Wow, this is an extraordinary summation of an exceptionally powerful and brave collection of individual acts and articles of protest!! Thanks ever so much!!
A friend forward this quiet, but moving critique of our President, courtesy of Tommy Lee, the Drummer of Mötley Crüe
"An Open Letter to the president" April 16, 2025
Dear Fucking Lunatic,
At your recent press conference - more a word salad that had a stroke and fell down stairs, you were CLEARLY so out of your depth you needed scuba gear. Within minutes of going off air your minions were backpedaling faster than Cirque De Soliel acrobats... In India a week ago, I couldn’t get past the bit about your being the most popular visitor in the history of fucking india — a country of a BILLION human souls that’s only 3000 years old, give or take.!!! Trust me - Gandhi pulled CROWDS.. You pulled a cricket stadium and half WALKED out...
Do you know how fucking insane you sound, you off-brand butt plug? That's like the geopolitical equivalent of “that stripper really likes me” — only 10,000 times crazier and less self aware.
You are fucking exhausting. Every day is a natural experiment in determining how long 300 million people can resist coring out their own assholes with an ice auger. Every time I hear a snippet of your Queens-tinged banshee larynx farts, I want to scream!...
So fuck you Mr. President. And fuck you forever.
Oh, and Vance, you oleaginous house ferret. Fuck you, too. You'll be as useful as a chocolate teapot against a medical crisis you Bible thumping socket loser!"
The decision to put funds into the legal fund is brilliant. Loving the insider views that come from the Contrarian, and enjoying comments from all the Contrarians. Stay strong everyone!!!
Without the Contrarian and Substack for relief, I would be screaming my lungs out at the walls of my house and going totally insane with the daily destruction of our democracy and all it used to represent for us and for the world (however imperfect). So stay strong, take your vitamins, get some sleep, and keep going forward to those mountains that we'll all have to climb forever that our democracy may yet prevail. Kudos to all you guys!
I can’t thank Jen and Norm enough for their courage with speaking the truth! Your accurate reporting and explanations are crucial in helping us fight to keep our democracy. Thank you so very much!
I am baffled, mind boggled. !00 days of wins? with illegal detainees, illegal deportations, unconditional support of the Gaza genocide, with even judges starting to get arrested - we seem to live in parallel universes. The country is on the verge of fascist takeover, with most public institutions in the hands of rogue psychopaths, the Supreme Court slowly buy surely giving up on the constitution, people in fear of practicing free speech, especially if it is based on the solidarity with the Palestinians. This euphemistic portray of the situation is as dangerous as the threat to democracy and the rule of law itself.
I guess they are applying the 'take your wins where you can get them' datum. It is true the war isn't won but there have been some skirmishes that have been won. I would even venture to say there have been 100 days worth.
I admire your optimism, but it worries me deeply. I have been witnessing similar tragic fascist takeovers - and every time I could see the refusal to acknowledge the gravity of situation as one of the main, if not the main, problems. The government is doubling down on persecutions, ignoring orders from judges, the main US universities - the great pride of the country, which attracts the best from all the world, which made people like me leave everything and learn my craft in the US - with the exception oh Harvard, giving in to political and economical pressure and giving up on independent education and free speech and actually collaborating with illegal persecution of its students. The Pentagon budget to become of order trillion, greatest ever, with Musk profiting more than ever and becoming even richer - and that per se destabilises democracy. The genocide in Gaza getting even worse, beyond human comprehension (unless ones has no solidarity or empathy), leading directly to fascism due to weaponisation of anti semitism (by people who themselves are anti semites), in order to attack free speech. I could go on and on - my point is that unless the leaders of this platform, you and I and all of us do not terrified, tomorrow the US will be on the road of Hungary, if not worse - Trump and Musk and people around them are far more dangerous, violent, unstable people than Orban. I am actually getting desperate by the lack of awareness in the dangers of fascism in the US.
For most of the past half-century or so I’ve been working in international development, primarily in sub Saharan Africa and the Middle East, and have seen various instances when good intentions become significantly less good.
I don’t think that many have lost sight of the truly major obstacles that decent people are now facing, but even relatively minor bumps in the road to rottenness can have cumulative effects.
Are you familiar with Stephen Schmidt s Substack? He recently cited Avner Less, an Israeli prosecutor who interrogated Adolph Eichmann and a number of other sociopaths and came to the conclusion that there are a lot of Little Eichmanns around who are constrained primarily by democratic norms. But given half a chance ….
It is not an issue of giving up, a sane person never does that. But if you have a cancer, you must treat it as such - this desperate need to pretend some normalcy, and even winning, at the time when democracy is receiving one blow after another, will lead to a disaster. I wonder what experience you have of a society slipping into fascist takeover.
Of course, we all do, every and each day of our lives. But it is crucial not to pretend that the situation is less grave. You treat a cancer differently from a benign tumour, and metastasis still more differently. I am objecting the false picture of success in the gravest possible situation the US finds itself in. This is from the Wiki page on Weimar Republic: 'Hitler promptly used these powers to thwart constitutional governance and suspend civil liberties, which brought about the swift collapse of democracy...' Fascism, and even nazism, start precisely the way the US is heading now - and yet, almost all need to pretend that it is not so grave.
Wow, this is an extraordinary summation of an exceptionally powerful and brave collection of individual acts and articles of protest!! Thanks ever so much!!
Yes, brave!!
A friend forward this quiet, but moving critique of our President, courtesy of Tommy Lee, the Drummer of Mötley Crüe
"An Open Letter to the president" April 16, 2025
Dear Fucking Lunatic,
At your recent press conference - more a word salad that had a stroke and fell down stairs, you were CLEARLY so out of your depth you needed scuba gear. Within minutes of going off air your minions were backpedaling faster than Cirque De Soliel acrobats... In India a week ago, I couldn’t get past the bit about your being the most popular visitor in the history of fucking india — a country of a BILLION human souls that’s only 3000 years old, give or take.!!! Trust me - Gandhi pulled CROWDS.. You pulled a cricket stadium and half WALKED out...
Do you know how fucking insane you sound, you off-brand butt plug? That's like the geopolitical equivalent of “that stripper really likes me” — only 10,000 times crazier and less self aware.
You are fucking exhausting. Every day is a natural experiment in determining how long 300 million people can resist coring out their own assholes with an ice auger. Every time I hear a snippet of your Queens-tinged banshee larynx farts, I want to scream!...
So fuck you Mr. President. And fuck you forever.
Oh, and Vance, you oleaginous house ferret. Fuck you, too. You'll be as useful as a chocolate teapot against a medical crisis you Bible thumping socket loser!"
Spot on from Tommy Lee. Thanks for sharing. Both hilarious and true.
I never realized how truly eloquent Mr. Lee could be. Bravo!
The bar none, epitome of accurate, astute, and truthful descriptions of our current excuse for occupant of the Oval Office!
That really sums up my feeling about this backwater administration and every Republican toady in between. Bravo Tommy Lee!
Great coverage!
FLRA? IFTPE?
The decision to put funds into the legal fund is brilliant. Loving the insider views that come from the Contrarian, and enjoying comments from all the Contrarians. Stay strong everyone!!!
Without the Contrarian and Substack for relief, I would be screaming my lungs out at the walls of my house and going totally insane with the daily destruction of our democracy and all it used to represent for us and for the world (however imperfect). So stay strong, take your vitamins, get some sleep, and keep going forward to those mountains that we'll all have to climb forever that our democracy may yet prevail. Kudos to all you guys!
I can’t thank Jen and Norm enough for their courage with speaking the truth! Your accurate reporting and explanations are crucial in helping us fight to keep our democracy. Thank you so very much!
Soooo glad you are here!
Thank you for restoring my faith in humanity.....
Phew, that's a lot, and all good. I don't know where you find all the time to do this, much less to sleep!
I agree. How Norm and Jen get any sleep is beyond me. That goes for Aaron Parnus.
“Contrarian Proud”
If you liked that idea, perhaps you'd like my political cartoons:
https://www.instagram.com/foolforthought2025/
I hope this isn't considered a faux pas...
Thanks for all you do! I have been following almost since day one and have consistently liked what you guys do.
Many thanks to each and every one of you "Contrarians" for your excellent coverage - for keeping us all informed, motivated, and united.
Bravo and sincere thanks. Let’s keep the pressure on!
WOW! The group is magnificent! What marvelous sources you are including, and we will count on being informed. What a great treat to be a subscriber!
I am baffled, mind boggled. !00 days of wins? with illegal detainees, illegal deportations, unconditional support of the Gaza genocide, with even judges starting to get arrested - we seem to live in parallel universes. The country is on the verge of fascist takeover, with most public institutions in the hands of rogue psychopaths, the Supreme Court slowly buy surely giving up on the constitution, people in fear of practicing free speech, especially if it is based on the solidarity with the Palestinians. This euphemistic portray of the situation is as dangerous as the threat to democracy and the rule of law itself.
I guess they are applying the 'take your wins where you can get them' datum. It is true the war isn't won but there have been some skirmishes that have been won. I would even venture to say there have been 100 days worth.
I admire your optimism, but it worries me deeply. I have been witnessing similar tragic fascist takeovers - and every time I could see the refusal to acknowledge the gravity of situation as one of the main, if not the main, problems. The government is doubling down on persecutions, ignoring orders from judges, the main US universities - the great pride of the country, which attracts the best from all the world, which made people like me leave everything and learn my craft in the US - with the exception oh Harvard, giving in to political and economical pressure and giving up on independent education and free speech and actually collaborating with illegal persecution of its students. The Pentagon budget to become of order trillion, greatest ever, with Musk profiting more than ever and becoming even richer - and that per se destabilises democracy. The genocide in Gaza getting even worse, beyond human comprehension (unless ones has no solidarity or empathy), leading directly to fascism due to weaponisation of anti semitism (by people who themselves are anti semites), in order to attack free speech. I could go on and on - my point is that unless the leaders of this platform, you and I and all of us do not terrified, tomorrow the US will be on the road of Hungary, if not worse - Trump and Musk and people around them are far more dangerous, violent, unstable people than Orban. I am actually getting desperate by the lack of awareness in the dangers of fascism in the US.
I'm not sure that there is any value in deciding we're F+++ed and throwing in the towel, since in that case, we certainly would be.
Hi Goran,
For most of the past half-century or so I’ve been working in international development, primarily in sub Saharan Africa and the Middle East, and have seen various instances when good intentions become significantly less good.
I don’t think that many have lost sight of the truly major obstacles that decent people are now facing, but even relatively minor bumps in the road to rottenness can have cumulative effects.
Are you familiar with Stephen Schmidt s Substack? He recently cited Avner Less, an Israeli prosecutor who interrogated Adolph Eichmann and a number of other sociopaths and came to the conclusion that there are a lot of Little Eichmanns around who are constrained primarily by democratic norms. But given half a chance ….
It is not an issue of giving up, a sane person never does that. But if you have a cancer, you must treat it as such - this desperate need to pretend some normalcy, and even winning, at the time when democracy is receiving one blow after another, will lead to a disaster. I wonder what experience you have of a society slipping into fascist takeover.
It is quite horrendous but we take the wins we can.
Of course, we all do, every and each day of our lives. But it is crucial not to pretend that the situation is less grave. You treat a cancer differently from a benign tumour, and metastasis still more differently. I am objecting the false picture of success in the gravest possible situation the US finds itself in. This is from the Wiki page on Weimar Republic: 'Hitler promptly used these powers to thwart constitutional governance and suspend civil liberties, which brought about the swift collapse of democracy...' Fascism, and even nazism, start precisely the way the US is heading now - and yet, almost all need to pretend that it is not so grave.
Yes! T-shirts!!!
YES! I already have an AOC "Tax the Rich" T-shirt, so a "Contrarian" T-shirt would be a nice addition.