The Third Estate Sunday Review focuses on politics and culture. We're an online magazine. We don't play nice and we don't kiss butt. In the words of Tuesday Weld: "I do not ever want to be a huge star. Do you think I want a success? I refused "Bonnie and Clyde" because I was nursing at the time but also because deep down I knew that it was going to be a huge success. The same was true of "Bob and Carol and Fred and Sue" or whatever it was called. It reeked of success."
Last week, in a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump took
the Smithsonian’s museums to task for emphasizing “how bad slavery was.”
The White House staff followed up on August 21 with a statement titled “President Trump Is Right About the Smithsonian,” flagging several objectionable exhibits, including one, weirdly, on Anthony Fauci.
Trump is in eminent company. For nearly a century, between the 1860s
and the 1950s, defenders of slavery succeeded in creating a dominant
narrative in the nation’s textbooks, trying to show that slavery wasn’t
so bad and that the real outrage was the abbreviated period of
Reconstruction.
The whitewashing of slavery began as early as 1867, with publication of a book by Edward Pollard, titled The Lost Cause.
In this account, slavery was mostly a benign system that uplifted
Blacks; plantation owners were typically kindly. This echoed a century
of antebellum Southern propaganda. Pollard contended that the Civil War
was not really about slavery; it was a war over states’ rights.
As public education systems became more widespread in the South after
the Civil War, states of the former Confederacy set standards to ensure
that textbooks for public schools would portray a sympathetic view.
These laws influenced Northern publishers. Meanwhile, some prominent
Northern scholars embraced the Lost Cause view. The most notable of
these was William Archibald Dunning of Columbia University.
Some live to be humiliated or maybe they can't help themselves? It's a high for them and their drug of choice.. Think 'journalist' Glenneth Greenwald. At the end of May, GiGi got outed and worked hard to spin it.
As we've long noted over the years, Glenneth hates women. Can't stand women. Part of that's his college days. By the way, some of this we've written about here before. And we've long noted his computer flash drive that was turned over to one of us by an unknown person (left at the agency C.I.'s signed with). We've long noted the MAGA cashmaster he did online 'hookups with' and we know his computer history.
So last May, it was delicious justice, when 'manly' girl Glenneth got exposed in her halter top and skirt with her meth and meth pipe on the bed while Glenneth went to town on the feet of a man who was spitting on him and verbally humiliating him. We are aware that he's bragged to his few friends that he now masturbates to that exposure and has a mind blowing orgasm.
There was the misogynist Glenneth, the trans hating Glenneth, the widow Greenwald who ignored his death bed (former sex worker) husband to start his own talk show, dressed as a woman.
And paying a man to humiliate him.
"That what you fear the most could meet you halfway."
Eddie Vedder sings that refrain from "Crazy Mary" on the album SWEET RELIEF: A BENEFIT FOR VICTORIA WILLIAMS.
"That what you fear the most could meet you halfway."
And it certainly met Glenneth.
A man who hates women, has spent years actively insulting them, undermining them and sidelining them, needs to dress up as one to get off?
It should make you think. It should make you look for connections and shadings and possible confessions.
As the population of people of color grows across the United States,
white Americans are still prone to move when neighborhoods diversify,
and their fears and stereotypical beliefs about other racial and ethnic
groups may help maintain segregation, according to research published by
the American Psychological Association.
In a nationally representative survey and six additional studies,
white Americans perceived a threat to their culture and way of life when
presented with information about changing demographics in hypothetical
white-majority neighborhoods and schools, compared with when no
demographic change was projected. The projected population growth of
Arab Americans, Latino Americans and Asian Americans evoked the
strongest feelings of foreign cultural threat, followed by the projected
population growth of Black Americans. The research was published online
in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.
“The more that white Americans perceived this foreign cultural
threat, the more they reported wanting to move out of those
communities,” said lead researcher Linda Zou, PhD, an assistant
professor of psychology at the University of Maryland. “Racial
segregation of schools and neighborhoods never ended. The country is
growing more diverse, but those changing racial demographics may trigger
heightened perceptions of threat among white Americans and contribute
to the persistence of segregation.”
White flight, in the second half of the 20th century, was one of the factors creating the growth in suburbs. One. And we don't say all who left the cities for the suburbs were motivated by Black people moving into city neighborhoods they were previously prevented from. Nor do we assert that every White person took part in White flight. Nor do we overlook the role of the press in scaring people or its historic racism.
But we do wonder about those who fled to the suburbs and did so to avoid living near a Black person.
There were a lot of racists. There are still a lot of racists.
"That what you fear the most could meet you halfway."
At the heart of some racists is the basic humiliation that they fear the people they target with racism are actually superior to them.
Take Donald Chump, for example. He needs buck dancers to flatter him constantly and these Uncle Toms are kind-of, sort-of welcomed by him until they cross a line. These Uncle Toms reassure his troubled manhood that Black people aren't superior to him or they wouldn't rush to kiss his ass.
But at the heart of it all, yes, Chump realizes he's beneath every Black person. While he doesn't grasp is that he's really beneath all Americans regardless of their skin color, he does grasp that, for instance, US House Rep Jasmine Crockett is smarter than he is, is stronger than he is and is more of a leader than he is.
When Crockett or any other Black person refuses to just grin and nod along, it's very hurtful for Chump because it reminds him that these people he thinks are beneath him are above him and that peels the scab off of the never healing wound from all the times his father told him just how worthless he is.
President Donald Trump’s plot to control American history got a sharp takedown from a top Democrat on Sunday.
Last
Tuesday, the president raged about the “out of control” and “woke”
Smithsonian Institution in a post on Truth Social, complaining how its
museums only focused on how “horrible our Country is” and “bad Slavery
was.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.)
scoffed at Trump’s suggestion that there was any upside to depict about
slavery as he spoke to Dana Bash during a stop by CNN’s “State of the
Union.”
“There is no good
aspect of slavery, and so Donald Trump is once again behaving like a
racial arsonist,” he said, adding that it was “extraordinary that he
would make such a historically ignorant statement.”
Putting
his full support behind the institution, Jeffries said, “The
Smithsonian should continue to hold the line and make sure that this
very painful part of American history is not erased, but is understood
by everyone across this country and throughout the world.”
Hakeem Jeffries? Yep, he's a stronger leader and a smart leader than Chump. And, yes, Donald, we all see it and we all know it. Kanika Saini (INQUISITR) notes:
Donald
Trump ignited debate on a topic that nobody expected or probably wanted
to be scrutinized. But here we are, discussing the very foundation and
concept of the museum. Recently, Fox News contributor Clay Travis joined
the debate as he went on a bizarre rant, likening the history of
slavery to plane crashes while siding with Trump’s unhinged attacks on
the Smithsonian Institution.
Last
week, Trump ranted about how museums in the United States focus
excessively on “how bad slavery was,” while implying that it needs to be
changed from hereon.
Trump wrote in his
social media post, “The Smithsonian is OUT OF CONTROL, where everything
discussed is how horrible our Country is, how bad Slavery was, and how
unaccomplished the downtrodden have been — Nothing about Success,
nothing about Brightness, nothing about the Future.”
Slavery was awful. And yet Black people survived it.
Donald, that nagging thought in the back of your head is accurate, you never could have survived slavery. You're just not strong enough.
Last week, a highly racist conversation took place between two well known racists but Elaine's the only one we've found who bothered to note it ("MTG and Megyn Kelly: A Couple of Racists Sitting Around Talking"). The key moment of the trash Megyn Kelly broadcast was when she and the other racist took it upon themselves to debate whether or not Jasmine Crockett is Black.
Marjorie Taylor Greene insisted Jasmine wasn't (she is) and stated, "So she claims to be, you know, from her people. She puts on this image that she understands the Black American struggle. But let's face it, the girl went to private school. She went on to, you know, I don't know what college and law school.
First off, "the girl" is 44-years-old. Calling Jasmine a "girl" is no different than calling a 40-year-old Black man a "boy.''
Second, she did attend private schools, they were private religious schools. Does MTG really want her constituents to know that she was insulting private religious schools?
Third, she went to college in Memphis (Rhodes College) and she attended two law schools (Texas Southern University's Thurgood Marshall School of Law and University of Houston Law Center).
Fourth, shocker for MTG but Black children have been going to private schools in this country for nearly 300 years. The first one for Black children was establishes in 1760, Virginia's Williamsburg Bray School.
Fifth, Black people have been going to college in the US for nearly two hundred years. In 1835, Ohio's Oberlin College became the first US college to admit Black students. And the first college for Black student came along two years later with the Institute for Colored Youth which became the Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.
Sixth, going to private school, going to college and going to law school? Black people can and have done all of that for nearly two centuries now in this country. In fact, let's educate MTG, Judge Macon Bolling Allen? He was the first Black attorney (licensed attorney) in this country and that was back in 1844. He went on to become a judge.
It's only in MTG's starving brain, where facts are forbidden but conspiracies run free, that a Black person can't know "the Black experience" if they've gone to law school.
Megyn offered her own racism including, of Jasmine Crockette, "She's a complete fake. She's as fake as her eyelashes. She's as fake as her hair --"
We'll cut her off there but we will note that Megyn wears extensions (fake hair) and has a lot of make up on (because she's got a wonky eye and one side of her face looks caved in).
So Megyn, a friend of Glenneth Greenwald's, is a racist who wants to dress up as a Black person.
Glenneth's jealous of women and it manifests itself as sexism. Megyn wishes she was 'authentic' and could be Black and that manifests in her as racism.
"That what you fear the most could meet you halfway."
MAGA
influencer Charlie Kirk called on the NAACP to give President Donald
Trump a nonexistent "Man of the Year" award for sending federal troops
into Washington, D.C.
[. . .]
According to Kirk, Trump proved "you can stop Black-on-Black crime."
"In
fact, President Donald Trump should be getting the Man of the Year
award from the NAACP," he argued. "President Donald Trump should be
awarded at the Black Entertainment Television Awards for what he is
doing here. President Donald Trump should be given the Hero Medal of
Freedom equivalent in the Black community."
Racist Charlie Kirk -- defender of Blackface. Again, factor that in. Factor in how he feels small and inauthentic and wishes he was Black but can't be so he turns it into racism.
BET Awards? Those go to musicians, people in film and TV and athletes. None of which, Albino Charlie, is a category for Donald Chump.
There is no Man of the Year NAACP Award. Mainly because there are no NAACP Awards. The awards handed out by the NAACP are The NAACP Image Awards. Those awards? Man of the Year is not a category and never has been.
Many of us often wonder how, in the 21st century, you can still have racists in the United States?
In the past, it was ignorance taught in schools and encouraged in the press.
Now?
Now it's about butt hurt White people like Megyn, Chump, Charlie and Marjorie whose jealousy of Black people manifests itself as racism.
Jim (Con't): So I think Stephanie Ruhle said last night
on MSNBC that Chump's now been president for 218 days. Anybody else
wonder if we're going to survive it?
Isaiah: I worry about that every single day. He is destroying our country.
Kat:
We should win the mid-terms by a landslide. But I think about the 2020
election and how he was pressuring governors to deliver him X votes
after the votes had been counted. I think about that and then I wonder
about his scam where he's asking for voter rolls from states right now
and I wonder if that's some stunt he plans to pull to overturn
elections. I wouldn't put anything past him. He's the closest thing to
Satan on this earth.
Jim: I hadn't really thought about that. It's something to be concerned about.
Cedric:
I'll note that I didn't vote for him, wouldn't vote for him, think he's
scum but even I'm surprised by how outright evil he has become. And
this is the man who led an insurrection against the government. But
I've never seen someone so hateful and so joyless and so determined to
destroy the American people. Kat's right, he's the closest thing to
Satan that we have on earth.
Trina:
People like him tend to destroy themselves. By that I mean, look at
him, his skin's rotting, he's taking on water in the ankles, he's
morbidly obese and can no longer walk a straight line. He is a stroke
waiting to happen. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he had to step
down because he became physically and mentally incapacitated. I also
wouldn't be surprise if he had a fatal stroke and passed away. And I
wouldn't shed a tear for a number of reasons but in terms of medical the
main reason I wouldn't cry is that his administration has devalued and
defunded preventative care. He, as a patient, is also rejecting
preventative care. So he will have brought any health problems on
himself.
Jim: Trina's a
nurse. Can anyone think of a previous president so determined to attack
half of the country, half of its citizens.
Ruth:
Let me grab that. No. I did not care for President Ronald Reagan, for
instance. And I think he did real damage on issues like the homeless
and AIDS; however, I would not say that his policies were about
attacking the Americans who did not vote for him. He also did not spew
hatred every time he opened his mouth. I have had it with The Convicted
Felon and members of his cabinet constantly attacking former President
Joe Biden. There is no excuse for it. And it makes our entire country
look dysfunctional on the international stage.
Jim: What's been the biggest disappointment in the last 218 days?
Wally:
Republicans in Congress. They've always claimed to have ethics. They
have none. They vote that Big Bulls**t Bill that destroys America --
for example, destroys medical insurance for so many Americans -- and
then they make it worse by going into their districts and lying about
what the bill will do. And then they have a whiney fit when their
constituents refuse to go along with them and their break from reality.
That's what the second Chump term is: A break from reality. A
psychotic break.
Dona: Grace Hall (MIAMI HERALD) cites
Pew's latest poll which found his job approval rating has fallen "to
38%" and it was 47% at the start of his second term in January 2025."
It would appear that a large number of Americans are tuned into what
he's doing.
Marcia: Yes,
but that's not registering with Republicans in Congress -- like Wally
pointed out earlier. And they control both houses of Congress. So it's
hard not to feel as though we're screwed for the rest of this year and
next.
Betty:
And we've got a corrupt Supreme Court. Don't forget that. And let's
never forgive John Roberts, Chief Justice, for bringing us to this
point. He is part of the problem. And he will be remembered in history
for presiding over the Court that the American people lost faith in.
For decades, we had seen the Supreme Court as a trusted body. Now we
see it for a collective of right-wing partisan hacks. It doesn't
represent the American people and it doesn't even attempt to pretend
that it does. This is a very sad and very risky moment in American
history. And I think we're seeing how little democracy means to a
number of people -- some of whom hold elected office.
Jess: That's a majority. A majority is what Chump didn't get in the 2024 election. He got 49% to Kamala's 47%,
Ty: It's a majority saying Chump needs his power limited because people have caught on. Chump is a menace, a threat to democracy.
Betty: It is prayer. That's all that's getting me through these days. He is rejecting even the Supreme Court these days.
Elaine: Exactly. He announces that he's got an executive order that now will put anyone burning a flag into prison for one year. This despite the rulings of the Supreme Court that flag burning is a form of free speech. Or his attempts to fire Lisa Cool from the Federal Reserve Board -- a move that a Supreme Court verdict earlier this year said he did not have the power to do.
Rebecca: As Ruth and Mike both noted last week, Chump needs to learn his lane. He thinks being president of the United States means he can dictate our medical rights, that he can dictate what's on TV and what's not, that he can dictate what cases attorneys take and do not take, that he can misuse the Justice Dept. to go after his political enemies, that he can dictate what colleges teach, go down the list. He's out of control.
Mike: And while he does all of this, our economy is tanking and our democracy is fading. He is the worst president this country has ever seen.
Jim: Ever?
Mike: Ever, ever, ever. And he doesn't even have one decent appointee in his administration. He may have the administration that he deserves but it's not one that this country deserves.
Jim: Ann, Stan we need to wrap up. What disturbs you two the most?
Stan: For me, it's the media coverage. Too much of the media fails to address what is going on and fails to call it out. You can't both sides Hitler without embracing and backing Hitler. That's the reality. You're supposed to be on the side of democracy. Someone attacks democracy, they've become the enemy and the press needs to grasp that.
Ann: And he's certainly attacked the press. The thing that bothers me is even his attempts to take over business -- to dictate to business -- even this doesn't result in a flurry of press outrage. The editorial board of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, for example, did come out against that. But talk to people you know and you'll learn that much of the press has still not even reported on it, let alone weighed in against it.
Jim: And that's going to have to be the last word. This is a rush transcript. Ava and C.I. took notes for this transcript.
Isaiah's
latest THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "." AG Pam Bondi explains, "Some
people call me Pam Bimbo and that's just not fair. Bimbos are much
smarter." FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino is ready with Bondi jokes,
"Why did the Bondi get fired from the M&M factory? For throwing out
the Ws." Isaiah archives his comics at THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS.
Let's all let AG Pam Bimbo Bondi know that we are a democracy and we will mock anyone who tries to harm our democracy. We see you, Pam. So do the country a favor and tell a dumb Bondi joke this week.
We'll lead by example: What did the Bondi say after glimpsing a box of Cheerios? "OMG! Doughnut seeds!"
"Gene Hackman" -- Stan covers the passing of a two time Academy Award winner.
"Shattered Love: A Memoir"
-- at the start of the year, Marcia reviewed Richard Chamberlain's
autobiography. He passed away at the end of the March and a lot of
readers e-mailed to say Marcia's review works as a good obit.
"Angie Stone" -- Betty covers the passing of the queen of neo soul.
"Jay North" -- Kat covers the death of a child actor from the 50s.
"Clem Burke" -- Kat covers the death of a drummer.
Jim, Dona, Jess, Ty, "Ava" started out this site as five students enrolled in journalism in NY. Now? We're still students. We're in CA. Journalism? The majority scoffs at the notion.
From the start, at the very start, C.I. of The Common Ills has helped with the writing here. C.I.'s part of our core six/gang. (C.I. and Ava write the TV commentaries by themselves.) So that's the six of us. We also credit Dallas as our link locator, soundboard and much more. We try to remember to thank him each week (don't always remember to note it here) but we'll note him in this. So this is a site by the gang/core six: Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess, Ava and C.I. (of The Common Ills).
