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

[Carabas]

Mental health is just one of many healthcare problems that we're not dealing with. But that's a separate issue.

It's related to the main problem: nutcase Republicans who want to see the world burn.

[Dalak]

I am all for it, for example unlike some of the people i know about guns i am for universal bg check in the US, i can get behind that idea but no the assault weapon ban, for one the Ar-15 has become so popular because it can be customized to suit the needs of nearly any person.

A woman of around 120lb 5'2" won't be able to John Wick a threat but she can use a short barrel AR15 if her home gets raided.

What does an AR give her that a handgun or 2 won't when defending her home? Seems like it would be easier to use indoors. Would you say that with a handgun there's less risk of bullets going through walls into bystanders?

Why does she or anyone else need THIS gun in particular?

Another question, why are you so interested in what gun controls the US does or doesn't institute as it won't affect you in any way?

[worstblogever]

On this date in 2015, 2016, as well as 2017, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day posted profiles of Kelly Kiesling, a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives who prior to the 2012 election, made headlines by sending out an e-mail forward from his government account that contained a conspiracy theory that the Obama administration was going to stage a “false flag” assassination attack to institute martial law in major cities and prevent the elections from happening. The theory, insane as it was, originated from a Canadian conspiracy theorist and was then circulated through the hard-right conservative crowd via the Constitution Party of Florida, and their forwards eventually found their way to Keisling’s inbox. After widespread criticism, Keisling defended forwarding the e-mail to his constituents, saying, “I wouldn’t put anything past anybody.” As a legislator up until this point in his first two terms, had voted to nullify the Affordable Care Act, voted for stricter Voter ID laws to disenfranchise tens of thousands of voters to prevent statistically non-existent in person-voter fraud, had voted to prevent enacting the United Nations’ Agenda 21 environmental treaty, voted for abstinence-only sex education in Tennessee schools, voted for abortion to be outlawed if a fetal heartbeat is detected (i.e. six weeks in, before many women even realize they’re pregnant), voted to bring back the electric chair as a valid method of execution in the Volunteer State, and voted for every pro-gun bill that flew through the Tennessee state legislature prior to the 2016 NRA convention being hosted in Nashville.

Since we last covered Kiesling, he also voted for a mandatory (but medically unnecessary) ultrasound being required for any woman seeking an abortion.The odds of him being voted out of office by a Democrat remain highly unlikely, even given a Blue Wave year, as he won re-election in 2016 with 81% of the vote. Any candidate seeking to unseat him has until April 5th to register, so here’s to the challengers, whomever they might be.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Lawyers Explain Why It Might Be Smart Not To Have Donald Trump As A Client

“It is difficult for one to maintain one’s appearance of being an ethical lawyer while trying to represent Donald Trump,” a legal expert said. That much is obvious. Meanwhile....

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Attorney Who Declined A Job On Trump’s Legal Team Rips ‘Turmoil’ In White House

“This is turmoil, it’s chaos, it’s confusion, it’s not good for anything,” said attorney Ted Olson. Can't say I blame this guy for not wanting to willingly join Trump's circus.

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States Are Passing Laws Telling Women Abortion Can Be Reversed. But That’s Unproven.

“We should all be concerned when our government forces doctors to recommend an experimental therapy,” a doctor said. This could make for a dangerous trend.

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Linda Brown, Center Of Brown v. Board Of Education, Dies At 76

Linda Brown was the young girl at the center of the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision that would end legal school segregation.

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Jake Tapper Uses The Bible To School A Right-Wing Trump-Supporting Preacher

He got schooled, Sunday style. Good for Jake! It's hilarious how hypocritical bible thumpers blindly support a draft dodging, habitually lying serial adulterer like Trump.

[JCAll]

States Are Passing Laws Telling Women Abortion Can Be Reversed. But That’s Unproven.

“We should all be concerned when our government forces doctors to recommend an experimental therapy,” a doctor said. This could make for a dangerous trend.

That's sort of like passing a law telling restaurants that eggs can be unscrambled.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

After Stormy Daniels, Republicans Face a Referendum on Trump’s Conduct

When Representative Ryan Costello of Pennsylvania announced on Sunday that he would join more than 40 other congressional Republicans not seeking re-election in November, he left no doubt about the reason: President Trump’s conduct made it impossible to talk about anything else.

Were he running, Mr. Costello said in an interview, he would be inundated with questions about Stephanie Clifford, the pornographic film actress known as Stormy Daniels, who has said she had an affair with Mr. Trump and was threatened to stay silent about it.

“If I had a town hall this week, it would be question after question,” Mr. Costello said. “‘Do you believe him or do you believe her? Why don’t you believe her?’”

While Republicans have been bracing for months for a punishing election in November, they are increasingly alarmed that their losses may be even worse than feared because the midterm campaign appears destined to turn more on the behavior of the man in the White House than any other in decades.

As much as gun control, immigration, the sweeping tax overhaul and other issues are mobilizing voters on the left and the right, the seamy sex allegations and Mr. Trump’s erratic style could end up alienating crucial blocs of suburban voters and politically moderate women who might be drawn to some Republican policies but find the president’s purported sex antics to be reprehensible.

Polls and every recent election show that Mr. Trump has galvanized liberal and moderate voters — especially women and those with college degrees — to oppose his party. Yet at the same time, personal loyalty to the president is increasingly the most crucial litmus test for Republicans.

This widening chasm has created a dilemma for Republicans, especially in liberal and swing states.

If they stay faithful to Mr. Trump they risk incurring the wrath of many in the political center during the general election, likely dooming their campaigns. But if they disavow the president, they risk depressing turnout from their core Republican voters and watching their pool of volunteers evaporate overnight.

“It’s a political Catch-22,” J. Tucker Martin, a Virginia Republican strategist, said. “Candidates can’t win without their base. But what it takes to satisfy a pro-Trump base in 2018 will make Republican candidates in many states unacceptable to large swaths of the electorate.”

And the moral of this story, boys and girls? Get in bed with a dog and your chances of catching fleas increases exponentially.

[worstblogever]

That's sort of like passing a law telling restaurants that eggs can be unscrambled.

The old joke comes to mind...

"What's the difference between a pregnant lady and a light bulb?"

"You can unscrew a light bulb."

[Tendrin]

Speaking of abortion laws, here's a new one!

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-sta...ion?src=usn_tw

NDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a new law that will require medical providers who treat women for complications arising from abortions to report detailed patient information to the state.
The Republican governor signed the measure without fanfare Sunday, shortly before leaving the country for a multi-day trade mission to Canada.
Supporters said the law, which takes full effect in July, will ensure abortions are provided safely in the state. But opponents argued that it's overly burdensome and will further stigmatize abortion, which has lower complication rates than many other standard procedures.
Previous state efforts to restrict abortions in Indiana have been challenged in court in recent years, some of which have been blocked from taking effect.

[ed2962]

That can be explain because other minorities dont look for guns since guns ownership has been a touchy subject for minorities in the U.S

Example of this can be seen with Muleford Act made it easier for KKK cops to kill black women and children, Black Panthers were formed as a reaction to this. Then the NFA laws came in disarming Black Panther members.

So black people didnt bother to get a gun since it would put a target on them something that can still be seen today.

Black people don't look for guns? I don't think that's accurate. I mean, I live in a town with pretty strict gun control laws that also has a high homicide rate. If you're a black person with access to a car, you can get a gun if you want to. And drive bys do happen were multiple people become victims in black neighborhoods.

I really think a lot of it is "cultural"/envirnomental/situational...plus how these things get reported. A kid from "the hood" gets picked on at school, he's encouraged to get even with the person he's mad at. He gets a hand gun and shoots his enemy at the enemy's home or in a crowd of people that the enemy may or may not be in at that moment.

A dozen people might be hurt in such an incident but it doesn't get reported as a shocking event. It's reported as possible "gang violence" or just another day in the hood. That kid doesn't have an AR-15 that he got at a gun show, he's got a handgun he obtained through a straw purchase so the body count is probably lower and less shocking.

It's not that there aren't multiple shootings in the so called hood, it's just that they aren't MASS shootings.

[mojotastic]

What does an AR give her that a handgun or 2 won't when defending her home? Seems like it would be easier to use indoors. Would you say that with a handgun there's less risk of bullets going through walls into bystanders?

Why does she or anyone else need THIS gun in particular?

Another question, why are you so interested in what gun controls the US does or doesn't institute as it won't affect you in any way?

On the risk of a bullter going though a wall, hiigh velocity, frangible 5.56 rounds splinter apart when hitting walls, greatly reducing the risk of collateral damage

One why would anyone want the gun, firearms are subjective. Everyone varies in what their circumstances are, what they find comfortable, and what they need out of a gun.

A $650 mid tier AR is probably the best choice for many gun owners re: duty/defense oriented shooting.

On why i am interested? 1 thing, my grandad used to collect guns that he got from a little civil war we got in the country, he teached a lot about guns to my dad and my dad teached a lot about guns, here i am just posting what i know about firearms and in my opinion the ban on assault rifle is not something i support.

Also i have some family in Ohio but they only own a handgun, sometimes i talk to them about laws in the US, we both agree there should be universal background check for safety.

[ed2962]

I knew this was going to be a waste of time forever. His base doesn’t care and probably thinks it’s cool. The rest of the party will give him a pass. If anyone did anything stupid it was his lawyer.

Oh and in the midst of this whole media blitz this dickhead is getting his best approval ratings.

His base thinks he's being "picked on" by the media.

[mojotastic]

.

I really think a lot of it is "cultural"/envirnomental/situational...plus how these things get reported. A kid from "the hood" gets picked on at school, he's encouraged to get even with the person he's mad at. He gets a hand gun and shoots his enemy at the enemy's home or in a crowd of people that the enemy may or may not be in at that moment.

A dozen people might be hurt in such an incident but it doesn't get reported as a shocking event. It's reported as possible "gang violence" or just another day in the hood. That kid doesn't have an AR-15 that he got at a gun show, he's got a handgun he obtained through a straw purchase so the body count is probably lower and less shocking.

It's not that there aren't multiple shootings in the so called hood, it's just that they aren't MASS shootings.

Yeah it could, i should investigate more on the subject seem is something i find interesting.

[Ragged Maw]

Why does she or anyone else need THIS gun in particular?

Either when living in an area frequented by large and aggressive animals or when confronted with a PCP fiend?

[Tami]

This is a book on my reading list, and from what I have read and heard about it, it seems to predict Cambridge Analytic by 50 years. The 480. By Eugene Burdick.

[ZombieHavoc]

Whoopi took the words right out of my mouth...

https://www.mediaite.com/tv/the-view...tes-interview/

Why would anyone think an affair from 12 years ago was going to contain a smoking gun?

The moral aspects are of no real concern to anyone. The legal aspects, I mean...the possibility of using campaign funds for her payoff...that's about it, right? And I mean, that seems tiny compared to a lot of what Trump has done and likely done.

Also, I could totally buy, as someone mentioned above, this whole Stormy thing being planned as a distraction from something terrible. I mean, from Trump's perspective, his base learning that he banged a porn star is, like, not a bad thing at all. Maybe that 130,000 payout was payment for her to come out with this story eventually...and they both win. His approval rating is going up and she's making money.