United States

Habeas Corpus Kristi

So 

Homeland Security

Director, Kristi,

didn’t know

that habeas

corpus

is for

all of us.

It is not

Trump’s 

decision

to imprison

or deport

anyone 

he chooses.

But Kristi

refuses

to acknowledge

(did she learn

this in college?)

that we are

a constitutional

democracy.

While some

heard 

defiance,

others heard

reliance

on

the  Constitution

as the enabler

of the singularity

of authority

of the presidency.

The controversy

isn’t really

about understanding

habeas corpus.

It’s the torturous

logic 

of torture

and detention

when the pretention 

of 

executive order

that suggests

the border

of emergency.

From enhanced

interrogation

to undoing

immigration,

by 

denying

due process,

the crisis

excuse

for justified

use

is nothing

less than

constitutional

abuse.

Fast and loose

with interpretation

or not 

understanding

the definition

of habeas 

corpus,

Krsiti Noem,

Director of Home-

land

Security,

defined

the meaning

of this

presidency:

Because

he says

so.

A Classless Society

A decade ago, 

when Trump

made a go

at politics,

the heretics

rose

to close

the deal

to reveal

the fault 

lines

beneath us.

It’s been

everyone

else’s fault

since then;

never

a mia

culpa.

A witch hunt,

political stunt,

or cries

of lies

no matter

how it defies,

now

no surprise;

Nonetheless appalling.

The most 

galling

is no longer

name 

calling.

It’s to be

expected.

Protected 

speech,

unless you 

teach

or learn

about

oppression,

is a matter

of opinion.

The dominion

over everything

that power

and money

can possibly

bring

is ushering

in

autocracy

in a now

crass

and classless

society.

I don’t

mean

the kind

that Bernie

and A.O.C.

have 

in mind,

but the 

cheap 

and tasteless,

undignified,

rapacious,

Trump

brand

that his

command

has forced

us to

withstand.

Checking

privilege 

and elitism

is unfolding

into quite

a schism

suggesting

that the

evolution

of civilization

has been

a hoax,

folks.

Proof

that money

can’t by

class,

the ass

in chief,

like a thief,

takes

whatever

he wants.

His taunts,

now dangerous,

and increasingly

outrageous,

threatening

to deport

citizens

after the precedents

of sending

legal residents

to Salvadoran

and Libyan

prisons.

The callousness

of this classlessness

as with everything

else he says 

and does

does

harm 

to all of us.

Our classless

society

with faux

piety,

now run

as an

oligarchy

with remnants

of democracy,

can’t wait

for half

to discover

decency.

This is an

emergency.

This class

is pass/

fail. 

May Day! May Day!

Signal 

of distress;

SOS!!

Help 

rectify

this mess!!

Contact

Congress!!

It’s work,

and feels

less 

than compelling

when the MAGA

contingent

has bought

what

Trump’s been

selling.

But maintaining

democracy

requires

sustaining

the doing

of democracy.

Giving up

on living

up

to imperfect

but just,

is just

unimaginable

for a habitable

US.

May Day! May Day!

This May Day

may be

an ideal opportunity

to stand in solidarity

for dignity

and democracy

with workers

internationally

and certainly,

locally.

Don’t let the perfect

be the enemy

of the good.

In fact,

that’s caused

our situation.

Infatuation

with mere rhetoric

allowed a heretic

with a flare

for the dramatic

(and toxic)

enter the real

politic.

But resistance

matters now.

And then

when 

history

looks back

and asks

what happened,

“May Day! May Day!”

it will say.

People resisted

and insisted

on democratic

process,

under duress,

as multitudes

did the work

of making

progress,

in the face

of the disgraceful

president.

The Stunt Man

100 days 

down;

1300 to go,

(as far

as we

know).

At least,

I hope

so.

“It could

always

be worse”

does not

reverse

the curse

of the perverse

POTUS.

Once famous,

now infamous

for inflicting 

upon us

his lust 

for just

about 

anything

you shouldn’t

trust,

made

the first

100 Days

craze

crazy.

The invention

of the first

100 Days

convention

came with

a New

Deal.

But making

laws,

not breaking

them

was truly

the art

of the 

deal.

The now 

old

New Deal

was the 

real deal;

not this

brand

new deal

with a grand

Trump brand

seal

that is no

deal

at all.

No legislating;

just defenestrating—

throwing

it all

out the

window.

The reality

showman

knows

how to make

a fake

reality,

while

in actuality,

real

victims

of false

assertions

and distortions

have lost

their lives

as they’ve 

known them.

Leveraging

chaos

and threats,

his bets

have paid 

off,

as nary

a scoff

can be heard

from the absurd

right.

Each

independent

institution,

not to mention

the Constitution,

has seen

its standing

diminished.

But he’s

not finished.

He’ll never be

as long as 

he’s 

the guy

on tv

even

remotely

controlling

the autocracy.

He’ll

pull

any stunt

to front

this show

for as long

as possible

as it can go.

He’ll leap

and dive

and remain

alive

and it’s

still

only 2025.

But the stunt

double

can get into

trouble

without

proper

precautions.

Exhaustions

aside,

do not

abide

by the stunts

this guy

can only

provide.

The Best You Can. Do.

For those who doubt

the efficacy

of protests

weekly,

or 

at all,

I suspect

the doubt

is about

the immediacy

of actions

despite 

distractions

and detractions,

not to mention

legal infractions,

that this 

POTUS

has thrust

upon 

us.

How many

marches

and protests

and civil

unrests,

sit-ins

and be-ins

and legal

tests,

did it take

to make 

history?

To change

the trajectory

of this presidency

seems unlikely,

but 

no response

to immorality

and illegality

ensures fragility

and less ability

to ultimately

overcome.

Find your

courage

against 

this scourge

and your

commitment

to persistence.

The resistance

needs 

your assistance.

The images

of dogs

and hoses,

throngs of 

women,

The March

on Washington,

Pride,

pink pussy hats,

and Black Lives

Matter

demonstrations,

can be 

recalled

as they were

installed 

in our 

memory banks.

It’s thanks

to those

who showed

up

and stood up

to injustice

that moved us

forward,

even when 

there’s been

backlash.

The whiplash

can feel

incapacitating.

But activating

is celebrating

your ability

to meet

humanity

and build

a just 

community

whether 

or not

it’s

weekly.

Contribute

what 

you can;

however

you can;

the best 

you can.

DO. 

Uncle Sam

Needs

YOU.

Savior

The irony

is not lost

on me

that

this season

of sacrifice

and redemption

was ushered in

with preemption.

Immigration.

Justice.

Education.

And the most

severe

tariffs

upsetting

economics,

then a carve

out

for our 

electronics,

because some 

sacrifice 

is just 

too much

to bear.

Still,

so many swear

on the 

bible

that their

tribal

behavior

and support

for their

savior

will redeem

their

Project

2025 

American

wet dream.

A witch hunt

or crucifixion,

choose

your

metaphor.

He’s 

the victim’s

victim,

no matter

what

hits him

in reaction

to each 

action

and utterance.

Each  word

salad

sentence

has the pretense

of solution

or dissolution

of some illusion

(or delusion)

of each institution.

And yet

he’s also

met

with evangelical

zeal

and his appeal

hasn’t changed

at all.

He redeems

himself

to himself,

if redemption

is merely

an exchange.

Sacrifice

may sound

nice,

but only 

if others

pay the

price.

When everyone’s

a Judas,

and Moses

doesn’t exist,

becoming

second

to only 

Jesus

suggesting

that this 

sacrifice

will free us,

leaves us

with his avarice

leading us.

We need

an exodus,

without

wandering

in the desert

for 40 years.

We,

including those

who represent 

us,

must lead us.

Moses

and Jesus

are not

among us.

“He puts

the mess

in messiah”,

encapsulates

the United

States

desperately

looking

to be saved.

Bearing the Bull

It’s no surprise

that the handsy

guys,

now the most

powerful

in the world,

assume that

ties and lies

are part of 

enterprise,

and the skies

are not even

the limit. 

They scoff

at “Hands Off”

protests

in each state,

recklessly

wrecking

the economy

globally,

and honestly,

I have no

idea why,

other than

retribution.

I don’t get

the vision

for this nutty

tariff decision

other than

incomprehension

of the value

of trade.

Afraid 

of not being

the ultimate,

or being

in proximate

company

to the 

most wealthy,

he writes

his history,

now ours.

His bull

unending,

pretending

to know

everything

or nothing,

depending

on the situation;

his solution-

“an economic

revolution”-

will leave

people

barely

able to 

bear

the bear market.

His target

is anything

and anyone

he perceives

as having been

or could be

a threat.

Most remarkable 

yet,

are those

still willing

to abide

the chilling

destructiveness

and bear

the bull 

of “success”.

Tariffied

The duty-free

presidency,

except

to his own

constituency

of sycophancy,

who stigmatize

and compartmentalize,

can’t help

but

antagonize

for the

ego prize

and power.

Self aggrandizing,

without compromising,

he’s tariffizing

because 

he can.

It’s hard

to know

how this

will go

and lead

to a reasonable

end.

And while

we’re on

the subject

of ending,

he’s sending

every hint

that his stint

as POTUS
will be continuous-

his happily

ever 

after.

At least

Corey

Booker

and his 

filibuster

took some

attention

away from

the Trump

bluster

to muster

energy-

the longest

in history-

to stand 

up and

be heard.

The absurd

tariff policy

will directly

affect

everybody,

although

obviously,

some

much more 

harshly

than others.

In his own

duty-free

universe,

only

the perverse

can reverse

what’s

been built

without guilt

as long

as his support

remains

strong.

But the insistence

of the resistance

requires

persistance.

That’s how

they brought

us here,

now tariffed.

The Daily Show

…OMG!

…WTF?

…I know, right?

…What morons!

…Totally!

…It’s not just

the President

who is

profoundly

incompetent.

…It’s like

it’s a 

requirement!

…They’ll fall

in line

and none 

will resign.

…It’s all

fine

and good

in MAGAhood.

…It’s a BFD

to reveal

war plans

against

a foe

and not

know

the group

chat

included

that

editor

in chief

of 

The Atlantic.

…FWIW,

the best

thing on 

earth 

that could

have happened

was Goldberg’s

inclusion

despite 

his confusion

over the

veracity

of the audacity

and stupidly

of the indefensibly

horrific

officials

who threaten

our national

security

daily.

…I  guess

a group

text

is the next

best thing

to nuclear

secrets

on that

gold toilet

thing.

…Truth.

…Everyday

is a shitshow.

Getting Credit Where Credit is Do

I kind of 

love

that

Trump

is hocking

Teslas

to his 

base.

Hardly 

shocking

as the 

mocking

of libs

now taking

dibs

on the  EV

car

that has

so far

transformed

the American 

auto

industry,

forcing

the history

of fossil

fuel

combustible

engines

to reinvent

if not

the wheel,

then the 

real

possibility

of environmentally

cleaner

driving.

Once

the province

of mostly

progressives,

now the

MAGA

obsessives

are trying

to help

the  other 

aggressive

billionaire —

the richest

man on 

the planet,

the unelected

co-president,

who still

wants to

be a 

bazillionaire.

It’s fair

and sensible

to protest

the indefensible,

much less

the incomprehensible,

but I’m kind

of glad

that the ones

who once

saw the 

Tesla

as a liberal

symbol

are nimble

enough

to huff 

and puff

about 

now choosing

an electric

(well,

a specific)

vehicle.

Let’s not

forget

the climate

crisis

is environmental;

our natural

world

needs all

the help

it can get. 

Tell your

reps

to vote 

for EV

and clean

energy
tax credits.