Just The Facts

11/09/2025

Hello everyone. Justin Burlin here, author of this page and soon to be grad student, with a new sociology lesson for the day.

- Why do police departments train their officers to say “I feared for my life” after fatally shooting unarmed (usually black) men?
- Why do more than half the states in the country still allow what is known as the “trans panic defense”?
- Why do bigots want to make words like “TERF” and “racist” labeled as slurs?

Because when you position yourself as the victim, it generates a mixture of sympathy or concern for you, and it paints whoever is on the other side of the situation in a negative light. This becomes especially useful for someone that is the aggressor or the shooter in a hostile situation. Why do police say they feared for their life? To make the other person seem dangerous, to place all potential blame onto them.

Why do people use the trans panic defense? To make trans people seem deceptive and something to be scared of. Why do bigots want to outlaw words like TERF and racist? To make themselves seem like the unjustly maligned victims of a witch hunt, which then makes it harder for people to call out racists because they are portrayed as the liberals who cried wolf and hate everyone who disagrees with them.

This is manipulation of fear and weaponization of victimhood. You know that old saying about modern-day conservatives: “every accusation is a confession”? It’s a similar structure with this: every claim of victimhood is an act of aggression in disguise. When police say they feared for their life, they are trying to paint a victim as a monster, and if that person is still alive, trying to endanger their life again or get them sent to prison.

When people use the trans panic defense, they’re trying to make all transgender people feel scared, like they should have to hide in a hole lest someone discover who they really are. When bigots try to outlaw accurate terminology of bigots, they’re trying to censor free speech to the point that it’s no longer safe to call out racists without risking physical harm.

Fascists and bigots are the enemy. They are the aggressors. They are the monsters. They want to oppress, silence, eliminate, execute anyone they deem to be inferior to them and their sick, demented worldview. Don’t let them turn the story around and try to pass themselves off as victims when they get called out for being fascists. They are the bad guys. Don’t ever let them say otherwise.

11/09/2025

SNAP benefits being cancelled for absolutely no reason and teachers having to fight each other for pocket change. Look me in the eye and tell me this country is great.

11/08/2025

Here’s the full list of countries that have and have not recognized a Palestinian state.

ALMOST every country, territory and island nation on Earth has recognized Palestine. We are officially getting down to a countable number of who HAS NOT. Even Iran, Iraq, Syria, Russia, China, and North Korea have all recognized Palestine. The United States looks worse with every country that signs on.

A growing number of countries are pledging to recognize a Palestinian state, with more than 145 nations now joining the call for international recognition.

11/08/2025

It has been repeatedly and demonstrably proven that old guys with decades of experience are not enough. Decency, compassion, and a new perspective are just as important. Zohran Mamdani is going to be a breath of fresh air for New York City, in more ways than one. If you need proof, look at the changes in Baltimore.

LINK: https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/maryland-baltimore-city-violent-crime-homicides/

LINK: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/16/baltimore-violent-crime-trump

LINK: https://retriever.umbc.edu/2025/09/crime-in-baltimore-is-declining-at-historic-rates/

11/08/2025

Being greedy and not caring about people is one thing but it’s like these fascist ghouls actually want the poor to starve.

LINK:

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to immediately halt a judge’s ruling that requires full Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) November payments be made to states by Fr…

11/07/2025

Even for this hellish nightmare we’re all trapped in, this is unconscionably evil.

LINK:

The Circuit also seemed to suggest that trans students could not misgender their bullies in return.

11/07/2025

An innocent hard-working woman is dead, a man has lost his wife and FOUR children lost their mother because some as***le with a gun was so terrified of strangers on their front porch.

LINK:

The shooting victim died from a gunshot wound to the head, the coroner's office said.

11/06/2025

The Supreme Court is allowing the Fascist Regime to force transgender & nonbinary individuals to use passports with their birth gender. All this does is add to the public humiliation and indignity that these people are forced to endure every day.

What happens when a trans woman who had her surgeries twenty years ago tries to go through TSA but it says “Male” on her passport? Or vice versa? The physical, emotional, psychological and mental anguish that this is going to inflict on so many people is unconscionable.

This is just another reminder of how evil and bigoted the conservative justices really are on the so-called “Supreme Court”.

LINK:

The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the Trump administration to require the s*x designation on US passports to align with a traveler’s biological s*x, a blow to transgender and nonbinary Americans who have argued the policy is unconstitutional.

11/06/2025

11/06/2025

Nancy Pelosi was the first woman elected as Speaker of the House and out of the 56 Speakers in U.S. history, she is just one of four to have served non-consecutive terms. She is the best and most consequential Speaker of my lifetime and this country owes her an immeasurable debt of gratitude for her lifetime of magnificent service.

LINK:

Nancy Pelosi, the first and only female speaker of the US House of Representatives and one of the most powerful figures in Democratic politics for decades, has announced she will not seek reelection.

11/05/2025

There is a disturbing pattern of the fascist regime buying up shares of multiple tech companies and shoving their way into influencing their operations. The U.S. government is actively engaged in a hostile takeover of a sizable portion of Silicon Valley.

LINK: https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2025/11/05/westinghouse-cameco-brookfield-trump-nuclear-ap1000.html

LINK: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-administration-now-holds-stakes-023008085.html

11/05/2025

From New York to California, Democrats WON BIG last night.

The results — which include double-digit victories in Virginia and New Jersey — hint at how Democrats could mount a comeback in next year's midterms.