Saturday, January 16, 2021

And another day of a long time coming, parroting far-right talk, the First Amendment, Orwell and language, a science team, ‘inappropriate’ messages, donor backlash, ‘Christian nationalists,’ and boosting minimum wage comes to a close:

“Because nothing ever doesn’t change, but nothing changes much.” -- OK Go

Deaths

US: 405,261 (+3405)

World: 2,030,924 (+13,080)

Cases

US: 24,306,043 (+203,614)

World: 94,951,948 (+639,691)

Countdown: 4 days.

Biden to sign executive orders rejoining Paris climate accord and rescinding travel ban on first day.

The Trump-fueled riot shocked America. To some, it was a long time coming. To countless scholars, advocates and political actors, the violent mob that stormed the halls of Congress on Jan. 6 was not exactly surprising. To some, it wasn’t a matter of whether a mob inspired by Donald Trump would kick down the doors of the Capitol, but when.

Some in the GOP parrot far-right talk of a coming civil war. “At the time of the Civil War, this took the form of Southern white men angry at the idea that the federal government would interfere with their right to own Black slaves. Today, I think this takes the form of white people who believe that Black and brown people are making gains, or getting special treatment, at their expense,” Silber, who teaches at Boston University, said in an email interview. Just as happened generations ago, partisans are using strident words and images to define the other side — not just for policies with which they disagree but as evil, said George Rable, a retired historian at the University of Alabama.

The First Amendment doesn't guarantee you the rights you think it does. Here's a look at some common First Amendment arguments, illuminated and debunked by constitutional experts.

The word “Orwellian” has lost all meaning. How the right made the word “Orwellian” an empty cliché. But what Orwell is particularly angry about is imprecise language, and language that conceals rather than clarifies. Which, for him, includes most political language. “Political language,” he writes, “is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.” For this reason, Orwell argues, politicians are particularly given to lazy, sloppy rhetoric, filled with meaningless buzzwords and clichés. Political language, he says, muffles the sense of what is being communicated, which is so often indefensible, with an overlay of righteous justification. And as a result, those who get caught up in this style of speech — both its speakers and its listeners — find their ability to think caught and shaped by their impoverished language. They are no longer able to recognize a lie as a lie and a murder as a murder because the language in which they speak is so vague as to allow them to consider a lie an alternative fact and a murder a tragic yet unavoidable accident.

Biden rolls out members of science team. The transition team added in the  personnel announcement that Biden will be elevating the post of presidential science adviser to a Cabinet rank.

Trump’s State Department Had a “Humiliating” Lack of Diversity. Can Joe Biden Fix It? “If you have a president who is saying all kinds of racist things, and a secretary of State who is toeing the party line, you’re not going to have a State Department that reflects the values of inclusion.”

Man arrested at a Washington, DC, checkpoint near the Capitol with "unauthorized" inauguration credentials, a gun and more than 500 rounds of ammo, police say.

Democrats have a new tool to undo Trump's 'midnight rule-making.' But there's a catch.

Boebert communications director resigns amid Capitol riot: report.

“No one took us seriously”: Black cops warned about racist Capitol Police officers for years.

Donor backlash fuels GOP alarm about Senate fundraising.

U.S. races to catch up with other countries in COVID-19 sequencing research.

John Weaver, Lincoln Project co-founder, acknowledges “inappropriate” messages. John Weaver, a veteran Republican operative who co-founded the Lincoln Project, declared in a statement to Axios on Friday that he sent “inappropriate,” sexually charged messages to multiple men...During the past week, several men have alleged on social media that Weaver sent them unsolicited and sexually suggestive messages, sometimes coupled with offers of employment or political advancement.

US set for flurry of ‘Christian nationalist’ bills advanced by religious right. Donald Trump is set to leave the White House and Republicans are about to relinquish control of the Senate, but experts are warning the US is facing a wave of rightwing ‘Christian nationalist’ legislation in 2021, as the religious right aims to thrust Christianity into everyday American life. With the supreme court now dominated by Trump-appointed conservative justices, elected officials in states across the country are set to introduce bills which would hack away at LGTBQ rights, reproductive rights, challenge the ability of couples to adopt children, and see religion forced into classrooms, according to a report by the American Atheists organization.

Federal government carries out 13th and final execution under Trump. President Donald Trump’s Justice Department resumed federal executions last year following a 17-year hiatus. No president in more than 120 years had overseen as many federal executions.

Biden minimum wage proposal could lift more than 1 million workers out of poverty.

Rare Mickey Mantle card sells for record-breaking $5.2 million.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.