Indy

Mental Health Clinician /RN Autism Spectrum Advocate 🐶 Rough Collies and Chihuahuas 🐾 Save 🐝🌎✌🏻🎀 Be kind 🇺🇦🇺🇸

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

Good morning. The sky is clear. My dog is a good boy.
We're less than a week away from the election.
Trump's closing message, beyond him taking multiple cognitive exams and liking male ass, appears to be that he's making more money than ever and if you were in Mar-a-Lago, you couldn't even afford a hamburger. Every speech he gives hurts the GOP.
He is old. He is ill. He is pathologically disordered. He's globally reviled and universally distrusted.
He's also become something else in recent weeks: He's now the man behind the curtain that is exposed as the antithesis of his myth.
On that note, James Talarico just outdrew him in Lubbock, TX.
He's also heavily medicated - you can tell by his increased gaffes, uneven energy, giant pupils, sweats, and his newfound inability to even snap back at hecklers.
He's badly craving to put forth grandiosity. But he can't. And he's desperately trying to avoid humiliation. But it's coming for him.
His lies are more obvious and exposed now; his hyperbole is more fantastical and cartoonish. His incredibly corrupt self-centeredness now defines him.
He is miserable, so he inflicts misery. He is damaged, so he is a damager of all things. He's a parasite, a pariah, a plunderer, and a putz.
But enough about him. This land belongs to its People. That's us. And we're days away from proving it.
Have a nice day!

[Barack Obama @BarackObama]

It is a basic principle of American democracy that the government can’t selectively target individuals simply because of their political beliefs or what they say. But that’s exactly what the Trump Administration is doing to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.

To understand why this is so appalling, it’s important to know the facts. Congresswoman Omar came to this country with her father when she was 12 years old. Five years later, her father became a naturalized citizen. If Ilhan had been 18 at the time, she would have had to apply for citizenship separately. But because she was 17, she became a naturalized citizen automatically.

Congresswoman Omar went on to graduate from college, work as a community organizer, become the first Somali-American legislator elected to public office in the U.S., and win a seat in Congress. There, she has been one of the Trump Administration’s fiercest critics, which has led the president to repeatedly single her out as someone who he believes does not belong in this country.

Now the Administration is actively trying to deport Congresswoman Omar, seemingly based solely on the unsubstantiated theory that she was actually 18 when her father was naturalized, and therefore is not a citizen. Federal agents have raided her home, confiscated personal records, and seized her phone — all to try and uncover a nonexistent smoking gun from 20 years ago that will somehow make their case.

Think about that. The full weight of the federal government is being brought down on a law-abiding elected official because she has dared to criticize the president. And it’s not the first time this has happened. Under President Trump, the Justice Department has repeatedly gone after those he considers his political enemies — from the Attorney General of New York, to the former head of the FBI, to members of the Federal Reserve.

In those cases, the prosecutions either stalled or were dismissed for having no basis in law, and the same is likely to happen in this case. But not before Congresswoman Omar’s life has been turned upside down, her legal bills have piled up, and she’s been forced to spend time fighting unsubstantiated charges instead of serving the people of Minnesota.

The fact that any president, or any administration, is willing to engage in such transparent efforts to intimidate someone should outrage all Americans, regardless of how they feel about Congresswoman Omar’s political views. Because if this becomes the new normal, there’s no reason to believe it will stop with her — or that future presidents, in either party, won’t do the same.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

There is only one world leader I can think of who has both nobly defied Trump's extortive quid pro quo blackmail and fought bravely to thwart Putin's murderous aggression - so much so, that most would say he's "outfought" Putin. One world leader. Trump AND Putin. He's in a tough place now with Trump's desperate need to distract, and general sociopathic treachery - and given the lack of mettle from the GOP, nobody can say for sure how things will transpire. But we KNOW he leads courageously, we CAN say Slava Ukraina, and we can DEFINITELY say that Vlodomyr Zelenskyy is ... a rare hero.

[K A C E Y @KaceyMusgraves]

I don’t think you have a dog in this fight but if you did you would have shot it.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

For years, on this platform, we've heard the Right say "Dems are panicking" and it was never accurate. And we heard the Left say that "MAGA is panicking," and that too was never accurate. UNTIL NOW.
The Right IS panicking. They've given up on the House. They've given up on the NC Senate seat. They've given up on the GA Senate seat - I should add that Ossoff turned that one into a Blue rout by himself.
They're putting $ into places they never thought they would need to like Iowa, Kansas, and South Carolina!
But here's where I really see the panic from the Right. They're going all out and all in to desperately hold onto Texas and to flip Michigan. Those are their bullseyes. And what makes me call it panic, is HOW they are doing it.
Are they speaking to Americans? No. Are they addressing issues? No. Are they elevating their candidates? No. They're demonizing the Dems with fantastical culture fiction of the lowest denominator. In Michigan, they don't know how else to deal with El-Sayed, who speaks eloquently, quickly, articulately, smartly, and relevantly. So, they're going with making fun of his name and references to Sharia Law, and it is NOT going to get over. Because Trump lost A LOT of his hateful divisive mojo. El-Sayed will win.
As for Texas - this is THE race of races. They know - they lose Texas, they lose the Senate. They're flooding the State with Musk money. And they're trying to demonize Talarico - again, it's all stupid stuff like his name, how much meat he eats, or how quickly he recovered from the flu. Nothing on helping people, or the issues. And - the panic comes from the elephant in the room - their HORRIBLE scandal-plagued candidate, who is clearly beyond the pale, clearly afraid to debate, and - don't forget THIS - is clearly ONLY even a candidate because of a thin-skinned vengeful sociopathic leader. AND - when Talarico flips Texas, and he will, it's ALL on Trump, and how they recover from that, they don't know. THAT'S the panic.
You feel their desperation most in Texas. They need that seat. Even Stephen Miller is out of his daytime casket and tweeting full force on this one.
I was going to buy extra popcorn for the home stretch. But after seeing what I'm seeing, I decided instead to go all in and invest in popcorn futures.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

Donald Trump hates Democrats. Some Republicans like that. Until they realize he also hates Republicans. And - don't forget Independents - he hates them too.
He hates Ukraine AND Russia, Taiwan AND China, Israel AND Gaza. He hates places he doesn't know.
He hates the Rule of Law more than anything. It's always in his way. He wants to change it, dictate it, be it, and wield it.
You know who else he hates? He hates his followers. In fact, he not only hates them, but they nauseate and disgust him.
He has all this hate and no love, because there's a metaphorical divot in his brain. It leaves him with no ability to feel empathy. No sense of shame. No capacity for contrition. No counterbalance to any of his malice. He cannot ever see beyond himself.
He has no friends - the allies he has, are allies only as long as they are useful to him. And his children - are spawn.
What DOES he have? Self-based cravings and impulses. Avarice. Desire for attention, adulation, money, power, revenge, domination, and his illusory vision grandiosity. He is a human id.
He also hates that he's old, and that he's ill. He's as miserable as he is malign. When it's time, he wants to go out on his own terms.
He is a narcissist, sociopath, fraudster, sexual deviant, and parasite.
You couldn't build a worse person in a laboratory, with a trillion dollars of AI.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

The Republican Party is so devoid of value and messaging that it blows my mind. They've got NOTHING!
I understand they've sold their souls at the altar of narcissistic sociopathy. But here we are, approaching a big election, and there's zero positivity emanating from them. Their ENTIRE message it to impugn Dems and do it cartoonishly - Dems are communists, Dems will open the border, Dems want Sharia Law, Dems want trans for everyone, if you elect Dems we'll go into a depression, blah, blah, and f*cking blah.
What about this amazes me? Let me add context:
We the People, collectively, ALL of us - Red, Blue, and In-Between - want much of the same things: a better life; good health coverage; less disease; jobs; roads; schools; and to smile, love, and laugh. In our government, we want a louder voice; a fairer share; a living wage; social services; liberty; and the ability to pursue happiness. In all these areas, there is a commonality of interest.
ALL these things are addressed by Dems, in every state and municipality, every day. NONE of these things are addressed by Republicans.
It's all fearmongering, mudslinging, and gaslighting.
And it's all in service of fraud, grift, and cover-ups.
They need to be rebuked and flattened in November.

[Indy @ndybow423]

@OurShallowState From a therapeutic perspective, Mr Schmitt displays poor judgement and an obscene lack of ethical verification of facts. He may trust his staff but to move forward neglecting to himself verify his staff’s assertion illustrates his poor judgement/lack of ethics as a senator.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

In order to follow the message of this morning post, you have to imagine for a moment, that you get your news in an echo chamber or through targeted Meta algorithms. Pretty distasteful imagining - sorry for that - but indulge me for a moment.
Tens of millions of people fit that bill. And they supported Trump because they believed he was a good businessman, that he'd be good for the economy, that he'd tear down the Deep State, he'd be strongly anti-war, he'd start no new wars, and he'd address the border. There's a lot that people didn't like about him - his crudeness, how Jan 6 unfolded, but eventually the tens of millions bought into the demonization of the Left. You were a lifetime Republican, and he was, to you, a better choice.
Now you're confounded. NOTHING you believed he was, is what he seems to be now. NONE of the things you expected, is what you got. Who even knew about tariffs? Who even knew he'd attack Canada? He did NOTHING about Epstein. MTG left him. Tucker Carlson left him. And ALL of his crap - even immigration - is filled with so much division and cruelty. And you had personal experience with that cruelty - or know someone who did.
THIS is a prevailing sentiment right now among GOP voters. And Trump keeps making it worse. He keeps arguing that what you see is not what is. He keeps making everything about him, and nothing about you. Because he's a narcissist. Millions have learned that word.
And your unhappiness is spreading to all aspects of your life, and you're not sure what to think. Are all politicians for shit? Or were you wrong all along?
Cognitive dissonance - the conflict between belief and perception - is everywhere right now on the political Right. How it resolves, is key to margin of victory.
Trump is such a loud, boorish, ubiquitous, and non-pivoting voice, that you're thinking of changing your world view, because he cannot be right.
===
Trump's political rise speaks much to our celebrity culture, our consuming of media in echo chambers - as per the example above, his craven enablers, and our aggrieved society. This convergence has created a phenomenon that's made a portion of our electorate ... well ... I'll just be nice and call them "susceptible."
But not so much anymore. At this point, Trump is so flawed, so owned by his disorders, and so enfeebled, he can't even navigate the very chaos he inflicts - people liked the Trump Show, but not so much anymore. He seems "off." He can't pivot and can't be contrite.
So, it appears that he keeps getting in deeper. He's become too old, too desperate, too fearful and too unable to process his own mortification. He never had a strategic thought nor an ability to play from behind. And he's a lame duck. And he's globally exposed.
All Trump has left now is his cravings, a fantastical desire to reclaim grandiosity, a panicked fear of humiliation, and layers of toxicity. He's unable to satiate from incoming narcissistic nutrition, no matter how often they give him the North Korea treatment; and now everything in his world - his polling, his son's wedding, even Natalie has been exposed as tainted.
He is flailing. He keeps making mistakes and keeps screwing up - everything, everywhere, all at once.
LOTS of those people I referenced at the beginning of this post, will stay home in November. Many of them will vote Blue, whether due to a change of world view, a need to put a check on him, or just as a protest.
The next couple of weeks might see record levels of disaffection on the Right, and the GOP knows this. They've got nothing but demonization to run on, and are now asking Trump to campaign in Alabama, ffs.
It's a dangerous time, because there are a lot of dangerous people with power, grappling with it all.
And how it transpires, and how long it transpires for, is unknown.
But what I think is NOT so unknown - is that Trump's decline is unmistakable, and his ultimate demise will be spectacular.

[Indy @ndybow423]

Russian Attacks Destroy Millions of Books, the Heart of Ukrainian Culture https://t.co/Hf8lWAzWUX via @NYTimes

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

There is a difference between DISTRACTION and DEFLECTION.
In psychology, distraction is diverting attention from a primary to secondary subject. You could say that if a person distracts, it's an admission that things are bad.
Deflection is redirecting blame to protect self-image and avoid humiliation. You could say that if a person deflects, it's an admission that THEY did something bad.
Trump - when he's not being lampooned abroad, yelling at the press, or falling asleep impromptu with massive mouth droop - has been deflecting a lot lately.
His latest deflection is suggesting that gas prices in the US are climbing because Ukraine is taking out diesel refineries in Russia. The ONLY reason diesel has risen (50% in 6 months) is HIS ill-fated war of choice in Iran. One-fifth of the world's oil transports through the Strait of Hormuz. That passageway is closed, BECAUSE OF HIM.
Every extra dollar we pay here, is BECAUSE OF HIM.
To place the blame elsewhere, is to deflect. I hope our media calls this out - and calls it what it is.

[Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum]

Your regular reminder: If the Russians stop fighting, the war ends. If the Ukrainians stop fighting, their land will be occupied, their leaders will be killed, their history and language will be erased, their children will be kidnapped to serve Russia.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

I wanted to speak - for the first time in detail - about NARCISSISTIC CONTRARIANISM.
This is a trait Trump has shown with greater frequency in recent days. It's led some analysts to surmise that Trump is acting as if he wants to lose the midterms. Here's what it REALLY is:
A narcissist contrarian is someone who takes the opposite side of obvious or even popular issues, opposing prevailing views. They do this reflexively, because they are feeling enfeebled or attacked.
When the story of the excessive time at sea by military personnel aboard the USS Lincoln was driving public ridicule, Trump characterized their time at sea as "not long enough." Why would he possibly say that? When a bad inflation report broke, Trump was quoted as saying "I love inflation." Really? He's said the same thing recently about "data centers," a sensitive topic across the political spectrum. And any time he is accused of too much focus on the WH ballroom, a broadly unpopular issue, his response is to speak glowingly and lavishly about it even more.
The key thing to realize here is that a narcissistic contrarian doesn't oppose prevailing views because they've thought something through. On the "contrary."
They do it because disagreement serves their battered ego, signals grandiosity through them knowing better, and attracts attention, which is a narcissist's nutrition.
Psychologists speak to 8 core traits leading a narcissist to become excessively contrarian which are:
1. A grandiose self-image that has taken a battering.
2. An innate resistance to compromise.
3. Binary thinking - if one is right, the other is wrong.
4. Deep insecurity masked by professing superiority.
5. The need for self-preservation - to appear smarter - now, to reverse the trend where they appear old or ill.
6. Deep feelings of innate distrust - assuming bad intent even where none exists; paranoia.
7. The need to re-exert autonomy - show they can and will do what they want, to dominate a news cycle.
8. The need to prevail in a big current power struggle.
Let me help you go through that list: CHECK, CHECK, CHECK, CHECK, CHECK, CHECK, CHECK, and CHECK.
So - to summarize - when Trump takes a position or makes a statement that goes against conventional wisdom, it's not only because he's ignorant, stubborn, or an idiot - it's because he's losing, desperate, and narcissistically damaged - and suggesting or adopting a contrary viewpoint is his way of trying to cope, reverse bad trends, and nurse his narcissistic injury.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

The fact that the House just declared a recess partly to prevent the new Epstein petition by Massie from being discussed before midterms, should be a bigger story.
The fact that Todd Blanche keeps refusing to comply with the court order to release the Epstein files following Katie Phang's lawsuit, should be a more significant story.
The fact that the Epstein Estate ACTUALLY PAID a settlement to one of the women who alleged that Donald Trump raped her as a minor, and it was paid AFTER Epstein died, as told under oath by Epstein's longtime accountant, should be a more significant story.
The fact that Trump said he wasn't ever on Epstein's plane and then we found out he was, should be a more significant story.
The fact that senior officials gathered in the Situation Room to concoct and coordinate an Epstein coverup that should be a holy shit story, most significant of all.
And when you combine ALL these stories and add to it his hiring of Alex Acosta, the birthday card, the movement of Maxwell to a more lenient facility, and then - especially - his panicked behavior on all things Epstein, it really should have ended his presidency, and at any other moment of our last 250-years, it would have.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

He fomented an insurrection. He botched a pandemic. He stole classified documents. He committed every type of fraud known to man.
He protects pedophiles. He's a convicted felon. He's an adjudicated rapist.
He monetizes the presidency and weaponizes justice. He lies and obstructs at every turn.
He's lawless. He's needy. He's compromised.
He's narcissistic. He's psychopathic. He's paranoid. He's sadistic.
AND YET -
No matter how bad we know he is, and no matter how bad the many things we know he did are, remember this: Some of the things we don't yet know he did, are even worse.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

I wanted to use Trump's threat to levy 50% tariffs on Canada and Canada's in-his-face response to discuss the underlying behavioral reasons for Trump being so fixated on tariffs.
Trump has no strategy or depth. He has cravings. And two of the cornerstone cravings for Trump, especially now that he's playing out his final chapter on Earth, are greed and grandiosity. These two things, which interrelate, underly almost everything - he is a giant id.
He wants awards, he wants things named after him, he wants oil from this country and a piece of this company and $10B here and billions more there, and all of that is but a subset of what he really wants, which is the knowledge, belief, and portrayal that he can do whatever the f*ck he wants - the ultimate grandiosity.
The legacy media always tries to understand Trump's stubborn fixations by normalizing him and asking: "What's he thinking?" Allow me AGAIN: Trump doesn't think; HE FEELS. He lusts. He craves.
And he likes how tariffs make him feel, because he can be a bully, impose his will, make and remove threats, and cause countries to do his bidding and pay him tribute arbitrarily. THEY FUEL HIS GRANDIOSITY.
How much more American consumers, businesses, and importers pay, is immaterial. None of that matters to Trump. Prices don't matter. Inflation doesn't matter. People don't matter. America doesn't matter.
Bullying, imposing his will, being the center of attention, and threatening others, is the essence of what a malignant narcissist does. Carney knows that and realizes that this is where America is at present.
It's like America didn't even elect a person. It elected a thing, a parasite, a pathology.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

TRUMP SUPPORTERS: I know you're uncomfortable. Things don't add up. Prices aren't going down, but he keeps saying they are! As you learned on Google, foreign nations don't pay our tariffs - WE DO! You see every day he badly botched the war in Iran, and he VERY badly treated our soldiers on the USS Lincoln - these are our soldiers and he doesn't seem to care about them - these are our America First boys!
His response to people's unhappiness is to tell you Dems are Communists. His response to bad polling is that he's doing great! Up is down. Black is white. Our allies are adversaries and our adversaries are allies - what is up with all of this!?
He seems focused on vanity projects and crypto and his name on buildings - everything EXCEPT Americans!
And if he's not implicated in the Epstein files, why is he so petrified of them and why haven't they properly released all of them, as was agreed they would?
We get it. You're right to feel conflicted, because things DON'T add up. There's a name for the conflict you feel - it's called COGNITIVE DISSONANCE.
We'll be straight with you: He was never a builder. He was never competent. He was never conservative. He was CERTAINLY never "one of you." He is a lifelong criminal whose only skills are committing the con, grabbing the grift, fabricating the fraud, and avoiding accountability.
And "The Apprentice" --- was A REALITY TV SHOW!
Take a deep breath. Stop the defiance. Come back to the light. You know Putin started the war in Ukraine WITHOUT PROVOCATION and is a war criminal. He's bad! Doesn't it seem like half the people in Trump's orbit are billionaires ... is Trump the actual Deep State? And you know Ghislaine Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence - Blanche met with her and poof - she got moved to a much more lenient prison. That's REALLY bad! Think about how brutal that is for the survivors!
You're an American. And America is stronger with less tribal disagreement. Open your minds to the truth - however unpleasant. You know he's old and you know he's losing it. You know you don't like or trust Vance. You know America is way better without all this mid-census gerrymandering - that's cheating and should piss YOU off too.
And hey - finally - if you can please try to open your minds to the toughest truth of all, you'll know - the reason you feel uncomfortable and conflicted and cognitively dissonant, is because ...
You've been played.

[Indy @ndybow423]

@OurShallowState …and to this clinical ear and perhaps to the Iranian clinical ear, presidential saliva is accumulating and remaining in the presidential mouth and throat. On occasion, one can discern gurgling.

[The Shallow State @OurShallowState]

I wanted to use Trump's threat to levy 50% tariffs on Canada to discuss the behavioral reasons why I believe Trump is so fixated on tariffs.
Two cornerstone objectives for Trump, especially now that he's playing out his final chapter on Earth, are greed and grandiosity. These two things, which interrelate, permeate everything he craves. He is a giant id. He wants awards, he wants things named after him, he wants $10B here and billions more there, and all of that is but a subset of what he really wants: The knowledge and belief that he can do whatever the f*ck he wants.
The legacy media always tries to understand Trump's stubborn fixations by normalizing him and asking: "What's he thinking?"
Allow me: Trump doesn't think; he feels. He craves.
And he likes how tariffs make him feel, because he can be a bully, impose his will, make and remove threats, and cause countries to do his bidding and pay him tribute arbitrarily. THEY FUEL HIS GRANDIOSITY.
How much more American consumers, businesses, and importers pay, is immaterial. None of that matters to Trump. People don't matter. America doesn't matter.
Bullying, imposing his will, being the center of attention, and threatening others, is the essence of what a malignant narcissist does.
It's like America didn't even elect a person.
It elected a pathology.

[Indy @ndybow423]

@OurShallowState Totally and completely bizarre. He’s having trouble coordinating speaking, swallowing and breathing.