US Politics Thread 2016-2020

[u crank]

Originally Posted by Onkel Neal

Joe Walsh announces Republican primary challenge against Trump

Crossing my fingers

I always liked Joe. Hell of a guitar player.

[Rockstar]

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by u crank

I always liked Joe. Hell of a guitar player.

Very much doubt he will succeed though.

[vienna]

Originally Posted by Onkel Neal

Joe Walsh announces Republican primary challenge against Trump

Crossing my fingers

I'd kind of like to see Paul Ryan toss his hat into the ring, although I don't think he is much inclined to do so...

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

Very much doubt he will succeed though.

Maybe not, but, in his usual condition, he wouldn't much really care...







<O>

[Skybird]

There is a stupid big boss man in Bolivia who encourages the destruction of the rain forest. There is a stupid big boss man in Brazil who encourages and allows the destruction of the rain forest. There are incompetent big boss men in Russia allowing the Siberian Tundra forests burning as bad as never before. And now there is a stupid big boss man in America who wants to allow the cutting of protected forests in Alaska.

Maybe we really should start cutting stupid big boss men before we get cut by their arrogance and ignorrance.

[Buddahaid]

[Onkel Neal]

Originally Posted by vienna

I'd kind of like to see Paul Ryan toss his hat into the ring, although I don't think he is much inclined to do so...

I kinda liked Ryan, his long standing aim of keeping America fiscally sound, supporting the working spirit, "shrinking the federal government by eliminating federal government departments, spending cuts, and restructuring entitlement spending". I think that's the attitude necessary to continue our prosperity.

I didn't think much of how he crumbled before Trump, though. But if he was to launch a campaign to beat Trump, I would support him wholeheartedly.

[vienna]

Originally Posted by Onkel Neal

I kinda liked Ryan, his long standing aim of keeping America fiscally sound, supporting the working spirit, "shrinking the federal government by eliminating federal government departments, spending cuts, and restructuring entitlement spending". I think that's the attitude necessary to continue our prosperity.

I didn't think much of how he crumbled before Trump, though. But if he was to launch a campaign to beat Trump, I would support him wholeheartedly.

I think the 'crumbling' was less about being cowed by Trump and more about trying to walk a very fine edge: trying to manage and control the House, preventing the GOP in Congress totally going down the tubes following SS Trumptanic to the bottom compounded with the normal duties and responsibilities of House Speaker; it was a damn shame not enough of the House GOP (or the GOP Party, in general) was willing to back his play to counteract the destructiveness of Trump; Ryan was pretty much on his own and I think he knew the great debacle that was the loss of the House by the GOP was coming. He bowed out rather than be burdened with a further, unneeded and unwanted, leadership role in a minority party House delegation. He took a whole lot of hits trying to keep at least some sense of order and dignity in the GOP House and I think anyone who had to endure such a beating has to, at some point, decide if being the sole, high profile target with no upside is/was worth it. His leaving the House was not so much an acknowledgement of some personal defeat, but, rather, a testament to just how screwed up the GOP has become under Trump; and it doesn't look like its going to get any better: if Trump tanks the economy with his simple-minded, childish 'policies', the voters are going to not only turn on Trump, they're going to take out their frustrations on those who failed to rein him in; and it looks like, once again, a good number of GOP House members are bailing as they did before the 2016 mid-terms. I haven't seen the latest count, but there were at least a dozen GOP House members who have announced they are retiring or otherwise not running for reelection in 2020; and the Senate GOP is not fairing much better: three (3) GOP Senators have announced retirement versus one (1) DEM Senator. Since the GOP is only three Senators over the mid point of majority (50 members) and given the brutal uphill slog experienced by GOP Senate and House candidates in 2018, when conditions were arguably better than the current situation, and a lot better than what may be coming, the possibility of DEMs controlling both the Senate and the House is getting even more likely. If you think Trump is in deep guano with the GOP holding only one side of Congress, imagine what his condition, and the GOP's, will be if they lose all legislative control; of course, if Trump does run into that 2020 iceberg, and a DEM President takes the Oval Office, the GOP will really be screwed and they will have no one to blame bur themselves for backing such a jackass as Trump...


I'd really like to see Ryan run; I'd vote for him and I think a lot of other Independents would, also. Hell, maybe even not a few dissatisfied DEM voters might sign on...










<O>

[ikalugin]

@skybird

There are no forests in Tundra, very few trees survive there, you may be confusing it with Taiga. As to forest fires in Brazil, they are less severe this year than in the years before.

Ecology wise, Putin is actually pro Paris treaty from what I recall and one of his most trusted advisors went to run ecology department of administration. While this process was not without **** ups such as how the garbage reform is going or how illegal forest cutting and sales to China are still happening overall it is getting better.

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by ikalugin

@skybird

There are no forests in Tundra, very few trees survive there, you may be confusing it with Taiga. As to forest fires in Brazil, they are less severe this year than in the years before.

Ecology wise, Putin is actually pro Paris treaty from what I recall and one of his most trusted advisors went to run ecology department of administration. While this process was not without **** ups such as how the garbage reform is going or how illegal forest cutting and sales to China are still happening overall it is getting better.

While you are right with Tundra versus Taiga, I mistook it, pretty much everybody opposes what else you said. The fires there are in Russia currently, are amongst the worst ever in the region. The fires in the rai forests that cover not just Brazil, but also its nighbourign states and were actively suppported by Bolivia's big boss man, are mostly small if taken one by one, but go into the tens of thosjands, and that is what makes this one of the biggest fire desaster seasons in South Americna history and makes it so difficult to fight against.


I wuld not trust Putin having singed a paper if later he finds that said paper stands in his interests' ways. The Kremlin knew early of the fires going out of contrpl this year - and did not intervene. Their is strong reason to assume that local governors could not ignore it this long without consent by the Kremlin. And it shard to not be aware of the scale of the fires.


Lets not white-.wash these things and make them appear as less than what they are. The scale of these desasters ranges amongst the biggest desasters of this type in decades.

[ikalugin]

We shouldn't black wash them so to speak either.


And you can look the statistics for fires in Brazil over the years, they were worse under the previous (more left leaning?) government.

 

You can verify this data independently.


Same applies elsewhere - forest fires are not the problem, their reporting is just means to ends.

[Jimbuna]

What is being reported though is that the largest numbers ever (approx. 90%) are deliberately started and man-made.

[ikalugin]

As to Putin - he is modestly pro-ecology in a number of aspects, but currently air and garbage polution are the core concerns for the public it seems. This in turn lead to the garbage reform where the garbage disposal was transfered from local organised crime to the Russian megacorporation - Rostech.


And even though Rostech is not doing as well as one would have hoped considering that they are getting budget funding for this stuff, this still allowed for a number of small grass roots ventures to appear in the area of sorting and recycling for example.

[Bera]

Originally Posted by ikalugin

We shouldn't black wash them so to speak either.


And you can look the statistics for fires in Brazil over the years, they were worse under the previous (more left leaning?) government.

 

You can verify this data independently.


Same applies elsewhere - forest fires are not the problem, their reporting is just means to ends.

Hi! I´m from Brazil and this data is not right.


According to INPE - the brazilian Institute of Space Research, a governmental branch - on this month of august alone there were 23.677 fire focus points. Last year, there were 10.421. So we have a historic record.



Even though I speak a little Russian, I´m not aware of Vladimir Putin´s speech about environmental issues. But our President, Jair Bolsonaro, is dumb and completely idiot. His hate speeches seems to literally fan the flames. Here´s some examples:



"You just need to eat less. You talk to me about pollution. You just need to poop on alternate days, it would surely improve our life."


"[enveronmental issues] are only for vegans who don´t eat meat"


And one last thing: Bolsonaro fired INPE´s former director because he didn´t agree with the official data.

[Mr Quatro]

Welcome back Brea

"You just need to eat less. You talk to me about pollution. You just need to poop on alternate days, it would surely improve our life."

Now that is dumb ... I've heard of the slash and burn farmers that make a living off of farms, bu this goes way beyond a few farmers.

I wonder how long it will take for the world to see that these fires have caused irreparable damage?