So the word is Vice President Pence has finally spoken with President Trump. I’ve been trying to imagine how that conversation went. Maybe something like this:
(From British television channel ITV)
Pence: Hey, Mr. President, trashing me to your supporters last Wednesday wasn’t a very nice way to treat your vice president.
Trump: Mike, I wasn’t trashing you. I was just trying to encourage you to do the right thing in that meeting about the electoral vote.
Pence: But you know I was limited by the Constitution to a ceremonial role.
Trump: Everyone knows the Constitution is just window dressing. All you needed to do was wave your arms around and delay the vote certification. Then we could have remained in office.
Pence: Sir, it was very unsettling to hear these people roaming through the capitol halls, shouting, “Where’s Pence!”
Trump: No, Mike, they were shouting, “Make Sense!”
Pence: Then how do you explain that gallows out front, with a noose?
Trump: No, Mike, that noose wasn’t for you, it was for Pelosi….except if you hadn’t waved your arms around and delayed the certification, then maybe it was for you, too.
I’m trying to think of ways to lighten up the events of last week, and I’m struggling. It was bad, as bad as it gets, and the best I can do is gallows humor. (I wanted to include a photo of the gallows and noose out front of the Capitol, but you’ll have to view it here, since I wasn’t about to pay $375 to the agency that was selling rights to it on behalf of a photographer.)
There were difficult demonstrations during the 1960s and early 1970s. Most were simply occupations of university buildings, to push for withdrawal of American troops from Vietnam. I was at one in 1967 in front of the Justice Department in Washington and was tear-gassed. Very scary, but there was never any thought to taking over a government building and people. There were radicals building bombs, some of which went off in apartments in New York. There were shootings of judges at court houses in California. There was Kent State in 1970, where four students were killed by Ohio National Guard troops for no obvious reason than having been standing in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But the scenes at the U.S. Capitol last Wednesday were a whole different dimension. When you watch the videos of the destruction and the marauding mobs, you realize that it was only because of a few lucky breaks that legislators and the vice president weren’t rounded up and hauled out to that gallows set up outside the capitol.
We’ve gotten to hear a lot of words unfamiliar to most Americans. Insurrection, coup d’etat, sedition, putsch. All having to do with violently overthrowing the government. Some have questioned how a few hundred crazies in the Capitol could overthrow a government. Amazingly simple: By preventing the legislators, overseen by the vice president, from certifying the electoral vote—usually a ceremonial event—the matter of the next president could suddenly have become a matter of serious confusion. And who might have stepped into the vacuum to proclaim himself the real leader ongoing?
Insurrection is a word we’ve only heard in this country when reading history books about the Civil War. Insurrection is one of the most serious crimes a citizen can commit. That’s why the 14th Amendment—to give citizenship to former slaves, right after the Civil War—includes a provision that anyone guilty of insurrection is forbidden to hold office in the U.S., unless two-thirds of Congress agrees.
In other countries, insurrections and coups are matters of very serious consequences. A failed coup in Turkey in 2016 led to 50,000 arrests, 20,000 people losing their passports, and more than 100,000 people being fired from state and university jobs over the two years that followed. Last November, 337 individuals identified as ringleaders received multiple life sentences.
On January 6, the crowd outside America’s capitol had been stoked beforehand by President Trump, when he reviewed, yet again for the unpteenth time, his grievances, the falsehoods about the election having been stolen from him, and then declared: “Today, we see a very important event though, because right over there, right there, we see the event going to take place. And I’m going to be watching, because history is going to be made. We’re going to see whether or not we have great and courageous leaders or whether or not we have leaders that should be ashamed of themselves throughout history, throughout eternity, they’ll be ashamed. And you know what? If they do the wrong thing, we should never ever forget that they did. Never forget. We should never ever forget.”
History was certainly made, but for all the wrong reasons. The event laid bare the authoritarian (some would say fascist) virus that has been taking hold in the minds of many Americans for years now. Stoked most intensively by two months of “the big lie,” unrelenting claims of election fraud—claims that had been rejected by 60 courts, including twice by the U.S. Supreme Court, along with state legislatures and secretaries of state.
Once the U.S. legislators reconvened amid a quickly cleaned Capitol building the evening of Jan. 6 and confirmed Joe Biden’s election as president, things seemed to quiet significantly. That was because social media finally, after years of indulging Trump and his outlandish accusations and conspiracy theories, finally pulled the plugs on him and associates on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media. Platforms threw Parler off. Corporations joined in to discontinue contributions to the Republicans. Bill Belichick, coach of the New England Patriots, refused the Presidential Medal of Honor. European officials refused to meet with America’s secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, forcing him to cancel his trip. In other words, important people and organizations took actions to isolate the virus carriers.
That raised all kinds of claims of censorship from supporters remaining on Facebook and elsewhere. One of the first lessons I learned in journalism school (in a class on libel law) is “you can’t yell ‘fire!’ in a crowded theater” (per U.S. Supreme Court). In other words, speech that is both dangerous and false not only isn’t protected, it is toxic and subject to ban (and can be libelous). Trump’s repeated assertions that the election was fraudulent, even after having that claim rejected in 60 courts, including twice before the Supreme Court, is a classic example. Yet he used the repeated assertion on social media to foment insurrection (as dangerous as it gets), so Twitter and FB acted responsibly.
Here’s one interesting assessment from a NYTimes columnist: “In fact, Twitter and Facebook’s ejection of Trump is pretty much the opposite of what happens in China; it would be inconceivable for the Chinese social media giant Weibo to block President Xi Jinping. Trump’s social media exile represents, in some ways, a libertarian dream of a wholly privatized public sphere, in which corporations, not government, get to define the bounds of permissible speech…..”
Clearly, speech can be weaponized to do serious damage. Hopefully the fever of this virus has broken, and we’ll see a lowering of voices and more isolation and punishment of the perpetrators. There’s an old saying: “Nothing focuses the mind like the hangman’s noose.”
wow. you are a moron. nothing can cure you. put you out of our misery
Ilo, I am glad to be reminded of the misery of those who have been cruelly lied to and misled by a monster, a con man, an arrested developmentally crippled man child. I blame money in politics and well, racism that has been used forever by the rich to pit the races against each other to keep wages low. I thought David’s column was strong and clear and accurate. I was quite moved by his eloquence and deep caring about our nation, and our fragile hold on Democracy. Sorry you had to miss all that.
A summer of violence, burning, looting, and the murder of supporters of the president, which the mainstream media and politicians of the Left called “peaceful protests?” And the murder of many elderly New Yorkers by an ignorant, dictatorial governor? You’re OK with that? Only a single federal judge, in a single case of electoral fraud, looked at the evidence, and ruled on the merits of the lawsuits. She said the plaintiffs were likely to win on the merits. She was overruled on the appellate level. In every other case, the courts punted. Dismissed them for lack of standing. What we have now is a full takeover of our government by the oligarchs. Complete censorship of all dissenting views, not just on vaccines, but on anything which threatens profits. This is a world you want to live in? You think the candidate who promised a “dark winter” was popular enough to win the election? You most certainly have not looked at the evidence, which is vast and compelling, of this Chicago-style election.
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Ditto.
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Gary, you are resorting to what I call the “whataboutism” tactic….Hey, the insurrection was bad, but what about Cuomo’s bungling of the Covid virus and what about the looting at some Black Lives Matter demonstrations and what about….what about…..A couple points:
Voting is an imperfect process, but in a democratic system, it’s what you go by, and it’s up to the participants to accept the results. Nearly all America’s presidential candidates over 240 years have followed that approach…..until Donald Trump decided to weaponize the inherent imperfections to create doubt, and create “a big lie”. In his view, there was no result that was satisfactory except for him being declared the winner.
We don’t have anything close to “a full takeover of our government by oligarchs.” Certain industries, like agriculture or telecomm, are very concentrated. But there is still a huge amount of competition in most industries–just try starting a business in most areas, and you’ll see. As for “complete censorship of dissenting views,” it’s just not happening. I’m on Facebook a lot, and there continues to be serious debate about the election, vaccines, and many other issues. The major social media shut down Trump and some of his supporters because he continuously violated their rules by posting false information. You go in their playgrounds, you play by their rules. You don’t like the rules, then go play somewhere else.
Gary,
Thanks for the post. Not sure why people are not willing to believe what is in front of them. I suppose it is easier to let the main stream media dictate the narrative than to verify it for yourself. I often wonder if Trump regrets not usurping the governors and mayors who let their cities be burned out, and completely taken over by these violent anti-government trouble makers, this summer. I thought Trump was right to stay out of the states’ business. Surely, he would have been called out harshly for overstepping his authority.
I become physically ill listening to Elizabeth Warren, say to CNN , “..a President who stood in front of a mob and told them to go the Capitol and invade” and, “he told them to take up arms” Does she realize his speech was televised. How does a legislator get to change the President’s words from: ” peacefully and patriotically go to the Capitol, to, take up arms and invade?
So my neighbor explains, she did hear Trump say, that night, he wanted “no violence, everyone needs to go home”, but, she did not think he was sincere, so, according to her, it was insurrection. Well, he looked sincere to me, since he knew this was not helping his cause.
I guess I am just shocked at this group. Below, David says we may go from a democratic society…Am I reading that David thinks we are a democracy? And, who is inciting insurrection, the person saying go peacefully, or the person saying he told them to take up arms?
Bobbi, here are a few responses to your comment, because it’s easy to forget or overlook what really happened as we move further from the event (more than 3 weeks now):
1.Re Elizabeth Warren’s comments, you didn’t provide a link, but I believe I found the interview, at the link following this point. At the 5-minute mark, she says some of what you quote, but not all. She says the part that the “president stood in front of a mob…” But, and this is a big “but,” I can’t find her saying, “He told them to take up arms.” If she had said that, I would agree, that was an exaggeration of what he said, since Trump didn’t allude to arms.
https://www.facebook.com/CNNReplay/videos/210464307401226/
2.As far as what Trump did say, your assessment that he just said they should “peacefully and patriotically go to the capitol” isn’t entirely accurate. Now, Trump is very careful to not be explicit when advising people to do something illegal (his personal lawyer has testified that Trump “speaks in code” when asking those around him to commit crimes, so he can’t be easily charged). But there is a transcript of his remarks online, and you and others here might want to read through it, because he goes beyond the “peacefully and patriotically” you recount.
https://wnyt.com/politics/transcript-of-trumps-speech-at-rally-before-us-capitol-riot/5977040/
I’ve read through it a few times (it’s long, since it was about a 1 hour 15 minute speech), but he says several times that you don’t get anywhere by being nice in this type of situation. Here is one such statement:
“Mike Pence is going to have to come through for us, and if he doesn’t, that will be a, a sad day for our country because you’re sworn to uphold our Constitution.
“Now, it is up to Congress to confront this egregious assault on our democracy. And after this, we’re going to walk down, and I’ll be there with you, we’re going to walk down, we’re going to walk down….
“Because you’ll never take back our country with weakness. You have to show strength and you have to be strong. We have come to demand that Congress do the right thing and only count the electors who have been lawfully slated, lawfully slated.”
Later on, he ended his speech by declaring the entire voting process “fraud on a scale never seen before.”–not something designed to calm people down.
“But it shows you the media’s genius. In fact, probably if I was the media, I’d do it the same way. I hate to say it. But we got to get them straightened out.
“Today, for the sake of our democracy, for the sake of our Constitution, and for the sake of our children, we lay out the case for the entire world to hear. You want to hear it?
(Audience responds: “Yeah”)
“In every single swing state, local officials, state officials, almost all Democrats, made illegal and unconstitutional changes to election procedures without the mandated approvals by the state legislatures.
“That these changes paved a way for fraud on a scale never seen before.”
3.You are correct that Trump did tell people to go home…..but he did that several hours after the mob stormed the Capitol and had done its damage and nearly killed many legislators. Classic case of asking that the barn door be closed well after the horses had run out. Here is an account of that statement, which you might want to read, as well as view the video of Trump’s statement:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-06/trump-says-stay-peaceful-after-urging-supporters-to-protest
4.You mock my saying that we might have lost our democracy. Just to explain, “democracy” is a shorthand way of saying that we live in a democratic republic, or in a representative democracy. You can laugh all you want at that, but we do have federal elections every two years, which are seriously overseen by Republicans and Democrats alike in the 50 states. Following this last election in November, Trump’s own election official at Homeland Security said we had the most the “most secure election” ever in the U.S. All I can say to you is that if Trump had succeeded with the insurrection, we very likely wouldn’t have had another real election for many years, because dictators don’t like honest elections. Fortunately, we’ll never know whether my prediction is accurate.
I don’t think any fever has broken, anywhere. The crazies are still feverish and delirious with whatever their perspective is and there’s no convincing them otherwise. Those on “the left” (whatever that is) will berate and legislate the “crazies” on other side, while the stormtroopers on “the right” already are labeling the opposition “antifa” (again, whatever that is in one’s own mind). The playbook: Always demonize The Other and encourage the peons beat one another to a pulp in the streets, while the banksters laugh all the way to, well, the bank. History repeats itself.
Sadly, Kieron, I believe you are right. It’s only driven the virus deeper into the organs. I stand back and shake my head at the insanity of both sides.
With respect to the demonstrations in Washington David I think you are making a mountain out of a molehill. Your use of the word “insurrection” is hardly indicative of the majority of the protesters. The real virus in your country and what likely brought this demonstration to a head is biased media censorship. A ever growing phenomenon that that existed several years before 2016 and that I am all too familiar with due to my position in regards to vaccinations. Censorship, along with these insane destructive draconian government lockdown measures are backing people into a corner and the eventual outcome will not be pretty.
As the following American Institute for Economic Research article titled, “The Liberal Left Has Gone Fully Illiberal” states, “Over ten months, I have watched with incredulity as the liberal-left has unquestioningly and unequivocally embraced policies, ostensibly to manage the coronavirus pandemic, that are not only illiberal but authoritarian. With each passing day, those on the left-liberal side of the political spectrum display greater acceptance of increasingly oppressive measures. Maybe I should have been prepared…
With respect to the public being “deprived of our basic liberties” the article goes on to state, “We cannot freely associate with other people, operate our businesses, send our children to school, or travel to many places without having to isolate for two weeks, which often translates into visiting loved ones becoming a practical impossibility. College students are imprisoned in dorm rooms for weeks because they or someone they interacted with tested positive for the virus (I will leave the topic of the unreliability of these tests for another day). They are expelled, harshly punished, and shamed for attending parties and socializing in groups. It is no surprise that, condemned for engaging in the most natural activities for those their age, suicidal ideation, depression, and drug usage have skyrocketed in this demographic. Children are forbidden from playing with one another.”
And again the article goes on to state, “Particularly chilling is a piece published in the New York Times on January 4, 2021, “In a Topsy-Turvy Pandemic World, China Offers Its Version of Freedom,” by Li Yuan. Notably, this article appeared not in the opinion pages, where arguably it could defensively be printed, but in the news section, and accordingly can be deemed representative of the Times’s views. It is worth pointing out that the Times’s influence cannot be overstated: it is the journalistic arm of the Democratic establishment and informs the consciousness and values of the urban professional class. One can be fairly certain that the beliefs of most doctors, teachers, lawyers, and professors will reflect the ideas propagated in the paper… Ms. Yuan’s article (New York Times) is simply a more express admission than many of the paper’s more subtle suggestions that liberal values are overrated and ought to be abandoned in favor of virus suppression policies that do not bother with such annoyances as human rights.”
https://www.aier.org/article/the-liberal-left-has-gone-fully-illiberal/
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Making a mountain out of a molehill? Have you watched the videos of what was going on inside the capitol last week? I realize that many of the people who showed up to protest in DC weren’t part of the mob that invaded the capitol. but those that did were a major threat to the democratic process. And except for a few lucky breaks, dozens of legislators could have been taken hostage and/or marched outside to the gallows…..and killed.
I also believe you are overstating the influence of the NYTimes. The influence of nearly all newspapers that once dominated the media landscape have declined considerably, eclipsed by online news sites and personalities, many of which are very conservative (Breitbart, Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, etc.).
I think you’re going to see the restrictions imposed by Covid-19 diminish considerably over the rest of this year, as the various vaccines are administered widely. Believe me, governors and other public officials don’t like imposing as much control as they’ve implemented. For one thing, such measures are unpopular. More important, they are terribly costly–state and local governments have been deprived of a huge amount of tax revenues. These officials much prefer their constituents out eating and drinking….and spending $$$.
from your perspective you believe it is just how
I did, and I watched interviews of both those who remained outside of the building conversing peacefully with the police and that hodgepodge of individuals that entered the building some of whom were despicably aggressive and crude, as well as others who were merely caught up in the moment and “regretfully” entered the building out of curiosity and/ or a desire to make a point and be heard… “Insurrection” was the last thing that most of the protesters had on their mind and those who make such accusations are making a mountain out of a molehill. That said, any type of protest that is destructive and violent is despicable and it is equally despicable when factions and/or individuals in the media focus on, distort and play up the violence for biased political reasons.
As far as the New York times is concerned, its influence continues to be substantial despite the competition… As Dennis Prager put it, “The Mainstream press is Pravda”. The following interview titled, “The Left’s Lockstep Pseudo-Intellectualism” with Dennis Prager is germane.
https://www.facebook.com/TippingPointonOAN/videos/315149253171812
As I stated in April on your blog, “the current supercilious attitudes reflected in the absurd methods being used in an attempt to “snuff out” this novel coronavirus, such as restrictions on movement and so-called hygiene protocols will eventually be relaxed, not because they were effective or because an experimental toxic vaccine was fast tracked and introduce, but because the virus has naturally established itself in the general population and a state of herd immunity has been achieved”. Unfortunately, and despite the governors and other public officials’ intent, the harsh destructive effects of these poorly thought out draconian covid-19 measures are going to have to be endured for many years to come.
That first incomplete sentence was not meant to be a part of my comment… That said however, perspective does seem to be a large conributing factor when it comes to protests.
Masses are Asses.
That quote applies quite well here. It could very well be true that most of the people that approached the Capitol did not participate in actual violence.
But guess what….. they stood by and watched and he nothing to stop the pillaging and rioting. They are totally guilty by close association. They carried the Trump flags. They wire the MAGA hats. They chanted the bigoted. Hate speech.
All of you so called “good patriotic people” need to find your good spine and stop being cult puppets and big lie believers. The moral center of the Republican party has finally found their moral spine and have broken with Trump.
You are totally fine to hold conservative policy ideologies but when it comes to truth and drinking the coolaide after Trump has revealed his Nazi fascist, racist, sociopathic seditionist little man self you are the true problem that faces America. Trump would not be powerful if the alt right racists did not love him. Look in the mirror…. you are the problem. It is disgusting.
Take away twitter and FB and the emperor’s got o power He can no longer spew and puke is garbage and big lies
Little man just became a despot nobody. I bet he is in jail in less than ten days.
Sick of listening to the racist crap and leftist bashing. The rest of the world is in shock. We have lost our American moral guidestone. My friends from the EU are truly concerned for the loss of the once good American reputation for moral leadership in the world.
If I don’t speak out…. I am complicit. Just like the morons that attended the Trump rally. They are complicit.
This is just for you Mark…
“Dr. Simone Gold – The truth about the CV19 vaccine”
David, A good read and good comments!!
Insurrection, coup d’etat, sedition, putsch. (I had to look up the meaning of putsch.) Words not heard these days are malfeasance and misfeasance which mean deliberate wrongdoing and inadvertent wrongdoing respectively.
To me, misfeasance means political leaders formulate policies that, when implemented, results don’t match intents. A case in point is political response to the COVID-19 problem.
Of necessity, politicians of all stripes rely on policy advisors for intelligence. Unfortunately, experts in our most respected institutions fed the president, governors, and mayors information that led to disastrous consequences. For example, with one notable exception, the public health sector insisted that achieving vitamin D sufficiency would not prevent COVID-19 infections and complications. As recently as December 17, 2020 a BMJ article title read, “Covid-19: Evidence is lacking to support vitamin D’s role in treatment and prevention. (Web search – BMJ Vitamin D COVID-19)
By way of contrast, during the last four months of 2020, Ireland was the only European country to maintain a flat Daily New Deaths curve despite fluctuations in the Daily New Cases curve. (Web search – Ireland Worldometer) What did they do differently in Ireland? Back in May 2020 Rose Anne Kenny and colleagues of Trinity College Dublin, were “adamant that the recommendations from all public health bodies should be for the population to take vitamin D supplements during this pandemic.” (Web search – Rose Anne Kenny Vitamin D deficit link)
Here in the USA the wind may be changing. On January 5, 2020, MEDPAGE TODAY published an Op-Ed entitled “Don’t Let COVID-19 Patients Die With Vitamin D Deficiency”. (Web search – Richard Carmona Vitamin D) The article begins, “The U.S. is breaking new records in the number of daily deaths from COVID-19. The breakneck speed with which several vaccines have been developed and deployed is nothing short of breathtaking. Yet we still have to confront the grim prediction that our national death toll will exceed 500,000 Americans before widespread vaccinations can dig us out of this crisis. The response to the pandemic, therefore, should include an effort to aggressively eliminate what is becoming apparent as a morbidity and mortality risk factor in COVID-19 — vitamin D deficiency.”
Thank you for sharing your thoughts here, David. It’s difficult to wrap my mind around what happened on January 6. One of the headlines in today’s Wall Street Journal (hardly a liberal bastion of news) is “Lawmakers Were Feet and Seconds Away From Confrontation With Mob: The rampage was a rare and deadly assault by American citizens on the halls of Congress, leaving two killed, three others dead and widespread damage.” Those rioters were intent on harming our vice-president, members of Congress, and their staffers. They killed one police officer and injured other police officers. That certainly qualifies as insurrection in my book! I fervently hope that the next week and the inauguration pass peacefully.
David,
Totally agree. Trump has released the evils that lurk in the hearts of the right wingers. That evil was fueled and empowered by its leadership in Trump.
Now the idiots that follow Trump are going to pay for their sedition and treason and murder
My concern is wether our country has the guts to bring Trump to justice. We must bring him to atone for the uncounted disgusting acts against not only our country but it’s citizens and humanity in general. The big lies and the persistence in telling them over and over and over again is the greatest sin of all.
Loss of truth And accountability is our greatest loss.
I am overjoyed to see Twitter take away his micro phone. It’s “the emperor has no clothes time”. No Twitter…. no cult power. This is very revealing time. Corporate America has taken charge of morals and ethics. Forbes magazine is posting the names of those Trump admin people that told lies. Warning other future employers to never hire a liar.
That’s accountability.
Precisely… “What threatens the country? A foolish, stupid, wrongheaded, vile attack on the Capitol, which reopened for business within hours, versus the ongoing suppression of free speech? It’s not symmetrical.” Dennis Prager
https://www.theepochtimes.com/dennis-prager-capitol-siege-was-vile-but-lefts-suppression-of-free-speech-is-worse_3655365.html?utm_source=newsnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=breaking-2021-01-13-4
Ken,
Thank you for the Dr Simone Gold MD link. I listened to every word she said.
She lost me when she started saying political things like Socialism and the left!
She posed plenty of questions. She had few answers. Her call to action was more about freedom than anything. Her concern for questions about fertility are interesting.
I do agree that waiting is a good idea. It will no longer be experimental in a short time. It is being given to millions of people. Data will tell the story very soon.
Ken Conrad,
The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees freedom of speech, very, very Specifically, the language states that there will be No suppression of free speech by the government. This halting/banning of incendiary language is/was “Not” imposed by any government. The censorship is being imposed by a private corporation. What they are doing is no different than me writing a letter to the editor in my local newspaper, saying things that go against their policies, and having the letter refused by the editor of the newspaper for not adhering to their corporate policies, No Difference, At All !! The government has done “Nothing” to suppress anyone’s right to free speech. But the asshats that rioted in D.C. sure screwed things up for us law abiding gun owners, gun control will be on it’s way now, from both sides of the aisle. It is “Always” just a few idiots that screw things up for the rest of us!! thank You Very Much Ass Hats!!
Not true, you are extremely naive if you believe that government has not and is not involved in private company censorship. Adam Schiff for example and to be specific made a formal request to these so-called private companies to address any info that contradicts the current vaccine narrative…
“Schiff Sends Letter to Google, Facebook Regarding Anti-Vaccine Misinformation”
https://schiff.house.gov/news/press-releases/schiff-sends-letter-to-google-facebook-regarding-anti-vaccine-misinformation
As I stated to David a while back, “Private or not censorship is an egregious crime… Yes, they are private companies, but to suggest that the government isn’t involved is absolutely incorrect. I have had three separate articles blocked questioning the effectiveness of masks… Why would a private company want to do that? Who is pulling their strings?
Ken Conrad,
Wholeheartedly disagree with you.
One more thing about Dr Gold.
Never heard of a doctor that refused to wear mask and strongly encouraging others not to wear one.
Doctors know that a mask will decrease pathogen load. Regardless of the airborne pathogen.
She provided no evidence to support her position about no masks. She suggested that wearing a mask some how infringed on liberties and freedom.
After some reflection…. I now know why she was fired. She is not driven by medical practice. She is driven by freedoms and questions of “maybe and what if??”
She had doubts about the experimental vaccine. She had few facts.
She is a lawyer plus a doctor.
Check out Nd Bruce Fife about masks.http://coconutresearchcenter.org/HWNL_SpecialEdition2021.htm
Mark there are many doctors that reject the need to wear a mask and who do not wear them… Some are exempt, others flat out refuse to do so and have been defrocked and many who do wear masks are merely doing so because they are being compelled by the system and their patients who squeal on them. As soon as you place that device on your face you begin to recirculate stale contaminated air. A well proven fact that is clearly not natural, nor is it healthy… Many health care professionals, based on experience are keenly aware of the above fact and refuse to wear a mask for that very reason…
In the following article by retired neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock M.D., published May 14, 2020 in Technocracy News & Trends he states, “We know that people who have the worst reactions to the coronavirus have the highest concentrations of the virus early on. And this leads to the deadly cytokine storm in a selected number… By wearing a mask, the exhaled viruses will not be able to escape and will concentrate in the nasal passages, enter the olfactory nerves and travel into the brain.”
https://www.technocracy.news/blaylock-face-masks-pose-serious-risks-to-the-healthy/
A recent study involving 159 healthcare workers aged 21 to 35 years of age found that “81% developed headaches from wearing a face mask… That is, a reduction in blood oxygenation (hypoxia) or an elevation in blood CO2 (hypercapnia). It is known that the N95 mask, if worn for hours, can reduce blood oxygenation as much as 20%. And proper oxygenation of the blood is essential for energy, mental clarity, focus and emotional well-being”. There are numerous other studies to back up this one…
Regardless of what one believes, nobody should condemn anyone for their choice of wearing or not wearing a mask. Sadly however, it’s not shared by self-righteous germaphobes and would-be tin-pot dictators, some of whom appear to revel in their newfound autocratic power to order citizens around like serfs.
Clearly there are divergent opinions on the practice of wearing masks.
It will be very revealing to see the long term studies that come from this entire human experience and saga.
I don’t give a lot of credence to the freedom arguments. In the raw milk arena, in the past, “freedom at all costs” and ignoring strong raw milk standards put plenty of people in the hospital.
In the recent past ( of five years ) with more and more raw milk producers using strict sanitation protocols for raw milk we have seen fewer and fewer outbreaks. Peer reviewed evidence and published researched shows this.
In the last couple of years nada.
Strict raw milk standards were violently opposed ten years ago. Then high standards became the standard and the freedom fighters went silent.
When ever the freedom fighting raw milk producers made someone sick, they blamed others and ran for the hills to avoid responsibility. So much for Taking responsibility and personal integrity. Much more like cowardice to me.
You can get all the freedom you would ever want by taking personal and professional responsibility “first”.
Building Your host immune system strength by microbiome nutrition is fundamental. Data is clear. Those with compromised immune systems, obesity, co-morbotities and older ages… are generally the people that are dying from Covid
Masks or no masks??
I find it a weird thing to fight over. It’s not a hill to die on. I really don’t care. I wear a mask ? when required and who cares.
When taking a pulse OX measurement with and without a mask my numbers were exactly the same. This old paramedic has a pulse ox.
Much ado about freedom…. but where is the true action to build host immunity and micro biome strength?
Where is the action to oppose our soon to be ex president? He takes zero responsibility for anything and lies about everything Blaming others when possible.
Freedom must be based on personal responsibility. Bottom line.
an example of what happens when people start thinking for demselves
Kansas nurses refuse to give COVID-19 vaccines
Department chief Lindsay Payer and her colleagues have refused to administer any Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to residents. Coffey County KS
Coffee County in Kansas has roughly 8,500 residents, but they won’t be getting their COVID-19 shots from the county health department’s four nurses.
Department chief Lindsay Payer and her staffers have opted out of giving the injections because they have doubts about the safety of the Moderna vaccine, which the county is offering, local TV station WIBW reported.
Payer told WIBW that her employees made up their own minds and “not without considerable thought.” The county will hire at least one outside nurse, who will be paid with COVID-19 funds.
“I will tell you we will have to contract staff…because my staff is not comfortable with that. It’s a new technology. We’ve never seen it before. It was only studied in 45 people before it was approved…,” Payer said.
“It’s somewhat discomforting to a nurse who has to put that in people’s bodies.”
Check this out by Nd Bruce Fife about masks.http://coconutresearchcenter.org/HWNL_SpecialEdition2021.htm
Excellent interview with Dennis Prager…
“We’re living in a gigantic lie that is reminiscent of the Reichstag fire… Everywhere the left assumes power it suppresses free speech.” Dennis Prager
https://www.theepochtimes.com/video-dennis-prager-this-is-the-reichstag-fire-relived_3657503.html?utm_source=newsnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=breaking-2021-01-15-2
The ever changing so-called science based shifting COVID-19 goal posts… if it wasn’t so tragic it would be laughable.
“Chicago Mayor Calls for Bars, Restaurants to Reopen to Prevent Spread of COVID”
https://www.cnsnews.com/blog/melanie-arter/chicago-mayor-calls-bars-restaurants-reopen-prevent-spread-covid?fbclid=IwAR0xtyrcPYUkimFnqGM5Q4_7JhRxQwXwaZ3CsbmVpDbY-d0hEGWiCMtX8rA
COVID-19: A Fabricated Second “Tidal Wave” of Poverty and Injustice
Crimes against Humanity. The people who are implementing and enforcing lockdown measures are directly contributing to the untold suffering and deaths of millions of people
https://www.globalresearch.ca/covid-19-fabricated-second-wave-crimes-against-humanity/5732054?fbclid=IwAR2LeY79tagEy2_UUL7rSYqx0GQxWnBGN5O46tvnDuvqBvUv6dsuwPlOSXo
Ken Conrad,
I’m sure this second wave was fabricated also: https://www.history.com/news/spanish-flu-second-wave-resurgence For such an intelligent man, you sure buy into the fringe news quite a bit, which actually surprises me quite a bit.
John, The common sense warnings as to the harm that would result from these lockdowns was made by myself and others from the get go, and the repercussions of the lockdowns are being revealed daily by many upstanding and credible individuals and organizations… Unfortunately, politicians and health bureaucrats have ignored these warnings and have opted to implement the popular, narrow, militaristic germaphobe approach… An approach that I do not share and have not shared for over 30 years. Indeed, and an approach and narrative that I am extremely annoyed with when the powers that be use it in an attempt to impose it on the general populous by toying with their emotions and making them feel that they are caught between a rock and a hard place unless they conform… It is an extremely overbearing and divisive approach that is akin to many of the religions of the world, past and present.
Today was a great day. I cried several times during the inauguration. Garth Brooks singing, J Lo singing and the Sincere speaking and heartfelt prayers. The National Poet speaker wow! Watching Obama, Clinton and Bush giving Biden 100% support. This is the America I missed and dearly love.
Calls came in from all of our ex foreign exchange students ( Denmark and Norway ) as they expressed their joy for our new president and history making Vice President.
Unity…. we have some healing to do.
It is unfortunate the Democrat party lacked the wisdom and maturity to elect this woman as their presidential candidate…
J. Michael Waller (at the center for security policy org) wrote an on-site account of what he saw on 1/6. It was published on 1/13 and, in part, he wrote:
“…This article is a first-person, eyewitness account drafted the night of January 6 and morning of January 7, so it is not affected by other news coverage or information. The only research aids used in this article were photos and videos that I took from my phone. I have witnessed and participated in scores of protests since the 1970s, when as a high school student I was trained by professional agitators from California. Apart from my own professional background and experience, nothing in this article is derived from any third-party information or analysis….”
“…Having spent decades around the Capitol since my days as a junior Senate and House staffer, and loving the building and its history as one of our greatest national treasures, I was confident that the Capitol would remain safe. But the lack of perimeter police presence, and the confused actions of those firing tear gas, flash grenades, and pepper balls from the presidential swearing-in platform, had me thinking that something was wrong at the command level. What if someone did break into the Capitol? Not possible….”
I read his account.
All the best in the new year to everybody,
J. Ingvar Odegaard
Hope strings eternal.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.13newsnow.com/amp/article/news/nation-world/insurance-food-medicine-coverage-health/507-9a48f327-9d78-4054-80b5-69e1a671d7ad
When medical insurance companies start to realize that drugs do not provide health…. good food does. On top of that these insurance companies realize that well nourished citizens are healthier and don’t cost as much to insure.
There is hope.
‘Go to the Supermarket’: COVID Cops Threaten Families With Fines for Buying Farm Stand Milk
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2021/01/25/go-to-the-supermarket-covid-cops-threaten-families-fines-going-farm-stand/
British police reportedly threatened to fine families for buying milk from a farm stand and told patrons to take their business to supermarkets in order to keep in line with coronavirus restrictions.
Police told families last week attempting to buy milk from a vending machine in Trelogan, Wales, that they would be fined unless they immediately left the farmstand, with officers claiming people should purchase “essential” products from supermarkets or shops.
A good essay today atop the website of Dr Henry Makow, to do with the future of the food supply
http://www.henrymakow.com
Some ‘conspiracy theories’ have a whole lot of hard evidence to substantiate them
the Covid SCAM-demic accelerated what happened as the ‘legacy’ dairy industry failed over the last half century : 2 clear streams developing > fake phoods/ ersatz edible substances easily cheaply available profiting giant corporations > REAL nutrition / nutriceuticals = much more expensive produced by artisanal enterprises
No mere co-incidence that some New World Order advocates use the beehive model. All bees start out with potential to develop fully and are fed properly for the first week. Then, those designated to be workers, have their nutrition reduced to subsistence / most bees are stunted so as to prevent sexual maturity. Meanwhile queens and drones are fed properly
…….. CONTROL OUR FOOD
The confusing aspect for many is the plethora of front groups, NGOs and programs which all lead to the same goal: the drastic control over every member of society in the name of sustainability–UN Agenda 2030. Nowhere is it more ominous than in their plans for the future of our food. After creating the present system of globalized industrial agriculture, agribusiness, a project begun in the 1950s by the Rockefeller Foundation, the same circles now advocate “sustainable” agriculture which will mean a shift to genetically edited fake foods, lab-made synthetic meats and such, even including worms and weeds as new food sources.
The WEF’S Schwab has partnered with something called EAT Forum, which describes itself as a “Davos for food” that plans to “set the political agenda.” EAT was created in Sweden in 2016 with support from the UK Wellcome Trust (established with funds from GlaxoSmithKline), and the German Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.
Lab-grown synthetic gene-edited meats are being supported among others by Bill Gates, the same one backing Moderna and other genetically edited vaccines. EAT works among others with Impossible Foods and other biotech companies. Impossible Foods was initially co-funded by Google, Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates. Recent lab results showed the company’s imitation meat contained toxic glyphosate levels 11 times higher than its closest competitor.
In 2017 EAT launched FReSH (Food Reform for Sustainability and Health) with the backing of Bayer AG, one of the world’s most toxic pesticide and GMO producers that now owns Monsanto; the China-owned GMO and pesticide giant Syngenta, Cargill, Unilever, DuPont and even Google. This is the planned food future under the Great Reset. Forget the traditional family farmer.
In his 2020 book on The Great Reset, Schwab argues that biotechnology and genetically modified food should become a central pillar to global food scarcity issues, issues which COVID has exacerbated.
He is pushing GMO and especially the controversial gene-editing. He writes “global food security will only be achieved if regulations on genetically modified foods are adapted to reflect the reality that gene editing offers a precise, efficient & safe method of improving crops.” Gates, a project partner with Schwab since years, has argued the same.
EAT has developed what it refers to as “the planetary health diet,” which the WEF champions as the “sustainable dietary solution of the future.” But according to Federic Leroy, a food science and biotechnology professor at University of Brussels, “The diet aims to cut the meat and dairy intake of the global population by as much as 90% in some cases and replaces it with lab-made foods, cereals and oil.”
Organic produce sales up 14% in 2020, topping $8.5B
https://fruitgrowersnews.com/news/organic-produce-sales-up-14-in-2020-topping-8-5b/
Below are just a few examples of pharmaceutical industry corruption… Are these the companies you trust to provide you with an experimental vaccine… Indeed, and the companies that have been granted immunity from liability for that same vaccines and others?
Pfizer
SEPT 2009
Pfizer was fined $2.3 billion, then the largest health care fraud settlement and the largest criminal fine ever imposed in the United States. Pfizer pled guilty to misbranding the painkiller Bextra with “the intent to defraud or mislead”, promoting the drug to treat acute pain at dosages the FDA had previously deemed dangerously high. Bextra was pulled from the market in 2005 due to safety concerns. The government alleged that Pfizer also promoted three other drugs illegally: the antipsychotic Geodon, an antibiotic Zyvox, and the antiepileptic drug Lyrica.
Merck
NOV 2011
Merck agreed to pay a fine of $950 million related to the illegal promotion of the painkiller Vioxx, which was withdrawn from the market in 2004 after studies found the drug increased the risk of heart attacks. The company pled guilty to having promoted Vioxx as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis before it had been approved for that use. The settlement also resolved allegations that Merck made false or misleading statements about the drug’s heart safety to increase sales.
GlaxoSmithKline
JULY 2012
GlaxoSmithKline agreed to pay a fine of $3 billion to resolve civil and criminal liabilities regarding its promotion of drugs, as well as its failure to report safety data. This is the largest health care fraud settlement in the United States to date. The company pled guilty to misbranding the drug Paxil for treating depression in patients under 18, even though the drug had never been approved for that age group. GlaxoSmithKline also pled guilty to failing to disclose safety information about the diabetes drug Avandia to the FDA.
Sanofi-Aventis
DEC 2012
Sanofi-Aventis agreed to pay $109 million to resolve allegations that the company gave doctors free units of Hyalgan (an injection to relieve knee pain) to encourage those doctors to buy their product. Sanofi lowered the effective price by promising these free samples to doctors, but at the same time got inflated prices from government programs by submitting false price reports, alleged the United States. Medicare and other government health care programs “paid millions of dollars in kickback-tainted claims for Hyalgan,” according to the DOJ announcement.
Johnson & Johnson
NOV 2013
Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay a $2.2 billion fine to resolve criminal and civil allegations relating to the prescription drugs Risperdal, Invega and Natrecor. The government alleged that J&J promoted these drugs for uses not approved as safe and effective by the FDA, targeted elderly dementia patients in nursing homes, and paid kickbacks to physicians and to the nation’s largest long-term care pharmacy provider, Omnicare Inc. As part of the agreement, Johnson & Johnson admitted that it promoted Risperdal for treatment of psychotic symptoms in non-schizophrenic patients, although the drug was approved only to treat schizophrenia.
Eli Lilly
JAN 2009
Eli Lilly was fined $1.42 billion to resolve a government investigation into the off-label promotion of the antipsychotic Zyprexa. Zyprexa had been approved for the treatment of certain psychotic disorders, but Lilly admitted to promoting the drug in elderly populations to treat dementia. The government also alleged that Lilly targeted primary care physicians to promote Zyprexa for unapproved uses and “trained its sales force to disregard the law
AstraZeneca
APRIL 2010
AstraZeneca was fined $520 million to resolve allegations that it illegally promoted the antipsychotic drug Seroquel. The drug was approved for treating schizophrenia and later for bipolar mania, but the government alleged that AstraZeneca promoted Seroquel for a variety of unapproved uses, such as aggression, sleeplessness, anxiety, and depression. AstraZeneca denied the charges but agreed to pay the fine to end the investigation.
Abbott
MAY 2012
Abbott was fined $1.5 billion in connection to the illegal promotion of the antipsychotic drug Depakote. Abbott admitted to having trained a special sales force to target nursing homes, marketing the drug for the control of aggression and agitation in elderly dementia patients. Depakote had never been approved for that purpose, and Abbott lacked evidence that the drug was safe or effective for those uses. The company also admitted to marketing Depakote to treat schizophrenia, even though no study had found it effective for that purpose.
Boehringer Ingelheim
OCT 2012
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc agreed to pay $95 million to resolve allegations that the company promoted several drugs for non- medically accepted uses. These drugs included the stroke-prevention drug Aggrenox, the lung disease drugs Atrovent and Combivent, and Micardis, a drug to treat high blood pressure. The FDA alleged that Boehringer improperly marketed the drugs and “caused false claims to be submitted to government health care programs.”
Amgen
DEC 2012
Amgen agreed to pay a $762 million fine to resolve criminal and civil charges that the company illegally introduced and promoted several drugs including Aranesp, a drug to treat anemia. Amgen pleaded guilty to illegally selling Aranesp to be used at doses that the FDA had explicitly rejected, and for an off-label treatment that had never been FDA-approved.
Endo
FEB 2014
Endo Health Solutions Inc. and its subsidiary Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. agreed to pay $192.7 million to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from Endo’s marketing of the prescription drug Lidoderm. As part of the agreement, Endo admitted that it intended that Lidoderm be used for unapproved indications and that it promoted Lidoderm to healthcare providers this way.
https://scontent-yyz1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/140701636_691617458197100_2003351619011435041_o.jpg?_nc_cat=109&ccb=2&_nc_sid=730e14&_nc_ohc=3K4Ru-M1fdsAX-ebXrB&_nc_oc=AQlHXZPrADrQRXce_ChUT8GDSU6MEC6ltRSybYgbPxvEo7s7gvGwejeVVGie9EQ0iXQ&_nc_ht=scontent-yyz1-1.xx&oh=c193547761253552aabdee1bdd91d2d8&oe=6035CB0E
I find your list interesting Ken. It included two drugs that personally affected my family members. Both my father and my husband suffered mild head injury from falls, in separate incidents, and both suffered long-term damage from the delayed recognition of their head injuries. My father developed normal pressure hydrocephalus. My husband was bleeding in his brain for 4 months before it was diagnosed. Both wound up with dementia and were ultimately placed in nursing homes. Both had an episode of mild aggression and were subsequently given psychotropic drugs. My father suffered a seizure from Risperdal. My husband was given Depakote for 4 days and lost the ability to talk, to chew, to breathe deeply, to move and to walk. It was responsible for his death. Your post is the first time I have seen that the drug companies paid fines for the same kind of situations that took my loved ones. There is no compensation for the harm they have done and will continue foisting on the population.
https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/raw-drinking-milk#raw-drinking-milk-and-the-law
Clearly the police were misguided and miss informed. Those raw milk consumers have an obligation to educate the police about their ignorance.
Stroke and heart attacks are recognized side effect following vaccinations, including recent deaths following Pfizer and Moderna’s Covid vaccines. During the past decade, there have been a number of studies showing that idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) develops after receipt of vaccines, with authors calling for more research into the association between vaccination and ITP…
“Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura Is More Severe in Children with a Recent History of Vaccination”
https://sites.kowsarpub.com/apid/articles/20219.html
“Conclusions: In this study, a higher rate of more severe ITP in recently vaccinated young children was observed in comparison with other probable etiologies. Further investigations are needed to explain this finding.”