All-purpose news and politics thread: Two Steps Beyond!

[PaulBullion]

Looks like there's a coalition deal in Germany. But the Social Democrats' party base has to vote on it still.

[Handsome men don't lose fights]

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/m...p-grow-ovaries

She seems nice.

“I absolutely refused to bow down to Sharia law,” she said. “After eight years of fighting, I won my battle for the religious freedom of American servicewomen.”

She added, “After taking on terrorists in combat, the liberals in the Senate won’t scare me one bit.”

Wasn't she a Warthog pilot? I'm not too familiar with how these things work, but while I'm sure her service record is commendable, don't her words basically amount to "I was safely hundreds of feet in the air away from the people I was killing, and I was piloting something bristling with enough ordinance to depopulate a small town, but I'm still a ferocious beast of war so raaarr." I mean, it's not like she was looking people in the eye and slitting their throats or something. I dunno, my dad says all pilots are dicks so I might be biased.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

RE: the Idiots comments

someone on Fox News said "that is how forgotten Americans talk and they can relate to it"

well, THAT is why they are forgotten

because they don't know how to be decent people

Oh, yes, the "forgotten Americans" who had been forced to keep their racism under wraps for so very long. But now that there's a new sheriff in the White House, those formerly oppressed people are now free to let their bigot flag fly!

[Tendrin]

In a shocking Shymalanian twist, James Demore's assertion that Google has created an environment hostile to white male conservatives, is basically bullshit.

James Da Moron, amirite?

[Iron Maiden]

Oh, yes, the "forgotten Americans" who had been forced to keep their racism under wraps for so very long. But now that there's a new sheriff in the White House, those formerly oppressed people are now free to let their bigot flag fly!

And people didn't believe Hillary when she said there was a basket of deplorables on the Trump train. She was wrong about one thing. It's not a basket. There's probably a lot more than we care to admit....millions probably if we can extrapolate from some of the polls.

[Tami]

UN condemns Donald Trump's 'shithole countries' remark as racist

Remarks by Donald Trump describing immigrants from Africa and Haiti as coming from “shithole countries” were racist, the United Nations human rights office has said, as it led global condemnation of the US president.

On Thursday, Trump questioned why the US would want to have immigrants from Haiti and African nations, suggesting instead more immigrants should come from Norway, whose prime minister he had met on Wednesday.

According to a report in the Washington Post, Trump said: “Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?” after he had been presented with a proposal to restore protections for immigrants from El Salvador, Haiti and certain African nations as part of a bipartisan immigration deal.

In a statement, the White House did not deny the account, instead highlighting Trump’s hardline immigration stance.

The UN human rights spokesman, Rupert Colville, told a Geneva news briefing: “There is no other word one can use but racist. You cannot dismiss entire countries and continents as ‘shitholes’, whose entire populations, who are not white, are therefore not welcome.”

[mojotastic]

I still believe that google shouldnt had fired Damore, i think public opinion was fast to drag him thought the mud.

[Adam Allen]

Why do you believe they should not have fired him?

[ZombieHavoc]

Rick Wilson, Never Trumper, who should number among our favorite republicans for most of us, had a great exchange with some other conservative, a radio host, I guess, on CNN. Here's some fun bits:
http://thehill.com/homenews/media/36...like-a-fish-on

“Hearing John’s defense of Trump and of this overtly racist aspect of it, it shocks me that we still have people [like this] in this country," Wilson began.

"Don’t bother calling yourself a conservative if you don’t believe there’s a way where people who come and embrace the proposition of this country can become Americans. Because we’ve worked very hard in this country to accept people from around the world and of varying backgrounds,” Wilson said to Fredericks.

“You know what, John? I’m sure your ancestors here weren’t descended from the Mayflower in some cloud of heavenly light. I’m sure they came here from Ireland, Germany, Italy or somewhere else. You know what? Back then, they were the shithole people. Back then, they were the people who were looked down upon," Wilson added before recommending that Fredericks "go on Amazon, order yourself a pointy white hat, head down to Home Depot and get the wood to build a burning cross.”

Fredericks responded by citing the economics of immigration.

“Well, it’s about economics, Rick. You can throw all the insults you want, and I appreciate it,” Fredericks said before being interrupted by Wilson.

“No, John. You don’t appreciate it. You’re a weak, impotent person who can’t handle the fact that there are people who don’t look like you, who want to come to this country because our system is awesome," Wilson said. “You hate that, you hate it so much, because you’re so weak inside.”

“That’s your substantive argument to me, Rick Wilson?” Fredericks asked.

“John, I will gut you like a fish on this show if you want to keep this up,” Wilson declared.

[mojotastic]

Why do you believe they should not have fired him?

In a human resources point of view, this could had been fixed if either Damore or the leaders in human resources had interacted more with him or he had interacted more with them, it seems like something easy to deal if he could have had a conversation with the HR team.

I think google double down to the backlash to quickly.

At least this is the way i see it, maybe i have to much compassion or maybe i didnt see the memo as big of enough reason for him to be fire, those are 2 things that keep me from saying he should not had been fired.

[TheInvisibleMan]

“I absolutely refused to bow down to Sharia law,” she said. “After eight years of fighting, I won my battle for the religious freedom of American servicewomen.”

She added, “After taking on terrorists in combat, the liberals in the Senate won’t scare me one bit.”

Wasn't she a Warthog pilot? I'm not too familiar with how these things work, but while I'm sure her service record is commendable, don't her words basically amount to "I was safely hundreds of feet in the air away from the people I was killing, and I was piloting something bristling with enough ordinance to depopulate a small town, but I'm still a ferocious beast of war so raaarr." I mean, it's not like she was looking people in the eye and slitting their throats or something. I dunno, my dad says all pilots are dicks so I might be biased.

I served in the USN on an aircraft carrier, and worked in the Operations department, which has some interaction with the Air Wing

and yes most pilots and naval aviators are dicks, not all but most

[TheInvisibleMan]

John Feeley, current US ambassador to Panama, is resigning after the Idiots comments yesterday

Feeley is a career diplomat, appointed by President Obama in 2016, will be leaving his post in March

[Adam Allen]

In a human resources point of view, this could had been fixed if either Damore or the leaders in human resources had interacted more with him or he had interacted more with them, it seems like something easy to deal if he could have had a conversation with the HR team.

I think google double down to the backlash to quickly.

At least this is the way i see it, maybe i have to much compassion or maybe i didnt see the memo as big of enough reason for him to be fire, those are 2 things that keep me from saying he should not had been fired.

I don't think there was any fixing it, once the memo was widely dispersed -- even if it had just been inside the company, I don't think HR would have had much choice. We're all welcome to our personal opinions, but you need to be careful when you're spreading your opinions to your co-workers -- especially so much as your opinions are about your co-workers as a group.

You're maybe thinking management could just have told him to stop talking about these things, but once he's put them out there, other employees could too easily say that his continued employment suggested some level of tacit approval of his statements. So, now Google as a company can stand to face claims of a hostile work environment or discrimination etc -- because this guy didn't realize that talking at work is not the same thing as talking in your private social sphere?

No, I'd have to agree to disagree with you on that one, I guess -- I totally see why they had to fire him.

[PaulBullion]

I don't think there was any fixing it, once the memo was widely dispersed -- even if it had just been inside the company, I don't think HR would have had much choice. We're all welcome to our personal opinions, but you need to be careful when you're spreading your opinions to your co-workers -- especially so much as your opinions are about your co-workers as a group.

You're maybe thinking management could just have told him to stop talking about these things, but once he's put them out there, other employees could too easily say that his continued employment suggested some level of tacit approval of his statements. So, now Google as a company can stand to face claims of a hostile work environment or discrimination etc -- because this guy didn't realize that talking at work is not the same thing as talking in your private social sphere?

No, I'd have to agree to disagree with you on that one, I guess -- I totally see why they had to fire him.

Exactly... It was his choice not to quietly go to HR but to make it a global event. His own ego was his downfall.

Not to mention the fact that he is a small misogynist who doesn't get how the world works, which makes him a bad fit for the company that aims to be the future.

[TheInvisibleMan]

he's presuming a hostile work environment based on race with no proof or data

merely hyperbole

the least a company would do is fire him

ME, I would have castigated him in front of everyone and give him an actual reason to fear non white males