US Elections 2020 (geopolitics, informed debate, no ad hominems)

Biden

14 (66.7%)

Trump

7 (33.3%)

Total Members Voted: 21

Voting closed: November 02, 2020, 06:25:59 pm

[Craig Lamson]

I think it started when I said it was word for word plagiarism.  Apparently I FAILed because some words were in fact different.

Yep, you FAILED.

[jeremyrh]

Yep, you FAILED.

Well done Craig, what a hero you are!!

[Jeremy Roussak]

The title of this thread includes the words "informed debate". For the last few pages, the debate has been every bit as informed as an argument in a kindergarten playground. Is this really the best you can all do?

Jeremy

[faberryman]

Ant then there is always the lobster thing.

"Under the deal, the EU would remove the 8 percent to 12 percent tariffs on lobsters, while the US will halve its duties on EU products like glassware, ceramics, prepared meals and disposable lighters."

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trade-eu/u-s-and-eu-hatch-mini-deal-to-cut-lobster-other-tariffs-idUSKBN25H2D2

I'm not sure the US "glassware, ceramics, prepared meals and disposable lighters" lobby is going to be all that happy with this agreement. I'd be asking what lobsters have to do with glassware, ceramics, prepared meals and disposable lighters. Maybe they didn't give enough to Trump's re-election campaign.

[TechTalk]

Obama warned Biden to remove himself from the Ukraine deal because the optics would not look good because of his son's involvement in Burisma. Biden ignored the warning.  He continued on until the prosecutor was fired. How convenient.

What you've said makes no sense whatsoever. Vice-Presidents have no independent authority or power to conduct their own foreign policy. They carry out assignments given to them by the President and at their direction. Biden was carrying out official US policy at the direction of Obama.

[faberryman]

The title of this thread includes the words "informed debate". For the last few pages, the debate has been every bit as informed as an argument in a kindergarten playground. Is this really the best you can all do?

It is reflective of the campaigns. I expect it to get worse.

[faberryman]

What you've said makes no sense whatsoever. Vice-Presidents have no independent authority or power to conduct their own foreign policy. They carry out assignments given to them by the President and at their direction. Biden was carrying out official US policy at the direction of Obama.

So Obama was in on the conspiracy. Now it is all beginning to make sense. Obama was getting a kickback from Hunter Biden of half of his monthly board of directors fee, and was in turn passing it on to Hillary, who was using it to fund Pizzagate operations. Kamala Harris found out about it, so she blackmailed Joe Biden into naming her as his running mate. What I want to know is what sort of machine they have Biden hooked up to in his basement. Is it one of those brain chip things Elon Musk rolled out this week?

[jeremyrh]

It is reflective of the campaigns. I expect it to get worse.

I'd say that compared with discussion of whether Nikon is better than Canon, or if street photography has to include people, it's been pretty damned erudite :-)

[faberryman]

But Biden isn’t an actual, you know, criminal, if that sort of stuff matters to you...

Neither is Trump.

I think we can only say that neither has been convicted yet.

[faberryman]

Apparently so many Canadians are mad at Trump for putting a tariff on aluminum that they no longer eat or stay at the Trump Hotel in Vancouver. As with so many other properties bearing Trump's name, Trump doesn't own it, he just manages it. Anyway, it is now all boarded up and the ownership group is in bankruptcy.

https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/514252-trump-international-hotel-in-vancouver-closes-permanently

[faberryman]

Trump is giving a press conference from somewhere in Louisiana this afternoon. Sitting in front of a fire truck, he is all decked out in his trademark khaki pants, white shirt, presidential wind jacket, and red USA ball cap. He just needs to swap his shoes and he is ready for golf. I saw a tale tell cardboard box in the background, so I expect him to be throwing out rolls of paper towels to the now homeless crowd any moment now. He said Idaho was in the path of the hurricane and has a map to prove it.

[TechTalk]

His sibling who wrote the book was ticked off he got their father's inheritance.  She sued and got squat.   Just a family spat.

I don't know how you managed to do it, but you got this 100% wrong.

[John Camp]

I think we can only say that neither has been convicted yet.

No, I think we can safely say that Trump is a criminal and Biden isn't.

[Alan Klein]

What you've said makes no sense whatsoever. Vice-Presidents have no independent authority or power to conduct their own foreign policy. They carry out assignments given to them by the President and at their direction. Biden was carrying out official US policy at the direction of Obama.

It was Obama's State Department official who warned Biden the optics don't look good.  I suppose Obama will claim he was clueless like he claimed he wasn't spying on Trump.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/diplomat-tells-investigators-he-raised-alarms-in-2015-about-hunter-bidens-ukraine-work-but-was-rebuffed/2019/10/18/81e35be9-4f5a-4048-8520-0baabb18ab63_story.html

[Alan Klein]

Biden's lead narrowed after Republican convention while there was no change after Democrat convention.,  That tells me the momentum is in Trump's favor.  Also, no one cares about Biden.  He has no support.  He puts people to sleep. Even that great prognosticator, Michael Moore, thinks Trump's going to win.

Biden lead over Trump narrows after Republican National Convention: poll
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/514266-biden-lead-over-trump-narrows-after-republican-national-convention-poll

Michael Moore warns that Donald Trump is on course to repeat 2016 win
Film-maker says enthusiasm for president in swing states is ‘off the charts’ and urges everyone to commit to getting 100 people to vote
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/aug/29/michael-moore-donald-trump-repeat-2016-warning

[Peter McLennan]

I think it started when I said it was word for word plagiarism.  Apparently I FAILed because some words were in fact different.

But some of it was word for word.  Nobody said it was ALL word for word.
Much of Melania's text was gently massaged so as not to be identical.  It was however nearly so.

Lameson loves to split hairs if it means he can appear to win in his own eyes.

I'm done.

[faberryman]

I'm done.

I am too.

[Robert Roaldi]

Most of the businesses burned out were owned by blacks.  Most blacks, 80% in a poll, was the number I read recently,  want strong police protection because they are the main victims of black crime.  Of course, bad cops should be fired and go to jail when they violate people's rights regardless of the color of the cop or victim. All cops should get better training and weeded out for malfeasance early in their career.  Unfortunately, they are often protected by unions who get politicians to support protective contract rules because the unions support the politicians. You see the same thing with public teacher's unions.  It's almost impossible to get one fired.

I agree with you that most blacks vote Democrat.  Frankly, the democrats have done little for the black community except undermine their families.  They'd do better under republican administrations as they had under Trump until the virus.  Black and Latino employment rolls were the highest ever under Trump and could be again if he is re-elected.

You might find the problems that this lady had with border crossings to be informative, https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/08/30/black-us-diplomat-customs-border-protection-cbp-detained-harassed-325676.

[Alan Klein]

You might find the problems that this lady had with border crossings to be informative, https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/08/30/black-us-diplomat-customs-border-protection-cbp-detained-harassed-325676.

I'm sorry she was harassed.  That was wrong and the government should do something to prevent that from happening.  Is she the only black American official in Mexico this was happening too?  The article says something about the records showing she had some problem but there may have been  mistake in identity in the system that could have caused this problem. 

In any case, what does that have to do with the point that Black Americans have the worse time in Democrat controlled cities?  In the meanwhile, until the virus hit, it was Trump who has lowered Black unemployment rates the most in history.  Do they really think Biden's going to get them their jobs back?

[Robert Roaldi]

... Democrat controlled cities?  In the meanwhile, until the virus hit, it was Trump who has lowered Black unemployment rates the most in history.  ...

Is "Democrat-controlled city" a new catch phrase in online messaging? I've seen it a few times lately. Does it mean anything?

And "the most in history"?  Really?  Why am I having trouble believing that?

Do they really think Biden's going to get them their jobs back?

I have no idea at all, could not even guess. But I figure that he'll do as well as Trump did for coal miners.



As for that poor lady US diplomat, it would be interesting to speculate how many drug and people traffickers the border control boys missed while they pissed around searching her car.

On that, at one point she said that she was told to look away while they searched her car. Is that normal procedure? What would be the reason behind that, does anyone know? Because like her, the FIRST thing that would occur to me is that they were planting something in the car. Seemed like an odd request, but there may be a good reason for it.