Lord Ratner

I was specific in what I said. Election fraud and the systemic persecution of black people in the new millennium were both false narratives. 19 unarmed black people were shot by police in 2019. Are you going to pretend like that was the narrative this summer? I can spend the time quoting the many public leftists who fanned the flames with a false premise, but maybe we're just misunderstanding each other's point? If you think the protests over the summer were based on reality, spend the time and read the opposing side, you don't need me to Google it for you. Heather MacDonald has five great work on the subject. If you've done that and still buy the vision of a racist america in 2020, we'll just be stuck in different realities.

Just like anyone who thinks America is a racist country where innocent black people are being massacred by the cops is being gaslighted. That's the whole point, and the real tragedy. The Republicans now have their own false reality (election fraud) to live in. So both sides no longer know what's real. Great.

The (R) are like the gangsters in The Dark Knight who hired the Joker. They hoped for a one sided chaos they could control, but they just got chaos. Still. I think we've only seen the end of the beginning, with Trump as the catalyst for what comes next. Rational liberals who voted Democrat, and could have voted no other way because of the absurdity of Trump as president, no longer have the boogeyman to distract them from the insanity of democratic policy. Phase two is going to be the breakdown of the democratic party, a split that has been a long time coming, will once again take away the fabled supermajority of voters that Democratic politicians have been chasing for decades. Joe Manchin may be able to sell out his entire ethical foundation, but the American voters will be less pliable. The worship of race, and the now open demonization of "whiteness," wealth, and masculinity will take the many, many suburban woman who voted against Trump for the justified hated of his disgusting composure, and deliver them right back to the Republicans. Well, only if the Republican politicians learned from the last 4 years. Some have. Warnock is the continuation of the Marxism camel getting it's nose under the tent. The (D) will be hard pressed to keep it out now.

I don't think he's made the point well until his recent long post, but Negatory is on to something that (R) have been blind to. The generational wealth disparity, home price increases, education cost increases, purchasing power stagnation, consumer debt increases, all coupled with the near-requirement for dual income households is a gigantic Master Warning light that we're ignoring. The government is shoveling as much fake money into the stock market as it can to stabilize the 401k accounts and underfunded state and local pensions that are heavily invested in equities to make up for their poor balances. And because the interest rates are still at zero in an effort to prop up the markets, there's nowhere else to put your money where it will grow. The boomers did a shit job of, well, everything, and now that they are finally retiring, they are collectively shitting their pants at the prospect of their houses and investment accounts losing value right when they are planning on needing them. And the government is pouring gas on the already immolated future of the millennials and Gen Z in order to save boomers from a lifetime of abdicating responsibility. Buckle up.

Well, thank you for proving my point. I didn't say mainstream, specifically. And in fact I made it pretty obvious that I don't think all Democrats are SJW lunatics. So, let's stick with what I did say. The ideological engine of the party (not the voters) is being driven by exactly these types of lunatics. That you are unaware of them is irrelevant. They are *everywhere* in academia, politics, media, and especially big tech companies. While you go on with your life, blissfully unaware, they are whispering in the ears off those making the decisions. Critical race theory, anti-racism, equity... There are a ton of pseudo-intellectual theories that are gaining traction. You shrug them off because you're a rational human, but this curriculum is being taught in classrooms and boardrooms across the nation, and many people are buying the dogma. Again, regardless of your ignorance to the philosophy. White Fragility has been a Best Seller for over a year. That's not fringe. Read it and tell me it's not the most insane shit you've ever read. Yet, it's definitely relevant on the institutional left. So, exactly like I said in my post, liberal voters don't know what their own party is espousing. There's no conservative equivalent right now. If Richard Spencer was making huge book deals and having his lectures quoted by sitting senators and presidential candidates, I'd agree with you. But that's not what's happening.

This seems to be the biggest disconnect in the conversation these days. Well-intentioned liberal voters are unaware of the the doctrine being espoused by the "intellectuals" driving their party. Makes the conversation difficult when the conservatives are more knowledgeable of what the progressives are pushing than the liberal voter engaged in the discussion. Another common retort is that such terminology and the associated arguments represent the crazy fringe of the party. But I don't think it's fair to argue that Ta'-Nehisi Coates, Robin DiAngelo, or Ibram X. Kendi are "fringe" anymore. They are thought leaders being quoted at the highest levels of power. So when a liberal cites the dictionary, it demonstrates immediately that they don't even know what "their side" is preaching.

ID verification upon delivery of the parcel, similar to certified mail. The govt can afford it. That's just one option, there are so many ways to skin the cat. The democratic pols think many of their voters are too stupid/poor/lazy to get an ID in time to vote. They are right, of course, but I suspect they are overestimating the number of that group by 10x or more, and underestimating the number of (R) voters who would not make the cut as well.

Don't forget, all this after indulging (and revering) Stacy Abrams in her fantasy of winning the Georgia election. I don't like the reaction of the Republicans, but I understand it. Just like when the left screamed that a person's race was a critical element of their identity, then were shocked that white supremacists made a comeback. Be careful the rules you make, for others may follow them.

Yeah, it's a shame to see so many republicans play the same stupid games.

I get what you're saying, but the difference is, you're a nobody. Not a slam. I'm nobody too. But Both Obama's and Biden's staff were aware and concerned about what Hunter was doing. That doesn't make it Joe's fault, but are we going to pretend he didn't know, as he claims? Nonsense. He's unfit. So is Trump. So with two unfit people running, one traditionally unfit (corrupt to the ears, but maintains an outward appearance of propriety) and one untraditionally unfit (morally bankrupt, yet proudly and loudly so). So I go for the policy. There are a lot of voters like me. Dislike Trump, like the policy. And there are a lot more people like the MAGA crowds, who don't know policy, they just see the huge contradictions in reality. Ben Shapiro's podcast from yesterday is a near-perfect encapsulation of the massive double standard that the less-knowledgeable conservatives, such as my father, can see clearly.

Remember when the news outlets dutifully ignored the story about Donald Trump and some Russian hookers engaging in piss-play in a hotel? I don't believe the election was "stolen." But Victor Davis Hanson puts it best when he explains how it was "rigged" through a concerted effort to suppress negative information about Joe Biden. If you have an hour, this is a great look into the pro-Trump perspective. If you don't have the time, watch from 4:45 - 8:15. Do I think it means the SCOTUS saves the day? No. The media problem isn't something the government can solve. But everyone laughing and scorning the Trump team for making bold claims in public that never materialize in court sure seem to be forgetting the Adam Schiff (D) show on CNN for several years assuring us that Donald Trump was a Russian puppet, and using his position on the Intelligence Committee as standing to back up the claim. Yet nothing was every taken to court. There is no honest way to argue that the same standard has been used on Joe Biden as has been used on Donald Trump. That hypocrisy is very, very visible to conservatives. And whenever (D) voters get into a conversation with (R) voters, there is a general refusal to admit the clearly obvious difference in treatment between the two. And when that is pointed out, inevitably it's some variation of but Donald Trump is so much more offensive. He cheats on his wives! His businesses fail! His kids are only doing well because of Daddy! But to say these things in such a manner completely ignores the reality of politics. Bill Clinton was getting his dick sucked by a 22 year old in the oval office, while very much married. Kennedy was flying 19 year-olds around the world for drug-fueled orgies, also married. Sanford, Gingrich, and plenty of other republicans too. John Edwards had a love child while his wife was dying of cancer. Hillary Clinton literally ran a server in a bathroom that she had destroyed when it was discovered. Then lied about having the emails from the server. These people are monsters. And going back before Trump, George Bush, by every account a decent man, was called a Nazi. Mitt Romney was maybe the most charitable politician in history, and he too was smeared as an evil monster. And don't even get me started on Brett Kavanaugh. So is Trump a horrible person? Yup. But not one fucking percent more horrible than the parade of Democrats and Republicans who hate him so furiously. And now Joe Biden is getting a pass for his kid clearly and obviously using the family name for profit, and kids are off limits? Didn't seem so for the Trump kids. And when evidence (yes, first hand testimony is evidence) comes out that Joe Biden was aware, well that's just one guy saying some stuff. If photos of Tiffany Trump snorting coke while she worked for a Russian company making $50k/month in an industry where she had zero experience or skill were to make it public, the whole world would erupt, and we all know it. I wish both side would be more honest about their candidates and their beliefs. But we're human, we don't like to admit any shortcomings of our own team. I'm just as tired of my god-fearing Christian airline captains acting like Trump is a good man as I am of democrats or centrists pretending like their preferred politicians are somehow less corrupt or less dishonest than Trump. Bullshit.

That's fair

I took that to mean that Kamala would have to come up with a reason to quit, just like he would have under Obama. But as usual, the man is incapable of putting a clear thought together. After 4 years of Trump doing the same thing, we should be used to it.

Why? Unless she was born into the wrongly gendered body, we all know exactly how it will play out.

Is this the part where we pretend, regardless of the intentional or unintentional nature of the squib kick, that this makes sense. Take the top male kickers and pit them against the top female kickers. There will be no surprises. The fact they had to put a female into the weakest position on the weakest team does more damage to the cause. Absurd. There are plenty of sports where gender is irrelevant. Why pick one where it's most relevant? Remember this gem? https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/australian-womens-national-team-lose-70-to-team-of-15yearold-boys-a3257266.html

And that's exactly why the American system works. Because if people are left to pursue their self-interests, their fundamentally good nature will be freed to impact those around them. But we will suppress that good nature if required in order to protect our self-interest. Thus the failure of communism over capitalism. Even the best mannered dog will bite you if provoked enough. Doesn't mean it's not a good dog. One of the most unfortunate results of the era of limitless and instant communication is the proliferation of bad news over good news, even though the latter exceeds the former in every way. Can you even name a movie or TV show that is set in the future that doesn't have some sort of dystopian hellscape as the backdrop? For some reason we are fascinated with the idea that the future, even the immediate future, is doom on our doorstep. Yet overwhelmingly the evidence is that across the globe it has only gotten better for humanity over time. Anyone who's interested in the data supporting this concept should read "Enlightenment Now" by Stephen Pinker. Great book.

If people were fundamentally evil, society would trend downward. It hasn't. There are evil people. There are more good people. Over time the good have beaten the evil. Our system protects the good from the evil to allow the good to flourish and continue doing good. If you've seen little evidence of altruism, you've been limiting your view to a TV screen. Look around, it's literally everywhere.

You'd need a special investigator to handle 3 years of no hard evidence.

Shapiro is the most honest conservative in the media, hands down. This is the primary problem with politics now, and it's probably due to the lack of a third (and fourth, and fifth...) party. Way too many Americans view their party as a team. And you don't stop rooting for your team just because a player fucks up. You also don't give the other team credit over your own. I don't see an end in sight in the short term, but we probably need to get away from the idea that a voter has a party affiliation. Why? You vote for whoever represents your interests best during that election cycle. Political parties are for the politicians. Convincing we-the-people that we are in the party as well is a cynical way of protecting votes without having to keep promises or follow through. Trump is one of the most successful presidents on a policy and effects basis in decades. He's also a miserable piece of shit who makes up for his wild inadequacies by being a delegation savant. He lost because of shitty luck. Who expects a pandemic? But he still lost.

I'll check that one out, thanks.

Is it hand cranked?

Then why mention it? And there was no legally mandated recount, the supreme court stopped it before it could finish, and only then did Gore concede. Trump is a fool for what he's doing, but let's not pretend like the others were noble leaders who conceded for the good of the country. They concede when they run out of options.

You had me till there. She quit because she didn't see a path to victory. And Gore didn't concede until December 13th, *after* the supreme court had to weigh in! This is exactly the double standard that the right is constantly whining about, and they're correct.

I'll translate: No, he didn't lead anything.

What part of the tea party was radical? Real question, that was a while ago.