Worth checking out: "Social Security and its Enemies" -- Max Skidmore. Been around 20 years since I first read it.
Prior to social security, families had to bond together and contribute to the care of their elderly members. Before that, seniors without families to support them went into extreme poverty. It is good to recognize WHO the enemies of this system were and are.
Thank you for this fantastic analysis, and so glad to see the Guardian feature you.
Simon, will you be setting up fundraising for Sherrod Brown through Hopium? I'm so thrilled to see him running again. I was going to donate money, but I'll wait if you're going to do it. Meanwhile, I'll donate to Sherrill today in honor of the proud plucky New Jersey Hopiates.
Signed up for a "No Kings" event, virtual, just after the Hopium weekly gathering. Not sure what to expect but if I have any time I look for new things to do:
Also mailed 100 postcards on Tuesday, signed up for 50 more to TN and AK, voter registration. I also, just as a start, donated $10 to David Jolly for FL governor, and $5 monthly recurring to his campaign. I expect I will bump that up a bit. I've been contacting them repeatedly about voter registration work.
I've watched the first 2 of the One Million Rising training you link to, and I'll watch #3 on Friday (Wednesday nights don't work for me, but they send you the link to the recording if you sign up for the event). It's worthwhile!
Strategic non-compliance has a long proven history in taking down autocrats, and it's very good to have all the tools we can at our disposal as things get weirder.
As Susan pointed out below, you have signed up for part 3 of the "One Million Rising" training.
I suspect that you are not familiar with parts 1 or 2 - otherwise you would be aware of what's happening this evening. I would suggest watching them in sequence, but I don't think it's strictly required.
With several groups from WNY, we had a planning session last night on zoom for the Sept 13th "Taking it to the Streets" rally. We are planning for " A peaceful protest at 9 high visibility locations in WNY.
I worked 13 years at UCLA during the great years of Kareem and Walton and great research work being done. It was the center of my solar system and I go there walking around and for games. I’m Jewish but nobody (including myself) cares at all. The current problems all stem from Netanyahu’s war killing over 60,000 Palestinians. It’s hardly anti-Semitism to be against that. But, like with Harvard, its Trump’s excuse to do a takeover of higher education and freeze much needed scientific/medical research. Being
Anti-science means we lose out to the world and live in a less healthy environment. We can guess that it means more power for him, somehow.
UCLA gave 2mil+ to Jewish groups with good intentions and thought the antisemitism issue was over. It wasn’t as Trump is freezing over $500 million in research funds and insisting on a 1 billion fine over his version of illegal use of race, Transgenders in sports as well as anti-Semitism! Students who will be PHDs are looking overseas as they see his assault on science to continue and ruin their careers. For example, the University has lost a $25 million grant for Pure and Applied Mathematics and 20 grants were cancelled in the UCLA Samueli Bioengineering Dept. This is horrible.
Meanwhile what is Trump’s own history on anti-Semitism? During the times he was a pal of Epstein, he made a You Tube saying “I’m proud of my German genes. They are superior”. Weird. You might know of KKK Grand Wizard David Duke who ran for President. Trump would not un- endorse him.
Trump invited Nick Fuentes, major
Holocaust denier, with Kanye West to Mar-a-Lago. Trump’s kind of people. Just one more. During the riot in Alexandrea, Virginia, with Neo Nazis marching and shouting “Jews will not replace us” it was Trump who said “there are good people on both sides”.
There's plenty of history on Trump's anti-Semitism as well as on all minorities for a book.
I wish I was up to writing it with a plane ticket to Iceland.
Totally agree - Trump's anti-semitism has been lifelong and his current 'use' of it is completely as a tool and a form of lying, at which he is expert. He is anti-science and anti-higher education.
'the zone of interest" along with 2001's 'conspiracy ' because folks, these current maga assholes sound awfully like the original goose steppers ; i don't know what the hell happened to stephen miller, who seems to have been disowned by some of his own family, that he has taken up the banner of fascism, and i find it odd that anti semitism is the cudgel being used to attack universities, which in my experience tend to have a fair share of jewish faculty; i'm proud to see my alma mater, rutgers, leading the big 10 in resistance to these trump extortion schemes. in fact, rutger's own jenn mittelstadt will be headlining a discussion on authoritarianism in dc this friday along with dan drezner and a few others; talk about perfect timing.....i even looked into attending but it was sold out! that says something....
I'm so glad to hear that. Brown is my alma matter and I'm just so disgusted with them. Before they capitulated, the president even told the alums, basically, "save your advocacy for other things, we're HANDLING this!" Can't imagine the student body or the faculty are going to be pleased.
People have written about antisemitism as a conspiracy theory, that it's used more flexibly than other hatreds and isms - when the target is communism, Jews are claimed to be communists; when the target is capitalism, Jews must be bankers and owners; etc. Using antisemitism as a cudgel in higher ed seems novel, and of course, weaponizing antisemitism is a twisted act of antisemitism.
Simon, I added a fifth - resolution, that is, to your four. I included stopping support to Israel until massive aid of food and medicine flow into Gaza, specifically through the previous UN/NGO distribution process since the U.S./Israeli process is an unmitigated disaster and people are dying.
Self report: Today I called House Rep & my two Senators to initiate the resignation of HHS RFK, Jr. His latest $500m cuts to research is despicable, not to mention that he lied (of course he did) during his Senate Confirmation hearings that he wouldn’t take vaccine access away from Americans. He’s gotta go!!
Daily calls are in to Rep members of congress regarding our 4 main concerns. Additional call regarding Labor statistics nominee and Smithsonian museums. Continuing to write postcards. Newest campaign is for Mayor of Mobile AL
Am just signing up to work on the election this fall here in Colorado and they said they "have had a great response". Am just passing this along as a little bit of good news.
Last night, MD Governor Moore told Jen Psaki that he will refuse to call up the MD National Guard if Trump tells him to. He called on his own military experience and sounded amazingly strong. Maryland, including Baltimore, is seeing crime levels lower than they've been in decades. I'm going to contact Governor Moore today to thank him.
I've been laughing out loud at California Governor Gavin Newsom's social media posts to Trump mocking Trump, using Trump's own bombastic style. They're great and I bet they're getting under Trump's skin.
I'm not too worried that Republicans won't say or admit that they regret their vote for Trump. If you read Don't Think of an Elephant, Republicans tend to come from homes where shame was used as a way to control behavior. They can never admit that they were wrong. But they can stay home in 2026 and that will be fine. He's doing terribly with Independents and that matters.
I called Congressman Raskin and Senators Alsobrooks and Van Hollen to ask them to do more about the tariffs and to stop him from adding to ICE. I'm writing postcards to Virginia voters today.
It takes a huge amount of courage to publicly admit being wrong, especially about something as key to one's identity as MAGA. I like your take on this and think you're right!
Good morning! Today, I am working on postcards to VA and looking forward both to our sub call this evening and to the 8 pm Indivisible training. Feeling strong and empowered. Calls to Senators demanding a delegation to AK and to Ukraine to meet w Zelenskyy, Dems should speak out AND pass resolutions condemning the Alaska fiasco & hostile takeover of DC, and arrest of Putin if/when he arrives in AK. Call this sh&t out!
Some great links I shared late yesterday, and a couple new ones:
i think i will start feeling a little better when his approval ratings are consistently in the 30% range. then i think MSM will start asking the hard questions and maybe corporations and institutions will start saying no, seeing the deck chairs on the titanic slide into the ocean. he will always have his demented 25-30%. even today repubs are on board with him on immigration, despite the cruelty, lack of due process, etc.
A point that I can't wrap my head around - if Trump's approval rate is down to 38% (how can it be that high?), why is it that only 1% of his supporters regret their vote? There are that many stubborn, ill-informed, willfully ignorant people???
I think people are reluctant to say they "regret their vote". They might disapprove of Trump, but still would've voted for him over Kamala. Or at least that's what they say.
You hear this kind of thing all the time. They will say they "don't like Trump", or "don't like his personality", etc. But they still voted for him.
I think the answer is that there are a significant number of people who will say they disapprove, but will also say they don't regret and wouldn't change their vote.
Agreed. See also Catherine Schilling's excellent comment above. Saying you regret your vote is basically saying, "I was wrong," which is not a thing many people enjoy doing.
Make sure everyone knows FDR signed Social Security into law ninety years ago tomorrow.
GOT SOCIAL SECURITY? THANK DEMOCRATS.
WANT TO KEEP IT? SUPPORT DEMOCRATS
hope the DNC and all elected dems are messaging this loudly today!!! let's take the win!!
The DNC issued a statement from the War Room yesterday. https://democrats.org/news/unearthed-audio-trumps-newest-economic-lackey-wants-to-sunset-social-security/
thank you for this!
Worth checking out: "Social Security and its Enemies" -- Max Skidmore. Been around 20 years since I first read it.
Prior to social security, families had to bond together and contribute to the care of their elderly members. Before that, seniors without families to support them went into extreme poverty. It is good to recognize WHO the enemies of this system were and are.
just called my 2 DEM Senators and asked them to promote this annivesary all day tomorrow!! Thank you for letting us know!
Thank you for this fantastic analysis, and so glad to see the Guardian feature you.
Simon, will you be setting up fundraising for Sherrod Brown through Hopium? I'm so thrilled to see him running again. I was going to donate money, but I'll wait if you're going to do it. Meanwhile, I'll donate to Sherrill today in honor of the proud plucky New Jersey Hopiates.
Signed up for a "No Kings" event, virtual, just after the Hopium weekly gathering. Not sure what to expect but if I have any time I look for new things to do:
https://www.mobilize.us/nokings/event/803953/
Also mailed 100 postcards on Tuesday, signed up for 50 more to TN and AK, voter registration. I also, just as a start, donated $10 to David Jolly for FL governor, and $5 monthly recurring to his campaign. I expect I will bump that up a bit. I've been contacting them repeatedly about voter registration work.
Thanks everyone for your work.
I've watched the first 2 of the One Million Rising training you link to, and I'll watch #3 on Friday (Wednesday nights don't work for me, but they send you the link to the recording if you sign up for the event). It's worthwhile!
Strategic non-compliance has a long proven history in taking down autocrats, and it's very good to have all the tools we can at our disposal as things get weirder.
As Susan pointed out below, you have signed up for part 3 of the "One Million Rising" training.
I suspect that you are not familiar with parts 1 or 2 - otherwise you would be aware of what's happening this evening. I would suggest watching them in sequence, but I don't think it's strictly required.
Well I don't have time for that now. Depending on how this one goes I will go back and watch. Thanks for that.
With several groups from WNY, we had a planning session last night on zoom for the Sept 13th "Taking it to the Streets" rally. We are planning for " A peaceful protest at 9 high visibility locations in WNY.
I worked 13 years at UCLA during the great years of Kareem and Walton and great research work being done. It was the center of my solar system and I go there walking around and for games. I’m Jewish but nobody (including myself) cares at all. The current problems all stem from Netanyahu’s war killing over 60,000 Palestinians. It’s hardly anti-Semitism to be against that. But, like with Harvard, its Trump’s excuse to do a takeover of higher education and freeze much needed scientific/medical research. Being
Anti-science means we lose out to the world and live in a less healthy environment. We can guess that it means more power for him, somehow.
UCLA gave 2mil+ to Jewish groups with good intentions and thought the antisemitism issue was over. It wasn’t as Trump is freezing over $500 million in research funds and insisting on a 1 billion fine over his version of illegal use of race, Transgenders in sports as well as anti-Semitism! Students who will be PHDs are looking overseas as they see his assault on science to continue and ruin their careers. For example, the University has lost a $25 million grant for Pure and Applied Mathematics and 20 grants were cancelled in the UCLA Samueli Bioengineering Dept. This is horrible.
Meanwhile what is Trump’s own history on anti-Semitism? During the times he was a pal of Epstein, he made a You Tube saying “I’m proud of my German genes. They are superior”. Weird. You might know of KKK Grand Wizard David Duke who ran for President. Trump would not un- endorse him.
Trump invited Nick Fuentes, major
Holocaust denier, with Kanye West to Mar-a-Lago. Trump’s kind of people. Just one more. During the riot in Alexandrea, Virginia, with Neo Nazis marching and shouting “Jews will not replace us” it was Trump who said “there are good people on both sides”.
There's plenty of history on Trump's anti-Semitism as well as on all minorities for a book.
I wish I was up to writing it with a plane ticket to Iceland.
R
Totally agree - Trump's anti-semitism has been lifelong and his current 'use' of it is completely as a tool and a form of lying, at which he is expert. He is anti-science and anti-higher education.
Here's a paywall-free fascinating article on one of the cultural groups who actually built America - https://open.substack.com/pub/thinkbigpicture/p/mohawk-skywalkers-indigenous-us-history?r=25zh27&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
i think everyone should watch
'the zone of interest" along with 2001's 'conspiracy ' because folks, these current maga assholes sound awfully like the original goose steppers ; i don't know what the hell happened to stephen miller, who seems to have been disowned by some of his own family, that he has taken up the banner of fascism, and i find it odd that anti semitism is the cudgel being used to attack universities, which in my experience tend to have a fair share of jewish faculty; i'm proud to see my alma mater, rutgers, leading the big 10 in resistance to these trump extortion schemes. in fact, rutger's own jenn mittelstadt will be headlining a discussion on authoritarianism in dc this friday along with dan drezner and a few others; talk about perfect timing.....i even looked into attending but it was sold out! that says something....
Go Rutgers! So proud of them. And furious at Penn. My university is in protective crouch, but our faculty union has some things up our sleeves...
I'm so glad to hear that. Brown is my alma matter and I'm just so disgusted with them. Before they capitulated, the president even told the alums, basically, "save your advocacy for other things, we're HANDLING this!" Can't imagine the student body or the faculty are going to be pleased.
Embarrassed by Penn — both as an alum and, until quite recently, part of the adjunct faculty there. Folding and folding and folding. Why?
People have written about antisemitism as a conspiracy theory, that it's used more flexibly than other hatreds and isms - when the target is communism, Jews are claimed to be communists; when the target is capitalism, Jews must be bankers and owners; etc. Using antisemitism as a cudgel in higher ed seems novel, and of course, weaponizing antisemitism is a twisted act of antisemitism.
Simon, I added a fifth - resolution, that is, to your four. I included stopping support to Israel until massive aid of food and medicine flow into Gaza, specifically through the previous UN/NGO distribution process since the U.S./Israeli process is an unmitigated disaster and people are dying.
Self report: Today I called House Rep & my two Senators to initiate the resignation of HHS RFK, Jr. His latest $500m cuts to research is despicable, not to mention that he lied (of course he did) during his Senate Confirmation hearings that he wouldn’t take vaccine access away from Americans. He’s gotta go!!
So many of them automatically lied, including the Liar in Chief. Great point that i'm adding to my emails to Senators and Rep, thank you!
Daily calls are in to Rep members of congress regarding our 4 main concerns. Additional call regarding Labor statistics nominee and Smithsonian museums. Continuing to write postcards. Newest campaign is for Mayor of Mobile AL
Hanging in there and staying in the fight.
Am just signing up to work on the election this fall here in Colorado and they said they "have had a great response". Am just passing this along as a little bit of good news.
Paywall-free - who built America? A coalition of all of US -
https://open.substack.com/pub/thinkbigpicture/p/mohawk-skywalkers-indigenous-us-history?r=25zh27&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
Biggest threat in DC is actually August heat .. troops need to stay hydrated while standing around
Simon, thanks for the update!
Last night, MD Governor Moore told Jen Psaki that he will refuse to call up the MD National Guard if Trump tells him to. He called on his own military experience and sounded amazingly strong. Maryland, including Baltimore, is seeing crime levels lower than they've been in decades. I'm going to contact Governor Moore today to thank him.
I've been laughing out loud at California Governor Gavin Newsom's social media posts to Trump mocking Trump, using Trump's own bombastic style. They're great and I bet they're getting under Trump's skin.
I'm not too worried that Republicans won't say or admit that they regret their vote for Trump. If you read Don't Think of an Elephant, Republicans tend to come from homes where shame was used as a way to control behavior. They can never admit that they were wrong. But they can stay home in 2026 and that will be fine. He's doing terribly with Independents and that matters.
I called Congressman Raskin and Senators Alsobrooks and Van Hollen to ask them to do more about the tariffs and to stop him from adding to ICE. I'm writing postcards to Virginia voters today.
It takes a huge amount of courage to publicly admit being wrong, especially about something as key to one's identity as MAGA. I like your take on this and think you're right!
Gavin's posts are next level trolling and I am here for it!
I am really enjoying Gavin Newsom's (sp?) trolling - he's really got it down - the CAPS, the self-aggrandizement, the threats. Pitch perfect.
Wow. Here's an extremely powerful satiric video about Trump's ballroom. Mockery and satire galore!
https://www.facebook.com/100014162138061/videos/1923023488545520
Loved it.
Me too!
Good morning! Today, I am working on postcards to VA and looking forward both to our sub call this evening and to the 8 pm Indivisible training. Feeling strong and empowered. Calls to Senators demanding a delegation to AK and to Ukraine to meet w Zelenskyy, Dems should speak out AND pass resolutions condemning the Alaska fiasco & hostile takeover of DC, and arrest of Putin if/when he arrives in AK. Call this sh&t out!
Some great links I shared late yesterday, and a couple new ones:
Author Richard N. Patterson has an excellent Substack series titled America in Crisis. He's publishing it in daily segments. Here's the intro: https://richardnorthpatterson.substack.com/p/america-in-crisis
Anne Applebaum in The Atlantic on the bogus State Dept. report on human rights that just got released (gift link): https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/08/trump-state-department-human-rights-report/683852/?gift=woWIUxw7PQkPWVjhh-qn3nCm6EyC2ieESUi5tAN3UY0&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share
Another strong US Senate candidate in Iowa, campaign vid here: https://substack.com/@adamparkhomenko/note/c-144776659?r=foe0&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
Democracy Forward’s Skye Perryman w Marc Elias- an update on all the lawsuits: https://youtu.be/joWu8liEfRE?si=4QhvFpP9NZ4E1jHK
Keep going!
i think i will start feeling a little better when his approval ratings are consistently in the 30% range. then i think MSM will start asking the hard questions and maybe corporations and institutions will start saying no, seeing the deck chairs on the titanic slide into the ocean. he will always have his demented 25-30%. even today repubs are on board with him on immigration, despite the cruelty, lack of due process, etc.
A point that I can't wrap my head around - if Trump's approval rate is down to 38% (how can it be that high?), why is it that only 1% of his supporters regret their vote? There are that many stubborn, ill-informed, willfully ignorant people???
I think people are reluctant to say they "regret their vote". They might disapprove of Trump, but still would've voted for him over Kamala. Or at least that's what they say.
You hear this kind of thing all the time. They will say they "don't like Trump", or "don't like his personality", etc. But they still voted for him.
I think the answer is that there are a significant number of people who will say they disapprove, but will also say they don't regret and wouldn't change their vote.
Agreed. See also Catherine Schilling's excellent comment above. Saying you regret your vote is basically saying, "I was wrong," which is not a thing many people enjoy doing.