The Mason Missile, April 29, 2026

Greetings, Americans! Upcoming is May Day, the worldwide celebration of workers. In the past few years, in this country, May Day was considered a commie holiday, with the image of troops marching past Lenin’s Tomb in Red Square. Over the past few years, however, it has gained currency and respect, with the downfall of the Soviet Union and workers from Central and South America coming in, who have grown up with traditions of May Day in their countries of origin. In Philadelphia, the movement to celebrate May Day was the work of Jim Moran, of blessed memory, who served as Director of the Philadelphia Area Project for Occupational Safety and Health (PHILAPOSH), and has been the driving force behind the commemoration of Workers Memorial Day. We continue his work for the cause of workers. We all need to organize to resist the ongoing trump onslaught on our rights. The administration is proposing to send ICE agents to polling stations—for what? It’s supposedly for “security,” but for whom? Certainly not us, the American voters. This regime’s solution to every internal challenge, like with the pro-immigrant movement in Minneapolis, or the possibility of losing the House and Senate, is to send its armed goons to let the nation know how badass he is. It’s no different from how ICE deployed agents to airports to deal with the problems of long lines for passengers, due to TSA agents not being paid. What COULD they do about that situation? The agents just stood around, drank coffee, and they had nothing to do, really. It’s another example of a wannabe dictator showing us how powerful he is, except he isn’t so powerful. In short, they are attempts to intimidate us. We won’t allow that to happen. (https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/24/us/ice-agents-airport-deployment-what-we-know) (https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/sending-ice-polling-places-illegal) To show you what we’re up against, the trump DOJ (it’s not ours) has put out an indictment against the Southern Poverty Law Center (https://www.splcenter.org/), charging it with defrauding donor funds by (allegedly) paying informants to infiltrate racist and neo-fascist groups. The DOJ is not, however, going after the Klan, antisemites, or terrorists, for THESE are the constituencies that the Trump-MAGA movement comes from., and are the support of the regime. SPLC has done wonderful work in investigating racist-fascist organizations that continue to pollute our politics and society—and which have found its way into the Republican Party and then the Trump regime. THAT’S what this “indictment” is about. It’s using the apparatus of the State to go after the regime’s enemies. (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/21/us/politics/southern-poverty-law-center-doj-investigation.html) But all is not lost. Hungary has been ruled for 16 years by Victor Orban, who has used the government power he had to weaken democracy in his country, by controlling the news media and placing his minions into the judicial system. Conservatives have pointed to Orban’s Hungary as a model of “illiberal democracy” for this country to follow, and Budapest has hosted several meetings of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). Earlier in April, Orban’s party lost in a landslide to the party of Peter Magyar, a more centrist conservative, and Orban conceded defeat; I was afraid he would be like trump and send a howling mob of loyalists to rampage the parliament, but that didn’t happen. If the Hungarians can peaceably vote out its dictator, we can do the same with ours. (https://www.npr.org/2026/04/12/nx-s1-5782671/hungary-viktor-orban-concedes-defeat) With the midterms coming up—May 19 in Pennsylvania—you know trump and his goons will try any dirty trick to prevent us from voting against him, like with intimidating voters, gerrymandering districts, and “voter ID” laws. The trump regime is running scared, so let’s ALL get out and vote, and we’ll run them right out of our government, and our politics. The fate of this country, and the world, is riding on this. Stay safe, stay strong, and stay together! Am Yisrael Chai! Slava Ukraini! Fuck Trump! America will be free! Bye!

The Mason Missile, March 28, 2026

Greetings, Americans! I’m preparing for the upcoming primary elections in Pennsylvania, on May 19, here in Philadelphia. I’m working alongside other members of my Ward Committee, workaday Philadelphians active in the affairs of our neighborhoods. If you’re in Philadelphia, and you need voting information, look up the website https://vote.phila.gov/ . In Pennsylvania, contact https://www.pa.gov/agencies/vote. Trump and his minions are doing everything in their power to repress and discourage voting, particularly by groups they’ve been targeting for decades—ethnic and racial minorities, women, and LGBTQ+ people. Recently the Washington Post reported on a 17-page memo, from some trump-allied attorneys, revived the tired old lie that China manipulated the 2020 election; the memo proposed that the “President” declare a national emergency and take over states’ voting systems, and the memo also calls for hand-counting paper ballots—marked in public—and voter-identification rules. The proposal also includes banning mail-in ballots and voting machines. The US Constitution gives the STATES control over their several voting systems, with limited federal oversight. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/02/26/trump-elections-executive-order-activists/) (https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artI-S4-C1-2/ALDE_00013577/) (https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-says-hes-not-mulling-a-draft-executive-order-to-seize-control-over-elections-heres-what-we-know) Then, we have the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act; it would place all sorts of restrictions for people to vote, such as requiring photo IDs, birth certificates, it would also require monthly vote-roll purges, so people would have to start all over again with registering. This would place a burden on people trying to register, as so many people in this country don’t have access to their birth certificates or have a passport. It would deter so many Americans from even bothering to vote—but that’s the idea; the trump regimes and its allies want to keep people from voting, so that they can stay in power. It’s no different from the voting laws of the post-Civil War South, that prevented Black Americans from voting. (https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/new-save-act-bills-would-still-block-millions-americans-voting) (https://www.naacpldf.org/case-issue/save-america-act-saves-no-one-voter-suppression-bill-explained/) Oh, the good old days, when Republicans and conservatives championed “states’ rights,” that is, the right of the southern states to oppress minorities, and the big bad federal government didn’t meddle in this sacred right of the states. But now, a rightist-fascist regime is in Washington, and its party rules—for now—all three branches of government, and the regime is trying to control states’ voting systems. It’s never been about “big government—small government;” it’s rhetorical cover for attempts to make the government useful for All its citizens, and not a plutocratic-corporate elite. February was African-American History Month, where we celebrate the accomplishments of African-Americans; March is Women’s History Month, where we honor the accomplishments of women. In our service academies and our national monuments and parks, the reality of slavery in this country and the struggles of formerly marginalized groups are being eradicated by a racist-sexist-homophobic regime that denies the accomplishments, or even the existence, of such groups. When such groups tell their stories, and list their accomplishments, it gives them a sense of pride, and the Trump regime can’t stand that. Recently, Secretary of Weird, uh, War, uh, Defense Pete Hegseth intervened to prevent the promotion of four Army officers to one-star rank; two of them just happened to be Black, and two just happened to be female. It was all because Petey opposed anything that’s “woke”. I repeat, for the hundredth time, “woke” come from the Black experience, meaning to pay attention to your surroundings, and to the problems we’re facing; that’s it, period, full stop. The Trump crime family would prefer us to be comatose, ignorant, not paying attention to what’s going on. (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/27/us/hegseth-promotion-list.html) I take this time to pay my respects to my friend, teacher, and mentor, Fred Stefon, formerly on the faculty of Pennsylvania State University, Wilkes-Barre, who has recently passed away. Fred saw potential in me, this bullied, no-self-confidence kid, and he urged me along in my intellectual explorations, in a self-disciplined manner; he had faith in me when I didn’t have faith in myself. Thank you, Fred. I have had wonderful mentors in my life, and I think about them often: Fred Stefon, Harry Hyde, Jr., Harold Ash, Marty Berger, Alex Wollod, and Burhman Smith. I raise their name in honor. Let us continue to keep fighting the good fight for a genuinely free and democratic America, one we can be proud to call our country—and raise and mentor another generation to pick up where we leave off. Stay safe, stay strong, and stay together! Slava Ukraini! Am Yisrael Chai! Fuck Trump! America will be free! Bye!

The Mason Moment with John Oliver Mason, February 9, 2026

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The Mason Missile, January 25, 2026

The Mason Missile The E-Newsletter of John Oliver Mason January 25, 2026 johnomason@johnomason.com http://johnomason.com Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist —Ralph Waldo Emerson Greetings, Americans! We have just commemorated the birthday, life, and work of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.—not the sanitized saint, not the harmless peacenik, but the man who challenged the injustices of his day, such as poverty, war, and racism. Let us remember that at the time of his assassination, King understood the interconnection between racism and class, how low-income and working-class white people have everything in common with similarly low-income and working-class Black people But so many politicians have used racism, in its many veiled forms, to play white working-class people against their Black counterparts. This goes from Nixon and his “Southern Strategy” of siphoning off the voters for George Wallace in 1968 with the use of racial stereotypes while avoiding using the N-word; the mention of “lazy welfare bums,” “urban crime,” and the War On Drugs,” which gave law enforcement agencies the excuse the run rampant through African-American neighborhoods. Plus, conservative activists have continued to push the idea that it’s white males who are the ones discriminated against. Now, under the regime of Donald whatshisface, racist appeals to fears of the end of white dominance are out in the open, and government media, like X accounts, are broadcasting them. One X message from the Department of Labor had a picture of George Washington and the words, “Remember who you are, American;” another X message from Labor had the phrase “Trust The Plan,” a slogan of the Q-Anon conspiracy theory. (You remember, it was the idea that several prominent Democrats where part of a pedophile ring, and trump—Jeffery Epstein’s bosom buddy—was out to root it out.) Another X-gram, from the Department of Homeland Security, had the slogan, “We’ll have our home again,” a song used as an anthem for the Proud Boys. In an interview with reporters from the New York Times, published on January 11, trump spoke the common complaints abut the Civil Rights movement of the Sixties: “White people were very badly treated, where they did extremely well and they were not invited to go into a university or a college…it also hurt a lot of people — people that deserve to go to a college or deserve to get a job were unable to get a job. So it was, it was a reverse discrimination.” That’s the common whine from conservatives, “White people are discriminated against.” https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/11/us/politics/trump-interview-transcript.html We see this play out in Minnesota, where ICE goons have been terrorizing the residents of Minneapolis, including the murder (let’s call it what it is) of Nicole Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were involved in peaceful protests and monitoring the “agents’” behavior—may their memory be a blessing. Thugs like ICE have no respect for nonviolent protests, they’ll shoot at them anyway. How low will they sink? ICE “agents” arrested a five-year-old BOY, Liam Ramos, and his father as they were driving into the family’s driveway. The “agents” detained both Liam and his father and used Liam—all of five years old—to knock on people’s doors to see who was inside. ICE has a record of nabbing children going to and from school, like the four children detained by ICE in the suburb, Columbia Heights, including a 17-year-old nabbed as he was exiting his car. As for Liam and his family, they were in the process of seeking asylum in the United States, eventually becoming citizens. https://bsky.app/profile/paleofuture.bsky.social/post/3mcxvaci2e22c https://www.kare11.com/article/news/local/5-year-old-boy-among-four-students-detained-by-ice-according-to-school-leaders-mn/89-113e2490-282c-4e5d-a472-f5cf8f18a94b BUT, the valiant people of Minneapolis braved the elements—it was minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit—and took to the streets by the thousands to demand that ICE leave their city. People in other cities, including Philadelphia, also staged demonstrations in solidarity with Minneapolis. (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/24/thousands-in-minneapolis-brave-bitter-cold-to-protest-ice-crackdown) (https://www.inquirer.com/news/philadelphia/philly-stands-with-minneapolis-ice-out-for-good-20260123.html) (https://www.yahoo.com/news/videos/anti-ice-march-takes-place-171100952.html) From what I hear, Philadelphia will be the next target for ICE. Over the Martin Luther King weekend, protestors marched from Immigration Court and on to the ICE field office. Several City officials, such as District Attorney Larry Krasner and Sherrif Rochelle Bilal, held a press conference and condemned the shooting of Renee Good. It’s great to see SOME public officials show some guts against a wannabe despot. Krasner warned ICE: “We will arrest you. We will put handcuffs on you. We will close those cuffs. We will put you in a cell,” and, “We will do everything in our power to convict you and we will make sure you serve your entire sentence because Donald Trump has no power whatsoever to pardon you.” (https://www.cityandstatepa.com/politics/2026/01/ice-operations-philadelphia-have-immigration-advocates-high-alert/410794/?oref=cspa-homepage-river) (https://whyy.org/articles/philadelphia-mlk-day-2026-ice-raids-protest/) (https://billypenn.com/2026/01/08/krasner-ice-minneapolis-shooting-trump-city-council/) A group of demonstrators, including clergy-people, blocked the doorway of the garage of the Philadelphia ICE building, so their vehicles can’t exit the building. The demonstration was organized by the group no ICE Philly. https://6abc.com/post/protesters-no-ice-philly-form-human-blockade-outside-office-center-city-philadelphia/18438056/?link_source=ta_thread_link&taid=696fa6a41b14e40001df36bb&utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=threads.net# We’re facing a government-funded gang of maniacs and killers, with not even the most rudimentary training, recruited by the most in-your-face racist appeals and slogans. These are trump’s enforcers. It has nothing to do with securing the border, it’s about terrorizing Democratic-run cities and minority communities. And, of course, they did not anticipate any resistance from the grassroots, they always expect us to sit back and take it. And, as always, the regime tries to convince us that it’s just a gang of troublemakers, not the American people. Are they trying really to persuade the public, or themselves? This shows how low the trump regime will go to retain power, so they can continue to claw back progress on Civil and Human Rights for previously excluded groups, such as African-Americans and women. As if to underscore the racism coursing through this country, here, in Philadelphia, the signs at the President’s House exhibit in Independence Mall, that described the lives of the people enslaved by George Washington, taken down. It’s part of the regime’s ongoing effort to deny the accomplishments, or even the existence, of people of color in this country. (https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/presidents-house-independence-mall-slavery-trump/) May 19 will be Primary Election Day in Pennsylvania; please find out the election dates in YOUR state. This is a serious situation we’re in—there are even those who say we’re on the verge of civil war! PLEASE get out and vote; the Republicans paid attention to last year’s elections and saw how poorly they did in municipal, state, and primary elections. We can do it! We CAN win! Don’t give up the fight! Stay safe, stay strong, and stay together! Slava Ukraini! Am Yisrael Chai! Fuck trump! America will be free! Bye! ADVERTISEMENTS

The Mason Moment with John Oliver Mason, January 19, 2026

I speak on social and political issues, calling them as I see them. I speak about the like and work of Dr. King, resisting the sanitized image of him, and the ongoing work of freedom-fighting.

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The Mason Missile, December 13, 2025

Greetings, Americans! The off-year elections of 2025 have shown the importance of voting in municipal, county, and state elections, and whatever special elections occur to fill a vacant seat. Three candidates for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court—Christine Donohue, David Wecht, and Kevin Dougherty—won retention, in a race that had national coverage, and in which several Republican-allied interest groups (such as the ones affiliated with billionaire Jeffery Yass), dumped money into the campaign. (https://www.spotlightpa.org/news/2025/11/pa-election-results-supreme-court-retention-donohue-dougherty-wecht/) (https://www.spotlightpa.org/news/2025/10/pennsylvania-supreme-court-retention-race-spending-independent-expenditures-elections/ ) Two women were elected governors of their respective states—Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey, Abigail Spanberger in Virginia—defeating Jack Ciattarelli and Winsome Earle-Sears, respectively, Ciatarelli being endorsed by t---p himself. In New York City, Zorhan Mamdani, a young state assemblyman, was elected Mayor. In California, Proposition 50, the amendment to redraw the Congressional Districts in the Democrats’ favor (responding to Texas’ amendment to redraw THEIR districts in trump’s favor), passed overwhelmingly. (A federal court voted to declare Texas’ plan unconstitutional.) (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/texas-redistricting-court-ruling-california-prop-50/) (https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-elections-watch-this-week-nyc-mayor-governors-redistricting-2025-11-03/) (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/sherrill-spanberger-ciattarelli-earle-sears-virginia-new-jersey-governor-trump/) In Mississippi, Democrats won enough seats in the State Senate to break the Republican “supermajority,” and Democrats won a 13-seat majority in the Virginia House of Delegates. (https://mississippitoday.org/2025/11/05/democrats-end-gop-two-thirds-supermajority-in-mississippi-senate-what-does-that-mean/) (https://news.ballotpedia.org/2025/11/06/virginia-democrats-gain-13-seats-in-the-house-of-delegates/) In other words: people are standing up to the trump regime, and even some hard-core MAGAs are waking up. But, alas, he’ll still have his true believers. trump’s use, misuse, and abuse of our military goes on. In September, SOMEone in our military shot down a boat off the coast of Venezuela, which, according to the trump administration (not a reliable source for news) said it was transporting narcotics into the US. From the video that the Pentagon released, it looked like the kind of boat you take to the lake to go fishing, not for crossing the sea from Venezuela. This—let’s be clear—would be called a war crime if we were at war with Venezuela—Is that what trump is after? After the first strike, the survivors held on to what was left of the boat and signaled for help, but the boat as attacked a second time, a “double tap.” There are reports that Hegseth himself gave the order, “kill everybody.” https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/pete-hegseth-drug-boat-survivors-order-b2874580.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/11/28/hegseth-kill-them-all-survivors-boat-strike/ https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5628265-hegseth-boat-strike-order-congress-trump/ If this is not a war crime, since we’re not at war, it’s murder, and everyone involved in this operation, from trump and Hegseth down to whoever carried out the order, is an accessory. The excuse-rationale from the regime was the boat was transporting drugs. That talk does not wash; recently, trump had granted a pardon to several people involved in the narcotics trade, such as Juan Orlando Hernandez, former President of Honduras, who allowed his country to be a safe haven for drug cartels. Others have been Ross Ulbricht, who ran the “Silk Road” online drug market, gang leader Larry Hoover of Chicago, and Baltimore drug boss Garnett Gilbert Smith. But that’s classic trump, always favoring anybody with millions of dollars to shove his way. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/12/07/trump-drugs-pardons-hernandez-venezuela/ Also, Trump’s war on immigrant communities carries an elitist element, for all his “plain folks” talk. Earlier this month, trump announced a new “gold card” visa program, whereby anyone who pays $1 million will have their application expedited, and promised applicants residency “in record time”; trump’s Commerce Secretary Howard Luttnick told Fox News that applicants “are the best people coming in” who would be “economically capable of driving our economy.” (https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trump-gold-card-launches-offering-032737976.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall) (https://trumpcard.gov/) (https://apnews.com/article/trump-gold-card-website-live-us-visa-22edbd7e65d188bbf6c8ec1d5f78d11a) (https://www.ms.now/opinion/msnbc-opinion/gold-card-immigration-address-congress-trump-newsletter-rcna194521) The story is that these millionaires buying their way into this country are, through their magic, going to create jobs for Americans, just while millions of people flee poverty, political repression, and gang violence in their homelands to this country, in hopes of something better for themselves and their families; and without their labor in farms, hotels, restaurants, and construction sites, these billionaires would only be talking to themselves; they’d be NOTHING. Time is running out for funding for the Affordable Care Act, aka “Obamacare.” Congress-member Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania (serving the suburban counties of Berks and parts of Montgomery) introduced a bill for subsidizing the ACA with a cap on high-income earners, and NO restrictions on abortion. Squeaker of the House Mike Johnson has shown no urgency to fund ACA, so that Americans don’t get stuck with increases in premiums, thereby having to do without life-saving procedures. Remember, Johnson calls himself a “Christian,” and he’s allowing people to die for lack of medical care. You would think he, of all politicians, would pay attention to the November election results, and see that the public is turning against the trumpified GOP. https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/aca-subsidies-2026-health-insurance/ What a difference a year makes! Earlier in the year, we thought that trump was unstoppable in his drive to fascism, with his control over the Republican Party, which controls the House, the Senate, and dominates the Supreme Court; now, an estimated 22 House and Senate Republicans have announced their resignations before the New Year, or have already resigned. They know the party’s chances of losing “bigly” in the midterms are huge, and they got their pensions and health insurance (that ordinary Americans DON’T have), and they know NOW that rump is politically toxic, so it’s time for them to cash out. (https://www.newsweek.com/full-list-of-republicans-leaving-congress-11154919) (https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5630833-house-republican-exodus-problem/) SO, it IS urgent for Democrats to organize immediately for the 2026 midterms, and run candidates with pro-worker, pro-low-income agenda, one that addresses the needs of the people in our neighborhoods; the Clintonist, Republicans-but-nicer, “neo-Liberal” (whatever the hell that means) approach that the party has done, which has done ZERO to address issues as they are but only emulates the Republicans (who still attack the Democrats anyway). SO, as we enter the new year, let us make a resolution to continue the grassroots and shop-floor work of organizing our coworkers and communities, and stand up to the trump-MAGA-fascist agenda. Stay safe, stay strong, and stay together! Slava Ukraini! Am Yisrael Chai! Fuck Trump! America will be free! Happy New Year!

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The Mason Moment with John Oliver Mason, Noverber 3, 2025: "Keep on votin'"

I speak on social and political issues, calling them as I see them. I urge people to get out and vote, and let no one intimidate them.

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The Mason Missile, October 22, 2025

Greetings, Americans! Over the Last weekend of September, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered a meeting of generals and admirals on the campus of the Marine Corps University, Quantico, VA. All of the topmost United States military leaders, and their most senior NCOs, in one space, at one time, away from their commands; what it there is a terrorist attack on the university? What is there was a major geopolitical problem somewhere in the world? But this is a regime that’s only interested in performance, putting on a show, for themselves and for the American public. Hegseth—a former Fox News personality, former National Guard officer—harangued these military leaders, with decades of experience, on the need for developing a “warrior ethos” in the military, whatever that means to him. He raved to these veteran military leaders about “fat generals” and “fat soldiers,” grooming habits, and of diversity efforts that he said made the Department “the Department of Woke” (like that’s a bad thing!). Hegseth also howled for changing the Inspector-General system, making it more tolerant of bullying, hazing, and abusive leadership, including drill sergeants “putting their hands on” trainees. He also raved about “stupid rules of engagement”, adding, “We untie the hands of our warfighters to intimidate, demoralize, hunt, and kill the enemies of our country,” leading to the possibility of war crimes. (https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/pete-hegseth-speech-generals-admirals-rcna234674?cid=eml_maddow_20250930&user_email=56443b86787902b10c4645fc42bff8ee9ec2614de6cc5f00300871db6871f4c6) (https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hegseths-policy-memos-hazing-harassment-military/story?id=126081286) (https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5528817-hegseth-changes-military-meeting/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CYes%2C%20they%20can%20shark%20attack%2C%20they%20can%20toss,the%20warriors%20they%20need%20to%20be%2C%E2%80%9D%20Hegseth%20said.) (Government shutdown begins after Congress and White House fail to reach agreement) (https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2025/09/30/hegseth_were_empowering_drill_sergeants.html?video) After Hegseth finished his tirade—he looked like he expected a standing ovation—trump came on stage, and talked about his use of the nation’s military in Portland (OR) and Chicago, and telling the brass that these cities, and others, would be “training grounds” for war, and they would be fighting “the enemy within”—i.e., their own fellow Americans peacefully resisting the police-state actions of ICE, and protesting for their rights, as is the right AND the duty of Americans. Thus, trump and Hegseth show themselves as no better than schoolyard bullies who terrorize weaker kids. (https://www.npr.org/2025/09/30/nx-s1-5557232/hegseth-generals-trump) (https://www.npr.org/2025/09/30/nx-s1-5557232/hegseth-generals-trump) I took part in the No Kings rally at Philadelphia’s City Hall on October 18, being one of approximately Seven Million Americans protesting this totally obnoxious regime, Philadelphia being one of around 2700 municipalities holding rallies. Of course, trump, being in a self-imposed mental bunker and showing signs of mental deterioration, hasn’t gotten the message; but what about his minions, the enforcers of his ill-tempered whims? Can we count on them to wake up to the fact that the regime is so despised? I’m afraid not. trump purposely filled his regime with people who would have stayed on the margins of politics, religion, and the media if trump didn’t hire them. A phrase making the rounds, once on the intellectual margins but not taken seriously, is “soft secession,” the idea of states resisting the federal government, challenging the trump regime’s efforts at dictatorship. In June, trump threatened to cut off funding for California’s public university system, considered one of the world’s finest; Governor Gavin Newsome replied, “Californians pay the bills for the federal government. We pay $80 BILLION more in taxes than we give back. Maybe it’s time to cut that off, @realDonaldTrump. (https://x.com/GavinNewsom/status/1931087538565054849) One example of this is the Northeast Public Health Collaborative, a group of northeastern states (Pennsylvania one of them) shoring information about vaccines, laboratory information, and data concerning vaccines for such things as COVID-19 (still lurking around). This is in response to trump’s Secretary of Health and Human Services (not ours) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his assaults on the public health system, and on the very idea of vaccinations. Here is another example of trump hiring charlatans and quacks in his regime. (https://whyy.org/articles/pennsylvania-regional-public-health-coalition/) (https://www.pa.gov/agencies/health/newsroom/launch-northeast-public-health-collaborative) (https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/10/its-time-for-soft-secession/) (https://coloradotimesrecorder.com/2025/09/time-for-soft-secession-by-blue-states/72581/) (https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/a-soft-secession-could-blue-states-withholding-federal-taxes-reshape-the-national-agenda/ar-AA1McGtA) This can be compared to the volunteer “mutual aid” programs formed during the COVID-19 pandemic, when trump would not face the reality of the pandemic killing over a million Americans on his watch, and always talking about injecting bleach or sunlight into the body. trump was useless then, and he’s even MORE useless now. (https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/a-soft-secession-could-blue-states-withholding-federal-taxes-reshape-the-national-agenda/ar-AA1McGtA) (https://www.teenvogue.com/story/what-is-mutual-aid-explainer) (https://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrFdBnQNvlo7gEA4NpXNyoA;_ylu=Y29sbwNiZjEEcG9zAzQEdnRpZAMEc2VjA3Ny/RV=2/RE=1762372560/RO=10/RU=https%3a%2f%2fwww.teenvogue.com%2fstory%2fwhat-is-mutual-aid-explainer/RK=2/RS=rpj0rHAnN9OzrHN0jdKhLCVvCx4-) That could be a great model for our resistance to trump and company; forming more-or-less informal networks to resist the regime, to prepare for whenever (God forbid!) ICE is in the area, among other things. SO, with the No Kings rallies, constant protests to ICE and other types of regime terror, and public officials AT LAST showing a spine (like Newsome and OUR governor Josh Shapiro), along with OUR OWN creativity, we can put the brakes on trump’s drive to dictatorship, and we can be rid of his (very real) stench for all eternity. Stay safe, stay strong, and stay together! Slava Ukraini! Am Yisrael chai! America will be free! Bye!

The Mason Moment with John Oliver Mason, October 20, 2025: "On The March...

I speak on social and political issues, calling them as I see them. I speak about the No Kings marches of October 18, and of the need to keep up the fight.