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Author Topic: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa  (Read 1300352 times)

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16880 on: March 24, 2025, 07:13:19 am »

A friend just informed me that he thinks he remembers that Musk may have been prescribed ketamine sometime in the past. I had not heard this before, so I'll retract part of my post above suggesting that he may be buying it from illegal dealers.
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Robert

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16881 on: March 24, 2025, 10:23:49 am »

My news paper reports a decrease in the tourist flow going to the US from Europe. One reason is the dislike of US policies at the moment and an othe, more practical, is the increased hassle many tourist get into when they try to enter the US. Some are held for days at the border without significant reason. The US isolates itself more and more and has become an unreliable partner; US-citizen will find out how well they were before Trump-II.

I keep hearing similar anecdotal evidence, hard to say how large the decrease in tourism actually is. The March break season will be over soon, we might get real data after that. There are plenty of Canadians who either own property or timeshares in the southern US and I doubt that they'd refrain from travelling as they need to get their money's worth. It would be interesting to find out if many of those properties are up for sale these days. With a downturn in the economy, winter migration to warm places was going to suffer anyway.
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Robert

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16882 on: March 25, 2025, 08:12:32 am »

Now this is funny. Arkansas has introduced legislation to ban gender non-conforming haircuts.

Blurb from the video "Republicans in the Arkansas state legislature have introduced legislation that would make it effectively illegal for hairdressers to give gender-based haircuts to people of the opposite gender. The bill would allow the hairdressers to be sued if the haircut given does not conform with the gender assigned to a person at birth. This is reminiscent of the government-approved haircuts in North Korea, and equally as oppressive. Ring of Fire’s Farron Cousins explains what’s happening."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pT6RJscGT10
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Robert

Rhossydd

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16883 on: March 25, 2025, 11:27:15 am »

"It’s over. America has ceased to be leader of the free world"

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/comment/2025/03/25/its-over-america-has-ceased-to-be-leader-of-the-free-world/

This 'make America great again' isn't going so well then ?

'The land of the free' as long as we approve of your hair style.

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Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16884 on: March 27, 2025, 09:31:35 pm »

Speaker of the House of Congress Michael Johnston would like to get rid of the courts that bother him, https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-house-speaker-johnson-says-congress-can-eliminate-district-courts-2025-03-25/. Well hell, who doesn't. He has stated in the past that he's guided in all things by the bible; I wonder where it says that it's ok to do that in the bible.

As for the war plans group chat on Signal thing from a couple of days ago, have you ever heard adults come up with so many different ways to say 'the dog ate my homework' ?
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Robert

Rob C

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16885 on: March 28, 2025, 08:46:01 am »

Speaker of the House of Congress Michael Johnston would like to get rid of the courts that bother him, https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-house-speaker-johnson-says-congress-can-eliminate-district-courts-2025-03-25/. Well hell, who doesn't. He has stated in the past that he's guided in all things by the bible; I wonder where it says that it's ok to do that in the bible.

As for the war plans group chat on Signal thing from a couple of days ago, have you ever heard adults come up with so many different ways to say 'the dog ate my homework' ?

Why be surprised? Post-truth ethics permits all things.

I have been listening to a series of old podcasts, based on photographic topics, where the guy who runs the podcast is worrying about the effects of Mr Trump being in charge; it will be interesting to hear what he has to say about this new term of office that the latter has won.

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16886 on: March 28, 2025, 01:38:46 pm »

Why be surprised? Post-truth ethics permits all things.

I have been listening to a series of old podcasts, based on photographic topics, where the guy who runs the podcast is worrying about the effects of Mr Trump being in charge; it will be interesting to hear what he has to say about this new term of office that the latter has won.

Speaking of podcasts, I'm becoming a fan of the UK podcast The Rest is Politics (https://www.youtube.com/@restispolitics/videos) with Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart.
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Robert

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16887 on: March 29, 2025, 09:25:24 am »

Top vaccine expert at FDA forced out, https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/03/28/nx-s1-5344010/fda-peter-marks-rfk-jr. In an exit message, he is critical of RFK Jr.

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Robert

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16888 on: March 29, 2025, 09:54:34 am »

This is an article about 3 Yale profs who left (are leaving) the USA, https://yaledailynews.com/blog/2025/03/27/three-prominent-yale-professors-depart-for-canadian-university-citing-trump-fears/. The one item that struck me was that Columbia Univ agreed to external oversight of their Middle East department.

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Robert

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16889 on: March 30, 2025, 07:28:44 am »

The latest video from Patrick Boyle (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AT7x31Jm9go) addresses the various issues plaguing Musk's businesses at the moment, including the administration's interference with agencies that were investigating his companies for various reasons. I knew that some Tesla has received loans/guarantees from the federal government but I didn't know how much it amounted to. What was very surprising is his assertion that Tesla has earned little or no real money for investors. It is all delivered in his usual style.
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Robert

Rob C

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16890 on: March 30, 2025, 11:17:55 am »

They will change the tax laws, introducing a new one making it possible to avoid all US taxation if you decide to live on a superyacht. I can already see a hold full of cash, gold and credit cards… bon voyage, and hello Monaco!

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16891 on: March 30, 2025, 01:13:21 pm »

They will change the tax laws, introducing a new one making it possible to avoid all US taxation if you decide to live on a superyacht. I can already see a hold full of cash, gold and credit cards… bon voyage, and hello Monaco!

There are reports (from WSJ, I think) that Hegseth brought his wife to security briefings for which she did not have clearance. She is (or was?) a FOX producer.

The thing is that if they don't enforce existing laws, there isn't much need to change them. :)

Musk has been destroying agencies that were investigating him, but what I have noticed is that there is not as much criticism of this as I would have expected. Maybe the oligarchs are taking the long view, i.e., this is a good precedent to establish.

I have also have not heard much criticism about Trump's effects on the stock market from the business class. They must be see something in it for them, or maybe they're worried that he might destroy them with an executive order if they complain too much. He doesn't seem to be above issuing edicts against private law firms who happen to have acted against him in the past.

Banana republic.
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Robert

Rob C

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16892 on: March 30, 2025, 05:24:21 pm »

Banana republic indeed! And now one that want's to expand northwards, and also to that big iceberg to the east. You both may yet end up as but another state…

However, there is an invisible elephant in all of this: who is out there in a position to compete with the incumbent? It would seem that the answer to that is nobody: as with the UK and Spain, all the choices, winners included, appear to be desperately poor ones.

marvpelkey

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16893 on: March 30, 2025, 05:41:22 pm »

Speaking of Musk, I recently watched a brief (can't watch too much of him, he gives me a tummy-ache) bit of him in an interview where he was whining (actually thought he was going to cry) about a politician (can't recall exactly who but it may have been Kamala's running mate) making fun of the downturn in Tesla business.

Musk was spouting stuff like "how rude" and "doesn't he have any feelings for the Tesla workers who may be out of a job because of this?"

......as he slashes and burns the lives of so many others....Wow.
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Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16894 on: March 31, 2025, 09:59:17 am »

Banana republic indeed! And now one that want's to expand northwards, and also to that big iceberg to the east. You both may yet end up as but another state…

However, there is an invisible elephant in all of this: who is out there in a position to compete with the incumbent? It would seem that the answer to that is nobody: as with the UK and Spain, all the choices, winners included, appear to be desperately poor ones.

The idea that the clowns who can't run their own country should take over others gives me a belly laugh.

A report came out yesterday that Musk used Air Force One to go bribe voters (sorry, offer his million dollar incentive) in Wisconsin. I think it's Wisconsin, might be somewhere else, too many stories to keep track of, they must be flooding the zone again. I'd throw my name in that hat no matter how I voted, get a chance at a cool million, why not. Have they found some way of only paying out if you vote GOP?

There's another report that Musk is consulting with Boeing to deliver the new Air Force One more rapidly, as the one has been delayed a bit. He made promises about a more timely delivery. Doesn't look good on Boeing, does it?

In a clip I saw online, out of context it must be said, Musk was upset that people were bad-mouthing Tesla, blaming villains who are spreading anti-Tesla propaganda. I thought he was a free speech "absolutist", let the ideas out there to compete in the free marketplace of ideas, I'm sure he said. Didn't he? I'm sure someone did.

Does anyone know why they originally intended to send Vance's wife to Greenland. I'm sure she's a nice lady but what's her foreign policy involvement.
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Robert

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16895 on: April 01, 2025, 03:37:14 pm »

Luckily, there is often a lighter side to the news. I enjoyed this story, https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-cia-director-blames-biden-235001985.html, where the Trump administration's CIA Director blames Biden for SignalGate. I think he should have blamed it on the Devil.
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Robert

Ray

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16896 on: April 01, 2025, 10:21:04 pm »

This April Fool's joke is hilarious.  ;D

"Washington, D.C. – President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order today renaming the Fahrenheit temperature scale “AmeriTemp.” “I did it, folks, it’s official”, straight from the White House."

“Europe’s metric system, total disaster,” Trump said at the signing. “Their climate scientists can’t even pick a name for temperature. Centigrade? Celsius? Who knows? They’re confused, weak. I’m fixing that with AmeriTemp—best name, strong, all-American. Done.”


https://iowaclimate.org/2025/04/01/trump-signs-executive-order-fahrenheit-now-ameritemp/
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Rhossydd

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16897 on: April 02, 2025, 04:24:47 am »

This April Fool's joke is hilarious.  ;D
Perfectly believable given the outrageous things he's already done.

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kers

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16898 on: April 03, 2025, 04:38:10 am »

Then this 2nd april's joke : tariffs on all countries including some artic regions ; islands without any inhabitants.
Including the Ukraine, but not Russia....
Camera manufacturers will increase their prices in the US unless they start manufacturing in the US and pay little to the future employees.
What cheap employees? The immigrants are all escorted out.

V.A.T. , 21% in the Netherlands, is seen as a tarif against the US althought everybody has to pay it also on Dutch goods.
Yes, we hardly import American cars... They are too big and consume too much gasoline - Tesla did well here, but not anymore...

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/03/donald-trump-tariffs-antarctica-uninhabited-heard-mcdonald-islands
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Rhossydd

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #16899 on: April 03, 2025, 06:02:10 am »

Camera manufacturers will increase their prices in the US unless they start manufacturing in the US and pay little to the future employees.
Can anyone see the likes of Nikon, Canon, Fuji etc setting up new factories in the USA ? Seems very unlikely to me and would take a long time too. It just means photo hardware is going to be a lot more expensive in the USA for a long time, that it turn will make some photo stores unviable and people will loose their jobs.
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V.A.T. , 21% in the Netherlands, is seen as a tarif against the US although everybody has to pay it also on Dutch goods.
That the USA administration can't understand that VAT is just a general sales tax applied to everything* regardless of country of origin. Surely US states also apply their own sales taxes, why the lack of comprehension ?
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Yes, we hardly import American cars... They are too big and consume too much gasoline - Tesla did well here, but not anymore...
No one here is suddenly going to change to poorly made US gas guzzlers.

There's going to be a lot of voter remorse as the Trump taxes on their own citizens work their way through to bite.

https://www.ft.com/content/e025d7e6-512d-4e82-9c25-7900b94ac153

*OK, there are a few exceptions for VAT like books, children's clothing, but not much.
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