Rep. Henry Cuellar gets dark money help as he defends against progressive challenger houstonchronicle.com/news/p... dk's story on it Spoiler A mystery dark money group called "American Workers for Progress" has booked $720,000 in TV time to help Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar ahead of the March Democratic primary, according to data provided by a source with knowledge of media buys in the district. The spot praises Cuellar for fighting "to protect Obamacare" and "standing with Nancy Pelosi to lower prescription drug prices." Help Jessica Cisneros fight back against this flood of dark money. Send her $3 today. The ad is one of those "call your congressman to thank him" commercials, a classic dodge used to elevate a politician's profile without expressly calling for his election—or the defeat of his opponent, in this case attorney Jessica Cisneros, who is challenging the conservative Cuellar for his long history of siding against progressive priorities and with Donald Trump. This dodge allows the spot’s sponsor to avoid having to disclose its spending to the FEC, since by the barest definition this isn't a campaign ad. In fact, American Workers for Progress hasn't disclosed a thing: Their website is just a single page that contains exactly one sentence of explanatory text and doesn't describe the group's backers in any way. All we know from the site's registration data is that the domain was purchased on Jan. 8 of this year by a firm called NP Strategy Group.
American Factory, it’s on Netflix now. It’s a documentary about GM closing its plant in Dayton, Ohio. A Chinese glass manufacture buys it several years later, and hires people at half former salaries. They hold a union vote after the American supervisors are fired. It fails overwhelmingly. Who has seen it? In my opinion, the automation scene at the end is the most telling. Eventually, there are going to be a billion Chinese laborers rendered obselete by automation. I wonder how the social fabric holds when that happens there.
Just watched it. They scare the younger workers into voting no because they might miss a few paychecks during a strike now they’ll just miss all of their paychecks when their jobs are automated
Also enjoyed the irony of Sherrod Brown talking about needing a union there at the grand opening, that American manager being all pissed about it, then being subsequently fired and eventually advocating for there to be a union
huge fan of this podcast. been going back and listening to old episodes. the one where they did a dramatic reading of the brett stephens convo where he said bloomberg is the best candidate had me in tears
I think the Chapo reading series are a lot funnier, but because of Tanya, Tarrence, and Tom all being from legit working class families they add a flair that makes everything funny because they've all seen a lot more shit than any of the Chapo hosts. I'm listening to the podcast they dropped last night and they're going into old buckets being filled with gnats, grease traps with mice living in them, just gross shit lol.
Angry workers spurn Ethiopia's 'industrial revolution' https://www.france24.com/en/20200204-angry-workers-spurn-ethiopia-s-industrial-revolution
Trillbillies Patreon just dropped their episode with Sturgill Simpson and not even 5 minutes in and they've got him shitting on J.D. Vance. So great
He's been on the Well Red podcast and has done the same. It's great. Speaking of JD Vance, I highly recommend Appalachian Reckoning by Anthony Harkins. He shits all over Hilbilly Elegy.
I have no connection to Appalachia or that region of Kentucky/Ohio he discusses. When I was reading it, I recognized the tired boot straps story, while ignoring/minimizing the help and luck he got along the way. However I didnt really know how to process his perception of the culture or people he speaks of w faux pity, how they would view his thoughts about Appallacia ect. Appalacia Reckoning gave me a better perspective in all that.
The very first episode of Trillbilly Workers Party goes into all this, they all live in rural poor Eastern Kentucky which is super-coal country that has absolutely devastated the local population, towns, and economies.
I'll give that a listen. This is podcast you talk about all the time? Is Trillbilly Workers Party, different than The Trillbillies you talk about? As far as podcasts go? Im sure they're the same group
Yes they're the same thing, the Trillbillies is just shorthand and what people call them but the actual podcast title is different.
I'll have to check that one out. There has been several answers to Vance published in the last couple of years but I haven't gotten around to any of them yet. I'm not as familiar with KY but my mom's entire family is from the SW corner of NC (Mark Meadows country). Lots of poverty and a populace that is very susceptible to racial grievance politics. This story was from her parents' hometown: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gun-shop-billboard-mocks-the-squad-calling-four-congresswomen-idiots/
Ive listened to the first one on Vance, and now about a 1/3rd into the last one after NH. I can see why you like them. Bernie is a god and everyone is a poser. lol
I mean when the media did nothing bout spend months and months after Trump got elected talking about rural low-income whites and their draw to Trump it's probably important to recognize that so many of them also like a candidate who understands their material conditions and who would greatly improve their lives. These aren't Brooklyn hipsters, these are people who live in some of the worst conditions in the United States enviornmentally speaking.
Like I'm not trying to be a dick, I just think they live in areas where they've experienced some horrible economic and environmental policy and shouldn't be dismissed as quickly as the Chapo hosts for being all in on Bernie and disliking the other candidates.
Im not trying to pick a fight here, but youre really just being defensive again. I wasnt dismissing them at all, or inferring they're brooklyn hipster posers. With the huge caveat of only listening to a whopping 1.5 episodes so far - I agree w their criticism for the most part. Them saying they want to destroy the democrat party if Bernie loses is dumb. The girl saying she'd be more pissed in a way if the democrats just decide to adopt Bernie's platform after shitting on him for all these years is even dumber. THE DNC shifting to become a labor party is the best case scenario, as unlikely has it seems right now. I also disagree w them putting Warren in the same bucket as Pete and Amy. That's just hyperbolic and disingenuous. Im not being dismissive. Unless any bit of slight criticism is dismissive. I like this, and will keep it in the rotation