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LIVE CHAT TONIGHT: Republican Debate in Detroit @ 6:00pm PST

Thanks Ad.

Yeah, it’s easier to watch that kind of stuff with other GOOD people around – like going to a scarey movie alone vs. with the other kids!

It was indeed appalling, to think that any of the people on that stage are the only serious candidates from a major national party. What ever happened to “Best and Brightest”, or at least people who maintained the illusion of such? It’s been kabuki theater for a long time, but at least in the ‘old days’ the candidates ACTED like they were adults even if they weren’t.

Donald, to his credit, was only ‘exposing’ the size question that Mario (err…’Marco’) had been implying – all the same, it was incredibly juvenile all around and has NO place in a political race whatsoever.

Fox wanted a slasher film, they tried their best to bring out the gore, but in the end the Trumpistas only saw ‘their guy’ being picked on by the establishment (ie – everybody else). Donald has re-written the rules and nobody in the RNC seems to notice, or if they notice they are unable to adapt.

It’s like everybody is playing hopscotch and Donald has shown up to play Machete Roller-Hockey. He even has a goalie mask on!

If Donald runs and wins, look at his VP choice to be our President after some kind of massive ‘accident’ is how I’m reading this one. The Smoking Dude from X-Files is burning through cartons of unfiltereds deep in a basement bunker somewhere setting plans in motion…

Thanks again, I hope to return soon! ~ RF

» Posted By RF Dude On March 4, 2016 @ 8:42 am

Ad – I just wanted to thank you for hosting the LiveChat tonight. It was great fun.

About the link to Scott Adam’s blog I posted during the LiveChat. I was just over there and saw his posting of a (seeming) pro-Trump letter. I read through it a couple of times looking for the snark or at least The Twist but it isn’t jumping out at me. At this point, I’m pretty sure it’s real, and it is the first overt Trump support I have seen at the Dilbert site.

The point I want to make is that since I’ve been away from here for quite a while (longer than I want to think!), I don’t want anybody to think I’ve shown up to promote Trump in any way! That there would be a President Trump is anathema to me!

Having followed the Adams blog since around last Christmas, I _think_ he posted the letter to show how deep possible Trump support runs in many well-spoken and even highly educated people. If so, the Trump phenomenon is even more frightening to me.

Anyway, I had to come back over and say HI again and to try to head-off any misunderstanding. It’s still the same ‘me’ from the old days, and I haven’t turned into a nasty troll (well, not YET anyway!).

I’m following the election closely, and have my passport (and shots!) up to date and ‘essentials’ packed just in case it’s Bug Out time after November.

On a lighter note, we had a great turnout for Super Tuesday and lots of great support for both Bernie and Hillary (I’m feeling the Bern myself, was happy to volunteer as a delegate to Convention for him – I just hope the Hillary folks share my interest in fine beers so we have an excuse to get together! 😉 )

Thanks again for 2nite! ~RF

» Posted By RF Dude On March 3, 2016 @ 9:44 pm

Hi Ad! I’m making an extra large batch of popcorn and eagerly awaiting the start of the Detroit Cage Match!

» Posted By RF Dude On March 3, 2016 @ 5:23 pm

Ladies and Gentlemen, Our Corporate Anthem

Thank you Aquarius! College was indeed much less expensive in those days – I could actually afford to buy the occasional 8-track tape! 😉

The assaults on education are among many of the assaults on our way of life. Corporate power has warped the country, split the citizens along old racial lines not seen since the 60’s, sucked the life out of families in the form of crushing debt, and taken the entry level jobs that our young men and women need to get started in life.

Only the people of this country can change that. Getting involved at any level, paying attention to the real news and not the celebrity fluff pieces, turning off the television and talking with neighbors and friends.

It all makes a difference. Wake up the people you know one by one. It will take a lot of us, but the alternative is unthinkable.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 20, 2013 @ 10:09 pm

Absolutely, agrippa! Getting involved or at least voting at all levels is critical!!

“Squeaky wheel gets the grease” – so let’s start squeaking!!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 6:42 pm

Excellent PW – I’m hanging on to that one! 😉

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 6:41 pm

Thank you Greta.

ALEC – a four-letter word if I ever saw one!

I was very late to the election-scene myself. For years, I showed up at the General Elections because I figured if I didn’t vote I couldn’t complain about anything ‘Them Government People’ did.

But I realized that the action really takes place in the Primaries. That is especially true now, in states that have adopted Open Primaries – because in many of those states the top two ‘winners’ of the Primaries are the only candidates in the General Election. This means that it is quite possible to have two Republicans (or two Democrats) running on the General ballot and no opposition candidate!

Plus, since the turnout in Primaries is historically smaller than in the Generals it is ~much~ easier to load a ballot with less-than-stellar candidates.

Having said that, turnout in off-year General elections is something that ~must~ be improved if Progressives want to regain control of some of the seats. We cannot keep lurching from one majority to the other, with nothing getting done in-between. Too much time has already been wasted since ’10 with all of the games that have been going on in Washington and at the State level.

I am usually in favor of ‘balanced’ government with no single party running the show. This has been reinforced watching all of the energy spent keeping REgressive state legislatures from trying to turn back the clock to 1951 as they ram through their ALEC agendas purely along party lines and the Dems have to sit and watch, powerless.

The Federal Government has been simply gridlocked since about 2008. Except for a few months when the Democrats held the WH and a majority in Congress, power has been split such that nothing of meaning gets done at the Federal level. This must change, and if it means majority control by Democrats at the Federal level for several election cycles I am all for that. (We have already seen what Republican majority control will do – I give you Wisconsin, Michigan, and pretty much all of the Southern states…)

So yeah, ’14 is a very important year for this country. Whether one prefers Progressive or Conservative philosophies, it is past-time to get things moving and we need to get the vote out, preferably elect Progressives or Moderate Conservatives, and try to get this country moving again!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 10:22 am

Thank you Confuseddemocrat.

The people who have joined in to the Tea Party ‘movement’ are indeed looking for change, but the Tea Party itself is by no means a true grass-roots effort.

The Tea Party is widely known as a vocal group funded by the very same people who are working strictly for Corporate interests – people like the Koch brothers. The money-people have tapped into a large pool of fear and anger, fueled the Us-Them division, and gotten some pretty extreme candidates elected to support a wide anti-government agenda. Many traditional Conservatives have gone along with this movement because it has (so far) worked in their primary interest of getting re-elected – but has the movement really been effective?

What I see is a Republican party that has been quickly stretched to the extreme right, and a Democratic party that has been pulled more to the right. So in that sense the Tea Party has been quite effective at shifting the conversation towards the far-right.

As I see it, their primary accomplishments so far have been to 1) shut down government in the areas where government is most needed at this time – job creation, infrastructure maintenance, safety nets and Social Security/Medicare, and 2) have stretched the Republican party to the point of schism.

You are absolutely correct in that the unknowing membership of the Tea Party has much in common with the Progressive side – the desire for personal security, the opportunities for growth to be opened, maintenance of their SS and Medicare benefits (which, although labeled ‘entitlements’ are in fact benefits which have been paid-for through payroll deductions during the working lives of the recipients).

The perversion of the Tea Party has been the control, behind a curtain, of these people by the very Corporate interests who have no interest in making the country a better place for them to live. It is a cynical sham, and so many have let their anger and their fear of a dark-skinned president blind them to the reality that they are once again being played.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 10:07 am

Thank you Sabreen!

The greed that has poisoned our society has driven many into thinking that it’s ‘everyone for themselves’. It’s why our infrastructure is in disrepair, we are told constantly that unemployed are ‘lazy’, and that if you help others you are ‘making them dependent’.

I shudder to think of what a President Romney would have done to this country… Beyond our worst nightmares, that would be certain.

Obama has tried to show this country that we are all in this together, and we will get nowhere fighting each other. He is one voice, and the power thrown against him is enormous, but you make a very good point that he provides a good example of working for change (no matter how small it seems to us) against long odds.

I would be happier if Obama could do more, but given the circumstances (and especially that we do not have a President McCain or President Romney in office!) I can only keep up the support (and pressure) for him to keep trying.

We can but emulate his example and do what we can on our own part.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 1:47 am

Thank you Funk.

You are absolutely right that Corporations rig the system with money, influence, whatever so that they achieve their goals. They do not care one bit about the bigger picture – only maximizing their return.

The extreme money that Corporations and the Uber-Wealthy can pour into elections has given this country a dysfunctional Congress, State governments burning down the house as fast as they can, and even local towns and counties – all with extremely narrow agendas focused on turning the clock back 50 years or more.

Gotta at least keep trying in ’14 to hold the line – I’m not expecting to score big, but we must hold the line!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 10:06 pm

Thank you, OppositionResearch – and thank you for the links! These are both films that I will watch – neither is particularly long, looking forward to them!

I will get back to you after watching them!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 5:28 pm

Thank you ~very~ much for providing this place for our voices, Ad!

Another movie comes to mind here too – THX1138. The extreme example of people-as-sheep, and one man breaking out into the light of a new day.

I remember laughing at the robo-cops being called off because they had overrun the budget chasing THS1138 up the ladder! Perhaps this is a clue as to how to take on the Corporate power – after all, it’s all about the money to them!

Oh, and it is ~such~ a relief to see so many friends coming here and connecting on a forum that is free of oppression. You and several other good posters have given us all space to regroup for the next round – thank you again!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 4:33 pm

Thank you Nirek. Yes, that does seem to describe the America we live in today – the slope is steep and the bottom looks rocky.

Corporations as ‘persons’ is a dangerous legal fiction, and the SC knew well what it was doing in that ruling. People are responsible for their actions – Corporations are doing their best to make sure that Corporations are not responsible for ~their~ actions.

This must change, it cannot stand!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 4:26 pm

Thank you Kalima! Synchronicity is a common element in my experience online. I have found that whatever wild ideas are floating in my mind are shared by many, and turn out to be not so wild!

Power structures can do much evil in the world before they are corrupted from within and fall. It is the duty of each person to hold onto their own identity, realize that we are not alone, and that one day we or our children or our grandchildren will have a better world.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 4:23 pm

Thank you M^3 – I did not remember that Norman Jewison also directed those other fine movies!

“Fiddler on the Roof” reminds me of another migration taking place today, in a way – the forced eviction of the good commenters at Place Formerly Known As The Poo. (Well, it’s still known as that…)

It is symbolic of the forced-relocation of peoples through the ages by unreasoning, tyrannical power structures that just laugh at the helplessness. This is, in part, what inspired me to write this piece.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 4:20 pm

Thank you KT – yes, there is much in our literature that foreshadowed the times we see today. These were authors that had a message, and they used the genre they were best at to communicate their message.

Many just read (or watch) for the high-level story, and that is OK. I did the same reading and watching all those years ago – and now, as I reflect, I see what they were ~really saying! The seeds they planted have sprouted and taken root – that is the beauty of the process.

And you are SO correct – as 2010 showed, democracy is not something you can just watch on the TeeVee. It is far more than a series of debates or news articles – it takes getting out and at least voting, or we risk losing the small gains we have seen in the past.

Corporations are in it for the long-game. They plan ahead, and they work their strategy over decades. They have the advantage of a unified organization, money, and manpower.

Citizens here and around the world are waking up, many see the need and the question is ‘How do we get to the same level of organization’?

In the mean time, as we try to organize ourselves, we must keep up the pressure on politicians and government to slow the Corporate plans – and we must find a way to ‘get it together’ for the future.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 4:16 pm

Huffington Post Goes NSA on Its Members

HP created the troll problem in the first place, then placed the burden of proving ‘civility’ on their users like you and me.

I was outraged on Tuesday last, when they flipped the FB switch with NO warning. I had spent literally weeks on the well-hidden Anonymity and ‘Carousel’ threads arguing with Pavley, Macgregor, Stephanie, and all – only to see them not only ignore me but ignore the 100’s of OTHER concerned long-term users.

Too many times in the past I have contacted HP staff directly, and too many times I’ve been ignored. I’m caught-up enough to know that if I am contacting staff about something, there are a LOT of other folks doing the same – but they blew us all off every single time.

So yeah, those bot-mails are all in with the Nigerian Prince eMails – in the Bit Bucket!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 8:42 pm

Hi PW – good to see you!

The two largest sites where HP expats have been coming in are The Epoch Times and Poynter.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/401062-huffpost-sees-mass-exodus-users-reject-new-comment-system/#comment-1165935575

http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/mediawire/233193/want-to-comment-on-huffpost-just-give-facebook-your-phone-number-first/#comment-1163039085

Most of these people had no idea where to go and found the site through cross-posting and internet searches.

You might see some familiar faces there, and both sites offer independent news reporting (with their own staff – not aggregated!) so they might fit well with a lot of the HP ex-pats.

There is a lot of anger at HP over this – combined with the abysmal ‘carousel’ format, the FB invasion-of-privacy seems to be a deal-breaker for most.

Your are right about people returning after some time, but this time people are finding each other and re-connecting in good ways on open, troll-free sites. HP is going to have a hard time luring them back, although I have no doubt there will be some number that will return.

Have a good one, see you around here and there!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 2:03 pm

Hi Ad – I took the liberty of cross-posting Zoot’s article to the Epoch Times thread. The Huffugees have kinda taken over one of the threads there (was up to over 3600 comments when I left there just a bit ago) and I posted a precise’ of your conclusion there as well.

So far, the trolls have not swarmed in there but several have posted some cautionary notes that _when_ the trolls come (it’s only a matter of time) that people don’t engage them and let the modz there handle it.

The moderators have been on top of the thread, dropping in from time to time and saying ‘Hello’ so I think Epoch (at least) has it under control.

Your timing on this was perfect! It really resonated with some of the posters that responded, and I hope they come here to check things out.

Thanks again, and goodnight to you.

R.F.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 1:29 am

Indeed, Fergie – the very same cheeto-encrusted swamp-trolls that will never leave the site because it pays them a nickel a post 😉

Seriously, I’ve spent 12-14 hours a day this past week on the Epoch Times and Poynter threads with the exPats, as well as some time here to get into the ‘freedom of expression’ thing. It is people like me, and many others who have online as their only social outlet, that have driven the clicks at HP.

Granted, I rarely spent that much time on HP at one sitting (well, kinda rarely 😉 ) but many shut-in and otherwise non-social people used HP to connect with friends, make new friends, and speak what was on their minds for many, many hours each day.

A lot of those people have left (I lost over 250 from my fancount before I closed the account), and many more have not closed accounts but will not open a FB-verified account so they have all migrated off in search of places like this or the other sites.

Those clicks are gone forever, and the 20-somethings will not sit in the threads or click around the site as much as we did. Just my opinion, time will tell, but HP has taken a hit and we will see what the numbers say.

And this time it will not be so easy for HP to get us to return. Folks are hopping mad at this, and are already finding good, open, safe landing places and are settling in nicely!

Lots of warm campfires on the hills out there, people connecting in ways impossible at HP for too many cold years!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 16, 2013 @ 1:23 am

The news about the Huffugees at Poynter and Epoch Times is getting out.

This was just posted at Epoch Times: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/401062-huffpost-sees-mass-exodus-users-reject-new-comment-system/

Wouldn’t you love to be an observer at the Monday Morning Staff meeting at The Poo in a few hours??

Bwahahahahaha!!!!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 15, 2013 @ 10:59 pm

On it, Maj!!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 14, 2013 @ 9:18 am

BTW – If you are still able to log into the account you thought you’d closed, I suggest putting a goodbye note in your microbio and letting that come through.

True, only your old comments will show it – but it’s a way to say goodbye to old friends even though you’re mute there now.

I was able to put my old avi back and put such a note in before I went all medieval on the red-button, so in a way I’m thankful for having that opportunity.

(Sadly, ‘PlanetPOV’ is blacklisted at the Poo and they wouldn’t approve that word. Get more creative than I did – there is a way, after all we got around teh dreaded word-filters for years didn’t we? )

» Posted By RF Dude On December 14, 2013 @ 9:17 am

Awoken from the magic-spell, Kesmarn!

It was good there while it lasted, and led to other places like Planet where we can continue with friends met there. I’m thankful for that – now time to move on.

Growth is good – and I view this as growth for all of us!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 14, 2013 @ 9:09 am

OK, I thought I’d ‘closed’ my account at the POO on Tuesday, but nooooooo – not really…

After seeing some posts here and on other sites, I decided to try to log-in. Yep – I still could.

So, as others have pointed out, I cycled the log-in/press red button & confirm/log out sequence 5-6 times. Now, at long last, I get the “Your account has been closed” message when I try to sign-in. WOOT!!

Dunno what that’s all about – I suspect some kind of statistical metric is involved there, but for me it’s another disingenuous ploy by That Place to ‘fool’ users.

So, yeah – you’re gonna have to go through that process several times to truly be HP-Free. The first time is the hardest, for some, but I was blazin’ mad enough that it was a PLEASURE to go through that to really finish the episode off.

Truly, a pleasure 😀

Great Day to all, now on to important things like Saturday chores 😉

» Posted By RF Dude On December 14, 2013 @ 9:07 am

Yes, I had already put a lot of distance between myself and that place over the past few months. Posted mainly on the Macgregor Carousel and on the Pavley anonymity threads – little else.

Talked my talk out over those, and the sudden FB thing was enough to get me over that wall.

I’m only bitter at what we lost, we will always have what we gained there. I will never go back.

» Posted By RF Dude On December 13, 2013 @ 11:48 am

Hey there old friend! Yes, I poofed ‘RF Dude’ at The Poo on Tuesday night after one last rash of faving the comments on the ‘Death of Anonymity’ thread (and _flagging_ each and every one of Tim McDonalds comments!)

Petty and juvenile, I know – but I decided that given all of the recent changes it was time for me to move-on from HP so I did.

Didn’t hurt a bit!

Anyway, glad to see you in a place where folks can actually communicate with each other! What a pleasant surprise!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 13, 2013 @ 11:02 am

Indeed!

Many of my friends have expressed dismay that the Progressive voices at HP will be silenced – even here, I see comments to that effect.

IMO, the draconian moderation and new format were sufficient in and of themselves to shut-down political discussion. Adding the FB verification is chilling and is the final nail.

Sites like this, however, provide alternatives to HP. The service HP almost exclusively provided in the past has grown out to sites like The Planet where Progressive and (true) Conservative voices can engage and discuss like the ‘old days’ on HP.

We are lucky to have these alternate platforms, we are no longer limited to a single site that – as we see – can so easily be co-opted and shut down as was the case with The Poo.

Thanks again for your farsightedness, Ad – you and others like you may well have saved the day for us all by setting up these sites!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 13, 2013 @ 9:37 am

You are most welcome my friend.

I’m just another little poster reading between the lines 😉

» Posted By RF Dude On December 13, 2013 @ 9:32 am

Agreed, HLL. Advertisers were uncomfortable with free, open discussion and advertising revenue is what HP is in it for after all.

FB provides the ultimate advertiser information goldpile bonanza, and although some know how to ‘protect’ themselves many are unsophisticated and will leave the doors to their information wide-open.

The entire drama from moderation to carousel to finally FB revolves around maximizing clicks and ad revenue. That it also shuts-down effective criticism of the 1% ALEC/Koch takeover is a bonus to corporate Amerika.

Fortunately, alternate sites like this and others provide the necessary forums for us to organize, exchange ideas, and get ready for 2014!

Timing is perfect, IMO. Whatever we lost when HP finally closed discussion down we can regain with an even stronger voice.

There is still time!

» Posted By RF Dude On December 13, 2013 @ 9:22 am