In case you missed it ...
Election madness continues with lies, propaganda and gobs of money.
As we sprint toward the finish line of the 2024 presidential election (well, I sort of hobble), a lot of interesting stuff has come to light in the last couple of weeks.
There’s the normal: Donald Trump continues his daily onslaught of fantasy and bullshit, and Kamala Harris carries on with her version of crypto-English and hellish interviews. Then there’s the not-so-normal: Trump taking his turn as fry cook at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s while Harris exchanges her deepest policy thoughts on the podcast “Who’s Your Daddy?”
This week: Who knows? Trump is scheduled to appear on the Joe Rogan Experience (imagine him sharing a stogie and a shot of tequila with Rogan) while Harris and her surrogates try to convince everyone that fascism looms just around the corner.
Meantime, the world burns.
But in case you missed some of the lesser-known stories, here is a summation of the last two weeks of the campaign, plus a couple of random topics at the end.
(Inspired by Nellie Bowles TGIF)
Trump: Crypto-king
First, it was the Golden Sneaker. Then it was the “God Bless America” Bibles that were purchased by the Oklahoma Department of Education for distribution around the state, 55,000 of them. (hey, isn’t that illegal?).
The funny thing is the Bibles are being printed in China.
Now it’s Cryptocurrency. The latest scheme to line Donald Trump’s pockets is the sale of digital currency, but with a twist.
It’s a World Liberty Financial “token” called “Web3” that you can buy and put in your “wallet.” The tagline is: “Shape a New Era of Finance: Be DeFiant.” And: “The only DeFi platform inspired by Donald J. Trump.”
Definition: A Cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency secured by cryptography, which makes it nearly impossible to counterfeit or double-spend. Most cryptocurrencies exist on decentralized networks using blockchain technology—a distributed ledger enforced by a disparate network of computers.
The thing is World Liberty Financial token doesn’t fit the definition. It cannot be used as a currency. You cannot sell it or trade it. All buying a World Liberty Financial token allows is for you to vote in World Liberty Financial matters.
Even within the world of scam cryptocurrencies, this is unfathomably scammy. Usually, crypto tokens can be bought and sold. That’s kind of the whole point of them. These tokens can’t. It’s like buying a piece of beachfront property in Arizona, another reason for buyers to say proudly they own “Trump currency.”
It’s worthless. It’s like dealing snake oil to imaginary friends. Or sand to the Arabs.
Understanding The Donald
Perhaps there’s a method to his madness, or maybe I’m taking things at face value, but did you ever notice that Trump’s stream-of-consciousness rambling sounds like a third grader trying to sell you lemonade from a street stand?
He can go for 90 minutes covering a dozen issues, wandering off topic dozens of times with inane stories and asides, and not say anything. Or at least he disguises the lies.
All dissenters are “very bad” or “evil.” Or worse yet, a “loser.” All people who support him are “beautiful” and a “great American.”
And that’s about it.
And this is the guy we’re supposed to be so afraid of?
Where have all the Black men gone?
Kamala Harris this week announced a new initiative to lure black male voters. This includes “forgivable” loans of up to $1 million to Black Entrepreneurs.
Isn’t that like — you know — a form of bribery? And is it legal to offer government loans just for one race? Affirmative Action with money? I’m not a constitutional scholar (in my heart I feel I am, but I’m trying to seem relatable), but that feels unconstitutional.
Soon after Kamala’s announcement, she walked it back. The loans are actually open to everyone, not just Black men. But she and her team always knew that. So she decided to settle on a topic that might be important to Black men: making weed legal.
Okay, at least it will appeal to Snoop Dogg.
Some context
Her polling among black men is surprisingly weak. Only 73 percent of black men say they will vote for Harris, the lowest margin of support for a Democratic candidate in the past three cycles.
Former President Barrack Obama chastised them last week, telling the “brothers” he was speaking to that their support of Trump is probably rooted in Trump’s skill at “putting women down”—something Obama apparently thinks resonates with black men. Obama added: “Part of it makes me think that, well, you aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president and you’re coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for that.”
Bottom line: “Orange Man Bad.”
Creatives for Harris
Meanwhile, a pro-Kamala group called “Creatives for Harris” put out a new ad meant to appeal to men who might be on the fence about voting for Kamala Harris. The actors hired to play the men look like men, yes, well done. One is super fat and one is sleeveless and has a beard, which somehow indicates maleness.
But the script was clearly written by women, probably over a double-chocolate latte, and it’s so bad it’s cringe-worthy. Here are real lines from the guys in the ad (or what the ladies at “Creatives for Kamala” imagine men talk like) …
“I’m a man. I’m a man. I’m a man. I’m a man, man.”
“I’m man enough to enjoy a barrel-proof bourbon.” (Cool)
“I’m man enough to dead-lift 500 and braid the shit out of my daughter’s hair.” (a line cut from the script of “Beauty and the Beast”)
“You think I’m afraid to rebuild a carburetor? I eat carburetors for breakfast.” (Never mind that the last carburetor was manufactured for use in a new automobile in 1994)
“I ain’t afraid of bears: That’s what bear hugs are for.” (Did you get the double meaning? Bear hugs are cute. Clever, huh.)
“I’m not afraid of women. A woman wants to be president? Well, I hope she has the guts to look me right in the eye and accept my full-throated endorsement.” (Translation: “Yes, dear.")
“I’m man enough to be emotional in front of my wife, in front of my kids, in front of my horse.” (Funny, right? But the horse pictured is about the same size as My Little Pony)
Word of advice: quit trying so hard.
Plagiarism: “Just sloppy writing”
The conservative activist Chris Rufo reported last week that more than a dozen passages from Kamala Harris’s 2009 book Smart on Crime are plagiarized, often just copy-pasted from Wikipedia.
Politicians’ books are always fake, so I’m personally not scandalized. Ghostwriters are employed all the time. Besides, most people are horrible writers and would benefit from admitting that copy-and-pasting is common. That could be the end of one’s take.
But no. Not for The New York Times. They could not let it stand! So what did they do? A whole story—with three reporters—on how one plagiarism expert doesn’t think what Kamala did is a big deal. As the Times put it, solemnly: “A plagiarism expert said the lapses were not serious.” (Expert in plagiarism?) Like a doctor examining a cyst—“You’re good, just don’t put too much pressure on it.”
Moreover, it’s racist to look at the book for plagiarism at all, the reporters added. After all, they got then-Harvard president Claudine Gay, didn’t they?
I cannot emphasize enough how different coverage will be if Harris wins in November because this will be the quality level of all mainstream media. Under Trump, these reporters will have to go to work again. Scoops will be picked over. Fake news is a conspiracy theory. No lie is too small to ignore.
With Kamala (vulnerable, historically marginalized, disenfranchised, person with a uterus) in office, things will be different.
Headline of the Week
Wow. Quite a trifecta.
What about Mao? Genghis Kahn?
FBI crime rates
The FBI quietly released the final (read: final) crime data for 2022. First, they had reported that violent crime had fallen by 2.1 percent nationwide. It appears the FBI forgot to invert and double this stat: The Bureau very quietly revised this number last month. Violent crime actually increased by 4.5 percent in 2022.
Whoops!
In September 2023, when they released the fake numbers, the mainstream media reported how crime is down and people who complain about crime are lunatics. “Crime Is Down” became a huge talking point, even though crime did not feel down. Crime vibes abounded.
So a lot of murders, rapes, and assaults were initially left out. Even more confounding is that the whole data-gathering process is a mystery. So much so that even the FBI can’t explain it.
“This FBI report is stunning because it now doesn’t state that violent crime in 2022 was much higher than it had previously reported, nor does it explain why the new rate is so much higher, and it issued no press release about this large revision,” said David Mustard, the Josiah Meigs Distinguished Professor at the University of Georgia who researches extensively on crime. “This lack of transparency harms the FBI’s credibility.”
Was this “error” that went unmentioned in the FBI’s September report political? Well, maybe.
Walgreens mass closings
Walgreens shutting down 1,200 stores
The experience of walking into a drugstore in many American cities now is high stress. Everything is locked up. You have to buzz and wait for someone to come get you a bar of soap from behind thick plexiglass (of course, they never come). You consider buying a toothbrush on your way out, a thing you don’t need, before realizing there’s no one working the registers.
Anyway, it’s not surprising that Walgreens announced it’s closing 1,200 stores. The big reason is theft.
Tax breaks for billionaires
Much has been made of the megabucks spent by Elon Musk on the Trump campaign, including the offer of $1 million daily to registrants who will sign a petition to support the First and Second Amendments. Seedy, but legal.
Meantime, V-P Harris is championing the middle class. After all, she has countlessly reminded voters of her humble origins. One can picture her waiting by the bus … in the rain … wearing a $5.95 dress and a meek smile.
But what about Democratic donors? Aren’t they, you know, kinda loaded? After all, she raised more than $1 billion in the last three months. So, meet her top 5 big bucks supporters …
Reid Hoffman: Founder of LinkedIn and Microsoft Board Member. Hoffman’s single largest political donation since 2002 is the $6 million check he cut in March to Future Forward, a Democratic Superpac. He gave another $4 million to the PAC in April and June.
Reid Hoffman Michael Bloomberg: Former New York City mayor and chairman of the Department of Defence advisory board. Federal records show in May, Bloomberg spread over $19 million to Future Forward, Harris Victory Fund, and Harris for President.
Fred Eychaner: Eychaner, the founder of the Chicago-based Newsweb Corporation, is known as a recluse. But the businessman doesn’t shy away from politics. Eychaner has donated roughly $27 million to national Democrats over the last two years, including over $7.9 million to pro-Harris committees.
Dustin Moskovitz: Moskovitz, who co-founded Facebook, is widely expected to donate large sums to Future Forward closer to the election, according to The New York Times. Though far more unknown outside of Silicon Valley than his fellow Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, Moskovitz and his wife, former Wall Street Journal reporter Cari Tuna, shelled out $25 million in 2016 against Trump, followed by $47 million to fuel Biden in 2020.
George and Alex Soros: George Soros, 94, is a longtime Democratic megadonor. Joined by his son, Alex Soros, the influential duo has contributed heavily this election cycle to Harris-aligned committees. The Fund for Policy Reform, a nonprofit group funded by the Soros family, routed $60 million to pro-Harris groups, according to federal records.
Death comes calling
Let’s have a moment of silence for the fallen Hamas leader and psychopathic killer Yahya Sinwar ....
Okay, that’s enough.
In deference to Columbia University grads and a #GayForHamas, my progress flag is at half-staff.
I cannot help but think this is not over. Neither side wants it to.
For Israel, enough is enough. They’ve tried for decades to come to a two-state solution, only to come up with another attack from a different foe … Syria, Lebanon, Egypt … and on and on. It’s pretty hard to make peace when bombs keep falling in your kitchen.
The road to paradise is measured by dead bodies, including their own. Infatada, jihadism and martyrdom are core to the religion. Death is not feared, it is embraced. With hardcore Islamic fanatics, there is no compromise. There is no other way. A child who dies in war isn’t a tragedy, it is celebrated as the ultimate sacrifice.
Hamas is a death cult, a rather large group of religious zealots who make no bones about what looks like victory — death to the infidel. (Hint: You and I are infidels). The road to paradise is measured by dead bodies, including their own. Infatada, jihadism and martyrdom are core to the religion. Death is not feared, it is embraced. With hardcore Islamic fanatics, there is no compromise. There is no other way. A child who dies in war isn’t a tragedy, it is celebrated as the ultimate sacrifice.
Believe them: They love death more than we love life.
###
Jim Geschke was inducted into the Marquis Who’s Who Registry in 2021.
Seems like you are back. Good to see you again! There's an election down there, eh?