And this is another example of main stream media dropping the ball, fearful of a backlash from those ready to pounce on perceived "liberal bias."
We're all afraid to go down a rabbit hole resulting in accusations of lunacy. BUT, the whole scene seemed too "perfect." The blood perfectly placed on the face. The hero arising from the depths..."fight, fight,fight." Fist raised in defiance. And where the hell were hospital officials with a report, to include other probable injuries,such as inner ear damage or a concussion? I mean,come on man! I'll say no more.
Doesn’t this feel like ancient history, Steven. I’m still not sure about any of it though. But now that the country is in peril it has taken on more importance as a harbinger of what was to come. Performative politics by the Shadow Docket.
The lesson that Trump has learned from his KGB overlords and from every fascist before him is that what ultimately matters is not the truth of any given event, but the generally accepted perception of it.
So all it takes is for him to shift the narrative to his advantage is to repeat his falsehoods and fabrications often enough for them to gain acceptability.
But this should come as no surprise since it is how most nations write their history books. I should add, of course, that it is also how cults convince their adherents.
You know those blood capsules that actors use to simulate injury or death in the movies? That’s what it looked like to me. And the “ear diaper” was the coup de gras.
“I wrote a book about Lee Harvey Oswald—who he was and why he would assassinate President John F. Kennedy. That November day in Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas has been pored over in excruciating detail as writers have sought to make sense of that world-altering tragedy. Six decades on, it remains a troubling vortex for conspiracy theorizing.”
I appreciate so much this phraseology:”…troubling vortex for conspiracy theorizing.”
Troubling vortex is where I feel I still am as are many, with the status of our country at this time.
Oswald was married to a Russian woman and had been in Russian just before the assassination. This was Khrushchev's revenge against Kennedy due to the Bay of Pigs. This is a perfect example of how Russian leaders operate and Putin is the same. I spent 20 years living and working in Russia and Central Asia - and became bi-cultural.
Take a look at how his head was turned sideways with his ear out of direct range when he pulled out his handkerchief. But I agree these keystone cops could not have pulled that off, but ??? I say check out if the shooter’s parents are living a life of luxury.
You are spot on with this essay. We will never know if it was staged, if it was a bullet that struck him or glass or neither. Because when all Trump does is lie, how can he ever be believed?
Liars are everywhere. They’re a dime a dozen. Only an honest man whose word is never compromised can be trusted. In the end a stable and peaceful society is held together only by the reports and actions of the truth tellers. People like you, Steven Beschloss, and like Robert Hubbell and Heather Cox Richardson. I depend on you and people like you for clarity and understanding. Without you it’s all confusion and chaos.
We must protest on Thursday because “Good Trouble Lives On”. The memory of Troy AL native John Lewis will be honored to have you participate in this manner. Here are signs for you to print. https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/protest-signage-free?r=3m1bs
What makes a claim inarguable? When backed by irrefutable evidence, such a claim is impossible to deny or argue against, leaving no room for reasonable doubt. The proof is so strong and compelling that it cannot be disproven or refuted. In the absence of such evidence, a claim may be backed with false, fabricated, or tainted evidence, intentionally created or altered to mislead. Just as often, a claim may be attested to as being backed by irrefutable evidence, but withheld by the claimant and/or the claimant's advocates. When challenged, the most typical claimant response is belligerence and dismissiveness. Such responses signal that deception is afoot.
But every actor did NOT perform perfectly. A man was killed, a man who was presumably not the target. Trump could be prosecuted for this if the whole thing was proven to be (amateurishly) staged. Add Trump's hollering about his shoes/lifts, the fact that he could not tolerate the ridiculous bandage long enough for the wound to be credible, and the fact that he played the situation to the hilt with Ronny Jackson as the only medical authority.
At this point we know no one is going to rescue us, so it’s up to us to do what needs to be done. Everyone who has a republican representative or senator
must call them every day, NOT to even hint about any physical violence, but to say in a very matter of fact way, if they don’t do something to get the traitor out of office we will do everything in our power to make sure THEY are voted out of office. Because apparently, that’s all they care about. They’ve made it abundantly clear that they don’t care one whit about the voters who put them in office.
Republicans in Congress think their supporters are fools—how do we know that? Because their supporters have voted for them regardless of their
abject cruelty, regardless of their fiscal irresponsibility and regardless of the incompetent people their senators & reps voted to put in charge of our national security. When Russian state
tv refers to our Director of National Intelligence as “Russia’s girlfriend,”
how safe does that make you feel?
Republican reps and senators go along with what the traitor wants so they won’t be “primaried.” (Is that even a word?) How many times have we heard that excuse? Well, it’s not a legitimate excuse when they are allowing citizens who have committed no crimes to be chased down, violently assaulted &
thrown in detention camps that are fully reminiscent of Nazi concentration camps without any acknowledgment of
their right to prove their innocence.
That should scare every voter to death.
Our republican senators & reps sit there and go along with every bizarre, cruel & unethical thing the racist Traitor In Chief dreams up. That’s not acceptable, and
they’ve gotten away with it for too long.
They could have stopped the cruelty at
any time. We aren’t paying them hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to be rubber stamps for the approval of a cruel criminal regime.
Republicans in Congress just voted to
take healthcare away from millions of
people, including children, just so they can give more money to filthy rich people. No decent human being would vote for that and exactly no one forced them to vote for it. Republicans pretend they have no choice, they say they will lose their seat in Congress if they don’t vote the way the traitor wants them to vote.
Guess what—they SHOULD lose their seats! News flash—throwing their supporters to the wolves to fend for themselves while they get perks from the rich for screwing us over, isn’t what they’re being paid to do.
Start calling & emailing your republican senators & representatives now, before the urge to get violent sets in. Because
if we get violent, it gives them permission to get violent toward us. . .
I’m so pleased to read this article from you. Thank you. I have doubted this from day one. You are my reputable source. It makes me feel less crazy and hateful. What an awful event especially if it was not true. He really is pathetic and the poor secret service who take an oath to protect him .
I am so glad that you have not laid this event to rest because it is one more thing to rile the masses up. Actually, we should start narratives about it again and see if MAGA would weigh in with reasonable swears giving how they are questioning their master-in-chief. I am not on X but maybe some of your readers are.
Recently read an article in which Corey Comperatore’s wife spoke out. And another in which the woman from the Secret Service who was fired opined. I think the public should be privy to the hospital reports too. I remember when W had a colonoscopy: every detail of the polyp and the procedure was shared with the public.
Staged or real, the problem with the bloody ear is that it has given rise to the myth that Trump was saved by God to protect the country. Talk about jumping the shark! I'm not convinced that it wasn't staged. However, the collateral damage of the father who died protecting his children and the Secret Service taking out the shooter, make this melodrama as sordid as can be...very Trumpian, yes?
Steven - I wish you would agree to particpate in the book Survival and allow me to include one of your Substacks in the book. Thanks, Elizabeth contact is graham1elizabeth@aol.com
And this is another example of main stream media dropping the ball, fearful of a backlash from those ready to pounce on perceived "liberal bias."
We're all afraid to go down a rabbit hole resulting in accusations of lunacy. BUT, the whole scene seemed too "perfect." The blood perfectly placed on the face. The hero arising from the depths..."fight, fight,fight." Fist raised in defiance. And where the hell were hospital officials with a report, to include other probable injuries,such as inner ear damage or a concussion? I mean,come on man! I'll say no more.
I hear ya.
Doesn’t this feel like ancient history, Steven. I’m still not sure about any of it though. But now that the country is in peril it has taken on more importance as a harbinger of what was to come. Performative politics by the Shadow Docket.
Ancient and tragically relevant.
This is a wonderfully nuanced article, Steven.
The lesson that Trump has learned from his KGB overlords and from every fascist before him is that what ultimately matters is not the truth of any given event, but the generally accepted perception of it.
So all it takes is for him to shift the narrative to his advantage is to repeat his falsehoods and fabrications often enough for them to gain acceptability.
But this should come as no surprise since it is how most nations write their history books. I should add, of course, that it is also how cults convince their adherents.
You know those blood capsules that actors use to simulate injury or death in the movies? That’s what it looked like to me. And the “ear diaper” was the coup de gras.
(I read your mesmerizing book.)
EXCERPT from today
“I wrote a book about Lee Harvey Oswald—who he was and why he would assassinate President John F. Kennedy. That November day in Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas has been pored over in excruciating detail as writers have sought to make sense of that world-altering tragedy. Six decades on, it remains a troubling vortex for conspiracy theorizing.”
I appreciate so much this phraseology:”…troubling vortex for conspiracy theorizing.”
Troubling vortex is where I feel I still am as are many, with the status of our country at this time.
Oswald was married to a Russian woman and had been in Russian just before the assassination. This was Khrushchev's revenge against Kennedy due to the Bay of Pigs. This is a perfect example of how Russian leaders operate and Putin is the same. I spent 20 years living and working in Russia and Central Asia - and became bi-cultural.
Take a look at how his head was turned sideways with his ear out of direct range when he pulled out his handkerchief. But I agree these keystone cops could not have pulled that off, but ??? I say check out if the shooter’s parents are living a life of luxury.
You are spot on with this essay. We will never know if it was staged, if it was a bullet that struck him or glass or neither. Because when all Trump does is lie, how can he ever be believed?
Liars are everywhere. They’re a dime a dozen. Only an honest man whose word is never compromised can be trusted. In the end a stable and peaceful society is held together only by the reports and actions of the truth tellers. People like you, Steven Beschloss, and like Robert Hubbell and Heather Cox Richardson. I depend on you and people like you for clarity and understanding. Without you it’s all confusion and chaos.
Thank you, Susan.
We must protest on Thursday because “Good Trouble Lives On”. The memory of Troy AL native John Lewis will be honored to have you participate in this manner. Here are signs for you to print. https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/protest-signage-free?r=3m1bs
What makes a claim inarguable? When backed by irrefutable evidence, such a claim is impossible to deny or argue against, leaving no room for reasonable doubt. The proof is so strong and compelling that it cannot be disproven or refuted. In the absence of such evidence, a claim may be backed with false, fabricated, or tainted evidence, intentionally created or altered to mislead. Just as often, a claim may be attested to as being backed by irrefutable evidence, but withheld by the claimant and/or the claimant's advocates. When challenged, the most typical claimant response is belligerence and dismissiveness. Such responses signal that deception is afoot.
But every actor did NOT perform perfectly. A man was killed, a man who was presumably not the target. Trump could be prosecuted for this if the whole thing was proven to be (amateurishly) staged. Add Trump's hollering about his shoes/lifts, the fact that he could not tolerate the ridiculous bandage long enough for the wound to be credible, and the fact that he played the situation to the hilt with Ronny Jackson as the only medical authority.
At this point we know no one is going to rescue us, so it’s up to us to do what needs to be done. Everyone who has a republican representative or senator
must call them every day, NOT to even hint about any physical violence, but to say in a very matter of fact way, if they don’t do something to get the traitor out of office we will do everything in our power to make sure THEY are voted out of office. Because apparently, that’s all they care about. They’ve made it abundantly clear that they don’t care one whit about the voters who put them in office.
Republicans in Congress think their supporters are fools—how do we know that? Because their supporters have voted for them regardless of their
abject cruelty, regardless of their fiscal irresponsibility and regardless of the incompetent people their senators & reps voted to put in charge of our national security. When Russian state
tv refers to our Director of National Intelligence as “Russia’s girlfriend,”
how safe does that make you feel?
Republican reps and senators go along with what the traitor wants so they won’t be “primaried.” (Is that even a word?) How many times have we heard that excuse? Well, it’s not a legitimate excuse when they are allowing citizens who have committed no crimes to be chased down, violently assaulted &
thrown in detention camps that are fully reminiscent of Nazi concentration camps without any acknowledgment of
their right to prove their innocence.
That should scare every voter to death.
Our republican senators & reps sit there and go along with every bizarre, cruel & unethical thing the racist Traitor In Chief dreams up. That’s not acceptable, and
they’ve gotten away with it for too long.
They could have stopped the cruelty at
any time. We aren’t paying them hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to be rubber stamps for the approval of a cruel criminal regime.
Republicans in Congress just voted to
take healthcare away from millions of
people, including children, just so they can give more money to filthy rich people. No decent human being would vote for that and exactly no one forced them to vote for it. Republicans pretend they have no choice, they say they will lose their seat in Congress if they don’t vote the way the traitor wants them to vote.
Guess what—they SHOULD lose their seats! News flash—throwing their supporters to the wolves to fend for themselves while they get perks from the rich for screwing us over, isn’t what they’re being paid to do.
Start calling & emailing your republican senators & representatives now, before the urge to get violent sets in. Because
if we get violent, it gives them permission to get violent toward us. . .
all of us.
I’m so pleased to read this article from you. Thank you. I have doubted this from day one. You are my reputable source. It makes me feel less crazy and hateful. What an awful event especially if it was not true. He really is pathetic and the poor secret service who take an oath to protect him .
I am so glad that you have not laid this event to rest because it is one more thing to rile the masses up. Actually, we should start narratives about it again and see if MAGA would weigh in with reasonable swears giving how they are questioning their master-in-chief. I am not on X but maybe some of your readers are.
Recently read an article in which Corey Comperatore’s wife spoke out. And another in which the woman from the Secret Service who was fired opined. I think the public should be privy to the hospital reports too. I remember when W had a colonoscopy: every detail of the polyp and the procedure was shared with the public.
Staged or real, the problem with the bloody ear is that it has given rise to the myth that Trump was saved by God to protect the country. Talk about jumping the shark! I'm not convinced that it wasn't staged. However, the collateral damage of the father who died protecting his children and the Secret Service taking out the shooter, make this melodrama as sordid as can be...very Trumpian, yes?
And then when they “honored” the father who died at the RNC, the buffoons misspelled his name. Also very Trumpian.
Steven - I wish you would agree to particpate in the book Survival and allow me to include one of your Substacks in the book. Thanks, Elizabeth contact is graham1elizabeth@aol.com