What is "normal"?

[kentuck]

The persistent lies have taken their toll. A recent poll shows Donald Trump at 47% approval. Gradually, his lies and insane policies are becoming "normal". For a short while, his great appeasement with North Korea was going to be one of his crowning achievements. Unfortunately, intelligence indicates that they are not destroying their nuclear capabilities, but instead, are building it up since the meeting between Trump and Kim Jong Un.

Even taking children from the arms of their parents and locking them in cages has not stirred the resistance that one might expect from such an act. That too, is becoming "normal".

This might indicate that the country is wearing down? People are tired of fighting a battle where no ground seems to be gained?

There are those, FOX News and Trumpers, that have believed this all to be "normal" from the beginning. They had no problems with Donald Trump. They celebrated his actions and his crudeness and his destructive policies. It was "normal" for them. They say that is what they voted for.

This is our battle on this celebrated day of our history. We cannot accept the corrupt, destructive divisiveness as "normal". We cannot let that word be re-defined.

[dalton99a]

1. Frogs are not okay with being slowly boiled alive, metaphors be damned

https://io9.gizmodo.com/frogs-are-not-okay-with-being-slowly-boiled-alive-meta-1493614589
Frogs are not okay with being slowly boiled alive, metaphors be damned

Many people have heard the old metaphor about the frog; if you put one in boiling water it will hop out, but if you gradually increase the temperature of the water it will let itself be boiled. It's meant to warn us about slowly developing dangers in addition to obvious ones.

As metaphors go, a boiling frog works. Step into the realm of reality and the metaphor breaks down. Dr. Victor Hutchison, at the University of Oklahoma, dispelled the myth when he studied frogs' reaction to temperature changes in water. He followed the procedure outlined for a proper frog-boiling; put a frog in cold water, and gradually warmed the water up. (He stopped well before the boiling point.) The frogs most definitely did jump out when the water got too warm for them.

[cyclonefence]

2. If we learned anything in 2016

it was not to trust polls. Hardcore Trumpers are always going to respond favorably and enthusiastically to questions about their leader. They will seek out opportunities to do so. Many if not most of the rest of us either don't get asked or like me refuse to participate in polling. Polls are meaningless.

[spanone]

3. K&R...