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Pol Lounge General News Thread of "This doesn't deserve it's own thread" (Page 46)
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The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 17, 2018, 10:34 PM
 
https://www.mediaite.com/tv/tucker-c...-to-defend-it/
Carlson first asked Trump, “What is the purpose of NATO right now?”

Trump talked again about how countries should be paying and said, “It’s not a new fact. This is something that people have known for a long time.”

At one point, Carlson posed this question to the President:

“Membership in NATO obligates the members to defend any other member that’s attacked. So let’s say Montenegro, which joined last year, is attacked. Why should my son go to Montenegro to defend it from attack?”

Trump agreed, saying, “I understand what you’re saying, I’ve asked the same question. Montenegro is a tiny country with very strong people.”
I was hoping making out of the NATO summit without Trump threatening to pull out was a relief but I guess there's still a chance.
     
subego
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Jul 17, 2018, 10:58 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
What is the purpose of NATO right now?
We seek the Holy Grail.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 17, 2018, 11:20 PM
 
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/maine-g...ands-medicaid/
Maine's fiscally conservative governor says he'd rather go to jail before expanding Medicaid and putting the state in "red ink." Gov. Paul LePage made the remark Tuesday during a call-in on WVOM-FM.

Nearly three out of five voters last fall voted to expand Medicaid to 80,000 Mainers by July 2. Advocates are encouraging Mainers to sign up.

The Republican governor is fighting a court order requiring him to follow the voter-approved law and submit paperwork needed for Maine to receive federal funding. He successfully vetoed a bill to fund Maine's share of expansion with surplus and tobacco settlement funds.

https://wgme.com/news/local/gov-lepa...-1917-combined
The Republican governor has vetoed more bills approved by the Legislature than the combined total by all governors since Carl Elias Milliken, who took office in 1917. The Ottoman Empire fell five years later.
This guy certainly has secured himself a few footnotes in state history.
     
andi*pandi
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Jul 18, 2018, 01:43 PM
 
that ******' guy. How will federal funding put the state in red ink?
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 19, 2018, 09:41 AM
 
When do we get to find out what the **** was agreed to at the summit? Why isn't Trump touting those successes?
     
subego
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Jul 21, 2018, 02:32 AM
 
So, if what I’m hearing about Paul Manafort’s personal life is true, fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night.
     
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Jul 21, 2018, 08:47 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
When do we get to find out what the **** was agreed to at the summit? Why isn't Trump touting those successes?
We’ll know as soon as Putin tells him what they are.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 23, 2018, 11:58 PM
 
Not The Onion.

     
subego
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Jul 24, 2018, 01:52 AM
 
Ocasio-Cortez calls for a better society.

This author calls for a stronger society.

Both fail to realize better is not stronger, and stronger is not better.
     
Doc HM
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Jul 24, 2018, 02:53 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Ocasio-Cortez calls for a better society.

This author calls for a stronger society.

Both fail to realize better is not stronger, and stronger is not better.
Or indeed either.
This space for Hire! Reasonable rates. Reach an audience of literally dozens!
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 24, 2018, 09:36 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Ocasio-Cortez calls for a better society.

This author calls for a stronger society.

Both fail to realize better is not stronger, and stronger is not better.
I don't see why the two are mutually exclusive, but then again I didn't expect a serious response to an article that fails to realize we already have a right to education and the minimum wage was passed as a living wage 80 years ago.
     
subego
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Jul 24, 2018, 02:01 PM
 
It’s easy not to take this author seriously, because she can’t communicate for shit.

I’d put money on this author believing the minimum wage should be lowered, while Ocasio-Cortez would laugh at the idea the minimum wage as it stands being a living wage.

I’d likewise put money on this author taking issue with public education, while Ocasio-Cortez thinks thinks it’s such a good idea it should apply to higher education.

These are the distinctions the author is trying to draw. She hovers on the boundaries of self-awareness by acknowledging Ocasio-Cortez’s position is attractive, but then retreats to smug superiority.


As for better versus stronger, they aren’t wholly exclusive, but they’re closer to a zero-sum game than I’d like.

Do we reject social Darwinism because it’s cruel, or because it doesn’t work?
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 24, 2018, 05:53 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
It’s easy not to take this author seriously, because she can’t communicate for shit.
Yes, that was the point. Her writing was so bad that it read ridiculously.

Originally Posted by subego View Post
Do we reject social Darwinism because it’s cruel, or because it doesn’t work?
Well, that escalated quickly.
     
subego
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Jul 24, 2018, 07:04 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Well, that escalated quickly.
The author escalates it there, along with conservatives in general. I’m just cutting through their bullshit.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 24, 2018, 07:55 PM
 



tldr: Man makes the case for abolishing the library and replacing it with amazon stores.
Person responds now you have to pay for books
Man: But no taxes!

This is the idea of a man who does not use libraries and but is really gung-ho about saving 3¢ a year or so I imagine goes to funding libraries.
     
subego
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Jul 24, 2018, 08:01 PM
 
This pinned my Troll-lol-meter so hard I didn’t even look.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 24, 2018, 08:37 PM
 
Econ professor. I was expecting libertarian think-tank douche.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Jul 24, 2018, 08:44 PM
 
White House stops announcing calls with foreign leaders
This one really unnerves me, mostly because I can't understand why they'd want to do this. As it is, other nations get to make whatever claims they want.
     
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Jul 24, 2018, 11:02 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Ocasio-Cortez calls for a better society.

This author calls for a stronger society.

Both fail to realize better is not stronger, and stronger is not better.
That's a non-sensical distinction to make: what you consider better or stronger depends on your value system, your list of priorities and what you believe to be the best course of action is. So for the purpose of this discussion, there is no distinction in what these two words mean.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
OreoCookie
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Jul 24, 2018, 11:09 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
White House stops announcing calls with foreign leaders
This one really unnerves me, mostly because I can't understand why they'd want to do this. As it is, other nations get to make whatever claims they want.
Presumably to take pressure off Trump: if he doesn't want to do his homework (e. g. call Angela in Bonn), then nobody knows he hasn't done his homework for a while. He doesn't have to anticipate questions and just boast how “great” the relationship is and that he has had the best relationship with her ever compared to any President — especially his nameless predecessor.
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subego
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Jul 25, 2018, 12:28 AM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
That's a non-sensical distinction to make: what you consider better or stronger depends on your value system, your list of priorities and what you believe to be the best course of action is. So for the purpose of this discussion, there is no distinction in what these two words mean.
Dominant hits closer to the mark I was aiming for than stronger.
     
OreoCookie
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Jul 25, 2018, 03:16 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Dominant hits closer to the mark I was aiming for than stronger.
I have the impression that the author of the article simply has a different idea of what makes for good (or rather, better) politics than Ocasio-Cortez. Clearly, both have very different visions of what society they would like to live in, but I don't think it makes sense to call one a vision for a “more dominant/stronger” society vs. a “better” one.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
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Jul 25, 2018, 11:22 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Econ professor. I was expecting libertarian think-tank douche.
He can't be both? He's peeved that $495 of his property tax bill (which must be huge) goes to libraries.
     
subego
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Jul 25, 2018, 07:08 PM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
I have the impression that the author of the article simply has a different idea of what makes for good (or rather, better) politics than Ocasio-Cortez. Clearly, both have very different visions of what society they would like to live in, but I don't think it makes sense to call one a vision for a “more dominant/stronger” society vs. a “better” one.
The society this author envisions pumps out babies like a ****in’ barnyard, and the ones who don’t win a ribbon at the county fair get to be in an Upton Sinclair novel.

My guess? If we objectively measured what society is most suited to dominate others, the author’s blueprint would win.
     
subego
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Jul 26, 2018, 04:22 PM
 
Further, I don’t think her blueprint is the result of reasoning.

If I were to ask her to show her reasoning I predict it would be comically inconsistent, and challenges would make her slipperier than a greased pig. If not her, we all know someone like it. There may even be someone like it in this very forum. Almost every conservative is this way.

The actual reason they use this blueprint is because our ancestors who had this blueprint in their gut were the ones who successfully beat all the others. The blueprint was never meant to be consistent or rational, and the only reasoning behind it is the cold hand of selection pressure.
( Last edited by subego; Jul 27, 2018 at 12:39 AM. )
     
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Jul 30, 2018, 07:42 AM
 
     
Thorzdad
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Aug 1, 2018, 07:49 AM
 
Milton Glaser's logo design for Trump's Space Force...

     
andi*pandi
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Aug 2, 2018, 12:44 PM
 
My new painting – “Crossing the Swamp” “Never give up. Never lower your light. Never stop till the swamp is dry.” – Jon McNaughton @McNaughtonArt)
https://twitter.com/McNaughtonArt/st...92558845833216
Read the thread. A one-man photoshop tennis spree ensues.
     
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Aug 2, 2018, 06:04 PM
 
The swamp is now a sewer.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
subego
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Aug 2, 2018, 06:10 PM
 
Melania and the original Bolton are surprisingly well done.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 2, 2018, 10:46 PM
 
The man is genuinely talented. It's why his work has both an ironic and unironic following. If it were trash it wouldn't be nearly as interesting.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 5, 2018, 06:26 PM
 


I think the t-shirts are supposed to be a joke, but I'd love to hear their answers if you gave them that choice.
     
Waragainstsleep
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Aug 5, 2018, 08:10 PM
 
They sure think its funny, but I doubt they're joking.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
subego
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Aug 5, 2018, 08:59 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I'd love to hear their answers if you gave them that choice.
My guess is these people would like:

1) Trump to have more authority

2) Harsh treatment of “unpatriotic” behavior

3) Christianity to be given great respect by the government

3a) Less uppity homos

We have saying. If sleep like bear and bite like bear... is bear.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 6, 2018, 12:29 PM
 
What's the deal with Rand Paul and Russia?
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 6, 2018, 02:56 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post


I think the t-shirts are supposed to be a joke, but I'd love to hear their answers if you gave them that choice.

These shirts showed up on Russian state tv, so now I'm left thinking this is more Russian based provocation that some Trump supporters latched onto. I wonder if it's possible for a reporter to track down their origin.
     
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Aug 7, 2018, 03:24 PM
 
EPA now allows use of asbestos in manufacturing.
The world’s largest exporter of asbestos? A Russian company.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 7, 2018, 03:58 PM
 
Trying to bring Asbestos back is idiocracy level shit. Whywhywhy
     
Laminar
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Aug 7, 2018, 04:15 PM
 
The EPA never fully banned the use of asbestos. They're allowing evaluation of new potential uses of asbestos.
     
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Aug 7, 2018, 04:25 PM
 
Love the Trump sigil the Russian asbestos company is putting on their shipping pallets. Their hero.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 7, 2018, 05:38 PM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
The EPA never fully banned the use of asbestos. They're allowing evaluation of new potential uses of asbestos.
There's a huge caveat here:
According to Fast Company, the EPA’s recently released report detailing its new framework for evaluating the risk of its top prioritized substances states that the agency will “no longer consider the effect or presence of substances in the air, ground, or water in its risk assessments.
What the **** is the point of the EPA if it doesn't evaluate for air, ground or water? Does that mean if something is deadly if I breathe it in, or drink it, they don't care about the risk?

Edit: To summarize my take, it sounds like they're rigging the 'test' so asbestos can pass.
     
subego
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Aug 7, 2018, 07:23 PM
 
I skimmed through the document. This smells like a hit-piece.

If I’m reading it right, what considers the effect or presence of these vectors are the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

They’re not going to duplicate these, and are only developing assessment frameworks for what they don’t have.

For example, the Clean Water Act gives ****-all about the fishy, so the EPA will create a framework to consider the effect upon aquatic life.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 7, 2018, 10:28 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
I skimmed through the document. This smells like a hit-piece.
I've certainly seen the headline bouncing around for a few days but I can't recall if any of the big outlets have reported on it.

Originally Posted by subego View Post
If I’m reading it right, what considers the effect or presence of these vectors are the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

They’re not going to duplicate these, and are only developing assessment frameworks for what they don’t have.

For example, the Clean Water Act gives ****-all about the fishy, so the EPA will create a framework to consider the effect upon aquatic life.
I'm not sure I follow. Thanks to the above three acts, does a possible contaminant have to make it past those three hurdles or is judged by some other mechanic?
     
subego
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Aug 8, 2018, 12:51 AM
 
IIUC, it has to pass all three, and then pass a fourth comprised of what the EPA feels those fail to address.

I didn’t do exhaustive research, but each example of the story I saw was a repackaging of the Fast Company article.
     
reader50
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Aug 8, 2018, 12:10 PM
 
The shoe is sometimes on the other foot. The lead foot in this case.

Dianne Feinstein, senior Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, was employing a Chinese spy for several years. Her driver in the San Francisco area.
The FBI interviewed the spy and determined he hadn't passed on anything of value.
As a California voter, this does not surprise me. Feinstein has made a career of not doing her oversight duty on our intelligence agencies. She defends their shenanigans instead of being adversarial. It would not surprise me if she didn't know anything about what they're doing.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 8, 2018, 12:20 PM
 
Is the implication here if she was the average senator she would have known or did she ignore warnings or didn't dueproper background checks?
     
reader50
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Aug 8, 2018, 12:32 PM
 
I wasn't going for any of those. She got no warning until the FBI notified her. And the employee was recruited years after hiring, so background checks up front were moot.

1. Democrats sometimes screw up too. I'm not afraid to call them out. Republicans should not be afraid to criticize their well-placed people when they screw up.
2. Feinstein *is* an average Senator - she protects the federal agencies she's supposed to police. The Chinese spied on her for several years, and got nothing of value. If it's because she didn't know stuff she should, then us voters are getting little of value either.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 8, 2018, 09:44 PM
 
Originally Posted by reader50 View Post
1. Democrats sometimes screw up too. I'm not afraid to call them out. Republicans should not be afraid to criticize their well-placed people when they screw up.
How did she screw up?

Originally Posted by reader50 View Post
2. Feinstein *is* an average Senator - she protects the federal agencies she's supposed to police. The Chinese spied on her for several years, and got nothing of value. If it's because she didn't know stuff she should, then us voters are getting little of value either.
Feinstein is well past her prime, but more importantly, she's out of touch. It pretty clear she a more moderate dem representing a fairly liberal state. Glad she's got a primary challenger.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Aug 8, 2018, 09:48 PM
 
Kris Kobach is in the GOP Primary for gov and its close enough to need a recount. As SoS he oversees such things. He's said he won't step aside even though it would be the ethical move.

Oh yeah, the guy who sued for his voter fraud commission posted the receipts. No significant voter fraud found. Surprise!
     
 
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