Political Discussion Thread (With Rules)

[unclevlad]

12 minutes ago, Iuz the Evil said:

Not a ton of space for moderate positions in public discourse these days.

 

+100

 

The space between the positions is also filled with soundproofing materials, that doesn't help.

[unclevlad]

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=555017716188991&set=a.251561316534634

 

 

[Pattern Ghost]

6 hours ago, unclevlad said:

 

I'm not positing either side of teacher effectiveness.  My point is, the Republicans want THAT to be the topic of debate...not gun control.  The gun control advocates can't win when the agenda item isn't even on the table, and deflection is a means to do that.

 

I'm not seeing it, but thanks for clarification.

[DShomshak]

Marjorie Taylor Greene was on 60 Minutes tonight, and I'm sorry to say she owned interviewer Leslie Stahl. Or at least, I thought Stahl was notably inept.

 

For instance: When Greene repeated the stock line that "Washington doesn't have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem," Stahl called it out as glib -- but failed to ask the blazingly obvious question, "So what spending should be cut? Be specific."

 

Green claimed maybe she hadn't really said outrageous things she's well known to have said. Stahl said the show had fact-checked that yes, she had. But she didn't pull out documentation or film clips of Greene, confronting her with proof. She let Greene huff about well, fact checking, are you going to fact check everything she ever said back to kindergarten? As my sister noted, it's a classic propaganda/disinformation technique to respond to challenges by puffing the challenge to absurdity.

 

It's not that Greene is a brilliant rhetorician. But Stahl didn't seem to have the chops to handle her.

 

Dean Shomshak

[Pattern Ghost]

Journalism reminds me of that scene from The Princess Bride: It's mostly dead. It may be a little bit alive . . . but it's mostly dead.

[Lord Liaden]

It's rather healthier in free countries outside of the United States, at least those not dominated by Rupert Murdoch. Although public skepticism toward journalists seems to be trending everywhere now.

[Cygnia]

The cynic in me wonders/fears if CBS higher-ups ordered Stahl to give her only softball questions.

[death tribble]

Ex-chancellor Nigel Lawson dies aged 91

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-65167914

[Sociotard]

I'm having difficulty confirming this. Amusing if true.

 

 

[Lord Liaden]

Well, Russia's army keeps moving farther and farther back in history. I wonder if we'll see Cossack cavalry at the front before this is over.

[Old Man]

19 minutes ago, Lord Liaden said:

Well, Russia's army keeps moving farther and farther back in history. I wonder if we'll see Cossack cavalry at the front before this is over.

I’ve already seen drone footage of one orc armed with a stick. He didn’t make it. 

[Cygnia]

The drone or the orc?

[Old Man]

Well, I don’t usually refer to inanimate objects using gendered pronouns. 
 

Pretty sure the stick was unharmed though. 

[BNakagawa]

Looks like MEAT's back on the menu, comerades!

[DShomshak]

3 hours ago, Lord Liaden said:

Well, Russia's army keeps moving farther and farther back in history. I wonder if we'll see Cossack cavalry at the front before this is over.

If so, they might be Ukrainian...

 

Cossacks - Wikipedia

 

Interesting note from the introductory text:

Quote

The Cossacks^[a] are a predominantly East Slavic Orthodox Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of Ukraine and southern Russia.^[1][2][3] Historically, they were a semi-nomadic and semi-militarized people, who, while under the nominal suzerainty of various Eastern European states at the time, were allowed a great degree of self-governance in exchange for military service. Although numerous linguistic and religious groups came together to form the Cossacks, most of them coalesced and became East Slavic-speaking Orthodox Christians. The Cossacks were particularly noted for holding democratic traditions. [emphasis mine]

Dean Shomshak

[Hermit]

NATO now surrounds a peace loving country....

that is, Sweden

 

Finland has joined NATO

 

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/finland-set-join-nato-historic-shift-while-sweden-waits-2023-04-04/

 

Sweden is trying to join too so , which is good, then it won't be surrounded

 

 

[L. Marcus]

Eh, we're alright.

[Dr. MID-Nite]

On 4/3/2023 at 12:52 AM, DShomshak said:

Marjorie Taylor Greene was on 60 Minutes tonight, and I'm sorry to say she owned interviewer Leslie Stahl. Or at least, I thought Stahl was notably inept.

 

For instance: When Greene repeated the stock line that "Washington doesn't have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem," Stahl called it out as glib -- but failed to ask the blazingly obvious question, "So what spending should be cut? Be specific."

 

Green claimed maybe she hadn't really said outrageous things she's well known to have said. Stahl said the show had fact-checked that yes, she had. But she didn't pull out documentation or film clips of Greene, confronting her with proof. She let Greene huff about well, fact checking, are you going to fact check everything she ever said back to kindergarten? As my sister noted, it's a classic propaganda/disinformation technique to respond to challenges by puffing the challenge to absurdity.

 

It's not that Greene is a brilliant rhetorician. But Stahl didn't seem to have the chops to handle her.

 

Dean Shomshak

 

 

Yeah...Stahl could have (and should have) torn her a new one. You need to challenge them on their BS at all times.

[tkdguy]

She got called out today. This clip does include a portion of the interview.

 

 

[Cygnia]

Tennessee GOP retaliates against Dem lawmakers for protesting gun inaction

[Cygnia]

 

[unclevlad]

1 hour ago, Cygnia said:

Tennessee GOP retaliates against Dem lawmakers for protesting gun inaction

 

It gets worse.  Not just committee assignments.

https://wpln.org/post/republicans-bar-three-democrats-from-committees-following-their-gun-control-protest-on-tennessee-house-floor/

 

If the Republicans oust them, I have to think this'll go to the state Supreme Court, because this feels utterly unjustified.  It shows, tho, that at least here, at least some of the Republicans don't care about democracy.  

[tkdguy]

Liberals will win control of Wisconsin's Supreme Court

[unclevlad]

My hope is that the extreme moves in multiple states start triggering a backlash.  MAYBE, just maybe, this vote in Wisconsin is a sign of that.  I can't put too much weight *yet* on the Trump candidates losing, as so many of them were terrible candidates.  This is a rather more focused test case...but only one case.

[tkdguy]

Another victory for progressives, this time in Chicago's mayoral race