Nov 2023 Mod notice:
There may be other, more specific, threads about some aspects of US politics, but this one tends to act as a hub for all sorts of related news and information, so it's usually one of the busiest OTC threads.
If you're new to OTC, it's worth reading the Introduction to On-Topic Conversations and the On-Topic Conversations debate guidelines before posting here.
Rumor-based, fear-mongering and/or inflammatory statements that damage the quality of the thread will be thumped. Off-topic posts will also be thumped. Repeat offenders may be suspended.
If time spent moderating this thread remains a distraction from moderation of the wiki itself, the thread will need to be locked. We want to avoid that, so please follow the forum rules when posting here.
In line with the general forum rules, 'gravedancing' is prohibited here. If you're celebrating someone's death or hoping that they die, your post will get thumped. This rule applies regardless of what the person you're discussing has said or done.
Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
And I'll be surprised when I'm not surprised.
That last comment from the thing Tactical Fox posted: Holy crap. It takes 99 billion dollars (I'm assuming, it's cut off) to feed and house an illegal immigrant during their lifetime? That is such a bizarrely huge number for that purpose that it flat out can't be true. And people believe that?
Not Three Laws compliant.I've been trying to warn my friend from Chicago multiple times now, but he's completely convinced he will be safe in the Southwest side. I just gave up and said "Fine, but if something happens, don't say I didn't warn you."
These people live in a separate reality. Genuinely.
Oh really when?Aww, shit, I forgot that the shit cut off when I do the screenshot.
Here's the full comment he posted.
As for energy sources, billions and billions of dollars have been poured into renewable energy sources like solar and wind power. Hell, solar power alone has taken up more than $150 billion in federal spending, and yet it doesn't even account for 1% of our nation's energy. If you want to fix problems with the environment, then we need to come up with a source of energy that's as cost-efficient as oil is now, which is gonna take a while.
And if it's the ethics you're questioning, then good news. Trump has openly advocated for building shelters in Syria, and I think you and I both know that this immigration ban only lasts long enough for us to figure out how to actually vet people. And frankly, if we can be on good terms with Japan after the Democrats stuck them in internment camps during World War 2, I don't think poisoning the entire bown of M&Ms is something that's gonna happen here.
This is the shit that conservatives believe.
New Survey coming this weekend!New York City's mayor is saying they're prepared to challenge the sanctuary city order in court. The way it's worded, it's potentially vague enough to be unenforceable, or over-enforceable.
I'm a bit puzzled over the "federal grants" wording. Like the wall, isn't this "budget" and therefore requires Congress?
There's also legal precident that the federal government can't withold funding from states that refuse to comply with a mandate if that funding is not related to that mandate.
The city claims that the biggest hit taken by the sort of funding cut off being threatened would be by the NYPD (unless it's deemed exempt).
Even if this was the lifetime cost of feeding and housing ALL illegal immigrants in the United States I would still be skeptical of the number, but how the FUCK would housing just one cost 99 billion and how the hell would you get that figure from Politifact?
edited 25th Jan '17 8:42:53 PM by Draghinazzo
...they realize that, if that $99 billion amount was right, the cost of all current illegal immigrants would be about 500x greater than the sum total of all human economic output since the beginning of time, right? In more mundane amounts, their cost for just one immigrant is about 33,000 times the net lifetime income of a typical middle-class individual. $99B is about $15B more than the richest person alive (Bill Gates) has to his name in all assets.
The number of sanity checks they'd have to ignore to believe that number is ridiculous.
Another full comment
Abortion needs to be taken down. It's killed nearly 60 million innocent people since the Roe v. Wade ruling, and that number keeps going up every day. Babies should have rights too.
As for "refugees," well, here. Suppose you have a bowl of 10,000 M&Ms, and 10 of them have a deadly poison that will kill you instantly, and you don't know which ones they are. Would you eat a handful of them?
Goodness, gracious!
New Survey coming this weekend!The standard response to that last—"people are not M and Ms"
United States economy explained using cookies.
New Survey coming this weekend!I reading a bit on r/askhistorians about the rise of Hitler, and they explain that Hitler and the Nazis were able to transform Germany from a democratic state into a Nazi totalitarian nightmare in just four to five months. I'm not saying that this is what will end up happening, as I don't think the majority of Republicans are like Nazis, but it's pretty terrifying to think about.
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas EdisonFor extra accuracy points, there ought to be a fourth guy taking a portion of cookie from everyone to make Cookies-and-cream Oreo milkshakes for everyone. The guy with the most cookies refuses to give more than a bit of one cookie and forces the fourth guy to take what he can get from the other two. The result is some really shitty smoothies.
edited 25th Jan '17 9:15:36 PM by M84
Disgusted, but not surprisedThat's such a dumb analogy. 10 terrorists can't kill a whole society, much less instantly. The only group that small with the capability of doing so is in the White House.
Even if you reduce people to numbers, the 10 bad people would have to kill 9991 people to make it a net loss.
And yet that is the rationale some people in the USA use as their excuse to turn the entire goddamn country into a gated community.
Disgusted, but not surprisedThat's more or less their reasoning for any group they discriminate against actually, and I think many of them do sincerely believe it and don't realize how racist it actually is.
"Ok, I know that logically most black people can't be crooks and are probably just trying to get by. But what if by bad luck you end up with the one who actually IS one? A police officer can never be too careful."
You know how it goes.
Of course. After all, foreigners are scary and despite 241 years of evidence to the contrary (or 397 if you want to go back to the Mayflower instead of American independence), will never, ever integrate.
I feel weird that I feel like I can understand the reasoning behind the Muslim ban and yet absolutely hate it.
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas EdisonWhat makes the Muslim ban especially galling is that Trump left out Saudi Arabia — a country where he has multiple major investments.
Further proof that the only religion Trump follows is the worship of Mammon, and the only color he really cares about is green.
edited 25th Jan '17 9:52:10 PM by M84
Disgusted, but not surprisedHow much of a fucking narcissist do you have to be that being the most powerful man in the world, literally can't satisfy your ego.
New Survey coming this weekend!To me the most glaring flaw in the idea of a Muslim ban is a simple question: How do you identify a Muslim? Despite what the GOP believes, it's not "they're brown".
Except what Republicans believe is all that matters.
...Great, now I'm wondering if Trump is going to change the color of our currency to gold.
Disgusted, but not surprised
The recent one is probably killing the ethics committee
edited 25th Jan '17 8:28:09 PM by sgamer82