[worry]

Triple post, but it's a worthwhile one!

[Aptorian]

worry, on 24 January 2019 - 10:18 PM, said:

On another note, there are growing rumblings about organizing a general strike in response to the shutdown. Is everyone else in the world like "duh, you shoulda been doing that weeks ago"? Americans are real skittish about that kind of thing for whatever reasons (beaten dog syndrome?), and I don't even know if it's likely en masse, but it'd be nice to see the idea take hold.

Dont know about a general strike but in Denmark, us state employed would be camping out in front of our parliament and generally harassing the politicians. Mind you we also have strong unions who organize this stuff.

But as I mentioned earlier. We'd also have had a reelection by now if things collapsed.

[Aptorian]

Democratic Senator Michael Bennet did a great rebuttal of Ted Cruz and the wall on C-SPAN.

It's worth watching in it's entirety.

https://youtu.be/1LlCn-HZDuY

This post has been edited by Alternative Goose: 25 January 2019 - 05:05 AM

[Cause]

worry, on 24 January 2019 - 10:18 PM, said:

On another note, there are growing rumblings about organizing a general strike in response to the shutdown. Is everyone else in the world like "duh, you shoulda been doing that weeks ago"? Americans are real skittish about that kind of thing for whatever reasons (beaten dog syndrome?), and I don't even know if it's likely en masse, but it'd be nice to see the idea take hold.

I am amazed at the bery least they haven't done some kind of mass 'go slow'. TSA agents should report to work and in their job wearing a uniform is tactically important but they should for example from the waist down just wear tracksuit pants and sneakers. That way everyone who they screen is reminded that things are abnormal. In theory if they all called out sick for one day, they would force politicians hands but perhaps they view that as a step too far and it may turn the public against them. They could maybe choose five minutes in every hour to just stop a screening line in the airport, just enough to cause people a slight delay.

The coast guard is forbidden by law to do anything similar I imagine as a military service. The park rangers are mostly furloughed so they will find it difficult to do something similar.

Although as I say all this I realize that their are already major difficulties hurting the American people caused by this shutdown and no one cares. Farmers are not getting there money, they don't have the supply/demand forecast. Food stamps are about to be turned off. I read a list and sone of the effects are doozies!!!

[Malankazooie]

[Mezla PigDog]

Cause, on 25 January 2019 - 07:35 AM, said:

Although as I say all this I realize that their are already major difficulties hurting the American people caused by this shutdown and no one cares. Farmers are not getting there money, they don't have the supply/demand forecast. Food stamps are about to be turned off. I read a list and sone of the effects are doozies!!!

I haven't really been following the shutdown as the strife in my own country is absorbing enough but are they really going to have to stop food stamps?!

[Cause]

Mezla PigDog, on 25 January 2019 - 12:43 PM, said:

Cause, on 25 January 2019 - 07:35 AM, said:

Although as I say all this I realize that their are already major difficulties hurting the American people caused by this shutdown and no one cares. Farmers are not getting there money, they don't have the supply/demand forecast. Food stamps are about to be turned off. I read a list and sone of the effects are doozies!!!

I haven't really been following the shutdown as the strife in my own country is absorbing enough but are they really going to have to stop food stamps?!

I forget if its the start or end of February but the programme that provides them is only funded until then. Whats scary is that again its not that the money isn't their, its that it becomes illegal to give it out.

Lots of federal workers are already receiving help from food pantires/charities as they don't have their paycheques. They cant apply for foodstamps because by the time they are approved foodtamps wont exists or they will have their back pay.

[Anomander]

I would love to have seen Roger Stone's face when he heard the knock. I'm wondering how long before Trump finally declares his state of emergency, he's going to lose it knowing Stone has gone down.

[QuickTidal]

Well, it seems like Trump may have blinked.

I mean we all knew he would, he had no other option...but still.

I also think the whole "leave the border wall for a future discussions" thing is hilarious. Unless you want to shut the gov't down AGAIN you orange windbag...that ain't happening.

This post has been edited by QuickTidal: 25 January 2019 - 06:31 PM

[amphibian]

Possibly a hundred thousand federal workers have gone on unofficial strike over the last few days. 15,000 at the IRS alone. Air traffic controllers have gotten involved in this too - shutting down LaGuardia, which is one of the 1000 busiest airports in the world and constraining many others.

There is some collective action occurring and it is forcing results from the shitheads in the GOP.

[QuickTidal]

He's talking now....trying to spin it like "we're still getting border security"...but the 5.7billion for the Wall...not in there. If it was, he'd be crowing about it and he's not. He's pussyfooting it to try to hang onto his base.

Ugh, this fucking windbag is going on and on about nothing...

This post has been edited by QuickTidal: 25 January 2019 - 07:31 PM

[Mentalist]

QuickTidal, on 25 January 2019 - 07:24 PM, said:

He's talking now....trying to spin it like "we're still getting border security"...but the 5.7billion for the Wall...not in there. If it was, he'd be crowing about it and he's not. He's pussyfooting it to try to hang onto his base.

Ugh, this fucking windbag is going on and on about nothing...

Not trying to defend the carrot-man or anything, but that's 90% of what any politician does.

We've come to the point where a leader making an unpopular decision that's likely to have long-term benefit but cost himself/his party the next election are next to non-existant.

[Tsundoku]

Let's hope you guys don't have to do the Shutdown Hoe-Down again any time soon. Probably a vain hope though.

This came up as I was scanning The Atlantic - it's from 21 Nov 2016 and it's a little scary how accurate it is, and why. Long-ish but well worth reading.

https://www.theatlan...esident/508310/

EDIT:

Unrelated to the above, but up-to-the-minute and quite funny. The Wire meets the Mueller investigation.

https://www.theatlan...iracies/581299/

This post has been edited by Tsundoku: 28 January 2019 - 11:07 AM

[worry]

Who's ready for a glut of hot takes from 'let's be reasonable' rich people & pundit bootlickers who want cover from overtly supporting Trump, so will defend this "both sides are extreme" billionaire spoiler at every opportunity? They want the Trump tax breaks and right white hegemony without any of the taint.





There are no good Republicans, there are no good "fiscal responsibility" centrists, and there certainly are no good billionaires.

[worry]

(I don't necessarily have that fear about what's in Schultz's mind -- he could very well just be another narcissist with too much money -- but he's gonna have the David Frum's of the world pretending to support him for sure).

This post has been edited by worry: 28 January 2019 - 10:33 PM

[Tiste Simeon]

I volunteer to become a billionaire and prove worry wrong about there not being any good billionaires!

[Silencer]

Tiste Simeon, on 29 January 2019 - 01:02 AM, said:

I volunteer to become a billionaire and prove worry wrong about there not being any good billionaires!

One good billionaire is an outlier, so I volunteer to be a second billionaire for the purposes of this experiment.

[worry]

[worry]

(there are two speakers, both making excellent arguments, not sure why the tweet only mentions one)

[Tsundoku]

Davos is like the Oscars, where a bunch of overpaid narcissists mutually masturbate each other about how much they're "making a difference" or some crap, when all they're actually doing is making themselves feel better about the shit they're producing while making ever-increasing piles of money.