TVTropes Now available in the app store!
Open

Follow TV Tropes

Following

The General US Politics Thread

Go To

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

AceofSpades Since: Apr, 2009 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
#179976: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:14:24 PM

[up][up]I put that down at least partially to the fact that our government/civics/whatever they may be called in your district classes tend to one, suck, and two, tend to be shoved into half a semester while the other half is an economics class that in no way explains that economics works differently for governments than it does for individuals and businesses.

edited 28th Mar '17 6:17:12 PM by AceofSpades

henry42 [REDACTED] from Western Hemisphere Since: Mar, 2012 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
[REDACTED]
#179977: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:18:53 PM

[up][up] I honestly don't think there's any sort of "conspiracy" with Russia; they're probably just too stupid and/or paranoid to realize that they're just making themselves look bad by shutting this down.

edited 28th Mar '17 6:19:02 PM by henry42

One does not shake the box containing the sticky notes of doom!
Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#179978: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:24:06 PM

I doubt it at this point. There are too many secret meetings with Russians where the topic is "conveniently" forgotten about. There's also the fact that people like Nunes are going out of their way to defend him.

kkhohoho (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#179979: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:26:44 PM

RANDOM REPUBLICAN: Trump, quick! Someone's trying to testify to Congress! This is gonna make us look bad!

TRUMP: No choice. Boys, shut her up.

{One day later...}

RANDOM REPUBLICAN: Trump, quick! We're not letting someone testify to Congress! This is gonna make us look bad!

TRUMP: No choice. Boys, shut her up.

RANDOM REPUBLICAN: Uh, we already did that. That's what got us into this mess in the first place.

TRUMP: Uh, well, I don't know. Open her up? Bigly?

RANDOM REPUBLICAN: You do realize that justifies everyone who thought 'grab em by the pussy' wasn't just locker room talk, don't you?

TRUMP: ...

RANDOM REPUBLICAN: Uh, sir?

TRUMP: No choice. Boys, shut him up.

RANDOM REPUBLICAN: ...Oh bloody hell.

edited 28th Mar '17 6:36:20 PM by kkhohoho

sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#179980: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:28:52 PM

Bad example, that random Republican is clearly a British spy

henry42 [REDACTED] from Western Hemisphere Since: Mar, 2012 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
[REDACTED]
#179981: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:29:19 PM

[up][up][up] Eh, it all sounds like a bunch of conspiracy theory BS to me.

[up][up] Haha, that's great. [lol]

edited 28th Mar '17 6:29:40 PM by henry42

One does not shake the box containing the sticky notes of doom!
AmbarSonofDeshar Since: Jan, 2010
#179982: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:40:24 PM

Because reports from every major intelligence agency, including the pro-Trump FBI, are apparently a conspiracy theory.

Links have been found between numerous Trump associates and the Russian government. They keep getting found. It's not going away.

So why, in the face of all the mounting evidence, would you write it off as a conspiracy theory? Particularly given that, in the past, you were more than willing to accept many of the "corruption" claims aimed at Clinton, claims that were based on far less evidence.

Journeyman Overlording the Underworld from On a throne in a vault overlooking the Wasteland Since: Nov, 2010
Overlording the Underworld
#179983: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:41:12 PM

At this point it's either a lot of nothing to distract us from the really bad things they have coming down the line, or it's a metric ton of criminal behavior/high treason that will see Trump escape with his life only because he can afford to bribe every member of the firing squad sent to do him in.

My bet's on a whole lot of nothing. It's almost certain even Trump knew Clinton's email stuff was total bullshit, but he rode that right into office. He knows you can pull misdirects by blowing up reeeeeaaaallllyyyy small stuff into mountains. So there's a good chance all this Russia stuff will turn out to be nothing, but we'll be distracted while they rush in something even worse than we've seen so far. Like unnoticed E Os about just how to fuck over healthcare while not making a whole new system that was already rejected. Or national level laws punishing women for being women. And people of different colors for not being white.

Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#179984: Mar 28th 2017 at 6:49:00 PM

You think Trump is coordinating the Russia story? He started being investigated last summer before he was even President.

edit: Frankly if all this Russia stuff was false then Trump would be tripping over himself to prove it. This stuff being disproven would be the perfect excuse to justify his Fake News BS. But he didn't do that and they're all acting guilty as hell. At this point Occam's Razor says it's probably true.

edit 2: Here's a timeline of events by the way.

edited 28th Mar '17 7:03:58 PM by Kostya

henry42 [REDACTED] from Western Hemisphere Since: Mar, 2012 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
[REDACTED]
#179985: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:04:41 PM

If anything, Occam's Razor says the most likely explanation is that people just like to invent conspiracy theories about people they don't like. After all, that's exactly what the hardcore Trump supporters were doing during the election. And while Trump may be using the distraction to his advantage, I really doubt he would do something like propagating conspiracy theories to make his detractors look dumb—he's not nearly smart enough to pull that off.

Edit: Here's a related article. Key Democratic Officials Now Warning Base Not to Expect Evidence of Trump/Russia Collusion

edited 28th Mar '17 7:08:14 PM by henry42

One does not shake the box containing the sticky notes of doom!
Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#179986: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:07:04 PM

You know what else was a conspiracy? Watergate. It was still true. If the Intelligence Community, multiple foreign governments, and every single major news organization is taking this seriously I think it's pretty absurd to dismiss it as a conspiracy theory.

Parable Since: Aug, 2009
#179987: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:11:22 PM

From Newsweek:

But, while signing an executive order might be easy, implementing it is not. Under the 10th Amendment, the federal government cannot make states or local governments enforce national laws. It can push them to do so by withholding funding, but not if a court deems it “coercive.”

In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that Obama’s attempts to expand Medicaid (by cutting Medicaid funding to states unless they offered it to a wider group of people) was coercive. It’s due to this decision that some people think Trump’s plans to defund sanctuary cities won’t stand.

edited 28th Mar '17 7:11:56 PM by Parable

CenturyEye Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign? from I don't know where the Yith sent me this time... Since: Jan, 2017 Relationship Status: Having tea with Cthulhu
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
#179988: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:16:46 PM

So, does anyone remember Oliver's Infrastructure Movie? America's $4tn infrastructure time bomb

The movement is constant and mesmerising. The lorries trundle down to the water from the left, pause to accept their loads of rock, mud and debris, and then exit to the right.

For weeks now this performance has been constant, day and night, as construction workers repair the Oroville Dam, once an engineering marvel, now an embarrassment.

Last month, nearly 200,000 people were told to leave their homes when the dam overflowed amid fears that water pouring over a weakened emergency spillway was eroding the hillside beneath the structure.

In desperation, engineers diverted a torrent of storm water away from the danger area and down the dam's main sluice. The decision prevented disaster but at the cost of tearing huge chunks out of the spillway.

Now, with repairs to clear up the detritus and fix the giant scars underway, the worry is that this will happen again, somewhere in the United States, and that next time the consequences could be deadly.

The average age of the 90,000 dams in the United States is 56 years. By 2025, seven out of 10 of them will be more than half a century old.

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) warns that "many dams are not expected to safely withstand current predictions regarding large floods and earthquakes".

Overall, says the society, $4.6tn (£3.6tn) will be needed by 2025 to bring US infrastructure to an acceptable standard. Less than half that amount has so far been allocated for the work.

Earlier this month the ASCE published its quadrennial report card on the nation's infrastructure, awarding the US a grade of D+ on a scale of A to F - no change from its previous report in 2013 - and warning that continuing on the present path would cost the US $3.9tn in lost GDP and 2.5 million jobs over the next eight years.

The report concluded that over the previous four years there had been no overall improvement in aviation, bridges, dams, drinking water, energy and roads.

The situation with parks, solid waste and transit had worsened, while there had been some improvements in hazardous waste, inland waterways, levees, ports, rail, schools and wastewater.

The country has 15,500 "high-hazard potential dams", meaning that loss of life would be probable if they failed. Of those high-hazard dams, 2,170 are rated as deficient.

The problem, and not just for dams, is that much of America's infrastructure is coming to the end of its lifespan.

The ASCE report says US roads are "chronically underfunded and becoming more dangerous" and assesses that one in every five miles of highway is in poor condition.

More than two of every five miles of urban interstates are congested, contributing to an estimated $160bn in wasted time and fuel in 2014.

Deaths on the roads, falling for years, rose by 7% in 2015.

There are also problems with the power grid. More than 640,000 miles of high-voltage lines are at full capacity. Most US power lines were constructed in the 1950s and 1960s and are already past their life expectancy.

Public transit is also "chronically underfunded", ASCE says, with a $90bn rehabilitation backlog.

(excerpt)
It's like they're trying to make us look bad or something...

Look with century eyes... With our backs to the arch And the wreck of our kind We will stare straight ahead For the rest of our lives
henry42 [REDACTED] from Western Hemisphere Since: Mar, 2012 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
[REDACTED]
#179989: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:33:18 PM

@Kostya

"The Intelligence Community, multiple foreign governments, and every single major news organization" also backed the Bush administration's claims that Iraq had WMDs.

edited 31st Mar '17 11:44:31 AM by henry42

One does not shake the box containing the sticky notes of doom!
AmbarSonofDeshar Since: Jan, 2010
#179990: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:48:08 PM

Oh look...The Intercept again as a source. Because nothing says honest reporting like another Glenn Greenwald hit piece.

Greenwald has been denying the Russia claims from the start, especially since Stein's campaign got linked to them. He'll endorse every corruption conspiracy theory aimed at the Clintons, but the reality of what Trump did he will never acknowledge.

And of course the BS you just tried to throw at the intelligence agencies is exactly that since a) the CIA did not confirm Bush's claims (and the FBI has nothing to do with them either way) and b) we're talking about the intelligence agencies opposing a presidential administration, not helping one.

edited 28th Mar '17 7:50:04 PM by AmbarSonofDeshar

Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#179992: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:56:24 PM

Also multiple friendly foreign goverments opposed Iraq, I don't belive that any US friendly government has stated that they belive Trump isn't linked to Russia.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
Bat178 Since: May, 2011
#179993: Mar 28th 2017 at 7:59:28 PM

[up][up] Can't we build a giant freezer and place it in the arctic, or keep dumping loads of ice there every year?

edited 28th Mar '17 8:05:30 PM by Bat178

DingoWalley1 Asgore Adopts Noelle Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Can't buy me love
Asgore Adopts Noelle
#179994: Mar 28th 2017 at 8:04:42 PM

[up] Honestly, I think the best way to actually fight Climate Change at this point is to create a bunch of Carbon Converting Machines that do what Plants and Bacteria do at a rate of x1000. I don't think any amount of taxing emissions will actively solve the problem, especially not at this point.

The only real way to fight Man Made Climate Change is with Man Made Climate Change in the opposite direction at this point.

[down] Eh, not exactly what I want, and that does come with risks... But I guess at this point, it's better then nothing. Maybe enforcing widespread Carbon Sequestration would help. Then again, Cars and Airplanes are big culprits as well and they can't be sequestered...

edited 28th Mar '17 8:11:04 PM by DingoWalley1

DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#179995: Mar 28th 2017 at 8:05:42 PM

A conspiracy theory isn't BS if there really was a conspiracy.

@Dingo: Carbon sequestration

edited 28th Mar '17 8:07:01 PM by DeMarquis

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
Bat178 Since: May, 2011
#179996: Mar 28th 2017 at 8:08:04 PM

[up][up] I'm just on the verge of a mental breakdown here over the fact that I will most likely get killed because of Climate Change since I am 22 (In addition to the other horrible **** the GOP are doing, especially with immigration and the internet, and the fear of nuclear war) and believe that Right-wing Americans and corporations need to die painfully.

edited 28th Mar '17 8:13:51 PM by Bat178

DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#179997: Mar 28th 2017 at 8:09:14 PM

You can relax. The major effect you will notice during your lifetime is the rising price of energy and food. Depending on where you live, you won't die. You may experience a falling quality of life.

edited 28th Mar '17 8:09:25 PM by DeMarquis

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
LinkToTheFuture A real bad hombre from somewhere completely different Since: Apr, 2015 Relationship Status: What's love got to do with it?
A real bad hombre
#179998: Mar 28th 2017 at 8:14:35 PM

I'm 16 and I feel like I will absolutely not back down or give in to despair on that front in particular.

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison
AceofSpades Since: Apr, 2009 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
#179999: Mar 28th 2017 at 8:25:15 PM

Meh, building "carbon converting machines" while nifty, probably isn't nearly efficient as say, planning out how to efficiently plant trees in the best strategic places to improve air quality. For one thing, trees provide homes for small animals and shade for people and buildings. Machines don't really do those things.

Of course, either option involves convincing local government officials that such projects are worth the money they would cost.

DingoWalley1 Asgore Adopts Noelle Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Can't buy me love
Asgore Adopts Noelle
#180000: Mar 28th 2017 at 8:30:36 PM

[up] Oh, of course! I'm not saying don't plant trees or anything like that. I'm just saying for our extreme Global Warming issues which we are causing, we need an extreme way to fix, and Carbon-to-Oxygen Converters that do what Trees, Plants and Bacteria a thousand fold is the best way in my mind. Trees, Plants and Bacteria do help, but they can't combat the extreme amount of Greenhouse Gasses we are producing. Taxing Carbon doesn't actually stop the Carbon we release either, and we can't guarantee that it will drop Carbon emissions, and we can't guarantee they'd be around long enough to bring any good result.

edited 28th Mar '17 8:31:30 PM by DingoWalley1


Total posts: 417,856
Top