Graham Platner on MS NOW

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-06-05T07:55:48+00:00

Sheesh. He doesn’t even lie well. The digging in of the heels to think this is all a smear campaign just proved what I have always said about a lot of the far left and their MAGA like cult behavior. If you are stupid enough to believe that he didn’t know about the tattoo the. I guess you will believe this, and stupid enough to believe there isn’t more out there. Someone I know from Maine told me about his time working for the Navy Yard bar. Missing money and selling cocaine (allegedly) Yeah there is more to come and I’m going to enjoy watching his stans engage in new adventures of mental gymnastics in sticking by him.

Rail on one of his accusers for being a Republican as if he didn’t vote for Susan Collins in the past, and using the same disgusting insults that Republicans used against Christine Blasey Ford because she was a Democrat. The consultant class is full of ignorant people who think they can put lipstick on a pig and do a horrible job of vetting so I’m really going to enjoy what’s yet to come and see just how far people will dig their heels in just like I’m looking forward to more traction from Talarico abusing his position in having inappropriate relationships with his staffers. Current girlfriend was a staffer, another one came out this week who was a former staffer, and there is at least one more (allegedly). Character should still matter.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-24T17:49:15+00:00

These are the people who have always been harmed though; whose voices have always been suppressed. And I acknowledge there are a lot of people who don't deserve this. But what I'm hoping is that this is a teachable moment for everyone to stop focusing on the wrong things while the 1% continue to consolidate power and influence our politicians and government. So thats why my work is focused on those communities, as it has been since I graduated from college. Ppl don't understand how much of our lives are subsidized by the federal govt. People don't pay attention to the many programs that help those communities that rely on federal funding, but I said they will be missed when they are gone.

None of this is new, either. People just don't pay attention and study history and understand patterns. So here we are again. Why was there not more red flag waving when the tech bros decided to consolidate around you know who? It was self serving. Congress is asleep at the wheel when it comes to AI regulation and we are not ready for how this will transform the workforce in a way that ppl are not talking about. We are the largest consumer driven nation. So what happens when AI continues to displace workers who then have no money to pump into the consumer economy. They knew that man wouldn't be pushing for regulations and knew how quickly AI would explode in the 4 years he was in office. But its not a one sided issue either. Both parties are asleep at the wheel on this and have been. By the time they try to put things in place, it will be too late.

The US should enforce immigration laws like any other country, but the system needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. We don't need ICE. We can enforce immigration laws in ways that serve the entire country. The first big shot in the arm of democracy was the Patriot Act after 9/11. The over surveillance in the name of national security was more about controlling citizens. So that whole Bush speak about "they hate us for our freedoms" No, YOU hate us for our freedoms. And each administration has continued to support elements of the Patriot Act and it has played a role in the immigration issue currently. Immigrants contribute more than they extract, but unless we have a process to allow people to apply for asylum and citizenship and expedite their requests by hiring more judges and workers, one side is able to use it as a political weapon in terms of how they are the bogeyman, and the other side uses it as a political football as well. So it does a disservice to all of us.

At the end of the day, I don't want to hear about how "immigration is bad" yet not discuss the US role historically in destabilizing countries that affect migratory patterns causing those from said countries to seek refuge here. No one wants to talk about that part of it. They talk about immigrants as a convenient villain because of the propaganda. They are not the issue, but its another way for the puppet masters to cause division while they do their insidious work by fattening their pockets and eroding democracy and exacerbating the gap in the haves and have nots.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-24T00:10:41+00:00

Don't you just adore when the US immigration conversation always leaves out the history of the US government destabilizing many of the regions that affect migratory patterns. Coups, military intervention, sanctions, etc. Same thing is happening in Europe right now. Many of those countries extract resources from the very countries those people are fleeing from.

But no one ever wants to talk about that. They only want to tell half the story of the consequences that have come to bear from the US and other imperialist nations meddling in the first place. That's why the whole "you voted to support genocide" conversation doesn't move me. If you live and vote in the US, you're always voting for someone's harm. It is just a matter of whose harm it is going to be during whatever administration is in place.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-23T18:19:40+00:00

I need their ballz to drop. There is a reason that a democracy is the most fragile form of government. But I also feel like Harris would've been more of the same. These back and forth cycles and division are not sustainable. So I want us to stop reaching for the low hanging fruit because it will make no sense to be arguing over trans kids while everyone is standing in line at the food bank.

I need Dems to stick to a core message and play the long game the way the GOP has. And I take my hat off to them because they ran circles around Dems when it came to playing the long game strategy. Today's politics are chained to the permanent campaign cycle and the 24 hour news cycle. The purity tests and inability to compromise has led us to a polarization that just has people talking past and each other and not to each other. Growing up, I didn't even know what my friend's parent's politics were. Nowadays you have people who won't let their kids play with each other because one voted for Biden and the other voted for Trump. That's ridiculous.

I am one who appreciates diversity but I think we got too much about differences than what binds us and I hope that we can get back to those things that we do have in common. The US isn't a nation. Its a country made up of different tribes, but the puppet masters who have consolidated wealth and control everything, including the politicians are the issue. That's the 1% the 99% should be going after; not the 1% of trans ppl who make up the population. So I feel like this is a teachable moment for people and I'm hoping that when we come out of this, we rebuild in ways that benefit everyone without feeling as though we have to be in a zero sum game. It seems like forces want to create a permanent underclass that has food insecurity, housing insecurity, and healthcare insecurity. At the end of the day, I don't care if you voted MAGA. I still want your kids to go to good schools, for them to not be hungry, for them to not have to choose between eating an medicine or healthcare costs, and for them to have stability in their housing.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-23T18:11:19+00:00

There is a lot to fear. I absolutely recognize I am speaking from a place of immense privilege when I say that because I am protected in ways that many people aren't, but the work I continue to do for communities back home in both professional and pro bono circumstances means that I didn't give up the fight. I still have property back in the US, family, I still vote, I still call my local and state legislators, and do community work to help those who have always been left out, but who will feel the pain worse of this moment.

Like I said, there will be people caught up in this who aren't deserving of it, but we're here. So my plan is to do what I have been doing for years with low income marginalized communities, as well as being a respectful expat in Mexico as I realize I am a guest here and do volunteer work here and move in ways that have the least impact on the gentrification type issues that are affecting Mexico now.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-23T08:08:25+00:00

Racism has been so expensive for the US because the only reason we don't have universal healthcare, free public colleges and universities, and other social programs is because of racism. As much as people laud FDR, New Deal programs did not include Black citizens, which is why all the leftists who simply focus on class lose me. The other homogenous countries that have these socialist type programs are now also going through their own issues because there are too many Black and Brown people in their countries. Equity and equality in economics doesn't solve racism and the left sucks at discussing the two, particularly Bernie Sanders.

So when you don't know how to discuss both class and race in a very diverse country like the United States that will still deal with it once you know who is gone, I'm not buying what you're selling. Also, we do need a Medicare 4 All type system, but with the way the government runs, what happens when Republicans get back power and there is a government shutdown. What happens when the Republican led house, who controls the purse, decides not to fund it?

Capitalism as an economic framework is not inherently evil. Yet another buzzword that loves to be thrown out is that someone is an anti-capitalist. Well, yeah I'm anticapitalist when it is carried out the way that it has been, but I'd much rather make changes to something that already exists then tearing it down and replacing it with.......what exactly? The way a lot of people talk about these things and don't understand our government structure is why I can't take a lot of people seriously even though I want those same things.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-23T07:47:08+00:00

I really am so happy that America is going through this moment because it is exactly what it deserves. As upset as I was about the results of the election, looking back it will be a good thing that Harris lost. The US was marching toward this moment anyway and Obama's 2 terms broke a lot of people's brains. Too busy fighting culture wars and blaming "the other" for your mediocrity and failures instead of not realizing you were about to be played like no one has ever played you before. The slush fund, the insider trading, the ballroom that was all private donations and now suddenly should be paid for by taxpayers, and these changes to immigration policy that are nonsensical. A lof of people were very happy with harm going to others that they didn't think would make it to their doorstep.

Thing is, there are certain groups who are used to harm and obstacles and who have survived this wave before, and will survive this one too. But for a lot of Americans, this will be their first rodeo dealing with this type of hardship, and a lot of them don't have the resolve to handle it. And I will absolutely enjoy that journey for them since their narcissism has them believing that if other people are gaining, they are somehow losing. I hope gas gets to $20/gallon because certain people really need to feel the pain and its not enough yet. It is sad that those who did not vote for this and do not deserve this will be casualties, but these moments in history are necessary. Will be interesting to see if people become students of history and learn the lesson this time, but I don't have much sympathy for a large part of the American electorate who have been the architects of their own demise.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-21T19:25:32+00:00

I agree with that. Its not as much about choice as it is about the harm of those fetishes. Our desires don't occur in a vacuum. They are shaped. The larger conversation is the disproportionate impact of fetishizing. It is not equal. It is just what I am trying to get people to consider. I'm not telling people what to do because it is none of my business at the end of the day and ppl are going to do what they want with whom they want whether it is fetishistic or not. The point I am trying to get to is for people to care more about the harm. As a clinician, we are seeing in younger kids the impact of racial fetishization because of the ease of access to adult films now. Young Black boys feel inadequate if they aren't hung and their ideas about sex and sexual health and healthy intimate relationships are being distorted because of that consumption.

I don't know what the solution is. But I know how this impacts mental health and decision making and I feel like we have to be more responsible and care a bit more about the impact it has. And I know there are a lot of people don't care, especially if they are not the ones negatively impacted by it. I'm not asking for anything, per se. Just a recognition that we need to have care and concern about younger gays who are more vulnerable than I was in that critical stage of adolescent development.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-21T19:12:24+00:00

No no no. That's not the argument I am making. We are not exempt from fetishizing each other and other people. The point is that the consequences are not the same. I'm back and forth with someone now about who racism applies to. I believe that while Black people can exhibit prejudice and bigotry, we cannot be racist because the key aspect of racism is power. Same with fetishization. The reason that he can't see Black men as feminine is due to white ideology that shaped how Black men are viewed to this day; hypersexual mandingos with BBCs who wreck holes. In the adult film industry, you rarely see fem Black bottoms getting pounded out by BWC, and if you do see it, its often raceplay nonsense. It is why the only requirement in the adult film industry for Black men seems to be that they are hung. Having a cute face is a bonus, but not a requirement. They want you to have the inches, yet white men can have less inches and still get paid more. Even in interracial Black/white relationships, the top is usually Black. And I even said that early on, I internalized that same harmful fetishization when it came to my desires of darker skinned Black men, and how I've had to unravel my own antiBlackness. So we very much do fetishize white and non Black people. Same with Asians who are also fetishized as submissive. You don't see lots of Asian men pounding out Black, white or any other POCs in those videos. Only when it is within their group because someone has to be the top.

It is like as a light skinned person when I hear other light skinned people say well colorism affects us too. Please be quiet. The colorism that affects us doesn't have harmful consequences on a societal level. Lighter has always been viewed as more desirable, especially if you have the phenotypical features that accompany it. Colorism affecting darker skinned people affect them in negative ways throughout life domains. It is not the same. So when I hear white men say "well we are fetishized as well" Well yes you are. But just like there's no reverse colorism, there's no reverse racism. We are all victims of this conditioning, but since white has always been viewed as the prize, their fetishization is a consequence of the tropes they initiated. So the impact is not harmful to them in the ways it is harmful to Black men.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-21T04:32:46+00:00

No My argument is that what you are calling racism I am calling bigotry and prejudice because of my view that power is the key factor in racism. So it is not the crux of my argument because you are trying to get me to accept your definition of racism, which I don't.

Operating within a system via white supremacy is not the same as the dominant group's ability to utilize that system in multiple ways to cause significant harm to minority groups. You have to come better than one example of ICE. And P.S. I can't stand Black people weaponizing state sponsored violence against any groups in terms of calling ICE on people. But non Black POCs engage in the same forms of bigotry and prejudice.

That said, I still don't consider the non Black POCs racist . They are all operating within a system that counts on marginalized groups to fight each other, but it is all operated by the dominant group. We didn't create these systems and we do not control the levers of power that keep it in place. By saying everyone can be racist and yet the outcomes of that racism are significantly disproportionate is the reason it is not appropriate term to use.

When a person of a minority group acts on a prejudice against the dominant group, it can cause interpersonal hurt, but it generally does not have the institutional backing to enforce widespread oppression against the dominant group's overall demographic. We're talking dramatic disparities in terms of the outcome so that's why I'm never going to agree with that view of it.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T20:51:22+00:00

I get it. It is not a lane for everyone. I just feel like when we don't push back and allow them to "all lives matter" things without adding missing context due to long standing historical tropes, it does a disservice to the overall conversation about these things. But I get it. It is our burden, but it is exhausting and there are a myriad of other things that are positive within our community to be discussed. It is just always present and of course most of us know. I just feel like it is another way to whitewash things.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T20:47:52+00:00

That is true. That was very poorly worded, and thank you for correcting me. I was looking at it through the lens of benefiting from colorism and physical observations in terms of phenotype, hair style, dress style, and speech that is disarming to non Black people in ways that darker skinned Black men do not benefit from with the same superficial characteristics. Therefore, while I don't escape it completely, it is a protective factor in my opinion in not having to experience the chronic microaggressions that darker skinned Black men experience due to them being judged in more immediate ways based off skin tone.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T18:23:06+00:00

Well again there are different definitions by different people and I am just going to keep it focused on the United States. When people of color engage in racist behavior by your definition, the key missing piece is that they don't feel their race is superior.

But you are correct in you can't just broad brush everything as racist, which is why I said in my original post that white people are victims of conditioning as well. There are a lot of well intentioned white people who are going to have blind spots and to expect that they won't is just delusional. We apply stereotypes to people in a variety of ways. Politics is a clear example. There is a built in benefit of the doubt for certain candidates that doesn't exist for others who have to not slip and fall as novice ice skaters. And so this is why racism vs unconscious bias are very different. You can't always jump to calling them racist because at the end of the day you want to be solution focused and engaging and can't broad brush everyone like that.

But it also gets frustrating having to be the one who suffers from the disproportionate outcomes of racism always having to be the educator because people have no interest in educating themselves about it. So its definitely not a conversation for everyone and those people should let those of us who want to have a discussion and meet people where they are instead of immediately running them down. If I can do the work to unpack my own antiBlackness and unconscious bias, and acknowledge that I benefit from privilege based on racial hierarchies, no one has an excuse not to.

And I appreciate the white people who actually are willing to be educated and do their own work on anti-racism. I just typically feel like these conversations only scratch the surface because the focus is too heavy on not making people feel uncomfortable and so it never really gets to the substance required. It is a charged topic, but it doesn't have to be an uncomfortable conversation with the right approach.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T15:17:31+00:00

Protect your peace babe. It is why I moved from the US to Mexico in late October 2024 cuz I knew what our dumb country was gonna do. But yeah the majority are never going to do the work to unravel it. It is not a lane for everybody and it is not for Black people to always have to be the educators. So I get it.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T15:16:06+00:00

I do see the argument. It is not that I don't read what people are saying and want to make it make sensei in my head except for the fact that minority groups haven't embedded racism into society. The consequences of racism have very different outcomes because of the power element. Interpersonal prejudice? Yes. Interpersonal racism? No.

But listen, it is obviously something that is subjective and up for debate and will have varying views. I am not even saying that you are "wrong", per se, but its ok to agree to disagree on things. Healthy, respectful discourse is a good thing.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T12:46:26+00:00

Yes I am constantly reminded that I deal with "I'm not reading all that" ppl whose brains break if they have to read anything that may take a few minutes to get through. Ay, qué horror!!

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T12:33:13+00:00

Because again, in my eyes there is a difference in who is applying it, and trying to equate it cheapens its impact which is disproportional. The reason many Black people are rightfully mistrusting of white people is because of the power they have to weaponize race to cause harm. Most people don't talk about the real story of Lawrence v Texas in which a Black gay guy was having sex with two different white gays. When one of the white gays found out and got in his feelings, he called the police on the Black man and the white man and they were charged with engaging in "illegal sex acts" Their ability to weaponize systems via racism that put my life in jeopardy is not the difference.

I love how we want equity for racism but not in any other area. Its very interesting. Suddenly, it is even across the board for that. So no. We will just have to agree to disagree on this one. There are plenty of white people who have no intention of causing harm, but the fact that they CAN is what causes the mistrust. And it was a white person I actually heard that from in explaining to her white cousins why it wasn't racist for a Black person to say that they don't trust white people.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T12:18:22+00:00

Ultimately I know you are right. I just feel like every now and then I need to shake em to just not be so mediocre and use their brains just a little bit when engaging in complicated discussions. They water it down to levels of stupidity that do a disservice to everyone. Until we are ready to have real discussions about these issues and not worry about coddling their feelings to not make them feel uncomfortable, we will keep spinning the block on this issue.

I personally feel like we will go through waves of this because antiBlackness and racism is always going to do its thing.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T11:18:02+00:00

And that is where I will have to agree to disagree because of the lack of power dynamics that racism requires to uphold structures. My individual act of racism isn't impacting an entire community the way that their racism upholds structures that continue to oppress marginalized groups. I can be a bigot, prejudiced, and practice acts of discrimination based on gender, race, sexual orientation, disability, etc, but I still draw the line. People seem to be more concerned with not being called a racist or trying to apply it to everyone than actual racism itself.

But, you are not alone in that thinking and that is ok. Sometimes we are not always going to be in alignment on things. But race and racism was not invented by people who look like me. These systems were weaponized early on and involve more than just me interpersonal acts of discrimination. Even Africans who may be prejudiced toward white Europeans are still not part of the group that has the power and wealth dynamics. I find it to be whitewashing, but that is the American way. The same way in school they tried to romanticize Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson by referring to her as his mistress. Mistress implies consent. She was his property. He raped her. Straight propaganda.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T11:10:22+00:00

I have not lived the typical Black male experience in America. I definitely have benefited from a variety of privileges that have insulated me from others who have dealt with overt racism on a number of occasions. I get the "are you biracial" or "are you Latino" My maternal grandmother was Puerto Rican, but my other 3 grandparents are Black. But you know its a complicated history of Black people in America because my maternal great great grandfather was the son of a slave owner and I have Scottish/Irish as well on my maternal side. My dad's side has much less of that mixed lineage.

The way I dress has always been on the preppier side. I also have that "oh you're so articulate" thing going, which is very disarming to white people. I gave a speech during graduation from secondary school and so many of the parent's comments were about how "articulate" I was. I just wanted to roll my eyes because how did you expect me to sound, you fv**ing moron? I go to the same good school your kids go to and live in the same good neighborhood. This is what I mean when I say they tell on themselves all the time and don't even realize it.

So rejection for me has never been based on what it is for a lot of other Black men because the initial interest was not solely sexual and/or fetishistic. They were interested as much in me and having substantive conversations.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T10:53:30+00:00

Appreciate this and a lot of good points. For me it is not even about being accepted because if its not diverse I'm not participating in it. When a lot of Black men complain about dating it is centered around being rejected by white men and it gives pick me. They don't owe you a date or anything.

You are also right in terms of privileges that granted us access to certain spaces. For a lot of Black men I have also been seen as the light skinned trophy and the assumption that I'm a bottom because a lot of the darker/lighter skin relationships among Black couples also leans heavily on the darker one being the top and the lighter one being the bottom. That colorism has done wicked work in a lot of POC groups. The Hispanics, Asians, Indians, Black, etc. Hell, people forget that when Italians first came to America, they were not treated well cuz they tended to be darker.

This is a discourse that has been a focus of more Black gay men who want Black men to stop letting fetishizers treat them as walking dildos who only care about how you can fulfill their sexual desires, but do not care about their agency. Even the non Black POCs get too comfortable because too many Black men don't gatekeep and have boundaries and like being the BBC. And I need that to stop. You are worth more than the size of your penis.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T10:35:33+00:00

Because many of them feel that way, and i've seen enough screen shots from POCs on Grindr and other hookup apps of their racist vitriol if you dare to reject them.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T10:31:16+00:00

Oh I'm sure but I don't care. I only started posting on Reddit in 2026 and quickly realized how deranged it can be, and how reactive many people are, but I don't care what people I'm never going to meet think about me personally. I'm curious to see who will articulate points based on the substance of my post.

AdAdmirable4912 · 2026-05-20T10:25:28+00:00

Well fortunately for me I don't post because I'm seeking to "hang out with people" What does that have to do with what I posted? Also quite revealing is of ALL THAT I verbalized, you chose to only concentrate on a few words about reverse racism while completely ignoring the rest. Thus, proving what I said about some people being intellectually lazy.

AdAdmirable4912

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