Centered From Reality

The Electoral Count Act of 1887 Led to January 6th!

In this episode, Alex takes a deep dive into understanding the Electoral Count Act of 1887. The act was passed by Congress in reaction to the Compromise of 1877, and some argue that its existence actually paved the way for the 2020 election chaos and the storming of the capitol on January 6th. 

 

After President Grant ( a Republican) decided not to run for a third term, the 1876 election cycle was composed of Governor Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio (Republican) and Governor Samuel J. Tilden of New York (Democrat). The results of this presidential election between Tilden and Hayes became one of the most contested in US history. Tilden was winning the electoral college count with 184 electoral votes to Hayes's 165, yet there were four states that remained unresolved. These four states were Oregon, Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina. Each of these states responded differently to this situation, each party reported that their own candidate had won, and Oregon even replaced their electors. Eventually, a compromise was made in which Hayes became president and Tilden conceded. The Compromise of 1877 said that all of the remaining 20 electoral votes were given to Hayes. In return, “the Republicans agreed to withdraw federal troops from the South. This is credited with ending Reconstruction.” Ten years later, the Electoral Count Act of 1887 was passed. Unfortunately, it created an environment where if there was a contested election, no matter what the electors of the state determined, congress could make the final decision. Now there was a designated period that allowed contesting electors to make their case and if there was an issue, the Vice President and Congress would make the final decision. 

 

Alex argues that this act was poorly created and has existed in limbo ever since this period. Unfortunately, the 2020 election was also close and opportunistic lawyers and state officials used it to their advantage. Alex believes that this act needs to be overturned or reformed (at the least) so that there is a clear understanding of who will determine the legitimacy of an election, even if it is contested. 

Chaos in Kazakhstan & What Does Putin Really Want?

In this episode, Alex goes into why there are major protests occurring across Kazakhstan. Are they about oil or something bigger? Later he looks into Putin’s fixation on Ukraine and why he is furious with NATO. In Putin's eyes, in the post-Cold War era, the West has humiliated Russia. What does he want?

 

Over the last week, what started as mainly peaceful protests in a western city in Kazakhstan called Zhanaozen, now have turned into nationwide protests and riots. The protests started over close to a 60% rise in gasoline prices in this oil-rich country, but now they have tapped into a deeper rage about the country’s political structure. The President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, has requested that Russia send in troops to help quell the violence and Russia is sending paratroopers. The US has condemned these actions and now it looks like Russia may have a two-front issue in the region (Ukraine and Kazakhstan). Alex goes into the history of Kazakhstan since the fall of the Soviet Union. Freedom House rated Kazakhstan as a "consolidated authoritarian regime", stating that freedom of speech is not respected and "Kazakhstan’s electoral laws do not provide for free and fair elections. Even after the former president, Nursultan Nazarbayev resigned in 2019 after decades of rule, he still is behind the scenes. The population seems to want change.

 

Later in the episode, Alex asks the question - why is Putin always acting out? And why is he opposed to NATO? After the end of the Cold War, there were guarantees that NATO would not expand into Eastern Europe (though this changed later). However, over time, NATO has expanded in appeal and many former Soviet nations have joined the bloc. The Economist notes that “A bloc that once shared only a slender border with Russia, in Norway’s northern fringes, now encompasses the Baltic states, former Soviet territories within 200km of St Petersburg and 600km of Moscow. Seven of the eight former members of the Warsaw Pact have become part of nato.” Alex discusses how Putin feels betrayed in the post-Cold War era and he seems to be holding onto Ukraine. In Putin’s eyes, Russia has been humiliated and he wants a seat at the table. Will the west let him?

Thoughts on the Anniversary of 1/6, the Tonic Accord Throwback on 1/7/21 & Alex’s Experience With COVID

It has been a year since the storming of the capitol on January 6th. In this episode, Alex keeps it short due to low energy after contracting COVID in the last few days. He gives his story on COVID testing chaos and why he thinks people may not be doing the right thing for getting proper testing results. Then for the bulk of the episode, Alex gives his thoughts on the anniversary of January 6th. Finally, the episode ends with a segment from a year ago on the “Tonic Accord Podcast” in which Drew and Alex reacted to the capitol riots. Some of their predictions came true, but they were too optimistic about the GOP… 

The full episode from a year ago can be found here - https://thetonicaccord.podbean.com/e/trump-concedes-after-chaos/  

Fears of a Military Coup, America Has a Testing Problem & Mass Formation Hypnosis

In the first episode of 2022, Alex covers a myriad of topics including the outcome of the Elizabeth Holmes trial, a disturbing op-ed by three retired US generals in which they warn of a potential coup in 2024, America’s COVID testing problem, and thoughts on the Joe Rogan podcast and “mass formation psychosis.” 

In this episode:

• On December 17th, three retired generals put out a disturbing op-ed in the Washington Post. These three generals were Paul Eaton, Antonio Taguba, and Steven M. Anderson. In a nutshell, the article worries that the same doubts that have impacted the general public concerning who won the 2020 election have also hit the military. The generals paint the hypothetical scenario that in 2024, a large portion of the armed forces isn’t sure who won the election. This is made worse by conflicting reports from military leaders. What if in 2024 there is another riot but this time the military is splintered and the rioters get support? 

 

• The US has a testing problem and even after a summer of the Delta surge, policymakers and the private sector were still behind in producing enough. Alex goes into some of the reasons as to why this happened and what can be done. In general, it seems like the US lacked and still lacks any national strategy.

 

• Joe Rogan has recently gone fully into the anti-vaccine space and the idea of “mass formation psychosis” has been discussed by several of his recent guests. They argue that there is a nefarious plan to vaccinate the country and not discuss treatment methods or alternative options. Alex mentions how Dr. Malone recently said on the podcast that “When you have a society that has become decoupled from each other and has free-floating anxiety in a sense that things don’t make sense, we can’t understand it, and then their attention gets focused by a leader or series of events on one small point just like hypnosis, they literally become hypnotized and can be led anywhere.” People like Rogan and many on the right believe this describes the left’s authoritarian shift during COVID. In reality, Alex argues that this idea better reflects what the Trump movement did to the right. 

Reflections from 2021 & Projections for 2022

In this episode, Alex goes over five of what he deems “the most important” reflections from 2021. Then he goes over his five predictions for 2022. 

His five reflections from 2021 are:  

1. The Supply Chains Issues & What This Means for Globalization
2. Ethiopia’s Horrific Civil War
3. Democracy is Backsliding in the US and Abroad
4. Under PM Mario Draghi, Italy is Recovering
5. Joe Biden Showed Us That He Alone Can’t Fix This

His give predictions for 2022 are: 

1. The GOP Will Adopt Federal Legalization of Marijuana as a Platform (and it could hurt Democrats)
2. Electric Vehicles Will Take Off
3. The Private and Public Sector Will Be Forced to Deal With the Great Resignation
4. The Younger Generations Will Demand Change (on both the right and the left)
5. Russia’s Encroachment on Ukraine May Backfire

Manchin Gave Biden COAL for Christmas & Is the US in Fascism’s Legal Stage?

In this “stocking stuffer” episode, Alex delivers only coal to the listeners. In the first part, Alex discusses how in about 10 seconds on Fox News Sunday, Senator Joe Manchin was able to kill the current iteration of Biden’s Build Back Better Bill (BBB). The bill needed every Democrat to vote in favor of it so that Kamala Harris could break the 50-50 tie. Alex goes into the specifics of the bill in which there are a myriad of parts that include health care reform, climate change reform, child tax credits, cheaper elderly care, and the creation of new jobs. Alex goes into why Manchin opposed climate reform as well as the child tax credit. Then he looks into how the Biden Administration may be able to salvage parts of it. With the election year, the administration needs to focus on getting parts of it passed after the holidays.

To wrap up the episode, Alex looks into a news article from the Guardian called “America is now in fascism’s legal phase.” The main point of the article is that “the history of racism in the US is fertile ground for fascism. Attacks on the courts, education, the right to vote, and women’s rights are further steps on the path to toppling democracy.” Alex also discusses how Critical Race Theory has been a rallying cry for fear-mongering on the right and it has created a perceived threat. “The Nazis used Judeo-Bolshevism as their constructed enemy. The fascist movement in the Republican party has turned to critical race theory instead. Fascism feeds off a narrative of supposed national humiliation by internal enemies.” Ultimately, the Democrats need to be effective in 2022 to hold off this democratic backslide. 

Omicron is Loving College Life, Biden Backtracks on Student Loan Relief & Alex’s Top People of 2021

In this episode, Alex looks at recent surge of Omicron cases at Cornell University that has led to a return to online finals and a shutdown of the Ithaca campus. He goes over how this reflects a similar problem in Vermont, Denmark, and the U.K.. It seems like Omicron may be a serious threat for the US, not because of its lethality, but because of what the surge in cases may do to the health care system. Later, Alex talks about how the Biden Administration has announced that it won’t extend student loan relief even though it was a popular policy. Alex discusses how the student loan crisis is not only a ticking time bomb, but something that both parties don’t seem driven to fix. Could ending this relief before the midterms hurt Biden even more? Finally, Alex goes over his top five most impactful people from 2021. These are highly debatable, but all are individuals that have impacted Alex’s year and made him think.  

Mark Meadows is Having a Rough Week & the Tornados Exposed More Corporate GREED

In this episode, Alex starts with a recent experience of being confronted by antivaxxers in a restaurant in California. Then he goes on to discuss new revelations in the January 6th investigation, and how corporate greed led to unnecessary deaths during the recent tornados in the midwest. "While Rudy Was Imploding, A Serious Plot Against Democracy Was Exploding." 

 

• Over the last couple days, two new revelations have come to the surface. First, Mark Meadows, received text messages from Trump family members (including Don Jr.), Fox News Hosts, and Republican house members, begging for him to tell Trump to stop the chaos. These texts could be damaging for the Trump administration because it shows that Trump was out of control, liked what was happening, and was not going to stop it. It seems clear that he was no longer acting as president for all of America, but as a demagogue wanting to hold onto office for as long as he could. Alex thinks that the impeachment should have gone to a trial after January 6th to make it so Trump could not run for office again. 

 

• The second revelation, from when Mark Meadows cooperated with the commission, is that there was a 36 page powerpoint outlining different options for overturning the election. These options included options ranging from declaring a national emergency to seize ballots to blaming Chinese interference. The most troubling slides revealed that there was a focus on January 6th and halting the certification of the votes. This highlights that there was an orchestrated attempt to overturn this election. Alex mentions that the media may have laughed off Rudy Guliani melting and farting during court cases or Sydney Powell’s delusions, but the real plot was much more serious and refined. 

 

• Also, the recent tornados in the midwest have fo far killed 80 people. One town of Mayfield, Kentucky saw its downtown leveled and a factory completely destroyed. Alex mentions how these tragic events highlight corporate greed. There are reports that a factory in Mayfield threatened to fire its employees if they left work after the tornado warnings. These people were forced to go back to work and eventually had to hide in bathrooms and hallways. Eight people died. Also, in Illinois, an Amazon warehouse saw damage that killed 6 people. There are reports that these employees were not given the option to leave work and couldn’t shelter in safe places. Alex argues that while Amazon denies this report, the bigger question is: WHY WERE THESE PEOPLE STILL REQUIRED TO WORK? 

Lessons We MUST Learn from the Bosnian Genocide & A Thug is Running Interpol

In this episode, Alex starts by going over an article from The Atlantic called “TRUMP’S NEXT COUP HAS ALREADY BEGUN” by Barton Gellman. The main point of the first half of the article is that “January 6 was practice. Donald Trump’s GOP is much better positioned to subvert the next election.”  Alex then focuses on the more disturbing parts of the article. Gellman interviews a man who is furious about the 2020 election and still believes it was stolen. The man says “There ain’t no f***** way we are letting go of 3 November 2020." When people think their livelihoods have been taken from them, whether it is perceived or real, it seems like people may be willing to do the unthinkable. 

Alex turns to Robert Pape, who is at the University of Chicago. He focuses on national and international security affairs. He said that when he saw the storming of the capital, he immediately thought of Slobodan Milošević, the former president of Serbia. Pape says that “Milošević compared Muslims in the former Yugoslavia to Ottomans who had enslaved the Serbs six centuries before. He fomented years of genocidal war that destroyed the hope for a multiethnic democracy.” Basically, Milošević stoked grievance and anger for a changing, multiethnic country, and it led to a brutal genocide that killed close to 100,000 people, mainly Bosnian Muslims. This happened slowly because society and the institutions slowly became corrupted and radicalized against other groups. Alex goes into how this could have happened, and how leaders like Trump, Tucker Carlson, and some congressmen, are stoking the same ideas of replacement, historical grievances towards “the other”, and this idea of opposing a changing, multiethnic world. Alex sees the current escalation of real-world violence and hatred towards others as a disturbing escalation of affairs in the United States. 

Later on, Alex talks about Interpol and its flaws. Interpol has a new president and his name is Ahmed Naser al-Raisi. He was previously the inspector general for the interior ministry in the United Arab Emirates and recently was elected to be the president. The head of ALQST for Human Rights, said: “Raisi’s election sends a chilling message that Interpol has abandoned its human rights commitments.” There are numerous reports that al-Raisi was involved in torture and other brutal acts during his time in the UAE. Alex worries that al-Raisi may end up just helping autocrats abuse Interpol’s “red notice” system. Over the last two decades, autocratic regimes have found that the red notices, or international warrants, can be used to persecute exiled dissidents. Alex then goes into a deeper look at Interpol, why it has become useful for autocrats, why it has lost credibility, and why these international organizations keep electing flawed individuals. 

The Grift in Georgia Continues, Some Thoughts on Gun Reform & School Shootings

In this episode, Alex discusses the recent news that David Perdue, an ex-Republican senator, has announced that he will be running in Georgia’s 2022 gubernatorial election against Brian Kemp (Georgia’s current Republican governor). Stacey Abrams is also running, on the Democratic side. This election is turning out to be what the Atlanta Journal-Constitution called “‘A mess’: Kemp is under pressure from both sides in 2022 race.” Kemp, a one-time Trump ally, fell out of favor with the former president after not agreeing with Trump over massive fraud in the 2020 election. Alex worries that David Perdue may be willing to embrace Trump. After he lost to Jon Ossoff in a Senate runoff election back in January, Perdue has been willing to embrace claims of election irregularities and clearly may be more in favor within the Trump base. 

 

Later, Alex shares some thoughts on the recent school shooting in Michigan and the timeline that led to that event. The prosecutors charged the parents in this case as well which is not common to do. Alex discusses how this may send an effective message to parents around the country.