Anti-Trump protests overshadow Trump’s parade » « Stephen Pinker slides down the slippery slope of a public intellectual

Open thread

I have not felt the desire to blog the least few days because the news has been so relentlessly depressing. With Israel seeming to be determined to start a war with Iran, Trump and his gang’s assault on immigrants and his use of the National Guard and federal troops to suppress protest, his stupid vanity project of a military parade, and the tragedy of the Air India plane crash, it feels like writing about any single thing is avoiding everything else.

So I invite people to use this post as an open thread to vent about anything they like.

Anti-Trump protests overshadow Trump’s parade » « Stephen Pinker slides down the slippery slope of a public intellectual

Comments

  1. chigau (違う) says

    My apartment building is very large and the exterior surface is very dark. When the sun shines upon it, it can get VERY warm.
    In summer, when the surrounding vegetation is burning, it becomes a problem:
    do I open the windows to get air circulation (including smoke) or leave them closed and risk 40 degrees C in my apartment?
    I open the windows.
    And the door.

  4. says

    Reports from local weather people indicate that we have not had a weekend free of precipitation in 30 weeks. Also, we have not had a stretch of 72 hours free of precipitation in some 240+ days. It rained again last night. Drought is not on the horizon, however, being smothered by moss and algae is. Historically, we get around 100 inches of snow during the winter. The trend over the last several years has been less than that. By late February of this year we had topped 170 inches and I stopped counting. A town 20 miles to our north hit 300 inches. Yes. 25 feet.

    2025 has been a mess on a number of fronts, and it appears that, at least locally, mother nature is now out for revenge.

  5. Katydid says

    2025 has just been TOO MUCH. Too much malfeasance, too much information overload, too much heat and much rain and too much drought. @4 and @1, sorry to both of you.

    Last night on the PBS Newshour, one feature was the Rio Grande catchment area, where apparently the continental US grows sugarcane. Or, GREW sugarcane. It’s a very water-intensive crop and the Rio Grande just doesn’t have the water. Also, there is now land in that area that hasn’t seen rain in two years, and reservoirs on both sides of the border are drying up.

    In my area, we had no spring and have gone right from February into August temps. I’ve found myself getting annoyed with chirpy weather people who gush over “the WONDERFUL summer temps!” we’ve been having; it’s shouldn’t hit 99 this early.

    We do live in interesting times, just like the curse.

  7. raven says

    This just happened.
    Fascist terrorism incident: Two Democratic party legislators in Minnesota were shot at their homes by someone impersonating a police officer.

    2 Minnesota lawmakers shot in apparent ‘targeted’ incident: Officials
    ByJon Haworth ABC logo Saturday, June 14, 2025 6:47AM

    MINNESOTA — Two state lawmakers were shot in an apparent “targeted” incident on Saturday, officials said. Their conditions are grave.

    A source familiar with the matter tells ABC News that two of those shot are state Sen. John Hoffman of Champlin and state Rep. Melissa Hortman of Brooklyn Park. Both were shot at their homes, and authorities believe the shooter was impersonating law enforcement, the source says.

    The two shootings took place early Saturday morning in Champlin, Minnesota, and Brooklyn Park, Minnesota — located approximately 8 miles away from each other just north of Minneapolis.

    “I’ve been briefed this morning on an ongoing situation involving targeted shootings in Champlin and Brooklyn Park,” Gov. Tim Walz said in a social media post. “The Minnesota Department of Public Safety and local law enforcement are on the scene. We will share more information soon.”

    Walz said he’s activated the State Emergency Operations Center.

    .1. Obligatory disclaimer. I’m supposed to say this is only a probable assassination attempt by a right wingnut since the shooter hasn’t been caught.
    I’m not going to bother. It was almost certainly a MAGAt.

    .2. They are in the hospital and their conditions are stated as “grave”.
    They might well die from their wounds. At the best they will be life altering.

    .3. The news stories all say it was someone “impersonating” a police officer.
    How do they know that? It could just as easily be a real police officer or an ICE agent with a mask and no badge showing.

    .4. This is the second attempted assassination of an elected Democratic leader. Someone fire bombed the Pennsylvania governor’s house when he was home.

    .5. I’m sure Trump will now call up the Minnesota National Guard and catch the wannabe assassin. (This is a joke. I’m sure the GOP is celebrating.)

  8. Katydid says

    Two have died. This is 100% on Trump and his violent thuggish base:

    A Minnesota lawmaker and her husband were shot and killed in their home early Saturday by someone posing as a police officer and a second lawmaker and his wife were wounded in what Gov. Tim Walz described as “targeted political violence.”

    Former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her spouse were killed in their Brooklyn Park home. The other lawmaker and his wife were shot multiple times in Champlin, authorities said at a news conference. Authorities were actively searching for a suspect in the hours following the shootings.

    “We must all, in Minnesota and across the country, stand against all forms of political violence,” Walz said at a press conference Saturday. “Those responsible for this will be held accountable.”

    The wounded lawmaker was identified as state Sen. John Hoffman, a Democrat, was first elected in 2012. He previously served as vice chair of the Anoka Hennepin School Board, which manages the largest school district in Minnesota. Hoffman is married and has one daughter and represents a district north of Minneapolis.

    Hortman was the top House Democratic leader in the state Legislature and a former House speaker. She was first elected in 2004. She and her husband had two children. (snip)

    GIFFORDS, the national gun violence prevention organization led by former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, released the following statement.

    “My family and I know the horror of a targeted shooting all too well,” Giffords said. “An attack against lawmakers is an attack on American democracy itself. Leaders must speak out and condemn the fomenting violent extremism that threatens everything this country stands for.”

    Giffords was shot in the head in 2011 by a gunman who killed six people and injured 12 others. She stepped down from Congress in January 2012 to focus on her recovery.

  9. Katydid says

    I have to point out here; when Democrats disagree with Republicans, they point out their flaws and sometimes escalate to calling them names. When the other side disagrees with Democrats, they kill them.

  10. seachange says

    It’s usual for magnolias in Southern California to be pruned high, but one of a pair in my neigborhood my neighbor doesn’t do that. They are just blooming right now. This means if you walk by you can smell the wonderful fragrance and see the masses of honeybees flying about and clustering about in their large fluffy yellow centers.

    This year has also been a very good year for matilijia poppies. Not only is there a patch in the Cahuenga Pass of the US 101, one of my neighbors has a now-huge plant in their front strip cactus garden. Their bloom time is so short, but they are very lovely to be able to see in person. They seem to have a much smaller beelike pollinator.

  11. says

    sea -- ceanothus flowers are tiny, but grow in puffy clusters. we have one, and interestingly, it’s packed with tiny pollinators. beeflies, i imagine. they’re fun to see.

    nazism and global warming -- please slow down for a minute. take a day off.

  12. says

    Just got back from our local No Kings rally. Excellent turnout and much positive energy. Many good signs and lots of US flags being waved about. In contrast, on the way to the rally I saw a pick-up truck heading the other way with chrome, high-offset wheels (the ones that make the tires stick way out from the sides of the truck) and with low profile tires. The tailgate was completely covered with a confederate battle flag. This is NY state.

    Oh, and heck with the shootings/murders of Democratic lawmakers, it seems the Republicans are in a snit that local Democratic Congressman, John Mannion, told a NY Republican Congressman (Mike Lawler) “This is f—ing madness, man. We’ve had enough. F—ing get over there and get some f—ing balls”, regarding the current situation in the country. Such unprofessionalism! /snark

  13. Steve Morrison says

    There is now a suspect in the Minnesota shootings; apparently, he has a lengthy list of Democratic politicians he wants to kill.

  14. birgerjohansson says

    Katydid @ 5
    Yes. I feel like speaking like Marvin The Paranoid Android, it always gets worse.
    Here in Sweden a nice detail is that the government coalition supported by our local Trump-lite party is tanking in the polls.
    And Ukraine is still kicking Putin’s ass, despite the limp dick in DC pulling his support.

    To deal with the overwhelming bombardment of bad news I do tiny things I have control over; feeding birds, adding grass seed to public areas where the vegetation has beed damaged by snow plowing in the winter, donating books in good condition to the local libraries. Here at Freethoughtblogs I try to locate science and medical news others might find interesting and post links on PZ’s “infinite” open thread.

    And as one way to deal with darkness is dark humor, I post links to where Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers and Stephen Colbert add their comments of the news.
    It is as we are inside an episode of the British 1980’s dark humor series “Oops, Apocalypse!”

  16. chigau (違う) says

    Bébé Mélange #2
    Thank you for the thought, Sweetie.
    I have enough money for anything I want. AC is not on the list.

  17. Katydid says

    @ birgerjohansson, 14: yes and thank you for the attempts to divert! I have my charities I support and my fitness routines I follow that take me from the computer.

  18. birgerjohansson says

    Welcome to ‘the Corporate Rim’, the Utopia of Musk and other techbros.

    “Murderbot: Who Leebeebee Was Working For Finally Revealed”
    .https://youtube.com/watch?v=mUZ-bTrQF6o
    (I will use up my third and final comment, because ‘Murderbot’ is so °☆~•* frigging good)

  19. Dunc says

    If you haven’t read the link Deepak Shetty provided in comment #6, I would strongly advise that you do so. Molly White is an absolute treasure -- she’s one of very few writers of whom I make the effort to read every single thing she posts.

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