pipermcq

🧵 time. If you’ve ever pondered what the Founders meant by the phrase “pursuit of happiness,” let the Professor, @CoyoteUnclean, offer some insight. Brilliant.

@barnacles71 @ColoradoandMore Trying to focus on one account, trying to “call it out” so it’ll stop, is like trying to hold back the tide. Better to learn to see it for what it is, and steel one’s self from its effects. “The fault, dear Brutus, is not our stars, but in ourselves.” (Shakespeare, J. Caesar).

@pipermcq @ColoradoandMore yes, he's not the only one, But he is the primary one. The vetbro community is aligning themselves with him because he has a Green Beret. Because of course Benedict Arnold would never turn against America.

The interview of JD Vance in which he mentioned the (true) notion that wars end with negotiation didn’t just air (as you may have thought). Nor did it have anything at all to do with Iran negotiations (thanks, @ColoradoandMore, for the heads-up on this). It aired in August, 2025. The subject was the Russia-Ukraine war and the (true) statement that it will need to be resolved by negotiations. It got little attention at the time. So— your assignment for this Sunday is to ponder the following: 1. Why would the (deceptively edited) clip be circulating just now? 2. Why did it get circulated by accounts who intimated it had to do with Iran negotiations? 3. Why did it gain virality now, when it didn’t before? 4. Who stands to gain from it being “boosted” now? 5. Were foreign actors involved in this disinfo campaign? You (and I) are being manipulated all the time. It is important to resist the effort. Even I made the mistake of thinking this was a recent interview. I have to redouble my efforts to not get played. This will all only get far, far, worse— especially if we allow it to work.

@barnacles71 @ColoradoandMore I detect a slight animosity toward Mr. Kent on your part… And there have been some alarming “reversals” and turns on his part that give me pause. But he’s by far not the only one. It’s everywhere. Almost every “5 digit” or better account does it to some extent.

@pipermcq @ColoradoandMore Its working because we have rats that we refuse to properly deal with. Americans are soft.

Once you pick up the signs and “tells” of political message manipulation, you’ll see it all so clearly you’ll wonder why you ever fell for it. This latest “OMG JD Vance!” nonsense is classic. A video from a year ago, about the Russia-Ukraine war, that got very little attention at the time, makes its way into someone’s oppo bank. But timing is everything. No need to blow it up at the time. Let’s wait a bit. A year later? Early “positioning’ is underway for the 2028 GOP Prez race. Trump’s a lame duck. All eyes are on Vance as the “heir apparent?” Not so fast. Time to sow a little discord. Let’s trot that video out, but deceptively edit it down to the WWII comparison. Then, we’ll post it with editorial content that makes the viewer think he’s “covering” for Trump’s “weak” Iran nego’s. Then, we’ll finish with a flourish— virtually all of the posters did this same thing (almost as if they’re paid to…)” “OMG! Vance is so stupid! He’s unqualified to be president!!” Did you see it? Did it get to you, right there in your amygdala, that little nub in your brain that does all the “feeling,” but none of the “thinking?” Did it make you angry? Fearful? Even just annoyed? Did it make you want to mash that “repost” button? Congratulations. You fell for it. It worked on you. It’s early yet, though. It will all get so much worse. The quality of iterative AI will become so good that by next your even the videos will be “avatars” of candidates saying made up shit. This is just the battlefield prep. They’re softening us all up for the real action that will start in 2027. More of this will hit your feed. And it will fit all of these elements like a soft glove. So much of social media is conscious emotional manipulation and promotion of chaos and discord there’s almost no way to see the actual “signal” for the noise. But you can do it. If you see something that makes you pause and say, “wait— is this true?” Go check it. More often than not, it isn’t. Or it’s manipulated, edited deceptively, or pushed for an agenda. Do you see something that makes you angry? Almost irresistibly makes you want to mash that “repost” button? Pause. Think. Don’t “feel.” Just for a moment. If you condition yourself to this practice, you will become almost impervious to the bullshit, foreign info ops, political poo-flinging, and manipulation. This practice will be your armor. Do it.

No one “lets it happen” here or anywhere. Schools have changed security procedures and design to make this much harder to do. But there is no magic wand to wave to make all the bad guns go bye. We can’t put something in the water to stop criminals from breaking laws. What we CAN do, policymakers refuse to do: allow for teachers and school employees who are willing to undergo the training to carry weapons at school; “man-trap” front doors and secure side entrances; vigilant and aggressive response to incidents as they develop; more aggressive identification and interdiction of those inclined to do this.

@pipermcq @shipwreckedcrew *year after year

What do you do next year to find those same funds?

@ColoradoandMore Yeah, but I hear the bat soup is delicious!🤮

@pipermcq I’ve been to Wuhan. Sickest city I’ve ever visited.

Had to cross-check to assure this document is genuine. It is. While it represents one analyst’s researched conclusions, it tracks with a lot of what we have learned about Covid’s origins. A serious government would be doing much more than just holding hearings on this. Like indictments.

@ColoradoandMore @SonofLiberty357 Thanks for the heads-up— did a post on I’m a bit chagrined that I didn’t catch this critical detail. Thanks for setting me straight!!

@pipermcq @SonofLiberty357 I’m reading this interview is not about Iran, but the Russia Ukraine conflict. Someone dredged it up to smear Vance.

The gaslighting is full speed. When you have to tell a lie this big, you are hiding something. My concern over this thing is now 10x what it was.

@ColoradoandMore @SonofLiberty357 Oh- I hadn’t seen that. I assume it was related to Iran. It’s a tad early for the GOP 2028 oppo dumps— I wonder who was behind this dropping now?

@CherylThaxton Of course not. Both she and Platner would be terrified of the subject.

@pipermcq Do you think if he went on the program, she'd ask that question? Or press him on it?

Welker is one of the better interviewers on that network, but it is a painfully low bar. And Fetterman’s point remains unaddressed. “We’ve invited him on the program.” Seriously? That’s what passes for journalism? Sheesh.

@bonchieredstate One of her “art” pieces. Looks like a bass drum head:

The working class didn’t want to buy her crappy paintings, so she’ll just tax them and pay herself a grant instead. Psychotic.

Here’s the last comment I’ll make about Vance’s historically correct statement that WWII ended with “some sort” of negotiation: He was right. We negotiated from a position of immense strength by 1945, but we negotiated. Japan even set conditions we agreed to. But bringing it up in the context of the Iran discussions was inapt. There is no need to reflexively defend the notion of talks with Iran to end this conflict. But quit “selling” an agreement that has not yet been reached. It comes across as defensive and weak. Work the deal. Then describe it. In detail.

@DolioJ The most hilarious part is that the Bobbies just yanked the mannequin’s arm off to effect the arrest of the protester. She didn’t think that part through.

@pipermcq Lol.

UK is a caliphate

We’re always just one more tax away from utopia.

This is a fairly standard ploy for the Commie Wing of the DNC, for whom Bernie is the paterfamilias. They never work a legitimate job in their lives— like Bernie, they rely either on government paychecks or the kindness of strangers. But then, they “write a book.” Donors buy said book- by the tens of thousands. No one reads said book. But it’s a great way for big-money donors (and dark-money interests) to buy politicians. The politicians love the “book gambit,” because unlike a campaign contribution, no one tracks the “purchasers,” (so foreign interests can buy influence in the dark), and the politicians get to spend the income on themselves. All “legally.” Like Bernie here— who bought three homes and became a multi-millionaire. Because of his “books.”

@caroljsroth The term “nonprofit,” Adam?

He’s built electric vehicles, robots, spacecraft, etc…. Whiners: BUt hoW mANy nOn ProFitS? What have you built?

Elon Musk: At GM, there's a special elevator only for senior executives. We have no such thing at Tesla. “I actually know the people on the line, because I worked on the line, I walked the line, I slept in the factory, and I worked beside them. So, I'm no stranger to them. There are many people at Tesla who have gone from working on the line to being in senior management. There are no lords and peasants. Everyone eats at the same table. Everyone parks in the same parking lot. At GM, there's a special elevator only for senior executives. We have no such thing at Tesla. We give everyone stock options. Many people who are just working the line, who didn't even know what stocks were, we've made them millionaires. And I just want to say that I'm incredibly appreciative of those who build the cars, and they know it.” New York Times DealBook Summit, 2023

As Santayana warned, “those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it.” But here’s the PiperMcQ Corollary: “Those who DO remember history will be doomed to watch as the half-wits who do not outnumber us, and blunder forward ignorantly.” @MOneill225 is correct; Barry is not.

@JoelWBerry His statement (that wars always end with “some kind” of negotiation) is historically accurate. Sometimes, such negotiations take place with one party thereto in a position of strength; sometimes not. But even WW II ended following negotiations for the surrender.

WW2 ended with two atomic bombs.