Aw, poor DOCTOR Adrian Harrop has had to apologize to JK Rowling.

Rowling raises an eyebrow.

‘Insensitive’.

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) May 30, 2020

He’s not a bully, he’s not he’s not he’s NOT. He’s just inthenthitive.

What did he say?

Replying to @StandWithMaya

Jimmy Saville was the UK’s most popular children’s entertainer at the height of his career, & one of the most famous men in the country. working with how you’re framing JKR, I suppose you’d have gladly given him unsupervised contact with your kids – or have I misunderstood you?

Sure, just insensitive, not libelous at all.… Read the rest

President Trump today as the national remains on edge: “MAGA is make America great again. By the way, they love African-American people, they love black people. MAGA loves the black people.”

— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) May 30, 2020

He said that??

How to the black people pic.twitter.com/iCBXIKTI8N

— Sarah Cooper (@sarahcpr) May 30, 2020

He said it.… Read the rest

The Guardian on Trump’s repulsive excitement about the vicious dogs and big big guns all ready to massacre protesters:

Donald Trump has praised the US Secret Service for confronting protesters who massed outside the White House on Friday night, tweeting that had any of the crowd breached the fence, they “would have been greeted with the most vicious dogs, and most ominous weapons, I have ever seen”.

…

On Friday night, as protests reached the White House gates, Trump turned back to incendiary tweeting, electioneering on the back of protests, riots and looting in cities across the US.

Outside the White House, people hurled bricks, bottles and other objects at Secret Service and US park police officers in riot gear

It’s not the first time. Reuters February 2016:

Presidential candidate Donald Trump admires the late Douglas MacArthur and George Patton, both World War Two generals. They were winners, unpredictable, and not especially nice guys, he says in campaign speeches. But Trump’s pledge to imitate their styles sets modern-day military experts on edge.

…

The candidate’s spokeswoman Hope Hicks said Trump made a habit of citing the two World War Two figures to “emphasize the need to strengthen the U.S. military, talk less and do more to protect America.”

Talk less! Nobody talks more than Trump. Trump literally never shuts up.

But hey – the movie.

There are scholar presidents, and presidents who don’t read much, and then there

How about this one? Do we agree that this is fascist?

Mayor Jacob Frey of Minneapolis will never be mistaken for the late, great General Douglas McArthur or great fighter General George Patton. How come all of these places that defend so poorly are run by Liberal Democrats? Get tough and fight (and arrest the bad ones). STRENGTH!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 30, 2020

McArthur and Patton…what is it that they have in common? Oh yes – being busted.

Let’s hear some praise for Lieutenant Calley now, and how about that fabulous General Dyer?

The worship of STRENGTH is fascism.… Read the rest

Tim Murphy at Mother Jones says Minneapolis is Trump’s campaign dream.

Rioters in the city were “THUGS,” he wrote, and he proposed sending in the National Guard to “get the job done right.” In a tweet so depraved that Twitter appended a disclaimer, he quoted an infamous 1960s Miami cop: “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.”

Trump’s comments weren’t just those of a head of state addressing unrest in a major city. They were also the words of a candidate for reelection who believes that what happens in Minnesota could make or break his chances this fall. The president has made repeated campaign stops in the state over the last four years; in threatening violence against protesters, he

So Nicola Spurling deleted that defamatory tweet, and then reiterated the ideology.

With that said, I stand behind the intent of the tweet, which is to highlight the dangerous nature of transphobia. Children are particularly vulnerable and must be accepted for who they are, not told that who they are is wrong. With great power comes great responsibility.

— Nicola Spurling (@NicESpurling) May 30, 2020

“Children must be accepted for who they are, not told that who they are is wrong.”

But who is it that actually tells children that who they are is wrong? Who is it that refuses to accept them for who they are?

Spurling of course is claiming that it’s people who don’t believe the trans … Read the rest

Merkel says no, she’s not going to Trump’s party.

“The federal chancellor thanks President Trump for his invitation to the G7 summit at the end of June in Washington. As of today, considering the overall pandemic situation, she cannot agree to her personal participation, to a journey to Washington,” German government spokesman Steffen Seibert told POLITICO Friday.

…

Merkel’s refusal to attend the summit in person risks scuppering Trump’s attempts to present the gathering as a landmark moment drawing a line under the lockdowns and travel bans imposed to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

You know what else risks scuppering that? The coronavirus pandemic. It hasn’t gone anywhere, so drawing a line under the lockdowns and travel bans would be … Read the rest

Trump didn’t say a word about George Floyd at his “press conference” (the one at which he took no questions) today, but he did say he was yanking the US out of the WHO.

US President Donald Trump has announced that he is terminating the country’s relationship with the World Health Organization (WHO). The president has accused the WHO of failing to hold Beijing to account over the coronavirus pandemic. “China has total control over the World Health Organization,” the president said while announcing measures aimed at punishing Beijing.

…

More than 102,000 people in the US have lost their lives to Covid-19 – by far the biggest death toll in the world.

And that’s…the WHO’s fault.… Read the rest

A couple of thoughts related to the police murder of George Floyd and the protests in response:

It can be hard to get the evidence to prosecute police excessive force cases & juries don't always convict. But forcing your knee onto the neck of a man for 2:53 after he's unresponsive? Presumably the officer is paying attention to his condition to evaluate any threat. He knew.

— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) May 29, 2020

Thinking about Black journalists who may have a difficult time covering the events in Minneapolis and the protests across the country. Your work is always important, but especially right now. Thank you—stay strong.

— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) May 29, 2020

Both women are former prosecutors.… Read the rest

Originally a comment by Seth on As a fact not as a statement.

This is the real Doublespeak, of course; not a statement meant to instill contradictory beliefs in the speaker’s mind and thus induce a fugue of passive acceptance of Big Brother, but rather an obvious smokescreen meant to gaslight anyone who takes the plain reading seriously. I foresaw this excuse immediately when I glanced at your previous post. The interpretation being in this case that Trump is a very poor and disorganized speaker who obviously meant that when looting (or really any kind of civil disobedience) occurs, violence often follows (by and upon the looters/disobeyers themselves, obviously), and the government should step in to prevent the looters/disobeyers … Read the rest

Ah now comes the backtrack.

….It was spoken as a fact, not as a statement. It’s very simple, nobody should have any problem with this other than the haters, and those looking to cause trouble on social media. Honor the memory of George Floyd!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2020

Time stamp is 11:20. He was scheduled to do a press conference starting at 11.

What does “It was spoken as a fact, not as a statement” mean? Was he trying to say he was describing what happens as opposed to making a threat? Poor confused wannabe fascist.

Anyway – do we believe his afterthought?

No.… Read the rest

Maybe casual libel isn’t such a good idea after all.

Unless you want to hear from lawyers, you might want to rethink that tweet. I'm not wasting time arguing with wilful misrepresentations of my views on transgenderism – your timeline shows you're not big on truth – but making serious insinuations like this comes with consequences.

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) May 29, 2020

… Read the rest

Also in the Post’s live updates:

Hours after Twitter said a tweet by President Trump violated its rules for glorifying violence, the White House posted his same comments about the unrest in Minneapolis on its official account Friday morning.

“These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen,” the White House tweet said, quoting Trump’s words referring to the man who died after a police officer kneeled on his neck. “Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!”

The White House did that, so it’s … Read the rest

More on that arrest of the CNN reporter and crew as they were reporting:

CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez and his camera crew were arrested on air early Friday as they reported on the protests.

A Minnesota State Police officer said the journalists were arrested because they were told to move and didn’t, according to CNN. Jimenez is seen and heard on camera before his arrest identifying himself and his crew as reporters and saying, “We’re getting out of your way” and “put us back where you want us. Just let us know.”

…

The arrest, which happened during CNN’s “New Day,” shocked hosts Alysin Camerota and John Berman. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” Berman said.

…

CNN political reporter

Do we really have to soften Trump’s homicidal fascist screams of rage even now, when he’s literally saying he’s going to have people shot in the street?

Washington Post headline:

CNN crew arrested as fires rage in Minneapolis; Trump calls protesters ‘THUGS,’ suggests looting will lead to ‘shooting’

He didn’t “suggest”! He flat-out said it! His words: “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.” How is that in any way a “suggestion”? It’s a flat unqualified announcement. He announced his intention to have people murdered for property crimes.

President Trump called the protesters “THUGS,” while suggesting military intervention and warning in a tweet that there could be additional violence if the chaos continued. “When the looting starts, the

And there’s this.

Very Reichstag fire today.… Read the rest

But last night Trump finally did push it hard enough that Twitter semi-removed one of his tweets. They’ve veiled it behind the message

This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible. Learn more

and there’s a view button next to it.

What does it say? Oh nothing much, just that he wants “the Military” to shoot people who are “looting” in Minneapolis.

….These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume

Wisdom:

CHINA!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2020

… Read the rest

Such a good idea to politicize wearing masks during a lethal pandemic.

New Trump campaign Facebook ads mock Biden wearing a mask with a China flag behind him

While Trump is shown with no mask in front of an American flag pic.twitter.com/xMIQD5nADf

— Will Steakin (@wsteaks) May 28, 2020

… Read the rest