Odds and Ends — 6 January 2025

in #oddsandends9 days ago

Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:

Politics:

Don’t Mention the Coup!

The memory of January 6 vanishes from Trump’s new Washington.

Why Is Hollywood Suddenly Silent About Trump?

Something strange has been happening to The Apprentice, which despite acute timeliness and an 83 percent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes has been willed away by the industry. Most distribution execs wouldn’t touch it; actors won’t talk about it.
The film shows how Cohn’s bare-knuckle approach shaped a young Trump. And whether entertainers fear validating Trump’s relevance or worry about repercussions for seeming critical of his power, they’ve sidestepped the subject. What if they made a movie about Roy Cohn and everyone was afraid of a blacklist?”
Such a reception metaphorizes current Hollywood. After deploying every weapon to stop Trump from regaining the White House — letting loose every Beyoncé performance, George Clooney op-ed and Taylor Swift endorsement — the industry has pretty much gone Harold Lloyd-silent since he won.

Obeying in advance is never a good idea.

Trudeau expected to announce exit as party leader before national caucus meeting Wednesday

https://x.com/BennieGThompson/status/1875661717738520601

Trump Pushes Republicans to Pass His Agenda

“We must Secure our Border, Unleash American Energy, and Renew the Trump Tax Cuts, which were the largest in History, but we will make it even better - NO TAX ON TIPS,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Republicans must unite, and quickly deliver these Historic Victories for the American People. Get smart, tough, and send the Bill to my desk to sign as soon as possible.”
That’s a tall order. Not only is it a breathtakingly expansive amount of policy to enact, but Trump’s definition of “as soon as possible” is likely different from that of Republicans on the Hill. At the moment, House Speaker Mike Johnson can only afford to lose the vote of a single Republican (assuming united Democratic opposition), and members of the Freedom Caucus, for example, are unlikely to accept a bill that doesn’t try to do something about government spending or the debt.

Biden says it is awful that Trump is seeking to do away with US birthright citizenship

Jan. 6 Has Taken On a Whole New Meaning

The failures of the past four years are crystal clear, yet hard to fathom.

Toxic masculinity links the New Orleans attacker and the Las Vegas bomber

Whether MAGA or ISIS, troubled men are getting sucked in by hateful online propaganda

Starmer attacks those 'spreading lies' on grooming gangs

Serendipity:

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Thank you for the picture of Bernie. The rest of it is mostly depressing. Cowards all

Something strange has been happening to The Apprentice, which despite acute timeliness and an 83 percent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes has been willed away by the industry. Most distribution execs wouldn’t touch it; actors won’t talk about it.

I guess you can't blame people. The unthinkable has happened. What comes next? We don't recognize this country, because we never realized what many people really believe. They don't want equal rights. They don't want justice. They want a world in which everybody looks like them and everybody agrees with them. Womanizer? Insurrectionist? Serially liar and fraudster? They don't care.

It's stunning and depressing. Thanks for being out there and pointing out the truth.