New from me: It is not just that the US is experiencing democratic backsliding. Authoritarianism has emerged more quickly than in other benchmark countries. This graph from John Burn-Murdoch sums it up. 🧵donmoynihan.substack.com/p/autocracy-...
Rendering impeachment a dead letter, Jan 6, the institutional GOP defenses/excuses, the lack of consequences for it, and the Supreme Court effectively rewriting the Constitution to favor this one would-be authoritarian they like — twice! — all has to be included as democratic backsliding in the US.
Before the 2024 election, I outlined 9 ways Trump had damaged Constitutional democracy, saying the 10th and final barrier was We the People. We’re not a year into democratic backsliding. We’re a year into a plurality of American voters endorsing nearly a decade of backsliding, and opting for more.
To those marking the backsliding earlier: Whatever your criticisms of Bush, he stepped down without question and conducted a smooth transition. As president, he sought and got Congressional authorization for both Afghanistan and Iraq. Doesn’t mean this came out of nowhere, but it’s not the same.
it's not the same, but he paved a nice wide freeway for everything we are seeing. The formation of DHS, the Patriot act farce expanded this miliatrized surveillance state "for our sAfEtY!" oh and that whole lying -lying- about why we needed to invade a sovereign country thing. Habeas corpus was FIRST denied and torture was used at Guantanamo. It was different… just like a seedling is different from a sapling is different from a tree. But it's the same.
Couldn’t decide what to post for #caturday, so you get both pictures. A beautiful mlem from Pixel, and a highly misleading dangerous-hunter-on-the-prowl from Lilu.
If you like a good toot-bot, I can recommend these two accounts for a follow. They serve you up a fun set of pics from a random restaurant or cafe occasionally, from diverse spots on the planet.
They had a bit of a hiatus but appear to be back online again, after a little prod today. ☺️
Give 'em a follow if you want something light and foody and travelly in your timeline:
Trump told the country in 2024 that mass deportation would be a “bloody story.”
ICE has not gone rogue. Nothing has gone haywire. This was the blueprint.
Trump and MAGA planned to kill. PROMISED to kill. They will try to change the narrative to salvage the midterms, but don’t believe Homan’s performance. Noem was covering her ass but also telling the plain truth when she said that DHS has done precisely as instructed in MN.
Estimated russian losses from February 24, 2022 to February 01, 2026 of the russian all-out war against Ukraine, according to the General Staff of #Ukraine
Offensichtlich wird polizeilich differenziert vorgegangen, wenn die Proteste von Bauern oder Klimaschützern kommen!
Die Polizei in Brandenburg hat am Freitag erneut Blockaden von Autobahnauffahrten durch Bauern mit Traktoren zugelassen. „Es gab Versammlungsanmeldungen“, sagte Lea Enzenroß, Sprecherin des Polizeipräsidiums Brandenburg, der taz. Von Verboten sei ihr nichts bekannt.
Schneider kritisierte, dass die Polizei mit zweierlei Maß messe, wenn es um Blockaden durch Bauern und durch Klimaaktivisten gehe. „Wir sind mit vergleichbaren Aktionen auf eine ganz andere Stimmung gestoßen.“ Diese Diskrepanz fällt umso mehr auf, als die „Klimakleber“ die Wahl ihres Demonstrationsortes auf den Straßen im Gegensatz zu den Bauern auch inhaltlich begründen konnten
Alla manifestazione contro lo sgombero del centro sociale gli antagonisti danno la caccia a forze dell’ordine e giornalisti: 80 feriti, una decina i fermati.
There will be more of these ones! This is a Woodland Kingfisher - remarkable common - in fact you can hear their call in most riverine woodlands in Summer and astonishingly beautiful. #birds #birdphotography
Eine Freundin hat ein Grundstück in #Karlsruhe mit einer schmalen Rasenfläche bis zum Gehweg einer viel befahrenen Straße und einer Tramtrasse in Sichtweite.
Zum wiederholten Mal hat die BW- #CDU nun zur Landtagswahl eine monströse Plakatwand (überdimensionerter „Wesselmann“) darauf aufgestellt - ohne zu fragen und nachdem sie es ihr bei vergangenen Wahlen bereits explizit verboten hatte. Und diesmal sogar obwohl die Aufstellenden bei Ihrer Arbeit durch einen Nachbarn explizit auf ihr illegales Treiben hingewiesen wurden.
Returned to the new fish market last night (Sat) for dinner. Not a great experience. Very long queues. Went to Squid Inc but they really are having teething
Nicholas Grossman
in reply to Nicholas Grossman • • •Nicholas Grossman
in reply to Nicholas Grossman • • •Before the 2024 election, I outlined 9 ways Trump had damaged Constitutional democracy, saying the 10th and final barrier was We the People. We’re not a year into democratic backsliding. We’re a year into a plurality of American voters endorsing nearly a decade of backsliding, and opting for more.
The Institutions of American D...
The Institutions of American Democracy are Hanging by a Thread
Nicholas Grossman (Arc Digital)Nicholas Grossman
in reply to Nicholas Grossman • • •CJPaloma's New Year New Server
in reply to Nicholas Grossman • • •