The nightmare of a second Trump term: John Oliver nails it

I really hate to keep harping on this (well, no I don't), but anyone who remains unaware of what a profound peril a second Trump "presidential" term would be -- not only for American democracy and national security but also for democracy and security across the globe -- is either willfully blind, or has been in a coma for the past eight or nine years, or is hopelessly naive, or is profoundly stupid.

I wrote at length in November of 2023 about this, outlining the specific threats posed by Trump's own "Agenda 47" and an evil, well-funded, and well-organized Christofascist tool known as "Project 2025." And of course countless others who have a much broader reach and infinitely more knowledge, experience, and insight than I do have also been sounding alarms all over the place.

And yet... and yet... Mango Mussolini has a very good chance of oozing back into the Oval Office.

I know blogs are unexciting and even, many would argue, passe, or at least somewhat unfashionable. But videos are not. And the lovely and talented John Oliver, with his characteristic John Oliver-ness, really nailed the Trump 2.0 threat on a recent edition of Last Week Tonight. If the embedded video above doesn't work, here is the direct YouTube link.

It's worth your time to watch.

And if you're eligible and registered, it's very much worth your time to vote blue this November, from the White House all the way down-ballot. Staying home, or voting for a spoiler "presidential" candidate like anti-vax/conspiranoid loon RFK Jr., are not options -- unless, of course, you want to see American and Western democracy crushed by a lethal combination of evil, cynicism, and stupidity.

Please pay attention to the warnings. Someday, and much sooner than you might think, it may be too late.

Before you leave...
This has been, through what is no apparent fault of her own (excluding, perhaps karmic matters that are quite beyond her ability to comprehend), a nightmare of a year for the ruler of this Whirled. Money, alas, cannot make the nightmare go away, but it can make it easier to bear. Now more than ever, donations are urgently needed and profoundly appreciated. Here are some ways to do it:

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Secrets of the great pyramids

John Oliver has some hilariously spot-on things to say about those pyramid schemes known as MLMs, including but not limited to the infamous Herbalife, as well as Youngevity. Here you go:

Herbalife CEO Michael O. Johnson

Granted, this was a far from comprehensive examination of the scourge of MLM, but it did cover some basic truths in a largely humorous way, without being unsympathetic to the victimized. And as Salty Droid has done in greater depth over the years, Oliver focused on the ways that some of the most economically and socially vulnerable demographics are being targeted by ubiquitous giants such as Herbalife.

I would have liked to have seen a mention of now-imprisoned serial scammer Kevin Trudeau's Global Information Network (GIN). In its glory days GIN scammed thousands of people out of millions of dollars, without even offering a tangible product that would have allowed the notorious phenomenon known as "garage qualifying" (in which participants buy their way into a certain position in the compensation plan by purchasing hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of product, which ends up unsold in their garages). The "product" for sale in the GIN MLM back in the day was a $1,000 Level One membership in GIN. But since that old GIN MLM is no longer operating at those monetary levels, I can understand why the producers would have wanted to focus on more current and higher-dollar scams.

All things considered, I think Oliver's effort is a worthy addition to the critical and cautionary content regarding MLMs. I hope it finds a wide audience.

Related on this Whirled:

• 29 April 2016: True Spanish lies: A scam in any tongue is still a scam -- Herbalife, Youngevity/Livinity and the ways they exploit Latinos
  
  
• 22 December 2013: Kevin Trudeau's pyramid continues to crumble -- The FTC declared Kevin Trudeau's Global Information Network (GIN) MLM to be an illegal pyramid scheme. (Note: The old MLM was discontinued in November 2013 but it rose again in a more modest form under GIN's new owners.)
  
  
• 9 December 2013: Tin Promises: How MLMs Can Tear Lives Apart (Part 1 of 2) -- Natch, the link to Part 2 is included.
  
  
• 16 July 2012: Back in Time with the big sick machine -- A little history, but not enough to hurt you.