#data for progress

[vyorei]

Poll results from Data for Progress regarding US opinions on the ongoing genocide

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Ryan O'Donnell at Zeteo News:

In the wake of a newly proposed ceasefire deal put forth by the White House and on the heels of President Joe Biden saying people have “every reason” to think Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is extending the war in Gaza to stay in power, a new Data for Progress survey fielded from June 5 to 6 shows that a plurality of U.S. likely voters (49%) believe Netanyahu is a major or moderate obstacle to achieving peace between Israel and Palestine. Only 18% of voters believe the prime minister is not an obstacle at all.

When asked who is primarily responsible for the lack of a permanent ceasefire in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, a plurality of voters (38%) believe both Netanyahu and Hamas share equal responsibility. This sentiment is particularly strong among swing voters, who believe that Netanyahu and Hamas are equally responsible for the lack of a permanent ceasefire by a 19-point margin over Hamas individually.

Moreover, when asked about Biden’s three-phase ceasefire proposal announced on May 31, a significant majority of voters (64%) express their support. This includes a notable +37 net support from Independents and +44 from swing voters, highlighting widespread approval across various political demographics.

A Data For Progress/Zeteo News poll conducted betwen June 5th and 6th reveals that 65% of voters believe that Israel Apartheid State PM Benjamin Netanyahu is at least a minor obstacle to achieving peace. The same poll reveals that 38% blame both Netanyahu and Hamas for the lack of a permanent ceasefire, 36% blame solely Hamas, and 13# blame solely Netanyahu.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

The vast majority of U.S. voters across the political spectrum don't support Republican proposals to gut Social Security benefits for Americans under age 50, according to polling results published Tuesday by the progressive think tank Data for Progress.

The survey, conducted Friday and Saturday, showed that 82% of all likely voters somewhat or strongly oppose policies that would mean "Americans currently under 50 would receive fewer Social Security benefits when they retire than those who receive Social Security benefits today."

Opposition was relatively consistent across parties: 84% of Democrats, 83% of Republicans, and 80% of Independents or third-party voters. The figures were also roughly the same regardless of age, gender, and education level.

Data for Progress further found that 72% of respondents—including 76% of Democrats, 66% of Republicans, and 72% of Independents or third-party voters—are "less likely to vote for a candidate who supported cutting future Social Security benefits for Americans currently under 50."

Back in January 2020, then-President Donald Trump—who is currently the front-runner for the GOP's 2024 nomination, despite his various legal issues and the argument that he is constitutionally disqualified from holding office again—said that programs like Social Security are "the easiest of all things" to cut.

Three of Trump's Republican 2024 opponents—Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, ex-Vice President Mike Pence, and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley—are now publicly pushing for changes to the program that would affect younger people.

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have also set their sights on the program and are currently fighting for funding cuts to the Social Security Administration that Julie Tippens, legislative director of the American Federation of Government Employees, recently warned would "devastate the agency's ability to serve the American public."

Earlier this year, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced plans to establish a "commission" to examine ways to cut Social Security, and the 175-member Republican Study Committee proposed raising the program's full retirement age to 69.

As Data for Progress press secretary Abby Spring wrote in a Tuesday blog post:

"Republicans have argued that these proposed Social Security cuts are necessary to ensure that Social Security remains financially solvent—meaning the program would have enough funds to fully pay out beneficiaries—without affecting seniors currently receiving Social Security benefits.

However, other proposals, such as the Social Security Expansion Act or Social Security 2100, could extend the solvency of Social Security while increasing benefits for current and new recipients. These plans would be paid for by increasing taxes on wealthy Americans."

The think tank's poll also revealed widespread support for using tax hikes targeting the wealthy to sustain Social Security. Specifically, such policies were backed by 77% of everyone surveyed, including 83% of Democrats, 63% of Republicans, and 76% of Independents or third-party voters.

"When it comes to Social Security, candidates in the Republican Party are seemingly competing over who can offer the least popular proposals," said Data for Progress executive director Danielle Deiseroth. "No one—not even Republican voters—wants cuts to Social Security benefits for Americans under 50. Instead, voters would rather see taxes on wealthy Americans to ensure Social Security remains a guarantee for all."

Democratic President Joe Biden, who is seeking reelection, "proposed increasing taxes on the rich and businesses to prevent Medicare from running out of funds. But the latest White House budget does not propose a solution for extending Social Security," The Washington Post noted last month. "Numerous congressional Democrats have called for trillions in new taxes to avoid the Social Security shortfall, as well."

[arthropooda]

Mittens off.

Americans are in favor of raising the minimum wage well above $20, according to a new poll.

Yesterday (May 24), Data for Progress, a progressive think tank, published the results of a survey in which US voters were asked how much a person needs to earn to have a “decent quality of life.” “Decent” was defined as the ability to cover expenses for bills and necessities “without struggling.”

[kiramoore626]

Supreme Court web designer case goes against most Americans' views on LGBTQ discrimination

Supreme Court web designer case goes against most Americans’ views on LGBTQ discrimination Days after the Supreme Court’s ruling that businesses can deny same-sex wedding services if it clashes with their religious views, new data says most American voters disagree with that position.

[alanshemper]

These are not serious people

[politijohn]

Source

Source

Billionaires Should Not Exist

[ghostymarni]

good morning-

-now say it back

[banji-effect]

Hard data

[more-flotsam-and-jetsam]

[bradleycarlgeiger]

CRIMINALS ARE CURRENTLY IMPERSONATING THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SEEN IN MY PERSONAL HOME, WHERE I SLEEP, IN ORDER TO CLAIM AUTHORITY TO COMMAND TECHNOLOGY AND PEOPLE, AND ALSO TO EXPEND FEARS RELATED TO TIME TRAVELING CRIMINALS BY PORTRAYING ME AS ESSENTIALLY THEIR SLAVE!!! CALL ALL YOUR POLICE, CALL ALL YOUR MILITARIES, CALL EVERYONE ELSE'S POLICE AND MILITARIES.

[piscoyt]

the mrst/endless compilations i've been talking about for months! it's here!

big thanks to @dragonpuff17 for finding like 80% of the clips <3

funny screenshot as a bonus :3

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Amid numerous scandals that have revealed the deep corruption on the Supreme Court bench, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) have reintroduced a bill seeking to reverse the relative impunity that Supreme Court Justices enjoy and enact a set of binding ethical rules.

The Judicial Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act would ensure that, like every other federal court in the nation, the Supreme Court is legally bound to a code of ethics — a provision that has become a rallying call for Democrats and progressives in recent years.

Under the bill, the monetary value of gifts that Supreme Court justices are allowed to receive would be capped, and oversight for justices attending privately funded events would be increased. This is especially germane to the controversy around Justice Clarence Thomas, who commentators and legal experts have said has repeatedly broken disclosure laws, but who seems to be facing no legal consequences with zero apparent will to curb this sort of corruption from Chief Justice John Roberts.

The bill would also create a number of other boundaries, like banning federal judges from owning individual stocks, creating more transparency in Supreme Court Justices’ recusal decisions, and making it easier for Supreme Court Justices to face public complaints or be impeached.

“It’s simple: A system without basic ethics is a corrupt system,” Jayapal said in a statement. “Public trust in the Supreme Court is at record lows, and it’s not difficult to understand why. As the country’s highest Court is plagued by scandal after scandal, it’s clear that we can no longer stand by as judges and Justices take advantage of their position to build wealth and power at the expense of our country. We deserve an impartial Court that isn’t beholden to special interests and personal agendas.”

The bill, which Warren and Jayapal first introduced last year, has been cosponsored by seven Senators, including Senators Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), and 35 House Representatives, including progressives like Representatives Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan).

Tlaib said that the legislation is needed because Supreme Court Justices are out of control and “unhinged.”

“It’s outrageous that the Supreme Court is the only court in the nation not subject to a binding code of conduct,” said Tlaib. “As a result, the Supreme Court’s mounting ethics scandals are rapidly eroding its legitimacy, and the Court is in urgent need of anti-corruption reform. This far-right, unhinged Supreme Court has secretly been accepting lavish trips and payments from billionaire Republican megadonors while stripping away our rights and legislating from the bench.”

The legislation was unveiled alongside polling from Data for Progress finding broad support for the bill. A whopping 90% of voters support binding the Supreme Court to a code of ethics, the polling found, while 73% of respondents said they believe that the Supreme Court needs to be subject to more oversight in general. Meanwhile, a majority of 57% believe that Supreme Court Justices should not be allowed to own stocks that would pose a potential conflict of interest.

[autos-ismos]

i keep anxiously swallowing air and hurting my stomach

[dendrocrysts]

I’m sure my supervisor would be pleased that instead of working my thesis, I’ve once again decided to do everything else. Anyway, here’s a quick appreciation drawing and post for my favorite Liyue doctor.

[leo-crafts-theories]

I've been thinking a lot about wither!Skizz lately. I have reasoning behind it and some things that lead into it, but I have no idea where he would have come from or how this would have happened to him.

The idea comes from Legacy SMP. When the Legates used their emergency Rift travel to escape the s1 world and reach s2, they accidentally dragged Skizz into the Rift with them from his world. Maybe the reason he was able to be yoinked like that was due to the Withers following the Legates through... picking up one of "their own" along the way.

Right now Skizz is notorious for his terrible wither skeleton skull luck, which I think is related somehow. A friend also pointed out that Withers that get out of hand while Skizz is around tend to stay relatively under control, with him coming to the rescue for Tango and Gem, but when he's not around, suddenly the Wither is completely causing havoc. Hmm...

Currently, my best guess is that Skizz is mixed human and Fortress People - the race of humanoids that the wither skeletons came from. But the Fortress People went extinct when the undead plague hit the Nether, so if that's the case it must be something pretty far back in his ancestry and he hit the genetic lottery. (This option would also require me figuring out what the Fortress People may have been like 😅) There's also the option of him actually being a wither/wither skeleton hybrid, but I don't really know how that would work. Either way, still figuring out abilities and looks that go with this, but Skizz is definitely Wither-related somehow!