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

[Tendrin]

Eyes. They roll.

[Tazirai]

Why some police departments are dropping their body camera programs
Body cameras are praised as a key police accountability tool. Some departments say they’re too expensive to use.

As body camera programs have become increasingly popular in recent years, departments have moved to enact new programs. But the Post report notes that these costs were an unforeseen result of the cameras’ proliferation.

That issue, coupled with years of data and analysis presenting a complicated picture about the effectiveness of body cameras in changing officer behavior, and the passage of laws limiting the availability of footage, shows how implementing body cameras in a way that encourages police transparency and accountability has been far more complicated than initially thought.

Body cameras have been touted as a way to increase police accountability. Now some departments are moving away from them.

[Tazirai]

The libertarian case for the shutdown, explained
Some shutdown sympathizers have argued it’s a good moment for evangelizing small government.

America’s longest-lasting government shutdown is a loser in the polls among most Americans, but among a swath of prominent conservatives and libertarians, it’s no big deal. In fact, it might even be a good thing.

“Looking around America, everything seems pretty normal. Life goes on,” said John Stossel, a popular libertarian commentator, in a video for Reason Magazine. On January 15, he said, “Kids still play and learn, adults still work, stock prices have actually increased during the shutdown. It’s hardly the end of the world.”

A week later, Stossel told me that the partial shutdown is a problem, but not nearly as bad as it’s been portrayed in the media.

[Tendrin]

Ah, yes. Lolbertarians.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

Well from an article CNN did in January 11th , Oprah will be interviewing Beto O'Rourke in Times Square on Feb 5th. Its basically his big media push from Oprah and others as O'Rourke will more than likely announce he is running for President of the United States. Sorry Bernie ...but Beto is the young lion now and he seems to be getting that push now.

[jetengine]

Liberterians opinions are utterly worthless to me. They've signed up to a failure of an ideology that supports utter selfishness and whose end goal is a Mad Max hellhole. Its as realistic as idealised Communism and was created by a damaged women so angry at the Soviet government that she created a set of ideals that were the pinnacle of everything they hated. The fact that it only really caught on in America during the gilded age says it all really.

[Gray Lensman]

The libertarian case for the shutdown, explained
Some shutdown sympathizers have argued it’s a good moment for evangelizing small government.

I'm a Libertarian and I disagree with that. While the shutdown never directly affected me, the possibility that it would was certainly looming (mostly due to a flight I plan on taking in May), and many people I know were going to be affected at least indirectly.

There is a case to be made for reducing the size of the government, but not by breaking things. But I always say we need to start by cutting the billionaire welfare queens off the public dole and cutting the regulations that favor the powerful - then we can look at the rest.

[jetengine]

'Billionaire Welfare Queens' are strawmen created by Liberterians and Republicans to fuck over the poor, the working class and minorities.

There may very well be the odd person gaming the system but that requires you to fix the system not break it, also welfare abuse is a literal drop in the ocean of massive corporate tax avoidance.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

5 Dead In Louisiana Shootings, Search For Suspected Gunman Underway

Officials believe that Dakota Theriot, 21, killed his parents and three others. Oh, look! Another unhinged, HOMEGROWN WHITE GUY went on a murderous rampage. But hey, let's clutch our pearls and cower in the corner from the dire threat of illegal immigrants from south of the border.



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Trump On Defense As Conservatives Say He Caved On Shutdown

Trump insists he didn’t cave to anyone and said the standoff with Democrats was far from over. Why should that standoff be with Democrats when Trump (who folded like a cheap penknife) promised that MEXICO woud pay for the wall? Pelosi, Schumer, other leading Democrats and the media should remind, no, hammer Trump about that broken promise EVERY. GODDAMN. DAY.

**********

12 Undocumented Immigrant Workers At Trump Golf Course Fired, Lawyer Says

Many of the employees had worked at the club for a dozen or more years. The hypocrisy is strong here.

**********

Twitter Hasn’t Forgotten Lindsey Graham’s Dire Prediction About Trump And The Shutdown

The senator previously warned that if the president caved without his wall money, “that’s probably the end of his presidency.” We can only hope.

**********

Twitter Erupts After Melania Trump Vows To ‘Continue’ Fighting For Children Everywhere

“Except for the brown ones at the border, right?” asks one tweet. “Those, we cage.” Melania needs to just shut the fuck up, drop any pretense of having causes she cares about when she clearly doesn't give a shit and stick to doing she excels at----being arm candy for a rich man. She's a dumpster fire as First Lady, easily the worst ever.

[Gray Lensman]

'Billionaire Welfare Queens' are strawmen created by Liberterians and Republicans to fuck over the poor, the working class and minorities.

There may very well be the odd person gaming the system but that requires you to fix the system not break it, also welfare abuse is a literal drop in the ocean of massive corporate tax avoidance.

I'm pretty sure you took exactly the opposite idea from what I wrote. I'm referring to actual billionaires whose businesses get a helping hand from subsidies and regulations that prevent them from having to experience any downside of the free market, not the person who is getting a check to help make ends meet.

[Gray Lensman]

I'm talking about sports stadiums being built on the public dime despite the team owner having enough money to finance it - making them billionaire welfare queens.

I'm talking about how most of the BLM leases (which cost much less than leasing from a private owner) are in the hands of the mega-rich like the Kochs - another set of billionaire welfare queens.

I'm talking about how the banks get bailouts when the mortgage holders get foreclosed - making the CEO's in question....at least multi-millionaire welfare queens.

[Tendrin]

Rep. Walter B. Jones is now in hospice care, the North Carolina Republican’s office said in a statement Saturday.
“The family asks for your prayers, and for their privacy to be respected during this difficult time,” the statement read.
Jones, who has missed votes since September while battling medical issues, experienced an additional decline after breaking a hip last week, his office said.
The congressman from North Carolina’s 3rd District was sworn in privately at his home in Farmville earlier this month. He won a 13th term last November, running unopposed in the general election. But as someone who often breaks with his party, Jones has had to contend with strong GOP primary challenges in recent cycles. He’d already announced last year that his 13th term would be his last.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...cid=spartanntp

[jetengine]

I took the opposite idea because you literally made the term up. Welfare Queen has very specific connotations. Its like me calling someone "A billionaire N-word" and then when people call me a racist go "Nah what I meant was that he lives like an ordinary black guy despite having a lot of money"

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Congressman Boyle Introduces Legislation to Ban Government Shutdowns

Congressman Brendan F. Boyle (PA-02) tonight released the following statement upon introducing new legislation to ban future government shutdowns, H.R. 696, the Ban Government Shutdowns Act.

“The era of government shutdowns has been a relatively recent phenomenon in American history as it is increasingly being used as a weapon for political gain,” said Congressman Boyle. “This is irresponsible, and morally wrong. The current shutdown – the longest in history – continues to threaten the health and wellbeing of the American people and our economy at large. It’s holding the paychecks of 800,000 hardworking public servants ransom, collateral damage of an unrelated political debate, and threatening global confidence in our nation. This is no way to govern.

“We can’t imagine our founding fathers considered shutting down government as their sole means of achieving legislative victories, and neither should we in this day and age. That is why I introduced legislation today to ban any future government shutdowns. We must end this terrible chapter of political brinksmanship that continues to erode our democracy.”

Congressman Boyle’s legislation would trigger an automatic 90-day continuation of current funding levels at the termination of an appropriations bill, rather than a lapse in appropriations triggering a shutdown.

My prediction? This won't go anywhere and will be killed by Turtle Boy and Republicans. Holding government workers hostage is the only card they have to play to gain leverage when they whine like toddlers for something they want, like Trump's nonsensical wall for instance. By the by, I also heard the U.S. is the ONLY country in the world that authorizes government shutdowns. This is flat out abominable.

[PaulBullion]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...cid=spartanntp

Whoa, at 75 he is one of the younger Republicans actually.