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The Bar Room => The Champagne Cabana => Topic started by: George on August 30, 2011, 09:39:27 PM

Title: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 30, 2011, 09:39:27 PM
Quote
"I don't know how much God has to do to get the attention of politicians. We've had an earthquake; we've had a hurricane. He said, 'Are you going to start listening to me here?'"
—Michele Bachmann
And didn't Pat Robertson bleat something similar about the recent earthquake? Jeez, we gots weirdos in Canberra, but I think you beats us!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: kitano on August 30, 2011, 10:54:33 PM
It's the same people who mock the idea that the billions of cars and planes running on burning oil is heating up the planet bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: latefordinner on August 30, 2011, 10:59:15 PM
Who you gonna listen to? A bunch of scientists who do research or someone who talks to God?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: dragonsaver on August 30, 2011, 11:24:25 PM
Don't they put people who listen to 'voices' and people not there in the loonie bin  mmmmmmmmmm mmmmmmmmmm ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on August 31, 2011, 02:16:58 AM
God, who loves us all as his children and is a magnificent force for good, has decided to inflict horrific and tragic natural disasters on America because it's people just aren't listening to him. Wow Michele, your god is that petty? I've met teenagers more grown up than that. Oh, and the arrogance of assuming that god is so focused on America - your country is only, y'know, a small fraction of the world's population. Shouldn't he (?) really punish the communists, muslims and catholics first, and when they have learned their lesson he should edumacate the jews about his son. After all this he'll probably turn to the liberal democracies that have achieved a blasphemous separation of the church and state, y'know, like, the ones that have really done it, such as the UK, France and most of western Europe and Scandinavia. Mind you, that probably won't take natural disasters, just a quick word in the ears of the leaders - they're reasonable chaps and chapesses after all. Oh and of course he will have to smite/convert the ignorant fools that live in places where they've never heard of god and worship nature and stupid shit like that. So you see Michele, it's gonna be a long time before god gets to smiting the liberal democratic world's most overtly and outspokenly christian country. While the rest of the world is flabberghasted by the fact that you and that texan gubnertorial nightmare are actually, well, somewhat popular, god looks down on your part of the world content that you are closer to a good example, than an example he has to make. So STFU you poisonous cretin and stop hijacking tragic events for your own agenda.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on August 31, 2011, 03:43:51 PM
Most of the Republican element in the USA has seriously stepped off the curb...gone completely gobblers. And Michele Bachmann is leading the charge. kkkkkkkkkk

Fortunately, at least for now, the most rabid element seems to be completely unelectable in the general election. The only possibly electable Repubs are the relatively-moderate Mitt Romney, the unapologetic personal bitch of the banks and major corporations; and possibly Texas governor Rick Perry, who has been described as "George W. Bush on steroids". aaaaaaaaaa
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on August 31, 2011, 04:12:28 PM
Oh wait guys, it's ok! She was just being funny

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/30/michelle-bachmann-hurricane-warning-joke
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on August 31, 2011, 04:16:02 PM
Don't they put people who listen to 'voices' and people not there in the loonie bin  mmmmmmmmmm mmmmmmmmmm ahahahahah

Yes, but some Escape and go into politics. ahahahahah

This message paid for by the Escaped Lunatic for Supreme Ruler of Earth Campaign.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Just Like Mr Benn on August 31, 2011, 06:56:46 PM
Oh wait guys, it's ok! She was just being funny

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/30/michelle-bachmann-hurricane-warning-joke

I made a joke in much the same vein when I proposed a menage a trois to my ex-girlfriend, and she also joked when she agreed, as long as it was with my ex-best pal (and her current husband).
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: El Macho on August 31, 2011, 09:07:38 PM
One of Bachmann's favorite rhetorical tactics is to say insane things and then later claim they were "jokes".

I'm not looking forward to the next administration…unless Huntsman somehow wins the Republican nomination, it's going to be a fanatic.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 31, 2011, 10:44:02 PM
 ananananan I feel sorry for you blokes! Our nutters aren't quite as stupid as yours. agagagagag agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 01, 2011, 07:47:23 PM
And it continues........ agagagagag
Quote
"Abstinence works."
—Rick Perry, when asked why his state has abstinence-only sex education despite having the third-highest teen-pregnancy rate in the U.S.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on September 01, 2011, 08:08:43 PM
And it continues........ agagagagag
Quote
"Abstinence works."
—Rick Perry, when asked why his state has abstinence-only sex education despite having the third-highest teen-pregnancy rate in the U.S.

Maybe they were tied for the 2nd highest rate before implementing the campaign? ahahahahah ahahahahah ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 02, 2011, 08:21:10 PM
Our nutters aren't quite as stupid as yours.

Oh, nonsense, ya pommy bastard. We just tend to elect ours to public office so we can all keep an eye on them and laugh at them, while yours remain on the loose in the general populace. Or, at best, you give them TV shows where you can get them out into the bush to run around bitch-slapping incredibly dangerous reptiles. uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 07, 2011, 09:55:37 PM
Hang on! That bloke wasn't a pollie! A tad stoopid, yes, but not an elected official..........like this one............
Quote
"NOW, THEREFORE, I, RICK PERRY, Governor of Texas, under the authority vested in me by the Constitution and Statutes of the State of Texas, do hereby proclaim the three-day period from Friday, April 22, 2011 to Sunday, April 24, 2011, as Days of Prayer for Rain in the State of Texas."
—from an official proclamation. The prayers went unanswered.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 07, 2011, 10:47:32 PM
Hmph. I WISH I were only talking about Steve Irwin, the man who gave all Australians the nickname "Irwins". ahahahahah

From what I'm seeing on TV, it seems you can't take 3 steps in any jungle in the world without bumping into at least one of you Irwins out pissing off 14-foot crocs or violating the intimate orifices of black mambas. bibibibibi

As for Rick Perry, well, you're talking about Texas there. It's a bit like China in that you shouldn't expect any rationality to come from either place. uuuuuuuuuu
The one that puzzles me is how Michele Bachmann, easily the most deeply disturbed of the Republican/Tea Party candidates, was ever elected to anything in Minnesota...which is usually a relatively sensible place. mmmmmmmmmm
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Sam Smith on September 08, 2011, 07:32:02 AM
Bachmann doesn't have a prayer winning the Republican nomination --- she has plummeted in the polls since Perry got in to the race.

The most recent Gallup Poll:

Perry:    25
Romney:   14
Palin     11
Paul:     11
Bachmann:  7
Gingrich:  3
Cain:      4
Santorum:  3
Huntsman:  1

The Repubs will be debating tonight at the Reagan Presidential Library (and yes, it has more than one book in its collection!)afafafafaf so it should be interesting to see if sparks fly tonight.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Con ate dog on September 08, 2011, 09:49:04 AM
The overlooked guy in that pack is Ron Paul, the only one with any kind of grasp of the truth.  Being a Libertarian, he's feared and despised by the party.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 08, 2011, 09:06:14 PM
And being feared and despised by the party, he has little chance of getting the nomination. kkkkkkkkkk
The "overlooked" part seems to be deliberate by the Republicans. Although he came in a very close second to Bachmann in the (totally meaningless) Iowa Straw Poll, Republican media outlets like Fox News ( aaaaaaaaaa ) hardly mentioned him at all...and if they DID mention him, it came with a smirk and an eye-roll. Which kinda makes sense...he's actually one of the least rabid of a pretty psychotic pack.

Meanwhile, my TV is playing video of some unknown Irwin stomping around in what looks like Florida. When I first noticed him, he was holding up a meter-long croc and screaming "Waow! An Amehrican crocudile! What a maaagnificent creeeeecha!"
Now, he's amusing himself by standing on a riverbank and casting a fish on a rope in front of a 12-foot crocodile, then snatching it away just as the croc tries to bite it.
Personally, I'm starting to root for the crocodile. Eating this idiot would make GREAT television. uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 08, 2011, 09:34:50 PM
Quote
Meanwhile, my TV is playing video of some unknown Irwin stomping around in what looks like Florida.
And you are watching?? Anyway he can't be an "Irwin" as you are pleased to label us, cos all of us know that Usitania only has aggilators!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Mac Attack on September 08, 2011, 09:36:33 PM
My motto has always been.........throw all of the bumbs out. Every last one of them. The more time that they spent in congress or the senate, the more passive they become. Very few of these people still believe that they work for us at OUR discretion.

Quote
When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty.
Thomas Jefferson
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 08, 2011, 09:41:54 PM
Quote
bumbs
Rhymes with thumbs, but not quite as useful, or spelt the same way! agagagagag agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 08, 2011, 09:56:47 PM
Quote
"You know, we used to all love Sarah Palin, conservatives like me, for her enemies. I'm starting to dislike her because of her fans."
—Ann Coulter
I'm sorry, but I don't know what this means! bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on September 08, 2011, 10:02:19 PM
And you are watching?? Anyway he can't be an "Irwin" as you are pleased to label us, cos all of us know that Usitania only has aggilators!

Mwahahaha...aggilators??? What the devil is an aggilator, George??? I know an alligator but not an aggilator...

Of course Ron Paul is unpopoular...he is saying things like "The economy would be better if we did not go to war with every oil-producing country in the world" and "The rich should pay more taxes"...I mean, a politician can't just waltz around telling the truth, all the other politicians will lose face...Having seen Bschmann interviews, I conclude she is crazy...
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Just Like Mr Benn on September 08, 2011, 10:15:51 PM
Quote
"You know, we used to all love Sarah Palin, conservatives like me, for her enemies. I'm starting to dislike her because of her fans."
—Ann Coulter
I'm sorry, but I don't know what this means! bibibibibi

I don't think Ann Coulter ever really understood what Palin was about. I mean, in the last election when they kpet tossing the word 'maverick' about, did Coulter take that to mean that Palin was a non-questionning adherent of conservative dogma. For better or worse, Palin is off on her own planet. She wasn't a typical Conservative governor of Alaska. She was thrust into the national limelight at the height of an election as a Republican candidate, but I'm pretty clear that however we perceive her, Palin sees herself as essentially an Independent, and above such mundane things as Conservative political ideology. She probably thinks that ideologists are the people who make her children's fake driving licenses.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 08, 2011, 11:09:14 PM
No, I wasn't watching the show. It was just kind of on as background noise while I posted on The Saloon. bjbjbjbjbj  But the yelling drew my attention for a moment...

I'm sorry, but I don't know what this means!

Not surprising, you ignit mcnugget. llllllllll

America, being the Land of Plenty, has both alligators AND crocodiles. The alligators simply have a better agent, and therefore get all the media attention. ababababab

Not that this Outback yahoo on TV would know the difference. kkkkkkkkkk

Sadly, America not only has gators and crocs, we also have Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, and Ann Coulter. IMHO if we simply fed the last three to the first two, America and the world would be a much better place. bfbfbfbfbf

For what it's worth, what Coulter was referring to is that way too many of Sarah Palin's fans are pig-ignorant methane-breathing inbreds who would turn the stomach of even a paleoconservative road apple like Ann Coulter. Hell, even an alligator, being at least 20 points smarter than most Palin supporters, would think twice about tangling with such beings. aaaaaaaaaa
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 08, 2011, 11:18:36 PM
Thanks! I'm glad you cleared that up. ahahahahah ahahahahah ahahahahah ahahahahah ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 08, 2011, 11:27:34 PM
Don't get too happy. When I first came across this:

My motto has always been.........throw all of the bumbs out. Every last one of them.

I seriously thought he was talking about Irwins. uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 08, 2011, 11:37:48 PM
Quote
I seriously thought he was talking about Irwins.
Silly boy! kkkkkkkkkk kkkkkkkkkk
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 08, 2011, 11:39:32 PM
At last, something we can agree on. agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Granny Mae on September 09, 2011, 10:33:33 AM
With all this talk of Irwins, It was five years ago five days ago (4th Sept) that Steve passed away. alalalalal
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 09, 2011, 12:57:13 PM
Yeah. To be serious for a moment, he did an awful lot of good when it came to conservation and environmental awareness. He passed way too young and way too terribly. ananananan
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: latefordinner on September 09, 2011, 04:07:52 PM
You mean it would have been better if a croc ate him instead of a stingray zinging him?

Just loooooookit these beauuuuuutiful teeth here. Let's count them, shall we? One two, three, ... Crikey! 'E bit my arm off! 'Ere, open up lad, let me stick my head inside and see if I can find me arm...
<shrug> I can see how that would have made good TV. Yes, Irwin made great TV. And he didn't send anyone off to war or cause banks to fail or put people out of work or anything like that. Only the good die young. That's why they're called paleo-conservatives.

<ahem, gotta get back on-topic>
Wouldn't feeding the likes of palin, bachman and coulter to the crocs constitute cruelty to animals?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Mimi on September 12, 2011, 04:54:05 AM
With both Bachmann and Perry out for obvious reasons, it looks like the GOP is headed for some kind of rift where they dump the extremists and focus on actual politics again. Yay!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Con ate dog on September 12, 2011, 10:18:35 AM
Hope you're right, pretty girl, but strongly suspect you're wrong.

Gonna be Romney.  5 kwai bet.  The only one with any chance of being president.  I kind of hope of of the other clowns gets the nomination, though, because I want to see the Republicans slaughtered.  Not forever, just long enough to get out of the way until things get fixed.

Have Perry and Dubya ever been seen in the same room?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 12, 2011, 09:06:01 PM
Hope yer right, brother, but I'm not so sure. From the sound of things, if the GOP Convention were held right now, Perry would probably win the nomination. bibibibibi

Have Perry and Dubya been in the same room? Probably. Perry succeeded Bush as governor of Texas. And again, people here are describing Perry as "George W. Bush on steroids." aaaaaaaaaa
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Mac Attack on September 12, 2011, 09:28:35 PM
One thing you never see in our elections..........the second runner-up automatically getting the first shot at VP. I think we don't see this because there is so much mud slinging leading up to the convention that the top candidates hate each other so much by the time of the vote for the Presidential nomination. That is how we ended with such memorable VP's like: Spiro T. Agnew, Dan Quayle, and Sarah Palin.

The next one will be???????????
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 12, 2011, 09:38:05 PM
Hopefully, the next VP will still be Joe Biden. agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: dragonsaver on September 12, 2011, 10:47:49 PM
Quote
Hopefully, the next VP will still be Joe Biden.


I totally agree with you on that.    agagagagag agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: latefordinner on September 13, 2011, 01:00:10 AM
Yeah, Obama could campaign on a platform of "Slowly getting the hang of it" or "At least I haven't started another war" and still look much better than anything the GOP has right now.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 13, 2011, 01:03:57 AM
Indeed. In 2012 a lot of people may be voting against the flakes and idiots the GOP is generating, not so much for Obama himself.

But either way is fine by me. The more bizarre the Republican candidate, the better I like it...with a side benefit of magnificent fodder for Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, etc. bfbfbfbfbf
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on September 13, 2011, 02:59:05 AM
US Presidential Politics - one more very good reason to elect me as the Supreme Ruler of Earth.  Once in charge, I'll let people like these candidates participate in gladiatorial games for the privilege of running for important jobs like City Dog Catcher.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Mimi on September 13, 2011, 04:12:56 AM
Yeah, Obama could campaign on a platform of "Slowly getting the hang of it" or "At least I haven't started another war" and still look much better than anything the GOP has right now.

Oh man, this made me laugh.

But, back to what Con said, I agree that Romney is the most viable nominee.  I don't like him, but that is to be expected.  Trouble is, people aren't excited about him anymore, and that is the fault of the GOP for pushing these sideshow folks to whip the right into a frenzy.  I really do think they'll fail miserably in this election and have to consider some serious restructuring. 
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 13, 2011, 03:03:41 PM
I can definitely see a road to the nomination for Perry.  The right wing-nuts are in full flower with the GOP right now and Romney is Mr. Bland, a Mormon and responsible for a state-wide health care program; a cardinal sin. 

The biggest applause line in the GOP debate was the statement by the moderator that Rick Perry has put to death more criminals than any governor in history.  Should tell you where the wind is blowing at the moment.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 13, 2011, 03:28:33 PM
Romney seems to be leaving people cold in droves...considering his money and party support, his poll numbers are surprisingly weak.

Perry, however, does have at least one major Achilles heel...he's speaking out against Social Security, calling it a "Ponzi scheme"- and with our post-WW2 population balloon (the "Baby Boomers") starting to reach retirement age in large numbers, this could well be the Kiss of Death for a Perry campaign.

We can only hope. uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 13, 2011, 07:38:35 PM
Gotta get back on track!
Quote
SAY WHAT?
"Wasilla was so white that there was only one African American in the entire school system. One day when the boy was in junior high school, Todd, then a senior, and two friends waylaid him by the gravel pit adjacent to Wasilla High and beat him up, simply because he was black. 'Sure, Todd was a racist bully, but that just made him one of the guys. Growing up black in Wasilla was hell.'"
—from The Rogue, by Joe McGinniss
From Doonesbury, via Slate.
As is this.....
Quote
WHA?
Anna Bramfeld | Oak Park, IL | September 12, 2011
Wha....? Just now, as I was folding up today's Chicago Tribune, I realized I'd forgotten to read Doonesbury. I opened up the comic page again and discovered the following message: "This week's Doonesbury does not meet our standards of fairness. Please enjoy this substitute strip." I'm thinking of cancelling my subscription, which I have never considered in the past. The Tribune has a columnist and a cartoonist who have made careers out of trashing Obama almost every day, and I have accepted it as part of the ugly downside of a democratic society and a free press. And now the Trib says it can't publish a cartoon that quotes a book about Sarah Palin?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Crippler on September 13, 2011, 09:03:10 PM
I am afraid everyone will stay home as it seems there is no sanity on either side.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on September 13, 2011, 11:30:02 PM
Quote
Discussing the individual mandate, CNN's Blitzer asked Paul a hypothetical question about a young man without insurance who is severely injured and requires hospitalization for six months. Who would pay for his care? Should society "just let him die?" "Yes," came a few calls from the crowd.

Ugh.

(also from Slate)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on September 14, 2011, 09:16:01 AM
Social Security didn't used to be a Ponzi scheme.  Money you paid was held in a reserve.  Then someone came up with the bright idea of spending that money now and letting current workers pay the benefits of current retirees.  At that point, it met the definition of a Ponzi scheme.

Telling the truth about it won't win a lot of votes no matter what political banner you run for office under. kkkkkkkkkk
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 14, 2011, 06:50:23 PM
Weren't the first Social Security checks given to seniors who never paid into the system...since it had not yet existed?  I've always been told that the dollars I pay into the system are not held in reserve for me.  It's a funded program and always has been. Just becuase changing demographics make it harder to fund, does not make it a Ponzi scheme. I believe it is solvent, right now, until the 2030's.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 14, 2011, 07:20:25 PM
What A-Train said.
If the money just sat in a bank vault collecting 0.4% per annum, I'd be pretty pissed. asasasasas
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: kitano on September 14, 2011, 10:26:21 PM
I think it's important to remember that the Sarah Palin and all of them are a loud but very small minority. I get the impression that even most Conservatives in the US hate them so even though they are on TV all of the time, it's another matter whether they will actually get to run, and yet another matter whether enough people will go and vote

They make a lot of noise, but I can imagine a lot of people, even people who hate Obama actually chickening out of trying to put some wingnut as president. There is a lot of protest here, the TEA Party thing doesn't really have any content.

Maybe I'm over optimistic though, I read a really good essay about it by an ex US Republican who has quit the party over the direction...

http://www.truth-out.org/goodbye-all-reflections-gop-operative-who-left-cult/1314907779
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on September 15, 2011, 01:40:12 PM
Once upon a time there was a social security trust fund.  Now any leftovers are (mis)used for other things.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 15, 2011, 04:33:15 PM
I think it's important to remember that the Sarah Palin and all of them are a loud but very small minority.

They make a lot of noise, but I can imagine a lot of people, even people who hate Obama actually chickening out of trying to put some wingnut as president.

Maybe I'm over optimistic though, I read a really good essay about it by an ex US Republican who has quit the party over the direction...

http://www.truth-out.org/goodbye-all-reflections-gop-operative-who-left-cult/1314907779

Minority, yes, but not so small.  And their numbers are made up for by their noise and activism during elections.  Every GOP candidate, (except maybe Ron Paul), has to pay heed to the Tea Party or they will be out.  Just ask the former, (very conservative), Republican Senator from Utah. Or former Senator Arlen Spector.  The best, and most likey, scenario is that they nominate someone so far right that the independants can't stomach him/her. 

I know this is overly dramatic, but the National Socialists were a small minority as were the Bolsheviks. That didn't stop them from assuming power. And the nighmare scenario would be that the economy is so bad in 2012 that Obama loses to whoever the GOP throws onto the ballot.  President Rick Perry!?!?  bzbzbzbzbz
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Sam Smith on September 16, 2011, 08:00:33 AM
@A-Train --- "overly dramatic" is an understatement!  You just associated the Tea Party and GOP with the Nazis.  With all due respect...that is the kind of bullshit bomb throwing that people are sick of.  If you want to talk about politics, talk about the issues instead of throwing bombs.   bfbfbfbfbf
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 16, 2011, 11:44:59 AM
Quote
I know this is overly dramatic, but the National Socialists were a small minority as were the Bolsheviks.
Quote
you just associated the Tea Party and GOP with the Nazis.
Just a very small association!! ahahahahah ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on September 16, 2011, 02:02:20 PM
Sweet, a thread actually invoking Godwin's law.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 16, 2011, 03:56:09 PM
You just associated the Tea Party and GOP with the Nazis.  With all due respect...that is the kind of bullshit bomb throwing that people are sick of.  If you want to talk about politics, talk about the issues instead of throwing bombs.   bfbfbfbfbf

The association was only with regard to the fact that a small minority can take power.  It was a response to Kitano's statement, not a "bomb". It also said nothing about the GOP. But then again I'm not saying that the Tea Party is NOT a group of racist, xenophobic, selfish, hate-mongers either.  The door's open for discussion on that one.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 16, 2011, 03:59:37 PM
Sweet, a thread actually invoking Godwin's law.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law



"Precisely because such a comparison or reference may sometimes be appropriate, Godwin has argued[4] that overuse of Nazi and Hitler comparisons should be avoided, because it robs the valid comparisons of their impact."

So was my invocation of Social Democrats an overuse or appropriate?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: kitano on September 16, 2011, 05:51:33 PM
There are quite a few parallels between the situations, capitalism coming close to collapse, capitalist democracy losing validity, fear gaining more and more political capital.....

I don't for a second think that the TEA party are anything like the Nazis though, when you look at it now you can see the Nazis had a strategy almost from day 1, the right in the US seem to be pretty random (unless they are being 'crazy like a fox'....)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: latefordinner on September 16, 2011, 10:00:06 PM
good question, A-Train. My first thought was that yours was hyperbole, but kit hits the nail on the head with this observation:
Quote
fear gaining more and more political capital
In that one respect at least, I believe your comparison is valid.
Is the looney right in the US "crazy like a fox"? Ten years of Rove, Cheney and Rumsfeld provide unsettling evidence. They aren't Tea Party, but ideologically close enough to manipulate the TP fear.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on September 16, 2011, 11:05:06 PM
Sweet, a thread actually invoking Godwin's law.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law



"Precisely because such a comparison or reference may sometimes be appropriate, Godwin has argued[4] that overuse of Nazi and Hitler comparisons should be avoided, because it robs the valid comparisons of their impact."

So was my invocation of Social Democrats an overuse or appropriate?
ha, I think you have a point. Godwin's Law is absurd, which is why I like it.

Re: the randomness of the TEA party - I'm not convinced of it myself. The Koch brothers have played, and payed, a crucial role in the TEA party movement. If it wasn't for them the TEA party might not exist, or at least probably would not be the force it is today.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/oct/25/tea-party-koch-brothers

How so many people now equate corporate freedom and personal freedom is surely in no small part to their influence.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 17, 2011, 12:38:09 AM
Yaar. With or without the Tea Party, the Republicans ain't what they used to be.

Their current platform boils down to two major planks:

1) Reduce or eliminate taxes on corporations and the super-wealthy.
and
2) Reduce or eliminate regulations on business- environmental, child labor, workplace safety, etc.

Personally, I know NO ONE who will benefit from these things. kkkkkkkkkk
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 19, 2011, 08:43:44 PM
Just to keep this kettle boiling.... ahahahahah
Quote
SAY WHAT?
"Never hurts to rumormonger."
—Sarah Palin, in an email musing on ways to prevent Alaska Senate President Lyda Green from being re-elected
"Flippin' unbelievable. Wouldn't you think they'd be afraid of being proved wrong when they rumor around the building like that?"
—Palin, in a subsequent email objecting to a (true) rumor that Bristol Palin was pregnant
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 20, 2011, 10:21:08 PM
Quote
"I have more power than anybody other than the president, in the sense that I can get things changed, quickly. I don't have to go through the legislative process; I don't have to do any of that. I can just bring it to the people and say, 'Look, this has gotta be dealt with.'"
—Bill O'Reilly
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 20, 2011, 11:13:10 PM
By that definition, OBL had more power also.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on October 20, 2011, 08:41:16 PM
Quote
SAY WHAT?
"He put us in Libya. He is now putting us in Africa."
—Michele Bachmann on Obama
regular little Tiger Woods, innhe! bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on October 20, 2011, 08:45:52 PM
More like:

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v176/RaoulSaloon/Saloonies/bachmann-crazy.jpg)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on October 28, 2011, 08:31:12 PM
Quote
SAY WHAT?
""It's not okay. It's a license to do things in a sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be.""
—Rick Santorum on contraception
I think that's fucked up! bibibibibi
Why do some "people" think contraception is bad and evil??
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on October 29, 2011, 01:02:21 AM
Rick Santorum is one of the scariest of the Republican Primary nutjobs. Fortunately, the odds of him getting the nomination are slim to none.

If you're not already in on the joke, google just the word "santorum" by itself sometime. uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: live-long-and-prosper on October 29, 2011, 02:49:47 AM
Good topic, Yes, there surely must be something in the water in the USA.  I am not there very often thankfully, but it seems the whole country is off the deep end.

Case in point is the obsession with terrorism and the absurdity people submit to at airport screenings. 

Its ironic because I have been doing some reading recently and the US's war on terror sounds eerily similar to the various campaigns and "struggle sessions" used to enforce a reign of terror in the Mao Zedong era to shape public opinion.

It just sends a chill up my spine when ever I walk through a US airport and hear "the TSA has determined the terrorist threat is Level Orange" blaring over the loudspeakers every 5 minutes, see the storm trooper's dressed in black with automatic weapons slung across their shoulders, and watch overweight high school drop outs, wearing rubber gloves, pat-down a terrified 80 year old woman in a wheelchair.

Believe me, the chill is not coming from me worrying about a terrorist, the real threat is clearly the oppressive nature of governments.     
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 19, 2011, 08:55:04 PM
I don't think the color-coding system you refer to is used anymore.  I think they just declare that the threat level is "Elevated" or "Imminent".  I travel in the U.S. a fair amount and I can't really say that there is a high presence of weaponry by the authorities.  But maybe I'm numb to it now.  I have to agree that the pat-down procedure is pretty useless and that the change that has done the most to prevent attacks was when they sealed off the cockpit.  The rest is mostly showmanship but I can't argue with the results and I don't feel too put upon by the procedures.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on November 29, 2011, 11:24:34 PM
Meanwhile, the horrible, horrible Newt Gingrich is, incredibly, the new current Republican front-runner...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v176/RaoulSaloon/Saloonies/newt2012.jpg)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on November 30, 2011, 06:31:29 AM
This is the idiot that said, "sack all the school janitors and pay students to clean the schools"
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 30, 2011, 09:33:24 PM
Here's a goody from Sept 12, of last year:

"What if [Obama] is so outside our comprehension, that only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior, can you begin to piece together [his actions]?" Gingrich asks. "That is the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior."

"This is a person who is fundamentally out of touch with how the world works, who happened to have played a wonderful con, as a result of which he is now president,"
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: CaseyOrourke on December 01, 2011, 12:16:52 AM
This is the idiot that said, "sack all the school janitors and pay students to clean the schools"

Hell, that is what they do here in China.  Every morining when I go to work, there is always a bunch of students armed with brooms and dustpans sweeping up all the dirt, leaves and ciggarette butts from the roads, watering plants and cleaning the windows.  Last winter while we was still living in Jilin Province my niece got a call from her college everytime it snowed to come help shovel snow from the sidewalks and doorways of the dormitory and classrooms.

It might do he fat lazy American kids some good.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on December 01, 2011, 03:46:29 AM
True, but in China they don't employ janitors in the first place!
If the Idiot carried out his stupid idea, what would all the unemployed janitors do? Go on the dole??
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: latefordinner on December 01, 2011, 04:14:01 AM
1) they do so have janitors in China. They are the hardest working, most dilligent family members and friends of friends money can employ to sit and drink tea while the kids clean the classrooms.
2) if the teapublians had their way, those unemployed american janitors would all join the teapublicans who put them out of work and blame someone else.
3) yes, I've had the same thought before, both about kids in my home country and about some of the Ch kids I've taught here. It would do the lazy F'rs some good. Problem is, its always the lazy f'rs who get out of doing the work or do a piss-poor job of it. And its always the kids who have already learned a life lesson or three who get stuck doing the crap jobs. Which is why I go out of my way to be nice to them.
4)
Quote
"This is a person who is fundamentally out of touch with how the world works, who happened to have played a wonderful con, as a result of which he is now president,"
Classic projection in a lime-green shade of envy
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: skippyteach on December 10, 2011, 03:11:45 AM
After reading the whole of the thread----I don't think I've felt more at home!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: pydilyk on December 13, 2011, 04:02:24 AM
Anyone seen the new rick perry 'gays in the military but kids can't celebrate Christmas ad'? It is so absurd and shocking that it is hard to believe it's real. Unbelievable that someone can say something so stupid and be so ignorant and still be considered relevant.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on December 13, 2011, 12:00:29 PM
Fortunately, Rick Perry's mouth has pretty much dug him out of the relevance zone...at least outside of Texas...and thank God for that.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: zero on December 13, 2011, 12:42:09 PM
Anyone seen the new rick perry 'gays in the military but kids can't celebrate Christmas ad'? It is so absurd and shocking that it is hard to believe it's real. Unbelievable that someone can say something so stupid and be so ignorant and still be considered relevant.
What about gays in the military celebrating Christmas? Is that wrong?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Just Like Mr Benn on December 13, 2011, 01:16:36 PM
Anyone seen the new rick perry 'gays in the military but kids can't celebrate Christmas ad'? It is so absurd and shocking that it is hard to believe it's real. Unbelievable that someone can say something so stupid and be so ignorant and still be considered relevant.

That's nothing. Wait until the Superpac (nothing to do with the candidates, despite the fact that it's run by their ex-Press Secretaries) adverts start next year. As the Supreme Court said, you can't have too much freedom of speech.

I've heard it said that Perry is over compensating a bit because of the gay rumours about him.

I reckon womeone new will still jump in the race. They've missed the first batch of filing deadlines, but I can't honestly believe the Tea party are going to be able to stomach Gingrich.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on December 13, 2011, 11:20:42 PM
Getting away from politics for a while............tom cruise playing Jack Reacher!
Whattya think? Should the mindless midget play the part of the great Jack Reacher? I know Lee Child is a Pom, but he lives in the US. Has he sold his principles for a shitload of dollars? He created the character Reacher, as a big, tough ncompromising, tough guy,and has successfully turned him into around 14 books, and a squillion dollars, but now, he is agreeing to have him portrayed by a snivelling short-arsed scientologist!! Opinions, anyone?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on December 14, 2011, 04:26:45 AM
Well, it works like this, George...movie company buys movie rights. Authors rarely get to make decisions about which actor stars in the movie adaptations. Having read Lee Child, I can only agree with you completely, Jack Reacher should not be played by Tom Cruise. That is about as sensible as...oh, I don't know...if they had made Andre the Giant play Willow Ufgood in "Willow"....but George, don't worry, it is simply because the people who decide which actor should play which character are way too busy to read books...very simple explanation.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on December 14, 2011, 08:21:49 AM
Thank you Squirrel. Some of them must read at least, parts of a book. How else do they come up with the idea to change the ending, or the locations, of the heroine's hair colour, etc?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on December 14, 2011, 01:27:38 PM
That's the script-writer who does that. Oh, I am sure that, in some lone dungeon beneath the various studios there is some disgraced former-esec who has been saddled with the job of trawling through works of literature, or what today laughably passes for such, and then make suggestions as to how the work can be changed. However, one cannot blane the author for casting. That has to do with the agent and the popularity of the actor. The "Reacher" novels are hugely popular and Mr. Cruise could definitely use a career pick-me-up.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on December 30, 2011, 04:47:57 AM
""Every barrel of oil that comes out of those sands in Canada is a barrel of oil that we don't have to buy from a foreign source.""
—Gov. Rick Perry
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on December 30, 2011, 04:44:29 PM
""Every barrel of oil that comes out of those sands in Canada is a barrel of oil that we don't have to buy from a foreign source.""
—Gov. Rick Perry

Damnit!  The annexation of Canada wasn't supposed to be announced for another few months. bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: zero on December 30, 2011, 05:16:06 PM
I think that most Americans truly think of Canada as pretty much interchangeable with the U.S. However, Canadians do not seem to appreciate that viewpoint too much.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on December 30, 2011, 06:14:01 PM
No, no, no...you guys are assuming too much.

You seem to think the USA is out to annex Canada.

You're wrong. We don't want it. kkkkkkkkkk


TEXAS is out to annex Canada. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on December 30, 2011, 08:56:45 PM
Now, this I just don't understand! Is he saying something here, or just flapping his gums?

""I want the full portrait of evolution and the people who came up with the ideas to be presented. It's a worldview and it's godless. Atheism has been tried in various societies, and they've been pretty criminal domestically and internationally. The Soviet Union, Cuba, the Nazis, China today: they don't respect human rights...Columbine, remember that? They were believers in evolution. That's evidence right there.""
—NH state Rep. Jerry Bergevin, on his bill requiring schools to include evolution scientists' positions on atheism
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Stil on December 30, 2011, 09:09:41 PM

Now, this I just don't understand! Is he saying something here, or just flapping his gums?

""I want the full portrait of evolution and the people who came up with the ideas to be presented. It's a worldview and it's godless. Atheism has been tried in various societies, and they've been pretty criminal domestically and internationally. The Soviet Union, Cuba, the Nazis, China today: they don't respect human rights...Columbine, remember that? They were believers in evolution. That's evidence right there.""
—NH state Rep. Jerry Bergevin, on his bill requiring schools to include evolution scientists' positions on atheism


It's perfectly simple George.

Evolution = Godlessness
Godlessness = Atheism
Atheism = no respect for human rights

therefore

Evolution = no respect for human rights.

The Colombine shootings are the proofs for the equation.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 06, 2012, 05:29:55 PM
Now, this I just don't understand! Is he saying something here, or just flapping his gums?

Oh, he definately wants to say something and is not alone.  Here's a bit about the Republican candidate who just "won" the Iowa Caucus Tuesday.

"In 2001, Santorum sought to amend the No Child Left Behind bill to include a provision affecting the teaching of evolution. According to Santorum, his goal was that students studying evolution should hear "competing scientific interpretations of evidence," including "such alternative theories as intelligent design." The provision came to be known as the "Santorum Amendment" and was written with the assistance of the Discovery Institute. The Senate's approval of the amendment "was hailed by anti-evolution groups as a major victory and criticized by scientific organizations"
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: kitano on January 06, 2012, 06:54:02 PM
I think that one of the reasons that these nutcases have taken over the Republicans is because America is traditionally so anti-Socialist and there is a huge vacuum.

It's quite worrying how there seem to be more and more fundamentalists because it also means that there are no checks on the capitalists. I wouldn't even be surprised if it was deliberate.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 07, 2012, 07:04:42 PM
Americans are indeed very anti-Socialist...yet in many ways the USA is much more Socialist than is China. The USA offers things like tuition-free public schools, advanced infrastructure, etc. that China will probably never offer.

I think that the "Socialist" parts individuals like are grudgingly accepted as natural functions of the government, while the parts they don't like are branded as "Socialism." This tends to cleave along party lines, with Democrats much more accepting of public works than are the idiots Republicans.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 07, 2012, 07:39:54 PM
Quote
tuition-free public schools,
Hey! That's a novel idea....schools with no tuition! ahahahahah ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 10, 2012, 01:07:25 AM
I think that one of the reasons that these nutcases have taken over the Republicans is because America is traditionally so anti-Socialist and there is a huge vacuum.

It's quite worrying how there seem to be more and more fundamentalists because it also means that there are no checks on the capitalists. I wouldn't even be surprised if it was deliberate.

The anti-socialist/communist fixation is huge and goes hand-in-hand with religious extremists who also believe they are the only true patriots.  And it goes without saying that these groups are extremely pro-military (which is even scarier). Checks on capitalists?  Hell, all of the above is fueled by corporate money which is only getting worse since the Supreme Court declared corporations "people" and their expenditures as "free speech".
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 10, 2012, 11:57:09 PM
Quote
tuition-free public schools,
Hey! That's a novel idea....schools with no tuition! ahahahahah ahahahahah

Do that imply that one pays tuition for Australian public schools, like the one pictured here? mmmmmmmmmm
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v176/RaoulSaloon/aussieschool.jpg)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 11, 2012, 07:29:11 AM
That's an Adult Education class, RD. They do cost!

Quote
Hey! That's a novel idea....schools with no tuition!


Quote
Do that imply that one pays tuition for Australian public schools, like the one pictured here?
No, that implies that "tuition-free" implies that the schools don't actually teach anything! llllllllll
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Granny Mae on January 11, 2012, 11:17:04 AM
These schools definitely teach a valuable lesson in Australia. bfbfbfbfbf If you flatten all the aluminium cans, you can fit more into a hessian bag to cart them off to the folk who pay good money for these cans. You then learn to go out and buy more full cans, consume the contents, then start the process again. bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: CaseyOrourke on January 11, 2012, 07:34:06 PM
I think that most Americans truly think of Canada as pretty much interchangeable with the U.S. However, Canadians do not seem to appreciate that viewpoint too much.
Let me address a few subjects...

I had a friend from Vancouver BC tell me that what most Canadians wanted Canade to be is:
French culture, British politics and American technology, but what they got (much to their displeasure) is a country basing its entire identity on French politics, British technology and American culture....

next....
Us early teabaggers don't hold a lot of high reguard for the current crop of yahoos who have associated themselves with the movement.  They have managed to hijack the movement, move it to the extreme right and now it is so marginalized and vocal that the moderates in the movement are being completely shut out by both sides (the right because we aren't in lockstep with their beliefs and the left because we have conservative leanings they paint us with the same brush they do the radicals)

finally tom Cruise and his movies.....

I could care less.  I haven't gone to see a movie in years.  If you gave me a list of the hottest actresses and actors working today, I ask who they were?  I'm to busy with life to worry about the fantasy world of Hollywood. 

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 11, 2012, 08:31:02 PM
Us early teabaggers don't hold a lot of high reguard for the current crop of yahoos who have associated themselves with the movement.  They have managed to hijack the movement, move it to the extreme right and now it is so marginalized and vocal that the moderates in the movement are being completely shut out by both sides (the right because we aren't in lockstep with their beliefs and the left because we have conservative leanings they paint us with the same brush they do the radicals)


That must have been an extremely brief moment because the pistol-packing, Obama-haters were out in full force in early 2010.  And the candidates they ran that Spring were mondo bizzarro and beyond. 

Personally, I think the moderates you refer to should hook up with the "Occupy" movement. They have a lot more in common than what appears on the surface.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 12, 2012, 05:23:58 AM
Quote
SAY WHAT?
""This is the kind of, the kind of snobbery that we see from those who think they know how to run our lives. Rise up, America. Defend your own freedoms.""
—Rick Santorum, on President Obama's (alleged) suggestion that all kids should go to college
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 12, 2012, 07:10:58 AM
They also lashed out at Mrs. Obama for the same reasons when she tried to encourage kids to eat healthier and lose weight.  It's MY miocardio infarction and you can't take it away from me.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 12, 2012, 08:39:37 AM
A lot of people just hate the Obamas. I think there's still a deep undercurrent of racism going on. Sometimes it's heavily veiled, sometimes it's pretty blatant. If you wade into many online political discussions (which I do not recommend aaaaaaaaaa ) you'll still find comments like "That nigger will NEVER be "my President!" Pretty sickening stuff.

I was really stoked about the Occupy movement at first, but I've cooled considerably on them. Their hearts are in the right place, but they're basically an amorphous mass with no shape or direction. Drum circles and park curfew violations are just not going to change anything. kkkkkkkkkk
We need some non-violent but much more direct civil disobedience. More people are going to have to be willing to brave pepper spray, beatings, and arrest...on a much larger scale than we've had so far. We should all know that large-scale social change and freedom generally don't tend to come from asking politely.

For me, I think we should get rakes and torches, form an unruly mob, and absolutely insist that our guys in the Senate and the House of Reprehensibles vote for legislation that will strike down the Supreme Court decision Citizens United v Federal Election Commission. This was the mess that made money a Constitutionally-protected form of speech, and gave corporations the same rights as individual citizens.
Getting rid of that horror wouldn't exorcise all the demons in our political situation, but it would sure be a great place to start.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 12, 2012, 08:59:17 AM
By the way, I have a very small little Facebook page called "Why Modern Conservatives/Republicans SUCK So Much." (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Why-Modern-ConservativesRepublicans-SUCK-So-Much/268030176564159 (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Why-Modern-ConservativesRepublicans-SUCK-So-Much/268030176564159))

Not a lot happens there, but you're welcome to Like it if you want. If you're a Modern Conservative/Republican you should probably just stay away and go suck somewhere else. uuuuuuuuuu  This is NOT a political-debate page, it's a calling-it-like-it-is page, and the dissenting snipers rapidly get the ol' heave ho.

This is the rant that started it all:

Why Modern Conservatives/Republicans SUCK So Much

The Republican Party of Everett Dirksen is long dead. Even the Republican Party of Richard Nixon is long dead! Hell, even the "ketchup-is-a-vegetable" Republican Party of Ronald Reagan has been gone for years.

What we have now is a Jihad with basically only 2 planks left in their platform:

1) They want to keep taxes low for corporations and the obscenely wealthy, hoping instead to raise taxes on poor people already at or below the poverty line. If you're reading this, THAT POSITION IS NOT GOING TO HELP YOU! But that's not the worst thing they do...

2) They want to roll back government regulations on business...you know, the laws that keep children from working in factories, entire species from being wiped out, national parks from being turned into tire fires, and so on. Again, if you're reading this, THAT POSITION IS NOT GOING TO HELP YOU! But that's not the worst thing they do, either...

No, the WORST thing they do is wrap themselves up in The Flag and The Bible- both of which are wonderful things in themselves- and, somehow, convince average working-class Americans to actually support this huge naked theft of our country! They use evil blithering idiots like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck, or Fox News (owned by Rupert Murdoch, an obscenely rich man who does not like being taxed or regulated in any way) to outright lie and overtly distort reality into a package that Joe Sixpack will swallow without question.

They've also openly announced that getting rid of President Obama is their #1 priority...and they're perfectly willing to damage the whole country in the process of doing so. They're simply ITCHING to get rid of our long-overdue Health Care reform- a position popular with those who already have health insurance- and they're standing firmly in the way of the meaningful Bank Reforms we desperately need. If President Obama were to find a cure for cancer, these boneheads would be screaming about all the oncologists and morticians he was putting out of work!

ENOUGH ALREADY!

- Try thinking for yourself! Check a few facts! Go use that festering pile of blatant socialism- your Public Library- or get on the internet, and check some things! Think through the things these paleo-Conservative vipers are telling you...are they true, and are they really going to be good for YOU?

- TURN OFF FOX NEWS, for Pete's sake. Get your news from sources that don't come with a pre-set bias, for once...there are still a few out there, you know. Or, watch Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert...they may be comedy shows, but you'll still FIND MORE TRUTH IN ONE HOUR WITH THEM THAN YOU WILL IN A WHOLE DAY OF FOX NEWS!

- Don't let alleged "people" like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck get stinking rich anymore off of your unwillingness to check facts and ask questions!

- Don't just take the lies and stupidity...speak out against it! It's just amazing how quiet Conservatives get when confronted by solid, indisputable facts. ;-{)

- On election days, get off yer duff and GO VOTE....for just about ANYTHING except one of this current breed of Republicans!

LONG LIVE THE TRUTH!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 12, 2012, 09:19:56 AM
By the way,
I am a rare beast indeed; you're more likely to find a unicorn or a Sasquatch than another like me. Someday you can tell your grandkids you knew one!

I am a Catholic Liberal. I'm NOT a "Liberal Catholic"; that label is used by a sort of a non-Roman Catholic cult group. But I AM a Catholic Liberal...almost an oxymoron like "military intelligence."

I'm pretty much in step with my Church.
An example: Personally I'm pro-Life and hate abortion...but socio-politically I'm pro-Choice; I don't feel entitled to nail my personal religious beliefs onto others. I strongly dislike the "Pro-Life Jihad" element in our Church...they're giving us a bad name in a time when we're, uh...sort of already having a little PR problem. I believe in combating abortion with prayer, not by shooting doctors or pushing baby carriages with bloody baby-dolls or getting in the faces of poor scared, conflicted women who may be heading into Planned Parenthood for very different reasons than an abortion.

Anyway. The Catholics are a pretty conservative lot. I run my local church's Facebook page, and I really have to hold my nose (not to mention my tongue) at some of the stuff people there have on their personal Facebook pages.

It's weird. Jesus was a pretty liberal guy.
A recent scientific study (this is true!) found that people tend to be more liberal, the more extensively they read the Bible.
And I read mine every day.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 12, 2012, 10:41:38 AM
But do you believe in God?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 12, 2012, 12:01:52 PM
Of course I do. I've seen him on a number of occasions.
But that's probably a conversation best left for another thread, if not another venue entirely. oooooooooo
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 12, 2012, 12:30:42 PM
That's Ok. Just askin'.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: fullricebowl on January 12, 2012, 07:22:06 PM
I grew up in a very conservative Lutheran church and definitely, due to their stance on abortion, it was suggested that voting for republicans would be the more "godly" way to vote. By the time I was old enough to vote in my first election this had left me with some sense that democrats seemed to have good policy but they didn't really care about my beliefs. Once I learned more about the actual policy behind the propaganda, I felt more or less used by the republican party- that they'd used me for my beliefs to enact whatever policies their donors wanted. I feel like the biggest issue is the politicizing of everything to make people pissed off and unable to discuss anything. If we actually discussed individual issues (save abortion and the like) I think people would realize we all pretty much want similar things. I don't feel like republican candidates actually say anything anymore- a bunch of statements about freedom, war on religion, American values- nothing with any practical application of what they want to do but lots of things to piss people off/make them afraid.

Raoul- you are definitely not the first Catholic Liberal I've run in to (one of them is currently praying for my conversion). Really refreshing to read any Christian-liberal perspective.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 12, 2012, 08:38:48 PM
Quote
Raoul- you are definitely not the first Catholic Liberal I've run in to...

Really! Well, I'll pray for your conversion. uuuuuuuuuu
Have you encountered a website/Facebook page called "The Christian Left"? (http://www.thechristianleft.org (http://www.thechristianleft.org)) It's wonderful. I don't agree with everything I see there, but I'm cool with that. So much more is very comfortable for me. It's actually a demonstration of the Christian faith that allows you to keep your brain, contrary to what many think is possible. It appeals to the mind as well as the heart and soul. It's Christianity without snake-handlers, "prosperity gospel" and heavy duns for money, doctor-assassins, inbred yokels carrying signs reading "God Hates Fags", TV preachers with Jiffy-Pop hairdos, obscene excesses of sanctimonious hypocrisy, and all the other extreme non-mainstream crap that quite understandably turns many people away from Christianity. It really doesn't have to be like that.

Anyway.
I did want to clarify one thing in particular. When I stated that
Quote
I believe in combating abortion with prayer, not by shooting doctors or pushing baby carriages with bloody baby-dolls or getting in the faces of poor scared, conflicted women who may be heading into Planned Parenthood for very different reasons than an abortion.
let me make it clear that this is the MAINSTREAM Catholic view. I did not mean to imply that this was something unique to me.

And, sorry. We almost never talk religion around here- with good reason aoaoaoaoao -and I want to keep it that way.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on January 13, 2012, 12:51:30 AM
Having watched the GOP debates and finding them really funny, I must admit I am a little confused about this whole God-business. Maybe it's a European thing, but I can honestly say that when we vote for the schmucks in Parliament and the uber-schmuck, that would be the PM, no-one gives a rats behind about their religious views..weeeelll....if a candidate professes to believe in Anton Szandor Lavey and would like necromancy to be part of the elementary school curriculum, then there might be a problem....Now, I am not trying to cause trouble here but could anyone please explain to me this, as I see it, extremely ambiguous part of American society. Every Christmas and Easter I read news about some group being cheesed off because someone has put up a Christmas tree, a nativity scene, said Happy Easter or some such, since such acts are, apparently, perceived as being preachy...and yet, when it comes to the presidential election, the candidates can't utter one phrase without mentioning God, be it the Mormon, Catholic or Protestant one....Why does it matter which incarnation of God a candidate prays too? I am just being curious here, not out to villify religion or any such nonsense.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 13, 2012, 02:42:58 AM
What I was talking about, Eric, was nothing to do with a candidate's beliefs. It doesn't matter much to me.

But it does to a lot of Americans, apparently.
These would be our simple people...our people of the land. You know...morons. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 13, 2012, 03:21:10 AM
I think you've broached two topics.  1) "Why is America and its politicians so 'religious'?" and, 2)" Why do religious people think they are being persecuted for their beliefs?"; especially when they they are in the majority and have so much religious freedom.

You Europeans had your chance to be the religious epicenter of the world and through classism, wars, monarchies and general sinfulness, you blew it. America is the world's fresh start, savior and restorer of religious virginity...you just don't know it.  Europe "strayed from the path" like the Biblical Lost Sheep and God created the New World to right the situation.  To continue America's destiny, (at this point you should read up on "American Exceptionalism), she needs leaders that share this vision of herself. Thus, all political contenders must be firmly rooted in religion, (preferably Protestant), and since a burden of this size cannot be borne in silence, they must make their beliefs public.

Trust me when I say that the above is embraced by most Americans.  I'd like to say that this is restricted to conservative voters, but it would be a vast understatement. 

As to why the extremist portion of the above people believe they are being persecuted by government and atheists?  Well, you can't be truly Christian without a Savior Complex. If you asked 100 Americans if prayer in school is legal, I think well over 90 would say "no", when the reverse is actually true.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 13, 2012, 01:27:48 PM
Trust me when I say that the above is embraced by most Americans.

I might go for "many", A-Train, but not "most".
It might be accurate to say "most" Americans subscribe to the misconception that our country was founded to be intrinsically a Christian nation; it wasn't...but people here still tend to expect their political leaders to express acceptance of Christianity (or, at least, Judaism). A non-Christian or atheist/agnostic would have a very hard time being elected as President.

Much of the current uproar centers on the fact that candidate Mitt Romney (as well as largely irrelevant candidate Jon Huntsman) is a Mormon. In a big blast of very un-Christian judgment and arrogance, the status of Mormonism as a Christian sect is very much contested by some of the more fundamentalist/evangelical groups. The same thing happened when Catholic John F. Kennedy ran for President back in 1960.

Mormonism, by the way, is of purely American origin and formation...not a holdover from Europe.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on January 13, 2012, 03:41:25 PM
As the extremists of the right try to outdo the extremists of the left in the utter stupidity department, the time has come to finally realize that insane times call for insane leadership.

Your choice is simple.  Keep selecting the lesser of two weasels in ever election, or else give your total loyalty to the one person crazy enough to take the reigns of power and drive the world out of this darkness.

ESCAPED LUNATIC FOR EMPEROR!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 13, 2012, 05:37:59 PM
Trust me when I say that the above is embraced by most Americans.

I might go for "many", A-Train, but not "most".  It might be accurate to say "most" Americans subscribe to the misconception that our country was founded to be intrinsically a Christian nation; it wasn't...but people here still tend to expect their political leaders to express acceptance of Christianity...

I'll bet that most American VOTERS believe, basically, what I tried to state.  And there is no doubt that the vast majority of Americans believe in "American Exceptionalism" which is rooted in Christianity.  America is the new "Promised Land" and "The Chosen People".
http://washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/2010/12/poll-americans-believe-american-exceptionalism-not-sure-about-oba
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 13, 2012, 06:03:09 PM
Quote
the lesser of two weasels
That's "the lesser of two weevils" EL. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on January 13, 2012, 09:00:12 PM
Quote
the lesser of two weasels
That's "the lesser of two weevils" EL. ahahahahah

I didn't want to insult weevils.  They are a bigger voting block than weasels. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 26, 2012, 10:39:48 PM
Quote
SAY WHAT?
""I believe in an America where millions of Americans believe in an America that's the America millions of Americans believe in. That's the America I love.""
—Mitt Romney in stump speech
ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 27, 2012, 12:03:54 AM
Talking Without Saying Anything is a very old and common political tool. But I gotta admit...Romney raises it to a true art form, at levels one would have never suspected even possible. bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: AMonk on January 27, 2012, 01:20:49 AM
... you ain't never heard Bermuda's (present) Premier aoaoaoaoao  She's a corporate lawyer by training, who swallowed a dictionary and washed it down with a thesaurus. bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 29, 2012, 10:04:34 PM
Talking Without Saying Anything is a very old and common political tool. But I gotta admit...Romney raises it to a true art form, at levels one would have never suspected even possible. bibibibibi

Yeah, but Bush did it without trying. That has to be worthy of some sort of award.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 30, 2012, 04:45:51 PM
Bush is just stupid. I think he probably talks like that naturally. ahahahahah
Romney, on the other hand, truly is a weasel...a corporate-owned simulacrum programmed to spend hours talking a lot and saying nothing. asasasasas
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 30, 2012, 07:19:30 PM
What bothers me most is this reverence the country has for business and business people. The free market is today's temple, Adam Smith the prophet. That and the reflex-contempt for anything to do with government.  As if business never fu*ks up royally and government has never done a bit of good. Romney is the bland product of the national marketing department and his "corporations are people" slogan a natural byproduct of the whole concoction as well as a sign of things to come.  If you aint corporate, you aint $hit. And your breathing rights are under review to ensure that you are providing an adequate ROI to the system.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on January 30, 2012, 08:06:34 PM
Amen, brother.

What bothers me most is this reverence the country has for business and business people. The free market is today's temple, Adam Smith the prophet. That and the reflex-contempt for anything to do with government.

What's really bad is that the less someone has benefited from the free market, and the more they've benefited from the government, the more likely they are to feel that way. bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on February 18, 2012, 12:43:38 AM
Oh dear. bibibibibi
Quote
SAY WHAT?
""Who let her slip or pushed her underneath that water?...Who let Whitney Houston go under her water?""
—Nancy Grace on CNN
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: dragonsaver on February 18, 2012, 04:25:38 AM
 ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on March 01, 2012, 01:05:59 AM
Recent quote from one of the front-runners of the Republican Party, Rick Santorum:

"President Obama once said he wants everybody in America to go to college, What a snob."
"Oh I understand why he wants you to go to college, he wants to remake you in his image."
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on March 17, 2012, 11:34:04 PM
You poor people who live in Holland!!

“In the Netherlands, people wear different bracelets if they are elderly. And the bracelet is: ‘Do not euthanize me.’ Because they have voluntary euthanasia in the Netherlands but half of the people who are euthanized — ten percent of all deaths in the Netherlands — half of those people are enthanized involuntarily at hospitals because they are older and sick. And so elderly people in the Netherlands don’t go to the hospital. They go to another country, because they are afraid, because of budget purposes, they will not come out of that hospital if they go in there with sickness.”

— Presidential Candidate Rick Santorum,
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: dragonsaver on March 18, 2012, 03:09:53 AM
When his media representative was questioned about this - because it was not true, She told the reporter that he was just speaking from his heart.  Therefore, whatever Santorum says, whenever it is illogical or untrue is just cuz he is speaking from his heart.  llllllllll llllllllll llllllllll
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on March 18, 2012, 04:51:36 AM
Quote
just speaking from his heart
Is that because he has no brain to speak of..or from??........or does he just talk out of his arse!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on March 18, 2012, 04:52:26 PM
Quote
just speaking from his heart
Is that because he has no brain to speak of..or from??........or does he just talk out of his arse!

Quick!  Call all the media and let them know that this guy has an obvious heart defect, so shouldn't be elected.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on March 18, 2012, 04:57:31 PM
Ah, so one can make completely irrational and erroneous comments about a foreign country and then, after a journalist points out how stupid that is, have someone else declare that is was...err...a heartfelt...errrr...a heartfelt...what??? It is ok, I mean, it is not as if Santorum is running for some sort of political office where he will have to give lots of speeches and dictate foreign policy and such....Politicians are funny ahahahahah ahahahahah ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: fullricebowl on April 01, 2012, 03:22:05 AM
By the way,
I am a rare beast indeed; you're more likely to find a unicorn or a Sasquatch than another like me. Someday you can tell your grandkids you knew one!

I am a Catholic Liberal. I'm NOT a "Liberal Catholic"; that label is used by a sort of a non-Roman Catholic cult group. But I AM a Catholic Liberal...almost an oxymoron like "military intelligence."

You're not alone!

(http://npr.org/news/graphics/2012/03/gr-christianpolitics462.gif)

http://www.npr.org/blogs/ombudsman/2012/03/30/149717982/christian-is-not-synonymous-with-conservative (http://www.npr.org/blogs/ombudsman/2012/03/30/149717982/christian-is-not-synonymous-with-conservative)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on April 01, 2012, 05:54:04 PM
Yeah, I know. I think I'm only rare in this central part of the USA. And I'm not alone here, either, thank goodness. bfbfbfbfbf
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on April 02, 2012, 05:08:50 PM
Yeah, I know. I think I'm only rare in this central part of the USA. And I'm not alone here, either, thank goodness. bfbfbfbfbf

As opposed to that very common group of Native Americans who have converted to Islam and joined the Tea Party. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on April 07, 2012, 02:11:40 AM
Second only to the left-handed, blue-eyed, Amish bloc vote.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on April 07, 2012, 05:34:51 AM
....and speaking of business...
Quote
""We've got to do something about these Asians coming in, opening up businesses -- those dirty shops. They ought to go. I'll just say that right now, you know. But we need African-American businesspeople to be able to take their places, too.""
—two-term DC council member Marion Barry, in a primary night victory speech
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on April 07, 2012, 06:11:36 PM
....and speaking of business...
Quote
""We've got to do something about these Asians coming in, opening up businesses -- those dirty shops. They ought to go. I'll just say that right now, you know. But we need African-American businesspeople to be able to take their places, too.""
—two-term DC council member Marion Barry, in a primary night victory speech

Further proof that every political party and every ethnicity in America has its share of utterly stupid and deeply bigoted people who somehow keep getting reelected.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on May 18, 2012, 09:32:35 AM
""The long term goal of the homosexual movement is to get every little boy to grab his ankles and every little girl to give it a try. They will not rest until every one of our children at least gets to try, has the opportunity and maybe is forced to at least once experience homosexual acts."
—Paul Cameron, of the Family Research Institute, also stating that Obama's endorsement of same-sex marriage "lends some credence" to claims that the president is gay"

And some people will believe this! bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on May 18, 2012, 08:35:59 PM
....and speaking of business...
Quote
""We've got to do something about these Asians coming in, opening up businesses -- those dirty shops. They ought to go. I'll just say that right now, you know. But we need African-American businesspeople to be able to take their places, too.""
—two-term DC council member Marion Barry, in a primary night victory speech
This is very confusing. I expected this to be a white, woman, just searched the 'net and it turns out it's a black, man. I know anyone can be racist and ignorant but jeez.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on May 19, 2012, 08:46:59 AM
White women are more apt to be racist and ignorant? mmmmmmmmmm

Anyway...we're talking occasional Washington DC mayor and repeat-convicted coke fiend Marion Barry here. Calling him a "colorful character" would be putting it mildly.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: cruisemonkey on May 19, 2012, 03:48:54 PM
What's in the water in USA?

I can't believe in 10 pages of 'debate' everyone has missed the answer -
flouride.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on May 19, 2012, 04:32:23 PM
I can't believe in 10 pages of 'debate' everyone has missed the answer -
flouride.

You misspelled "fluoride". uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on May 19, 2012, 05:05:09 PM
Flouride is fluoride supplemented flour. ahahahahah

Mandrake, do you realize that in addition to fluoridating water, why, there are studies underway to fluoridate salt, flour, fruit juices, soup, sugar, milk... ice cream. Ice cream, Mandrake, children's ice cream.
  - General Jack D. Ripper
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: cruisemonkey on May 19, 2012, 10:59:16 PM
You misspelled "fluoride". uuuuuuuuuu

I have an excuse - I'm a dyslexic Canadian... ya know... Mexico north. You Yanks keep stealing all our best: actors, comedians and musicians; but with Manifest Destiny (and all that) it doesn't matter because a Canadian is really just an unarmed American with a health plan. The big difference is (most) Canadians don't watch Fox News and have a (slightly) longer than 15-second attention span.

If you keep showin' us up by pointing out our spelling mistakes we'll send you Celene Dion as punishment. Oh,... wait a minute... nevermind.  bfbfbfbfbf
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Stil on May 20, 2012, 02:58:25 AM
FOX News is awesome. One of the best parody shows ever. It's the most constantly funny show on TV.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on May 20, 2012, 06:03:37 AM
White women are more apt to be racist and ignorant? mmmmmmmmmm

Anyway...we're talking occasional Washington DC mayor and repeat-convicted coke fiend Marion Barry here. Calling him a "colorful character" would be putting it mildly.

No, just that I've met quite a few people called Marion so far in my life and they've all been female and white.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on May 20, 2012, 09:13:14 AM
"I'm not familiar, precisely, with exactly what I said, but I stand by what I said, whatever it was."
—Mitt Romney, standing by his earlier comment that Obama wanted to make America "a less Christian nation"
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on June 21, 2012, 10:00:55 AM
Quote
"What she said was offensive...It was so offensive, I don't even want to say it in front of women. I would not say that in mixed company."
-- Michigan state Rep. Mike Callton, on Rep. Lisa Brown being banned from speaking on the House floor for saying the word "vagina"

Delicate little petals, aren't they, but I wonder how many male members freely use the word "cunt" when talking about women.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on June 28, 2012, 08:38:44 AM
"I believe in an America where millions of Americans believe in an America that's the America millions of Americans believe in. That's the America I love."
—Mitt Romney

Good to be a believer.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on June 28, 2012, 02:37:30 PM
What would happen if millions of Americans didn't believe in America?  Would it become a mythical place like Atlantis? ahahahahah

(Now click your heels together 3 times and say "I wish there were competent candidates.  I wish there were competent candidates. . . ")
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on July 18, 2012, 09:08:26 AM
Quote
"[Obama is] a radical ideologue, a ruthless politician who despises the country and the way it was founded and the way in which it became great. He hates it."
-- Rush Limbaugh
ahahahahah ahahahahah I love Rush Limbaugh. He is such a fuckwit!!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 29, 2012, 10:42:36 AM
Politics
Todd Akin Claims Breastmilk Cures Homosexuality
http://dailycurrant.com/2012/08/26/todd-akin-claims-breastmilk-cures-homosexuality/ (http://dailycurrant.com/2012/08/26/todd-akin-claims-breastmilk-cures-homosexuality/)


August 26th, 2012


Missouri U.S. senate candidate Todd Akin has stoked more outrage today by claiming that male homosexuality is a disease and that the medical establishment has found the cure.
The Republican congressman, already under fire for his controversial comments regarding rape, told a reporter for Cape Giradeau's KBSI 23 News that "female breastmilk - when fed directly to an adult homosexual male daily for at least four weeks - has a 94% chance of permanently curing homosexual perversions."
"Lesbians can be cured by drinking something else."
Akin made the scientifically dubious statement during an interview that was supposed to mark the "rebirth" of his campaign to defeat incumbant U.S. senator Claire McCaskill.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on August 29, 2012, 04:06:11 PM
"Lesbians can be cured by drinking something else," Akin replied "I'll leave that one to your imagination."

Highly doubtful, but in the interest of science, I'll volunteer to assist a lesbian in the experiment. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on August 29, 2012, 04:14:11 PM
Damn.  No lesbian experiments today.  The original article was a satire. ananananan

http://www.mediaite.com/online/satirical-story-convinces-twitterverse-that-todd-akin-believes-breastmilk-cures-homosexuality/
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 29, 2012, 04:35:50 PM
It's getting harder to separate truth from satire, these days!!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on August 29, 2012, 08:51:34 PM
No, it is not...one merely needs to check the sources of the news. Maybe also realize that getting news from Twitter is not a good idea...
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: latefordinner on August 29, 2012, 09:23:26 PM
yes, always check your sources, some are more credible than others. AFAIK, twitter ain't at the top of anyone's list of credible sources. Still, it is a sign of well-written parody that it is mistakable for the real thing.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 30, 2012, 01:45:11 AM
Quote
one merely needs to check the sources of the news.
So I should watch FOX News??
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on August 30, 2012, 02:09:40 PM
Well, yes, and CNN and BBC and CCTV and any other news channel you can find. There are no news channel that objectively reports the news. Read any newspaper but lord, not Twitter.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Stil on August 30, 2012, 04:38:52 PM
Twitter is absolutely great for this problem because you can follow the actual journalists in the field. You can follow the news corps too and if there is any doubt as to the validity of the story, a lot of people will chime in with doubts and links to other stories pertaining to the topic. Crowd sourcing in real time.

I make lists with the Twitter accounts I follow. Like, China Blogs. Sports News, American politics and so on.  uuuuuuuuuu I skim through Twitter saving links to read later on something like Instapaper or Pocket

There's a bit of a learning curve but but once you figure out how to use it properly you make it as banal or as serious as you want it to be.

Facebook for friends and all the stupid things they have to say and pictures of their idiot kids and Twitter for more serious things is how I use them.

Also, Sina Weibo is a great tool for knowing what your students are being exposed to. Not necessarily to follow them as they tend to use it much like Facebook is used outside of China  aoaoaoaoao but for the general topics that are sweeping across China.

I'll often start my day by checking Weibo to see if there's anything big happening that's caught on and, if possible, adjust my lessons to include these topics. It could be as uninteresting as a celebrity couple break-up but the students are keen to talk about it. It's a great warm up. "Explain to me what happened to Fan Bingbing's dress?' "Do you think Zhou Kehua was working alone?" They get engaged and will even argue with each other in English.

Social Media is a tool.

Only a fool blames his tools.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 02, 2012, 01:44:23 AM
There are no news channel that objectively reports the news.

I'm sure this will get laughed out of the building, but I think National Public Radio has many objective and in-depth news programs.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: AMonk on September 02, 2012, 05:23:18 AM
Apparently, Cint Eastwood ababababab spoke at the Republican National Convention.  The vote is still split over whether he was spoofing ahahahahah or in early-stage dementia ssssssssss or working undercover for the Obama camapign :wtf:

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/31/politics/eastwood-speech/index.html
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 27, 2012, 08:52:01 AM
Quote
"[Obama] really is a lot like the substitute referees in the sense that he's not a real president. He doesn't do any of the things that presidents do. He doesn't worry about any of the things presidents do...And I suspect that he's pretty contemptuous of the rest of us."
—Newt Gingrich
I reckon Obama would be pretty contemptuous of Gingrich, at least.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on September 27, 2012, 05:24:33 PM
Quote
"[Obama] really is a lot like the substitute referees in the sense that he's not a real president. He doesn't do any of the things that presidents do. He doesn't worry about any of the things presidents do...And I suspect that he's pretty contemptuous of the rest of us."
—Newt Gingrich
I reckon Obama would be pretty contemptuous of Gingrich, at least.

I'm developing an ever-growing suspicion that it's all just like professional wrestling.  They get in front of the cameras and into the newspapers to say and write all sorts of over the top statements and wildly inaccurate accusations solely to draw people's interest, but everything said by both "sides" has all really been carefully scripted by some central office behind the scenes.  No matter who wins, both "sides" attend the "job well done" party after the election is over.

Oh damn.  Now UPE, Inc (US Political Entertainment Corporation) is going to hunt me down for outing them.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on September 27, 2012, 10:36:08 PM
Apparently, Cint Eastwood spoke at the Republican National Convention.  The vote is still split over whether he was spoofing or in early-stage dementia or working undercover for the Obama camapign

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/31/politics/eastwood-speech/index.html

Mr. Eastwood's classic response..."If somebody's dumb enough to ask me to go to a political convention and say something, they're gonna have to take what they get,"

AWESOME!!!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Raoul F. Duke on September 29, 2012, 03:14:21 PM
Yeah, but I watched Eastwood's speech on TV. My vote is early-stage dementia. aoaoaoaoao

Fox News is, I guess, a credible news source as long as they're not talking about politics. Their political "coverage" is pure Paleo-Conservative propaganda and is at best in the nature of "info-tainment". My vote is early-stage dementia. uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on October 01, 2012, 06:07:25 PM
Yeah, but I watched Eastwood's speech on TV. My vote is early-stage dementia.


Agreed, but he has as much right to it as any of us do...probably more. 
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on October 29, 2012, 02:06:54 PM
http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/music/meat-loaf-leaves-a-bad-taste-again-20121029-28e4d.html
This is hilarious..........and very, very sad!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: caley1313 on October 30, 2012, 09:14:41 AM
Most of the Republican element in the USA has seriously stepped off the curb...gone completely gobblers. And Michele Bachmann is leading the charge. kkkkkkkkkk

Fortunately, at least for now, the most rabid element seems to be completely unelectable in the general election. The only possibly electable Repubs are the relatively-moderate Mitt Romney, the unapologetic personal bitch of the banks and major corporations; and possibly Texas governor Rick Perry, who has been described as "George W. Bush on steroids". aaaaaaaaaa

Too funny. I have several friend who would agree with you wholeheartedly. Having worked with and for local, state and federal politicians over the years, I can personally attest to the fact that one needs little in the way of mental mass to be a politician. In fact, the lighter the load above one's neck, the better. Sad, but no one every said Democracy wasn't flawed. Cheers, from Carolina to Ningbo bound.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 07, 2012, 03:31:48 AM
This will not be that close. Obama takes Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nevada and, maybe, Virginia. This is over early; either Virginia goes Obama and/or Ohio...then it's "Katy by the door".
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: roadwalker on November 07, 2012, 04:16:21 AM
I won't eat my hat if wrong, but I expect a 2000-type election cluster-bungle a la Bush v. Gore.  Romney will mysteriously take Ohio but there will be more irregularities and lots and lots of information and disinformation going around. 
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: fullricebowl on November 07, 2012, 02:27:44 PM
I won't eat my hat if wrong, but I expect a 2000-type election cluster-bungle a la Bush v. Gore.  Romney will mysteriously take Ohio but there will be more irregularities and lots and lots of information and disinformation going around. 

There seems to be enough of that anyway- from NPR:
Quote
Florida's Republican Gov. Rick Scott signed legislation earlier this year that imposed new restrictions on voting, many of which were overturned by the courts.

One provision that remained in place reduced the days for early voting from 14 to eight. That led to long lines at early polling stations across the state last week, and some waits of four or more hours.

Early voting was very important to Florida Democrats in 2008, when a strong early-vote turnout helped Barack Obama carry the state.

Last week, a series of Democrats sent letters to Scott asking him to add days for early voting. He refused, so Democrats went to court. That's when county elections officials who were named in the lawsuit decided to allow in-person absentee voting.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/11/05/164355695/legal-battle-surrounds-florida-early-voting-dispute

I'm already kind of miffed about this- I requested my absentee ballot from my town clerk before they were released and she sent it as soon as she could on Sept 27th. Still not here. Wisconsin is one of the states that only allows you to vote using a paper ballot that needs to be shipped both way and doesn't even accept the federal "emergency ballot" you can print off and send in. This whole push by Republicans to curb "voter fraud" seems much more effective at limiting the ability of people (especially from more liberal demographics) to vote.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on November 07, 2012, 02:32:01 PM
And here we you go again.......
http://www.theage.com.au/world/us-election/voting-machine-changes-obama-to-romney-20121107-28x09.html (http://www.theage.com.au/world/us-election/voting-machine-changes-obama-to-romney-20121107-28x09.html)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on November 07, 2012, 07:37:54 PM
Well, now things can return to the normal level of insanity...Obama won and all this election stuff can take a break for four years and people can go back to watching Honey Boo Boo and waiting for the first intstallment of the "Shades of barf Grey" movie trilogy.  agagagagag agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: The Local Dialect on November 07, 2012, 08:24:34 PM
Thank you my fellow Americans! I am so glad this was not a repeat of 2000. Watching the results come in from Florida, I was worried there for a few.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Fozzwaldus on November 08, 2012, 02:35:55 AM
Yay Obama!

The people of Europe rejoice!   ahahahahah ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 08, 2012, 02:48:45 AM
 

Quote
http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/11/05/164355695/legal-battle-surrounds-florida-early-voting-dispute

I'm already kind of miffed about this- I requested my absentee ballot from my town clerk before they were released and she sent it as soon as she could on Sept 27th. Still not here. Wisconsin is one of the states that only allows you to vote using a paper ballot that needs to be shipped both way and doesn't even accept the federal "emergency ballot" you can print off and send in. This whole push by Republicans to curb "voter fraud" seems much more effective at limiting the ability of people (especially from more liberal demographics) to vote.

I had no problems. My Wisconsin Township e-mailed me the ballot and I returned it three weeks ago via snail-mail.  Well, at least I assume there were no problems getting it there. What's your home town?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 08, 2012, 02:50:04 AM
Well, now things can return to the normal level of insanity...Obama won and all this election stuff can take a break for four years and people can go back to watching Honey Boo Boo and waiting for the first intstallment of the "Shades of barf Grey" movie trilogy.  agagagagag agagagagag
I advise staying away from all U.S. news sources as the dialogue regarding the 2014 election, I guarantee, will start tomorrow.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: fullricebowl on November 08, 2012, 04:27:41 AM
A-Train- was your status with your township "permanent overseas"? By the time I discovered I could get a ballot that way it would've cost well over $30 to mail it back. I was under the impression that ballot didn't have any local elections on it, is that true? Well, live and learn I guess. My district is a rural township NW of Madison.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on November 08, 2012, 07:52:22 AM
Sore losers.....
Quote
"This election is a total sham... We are not a democracy!...We can't let this happen. We should march on Washington and stop this travesty... We should have a revolution in this country!"
-- Donald Trump tweeting on election night

"It's a perplexing time for many of us right now."
-- Sarah Palin
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: NATO on November 08, 2012, 12:47:11 PM
Seems certain areas of the Republican party aren't good at self-reflection. Mostly when a party loses an election in the UK they admit defeat, walk off with their heads down and try and work out what went wrong with their strategy before coming fresh and revitalised (well, that's the idea anyway).
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: The Local Dialect on November 08, 2012, 12:50:14 PM
The GOP is always all about the sour grapes. Back when it looked like Romney might actually win the popular vote, Fox news was on about the electoral college. Which, hello? We never would have had the Bush administration without the electoral college. And you can be sure that had Romney won the electoral college but not the popular vote, you wouldn't have heard a peep from those folks.

Basically sore losers and hypocrites. If you un-Facebook, consider yourself lucky. You're spared all of the "that's it, I'm moving to France" comments. Oh the (unintentional) irony!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on November 08, 2012, 01:55:13 PM
Thanks, LD. A nice segue into.......
http://www.theage.com.au/technology/technology-news/confused-so-was-kristen-neel-20121108-28zhi.html (http://www.theage.com.au/technology/technology-news/confused-so-was-kristen-neel-20121108-28zhi.html)
"I'm moving to Australia"
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: caley1313 on November 08, 2012, 04:33:56 PM
Sore losers.....
Quote
"This election is a total sham... We are not a democracy!...We can't let this happen. We should march on Washington and stop this travesty... We should have a revolution in this country!"
-- Donald Trump tweeting on election night

"It's a perplexing time for many of us right now."
-- Sarah Palin

Heh, I knew the election was over a week ago when my mostly black female marketing students were overheard talking about getting on the bus to go pre-vote. I asked them who they were going to vote for. They said: "Mr. Allison, you're so funny." Enough said.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 10, 2012, 07:17:40 PM
A-Train- was your status with your township "permanent overseas"? By the time I discovered I could get a ballot that way it would've cost well over $30 to mail it back. I was under the impression that ballot didn't have any local elections on it, is that true? Well, live and learn I guess. My district is a rural township NW of Madison.
Yes, "Permanent Overseas". Depends on the municipality, of course but it may only have to be postmarked by election day, not arrived before.
Which Township?  I'm from near Oconomowo, WI
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on November 12, 2012, 02:44:50 PM
Only 4 more years to go until the next US Presidential debacle.

Of course, there's one way to put an end to this insanity.  Insane times call for insane leadership.

VOTE ESCAPED LUNATIC
for
EMPEROR OF EARTH
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 15, 2012, 01:34:20 PM
Only 4 more years to go until the next US Presidential debacle.

Of course, there's one way to put an end to this insanity.  Insane times call for insane leadership.

VOTE ESCAPED LUNATIC
for
EMPEROR OF EARTH


He won in 2000. And his evil twin was VP
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on November 15, 2012, 03:37:10 PM
I think you're mixing up idiocy and lunacy.  No US president, except maybe Teddy Roosevelt, ever truly embraced the concept of Lunatic Leadership.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: roadwalker on November 15, 2012, 05:58:52 PM
Mitt Romney/George Shambles in 2013!  "I can't see why not!" TM
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on November 15, 2012, 06:55:39 PM
Thank you my fellow Americans! I am so glad this was not a repeat of 2000. Watching the results come in from Florida, I was worried there for a few.

I knew it wasn't going to be a repeat of 2000 because Al Gore was simply a sucky candidate.  Keep in mind that the economy was still fairly good in 2000 (as opposed to now where the economy sucks) and people had a high opinion of Clinton in general.  Despite that, and the fact that Bush spoke like a drunken southerner, Al Gore lost.  That should tell you something about how weak of a candidate he was.

In the case of this year, Mitt Romney was a weak candidate.   Despite the fact that the unemployment rate is worse than it EVER was during the Bush years (when it was typically around 5 to 6 percent).  Also, despite the fact that Obama failed to close Gitmo, failed to reduce our military involvement in the middle east, failed to get rid of the Patriot Act, Mitt Romney still lost.   That should tell you something about how weak of a candidate Mitt Romney was.

Come to think of it, maybe 2012 isn't all that much different from 2000 after all.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on November 15, 2012, 06:57:27 PM
Sore losers.....
Quote
"This election is a total sham... We are not a democracy!...We can't let this happen. We should march on Washington and stop this travesty... We should have a revolution in this country!"
-- Donald Trump tweeting on election night

"It's a perplexing time for many of us right now."
-- Sarah Palin

Ever hear of the bumper sticker in 2000 called "Sore/Loserman"?   Talk about sore losers, Al Gore is the king of sore losers!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: AMonk on November 15, 2012, 07:31:05 PM
Apparently, there have been thousands of people (in all 50 States) signing petitions asking for their State to secede qqqqqqqqqq from the Union :wtf:
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on November 15, 2012, 07:40:15 PM
Hmmmn... What would happen if all 50 states seceded at once? mmmmmmmmmm  Dealing with Social Security and Medicare would be a huge problem, but it would leave Washington DC and a handful of territories holding the bag on the national debt. ahahahahah

Let's give it a try and see what happens.  Where do I sign?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Stil on November 15, 2012, 11:34:03 PM
I'm not sure they'll be able to pull it off

(http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a197/Bissessar/IMG_0869.jpg)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on November 16, 2012, 01:13:53 AM
Wrong pic Stil.  That's the Society for Eating Crocodiles, Dogs, Emus, Etc.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 16, 2012, 05:11:11 AM
I'm not sure they'll be able to pull it off

(http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a197/Bissessar/IMG_0869.jpg)
If this is from a "red state", then their secession will probably elevate the IQ of both, new countries.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 16, 2012, 05:22:44 AM
Sore losers.....
Quote
"This election is a total sham... We are not a democracy!...We can't let this happen. We should march on Washington and stop this travesty... We should have a revolution in this country!"
-- Donald Trump tweeting on election night

"It's a perplexing time for many of us right now."
-- Sarah Palin

Ever hear of the bumper sticker in 2000 called "Sore/Loserman"?   Talk about sore losers, Al Gore is the king of sore losers!

except for the obvious fact that he garnered more votes than Bush in both Forida and nationally, you'd be right.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 16, 2012, 05:30:07 AM


In the case of this year, Mitt Romney was a weak candidate.   Despite the fact that the unemployment rate is worse than it EVER was during the Bush years (when it was typically around 5 to 6 percent).  Also, despite the fact that Obama failed to close Gitmo, failed to reduce our military involvement in the middle east, failed to get rid of the Patriot Act, Mitt Romney still lost.   That should tell you something about how weak of a candidate Mitt Romney was.

Come to think of it, maybe 2012 isn't all that much different from 2000 after all.



Check your facts. Unemployement is now less than it was at the end of Bush's last term. Not to mention the fact that the downward slide he left us with had to be overcome to achieve this feat. http://www.google.com/imgres?num=10&hl=en&tbo=d&biw=1366&bih=667&tbm=isch&tbnid=mOifpq_86YpAOM:&imgrefurl=http://reflectionsofarationalrepublican.com/2012/10/06/bush-vs-obama-unemployment-september-2012-jobs-data/&docid=NhkQQG_odTw9jM&imgurl=http://reflectionsofarationalrepublican.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/bush-vs-obama-unemployment-september-2012-data.jpg%253Fw%253D640&w=482&h=290&ei=AQilUPBx1O6sAZ_zgfgM&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=1035&vpy=164&dur=10522&hovh=174&hovw=290&tx=171&ty=74&sig=108800302089277282256&sqi=2&page=1&tbnh=144&tbnw=240&start=0&ndsp=16&ved=1t:429,r:5,s:0,i:86

The losers always turn on their candidate and devour their young. WHO among the other nut-jobs would have been a better, general election candidate than Romney? Bachman? Palin? Gingrich? Santorum? Romney was the BEST of the worst and if the GOP doesn't accept the winds of change, they will be gone with the very same wind.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on November 17, 2012, 03:34:09 AM
except for the obvious fact that he garnered more votes than Bush in both Forida and nationally, you'd be right.

I've never heard of Forida.   However, he lost in Florida because Bush got 2,912,790 votes and Gore got 2,912,253.

Source:  http://www.fec.gov/pubrec/2000presgeresults.htm

He did get more votes nationally, but not in a significant enough way to have beaten Bush, which is telling since the economy was not bad and Clinton had a high approval rating.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on November 17, 2012, 03:44:34 AM


In the case of this year, Mitt Romney was a weak candidate.   Despite the fact that the unemployment rate is worse than it EVER was during the Bush years (when it was typically around 5 to 6 percent).  Also, despite the fact that Obama failed to close Gitmo, failed to reduce our military involvement in the middle east, failed to get rid of the Patriot Act, Mitt Romney still lost.   That should tell you something about how weak of a candidate Mitt Romney was.

Come to think of it, maybe 2012 isn't all that much different from 2000 after all.



Check your facts. Unemployement is now less than it was at the end of Bush's last term.

The end of Bush's last term would be December, 2008 when the unemployment rate was 7.3%

In October 2012, the unemployment rate was 7.9%

Source:  http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000



Quote
Not to mention the fact that the downward slide he left us with had to be overcome to achieve this feat.

1)  Why is it still above 7.3% after 4 years?
2)  Why did Obama's experts make the mistake of telling Obama that the stimulus would keep the unemployment rate below 8%?

Source:  http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1910208,00.html




Quote
The losers always turn on their candidate and devour their young. WHO among the other nut-jobs would have been a better, general election candidate than Romney? Bachman? Palin? Gingrich? Santorum? Romney was the BEST of the worst and if the GOP doesn't accept the winds of change, they will be gone with the very same wind.

What is this "change" you are talking about?   Oh, I know, we have a black guy as president instead of a white guy.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 20, 2012, 10:57:25 PM
You're going to give January of 2009 to Obama?  Seriously?  He was in office for the last 10 days of the month and you're holding him responsible for the unemployment rate going from 7.3 to 7.8 in the entire month of January, 2009?  Intersting accountability.

"Why is it still above 7.3% after 4 years?"

Because the crisis was THAT flippin' bad and the stimulus package was too small due to comprimses with the GOP and, even more importantly, the fact that government spending by the states decreased during the past four years greatly mitigating the positive effect of the stimulus. Recessions are no time for austerity, (something the Republicans cannot accept), anymore than they are times for tax increses, (something the Democrats agreed with). Just ask any Englishman looking for work.

"Why did Obama's experts make the mistake of telling Obama that the stimulus would keep the unemployment rate below 8%?"

They either overestimated the stimulus effect, underestimated the recession, (which is doubtful), or got what they could and prayed for the best. This recession is new territory. Nothing quite like it, (save for elements of the Great Depression), has ever happened before.

Romney loved to say that we would be out of a typical recession by now. This was NOT a typical recession. Take one look at the unemployment rate graph from your link, the almost total collapse of the financial industry and real estate explosion. Usualy, real estate leads us out of a recession. It simply was, and is, not there to do that this time.

I think a far more pertinent question would be "How the hell can the conservatives be championing the removal of financial regulations?".  The removal of regulations over the past 40 years, (yes I blame Clinton as much as anyone), has led to at least two financial crises; remember the S&L blowup? They have a hell of a lot of damn gall to actually keep a straight face and make that argument after our near-death experience with deregulation.

"What is this "change" you are talking about?"

I'll give you that one. As Ralph Nader said, "The only difference between the Republican and Democratic parties is the velocities with which their knees hit the floor when corporations knock on their door".  The change I'm talking about is social, not economic.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on November 21, 2012, 05:48:47 AM
You're going to give January of 2009 to Obama?  Seriously?  He was in office for the last 10 days of the month and you're holding him responsible for the unemployment rate going from 7.3 to 7.8 in the entire month of January, 2009?  Intersting accountability.

So at what point WOULD he be responsible?   Apperently, 4 years isn't enough to hold him accountable in your book.

If the unemployment rate was 7.8% in January of 2009 and then kept going up for the whole year, and then started to go DOWN in 2010, then I would be willing to say that Obama was good for the economy.  Not only that but I would be willing to give the bad economy in 2009 to Bush.

At a certain point though, you gotta hold Obama responsible. 

Quote
"Why is it still above 7.3% after 4 years?"

Because the crisis was THAT flippin' bad and the stimulus package was too small due to comprimses with the GOP

You realize

1) The stimulus was started by BUSH
2) It was almost 1 trillion dollars.

You realize that the entire GDP of the United States is about 30 trillion right?

Just to give you an idea of how much 1 trillion is.  If you were to spend one million dollars EVERY DAY since the time of Jesus (i.e. 0 AD) until now. you WILL NOT have spent 1 trillion dollars.

Basically, if 1 trillion dollars wasn't enough then the idea of a stimulus was a bad idea.  Just like trying to melt a giant steel bar with ordinary matches is a bad idea regardless of how many matches you try to use.

Quote
and, even more importantly, the fact that government spending by the states decreased during the past four years greatly mitigating the positive effect of the stimulus. Recessions are no time for austerity, (something the Republicans cannot accept), anymore than they are times for tax increses, (something the Democrats agreed with). Just ask any Englishman looking for work.

Well the last time I didn't have much money, I had to eat noodles because I couldn't afford steak.  Not only that, but it did get bad enough at one point to where I had to sleep in my car for a few days.  Since as you say, being broke isn't a time for "austerity", what would be the other word you would use for a situation like that?  Abundance?

Now at that time, the US government could have given me $10,000 (which would be WAY less than 1% of the stimulus that Obama spent).  It would however, have only benefited me in the short term.  And because of the human condition called ENVY, it wouldn't have been enough.

Quote
"Why did Obama's experts make the mistake of telling Obama that the stimulus would keep the unemployment rate below 8%?"

They either overestimated the stimulus effect, underestimated the recession, (which is doubtful), or got what they could and prayed for the best. This recession is new territory. Nothing quite like it, (save for elements of the Great Depression), has ever happened before.

What, you mean except for the long recession of 1872?  You know, where the banks failed and President Grant decided NOT to bail them out?

Or did you think that banks failing because of making bad loans was only a feature of the 21st century?

Quote
Romney loved to say that we would be out of a typical recession by now. This was NOT a typical recession. Take one look at the unemployment rate graph from your link, the almost total collapse of the financial industry and real estate explosion. Usualy, real estate leads us out of a recession. It simply was, and is, not there to do that this time.

It wasn't real estate that led us out of the long depression of 1872, or the Great Depression.

Basically, the democrats are partially responsible for the real estate market collapsing because of their encouragement of banks to make loans to people that couldn't pay them back.  Another thing that was responsible for it is the rather obvious fact that the price of something can't increase indefinitely.

As a thought experiment, do you think a $100,000 house would ever become worth $1 billion?   If not, then there must be some point between 100,000 and 1,000,000,000 where the value of that house will no longer increase.

Quote
I think a far more pertinent question would be "How the hell can the conservatives be championing the removal of financial regulations?".  The removal of regulations over the past 40 years, (yes I blame Clinton as much as anyone), has led to at least two financial crises; remember the S&L blowup? They have a hell of a lot of damn gall to actually keep a straight face and make that argument after our near-death experience with deregulation.

You don't see the potential problems that could occur WITH regulations?

Here's the thing.  If I know that the government will bail me out by giving me millions of dollars if I do a bad job teaching at Anyang Normal University, then what would be my incentive to do a good job?  Wouldn't it actually be SMART for me to do a bad job, just so I can get the millions of dollars?  If you then decide to make regulations so that it would be against the law for me to do a bad job, then I could simply break those laws and get the millions of dollars anyway.  Maybe go to jail for a little bit.  After all, a year or so of jail time is worth millions of dollars isn't it?  Sure with a jail record I probably wouldn't get another ESL job, but millions of dollars is way more than I would ever make in ESL anyway.

I can't think of anything that would be a bigger motivator for someone to behave stupidly, than to give him millions of dollars to do it, can you?

Quote
"What is this "change" you are talking about?"

I'll give you that one. As Ralph Nader said, "The only difference between the Republican and Democratic parties is the velocities with which their knees hit the floor when corporations knock on their door".  The change I'm talking about is social, not economic.

Well, what kind of social change do you see with Obama?   You see for example, someone getting put in jail for making a stupid movie about Mohammed.   As opposed to, let's say, someone getting government funding to put a crucifix of Jesus in a jar of urine.   Because as we know, it's okay to make fun of Christianity, but not okay to make fun of Islam.   After all, if you make fun of Islam, guys in the middle east go around killing people.  Whereas making fun of Christianity pretty much largely results in the Christians complaining about government funding.  So maybe the Christians in France that protested "Piss Christ" violently, had the right idea?

If you are talking about gay marriage, maybe.  The trouble is though, Obama has to pretty much pander to various people who are opposed to gay marriage (not just conservatives) and can't really rock that boat too much.

By the way, the guy that is sleeping in his car is probably going to be WAY more concerned about getting a job and improving his economic situation than he is over whether he gets to have sex with another guy without being bothered.  I know because I was once that guy.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on November 21, 2012, 06:14:56 PM
Can't we all just settle down and agree that both parties are the fiscal responsibility equivalent of handing credit cards out to 1st graders at a shopping mall.  The only difference is some prefer to head for the candy store first, and others go to the toy store first.  Either way, the end result is massive debt and very little useful work accomplished.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on November 27, 2012, 08:02:09 AM
Right! Yer election's over The good guy won. Moving right along......
Quote
"I would submit that scientists cannot tell us the age of the earth. The only way we can know the age of the earth is if we have eyewitness testimony of somebody who was there."
—Dr. Terry Mortenson, who has a Phd in the history of geology
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on November 27, 2012, 02:48:09 PM
I didn't know they gave PhD's in the history of geology. mmmmmmmmmm

Technically, he's correct.  The exact age of the earth would be a little hard to determine if there isn't an exact definition of when the coalescing debris officially achieved planetary status and if no one was there to note the exact day when this happened.

Geologically speaking, it's hard to pin it down with an accuracy of less than plus or minus a hundred million years or so.


Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on November 27, 2012, 07:23:31 PM
Quite an epistle by elzoog. I won't extend this conversation much further but there are a couple of his points that can't be gotten away with.

When you say that the Stimulus package was initiated by Bush are giving credit to him or blame? Or just trying to minimize Obama? Because if you recall the moment, it was bi-partisan effort and the Bush people asked President-elect Obama if he wanted it passed during lame-duck session or after he took office; he chose the former.

To go on and on about the size of the package seems futile. The fact is that it wasn't big enough; $.8 trillion in a $15 trillion economy, (I assume your $30 trillion number is a typo), and that it was mitigated by state-level spending cuts that actually outstripped the size of the stimulus as early as late 2009 http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/09/09/816761/flabbergasted-rand-paul-learns-public-employment-decreased-under-obama/?mobile=nc.

"Well the last time I didn't have much money, I had to eat noodles because I couldn't afford steak.".  If the government followed that path it would have accelerated and deepened the recession. This is exactly what Hoover did in '31 and '32 with results that we now know had the opposite of the intended effect.  So, unless you're in love with '30's level suffering, I think we can consider that lesson learned. If not convinced, see U.K. over the past two years.

"...except for the long recession of 1872?  You know, where the banks failed and President Grant decided NOT to bail them out?".  Really? That's your analogy? Because the manufacturing and financial industries have undergone a few fundamental changes in the past 140 years. I'm no fan of the bailout, but you can't possibly think that the effect of a financial collapse in pre-industrial revolution 1872 is comparable to 2008?

I couldn't agree with you more about the ill effects of the bailouts. I think it had to be done as a tourniquet, but far more changes should be in place to stop this from ever happening again.

What general changes?  The general liberalization that is now out front after taking a back seat since the Reagan era. Examples?  Gay rights, passing of marijuana laws, increased taxation on the wealthy, Obamacare now ratified and permanent, next will be immigration reform.

Now let's just wait for those old, conservative geezers on the Supreme court to start retiring over the next four years.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on November 30, 2012, 11:13:11 AM
I didn't know they gave PhD's in the history of geology. mmmmmmmmmm

Technically, he's correct.  The exact age of the earth would be a little hard to determine if there isn't an exact definition of when the coalescing debris officially achieved planetary status and if no one was there to note the exact day when this happened.

Geologically speaking, it's hard to pin it down with an accuracy of less than plus or minus a hundred million years or so.




http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/faq-age-of-earth.html

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on November 30, 2012, 11:54:33 AM
Quite an epistle by elzoog. I won't extend this conversation much further but there are a couple of his points that can't be gotten away with.

I'm sorry that you don't understand my basic point.

Quote
When you say that the Stimulus package was initiated by Bush are giving credit to him or blame? Or just trying to minimize Obama?

I am saying that it's hypocritical to praise Obama for doing the same thing that Bush did, or for blaming Bush for doing something and not also blaming Obama for doing THAT SAME THING.

Quote
Because if you recall the moment, it was bi-partisan effort and the Bush people asked President-elect Obama if he wanted it passed during lame-duck session or after he took office; he chose the former.

To go on and on about the size of the package seems futile. The fact is that it wasn't big enough; $.8 trillion in a $15 trillion economy, (I assume your $30 trillion number is a typo), and that it was mitigated by state-level spending cuts that actually outstripped the size of the stimulus as early as late 2009 http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/09/09/816761/flabbergasted-rand-paul-learns-public-employment-decreased-under-obama/?mobile=nc.

You are aware that if the states also spent money they didn't have that they too would be running a deficit?

Also, 0.8 trillion is about 5% of 15 trillion.  Let's suppose you spend 5% of your yearly income on something, but you didn't know what you spent it on.   All you know is that 5% of your income was spent on something.   Wouldn't you be curious about where that money went?

Where did this 0.8 trillion go?

Quote
"Well the last time I didn't have much money, I had to eat noodles because I couldn't afford steak.".  If the government followed that path it would have accelerated and deepened the recession. This is exactly what Hoover did in '31 and '32 with results that we now know had the opposite of the intended effect.

Hoover in response to the Great Depression, ".. spent $500 million a year on public works and government programs to build or improve government properties."

He also made businesses keep wages high instead of cutting wages.

Source:  http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_did_Herbert_Hoover_do_in_response_to_the_great_depression

In other words:

1)  He made businesses spend more than they otherwise would have by not allowing them to cut wages.
2)  He increased government spending on governmental works, of which the HOOVER DAM is an example.

By the way, his policies created uncertainty in the economy causing people to not invest.  I wonder what's happening now that Obama has been re-elected.

http://www.localnews8.com/lifestyle/money/Investors-brace-for-capital-gains-tax-hikes/-/461672/17388546/-/rl6ttf/-/index.html


Quote
  So, unless you're in love with '30's level suffering, I think we can consider that lesson learned. If not convinced, see U.K. over the past two years.

"...except for the long recession of 1872?  You know, where the banks failed and President Grant decided NOT to bail them out?".  Really? That's your analogy? Because the manufacturing and financial industries have undergone a few fundamental changes in the past 140 years.

You mean that the banks don't engage in risky investments like they did 140 years ago?

Quote
I'm no fan of the bailout, but you can't possibly think that the effect of a financial collapse in pre-industrial revolution 1872 is comparable to 2008?

1872 would be AFTER the industrial revolution.

Source:  http://www.questia.com/read/77198082/the-industrial-revolution-1760-1830

What was it I heard about "those who are ignorant of history"?

Quote
I couldn't agree with you more about the ill effects of the bailouts. I think it had to be done as a tourniquet, but far more changes should be in place to stop this from ever happening again.

What general changes?  The general liberalization that is now out front after taking a back seat since the Reagan era. Examples?  Gay rights, passing of marijuana laws, increased taxation on the wealthy, Obamacare now ratified and permanent, next will be immigration reform.

Gay rights have nothing to do with whether or not we have economic problems.   A gay marriage has just as much of a chance at being as miserable as a heterosexual one.

Companies are already raising prices on the consumer in response to Obamacare.  I guess if making people pay more for goods and services is something you consider good for the economy, then I guess Obamacare is good for the economy.

As far as immigration reform, the US already has the most "liberal" (by that I mean being lax on illegal immigrants) than most of the civilized world.   Try being an illegal immigrant in China for example and let's see what they do to you.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on December 27, 2012, 08:45:11 AM
Just another amusing little quote...
Quote
"He wanted to be president less than anyone I've met in my life. He had no desire to...run. If he could have found someone else to take his place...he would have been ecstatic to step aside."
—Tagg Romney on his father Mitt
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: The Local Dialect on December 27, 2012, 05:51:21 PM
Just another amusing little quote...
Quote
"He wanted to be president less than anyone I've met in my life. He had no desire to...run. If he could have found someone else to take his place...he would have been ecstatic to step aside."
—Tagg Romney on his father Mitt

As much as it pains me to defend Mitt Romney, that quote really needs some context. I can see why most sane people would not want to be president -- especially right now. I wouldn't be at all surprised if the gist of this was "It wasn't his personal ambition that drove him to run for president, but he felt he had a duty to his country."
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on December 28, 2012, 01:40:29 AM
Yes, yes, after he flip-flopped his way to losing the election, it is now revealed that he really did not want the Oval Office at all...right...I said the same when I failed my Phonetics Exam the first time...I studied rather hard for it but I actually did not want to pass at all...nope...
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on December 28, 2012, 08:57:07 AM
He spent over six years and God knows how much money to run TWICE but he didn't really want to???  And Bill Clinton didn't inhale.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on December 28, 2012, 09:07:54 AM
Quite an epistle by elzoog. I won't extend this conversation much further but there are a couple of his points that can't be gotten away with.

Whew...how did I overlook this duzey. The topic is stale and boring now, but I feel obliged to mention that Hoover stressed a balanced budget and tight monetary policy during the beginning of the Great Depression. Keynes, (and ten years of suffering), taught us the folly of that policy during a downturn.

It boils down to this question..."Do you think the economy would be better off if the stimulus had NOT been passed?". 
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: caley1313 on December 28, 2012, 01:06:15 PM
Actually, there's not much wrong with the water in America. The wallowing snakes will be back in session (Congress) on Sunday/Monday. By that time, one would hope they're looking at personal financial portfolios that will have lost as much as 5% in the preceding week. The sweat will bead on their collective brow, their asses will be in a pucker position, and it will be time to do what's right for the pocket book of each and every around the hallowed hall. I suspect Mr. Boehner will throw up his arms and concede that each GOP member will be asked to vote according to his/her conscience (oxymoron here...GOP and conscience in the same sentence) and do what's right for America in this time of financial turmoil. The flaws of democracy: Oily old farts and trays of special interest monies, and slack laws that permit it all. And a belated Merry Xmas and Happy Festive Season to all. 
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on December 29, 2012, 11:17:09 AM
...By that time, one would hope they're looking at personal financial portfolios that will have lost as much as 5% in the preceding week...and it will be time to do what's right...

I'm starting to believe that they won't fix this before the next session. Boehner and Obama are in alignment, but thanks to gerrymandering, the Republicans are dug in on doctrine. Boehner would have to move left in order to get ALL Democrats and enough Republicans to make it pass which would be political suicide for him. I would not want his job.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on December 29, 2012, 02:11:05 PM
Quite an epistle by elzoog. I won't extend this conversation much further but there are a couple of his points that can't be gotten away with.

Whew...how did I overlook this duzey. The topic is stale and boring now, but I feel obliged to mention that Hoover stressed a balanced budget and tight monetary policy during the beginning of the Great Depression. Keynes, (and ten years of suffering), taught us the folly of that policy during a downturn.

It boils down to this question..."Do you think the economy would be better off if the stimulus had NOT been passed?". 

Incorrect:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/06/AR2009040603355.html

"William Hettinger [letters, April 3] rewrote history by falsely claiming that "President Herbert Hoover's response" to the 1929 stock market crash "was to balance the federal budget." Hoover actually ran up massive deficits, as the federal Office of Management and Budget notes. "

Paradoxically, liberal economists blame Hoover's tax increases for exacerbating the Great Depression.  Guess what liberals want to do in the current recession.   Raise taxes on the rich..  Funny how liberals don't really believe their own ideology. 

Not to mention the fact that raising taxes on the rich will not pay for the deficit.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on December 29, 2012, 06:45:45 PM
 bibibibibi
If one is replying to a
Quote
quote
one should simply reply OUTSIDE the original bloody quote. Then we would know who said what to who!! asasasasas
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on December 30, 2012, 07:24:18 AM
@elzoog:  You didn't answer the question.  Would the economy be better or worse if we had NOT passed the stimulus packages?

Saying Hoover was a deficit spender is the conservative participation in revisionist history, (along with declaring Nixon as a liberal). In 1931 he both increased taxes and decreased spending in the sacred name of a balanced budget.

Hoovers own words on March 8th, 1932..."Nothing is more important than balancing the budget with the least increase in taxes. The Federal Government should be in such position that it will need issue no securities which increase the public debt after the beginning of the next fiscal year, July 1".  http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=23478

The spending in 1932 you refer to, (Golden Gate Bridge etc.), came far too late and was far too little. That year he also signed the Smoot-Hawley Act, the largest tariff in U.S. History against the advice of all major economists; effectively raising taxes and prices.

As for the advocating of an increase in taxes on the wealthiest 2% of U.S. citizens being a liberal hypocrisy? It's one I have no problem living with given the enormous tax breaks and subsidies they have received over the past 30 years and the relatively stable recovery we're in.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: elzoog on December 30, 2012, 08:41:12 PM
@elzoog:  You didn't answer the question.  Would the economy be better or worse if we had NOT passed the stimulus packages?

It's impossible to say.  Ever hear of the broken window fallacy?  It goes like this.  If we have teenagers going through town breaking windows, it's good for the economy.  It would give window makers and glass manufacturers jobs.   It would also give jobs to people who have to clean up the glass and it would give jobs to people that have to deliver the glass.

The reason this is a fallacy is that you see those benefits but you don't see the HIDDEN things.  Like for example, if the business owner didn't have to fix his window, he could have used that money to buy something else.  The people who spend time making the windows could have spent their time doing something else, and so forth.  It's this SOMETHING ELSE that you DON'T SEE that shows it as a fallacy.

Likewise, since I haven't seen the actual results of "no stimulus in 2008" I can't say if it would be worse or better.   All I can do is compare it to the past and the only past example I can think of, is 1872 when president Grant decided to not bail out the banks.  It's hard to say that the economy of 2010 would be as bad as the economy of 1874 because there are too many other factors going on.

What tells me that the stimulus is probably a BAD idea though, is that most of that money went to people who made bad financial decisions.   If the result of making a bad financial decision is that the government gives you millions of dollars than guess what?  More people are going to make bad financial decisions!

If you don't think the government would be stupid enough to break windows in order to stimulate the economy, consider the "cash for clunkers" program.

Quote
Saying Hoover was a deficit spender is the conservative participation in revisionist history,

I guess saying Hoover was a man is revisionist history too since "man" has a certain definition, and Hoover happens to fit that definition.

Llkewise, "deficit spending" has the definition that you spend more than you take in in revenue (in the 1930s this could include tarriffs as well as taxes).  Specifically, the debt went from 20% of the GNP in 1929, to 40% of the GNP at the end of Hoover's term.

Specifically, at the end of Hoover's term, the deficit was about 4 billion dollars.  So "deficit spending" is a term that accurately describes what Hoover did.

He didn't want to spend money on "welfare", however he did spend money on government projects such as the HOOVER DAM.   Notice, that HOOVER is part of the name of that dam?



Quote
(along with declaring Nixon as a liberal).

You realize that many "liberal" policies were started by Nixon right?  Such as the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).  To be fair though, the "liberal" policies of Nixon were initiated by outside pressure.

Quote
In 1931 he both increased taxes and decreased spending in the sacred name of a balanced budget.

He didn't decrease spending overall.  He merely decreased spending on things liberals like. 

Quote
Hoovers own words on March 8th, 1932..."Nothing is more important than balancing the budget with the least increase in taxes. The Federal Government should be in such position that it will need issue no securities which increase the public debt after the beginning of the next fiscal year, July 1".  http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=23478

Yeah, sort of like Reagan saying in his inaugural address in 1981 that government is the problem, and then increased government more rapidly than any other previous president.

Or the famous, "Read my lips.  No new taxes." of Bush in the 1990s.

I would have though that someone that has lived through at least the 1990s would have learned that you judge a president on what he DOES and not what he "says".

The FACT that Hoover ran a deficit is pretty easy to check and verify A-Train.

Quote
The spending in 1932 you refer to, (Golden Gate Bridge etc.), came far too late and was far too little. That year he also signed the Smoot-Hawley Act, the largest tariff in U.S. History against the advice of all major economists; effectively raising taxes and prices.

The Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act was signed in June of 1930, not 1932.

By the way, many economists today say that Obama should cut entitlement spending.  Do you think Obama will do that, or do you think he will go against the advice of economists like Hoover did?


Quote
As for the advocating of an increase in taxes on the wealthiest 2% of U.S. citizens being a liberal hypocrisy?

That's not why I think liberals are hypocrites.

Quote
It's one I have no problem living with given the enormous tax breaks and subsidies they have received over the past 30 years and the relatively stable recovery we're in.

You mean, other than the rather minor detail being that it won't actually work?

The debt currently is at about 16.3 trillion dollars 
(source:  http://www.usdebtclock.org/)
If we were to not only tax, but simply confiscate the wealth of the top 2%, it would not be enough to pay for a 16 trillion dollar deficit.

For example, Bill Gates is currently worth about $65 billion dollars
(source:  http://www.forbes.com/profile/bill-gates/ )

So we would need about 246 Bill Gates to pay for the 16 trillion dollar deficit.  Given that Bill Gates is in the top 5 of the richest men in the world, we don't in fact have 246 Bill Gates.   So obviously, we will need more than 246 people to pay for the debt.  Given that we have 300 million people in America you would think that wouldn't be hard to do.

Unfortunately, when you do the numbers, if you add up all of the wealth of the top 2%, you still won't have enough to pay 16 trillion dollars.  (I did this myself with the top 500 people and got that result). 

By the way, the current GNP of the entire United States is $15.23 Trillion:
(Source:  https://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&met_y=ny_gnp_mktp_pp_cd&idim=country:USA&dl=en&hl=en&q=us%20gnp )

In other words, the current debt is now GREATER than the entire GNP of the entire country.

What I would say is, that this debt will NEVER be paid back and that what we need to do is face the music of whatever the fallout will be of not paying the debt.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: caley1313 on December 31, 2012, 04:46:03 AM
I posted this interesting ditty of a perspective on the Fiscal Cliff, which came from my bright young Canuck daughter, whose only pleasant feeling on things American is South Beach in March. Thought you'd all get a chuckle. Caley

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/tarheel1313/8326082358/" title="Fiscal Cliff by Donald H. Allison, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8084/8326082358_ebea0c45e6_c.jpg" width="600" height="800" alt="Fiscal Cliff"></a>
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Con ate dog on December 31, 2012, 10:08:58 PM
I feel for America.  Back in the late 80's and early 90's Canada was stuck with a runaway deficit during a recession and it HURT.  Enter a financial genius by the name of Paul Martin, who raised taxes and cut, cut, cut spending.  The miracle is that he slashed things to the point that they teetered but didn't collapse; he darted back and forth, restoring the bare minimum funding to keep each program afloat like a pie late spinner.  The banks liked it:  confidence was restored.

When the budget was finally balanced he started increasing spending- but at a shockingly low rate.  He stressed the need to pay down debt more aggressively than restoring spending or cutting taxes.

Now, America is still in recession- maybe not technically, but still very sluggish- so the guv is limited in how much they can do for now.  They'll have to raise taxes, and cut things they kind of need.

It'll hurt, but it's been done before.

Just read a headline saying Obama has cited both the recent election and polls showing the public supports his position, thus the lack of an agreement would fall on the GOP's head.  I'm inclined to agree:  when Ronald Reagan won reelection the Dems made an effort to work with him. 
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 02, 2013, 10:49:26 AM
elzoog wrote:  "You realize that many "liberal" policies were started by Nixon right?"

Perfect.  This is history as taught by Anne Coulter.  Along with "McCarthy was right" and "Hoover was a Keynesian".  Conservatives elected Nixon, re-elected him and forced him into resignation when they, finally, withdrew their support, (thank you Ed Gurney).

As for Hoover, I'll quote Brad DeLong who says it more succinctly than I could.  He's responding to someone who's quoting virtually the same numbers that elzoog is using and putting them into proper context.

"I think that Megan McArdle's major problem is that she is looking at one table in OMB's Historical Tables. She is not reading Hoover's Budget Messages or any other documents from the Hoover administration, not reading histories of the Hoover administration, not identifying how what congress finally enacted and what Hoover signed differed from what Hoover had originally proposed--or indeed, at how as the Great Depression deepened Hoover decided at the very start of calendar year 1932--halfway through fiscal year 1932--to push for measures (Reconstruction Finance Corporation, Home Loan Bank, direct loans to fund state Depression relief programs) that increased spending--but did so alongside the Revenue Act of 1932 that increased taxes.

After he decided that he was President and that the Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon whom he had inherited from Coolidge worked for him, Hoover did decide to do something to fight the Great Depression. Tax increases to try to balance the budget in order to call down the confidence fairy made up the biggest part of his plan. But Hoover also sought to fund state relief. And he sought to set up GSE's (RTC, HLB) to restart broken capital markets.

But to say that "Hoover was no budget-cutter" misses most of the story. Hoover would have been a budget-cutter in normal times. Hoover was a budget-balancer. Hoover held the line against powerful political forces that sought to increase government spending in the Great Depression for fully 2 1/2 years before endorsing what seem to us to be half-measures."

In Twain's words, "There are three types of lies. Lies, damned lies, and statistics".  elzoog has submitted the latter.  Or perhaps a better quote from Johns and Quay is more appropriate:  "...he knows the words but not the music.".
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 10, 2013, 08:40:14 AM
Ya gotta luv it.  Quick, sign the attached petition to stop Obama's "gun control" plan.  Forget that one has not yet been proposed or that gun control has literally moved backward during his administration. Facebook has gone crazy with people's declarations of Obama's fascism, communism whateverisms.

http://nagr.org/M1garand.aspx
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on January 10, 2013, 02:00:13 PM
End Whateverism Now!  bababababa
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 12, 2013, 08:36:24 AM
Quote
"If [more gun control] happens it's gonna spark a civil war, and I'll be glad to fire the first shot...I'm not letting anybody take my guns. If it goes one inch further, I'm going to start killing people."
—James Yeager, who runs a firearms and tactical training company
Lurrve dem guns!!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Granny Mae on January 12, 2013, 11:44:38 AM
My observations are that the Weapons Act in Australia has certainly removed a lot of weapons.  I am in the process of transferring my five weapons to my Daughter In Law since my son is still waiting for his licence. These folk live out in the countryside on a property. The weapons I have belonged to my husband and they will eventually go to my Grandsons. I was talking to the Weapons Licensing Branch yesterday to advise them that both my first names had been spelled incorrectly on the Application to Renew Weapons Act Licence. Even though THEY made the mistake, (we have a new system) I have to take a certified copy of my Birth Certificate to the Police Station to have it amended. bibibibibi Wonder what sort of problems we will have with the transfer of weapons papers if I don't comply?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 16, 2013, 11:31:34 AM
It just keeps gettin' better;

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/gene-rosen-sandy-hook-conspiracy-155033813.html

"Man who helped Sandy Hook kids is harassed by conspiracy theorists"
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 17, 2013, 08:34:23 AM
Quote
"Obama is SO elitist! HE gets to carry nuclear 'football,' but feds ARREST private citizens trying to assemble nuclear device!"
-- Robert George tweet
ahahahahah ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on January 17, 2013, 02:16:36 PM
Quote
"Obama is SO elitist! HE gets to carry nuclear 'football,' but feds ARREST private citizens trying to assemble nuclear device!"
-- Robert George tweet
ahahahahah ahahahahah

That's because assembling such a device is dangerous.  People who want to own one need to buy it from a licensed dealer. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: gonzo on January 17, 2013, 02:53:44 PM
I'd be sending the gun freaks, weapons and all, down to Guatemala City just to see how many make it back. There's the logical Second Amendment end-point.

My Australian next door neighbour is a psychopath [assessed and has spent time in a facility] who hates me with a passion. If he had a gun, I'd wake up dead tomorrow. He doesn't, I have court orders against him, and the cops are so on his case he has trouble breathing. But with a gun?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 18, 2013, 07:07:34 AM
No topic would be complete unless we can drag the President's daughters into the fray.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2013/01/17/nra_ad_about_obama_s_daughters_david_keene_says_ad_wasn_t_about_the_president.html

"The ad, first released online Tuesday night, calls the president an "elitist hypocrite" for pushing for stronger gun-control laws while his daughters are protected by armed Secret Service agents. "Are the president’s kids more important than yours?" the ad asks at its outset. "Then why is he skeptical about putting armed security in our schools when his kids are protected by armed guards at their school?""
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: caley1313 on January 19, 2013, 03:40:28 PM
No topic would be complete unless we can drag the President's daughters into the fray.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2013/01/17/nra_ad_about_obama_s_daughters_david_keene_says_ad_wasn_t_about_the_president.html

"The ad, first released online Tuesday night, calls the president an "elitist hypocrite" for pushing for stronger gun-control laws while his daughters are protected by armed Secret Service agents. "Are the president’s kids more important than yours?" the ad asks at its outset. "Then why is he skeptical about putting armed security in our schools when his kids are protected by armed guards at their school?""

I have breakfast four times weekly with some old farts down here in North Carolina. One fellow arrived this morning and said he had just gone to his doctor and said his blood pressure was up. The doctor wanted to know why. The fellow stated that he had been listening to Fox News and that he was more than pissed with all the executive orders Obama had issued around gun control. When he arrived at the breakfast diner, this poor fellow was quite apoplectic with steam rising from his head. Such is life in the gun-loving southland. Thankfully, the good wife and I will be in Shaoxing in another month. Que sera, sera.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on January 28, 2013, 09:54:21 PM
This just about says it all:

The national day of "RESISTANCE" is coming soon on 2/23 in cities all across the country! 2/23 has a significance in that .223 is the caliber that an AR-15 uses. We are scheduling many top conservatives to speak. Stay tuned for more information on these historic rallies in support of our right to bear arms.
http://tacticaloffense.com/news/?p=1278
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on January 30, 2013, 08:26:49 AM
Quote
"You know how to stop abortion? Require that each one occur with a gun."
—Rush Limbaugh

Words fail me!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Granny Mae on January 30, 2013, 10:51:33 AM
Quote
"You know how to stop abortion? Require that each one occur with a gun."
—Rush Limbaugh

Words fail me!

Don't tell me they want to shoot the fathers? :wtf:
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: caley1313 on January 30, 2013, 01:05:37 PM
OMG...we don't even listen to Rush down here in the Carolinas. Some things are best avoided for fear that mental atrophy will take hold.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: gonzo on February 04, 2013, 07:29:14 PM
To help your students understand irony, run this past them.   

'American Sniper' author shot dead

Chris Kyle, the man known as America's deadliest sniper and author of best-seller 'American Sniper', has been shot dead by a fellow veteran at a Texas gun range.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on February 05, 2013, 04:30:42 AM
I rather thought the irony was that someone who repeatedly took down targets from well over a kilometer away using a very high end rifle was taken out by a pistol. kkkkkkkkkk
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on February 06, 2013, 12:03:28 AM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/31/applebees-waitress-fired-god-tip-receipt_n_2591794.html

The note at the top of the restaurant receipt read simply, "I give God 10%, why do you get 18?"

The snarky comment has created a furor online after a waitress posted it on the website Reddit. She has been fired, while the customer who scribbled the note has been vilified. And the controversy has forced the president of the restaurant chain to explain its privacy policies.

It began Jan. 25 when a customer who described herself on the receipt as a pastor shared appetizers with eight or nine friends at an Applebee's in south St. Louis. Applebee's spokesman Dan Smith said Friday that the group was large enough that an automatic 18 percent tip was added to the bill.

The full cost for the table was $34.93, including the tip, which Smith said the customer paid despite the comment.

If the waitress for the table was bothered, she didn't show it. But another waitress took a picture of the receipt and posted it Tuesday on Reddit, adding her own response: "I'm sure Jesus will pay for my rent and groceries."
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on February 06, 2013, 04:36:40 PM
Ummmm . . . Applebees automatically adds 18% and then leaves a line for additional tips? aoaoaoaoao

The guy who wrote that on the bill is still an idiot, but I have to wonder about setting a minimum tip that high for an amount that would indicate one or two diners.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: AMonk on February 06, 2013, 11:39:27 PM
The guy who wrote that on the bill is still an idiot,

The "pastor" is/was a woman.  :wtf:
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: dragonsaver on February 07, 2013, 02:42:41 AM
I think that Applebees has just received a ton of bad press, which is well deserved.

I don't think many people look at bills closely enough and those added charges are often not noticed.  I know I would be less likely to go there after reading this.  I am positive that the pastor and her 9 or 10 friends and their friends won't go back there.

I think what was written on the bill was a tad foolish but one writes / says things they shouldn't when nickered off.  Personally, the woman should have asked to see the manager and tried to have the bill corrected.   agagagagag agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on February 07, 2013, 04:08:31 AM
Personally, the woman should have asked to see the manager and tried to have the bill corrected.   agagagagag agagagagag

Which woman?  The preacher or the waitress?  The bill was correct until the customer changed it and, according to all parties, the customer did leave a cash tip.

As a former busboy I know the reasoning behind adding the "gratuity" even if 18% sounds high. But two things: would this have gone viral if the religion card had not been paid and, why can't we do away with tips and just pay these people better?  Who gets tips is arbitrary at best and the service is largely out of the waitresses control.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Granny Mae on February 07, 2013, 11:30:22 AM
I was always happy that tipping was not part of the Aussie scene, because staff are paid a standard rate by law. I notice lately that in some Restuarants a small metal tray with your bill on it, is presented to you. Some bars also have a tray on the bar. It is hoped that you will leave a tip. On a bill from a restuarant at the Casino, they had a place on the bill for the customer to write in the amount of the tip before paying. I refuse to pay tips on principle otherwise I would have to tip every person no matter what the job. If I find any money on the floor at the Casino and I can't find the owner, I often give it to certain bar staff, but I make it quite clear that I found the money and it is not mine to keep. People complain about the unemployment rate, so I expect people who are working, to do their jobs well; I shouldn't have to "tip" them.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: latefordinner on February 07, 2013, 02:11:51 PM
2 good points, A-Train

The religion card is always fun to play, and can be played from both ends. You give your god 10%, but what does he/she/it do for that money? Put food on your table? (Wait a moment. For a pastor, the answer is yes)

And yes, who gets tips is arbitrary at best. If restaurants paid waitstaff decent wages, tipping could just be for exceptional service. for me, the idea of paying a mandatory % on top of the bill is just one good reason to avoid a restaurant chain.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on February 07, 2013, 04:14:54 PM
I think the whole tipping thing is out of control in the US.  A loooong time back, it was reserved for full service restaurants, taxis, and certain hotel staff.  Now it's for anyone providing any form of service.  I'm sure we're not too far away from having tip jars showing up in the local vehicle registration offices.

I'm all for giving tips for EXCEPTIONAL service, but find obligatory tips substituting for paying staff a living wage (or even for supplementing their more than adequate salaries in some cases) to be crazy.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on February 12, 2013, 07:42:12 AM
Quote
"They're a smaller country, and they've got lots of sun. Right? They've got a lot more sun than we do."
—Fox News commentator Shibani Joshi, on why Germany's solar power industry is doing better than ours

 bibibibibi
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: ericthered on February 12, 2013, 12:30:47 PM
Errr...Germany has mountains and rain, lots of rain...America has several deserts. Are there actually any educational requirements for becoming a FOX commentator??
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on February 12, 2013, 03:25:58 PM
Errr...Germany has mountains and rain, lots of rain...America has several deserts. Are there actually any educational requirements for becoming a FOX commentator??

Tune in for 10 minutes and your question will be answered. Education would work against you on a C.V.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: teacheraus on February 12, 2013, 04:38:59 PM
I thought George was talking about Australia rather than the US.... which actually makes what the Fox Commentator said even worse....
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on February 12, 2013, 05:50:20 PM
I think the UK may have figured out how to solve the problem of idiots and the news.  Don't they have news readers.  Imagine that - someone who's job is to clearly and correctly speak what is going on in the news from a script provided by trained professionals.  Sounds far superior to everyone calling themselves a news commentator and babbling off whatever moronic thought wanders through their brain while trying to talk about a real news event.

I don't think the news commentators (liberal or conservative) say anything that much more outrageous than the average person might - if that person had a couple too many and was at a late night BS session with close friends.  The difference is that with friends, you get laughed at. Then the worst case scenario is that someone caught it on their cell phone camera and you end up looking like an idiot on Yukou or youtube.  You don't get to have all the stupid things a person might say under those circumstances get broadcast to an audience of millions each and every day.

Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on February 12, 2013, 05:58:08 PM
Quote
I thought George was talking about Australia rather than the US.
Teacheraus, the title of this thread says it all!! agagagagag agagagagag
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on February 13, 2013, 02:41:33 PM
If the thread were about Australia, it would start with "What's in the beer" ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on February 27, 2013, 04:47:36 AM
Could this happen in your country?  The Gun Lobby in the U.S. actually had a law passed that prevented the government's "Centers for Disease Control" to even conduct research into gun violence.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/01/17/gun-research-is-allowed-again-so-what-will-we-find-out/
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on February 28, 2013, 08:56:47 PM
Using epidemiology to analyze non-disease issues can be done, but it is SOOO easy to deliberately or accidentally bias such a study beyond any semblance of science and get the conclusion the researcher expected from it instead of useful data.

I do think research is needed, but I'd rather see the DoJ do it than the CDC.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on March 08, 2013, 01:48:16 AM
http://writingshares.com/abc-news-video-houston-texas-kyle-copelands-armed-citizen-project-aims-to-give-free-guns-20-gauge-shotguns-to-citizens-for-self-defense/
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on March 08, 2013, 02:53:57 PM
http://writingshares.com/abc-news-video-houston-texas-kyle-copelands-armed-citizen-project-aims-to-give-free-guns-20-gauge-shotguns-to-citizens-for-self-defense/

Well, as long as it's only 20 gauge, it's ok.  If they handed out 12 gauge shotguns, someone might get hurt. ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on March 19, 2013, 03:54:37 AM
What's in the Water?  What's in the Earth?

A man who disappeared into a sinkhole that opened up right under his bedroom is presumed dead.

By Michael Muskal
March 1, 2013, 9:06 a.m.
A Florida man who was in his bedroom late Thursday night is presumed dead, swallowed by a sinkhole that opened beneath his Tampa-area home, officials said.

The man, identified as Jeff Bush, 36, was in his bedroom when the sinkhole opened up. Bush screamed for help, but by the time his relatives could come to his aid, he had fallen through the abyss, Hillsborough County Fire Chief Ron Rogers told reporters at a televised news conference Friday morning.

The sinkhole is 20 to 30 feet across and up to 30 feet deep.


Photos: Man swallowed by sinkhole under bedroom

Carson City neighborhood grieves as BLM traps local wild horses

'I'm still going to tan,' vows mom cleared in endangerment case
Texas school staffer shot during gun class
PHOTOS: Man swallowed by sinkhole

Would-be rescuers rushed to the one-story, 1970s home in Brandon Fla., a suburb of Tampa, but they were forced to leave the structure as the floor continued to crumble, Rogers said. The search continued with sophisticated electronic monitoring devices.

“There is no sign of life,” the chief said.

Bush’s brother, Jeremy, and four other people in the house, including a 2-year-old child, escaped.

It was around 11 p.m. when Jeremy Bush said he heard sounds from his brother’s bedroom.

“I heard a loud crash, like a car coming through the house,” Jeremy Bush told WFTS-TV. “I heard my brother screaming and I ran back there and tried going inside his room, but my old lady turned the light on and all I seen was this big hole, a real big hole, and all I saw was his mattress.”

“I wouldn’t say sinkholes are common in that area, but it isn’t unusual either,” Hillsborough County Fire Rescue spokeswoman Jessica Damico told the Los Angeles Times by telephone. “What makes this one unique is that it was completely under the bedroom,” she said.

The death is believed to be the first attributed to a sinkhole in Hillsborough County, she said.

Damico explained that much of the area lies on bedrock that can be eaten away by ground water. As the water table rises and falls, it creates empty pockets underground. The expanding pockets undermine the earth until the surface soil can no longer be supported and it falls in on itself, creating a sinkhole.

The situation at the site on Friday remains precarious, Rogers said. He said experts worry that the hole is still spreading and the entire house could collapse at any time.

Nearby homes have been evacuated as a precaution.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Tree on April 05, 2013, 08:44:29 AM
On topic, more Pat Roberson douchbaggery:

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/41809_Pat_Robertson-_Simple_Africans_More_Likely_to_Experience_Miracles_Than_Over-Educated_Americans
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: dragonsaver on April 20, 2013, 03:40:56 AM
I believe this is satire, but somehow I could believe it.

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/borowitzreport/2013/04/courageous-senators-stand-up-to-american-people.html
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on April 20, 2013, 05:53:11 AM
I believe this is satire, but somehow I could believe it.

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/borowitzreport/2013/04/courageous-senators-stand-up-to-american-people.html

Yeah, but a little too close to the truth to be more than sad.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Stil on April 20, 2013, 02:58:36 PM
Statement of the Ambassador of the Czech Republic on the Boston terrorist attack (http://www.mzv.cz/washington/en/czech_u_s_relations/news/statement_of_the_ambassador_of_the_czech.html)

It's amazing that the Czech republic had to issue a statement saying "Hey, we are not Chechnya!"

My first reaction is to whinge about the state of education but I then I remember that there was plenty of ignorance when I was going to school but It seemed like people knew they were ignorant. It's the sheer confidence that people show in their uneducated or misinformed opinions that galls. Information is at one's finger tips but we seem to lazy or sure of ourselves to take a moment and check.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Just Like Mr Benn on April 20, 2013, 03:58:22 PM
url=http://www.mzv.cz/washington/en/czech_u_s_relations/news/statement_of_the_ambassador_of_the_czech.html]Statement of the Ambassador of the Czech Republic on the Boston terrorist attack[/url]

It's amazing that the Czech republic had to issue a statement saying "Hey, we are not Chechnya!"

My first reaction is to whinge about the state of education but I then I remember that there was plenty of ignorance when I was going to school but It seemed like people knew they were ignorant. It's the sheer confidence that people show in their uneducated or misinformed opinions that galls. Information is at one's finger tips but we seem to lazy or sure of ourselves to take a moment and check.

Not just America. In the nineties I think some paediatricians (everywhere except USA spelling) were attacked because folk thought they were paedophiles.

Then again, perhaps that's why Americans spell it differently.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Stil on April 20, 2013, 04:33:35 PM
Yeah, I put it in this thread but I don't mean to jump on the States.

You have to admit though, it would make more sense if they went after podiatrists. There something a little off about them.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: caley1313 on April 20, 2013, 04:47:17 PM
The Czech statement does not surprise me. I've lived as an expat in North Carolina for the past 10 years (had to get out this year to China). I be Canadian. I'm never amazed at the common redneck's ignorance of things not American. I had one little perky blonde, being friendly mind you, tell me that she had once visited the Canadian city of Omaha and found the people very nice. Go figure.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Just Like Mr Benn on April 20, 2013, 05:09:13 PM
I lived in South America for 3 years. It took me a while to realise why my sister's friends kept asking me if I'd seen any lions. Turns out my sister had been telling everybody that I was in South Africa.

One of my closest friends is a qualified teacher but has been unemployed and stuck in Britain for a while now. When I tried to persuade her to come to china, she said that she had been scared of Chinese people ever since watching Tenko as a girl. When I pointed out that was Japan, she shrugged. PoTAYto, poTARto.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on April 20, 2013, 05:16:53 PM
I hope she doesn't get arrested for engaging in either pedantry or pedagogy with minors. aoaoaoaoao
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on May 27, 2013, 09:19:12 PM
http://samuel-warde.com/2013/05/michelle-bachmann-blames-god-for-9-11-and-benghazi/

In case you didn't think the U.S. government was insane...this woman ran for President and was actually leading at one point.  Hope you can open it.




Michelle Bachmann Blames God For 9-11 And Benghazi


"Well, to be more accurate, she blames the American people for doing things that caused her concept of a god to get vewy, vewy angwy at us, and therefore made these things happen.

This from a former presidential candidate. This from a current member of the “House Intelligence Committee” – something that in itself makes the committee null and void. Calling terrorists attacks “God’s judgment” at a congressional prayer event goes beyond her normal bizarre and into the same realm as actual terrorists who are actually religious fanatics and believe that they have their god on their side.

How about that ol’ concept of separation of church and state? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?"




Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on May 27, 2013, 09:40:48 PM
Why can't the USA be more like Italy - and elect porn stars instead of buffoons.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: roadwalker on May 27, 2013, 11:26:05 PM
Why can't the USA be more like Italy - and elect porn stars instead of buffoons.


(http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3620/3581604362_1d03977e47_m.jpg)

To be honest, I'm not sure if this is a porno still or not, but we did elect the guy on the left in 1980 and 84.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 20, 2013, 09:58:40 AM
Time for a bump up.
Quote
"I can't wait to write a defense of the drone strike that takes out Julian Assange."
—Time reporter Michael Grunwald, in a tweet

What they gunna do? Wait for him to appear on the balcony of the Ecuadorean Embassy in the middle of London?
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on August 20, 2013, 04:06:50 PM
Time for a bump up.
Quote
"I can't wait to write a defense of the drone strike that takes out Julian Assange."
—Time reporter Michael Grunwald, in a tweet

What they gunna do? Wait for him to appear on the balcony of the Ecuadorean Embassy in the middle of London?

Well.... you have to admit that it would be newsworthy.  ahahahahah
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 20, 2013, 05:33:57 PM
And it would make the cover of Time.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: A-Train on August 24, 2013, 02:08:50 PM
Does it get any more uncouth than this?

http://www.occupydemocrats.com/zimmerman-tours-manufacturer-of-gun-used-to-kill-trayvon-inquires-about-new-shotgun/
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on August 24, 2013, 10:48:24 PM
arrogant dickhead!!
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Stil on August 25, 2013, 05:18:00 PM
Not sure if painting the bullseye on his chest larger is such a good idea.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: George on September 05, 2013, 06:36:25 PM
Quote
When the Christmas Island tourism board decided to promote its lovely juvenile boobies, it never thought it would have Facebook's pervert police on its case.
http://www.watoday.com.au/travel/travel-news/how-abbotts-booby-upset-facebook-20130904-2t5al.html (http://www.watoday.com.au/travel/travel-news/how-abbotts-booby-upset-facebook-20130904-2t5al.html)

Merka is so quaint! I wonder how FB would respond to this headline.
Quote
Great Tits Built to Survive Climate Change?
http://news.discovery.com/animals/great-tits-built-to-survive-climate-change-130709.htm (http://news.discovery.com/animals/great-tits-built-to-survive-climate-change-130709.htm)
Perhaps two blue tits may be acceptable.
http://cdn.discoverwildlife.com/sites/default/files/uploads/10975/blue%20tit_BTO_2.jpg (http://cdn.discoverwildlife.com/sites/default/files/uploads/10975/blue%20tit_BTO_2.jpg)
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Just Like Mr Benn on July 23, 2015, 04:45:16 PM
I appreciate that conspiracy theories are hardly the preserve of the mentally stable, but I am becoming more and more convinced that Donald trump is a democrat plant whose mission is to destroy the Republican Party.

I'm not the only one.
Quote
One Republican state legislator in Florida doesn't think 2016 presidential candidate Donald Trump is a legitimate GOP candidate and has stated more than once that Trump is a "phantom candidate." Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Miami) explained his reasoning by claiming Trump possibly could be a plot devised by the Democrats to make the GOP look bad.

Republican State senators tend to be right about things like this, so I'm feeling pretty confident.

Unfortunately, Curbelo seems to be the only other person to have seen through this.

Let's look at the evidence though.

1. Trump is good friends with the Clintons. As Curbelo notes, they were at his last wedding. Ok, statistically there's a good chance we'll all end up at one of his weddings eventually, but Trump has contributed a lot to the Clinton Foundation. The Clintons won't say a bad word about him.

2. In a 2004 interview with wolf Blitzer

Quote
BLITZER: Do you identify more as a Democrat or Republican?
TRUMP: Well, you'd be shocked if I said that in many cases I probably identify more as Democrat. And I think you'd probably be shocked...

BLITZER: On social issues?

TRUMP: You know, it's interesting, I've been now around long -- you know, I think of myself as a young guy, but I'm not so young anymore. And I've been around for a long time. And it just seems that the economy does better under the Democrats than the Republicans. Now, it shouldn't be that way. But if you go back, I mean it just seems that the economy does better under the Democrats...

if you read the rest of that interview, or any others from a while back, Trump comes across very differently. Maybe he has become a bloviating nutjob in recent years, or maybe its an act.

3. The democrats Achilles heel in this election was likely to be the Latin vote. Bush, Rubio (and unbelievably but true) Ted (o Canada) Cruz all have election strategies based on capturing the Latin vote. This has been somewhat undermined by Trump's rapist comments.

If you think he's caused havoc so far, wait until the debates start. As soon as he says something wildly offensive, the other people on the stage will have to make an immediate decision whether to alienate Trump's supporters by condemning his comments.

Genius.
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: Escaped Lunatic on July 23, 2015, 11:15:49 PM
If you give away too many plot points in advance, the World Political Entertainment Corporation will be paying you a visit. uuuuuuuuuu
Title: Re: What's in the water in USA?
Post by: shakemyspear on August 08, 2015, 09:57:33 PM
Long story short, Republicans are mentally unstable. ;)