2024 US Presidential Election

[SGR]

First off, @SGR , no problem with the gif. I do that, too, though I didn't understand why you and this Steve Harley sorry Harvey were so dumbstruck.

It was a combination of my lack of familiarity with Kennedy and some of what he's said (and his controversies) and not being able to connect the dots with what you said, essentially. Steve Harley...

and thanks @Lexi Darling  for helping to clear it up for me. Been transferring my journals all last week and today; getting close to having them all up to date, but it's been keeping me from checking out/responding to threads.

I used to post in an admittedly pretty left-wing, liberal forum called - ah damn I forget, but it was one of those places where they post all the fuck Trump stuff. I learned through bitter experience though that they were, or are, in their way, as close-minded and ready to stab you if you stick one toe out of line (as they see it) when I was banned. Yeah, me! Banned! Have you ever met a nicer, less offensive person, not counting Lisna? Yet they banned me. Long story.

That's certainly not unheard of, especially among the left as of late. It more than likely factors into why many lefties shunned Hillary and decided to either not vote, vote for Trump or vote third party - and also why some are planning to either not vote for Biden or vote third party now. You were 'morally outbid', Trolls. 

Purity spiral - Wikipedia

Anyway (what the hell was the name of that place? I just seem to have gone blank on it. It'll come to me) it was there that I first learned of RFKJ, who was actually taking legal action against them for posting perfectly legitimate pictures of his taking part in a Nazi rally, or rather, for refusing to reveal the source that posted them. They have a back-and-forth with him, but again it was there that I had learned the family had disowned him and accused him of shitting on the proud legacy of the Kennedys.

Okay, I looked it up. Daily KOS, that was it. Here's the story, sent to me in email format way back in 2022, obviously before they banned this dangerous radical from their site!



Nazi-cavorter Robert Kennedy is suing Daily Kos. Here's where things currently stand:
Inbox

Daily Kos <campaigns@dailykos.com> Unsubscribe
Tue, 25 Jan 2022, 15:09
to me

Deryck, at an anti-vax rally over the weekend in Washington, D.C., Robert F. Kennedy Jr. compared the current pandemic safety policies to Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. Except, according to Kennedy, it was easier to escape the Holocaust, saying "Even in Hitler's Germany, you could cross the Alps into Switzerland, you could hide in an attic like Anne Frank did" (ignoring the fact that Anne Frank died in a concentration camp). He followed that up with a tirade about 5G and satellites tracking our every move.

Unlike in Nazi Germany, Kennedy can freely spew his conspiracy theories and exploit one of the greatest human tragedies in history into a microphone in the middle of the nation's capital—it's one of those rights granted to us in the Bill of Rights. Yet, this man is suing Daily Kos to reveal the identity of a user who wrote about Kennedy's participation in an anti-mask rally in Germany that was organized and attended by Nazis. A story that was also reported by many major media outlets.

Daily Kos is now in the second year of defending Kennedy's frivolous lawsuit to protect the privacy of our community and our First Amendment rights. The lawsuit now spans two coasts--in courts in both New York and California—and it is getting costly. But we refuse to back down from Kennedy's bullying.

Unfortunately, Kennedy comes from one of those American dynasty families and has unlimited financial resources. Unlike Kennedy, nearly half of our revenue comes from thousands of grassroots supporters chipping in a few dollars at a time. Help fund our legal efforts against Robert Kennedy Jr. a dangerous, life-threatening conspiracy theorist, by donating $5 to Daily Kos today.

Interesting, I hadn't heard of this. But what gives rise to characterizing the people of this rally as 'nazis'? What positions do they hold? I'm guessing it wasn't as obvious as they were flying swastika flags (because that's banned in Germany) - if their primary reason for being there was because they were anti-mask or anti-lockdown, that's a hard-sell as a 'nazi' to me, particularly coming from the Daily Kos, which, while I'm no regular reader - I'm familiar enough with to know their bias is rather far left, they're like the 'Breitbart' of the left. Again, I'm not very familiar with the situation or the rally, maybe there's a good reason to suspect they're nazis that I'm not aware of.

[Trollheart]

I'm digging. Here are a few:
Auschwitz Memorial respond as Kennedy compares vaccine mandates to holocaust

I guess not swastikas, but here's what they said:

The protest was organized by right-wing extremist organizations- including the AfD party and various anti-Semitic conspiracy groups as well as the neo-Nazi NPD party.

Among the speakers was Robert F. Kennedy Jr.. who warned against the "totalitarianism" of Angela Merkel.

"He sounded the alarm concerning the 5G mobile network and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.  Referring to the famous Berlin speech of his uncle JFK he said 'Today Berlin is is once again the front against totalitarianism.'"

Protester were seen carrying poster urging "Trump, Please Help"  with the QAnon logo.

As for me, I was on notice after calling someone a "right wing bitch" (they didn't like the b-word and I had to apologise). Next thing I posted my American West journal, and because I used the word "savage" about the Native Americans it was called racist and pulled. Even though the word was clearly in quotes, to show I did not agree and was making a point. I replied, explaining this (though it should have been obvious) and asking the editor if he understood what context was? Next time I tried to post I was advised I had been banned. Idiots. Didn't want their stupid lefty forum anyway.

[Guybrush]

Yuck. Litigation like that seems such a bullying tactic. I obviously don't know the story or what really happened, but if you're a politician joining a public demonstration, that does sound like a matter of public interest and fair game for news reports. But then I guess litigation is used to scare or bully whether they're right or wrong.

About your ban, they didn't deserve you, @Trollheart.

[Psy-Fi]

[Psy-Fi]

Biden implied his uncle lost in WWII was eaten by cannibals. Papua New Guinea's leader pushes back.

[Trollheart]

Yuck. Litigation like that seems such a bullying tactic. I obviously don't know the story or what really happened, but if you're a politician joining a public demonstration, that does sound like a matter of public interest and fair game for news reports. But then I guess litigation is used to scare or bully whether they're right or wrong.

About your ban, they didn't deserve you, @Trollheart.

Thanks man. What really grinds my gears is that I made a very formal, public and quite embarrassing apology about the b-word, and they STILL banned me! Looks like they were just looking for an excuse, as some other opinions in my other journals hadn't gone down too well. I was even told it was not my  place to write a history of America, as I was not American! In terms of their mindset, and I told them this (which may have led to the ban too) they were being as close-minded and as speech-censoring as the Republicans and Trump supporters they claimed to hate. Two sides of the one coin, very ugly. Ah well, as Jesus said in the New Testament, fuck those guys.

[SGR]

I'm digging. Here are a few:
Auschwitz Memorial respond as Kennedy compares vaccine mandates to holocaust

I guess not swastikas, but here's what they said:

The protest was organized by right-wing extremist organizations- including the AfD party and various anti-Semitic conspiracy groups as well as the neo-Nazi NPD party.

Among the speakers was Robert F. Kennedy Jr.. who warned against the "totalitarianism" of Angela Merkel.

"He sounded the alarm concerning the 5G mobile network and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.  Referring to the famous Berlin speech of his uncle JFK he said 'Today Berlin is is once again the front against totalitarianism.'"

Protester were seen carrying poster urging "Trump, Please Help"  with the QAnon logo.

As for me, I was on notice after calling someone a "right wing bitch" (they didn't like the b-word and I had to apologise). Next thing I posted my American West journal, and because I used the word "savage" about the Native Americans it was called racist and pulled. Even though the word was clearly in quotes, to show I did not agree and was making a point. I replied, explaining this (though it should have been obvious) and asking the editor if he understood what context was? Next time I tried to post I was advised I had been banned. Idiots. Didn't want their stupid lefty forum anyway.

I'm gonna have to claim ignorance on those far right German parties, as I'm in the dark there. I'll have to do some reading on that. Comparing vaccine mandates to the holocaust though is just nonsensical. Obviously, RFK Jr can say whatever he wants, but if he's serious about gaining support/voters, saying things like that makes him look like a non-serious candidate. Doesn't he have someone whispering in his ear and coaching him on his speeches? Comparisons like that is just a completely unforced error. Sloppy (similar to his comments on COVID and it being genetically targeted).

[Guybrush]

Isn't it just the Trumpification of the political rhetoric? Just say whatever crazy shit gets people riled up. There's hardly any accountability for past utterings anyways, so why not.

[SGR]

Isn't it just the Trumpification of the political rhetoric? Just say whatever crazy shit gets people riled up. There's hardly any accountability for past utterings anyways, so why not.

That's certainly a frame you could look at it through. Maybe the poor analogy was completely intentional because he knew it would make some headlines and get him some attention. And when you're running as an independent in America, you kinda need all the press you can get. But is all press 'good press'? I find that adage to not always be true - but maybe it's true in this particular case - and maybe my previous comment (that it was an 'unforced error') was looking at it wrong, and perhaps it wasn't an error at all. After all, here we all are talking about him because of it.

[jimmy jazz]

Biden implied his uncle lost in WWII was eaten by cannibals. Papua New Guinea's leader pushes back.

Now imagine the shitfest if Trump had come out with that. You'd never hear the end of it for racism accusations.

[Trollheart]

Wasn't it Frank Zappa who had a song or album called Uncle Meat?     

[SGR]

Hmmm, given that Pecker is being forced to stand trial and spill the beans on Trump, could it fairly be said that the judge in this case is 'grabbing Trump by the Pecker'?

Second day of Pecker testimony wraps in Trump's hush money trial

And let's not even get started with all the 'gag' orders...

[Trollheart]

Considering Trump's infamous "you can grab them by the colloquial name for a cat" tape, I think that's a case of turnabout is fair play.

[Lisnaholic]

Very interesting to read about your experiences in that Daily Kos forum, Trollheart! Guybrush says, they didn't deserve you.

Thanks for the wiki link to "Purity Spiral", SGR: it's good to have a term for something that is surprisingly common in political, religious groups. The Communist Party in the 1930s suffered from this syndrome big time, and I see it alive today with Majorie Taylor Green's threats to oust Speaker Johnson, ( if I am understanding the concept right.)

[DJChameleon]

Now imagine the shitfest if Trump had come out with that. You'd never hear the end of it for racism accusations.

There wouldn't be any with his supporters. Just the media outlets for a few days and then it would be forgotten. Just like he said he could walk in a busy tourist area and shoot someone and still get away with it.