‘How populist are you?’

The Guardian last week presented a quiz one may take to determine one’s level of populism.

I have a screen shot of this above.

But, right here, is the link: How Populist Are You? — Quiz.

Once Again, Here Is Hillary Clinton…

Hillary Clinton strikes again!

Last week, during the week of the holiday that was Thanksgiving 2018, was a published article in The Guardian.

More followed.

Hillary Clinton, the most unpopular presidential nominee in the history of the Democratic Party, who lost the 2016 presidential election to the most unpopular presidential nominee in the history of the Republican Party, Donald Trump, unnecessarily reminds us of the following: While it is not good the president of the United States is Donald Trump, it is good the president of the United States is not Hillary Clinton.

The latest: Hillary Clinton, on not only right-wing populism but also immigration, and what a beauty!

Here, with the following screen shot, is a reminder: Clinton, Blair, Renzi: why we lost, and how to fight back.

I posted it, last week, anyway. But, that was in the comments section.


There is more: Hillary Clinton: Europe must curb immigration to stop rightwing populists.

An opinion piece, in response to this, was followed here: Hillary Clinton’s chilling pragmatism gives the far right a free pass.

Below are some videos—ones by Jimmy Dore, Jamarl Thomas, Mi Casa Es Su Casa’s Niko House, and The Rational National’s David Doel—which have since been uploaded to YouTube.

(I am hoping for videos also come from Tim Black, The Humanist Report’s Mike Figueredo, and Secular Talk’s Kyle Kulinski, or anyone else like The Real News; so, I can add however many of them here as well.)

Thanksgiving Week!

During this week, there will be just this one blog entry thread.

I wish everyone, here at Progressives Chat, a Happy Thanksgiving Day!

Appreciation: Joni Mitchell

Last week, on Wednesday, November 7, 2018, was the 75th birthday for the legendary songwriter and singer Joni Mitchell.

She was born Roberta Joan Anderson, on November 7, 1943, in Fort Macleod, Alberta, Canada. 

I haven’t had the time to write more lengthy about Joni Mitchell. (This was much due to the elections. Timing.) Anyone can do his reading on Mitchell’s roughly 50-year career—including being in her early-20s when she wrote “Both Sides, Now”—and her personal life (including a daughter, born during the 1960s, not revealed until Mitchell was past age 50).

(I wrote and posted, this past March, on the milestone birthdays of other music greats: James Taylor, 70; Quincy Jones, 85; George Benson, 75; and Chaka Khan, 65. To some people looking at those numbers, their ages, it can feel a bit strange. But, as the passing of time shows—well, it does add up. And, so, Joni Mitchell is now 75.)


Mitchell’s career was most prominent during the late-1960s and thoughout the 1970s. She delved into more mainstream pop fare during the 1980s (Dog Eat Dog, 1985; Chalk Mark in a Rainstorm, which garnered her a 1988 Grammy nomination for Female Pop Vocal Performance for the entire LP). Mitchell’s 1990s albums Turbulent Indigo (1995 Grammy for Best Pop Album) and Taming of the Tiger (1998) were more remarkable. I did enjoy her 2002 comment, in Rolling Stone, on what had become of the music industry. While describing it as a “corrupt cesspool,” Mitchell added, “I'll be glad if the industry goes down the crapper.”

In 2008, jazz great Herbie Hancock won the 2007 Grammy for Album of the Year for River: The Joni Letters, an LP which paid tribute specifically to the songs of Mitchell. She even recorded, with Hancock, on “Tea Leaf Prophecy.” (Wikipedia mentions Mitchell shared in some credit with that Grammy: “Although officially a Herbie Hancock release, Mitchell also received a Grammy due to her vocal contribution to the album.”)


In 2015, Joni Mitchell suffered a brain aneurysm. She has been mostly absent from the public. (I don’t have a feeling she will record again. But, I want to be wrong.) In the following picture, Mitchell was at the recent concert tribute in her honor. Rolling Stone reported here: Joni Mitchell at 75: Friends and Admirers Honor an Icon at Moving Tribute Show.

Below are five tracks I appreciate from the following albums: Ladies of the Canyon (1970); Blue (1971); Court and Spark (1974 Grammy nominee for Album of the Year which also included Record of the Year nominee “Help Me”); Turbulent Indigo (1995); and her stirring 2000 re-recording of “Both Sides, Now” (which nabbed her a Grammy nomination for Female Pop Vocal Performance from the album Both Sides Now).

‘Maj. Danny Sjursen: War, Ignored; The Pentagon's Empire of Secrecy…’

Last Thursday, November 8, 2018, The Zero Hour host RJ Eskow interviewed Maj. Danny Sjursen on the 2018 midterm elections and that the continuation of wars was not made an election issue.

As much fun as one can have with election outcomes, this is much more important. The timing happens to also be good. So, I have chosen to make this half-hour video the topic of this blog entry.

Election Night Was ‘Real’ For Abby Martin

I was tempted to write a post-Election 2018 analysis. But, I came across The Real News’s coverage and was impressed by much of it that I wanted to present some of it as this blog entry’s topic. I was particularly appreciative of Abby Martin. And I will share it here.

Election Day

The day has arrived.

The 2018 midterm elections.

I invite readers to comment, as they normally would like, but I really want to encourage comments which will have a focus on the day’s elections.

Here, listed in order of population rank, and on Eastern Time (because of broadcast- and cable-news coverage), is a timeline for when states’ polls will be closing [if you want local information, here is a source: State Poll Opening and Closing Times (2018) ]:

Source: PBS image. (Date is uncertain but is applicable here in 2018.)

07:00 p.m. ET

 • Georgia
 • Virginia
 • Indiana
 • South Carolina
 • Kentucky
 • Vermont

07:30 p.m. ET

 • Ohio
 • North Carolina
 • West Virginia

08:00 p.m. ET

 • Florida
 • Pennsylvania
 • Illinois
 • New Jersey
 • Massachusetts
 • Tennessee
 • Missouri
 • Maryland
 • Alabama
 • Oklahoma
 • Connecticut
 • Mississippi
 • Maine
 • New Hampshire
 • Rhode Island
 • Delaware
 • District of Columbia

08:30 p.m. ET

 • Arkansas

09:00 p.m. ET

 • Texas
 • New York
 • Michigan
 • Arizona
 • Wisconsin
 • Colorado
 • Minnesota
 • Louisiana
 • Kansas
 • Nebraska
 • New Mexico
 • South Dakota
 • North Dakota
 • Wyoming

10:00 p.m. ET

 • Iowa
 • Utah
 • Nevada
 • Montana

11:00 p.m. ET

 • California
 • Washington
 • Oregon
 • Idaho
 • Hawaii

01:00 a.m. ET

 • Alaska

Election Predictions

I chose this thread’s date to post my predictions for next Tuesday’s [Nov. 6, 2018] midterm elections. 

I will not post a thread on Monday [Nov. 5]. That is because I will have one, simply titled “Election Day,” on Tuesday. One can use it if, for example, he feels like posting comments during Election Night. I figure this will allow an opportunity for readers to give up-to-date comments as Election Night unfolds. The “Election Day” thread will be posted at 06:00 a.m. ET. 

This blog topic is about my “Election Predictions.” 

Readers of Progressives Chat are also welcome to offer their predictions. 

In the meantime, I summarize—for U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and U.S. Governors—why I am making my predictions. For any questions, on some of the details, one can refer to these previous, 2018 blog topics: Democrats Magic Number +7 ; Coming Up: U.S. House ; Coming Up: U.S. Senate ; and  Coming Up: U.S. Governors .

U.S. HOUSE

 • 2018 Prediction: Democratic pickup for a new majority
 • U.S. Popular Vote Target Margin (whole number; adjusted after prior blog entry): Democratic +6
 • Predicted Margin: Democratic +8.50
 • 2016 U.S. Popular Vote Margin: Republican +1.08
 • Shifted Margin from 2016: Democratic +9.58
 • Historical Avg.—Since 1946—Gained Seats, Per Percentage Point Nationally Shifted (adjusted after a previous error of +3.59): +3.64
 • 2018 Estimated Net Seat Gains: Democratic +35
 • Effective January 2019: Democrats, with 230 seats
 • Map: An estimate range between 16 to 25 individual states will be involved. Multiply them by either 1.5 or by 2—and it is one more example why the 2018 Democrats are in position to flip the U.S. House. (Due to limited effectiveness with its appearance, no actual map will be presented here.)

U.S. SENATE

 • 2018 Prediction: Republican hold [retained] for majority
 • U.S. Popular Vote Target Margin: Democratic +14
 • Predicted Margin: Democratic +13
 • 2012 U.S. Popular Vote Margin: Democratic +11.82
 • Shifted Margin from 2012: Democratic +1
 • 2018 Estimated Net Set Gains: Democratic +1
 • Effective January 2019: A 50–50 tie; Republican U.S. Vice President Mike Pence will be the tie-breaker vote (when necessary)
 • Map: Solid shades are Republican or Democratic holds; those in light shades are pickups

U.S. GOVERNORS

 • 2018 Prediction: Democratic pickup for a new majority
 • U.S. Popular Vote Target Margin: Democratic +4
 • Predicted Margin: Democratic +4.50
 • 2014 U.S. Popular Vote Margin: Republican +4.09
 • Shifted Margin from 2014: Democratic +8.59
 • Historical Avg. (Since 1990s) Gained Seats, Per Percentage Point Nationally Shifted: +1.51 (I’m predicting an estimated +1.33)
 • Effective January 2019: Democrats, with 27 governorships
 • Map: Two maps will be presented. The first map, which includes tossups, shows my estimate that Democrats, entering 2018 with 16 governorships, will win a net gain of at least +9 to reach 25. But, the following map shows no tossups—and I go ahead and make my prediction

Final Notes

 • The hour of 09:00 p.m. ET: This is the earliest hour a projection can be made for the 2018 Democrats, should they succeed in flipping the U.S. House. (And this would be to the tune of +30 or more net gains in seats; approximately up to ten will be coming from the 10:00 p.m. ET closing in Iowa and several more from the 11:00 p.m. ET hour closings in California and Washington.)
 • The hours of 11:00 p.m. ET or afterward: This is when I anticipate the majorities for the levels of U.S. Senate and U.S. Governors will be projected.