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MadSkillz Destroyer of Worlds Since: Mar, 2013 Relationship Status: I only want you gone
Destroyer of Worlds
#156001: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:36:10 PM

Do us a favor and move to Ohio. Or Florida. The votes there were so close, if enough reliably Democratic voters moved there the states could be secured for the next election.

I want to move to be safe not to put myself in the middle of the action.

Krieger22 Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018 from Malaysia Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: I'm in love with my car
Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018
#156002: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:38:00 PM

[up][up]It's arguably worse, since it's already been posited that he flip flops based on which adviser talked to him last. Even if Bannon somehow doesn't make it to the White House team, there are still a lot of odious people on that list.

I have disagreed with her a lot, but comparing her to republicans and propagandists of dictatorships is really low. - An idiot
TacticalFox88 from USA Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Dating the Doctor
#156003: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:38:05 PM

Only way I'd move to Florida is if it was Miami-Dade country.

Jesus Christ, I'm terrified of just DRIVING through the red parts of the state let alone living there.

New Survey coming this weekend!
Draghinazzo (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: I get a feeling so complicated...
#156004: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:42:19 PM

[up][up] I wonder how that's going to play out in practice?

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO DO THAT DONALD!!!"

"Oh, but see, the person I saw after you, he, he said I should do the exact opposite, and I thought he probably had a few good points, so I decided to do what he said instead. By the way, you're fired. Maybe you'll have a shot next season."

edited 16th Nov '16 9:42:54 PM by Draghinazzo

CaptainCapsase from Orbiting Sagittarius A* Since: Jan, 2015
#156005: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:43:04 PM

So Trump's supporters at least seem to be going on a crusade against NPR, hoping to see it defunded for not supporting him. I'd really hate to see that happen, as plausible as I find it.

TacticalFox88 from USA Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Dating the Doctor
RBluefish Since: Nov, 2013
#156007: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:47:52 PM

4 Signs President Trump Is Headed For A Hitler-Like Reign

Oh good, I was almost starting to think we weren't completely and utterly screwed.

"We'll take the next chance, and the next, until we win, or the chances are spent."
CaptainCapsase from Orbiting Sagittarius A* Since: Jan, 2015
#156008: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:48:12 PM

[up][up] He hasn't said anything about that recently, I'd rather focus on the odious things he's doing right now rather than the countless things he said during the campaign.

edited 16th Nov '16 9:48:20 PM by CaptainCapsase

Krieger22 Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018 from Malaysia Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: I'm in love with my car
Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018
#156009: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:55:33 PM

Thank you Wikileaks: The Consequences of 'Pizza Gate' are Real at Comet Ping Pong

Say you have a great meal at Comet Ping Pong and want to leave the Upper Northwest restaurant a four- or five-star review. Before you can write that review you'll have to review Yelp's "Active Cleanup Alert" pop-up informing Yelp users when an establishment is battling a controversial news story.

That news story is that alt right conspiracy theorists have pegged the 10-year-old neighborhood pizza restaurant as both a pedophiliac sex ring and the meeting ground of a satanic cult—all based on an email exchange between Comet Ping Pong owner James Alefantis and Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta that surfaced in the latest Wikileaks dump. For confusing reasons, conspiracy theorists are especially concerned with the fact that Podesta owns a hanky with an image of a "pizza-related" map on it.

The story surfaced days before the Nov. 8 presidential election. If you want to go down the wormhole, here you go.

Despite the fact that the election is over, the alt right internet trash talk hasn't ceased. Comet Ping Pong now has 84 one-star reviews on Facebook, which doesn't have the same sort of pop-up alert.

These reviews are small potatoes compared to a much more troublesome problem, according to Alefantis.

"The most sickening part of this vicious attack has been the stealing of Instagram images, Facebook images of children, minors, aged 5, 7, and 8 years old that are then slapped across their chat boards as nothing but pawns," Alefantis says. "Yes, it’s scary to be attacked, it’s dangerous for business, but it's disgusting and filthy of these people to be posting photos on these websites. ... Someone should be prosecuting these people."

Alefantis says the photos have been lifted from his personal social media accounts, and those of his friends and employees—not from the restaurant. "Kids in the restaurant are completely safe, none of these people are going there, they're cowards," he says, emphasizing that this scandal only exists on the internet. Inside the restaurant it's business as usual.

Alefantis says he's even received intimidating direct messages on Facebook and so have others associated with the restaurant, including its purveyors. He calls the attackers "conspiracy theorist, white nationalists made up largely of racists, homophobic individuals who loosely tie together theories and do not attempt to find the truth, and when they do find truth that dispels their theories, they ignore it."

While Alefantis says he can weather the storm, he's concerned about others who may not have as much community backing as he does. "I personally worry for the individuals who are being attacked and smeared and slandered and maligned and for other independent businesses or restaurants who are less established than Comet."

He says that now includes other places in the neighborhood as well as pizza joints across the country. "They’ve moved on to people in my block like Politics & Prose, TERASOL across the street," Alefantis says. "Apparently there are networks of satanic tunnels built under the entire block. Across the street is an office that contains an NGO that works to save Haitian orphans, so they’re implicated."

The election may be over, but Pizza Gate is still churning.

I have disagreed with her a lot, but comparing her to republicans and propagandists of dictatorships is really low. - An idiot
Draghinazzo (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: I get a feeling so complicated...
#156010: Nov 16th 2016 at 9:56:32 PM

I googled "trade war" to find out a little more about how such a thing plays out (I have to admit economics is an area I know pretty much nothing about), and I found an interesting article talking about the effects of a China tariff policy, citing the effects it would have in a number of sectors, with a particular focus on the smartphone market and Apple.

It also concludes that the people who would be most hurt by this policy are the poorer american workers, aka the people who most likely voted Trump.

The irony never ends.

AzureSpiritStone Since: Aug, 2014
#156011: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:03:38 PM

Ah great, just what I needed— more anxiety.

Please, let us be safe for the next few years...

MonsieurThenardier Searching from Murika Since: Nov, 2016 Relationship Status: Getting away with murder
Searching
#156013: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:08:35 PM

A Republican Congress is not going to let a 45% tariff pass.

"It is very easy to be kind; the difficulty lies in being just."
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
#156014: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:12:56 PM

Since I officially enter the electorate just in time for the next midterms, I think now might be the best time I can start truly doing things to help our country and the world, even if I don't know where to start.

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison
Draghinazzo (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: I get a feeling so complicated...
#156015: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:13:46 PM

[up] I would encourage everyone you know to get involved and vote in the midterms for 2018. Not sure what else you can do.

edited 16th Nov '16 10:14:11 PM by Draghinazzo

AceofSpades Since: Apr, 2009 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
#156016: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:16:29 PM

You could try applying to volunteer for your local political party/ACLU/join some kind of club in college? There's things you can do, you probably just need to google or ask around at whatever school you go to.

Although if you volunteer, be aware it is an online application and you might end up pressing the link where they ask you for a monetary donation.

RedSavant Since: Jan, 2001
#156017: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:18:50 PM

Someone a few pages ago was asking about the current state of Japan.

Well, it's not the best it's ever been. Abe Shinzo, the current Prime Minister, is pretty conservative, and that's a problem for relations in East Asia. While his economic policies have been helping the yen strengthen again, issues like Yasukuni Shrine (a shrine where pretty much all the Japanese war dead, including several war criminals, are enshrined) causes tensions to flare up every time someone important visits it.

The latest conservative push is to repeal Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, which is the anti-war article forbidding Japan from having a standing army. They do have a Self-Defense Force which is an army in all but name, but repealing Article 9 is kind of tied up in nationalist and jingoist ideologies both as a way to get out from under the US's wing and/or boot, and to be ready to kick China in the face next time someone flies somewhere they shouldn't.

It's been fun.
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#156018: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:25:47 PM

[up] The sad thing is, Trump may have given them just the push they needed to finally get rid of Article 9. The guy has said during his campaign that he doesn't like America wasting resources defending other countries.

It's kind of funny that a lot of the people who voted for Trump would be the ones most hurt by a lot of his proposed policies, while some of the people who voted against Trump, including yours truly, would stand to benefit from some of those policies. My family is well off enough to qualify for those sweet tax cuts. Which doesn't make me any less freaked out.

edited 16th Nov '16 10:29:29 PM by M84

Disgusted, but not surprised
TheWanderer Student of Story from Somewhere in New England (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
Student of Story
#156019: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:30:19 PM

Link, get yourself and your friends registered, talk seriously to them and people you know about the policies you think are important, and if you can or you know people who can and are willing to, start donating to organizations like the ACLU and the Southern Poverty Law Center, as they're the ones who are most likely to close monitor actions that are illegal or discriminatory, and bring lawsuits to fight attempts at such actions.

If you want to go all in somewhere down the road, don't neglect the power of organizing student groups and networking with fellow leftists to try to push state and federal representatives towards a course of action through letters, phone calls, etc. The smaller and closer the representative is to the people the easier it is to accomplish; I will never forget the shock of hearing a journalist who had his own newspaper covering the New York State government relate how he overheard one state representative say that he had to pull support from a measure because he was "getting killed" over it in his district. It turned out that "getting killed" meant that he had received 4, (yes, four) letters from people within his district urging him to vote no.

Aside from that, no matter what level of involvement you choose to have, you have the sincere thanks of me and I'm sure others in the thread for wanting to get involved and pay attention to the issue so young. It's a good thing to see. smile

| Wandering, but not lost. | If people bring so much courage to this world...◊ |
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
#156020: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:36:22 PM

I'll be sure to see what I can do, and I will try to do all of that when possible.

I've already got a small group going with a few friends of mine, even if we haven't actually done anything yet except have a long discussion about it.

What's the best news source usually for covering US politics? I'm going to bookmark my local news site to keep track of local things, but what about on a national level? What's the best site or sites to remain informed? This is hard in a time where it seems that every other "news" site is glorified propaganda for one side or the other, outside of all the big names like the NYT, WaPo, etc.

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison
RBluefish Since: Nov, 2013
#156021: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:37:53 PM

So, been thinking about the 2018 Senate race, which some people are holding out hope for as the big turning point for the Good Guys, the point where we can retake the Senate and start fighting back in earnest.

Is it just me, or are we only going to become even more screwed in the midterms? There are only eight Republican seats up for grabs, compared to 23 Democratic seats that we're going to need to defend. And almost all of said seats are in ruby-red states that went solidly Trump.

Throw in the fact that the Dems have a history of piss-poor midterm turnouts, the possibility (probability, perhaps) of the RepublicKKKans further gutting the Voting Right Act, even more draconian voter suppression, pro-GOP propaganda coming from newly state-run outlets like Breitbart...I really don't have any hope for 2018. The GOP are only going to tighten their death grip on the government and rule with even less opposition.

2020 doesn't look any better, because by then they'll have brutally gerrymandered the nation even further. (And you can bet the electoral college will still be a thing, because they have absolutely no motivation to get rid of it and they're running the show.) And there's also a good chance that Trump will have fed his supporters enough bullshit for them to not feel like turning on him - or failing that, maybe another Trump just comes along and follows in his footsteps, and they all flock to him because surely this guy will deliver.

Again, this is all assuming that the country is still recognizable in a few years' time. If we've completed the process of turning into a fascist nationalist state, with internment camps and flagrant human rights violations, then the above prediction is positively rosy by comparison.

Oh, let's not forget about the possibility of World War 3 starting in the near future. And we can be pretty sure we won't be on the right side of that one, assuming there is a right side.

"We'll take the next chance, and the next, until we win, or the chances are spent."
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#156022: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:38:58 PM

[up][up] Well, a good rule of thumb would be finding out which newspapers Trump wants to sue. evil grin

But seriously, it's a good idea to get involved in local government. Honestly, if the Democratic Party paid more attention to midterm elections and state legislatures, we wouldn't be in this mess.

[up] Yeah, the 2018 midterms are pretty much a Hail Mary pass with a lot more to lose than to gain. Hopefully the Democratic Party can reorganize and prepare adequately in two years.

edited 16th Nov '16 10:44:22 PM by M84

Disgusted, but not surprised
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
#156023: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:45:13 PM

Remember that the Midterms are more than just the Senate, the House is also up for reelection. The Senate might go worse but the House could still end up swinging Dem if the Dems get their shit together.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
AceofSpades Since: Apr, 2009 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
#156024: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:45:22 PM

Bluefish; the prospect of failure doesn't mean we shouldn't try. Things don't end just b ecause we lose, and there's a point at which focusing on the negative only inspires us to not try. If we can help prevent losses then we should. Sometimes that's all you can do. The advice given to Link applies to you too, because staying mired in that mindset isn't ever going to help prevent or avert the things you fear.

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
#156025: Nov 16th 2016 at 10:48:43 PM

All we need to do is take control of one chamber of Congress and things become significantly less terrifying, even if we're still in deep shit and chances of any improvement are slim.

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison

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