April 12, 2024

Latest "masculinity influencer": Another dudebro guiding followers into deeper loneliness

Latest "masculinity influencer": Another dudebro guiding followers into deeper loneliness
Self-described "alpha male" Nick Adams is offering young men "advice" that will only alienate them even further

By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 12, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)


(Salon) Andrew Tate may be facing a mounting number of international charges for alleged sex crimes, but this doesn't mean we've seen the end of "masculinity influencers" who make big bucks by preying upon the the insecurities of young men. On Tuesday, Ben Terris of the Washington Post profiled Nick Adams, a self-described "Alpha Male" who wins over young men with an is-he-kidding shtick focused on the ever-present threat of emasculation supposedly posed by everything from liberals to girlfriends to salmon entrées at restaurants.

Like most similar marketers of so-called masculinity, Adams targets young men's fears of loneliness or failure — which are no doubt both real and prevalent — with the false promise that embracing aggressive misogyny is the key to achieving your dreams. Adams has evidently cashed in because he's good at employing faux-irony in order to push his message. Terris, who has an eye for telling details, zeroes in on excellent examples of the "jokey but serious" rhetoric.

....(snip)....

As Terris documents, Adams likes to sow confusion over how serious he is about any of this, telling Terris at one point that he's playing "a character," but then contradicting himself: "This is not a character. This is not a bit. It's not trolling." The ambiguity is strategic. To his followers, the core message comes through loud and clear — misogyny rocks, and will get you laid — but Adams can deflect at least some criticism by pretending it's all just an elaborate joke.

....(snip)....

There's a different kind of irony at work when it comes to the psychological damage done to the audiences of Adams and other masculinity influencers. These guys market themselves as self-help gurus who are here to help young men address two major concerns we've heard so much about: Loneliness and fear of failure. But the "advice" they offer, as anyone who isn't redpilled can see, is likely to backfire. In the name of being "alpha," Adams encourages his followers to be rude, annoying and even abusive, especially to women. But behaving like an unpleasant jerk, rather than being a secret to the good life, is a good way to shut yourself out of both jobs and dates. Keep that up long enough, and you might not have any friends left either. ...............(more)

https://www.salon.com/2024/04/12/latest-masculinity-influencer-is-guiding-followers-into-deeper-loneliness/

April 12, 2024

U.S. Capitol Police chief describes preparations for possible post-election turmoil

WASHINGTON — U.S. Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger sought to ease concerns from the lawmakers in charge of his agency’s budget on Wednesday, saying the department is preparing for major upcoming events — including another potential Jan. 6 — by trying to grow the size of its force and overhauling its intelligence gathering activities.

During an hour-long hearing in front of the House Appropriations Legislative Branch Subcommittee, Manger argued the agency is far better positioned than in the past to address the safety of members both in the Capitol complex and at their residences, though at one point he said USCP’s “resources are strained.”

Manger also noted USCP has fallen behind and is trying to enhance protection for House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, and Senate Speaker pro tempore Patty Murray, a Washington state Democrat, since they are second and third in the line of presidential succession, respectively.

The U.S. Secretary of State, who sits fourth in the line of succession below both those lawmakers, has a security detail three times larger than anything USCP provides, Manger told the committee. ................(more)

https://michiganadvance.com/2024/04/11/u-s-capitol-police-chief-describes-preparations-for-possible-post-election-turmoil/

April 12, 2024

We need a 'Marshall Plan' for public media

We need a ‘Marshall Plan’ for public media
Local news is too important for our democracy to live and die by ad dollars or fundraising

CHRIS MILLS RODRIGO
APRIL 11, 2024 3:33 AM


(Michigan Advance) America’s media institutions have had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad start to 2024.

The Messenger, a well-funded, high-profile news site, dissolved after less than a year. Big newspapers from the Los Angeles Times to the IndyStar saw major layoffs. And Sports Illustrated fell into licensing limbo while sites like BuzzFeed, Vice News or Complex found themselves at best on life support.

....(snip)....

The losses have been particularly acute in poor and rural communities, leaving ever expanding news deserts all across the nation.The collapse of news outlets, especially local papers, is robbing our communities of indispensable watch dogs. The disappearance of reporters from city council meetings and public safety hearings is creating oversight vacuums that leave citizens in the dark and enable shady dealings that let the wealthy exercise undue — and undetected — influence.

....(snip)....

Given all this, some experts are calling for a fundamental rethinking of how we value journalism.

“The information produced by journalism should always be — and should have always been — treated as a public good,” Victor Pickard told me. “And that, by its very nature, is not something that’s easily monetized.” ................(more)

https://michiganadvance.com/2024/04/11/we-need-a-marshall-plan-for-public-media/

April 12, 2024

The Americans retiring to Mexico for a more affordable life: 'We are immigrants'

The Americans retiring to Mexico for a more affordable life: ‘We are immigrants’
There’s been much ado about northbound migration across the Mexico-US border – but some are moving in the other direction

Alexandra Villarreal
Thu 11 Apr 2024 13.00 EDT


(Guardian UK) Don’t call Jym Varnadore an ex-pat.

Yes, he and his wife, Renee Varnadore, are living abroad. But they left the United States in search of a quality of life that’s no longer in reach for them stateside. Now, the clear blue waters of Rosarito Beach are quickly becoming home.

Their condo is just the right size for two. It’s intimate but not without its luxuries, like a huge bathtub with jacuzzi jets. Then there’s their balcony, overlooking a world of ocean that bleeds into the horizon. It’s a view reserved for millionaires and billionaires in the US, but not here.

“We are immigrants. And I think it’s disingenuous to call us anything else,” Jym said. “When I decided that I wanted to move out of the US, it was eyes wide open with that word in mind. I am an immigrant.” .....................(more)

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/11/americans-retire-mexico-affordability-peace

April 12, 2024

A total eclipse of Donald Trump: First felony trial could finally humble him

A total eclipse of Donald Trump: First felony trial could finally humble him
Donald Trump faces the first of four felony trials in less than a week and boy is he scared

By BRIAN KAREM
Columnist
PUBLISHED APRIL 11, 2024 9:00AM (EDT)


(Salon) ....(snip)....

It was an awesome display of celestial mechanics, but pales in comparison to the mechanics of the justice system holding Donald Trump accountable for his disruptive, divisive and illegal activities. Much as the ancient viewers of total solar eclipses once were, Trump today is in the pit of despair – and he’s melting down.

....(snip)....

This week the demonic angel of despair and divisiveness remains as angry and as scared as I’ve ever seen him. I doubt there’s a safe ketchup bottle within 100 miles of Mar-a-Lago. Trump is scared out of his befouled shorts. His former CFO Allen Weisselberg got sentenced to five months in jail after committing perjury in the former president’s civil fraud case. Think he’ll talk? I don’t know but, according to those in Trump’s orbit, the Donald is worried. After his third attempt to delay his trial in Manhattan was denied, there’s no doubt Trump has slipped a cog.

....(snip)....

We in the media continue to treat him as a legitimate candidate while half of the electorate agrees. Every time Donald Trump goes after a judge, a jury, witnesses or his charges, we cover it – but curiously we never mention Judge Aileen Cannon. Trump never goes after the judge in the Mar-a-Lago documents case against him. “That’s because she’s a MAGA sycophant,” a prosecutor close to the case explained. Maybe that’s worth reporting a little more often.

Perhaps we should be covering Trump based on the facts – and not the blathering, bloviated nonsense he spouts on a daily basis. I don’t care about the wild and dramatic ramblings of the demented former president. The fact is Trump has more reasons to fear the coming months than Middle Age peasants feared a solar eclipse. The eclipse, while humbling, isn’t a threat to our existence. Next week Trump will face a case in court that is a threat to his existence – even though it’s considered the weakest case against him. ................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2024/04/11/a-total-eclipse-of-donald-trump-first-felony-trial-could-finally-humble-him/

April 10, 2024

Drunk Florida man believed he had a right to 'sit naked in a trash can' in public: police

A 35-year-old Florida man taken into custody over the weekend told police he believed he was allowed to be “drunk and disorderly and sit naked in a trash can on the public sidewalk,” according to a Pinellas County arrest affidavit.

Wyly James Weeks was found that way late Saturday night when he also refused to identify himself on the grounds he was being illegally detained in downtown St. Petersburg.

Weeks was charged with misdemeanor counts of disorderly intoxication and resisting an officer without violence.

Police indicated in their report that drugs and mental health issues didn’t seem to be an issue, though the suspect did appear intoxicated. ............(more)

https://www.nydailynews.com/2024/04/09/florida-man-arrested-drunk-naked-trash-can/

April 10, 2024

Trump busts the myth behind the MAGA rich

Trump busts the myth behind the MAGA rich
Trump's "nice countries" comment proves rich MAGA voters share the prejudices of the cheap seats

By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 10, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)


(Salon) "Is Corporate America in Denial About Trump?" read a headline in the New York Times Magazine over the weekend. In it, staff writer Jonathan Mahler details how wealthy corporate executives, many of whom distanced themselves from Donald Trump after his attempted coup, are now talking themselves into backing his current presidential campaign. Noting that the erratic nature of far-right leaders is often destabilizing, Mahler warns that authoritarian leaders have a "disastrous effect not just on democracies but on businesses — and business leaders."

Mahler's article is a useful read, particularly in laying out the likely dire consequences of a second Trump term to the economy. But it is built on a questionable premise: That business leaders, in their hearts, are smart enough to loathe Trump, yet are setting aside their reservations to cozy up to the possible next president.

The myth that wealthy people are inherently rational is sewn throughout both the article and coverage of it. MSNBC host Nicole Wallace, for instance, fretted Monday that "smart" people weren't seeing the dangers here. But I would like people to consider another possibility: That many rich people back Trump because they agree with his rancid views. That they don't just see Trump's racist rhetoric as a useful way to bamboozle working-class whites into voting for him, but that they also hold such views. That, beneath all the expensive clothes and fancy automobiles, many in the top economic tier of America have attitudes about race and gender that are no different than what you'd hear from Trump's beloved "poorly educated."

....(snip)....

The setting matters a lot. Trump went there at a fancy fundraiser because he believed that, as racist as the Bud Light-boycotting crowd at his rallies might be, he'd find an even more appreciative audience for his blunt "whites only" message among the private jet people. He appears to have guessed correctly, as the New York Times reporters registered no complaints about this David Duke-style talk at the upscale shindig. Instead, the rich attendees opened their wallets and rewarded Trump with fat checks. ..........(more)

https://www.salon.com/2024/04/10/busts-the-myth-behind-the-maga-rich/

April 9, 2024

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer "confident" Trump will sign a federal abortion ban if given the opportunity

(Michigan Advance) Former President Donald Trump said in a video Monday it should be left up to state governments to determine the legality of abortion, touting the repeal of Roe v. Wade, while not definitively condemning a federal ban on abortion.

“My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states will determine by vote or legislation or perhaps both. And whatever they decide must be the law of the land. In this case, the law of the state,” Trump said.

....(snip)....

Whitmer said Trump is still taking pride in letting politicians interfere in private medical decisions for women and assertions from Trump that abortion should be left up to states and voters as a people’s issue are disingenuous.

“We know exactly how bad Trump has been for women and reproductive freedom, and we are confident he would sign into law the national abortion ban he and his party have wanted for so long. He said he thinks women should be punished for choosing abortion, and we should take him at his word,” Whitmer said. .............(more)

https://michiganadvance.com/2024/04/08/whitmer-confident-trump-will-sign-a-federal-abortion-ban-if-given-the-opportunity/

April 9, 2024

Evangelicals won't be bothered by Trump's abortion gambit -- they know he's lying

Evangelicals won't be bothered by Trump's abortion gambit — they know he's lying
Project 2025 makes it clear: The plan is a national abortion ban, even if by executive order

By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 9, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)


(Salon) On Monday, with great fanfare, Donald Trump released his "plan" on abortion in a video posted to Truth Social. As with most things Trump says, the short statement was an avalanche of lies. He claims overturning Roe v. Wade was "about will of the people." In reality, strong majorities of Americans disapprove of the Supreme Court's actions. He claims "all legal scholars" on "both sides" wanted to repeal Roe, another lie. Most legal scholars, except far-right ones, agree the right to privacy is justified by the Constitution but that such a dramatic reversal of precedent is bad law. He claimed, as he does routinely now, that Democrats want abortion "after birth," a vile lie that has become normalized through brute repetition. But the most consequential deceit is from Trump implying — but notably never actually saying — he's on the "leave it to the states" bandwagon.

....(snip)....

As sharp observers noticed (which most mainstream media missed), Trump's language here is descriptive of the current state of play and avoids committing to any future action or inaction. Trump is usually sloppy with language, but as Jordan Weissman of Semafor points out, whoever wrote this statement carefully did so to leave the impression Trump is saying he will leave it to the states — but in fact, he leaves the door open to signing a national abortion ban.

....(snip)....

But most telling is the muted response on the Christian right. The anti-abortion group SBA List said they were "disappointed," but promised to "work tirelessly" to elect Trump in 2024 and that "he will get there" on a national ban. Alliance Defending Freedom, which argued the Dobbs case before the Supreme Court that ended Roe, completely ignored Trump's statement. Americans United For Life, Family Research Council, the Heritage Foundation, Turning Point USA: All loudmouthed fundamentalist groups, all angrily anti-abortion, and all responded with either silence, or in some cases, eager support to Trump's video. Penny Nance of Concerned Women for America, a longstanding anti-feminist group, seemed confident Trump will stick by the forced childbirth cause.

That's because they all know it's a crock, and Trump will sign any abortion ban a Republican-controlled Congress passes. Moreover, they all know that, if he gets into the White House, Trump will abuse executive powers to create a backdoor ban on most, if not all abortion, by using the defunct-but-never-repealed Comstock Act to legally persecute those who transport drugs or materials that are used in abortions. They know he will do this, because they are all involved in developing the plan to do so, through Project 2025. .............(more)

https://www.salon.com/2024/04/09/evangelicals-wont-be-bothered-by-abortion-gambit--they-know-hes-lying/

April 9, 2024

You'll Never Guess Which State Court Just Approved Religious Exemptions From Abortion Bans

(Slate) On Thursday afternoon, in an important lawsuit seeking to clarify which religious objectors will be taken seriously when they seek legal exemptions, a group of plaintiffs in Indiana scored a notable win: A three-judge panel on the Indiana Court of Appeals agreed to enjoin Indiana’s near-total abortion ban, as applied against a class of religious plaintiffs who had argued that the ban violates a state law protecting religious freedom. In its unanimous 76-page opinion, authored by Judge Leanna K. Weissmann, the panel determined that a preliminary injunction granted to a group of plaintiffs who had alleged that Indiana’s abortion law violated their rights under the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act could remain in place. The case now proceeds to trial, or more likely to a direct appeal to the state Supreme Court.

Indiana became one of the first states to enact a near-total abortion ban after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. In September of that year, four state residents of various faiths and a group called Hoosier Jews for Choice claimed that the ban violated the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was passed with great fanfare in 2015 under the watchful eye of then-Gov. Mike Pence. The American Civil Liberties Union’s plaintiffs contended that the almost total ban violates Jewish law, which provides that “a fetus attains the status of a living person only at birth,” and religious tenets that give priority to the life and health of the mother over that of the fetus. They also cited the religious teachings of various other faiths that support seeking abortion care under broader circumstances than the ban allows. The plaintiffs contend that their sincere religious beliefs provide grounds for terminating pregnancies in circumstances that are criminalized under Indiana’s prohibition.

A state trial court judge had sided with the plaintiffs in December of 2022, and the state filed an appeal. Among the state’s objections, including ripeness and associational standing, they objected to the fact that the members of the plaintiff class did not share identical religious values, and that their abortion objections did not amount to religious views that should be protected under the state RFRA. As we cautioned after Dobbs was decided, at least one amicus brief filed in the case suggested that their proffered religious values were in fact pretextual. In allowing the injunction to stand, at least for now, with a narrowed class of plaintiffs, the Indiana court has signaled that no single religion has a monopoly on faith claims, and that members of dominant religious groups have no basis for casting doubt on the nature of faith claims advanced by others. ....................(more)

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/04/indiana-abortion-ban-religious-exemption-judaism-faith.html