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

[Arundel Armor Hunter]

When MSNBC decides to start claiming a recovered POW is a traitor, and that his father's beard is a sign he's also sympathetic to terrorists, maybe then they'll be in the same ball park as FOX News.

Because seriously, I feel like we're on a countdown to the first time some FOX News viewer goes and publicly lynches somebody because of what the d***wads on the curvy couch told them about them. Which is a hell of a lot more glaring issue with journalistic integrity.

Calling the Tea Party Taliban comes close. You cannot compare a whole group to a those barbarians just because you disagree with him.

Because seriously, I feel like we're on a countdown to the first time some FOX News viewer goes and publicly lynches somebody because of what the d***wads on the curvy couch told them about them.

Those people would do something crazy no matter what.

[Mikekerr3]

Calling the Tea Party Taliban comes close. You cannot compare a whole group to a those barbarians just because you disagree with him.

The Taliban bit is a pretty close fit, they both are mostly religious fundamentalists intent on making everything follow their religious creed by force of law. Both with an urge to return to days when people were far less free.

[Surtur]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/06/13...go-tower-sign/

I have to say I live in Chicago, but this really doesn't bother me that much. The cities government has a lot more to worry about then a Trump sign on a building. If they are so aghast over this then why did the city zoning admin and the city council sign off on it? At this point they can't make him take it down unless Trump wants to, which we KNOW will never happen. I wish the mayor would focus on more important things. There are codes, etc. for any structure, if the building is up to code then the discussion is over.

This ignores the fact he calls it "tasteless architecture" but..things like that are subjective opinions. Funny, I've seen Hilton hotels with their name plastered on the side in big letters, never heard a peep from the mayor about these. Or I wonder if he'd have a problem if the sign on the building read "Obama". Something tells me he wouldn't say a damn thing then.

[Paradox]

Heh, it's just two assholes in a dick measuring contest. I never did like Emmanuel, he's the epitome of a sleazy ward-heeling politician. So glad when he left the White House.

[Arundel Armor Hunter]

The Taliban bit is a pretty close fit, they both are mostly religious fundamentalists intent on making everything follow their religious creed by force of law. Both with an urge to return to days when people were far less free.

You got a poll that proves that they are religious fundamentalists? Why don't they focus on that instead of taxes and other money issues?

[Paradox]

I don't think they're religious fundamentalists myself. They're mostly bigots that hide behind religion that inflated the ranks when Glen Beck put out the call years ago. There is a wide contingent, though, that concerns itself with economic interests, while showing absolutely no knowledge of how economics actually works.

[Michael P]

The Tea Party has religious fundamentalists in it, but it's not a religious fundamentalist organization in nature. Unless you count the philosophy of Ayn Rand as a religion.

[Carabas]

I don't think they're religious fundamentalists myself. They're mostly bigots that hide behind religion that inflated the ranks when Glen Beck put out the call years ago.

That's what all religious fundamentalists are, be they christian or muslim.

[PwrdOn]

The Tea Party has religious fundamentalists in it, but it's not a religious fundamentalist organization in nature. Unless you count the philosophy of Ayn Rand as a religion.

Well I think it's important to distinguish between the actual Tea Party, who are mostly upper middle class "local notables," and the general mass of people who support them, who are largely being swayed to vote for policies which go against their own best interests because, well, to hell with Obama. Fiscal conservatism certainly has plenty of strong arguments in its favor, but in general it's not an ideology that you can really rally a popular movement behind, which is why it's always being packaged with all sorts of these emotionally charged social issues that do have the ability to get people riled up. Not to say that those we label as "religious fundamentalists" actually adhere to the principles of their own faith, there is a pretty radical social justice message in the Bible that you couldn't possibly ignore if you ever bother to read it.

[Charles RB]

Obama's to sign an executive order to ban workplace discrimination against LGBT workers.

[the4thpip]

That's what all religious fundamentalists are, be they christian or muslim.

No, I really think that people who blow themselves up with belts of explosives actually expect to be rewarded by their deity. They don't just do that because they hate gays and women.

[Mikekerr3]

You got a poll that proves that they are religious fundamentalists? Why don't they focus on that instead of taxes and other money issues?

they do focus on those things, if you are paying attrention they focus a lot on things like Birth control, Gay marriage and abortion. Dominionism seems as much a part of their agenda as anything else. Che4k out the tea party rum Texas republican party and their stated belief that gay can be cured. Of find a tea party candidate that thinks the worlds age is measured in the billions of years. the guys in charge are worried abut taxes, but the mainsteam if fillled with the ignorant and the crazy

[Carabas]

No, I really think that people who blow themselves up with belts of explosives actually expect to be rewarded by their deity. They don't just do that because they hate gays and women.

I think they're more political activists willing to die for what they see as a good cause. I don't think most of tem really believe, deep down, that they're going to get a bunch of virgins out of the deal.

[iangould]

Suicide bombing was first popularized by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam, an avowedly atheist and Marxist organization.

An intensive study of Palestinian suicide bombers showed that they were, if anything, less religious than their counterparts.

Several hundred Palestinian suicide bombers left behind "martyrdom videos", most of them don't mention religion at all. Of those who do, most made brief and conventional remarks, asking Allah to forgive them or to protect their families.

[iangould]

I'm sure many take MSNBC seriously.

When I do watch the news I skim through all of the channels, something made easier but the fact that they are bunched together on my cable system.

The average speaker talks at around 80-100 words per minute. You can probably read at least 300 words per minute.

You'll get far more information from reading for 15 minutes than you will from watching TV for 15 minutes.

You should also try to critically assess whether claims made are supported by subsequent events.

For example, in Ukraine, Russian media have been claiming there was a "Fascist coup". So how come the two Fascist parties got less than 2% of the vote in the subsequent Presidential election and quietly accepted the result?