Hill Abell

How to put aside doing what one wants and commence doing what one must?

[The Paranoid Style @paranoiacs]

Happy Birthday to Graham Parker, one of the transformational songwriters of my lifetime and a crucial influence on the Paranoid Style. Posting a review of his classic 1979 LP 'Squeezing Out Sparks' I wrote for Pitchfork last year. Here's to all things GP! https://t.co/Bw7tydtmzv

[Steven Hyden @Steven_Hyden]

RIP Todd Snider. One of the greats, an unheralded songwriters' songwriter and a genuine character. Loved and proselytized for almost as long as I've been a music critic. A guy not only influenced by Prine/Kristofferson/Jerry Jeff but he seemed to come out of the same world.

[The Paranoid Style @paranoiacs]

Too sick to be on tour and too broke not to be. Something that was said recently about Todd Snider before he died. A melancholy new edition of the Paranoid Style's Substack 'Please Take My Advice' Pavement, D.Boon and this god awful loss. Missing the man. https://t.co/xlL6zWRcG3

[Spencer Hakimian @SpencerHakimian]

The Democrats just posted this.

[Elizabeth Warren @ewarren]

This is Trump’s presidency in a single photo: Illegal, destructive, and not helping you.

[Nick Knudsen 🇺🇸 @NickKnudsenUS]

Holy sh*t

Twitter BANNED the creator of this ad because it moves voters 7 pts toward Dems.

Voters are DISGUSTED by Trump’s gestapo kidnapping US citizens in Portland and Chicago.

SPREAD THIS EVERYWHERE

And follow the ad’s creator @_joejacobson_ so Elon can’t silence them!

[Jessica Tarlov @JessicaTarlov]

Totally divorced from reality.

[Kaitlan Collins @kaitlancollins]

@RapidResponse47 @PressSec I was quoting the Portland police chief.

https://t.co/4uDZZdD0Au

[Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini) 🇺🇸🇺🇦 @AdamKinzinger]

The judge blocked the Trump admin. Steven Miller tweeted this:

[Robert Reich @RBReich]

Trump hates to be the object of humor. He understands that humor can be a more powerful antidote to tyranny than any other form of criticism.

I'm sure he'd hate it if you shared this cartoon. [Cartoon by Jon Adams/The New Yorker]

[Tom Nichols @RadioFreeTom]

Now and then X has its moments:

[Jon Favreau @jonfavs]

@StephenM Is that what you call zip-tying children, smashing glass on a one-month old, shooting chemical munitions at journalists, and breaking the ribs of an 80-year old citizen?

[Steve Martin @UnrealBluegrass]

We aren't learning.

[Mehdi Hasan @mehdirhasan]

It shouldn’t be just me and @RonFilipkowski highlighting this story. It should be every Dem member of Congress. Every MSNBC and CNN anchor. Imagine if this was Biden’s ‘spiritual adviser’? I can’t help but envy the right’s message discipline. 🤷🏽‍♂️

[Protect Kamala Harris ✊ @DisavowTrump20]

The silence of the generals, by Robert B. Hubbell

The most remarkable aspect of Trump’s speech to the assembled generals and admirals of the US military was the silence.

The generals sat in silence.

They sat in silence as Trump slurred and rambled through a “speech” that insulted the intelligence, professionalism, and loyalty of the generals.

They sat in silence as Trump attacked their former commander-in-chief, Joe Biden.

They sat in silence as Trump claimed that the military would use U.S. cities as “training grounds” for waging war against American civilians.

They sat in silence as Trump said he would ask the military to fight “the enemy from within.”

They sat in silence as Hegseth said the generals were free to ignore the law of war and international treaties that separate the US military from barbarians and war criminals.

They sat in silence as Trump said that the Navy should “consider the concept of battleship.”

They sat in silence as Trump wondered aloud why the generals sat in silence.

They sat in silence even after Trump pandered for their applause.

Their silence spoke volumes.

In their silence, the generals affirmed their oaths to defend the Constitution.

In their silence, the generals demonstrated their professionalism, discipline, and judgment.

It could have been otherwise. Trump and Hegseth expected it to be so. In their adolescent fantasies, Trump and Hegseth believed the generals would fête them with standing ovations, chanting, “USA! USA! USA!”

Instead, Trump and Hegseth were humiliated as their unhinged, delusional words slapped sharply against the bare walls and fell to the ground, their lunacy heightened by the silence of the generals.

Without the crutch and cover of cheering crowds, Trump’s mental deterioration was laid bare for all to see. Trump told the generals that the city of Portland “looks like a war zone. . . . unless they’re playing false tapes, this looked like World War II.”

Every general who heard Trump say that Portland “looks like a war zone” knew it was a lie and understood that their Commander-in-Chief is so feeble that he is unable to distinguish between reality and “false tapes” replayed on Fox News.

Every general who watched Pete Hegseth’s peurile speech immediately recognized him as one of the posers and video-game warriors that the generals identify as misfits to be counseled out of the military at the first opportunity.

The generals were not impressed by Trump or Hegseth. The generals are sophisticated, successful professionals who have risen to the top (in part) because of their ability to judge people—the good, the bad, and the flakes. They left the meeting understanding exactly who Trump and Hegseth are.

All Americans should take confidence and comfort from the silence of the generals. Their silence was an act of protest—because their silence exhibited loyalty to the Constitution and respect for the Office of the President, rather than for Donald Trump.

Prior to Trump’s meeting with the generals, dozens of readers forwarded Substack and social media posts claiming that Trump would use the occasion to declare martial law. Other readers sent posts claiming that Trump would administer a loyalty oath requiring fealty to Trump. Still others predicted on-the-spot mass firings and public humiliation of generals perceived to be disloyal.

In his final insult, Trump told the generals they looked like they came out of “central casting.” In doing so, he trivialized and demeaned their accomplishments and professionalism, telling them they were nothing more than props for infantile speeches by men who hold the military in contempt.

And so, the generals sat in silence, depriving Trump of the thing he values most--obsequious adulation.

The silence of the generals spoke volumes.

[derek guy @dieworkwear]

Jane Goodall was my first childhood hero, as I loved animals as a kid and was inspired by her story. I still remember the National Geographic specials about her. RIP.

[George Conway ⚖️🇺🇸 @gtconway3d]

oh my

[DonQ @DonQs000]

@bstarrreports

[Katie Couric @katiecouric]

Why would the US Justice Department remove a study from its website last week that concluded that far-right extremists have killed far more Americans than any other domestic terror group? .

The now-archived report, titled "What National Institute of Justice Research Tells Us About Domestic Terrorism," was reportedly removed from the DOJ's website between September 11 and 12, according to Jason Paladino, an independent investigative reporter. Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was killed on September 10 while speaking at a campus event at Utah Valley University.

In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death, President Trump and others in the administration have repeatedly claimed that “the radical left causes tremendous violence” and that they “seem to do it in a bigger way” than groups on the right.

This study, based on research spanning three decades, represented one of the most comprehensive government assessments ever of domestic terrorism patterns. It found that “militant, nationalistic, white supremacist violent extremism has increased in the United States” and that “the number of far-right attacks continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic violent extremism”.

Amidst all the accusations from the administration, we republished a piece examining political violence by Art Jipson and Paul J. Becker from the University of Dayton, which found that most domestic terrorists in the US are politically on the right, and right-wing attacks account for the vast majority of fatalities from domestic terrorism. You can read the piece down below.

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