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This utterance isn't actually an argument, but if you can't see that, I'm not going to explain. You've gone off on tangent, but ironically you do support my original point directed at another ditch digger, ie business and profit is not moral or immoral. Such value judgements are applied to people.
But this is why people write books called "How to talk to a Liberal if you really must"
The rest of the ramble = a lot of no poop Sherlock, or No Kidding, but thanks for the lecture. There is hope.
You do show your socialist colours though.. eg ..."...the point at which capitalism loses its way and needs to be replaced by some other system."
Anyway such discussion is so much theoretical blah blah navel gazing, and the stuff of who- gives-a-doggie doo-doo.
In the real and tangible world,Exxon supports lifting sanctions against Russia, so it might do business. The horror!!! ( thank you Joseph Conrad)
In other news, the local Esso gas bar charged me money to fill up my car today, and more money to buy snacks at the checkout counter too!!!
The company probably made PROFIT on the transactions too!!! The greed!!!
Double and triple horrors!!!!
Yes quite.
Liberals in revolt!
Lefty whining and hyperbole really does provide no end of entertainment.
I think I might buy a new suit for the inauguration. Obama has been retired to the golf course and ding dong, the witch is dead!
https://mediamatters.org/video/2016/12/20/bill-oreilly-abolishing-electoral-college-all-about-race/214881
You want to talk mature, @bondjames? Talk to your buddy @timmer about his mud fixation.
"According to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the host country is responsible for the safety of foreign diplomatic missions," Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
"The 22-year old Turkish special operations police officer Mevlut Mert Altintas, who assassinated Russian Ambassador Andrei Karlov in Ankara Monday, Dec. 12, was a member of the Nusra Front, Al Qaeda’s Syrian branch."
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/turkey-responsible-safety-russian-diplomats-kremlin/
http://www.debka.com/article/25845/Russian-ambassador-killed-by-Nusra-jihadist
The timing of this murder is highly suspicious, coming as it does just as Turkey and Russia form a stronger alliance post-Syrian Civil War much to Nato's chagrin, and a few days after Mr. Obama's promise of retaliation for alleged Russian hacking. Spectre-like at the very least.
An interesting Op-ed on the President Elect's mandate from the Wall Street Journal:
"As after-action reports make clear, the Clinton campaign, with money coming out of its ears, underinvested in urban turnout in the key battlegrounds."
"To put a charitable face on it, the panic on the left since his election partly arises because Mr. Trump remains a mystery onto which Democrats can paint their worst fears and most corrosive stereotypes. At least that’s the excuse we’ll offer for their eagerness to believe that Russia determined the outcome and the Electoral College should have taken away his win."
"Mr. Trump has never had a political job. He’s bombastic, careless with the facts (hardly a first among American politicians and talking heads, it should be noted). He’s given to half-formed thoughts that are easy to mock: Climate change is a hoax manufactured by China, Vladimir Putin is an amazing statesman. Never mind that you can often find more fully formed versions of these thoughts that suggest Mr. Trump is actually a nuanced and sharp observer of political realities."
http://www.wsj.com/articles/trumps-market-mandate-1482277129
And one on foreign policy from the Washington Post:
"Does Trump really mean to blow up the U.S.-China relationship? Because his strident comments came before his inauguration, they aren’t quite official; he has room to maneuver once he’s in office. The Chinese aren’t used to such ambiguity from the United States. Usually Americans are the straightforward ones, while Beijing emulates Sun Tzu’s counsel to subdue the enemy without fighting."
"Henry Kissinger, the American master of diplomatic ambiguity, sees some benefit in Trump’s unpredictability. “Donald Trump is a phenomenon that foreign countries haven’t seen,” he told CBS’s John Dickerson on “Face the Nation” on Sunday. He said that Trump has an opportunity to be a “very considerable president” because he is filling a “partial vacuum” left by President Obama in foreign policy and “asking a lot of unfamiliar questions.”
Kissinger’s praise is interesting, given that he was an architect of the one-China policy that Trump has destabilized. Perhaps Kissinger is simply trying to flatter the president-elect. But perhaps he sees benefit in the way Trump has introduced new dynamics in the triangular relationship among the United States, Russia and China — by taking a harder line with Beijing and a softer one with Moscow. Kissinger did the same, in reverse, in the 1970s."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/could-trumps-freewheeling-foreign-policy-have-its-benefits/2016/12/20/abd72734-c6e0-11e6-bf4b-2c064d32a4bf_story.html?utm_term=.dcc0816d5a58
I think it would be helpful if everyone can be mindful of the personal mud slinging while still bringing humour and having a bit of much needed fun here (an admittedly difficult balancing act). Otherwise things can get out of hand unnecessarily, as is normally the case on these political threads that aren't safe zones and where passions run strong.
Regarding your post about the couple who were allegedly threatened & insulted by the Uber driver: it's unfortunate, but that is a law enforcement matter and hopefully they do go to the police station and file their complaint about the alleged xenophobe. That's their right, and they should follow through.
My sarcasm didn't translate, I guess.
We've all seen the various film adaptations but not many of us have actually read the book, which is a social commentary and it can be applied today.
Victor Frankenstein created this misshapen creature and after seeing what he had done he refused to take responsibility for it. The creature set about and destroyed everything that was dear to Victor Frankenstein. Eventually destroying Frankenstein as well. the book ends with the creature planning to commit suicide by throwing itself on a funeral pyre.
The GOP is victor Frankenstein and Trump is the creature they created but does not want to acknowledge. Trump will destroy this country with his stupidity, recklessness and laughable policies. The Country is what the GOP (Frankenstein's loved ones) loves.
The funeral pyre is the ruin wrought on us by Trump and he will throw himself on the ashes and ruins that he created...
Frightening isn't it?
Just reading the quotes from these Trump voters (and acknowledging these focus groups are a small sample size), I just have to shake my head and wonder WTF people are thinking. They have simply voted for the President of "Make America Great Again," without having any idea what he stands for--because his policy positions were never clear.
President Elect Trump today named Campaign Manager Kellyanne Conway as his presidential counselor. Ms. Conway will help with messaging and legislative priorities.
The President Elect said that Ms. Conway:"played a crucial role in my victory. She is a tireless and tenacious advocate of my agenda and has amazing insights on how to effectively communicate our message."
Personally, I’m excited to hear this announcement. Ms. Conway has proven to be an excellent strategist and communicator, who ran rings around the opposition and was a resolute supporter of the President Elect. A lawyer by training, she is also the president and CEO of The Polling Company Inc./Woman Trend, and has great insights into the American public’s views on several matters. She will no doubt work very well with Steve Bannon and Reince Preibus to drive home the President Elect’s message over the next four years. Ms. Conway is the first woman to ever run a Presidential Campaign, a title she owes to Mr. Trump and Pence’s foresight in hiring her for the job.
“A Trump presidency will bring real change to Washington and to Americans across this great nation. I am humbled and honored to play a role,” Ms Conway said.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/president-elect-trump-selects-campaign-manager-conway-as-counselor-to-the-president-1482409429
In other news, the President Elect yesterday named Peter Navarro, a professor at University of California-Irvine, to head a newly formed National Trade Council.
Mr. Navarro is a vocal critic of China on trade, and has written several books on the subject. He is of the opinion, shared with Mr. Trump, that China has taken advantage of global trading rules unfairly to benefit itself at the expense of the United States. He also selected billionaire investor Carl Icahn as special advisor to overhauling federal regulations.
The appointments indicate that the President Elect is serious about his campaign promise of ensuring future trade policy benefits American employment as well as corporate profit. It also suggests that he is serious about a managed ‘Industrial Policy’ (which aids manufacturing) from the White House, something which other successful countries (including Japan, China and South Korea) have done for decades, but which the US has not so far followed. This is at odds with traditional GOP principles of letting the market decide everything.
I am personally a big believer in Industrial Policy, & have seen how it benefits countries. In an increasingly competitive world, one cannot leave everything fully to the unfettered ‘free markets’, particularly when other countries are not abiding by the same approach, but rather are getting a lending hand from their Govts. However, it is a fine line between guiding & facilitating the corporate sector vs. interfering in an incompetent manner. This is a balance that must be struck. Successfully fusing traditional GOP economic principles of lower taxes and regulations with a managed industrial trade policy will be one of the President Elect’s greatest achievements, if his team and he can pull it off. I expect push back from the GOP on this, and the Council is not a Cabinet post, so it’s unclear how effective it can be.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/12/21/trump-appointments-signal-he-might-stick-with-hard-line-stances-on-trade-regulations/?utm_term=.0a778550dec1
In other news, the President Elect met a fews back at his Mar-a-Lago estate with Carlos Slim, the richest man in Mexico, the owner of Latin America’s largest Telco America Movil and an investor in the New York Times.
Mr. Slim and Mr. Trump exchanged heated words during the campaign trail, when Mr. Trump accused the Mexican of interfering in the US elections through the Times. It appears that the men have now ‘made up’. The meeting was arranged by former Campaign Advisor Corey Lewandowski, and was designed to facilitate conversation on trade and economic issues between the two countries.
The Mexican peso has declined considerably vs. the US $ since Mr. Trump announced his candidacy in 2015 and 2017 growth projections have been slashed, perhaps in fear of the implications of a Trump presidency.
Mr. Slim apparently “was left with a very positive taste in his mouth regarding the relationship with Mexico," according to a spokesman.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-dines-with-carlos-slim-as-relations-warm-with-mexican-leaders/2016/12/19/652ccf7c-c60f-11e6-bf4b-2c064d32a4bf_story.html?utm_term=.95a5297f3116
Finally, in global news, there have been some sickening revelations regarding the two heinous and disgraceful terrorist attacks in Germany and Turkey on Monday.
Regarding Turkey, authorities have apparently located Al Qaeda and Gulen (Fetullah Gulen, the Turkish dissident living in the US) related materials in the killer's apartment. Al Nusrah (Al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate) today claimed responsibility for the attack. The assassin shot the Russian ambassador a reported 8 times in the back before being killed himself in an encounter with police. Here is a rather chilling photo of him lurking behind the ambassador with malicious intent just prior to the assassination.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4054288/Terror-group-linked-Al-Qaeda-claims-responsibility-slaying-Russian-ambassador-links-killer-Syrian-militants-emerge.html
In other news, it is being reported that the alleged killer of at least 12 people (and over 50 injured) in the Berlin lorry incident was known to the authorities and was actually under surveillance for a while. The Tunisian suspect (Anis Amri), an undocumented refugee, had reportedly made threats to attack public places (including apparently with trucks filled with gasoline/petrol), and was for a time under covert watch by German police for potentially “preparing a serious act of violent subversion,”. He was supposed to have been deported, but the process was apparently delayed due to insufficient paperwork again. Islamic State (ISIL/ISIS/Daesh) has claimed responsibility but provided no further details. There is a 100,000 euro reward for his arrest.
It is not clear at this time whether Mr. Amri is a scapegoat or was the actual attacker. His fingerprint was found in the lorry. If he did in fact commit this act, then it doesn’t bode well for the besieged Ms. Merkel’s chances in the 2017 general election. The opposition anti-immigration AfD party has already blamed her for this attack, as she allowed approximately 1m refugees into the country last year.
President Elect Trump commented on the matter yesterday, saying it was: "an attack on humanity and it's got to be stopped." … "What's happening is disgraceful."
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/22/police-raid-flats-in-search-for-berlin-truck-attack-suspect-anis-amri
From my perspective, what is particularly annoying about the German situation is that the alleged attacker was actually under surveillance at one point. I’ve noticed a pattern with these terrorist attacks and that is that authorities in many of the countries (including in France) at one point or another had many of the perpetrators in their sights, but then didn’t follow through due to lack of evidence. In my view more coordination and vigilance is needed. I’ve seen similar scenarios with the lone gunmen nutcases who kill masses of people in the US – at some point or another they were either on the police or medical radar (for mental health instability). Here is a chilling fact from the above link:
"US officials said Amri was on a US no-fly list, had researched bomb-making online and been in contact with Isis at least once," the New York Times reported.
One thing I've noticed with these perpetrators is that for the most part, family members don't have a clue that they are being radicalized. This chap's brother had no clue.
He's not a suicide nut though. This one is far more dangerous, because he escaped rather than blowing himself up.
http://www.dw.com/en/search-for-berlin-attack-suspect-intensifies-as-anger-in-germany-grows/a-36870208
Trump is proving day after day in almost exponential increments how supremely unfit he is for this job, and YOU @bondjames are 'excited'??? :-O
If you are the mature one here, then I'm GLAD to be the opposite. You are totally non, non non, non heinous!
Thanks mate. Much appreciated.
That explains a lot.... /:)
You actually compared Trump to Muhammed Ali???
Oh the ironi! =))
=P~
Here's the tweet the media say he put out before deleting his whole account.
She was apparently travelling with her kids as well as her husband.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-passenger-idUSKBN14B25I
:)>-
Some good diligent postings there @bondjames
Will catch-up. Just did a skim for now.