are there really that many stupid people out there that believe " illegals are getting free health care" ??????? this trope is right up there with " caravans of criminals are coming ??????????
I don't know, man. Seems to me that Musk is a mass murderer and staying on Twitter to personally hand him money because "my words are so persuasive" is a moral hazard of the highest degree, combining the sins of pride and refusal to admit your actions have consequences on poor people, but what do I know, right? I'm sure we'll all be convincing Catturd 1488 of the error of his ways any day now. What has fascism done for him other than make him rich and famous and well-regarded? Yup, well worth lining Musk's pockets and burnishing the rep of his platform.
Look, I'm salty. Rape is apparently legal now if you wear an ICE uniform or vote Republican, and it may even be mandatory if you want to get ahead in the military. We all know the gender gap in voting. This is what men want for women. Not like I can move to a less sexist country, either, because it doesn't exist. And I understand that me mentioning this has forced 20 liberal men to join the MAGA party. Sorry about that, hopefully we'll make it up when birth control and marijuana are banned.
I'm surprised that Hegseth isn't encouraging all the troops to grow beards. That way, they can find any women that might be hiding in the ranks and throw them out. You never know.
NO. Eventually, grifters and felon's reveal what they want to take and never give. Decent people and there are more of them then the morons who follow the felon, will never give up defense of what this Country has always stood for.
The best way to show we are not divided and are ready to step up to resist, is to attend the next nationwide No Kings protest on October 18th. (nokings.org) Single day massive protests across the country get much more attention and will be much more impactful, than numerous, but scattered protests throughout the year. People with platforms, like the Bulwark, need to promote the event and its organizers/supporters in multiple ways to make it a really huge event. I hope you will be part of this effort. Politicians need to be doing likewise and both participate and promote the event in their networks. This is their time to step out of the shadows and be front and center. It will help us as citizens to see them lead and the politicians will be inspired to see the support they get. A real win/win.
There's something that's been missing from the commentary about the Quantico speeches. Everyone talks about "generals and admirals" but neglects the senior NCOs (the ones with all those stripes down their sleeves).
Officers rely on senior NCOs to know what's going on in the rank and file, and to exhibit to the biggest macho blowhards what it means to embody the values of the military every day.
I think Hegseth screwed up by inviting them, because they've all had to deal with arrogant junior officers placed in authority over them. They know how poisonous they can be. And they know exactly the limits of how to work around them.
I’m a veteran of the 82nd Airborne. I completed basic in 1978 and the drill sergeants never touched us. Hegseth’s training was the same. Was he not a “warrior”? We considered ourselves professional soldiers, not “warriors”. Where does he get this crap?
Yes, Dean, that's correct. But certainly intelligence is an objective part of good decision-making, while whatever the white-supremacists think should be a qualification for decision-making is not.
The ultimate irony is that draft dodger Trump - THE AGONY OF THE BONESPURS! - is now commander in chief, and a drunk Fox host Secretary of defense - scratch that - Secretary of War is Secretary of war. The general staff officers expressed their dissaproval in the appropriate way - silence. Trump is the greatest threat to our republic since the confederate rebellion. Impeach Remove Try and Convict.
Our best hope is that Trump's health fails. He breaks down, physically, mentally, or both. And it becomes too obvious for even his most devoted fans to ignore. He really did not look good in Quantico. His voice was weak, his eyes nearly closed, and his stance wobbly. His digression on the difficulty of walking down stairs was him saying it out loud.
I wake up every day and hope for the banner headline. Meantime we keep resisting, how and where we can.
You are correct, Bill. It has become clear that the people (the voters who determine who our elected leaders are) cannot rise to the occasion. Surely the 2024 election result proves that, even if you want to disagree with me that it became clear at least by the 2000 election. For decades now we have been encumbered by the lack of quality in our elected leaders, which is determined by the poor collective judgment of the electorate. Now that poor collective judgment means the end of liberal democracy (rule of law, etc.), more than likely permanently. There is one clear technical change that would have saved us from being in this position if we had taken it. That is simply to change the electorate. It has now been proven that the least intelligent of us can be convinced by bad actors (I'm looking at you, Rupert, as well as too many others to count) to vote en masse for the most incompetent and morally deficient of us. There is no reason to believe that allowing this unintelligent (or uneducated, high-school educated, unengaged, country-living, or any other partial euphemism for unintelligent) to continue to have the same say in who our elected leaders are that the quality of our leaders will improve. We need to have the more intelligent of us to have a greater say in determining our leaders if we wish to keep such an important (yet seemingly too complex for the other half to get their head around) concept as liberal democracy alive. That means to jettison this historically recent experiment of an electorate made up of one adult=one vote.
Terry Pratchett covered this one best, I think. "Vimes had once discussed the Ephebian idea of ‘democracy’ with Carrot and had been rather interested in the idea that everyone* had a vote until he found out that while he, Vimes, would have a vote, there was no way in the rules that anyone could prevent Nobby Nobbs from having one as well. Vimes could see the flaw there straight away."
Sorry, the People have almost always guessed better than the Ivy Leaguers. I'd trust a million Americans over 3 Ted Cruz's, that's for sure. The oligarchy results in Russia, every damn time. Do the People stink? Wooo-weee, we stink on ice. But we smell a lot rosier than governments by tiny groups of cliques.
While I am aware that there is a popular desire to believe your statement that "the People have almost always guessed better than the Ivy Leaguers" because we would like it to be true, I strongly suspect any quantitative research would find otherwise. Unfortunately, we live in a society where too many assumptions which we wish to be true are assumed to be true. Anyway, I never suggested education (being an Ivy Leaguer) as being the ultimate determiner of "intelligence". They're connected, but we have a better (yes, far from perfect) way of determining intelligence. IQ tests.
I agree that a large electorate has many advantages over a small one, for the very reason you don't want three "Ted Cruz's". But even if we cut our electorate in half, it is a very large electorate with a variety of views.
There has to be a definitive series of qualifications that require a passing grade to be able to run for office. Any job I ever applied for had requirements mandated to even have the chance to be hired. To run for public office? nothing. We are indeed paying the price for that.
Yes, Dean, that's correct. But certainly intelligence is an objective part of good decision-making, while whatever the white-supremacists think should be a qualification for decision-making is not.
Intelligence is not really objective. Testing for intelligence is, as has been shown, quite subjective. And as was shown in the south up until the voting rights act, the testing itself can be very unevenly applied.
What I think you're suggesting is a poor, semi literate person, who may have plenty of capacity to learn (a measure of intelligence) should be weeded out from voting until they learn whatever it is you think they should learn.
Intelligence is subjective? Perhaps I have an advantage at having been a teacher for most of my life. The differences that I saw there certainly made me realize that they are starker than one would think. That is what I thought I might have to argue. But completely subjective? I don't know where to go with that. And down south, Mississippi had an English literacy test, not an IQ test.
I'm also a teacher. How we measure intelligence is subjective. Also how we test for it. I won't get dragged into a technical argument on this. But there are varying types of "intelligence, " with varying utility. An electrician is intelligent enough to wire your house but might be ignorant of history
While, yes, there are various kinds of intelligence, but these are examples of knowledge. You're confusing intelligence with knowledge. A person of average to poor intelligence may learn the steps to take to be an electrician, just as a similar person can memorize history.
Our elites have determined that intelligence is measured by passing tests they designed to get into Harvard. You're going to have to come up with a more meritorious way to measure intelligence that doesn't actually measure wealth, and in America, that's a tough ask.
My guess is about 40% of the notoriously fickle American electorate will grab another beer and head for the couch to catch up on whatever drivel the mainstream media feeds them. Judge Young will probably join the unemployment line during the scheduled government shutdown which arrived as predicted by the Republicans. The silence of the Generals is matched by the Silence of the electorate-for different reasons. YMMV.
are there really that many stupid people out there that believe " illegals are getting free health care" ??????? this trope is right up there with " caravans of criminals are coming ??????????
He is correct. 😠😩
I don't know, man. Seems to me that Musk is a mass murderer and staying on Twitter to personally hand him money because "my words are so persuasive" is a moral hazard of the highest degree, combining the sins of pride and refusal to admit your actions have consequences on poor people, but what do I know, right? I'm sure we'll all be convincing Catturd 1488 of the error of his ways any day now. What has fascism done for him other than make him rich and famous and well-regarded? Yup, well worth lining Musk's pockets and burnishing the rep of his platform.
Look, I'm salty. Rape is apparently legal now if you wear an ICE uniform or vote Republican, and it may even be mandatory if you want to get ahead in the military. We all know the gender gap in voting. This is what men want for women. Not like I can move to a less sexist country, either, because it doesn't exist. And I understand that me mentioning this has forced 20 liberal men to join the MAGA party. Sorry about that, hopefully we'll make it up when birth control and marijuana are banned.
You can use a dartboard of liberal democracies around the world and hit a country less sexist than the U.S. in one throw.
I'm surprised that Hegseth isn't encouraging all the troops to grow beards. That way, they can find any women that might be hiding in the ranks and throw them out. You never know.
Enforced shaving is only being done to throw out Black soldiers due to folliculitis barbae.
The drunk Kegsbreath watched the film "Patton" too much. He would not make a pimple on Patton's ass.
NO. Eventually, grifters and felon's reveal what they want to take and never give. Decent people and there are more of them then the morons who follow the felon, will never give up defense of what this Country has always stood for.
You can lead a General to a lecture, but you can't make them applaud.
Find a way to connect the price of eggs and steak with free speech.
The best way to show we are not divided and are ready to step up to resist, is to attend the next nationwide No Kings protest on October 18th. (nokings.org) Single day massive protests across the country get much more attention and will be much more impactful, than numerous, but scattered protests throughout the year. People with platforms, like the Bulwark, need to promote the event and its organizers/supporters in multiple ways to make it a really huge event. I hope you will be part of this effort. Politicians need to be doing likewise and both participate and promote the event in their networks. This is their time to step out of the shadows and be front and center. It will help us as citizens to see them lead and the politicians will be inspired to see the support they get. A real win/win.
There's something that's been missing from the commentary about the Quantico speeches. Everyone talks about "generals and admirals" but neglects the senior NCOs (the ones with all those stripes down their sleeves).
Officers rely on senior NCOs to know what's going on in the rank and file, and to exhibit to the biggest macho blowhards what it means to embody the values of the military every day.
I think Hegseth screwed up by inviting them, because they've all had to deal with arrogant junior officers placed in authority over them. They know how poisonous they can be. And they know exactly the limits of how to work around them.
I’m a veteran of the 82nd Airborne. I completed basic in 1978 and the drill sergeants never touched us. Hegseth’s training was the same. Was he not a “warrior”? We considered ourselves professional soldiers, not “warriors”. Where does he get this crap?
He's a TV phony. The worst poser I have ever seen. He is a disgrace.
Yes, Dean, that's correct. But certainly intelligence is an objective part of good decision-making, while whatever the white-supremacists think should be a qualification for decision-making is not.
The ultimate irony is that draft dodger Trump - THE AGONY OF THE BONESPURS! - is now commander in chief, and a drunk Fox host Secretary of defense - scratch that - Secretary of War is Secretary of war. The general staff officers expressed their dissaproval in the appropriate way - silence. Trump is the greatest threat to our republic since the confederate rebellion. Impeach Remove Try and Convict.
Well said.
Our best hope is that Trump's health fails. He breaks down, physically, mentally, or both. And it becomes too obvious for even his most devoted fans to ignore. He really did not look good in Quantico. His voice was weak, his eyes nearly closed, and his stance wobbly. His digression on the difficulty of walking down stairs was him saying it out loud.
I wake up every day and hope for the banner headline. Meantime we keep resisting, how and where we can.
Great comment and I feel the same way. Waiting to hear he stroked out.
You are correct, Bill. It has become clear that the people (the voters who determine who our elected leaders are) cannot rise to the occasion. Surely the 2024 election result proves that, even if you want to disagree with me that it became clear at least by the 2000 election. For decades now we have been encumbered by the lack of quality in our elected leaders, which is determined by the poor collective judgment of the electorate. Now that poor collective judgment means the end of liberal democracy (rule of law, etc.), more than likely permanently. There is one clear technical change that would have saved us from being in this position if we had taken it. That is simply to change the electorate. It has now been proven that the least intelligent of us can be convinced by bad actors (I'm looking at you, Rupert, as well as too many others to count) to vote en masse for the most incompetent and morally deficient of us. There is no reason to believe that allowing this unintelligent (or uneducated, high-school educated, unengaged, country-living, or any other partial euphemism for unintelligent) to continue to have the same say in who our elected leaders are that the quality of our leaders will improve. We need to have the more intelligent of us to have a greater say in determining our leaders if we wish to keep such an important (yet seemingly too complex for the other half to get their head around) concept as liberal democracy alive. That means to jettison this historically recent experiment of an electorate made up of one adult=one vote.
Terry Pratchett covered this one best, I think. "Vimes had once discussed the Ephebian idea of ‘democracy’ with Carrot and had been rather interested in the idea that everyone* had a vote until he found out that while he, Vimes, would have a vote, there was no way in the rules that anyone could prevent Nobby Nobbs from having one as well. Vimes could see the flaw there straight away."
Sorry, the People have almost always guessed better than the Ivy Leaguers. I'd trust a million Americans over 3 Ted Cruz's, that's for sure. The oligarchy results in Russia, every damn time. Do the People stink? Wooo-weee, we stink on ice. But we smell a lot rosier than governments by tiny groups of cliques.
While I am aware that there is a popular desire to believe your statement that "the People have almost always guessed better than the Ivy Leaguers" because we would like it to be true, I strongly suspect any quantitative research would find otherwise. Unfortunately, we live in a society where too many assumptions which we wish to be true are assumed to be true. Anyway, I never suggested education (being an Ivy Leaguer) as being the ultimate determiner of "intelligence". They're connected, but we have a better (yes, far from perfect) way of determining intelligence. IQ tests.
I agree that a large electorate has many advantages over a small one, for the very reason you don't want three "Ted Cruz's". But even if we cut our electorate in half, it is a very large electorate with a variety of views.
There has to be a definitive series of qualifications that require a passing grade to be able to run for office. Any job I ever applied for had requirements mandated to even have the chance to be hired. To run for public office? nothing. We are indeed paying the price for that.
I perceive this as a viable alternative to making adjustments to the electorate.
The white supremacists are totally with you on this, but they might have a different idea about who qualifies to vote.
Yes, Dean, that's correct. But certainly intelligence is an objective part of good decision-making, while whatever the white-supremacists think should be a qualification for decision-making is not.
Intelligence is not really objective. Testing for intelligence is, as has been shown, quite subjective. And as was shown in the south up until the voting rights act, the testing itself can be very unevenly applied.
What I think you're suggesting is a poor, semi literate person, who may have plenty of capacity to learn (a measure of intelligence) should be weeded out from voting until they learn whatever it is you think they should learn.
Intelligence is subjective? Perhaps I have an advantage at having been a teacher for most of my life. The differences that I saw there certainly made me realize that they are starker than one would think. That is what I thought I might have to argue. But completely subjective? I don't know where to go with that. And down south, Mississippi had an English literacy test, not an IQ test.
I'm also a teacher. How we measure intelligence is subjective. Also how we test for it. I won't get dragged into a technical argument on this. But there are varying types of "intelligence, " with varying utility. An electrician is intelligent enough to wire your house but might be ignorant of history
While, yes, there are various kinds of intelligence, but these are examples of knowledge. You're confusing intelligence with knowledge. A person of average to poor intelligence may learn the steps to take to be an electrician, just as a similar person can memorize history.
Our elites have determined that intelligence is measured by passing tests they designed to get into Harvard. You're going to have to come up with a more meritorious way to measure intelligence that doesn't actually measure wealth, and in America, that's a tough ask.
IQ tests.
My guess is about 40% of the notoriously fickle American electorate will grab another beer and head for the couch to catch up on whatever drivel the mainstream media feeds them. Judge Young will probably join the unemployment line during the scheduled government shutdown which arrived as predicted by the Republicans. The silence of the Generals is matched by the Silence of the electorate-for different reasons. YMMV.