Supreme Court says yes sure a president is above the law, no problem.

The Supreme Court’s liberal bloc issued blistering dissents in the Trump immunity ruling, arguing that the decision “reshapes the institution of the presidency” and “makes a mockery” of the constitutional principle that no man is above the law.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, reading her dissent from the bench, said that “relying on little more than its own misguided wisdom … the Court gives former President Trump all the immunity he asked for and more.”

Generosity is a virtue.

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on ideological lines that former President Donald Trump has immunity for some of his conduct as president but not unofficial acts in the federal

Oh go to hell all of you – the police the BBC all of you.

Transgender woman guilty of rape after night out

Man. Man man man man man. Women don’t rape; women can’t rape. Women are the targets of rape, not the perps.

A transgender woman has been found guilty of rape following a night out. Lexi Secker, 35, of Lowbourne, near Melksham, was living as a man when she attacked a woman in Blunsdon, Wiltshire, on 23 April 2023.

Don’t be so ridiculous. The man wasn’t “living as a man”; the man was a man.

Swindon Crown Court was told Secker would be tried as a woman and she was found guilty of one count of rape on

So the important thing is Biden and his career and his everything – when it should be everyone else.

President Joe Biden waged an intense weekend battle to save his reelection bid following his disastrous debate performance but has been unable to dismiss existential questions about his candidacy that are more glaring than ever.

But maybe just maybe the important thing isn’t his career but the cliff we’re racing towards.

The Democratic damage control strategy of arguing that one bad night does not detract from Biden’s past successes ignores the critical question with which many voters have wrestled for months: Is Biden simply too physically and cognitively diminished to serve another four years?

That’ll be because the arrow of time … Read the rest

I saw this guy’s (disgusting) tweet this morning, but I didn’t realize he’s a PR honcho for the police.

The eight nurses who don’t want to undress in front of a man are the bad people here, for “humiliating” him. He’s not the bad guy for humiliating them, no, they’re the bad people for trying to make him stop humiliating them. And yet here we are.

Can you imagine a man working as Head of Comms for the Independent Office for Police Conduct – with a remit to 'restore trust' in the police – mocking a female MP’s concerns for her safety days after a man was convicted of threats to kill her?

What say you @policeconduct ?

I’m so pleased to find out at last what asexuality looks like.

I did it! It was an honour to be the first asexual person to lead @PrideInLondon!

Asexual representation matters. Our recognition matters. Our protection matters. Our voices matter. We matter. Thank you all for your support throughout the day! 💜#ThisIsWhatAsexualLooksLike pic.twitter.com/TA0FTpNrFz

— Yasmin Benoit, MSc (@theyasminbenoit) June 29, 2024

… Read the rest

Yeah good luck with that “damage control” thing.

With countless calls and a rush of campaign events, the president’s team began a damage-control effort to pressure and plead with anxious Democratic lawmakers, surrogates, activists and donors.

But pressure and pleading aren’t going to turn back the clock. They’re not going to make Biden any younger or sharper or more robust.

Later on Friday, top White House aides worked the phones, with Mr. Biden’s chief of staff, Jeff Zients, calling the Democratic leader of the Senate, Chuck Schumer, to check in, according to a person familiar with the call. And by the afternoon, the Biden campaign had transformed its weekly all-staff call into a virtual pep talk to dispel any

Yet again, for the umpty-billionth time, a smug man reveals how entirely indifferent he is to women and their need for safety from predatory men.

Gee yes how dare women object to being forced to take their clothes off in front of men? Who do they think they are, real people???… Read the rest

The Telegraph did a little stir the pot story on an academic article accusing Dolly Parton of all the phobias because of her project to send books to children who need them.

Dolly Parton has been accused of “white saviourism” for giving millions of free books to poor children.

The reading scheme, called Imagination Library, was launched by the country and western star in the US more than three decades ago. It now operates in the UK, Ireland, Canada and Australia, and has been lauded for helping to drive up literacy rates.

It gives disadvantaged pupils the same access to books as their middle-class peers by sending high-quality titles directly to the homes of under-fives.

That’s already a very over-simplified … Read the rest

I grabbed a bus way the hell north and east from here to a huge mostly wildish park on Lake Washington. Saw people playing cricket. Walked through big meadows full of long grass to the lake, and promptly turned back to the meadows because the area along the lake was full of people with picnics and so on. No problem, I can visit the lake in the cooler months and/or on rainy days. Crossed the road that traverses the park and went a few yards into a meadow and encountered

…a coyote.

Just the one, fortunately. It gazed at me calmly and then turned and trotted away.

I’ve encountered coyotes quite a few times lately – generally just running or … Read the rest

We are so screwed.

Biden’s poor performance sent leading Democrats into a panic on Thursday night, after the US president appeared shaky and at points struggled to finish sentences. It amplified fears about his age and fitness for office that it had been hoped the debate would allay.

It seems kind of stupid and reality-denying to hope that given the realities. What’s he going to do, rip off his shirt to reveal the Superman leotard underneath?

The former US president Barack Obama defended Biden in a social media post on Friday. “Bad debate nights happen,” he said. “But this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only

Does Angela Rayner answer the question?

She does not.

One reason I won’t vote Labour is that its deputy leader called the @AllianceLGB, whose founding meeting I attended, a hate group. She did it years ago and the media didn’t give a toss. I’m overjoyed that a national broadcaster is now holding @AngelaRayner to account over it 1/2 https://t.co/ENUPHN6kaA

— Simon Edge (@simonjedge) June 29, 2024

She says many words but she does not answer the question.… Read the rest

There was a Pride march in Toronto yesterday. Apparently one theme was “transphobe extermination.”

not sure what kind of bizarre meet up was taking place downtown Toronto last night, but subway started filling with 20-somethings in “transphobe extermination” shirts (note the noose), many with gigantic masks & (apparently unnecessary) canes, like they were 90 yrs old. So weird pic.twitter.com/xSpr6DNoVr

— Jonathan Kay (@jonkay) June 29, 2024

… Read the rest

Capitalism must be set free:

Friday’s ruling that overturned an important 1984 ruling called Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council was a belated victory for Trump’s deregulatory agenda, with all three of his appointees to the high court joining the 6-3 conservative majority.

“The decision was the culmination of a decadelong, billionaire-funded campaign to capture and weaponize the unelected power of the Supreme Court to deliver huge windfalls for corporate interests at the expense of everyday Americans,” said Alex Aronson, a former Democratic staffer in Congress who is executive director of Court Accountability, a judicial oversight group.

…

Overturning Chevron, a ruling that business interests long disliked, has long been a goal of conservative lawyers, who saw

Hahahahahahahaha

Can’t parody this pic.twitter.com/Io94Lacsfb

— Julie Bindel (@bindelj) June 28, 2024

Ok I can’t parody it either but I can ask –

If she’s asexual why is she dressed that way and standing that way and glaring that way?

Are we supposed to think none of that is sexual at all in any way?

Come onnnnnnnnnnnn.… Read the rest

Originally a comment by Artymorty at Miscellany Room.

A strange side effect of SPLC calling legitimate organizations hate groups is that it has the potential to become a self-fulfilling prophecy. People or groups who have been wrongly smeared as agents of “hate” are liable to turn sour on any suggestion that anyone is hateful, and they might start drifting towards hardline, far-right positions, as a social effect of being ostracized by liberals and embraced by fellow-exiles, many of whom are, in fact, far-right, hateful extremists who were exiled from liberal society’s good standing for entirely legitimate reasons.

No one who’s been cast into the “hate” pile believes they deserve to be there. Everyone who’s been labelled hateful vehemently denies … Read the rest

A win for girls for a change:

Last week, Sierra Leone’s parliament enacted landmark legislation to ban child marriage. The Prohibition of Child Marriage Bill 2024, which makes marriage for anyone under 18 a criminal offense, seeks to protect girls from a harmful practice that has long violated their rights and hindered their development.

Child marriage is a serious problem in Sierra Leone, where 30 percent of girls and 4 percent of boys are married before age 18, with even higher rates in rural areas. Around 800,000 girls are currently married in Sierra Leone, half before turning 15.

Jeezus. 400 thousand girls married before turning 15.

Child marriages fuel the high adolescent pregnancy rate in Sierra Leone

We’re doomed. Toast. Dead in the water.

While Republican candidate Donald Trump faces criticism for the number of falsehoods he uttered, much of the attention has been focused on President Joe Biden’s poor performance.

Biden appeared to struggle in several of his answers. As a result, concerns about his age and mental fitness have only risen further. Some Democrats have even asked after the debate whether the president could be replaced as the party’s presidential candidate.

Toast.… Read the rest

Oklahoma embraces theocracy:

Oklahoma’s top education official has ordered schools in the state to begin incorporating the Bible into lessons, in the latest US cultural flashpoint over religion in the classroom. A directive sent by Republican state Superintendent Ryan Walters said the rule was compulsory, requiring “immediate and strict compliance”.

All lessons? How can you “incorporate the Bible” into math lessons, science lessons, geography lessons? History, yes, but algebra, no.

In a statement on Thursday, Mr Walters described the Bible as “an indispensable historical and cultural touchstone”.

“Without basic knowledge of it, Oklahoma students are unable to properly contextualize the foundation of our nation, which is why Oklahoma educational standards provide for its instruction,” he added.

It’s true that … Read the rest

Look closely at the direction of this short clip.

Notice the size of the man compared to the woman. That was a choice.

Notice how he comes in and positions himself right next to her.

Notice that his right hand is almost a fist.

Notice his scowl.

Those were all choices.

“Look, bitch. If a large man joins you in an elevator and practically stands on top of you, scowling and clenching his fist, you’d better just shut up and take it or we’ll shame you in public.”

This, from the Victorian Government, is "trans".

Women who listen to their survival instincts are dangerous bigots making the men who pretend to be us unsafe.

Taxpayer money was used to create

Wait wait wait what happened to inclusion? What about inclusivity? Is that all of a suddenly over?

Apparently @pflagcanada in Edmonton Alberta missed the memo and didn’t study LGB history at all.

“Trans women of color” did NOT start the riot at Stonewall. This is well documented and proven to be a myth.

Marsha was a drag queen. And he didn’t get there until it was already… pic.twitter.com/aUUN4JFvFn

— 🇨🇦 Jack (@JackDan110) June 27, 2024

Pflag Edmonton is also on Facebook. It has strict instructions at the top of the page that this group is open only to gender-diverse, trans, two-spirit, gender non-conforming, and non-binary individuals. Hey, I could go! I’m gender non-conforming. I could go, but I’d rather be … Read the rest