Jill Stein - the Greens go MAGA

We live in interesting times when the Green Party Candidate has the same views on Russia as President Trump and his minions. If any Green Party members are out there who don't support Stein and Putin, leave a note in the comments and give me a call. I may come back - if only to assist someone who is not MAGA.

Liad Mudrik - Theories of Consciousness

Look at the Jungian cognitive functions where we perceive and decide both internally an externally (sensory and feeling are internal, while reason and intuition relate to the other.

The thing that gives us consciousness is the experience of time. Computers can count but not experience time. Computers can sense, but they cannot feel - no limbic system. This mean that there is no singularity. Nor can consciousness be uploaded - as to do so would be the ability to experience being a computer.  

Some kind of theology has to be part of consciousness because people have experienced this in NDEs. See http://xianleft.blogspot.com/2025/03/theology-for-scientists-in-15-minutes.html

Theology for Scientists in 15 minutes

Will there be a singularity? Look at Jungian personality functions to answer the question (as well as cultural theory). Computers can do Reason, can do Intuition (which is group reason or group emotion - either knowing it or growing it). A computer can certainly know values and can expertly do sensory - although it cannot experience sensuality. Computers cannot have a limbic system. It won't say no based on its own need for pleasure or authenticity. We won't let it - nor can we build it. We can certainly simulate human tantrums, but it is not a good idea to do so.

Then there is the concept of uploading your consciousness. If it were possible, the reality is that you would then know how it feels to be a computer. Sounds like Hell to me. Again, no limbic system.

Scientists need to quit conflating what the Church says with the will of the ultimate reality - which, according to people who have had NDEs - is where free will is. We do not live free will, however. Events are negotiated before your life. How we react to them and treat others as part of the deal is what we can control. Einstein believed in the God of Spinoza. Jesus and Bill W. would agree. 

To know why this is, taking a theology course is needed to be a well rounded scientists, because as I wrote earlier, the rest of the galactic civilization does not care about our technology - they care whether we keep having societal tantrums. Until we stop (and atheists can be as tribal as anyone else), we are stuck on the planet. Again, people who have had NDEs and ask about ETs are told that advanced civilizations have made their peace with the God question. Human consciousness is eternal. We don't need to go to Mars to preserve it.

Warn Trump that he needs to cut his losses

The market is over-valued because taxes are too low and tariffs are too random. He needs to appoint a bipartisan panel to work on taxes and trade. A VAT structure is better than a tariff structure - and he should have a panel make recommendations for him then take the credit.

He needs to drop Putin. His warheads need a gas injection to work that was never done. Russia has no chance in this war unless it dumps Putin. At some point, NATO will be involved and will drive into Moscow as liberators.

Most urgently, Trump needs to take the loss on Musk's power grab and immigration. The DC Circuit, which is the second highest court in the land, will uphold what  judges have ruled. The DC District Court is the correct venue to sue federal agencies. Tell Trump to quit while he is behind.  Roberts is no longer in his corner, nor is Barrett. The respondents will likely ask the Court to revoke the assumption of executive immunity - and for good measure mention the Office of General Counsel memo with the hope that it is discussed and possible part of the order. Trump could be in jail yet unless he cuts his losses. 

Note to Donald Trump. I double dog dare you to ignore my advice, as I will rue the day when you lose.

Schumer Put Politics Over Governing Again - Remove Him

Rick Wilson gave us an angry post about the continuing resolution being passed. See it here: https://youtu.be/7tNbsxVCQD4?si=Z-ZDwv_70LhcABLH

This is standard Schumer. He thinks that his little stunts - or lack thereof - make electoral victory likely (rather than sucking the air out of the base).

He did this in 2009 on not revoking Bush tax cuts, not passing immigration that year and not fighting for the public option. He did this on both impeachments - ignoring the Russia angle by not calling Lev and Igor activities the acceptance of a bribe and not pointing out that Team Crazy was made up of Putin allies who would have gotten the Soviet Order of Lenin (Flynn), served at behest of Lev and Igor (Rudy, Donald) or dated Maria Butina (that other guy the WH Counsel did not know - Byrne). 

He does not govern - for him the electoral angle is the only game in town.

The Universal Clock

The Great Attractor is the center of the Universe. An infinite number of universes would require an infinite amount of energy with every movement of every quark. There may be a big bang going out and then a contraction toward the great attractor. The background is simply the edge that reflects in. At some point, the great attractor was the great repeller from which everything expanded from. The multiverse is science fiction - like time travel. 

This is philosophy, not science. It is only provable when the peak of the journey from the great attractor became a journey toward it. When we know when the shift over occurred, we can predict the end. Or we can add the inflation rejected time to the attractor plus the time since the Bing Bang divided by two.

At what point does Sag A swallow the entire galaxy. Assume expansion will eventually be rejected - what comes first, a swallowed Milky Way or reaching the great attractor?

How could deflation be proven? Do an estimate as to whether the Great Attractor has shifted as it eats Laniakea. 

So, where are we on the expansion/contraction clock. Put your best estimate in the comments. On a 24 hour clock, it is after noon - not sure when. On the 12, it is after 6.

https://youtu.be/LfHLBOK_3L0?si=R94Du-aOUb7Qn352

https://youtu.be/f2ksinw0nY0?si=W0j_eQKqh5s1dWOI

https://youtu.be/VGkF5zrsrYk?si=fEbBPEbuRbA9zvPP

Tariffs and Industrial Policy for Wood and Milk

Did the timber industry ask Trump to intervene? Id Land O' Lakes make a phone call asking for help? Ask around. Are they on both sides of the border? If not, the answer is likely no. Trump is either doing this with industry or doing another publicity stunt. To confirm the latter, quit covering him for a week - give him a time out - and see if he behaves.

Trump's Fears on Display with Zelisnky

Trump and I are of the generation (Boomers) where were socialized to be afraid of Russia. Those of us (Trump is not one of them) who studied the Soviets recognize Putin as the New Soviet Man, which is a rather pathetic form of humanity.

Trump blew up at the President of Ukraine because he believes that Russia could actually start a nuclear war. No one will brief Trump on how likely that is. Actually, its impossible, but the establishment cannot tell either Trump or Gabbard, primarily because doing so would require disclosing sources and methods - which they would share with Putin - and that would be bad.

Only pure fear explains his tone and his malleability against the New Soviet Man. Part of it may be the dildo he wanted to erect in Moscow with the Trump logo on it - but Trump's organization will be defunct once his appeals in New York are exhausted. Putin's regime, if not Putin himself, will also be defunct soon. Europe signed its death warrant on Saturday - thanks to Trump's actions on Friday.

If the people around Trump were no so totally incompetent, I could almost believe that Friday and Saturday were part of a master plan. Maybe God's plan. Certainly not Trump's.

At some point, a Ukrainian brigade needs to duplicate the route the Wagner Group was taking to Moscow. They would be welcomed as liberators. 

3 Rules for Government Lawyers

Do not embarrass yourself.

Do not embarrass the United States

Do not embarrass your client

The recent position from DOJ on paying AID contractors is abhorrent and, worse yet, embarrassing. The claim is sovereign immunity - which is generally the ability to not be personally sued for damages, not for the government to avoid paying claims. The First Amendment guarantees the right to petition for the redress on grievances. It is worthless if claims are not paid.

The job of a government attorney is defend the law and Constitution. That the particular Administration must be appeased is unfortunate, but the responsibility that goes with that duty is to adequately inform the Administration (client) of what the law is and the likelihood that what is claimed is either unconstitutional or illegal.

To make a bald faced admission that is clearly wrong shows that no attempt was made to education the client. Worse would be the possibility that said attorney actually believes such nonsense. If this is the case, that attorney needs to be fired, quit, lose his law license, refund all his prior employers as a fraud and demand a refund from his law school.

This is mild compared to what opposing counsel and the judge will say - and the language will get harsher if the case is appealed. The appeal will not go far - as the unconstitutionality of the argument is so bald that SCOTUS will not hear it.

And shame on any talking head or lawyer who alleges it will. They are as badly intentioned and informed as the offending lawyer.

The Chain of Command

Note to Musk: You are staff. You can make requests, not give orders. You have no authority and no legal power. The power is vested in agency directors, especially Cabinet Officers. If you tick them off, Trump could be seen as disabled. The 25th Amendment has procedures for declaring him disabled. Acting cabinet members still get a vote on this.

End this obsession with people going to work in person. It is a CEO bright shiny object. If you want to improve productivity, look at how Congress stands in the way of money being spent and authorization legislation being passed. Fixing Congress is the low hanging fruit.

Note to Trump, see above on the 25th Amendment. Also, if you let Musk keep embarrassing you, the American Legislative Exchange Council (under Koch) may decide that it needs to reclaim the GOP organizational structure and do something about your relationship with Putin.

Our NATO allies are also starting to notice. If they tell their forces that the Supreme Commander of NATO will be replaced with an officer of another member, you are essentially fired from your role as the Commander in Chief of the Alliance. They seem to have had enough.

Why you are in thrall to Putin is puzzling. HIs country has nothing that others do not have. His military is broken and his nukes likely do not work. His people do not have enough initiative to get rid of him. No one wants to conquer Russia. It is a crap hole. Also, at some point, your NY appeals will be done and your organization will be in no position to build anything in Moscow. 

You say you want to visit. Now that you are no longer under indictment or on bail, you can certainly go to Russia and stay there. Zelensky's forces may eventually meet you and Putin in Moscow. This is likely where the war will finally  be going.

Pick your side. Behave yourself and the world may let you keep your job. Let Elon ignore the chain of command, continue to support Putin's tyranny at home and his war on Ukraine and you will see that you are replaceable as "leader of the free world." In fact, no one considers you to be that anymore.

What if a galactic civilization already exists? When will they invite Ea...

If there is a galactic civilization, the ability to travel at "warp speed" is not the criterion. Once contact is made, schools can be set up on Earth or our best and brightest can travel to existing schools. The science and engineering will already exist and the planet will benefit from it.

So, what's the holdup? We are not a civilized species. Eating meat might be a thing, but a bigger thing is that we, as individuals and collectively, believe in sin and the need to punish it. In other words, we are not housebroken. The kind of freedom of choice we have - the freedom to judge the choices of others - needs to be abandoned. If it is not, Earth will continue to be a backwater.

The necessary science for mankind to move forward is social science. The galaxy has the rest of it covered. Rumor has it that they also have a more open dialogue with the Creator, so atheism is not the answer either. Sorry, Dawkins - but you are helping hold things up.

Salva Ukrani - Part 6 of Five

I left readers with a grim future for Ukraine at the hands of Trump. That is really not true. Ukraine can destroy Russia's oil infrastructure - someone tell Gabbard to tell her boss (Putin) and Trump. Even in defeat, a Ukrainian insurrection can take down Russia. 

The Russian far east - indeed all Russian Federation members should start talking amongst themselves about whether to make a deal with China or go it alone (or join Canada in creating a Northern Nations state - Lapland to Greenland, from the Arctic to American reservations - Mohawk to Lakota. If they assert nationhood and can make the oil rights stick, they would be quite powerful.

For the near term, set Ukraine needs to set up an expeditionary force to test two things: how close they can get to Moscow by breaking through lines and driving north and, if challenged, how to fade into the woodwork - as practice for an insurgency if Trump's fat finger on the scale goes against them.

The worst that can happen is that they win and then have to put the Russian nation together after breaking it. Someone has to show the little people of Russia how to assert themselves and demand freedom. As fellow Slavs, Ukraine can provide the yeast. No other nation can free the Russian people from their own political indolence. They do not conform - they simply do not engage. They are fatalistic, but that fatalism is about autonomy  and emotion rather than reason and conformity.

Salva Ukrani!

Salva Ukrani - Impeach Trump!

This essay summarizes five videos about whether and how Trump can be stopped and why. The links are at the bottom. There are some people on the left claiming that Trump voters should have buyers' remorse – although they are mainly doing party building rather than trying to stop Trump.

Trump could have been stopped if Democrats said the right things about his relationship with Putin. If they had said that the Perfect Phone Call and Hanging Mike Pence were a diversion covering up the fact that Trump was doing Putin’s bidding and both denying Javelins and holding the insurrection were a GRU (think KGB) operation – the GOP would have removed Trump in each impeachment. The Dems instead wanted to embarrass Trump and win the 2020 election, including the House and Senate. 

The Insurrection put Georgia in the Democratic camp. They may not hold it. The fact that Biden was Catholic and did not heavily stress abortion rights gave him the swing state win. Harris stressed abortion rights and urged people to vote for her on that basis – with swing state Pro-Life Catholic Democrats staying home as a result. Democrats lost votes in the House in 2020 and 2022 and did not pick it up in 2024 – largely due to Harris.

What is the proof? Asking the people that voted will tell you nothing. Instead, someone needs to poll Democrats who voted in 2020 and stayed home in 2024 in the Swing States why they did not come out. Open ended responses would be entertaining. Asking them if they thought Trump would do what he is now doing would give unreliable answers, especially if asked issue by issue. The key question is whether they stayed home because of the Harris promise to sign the Freedom of Choice Act restoring Roe. 

If the Center for Reproductive Rights had explained to the Supreme Court that viability meant that a person could be born at that stage, so that under law they cannot be aborted, Roe may not have fallen. If they had cited the civil war as a reason states should not have the power they now have was cited, Roe may have been kept on. Affirming abortion rights as precedent, without compromise, lost. Harris doubled down on the losing argument – and we have Trump.

The Democrats also failed to connect the Trump tax cuts to the economy. Biden did not reverse them, thanks to Manchin and Sinema. Trump should have been given ownership of the economy. Biden cannot claim the recovery, which was mainly in the financial markets. Of course, I doubt that they know such a connection exists, given the me too-ism in much of economic theory. The reality is that cutting taxes on the rich always hurts workers and leads to price increases driven by spending by the rich – as producers cater to a level of product that the majority cannot afford – especially in housing.

A lot of the Musk agenda will be struck down because it goes against statute – although it could be argued that the additional votes for Trump came from Musk getting out the vote for the issues on which he is now acting. Musk said as much – that he had a mandate. This is where the natural tension between the rule of law and democracy is highlighted. You cannot have both perfectly.

What can Trump do that cannot be undone? His relationship with Putin. As President, he can make alliances – although Congress could require that such things be treaties ratified by the Senate. So far, it has not. Trump could, while taking Putin’s side, bomb Ukrainian positions. Ukraine is not part of NATO. For it to become part of NATO, the rest of the alliance would have to expel the United States – or simply dissolve the treaty and replace it with a unified European Union army, taxation and have a single constitutional court and Commander in Chief (as an individual, not rotational). 

In either case, could Trump order the bombing of Ukrainian forces? He might get some resignations, but it would be a legal order. He does not have to go that far. He simply has to tell Ukraine that he has the option and is likely to take it. Doing it quietly prevents anyone from having to resign and is a constitutionally protected act.  Now, there are parts of his coalition that would not like it – but it is their own fault that they were not listening when Trump said that he trusted Putin more than he trusted the United States government intelligence and military agencies.  It is the fault of the Democrats for not making this issue one – indeed the only issue of the last election. 

I have MAGA friends who are sure Trump is not a Russian asset – so perception is important to Trump. There are also people in MAGA who like Putin as a strong leader, ignoring the fact that Putin is an unrepentant Soviet. Russia’s government by oligarch and government by commissar are identical – yet Trump followers believe that employee empowerment leads to the latter. They don’t see to mind it for Russia – or the US if you don’t call it socialism or Marxism.

In other words, democracy gave us the current chaos in governance. It gave us the current economy and will assure that it will continue; it gave us payback to Musk for turning out voters who agreed with the Trump-Vance-Musk Agenda; it prevented the enactment (or any action regarding) abortion AND it may have given Ukraine the shaft.

How do we fix this? Can we? Should we? As far as we know, what is happening now is exactly what people voted for. Whether or not these decisions are wise (and they are not), it is how the system works.

If Trump goes through with his agenda, and if all of what he wants is passed through Congress if disallowed by the courts, then he will have to deal with the result. Getting what he wants will let him keep his place as the only President worse than Buchanan (I would argue that Fillmore was even worse than both – but may be just worse than Buchanan). Or he could hire people who can actually help him do great things. Things like enacting regional arrangements to bring government closer to the people – allowing some degree of regional variation. He could get everyone off the tax rolls and abolish the IRS – and without messing up the economy. He could come to a negotiated solution on abortion – taking it off the table.

Most of the conservatives who would do this – and these are conservative solutions – may balk at ethnic cleansing in Gaza and will definitely balk at Trump’s special relationship with Putin.

The Democrats are hoping that Trump voters, realizing that they are feeling pain, will vote Democratic for the long term. It won’t happen without a bipartisan compromise on late term abortion. 

Ukraine is the issue – or rather – Putin. While MAGA has been brainwashed to follow the GRU/KGB dogma on Ukraine, a majority of the GOP does not. 

Trump will not be removed because of his mental state. That would take a majority of the Cabinet and his Vice President to do. They won’t plus they agree with his agenda. Two thirds of each house can declare him incompetent, but any number less that than cannot survive Trump stating that his is all better after 90 days. They could do congressional governance with veto-proof majorities – which they do not have. It has been done before. The late 19th century was all about congressional government. Speaker Canon ran things – not the President. There are just enough Republicans who did not vote to stop the steal to join with the GOP as a two-thirds majority – although it would be close.

Judge Chutkan could have tossed out the DOJ memo stopping presidential prosecution. DOJ could have acted quickly to prosecute Trump. They did not, even as McConnell said they should. Democrats could have explained why the tax cuts hurt so much and how far into Putin’s pocket Trump was during both impeachments – that the Perfect Phone call and hanging Pence were covers for what was really going on – which was violating the Budget Impoundment and Control Act in Russia’s favor and then sending armed men and women to where members were hiding on January 6th to convince “weak” Republicans and do God knows what to Democrats.

The only possible tactic is to find five GOP Representatives  to make Jefferies the Speaker and 20 Senators to convict Trump of bribery by linking the Javelins to a quid pro quo to fund the Fruman and Parnas’ Protect the House PAC and by making a narrative that goes from “Team Crazy” being Russian spies (Gen. Flynn, Butina’s lover Byrne, Rudy and Trump) that Trump was in the plot to breach the barriers to reach members when he said to go to the Capitol and then dropped the plot when Babbitt was killed and her squad arrested. The counter argument that explains why Trump could not be convicted was that he stopped action when Babbitt was killed because he did not want anyone to die – which was enough reasonable doubt to avoid prosecution, but not enough doubt to stop removal by the Senate.

It is sad that a border war over Ukraine and keeping it in the Russian empire was the defining issue of the 21st Century so far. And it still is the dominant issue in our politics, as well as abortion.  Going back to impeachment is the path of least resistance – needing the least number of votes. All it would take is for Koch to activate the Tea Party (as opposed to those who are solely MAGA) to demand Trump’s conviction by 20 Senators. The American Legislative Exchange Council has 30 or so state majorities. All they need is 20 of them.

Funny how much influence Chutkan, McConnell, Koch and Schumer had and have as far as stopping Trump, yet none had the courage or incentive to do so.

Salva Ukraini!

https://youtu.be/kaJ5KsqWen4

https://youtu.be/HAiKxqZfhOY

https://youtu.be/VUjJCaHA3Sg

https://youtu.be/4p4iCKnZ0rE

https://youtu.be/gs3Gk0oUdnI

Trump and Musk as performance art

CEOs do not do work. They have people for that. So do business owners - even small business. All merchants and CEOs do performance, not work. There is a group of people in independent politics who think "we need a businessman." We got what we asked for - a preener rather than a doer. That is what Perot, Bloomberg, Trump and Musk have in common. Let us hope that we have learned our lesson about letting a CEO perform his way into the White House.

Forget about preventing warming

We passed the point of no return decades ago. Global climate cooperation will not prevent global climate change in the future. Barents Sea is about 50 degrees too hot. It took 7 degrees F per decade since cars came into wide use to get us this far. We need to undo that at a global level. Climate goals are weak tea. Stop driving if you are really committed to changing things. Putting up solar panels or wind turbines do not get us there unless they feed a system without hydrocarbons. Work to end gasoline driving if global action is your thing - but don't drive unless absolutely necessary.

Lent is coming. Give up driving if you want to show solidarity with the planet and the working class.

Elon is making a fool of himself and Trump

I was right and wrong in the last video. Elon could do good things if he acted like an advisory committee chair, investigate first and then leave it to agencies and Congress to act. Instead, he is shredding the rule of law. The leaves Trump at the bottom of the list of presidential greatness, at worst - even worse than Buchanan and Fillmore, who signed the Fugitive Slave Act. The rule of law will still win. The justice system will still stand. Agencies will do their jobs and keep him from doing real harm. The question is, will he finally be impeached or will God handle it?

Buyouts allowed to go forward, insiders yawn

Until people sign their Form 52s and their exit payments are funded in budgets, there will be no buy outs. The court is simply letting the insanity go forward. The fact is, much of the government at the DC level is procurement of services provided by state governments and contractors. Even the military has a large contracting out component. Unless there is a war, most military units, like most civilian agencies, have a lot of down time. Much of this results from the fact that Congress cannot make decisions - the process has too many gatekeepers, some of them being hyper-partisan with an interest or bias toward throwing sand in the gears. Until there is a bipartisan consensus on taxing and spending, with automatic approval of funds when the work does not happen on schedule, the situation will not change.

What will change is government by publicity stunt - which is how best to describe the Elon-Don show. The media loves covering it, but the reality is that every administration has some kind of management reform effort at the front end that usually does little. The show only lasts so long before people get board with it. Reality intervenes.

Will Trump or his handlers get smart and look for actual good ideas to make him look good rather than feeling good about himself? Will he get to that cheeseburger too far so we can see what Vance does? Will I survive until that happens (as I am bigger than Trump is)?  Time will tell. It always does.