cross-posted from: https://ibbit.at/post/127026

A leaked memo by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi directs the Justice Department and FBI to compile a list of groups that may be labeled “domestic terrorism” organizations based on political views related to immigration, gender and U.S. policy. The memo was obtained by independent investigative journalist Ken Klippenstein, who joins us to discuss how it expands on President Donald Trump’s NSPM-7…

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[–] 221 points 11 months ago (1 child)

I’ve got a lot of anti-Trump thoughts, how much are they paying for them?

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  • [–] 149 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Trump is such a little bitch

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  • [–] 69 points 11 months ago (13 children)
  • [–] 84 points 11 months ago (12 children)

    I’m rewatching The X-Files at the moment, and it’s so weird to remember a time when people believed that government agencies were staffed by people smart enough to investigate or cover up alien conspiracies.

    It actually works as evidence against the theories that aliens have visited earth, because if it existed, Patel would have accidentally tweeted the Roswell autopsy video while eating his lunch on the toilet by now.

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  • [–] 29 points 11 months ago*

    Right? I laugh now about “how organized and responsive” governments are portrayed. Hurricane Katrina was also a giveaway; but the last 10 years (especially the last year)? Gong show!

    Edit: If aliens showed now, ICE would just make them disappear if they couldn’t be monetized. I miss Mulder and Scully.

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  • [–] 8 points 11 months ago* (9 children)

    I personally suspect that if aliens actually did show up to earth, they wouldn't be content to remain in the shadows.

    Basically, the native life is the only thing that would be of interest. we (that is life,) are the only things that are actually unique to this particular system. If it's simple curiosity about things, they could study us from a distance, without ever revealing themselves to us (or the government.)

    Which leaves a few reasons for why they'd come here:

    • Genocidal freaks who have some biological or cultural imperative to kill everything that's not them.
    • Space Mormons coming to share their faith.
    • Space evangelicals. They're like Space Mormons, except turn into the first group when you politely decline.

    Either way... we'd know they'd be here.

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  • [–] 5 points 11 months ago

    I kind of feel like if aliens do exist and they can travel FTL and visit Earth, they probably also would belong to some organization that controls space travel and our planet would be marked as a no go zone.

    We are incredibly violent apex predators who have reshaped the very planet in our image with an unending thirst for resource consumption. I feel like aliens would not want to give us access to their tech because we are dangerous.

    That's just my hunch though, in reality I have no idea. For all I know some space Mormons will show up and absolutely wreck our shit and enslave us. We're smart enough we'd make good pets and/or work animals. Regardless, if aliens do show up and reveal themselves to us I hope they have kind intentions.

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  • [–] 1 point 11 months ago

    Theres also aliens that want to lock you in a zoo, aliens that want to rob you, aliens that want to assimilate you, and (assuming our biology is the only viable route for advanced life) refugees.

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  • [–] 1 point 11 months ago (4 children)

    I mean.. it is the prime directive and all

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  • [–] 1 point 11 months ago (3 children)

    Pretty sure the prime directive says “if they’ve nuked themselves hundreds of times… DONOTGOTHERE!!!!”

    (Of course they went there. What could go wrong?)

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  • [–] 1 point 11 months ago (2 children)

    Picturing the onion article. Planet that nukes itself over and over cannot prevent nuking itself

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  • [–] 61 points 11 months ago (7 children)

    Now I'm going to anti-trump think even harder.

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  • [–] 12 points 11 months ago (4 children)

    Rule number 1: Don't obey in advance. I know I'm preaching to the choir, but still, never lapse, even for a second.

    Fuck Trump, and you should also know it's incredibly illegal to say "I want to kill the president of the United States of America." It's one of the only sentences you're not allowed to say!

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  • [+] 7 points 11 months ago (3 children)
  • [–] 2 points 11 months ago

    Almost certainly yes, at least based on historical precedent, though Trump loves ignoring that.

    For example, Watts v. United States, where someone said:

    "They always holler at us to get an education. And now I have already received my draft classification as 1-A and I have got to report for my physical this Monday coming. I am not going. If they ever make me carry a rifle the first man I want to get in my sights is L. B. J."

    He was originally convicted, but that was then reversed, as the Supreme Court stated:

    "We agree with petitioner that his only offense here was 'a kind of very crude offensive method of stating a political opposition to the president.' Taken in context, and regarding the expressly conditional nature of the statement and the reaction of the listeners, we do not see how it could be interpreted otherwise."

    At the end of the day, the law only really states that you have to:

    1. Make a threat
    2. ...That threatens you taking the life of, kidnapping, or inflicting bodily harm upon the president

    So let's say I say "I am going to kill the President" not as an example, but as an actual statement. That could be interpreted as an actual threat. However, If I am a 13 year old kid with just $20 to my name, no access to a gun, and no means of transport to even get near the president, it would be hard for the government to argue that's not just a joke, or political hyperbole, as it was in the case of Watts v. United States.

    Given that all of those would be a threat for you to do something, and not just you wishing he was dead by any other means, it's quite likely that any court would determine you saying something like "I hope Donald Trump dies a horrible, agonizing, painful death," or even something like "I hope someone else shoots the president" would probably be considered AOK, and again, just political hyperbole, or statements without any material threat behind them.

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  • [–] 117 points 11 months ago (11 children)

    This is harder to type than it probably should be. Back in 2015, because of the way I was raised in an extreme conservative evangelical household as a preacher’s kid, I was a Republican. I had already broken with that world in every meaningful way, but I had not actually sat down and examined what I believed. So there I was, still actively involved in politics. I helped campaign for Romney. I made more than three thousand phone calls, which I am pretty sure qualifies as a minor war crime. I was on the election staff of a representative who, for the record, had not been elected yet when I worked for her. I was a special elector. I was on the county central committee. I worked every election since 2011 with an R behind my name.

    And then they picked the orange man. I wrote the Chairwoman a very long letter explaining, in polite terms, that this was not going to work for me. I switched my affiliation to Independent. Unfortunately, I still had not figured out where the world was heading, so I voted for Gary Johnson. The less said about that period of my life, the better.

    When the Senate Election Committee decided to finance Roy Moore, I walked directly to the courthouse, changed my registration to Democrat, and started working elections for that party instead. There is a point where a person realizes the boat is not just sinking, it was built upside down to begin with.

    Anyway, based on the tone of that old letter, I find myself hoping I ended up on a list somewhere for Pam Bondi. It would be nice to feel important for a moment. Besides, what a spectacular waste of resources it would be to track down one Army veteran who lives in an RV in the middle of nowhere.

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  • [–] 15 points 11 months ago

    Out of the current "R" brand spread, Romney at least had some character. I wouldn't beat yourself up too bad about things you did many many years ago, reflection is hard, growing up is hard - you are a champion for being man enough and introspective enough to grow as a person. Also I enjoyed reading this, thank you for sharing.

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  • [–] 1 point 11 months ago

    Good on you. It takes courage to admit to something like that and to move in a direction you believe is right despite your upbringing. I'm in a situation with some similarities to yours, and while im still coming to terms with things and not ready to talk about it yet I want you to know that you posting your story and owning your mistakes is inspiring

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  • [+] -31 points 11 months ago (8 children)

    I grew up in a strict evangelical Republican household and stayed in GOP politics for years without really questioning my beliefs. I campaigned, worked elections, and was deeply involved—until the party chose Trump. I left, became an Independent, briefly voted for Gary Johnson, then switched to Democrat when the GOP backed Roy Moore. At some point you realize the ship wasn’t just sinking—it was built wrong. Honestly, I kind of hope I made some list in Pam Bondi’s files; it’d be the first time an Army vet living in an RV felt important.

    There, easy to type.

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  • [–] 32 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    Thanks for the summary. Your version is definitely easier to type, but I still prefer the line I wrote earlier: “There is a point where a person realizes the boat is not just sinking, it was built upside down to begin with.”

    Still, I appreciate the reply.

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  • [–] 4 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    That’s not a boat, it’s a roof with no house.

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  • [–] 3 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    If you want to take all human and emotional connection out of it, sure. Take your chatgpt slop with you.

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  • [–] 2 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    If the best you can do is accuse me of using ChatGPT instead of responding to a single thing I actually said, that’s not a debate. That’s avoiding one. I write my own stuff. Always have. Sometimes I even manage to get a line right.

    But if calling it “slop” makes it easier for you to skip the point, go ahead. I grew up in Iowa. I’ve seen actual slop. What I wrote doesn’t qualify.

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  • [–] 50 points 11 months ago

    Fox News host Tucker Carlson said in a text message after the 2020 election that he "passionately hated" Donald Trump, according to new court filings. - BBC

    WASHINGTON (AP) — Mitch McConnell said after the 2020 election that then-President Donald Trump was “stupid as well as being ill-tempered,” a “despicable human being” and a “narcissist,” according to excerpts from a new biography of the Senate Republican leader that will be released this month.

    Donald Trump’s former chief strategist Steve Bannon has described the Trump Tower meeting between the president’s son and a group of Russians during the 2016 election campaign as “treasonous” and “unpatriotic”, according to an explosive new book seen by the Guardian.

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  • [–] 42 points 11 months ago

    “Pedophilia is bad.”

    “Alright, straight to jail with you!”

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  • [–] 39 points 11 months ago

    Amerikkka, now with thoughtcrime.

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  • [–] 35 points 11 months ago

    Fuck off fascists. You gonna arrest 70% of this country??? Even your own "side" is turning on you. "My groceries are too high." <-- that is anti-PEDOnald. "I don't like child rapists." <--- that is anti-PEDOnald.

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  • [–] 69 points 11 months ago (30 children)

    It's funny because in the early 00s I worked for a gay rights organization and was told pretty flat out, the FBI keeps at least a list with my name on it, if not my own file (holdover from the civil rights era when they did this to all progressive groups). And then Obama came along and we thought a new era was being ushered in. And now in 2025 I run a gay nonprofit and probably have an FBI file again. Oh well, means I'm doing something right, fuck 'em.

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  • [–] 12 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    I got permabanned from Reddit during the February bloodbath, after 12 years and nearly a million Karma, all while ferociously attacking Republicans, MAGA, and especially Trump, who I always referred to as HitlerPig.

    I'm sure Spez turned over ALL the files to DOGE like a good little minion, so they've got a nice fat file of ThoughtCrimes® on me.

    I just saw that he's married to Serena Williams, so I now hate her, too.

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  • [–] 29 points 11 months ago* (22 children)

    got to admit, obama played us good. campaign of Hope and Change followed by 8 years of the same tired old playbook

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  • [–] 17 points 11 months ago (11 children)

    My favorite thing about Lemmy is people are willing to make accurate criticisms about Obama and his policies instead of simping for him because he's charasmatic and a Democrat.

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  • [–] 20 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    There's a weird disconnect between the left and the right where MAGA especially is so slavishly cultish that their guys can do no wrong. Whereas on the left, we generally have the critical thinking skills to admit that our guys aren't always doing the right thing.

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  • [–] 13 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

    annoying part is you can see they're setting up the same shit with Newscom/Pritzker

    make some big publicity stunts on tv talking a big game, doing these cute little marches, all while greenlighting ICE to harass their surrounding poor neighborhoods long as they stay out of their donor neighborhoods

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  • [–] 6 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    No politician should be simped for.

    Unfortunately, simping has proven to be very effective :(

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  • [–] 9 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    Yeah turning politics into a fandom changed the game for the worst in a lot of ways

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  • [–] 2 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Now that politics is a team sport, what's the over/under on how long it takes to legalize gambling on politics? I'm sure the gambling apps are lobbying for that right now.

    That shouldn't fuck up anything, right? Nobody could be bribed to throw a race could they?

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  • [–] 2 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    The left has always criticized Obama. We aren't a cult.

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  • [–] 9 points 11 months ago* (5 children)

    We did get the ACA, so it wasn't all for nothing.

    He also had the Republicans fighting so hard against him that they were torpedoing their own bills just because he agreed with them.

    Before Trump, the actual powers of the presidency were pretty limited as far as actual policy changes.

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  • [–] 14 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (4 children)

    the ACA was a corporate wet dream. clearly bought and paid for just like our federal student loan system...just look at their profit margins after it was passed.

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  • [–] 6 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    The original one wasn't. Once the Republicans got their fingers in it, it became one.

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  • [–] 9 points 11 months ago* (2 children)

    lol, and it passed with 1 dem flipping, how convenient.

    it's all a circus to these cunts mate, establishment dems are and always have been controlled opposition.

    the original was never meant to pass, it was meant to allow dems to shrug their shoulders and go "well, we tried" before giving their donors what they paid for

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  • [–] 4 points 11 months ago

    Not me. When he took that stage in that stadium with his family after his election, to a cheering, adoring crowd, and the TV talking heads going on about Hope & Change, I knew he was going to be one more placeholder Democrat, who will last long enough for everyone to forget what shitheads Conservatives are, and allow them back in power to continue their rampage of destruction. That's all Carter, Clinton, and Biden were, too. There hasn't been an effective Democratic president since LBJ.

    But they're the lesser of two evils.

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  • [+] 33 points 11 months ago* (8 children)
  • [–] 26 points 11 months ago (6 children)

    He won't. He'll die of old age after the best medical care in the world exhausts all options to keep him alive.

    The best we can hope for is a stroke to give him locked in syndrome so he can experience a narcissist's hell for a few years first.

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  • [–] 10 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    This is the sad truth, even if the democrats and Republicans somehow united and said 'to hell with this jackass, let's arrest him and try him properly' he will probably die before even that trial is complete.

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  • [–] 12 points 11 months ago

    Donald Trump is such a disgusting criminal individual it isn't funny. Everything he accuses his enemies of he is guilty of himself, including the recent accusations of mortgage fraud.

    In his mind rules and laws aren't for allowing society to function, but as tools to get his enemies in trouble, and at the same none should apply to him.

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  • [–] 32 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    Trump is a giant pedophile piece of felon shit!

    Come get me, fuckers. I'm armed!

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  • [–] 29 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Can I report myself? Is there a limit?

    I feel like this could be a revival of the Reddit Area 51 fun run. “They can’t take all of us!”

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  • [–] 8 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

    I heard about the Area 51 thing back when it was happening but didn't think much of it other than "edgelords being extra edgy". And I hadn't given it much more thought after that. Until that documentary came out recently on Netflix. I watched it and I was mostly shocked about how much the military/government were shitting their pants over it.

    The main thing I took away from that was how much power a large group of people would truly wield if they actually organized and worked together .

    That's the reason we're all being pitted against one another.

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  • [–] 28 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    How much more anti-American can the USA get?

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  • [–] 28 points 11 months ago

    The largest untapped market in the country: people who dislike trump. It's genius

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  • [–] 26 points 11 months ago

    Gee I wonder who could've seen this coming since the post-9/11 bloodthirst...

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  • [+] 22 points 11 months ago (2 children)
  • [–] 6 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    They might not get to "the rounding them up" stage yet. But, right off the bat, being on one of those lists could subject you to a tax audit, keep you from accessing benefits, leave you unemployed, etc. They did this under the Red Scare. Just because they're not going to come for you today doesn't mean they won't make your life miserable.

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  • [–] 21 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Trump is the weakest snowflake in the world.

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    [–] 21 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    make up a bunch of false reports, flood their system.

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