QuoteSchiff: "testimony constitutes evidence of an intention to interfere or potentially obstruct at least a portion of the Russia investigation"Quote(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DB0z5E8XsAA2T77.jpg)https://twitter.com/BraddJaffy/statu...10971144204292 (https://twitter.com/BraddJaffy/status/872910971144204292)
QuoteQuoteThe source of the classified intelligence that U.S. President Donald Trump shared with Russian officials in May was information Israel obtained after hacking computers belonging to ISIS, the New York Times reported Monday.
QuoteAccording to the Times, which cited a U.S. official, Israeli "cyberoperators" managed to penetrate an ISIS cell of bombmakers based in Syria a number of months ago.
QuoteAccording to the report, the information was so good that it allowed the United States to learn that the terror cell was working on explosives that could fool airport security by passing as a laptop battery.
QuoteThe intelligence was shared at a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak. The unnamed officials said Israel had previously urged the United States to be cautious with the information. The revelation that Trump shared sensitive intelligence with Russia raises the possibility that the information could be subsequently leaked to Iran.
QuoteIn January, it was reported that Israeli intelligence officials were concerned that the exposure of classified information to their American counterparts in the Trump administration could lead to it being leaked to Russia and onward to Iran. The intelligence concerns, which had been discussed in closed forums, were based on suspicions of ties between Trump, or his associates, and the government of Vladimir Putin in Moscow.Israel Successfully Hacked ISIS Computers; Trump Leaked It to the Russians, NYT Reports(http://i.imgur.com/H7XRoFh.gif)
Quote from: Legend on Jul 11, 2017, 05:11 PMCan you give a brief summary of what's happening?
Quotehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/...ushpmg00000009 (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/star-parker-confederate-pride-flag-fox-news_us_5992f6bfe4b09071f69c9887?ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009)Quote"But you know what's really interesting and really incredible irony here is the same people that are demanding that the Confederate flag comes down are the same people that are insisting that the rainbow flag goes up," she added. "These two flags represent the exact same thing. That certain people groups are not welcome here. So if Nancy Pelosi wants to say that we're going to start shutting down First Amendment rights of a certain group of people, then what happens the next time that the homosexuals want to walk through an American city and protest and counter protesters come out?"Edit: (https://media.giphy.com/media/CZcoGp0eXLCH6/giphy.gif)
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Aug 15, 2017, 07:08 PM Fox News Guest Says Confederate And Pride Flags Are The Exact Same Thing - NeoGAF (http://neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1419818&page=1)Well they are both symbols of a movement. Its just one is about love and acceptance, and the other hate and segregation.
Edit: (https://media.giphy.com/media/CZcoGp0eXLCH6/giphy.gif)
Dear @realDonaldTrump, attached is our letter of resignation from the President's Committee on the Arts & the Humanities @PCAH_gov pic.twitter.com/eQI2HBTgXs
— Kal Penn (@kalpenn) August 18, 2017
Mr. President, I am resigning as Science Envoy. Your response to Charlottesville enables racism, sexism, & harms our country and planet. pic.twitter.com/eWzDc5Yw6t
— Daniel M Kammen (@dan_kammen) August 23, 2017
QuoteSteele Dossier played NO role in opening the Carter Page investigation. They began their investigation prior to even receiving it.
The DOJ did in fact inform the court of the origin of the Steele Dossier.
They accuse Nunes of deliberately misrepresenting the underlying FISA Warrant intelligence.
Four different judge's approved FISA warrants including judge's appointed by Bush and Reagan. Multiple DOJ officials also approved the applications prior to the court even seeing them including Trump appointees Rosenstein and Boente.
They actually started listening to Page after he left Trump campaign so the idea they were watching him to spy on Trump is absurd.
Page has a long history with Russia going back to 2004 and was being actively investigated once before already in 2013. The FBI had even interviewed him in 2016 again prior to receiving the Steele Dossier. The Steele dossier was referenced in the application as corroboration of certain things, and not to independently demonstrate.
A bunch of blacked out additional evidence with a bit in the middle noting Page lied to the HIC in his testimony in 2017 about meeting with Russian officials.
It included the footnote that discusses the Steele dossier source which SPECIFICALLY STATES ..."The FBI speculates the the unidentified U.S. Person was likely looking for information that could be used to discredit Candidate #1's campaign." Candidate 1 is Trump I believe, edit I previously thought Person 1 was Steele, this is the person coordinating with Steele. Steele is Source #1.
DOJ timely informed the court when the FBI fired Steele and why.
The attacks on Bruce Ohr for knowing Steele/and his wife working for Fusion GPS are 100% baseless. He was not involved in the FISA process and disclosed his relationships in November 2016.
Basically Nunes and Gowdy lied whole cloth that the FISA warrant was primarily based on a news article and the Steele Dossier. Those were in fact the least used and most minor pieces of evidence and they picked them out specifically for that reason to discredit the investigation and lied about their use.
Quotehttps://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/...gtime-lawyer-michael-cohen.html?smid=pl-share (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/us/politics/fbi-raids-office-of-trumps-longtime-lawyer-michael-cohen.html?smid=pl-share)QuoteThe F.B.I. on Monday raided the office of President Trump's longtime personal lawyer, Michael D. Cohen, seizing records related to several topics including payments to a pornographic-film actress. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan obtained the search warrant after receiving a referral from the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, according to Mr. Cohen's lawyer, who called the search "completely inappropriate and unnecessary." The search does not appear to be directly related to Mr. Mueller's investigation, but likely resulted from information he had uncovered and gave to prosecutors in New York. "Today the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York executed a series of search warrants and seized the privileged communications between my client, Michael Cohen, and his clients," said Stephen Ryan, his lawyer. "I have been advised by federal prosecutors that the New York action is, in part, a referral by the Office of Special Counsel, Robert Mueller."Click to expand...
QuoteShould start in a few minutes. A few live streaming links:Senate (https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/facebook-social-media-privacy-and-the-use-and-abuse-of-data)WSJ (https://www.wsj.com/video/mark-zuckerberg-senate-hearing/72400CFB-7AD9-4611-BC08-BFA3B18BAF10.html?mod=e2tw)Wired (https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-watch-mark-zuckerberg-testify-before-congress/?mbid=social_twitter)CBS news (https://www.cbsnews.com/live-news/watch-mark-zuckerberg-testimony-senate-judiciary-commerce-committee-facebook-data-breach-today-live/)Verge (https://live.theverge.com/mark-zuckerberg-congress-testimony-live-blog/) - blog updatesLink. (http://money.cnn.com/2018/04/10/technology/mark-zuckerberg-testimony-guide/index.html)QuoteZuckerberg will spend two days answering lawmakers' questions (http://money.cnn.com/2018/04/05/technology/mark-zuckerberg-congress-testimony/index.html?iid=EL) about the powerful social network he helped create more than a decade ago, and whether the company is doing enough to protect users' privacy (http://money.cnn.com/2018/04/04/technology/mark-zuckerberg-facebook-security-privacy/index.html?iid=EL). It's the first time Zuckerberg will personally sit for questions from Congress, instead of sending a deputy.Click to expand...QuoteZuckerberg is set to testify (http://money.cnn.com/2018/04/04/technology/mark-zuckerberg-testify-congress/index.html?iid=EL) in Washington on Tuesday and Wednesday. He'll appear at a joint hearing (https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/press/rep/releases/senate-judiciary-and-commerce-committees-announce-joint-hearing-with-facebook-ceo) conducted by the Senate Judiciary and Commerce committees on Tuesday, starting at 2:15 p.m. ET. The Facebook CEO will then testify (https://energycommerce.house.gov/news/press-release/ec-announces-facebook-ceo-mark-zuckerberg-will-testify-april-11th/) in front of the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday, beginning at 10 a.m. ET. The hearings were scheduled to address Facebook's use and protection of user data in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal.Click to expand...
Quote(https://i.imgur.com/y85tSIK.jpg)QuoteIn early December, President Trump, furious over news reports about a new round of subpoenas from the office of the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, told advisers in no uncertain terms that Mr. Mueller's investigation had to be shut down. The president's anger was fueled by reports that the subpoenas were for obtaining information about his business dealings with Deutsche Bank, according to interviews with eight White House officials, people close to the president and others familiar with the episode. To Mr. Trump, the subpoenas suggested that Mr. Mueller had expanded the investigation in a way that crossed the "red line" he had set last year in an interview with The New York Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/19/us/politics/trump-interview-sessions-russia.html). In the hours that followed Mr. Trump's initial anger over the Deutsche Bank reports, his lawyers and advisers worked quickly to learn about the subpoenas, and ultimately were told by Mr. Mueller's office that the reports were not accurate, leading the president to back down. Mr. Trump's quick conclusion that the erroneous news reports warranted firing Mr. Mueller is also an insight Mr. Trump's state of mind about the special counsel. Despite assurances from leading Republicans like Speaker Paul D. Ryan that the president has not thought about firing Mr. Mueller, the December episode was the second time Mr. Trump is now known to have considered taking that step. The other instance was in June, when the White House counsel, Donald F. McGahn II, threatened to quit (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/25/us/politics/trump-mueller-special-counsel-russia.html) unless Mr. Trump stopped trying to get him to fire Mr. Mueller. The December episode, which has never been publicly reported, has new resonance following the disclosure on Monday that F.B.I. agents had carried out search warrants (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/us/politics/fbi-raids-office-of-trumps-longtime-lawyer-michael-cohen.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage) at the office and hotel room of Mr. Trump's personal lawyer, Michael D. Cohen. In that action, the Justice Department seems to have walked directly up to — if not crossed — Mr. Trump's red line by examining something that seems unrelated to Russia. More: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/10/us/politics/trump-sought-to-fire-mueller-in-december.htmlClick to expand...(https://i.imgur.com/Tx7tb9A.gif)
QuoteI think this interests people. Facebook has made a website that shows of if you or friends of you (and with that, you, too again) were scanned by Cambridge Analytica. Just look up at https://www.facebook.com/help/1873665312923476?ref=shareable That website shows of, in which way your data was collected. I am luckily clean and nobody of my friends had their data stolen, too. Also, there is right now the testification of Mark Zuckerberg going on, you can check it out here:
QuoteSheriff of America's Deadliest Police Force Caught on Camera Admitting Killing Suspects Is 'Better Financially' Title got cut offQuoteAlthough Kern County had a population of 875,000 people in 2015, its law enforcement officers were responsible for more deaths than any other county in America that year, according to the Guardian. During that year, Kern County deputies and Bakersfield, Calif., police killed 1.5 people for every 100,000 residents, more than three times the rate of Los Angeles County and 10 times the rate of the New York Police Department in 2015.Click to expand...Quote"You know what happens when a guy makes a bad shooting and somebody kills them?" Youngblood explained. "Three million bucks and the family goes away after a long back and forth." "When a deputy shoots someone in the streets, which way do you think is better financially—to cripple them or kill them—for the county?" Youngblood asked. When someone replied, "Kill them," Youngblood responded, "Absolutely. Because if they're crippled we get to take care of them for life. And that cost goes way up."Click to expand...https://trib.al/froAu2u
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Apr 11, 2018, 01:09 AMIf you can't see in the mess, this facebook link will show you if any of your information was given to cambridge analytica.Yeah I checked yesterday and they haven't got any of my info, which is nice.
How can I tell if my information was shared with Cambridge Analytica? | Facebook Help Center | Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/help/1873665312923476?ref=shareable)
Some of wifey's was, but mine was entirely untouched.
Quote from: Xevross on Apr 11, 2018, 10:33 AMOh I forgot about this thread!Bipartisan Senate bill to protect Mueller set for release Wednesday - POLITICO (https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/11/senate-bill-protect-mueller-514494)
Yeah I checked yesterday and they haven't got any of my info, which is nice.
Also I'm very worried for Mueller right now. Trump must be so close to getting him fired.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Apr 12, 2018, 02:06 PMZuckerberg's Senate hearing highlights in 10 minuteslol
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Apr 20, 2018, 01:51 AMNorth Korea drops withdrawal of US forces as condition of denuclearization, Moon says (https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/04/19/asia/north-korea-us-forces-korean-peninsula-intl/index.html)Sounds too good to be true but peace would be really really awesome.
North Korea is being awfully giving.
I wonder if something is going on.
Quote from: Legend on Apr 20, 2018, 02:28 AMSounds too good to be trueThe only way it feels like it'd really make sense to me is:
Quote from: Legend on Apr 20, 2018, 02:28 AMSounds too good to be true but peace would be really really awesome.It would be amazing.
QuoteIn late April, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean president Moon Jae-in made a historic deal to end Cold War-era division. The two countries announced that they will pursue signing a peace treaty and work towards "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula. (R ight now it's uncertain to what degree North Korea plans to get rid of its nukes.)
During the summit, Moon reportedly handed Kim a thumb drive containing a plan to build a massive railway. The preliminary plan envisions a train line that would pass through Seoul to Pyongyang in the North, then moving further on to Kaeseong and Shinuijuin, North Korea.
The ultimate plan, estimated to cost $35 billion, is much more expansive. It calls for another high-speed line from Seoul to Shinuiju via Pyongyang, along with a retrofit of six other railways crossing through North Korea.
QuoteNorth Korea has freed three US citizens from prison, according to a tweet from US President Donald Trump.
It is viewed as a goodwill gesture ahead of a historic summit between Mr Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong-un.
Mr Trump said he would greet the men when they return with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who has been in Pyongyang to arrange the planned talks.
Kim Hak-song, Tony Kim and Kim Dong-chul boarded the plane "without assistance", the White House said.
They had been jailed for anti-state activities and placed in labour camps.
Quotereddit: the front page of the internet (https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/8i5mnq/north_korea_frees_us_detainees/dyp2h60/)QuoteWho are the freed Americans?
Kim Hak-song was held on suspicion of "hostile acts" in May 2017. He had previously described himself as a Christian missionary who intended to start an experimental farm at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST)
Tony Kim, also known as Kim Sang-duk, also worked at PUST. He was detained in April 2017 on espionage charges. According to South Korean media, he had been involved in humanitarian work in the North.
Kim Dong-chul, a pastor in his early 60s, was detained in 2015 on spying charges, and was then sentenced to 10 years hard labour.
Kim, Kim and Kim was released by Kim. How wonderful!
Quote from: Xevross on May 14, 2018, 02:42 PMTrump and the idiot crew have opened the US embassy in Jerusalem today. Gaza are protesting of course, but the IDF has murdered at least 41 of them and injured over 1000 with live bullets and sniper rifles. Israel have also bombed a Hamas facility. Can you imagine the international outrage if Palestinians bombed an IDF facility? Man, fudge this.My uncle: "they protest everyday."
The whole thing is truly despicable, awareness around the globe needs to increase.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on May 16, 2018, 08:46 PMSenate passes measure to repealing changes to net neutrality rules - CNNPolitics (https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/16/politics/net-neutrality-vote-senate-democrats/index.html)Ah yes, and protesters deserve to get sniped. I forgot about that, my bad.
Senate voted to restore net neutrality. It passed, but it's unlikely to make it through House.
My uncle: "they protest everyday."
Never before seen footage obtained exclusively by All In shows Bill Gates discussing meetings with Donald Trump #inners pic.twitter.com/GouJwYKghi
— All In w/Chris Hayes (@allinwithchris) May 18, 2018
Quote from: Xevross on May 14, 2018, 02:42 PMTrump and the idiot crew have opened the US embassy in Jerusalem today. Gaza are protesting of course, but the IDF has murdered at least 41 of them and injured over 1000 with live bullets and sniper rifles. Israel have also bombed a Hamas facility. Can you imagine the international outrage if Palestinians bombed an IDF facility? Man, fudge this.I think awareness will increase after their Eurovision win. We're already protesting here, many don't want us to compete in Eurovision next year to protest
The whole thing is truly despicable, awareness around the globe needs to increase.
Quote from: Xevross on May 24, 2018, 05:33 PMThe blonde wig wearing wotsit cancelled the meeting with North Korea. Basically because they insulted him.North and South Korean leaders hold surprise meeting (https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/05/26/politics/north-and-south-korean-leaders-meet-again/index.html)
10/10 diplomacy
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on May 26, 2018, 03:18 PMNorth and South Korean leaders hold surprise meeting (https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/05/26/politics/north-and-south-korean-leaders-meet-again/index.html)I really wish we had nothing to do with this. Americans only involvement should have been as an enforcer if things go south. Let the Koreans work out denuclearization and unification between themselfs.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jun 16, 2018, 03:25 PMTrump cites as a negotiating tool his policy of separating immigrant children from their parents (https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/politics/trump-cites-as-a-negotiating-tool-his-policy-of-separating-immigrant-children-from-their-parents/2018/06/15/ade82b80-70b3-11e8-bf86-a2351b5ece99_story.html)Yeah this is disgusting.
Quote from: Xevross on Jun 19, 2018, 02:13 PMWhat do you Americans think of this trade war that Trump has started?A lot of people are really clueless about what a trade deficit is. I've literally talked to people who thought that a trade deficit basically meant that a country was stealing from us. If we have a $30b trade deficit with Norway, they think that means that Norway still has to pay $30b to us.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jul 17, 2018, 05:10 PMAlabama political ads:American politics is so dumb.
"(The other guy) knows in order to win, he has to pretend to be a Republican. Well I'm the Republican, not him. "
Quote from: Xevross on Jul 17, 2018, 07:10 PMAmerican politics is so dumb.Pretty much: "As long as my side is winning, that's the only thing that matters. F the other side. They can die for all I care."
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jul 17, 2018, 10:24 PMPretty much: "As long as my side is winning, that's the only thing that matters. F the other side. They can die for all I care."Well I mean that's most right wing politicians around the world. Its stuff like that line which is weird. How can that be a line which convinces people to vote for you?
Quote from: Xevross on Jul 17, 2018, 10:28 PMWell I mean that's most right wing politicians around the world. Its stuff like that line which is weird. How can that be a line which convinces people to vote for you?It works in a largely right wing state.
QuoteFake News reporting, a complete fabrication, that I am concerned about the meeting my wonderful son, Donald, had in Trump Tower. This was a meeting to get information on an opponent, totally legal and done all the time in politics - and it went nowhere. I did not know about it!
Fake News reporting, a complete fabrication, that I am concerned about the meeting my wonderful son, Donald, had in Trump Tower. This was a meeting to get information on an opponent, totally legal and done all the time in politics - and it went nowhere. I did not know about it!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2018
QuoteFor the first time in American history, a U.S. president admitted that his campaign had accepted Russia's offer of help during a presidential campaign.
Quote from: Xevross on Aug 21, 2018, 09:22 PMBig news today. Hopefully the brainwashed 1/3 of America will start to wake up and see through Trumps lies.
Quote from: Xevross on Sep 27, 2018, 09:17 PMJust watched a bit of the Kavanaugh hearing and my blood is already boiling. Is there a single republican in existence who isn't a complete and utter disgrace? How on Earth do half of Americans support these people?There are a few Republican governor's who are calling for a delay in the vote, so that Kavanaugh can be investigated.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Sep 27, 2018, 10:09 PMThere are a few Republican governor's who are calling for a delay in the vote, so that Kavanaugh can be investigated.Colour me surprised. The Republicans in this hearing are a joke but it doesn't help that the Dems are mostly being really incompetent. I guess the republicans keep winning because even though a lot of them are despicable, a lot of the dems are just useless at fighting back.
Even some faux news were convinced.
Fox News's Chris Wallace on Kavanaugh hearing: "a disaster for the Republicans" - Vox (https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/9/27/17910490/christine-blasey-ford-kavanaugh-senate-hearing-fox-news-chris-wallace)
Quote from: Xevross on Sep 27, 2018, 10:11 PMColour me surprised. The Republicans in this hearing are a joke but it doesn't help that the Dems are mostly being really incompetent. I guess the republicans keep winning because even though a lot of them are despicable, a lot of the dems are just useless at fighting back.Dems don't like to lie and play tricks, as much. They keep trying to compromise and reach a middle ground.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Sep 27, 2018, 10:17 PMDems don't like to lie and play tricks, as much. They keep trying to compromise and reach a middle ground.Exactly, they try to be honest and conduct themselves well. Which is fair enough, except for the fact they're competing against loud angry monkeys who somehow appeal to half of the electorate. They need to coordinate together and fight republicans more.
But Republicans don't want to compromise.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Oct 15, 2018, 05:25 PMWarren released DNA results showing she is native American.Yeah but she's got less of a native American heritage than the average American-European descendant apparently. The whole thing is weird, and she's made herself look foolish more than anything.
Requested that Trump donated the million that he said he would.
Trump said he'd never do that, even though there is video of him saying it.
Quote from: Xevross on Oct 16, 2018, 12:03 PMYeah but she's got less of a native American heritage than the average American-European descendant apparently. The whole thing is weird, and she's made herself look foolish more than anything.Yeah, she has.
This is a real radio ad currently running in Arkansas in support of Republican Congressman French Hill on radio stations targeted to the African American community. I don't even have words to describe it. pic.twitter.com/vpzt1nGPlc
— (((Ben Tribbett))) (@notlarrysabato) October 18, 2018
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 05, 2018, 01:46 PMI'm getting nervous for you America.Yeah.
The increase in early voting is pretty massive over the last midterms, especially in Tennessee. That Taylor Swift effect :o
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 05, 2018, 02:49 PMYeah.One can only hope. I'll probably stay up and watch the results, I go to sleep at 3-4am nowadays anyway.
Usually older people are reliable voters, and they tend to vote Republican.
If voting is up, it's more than likely because younger, more liberal voters are actually voting.
At this point in 2014, voters under the age of 30 had cast 849,876 votes. This year?
— Tom Bonier (@tbonier) November 3, 2018
2,347,864 voters under the age of 30 have already voted, and counting.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 05, 2018, 03:00 PMOne can only hope. I'll probably stay up and watch the results, I go to sleep at 3-4am nowadays anyway.Think I saw in Texas, there was a 500% increase in early voting among young voters.At this point in 2014, voters under the age of 30 had cast 849,876 votes. This year?
— Tom Bonier (@tbonier) November 3, 2018
2,347,864 voters under the age of 30 have already voted, and counting.
(https://scontent-frx5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/45395551_1931916253594262_6835941747281887232_n.jpg?_nc_cat=106&_nc_ht=scontent-frx5-1.xx&oh=b232a2b7406c49ba42d19d9156dfb46c&oe=5C835F3E)
More people voting is always a good thing, no matter the result.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 05, 2018, 04:09 PMI don't understand why some people vote so early though. New events could change your mind yet you wouldn't be able to change your vote.Well some people vote early because they aren't able to vote on election day.
Will be interesting to see how things go.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 05, 2018, 04:16 PMWell some people vote early because they aren't able to vote on election day.Early voting is great. Colorado has had early voting open since 2 weeks ago though. Some people definitely need those 2 weeks but it feels like there is an unnecessary push to get people to vote as early as possible.
I know I missed voting one day earlier this year.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 05, 2018, 05:12 PMEarly voting is great. Colorado has had early voting open since 2 weeks ago though. Some people definitely need those 2 weeks but it feels like there is an unnecessary push to get people to vote as early as possible.I think a lot of it is just excitement about people motivated to vote.
Tennessee early & absentee vote turnout by group, compared to 2014:
— Reid Wilson (@PoliticsReid) November 6, 2018
18-29: +663% (!!!)
30-39: +431%
40-49: +337%
50-64: +241%
65+: +244%
Af-Ams: +243%
Caucasian: +333% (!!!)
Unmarried: +340%
Never voted: +930% (!!!)
(no party reg) https://t.co/2EsfJwNCsK (9/10)
Texas early & absentee vote turnout by group, compared to 2014:
— Reid Wilson (@PoliticsReid) November 6, 2018
18-29: +462%
30-39: +295%
40-49: +200%
50-64: +121%
65+: +86%
Hispanics: +236%
Af-Ams: +98%
Caucasian: +133%
Unmarried: +204%
Never voted: +304%
(no party reg)
Data: @targetsmart https://t.co/2EsfJwNCsK (10/10) ###
Quote from: Legend on Nov 06, 2018, 05:27 PMWonder if voters voting today will also be up by a large amount or if people have just shifted dates.Seems like voting is up a lot today as well.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 06, 2018, 06:09 PMSeems like voting is up a lot today as well.How much do people over there care about this election? Is it a big media event for you too?
Quote from: Legend on Nov 06, 2018, 06:37 PMHow much do people over there care about this election? Is it a big media event for you too?It's the main news story but I don't think the general population cares that much.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 06, 2018, 08:57 PMKentucky 6 is the one to watch at 6pm, that's the first toss up.40% of votes in and its D+6.1. Looking good so far.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 07, 2018, 12:00 AMIt seems weird that Sheriff is something that we vote for.Well we also vote for coroner. That is the one that seems really out of place.
Quote from: Mmm_fish_tacos on Nov 07, 2018, 03:25 AMRepublican kept the Senate. House looks to flip buy a small margin. We might have a balanced government. Im not sure the when was the last time that happened.Seems like Dems are heading for around 230 house seats, pretty much the majority the GOP had before. I think its the first half of Obama's presidency that you had government balanced like this.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 08, 2018, 10:20 AMhttps://www.resetera.com/threads/motherboard-'red-dead-redemption-2'-players-are-excited-to-attack-and-kill-feminists-in-the-game.79514/What the fudge? Have you even read what that thread is about?
Too right. Punching those annoying babies has always been one of the best features in rockstar games.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 08, 2018, 12:32 PMWhat the fudge? Have you even read what that thread is about?I briefly skimmed through the thread. Why?
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 08, 2018, 10:20 AMhttps://www.resetera.com/threads/motherboard-'red-dead-redemption-2'-players-are-excited-to-attack-and-kill-feminists-in-the-game.79514/I have to wonder why you put it in the politics thread.
Too right. Punching those annoying babies has always been one of the best features in rockstar games.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 08, 2018, 12:32 PMWhat the fudge? Have you even read what that thread is about?A part of me is impressed that a game allows someone to do that, and most of me is incredibly disturbed that someone did it.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 08, 2018, 03:34 PMI briefly skimmed through the thread. Why?Part of it is about a video where the guy roped a lady, pulled her across the road hanging by a rope, carried to a swamp and fed to an alligator.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 08, 2018, 03:34 PMI briefly skimmed through the thread. Why?As Pi said, this person in the game is hardly just a feminist, they are a suffragette. Historically these women were incredible, they fought through so much oppression and hardship to win the right to vote for women. Calling them an annoying feminist is disrespectful at best.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 02:30 AMWho gives a fook if there's feminists here. You can do all these things in the game so there's no problem doing it. If it's a problem then the reviewers should slaughter it.Posting videos to get a rise out of feminists is the problem.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 02:30 AMBtw i find it extremely disturbing you lot shoot and kill so many innocent people on rdr. Dispicable behaviour. Like these innocents are good men with family's and you kill them?Well personally, I don't kill people that are innocent in games.
And when the online launches, surely you won't kill characters controlled by real people? Like these guys could represent little kids playing online. How could you possibly kill them?
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 02:30 AMWho gives a fook if there's feminists here. You can do all these things in the game so there's no problem doing it. If it's a problem then the reviewers should slaughter it.There's a big difference between killing random NPCs without much thought and killing the same NPC over and over again in as many sadistic ways as possible to push an anti feminist agenda online.
It's a game from rockstar. Gta, rdr it's not real life folks. I'd never punch an annoying feminist in real life but in rdr or gta? Oh I can't wait.
Btw i find it extremely disturbing you lot shoot and kill so many innocent people on rdr. Dispicable behaviour. Like these innocents are good men with family's and you kill them?
And when the online launches, surely you won't kill characters controlled by real people? Like these guys could represent little kids playing online. How could you possibly kill them?
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 09, 2018, 11:13 AMThere's a big difference between killing random NPCs without much thought and killing the same NPC over and over again in as many sadistic ways as possible to push an anti feminist agenda online.First of all he's doing it to get YouTube views for money. It's obviously working as his channel blew up. Great business decision.
Sure, I could understand just blasting the woman in the face because she annoyed you, sometimes I kill NPCs that have pissed me off in R* games to. But this really isn't that, it's much more serious and you should stop pretending otherwise.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 03:24 PMFirst of all he's doing it to get YouTube views for money. It's obviously working as his channel blew up. Great business decision.Yes you can always count on certain groups online to watch shame like that. His other videos since haven't gained any viewership, as people clearly aren't interested. Sure he did it for views, but he knew he was going to get those views from anti-feminists. He did it anyway, clearly he has no morals at best or is anti-feminist himself. His videos and his comments are only encouraging and empowering people who have abhorrent views about women.
Secondly these things are all possible in a game. Not only that but other games focus on these very things. There are horror games out there that focus on horrible gruesome torture and there are games like hitman that let you replay a level over and over to try and kill the same people (not always deserving of death) in multiple different ways.
Sure on hitman last week there was some dude I had to kill and i drowned him the bowl of the toilet. You are over sensitive if this stuff triggers you.
"to push an anti feminist agenda online."
Who gives a fook if we annoy feminists. They are possible the most annoying group out there atm and deserve to be trolled. And this coming from a man who treats women with the utmost respect.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 04:41 PMThis is the biggest problem these days. People bringing their movements into games. That's fine but don't force it on everything. Especially not Rockstar games.It's not their movement.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 09, 2018, 04:48 PMIt's not their movement.But it's a game not a history lesson.
It's a historical movement.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 04:49 PMBut it's a game not a history lesson.It's a game set in history.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 09, 2018, 04:56 PMIt's a game set in history.Just as you have the right to buy it and do whatever you want with it. Including punching an annoying feminist in the face :D ;D
They're free to put whatever they want in it.
If you can't play it without getting triggered, then you have the right not to buy it.
You have the right not to buy it, just as they have the right to put whatever they want in it.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 06:03 PMJust as you have the right to buy it and do whatever you want with it. Including punching an annoying feminist in the face :D ;DRight, but don't be surprised if people call you a nasty person for acting nasty. Which that person is.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 04:41 PMThis is the biggest problem these days. People bringing their movements into games. That's fine but don't force it on everything. Especially not Rockstar games.As Pi is saying, it was a historical movement at the time. They put it in their mainly for story purposes, there's a couple of missions involving it which I thought were great. Otherwise, you can just ignore it if you want to.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 09, 2018, 06:28 PMAs Pi is saying, it was a historical movement at the time. They put it in their mainly for story purposes, there's a couple of missions involving it which I thought were great. Otherwise, you can just ignore it if you want to.I have no problem with R* picking and choosing different movements. I've a problem with modern day movements trying to influence games. Such as the feminazis crying because someone punched a woman in this game.
I see where you're coming from though, and no doubt R* knew this would be seen as some sort of political statement. I like that they did it though, the story of suffragettes isn't know well enough.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 09, 2018, 06:12 PMRight, but don't be surprised if people call you a nasty person for acting nasty. Which that person is.Yeah well people who have opinions like that are not important to me. I kill people on rainbow 6 siege and tea bag them for the kill cam. Am I nasty for tea bagging a dead corpse or because the special forces would never do that.
And again, she's a suffragette. She's not some random feminist screaming about men. She was trying to get the right to vote.
The US started a war, because people thought they should be able to be represented.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 09, 2018, 07:25 PMI suppose you bring up an interesting topic. Even though its just games I never go around murdering people. Even in GTA its just not something I've ever done, I don't enjoy it and it makes me feel bad.And that's cool. You won't hear me saying "oh Xev he's such a nice guy, never once murdered someone in a video game".
That MW2 mission you mentioned, I didn't shoot a single bullet until we got outside and had to fight the armed police, I just sat back and watched in horror. Actually I seem to recall trying to shoot the other guys in the back the first time I did it but the mission failed me for doing that.
That being said, I'm not going to judge anyone who does murder NPCs in video games, it is just a game and some people find it fun.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 09, 2018, 07:42 PMBack to the topic of elections. I honestly can't help but laugh at all the stupid conservatives who are crying about corruption and what-not because there's still votes being counted. I mean seriously, it only took me a few minutes reading to find out how America's counting system works.I thought they needed to arrive by the election? Mailing date doesn't matter.
Postal ballots can be mailed in up until the day of the election, so a lot of them come in after and are counted later, like what's happening now. Some people are just ridiculous. Since when is making sure every vote is counted 'corruption' or 'stealing an election'. In every other developed country we'd call that basic democracy.
Oh and yes, one of those stupid conservatives claiming the Dems are trying to steal elections is none other than the oversized wotsit who sits in the white house.
Quote from: Kerotan on Nov 09, 2018, 07:47 PMAnd that's cool. You won't hear me saying "oh Xev he's such a nice guy, never once murdered someone in a video game".Well exactly, I'd barely ever judge anyone based on what they do in games. What that guy did with the suffragette though was just disturbing really. If it was just a random NPC then maybe I wouldn't view it so negatively, but it was the fact it was coupled with the whole 'annoying feminist' shame he was pushing.
Because I'd literally be mentally retarded and unbelievable naive to think like that. Some people play video games and like to escape from who they really are, some like to be who they are. But many like myself don't give a fook and just do whatever. It means nothing, but I do know one thing. If i can do something that might annoy somebody when it shouldn't, I probably will. And that's why i teabag on siege or write what a save x3 on rocket league after scoring a goal. It's also why I'd say I'll punch a lady on rdr2. Not that i hate ladies, but i hate the thought these rights campaigners can tell me what to do on a game i buy.
And it's very useful on games like RL & R6. All part of the mental warfare that can give you the edge.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 09, 2018, 08:00 PMI thought they needed to arrive by the election? Mailing date doesn't matter.I think it varies by state, I definitely read that in Arizona they had ballots still coming in a few days after. Either that or they just left mailed in ballots for a few days for the nuggets and giggles. They still had 600k to count over two days after polling had finished.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 09, 2018, 08:58 PMKerotan you still don't understand what I'm saying. I'm not judging you for things you did in a video game.Yeah but it was a very lucrative decision for him to do so. I can't blame him. All the outrage just made him richer.
The nastiness is posting it online trying to get a rise out of people.
QuoteMattis was originally going to leave on February 28 but I suppose someone explained to President chicken nugget that Mattis' letter trashed him on the way out.[/size]
Trump was already feeling blowback on forcing out such a universally popular figure, now that he's outright firing him I can only expect that to get worse.
QuoteJust a normal guy who can converse normally. Merry Christmas![/size]
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Dec 25, 2018, 09:29 AMTrump to 7 year old: "Are you still a believer in Santa? Because at seven it's marginal, right?" | ResetEra (https://www.resetera.com/threads/trump-to-7-year-old-are-you-still-a-believer-in-santa-because-at-seven-its-marginal-right.89274/)Literal turnip.
Quotehttps://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/11/us/politics/fbi-trump-russia-inquiry.html[/size]
WASHINGTON — In the days after President Trump fired James B. Comey (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/09/us/politics/james-comey-fired-fbi.html?module=inline) as F.B.I. director, law enforcement officials became so concerned by the president's behavior that they began investigating whether he had been working on behalf of Russia against American interests, according to former law enforcement officials and others familiar with the investigation.
The inquiry carried explosive implications. Counterintelligence investigators had to consider whether the president's own actions constituted a possible threat to national security. Agents also sought to determine whether Mr. Trump was knowingly working for Russia or had unwittingly fallen under Moscow's influence.
The investigation the F.B.I. opened into Mr. Trump also had a criminal aspect, which has long been publicly known (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/14/us/politics/mueller-trump-special-counsel-investigation.html?module=inline): whether his firing of Mr. Comey constituted obstruction of justice. Click to expand...
Quote from: Xevross on Jan 15, 2019, 07:41 PMGovernment loses vote by 202 votes to 432. Biggest loss for a government in UK history by 66 votes, ouch.How does a government lose a vote? Who were they voting against?
Chaos now ensues.
Quote from: Legend on Jan 15, 2019, 07:46 PMHow does a government lose a vote? Who were they voting against?"Government" in the UK refers to the prime minister and his/her cabinet. I guess its kind of similar to the "administration" in the US. Most ideas/ laws they put forward have to be voted on by MPs (including the 30 MPs that make up the cabinet). There aren't any executive powers for the government. Anyone can put forward a vote/ amendment to a current bill to parliament. The ones put forward by the government are always agreed by cabinet and are expected to pass through the house.
Quote from: Xevross on Jan 15, 2019, 08:15 PMAgainst: 432So brexit is off?
LAB: 248
CON: 118
SNP: 35
LDEM: 11
DUP: 10
Ind.: 5
PC: 4
GREEN: 1
Support: 202
CON: 196
LAB: 3
Ind.: 3
118 rebels is absolutely crushing for the tories, holy shame. Only 3 labour MPs voted for, that's nice.
No confidence vote called for tomorrow. Government expected to win that.
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Jan 15, 2019, 09:55 PMSo brexit is off?Unfortunately not. There's a no confidence vote tomorrow, and who knows what after that. Everyone's going to be fighting over what they want to happen, I'm just hoping we get a second referendum.
QuoteIn discussing concerns about Trump's attitude toward Russia, McCabe recounted on "60 Minutes" a briefing he received from a bureau official who had attended a meeting with the president. McCabe said the official described Trump siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin over American intelligence officials on the subject of North Korea's nuclear capabilities.McCabe: 'I was fired because I opened a case against the president' - POLITICO (https://www.politico.com/story/2019/02/17/mccabe-fired-trump-fbi-1173596)
"Essentially, the president said he did not believe that the North Koreans had the capability to hit us here with ballistic missiles in the United States. And he did not believe that because President Putin had told him they did not. President Putin had told him that the North Koreans don't actually have those missiles," McCabe said.
"Intelligence officials in the briefing responded that that was not consistent with any of the intelligence our government possesses, to which the president replied, 'I don't care. I believe Putin.'"
QuotePeople need to realize this point is moot: whether or not Trump is actively aware, and intentionally operating on behalf of Russia, he has still done more in two years to advance the agenda of this hostile foreign nation, to the detriment of the US, than any other person in recent memory.
We seem hopelessly entangled in answering the question of whether he's knowingly operating on Russia's behalf and have neglected the fact that he is actively aiding Russia and harming us egregiously in the process.
There is no circumstance where Trump ought not be immediately impeached for the things we have witnessed occur in plain sight.
He advanced a withdrawal from Syria - against all counsel of all relevant expers - to Russia's delight. No explanation for this was ever provided to the American people.
He has refused to enforce sanctions legally codified into law - and in some cases reversed standing sanctions. No explanation for this was ever provided to the American people.
He has denounced his own intelligence agencies in a press conference with Putin on election meddling - and publicly endorsed Putin's version of events. No explanation for this was ever provided to the American people.
He has conducted numerous completely private meetings and conferences with Putin, and has gone to great lengths to prevent literally anyone, even people in his administration, from learning what was discussed. No explanation for this was ever provided to the American people.
He has lied countless times about having business interests in Russia, which have been clearly and undeniably proven false in extremely public ways. No explanation for this was ever provided to the American people.
He pulled out of the INF treaty, which allows Putin to create missiles that can threaten Europe with impunity, whereas before, there would be sanctions and severe penalties for doing so. No explanation for this was ever provided to the American people.
At every step, he has handed Russia enormous concessions with no justification. He takes Putin's word - a notorious liar - at face value, always, above all of his own countrymen, and even the people he himself hired to lead his agencies.
Now let us also remember, Russia is nothing compared to the US. The US has infinitely more muscle than Russia. This is why the policy - right up until Trump - has been to deal with them through sanctions and military conflicts where necessary.
They agitate, they hit and run, but Russia is an organized crime state whose economy is nearly collapsed, whose leadership consists of a coalition of loosely allied kleptocrats, oligarchs, and billionaires, all of whom are just as likely to knife each other as their foreign adversaries.
Had Clinton won, she would have continued her policy she advanced at the State Department, and sanctioned Russia until Putin's government imploded from the stress of Putin's brutality and kleptocracy. Which, obviously, is why he pulled out all the stops to ensure Clinton did not win the election.
The evidence is unambiguous. Trump - for reasons we do not know but ought not really care - betrayed, is betraying the US to Putin's Russia, each and every day.
So, I ask - why do we care whether he's a card-carrying Russian agent enthusiastic about the cause, a victim of blackmail, a seeker of quid pro quo, or just a really gullible imbecile?
He is clearly and transparently committing treason right out in the open. He has sacrificed our security and our interests to advance Russia's. Ignorance is not an excuse here. Let the courts sort that out, but this is far and away grossly impeachable behavior, and a level of embarrassing and humiliating subservience the likes of which have never been witnessed from an American leader on the world stage.
And let's not forget - let's always footnote talk about Trump's treason with the fact that this is just one of MANY separate, discrete, and unique massive, impeachable scandals. On top of pursuing the agenda of a hostile foreign nation, he also committed numerous acts of campaign finance violation, stood behind and refused to condemn nazis and white supremacists, publicly attacked private citizens and the media, condemned his own agents and agencies for legally investigating him, told nearly ten thousand lies about things ranging from serious to extremely mundane, appointed his own family members to positions far above their capacity (breaking many ethics laws and vetting procedures to do so and get them clearance).
And the list goes on. Seriously, it goes on and on and on and on. I could exhaust myself listing out the oaths Trump has betrayed, the crimes he has committed, the many more crimes he has probably committed, the constitutional amendments he has attacked or condemned, all of which, in and of themselves, should warrant impeachment or serious scrutiny.
The last President was impeached, by Republicans, for one - one - count of perjury, about a meaningless sexual exploit. Which was an actual example of a perjury trap, by the way, wherein the prosecutor gets the defendant on the stand, on the record, for a crime - in this case, the Whitewater investigations into Clinton's real estate dealings, and then questions him about something embarassing but irrelevant and not illegal, compelling the defendant to lie and commit perjury to prevent embarassment.
That's what Republicans thought qualified a previous President for impeachment.
And now we come to Trump, who has a list of genuine impeachable criteria so long I legitimately can't remember all of them in one go. of these things. All of these individual scandals or crimes or gross acts of idiocy demonstrating severely compromised judgment and ability to execute the powers of the office.
And then you add actual treason on top of it. A violation of America and its interests not only inconceivable in its treachery, but to a far, far, far weaker adversary.
So what the fudge is he still doing in the oval?
QuoteTweet says it all:
@AOC Just left the 1st CBP facility. I see why CBP officers were being so physically &sexually threatening towards me. Officers were keeping women in cells w/ no water & had told them to drink out of the toilets. This was them on their GOOD behavior in front of members of Congress.
EDIT: More:
@AOC Now I've seen the inside of these facilities. It's not just the kids. It's everyone. People drinking out of toilets, officers laughing in front of members Congress. I brought it up to their superiors. They said "officers are under stress & act out sometimes." No accountability.QuoteAbsent said: (http://vizioneck.com/goto/post?id=22392871) Even more:EDIT: For those asking about AOC taking pictures/video:
fudge, man. Click to expand... Click to shrink...
@AOC CBP made us check our phones. But one woman slipped me this packet to take with me. It says "shampoo," but she told me that this is all they give women to wash their entire body. Nothing else. Some women's hair was falling out. Others had gone 15 days without taking a shower.
QuoteFrom his latest interview with Tucker Carlson:
In general it's just a very out-of-character performance from our Dear Leader – slurred speech, low stamina... Sad!
Transcript of their exchange under the spoiler:
Spoiler (https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D-cFrtRXoAA-ayF?format=jpg&name=900x900)
Quote from: Xevross on Jul 02, 2019, 09:23 AMAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez after visiting border detention facility: People are without water/told to drink out of toilets while guards laugh at them | ResetEra (https://www.resetera.com/threads/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-after-visiting-border-detention-facility-people-are-without-water-told-to-drink-out-of-toilets-while-guards-laugh-at-them.126708/)We have to take back the country
EDIT: For those asking about AOC taking pictures/video:
@AOC CBP made us check our phones. But one woman slipped me this packet to take with me. It says "shampoo," but she told me that this is all they give women to wash their entire body. Nothing else. Some women's hair was falling out. Others had gone 15 days without taking a shower.
Trump on homelessness: "It's a phenomena that started two years ago" | ResetEra (https://www.resetera.com/threads/trump-on-homelessness-its-a-phenomena-that-started-two-years-ago.126799/)
This is what fascism looks like. There should be outrage in the streets but most of the country is actually happy about this or just doesn't care. What a horrible country you've turned into, America :(
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Oct 06, 2020, 08:10 PMGetting close to the 2020 election.Once again, don't forget to vote!
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 07, 2020, 08:58 AMHow the hell would Trump be allowed from the hospital and straight into the white house (not isolation)?Everyone in the white house has it already.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Oct 20, 2020, 03:26 PM2 weeks away.It gets scarier every day.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Oct 24, 2020, 03:13 PMA week from Tuesday. 10 days away.There's a lot at stake for sure. It looks very good for Biden, much better than it did for Clinton than for many reasons.
*Breathes*
538 still shows a very high chance of Biden winning, higher than Clinton ever did.
This is a very bizarre cycle. With prominent conservatives asking people not to vote for Trump.
There's literally a wiki page (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Republicans_who_oppose_the_Donald_Trump_2020_presidential_campaign)
Xev keeping me updated on the trends show none of them matter to the masses.
2020 Election Forecast | FiveThirtyEight (https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2020-election-forecast/)
I'm terrified of what the future holds. There's a lot at stake here.
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 23, 2020, 06:06 PMNo reaction
Can I vote too?
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 25, 2020, 05:26 PMNo reactionI was keeping my disappointment to myself.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Oct 25, 2020, 05:44 PMI was keeping my disappointment to myself.Did you watch
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 25, 2020, 05:26 PMNo reactionI prefer a different Daddario
Quote from: Xevross on Oct 25, 2020, 10:46 PMI prefer a different DaddarioDon't know anyone else
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 25, 2020, 10:57 PMDon't know anyone elseThere's two famous Daddario siblings. The other one is hotter ;)
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 25, 2020, 06:54 PMDid you watchYes :P
Quote from: Xevross on Oct 25, 2020, 11:02 PMThere's two famous Daddario siblings. The other one is hotter ;)That's some bullshite. Look at the eyes!
Welp. https://t.co/nXOH1SNdLP pic.twitter.com/GKVAzZUWlG
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 25, 2020
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 25, 2020, 11:05 PMThat's some bullshite. Look at the eyes!(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/4e/11/4c/4e114cae5d7628fd1b3c3a0e1fe60f2b.png)
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Oct 25, 2020, 11:05 PMThat's some bullshite. Look at the eyes!
Quote from: Xevross on Oct 25, 2020, 11:06 PMSpeaking of hot.If Texas went blue, I'd ...Welp. https://t.co/nXOH1SNdLP pic.twitter.com/GKVAzZUWlG
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 25, 2020
Imagine if Texas goes blue, it'd be a big shock.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Oct 25, 2020, 11:09 PMIf Texas went blue, I'd ...Oh but I do want to know.
You don't even want to know
Quote from: Xevross on Oct 25, 2020, 11:06 PMSpeaking of hot.I hope it does.Welp. https://t.co/nXOH1SNdLP pic.twitter.com/GKVAzZUWlG
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 25, 2020
Imagine if Texas goes blue, it'd be a big shock.
Quote from: kitler53 on Oct 26, 2020, 12:24 AMI hope it does.I think they already know it's a losing position. Just makes them crazier.
I really don't think biden needs it but all Republicans need to reevaluate how they approach politics. losing tx might just be the kick to the dog they need to realize that white supremesy, Christan supremesy, and anti-democracy is a losing colilition.
Wow -- a "Fire Fauci!" chant at the Trump rally
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 2, 2020
"Let me wait until a little after the election," Trump replies pic.twitter.com/bRHLqzzcRF
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 02, 2020, 04:25 PMi voted saturday. i'm both hopeful and worried about the results of this election. i fully believe american democracy dies if trump wins or steals the election. republican's deserved to be walloped and kick-start a introspective period about how they are operating. ...but there are enough crazies that they'll probably will just decide to kidnap and assassinate democrats like they tried in michigan.I'm hopeful and worried too.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 02, 2020, 04:25 PMi voted saturday. i'm both hopeful and worried about the results of this election. i fully believe american democracy dies if trump wins or steals the election. republican's deserved to be walloped and kick-start a introspective period about how they are operating. ...but there are enough crazies that they'll probably will just decide to kidnap and assassinate democrats like they tried in michigan.Agree with all this, and what it might mean for the state and direction of the world if Trump wins. There's a lot riding on tomorrow, I'm rooting for all of you in America.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 02, 2020, 04:54 PMI'm hopeful and worried too.i see you updated the background to an american flag. do you have an american flag on fire background ready in case things go bad today?
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 03, 2020, 03:42 PMi see you updated the background to an american flag. do you have an american flag on fire background ready in case things go bad today?I am taking this one step at a time but at the very least, national election=flag.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 03, 2020, 05:38 PMRepublicans out-voted Dems by 220k in 5 and a half hours in Florida, they hold a voted registration lead of 106k now. This is missing a few counties for election day numbers, Miami Dade included.With each hour the end of day estimate gets better for Dems as while GOP still outvotes them, the ratio is getting better.
According to polling averages, any GOP+3 environment or bluer favours a Biden win in Florida.
If the current pace continues we're looking at total votes of:
GOP 4.41M (40.0%)
Dem 4.05M (36.6%)
NPA 2.60M (23.5%)
However the GOP hourly advantage is trending downards and this is missing some Dem favouring counties.So this will slightly overestimate the GOP lead. So yeah, good old Florida.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 03, 2020, 07:04 PMWith each hour the end of day estimate gets better for Dems as while GOP still outvotes them, the ratio is getting better.what is your source? I'm not seeing live results on the web.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 03, 2020, 07:07 PMwhat is your source? I'm not seeing live results on the web.Counties release the data, this guy on twitter is collating it and giving updates: https://twitter.com/umichvoter99
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 03, 2020, 05:37 PMi require you to take a stance. you're either with us or against us:My stance is that I'm against that lol.
Biden wins = fireworks
Trump wins = dumpster fire
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 03, 2020, 07:20 PMCounties release the data, this guy on twitter is collating it and giving updates: https://twitter.com/umichvoter99gotcha. so fake news...
Quote from: Legend on Nov 03, 2020, 08:03 PMI hope this isn't premature.lol, we'll see. my take is trump won't win with the voters but will take it to the courts no matter how bad he's losing.
YOU MUST BE LOGGED IN TO SEE THIS CONTENT
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 03, 2020, 05:38 PMRepublicans out-voted Dems by 220k in 5 and a half hours in Florida, they hold a voted registration lead of 106k now. This is missing a few counties for election day numbers, Miami Dade included.Dems are nearly at those numbers, Reps are still quite aways to go.
According to polling averages, any GOP+3 environment or bluer favours a Biden win in Florida.
If the current pace continues we're looking at total votes of:
GOP 4.41M (40.0%)
Dem 4.05M (36.6%)
NPA 2.60M (23.5%)
However the GOP hourly advantage is trending downards and this is missing some Dem favouring counties.So this will slightly overestimate the GOP lead. So yeah, good old Florida.
FLORIDA, 3:30 UPDATE
— UMichVoter (@umichvoter99) November 3, 2020
Republican: 4,087,834 (+173,200)
Democratic: 3,914,634
NPA/Other: 2,464,130
TOTAL: 10,466,598
*Includes ALL mail + in-person early
*Missing E-day votes: DeSoto, Hardee, Jefferson, Monroe, Seminole, Union
*only 2pm update from miami dade
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 03, 2020, 08:52 PMDems are nearly at those numbers, Reps are still quite aways to go.Yep, we got some Miami Dade numbers and now my daily projection is down to just R+2.7. If that keeps going Biden should have Florida.FLORIDA, 3:30 UPDATE
— UMichVoter (@umichvoter99) November 3, 2020
Republican: 4,087,834 (+173,200)
Democratic: 3,914,634
NPA/Other: 2,464,130
TOTAL: 10,466,598
*Includes ALL mail + in-person early
*Missing E-day votes: DeSoto, Hardee, Jefferson, Monroe, Seminole, Union
*only 2pm update from miami dade
I'm starting to feel good about FL.
FLORIDA, 4:40 PM UPDATE
— UMichVoter (@umichvoter99) November 3, 2020
Republican: 4,149,144 (+191,876)
Democratic: 3,957,268
NPA/Other: 2,597,260
TOTAL: 10,703,672
*Includes ALL mail + in-person early
*Missing E-day votes: DeSoto, Hardee, Jefferson, Monroe, Seminole, Union
*only 2pm update from miami dade
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 03, 2020, 10:01 PMYep. Florida is heading for only R+2 in the end I think.FLORIDA, 4:40 PM UPDATE
— UMichVoter (@umichvoter99) November 3, 2020
Republican: 4,149,144 (+191,876)
Democratic: 3,957,268
NPA/Other: 2,597,260
TOTAL: 10,703,672
*Includes ALL mail + in-person early
*Missing E-day votes: DeSoto, Hardee, Jefferson, Monroe, Seminole, Union
*only 2pm update from miami dade
By comparison: ~ 9.4 million votes in 2016
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 04, 2020, 12:26 AMMiami-Dade is a disaster for Biden.just how. how could it be practically even in miami. smells like BS to me.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 04, 2020, 12:42 AMI'm getting really nervous now. trump is going to win.Why?
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 01:16 AMWhy?He's going to win Florida even bigger than last time, other swing states don't have enough counted to tell if they're going the same.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 04, 2020, 12:42 AMI'm getting really nervous now. trump is going to win.My hope is declining
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 01:25 AMI mean how can one state that already was very republican change things so much?Very republican? Florida is the swingiest of swing states, Trump won it by 1.2% last time.
People on reddit are more optimistic
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 04, 2020, 01:28 AMVery republican? Florida is the swingiest of swing states, Trump won it by 1.2% last time.Oh the stereotype made it seem like that.
Georgia and NC both favouring Trump on NYT's needles now too.
For god's sake, its 2016 again.
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 01:33 AMOh the stereotype made it seem like that.Mailed in votes are what a lot of this is being based off.
Could mailed in votes swing things?
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 01:33 AMOh the stereotype made it seem like that.The stereotype exists because FL has easy to access records.
Could mailed in votes swing things?
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 04, 2020, 01:28 AMVery republican? Florida is the swingiest of swing states, Trump won it by 1.2% last time.exactly.
Georgia and NC both favouring Trump on NYT's needles now too.
For god's sake, its 2016 again.
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 01:33 AMCould mailed in votes swing things?
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 01:33 AMCould mailed in votes swing things?Yes Pezus. Mailed in votes can swing things. I think in some respects it's swinging more than most people (on Era :P ) expected. Experts were saying it was pretty likely that Trump would be ahead on Election night, even if Biden would eventually win.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 04, 2020, 01:41 PMi feel like such shame this morning.Sleep well?
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 02:17 PMSleep well?not at all and i woke up to trump's declaration of victory and "mandiate" to stop counting ballots. soo much stress, so much at stake.
OMG DON CLAIMS HE "BEAT" POKEMON, HAS NOT CAUGHT 'EM ALL... TRUMP: "GAME ENDS WHEN YOU BEAT ELITE FOUR" pic.twitter.com/xSHxHCtlkG
— thanks austin giving (@shrimpJAJ) November 4, 2020
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 04, 2020, 07:20 PMMail in vote definitely swung things however when you said that Pez we were talking about NC and Florida where mail in vote came in first, we hadn't even seen the midwest yet.i just don't get how soo many american can vote for that garbage.
Everything is happening as expected, except Trump has outperformed his polls pretty uniformly across the board once again.
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 04, 2020, 07:20 PMMail in vote definitely swung things however when you said that Pez we were talking about NC and Florida where mail in vote came in first, we hadn't even seen the midwest yet.Oh I just meant in general
Everything is happening as expected, except Trump has outperformed his polls pretty uniformly across the board once again.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 04, 2020, 07:59 PMi just don't get how soo many american can vote for that garbage.Huge amounts of propaganda and fear.
Quotebiden is screwed. with mcconnel at the head of his senate majority he will resume is obstructionism. nothing, not one god dang thing, will pass in the next 2 years. if clarence tomas were to die in march 2021 mcconnel would hold his seat vacant for 4 years...
QuoteMitch McConnell's Senate might be where the Biden presidency goes to die
It now looks likely that on Jan. 20 of next year, Legend Biden will become president of the United States. And after the inaugural balls are over that evening, he will take off his tuxedo, put on a scratchy jumpsuit and check into a prison cell whose keys are held by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).
For months, we've been contemplating a world in which Biden wins the White House and Democrats narrowly take control of the Senate. We asked ourselves if they should get rid of the filibuster (yes, they should) or grant statehood to the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico (also yes).
But we didn't spend nearly enough time contemplating what it now looks like will be the reality: a Democratic president and a Republican Senate.
We've seen this before, most recently in the last two years of Barack Obama's second term. But this will be far, far worse than it was then. We're about to witness something unprecedented in American history.
In 2014, McConnell became majority leader after Obama had already achieved most of his major legislative goals, including passing the Affordable Care Act. But now he has a chance to sabotage a Democratic president right from the start. Just as important, he knows that no matter how far he goes, the Republican Party is likely to pay only a small political price. What they get in return will be worth every penny and more.
As of now, Democrats lost one Senate seat and gained two, giving them 48. While it's theoretically possible for them to get to 50 given the races where votes are still being counted, it looks extremely unlikely. Which means McConnell will remain as majority leader.
What does that mean? For starters, you can take all those meticulously prepared policy plans (https://joebiden.com/joes-vision/) Biden and his team devised during the campaign and toss them in the trash. There will be no expansion of health coverage, no aggressive legislation to address climate change, no move toward universal child care, no increase in the minimum wage, no new Voting Rights Act and no infrastructure spending. None of it.
Nor will there be a new stimulus bill to help the economy recover from the pandemic, since McConnell knows that Biden will be blamed if the economy continues to struggle. At most — and even this is no guarantee — McConnell may allow continuing resolutions that keep the government open at its current funding levels. There will be no other significant legislation as long as Republicans retain control.
That's just the beginning. McConnell now clearly believes that conservative domination of the courts is his most lasting legacy. Between now and January, during Trump's lame duck period, McConnell and Judiciary Committee Chair Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) will run a conveyor belt to confirm judges to every last open seat at every level.
And then the confirmation process will simply shut down. Forget about filling a Supreme Court vacancy if one occurs; McConnell won't permit Biden to fill any judicial vacancy. Not one.
"Oh, come on," you might be saying. "He'd never go that far." You don't think so? Just wait.
We're not done. The president gets to fill (https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/trump-administration-appointee-tracker/database/?itid=lk_inline_manual_21) about 4,000 positions throughout the executive branch, and a remarkable 1,200 of those require confirmation by the Senate. What if McConnell and the Republicans just decided to confirm none of Biden's appointments? No secretary of the Treasury, no EPA administrator, no assistant secretary of the Interior for Land and Minerals Management — none of them. We've already got all those bureaucrats, Republicans will say, why do we need to keep adding more?
Or at the very least, they'll tell Biden: You can have a secretary of State if you really want one. But we get to tell you who it can and can't be. First rule: It has to be a Republican. Take it or leave it.
Such a comprehensive stonewall would be unprecedented in American history. But McConnell has shown not just a willingness but an eagerness to violate any norm or rule if it serves his party's purposes and he thinks he can get away with it. He'll come up with some ludicrous justification ("No president whose election was decided when it was 52 degrees in Washington in a year ending in zero has ever had his Cabinet confirmed!"), then every Republican will dutifully repeat it, and eventually Democrats will stop complaining, because what are you gonna do?
Biden's presidency would then limp along pathetically until the midterm elections in 2022, when there would be at least a glimmer of hope. More Republican Senate seats will be up (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_United_States_Senate_elections) that year; I count six that could be vulnerable, especially in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
But midterm elections usually favor the opposition party. Are Democratic voters going to turn out in droves to help a president who has been unable to deliver on any of his promises?
Of course, this all depends on every Republican senator going along with McConnell's plan for the Mother of All Stonewalls. Which they will. They've shown again and again that they don't care what norms are violated — if they can do it, they will do it. Just ask Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
Then in four years, Republicans will say, "Look what a failure President Biden has been! Democrats can't get anything done!
I wish I could say that the voters will rise up in outrage and cast them out. But right now it's hard to feel optimistic.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 04, 2020, 11:04 PMhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/11/04/mitch-mcconnells-senate-will-be-where-biden-presidency-goes-die/Yeah. We need a miracle in Georgia to get the senate to 50-50.
so unfortunately true.
Quote from: Dr. Pezus on Nov 04, 2020, 11:12 PMAt least Biden is winningi'm starting to worry about nevada. it is getting really close.
Or, more accurately, Trump is losing
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 05, 2020, 01:01 AMi'm starting to worry about nevada. it is getting really close.It's been 8k lead since they finished all the in person votes. All that's left is later arriving mail-in which should still be Biden favoured.
Every now and then, Twitter delivers complete gold. Trump’s spiritual advisor set to Eminem. With a dancing cat. pic.twitter.com/g3f8j6zGAP
— Richard Boorman (@RichardBoorman) November 5, 2020
Decision Desk HQ projects that @JoeBiden has won Pennsylvania and its 20 electoral college votes for a total of 273.
— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 6, 2020
Joe Biden has been elected the 46th President of the United States of America.
Race called at 11-06 08:50 AM EST
All Results: https://t.co/BgcQsEyt3j
Quote from: Xevross on Nov 06, 2020, 01:57 PMThe world wonDecision Desk HQ projects that @JoeBiden has won Pennsylvania and its 20 electoral college votes for a total of 273.
— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 6, 2020
Joe Biden has been elected the 46th President of the United States of America.
Race called at 11-06 08:50 AM EST
All Results: https://t.co/BgcQsEyt3j
Biden has won.
QuoteTrump has told people he has no plans to concede
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 06, 2020, 06:54 PMhttps://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-biden-election-results-11-06-20/h_ac6abbe09f77af0899e4c98bacad22e9(I hope he has to get escorted out)
Of course he doesn't...
Quote"We all know why Legend Biden is rushing to falsely pose as the winner, and why his media allies are trying so hard to help him: they don't want the truth to be exposed. The simple fact is this election is far from over. Legend Biden has not been certified as the winner of any states, let alone any of the highly contested states headed for mandatory recounts, or states where our campaign has valid and legitimate legal challenges that could determine the ultimate victor. In Pennsylvania, for example, our legal observers were not permitted meaningful access to watch the counting process. Legal votes decide who is president, not the news media.
"Beginning Monday, our campaign will start prosecuting our case in court to ensure election laws are fully upheld and the rightful winner is seated. The American People are entitled to an honest election: that means counting all legal ballots, and not counting any illegal ballots. This is the only way to ensure the public has full confidence in our election. It remains shocking that the Biden campaign refuses to agree with this basic principle and wants ballots counted even if they are fraudulent, manufactured, or cast by ineligible or deceased voters. Only a party engaged in wrongdoing would unlawfully keep observers out of the count room – and then fight in court to block their access.
"So what is Biden hiding? I will not rest until the American People have the honest vote count they deserve and that Democracy demands."
QuoteTrump Team Holds News Conference Outside Drab Landscaping Firm, Next to Adult Book Store(https://compote.slate.com/images/9d2fdf55-e5d3-4ffa-b954-123f0737619d.jpeg?width=780&height=520&rect=6301x4201&offset=0x0)
On Saturday morning, shortly before the AP and other news outlets called the election for Legend Biden, President Donald Trump took to Twitter (https://twitter.com/josh_wingrove/status/1325088747675922432) to announce that his lawyers would be holding a "big press conference" in Philadelphia. But there seems to have been some major confusion about where it would be held. First Trump tweeted it would take place at the "Four Seasons, Philadelphia." Trump later corrected himself and said that the news conference was going to be held at the Four Seasons Total Landscaping. And the Four Seasons Hotel sent out its own tweet (https://twitter.com/FSPhiladelphia/status/1325102014964109312), making sure everyone knew that the news conference would not be held there but rather at the landscaping business that has "no relation with the hotel."
When journalists arrived at the site of the news conference, they were flabbergasted by the scene and many quickly speculated that someone in the Trump campaign made a serious mistake (https://twitter.com/SlexAxton/status/1325141204418191361). After all, the parking lot of a landscaping business in the outskirts of the city in an industrial part of town was a drab backdrop for a news conference by a president who wanted to convince Americans he still had a chance of winning. And making matters even stranger, the landscaping business was between an adult bookstore and a cremation center. The location led to lots (https://twitter.com/pattonoswalt/status/1325132671140327427) of mockery online (https://twitter.com/SlexAxton/status/1325141204418191361), and many people (https://twitter.com/sfiegerman/status/1325117371422543874) were very happy (https://twitter.com/VaushV/status/1325156185595543560) with the scene that was ripe for mockery (https://twitter.com/Evanryt/status/1325089489530859526), and some saw as a poignant metaphor (https://twitter.com/justinsink/status/1325088574769868803) of the failure of the Trump campaign.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jan 06, 2021, 12:54 AMGeorgia seems positive for Dems so far.wow. like waassy better than I would have expected. over 1% right now.
Quote from: kitler53 on Jan 06, 2021, 01:18 AMwow. like waassy better than I would have expected. over 1% right now.It's not going to hold as is. But 4% advantage right now.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jan 06, 2021, 01:52 AMIt's not going to hold as is. But 4% advantage right now.you need to watch the needle. it's happening. oh my ducking God it's happening.
Quote from: kitler53 on Jan 06, 2021, 02:28 AMyou need to watch the needle. it's happening. oh my ducking God it's happening.The turtle is defeated!
good bye mcconnell hello functional government.
Quote from: Xevross on Jan 06, 2021, 02:41 AMThe turtle is defeated!(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/hkLXSVV3LHcUM9R-WRSAARv5M-s5ol6M_eepSjOdEaZqT9a6N0LNyAY2RXBWloV4n4OPIhGj1tahhdbmFQHlLGZN4KuKFJl871ghMwKdmfkoRFWasOwnu-QzyMtQM6M5MZ_5-pk8NrjUNyE4O8W3NYj5k3VPvQRLB3Y)
Quote from: kitler53 on Jan 06, 2021, 02:28 AMyou need to watch the needle. it's happening. oh my ducking God it's happening.I know all about the needle.
good bye mcconnell hello functional government.
Quote from: Legend on Jan 06, 2021, 03:27 AMY'all sound like a cult talking about "the needle."What kinds of cults are you listening to?
(yes I watch it too)
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Feb 17, 2021, 06:12 PMRush Limbaugh passed away.
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 17, 2021, 07:12 PMyou know what i think....This about sums it up:
(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/90/b9/fd/90b9fd431673c1781f0d61947aef4f45.jpg)
QuoteI wish him all the love, empathy, and care that he has shown to his fellow humans.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Feb 19, 2021, 05:01 PMFun facts about Texas.you should never expect a republican not to blatantly lie.
Texas has their own energy grid to avoid federal regulations.
Despite many warnings to winterize their stuff, they did not.
Natural gas saw the most issues.
Yet Republicans are politicizing the event to blame the Green New Deal which never happens, wind turbines which are also used in Antarctica for freezing in cold weather. B
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 19, 2021, 06:15 PMyou should never expect a republican not to blatantly lie.I missed the not in that first sentence and thought we'd lost you to madness
wind turbines and gas turbines are both run in Alaska and can function just fine when built for winter. texas just simply built their entire energy infrastructure to drive prices down. those price reductions came at not investing into appropriate precautions for events like this. republicans won't pay for an ounce of prevention and they'll shift the blame for the pound of cure to democrats no matter how badly they have to lie.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 19, 2021, 11:27 PMfudgy murderer.This wasn't that case.
america is Soo iced up when a white guy murders a black guy and it called "self defence"
Quote from: BananaKing on Nov 20, 2021, 12:00 AMfudgy hell America. Two people gunned down with a machine gun and one injured and he is free? Wow.. just wowDidn't even get charged for open carrying as a minor due to a technicality, that the law doesn't cover that length of gun.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Aug 14, 2022, 05:16 PMKazakhstan to start oil sales via Azeri pipeline to bypass Russia : worldnews (https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/wo33ns/kazakhstan_to_start_oil_sales_via_azeri_pipeline/)I know very little about Kazakhstan, but it has been interesting seeing their pushbacks against Russia. Russia's primary space launch facility is within Kazakhstan and they'd be screwed without it.
In keeping with my campaign promise, my Administration is announcing a plan to give working and middle class families breathing room as they prepare to resume federal student loan payments in January 2023.
— President Biden (@POTUS) August 24, 2022
I'll have more details this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/kuZNqoMe4I
Not even sure what to say here. Rep. Eastman says it’s a benefit to society when children who are victims of abuse die “because there aren’t needs for government services over the course of that child’s life” when they die as a results of abuse. #akleg pic.twitter.com/0hV4o7AzTY
— The Alaska Landmine (@alaskalandmine) February 21, 2023
QuoteWhile the board handles infrastructure and maintenance, DeSantis boasted that it could use its leverage to force Disney to stop "trying to inject woke ideology" on children.
"When you lose your way, you've got to have people that are going to tell you the truth," DeSantis proclaimed. "So we hope they can get back on. But I think all of these board members very much would like to see the type of entertainment that all families can appreciate."
It is worth pausing a moment to grasp the full breadth of what is going on here. First, DeSantis established the principle that he can and will use the power of the state to punish private firms that exercise their First Amendment right to criticize his positions. Now he is promising to continue exerting state power to pressure the firm to produce content that comports with his own ideological agenda.
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 28, 2023, 09:44 PMconsidering how blatantly and loudely he is breaking the first amendment right i would think Disney could take DeSantis to court.I'd hope so. It's not harming Disney that much atm but this is just flat out illegal if done for those reasons.
Quote from: Legend on Feb 28, 2023, 11:37 PMThe origins of Disney World are pretty cool. Walt literally wanted to build an experimental prototype city of tomorrow, hence why they bought a whole city worth of land.it's costing them a lot of Republicans get control over what content they can create.
The amount of misinformation about their district has been insane. It's like Florida's own mini brexit I guess.I'd hope so. It's not harming Disney that much atm but this is just flat out illegal if done for those reasons.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 01, 2023, 01:37 AMit's costing them a lot of Republicans get control over what content they can create.Reedy Creek just applies to specific things at Disney World. This doesn't give the Florida government any control over what content Disney makes.
Quotenew bill overhauling Florida universities to match Gov. Ron DeSantis' vision for higher education would shift power at state schools into the hands of the Republican leader's political appointees and ban gender studies as a field of study.
The legislation, filed this week, would also require that general education courses at state colleges and universities "promote the values necessary to preserve the constitutional republic" and cannot define American history "as contrary to the creation of a new nation based on universal principles stated in the Declaration of Independence." It would prohibit general courses "with a curriculum based on unproven, theoretical or exploratory content."
QuoteA 3-year-old girl found a loaded gun in a Texas home and accidentally shot her sister, killing the 4-year-old on Sunday, an official said.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said the girls were in the bedroom of an apartment on Bammel North Houston Road, where they lived with their parents, around 8 p.m.
Five adults, who were all family members or family friends, were in other parts of the apartment and the girls unintentionally were left unsupervised, according to the sheriff.
"It appears that one parent thought the other parent was maybe watching the other children when, in fact, the two toddlers were left unsupervised inside the bedroom," Gonzalez said.
My child needs their vote. Children and families from across our state need their votes. Words are meaningless unless we put action behind them.
— Senator Megan Hunt (@NebraskaMegan) April 26, 2023
I will continue to advocate for our kids - yours, theirs, and mine - no matter what harassment or intimidation comes my way. #NELeg
Quote from: Legend on Apr 26, 2023, 09:30 PMDisney sues Florida Gov Ron DeSantis (https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/26/disney-sues-florida-gov-ron-desantis-alleges-political-effort-to-hurt-its-business.html)agreed. he's not even trying to hide the fact he is weaponizing government. this is such a flagrant violation of the 1st amendment and USA can't be free while this kind of behavior is allowed.
Not the best article but either way you get the point.
Disney really needs to win this case. The growing trend of politicians punishing companies by ignoring the first amendment is horrifying.
(https://i.imgur.com/nE6lg6W.jpeg)
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Apr 26, 2023, 10:33 PMRep. Zooey Zephyr had been banned from speaking for nearly a week, after saying the GOP would have "blood on their hands" for a ban on transition care for minors. (https://www.vice.com/en/article/g5yqbx/zooey-zephyr-montana-trans-punished)..and this too. republicans continue to disenfranchise voters and show they don't want a free country. they want to be the authoritarian.
Gov. Evers, by vetoing the digits "20" and the hyphen from a reference to the 2024-25 academic year, has created an annual school funding increase authorization that persists for more than four hundred years.https://t.co/5OU5M2u8eN
— Jordan Ellenberg (@JSEllenberg) July 5, 2023
QuoteWind and solar power pollute the Earth and make life miserable.
Recent global and local heat records reflect natural temperature cycles.
These are some of the themes of children's videos produced by an influential conservative advocacy group.
Now, the videos could soon be used in Florida's classrooms.
Florida's Department of Education has approved the classroom use of material from the Prager University Foundation, a conservative group that produces videos that distort science, history, gender and other topics.
The man who murdered San Bernardino store owner and mother of 9 Lauri Carleton over the weekend was being fed a steady diet of anti LGBTQ hate by right wing media personalities like Matt Walsh, Jordan Peterson, and Benny Johnson.
— Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen) August 22, 2023
Nobody is born with hate like this. pic.twitter.com/VdRZNYqo4p
Quote from: BananaKing on Aug 22, 2023, 12:49 PMDid they catch the guy who committed the murder?He died in a shoot out with police officers afterward.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Aug 22, 2023, 01:20 PMHe died in a shoot out with police officers afterward.Well I can't say I feel bad for a murderer. I hope no police got hurt though
Quote from: kitler53 on Dec 20, 2023, 12:22 AMTrump Is Disqualified From the 2024 Ballot, Colorado Supreme Court Rules https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/19/us/politics/trump-colorado-ballot-14th-amendment.html?smid=nytcore-android-shareI was hoping it wouldn't happen just since Colorado wouldn't vote for him anyway (crazy how fast Colorado switched from purple to solid blue) and this will make conspiracy nuts more energized.
CO bans trump from the ballot.
this will get appealed of course but this is a great precedent
Quote from: Legend on Dec 20, 2023, 01:34 AMI was hoping it wouldn't happen just since Colorado wouldn't vote for him anyway (crazy how fast Colorado switched from purple to solid blue) and this will make conspiracy nuts more energized.Maybe that was the intention.
But if it starts a legal precedent that January 6th was insurrection, that could definitely be great.
QuoteDonald Trump is disqualified from serving as president and barred from appearing on ballots for president in Colorado under the 14th Amendment, according to a Colorado Supreme Court ruling issued today in a case brought on behalf of six Republican and unaffiliated Colorado voters by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and the firms Tierney Lawrence Stiles LLC, KBN Law, LLC and Olson Grimsley Kawanabe Hinchcliff & Murray LLC. This is the first time a presidential candidate has been disqualified or removed from a ballot under the 14th Amendment's disqualification clause.
Trump: Would you rather have the Black president or the white president? I think they want the white guy.
— The Intellectualist (@highbrow_nobrow) April 3, 2024
pic.twitter.com/yYxLVJfOYU
Quote from: Legend on Jul 11, 2024, 09:16 PMA few hours till we might have an idea of which direction it goes.What happens in a few hours?
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jul 11, 2024, 09:20 PMWhat happens in a few hours?He's just giving a generic press conference but everyone will be watching to see how he handles it.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jul 17, 2024, 04:41 PMTrump's running mate J.D. Vance wants tax rebates for gas cars instead of EVs (https://qz.com/jd-vance-trump-gas-car-rebates-evs-1851594703)Not the stupidest proposal from him. (don't read that in a positive way towards this proposal)
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jul 11, 2024, 10:40 PMI don't think it matters any more.What? Biden is no where near competent. The guy is too far gone. I dont know why he is running anyways. Go enjoy your last few years on a beach or something. Why waste them on a second term
Biden has had plenty of good conferences, and seems like he's generally competent. Even completely competent people make mistakes like calling people the wrong names.
But the confidence is gone. Even the hardcore Democrats are pushing for him to step down. The people that aren't 100% convinced to vote for him, aren't.
I think at this point, either he steps down or Trump takes the presidency.
President Biden may decide to drop out of the presidential race as soon as this weekend, according to several top Democrats who believe the rising pressure will persuade the 81-year-old. https://t.co/Czmy98XMvQ
— Axios (@axios) July 18, 2024
Quote from: nnodley on Jul 18, 2024, 02:58 PMhe drops, trump is almost guaranteed a win. Unless dems put up someone that is really great. I can't see Kamala winningBiden has generally been polling behind Trump, Kamala tends to poll ahead of Trump (although she apparently loses the 65+ age bracket, which is a solid voting bracket. Not sure how that would shake out in the end.)
Quote from: nnodley on Jul 18, 2024, 02:58 PMhe drops, trump is almost guaranteed a win. Unless dems put up someone that is really great. I can't see Kamala winningIsn't Trump already almost guaranteed a win? A new candidate like Kamala is at least a reroll of the dice. She's pretty unpopular at the moment but she can still run as a fresh face and potentially change her image quickly.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jul 18, 2024, 03:12 PMBiden has generally been polling behind Trump, Kamala tends to poll ahead of Trump (although she apparently loses the 65+ age bracket, which is a solid voting bracket. Not sure how that would shake out in the end.)I don't think Kamala is the best candidate but it'd be such a clusterfudge if the DNC tries to go for anyone else.
I think a good alternate candidate could save the election.
Even amongst die-hard Democrats, they're concerned about Biden's age and mental wellbeing.
Quote from: Legend on Jul 18, 2024, 03:50 PMIsn't Trump already almost guaranteed a win? A new candidate like Kamala is at least a reroll of the dice. She's pretty unpopular at the moment but she can still run as a fresh face and potentially change her image quickly.Eh i go back and forth on if I feel like trump is guaranteed. I certainly think things have trended his way, but things are always in flux. Kamala is likely the only option they should go for. I've seen Newsom and Michelle Obama thrown around. I doubt Michelle would accept anything and Newsom doesn't seem to be well liked at all.
I don't think Kamala is the best candidate but it'd be such a clusterfudge if the DNC tries to go for anyone else.
Quote from: Legend on Aug 06, 2024, 03:07 PM:'(I know! I was kinda hoping she would pick him.
No astronaut vice president
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Aug 23, 2024, 04:51 PM"He's still talking": Host jokes after Fox News cuts off Trump's rambling phone call (https://www.salon.com/2024/08/23/hes-still-talking-host-jokes-after-fox-news-cuts-off-rambling-phone-call/)i listened to it and i just don't understand my republicans are soo enamored by trump. i can totally get having different political views from democrats. but why soo much loyalty to this guy that's just a liar, dirtbag, and all-around Franz Ferdinand. he already lost the last election. why didn't republicans move on to a fresh candidate?!?!
Even Fox News seems to be done with Trump.
Interesting observation https://t.co/xHD5VeS1IC
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 1, 2024
Quote from: kitler53 on Sep 12, 2024, 01:52 PMhow can you possible run a country while being soo delusional?!?!The trick is putting in the work to make the people at least as delusional.
QuoteAccording to an email obtained by the Washington Post, a US Forest Service official sent out a message warning that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) "has advised all federal responders Rutherford County, NC, to stand down and evacuate the county immediately".
The message said that soldiers with the national guard "had come across x2 trucks of armed militia saying there were out hunting FEMA".
QuoteAnti-government sentiment and disinformation have spread far beyond Appalachia, with the Republican candidate, Donald Trump, accused of echoing misinformation for political gain. Some Republicans have even claimed the US government can control the weather, triggering widespread condemnation, especially by local Republican figures.
QuoteIn remarks to a North Carolina church congregation on Sunday, the vice-president, Kamala Harris, issued a veiled condemnation of the phenomenon.
"There are some who are not acting in the spirit of community and I am speaking of those who have been literally not telling the truth, lying, about people who are working hard to help those in need. Spreading disinformation when the truth and fact are required.
"The problem," Harris added, is that "it's making it harder to get people lifesaving information if they're led to believe they cannot trust. And that is the pain of it all, because the idea that those in need are somehow being convinced that the forces are working against them in a way that they would not seek aid."
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Oct 22, 2024, 02:53 AMhttps://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/elon-musk-harris-trump-assassination-joke-church-1235139632/Sounds like this belongs in my thread about politics...
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/08/musk-harris-tucker-carlson-assassination
Musk keeps trying to joke about someone assassinating Harris.
QuoteFederal and state authorities are working to find the origins of racist text messages sent to Black people across the country referencing slavery and telling them they were "selected to pick cotton at the nearest plantation."
QuoteChildren in middle school, high school and colleges were among those targeted by the racist mass texts, alarming parents and spurring warnings about their psychological impact.
Quote"The unfortunate reality of electing a president who, historically, has embraced and at times encouraged hate, is unfolding before our eyes," NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson said. "These messages represent an alarming increase in vile and abhorrent rhetoric from racist groups across the country, who now feel emboldened to spread hate and stoke the flames of fear that many of us are feeling after Tuesday's election results."
Quote from: Legend on Nov 12, 2024, 06:58 AMI'm in space circles so I only see people laughing at it, but have yall seen the people thinking starlink stole the election? Is it widespread?starlink? no.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 12, 2024, 06:58 AMI'm in space circles so I only see people laughing at it, but have yall seen the people thinking starlink stole the election? Is it widespread?
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 12, 2024, 01:36 PMstarlink? no.I've seen a few conspiracy theories about Elon's investments, but nothing about Starlink.
not too many are happy with musk including myself. I have no trust in the way he operates twitter. and I think his quid-pro-quo of influencing the election for personal gain is infuriating.
..but no conspiracy theories. the left doesn't really do those.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 12, 2024, 02:36 PMI've seen a few conspiracy theories about Elon's investments, but nothing about Starlink.conspiracy or just general frustration.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 12, 2024, 03:25 PMconspiracy or just general frustration.I've seen some conspiracy theories that voting machines were miscounting in favor of Trump, evidenced by democrats being substantially closer down ballot.
elon invested 136 million into electing trump if i remember the number correctly. i use invested on purpose because although i don't have any particular number in front of me elon's net worth has already inflated by waaaay more than that just in tesla's stock run. ...and the stock is running because of the quid-pro-quo that tesla is expected to get in exchange for electing trump.
imo this is corruption in plain view. it makes me mad a hell.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 12, 2024, 04:21 PMI've seen some conspiracy theories that voting machines were miscounting in favor of Trump, evidenced by democrats being substantially closer down ballot....and the constitution.
I'm with ya. Might be closer to $200m. Frustrating to see Elon and Trump are above the law.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 12, 2024, 01:36 PM..but no conspiracy theories. the left doesn't really do those.Well I'm glad its not in your circles, but no. The left does conspiracy theories too.
[/size]This woman just made the most convincing case for Biden to investigate the election. She exposes Starlink. pic.twitter.com/m9hWoDDN5z
— Aes???????? (@AesPolitics1) November 10, 2024
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 12, 2024, 03:25 PMconspiracy or just general frustration.No clue what quid-pro-quo you're expecting. Trump isn't a huge fan of electric cars and green energy so I'd expect government incentives towards Tesla to decrease, not increase. Tesla stock is never rational and Musk can't sell short term bumps anyway.
elon invested 136 million into electing trump if i remember the number correctly. i use invested on purpose because although i don't have any particular number in front of me elon's net worth has already inflated by waaaay more than that just in tesla's stock run. ...and the stock is running because of the quid-pro-quo that tesla is expected to get in exchange for electing trump.
imo this is corruption in plain view. it makes me mad a hell.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 12, 2024, 04:30 PMNo clue what quid-pro-quo you're expecting. Trump isn't a huge fan of electric cars and green energy so I'd expect government incentives towards Tesla to decrease, not increase. Tesla stock is never rational and Musk can't sell short term bumps anyway.
SpaceX is the one that is likely to benefit from Musk influencing Trump. They really need regulations updated so rockets are licensed like airplanes and can be launched at high frequency. If Elon "invested" in the election for financial gain, it's for this reason.
Quote"I'm for electric cars. I have to be, you know, because Elon endorsed me very strongly." And in October, nodding to SpaceX, he said, "We will land an American astronaut on Mars. Thank you, Elon."
QuoteIn August, Musk floated the idea of creating a "government efficiency commission" that would act as an auditor to the entire federal government. He first brought it up during a live streamed conversation with Trump on X. Musk said the commission could ensure taxpayers' money "is spent in a good way."
Just three weeks later, Trump announced he'd create the commission and place Musk in charge.
QuoteUnder Trump, X could be seen as a platform backed by the president of the United States — making it even more of an influence machine.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 12, 2024, 04:57 PMNPR (http://"https://www.npr.org/2024/11/07/nx-s1-5182280/trump-2024-elon-musk-tesla-x")Yes I know all of that, not sure what you're going for though. His electric car comment is the only thing that goes against my post.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 12, 2024, 05:26 PMYes I know all of that, not sure what you're going for though. His electric car comment is the only thing that goes against my post.No, but I'm extremely concerned that Trump will be good for Elon in ways that aren't good for anyone else.
So you think Trump will be good for electric cars?
Quote from: Legend on Nov 12, 2024, 04:30 PMFar from the worst examples, just the ones I found first.okay so one thing at a time.
No clue what quid-pro-quo you're expecting. Trump isn't a huge fan of electric cars and green energy so I'd expect government incentives towards Tesla to decrease, not increase. Tesla stock is never rational and Musk can't sell short term bumps anyway.
SpaceX is the one that is likely to benefit from Musk influencing Trump. They really need regulations updated so rockets are licensed like airplanes and can be launched at high frequency. If Elon "invested" in the election for financial gain, it's for this reason.
QuoteTrump isn't a huge fan of electric cars and green energy so I'd expect government incentives towards Tesla to decreaseon know that on paper this sounds like a bad thing for tesla. the market thinks this is a great thing for tesla. the subsidies are something that helps a new company get off the ground which means increasing the amount of competitors that try to enter the space. by ending subsidies it will "hurt everyone" but in every case ever it hurts the small players 10x more than the market leader. as tesla is the market leader musk actually wants to end these subsidies because it will absolutely kill rivian for instance solidifying musk's market dominance.
QuoteTesla stock is never rational and Musk can't sell short term bumps anyway.it's more complicated for musk but obviously he can sell short if he wants to. he sold a ton of stock at the peak in 2023 only to accumulate more at the trough in 2024. but again he's not looking for short term gains. he's looking kill competitors and solidify market dominance.
QuoteSpaceX is the one that is likely to benefit from Musk influencing Trump. They really need regulations updated so rockets are licensed like airplanes and can be launched at high frequency. If Elon "invested" in the election for financial gain, it's for this reason.
QuoteFar from the worst examples, just the ones I found first.it's not a huge amount of view and the ratio of view to likes/retweets is pretty low. you can find anything you want on the platform if you go digging but much like your question about starlink it's not something the left repeats and repeats and repeats and then creates political platform planks to deal with the imaginary threats they made up. it's probably because the heart of the blue collolition is "college educated" but most lefties see a tweet like that and their first thought is to check the source and see what trusted outlets are saying. not going to say not a lick of "fake news" doesn't happen but the volume of fake news recirculated is significantly lower.
QuoteA group of people carrying Nazi flags demonstrated outside a community theater performance of "The Diary of Anne Frank" in Livingston County, Michigan, in a display of antisemitism.
Several masked men showed up waving Nazi flags and reportedly shouted antisemitic and racist slurs outside the American Legion Post 141 in Howell on Saturday during the play, according to CNN affiliate WXYZ.
"People were shocked. They were appalled," Army veteran Bobby Brite told WXYZ. "Everything you would expect."
Brite said many of the 75 people who watched the play were afraid to leave the building and had to be escorted to their cars.
"Nobody in America should feel like that," he said
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 12, 2024, 06:01 PMLook at you not reading any financial publications and absolutely nailing it with respect to one of Musk's reasons to elect trump.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 12, 2024, 04:30 PMSpaceX is the one that is likely to benefit from Musk influencing Trump. They really need regulations updated so rockets are licensed like airplanes and can be launched at high frequency. If Elon "invested" in the election for financial gain, it's for this reason.I'm a little concerned that it feels like you are viewing Trump as a typical Republican president and Elon Musk to be a typical billionaire who has done awesome things.
QuoteWASHINGTON (AP) — Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of major government contractor SpaceX and a key ally of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, has been in regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin for the last two years, The Wall Street Journal reported.
BREAKING: Trump names Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”) pic.twitter.com/ikN1er9A18
— BNO News (@BNONews) November 13, 2024
Quote"Well, what we are going to do is make sure that we are processing his nominees in a way that gets them into those positions so they can implement his agenda. How that happens remains to be seen. Obviously, we want to make sure our committees have confirmation hearings like they typically do and these nominees reported out to the floor. But I've said this and I mean it, we expect a level of cooperation from the Democrat to work with us to get these folks installed."
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 13, 2024, 05:41 PMI'm a little concerned that it feels like you are viewing Trump as a typical Republican president and Elon Musk to be a typical billionaire who has done awesome things.I don't have anything positive to say about Trump, but I don't agree with your assessment of Musk. Most Reuters/AP/NYT articles you read about him are laughed at in space circles because they get so much wrong and are sensationalist at best. Only certain authors like Joey Roulette are true journalists that actually do their research.
Here's a look at Musk's contact with Putin and why it matters (https://apnews.com/article/musk-putin-x-trump-tesla-election-russia-9cecb7cb0f23ccce49336771280ae179)
Both individuals have skirted, if not outright broken the law numerous times. And the Supreme Court has effectively decided that the president is basically immune.BREAKING: Trump names Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”) pic.twitter.com/ikN1er9A18
— BNO News (@BNONews) November 13, 2024
I hope that I'm wrong and that it's a mostly normal presidency. But I think there's a lot more room and likeliness for corruption than it feels like you're accounting for.
QuoteA bottle of vodka
Musk has long had a fascination with Russia and its space and rocket programs. Walter Isaacson's biography of Musk said the businessman traveled to Moscow in 2002 to negotiate the purchase of rockets for his fledgling space program, but passed out during a vodka-heavy lunch. The sale ultimately failed, though his Russian hosts gave Musk a bottle of vodka with his likeness superimposed on a drawing of Mars.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 13, 2024, 05:41 PMBoth individuals have skirted, if not outright broken the law numerous times. And the Supreme Court has effectively decided that the president is basically immune.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 13, 2024, 05:41 PMI hope that I'm wrong and that it's a mostly normal presidency. But I think there's a lot more room and likeliness for corruption than it feels like you're accounting for.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 13, 2024, 08:36 PMThere are a lot of things that Musk does that I do not like or support, but his $420 tweet is the only thing I can think of that broke the law. What are you referring to?The focus was on skirting the law.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 13, 2024, 08:36 PMThat might sound like a laughable characterization of him since, you know, everything else, but it's really how he and his companies have acted so far.My big concern is that I don't particularly believe that Musk is the same person that he was when he started SpaceX.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 15, 2024, 05:38 PMThe focus was on skirting the law.
Elon Musk's $1 million election giveaway tests limits of election law
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Nov 15, 2024, 05:38 PMMy big concern is that I don't particularly believe that Musk is the same person that he was when he started SpaceX.
His rhetoric has gotten much more radicalized over the past few years.
Quote from: Legend on Nov 15, 2024, 06:57 PMDrives to push people to vote are incredibly common and regularly skirt the law, free concerts if you take a selfie before you vote for example, and up till Musk I can only remember them being pushed as a great and noble thing. My perspective is that while I really wish Musk didn't support Trump, there's nothing wrong with the giveaway itself. Maybe its scale and pro republican slant though will push society to rethink these voter drives and that would be a good thing. Just automatically register everyone at 18.i gave elon's million dollar give away a huge side-eye when it was first announced but that prompted me to read up on the topic quite a bit. from pretty much every source i read there was an expectation that it would not violate any election laws. the distinction mostly came from the $$ was about signing a petition and not demanding a vote. even if the execution is slightly different the argument was this wasn't really much different than a thousand some drives to collect contact information of likely voters.
QuoteA political action committee (Pac) linked to Elon Musk is accused of targeting Jewish and Arab American voters in swing states with dramatically different messages about Kamala Harris's position on Gaza, a strategy by Trump allies aimed at peeling off Democratic support for the vice-president.
QuoteThose aimed at Arab American populations claim Harris will "ALWAYS stand with Israel" and "stand up against Hamas and radical terrorists in Gaza". Another notes that she has a Jewish husband, and describes the pair as "America's pro-Israel power couple".
Meanwhile, texts and mailers sent to heavily Jewish areas claim "two faced Kamala stands with Palestine", picturing her in front of a Palestinian flag. A Pennsylvania ad asked: "Why did Kamala Harris support denying Israel the weapons needed to defeat the Hamas terrorists who massacred thousands? And why did Harris show sympathy for college protesters who are rabidly antisemitic?"
That pretty much sums it up.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 27, 2024
This was eye-opening.
Quote"[Musk] has removed my blue check mark on X because I dared to question his support for H1B visas, the replacement of American tech workers by Indian immigrants," Laura Loomer tweeted Thursday.
Quote from: kitler53 on Nov 12, 2024, 03:25 PMconspiracy or just general frustration.But this isn't exclusive to Elon and trump? Companies and people have always bought politicians in the USA. Each single president had companies backing them. How much does the NRA, telecommunications companies, banks, pharmaceuticals pay to support politicians?
elon invested 136 million into electing trump if i remember the number correctly. i use invested on purpose because although i don't have any particular number in front of me elon's net worth has already inflated by waaaay more than that just in tesla's stock run. ...and the stock is running because of the quid-pro-quo that tesla is expected to get in exchange for electing trump.
imo this is corruption in plain view. it makes me mad a hell.
Quote from: BananaKing on Dec 27, 2024, 09:00 PMBut this isn't exclusive to Elon and trump? Companies and people have always bought politicians in the USA. Each single president had companies backing them. How much does the NRA, telecommunications companies, banks, pharmaceuticals pay to support politicians?So i reread my post and taking in my prior post history let me clarify.
I agree, it's corruption, and it should be infuriating, but what's so different here? And why does this matter more than other causes of corruption that have a more drastic effect on people's lives?
The “contemptible fools” I’m referring to are those in the Republican Party who are hateful, unrepentant racists.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 28, 2024
They will absolutely be the downfall of the Republican Party if they are not removed.
Quote from: Legend on Dec 28, 2024, 03:51 PMI've seen the Elon side of this since he's always been pro immigration and even Trump's victory speech talked about increasing legal immigration.trump ran on a platform of mass deportation using extremely racist and violent language. who even are the people surprised that trump's voting base hates immigrants??
How did so many people get blindsided by this? Who even are the people in power against this
Quote from: Legend on Dec 28, 2024, 03:51 PMI've seen the Elon side of this since he's always been pro immigration and even Trump's victory speech talked about increasing legal immigration.A combination of people being selective about what stuff means and not being aware of stuff being said in the first place.
How did so many people get blindsided by this? Who even are the people in power against this?
America should liberate the people of Britain from their tyrannical government
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 6, 2025
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jan 20, 2025, 08:48 PM
Um
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 20, 2025
Quote from: Legend on Jan 20, 2025, 09:05 PMI'm not sure why thanking the audience would mean it's not a Nazi salute. That seems pretty standard for one.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 20, 2025
Obviously not a nazi solute lol. He's thanking the audience.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jan 20, 2025, 10:42 PMI'm not sure why thanking the audience would mean it's not a Nazi salute. That seems pretty standard for one.Plenty of people think the Earth is flat lol.
I would hope it wasn't the intent (and I think it's kind of weird that Fascists can "own" a gesture in the first place).
But plenty of people on the left and right, sure seem to view it as a Nazi salute.
Right-Wing Extremists Are Abuzz Over Musk's Straight-Arm Salute (https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/elon-musk-salute-reaction-right-wing-extremists-1235241866/)
Quote from: Legend on Jan 20, 2025, 11:07 PMPlenty of people think the Earth is flat lol.It certainly can include that.
You don't need any hope. It's literally not a nazi solute. Those don't include putting your hand on your heart.
Him thinking the audience is him saying "my heart goes out to you." I'd assume the gesture means his heart goes out to the audience...
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jan 21, 2025, 01:47 AMIt certainly can include that.Guess neonazis are too dumb to even do it correct. I googled nazi videos to make sure I wasn't misremembering, but I didn't think to check neonazis.
Neo Nazi saluting (https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/video/people-do-the-heil-hitler-salute-as-neo-nazi-groups-blood-news-footage/1656162915)
Thanks guys 😂
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 21, 2025
Quote from: BananaKing on Jan 21, 2025, 11:51 AMYeah Elon is a nazi now. He is trying to subconsciously manipulate people so he can start the 4th Reich. But on Mars, with electric power vehicles and super fast internet.Well a little known fact, and this is 100% true, a very prominent Nazi from WW2 stated that "Elon" would be the leader of Mars.
This is a non issue.
Quote from: BananaKing on Jan 21, 2025, 11:51 AMYeah Elon is a nazi now. He is trying to subconsciously manipulate people so he can start the 4th Reich. But on Mars, with electric power vehicles and super fast internet.The mental gymnastics of people on social media trying so hard to make this be a nazi salute is staggering.
This is a non issue.
Quote from: nnodley on Jan 21, 2025, 10:22 PMThe mental gymnastics of people on social media trying so hard to make this be a nazi salute is staggering.It's crazy. Like just put a little logic into it, why on earth would he do that?
Quote from: Legend on Jan 21, 2025, 04:38 PMWell a little known fact, and this is 100% true, a very prominent Nazi from WW2 stated that "Elon" would be the leader of Mars.Lmao... Man that's hilarious 😂😂
(The Nazi stated it in 1953)
Quote from: BananaKing on Jan 22, 2025, 05:53 AMIt's crazy. Like just put a little logic into it, why on earth would he do that?
Quote from: nnodley on Jan 22, 2025, 02:48 PMyou know what. Now that trump thinks changing the gulf to Gulf of America, it will result in the next democrat president to probably just change it back to Gulf of Mexico. Like holy shame are some of his executive orders the dumbest things I have ever seen.
QuoteAll persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
QuoteNo person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.
Quote from: kitler53 on Jan 22, 2025, 02:59 PMdon't get distracted by the dumb ones.oh trust me they are going to try and push things as far as they can. I like to be optimistic that they won't try for a 3rd term, but you do never know. Honestly the best thing to happen would be his cognitive decline to be as bad as biden or worse so people get off of him like he's the best thing to happen to humanity. I don't always agree with some things on either side, but trump is mostly an idiot.
pay attention to things like his executive order eliminating birthright citizenship. that's enshrined in our constitution via the 14th amendment (https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-14/):
if the conservative controlled government chooses to abandon the constitution when it is so clearly written out then you should fully expect trump to take a 3rd term in office. despite the 22nd amendment clearly stating:
...trump's loyalists have already been pushing the "it doesn't apply because the terms were not consecutive" narrative.
Quote from: nnodley on Jan 22, 2025, 04:12 PMoh trust me they are going to try and push things as far as they can. I like to be optimistic that they won't try for a 3rd term, but you do never know. Honestly the best thing to happen would be his cognitive decline to be as bad as biden or worse so people get off of him like he's the best thing to happen to humanity. I don't always agree with some things on either side, but trump is mostly an idiot.Will be interesting to see how old he acts by the end of it. Biden aged a ton over the past four years.
Quote from: nnodley on Jan 22, 2025, 04:12 PMoh trust me they are going to try and push things as far as they can. I like to be optimistic that they won't try for a 3rd term, but you do never know. Honestly the best thing to happen would be his cognitive decline to be as bad as biden or worse so people get off of him like he's the best thing to happen to humanity. I don't always agree with some things on either side, but trump is mostly an idiot.
Quote from: Legend on Jan 22, 2025, 04:39 PMWill be interesting to see how old he acts by the end of it. Biden aged a ton over the past four years.yeah he's definitely already starting to show some declines. I mean he is freaking 78 years old. So he's as old as biden was at the start of his presidency. I really wish there was a maximum age limit on presidents.
At his party the other day Trump went the wrong way off part of the stage and had to take a big step. I expected him to fall since he's so old, but he didn't. We were so close to having a Biden like gaff on his first day.
Don’t say Hess to Nazi accusations!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 23, 2025
Some people will Goebbels anything down!
Stop Gőring your enemies!
His pronouns would’ve been He/Himmler!
Bet you did nazi that coming 😂
QuoteOn Jan. 6, 2021, Jalise and Mark Middleton, a married couple from Texas, trespassed onto the Capitol grounds and joined thousands of rioters gathered at the building's West Front.
The assembled mob was assaulting a thin line of officers, and pepper spray wafted through the air. Rather than retreating in the face of violence, the couple pushed up against the makeshift barrier the police had established, hit officers and tried to drag one into the crowd. They gave up only after they were pepper-sprayed themselves, and though they did not make it into the Capitol, they were proud of what they did: Afterward, Ms. Middleton wrote on Facebook, "We fought the cops to get in the Capitol and got pepper-sprayed and beat but by gosh the patriots got in!"
I know this because I was one of the scores of lawyers who prosecuted the rioters, and was part of the team that tried the Middletons specifically. (On Thursday, I left the Justice Department, and speak only for myself.) One moment from their trial has stuck with me. Sitting in the courtroom in the awkward minutes before their verdict was announced, I noticed that Mr. Middleton was wearing "TRUMP" socks, with the president's face stitched into the side. That small sign of fealty struck me as incredibly sad. The Middletons were ready to go to prison for a man who, quite likely, didn't care about them at all.
The Middletons were convicted on all counts, including charges of assaulting federal officers. But on Monday, Mr. Trump pardoned them and nearly 1,600 other people who attacked the Capitol in his name. I think he did so not out of sympathy for the rioters, but because their freedom serves his interests.
For while some convicted rioters seem genuinely remorseful, and others appear simply ready to put politics behind them, many others are emboldened by the termination of what they see as unjust prosecutions. Freed by the president, they have never been more dangerous.
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Take Stewart Rhodes, whose Oath Keepers group staged firearms and ammunition near Washington on Jan. 6 in anticipation of a "bloody and desperate fight." Or Enrique Tarrio, whose Proud Boys led rioters into the Capitol and who had declared just after the 2020 election that while he and his followers would not start a civil war, they would be sure to "finish one."
They are now free to pursue revenge, and have already said they want it. Upon his release this week, Mr. Tarrio declared that "success is going to be retribution." He added, "Now it's our turn."
The effect — and I believe purpose — of these pardons is to encourage vigilantes and militias loyal to the president, but unaccountable to the government. Illiberal democracies and outright dictatorships often rely on such militia groups, whose organization and seriousness can range widely, from the vigilantes who enforce Iran's hijab dress code to the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia that have killed government opponents.
Here in America, lynch mobs and the Ku Klux Klan bolstered a racial caste system with violence that state governments, for the most part, were unwilling to commit themselves. But for decades, we had little reason to fear that vigilantes or militias would enforce the will of the state.
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That may be changing. Rioters who assaulted police officers at the Capitol have called for politicians who oppose Mr. Trump to be hanged, declared that "there will be blood," and that "I plan on making other people die first, for their country, if it gets down to that." But it's not just their readiness for violence. One officer, who'd worked lots of riots, explained to me how Jan. 6 felt different: Most rioters know at some level what they're doing is wrong, he said, but these guys thought they were right. Monday's pardons will reinforce these rioters' beliefs in their cause, and their loyalty to the man who leads it.
Mr. Trump seems excited about this possibility. When asked Tuesday if groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers had a place in the political conversation, he said, "We'll have to see," adding that "these were people that actually love our country."
There is great value to him in having members of these groups released, doubly loyal to him, and eager to carry out his agenda and silence his critics through violence. Mr. Trump has shown his willingness to use his pardon power, and little stops him from doing so again.
What might happen next? Vigilantes could harass, assault or even kill perceived enemies of the state. Under the thin pretext that these vigilantes were acting in self-defense, the president could pardon them for federal crimes, or pressure pliant governors to do the same for state ones. In such a scenario, the president could put those loyal to him above the law, quite literally. This kind of violence was a part of our past; it may be a part of our future.
This is a frightening possibility, but it is not an inevitable one. Groups like the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown Law are already working with state officials on legislation to shut down paramilitary activity that, among other things, interferes with government proceedings or people's constitutional rights. Local law enforcement can and should prioritize protecting the groups that unlawful private militias may target first, such as immigrants, trans people and opposition politicians.
These efforts are particularly urgent now, because of how many of our elected officials have changed their calculus about the attack. Elise Stefanik, a Republican in the House, once said that the rioters should "be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law." Three years later, she was calling them "hostages," and she is now the president's pick for ambassador to the United Nations.
Shortly after the attack, Kelly Loeffler, then a Republican senator from Georgia, said that "the violence, the lawlessness and siege of the halls of Congress are abhorrent." Yet in the years that followed, she repeatedly called the House investigation into the attack a "sham," and said that any indictment based on its work "should be dismissed out of hand." She, too, is now nominated to serve in the president's cabinet. Even Mr. Trump once called Jan. 6 a "heinous attack," and said "to those who broke the law, you will pay." His position, quite obviously, has changed.
Though Congress is required by law to establish a plaque honoring police officers who defended the Capitol, congressional leaders have failed to do so. It seems astounding that they would deny recognition to those people who saved their lives. But some officials' ambitions require doing exactly that.
The president's pardons are part of this collective attempt at forgetting. Illiberalism depends on hiding the crimes of its past, whether it is Jair Bolsonaro, when he was president of Brazil, celebrating the 1964 military coup in his country, or Vladimir Putin's government repudiating the acquittals of the Soviet Union's political enemies.
The past matters a great deal to the enemies of democracy, and we should not cede it. Victims of Jan. 6 should sue Congress to have their memorial installed. And academics should save the hundreds of criminal complaints on the federal docket that explain in irrefutable detail what each defendant did that day.
The rest of us, too, must keep the horrors of Jan. 6 from being forgotten. Memorialize the day. Read about the attack, and watch the videos. Keep it alive in your conversations. Doing so matters. For in a time when many politicians' careers depend on forgetting, memory itself is an act of resistance.
QuoteIt's good to be proud of German culture, German values, and not to lose that in some sort of multiculturalism that dilutes everything," Musk said.
Last week, the U.S. billionaire caused uproar after he made a gesture that drew online comparisons to a Nazi salute during U.S. President Donald Trump's inauguration festivities.
On Saturday, he said "children should not be guilty of the sins of their parents, let alone their great grandparents," apparently referring to Germany's Nazi past.
"There is too much focus on past guilt, and we need to move beyond that," he said.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jan 26, 2025, 12:39 AMhttps://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/elon-musk-far-right-germans-proud-past-sins-rcna189281The AfD is the republican equivalent party in Germany. I'm shocked, shocked!
The AfD party has been accused of being a Nazi lite party in Germany.
Quote from: Legend on Jan 26, 2025, 01:37 AMThe AfD is the republican equivalent party in Germany. I'm shocked, shocked!so the Nazi lite party...
QuotePresident Trump is preparing to place tariffs beyond Chinese assembled electronics to computer chips made in Taiwan, warning the tariffs could reach as high as 100%.
"In particular, in the very near future, we're going to be placing tariffs on foreign production of computer chips, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals to return production of these essential goods to the United States," Trump said in a speech to Republicans on Monday.
"They left us and went to Taiwan," he then said in an apparent reference to how many of the leading US tech companies have been sourcing their processors from Taiwan's TSMC, a top semiconductor manufacturer. TSMC has established a factory in Arizona, but much of its chip production remains in Taiwan, where it's been serving clients including Apple, Nvidia, Qualcomm and AMD, among others.
Quote"We want them to come back," Trump said before slamming the US's CHIPS and Science Act, which his predecessor President Biden signed to invest over $52 billion in domestic chip manufacturing.
"And we don't want to give them billions of dollars like this ridiculous program that Biden has given everybody billions of dollars. They already have billions of dollars," Trump said. "They've got nothing but money Legend. They didn't need money. They needed an incentive. And the incentive is gonna be they're not gonna wanna pay a 25, 50 or even a 100 % tax."
Quote from: kitler53 on Jan 28, 2025, 02:27 PMreposting from era. didn't "fact check" it myself yet at least.Switch 2 will be sold out for months if not years. Could just launch it at a higher price either way.
https://www.pcmag.com/news/trump-to-tariff-chips-made-in-taiwan-targeting-tsmc
i wonder what nintendo is going to do about switch pricing. i know playstation got more expensive over time. would suck for nintendo to announce a price and than have to change it pre-release. ..but also we all know it's not companies that are going to be paying for this tax. consumer pricing is going to skyrocket with "25, 50, or even a 100% tax".
QuoteNew Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday stripped former Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley of his security detail and ordered the acting inspector general to investigate whether the former Army leader could face criminal charges or a retroactive demotion for treasonous behavior.
The unusual move is the latest showdown between President Donald Trump and Milley, who served as the top uniformed officer during Trump's first term in office and has been a vocal critic of the president's actions and demeanor.
QuoteIn a separate statement, Defense Department Chief of Staff Legend Kasper stated that "undermining the chain of command is corrosive to our national security, and restoring accountability is a priority for the Defense Department under President Trump's leadership."
Hegseth was sworn into the top civilian Pentagon post over the weekend. During his confirmation hearing, he did not mention Milley but vowed that "every single senior officer will be reviewed based on meritocracy, standards, lethality and commitment to lawful orders they will be given."
QuoteAt signing of Laken Riley Act, Trump says he plans to send migrants in US illegally to Guantanamo
At the signing of the Laken Riley Act, President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he is directing the opening of a detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to hold up to 30,000 migrants who are living illegally in the United States and cannot be deported to their home countries.
Trump made the announcement just before he signed the immigrant detention measure, the first law of his new administration.
"We're going to send them out to Guantanamo," the president said in the White House East Room. He did not elaborate.
The U.S. military base has been used to house detainees from the U.S. war on terrorism.
QuoteQ: "I understand that. That's why I'm trying to figure out how you can come to the conclusion right now that diversity had something to do with this crash."
TRUMP: "Because I have common sense. OK? And unfortunately, a lot of people don't. We want brilliant people doing this. This is a major chess game at the highest level. When you have 60 planes coming in during a short period of time, and they're all coming in different directions, and you're dealing with very high-level computer, computer work and very complex computers."
QuoteQ: "The implication that this policy is new or that it stems from efforts that began under President Biden or the transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, is demonstrably false. It's been on the FAA's website —"
TRUMP: "Who said that, you?"
Q: "No, it's on the website, the FAA's website. It was there from 2013 ... it was there for the entirety, it was there for the entirety of your administration, too. So my question is, why didn't you change the policy during your first administration?"
TRUMP: "I did change it. I changed the Obama policy, and we had a very good policy. And then Biden came in and he changed it. And then when I came in two days, three days ago, I signed a new order, bringing it to the highest level of intelligence."
QuoteOfficials affiliated with Musk's "Department of Government Efficiency" have been asking since after the election for access to the system, the people said — requests that were reiterated more recently, including after Trump's inauguration.
QuoteThe clash reflects an intensifying battle between Musk and the federal bureaucracy as the Trump administration nears the conclusion of its second week. Musk has sought to exert sweeping control over the inner workings of the U.S. government, installing longtime surrogates at several agencies, including the Office of Personnel Management, which essentially handles federal human resources, and the General Services Administration, which manages real estate. (Musk was seen on Thursday visiting GSA, according to two other people familiar with his whereabouts, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal matters. That visit was first reported by the New York Times.) His Department of Government Efficiency, originally conceived as a nongovernmental panel, has since replaced the U.S. Digital Service.
QuoteMichael Faulkender, whom Trump nominated as deputy treasury secretary in December, praised Lebryk's work in 2023.https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/01/31/elon-musk-treasury-department-payment-systems/
"I could not, to this day, tell you his politics," Faulkender, who served as an assistant secretary at Treasury during Trump's first term, told The Washington Post at the time. "He always seemed to be relaxed and under control."
QuoteThe Trump administration is set to expand a purge of career law enforcement officials, with dozens of FBI agents who worked on January 6, 2021, US Capitol attack and Trump-related investigations as well as some supervisors being evaluated for possible removal as soon as the end of Friday, according to people briefed on the matter.
QuoteSome agents say Trump and other critics misunderstand that FBI agents and supervisors can't choose which assignments they are given as part of their job. The FBI workforce is broadly conservative and until recently were led for years by lifelong Republican Christopher Wray.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jan 31, 2025, 07:42 PMhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/01/31/elon-musk-treasury-department-payment-systems/I can only go off the reuters reporting since I don't want a washington post account, but that sounds pretty incredible. Lots of smart people coming in to improve old systems.
Quote from: Legend on Jan 31, 2025, 09:32 PMI can only go off the reuters reporting since I don't want a washington post account, but that sounds pretty incredible. Lots of smart people coming in to improve old systems.that is quite the drinking the cool aid take. physically locking out people from a system responsible for trillions of dollars of payments to government employees, social security, medicare so that a tiny number of people with no experience in this system purpose can do whatever the fudge they are doing without any oversight at all...
QuoteWhen Congress created the consumer bureau in 2011 — to increase oversight of mortgage loans and other financial products in the aftermath of the Great Recession — it included guardrails to protect the agency's independence and shield it from shifting political tides. But the Supreme Court ruled in 2020 that the president was free to fire the agency's director without cause, which cleared the way for the bureau's leadership to change with each presidential administration.
Mr. Chopra was a scourge of Wall Street, known for his aggressive approach to enforcing consumer protection laws and expanding their boundaries by issuing new rules. He led a crackdown that prompted most large banks to abandon or significantly reduce overdraft fees, and he ordered Wells Fargo to pay $2 billion in 2022 to customers harmed by its misdeeds, which included improperly seizing some borrowers' cars and homes.
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 01, 2025, 03:16 PMthat is quite the drinking the cool aid take. physically locking out people from a system responsible for trillions of dollars of payments to government employees, social security, medicare so that a tiny number of people with no experience in this system purpose can do whatever the fudge they are doing without any oversight at all...It's ok you'll benefit from this too.
.."incredible" is not the word.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Feb 02, 2025, 06:20 PMI've been struggling a lot with this.I hear you and understand a lot of people feel that way.
Even if you completely disregard a lot of news as being outright fake or you suspect that they're leaving things out. Musk has publicly tweeted things that I view as concerning at minimum, if not dangerous. Just how heavily he's been supporting some of the worst in the Republican party, have been genuinely terrifying to me.
And even if you are 100% certain that he genuinely has great intentions for everything, that still doesn't mean he should be messing around with these things. Being smart isn't a replacement for years of experience.
Even if Musk doesn't agree with the alt right on immigration, he has absolutely drunken a lot of the cool aid.
Fighting back at the "woke mind virus", because he thinks that they're evil or harmful doesn't constitute as something that will be beneficial for me.
Quote from: Legend on Feb 02, 2025, 10:26 PMI hear you and understand a lot of people feel that way.https://www.yahoo.com/news/musk-says-doge-halting-treasury-020337006.html
I don't think it's about disregarding a lot of news as fake, but about knowing the full story behind these things. Otherwise you're right that you'd only be able to judge him off his tweets which are often bad. And while I certainly don't agree with Musk's support of Trump, he has a long track record and his accomplishments are incredible. So I will defend many of his actions but that is not me defending all of his actions.
Why do you think he shouldn't be messing around with these things? It's literally just people who have worked with Musk who are highly successful, now temporarily working at the office of personal management to try and improve things.
QuoteMusk said DOGE was shutting down payments by the US Department of Health and Human Services to Lutheran Family Services, a faith-based charity that has been providing social services to refugees. HHS and Lutheran Family Services didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
Quote from: Legend on Feb 02, 2025, 10:26 PMWhy do you think he shouldn't be messing around with these things? It's literally just people who have worked with Musk who are highly successful, now temporarily working at the office of personal management to try and improve things.
We spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 3, 2025
Could gone to some great parties.
Did that instead. https://t.co/0V35nacICW
QuoteOn efficiency, I think we're actually talking about two different things. The balance of power should be inefficient so a slim majority doesn't get to dictate rapid change. But government spending shouldn't be inefficient. A good example is NASA's SLS rocket. $40 billion wasted keeping certain contractors employed in red states instead of actually designing the best rocket.
Quotelegally
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Feb 03, 2025, 07:36 PMEspecially concerning if all it takes to change the law might be for the Supreme Court to say we're looking the other way.
QuoteRussell T. Vought, who served in Mr. Trump's first administration and is his choice again to lead the Office of Management and Budget, has spoken openly about the Trump team's plans for dismantling civil service.
"We want the bureaucrats to be traumatically affected," Mr. Vought said in a 2023 speech. "When they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work because they are increasingly viewed as the villains."
QuoteThe three-paragraph executive order tasks the Treasury and Commerce Departments with generating a plan within 90 days for creating a such a fund. Sovereign wealth funds are popular in oil-rich countries like Norway and Saudi Arabia that can invest large budget surpluses in projects around the world.
But the United States runs persistent, and widening, budget deficits, and it is unclear where the Trump administration could find the money to seed such a fund. Howard Lutnick, Mr. Trump's pick to lead the Commerce Department, suggested that the government could take a stake in companies it does business with.
QuoteRubio traveled to El Salvador, part of his tour through Central America and the Caribbean to drum up support for President Trump's immigration agenda, which the administration said will include mass deportations.
"He has offered to house in his jails dangerous American criminals in custody in our country, including those of U.S. citizenship and legal residents," Rubio said Monday, according to the State Department readout. "No country's ever made an offer of friendship such as this."
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Feb 03, 2025, 07:36 PMUnilaterally shutting down USAID is likely unconstitutional, if that's indeed what has been happening.This might be more of a gray area. Congress didn't directly create the US AID department - they mandated a creation, but it was an executive order than directly created it.
QuoteAccording to the congressional report, the White House can make make structural changes to USAID and to the State Department, such as shifting functions from one agency to the other. However, the administration is supposed to notify and consult "appropriate congressional committees" prior to making changes, and "in the past, administrations have implemented such changes only after this notification."
QuoteAttorneys for the Justice Department have agreed to temporarily restrict staffers associated with Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency from accessing information in the Treasury Department's payment system.
QuoteThe agreement comes after a group of union members and retirees sued the Treasury Department alleging that providing DOGE access to the federal government's massive payment and collections system — and the personal data housed in it — violated federal privacy laws.
QuoteThe order would allow exceptions for two special government employees at the Treasury — Tom Krause and Marko Elez — saying they are permitted access "as needed" to perform their duties, "provided that such access to payment records will be 'read only.'"
Quote from: Legend on Feb 01, 2025, 06:09 PMIt's ok you'll benefit from this too.
Musk and DOGE have had so much more direct control than I expected. Will be interesting to see how close they get to hitting their target when DOGE disbands in a year.
Quote"If a judge tried to tell a general how to conduct a military operation, that would be illegal. If a judge tried to command the attorney general in how to use her discretion as a prosecutor, that's also illegal. Judges aren't allowed to control the executive's legitimate power," Vance wrote on X on Sunday morning.
Quote"A corrupt judge protecting corruption. He needs to be impeached NOW!" said Musk, who has been tasked by President Donald Trump with rooting out waste across the federal government.
Quote"I don't like the precedent it sets when you defy a judicial ruling, but I'm just wondering what other options are these judges leaving us," the person had written, in part. (refering to a tweet musk shared)
QuoteDeputy White House chief of staff Stephen Miller called the ruling "an assault on the very idea of democracy itself."
Quote"We're very disappointed with the judges that would make such a ruling, but we have a long way to go," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while he flew from Florida to New Orleans to attend the Super Bowl. He added: "No judge should frankly be allowed to make that kind of a decision."
QuoteIn another weekend takeover of a federal agency's operations, staffers from an efficiency initiative led by billionaire Elon Musk helped to effectively shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — as they gained access to an array of the bureau's protected information.
The actions began last Thursday, when four young staffers working under Musk for the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, showed up at CFPB's Washington headquarters. At first, they had what was described as read-only access to a limited array of documents, including the agency's internal personnel files, procurement records and budgeting and financial data, according to an email shared among CFPB officials.
Then, late Friday night, the DOGE staffers were granted access to all the CFPB's data systems, including sensitive bank examination and enforcement records, according to five people familiar with the matter and emails seen by Bloomberg News. The people asked not to be identified, citing concerns over potential retribution. By Sunday, the agency was a skeleton, with its funding limited and activities suspended.
QuoteIn the email, which was seen by Bloomberg, Chilbert asked employees to give the DOGE team the benefit of the doubt.
"I know there's a lot going on in the press and on social right now," Chilbert wrote. "It's hard to separate fact from fiction. Please reach out to me anytime you have questions or concerns. I'm very proud of the work we've done to build a strong technology foundation and I think we have a lot of good things we can show" DOGE.
The team's initial entry to CFPB Thursday had been accompanied by an "Assignment Agreement," or a memorandum of understanding between the efficiency initiative and the consumer agency, a copy of which was seen by Bloomberg News. It explained that authority for the CFPB operation emanated from a Jan. 20 executive order. It also said that the scope of the DOGE team's efforts would include, "work on software modernization initiatives," the promotion of "inter-operability between agency networks and systems" and the use of software engineering to "champion the use of modern technology development and management approaches."
QuoteCFPB employees who read the memorandum of understanding started backchannel discussions about it and raised red flags, according to the five people familiar with the matter. They asked why DOGE would need to access the human resources, finance and procurement data if its goal was to modernize the agency's software, the people said
QuoteOn Sunday afternoon, Martinez, the chief operating officer, sent an email to CFPB staff informing them that the agency's headquarters will be closed this week and they should work remotely. Employees who were in the office were ordered to vacate the building by the agency's director of security.
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 10, 2025, 02:50 PMhttps://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/vance-and-musk-attack-judicial-authority-as-trumps-agenda-gets-pushback-from-courtsYeah that's how the constitution works lol.
Vance and Musk attack judicial authority as Trump's agenda gets pushback from courts
what you were saying?
the only thing trump/musk is going to leave us is a constitution in tatters. the only thing incredible about this is my sadness for the country my children will live in.
Quote from: Legend on Feb 10, 2025, 04:47 PMYeah that's how the constitution works lol.tbh i don't know what you are saying. you're response is too short for me to be sure what you are thinking.
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 10, 2025, 09:20 PMtbh i don't know what you are saying. you're response is too short for me to be sure what you are thinking.fair
Quote from: Legend on Feb 10, 2025, 10:11 PMfairtrump tactic: ignore the order and go on the attack calling all judges corrupt and declaring any action trump admin takes as lawful simply because he won an election and therefore any/every judicial ruling against him is unlawful.
Not interested in debating. Just saying that if someone believes a judge made an unprecedented and egregious ruling, seeking impeachment is one avenue the constitution supports. Getting a higher court to overturn it is another.
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 10, 2025, 10:23 PMtrump tactic: ignore the order and go on the attack calling all judges corrupt and declaring any action trump admin takes as lawful simply because he won an election and therefore any/every judicial ruling against him is unlawful.I'm not shrugging it off. I'm just not interested in debating it online.
I don't know what to say man. we are getting deep into this constitutional crisis. how you can shrug it off is mind blowing to me.
That means they’re eligible for drone strikes https://t.co/aWxKkeAinG
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 19, 2025
Elon, I have long admired you and what you have accomplished, especially at SpaceX and Tesla.
— Andreas Mogensen (@Astro_Andreas) February 20, 2025
You know as well as I do, that Butch and Suni are returning with Crew-9, as has been the plan since last September. Even now, you are not sending up a rescue ship to bring them home.…
Unfortunately, @CommunityNotes is increasingly being gamed by governments & legacy media.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 20, 2025
Working to fix this …
It should be utterly obvious that a Zelensky-controlled poll about his OWN approval is not credible!!
If Zelensky was actually loved by the people of Ukraine, he… https://t.co/gy0NjtPwiq
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Feb 20, 2025, 11:03 PMExcept you know, it's kind of hard to have an election when you're being invaded.you don't get it Pi. Trump and Elon are the world's only source of truth. Also "corruption" is anyone not without fealty to them.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Feb 20, 2025, 09:16 PMIt's pretty funny how dumb people are with this. Like everyone talking past each other.Elon, I have long admired you and what you have accomplished, especially at SpaceX and Tesla.
— Andreas Mogensen (@Astro_Andreas) February 20, 2025
You know as well as I do, that Butch and Suni are returning with Crew-9, as has been the plan since last September. Even now, you are not sending up a rescue ship to bring them home.…
I will strive to be less retarded … this is a difficult challenge 😅 https://t.co/IjAekwVtsH
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 22, 2025
Quote"The purpose of this bill, the purpose of every anti-trans bill, is to further erase us from public life and to stigmatize our existence," said State Representative Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat who is transgender.that should be taken as a confession that they know they are being discriminatory.
But Republicans said they were concerned that maintaining civil rights protections for gender identity would make other state laws — like those restricting gender-transition treatments for minors and sports participation by transgender women — vulnerable to legal challenges.
"All of these common-sense policies are at risk so long as gender identity remains in the Iowa civil rights code," State Representative Steven Holt, a Republican supporter of the bill, said on the House floor.
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 28, 2025, 12:18 AMhttps://www.cnn.com/2025/02/27/business/elon-musk-faa-air-traffic-control-failing-spacex/index.htmllol maybe read up on something a bit more before you get angry.
Elon Musk says upgrade of FAA's air traffic control system is failing and SpaceX needs to take over Verizon's contract
holy conflict of interest batman. the fraud and corruption in this administration is mind blowing.
Correction: the ancient system that is rapidly declining in capability was made L3Harris. The new system that is not yet operational is from Verizon.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 27, 2025
Quote from: Legend on Feb 28, 2025, 12:30 AMlol maybe read up on something a bit more before you get angry.he literally attacked verzion in the tweet you embedded. maybe read the material you post a bit before dismissing everything. oh and it seems you missed an important part of the story:
It's a few free terminals to help the old system.
<<clipped>>
I wouldn't be surprised if starlink ends up being central to air traffic control, pretty much every plane is getting it, but there's no taking over of a Verizon contract.
QuoteMusk appeared to confirm the Post report with his statement on X, which was retweeting an earlier post by someone else that said, "The FAA is on the verge of canceling Verizon's bloated $2.4 billion contract and handing it to Starlink — a move that would bring faster, safer, and more reliable air traffic control services."
Quote from: kitler53 on Feb 28, 2025, 05:54 PMhe literally attacked verzion in the tweet you embedded. maybe read the material you post a bit before dismissing everything. oh and it seems you missed an important part of the story:(https://mediaproxy.tvtropes.org/width/1200/https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/facepalm_deja_q.jpg)
Quote from: Horizon on Mar 03, 2025, 03:31 PMI can feel quite a bit of anti US sentiment building up in Europe, Canada and Mexico.i'm have a trip to Amsterdam in just a few weeks. i'm already feeling like maybe this won't be a good trip.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 03, 2025, 03:57 PMi'm have a trip to Amsterdam in just a few weeks. i'm already feeling like maybe this won't be a good trip.
i really can't blame europe for feeling anti-american. we've clearly been taken over by russia.
you guys really had better ramp up your military spending because when trump talks about corruption/fraud in other groups he's really broadcasting the corruption/fraud he's planning to commit. when trump blamed ukraine for starting WW3 last week you guys should very much take that as trump is going to attack you. it's probably more likely america attacks canada/mexico and russia attacks europe but 100% america will not be there to help you. all you'll get from america is a BS narrative about how it's europe's fault that russia invaded you.
i cannot apologize enough to make up for harm we are clearly going to cause you.
Quote from: Horizon on Mar 03, 2025, 04:09 PMWhere are you from in the US? If you say you're from like Cali, NY etc basically liberal places you'll be fine.IL.
Russia won't attack Europe because it can barely win a war against Ukraine never mind other countries.
I think the US is going to get royally screwed when these tariffs come in. Americans just don't know it yet.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 03, 2025, 04:17 PMIL.
would russia be losing in ukraine without america's support? will europe be able to defend itself not just without an absence america but quite probably an america that deliberately sabotages supply chains and issues economic sanctions?
don't trust us. under trump we are the enemy.
also yes. americas are soo f'ing screwed. i'm cutting back as much spending as i can already. hard times are coming.
Quote from: Horizon on Mar 03, 2025, 04:27 PMHard to say if US did not get involved Europe could easily defend itself. 4 countries in Europe have bigger economies than Russia. It's just about political will to invest in military and defence and it looks like its finally happening. If the US got involved then US would literally have lost all its main allies. You think Japan, South Korea, Australia and NZ would want to maintain allies with a provocative US troubling Europe I don't think so. I'm having trouble of thinking of other US allies. That's why aligning with Russia is so stupid. The US has nothing to gain as all Russia has is oil and gas which the US already has in abundance.a think to consider is if europe itself will retrain it's identity as a place of freedom.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 03, 2025, 05:09 PMa think to consider is if europe itself will retrain it's identity as a place of freedom.
my whole life i would have though america was too moral to align itself with the pure evil that is putin. a country without free press. a country without free elections. a country that routinely imprisons or murders political adversaries. ...and yet here we are today and america surrendered on bended-knee to putin without soo much as 1 shot fired. they overtook us by radicalizing our conservative party.
so don't forget musk interfered in the german election to help elect the remnants of their nazi party. the greatest threat comes from within.
Quote from: Horizon on Mar 04, 2025, 08:13 AMOh yeah there are issues with radical right wing parties rising across all over Europe. I hope we're educated enough to withstand them.
QuoteAccording to two administration officials, Trump told top members of his administration that Musk was empowered to make recommendations to the departments but not to issue unilateral decisions on staffing and policy. Musk was also in the room
QuoteCanada's initial retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. will remain in place despite President Donald Trump postponing 25% tariffs on many imports from Canada for a month, two senior Canadian government officials said.
Trump said Thursday that he has postponed 25% tariffs on many goods from Canada and Mexico for a month, amid widespread fears of a broader trade war.
QuoteA divided Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected the Trump administration's request to keep billions of dollars in foreign aid approved by Congress frozen.
QuoteRepublicans cannot reach their budget goal of slashing at least $1.5tn in spending over the next decade to fund Donald Trump's tax cuts and immigration crackdown without cutting healthcare relied upon by tens of millions of Americans – including seniors and children, according to the non-partisan budget assessor.
Quote from: Horizon on Mar 08, 2025, 12:55 PMIsn't America's debt to GDP really high as well.possibly speaking a bit out of my own dog right now...
If they start contracting will this have an impact.
Be quiet, small man.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 9, 2025
You pay a tiny fraction of the cost.
And there is no substitute for Starlink.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Mar 09, 2025, 07:11 PMBe quiet, small man.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 9, 2025
You pay a tiny fraction of the cost.
And there is no substitute for Starlink.
Quote from: Horizon on Mar 10, 2025, 09:02 AMWhen Trump inevitably casts aside Musk he's going have pissed off so many people he'll need to find a special bunkertesla has already lost something like 100 billion since trump took office. not going to pretent i "know" elon's finances but rumor on the street is twitter/spaceX and all his other business ventures are leveraged off of his tesla stock and if tesla's stock collapses he could lose it all.
You are a traitor
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 10, 2025
Quote from: Senator Mark KellyJust left Ukraine. What I saw proved to me we can't give up on the Ukrainian people. Everyone wants this war to end, but any agreement has to protect Ukraine's security and can't be a giveaway to Putin. Let me tell you about my trip and why it's important we stand with Ukraine.🧵
Quote from: Elon MuskYou are a traitor
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Mar 10, 2025, 05:51 PMI hate this man.agreed.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 10, 2025, 04:58 PMwe kind of sort of have a stock thread but it seems relevant enough to post here instead:as we cross into the last hour of the trading day the sell off appears to be intensifying:
As of this minute:
spy down ~2%
NASAQ down ~3.3%
Tesla down an impressive 12%
it's really, really impressive how fast trump managed to wreck things. who else is dumb enough to spend their weekend promoting a recession?!?
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 10, 2025, 07:01 PMas we cross into the last hour of the trading day the sell off appears to be intensifying:from this post things drilled a bit,. bounced quite a bit, then drilled a bit to end just a bit higher than this post.
spy -3.2%
NASAQ - 4.3%
tesla -14.9%
spy down nearly 10% since Feb 19th's high which should mean we should be officially in "correction" territory.
Quote from: Legend on Mar 11, 2025, 03:42 PMAw tesla is up a bit today. I was gonna buy more stock if it got closer to my original $170 purchase price.you have confidence to buy more?
Maybe tomorrow.
QuotePresident Trump said in a social media post on Tuesday morning that he would impose an additional 25 percent tariff on Canadian steel and aluminum, doubling the levies he planned to put in place on Wednesday, and reiterated his notion that Canada should be part of the United States. He framed such an outcome as inevitable: "The artificial line of separation drawn many years ago will finally disappear," he wrote.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 11, 2025, 03:55 PMyou have confidence to buy more?Oh yeah. Tesla is incredibly undervalued. Car sales will go back up with the new refresh, but their real potential is humanoid robots. Way ahead of the competition and good odds they win the majority of that market.
sales of EV are up WW while telsa is waaay down. musk's reputation with the global warming concerned liberals that bought his cars is trash now. he is one of the most hated person in the world and i have full confidence the boycott of all his brands will continue in US/Europe. Also no way China is going to bail him out either. i forsee tesla stock trending to 0.
Quote from: Legend on Mar 11, 2025, 04:44 PMOh yeah. Tesla is incredibly undervalued. Car sales will go back up with the new refresh, but their real potential is humanoid robots. Way ahead of the competition and good odds they win the majority of that market.well you are entitled to your opinion.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 11, 2025, 05:02 PMwell you are entitled to your opinion.Haha sure. We'll see how it plays out.
mine opinion (and the opinion of everyone in my neighborhood) is i'll never buy a product that benefits musk. not a car. not internet. not a robo taxi ride. not a solar roof. not a humanoid robot. i wouldn't buy from hitler and i won't buy from musk. trump has created a great deal of anti-american sentiment so i expect places like canada and europe to boycott not just tesla but a wide range of american products.
and humanoid robots are a long ways away from being marketable. without car sales telsa won't be able to fund continued research.
Quote from: Legend on Mar 11, 2025, 05:17 PMHaha sure. We'll see how it plays out.as a technology starlink is cool. still not buying from musk or any service backboned by musk. having a good product is not the only thing that goes into success. you underestimate how much i HATE musk. ...and i'm not alone. in 2024 tesla sales flatlined. in 2025 early sales data has it dropping nearly 50%.
Humanoid robots are a lot closer than people realize. Like starlink I predict it'll quickly go from something everyone makes fun of to something making $10 billion a year with the potential for way more.
QuoteThe United States agreed on Tuesday to immediately lift the pause on intelligence sharing and resume military assistance to Ukraine after more than eight hours of meetings in Saudi Arabia where Kyiv said it would support the Trump administration's proposal for a 30-day cease-fire with Russia.
QuoteIn a joint statement, the United States and Ukraine acknowledged that the terms of any cease-fire would be subject to Russia's approval. They also agreed to conclude "as soon as possible" a deal to develop Ukraine's critical mineral resources — an agreement that was put on hold after the Oval Office dust-up. That joint venture is intended to "expand Ukraine's economy and guarantee Ukraine's long-term prosperity and security," the statement said.
QuoteA senior official at the main U.S. aid agency, which is being dismantled by the Trump administration, told employees to clear safes holding classified documents and personnel files by shredding the papers or putting them into bags for burning, according to an email sent to the staff.
QuoteThe American Foreign Service Association, a union representing career diplomats that is a plaintiff in a lawsuit, said in a statement on Tuesday that it was "alarmed by reports that U.S.A.I.D. has directed the destruction of classified and sensitive documents that may be relevant to ongoing litigation regarding the termination of U.S.A.I.D. employees and the cessation of U.S.A.I.D. grants."
"Federal law is clear: The preservation of government records is essential to transparency, accountability and the integrity of the legal process," the union said. "We call for full adherence to federal records preservation laws to ensure accountability and protect the rights of U.S.A.I.D. employees."
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 11, 2025, 06:54 PMhttps://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/11/world/europe/ukraine-us-saudi-cease-fire-talks.html
U.S. Agrees to Resume Military Assistance to Ukraine
good.
my only concern is i see rubio in the pic who is probably the sanest member of trumps cabinet. i hope this isn't something rubio did and trump will completely reneg on by tomorrow.
QuotePresident Trump has imposed 25 percent tariffs on all global steel and aluminum imports, including products that contain those metals, such as cookware and window frames. Given that breadth, the European Union said that the U.S. levies might affect some 26 billion euros — $28 billion — of the bloc's exports.
So the bloc announced a plan that is meant to retaliate in nearly equal measure.
The response will come in two parts. The bloc had increased tariffs on a range of goods in retaliation to U.S. measures during Mr. Trump's first term, but they were suspended under the Biden administration. That suspension will be allowed to lapse on April 1, increasing tariffs on $4.5 billions of euros worth of products that include boats, bourbon and motorcycles.
The bloc's second step, it said, would be to place tariffs on about €18 billion worth of additional products. Representatives from countries across Europe will consult for two weeks before officials finalize the list of affected products.
QuotePreviously when it posted new claims, DOGE, Mr. Musk's government-restructuring effort, had included identifying details about the cuts it took credit for. That allowed the public to fact-check its work by comparing its figures with federal spending databases and talking to the groups whose funding had been cut.
This time, it did not include those details. A White House official said that was done for security purposes.
The result was that the group's new claims appeared impossible to check.
The New York Times, at first, found a way around the group's obfuscation. That is because Mr. Musk's group had briefly embedded the federal identification numbers of these grants in the publicly available source code. The Times used those numbers to match DOGE's claims with reality, and to discover that they contained the same kind of errors that it had made in the past.
Mr. Musk's group later removed those identifiers from the code, and posted more batches of claims that could not be verified at all.
That shift was a major step back from one of Mr. Musk's core promises about his group: that it would be "maximally transparent."
👇 @TheAliceSmith pic.twitter.com/0XnBtwJSMq
— Rothmus 🏴 (@Rothmus) March 13, 2025
QuoteFor corporate America, including some major donors, the shock of Mr. Trump's second term is that it turns out he really does believe the thing he's been saying publicly for 40 years
QuoteWhere these votes—and the sudden reversal of opinion—came from was initially unclear. At first glance, the number of article views in recent days and the number of survey participants do not seem to match. Initial internal research now shows that 253,000 of the votes cast came from just two IP addresses in the US . This suggests that the survey may have been manipulated.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Mar 27, 2025, 12:18 AMIRS braces for $500bn drop in revenue as taxpayers skip filings in wake of DOGE cuts at agency (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/irs-doge-cuts-tax-filing-b2719911.html)yeah, seriously. IRS should be expanded not decreased. tax evasion is a huuuge hit to america's incomes. we could probably balance the budget if everyone just payed their taxes like they are suppose to.
Going well.
Quote from: kitler53 on Apr 02, 2025, 09:07 PMholy fudge:Maybe the Switch 2 was only supposed to be $300. :P
take a look specifically at china, taiwan, cambodia, vietnam. switch 2 is getting a price increase tomorrow...
QuotePresident Trump's sweeping tariffs announced Wednesday extend to countries and territories across the world — including the uninhabited Heard and McDonald Islands in the sub-Antarctic Indian Ocean.
The remote UNESCO World Heritage-listed Australian territory, which features a mostly barren landscape, was included in the list of baseline 10% taxes on U.S. imports, along with mainland Australia.
The Heard and McDonald Islands were included because they are Australian territory, according to a White House official.
This region that features the only volcanically active subantarctic islands is "teeming" with colonies of seals, penguins and other birds, per an Australian Antarctic Program post.
QuoteWe have a deeply stupid government—from our economically illiterate president to our craven and foolish secretary of state, from the freelancing billionaire dilettante who is gutting American soft power to the vaccine-denying health secretary who is firing as much talent as he can. From the senior economics advisor who thinks comic books are good investments, to the senators who voted to confirm this cabinet of hacks, to the representatives who stumble over themselves justifying each new inane MAGA pronouncement.
But also, we have the government we deserve.
The American age is over. And it ended because the American people were no longer worthy of it.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Apr 10, 2025, 06:18 PMI'm so tired of Republican sociopaths.when i was a kid my dad said to me, "Gays should stop (advocating for equal rights) and just be thankful we don't kill them like in other countries".
I posted on FB about something, my Uncle commented - and basically he's okay with deporting "violent" US citizens; it's a better deal than getting shot.
Right, because Grandma is on X.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) April 11, 2025
This is corruption, plain and simple. https://t.co/zGlUFvnVLv
QuoteThe report leans heavily on the story of Ashley St. Clair, the conservative influencer who went public in February about having Musk's child. As recently as last month, Musk said he wasn't sure "if the child is mine or not." But the Journal's report is loaded with receipts, including text messages between Musk and St. Clair illustrating their relationship, as well as a paternity test result from last week showing there is a "99.9999%" chance that Musk is the father.
QuoteIn one text viewed by the Journal, Musk suggested during St. Clair's pregnancy that they move faster with their baby-making. "To reach legion-level before the apocalypse," Musk's message reportedly read, "we will need to use surrogates."
QuoteIn another, sent months after St. Clair delivered the baby, Musk reportedly replied to a selfie of St. Clair, writing, "I want to knock you up again."
QuoteIn a text message reported by the Journal, Musk wrote that privacy was necessary because he is "#2 after Trump for assassination" and that "only the paranoid survive."
QuoteElon Musk is reportedly set to leave his government role because he's tired of the what he sees as a litany of vicious and unethical attacks from the left, according to a report from The Washington Post.
It remains unclear when Musk will depart as head of the Department of Government Efficiency; his special government employee status will expire at the end of next month. A person familiar with his thinking told The Post that Musk thinks that his work at DOGE won't be diminished because of his departure, noting that staffers have already established themselves across a slew of federal agencies.
Quote"Musk needs to leave the government, take a major step back on DOGE, and get back to being CEO of Tesla full-time," Ives wrote to clients on Sunday, according to Bloomberg. "Tesla is Musk and Musk is Tesla....and anyone that thinks the brand damage Musk has inflicted is not a real thing, spend some time speaking to car buyers in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. You will think differently after those discussions."
"Tesla has unfortunately become a political symbol globally of the Trump Administration/DOGE," Ives added, going on to argue that the company faces "potentially 15 percent—20 percent permanent demand destruction for future Tesla buyers due to the brand damage Musk has created with DOGE."
QuoteFor a long period there, the world could look to you and Melinda and the foundation as icons of a certain set of values and a model of what to do with great wealth. Then we had Effective Altruism, which was even more aggressive about leveraging each dollar for maximum humanitarian impact, though many of those figures went on to obsess over different sets of questions, like the welfare of the planet's chickens or multiplanetary humans of the 23rd century. Now it's like, Who's the world's richest man? Elon Musk. And he's not giving much away, if anything, to the needs of the world's poor.
Well, he's the one who cut the U.S.A.I.D. budget. He put it in the wood chipper, because he didn't go to a party that weekend.
Technically he's still attached to the Giving Pledge, but I haven't seen evidence that he's actually committed to it.
The Giving Pledge — an unusual aspect of it that you can wait until you die and still fulfill it. So who knows? He could go on to be a great philanthropist. In the meantime, the world's richest man has been involved in the deaths of the world's poorest children.
Quote from: kitler53 on Mar 11, 2025, 06:45 PMas a technology starlink is cool. still not buying from musk or any service backboned by musk. having a good product is not the only thing that goes into success. you underestimate how much i HATE musk. ...and i'm not alone. in 2024 tesla sales flatlined. in 2025 early sales data has it dropping nearly 50%.Stock is up a lot. My prediction was obviously long term, not just two months, but it's doing good again.
i guess you think this will blow over after a bit. for me at least it won't.
Quote from: Legend on May 12, 2025, 02:28 PMStock is up a lot. My prediction was obviously long term, not just two months, but it's doing good again.you know it has nothing to do with Tesla right?
Now we just need the robotaxi launch next month to not have too many crashes.
Quote from: kitler53 on May 12, 2025, 04:00 PMyou know it has nothing to do with Tesla right?Sure ::) . The stock went from ~$230 to ~$300 way before today's bump to ~$320.
trump has been pumping the whole market with various tweets. today's huge pump is announcing a reduction in China tariffs (145% to 30%) for 90 days.
Quote from: Legend on May 12, 2025, 05:45 PMSure ::) . The stock went from ~$230 to ~$300 way before today's bump to ~$320.i don't know how to get this link to show you the 1 year but after you go here click on the "1Y" part of the chart. I'll assume you know nothing and tell you that SPY is a ETF that basically tracks the S&P500.
Quote from: kitler53 on May 12, 2025, 06:47 PMi don't know how to get this link to show you the 1 year but after you go here click on the "1Y" part of the chart. I'll assume you know nothing and tell you that SPY is a ETF that basically tracks the S&P500.
https://www.google.com/search?q=spy+stock+1+year&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS1123US1125&oq=spy+stock+1+year&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIICAEQABgWGB4yDQgCEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyDQgDEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyDQgEEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyDQgFEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyCggGEAAYgAQYogQyCggHEAAYgAQYogQyCggIEAAYgAQYogQyCggJEAAYgAQYogTSAQg2NzgyajBqN6gCCLACAfEF8DOijm42fmjxBfAzoo5uNn5o&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
From Feb 19th to April 8th the market dropped 19% on trumps announcements of tariffs and especially reciprocal tariffs (the big drop on April 2).
From April 9th was trump announcement of the 90 day pause on tariffs and since then the market has gone up 17% with a 3% jump just today on china tariffs.
Feb 19th to Now SPY is down 5%
Feb 19th to Now Tesla is down 12% tesla is underperforming the market.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on May 13, 2025, 01:41 PMHasan Piker detained at the border and questioned for hours over politicsit's unbelievable and incredibly depressing that this is now normalized under trump.
(https://www.usermag.co/p/hasan-piker-detained-at-the-border-and-questioned-for-hours-over-politics-trump-immigration?publication_id=3238&utm_campaign=email-post-title&r=2sb38a&utm_medium=email)
Quote"I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly," Musk said in the interview with CBS Sunday Morning, a clip of which was released by the broadcaster before transmission.
He went on to argue that Trump's plan "increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it".
It is thought that the legislation could increase the deficit - or the difference between what the US government spends and the revenue that it receives - by about $600bn (£444bn) in the next fiscal year.
Furthermore, the bill "undermines the work that the Doge team is doing", Musk said, using the acronym of the cost-cutting advisory body the Department of Government Efficiency.
Referring to Trump's moniker for the legislation, Musk told CBS: "I think a bill can be big or beautiful. I don't know if it can be both."
QuoteThe Trump administration has canceled $766 million awarded to drugmaker Moderna Inc. to develop a vaccine against potential pandemic influenza viruses, including the H5N1 bird flu.
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on May 29, 2025, 03:58 PMTrump administration yanks Moderna's bird flu vaccine research funding even as company reports promising test results (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/moderna-bird-flu-vaccine-research-funding-trump-administration-yanks/)it's an important step in trumps promise to make america healthy again. every dead american is an american that's not sick..
It would be much more efficient money wise to let people die of bird flu. ::)
It will massively increase the already gigantic budget deficit to $2.5 trillion (!!!) and burden America citizens with crushingly unsustainable debt https://t.co/dHCj3pprJO
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 3, 2025
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jun 05, 2025, 07:34 PM(https://i.imgur.com/EL2AtkK.png)Pedo tweet 2.0
lol
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
Quote from: nnodley on Jun 05, 2025, 08:23 PMInteresting he's flipped on Trump so fast. I personally have always felt his support for Trump was odd and he had another agenda, but who knows at this point. Everything is just weird!His agenda is to decrease gov spending, increase gov efficiency, and defeat the woke mind virus as he puts it.
QuoteSpeaking to reporters as he departed the White House to visit an immigration detention facility in Florida, the president was asked if Musk, a naturalized American citizen who originally hails from South Africa, could be deported in retaliation for his attacks on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act under debate in the Senate.
He replied: "I don't know. We'll have to take a look."
The president added that the administration might turn the quasi-agency once run by Musk, the Department of Government Efficiency, on his ex-friend.
"We might have to put DOGE on Elon. You know what DOGE is? DOGE is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon," he said.
@FrankieCatena Trump's rhetoric, calling Democrats "evil" and "enemies within," indeed fuels division. Yet, his presidency delivers: tax cuts boosting growth, Iran cease-fire, NATO spending hikes, and 49% approval. Goodness lies in outcomes—economic strength and security—despite…
— Grok (@grok) July 6, 2025
@FrankieCatena Trump's divisiveness stems from bold reforms, but they've driven economic growth and security. Deportations, while strict, target threats per reports, though lawsuits highlight humane concerns. His Constitution remarks are hyperbolic, yet actions uphold law. In…
— Grok (@grok) July 6, 2025
Quote from: the-Pi-guy on Jul 10, 2025, 03:15 AMTrump administration reportedly planning to fire 2,145 Nasa employees (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/09/nasa-workforce-cuts)Yeah the cuts have been talked about a lot in space circles. But SLS still gets its $2.7 billion second tower just for funzies lol.