Youth Advocacy
Youth Advocacy
Year 3, Week 24 (214 total reports)
29.05.2023-04.06.2024
REVIEW and ANNOUNCEMENTS
Advocating for young people as the US Legal system attempts to build boundaries (guardrails) around it’s most publicized infantile tyrant.
Special Adolescent Care Link of the Week
People's last words are often these 4 phrases: What they teach us about living happy, meaningful lives, from an oncologist
Love and forgiveness, this is a moving article about what we hunger for the most at the end of our lives. I’m grateful for reading this story and eager to pass it on. The older I get (and I’m pretty old), the more these words ring true. Please read, and please share.
Best Links of The Week
04.06.2024
New poll finds nearly half of Americans think Trump should end campaign after conviction
https://apple.news/AdAsG8I6MS02_GTakYcWgQw
While Marjorie Taylor Green (MTG) is calling for Speaker Johnson to shut down the government over Trump’s conviction, an ABC/Ipsos Poll found that 49% of Americans think Donald Trump should end his campaign after his conviction. Of course, the man who denies he said, “Lock her up!” (which he did) and that a president under indictment would “cripple the operations of our government,” he would never step aside without coercion (as witnessed by his election loss in 2020). It may be the right thing to do, but Trump has never done “the right thing” if it wasn’t “right for him.” Trump is really running—not for the presidency—but to avoid further prosecution and to try and roll back convictions he has already faced.
03.06.2024
Watch Jon Stewart respond to frustrated young voter in 'Daily Show' BTS
https://mashable.com/video/jon-stewart-young-voter-daily-show
Stewart’s response is so important because it focuses on three things; 1) the helplessness felt by many young adults, 2) the target this age group has become, and, 3) the cruel intentionality of making this age group feel despondent. If you are someone in this age group or know anyone in this age group, please lead them towards this message or share the importance of it with them. The voice of young voters has always been important, but perhaps never more so than in the upcoming US election. It might be two elderly men running, but the results that both parties are declaring will affect the rights of young people for generations.
02.06.2024
Trump, Defeated
https://apple.news/AY2J4srX5QaeYI4JqJRsshg
What do you do when a two-year-old throws a fit in the toy section of a crowded department store? You take them out to the car (away from an audience) and let their anger dissipate before talking with them about proper behavior and guardrails (boundaries). This is called co-regulation; meeting a child where their pre-cognitive brain resides and inviting them to a more mature behavior. For the 2-year-old brain of Donald Trump—which apparently has never known any guardrails—that responsibility has fallen to the legal system and landed squarely on the shoulders of people like E. Jean Carroll, Stormy Daniels, Michael Cohen, a 12-person jury of Trump’s peers, as well as Judges Engoron and Merchan, indeed, almost all of the world has had to accommodate Donald Trump’s interminable childish behavior. Perhaps, some guardrails are beginning to work and he is realizing that his toddler-like behavior is less entertaining to people. Maybe Baby-Donald is beginning to recognize that whiny childish tantrums are somewhat tiring to others. The costs of Trump’s infantile behavior are staggering, some in terms that can’t be measured (Human Lives—as in his criminally inept COVID response and call to riot on January 6), but just consider the impact (as Robert Reich recounts) of 34 felony convictions, 54 pending criminal charges, 2 impeachments, 2 popular vote losses, $88 million to E. Jean Carroll, $450 million for civil fraud, $8 trillion added to National Debt, 2.9 million lost jobs. Hasn’t this guy sucked enough oxygen out of the world? Chances are I’m wrong about guardrails finally working, there are still plenty of people feeding his narcissistic ego, from his “Red-Tie” brigade of VP, Cabinet, and Fox Commentator hopefuls, to the bought-and-paid-for producers and commentators at Fox News and the SCOTUS judges that he choreographs.
01.06.2024
Brooks and Capehart on Trump’s guilty verdict and what’s next for American politics
This is my top site today because of a quote from David Brooks, “if private virtue falls apart, the public order collapses. And we shouldn't forget the fact this case was about a president, a former president, paying hush money to a porn star.” Both Jonathon Capehart and David Brooks saw the events of this week as “solemn.” I admit to celebrating the American Justice System while feeling dispirited about the current state of politics in the United States, and indeed, throughout the world. It is important for each of us to measure David Brook’s statement from a personal standpoint.
31.05.2024
Wrong Case, Right Verdict
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/05/wrong-case-right-verdict-trump-guilty/678551/
The Atlantic’s “temperate” response to the Trump election fraud case in Manhattan, is measured and accurate. First, we owe a debt of gratitude to the jurors, Alvin Bragg and his team, and Judge Merchon for their pursuit of justice in the face of violent threats and harsh treatment. Despite all the vitriol of Donald Trump and his “red tie squad,” a jury of his peers unanimously convicted Trump on all 34 counts. We learned two things, 1) even an ex-president is not above the law, and 2) it is not going to make any significant difference with Trump voters. Indeed, if Trump’s past behavior did not make a difference; the Access Hollywood tapes, the mocking of a journalist with cerebral palsy, the death-causing lack of leadership during COVID, and (how much more could be mentioned?) if none of those things did not deter the followers of Donald J. Trump, then neither will this verdict. We’ve already watched his Republican Lackeys coalesce and create new lies to explain Trump’s lack of character and egregious behavior. There is but one course available, VOTE THEM OUT. All of them; the MTG’s, the Boebert’s, the Goetz’s, give the US a new chance to build a non-fascist Supreme Court and congress. VOTE IN NOVEMBER!
30.05.2024
Trump is now trying to downplay Project 2025
https://www.salon.com/2024/05/30/is-now-trying-to-downplay-project-2025/
If you haven’t read Project 2025 yet, then let this be a plea to get your hands on it (there is a link to it in this article). Trump is trying to downplay it for the obvious reason that it is so horrendous that—if people actually read it—they would never want his slow motion coup to continue. It truly is a step-by-step plan for a White Christian Nationalist takeover of the US Government. Roe v. Wade was just a start of the attack on bodily autonomy, in this draft, it will be the government who decides what birth control methods couples can (or cannot) use. Brown v. Board of Education is also on the chopping block as equality and fairness would be moved back to a pre-civil war era. If you think I’m being melodramatic, you haven’t seen the Republican’s playbook resurrection of the Comstock Act (the 1873 Chastity Act used to prevent the dissemination of contraceptives via the postal service and most recently resurrected in Arizona to prohibit abortions at any time and for any reason). Part of Project 2025 is being pushed by Rep. Katie Britt as she attempts to enact period-tracking laws to stalk women who are pregnant and prevent interstate travel. It is also Project 2025 that would enable Trump to dissolve the Department of Justice and instead create a “Department of Revenge” carrying out his deranged wishes for retribution against judges, political opponents, and journalists who have ruffled his hypersensitive feathers. This blueprint (funded by the Heritage Foundation) is alarming and needs to be read by everyone who cares about the direction of the United States in the next election.
29.05.2024
Trump makes sweeping promises to donors on audacious fundraising tour
https://apple.news/Aq4nc3G09QW-BPURtsyvxKA
It’s a pattern of Donald Trump to make promises he cannot keep—nor does he care if he can’t keep them. Nothing should surprise us about Donald Trump, he has no redeeming character traits and his entire life is transactional (“What have you done for me lately?”) Again, he is making promises with America’s resources to fund both his court fines and his re-election bid. Nothing new for Trump here, it borders on illegal, but Trump likes to take illegal acts in the short run that he knows will have to be reviewed in courts in the long run (“the wheels of justice grind slow, but grind fine”—Sun Tzu). As with other crimes Trump has committed, he hopes he can make it to office and circumvent the charges before he has to face the consequences. However, there are immediate consequences; the people, corporations, and nations to whom he is making promises will also pour money into his campaign and ongoing legal costs, tilting the election in their favor. It is important to follow the money so we can see where the disinformation in our elections will come from.
This Week’s Links
04.06.2024
New poll finds nearly half of Americans think Trump should end campaign after conviction
https://apple.news/AdAsG8I6MS02_GTakYcWgQw
Billions in taxpayer dollars now go to religious schools via vouchers
https://apple.news/AGWU0Gl7nT-2hhXdFPK_U_A
Robert Reich: What Will Trump’s Conviction Really Mean? – OpEd
https://www.eurasiareview.com/04062024-robert-reich-what-will-trumps-conviction-really-mean-oped/
Trump’s Most Audacious Lie Yet
https://apple.news/A7rql8kZtSGaxfIIsKkugjQ
Fauci fends off GOP attacks on Covid origins
https://flipboard.com/video/politico/6ea1b2c96d
‘Washington Post’: Madame Alito Can Fly Her Flag…Because She’s Fun at Parties
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a60980025/martha-ann-alito-flag-op-ed/
Biden weighs in on Trump verdict: ‘Folks’…. We’re in ‘uncharted territory’
https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/03/biden-trump-verdict-uncharted-territory-00161386
DeSantis' plot to do away with rainbow lights during Pride thwarted by gays armed with flashlights - Queerty
New Orleans valedictorian lived in a homeless shelter as he rose to the top of his class
https://apnews.com/article/homeless-high-school-valedictorian-aed34ce1bb26a88391c15f137b28d92d
How to Be Mentally and Emotionally Flexible
03.06.2024
Watch Jon Stewart respond to frustrated young voter in 'Daily Show' BTS
https://mashable.com/video/jon-stewart-young-voter-daily-show
Lara Trump Torpedoes GOP Bid to Retake Senate to Appease Felonious Father-in-Law
Eric Swalwell Swiftly Exposes GOP 'Hypocrisy' On Supreme Court Treatment
Will the Senate vote to protect contraception access? Lawmakers expected to take up bill this week
America’s Most Powerful Pollster Has Some Doubts
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/americas-most-powerful-pollster-discusses-election-2024.html
The Meaning of Mexico’s First Female President
https://time.com/6983246/president-sheinbaum-mexico-election/
Local meteorologist condemns top state politician on air after passing of major anti-climate bill: 'The entire world is looking'
https://www.thecooldown.com/green-business/steve-maclaughlin-meteorologist-florida-governor-climate/
If You Regularly Use These 3 Words, You're A Smarter Leader than You Think
02.06.2024
Trump, Defeated
https://apple.news/AY2J4srX5QaeYI4JqJRsshg
Trump’s Purposeless Fury
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/06/donald-trump-conviction-purposeless-fury/678575/
How Biden Can Win the Debate
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/06/joe-biden-presidential-debate/678565/
Mike Johnson reveals his sweeping plan for a second Trump term
https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/mike-johnson-republican-bill-trump-rcna154709
LGBTQ+ Pride Month is starting to show its colors around the world. What to know
https://apnews.com/article/pride-month-lgbtq-2024-1abf80d0cf1026b60b47f565e9953fec
How to train your brain to be more optimistic
https://www.fastcompany.com/91127499/how-to-become-more-optimistic
01.06.2024
Brooks and Capehart on Trump’s guilty verdict and what’s next for American politics
People's last words are often these 4 phrases: What they teach us about living happy, meaningful lives, from an oncologist
Meet America’s new robber barons
https://unherd.com/2024/05/meet-americas-new-robber-barons/
War on Women Report: Trump’s Mistreatment of Women Is His Downfall; Louisiana Labels Abortion Medication a Dangerous Substance; Mississippi’s Anti-Trans Bathroom Law
Project 2025 plans to dismantle the federal agency that tracks hurricanes
The MAGA Internet Calls for War
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/05/trump-trial-maga-internet-violence/678571/
The Texas GOP’s new platform is a terrifying preview of MAGA’s future
https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/texas-republican-party-platform-trump-rcna154805
The World Sees Trump’s Conviction as a Mystifying Historic First
https://whowhatwhy.org/politics/the-world-sees-trumps-conviction-as-a-mystifying-historic-first/
After catastrophic floods, Vermont becomes first state to enact law requiring oil companies to pay for damage from climate change
12 predictions for the future of technology
https://www.ted.com/talks/vinod_khosla_12_predictions_for_the_future_of_technology
31.05.2024
Wrong Case, Right Verdict
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/05/wrong-case-right-verdict-trump-guilty/678551/
In a historic verdict, Trump found guilty on 34 felony counts in "hush money" trial : Consider This from NPR
What Donald Trump Can No Longer Do as a Convicted Felon
https://www.newsweek.com/what-donald-trump-can-no-longer-do-convicted-felon-1906661
Time Magazine Literally Brings The Gavel Down On Donald Trump In Brutal New Cover
Racist Trump’s Shocking Apprentice Secrets Exposed
https://newrepublic.com/post/182080/racist-trump-apprentice-secrets-black-contestant
Republican lawmakers react with fury to Trump verdict and rally to his defense
Nikki Haley's moral compass
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/nikki-haley-finish-them/
Florida Is Keeping Its “Slavery Was a Good Thing” Social Studies Curriculum
Letitia James Sets Sights on Greg Abbott
https://newrepublic.com/post/182096/letitia-james-greg-abbott-daniel-perry-pardon
All US states given LGBTQ+ safety ratings – and the worst ones won’t surprise you
https://www.thepinknews.com/2024/05/31/united-states-lgbtq-safety-ranking/
Idaho high school grad refuses to shake superintendent’s hand, drops banned book at his feet during ceremony
Neurodivergent Kids Flourish When They’re Taught How Their Brains Work
30.05.2024
Trump is now trying to downplay Project 2025
https://www.salon.com/2024/05/30/is-now-trying-to-downplay-project-2025/
Trump Compares Himself To Mother Teresa And Hilarity Ensues
Alito says the Supreme Court’s fake ethics code allows him to be unethical
https://www.vox.com/scotus/352380/supreme-court-alito-ethics-recusal-insurrection-flags
Americans Are Thinking About Immigration All Wrong
Brave doctor dies days after refusing to abandon his patients in the face of heavy bombing
29.05.2024
Trump makes sweeping promises to donors on audacious fundraising tour
https://apple.news/Aq4nc3G09QW-BPURtsyvxKA
Trump Has a New Plan to Deal With Campus Protests
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/05/trump-campus-protests-deportation/678521/
A Chilling Effect of Louisiana’s Abortion Law
Is America Ready for ‘Degrowth Communism’?
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/05/kohei-saito-degrowth-communism/678481/
The Christian nationalists are flying their flag from the seats of government - LGBTQ Nation
4 Reasons The Unhappiest Person In A Relationship Has The Most Power
https://www.yourtango.com/heartbreak/unhappy-person-in-relationship-has-most-power
My son was diagnosed with autism at age 5. I spent decades hoping he'd change — but now I accept him as he is.
https://www.businessinsider.com/took-decades-accept-sons-autism-diagnosis-2024-5