Michael, you have been a true inspiration to me and countless others. I have been inspired to work and contribute in ways I hadn’t thought of. I too enjoy and feel so inspired reading the posts others in this amazing community share and of course your wonderful podcasts and writings. I became a paid subscriber to support the cause and so I could be part of a forward thinking community. I don’t want to work you to death. Please keep inspiring us! We love your well thought out series. Please keep them coming to help move us to the amazing country we will (and I said will) become!
Michael, I salute you: you are a national treasure.
Nobody has worked harder than you to save your country ... and not just with "thoughts and prayers", but with daily practical grassroots ideas for things anybody can do - and I hope, will do - to re-make America into the inspirational country it once was.
Thank you for being a great international example of what true patriotism is: action, not blather. Optimism, not hatred. Inclusion, not division.
If you ever give up hope (which I don't think) please come to Canada where I live. Believe me, you'd be welcome. Patricia Harvie, a Canadian democracy-watcher.
Hi Michael Moore, I eagerly listened to all your podcasts. I'm trying to start a Democrats and Independents of Portland [Oregon] "DIP" and hope we can get it going on our issues. In future podcasts, would you please tell us how to get the 118+ insurrectionists out of the House of Representatives, and the few Senators who are also insurrectionists? Article 14, Section 3 says they have not right to serve in public office. So why are they there? I want YOU to tell US how to get them out RIGHT NOW.
This has been a terrific and much-needed series. I just played this final episode for a few of the early birds who are part of an online political chat room. (I've played most of the episodes in the "Democracy" room, and folks really appreciate them.)
I've gotten a copy of the 2022 general election results for Cherokee County (GA), and have been looking them over. The majority of races had a Democrat running in them, and they were all defeated by wide margins. A great place to start; nowhere to go but up.
Yesterday, on Georgia Public Radio's "Political Rewind," Senator Jon Ossoff was saying that Georgia has a LONG way to go before Democrats become competitive in statewide races. (And it appears even longer in local elections like in Cherokee County.)
42% dairy farms have been closed since 2014. We need Blue dairy cows! If you don’t know stuff like this, you will never win in Trump country. Even though he knows nothing about the struggles of the rural family. Republicans to possession.
Hit 4H up for young Dems. These topics are issues not sexy but real issues.
The search is on for the next chair of the Florida Democratic Party. It comes after the current leader, Manny Diaz, abruptly resigned Monday.
The former mayor of Miami served in the spot for a year and oversaw a series of brutal defeats during the November midterms. This included Republicans sweeping the Florida Cabinet, keeping the governor's office and a U.S. Senate seat. The GOP also nabbed super majorities in both chambers of the state Legislature.
Some speculate former Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried will make a run as the last Democrat to win statewide office in Florida. Online, Tallahassee City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow and former state Sen. Annette Taddeo have announced interest. #SomethingNew #WontBackDown 🏃♀️
I live in the red sea, believe it or not, 30 miles north of NYC in the Hudson Valley. We lost our Democratic Congressman, Sean Maloney and my town hasn't elected a Democrat to any position in 12 years. It's a 65 - 35 vote every election and it's getting hard to find people who want to run when they know they're going to get their butt kicked. It's been one party rule for a long time.
Last Spring the regular Dems all quit. A few of us picked up the pieces and have grown our group basically from scratch. With a great young woman candidate and tons of work we nearly doubled the number of Dem votes in this last election.
We've all listened to your podcast and are taking it to heart. This year we're going to run a strategic Good Neighbor - Good People effort, along with the tactical requirements of the campaign.
Long story, short. If you know any "Sister" group in NYC or in the metropolitan area we'd love the help.
We're a short drive from the City and we're a fun group. We have a big annual get together where we gather apples from local orchards and go to a friend's property in upstate NY to do a cider pressing. Music , food and drink. We'd love to have our "Sister" come experience the area with us. Michael you're invited if you're ever in town.
Any help you can give would be greatly appreciated,
I am here to confirm that every bit of advice that Michael has given you works! That's because it's exactly what my friends and I did in Eastern Ohio – back in 2016. We reinvented our own Democratic party as soon as we got over the initial shock of Trump's win and acknowledged the nightmare we were about to face. I literally wrote our mission statement in my head as I drove to our first meeting and that's how the Jefferson County Progressive Democratic Coalition was born. We created and carried out a game plan that mirrors all the suggestions you've been hearing from Mike during these 12 podcasts. We began with community projects to introduce ourselves and let everyone know that we were there for them. Those included things like cleaning up local parks on Earth Day. When a fire at the local VFW destroyed all the wreaths that members place on veterans' graves, we replaced them. We got noticed for doing the right thing, and put our group on everyone's radar, including the local MAGAs, whose heads exploded because we “stole their veterans!” LOL Most importantly, we began to take charge of a positive message about Democrats and spread it far and wide. Our most effective tool was submitting a letter to the editor of our local newspaper every week from the day of Trump's inauguration to the day of his epic failure to get re-elected. Every. Single. Week. We became the “go to” organization whenever local media needed a soundbite and when Democratic candidates needed campaign help. We took back the stranglehold MAGAs claimed to have on patriotism by holding free picnics to honor veterans and first responders, and politicians showed up to talk to all the people who came for free food. We reclaimed the profile and reputation that Democrats here had for years until they got complacent or just worn down by aggressive conservative rhetoric. We said, “it's our flag too; it's our government too; it's our country too!” To get started, you only need to follow a few suggestions and get the word out about what you're doing. Thank you, Michael; your advice is spot-on and my friends and I are proof that it works!
Keenan Anderson completed his teaching credential program at Antioch University Los Angeles. A father and a teacher, he was committed to helping young people become their best selves. The courses that he took reinforced his social justice point of view and his desire to help young people think critically and to be upstanders, people who stand against oppression, key practices that are part of the Antioch legacy. It is tragic that such a person is no longer with us and no longer a model for the many students he may have influenced. We miss him.
Given his shortened legacy, our best response is to critically examine tasers as a method of restraint by police and evidence of the resulting injury and death of the use of tasers is worthy of a serious examination. The research and reports however are contradictory.
What is a taser and how does it work? “TASER” is the brand name of an electroshock weapon that is designed to incapacitate. The word “Taser” has become so popular that it is generally used to describe any hand-held electric-discharging muscle immobilizer. Tasers are sometimes referred to more descriptively as conducted energy devices, conducted energy weapons, electronic control devices or electronic control weapons
There are various models on the market but all are hand-held weapons that shoot barbed dart-like electrodes (often referred to as darts) that are intended to incapacitate a person by paralyzing his or her nervous system. Each Taser cartridge is single-use and contains a nitrogen charge and electrodes, which are propelled by the charge. The darts are attached to the main component with thin copper wires. The darts are designed with pointed tips and are barbed. This helps the darts to pierce the skin and clothing and to remain affixed to the individual.
The taser delivers 19 short pulses per second over 5 seconds, with an average current of 2 milliamps, according to TASER manufacturer Axon. It creates an electric field, which stimulates nerve cells called alpha motor neurons to send an electrical impulse. The impulse travels to muscles and causes short, sustained muscle contractions.
The taser has two modes: the first, pulse mode, causes neuromuscular incapacitation as the neural signals that control muscles become uncoordinated, and muscles contract at random. The second mode, drive-stun, uses pain to get compliance. What else does a TASER do?
In an article from 2012 by Christian Nordqvist, she reported a study by Douglas P. Zipes, M.D. He stated that “Law enforcement and other individuals using a stun gun need to be aware that cardiac arrest can occur, however infrequently, and therefore it should be used judiciously. An ECD shock delivered through the chest wall can ‘capture’ the heartbeat, taking over the heart’s natural ability to regulate itself. A fighting, fleeing individual might have a normal heart rate of 150, but the ECD shock may increase that rate substantially This can lead to ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation that stops normal blood flow”. Sports enthusiasts became much smarter about the health of our hearts as Bills player Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field after being tackled. The rhythm of the heart when disrupted can cause death.
In 2017 Peter Eisler, Jason Szep, Tim Reid and Grant Smith compiled the most detailed study ever of fatalities and litigation involving police use of stun guns. Reuters found more than 150 autopsy reports citing Tasers as a cause or contributor to deaths across America and have documented a total of at least 1.081 U.S. deaths following the use of Tasers since they began to be used in the early 2000s. Behind the fatalities is a sobering reality: Many who die are among society’s vulnerable – unarmed, in psychological distress and seeking help and showed that many cases involved high-risk subjects, such as people agitated by drugs or mental illness, people with heart problems, people who are very young or very old or very frail
As police departments have become more aware of Tasers’ risks and limitations, a growing number have restricted their use, says Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) think tank. Still, many officers remain unaware of the hazards when they encounter those vulnerable to a Taser’s shock, Wexler warns.
On the other side of this issue is Axon Enterprise Inc , the Taser’s manufacturer. They say most deaths involving the weapons are a result of drug use, underlying physiological conditions, such as heart problems, or other police force used along with the Taser.
Axon argues that most cause-of-death rulings implicating its weapons are misinformed and said in an email that Tasers albeit “not risk free” are “the most safe and effective less-lethal use of force tool available to law enforcement.”
And from another point of view from an ABC News report by Dr. Sima Patel (2018 )the response is also relatively positive. Patel describes the actual electrical process.
The current -- either direct, DC, or alternating, AC -- is the rate at which electrons going down a wire travel per second. Alternating current is what is typically used in wall sockets and it's more dangerous, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association, causing more extreme muscle contraction.
An ampere, or amp, is the unit used to measure current. A small current -- 200 microamps –- applied directly to the heart can cause a fatal rhythm. However, TASER currents don’t reach the heart. Humans have protective mechanisms: The skin, which provides high resistance to electricity, and soft tissue, which surrounds muscles and organs like the heart, also reduce the current.
For people without heart issues, the electrical discharges of the TASER device are too short to affect the heart muscle or cause abnormal heart rhythms. Even for those with heart conditions, the proper use of the device does not appear to cause issues. One of the first studies of TASERs on humans, published by the Academy of Emergency Medicine in 2006, looked at their effect on individuals with a known pre-condition. The study participants were shot in the back with a TASER and researchers measured blood markers of heart damage and did a test called an EKG, or electrocardiogram. They did not find any negative effects.
Complications related to the brain or nervous system are rare, but do occur, including loss of consciousness, seizures, abnormal brain activity and confusion. This is more likely to occur if a subject is shot at a close distance or directly to the head, which is not usually the case since those are not the recommended targets. The probability of causing a seizure is very low.
Dr. Zipes said that “The purpose of this (his) article is not to condemn stun gun use by trained professionals. Law enforcement experts must make those decisions, not physicians.”
To honor Keenan we need to call upon the law enforcement community to re-evaluate tasers, read the research and determine whether the risk outweighs the benefit. Think about what you saw and what you have read and write your concerns to anyone who will listen. It is true that we do not know what effect the taser had on him. We may never know. But given the research it is possible that it was a significant contributing factor in his death. Be an upstander for Keenan and learn about tasers and ask your police departments to investigate their use. It’s the least we can do.
Already, here in Texas, a judge has actually struck down part of that horrendous law that allows anyone to collect 10 grand if someone has helped a woman have an abortion. Unfortunately, the law is still on the books, but that strike-down is a great start.
Michael, I am so ready to do this. Have to figure it out. I’m a native New Yorker, living in India....I love the music you selected for this mini pod. Thank you, thank you. We’ve got serious work to do.
Michael, you have been a true inspiration to me and countless others. I have been inspired to work and contribute in ways I hadn’t thought of. I too enjoy and feel so inspired reading the posts others in this amazing community share and of course your wonderful podcasts and writings. I became a paid subscriber to support the cause and so I could be part of a forward thinking community. I don’t want to work you to death. Please keep inspiring us! We love your well thought out series. Please keep them coming to help move us to the amazing country we will (and I said will) become!
Thank you, Michael...We rural Michigan Dems and Independents are with you and will get going on the great strategies you discussed. Stay tuned...
Michael, I salute you: you are a national treasure.
Nobody has worked harder than you to save your country ... and not just with "thoughts and prayers", but with daily practical grassroots ideas for things anybody can do - and I hope, will do - to re-make America into the inspirational country it once was.
Thank you for being a great international example of what true patriotism is: action, not blather. Optimism, not hatred. Inclusion, not division.
If you ever give up hope (which I don't think) please come to Canada where I live. Believe me, you'd be welcome. Patricia Harvie, a Canadian democracy-watcher.
WELL DONE, MIKE - ALL 12!
JOHN E. CARROLL, New Hampshire
I live in Antrim County, where Michael lived. But I'm the chair of the Michigan Rural Caucus, so we are all over the state.
Hi Michael Moore, I eagerly listened to all your podcasts. I'm trying to start a Democrats and Independents of Portland [Oregon] "DIP" and hope we can get it going on our issues. In future podcasts, would you please tell us how to get the 118+ insurrectionists out of the House of Representatives, and the few Senators who are also insurrectionists? Article 14, Section 3 says they have not right to serve in public office. So why are they there? I want YOU to tell US how to get them out RIGHT NOW.
This has been a terrific and much-needed series. I just played this final episode for a few of the early birds who are part of an online political chat room. (I've played most of the episodes in the "Democracy" room, and folks really appreciate them.)
I've gotten a copy of the 2022 general election results for Cherokee County (GA), and have been looking them over. The majority of races had a Democrat running in them, and they were all defeated by wide margins. A great place to start; nowhere to go but up.
Yesterday, on Georgia Public Radio's "Political Rewind," Senator Jon Ossoff was saying that Georgia has a LONG way to go before Democrats become competitive in statewide races. (And it appears even longer in local elections like in Cherokee County.)
Peltola in Alaska kicks ass because she knows the fishing industry like the back of her hand.
42% dairy farms have been closed since 2014. We need Blue dairy cows! If you don’t know stuff like this, you will never win in Trump country. Even though he knows nothing about the struggles of the rural family. Republicans to possession.
Hit 4H up for young Dems. These topics are issues not sexy but real issues.
The search is on for the next chair of the Florida Democratic Party. It comes after the current leader, Manny Diaz, abruptly resigned Monday.
The former mayor of Miami served in the spot for a year and oversaw a series of brutal defeats during the November midterms. This included Republicans sweeping the Florida Cabinet, keeping the governor's office and a U.S. Senate seat. The GOP also nabbed super majorities in both chambers of the state Legislature.
Some speculate former Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried will make a run as the last Democrat to win statewide office in Florida. Online, Tallahassee City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow and former state Sen. Annette Taddeo have announced interest. #SomethingNew #WontBackDown 🏃♀️
Michael, First thank you, thank you.
I live in the red sea, believe it or not, 30 miles north of NYC in the Hudson Valley. We lost our Democratic Congressman, Sean Maloney and my town hasn't elected a Democrat to any position in 12 years. It's a 65 - 35 vote every election and it's getting hard to find people who want to run when they know they're going to get their butt kicked. It's been one party rule for a long time.
Last Spring the regular Dems all quit. A few of us picked up the pieces and have grown our group basically from scratch. With a great young woman candidate and tons of work we nearly doubled the number of Dem votes in this last election.
We've all listened to your podcast and are taking it to heart. This year we're going to run a strategic Good Neighbor - Good People effort, along with the tactical requirements of the campaign.
Long story, short. If you know any "Sister" group in NYC or in the metropolitan area we'd love the help.
We're a short drive from the City and we're a fun group. We have a big annual get together where we gather apples from local orchards and go to a friend's property in upstate NY to do a cider pressing. Music , food and drink. We'd love to have our "Sister" come experience the area with us. Michael you're invited if you're ever in town.
Any help you can give would be greatly appreciated,
Pete
I am here to confirm that every bit of advice that Michael has given you works! That's because it's exactly what my friends and I did in Eastern Ohio – back in 2016. We reinvented our own Democratic party as soon as we got over the initial shock of Trump's win and acknowledged the nightmare we were about to face. I literally wrote our mission statement in my head as I drove to our first meeting and that's how the Jefferson County Progressive Democratic Coalition was born. We created and carried out a game plan that mirrors all the suggestions you've been hearing from Mike during these 12 podcasts. We began with community projects to introduce ourselves and let everyone know that we were there for them. Those included things like cleaning up local parks on Earth Day. When a fire at the local VFW destroyed all the wreaths that members place on veterans' graves, we replaced them. We got noticed for doing the right thing, and put our group on everyone's radar, including the local MAGAs, whose heads exploded because we “stole their veterans!” LOL Most importantly, we began to take charge of a positive message about Democrats and spread it far and wide. Our most effective tool was submitting a letter to the editor of our local newspaper every week from the day of Trump's inauguration to the day of his epic failure to get re-elected. Every. Single. Week. We became the “go to” organization whenever local media needed a soundbite and when Democratic candidates needed campaign help. We took back the stranglehold MAGAs claimed to have on patriotism by holding free picnics to honor veterans and first responders, and politicians showed up to talk to all the people who came for free food. We reclaimed the profile and reputation that Democrats here had for years until they got complacent or just worn down by aggressive conservative rhetoric. We said, “it's our flag too; it's our government too; it's our country too!” To get started, you only need to follow a few suggestions and get the word out about what you're doing. Thank you, Michael; your advice is spot-on and my friends and I are proof that it works!
Keenan Anderson was my student at Antioch
Keenan Anderson completed his teaching credential program at Antioch University Los Angeles. A father and a teacher, he was committed to helping young people become their best selves. The courses that he took reinforced his social justice point of view and his desire to help young people think critically and to be upstanders, people who stand against oppression, key practices that are part of the Antioch legacy. It is tragic that such a person is no longer with us and no longer a model for the many students he may have influenced. We miss him.
Given his shortened legacy, our best response is to critically examine tasers as a method of restraint by police and evidence of the resulting injury and death of the use of tasers is worthy of a serious examination. The research and reports however are contradictory.
What is a taser and how does it work? “TASER” is the brand name of an electroshock weapon that is designed to incapacitate. The word “Taser” has become so popular that it is generally used to describe any hand-held electric-discharging muscle immobilizer. Tasers are sometimes referred to more descriptively as conducted energy devices, conducted energy weapons, electronic control devices or electronic control weapons
There are various models on the market but all are hand-held weapons that shoot barbed dart-like electrodes (often referred to as darts) that are intended to incapacitate a person by paralyzing his or her nervous system. Each Taser cartridge is single-use and contains a nitrogen charge and electrodes, which are propelled by the charge. The darts are attached to the main component with thin copper wires. The darts are designed with pointed tips and are barbed. This helps the darts to pierce the skin and clothing and to remain affixed to the individual.
The taser delivers 19 short pulses per second over 5 seconds, with an average current of 2 milliamps, according to TASER manufacturer Axon. It creates an electric field, which stimulates nerve cells called alpha motor neurons to send an electrical impulse. The impulse travels to muscles and causes short, sustained muscle contractions.
The taser has two modes: the first, pulse mode, causes neuromuscular incapacitation as the neural signals that control muscles become uncoordinated, and muscles contract at random. The second mode, drive-stun, uses pain to get compliance. What else does a TASER do?
In an article from 2012 by Christian Nordqvist, she reported a study by Douglas P. Zipes, M.D. He stated that “Law enforcement and other individuals using a stun gun need to be aware that cardiac arrest can occur, however infrequently, and therefore it should be used judiciously. An ECD shock delivered through the chest wall can ‘capture’ the heartbeat, taking over the heart’s natural ability to regulate itself. A fighting, fleeing individual might have a normal heart rate of 150, but the ECD shock may increase that rate substantially This can lead to ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation that stops normal blood flow”. Sports enthusiasts became much smarter about the health of our hearts as Bills player Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field after being tackled. The rhythm of the heart when disrupted can cause death.
In 2017 Peter Eisler, Jason Szep, Tim Reid and Grant Smith compiled the most detailed study ever of fatalities and litigation involving police use of stun guns. Reuters found more than 150 autopsy reports citing Tasers as a cause or contributor to deaths across America and have documented a total of at least 1.081 U.S. deaths following the use of Tasers since they began to be used in the early 2000s. Behind the fatalities is a sobering reality: Many who die are among society’s vulnerable – unarmed, in psychological distress and seeking help and showed that many cases involved high-risk subjects, such as people agitated by drugs or mental illness, people with heart problems, people who are very young or very old or very frail
https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-taser-911/
As police departments have become more aware of Tasers’ risks and limitations, a growing number have restricted their use, says Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) think tank. Still, many officers remain unaware of the hazards when they encounter those vulnerable to a Taser’s shock, Wexler warns.
On the other side of this issue is Axon Enterprise Inc , the Taser’s manufacturer. They say most deaths involving the weapons are a result of drug use, underlying physiological conditions, such as heart problems, or other police force used along with the Taser.
Axon argues that most cause-of-death rulings implicating its weapons are misinformed and said in an email that Tasers albeit “not risk free” are “the most safe and effective less-lethal use of force tool available to law enforcement.”
And from another point of view from an ABC News report by Dr. Sima Patel (2018 )the response is also relatively positive. Patel describes the actual electrical process.
The current -- either direct, DC, or alternating, AC -- is the rate at which electrons going down a wire travel per second. Alternating current is what is typically used in wall sockets and it's more dangerous, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association, causing more extreme muscle contraction.
An ampere, or amp, is the unit used to measure current. A small current -- 200 microamps –- applied directly to the heart can cause a fatal rhythm. However, TASER currents don’t reach the heart. Humans have protective mechanisms: The skin, which provides high resistance to electricity, and soft tissue, which surrounds muscles and organs like the heart, also reduce the current.
For people without heart issues, the electrical discharges of the TASER device are too short to affect the heart muscle or cause abnormal heart rhythms. Even for those with heart conditions, the proper use of the device does not appear to cause issues. One of the first studies of TASERs on humans, published by the Academy of Emergency Medicine in 2006, looked at their effect on individuals with a known pre-condition. The study participants were shot in the back with a TASER and researchers measured blood markers of heart damage and did a test called an EKG, or electrocardiogram. They did not find any negative effects.
Complications related to the brain or nervous system are rare, but do occur, including loss of consciousness, seizures, abnormal brain activity and confusion. This is more likely to occur if a subject is shot at a close distance or directly to the head, which is not usually the case since those are not the recommended targets. The probability of causing a seizure is very low.
Dr. Zipes said that “The purpose of this (his) article is not to condemn stun gun use by trained professionals. Law enforcement experts must make those decisions, not physicians.”
To honor Keenan we need to call upon the law enforcement community to re-evaluate tasers, read the research and determine whether the risk outweighs the benefit. Think about what you saw and what you have read and write your concerns to anyone who will listen. It is true that we do not know what effect the taser had on him. We may never know. But given the research it is possible that it was a significant contributing factor in his death. Be an upstander for Keenan and learn about tasers and ask your police departments to investigate their use. It’s the least we can do.
Already, here in Texas, a judge has actually struck down part of that horrendous law that allows anyone to collect 10 grand if someone has helped a woman have an abortion. Unfortunately, the law is still on the books, but that strike-down is a great start.
Michael, I am so ready to do this. Have to figure it out. I’m a native New Yorker, living in India....I love the music you selected for this mini pod. Thank you, thank you. We’ve got serious work to do.
Republican Dominated Law Enforcement
This video shows an inmate who has punched holes through the wall and his drug stash (weed) during his video tour of his cell.
https://www.facebook.com/joeljamescomedy/videos/6525706970777124/?app=fbl