Trump: Gaslighting America once again

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Saturday September 17, 2016 · 2:54 PM PDT

2016/09/17 · 14:54

In the wake of the Republican National Convention and all the “intimidation, denial of responsibility, revisionism” and flat out lies uttered by one speaker after another, Texas Observer writer Andrea Grimes wrote this psychological assessment of the GOP: The GOP is Gaslighting America — on National Television. For those fortunate enough to have never been subjected to this tactic, Grimes offers this definition:

Gaslighting is a psychological tactic used by abusers, particularly but not only domestic abusers, to confuse, shame and manipulate others into believing that they cannot accurately interpret reality.

Yesterday, we saw it again, with Trump as he called a press conference under false pretenses, then tried to blame Hillary Clinton for starting the "birther movement."
In the Texas Observer article, Andrea Grimes asks us to imagine what it would be like to be in an abusive relationship where such a pattern of lying was considered “normal.”

What would we do if someone treated us, if someone talked to us, the way Trump and the GOP leadership has done this week? If we see these tactics and behaviors as reflective of patterns of emotional and mental manipulation, rather than an especially egregious version of the politics to which we’re otherwise resigned, does that change the way we can, or should, react?

Well, if we were raised in an environment where gaslighting was a common occurrence, we might react the way Ivanka Trump did when she walked out of the "tough" Cosmopolitan interview, accusing the interviewer of “editorializing” instead of facing up to the fact that her father did actually say those things about pregnancy being “inconvenient” for business.

As we phone bank, block walk, and get out the vote for Hillary Clinton and our down-ballot Democrats, it’s important to know that there’s a significant portion of our society for whom this abusive, authoritarian, pathological lying is “normal,” and it’s beyond our ability to tell them otherwise. At this point, we need to make sure “our side" outnumbers theirs. We need to get out the vote for Hillary Clinton and all our progressive down-ballot candidates in state legislatures, judiciary, and school board who will improve the mental health of this country from the class room to the board room to the Oval Office.

Proud to be Stunningly Ignorant About Guns

CoolOnion

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Sunday January 20, 2013 · 9:48 AM PST

2013/01/20 · 09:48

I've never owned a gun, never fired a gun, and don't intend to ever fire a gun. I don't know the difference between a shot gun and a hand gun, and I'm proud of my stunning ignorance of different types of weapons.

Sure, I know the world is a dangerous place, but I refuse to go through life being afraid of everything.

When I was a kid, I had an uncle who knew all about guns. He was afraid of burglars and kept a gun in his nightstand drawer. One night, he heard a prowler in the house and shot. Except it wasn't a prowler, it was his wife, in the kitchen getting a glass of water. Fortunately, the bullet only grazed her leg and she wasn't injured badly.

Nothing like that ever happened at my house, because my parents didn't live in fear of being burglarized, and they didn't own a gun.

Today, I live in a nice, relatively safe neighborhood with an active neighborhood association of good people who look after each other.

One of my neighbors knows all about guns. She's another one of these paranoid people who sees robbers around every corner, and was happy to host a crime watch meeting at her house. I wasn't at that particular meeting, but I've heard the story from several people who were there. At the meeting, she was proudly showing off her latest gun when it accidentally went off! Luckily, it fired into the ceiling and no one was hurt.

Nothing like that will ever happen at my house, because I don't live in fear of crime, and I don't own a gun.

Call me crazy, but I don't think us "stunningly ignorant about guns" folks are the problem.

UPDATE: Just wanted to add that I'm not scared of coyotes, either. Our governor admitted to jogging with a gun in case he sees a coyote and "needs" to shoot one. What an idiot. I've seen coyotes on the edges of my urban neighborhood, but they're not a threat to people. They're more afraid of us than we are of them.

Fun Convention Game: "Where's Joe?"

CoolOnion

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Thursday September 06, 2012 · 2:54 PM PDT

2012/09/06 · 14:54

Here's a fun game for you when you're watching tonight's convention. It's kind of like "Where's Waldo, but your mission is to look at the buttons on the lapels of convention delegates as the camera pans by, looking for this button:

I call the game "Where's Joe?" and I spotted a few in the crowd last night among the Delaware delegation, of all places! Coincidentally, they have a favorite son named Joe, too, but this button is for the campaign of Dallas County Treasurer, Joe Wells... Read More

Right-wing Texans love gov't healthcare, just not "Obamacare"

CoolOnion

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Saturday June 30, 2012 · 5:08 AM PDT

2012/06/30 · 05:08

My spouse and I are safely back in our blue bubble after spending a week in an alternate universe (otherwise known as Amarillo, Texas) where people claim that they "never watch the news," but somehow parrot all the right wing talking points about how everything President Obama does is "socialism."

We were having breakfast yesterday when one of my sister-in-law's friends came over and launched into a launched into a tearful, worried, misguided rant about "Obamacare."

"I never watch news," she said, "but..." and--well, you know the rest, the same old litany of misinformation spouted by right-wing hate radio.

When she finally took a breath, I said--just to be snarky, really--"Yeah, I'd rather have Medicare for All."

The woman perked up. "Yes!" she said. "Medicare for All is what the people want!"

I was a little surprised, but not very, because I heard that from the Tea Partiers back in 2009...

CoolOnion

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Thursday February 16, 2012 · 12:51 PM PST

2012/02/16 · 12:51

You want to do something big to make a difference. You're tempted to join "Operation Hilarity" because, hey, it would be hilarious if the Republicans were stuck with Santorum as their nominee.

But then you think, "Is this the best use of my time and my vote? What can I do to bring about real change in the Democratic Party?"

If you're tired of a centrist Democratic Party and want to drag that tired old lazy donkey to the left, don't waste your vote on some half-assed attempt to make the GOP look stupid. They can look stupid all on their own. What you want to do is go to your precinct caucus on Super Tuesday and vote for delegates to the convention and resolutions. For more information, follow me over the Fleur de Kos...

CoolOnion

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Thursday February 02, 2012 · 2:24 PM PST

2012/02/02 · 14:24

There's not much I can add to this column by Jacquielynn Floyd, which appeared in today's Dallas Morning News: Komen for the Cure’s new fashion statement: the pink burqa

Excerpts and commentary over the Fleur de Kos...

CoolOnion

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Friday December 30, 2011 · 7:24 AM PST

2011/12/30 · 07:24

OMG, OMG--I woke up this morning to an email that an anonymous benefactor had bought me a lifetime subscription to this place! I'm so excited that I look kind of like this right now:

You've made my day, and helped me end the year on a bright spot. 2011 hasn't been the best year for me--not horrible, just not great, a year where I'm doing some serious budget cutting to make ends meet. As much as I wanted a lifetime subscription, I just couldn't swing it without your help.

Thank you, thank you, thank you--may your generosity come back to you 1000-fold.

Rick Perry's Texas Miracle: Voter Apathy

CoolOnion

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Wednesday December 28, 2011 · 5:54 PM PST

2011/12/28 · 17:54

By now, everybody's seen Rick Perry, and everybody--Democrats, Republicans and Independents alike--are probably asking themselves the same question, "What the hell?"

He flubs his own talking points, confuses vague statements for irrefutable fact, and apparently doesn't realize that Canada is a foreign country.

"He must have something," people all over the country are saying, "Because he's so popular in Texas."

Wrong on both counts. What you've seen is what you get--there's no "something else" happening with him, that's all there is. And he's not popular in Texas, either. The vast majority of Texas voters have never cast a vote for Rick Perry.

Follow me over the jump and I'll explain (be careful stepping over that coiled up snake in the grass).

CoolOnion

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Wednesday August 03, 2011 · 12:18 PM PDT

2011/08/03 · 12:18

I'm proud to say I'm a member of Dallas Area Christian Progressive Alliance which put together an open letter to Rick Perry, calling on him to repent--a word which means "go a new way"--for the way he's treated children, the poor, the immigrants and others in Texas.

Over the squiggle is the letter in its entirety, for those who'd like to read it; it's full of scriptural passages ignored by right-wingers, which might be of use in challenging the bible-beater politicians in your state.

We also invite Christians, people of other faiths, and non-believers to sign our petition at this link: Gov. Rick Perry: On August 6, "Go A New Way"

CoolOnion

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Friday July 15, 2011 · 9:01 PM PDT

2011/07/15 · 21:01

Well, we have another "family values" Republican who won't be taking the Family Leader marriage vow. Pete Sessions and his wife of 27 years are separating.

From NBC/DFW:

The 56-year-old Texas Republican issued a statement Friday:
"After a great deal of thought and discussion, a decision has been made that my wife and I are separating. I am grateful for many years of marriage, and the blessing of two wonderful sons. I ask for respect for my privacy and for that of my family, and I do not intend to comment any further."

Of course, he can't be reached for comment, and he dumped this news on Friday night. So there's no news on what's behind this--maybe she got tired of him running off to fundraisers at strip clubs or just got tired of him being so damned stupid. Read More

Texas Lawmakers use "ghost votes" to pass Voter ID Law

CoolOnion

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Friday March 25, 2011 · 11:55 AM PDT

2011/03/25 · 11:55

From the file of "you can't make this shit up" comes this gem from today's Dallas Morning News: Some Texas lawmakers cast votes for fellow members on bill meant to protect elections

As they debated a photo identification mandate for voters, House members passionately and frequently defended the imperative of ballot integrity.
And then, often and openly, many of them voted for themselves, then reached over and cast their colleagues’ votes, too, on some of the bill’s 63 amendments.

The practice of "ghost voting" is nothing new in the Texas Legislature, but it's particularly hypocritical that it was used for this vote. Below the jump is a video from 2008 about the procedure that lawmakers call "a necessary courtesy and convenience." Read More

The Bush Library must be hard up for cash

CoolOnion

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Tuesday March 22, 2011 · 5:16 PM PDT

2011/03/22 · 17:16

Well, you'll never believe what I got in the mail today--a fundraising letter from George W. Bush himself, asking for support for his Presidential Library. He must be really hard up for cash if he's asking me for money.

"Dear Friend," it starts...

Throughout our time in the White House, Laura and I were sustained by support from friends like you...

Boy, did he get a wrong number. I guess he didn't see my artwork on display at the Farewell Shoes for Bush show. I know he didn't see me standing on the road in Crawford with Cindy Sheehan, 'cause he avoided that situation like the plague.

I wondered how my name ended up on the list of supporters for the lie-brary, so I'm using their postage-paid envelope to ask that very question...

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Trump: Gaslighting America once again

Proud to be Stunningly Ignorant About Guns

Fun Convention Game: "Where's Joe?"

Right-wing Texans love gov't healthcare, just not "Obamacare"

Stop the Hilarity! Go to the Dem caucus on Super Tuesday!

Komen's New Fashion Statement: Pink Burquas

A big Thank You to my anonymous benefactor!

Rick Perry's Texas Miracle: Voter Apathy

Progressive Christians call on Rick Perry to repent

UPDATED: Pete Sessions and wife calling it quits

Texas Lawmakers use "ghost votes" to pass Voter ID Law

The Bush Library must be hard up for cash