All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[PwrdOn]

The American Enterprise Institute is a shill for the Koch brothers and other right wing endeavors. It is not a legitimate scholarly source.

https://www.sourcewatch.org/index.ph...rise_Institute

I mean you just have to actually look at their front page to see what kind of reasoned, intelligent discourse they're engaging in.

https://www.aei.org/tag/the-report-card-podcast/

Critical race theory, Title IX, racial achievement gaps, homeschooling. Bingo.

[worstblogever]

The American Enterprise Institute is a shill for the Koch brothers and other right wing endeavors. It is not a legitimate scholarly source.

https://www.sourcewatch.org/index.ph...rise_Institute

I mean you just have to actually look at their front page to see what kind of reasoned, intelligent discourse they're engaging in.

https://www.aei.org/tag/the-report-card-podcast/

Critical race theory, Title IX, racial achievement gaps, homeschooling. Bingo.

So you're telling me the person who thought I may have been using information I'd seen at an "unreliable source"...

Was using statistics from an unreliable source?

Whoa, couldn't have seen that coming.

[Mister Mets]

When talking about kids and schools it is disingenuous and just bad scholarship if only death is considered and not long term health effects when contracting the virus ( there are some, even for children) and the chance of spreading the virus to adults. If those aren't considered, the analysis is worthless.

Of course.

I said CONSTRUCTIVE discussions about public education. Take Back Our Schools? From whom?

Progressive bureaucrats.

That said, it should still be possible to have constructive discussions on that question.

And, for those who want to live in a sane world without just casually causing deaths in the tens of thousands...

We reopened schools before anyone was vaccinated last fall. We literally have the data to show what happens to the overall populace, and the number of Covid-19 cases when you do that. And that was before a more contagious Delta variant was in the mix.

My feelings are starting to trend away from asking, "Are conservatives in some sort of death cult?" to just making it a statement, because it's the only thing that makes sense. Other than they're just remarkably stupid, and unable to apply science to understand highly potential outcomes based on evidence.

I really wish I wasn't being hyperbolic, but I'm really, really not liking the idea of watching a death count jump back into the hundreds or thousands a day because Fox News in a majority of elected Republicans are telling their base to effectively die for the Trump cause of making Biden look bad. I just don't want to see that, and feel like it's honestly terrifying that I have to say that out loud and think it's a "controversial" opinion for those on the right.

We have some data on transmission in schools.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019...2_schools.html

Much of the evidence suggests that transmission between students is rare.

I mean you just have to actually look at their front page to see what kind of reasoned, intelligent discourse they're engaging in.

https://www.aei.org/tag/the-report-card-podcast/

Critical race theory, Title IX, racial achievement gaps, homeschooling. Bingo.

Are you surprised that a podcast about current events discusses topics that are in the news? What specifically have they said that you feel to be beyond the pale?

[Mister Mets]

So you're telling me the person who thought I may have been using information I'd seen at an "unreliable source"...

Was using statistics from an unreliable source?

Whoa, couldn't have seen that coming.

You said multiple things that were untrue. That's why I was concerned that your information comes from unreliable sources.

The American Enterprise Institute is a shill for the Koch brothers and other right wing endeavors. It is not a legitimate scholarly source.

https://www.sourcewatch.org/index.ph...rise_Institute

If someone talks about their inability to find conservative arguments, they'll be guided to places that have received funding from prominent conservatives.

This doesn't mean that the standard AEI writer is operating in bad faith, any more than that the standard leftwing thinktank employee is acting in bad faith.

[worstblogever]

This doesn't mean that the standard AEI writer is operating in bad faith...

They're presenting misleading statistical analysis to justify why it's fine roughly 15,000 people a year dying from gun violence (not including suicides) is acceptable.

Suffice to say, they are operating in bad faith, and their politics are garbage.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

And, for those who want to live in a sane world without just casually causing deaths in the tens of thousands...

We reopened schools before anyone was vaccinated last fall. We literally have the data to show what happens to the overall populace, and the number of Covid-19 cases when you do that. And that was before a more contagious Delta variant was in the mix.

My feelings are starting to trend away from asking, "Are conservatives in some sort of death cult?" to just making it a statement, because it's the only thing that makes sense. Other than they're just remarkably stupid, and unable to apply science to understand highly potential outcomes based on evidence.

I really wish I wasn't being hyperbolic, but I'm really, really not liking the idea of watching a death count jump back into the hundreds or thousands a day because Fox News in a majority of elected Republicans are telling their base to effectively die for the Trump cause of making Biden look bad. I just don't want to see that, and feel like it's honestly terrifying that I have to say that out loud and think it's a "controversial" opinion for those on the right.

Well, it's true, the Qpublican Party very much IS a party of DEATH. No ifs, and or buts about that. They look the other way when kids are gunned down in schools, issue meaningless "thoughts and prayers" after mass shootings, and encourage their own base to die from a horrible virus for the sake of an orange skinned sociopath who wouldn't so much as piss on them if they were on fire. The only thing missing from this insane cult is the poison spiked Kool-Aid. I defy anyone to tell me differently.

[PwrdOn]

Progressive bureaucrats.

That said, it should still be possible to have constructive discussions on that question.

Conservatives are more than welcome to contribute making America's schools great again if they are willing to help. Of course, as with most things, they can't be bothered to do any of the actual work, because of course when it comes to public education it's quite a grueling, thankless, and poorly paid slog. They just want to jump in at the end when the result is inevitably not to their liking, and throw a hissy fit when nobody takes any of their silly ideas seriously.

Seriously, where were conservatives during the pandemic when teachers were trying to come up with new strategies and solutions to keep students engaged and productive, or how to address the psychological issues that can come from extended periods of isolation? Where are conservatives' proposals for what kinds of policies we could adopt in schools to make reopening them safer for both students and teachers? Of course, they never have any actual helpful ideas when it comes to education, or any other topic for matter. The only thing they are ever concerned with is that something has slightly inconvenienced THEM in some way and that the rest of us must move heaven and earth to remove this obstacle forthwith.

You said multiple things that were untrue. That's why I was concerned that your information comes from unreliable sources.

If someone talks about their inability to find conservative arguments, they'll be guided to places that have received funding from prominent conservatives.

This doesn't mean that the standard AEI writer is operating in bad faith, any more than that the standard leftwing thinktank employee is acting in bad faith.

Where are the conservative arguments that come from every day people shaped by their experiences of working in education? Are conservatives unable to come up with an original opinion of their own and only capable to regurgitating the same few opinions they are being paid to repeat?

[Tami]

White nationalist group posing as antifa called for violence on Twitter

A Twitter account claiming to belong to a national “antifa” organization and pushing violent rhetoric related to ongoing protests has been linked to the white nationalist group Identity Evropa, according to a Twitter spokesperson.

The spokesperson said the account violated the company's platform manipulation and spam policy, specifically the creation of fake accounts. Twitter suspended the account after a tweet that incited violence.

As protests were taking place in multiple states across the U.S. Sunday night, the newly created account, @ANTIFA_US, tweeted, “Tonight’s the night, Comrades,” with a brown raised fist emoji and “Tonight we say 'F--- The City' and we move into the residential areas... the white hoods.... and we take what's ours …”

This isn’t the first time Twitter has taken action against fake accounts engaged in hateful conduct linked to Identity Evropa, according to the spokesperson.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

White nationalist group posing as antifa called for violence on Twitter

Antifa is like someone's bowels after taking Ex-Lax....loose. Also, I think it's safe to safe if there was an actual organization under that name instead of just an idea, none of their members would say "Comrades". More proof it was bogus as hell.

[CSTowle]

Dick Durbin confirms former Trump DOJ official Richard Donoghue will also testify this week about the Trump-Clark election plot. This means the two top Trump DOJ people from the final days are both eager to bring Donald Trump to justice. Makes for a slam dunk criminal case.

I hope folks aren't really getting their hopes up that he's going to be brought to justice, even if the case is a "slam dunk". We've seen this sort of thing before with the two impeachment trials, and while most of these things have no real impact other than as political theater to keep the fundraiser base happy and make politicians look like they're accomplishing something with low effort and harsh but ultimately pointless rhetoric I feel like getting folks' hopes up that something might happen this time is just the left's version of the MAGA/Q-folks beliefs that any day now he's going to retake the White House (for fun, the newest date is the 13th so mark that on your calendar until it comes and goes and they come up with another one).

It's counterproductive and more likely to turn people in the middle off of politics and be less trustful of the Democratic Party as an effective body. It's great for feelings of superiority, but I wonder what they could be doing instead with control of Congress and time on their hands and what we'll be saying when they lose control of that (to the extent they have it now, with the Manchins and Sinemas) next year. This political theater things is great for Party Hacks and fundraising, but what does it accomplish for the people who go out and actually vote for them? If it were going to have an impact and end in him being punished I'd say sure. But you know it's not. He knows it's not.

[Tami]

I hope folks aren't really getting their hopes up that he's going to be brought to justice, even if the case is a "slam dunk". We've seen this sort of thing before with the two impeachment trials, and while most of these things have no real impact other than as political theater to keep the fundraiser base happy and make politicians look like they're accomplishing something with low effort and harsh but ultimately pointless rhetoric I feel like getting folks' hopes up that something might happen this time is just the left's version of the MAGA/Q-folks beliefs that any day now he's going to retake the White House (for fun, the newest date is the 13th so mark that on your calendar until it comes and goes and they come up with another one).

It's counterproductive and more likely to turn people in the middle off of politics and be less trustful of the Democratic Party as an effective body. It's great for feelings of superiority, but I wonder what they could be doing instead with control of Congress and time on their hands and what we'll be saying when they lose control of that (to the extent they have it now, with the Manchins and Sinemas) next year. This political theater things is great for Party Hacks and fundraising, but what does it accomplish for the people who go out and actually vote for them? If it were going to have an impact and end in him being punished I'd say sure. But you know it's not. He knows it's not.

I think they are already talking about some time in September.

[Tami]

Republicans are stoking QAnon conspiracy fires — and we're all paying for it

Supporters of QAnon, the conspiracy theory that Democratic politicians are Satan-worshiping pedophiles and that former President Donald Trump’s mission in the White House was to stop them, have a new outlandish hypothesis: that the police officers who died by suicide after surviving the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol have in fact been covertly murdered by the deep state.

In a sane world, it should go without saying that this is not just false, but also absurd and dangerous. But unfortunately it does not go without saying — and that’s in part because of mainstream right-wing disinformation surrounding the riot and the election.

Both Republicans and QAnon are peddling evidence-free conspiracy theories, it’s just that QAnon’s go a bit further. Political and media elites on the mainstream right are creating a climate in which the very idea of a knowable, shared reality is becoming extinct, and only in-groups can be trustworthy sources.

In this environment, it’s only natural for QAnon conspiracies — which about a quarter of Republicans subscribe to — to flourish and evolve. To that point, the latest QAnon theory stands out less for how strange it is than for how closely it tracks with the way that Republicans have framed what happened Jan. 6.

Vice News reports that QAnon influencers and adherents have been discussing the addition to the conspiracy theory online and on fringe right-wing media sites in recent days. It appears to be a response to the fact that on Monday, authorities announced that two more police officers who responded to the insurrection have died from suicide.

Where most people see tragedy stemming from trauma and neglect, the QAnon world sees proof of a shadowy effort to silence whistleblowers.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Republicans are stoking QAnon conspiracy fires — and we're all paying for it

I'm of the opinion Republicans don't believe so much as one iota of QAnon's conspiracy bullshit. However, Trump's rabid followers treat it like the gospel, so the GOP has to stoke those fires or risk losing support they desperately need for next year and beyond. Hypocritical? You betcha!

[Mister Mets]

Conservatives are more than welcome to contribute making America's schools great again if they are willing to help. Of course, as with most things, they can't be bothered to do any of the actual work, because of course when it comes to public education it's quite a grueling, thankless, and poorly paid slog. They just want to jump in at the end when the result is inevitably not to their liking, and throw a hissy fit when nobody takes any of their silly ideas seriously.

Seriously, where were conservatives during the pandemic when teachers were trying to come up with new strategies and solutions to keep students engaged and productive, or how to address the psychological issues that can come from extended periods of isolation? Where are conservatives' proposals for what kinds of policies we could adopt in schools to make reopening them safer for both students and teachers? Of course, they never have any actual helpful ideas when it comes to education, or any other topic for matter. The only thing they are ever concerned with is that something has slightly inconvenienced THEM in some way and that the rest of us must move heaven and earth to remove this obstacle forthwith.



Where are the conservative arguments that come from every day people shaped by their experiences of working in education? Are conservatives unable to come up with an original opinion of their own and only capable to regurgitating the same few opinions they are being paid to repeat?

You may be conflating several different arguments. There are many on the left who make decisions on education policy or opine on it without having a background on the grueling aspects of teaching.

I'm not sure of the context of "nobody takes any of their silly ideas seriously." It doesn't seem to be literally or figuratively true. Many of the policies poll well, and are adopted by state legislatures.

There are going to be some grifters in any area where money is available, but I do think most of the people involved in education and education policy are trying to do what's best. This includes public schools employees, charter school employees, private school employees, parents groups, etc. It's true of liberals pushing for education policies, and conservatives. I'm not sure why any conversation on education policy should be limited to public schools. Progressives have largely been in charge of public school, and the results (as measured by international standards like PISA scores) aren't great.

During the pandemic, conservatives generally argued that the best thing for students was to continue in-person learning. Studies about learning loss as well as transmission rates in schools suggest they had a point. Conservatives were less willing to advocate for people to compromise on their children's educations.

[JackDaw]

I thought we’d got to point in UK where blatantly racist ads were a thing of the past.

So bit gobsmacked to see story about Ivy’s (upmarket restaurant group) campaign to launch Ivys Asian themed restaurant in London..it featured a Fu Manchu look alike and a couple of Geisha girls who looked like sumo wrestlers…and once they got to restaurant all other customers were white, sleek, sophisticated.

The pictures were jaw dropping…advert was rapidly withdrawn when people complained… but it’s mind boggling that any PR agency could believe it was okay to run in first place.