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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM

sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#256526: Oct 4th 2018 at 11:46:47 AM

What are the odds this will demoralize Democrats and stop them from voting?
Hasn't stuff like this consistently had the opposite effect, thus far?

Edited by sgamer82 on Oct 4th 2018 at 12:49:25 PM

LSBK Since: Sep, 2014
#256527: Oct 4th 2018 at 11:47:00 AM

And you wonder why I'm so fucking pessimistic.

I mean, to me, pessimism has always implied undue negativity or assuming the worst has to happen even when other, better alternatives are entirely possible.

If the negativity is warranted, I don't usually think of it as pessimism. And that bad things will happen isn't a justification of pessimism.

So like, this doesn't really change my personal opinion of your usual attitude at all.

Edited by LSBK on Oct 4th 2018 at 1:47:06 PM

Medinoc from France (Before Recorded History)
#256528: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:00:59 PM

By the way, what's the current number of senators? Is it possible Pence may have to act as the tiebreaker again?

"And as long as a sack of shit is not a good thing to be, chivalry will never die."
speedyboris Since: Feb, 2010
#256529: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:03:46 PM

Assuming he gets confirmed, is anybody expecting Kavanaugh to judge cases objectively at this point, especially after his rebuttal last week? Like, even if he tries to convince himself/Congress that he will be fair, you just know he's going to decide many cases against Democrats/liberals as payback.

This might be a bad analogy, but it's kinda like when the jury (or at least some of them) in the O.J. case declared him innocent as payback for Rodney King.

Edited by speedyboris on Oct 4th 2018 at 2:05:59 PM

Parable Since: Aug, 2009
#256530: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:11:48 PM

Honestly, I don't think anyone expected him to judge in any manner except hardcore right wing. Just until now we didn't expect him to be so open about it.

Balmung Since: Oct, 2011
#256531: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:28:53 PM

[up][up]I would never expect him, or any other Republican judicial nominee, to rule in any way other than hardline partisan. The Republicans have long since figured out that the structure of the SCOTUS encourages appointing the youngest, most ideologically extreme judges they can get past Congress.

What I think should be more noteworthy is that, if appointed, Kavanaugh would undermine the moral authority of the entire judicial system, as well as the legislative system that confirmed him. How is anyone supposed to have any faith in the legal rulings of a judicial body wherein one of the nine highest judges is a probable sex criminal and liar?

CharlesPhipps Since: Jan, 2001
#256532: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:30:41 PM

Should we feel any different about this than Clarence Thomas?

Author of The Rules of Supervillainy, Cthulhu Armageddon, and United States of Monsters.
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#256533: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:31:07 PM

I suspect that this will end with people eventually stopping to follow Supreme Court rulings. Or if things go really bad, an assassination attempt or some.

^Thomas is nowhere near this ranty and partisan.

Edited by SeptimusHeap on Oct 4th 2018 at 9:30:49 PM

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
RainehDaze Nero Fangirl (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
Nero Fangirl
#256534: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:33:43 PM

The risk of physical harm is why I'm astonished Kavanaugh stuck with it. Just the sheer amount of hatred getting away with this engenders...

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
#256535: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:34:51 PM

Yeah I suspect that this will blow up in the end, eventually you’ll have the Trump administration sue a blue state over something (probably related to ICE and sanctuary cities), the Supreme Court find 5-4 in Trump’s favour and the governor of said state call the Supreme Court ruling illegitimate due to Bret and refuse to follow it.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
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?
#256536: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:41:14 PM


     US to end Treaty of Amity with Iran after ICJ ruling 
The US will pull out of a decades-old treaty with Iran which was used by Tehran as a basis for a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said.

Iran took the US to court after it re-imposed sanctions on the back of abandoning a nuclear deal in May.

Iran argued that decision violated the terms of the 1955 Treaty of Amity.

But after the ICJ ordered the US to ease sanctions on Wednesday, Mr Pompeo said the treaty would be terminated.

"This is a decision that is, frankly, 39 years overdue," Mr Pompeo said.

National Security Advisor John Bolton said all agreements which could expose the US to ICJ rulings would be also reviewed.

Both men called Iran's claims "baseless" and rejected the ICJ ruling.

Judges ruled that the US had to remove "any impediments" to the export of humanitarian goods, including food, medicine and aviation safety equipment.

It did though reject Iran's call for the ICJ to order the reinstated US sanctions to be terminated without delay.

The rulings of the ICJ are binding but the court has no power to enforce them.

It is the main judicial organ of the UN and settles legal disputes between member states. But both nations have in the past ignored the court's rulings.

....


     Osaka cuts San Francisco ties over 'comfort women' statue 
Japan's Osaka city has ended its "sister city" ties with San Francisco over the display of a statue depicting women forced to work as sex slaves for Japanese soldiers during World War Two.

Osaka mayor Hirofumi Yoshimura said the "comfort women" monument "destroyed the two sides' relationship of trust".

The work depicts three young women - from Korea, China and the Philippines - standing in a circle holding hands.

It is estimated that some 200,000 women were kept in these military brothels.

The statue on display in San Francisco, which was initially set up privately but officially accepted by the US city last November, is entitled the "Women's Column of Strength".

It represents the women who worked in the brothels at the time, including some who were reportedly lured with the offer of paid work as cooks or cleaners, according to a UN report.

Mr Yoshimura's decision to end Osaka's sisterhood with the city, which dates back to 1957, was first announced in November, but the move was delayed following the death of San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee in December.

Lee was later replaced by London Breed, the city's first female black mayor.

Mr Yoshimura set out the reasons for his decision in a 10-page letter to Ms Breed, saying that part of the "problem" was the monument's inscription, which he said "presents uncertain and one-sided claims as historical facts".

"There is also disagreement among historians when regarding the historical facts such as the number of 'comfort women', the degree to which the former Japanese army was involved, and the extent of the wartime harm", his letter adds.

The full inscription on the side of the statue reads: "This monument bears witness to the suffering of hundreds of thousands of women and girls euphemistically called 'comfort women', who were sexually enslaved by the Japanese Imperial armed forces in 13 Asian-Pacific countries from 1931 to 1945."

The monument also includes a fourth figure who stands nearby, depicting an elderly woman meant to be Kim Hak-sun, the first woman to speak out about her experience during the Japanese occupation of Korea during the war.

A spokesman for Ms Breed described Mr Yoshimura's decision as "unfortunate", adding: "We will remain sister cities via the people-to-people ties maintained by our San Francisco-Osaka Sister City Committee and their counterparts in Osaka."


     Texas governor calls Beto O'Rourke 'cult-like' figure 
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Monday described Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) as "cult-like" in the way that he's garnered attention in his bid to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

"He’s been a cult-like, very popular figure the way that he’s run the campaign, but you don’t vote on cult, you don’t vote on personality when you get to the U.S. Senate. You vote on the issues," Abbott said on "Fox & Friends."

Abbott was critical of O'Rourke's liberal policy views, saying Texas voters won't approve of "George Soros policies" such as higher taxes.

"Texans are hostile to any candidate who’s talking about raising their taxes," he said. "Texans are hostile to anybody talking about big government programs run their lives."

Abbott likened this year's U.S. Senate race in Texas to his own campaign four years ago against Democrat Wendy Davis, who he noted also gained national attention before losing by roughly 20 percentage points in the general election.

O'Rourke has gained significant traction as he attempts to defeat Cruz in a traditionally Republican state. The Democrat has garnered national attention for his speeches and for his fundraising hauls, while the national GOP has mobilized to support Cruz.

The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan election forecaster, rates the Texas Senate race as as "toss-up."

A Real Clear Politics average of polls in the race shows Cruz with a 4.5 percentage point lead in the race.

Abbott is also up for reelection this year. An average of polls show him with a sizable lead over Democratic candidate Lupe Valdez.

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
Larkmarn Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Hello, I love you
#256537: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:53:50 PM

Didn't the Osaka/San Francisco thing happen forever ago?

EDIT: Yeah, they decided it but waited for a bit because the San Fran Mayor died. Well, a good, lasting impact. Fuck Imperial Japan, and fuck modern day Japan for trying to whitewash it.

Edited by Larkmarn on Oct 4th 2018 at 3:54:40 PM

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Balmung Since: Oct, 2011
#256538: Oct 4th 2018 at 12:56:39 PM

[up][up][up]And that's the kind of thing that tends to lead to civil wars.

[up][up]Japan really needs to drop the historical negationism and acknowledge that they did some terrible things in the 30s and 40s.

Edited by Balmung on Oct 4th 2018 at 2:56:38 PM

sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#256539: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:10:43 PM

https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2018/10/04/day-623/

Day 623: Unfathomable.

1/ The White House received the FBI's report on Brett Kavanaugh and said it's "fully confident" he will be confirmed by the Senate. The White House said it found no evidence in the FBI report corroborating Christine Blasey Ford's allegations of sexual assault against Kavanaugh. Mitch Mc Connell scheduled a procedural vote for Friday. If the motion passes, Senators will have 30 hours to debate Kavanaugh's confirmation before making the final decision. (Washington Post / NBC News / Wall Street Journal)

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/mcconnell-sets-vote-friday-move-kavanaugh-confirmation-forward-n916491

More than 1,700 law professors signed onto a letter opposing Kavanaugh's confirmation to the Supreme Court. The letter to the Senate says "the unprecedented and unfathomable demeanor of Judge Kavanaugh" during his hearing last week displayed a lack of judicial restraint and should disqualify him from serving on the nation's highest court. (Politico / Washington Post)

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/10/03/kavanaugh-confirmation-temperament-law-professors-868125

A group of 100,000 Christian churches called for Kavanaugh's nomination to be withdrawn, saying he "exhibited extreme partisan bias and disrespect towards certain members of the committee and thereby demonstrated that he possesses neither the temperament nor the character essential for a member of the highest court in our nation." The National Council of Churches represents 45 million churchgoers in the U.S. (Fortune)

http://fortune.com/2018/10/03/national-council-of-churches-demands-kavanaugh-withdraw/

A former Kavanaugh classmate at Yale said the Supreme Court nominee lied under oath about his drinking and the meaning of his yearbook entries. "Brett Kavanaugh stood up under oath and lied about his drinking and about the meaning of words in his yearbook," writes James Roche. "He did so baldly, without hesitation or reservation." Roche said there is "zero chance" that Deborah Ramirez made up her accusation that Kavanaugh exposed himself to her at a party. He also said Kavanaugh lied about never blacking out from drinking, and about the definition of the word "boofing." (CNN)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/03/politics/yale-roommate-kavanaugh-cnntv/index.html

2/ Sens. Susan Collins and Jeff Flake called the FBI report "reassuring" and "thorough," adding that they see "no additional corroborating information" to back up Ford's allegations. Democrats called the report "incomplete," saying the FBI – at the White House's direction – limited the investigation to protect Kavanaugh. The two Republican senators said they are still undecided about how to vote, but a "yes" vote from both would secure Kavanaugh's seat on the Supreme Court. (NBC News / New York Times / Washington Post / ABC News)

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/grassley-says-new-fbi-report-kavanaugh-includes-no-new-info-n916601

48 Senators publicly support Kavanaugh's nomination – all Republicans. There are three undecided Republicans – Collins, Flake, and Lisa Murkowski – and one undecided Democrat – Joe Manchin. Kavanaugh needs to pick up at least two of those four votes to advance. Heidi Heitkamp said she will vote "no" on Kavanaugh's nomination. (Politico / Reuters)

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-kavanaugh-heitkamp/democratic-senator-heitkamp-a-no-on-kavanaugh-nomination-idUSKCN1ME2ED

3/ There is a single copy of the FBI's findings available to Senators to review in a vault in the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility. The report cannot leave the room, Senators can't bring their phones into the SCIF, and if they take notes, the notes must be left in the room when they leave. All 100 senators, four majority committee staffers, four minority committee staffers, and one committee clerk are cleared to view the report. Sen. Dick Durbin called the process "bizarre," although it's a standard process for FBI background reports. This FBI report will likely never be made public. (CNN / MSNBC / Business Insider)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/04/politics/senator-fbi-report-review/index.html

Notables.

A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from ending Temporary Protective Status for more than 300,000 immigrants from El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Sudan. The judge ruled that those TPS recipients and their children would "indisputably" face "irreparable harm and great hardship" if they were to lose protected status. (Politico / New York Times / CNN / NBC News)

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/10/03/immigrants-protections-trump-legal-868126

The Justice Department indicted seven Russian military intelligence officials for trying to hack anti-doping agencies in the U.S., Canada and Europe, which exposed Russia's state-sponsored doping scheme that resulted in the country's athletes being banned from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil and the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. (New York Times / CNBC / CNN / Reuters)

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-russia-cyber/u-s-indicts-russians-in-hacking-of-nuclear-company-westinghouse-idUSKCN1ME1U6

A Russian official linked to the lawyer who met senior Trump campaign officials at Trump Tower in 2016 died in a helicopter crash outside of Moscow. Russian Deputy Attorney General Saak Albertovich Karapetyan was linked to Natalia Veselnitskaya in a Swiss court case earlier this year for running a foreign recruitment operation that involved bribery, corruption, and double-agents. It's unclear why Karapetyan and two others took off after nightfall in adverse conditions. (Daily Beast)

https://www.thedailybeast.com/russian-official-linked-to-natalia-veselnitskaya-the-trump-tower-lawyer-is-dead

Robert Mueller's team has gained possession of radio interviews between Roger Stone and radio host Randy Credico, who Stone claimed was his back channel to Wiki Leaks founder Julian Assange. The radio interviews took place between August 2016 and April 2017 on local New York station WBAI. Credico has denied Stone's claim that he was the intermediary between Stone and Assange. Mueller is investigating Stone's possible involvement in Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. (CNN)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/03/politics/kfile-roger-stone-randy-credico-special-counsel/index.html

Imca (Veteran)
#256540: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:18:31 PM

[up][up]Its never going to happen with the LDP in charge, and they have zero competition at all.... so the revisionism is here to stay.

The NHK(public broadcasting) isn't even allowed to mention nanking.... and you should see one of our "history" documentarys some time... there... something.

The end result is that no one really knows enough about the subject to have any thing BUT a revisionist standpoint, the LDP whitewashes better then the south could ever dream too.... and that isn't going to change any time soon


The hell is a sister city though?

Robrecht Your friendly neighbourhood Regent from The Netherlands Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: They can't hide forever. We've got satellites.
Your friendly neighbourhood Regent
#256541: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:19:04 PM

On the one hand yes, on the other hand Japan also has a right to be somewhat upset that the US keeps trying to rub Japan's nose in its misdeeds in South-East Asia during WW 2, while if Japan, which is actually in South-East Asia, tried to build a memorial to all the women forced into prostitution or straight up raped in the US's adventures in Korea, Vietnam and during the early occupations of the Philipines and Japan, one city in the US ending it's 'sisterly' relation with one city in Japan would be the least of the repercussions.

Especially since Japan's current denialism and whitewashing is, in part, a direct result of the US's policy of discrediting and even suppressing a lot of the Japanese politicians and activists who did seek to acknowledge their history, because a lot of them were Japanese communists and socialists. (And also because the US didn't want it's strongest Cold War ally in South-East Asia weakening its position by admitting guilt and paying more reparations to Communist nations like China and (North) Korea than the ones already agreed upon at the end of the war.)

Angry gets shit done.
Imca (Veteran)
#256542: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:25:29 PM

[up] I used to have a similar thought while I was working things out, but here is the thing.

Other nations have monuments to war crimes committed by others in WWII, Holocaust Memorials, Nuclear Memorials... those are just things that exist... every one acknowledges them and have moved on... there isn't much of a reason that the Imperials fuckups should be any different.

Ultimatum Disasturbator from the Amiga Forest (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Disasturbator
#256543: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:28:40 PM

> The hell is a sister city though?

It's way of improving relations between two countries, "Oh yeah these two towns have something in common,let's say they'r related"

have a listen and have a link to my discord server
KnightofLsama Since: Sep, 2010
#256544: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:33:48 PM

[up][up] Japan's generally considered East Asia, South-east asia is Thailand, south through to Indonesia (which straddles the border between Asia and Australia/Oceania)

Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#256545: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:35:12 PM

On the one hand yes, on the other hand Japan also has a right to be somewhat upset that the US keeps trying to rub Japan's nose in its misdeeds in South-East Asia during WW 2, while if Japan, which is actually in South-East Asia, tried to build a memorial to all the women forced into prostitution or straight up raped in the US's adventures in Korea, Vietnam and during the early occupations of the Philipines and Japan, one city in the US ending it's 'sisterly' relation with one city in Japan would be the least of the repercussions.

Are you kidding me? No, they have no right to be upset over the truth.

Stop playing apologist for war crime denialism, their position is unreasonable and pathetic. It's functionally identical to the American Southerners who want to erase mentions of slavery or downplay its harshness. By acting as if it's even slightly reasonable you're tacitly encouraging the kind of toxicity that is directly connected to Republicans and other reactionaries.

What are the odds this will demoralize Democrats and stop them from voting?

Realistically zero, this is the kind of thing that motivates people to vote.

Especially considering that Democrats have a more than 10% lead on Republicans in regards to being concerned about the Supreme Court.

Edited by Fourthspartan56 on Oct 4th 2018 at 4:40:12 AM

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
Larkmarn Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Hello, I love you
#256546: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:37:17 PM

[up][up][up][up] Moreover, it's not a "fuck Japan" statue, it's a "tribute to these women." It might be one thing if, say, it depicted them standing on a Japanese hachimaki or something, but it just mentions that, you know, they weren't raped by ghosts and instead were raped by people."

Also, keep in mind that, in this topic especially, we're so critical of Japan doing that specifically because America has whitewashed its own actions. Doomed to repeat and all.

Edited by Larkmarn on Oct 4th 2018 at 4:38:52 AM

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DingoWalley1 Asgore Adopts Noelle Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Can't buy me love
Asgore Adopts Noelle
#256547: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:40:43 PM

I'm getting reports that Sens. Ben Sasse (R-NE) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) are still undecided on voting for or against Kavanaugh. I'm still fully expecting them to vote for him tomorrow. If they do vote against Kavanaugh, though, I'd be genuinely shocked.

Sadly, it looks like we're getting Justice Kavanaugh, at least for a couple of months. The good news is he can't get in quick enough to protect Trump this Year, and if the Democrats take at least the House, they could potentially stall him for at least another (or get him removed entirely).

Protagonist506 from Oregon Since: Dec, 2013 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
#256548: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:41:39 PM

@Robrecht: I'm not entirely sure that the US has been trying to rub Japan's actions in WWII in its face, at least not recently. In fact, I'd say the US tends to unfairly downplay and whitewash Japan's war crimes due to feeling guilty about racism and atomic bombings.

Edited by Protagonist506 on Oct 4th 2018 at 1:41:39 AM

Leviticus 19:34
kkhohoho (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#256549: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:43:26 PM

[up][up]How would he 'not get in quick enough'? Wouldn't he be a member of the SC the minute he was confirmed?

Eschaton Since: Jul, 2010
#256550: Oct 4th 2018 at 1:45:07 PM

Especially considering that Democrats have a more than 10% lead on Republicans in regards to being concerned about the Supreme Court.
I don't know if you're thinking of a different metric, but the enthusiasm gap for the midterms has vanished, down from a Dem 10 point lead to statistical tie of 2.

Edited by Eschaton on Oct 4th 2018 at 1:47:39 AM


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