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

[achilles]

I suppose it’s effective enough to kill a shed load of people. And caused a fantastic amount of property damage..was reading that 90 percent of all Mariupol buildings have been destroyed.

I find the bravery and resilience of the Ukrainian people astonishing. I’ve been comparing their fortitude to my own and my fellow Brits…we tend to be rushing to supermarkets to stockpile if there’s even a rumour of a shortage….

I guess that resilience has been an even bigger factor than Russian ineffectiveness in Russia’s failure to get a quick easy victory.

It's their V-2, a terror weapon that can't actually win their war for them, but can express Putin's evil quite well, or their ME-262, too late and too little to alter the outcome. They will kill people, a lot of people, but won't really do anything the Ukrainians can't survive.

The time will come, I expect, when we really have no choice but to hit China with heavy sanctions as well until they stop supplying Russia with a lifeline. It's a fine line to walk, not to start WW3, but also to help Ukraine against Russia, as also for the safety of the world we have to establish that a would-be conqueror won't profit from their conquest, or the world will forever be their hunting grounds, along with other bad actors like China or Iran or NK. They have to know they can't just do that.

[Kirby101]

They can't talk about his performance because it is a losing argument for them so they ignore all his failures, deflect to their Trump hate or attack you for pointing out the facts of Biden's policies hurting the country. You won't see anything about the border, inflation, the 10k Americans who lost their job o his first day (in the middle of a pandemic), Afghanistan, crime, asking OPEC for oil, over regulating the energy industry, dropping sanctions against Iran's nuke program, fentanyl deaths, failure to deter the Russian invasion, the list goes on and on but they have all drank from the liberal well of ignorance, hate and non-tolerance of other views...

[CSTowle]

They can't talk about his performance because it is a losing argument for them so they ignore all his failures, deflect to their Trump hate or attack you for pointing out the facts of Biden's policies hurting the country. You won't see anything about the border, inflation, the 10k Americans who lost their job o his first day (in the middle of a pandemic), Afghanistan, crime, asking OPEC for oil, over regulating the energy industry, dropping sanctions against Iran's nuke program, fentanyl deaths, failure to deter the Russian invasion, the list goes on and on but they have all drank from the liberal well of ignorance, hate and non-tolerance of other views...

I voted for him and got exactly what I expected. A past-his-prime gladhanding centrist establishment Democrat who can be counted on not to upset the apple cart. He inherited a pandemic and the economic downturn that came with it, and on some fronts it's still not great. As mentioned the inflation continues but as with the energy prices rising it's largely based on things outside of his control. Certainly when you factor in both the reflexively obstructionist Republican Party that would see the country fail and its people suffer if it helps them come the midterms, and the dynamic duo of Manchin & Sinema helping them do it "on principle".

I'm not an economist (if there's one who frequents the boards, or anyone with helpful information and not biased political opinion to share, please correct me here) but there are several reasons for inflation. 1. The stimulus and bailouts and the printing of money and taking on of debt which led to us overprinting money to try to keep up. 2. Supply chain issues keeping goods from reaching their goals and scarcity driving up the prices of products. 3. More money in the pockets of people who were trapped inside for over a year and now have money for goods that aren't reaching them. 4. With interest rates as low as they are companies are almost compelled to borrow money right now, and with that extra cashflow you have the same thing on a larger scale as the couple who wasn't eating out for a year and can now bring dollars (with extra competition) to everything from payroll to construction/infrastructure to acquiring other assets.

On energy policy, I'll never understand why Republicans reflexively rail against the idea of renewable energy or trying to gain our independence from the OPECs/Russias/Venezuelas of the world (other than maybe they see it as a leftist issue, and so has to be forbidden fruit) and treat petroleum products like holy water blessed by the lord. But at some point we're going to have to make the transition and if we develop that tech first we can turn it into a strength and a source of income. No serious person believes we're a decade or two away from being independent of fossil fuels, but the time will come and we should prepare for it. For direct economic reasons as well as climate change and political entanglement reasons. Keeping Canada from saving money on shipping and upping the cost on consumers might not help in the short term, but that's a decision those who live where those pipelines were bound through decided on and we should respect their wishes. It's not a national security concern, it's a private enterprise one. If they truly want it they need to convince those folks of it, not you or I paying extra at the pump (which that pipeline wouldn't have prevented).

On Afghanistan, tell me how you'd "win" that? Could it have been handled better? Sure. But it needed to be done. I'll take that over backstabbing the Kurds (again) any day. Every life wasted (forget dollars) or soldier maimed or disabled for an occupation with no real goal in sight was a failure of leadership on multiple Administrations. Good on Biden for finally getting us out.

On jobs, I'm sure you're aware of the numbers even if you want to single out a single day but if you're being honest or have any awareness at all you know the unemployment rate is nearly at the level it was pre-Covid. And that with people deciding not to go back to certain sectors of the economy, and Covid restrictions still in place in many areas. I can't give Biden a lot of credit for this, as with gas prices and inflation being situations beyond his control the economy getting back on track as we open back up was inevitable so long as nobody screwed the pooch. On that note:

On Covid. Yes, more deaths last year than the first year (though the first year started getting under way around April). That said, about half of the country (ones who probably feel the way about Biden that you do) sees everything from masks to getting vaccinated as an assault on their civil liberties and have enabled each variant strain to run wild through the population as they prematurely tried to "get back to normal". For that yes, I do blame the former President. He was the coward who abdicated his responsibility as the Commander In Chief by refusing to coordinate a Federal response to the pandemic and instead allowed the states to handle it themselves. More than likely to avoid getting blame if something went wrong. He cast doubt on masks and distancing. He stoked the "nobody tells me what to do, FREEDOM!" nonsense that has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of grandmas and grandpas these past few years. He set the tone that the right takes, willing to make things worse for everyone if it makes them feel better. There's a reason Trump was getting upset over people focusing on Fauci at his Covid press briefings. They wanted to talk to the adult in the room, and that clearly wasn't the fat orange guy with the funny hair.

On the border, I'd love to see comprehensive immigration reform. I'd like more and easier legal immigration. But we don't have the political consensus to not kill grandma or to keep our infrastructure from falling apart around us, so I don't see that being a priority any time soon. The last one to make progress on that was Reagan, and that was a long time ago. Fentanyl deaths would be helped if we relaxed drug laws in the country so people weren't forced underground in order to acquire their recreational drug of choice and end up with more than they bargained for. It would also help crime if we didn't lock up a lot of young men (a good chunk of them "coincedentally" black or brown) for trying to make a living when their options are scarce. Another argument for investment in education and job skill training. If you're actually interested in solving the problem, and not identifying one in order to seem superior by judging people.

On Iran, great job by the last President to pull out of the treaty. Now they have all the more reason to acquire nuclear weapons. We've already demonstrated we won't invade a nuclear power. Any smart country with the means probably should acquire them.

On the Russian invasion, having a useful idiot in the White House who'd fawn over him on TV (and in private) and likely would have withheld the support we've provided Ukraine with during the Biden Presidency would have been a great boon to Putin. Luckily we didn't get that. The idea that Trump would have stopped him somehow is as speculative and unsupported by facts/reality as, well, anything else on your list but certainly not because he feared Trump. The man openly admired Putin. Admires, I should say. He's still fawning over him any chance he gets.

I didn't vote for Biden because he was my preferred candidate, or even because I thought he'd be a better than average President. But compared to the last guy? I'd vote twice for him, in person and by mail.

[Tami]

I voted for him and got exactly what I expected. A past-his-prime gladhanding centrist establishment Democrat who can be counted on not to upset the apple cart. He inherited a pandemic and the economic downturn that came with it, and on some fronts it's still not great. As mentioned the inflation continues but as with the energy prices rising it's largely based on things outside of his control. Certainly when you factor in both the reflexively obstructionist Republican Party that would see the country fail and its people suffer if it helps them come the midterms, and the dynamic duo of Manchin & Sinema helping them do it "on principle".

I'm not an economist (if there's one who frequents the boards, or anyone with helpful information and not biased political opinion to share, please correct me here) but there are several reasons for inflation. 1. The stimulus and bailouts and the printing of money and taking on of debt which led to us overprinting money to try to keep up. 2. Supply chain issues keeping goods from reaching their goals and scarcity driving up the prices of products. 3. More money in the pockets of people who were trapped inside for over a year and now have money for goods that aren't reaching them. 4. With interest rates as low as they are companies are almost compelled to borrow money right now, and with that extra cashflow you have the same thing on a larger scale as the couple who wasn't eating out for a year and can now bring dollars (with extra competition) to everything from payroll to construction/infrastructure to acquiring other assets.

On energy policy, I'll never understand why Republicans reflexively rail against the idea of renewable energy or trying to gain our independence from the OPECs/Russias/Venezuelas of the world (other than maybe they see it as a leftist issue, and so has to be forbidden fruit) and treat petroleum products like holy water blessed by the lord. But at some point we're going to have to make the transition and if we develop that tech first we can turn it into a strength and a source of income. No serious person believes we're a decade or two away from being independent of fossil fuels, but the time will come and we should prepare for it. For direct economic reasons as well as climate change and political entanglement reasons. Keeping Canada from saving money on shipping and upping the cost on consumers might not help in the short term, but that's a decision those who live where those pipelines were bound through decided on and we should respect their wishes. It's not a national security concern, it's a private enterprise one. If they truly want it they need to convince those folks of it, not you or I paying extra at the pump (which that pipeline wouldn't have prevented).

On Afghanistan, tell me how you'd "win" that? Could it have been handled better? Sure. But it needed to be done. I'll take that over backstabbing the Kurds (again) any day. Every life wasted (forget dollars) or soldier maimed or disabled for an occupation with no real goal in sight was a failure of leadership on multiple Administrations. Good on Biden for finally getting us out.

On jobs, I'm sure you're aware of the numbers even if you want to single out a single day but if you're being honest or have any awareness at all you know the unemployment rate is nearly at the level it was pre-Covid. And that with people deciding not to go back to certain sectors of the economy, and Covid restrictions still in place in many areas. I can't give Biden a lot of credit for this, as with gas prices and inflation being situations beyond his control the economy getting back on track as we open back up was inevitable so long as nobody screwed the pooch. On that note:

On Covid. Yes, more deaths last year than the first year (though the first year started getting under way around April). That said, about half of the country (ones who probably feel the way about Biden that you do) sees everything from masks to getting vaccinated as an assault on their civil liberties and have enabled each variant strain to run wild through the population as they prematurely tried to "get back to normal". For that yes, I do blame the former President. He was the coward who abdicated his responsibility as the Commander In Chief by refusing to coordinate a Federal response to the pandemic and instead allowed the states to handle it themselves. More than likely to avoid getting blame if something went wrong. He cast doubt on masks and distancing. He stoked the "nobody tells me what to do, FREEDOM!" nonsense that has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of grandmas and grandpas these past few years. He set the tone that the right takes, willing to make things worse for everyone if it makes them feel better. There's a reason Trump was getting upset over people focusing on Fauci at his Covid press briefings. They wanted to talk to the adult in the room, and that clearly wasn't the fat orange guy with the funny hair.

On the border, I'd love to see comprehensive immigration reform. I'd like more and easier legal immigration. But we don't have the political consensus to not kill grandma or to keep our infrastructure from falling apart around us, so I don't see that being a priority any time soon. The last one to make progress on that was Reagan, and that was a long time ago. Fentanyl deaths would be helped if we relaxed drug laws in the country so people weren't forced underground in order to acquire their recreational drug of choice and end up with more than they bargained for. It would also help crime if we didn't lock up a lot of young men (a good chunk of them "coincedentally" black or brown) for trying to make a living when their options are scarce. Another argument for investment in education and job skill training. If you're actually interested in solving the problem, and not identifying one in order to seem superior by judging people.

On Iran, great job by the last President to pull out of the treaty. Now they have all the more reason to acquire nuclear weapons. We've already demonstrated we won't invade a nuclear power. Any smart country with the means probably should acquire them.

On the Russian invasion, having a useful idiot in the White House who'd fawn over him on TV (and in private) and likely would have withheld the support we've provided Ukraine with during the Biden Presidency would have been a great boon to Putin. Luckily we didn't get that. The idea that Trump would have stopped him somehow is as speculative and unsupported by facts/reality as, well, anything else on your list but certainly not because he feared Trump. The man openly admired Putin. Admires, I should say. He's still fawning over him any chance he gets.

I didn't vote for Biden because he was my preferred candidate, or even because I thought he'd be a better than average President. But compared to the last guy? I'd vote twice for him, in person and by mail.

Biden is what this country needed most right now. Someone experienced enough to hit the ground running, old enough to no longer have a personal political stake (running for a second term is optional, not required or even expected) which allows him the freedom to act on behalf of the country and not himself, and clear headed enough to stay calm and act rationally.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

I voted for him and got exactly what I expected. A past-his-prime gladhanding centrist establishment Democrat who can be counted on not to upset the apple cart. He inherited a pandemic and the economic downturn that came with it, and on some fronts it's still not great. As mentioned the inflation continues but as with the energy prices rising it's largely based on things outside of his control. Certainly when you factor in both the reflexively obstructionist Republican Party that would see the country fail and its people suffer if it helps them come the midterms, and the dynamic duo of Manchin & Sinema helping them do it "on principle".

I'm not an economist (if there's one who frequents the boards, or anyone with helpful information and not biased political opinion to share, please correct me here) but there are several reasons for inflation. 1. The stimulus and bailouts and the printing of money and taking on of debt which led to us overprinting money to try to keep up. 2. Supply chain issues keeping goods from reaching their goals and scarcity driving up the prices of products. 3. More money in the pockets of people who were trapped inside for over a year and now have money for goods that aren't reaching them. 4. With interest rates as low as they are companies are almost compelled to borrow money right now, and with that extra cashflow you have the same thing on a larger scale as the couple who wasn't eating out for a year and can now bring dollars (with extra competition) to everything from payroll to construction/infrastructure to acquiring other assets.

On energy policy, I'll never understand why Republicans reflexively rail against the idea of renewable energy or trying to gain our independence from the OPECs/Russias/Venezuelas of the world (other than maybe they see it as a leftist issue, and so has to be forbidden fruit) and treat petroleum products like holy water blessed by the lord. But at some point we're going to have to make the transition and if we develop that tech first we can turn it into a strength and a source of income. No serious person believes we're a decade or two away from being independent of fossil fuels, but the time will come and we should prepare for it. For direct economic reasons as well as climate change and political entanglement reasons. Keeping Canada from saving money on shipping and upping the cost on consumers might not help in the short term, but that's a decision those who live where those pipelines were bound through decided on and we should respect their wishes. It's not a national security concern, it's a private enterprise one. If they truly want it they need to convince those folks of it, not you or I paying extra at the pump (which that pipeline wouldn't have prevented).

On Afghanistan, tell me how you'd "win" that? Could it have been handled better? Sure. But it needed to be done. I'll take that over backstabbing the Kurds (again) any day. Every life wasted (forget dollars) or soldier maimed or disabled for an occupation with no real goal in sight was a failure of leadership on multiple Administrations. Good on Biden for finally getting us out.

On jobs, I'm sure you're aware of the numbers even if you want to single out a single day but if you're being honest or have any awareness at all you know the unemployment rate is nearly at the level it was pre-Covid. And that with people deciding not to go back to certain sectors of the economy, and Covid restrictions still in place in many areas. I can't give Biden a lot of credit for this, as with gas prices and inflation being situations beyond his control the economy getting back on track as we open back up was inevitable so long as nobody screwed the pooch. On that note:

On Covid. Yes, more deaths last year than the first year (though the first year started getting under way around April). That said, about half of the country (ones who probably feel the way about Biden that you do) sees everything from masks to getting vaccinated as an assault on their civil liberties and have enabled each variant strain to run wild through the population as they prematurely tried to "get back to normal". For that yes, I do blame the former President. He was the coward who abdicated his responsibility as the Commander In Chief by refusing to coordinate a Federal response to the pandemic and instead allowed the states to handle it themselves. More than likely to avoid getting blame if something went wrong. He cast doubt on masks and distancing. He stoked the "nobody tells me what to do, FREEDOM!" nonsense that has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of grandmas and grandpas these past few years. He set the tone that the right takes, willing to make things worse for everyone if it makes them feel better. There's a reason Trump was getting upset over people focusing on Fauci at his Covid press briefings. They wanted to talk to the adult in the room, and that clearly wasn't the fat orange guy with the funny hair.

On the border, I'd love to see comprehensive immigration reform. I'd like more and easier legal immigration. But we don't have the political consensus to not kill grandma or to keep our infrastructure from falling apart around us, so I don't see that being a priority any time soon. The last one to make progress on that was Reagan, and that was a long time ago. Fentanyl deaths would be helped if we relaxed drug laws in the country so people weren't forced underground in order to acquire their recreational drug of choice and end up with more than they bargained for. It would also help crime if we didn't lock up a lot of young men (a good chunk of them "coincedentally" black or brown) for trying to make a living when their options are scarce. Another argument for investment in education and job skill training. If you're actually interested in solving the problem, and not identifying one in order to seem superior by judging people.

On Iran, great job by the last President to pull out of the treaty. Now they have all the more reason to acquire nuclear weapons. We've already demonstrated we won't invade a nuclear power. Any smart country with the means probably should acquire them.

On the Russian invasion, having a useful idiot in the White House who'd fawn over him on TV (and in private) and likely would have withheld the support we've provided Ukraine with during the Biden Presidency would have been a great boon to Putin. Luckily we didn't get that. The idea that Trump would have stopped him somehow is as speculative and unsupported by facts/reality as, well, anything else on your list but certainly not because he feared Trump. The man openly admired Putin. Admires, I should say. He's still fawning over him any chance he gets.

I didn't vote for Biden because he was my preferred candidate, or even because I thought he'd be a better than average President. But compared to the last guy? I'd vote twice for him, in person and by mail.

Sums it up better than I would. Biden's better by a long shot. Could you imagine Trump trying to handle inflation and getting on TV blaming lazy people not working or some nonsense.

[kidfresh512]

Ketanji Brown Jackson SC hearings starting up. Ready to see the embarrassing racist diatribes prepared by the GOP.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Justice Clarence Thomas was reported to have been hospitalized with flu like symptoms. While I despise the man, and his harridan of a wife, I hope he’ll recover.

[Tami]

Justice Clarence Thomas was reported to have been hospitalized with flu like symptoms. While I despise the man, and his harridan of a wife, I hope he’ll recover.

A lot of people seem to be longing for a way to get him out of the SCOTUS, but not like that. Odds are very good that he'll be fine, he is in a position where he can get the best of medical care.

Still, it might give him pause to consider retiring. Maybe.

[JB]

don't get too scared. the fact that they're parading this thing about an acting like it's a war-winning superweapon is... ironically, a pretty good sign.

I'm sure it's real. but sometimes it is profitable to advertise something as being just around the corner when it's really just an idea. they could be doing this to bolster morale back at home and scare possible enemies.

look at Reagan's imaginary Star Wars program. that was never gonna happen. we can't even pull that off now... so, it was certainly impossible back in 1983! but, it was supposed to scare the Soviets, and make our people feel better at the same time.

Agreed. "Appear strong when you are weak" kind of stuff. The more one flexes, the less likely they are to back it up.

Zelensky: 'I'm ready for negotiations' with Putin, but if they fail, it could mean 'a third World War'
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/20/polit...ntv/index.html

Washington (CNN) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that he's "ready for negotiations" with Russian President Vladimir Putin but warned that if they fail "that would mean that this is a third World War."

"I'm ready for negotiations with him. I was ready for the last two years. And I think that without negotiations we cannot end this war," he told CNN's Fareed Zakaria.
"I think that we have to use any format, any chance in order to have a possibility of negotiating, possibility of talking to Putin. But if these attempts fail, that would mean that this is a third World War," he added.

"We have always insisted on negotiations. We have always offered dialogue, offered solutions for peace," he said. "And I want everyone to hear me now, especially in Moscow. It's time to meet. Time to talk. It is time to restore territorial integrity and justice for Ukraine."

Zelensky has previously said that his priorities in the talks are clear: "The end of the war, security guarantees, sovereignty, restoration of territorial integrity, real guarantees for our country, real protection for our country."

Zelensky ran on making peace with Donbas so I truly hope he gets what he's been fighting for and that this nightmare ends soon.

I still need to read everything but I really appreciate posters sharing their views and opinions on Biden's administration. Even if people can't come to agreement on things I think it's refreshing to see where people are coming from.

And prayers to Justice Thomas. We've all suffered so much loss the last two years so even if I don't agree with many of his opinions, I wish for him a speedy recovery.

[JB]

Ketanji Brown Jackson SC hearings starting up. Ready to see the embarrassing racist diatribes prepared by the GOP.

Thanks for the heads up!

[Gray Lensman]

One thing not helping at the border is Trump's stupid wall. Once past it, you find something that wasn't there before - a road that had to be built in order to bring the stuff to build and maintain the wall, and roads are easier to travel than the terrain that was there before. Also, roads go somewhere, so fewer people get lost. Trump made it easier to sneak across the border, not harder.

[Kirby101]

One thing not helping at the border is Trump's stupid wall. Once past it, you find something that wasn't there before - a road that had to be built in order to bring the stuff to build and maintain the wall, and roads are easier to travel than the terrain that was there before. Also, roads go somewhere, so fewer people get lost. Trump made it easier to sneak across the border, not harder.

It’s Official: Trump’s ‘Impenetrable’ Border Wall Is An Expensive Failure

Former President Donald Trump promised his supporters an “impenetrable” border wall between the United States and Mexico. Instead, the $15 billion wall was reportedly breached thousands of times in areas where it was completed, and the smugglers who cut through it were able to do so with cheap power tools available in retail stores.

Unpublished data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection obtained via the Freedom of Information Act showed that Mexican smugglers cut through the wall 3,272 times over three years, according to The Washington Post. In some cases, they replaced the areas they cut with tinted putty, essentially creating secret passages.

Also it is important to note that Mexico did not pay one cent for the wall. We paid $15 billion for this utter failure.

[Catlady in training]

Agreed. "Appear strong when you are weak" kind of stuff. The more one flexes, the less likely they are to back it up.

Zelensky: 'I'm ready for negotiations' with Putin, but if they fail, it could mean 'a third World War'
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/20/polit...ntv/index.html



Zelensky ran on making peace with Donbas so I truly hope he gets what he's been fighting for and that this nightmare ends soon.

I still need to read everything but I really appreciate posters sharing their views and opinions on Biden's administration. Even if people can't come to agreement on things I think it's refreshing to see where people are coming from.

And prayers to Justice Thomas. We've all suffered so much loss the last two years so even if I don't agree with many of his opinions, I wish for him a speedy recovery.

I don't think there will be any meaningful talks while The Evil Incarnate sits in the Kremlin. He seems to be convinced that Ukrainian president and government are not worthy of breathing the same air as him and that they are some kind of US/NATO puppets. Sadly, this isn't probably going to end soon.

[Scott Taylor]

What has Biden done? Re-normalized the presidency. Handed out hope rather than mockery. Made it safe to go back in the water.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

A lot of people seem to be longing for a way to get him out of the SCOTUS, but not like that. Odds are very good that he'll be fine, he is in a position where he can get the best of medical care.

Still, it might give him pause to consider retiring. Maybe.

I doubt it. My uninformed guess is that Thomas, like RBG will be stubborn to the very end and die while on the Court. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not wishing ill on the man, I just think Thomas is not the retiring type. If he proves me wrong and does hang up his robe, sooner rather than later, I’ll gladly commend him, unless his exit strategy is to hang on long enough for a Qpublican to reclaim the Oval Office and he seats a right wing successor.

It’s Official: Trump’s ‘Impenetrable’ Border Wall Is An Expensive Failure



Also it is important to note that Mexico did not pay one cent for the wall. We paid $15 billion for this utter failure.

Imagine how much good that money could’ve done to help the people struggling to make ends meet, to put food on the table, keep a roof over their heads, to stay healthy and send their children to good schools. Instead, it was all wasted on that white elephant which didn’t solve the illegal immigrant problem, something everyone who wasn’t a right leaning idiot didn’t already know. Damned frustrating!