Maryellen Noreika Never Answered Mark Scarsi’s Question Trial Attention: Don’t Let a Pecker Distract from More Important Stor... 
Maryellen Noreika Never Answered Mark Scarsi’s Question Trial Attention: Don’t Let a Pecker Distract from More Important Stor...
Great show. The normalization of political violence in the U.S. was something I didn’t really understand until hearing it described like this. I heard that threats against federal judges are up by a large factor (3x ?) in the last few years, but I didn’t make the connection between the far-right agitators on Faux News and other RWNM and this normalization, but it makes total sense.
One of Donald Trump’s superpowers is his inability to be shamed. He just rejects the framing of any argument against him, and refuses to accept that there are any rules, norms or laws that should apply to him. He has given a huge number of Americans permission to unleash the worst parts of themselves, and the U.S. may be grappling with the consequences for a long time.
That’s right, Dopefish. Everyone knows there are going to be long-term “consequences” for our culture, but what you are describing will have been some kind of profound shift in the mileau, or a person’s social environment. That right there get’s at the problem, because a person is just an individual. A person can’t talk about changes to the mileau just like Shaquille O’Neil can’t describe the Wheaties Box he’s on, even though he’s holding a Wheaties Box, and on that box there’s Shaqueile O’Neil on it holding a Wheaties Box, that he can look at. It’s easy to attribute someone’s sense of the mileau to whatever you want from “they’re mad they lost the election” or “they’re nuts”.
By systems levels analogy it might shed light to journey from the person walking around in milieau to their organ systems, tissues, and cells. A single cell is an open dynamic steady state system where nothing changes without changes also occuring in chemistry or physics. Society over person over organ system cells macromolecules atoms quarks. So society is like a cell. They are both open, steady state dynamic systems with a history. I think in systems levels analogy the dismemberment of the letter of the law from the spirit, truth from fiction, and love from life in the transition to fascism is like a cell that recognizes it is corrupt, not cancer per se, but understands this like a cell whose retinoblastoma protein is telling it to self-annihilate in apoptosis or descent to a terror state which is like cellular senescence.
Do you mean milieu?
milieu – a person’s social environment
I don’t think I’ve ever spelled it right yet.
Apologies
Lieu means place, like in lieu means in place of.
Milieu is then my place. Hope that helps future spelling.
You have given me the key to milieu. I spelled it right that time! And I believe I need to think more about transcendence over the social in cognition, where dynamics can be at hand while you are simultaneously a participant, so a society entering senescence might save itself from terror by re-historicizing, like a husband and wife who are psychologists might realize that their way of walking away from each other when they need space has conditioned them through negative reinforcement to escape and avoidance. Oh honey, that’s why we’re not talking anymore. You transcend the social system you see the dynamic I think. Thanks for “milieu” milady!
I’m 55 yrs old and I remember listening to Rush Limbaugh on the am radio back in the mid 90s while flipping through channels (other choices besides right wing hate were sports, Christianity and Hispanic music).
Then I saw pathological lying on Fox “news”. Decades go by and I wondered: “Who believes this crap?”
Fox’s popularity explodes…..I thought “Where is all this BS leading?”
I have my answer. 1,500 AM radio stations, Fox, Alex Jones, etc….it all brought us DJT, 1/6 and whatever next horrors they unleash. Roughly 25% of the US thinks Sandy Hook was fake. Political violence is being normalized.
I didn’t speak out as much as I wish I had. Would it have made a difference? I don’t know.
But the time to remain silent has long passed….
Thanks for what you do, Ladies and keep up the good work!
Other than one lawyer in the HBO documentary “The Truth vs. Alex Jones” saying something similar, do you have a citation for:
“Roughly 25% of the US thinks Sandy Hook was fake” ?
Thanks in advance.
“Nearly one in five Americans…” Not 25%, but close enough. The associated poll results are at least as troubling.
https://today.yougov.com/politics/articles/43432-most-americans-dont-trust-alex-jones-poll
I personally blame the greedy studios that didn’t want to pay their talent in 2007.
After remand from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, District Judge Amit Mehta has ruled that the civil damages actions against Donald Trump arising out of the events of January 6 need not be stayed pending resolution of the criminal case brought against Trump.by the Special Counsel. https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/24555476/ddc_1_21-cv-00400-apm_106_0.pdf The case will now proceed to discovery to determine whether Trump’s alleged conduct “can reasonably be understood as the official actions of an office-holder rather than the unofficial actions of an office-seeker.” Blassingame v. Trump, 87 F4th 1, 30 (D.C. Cir. 2023).
By January 6, 2021, Trump was not an Office seeker. He fully lost every legal and sensical challenge to the election results and was at that time an office denier. And sure you can argue that a violent coup attempt would fall under office holder trying to remain the holder, but a failed coup nonetheless. Here’s to hoping he becomes a cell holder.
Just a small note about audio: I’m no audio expert but is there anything Marcy can do to help better match Nicole Sandler’s audio? Whether it’s microphone, recording space, etc. the contrast between the two gets wearisome after awhile. I love spending part of my Fridays with these two and look forward to it every week. Just hoping for some audio improvements over time.
Huntaurd I’m going deaf & my hearing aids & nerves are highly offended by the echoing on Marcy’s end. I was told Spotify had transcripts but alas, I cannot find them. I even emailed customer service. I also hope some sort of adjustment might be made.
Chill. They are two different people interacting on the internet from two different continents. You get what you pay for, don’t whine.
spoken (written) like a person who doesn’t personally have to deal with hearing impairment
Sorry to read of your hearing issues.
Pot? Kettle.
Kettle? Pot.
Nice to meetcha.
[Moderator’s note: These Fridays comment threads have been treated as open but engaging in tit-for-tat exchanges with other commenters denies use of this thread by other community members for cogent discussion. End it here. /~Rayne]
Nicole is close-mic’d in a dead room, Marcy’s mic is far away in a live room.
EW should get a decent mic and stand and speak with it a few inches from her mouth, wear headphones, and do it from a clothes closet.
If you have access, the Apple podcast has no such issues.
‘Hope that helps.
I was traveling this week. So circumstances were not optimal.
We are working, generally, on sound quality. It’s not easy given the distance (8 time zones in summer). But we are working on it.
‘Nuff Said.
We should be realistic about the limits of audio over multiple networks over that distance. Each hop between network devices adds latency; network traffic volume can cause jitter and distortion; differences in devices and software at each end also challenge sound quality. Exact match of audio output at both ends for recording without any lag or distortion is unlikely unless an asynchronous interview format was used with exactly the same equipment, recording environment, and software at each end.
There is a recording tool that bypasses the issue that Rayne mentions – Squadcast (now integrated into the Descript audio editor) will capture audio on each speaker’s local computer, then stream the audio to the cloud, without the compression loss that would occur if the transmitted audio were used. Then the recording volume of each speaker can be adjusted as needed, any echoing removed, and audio components combined back into the actual conversation. It’s a game changer.
I don’t personally have an audio problem, but Marcy’s voice has a higher frequency than Nicole’s. Perhaps that is part of the problem.
I didn’t have any problem with this week’s podcast – clear as a bell to my ears, on both sides of the podcast. In the past there have been annoying glitches with the sound apparently going through a reverb unit, that Nicole was able to clean up after the live broadcast was over.
Same here
We are working on Marcy’s audio. There is a new mic and headset (I believe) on their way to Marcy, courtesy of our friend Spocko. Hopefully she’ll have them there and we’ll get it all tested before we reconvene again on Friday. Just know we are working on it.
Here’s the link for this week’s episode on Spotify. There’s a place on this page to click for the transcription: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3J9n2hOXP9GUGG6IzTJALE
[1:50] TRUMP election interference / hush money trial
[36:20] SCOTUS case [FISCHER] re: obstruction charge 18USC 1512(c)(2)
re: differences between #J6 and protests/riots in Portland, and at Kavanaugh confirmation hearings
[45:00] TRUMP’s immunity argument at SCOTUS
Civil cases against TRUMP [official/presidential acts]
[51:00] re: BARR says he’s voting for TRUMP
[55:15] News: Jury in TRUMP trial is seated
[56:43] CONGRESS
Ukraine funding
MTG:
Republican v. Republican:
re: McCARTHY / JOHNSON [1:03:01]
Harpie to the rescue once again. TYH!
Re: the Trump trial and a smarter than average jury, Lawfare has a deep dive into the jury/alternate selections and process.
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/and-we-have-a-jury-faster-than-expected.
I don’t know about smarter than average, but they will surely be colder than average. I am liking Judge Merchan.
UKRAINE funding passes in the House: [“3 minutes ago” at 2:00 PM]
https: //www.washingtonpost. com/politics/2024/04/20/house-vote-ukraine-israel-aid-johnson/#link-3WDMXUNGMBEYJAXTA3NR6IEHIQ
Watched much of it on C-SPAN. The guy presiding also dunked on the flag waving a couple of times. And the flag wavers dunked back and waved ’em again.
All in all, a good day. I’m not normally rah, rah for war. But this one’s different; the stakes are different.
When Johnson went to Florida to meet with Trump recently, I thought no way in hell will he help Ukraine.
Tuned to Fox just for a few minutes after the vote. A guy was interviewing Liz Truss. She said all the right things as well, right up until nearly the end — and then said, if elected, Trump will be 100% all in for NATO.
Fuck. Bullshit.
I don’t know what recreational substances Truss enjoys, but it’s not helping her grip on reality. You’d think after a tenure as PM shorter than the lifespan of a head of lettuce she’d have caught the clue train but nope.
Having failed to outlast a head of lettuce as PM, I suspect Lizzy is looking for some of that lucrative American wingnut welfare. Not that the Brits don’t have their own version, but Truss doesn’t seem able to access it like Blair, Johnson, and Cameron.
Support of the Irish independence movement might not have been a US policy, but I wonder how much the Irish Americans helped the cause when Ireland regained its independence? If Ukraine continues to get US and EU support, may the Russian empire finally join the other empires in the ash bin of history?
The Russian empire was contiguous, but an empire nevertheless.
That yearning for the return of empire that hides in the hearts of many everyday Russians is the source of Putin’s power.
The similar feeling in the hearts of many English men and women delivered the disaster of ‘Brexit.’
And a similar dynamic of yearning for self-images that are thorough-going lies is at work in Trump’s MAGA mischief.
History freed of mythologizing is difficult but important work.
OT: Historian Timothy Snyder gave a talk recently about how the USA is the main variable in whether Ukraine or Russia will win that war, and also summarizing how high the stakes are: quite aside from Russia’s genocidal intent towards Ukraine, this war will also affect everything from the international rules-based order, the viability of the European Union model, the deterrence value of NATO, nuclear proliferation, the morale of U.S. and its allies in this time of democratic backsliding around the world, and frankly America’s reputation as a reliable ally or a credible foe.
He also points out that if Russia wins in Ukraine, it will control a lot more natural resources: everything from rare earths to a bigger chunk of the world’s food supply. Surviving Ukrainians would also be press-ganged into the Russian military, leaving Europe eventually facing a much bigger threat from a much more dangerous Russia.
Here is the talk:
The Peril of Slowness: American Mikstakes during Russia’s War of Aggression in Ukraine
If one is not inclined to listen to an hour-long talk, maybe start at around 37:51 where Prof. Snyder summarizes what the U.S. and the world stands to lose if Russia wins in Ukraine.
With the stakes so high, its really disturbing that so many members of Congress are willing to delay and hamstring Ukraine’s defense, when the long-term consequences of this might be extremely bad for the U.S. and other democracies around the world.
My new mantra,
It’s the Maggots Stupid.
Vote them ALL OUT
top to bottom.
The puppeteers aren’t smart enough to know when the gig is up.
Hey people, if leaders want to be big bullies, get them the fuck off the stage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdXjm8pZMws
…10 would do judge.
Rayne, hope it flies.
Here are two “international relations” people seeming to agree that MARGE most likely got her “Carpathia” talking point NOT from Russia, but from ORBAN of Hungary:
https://bsky.app/profile/smsaideman.bsky.social/post/3kqikwst2ks2s
Apr 19, 2024 at 10:51 AM
You know…the Viktor ORBAN who just visited TRUMP at M-a-L in March:
Trump praises ‘fantastic’ Viktor Orbán while hosting Hungarian autocrat at Mar-a-Lago for meeting and concert https: //www.cnn. com/2024/03/08/politics/trump-orban-mar-a-lago/index.html
Peter SZIJJARTO – ORBAN’s Foreign & Trade Minister – spoke during the General Session of the 5/16/19 -5/18/19 Council for National Policy [CNP] 2020 Vision meeting at The Ritz-Carlton in Tyson’s Corner, McLean, Virginia.
[See particularly Rayne’s comments]
https://www.emptywheel.net/2022/04/02/on-ginni-thomas-obstruction-exposure-and-clarences-former-clerk-carl-nichols/#comment-929924
The isolationist pro Russian lobby was about 1/2 of the Republican house membership, slightly more than 1/4 of the House. And the media has been allowing that faction to bully the US into policies that both parties rejected for 70 years in the aftermath of WWII.
I wonder where Orban got it.
True…from PUTIN through ORBAN most likely.
…or from Aleksandr Dugin, who is Putin’s Steve Bannon.
An always useful trope:
My apologies to our poets laureate (is this the right pluralization?) This is my first and indubitably last attempt.
Getting back to the conversation between Nicole and Marcy: I really appreciate many points but what caught my attention in the discussion about stochastic terrorism is the fact that the SCOTUS gave itself federal protections while at home/not at work, but doesn’t seem to think these protections would be necessary for other participants (witnesses, juries) in these processes.
Putin and djt have really brought out the worst in the equal applicability – purposefully – to drive us apart. (For bmaz, djt is an abbreviation of smelvis.)
Smelvis, the two-scent skunk?
Well since you guys brought it up, one question that wafted through my brain after that Meidas Touch tweet was whether some of the seated jurors who subsequently asked to be relieved of duty were actually worried about their ability to handle the job olifactorily?
Late to the party, but could he be held in continent of court?
*showing myself out now…*
More about MARGE, by Sarah Posner:
https://bsky.app/profile/sarahposner.bsky.social/post/3kqidsgj2nk2u
Apr 19, 2024 at 8:43 AM
Voters are not known to make precise distinctions between House members. The party of Greene, like the party of Nixon, may get punished for insulting the electorate.
I am not sure I’ve got the question phrased right, buy why do you compare the party of MTG and Tricky?
Despite being personally an outsider, Posner is very well sourced and has a level of understanding of that sphere better than anyone I can think of at the big print outlets right now.
She’s a great example along with MW of how news execs keep tripping on rakes by thinking that hiring insiders from the right wing will give better intel than hiring well informed outsiders.
She was just on my son’s podcast for an hour, quite a “get”. She has an impressive deep view of the origins and journey of the religion/nationalism nexus.
I’m wondering if the vote for Ukraine aid is an indication of a turning point away from TFG and the likes of Margarine Green. Maybe the combination of a long list of issues going against TFG has finally broken the dam. This week has been a disaster for Sleepy Don. How more chaotic and disorganized can the GOP get.
A widely-publicized criminal trial at which the defendant has been openly disrespectful of the judge, jury, court rules, endangered jurors and juror candidates, tampered with witnesses and the jury, has a way of cracking open the GOP’s Trumpian omertà.
He’s the star of the show. But the more he’s on TV the weaker and more mentally disorganized he appears. Without careful digital editing his chronic decline is obvious.
But whatever weakness may sneak through, Fox, Newsmax, etc., his cult blames and will blame the Deep State, Biden, deSantis, Haley, AI, his lousy lawyers, House Speaker Johnson or whatever they can think of.
And in which he has been repeatedly humiliated by prospective juror’s comments.
Thank you to Nicole and Marcy for the gift of these Friday conversations, overcoming the time zone & technical issues and each of your busy lives (especially Marcy, from what I observe here). And Rayne for posting it too (think you said you’d catch it if one of them did not).
And to Harpie for always providing details and links and herstorical record etc.
And EOH and others for excellent food for thought.
I appreciate this bonus post each week on top of all the other excellent work.
Sometimes I wish Joe was a republican, this cannibal stuff, would make good fodder.
Tomorrow, Justice Engoron in Manhattan has scheduled a hearing at which Donny Trump will be required to justify the sufficiency of his $175 million appeals bond. The NYAG filed her response memo to Trump on Friday. It nicely skewers the sufficiency of Trump’s bond.
Given the amount of the bond, Knight Specialty Insurance Company is undercapitalized. Its reinsurance arrangements with a captive affiliated insurer in an offshore tax haven may overstate its already severely inadequate surplus capital. The way in which Trump, through his eponymous trust, has secured the bond is vague about what assets are covered, and allows him leeway to substitute assets and lower the market value of the collateral, exposing the judgment creditor to unnecessary risk. Managers for KSIC and its affiliated companies have not demonstrated necessary and sufficient “trustworthiness” and “competence,” terms of art defined under NY insurance practice.
The appeals bond’s failure to include an express promise to pay the NYAG is cured by the context and NY state precedent, albeit inelegantly and with outdated language that was not used in the $83 million bond Trump obtained to appeal the E. Jean Carroll award. Coincidentally, Trump obtained that bond from a qualified NY state appeals bond issuer.
https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/24564208/james-on-trump-bond.pdf
If anybody’s missing Mehdi Hasan, he now has a YT channel as well as a substack, both called “Zeteo”. Here’s a 1/2 hour interview he did with AOC recently:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBoqy5Tx6U8