U.S. Politics Independance Day edition

[A Horse Named Stranger]

5 hours ago, Chataya de Fleury said:

While I’m certain that 22 sources cannot be entirely incorrect or off base, I also suspect we would never hear about this if the VP were named “Kevin” rather than “Kamala”.

I think reducing that one to sexism isn't helpful. The previous administration, esp. the office of POTUS was super leaky. I am sure you remember the office holder, obese orange skinned fellow, Donald was his name, not Donna (eventho he managed to be the prima donna in that soap opera). Harris should really sort out her office, if she wants to succeed Biden as President. Speculating whether it would be less leaky if she possessed a Y-chromosom instead of a second X-chromosom really isn't helpful in that regard.

[Gorn]

I find the news about a political figure's office "being an unhealthy place to work" to be the most non-newsworthy bullshit you can read, published mostly when someone wants to attack that person while lacking anything specific to bash them with. You can find a disgruntled employee who will say something like this in roughly 100% of offices in the world.

[IheartIheartTesla]

It isnt really dysfunction, more that some donors didnt gain some sort of access and something about the office not returning calls. A long distance from a toxic work environment; and if you compare it to the previous administration I'm sure its as close to heaven as an office can be.

[Fragile Bird]

I assume that the people who work in Harris’s office are all Harris supporters, not Republicans or random strangers off the street. That 22 of them were willing to complain to the press about the office so early in the game means that there likely has to be a personnel change higher up. The office manager has a problem and has to be helped somehow or just helped out of the job.

[DMC]

On 7/4/2021 at 11:33 AM, OnionAhaiReborn said:

It is so not an important barrier to reforming or restructuring the Senate through the amendment process, it's an inconsequential bit of esoterica. If the political will could somehow be mustered to get 3/4 of states to pass an amendment to change the Senate, getting around it would be trivial.

Right.  If we're accepting the premise that 38 states ratified (and likely two-thirds of both chambers proposed) such an amendment, it is incredibly unlikely the courts would overturn such a popular measure.  Especially a court led by John Roberts, who was refused to overturn the ACA because he was more worried about the court's legitimacy.

18 hours ago, Chataya de Fleury said:

While I’m certain that 22 sources cannot be entirely incorrect or off base, I also suspect we would never hear about this if the VP were named “Kevin” rather than “Kamala”.

While the second part of this sentence is almost certainly true - not to mention the elevated criticism for everything Harris does (or doesn't do) - the amount/frequency of her staffers already resigning or departing recently is rather eye-opening.  

[Mindwalker]

14 hours ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

I think reducing that one to sexism isn't helpful. The previous administration, esp. the office of POTUS was super leaky. I am sure you remember the office holder, obese orange skinned fellow, Donald was his name, not Donna (eventho he managed to be the prima donna in that soap opera). Harris should really sort out her office, if she wants to succeed Biden as President. Speculating whether it would be less leaky if she possessed a Y-chromosom instead of a second X-chromosom really isn't helpful in that regard.

Looking at the first part of the sentence you quoted, I don't see how she "reduced it" to sexism. I mean she basically said that this amount of complaints probably meant something regardless of sexism.

As to the bolded, taking a step back and trying to figure out how big a part sexism (or racism) may play in any public action is, imho, always helpful. If only to try and separate that part from the legit part.

That said, I don't like her (and I've tried very hard) and if I had to guess, I'd think she might not be a great person to work with, but I'm aware that's only based on my personal perception, and I'd defend her against any attack I perceive to be sexist. Or racist for that matter.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

12 minutes ago, Mindwalker said:

Looking at the first part of the sentence you quoted, I don't see how she "reduced it" to sexism. I mean she basically said that this amount of complaints probably meant something regardless of sexism.

As to the bolded, taking a step back and trying to figure out how big a part sexism (or racism) may play in any public action is, imho, always helpful. If only to try and separate that part from the legit part.

That said, I don't like her (and I've tried very hard) and if I had to guess, I'd think she might not be a great person to work with, but I'm aware that's only based on my personal perception, and I'd defend her against any attack I perceive to be sexist. Or racist for that matter.

Ahum, I'll point you to what made me say that.

 

19 hours ago, Chataya de Fleury said:

I also suspect we would never hear about this if the VP were named “Kevin” rather than “Kamala”.

Never is a very strong word there.

 

9 hours ago, Chataya de Fleury said:

Donald Trump had actual issues with being a narcissistic sociopath. He by all accounts demanded praise at all times and had the attention span of a gnat. He verbally abused people. 

This is quite different from “the office environment is baaaaad.”

Undoubtedly, but as you said, we wouldn't hear of the poor working conditions in Harris office, if she was a man. And that's very obviously not true, as we heard how horrible and dysfunctional it was in the WH during the previous administration. Either way Harris should really sort this issue out. Chaos and disorganization were the trademarks of, well, the former guy.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

Yes, she should be given some time sort it out, either by replacing some staffers or making other changes, but it still needs to be addressed. As in I could live very well, without the background noise of reports of a chaotic and disorganized VP office. It's not good optics, and also not particularly great for her future chances, if she couldn't fix that issue. There's still some time before the midterms, but it best be a faint memory by then.

[DMC]

7 minutes ago, Chataya de Fleury said:

So, yes, while there is “something there” I think we ought to give Ms. Harris the benefit of the doubt, and some time to make some personnel changes - or whatever changes may be needed.

The concerning thing is this isn't the first time.  There was a lot of criticism among the chattering classes with the disorganization in her presidential campaign, albeit that largely focused on an apparent power struggle between her sister Maya and her campaign manager.  This suggests there may be a pattern that presumably has nothing to do with her sister.  And I say this as a very strong supporter of Kamala and her political future.

[Fragile Bird]

And in other unhappy news, I see the weekend saw 400 shootings and 150 deaths across the US.

eta: that literally just flashed by on the tv…

eta #2: and fireworks. Geez, the goalie for the Blue Jackets of the NHL was in a hot tub at a party in Michigan when he was hit in the chest by a fireworks launcher* (?) and died. Ffs, poor bastard. 
 

* a mortar launcher style fireworks blaster that tipped over and started spraying everyone. 

[Durckad]

On 7/4/2021 at 1:44 PM, ThinkerX said:

not going to bother with a link, but conservatives - at least those infesting my Facebook - do seem to have decided that Global Warming is 'real' and 'human caused' (possibly in acknowledgment of the heat wave afflicting much of the US at the moment).

 

However, true to form, they have settled upon their own unique cause - 'chem trails' - which they also espouse is part of a deliberate campaign of climate change orchestrated by...???...to transform the US into a socialist communist dictatorship.  (sorry, couldn't make it through the vid these guys are citing)

JFC...  I swear, you can lead a conservative to water, but 90% of the time, it seems they'll just end up drowning in their own piss.

[DireWolfSpirit]

So there's an another apparent Russian ransomware attack. They are asking for $70 million to release the data they have stolen.

And just after Biden's summit warning to Putin that if we determine its State sponsored we will act.

I'm expecting Biden to back this up if it is in fact State sponsored there needs to be retaliation.

 "If it is either with the knowledge of and/or a consequence of Russia, then I told Putin we will respond."

[Fragile Bird]

Among those 150 deaths on the weekend were three very sad and strange ones.

A golf pro at a course outside of Atlanta saw a pick-up drive out onto the golf course, and he went out to investigate what was going on. Bang bang, and he's dead. The pick-up was stolen, and abandoned. In the pick-up bed there were the bodies of two men, also shot, one of whom was the owner of the pick-up. I guess the thief drove out onto the golf course to dump the bodies and the unfortunate golf pro, just doing his job, was in the very wrong place at the wrong time. Holy wtf is the world coming to.

In other weird news, the tallest building in San Francisco, a 55-storey luxury condominium, has been sinking for years (about 18 inches so far) and is tilting. I saw a video where one of the owners of a unit dropped a ball on the floor of his condo, and you see it roll away from him, stop, and roll back to him, because of the tilt. People are getting just a little more nervous after the Miami collapse. There are all kinds of law suits and investigations going on.

 

[Mindwalker]

17 hours ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

Ahum, I'll point you to what made me say that.

 

Never is a very strong word there.

True, maybe I would have said "less likely" or sth llike that.

 

Anyway, sorry if this has already been posted, but the NY Times has pieced together the most comprehensive video of the Jan 6 tourism in the Capitol to date:

 

[Zorral]

9 hours ago, L'oiseau français said:

People are getting just a little more nervous after the Miami collapse. There are all kinds of law suits and investigations going on.

Downright frightened.  And panicked.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/06/us/florida-condos-insurance.html?

[argonak]

10 hours ago, L'oiseau français said:

Among those 150 deaths on the weekend were three very sad and strange ones.

A golf pro at a course outside of Atlanta saw a pick-up drive out onto the golf course, and he went out to investigate what was going on. Bang bang, and he's dead. The pick-up was stolen, and abandoned. In the pick-up bed there were the bodies of two men, also shot, one of whom was the owner of the pick-up. I guess the thief drove out onto the golf course to dump the bodies and the unfortunate golf pro, just doing his job, was in the very wrong place at the wrong time. Holy wtf is the world coming to.

It may help if you remember that stuff worse than this happens every day.  You just don't hear about it because it.  We're overwhelmed by information (much of it horrifying) in this day and age, and we're not really well equipped to handle it because there's nothing we can do about it.  So we just end up horrified and frightened by it, and it makes us feel helpless.  

[argonak]

56 minutes ago, Zorral said:

Downright frightened.  And panicked.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/06/us/florida-condos-insurance.html?

I get a Paywall.  Is there anything worth quoting?

[Zorral]

34 minutes ago, argonak said:

I get a Paywall.  Is there anything worth quoting?

It's hard to pull out a specific quote, from the descriptions of everything that kicked in immediately the condo collapse, throughout Florida, and particularly on the Sun Coast.  It's everything from sudden oversight inspections discovering lots of problems with very very very many buildings, particularly those built 30 + years ago, sudden institution of much higher assessment to Do Something about the state of the building which they've been putting off, and now much higher insurance rates, and the threats by the companies to drop the condos all together.  Then --  shall we sell?  Will anyone buy? I can't afford this! "I'm getting rid of mine and moving the Everglades where it is safer."  But the brunt of the report is on the countless number of aging condos everywhere facing in one form and another what happened in Miami, and now what are we going to do?

From the very end of the report:

Quote

 

. . . .Imminent inspections could drive up both repair costs and buyers’ caution, leaving residents who want to sell their homes, like Ms. Mason, in precarious positions, Ms. Bozovic said.

Selling entire buildings to a developer may become attractive options, she said. And those developers could demolish the building and start from scratch, pricing out residents who have sat on their investments.

That is what Ms. Siqueira most fears, that the value of her condo will diminish while the costs of living in it grow. If she sells, she will have no choice but to leave the coast.

“The money I’m going to get, it’s impossible to buy — not even a small house in a worse neighborhood,” she said. “I’m looking at moving from the beach to the Everglades.”

 

 

[DireWolfSpirit]

Imo the condo owners and their insurers need to solve their building on sand issues. 

It's not something the public at large should have to bail out. It's a problem for the privileged users of the oceanfront to sort out.

They now have had a shot over their bow and should protect themselves accordingly.

[Zorral]

The latest discriminatory actions, victimizing the great patriates that are tRumpister college 'men' -- the majority of the women on campus won't 'date' them.  Yah a whole article in the National Review, which lso informs us that discrimination they suffer is so intense they live in fear.  

I keep thinking this is a joke.  But, guess ... not?