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

PotatoesRock Since: Oct, 2012
#111401: Feb 9th 2016 at 12:48:32 PM

Gold exists in a physical form and is shiny. Shiny means value to humans and because it's physical, it makes people feel safer than Fiat Money.

No mind Gold and Fiat money both run on the same "You believe it has Value" issue.

But a lot of it is paranoia that the government is playing games with imaginary numbers that have no basis in reality rather than something tangible such as gold.

Kayeka (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#111402: Feb 9th 2016 at 12:50:24 PM

@Le Garcon:People not trusting "fake" money backed by nothing but promises and happy thoughts.

Of course, reintroducing the gold standard would be a monumentally bad idea, but it's the sort of thing that makes sense in the heads of people that never had to think about money outside of their households. Much like a "balanced government budget".

EDIT:[nja]

edited 9th Feb '16 12:52:45 PM by Kayeka

DrDougsh Since: Jan, 2001
#111403: Feb 9th 2016 at 12:51:06 PM

I wonder if he's benefitting from Rubio's utter humiliation in the last debate.

ILoveDogs Since: May, 2010
#111404: Feb 9th 2016 at 12:57:08 PM

Most likely! Kasich may take the place of Rubio as the Establishment candidate.

Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#111405: Feb 9th 2016 at 12:58:43 PM

I thought Cruz was the establishment candidate?

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
PotatoesRock Since: Oct, 2012
#111406: Feb 9th 2016 at 12:59:07 PM

Everyone is, who relies on Donors and the Establishment. The "glitchy repeats" of Rubio are basically getting him slain by the media.

I thought Cruz was the establishment candidate?
Nope, he's the Evangelical/Bible Thumper Candidate/Ideological Purity Candidate. A large number of Congressional Republicans and Donors and Party Elites LOATHE Cruz.

Do women gravitate to Bernie because he's 'guy stuff' (which is more socially acceptable than 'girl stuff') OR because they view his policies as being more helpful to women who generally get fucked over by naked capitalism?

Bernie Sanders represents the future that Young Democrats want the party to take.

The Donald Trump phenomenon, explained in 21 maps and charts

Must-Read: Mark Thoma: Why the Working Class Is Choosing Trump and Sanders

(The two sets of voters–those for Sanders and those for Trump–see different causes and different solutions to the struggles they face, but the goal in both cases is the same... an economy that works for them and a political system that responds to their needs...)

edited 9th Feb '16 1:00:21 PM by PotatoesRock

AceofSpades Since: Apr, 2009 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
#111407: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:00:49 PM

The establishment hates Cruz because of his tendency to not play well with others. He's the one that led the government shutdown, which a lot of older Republicans apparently didn't want to do but got dragged into because Cruz got his Tea Party compatriots behind the idea. So no, he's not the establishment candidate.

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#111408: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:01:54 PM

If I had to pick a Republican for Democrats to run against this fall, we could do worse than Kasich, because he's at least shown the willingness to regard people on the other side of the aisle as people, not as objects of hatred and/or revulsion. His stump speeches are about working together. We could have a dialogue with him that doesn't devolve into "Benghazi", "Death panels", "Socialism EVIL".

His ideas are balls-out stupid, but that's par for the course this cycle. We can't really be picky on that basis.

Cruz is absolutely hated by everyone in the political arena. He's an asshole with a mouth.

edited 9th Feb '16 1:03:07 PM by Fighteer

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
DrDougsh Since: Jan, 2001
#111409: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:02:40 PM

There's some evidence that the "establishment" actually prefers Trump to Cruz.

Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#111410: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:04:11 PM

At this point with the support trump is getting, would it be smart of the GOP to revile him?

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#111411: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:05:20 PM

It does the GOP little good to support or revile him; he's running what amounts to a completely independent campaign. He doesn't give a damn what they think. Come crawling to him and they look like sycophants, handing him a moral victory; reject him and they look like the "broken political establishment" that he rails against. Win/win.

edited 9th Feb '16 1:06:23 PM by Fighteer

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
PotatoesRock Since: Oct, 2012
#111412: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:07:01 PM

Again, Trump might be a bigoted narcissist, but he's the sort of Narcissist who isn't an ideological pure cartoon character.

Kasich would be better if it wasn't for the Goldbuggery.

Trump is a bigot.

And Bushi is a Bush.

And Rubio is apparently a glitchy robot.

Kind of a mess to pick from. :T

DrDougsh Since: Jan, 2001
#111413: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:09:13 PM

You're saying Trump isn't a cartoon character?

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#111414: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:16:04 PM

  • Trump: Reality show star, self-promoter par excellence who has moderate economic views and is a violent racist. Relentlessly bullies anyone who disagrees with him, has no political experience at all, is laughed at openly by the rest of the world.
  • Cruz: Hardcore Dominionist who wants to turn the country into God's Nation with the Bible as the Law. So hated by his own party that not a single politician has endorsed him; led the Tea Party revolt that caused a government shutdown.
  • Rubio: Pretty-boy poster child, an empty suit who will endlessly recycle memorized lines in exchange for campaign cash. Has no political accomplishments to his name and no ideology other than what his masters tell him.
  • Bush: Running on his family name, appears to have no enthusiasm for the campaign trail despite being bankrolled by, well, everybody. Had to ask for applause during a stump speech last week. "Hey, folks, I'm George W. Bush 2.0."
  • Kasich: Sounds reasonable until you examine his anti-abortion and goldbug platforms. Might be a nice guy to debate against, but I wouldn't want him in charge.
  • Carson: Sleepy-eyed king of the know-nothings, he can't put together a coherent speech to save his life and is basically running at this point on being inoffensive. It is unclear what his actual policies are because he is incapable of enunciating them. Famously could not figure out how to walk onto the stage at last weekend's debate.
  • Fiorina: I ran HP (into the ground). PLANNED PARENTHOOD MURDERS FETUSES AND SELLS THEIR ORGANS.
  • Christie: He's running on the platform that, because he's really good at governing New Jersey like a mob boss, he'd do a good job as President.
  • Gilmore: Hey, guys, remember me? I got twelve votes in Iowa. I was Governor of Virginia at one point. Hey, hey, look at me!

edited 9th Feb '16 1:37:26 PM by Fighteer

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Luminosity Since: Jun, 2012 Relationship Status: Lovey-Dovey
#111415: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:23:46 PM

Trump: Reality show star, self-promoter par excellence who has moderate economic views and is a violent racist. Relentlessly bullies anyone who disagrees with him, has no political experience at all, is laughed at openly by the rest of the world.

Which is exactly why if he does end up the one running against a Democrat, it will be awesome because the Republican party will crash, burn and dissolve in a spectacular fashion.

Cruz: Hardcore Dominionist who wants to turn the country into God's Nation with the Bible as the Law. So hated by his own party that not a single politician has endorsed him; led the Tea Party revolt that caused a government shutdown.

Watches ponies. No, really.

Fiorina: I ran HP (into the ground). PLANNED PARENTHOOD MURDERS FETUSES AND SELLS THEIR ORGANS.

How did that nonsense end? I hear contradictory information about whether or not Planned Parenthood actually got defunded.

Christie: He's running on the platform that, because he's really good at governing New Jersey like a mob boss, he'd do a good job as President.

Like a mob boss?

ILoveDogs Since: May, 2010
#111416: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:25:54 PM

I'm really kind of scared of the prospect that Cruz wins. As much as we lump him in with Trump, it's not impossible.

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#111417: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:26:46 PM

Planned Parenthood did not get defunded; a bill to that effect in Congress failed to override Obama's veto. No wrongdoing was found by them in any of the many state probes that were launched; in Texas, the people that released the falsified video that started the whole mess were themselves indicted for various types of fraud. Texas did cut off Medicaid funding to their state Planned Parenthood offices, however.

Christie is kind of a bully. He's known for ruthlessly attacking anyone who disses him in New Jersey; the most famous example of this is "Bridgegate" in which his staff shut down a major bridge to punish a local mayor for not supporting his reelection bid. Several members of his staff are under indictment and/or investigation for the affair. He believes in cronyism and under the table favors, and if you cross him, you get the full weight of his office wielded to discredit you and damage your career. Oh, and he also revoked funding for a major transportation project (a commuter tunnel) that would have had far-reaching economic benefits.

edited 9th Feb '16 1:41:58 PM by Fighteer

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#111418: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:47:44 PM

Bridgegate might have also caused/contributed to a death because the ambulance was delayed.

[up][up]Cruz is the next Huckabee or Santorum, big in the Bible Belt states but would drive moderates away and motivate Democrats, he's already cooked. And his hardcore immigration stance has lost him the Latino vote.

Plus, his personality and operating style piss off almost everyone who knows him personally.

edited 9th Feb '16 1:49:24 PM by Rationalinsanity

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
ILoveDogs Since: May, 2010
#111419: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:50:23 PM

Well, if it's not Cruz and it's not Trump, who is it?

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#111420: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:54:15 PM

[up] Good question. There is not a single one of the current crop of candidates that I could even consider supporting in a general election. I would prefer a candidate who's most likely to bring some vestige of sanity back to the GOP; in that sense, Kasich is probably the best bet, even though he'd be terrible as President.

I don't see Rubio recovering from his abysmal debate performance this past weekend. Christie seems all but dead, so does Bush. If things go as they are, we'll get a three-way race between Trump, Cruz, and Kasich. But New Hampshire is a bit of an outlier. Things will be much different in South Carolina and Nevada.

edited 9th Feb '16 1:56:01 PM by Fighteer

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#111421: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:55:06 PM

If Rubio avoids crashing and burning (unlikely) he'd stand a decent chance in the general, but he'd basically be a right-wing puppet in the Oval Office.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Luminosity Since: Jun, 2012 Relationship Status: Lovey-Dovey
#111422: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:56:16 PM

And I think the GOP doesn't need sanity, the GOP needs to cease to be as a political force, and insanity is perfect for that.

ILoveDogs Since: May, 2010
#111423: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:56:56 PM

But I mean, aside from Trump and Cruz, everyone's campaign either seems to be either on the decline or dead in the water. The few people who might recover, like Kasich, might have it too little, too late.

edited 9th Feb '16 1:57:42 PM by ILoveDogs

Nihlus1 Since: Jul, 2015
#111424: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:57:58 PM

Kasich isn't fanatically anti-free trade and anti-immigration (he's pro both actually). He was also supportive of the new deals with Iran IIRC, and supports expanded welfare. So, significantly less insane than most of the current stock, even if he does have his own issues.

edited 9th Feb '16 1:58:35 PM by Nihlus1

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#111425: Feb 9th 2016 at 1:59:03 PM

Anti free trade is insane!? There are plenty of legit problems with most implementations of free trade, including the ones discussed right now.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman

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