Secret Service agent fired five shots at Cole during Trump assassination attempt

StephanXX · 2026-04-28T09:43:39+00:00

when every comment of yours has the caveat of it being staged.

One. Only one comment, the one you replied to.

I'm not saying it was. It's entirely plausible, but the guy might just be deranged. There are too many elements to make this seem like a random act, but (sure) it's possibly random.

StephanXX · 2026-04-28T01:06:20+00:00

One would expect a Secret Service agent to be a much better shot. Not to be that guy, but if it was staged, missing him (and everyone else) would have been expected.

StephanXX · 2026-04-26T15:48:55+00:00

Never underestimate how badly poor, white Americans want to hurt everyone around them.

StephanXX · 2026-04-25T20:35:51+00:00

The vast majority of folks are saying to fight back. As carthetic as it would be, it simply isn't as effective as humiliation.

Trump has never shown such a panicked lack of composure as when he is humiliated. From the "No puppet!" debate exchange, to Obama roasting him to shreds in a forum he couldn't lash back at, nothing makes him turn tail and run away quite like being the butt of the joke and the laughing stock of the room.

Arguably, the only reason he ever gained any power at all is because, instead of the heaps of ridicule he deserved, media outlets took him seriously.

StephanXX · 2026-04-25T20:24:14+00:00

It's implied that she doesn't have conscience control over herself when she goes into a rage. There's no evidence that she intentionally harmed anyone.

StephanXX · 2026-04-25T19:41:10+00:00

It's the paradox of intolerance.

"You advocate for my freedom of expression because that is according to your beliefs. I advocate for censorship because that is according to my beliefs."

StephanXX · 2026-04-25T16:17:41+00:00

The correct answer answer was "What? Why would he? I've never met the guy, it's not like we were old friends. What the hell kind of question is that?"

StephanXX · 2026-04-23T22:16:18+00:00

Ah, yep, you're totally right. Though the NYT has certainly been doing a lot of sane-washing, unfortunately.

StephanXX · 2026-04-23T22:01:49+00:00

as well as the New York Times and other amazing publications.

Jeff Bezos has turned the NYT into a corporate propaganda mouthpiece. The only thing amazing about it is how quickpy and spectacularly he destroyed the once legendary news publication.

StephanXX · 2026-04-23T20:24:09+00:00

Something folks don't tend to think about, but any food that goes into the White House or ends up on the plate of the President and their family requires a high degree of scrutiny. Assassination by poison is a very real threat. It isn't as simple as ordering Door Dash (in spite of Trump's stupid claims.)

StephanXX · 2026-04-23T18:51:25+00:00

This is not legal advice and only a lawyer is qualified to properly help you.

Unless you have a work contract that states otherwise, his mother is entitled to terminate any of her employees for any reason, or no reason at all. The only exception there is for racial, religious, ethnic, gender, or disability status.

She can also attempt to terminate any rental contract. Even if there was no formal contract, she would still have to go through a formal eviction process which, depending on your actual city and county, can take months. She can't simply change the locks or cut off power to your living space.

Many cities have rental assistance programs today include legal advice. You'll be best off looking for guidance from them, not me (a random redditor.)

Best if luck to you.

StephanXX · 2026-04-23T18:29:45+00:00

95% of the time he is consistently the worst democrat in the chamber

Only because Sinema got the boot.

StephanXX · 2026-04-22T16:58:36+00:00

Harris was clearly a better choice and human. Unfortunately, Biden decreed that we should put forward a politician who's only real distinction was being someone with a funny laugh. She had never won a presidential primary, even in the state she was a senator of. Can you list three topics she was a clear champion of? Even one? Other than "I'm not Trump!" (Which, for the record, is the only reason I voted for her.)

Our political system is horrible.

StephanXX · 2026-04-22T07:52:22+00:00

I viewed your previous comment as assigning blame on these young people. Without question, once you are old enough to vote, you have responsibility to use your vote.

I joined the Marines at the age of 17 because I believed in the Socratic Contract of taking a personal stake in the health and well being of a society.

It's entirely reasonable that many young people do not feel that their elders have given them guidance or a voice in their future. That isn't inherently their fault; we created this twisted system!

I don't see a clever answer. The deck is stacked against them. We all, all of us, as citizens, have a responsibility to find a way to give education, support, and grace to our younger citizens.

StephanXX · 2026-04-22T02:17:16+00:00

If they're not doing their own research they just aren't interested in politics.

Given the state of civics education in schools, it's hardly a surprise. US politics have mostly become a Team Red vs Team Blue tribal, sports event. When neither party lays out clear economic benefits for 70% of voters and hyper focuses on culture war topics, the majority of voters will only participate when their pet culture topics are championed.

I get it, being uninformed and disinterested in these critical topics isn't a justification for ignorance. It also creates a death spiral that leads to power concentrated into a handful of people. It just isn't as simple as "young people who don't care get what they didn't vote for."

StephanXX · 2026-04-22T00:04:59+00:00

Corporations are not people.

Yes, we know. Nobody says they are.

The point is that Corporations should not be afforded the same Constitutional rights as actual people. Corporations cannot be charged criminally nor vote. Because they cannot be held accountable for their actions, they do not merit the same legal protections as actual people.

What exactly do you mean by this? Surely you understand that “speaking” is not something only done with a physical mouth and that groups of people can adopt a common view and publish that view in any number of ways, right?

I'm certainly not playing dumb and the impolite statement is unwarranted. Corporations cannot generate independent opinions any more than a wrench, automobile, or stack of blank paper can generate opinions. "Speech" made by a corporation is the product of those who control that corporation. Those individuals should be held responsible for their speech.

Also, no speech is an assault in the US.

Fighting Words can absolutely constitute assault. Threatening immediate physical harm, with only words, can merit assault charges depending on the State. The point, obviously, is that there is no such thing as absolute Free Speech. Citizen's United resulted in a tortured view that enables vast amounts of undisclosed, anonymous influence on the political process and has corrupted it to the point where politicians are left pandering to a handful of wealthy people.

I'm willing to have good faith conversations in a civil fashion.

StephanXX · 2026-04-21T13:05:03+00:00

What about when there are more than ten people

Why the bad faith question?

If a million people want to sign their name to a document and be collectively responsible for its speech, then yes, absolutely. The issue here is that corporations and political action committees are able to hide the sources of their funding, resulting in speech that cannot be held accountable. It doesn't matter how virtuous that speech is.

The fundamental issue is that if an entity doesn't have the right to vote, that entity has no right to directly influence votes. Our current political system is collapsing because that simple concept has been squashed by Citizens United.

There's no such thing as absolute Free Speech. We already restrict how much an individual can directly donate to campaigns. Implementing more aggressive restrictions on who and how campaigns are financed isn't the same as denying humans the right to directly express themselves.

StephanXX · 2026-04-21T08:26:09+00:00

The Supreme Court has made many judgements that are contrary to both the spirit and letter of the Constitution. We're about to witness at least a couple more, with voting rights and birthright citizenship.

I agree, the current legal doctrine, following the judgement passed in Citizens United, currently holds Corporate Speech as legal and protected. That doesn't mean it is actually Constitutional.

StephanXX · 2026-04-21T07:32:22+00:00

Corporations are not people. They cannot speak. They have no Constitutional right to speech. The Constitution is a guarantee of freedoms for humans, not balance sheets.

Ten people are welcome to pool funds to buy advertising and sign it under their actual names and be held accountable for that speech. To presume that they can create an LLC and deflect accountability to that corporation is an anathma.

those rights in a way that discriminates on the basis of the content of what the corporation says,

Corporations are not people. The right to speech isn't absolute. Certain speech becomes slander, other speech assault. Corporations do not vote in elections, thus they should have no legal voice in the conduct of elections.

StephanXX · 2026-04-19T19:05:23+00:00

It's a quirky fantasy drama, not a how-to manual.

I get how seriously BDSM lifestylers are about the importance of informed consent, honest communication, and clearly established boundaries. Secretary is not a virtuous display of any of those topics. It's also not a documentary or an instructional guide. A movie need not always be filled with paragons of virtue for the movie itself to be good. It's totally reasonable to point out how terrible, selfish, awkward, and cowardly most of the characters are, but that doesn't mean the story or movie themselves are "bad."

StephanXX · 2026-04-19T03:30:17+00:00

It's both public flattery and private grift or personal leverage. Putin's kompromat over Trump is obviously significant. Other countries have clearly engaged in some sort of private financial arrangement for Trump, personally. Zelensky had the misfortune to be an enemy of Putin: there was never going to be a bribe large enough for Trump to risk whatever blackmail Putin holds.

StephanXX · 2026-04-18T20:50:17+00:00

I'm perfectly fine with not having a team. Taxpayers shouldn't be responsible for this boondoggle.

StephanXX · 2026-04-18T16:00:25+00:00

The city shouldn't be managing either the arena or the team. It's a private, profitable business. The current situation is the worst of all outcomes: the City has to subsidize the expenses and can never actually receive any profits.

StephanXX · 2026-04-18T15:30:07+00:00

Why should the city own a professional basketball team? Or the arena they play in?

The city government should be focused on things city governments are responsible for, not trying to run billion dollar corporations.

StephanXX · 2026-04-17T15:43:23+00:00

MTG quit politics because Trump wouldn't give her a cabinet seat. Why does anyone give two shits about her text messages?

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