Total posts: 1,942
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… and a side of fries with that Whopper, please.
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“The threats the United States faces are the most serious and most challenging the nation has encountered since 1945 and include the potential for near-term major war,” the report concluded. “The United States last fought a global conflict during World War II, which ended nearly 80 years ago. The nation was last prepared for such a fight during the Cold War, which ended 35 years ago. It is not prepared today.”
… The commissioners criticized multiple administrations for backing National Defense Strategies based on wishful thinking, as well as budgetary gridlock in Congress, and general indifference from an American public that is largely disengaged on national security issues.
“The lack of preparedness to meet the challenges to U.S. national security is the result of many years of failure to recognize the changing threats and to transform the U.S. national security structure,” the commissioners say. “The 2011 Budget Control Act, repeated continuing resolutions, and inflexible government systems” exacerbate the problem.
“The United States is still failing to act with the urgency required, across administrations and without regard to governing party,” the report says. “Implementing these recommendations to boost all elements of national power will require sustained presidential leadership and a fundamental change in mindset at the Pentagon, at the National Security Council and across executive branch departments and agencies, in Congress, and among the American public writ large.”
This is a problem which is getting no airplay currently, but it deserves our attention. Everyone is focused on high prices, but we need to be mindful of the very high price of war and preventing it. Media need to be holding both candidates’ feet to the fire on this, but they won’t. The irony is that a president holds much more sway in this matter than with inflation.
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My hat (if I wore one) is off to the Mossad. You guys are good…
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@FLRW
I’ve watched a debate featuring Sean Carroll, and I came away impressed with both the depth of his expertise and his likeability.
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“There are things we are still unable to explain, ergo Jehovah exists.”
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@n8nrgim
I would like to see Dick Cheney’s endorsement in a Harris campaign ad. That would be fun. More realistically though, I think he is just showing solidarity with his daughter.
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@Swagnarok
Thanks for your effort with that. It was a much easier read than it looked! It reminds me of the saying: “Hard times make hard men; hard men make good times; good times make soft men; soft men make hard times.”
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@Greyparrot
Whoosh!
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@Greyparrot
How important is it to this nation to have as its president its first woman of color?
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@FLRW
The Captain thinks that having a plane pic makes me a wannabe. It’s a good thing reality and I don’t care what he thinks!
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@Best.Korea
Good save!
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@FLRW
Yes. Why do you ask?
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@Best.Korea
Bernie would have less lead.
Less lead? You claimed he would be decidedly trailing.
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@Best.Korea
Thats what your link says, anyway.
Can you quote from the link the part which supports your assertion “Bernie would stand no chance against Trump.”?
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@FLRW
I see what you are saying.
Communication is occurring!
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@Best.Korea
Bernie would stand no chance against Trump.
This claim does not resonate. Trump is likely the most beatable presidential candidate the GOP has, which is precisely why Harris can beat him.
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@Greyparrot
The US political landscape is just chaotic in general currently. I think Putin will be content either way. In regards to Trump, I think the reaction to Trump bears at least as much responsibility for discord as Trump himself. It’s like trying to kill a mouse in your house with a shotgun.
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@FLRW
On February 21, 2020, The Washington Post reported that, according to unnamed US officials, Russia was interfering in the Democratic primary in an effort to support the nomination of Senator Bernie Sanders.
… In March 2020, the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Brennan Center for Justice published a report indicating that Russia-linked social media accounts have been spreading Instagram posts calculated to sow division among American voters.[54][55] According to the report, Russian operatives were increasingly impersonating real political candidates and groups rather than creating fictional groups.[55]According to Twitter's head of site integrity, Russian agents also attempted in 2018 to create the impression of more election interference than is actually happening to undermine confidence in the process.[56] Shortly thereafter, the New York Timesreported that according to American intelligence officials Russian operatives have been stoking via private Facebook groups anger among African Americans, emphasizing allegations of police brutality in the United States, highlighting racism in the United States against African Americans, and promoting and pressuring hate groups, including white and black extremist groups, in order to create strife within American society,
It appears that Russia’s goal is to sow dischord and doubt in the democratic process and our society. The election of Trump is just one of several possible ways to accomplish this.
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@Greyparrot
Perhaps the spin-masters set it up that way in 2016 so as to have the veneer of credibility by then pointing to 2021 and then blaming Trump for that period of global conflict.
Pretty much…
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@Greyparrot
This is a big ask.
I know. If it were a small ask, I probably wouldn’t be motivated to ask. I am familiar with the creative connecting of existing dots, but this AI claim might constitute inventing a whole new dot— “embroiling the globe in warfare.”
I realize that Trump pissed off NATO allies by telling them to pay their share, but that led to them paying their share rather than “embroiling the globe in warfare.” I don’t think Trump’s defense spending had pissed off the aerospace and defense industry, either.
While Trump’s relations with dictators robs us of our sense of moral superiority and causes moral indignation against Trump, I don’t see the resultant “embroiling the globe in warfare.”
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@Greyparrot
his foreign policy decisions often alienated our long-standing allies while cozying up to authoritarian regimes, … embroiling the globe in warfare.
Could you expand on the alienation of which allies exactly and expand on how that and the dictator cozying led to embroiling the globe in what warfare exactly?
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@Greyparrot
On the other hand, there are fingers.
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Ah, a very salient piece of info from Professor Non Sequitur.
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@Greyparrot
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@Greyparrot
Harris voters really should not be complaining about the high price of beef. Beef production contributes to climate change. Insects, on the other hand, are plentiful, nutritious, cheap, and do not contribute to climate change.
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@Greyparrot
The accusations of price gouging are generally just good old fashioned scapegoating. It isn’t “gouging” when high prices are “a global phenomenon.” Prices are set by the market, not by individual companies. True gouging usually occurs in the wake of a natural disaster where one merchant hoards all the toilet paper and charges an exorbitant price, for example, and that is already illegal. To say it is occurring now is more like conspiracy theory.
I will say that insulin prices in the US compared to the rest of the world is much closer to a price gouging situation, and it does need to be investigated and addressed. But the accusations against the food industry appear to be unsubstantiated, to say the least. Where the accusations ARE effective is motivating people to vote for Harris, despite economists’ warnings about price controls. But what would they know? People who vote for Harris are, naturally, above average in intelligence.
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@Greyparrot
Indeed you can.
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@WyIted
Not necessarily. One could conceivably put it in the Economics forum, the Society forum, the Show Business forum, perhaps maybe even the Philosophy forum (would be a stretch). One might even create a Venn Diagram of how the subject matter intersects with each of these categories. This speech was delivered at the Democratic National Convention— an event decidedly rooted in politics, by the spouse of a political figure, in support of a political figure and in support of a certain political worldview. So, being in the Politics forum is wholly appropriate and reasonable.
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Here’s Michelle Obama’s well delivered and well received speech from last night:
At the 8:30 mark, she starts referring to “we.” Who exactly is “we”? Conversely, who exactly is NOT included in “we” (or “not we,” if you will)?
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@HistoryBuff
Don’t mind Mall. He’s just BK’s alter ego— the yin to BK’s yang… or yang to his yin…
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@ADreamOfLiberty
The problem is that he doesn't say "these things", but you still hear them (personally).
No, he distinctly said there is going to be a “bloodbath” if he doesn’t get elected… a BLOODBATH, FFS!! That means people literally bathing in the blood of their victims!
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Then she told the paid actors that they could eventually see craters on the moon with their own eyes! *points to my own eyes*
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@Greyparrot
the "fine people on both sides, all Mexicans are bad people, and ingesting bleach" Cult.
President Biden was just explaining how he really had no plans to run for president again. But then… he heard the news of Trump saying “There are GOOD PEOPLE ON BOTH SIDES” and that gave him the will to run once more… and to win!
So, just think— Biden ran for president based on a media lie…
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@Greyparrot
I'm really surprised at how much AI can sound like a grandmother.
“Wait till your father gets home!”
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@Greyparrot
it undermines any meaningful conversation that could be had.
This is why I think his name stands for Fellow Lacking Relevant Witticisms.
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@Greyparrot
Precisely. This is why I like to pay off loans and buy goods and services with certificates of appreciated stock whenever possible. That way, I can spend money that has never been taxed!
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@FLRW
This disparity is driven largely by the way our tax code treats income generated from wealth—that is, income from assets like stocks that increase in value over time. When a middle class American earns a dollar of wages, that dollar is taxed immediately. But when a billionaire makes a dollar because their stocks increase in value, that dollar is taxed at a preferred rate—if it’s ever taxed at all. If a wealthy investor never sells an asset that has increased in value, those investment gains are entirely ignored for income tax purposes when the assets are passed on to an heir, thanks to stepped-up basis.
What would you prefer to be the case instead?
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@ludofl3x
If you don't think it's worth responding to, there's an even faster solution: don't respond.
This is the solution most people resort to with this site, and the results speak for themselves.
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@Double_R
Putin always planned to invade Ukraine but was waiting for a second Trump term because he was expecting Trump to pull us out of NATO which would have made the global environment for such an invasion far more favorable. No contradictory arguments required.
That is John Bolton’s take on it, yes.
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@Owen_T
Why are so many people born into a life of suffering? Why not just skip straight to the wonderful afterlife with God?
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@HistoryBuff
how is the candidate being an idiot a very minor aspect?
I said he's dumb. You said that his intelligence (and lack thereof) is a minor aspect. Really seems like you're saying it doesn't matter that he's a moron.
You are not comprehending the words I’m stringing together. What’s worse, I don’t think you wish to. I don’t think I can stop you from arguing with your misunderstanding of what I’m saying…
you really should be. People eat tide pods. People used a horse dewormer to fight covid. Trump cultists are not smart. And if trump tells them something is good, some of them will believe it no matter how stupid it is.
Well then, it should be easy for you to find instances of people ingesting bleach. In the meantime, I was not worried and have no reason to believe my lack of concern was misguided.
the plan had already been set.
What in Trump’s plan caused the poor execution? If it was known to be a poor plan, why was it followed? What DO you blame the Biden admin and DoD for in that withdrawal? Why wasn’t anyone held accountable and fired? What do YOU think of Biden saying “That was four, five days ago?”
That's like saying, I ate at noon and at 5, but not at 3. That's a striking coincidence.
No, I don’t think those are similar at all. It’s as if you have no concept of world superpowers, international diplomacy, and power projection.
lol, your argument is that trump is so stupid and crazy and he would have ended the world and that is why russia wouldn't invade. My counter argument is that trump being president made it VASTLY more likely nuclear weapons would be used and we would all die. But we both know that Trump loves Vlad, and russia would absolutely not have been afraid of america with trump in power. All they would have had to do was give trump exclusive rights to build some trump towers in moscow and he would have let them invade whoever they wanted.
You… did not look up “Madman Theory.” You don’t comprehend it at all. Your proposed counter argument and your “we both know” claim seem to be in direct contradiction to one another.
My point was not that I couldn't think of one, it was that I don't know what one you were talking about.
What other major terrorist attack which might have been funded by Iran against a US ally during Biden’s presidency was floating in your history filled mind? One can only wonder…
Here’s an article which you will probably deny how it undergirds what I’m talking about, but what the heck:
So the important issues you have listed are just bullshit.
Yes, I already predicted that this would be your response. Your retorts are so predictable that I could argue your side without your help.
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@HistoryBuff
Before I respond to your points, realize that I think that it may actually be impossible for you to understand why anyone would vote for Trump. My central point is that your thread deals with a very minor aspect of Trump’s candidacy. The major aspects in my view are the ones I mentioned.
“I will settle for a candidate who says dumb things”
this is a big problem. You are fine with a moron being the most powerful person in the world.
I didn’t say that. That is merely your opinion of what I said.
The man who wonders if people should inject bleach and why you don't nuke a hurricane...
You’re making a categorical error here: bleach is a disinfectant, but not all disinfectants are bleach. I was never concerned about people drinking or injecting bleach. I am really not worried about Trump actually nuking a hurricane, either. Trump actually says his unfiltered brainstorming out loud. What ever will we do?
These are both minor points in the bigger picture I’m talking about.
- did not have a catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan where no one is held responsible or is fired or resigns and when asked about the debacle, responds “That was four, five days ago!”
This is hilarious to me because it was trump's plan. His administration planned and carried out the preparation for the withdrawal. You blame them for being stuck carrying out Trump's plan.
This is the usual, tired refrain of the 30%, and it is “weak sauce.” Trump set the timeline; he didn’t dictate the execution. As I said, no one was fired over it. Trump wasn’t the one saying, “That was four, five days ago!” when asked about what he thought about desperate people falling out of the sky trying to grab onto an airplane.
- did not have Russia invading a country;
this doesn't even make sense.
Russia invaded a country before Trump’s presidency and after Trump but not during Trump. That is a pretty striking coincidence by any measure. Now, this is where you’ll say something like “Correlation does not equal causation!” and I’ll respond with “See Madman Theory” and you’ll say “What are you talking about??” and I’ll explain how Trump threatened to take out Moscow if Putin invaded Ukraine, and you will refuse to believe anything I say and so on and so forth… and back to what I said at the top of this post.
- did not have Iran funding a major terrorist attack against a US ally.
I don't even know what attack you're talking about. But are you pretending like there were no terrorist attacks while trump was president? Also, how does the US president have anything to do with a terrorist attack in a country that is not the US.
You cannot think of a major terrorist attack on a US ally in the last year? Yikes…
Hint: it started a war which is still going.
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@HistoryBuff
Yes, it is dumb to claim that there’s more than 100% of something. In the bigger picture though, I will settle for a candidate who says dumb things like that but:
- did not have a catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan where no one is held responsible or is fired or resigns and when asked about the debacle, responds “That was four, five days ago!”
- did not have Russia invading a country;
- did not have Iran funding a major terrorist attack against a US ally.
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@Greyparrot
Remember when the President announced “Zero percent inflation” for July 2022?
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@Greyparrot
I know this is what happens if you wear a Battle of the Bulge ribbon on your uniform:
(That ribbon is unofficial and unauthorized for wear)
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@Greyparrot
Take heart that journalism used to be just as partisan, if not more so, in the 1800s. A decent “opinion piece” on this:
TLDR: the 19th century saw some of the most unashamedly partisan news outlets, both before and after the Civil War. With the common cause brought about with the Great Depression, WWII, and the Cold War, journalism became less partisan. Advertising pressure kept outlets more centrist as well through the 70s and 80s.
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@Greyparrot
She needn’t fear the journalists— even though they’re not on her payroll, they act as if they are.
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@Greyparrot
Yikes, and I thought one Harris at a time was bad… any idea when her campaign is going to have an actual policy platform?
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@Greyparrot
Yeah, she tried that on Biden in the primaries. “*I* was that little girl.” Playing it on Trump should be a no brainer.
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