This was 4th on the front page and all of a sudden it just disappeared What happened?
Manual moderation? It's not flagged.
Well. Now it's flagged.
Usaid.gov
21–30 of 34 posts
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#22[flagged]
Re: Usaid.gov
#23Earlier quoted context omitted.
What are your concerns? My understanding is an electoral majority of Americans believe that this soft power is in better hands if it is ceded to other nations such as Russia and China and/or others.
That sort of blanket statement is hard to work with; it seems unlikely to me personally that this was top-of-mind for most voters. That said: my own objection is primarily moral—I believe humans should help other humans without exception, _especially_ those most in need, and would strongly prefer that be embedded into the society in which we live. If you're going to argue that many folks that voted for the current ad…
> That said: my own objection is primarily moral—I believe humans should help other humans without exception, _especially_ those most in need, and would strongly prefer that be embedded into the society in which we live.
Personally I agree with you but in recent weeks I’ve learned that most of my friends and colleagues were either ambivalent or actively hostile at the idea that the US taxpayers should help buy medicine for 20 million people suffering from HIV. That said, I am fortunate that I have enough food to eat and shelter and I live in relative comfort so I understand that I might be badly out of touch with fellow Americans.
> The more cross-cutting argument is that Trump campaigned on getting the US out of expensive wars and preventing getting into forever wars, primarily talking about the monetary cost. Cutting off the US's soft power increases the chances of ending up in a hot war for very little actual savings—the total amount of foreign aid the US spends is below 1% of the budget.
Again I’m personally in agreement with you but my understanding is that the majority of voters have difficulty following this chain of reasoning especially when it is at odds with what they are told by every social media influencer they rely on to get their news.
Re: Usaid.gov
#24[deleted]
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#25Well there goes a front for covert ops.
Bush & Obama used it to fund anti-Castro media.
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#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have mixed feelings on this one. I hope folks in need of aid get it; I am concerned about a world in which soft power is ceded to Russia and China.
What are your concerns? My understanding is an electoral majority of Americans believe that this soft power is in better hands if it is ceded to other nations such as Russia and China and/or others.
> My understanding is an electoral majority of Americans believe that this soft power is in better hands if it is ceded to other nations such as Russia and China and/or others.
A plurality of voters believing something does not make it true.
Re: Usaid.gov
#27See also perhaps "USAID security leaders on leave after trying to keep Musk’s DOGE from classified info, officials say":
> WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has placed two top security chiefs at the U.S. Agency for International Development on leave after they refused to turn over classified material in restricted areas to Elon Musk’s government-inspection teams, a current and a former U.S. official told The Associated Press on Sunday.
> Members of Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, eventually did gain access Saturday to the aid agency’s classified information, which includes intelligence reports, the former official said.
> Musk’s DOGE crew lacked high-enough security clearance to access that information, so the two USAID security officials — John Vorhees and deputy Brian McGill — were legally obligated to deny access.
* https://apnews.com/article/doge-musk-trump-classified-inform...
* https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42910635
I seem to remember some hullabaloo about Clinton not treating (potentially) classified e-mails appropriately.
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#28It gives me absolutely no joy to say it, but I am concerned the top people in Trumpocracy, notably Trump and Musk, might end up shot.
They are pissing off so many people, so quickly, so heavy-handedly, and in a country literally stuffed with guns.
One guy whose business exports are killed by retaliatory tariffs, or another whose medical care gets shut down, or someone with family in a developing country whose life ends up ruined by the US defaulting on its aid commitments. And it's barely two weeks in.
And yes, I know it's mostly the MAGA crowd who has guns, but they are half the country, and Trump doesn't seem to mind shooting with his eyes shut. Well, you're going to hit quite a few of your own people if you do that. Populist sentiment seems to run out when you hit people where it hurts - their wallet.
To be clear, the thought gives me no joy. Already being a US president is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, and this would only set an awful precedent for whoever follows.
Re: Usaid.gov
#29It gives me absolutely no joy to say it, but I am concerned the top people in Trumpocracy, notably Trump and Musk, might end up shot. They are pissing off so many people, so quickly, so heavy-handedly, and in a country literally stuffed with guns. One guy whose business exports are killed by retaliatory tariffs, or another whose medical care gets shut down, or someone with family in a developing country whose life en…
I doubt anything will happen to Trump while in office: the Secret Service will move heaven and earth to prevent another presidential assassination. They've already got enough egg on their face from the near-misses during Trump's campaign, but the resources they dedicate to protecting candidates and former Presidents is a mere fraction of what they devote to the President while in office. A presidential assassination would utterly destroy what remains of the Secret Service's already tarnished credibility, and even seriously risk triggering a second Civil War.
I don't believe Musk has Secret Service protection, but as the richest man in the world, his private security budget is effectively unlimited.
Re: Usaid.gov
#30It gives me absolutely no joy to say it, but I am concerned the top people in Trumpocracy, notably Trump and Musk, might end up shot. They are pissing off so many people, so quickly, so heavy-handedly, and in a country literally stuffed with guns. One guy whose business exports are killed by retaliatory tariffs, or another whose medical care gets shut down, or someone with family in a developing country whose life en…
I doubt anything will happen to Trump while in office: the Secret Service will move heaven and earth to prevent another presidential assassination. They've already got enough egg on their face from the near-misses during Trump's campaign, but the resources they dedicate to protecting candidates and former Presidents is a mere fraction of what they devote to the President while in office. A presidential assassination…
Yeah, maybe not Trump or Musk, but there's a lot of them.al
Also, you only need one bullet to go through, and Trump doesn't strike me like the guy who does everything Secret Service tells him to do.