Cults of personality in governance have the Great Leader's face and sayings splashed all over public places. Think Mao's China, Stalin's USSR, Hitler's Germany, Kim's North Korea...

Back in 2000, Louise and I visited Egypt. Our guide was a retired professor of Egyptology from the largest university in the country, and as we were touring Luxor he pointed out some writing carved fifteen or so feet up a stone wall at the Temple of Karnack.

"This is from when Alexander the Great conquered Egypt," he told us, as I recall. "It says that Alexander was the child of Amen, the god of all the gods, the one who was so great that even to this day we say his name at the end of prayers."

"Why would Alexander make that claim?" I asked.

"Because" he said, "it's a lot easier to seize and hold power when people think you have a connection to their idea of divinity."

While modern Hebrew scholars may disagree about why "amen" ends our prayers, it was a lesson for me that I've kept in mind ever since. Beware of leaders asserting connections to divinity, particularly if they're grasping for political or financial power.

Trump is now openly encouraging his followers to think of him as divine or, at least, divinely inspired. And this isn't a new pitch, it's just getting a new round of attention.

Read more at HartmannReport.com.

-Thom

Wednesday's Daily Stack

Hour One: National Progressive Townhall Meeting
- Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI, 2nd District) / Member & Former Co-Chair-Congressional Progressive Caucus / (Committees: Appropriations / Also, Education & Labor)

Tweet: "Our suit against Donald Trump and the Trump Org alleges a years-long financial fraud scheme. Here's how Trump generated false and misleading values on his annual financial statements, which were then used to pay lower taxes, guarantee loans, and get better insurance rates:" by NY AG James.

Article: "Putin mobilizes 300,000 troops for war in Ukraine and warns he’s not bluffing with nuclear threat" by Holly Ellyatt.

Article: "Remarks by President Biden Before the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly", September 21, 2021.

Article: "'Could end up being World War III!' Trump hypes up Putin's nuke threat and uses it to blame Biden" by Brad Reed.

Article: "Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul says he delivered Trump letter to Putin" by CNN.

Article: "Rand Paul calls for repeal of Espionage Act after Trump FBI search" by Ivana Saric.

Article: "Inflation Reduction Act of 2022" by Wikipedia.

Article: "A Texas Sheriff Opened A Criminal Investigation Into Gov. DeSantis’s Political Stunt Of Sending Immigrants To Martha’s Vineyard" by Paige Skinner.

Article: "Trump Support Collapses, Majority of Independents Don't Want 2024 Run: Poll" by Ewan Palmer.

Bill: "S.623 - Sunshine Protection Act of 2021" by Sen. Rubio, Marco [R-FL].

Bill: "H.R.69 - Sunshine Protection Act of 2021" by Rep. Buchanan, Vern [R-FL-16].

Article: "DeSantis Admits Mass Migration Not Really A Big Problem In Florida Right Now" by Sara Boboltz.

Article: "President Biden Announces American Rescue Plan" by White House.

Article: "Biden signs $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill into law, unlocking funds for transportation, broadband, utilities" by Jacob Pramuk.

Article: "CHIPS Act Passes: House Approves $280 Billion Bill To Boost Microchip Production And Counter China" by Brian Bushard.

Article: "The Social Security 2100 Act" by John Larson.

Article: "This week in Congress: Two weeks to negotiate a budget extension" by Leo Shane III.

Site: FCC.

Law: "First Amendment to the United States Constitution" .

Article: "Leveraging Worker Voice and Labor Rights to Address the Root Causes of Migration in Central America" by Thea Lee.

Hour Two: China vs. US: System Rising vs. Falling- New Global Capitalism
- Economist Dr. Richard Wolff, Co-founder, Democracy At Work / Author of numerous books - his latest is The Sickness is the System (now also available as an e-book) & Host - Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff on Free Speech TV

Article: "China vs. US: System Rising vs. Falling- New Global Capitalism Lecture" by Richard Wolff.

Article: "British Empire" by Wikipedia.

Article: "American imperialism" by Wikipedia.

Article: "China" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Inflation Rate - By Country" by Tradingeconomics.com.

Article: "American Revolutionary War" (1775-1783) by Wikipedia.

Article: "War of 1812" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Economy of China" by Wikipedia.

Article: "CVS, Walmart reach $147.5M opioid settlement with West Virginia" by AP.

Article: "Joe Manchin" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Classified information in the United States" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Simpsons episode inspires new QAnon conspiracy prediction for this Saturday" by Bob Brigham.

Article: "Trump's Messiah Scam Increases His Threat To America" by Thom Hartmann.

Book: Trump on the Couch by Dr. Justin Frank MD.

Book: The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: 37 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Assess a President - Updated and Expanded with New Essays by Bandy X. Lee.

Tweet: "Liz Cheney describes what was happening in the Republican Cloakroom on Jan. 6. One member said under their breath: "The things we do for the Orange Jesus."" by The Republican Accountability Project.

Tweet: "Thank you to Wayne Allyn Root for the very nice words. "President Trump is the greatest President for Jews and for Israel in the history of the world, not just America, he is the best President for Israel in the history of the world... and the Jewish people in Israel love him ... like he's the King of Israel. They love him like he is the second coming of God...But American Jews don't know him or like him. They don't even know what they're doing or saying anymore. It makes no sense! But that's OK, if he keeps doing what he's doing, he's good for..." by Donald J. Trump.

Book: Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man by Mary L. Trump Ph.D..

Book: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream by Hunter S. Thompson.

Book: "The Hidden History of Neoliberalism: How Reaganism Gutted America and How to Restore Its Greatness" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Amon" by Encyclopedia Britannica.

Article: "Daughter blames Michigan man's QAnon obsession after he reportedly kills his wife, dog" by Cliff Pinckard.

Article: "standing ovation" by .

Article: "DeSantis gets standing ovation from GOP voters after flying migrants to Martha's Vineyard" by Steve Contorno.

Article: "California dad killed his kids over QAnon and 'serpent DNA' conspiracy theories, feds claim" by Doha Madani, Andrew Blankstein and Ben Collins.

Article: "Feds probing whether Nashville bomber believed in lizard people conspiracy" by Tom Winter, Michael Kosnar and Wilson Wong.

Article: "Trump's new trade war rationale: 'I am the chosen one'" by Megan Cassella.

Article: "Liz Crokin Claims Celebrities Are Getting Coronavirus From Tainted ‘Adrenochrome Supply’" by Kyle Mantyla.

Article: "Liz Crokin: Trump Has Confirmed That ‘Pizzgate Is Real’" by Kyle Mantyla.

Article: "The ‘Shared Psychosis’ of Donald Trump and His Loyalists" by Tanya Lewis.

Article: "QAnon Offenders in the United States" by National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START).

Site: "Lauren Boebert".

Article: "Nearly Half of Republicans Now Think Top Democrats Are Running Pedophile Cabals" by Paul Blest.

Article: "Cheney is right: Not holding Trump accountable will be our downfall" by Jennifer Rubin.

Article: "Trump claims he’s the messiah. Maybe he should quit while he’s ahead." by Dana Milbank.

Book: President Donald J. Trump, The Son of Man - The Christ by Helgard Müller.

Article: "Why it matters that McCarthy went to Mar-a-Lago to kiss the ring" by Steve Benen.

Article: "Trump Administration Restricts Access To Immigration Detention Facilities" by Christina Fialho.

Article: "Immigration law expert details the laws Ron DeSantis may have broken with Martha's Vineyard stunt" by Jean Lantz Reisz.

Article: "Border arrests top ‘21 record, on pace for 2 million by end of September" by Mark Moore.

Article: "David Koresh" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Branch Davidians" by Wikipedia.

Article: "No escape: Russia reportedly bars airlines from selling tickets to adult men amid military call-up " by Ben Wolfgang.

Article: "Putin Orders Troop Conscription in Ukraine War Escalation" by Reuters.

Article: "Putin Plans to Annex Ukrainian Provinces Holding Referendums: ISW" by Brendan Cole.

Article: "China calls for Ukraine, Russia peace talks as Putin launches military mobilization" by Caitlin McFall.

Article: "India's Modi Tells Putin Now Is 'Not A Time For War'" by AFP.

Article: "Chinese Navy Shadows U.S. and Canadian Warships Transiting Taiwan Strait" by John Feng.

Article: "Biden says U.S. forces would defend Taiwan, but White House says otherwise" by CBSNews.

Article: "Policy of deliberate ambiguity" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Jared Kushner and Steven Mnuchin Have Reportedly Secured Billions from Saudi Government" by Ken Meyer.

Article: "N.Y. Attorney General Files Fraud Suit Against Donald, Don Jr., Ivanka and Eric Trump: 'The Art of the Steal'" by Virginia Chamlee.

Article: "These Are The Military Projects Losing Funding To Trump's Border Wall" by Claudia Grisales.

Article: "Russia’s State Duma approves specific amendments to the country’s Criminal Law relating to the military" by Chris King.

Quote: "Treat them with humanity, and let them have no reason to complain of our copying the brutal example of the British Army in their treatment of our unfortunate brethren who have fallen into their hands" - George Washington.

Hour Three: WV Abortion Ban
- Ixya Vega, Member - Morgantown City Council (representing 3rd Ward) / Community Organizer-Planned Parenthood South Atlantic & Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic in West Virginia

Article: "Ixya Vega: Change in the Air" by Holly Leleux-Thubron.

Article: "WV’s Abortion Ban Is About Controlling Lives, Not Saving Lives" by Troy N. Miller.

Article: "“We Cannot and Will Not Stand By”: Abortion-Rights Activists Brace for West Virginia’s Dystopian, Near-Total Abortion Ban" by Abigail Tracy.

Article: "Most abortions stop in West Virginia after lawmakers pass near-total ban" by .

Article: "West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice signs abortion ban into law" by Leah Willingham.

Site: Planned Parenthood - West Virginia.

Site: Women's Health Center of West Virginia.

Site: Choice Fund — Women's Health Center of West Virginia.

Site: Holler Health Justice.

Article: "New York Attorney General Letitia James says Trump committed crimes, asks federal prosecutors and IRS to investigate" by Kevin Breuninger, Dan Mangan.

Tweet: "Letitia James doesn't care about the law. She's a Dem activist, who only cares about politics. Here's the most recent poll in her reelection race. So she's now desperately trying to fire up her leftwing base with this BS. This is ALL politics, nothing more. Disgraceful!!!" by Donald Trump Jr..

Article: "Mary L. Trump" by Wikipedia.

Article: ""We Just Want to Be Parents"" by Jessica Valenti.

Article: "Trade in Goods with China " by U.S. Department of Commerce.

Article: "China Exports By Country" by Trading Economics.

Article: "China Imports By Country" by Trading Economics.

Article: "World War I" (1914-1918) by Wikipedia.

Article: "Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Blocking the Hormuz Strait: China’s Energy Dilemma" by Yitzhak Shichor.

Article: "Strait of Malacca" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Strait talking: The China question extends from Malacca to Hormuz" by Kabir Taneja.

Article: "Battle of the Malacca Strait" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Portion of Highway 1 closed after Tesla battery catches fire at PG&E substation" by Jessica Flores.

Article: "Highway 1 reopened in Moss Landing following fire in Tesla Megapack battery storage facility " by Thomas Wright.

Article: "Graphene batteries: Introduction and Market News" by Graphene-Info.

Article: "Zinc-ion batteries: Materials, mechanisms, and applications" by Jun Ming, Jing Guo, Chuan Xi, Wenxi Wang, Husam N. Alshareef.

Article: "Iron-air batteries: Huge green-energy breakthrough, or just a lot of hype?" by David Von Drehle.

Article: "Aluminium battery" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Australian Aluminum-Ion Battery Promises 60X Increase In Charging Speed" by Steve Hanley.

Article: "IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) " by Cleveland Clinic.

Thursday on The Thom Hartmann Program, 12-3pm ET

Mark Weisbrot, Co-Director, Center for Economic & Policy Research / President-Just Foreign Policy / Author of several books including "FAILED: What the "Experts" Got Wrong about the Global Economy", will be here to talk about inflation in Argentina.

Plus, I'll be talking with Ali Velshi, Host - MSNBC “Velshi” (Sat/Sun 8-10aET) & "The Last Word" (Fri 10pET) / Host of the digital platform, The Velshi Exchange

And, the best of the rest of the news along with your calls right here on...

The Thom Hartmann Program, Occupying The Media 3 hours a day 5 days a week for "we the people"

And don't forget...Democracy is NOT a spectator sport...it begins with you...

Does The Rise of China's Economy Mean US Economy Falls? Featuring Richard Wolff

Did West Virginia Ban All Abortions Except For the Rich Featuring Ixya Vega

Is Texas Covering Up Maternal Mortality Data Before Election?

Is Russia Sending Cannibals As Last Resort To Win War?