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Memory is a tricky thing. We like to believe our memory is accurate, but a lot of people (maybe you!) remember meeting Bugs Bunny at Disneyland. Only one problem: Bugs Bunny isnt a Disney character.

Darker versions of this phenomenon exist. The infamous case of Sybil a woman diagnosed with multiple personality disorder is considered by some to have been an instance of a shrink fostering false memories in a patient in the hope of getting good material for a book. George Orwell commented on the possible political use of false memory in his novel 1984, in which the population of Oceania incorrectly remembered that they were always at war with Eurasia, rather than Eastasia.

Now, a study published in Political Psychology looks into this phenomenon further and examines how partisanship influences false memories.

The researchers carried out two surveys on two different groups of test subjects. Each survey began with a section on the subjects demographic, political, and psychological traits alongside a short cognitive ability test. The surveys then moved on to a series of vignettes describing events or policies that were either real, misattributed, or outright fabricated.

For example, a misattributed story described how Eric Holder (an official in the Obama administration) spoke with MSNBC about negative news coverage of the administration. This event didnt happen, but a similar one did: Bill Barr (a Trump administration official) met with Fox News president Rupert Murdoch. A fabricated story described how the Trump administration allowed waste to be dumped into the Great Lakes. Each survey included 18 stories like these.

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The authors most striking finding was that, while most respondents (correctly) did not recall events that did not occur, 30% of them did and what they misremembered was suspiciously aligned with their political affiliation. For instance, Democratic test subjects were more likely to recall (incorrectly) that the Trump administration intentionally polluted the Great Lakes, while Republicans were more likely to recall (incorrectly) that Trump signed a particular G.I. bill (which was actually signed by Obama).

What causes false memories? By sifting through the data they collected, the authors found that false memories were linked to cognitive ability or, rather, the lack thereof. Similarly, being prone to perceive pseudo-profound bullshit as deeply meaningful also predicted acceptance of false stories. Narcissism also plays a role; confidence and nonsense often go hand-in-hand.

Furthermore, the researchers found that partisanship influenced the recollection of false memories. Members of one political party were more likely to remember events that never happened, provided that the event made their party look good and the other party look bad.

Read more:
Politics ruins everything, including your memory - Big Think

This week walking on Peaked Hill, I passed a 10-inch box turtle on two different walks, both chalking up the only times to cross paths since walking up there over the past decade. The best new thing in town is the Milokan Cultural Center, created by Rick Bausman at Native Earth Teaching Farm: see the activity schedule at bit.ly/MCCatNativeEarth.

Suellen Lazarus opened her Thursday Authors Series explaining that no family or friends had preferential ticket treatment, that Amy Schumer approached the CCC on Monday asking if she could offer a show shes working on as a fundraiser, and on Friday evening she was onstage for the lucky 250 ticket holders. Two hundred tickets were available for present CCC members, those were gone Thursday, and another 50 tickets released Friday morning to anyone on their mailing list, though by sharing that info, many more people were looking for those tickets, which were sold out in two minutes. Perhaps the rumor there will be a second show will come true.

If Alan Dershowitz wants to reach Island listeners, he should contact MVTV, where seating is not an issue: mvtv@mvtv.org, 508-696-9760.

North Tabor Farm now carries farm-prepared meals including salad, grain bowls, and their toasted sesame dressing. Dont forget to visit Crouton and her breadcrumbs.

I ran into cookbook author Joan Nathan and learned that her late husband, Allan Gerson, photographer and famed international lawyer, has an exhibit of his Marthas Vineyard photographs, Perfect Waits, at the M.V. Playhouse from July 19 to August 13, with an opening reception on Wednesday, July 27, from 5 to 6:30 pm (otherwise the gallery is open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, from 1 to 4 pm). Also, Joans son, David Henry Gersons documentary, The Story Wont Die, plays at the Grange on Thursday, July 28, at 7 pm. The film highlights young Syrian artists who use their work to protest and process what is currently the largest and longest ongoing displacement of people since World War II. Tickets at tmvff.org/thestorywontdie.

After opening three years ago, the Ruel Gallery, run by painter Colin Ruel and his wife, jeweler Nettie Kent, is throwing an official opening. Stop by Thursday, July 28, from 4 to 7 pm at 31 Basin Road, Menemsha.

The Beach Plum Inn is now open for breakfast from 8 to 10 am, Thursday to Sunday. Reservation only prix-fixe dinner, Friday: Burger Night, Saturday: Taco Night, and Sunday: Caribbean Night, 5 to 9 pm. Use tableagent.com or call 508-645-9454.

This weeks Sunday Flanders Field Softball reports there were bonehead plays of hilarity coupled with brilliant fielding plays especially by younger players. Hunter Weiss standout defensive play showed a magnificent running catch in foul territory. The carefully crafted first-week rules dissolved, except for very sketchy ball and strike calls. In the first game, Peter Haplerins team prevailed over the Hans Solmssen/Caleb Caldwell pitching collaborative, 7-4. In the second game, Ed Egers team got by Jim Feiners team, 5-1. Newcomers include Will Goldman visiting his grandmother, a standout player in both games, and she umpired a few innings too. Jude Spencer, about to start Bard College, played well. Mira Quinton, age 12, played impressively with cool shades and great swing, legged out a few hits, and was joined by her dad in the game. Lily Bernhard, 18, just back from London, played impressively, with her dad in the outfield. Then there was the red-haired young guy on third base who snagged the vicious liner hit by Sig Van Raan, ending a bases-loaded inning. A great Sunday in the fog game, forever summer. Chilmark Softball Games at Flanders Field (on Pasture Road off Tabor House Road), Sundays at 8 am, 12 years or older, and all skill levels welcome.

Join Nancy Aronie for a Memoir as Medicine book talk at the Aquinnah library on Thursday, July 28, at 5 pm. Her upcoming Chilmark Writers Workshops still have room. Call or text 508-274-4286 to register.

Chef and cookbook author Catherine Walthers and foraging farmer and author Rebecca Gilbert have teamed up to teach Preserving an Island Summer Bounty series on Thursdays from 4:30 to 6 pm at Native Earth Teaching Farm; July 28 is Quick Pickles, August 4 is Growing and Enjoying Edible Flowers. Preregistration required; space is limited. Sign up and learn more at bit.ly/WalthersaNEF.

The M.V. Author Series continues on Thursday, July 28, when former Attorney General Eric Holder is interviewed by Michelle Norris about his new book, Our Unfinished March: The Violent Past and Imperiled Future of the Vote A History, a Crisis, a Plan. This program is sold out, but dont miss the final two authors. Learn more and buy tickets at mvbookfestival.com.

Dont miss Kara Taylors Guardians of Us exhibit, open Thursday to Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm.

The Simon Gallery is open Saturday and Sunday, 10 am to 4 pm, at 14 Wisteria Road off Tabor House, featuring Peter Simon photography and Ronni Simon Designs.

Check out the Yard programs and classes at dancetheyard.org. Yoga with Mollie Doyle info is at mollieyoga.com/inpersoncalsses. Class passes sold at the door.

Peaked Hill Studio yoga and Sound Journey info is at peakedhillstudio.com.

The Chilmark library hosts Travel Among the Stars with Mark Alan Lovewell to explore the summer night sky, on Wednesday, August 3, at 8:30 pm; unless noted, programs are hybrid, in-person and on Zoom. Email tthorpe@clamsnet.org for more information. Kids are welcome to join the summer reading program, Read Beyond the Beaten Path. Afternoon Lego Club meets Wednesdays at 2:30 p.m. For further help, call 508-645-3360 or chil_mail@clamsnet.org. Summer hours: Monday and Friday: 10:30 am to 1 pm, Tuesday and Thursday: 10:30 am to 5 pm, Wednesday: 10:30 am to 6 pm, Saturday: 10:30 am to 3 pm. See chilmarkma.gov/chilmark-library.

In-person MV BLM vigils at the Chilmark Library lawn are on Sundays at 10:30am. Learn more at mvblm.org. Keep up with whats going on with MV BLM and subscribe to their YouTube channel at bit.ly/MV_BLM_YT.

Check Its a Chilmark Thing on Facebook for up-to-date information about our town and Island.

Have a good week, and Happy Summer to all.

If you have any Chilmark Town Column suggestions, email Valerie Sonnenthal, vsonnenthal@gmail.com.

Here is the original post:
Chilmark: The best new thing - Martha's Vineyard Times

For weeks, if not months, leadership at the Department of Justice has repeatedly told us they will follow the facts and the law and will hold Jan. 6 wrongdoers accountable at any level. Yet they provide few updates or concrete information. We have seen zero overt law enforcement activity against anyone but the foot soldiers of former President Donald Trumps insurrection. In substance, the DOJ is asking the American people to trust them. But following the Houses final (at least for a while) Jan. 6 committee hearing on Thursday, that trust is eroding.

Over the course of these eight public Jan. 6 committee hearings, we have seen compelling (not circumstantial) evidence of Trumps potential crimes.

Over the course of these eight public Jan. 6 committee hearings, we have seen compelling (not circumstantial) evidence of Trumps potential crimes. Former acting Deputy Attorney General Richard Donoghue testified that Trump told a group of department officials that it didnt matter if the election was rife with fraud, adding, just say the election was corrupt and leave the rest to me and the Republican congressmen. This is direct evidence relayed by Donoghue under oath of criminal intent. Trump apparently neither believed nor cared whether there was provable evidence of widespread election fraud, he simply wanted his DOJ officials to lie "just say the election was corrupt" and let him use that lie to help steal a second presidential term.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder described these statements as a smoking gun proving Trumps corrupt intent, adding that it would be laughable for anyone to argue otherwise to a jury. I agree wholeheartedly with Holder. (Full disclosure: He was my direct boss when he was the United States attorney for the District of Columbia.) And for anyone who might dismiss Holder as hopelessly partisan, its worth remembering that before he served as U.S. attorney for D.C., he was nominated to the Superior Court of the District of Columbia by President Ronald Reagan.

Similarly, Cassidy Hutchinson testified that prior to Trump's Jan. 6 speech on the Ellipse, he was informed that some of his supporters were armed with rifles, pistols and other deadly weapons. In a staggering display of callousness and disregard for the safety of others, Trump responded by demanding that security take down the metal detectors and let his supporters in anyway, because theyre not here to hurt me. As a career prosecutor, I would argue that the only reasonable inference from that statement is that Trump fully understood his armed supporters were a danger to lawmakers certifying the election win of his opponent. Trump also said that after his speech (i.e., after the metal detectors were removed and his armed mob was allowed in), they would all then march to the Capitol. This is powerful, direct evidence relayed by Hutchinson under oath that Trump intended to lead an armed mob to stop the election certification.

As weve watched this staggering and, Id hasten to add, legally admissible evidence of Trumps alleged crimes accumulate, DOJ inaction feels increasingly inexcusable.

Add to that the alarming recent New York Times reporting claiming Hutchinsons testimony jolted the DOJ into a more direct consideration of Trumps potential criminal responsibility. This revelation prompted former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann to accuse the DOJ of a myopic focus on the Jan. 6 riot, with too few signs of a robust (DOJ) investigation.

Even former U.S. Attorney (and MSNBC Columnist) Barb McQuaid, a long-time federal prosecutor with impeccable credentials and a healthy dose of circumspection, is now asking, DOJ, you up yet?

Lawlessness, unaddressed, begets lawlessness. And we now see Team Trump engaging in possible witness tampering as well. Given the lack of DOJ action, there seems to be no serious deterrence in place.

And to be clear, if the revelations of Donoghue and Hutchinson, detailed above, are smoking-gun evidence, witness tampering is loaded-gun evidence. Professionally, Ive had far too many chances to deal with instances of such meddling. Corruptly attempting to influence, impede or prevent the truthful testimony of a witness strikes right at the very heart of the integrity of any investigation, congressional or criminal. Prosecutors take these allegations seriously, and investigate them as quickly as possible.

Is federal law enforcement doing the same?

Lest we forget, the House voted to hold Mark Meadows in contempt of Congress for refusing to appear before the Jan. 6 committee. Meadows, Trump's former chief of staff, appeared so determined to conceal Trumps behavior that he risked possible criminal charges. But DOJ declined to indict. In a legal sense, I think DOJ should be looking at Meadows not only for the crime of contempt of Congress but also the federal offenses of accessory after the fact and misprision of a felony. In a lay sense, Meadows certainly appears to be involved in a cover-up. And still, he has been given a pass.

This failure to charge Meadows, Trump or any of the other Trump associates who seem to be in the thick of the corrupt efforts to overthrow our democracy exposes a deep injustice presently at play.

The testimony of defendant Stephen Ayres during the last hearing highlighted the DOJs disparity of treatment. Trump deceived, duped and lied to the American people, telling them their votes were stolen, the presidential election was corrupt, urging them to come to D.C. for a wild protest and then whipping them into a frenzy and instructing them to fight like hell.

Thousands of loyal supporters believed these lies and acted on these commands. And now, hundreds upon hundreds of his supporters are being prosecuted, convicted and imprisoned for doing precisely what their president told them to do.

And where is Donald Trump? Golfing and holding rallies at which he still pushes the big lie, inciting and enraging those who still choose to listen to a two-bit conman. And almost a year and a half after Joe Bidens inauguration, Wisconsin state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says Trump called him this very month and pushed him to try to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Such inequity is a stain on our government.

Now, I have long cautioned that we should give the DOJ enough time to do its thing. But my view has always been premised on the assumption that DOJ has, indeed been doing a thorough, far-reaching, aggressive investigation behind the scenes. My growing concern with each new data point is that for reasons that may have little to do with the facts or the law, DOJ is not doing the kind of investigation our democracy needs to survive.

Link:
Jan. 6 hearing witnesses prove Trump's criminal intent - MSNBC

Eric Holder is standing trial for the murder of Nipsey Hussle, and on Wednesday, prosecutors began to reveal terrifying details about the tragic incident.

According to TMZ, Deputy District Attorney John McKinney addressed the jury Wednesday, detailing Holders alleged actions following Nipseys death. McKinney alleged that after Eric gunned Nipsey down in the parking lot of his Marathon clothing store, he walked over to the rapper and kicked him in the head.

Holder allegedly addressed Nipsey saying, Youre through, and Nipsey responded with, You got me, before the gunman fled the scene.

Eric Holder was arrested and charged with murder, attempted murder and possession of a firearm by a felon in connection to the murder of Nipsey Hussle. He was indicted by a grand jury in December, and DA McKinney argued that Holder intentionally killed Hussle due to a prior dispute.

Grand jury transcripts indicate that Holder approached Hussle for a brief conversation in the Crenshaw parking lot moment before Eric Holder loaded a gun and, subsequently shot Nipsey multiple times.

Apparently the conversation had something to do with Mr. Asghedom telling Mr. Holder that word on the street was that Mr. Holder was snitching. The conversation wasnt particularly belligerent, and it lasted about four minutes.

Holder was initially being represented by Chris Darden, famously known for working the OJ Simpson trial, but he withdrew from the case alleging his family was receiving death threats. Eric Holder is now being represented by a public defender, who plans to argue that he is being overcharged.

Read more here:
Eric Holder Trial Reveals Gruesome Details About Nipsey Hussle's Passing

Former Attorney General Eric Holder warned on Monday that the United States is "slipping into" a "political apartheid system" because conservatives have greater influence than their numbers would suggest.

During an interview with Washington Post Live, Holder said he was concerned that gerrymandering allows politicians to pick their voters instead of voters making the choice.

"We are in danger of slipping into what I would call a political apartheid system, where a minority of the people in this country will have disproportionate amounts of power," Holders said, "and be able to put in place things that are not supported by the majority."

The former attorney general pointed to the expected loss of abortion rights as one example.

"The minority [of voters] will be represented by the majority that was put on the Supreme Court by two presidents who did not win the majority of the vote because of our Electoral College," Holder explained. "[Conservative justices] will have the ability to foist on the nation a policy with regards to reproductive rights that is not supported by the people of this country."

"A whole range of things where the American people are essentially together," he added. "And yet, we don't see our laws, our regulations, our policies reflected of what in a lot of places is consensus on the part of the American people."

The infamous apartheid policy of South Africa was used to give the country's white minority power over its non-white majority. The policy was denounced by countries around the world and was eventually overturned in the 1990s.

Watch the video below or at this link.

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Eric Holder warns of 'apartheid system' in US as conservative 'minority ...