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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
It strikes me as a little condescending for first nation citizens to talk about reforming troublesome regions of the globe when their own political houses aren't exactly in order. The US currently has xenophobic fascists as 'serious' presidential candidates, Canada only fairly recently just got out of Harper's boondoggle, and most of Europe doesn't seem particularly happy with their current state of leadership.
I know that we'd be waiting forever if we waited for a perfect country to have the moral right to intervene in other nations' affairs, but how many political issues does a country have to have before intervention in a weaker party's affairs crosses the line into being hypocritical? I would feel a lot better about intervening if I weren't afraid that practically any given country could flip the switch over into crazy town in any given election. A little political stability of our own would be nice before we go sallying forth to impose theoretical order on others.
My problem with America's population on whom they elect. If they elect racists, it will just ruin their relations with the rest of the world.
To be fair though, you cannot say that those politicans do not go to LENGTHS to present themselves as not racist.
Even Trump is not racist, if you ask him. It is a lot more of self delusion than it is them actually crossing that fence on purpose.
It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothesVery few people openly identify as racist. They always consider their views to be justified. "If all Mexicans are rapists, then it's not racist to say so."
edited 12th Jan '16 7:35:22 AM by Fighteer
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"Also keep in mind that I don't think anyone is suggesting that the US should do it all alone. The political process especially (as opposed to the security one) would need to be done by a broad spectrum of counties. Plus while the US has its problems they are a far cry from Iraq level problems.
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ CyranI don't know; we just poisoned a city of 100,000 people and lied about it. That's not nothing. But it is true that our government is not engaged in open military warfare against an ideological insurgency. It's all glances and Foe Yay and subtle teasing.
Regardless, we have the distinction of being the biggest kid on the block and the one whom the other kids all look up to for protection. Just because we have domestic problems at home doesn't mean we can abrogate that responsibility. Who's going to fill the vacuum?
edited 12th Jan '16 7:40:22 AM by Fighteer
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"Seriously, Jack. I know you've got the excuse of youth, but that doesn't justify this constant hyperbole and hysteria.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"Here is a funny different perspective.
Actual people with an actual claim to the land currently claimed by Y'all Qaeda:
They need to get the hell out of there"
Man. Don't tell this to the yeehawdists, they are already pumped up enough on bad spaghetti westerns that they might actually wanna go 'shoot dem injuns for takin' muh scalps'
It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothesYeah, I heard about that the other day, and it's pretty hilarious.
- Militia: We need to give this land back to its original owners... the ranchers!
- Native Americans: ...the fuck did you just say?!!
Of course, if you actually look at things logically, the whole situation is pretty hilarious.
- Militia: We believe that local people should have more control over their own lives, which is why we stand here in support of the Hammonds!
- The Hammonds: We don't want you to stand anywhere near us, we're going back to jail, now will you out-of-staters and all the people you dragged here from across the country fuck off?
- Militia: Nope, because we know what's right for you locals!
Then there's their scholarship in the area of Constitutional law.
- Militia: The government has no right to own land! It's newfangled tyranny, tyranny! *Waves copy of Constitution*
- Everyone who's ever read the Constitution: Um, sure the government does. It's right there in the Constitution. It's not even an amendment or anything, it's part of the original text!
Or their general libertarian bent.
- Militia: We shouldn't have to pay taxes and give up our money to faraway people in Washington who will just waste it to support the bad decisions of others!
- Snarky asshole like me: So when are you going to stop asking people from far away to give up their money to you to support your bad decisions, (money which you'll probably squander) like planning to take over a building and be besieged by the government but not bringing food? Show us how the rugged individualist does it without help from anyone else!
Or the way they're being oppressed.
- Militia: Tyranny! Tyranny! Police state! We have to fight for our rights!
- The Country: *Allows militia to protest, despite being armed, taking over government land/building, and even lets them drive unmolested to the nearest town to fetch additional supplies to continue their protest while they call for people to take up arms against their country and overthrow it*
I mean, the sheer amount of cognitive dissonance on display is pretty awe inspiring, and certainly laughable.
edited 12th Jan '16 8:13:51 AM by TheWanderer
| Wandering, but not lost. | If people bring so much courage to this world...◊ |Speaking of starving off people in order to up the IQ of humanity as a whole, can we add Trump onto that list? His latest thing seems to be praising Kim Jong Un
.
“If you look at North Korea, this guy, he’s like a maniac, OK?” Trump said at a rally in Ottumwa, Iowa, on Saturday.
“And you’ve got to give him credit: How many young guys — he was like 26 or 25 when his father died — take over these tough generals and all of a sudden, you know, it’s pretty amazing when you think of it. How does he do that?” he added.
“Even though it is a culture, and it’s a culture thing, he goes in, he takes over, he’s the boss. It’s incredible.”
After North Korea’s government said it successfully tested a hydrogen bomb earlier this week, Trump called the authoritarian leader a “madman playing around with nukes” and a “total nut job.”
But he also insinuated that Kim had some admirable qualities.
“I mean, it’s amazing that a young guy would go over and take over,” Trump said Thursday on Fox News’ “On the Record.” “You know, you would have thought that these tough generals would have said no way this is gonna happen when the father died.
“So he’s gotta have something going for him, because he kept control, which is amazing for a young person to do,” he added.
And I thought we were through the looking glass when Ben Carson basically, unironically,
repeated the premise of an article from The Onion on Syrian refugees
and how American hatred of them would drive them into radicalization.
It's very hard to tell, he seems to have been effectively eliminating their power players, but that could be people working though him. In the end it's North Korea, the information we have is at best gossip from the few western diplomats in the country.
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ CyranSomeone do a Korea MV with the House Of Cards opening theme.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.@ Garcon The guy who moves in with the illegal immigrant family is what I'm referencing when I talk about "real life Mexican hunters."
Probably not what most people here would like, but they don't sound like the types to run down and shoot human beings for sport. If that stuff actually happens than I apologize for my ignorance.
I haven't heard of those sorts committing too many straight up shootings and such, but they like to make asses of themselves and terrorize anyone who looks too brown. They cause the actual border patrol a great amount of headaches.
2014 article on one of the more well-known factions
edited 12th Jan '16 12:22:40 PM by carbon-mantis
Many Americans are drunk on the Second Amendment - and, in many cases, actual alcohol too. They've spent their whole lives training for the day when the Lobsterbacks try to storm their homes and the only thing that can protect America is a plucky Southerner with a shotgun, a pickup truck full of ammunition, and a six-pack of beer.
It's not that these people have a well-reasoned analysis of the situation that has caused them to believe there is a threat to American sovereignty. It's that they're all but begging for one. They're Freedom Fighters without a cause, trying to find the right narrative thread that lets them be the Action Hero they've been preparing for.
So they look to the Mexicans and say they're invading our lands and need to be shot! They look to the Muslims, they're terrorists here to blow us all up because they hate our money and beer, they need to be shot! They look to the African-Americans, they're violent rage monsters who want to eat our children and must be shot! They look to the government, it's oppressing all of us and trying to take our freedom, it has to be shot!
In essence, all of these groups are basically the same people. They're self-stylized action heroes searching for a villain. They won't be happy until they've saved America from something but every time they try to root out a threat to America, nothing bites.
edited 12th Jan '16 1:23:17 PM by TobiasDrake
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.

The French Onion gave us this article: Donald Trump promises to legalize Mexican hunting
.
Thing is, it doesn't even sound that absurd anymore.