Year: 2024

Donald Trump, convicted felon, at a MAGA rally: “Beautiful company, beautiful. Guy’s been doing it for 50 years, sells hundreds of boats. They use Mercury engines. They want to take that out, they want to make it all-electric. I asked, ‘How is it?’

“He said, ‘It’s a problem, sir, they want us to make all electric boats. The problem is, the boat is so heavy, it can’t float.’ (Remember, one of the “tells” that Trump is lying is he’ll say someone else called him “sir.”)

“I said, ‘That sounds like a problem.’

“He said, ‘Also it can’t go fast because of the weight, and they want to now have a 50-mile or 70-mile radius. You have to go out 70 miles before you can really start the boat up, and you go out at two knots. That’s essentially almost like two miles an hour.’

“I said, ‘How long does it take you to get out there?’

“He said, ‘Many hours, and then you’re allowed to go around for ten minutes, and then you have to come back, because the battery only lasts a very short period of time.’

“So I said, ‘let me ask you a question,’ and he said, ‘Nobody has ever asked this question.’ And it must because of MIT, my relationship to MIT. ‘Very smart,’ he goes. (His brother John taught at MIT.)

[…]

“My colleagues, none of this today that you are bringing makes sense—your inconsistencies, your hypocrisy, your sycophancy. Unless you are in a cult,” Rep. Eric SwalWell (D-CA) said, addressing his MAGA colleagues at a June 4, 2024, congressional hearing. “And guys, I’m starting to think you’re in a cult. That is your right. But it’s not your responsibility. I promise you, that’s not what your constituents would want.”

Swallwell was responding to the MAGA party’s reaction to the conviction five days earlier of their leader, Donald Trumps, on 34 felony counts of fraud in New York.

He continued: “So if you believe in states’ rights, except when a jury in that state convicts your nominee for president, you might be in a cult.

[…]

Los Angeles Blade: In an article published Thursday in the far-right anti-LGBTQ+ online magazine The Federalist, Indianapolis-based freelance writer Ericka Andersen, who self identifies as a Christian mom and Bible study leader, attacks Country Music icon and megastar singer-songwriter Dolly Parton…

When asked about her diverse community of fans, Erickson writes, Parton always mentions Christianity, saying she does her best “not to judge” and only “to love” for that reason.”

But Parton’s version of love, which includes condoning immoral sexual behavior (“be who you are,” she’s said), is unaligned with God’s vision for humanity. Like so many secularized spiritual leaders, Parton equates love with agreement, but the two are not reciprocal. Love doesn’t mean we must accept sinfulness as good to avoid hurting someone’s feelings.