In case you missed it, this is a pretty good rundown from the other night, as far as these things go:

Gotta admit: the video of Josh Hawley doing the 100 yard dash out of the capital building Jan. 6th is pretty satisfying. What a fucking prick.

No quarter for these people. How the fuck can you break bread and unify with someone who voted Hawley, or Bobert, or the rest of those shitheads? I'm supposed to find common ground with these people?

I was watching...I don't know what you call them: IG video, story, whatever. It was Bernie Sanders talking about how we can't give into doomerism, how we've always been in bad situations, and I'm like, yeah, I guess, but has it really ever been like this? Fucking Internet.

My optimism dwindles daily.

Fucking Internet.

Exactly.

How many people are going to get radicalised on social media? Will it be an ever-rising proportion, will it settle on a stable population of derp-susceptible people, or will it greatly depend on algorithms and regulation? American-funded brainrot is everywhere in the English-speaking world now.

Well I guess Russian and Chinese funded, too. They always said democracy is dumb, we'll just manipulate your stupids with propaganda and then what you democracies gonna do?

Given all the insanely incriminating stuff Bannon has said and done, both on recordings and by reliable report, I can see him as turning out to be the one person, out of quite a large group who said and did stuff that was at least as criminal, who ends up incarcerated for more than a very short time, say >6 months. The fall guy, as it were; the sacrifice. Not that he doesn't deserve it, but it's a fucking travesty that ANY of those people are walking around free, and we mustn't be placated by crumbs.

Stephen Miller needs to be in a fucking Supermax or something. Why is he not already there?

Anthony Flack wrote: Sat Jul 23, 2022 5:53 pm

Fucking Internet.

Exactly.

How many people are going to get radicalised on social media? Will it be an ever-rising proportion, will it settle on a stable population of derp-susceptible people, or will it greatly depend on algorithms and regulation? American-funded brainrot is everywhere in the English-speaking world now?

Fall 2021: Deep, Divisive, Disturbing and Continuing: New Survey Shows Mainstream Community Support for Violence To Restore Trump Remains Strong [pdf]

UChicago poli sci people wrote:KEY FINDING #2:

One might expect 9.3 months after Jan 6:

1. Interest would naturally wane
2. Arresting 650+ would have a chilling effect
3. De-platforming Trump would de-energize support for violent restoration

Instead:
1. Movement is large and stable from June to Sept (21 million)
2. May well continue (or grow) with the coming election season and as Trump launches his own social media platform
3. There is a large mass of kindling waiting for an incendiary moment

OVERALL FINDING:

Large Mobilization Potential For Replay of “Stolen Election” Violence in 2022 Primaries and Midterms

This report is nearly a year old now, but I doubt the committee hearings this year have made much difference to hardcore Trump supporters -- a bit of difference for a few, maybe, but not enough to render this study's extremely grim conclusions obsolete.

IIRC, during one of the debates before the election, Mike Pence was asked point-blank whether he would commit to the peaceful transition of power if Trump lost, and he completely dodged the question, giving a non-answer. You can probably find a clip of this on YouTube.

Point being, this was in the works in one form or another long before January 6th. Don't be mistaken. What form it would take may have been up in the air somewhat, how it played out may have been a surprise to some or more chaotic than a few of the instigators expected, but the ball was set in motion before Election Day.

susanvp wrote: Sun Jul 24, 2022 4:29 am This report is nearly a year old now, but I doubt the committee hearings this year have made much difference to hardcore Trump supporters

You're never going to sway the swivel-eyed loons, they're lost down the rabbit hole. Where these hearings can make a difference though is to ordinary people - people with no strong partisan feelings, swing voters and the like. It could even galvanise people who don't normally bother voting. Note that the 2020 election had one of the biggest voter turnouts ever seen - because the US had seen enough of trump. These hearings can only make those feelings stronger.

Curry Pervert wrote: Sun Jul 24, 2022 5:53 pm

susanvp wrote: Sun Jul 24, 2022 4:29 am This report is nearly a year old now, but I doubt the committee hearings this year have made much difference to hardcore Trump supporters

You're never going to sway the swivel-eyed loons, they're lost down the rabbit hole. Where these hearings can make a difference though is to ordinary people - people with no strong partisan feelings, swing voters and the like. It could even galvanise people who don't normally bother voting. Note that the 2020 election had one of the biggest voter turnouts ever seen - because the US had seen enough of trump. These hearings can only make those feelings stronger.

Yeah, and as has been pointed out elsewhere, at a minimum the hearings are creating an indelible public record, disseminated on a massive scale in real time, all of which seems important and valuable in itself. That the hearings been effective in laying out credible narratives, and have actually been compelling viewing, is less of an advantage than it might seem. I've seen people dismissing them as "The January 6 Show," as if they're anodyne entertainment for idiots who don't know that they're far too little and too late.

susanvp wrote: Mon Jul 25, 2022 4:35 am

Curry Pervert wrote: Sun Jul 24, 2022 5:53 pm

susanvp wrote: Sun Jul 24, 2022 4:29 am This report is nearly a year old now, but I doubt the committee hearings this year have made much difference to hardcore Trump supporters

You're never going to sway the swivel-eyed loons, they're lost down the rabbit hole. Where these hearings can make a difference though is to ordinary people - people with no strong partisan feelings, swing voters and the like. It could even galvanise people who don't normally bother voting. Note that the 2020 election had one of the biggest voter turnouts ever seen - because the US had seen enough of trump. These hearings can only make those feelings stronger.

Yeah, and as has been pointed out elsewhere, at a minimum the hearings are creating an indelible public record, disseminated on a massive scale in real time, all of which seems important and valuable in itself. That the hearings been effective in laying out credible narratives, and have actually been compelling viewing, is less of an advantage than it might seem. I've seen people dismissing them as "The January 6 Show," as if they're anodyne entertainment for idiots who don't know that they're far too little and too late.

I think the real litmus test will be if prosecutions happen as a result, depending on how extensive they are.