American Politics / Current Events Thread

[YOURTURN | 1,256]

3 hours ago, Californication said:

Are you saying that the Republicans wouldn't be on the same path without Trump?

I have to say "Yes!" to that.

With the simple truth being that his followers, and supporters, excused the times he put himself first. With examples where he has exonerated any actions that go against the American People, the Republican Party, and even the United States Constitution. And he has also allowed the Republican party itself to become fractured, opting to have the least qualified Republican to take over those who did not put him first.

In the end, those within the Republican party would not be saying "We support the Blue as long as they don't oppose our President." like his supporters are promoting. Along with other examples I am skipping.

3 hours ago, Californication said:

Are you saying that the crowd who's idea's about election fraud are from from Trump although every conservative platform has called the election fake for the better part of a year?

I'm calling a citation on your "every Conservative platform" claim. 

In 2016, there ere a number of Conservatives that have asked for every Intelligence agency (who have reported voting irregularities) to further investigate it. Donald Trump convinced those who'd listen that this was a "political witch hunt" (which is hypocritical because he was a prominent member of the Birther Movement).

In 2020, Donald Trump started the claims that the only way he could win is if Biden chose to cheat. This evolved into him starting the claims that the election will be a fraud if he loses. Which was something only his Conservative followers/supporters supported. With the rest being the reason why he has helped fracture the party from within.

With the added hypocrisy being that he also publicly fired and scrutinized every Government official that had confirmed the election had no irregularities, when compared to those found in 2016.

[Californication | 1,477]

1 hour ago, FenrirZero said:

I have to say "Yes!" to that.

With the simple truth being that his followers, and supporters, excused the times he put himself first. With examples where he has exonerated any actions that go against the American People, the Republican Party, and even the United States Constitution. And he has also allowed the Republican party itself to become fractured, opting to have the least qualified Republican to take over those who did not put him first.

In the end, those within the Republican party would not be saying "We support the Blue as long as they don't oppose our President." like his supporters are promoting. Along with other examples I am skipping.

I'm calling a citation on your "every Conservative platform" claim. 

In 2016, there ere a number of Conservatives that have asked for every Intelligence agency (who have reported voting irregularities) to further investigate it. Donald Trump convinced those who'd listen that this was a "political witch hunt" (which is hypocritical because he was a prominent member of the Birther Movement).

In 2020, Donald Trump started the claims that the only way he could win is if Biden chose to cheat. This evolved into him starting the claims that the election will be a fraud if he loses. Which was something only his Conservative followers/supporters supported. With the rest being the reason why he has helped fracture the party from within.

With the added hypocrisy being that he also publicly fired and scrutinized every Government official that had confirmed the election had no irregularities, when compared to those found in 2016.

When I say the Republican party is on the same path I mean they have the same goals/policy as prior to Trump. I would agree that Trump has changed the way the party functions as they have taken away the silken glove and the way they function has become more visible to a wider audience, but that is just an adjustment to the way they reach their goal. 

When I said every conservative platform I was being hyperbolic. I was implying the a material/majority of them pushed the fake election nonsense which make outliers irrelevant.

[YOURTURN | 1,256]

47 minutes ago, Californication said:

When I say the Republican party is on the same path I mean they have the same goals/policy as prior to Trump.

Thanks for the clarification. And I do wish you were more clear on what you meant. Words without context and tone tend to sound differently when read. 

As for this... Their agreements are also marginalized. Like Democrats, they appear to be on the same path but that is because they are trying to appease to those who can keep them in office. It is one of those messes that currently has this nation spend more money than they can make. With it being worse when they had full control during the last Bush Administration.

It's one of those reasons why I chose to re-register as an American Independent. I would have gone Libertarian, but the ones I met made me want to sport a Deniz Khan ponytail every time I go to Pawn Stars for my video game needs.

[avatar! | 1,812]

Oh, the irony... apparently the shoes she is wearing sell for $1000 (or more), and who knows how many thousands that dress would cost! Did I mention a ticket to the MET Gala is $35,000... now I'm not saying nor implying she did anything illegal, but the irony is just SO rich (pun intended And for the record I'm all in favor of closing tax loopholes and having the rich pay their share. Still, this is hilarious. Voltaire would have enjoyed this.

https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2021/09/14/aurora-james-designer/

[Kguillemette | 1,544]

https://www.distractify.com/p/do-celebrities-pay-for-met-gala

I just was curious. I'm guessing she was a guest for the designer, basically a walking breathing advertisement for her fancy dresses to sell to rich people. And I do find this quite ironic.

[avatar! | 1,812]

"bizarrely gone missing"...? Oh, not suspicious at all

[avatar! | 1,812]

On 9/16/2021 at 7:00 PM, Kguillemette said:

https://www.distractify.com/p/do-celebrities-pay-for-met-gala

I just was curious. I'm guessing she was a guest for the designer, basically a walking breathing advertisement for her fancy dresses to sell to rich people. And I do find this quite ironic.

Wow, the irony (if you call it that, at this point that seems a bit too generous) just keeps piling up...

Designer Aurora James's company, Brother Vellies, racked up three open tax warrants in New York for failing to withhold nearly $15,000 worth of income taxes from employees’ paychecks, the New York Post reported...James also has a history of rent disputes. A previous landlord sued James in February 2018 for more than $5,000 in unpaid rent at her shop’s old address in Manhattan. Another landlord in Aug. 2020 filed papers to evict Brother Vellies from its location in Brooklyn and demanded more than $25,000 plus interest for staying beyond the end of the lease, with the case eventually getting settled, according to the outlet.

[Kguillemette | 1,544]

18 minutes ago, avatar! said:

Wow, the irony (if you call it that, at this point that seems a bit too generous) just keeps piling up...

Designer Aurora James's company, Brother Vellies, racked up three open tax warrants in New York for failing to withhold nearly $15,000 worth of income taxes from employees’ paychecks, the New York Post reported...James also has a history of rent disputes. A previous landlord sued James in February 2018 for more than $5,000 in unpaid rent at her shop’s old address in Manhattan. Another landlord in Aug. 2020 filed papers to evict Brother Vellies from its location in Brooklyn and demanded more than $25,000 plus interest for staying beyond the end of the lease, with the case eventually getting settled, according to the outlet.

I've long since gotten the sense that her goal, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, is being famous on the internet. Not fighting for any particular ideal. She's a fool if she thinks the Met Gala of all places is a place to practice her ideals. If she represented my district, I'd be completely embarrassed.

Edited September 20, 2021 by Kguillemette

[Californication | 1,477]

1 hour ago, Kguillemette said:

I've long since gotten the sense that her goal, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, is being famous on the internet. Not fighting for any particular ideal. She's a fool if she thinks the Met Gala of all places is a place to practice her ideals. If she represented my district, I'd be completely embarrassed.

Stupid Met dress aside it's a little ironic that you are enjoying the child tax credit while talking shit about one of the main people that fought to get that for you.

Edited September 20, 2021 by Californication

[Californication | 1,477]

On 9/16/2021 at 11:29 AM, avatar! said:

Oh, the irony... apparently the shoes she is wearing sell for $1000 (or more), and who knows how many thousands that dress would cost! Did I mention a ticket to the MET Gala is $35,000... now I'm not saying nor implying she did anything illegal, but the irony is just SO rich (pun intended And for the record I'm all in favor of closing tax loopholes and having the rich pay their share. Still, this is hilarious. Voltaire would have enjoyed this.

https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2021/09/14/aurora-james-designer/

I think the dress is stupid, but what would the cost of the dress or shoes have to do with anything? Very confused.

[Kguillemette | 1,544]

8 hours ago, Californication said:

Stupid Met dress aside it's a little ironic that you are enjoying the child tax credit while talking shit about one of the main people that fought to get that for you.

Im not a member of US Congress like AOC and MTG are. I'm going to be critical of the things members of Congress do that I do not like. They are representatives of the people. If she represented my district, I would be especially embarrassed.

[Kguillemette | 1,544]

9 hours ago, Californication said:

I think the dress is stupid, but what would the cost of the dress or shoes have to do with anything? Very confused.

Nothing. She likely paid nothing for the dress or shoes. She is just allowing herself to be a billboard for fancy dresses made by a designer that will use her likeness to market them to the ultra wealthy elite.

Im not impressed.

[Californication | 1,477]

1 hour ago, Kguillemette said:

Im not a member of US Congress like AOC and MTG are. I'm going to be critical of the things members of Congress do that I do not like. They are representatives of the people. If she represented my district, I would be especially embarrassed.

You said that you believe her goal is to get internet famous and yet she has been a major part of getting things like the child tax credit increase and the housing moratorium extension. You clearly have no understanding of how congress functions if you think those two are on the same level. MTG has zero committee assignments and has produced nothing. AOC has co-sponsored multiple bills, has helped get people elected, and gotten the aforementioned legislation passed that has literally helped Americans (like yourself).

I'm not sure who you get your news from, but the stuff you are saying is literally an outgrowth of progressive YouTube commentators that have pushed their opinions to the right to increase viewership and has no basis in reality.

Edited September 20, 2021 by Californication

[CodysGameRoom | 2,008]

12 hours ago, Kguillemette said:

I've long since gotten the sense that her goal, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, is being famous on the internet. Not fighting for any particular ideal.

This is ridiculous. She's popular on the internet because she's getting real progressive shit done in the political landscape, and apps like TikTok and Instagram are full of progressives.

MTG is famous for being a.... I'm just gonna redact my language so I don't get any warning points. But fill in the blank with any number of derogatory expletives.

You couldn't be more off base here. 

[avatar! | 1,812]

Almost one-third of all working-age men in America aren’t doing diddly-squat. They don’t have a job, and they aren’t looking for one either.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/7-ways-men-live-without-working-in-america-092147068.html

How do they live? What are they doing for money? To me, this is one of the great mysteries of our time.

[Kguillemette | 1,544]

22 hours ago, avatar! said:

Almost one-third of all working-age men in America aren’t doing diddly-squat. They don’t have a job, and they aren’t looking for one either.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/7-ways-men-live-without-working-in-america-092147068.html

How do they live? What are they doing for money? To me, this is one of the great mysteries of our time.

Starting to see even more small businesses close and/or reduce hours due to lack of staffing. More restaurants that are closed Mondays or Tuesdays, sometimes both because they can't fill the schedule up. Opening later, closing earlier, etc. It's not just happening in restaurants. I read of a mom and pop discount store in Maine closing down due to only having 6 staff members for a period of 6 months, a few of which were part time,  when it needs at least 12 full timers. At least around here, the issue isn't pay anymore, especially when you have companies like Applebee's of all places advertising $18-21 an hour starting pay for line cooks. A local McDonalds is advertising $16 per hour on the billboard under their sign, which is nuts for Southern NH. The way things are right now, it's going to get worse before it gets better.

And from everything I hear around from my peers in the industry(restaurants/food service/hospitality) the quality of help you have to pay a premium for is rare and often sub par or pulls the old NCNS and ghosts you on critical shifts like holidays knowing there is another job across the street they can start at tomorrow. Which is crazy because there has never been a bigger demand for hospitality as there is right now.

Is the issue related to people outright refusing to work or just waiting for a better deal or pay to return? Have we lost people to other careers because of the shutdown last year? Is covid still a concern before returning to work? Are people milking unemployment because they perceive themselves making more money sitting at home than they will returning to work? Is it an issue of child care as there are still many day care centers that have since closed or sitters unable or unwilling to assist due to covid exposures or general covid concern? A small combination of all the above? If each issue factors into only 1.5% of the workforce that has left the industry, that's a very substantial sum of people. Especially factoring that help was difficult to find before the shutdown happened.

This is only just beginning.

[Tulpa | 3,506]

https://www.vox.com/recode/22673353/unemployment-job-search-linkedin-indeed-algorithm?utm_source=pocket-newtab

Short answer, it's all of those things and more, and there's blame on both sides.

[Californication | 1,477]

19 hours ago, Kguillemette said:

Starting to see even more small businesses close and/or reduce hours due to lack of staffing. More restaurants that are closed Mondays or Tuesdays, sometimes both because they can't fill the schedule up. Opening later, closing earlier, etc. It's not just happening in restaurants. I read of a mom and pop discount store in Maine closing down due to only having 6 staff members for a period of 6 months, a few of which were part time,  when it needs at least 12 full timers. At least around here, the issue isn't pay anymore, especially when you have companies like Applebee's of all places advertising $18-21 an hour starting pay for line cooks. A local McDonalds is advertising $16 per hour on the billboard under their sign, which is nuts for Southern NH. The way things are right now, it's going to get worse before it gets better.

And from everything I hear around from my peers in the industry(restaurants/food service/hospitality) the quality of help you have to pay a premium for is rare and often sub par or pulls the old NCNS and ghosts you on critical shifts like holidays knowing there is another job across the street they can start at tomorrow. Which is crazy because there has never been a bigger demand for hospitality as there is right now.

Is the issue related to people outright refusing to work or just waiting for a better deal or pay to return? Have we lost people to other careers because of the shutdown last year? Is covid still a concern before returning to work? Are people milking unemployment because they perceive themselves making more money sitting at home than they will returning to work? Is it an issue of child care as there are still many day care centers that have since closed or sitters unable or unwilling to assist due to covid exposures or general covid concern? A small combination of all the above? If each issue factors into only 1.5% of the workforce that has left the industry, that's a very substantial sum of people. Especially factoring that help was difficult to find before the shutdown happened.

This is only just beginning.

Ya it's crazy right.

From what I heard the areas that reduced unemployment had no noticeable difference for people going back to work.

And the major companies are having problems filling office positions. I have heard of a backlog of over a hundred people wanted at one I know. They are starting to call this the great resignation because there are so many people moving around or not staying at their jobs right now.

[avatar! | 1,812]

I long for the day when MTG resigns! Or preferably is fired...

Sadly, I think that's not going to happen. There was some discussion as to AOC and MTG, and I believe both want lots of attention for their ultimate goal - to run for President of the United States. Yup, I believe both women have their eyes set on the highest position in the land...

[avatar! | 1,812]

https://www.barrons.com/articles/the-workers-wont-be-coming-back-covid-or-not-here-are-theories-on-where-they-went-51634290204

“It remains a mystery,” says Torsten Sløk, Apollo Global Management’s chief economist. “If we still have five million people who used to have a job and now don’t, why is it that wages continue to go up very, very quickly? Why is there a labor shortage?”

[Brickman | 3,987]

2 hours ago, avatar! said:

https://www.barrons.com/articles/the-workers-wont-be-coming-back-covid-or-not-here-are-theories-on-where-they-went-51634290204

“It remains a mystery,” says Torsten Sløk, Apollo Global Management’s chief economist. “If we still have five million people who used to have a job and now don’t, why is it that wages continue to go up very, very quickly? Why is there a labor shortage?”

Could you dump the article in here? It cuts off after two paragraphs and wants me to sign up for a subscription.

[avatar! | 1,812]

5 hours ago, Shmup said:

Could you dump the article in here? It cuts off after two paragraphs and wants me to sign up for a subscription.

Funny, I'm having problems accessing it at the moment, but I think I know why. It may take me a few days to get my access back, but I'll get back to you

[Tulpa | 3,506]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/texas-lt-gov-dan-patrick-pays-out-dollar25000-to-democrat-for-republican-voter-fraud/ar-AAPQCE8?li=BBnb7Kz

A week after the 2020 election, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced that he was offering up to $1 million -- paid from his campaign account -- "to incentivize, encourage and reward people to come forward and report voter fraud."

Nearly a year later, Patrick, a Republican, has paid out his first reward: $25,000 to a Democrat in Pennsylvania, who reported a man for voting twice.

Eric Frank, a poll worker, received the money earlier this month for his part in reporting Ralph Holloway Thurman, a Republican who after voting once, attempted to vote a second time as his son, as first reported by the Dallas Morning News.

"Of course, I never do anything for money, that's just how I was raised. I do things because it's just the right thing to do. And I would have reported Thurman if he was a Republican or a Democrat," Frank told CNN by phone on Friday.

Frank reported Thurman after he recognized the 72-year-old came back and attempted to vote again with a "dark baseball hat and Ray Ban sunglasses." Thurman pleaded guilty and was sentenced in September to three years probation, according to court documents. Frank noted he wasn't supposed to be at the polls the day of the election but was asked to fill in last minute by his father, an election judge.

"It was just ironic -- it's my opinion that (Patrick) put up, they put out this bounty to try to find Democrats committing voter fraud. And in fact, it was the complete opposite of what their intentions were, Frank said.

Neither Patrick's office nor campaign responded to multiple requests for comment.

[avatar! | 1,812]

'Overwhelmed' teachers lead Virginia Beach City to end certain school days early

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/teachers-virginia-beach-city-end-school-early-114801703.html

"There’s been a teacher shortage crisis looming across the country ... and I think they’ve been exacerbated by the pandemic," Spence said...According to the National Education Association (NEA) estimates for the 2020-2021 school year, the national classroom teacher salary stands at $65,090. When adjusted for inflation, that represents a 0.9% increase over the past 10 years.

"I don’t think that in our nation, we pay our teachers what they’re worth," Spence said.

[Tulpa | 3,506]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/jenna-ryan-rioter-who-boasted-she-wouldnt-go-to-jail-because-shes-white-is-going-to-prison

A Texas real estate agent who swore she wouldn’t be jailed over her role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot has been sentenced to 60 days in prison.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper on Thursday also slapped convicted rioter Jenna Ryan with $500 in restitution after she was charged with a single count of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.

At the hearing, Cooper told Ryan that he believed her punishment would tell Americans “something about the courts and about how our country responded to what happened, and I think the sentence should tell them that we take it seriously.”