Daily Ghion Water

The Washington Post put out an in-depth analysis of President Trump’s 1,950 lies and misleading claims over his first year in office. It’s an impressive feat since the Post had to fact-check everything and allow Trump’s third-grade-level speeches to enter its fact-checkers’ earholes, a punishment I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemies. The writers at the Washington Post are correct that lies spray out of Trump’s face with the force of an untethered fire hose. They’re also correct that almost every statement by Trump is either false or misleading. However, the irony is that almost every statement the Washington Post prints in correcting Trump’s lies is in itself a lie or misleading statement. So, to be clear, I’m not saying Trump is not lying. I’m saying that the way in which our mainstream media correct him is also meant to deceive us. [from Lee Camp]

Soup for the Soul

“All the things we want in this country and the things we want to struggle for—peace, justice and equality—are really byproducts of our kinship. No kinship, no peace. No kinship, no equality. And no kinship, no justice,” said Boyle. “No matter how singularly focused we might be on those worthy goals, unless we stand against forgetting that we belong to each other, that there is no us and them, and that’s the point of kinship. So Homeboy Industries tries to be what we think the world is invited to become, which is a community where everybody belongs.” [from Truthdig]

How We Treats the Least Among Us

A Chicago resident who provided overnight cots to the homeless in his basement during the cold snap was threatened with condemnation of his home, for alleged violation of ‘sleeping regulations.’ NBC reported that during the subzero conditions, the Chicago man had the idea to host overnight “slumber parties” for the homeless, but that officials said there are “sleeping regulations” for basements and Schiller’s basement doesn’t meet those requirements. Homelessness is an escalating problem in the US regardless of weather conditions, including an increasing number of Americans who cannot afford housing despite working full-time jobs. Outlets like the New York Post relate that hundreds of full-time New York City workers are homeless, while a report by NBC documented the general issue of homelessness among the employed: [from Disobedient Media]

Another Perspective

“For everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted…,” according to Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. The Vietnamese Buddhist monk “Thich Nhat Hanh had a beautiful way of putting it when a little girl asked him if he’d decided what he’d be in his next life. He said maybe a little dust, and some soil and a bit of the sky, a cloud, a flower, and perhaps other stuff. Then he said ‘oops,’ he had to be careful or he might step on the flower, if he wasn’t being mindful and laughed,” according to Deborah Thayer. Many indigenous cultures are more death aware than the dominant American cultures. For example, this reporter lived in Mexico and appreciates that country’s annual Day of the Dead celebration, where families go to graveyards at night to honor their ancestors. It is still my favorite holiday. I have attended them here in Sonoma County. [from Naked Capitalism]

Did I Mention Corporate Journalism is a Racket

Surprisingly, there is a takeaway from this episode and from the countless hours of Trumped-Up, blatherati-driven coverage churned out by MSNBC, CNN and the three networks … and it’s this: If the so-called “Liberal Media” really is out to “get” Trump … they really suck at it. Why? Because if I was a managing editor at MSNBC (or CNN or the “Today Show” or “Good Morning America,” for that matter) and I was “out to get” Trump … I’d have spent a good three blocks of airtime on former Eli Lilly bigwig Alex Azar. He’s Trump’s replacement for the sleazy, insider trading Dr. Tom Price at the Department of Health and Human Services. Hell, POLITICO even did most of the work when it published a big story detailing the way Eli Lilly gamed the patent system to sustain Cialis as a rock-hard profit producer when Azar was a Lilly exec. They used a pediatric study loophole the makers of OxyContin had once used to squeeze another six months of profits out of their drug. [from Consortium News]

Hoarding Syndrome

Even after all of these excesses, as this week’s news reminded us, Bezos is still worth $106 billion USD. I do not believe that, even if he cashed in all of his Amazon shares, he would be able to spend that much in a lifetime. Even if Bezos leaned in to charity like Bill Gates has—Bezos’ lacklustre philanthropy is infamous—he would still have billions of dollars. For normal human beings, it is simply an unfathomably large sum of money, and it’s yet another stark reminder of something that economists from across the spectrum have been saying for some time now: People like Bezos are getting ever-richer, while average people aren’t seeing in-kind improvements to their lives. It’s gotten so bad that in 2017 even a World Economic Forum report suggested “reforming market capitalism” before wealth inequality becomes so extreme that the whole system falls apart at the seams. [from Motherboard]

From the YouTubes

This Day in History

49BC - Julius Caesar leads his army across the Rubicon River, plunging Rome into civil war. This is where the term “crossing the Rubicon” comes from, as in be careful before making a decision that can unleash unforeseen circumstances.

Quote of the Day

Success without failing is like giving birth without being pregnant::

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