"Joy and pleasure are as real as pain and sorrow and one must learn what they have to teach. . . ." -- Sean Russell, from Gatherer of Clouds

"If you're not having fun, you're not doing it right." -- Helyn D. Goldenberg

"I love you and I'm not afraid." -- Evanescence, "My Last Breath"

“If I hear ‘not allowed’ much oftener,” said Sam, “I’m going to get angry.” -- J.R.R. Tolkien, from Lord of the Rings

Friday, December 14, 2018

Lest We Forget

That our "free and independent press" probably contributed as much to Trump's election as the NRA and Putin combined, Betty Cracker has a post at Balloon Juice illustrating that they're still stuck in that hole -- the one called "compromise with terrorists". She starts off with a couple of right-wing shills, but then hits the nugget:

But Thiessen’s narrative is seeping into The Post editorial board, which published an opinion earlier today that was infuriatingly entitled “Trump and Democrats can reach a deal on the wall — if they have the spine to take it.” Here’s the conclusion:

If there is a moral imperative in any trade-off involving immigration and security, it’s the urgent necessity of finding a way to ensure a future in this country for dreamers, who are Americans by upbringing, education, loyalty and inclination — by every metric but a strictly legal one. Striking a deal that achieves that outcome should be a no-brainer for both sides. If it means a few billion dollars to construct segments of Mr. Trump’s wall, Democrats should be able to swallow that with the knowledge that it also will have paid to safeguard so many young lives, careers and hopes. That’s not a tough sell even in a Democratic primary.

Any compromise worth the trouble involves painful concessions for each side, but in this case, if assessed with cool heads, the concessions are a far cry from excruciating. The question, for both sides, is familiar: Do they want an issue or a solution? If it’s the latter, it’s eminently achievable.

It's worth reading the whole editorial -- it's a good sign as to how far the Post editorial board has its head up its own ass. The wall is nothing more than a boondoggle, a campaign slogan tailored to appeal to the least thoughtful and critical -- and most racist -- of Trump's base. There's also the fact that the "World's Greatest Negotiator" is not going to negotiate -- if he makes any concessions, he'll renege on them at the first opportunity.

Welcome to Trump's America, where the "enemies of the people" are so caught up in being "fair and balanced" (by right-wing standards) that they are neither.

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