concentration camps

Administration Deportations


POST 1162

CAUTION!

This post contains well-placed snark likely to displease Constitution violators.

The Correct Renditions

You know that last week our brave president and his brown shirt action figures rounded up over 230 migrants, claiming without any evidence that they are Venezuelan gang member terrorists. Note that I claim, similarly without evidence, that they are Norwegian flower salesmen.

They were put on airplanes bound for El Salvador where they were accosted by guards, who dragged them to an overcrowded super-max concentration camp. The administration claimed that they are the worst of our immigrants and that the American people are now safer. Trump agreed to pay the El Salvadorans $6 billion to incarcerate those deported, an inventive international extension of our prison-industrial complex.

WAIT: Wasn’t El Salvador one of those “shit hole countries?”

All of that was done without probable cause, without accusation or evidence of any specific crimes, without charging, without trial and without conviction of any crime. The name for what was missing is DUE PROCESS OF LAW, as required by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, which apply to all “persons,” not just “citizens.” Look that up via the links.

While those airplanes were flying south a federal judge heard arguments and ruled that the disappearing of those men was both illegal and unconstitutional. He ordered the administration to cause the planes in the air to turn around and come back to the U.S. and that a deportation plane that had not yet departed remain on the ground. Our bold, chest-thumping administration then did what no administration had ever done before: they ignored the judge’s ruling. The 230 remain locked up in El Salvador.

“Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power.” – Vice-President of the United States, JD Vance

Yeah, they are. It’s in the Constitution. You could look it up, you fauxbilly.

“We are not stopping. I don’t care what the judges think” – Border Czar Tom Homan

It’s great for Homan that he’s in America where he can believe and say stupid things. In an authoritarian country like Hungary, Turkey or Singapore, he’d be locked up and forgotten for saying such manly man strength and idiocy. That’s the America Trump is working to create.

BTW: How did we end up with czars? It started with Dubya.

“What we are expecting is the Supreme Court to say what has always been the case, which is, when the president is using his powers as commander-in-chief, those determinations are not subject to judicial review .  .  .”   – Homeland Security Advisor and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.

Oops. Once again Stephen “The cruelty is the point.” Miller got it wrong.

All of that flies in the face of 248 years of precedent, established law, the separation of powers, the Constitution and more. Plus, it’s factually wrong, as all but the angry chest thumpers know quite well. Note that it not known if these Administration officials themselves are Venezuelans or even Americans, but they are known Trump gang members.

These are the first administration officials to be accused of un-American acts by your Disambiguation Agency (“DA”), which so far is still not invaded and violated by Musk and his abhorrent flying monkey tech criminals.

The DA will order them to be shackled, hooded and jammed into an airplane bound for rendition, as were the 230. They will remain ineligible for recourse or a pubic hearing, this by virtue of the Habeas Stupidus Act proscribed by Project 2025.

It Isn’t Just Federal Perps

Here’s another flamer. From Daily Docket, March 20, 2025:

[North Carolina] GOP challenger Judge Jefferson Griffin is refusing to concede [the election to the state’s Supreme Court, which he lost].

Griffin sits on the Court of Appeals [where his case now sits], and he wants his colleagues to retroactively change election rules, throw out tens of thousands of votes in Democratic counties and declare him the winner.

  • North Carolina has a long standing and proud tradition of Republican malfeasance and dirty tricks. Stand by to see if they get away with this one, Meanwhile, Griffin has a reservation on that rendition airplane. So does Arizona loser Kari Lake, and for much the same reasons.
  • We cannot end this section without considering Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. He went to Samoa and trumpeted his groundless poo-poo indictments of vaccines, convincing many people to forego vaccinations, resulting in thousands of confirmed cases of Covid-19 and dozens of deaths. A similar situation is playing out in the U.S. on children whose parents were persuaded by Kennedy to refuse their kids the measles vaccine. At least 2 children are now dead. with third death under investigation. Prior to Kennedy’s baseless attacks on vaccines it had been 20 years since the last U.S. death from measles.  That’s plenty of evidence to cause Kennedy to be shackled. muzzled and perp-walked onto that rendition airplane.
  • Expect regular additions to the manifest for these flights.
  • ACTION

  • There will be a huge demonstration in DC on April 5 organized by Indivisible, 50-50-1, mobilize.us, Women’s March and many more organizations, all demanding of TrumpMusk, “HANDS OFF!“

    The beauty is that you don’t have to be in DC to stand and be counted. There will be rallies that day all across the nation. Stand tall. Make your voice heard. Being passive is the same as making yourself a victim and losing everything. You don’t want that to happen.

  • Click here or on the map to the right to find a rally near you. Then SHOW UP on April 5!

  • REBEL!

Continuing Quote for This Century

From Mark Elias’10 Things We Can All Do to Protect Democracy:

10. Don’t give up hope

Our best political movements were hopeful. John Kennedy insisted that “we should not let our fears hold us back from pursuing our hopes.” Bill Clinton was the man from Hope. Barack Obama ran a campaign based on hope and change. Donald Trump and the Republicans want you to give up hope. Despair and cynicism fuel their movement. We must always, in the words of Jesse Jackson, “keep hope alive.”

Best Headline of the Week

From the NKC Occasional Update of March 21:

Hakeem! Chuck! Don’t make me stop this car!

Who will lead?

Late Addition Sunday Dark Cloud

From David Corn of Mother Jones’ Our Land of March 22:

And Tulsi Gabbard, [Trump’s] director of national intelligence, not only cheered on this decision [to silence the Voice of America, VOA]; she boosted the Russian critique of VOA. When Ian Miles Cheong, a Malaysia-based right-wing podcaster who has written for RT, the Russian propaganda outfit, hailed Trump’s demolition of VOA and echoed the Russian line by claiming it had “perpetuated pro-war narratives against Russia,” Gabbard shared his post. Here was the top intelligence official in Trump’s administration accepting and spreading Vladimir Putin’s take on VOA.

What could possibly go wrong?

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The Fine Print:

  1. Writings quoted or linked from my posts reflect a point I want to make, at least in part. That does not necessarily mean that I endorse or agree with everything in such writings.
  2. There are lots of smart, well-informed people. Sometimes we agree; sometimes we don’t. Search for others’ views and decide for yourself.
  3. Errors in fact, grammar, spelling and punctuation are all embarrassingly mine, but I do wish that I could blame someone else. Glad to have your corrections.
  4. Book links to Amazon are provided for reference only. Please purchase your books through your local mom & pop bookstore. Keep them and your town or neighborhood vibrant.
  5. Clicking on most pics in these posts will take you to the source information.
  6. Responsibility for the content of these posts is unequivocally, totally, unavoidably mine.

Click me

JA


Copyright 2025 by Jack Altschuler
Reproduction and sharing are encouraged, providing proper attribution is given.

Goo Gobs of Blame


POST 1161

Post 1160 was originally entitled “To Wimp or Not To Wimp: That Is The Question.” It was a ripping on Chuck Schumer for his signing on to that total abdication of power, the abhorrent continuing resolution. The only thing in that un-American bill necessary for keeping the government open and operating is the first sentence of Section 3. Instead, Mike Johnson and his Jellyfish Caucus jammed in all the rest of what Trump wanted, formally neutering Congress. Then Schumer caved in and voted for it. That’s why my post was entitled as it was.

But then our constitutional democracy ended.*

So, the title, focus and energy of Post 1160 shifted and the message is spelled out best by someone more able to articulate our dreadful reality. Many thanks to SL for directing me to the work of The Intellectualist.

The name of this publisher itself is a brave declaration in this age of anti-wisdom, anti-science, anti-knowledge, anti-critical thinking, anti-intellectual, anti-learning,** anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim, anti-Jews, anti-anything-not-White-and-claiming-to-be-Christian, anti-sovereignty of Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal, anti-justice, anti-democracy – let’s stop there and focus on just the last two. Post your own anti-whatever in the Comments section below.

Here’s a link to the essay in The Intellectualist, Black Saturday: The Day the United States Ceased to Be a Constitutional Democracy. Perhaps you prefer a musical reference: last Saturday, March 15, was the day the music died. It is the day when Trump and his anti-American, anti-democracy, hate and anger mouth foamers completed taking down the other branches of government.

Congress was already in Trump’s pocket, as was the Supreme Court. Last Saturday he defied a District Court order, which put all power in his own hands. Pick your word: fascism; authoritarianism; monarchy. Doesn’t matter. Our democracy has been trashed, leaving us great misery to come.

Read the piece in The Intellectualist. It’s the best explainer. Then weep, rage and make plans to protect yourself from the orange Big Brother. I prefer to begin by pointing fingers of blame. Childish, I know, but, oddly enough, it turns out I’m human and putting blame where it’s due feels right.

→ Blame Trump’s parents for failing to hold him accountable, effectively being his first enablers, teaching him to lie, cheat and steal. Their lousy parenting allowed him to avoid hundreds of well earned spankings.

→ Blame higher education institutions for letting Trump’s father buy him diplomas.

→ Blame his podiatrist for lying about bone spurs that later magically disappeared.

→ Blame all the suck-ups everywhere.

→ Blame Presidents and Congresses for blowing off millions of people for decades, most decisively since Reagan, his trickle down economics larceny and our steadfast march away from accountability. That set the stage for pissy people embracing violence, threats of violence and massive idiocy at ballot boxes, voting for completely unqualified candidates who cleverly spoke to their pissy.

→ Blame Democrats for ignoring the needs and aspirations of millions of working people, which, of course, made them pissy.

→ Blame Democrats for constantly pretending that this is some imaginary other age, when people acted with integrity and were polite at all times, where they never raised their voices and fought only to win great intellectual debates. Today that’s called spinelessness.

→ Blame all the spewers of Big Lies and conspiracy fantasies and all the willfully ignorant fools who believe them.

→ Blame the very clever, manipulative lawyers, the cunning political operators and the vast army of liars who lack all integrity all the time. They parade their dishonesty as though it were a virtue and somehow they’re never checked on that.

→ Blame the Supreme Court Black-hearted Six for driving the final nail into the coffin of democracy with its 2024 decision allowing presidents to break the law and not be held to account. Now Trump really can shoot someone on 5th Avenue and suffer no consequences.

→ Blame congressional Republicans for having no spine, no courage, outrageous hypocrisy and for thinking not of our country or of We the People, but of what’s best for themselves in the short term, first, last and always.

→ Blame Democrats for a complete lack of vision and the inability to motivate anyone.

→ Blame the hundreds of thousands of Americans who long ago went heads down, refusing to see what has been right before them, who only recognize what touches them directly and who turn away from what is even just a bit uncomfortable.

→ Blame me for failing to find a way to reach far more people and be a more effective wake up call, a disambiguator making a difference.

There. I feel better.

  • The Constitutional Democracy Preservation/Reinstatement To-Do List

Our Constitution is extremely sick and it appears that it could be terminal. What I want to know is what the Constitutional Democracy Preservation/Reinstatement To-Do List has on it. I’m certain that there are brilliant legal minds working on that right now. There are also countless organizations calling for rallies and demonstrations. That’s where we start.

There will be a huge demonstration in DC on April 5 organized by Indivisible, 50-50-1, mobilize.us, Women’s March and many more organizations, all demanding of TrumpMusk, “HANDS OFF!“

The beauty is that you don’t have to be in DC to stand and be counted. There will be rallies that day all across the nation. Click here or on the map below to find a rally near you. Then SHOW UP on April 5!

Stand tall. Make your voice heard. Being passive is the same as making yourself a victim and losing everything. You don’t want to do that.

Democracy doesn’t look like Musk’s goons breaking into agencies and threatening the workers with violence and arrest. It doesn’t look like Musk’s evil flying monkey hackers stealing your financial, tax and medical records, either.

Democracy doesn’t look like:

Trump rounding up some aliens who have been charged with no crime, not even charged with being in our country illegally;

accusing them of felonious acts and offering no evidence;

denying them anything resembling due process;

expelling them from our country – disappearing them;

turning them over to El Salvador concentration camp thugs;

and disobeying the orders of a federal district court judge, this so that Trump could aggregate all power to himself. All that’s left to do are a few details, as Trump pisses on the graves of our Founders.

That most decidedly is not what democracy looks like.

Demonstrations like those upcoming on April 5 are where we stand tall – this is what democracy looks like.

Say it out loud:

This is what democracy looks like.
.

REBEL!

________________________________________

* Read Steve Schmidt’s post, First They Came For . . .

** If you’re old enough you might remember President Kennedy proclaiming, “College is America’s best friend.” That was in an age when we were in a battle against the Soviets for industrial and technological leadership and we needed lots of smart, well-educated people.

The same battle continues to rage, now standing up to Russia and China. We still need smart, educated people. But instead of promoting secondary education, Trump is trying to tear down our institutions that supply that education. Who do you suppose he wants to win this battle and lead the world?

By making college unaffordable and student loans unbearable, we risk deterring our best and brightest from pursuing higher education and securing a good-paying job.

Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI)

  • We also pull the rug from under our country with that crushing cost.
    Fun Fact: Both Barack and Michelle Obama had outstanding student loans when Obama became President.

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The Fine Print:

  1. Writings quoted or linked from my posts reflect a point I want to make, at least in part. That does not necessarily mean that I endorse or agree with everything in such writings.
  2. There are lots of smart, well-informed people. Sometimes we agree; sometimes we don’t. Search for others’ views and decide for yourself.
  3. Errors in fact, grammar, spelling and punctuation are all embarrassingly mine, but I do wish that I could blame someone else. Glad to have your corrections.
  4. Book links to Amazon are provided for reference only. Please purchase your books through your local mom & pop bookstore. Keep them and your town or neighborhood vibrant.
  5. Clicking on most pics in these posts will take you to the source information.
  6. Responsibility for the content of these posts is unequivocally, totally, unavoidably mine.

Click me

JA


Copyright 2025 by Jack Altschuler
Reproduction and sharing are encouraged, providing proper attribution is given.

Perception Deception


POST 1138

Update From the Institute for the Destruction of Intelligence, Opportunity, Trust and Self-rule (“IDIOTS”)

Trump wants you to perceive the wonderful wonderfulness of his you’ve-never-seen-anything-like-this-before, the-best-in-the-world, never-done-before, only-I promises, so, he’s declared all sorts of bone headed things that will begin on “day-one.”

On day-one, says Trump, he’ll begin an absurd number of over-the-top actions, including Gestapo style raids to snatch and grab 11 million people (or is it 20 million?) who look like they might not be in this country legally. The “looks like” part means they look Hispanic or just non-European to ignorant, untrained officials – like Trump. Inflation will soar and eggs and lettuce will become really expensive. Pay no attention to the illegal profiling and wanton cruelty.

From Eugene Robinson:

It is undeniably true that the southern border is a mess and the whole U.S. immigration system is dysfunctional. This has been the case for decades, under Democratic and Republican presidents. The solution has also been obvious for decades: We need comprehensive reform that secures the border; provides viable pathways for legal immigration; offers asylum to those seen as legitimately fleeing oppression or life-threatening violence; provides legal status to the “dreamers,” who were brought here as children and know no other country; and acknowledges the reality that uprooting and expelling an estimated 11 million undocumented migrants, almost all of them leading productive lives, would be an unrealistic exercise in national self-harm.

Also on day-one he will not only re-authorize the “make rich guys and corporations richer” tax fraud, he will almost certainly propose additional tax breaks for unthinkably rich guys. He will authorize the destruction of regulations that cost corporations a few bucks but which protect We The People. Perhaps the Cuyahoga River will once again ignite and Los Angeles air will once again become unbreathe-able, even after the fires are gone. Deregulation will be the ultimate iteration of Reagan’s supply side fraud that blatantly impoverished We The People.

Another day-one proclamation will be signed ostentatiously, like all the rest, in extra bold Sharpie. This one will be to cancel all Biden policies in a first step to erase Biden from U.S. history, just as Trump tried to do in his first term to Obama’s legacy. “Only I” must have all the spotlight all the time, no matter the cost to our nation. Chips and Science Act? Inflation Reduction Act? Infrastructure Act? They don’t have Trump’s name on them, so Trump will carve Biden’s successes into flush-able chunks that won’t make it into history books. All history will start with Trump.

Of course, his Inflation Maximization policy that includes brain-free tariffs will be triggered by bold Sharpie on day-one, too.  Not only will eggs and lettuce become really expensive, so will parts for your car, TVs, clothing – pretty much everything. When it hits, think about this as the inflation people hated before the election, now becoming far worse because they voted for it.

Whether his healthcare moron is JFK, Jr. or some other brain-free suck up, Trump will encourage an assault against medicines and medical practices that protect We The People. Make Preventable Death Great Again!

From David Corn of Mother Jones, Democrats, Don’t Waste This Opportunity, November 22, 2024:


Copyright 2025 by Jack Altschuler
Reproduction and sharing are encouraged, providing proper attribution is given.

We Do Know What’s Coming – A Sampler


POST 1126

Today we take a quiet Sunday to club Republicans over the head for their excellently done sellout of America and the American people and the world class hypocrisy of so many. Sadly, we do know what’s coming.

  1. As soon as Trump began his awful run for the White House in 2015 it was obvious what we were in for.  Recall his demonizing of Hispanics coming to this country, whom he described as drug carriers, rapists and criminal transmitters of disease. He said this to a small group of paid actors in the lobby of his building, recruited to cheer for him wildly. As soon as he got off the escalator he claimed there were thousands there. That was just his first official lie and a harbinger of his fraud to come. Republicans began to debase themselves before Trump almost immediately. We should have known what was coming.
  2. Then there were the impeachments. It was clear to everyone that he was guilty of those high crimes and misdemeanors, but Republicans in the House refused to vote against him. Only a small handful of Republicans in the Senate had the integrity to vote him guilty. The rest decided that they didn’t want to get primaried. Worse, they knew that a guilty decision would have prevented Trump from ever again holding any “office of trust” – we would have been rid of him. They chickened out. We wouldn’t be facing the frontal assault on our Constitution and our democracy now, had there been 10 more Republicans with a spine. Translation: The Republicans’ careers in Congress were more important to them than the fate of the United States of America or the oath they swore. Where have the patriots gone, you ask? They’ve been replaced by cowards and hypocrites. We should have known what was coming.
  3. Matt Gaetz was the most hated man in the House, mirroring Ted Cruz, the most hated man in the Senate who isn’t named Josh Hawley. Gaetz, a reasonably accused sex trafficker, high school girl schtuper, Ecstacy aficionado, Justice Department know-nothing and more, has removed himself from consideration for the job of A.G., a position for which he is profoundly unqualified. Perhaps now he can be prosecuted and get the cell of his pal Jeffrey Epstein. He’s being replaced by Trump’s defense lawyer and suck up (but looks good on TV – very important to Trump) Pam Bondi. We did know what was coming.
  4. Speaking of the Department of Justice, somebody please tell us what “weaponization of the Department of Justice” is. It sounds terrible, so it’s a great campaign slogan for Republicans to use to accuse Democrats of something bad. Isn’t the Department of Justice supposed to be weaponized against wrongdoing, like insurrection and theft of classified documents? Whatever evil “weaponization” means, I’m certain the Trump administration will do exactly that. They’ll prosecute everyone on Trump’s hit list and more just to harass them and drain them of money. We do know what’s coming.
  5. Sure, we believe Trump when he says he knows nothing about Project 2025 and will have nothing to do with its implementation. I mean, he said so, right? We do know what’s coming.
  6. Even if you follow news and politics only a little you likely saw that Jack Smith has dropped his indictments against Donald Trump for inciting insurrection, election interference, fraud, possession of stolen classified documents and more. That absurd Office of Legal Counsel memo (NOT law) from 1973 that says that a sitting president cannot be indicted and prosecuted is a justice killer, a rule-of-law violator, as is the 2024 Supreme Court issued “get out of jail free” decision. Combined with Merrick Garland’s unconscionable two years of foot dragging and Trump’s defense attorneys’ masterful manipulation of the courts to delay, delay, delay, Trump will have gotten away with his heinous crimes. Had you done any of the things Trump did, you would already have been rotting in a prison cell for a couple of years. It sure looks like a prime case of two sets of laws, one for rich, powerful people and another for the rest of us. We did know what was coming.
  7. Are you a woman or do you know and care about a woman? Coming are a national abortion ban, bans on contraception, prosecutions of OB/GYNs and a constant Christian Nationalist (which actually isn’t Christian at all) drum beat of reducing women to nothing more than sex toys, incubators and house slaves. We do know what’s coming.
Quote Adjustment Following the Election

From Salon.com, November 14:

In the most basic sense, the 2024 election can be understood as a referendum on the direction of America and the future of pluralistic multiracial democracy.

True, but that soft peddles the fundamental point. Let me help.

In the most basic sense, the 2024 election can be understood as a referendum on whether this is or ever will be America.

You Can Get Anything You Want at Alice’s Restaurant.

There is hypocrisy masquerading as justice and even as popular will, just as there was when Arlo Guthrie told his tale. Watch over the next few years – could be even faster if the MAGA barbarians are able to shred the entire Constitution sooner. Watch the MAGA faithful, the willfully ignorant, the dupes, the “I could never vote for a Democrat” non-thinkers, the “I want a strongman, not one of those woke types and for sure no woman” chest pounders and even those too lazy to get off the couch and vote.

Watch what happens as the hatred spreads and their freedom evaporates. They may cheer as the freedom of others disappears, but not when it clobbers them. Then, o’ golly, that won’t be fair.

Watch as they realize that the nice guy down the block has been ripped from his family and thrown into a concentration camp, his children left weeping. Watch as the cost of food and everything else skyrockets but wages are stagnant. Watch their eyes as diseases like measles, polio and smallpox make a big comeback, when the kid across the street is struggling just to breathe and the elderly lady next door has died with horrible sores all over her body and they realize that they might have been infected.

Listen to the hypocritical excuses, the lame, “It’s not my fault” exculpations. Watch as the testosterone overfilled, Bible thumping crowd begins to feel the pain of women dying in pregnancy, a threat that exists only because of their actions.

Yale Professor of History Timothy Snyder knows what’s coming. He lays it out for you here.

Oh yes, we do know what’s coming.

Bide your time. And

REBEL!

Did someone forward this post to you? Welcome! Please subscribe – use the simple form above on the right. And pass this along to three others, encouraging them to subscribe, too. (IT’S A FREEBIE!) It’s going to take ALL OF US to get the job done.

And add your comments below to help us all to be better informed.

Thanks!

The Fine Print:

  1. Writings quoted or linked from my posts reflect a point I want to make, at least in part. That does not mean that I endorse or agree with everything in such writings.
  2. There are lots of smart, well-informed people. Sometimes we agree; sometimes we don’t. Search for others’ views and decide for yourself.
  3. Errors in fact, grammar, spelling and punctuation are all embarrassingly mine. Glad to have your corrections.
  4. Responsibility for the content of these posts is unequivocally, totally, unavoidably mine.
  5. Book links to Amazon are provided for reference only. Please purchase your books through your local mom & pop bookstore. Keep them and your town or neighborhood vibrant.
  6. Clicking on most pics in these posts will take you to the source information.

Click me

JA


Copyright 2025 by Jack Altschuler
Reproduction and sharing are encouraged, providing proper attribution is given.

Welcome


Post 1,010

—————————————

I’m making a mental health separation from the heartbreak in the Middle East, from the insanity in the House of Representatives and from the promise of the end of our democracy engineered by what passes for today’s Republicans and Der Fuhrer. Let’s talk about something else. Ed.

Immigrants

Should you take the ferry to Liberty Island to visit the Statue of Liberty be sure to wander inside the base to see the plaque with the poem by Emma Lazarus. She penned it in 1883 to help raise funds for the completion of the pedestal upon which Lady Liberty stands.

Here is what she wrote for new immigrants arriving at our shores.

The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Of course, new immigrants weren’t able to read those words as their ships glided into New York Harbor. It seems to me, though, that Lazarus’ message wasn’t for those desperate souls. It was and is for all of us. Here’s why.

Not many arrived in the New World with wealth and power. Most arrived nearly penniless, clutching not much more than hope. It’s highly likely that your ancestors arrived just that way. I know that mine did.

We in America have consistently been challenged by how to deal with immigrants. There has always been a fearful, angry faction afraid that poor immigrants would take whatever position in society present Americans thought was their own, perhaps because they were here first or because the new immigrants were somehow “others.” They imagined that immigrants would be different and dangerous, that they would be criminals and wopuld rape the women and the land.

This is embodied today by those fearful and power hungry souls spouting so-called “replacement theory,” their voices screeching and their fingers pointing at imaginary caravans from the south. They chant, “Jews will not replace us” and they carry their primal call to fear and hatred.

I have questions for you about this.

  1. If your ancestors were arriving in this country today from wherever their Old World was, should we as a country write a letter of welcome to them? Should we include a snapshot of the Statue of Liberty and the words of Lazarus’ poem?
  2. What if they were my ancestors instead of yours coming from wherever their Old World was? They would arrive poor and “other” than your people who are already here, Should we write a welcome letter to them, too? What about the picture and the poem?

Think about it.

A Better Way

Niles West High School is just another suburban Chicago high school – except it isn’t. It’s one of the most racially, ethnically, nationality and religiously diverse schools in the nation. Surely, you can imagine blood running hot in this time of Israeli-Hamas conflict and the awful Palestinian suffering. It does, and the staff regularly deals with hate speech. They’ve heard lots of talk about walkouts and protests.

Nevertheless, groups of students in their clubs worked together to craft the statement below. It was written entirely by the students and is printed here exactly as they posted it. As you’ll see, they are far better than most of the angry, misguided reactionaries we see around the globe today.

Joint Solidarity Statement from Our Niles West J.S.A., M.S.A., and M.E.N.A. Student Leaders and Sponsors

In collaboration with the Niles West Youth Activism and Leadership Club

October 11th, 2023

On behalf of the Muslim Student Association, Middle Eastern and North African Club, and Jewish Student Association, we believe it is essential to come together at this moment to express our collective commitment to and desire for peace, dignity, and the basic human right to live without fear of violence or persecution for every member of our shared human family. What we share in our humanity takes precedence over any political or religious differences we may have. We recognize that the loss of life, casualties, and escalating conflict bring pain and distress to our community, especially those with family members or other loved ones in Israel and Palestine. Our main goal in sharing this joint statement is to promote compassion, unity, love, and mutual respect for our fellow Niles West community members in the face of horrific events and violence abroad. One group’s pain should not cancel out another group’s pain; these tragedies hurt everyone in our community, including but not limited to our Palestinian, Jewish, Israeli, MENA, and Muslim students and staff. We are committed to doing this work together and ask for support and kindness as we strive for peace at Niles West.
.

Yes, they are youthful idealists and things are never as simple as Rodney King asking, “Can’t we all get along?” Things are always far more complex and change is fraught with fear. Nevertheless, let’s hope these students can keep their values and their focus. We all need hope and they are our future.

Okay, Boomers

Just heard a song from the Way Back Machine. From Aquarius by the Fifth Dimension:

Harmony and understanding,
Sympathy and trust abounding.
No more falsehoods or derisions,
Golden living dreams of visions.
Mystic crystal revelation
And the mind’s true liberation,

Aquarius.

I guess we Boomers lost some of that sentiment along the way, as we became investment bankers, salespeople or just entered the slog through the realities of life. Some became absolutists with a permanent chip on their shoulders and taught their children to fear and hate, which they learned well. They’re now making death threats and shooting innocent people.

The sun that was supposed to shine in. Where did it go?

We better find it fast.

Question of the Week

Until recently Donald Trump labeled all Democrats, RINOs and everyone who didn’t buy Trump’s Big Lie such things as pedophiles, child traffickers, socialists, communists and more.

On Veterans Day last weekend he called the same people “vermin” and vowed to put them in concentration camps after he’s elected.

Here’s the Question of the Week:

Is “vermin” better or worse than pedophiles and the rest?
.

Compare and contrast, referencing Nazi Germany, the American Confederacy, the shooter of Pizzagate notoriety and Trump’s claim that only he can prevent World War III and that it will be “very easy.”

You can get 10 extra credit points each if you can tie into your answer:

Trump holding a bible upside down and quoting “Two Corinthians”

Judge Aileen Cannon’s obvious crush on Trump

Proof that Trump had the biggest inaugural crowd “ever. Period!“

Today is a good day to be the light

______________________________

  • Our governance and electoral corruption and dysfunction and our ongoing mass murders are all of a piece, all the same problem with the same solution:
  • Fire the bastards!
  • The days are dwindling for us to take action. Get up! Do something to make things better.


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    JA


Copyright 2025 by Jack Altschuler
Reproduction and sharing are encouraged, providing proper attribution is given.

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