Political Discussion Thread (With Rules)

[Old Man]

1 hour ago, Twilight said:

So attempts to mimic the BS in Ottawa failed in both Toronto and Vancouver.  In Toronto police shut down the attempted process with ease and in Vancouver, citizens had the COVIDiots corralled before the police could even arrive.  In Ottawa, well I'd call the Ottawa Police Service a bunch of Zapp Brannigans but they don't even talk a good game.  Efforts are being made but it's clear that the Ontario Provincial Police or the RCMP, or both, will have to be sent in for the mess in Ottawa to be handled competently.  I expect many "protesters" to be arrested before this is over and many members of the OPS to lose their jobs, at the very least.

 

On behalf of my fellow Uh Murricans, I would like to extend my heartfelt sympathy and apologies to the residents of North North America that this phenomenon has been allowed to fester to the point of metastasization outside our borders.

[Lord Liaden]

Here is a different perspective on the handling of the Ottawa demonstrations, which I believe is worth consideration.

 

 

BTW Ottawa law enforcement have already started cracking down on the suppliers to the protestors, as Beau suggested.

 

48 minutes ago, Old Man said:

 

On behalf of my fellow Uh Murricans, I would like to extend my heartfelt sympathy and apologies to the residents of North North America that this phenomenon has been allowed to fester to the point of metastasization outside our borders.

 

I do thank you for the sentiment, but you shouldn't take all the responsibility. Canada has its share of reactionaries, and COVID fatigue is as much a social factor here as it is to the south. This demonstration snowballed because it drew in many people besides truckers who are generally fed up with it.

 

IMO the worst that can be said is that events in the US have catalyzed these responses in other countries.

[unclevlad]

And let's also note that Canadian Covid fatigue is likely far more justified than most US Covid fatigue...health care workers being a massive exception.  Wahhh, wahhh, wahhh, I don' wanna wear a mask!!!!  Yes, I'm belittling it.  Intermittent working conditions, financial insecurity...those are huge.  But hey, in most areas?  There've been annoyances...not crises.  Those same issues have hit Canadians, too.  Too many of us feel too entitled and anything that denies us anything, no matter how small, is a personal insult.

[Pariah]

I have to note here that those people who are most likely to refer to others as snowflakes tend to be the first ones to start complaining about the loss of "personal liberties" as a result of the plague. If I thought they had any clue what irony was, I would wonder if they appreciated it in this situation.

 

As for me I'm inclined to say something like, "Shut your Rogan hole. Put a damn mask on."

[archer]

On 2/6/2022 at 11:33 PM, DShomshak said:

 I would never recommend that, even in sarcasm.

 

 

I think recommending that in sarcasm makes it explicitly clear how ludicrous the RNC position is and thus helps clarify a discussion.

 

YMMV

[assault]

6 hours ago, Pariah said:

I'm inclined to say something like, "Shut your Rogan hole. Put a damn mask on."

 

I doubt putting a mask on your Rogan hole would protect you from Covid.

[Pariah]

This couldn't possibly go wrong....

 

Republican Lawmaker Basically Begs Anti-Vax Truckers to Blockade the Super Bowl

 

[Twilight]

4 hours ago, Pariah said:

This couldn't possibly go wrong....

 

Republican Lawmaker Basically Begs Anti-Vax Truckers to Blockade the Super Bowl

 

Poor strategy I'd think.  I mean I don't know how most Americans feel about the vaccine but I know they love their football and I feel safe in saying that the majority of them care FAR more about the Super Bowl then they do the GOP.  Effing with the thing the voters adore isn't going to be turning anybody to your cause.

[unclevlad]

Does this make any sense to anyone?  Far right Arizona state senator Wendy Rogers, from the article Mr. P found.

 

Quote

If truckers shut down the Super Bowl it would partially be payback for Colin Kaepernick and the kneeling.

 

Granted that I don't expect a Trumpist to make any sense, but...still....

 

And yeah, if there would be a better way to turn undecideds against you than interfering with the Super Bowl, I can't think of it.  Football is the true American state religion, thus the Super Bowl is the High Holy day.

[archer]

1 hour ago, unclevlad said:

Does this make any sense to anyone?  Far right Arizona state senator Wendy Rogers, from the article Mr. P found.

 

 

Granted that I don't expect a Trumpist to make any sense, but...still....

 

And yeah, if there would be a better way to turn undecideds against you than interfering with the Super Bowl, I can't think of it.  Football is the true American state religion, thus the Super Bowl is the High Holy day.

 

 Makes no sense to me.

 

The fans who are still watch and/or attending pro football games likely aren't the same group of people who were backing Kaepernick.

 

And the teams and league didn't seem to support Kaepernick either. So hurting them financially by shutting down the Super Bowl is senseless, unless there's some 4th dimensional chess move going on that I'm not seeing.

 

Just making the threat of a shutdown is costing the league money because they're having to spend money coming up with plans of what to do if the interference actually materializes.

 

The players couldn't even make it to the stadium safely if the roads are blocked by angry protesters, not to mention the TV people and entertainers getting there.

[Lord Liaden]

Completely justifiable for a group of white Rightist rednecks to storm the Capitol, injure police, trash the halls of Congress and steal from legislators' offices, while calling for the head of the Vice-President. Absolutely inexcusable for a black football player to kneel during the National Anthem.

 

This category of Americans have shown themselves immune to sense on these political issues. Being outraged over whatever seems like their goal, like it just makes them feel better.

[archer]

Q: What's the Democrat's platform in the midterms?

 

A: Unlike Trump, we can use both Facebook and Twitter.

[pinecone]

Back in the day we called such "Rage-aholics"....

[DShomshak]

On 2/7/2022 at 3:05 PM, Lord Liaden said:

Here is a different perspective on the handling of the Ottawa demonstrations, which I believe is worth consideration.

 

 

BTW Ottawa law enforcement have already started cracking down on the suppliers to the protestors, as Beau suggested.

Beau pretty much describes the playbook Seattle used for dealing with the CHOP. At the height of the BLM protests, a police station in the ultra-liberal Capitol Hill neighborhood came under sustained attack. The police abandoned it. The far-lefty protesters declared several blocks of the neighborhood the Capitol Hill Organized (or Occupied) Protest zone, or CHOP. The antics continued for a few weeks, much to the anger of Capitol Hill businesses. Right-wing media hyperventilated. Because this was Seattle, the protesters' issues ranged far and wide. Donations poured in from sympathizers across the country.

 

To me on the outside, it looked more silly than threatening -- Whoa, they're painting murals and holding drum circles! That racist, patriarchal, capitalist hegemony is gonna FALL! Naturally, the protesters' anarcho-Marxist decision-making by consensus did not include the local business owners...

 

Then a third-string rapper brought in a couple goons with guns and declared himself the CHOP's "Warlord," come to protect it. Someone got shot. The police swooped in, retook the police station, dispersed the protesters, and thus ended the revolution.

 

One local right-wing TV station did offer a suggestion that Ottawa might try, though: If this is possible, shut down the local WiFi. No longer able to tweet, SnapChat or Insta their posturing, most of the protesters will probably go home.

 

Dean Shomshak

[unclevlad]

4 hours ago, DShomshak said:

One local right-wing TV station did offer a suggestion that Ottawa might try, though: If this is possible, shut down the local WiFi. No longer able to tweet, SnapChat or Insta their posturing, most of the protesters will probably go home.

 

Wouldn't achieve that, even if it was possible, without disabling all the cell towers...and THAT would never fly, not just for this.  The situation would need to be massively, massively more important, more time critical.  For a protest?  It's using a dozen sticks of dynamite to kill a fly.

[TrickstaPriest]

9 hours ago, unclevlad said:

Wouldn't achieve that, even if it was possible, without disabling all the cell towers...and THAT would never fly, not just for this.  The situation would need to be massively, massively more important, more time critical.  For a protest?  It's using a dozen sticks of dynamite to kill a fly.

 

Not just that, I rather prefer having them online rather than offline.

[Cygnia]

 

[archer]

I think the Ottawa trucker protest could be handled much more easily by towing the trucks to a series of "unguarded" parking lots.

 

I don't know what it's like in Canada but in the US, the trucks would be stripped almost as quickly as they were parked.

 

I'm sure the truckers have insurance which would eventually get the trucks repaired. But with 1500 of them, insurance inspectors would be in short supply. 

 

With so many trucks losing a significant portion of their parts, room in repair shops would be in short supply.

 

And replacement parts would be in short supply because insurance companies are unlikely to authorize the use of stolen replacement parts purchased from criminals.

 

So the truckers would be out of a way to make a living for a large number of months in addition to the time they missed from work while doing the protests.

 

I doubt how many of them have income replacement insurance and most of them would have truck payments to make. Without a source of income, a good number of the trucks would be repossessed.

 

Could the city of Ottawa be sued for posting an inadequate guard over the impounded trucks? Sure, but that's why cities pay for insurance against lawsuits. And it's questionable whether a trucker would win the suit.

[TrickstaPriest]

Was there 1500 trucks?  I heard it was only a couple dozen actual trucks.  Also I'm not one for vindicative behavior by the government... they have a legal framework for that already.

[archer]

1 minute ago, TrickstaPriest said:

Was there 1500 trucks?  I heard it was only a couple dozen actual trucks.  

 

What I've heard is that there's an estimated 1500 truckers nationwide who are in solidarity with the protest, not all of inside Ottawa at the moment. 

 

The best estimates I've seen are 121–230 trucks and 430–925 personal vehicles actually in Ottawa.

 

More trucks were in the original convoy than are parked inside Ottawa at the moment. I'm guessing if there was a serious effort to clear the streets that more trucks would attempt to come in and block them again.

[Dr. MID-Nite]

So we're exporting our madness to the north....terrific.

 

[Lord Liaden]

But I'm embarrassed to say, the truck convoy was our idea. And now it's being taken up in other countries. 😞

[Starlord]

Ummm...yeah.

[Pariah]

Still a better export than Justin Bieber.

[death tribble]

A truck convoy is a target rich environment for A10 Warthogs, F35 Lightning II and Apache Helicopters.  I'm just saying.......