Malcador Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 1 hour ago, Gorth said: Australia used to be a nice place... let's commemorate the country that once was: What about the bogans? Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra
Gorth Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 5 minutes ago, Malcador said: What about the bogans? Those areas on the map marked in green... 4 “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein
ShadySands Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 Castro finally ends campaign Free games updated 3/4/21
ComradeYellow Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 8 hours ago, BruceVC said: I still maintain Biden is the best Democratic candidate to beat Trump and hopefully he wins the Democratic nomination Trump Lite, eh?
Gfted1 Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 Yang had a big increase in the 4th quarter campaign finances. Yang...Yang...Yang!!! "I'm your biggest fan, Ill follow you until you love me, Papa"
Guard Dog Posted January 2, 2020 Author Posted January 2, 2020 Julian Castro has dropped out: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/elections-2020/julián-castro-drops-out-of-presidential-race/ar-BBYxV1z?ocid=spartandhp "While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before" Thomas Sowell
213374U Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 Making misery pay: Libya militias take EU funds for migrants Ah well. 1 - When he is best, he is a little worse than a man, and when he is worst, he is little better than a beast.
Azdeus Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 13 minutes ago, 213374U said: Making misery pay: Libya militias take EU funds for migrants Ah well. Long suspected as much, even though I never really read anything about it. It'll be good to have something under my belt while arguing with Swedish Democrats that wants to "help where migrants are at". Civilization, in fact, grows more and more maudlin and hysterical; especially under democracy it tends to degenerate into a mere combat of crazes; the whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, most of them imaginary. - H.L. Mencken
Gromnir Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 4 hours ago, ShadySands said: Castro finally ends campaign for us this is kinda a meh moment. had to keep reminding self castro were still technical in the race. felt a little disappointment when booker dropped out o' the race. buttigeg is kinda a watered-down and less experienced version o' booker but with the advantage o' not being a washington guy, which is increasing important these days. we preferred booker to biden or buttigeg. admitted, it were tough to figure out exact where booker stood on a few issues and he failed to have a signature policy driver such as yang's $1k handout. *insert eye-roll* am personal not a fan o' clinton era fiscal policy, and booker were kinda a more honest and less smarmy bill clinton, but am thinking he coulda' actual brought back a bit o' needed bipartisanship to washington on a number o' issues if he had been willing to stand up for... something. castro started poor in the debates and initial polls and never improved much. again, need remind self he were still in this. HA! Good Fun! "If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence."Justice Louis Brandeis, Concurring, Whitney v. California, 274 U.S. 357 (1927) "Im indifferent to almost any murder as long as it doesn't affect me or mine."--Gfted1 (September 30, 2019)
ShadySands Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 Booker dropped out? Free games updated 3/4/21
Zoraptor Posted January 2, 2020 Posted January 2, 2020 2 hours ago, Azdeus said: Long suspected as much, even though I never really read anything about it. It'll be good to have something under my belt while arguing with Swedish Democrats that wants to "help where migrants are at". Libya having huge migrant exploitation and literal slave markets has been known for absolute ages, but nearly no one in the press wants to actually report on it- mostly because it would involve strong tacit criticism of an intervention they were wildly supportive of and make other interventions they're wildly supportive of harder to sell. The really weird thing about Libya is the split in who supports which faction. Sworn enemies in Syria- Russia, Syria; UAE, KSA, France and Israel along with Egypt which was broadly neutral- all teaming up to take on the Turkish backed formal government in Tripoli, and Turkey is even flying in the jihadi mercenaries it used in its ethnic cleansing campaign in northern Syria as expendable cannon fodder. 1 1
Guard Dog Posted January 3, 2020 Author Posted January 3, 2020 Booker is still in. 1 "While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before" Thomas Sowell
Zoraptor Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 Iraqi TV and a Hezbollah TV channel (and secondary sources like Al Jazeera quoting them) are reporting that the US has droned Qassem Soleimani and PMU head al Muhandis. If so, it's difficult to see anything other than outright war following, but there are also sources (eg BBC Arabic) denying it and the whole situation is pretty murky- the initial reports were of an attack being made on US troops at Baghdad Airport. Given that 10 Iraqi soldiers proper are also reported dead or injured I'd suspect at very least the US is going to be 'invited' to leave Iraq in the next few days. 1
Malcador Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 Funny, all of this and no Bolton there. Wouldn't have expected tha Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra
ComradeYellow Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 Consumer goods are literally the only thing that's keeping a large segment of the U.S. population inactive at rebelling against this pitiful regime that has been been in power since at least Clinton. I would know, I've fell back into the addiction of computer hardware assembly. It's literally a drug. Silicon Valley is doing a phenomenal job at keeping American left-leaning people docile. Whether this is all for the better is yet to be determined. Either consume and destroy the planet and start a family or rebel and offer alternative solutions with uncertain certainty of success. The post-modern world really sucks. I guess it'll take a collective sledgehammer and to have things start falling apart before a new collective conscience takes place. Until then, pay your bills, learn to love, and remain cautious. It's the small things that matter, stuff the history books don't write about, that generates good...
BruceVC Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 4 hours ago, Zoraptor said: Libya having huge migrant exploitation and literal slave markets has been known for absolute ages, but nearly no one in the press wants to actually report on it- mostly because it would involve strong tacit criticism of an intervention they were wildly supportive of and make other interventions they're wildly supportive of harder to sell. Zora I was hoping 2020 would be a good year to not be selective and revisionist about geopolitical events and developments For example its patently untrue that the press hasnt reported about the slave markets in Libya, it was CNN who first broke the story with Freedom Project at great personal risk to there own journalists. How else do you think you even know about the Libya slave markets which were mostly controlled by the ISIS faction. Its the same as the slavery we see Boko Haram involved in https://edition.cnn.com/specials/africa/libya-slave-auctions Comments like the media is biased I have always found to be inaccurate due to the fact the media isn't some monolithic entity controlled by the Jews/Illuminate " puppet masters " And finally the entire collapse of Libya was not because of the West. It was a outcome of the Arab Spring and the fact Gaddafi, like Assad, refused to allow all his citizens to be part of the economy or share in any kind of economic transformation. This is on them, not the Western intervention "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
BruceVC Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, ComradeMaster said: I would know, I've fell back into the addiction of computer hardware assembly. It's literally a drug. Silicon Valley is doing a phenomenal job at keeping American left-leaning people docile. Whether this is all for the better is yet to be determined. Either consume and destroy the planet and start a family or rebel and offer alternative solutions with uncertain certainty of success. Im genuinely interested in how Silicon Valley is adding to the left being docile? Because its normal to buy PC hardware and software if that is one of your hobbies So in other words how is commercialization of any sector or industry responsible for reducing activism? You can do both ....we can " walk and chew at the same time " as some people say in the South Africa political and social narrative Edited January 3, 2020 by BruceVC "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
Zoraptor Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 Hmm. CNN did not break the story of Libyan slaving. It's been going on since 2012 so it took them 5 years to report on it. They did however try to run interference by blaming ISIS for it. Which as with most good propaganda is true, from a certain point of view, however... There's massive slaving still going on despite ISIS practically not existing any more in Libya. The primary slavers are, surprise surprise, western backed militias- and always have been. The collapse of Libya was 100% due to the west. Not the US in this case which largely got dragged along by its allies, but due to that noxious dwarf war criminal Nicolas Sarkozy wanting to cover up getting illegal donations from Gaddafi. Libyans were literally 100% better off under Gaddafi in every conceivable way and every conceivable measure, including the possiblity of arbitrarily being tortured or killed from which the threat now comes from a befuddling array of possibilities rather than just if you challenged Muammar. The popular revolution was so powerful that even with NATO illegally acting as its airforce the rebels still took 6 months to win. 1
BruceVC Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 8 minutes ago, Zoraptor said: Hmm. CNN did not break the story of Libyan slaving. It's been going on since 2012 so it took them 5 years to report on it. They did however try to run interference by blaming ISIS for it. Which as with most good propaganda is true, from a certain point of view, however... There's massive slaving still going on despite ISIS practically not existing any more in Libya. The primary slavers are, surprise surprise, western backed militias- and always have been. The collapse of Libya was 100% due to the west. Not the US in this case which largely got dragged along by its allies, but due to that noxious dwarf war criminal Nicolas Sarkozy wanting to cover up getting illegal donations from Gaddafi. Libyans were literally 100% better off under Gaddafi in every conceivable way and every conceivable measure, including the possiblity of arbitrarily being tortured or killed from which the threat now comes from a befuddling array of possibilities rather than just if you challenged Muammar. The popular revolution was so powerful that even with NATO illegally acting as its airforce the rebels still took 6 months to win. You raise some good points but there is a fundamental inconsistency in the argument " that Libya was better off under Gaddafi " Clearly the majority of the actual Libyan citizens disagree with that view because the Arab Spring uprising in Libya was initiated by Libyan tribes unhappy with the dictatorial rule of Gaddafi. The original intervention of the Western bombing campaign was to break the siege of Misrata, the planned attacks on Bhengazi and to prevent the massacre of tens of thousands of Libyan rebels and civilians by Gaddafi forces. The intervention was also the basis for the UN resolution 1973 ( even if you dismiss WIKI links you can use the links below as a basis for other articles outside of wiki links, I am just posting them as reference and convenience ) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1973 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Misrata https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_2011_military_intervention_in_Libya I am not suggesting the Western bombing campaign didn't extend its UN mandate but they didn't cause the original instability and were not responsible for the causes of the Libyan civil war Finally people criticize the West for helping to defeat Gaddafi but then not playing any meaningful role in helping to rebuild the new Libya. But the rebuilding of Libya was never part of the strategy or a realistic expectation for several reasons. Primarily the fact that many of the anti-Gaddafi tribes also didn't like the West so Western countries couldn't be seen as any kind of occupying force after the initial failures of the 2003 invasion of Iraq Compare Syria to Libya now and ask an honest question, what country has a better future or is more likely to be rebuilt in a quicker and more sustainable way? That is my example of what happens when you dont have Western intervention and things are left to be resolved by the likes of Russia or other players "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
BruceVC Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 4 hours ago, Zoraptor said: Iraqi TV and a Hezbollah TV channel (and secondary sources like Al Jazeera quoting them) are reporting that the US has droned Qassem Soleimani and PMU head al Muhandis. If so, it's difficult to see anything other than outright war following, but there are also sources (eg BBC Arabic) denying it and the whole situation is pretty murky- the initial reports were of an attack being made on US troops at Baghdad Airport. Given that 10 Iraqi soldiers proper are also reported dead or injured I'd suspect at very least the US is going to be 'invited' to leave Iraq in the next few days. This is concerning, its currently been extensively covered by Al Jazeera for those interested and its a good, objective way to follow this development as you see views by numerous people on both sides "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
Guard Dog Posted January 3, 2020 Author Posted January 3, 2020 This is a very smart, sober, and enlightening analysis of the US political situation. Frankly I surprised it came from the Atlantic. But, credit where credit is due: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/01/two-party-system-broke-constitution/604213/ One of my biggest worries is that one political faction or the other actually achieves a real and enduring majority. With so much animosity and so many actions taken for no reason other than petty attempts to infuriate the other side and actual armed civil war absolutely could happen. The worst part of it is people in general follow the better angels of their nature and don't automatically hate each other. But the political class needs that anger to drive their electoral ambitions so they gleefully stoke it. "While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before" Thomas Sowell
pmp10 Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 14 hours ago, Zoraptor said: Iraqi TV and a Hezbollah TV channel (and secondary sources like Al Jazeera quoting them) are reporting that the US has droned Qassem Soleimani and PMU head al Muhandis. Given that it's election year I can't help to wonder what was Trump thinking. A serious escalation while his base was all for getting out of middle-east.
Chilloutman Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 1 hour ago, pmp10 said: Given that it's election year I can't help to wonder what was Trump thinking. A serious escalation while his base was all for getting out of middle-east. well most of his voter base don't want troops in there, throwing few missiles there on other hand... 1 I'm the enemy, 'cause I like to think, I like to read. I'm into freedom of speech, and freedom of choice. I'm the kinda guy that likes to sit in a greasy spoon and wonder, "Gee, should I have the T-bone steak or the jumbo rack of barbecue ribs with the side-order of gravy fries?" I want high cholesterol! I wanna eat bacon, and butter, and buckets of cheese, okay?! I wanna smoke a Cuban cigar the size of Cincinnati in the non-smoking section! I wanna run naked through the street, with green Jell-O all over my body, reading Playboy magazine. Why? Because I suddenly may feel the need to, okay, pal? I've SEEN the future. Do you know what it is? It's a 47-year-old virgin sitting around in his beige pajamas, drinking a banana-broccoli shake, singing "I'm an Oscar Meyer Wiene"
Zoraptor Posted January 3, 2020 Posted January 3, 2020 2 hours ago, pmp10 said: Given that it's election year I can't help to wonder what was Trump thinking. A serious escalation while his base was all for getting out of middle-east. Trump simply doesn't have the ability to 'think' about such things, he lacks any depth of knowledge or critical acumen beyond seeing everything as a business transaction. Situation would have been something like he'd have got a phone call from Netanyahu urging him to 'eliminate a terrorist' and done it with no one left to tell him that it's the equivalent of eliminating the US SecDef, if the US SecDef happened to also be George Washington- Soleimani was ludicrously popular in Iran, even US surveys had him at 80% approval. He was also ludicrously popular in places the US really needs for when they'll be kicked out of Iraq, like Iraqi Kurdistan since Soleimani lead the Iranian response to Anfal and Saddam's chemical weapons attacks on the Kurds at a time when the US was still arming Saddam and claiming it was Iran framing Iraq for the CW attacks. Of course, the main US supporter there and his party was actually working for Saddam while his compatriots were being gassed...
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