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

[TechTalk]

With a solo town hall forum, at least voters will be able to hear what Biden has to say without having some unhinged guy hopped-up on steroids talking over him constantly.

[John Camp]

With a solo town hall forum, at least voters will be able to hear what Biden has to say without having some unhinged guy hopped-up on steroids talking over him constantly.

I never thought Trump was strongly hinged, but I have to say that recently he's really seemed unhinged, much more than usual. Somebody must have inadvertently told him the truth about the polls. That whole Mussolini thing on the balcony? Really? Pissing on his own cabinet for not prosecuting Obama and Biden? Really? Maybe his wing nuts are beginning to realize that they're all going to lose their jobs, so they're unscrewing themselves from his hinges. Which would leave him screwed.

I'll stop now.

[faberryman]

I never thought Trump was strongly hinged, but I have to say that recently he's really seemed unhinged, much more than usual.

It is not just Trump who is unhinged. His supporters on Fox are becoming unhinged too. They know that if Trump doesn't win, which is looking more likely every day, they will be out of a job. Who wants to listen to a Trump supporter after Trump loses?

https://www.thedailybeast.com/maria-bartiromo-erupts-when-fox-colleague-wonders-why-trumps-still-talking-about-hillarys-emails

[Alan Klein]

It is not just Trump who is unhinged. His supporters on Fox are becoming unhinged too. They know that if Trump doesn't win, which is looking more likely every day, they will be out of a job. Who wants to listen to a Trump supporter after Trump loses?

https://www.thedailybeast.com/maria-bartiromo-erupts-when-fox-colleague-wonders-why-trumps-still-talking-about-hillarys-emails

I think more people will be out of jobs on CNN and MSnbc.  Without Trump, we can all go out to shoot pictures.  No one's going to watch sleepy Joe.  Trump has made all these talking heads millions.  Without him, they'll all have to get real jobs. We'll all have to go back to film vs. digital and Canon vs. Nikon arguments.

[TechTalk]

I watched the Arizona Senate debate between Democratic candidate Mark Kelly and Republican Senator Martha McSally. When asked if she was proud of her support for Trump, she refused to answer. When pressed multiple times on the question she continued to evade talking about Trump. She is way behind in the polls and is expected to lose her appointed Senate seat to Kelly.

Video starts at first question regarding McSally Trump support. She babbles a non-answer and is pressed on the question until the reporter gives up trying to get an answer.

https://youtu.be/AZ Senate Debate - McSally asked about support for Trump

She did learn a page from Trump's playbook and continually referred to her opponent as Counterfeit Kelly. Kelly respectfully referred to her as Senator McSally.

For those not familiar with the candidates, Mark Kelly is a former astronaut and the husband of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords who was shot in the head in an assassination attempt in 2011. Martha McSally lost her campaign for the Senate seat of retiring Senator Jeff Flake in 2018, but was appointed to fill John McCain's Senate seat in January 2019.

[TechTalk]

Personally, I'll be happy to have a President that isn't a needy narcissist that demands everyone pay attention to him 24/7 and who will say, do, or tweet anything to get that attention. It's exhausting.

[chez]

I think more people will be out of jobs on CNN and MSnbc.  Without Trump, we can all go out to shoot pictures.  No one's going to watch sleepy Joe.  Trump has made all these talking heads millions.  Without him, they'll all have to get real jobs. We'll all have to go back to film vs. digital and Canon vs. Nikon arguments.

Yeh...Trump's the star on the talk shows...too bad he did diddly squat to save the 210,000 ( and still counting ) citizens that gave their lives while the joker put on a show for his audience.

[Paulo Bizarro]

I think more people will be out of jobs on CNN and MSnbc.  Without Trump, we can all go out to shoot pictures.  No one's going to watch sleepy Joe.  Trump has made all these talking heads millions.  Without him, they'll all have to get real jobs. We'll all have to go back to film vs. digital and Canon vs. Nikon arguments.

Here in Portugal, I will surely miss the daily Trump telenovela: it lasts for a few minutes on the 8 o'clock news, and it is always a good laugh.

[William Walker]

Bad luck!
Oh well...there's always next year.

[faberryman]

Bad luck!
Oh well...there's always next year.

Praise the Lord that the orange jackass didn’t win. He would have been even more insufferable, which is almost unimaginable. Of course, this doesn’t mean he won’t photoshop himself onto the award and put a copy of it on the wall next to his fake Time Man of the Year magazine covers in each of his golf course clubhouses.

I understand that he is working on a series of gilded crucifixes with himself nailed to the cross to sell to all his supporters if he loses the election. Naturally, they’ll be made in China.

[Alan Klein]

You guys are really getting obnoxious.   LuLa is starting to look disgusting like social media.

[Robert Roaldi]

This is an interesting short 20 min podcast on the US income tax code. It uses the story about Trump's low taxes as launch point into the subject and covers a number of topics. It shows why rich people might like Trump a lot and there's a discussion of that $73 million refund tax that is unprecedented in how long it has been under deliberation, https://www.npr.org/2020/09/30/918894535/trumps-tiny-taxes. One especially interesting bit is how the investigative and enforcement arm of the revenue service has had its budget consistently cut over the years. Always interesting to see where the priorities are when you're draining the swamp.

[Robert Roaldi]

You guys are really getting obnoxious.   LuLa is starting to look disgusting like social media.

I'm curious to hear your opinion of that take-down of the militia in Michigan that had apparently planned to kidnap the Governor. Since you have in the past expressed support of the 2nd amendment in part because you believe that the citizenry should be armed to protect itself from arbitrary government, I'd be curious to hear what you think of their planned action. That is, how do you arrive at the decision whether or not to support their action. When is an action a crime and when is it a legitimate action to protect freedoms? How can you tell.

[Robert Roaldi]

The topic has come up on these pages about citizen actions/riots and police response. There is a fascinating podcast on Radiolab (https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/articles/no-special-duty) about what in fact are the responsibilities of the police. Why do they exist and what are they for? I would have thought this would be obvious but turns out it isn't. I am not crazy about the too cute presentation style of the program but the content was a surprise, to me anyway.

[Alan Klein]

I'm curious to hear your opinion of that take-down of the militia in Michigan that had apparently planned to kidnap the Governor. Since you have in the past expressed support of the 2nd amendment in part because you believe that the citizenry should be armed to protect itself from arbitrary government, I'd be curious to hear what you think of their planned action. That is, how do you arrive at the decision whether or not to support their action. When is an action a crime and when is it a legitimate action to protect freedoms? How can you tell.

The second amendment doesn't give you the right to overthrow the government that's acting constitutionally.  It's there to allow an oppressed people to overthrow a dictator.  I don't think Gretchen is one. 

[faberryman]

Do you know what is really scary? Thinking about what Trump supporters are going to latch onto when Trump loses the election and their lives no longer have any meaning.

[chez]

The second amendment doesn't give you the right to overthrow the government that's acting constitutionally.  It's there to allow an oppressed people to overthrow a dictator.  I don't think Gretchen is one.

Is Trump a dictator?

[Alan Klein]

Do you know what is really scary? Thinking about what Trump supporters are going to latch onto when Trump loses the election and their lives no longer have any meaning.

Well, I can always fall back on photography. 

[Alan Klein]

Is Trump a dictator?

You ought to be careful.  He may come to get your guns.

[James Clark]

Is Trump a dictator?

No.