IheartIheartTesla Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 Well, the match up no one seems to want is here. Regarding the polling for the primaries on the GoP side, they are probably the least predictive of all because of really poor statistics. Still, a few warning signs for Trump. Thing is, there is enough time for Republicans to go back to the fold (same is true for Democrats soured on the administration's Israel policy). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatCoward Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 They really are both dogshit choices, like being offered vinegar or lemon juice to be poured on a paper cut. DireWolfSpirit, Many-Faced Votary, Jace, Extat and 1 other 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanteGabriel Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 (edited) 17 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said: They really are both dogshit choices, like being offered vinegar or lemon juice to be poured on a paper cut. Come on now. I'm not thrilled with Biden running again but they are not at all comparable. What a ridiculous oversimplification. This lazy "both of them suck" dogshit thinking is a large part of the decline of American political culture. Edited March 7 by DanteGabriel 3CityApache, The Mance, Luzifer's right hand and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatCoward Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 7 minutes ago, DanteGabriel said: Come on now. I'm not thrilled with Biden running again but they are not at all comparable. What a ridiculous oversimplification. This lazy "both of them suck" dogshit thinking is a large part of the decline of American political culture. I wouldn't trust Biden to run a summer fete, the people behind him may be competent but he is still the leader and he isn't fit to be. Doddery old men are not remotely suited for high office. He is clearly a liability, him having the launch codes beggars belief. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3CityApache Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 All true, and yet I agree they're not even remotely comparable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darryk Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 (edited) @The Anti-Targ Quote How about celebrating the deaths of other countries' military personnel? Also bad if it's US's friends, but fine if it's rivals? When is it OK to celebrate a person's death and when is it not? Seems like the number of situations where celebrating peoples deaths is justified should be zero or somewhere close to it. I don't think soldiers are at all special in this regard. Veneration of military personnel of one's own country beyond what should be normal due regard and respect for all people is militaristic nationalism. I think that's a particularly bad kind of nationalism. Which other country's military's personnel are you talking about? American's main enemies over the past few decades have been terrorist groups like ISIS and Al-Qaeda, and I certainly don't cry for any of their deaths. I think soldiers are special because they're putting their lives on the line. Anyone who puts their life on the line, whether it be soldiers, policemen or firemen gets extra respect from me. Edited March 7 by Darryk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phylum of Alexandria Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 57 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said: I wouldn't trust Biden to run a summer fete, the people behind him may be competent but he is still the leader and he isn't fit to be. Doddery old men are not remotely suited for high office. He is clearly a liability, him having the launch codes beggars belief. Have you seen him in a full interview, as opposed to a few clips from a speech or some other event? He looks and sounds old, for sure, and I admit I worry about potential decline further down the road, but he's definitely all there now: competent, sharp, and serious. Even at his best he was never an Obama, but that's a weakness mostly in communication and campaigning, not governance. I feel like people who question Biden's basic competence for governance are making a sloppy judgment, probably (hopefully) off the cuff. horangi, DanteGabriel, Ormond and 1 other 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kissdbyfire Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 10 minutes ago, Darryk said: Which other country's military's personnel are you talking about? American's main enemies over the past few decades have been terrorist groups like ISIS and Al-Qaeda, and I certainly don't cry for any of their deaths. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-the-united-states-enabled-al-qaeda/ https://theintercept.com/2018/01/29/isis-iraq-war-islamic-state-blowback/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darryk Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 You guys are going off on tangents. All I said was I have no respect for anyone who celebrates the death of US soldiers and suddenly we're having a history lesson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liffguard Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 29 minutes ago, Darryk said: I think soldiers are special because they're putting their lives on the line. Anyone who puts their life on the line, whether it be soldiers, policemen or firemen gets extra respect from me. The 9/11 bombers put their lives on the line as well. Russian soldiers are putting their lives on the line right now. Surely there also has to be some assessment of what someone is putting their life on the line for? Prince of the North, DireWolfSpirit, The Mance and 3 others 4 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 3 minutes ago, Liffguard said: The 9/11 bombers put their lives on the line as well. Russian soldiers are putting their lives on the line right now. Surely there also has to be some assessment of what someone is putting their life on the line for? You really want to offer apologia for the 9/11 hijackers? I honestly feel sorry for Russian soldiers… they really have a shit deal. DireWolfSpirit 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liffguard Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 3 minutes ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said: You really want to offer apologia for the 9/11 hijackers? Did I say that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 11 minutes ago, Liffguard said: Did I say that? Complementing their bravery isn’t apologia? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatCoward Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 Just now, Ser Scot A Ellison said: Complementing their bravery isn’t apologia? i don't think you have read what was written properly. Durckad, Prince of the North, Larry of the Lawn and 2 others 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darryk Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 21 minutes ago, Liffguard said: The 9/11 bombers put their lives on the line as well. Russian soldiers are putting their lives on the line right now. Surely there also has to be some assessment of what someone is putting their life on the line for? If you're gonna compare American soldiers to 9/11 terrorists then you're a frigging lunatic, simple as that. I feel sympathy for Russian soldiers since they're being forced to fight by a tyrannical dictator but I care more about US soldiers, sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phylum of Alexandria Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 Celebrating death should always be thought of as at least a little wrong, even in the most extreme cases of tyranny. That's easy for me to say, because I've never had to experience the horrors of genocide or other oppression. But that is why I say that such traumas derange people into such states of violent extremism. I'm not saying I would be immune from such modes of thought given sufficient desperation; but I do take pains not to valorize such desperation, which can and easily does veer into its own ugly anti-humanism, and lets our collective song of ice and fire go on for one more rancid chorus. And I say again: whatever one thinks of military service members, this "martyr" who killed himself for the Gaza cause also justified Hamas' attack on innocent Israeli civilians, people who were murdered because they happened to be born where they were born. And I guess, because they attended a concert rather than take up arms against the Israeli government. Even if you sympathize with some elements of his cause, this was a sick fucking individual. Someone who let the lefty anti-colonial narrative take him down a path of radicalism, self-destruction, and the justification of evil. Prince of the North, Jace, Extat, Ser Scot A Ellison and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 2 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said: i don't think you have read what was written properly. Noting the 9/11 hijackers put their lives on the line isn’t complementing bravery and by extension… apologia? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liffguard Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 3 minutes ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said: Complementing their bravery isn’t apologia? I didn't compliment their bravery, I pointed out they put their lives on the line. I was implying that the mere act of risking or sacrificing one's life is not inherently noble or worthy of respect. The respectability of an action also has to be judged in the context of the broader cause that the action is in aid of. Larry of the Lawn, Prince of the North, Crixus and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatCoward Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 Just now, Ser Scot A Ellison said: Noting the 9/11 hijackers put their lives on the line isn’t complementing bravery and by extension… apologia? Not if you read the next line. Ser Scot A Ellison 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liffguard Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 5 minutes ago, Darryk said: If you're gonna compare American soldiers to 9/11 terrorists then you're a frigging lunatic, simple as that. Again, was that what I said? You said that you think soldiers are special because they put their lives on the line. I pointed out that lots of people put their lives on the line in pursuit of evil. Therefore, putting one's life on the line should not automatically be worthy of respect. Prince of the North and Lord of Oop North 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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