Happy New Year!

 

I wish everyone at Progressives Chat a pleasant holiday.

Come Saturday [January 1, 2022]…

Happy New Year!

A new blog topic will be published here next Monday, January 3, 2022.

Merry Christmas!

I wish everyone at Progressives Chat a pleasant holiday.

Merry Christmas!

We know what holiday comes next.

That will be posted Monday, December 27, 2021.

A new blog topic will be published here on Monday, January 3, 2022.

Greenwald On Assange Extradition

Glenn Greenwald responded to Julian Assange’s extradition in his own videos and as a guest on The Jimmy Dore Show. (The Greenwald videos were published to YouTube last Saturday, December 11, 2021, which was the same date he appeared on Dore’s program.)

I get the sense no one has been better with understanding and articulating why especially the Democrats are after Assange…as well as what this means for journalism, Free Speech, and The People.

What Greenwald says matters.

(I also recommend his written news report here: Julian Assange Loses Appeal: British High Court Accepts U.S. Request to Extradite Him for Trial.)

Numerous videos follow. (And I have a Note below.)

Note to readers and commenters here at Progressives Chat: 

Saturday, December 25, 2021 will mark the one-year anniversary of my father’s death. This is something that could be sad for people. But, I have put it in perspective. The fact is: On the calendar, everyone has his/her day. His/her day for birth. His/her day for death. I look at that particular day as one which is special—and that it is a compliment to my father—so I should be well.

The next two weeks—Mondays, December 20 and 27, 2021—will have blog topics which are really holiday-related greetings. I have Progressives Chat set up for each week’s given topic to allow the comments section to be active for a week. So, it is necessary to regularly post blog topics on a schedule. It is best for me to be able to catch a break from having to come up with a specific topic thread with all of a given year’s 52 weeks. So, this is the last blog topic, as normally related to Progressives Chat, for 2021. The next blog topic, normally related to Progressives Chat, will be Monday, January 3, 2022.

‘How [Democrats] Caused The Abortion Crisis’…

This past Saturday [December 4, 2021], Jimmy Dore welcomed The Grayzone’s Max Blumenthal to discuss the Democrats and their role on the issue of abortion as well as the devastation—for the have-nots—with the lockdowns over COVID–19.

Dore’s livestream was one in which some were late to finding it. Three videos cover the over-two-hour interview with Blumenthal. And this is well-worthy of this week’s blog topic.

(Side note: I have added to Videos Dr. John Campbell who, on his YouTube channel, describes himself as follows: “I am a retired Nurse Teacher and A and E nurse based in England.” Campbell has been a good source for concerns over COVID–19. If any reader has an additional suggestion—for who else should be recommended—please let me know.)

‘Kyle Rittenhouse Is Not the Enemy.…’

 

The recent acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse, from the Kenosha, Wisconsin killings, has its critics. The following, from last Tuesday [November 23, 2021], by MintPress’s Jonathan Cook, is a thoughtful piece.

Link:

‘Kyle Rittenhouse Is Not the Enemy.…’

Videos Update

Fred Hampton Leftists is now Revolutionary Blackout.

I made that change, along with an appropriate link, in the listing for Videos.

As of November 29, 2021, I have also added two more to sources: Robert Durden, from Project Mayhem, and Matt Orfalea. We know of Orfalea from his brilliant videos which record important figures for what they have said in the not-too-distant past. Durden is one I recently saw interview on Sabby Sabs and, gradually, found myself starting to follow.

The following videos are: Matt Orfalea, first, for his “Across State Lines,” a video showing some propaganda mainstream media sources pushed against Kyle Rittenhouse; second is Robert Durden with his “Power Rankings.”

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

I wish everyone here at Progressives Chat a pleasant holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A new blog topic will be published here next Monday, November 29, 2021.

‘Elections and the Illusion of Black Power’

Black Agenda Report’s Margaret Kelley writes a piece on how blacks, even when empowered electorally, are either not in position to serve and deliver for their people…and/or they don’t intend to do so.

Link:

Elections and the Illusion of Black Power

The 2022 Midterm Elections, One Year Out

Last week’s 2021 gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia gave us enough of a preview for what is likely to come with the midterm elections of 2022. 

New Jersey and Virginia, which rank as the nation’s Nos. 11 and 12 most-populous states, shifted dramatically away from the incumbent White House party, the Democratic Party, and from the incumbent U.S. president Joe Biden. 

The midterm elections of 2022 will highly likely become a wave toward the White House opposition party—the Republican Party. 

At each of the levels of U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and U.S. Governors, the 2022 Democrats’s backs are electorally against the wall.

I will explain.

U.S. House

The Republicans, with the outcome of Election 2020, have 213 seats. It takes 218 for majority. They are just five [5] seats from winning over new majority. Not only that, percentage wise, that 213 of a required 218 amounts to 97 percent. Yes—the Republicans are 97 percent within reach.

U.S. Senate

With the results of Election 2020, it is a tie in the upper chamber of Congress. Republicans have 50 seats. They do not have majority given U.S. President is in the column for the Democrats and Joe Biden. That makes the tie-breaker vote cast by Democratic incumbent U.S. vice president Kamala Harris. One seat flipping Republican delivers the U.S. Senate to Team Red. Their current 50 of what would be an outright majority of 51 seats means they are 98 percent within reach.

U.S. Governors

The Republicans have current majority number with 27. The recent pickup of Virginia will make it 28 heading into the 2022 midterms. But, the electoral votes from the applicable 28 are slightly less than the 270 electoral votes required for the presidency. Republicans-held governorships, based on Election 2024 allocation of electoral votes, and counting their 2021 pickup of Virginia, comprise 265 of the required 270. This means they are 98 percent within reach with that level of electoral strength.

Looking at Past Examples

This reminds me of the 1980 Republican pickup of the presidency of the United States to Ronald Reagan and the 2008 Democratic pickup of the presidency of the United States to Barack Obama. Following the 1976 unseated Gerald Ford, the starting point for Reagan was a mathematical 241 electoral votes. (That is 89 percent of the required 270 electoral votes.) Following the 2004 losing nominee John Kerry, the starting point for Obama was a mathematical 252 electoral votes. (That is 93 percent of the required 270 electoral votes.)

The Republicans, heading into the midterm elections of 2022, have an even stronger advantage than 1980 Reagan and 2008 Obama. And the Democrats, as they are heading into the midterm elections of 2022, are reminding me of 1980 unseated Democratic incumbent U.S. president Jimmy Carter and of 2008 losing Republican nominee John McCain. The 2022 Democrats have little to no back support. 

There is more to consider.…

Involved States: U.S. House

Approximately 53 to 54 percent of U.S. citizens lives in one of the Top 10 most-populous states in the nation. According to their current ranks, they are: California; Texas; Florida; New York; Pennsylvania; Illinois; Ohio; Georgia; North Carolina; and Michigan.

I recently looked over the last four midterm-elections cycles in which the U.S. House flipped to the White House opposition party. This counted two such cycles won over by the Republicans, on the watches of Democratic-affiliated U.S. presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, in 1994 and 2010. This counted as well two cycles won over by the Democrats, on the watches of Republican-affiliated U.S. presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump, in 2006 and 2018. 

In each of those four midterm-elections cycles, no less than 7 of the nation’s Top 10 populous states contributed to flipping the U.S. House. In all four of those cycles, the nation’s Top 4 states were involved in flipping the U.S. House. California, Texas, Florida, and New York combine for nearly 1 for every 3 U.S. residents.

I have taken notice of electoral structures. 

Dating back to the 1940s, when the White House opposition party flips the U.S. House they tend to win a net gain of an estimated +3.50 to +4 seats with each percentage point nationally shifted in their direction. A 10-point national shift would yield pickups of approximately +35 to +40 seats. 

When it comes to involved states, the 1994, 2006, 2010, and 2018 cycles saw an average of approximately +1.75 to +2.00 net gains. The 1994 Republicans won a net gain of 54 seats from 31 states. (An average of +1.74 pickup seats from each involved state.) The 2006 Democrats won a net gain of 31 seats from 18 states. (An average of +1.72 pickup seats from each involved state.) The 2010 Republicans won a net gain of 63 seats from 33 states. (An average of +1.90 seats from each involved state.) The 2018 Democrats won a net gain of 40 seats from 21 states. (An average of +1.90 pickups from each involved state.)

The 2022 Republicans, to flip the U.S. House, need a national shift of +2 percentage points in their direction. Their 2020 U.S. Popular Vote was –3.12 percentage points. (Result: Democratic 50.81% vs. Republican 47.69%.) For involved states, the Republicans only need three states which, based on electoral structure, would deliver +5 or +6 pickups to reach a new majority for the U.S. House.

Wikipedia, with its report on the 2020 U.S. House elections, lists 37 Democratic-held U.S. House seats which were carried by +10 percentage points or less. Imagine if all were to flip from 2020 Democratic to 2022 Republican. Here is the math: 37 net gains in seats, divided by 10 percentage points, is an average of +3.70 net gains in seats with each percentage point nationally shifted [to the 2022 Republicans].

270toWin also lists those Democratic-held seats heading into 2022. I counted the number of involved states. Total is 21. This does not mean, when it all ends, that exact number is what will play out. There can be fewer states. Let’s say it ends up a total of 20. (An easy number.) Here is the math: 20 involved states, multiplied by +1.75, equals a net gain of +35 seats; 20 involved states, multiplied by +2, equals a net gain of +40 seats. (Source: Current House of Representatives Map (Heading Into Election 2022).)

The following map are involved states in which there are Democratic incumbents whose Election 2020 margins were +10 percentage points or less. The only Top 10 state not colored in blue is New York.

Potential States: U.S. Senate

If the 2022 Republicans end up flipping the U.S. Senate, they most highly likely will do so by starting with one particular state: New Hampshire. 

Maggie Hassan’s 2016 Democratic pickup in New Hampshire was a narrow +0.14 percentage points while using presidential nominee Hillary Clinton narrowly carried the state by +0.36. 

While the state’s governor, Chris Sununu, has not officially announced if he will run…if he does ends up running—and he does lead Hassan in matchup polls—Sununu would likely do so because he would win.

The following is the map of those potential states with Democratic-held U.S. Senate seats which may flip 2022 Republican. I use a color code to blend in yellow with the commonly recognized hues. Green is used for Democratic-held U.S. Senate seats which have the potential to flip Republican. Orange is used for Republican-held U.S. Senate seats which have the potential to flip Democratic. The point of including both possibilities is not because, say, five Democratic-held seats would flip Republican while five Republican-held seats would flip Democratic. It is to keep in mind, this far in advance, which states appear to be competitive. (I consider this to be a little early. We will need more polling.) 

Vulnerable States: U.S. Governors

The 2018 U.S. Popular Vote for U.S. Governors was a percentage-points margin of Democratic +3.07. Which also means Republican –3.07. (Result: Democratic 50.37% vs. Republican 47.30%.)

My sense is that there are fewer than ten states indicating a 2018-to-2022 shift toward the Democrats. So, that would leave 26 or more states which will be shifting in the direction of the Republicans.

This will make it not feasible for the 2022 Democrats to hold the U.S. Popular Vote. Just getting it to a margin of Republican +0.01 would deliver to that party a net gain of +3 states. (They already flipped 2021 Virginia. I sense more will come.)

The midterm elections of 2018 saw the Democrats end up with six [6] of the Top 10 populous states’s governorships. A Republican wave would likely take their four to at least six. Republican pickups of Pennsylvania and Michigan, which are leading bellwether states nowadays with No. 21-ranked Wisconsin, would move their four to six of the Top 10. 

The Rust Belt Trio each have Democratic incumbent governors. Pennsylvania’s Tom Wolfe is term-limited. Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer and Wisconsin’s Tony Evers—both were 2018 Democratic pickup winners on the watch of Republican incumbent U.S. president Donald Trump—would become unseated. It would not surprise me if all three states flip. And, if that happens, it would move the 2022 Republicans to 31 states. That is…if Arizona and/or Georgia and/or Maryland—each with the potential to go against the national tide and shift Democratic—don’t flip from 2018 Republican to 2022 Democratic. If that happens, the U.S. Popular Vote for 2022 ends up the same as it was in 2018. That would lead me to anticipate three more states flipping Republican just to get a national margin to at least +0.01. Likely their additional pickups would be Kansas and two of the following three: Maine, Nevada, and New Mexico.

The following map uses similar color-coding as they appear with U.S. Senate. For U.S. Governors, I colored in Virginia light red because its 2021 outcome was a Republican pickup. Those states in green, currently in the Democratic column, are vulnerable to flipping Republican. Those states in orange, currently in the Republican column, are vulnerable to flipping Democratic. If all of them were to switch party occupancy, the 2022 Republicans would end up with a total of 33 U.S. Governors.

 

The 2021 Gubernatorial Elections: New Jersey and Virginia

This Tuesday, November 2, 2021, will be the gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia.

They are important, electorally, for good reasons.

New Jersey and Virginia are ranked the Nos. 11 and 12 most-populous states in the nation.

The two have long been considered harbingers for what will likely play out with the following year’s midterm elections. So, this is much about 2022.

In 2017, on the watch of Republican incumbent U.S. president Donald Trump, New Jersey became a Democratic pickup for Phil Murphy. (This followed two terms of Republican Chris Christie. His job-approval struggled to reach 20 percent. It was not feasible for 2017 Republicans to hold New Jersey.) Murphy won by a margin of +14.14 percentage points. In Virginia, the result was a Democratic hold for Ralph Northam. He won by a percentage-points margin of +8.93.

In the 2018 midterm-elections cycle, the Democrats won the U.S. Popular Vote for U.S. Governors by a margin of +3.07 percentage points. That was a good 7-point national increase from their losing 2014 margin of –4.09. The 2018 Democrats ended up winning a net gain of +7 governorships. 

In midterm elections, there are 36 scheduled gubernatorial elections. There are 9 which rank among the nation’s Top 10 populous states. (North Carolina is scheduled with leap/presidential years.) And just over 50 percent of U.S. citizens reside in a Top 10 state.

Recent polls indicate both New Jersey and Virginia have shifts heading in the direction of the Republicans. Even if both states hold in the 2021 Democratic column, this is not good for Democratic incumbent U.S. president Joe Biden and Team Blue. 

Virginia has been on a pattern of electing White House opposition-party governors since 1977. The pattern was, perhaps, interrupted in 2013 when former DNC chairman and 2008 Hillary Clinton campaign advisor Terry McAuliffe won a Democratic pickup while he defeated the state’s controversial attorney general and Republican nominee Ken Cuccinelli. 

New Jersey has been on this pattern, with no exceptions, since 1989. But, it may break this year because the U.S.’s two most recent consecutive presidential-election cycles, in 2016 and 2020, switched party occupancy in the White House. That doesn’t happen frequently. It previously occurred in 1976 and 1980. Before that, it dates back to 1888 and 1892 and 1896. 

My sense of the races are this: I predict New Jersey will end up a Democratic hold with a margin between +6 to +8 percentage points. (Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli, a former member of the New Jersey General Assembly, has been able to cut into Democratic incumbent Phil Murphy’s 2017 margin. But, Ciattarelli appears to have arrived too late to surge sufficiently and make Murphy fight for re-election.) … Due to very recent momentum, especially over the last few days, Virginia will deliver a Republican pickup to Glenn Youngkin (with defeating Terry McAuliffe) by a percentage-points margin between +0 to +2. In fact, FiveThirtyEight is suggesting that Virginia—rated a Tossup—is more poised to flip. And I will include that information below.

(Next week: The 2022 Midterm Elections, One Year Out.)

‘No!’

The next two weeks, November 1 and 8, 2021, will address electoral matters. 

The first week will be timed with the 2021 gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia. They rank as the nation’s Nos. 11 and 12 most-populous states. The two states are often perceived as harbingers for what will come the following year.

The second week will be timed one year out from the scheduled 2022 midterm elections. That topic will, in fact, be published here on Progressives Chat on November 8. 

I will weight in electorally with both topics during those weeks.

This week, as we are closing out October 2021 (and a Happy Halloween!, come next Sunday, to anyone who wants the greeting), the timing is right for me to state my position.

“No!”

I will not vote for the Democratic Party.

My answer is “No!” to the Democratic Party.

There are so many reasons—easily understood by Progressives Chat readers and commenters—that there is no need for me to expend any energy. But, I will give this one reason (which is actually reason enough): I will not vote for a political party which rigs its primaries.

There is one more thing to say. 

It feels good.

What does not feel good is to say good-bye to another formerly listed Recommendation. 

Paul Jay’s theAnalysis.news is no longer included in “Videos.” It was mentioned, a few months ago, by a forum member here that Jay’s position on “Force the Vote” came across as if he didn’t quite understand what that was about—or, perhaps, he did to some extent but was not especially supportive. I missed that period. What I did not miss was the below video. 

Paul Jay comes across as yet another Voice on the Left who gives us one more talking-to about how the Republicans are so dangerous and it is only the Democrats who can save us. That we need the Democrats. 

“No!”

Replacing theAnalysis.news is economist Richard Wolff. 

‘Why has [“Squid Game”] resonated with a global audience?’

Link:

Why has Squid Game resonated with a global audience?

'Thousands of Police Killings Are Unreported’

 

Link:

Thousands of Police Killings Are Unreported

‘Grayzone’: ‘CIA plot’ against Julian Assange

News from last week of the CIA having plotted against WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange—for possible kidnapping and even assassination—was shocking to some. (It wasn’t to me.)

This is important. And, so, I decided to have this week’s blog topic focus on this recent news. And this is why I have two videos from The Grayzone discussing this at length.

Published to YouTube last Thursday [September 30, 2021], the above videos are described as follows:

 

‘Inside the CIA plot to kidnap, kill Julian Assange’

As the Biden administration continues to seek the extradition of Julian Assange, new details have emerged about the Trump administration's secret war against Assange and his organization, WikiLeaks. Michael Isikoff of Yahoo News discusses his team's explosive reporting on the CIA plot to surveil, kidnap, and even kill Assange—all overseen by Michael Pompeo. 

Isikoff and Aaron Maté also debate Russia's role in the Assange controversy, particularly the allegation that Russia stole Democratic Party emails in 2016 and gave them to WikiLeaks.

‘Behind CIA plot to kill Assange, and debunking “Havana Syndrome” propaganda’

Moderate Rebels live: Max Blumenthal and Ben Norton discuss the CIA's plot to assassinate or kidnap WikiLeaks journalist Julian Assange, which was first reported by The Grayzone in 2020. We also address the absurd media propaganda about “Havana Syndrome,” claiming without any evidence whatsoever that Official Enemies of the US government are attacking American spies with microwave energy, or sonic weapons, or ray guns, or... something.

★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★

From 40 to 46: Revising ‘Recommendations’

I decided to make some changes to what has been known as Recommendations.

Gone is that word.

Now, on the right-side bar, are Videos and Websites. 

(Regulars here at Progressives Chat know they are recommended.)

I moved over twelve sources, which were among formerly listed Recommendations, to what now reads as Websites. They are joined by journalists Matt Taibbi’s and Michael Tracey’s Substack columns.

The previous Recommendations which now reads as Videos have been reshuffled to some extent. Part of the reason is for a convenient segue between the last four listees—Useful Idiots, The Grayzone, Glenn Greenwald, and MintPress News—as they are also the first four listees on Websites. (It’s really about two forms. These four sources are available and recommended in both forms.)

Newly added to Videos is the new version of Useful Idiots with Katie Halper and Matt Taibbi. (The latter recently left Rolling Stone, not long after that publication and Halper and Taibbi ended their, say, partnership of their former Useful Idiots. Reshuffling The Katie Halper Show, to appear just before this newer Useful Idiots, makes some sense.)

I have also added to Videos Glenn Greenwald. (Sometime ago I added his Substack column.)

The two remaining Videos additions are: Garland Nixon, who used to co-host the morning-news/discussion program Fault Lines on Sputnik Radio (with a livestream simulcast); and, as he is described by Wikipedia, “comedian, actor, radio host, writer, and activist” Russell Brand, who has been delivering some truly progressive—and well-informed—videos which have Establishment Media pissed at him. (His YouTube channel launched in July. I should have added him sooner. Last week, The Jimmy Dore Show took notice and titled one of its video clips, “Russell Brand ‘Canceled’ For Telling Truth About RussiaGate & Hillary!”)

As of October 4, 2021, the combined total now recommended in Videos and Websites are 46. It would be nice to get their combined total up to 50. And I welcome any suggestions. (No hurry! I know it is also wise to watch for whether there are current listees, worthy of re-evaluation, who may need to go. That did happen, at different points in the year, with several who were previously recommended.)

I think this “Revising ‘Recommendations’” will give this site a more organized and efficient way to list—and to keep track of—which sources are very good, and [mostly] trustworthy, for Progressives Chat.

Since I have made these changes, I think it would be good to include one video from a new addition. It is simply an introduction video. And it is a nice one.

‘Progressives Chat’ Turns 4

Last Saturday, September 25, 2021, marked the 4-year anniversary of Progressives Chat.

I launched this blog site on Monday, September 25, 2017 shortly after the end of cathyx’s The Far Left Chat. (cathyx was a big help to me. I remain very grateful. Thank you, cathyx!)

Progressives Chat will continue as a blog site which also allows its regulars a space for independence with their comments. And, with time seeming to go by faster as I am getting older (I won’t speak for anyone else), the fifth anniversary won’t take long to arrive.

Jimmy Dore Interviews Robert Malone

Last week [with publishing date of Tuesday, 09.14.2021], Jimmy Dore interviewed Robert Malone in the following video, “EXPLOSIVE Truth About Vaccines & COVID w/Inventor Of mRNA Vaccine Technology.” (Due to its long title, I am using a different heading for this blog topic.)

It was posted in comments by TowerofBabel. (Thank you, TowerofBabel!)

This is very important. It warrants being a blog topic due to its subject matter, certainly, and for the archives of Progressives Chat.

‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ Turns 25

September 13, 1996 marked the debut of one of the best comedy series in television history.

Everybody Loves Raymond, from David Letterman’s World Wide Pants, was a CBS sitcom about a grown man, sportswriter Ray Barone, with his wife, Debra, their daughter and twin sons, and his other family—neighbors—consisting of policeman brother Robert, intrusive mother Marie, and blunt father Frank.

The series ran nine seasons, having ended in 2005, and it won 15 Emmys from 69 nominations. It won Outstanding Comedy Series for its seventh and ninth seasons, in 2003 and 2005; Lead Actor for Ray Romano, in 2002; Lead Actress for Patricia Heaton, in 2000 and 2001; Supporting Actor for Brad Garrett, in 2002, 2003, and 2005; and Supporting Actress for Doris Roberts, in 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2005. It also won for Writing for what I think is its best episode, “Baggage,” in 2003. (Costar Peter Boyle never won for the series. He did win the 1995–96 Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for the episode “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose,” also an Emmy winner for Writing, for Fox’s The X–Files.)

A summary of some standout episodes: 

• “I Love You” (Season 01 Episode 02; 09.20.1996)—Debra asks Ray why he doesn’t tend to speak those three important words. Ray makes the mistake of involving his parents.

• “Robert’s Date” (Season 03 Episode 15; 02.01.1999)—Robert joins his partner for a night out for dancing. Trying hard to fit in, Robert goes overboard.

• “Bad Moon Rising” (Season 04 Episode 22; 05.08.2000)—Debra suffers from PMS. Ray has no clue how to respond. (Patricia Heaton’s performance won her her first Emmy.)

•  “Baggage” (Season 07 Episode 22; 05.03.2003)—After returning from a vacation, one piece of luggage remains, unattended, as Ray and Debra battle each other.

• “The Finale” (Season 09 Episode 16; 05.16.2005)—Ray, with his adenoids needing to come out, goes in for routine surgery. There is a complication.

More recommended episodes (for a balance of three episodes per season; the provided links for each season lead to episode descriptions): 

Season #01 • “Pilot” (S01 E01; 09.13.1996) and “Turkey or Fish” (S01 E10; 11.22.1996) 

Season #02 • “High School” (S02 E10; 11.24.1997), “The Letter” (S02 E11; 12.08.1997), and “The Checkbook” (S02 E16; 02.02.1998) 

Season #03 • “The Toaster” (S03 E12; 12.14.1998) and “Frank’s Tribute” (S03 E16; 02.08.1999)

Season #04 • “The Sister” (S04 E06; 10.25.1999) and “Bully on the Bus” (S04 E13; 01.17.2000)

Season #05 • “Italy” (S05 E01 and S05 E02; 10.02.2000), “Wallpaper” (S05E03; 10.09.2000), and “The Canister” (S05 E19; 04.09.2001)

Season #06 • “Marie’s Sculpture” (S06 E05; 10.22.2001), “Lucky Suit” (S06 E16; 02.04.2002), and “The Breakup Tape” (S06 E18; 03.04.2002)

Season #07 • “Meeting the Parents” (S07 E17; 02.05.2003) and “Robert’s Wedding” (S07 E24; 05.19.2003)

Season #08 • “Fun with Debra” (S08 E01; 09.22.2003), “Thank You Notes” (S08 E02; 09.29.2003), and “Misery Loves Company” (S08 E04; 10.13.2003)

Season #09 • “The Power of No” (S09 E14; 05.02.2005) and “Pat’s Secret” (S09 E15; 05.09.2005)

I will close with video highlights from Everybody Loves Raymond. They are from the “standout episodes” but, fair warning, some content—especially when I tried to find video on YouTube for “The Finale”—was rather limiting.

Sears, Kmart, and Mark A. Cohen

It recently came to my attention that Sears closed what was the last remaining department store in my home state Michigan.

The news of the closure came in July. 

The closure, if I correctly recall, was in August.

This store was located in Westland, the state’s 10th largest city (a population just under 100,000) approximately 15 miles west of Detroit.

I turned 50 last month. I grew up shopping at department stores for clothing. So, the decline in department stores is personally sad to me. I feel for the stores’s employees—especially those who had careers working in them. (I briefly worked at both stores.) Many of them were able to have middle-class incomes, with benefits, and with pensions. Some, depending on the timeline of their lifetime, are still alive and getting to experience them. And getting to experience fears of losing them.

In politics, the topic of realignment comes up. Realigning changes in such things like voting patterns. Realigning periods favorable for one of the U.S.’s two major political parties. But there is also realignment in life. How life has realigned here in the U.S. How people’s livelihoods have been realigning—which, of course, speaks to the declining middle class. The topic of realignment also applies to how we use television. And, given this week’s blog topic, it includes how we shop.

Kmart bought Sears. This goes back to 2004. There are people who thought it was the other way. Eddie Lampert, who made the purchase, was trying to give the impression he would be the savior. (Report: Kmart to acquire Sears in $11 billion deal.) But, I think the stores—and then you can add other well-recognized names also in dire shape—were not able and/or willing to adapt to a realignment in life in the U.S. And they—especially Sears and Kmart—are on the way to their graves. (Side note: In May, I received a letter from Sears informing me I must use my Sears department store credit card by June 30—or the account would become closed. I went ahead and let that deadline pass.) 

Last Friday [September 3, 2021], Sears Holdings Corporation (SHLDQ) closed the day at $0.41 per share. Combined existing stores, effective August 25, 2021, are just under 50. Nationwide. (Sources: How Many Sears Stores Are Left? and How Many Kmart Stores Are Left?) From one video—and you can find plenty of them on YouTube—not only did Sears close all its department stores in Michigan but in all of the midwest. (From How Many Sears Stores Are Left? one listed location is in Illinois; but, it may not be a department store.) Well, the midwest consists of Top 10 populous states Illinois (which ranks No. 6), Ohio (No. 7), and Michigan (No. 10). Approximately 53 to 54 percent of the nation’s people live in a Top 10 state. The last remaining Michigan Kmart store is in the city of Marshall, which is near I–69, which one may access if, say, traveling from Michigan to go south into neighboring Indiana. It is more than 50 miles and approximately 100 miles west of Ann Arbor and Detroit.

Below are videos which feature Mark A. Cohen. He had experience serving as Chairman/CEO of Sears Canada Inc. He was also Chief Marketing Officer and president of Softlines of Sears Roebuck & Co. Cohen is now a professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business since 2006. He is also its current director of Retail Studies. In these videos—which were published to YouTube on 04.28.2017, 10.15.2018, 01.08.2019, and 12.28.2020—Cohen comments not only on the outlooks for Sears and Kmart, and for department stores and malls, but he also articulates how and why.

Edward Asner (1929–2021)

Seven-time Emmy-winning television star Edward Asner, born November 15, 1929 in Kansas City, Missouri, died this past Sunday [August 29, 2021].

I considered Edward Asner one of the best actors in the history, thus far, of television. But, there was a lot to him in addition to being a terrifically skilled and talented actor.

Asner was a man with significant accomplishments.

He studied Journalism.

He served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps from 1951 to 1953.

He worked assembly for General Motors.

He not only became a very successful actor but was also the 21st president of the Screen Actors Guild between 1981 to 1985.

Asner is, of course, known for his iconic Lou Grant character—first with supporting series star Mary Tyler Moore on CBS’s groundbreaking comedy The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970–1977) but also with parlaying the success of that pivotal role into the series lead on spinoff drama Lou Grant (1977–1982). For both series, Asner combined winning five Emmys, in 1971, 1972, 1975, 1978, and 1980. He won two more for the ABC miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man, in 1976, and Roots, in 1977.

Asner, when he was starring on Lou Grant and was also serving as SAG president, was embroiled in controversy. He was no fan of then-new U.S. president Ronald Reagan—who had also been president of the Screen Actors Guild—for Reagan being anti-union, yes, but for also because Asner opposed U.S. policy in Central America. This was considered the catalyst for the end of Lou Grant, in 1982, and after five seasons, despite its ratings (according to Wikipedia, it was in the Top 10 its final month) being healthy enough for renewal for a sixth season.

Prior to his death, Edward Asner was the last surviving original cast member of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. With some cast changes along the way (including 1974 and 1975 spinoffs for costars Valerie Harper, in Rhoda, and Cloris Leachman, in Phyllis), joining MTM in 1973 was Betty White. Now at age 99, and born January 17, 1922, in Oak Park, Illinois, the seven-time Emmy-winning White is now the last surviving cast member of not only NBC’s The Golden Girls (1985–1992) but also among the core main-cast regulars of Mary Tyler Moore. (Some may argue that point given John Amos, who left the series for the 1974 premiere of CBS’s Good Times, was on the first three seasons, and Lisa Gerritsen, who played Phyllis’s teen-daughter Bess during the first five seasons and with the entirety of that spinoff, are both alive at ages 81 and 64. But, their MTM appearances were more along the lines of recurring players.)

I found some interesting reading relating to the late Edward Asner. 

Here they are:

Asner Calls ‘Lou Grant’ Censored | By Eleanor Blau | New York Times | 05.18.1982

TV: ‘Lou Grant’ farewell | By Richard T. Jameson | Originally published in The Weekly | 07.07.1982

The following videos are: The Mary Tyler Moore Show “The Lou and Edie Story” (Season 04 Episode 04; 10.06.1973; an Emmy winner for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series for Treva Silverman) with a profound script and performance by Edward Asner as Lou finds his marriage may be reaching its end; the actor discussing that episode; Lou Grant “Judge” (Season 01 Episode 09; 11.15.1977; with an Emmy-winning guest performance by Barnard Hughes) which has Lou determined to get an elderly judge off the bench; the actor discussing the 1982 cancellation of the series; and a video compilation of Edward Asner as a guest on David Letterman’s NBC and CBS late-night talk series.

‘Power to the People!’

Black Agenda Report co-founder Glen Ford died July 28, 2021, at age 71, from cancer. 

His daughter, Nia, wrote a piece for the publication, published August 4, about her father and why he lived: Ford was committed to “the liberation of Black people—all oppressed people across the globe.” 

This is an insightful read. 

Link: 

Power to the People!

The Big 5–0!

I have arrived.

The date of this blog topic entry marks my 50th birthday.

I will be finding out how I feel.

Discussing Nina Turner’s Loss

This week’s blog topic are video discussions on last week’s Ohio #11 Democratic primary loss of Nina Turner to party-establishment-preferred Shontel Brown.

The first video is from Sabby Sabs featuring the host, Sabrina Salvati, with her guests, Misty Winston and Meg MacPherson. 

The second video is from a new addition to “Recommendations.” Actually, it is a replacement for The Vanguard, which I no longer think needs to be recommended, and it is Punch Up Pod. The hosts are Patrick Cote and Leila Charles Leigh. She is an actress, writer, and producer. He is known in part for his Twitter handle @PatTheBerner. He was also memorable with the use of his 2016 Twitter parody account Peter Douche (which made fun of Hillary Clinton adviser Peter Daou).

Each of these videos run more than one hour in duration. So, I will caution readers about that. The discussions are interesting. 

More Recommendations Updates

The list of “Recommendations” is now up to 40 with the video [YouTube] and digital [Website] forms of MintPress News. According to its website, “MintPress News is an independent watchdog journalism organization [which] provides issue-based original reporting, in-depth investigations, and thoughtful analysis of the most pressing topics facing our nation.” Among those at MintPress News are senior staff writer Alan Macleod and contributors Elizabeth Vos and Whitney Webb.

‘Biden Approval Drops to 50%, Lowest for Him to Date’

• H I G H L I G H T S •

“The new rating is from a July 6–21 Gallup poll, which also finds that 45% of U.S. adults disapprove of [Joe] Biden's performance and 5% do not have an opinion.

“Currently, 90% of Democrats, 12% of Republicans and 48% of independents approve of the job Biden is doing. His ratings among Democrats and independents are the lowest to date among those groups. The new poll marks the first time [Biden] has less-than majority approval among independents.”

Biden Approval Drops to 50%, Lowest for Him to Date

This report shows indication that the Democrats, who have the presidency of the United States, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the U.S. Senate, are heading toward further erosion of support. Earlier in 2021, at least one polling source had Joe Biden reaching 60 percent. Frankly, the Democrats are, at the least, on a trajectory to lose the U.S. House with the 2022 midterm elections. 

Happy Birthday, Jimmy Dore! … An Important Choice

Monday, July 26, 2021 marks the 56th birthday of Jimmy Dore.

🎈 🎂 Happy Birthday, Jimmy Dore! 🎂 🎈

An Important Choice

It is very interesting to read and listen to those who urge vaccination try to scold or even demonize those who have not had at least one vaccination shot. (That they do this against people for whom the vaccine is available.)

The pandemic has been very hard on people. The vaccine is new. It does not, at least not at this point, guarantee one will not get COVID. It also does not guarantee one will not get sick from the vaccine. So, for some people, to make a decision is not done loosely. There are people who say they will never get the shot. There are people, like myself, who are not saying never but are in a wait-and-see mode. For the people who have done it, and that they did not have a problem, that is good that it worked out for them. For the people who have done it, and have had any problems, and maybe some of them are still having problems, that is something else. It is not unreasonable to choose to not have the shots from a vaccine that is, at this point, experimental. With more than one company involved, none has yet been approved by the FDA. So, it would be wise for those who scold people who have not yet been vaccinated to make an effort to understand. If they’re not going to make that effort, and this is coming from a number of people of a particular political persuasion, they should be reminded that no one can walk in the shoes of another person. People, still at this point in United States history, have choice.

Kim Iversen, in the below six-minute video, published to YouTube on July 20, 2021, addresses this topic. It has to do with the crackdown on misinformation. Iversen includes interesting polling information which is surprising. It furthers my point about my choice, at least so far, and why—as mentioned earlier—no one else has my [one’s] mind and body. I strongly suggest readers make sure to watch the video.

‘The Left’s Curious Silence About the Medicare For All Demonstrations’

Counterpunch is newly added to “Recommendations” as this thoughtful piece is the topic for this week. 

It is good timing. The March for Medicare for All, in many populous U.S. cities, is scheduled for this Saturday [July 24, 2021].

Here is the link:

The Left’s Curious Silence About the Medicare For All Demonstrations

Here is the link to the March for Medicare for All:

March for Medicare for All

‘No’ to the Ds, Nina Turner, and Jamarl Thomas

The special election of Ohio’s 11th Congressional District has a scheduled primary in August.

On the Democratic side, former state senator Nina Turner is trying to win nomination for the seat formerly held by Marcia Fudge, who is now in Joe Biden’s presidential administration serving as United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

Due to Turner having been connected to Bernie Sanders, predictably the corrupt, corporate, party-establishment figures—including the likes of Hillary Clinton and Jim Clyburn—are trying to make sure nomination for Turner does not happen. So, their approved candidate is Shontel Brown, chairwoman of Cuyahoga County Democratic Party.

Now, if this was 2016, 2018, or even 2020, I might be inclined to kick in a donation to possibly help Turner. That I would be really, really, really wanting to do that. But, we are past that point.

The problem is the…Party.

I see the Democratic Party as a sham. And, from those who remember my April 26, 2021 blog topic [The Three G’s], they are: Gaslighters, Gatekeepers, and Grifters. 

That is what what the Ds have to offer: Gaslighting, Gatekeeping, and Grifting.

The Ds don’t move me to want to support and vote for them. 

The Ds repel me. 

The Ds move me to make a point to not support and vote for them [especially in general elections].

So, I am saying “No” to the Democratic Party, in its entirety, and this means the same to Nina Turner.

I am also saying “No” to Jamarl Thomas.

“Recommendations” Updates 

Last week, I made changes to the “Recommendations” list. So, count this Update as Week #02.

Gone is Jamarl Thomas. 

What moved me to this decision was after he welcomed last week a particular guest, activist Lauren Steiner, on Sputnik’s Fault Lines. (I posted video of this in last week’s comments section.) 

The co-host and guest talked about fighting amongst the left in a way which made [Thomas and Steiner] sound like they were not sufficiently briefed—or they were, possibly willfully, out of touch. What went down—The Young Turks’s Ana Kasparian’s and Cenk Uygur’s McCarthyite-like smears against journalist Aaron Maté and fellow content creator and comedian Jimmy Dore (and Kasparian having blackmailed Dore with a lie that he sexually harassed her more than seven years prior)—is serious. I wasn’t at all pleased, and certainly not appreciative, of that Thomas–Steiner discussion. 

This compelled me to look over Thomas’s Videos page on YouTube. It now lists numerous simulcasts of his talk-radio program Fault Lines (which he co-hosts with Shane Stranahan). One can find those same installments on the YouTube Videos page of Fault Lines. The program is on weekdays. Each runs three hours. Independent of his day job, Thomas’s other Videos content isn’t particularly strong enough for me to keep him recommended. 

One positive thing about Jamarl Thomas is this: My de-listing him is, at this point, not for comparably egregious reasons for which I made the same decision with Secular Talk’s Kyle Kulinski. 

Replacing Jamarl Thomas on “Recommendations” is Primo Radical.

Since Primo Radical established its YouTube channel in 2015, and its content has been posted in the comments section by Progressives Chat regulars, I sense this will be a good choice.

‘Franc Analysis’ Interviews Caleb Maupin … ‘Recommendations’ Changes

Writer, journalist, and political analyst Caleb Maupin is the guest on Franc Analysis.

Maupin is seen with one of his books, BreadTube Serves Imperialism: Examining The New Brand of Internet Pseudo-Socialism.

It is a very interesting discussion, which was published to YouTube last Thursday [July 1, 2021], which gives insight to economic systems—capitalism, communism, socialism—with other countries and here.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Changes have been made to Progressives Chat’s listing of “Recommendations.”

No longer recommended are Secular Talk, with Kyle Kulinski, and Breaking Points, with Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti.

My decision was an easy one with Kulinski. One may refer to his June 30, 2021 video, Kyle Addresses Jimmy Dore & Aaron Mate vs TYT, which was a dishonest response to Jimmy Dore regarding especially Aaron Maté on the receiving end of McCarthyism-type attacks by The Young Turks’s Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian. (Kulinski, whose Secular Talk is part of TYT Networks, was dismissive of the attacks—describing it as “drama”—and he deceitfully propped up Kasparian by not mentioning her Twitter DM attempt to blackmail Dore.) Since Dore responded, in a July 1, 2021 livestream [Kyle Kulinski Omits Ana Kasparian's Blackmail Of Jimmy Dore From Video], what was also revealed is that Ball—who co-hosts with Kulinski Krystal Kyle & Friends—is also dishonest. After I viewed what Kulinski was really saying in his video, it should be renamed: I Will Now Remove My Mask.

Replacing them are three from Niko House’s MCSC Network: Fiorella Isabel’s and Craig “Pasta” Jardula’s The Convo Couch, Jesse Zurawell’s and Misty Winston’s Facts on the Ground, and Franco’s Franc Anaylsis. (Kudos to Franco for his warnings about Kulinski! I urgently recommend viewing the first of the following June 2021 videos, Krystal Ball and Kyle Kulinski Normalize Vaush and Kyle Gives Horrible Defense to Criticisms, which I will link below, and Jimmy Dore vs Secular Talk? Is Kyle Kulinski About to be Unmasked?)

Also joining “Recommendations” among video content are Fred Hampton Leftists (https://www.fredhamptonleftists.com/about/) and Sabby Sabs (with FHL’s Sabrina Salvati).

I also added one non-video entry. For a while, Caitlin Johnstone was on Medium. But, she now has her own website. I am pleased to now include her among “Recommendations.”

In addition to these “Recommendations,” I reorganized the list. While I respect Jamarl Thomas, I don’t frequent his videos so much nowadays because most of his time is spent as co-host of Sputnik’s Fault Lines with Shane Stanahan. (Shane’s father, Lee, used to co-host the program with Garland Nixon. It runs three hours during weekday mornings.) So, prioritizing Thomas at No. 2 is no longer applicable to the needs of “Recommendations.” I went ahead and moved up Jimmy Dore Show regular guests Ron Placone and Graham Elwood, with their own respective channels, to follow Dore. Since Kim Iversen has some similar themes in her content as Elwood, she is now in the fourth slot. This isn’t totally based on a numbered order of importance. (I personally watch Hard Lens Media second to The Jimmy Dore Show.) It is for purpose of being logical enough. For example: The Grayzone—with Max Blumenthal, Ben Norton, Aaron Maté, and Blumenthal’s wife Arya Parampil—is available in both video and non-video form. So, The Grayzone appears further down the list to the point in which it segues from video to non-video with both its YouTube channel and its website. This may not be difficult to follow.

There is more for me to mention.

The motivation for Kyle Kulinski, I figure, although it is not of particular importance to me to be accurate, is based on his career and money. Kulinski is now with Krystal Ball, a multimillionaire, past congressional nominee, and former MSNBC anchor, with their program. So, his Secular Talk may as well be considered a video diary. Produced and published however often. No real credible—certainly not a compelling—reason why it should continue to exist. 

Due to my personal loss, a few months ago, I wasn’t paying much attention during the first half of 2021 to Kulinski. I did come across, wherever else it was exactly, numerous comments by people who mentioned they unsubscribed within the last six months or a year or two years from Secular Talk. (This reminded me of my exit from The Young Turks, after 2016, well before their very recent, undeniable unmasking.) 

I owe a thank-you to Franco of Franc Anaylsis. He alerted me in a way that moved me necessarily. In his [below] video about Kulinski and Ball recently hosting an unsavory guest, one who is generally unfamiliar to me and who goes by the name Vaush, Franco—who has other recommendations of worthy content creators—summed up what has become of Secular Talk: “…Kyle Kulinski’s entire channel is just confirmation-bias porn. Like, I get just as much information reading Kyle Kulinski’s thumbnails as I do if I watch his videos. It’s a huge waste of time for me.…”

I will conclude with the following: If anyone comes across and wants to post videos from those who are no longer recommended, I will not object. I do not want to run Progressives Chat in a way which would suggest to readers I am telling anyone what he or she may or may not post in the comments. I will, of course, maintain control of “Recommendations.”

Mike Gravel (1930–2021)

Former Alaska U.S. senator and presidential candidate Mike Gravel died last Saturday, June 26, 2021.

He was 91.

Gravel, the last Democratic U.S. senator elected beyond one term from Alaska—with elections in 1968 and 1974—was a gutsy politician.

This month marks the 50th anniversary of Daniel Ellsberg’s The Pentagon Papers. Gravel had the courage to read them into the public record on June 29, 1971.

Gravel was a 2008 Democratic candidate for U.S. President. He seeked the nomination again, for 2020, as he was nearing age 90, in 2019.

Below are April and June 2019 videos of the host of The Jimmy Dore Show interviewing Mike Gravel. 

May he…Rest In Peace.

Masks Off for ‘TYT,’ Cenk Uygur, and Ana Kasparian

Last week was dominated by reaction to The Young Turks’s smears against The Grayzone journalist Aaron Maté.

No one gave a better video response to TYT—to Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian—than Jimmy Dore. And I know Progressives Chat readers are informed.

This is my response.

I started watching The Young Turks circa 2007. And I followed, pretty much, for ten years. Or, I could say ten consecutive years. That changed in 2016.

In July 2016, WikiLeaks reported the DNC E-mails which revealed the corruption inside not only the Democratic National Committee—that they rigged that year’s presidential nomination for Hillary Clinton and against Bernie Sanders—but other details for how the Democratic Party is throughly corrupt.

I knew, from there, that I would reject the Democratic Party in the general election.

Circa August 2016, Cenk Uygur announced on a TYT livestream he would vote in the general election for Hillary Clinton.

I did not care about any of his reasons. I just figured, Here comes the typical bullshit about people who claim to be progressives—and who were adamant that the nomination should go to Bernie Sanders—who, bottom line, will vote for the Democrats anyway. (Even after the reveal of their corruption.) 

When the nomination was rigged against Bernie Sanders, it was also rigged against every participating primary and caucus voter who voted that 2016 Democratic presidential nomination to Bernie Sanders.

This turned off from The Young Turks.

I did not tune in again, for any considerable period, until Election Night on November 8, 2016. But, I wasn’t tuned in only to coverage from TYT. I went back and forth between network and cable news programmers. Sometimes they don’t call a given state in unison. So, I would go back and forth. I did not have much focus on TYT. It was after Election Night that I was able to pick up, from what others uploaded to YouTube, how TYT handled Election Night.

I later learned that TYT went from Bernie Sanders to propping up Hillary Clinton—which meant shilling for the Democratic Party—after I had pretty much left. Election Night made my departure permanent.

In the last four consecutive years of 2017 to 2020, I was able to come across updates which informed me of what has become of TYT. So, what happened most recently—Ana Kasparian deliberately and falsely stating that Aaron Maté is paid by Syria—does not come as much to a surprise, or does it disgust me, as it has with others. For me, it served as full confirmation that TYT are Enemies of True Progressives. (Recommended reading: The Ideological Failure Of The Young Turks.)

This confirms, just in case there was doubt, that The Young Turks are frauds. Since 2016, the masks have been coming off the faces of people who pretend they are allies of those who are truly on the left and want policies such as Medicare for All and Free College Tuition (with Student Loan Forgiveness). 

It became apparent to me, with bottom-line Democrats like Thom Hartmann and David Pakman (both of whom I tuned out after they smeared 2012 and 2016 Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein), that they are not to be trusted. The Young Turks have, in recent times, been joined by the likes of The Rational National’s David Doel, The Humanist Report’s Mike Figueredo, TBTV’s Tim Black and—no surprise!— Majority Report’s Sam Seder (who I never liked and/or trusted) as well as Nomiki Konst (who appeared on Seder’s program to deliver a McCarthyite-like attack against Jimmy Dore).

“Force the Vote,” as offered last December by Jimmy Dore, and which came before from the Democratic Socialists of America, suggested the so-called progressives of the Democratic U.S. House—among them are New York’s Alexandria Ocasio–Cortez, Minnesota’s Ilhan Omar, Michigan’s Rashid Talib, Massachusetts’s Ayanna Pressley, Missouri’s Cori Bush, Washington’s Pramila Jayapal, California’s Ro Khanna, New York’s Jamal Bowman, and Wisconsin’s Mark Pocan—have leverage. The 2020 U.S. House Democrats retained their majority with 222 seats. 218 is outright majority. California’s Nancy Pelosi faced election for re-election as speaker of the House. Those nine members (and possibly more) could have used their leverage to inform Pelosi they will withhold their votes for re-electing her speaker if she does not, at the least, bring to the floor a vote on Medicare for All. Despite saying they want Medicare for All, they refused to use their leverage and easily voted for re-electing Pelosi. This is why they are the “Fraud Squad.”

The people who were blasting the approach of “Force the Vote” were taking off their masks. They were showing us, no matter how they attempt to explain away their so-called reasons, they oppose Medicare for All. They were telling us, from each of their positions, their true intention is to continue to string along people (and/or viewers) who trust and follow them. And, when it comes to the bottom line for them, they are focused on themselves for both their money and career. This was most telling with the source many thought were the leaders for actual progressives: The Young Turks.

I am pleased Cenk Uygur, Ana Kasparian, and The Young Turks have taken off their masks. That they exposed themselves as an operation for the Democratic Party. The corrupt, corporate Democratic Party Establishment. Uygur accepted $20 million from Hillary Clinton supporter Jeffrey Katzenberg in 2017. What is now seen on The Young Turks is what Cenk Uygur accepting that $20 million has manifest.

2021 Pulitzer Prize Citation for Darnella Frazier

Last Friday [June 11, 2021], a Pulitzer Prize Citation was awarded to Darnella Frazier. 

This is the Minnesota citizen who, at age 17, video-recorded the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.

This outrageous murder of Floyd, by Chauvin, was one murder case—a cop against a citizen—that the police, and those who defend the police, could not sweep under a rug.

What Darnella Frazier was able to capture in that gutsy video recording was instrumental in bringing conviction against Derek Chauvin.

‘Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar’

I am adding to “Recommendations” the brand-new Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar.

It premieres on the very date of this blog topic.

We will find out if it is a worthy addition.

I hope, for Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti, and for us, that Breaking Points will be better than their Rising series under The Hill.

The above video, published to YouTube on June 3, 2021, is a preview of the set for Breaking Points.

Here is a link:

Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar

Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti Move On … Justice for Abby Martin

The Rising, from The Hill, is no longer hosted by Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti. The two made last Friday, May 28, 2021, their final day. They will move on together for an independent program.

I have opted to no longer include The Rising on my “Recommendations.” If the replacement hosts end up being worthy, I will reconsider.

I hope Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti come up with a new program that I can Recommend. (I am optimistic.)

★★★★★

Abby Martin, host of Empire Files, recently won a lawsuit against the State of Georgia on the grounds its anti-BDS law violated her Free Speech and is unconstitutional in accordance to the First Amendment.

This is terrific. And I hope this marks the beginning of its end.

Martin appears as the guest to discuss this necessary victory—and justice—in a recent Tim Dillon Show. (Published Sunday, May 30, 2021, this near-90-minute episode has Martin appear at the mark of 52 minutes and 45 seconds.)

‘LIVE with Roger Waters and Gabor Maté, on Israel/Palestine, Gaza war, music, and more’

The Grayzone regulars Max Blumenthal, Ben Norton, and Aaron Maté having welcomed as their guests, on Friday, May 21, 2021, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters and Maté’s physician father Gabor Maté.

With Israel/Palestine so recently prominent in the news, their discussion is really good. 

This is two hours in duration. 

It is well-worthy of this week’s blog topic. 

One of the video’s commenters had this to say:

“This is possibly the greatest program [The] Grayzone has ever made. Please post bite-size extracts of this superb panel on social media for your viewers to post to their social media.” —Mark Williams

★ ★ ★

NOTE:  I have added one more name to “Recommendations”: Shant Mesrobian. I admit to not knowing enough about him. But, he came to my attention when Mesrobian was quoted by The Jimmy Dore Show from his recent guest appearance on the podcast The Popular Show. It was about #ForceTheVote. Mesrobian, who is very perceptive, has a few pieces on Inquire. (Glenn Greenwald recently told Jimmy Dore he should invite Shant Mesrobian onto his program. I hope it happens.)