tangogriz

I hate that about your former commander and I'm sorry that you had a brother like Trump. I'm sure it was difficult. Trump and the wingnuts are making moves in the courts and among extremists to hijack a fair election. For them, defeating the "mASSES" overrules the Constitution. I tried to steer your question to healthcare because its a healthcare issue. You never answered my earlier question, one that, with the latest developments in the courts is pretty important. Is it OK for Trump to use the virus to keep control of the country? Before this is over Trump will be responsible for many thousands of deaths of the gullible who believe him and the chain of others they infect. We could have smothered the virus early if we had a leader not a narcissist. Trump confronts the virus like he does Putin, with cowardice. Leverage explains Putin. Does incompetence explain the virus? The other option is corruption. It would be important to know when Trump decided to encourage folks not to wear masks. Just imagine if early on we had worn masks and the admistration had flooded the country with funds for PPE and armies of contact tracers. Why are some judges, including the Republicans on the Supreme Court, ignoring the virus and helping Trump. They're going to limit the vote counting while Trump's lackey running the Post Office slow walks the mail-in ballots. Trump has encouraged his folks to vote in person. He knows that Democrats will ignore his lies, act responsibly and vote by mail. This helps the wingnuts because a large number of folks from both parties make technical errors on the ballots. And because there will be a lot more Democrats using the mail, there will be a lot more Democratic votes discarded. Trump has been lying about voting by mail for how long, about as long as he's been lying about the virus. Doesn't this qualify as evil? Won't people die? Trump lied about the tax cuts. He lied about having a healthcare plan. He lied about showing his taxes (which would demonstrate his independence from outside pressure.) He is obviously making lots of money from foreigners (which is expressly forbidden in the Constitution.) Every time he speaks there is a long list of things that he lied about. If he wasn't President he would have several prosecutions against him. Our world leadership wanes every day he darkens the Whitehouse. His courtship of white thugs clubs is vomit worthy. It's equalled though by his slavery to Putin. Many of the folks who used to work for him say now that he is unfit to serve. (Before Trump this was unimagineable.) Its too nauseating to continue. Father Pat, you know about narcissists. How can you abide this Conman and Thief as our leader? TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

I am so happy. In cruising YOUTUBE I find that Oberman is back. The "subsequent" Worst Person In The World can be named. "Trump can not even get buying votes done correctly." Keith, you are the man. I will be grinning for the next hour.

The healthcare debate is an example of the right-left debate on many issues. Covid testing is just one example, and I assume its going on now, but early on the same test could cost $80 or $1000 depending on circumstances. That's why some call the current healthcare system the "wild west." I have a conservative friend whose whole political outlook may have changed because of a close encounter with the profiteering in the healthcare system. Trump ran in 2016 on a platform of replacing Obamacare. For his first 2 years he had complete control of both houses of Congress. What happened? Why couldn't he replace it with his undefined, mysterious better system. Maybe you hate the Clintons, lots of folks do, but beginning with Hillary's time as First Lady and then through to Obama, many of the best and the brightest tried to devise a system that would cover everyone equally. That's the test. How do you economically cover pre-existing conditions? Most of these folks didn't spend an adult lifetime smoking or over-eating. They lost the DNA lottery. Here Trump lies. The entire Republican party lies. If they had a realistic solution, it would be all over the news. Its like Covid, their plan results in many deaths. They have weighed the deaths against the profits and find it acceptable. Let's look at the numbers. Let's see who wins. And let's see who loses. It ain't the upper 1 percenters that's for sure. The earth is a spaceship governed by realistic, scientific laws. Its not a magic kingdom where those who follow the realm will get absolution for their sins, and thats true no matter how many Catholics sit on the Supreme Court. I don't think progressives are talking about a revolution. Let's think a little further down the road. What does it mean to tweak the system to cover the DNA disadvantaged? Is it false utopian thinking to incentivize a system that values individuals? TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

About that cash, I believe I read that he got it the way most wealthy folks get their money, inheritance. Here is a quick look at wingnuts with guns. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/nov/15/the-gun-numbers-just-3-of-american-adults-own-a-collective-133m-firearms

Those are very interesting questions. What did I do to deserve such mistreatment? I can't post personal info when many of my posts insult the thugs that live in my part of the country. I don't get paid enough. I believe that you are a sincere person, so my first reaction is to ask myself, "Oh, s***t, what have I done?" On the other hand, I assume this ties in with progressive versus conservative issues, ie. the "mommy state" Obamacare versus the current "wild west" healthcare system. Be well.

They should have worn a mask. We're gonna hear some good ones up to the election.

And General John Kelly, who worked closely with Trump as his Chief of Staff for 2 years, has told friends: "The depths of his dishonesty is just astounding to me. The dishonesty, the transactional nature of every relationship, though it's more pathetic than anything else. He is the most flawed person I have ever met in my life." TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

I know that folks are concerned about corruption, so give a listen to some of the Democratic Senators at the Coney Barrett hearing. The big money is on the handmaid, so they are talking about the money and not so much about her clumsy evasions. Here is an example from Rhode Island Senator Whitehouse: Big polluters and other special interests are taking over US courts because wingnuts have made a deal with the devil. (Ok, Whitehouse didn't talk about the "devil.") In order for the wingnuts to get their social issues: get rid of Obama Care, get rid of a woman's right to an abortion, get rid of a gay's right to marry they have joined forces with the dark money folks. During the Chief Justice Roberts era, there were 80 cases about special interest power. They align with these catagories: 1. Unlimited dark money in politics 2. Diminish the use of the civil jury 3. Weaken regulatory agencies 4. Ignore voter suppression and extreme gerrymandering by states The record on these cases is 80 to 0. The wingnuts won them all with a 5 to 4 vote where the 5 were always Republican judges. Coney Barrett has lied about her public statements to cause Trump to choose her. She has hidden her involvement in extreme wingnut groups or causes. If the wingnuts use the courts to move on these issues, don't be surprized if the Supreme Court is expanded to 11 members who have a defined number of years to serve. The Senate wingnuts refused Obama's moderate judge a hearing for 10 months. They refused to investigate credible charges against Kavanaugh, and now this unprecedented, hypocritical Coney Barrett rush. If the Supreme Court is changed, it will be the wingnuts who have caused it. TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

I remember those guys. Its interesting how that article covers some of the intersections of Trump and Buchanan, ie The Central Park 5. I didn't realize that Buchanan called for lynching one of those innocent boys. Atwater, who died from a brain tumor, apologized for some of his dirty deeds in helping to get Republicans elected. I think Buchanan ran for President like 50 times. I used to watch The McLaughlin Group. He was a regular. I don't think you have to know the show to find it funny but here's one of the best ever SNL spoofs of a TV show. TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

I assume that you don't vote... except for school board or something else where folks don't declare parties. Its like saying you refuse to use money and will only honor the barter system. There are many problems with the party system but that's how humans get things done. Without parties there would be chaos. My guess is that you do vote and its for Republicans. If it makes you feel better to believe that folks who vote Democrat don't think about the issues, go right ahead. We understand. I don't know what BLM family policy you talk about because it is way out there on the fringe and doesn't deserve serious discussion. Why can't Trump give a heavy-duty, hardcore condemnation of the white thug clubs? Many of your arguments are kinda like the President's deflections. For instance, on the Charlottesville violence, reporters ask him to denounce the Nazis and the murderer so Trump starts talking about all the fine racists, er I mean people, that were there just to protest the statue removals. Briefly he mentioned that Nazis and murder are bad. Its gotten worse. He doesn't want to offend the thugs, because he wants their help. Right now, right here, there is imminent danger from gangs of white supremisists. That is mainly caused by Trump's encouragement. I know folks with your opinions. The facts are right in front of them but they have some explanation that depends on a self contradictory belief system: the intel agencies are good but they all got it wrong on the Russia Hoax, the FBI is good but they've got it backassward on the kidnapping plot. The answer to the abortion issue is in your statement. Even now in the 21st century, wingnuts are fighting against birth control education and family planning. If wingnuts honestly wanted to greatly reduce abortions they would favor full funding for early education and free or low cost birth control options. They don't, because the policy is set by the religious institution. Its not a values issue. Its a population issue. Religions are still running the ancient population race. There are billions of humans that follow the 3 universal religions because over time those religions were the best at aquiring new members. Children are the easiest means so usually they oppose policies that reduce the birth rate. The big 3 got there by, on some issues, favoring rules that put the growth of the institution above the well-being of its individual members. The proof is that wingnuts do not place a high voting prority on policies to improve the environment of children in poverty. They don't strongly oppose mistreatment of kids at our southern border. They didn't protest Trump's treachery in leaving Kurdish families with children running for their lives. We are not going to war with China so we have to fight that terrible system by getting together with other countries to pressure them when and where we can. It should be obvious by now that Trump has no grand plan against China. Its a moment-by-moment policy dictated by politics not principle. Whipping up on China diverts attention from Russia. Trump kisses Putin's backside while Russia does what you list for China. Russia harms its citizens, bullies and invades its neighbors, assassinates opponents, attacks our elections and undermines our world leadership. It seems to me that you should be arguing to get all American businesses out of China. You are not. There is no going back. We are too heavily invested in each other. China is the long term threat but Russia is threatening now. For the wealthy, the stated income tax rate is not the actual rate paid because of the bus load of loop holes. Now its worse with Bozo driving the bus. Even so, we will eventially see Bozo's finances. If Republicans cared more about the country than they do about winning, before he became the nominee, they would have forced Bozo to disclose like everyone else. Its smart politics for Biden not to take a stand on the packing-the-court issue. It puts pressure on the 2-faced Republicans. You should be upset that Trump's last appointment was a serial sexual predator as a young man and this next one has been hiding her "Handmaid" mentality. I fear most the greedy. There are some folks who want everything that they can get their hands on. I used to fear a great crash caused by greed like the one at the end of the Bush administration. Well, we printed money like crazy and made it through what could have been another Great Depression. Now, my greatest fear for this country is a totalitarian takeover like the one being plotted in the Whitehouse right now. TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

Sorry to butt in, but let me get this straight. You think that these guys are left wingers who have done a setup operation against white nationalists and that the conservative FBI and Trump-owned Justice Department have been dupped?

I own a handgun. I don't think its just wingnuts who are now worried about the future. America has a serious problem. Extremist militia members swim in a vast ocean of standardized wingnut hate speech. Politicos have always insulted each other, but Newt Gingrich made it part of the Republican standard operating procedure. Gingrich was the Speaker of the US House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. Beginning in the 1980s, he sent out papers and tapes instructing fellow wingnuts how to label Democrats. According to one of Newt’s GOPAC documents sent to Republican members of Congress, wingnuts should use these words: "decay, failure (fail) collapse(ing) deeper, crisis, urgent(cy), destructive, destroy, sick, pathetic, lie, liberal, they/them, unionized bureaucracy, "compassion" is not enough, betray, consequences, limit(s), shallow, traitors, sensationalists, endanger, coercion, hypocricy, radical, threaten, devour, waste, corruption, incompetent, permissive attitude, destructive, impose, self-serving, greed, ideological, insecure, anti-(issue): flag, family, child, jobs; pessimistic, excuses, intolerant, stagnation, welfare, corrupt, selfish, insensitive, status quo, mandate(s) taxes, spend (ing) shame, disgrace, punish (poor...) bizarre, cynicism, cheat, steal, abuse of power, machine, bosses, obsolete, criminal rights, red tape, patronage." These are 30 year old, poll-generated words for a standard script. They are everywhere now. And yet wingnuts say that Democrats are hatemongers. Weak-minded, wingnut, junior militiamen grow up hearing Democrats called "destructive", "sick", "pathetic" "traitors." And the've heard it over and over again because of the mountain of media and money behind bend-over-for-big-business conservatives. There's an entire generation of Americans who take it for granted that Democrats are anti-family, anti-child and anti-jobs. Its just another con job so that the current crop of upper-1-percenters can divert attention while they gorge and grab whatever's not nailed down. Its ironic that militiamen believe they are soldiers protecting the country, but in reality they are brain-washed, diversionary pawns that cover for gluttons like Trump who fatten on their labor. Just look at what Trump did on taxes. He promised a middle-class tax cut and promised that he and the rich would not profit. What happened? The middle-class got a small cut while the upper-1-percenters got a massive cut and corporations got big breaks. Wingnut media leads their followers to fear that Democrats bring the new world order. Wake up wingnuts. You are adding to the power of the thing you dread. Religious fundamentalist may soon have control of the Supreme Court. Wingnuts may think thats a good thing but those fundamentalists are indebted to a corporate power structure. Already, the court has ruled that corporations under the law are, in political payout ways, the same as people. Along with other rulings this allows unlimited, hidden, corporate political donations. Do you wingnuts see how this can turn against you? Universal religions and global corporations _are_ the seas in which the wingnuts swim. There's still some clean air above. TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

No, they are asking you where you got those numbers because they only make sense if you are talking about movie stars and such. The ultra-rich are Republicans. Do you doubt that? At best, your criticisms apply to both parties. Many in the Trump administration and orbit have fallen from profiteering so I can't understand why you would use that as an argument in favor of Trump. Look at the resumes of his cabinet. Many of them have made careers based on profitting from the areas that they are now supposed to regulate. I'm sure that they will go on to even bigger pay checks from those they have "regulated." Hey, but don't worry, like Trump said in the debate, he is fighting to keep our air clean and our water pure. Its not new with Trump. Thats the way of the wingnut. TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

Darn it. Trump asked them to stay back and stand ready. Now who's gonna intimidate the vote counters? TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.

I was working and couldn't catch all the VP debate, but I caught enough to know that I don't want to watch any replays. Among all the lies, what bothered me the most came near the end when Pence attacked our Intel agencies' findings about the Russian work on behalf of Trump in the 2016 election. The cowardly snake waited until the end of the debate when there was no time for rebuttal. This is the wingnut version of school kids getting caught redhanded and yelling "I didn't do it, they did." It's Russian propaganda that all of our Intel agencies (and the Republican led Senate Intel committee) are wrong. The wingnuts say that the Russians didn't help Trump, Hillary made up the whole thing. It doesn't matter how stupid it sounds, wingnuts will believe anything. (Wake up wingnuts. The Mueller Report proves obstruction beyond a doubt. It shows several instances of collusion but did not did not follow the evidence because they believed that they could not prosecute a President. Barr covered up the evidence in the report. And Mueller did not follow the money trail, which was the reason for the collusion. It may take a while but we will find out why Trump kisses Putin's backside.) Wingnut media needs something to spew out on the airwaves. For years the "Russian Hoax" propaganda has had many White Knights on the horizon. All have failed. Investigations have failed. Wingnuts refused to look, but they were given a view of the truth from the Republican-led Senate Intel committee report. It supported all the Intel agencies' findings that RUSSIANS HELPED TRUMP. Wingnut Attorney General Barr appointed Connecticut US Attorney Durham as the last White Knight. He was supposed to indict all those Intel turncoats as well as Hillary, Obama and Biden. Wingnut media have been talking this trash for years. Surely this one last chance would show that they are not lying propagandists. Uh oh, even conservative Durham won't lie for them, so they've gone to plan, lets see A B C D E, probably plan F, and started quoting some anonymous Russian proganda as though it was fact. This bs is really weak. And it's really deceptive the way Pence presented it. TAKE MY GRANNY, NOT MY FREEDOM.