DOGE staffer is trying to reroute FEMA funds

Post by ModernMech » Fri, Feb 14, 2025, 5:34 AM UTC

mjburgess wrote: post #202

insane_dreamer wrote: post #195

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A lot of rightwing stuff that circulates is disinformation -- there are plenty of examples of it. Trump is an inveterate liar about almost everything (this is easily fact-checked), and his followers have adopted the same strategy (lies are powerful because they are usually more shocking and travel faster than a boring fact-check). Not to say that other politicians don't lie or distort the truth, but Trump has taken t…

The issue isn't whether that's true or not (personally, I think you're 80-90% correct). If private citizens, or organisations, want to get together and develop political counter-narratives that's fine -- entirely within the constitution, and always a good idea. The issue here is the top-down astroturfing from state-sponsored orgs whose boards are the last x heads of the CIA/etc. At the moment there is no strong firew…

  The Senate Intelligence Committee assessed that Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort's "high-level access and willingness to share information with individuals closely affiliated with the Russian intelligence services" was a "grave counterintelligence threat".[50] The foremost individual was Manafort's employee Konstantin Kilimnik, a Russian.[50] The committee identified Kilimnik as a "Russian intelligence officer"; describing that Manafort and Kilimnik had a "close and lasting relationship" even through the 2016 election.[53] Manafort repeatedly tried to "secretly share internal Campaign information with Kilimnik", including "sensitive internal polling data or Campaign strategy".[53]

Post by asadotzler » Fri, Feb 14, 2025, 7:44 AM UTC

diggan wrote: post #252

janice1999 wrote: post #251

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's difficult to resist when it means likely losing your job and not being about to afford rent or your mortgage.

You're right, it is really difficult and can come with severe consequences. These situations are when our values are truly put to the test. These moments test us, but they also define us.

Post by AlecSchueler » Fri, Feb 14, 2025, 8:01 AM UTC

intended wrote: post #258

ceejayoz wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're a marathon runner, and you lose to another marathon runner, that's OK. If you're a marathon runner, and you lose to a toddler, that's probably not. The Dems fought an eminently beatable candidate and lost, and they continue to struggle with messaging now (stop putting Schumer up there to deliver it!). They flubbed the response to Dobbs, the consultant class nixed the Harris campaign parts that were working…

How you frame a problem, determines what solution you are going to find. I went over many assumptions after the elections, to understand what I had missed. But things changed when I asked a different question. Its not a question of how Harris lost. Its a question of how Trump ran in the first place. With that change, things clicked into place.

Post by mytailorisrich » Fri, Feb 14, 2025, 8:39 AM UTC

diggan wrote: post #160

mytailorisrich wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It may fall slower but it also keeps falling... US' GDP is now 80% higher than EU's. The usual retort is that Europeans are not chasing money and prefer to have good quality of life, healthcare, etc. but this misses the key thing that if your income falls behind little by little at some point you will no longer be able to afford those things... we're already seeing it.

> we're already seeing it. Where exactly are we seeing this? AFAIK, most people in Europe still has access to healthcare, and still be able to have a job + free-time, with parental leave and more. Has that disappeared from any countries where it used to exist? I think the constant worry and focus on GDP is a great example of the differences of mindset between Americans and Europeans. As long as "number goes up!" is t…

Post by AlecSchueler » Fri, Feb 14, 2025, 10:32 AM UTC

kcplate wrote: post #285

ryandrake wrote: post #284

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We're getting wrapped up over the word "complicit." Fine, let's be neutral: "An eligible voter who doesn't vote, through inaction supports whoever ends up winning." The act of not voting can mean nothing but "I'm OK with whoever."

> The act of not voting can mean nothing but "I'm OK with whoever." Or it can mean “I am not ok with either”. That is the reason I didn’t vote for Trump or Harris. Why should I participate when neither viable political party actually respects my vote enough to run a candidate that is worthy of a vote? I don’t need to vote for the lesser of two evils or to feel like I voted for a winner.