All-purpose news and politics thread: Two Steps Beyond!(Part II)

[Kirby101]

It's so mean we are accusing students from this school of racism.

[WebLurker]

The American political system is a mess. Hope some people upstairs remember that they ultimately serve a whole nation, not a specific man, really, really soon. If you believe in prayer, now's the time for it.

Tell me, have you guys ever heard of these political and comic book sites before?

The Four Color Media Monitor
Douglas Ernst Blog
Shawn James, Black Freelance Writer
The Colossus of Rhodey
The Original Marvel Universe
The Fantastic Four: The Great American Novel
A conservative blog for peace

Seen a little a bit of The Colossus of Rhodey. Didn't find it very memorable.

I'm very familiar with Douglas Ernst's blog. Used to comment on it a lot before realizing the guy was a unapologetic cyberbully (this was in the pre-Comicsgate days and he didn't seem as rabid back them). At the time, Superior Spider-Man was in full swing and it was a relief as someone who hated the very premise (and still does, to be honest) to find someone else who also disliked it in the sea of "this is the greatest thing ever" comments. In retrospect, it wasn't a good situation.

I've heard of Douglas Ernst's blog given that he relentlessly stalked Dan Slott.

Yep, I can confirm that. Used to comment a lot on Ernst's blog (this was pre-Comicsgate and at the time and Ernst cloaked his cyberbullying more effectively), and he rarely missed a a chance to attack Slott over anything in a very personal way. Granted, I think Slott has very bad online manners, but still the glee Ernst took in it and the inane pretzels he twisted himself into to "prove" that such and such benign thing was evidence of Slott being evil is really disturbing. Since Slott has moved on from ASM, Ernst seems to have switched targets, with people like Saladin Ahmed Gail Simone, and Mark Waid (over Richard Meyer's suing him) being among his favorite new people to cyberbully and slander. (Really, anyone who stands up to Comicsgate and/or doesn't fit Ernst's sense of orthodoxy is fair game for him these days, it seems.)

He's also a pizzagate believer.

https://douglasernst.blog/2016/11/24...and-deceivers/

Oh, yeah, I was there when he was peddling that. I was viciously attacked for expressing skepticism over the whole affair and wanting to see his claims backed up with outside sources. Never heard if he revised his views or not after it was debunked, but, at the time, it was the first clue I got as to the man Ernst really was.

His more recent comments are generally a defense of comicsgate.

I did notice one tendency he had to consistently go after the left and the center for going too far without actually saying what he wants.

Yeah, anything not right/alt-right is the enemy and a member of some SJW conspiracy that's threatening to take over the world in his warped view of things. Not that he's ever provided any proof for his claims, beyond weird extrapolations from random online articles and postings. It's all a house of cards when you look at what he's actually saying and suggesting. Frankly, if he wants to believe stuff that doesn't make much sense, that's his decision, but using those beliefs as an excuse to harass and cyberbully people is beyond the pale.

Edit: Ernst has posted a video regarding the thread and the criticism of him (here). It's basically just lying and attacks on Mister Mets and us and him playing the innocent victim of his own cruelty. Really starting to wonder if Ernst's channel should be reported to YouTube; he regularly violates Youtube's policies on harassment and cyberbullying as part of his Comicsgate activies -- specifically the points "Abusive videos, comments, messages," "Deliberately posting content in order to humiliate someone," "Making hurtful and negative comments/videos about another person," and "Incitement to harass other users or creators."

[jetengine]

....what the hell.

Who actually thought Blackface in anytime post 1930s was casually acceptable.

[Malvolio]

....what the hell.

Who actually thought Blackface in anytime post 1930s was casually acceptable.

Maybe they're related to Megyn Kelly?

[aja_christopher]

Because some Republicans said something wrong years ago about a powerful man doesn't give Democrats license to be wrong now when talking about teenagers. Likewise because you think some people are treated wrongly and dishonestly today shouldn't be an excuse to treat others wrongly and dishonestly.

The Black Hebrew Israelites did start yelling at the kids, and did say worse things than any of the kids.

1) I never said that Democrats had the "license to be wrong" -- just that Republicans have done far worse in the past (and present) and that it's hypocritical of any Republican to talk about "dishonesty" when that's essentially the modus operandi of the modern Republican party.

Moreover, you have no real proof that Democrats are "wrong" about these "MAGA youth" -- you just have a few articles that somewhat support your opinion on what happened, unlike Obama who was completely (and "dishonestly") vilified by the Trump and Republican party while he was in office for things like "being a Muslim"... or simply for just being "black".

2) No one here has ever said the "Hebrew Israelites" aren't guilty of poor behavior as well -- to the contrary, many here have denounced them which is why it's telling that you are still attempting to defend the behavior kids in this story.

Speaking of which, I knew someone who considered himself a Hebrew Israelite as well a few years ago. I spent plenty of time arguing with him that not all white people are racist and despite the fact that he viewed whites as "evil" never once have I ever tried to defend his racist views as being acceptable, nor did I ever make excuses for his prejudices or biases -- in fact, I opposed said views at every opportunity, often pointing out his hypocrisy the same as I do with you.

Looking forward to when you can do the same for your entire party, rather than defending their behavior.

[Dalak]

People have been yelling to watch the whole video or other videos of the incident with the teens and Philip's. Someone did and wrote an illuminating thread on the subject.

1) I never said that Democrats had the "license to be wrong" -- just that Republicans have done far worse in the past (and present) and that it's hypocritical of any Republican to talk about "dishonesty" when that's essentially the modus operandi of the modern Republican party.

Moreover, you have no real proof that Democrats are "wrong" about these "MAGA youth" -- you just have a few articles that somewhat support your opinion on what happened, unlike Obama who was completely (and "dishonestly") vilified by the Trump and Republican party while he was in office for things like "being a Muslim"... or simply for just being "black".

2) No one here has ever said the "Hebrew Israelites" aren't guilty of poor behavior as well -- to the contrary, most here have denounced them which is why it's telling that you are still attempting to defend the behavior kids in this story.

Even if someone didn't watch the whole video to get the whole story (Link Above), being yelled at by a third party doesn't excuse you mistreating someone else. With the whole story it looks even worse.

[Jack Dracula]

Super dumb and they should be called out for that. I also blame any parents and chaperones who didn't intervene.

I'm not sure why anyone thought it was a good idea to stick those hate-magnet MAGA hats on a bunch of teenage & pre-teen boys and put them in the middle of that mess.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

It's so mean we are accusing students from this school of racism.

Son of a bitch! Seriously?

[Tami]

Trump voters now blame him for the government shutdown

Many here, even those who still support Trump, say they hold him most responsible. They recite his comment from the Oval Office that he would be “proud to shut down the government.” When he said it, they listened.

“It’s silly. It’s destructive,” Daudert said, adding that all he knows about 2020 is that he won’t be supporting Trump. “I was certainly for the anti-status quo. … I’ll be more status quo next time.”

“As a community it affects us because other people are being affected,” said Jasmin Cromwell, who runs Bodhi Seed Yoga & Wellness Studio, “whether we know them or not. Maybe I’m getting too yoga-like but we are all connected. It affects everyone. It affects us as a nation.”

Recent polling indicates that the government shutdown has caused skittishness among parts of Trump’s base, which has been one of the most enduring strengths of his presidency. A new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, conducted Jan. 10 to Jan. 13, found his net approval rating had dropped 7 points since December.

One of the biggest drops came from suburban men, whose approval rating of Trump fell a net change of 18 percentage points, while evangelicals and Republicans also dipped by smaller margins. Among men without a college degree, the downward change was 7 points.

[aja_christopher]

Even if someone didn't watch the whole video to get the whole story (Link Above), being yelled at by a third party doesn't excuse you mistreating someone else. With the whole story it looks even worse.

As with the Buzzfeed situation, this is just an attempt to spin the story so that they can attack the media as a whole: never mind that Trump and these MAGA youth have been caught engaged in similar -- often openly racist -- misbehavior before on numerous occasions; if they can find just one instance where the "media" even possibly gets it wrong, they will use that as an excuse to attack all mainstream media as "dishonest" and "fake news".

It also makes for a great, albeit temporary, distraction from both Republican failure and Russian collusion.

-----
"If black Americans have any saving grace from the daily deluge of Trump’s attacks on their interests, it rests in the awareness that more harm hasn’t been done, largely because of the governing ineptitude of the administration and the White House’s preoccupation with self-survival in a toxic environment of criminal and ethical probes.

Still, Trump has successfully fouled the national air by loosening the restraints on civil discourse.

When the president can say or do racists things with impunity, it gives license to those who share those beliefs to follow suit. So when Trump mocks Chinese business people with broken, pidgin English or contorts ridicule a disabled reporter, or calls kneeling professional athletes “sons of bitches,” Trump grants permission to his supporters to utter similar slights and act out their own racial fantasies...

“I hear him not talking to black people, but talking to white people about black people so they will think he cares about black people,” Alexis Scott, a former publisher of The Atlanta Daily World, a black-owned newspaper, told The New York Times in response to Trump’s campaign outreach to black voters. “The real thing that he’s trying to do is to try to protect some of the white vote by suggesting to them that he cares.”

Trump’s presidential campaign, in fact, was a cavalcade of racism’s greatest hits intended to amuse and delight a subset of white American voters, beginning with the escalator ride that led to his opening campaign proposals to ban Muslims from entering the country and defaming Mexicans as “rapists” and “criminals..."



https://thinkprogress.org/two-years-...-is-in-plenty/

[InformationGeek]

You could always not say something. That be fine.

Today, the men and women of the @NRA honor the profound life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King applied for a concealed carry permit in a "may issue" state and was denied. We will never stop fighting for every law-abiding citizen's right to self-defense. #MLKDay

[shooshoomanjoe]

Because some Republicans said something wrong years ago about a powerful man doesn't give Democrats license to be wrong now when talking about teenagers. Likewise because you think some people are treated wrongly and dishonestly today shouldn't be an excuse to treat others wrongly and dishonestly.

The Black Hebrew Israelites did start yelling at the kids, and did say worse things than any of the kids.

People also disliked Obama, and would think the Obama sunrise hat was associated with bad things (religious persecution, the murder of the unborn, snobbery towards the working class, etc.) In a pluralistic society we should do what we can to support the norm that wearing apparel indicating support for a political figure should not be seen as a provocation, barring extreme situations (IE- a Paul Wehlen T-shirt.)

That was in response to an adult telling a teenager "Just because you stole the land, don't make it yours."

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...s-student.html

The elder is making a lot of guesses about what the kids feel. He could be mistaken.

"These young men were beastly and these old black individuals was their prey, and I stood in between them and so they needed their pounds of flesh and they were looking at me for that."

"The kind of glee in the teenagers’ face was “ugly” and reminiscent of photographed reactions to lynchings from the mid-20th century. He described their behaviour as a reaction to learning “there’s more truth out there than what they’re being taught” in their schools — and they took issue with people who are not like them."

“One thing that I was taught in my Marine Corp training is that a scared man will kill you,” he said. “And that's what these boys were. They were scared."

He's a Native American that was crowded by a bunch of teens wearing MAGA hats telling him to go back to the reservation. Anyone would have had the same thoughts he did.

[SuperiorIronman]

And how about we just tell it for what it is and that the MAGA hat kids are a bunch of dick shits who have no business being assholes to someone they don't even know.

A bunch of kids are racist assholes why is this hard to comprehend? People can indeed see the light and change, but for the time being why don't we just take racism at face value. The kids are assholes, that simple.

[Mister Mets]

He's a Native American that was crowded by a bunch of teens wearing MAGA hats telling him to go back to the reservation. Anyone would have had the same thoughts he did.

Where in the video does someone tell him to go back to the reservation?

As with the Buzzfeed situation, this is just an attempt to spin the story so that they can attack the media as a whole: never mind that Trump and these MAGA youth have been caught engaged in similar -- often openly racist -- misbehavior before on numerous occasions; if they can find just one instance where the "media" even possibly gets it wrong, they will use that as an excuse to attack all mainstream media as "dishonest" and "fake news".

It also makes for a great, albeit temporary, distraction from both Republican failure and Russian collusion.

-----
"If black Americans have any saving grace from the daily deluge of Trump’s attacks on their interests, it rests in the awareness that more harm hasn’t been done, largely because of the governing ineptitude of the administration and the White House’s preoccupation with self-survival in a toxic environment of criminal and ethical probes.

Still, Trump has successfully fouled the national air by loosening the restraints on civil discourse.

When the president can say or do racists things with impunity, it gives license to those who share those beliefs to follow suit. So when Trump mocks Chinese business people with broken, pidgin English or contorts ridicule a disabled reporter, or calls kneeling professional athletes “sons of bitches,” Trump grants permission to his supporters to utter similar slights and act out their own racial fantasies...

“I hear him not talking to black people, but talking to white people about black people so they will think he cares about black people,” Alexis Scott, a former publisher of The Atlanta Daily World, a black-owned newspaper, told The New York Times in response to Trump’s campaign outreach to black voters. “The real thing that he’s trying to do is to try to protect some of the white vote by suggesting to them that he cares.”

Trump’s presidential campaign, in fact, was a cavalcade of racism’s greatest hits intended to amuse and delight a subset of white American voters, beginning with the escalator ride that led to his opening campaign proposals to ban Muslims from entering the country and defaming Mexicans as “rapists” and “criminals..."



https://thinkprogress.org/two-years-...-is-in-plenty/

Trump or some kids at Covington doing something bad in the past doesn't excuse anyone in the media for a failure to do due diligence in a new story.

With the Kentucky teens, there is also the immorality of ascribing blame to these specific kids based on poor behavior by other kids in the past.

1) I never said that Democrats had the "license to be wrong" -- just that Republicans have done far worse in the past (and present) and that it's hypocritical of any Republican to talk about "dishonesty" when that's essentially the modus operandi of the modern Republican party.

Moreover, you have no real proof that Democrats are "wrong" about these "MAGA youth" -- you just have a few articles that somewhat support your opinion on what happened, unlike Obama who was completely (and "dishonestly") vilified by the Trump and Republican party while he was in office for things like "being a Muslim"... or simply for just being "black".

2) No one here has ever said the "Hebrew Israelites" aren't guilty of poor behavior as well -- to the contrary, many here have denounced them which is why it's telling that you are still attempting to defend the behavior kids in this story.

Speaking of which, I knew someone who considered himself a Hebrew Israelite as well a few years ago. I spent plenty of time arguing with him that not all white people are racist and despite the fact that he viewed whites as "evil" never once have I ever tried to defend his racist views as being acceptable, nor did I ever make excuses for his prejudices or biases -- in fact, I opposed said views at every opportunity, often pointing out his hypocrisy the same as I do with you.

Looking forward to when you can do the same for your entire party, rather than defending their behavior.

If some Republicans made bad arguments about Obama's tan suit years ago, this doesn't mean all claims by any conservative should be dismissed in the present.

As for evidence that the kids were vilified by Democrats/ liberals, we have the comments about them on this forum by supporters of the Democratic party. You could look at twitter for comments by various progressive journalists/ entertainers.

With the "Hebrew Israelites" you do seem to be equating the two groups. I clearly and unambiguously believe that the adults who started the altercation by shouting at strangers, and yelled about how they're incest babies are worse. Your language seems to suggest the high school kids and Hebrew Israelites are on the same level (IE- you suggest that they are "guilty of poor behavior as well" and that I'm obligated to not defend the kids because you don't defend the Hebrew Israelites, which only follows if the two groups are just as bad.)

The comment I was responding to was also neutral about the behavior of the Black Hebrew Israelites.

[jetengine]

Stop talking **** Mets.

Left wing media makes a mistake and everyone jumps on it. Right wing media sells conspiracy theories and bullshit as ne- oh sorry 'Entertainment' and its ignored.