[Malankazooie]

Oh boy. Trump has stepped in it yet again. This time with comments he made about the NFL and his dis-inviting the Golden State Warriors to the White House. If there has been one constant during his presidency, it has been protests. Protests EVERY damn week. I've never seen anything like it.

[Siergiej]

Vengeance, on 22 September 2017 - 12:37 PM, said:

QuickTidal, on 22 September 2017 - 12:31 PM, said:

Is it bizarre to anyone else that two world leaders (if you can call either man that term) are firing burns off at one another and bickering like anonymous online commentators?

One is a child emperor of a starving hermit kingdom, the other is a spoiler boy who inherited hundreds of millions of dollars and has had everything given to him. If they are the epitome of anonymous online commenters then I don't know what is.

This begs for a One is a child emperor of a starving hermit kingdom, the other is Kim Jong Un =)

Mezla PigDog, on 22 September 2017 - 01:36 PM, said:

The US / N Korea thing is affecting me strangely. On the one hand there's the whole "fucking hell this could go horribly wrong" track. On the other hand I'm finding Trump's complete disregard for the status quo quite refreshing. If we had a true statesman in office then it would continue as a stalemate for a long time to come but I wonder if Trump is going to push NK into over-reaching. There's obviously the worst case scenario where S Korea is wiped from existence, millions of people die, sections of earth become inhospitable to human life blah blah blah. But there are many scenario's between the ongoing stalemate and global nuclear war. Kim could be overthrown internally, they could push their research too far and accidentally destroy their facilities, they could bankrupt themselves trying to show off or they could be exposed as a lame duck. Or any other zillion scenarios.

It's not a gamble I would choose to have played out over my head and I am not crediting Trump with any kind of strategy but I won't be surprised if we look back in 50 years and say without Trump it would still be a stalemate. I also wouldn't be surprised if there is nobody left to look back in 50 years so the stalemate has a lot going for it. But yeah, you can't deny it's interesting.

Also I want someone to publish a book of North Korean insults. They're so cute.

The ongoing stalemate seems to be the strategy of least risk. Mark Bowden had an excellent piece about this: https://www.theatlan...n-earth/528717/

[Cause]

Siergiej, on 24 September 2017 - 01:04 PM, said:

Vengeance, on 22 September 2017 - 12:37 PM, said:

QuickTidal, on 22 September 2017 - 12:31 PM, said:

Is it bizarre to anyone else that two world leaders (if you can call either man that term) are firing burns off at one another and bickering like anonymous online commentators?

One is a child emperor of a starving hermit kingdom, the other is a spoiler boy who inherited hundreds of millions of dollars and has had everything given to him. If they are the epitome of anonymous online commenters then I don't know what is.

This begs for a One is a child emperor of a starving hermit kingdom, the other is Kim Jong Un =)

Mezla PigDog, on 22 September 2017 - 01:36 PM, said:

The US / N Korea thing is affecting me strangely. On the one hand there's the whole "fucking hell this could go horribly wrong" track. On the other hand I'm finding Trump's complete disregard for the status quo quite refreshing. If we had a true statesman in office then it would continue as a stalemate for a long time to come but I wonder if Trump is going to push NK into over-reaching. There's obviously the worst case scenario where S Korea is wiped from existence, millions of people die, sections of earth become inhospitable to human life blah blah blah. But there are many scenario's between the ongoing stalemate and global nuclear war. Kim could be overthrown internally, they could push their research too far and accidentally destroy their facilities, they could bankrupt themselves trying to show off or they could be exposed as a lame duck. Or any other zillion scenarios.

It's not a gamble I would choose to have played out over my head and I am not crediting Trump with any kind of strategy but I won't be surprised if we look back in 50 years and say without Trump it would still be a stalemate. I also wouldn't be surprised if there is nobody left to look back in 50 years so the stalemate has a lot going for it. But yeah, you can't deny it's interesting.

Also I want someone to publish a book of North Korean insults. They're so cute.

The ongoing stalemate seems to be the strategy of least risk. Mark Bowden had an excellent piece about this: https://www.theatlan...n-earth/528717/

Interesting analysis but I think its too focused on today. 30 years ago we would have argued against a first strike or any of the other options because they were developing better artillery, better chemical weapons, better biological weapons. In 1953 the war was allowed to end in statement for various reasons. Where will N Korea be in 20 years? Maybe the regime will implode? Maybe they will be more of a threat to S Korea, Japan, America and the world in general. Not to mention that 25 million people are trapped in a hell. Technology is only getting better and more dangerous not less. Unless we develop a leap in ballistic missile defense?

Maybe the regime will implode and resolve on its own? Maybe we will get infighting and mad generals with nukes? Maybe the people will revolt one day? What if they do, the regime could extort the world to keep it in power with the nukes its developing now? I have absolutely no idea how to fix N Korea. However the current status quo is not a strategy. Its no guarantee of peace or that things will get better or stay the same. Their are scenarios where inaction could lead to it getting worse.

N Korea seems to be one of the most horrendous stains on the world stage and one that we forget more often than we remember it.

[Gorefest]

Malankazooie, on 24 September 2017 - 12:57 PM, said:

Oh boy. Trump has stepped in it yet again. This time with comments he made about the NFL and his dis-inviting the Golden State Warriors to the White House. If there has been one constant during his presidency, it has been protests. Protests EVERY damn week. I've never seen anything like it.

He'll go down in history as the president who got the masses politically engaged again. A monumental feat.

[Silencer]

Everyone loves a villain. Etc.

[Aptorian]

It's crazy to think that Weiner was on a fast track to become presidential nominee. Dude needs therapy.

[Tsundoku]

Pretty safe to say the USA DID get a Weiner as President. What's the difference between the two besides a few million alleged dollars and some dick pics?

[Vengeance]

Tsundoku, on 27 September 2017 - 09:26 AM, said:

Pretty safe to say the USA DID get a Weiner as President. What's the difference between the two besides a few million alleged dollars and some dick pics?

A couple of Billion dollars more allegedly. Also a seriously creepy sexual obsession with his daughter.

[Tiste Simeon]

Honey Cups, on 27 September 2017 - 02:57 AM, said:

Moore beats Strange in AL runoff.

I'm not 100% but I believe that's the 1st Trump backed loss?

Weiner gets 21 month sentence.

That was a classic lose-lose situation if I ever saw one. Also Moore was supported by Farage (who seems to be going round the world and speaking at neo-nazi events for some reason. But he's not a racist, honest!)

[worry]

The Dem in that race is Doug Jones, a prosecutor who's particularly famous for prosecuting the two surviving perpetrators of the bombing of 16th Street Baptist Church, killing four young black girls. If you've seen Spike Lee's excellent documentary 4 Little Girls, that's the one. I don't generally trust prosecutors to make great Dem candidates, but this one is going to be an interesting race. We'll be able to gauge the conscience of Alabama.

[Vengeance]

worry, on 27 September 2017 - 10:10 PM, said:

The Dem in that race is Doug Jones, a prosecutor who's particularly famous for prosecuting the two surviving perpetrators of the bombing of 16th Street Baptist Church, killing four young black girls. If you've seen Spike Lee's excellent documentary 4 Little Girls, that's the one. I don't generally trust prosecutors to make great Dem candidates, but this one is going to be an interesting race. We'll be able to gauge the conscience of Alabama.

You give the residents of Alabama a lot more intelligence then I do.

[worry]

It's hard to talk about what's going on in Puerto Rico without getting upset. What I will say is that I don't believe President Donald Trump's response has anything to do with incompetence, inexperience, or even indifference. I believe 100%, in my heart of hearts, that his goal is genocide, and it's only the humanity of other people in government, in the country, in the world that is a mitigating factor (even though so far, in terms of actual need, it hasn't been enough).

[amphibian]

I don't think his actual goal is genocide. It's a byproduct of enriching himself and his family, which I believe to be the goal. The strategies he's chosen, particularly as a child of a Klansman, are in their end product extractive and genocidal for non white people.

I had a thought reading Apt's words earlier about Trump giving his audience a gif of hitting a faux Hillary with a golf ball. Things like that are why he has the audience he does, rather than an in spite of situation.

[worry]

Yah, I can't agree with the "byproduct" thing. He's opportunistic and vampiric economically, of course, but at best I would call this a two birds one stone thing. As far as I'm concerned, he's also an opportunistic racist ideologue, and he wants Puerto Ricans to die, and to rub the survivors' noses in it...to know their place in the hierarchy.

[Tsundoku]

I think if you start with the assertion that everything Trump does if all about himself, how he sees himself, and the pre-1950's alpha male way he wants the rest of the world to see himself, he becomes easier to understand.

Not relateable by any stretch, but understandable.

This post has been edited by Tsundoku: 01 October 2017 - 04:56 AM

[Macros]

I think the word you're looking for is fruitloop

[Macros]

We're still changing fruitloop to fruitloop?

[worry]

GOP Congress update:
1. They've let CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program) lapse as of October 1. Health insurance for 9 million kids just up in smoke. The only silver lining is some states budgeted for this and have some money to last into 2018.
2. They've let the Federal Perkins Loan die. This is an extremely popular fixed interest student loan for low income college-goers (like 500k get it). The excuse is to streamline federal college loan programs...not that there's a replacement for this that exists, or will be any time soon.
3. Paul Ryan says DJT's "heart's in the right place" when it comes to racial issues. I'll let that speak for itself.

[Tiste Simeon]

When did the Onion stop doing satire and start reporting truth/just the facts?

http://www.theonion....-pass-its-57095

[worry]

House GOP wants to tie Puerto Rico aid (amounting to only $1 billion) to a CHIP funding package, paid for by dinging Medicare and diverting funds from Obamacare programs aimed at preventative care.
https://www.washingt...t-of-chip-bill/