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[Oblivion]

Almost 27 myself, and my understanding is thus:

Gingrich is basically the father of this current flavor of strong arm/no compromise politics, and abusing procedure to try to get his way anyway he can. Gingrich is also as far back as I can go in personal experience without resorting to history books.

Yup, I'd say you're correct regarding the Newtster. It was really he that shaped the Republican Party into what it is today. He's the one who decided that the Republicans would never agree to compromise on anything, and get everything from Clinton while producing nothing in return. As bad as Reagan was, at least he was able to work with Democrats and pass things Republicans didn't like.

 

[Coriolanus]

That sounds a bit too much like selective memory. There were, after all, liberal-leaning policies approved during the W. years, no? I do recall benji mentioning quite a few of them often. Were they forced through thanks to a democratic majority in both houses?

(also wtf happened to benji?)

Appears far more likely that whatever gave rise to the Tea Party is the gift that keeps on giving as far as the current intransigence is concerned.... aaaand a quick wiki check shows that, outside of some early outings in 2005 and 2007, the movement picked up steam in 2009.

Welp.

Seems more like a RuPaul thing that got co-opted tbh.

 

[NeoXChaos]

David Boren(D) former senator from Oklahoma and current Oklahoma University President senate exit statement May 14, 1994:

Today's Senate is not the body I joined 16 years ago. Partisanship is much stronger. Today, senators of different parties go into one another's states and campaign against one another, violating an old tradition and making it almost impossible to put party politics aside to work together in the national interest.

Too much time has to be spent raising money for campaigns instead of working on critical problems. The Senate has become a fragmented set of individual empires and political fiefdoms, with almost 300 committees and subcommittees. The average senator serves on 12 different panels. No wonder there is so much reliance on a cumbersome bureaucracy.

and this is still the case 20 years later but much worse. The 1990s seems to have been the turning point.

 

[Oblivion]

That sounds a bit too much like selective memory. There were, after all, liberal-leaning policies approved during the W. years, no? I do recall benji mentioning quite a few of them often. Were they forced through thanks to a democratic majority in both houses?

You talking to me? There were indeed a decent amount of liberal bills signed into law during Bush's reign, even before the Dems took control of congress. Which is why I left it out.

 

[HylianTom]

David Boren(D) former senator from Oklahoma and current Oklahoma University President senate exit statement May 14, 1994:

and this is still the case 20 years later but much worse. The 1990s seems to have been the turning point.

I could see how the 1990s changed things a bit. The Democrats were suddenly competitive for the White House after quite a long dry spell, and the Republicans were suddenly competitive in the House of Reps after being locked-out for decades. The old stability was upended in that decade.

Anecdotally, I do remember that Republican hopes were craaaazy-high after that 1994 election. Both on TV and among Republican family/friends, I remember them being convinced that Clinton was doomed to Jimmy Carter's fate of one flukey term, that they'd keep the House, that the Senate would be theirs, etc etc. They were looking forward to a wide, appealing field of candidates for '96 - surely someone would arise from that crowd and win, right? - and then that second term happened.

After that, along with the Internet blowing-up, media segmentation got more and more pronounced. Now almost everyone comes armed with their own facts and their own built universe. And I don't know how this gets reversed.

 

[B-Dubs]

After that, along with the Internet blowing-up, media segmentation got more and more pronounced. Now almost everyone comes armed with their own facts and their own built universe. And I don't know how this gets reversed.

The only way is for the bubble to be popped. FOX needs to do something so blatantly illegal that it gets them thrown off the air, never to return. Or something like that, where they get a story so wrong that not even they can spin it and it destroys all trust.

As far as the rest of the segmentation goes, all it did was give conspiracy theorists a platform. As time passes and people grow more used to the internet and this fact, it'll start getting less crazy. I'm talking a couple of generations down the line, like maybe our kids have a chance.

 

[JesseEwiak]

They've never been this crazy, unless you wanna dial it back to 1920-something.

You know it's bad when Republicans (who are still voting that way) are too embarrassed to identify as one when being polled and so they pollute the "Independent" stat.

I've said it before, but it's pretty simple. The worst thing for the institutional powers of the GOP was the Internet.

It used to be, you could talk about the evils of those socialist Democrat's, and then go make a deal with Tip O'Neill to get a nice government contract in your district, and since nobody knows who controls Congress (seriously, look at polling - people don't know anything), they just blamed the Democrats for the bill passing.

But now, not only can you, as the crazy person who rants to your neighbors and friends about the evils of Communism, you can find lots and lots of people on the Internet who agree with you. Throw in FOX News hyping insane non-stories, and there ya' go.

After twenty years, what has happened, is all the people who used to be good at playing crazy have been replaced with actual crazies.

 

[Poodlestrike]

I could see how the 1990s changed things a bit. The Democrats were suddenly competitive for the White House after quite a long dry spell, and the Republicans were suddenly competitive in the House of Reps after being locked-out for decades. The old stability was upended in that decade.

Anecdotally, I do remember that Republican hopes were craaaazy-high after that 1994 election. Both on TV and among Republican family/friends, I remember them being convinced that Clinton was doomed to Jimmy Carter's fate of one flukey term, that they'd keep the House, that the Senate would be theirs, etc etc. They were looking forward to a wide, appealing field of candidates for '96 - surely someone would arise from that crowd and win, right? - and then that second term happened.

After that, along with the Internet blowing-up, media segmentation got more and more pronounced. Now almost everyone comes armed with their own facts and their own built universe. And I don't know how this gets reversed.

It's going to take a sea change in how we view ourselves and the world around us. People are too sure of themselves, too confident in their perceptions and understandings. The sudden influx of information brought about by the internet and 24 hour news hasn't been accompanied by an improvement in our ability to discern the good from the bad. We're becoming more like the infinitely divisible cube-- all knowing, but also really, really dumb.

 

[Teggy]

So...yeah, politics...crazy stuff, huh?

Anyway, Paul figured out a way to run for president and not automatically lose his senate seat. Still an issue if he somehow gets the nomination.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/rand-paul-caucus-senate-president-same-time

 

[Crisco]

Yeah, it's not gonna get any better if we follow up the first black President with the first woman either. Especially a fucking Clinton. Watching Obama take the WH caused the GOP to lose its collective mind, and it only got worse with the utter denial going into 2012. Still though, 16 full years of not being to advance their legislative agendas while watching progressive economic and social policies become more popular will eventually force their hand. That and old people dying out.

 

[NeoXChaos]

Yeah, it's not gonna get any better if we follow up the first black President with the first woman either. Especially a fucking Clinton. Watching Obama take the WH caused the GOP to lose its collective mind, and it only got worse with the utter denial going into 2012. Still though, 16 full years of not being to advance their legislative agendas while watching progressive economic and social policies become more popular will eventually force their hand. That and old people dying out.

the states that they control are doing that for them.

 

[Crisco]

The states that they control are doing their best to fight progressive policies being implemented within' their borders, but they can't really do much to affect national trends. We're also already seeing signs of backlash from moderates in red states who are sick of being represented by crazies.

 

[NYCmetsfan]

is there no israel thread yet.

I'm enjoying bibi go full crazy

@ChemiShalev 3m3 minutes ago
Netanyahu on Facebook: "Left wing and media elements here and abroad have banded together to bring Tzipi and Bouji to power illegitimately"

Thought I am curious why more leftists anti-zionists don't support bibi's weaking but relection. It seems that would be better for those that want to isolate Israel. A centrist government would work better with Europe and the US and lock in the status quo for a bit longer.

 

[NeoXChaos]

The states that they control are doing their best to fight progressive policies being implemented within' their borders, but they can't really do much to affect national trends. We're also already seeing signs of backlash from moderates in red states who are sick of being represented by crazies.

and yet Brownback got reelected in Kansas, Walker is still in WI and just passed right to work.

 

[FiggyCal]

is there no israel thread yet.

I'm enjoying bibi go full crazy



Thought I am curious why more leftists anti-zionists don't support bibi's weaking but relection. It seems that would be better for those that want to isolate Israel. A centrist government would work better with Europe and the US and lock in the status quo for a bit longer.

There's a thread about him being behind in the polls.

Also here's a story I found:

Arkansas state legislator Rep. Justin Harris gave his adopted daughters away because he and his wife thought they were possessed by demons, according to a report in the Arkansas Times.

The revelation is particularly shocking because one of the girls was eventually raped by the new foster parent, who was one of Harris' former staffers, the New York Daily News reports.

...Those close to the Harrises told the Times an even darker story. Harris (R-West Fork) and his wife Marsha were convinced that the girls were possessed and could communicate telepathically, according to more than a dozen sources, including other foster families, the girls' biological mother, a Department of Human Services employee and a former babysitter. They also reportedly had exorcisms performed on the sisters, and kept them separated under lock and key.

...Chelsey Goldsborough, who regularly babysat for the Harrises, said Mary was kept isolated from Annie and from the rest of the family. She was often confined for hours to her room, where she was monitored by a video camera. The reason: The Harrises believed the girls were possessed by demons and could communicate telepathically, Goldsborough said. Harris and his wife once hired specialists to perform an "exorcism" on the two sisters while she waited outside the house with the boys, she said.

Heartbreaking

 

[ivysaur12]

Does anyone follow FreeRepublic.txt on Twitter? They just repost things from Free Republic (don't worry GOPGaf, we can do a PoliGAF.txt once Walker wins)

I found this one particularly fantastic:

@FreeRepublicTXT: Like the Chicago crowd led by Obama and his lackeys, Team Rocket (ロケット団 Rocket-dan, literally Rocket Gang) is an organized crime syndicate.

@FreeRepublicTXT: The Democrats, in attacking Pokemon, have revealed their own true selves.

 

[Aaron Strife]

I could see how the 1990s changed things a bit. The Democrats were suddenly competitive for the White House after quite a long dry spell, and the Republicans were suddenly competitive in the House of Reps after being locked-out for decades. The old stability was upended in that decade.

Anecdotally, I do remember that Republican hopes were craaaazy-high after that 1994 election. Both on TV and among Republican family/friends, I remember them being convinced that Clinton was doomed to Jimmy Carter's fate of one flukey term, that they'd keep the House, that the Senate would be theirs, etc etc. They were looking forward to a wide, appealing field of candidates for '96 - surely someone would arise from that crowd and win, right? - and then that second term happened.

After that, along with the Internet blowing-up, media segmentation got more and more pronounced. Now almost everyone comes armed with their own facts and their own built universe. And I don't know how this gets reversed.

Seems to match up with Obama's presidency pretty well. Republicans couldn't conceive how he could win again and yet he did pretty easily.

Hopefully 2016 isn't a repeat of 2000 in this parallel.

 

[HylianTom]

Does anyone follow FreeRepublic.txt on Twitter? They just repost things from Free Republic (don't worry GOPGaf, we can do a PoliGAF.txt once Walker wins)

I found this one particularly fantastic:

@FreeRepublicTXT: Like the Chicago crowd led by Obama and his lackeys, Team Rocket (ロケット団 Rocket-dan, literally Rocket Gang) is an organized crime syndicate.

@FreeRepublicTXT: The Democrats, in attacking Pokemon, have revealed their own true selves.

Yes! I was cackling like a loon at that. (And I swear that it wasn't my character. I don't know enough about Pokemon to crack those kinds of jokes.)

BTW - I posted a chart today. We're past the two-month mark for waiting on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which puts us right in the middle of prime ruling time.

(even if we get a good ruling, I'm guessing that it'll be stayed while TX tries to appeal for an en banc hearing, just to be spiteful and delay things..)

I was running an errand at the post office right across the street from the court building around noon today and saw a few happy couples out front. I didn't have my phone on me, so part of me was wondering if something had actually happened.

Seems to match up with Obama's presidency pretty well. Republicans couldn't conceive how he could win again and yet he did pretty easily.

Hopefully 2016 isn't a repeat of 2000 in this parallel.

Yup! Dems seem pretty confident that they have a distinct advantage with the map, just like the GOP used to back in the 1990s. One of Bill Schneider's favorite metaphors back then was that Bill Clinton "picked the lock" that the Republicans had on the Electoral College. Now it seems like the shoe is on the other foot, but a key difference is that the GOP base hasn't yet shown a willingness to adapt like the Dems did. After 12 years, the Dems were hungry and willing to shift.

I'll also admit - a big part of my hopes lie in demographic change. I still can't get over the coverage on this issue that we saw back in 2012-13.

On Election Night 2012 as soon as the race was declared, the conversation dwelled heavily on minority population numbers changing in key swing states. Then, in the following weeks and months, on multiple CSPAN discussion/analysis panels, they kept returning to the topic. Cable news continued to run stories about it. Even the Republicans themselves harped on their need to change to make themselves more competitive.

Then a few months later, that conversation seemed to fade. You still see it pop-up, but usually as an underlying context for debates surrounding various issues.

On Fox News on Election Night, we heard hopeful commentators say multiple times, "no sitting President has ever been re-elected with such a high unemployment rate - right around 8%! Ouch!" I'm wondering if demographics are beginning to over-ride that kind of rule. It might be the thing that over-rides the "three consecutive terms for one party!" trend for all we know. Then again, maybe it was an Obama-specific occurrence.

 

[ivysaur12]

Yes! I was cackling like a loon at that. (And I swear that it wasn't my character. I don't know enough about Pokemon to crack those kinds of jokes.)

BTW - I posted a chart today. We're past the two-month mark for waiting on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which puts us right in the middle of prime ruling time.

(even if we get a good ruling, I'm guessing that it'll be stayed while TX tries to appeal for an en banc hearing, just to be spiteful and delay things..)

I was running an errand at the post office right across the street from the court building around noon today and saw a few happy couples out front. I didn't have my phone on me, so part of me was wondering if something had actually happened.


Yup! Dems seem pretty confident that they have a distinct advantage with the map, just like the GOP used to back in the 1990s. One of Bill Schneider's favorite metaphors back then was that Bill Clinton "picked the lock" that the Republicans had on the Electoral College. Now it seems like the shoe is on the other foot, but a key difference is that the GOP base hasn't yet shown a willingness to adapt like the Dems did. After 12 years, the Dems were hungry and willing to shift.

I'll also admit - a big part of my hopes lie in demographic change. I still can't get over the coverage on this issue that we saw back in 2012-13.

On Election Night 2012 as soon as the race was declared, the conversation dwelled heavily on minority population numbers changing in key swing states. Then, in the following weeks and months, on multiple CSPAN discussion/analysis panels, they kept returning to the topic. Cable news continued to run stories about it. Even the Republicans themselves harped on their need to change to make themselves more competitive.

Then a few months later, that conversation seemed to fade. You still see it pop-up, but usually as an underlying context for debates surrounding various issues.

On Fox News on Election Night, we heard hopeful commentators say multiple times, "no sitting President has ever been re-elected with such a high unemployment rate - right around 8%! Ouch!" I'm wondering if demographics are beginning to over-ride that kind of rule. It might be the thing that over-rides the "three consecutive terms for one party!" trend for all we know. Then again, maybe it was an Obama-specific occurrence.

God, the 7th Circuit was fast. Posner was not having it.

 

[ivysaur12]

(Double post, I know)

Does anyone have any good articles on the population growth in cities from 2010? Most cities are now outpacing their growth from 2000-2010 and even from 1990-2000. I was wondering if there was any particular reason, outside of the recession, and if that can solely explain the population growth.

A lot of midwestern cities suffered huge population losses from 1950 to 1980, and only now is their growth starting to pick up. Cities such as Philadelphia had been losing population since 1950, yet are finally seeing real population growth from 2000-2010 (0.6) and now even larger (+1.8 from 2000-2013). Even Baltimore has positive population growth for the first time since 1950.

(Also, none of this counts Detroit. Or Cleveland.)

 

[eBay Huckster]

even in cleveland's case the city's been shrinking at a much slower pace as of the last 3 years

 

[NYCmetsfan]

http://www.mediaite.com/online/beck...elect-secret-muslim-grover-norquist-to-board/

Radio host Glenn Beck announced recently that he would quit the National Rifle Association completely if they re-elected Grover Norquist, whom he accused of being sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood, to its board. And during his radio show today, Beck announced that because of his comments, the NRA was now investigating Norquist’s alleged secret Muslim-ness.

“Yesterday I spent about an hour on the phone with Wayne LaPierre at the NRA. … They reacted immediately because of your phone calls. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of phone calls have apparently come in.”

“I honestly expected some sort of defense. But [Wayne LaPierre] said, ‘…I want you [and] your audience to know, I take our members voice’s seriously,’” Beck continued. “When you called, they went into action. And they said that they were opening up an ethics investigation on Grover. They said they’re going to get down to the bottom of this once and for all. Grover denies all of these allegations.”

Beck said he fully expects to be called a racist and an Islamophobe, though “there’s not a racist bone in [his] body.” But he praised the fact that the NRA has promised a “fully transparent” investigation that will be “posted on the web.”c

“When it comes down to something this important, agents of influence … we do not take a risk,” Beck said. “Especially with an organization as important as the NRA. … We cannot lose the NRA. And that’s why I say this, because I believe Grover Norquist is an agent of influence. I believe that he is influencing people to look the other way when it comes to people like the Muslim Brotherhood.”

 

[Hige]

Cruz will never be President. Not because of his politics or anything really substantial but because he is the living, breathing form of Droopy.

Every time I see him speak, I can only see Droopy speaking. He looks and sounds like him. And I'm sure that's in everyone's subconscious.

I know it's superficial, but voters are superficial, and I'm so unafraid of this clown becoming President compared to some others.

I'm like 90% certain that Ted Cruz is actually Robbie Rotten from LazyTown.

 

[Ondore]

http://www.mediaite.com/online/beck...elect-secret-muslim-grover-norquist-to-board/

So I'm guessing we should all root for the meteor here?

 

[ivysaur12]

even in cleveland's case the city's been shrinking at a much slower pace as of the last 3 years

Exactly. I'm trying to figure out what's the cause of this trend of urbanization.

 

[PhoenixDark]

On Bush and his support from GOP establishment: “We had Bob Dole, John McCain, Mitt Romney. If it’s just whoever’s next up, that hasn’t worked so well for the Republican party in the past. … Jeb’s a good man. You’re not going to hear me speak ill will of Jeb. He’s a friend of mine, He called me two days before (announcing) his PAC, I think highly of him. I just think voters are going to look at this and say, ‘If we’re running against Hillary Clinton, we’ll need a name from the future – not a name from the past - to win.’ ”

On Bush’s fundraising: “Yeah, he’ll have by far the biggest report. There’s a lot of people who are loyal to that family because of an ambassadorship or an appointment or something like that, so those people are going to show up big on his first report. What we’re hoping going forward are not donors of obligation but donors of passion, people who are passionate about the reforms we bring to the table.”

http://hotair.com/archives/2015/03/...y-dad-or-brother-appointed-them-to-something/

Ether from Scott Walker. I agree.

 

[Poodlestrike]

http://www.mediaite.com/online/beck...elect-secret-muslim-grover-norquist-to-board/

As much as I hate the NRA and Glenn Beck, I'm rooting for them on this one.

Also, here's a thought: why don't all the gun control advocates join the NRA? If there's voting rights, we could dismantle the whole thing from within.

 

[Hobbestetrician]

Biden Pumping Iron Set to Whitesnake

Biden Worries Legalized Weed In D.C. Will Cut Into His Business

Don’t get me wrong, Uncle Joe is slinging the dankest nugs in town. But who’s going to call me up for an eighth of Purple Trainwreck if they can just grab some buds from their own homegrown stash?

 

[Aaron Strife]

http://www.mediaite.com/online/beck...elect-secret-muslim-grover-norquist-to-board/

This can't be real

But I know it is

 

[Coriolanus]

I'm like 90% certain that Ted Cruz is actually Robbie Rotten from LazyTown.

Hey.

 

[jamesinclair]

Scandals of years past coming back to haunt Obama

In 2011, Solyndra, a California-based solar panel manufacturer, defaulted on a $535-million federal loan and went bankrupt. Critics argued that this proved renewable energy was hopelessly impractical and expensive and that federal and state policies to support it were a waste of taxpayer money. Americans for Prosperity, a group funded by the Koch brothers, spent $6 million on an ad campaign highlighting the company as a symbol of failure. Even the venerable “60 Minutes” got into the fray, reporting there was a “cleantech crash.” California, in particular, was singled out for ridicule. Pundits warned that strong support for renewable energy would bring down our economy.

But four years later, the real story is that the focus on the demise of a single company obscured the emergence of a thriving industry. Renewable energy has grown so rapidly that, in 2014, it accounted for most new electric generation capacity added nationwide. California leads the pack with the share of electricity from renewable sources, more than doubling from 12% in 2008 to 25% today. In that period, private companies invested more than $20 billion in new renewable power plants here. California is home to the largest geothermal, wind, solar thermal and solar photovoltaic power plants in the world.

All the leading utilities in the state have signed contracts ensuring the state will get more than 33% of its electricity from renewables by 2020. Renewable energy prices have fallen to record lows. Building on that momentum, Gov. Jerry Brown has set a new state goal of 50% renewable energy by 2030. Reaching such a milestone would make fossil fuels the alternative energy. Momentum also exists at the local level. Mayor R. Rex Parris of Lancaster, Calif., made his city the first in the nation to mandate solar power on all new construction.

Meanwhile, the early predictions of California's economic calamity have proved to be misinformed. Unemployment in the state has fallen from 12% in 2011 to 6.9% today. California's largest manufacturing operation in terms of employees at a single site is an electric car company, Tesla, whose 8,000 employees turn out 1,000 cars a week (Tesla received a federal loan guarantee roughly the same size as Solyndra's and repaid it in its entirety nine years early).

As for the Department of Energy's federal loan guarantee program, it too has proved to be a win for taxpayers. Out of a $34-billion portfolio, only 2.38% of the loans defaulted, and the interest payments from the successful projects have brought in more money than what was lost. Today, the program is $30 million in the black.

The clean energy projects and companies enabled by federal and state policy support are creating new technologies and adding a competitive advantage to the U.S. economy along with new jobs. The U.S. solar industry's job growth increased 86% in the last five years and employs 174,000 Americans. More than 75,000 Americans work in the wind power industry. In California, more work in the solar energy industry than in all the state's investor-owned utilities combined.

...

California-based SolarCity, the largest solar installer in the world, has been acquiring new space. One of the buildings the firm is moving into is the old Solyndra factory.

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-e...d-california-solar-energy-20150312-story.html

Another swing and a miss

 

[jamesinclair]

(Double post, I know)

Does anyone have any good articles on the population growth in cities from 2010? Most cities are now outpacing their growth from 2000-2010 and even from 1990-2000. I was wondering if there was any particular reason, outside of the recession, and if that can solely explain the population growth.

A lot of midwestern cities suffered huge population losses from 1950 to 1980, and only now is their growth starting to pick up. Cities such as Philadelphia had been losing population since 1950, yet are finally seeing real population growth from 2000-2010 (0.6) and now even larger (+1.8 from 2000-2013). Even Baltimore has positive population growth for the first time since 1950.

(Also, none of this counts Detroit. Or Cleveland.)

Exactly. I'm trying to figure out what's the cause of this trend of urbanization.

Youre not going to find one right answer.

Theres a lot of theory and conjecture.

For example, Richard Florida:

Florida is best known for his concept of the creative class and its implications for urban regeneration. This idea was expressed in Florida's best-selling books The Rise of the Creative Class, Cities and the Creative Class, and The Flight of the Creative Class. A book focusing on the issues surrounding urban renewal and talent migration, titled Who's Your City?, was recently published.

Florida's theory asserts that metropolitan regions with high concentrations of technology workers, artists, musicians, lesbians and gay men, and a group he describes as "high bohemians", exhibit a higher level of economic development. Florida refers to these groups collectively as the "creative class." He posits that the creative class fosters an open, dynamic, personal and professional urban environment. This environment, in turn, attracts more creative people, as well as businesses and capital. He suggests that attracting and retaining high-quality talent versus a singular focus on projects such as sports stadiums, iconic buildings, and shopping centers, would be a better primary use of a city's regeneration of resources for long-term prosperity. He has devised his own ranking systems that rate cities by a "Bohemian index," a "Gay index," a "diversity index" and similar criteri

Of course many people dispute this.

One strong reason is that "the rich get richer".

Cities have jobs, cities have people. If youre a company and want people, you go to the city. If youre a person and want a job, you go to the city.

Thats why we have clusters - finance in NYC, tech in Silicon Valley, medical in Boston.

Employers know everybody they need to hire does or will live there. Workers know everyone hiring lives there.

Combine with networking, exchange of information among friends, poaching people etc and you have a strong area get stronger and stronger.


....so why wasnt this the case before? Black people, and thus, white flight. Our land use exist it does today because of racism.

 

[NeoXChaos]

Gallup Poll:

Hillary Clinton 50-39 Favorability

 

[Poodlestrike]

Scandals of years past coming back to haunt Obama


http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-e...d-california-solar-energy-20150312-story.html

Another swing and a miss

Real talk: renewable energy is great, but Cali is going to have to start looking into Nuclear soon if their drought keeps up. I just don't see how else they're going to manage desalinization on a large enough scale.

 

[NYCmetsfan]

Gallup Poll:

Hillary Clinton 50-39 Favorability

It seems so solid. She's hovering around that 50 percent.

 

[Chichikov]

is there no israel thread yet.

I'm enjoying bibi go full crazy

You need to read the full facebook post to believe that shit, that idiot is in full panic mode.
Also, it reads like he was crying when he was typing it.
Might translate it later on if I have the time/can be bothered.

Thought I am curious why more leftists anti-zionists don't support bibi's weaking but relection. It seems that would be better for those that want to isolate Israel. A centrist government would work better with Europe and the US and lock in the status quo for a bit longer.

First of all, there aren't a lot of anti-zionists in Israel, and no party publicly call for a boycott or international isolation. It's actually illegal to do that in Israel.
I'm sure there are some people on the radical left who take the "the worse, the better" approach, but such positions are never super popular.
Also, Netanyahu is so terrible on all fronts and he and his wife are just disgusting human beings, that people just want to get them out of the public life.

 

[Aaron Strife]

It seems so solid. She's hovering around that 50 percent.

Probably not enough for a big landslide but a comfy win like Obama 2012 at least. If that holds

 

[NYCmetsfan]

You need to read the full facebook post to believe that shit, that idiot is in full panic mode.
Also, it reads like he was crying when he was typing it.
Might translate it later on if I have the time/can be bothered.

First of all, there aren't a lot of anti-zionists in Israel, and no party publicly call for a boycott or international isolation. It's actually illegal to do that in Israel.
I'm sure there are some people on the radical left who take the "the worse, the better" approach, but such positions are never super popular.
Also, Netanyahu is so terrible on all fronts and he and his wife are just disgusting human beings, that people just want to get them out of the public life.

I'm referring to people outside Israel whose views go beyond cynicism and just trolling. The Philip Weiss and Max Blumenthal's of the world.

I understand Israelis point of view.

Probably not enough for a big landslide but a comfy win like Obama 2012 at least. If that holds

It will drop when the ads start droping but I can't see by much. She seems to have a 40% ceiling at least as a candidate. People know her so well I can't see many opinions being changed at least on favorability.

I can see peoples ideas on who would better tackle the problems they see, which could be a problem.

 

[HylianTom]

I'm betting there's a hidden Bill factor that'll be at play, especially when he's featured heavily in the campaign. Her rating alone is one thing, but if voters are walking into the booth thinking that they're really getting a two-for-one deal, her rating alone may be deceptive whem it comes to gauging her prospects.

 

[Chichikov]

I'm referring to people outside Israel whose views go beyond cynicism and just trolling. The Philip Weiss and Max Blumenthal's of the world.

I understand Israelis point of view.

People like Weiss and Blumenthal do not see boycott as an end in and by itself, they wish to affect Israeli policies, and I seriously doubt that anyone in their right mind would argue that it's preferable to achieve such changes through the democratic process if it's possible.

 

[jamesinclair]

Real talk: renewable energy is great, but Cali is going to have to start looking into Nuclear soon if their drought keeps up. I just don't see how else they're going to manage desalinization on a large enough scale.

Real talk:

No.

Scenario: Your neighbors keep stealing all your food from your fridge.
Solution: You need to invest in cold fusion so you can farm the moon

Thats how logical your statement is.

 

[Poodlestrike]

Real talk:

No.

Scenario: Your neighbors keep stealing all your food from your fridge.
Solution: You need to invest in cold fusion so you can farm the moon

Thats how logical your statement is.

Wait, who is stealing Cali's water? I thought they had a drought.

 

[JesseEwiak]

I'm betting there's a hidden Bill factor that'll be at play, especially when he's featured heavily in the campaign. Her rating alone is one thing, but if voters are walking into the booth thinking that they're really getting a two-for-one deal, her rating alone may be deceptive whem it comes to gauging her prospects.

Here's the thing. Bill Clinton, despite not having the best relationship with Obama (I don't buy the Beltway "they hate each other shtick", but they're not best buddies), walked out and gave probably the speech of his life to help swing the election to Obama.

Now, the women with whom, at the least, he has shared the goal of the Presidency with for decades, is having her shot. Throw in Obama wanting to protect his legacy, and the truth is, the POTUS and VP acceptance speeches will probably be the 3rd and 4th most important ones at the DNC Convention in moving voters.

 

[jamesinclair]

Wait, who is stealing Cali's water? I thought they had a drought.

When a resource or product is priced at $0 it is abused and wasted

Do you think growing rice in the desert makes sense? It does if you can dig a hole in the ground and extract all the water you want with no regulation or restriction or cost.

Do you think spending billions to turn ocean water to fresh water to grow rice in the desert makes sense?

 

[Poodlestrike]

When a resource or product is priced at $0 it is abused and wasted

Do you think growing rice in the desert makes sense? It does if you can dig a hole in the ground and extract all the water you want with no regulation or restriction or cost.

Do you think spending billions to turn ocean water to fresh water to grow rice in the desert makes sense?

I think they can take some common-sense measure to reduce their consumption, but ultimately I don't think it'll be enough. Cali's economy depends largely on agriculture, and the kind of cuts that would fully alleviate things are even less feasible than, say, moon farming. Desalinization is a well-understood process. What we lack is the will to do it and the foresight to realize that eventually it's gonna be necessary.

 

[Diablos]

Pretty pumped to see the Obama Vice interview.

 

[HyperionX]

Small rant here: As sick of right wing conservatives as I am, what really annoys me are people in news media and on social networks who defend their shitty behavior. It's patently obvious those guys are wrong and there's no way to defend them, and they still do for whatever reason. There's a bunch of this nonsense happening lately and its annoying to no end. Sometimes I swear, they are being paid to defend the right wing, or are motivated by ratings, or in the case of social media, they're total assholes themselves and like seeing other people suffer or some crap. Also, I've come to realize that the Millenia generation is not going to be any kind of vastly better group of people than any other. It's only going to be slightly less racist, slightly less greedy, and slightly less paranoid about government programs. Our current society is going to take a looooong time to unfuck itself, in the range of decades from now.

 

[NYCmetsfan]

Small rant here: As sick of right wing conservatives as I am, what really annoys me are people in news media and on social networks who defend their shitty behavior. It's patently obvious those guys are wrong and there's no way to defend them, and they still do for whatever reason. There's a bunch of this nonsense happening lately and its annoying to no end. Sometimes I swear, they are being paid to defend the right wing, or are motivated by ratings, or in the case of social media, they're total assholes themselves and like seeing other people suffer or some crap. Also, I've come to realize that the Millenia generation is not going to be any kind of vastly better group of people than any other. It's only going to be slightly less racist, slightly less greedy, and slightly less paranoid about government programs. Our current society is going to take a looooong time to unfuck itself, in the range of decades from now.

both sides though.


in reality I think its a need to have both ends be 'reasonable' how does the US system work with one party? The fear of not having that other side drives people to defend the indefensible. They feel that accurately describing the republican party as insane in many instances will lead us to some totalitarian one-party rule. In reality the dem party would split but with so much money driving the conservative movement which uses racial paranoia to drive pro-business policy the status quo isn't changing

 

[Oblivion]

http://www.mediaite.com/online/beck...elect-secret-muslim-grover-norquist-to-board/

It's a real shame cause Norquists's non-hatred of muslims is probably his only redeeming character trait.

But hey, maybe this little inane stunt will open his eyes and make him realize how insane the people's he's been associating with all these years really are.

Spoiler

lol

Biden Pumping Iron Set to Whitesnake

Biden Worries Legalized Weed In D.C. Will Cut Into His Business

I have to ask. Is the "Diamond Joe" moniker taken from "Diamond Joe" Quimby from the Simpsons?

 

[Coriolanus]

I think they can take some common-sense measure to reduce their consumption, but ultimately I don't think it'll be enough. Cali's economy depends largely on agriculture, and the kind of cuts that would fully alleviate things are even less feasible than, say, moon farming. Desalinization is a well-understood process. What we lack is the will to do it and the foresight to realize that eventually it's gonna be necessary.

Hrm. Was looking at this study on cali's water usage, and a lot of things seem bizarre, like how the agricultural section uses more than 80% of the state's water, and the primary method of irrigation is flooding, instead of microsprinklers and drips.
Also saw a coupla articles saying that cities should improve water usage, but it seems to be a red herring given the gargantuan levels of water used by the agricultural sector.

Could always just tax the heck of whoever keeps using flood irrigation. 43% of the crops still use that ffs.