Politics

https://phys.org/news/2019-06-york-world-ambitious-carbon-reduction.html New York to get one of world's most ambitious carbon reduction plans: New York state lawmakers on Wednesday passed one of the world's most ambitious laws aimed at countering climate change, under which fossil fuel power plants and gasoline cars will be phased out by 2050. more at link...... <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> then we have this....…

What should the UN's stand be other than withdrawing its forces from Sudan? How should the USA offer military support to the Sudanese civilians? Should it interfere in any way or not?

Might not be any human civilization to see glaciers again : https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-climate-change-report-human-civilization-at-risk-extinction-by-2050-new-australian-climate/ "A new report by Australian climate experts warns that "climate change now represents a near- to mid-term existential threat" to human civilization. In this grim forecast — which was endorsed by the former chief of the Australian Defense Force — human civilization could end by 2050 due to the destabilizing societal and environmental factors caused by a rapidly warming planet. The report, entitled "Existential climate-related security risk: A scenario approach," lays out a futu…

I had never noticed Trump's connection with "PRO" wrestling, or more properly called "WWE" for "World Wrestling Entertainment," until I saw "Last Week Tonight" with John Oliver. "PRO" really means "FAKE" wrestling. Is anyone familiar with real wrestling, the kind of wrestling they have in high school, college and the Olympics? Are there any fans of real wrestling out there? Are there fans of WWE out there? What is the appeal? WWE is a choreographed dance that looks so fake, by the standards of special effects in movies, but is good enough for the fans. Trump's base always says, "We don't take Trump literally, we take him seriously." That is what the WWE is ALL ab…

Seems that even places with strict gun laws aren't immune from idiots wanting to hurt/kill other people. Seems so much more shocking when the news comes from a place other than the USA. My condolences to our Australian friends, BeeCee, Hyper, and other members who live down-under.

So he finally revealed his tax records. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/05/07/us/politics/donald-trump-taxes.html?fbclid=IwAR2CiXhc1rA2Lpo5lwLLcBB1_o--jWoXH5MgbKx3sT9SnDzy14oy8O5ZWIs Do those that voted for him still have his confidence seeing as his campaign was all about what a great business man he was? Maybe his father left him a note like the one from 'Brewster's Millions'.

During Barr's confirmation I gave him the benefit of the doubt about his integrity. But I learned that he applied for the job of attorney general long before he was confirmed. In his 19-page job application he said that a president has almost unlimited powers to defy accusations of obstruction of justice. So Trump hired him. Now we are seeing Barr mischaracterizing the Mueller report. When questioned if he knew what Mueller thought about Barr's 4-page memo "exonerating" Trump, Barr said he didn't know what Mueller thought about his mischaracterization of the Mueller report, which was a lie. Mueller sent Barr a letter complaining about his mischaracterization of his …

Can we avoid war? "So asking if the US and China can avoid Thucydides's trap is no mere academic question" https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-47613416

The US govt is shut down over the semantics of what the US needs on its' southern border, a wall or a fence. Or border security technology and additional personnel? Trump had said he insisted on a " concrete wall" not a fence, but recently he thinks they are the same. So my question is about the $5 billion he demands for his "wall" does that mean he wants to begin a project of REPLACING the fencing that is already there with his "steel slats" see-thru "wall". Does he want to tear down the inferior fencing and replace it with his super steel slats? What I would suggest is they install total surveillance along the border to find out EXACTLY WHERE the most people ar…

What does it mean wrt to whether something needs to be reported. Is gossip "in the public interest"? Does it differ either side of the Atlantic? What are the parameters?

In October Cesar sayoc was arrested for sending explosives to Obama, Joe Biden, Clinton, Kamala Harris and Cory Booker, former Attorney General Eric Holder, actor Robert De Niro, John Brennan, James Clapper, billionaires George Soros and Tom Steyer, and Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif. Yesterday a Military Officer was arrested who was plotting to kill some of the same people, link below. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has only been in political office 6 weeks and already made the list of a right wing extremist who was plotting to murder people. This isn't standard political polarization. This isn't a typical both sides issue. We are in a very dangerous political environment. …

President Trump's backed healthcare plan was recently pulled. However Congress can revive debate and propose another bill in the future. What are some of the solutions we'd like to see? *keeping in mind that we aren't starting from scratch. It seems solutions are dominated by who pays for healthcare: single payer, employer based, individual tax credits, etc. Cost cutting solutions tend to revolve around malpractice protection. I think one outlooked area is education. It is very expensive and academically difficult to pursue a medical career. That limits the number of people who are willing and able to pursue a medical career and also influences how much salary those w…

Yuri Bezmenov was a KGB agent who defected to Canada in the 70s. In the 80s he gave a series of talks and lectures on KGB intelligence methods. Notably he claimed that most work was not secret gathering, but developing people in Western countries who could unwittingly assist in a subversion program. These were usually people in higher education, the intention was to train the next generation in ideas that would bring about "demoralisation" of the West, so that further influence and control could be leveraged. How credible is the theory that a Soviet style conspiracy has gripped Western academia? Bezmenov warned in the 80s that the West did not have much time to reverse th…

On December 22nd 2017 the current in office Potus passed a major piece of legislation relating to taxes. It included massive tax cuts and many people predicted that this tax bill would result in businesses making much more money and the richer getting richer and the poorer getting poorer. However, regarding benefits to lower-income people. https://www.majoritywhip.gov/TaxReformWorks?utm_source=Speaker.gov+Master+List&utm_campaign=b998d88a3d-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3e173f5a25-b998d88a3d-157378765 This link has every single source located at the top, just click the company and you'll get the source. As muc…

Sen. John McCain was one of only two Republicans in recent memory whom I felt showed an uncommon measure of integrity for an American politician. The other was Sen. Arlen Specter. Sadly, I fear, we shall not see the likes of such men in American politics ever again, which is probably why I have such great hope for those women who have shown tremendous courage in choosing to serve our government. This is not to suggest that women are incorruptible, it's just time for a major social shift in our governing given the status of our current male leadership, which is extraordinarily disgraceful--IMO.

Congresswoman Ilhan Omar recently made an anti-Semitic remark on Twitter, Link. In response to a tweet critical of pro-Israeli positions among various U.S. Politicians she posted "it's all about the Benjamins baby". The association between Jewish people and money is a well known hateful trope. Should there be consequences for this, if so what should they be and if not why not?

What are some examples of successful matriarchal and patriarchal societies in the 21st century?

We've had a few threads exploring media bias, the dangerous political climate, and various ways propaganda seems to be shaping our politics, but I felt this one was specific enough to have it's own. Fox News’s propaganda isn’t just unethical — research shows it’s enormously influential Without the “Fox effect,” neither Bush nor Trump could have won. I think we need to do something about this. TBH, I don't know quite what that can/should be and how to improve matters while still having appropriate deference for the First Amendment. Also, as seems clear from the data, arguing that this is a "both sides" issue is (to be kind) disingenuous.

Did anyone watch this? I saw most of it. It was on channels: 2, 4, 5, 7, 11, and several cable news channels. One thing that did not get enough notice is that Trump called Cohen a "RAT." The way Trump used the term is a common gangster reference to someone who tells the TRUTH to law enforcement. At rat is not a liar. The GOP questioning Cohen kept harping on the theme that Cohen is a liar and cannot be trusted. Here is Trump's famous Tweet: "Remember, Michael Cohen only became a “Rat” after the FBI did something which was absolutely unthinkable & unheard of until the Witch Hunt was illegally started. They BROKE INTO AN ATTORNEY’S OFFICE! Why didn’t they…

Although I haven't heard this in the news, I am making the educated guess that North Korea has had all the time they need to set up thousands of artillery pieces all along their side of the border pointed directly at Seoul. If we do anything to destroy their nuclear program or long-range missiles, they can press a button that will rain down total ruin on the city of Seoul, completely destroying it a few minutes. Am I wrong? Anti-missile batteries can't do anything against artillery shells. Maybe it's time to relocate Seoul and its occupants to the southern tip of the peninsula.

"Animals" is the worst thing Trump can say about any group of people. He calls the gang members of MS-13 "animals" because they torture, kill, rape, and other terrible things that bad people do to innocent people, AND they are Latinos. But, strictly speaking, this assumes that "animals" in general are despicable. Calling a group of people "animals" sounds Nazi. When I go down the list of animals that I am familiar with, there is a long list of LOVELY creatures: dogs, cats, birds, squirrels, rabbits, horses, deer come to mind when I think "animal". Trump loves to eat meat. Are those animals that give up their lives for his pleasure despicable? Trump must be thinkin…

I saw a video that was 'sponsored' and posted to my timeline on FB. Anyone else get it? It was a little frightening that people will buy into this view. There was a posh student from the UK explaining how socialism has failed in every country that it has been tried in. It particularly made the recent problems in Venezuela a direct result of socialism failing. It listed many countries - including most of Europe where socialism has supposedly failed. Although the guy was English - I looked up the sponsored site and they were from the USA (as I had guessed they would be) - it was clearly a message direct from the Trump administration. Is this out of the Trump adm…

Visualize this: It’s November 7. You wake up to discover Republicans kept control of the house, senate, along with most state legislatures and governorships. What does that mean? What best explains how it happened? What comes next? Let’s not assume it’s impossible. After all, who thought they’d wake up to see Donald Trump as the US President on November 9, 2016...FiveThirtyEight gives 15% for GOP taking house, 81% for senate, and at least 26 state governors. This is clearly opinion based. Let’s please keep in mind that none of our crystal balls are more accurate than anyone else’s. What would it mean, how did it happen, what happens next?

The right, and especially Pres Trump, constantly are claiming media bias, supposedly supporting the left. Have there been any independent studies on whether that bias actually exists?

What are everyones thoughts on the effect of any independents running for election in 2020? Or even the threat of them running on the political positioning and debate, or who might get the Democrat ticket? Do they have any chance, or what circumstances might allow them to be elected? Some Democrats seemed quite upset at Howard Schultz suggesting he might run, as he would tend to draw more votes from Democrats than from Trump and that it would also favour Trump in the electoral college voting if there was no clear winner. My personal point of view is that it would be healthy to have someone moderate stating the case for the so-called middle, especially initi…