Why the U.S. Can’t Solve Big Problems

I guess this is what to expect from the country that inspired the quote, "Americans can always be counted on to do the right thing...after they have exhausted all other possibilities":

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/11/us-bad-big-problems-like-climate-change/576802/

Unfortunately, by that time it will be too late....

Trump Administration’s Climate Report Raises New Questions About Nuclear Energy’s Future

Nuclear power uses a LOT of water. That's a problem for many parts of the world:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/nuclear-energy-climate-change-report_us_5bfdb9cae4b0a46950dce58f

Donald Trump Gets Fact-Checked By Reporter Right To His Face, Walks Away

Immediate fact-checking is probably the best way to deal with Trump, since he doesn't get the clean, authoritative soundbites he wants:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-fact-checked-by-reporter_us_5bfd0cb8e4b0771fb6bda02e

President Trump Says He’s Too Intelligent To Believe In Climate Change

The most severe case of Dunning-Kruger effect I have ever seen:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-climate-change-denial_us_5bfde067e4b0d23c21379349

The Right-Wing Intellectual Abyss

"No matter how racist, how bigoted, how offensive, how obviously fake we get, people keep coming back."

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/daylightatheism/2018/11/the-right-wing-intellectual-abyss/

'I Don't Believe It': Trump Rejects His Administration's Dire Warning About Economic Impact of Climate Change

Your job is to protect US citizens, numb-nuts, not kill them and destroy their economy and environment. That's TRE45ON:

http://time.com/5463846/trump-rejects-climate-change-economic-report/

GOP Shrugs Off Bombshell Climate Report

Climate change is potentially more catastrophic than a nuclear war...and it's inevitable unless we act to counter it now. So politicians ignoring the threat is literally treason:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/climate-change-report-gop_us_5bfab61de4b0771fb6b9bf48

Federal Climate Report Predicts At Least 3 Degrees Of Warming By 2100

Doesn't ignoring an existential threat to our citizens count as treason?

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-climate-assessment_us_5bf5b31fe4b0771fb6b57ccb

Digital Authoritarianism Is Rising. Here’s What That Means

Democracy is on the decline:

https://singularityhub.com/2018/11/23/digital-authoritarianism-is-rising-heres-what-that-means/

Trumpism Is A Dangerous Death Rattle, But The Midterms Showed Us How To Beat It

A thoughtful opinion piece:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/opinion-2018-midterm-results_us_5bf58b84e4b03b230f9dd461

Like it or not, Jesus was a liberal

Just in case you run into a Republican who conflates conservative principles with Christianity:

http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/20171022/like-it-or-not-jesus-was-liberal

Troops Sent To U.S.-Mexico Border Under Anti-Caravan Push To Start Heading Home

The whole caravan panic was so obviously purely an election ploy:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/us-mexico-border-troops-caravan_us_5bf337d2e4b0376c9e67e213

The country is hopelessly split. So why not make it official and break up?

A detailed "what if" scenario for splitting up the US:

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/11/maybe-its-time-for-america-to-split-up.html

Trump's mood takes a foul turn: 'He's pissed -- at damn near everyone'

More Trump misery. :-)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/14/politics/donald-trump-mood-pissed-white-house-intrigue/index.html

Trump, stung by midterms and nervous about Mueller, retreats from traditional presidential duties

This is the feel-good post of the day:

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-absent-20181113-story.html

Schadenfreude!

Wildfires Are Getting More Frequent and More Destructive. There Are No Easy Ways to Prevent Them

How CA is dealing with climate change:

http://time.com/5453907/california-wildfires-adaptation/

Urging Florida To Ignore Military Votes Fits Trump’s True Pattern With The Troops

Trump has a long history of disparaging and disrespecting the military, something that SHOULD lose him more than a few military votes:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-military-disrespect-cemetery-florida_us_5be9f43ae4b044bbb1a783bf

Can Donald Trump fight back the House's subpoena for IRS to hand-over his tax returns?

According to this post, it's unlikely getting hold of Trump's tax returns will show much, unfortunately:

https://www.quora.com/Can-Donald-Trump-fight-back-the-Houses-subpoena-for-IRS-to-hand-over-his-tax-returns/answer/Nikita-Rogozin-2?ch=99&share=987de949&srid=uBhZO

Wins By Democratic Attorneys General Threaten To Multiply Climate Suits Against Big Oil

Corporations may be able to dump a lot of money into elections and buy off politicians, but that doesn't stop inexorable trends in public opinion:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/midterms-democrats-attorney-general-climate-lawsuits_us_5be5f199e4b0e8438897aa58

Democrats Are Going To Investigate Trump’s Corruption And His Nativist Immigration Policies

Another good line of attack on the Trump administration:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/house-democrats-trump-investigations_us_5be31530e4b0dbe871a5eba8

2018 was a WAY better election for Democrats than most people seem to think

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/09/politics/2018-democrats-midterms/index.html

A big fight is coming over Trump’s tax returns

Damn it, there is a possibility that Trump will keep his tax returns hidden:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/big-fight-coming-trumps-tax-returns-181055217.html

What the Artist Behind a Comics-Style History of Anti-Fascist Resistance Thinks You Should Know About Antifa

Some useful points:

"Nazism was finally defeated through the terrible destruction of World War II, if that’s what people want to go to because they think it’s not right to confront fascists when they’re in the streets. Confronting fascists in the streets when they’re a much smaller movement is a lot better than waging a world war to shut down a fascist state."

"Antifa wouldn’t exist if there weren’t these fascist and far-right groups mobilizing and carrying out attacks. If you look at the last couple of years, there’s been over two dozen people killed by far-right and fascist groups and individuals, and antifa hasn’t killed anybody."

http://time.com/5437204/antifa-history-comic/

We now know it’s folly to rage against Trump

"A central problem is that, while the right traditionally thinks the left is wrong, the left thinks the right is immoral. Thus the anti-Trump, anti-Brexit champions have found it easier to abandon reason for moral damnation."

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/nov/09/trump-us-president-the-left

Why the Midterm Results Should Concern You Regardless of Which Party You Support

The danger of gerrymandering:

http://time.com/5449459/midterm-elections-2018-results-gerrymandering/

Democrats Are Going To Investigate Trump’s Corruption And His Nativist Immigration Policies

"House Oversight Committee Democrats already had a list of 50-plus subpoenas they want filed prior to the election." Yeah, THAT'S what I want to see:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/house-democrats-trump-investigations_us_5be31530e4b0dbe871a5eba8

Most Americans Are Liberal, Even If They Don’t Know It

This is highly encouraging:

http://prospect.org/article/most-americans-are-liberal-even-if-they-don%E2%80%99t-know-it

U.S. Election Rules Doomed Democrats’ Chances Of Taking The Senate

Gerrymandering and lightly populated rural states make it tough to win the Senate:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/us-election-rules-doomed-democrats-chances-of-taking-the-senate_us_5be0a33be4b04367a87f786f

“I Don't Like Her. Should I Vote for Her?”

Women are judged more critically than men, and the characteristics people like in men are often a liability in women. I hope this doesn't hurt their election chances...but I'm sure it factors in:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/i-dont-like-her-should-vote-rachel-schall-thomas/

Noam Chomsky says Trump and allies are "criminally insane"

If you're ignoring climate change, you're ignorant, stupid or insane:

https://bigthink.com/politics-current-affairs/chomsky-says-trump-is-criminally-insane

As Trump Spreads A Fog Of Falsehoods, His Fans Believe Them And Make Excuses For Him

The human capacity for self-deception is disheartening:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-lies-supporters-midterm-elections_us_5bdf78dde4b04367a87dacf5

Democracy in Crisis

The US is not doing well, thanks to Trump and the Republicans:

https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/freedom-world-2018

Nigerian Army Uses Trump’s Words to Justify Fatal Shooting of Rock-Throwing Protesters

Oh for fuck's sake!

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/02/world/africa/nigeria-trump-rocks.html

12 Young People on Why They Probably Won’t Vote

I have to say I hate these idiots:

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/10/12-young-people-on-why-they-probably-wont-vote.html

What billionaires want: the secret influence of America’s 100 richest

And Trump supporters think Trump really wants to help them?

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/oct/30/billionaire-stealth-politics-america-100-richest-what-they-want

Taking the Oceans’ Temperature, Scientists Find Unexpected Heat

What does it take to cause politicians to wake up?

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/31/climate/ocean-temperatures-hotter.html