The General US Politics Thread

Oh, look, a survivor from Syria's gas attacks.

Er, isn't this what police are supposed to do? The whole, "Indie One-Shot," thing is dramatic, yeah, but inadvisable in real life.

Also, unarmed people can still be dangerous, depending on their body types (Though I don't know if that applies in this situation.)

Fire, air, water, earth...legend has it that when these four elements are gathered, they will form the fifth element...boron.

In for a penny, in for a pound. If you fire one, it's because you have decided to kill whatever you are firing at. So you might as well keep shooting until you are absolutely sure the target poses no further threat. Adrenaline can also play a role; there are reports of people saying "oh, I only fired one shot" when in fact they've emptied their gun completely.

—

Now, I'm not au fait with the ins and outs of this second shooting, so I'll reserve judgement, but the whole "why can't they shoot to wound/not fire so much/shoot the knife out his hand etc" is nonsense. To quote TVT's gun safety page: "Guns are not reliably capable of inflicting non-lethal injury." Also, in the kind of situation where using a gun would actually be justified - ie, an immediate threat to life and limb - its not realistic.

edited 21st Aug '14 5:05:55 PM by Achaemenid

Schild und Schwert der Partei

A North Carolina judge ruled that North Carolina's school voucher program, known as Opportunity Scholarships is unconstitutional.

Everything is Possible. But some things are more Probable than others. JEBAGEDDON 2016

Hooray! Maybe now they can quit this Charter School bullshit and put some real money into real schools.

Oh really when?

Republicans will do their best to stop that from happening.

| Wandering, but not lost. | If people bring so much courage to this world...◊ |

Government Accountability Office (GAO): The Pentagon broke the law when it swapped Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl for five Taliban leader.

The U.S. State Department has asked their high-ranking diplomats to refrain from publicly participating in the Ice Bucket Challenge — or, at least, the part where they dump ice water on their head — due to concerns about “preference and favoritism.”

California passes law banning sterilization of female inmates.

Everything is Possible. But some things are more Probable than others. JEBAGEDDON 2016

Microsoft ends its involvement with ALEC, apparently over the group's lobbying against renewable energy.

Either that or they're cutting back on their lobbying budget.

Blind Final Fantasy 6 Let's Play

"California passes law banning sterilization of female inmates."

Every now and again you see one of these things and go "That wasn't illegal already?!?"

I'm baaaaaaack

NOPE.

edited 22nd Aug '14 3:00:57 AM by deviantbraeburn

Everything is Possible. But some things are more Probable than others. JEBAGEDDON 2016

The Texas Ethics Commission is considering a proposal to require nonprofits to disclose their donors if 25 percent or more of its expenditures can be classified as politically motivated.

"We're all paper, we're all scissors, we're all fightin' with our mirrors, scared we'll never find somebody to love."

That sounds nice. I think.

Oh really when?

Wait, you're telling me that before now, California could just decide on a whim to give any woman prisoner a snip to prevent her from having more children? How was that not challenged as a massive violation of human rights before now?

That’s the epitome of privilege right there, not considering armed nazis a threat to your life. - Silasw

Maybe...maybe, while it was ''technically'' legal, it had never been once been put into practice, and was forgotten until now?

Fire, air, water, earth...legend has it that when these four elements are gathered, they will form the fifth element...boron.

What was happening is that policy allowed for tubals to be given voluntarily, and the "voluntary" part was being ignored.

Does the GOP have a policy problem or a messaging problem? Both, it seems. Americans prefer candidates who focus on Economic Growth over Income Inequality, but the thing is most people want Economic Growth via things such as affordable college education, higher wages, improving infrastructure, ending outsourcing, investing in alternative fuels and technology. Not the Republican holy grail of Trickle Down.

edited 22nd Aug '14 11:45:33 AM by PotatoesRock

That whole concept just baffles me. I mean, if somebody had a proven track record of abusing their children, I could maybe see doing something like that, in order to prevent them from obtaining more victims. That's about the only time when I think it would be even close to justifiable though.

The big issue with trickle down is that it doesn't work because the rich are doing all they can to throttle the trickling.

"And as long as a sack of shit is not a good thing to be, chivalry will never die."

Give more money to the rich and the rich keep it. Who could have known?

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"

Can we just go beat up the rich and take our money back already?

Oh really when?

what are you a filthy commie?

I'm baaaaaaack

Senator Harry Reid has issued an apology after making two jokes stereotyping Asians during an event in Las Vegas.

A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the Justice Department to provide Congress with documents related to the "Fast and Furious" gunwalking scandal, opening a new front in a controversy that has dogged President Obama's administration since 2010.

The Obama administration on Friday accused a Chinese fighter jet of conducting a "dangerous intercept" of a U.S. Navy surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft off the coast of China in international airspace — the fourth such incident since March.

Everything is Possible. But some things are more Probable than others. JEBAGEDDON 2016

x4 Who could've ever guessed that the rich got rich by not spending a lot of money.

Cross posted from the Arab Spring thread: http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/22/politics/us-isis-syria/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Looks like Obama might be hauled in Syria.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.

House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) issued a subpoena Friday for White House chief of staff Denis McDonough, arguing he has not cooperated with a GOP probe of President Obama's political office.

Everything is Possible. But some things are more Probable than others. JEBAGEDDON 2016