Sly Says: But What About The Men?

Stock image from Dreamstime

Sly Says:

But What About the Men?

Please read this article. I would speculate that many of the men involved in these attacks have antisocial personality disorder. However, this does not explain everything. There are female sociopaths, and there are sociopaths who go through life without ever committing violent acts. In fact, the majority of sociopaths never commit violent acts. So what is the other factor that isn't being discussed? Meghan Murphy, the author of the article, suggests that our toxic patriarchal Western society is key, and I agree with her.

Our toxic, patriarchal society is failing everyone, men included.

Whenever these horrific incidents happen, the need for mental health intervention is always brought up.

Yes, mental health needs to be addressed. Better mental health care needs to be available and affordable for all. But most people with mental illness do not kill other people. The majority of people with mental illness are invisible to the public, not standing out in any discernible way. They aren't raving lunatics terrorizing the streets, swinging knives as they rail at unseen foes. The mentally ill are, however, easy scapegoats.

We need to look deeper, and the answer isn't going to be pretty or easy. It calls our way of life in Western society into question.

~Sly Has Spoken~

Image copyright juliahenze@123rf.com

Come On, Sly, Give the Rump A Chance--Please?

Tell me again how I'm supposed to be okay with having this in a key government position

The first election I voted in was Reagan vs. Mondale. I voted for Mondale.

I've had people tell me I'm being an "alarmist" and being "unfair" to The Rump, that I'm being "disrespectful" and need to "give him a chance."

I've been around for a lot of years and I have never felt this concerned before. Frustrated, yes. Worried, sure. After all, there was the Cold War and there was Reagan and his "Star Wars" plan. But I never compared Reagan to Hitler.

I never saw reason to compare either of the Bushes to Hitler either.

Surely one would think I might have reason for thinking as i do about The Rump, for disrespecting him so utterly, for feeling that comparisons to Hitler are apt. But nope, I'm just a silly little neophyte with and overactive imagination. These people can keep telling themselves that about the dissenters while The Rump and his lackeys destroy this country.

~Sly Has Spoken~

Copyright juliahenze@123rf.com

Sly Says: Become the Avalanche

Marty Walsh, Mayor of Boston

Here's the thing with the whole "you have to accept Trump as your president. You have to give the new administration a chance" bit.

I didn't vote for either of the Bushes. I accepted both of them as President. I wasn't afraid of either of them, although I was critical of certain of their decisions.

I accepted Ronald Reagan as president. I was very critical of his decisions. I was afraid that he might make a stupid decision that would end us up in a nuclear exchange. I still didn't despise him to the core.

I never thought that Reagan or either of the Bushes were inherently evil. I thought that there were ways in which they were misguided. I didn't think that joking about Reagan's Alzheimer's disease was funny.

I don't know if Trump is "evil" per se, but he is not a good person. He is a con man. However, I also don't think he's actually in charge. I think he's a puppet, and I think that those who are pulling his strings are very, very bad people.

You know how they say that one bad apple spoils the barrel. Well, there are a lot of bad apples in the barrel right now. If we don't get them out, they are going to destroy our country.

I do not accept Donald Trump as my President, and I do not accept this new administration.

If that makes me a "special snowflake," then I'm proud to be a special snowflake alongside people like Marty Walsh, the Mayor of Boston, who is resisting the bad decisions made by the new regime because they are harmful to the people of his city.

When enough special snowflakes resist, we can become an avalanche.

Let's be the avalanche.

~Sly~

Copyright: juliahenze / 123RF Stock Photo

Sly Says: Wake Up, People!

Image by Shepherd Fairey

For anyone still believing that everything is fine, that people like me are just being overly dramatic and/or unpatriotic, who still think that we need to give this new regime a chance, well, don't take my word for it. Just look at what has happened in the space of a week since tRump and his cabinet of deplorables took over.

Those who study authoritarian regimes suggest keeping a list of abnormal events after a demagogue is elected, as a way to remind yourself that this isn't normal and to keep from being overwhelmed into acceptance by the onslaught of attacks on our rights.

Here is a list below. We are 4 days in.

As the author says, "when you see all of this in one list, it is easy to get overwhelmed, at first-- it is also easy to see a pattern and to finally, finally recognize that none of this is normal, nor is it ok."

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the DOJ’s Violence Against Women programs.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the National Endowment for the Arts.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Minority Business Development Agency.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Economic Development Administration.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the International Trade Administration.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Legal Services Corporation.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Civil Rights Division of the DOJ.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Environmental and Natural Resources Division of the DOJ.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Office of Electricity Deliverability and Energy Reliability.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

* On January 19th, 2017, DT said that he would cut funding for the Office of Fossil Energy.

* On January 20th, 2017, DT ordered all regulatory powers of all federal agencies frozen.

* On January 20th, 2017, DT ordered the National Parks Service to stop using social media after RTing factual, side by side photos of the crowds for the 2009 and 2017 inaugurations.

* On January 20th, 2017, roughly 230 protestors were arrested in DC and face unprecedented felony riot charges. Among them were legal observers, journalists, and medics.

* On January 20th, 2017, a member of the International Workers of the World was shot in the stomach at an anti-fascist protest in Seattle. He remains in critical condition.

* On January 21st, 2017, DT brought a group of 40 cheerleaders to a meeting with the CIA to cheer for him during a speech that consisted almost entirely of framing himself as the victim of dishonest press.

* On January 21st, 2017, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer held a press conference largely to attack the press for accurately reporting the size of attendance at the inaugural festivities, saying that the inauguration had the largest audience of any in history, “period.”

* On January 22nd, 2017, White House advisor Kellyann Conway defended Spicer’s lies as “alternative facts” on national television news.

* On January 22nd, 2017, DT appeared to blow a kiss to director James Comey during a meeting with the FBI, and then opened his arms in a gesture of strange, paternal affection, before hugging him with a pat on the back.

* On January 23rd, 2017, DT reinstated the global gag order, which defunds international organizations that even mention abortion as a medical option.

* On January 23rd, 2017, Spicer said that the US will not tolerate China’s expansion onto islands in the South China Sea, essentially threatening war with China.

* On January 23rd, 2017, DT repeated the lie that 3-5 million people voted “illegally” thus costing him the popular vote.

* On January 23rd, 2017, it was announced that the man who shot the anti-fascist protester in Seattle was released without charges, despite turning himself in.

* On January 24th, 2017, Spicer reiterated the lie that 3-5 million people voted “illegally” thus costing DT the popular vote.

* On January 24th, 2017, DT tweeted a picture from his personal Twitter account of a photo he says depicts the crowd at his inauguration and will hang in the White House press room. The photo is of the 2009 inauguration of 44th President Barack Obama, and is curiously dated January 21st, 2017, the day AFTER the inauguration and the day of the Women’s March, the largest inauguration related protest in history.

* On January 24th, 2017, the EPA was ordered to stop communicating with the public through social media or the press and to freeze all grants and contracts.

* On January 24th, 2017, the USDA was ordered to stop communicating with the public through social media or the press and to stop publishing any papers or research. All communication with the press would also have to be authorized and vetted by the White House.

* On January 24th, 2017, HR7, a bill that would prohibit federal funding not only to abortion service providers, but to any insurance coverage, including Medicaid, that provides abortion coverage, went to the floor of the House for a vote.

* On January 24th, 2017, Director of the Department of Health and Human Service nominee Tom Price characterized federal guidelines on transgender equality as “absurd.”

* On January 24th, 2017, DT ordered the resumption of construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline, while the North Dakota state congress considers a bill that would legalize hitting and killing protestors with cars if they are on roadways.

* On January 24th, 2017, it was discovered that police officers had used confiscated cell phones to search the emails and messages of the 230 demonstrators now facing felony riot charges for protesting on January 20th, including lawyers and journalists whose email accounts contain privileged information of clients and sources. 

~Compiled by Amy Siskind~

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Copyright: juliahenze / 123RF Stock Photo

Sly Says: So I'm an Alarmist, Eh?

And so it begins my friends...
In Case You Missed It
The Senate voted 51 to 48:
1. To end coverage for preexisting conditions, veterans benefits, and aid to rural hospitals.
2. To remove discrimination protection for women in healthcare.
3. Against the provision allowing children to remain on their parent's insurance till the age of 26.
4. To cut off funding for the Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
5. Against ACA contraceptive coverage and maternity care provision.
6. To direct committees to send budget legislation to de-fund and repeal the Affordable Care Act.
For those who get health insurance through work, no pre-existing conditions. Lifetime caps for coverage are back for everyone.
Real actions are being taken that will affect more than just the 20-30 million people who will lose their health care coverage and the 3 million people who will lose their jobs.
Despite their assertions of this being an action to "repeal and replace," no viable alternative plan has been proposed.
As of this moment, no replacement exists.

Send letters. Tell how you or someone you care about will be hurt by these changes.

The White House has turned off its public comments site and they all ignore email. Need postage? Let me know. I bought a bunch of stamps today, so I can help if postage stamps are not in your budget.

Apparently, Speaker Ryan has had his phones cut off because of the volume of calls, so here is his mailing address:
1233 Longworth HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
Fax: (202) 225-3393

I'd also urge you to find out which way your state's senators voted and give them a piece of your mind (positive or negative), and then keep this in mind when elections come around again.

COPY AND PASTE THIS. EVERYWHERE!

~Sly~

Copyright Juliahenze@123rf.com

Fat, Old, Ugly, But at Least Not a Sexist Piece of Crap

Kiss my fat ass

Mary says: Feeling really upset just now after seeing that two senators have made mean remarks about the women who were marching. I did march in DC and to see what's in the hearts of our government and the institutionalization of sexism, makes me sick.

Sly says: Fuck them. So what if they find us ugly? So what if they call us fat? I am fat. I'm also old. I'm also pretty sure most people don't find me to be in even the same zip code as pretty. Doesn't matter. My worth isn't tied to how desirable some cretin finds me. Took me a long time to get to this place, but now that I'm here I want to be in the face of so called men like this even more because it pisses them off, and that makes me happy.

~Sly Has Spoken~

Copyright Juliahenze@123rf.com

Sly Says: Melania Trump, the First Victim

Pity and do not ridicule Melania Trump. In her narcissistic husband's eyes, she's just another one of his possessions. I don't think she really wants to be part of this. Much as he's wretched and deserving of all criticism levied at him, I think she needs to be left out of the attacks. For those who say "why doesn't she just leave?" it really isn't that easy to "just leave." Once a person has been gaslighted for a long time, they come to doubt their own thoughts and feel that perhaps either things aren't "that bad" and they're just being "dramatic" or they fear that things could get worse if they leave.

We need to keep our criticisms confined to those who can actually do things that ruin our lives. That means the Rump. His adult children aren't immune from criticism, although I'm uncomfortable with attacks on Ivanka which insinuate that she's somehow a willing partner in his creepy behavior towards her. Laughing it off is not the same as willingness.

Barron should definitely not be attacked. As a minor, he really has no say. His actions at the inauguration were those of a child who was bored and uncomfortable with what was going on.

The Rump's elder sons seem to be real chips off the old block. I have no respect for anyone who pays for canned trophy hunts to prove their "manhood." And lest we forget, there was the infamous comparison of Syrian refugees to Skittles. Raise the rotten produce and launch, as far as those two are concerned.

There really doesn't seem to be that much to say about Tiffany. She doesn't have any influence.

The Rump is the one we need to focus on. Pictures of Melania from when she was a model are a non-issue. The woman went from one abusive man (her father) to another (The Rump.) She's suffering enough. Let's focus our criticisms on him, not her.

~Sly~

Copyright Juliahenze@123rf.com

Sly Fawkes Talks: The Danger Lies Behind the Curtain

Steve Bannon: Clueless Don's Dangerous Neo-Nazi Puppeteer

Source: Getty Images

Sly responds to this Daily Beast piece. regarding the fact that Trump's speech sounded extremely nationalistic.

Not to defend The Rump, but I'm not surprised that his words weren't his own. He really isn't that intelligent. I've said from the start that he's a figurehead. On his own, he would be an offensive, ludicrous boor like he's always been, but in the end, not too much trouble to remove. It's the ones behind the curtain who are the true danger. I am in no way being hyperbolic when I say this.

Personally, I don't think Trump is terribly aware, if at all aware, of how nationalistic the words coming out of his mouth sounded. He is not a politician, he's a carnival barker. Further, the only person Donald Trump cares about is Donald Trump. He will do whatever his advisers tell him, including neo-Nazi and domestic abuser Steve Bannon.

~Sly~

Copyright: juliahenze / 123RF Stock Photo

Sly is exercising her First Amendment rights

Sly Fawkes Talks: Another of the many reasons why

Another of the many reasons why I'm a feminist

Why I marched in protest of the new fascist, woman-hating regime, even though it damn near knocked me out (but that's a story for another time)

Why I will fight for equality until the day I'm carried out feet first for the last time

Trigger warning for discussion of sexual assault

My maternal grandmother was coerced into a sexual relationship by her supervisor, who threatened her with loss of her job if she didn't comply. He knew she had two daughters depending on her paycheck. My mother told me that he even made my grandmother have sex with him while she was on her period, as if he wasn't humiliating her enough. My grandmother later had a psychological breakdown and ended up in the mental hospital for several months, putting added stress on my mother who was trying to finish high school as well as care for her younger sister.

I hope the bastard who did this is burning in whatever hell there may be.

~Sly~

Copyright: juliahenze / 123RF Stock Photo

ACA Coverage

From a friend:
For those worried about ACA coverage for themselves and their families.
After hearing about the midnight repeal of the pre-exisiting conditions clause, I called Senator Warren's office. The woman I spoke to said they are being flooded with calls, as are the offices of Speakers Ryan and McConnell.
Senator Warren's staff member told me what would help the most would be to call the five Republican senators who have broken away from the GOP to demand a slow down of the repeal. Tell them how much you appreciate their efforts to stop the train wreck and share your story.
Cut and pasted-feel free to share.

They are:
Senator Bob Corker - (202) 224-3344
Senator Lisa Murkowski - (202) 224-6665
Senator Rob Portman - (202) 224-3353
Senator Susan Collins - (202) 224-2523
Senator Bill Cassidy - (202) 224-5824

The Cheese Grates It: WTF Zoe Saldana?

The following thoughts are musings on some incomprehensible statements made by Zoe Saldana in this article on the Daily Beast.

Saldana says: 

“We got cocky and became arrogant and we also became bullies,” Saldana told AFP of Trump, who’s mocked a disabled New York Times reporter, called Megyn Kelly a “bimbo,” accused Ted Cruz’s father of assassinating JFK, and has himself been accused of sexual assault by over a dozen women.

“We were trying to single out a man for all these things he was doing wrong,” she continued, “and that created empathy in a big group of people in America that felt bad for him and that are believing in his promises.”

The Daily Beast responds:

There is this strange argument, one cooked up by the Trump campaign and propagated by the conservative media apparatus, that Hillary Clinton (and by extension her Hollywood surrogates) ran an “ugly” campaign against Trump. The reality, of course, is that virtually all of Clinton’s attack ads against Trump consisted of montages of Trump saying heinous things. Accusing someone of running an ugly campaign for merely highlighting the sexist, bigoted, hateful things her opponent’s said is textbook gaslighting.

The Cheese Grates It:

I'm sorry, but I'm not awfully worried about being perceived as a bully when it comes to a "man" who talks about grabbing women by the privates, who mocks disabled people, who wants to create a registry for all people of a given faith and from certain parts of the world, and so on. Not that I'm part of Hollywood (thank whatever powers there may be for that) but I don't feel the least bit bad about any "rude" things I may have said about Donald T. Rump. Oops, there I go again.

~The Cheese Hath Grated It~

The Cheese Grates It Shallowly

I recently had a Trump devotee tell me that I was shallow because I expressed the opinion that I couldn't see how people would think that The Rump's misogyny, racism/xenophobia, support of homophobic agendas by his cabinet and vice president, and ridiculing of a disabled man weren't deal breakers.

If that makes me shallow, okay then. I guess I can't argue with that logic. And since I'm shallow, I'm most likely also so vain that I probably think this song is about me.

~The Cheese Hath Vainly Grated It Into A Shallow Dish~

A Letter to my Senators Re: Jeff Sessions

Dear Senator,

Jeff Sessions attitudes towards LGBT  people are dangerously archaic. It would be a huge step backwards to have a person with his beliefs in a key position. Please block the appointment of Mr. Sessions as Attorney General. The person in the Attorney General position should be unbiased and work to protect the rights of all Americans, regardless of race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation.

Sincerely,
Cara H

Yes, Pence is a Theocrat

Here's a little response to this article from the Daily Kos.

The Founding Fathers are rolling over in their graves. 

I don't have any truck with anyone's beliefs. Even though I'm an agnostic, I'm a member of Faithful America, a liberal Christian organization which fought against Trump and Pence's rise to power and continues to fight against their agenda. 

Believe what you believe. Be proud of it. However, our government needs to remain secular. 

Having a theocratic government is extremely dangerous. Pence, even more than Trump, needs to be stopped. He is more intelligent and therefore far more dangerous. Trump is mostly a nasty, disgusting figurehead embarrassing our country via Twitter at every turn.

~Cie~

Sly Fawkes Opinionated Opinions

Welcome to Sly Fawkes, where the members of Team Netherworld express our sociopolitical opinions. We are politically and religiously liberal. If you are too, you're gonna love us. If not, probably not so much.

We are U.S. based, but we welcome friends from all over the world. You are welcome to share your views on our politics, because what our nation does affects the world. 

You are welcome to commiserate and to (politely) debate.

We are all about positive change.

The current government scares the hell out of us, frankly. They have made America safe for hate and bigotry again. We've got the Clown in Chief, his more intelligent and far scarier second in command, and a whole cabinet full of monsters to make the Queen Xenomorph seem cuddly and lovable. 

I'm Cie, your hostess with the leastest. The leastest money and the leastest hope for the next four years, that is. I'll probably be doing most of the talking, but you'll meet some of my writing sisters and misters along the way. I never liked talking about politics and, until this year, only shared my opinion here and there. I was in no way, for instance, a fan of Mitt Romney, but I didn't talk about him that much.

I talk about what's happening now because...

Yes, I genuinely believe things are that serious.

We can't all be on the front lines, and there are some people whose opinions you won't be able to change. Don't let that get you down. We can keep working for the greater good together.

An organization which I am a part of (although I identify as an agnostic) and which I believe does wonderful work is Faithful America. They are a Christian organization on the front lines of the fight to stop the twisted version of Christianity which wants to turn the United States into a theocracy. Check them out. See what they're about. If you're in agreement with their views, join me in supporting them.

Some people feel that a person like me dislikes Christians or politically conservative viewpoints. I don't dislike people who identify as Christian, and I don't dislike people who identify as conservative. What we have in the White House right now, however, is not conservative, it's reactionary. It's pro-theocracy, anti-choice, and, in my opinion, a toxic Good Ole Boys club. 

Those of us who believe in something better need to fight against that.

I had been expressing my views on my philosophy and spirituality blog, but they were becoming too contentious. I want that blog to be there for discussions of such issues as metaphysics, philosophy and religion. The political discussions were making it a bit too much of a toxic waste dump.

However, I don't want to think of this blog as a toxic waste dump. I want to think of it as a cleaning crew. We expose the bad and try to turn it to good.

Let's do this!

The Real Cie

Crew Leader