Name the owner of that quote. I’ll wait…did you figure it out yet? I’ll give you a hint: it’s the same guy who referred to Nikki Haley as “Nimbra,” which isn’t even close to her actual name. So what makes this rename racist? It’s obvious, if you think about who it comes from, and who it’s meant to entice. This is right up there with “Meatball Ron” and the other words that come out of his mouth. Consider the context: Donald Trump has already alleged that Nikki Haley might not be a United States citizen (she is). This is also the same Donald Trump who would love nothing more than to rescind birthright citizenship. And…the same Donald Trump who turned away black residents from his real estate properties.

The simple truth is: Donald Trump is racist. It’s obvious by his actions, and anyone who supports this obvious racist has to really think about a few things. I would. First, how much do I really care about equality and making America into the Meritocracy we’d like for it to be. Not much, if I’m willing to let this rampant bigot run things, and manifest his biases as government institutions.

We cover this and so much more in this podcast episode of Right and Freedom.

For the love of money is the root of all evil. This is a phrase that's commonly known to most Americans, yet so many of us have lost our way. For some of us, we've decided that money supplants goodness, that money supplants community, and that power power associated with having money is so worthy and so valuable that it supersedes all of our other desires.

"Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition." Truer words were never spoken than those of Cardinal Ximinez in Monty Python's Life of Brian.

More of the quote: "Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition. Our chief weapon is surprise. Surprise and fear...fear and surprise...surprise and fear..."

What does this have to do with politics in America? The fear is palpable already. What's next is the surprise when what shouldn't be possible in America, suddenly becomes reality. Listen to this podcast episode to understand that it's much later than you think it is in the battle for the soul of our nation. Surprised? Afraid? Exactly.

You have to understand where we came from, to understand where we’re going. The electoral college? The 3/5ths compromise? Even the war for Independence?

You understand that women couldn’t open bank accounts in the 1960s, right?

Any time that someone says “good old days,” ignore them. The alleged glorious history of the United States is mired in the legacy of slavery, and the consistent disenfranchisement of many minority groups. We tend to want to look away, and that’s why things like the 1619 project, affirmative action, and even student loan relief, has been branded as “woke.” Also, recall that even today, we have slavery in the United States, as undocumented immigrants are being taken advantage of and forced to work long hours for little or no pay. This isn’t because there’s not money to pay them, but because of greed.

The idea that our history isn’t what it is, mired with violence and protests and oppression, is to forget to be watchful for the emergence of such things. Therefore, is it any wonder that one party would like you to remain “unwoke,” and cleanse your mind of actual history.

Think about it.

Demonizing the other? Check.

Calling anyone who disagrees with you as evil? Check.

Call for the imprisonment of political rivals just for being rivals? Check.

Isolate your followers from other sources of information? Check.

Perpetuate a “big lie” so that your followers are forced to rationalize to themselves, and tell more and more lies so that they continue flexing their rationalization muscles? Check.

We’re at a point where there has to be some accountability. Presidents are not nor have ever been above the law. Yet Trump operates outside the law. In a group of people have been “drinking the punch” for so long, the truth, which all of us hold dear, suddenly becomes useless

If you’re not familiar with the term “planned obsolescence,” the term is a business one which means that you intentionally design your widget (product) to self-destruct in a certain amount of time. For a while, every time a new iPhone came out, older iPhones began to degrade in performance with frightening precision. It was, in a court case, determine that Apple had intentionally planned the performance degradation. They’re not the only ones, and there’s another case happening right now before the French court.

What does this have to do with politics?

Project 2025.

We talk in broad strokes about different terms and accuse each other of socialism, fascism, communism, etc. But…what do these terms mean? To paraphrase the great Inigo Montoya, probably not what you think. When we talk about fascism in this podcast series, we use the terms as precisely as we can. In this podcast episode, we get into what some of these terms mean, and how their misuse confuses people. We also cover how society works. Surprisingly enough, being part of a society means you’re responsible for others. That’s what society means. Literally, you can’t have society without other people.

Some would divide us. But when it comes to it, wouldn’t you rather be in a community of people who support each other and build each other up than one of people who constantly tear each other down, and “put them in their place”?

I would.

A lot of our recent episodes have been kind of dark. We don’t want to alarm you, but…here are a few things that Trump and/or the GOP have said that you want to probably want to ignore if you’re feeling out of your depths:

• Muslims are to be ejected from the country, including students.

• Anyone who speaks against his highness will be expelled from this country.

• Pretty women can stay, but they can’t cross state lines if pregnant.

Christian nationalism is a problem in this nation. No, I didn’t say Christianity. I said specifically Christian nationalism. There are those who would impose their interpretation of Christian religious doctrine upon the rest of us, and the alarming thing is that we have one of these ideologues now 2nd in line to the presidency. Nothing seems to sway them from their self-destructive path, and they seem intent on bringing the rest of the country with them into Gilead.

When you see them, vote against them. A true leader must be willing to and able to put the society above their personal held beliefs.

Veterans day has come and gone, and Tuberville is still a problem. His ideological stance in blocking appointments has become a readiness issue for the USMC. We’ve talked about how the commandant of the Marines had a heart attack in a prior episode, trying to do the job of two general-level officers. What does Tuberville have to say about it? No comment, but prior, he’s said, to paraphrase, “why don’t they just delegate.”

Sounds a lot like “let them eat cake.” Tuberville has no sense of honor, and worse, no loyalty. He places his extreme ideological values above the nation he claims to serve.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one. A buddhist, a priest, and a rabbi walk into the United States Congress in 1789. They are unceremoniously escorted out as the first twelve amendments to the Constitution of the United States are adopted, the first of which very clearly states:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Notice the part in bold. That’s the part we’re talking about during this podcast episode. You know who directly opposes that clause in the constitution? Anyone who says that they need to bring the United States government under the Bible. Like the person who said this:

“the founders wanted to protect the church from an encroaching state, not the other way around.” - Mike Johnson, as quoted in the New York Times

As you can see with the two phrases here, they are in direct opposition to each other. “No law respecting an establishment of religion” means exactly that. Think deeply. What does “an encroaching church” look like in national politics? It looks like bending the will of the people to the dictates of a specific church. And with Mike Johnson’s Southern Baptist views, what does that church look like? Well, it sure isn’t the Church of Satan.

Think about this when you elect your representative. Anyone who puts religion first is out to gut our collective rights. Period.

"Problem is the human heart, not guns" - Mike Johnson (courtesy of AXIOS)

That’s your new Republican Speaker of the House, and what he thinks about gun control Asked about additional legislation, he pulled out the old tried-and-true Republican rebuttle: now is not the time. When is the time?

We started this podcast project in response to the shootings at Black Live Matter rallies a few years ago. As a group, collectively we three former Marines would much rather complain about issues that require long-term focus and concentration. We’d prefer not to talk about issues for which there exist commonsense solutions that over 70% of Amerians agree with, yet are still being blocked by petty wannabe tyrants.

What else can you call people who openly subvert the will of the people? In Oregon, we’re only finally clearing a legislative battle of almost two years just to try to get folks to register their firearms and create more rigorous background checks. Guess who is holding that law up? You got it. You’re same folks who, somehow, think that doing nothing about an issue is the same thing as doing something about it (yes, that’s exactly as stupid as it sounds).

Do you remember, in the Transformers franchise, when the main villian Megatron died? Well, the many times that Megatron died? I bring this up because right now, the Republican leaders in the House of Representatives share a lot in common with the Decepticons, from their inability to actually function as a team, to their ineptitude when they actually do try to work together. My point here is a simple one though. Every time Megatron died, either he came back to life as himself or as his extremely similar counterpart, Galvatron who was…let’s face it…Megatron with a slightly updated look.

Cue in Kevin McCarthy, the inept leader beholden to MAGA extremists who tried to govern, but couldn’t without Democratic support…

Okay, so that’s not the most elegant headline, but I think we all know who we’re talking about. And the man just can’t seem to keep his mouth shut, can he? 4 different trials, multiple gag orders, and the man keeps on going. But…really? $5,000 gag order to someone whose net worth is in the multiple millions?

Jim Jordan failed once again to get the votes he needs to pick up the speakership. No doubt you’ve heard that by now, as it’s been all over the news cycle. Who’s up next? It’s anybody’s guess. Like the opening salvo’s to the Wars of the Roses—great entertainment if it didn’t have repercussions throughout the entire modern world.

While we laugh (because otherwise we cry) about the situation, beware of two things: 1) they’re no doubt trying to pin this whole debacle on the Democrats, and 2) there’s a very good reason why the difficulties are pestering them, and the Democrats have little to do with it.

Listen and learn with Don, Christina, and Chuck as we work to untangle the web. Three former-Marines, talking politics. That’s it.

Did a ring-tone activate sleepers in the United States? Did Donald Trump win the election? Jewish space lasers? Will the government start brainwashing citizens under the guise of ‘deprogramming’?

Slow down.

Take a breath.

It’s okay.

None of the above, absolutely none of it, are true. These are rumors floated around to see if they work, and they don’t. But these are undeniably claims that people in our country actually believe? Why? Kind of…we asked for it.

The cry for blood cannot be sated with more violence. It only grows.

There can be no winner here. Resist the urge to pick up the flag and rally around one group or the other. This sadness is one of the many rewards for our collective carelessness in the treatment of millions of lives. We have all helped to plant the seeds of hopelessness and despair, and we have watered them with endless inaction and platitudes. Finally, we reap our harvest of sorrows.

Resist the shock, resist the outrage, resist the jingoistic cries of solidarity. What we must do now is steady ourselves, and stand with the innocents. The choices we make now are of the utmost importance. We as the people of the United States have one simple job to do: resist the reductionist outrage. We cannot allow this single event to harden us to the suffering of humans, wherever those humans happen to live. We must keep the conflict in our minds as messy and complicated as it truly is, however much it hurts to do so, and slowly, carefully we as a nation must help to pick up the pieces.

My heart for the people Israel. My heart for the people of Palestine. My heart for the innocents.

Republicans: We’re going to punch ourselves in the face.

Democrats: No. Don’t.

Republicans: <punch themselves in the face by ousting McCarthy>

Democrats: …

Republicans: Why didn’t you stop me from punching myself in the face?

And yet, for some reason, these people keep getting elected. The truth is that there’s nobody there who is capable of even remotely up to leading that party, especially with the Freedom Caucus with their thumbs on the scale. It’s messy, it’s ugly, and it’s impeding our ability to govern.

This podcast episode get’s right to the heart of the current political unrest in the House of Representatives (brought to you by the Republicans, no matter what they might say).

What is artificial intelligence? How will it impact the common person? We don’t know. But we will find out. Then there’s the question of when we do, what will that mean? And…will it be too late?

It’s the last question that we’re all interested in. Nobody knows what the reality will be, but we’ve all seen terminator. How long until Skynet? We’re hoping it doesn’t happen, but the long-standing mantra of Site Reliability Engineers everywhere is “hope is not a strategy.” Learn more about AI and potential implications in this episode of Right and Freedom.