Adding a few more because the venom dressed up as feisty girly sass is remarkable.

She is transphobic tho. https://t.co/ROR0PiK3ar

— The Second Shelf (@secondshelfbks) May 30, 2020

Can't believe we have to explain we're a bookshop, Jessie.

A bookshop that sells books by women who exist. https://t.co/3ymlx6QWQz

— The Second Shelf (@secondshelfbks) May 31, 2020

It is truly amazing when people are out there on the streets putting their lives at risk to fight for basic human rights we find our feed buried in tweets of white people very concerned for a billionaire writer who made her own choices. Get your priorities straight.

— The Second Shelf (@secondshelfbks) May 31, 2020

I particularly despise that theft of the “white … Read the rest

A Twitter account that claims to be a bookshop for women…

Oops. She blocked a bookstore of books by women. We're sure that was a mistake. pic.twitter.com/q1jWMIIhk3

— The Second Shelf (@secondshelfbks) May 29, 2020

I wonder why Rowling blocked this bookshop for women.

She doesn't believe trans people exist. Or should have the same rights. She tweeted her views on accident in a post meant for children. What if that child was trans? https://t.co/w1a6EDVjMZ

— The Second Shelf (@secondshelfbks) May 29, 2020

Oh. I guess that’s why. Claims of the “she doesn’t believe trans people should have rights” type – lies, in short. Possibly also the illiteracy – “on accident” “what if that child was trans” – two in … Read the rest

Meanwhile

President Trump moved to protect regulations issued by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that restrict federal student loan forgiveness in a veto issued Friday night. Several veterans’ groups have argued that the rules, which make it more difficult for student borrowers to prove that a college defrauded them, will harm former service members cheated by for-profit colleges, the New York Times reports.

In other words, for-profit colleges, which are a scam to begin with, have won a victory over the students they cheat. Of course Trump is down with that: he’s one of the scammers. Remember Trump “University”? Which was in no way a university, and took people’s money for very nearly nothing?

Trump said the vetoed legislation “sought

… Read the rest

That’s not the only mud Harrop threw at Rowling today.

https://twitter.com/AdrianHarrop/status/1266654521888997376 https://twitter.com/AdrianHarrop/status/1266657728090570753

How insensitive.… Read the rest

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

https://twitter.com/AdrianHarrop/status/1266812512546230275

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

… Read the rest

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

… Read the rest

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.

https://twitter.com/smotus/status/1266754147291783168

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

… Read the rest

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

… Read the rest

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

… Read the rest