And Now, Erick Erickson

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I would like to draw your attention to this post by Erick Erickson, the managing editor of RedState:

Convinced beyond reason and data that the American people find delicious the sandwich of socialism being force fed down their throats, the left does not understand what is happening in this country and what is coming.

In fact, the media does not understand what is happening either. Largely socializing with the same elites and liberals who are fomenting unrest in the country, the media is missing warning signs that revolutionary conduct amongst middle class conservative and independent voters is at hand.

Mind you, it is not revolution with bayonet, but revolution with ballot and advocacy. But it is building. It will come. And if left unsatiated by November’s elections, something worse will come.

There is a growing disconnect in this country between average Americans and the largely center-left political elite. That disconnect is what will destroy the Democrats in November and, should the Republicans offer no better, cause potentially cataclysmic change in the republic.

The whole thing is here, and leads into a discussion of the potential for a constitutional convention to consider one amendment (perhaps to ban gay marriage.) But I’m interested in the intro. Erickson’s careful to point out that he’s not talking about a “revolution with bayonet”—but isn’t that exactly what he’s referring to when he warns ominously that “something worse will come” and “cause potentially cataclysmic change in the republic”? Surely Erickson isn’t referring to a constitutional convention as “something worse”—he seems to be advocating for one. So what’s he talking about? 

Anyway, I’d love for Erickson to elaborate on all this.

Flickr/rodrigot | Creative Commons).

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

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