I'll give the most obvious example that you're wrong: Democrats are frequently in power, yet America remains. If they wanted to destroy it, they have had multiple opportunities to do so.
Trump, on the other hand, is actively trying to subvert American institutions. He is trying to subvert the Justice Dept and the rule of law in general - he does not believe that he nor his friends are subject to the rule of law, and he proves it by some of his several pardons. He saluted North Korean generals. He acts as an unwitting puppet for other governments who can control what he does simply by stroking his ego. He literally kidnaps kids from their parents and holds them in confinement - and I'm going to repeat that. The President Of The United States kidnaps children as young as infants and toddlers from their parents and then keeps them in confinement, all while saying he unconstitutionally wants to deny those children and their parents due process - which is obviously and blatantly un-American. He is abandoning the leadership role that America has had for decades, just literally and completely abandoning it. He has attacked allies who have stood with us on every important international issue for decades. He is starting trade wars that are not possible for either side to "win", while he's helping Chinese companies who spy on us try to avoid our sanctions and save their jobs.
And you think this person is good for the country, and that people who disagree with him are the enemies of the country. If the above description is what you think America means, then maybe you're the one who is actually the enemy of America. Maybe you have no idea what it means to actually be an American and share our values. Because our values include due process for everyone, even people in the country illegally. If you disagree with that, then you disagree with American values. It's that simple.
They're the enemy because they seek to destroy America. It's that simple.
I hope you understand the above statement is your opinion and is not a statement of fact, but I doubt you'll admit that.
One side wants nothing less than the complete destruction of America and American values.
That is another statement of opinion, and considering the fact that you're trying to apply it to a large portion of American society, it is also absurd.
They must be eradicated. There is no other option.
I can see that you're not willing to engage in any sort of discussion on this issue, you've already made up your mind and I have major doubts that any amount of evidence to the contrary, even obvious and direct evidence that your opinions are wrong, will cause you to engage in any sort of critical thinking or cause your opinions to change. If you'd like to post your name though, I'll go ahead and set up a news alert so I can find out when you've actually snapped and decided to attack your fellow citizens.
Your attitude towards your fellow citizens is a good illustration of the division the country faces. It's completely incorrect and it's a good illustration of the problem that many people like you have. I'm not sure who has convinced you that a large percentage of the country is your enemy, although I could certainly guess, but it's not correct and it's not helpful to progress. Viewing those that you disagree with as your enemy will not help you solve the problem, especially when you need their help, and most especially when you're part of a very small minority of people who think like you. I understand where you're coming from though, when you have a distorted view of reality in general and you can't figure out how other people see things differently, it helps you mentally if you can convince yourself that those who disagree with you are somehow "less" than you are. That's not necessarily true either.
I'm not a Democrat. But feel free to take a look at the popular vote totals for the 2016 election. Also feel free to figure out why 42.6% of new voters registered in 2016 were Democrat registrations, while 29% were Republican. Republican registrations only narrowly beat out independent registrations at 28.4%.
Don't worry though, I'm sure the Democrats will manage yet again to nominate people nobody wants.
All major government officials hand out some perks to other counterparts and such, its described in any number of the articles on the subject, they came from the same supplier the EPA used under Obama and are the same pen. Every bill that is signed has dozens of pens given out after signing it.
And the choices are either $.50 left over job fair pens, or $130 pens?
The cone of silence is a SCIF, they are required for any secure government communication and are found in every government facility in DC, if you are attending any sort of daily brief then you would need one.
OK, so you must be suggesting that the EPA did not have a SCIF, and it was Pruitt's brilliant leadership that brought them up to speed. Right? The EPA had no SCIF before Pruitt was there, correct? These rooms and buildings are all over Washington, some even mobile, and can be set up quickly, but you're saying the EPA never had on and this expense by Pruitt was necessary?
Russia again, any day now they'll show how he and Putin used carrier pigeons to coordinate their attacks on Hillary, just wait, it's coming...
Just to make a point clear: do you believe that Putin and Russia have actively tried to subvert democratic processes in the US and Europe? That's a simple question, it only needs a yes or no answer. Congress and the US intelligence community believe that they have. I'd like to know what you think, whether you agree with Congress and the 17 US intelligence agencies, or whether you think Putin is a fantastic guy, believe me, just the best. Almost as nice of a guy as Kim Jong-Un.
I think a lot of people had their meal tickets cut off.
A lot more people need their meal tickets cut off. People in Congress. People like McConnell and Pelosi.
I would definitely like to see their meal tickets totally cut off and the EPA do real work without causing any more environmental disasters through gross incompetence.
Agreed. This is one reason why Pruitt leaving is a good thing.
There *are* people who want to see America fail and are upset Trump is taking a sharp pro-America approach.
No shit. But they aren't Americans, and they definitely aren't voting in our elections. They're trying to subvert our processes, not participate in them.
I mean, seriously, assuming that there are a bunch of Americans who actively want to see the country fail is just ridiculous. Maybe there are a lot more masochists in this country than I realize, but I seriously doubt there are that many people pushing for their own failure.
What happened to the America that believed in one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all, that I used to pledge allegiance to as a kid?
That's a good question, so let's take those one at a time.
"under God" - which god are you referring to? Are you aware that the US is full of immigrants, and always has been, and that these immigrants do not all share one god? Are you aware that the percentage of people who feel comfortable saying that they believe in no god has been rising steadily for decades, in accordance with most of the rest of the world? The phrase "under God" was added in 1954 during the red scare. Despite what certain people want you believe, this country has not revolved around god throughout its history.
"indivisible" - it would be difficult to place blame for division on any one person, but the 2 major parties in control are amazingly divisive. There is no effort to unite people, only divide them, and that's especially true with Trump, that's what he does specifically.
"liberty and justice for all" - many people in this country feel like they do not have liberty or receive justice, but unfortunately when they protest over that a large percentage of conservatives attack them for it. But, again, it's hard to pinpoint blame on any one thing for this. Like other problems though, this starts at the top too. It starts with a president who feels that justice does not apply to him and has specifically said words to that effect. He wants justice officials to be personally loyal to him. That's not justice, that's the opposite. You can see it in his actions also, like pardoning Joe Arpaio. Arpaio was found guilty of criminal contempt of court - contempt for the actual justice system - and he even admitted his guilt. So, what did Trump do? He gave him a pardon, because Trump does not believe in justice and the rule of law when it comes to him and people he likes. Then, what happens when Trump gets investigated? He pardons a series of people, including corrupt government officials, and people who tried to subvert our elections, and he pardons them because he doesn't like the people who prosecuted them. Liberty and justice are fine values to have, but it's very difficult to be a nation of liberty and justice when we have a president who does not believe in them.
These are some of the reasons we need to get rid of the Ds and Rs and go back to actual representative government instead of electing a bunch of people who are only interested in securing power for themselves.
Then it's not a new party, is it? So that must not be what I'm talking about, right?
Seriously, this country needs to kick out the Ds and Rs and come out with 3, 4, or 5 parties so that people can actually look at the range of candidates and find someone who represents them that they want to go out and vote for. Maybe then 45% of the electorate will not decide to stay home.
If you're younger than about 40, the only third party candidate you remember seeing in a televised presidential debate is Ross Perot. But every year people from other parties still run. You never see them debate though. You should ask yourself why. If you want to know, look up the Commission on Presidential Debates, and realize that this process is controlled by the D and R parties and that they will lock any network who airs any other candidate in a debate out from those lucrative exclusive debate contracts that they like to throw around. I'm not sure what exactly is democratic about allowing a single network to air a presidential debate, but that whole process needs to be thrown in the trash.
That's ridiculous. Ask yourself why 45% of the electorate decided to stay home in 2016. I bet the answer is that people did not feel like either the D or R candidate was worth voting for or represented them, and they believed the narrative that a vote for any other party was a waste of time. There is a massive chunk of the population that doesn't feel like they should vote. Look at the Democrats now - they have no leadership, and no agenda other than opposing whatever Republicans do. Their incumbents are losing elections, and I would bet money that trend continues in the midterms. You still have to look for people like Bernie Sanders, who explicitly makes the point that he is not a Democrat, to see any kind of positive agenda that doesn't only revolve around opposition to Republican policies.
Democratic incumbents are going to be replaced by newcomers because the Democrats have no message and, like the Republicans, are showing that they are completely useless in Congress. If you're counting on them for balance, you're going to be disappointed. It's time for change. We need 3, 4, or 5 parties in Congress so that people will actually make some sort of attempt to compromise with each other for laws that 60, 70, or 80% of people support instead of this bullshit where each party crafts some awful legislation and then tries to scrape together the absolute bare minimum of votes to pass it. We deserve much better than that. The Ds and Rs have dropped the ball and they deserve to be kicked out.
or get Democrats to all re-register as Republican for 2020
Or maybe actual progressives need to form their own party, actual small-government conservatives need to form their own party, and let the "Democrats" and "Republicans" twist in the wind wondering why no one likes them any more.
Yeah! Those fucking Canadians have had it too easy for too long, what with them always helping us!
You're just mad because you want to see America fail.
This makes me sad because I believe that many Trump supporters actually believe things like this about people who disagree with them. There are way too many people in this country who think they have a monopoly on love for their country.
I like the whole "look at his expensive pens" deal, I don't want the EPA administrator handing a $.50 pen to his worldwide counterparts left over from a job fair.
OK, two things: why is the EPA handing pens out to people? They don't have their own pens? And, secondly, isn't there some sort of medium between "$.50 pens left over from a job fair" and $130 pens that he's buying by the dozen? I mean, is the pen market really so fractured that there is nothing for sale between $.50 job fair pens and $130 jewelry store pens?
Also, the whole"cone of silence." I like the fact that a cabinet position is taken seriously because that is direct in the line of succession, which means keeping up with top secret briefings and emails, as well as having a security detail and considering your travel.
Oh, I see. So, all other cabinet positions also have "cones of silence" then, and he was just getting up to speed. Right?
This is part of living in a nation with real enemies.
Yes. Like Russia.
The bottom line is the EPA administrates a lot of money to superfund and everything else which lefties have an entire infrastructure built around. He is a threat to that infrastructure and they need him out.
So you're suggesting that the only people who have a problem with the fact that Pruitt is a wasteful idiot are "lefties?" So, if someone is not a "leftie", then they have no problems at all with Scott Pruitt, correct?
The action now is to get someone in there who is 100x worse for the staff.
Why do you want to punish the EPA staff? Or, are you suggesting that you want the president to punish the EPA staff? Or that you think the president is going to punish the EPA staff regardless of what anyone else thinks?
OK, I'm glad that we agree on what disposable income means. People spend their money on all kinds of things that bring them no real benefit. This is no different.
My money is on no laws changing and the government continuing to act like there is no accepted medical use. It will probably take a court case to force them to change, especially with Sessions being there.
Better tell Germany, because they're about to convert a coal mine to do exactly that with a huge pipe running in a 10 mile underground loop for storing that water underground. They're going to add pumps to pump water to the surface during times of generation excess, and then when generation is lower they run the water back down into the mine reservoir and send it through a turbine on the way. So, quick, Slashdot expert, save Germany and tell them that this isn't going to work because the coal mine wasn't designed to hold an underground reservoir and pumping station.
Oh, and India is trying to use this one source of solar power to power their entire country, is that it? Once this is finished they're going to demolish all other power plants? No point in adding capacity during the peak usage times, right?
If you see any story that is even remotely critical of Apple, you can be reliably assured to find several comments from people like SuperKendall or macs4all trying to defend Apple's position at any cost. They'll stop replying when someone makes a point that isn't covered in their How To Defend Apple handbook. Once I see their names enough I just kind of associate their names with blind brand loyalty.
Slashdot Mirror
I'll give the most obvious example that you're wrong: Democrats are frequently in power, yet America remains. If they wanted to destroy it, they have had multiple opportunities to do so.
Trump, on the other hand, is actively trying to subvert American institutions. He is trying to subvert the Justice Dept and the rule of law in general - he does not believe that he nor his friends are subject to the rule of law, and he proves it by some of his several pardons. He saluted North Korean generals. He acts as an unwitting puppet for other governments who can control what he does simply by stroking his ego. He literally kidnaps kids from their parents and holds them in confinement - and I'm going to repeat that. The President Of The United States kidnaps children as young as infants and toddlers from their parents and then keeps them in confinement, all while saying he unconstitutionally wants to deny those children and their parents due process - which is obviously and blatantly un-American. He is abandoning the leadership role that America has had for decades, just literally and completely abandoning it. He has attacked allies who have stood with us on every important international issue for decades. He is starting trade wars that are not possible for either side to "win", while he's helping Chinese companies who spy on us try to avoid our sanctions and save their jobs.
And you think this person is good for the country, and that people who disagree with him are the enemies of the country. If the above description is what you think America means, then maybe you're the one who is actually the enemy of America. Maybe you have no idea what it means to actually be an American and share our values. Because our values include due process for everyone, even people in the country illegally. If you disagree with that, then you disagree with American values. It's that simple.
They're the enemy because they seek to destroy America. It's that simple.
I hope you understand the above statement is your opinion and is not a statement of fact, but I doubt you'll admit that.
One side wants nothing less than the complete destruction of America and American values.
That is another statement of opinion, and considering the fact that you're trying to apply it to a large portion of American society, it is also absurd.
They must be eradicated. There is no other option.
I can see that you're not willing to engage in any sort of discussion on this issue, you've already made up your mind and I have major doubts that any amount of evidence to the contrary, even obvious and direct evidence that your opinions are wrong, will cause you to engage in any sort of critical thinking or cause your opinions to change. If you'd like to post your name though, I'll go ahead and set up a news alert so I can find out when you've actually snapped and decided to attack your fellow citizens.
Your attitude towards your fellow citizens is a good illustration of the division the country faces. It's completely incorrect and it's a good illustration of the problem that many people like you have. I'm not sure who has convinced you that a large percentage of the country is your enemy, although I could certainly guess, but it's not correct and it's not helpful to progress. Viewing those that you disagree with as your enemy will not help you solve the problem, especially when you need their help, and most especially when you're part of a very small minority of people who think like you. I understand where you're coming from though, when you have a distorted view of reality in general and you can't figure out how other people see things differently, it helps you mentally if you can convince yourself that those who disagree with you are somehow "less" than you are. That's not necessarily true either.
I didn't read your post, APK, but you're a lying cunt and this is the only response you deserve.
I'm not a Democrat. But feel free to take a look at the popular vote totals for the 2016 election. Also feel free to figure out why 42.6% of new voters registered in 2016 were Democrat registrations, while 29% were Republican. Republican registrations only narrowly beat out independent registrations at 28.4%.
Don't worry though, I'm sure the Democrats will manage yet again to nominate people nobody wants.
All major government officials hand out some perks to other counterparts and such, its described in any number of the articles on the subject, they came from the same supplier the EPA used under Obama and are the same pen. Every bill that is signed has dozens of pens given out after signing it.
And the choices are either $.50 left over job fair pens, or $130 pens?
The cone of silence is a SCIF, they are required for any secure government communication and are found in every government facility in DC, if you are attending any sort of daily brief then you would need one.
OK, so you must be suggesting that the EPA did not have a SCIF, and it was Pruitt's brilliant leadership that brought them up to speed. Right? The EPA had no SCIF before Pruitt was there, correct? These rooms and buildings are all over Washington, some even mobile, and can be set up quickly, but you're saying the EPA never had on and this expense by Pruitt was necessary?
Russia again, any day now they'll show how he and Putin used carrier pigeons to coordinate their attacks on Hillary, just wait, it's coming...
Just to make a point clear: do you believe that Putin and Russia have actively tried to subvert democratic processes in the US and Europe? That's a simple question, it only needs a yes or no answer. Congress and the US intelligence community believe that they have. I'd like to know what you think, whether you agree with Congress and the 17 US intelligence agencies, or whether you think Putin is a fantastic guy, believe me, just the best. Almost as nice of a guy as Kim Jong-Un.
I think a lot of people had their meal tickets cut off.
A lot more people need their meal tickets cut off. People in Congress. People like McConnell and Pelosi.
I would definitely like to see their meal tickets totally cut off and the EPA do real work without causing any more environmental disasters through gross incompetence.
Agreed. This is one reason why Pruitt leaving is a good thing.
There *are* people who want to see America fail and are upset Trump is taking a sharp pro-America approach.
No shit. But they aren't Americans, and they definitely aren't voting in our elections. They're trying to subvert our processes, not participate in them.
I mean, seriously, assuming that there are a bunch of Americans who actively want to see the country fail is just ridiculous. Maybe there are a lot more masochists in this country than I realize, but I seriously doubt there are that many people pushing for their own failure.
What happened to the America that believed in one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all, that I used to pledge allegiance to as a kid?
That's a good question, so let's take those one at a time.
"under God" - which god are you referring to? Are you aware that the US is full of immigrants, and always has been, and that these immigrants do not all share one god? Are you aware that the percentage of people who feel comfortable saying that they believe in no god has been rising steadily for decades, in accordance with most of the rest of the world? The phrase "under God" was added in 1954 during the red scare. Despite what certain people want you believe, this country has not revolved around god throughout its history.
"indivisible" - it would be difficult to place blame for division on any one person, but the 2 major parties in control are amazingly divisive. There is no effort to unite people, only divide them, and that's especially true with Trump, that's what he does specifically.
"liberty and justice for all" - many people in this country feel like they do not have liberty or receive justice, but unfortunately when they protest over that a large percentage of conservatives attack them for it. But, again, it's hard to pinpoint blame on any one thing for this. Like other problems though, this starts at the top too. It starts with a president who feels that justice does not apply to him and has specifically said words to that effect. He wants justice officials to be personally loyal to him. That's not justice, that's the opposite. You can see it in his actions also, like pardoning Joe Arpaio. Arpaio was found guilty of criminal contempt of court - contempt for the actual justice system - and he even admitted his guilt. So, what did Trump do? He gave him a pardon, because Trump does not believe in justice and the rule of law when it comes to him and people he likes. Then, what happens when Trump gets investigated? He pardons a series of people, including corrupt government officials, and people who tried to subvert our elections, and he pardons them because he doesn't like the people who prosecuted them. Liberty and justice are fine values to have, but it's very difficult to be a nation of liberty and justice when we have a president who does not believe in them.
These are some of the reasons we need to get rid of the Ds and Rs and go back to actual representative government instead of electing a bunch of people who are only interested in securing power for themselves.
I do think that the Democrats hate it, because they do.
Then you're a sadly misguided fool. There's not much else to say about that if you actually believe that a majority of the US hates the US.
They happily sell out American workers to help foreigners.
Yeah, unlike Trump, who's nearly bending over backwards to save Chinese jobs at ZTE.
Then it's not a new party, is it? So that must not be what I'm talking about, right?
Seriously, this country needs to kick out the Ds and Rs and come out with 3, 4, or 5 parties so that people can actually look at the range of candidates and find someone who represents them that they want to go out and vote for. Maybe then 45% of the electorate will not decide to stay home.
If you're younger than about 40, the only third party candidate you remember seeing in a televised presidential debate is Ross Perot. But every year people from other parties still run. You never see them debate though. You should ask yourself why. If you want to know, look up the Commission on Presidential Debates, and realize that this process is controlled by the D and R parties and that they will lock any network who airs any other candidate in a debate out from those lucrative exclusive debate contracts that they like to throw around. I'm not sure what exactly is democratic about allowing a single network to air a presidential debate, but that whole process needs to be thrown in the trash.
That's ridiculous. Ask yourself why 45% of the electorate decided to stay home in 2016. I bet the answer is that people did not feel like either the D or R candidate was worth voting for or represented them, and they believed the narrative that a vote for any other party was a waste of time. There is a massive chunk of the population that doesn't feel like they should vote. Look at the Democrats now - they have no leadership, and no agenda other than opposing whatever Republicans do. Their incumbents are losing elections, and I would bet money that trend continues in the midterms. You still have to look for people like Bernie Sanders, who explicitly makes the point that he is not a Democrat, to see any kind of positive agenda that doesn't only revolve around opposition to Republican policies.
Democratic incumbents are going to be replaced by newcomers because the Democrats have no message and, like the Republicans, are showing that they are completely useless in Congress. If you're counting on them for balance, you're going to be disappointed. It's time for change. We need 3, 4, or 5 parties in Congress so that people will actually make some sort of attempt to compromise with each other for laws that 60, 70, or 80% of people support instead of this bullshit where each party crafts some awful legislation and then tries to scrape together the absolute bare minimum of votes to pass it. We deserve much better than that. The Ds and Rs have dropped the ball and they deserve to be kicked out.
or get Democrats to all re-register as Republican for 2020
Or maybe actual progressives need to form their own party, actual small-government conservatives need to form their own party, and let the "Democrats" and "Republicans" twist in the wind wondering why no one likes them any more.
Trump is standing up to the world
Yeah! Those fucking Canadians have had it too easy for too long, what with them always helping us!
You're just mad because you want to see America fail.
This makes me sad because I believe that many Trump supporters actually believe things like this about people who disagree with them. There are way too many people in this country who think they have a monopoly on love for their country.
I like the whole "look at his expensive pens" deal, I don't want the EPA administrator handing a $.50 pen to his worldwide counterparts left over from a job fair.
OK, two things: why is the EPA handing pens out to people? They don't have their own pens? And, secondly, isn't there some sort of medium between "$.50 pens left over from a job fair" and $130 pens that he's buying by the dozen? I mean, is the pen market really so fractured that there is nothing for sale between $.50 job fair pens and $130 jewelry store pens?
Also, the whole"cone of silence." I like the fact that a cabinet position is taken seriously because that is direct in the line of succession, which means keeping up with top secret briefings and emails, as well as having a security detail and considering your travel.
Oh, I see. So, all other cabinet positions also have "cones of silence" then, and he was just getting up to speed. Right?
This is part of living in a nation with real enemies.
Yes. Like Russia.
The bottom line is the EPA administrates a lot of money to superfund and everything else which lefties have an entire infrastructure built around. He is a threat to that infrastructure and they need him out.
So you're suggesting that the only people who have a problem with the fact that Pruitt is a wasteful idiot are "lefties?" So, if someone is not a "leftie", then they have no problems at all with Scott Pruitt, correct?
The action now is to get someone in there who is 100x worse for the staff.
Why do you want to punish the EPA staff? Or, are you suggesting that you want the president to punish the EPA staff? Or that you think the president is going to punish the EPA staff regardless of what anyone else thinks?
OK, I'm glad that we agree on what disposable income means. People spend their money on all kinds of things that bring them no real benefit. This is no different.
How pointless does your life have to be to see value in buying, with actual money, no less, some fancy virtual clothing for your virtual character?
So pointless that you have loads of disposable income. Must be a really shitty life.
My money is on no laws changing and the government continuing to act like there is no accepted medical use. It will probably take a court case to force them to change, especially with Sessions being there.
How is DNA proprietary?
Because Fuck You, that's why.
Although at least they invalidated patents on genes found in nature.
Was that "Steve's rave?" Hey, you guys going to Steve's rave? Steve's hosting a rave! And it was just a normal house party.
Better tell Germany, because they're about to convert a coal mine to do exactly that with a huge pipe running in a 10 mile underground loop for storing that water underground. They're going to add pumps to pump water to the surface during times of generation excess, and then when generation is lower they run the water back down into the mine reservoir and send it through a turbine on the way. So, quick, Slashdot expert, save Germany and tell them that this isn't going to work because the coal mine wasn't designed to hold an underground reservoir and pumping station.
Oh, and India is trying to use this one source of solar power to power their entire country, is that it? Once this is finished they're going to demolish all other power plants? No point in adding capacity during the peak usage times, right?
I'm not, just a fan of his work.
If you see any story that is even remotely critical of Apple, you can be reliably assured to find several comments from people like SuperKendall or macs4all trying to defend Apple's position at any cost. They'll stop replying when someone makes a point that isn't covered in their How To Defend Apple handbook. Once I see their names enough I just kind of associate their names with blind brand loyalty.
OK, that's cool, but 2050 is not 33 years away.
I'm guessing we will hit 50% much sooner than 33 years
I know how you feel, I sympathize with you, but we need to accept reality. It's 2018 and Trump is president.