THE UNABASHED OVERTNESS OF FASCIST THINKING NOWADAYS
COMPILATION AND COMMENTARY BY LUCY M. WARNER
DECEMBER 30, 2016


IT SEEMS THAT THOSE OF US WHO DO ANGRILY, PERSISTENTLY AND BOLDLY STAND UP FOR WHAT IS GOOD OVER WHAT IS EVIL ARE THE “FANATICS.” I HAVE NOTICED, THOUGH, SINCE THE TRUMP ELECTION -- WHICH WAS BROUGHT ABOUT BY OUR DELIGHTFUL ELECTORAL COLLEGE OVER THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE DUE TO ONE OF THOSE “CONSTITUTIONAL” REFUSALS OF JUSTICE IN THIS COUNTRY – THAT MANY OF OUR CITIZENS ARE TRULY UP IN ARMS, AND I BELIEVE WE WILL REMAIN SO AS LONG AS THIS OUTRAGEOUS POLITICAL GROUP REMAIN IN POWER. TRUMP MAY HAVE WON, BUT HE ISN’T GOING TO HAVE FUN IN HIS PRESIDENCY, I FEEL SURE. EVERY TIME SOMEBODY OPENLY CRITICIZES HIM HE SENDS OUT ONE OF HIS TWEET BARRAGES. HE DOES THAT BECAUSE IT HURTS HIM THAT SO MANY PEOPLE DON’T WORSHIP HIM AS HE FEELS WE SHOULD.

IF HE TRIES TO USE TIENANMAN SQUARE STYLE ACTIONS AGAINST HIS DISLOYAL SUBJECTS, I AM FAIRLY SURE THAT SOMEONE WILL ASSASSINATE HIM. I’M NOT RECOMMENDING THAT, OF COURSE. IT’S NOT WHAT I BELIEVE IN AND IT USUALLY LEADS TO A VERY SIMILAR SITUATION OR EVEN WORSE. I’M THINKING ABOUT THE REIGN OF TERROR AFTER THE FIRST PART OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION SUCCEEDED. IT REMINDS ME OF JESUS’ IMAGERY OF THE “NEW WINE BEING PLACED IN OLD WINE SKINS.” IT IS ALSO QUITE POSSIBLE THAT TRUMP WILL BE REMOVED FROM OFFICE BY THE LEGISLATURE OVER HIS MISDEEDS, IF THEY HAVE THE COURAGE TO DO THAT. I DO HOPE THEY ARE NOT TOO TIMID OR COMPLICIT IN HIS ACTIONS TO DO THAT. TO SEE AGAIN THE NOW FAMOUS IMAGE OF THAT CHINESE HERO AT TIENANMAN SQUARE, GO TO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeFzeNAHEhU. TRUMP HAS ALREADY SHOWN HOW HEAVY-HANDED HE IS PREPARED TO BE AND HE ISN’T EVEN IN OFFICE YET. PARDON ME FOR NOT FEELING PASSIVE, COMPLACENT OR LADYLIKE ABOUT THAT. COMPLACENCY IS THE NATURAL CONDITION OF THE FINANCIALLY WELL-OFF, BUT IT IS ALSO ONE OF THE TRUEST FORMS OF STUPIDITY. DON’T GIVE IN TO IT! GO TO THE NET AND LOOK UP THE NEWS FOR YOURSELF, AND DON’T FEAR THE “PROGRESSIVE” SITES! OFTEN THOSE ARE THE ONLY PLACES WE WILL FIND THE “TRUTH” THAT WE MOST NEED TO READ.



THE CAUSE OF THE SITUATION

The Mass Psychology of Fascism

https://www.laprogressive.com/trump-triumphant/

When the Beast Goes Wild: What a Person Can Do to Regain Influence
BY DORIS WOLZ-COHEN
POSTED ON DECEMBER 24, 2016


What turns natural human instinct into a distorted cruel beast that is willing to destroy others of the same species is that beast’s master. Program natural instinct to serve human Ego, and it will turn against others who look and think differently. Program–or reprogram– it to serve humanity’s universal Self or Soul, and it will serve and seek to protect the lives of all humans. Not only that, it will propel a person to individuate and drive humanity to evolve.

Who can lead us out of cruelty, when the beast goes wild? Not a leader who sees the world through Ego’s eyes. He will only deceive, distort, bully, entice and mislead human instinct further. The way out of darkness is not by projecting the hero, or the anti-hero, onto an authoritarian leader such as Donald Trump; it would merely energize him; the way out is by gaining insight into the three layers of human character Wilhelm Reich discovered in “the average individual.” Reich wrote in The Mass Psychology of Fascism,

“Extensive and conscientious therapeutic work on the human character has taught me that, in judging human reactions, we have to take into account three different layers of the biopsychic structure. …In the superficial layer, the average individual is restrained, polite, compassionate and conscientious. There would be no social tragedy of the animal, man, if this superficial layer were in immediate contact with his deep natural core [core Self]. His tragedy is that such is not the case. The superficial layer of social cooperation is not in contact with the biological core of the person, but separated from it by a second, intermediary character layer consisting of cruel, sadistic, lascivious, predatory and envious impulses.”

To become fully human and naturally social, Reich recognized that a person has to eliminate “the false, sham-social surface,” penetrate through “this second, perverse and antisocial layer,” and arrive at the “natural core.”

Whether our thinking is liberal or conservative, if the first character layer (root of liberalism) is not in contact with the third character layer (seat of humanity’s universal core Self), it likely means that we were raised in an authoritarian system where we learned to participate in creating the “cruel” second layer of instinctual rebellion and reactionary social ideas (root of fascism). Reich understood that, “A mechanistic authoritarian civilization only reaps, in the form of fascism, … what it has sown. [This is why] there is… not a single individual who does not have the elements of fascistic feeling and thinking in his structure. … One cannot make the Fascist harmless if, …one does not look for him in oneself; if one does not know the social institutions [or family systems] which hatch him every day.”

We are in the middle of a reactionary movement right now. Reactionary movements appear revolutionary but aren’t, because they are supported and energized by distorted instinct gone wild.

We are in the middle of a reactionary movement right now. Reactionary movements appear revolutionary but aren’t, because they are supported and energized by distorted instinct gone wild. Deplore and keep instinctual impulses down! Unfortunately, that’s what many of us learned. And every time we oppress our instinctual self, we deny its intelligence and feed an antisocial beast.

Today, we are caught in its claws and the only way forward is to change our relationship with it and heal the oppressor/oppressed split.¹ Reich gave us a key: if we make contact with the third layer of character and let our universal Self inform and lead us, we can become genuinely honest and cooperative human beings, ”capable of love and also of rational hatred.”

We can beat fascism by connecting to our “natural core,” which in turn makes us willing to understand and care about each other. There is a beautiful Zen teaching that invites us to seek “the truth” and represent all sides:

“If you want the truth to stand clear before you, never be for or against.
The struggle between “for” and “against” is the mind’s worst disease.”
—Seng-ts’an, c. 700 C.E.

What is “the truth?” From an Ego-centered place, “the truth” is that the oppressor (Ego) and the oppressed (natural instinct) are separate. But if viewed from a Soul-centered place, the oppressor and the oppressed are both aspects of the same universal core Self. When we take sides, we deny this truth, which reinforces the split between the first and the second character layer. Reich felt that this is precisely what keeps us from connecting with our core. When we energize human Ego by either idealizing or fighting authoritarian leaders, we forget that the Soul alone can restore the beast’s intelligence and lead us out of darkness.

During much darker times, Reich urged people “to become absolutely clear that fascism is not the deed of a Hitler or Mussolini [or, as many fear today, Donald Trump] but the expression of the irrational structure of the mass individual.” When we stop energizing an authoritarian leader with idealization or devaluation,² we can then allow instinctive rebellion against “the false, sham-social surface” to alert us, and make arriving at the natural core our goal.

Some people turned away from Hillary Clinton because of her political correctness and lack of authenticity. Some are trying to stop Donald Trump because of his dangerousness. As Charles Eisenstein pointed out in his article The Election: Of Hate, Grief, and a New Story, “Normal is coming unhinged…the wolf in sheep’s clothing [got rejected] in favor of a wolf in wolf’s clothing.” Ultimately, faux liberalism and dangerous animal impulses represent Soul disconnection every human being—in the process of individuation—must confront.

Until we realize that we are both, human as well as animal, we will fall short of creating systems that include both aspects, and where both are working together and helping us to evolve and thrive. It’s time to honor our natural instinct and to allow the Soul to lead us out of darkness. As Reich wrote, “Your basic error is that you deny or ridicule the mind which moves everything, instead of comprehending it.”

Doris Wolz-Cohen
Soulful Relating in Psychotherapy


[1] In authoritarian systems, children are taught to distrust and oppress natural instinct and obey Ego direction. This creates a split between Ego (oppressor) and natural instinct (oppressed). Instead of working together, Ego and instinct learn to oppose each other.

[2] Idealization and devaluation is a splitting defense mechanism employed when a child can’t integrate the fact that authority figures are both good and bad. In early trauma cases, these defenses may persist into adulthood.



>EXCERPT – “[1] In authoritarian systems, children are taught to distrust and oppress natural instinct and obey Ego direction. This creates a split between Ego (oppressor) and natural instinct (oppressed). Instead of working together, Ego and instinct learn to oppose each other. [2] Idealization and devaluation is a splitting defense mechanism employed when a child can’t integrate the fact that authority figures are both good and bad. In early trauma cases, these defenses may persist into adulthood.”


When these two things happen, a crowd can become a mob, a lonely man can become a rapist, a religious believer can become an ultraconservative fanatic. We are closer to being over the edge of the cliff psychologically as a people now than I have ever seen it, but this trend goes back into my earliest memories to a recognizable degree. The cynical maneuvering of David Koch’s Tea Party and Donald Trump’s quest to be the ruler of the world has turned our society not merely upside down, but inside out as well. Things which used to be the inner devil have become the outer evil. I have always hated and feared “group think”, which is NOT a healthy cooperation but the willful or uncontrolled subjugation of our own mind and sense of rightness to those of others. This is not a future peril, but the present day, and now our cultural and political Progressives, all true religions of humanistic beliefs and whose God is Love, all minority groups, not merely the often feared and hated “activists” like BLM but the true man on the street, rich and poor, old and young must “mobilize,” as Bernie Sanders said in November the day after the 2016 election. That is most often used these days to mean that our “team” needs to get together and make a touchdown, but it is originally a military term, and I believe that is what Bernie was talking about. He of all people –religiously and philosophically an innately endangered minority member – is well aware of the true potential of the situation in this the land of the free and the home of the brave. Our time to prove our personal courage and goodness has come. We need to pray, plan, communicate frequently and act. Heaven be with us.



THE LATEST FRIGHTENING EXAMPLE OF SURPRISINGLY INTENSE NEGATIVITY – CARL PALADINO

PALADINO’S MOST TOUCHING WORDS: “"And yes," he concluded, "it's about a little deprecating humor which America lost for a long time. Merry Christmas and tough luck if you don't like my answer."


http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/trump-ally-carl-paladino-slammed-racist-wish-list-obamas-n699621

Politics
Dec 23 2016, 3:28 pm ET

Trump Ally Carl Paladino Slammed for 'Racist' Wish List for Obamas
by Erik Ortiz

Image: President-Elect Donald Trump Holds Meetings At Trump Tower
Photograph -- Carl Paladino, former New York gubernatorial candidate, speaks to reporters in the lobby at Trump Tower on Dec. 5, 2016 in New York City. Drew Angerer / Getty Images
Play video -- Michelle Obama at DNC: 'When They Go Low, We Go High' 1:26

Carl Paladino, the brash Buffalo businessman who served as a co-chair of Donald Trump's campaign in New York, is facing backlash and calls for his resignation for crude comments disparaging the Obamas.

Paladino, an elected city school board member, took part in a survey by the Artvoice weekly newspaper in which Buffalo residents were asked what they wished for in 2017. In answering what he'd like to happen most next year, the former New York GOP gubernatorial candidate replied:

Obama catches mad cow disease after being caught having relations with a Herford. He dies before his trial and is buried in a cow pasture next to [senior White House advisor] Valerie [Jarrett], who died weeks prior, after being convicted of sedition and treason, when a Jihady cell mate mistook her for being a nice person and decapitated her.

And when asked what he would most like to see go in 2017, he responded:

Michelle Obama. I'd like her to return to being a male and let loose in the outback of Zimbabwe where she lives comfortably in a cave with Maxie, the gorilla.

Buffalo School Board President Barbara Seals Nevergold said Paladino is known for his controversial rhetoric.

"What was surprising though were the direct attacks on the president and the first lady in such demeaning ways, in such tone that many have described as racist and as sexist," Nevergold told reporters, "and so those are the comments I am most concerned about because of the messages they send to our children."

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said in a statement that Paladino must resign.

"While the First Amendment of our Constitution protects the right of free speech, no matter how deplorable it may be, there can be no room in our civil discourse for such hate and anger," said Poloncarz, a Democrat. "These comments harken back to the darkest days of racism in our nation's history. Anyone who has these beliefs is unfit to hold public office and especially unfit to oversee the education of children."

But in a lengthy response sent to the media on Friday, Paladino said his comments have "nothing to do with race."

Related: Nonprofit Head Who Wrote Racist Michelle Obama Post to Return to Job

"It's about 2 progressive elitist ingrates who have hated their country so badly and destroyed its fabric in so many respects in 8 years," he wrote.

He added that the president was "demeaning and weakening" the U.S. military and sniped at him for being a "yellow-bellied coward who left thousands to die in Syria and especially Aleppo."

He also said Michelle Obama "hated America before her husband won."

"And yes," he concluded, "it's about a little deprecating humor which America lost for a long time. Merry Christmas and tough luck if you don't like my answer."

Paladino could not immediately be reached for further comment Friday.

The 70-year-old real estate company chairman was re-elected to the Buffalo Board of Education in May, edging his rival by four percentage points.

In 2010, he lost the race for New York governor against Democrat Andrew Cuomo, after the Paladino campaign was mired in a scandal involving racist and sexually explicit emails, according to The New York Times. One message included a video of dancing Africans in traditional garb entitled, "Obama Inauguration Rehearsal."

Cuomo said in a statement Friday that Paladino's latest comments were "racist, ugly, reprehensible remarks" against the Obamas, and added that "he has embarrassed the good people of the state with his latest hate-filled rage."

Paladino, who was spotted at Trump Tower earlier this month, was one of the president-elect's earliest supporters.

He took heat in July for reportedly sending an email to a female anti-Trump Utah GOP delegate saying she should be "hung for treason" and promised to "be in your face" at the convention.

Erik Ortiz



http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/you-re-fired-buffalo-school-board-moves-oust-trump-ally-n701296

NEWS DEC 29 2016, 6:53 PM ET
You're Fired: Buffalo School Board Moves to Oust Trump Ally Carl Paladino Following Racist Comments About Obamas
by CHELSEA BAILEY


Photographs:
Image: President-Elect Donald Trump Holds Meetings At Trump Tower
Carl Paladino, former New York gubernatorial candidate, speaks to reporters in the lobby at Trump Tower on Dec. 5, 2016 in New York City. Drew Angerer / Getty Images
Related: Trump Ally Carl Paladino Slammed for 'Racist' Wish List for Obamas
Related: Analysis: The Vengeful World of Donald Trump, and Why It Matters


A Trump ally who made strikingly offensive remarks about the Obama family last week was on Thursday told to resign immediately from his position on a Buffalo, N.Y., school board.

In a 6-2 vote, the Buffalo County School Board gave controversial businessman Carl Paladino 24 hours to resign his seat, or the decision would go to the Department of Education. Paladino was absent from the meeting.

Paladino, an outspoken ally of President-elect Donald Trump, came under fire last week for his racist response to a local survey on New Year's wishes, telling the paper that he wished President Obama would die of mad cow disease and for the First Lady "to return to being a male and let loose in the outback of Zimbabwe."

His remarks were greeted by swift outrage, with protesters around the country demanding his resignation. The board's decision Thursday was greeted by a loud and sustained standing ovation from the school board chambers.

Paladino, who was chair of Trump's New York campaign before the election, also once sent an email to a female anti-Trump Utah GOP delegate saying she should be "hung for treason" and promised to "be in your face" at the convention.

In a closing statement before the vote was held, district President Barbara Nevergold said Paladino had failed the students under his care — especially those who are minorities — by reducing their role models to "depraved individuals."

"Words matter Mr. Paladino," Nevergold said. "As a sitting board member you have amassed a record and established a pattern of behavior that is equally egregious and violates your oath of office and professional ethics as a board of education member."

Nevergold went on to describe hundreds of "incredulous" complaints she and fellow board members said they'd received since Paladino's statements were made public.

"They would like me to tell you, 'You're fired,'" she said to applause. "But those are not my words. So I'm asking you to do the right thing and resign."

Paladino apologized somewhat for his remarks in a statement Tuesday, telling the Buffalo News that he'd mistakenly sent the responses to the outlet — he meant to only share the outlandish racism with his friends — and didn't intend for them to hurt the "minority community."

But he also remained defiant, vowing not to leave the school board in the face of backlash from what he called, "vanquished progressive haters."

"I don't intend to yield to the fanatics among my adversaries," he said. "I certainly am not a racist."

But for many members in both the board and the community, Paladino's apology wasn't enough.

View image on Twitter
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NYS Education Dept ✔ @NYSEDNews
Statement by Emily DeSantis, State Education Department Spokesperson on @BuffCitySchools Board of Education actions:
3:43 PM - 29 Dec 2016
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http://jezebel.com/trump-ny-chair-carl-paladino-told-to-resign-immediately-1790615908

Trump NY Chair Carl Paladino Told to 'Resign Immediately' Following Very Racist Comments About Obama
Megan Reynolds
Yesterday 12/30/16

Photo: AP

Last week Donald Trump New York campaign chair Carl Paladino gave astonishingly racist comments about the Obamas to Artvoice, an alt-weekly paper out of Buffalo, NY. As a result of those comments, which included his wish for Barack Obama to succumb to mad cow disease after “being caught having relations with a Herford” and for Michelle Obama to “return to being a male,” his employer, the Buffalo County School Board, has called for his resignation.

ABC News reports that Paladino has been given 24 hours to resign from his position on a Buffalo County school board. If he does not comply with the request, the decision will be raised to the Department of Education. The decision to ask Paladino to resign was made in a meeting that Paladino did not attend and was greeted with “a loud and sustained standing ovation,” which is the correct way to respond.

As a result of Paladino’s disgusting remarks, board members have been overwhelmed with complaints. District President Barbara Nevergold addressed the absent Paladino during the meeting, saying “Words matter, Mr. Paladino.” She also said that by reducing President Obama and FLOTUS to “depraved individuals,” Paladino failed in his responsibilities to the students under his care.

“As a sitting board member you have amassed a record and established a pattern of behavior that is equally egregious and violates your oath of office and professional ethics as a board of education member,” she said, before asking him to “do the right thing” and resign.

In a mealy-mouthed and half-hearted apology, Paladino told the Buffalo News that he hadn’t intended to send his answers to the paper, but to his friends instead and partially blamed his response on heightened emotions after listening to President Obama speak on Aleppo.

“I’m certainly not a racist,” he wrote. I’m sorry to say, bud, but yeah, you are!



http://artvoice.com/2016/12/27/carl-paladino-apologizes/

Carl Paladino apologizes to ‘minority community’ for Obama remarks; explains motivation
December 27, 2016 Jamie Moses 33 Comments

‘I certainly am not a racist’
By Carl Paladino;

To Artvoice:

I never intended to hurt the minority community who I spent years trying to help out of the cycle of poverty in our inner cities. To them I apologize. I thought about them every day as I fought against unqualified and incompetent superintendents, administrators, teachers and School Board members, unfair union contracts, broken homes and children who can’t get the education they need to break that cycle of poverty because our school system is a failure, for reasons that needn’t be. I have shown those who chose not to watch but to enter the arena how to fight the demons. Nevertheless, I won’t be judged by those timid souls who sit unbloodied in the gallery always prepared to criticize. Nor do I have any respect or regrets for the insane education activists who hover over and defend the dysfunction of the BPS.
I received your emailed survey at an emotional moment after I had just listened to Obama’s statement that he regretted the slaughter in Aleppo that, in fact, resulted from his failed and cowardly foreign policy, a policy to look the other way while innocent people were murdered and starved. I view Barak Obama as a traitor to American values. We don’t stand down and leave soldiers to die on a battlefield when we can send help. We don’t lie to the American people and the parents of our fallen to get re-elected. Obama has not led America to a better place by disregarding the rule of law and standing with his elitist brethren as above the law nor has his wife Michele Obama who told our children and the world after the election that now “there is no hope for America.”

Your survey questions provided me with the spark to vent and write deprecating humor about a bad President for whom the main stream media continues to seek an undeserved legacy. I wanted to say something as sarcastic and hurtful as possible about the people so responsible for the hurt and suffering of so many others. I was wired up, primed to be human and make a mistake. I could not have made a worse choice in the words I used to express my feelings.

It’s all too easy to make mistakes when you’re emotional about the riggedteachers’ contract by an incompetent Board of Education majority who sold out the school district as payback to teacher’s union leader Phil Rumore for his election support. They couldn’t care less about the children of Buffalo. And I’m bewildered about the Supreme Court Judge who tried to dismiss a lawsuit to recover $450 million fleeced from the children of Buffalo by LP Ciminelli during the $1.4 billion schools building project.

I publicly took responsibility for what I said and confirmed those were my answers, but believe it or not, I did not mean to send those answers to Artvoice. Not that it makes any difference because what I wrote was inappropriate under any circumstance. I filled out the survey to send to a couple friends and forwarded it to them not realizing that I didn’t hit “forward” I hit “reply.” All men make mistakes.

What is horrible is explaining to my 17 year old daughter how her hero could be so stupid.

What is horrible is watching my family and friends react to the rabid hordes of attacking parasites we now call activist progressives.

It’s been a sick, combative year for America. We changed the direction of our country and beat back the demons for a few decades. I am proud to have been a part of the making of history.

As for the vanquished progressive haters out there spewing their venom at anything that is a reminder of their humiliating defeat, irrelevance is tough to chew on.

For the mean spirited disoriented press trying to find grounding and recover legitimacy on my back, pray that you still have a job next year because you have lost all credibility with the people.

No, I’m not leaving the school board, not when it’s time to help implement the real choice elements of Trump’s plan for education reform. I’ve spent years dedicated to the mission to defeat the thought that the liberal progressive elitist establishment can continue to hold our minority children captive in the cycle of poverty simply to provide their voting base. I don’t intend to yield to the fanatics among my adversaries. I certainly am not a racist.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.



I HOPE TO SEE A TIME WHEN PEOPLE WHO SAY THESE THINGS WILL UNDERSTAND THAT THEY NEED TO APOLOGIZE TO THE HUMAN RACE RATHER THAN TO “THE MINORITY COMMUNITY.” WE’RE IN THE SAME BOAT, BROTHER!! LMW.



Artvoice
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Artvoice is a free weekly newspaper based in Buffalo, New York, distributed on Thursdays. Artvoice writes on arts, theater, music, food, sports, and politics in the Buffalo region. It was first published in June 1990. In 2010, Artvoice celebrated its 20th anniversary in its June edition with a time frame of the history of the publication.[1] It also celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2015 with a party celebrating performing and visual arts.[2]

Artvoice releases its content at its website, Artvoice.com. Some content is available online only. For many years, it was the only professional print competition to The Buffalo News distributed throughout the Buffalo area. Each year Artvoice awards the "Arties", celebrating excellence in local theater. Artvoice also runs an annual "Best of Buffalo" competition where readers are able to nominate and vote for their favorite individuals, groups, or companies in dozens of categories including food, people, theater, fine art, and retail.

In 2014, many of the staff of Artvoice, including Editor Geoff Kelly, left Artvoice to launch a competing weekly newspaper, The Public. Since that time, both publications have competed and existed side-by-side.[3] In 2015, Artvoice announced a joint venture with the Niagara Falls Reporter. The papers will combine certain business services while maintaining independent editorial control.[4]
As of October 2015 the weekly distribution of Artvoice was 45,000 copies with plans to increase to 50,000 through the partnership with the Reporter.[5]


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_newspaper

An alternative newspaper is a type of newspaper that eschews comprehensive coverage of general news in favor of stylized reporting, opinionated reviews and columns, investigations into edgy topics and magazine-style feature stories highlighting local people and culture. Its news coverage is more locally focused and their target audiences younger than those of daily newspapers. Typically, alternative newspapers are published in tabloid format and printed on newsprint. Other names for such publications include alternative weekly, alternative newsweekly, and alt weekly, as the majority circulate on a weekly schedule.

Most metropolitan areas of the United States and Canada are home to at least one alternative paper. These papers are generally found in such urban areas, although a few publish in smaller cities, in rural areas or exurban areas where they may be referred to as an alt monthly due to the less frequent publication schedule.

Alternative newspapers represent the more commercialized and mainstream evolution of the underground press associated with the 1960s counterculture. Their focus remains on arts and entertainment and social and political reportage. Editorial positions at alternative weeklies are predominantly left-leaning, though there is a contingent of conservative, and libertarian, alt-weeklies. Styles vary sharply among alternative newspapers; some affect a satirical, ironic tone, while others embrace a more straightforward approach to reporting.

Columns commonly syndicated to alternative weeklies include "The Straight Dope," Dan Savage's "Savage Love," Rob Breszny's "Free Will Astrology," and Ben Tausig's crossword puzzle "Ink Well." Quirky, non-mainstream comics, such as Matt Groening's Life in Hell, Lynda Barry's Ernie Pook's Comeek, Ruben Bolling's Tom the Dancing Bug, and Ted Rall's political cartoons are also common.

The Village Voice, based in New York City, is one of the first and best-known examples of the form.

The Association of Alternative Newsmedia is the alternative weeklies' trade association. The Alternative Weekly Network and the Ruxton Group are national advertising sales representatives for alternative weeklies.



I HOPE TO READ VERY SOON THAT THIS MAN IS NOT ONLY OFF THE SCHOOL BOARD, HAS LOST WHATEVER PROFESSIONAL CREDENTIALS WHICH HE POSSESSES, AND IS "FIRED" BY DONALD TRUMP AS WELL.