US Politics: One No Trump

[A Horse Named Stranger]

2 hours ago, Mindwalker said:

Eh, poodles are cool. They can't help they're often getting shitty haircuts.

Let's agree to disagree on the awesomeness of poodles. I am just not fond of those overbred breeds that were apparently created to make dogs less canine. I am perfectly fine with anybody disagreeing with that notion.

49 minutes ago, Fragile Bird said:

Infrastructure in power plants as been damaged by the freeze, and will be further damaged by the thaw. That will have to be repaired. The question is how much can be done to repair AND winterize before next winter? This was a very unusual event, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen again next winter. Mother Nature can be nasty that way. There was a small city here in Ontario that had a “100-year flood” one year and then had another “100-year flood” two years later.

A the cautious tale about Atlantis, Ontario. But yeah, it's an observable effect of climate change, and those extreme weathers are becoming (or already have become?) the norm, and not an exception.

[HoodedCrow]

True, Tony Blair turned out to be an AHole. 

 

[Maithanet]

I feel like this whole Ted Cruz fiasco just shows what a bad politician he is.  This is just a ridiculous self-inflicted wound, and if he runs for President in 2024, this is definitely not going to help. 

[HoodedCrow]

Cruz gets away with things in Texas, usually.

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

1 minute ago, Maithanet said:

I feel like this whole Ted Cruz fiasco just shows what a bad politician he is.  This is just a ridiculous self-inflicted wound, and if he runs for President in 2024, this is definitely not going to help. 

And yet at the same time, he was quick to realize in modern times that being a conservative troll is all you really need to be to acquire a lot of power. He's done nothing in his life outside of academia to be worthy of elected office, and yet, here he still is. 

[Fez]

11 minutes ago, Maithanet said:

I feel like this whole Ted Cruz fiasco just shows what a bad politician he is.  This is just a ridiculous self-inflicted wound, and if he runs for President in 2024, this is definitely not going to help. 

I think Cruz is toast tbh, and not just in presidential terms. He could probably still win a senate general election, though it depends on the national environment. But I think he's going to get primaried hard over this, by one of the many up-and-coming Texas Republicans who are just are fringe as he is and can club him over the head on this issue.

[Maithanet]

A lot remains to be seen, but I'm increasingly expecting Cruz not to run for President in 2024. 

[Centrist Simon Steele]

On 2/18/2021 at 9:39 AM, HoodedCrow said:

I see, when rich people do things like eliminate polio, it doesn’t count. They really should spend their money and time building non functional casinos or acquiring yet another car like Hannity.
 

Nah, Biden has been as good as he can be, after the Republicans raided the piggy bank, and left us to die. 
 

I wish that we could instantly solve horrible money problems. I would like to see a lot more egalitarianism, but, a lot of Americans have been indoctrinated about socialism, gender roles.

@Simonsteele, we need you. It’s going to be a long slog against the darkness. Bernie is working on the budget, women generals are getting considered again. The trans paranoia is garbage  but there are strides there, too. The racism is horrifying. The sexism is very hard to take.  If you ran for office, I would vote for you.

I have a question for the savvy. I’m going to see a specialist who I realize is trans. Just ignore, be gender blind? 
 

 

 

I'd say that because there are truly frivolous and terrible rich people who waste money, doesn't mean we can't be critical of having to rely on three men to make all the decisions about where their chosen amount of excess wealth goes. And it's not their wealth--it's stolen off the backs of all of us. Infrastructure in this country is crumbling, people are going homeless, and none of these three men are doing anything about that. Why not? I'm sure someone like Gates has a reason he feels is justified, but that's his interpretation. The other two just seem like uncaring dicks, so I'll leave them out of it.

And I agree with your second paragraph. I'm not sure what the solution is--I think part of my reaction to benevolent billionaires is that by painting them as though they're making the right decisions for everyone doesn't help shift people out of their indoctrination. I really don't know what the solution to this country's "rugged individualism" myth is. 

 As for your last question, I have had trans students communicate a few things about etiquette in those situations. Just treat it as normal, pay close attention to their language regarding things like pronouns, etc. I'd imagine it won't even come up, and most of my students (super anecdotal to be fair) who are trans have said they just want to be treated like everyone else. Others around here probably have better answers.

[Centrist Simon Steele]

18 hours ago, Mindwalker said:

A couple of jokes at TedFled's expense:

 

Even though you setup these were satire, I still watched the middle one and thought, "This is real?"

[Guy Kilmore]

8 minutes ago, Centrist Simon Steele said:

I'd say that because there are truly frivolous and terrible rich people who waste money, doesn't mean we can't be critical of having to rely on three men to make all the decisions about where their chosen amount of excess wealth goes. And it's not their wealth--it's stolen off the backs of all of us. Infrastructure in this country is crumbling, people are going homeless, and none of these three men are doing anything about that. Why not? I'm sure someone like Gates has a reason he feels is justified, but that's his interpretation. The other two just seem like uncaring dicks, so I'll leave them out of it.

And I agree with your second paragraph. I'm not sure what the solution is--I think part of my reaction to benevolent billionaires is that by painting them as though they're making the right decisions for everyone doesn't help shift people out of their indoctrination. I really don't know what the solution to this country's "rugged individualism" myth is. 

 As for your last question, I have had trans students communicate a few things about etiquette in those situations. Just treat it as normal, pay close attention to their language regarding things like pronouns, etc. I'd imagine it won't even come up, and most of my students (super anecdotal to be fair) who are trans have said they just want to be treated like everyone else. Others around here probably have better answers.

I have also been told it is ok to ask someone what their preferred pronoun is.  I am trying to get in the habit, unless I know otherwise to just....them/their it.

[HoodedCrow]

I don’t think that wealth should be concentrated like that. But it is. I agree with you. Now what? Pikes? How about taxes!

Rich people do not have all the answers. Sometimes, a person like Bill can get things done quickly and is used to thinking big.

I think Citizens United was a disaster for the U.S.

Thanks about Trans etiquette. I would normally ignore, perhaps quietly admire their guts, if I notice. I used to do portrait painting and also am very educated about voices. 

[Liffguard]

1 hour ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

I am just not fond of those overbred breeds that were apparently created to make dogs less canine. I am perfectly fine with anybody disagreeing with that notion.

Going way off topic here, but honestly dogs are much more interesting to talk about than politics. I'm not sure what's so un-canine about poodles. They look perfectly canine to me when they don't have that dumb dog show haircut.

[Ran]

One of the sweetest, cleverest dogs my family ever owned was a poodle we named Cocoa. Had him when I was a teen. He'd love to curl up in my arms and fall asleep like that while I watched TV. And our late Boxer's best friend in the whole world was an older poodle named Elmer (who more tolerated Breeze's boisterousness than anything), who for whatever loves saying hi to me even if he has to put up with a bouncing, overly-social boxer trying to say hello.

Poodles are cute, at least miniature poodles. I find standard poodles less appealing, personally, but I'm sure they have fine qualities.

[Zorral]

8 minutes ago, HoodedCrow said:

...Trans etiquette.

This may well not be useful for you at all, because my only experience with trans individuals is just that -- they are friends, who were friends, some of them very good friends and / or professional colleagues, whom I knew prior to their admission of wishing to undergo the massive work, surgical, hormonal, etc., to transition to the gender they were able finally able to recognize as theirs.  Not infrequently this meant not only doing gigs together during the various stages, but socializing as per usual prior to their embarking upon this incredible journey.  That choice of words isn't ironic.  It's almost the only way I can think of to characterize what I learned what the physical transition was and what it meant for their psychological and emotional well-being.  For one friend in particular, that her mother was there, always supportive and kind and generous as she'd always been before her son began the work to become her daughter -- that was vital in helping her keep her emotional balance during the mid-transition.  It was early in the process when he transitioned to she, as the preferred pronoun.

I admit I have had occasional slips during the process with my friends, still referring to her as him, for instance.  Sometimes they changed their names to more clearly signal who they are, which not only helped them, but, I admit helped me to remember.  In some ways though, I think it was the name changes that I slipped up with most often, until enough time had gone by that my mind really got it, that he was she or she was he, and my mind began identifying she or he with that name now.  But really, that shouldn't be any more difficult than in the past, when our parents would need to begin recognizing a newly married woman now with her husband's name.  In other words, not difficult.  Nor did our friends feel there was any deal to made out of my slip-ups.  They understood.  Far more quickly than one might imagine, one has transitioned, so to speak, with one's friends.  It's a lot quicker and easier than it is for them, I think -- we don't have people looking at us weirdly in the airport bathrooms, for instance, in the earlier stages.

I don't know if this helps or not.  What I'm trying to say is -- all we really need to do is be with trans in the same way we are with everybody else.

[Kalbear]

Cancun Cruz is also a very good nickname that'll make sure folks don't forget.

[DMC]

1 hour ago, Tywin et al. said:

He's done nothing in his life outside of academia to be worthy of elected office, and yet, here he still is. 

Uh, what?  If you want to say his career as a litigator was that of a conservative troll, I'm definitely not going to argue.  But he was a highly effective and even successful conservative troll.  If you map his CV on to a Democratic candidate, I don't see how you can argue that candidate isn't qualified - it's a pretty damn standard path to elected office.

59 minutes ago, Fez said:

But I think he's going to get primaried hard over this, by one of the many up-and-coming Texas Republicans who are just are fringe as he is and can club him over the head on this issue.

I mean, I agree that there's a damn good chance Cruz faces a tough primary in 2024 for his Senate seat, but that has more to do with the fact there's a shitload of ambitious GOP politicians throughout Texas and only two Senate seats.  There seems to be a rush to write his political obituary that smacks of recency bias.  Cruz can easily recover from this among the Texas GOP electorate by 2024.  I'd say I agree he doesn't have a shot at the presidential nomination, but I already thought that.

[IheartIheartTesla]

Its Friday, everyone is feeling a bit silly, so here is the 7 step process on how to provide Donald Trump his Diet Coke at his hotel:

Quote

As soon as Trump was seated, the server had to “discreetly present” a mini bottle of Purell hand sanitizer. (This applied long before Covid, mind you.) Next, cue dialogue: “Good (time of day) Mr. President. Would you like your Diet Coke with or without ice?” the server was instructed to recite. A polished tray with chilled bottles and highball glasses was already prepared for either response. Directions for pouring the soda were detailed in a process no fewer than seven steps long—and illustrated with four photo exhibits. The beverage had to be opened in front of the germophobe commander in chief, “never beforehand.” The server was to hold a longneck-bottle opener by the lower third of the handle in one hand and the Diet Coke, also by the lower third, in the other. Once poured, the drink had to be placed at the President’s right-hand side. “Repeat until POTUS departs.”

 

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

43 minutes ago, DMC said:

Uh, what?  If you want to say his career as a litigator was that of a conservative troll, I'm definitely not going to argue.  But he was a highly effective and even successful conservative troll.  If you map his CV on to a Democratic candidate, I don't see how you can argue that candidate isn't qualified - it's a pretty damn standard path to elected office.

A person who extends no empathy and openly says 99.9% of his prospective constituents are beneath him is in no way qualified to be an elected officials, education and career as a litigator be damned. 

[Kalbear]

9 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

A person who extends no empathy and openly says 99.9% of his prospective constituents are beneath him is in no way qualified to be an elected officials, education and career as a litigator be damned. 

Sounds like a perfect American politician to me

[DMC]

30 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

A person who extends no empathy and openly says 99.9% of his prospective constituents are beneath him is in no way qualified to be an elected officials, education and career as a litigator be damned.

I like how you quoted one proposition while ignoring the directly preceding qualifier - "If you map his CV on to a Democratic candidate."  Also, what Karl said.