny this became another single for them but at the same time I get it. It is a genuinely fun song. But if you want me to see if this has deeper meaning I’ll look. WAIT THIS SONG IS ABOUT BEING AGAINST RACISM??? FUCKING WHAT??? Okay so this was written about one of David’s past relationships where he was dating a woman he loved who was a different ethnicity than him and her parents forced them to break up because of their relationship being interracial. I would have NEVER guess this song was about this at all. I read the lyrics three times and I am just baffled. Like it is cool this song is anti-racism but it is more of me being like surprised that is what it is about. Well, maybe the music video will help. Well, that didn’t help me. It had nothing to do with being against racism. It was about a neglected child that might be the lead singer (??) being haunted by people who do the shaky head effect from Jacob’s Ladder (?????). Oh and there is some Christ imagery I guess. The music video doesn’t do anything for me. Now, does this song good a good job getting it’s message across? Uh, I am not the right person to answer that. But is it an entertaining song in general? Yeah, big time. Oh, fun fact, this song mostly uses synthesizers. That’s pretty neat.

Track 4: Down With The Sickness

Oh fuck it’s the “OO WA HAHA” song. This was one of the two songs I would listen to on the album as a teen (they were the only two songs I owned). I know there were bits of David’s weird noises from previous songs but it is way more noticeable here. Now if we put aside the funny noise this is an actually solid song. The whole “becoming a monster” to “being taken over by an entity and becoming inhuman” is a fun theme and one that tends to common in metal which here it is no exception. I also got why this got as big as it did. It has this nice build up throughout the song. However, the song is notable with the inclusion of the odd domestic abuse interlude around 3:24 in the song. I know there are those who don’t like it either because of the subject matter, or how it is inserted in awkwardly, or because it comes off jarring. Now, I would not blame people for thinking it was inserted in for edgy shock value. But that isn’t the case here. David has stated he has had “crap kicked out of me when I was a kid, on more than one occasion," but stated the song is not about his personal experience but instead,

 "I'm really talking about the conflict between the mother culture of society, who's beating down the child yearning for independence and individuality, and the submission of the child."

I know in the same interview he did discuss difficulties opening up about his more personal life to write lyrics for the album. That is no easy task, I don’t deny that. Now did he pull it off well? That is up to you. This also got a music video and I find it jarring they use concert footage for this song than like make a story based video.

Track 5: Violence Fetish

Well that is a title I didn’t expect from Disturbed but uh so this song is about the human necessity for some violent release. Though I guess my view of the song was more about the narrator’s justifying the violent desires. This album is called The Sickness so maybe the narrator got infected by the creepypasta violence desire syndrome or something. Despite the title this song is not really sexual or really provocative. Maybe in 2000s this was for both the mainstream music world and maybe even in the early nu metal scene but there had to have been nu metal songs WAY more very in your face about violence than this. The instrumentals for this track are decent, especially around 2:25. One of the weaker tracks for me.

Track 6: Fear

This was the other Disturbed song used in the Funimation DBZ Lord Slug movie. Hearing this first from there was both jarring yet funny. My friends made jokes that Lord Slug was just playing his playlist throughout the movie. Though I will say that Fear is my other favorite track from this album. I know this is supposedly about like how little we really are and how people say we are significant but we really aren’t or some shit. And that the narrator wants to do something significant or something. But I really don’t care about that. The lyrics not deep but something about this song does hit all the right buttons for me as like a junk food song. I am a bit sadden though this didn’t become a single (still am baffled Voices became a single).

Track 7: Numb

Funny there are two nu metal songs from the early 2000s called Numb. It isn’t surprising since “numb” is a common word. Though I do prefer Linkin Park’s Numb over this one. The beginning doesn’t benefit the song but once you get passed the slower singing then it gets a bit better. But this song doesn’t really do much for me. Out of all the heartache songs I have listened to, I would not have this as my go to.

Track 8: Want

The song begins with this nice somewhat industrial sounding instrumental until the 30 second mark were David sings “She wants me, no!” then begins mimicking the sounds of an ambulance. Okay when I say that it made me think of that nurse duck from Dingo Pictures’ Animal Soccer World. ALSO, I realized what all of the “oo wa ha has” and “ra ras” reminded me of. Korn, more specifically Freak on a Leash. Is that bad? No, not really. But it is a very obvious influence. Though Korn was big in the early 2000s and was influential in the nu metal scene. Anyway, while funny noises part is funny the rest of the song is about a woman who wants to dominate the narrator but is denying herself that. I think that is what it is about. Okay, that is how I am choosing how to interpret the song because it makes it more interesting to me. Outside of my interpretation this is another weak song. Wait, this song got a music video too? But why? This makes my belief that Fear should have a single and got a music video much stronger.

Track 9: Conflict

It is about enemies and eliminating them. It is a very simple song with decent instrumentals. I do find David singing “ow, ow!” funny. I don’t really have much to say about a song like this because it is...generic. Not even fun generic but more boring type. Well except near the end where the narrator talks about someone loving life but also wants to kill life. Mainly because the instrumentals and vocals really bring it out. It makes me wish the sound of the whole song was that section.

Track 10: Shout 2000

Now this is a cover of Tears for Fears’ Shout. This stands out as a track to me because how it sounds more different compared to the other songs. But it being a cover probably helps that. Also, when I was listening to this album at work I legit forgot this was a cover and that this song was on here so when it got to these lyrics,

They gave you life And in return, you gave them hell As cold as ice (Now, bitch, you're ice, ice, baby)

I lost it. I was just both confused but also amused by the Vanilla Ice Reference. Fun fact, that reference was not in the original Tears for Fears version meaning they added it. You know what? I like that. I think that adds character to the cover. Now how does this cover compare to the original? While I do like the original both instrumentally and lyrically I actually like Disturbed’s cover. The main reason because the song is meant to be a call to action and be angry about what is going on in the world. Which Disturbed made it sound like that with the heavier instrumentals and vocals.

Track 11: Droppin’ Plates

This was the other song I would listen to as a teen by the band and I am gonna be honest, I love this song. Not because I saw this as a deep song as a teen. Actually I never thought it was deep. I genuinely find the idea of a song about hitting plates on your head stupidly funny. For years I actually thought that was what the song was about. Smashing plates. Well color me surprised to learn that is not what this song about when I actually read the lyrics of the song. It is a brag song about how many records they are selling and that their music is the best. Hence dropping plates I guess being a slang term for making records (??). You know what? I am gonna go back and continue believing this is about smashing plates. I feel like if you are gonna make a “Our music is great” song then maybe don’t release it on your debut album and put it on a future album.

Track 12: Meaning of Life

Okay the instrumentals on this track are good. I love the faster pace, the higher energy, and the nice rhythm. The lyrics of the song about the narrator wanting to do more rougher sex with his partner. Though the rough sex is more on the REALLY rough side. I will say it’s strength lyrically that this is very gender neutral so the song can be made gay if you want. Which I am gonna do. Though the lyrics “I wanna get psycho” makes me giggle because all I can think is going joker mode.

Bonus Track 1: God of the Mind

This song was released on the 10-anniversy edition of the album and this is a decent to good song. It is fun I’ll give it that. It feels like a more polished early Disturbed song which benefits it.

Bonus Track 2: A Welcome Burden

This was the second song released on the 10-anniversy edition of the album. The sound of the song itself is okay. Not great but all right. Reading the lyrics this is a political song calling all metal fans to tell them that the world is dark and how this can blended in music. The thing is the song really isn’t deep. Look, I do like both deep and not deep music. There is a time and place for a song to have a simple message or a song to have a deep message. However the thing about Disturbed I have noticed on this album is that they aren’t really great on trying to make deep songs. When I would listen to the songs without reading the lyrics, they were weirdly fun background noise. I don’t go to Disturbed for deep lyrics, I go to turn off my brain. Though I am not against bands trying to be deeper if they are genuine and put effort into it. It just comes off that the band is awkward about it.

Well, this album was just...there. Was it bad? Well it is not the worse album I have listened to. But was it good? Uh, I don’t think it was amazing. I know this was their first album but they got lucky at the time they got big in general. The songs I did like on this album were Fear, Stupify, The Game, Shout 2000, Droppin Plates, and Down with the Sickness to an extent. I enjoyed those as mainly fun junk food metal songs. But the last two songs had more polish to them which for the time does mean they have done some improvement and that’s great. In 2015 David did an interview on Loudwire talking about the first album and he states the success of the band overnight. That it was gradual taking around two to three years as a local band. Which I can get that, being a local band there is a lot of hurdles you have to go through to get noticed. But one part stood out to me and it was this,

“So there was a long period of time before that and a lot of struggle in a city that wasn't conducive to hard rock and heavy metal. Chicago was an alternative town. It was Smashing Pumpkins, Local H. It was not metal. So we were blacklisted. We couldn't even play inner-city clubs. We weren't cool enough. We were too metal. That was something that wasn't considered cool enough. We had to force our way in."

This was just a reminder to me that metal isn’t a popular and mainstream genre. Even nu-metal which did get popular and radio hits as still not gonna be as popular to accepted compared to other acts. It is funny thinking that back then in their town Disturbed was considered too metal when there are many metal elitist types who don’t consider Disturbed metal at all. It weirdly reminds me when I told one of my friends that Black Sabbath is metal and he was shocked. Note, he is not well versed in metal as I am. I know by modern metal standards bands like Black Sabbath would not be considered heavy in sound nor metal. But they are for their time. Disturbed is metal as well, doesn’t matter if you think they are good or not. Now as nu metal is concerned, I do think Disturbed for a time stood out but I would not consider them the best of the genre. But I will give some credit for them helping the nu metal scene and for them being some people’s gateway into metal. I saw many of the reviews for this album being three stars out of five to five out of ten. The album for me is a middle score album and that’s okay. This does though make me wonder if the album Indestructible holds up. I have a few songs from that album so I will check that out eventually. Not soon though, I need some break from Disturbed for a bit.

[goldheartedsky]

I told myself I wasn’t going to make a post like this—that I wasn’t going to stoop to the level of making call-out posts—but I really can’t stay silent after what has happened in the last day or so.

The TOG fandom has a serious issue with excusing antisemitism and allowing people who have painfully hurt marginalized groups to continue to ignore, dismiss, and refuse to acknowledge their limits of intersectionality in regards to social justice. I have seen it myself, been on the receiving end of it, and have talked to other Jews in this fandom about what’s been going on and it needs to start being addressed.

Now, I’m not going to name names or tag people (mainly because I have been blocked by almost all of them for this very issue) but if you message me I will gladly tell you the users involved in this. Also, if you have doubts of any of this’s validity and would like screenshots, feel free to reach out to me here or via Discord and I will share them.

A lot of this started when a member of the All&More server had brought up the scientific and medical “discoveries” during the torture and medical experimentation that took place during the Third Reich and how a lot of the origin of it isn’t taught. LR made a comment saying that “we are three-dimensional creatures who are stuck moving forward in time and can’t go back” and added that not using the research won’t make past horrors not happen. When the original user added that there has been a movement in medicine for removing Nazi scientists names off discoveries and that progress was slow moving, she deflected the conversation onto herself, saying “Not using research won’t make my family not harmed by the Japanese” and then immediately pivoted into admitting that, from what she understood, there weren’t any particularly valid scientific discoveries made by them. She then said, in regards to said Nazi atrocities, “Take it, learn about it, put it in context, and then own it and transform it.”

A Jewish member of A&M voiced their discomfort about possibly taking medicine that was a direct result of the murder of their grandparents and other relatives, to which LR said, “Still stuck in the 3rd dimension, still moving forward in time.” I brought up the fact that medicine was built on antisemitism and racism and that starting over would be better than a lot of the procedures we have now. There is a longstanding issue in medicine of disregarding black pain and so much of what we have now is created by eugenicists—including Nazi scientists. There is still a lot of Jewish trauma due to medical experimentation and that is oftentimes dismissed.

LR then made a flippant comment about “Does this count as Godwin’s Law?”—which is about how all internet discussions lead to someone being compared to Nazis/Hitler. When called out on the inappropriateness of the comment, she did not respond and was backed up by one of the mods of the server. There was no apology made nor an acknowledgment about the casual antisemitism of the comments she made and the dismissal of Jewish trauma/pain.

Now, fast forward a couple months when I was contacted by a third party who had not been in the server at the time but had joined and heard about what LR had said there. H said they were friends with LR and had concerns about antisemitism and would like my perspective. I explained what had happened and offered screenshots if they would like them, which they did. They thanked me and apologized that it got to a point that I felt unsafe in the server and had to leave, which I appreciated.

A couple weeks later they reached out to me again and offered to broker a conversation between LR and myself because the situation wasn’t sitting well with them. I was skeptical (because I had been blocked at that point) and didn’t have a lot of hope that this conversation would actually take place but I felt a responsibility to try and be the bigger person and deal with what had been said head on, so I agreed to sit down and have a discussion with her as long as there was a third party in the chat as well—given our history.

After a couple weeks of back and forth with H and hearing that LR had said that she would “think about it”, she finally agreed. I was asked for a time and date and I gave my availability and was told she would be asked for the same. A couple days later, I was suddenly told LR would only be comfortable with this conversation if H acted as a “literal go-between” with us copy-pasting our responses in their DMs so we can “sit with the message and everyone can get to them when they can” rather than it being a session with an actual back and forth and was asked if I was okay with that. I honestly said no, because this was supposed to be a situation where she and I sat down and discussed what she said in the server, not a back and forth message relay where the conversation got dragged out for days or weeks or however long it was going to take. I said if she was serious about meeting me halfway on this, she needed to be able to sit down and actually talk.

H copy-pasted my response to LR and came back that she had backed out of the conversation, which part of me had expected from the beginning—even though all I wanted from this sit down was for her to understand how hurtful the antisemitic comments were and an apology.

These comments that were made in the server are not a secret. It’s pretty well known what was said and again, these were all on record, not privately made in some DM. She has still not owned up to the comments she said, nor has she ever apologized for them. She has ignored message after message about them and blocked more people than I can count. Many of the people defending her when the discourse begins have also been messaged about the comments she’s said and also either block people or ignore the messages completely and refuse to acknowledge them.

Now, this being said, in the most recent conversation about fandom racism, someone brought up the post that was made reducing users on ao3 to faceless, nameless numbers without saying who they were, what they had done, and how they were specifically contributing to the problem of racism in this fandom. They made the comparison of other situations like HR looking at pay stats to see how to fire and included “Nazis, capitalists, and colonizers.”

This is not an invalid argument. There have been other Jews in the fandom who specifically voiced feeling uncomfortable for the exact same reason. However, another person, LT, decided to specifically make a post calling the OP out and drag them for having the audacity to liken it to the Shoah (which, mind you, this person is not Jewish nor did they decide to capitalize Shoah or the Holocaust as they should have). She received a reply saying, “you’re offended by antisemitism? Here’s LR’s (someone LT has agreed with multiple times over racism in fandom) track record of antisemitic comments” which outlined everything I delved into previously.

LT said that they were “unaware of this incident until a couple days ago” but agreed that it was an upsetting display of casual dismissal of Jewish pain and hoped that LR had apologized. She was then called out for being aware of it and still continuing to reblog LR’s posts even after knowing about the comments and was linked to my post clarifying that LR had not apologized and refused a discussion about it, to which LT said that she had gotten “quite a different version outlined in the post linked and corroborated by a third party” and “felt uncomfortable” making a value judgement, insinuating that I was not being truthful about my side of the story.

I messaged LT off-anon and said that I was not lying nor over-exaggerating about what had happened in the server or about the following discussion about trying to broker a conversation with LR, and was immediately blocked by her. I am also not the only Jew who has sent her messages about this topic, only to have their messages ignored.

Now, am I surprised that I was immediately blocked after voicing my issues with what LT had said in that post? No.

She has a history of making antisemitic comments, most of which happened during the brunt of the Israel/Palestine discussion happening, which included statements such as “You cannot be considered indigenous if you hold a position of power”, that, despite having been displaced for 2,000 years, the Jewish diaspora was “integrated” into their respective communities (a wholly untrue statement), as well as linked to and promoted a website with extremely antisemitic articles including one about “Spartan Jews” and how Israeli Jews are violent to “send messages to their deprived self-esteem” that they won’t be victims again. Half of the comments on the site’s front page included such hits as “Death to all Jews” and “Wow, I had no idea this was happening—I guess it is true that Jews control the world and the mass media.” This website was repeated in multiple posts as “unbiased” and “a good resource” for other people to truly know what was going on.

Jewish dissent on the content of some posts and that website went unacknowledged and dismissed.

Being that LT is a relatively big user in the TOG fandom, her posts got circulated frequently. Seeing things like that touted as unbiased was extremely triggering for me and multiple Jews in this fandom that I’ve spoken to.

Now, the reason I made this post in particular was because I have seen a lot of echoing of the sentiment: “no matter how much you disagree with their sentiment, aligning yourself with racists is...well aligning yourself with racists.”

This statement NEEDS to become intersectional. If we are criticizing the work of people because of who they hold company with, why does that end at racism? If we are going to have a discussion about racism in this fandom, why are we letting it come from people who have openly said antisemitic things, people who have stood by them and supported them in silence, and people who have silenced Jewish voices speaking up about this issue.

These are not separate issues. This is a really good post regarding the white washing of Jews in social justice discussion and it comes full circle into the medical experimentation discussion. Jews were not seen as white during the Holocaust. The Nazis were trying to cleanse the Aryan race because they did not view Jews as white. They experimented on them because they did not view them as white and, thus, disposable.

Every Jewish diasporic community is still vulnerable. Even though the US has half the world’s Jews, over 50% of the religiously based hate crimes are consistently anti-Jewish even though Jews make up 2% of the population. Chinese Jews are still holding their holiday celebrations in secret due to government crackdowns. The attempted genocide of Beta Israel was less than 50 years ago. Across the Middle East and North Africa, Jewish communities are barely hanging on after centuries of attempted destruction. These are not just Jewish issues but racial issues as well because when people make the sweeping generalization of “Jew” and they only mean white-passing Ashkenazi Jews, it erases so much of our community.

I absolutely agree that this fandom needs to have a discussion about race and portrayal in fic and what we can do better moving forward—and I want to see that done—but we also need to acknowledge what so many people starting this discussion have said and the marginalized groups they have hurt along the way. I see these posts come across my dashboard and know exactly who they're coming from and what they think of people like me. If we are going to say, “No matter how much you disagree with their sentiment, aligning yourself with racists is aligning yourself with racists,” then we NEED to be saying, “If you are aligning yourself with antisemites, you’re aligning yourself with antisemites.”

We all need to move forward. But that means moving forward together. Jews included.

[handeaux]

Some Curious Tales About Cincinnati Streets And How They Were Named

Over the years, Cincinnati’s streets have been named, renamed, abandoned and vacated. The origin of some of our street names is lost in the mists of time and mythology. Here are a few attempts to sort the facts from the folderol.

Now That’s Plumb Curious

On the very earliest Cincinnati maps today’s Plum Street is labeled as “Filson Strret,” honoring the first local surveyor (and coiner of the name “Losantiville”) John Filson. By 1802, however, Filson Street had become – mostly – “Plumb Street.” There was enough confusion on this and other street names that City Council officially named the downtown streets on 12 February 1814, codifying that spelling, with a “B” at the end. One hundred years later, the Cincinnati Post [25 November 1914] claimed that it was “Plumb” Street “because other streets were platted plumb, or square, with it. While this may have been the case, there does not appear to be a contemporary record to support this theory. To the contrary, it seems that Cincinnati’s streets were “plumbed” westward from Broadway, originally known as Eastern Row. Additionally, it must be noted that the sweet purple fruit was known equally well as “plums” or “plumbs” up to around 1850. Whether by coincidence or not, all city maps after 1850 refer to “Plum Street.”

Beware The Indian Maiden!

As a useful rule of thumb, if you run across an origin story featuring an otherwise unidentified Indian Maiden, consider that legend – no matter the source! – to be unmitigated poppycock. For example, the Cincinnati Post [24 November 1914] claimed that Race Street got its name because two Indian braves raced down that primeval avenue to win the hand of a beautiful Indian Maiden. In reality, Race Street (and Vine, Walnut, Sycamore, etc.) was named by surveyor Israel Ludlow when he created to first official plat of the town. Ludlow used street names borrowed from Philadelphia. Be likewise suspicious of nostalgic old ladies. Mrs. Mary Lawton, aged 80, told the Enquirer [23 June 1929] that her own father, Nicholas Hoeffer, named Race Street after a racing track he owned at Washington Park. Not so, Mrs. Lawton, not so.

Don’t Touch That Name!

Cincinnati street names accrue sentimental ties in curious ways. In 1860, Rosetta Cobb, an elderly Irish Immigrant, sold off a plot of land in the ravine between Clifton and Clifton Heights. She filed a plat with the county naming all the subdivision’s streets for her daughters – Laura, Eveline, Christiana and Julia Ann. Over the years, property sales and redevelopment eliminated all of those streets except for Julia Ann. In 1992, the owners of Clifton Colony Apartments, located at the end of Julia Ann Street, petitioned the City of Cincinnati to change the name of the street because no one could find their apartment buildings. The city reasoned that Julia Ann Cobb and her mother were long past caring. Rosetta Cobb had gone to her reward in 1872 and Julia Ann had married Franklin Underwood in 1855 and moved to Memphis where she remained for the rest of her life. Hearing no objections, the city renamed Julia Ann Street to Clifton Colony Drive. One year later, Ronald Meyer, the city official in charge of street names, got an irate letter from a woman named Julia Ann, demanding Cincinnati change that street name back! Her parents – apparently no relation to the Cobb family – had named their daughter after that street and she considered it to be her very own street.

No Glory For Secretaries

If you can find them, Cincinnati named two streets to honor secretaries. Amthauer Street in Fairmount is sandwiched between Tremont and Harrison and runs eastward from Adler to Pinetree. Until 1908, that little lane was named Spruce Street, but was changed to honor Louise Amthauer, a secretary in the city clerk’s office, during a wholesale street retitling by the Boss Cox machine. Miss Amthauer was a dedicated Republican and later married the county GOP chairman. There is no signage for Amthauer Street, and no pavement – it’s only a paper street. Peggie Lane in Lower Price Hill is at least paved, but also lacks signage. In 1956, Margaret “Peggie” Funk was a secretary in the City Engineer’s Office. The City Engineer needed a name for the driveway abutting Oyler School. “Peggie” was brief, easy to spell, impossible to mispronounce and didn’t conflict with any other names in the system. But the cheapskates couldn’t spring for a sign to recognize Miss Funk.

Got You Under My Spell

Street names appear on street signs, obviously, but also on maps, directories, driver’s licenses and mailing lists. Sometimes discrepancies arise. Copelen Street in Walnut Hills marks the location of Fireside Pizza in the old Company 16 Firehouse. In 1930, the Cincinnati Post [17 December 1930] printed a “gotcha” story claiming the street sign was wrong because the city directory called it Copeland Street. The Post had to eat crow a few days later when Eugene Schellinger, city draughtsman, uncovered the 1855 ordinance naming that thoroughfare in honor of pioneering resident Isaac Copelen, insurance magnate and distinguished Mason, who once lived nearby. The Post got snookered again in 1964, complaining that Wolfangel Road in Anderson Township should be spelled “Wolfangle.” Tell that to the descendants of pioneer settler Gottfried Wolfangel! Not so easy to explain were the manifold misspellings of Whetsel Avenue, honoring Madisonville farmer and military hero Henry Bramble Whetsel. That road winds through three political jurisdictions. In the mid-1990s, an observant commuter noticed the correct spelling on Cincinnati’s signs, but Madeira spelled it Wetsel and Hamilton County opted for Whetzel.

That’s No Lady! That’s A Surveyor!

Jo Williams, born 1981, is a British speed skater and Jo Williams, born 1948, (now Dame Josephine Williams) is a British social worker. Neither of these ladies has anything to do with Jo Williams Street in Northside, which has been connecting Colerain Avenue and Blue Rock Road since 1853. “Jo” in this case is Joel Williams, one of Cincinnati’s earliest settlers. Williams competed with Israel Ludlow to draw up the official plat of Cincinnati. The town fathers chose Ludlow’s plat. Williams attempted to claim the Public Landing through a curious application of squatter’s rights but lost in court. He was more successful as an innkeeper, real estate investor and operator of Cincinnati’s first ferry. A stint as a surveyor has proven effective at getting a street named for you. Jo Williams’ nemesis, Israel Ludlow, is recognized by Clifton’s main drag, while (John) Filson Street, (Joseph) Gest Street and (Eli) Elder Street honor other local surveyors.

Not All Streets Have Happy Endings

Few people give a thought to Northside’s Gulow Street. It’s a short stretch of pavement with a few nondescript buildings and a parking lot, but it has an odd-sounding name. The street honors the memory of August E. Gulow, a merchant tailor who kept a dry goods shop at Knowlton’s Corner for many years. The little byway had been known as Oak Street, but City Council changed the name to Gulow in 1870. By 1900, Mr. Gulow was slipping into insanity, distraught after two daughters died from tuberculosis. The family did all they could to keep the old man out of an institution, but on 5 December 1901, he grabbed a razor and repeatedly slashed his stomach. He died six days later and is buried at Spring Grove Cemetery. His name lives on in that little street.

[giftofshewbread]

It’s Satan

By Daymond Duck    Published on: August 1, 2021

The writer of this article was recently asked, “Why do the globalists who are supposed to be very intelligent make decisions that are so clearly wrong?”

Most don’t realize it, but Satan is behind their evil.

He has blinded them to the extent that they don’t believe the Bible is the Word of God.

They push a godless world government, world religion, same-sex marriage, tracking everyone, etc., because they are not Christians (even though some falsely claim to be good Catholics, etc.).

Many were appointed by like-minded people, not elected by voters or nations.

They wouldn’t dare have an election because they don’t believe they can get elected.

The globalists overlook what the Clintons and Bidens have done because they share similar views on the issues listed above.

Their puppets impeached Trump twice because he opposed their views.

Their prosecution of Trump supporters for what happened at the capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, while ignoring the rioting, looting, destruction of property, etc. by Antifa, Black Lives Matter, and others, should concern every conservative and Christian because when the globalists get the upper hand (and they will), they will destroy the U.S. Constitution, and persecute and destroy those that disagree with them.

When they give their Antichrist power, he will go forth conquering and to conquer (Rev. 6:1-2; 13:4-7).

The following events indicate that the latter years and latter days, globalism, global pandemics, food shortages, persecution, etc., are on the horizon.

One, concerning the Battle of Gog and Magog in the latter years and latter days: on July 20, 2021, Sen. Lindsey Graham said, “The Iranians are progressing (on their development of nuclear weapons) at a dangerous pace.”

“Israel may need to take pre-emptive military action against Iran.”

“I’ve never been more worried about Israel having to use military force to stop the program than I am right now.”

Two, also concerning the Battle of Gog and Magog: it was reported on July 21, 2021, that Israel’s military and foreign intelligence agency said Israel needs a variety of plans to sabotage, disrupt and delay Iran’s development of nuclear weapons, and they will probably be asking for the money and resources to do that.

Three, also concerning the Battle of Gog and Magog: Israeli Prime Min. Netanyahu and Russian Pres. Putin agreed that Israel would give Russia advance notice of Israeli attacks in some areas of Syria, and Russia would not intervene.

Israel jets recently fired several missiles at Iranian targets near Aleppo, Syria, and a Russian official said Syria used Russian-made anti-missile systems to shoot down all of Israel’s missiles.

On July 24, 2021, DEBKAfile, an Israeli intelligence and security news source group, reported that a Russian official confirmed that Russia has changed its policy on not intervening in Israeli attacks in some areas of Syria because Russia has received confirmation from the Biden White House that the U.S. does not condone the continuous Israeli raids.

Thus, while the Biden administration is publicly saying Israel has a right to defend itself, it is telling Russia that some of Israel’s efforts to do that are unacceptable.

The Bible clearly teaches that the merchants of Tarshish and all the young lions (perhaps includes the U.S.) will not help Israel during the Battle of Gog and Magog (Ezek. 38:13).

Corrupt world leaders, deceit, and lying are also signs of the end of the age.

Four, on July 27, 2021, i24NEWS reported that Israel has notified the Biden administration that Iran is on the verge of crossing the nuclear threshold, and it could happen at any moment.

Because Pres. Obama sent Iran a planeload of money during his administration and seems to be influencing events in the Biden administration, notifying Biden might be a waste of time.

This may help explain the belief that the U.S. will not help Israel during the Battle of Gog and Magog (Ezek. 38:13).

Five, concerning famine: it is common knowledge that the Covid-19 lockdowns disrupted the world’s food chains (farmers and farmhands were quarantined; stores ran out of toilet paper, some foods, etc.; food processors closed or cut back; some trucks stopped rolling, etc.).

On July 23, 2023, it was reported that there are still bare shelves in some food stores in the U.K., the food supply chains are “at risk of collapse,” millions of workers have been ordered to self-quarantine, the food industry is running out of workers to keep the stores supplied, and the U.K. could be just a few months away from a major crisis.

Under the guise of stopping the spread of Covid, the U.K. government may be creating “food shortages and mass famine.”

Note: It was recently reported that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell warned that there will be another lockdown in the U.S. if American citizens “don’t wise up and get vaccinated against Covid-19.”

Note: On July 28, 2021, in an interview on “Fox & Friends,” Stuart Varney said an important business group is predicting that supply shortages will last until 2023.

Some prophecy teachers believe that Covid-19 is a created crisis (a pretext, a set-up, perhaps an engineered cluster of catastrophes) that globalists are using to prepare the world for a world government.

According to the pro-liberty group, Brighteon, on July 22, 2021, “very few people are prepared to survive a multi-layered, engineered cluster of catastrophes that are unleashed on top of each other.”

God’s Seal, Trumpet, and Bowl judgments during the Tribulation Period will be multi-layered catastrophes (pandemics, famine, economic collapse, etc.) on top of each other, and very few will survive.

Note: This writer believes we could be watching the development (early stages) of those multi-layered judgments.

Six, concerning deceit: on July 20, 2021, Sen. Rand Paul said on Sean Hannity’s T.V. program, “I will be sending a letter to the Department of Justice asking for a criminal referral (of Dr. Anthony Fauci) because he has lied to Congress” (about the involvement of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the research at China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology).

Note: This writer does not know how to verify it but has seen reports that Fauci owns stock in one or more of the companies that have been approved to sell the Covid-19 vaccine (If true, he is likely profiting off forcing people to be vaccinated and opposing the use of Hydroxychloroquine and Ivermectin).

Second Note: It has been reported that Fauci could spend up to 5 years in prison, but it is the opinion of this writer that the globalists (also called the Shadow Government, Deep State, super-wealthy elitists, etc.) will protect him because they are pro-vaccination. They want him to keep using his ever-changing fake science.

Seven, concerning world government and open borders: on July 21, 2021, it was reported that keeping the U.S. border with Mexico open is costing about 3 million dollars a day in suspension and termination payments to contractors to guard steel, concrete, and other materials they have in the desert.

Eight, militant Muslims say Jews should not be allowed on the Temple Mount because the entire Temple Mount is an Islamic site and none of it belongs to Israel.

For this reason, Jewish officials have allowed Jews to visit the Temple Mount at certain times, but they have not been allowed to pray on the Temple Mount.

On July 17, 2021, the eve of Tisha B’ Av (a holiday for remembering the destruction of the first 2 Jewish Temples; July 17-18 in 2021), it was reported that Jews were praying (and some were teaching Torah, a name for the Scriptures in the first 5 books of the Bible) on the Temple Mount.

On July 20, 2021, Prime Min. Bennett came out in support of freedom of worship for Jews on the Temple Mount.

This may lead to more violence, but it is worth noting that the Jews have gone from not being allowed to pray on the Temple Mount to praying and teaching on the Temple Mount, and Israel’s new Prime Min. supports it.

According to the Bible, the Jews will eventually get permission to rebuild the Temple.

Update: On July 25, 2021, it was reported that the temporary truce between Israel and the Palestinians is fragile, may be coming unraveled, and another war could be on the horizon.

Nine, concerning pestilence: on July 22, 2021, Israeli Prime Min. Bennett said as of Aug. 8, 2021, Israeli citizens will not be allowed to enter synagogues and other facilities without a vaccine certificate or proof of a negative Covid-19 test.

U.S. citizens are not having to prove that they have been vaccinated to attend places of worship, but some companies are requiring it.

Ten, concerning natural disasters: on July 26, 2021, it was reported that June in North America was “the hottest in recorded history.”

Record high temperatures were broken in several western states.

On June 28, 2021, the temperature was 117 degrees in Salem, OR; 110 in Redmond OR; 110 in Quillayute, WA; 110 in Olympia, WA etc.

The southwest U.S. is experiencing the worst drought in 122 years.

It covers almost 90% of the southwest, and much of that is classified as severe to exceptional drought.

Reservoirs and rivers are drying up, fish are dying, wildlife is suffering, farmers and ranchers are hurting, crop and cattle production is down, some ranchers and dairy farmers are going out of business, water rationing is beginning to kick in, and more than 60 million people are impacted.

Lake Mead, a 112-mile-long water reservoir, is at its lowest level since it was built 85 years ago (It is now only 35% full).

Utah’s Great Salt Lake has reached a record low.

86 wildfires are burning in 12 states, drought conditions have made them worse, two major wildfires have merged, and more than 10,000 houses are in danger.

The long-range forecast is for the high temperatures to continue through the fall.

Call it what you want; some officials are already blaming it on global warming because it fits their globalist agenda. But natural disasters will be like birth pains (increase in frequency and intensity) at the end of the age, and this record-breaking event seems to qualify.

As I close, understand that as bad as things are right now, Satan and the Antichrist are limited or partly restrained (II Thess. 2:7-9).

But the time will come (the Tribulation Period) when Satan and the Antichrist will no longer be restrained, and the events will be worse than anything that has ever happened or ever will happen (Matt. 24:22).

Finally, are you Rapture Ready?

If you want to be rapture ready and go to heaven, you must be born again (John 3:3). God loves you, and if you have not done so, sincerely admit that you are a sinner; believe that Jesus is the virgin-born, sinless Son of God who died for the sins of the world, was buried, and raised from the dead; ask Him to forgive your sins, cleanse you, come into your heart and be your Saviour; then tell someone that you have done this.

[politijohn]

Get to know Beto O’Rourke

Continues to appropriate Mexican nickname “Beto,” which was given to him specifically to pander to / trick Hispanic voters when running for office, despite criticism from the Hispanic community

Used his political power to help his millionaire father-in-law gentrify poor Hispanic communities with a racist plan that “relocated” poor Hispanics to make way for property investments made by wealthy Republican donors

Opposed Obamacare, tried to cut social security, and attacked labor unions to appease Republican donors

Generally voted against Democrats so much he was in the top fifth of lawmakers voting against their own party, voting with Trump a third of the time even though he represented one of the most solid blue districts in the country

Ran the most expensive congressional race of all time with immense establishment & celebrity backing. Still lost to the guy who lost to Trump

Voted with Republicans to deregulate Wall Street so many different times that I have to keep typing more words to hyperlink

Voted two different times to block federal funding for abortions

Sided with Republicans lying about “death panels” to undermine the ACA and abolish the IPAB (panel meant to lower Medicare costs for seniors)

Does not support Medicare for All and voted for Republican legislation that makes it easier for states to discriminate against pre-existing conditions

Voted with Republicans for Trump’s second round of tax scam legislation

Broke his own pledge to not accept money from fossil fuel industry, bringing in nearly half a million dollars, and then refused to sign another while backtracking on climate crisis legislation

Voted with Republicans to lift the 40 year-old oil export ban multiple times, voted to speed up the exports, and voted against Democratic legislation to ban new drilling

Voted for 20 of the 29 military spending bills since 2013, opposing even a 1% cut in spending, all while bringing in more money from defense lobbyists than any other candidate

Supports Trump’s attempted right-wing coup in Venezuela

Is fine with people keeping assault weapons

Voted for mandatory 15 year sentencing for teens attempting to send/receive a sext

His campaign manager is a corporate lobbyist for Bank of America, Humana, Pfizer, and Juul who set the rules for the Democratic primaries/caucuses and licensed party voter files for profit

His senior advisor is a corporate lobbyist for private prisons, Keystone XL, and Blackstone

The #1 recipient of AIPAC lobbyist money in the House, he voted for largest military aid package for Israel in history and opposes BDS, ignoring the plight of Palestinians

Voted for the “Blue Lives Matter” bill that turned police into a protected class, making assaulting an officer akin to a hate crime

Backed Republican legislation to weaken the vetting process for border patrol hiring as they continue to commit human rights violations

Helped a Republican beat who would’ve become the first queer woman of color in Congress

Profited off of IPOs while in Congress

Used campaign funds to pay his and his wife’s own company

Supports charter schools while married to a charter school leader

Does not support making public college tuition free

Backed by finance industry-funded thinktank Third Way and Neera Tanden of CAP, which is funded by banks, insurance companies, arms manufacturers, and the United Arab Emirates

Voted to fast-track TPP and wants to preserve NAFTA

Cosponsored and voted for a Republican bill that made it harder to pursue auto lenders for unlawful discrimination and weakened protections for home mortgage borrowers

Voted to create the unelected Puerto Rico oversight board that cut pension benefits, the minimum wage, and wants to cut its budget by 1/3

Voted for FOSTA/SESTA which has been devastating for sex workers

Inflated his own donor numbers in an attempt to appear ahead of Bernie

Has a criminal record that includes DWI (Driving While Intoxicated) and burglary arrests

He promised us he wouldn’t run in 2020

[mytearsrricochet]

pros and cons of 2020 democratic presidential candidates

Hi kids. I’m doing my own research here and I’ve compiled a fairly short but still informed list of pros and cons of the 2020 democratic presidential candidates based almost solely on social issues. These issues tend to be abortion/right to choose, gun control, foreign policy, civil rights (which include black, LGBT, and domestic violence issues), crime/prison reform, healthcare, and immigration.

Read if you want, if not that’s okay! I thought it just might be an easier guide for those who don’t want to spend a whole lot of time getting educated yet. It’s just a quick thing :) you are also totally free to message me or add replies if you feel that I missed something

this is based completely on a liberal perspective (i’m very left-wing) so if you are centrist or right-wing you won’t like this, but that’s ok :)

most of this was found on ontheissues.org if you want to read more about their stances with links. others I had to dig for.

this list was created 3/19/19 and may not include candidates that announce their run after this. I also did not include Bernie sanders because his stances were made public during the 2016 election!

Elizabeth Warren

pros:

notoriously pro-choice (supports public abortion funding, unrestricted abortion, keep federal funding for family planning clinics like Planned Parenthood)

supports civil rights issues (voted to allow states to recognize same-sex marriage, opposes a legal definition of traditional marriage, voted YES to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, supports equal pay)

acknowledges racism of criminal justice system

pro-gun control (extend federal assault weapon ban, voted YES to ban high-capacity magazines)

supports immigration (supporter of DREAM Act, supports providing lawyers for immigrant child facing deportation)

cons:

rated 64% by NAPO which means she has a moderate stance on police issues (can be pro or con I suppose)

does not recognize Palestine/will not allow UN membership for Palestine

Cory Booker

pros:

pro-abortion (wrote an OpEd about abortion rights, wants to fix Hobby Lobby decision)

staunchly pro-civil rights issues (supports same-sex marriage, wants to enforce against wage discrimination)

rated 9% by NAPO which means he has a “police-the-police” stance 

supports giving drug addicts treatment rather than prison time

rated B+ by NORML which indicates pro drug reform stance

supports gun control (background checks, gun trace data)

supports immigration (supports DREAM, against involving city police in immigration matters, supports providing lawyers for children at risk of deportation)

cons:

supports restrictions on abortion at a certain point in the pregnancy (viable fetus though this was in 2013 and it seems he has changed)

“considers” single-payer healthcare but is not “behind it”

Julian Castro

pros:

supports universal preschool and two free years of higher education

pro gun control (background checks, ban assault weapons)

supports Medicare for All

pro-choice (opposed law that would ban abortion after 20 weeks)

pro-LGBT (served as Grand Marshal for San Antonio Gay Pride, against the trans military ban, voted to extend city benefits to same-sex couples)

pro-immigration reform (allow path to citizenship)

cons

does not want to abolish ICE but to “reconstitute” it

John Delaney

pros

pro-choice (supports public abortion funding)

voted YES on reauthorizing Violence Against Women Act

pro-LGBT community (supports same-sex marriage, wants to enforce against anti-discrimination laws for gay students in schools, supports enforcing against wage discrimination)

pro gun control (supports restrictions on purchases)

supports ObamaCare

pro-immigration (supports DREAM)

cons

rated 92% by NAPO which means he is “tough on crime”

Tulsi Gabbard

pros:

pro-choice (opposes limitations on abortions)

voted YES to reauthorize Violence Against Women Act

supports tuition-free community college and tuition-free public university for families making less than $125k a year

pro gun control (ban assault weapons, background checks)

supports universal healthcare

cons:

rated 85% by NAPO which means she is “tough on crime”

previously opposed to civil unions in 2004, Hawaii LGBT caucus refused to endorse her in 2016

Kirsten Gillibrand

pros

pro-choice (allow use of contraception, require pharmacies to fill contraceptive prescription no matter what, supports embryonic stem cell research, opposes abortion restrictions, keep federal funding for family planning clinics)

pro-civil rights (started a project to involve more women in politics, voted yes to reauthorize Violence Against Women Act

pro-LGBT (supports same-sex marriage, supports prohibiting sexual identity discrimination in schools)

considered having a pro-Palestine voting record (pro if you are pro-Palestine)

pro gun control (rated F by NRA in 2010, close gun show loophole)

supports CHIP

supports abolishing ICE

cons:

has a 64% rating by NAPO which means she is moderate on crime (could be pro or con)

increased funding for COPS ON THE BEAT program (which funnels money into increased police surveillance in communities, typically bicycle or foot police)

has a mixed stance on drug reform 

had a high rating with the NRA in 2009, though this drastically changed in a year

member of “Blue Dog” commission, for conservative Democrats in 2007

Kamala Harris

pros

pro-choice (rated 100% by NARAL, supports public abortion funding, opposes notifying parents if their child is seeking an abortion)

pro-LGBT (fought for marriage equality in California, wanted to eliminate “gay panic” tactic for criminal defendants)

opposes death penalty

supports Back on Track to re-enter citizens instead of punish them for drugs

pro-gun control (opposes ownership by dangerous criminals)

cons

opposes cops using body cameras

supports Israel (can be pro or con depending on your view; however, this tends to be a con for a liberal POV)

John Hickenlooper

pros

pro-gun control (higher minimum age to buy firearms)

pro-LGBT (opposed amendment that would ban same-sex marriages)

opposes longer prison sentences 

distributed $34 million for mental health services to prevent crime

distributed $20 million to implement 24/7 mental health call centers

cons

did not support gun control immediately after 2012 Aurora, CO mass shooting during which he was mayor

supports healthcare but does not “get behind” implementing it; does not support Medicare for All 

rejects eliminating private insurance companies

does not support ban on assault weapons

extreme vetting for Syrian refugees

Jay Inslee

pros

pro-choice (supports embryonic stem cell research, voted NO on banning partial-birth abortion, opposed providing funding for health providers who refused to provide information about abortion, expand contraception for low-income women, rated 100% by NARAL)

pro-LGBT (opposed constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage, opposed banning gay adoptions, supporting enforcing punishment for anti-gay crimes)

pro-civil rights (rated 94% by NAACP meaning he is pro affirmative action)

wanted to reintroduce women’s rights amendment

opposes death penalty

pro-gun control (opposed decreasing wait to buy a gun from 3 days to 1

supports expanding CHIP

supports mental health reform

rated 100% by APHA which means he is pro-public health

supports scholarships for DREAMers

opposed building fence on Mexican border

rated 0% by USBC which means he supports open borders

cons

mixed stance on Israel-Palestine conflict

Amy Klobuchar

pros

pro-choice (supports embryonic stem cell research, consistently votes no on bills that would limit funding and access to women seeking abortions)

pro-civil rights (supports Violence Against Women Act, against wage discrimination, supports reintroducing Equal Rights Amendment)

pro-LGBT (supports prohibiting sexual identity discrimination in schools)

consistent pro-Palestine voting record (again, could be pro or con depending on your stance)

supports some gun control measures (banning assault weapons, background checks)

supports CHIP

supports universal healthcare

voted with democratic majority 94.2% of the time

cons

rated 64% by NAPO meaning she is moderate on police issues

considered to have a “hard on drugs” stance

pressured Arab countries to end boycott on Israeli products

“I would do nothing to hurt hunting” (about guns)

voted YES on allowing guns in checked Amtrak bags

Beto O’Rourke

pros

pro-choice (opposes restrictions on abortion)

voted yes to reauthorize Violence Against Women Act

pro-LGBT (supports prohibiting anti-gay discrimination in schools, voted to allow states to recognize same-sex marriages)

advocates for marijuana legalization

pro gun control (background checks, ban assault weapons)

wants to improve ObamaCare

pro-immigration (supports DREAMers, opposes family separation, opposes the wall, 

cons

rated 92% by NAPO which means he is tough on crime

[thesportssoundoff]

“It’s a makeshift card with interim titles and some damn good fights” UFC 236 preview

Joey

April 8th

What to call this card. Off the jump, let's be fair and point out that there are some damn good fights. The main card is really good with two superb (interim) title fights and some interesting fights at 205 lbs. The prelims feature no real names of note but there are some good fights featuring prospects as well as some fighters who hold some divisional relevance. We've even got a flyweight fight on the card! The problem is that like a large percentage of these are thrown together fights. That's probably due to the very blatant throw together vibe we have on this card. Most of these prelim fights (and maybe even a majority of these main card fights) are just there to fill spaces to keep the schedule going. That's not an awful thing because the matchmaking here is fine BUT it does create a sense of "Who cares?" That's made especially more blatant when you can look at May through July and see potentially some WORSE cards but cards with meaning behind them. What necessarily are the meaning to any of these fights outside of the two interims? Maybe I'm looking too deep on this bad boy and should just watch some fist fights. So let's watch some fist fights!

Fights: 13

Debuts:  Zelim Imadaev, Randy Costa, Boston Salmon

Fight Changes/Injury Cancellations: 1 (Paige Van Zant OUT,  Lauren Mueller IN vs Poliana Botelho)

Headliners (fighters who have either main evented or co-main evented shows in the UFC): 9 (Curtis Millender, Max Holloway, Dustin Poirier, Israel Adesanya, Ovince St. Preux,  Kelvin Gastelum, Eryk Anders, Nikita Krylov, Wilson Reis)

Fighters On Losing Streaks in the UFC: 3 (Brandon Davis, Eryk Anders, Max Griffin)

Fighters On Winning Streaks in the UFC: 5 (Israel Adesanya, Dustin Poirier, Max Holloway, Alexandre Pantoja, Kelvin Gastelum)

Main Card Record Since Jan 1st 2017 (in the UFC): 26-12 (3 NC)

Max Holloway- 3-0 Dustin Poirier- 4-0 (1 NC) Israel Adesanya- 5-0 Kelvin Gastelum- 2-1 (1 NC) Khalil Rountree- 3-1 (1 NC) Eryk Anders- 3-3 Alan Jouban- 1-2 Dwight Grant- 1-1 Nikita Krylov- 0-1 OSP- 4-3

Fights By Weight Class (yearly number here):

Welterweight- 3 (22) Light Heavyweight- 2 (13) Lightweight-  2 (20) Bantamweight- 2 (19) Women’s Flyweight- 1 (12) Flyweight- 1 (7) Featherweight- 1 (17)

Middleweight-  (10) Women’s Strawweight- (9) Heavyweight- (8) Women’s Bantamweight- (2)

2019’s Records We Keepin Track Of:

Debuting Fighters (9-17): Zelim Imadaev, Randy Costa, Boston Salmon

Short Notice Fighters (7-8): Lauren Mueller

Second Fight (23-5): Nikita Krylov, Khalid Taha

Cage Corrosion (Fighters who have not fought within a year of the date of the fight) (8-13): Alan Jouban

Undefeated Fighters (11-13):  Israel Adesanya, Zelim Imadaev and Randy Costa

Fighters with at least four fights in the UFC with 0 wins over competition still in the organization (5-5):

Weight Class Jumpers (Fighters competing outside of the weight class of their last fight even if they’re returning BACK to their “normal weight class”) (11-6): Eryk Anders, Poliana Botelho, Max Holloway and Brandon Davis

Twelve Precarious Ponderings

1- What changes if any will we see to the presentation for ESPN+'s PPV debut?

2- Isn't this one of those RARE times where an interim title makes sense? I know they're somewhat abused properties but let's be fair about this. The UFC can't go a full year without some sort of title defense at its deepest weight class (to the casual fan). You can't have 6-8 good lightweights all sitting around while waiting for Khabib to come back in September or October. A 12 month period without title defenses in my estimation should be large enough to open up the possibility of an interim title. The weirdness around the fight and getting to this point (It's potentially Conor vs Cowboy, no wait it's Poirier vs Ferguson, no wait it's Poirier vs Al, nope! It's gonna be Holloway vs Ferguson! Nope! Poirier vs Holloway it is!) can't be ignored either BUT this is a great fight. As for Adesanya vs Gastelum? The middleweight division is HOPING that Whittaker will be back in August. That gives you potentially 14 to 15 months without a title fight. Can't do that either.  The interim titles make some sense.

3- Is it fair to say that Israel Adesanya is the biggest example of how difficult it is to turn star qualities into star power?  If you tried to map out a guy who should be a big star, I'd imagine they'd have plenty of the traits Adesanya has but he's been pretty much an anti-draw throughout his tenure in the UFC. Maybe it's because he's weird and says stuff that makes it difficult to support him or who knows but this guy feels like sort of why the UFC probably felt comfortable cashing out with an ESPN+ PPV deal. He's probably never going to be a PPV mover so take the guaranteed cash since he's probably your "big" star going forward

4- So much has changed since the first Holloway vs Poirier fight but I wonder if there is SOME semblance of a mental edge knowing that you beat a guy once no matter how long ago it was. It's also 100% fair to say that while Holloway was super green, it wasn't like Poirier was a finished product either.

5- I feel no card shows the value of both the Contenders Series and the 205 lb division like this one does. The Contenders Series guys (like their TUF brethren before them) are used to pretty much fighting on anyc ard they can get themselves on. As such, you have guys like Jalin Turner, Dwight Grant, Montel Jackson and Lauren Mueller all competing on relatively short notice and getting right back in there. At 205, nothing matters and nobody is protective of an imaginary spot so you have a bunch of 205ers just sitting around waiting for the phone to ring.

6- I'd like to stick with Turner and Grant for a bit. Neither one was a heavily promoted fighter on the Contender Series and both got gigs off of violent finishes that showcased how raw and athletic they were. Like most Contenders Series guys, they were pretty much thrown on cards against proven familiar faces or middle of the pack fighters with the "If they win great! If they lose, oh well!" mentality. For instance, Jalin Turner made his debut on THREE weeks notice UP a weight class vs Vicente Luque. He had some moments but ultimately got boarded up by a really damn good welterweight. The rebound fight vs Callan Potter lasted under a minute as Turner got in, out and on with his life. Dwight Grant was tasked with facing Zack Ottow in his native Wisconsin and he lost a very close decision that in my opinion he should've won. He followed THAT up by facing and smelting Carlo Pedersoli and February. Guys like Turner and Grant sort of exemplify what the DWTCS has become; it's about talent accumulation with guys who may not be fundamentally sound but showcase the kind of traits that suggest they can be more than just reliable middle of the pack fighters. They could use a hand in the matchmaking department to help that pan out.

7- This is the FIRST UFC pay per view since UFC 230 in November to not have a WMMA fight on the main card and just the second PPV in the last ten events to not have a main card WMMA fight.

8- Israel Adesanya could be the second Nigerian born champion in UFC history and the second in as many months. It may not mean much for everybody but I appreciate it because it would show just how much this sport is growing.

9- I'd need somebody to convince me that Eryk Anders up 15 lbs isn't just going to be the same ultra patient stalking slopfester who refuses to commit to anything. Think we got enough of those guys at LHW.

10- Really excited about both of these bantamweight fights. Randy Costa is a promising East Coast talent at 135 lbs (seems like the UFC is loaded with those these days) and Brandon Davis is the sort of all action no defense fighter who can give a prospect some problems.

11- Gotta admit I feel pretty bad for Max Griffin. Even if his ultimate destiny was as the guy who would eventually just settle out as a fun action fighter, the loss to Curtis Millender was a momentum crusher in no small part due to Griffin folding after taking the first round. He followed that up by whooping up on Thiago Alves in a really fun fight only to get jobbed in my estimation on the cards. Now he's buried on the middle of the prelims facing a guy in his UFC debut.

12- It'd been a year and change so I forgive if you've forgotten but Boston Salmon was the FIRST signing of the DWTCS (in that he fought before anybody else who got signed). Salmon was a RFA/LFA product they were grooming FOR the UFC and so it's not a surprise he was on the debut show nor was it a surprise that he got signed. Injuries (Salmon fought on the Contender Series with a bad leg injury, pulled out of a few other opportunities due to it) stalled him up but he's here now. He'll kick off the main card vs Khalid Taha.

[alexsmitposts]

Gay Pride Weaponized by CIA in Georgia Who said religion and politics don’t mix? Religion is one of the failsafe of any politician – lie and cheat and abuse people, and if you say that your actions are motivated by religion, everything will be forgiven. Trump was even sent to us to save Israel! Religious groups themselves are happy to indulge the worst kinds of politicians, as long as they feel it will give them a bigger platform to do as they want. How Evangelicals can support a man like Trump, with his track record of doing everything their Bibles tell them not to, is one of the great ironies of the US political system. But they do it because they feel his sort of outsider politics gives them a bigger platform to spread their message from – they are still “voices crying in the wilderness” (John 1:23), but when that wilderness is the White House, they might be heard. All of which makes it so much sadder that the US is so determined to fight religion as a matter of policy. The same Bible-thumpers who claim moral superiority by displaying their faith in public (Matthew 6:5) are not prepared to allow religion to inform the policies of other nations. Whenever faith rears its head to the US and its allies, this has to be a bad thing, to be cut off it its root. We are told that Islam equals terrorism; despite the fact no Quranic scholar accepts that. Judaism equals Zionism, trying to undermine Christianity, while Christianity itself is a negative force trying to undermine secular values, as if there can be any secular values without religious ones to form a blueprint. But it is not hard to see why this position is taken. Both common faith and tolerance of other faiths bind nations and populations together. They form a large part of individual identities and of national culture – the very things which make people believe they have value, and should be respected and listened to, and not blindly fulfil the role a greater power has assigned them. Remember those big parades in Communist countries, where people carried banners of the leaders and demonstrated their military might and the force of their ideology? This was the only way these Godless atheists could try and supplant religion – using all the externals of religion to try and convince the public theirs was the only one—and they had been drugged with these fake religions. The US always claimed it was anti-Communist and wanted to change these countries. Yet it has promoted every attempt to “modernise” former Soviet states, and many others, by cutting the religious values and identity of their people out of their political life. This means of course that people cannot make a free choice, but only one from the range of inadequate options presented to them. The greater gulf between the people and the politicians, the less the people expect their politicians to serve them, not their US paymasters. Freedom for slaves One aspect of “modernisation” we are all very familiar with is the Gay Pride movement. Most, if not all, religions regard both male and female homosexuality as sinful, behaviour not permitted for their adherents (Romans 1:27). Every nation on earth is also built on religious values, and a culture which sprang from these, so this position is part of every culture on some level, irrespective of the tolerance shown to individual gays. Yet for many years there has been a concerted attempt to introduce ever-wider acceptance of homosexuality as a practice and a culture. No one is arguing that homosexuals should be persecuted, or suffer any discrimination in law. But the continual promotion of homosexuality has created a powerful political Gay movement whose influence dwarfs, for example, that of the Women’s Movement or advocates of black and ethnic minority rights. At one time homosexuality was seen as a mental illness. This public service film from the 1950s reflects the official attitudes of that time. But if anyone now used exactly the same words used in the film, they themselves would be told that they are mentally ill for not having the right mindset towards homosexuals. Both of these “clinical judgments” cannot be correct at the same time, but we are told this policy is “science” rather than politics. In a largely secular country, this may not matter. But when you condemn whole cultures for having the contrary view, and deride their people for not being “tolerant”, “modern” or “enlightened” enough, you maintain those people are too ignorant to have a voice, and cannot therefore challenge your own “scientific” reasoning. Georgia in the mind In the light of the above, you might expect that the Republic of Georgia, the CIA dirty tricks capital of Eurasia, to be on the frontline of the struggle between national traditions and someone else’s idea of “modernity”. Indeed it is: Via USAID, NED and other front NGOs, the US has long funded groups that take exception, in the name of Gay Pride, to its religious institutions. The Georgian Orthodox Church has always been a beacon of national identity, even for those who are non-religious or belong to other faiths. The members of Georgia’s minority faiths (largely Islam, Judaism and Armenian non-Chalcedonian Orthodoxy) identify themselves as Georgians within a minority religion, and happily acknowledge that most fellow Georgians are in the majority. In 2010 there was a riot at Tbilisi State University. The students were protesting against a book called “Holy Crap”, apparently written by a fellow student, being launched there. The book was a vile attack on religion, which directly equated prayer with masturbation, amongst other things. It was designed to cause the maximum offence, and the students were not happy with their names being dragged through the mud, as they saw it, through association with the book However the student who wrote it was long gone by the time the book was launched, enjoying a nice holiday in another country, and it was paid for by mysterious benefactors. The book was defended by an organisation called the Liberal Institute, which insisted that Georgians were being harmed by religion, and this book was a necessary means of dragging them into the modern world. Of course no one would ever be allowed to publicly attack an institution of the “modern world”, such as the Liberal Institute, in this obscene way, as many of its enemies found. The Liberal Institute had strong links with Mikheil Saakashvili and his United National Movement regime. This was funded by the US, as protection for allowing the CIA to smuggle arms and drugs through the country, torture opponents and develop biological weapons, to name but a few of its well-documented local crimes. Saakashvili was sometimes seen in church on state occasions, but spent the rest of the time attacking the institution. It was he who first introduced Gay Pride marches to Georgia. These take the form of processions through the central streets, in which gays act like conquering armies, not celebrating their existence but the fact that they have been given political recognition as a cultural group. Most Georgians have long felt uneasy about this, despite being told they will “get used to it”. Not because they are anti-gay, although these events have often been disfigured by violence from their opponents, but because they know what is going on. Gay Pride means attacking the religion and culture which have kept the Georgian people together through the darkest years of foreign domination. It means attacking Georgians for being Georgian, and thinking that is a good thing. If it didn’t, the US would not be interested in promoting it, when there are many other things – such as respecting democratic pluralism and rule of law, and improving the material well-being of the local population – they could be interested in. Laws can’t change everything The Georgian Orthodox Church issued a strongly worded warning against Tbilisi Gay Celebration, calling Tbilisi Pride of June 18-23 “absolutely unacceptable” and a “sodomite sin”, calling on the government “not to allow” it. It remains interesting that Gay Pride groups overseas are well funded by USAID and European countries, when there are apparently so many gays, who do not fund any children, that these events should be self-financing, if not outright money-spinners. People may ask why there is any need for religion. Why organise around something which cannot be proven by “scientific” methods? Well maybe this is because those same “scientific” method are used to justify all the wars and killing which are usually blamed on religion itself. Political calculations dressed up as “superior reasoning” lie behind evil activities, and the more areas in which this can be done, the greater acceptance there is for the practice. Trump now wants religion to be taught in schools. His motivation is pandering to his political base. However he also advocates the decriminalisation of homosexuality in countries where it is illegal. The question of whether homosexuality should be subject to legal penalties is a different one from whether the practice should be promoted and celebrated. During the last UK parliamentary election Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron was believed to have cost his party a lot of votes by refusing to say in interviews whether he, as a Christian, considered homosexuality a sin. Yet he consistently voted for every pro-gay, anti-discrimination measure in parliament because he was a Liberal, and this should have been enough in practical terms. Double Standard But why does Trump want to interfere in the gay-related legislation of other countries? The US still has the death penalty for certain crimes, many other countries do not. The death penalty is a religious tenet, if you believe some interpretations of the Bible Trump is fond of invoking to justify ignoring it. So why isn’t Trump calling for every other country to adopt the death penalty, or Christian national holidays, or monogamy, or any other practice the Bible advocates? Could it be that he knows these measures would not criminalise anyone else’s values, and thus deprive them of a voice at the “sophisticated” tables of power the US always chairs? Some of the people, some of the time The gay community is not served by the US and its allies promoting Gay Pride rallies in the name of human rights—quite the contrary. Gays are being pitted against their fellow countrymen in a fight for control of their countries, a fight most of them have no desire to be part of. Most people in the world are religious, and practice their religion to a greater or lesser extent. When you demand by government dictate that a country embraces values contrary to its dominant religion, you undermine the whole country, condemn its people as backward and thereby say that they and their aspirations are not worth anything. Religion has played in important part in the historical and cultural development of nations and individuals. Whether a member of a particular nation is religious or not, they wouldn’t be what they are today without it—and that is well understood! If nations are going to grow and prosper as sovereign entities they need to rediscover and promote the values of their peoples, whatever those may be. It is no coincidence that when the United Kingdom was at the height of its power in the nineteenth century, the Church of England built ever larger churches which seem incongruous today. The aggressive public promotion of Gay Pride, which always comes with political and financial strings attached, is simply another means of gaining control of resources. Those same US politicians who seek support from the religious right are happy to ignore mainstream religious leaders on this issue, and any other which gets in their way. Apparently prosperity can only flow one way, and that involves excluding as many people as possible from the pipeline by calling them deviant. Saint Anthony the Great told us all this long ago “Who has greater authority, him or Donald Trump?”

[thevividgreenmoss]

White supremacy makes us conceive of Israel’s relationship with the United States as exceptional. And this is not a left versus right issue. Some on the right have argued that Israel is exceptional for evangelical reasons, claiming that Israel will bring the second coming of Jesus. Some on the left argue that Israel controls American political affairs, which makes the United States care more about Israel than about domestic politics. This line in particular brings in some infamous dual loyalty accusations — another historically anti-Semitic trope. And such tropes should not be welcome in a movement that purports to combat white supremacy.

Here is the problem. Israel is unexceptional in ways that are relevant to American politics. To claim that it has some exceptional power over America while overlooking other ways in which money has a role in American politics is to fall into the hands of white supremacist stereotypes. Instead, we ought to conceive of this issue by focusing on two things.

First, the American government is not democratically representative of everyday Americans’ interests. It is comprised of wealthy individuals with little regulation on their financial conduct. These individuals all have personal economic interests, and we do not have good reason to believe that they operate in American politics for purely ideational reasons rather than as self-interested agents.

Second, the wealthy political class in the United States benefits from supporting governments that are politically cooperative and aligned with their interests. Israel is one of these states; they are a channel for the United States to defend its interests in the Middle East. The United States receives intelligence about anti-American “threats” while Israel can profit from military sales to the United States. But I must emphasize again: this is unexceptional. The United States also has similar beneficial alliances with states like Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, which have contributed to the brutal suppression of pro-democracy protesters in Bahrain and the murder of countless Yemeni civilians. They have a track record of allying with right wing governments abroad.

While avoiding pernicious language that paints Israel as a uniquely bad partner-state, we ought not to turn a blind eye to the fact that Israel and the Netanyahu administration is part of the global right wing alliance that cooperates with the United States’ interests abroad. This is not an Israel problem per se, but a matter of wealthy and powerful anti-democrats that are allied under American global hegemony. It is also not a matter of some small and elite council of people meeting and conspiring to control our political views. Rather, it is a matter of rational agents operating in positions of power under a capitalist system and bolstering themselves with convenient and common hermeneutics.

So, let’s establish that Israel is unexceptional when it comes to American political action. The U.S. is not controlled by its allies; rather, it is influenced by alliances and has interests in maintaining them. It is not that America is otherwise free, but influenced not to be. Rather, the U.S. has a set of geopolitical interests that alliances with anti-democratic powers can further. Israel is one of many right wing governments in this alliance.

Now, there is another way to treat Israel exceptionally that we should avoid, which is to ignore its role in this hegemonic alliance. That is, acting as though Israel is not a right wing government that benefits from allying with other right wing governments. This alliance means that Israel can influence American politics to an extent without necessarily “controlling” anything. Just like the U.S. and other states involved influence each other all the time. If it is in the interest of the American elite to ally with Israel and American representatives are self-interested agents, it makes sense that that would influence American politics. This does not mean that one controls the other. In fact, it would be absurd to deny American hegemony for the sake of arguing instead that Israel controls America. But it does mean that people are well warranted in pointing out that American politicians are incentivized to unconditionally support Israel — for their own benefit, and not necessarily Israel’s. We need not single out support for Israel here though. For instance, I do not take America’s support for Saudi Arabia to be about genuine care for Muslim interests, and I am sure plenty of American Muslims would agree with me. We can oppose politicians’ support of Saudi Arabia and similar states as well and identify the stakes of US political support for these regimes.

American exceptionalism is at the heart of this problem because it pushes the idea that America is an otherwise good and wholesome democracy, so long as other foreigners don’t intervene. But America’s international conduct shows that this is demonstrably false. American politicians have contributed to funding al-Qaeda affiliated groups and overthrowing democratically elected governments to create conditions favourable to them.  

But because white supremacy is hegemonic, it often is the quickest and most available language and conceptual framework people have. Hence, people resort to language that relies on white supremacist conventions, including the trope that Jewish people control America, and including the trope that Middle Eastern states are rogue and uncivilized and in need of intervention.

Critiques of Israel must be situated in America’s relationship to the Middle East. If we properly situate and contextualize our critiques, we will avoid both the use of pernicious stereotypes that single out Israel as an international player and the treatment of Israel as an exceptional state that deserves protection from anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist criticism.

The Misguided Exceptionalism of US-Israeli Relations

[anestheticx]

What Exactly is Trump Doing?

What Exactly is Donald Trump Doing? It's been months, and many are asking what in the world is Trump truly doing? Better yet, what, if anything, has he accomplished? Is America now magically "great?" Are the claims of job creation and a "better" economy true or simply fluffed up garbage? Is he fighting for the everyday person, or against them? Is he draining the swamp, or filling it? Does he believe in climate change, or is it a Chinese "hoax"? Some of Trump's advisers aren't even certain of what Trump actually means, thinks, or does - this much is obvious in their continuously undermined remarks by Trump himself. An adviser will publicly say one thing, and yet, Trump will say another, disagreeing with them entirely. For all we know, Trump makes decisions on a total, uneducated, emotionally charged whim during late night hours while he skims twitter, alone in his bedroom. Let's look at what Trump HAS done. Trump Has: 1.) A Record Low Approval Rating. Trump's approval rating is the lowest of any new president since Gallup began tracking approval ratings in 1953. New presidents have typically experienced a "honeymoon" period in approval ratings during their first few months, however, Donald Trump has not. His approval rating stands at about 37% consistently. Presidents have slumped low before. George W. Bush fell to 25%, Clinton fell to 37%, Obama fell to 38%, and Reagan fell to 35%. However, these presidents did not lose support so intensely so early in their presidency, and had higher approval ratings from both sides of the political spectrum during the beginning of their terms. If Trump's approval ratings are the highest they'll ever be now, and if they get any lower, he may be the most unpopular president of all time... 2.) Done a lot of Mar-a-Lago Golfing. Since taking office, Trump has spent nearly half of his weekends in Florida. This adds up to a total of 25 days, and the costs are mind numbing. These trips have costed tax-payers about $20 million in 100 days, while Obama's costs for personal travel were at about $97 million in eight years. The costs are historic, but why exactly is the president taking so much time off, so early on. Shouldn't he be working? 3.) Pushed Anti Environmental Legislation. From pulling out of the Paris Climate Agreement ( which was a voluntary agreement to consciously cut back on environment destroying carbon emitters ), budget cuts to the EPA, dismissing EPA scientists, scrubbing the EPA's climate change website, expanding offshore drilling, denying climate science, and ordering a review of national monuments to the Dakota Access Pipeline approval - Donald Trump has denied, destroyed, and thrown to the side what we know about climate science completely. Obama's Methane Regulation law was something Trump attempted to ban as well, however, surprisingly the Senate voted not to repeal it. Donald Trump refuses to push towards modernized, cheaper, cleaner energy such as solar, wind and hydro powered technologies, and in doing so has put the U.S.A behind other major countries putting the health of their citizens and this planet before profit. As usual, Trump sees profit as more important than people. The scariest part may be that our water, land, air and general environment will suffer long after Trump, oil and coal are gone. The course he's set on is one that will harm millions if not billions of people if continued without review. With or without the support of Trump and the fossil fuel industry, many states have decided that they must transition rapidly away from fossil fuels to renewable energy. Clean energy employs 6x more people than coal, and again coal and oil are finite anyway. 4.) Rolled Back Protections Against Transgender Students. During his campaign, Trump claimed he "loved the gays", and even held up a rainbow flag at an event. However, actions speak louder than words, and he quickly decided that his campaign rhetoric, though apparently good for snagging votes, was no longer useful in his real life legislative decisions. In February 2017, Trump ended federal protections for transgender students that allowed them to utilize the bathroom that suited their gender identity. This move against transgender students allows each individual state to decide whether or not they wish to, basically, discriminate against trans students. Conservatives claim this decision isn't harmful, and that trans students just have to "use the bathroom of their 'true' gender" ( which is transphobic in itself ), but obviously transgender students will be faced with bullying, and various forms of aggression while attending class due to this. Trump also has stated that he wants to give bosses and landlords a "right to discriminate" against LGBT Americans. He is expected to sign an executive order so religious groups, individuals and businesses can do so. 5.) Created a slew of failed Muslim bans. Donald Trump is still engrossed in a battle that seems to inevitably be headed to the Supreme Court over his "travel band" which, if we're being honest here, is really just a ban on seven predominantly Muslim nations. Trump and the alt-right are obsessed with blaming the entire Muslim world for extremist terrorist actions. Due to this, Trump has repetitively tried to enact travel bans on predominantly Muslim nations, and has been struck down due to this sort of wide spread generalization not only being xenophobic but against our Constitution. Trump claims this action is one that is necessary to, "Keep America Safe," yet when one looks closer, the ban actually excludes countries that Trump has business ties with such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. Sketchy..... 6.) Embarrassed the USA. Trump officially embarrassed the USA during his first trip abroad for a multitude of reasons, the biggest being angering our international allies which he seems to continuously take for granted. From enraging the intelligence community in Israel and Europe by publicly confirming sensitive material they told him NOT to leak to dragging out his confirmation of alliance to NATO forces - Trump has repetitively agitated our closest allies including France, Germany, the U.K. and Canada with patronizing commentary, overtly aggressive hand shakes, off-hand remarks and a basic, "I'm not working with you" attitude. Not to mention, can we talk about the glowing orb situation in Saudi Arabia? No biggie, right? 7.) Took to Twitter Continuously. You would think that the president had better things to do, but, apparently not. #Covfefe got more press than a Delaware-sized iceberg breaking off Antarctica, symbolizing a climate crisis that threatens all life on Earth. Needless to say, Trump is obsessed with the social media platform, and has not only embarrassed himself continuously on it but never seems to quit tweeting no matter what hour of the day or night it is. If Obama had tweeted "Covfefe", Fox News would have had 24x7 coverage trying to prove it was a code word for Muslims to overthrow the government. What does covfefe mean, after-all? Incompetence, classism, corruption, and nepotism all in one, of course. 8.) Refused to release his taxes. Donald Trump has said he has absolutely no intention of releasing his tax information. But, why? Trump would be the first president in more than 40 years not to do so, and one can only wonder why that would be. What does he have to hide, other than his claimed "large sums of income." Pieces of Trump's tax return reportedly obtained by the New York Times showed a net loss of about $916 million, which Trump has admitted he used to avoid paying some federal income tax. The story just gets thicker, and thicker doesn't it? 9.) Attacked Net Neutrality. The internet is one of the last, large, fairly accessible communication platforms not yet entirely destroyed by corporate influence. Net Neutrality basically protects all internet entities by ensuring that they all get equal representation, not influenced by money or advertising sums for the most part. For instance, your internet provider doesn't dictate what you do and do not see. However, unsurprisingly, Trump wants to put an end to that, and allow your service provider to do just that - dictate what is and isn't easily and readily available via their own personal interests. Imagine going to the book store, and wanting to read a book on gardening. Yet, the books on drilling for oil are free, and the books on gardening are $50.00. Now shove that analogy into internet terms. Ah, yes, censorship. Smells like typical Trump erasure and suppression of opposition voices. What I love is that the American public blatantly and unabashedly voiced its interest in keeping net neutrality yet, this administration plowed over our insistence and stripped away our right to fair and affordable internet in order to cater to their own egotistical desire to deepen their already bloated and overflowing pockets...some Oligarchy *cough* uh, democracy we live in. Basically, what this means is that they will also lift up content that pays large sums and essentially censor others. Also - want to watch Netflix? Just add on $29.99 a month to enjoy up to 300gbs of streaming data at just $10 for every 100gbs afterwards! Enjoy YouTube? Add another $5! Get the Youtube/Netflix/Hulu Triple Play for just an additional $50 a month! (Throttling fees still apply). Congrats Trump Voters, this is literally what you voted for and literally what ISPs will be able to legally do. 10.) Created a Sea of Nepotism. From Kushner's influence to Ivanka's when did children of a public figure with no government experience himself, magically become political experts, and been allowed to interfere with serious government affairs? Monarchies don't seem to be the kind of system American's typically go for, but with Trump fusing his family and business into his dealings politically, it's unfortunately, comparable. 11.) Filled The Swamp with Raw Sewage by Appointing Billionaires to his cabinet. How exactly do men with vast sums of money legislate in favor on the everyday person when the everyday person has no ties to them personally? Apparently to Donald Trump, filling his cabinet with billionaires equates somehow to "draining the swamp" aka making it "everyday Joe" friendly. How can corporate lobbyists truly be concerned with the well-being of typical citizens, both working-class and marginalized - when they still have ties to their own money making agendas? Trump has officially surrounded himself with like-minded individuals who are all about self-preservation, self-interest and of course, profit. 12.) Favored Tax Cuts for the Rich. After his cabinet appointees came out, who can be surprised? Trump released a one page piece of paper that resembled a flea-market flyer in April, void of any legislative or outlined text. In it, briefly, it stated that Trump, "planned to revamp the tax code." At a closer look, the plan would slash corporate tax rates, repeal a fee on wealthy taxpayer investments, repeal the estate tax for millionaires. Doesn't seem too lucrative for the everyday person, but in reality, it could benefit Trump himself "bigly" - in his own descriptive terminology. 13.) Favored A Healthcare and Budget Revamp that will Hurt the most Vulnerable. From cutting aid programs like Meals on Wheels, to creating a healthcare system that would make almost everything a pre-existing condition, Trump has made it clear that his priorities are to benefit the most comfortable Americans, and stick it to the most vulnerable. Democrats wanted to save 6 billion dollars by cutting federal handouts to oil companies and firms with private jets, but the GOP thought cutting food stamps to over 900,000 veterans and their families was a better way to save money. Trump's budget plan hasn't passed yet, and for this reason, hopefully it's dead on arrival. Now, let's get to the, "AHCA". If passed by the Senate, how will Trumpcare aka the AHCA function? Sure, there will be no requirement/tax if you decide not to get healthcare. However, Medicare will be slashed, leaving those in poverty possibly without any healthcare at all. Rich Americans will receive tax breaks. Younger Americans may pay less due to older, more vulnerable Americans paying 5x more simply due to their age. Under current rules, insurers cannot charge older adults more than three times what they charge young adults for the same coverage. The House bill that was passed would allow them to charge five times as much. FIVE. TIMES. If grandma can't afford her insurance now, just wait. Also, the states would decide what pre-existing conditions they would and would not cover. The list of what the GOP considers as pre-existing conditions is lengthy, including everything from pregnancy and rape to mental health, cancer, and acne. What this means, is if your state decides any or all of these GOP mandated pre-existing conditions isn't eligible for coverage, you won't be covered under any insurance and probably won't be able to afford coverage for care you need. This bill is classist, misogynistic, dangerous, selfish, lacking any empathy, and downright pathetic. Call your Senators, tell them to ensure this bill becomes dead on arrival. Here is the comprehensive list of which pre-existing conditions will get you denied health insurance under the GOP plan that just passed in the House. AIDS/HIV, acid reflux, acne, ADD, addiction, Alzheimer's/dementia, anemia, aneurysm, angioplasty, anorexia, anxiety, arrhythmia, arthritis, asthma, atrial fibrillation, autism, bariatric surgery, basal cell carcinoma, bipolar disorder, blood clot, breast cancer, bulimia, bypass surgery, celiac disease, cerebral aneurysm, cerebral embolism, cerebral palsy, cerebral thrombosis, cervical cancer, colon cancer, colon polyps, congestive heart failure, COPD, Crohn's disease, cystic fibrosis, DMD, depression, diabetes, disabilities, Down syndrome, eating disorder, enlarged prostate, epilepsy, glaucoma, gout, heart disease, heart murmur, heartburn, hemophilia, hepatitis C, herpes, high cholesterol, hypertension, hysterectomy, kidney disease, kidney stones, kidney transplant, leukemia, lung cancer, lupus, lymphoma, mental health issues, migraines, MS, muscular dystrophy, narcolepsy, nasal polyps, obesity, OCD, organ transplant, osteoporosis, pacemaker, panic disorder, paralysis, paraplegia, Parkinson's disease, pregnancy, rape, restless leg syndrome, schizophrenia, seasonal affective disorder, seizures, sickle cell disease, skin cancer, sleep apnea, sleep disorders, stent, stroke, thyroid issues, tooth disease, tuberculosis, and ulcers. 14.) Invited Racist clowns like Nugent, Kid Rock and Palin to the Whitehouse. Trump invited the three to the White House to apparently pose in front of portraits of Hillary Clinton. Palin has repetitively spewed elitist, classist garbage, Kid Rock is a vehement confederate flag supporter, and Nugent has openly stated that he wanted to shoot Obama and Clinton. Which leads us to Kathy Griffin.... 15.) Freaked out over Kathy Griffin. When Griffin created imagery of herself holding up Trump's fake, bloody severed head, the internet exploded. Trump cried foul play as he claimed his son was traumatized from seeing such a thing. When did we decide to hold a comedian to higher regards than a "president"? Trump can endanger generations to come in one day, with one pen stroke, and Kathy Griffin can post a photo decapitating Trump, and yet the photo seemed to matter more? Apparently, to Trump, it's alright to body slam a reporter, and talk about how you sexually abuse women with NO consequences, decide to openly destroy our environment and basic human rights with NO consequences - yet a photo is beyond unacceptable to the far right? People created effigies of Obama, burned and lynched them during his presidency. Sasha Obama was nine years old when the birther conspiracy started on top of it all. The ridiculous outrage over the image was palpably hilarious. Would it be more acceptable if we "grabbed some pussy?" while Nugent hailed for the murder of Obama and Clinton? 16.) Watched Himself on TV, and TV In General Nonstop. From NBC's Chuck Todd to White House staffers we've heard continuous mutterings of Trump's TV addiction. Apparently, Trump closely analyzes every interview after its been taped, often on mute, and focuses on...you guessed it, himself. When he's not doing that, and seemingly infuriating 70% of the planet, he's watching cable TV. Seems, "productive." 17.) RUSSIAGATE. Where to even begin? Trump's administration is submerged in seemingly sketchy secret contacts with the Russians, yet, Trump "isn't" involved? US, European and Australian intelligence knows the 2016 election was hacked by Russia, but how far did it go? Trump wasn't under investigation when he fired Comey, but most likely is now. Trump asked an FBI director for loyalty, as if to, "shove the matter" under the rug, but it's acceptable because he doesn't know what he's doing yet? This matter is one that could go on indefinitely, and with Trump claiming he'll take the stand under oath, it can only get juicier, more ridiculous and more awful. One thing is certain, the ex-FBI Director and Trump can't both be telling the truth. 18.) Attempted to segregate schools with voucher programs. The Washington Post has obtained the details of Trump and Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos’ first education budget proposal, and it spells disaster. The pair of billionaires are planning to gut the education budget by $9.2 billion dollars – 13.6% of the entire department’s funding – and reduce total federal education expenditures by $10.6 billion. Charter school crusader and religious extremist Betsy DeVos, who has pledged to use her position to “advance God’s Kingdom,” has budgeted $400 million for school “choice” vouchers and another $1 billion to “push public schools to adopt choice-friendly policies.” By “school choice,” of course, DeVos and Trump mean “allowing affluent white families to use taxpayer dollars to send their children to private religious schools with questionable approaches to scientific education” and deprive schools serving low-income students of desperately needed resources. School “choice” programs originally began as a way for racists to get around desegregation rules in the South, as governors closed public schools and allowed white parents to send their kids to whites-only academies while black children were left with no schools. There is only one federally funded school choice voucher program, in Washington D.C., and a recent Department of Education analysis found that the students in those charter schools performed worse on testing than children who attended public schools. The budget proposal cuts nearly two dozen vital programs, including: - $1.2 billion for after-school -$2.1 billion for teacher training and class-size reduction - $15 million program that provides child care for low-income parents in college - $27 million arts education program two programs targeting Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian students, totaling $65 million - $72 million for two international education and foreign language programs - $12 million program for gifted students - $12 million for Special Olympics education programs - $168 million from career and technical education grants - $96 million from adult basic literacy instruction - $13 million from President Obama’s community-building Promise Neighborhoods programs - the entire $1.65 billion fund for “student support and academic enrichment that is meant to help schools pay for, among other things, mental-health services, anti-bullying initiatives, physical education, Advanced Placement courses and science and engineering instruction.” - $700 million in Perkins loans for disadvantaged students - $490 million from a federal work-study program - His plan would also end loan forgiveness for 552,931 people for public servants in rural areas. The United States remains far behind many industrialized nations in academic achievement. Our schools need more funding, not less. Our public school system could use reform, yes, but from skilled educators with decades of experience managing education systems – not an enormously incompetent ideologue like DeVos, whose sole achievement is her role in the Detroit charter school program, which is considered “the biggest school reform disaster in the country.” The children of America cannot afford to let an unqualified religious zealot upend the public school system so she can achieve her lifelong dream of turning America’s schools into Christian camps. The future of our nation depends on it. 19.) Inspired White Supremacists. Hate crimes against people of color have risen since the election of Donald Trump. So has the re-emergence of white supremacist groups in public. From clashes with alt right, and KKK groups that have lead to violence, to the two brave people who stepped in to protect two Muslim women against a man spewing hate speech in Portland and were murdered - when people in power normalize racism and xenophobia it emboldens those with similar beliefs. This is why Trump and this entire xenophobic, hate filled racist "conservative" movement ( among many other reasons ) needs eradicated. 20.) Refused to Listen to the Pope. During their meeting, the Pope not only donned a somber face but a written letter to Trump, telling him why he should not dip out of the Paris Agreement. Trump obviously used the letter as toilet paper, because we now know what his final decision was. 21.) Refused to discuss a livable wage. In his first 100 days, Trump has done nothing to address the issue of wage stagnation. I know a $15 minimum wage seems radical to republicans. You know what's radical? That people working 40+ hours a week are living in poverty, and that those unable to find suitable work are considered unworthy of basic necessities. 22.) Been Involved in Scam, after Scam....Fake for profit university, settled with a fine. Rape allegations, pushed under the rug with settling out of court. Tax Return absurdity. Involving family in serious political decisions. Leaking information about ally intelligence. Tweeting offensive garbage. Fighting with people on twitter due to said garbage. Russiagate, Russiagate, Russiagate - when will it end? Hopefully soon...... 23.) Claimed EVERYTHING EVER was "FAKE NEWS." Removing information and claiming legitimate news to be "fake" while propagating actual propaganda is an Orwellian technique to keep the public in the dark. How much evidence is needed that Trump obstructed justice? When will Republicans put the well-being of others and even themselves above loyalty to their party? It's clear that Donald Trump hasn't fought for the working class, struggling Americans, everyday Americans, veterans or even small business owners. If anything, he's fought to pass legislation for the wealthy, for those that benefit him, those with ties to his business, and legislation with classist, close-minded leanings. It's notable, that Trump views the world as a zero-sum game in which either you "win" and they lose or they win and you lose. It's the personality of a sociopath. As scary as Trump is, this reality show disaster is being used to distract us from the true depth of an economic system built to exploit working, and marginalized people. As stated before, Trump has made it clear that his priorities are to benefit the most comfortable Americans, and stick it to the most vulnerable - all while he destroys our foreign affiliates. What I really, really love - is how anyone speaking out against this country's current capitalist Oligarchical structure is a "snowflake". Over reacting. A "baby." Yet, these ultra conservatives are offended that not everyone is Christian, white, straight, rich, and subordinate to them. When did fighting for universal healthcare, livable wages, social equality, workers well-being, legitimate and affordable education, women's rights and environmental protection become so "unreasonable" to these people? When did logic become radical? When did voting against your own self-interests to better those with wealth become "patriotic"? I see so many extremist, Trump-esc supporters attacking others for speaking out with slurs, xenophobic hatred, gender-based hatred, and pure propaganda fed ignorance. Aside from the fact that they can't formulate an articulated argument without straying from the subject at hand, they'll immediately attack individuals for their appearance, gender, or for striving for working and marginalized people's well-being. Conservatives will spend hours attempting to defend their oppressive corporatist government that doesn't even benefit them, AND even after this detailed list of the awful things that Trump HAS ACTUALLY done or plans to do, they'll still try to defend him.

[pocinperioddramas]

Haha whoops, I forgot to say that if you want sources for any of the stuff I mentioned I can track them down for you - the comments were just way too long already. (Thanks again for the thoughtful, civil conversation. I'm trying to find a non-patronizing-sounding way to say I was nowhere near as mature and self-aware as you in high school and I can't, but I swear I don't mean it that way, I just admire that. It took me way longer and I'm not even sure I'm there yet.)

So to start with I’m glad you’ve put so much thought into this. I personally as kind of uncomfortable bringing it up, as I *know* I’m not super well-informed on Israel, but I didn’t feel I could say nothing. With that knowledge in mind, I tentatively support a two-state solution - I’m not sure whether it’s relevant if it could *realistically* happen without further bloodshed - if it TECHNICALLY could, that’s probably what matters. (I’m maybe not expressing myself well - it’s like how a lot of things in Canada/USA which are technically possible are realistically less possible because of conservative obstruction, but we still aim for them.) Or even just… LESS bloodshed then right now.

There’s a post going around that GG posted on fb that’s getting a lot of flak, but the actual post specifically condemns Hamas, not Palestine, and her statements in the post support coexistence - and, yes, young IDF soldiers, but military service is compulsory in Israel - I know I feel for any young people drafted or convinced into combat. Like - it’s still okay to have an issue with her support of the military (although, like I said, her service wasn’t a choice and she wasn’t in combat), but a lot of the problem I think is that her service in/support of the Israeli military is being scrutinized and condemned, while celebrities like, say, Adam Driver, who supports the American military HARDCORE, like, complete with fundraising and stuff, go completely unscrutinized and uncondemed despite the US military’s own horrible track record/activities.

Last thing I think - it’s been my understanding that the creation of Israel created so many problems due to mistakes/racism/anti-Semitism by Western powers, and not Israelis or Jewish people in general. I don’t know how accurate that is - but it complicates the idea of Israel as ‘colonialist.’ (Although obviously the affect on Palestine has been… unjustly detrimental, to put it obscenely mildly.) I’d feel way more comfortable letting a Jewish person speak on this.

I know you’re looking for a mod - have you considered looking for a Jewish perspective, not specifically, but maybe as a desirable thing? Erm. Sorry for length, I didn’t intend for that number of replies. Thanks again for giving this so much thought. (VERY different experience from the last time I sent a blog I like a message like that tbh.)

Hello again, thanks for all your replies! :) I will respond to all of them here, by the way, for easier reading and so there will be not too many replies in that one post alone.

I understand your point about a realistic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict not being that relevant as of now, as that wouldn’t be very easy especially if there is still obstruction from self-interested parties, and you make a fair parallel to the situation there in Canada and the US. So yes, at the very least, less bloodshed than before would be something to aim for, which will hopefully eventually lead to the war’s end and full peace at last.

I saw a screenshot of that post - that was the very post for which people began truly disliking and condemning Gal for since it’s so explicit in its support of IDF. She brings up Hamas in that post - but Hamas can be interpreted as either a fundamentalist group of terrorists or a grassroots organization of freedom fighters, depending on your views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict/war in Gaza. To be honest, I don’t know what my stance on Hamas is yet, as I’ve read contradicting information about the group and I don’t know what to believe as of now. But there is apparently one falsehood that Gal perpetuates about Hamas in that post, whether or not you believe them to be terrorists or noble freedom fighters - she says that Hamas is using Palestinian women and children as human shields, something which has apparently already been disproven by a number of major news organizations (see here and here for more information).

Here’s an important quote from the 2nd article I linked that I find relevant:

“Speaking up for the Palestinians does not mean you are supporting Hamas or even are anti-Israel. It is just impossible to ignore the facts. In this so-called “war” there are way more people dying on one side than the other. And most of the people dying are civilians. Not only that, but hospitals and schools are in the cross-hairs, too. Yes, any nation reserves the right to defend itself. But is this really self defense or a variation of Florida’s barbarian “Stand Your Ground” laws played out on a global scale?

The other thing that bothers me about Gadot’s stance on the conflict is one of the hashtags she uses: #weareright. That hashtag is buttressed by other, more palatable ones like #freegazafromhamas and #coexistance (sp), but it still oozes with the kind of nationalism that leads to the kind of escalation that will ultimately make everything worse for both sides.

Here’s the thing. When you have hundreds of people — most of whom are women and children — dead and hospitals and schools destroyed, no one is right. War is terrible and awful. Not a spectator sport. Supporting one’s country does not mean you have to also support what that country is doing, especially when so much death and destruction is the direct result of those actions.

The fact that Gadot will be the real life embodiment of Wonder Woman for generations to come is what makes this all so ironic. Maybe not as ironic as casting, say, Ted Nugent as Batman, but still. Wonder Woman is supposed to be an ambassador of peace. Of course, she’s also an Amazon warrior who isn’t afraid to take up the sword against evil, but Diana of Themyscira only goes to war for those who cannot fight for themselves.

Is it possible that, were Wonder Woman real, her view of the conflict in Gaza would be filled with more compassion for the oppressed? Isn’t that the kind of justice that a character like Wonder Woman is supposed to inspire?”

As the quote points out, even though she says she supports coexistence in her hashtags, she uses the hashtags #weareright and #loveidf at the same time. I am aware of her history as a soldier serving in the IDF and I’m also aware that in Israel, serving in their military is compulsory, so I do not really condemn her for that. But the fact is that she remains an active supporter of IDF when she doesn’t have to be, because as far as I know, it isn’t compulsory for Israeli citizens to actively show their support and love for the IDF like through social media (unless it is, so please correct me if I’m wrong there - because I don’t know enough about Israeli laws and policies on that front). After her service in the military, she could have just remained quiet and not necessarily have been so public about her support of the IDF (but then that might have been a whole other can of worms as she would be condemned for her silence on the issue, for it could be viewed as being still complicit in the oppression due to her not speaking out on it).

I didn’t know about Adam Driver (who, like Gal, also served in his country’s military, although this time it wasn’t compulsory and thus it is less understandable and he actually served in combat too from what I’ve researched now), and in that area, I think you’re right. That is a troubling phenomenon, and thank you for pointing that out. I first knew of him through “Star Wars”, but I didn’t care much about him (and still don’t) because I like the lead actors - Daisy, John, and Oscar (whose character is not really a main protagonist as of now but Poe is more important to me than Kylo Ren anyway) - much better, and he really didn’t stand out as anything special to me although I suppose he was a good actor too. That’s the thing with US-centrism (and West-centrism in general) - these Americans think their country is too good and progressive to be oppressive to other nations and countries. And in this situation, I do think that it’s more likely than not a case of implicit anti-Semitism (and perhaps even a little sexism) and so-called liberals feeling high and mighty about themselves because they condemn one form of oppression perpetuated by a non-Western country while ignoring the oppression perpetuated by their own country.

I will tread more carefully now where Adam Driver is concerned, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I will boycott “The Last Jedi” and Episode IX. I have never had plans to watch any of his other movies and TV shows (and this just solidifies my stance to not watch them at all), especially ones in which he is the main character, and while he has a significant role in the sequel trilogy, the movies have been more focused on at least Daisy and John (and now Oscar and Kelly) and that is what I’m focusing on too. But I understand that would be a problematic stance to take, as it reminds me of the time people urged others not to boycott “Suicide Squad” so as to show support for the relatively unknown actors of color there for whom these people were afraid that their careers would end and be wasted if SS was a financial flop and the time people also urged others not to boycott “The Get Down” so as to also show support for the relatively unknown actors of color (mainly black, Latinx, and Afro-Latinx) who still deserved it despite people’s legitimate concerns about Jared Leto’s creepy behavior and the allegations of sexual harassment/assault against him and the issue of Herizen Guardiola being a child predator. Rest assured, I will think on that and reevaluate my stances, and I totally understand people who will not watch or who will boycott “Star Wars” due to Adam Driver’s presence and I will not condemn them for that.

For your last point, while that may have been the case at the beginning and that may be somewhat understandable (and I’m not fully convinced), that doesn’t account for all the atrocities that Israel has committed against Palestinians, especially at present. I doubt all of the cruelties they inflicted were a result of mistakes or US anti-Semitism - it’s far too many to all have been the product of mistakes, and they are still doing it now so yeah :/ However, I do understand that Israel owes a lot to US support and the US should be called out as vocally for its continued support for Israel, but there’s a line from this article which I linked to before in my previous response that I think we should consider: “Israel is an extension of US imperialism, doing its dirty work of intimidating regional enemies with periodic military aggression and a rogue nuclear arsenal. The US has no special interest in oppressing the Palestinians, but they are powerless enough to be expendable in the Great Power game.”

It may not be the best parallel to make, but this kind of reminds me (not specifically referring to you or anyone else, sorry if it comes off that way) of our current situation in the Philippines - how our president, Rodrigo Duterte, tries to deflect US criticism of his bloody war on drugs and the thousands of extrajudicial killings and murders that have happened in the course of this war by retorting with call-outs of US imperialism and colonialism in the Philippines in the past (although US imperialism still definitely affects our country at present, but Duterte usually cites things like atrocities committed by the Americans during the Philippine-American War and the American colonial period). Duterte’s call-outs are valid in that the US is still messing us up well into the present and they’ve never really apologized, and the US needs to acknowledge that too, but two wrongs do not make a right. Besides, there are plenty of Filipinos who criticize Duterte and his policies too, so that doesn’t mean all criticism of him is automatically invalid (which it’s still not, even from the US or Americans) because most of it (actually, from what I have seen, Filipinos are the most vocal) comes from the US. (And yes, for those who are curious, I am mainly anti-Duterte [but that doesn’t mean I oppose all his policies, for some do make sense, but in general, he has a terrible track record especially when it comes to actually serving his people as it seems he’s actually killing off a lot of them and violating their human rights as well] - though that doesn’t make me a yellowt*rd or a supporter of the Liberal Party/P-Noy/the Aquinos and the Cojuangcos as many Duterte fans are so fond of making false dichotomies - so if there are Filipino followers out there whom we call DDS (die-hard Duterte supporters), you can unfollow me.)

But it is in no way the fault of Jewish people in general at all - only the fault of the Israeli government, the IDF, and the people who actively continue to support them. Not all Jewish people are Israeli and there are in fact plenty of Jewish people who are anti-Israel (I’ve found more websites now like the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network and Jewish Voice for Peace), so if anyone is blaming them for what is happening in Israel and Palestine right now, they can sit their anti-Semitic asses down and shut up.

I think we could also consider that Zionism may be to Jewish people as the Q word is to LGBT+ people and the N word is to black people - it may be an inherently flawed ideology that is only theirs to reclaim and call out if necessary, so as I said before, this means we should be more careful when it comes to using the different terms involved in this issue.

Finally, for the mod/admin thing, I am considering it - that’s actually a good idea. Preferably Jewish people of color would be good, but if there are white Jewish people who wish to join and contribute to this blog, I will consider them. I will be editing my PSAs about admin applications soon in that case, but that isn’t final yet.

Also, I understand that there are people who do tend to respond to criticism like that aggressively, and while there are some situations - depending on the issues being criticized - where that’s an okay way to go, it doesn’t always help.

And yes, sources would be good too, so thank you in advance :) Thank you for that too - I’m rather flattered. I do think I could be even more mature as I don’t consider myself that mature yet, like if you knew me personally, but thank you anyway :) I hope I was able to make more clarifications too, and that we understand each other.

-Admin Dawn

[scottadamsblog]

Trusting Your Government in a Time of War

President Trump’s critics and supporters agree on one thing: Our new president has a history of “stretching” the truth whenever there is some advantage in doing so, and sometimes even when there is not. You might say he is famous for playing loose with the facts. We all expect a high degree of “hyperbole” from President Trump, to put it kindly. He gets away with it because barely-enough Americans believe his intentions are in line with America’s best interests.

The odd exception to our universal understanding of President Trump’s mode of operation is his claim that he is totally certain Assad was responsible for the chemical attack on his own people last week. The President’s critics and most of his supporters believe President Trump when he suggests that our military can track any plane in Syria and know what that plane did to whom.

Do you believe that?

I have it on good authority that the United States can track and identify aircraft in Syria. But does that mean we are watching (or recording) every plane at every minute, and we also know what ordinance they dropped?

Do you believe, for example, that our military can identify Syrian jets doing a normal bombing run at the same time as a hobby-sized ISIS drone drops some sarin gas in the blast zone? Can our satellites see that?

Or suppose rebels lobbed an artillery shell with sarin into a village that was being bombed at the same time. Would our satellites and drones and AWACS pick up the incoming round?

Maybe.

But my experience of life is that literally nothing works that well.

Or to put it another way, if we could do shit like that, the war would be over in a week. We’d know who every player on the ground was, and what they were doing, at all times. Heck, if we can detect a hobby-sized drone with a gas canister strapped to its belly from outer space, we don’t need boots-on-the-ground to beat ISIS. We can kill everyone who needs killing from the sky.

Generally speaking, the information you get from a war zone is fiction. You wouldn’t want it any other way. The Commander-in-Chief has to simultaneously manage public opinion and a military conflict. In the context of war, misinformation can be a useful tool. History would give a free pass to any president who misled the public in the interest of national security. 

My view is that the public will never know for sure who was behind the Syrian gas attack. But I also think it doesn’t matter because most of the world believes Assad was behind it. And that created options for Trump to get an advantage in Syria while simultaneously “negotiating” with China, North Korea, Russia, Congress, the American public, world opinion, Iran, Israel, and anyone else who is watching.

Some critics have pointed out that launching 59 Tomahawk Cruise Missiles is expensive. But it is starting to look like a good investment, at least so far. That could change, of course.

It is entirely possible that Assad launched the gas attacks to test for a U.S. reaction. Perhaps our military does have 100% certainty about the source of the attack. All I’m saying is that war-related claims have no credibility by their very nature. And in this specific case, the truth is irrelevant. What matters is that the allegation of Assad’s guilt opened new strategic options at a reasonable cost, and President Trump jumped on them.

That’s all we know for sure.

---

You might enjoy reading my book because a hobby-sized drone could lift it.

I’m also on...

Twitter (includes Periscope): @scottadamssays​

YouTube: At this link.

Instagram: ScottAdams925

[browanger55-blog]

The Bear’s Den, November 28, 2018

BEAR DOWN, CHICAGO BEARS, BEAR DOWN!!!!

MEMORY LANE

NFL 2016 Final Regular Season Power Rankings - New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers - ESPN - New England, riding a seven-game winning streak into the playoffs as the AFC’s top seed, reclaims its position at No. 1 atop the final regular-season rankings. Ken’s Note: Here’s a fun look back at where we were... note some of the other teams right around us.

BEARRRSSSS

Gabriel: Bears’ Defensive Line Setting The Tone - 670 The Score - Defensive lines are hallmarks of good defenses, and the Bears have one of the best.

Emma: Refreshed Bears Set Sights On Stretch Run - 670 The Score - ”We set ourselves up to be in a good position,” Allen Robinson says.

Emma: Bears’ Javon Wims Surprises Mother With Car: ‘Dream Come True’ - 670 The Score - Back home for Thanksgiving, Wims caught his mother off guard with a gift.

Dannehy: Maybe the 2018 Chicago Bears are Not “A Year Away” - Da Bears Blog - I started this season writing about how the Bears looked like the same old Bears and that’s because they did. Blowing a huge fourth quarter lead to the Packers on opening night was very on-brand. But on Thanksgiving Day, the 2018 Chicago Bears beat the Detroit Lions despite all the excuses. In doing so, they proved they are a different team.

Mully & Haugh: Bears’ Akiem Hicks On Play Of Eddie Jackson ‘It’s Dangerous’ - 670 The Score - ”Some people just have a knack for it,” Akiem Hicks says of Eddie Jackson.

Sansone: How do the Bears stack up against the best of the NFC — the Saints and the Rams? - Chicago Tribune - NFL Week 12 wrap-up: The Bears (8-3) hold the third seed in the NFC playoff race, 1½ games ahead of the Vikings in the NFC North.

Kane: 5 keys to a Bears playoff push as they enter the season's final month - Chicago Tribune - When the Bears return to Halas Hall on Tuesday after a four-day weekend, they’ll have about a month to complete a push for their first NFC North title and playoff berth since 2010.

Swartz: Former Bear Israel Idonije lands role on upcoming Fox drama 'Proven Innocent' - Chicago Tribune - Israel Idonije is one of a few former Chicago Bears players who have transitioned to network TV.

Haugh: Ryan Pace's savvy draft picks give the Bears a strong foundation for long-term success - Chicago Tribune - To achieve success that elevates a team to the next level, organizations must trade for difference-makers and sign playmakers. But to sustain it, they must draft wisely. The Bears find themselves at 8-3 and atop the NFC North because of Ryan Pace’s ability to do both.

Mullin: Is Mitch Trubisky a top-10 quarterback in the NFL? Yep, and you could look it up - NBC Sports Chicago - Is Mitch Trubisky a top-10 quarterback in the NFL? Yes he is, and you could look it up. John "Moon" Mullin weighs in on why that matters so much.

Stankevitz: As Bears sing to anything, they're taking their popularity and success in stride - NBC Sports Chicago - The Bears became a viral hit with #BearsSingToAnything over the weekend, but now have to handle the popularity that comes with their success.

Lunch with Larry: 11.27.18 - ChicagoBears.com - Bears Senior Writer Larry Mayer discusses game preparation for the Giants, how the Bears found success the last three weeks and who has played the biggest roles for the Bears to this point.

Really? Surprising Bears stats following Week 12 - ChicagoBears.com - Following last week's win against the Lions, here are some noteworthy facts, figures and stats about the game and the season to this point.

Medina: John Lynch Is Still Out There Talking About the Mack Deal He Couldn't Pull Off - Bleacher Nation - John Lynch can't seem to get over the fact that he couldn't pull off a trade to acquire Khalil Mack.

Medina: Bears Sign Track Star Turned Receiver/Return Specialist Cyril Grayson to Practice Squad - Bleacher Nation - The Bears have the need for speed.

Potash: Rabbit with a gun - First-place Bears determined to play harder as the hunted | Chicago Sun-Times - Now they’re 8-3, leading the NFC North, ranked from fourth to eighth in various power ratings and getting serious consideration as a playoff contender

Finley: Bears players dig #BearsSingtoAnything viral sensation - Chicago Sun-Times - The videos, posted on social media, dubbed songs — by Beyonce and Nickelback and everyone in between — over the Amukamara-led Motown dance celebration

Finley: Bears CB Prince Amukamara ready to face Giants for first time since leaving - Sun Times - Sunday, entrenched as a solid cornerback as one of the Bears’ leaders, the cornerback will face the team that drafted him for the first time.

Jahns: Jordan Howard: Bears RB is enjoying team's run -- and fun - Sun Times - Running back Jordan Howard is having a down year but the Bears are winning.

Finley: Why the Bears are confident in QB Chase Daniel if he has to start again Sunday - Sun Times It’s not often, if ever, that Charles Leno drives into Halas Hall without seeing Chase Daniel’s truck in the parking lot.

Kane: Bears cornerback Prince Amukamara eyeing first playoff run since winning the Super Bowl with the Giants - Chicago Tribune - Bears cornerback Prince Amukamara is looking to help a team to a playoff berth for the first time since his rookie season, when he was a reserve for the Giants on their way to a second Super Bowl title under quarterback Eli Manning.

Wiederer: 'He has been that way his whole life' - With his competitive fire always lit, Anthony Miller envisioning big things with Bears - Chicago Tribune - Bears receiver Anthony Miller has shown glimpses of promise during his rookie season. As Miller gets more comfortable with the NFL game and more in sync with quarterback Mitch Trubisky, he has grand visions of where his journey can take him and the team.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Rating job security of NFL head coaches - Who’s on hot seat in 2018 - ESPN - Mike McCarthy’s Packers are facing another season without the playoffs. Pete Carroll’s Seahawks are pushing for a wild-card spot.

The Top 5 most insane NFL concession foods; NFL’s reaction to domestic violence, Looking to next week - For the Fan NFL Podcast Jim, Wanda & Julie talk about the week in review and then discuss the top 5 most insane foods...

Leonard Fournette’s appeal could have $7 million in the balance – ProFootballTalk - Fournette’s contract contains sufficient language to support an argument that the suspension voids the remaining guarantees in Fournette’s four-year rookie contract, wiping out a $7 million obligation that extends over 2019 and 2020. Ken’s Note: Why is this important to us? The story’s last paragraph reads: “this is precisely why Bears linebacker Roquan Smith held out. Broad language that voids guarantees can become that “gotcha” item a team can hold over a player, giving them a blank check to get out from under an otherwise guaranteed contract whenever they want.”

Should Hue Jackson have been able to go to Bengals after being fired by Browns? – ProFootballTalk - The decision of former Browns coach Hue Jackson to join the Bengals came after the Browns decided to fire Jackson during the season. And it has sparked a passionate debate in some circles regarding whether Jackson should have been able to jump ship to a rival.

Completion percentage records are falling around the NFL – ProFootballTalk - Forty-eight hours ago, no quarterback in NFL history had ever finished a game with more than 20 passes and a completion percentage higher than 95 percent. Then it happened on Sunday. And then it happened again on Monday night.

2019 NFL Draft order, team needs: 49ers No. 1, Packers in top 12 - NFL.com - Which pick in the 2019 NFL Draft does your team hold, and what are the top needs for all 32 clubs? Have a look at where things stand for your squad coming out of Week 12.

KNOW THY ENEMY

Vikings Still Haven’t Beaten a Winning Team - Daily Norseman - It’s always pleasing when the Vikings beat the Packers. And perhaps a little more so in effectively ending the Packers’ playoff hopes. But for all the feel-good about a Vikings victory that...

Packers sign OL de Beer to practice squad - Acme Packing Company - Did Green Bay just find a diamond in the rough?

Packers shouldn’t take despite disappointing season - Acme Packing Company - There’s more to team development than the highest possible draft pick next season and Green Bay should care about it.

Video: Colin Cowherd on why Aaron Rodgers should not be in the GOAT QB discussion - YouTube - Colin Cowherd talks NFL on today's show. Hear why thinks there's not enough evidence yet that puts Aaron Rodgers in the GOAT QB discussion. He also breaks down the Steelers loss in Week 12.

The Detroit Lions’ long-ball offense is dead - Pride Of Detroit - Matthew Stafford has a cannon arm and the Lions seem content not using it.

Detroit Lions Week 12 Song of the Game: “Throw it all away” by Staind - Pride Of Detroit - Well, he did.

2019 NFL Draft order: 8th overall pick has good recent hit rate for Detroit Lions - Pride Of Detroit - The Lions are in a pretty good spot for the 2019 NFL Draft.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Householder's stock up, stock down: Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions Pt. II - Windy City Gridiron - The Bears finished their division test 3-0

Wiltfong's NFL Power Rankings: The Chicago Bears have climbed to the top 5 - Windy City Gridiron - After their big Thanksgiving win following the shortest turnaround in modern NFL history, the Chicago Bears are making people take notice. They improved to 3-1 on national TV, and the respect is at...

Wiltfong: Bears sign Cyril Grayson to the practice squad - Windy City Gridiron - The Chicago Bears have announced that they’ve added wide receiver Cyril Grayson to their practice squad. He was most recently a member of the Houston Texans’ practice squad.

Wiltfong: Ten Thoughts on the NFL and the Bears - Windy City Gridiron - The Houston Texans are kind of flying under the radar, but they’ve won eight straight games after starting out 0-3 and are sitting in the third seed in the AFC. They have an easier schedule down...

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

2 Minute Drill - Website - iTunes - Andrew Link; Steven’s Streaming – Twitch – Steven Schweickert; T-Formation Conversation - Website - iTunes - Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; WCG Radio - Website - iTunes - Robert Zeglinski

THE RULES

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The Bear’s Den Specific Guidelines – The Bear’s Den is a place for Chicago Bears fans to discuss Chicago Bears football, related NFL stories, and general football talk. It is NOT a place to discuss religion or politics or post political pictures or memes, and any posts that do this will be deleted and the poster will be admonished. We do not allow comments posted where the apparent attempt is to cause confrontation in the community. We do not allow gender-directed humor or sexual assault jokes. The staff of WCG are the sole arbiters of what constitutes “apparent attempt to cause confrontation”. We do not allow the “calling out” of other members in any way, shape or form. Posts that do this will be deleted on sight. Bottom line, it’s fine to debate about football, but personal jabs and insults are strictly prohibited. Additionally, if you keep beating the same dead horse over and over and fail to heed a moderator’s warning to stop, you will be banned.

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Source: https://www.windycitygridiron.com/2018/11/28/18115454/chicago-bears-2018-season-news-updates-analysis-game-twelve-new-york-giants

[toomanysinks]

A former Bessemer Venture Partners principal just closed his own $30 million fund, and here’s how

Sunil Nagaraj, who’d studied computer science as an undergrad at UNC Chapel Hill, landed two pretty nice gigs after deciding to pursue an MBA at Harvard Business School. First, he founded a venture-backed company called Triangulate — though he recognized when it was time to shut it down two years later. He then wound up working as a principal for Bessemer Venture Partners, a top-tier venture firm with locations around the world.

Nagaraj helped source a number of deals at the firm over the next six years, too, investments that made him proud, like bets on the identity platform AuthO and the space startup Rocket Lab, for example. But he was itching to meet with even younger companies, and he was itching to strike out on his own. So in the summer of 2017, he did, and now, 18 months of so later, Nagaraj says he has finally closed his debut fund with $30 million.

The name of the firm is Ubiquity Ventures, and its focus is on “software beyond the screen,” says Nagaraj, pointing to one investment, New Zealand-based Halter, as an example of what he means. How it works: with the help of a solar-powered, GPS-enabled neck band for cows, Halter’s app allows farmers to remotely guide their herds when it’s time for the animals to milked. Its software also keep the cows out of rivers and drains by creating virtual fences and can detect when cows are in heat or about to give birth, among other things.

We asked Nagaraj last night about leaving Bessemer, and what he has learned that other aspiring VCs — as well as current VCs who aspire to leave their firms — might learn from his path. Our chat has been edited for length.

TC: You had a plum gig at Bessemer. Why leave it?

SN: I learned everything I know about venture investing from the team at Bessemer, especially from working alongside [partner] David Cowan . . But even though Bessemer’s large fund size and robust team provide enormous support and rigorous processes, that can be the wrong fit for very early seed capital and nascent technical sectors with uncertain outcomes. There are certain things I treasure about my new role that wouldn’t have been possible at any large firm, including spending one day each week coding and nerding out on new technologies.

TC: What gave you the confidence to bounce?

SN: There’s never a moment where it feels comfortable or rational to jump. Every founder of a startup or VC firm rolls their eyes when they hear someone say “I would jump for the right opportunity.” For me, I was in the midst of uncovering my inner nerd and beginning to see some of my investments take off, and those things, combined with some inspiration from the OG wave of single GP firms — and Manu Kumar at K9 Ventures in particular — got the ball rolling.

TC: Who wrote your first check who was not a family member?

SN: David Cowan. Next was John Hollar, CEO of the Computer History Museum for the last 10 years. (He stepped down last year.) We’ve known each other since 2009, when I arrived in the Valley and launched the Computer History Museum NextGen Board. He was a reference for VCs when I raised venture capital as an entrepreneur in 2010 and his confidence in Ubiquity was a critical jump start.

TC: What was the hardest check to land?

SN The hardest capital to raise was institutional capital. Institutional investors like universities and pension funds tend to be savvier and have their pick of the litter, so I feel fortunate to have both categories of investors in my debut fund. Understandably, there are many hurdles to clear on track record, references, and portfolio construction for an institutional investor to commit to a new fund.

TC: You’ve already made nine investments, so presumably you were investing as you were getting your capital commitments. How much of the fund is left?

SN:  Yes, I have been investing since my first closing at the end of September 2017. I can’t say exact numbers, but Ubiquity is on schedule with capital deployment. Levl, which prevents the spoofing of wireless devices, and Eclypsium, which protects software in the real world from malware, were my first two investments; I made both in October 2017.

TC: How many companies do you anticipate funding altogether with this first fund?

SN: 20

TC: What happens if a company like Halter takes off and you want to continue funding it? Is the plan to use SPVs? AngelList?

SN: I have a healthy capital reserve for follow-on funding. After that, my priority is to ensure my LPs have access, likely via SPVs.

TC: Does Ubiquity have a geographic focus?

SN: Two portfolio companies are in the Pacific Northwest, another splits its time between Palo Alto and Israel, three more are in Palo Alto, and two are in Pasadena. Then there’s Halter in New Zealand. It’s not a total accident that zero are in San Francisco itself. My focus on software beyond the screen, deeply technical founders, and reasonable valuations hasn’t uncovered any SF investments so far.

TC: Are you price sensitive? What did you learn about this at Bessemer?

SN: Price matters to anyone buying anything. There’s a pervasive belief that a few companies make up all the returns in the Valley, so you shouldn’t worry about price if you have a winner. This may be true when looking retrospectively, but it’s sloppy thinking to apply when it is impossible to know if your current deal will be one of the massive winners. Also, high prices and pricing a deal to perfection too often results in down rounds and a messy aftermath for founders. My time at Bessemer allowed me to see so many good and bad startup outcomes, where price discipline only helps.

TC: How much traction does a startup need to have to get a check from you?

SN: Zero. I’m looking to back founders who are technical, know their problem space cold, and are going after a problem that fits tightly with Ubiquity’s thesis of software leaping off the screen and into the real world around us. I meet technical experts pre-idea, as well as founders with early products. My investments rarely have revenue when I invest,  but they should by the end of their seed runway.

TC: How much of an ownership stake are you targeting?

SN: Ten to twenty percent.

TC: What’s harder about starting your own firm than you anticipated would be the case?

SN: I wrongly believed that launching a venture firm would be similar to launching a startup. In startup fundraising, VCs are evaluating a specific product/market/customer. They have a very compressed time frame to decide. And they have monthly board meetings to provide regular input and even trigger changes.

With VC firm fundraising, their own investors have no concrete data about the future investments that will eventually populate the fund.  They’re on the receiving end of quarterly updates. And they’re called “limited” partners because they exercise no authority over investment decisions. The two worlds couldn’t be more different. As a result, LPs are charged with a much trickier decision and have a much deeper diligence process to make what amounts to a 10-year commitment.

TC: Anything easier than you’d guessed it would be, striking out on your own?

SN: Having no overhead allows me to focus 100 percent of my time on startups. It is more wonderful than I imagined.

source https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/23/a-former-bessemer-venture-partners-principal-just-closed-his-own-30-million-fund-and-heres-how/