Every day is a new circus.

Town Heretic

Out of Order
Hall of Fame
f_mo_la_pence_camps2_190712.760;428;7;70;5.jpg


Look at Pence. This is the face of the GOP.
In fairness, again, given what he's up to his neck in (or where he works) you can't blame him for not noticing the smell.
 

annabenedetti

like marbles on glass
It's one of the more disappointing things I've witnessed in my lifetime.

It's mind-boggling. It's been a huge, life-changing lesson.

I was naive, living my life as I did in the overwhelmingly white suburban middle class Christian bubble I was born into. I didn't know. It took me too long to find out.

A person of color would tell me that it's always been this way, that I just didn't see it. And they would be right. That the treatment of immigrants at the border is the most recent in a long history of indignities and cruelties visited on people of color, of other religions or no religion, of other sexual identities.

It took a Trump to give white evangelical Trump supporters the courage to be out and proud in their white nationalism, their Christian Dominionism, their bigotry, misogyny, racism. Trump feeds them what they need to keep them angry at their perceived victimhood when they're anything but victims.
 

ok doser

lifeguard at the cement pond
It's mind-boggling. It's been a huge, life-changing lesson.

I was naive, living my life as I did in the overwhelmingly white suburban middle class Christian bubble I was born into. I didn't know. It took me too long to find out.

A person of color would tell me that it's always been this way, that I just didn't see it. And they would be right. That the treatment of immigrants at the border is the most recent in a long history of indignities and cruelties visited on people of color, of other religions or no religion, of other sexual identities.

It took a Trump to give white evangelical Trump supporters the courage to be out and proud in their white nationalism, their Christian Dominionism, their bigotry, misogyny, racism. Trump feeds them what they need to keep them angry at their perceived victimhood when they're anything but victims.

i believe [MENTION=2451]The Berean[/MENTION] would tell you you're full of hooey
 

The Berean

Well-known member
Doser! Keep me out of your feud with Anna. Please. Hahaha.

I would say that Trump's popularity is an enigma. That so many Christians support him wholeheartedly is rather strange to me. Now on a certain level I kind of understand why they support him as our culture becomes increasingly more decadent, sinful, evil and spiritually dark and they see Trump as some modern day Samson smiting the Philistines. But Trump is not God's anointed.

One thing that many don't understand is that Trump has a fair amount of support from Latinos and Black people. It's just not White people. Granted these two groups mostly vote Democrat as the Democratic Party has conditioned them to vote Democrat by dangling "free stuff" and they vote for them in a sort of Pavlovian response. But there is a not insignificant percentage of Latinos and Black people that do support Trump.

As a neutral voter (I don't vote for Democrats nor Republicans as a general rule) I know both major parties are wicked, greedy, and amoral as can be. Both only seek power, money, and control. The neocons don't even hide their elitism, nativism, and complete lack of sympathy for anyone who is not like them. If all the so called refugees were Swedes, Finns, Germans, or Icelandic people would there be such animosity towards them? I think we all know that answer to this question.

The Democrats are no better. Their bizarre embrace of "identity politics" is a major turn off. As an old boss of mine (who is Black) once told me over 30 years ago, there is nothing worse than the so called White liberal, the supposed "ally" to the poor, ignorant, brown people like me. My boss told me something that I never forgot. He often shared about his life growing up in Mississippi and dealing with prejudiced White People. He told me some crazy stories about his father and grandfather dealing with the KKK. He said he respected the white southerner on a certain level because he was honest and open about his views of Black people. He would tell Black people to their faces, "N***er! I don't like you!" But when my boss moved to California he said he couldn't believe how two-faced the "white liberal" was. They act like his friend then say racist stuff about him behind his back. but they do it in a way that makes them think they are "woke" and morally superior.

The Democrats are cunning, though. They create political stooges like AOC, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib to stir up the masses. What I never quite understood is how someone can be a "Muslim" and a "progressive" at the same time? These two ideologies are practically mutually exclusive.

Anyway, this is my two cents.
 
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ok doser

lifeguard at the cement pond
A person of color would tell me that it's always been this way, that I just didn't see it. And they would be right. That the treatment of immigrants at the border is the most recent in a long history of indignities and cruelties visited on people of color....


Sorry [MENTION=2451]The Berean[/MENTION], I had meant to edit Anna's post to make clear what part I was replying to.


My experience in upstate New York tells me she's full of hooey
 

Lon

Well-known member
Trump evangelicals have sold their souls.
I don't think that's it. I think they have chosen the 'lesser of two evils.' Some, I have to admit, are fond of Trump and want to believe he is one of them without much, if any, evidence. I'd hope that he is a means to an end, as he is keeping his promises.

This is different though. It is about Mike Pence and his visit to the facilities. It at least 'seems' reasonable that he wanted to see for himself whether media or democrats were reporting what is actually happening.

I don't like war-mongers and gossips from either side of the aisle. Scripture warns about agitators and steering clear. I think, even in political discussion, we have to be a bit more careful. In this thread, I hope I've not produced agitation. Definitely not my goal - I want to give perspective from a different vantage point, instead. If Trump is impeached, it will happen if he is impeachable. I'd hope we'd all be on the same page, even if some would be disappointed, but all of that is speculation and perhaps gossip to some degree.
 

Lon

Well-known member
I would say that Trump's popularity is an enigma. That so many Christians support him wholeheartedly is rather strange to me. Now on a certain level I kind of understand why they support him as our culture becomes increasingly more decadent, sinful, evil and spiritually dark and they see Trump as some modern day Samson smiting the Philistines. But Trump is not God's anointed.

Samson wasn't a paragon of virtue either. The comparison may be more apt than you originally thought. :think:

Christianity vs Jew: Samson was a 'judge' of Israel during a time where it was both political as well as God-driven. Samson wasn't chosen 'because' he was the representative of virtue. He was chosen because he was a Nazarite.

Similarly, I believe a Christian, seeking his/her political concerns, may indeed vote for one who upholds those concerns, if not sharing the values behind them.

IOW, I don't believe a Christian need sell his/her soul over the matter *(some do certainly fondle over him).
 

Town Heretic

Out of Order
Hall of Fame
Indeed! He got elected because he's not Hillary.
He certainly got past the EC on the margins and I think those were definitely influenced by her nomination. I also believe a lot of people honestly thought he'd be what we needed to kick start the economy and stimulate business. I heard that a great deal among my father's social strata. Many of them had been playing it safe until they got a kicker to diminish risk.

My father will be the first to tell you two things today: he's made a lot of money off this president, and he's not going to support a second term. Though I suspect it depends on whether the Democratic Party nominates a centrist or someone more like Sanders. If it's Sanders or that hard a tilt the Dems had better beat the bushes (no) for every last vote.
 

Ktoyou

Well-known member
Hall of Fame
............. I also believe a lot of people honestly thought he'd be what we needed to kick start the economy and stimulate business. I heard that a great deal among my father's social strata. Many of them had been playing it safe until they got a kicker to diminish risk.

My father will be the first to tell you two things today: he's made a lot of money off this president, and he's not going to support a second term.

I can say the same, but I knew Donald Trump would be a wacko and maybe harm business too! What I think is the long bull market would have lasted though a Trump election,or not and his trade policies might have been the reason for a market drop in late 2018. If the market turns bear in 2020 it will not be because who is elected. The economy is independent of most politics.
 

Town Heretic

Out of Order
Hall of Fame
I can say the same, but I knew Donald Trump would be a wacko and maybe harm business too! What I think is the long bull market would have lasted though a Trump election,or not and his trade policies might have been the reason for a market drop in late 2018. If the market turns bear in 2020 it will not be because who is elected. The economy is independent of most politics.
We disagree a little. It depends. Policy drives the speculators and if you read them you can capitalize on it. I agree that larger market cycles aren't really established by government policy, unless the shift in policy is dramatic. And then the shift and outcome is a crapshoot.
 

Right Divider

Body part
We disagree a little. It depends. Policy drives the speculators and if you read them you can capitalize on it. I agree that larger market cycles aren't really established by government policy, unless the shift in policy is dramatic. And then the shift and outcome is a crapshoot.
If there were no disruptive policies, why would there be cycles at all? (Hint: there would not be).
 

Town Heretic

Out of Order
Hall of Fame
If there were no disruptive policies, why would there be cycles at all? (Hint: there would not be).
Because cycles aren't independent beasts, things that come upon us in the economic wild. They're reflections of behavior, of speculation, of resource depletion and rarity. They're driven by a lot of things not directly tied to production even. It's a hairy thing. :)
 

Right Divider

Body part
Because cycles aren't independent beasts, things that come upon us in the economic wild. They're reflections of behavior, of speculation, of resource depletion and rarity. They're driven by a lot of things not directly tied to production even. It's a hairy thing. :)
I understand that there are variations based on those things. But how would they form "cycles"?
They don't. Only government disruptions do things like create cycles.
 

Town Heretic

Out of Order
Hall of Fame
I understand that there are variations based on those things. But how would they form "cycles"?
They don't. Only government disruptions do things like create cycles.
No, cycles aren't created by government policy, but they are impacted and much of the effort of the Fed and government agencies relating to economic growth and development are centered on keeping things balanced.

Here's a link to a decent, quick look at the thing: LINK.
 
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