Friday Open Thread

What's on your mind?

Comments

[not guilty]

The Washington Post reports:

Senior Justice Department officials have held multiple meetings since last week’s deadly Minneapolis Catholic school shooting to consider banning transgender people from owning firearms, according to two people familiar with the discussions.

The talks — described as in the early stages by the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations — began after a 23-year-old transgender person allegedly carried out the Aug. 27 shooting that killed two children and injured 17 others during a Mass at Annunciation Catholic School.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/09/04/guns-transgender-justice-trump-bondi-shootings/

Oh, dear me! What will a MAGAt who hates trans folks but fetishizes firearms do? Shit? Or go blind?

[Kazinski]

Well it is at least as rational as banning marijuana users from owning or bearing guns, but of course I oppose that too, even for Hunter.

I think it just a troll, however if somehow it did make it to the Supreme Court it might make for a robust decision protecting gun rights of all individuals who have not been convicted of a felony or adjudged incompetent.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Obama did the same thing to Veterans who had someone else managing their financial affairs. Such a ban would quickly get to SCOTUS.

This raises the question of if SCOTUS would want to wander into the quagmire of Gender Identity Disorder versus Gender Dysphoria and the extent to which either (or both) might define someone as a “mental defective” per the Brady Bill – or would SCOTUS take the easy way out and simply declare the “mental defective” part of the Brady Bill to be unconstitutional?

Remember it's broader than "adjudged incompetent."

[Krayt]

There's also trying to use the desire to own guns as evidence of mental instability. It might very well be in some cases, but I'm not sure a desire to exercise a right should properly ever be used as argument to deny it.

[jb]

Well, as we see with the big DC Gun Roundup, Trump's views on guns haven't really changed since he was a NYC Democrat. Then again, getting shot at by a fellow Republican probably didn't make him any less suspicious of guns.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Even if he was a Republican, you do realize that the GOP is badly split right now, and it is the MAGA party and the RINO party.

[jb]

So the MAGA party is the one trying to take away the guns and the RINO one is the one that likes them?

[David Nieporent]

MAGA are, of course, RINOs. They do not hold traditional Republican views. Ronald Reagan would punch Donald Trump in the face if he were alive.

[Mr. Bumble]

...and JFK would have done the same to Clinton, Obama and Biden.

[Frank Drackman]

Why the use of the term "allegedly"?? It's like in Med Screw-el when you'd have a 3-time loser, career criminal, murderer, rapist, get shot by the cops, or stabbed in state prison, and the Case Presentation would start,
"Mr. Ja'rav'ius Washington, is a 35 yr old gentleman who incurred multiple gunshot wounds and blunt force injuries in a confrontation with the Mobile Police......."
Only once did I see an Attending stop the presentation and say "This.........is not a "Gentleman"

Frank "I'm no doorknob either"

[Krayt]

Only once did I see an Attending stop the presentation and say "This.........is not a "Gentleman"

Man of grammar.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Say that in front of the perp's attorney and you are looking at a potential malpractice pretext suit.

[Frank Drackman]

Ed, Ed, Ed, Ed, Ed,
I hope you're better at Janitoring than you are at whatever this is.
A "Potential Malpractice Pretext Suit"???? Sounds like a Code word "Real" (i.e. not you) Lawyers use to tell each other a Non-Lawyer's full of shit.
We have them in Medicine, the Attending would order a "Serum Porcelain Level (Stat!)" or say the Patient had a clear case of "MPH", "Chronic Fatigue Syndrome" and "Fibromylagia" used to be like that, but peoples didn't get the joke and now they're actual "Diseases" with ICD10 codes and support groups.
But I-ANAL but briefly, to qualify as "Malpractice"
an "Injury" has to occur, and calling someone bad names doesn't count.

Frink

[Frank Drackman]

Like Hawthorne, Faulkner or Hemingway (hasn't released much lately, whats up with that?) or even Steven King, I use grammar, grammar doesn't use me.
The "..........." was signifying the umm, what's it called with you let the last sound of a word continue to leak out like air from a bad tire (Billy Jefferson did it with his "It depends on what the definition of "Is", is................................
Frink

[Armchair]

"Anonymous"..."Discussions"...."Early stages"

Much ado about nothing....

[not guilty]

Never mind that imposing any such restriction would require an act of Congress.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Obama did it with his pen and phone...

[Frank Drackman]

I used to do it in my gym socks (the 1970's NBA Knee High ones, but only in the colors I didn't like) What Consenting Adults (or implements) do behind closed doors......

Frink

[Armchair]

If hypothetically there was anything to come of these "anonymous" "Discussions" in the "Early Stages" perhaps it might require an act of Congress.

But one might almost think that before asking for such an act, there should be discussions about it.

But, I suspect, this is much ado about nothing.

[Riva]

Oh, dear me! What will a leftist troll do when confronted with the reality that the trans movement is a vile project to exploit and abuse mentally disturbed children? They will make absurd efforts to attack those who challenge the trans groomers rather than confront the obscenity that is the trans movement itself.

[Malika la Maize]

Bot not programmed that conservative motivated shooters outnumber trans ones.

[Riva]

There are no “conservative” motivated shooters. There are various mentally disturbed individuals, including most recently those exploited by the vile trans movement.

[Moderation4ever]

Look at this as progress as they will clean about 1% of the school shooters.

[Brett Bellmore]

Well, you'd have to go after inner city gangs to clean up 98% of them.

[Sarcastr0]

You want to ban guns in the inner city?

Or just take an empty swipe at ‘Urbans.’

I’d also check you stats. Plenty of rural school shootings.
https://apnews.com/article/8660507c56b04dd0b580b248d39d2a2c

[Brett Bellmore]

Why would anybody but an idiot jump straight from dealing with inner city gangs, to banning guns? Is that the only tool law enforcement has available? I wouldn't even call it a law enforcement tool, it's just another victimless crime law generating an even larger black market.

Depends on how you define "school shootings". If you restrict yourself to just what people generally think of, yeah, it's as much rural as urban, maybe more, but it's not actually a huge problem, not where you'd aim your resources if your goal was to save lives.

If you define them to include shootings that happen near schools, as is commonly done to inflate the statistics, urban gangs become a bigger fraction of the problem.

But since the urban gangs cause a lot of problems outside the immediate vicinity of schools, why wouldn't you prioritize going after them, over going after the rare psycho student?

[Sarcastr0]

Why would I be following the subject of this thread, including the comment you replied to?

If you define them to include shootings that happen near schools
Yeah, but even you admit no one does this.

I also note that you seem to think law enforcement doesn't go after gangs, and needs to prioritize that.
You really don't know much at all about cities, eh?

[Brett Bellmore]

"Yeah, but even you admit no one does this."

You're hallucinating again.

[William of Brooklyn]

Sarcastr0 -- What are you talking about? If "no one does this," then why pass the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 that was the subject of Lopez??

[Sarcastr0]

That's not a relevant point to the discussion.

The key here is that the term 'school shooting' does not mean 'shooting near a school.'

As Brett admits, that's what people generally think of. Him substituting his own definition is just lame.

[Mr. Bumble]

Il Douche cements his position at the top of the douche list.

[Dr. Ed 2]

My favorite "school shooting" involved an individual who committed suicide by shooting himself inside of a car that was parked outside an abandoned school in the middle of the night.

That is counted as a "school shooting" because someone died of a GSW on the property of what had once been a school...

[Mr. Bumble]

Hey Brett. How does it feel to have a remora swimming around your comments?

[Swede425]

I know, right?
This man-crush has been brewing for a LONG time now.
Just screw up your courage and ask him out, Gaslighto!
You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

[Brett Bellmore]

He's got no shot with me, I'm a happily married to a total babe.

[Swede425]

Maybe quit being a tease, then.
Ever consider that?
With your "come hither" posts and sassy replies.
You know what you're doing.

[Frank Drackman]

So you're happy AND married??? and to a total babe??
So what's his name??

[Brett Bellmore]

Like I said last week, I originally was thinking that having a personal nemesis was going to be cool, but really, it's just creepy. And he's not even a quality nemesis, either, his capacity to respond to other people's arguments instead of what he hallucinates them arguing is diminishing rapidly.

I expect it's due to the stress of realizing that Trump's policies are actually fairly popular, and that the future isn't going to look like the inevitable march into a progressive utopia he was thinking it would be. I know that realizing that libertarianism wasn't very popular, and likely never would be, hit me pretty hard, too. But I'd kind of known it all along, which took the edge off.

[Bwaaah]

Everybody gets old (if they're lucky enough). And tired. And some grow bitter.

Indeed bitterness can be the cost of the losses; of the humiliations.

Worse than not being able to keep up, he can't help but piss on it.

...like Rev. Arthur, but without the dignity of an affection for the Stones.

[Riva]

Yeah, saving child victims of the vile trans movement and preventing harm to other children in future school incidents. Why do democrats hate children?

[Joe_dallas]

NG - Your focus on accusing people who are in favor of sound medical and mental health treatment for individual suffering from gender confusion is simply deranged and delusional. Its people that promote embracing their mental health delusions that are the true haters of trans individuals.

You are simply projecting your hatred of trans individuals on those who promote sound mental health treatment

[Malika la Maize]

I like that he fails to put proper punctuation at the end of his last sentence. Because he’s a mental health expert, not a hateful troll, and totally knows what he’s talking about here (and in epidemiology, and climatology, and macroeconomics, etc.,).

[John F. Carr]

This is already entertaining and the process hasn't even started. I wonder if we'll see an injunction against publishing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

As a practical matter, the rule can't be as vague as "no guns for cross-dressers." The government could make gender dysphoria a disqualifying mental illness. And then you get two legal questions. 1: Do the dysphoric get special legal protection? 2: Is there enough evidence in the administrative record to justify the rule under the Administrative Procedure Act?

The answer to 1 is definitely yes at the trial court level – suitable judges will be shopped for – but probably not in the Supreme Court. I don't know the answer to the second question. "Some of those people committed gun crimes" will not be good enough.

[Brett Bellmore]

If gun ownership were just the privilege gun controllers want it to be treated as, it would easily pass rational basis analysis, because transgenders have an enormously elevated suicide rate.

But as a constitutional right, I can't see it clearing any sort of scrutiny.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Brett, this is why I think that SCOTUS would take the easier option of tossing Brady and letting states instead have red flag laws.

[LawTalkingGuy]

That shouldn’t work under Bruen-Rahimi and how the case law is developing based on that. Basically there appears to be a growing consensus that categorical disarmament can only happen for:

1. Individuals convicted of violent felonies in which case lifetime bans are likely appropriate;

2. Individuals who have been determined presently dangerous after some kind of contested hearing with the understanding that there is an avenue for later relief.

So you can’t just say “trans people are mentally ill” therefore they can’t have guns. Present dangerousness would need to be adjudicated person-by-person, and it could only be a temporary order.

Rahimi could be temporarily disarmed because he was the subject of a DV protection order that he had the opportunity to contest at a hearing which found him presently a threat and there was a 5 year limit on the order.

[Brett Bellmore]

"Rahimi could be temporarily disarmed because he was the subject of a DV protection order that he had the opportunity to contest at a hearing which found him presently a threat and there was a 5 year limit on the order."

And even that exceeded the Bruen relevant historical practice, (Which was limited to having to post a bond to take your guns out of your home!) but the Court wasn't interested in being strict about it.

[LawTalkingGuy]

Well the problem is that Bruen is an unworkable standard for the lower courts and lawyers that actually have to decide these things case-by-case. I've even had a conservative pro-second amendment federal judge admit that to me. He also agreed with me that Rahimi presented a workable solution.

[Brett Bellmore]

Where "unworkable" doesn't mean, "You can't figure out what you're supposed to rule under it.", but instead, "It's clear you should rule something you really, really don't like under it."

But that's not what "unworkable" actually means. It's more like "unacceptable". Fully upholding the 2nd amendment is simply something the vast majority of jurists can't tolerate, even though the things they'd have to give up on, like red flag laws, are actually relatively recent developments.

Well, that might eventually change. For a few decades there, the judiciary were ready to write the 2nd amendment out of the Constitution, so many of them so disliked it. We've come a long ways from when Burger declared an individual right to own guns a "fraud", it's just that we've got a long way left to go before judges are ready to tolerate entirely upholding that right.

[LawTalkingGuy]

See the thing is Brett. You’re not a judge you don’t have to deal with this. There’s a reason everyone who has to deal with real cases thinks you’re wrong. You have the luxury of abstract absolutes. No one else does.

[JoeFromtheBronx]

Individuals convicted of violent felonies in which case lifetime bans are likely appropriate

On the merits, I know this might seem strange to some, since I'm some socialist woke person, but this seems absurd.

(I'm not denying it might be a valid rule under the current misguided jurisprudence in place.)

A "violent felony" can be a bar fight when you are 20. This is supposed to be the subject of a"lifetime ban"? SMH.

The reportedly being discussed trans ban should be deemed illegitimate on basic equal protection principles. I say "should."

[LawTalkingGuy]

It also obviously presents an equal protection problem even under rational basis review.

Yeah the reasoning for lifetime disarmament of violent felonies is sort of dumb. Basically at the founding if you are convicted (either by jury or because you waived those rights and were tried to a bench or pleaded guilty) of a felony you could simply be executed...so obviously it's okay to disarm. But Range v. Garland out of the Third Circuit called into question disarmament for a white collar felony like fraud. So I really do think we're going to settle on: you can temporarily disarm people on a case by case basis after a hearing where their present and future dangerousness is established. Which honestly is a fine rule to me.

Bruen is much much stupider when applied to sensitive place restrictions and class of weapons restrictions. There is no historical analog in 1791 saying you can't bring a nuke into the children's hospital!

[Brett Bellmore]

"Basically at the founding if you are convicted (either by jury or because you waived those rights and were tried to a bench or pleaded guilty) of a felony you could simply be executed"

That's because felonies were exclusively very serious crimes back then. The amount of felony inflation since rivals the degree of currency inflation.

"There is no historical analog in 1791 saying you can't bring a nuke into the children's hospital!"

That would be a much better argument if gun control laws were about nukes, rather than guns not too dissimilar from the guns of the founding era in terms of killing power. Raving about nukes in order to justify restricting popguns and pocket knives really doesn't leave the impression that you're confident of your position.

[Dr. Ed 2]

IF the violent felony was a bar fight when you were 20, there is the pardon option. Charlie Baker issued a bunch of pardons of persons like that so they could own guns.

However there is no similar pardon for the mental defect finding.

[Area Man]

Makes about as much sense as categorically disarming 18-20 year olds who would otherwise be entitled to own a gun. Yet, even though Left often insists we have to "listen to the wisdom of young people," it also has no problem categorically denying those same citizens their right to keep and bear arms.

[Sarcastr0]

Who is the monolithic left you speak of?

I'm aware of a couple of states.

[Poxigah146]

It also makes as much sense as categorically disarming people convicted of check fraud in 1977.

[not guilty]

It looks like commenters who otherwise salivate like Pavlov's dog at any mention of restricting gun rights are unconcerned about the Second Amendment rights of transgender folks.

Why am I unsurprised?

[Brett Bellmore]

""If gun ownership were just the privilege gun controllers want it to be treated as, it would easily pass rational basis analysis, because transgenders have an enormously elevated suicide rate.

But as a constitutional right, I can't see it clearing any sort of scrutiny."

[Harvey Mosley]

Per CNN:

“The NRA supports the Second Amendment rights of all law abiding Americans to purchase, possess and use firearms,” the organization said in a social media post." NRA does not, and will not, support any policy proposals that implement sweeping gun bans that arbitrarily strip law-abiding citizens of their Second Amendment rights without due process.”

I support 2nd Amendment rights for all adult citizens who are mentally competent are not violent felons.

Of course, you were asking about MAGAts and you would probably classify me as a gun nut (or some similar term you think is more derogatory).

[Kazinski]

There's been an update on the story of the two Scottish girls that were the subject of the viral video showing the 12 year old girl waving a knife and a hatchet, and telling the person filming to leave them alone.

2 adults have been arrested.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62zre98j85o

The news article is very sparing in details, but there is more detail on Twitter purporting to tell the girls family's side of the story.

"Including the medical record showing one if the girls suffered a concussion when the two adults attacked her and kicked in the head after she was pulled to the ground.

- Police Scotland originally claimed that CCTV footage went missing but it proved that only Lola Moir had committed a crime by being in possession of dangerous weapons

- It is now claimed that this is a lie and there is proof that Police Scotland attempted to cover up the crime of Fatos and his sister assaulting the little girls

- Attached is the screenshot of the hospital record proving that Ruby Moir sustained a serious head injury (concussion) as a result of the assault by Fatos Ali Dumana and his sister

- This was a vicious attack in which they attacked Ruby unprovoked , yanked her to the ground and the pair of them kicked Ruby in the head while she lay on the ground defenceless

- This is what motivated Lola to pull out the weapons to scare off Fatos and his sister

- The Moir family also claim they have a recording of an interview with Police Scotland in which the Police admit that Ruby and Lola's sequence of events is correct corroborating their entire story.

- Police Scotland have promised to issue a statement in the coming days confirming all of this”

https://x.com/Basil_TGMD/status/1963623418428805498

[Frank Drackman]

(with a tip O' the hat to Edward I)
"The Problem with Scotland is it's no longer filled with Scotts (but with Fatos Ali Dumana's and his 40 thieves)"

Frank

[Dr. Ed 2]

+1

It's time for another Crusade...

[Brett Bellmore]

Modern liberals largely fail to understand that the Crusades were a reaction to Islamic invasions of Europe, and the decision by Islamic leaders to deny access to Christian holy sites. It was the West finally fighting back.

[Sarcastr0]

BrettHistory is always so nice and simple.

[Brett Bellmore]

It's all fairly complicated, as with all history, but that's generally what happened, yeah. Islamic conquests took a good deal of Europe before beating beaten back, and the Conquests didn't really get much steam until Islamic countries started blocking the passage of Christian and Jewish pilgrims.

[Sarcastr0]

1. You link a blow-by-blow that has nothing to do with your thesis.

2. You shift your goalposts by now only talking about when they 'picked up steam.' Not your original scope! Because the First Crusade was more about Urban II burnishing his local power than any kind of access.

3. The Crusades were about conquest, not access. I've not heard that the motive was that Christian and Jewish pilgrims were kept out of the Holy Land in any generalizable numbers or period during the crusades.
-------
You do love to see things as good guys and bad guys, but there's no better example of that *not* being the case than the Crusades.

[LexAquilia]

Hey everyone, the Great Sarcastr0 hasn't heard of an historical event! Therefore IT CANNOT BE TRUE.

For HE is HIM and HE is the GREAT SARCASTR0!!!

[David Nieporent]

Please don't try to incorporate us into your fake history. The crusades were not about protecting Jewish pilgrims. They were, however, about killing Jews.

[Brett Bellmore]

No, of course the crusades weren't about protecting Jewish pilgrims. But the Islamic countries were still blocking their passage just as much as they were Christian pilgrims.

[bernard11]

No, of course the crusades weren't about protecting Jewish pilgrims.

Then why did you say they were?

Conquests didn't really get much steam until Islamic countries started blocking the passage of Christian and Jewish pilgrims.

The First Crusade was sold with your nice tale, but it started as a political move to enhance Urban's power and reputation.

And Jews were not protected but killed wholesale.

[Joe_dallas]

As usual you have a hatred actual facts which "bretthistory " is a reasonable accurate description of the actual history.

[Sarcastr0]

As usual your angry and unsourced assertions have little to do with actual facts.

[Joe_dallas]

Lex and Brett destroy your alternate universe of history. Yet you lash out in anger when you version of the alternate universe is exposed

[Sarcastr0]

Brett just repeated his assertion, and Lex is a weirdo antisemite I have blocked.

But OK Joe.

[Brett Bellmore]

I think once you provide evidence, it's more of an "argument" than an 'assertion'.

[bernard11]

Brett,

I looked at the video you linked. Kind of interesting, but I don't think it much supports your idea of blocking pilgrims being the main cause.

It does say that the Crusades started as an effort by Urban to gain influence by helping Alexios stave off the Seljuks, and mentions several atrocities the Crusaders committed, none of which you mentioned in your comment, while sort of dismissing them with,

" I'm not saying it was all conducted in a perfectly admirable manner, far from it."

So your "evidence" is not evidence for your POV at all.

[bernard11]

Joe,

As in so many other matters your claimed knowledge of history is nonsense. It is Brett's account, not even supported by his own linked video, that is wildly distorted.

[Joe_dallas]

See Kaz's comment below

Kazinski 3 hours ago
Flag Comment
Mute User
What about Spain, and Portugal?

That was major. And the Reconquista wasn't completed until 1492.

You accuse me and brett of getting facts wrong, yet your version of the facts are materially wrong.

[David Nieporent]

As usual your angry and unsourced assertions have little to do with actual facts.

It's not unsourced assertions that define bookkeeper_joe; it's completely content-free assertions. He'll handwave about "facts" but will never actually cite any.

[bernard11]

Brett's account is far from accurate.

He gets it, of course, from the highly sanitized versions that were commonly taught in schools for many years.

It's hard to blame him for believing it, but given that he professes to hate phony history he might have dug a little deeper than his ninth grade world history book before commenting.

[SRG2]

That does not explain the Albigensian Crusades, nor the Teutonic knights' predations in Eastern Europe, nor the wholesale slaughter of Jews across Europe as the Crusaders moved from west to east.

"Because we were deprived by Muslims of the right to pray at our holy sites, we're going to massacre Jews"/.

[Brett Bellmore]

Yeah, I'm not saying it was all conducted in a perfectly admirable manner, far from it.

All I'm saying is that it is widely under-appreciated that the Crusades, far from being a war of conquest, were a war of reconquest after Islamic conquests of originally Christian areas, and that what got them going was Islamic countries blocking passage to pilgrims.

[Krayt]

Carl Sagan once said, "If two religions are in logical conflict, one must be wrong. But if one, why not both?"

And take the modern quasi-religions of politicians with 'em.

[SRG2]

Possibly better to regard the Crusades as "polyphyletic", therefore.

[bernard11]

There were Islamic conquests of Christian territory, but that was in Anatolia and the surrounding area. There was no major invasion of Western Europe.

Nor was blocking pilgrims a major issue.

[Kazinski]

What about Spain, and Portugal?

That was major. And the Reconquista wasn't completed until 1492.

[Frank Drackman]

VMFA(drawing on my Flight Surgeon training, “V” is for Fixed Wing, “M” for Marine Corpse, “F” for Fighter, “A” for Attack, 122, was known as the “Crusaders” since WW2 when Pappy Boyington commanded them in Corsairs, they also flew the F-4, FA-18, and currently the F-35 in Yuma AZ,
In 2008, to placate our A-rab “Allies” the name was changed to “Werewolves” and the Crusader cross removed from the jets.
I’ve already communicated (telepathically)with Secretary Hedge-Sex to change the name back, as they used to say in the newspapers,
“Watch this spot”
Frank “what’s in a name?”

[Dr. Ed 2]

"It was the West finally fighting back."

That was my point.

[bernard11]

Well, that's the schoolbook version, anyway, and the story used to sell the First Crusade.

In fact what happened was that the Byzantine emperor was under threat from the Seljuk Turks and decided to turn to Pope Urban II, in France, for help. Urban saw a chance to improve his position vis-a-vis the antipope Clement III by bringing the Latin church and the Byzantine together. Hence the famous speech at Clermont and the First Crusade, which made helping the Byzantines its first goal, though the Crusaders did stop off in the Rhineland to attack a number of Jewish communities, and rob and massacre their members.

It did later move on to the Holy Land, though some of the leaders took the opportunity to break away and set up their own fiefdoms in captured cities. On the way these holy warriors managed a very bloody sack of Antioch, and ended by taking Jerusalem and massacring a large proportion of the population.

[bernard11]

Huh?

The Turks were definitely invading the Byzantine Empire, but not much else, certainly not any territory where the Crusaders came from.

The First Crusaders were helping the Byzantine emperor Alexios III stave them off.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

No comment about what actually happened, but in which reality do 12 year-old girls "pull out the weapons" (a large knife and a hatchet) to "scare off" people who have allegedly physically attacked and tried to kill them?

Where, exactly, were the weapons before this incident occurred?

[Brett Bellmore]

In a reality where 12 year old girls are routinely being physically attacked in that area, and the girls in question have gotten sick of it, I suppose.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Ah, so in an imagined reality. Thanks.

[Kazinski]

A reality where rapes have doubled in Scotland since 2013 when the younger girl was born and 2025. But that's because Scotland is a little out of the way.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/617767/rape-and-attempted-rape-scotland/

In the same period of time they are up over 400% in England and Wales.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/283100/recorded-rape-offences-in-england-and-wales/

That reality.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

And you imagine that 12 year-old girls are walking around every day with long knives and hatchets as a result. I see.

[Kazinski]

They needed them that day.

[Mr. Bumble]

...and unlike in hobie's hood guns are not a plentiful in the UK.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

That wasn't a denial.

[TwelveInchPianist]

Love the way the BBC blurs the image.

They blur the girl's face, the knife and the hatchet, leave her hands unblurred, and for good measure, they blur the small end of the knife and hatchet handles protruding below her hands.

[Kazinski]

The DOJ has opened an official criminal inquiry into the Lisa Cook mortgage fraud allegations.

If she ends up convicted of a felony will she regret fighting her firing, and not just negotiating a non-prosecution agreement?

https://abcnews.go.com/US/justice-department-opens-criminal-investigation-federal-reserve-governor/story?id=125261793

And it is longstanding DOJ policy that:

"Any proposed plea agreement in a significant public corruption case must be approved by the Department of Justice leadership to ensure it fairly addresses public interests."

[Mr. Bumble]

Who knew that being a Fed governor was so financially rewarding that you could afford to hire Abbe Lowell to try to save your job?
I wonder if the IRS will be looking at her returns to see if she properly disclosed income from her three "primary" residences?
Asking for a friend.

[Stephen Lathrop]

Kazinski, that last graph seems to be you suggesting vengeful disparate treatment for Cook by the Justice Department. I doubt they need your suggestion, but why endorse anything so unwise? Do you want that as a continuing norm when Ds are back in power? Or do you presume a Calvinball SCOTUS will protect your side?

[Swede425]

OMG! Lathrop is right!
We wouldn't want Democrats to use lawfare against their political enemies, too!
Great call, Steve!

[Commenter_XY]

What bothers lathrop and his fellow travelers are that the rules their side set up are now being enforced by the opposite team. Ooops.

[Kazinski]

Its been policy for a while under multiple administrations to treat public officials more harshly than ordinary miscreants, in order to deter public corruption.

But we don't know yet how disparate her treatment is yet.

What we do know is the administration launched an AI mortgage fraud detection effort 3 months ago to detect mortgage fraud, its not surprising they would go after public officials first for the deterrence effect.

https://www.fanniemae.com/newsroom/fannie-mae-news/fannie-mae-launches-ai-fraud-detection-technology-partnership-palantir

[Mr. Bumble]

Ask Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon.

[Sarcastr0]

its not surprising they would go after public officials first for the deterrence effect

This has got to be some kind of lying to demonstrate loyalty thing. Because I cannot believe anyone, a born sucker like you included, thinks a generalized focus on public officials via AI is what's going on here.

[Kazinski]

It's not just a focus on public officials, its everyone, but I am sure they have a process for flagging public officials when they show up on the list of fraudsters.

Do you think they are that proactive they put out a press release like this in May to pave the way to take down Lisa Cook in September?

“No one is above the law. In partnership with Palantir, Fannie Mae’s Crime Detection Unit will increase safety and soundness by rooting out bad actors in our housing system. This cutting-edge AI technology will help us find criminals who try to defraud our system," said Fannie Mae Chairman William J. Pulte.

“By integrating this leading AI technology, we will look across millions of datasets to detect patterns that were previously undetectable,” said Priscilla Almodovar, Fannie Mae’s president and chief executive officer. “This new partnership will combat mortgage fraud, helping to safeguard the U.S. mortgage market for lenders, homebuyers, and taxpayers.”

[Sarcastr0]

Lisa Cook
Chris Christie
John Bolton
Letitia James
Adam Schiff
Jack Smith
Christopher Krebs
Miles Taylor

I don't believe you don't see what's happening. Which means you're posting lying apologia.

But hey, radicalism requires some eggs to be broken, and sometimes that means the truth. Anything to support the guy whose going to burn everything down, eh?

[bernard11]

Do you think they are that proactive they put out a press release like this in May to pave the way to take down Lisa Cook in September?

Yes. Not Cook specifically, but political opponents in general.

[Kazinski]

So they expected there were a lot of crooks in their political opponents, and it turned out they were right?

Really your theory just doesn't make sense, they wanted Powell gone but they couldn't do anything because there was no articulable clause, so they settled for Lisa Cook. She should have kept her name off the list of mortgage fraudsters.

The rule they want the administration to follow for illegal aliens is unless they commit a crime they are untouchable.

The rule they want for Public officials who oppose Trump is they are untouchable even if they commit a felony.

No thanks, lets play by the rules Congress made.

[TwelveInchPianist]

All of these people have a right to a fair trial and to raise any defense of selective prosecution available to them.

That was sufficient for you guys when Trump was being prosecuted, and I don't see why it wouldn't be sufficient now.

[jb]

Its been policy for a while under multiple administrations to treat public officials more harshly than ordinary miscreants, in order to deter public corruption.

That might be the previous policy of the US Government, but it seems hard to take seriously given the number of corrupt public officials Trump has pardoned. Now he's taking it one step farther and offering them ambassadorships!

(Aside: kind of surprised Adams didn't ask for Turkiye.)

[Moderation4ever]

DOJ investigating individual causes of alleged mortgage fraud. Are they also getting ready to work on speeding tickets and parking violations.

[Swede425]

Depends.
Are the speeding tickets and parking violations felonies?
If so, then maybe you're onto something.

[John F. Carr]

At least some US Attorney's offices handle speeding tickets.

Serious question: Who gets the job? Is it intern level? Does a regular prosecutor take a day off work to appear in traffic court.

[not guilty]

The D.C. U. S. Attorney's office prosecutes some local crimes in D.C. Superior Court. In other area, I think that some traffic offenses occurring in national parks are prosecuted before United States Magistrates.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Yes, but by whom? Gotta have a bar card to do it, and who else working for the Feds does? Surely not Ranger Rick...

[Dr. Ed 2]

That's more true than you realize -- while I've never gotten one, I'm told that the US Attorney prosecutes speeding tickets issued by the Arcadia National Park rangers.

[BrotherMovesOn]

Do you mean "Acadia" National Park?
My God, can you ever get anything right?
In your own state to boot. Just amazing.

[Frank Drackman]

You've heard of "Village Idiots"??
Ed's the "Universe Idiot"

[Moderation4ever]

What if she doesn't end up convicted? What if the jury throws the case out like the grand jury threw out the felony sandwich thrower?

[Mr. Bumble]

Assumes that if they bring a case it will be in DC. The fraud (if it was in fact fraud) was committed in other jurisdictions where an action by be undertaken.

[Poxigah146]

Presumably, a case against Cook will be brought in front of a jury that isn't 95% Democrat.

[Moderation4ever]

It you assertion that Republicans on a jury would not be smart enough to see the stupidity of this prosecution?

[Mr. Bumble]

"It you"?

[Poxigah146]

No, my assertion is that Democrats will never convict a black criminal.

[Kazinski]

Doesn't seem stupid to me, and this isn't something Trump just made up:

"Occupancy fraud accounted for about 29% of misrepresentation investigations by Fannie Mae in the first half of 2025, making it the second most common type of fraud after income fraud.
Trends and Prevalence"

Recent Increases:
"Occupancy fraud risk nearly tripled between 2020 and 2023, though there are some indications that this trend may have stabilized or slightly reversed in 2024."

This article is from 2023:

https://bglaw.com/will-we-see-increased-instances-of-mortgage-fraud/#:~:text=CoreLogic's%202023%20Mortgage%20Fraud%20Report,in%20CT%2C%20MA%20and%20RI.

2020 is when Lisa Cook committed at least one of her 3 possible fraudulent transactions.

[hobie]

If she would just start running for a political office, this would trigger the lawfare exemption and she would therefore not be prosecuted

[Sarcastr0]

Oh my stars, DoJ leadership! Well, that's gotta be full of integrity and legitimacy then.

About as much integrity as Comer, I'm sure.

Kaz may be the biggest sucker for GOP propaganda on this website.

[Don Nico]

The man can't refrain from showing his partisan colors.

[LexAquilia]

Remember how just a year ago, Sarcastr0 would be painting similar comments by the Other as "harming our sacred democracy" and would be working with his comrades in government agencies to censor and punish the perpetrators.

Several years prior to that Sarcastr0's were sicc'ing police on praying grandmas or lone beach walkers and mean tweeters.

[Kazinski]

I was citing longstanding DOJ policy, not current GOP propaganda.

If you think about it can work as a safeguard as well as an accelerator, to make sure an aggressive partisan USA doesn't prosecute something without any basis in law, just for partisan ends.

Like what happened to Kay Baily Hutchison, Rick Perry, and Tom Delay in Austin.

[Sarcastr0]

Again, whether you've managed to turn your critical thinking off entirely or are lying, either way it's a pretty bad take t have the view that Trump's opponents just happen to have all done crimes.

This DoJ is openly an arm of Trump's will, and Trump loves to call everyone he doesn't like a criminal.

There has been no process, just press releases about investigations. Which you have a history of taking as gospel...when it's against a Democrat.

And when you need to reach back to the 1990s for your examples, that's just grasping at straws.

Everyone knows what this is, quit embarrassing yourself.

[Kazinski]

Are the people being accused of mortgage fraud guilty or not?

That ultimately is the only thing that will matter.

There have only been 2 that I am aware of uncovered by FHA, Schiff and Cook, so it is certainly not widespread witch hunt. James was uncovered independently by a blogger perusing public records, and James ethics reports.

Bolton has been under investigation since his book came out years ago.

[Mr. Bumble]

Interestingly, Jame's issues were uncovered by Sam Antar (Crazy Eddie).

[Krayt]

Going after politicians using government to investigate your enemies feels great, and we can facete concern for rule of law.

Launch all talking heads!

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Is this "a significant public corruption case"?

[Estragon]

I wonder if they’ll be looking into Ms Chavez-Deremer next?

https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2025/09/oregons-lori-chavez-deremer-other-trump-cabinet-members-claimed-2-or-more-primary-residences.html

“If somebody is claiming two primary residences, that is not appropriate, and we will refer it for criminal investigation,”

Ball’s in your court, Bill!

[Mr. Bumble]

...and in case you missed it:
"...In August, Obama-appointed U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams ruled that the alleged “environmental harms” of the famous Florida illegal alien detention facility outweighed the facility’s necessity. But that decision was overruled Thursday as the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked her order to close the illegal alien detention facility in Florida and halt all construction there.
https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2025/09/04/breaking-court-halts-closure-of-alligator-alcatraz-n4943353
The federal appeals court also blocked Williams from proceeding with the case until Florida’s appeal is complete...."

[Kazinski]

The district court made reversed the decision on these grounds:

Using NEPA as the basis for a cause of action is inappropriate because NEPA only applies to Federally financed projects AA, was financed by the state.

There was no federal final agency action which is required under the APA.

Dismantling AA goes beyond the scope of remedies for a preliminary injunction. Even if a preliminary injunction could be supported, at most freezing additional construction would be the most far reaching remedy that could be appropriate.

Allegations of irreparable environmental harm seem way overstated. The site has been operating as an airport well before it was repurposed as an immigration detention facility, and there have been 28,000 flights in and out of the airport in the last 6 months, about 140 a day.

The case was probably heard in the wrong venue, it should have been heard in the middle district of Florida, not the southern district.

[Stephen Lathrop]

If AA is intended for federal use, how can that not be basis for an EIS? That sounds like the usual setup for a typical airport expansion EIS. A state or local authority proposes to fund and build a project which will be used under FAA jurisdiction.

How can ICE be using the facility already, without a final agency action?

How can it be a proper function of a federal appeals court to decide that environmental harm is way overstated, when the statement of harm in question has yet to be researched, let alone published?

Sounds like more bullshit from Kazinski. Kazinski, are you just reciting the government's objections, and calling them the court's opinion?

[Kazinski]

I read the majority decision, a few hours ago when I was watching Thursday Night football, so my summary above was from memory.

But here is what Google AI says about the reasoning:
"Reasoning: The majority concluded that Florida and the Department of Homeland Security were likely to succeed in their appeal. It held that the detention facility was not subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) because it was state-funded and state-operated. The court reasoned that since Florida had not yet received federal reimbursement, it did not qualify as a "major federal action" requiring a federal environmental review."

Although your results may vary with AI response you can see for your self, or scroll down and read the PDF as I did.

https://www.google.com/search?q=11th+circuit+alligator+alcatraz+%22pdf%22

[bernard11]

It held that the detention facility was not subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) because it was state-funded and state-operated. The court reasoned that since Florida had not yet received federal reimbursement, it did not qualify as a "major federal action" requiring a federal environmental review."

Wow. Quite some logic there. Is FL going to be reimbursed? Was reimbursement promised? Then it surely is a major federal action.

I hire your company to build a building. It's built according to my instructions, and in an illegal fashion, and I make no objections. Now I have no responsibility until I pay the bill?

[Voize of Reazon]

there have been 28,000 flights in and out of the airport in the last 6 months, about 140 a day.

I'm curious where you got that number. I just ran a report using the FAA's TFMS system and it tells me there were a total of 188 arrivals and departures between Mar 1 and Sept 1 of this year.

(To duplicate using that interface: Click Airports and enter "TNT", click Groupings and check Flight Type and User Class, click Dates and select Range Mar 1 to Sept 1, then click Run)

Thinking maybe you meant 6 months before the Alligator Alcatraz ramp-up, I also ran Jan 1 2024 - Jan 1 2025 but the numbers were even lower, only 183 for the full year.

Dade-Collier was never a high volume airport. It was planned to be, when construction began in the late 60's it was going to be the biggest airport in the world with a half dozen runways and cater to the supersonic transport traffic everyone anticipated, but due to environmental concerns and cancellation of the Boeing SST project airport construction halted after building only one runway.

Since then it was lightly used for training airline pilots and general aviation. It never had accommodations or sanitary facilities for thousands of people.

[Kazinski]

I got it from memory, before that I got it from page 4 of the decision:

"Before FDEM assumed control of the Site, TNT was a small but bustling working airport. DE 116-1 ¶ 6. According to flight logs, the airport saw 27,997 landings and take offs in the approximately six months prior to the Site’s conversion, or around 137 flights per day. Id. ¶ 11. Of those 27,997 f lights, 4,349 involved multi-engine planes, 391 involved business jets, 137 involved private helicopters, 521 involved military planes, and 199 involved military helicopters."

I didn't check the cites, but you could probably download the decision and find out where the judge got it from, probably one of the defendant briefs.

[Voize of Reazon]

What I found:

The 28,000 number was reported by the airport manager, a Miami-Dade County employee, who got it from a Virtower automated system installed at the airport that tracks aircraft movements by their transponder signals. A private pilot doing touch-and-gos in a single-engine Cessna will log one arrival and one departure about every 10 minutes, each time around the circuit.

The FAA's TFMSC data however

includes data for flights that fly under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) and are captured by the FAA’s enroute computers. Most VFR and some non-enroute IFR traffic is excluded.

That pilot who didn't file and didn't leave the vicinity of the airport won't appear in these numbers at all.

Which number is more useful I'd say depends on what you are using it for. The first tells you more about runway utilization, but the second is more relevant to human traffic levels.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Remember this won't count military flights if they don't have transponders on -- and a remote airport is ideal for touch & gos, which student pilots have to do.

HOWEVER, from an environmental standpoint, the impact on the songbird and snail darter, a touch & go from an airplane with no muffler and burning 100LL ("Low Lead") is going to gave greater impact than the pilot driving home in his Toyota Corolla.

And a jet engine is way noisier than a Corolla...

[Voize of Reazon]

Yes Ed, a remote airport is ideal for touch and gos.

Google Maps aerial and street views haven't been updated lately so you can see what the airport looked like before its makeover. There's a big runway, a (car) parking lot, and a couple of small buildings. What you won't see is any parked small airplanes. Private pilots who used TNT kept their planes somewhere else, flew to TNT, did their circuits, and flew away again. They couldn't park their planes there, or refuel there, or get lunch there, because those facilities didn't exist.

Since July this has all changed. The state has constructed facilities to house 2000 detainees and were in the process of doubling that number. The environmental impact at issue is from construction, intensive activity, and disposing of the waste generated by thousands of people. It wouldn't surprise me if that were much more consequential than a few light planes doing circuits, but it sounds like a question worth asking.

[Commenter_XY]

Nicodemus the Alligator will be pleased. The sounds of illegal aliens traipsing about Alligator Alcatraz no doubt sounds like a dinner bell. 😉

[Frank Drackman]

They should use Guantanamo as a backup, I hear they have vacancies.

[Stephen Lathrop]

[Frank Drackman]

Cat got your tongue? or just garden variety stupidity?

[Mr. Bumble]

"Cat got your tongue?"
We should be so lucky.

[Stephen Lathrop]

Nope. Realized when I read it that I had drafted a comment which contained assertions I had not researched, and did not have time to go after now. Let me know when you see Kazinski do likewise.

[Frank Drackman]

Like I said, Cat got your tongue, and Garden Variety Stupidity, with a schmidgen of Pompous Ass-osity.

[Kazinski]

Well Stephen that's par for the course for you.

But you should have had time to do enough research to retract your comment above about the AA decision.

[Stephen Lathrop]

Nope. I read that decision. I conclude it is the work of a lawless MAGA panel trying to further a recent lawless MAGA/SCOTUS initiative to gut the statutory requirements for Environmental Impact Statements.

I guess MAGAs everywhere, including in the judiciary, figure that is done now, so everyone ought to move on. No more real requirement for environmental impact statements. That is the part that was new to me, and also by my lights a part of the case more important than the outcome on Alligator Alcatraz.

Not surprised gutting the EIS requirement happened without proud chest thumping from right wingers. It's a victory most of them no doubt want to hide under a barrel. Not many folks liked the old days when politicians in cahoots with land developers wiped out critical ecosystem resources without telling anyone it was happening.

So now SCOTUS has gutted the Clean Water Act, and declared an EIS a mere requirement for needless paperwork. Up next, no more clean air.

Progress. Couldn't be happening without a corruptly partisan Court to overrule Congress unaccountably. Keep your eye out for upcoming reports on Lewy body dementia.

[David Nieporent]

1) What are you talking about?
2) What are you talking about?
3) What does SCOTUS have to do with it?

[Kazinski]

Bit that's not actually what you said, you said I made it up.

"Sounds like more bullshit from Kazinski. Kazinski, are you just reciting the government's objections, and calling them the court's opinion?"

I think you just made that up.

[Stephen Lathrop]

Nieporent — Read the decision. It cites a recent SCOTUS case as authority to ignore requirements to compile and publish an EIS. The decision even concedes those would formerly have been legal requirements, prior to that SCOTUS case.

[Riva]

Judicial lawfare is not designed to withstand appellate review. It’s simply a delay tactic to undermine the Trump administration.

[jb]

Seems dumb. Wouldn't it undermine the Trump administration more if it withstood appellate review?

[Riva]

Based essentially on the underlying political preferences of the particular activist judge(s), it is intrinsically incapable of withstanding any real scrutiny.

[jb]

You mean like in AARP? Good point.

[Riva]

If you mean the 5th Circuit panel’s assumption of the role and powers of the President, yes it is.

[jb]

Ah, so now the 5th Circuit is also not applying any actual scrutiny?

[Riva]

Trying to think of a way to dumb this down for you. Judicial activism is not limited to district courts. If you still can’t understand, ask your parents or babysitter to explain.

[Sarcastr0]

"Judicial lawfare is not designed to withstand appellate review"

[jb]

Riva's context window isn't big enough for a discussion that goes back and forth more than twice, apparently.

[Riva]

You can call it a judicial insurrection if that makes you feel any better, little communist girl that never smiled. To each his (or little communist girl's) own.

[John F. Carr]

The dispute, like many before it, is over the meaning of a conjunction. Under circuit precedent an environmental impact statement is required if a project is federally funded and federally controlled. The district court held the requirement applicable if a project is federally funded or federally controlled. There is no federal funding yet. It is not clear to me if FEMA will need an EIS to approve funding for an already-completed environmental nuisance.

See pages 15-23. https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ca11.92709/gov.uscourts.ca11.92709.42.1.pdf

[bernard11]

Are you saying that FL decided to build the place on its own dime, hoping to be reimbursed by the Feds? And why would the Feds give over control to FL?

Seems implausible.

[John F. Carr]

Legally, Florida did this on spec. The federal government has no obligation. Florida is relying on Trump's favor to get a grant application approved. If through a series of implausible incidents Hakeem Jeffries becomes president the application will be denied.

[Stephen Lathrop]

How about some plausible incidents involving MAGA loss of the Congress during the midterm elections? You think Trump still gets to give FL a grant if the House won't vote to appropriate? I think Trump will at least try, and probably get a court to agree it will take a really long time to finish review.

[Krayt]

One goes into government to get in the way, to get paid to get back out of the way. Even meaningful regulatory instructions are used by pols to line their pockets in one roundabout way or another.

This is the way of the world, and the plague of human history. Fundamental Theorem of Government.

With free speech and the press, they have to hide it a little better here, which keeps the "shitholing burden" relatively low, but the thought is there.

Rarely though, do we see heartwarming environmental rules used so brazenly for their intended purpose, to get in the way.

[Stephen Lathrop]

An intended use of a mandated EIS to get in the way is a good use. The point of doing it was to force political review of controversial environmental projects which would otherwise get green lights without public attention. That was doing a giant amount of cumulative ecological damage, especially with regard to wetlands landfills. Before the EIS requirement was added to see to it that politicians who approved such projects would do it in context of an informed public with its eye on what was going on, nobody knew what was planned until it was too late to prevent the damage from being done while legal cases were pending.

[Stephen Lathrop]

Trump has kept his promises. That lie is much beloved by MAGA apologists. Some of them have the effrontery to recite it to justify Trump's lawlessness. But Trump did not promise lawless action. He promised specific results, without specifying means. Had he done otherwise, the marked decline in his approval evident in recent polls would have happened before the election. He would never have been elected. Thus, Trump can claim no mandate now.

That ought to be a salient point in Trump's case outcomes before SCOTUS. The Court seems cowed by Trump's claimed popularity, by his mandate. He has no mandate, and if the Court mistakenly relies on a notion that he does, it will retain no legitimacy.

[Mr. Bumble]

Do you ever get tired of yelling "get off my lawn"?

[Stephen Lathrop]

I never tire, because my commentary continues to draw tacit concessions such as your own.

[Frank Drackman]

I'd use another word that ends with "it"

[Frank Drackman]

And if Common-Law had won, "Dougie" would be nailing maids in the residence, like AlGore used to do (do they put Viagra in the Water at the Naval Observatory?maybe try some Salt Peter)
When he wasn't slapping around X-Girlfriends at Cannes (typical "Progressive" not slapping a waitress at Hooters, a Dancer at Scores, but his Girlfriend at Cannes)

Frank

[Kazinski]

The Court's aren't supposed to consider mandates, although I have to admit that's what apparently caused Roberts to call a fine a tax in NFIB.

But they wouldn't admit if they did.

[Brett Bellmore]

Wow, that's absurd 'reasoning': "Sure, he's done what he said he'd do, but he didn't say how he'd do it, so that doesn't count as keeping his promises!"

[Stephen Lathrop]

Exactly, Bellmore. Political promises are never rightly supposed by the public to announce lawless intent.

And anyway, you understand what Trump's poll decline shows about your ridiculous presumption that Trump has some electoral mandate. Trump has since lost many times the decisive margin which his vote count demonstrated. With the actual political actions and policies Trump chose in full sight, the American people have rejected those on the basis of experience. That is why Trump, MAGA, and you, are in a panicked rush to gerrymander the mid-terms.

[Brett Bellmore]

Then I guess a lot fewer political promises get "kept" than is conventionally thought. Per Lathropian standards for promises being kept, anyway.

As I've said before, while Trump's chosen means are far from ideal, the simple fact that he's even trying to keep his promises is sufficiently novel for a Republican President that Republicans will continue to cut him a lot of slack; They're just not used to their Presidents even trying to keep campaign promises, and they happen to like it.

Based on Nate Silver's numbers, Trump's popularity has been in the same range since his honeymoon ended; Since April he's been consistently polling in a tight range of 43-47% approval, without any significant trend. 43% appears to be his floor, and this represents basically every last Democrat despising him, which was unavoidable, and a very high level of popularity with everyone else.

So, yeah, he's unpopular with the people who were never going to like him no matter what he did, go figure.

Same general trend on the issue polling: As every last Democrat hates him with the white hot fury of a thousand exploding suns, he has a hard ceiling under 50%, but he's not doing badly with the people who aren't committed to hating what he does no matter what the results.

Presidential approval by members of the opposing party has been trending down for decades. With Trump, (And Biden before him!) it has gotten so low that polling for Presidential approval has been become interchangeable with asking somebody's party affiliation: Trump has approximately 2% approval among Democrats.

As you can see from Pew's numbers, Trump's approval is buried under the foundation when it comes to Democrats, but at a normal Presidential level when it comes to everybody else. And has only dropped by a perfectly conventional post-honeymoon degree among those who were ever going to approve of him.

The closest Democrats and Republicans come to agreeing about is whether Trump stands up for what he believes in. Only a 43% gap, because nearly half of Democrats will concede that he does, they just don't like what he believes in.

Bottom line is, the days when a President might expect to get an over 50% approval rating past his honeymoon are over, because members of the opposing party automatically give a President low single digit approval numbers, which puts a hard ceiling on overall approval. Trump is not unique in this regard

I don't want to exceed my link count, so continued...

[bernard11]

As I've said before, while Trump's chosen means are far from ideal, the simple fact that he's even trying to keep his promises is sufficiently novel for a Republican President that Republicans will continue to cut him a lot of slack;

Remind me, Brett. Isn't there some sort of saying about means and ends?

[Brett Bellmore]

Remind me, isn't there a difference between describing something, and being happy about it? Or must one engage in performative incomprehension of everything they find objectionable?

[bernard11]

Tell me, if someone constantly expresses approval of some result, and never objects to the means, never disapproves of the whole business because it was accomplished using unsavory means, isn't it fair to infer that they are glad about it?

[Bwaaah]

Or must one engage in performative incomprehension of everything they find objectionable?

[Brett Bellmore]

Biden job approval

Oh, look, Biden spent most of HIS Presidency in the low to mid 30's, not the middle 40's. With a consistent downward trend. That's what it looks like when even your own party members think you're a lousy President. Trump's doing a lot better than that, so far.

So far. He could still blow it. He hasn't yet, though.

[Frank Drackman]

He'll get a bounce after the 2028 Convention

[Brett Bellmore]

Oh, didn't you hear? They're talking about having a mid-term convention.

[Frank Drackman]

I heard, but the Third-Term Convention will be more important.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Why not?

[ThePublius]

"He promised specific results, without specifying means. Had he done otherwise, the marked decline in his approval evident in recent polls would have happened before the election. He would never have been elected. Thus, Trump can claim no mandate now."

Decline in polls? What decline in polls?

"A Daily Mail/J.L. Partners poll showed Trump has a 55 percent approval rating, the Mail reported on Thursday.

J.L. Partners co-founder James Johnson said, “This is the highest approval figure we have ever shown for Donald Trump,” and the outlet noted a six-point uptick from another poll conducted by the same groups in July.

The Mail reported, “The poll of 867 registered voters was conducted from August 21 – September 1 and has a 3.3 percent margin of error.”

Johnson also said, “It might seem surprising, but the news cycle has been ace for the president in recent days: his crime surge in DC is backed by the public, and economic news has been positive.”

A Harvard-Harris poll in June showed Trump at his highest approval regarding the issue of immigration, per Breitbart News."

Plus, your assertion that he has no mandate now because of what hypothetically might have happened in the past is logical nonsense.

[Riva]

Here’s some advice that democrats absolutely cannot and will not follow. Stop reflexively and stupidly opposing every policy and action of the Trump administration and put forward your own agenda. They can’t and won’t because their agenda is despised by the public that elected President Trump to undo it and implement the very policies they reflexively and stupidly oppose.

[Bob from Ohio]

" Stop reflexively and stupidly opposing every policy and action of the Trump administration "

LOL Totally impossible. Their hair has been on fire for a decade.

Easier to command the tide to stay out.

[Mr. Bumble]

Will the call soon be going out for "clean-up" at CBS News as a result of exploding heads now that Paramount is reported to be buying Free Press from Bari Weiss for $100 million and as part of the deal giving her a position at CBS News?
While $100 million is not what it used to be, most people would consider Weiss as now being rich. Was that just luck as Il Douche claimed in Wednesday's open thread?

[Brett Bellmore]

It does kind of sound like the old recipe for making a small fortune: Start with a large one... At one time, the Free Press was genuinely worth more than that, and in nominal, much less inflated dollars.

Sure wasn't being paid $100M for the Free Press, (It's not worth THAT much anymore.) wonder what most of the money was for?

[Mr. Bumble]

When was The Free Press worth more? It was only started by Weiss four years ago.

[Brett Bellmore]

OK, my mistake, I thought it was the old Detroit Free Press from Michigan. Well, then, I guess I retract my comment about it formerly having been worth that much.

[ThePublius]

And the rumored number is "$100M to $200M."

[Krayt]

I had to go look this up, too. I used to deliver it back in the day.

[Malika la Maize]

Wild start to the NFL season last night, from an immediate unsportsmanlike ejection for spitting to a lightning delay capped by a close game. Glad the Eagles pulled it out but the Cowboys put up a good fight. If only Jerry wasn’t holding them down so much…

[Frank Drackman]

Cowboys always remind me of "Toad" in Amurican Graffiti driving Steve's Bitchin' 1958 Impala,
"Man, what a waste of machinery!"

Spitting in a player's face? Jack Lambert would have knocked every tooth out of that (redacted) Eagles player's head, and Jack Tatum??? He'd have put him in a wheelchair (and on a Ventilator)
Oh wait, he did that to guys who didn't spit in his face.

Frank

[JoeFromtheBronx]

A lot of scoring, long break, and then the defense took over.

[Malika la Maize]

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has backed laws requiring his state’s public schools to display the Ten Commandments and enabling the schools’ adoption of a state-backed, Bible-based curriculum along with designated prayer periods.
This week, the Republican went a step further — urging children to recite “the Lord’s Prayer, as taught by Jesus Christ,” if their public schools established a prayer period as permitted by a state law that took effect Monday.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/09/04/ken-paxton-texas-school-prayer/

[hobie]

They could adopt another bounty law empowering other children to sue any muslim or jewish children that don'r recite the prayer

[ducksalad]

And he made the Lord's Prayer recommendation on the official AG government website, displaying the office seal, signing himself as Attorney General, and with response link going to the official AG e-mail address.

[Malika la Maize]

Remember, this is the same guy.

https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/10/angela-paxton-divorce-texas-attorney-general-ken/

In her divorce filing, Senator Paxton alleged that her husband had committed adultery, listing it as the "grounds for divorce." The couple stopped living together more than a year ago — "on or about June 1, 2024" — according to a copy of the filing obtained by The Texas Tribune.

[ducksalad]

That's exactly why his personal recommendation is the Lord's Prayer

forgive us our trespasses

rather than the Ten Commandments

thou shalt not commit adultery

[Michael P]

The Washington Post has better into self-parody, Twitting:

As many as 58 percent of people with depression who menstruate might have premenstrual exacerbation of depression, studies suggest.

My heart truly goes out to people with depression who menstruate.

[Frank Drackman]

My Mom had Post Partum Depression BEFORE I was born! (Rimshot)

[Brett Bellmore]

Doesn't that just mean that you had an older sibling?

[Frank Drackman]

You’re right, it should have been,

“My mom had Morning Sickness AFTER I was born!”

[hobie]

She was relieved to see that all that came out was afterbirth. Then the black muslim doctor informed it was an actual living Frankie. Then she became sick

[Frank Drackman]

Your mom thought she'd taken a really nasty shit, and you know, she did!

[John F. Carr]

No guns for people with PMS.

[Malika la Maize]

When Tennessee’s Republican governor, Bill Lee, dispatched his National Guard troops to Washington to support President Trump’s crackdown on crime, Democrats and other critics wondered why he didn’t keep them within state lines.

Memphis, after all, has long been one of the most dangerous cities in the country, with a murder rate about twice as high as the nation’s capital, according to F.B.I. statistics. Nashville has a higher rate of violent crime than Washington as well.

The same questions could be asked of other Republican governors like Greg Abbott in Texas, Mike DeWine in Ohio and Mike Kehoe in Missouri, since cities under their purview all have higher rates of violent crime than the nation’s capital. Yet no Republican governor has asked for federal intervention.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/01/us/politics/crime-republican-states.html

[hobie]

Like Ohio, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Missouri...All the towns and cities within Tennessee are crime-ridden shitholes. Red states have serious crime problems

[ThePublius]

"Like Ohio, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Missouri...All the towns and cities within Tennessee are crime-ridden shitholes. Red states Blue cities have serious crime problems." There, FIFY.

You keep doing this. They may be red states, but the worst crime cities in them are almost without exception Democrat run, i.e., with Democratic mayors. It's not a red state problem, it's a blue city problem.

[hobie]

That old fallacy. Ohio has rampant meth, opiate and property crime in the hayseed areas, and black crime in the cities. At some point - like with Illinois and California and their governors - you have to hold state government accountable. But we all know why we don't ask for that same kind of accountability in red states. Don't we, Publius?

[Dr. Ed 2]

Hobie, drugs have destroyed rural America.

[Malika la Maize]

Uh, don’t state governments have way more power than city ones in the same states? Also, how does this answer the initial point about why Red State governments aren’t sending their Guard to their own crime infested cities?

[ducksalad]

Simple honest mistake. Pub was unaware that states have National Guards but cities don't.

[Bob from Ohio]

"blue city problem"

Its a demographics problem really. We dance around it with "blue city".

[LawTalkingGuy]

Just getting closer and closer to outright racism huh?

[hobie]

Let's put it into terms Bob can understand: why be da niggas in red states moe wack than dem niggas in blue states?

[LexAquilia]

Blacks are blacks. They commit crimes at higher rates no matter where they are.

[Bob from Ohio]

Facts are not racist.

Murders are the best reported crime since bodies stink and are pretty visible

" Number of murder offenders 2023, by race
Published by Veera Korhonen
Nov 7, 2024
In 2023, 8,842 murderers in the United States were white, while 6,405 were Black. A further 461 murderers were of another race, including American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. "

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1466623/murder-offenders-in-the-us-by-race

[LawTalkingGuy]

Facts might not be, but you certainly are.

[hobie]

I'll bet there's a stat somewhere showing the vast number of homicides in America are perpetrated by Christians

[David Nieporent]

Even if your claim was true, how would it be responsive? Why aren't these Republican governors using their own states' NGs to fight crime in their own states' cities?

[LawTalkingGuy]

If a red state is really serious about crime in their blue city, they have tons of options to deal with it because the state is sovereign and the city is not. But I think tend to think that on some levels state level Republicans love having Democrats running major cities. Running a city is really hard but running against one is super easy. Way easier to run for state office or suburban offices, blame the big city for everything, but then do nothing about it except to 1) take performative anti-city action from time to time and most importantly 2) take full advantage of the city’s cultural and economic dominance.

They’ll say the city is a shithole and then go to its hospitals, doctors, sporting events, museums, steakhouses, stores, other restaurants clubs, and bars, offices, concerts, shows, parades, colleges and universities, private elite schools, fancy hotels, while having jobs provided by companies and demand located in the city.

You might be a Republican rep living in a bright red Ohio exurb that thinks Cleveland is a shithole…but we all know what hospital you’re going to when you need a bypass.

[Frank Drackman]

and if you want to see the Yankees play you have to go to the Bronx, doesn't make it not a shithole.

[Magnus Pilatus, MBA, MD, JD, PhDx2]

Wait until you connect the dots and realize that every urban shithole has been run by Democrats for a generation.

Just as their are no prosperous and healthy black communities/societies, there are no clean and safe Democrat cities.

[hobie]

Try to look at it logically, bro. All cities in every state are blue. Nearly all of them. So why do the cities in red states have much higher crime rates than those in blue states? There's your answer, bro.

[Keldonric]

Good point. When you compare cities of similar size, those in red states generally report higher violent crime rates than those in blue states. Tulsa, has a higher violent crime rate than Portland. At the state level, red states have posted 20–30% higher homicide rates than blue states in recent years according to the URL below. Of course, correlation doesn’t mean causation — and the state-level factors behind those numbers are numerous.

If you think of it like a function, the output (crime rate by category) depends on inputs like poverty, inequality, gun laws, policing policy, education, and density. Those parameters vary widely between states, which is why the differences show up so consistently in the data. And I’m sure this has been studied in extreme detail — the patterns have been persistent for decades.

They describe their sources at the URL but I would have preferred links to raw data.
https://www.thirdway.org/report/the-21st-century-red-state-murder-crisis

Like many other things there is just too much data to ingest and not enough time.

[Bob from Ohio]

"poverty, inequality, gun laws, policing policy, education, and density"

Missing any?

[hobie]

Listen to yourself, Bob. Why do red states have living conditions equal to southern Angola (another place I lived)?

[Dr. Ed 2]

Or red state reporting of crime is better.

[hobie]

I don't know. Is it?

[Frank Drackman]

All our prisons are full

[LexAquilia]

Because, as we've seen, Democrats cook the books to mask their failed ideologies.

[Malika la Maize]

Two comeback stories collided on the tennis court Thursday night when American Amanda Anisimova and Naomi Osaka of Japan — who was also raised in the U.S. — played each other in the U.S. Open semifinals….

Anisimova and Osaka have both been working their way back up the rankings after returning from mental health breaks in recent years. Each battled her own set of challenges — as well as some of the top-ranked players in the world — to advance to the penultimate round of the final Grand Slam tournament of the year.

https://www.npr.org/2025/09/04/nx-s1-5528663/naomi-osaka-amanda-anisimova-us-open-semifinals

[Armchair]

Current reports are the average GPA at Harvard is a 3.8. Wow. Talk about grade inflation...

Seriously, just switch to a pass-fail system. With a 3.8 average GPA, there's basically no real differentiation. Everyone gets an A.

[Malika la Maize]

They’re so selective there that it’s little surprise, these are the best of the best when it comes to getting grades. You might as well complain that average NFL combine scores are so high.

[ThePublius]

That's baloney, there are a lot of legacy admissions, and affirmative action admissions as well. It's well known that Harvard has engaged in grade inflation for years.

A good grading system would spread people over the range. When they're all compressed at the high end it shows the grading system is not discriminating.

[Malika la Maize]

That’s not necessarily true, a good grading system can reflect the material you want learned and standards, but it’s entirely possible that at that elite level most everyone will meet those standards. According to Gemini “The average SAT score for admitted students to Harvard is around 1530 to 1550,” the whole point of SAT is to predict college performance. Again, this is the NFL of getting grades.

“there are a lot of legacy admissions, and affirmative action admissions as well”

Cite? For “a lot.” And what are the average grades/scores for these groups? Remember that a common argument against affirmative action is it tends to reward well off, already high achieving members of minority groups.

[Armchair]

"but it’s entirely possible that at that elite level most everyone will meet those standards."

But are they? While anecdotal, we can look to the internet for case examples.

"I’m embarrassed to corroborate this claim that Harvard has grade inflation. As much as I want to argue that the letter grade I obtained in a class was all my mental prowess and grit, that’s simply not 100% true.

Case in point, I took Economics 1010A my freshman fall (Intermediate Microeconomic Theory). My first midterm exam went horribly: 100/130. My second was better: 113/100. My final was best: 114/130. These tests combined was worth 75% of my course grade. Of the remaining 25% unaccounted for, I earned 23% of those points. There is no way I should have received anything higher than a B based on my numerical grade: 85%. Not even a B+, but the class was graded on RANK not performance. If you scored in the top 50% of the class you received an A or A-.

By the hair of my chiny-chin-chin, I managed to score in the top 50% of the class, “earning” an A-. So I would love to say I deserved that A- because of my performance, but I didn’t. I only earned it comparatively."

https://www.quora.com/Does-Harvard-University-have-a-problem-with-grade-inflation

[Malika la Maize]

While anecdotal.

[Armchair]

If you want to provide a counter anecdote, go ahead.

Here are a few more anecdotes

"* An economics major received an A on a final exam for identifying "supply" and "demand" as two key elements in the law of supply and demand.

* A graduate student in classics received an A- for a paper in which he asserted that the Theban plays of Sophocles included Xena, Warrior Princess.

* A history concentrator received summa cum laude honors for his senior thesis, Positive Identification of the Body in the Tomb of General Ulysses S. Grant."

[Sarcastr0]

Armchair, you've fallen for satire.

https://www.harvardmagazine.com/2002/03/grade-inflation-resolved-html

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Lol.

I'm mainly curious which incredibly credulous right wing source he pulled that from (obviously, it wasn't from Harvard Magazine directly--at least, I hope not!)

[Sarcastr0]

My guess is AI.

[Malika la Maize]

Internet anecdotes are near worthless, why would I engage in matching them? The question is why you persist

[ducksalad]

Feel free to dismiss this as an anecdote or anonymous guy falsely claiming to be a professor.

But I talk with lots of colleagues at top 25 places, and with colleagues at open admission community colleges, and with my co-workers at a decent but unranked regional university.

Literally zero of them, in 30 years of conversations, has ever said we're giving higher grades because students are getting better. I've *never* heard an actual faculty member claim there's no inflation. At most they'll claim *they personally* don't inflate but their co-workers do. Some admit they've given in, because giving an above average student a B kills their job prospects when employers, used to inflation, now assume A means marginally competent and B means the student is a bottom dweller. And some say they've been "asked" to raise their grades by management, in some cases with specific numerical targets.

----
In the latter case, it goes about like this: "Dr. X, your grade distributions are lower than other instructors. That means your students aren't learning, and perhaps we need to find ways to help you teach better. For this semester, we're going to assign you to two hours of development every Friday afternoon, and a 2000 word reflective essay on how you can try to be a better teacher who cares about students. At the end of the semester, we'll take a look at your grade distributions and decide if these measures were effective or further actions are needed to ensure our students get the learning they and the taxpayers paid for. Please sign below to acknowledge receipt of this message."

[Dr. Ed 2]

"history concentrator received summa cum laude honors for his senior thesis, Positive Identification of the Body in the Tomb of General Ulysses S. Grant."

That may not have been as simple as you think.

[ducksalad]

As some who teaches at a non-elite university, I say meh.

I could accept a statement that students at Harvard perform better and therefore have higher grades.

Alternatively, I could accept a statement that an A at Harvard is better than an A at Obscure State University.

But when people make both arguments at the same time, and they* often do, then it strikes me as making contradictory arguments and deserving of some pushback. Decide whether it's one scale or different scales, and don't double dip.

Given that we have no enforced national grading scale, I lean toward the second formulation. But then that means that Harvard IS in fact inflating grades**. If they want to claim they're grading by tougher elite standards then their average student should have a B-.

*Not you of course.
**None of this should be interpreted as justifying any of the crap Trump is doing to them.

[Dr. Ed 2]

I'd like to see a national exit exam.

[bernard11]

a good grading system can reflect the material you want learned and standards, but it’s entirely possible that at that elite level most everyone will meet those standards.

Well, that depends on what the grade is supposed to measure. Is it how much of the material the student mastered? Then I suppose it makes sense to say "They're all smart, so they all did well."

But the grade is more than that. Whether the school likes it or not it is used as a measure of rank by others - graduate and professional schools, employers to some degree, etc. So it is a bit of a misrepresentation, especially since those users don't see the entire distribution.

And what is the point, anyway? "John mastered 98% of the course material." Well, what was the course material? If everyone did that, then maybe the class was too easy.

[Armchair]

"They’re so selective there that it’s little surprise..."

Well, there's the little fact that grade inflation at Harvard has skyrocketed. In 1914, the average GPA was 2.14. 1963, 2.7; 1975, 3.05; 1986, 3.2; 1996, 3.4; 2011, 3.6; 2017, 3.7; 2022, 3.8.

Doesn't look like just "selectivity" is the answer.

[Malika la Maize]

In the old days Harvard was essentially a gentlemen’s club of legacy type admits. The “gentleman’s C” was a thing. They didn’t start using the SAT until decades after your first stats. Top kids today are strivers at getting grades (fwiw), this is all in line with increasingly better performance.

[Armchair]

Your argument seems to be that Harvard was less selective in 1986 than it is today, and that all the performance increase is due to "better students".

And yet...was Harvard REALLY that much less selective in 1986?

[Malika la Maize]

There’s an unrelenting race of parents to get their kids into the best pre-schools in recent decades, snowplowing their kids through tutoring, oboe classes, getting consultations for entry essays, everything to get the slightest leg up on other kids to get these selective slots. Admission rates have plummeted. They were like 29% in the 1960’s and now are closer to 5. Yes, it’s more competitive.

[Armchair]

"oboe classes, getting consultations for entry essays"

Does that really make the kids "smarter" as you would indicate?

[Malika la Maize]

I think I said they were good at getting grades (which is what you’re talking about). These kind of distinctions matter.

[David Nieporent]

And yet...was Harvard REALLY that much less selective in 1986?

Yes. Acceptance rates in the mid-1980s were in the high teens. Acceptance rates in 2025 are in the low single digits.

[bernard11]

But the significance of that depends on how many applicants there are.

[Armchair]

So, how many applicants were there? How many schools did each applicant apply to?

These are key questions.. Care to answer them?

[Kazinski]

I've have noticed that kids these days already know everything by the time the graduate from high school, so its not surprising that GPA's would reflect that.

[Sarcastr0]

Grade inflation is a thing everywhere. It’s pretty transparent to pretend it’s a Harvard problem.

[Armchair]

But Harvard is arguably "leading the pack". Where other Universities have GPAs significantly lower, Harvard is starting to hit the 4.0 limit. If you curve the class to hit an A, then grades start to be meaningless.

[Malika la Maize]

Why curve? Set what you want to be learned, aim high and rigorous but then if x amount of kids hit that mark who cares what the number is? Given you’ve chosen the best of the best it’s not surprising most will hit the mark.

[Sarcastr0]

Harvard is arguably "leading the pack".

Vibes, of course.

I disagree with Malika in that I do expect there's a ton of grade inflation at Harvard. I also don't think their students are invariably the 'best of the best.' Our borked meritocracy is a subject for another day, however.

But grade inflation is a broad issue of incentives, your partisan focus just makes you look like a tool.

[ThePublius]

What partisan focus? I haven't seen anything partisan in this thread, except your mention of it.

[Sarcastr0]

Going after only Harvard isn't partisan? Oh, my sweet summer child.

[ThePublius]

No, it's not! It's a topic that's been talked about for decades, and there's nothing partisan about it, except in your head.

[Malika la Maize]

You have t heard that MAGAns hate Harvard?

[Sarcastr0]

Grade inflation has been talked about for decades. Pretending it's a Harvard-specific issue is reserved for tools of Trump.

[ThePublius]

No one's pretending. He just mentioned Harvard in his post as it's notable for being at the top of the ivy league. You guys just all have a partisan filter for everything.

[Sarcastr0]

He just mentioned Harvard in his post as it's notable for being at the top of the ivy league

Again, you're a sweet summer child.

[ThePublius]

Sarcastr0, get lost with your insults. Make an argument, fine, but don't try to augment it, or denigrate the person with whom you disagree.

[Malika la Maize]

That shows an unfamiliarity with Armchair and/or recent politics that does border on naive. He can be counted on to focus on the MAGA enemy d’jour and Trump’s focus on Harvard was a big deal in the news this week and in recent months.

[Malika la Maize]

I don’t see why, given Harvard’s greater selectivity and perceived value that Occam’s razor would t suggest that it’s drawing on people who are better/take more seriously the criteria that’s allegedly being “inflated.”

[Sarcastr0]

1. The average changing over time cannot be explained with selectivity.
2. Classes at Harvard or other elite institutions will be tuned for the expected quality of the student cohort; that should counter any selection bias.
3. Harvard admissions does not selects only or even primarily for those who they predict will have good grades at Harvard.
4. Grades are a subjective measure not an objective one; they cannot be considered some independent steady variable.

That's all just off the top of my head - there's almost certainly some good sources on the issue that would be more robust.

[Malika la Maize]

I don’t follow. As an example, if the value of quick linemen in pro football goes up we should expect to see the average 40 time for them to go down. I agree grades are somewhat subjective but they’re not totally, and we’re trying to explain grades are getting better for a small selection of a growing pool which values and takes grades more seriously.

Take women’s soccer or basketball. It’s hard to deny that the average performance of a pro player is better than it was. Due to things like the growing visibility of star pros in those fields lots more girls are playing soccer, lots more putting in more time hoping to be college and then pros, and what do you know the average player to make pros now from that larger pool of strivers is better performing than they were years ago.

[Armchair]

"Vibes, of course."

Or facts. Slightly dated, Harvard is now at a 3.8 overall.

https://ripplematch.com/insights/the-average-gpa-of-every-ivy-league-university-64f7f55d

[Sarcastr0]

So your analysis is to update Harvard's number, but keep everyone else's the same?

[Frank Drackman]

Funny that a University "leading the pack" is afraid to let their students take the MCAT

[Don Nico]

Finally, I can agree with S_0 without reservation.

[Frank Drackman]

I had a 3.6 overall at Auburn circa 1984, actually did better in Science/Math than the supposedly Easy Liberal Arts (Straight C’s in Freshman Engrish, “D” in an advanced writing course I took after getting my med school acceptance, I did get A’s in Literature, History and German, only B’s in Science/Math were Botany, Physics III(Electricity, still don’t understand it) and Differential Equations (see Physics)

Frink

[Malika la Maize]

Straight Cs in English, say It Isn’t
so

[Frank Drackman]

I was lucky to get that, and I only missed getting an "F" in English, History, and Pre-Calculus at FSU by a few minutes, dropping all 3 just before the deadline.
Like "D-Day" in Animal House, my FSU record is
"Frank Drackman.....has no Grade Point Average, all courses Incomplete!"

Frink

[Kazinski]

I graduated from Arkansas in '89 with 3.7 gpa, but I kind of cheated, they didn't count my 2.0 GPA from Jr. College in California, which was a years worth of credits. And I took the CLEP exam for another 5 courses which didn't count for my GPA, and I took 2 semesters of Japanese with my father in law as my professor, and he gave me a son-in-laws A.

I'm not sure I even had enough credits to graduate, I think they gave me 1 semester of my brother's credits from the mid 70's when they computerized the Junior college's records.

[TwelveInchPianist]

"Seriously, just switch to a pass-fail system. With a 3.8 average GPA, there's basically no real differentiation. Everyone gets an A."

Certainly true. I suspect that the main driver of grade inflation is the lack of demand for differentiation. And given that, maybe grade inflation isn't a problem.

[M L]

Right. Don't they still have magna, summa etc though.

[Frank Drackman]

Organic Chemistry 1, there were only 2 "A's" (me and a guy who looked like the Unabomber), 4-5 "B's", 10-15 C's, about 10 D's and F's, and that doesn't count the 1/2 the class that dropped out before Drop/Add day.
It was the "Weed Out" course for Med Screw-el, worked pretty well, not like I'm synthesizing chemicals all day long (Pfizer does just fine) but if you have trouble memorizing a few chemical reactions, you're not going to do well in Gross Anatomy, Neuroanatomy, Micro Anatomy,

Frink

[Armchair]

Who did better, Trump or Biden?

The lowest income category of Americans had the largest gains of income under Trump. The bottom 25% gained 10% in income, the median household gained 8% and the richest 25% gained 7%.

Under Biden the bottom 25% lost money, the median household gained less than 1% and the richest 25%...well, they gained 3-4%

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2025/09/who-did-better-biden-or-trump.php

[Malika la Maize]

The Committee to Unleash Prosperity

Lol

[Armchair]

I see that the honest facts of the situation have left you no choice but to have a mental breakdown.

[Moderation4ever]

Or just consider other honest facts:

https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/us-econ-republicans-democrats/

[Armchair]

I see you didn't respond with a link that was about incomes for people. Just changed the topic.

[Malika la Maize]

Laughing at The Committee to Unleash Prosperity does not constitute a mental breakdown, indeed coming up with that name is more likely indicative.

[Moderation4ever]

Agreed, the CUP is a joke. They seem to for that Trump 1.0 ended in a recession as Trump 2.0 likely will.

[Mr. Bumble]

See below.

[Armchair]

Are the facts presented incorrect? If not, are you just engaging in an ad hominem type argument?

[Michael P]

Perhaps he's announcing that he is part of the Plandemic 2 conspiracy.

[Mr. Bumble]

These aren't made up numbers by The Committee to Unleash Prosperity. They are based on census surveys and there is a full explanation of the sources and how the results were arrived at in a link in the Powerline article.

[Malika la Maize]

I like how it’s conclusion keeps stressing it’s methodology is “feasible,” “credible” etc., in the first paragraph alone!

[Brett Bellmore]

It turns out, shockingly, that American unskilled labor does really well when you remove a lot of illegal alien unskilled labor. Job growth among citizens has roughly matched deportation numbers. (Including self-deportation, of course.)

[Malika la Maize]

One problem with this is it doesn’t seem that many were relatively deported during Trump’s first term (which is what this report is about).

https://ohss.dhs.gov/topics/immigration/yearbook/2019/table39

[Brett Bellmore]

I think you're neglecting the extent to which Obama and Biden goosed their "deportation" numbers by changing practice to count turnbacks near the border as 'deportations', while still allowing huge numbers of illegals to enter the country and stay.

Trump's ACTUAL deportations, as defined prior to Obama, were higher, because by persuading illegals to stop even trying, he'd reduced the number of turnbacks needed. While the fact that the influx had mostly been shut down meant that the deportations, self and otherwise, actually were gaining ground, reducing total numbers.

Those numbers had kept rising during Obama, and especially Biden's administration, because they'd been deliberately allowing high levels of illegal immigration far exceeding deportations.

[Malika la Maize]

How about a citation for these “ACTUAL” numbers?

[Brett Bellmore]

Come on, your own source shows that Trump had removals comparable to Obama and Biden. Only at much lower levels of illegal border crossings...

As for Obama's redefinition of "deportation",

High deportation figures are misleading

[Malika la Maize]

Well, it said it started in W’s term, so it wouldn’t be Obama’s redefinition, would it?

Also, how do we know how many of Trump’s first term deportation numbers fell under this definition?

[Brett Bellmore]

We do know that Southern border crossings declined dramatically when Trump took office, and as they're the raw material for border turn backs, I figure they had to have similarly declined, while the sum didn't so much.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Maybe people decided not to swap one shithole country for another?

[Sarcastr0]

Job growth among citizens has roughly matched deportation numbers
Big if true.

Even bigger if true after September 30.

[hobie]

Basically, their 'data' fleshes out that both Biden and Obama (surprise!) did poorly and Trump bigly. Ignoring that Obama had to get through bad times for his first term cleaning up the Bush recession. Then handing over a roaring economy to Trump. And that Biden had to clean up the Trump recession so had poor numbers due to high inflation. Again, handing off a healthy country to another republican administration to fuck up all over again. Rinse/repeat.

[ThePublius]

"Biden had to clean up the Trump recession"

The Trump recession? Try the covid recession.

[Moderation4ever]

No Trump's recession. The recession goes wit the President. Most of the Biden inflation was due to spending and mismanagement in the Trump 1.0 administration and its still Biden's inflation. Sorry that just the way it works. The recession during Covid was inevitable but Trump's incompetence made it worse.

[Mr. Bumble]

Exactly how do you define moderation?
You hardly seem to exhibit it.

[hobie]

You mad 'cause he got all immoderate taking y'all to school. Please, please can he just be more moderate?!

[Mr. Bumble]

The only way he would take anyone to school would be as the bus driver, if he could get a CDL.

[LexAquilia]

Notice how it wasn't the CDC's incompetence to this guy. Nor does he even know that it's Congress that spends the money.

What a dipshit.

[Malika la Maize]

Trump didn’t have authority over the CDC?

[LexAquilia]

Do you think Presidents make every decision in every agency? Like how you and hobie think Presidents appropriate funding?

[Kazinski]

Make up your mind Hobie, did Trump shut things down too much, or not enough?

But in any case Biden didn't clean up the Covid recession, Trump did, the last 2 quarters Trump was in office, GDP was +35.3% and +4.4%.

[hobie]

I don't think Trump did much of anything for pandemic policy. He sort of let the CDC, states and businesses hash out what was best.

"the last 2 quarters Trump was in office, GDP was +35.3% and +4.4%"

Well, duh. When GDP is near zero and businesses go back on line, you'll see a jump like that. A more realistic metric would be to compare whatever the GDP numbers were at the end of 2020 versus what they were at the end of 2019.

Besides, Americans and economics were the last things on his mind in his final two quarters: maintaining power was.

[Frank Drackman]

Loved how at the end of his first term Barry Hussein was "Going to let the Bush Tax Cuts Expire!!!!!"
Which would have raised the Lowest bracket (the one that starts at your first taxable Shekel) from 10% to 15% (and I've grown old trying to explain that that's a 50% increase and not a 5% increase)
DemoKKKrats finally knocked some sense into BHO's nappy head, and they kept the every bracket at Bush's levels and only increased the top 35% bracket to 39.6% (which is a 13% increase, not 4.6%)

Frink

[Moderation4ever]

I wake up to find that the DOD is being renamed the Department of War. At what point do the MAGAs realize that Trump has completely lost it. Besides the complete stupidity of the idea, let's just look at this from a libertarian point of view. How much money will be spent on this stupid idea. Changing logos and letterheads. And MAGAs thought Cracker Barrel change was stupid.

[Malika la Maize]

It’s a nice distraction from Massie’s work this week though, maybe.

[Mr. Bumble]

It's being returned to its original name, although it will take an act of Congress to do it officially.

[Swede425]

I wanted it to be renamed the "Department of Mean Tweets".

[hobie]

Should just rename it after a Confederate slaver

[Frank Drackman]

You want everything named after DemoKKKrats

[Michael P]

Renaming* the War Department to DOD post-WW2 was a politically useful move to demonstrate to the Evil Empire that we were not interested in offensive actions. You don't get the same effect from remaining a DOD to a Department of Fuzzy Cuddles, and between Bush II and Obama, nobody would believe the US was still uninterested in offensive war.

* The original War Department only ran the Army, with a separate Department of the Navy, and the merged department was briefly known as the National Military Establishment. But functionally it was as much a renaming as a restructuring.

[Sarcastr0]

If it actually comes to pass, this will be some of the stupidest churn I've seen for a long time.

[LexAquilia]

Stupider than the all the DEI signage, policies, and gay flags everywhere?

Surely not. Because that has to go down as the dumbest time in all of human history.

[Riva]

Stupid to little communist girls who never smile perhaps. Because they do not understand the main purpose and objective of the military. As the great Maha Rushie once noted, armies in war kill people and break things. And we played to win when it was called the Department of War.

[John F. Carr]

Department of Police Action. For those who remember the 20th century. The expression "police action" has fallen out of use.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

"Special Military Operations Department" has some relevance...

[Jerry B.]

Seems like they should go back to "War Department".

[Bob from Ohio]

"DOD is being renamed the Department of War."

It would be better to rename Space Force as Space Fleet with naval ranks and better dress uniforms.

[Mr. Bumble]

Star Fleet.

[Bob from Ohio]

Probably a little too copycat. But ok.

Wrath of Kahn uniforms or Original Series miniskirts for the women?

[Mr. Bumble]

There you go.

[Ridgeway]

Wrath of Khan. Wrath of Kahn would be Spaceballs.

[Frank Drackman]

Khan Noonien Singh to be complete

[Riva]

Always go with the classics. Original uniforms.

[Swede425]

I'd go back in the service if I could be a Space Commodore.
Or, if enlisted, Chief Petty Officer of the Galaxy.
I'd get busted down to Space Ranger so fast your head would spin.

[Malika la Maize]

They need janitors in space?

If you couldn’t get into the Air Force the first time you’re not getting into Space Anything.

You cleaned the latrines for more physically able grunts. Revel in your time.

[Swede425]

You seem to have a thing for latrines.
I'm guessing you spend a lot of time in them.
For reasons that are your own.

[Malika la Maize]

What? I only point them out in reference to your service. “Cleaning the latrines” may mean something else in the service your low ASVAB scores relegated you to, and there might be some trauma there that explains a lot about you, but I’m honestly trying to help you think about your service as something noble.

[Swede425]

Oh, I know what you're honestly thinking about.
You're the he/she that fantasized about me taking showers with men in the barracks. No doubt you typed the whole thing with one hand. What is it with lefties and their fetish for latrines and showers? Don't answer that. We already know.

[ThePublius]

He has a wide stance.

[Kazinski]

Department of War was the original name George Washington and Congress gave it in 1798, Truman changed the name in 1947.

And it's not anywhere near Cracker Barrell, we aren't trying to attract customers for our services, we are trying to deter them.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Deterrence.

That must be why Hegseth said we're now "going on offense".

Scoring touchdowns, you know, like in Greenland?

[David Nieporent]

Congress, not Truman, changed the name, and therefore only Congress, not Trump, can change it again.

[Frank Drackman]

Somewhere, George Carlin is enjoying the kerfluffle over re-naming DOD the "War Department"

"Baseball is played on a diamond, in a park.......
"Football is played in a COL-O-SE-UM, or a STADIUM, such as "WAR MEMORIAL STADIUM!......."
"In Baseball you get "Extra Innings!" "we keep playing! nobody knows when it'll end!"
"In Football we have "Sudden Death!"

Frank

[bernard11]

I loved Carlin. Saw him live once and I was literally laughing so hard I fell out of my seat and couldn't breathe.

Remember the airplane routine, or the one about stuff?

[Moderation4ever]

Can you stop a rolling freight train? Or can Mike Johnson stop the release of the Epstein files? It seems like the amount of effort being expended to stop the release just makes the case for the release. Am I missing something here? Is there any reason to work this hard to stop the release?

[jb]

The other thought I had this morning is that by refusing to release the files, the administration has made it possible for Massie or MTG or the folks representing victims to just throw out whatever names they want with no context. Heck, they could name names that aren't even in the files and there's no way to rebut those assertions. How is this possibly better than just releasing the actual information the government has?

[LawTalkingGuy]

So Senator Eric Schmitt went all blood and soul “heritage American” in a speech. Said America is “not a proposition” which seemed to me to be a not so subtle attack on Lincoln’s conception of the country as expressed at Gettysburg.

Notably he hired Nate Hochman as a staffer who was fired by the DeSantis campaign for putting Nazi iconography in an extremely bizarre campaign video.

So it’s a good data point supporting the groyperfication thesis and the fascism thesis for describing the Trump era Republican Party.

Dork-ass too-online losers who are brain-poisoned by groyper memes and Nazi aesthetics are helping GOP US Senators openly reject the new birth of freedom that their forerunners created in favor of a personalist leader and a particularly pathetic form of nationalism.

But these assholes will probably still go to Republican Lincoln Day parties. Fuck them. They don’t deserve him.

[Estragon]

“groyperfication thesis”

Lots of data points supporting this coming to light recently. It’s “hard not to love” the Bismarck, amirite? I wonder if any of the resident denizens will be brave enough to pop in with the “we should have sided with Hitler” stuff Tucker Carlson has been pushing.

[Mr. Bumble]

Where has anyone who comments here shown any inclination to side with Tucker Carlson?

[Estragon]

“We should have sided with Hitler against Stalin” is definitely something I’ve seen in these parts in the past. Whether you want to characterize that red-hot take as “sid[ing]” with Mr Carlson isn’t really critical to the point here.

[ThePublius]

I have never read anyone say “We should have sided with Hitler against Stalin” on this blog.

[Estragon]

I have. I’ve also been around a lot longer than you. But again— the appearance or not of that sentiment in this particular forum is not really critical to the point here about groyperfication.

[Mr. Bumble]

Then why did you bring it up?

[Estragon]

For exact reason I stated! I am always curious as to what outside media you people are consuming. I am also interested in whether and to what extent the seemingly outre comments here actually have predictive value as to where MAGA is heading.

But that is a separate matter of personal interest. I was responding to the OP, about groyperfication.

[David Nieporent]

I have never read anyone say “We should have sided with Hitler against Stalin” on this blog.

I have, and it wasn't very long ago. I don't remember which semi-regular was posting it, but it showed up repeatedly in a "Patton was right" cloak.

[ThePublius]

Well, FWIW, Patton never said we should ally with Hitler, he said because the Russians had so many more divisions than the allies had in Europe we should recruit German veterans to augment our forces in going after the Russians, and he said this after Hitler's death.

[David Nieporent]

Patton has been accused of saying that we fought on the wrong side. The exact wording of what he said is disputed, but the point is that a poster here repeatedly endorsed that sentiment.

[TwelveInchPianist]

Tim Kaine likened the Declaration of Independence's claim that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights to Iranian theocracy.

[Malika la Maize]

Cite?

[Mr. Bumble]

Easy peasy.
“The notion that rights don’t come from laws and don’t come from the government, but come from the Creator, that’s what the Iranian government believes,” Kaine said while attacking Trump’s nominee for Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Riley Barnes.

[jb]

You guys love an out of context quote. Even Fox News bothers to include enough context to make clear what he's talking about:

"The notion that rights don’t come from laws and don’t come from the government, but come from the Creator — that’s what the Iranian government believes. It’s a theocratic regime that bases its rule on Shia law and targets Sunnis, Bahá’ís, Jews, Christians and other religious minorities," Kaine said during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Wednesday.

"They do it because they believe that they understand what natural rights are from their Creator. So, the statement that our rights do not come from our laws or our governments is extremely troubling.

"I'm a strong believer in natural rights, but I have a feeling if we were to have a debate about natural rights in the room and put people around the table with different religious traditions, there would be some significant differences in the definitions of those natural rights."

I get what he's trying to say, but I don't think he's making the case very well. I don't think we need to look to religion for our natural rights, and agree with him its problematic to do so because different religions will come to very different conclusions. But I think he's wrong to suggest that natural rights come from laws; that doesn't really make sense since then "natural rights" and "legal rights" become identical so the term loses all meaning.

[LexAquilia]

You adding context doesn't alter the meaning of what he said.

You just claimed it was out of context to somehow refute it, but you didn't even refute the complaint. You just quibbled and mind-read.

[Mr. Bumble]

"I'm a strong believer in natural rights, but I have a feeling if we were to have a debate about natural rights in the room and put people around the table with different religious traditions, there would be some significant differences in the definitions of those natural rights."
Sure but Tim Kaine is a US Senator and the idea of natural rights is one of the founding principles of the US.
And, he's a dumb fuck.

[LexAquilia]

That's what qualified him to be a Top Democrat.

[Malika la Maize]

Wait a minute, why do you say “sure” but then that he’s dumb as fuck?

Do you think our rights come from God?

[Bob from Ohio]

""I'm a strong believer in natural rights, but"

He does not in fact believe in natural rights.

Or wearing eye glasses correctly,

[Malika la Maize]

Because he says they’re problematic?

You never believed in something that you also thought was problematic?

[LexAquilia]

https://x.com/theblaze/status/1963597707945414973

Now even though this is a video of him in his own clear words, you will deny it.

[Malika la Maize]

Well, the equality part wasn’t in that quote.

[LawTalkingGuy]

Not a great comparison, but it was essentially just positivism vs natural law, a debate that's been going on for centuries.

And FWIW, I don't agree that rights are endowed by a creator because

1) God doesn't exist;
2) That's never how it works and the people who insist on that typically are the worst sorts of abusers of rights. The guy who wrote that owned slaves! Republicans to end birthright citizenship! You'd think the creator would endow you with a right to be able to stay in the place where you were born and spent your whole life but apparently Republicans disagree.

All humans have inherent dignity and worth and as a moral matter should be treated equally and have the blessings of liberty. But legal rights only exist insofar as societies are willing and able to protect them.

[LexAquilia]

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

So you're with Tim Kaine and you believe that statement is wrong. You, and Kaine, believe that the people in government grant you the right to Life. The people in government grant you the right to liberty, and the people in government grant you the right to pursue your own happiness.

Anti-human, and this is the simplest explanation as to why Leftism always results in mass murder and mass misery. Historically speaking, of course.

[Malika la Maize]

It’s anti-human to think rights come from human institutions instead of from God?

Since we’re talking about Jefferson’s quote, how do you feel about the created equal part?

[LawTalkingGuy]

God doesn’t exist and it’s just basic reality that rights only matter if societies work to recognize and enforce them.

Slavery was mass misery and murder. Apparently, despite the creator’s intention the rights of American slaves were extremely alienable.

[LexAquilia]

" if societies work to recognize and enforce them"

What would motivate a society to work to recognize and enforce a right?

A belief that some things are unalienable and granted by your Creator, or by the virtue of you being a human.

Did you think about that?

[LawTalkingGuy]

Societies recognize rights because people forced the issue. The Thirteenth Amendment was written in blood. While the fight against slavery was often rhetorically cast as a righteous and holy exercise of God’s wrath against the slavers, the slavers had a strong religious ideology in defense of alienating rights.

The fervent belief that God endows rights has usually been contested by the equally fervent belief that God has ordained that some people don’t have them.

[LexAquilia]

>Societies recognize rights because people forced the issue.

Why did they force the issue? ... A belief that some things are unalienable and granted by your Creator, or by the virtue of you being a human.

We're going on circles.

[bernard11]

Why did they force the issue?

To protect themselves.

[LexAquilia]

Courts Overturning Elections

The truth is, Democrats as a party no longer respect election results, a key component of self-government. They have moved on from respecting Americans’ individual sovereignty to dominating us by any means necessary.

https://thefederalist.com/2025/09/04/the-atlantic-why-yes-the-point-of-lawfare-is-to-overturn-any-elections-republicans-win/

Wow, just wow. I've never seen the truth put so powerfully before. Democrats really are an existential threat to humanity and human flourishing.

[Malika la Maize]

This is laughable stuff. We all remember how the GOP responded to Biden and Obama’s election by not challenging anything they did in court because the people had spoken.

[LexAquilia]

You think the lawfare of the past six months isn't unprecedented?

[Malika la Maize]

No, it’s not. Biden’s executive initiatives, from student loans, to immigration, to environmental, etc., were challenged.

[LexAquilia]

lmao, you're not very smart about current events and you can't even read, lol

you named 3, my article referenced 400+

SAD.

[Malika la Maize]

I named three *areas* (and with an etc.!), ya goof!

[LexAquilia]

L2read

[jb]

By "overturn elections", which is the the things Republicans try to do, they mean "tie up the administration in Court to prevent it from enacting its policy preferences", which is the thing that both parties try to do.

As usual an attempt to morph language to excuse Republicans' actual anti-Democratic actions.

[LexAquilia]

Many of these lawsuits are nothing more than attempts to insert Democrat-appointed judges into the office of the presidency to supercede the policies of the person voters chose to place there in the last election. It’s flatly un-American and un-democratic.

BOOM. ROASTED.

[jb]

You literally chose a quote that made my exact point.

[LexAquilia]

Do you think the lawsuits we've seen with Trump 2.0 are the same as previous presidential terms, or do you think the past six months has been unique in our history?

[LawTalkingGuy]

Yeah. But Trump is also uniquely terrible and a fascist.

[Malika la Maize]

Along this point, Trump and/or his supporters have said his first few months were unprecedentedly active, so this alone could explain more challenges.

[Poxigah146]

You must be talking about the homosexual Kenyan and Pedo Joe.

[Malika la Maize]

You think Trump is a Kenyan?

Is that in the files you’re working to bury?

[LexAquilia]

I see, so the current anti-democratic actions by the Democrats are to Save Democracy.

That's such a convenient cognitive out you people give yourselves. Of course you have to be a tyrant in order to save yourself from tyranny!!

lmao

[LawTalkingGuy]

Nah. Just have to stop a fascist from doing fascist shit like changing the definition of citizenship or usurping Congress’s spending power.

[LexAquilia]

https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/021/818/hitlerbook.JPG

[LawTalkingGuy]

You have the order of operations backwards. I don’t call people fascists because I don’t like them. I don’t like people because they are extremely similar to fascists.

[LexAquilia]

No offense, but that's clearly not true. Surely you were alive during the COVID Tyranny and the Tranny Tyranny eras yet you still identify as a Democrat.

[LawTalkingGuy]

No it is. See the problem is that you are operating under the assumption that fascism is things you don’t like, whereas I am operating under the assumption it is a mode of politics with identifiable characteristics that map neatly onto Trumpism.

Nothing about Covid restrictions, whatever you think of them, indicate it was a symptom of palingenetic ultranationalism. Trumpism, however, does. And it’s notable that self-described fascists seem to think so as well.

[LexAquilia]

That definition requires a "social revolution".

Who the fuck do you think agitates for social revolution and has been for decades?

The revolutionary Left and the Democrats. Yet, you still identify as a Democrat and don't paint the Left as fascists.

[LawTalkingGuy]

Because the American left isn’t ultranationalist and doesn’t want to return the “nation” (ethnically defined) to a mythic and more heroic past where traditional social relationships

And historically, conservatives and reactionary parties help put fascists into power and then it gets out of control. So the fact that people on the right love to deny the fascism comparison while hiring the sonnenrad guy is highly illustrative of the issue.

The guys obsessed with fascism don’t want to work for AOC for some reason!

[jb]

The lawsuits are similar in character to what we have seen in previous Presidential terms (e.g., the lawsuits against Biden trying to do student loan forgiveness through Executive Order) but way more numerous under Trump because he's attempting to push the limits of Executive power much more than any previous administration.

[LexAquilia]

They are clearly not similar in nature because 90% of them are getting overturned.

[jb]

Cool made up stat. Can we see some real data on the rate of reversal rates for significant injunctions against the Biden vs. Trump administration? I can think of a number of examples (Biden v Texas, FDA vs Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, and US Navy Seals v Biden) where lower court injunctions against the Biden administration were overturned by the Supreme Court.

Also, it probably wouldn't be surprising that partisan Republican judges are more likely to be upheld by a majority Republican-appointed Supreme Court than liberal judges.

[LexAquilia]

14 Supreme Court stays or order to vacate lower court orders
1 Supreme Court affirmation of lower court order

14-1.

https://www.lawfaremedia.org/projects-series/trials-of-the-trump-administration/tracking-trump-administration-litigation

No one tracked it against previous Presidents because this is an unprecedented assault on democracy by the Democrats.

[jb]

"No one tracked it against previous Presidents because this is an unprecedented assault on democracy by the Democrats."

LOL. We're not actually going to do the work to compare to previous administrations, but we promise it's definitely worse.

Also, at least one of those "Lower Court Overturned" was AARP, where the Supreme Court ruled against the government. So maybe what you'd conclude is the the Court is only hearing cases where it thinks the lower courts are getting it wrong versus the lower courts consistently erring in one direction or the other.

[LawTalkingGuy]

Didn’t Steve Vladeck write an entire book about this subject before Trump was elected?

[LexAquilia]

I ain't your personal research assistant.

lmao, wtf

[LawTalkingGuy]

“I ain't your personal research assistant.”

Thank goodness.

[LawTalkingGuy]

Was it un-American when the fifth circuit and some judges in Missouri did the exact same thing during the Biden era?

[Michael Ejercito]

What was this exact same thing that they did?

[LawTalkingGuy]

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/21a477_1bo2.pdf

(Military deployment)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Texas_(2023)

(Executive discretion in immigration enforcement)

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-235_n7ip.pdf

(FDA scientific decisions)

[David Nieporent]

So for anyone who might be misled, "overturning elections" in that comment has nothing to do with overturning elections; it just means not treating Trump like a king.

[Mr. Bumble]

While a billion dollars may seem to be chump change today, should the US change the recommendation for tetanus and diphtheria boosters.
This article claims we could save that amount every year by doing so.
It seems that if you received the recommended series of vaccinations as a child you pretty much have lifetime immunity.
This was based on a study comparing the UK (no boosters) with France (regular boosters for adults) which showed no statistical difference between the two countries.
https://scitechdaily.com/1-billion-saved-each-year-scientists-question-adult-booster-shots/

[jb]

Maybe? Even less money involved probably, but they changed the recommendation for the Yellow Fever vaccine to be once per lifetime instead of once every ten years. But the Yellow Fever vaccine also has really nasty side effects, so the motivation was probably more for health reasons than financial ones.

Tetanus seems really really awful, so just from a personal risk perspective I'd probably want to see more than one study before deciding to forgo a booster.

[Malika la Maize]

From the article “The researchers stressed that these savings and safety depend on keeping childhood vaccination rates consistently high.”

[Mr. Bumble]

Of course, which I mentioned.

[Malika la Maize]

No, you didn’t.

Plus, the study mentions several decades, that’s not lifetime (unless you’re living dangerously).

[Mr. Bumble]

"It seems that if you received the recommended series of vaccinations as a child you pretty much have lifetime immunity."
I thought this implied that.
Also, the study covered 50 years, which while not a lifetime would seem to indicate no need for boosters.
It also pointed out that when there was an outbreak of diphtheria (78 cases due due unvaccinated immigrants and more than in the previous 20 years combined) there was no transmission to the general public.

[Malika la Maize]

Ah, so now mentioned=implied.

[Mr. Bumble]

Piss off wanker.
I'll retract that and just say you're better than that, or can be.

[Malika la Maize]

You’re mad at me because you conflated implied and mentioned?

[Mr. Bumble]

By mentioning it I thought I implied it but if you've got nothing better then you be you.

[Bwaaah]

I don't think Queenie actually has a problem with what you said. Her problem is that it was you who said it.

You know...keeping sides.

[Brett Bellmore]

Thymus "involution", the process where the thymus, which programs T cells to recognize native proteins and function property, shrinks and becomes non-functional, proceeds from about middle age, and the T-cells produced have a limited lifespan. Some time in your 60's, give or take a decade, your immune system starts to become much less effective.

At that point, you might indeed need boosters for childhood vaccinations.

[hobie]

You mask-hating patriots had to behave in planes and stores for a few months, and now you feel you need to throw all your toys out of the pram and burn everything associated to the ground. Vaccines, mRNA, boosters surely must go. Sad.

[Mr. Bumble]

Follow the science and maybe try reading the article.

[Poxigah146]

You leftists insisted on the mask and vaccine mandates long after the science proved the mandates were wrong.

[Malika la Maize]

Do you think science proves such things definitively so soon about something like a novel virus?

[jb]

Some of the mask mandates were objectively really dumb. I remember places still having outdoor mask mandates over a year after we knew that Covid didn't really spread outside. There was a lot of politicization of masking on both sides of the debate.

The problem is this has now crept into vaccine policy where the consequences are much more significant.

[Brett Bellmore]

I think anybody who knew anything about virology knew from the start that Covid wasn't spreading outdoors.

[Poxigah146]

They also knew that it wasn't living on surfaces for days, the way bacteria can.

[hobie]

There were mask mandates. Don't recall vaccine mandates. I wish there had been vaccine mandates

[LexAquilia]

So more children could get myocarditis while Big Pharma and CDC bureaucrats got filthy rich?

[hobie]

So you don't like bureaucrats getting filthy rich, eh?

[LexAquilia]

Nope. Why don't you dislike it too? Because most bureaucrats are Democrats?

[Poxigah146]

Then your recollection isn't very good. There were mandates for military people, for other government employees, for people working for certain corporations, by some cities/states if you wanted toe at in restaurants, and so forth.

[Frank Drackman]

Vaccine Mandates? Military had them, rest of the Federal Government, most State Governments, so did most Hospitals, School Systems, Law Enforcement Agencies. I drove 300 miles to get my first one in March 2021 because all of the Beautiful People got first dibs (OK, I'll admit, I'm not a "Beautiful Person") and I wasn't guaranteed I'd get it.
Why did I get it? (see, I'm what they call a "Gas Passer" and most Surgery is done in what we call "Hospitals")
Oh, and my East German raised Mom told me too, Jawohl Mutti!!.
But she hasn't gotten the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th or 8th or whatever the fuck it's up to now, because she was raised in East Germany and knows about the "Tuskegee Experiment"
I have, because I travel alot, and while it's not officially "required" they also don't "require" that you don't take out your dick in front of Patients, but try doing it and see what happens. (You first)
Don't think I'm going to get it this year, hey, I'm 63 and Healthy (Physically anyway) I don't qualify!!!! give mine to that Fat Fuck Christ Christy!!!!

Frink

[Frank Drackman]

Tetanus immunization is on the Trauma protocol in every ER when there's any kind of penetrating wound, and since most Hood Rats don't carry their immunization card with them, it usually goes like this...
"When was your last Tetanus shot??"
"Wat dat be??"
"OK, we'll make it "Today" JAB
"Mo Fo! wactchoo be stickin me wit dat needle fo?!?!?"
and since Trauma tends to be a Chronic Disease, I've seen guys who've literally had 200 Tetanus shots.

I used to get one every year or so, I was forever stepping on rusty nails.

Frink

[Sarcastr0]

Though he says he doesn't cherry pick, Kaz seems to have neglected to post the jobs report, for some reason.

I still hold such numbers a snapshot and you really need to look at longer trends, I note that Lutnick says the jobs numbers "will get better because you'll take out the people who are just trying to create noise against the president ... this is gonna be the greatest growth economy six months from now, a year from today"

How promising!
I look forwards to Kaz uncritically posting some truly ridiculous and unbelievable job numbers in the future!

[jb]

I note that Lutnick says the jobs numbers "will get better because you'll take out the people who are just trying to create noise against the president ... this is gonna be the greatest growth economy six months from now, a year from today"

Okay, I looked at this quote and thought he was saying that there were some employers who were actively not hiring just to make the administration look bad, which I thought was really dumb.

Then I looked it up, and and it's much worse than that.

He actually thinks they're going to cook the books for Trump, or at the very least is espousing a view that there's a bunch of folks at BLS that were actively cooking the books against Trump. The damage this administration is doing to the long term credibility and capability of this country is really depressing.

[Keldonric]

“So he can’t replace somebody two weeks ago, and you expect fundamental change, but what you will get is an agency that’s on [Trump’s] side, just trying to do the best and put out the correct numbers,” he said.(Mr. Lutnick)

Mr. Lutnick talks as if there’s a ‘correct’ number waiting to be unlocked by picking the right side. But the jobs report is a modeled estimate that’s revised by design — it’s never exact, and it never will be.

Unless Congress mandates that every employer and even the self-employed file standardized monthly employment/payroll data and authorizes and funds BLS to perform collection and processing, CES is always going to need modeling.

Sat through the whole segment — no discussion at all of how CES actually works or how it could be improved. Just political spin about ‘correct numbers,’ which isn’t how statistics operate in the first place.

Would’ve helped if the CNBC panel actually knew how the CES works — voluntary survey, imputation for missing data, revisions, and annual benchmarking.

Mr. Lutnick has surely been briefed on how CES works — as Commerce Secretary he can’t not know. Which makes it worse: he chose to spin rather than explain, when a little education about surveys and revisions would’ve built trust instead of eroding it.

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

"Makes it worse" for what?

He's demonstrating precisely the qualities which will make it better for him, given the Administration he serves, and which qualities it values. Loyalty. Subservience. Ritual humiliation, etc.

[Kazinski]

I didn't post.the jobs report because its barely 9am on the west coast and I just got up, and haven't even had my coffee yet.

But glad to see you are waiting with bated breath for my analysis.

[hobie]

Looks like you boys have to find yet another BLS hack to get you the jobs numbers you want. Another shitty jobs report this morning

[Kazinski]

Now that I've had my coffee (Peet's Major Dickson's Blend) I see its exactly what the forecast were, up .1% to 4.3% unemployment, and the economy still creating jobs but very anemic growth, and at least on nugget of good news:

"Total nonfarm payroll employment changed little in August (+22,000) and has shown little changesince April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. The unemployment rate, at 4.3 percent, also changed little in August. A job gain in health care was partially offset by
losses in federal government and in mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction."

And I guess you already tipped us to the slowdown in the oil patch.

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm

More detail about the decline in federal employment:

"Federal government employment continued to decline in August (-15,000) and is down by 97,000 since reaching a peak in January. (Employees on paid leave or receiving ongoing severance pay arecounted as employed in the establishment survey.)"

So it it were not for the decline in federal employment there would have been 37,000 gain in jobs, still fairly weak but better. You can't male an omelet without breaking eggs.

The takeaway is we are finally going to het an interest rate cut later in the week.

[William of Brooklyn]

I agree that the relevant stat is private sector employment, but also the real numerator and denominator for the work force. Were those being deported part of each? Real stats would include those entering the work force (by dint of age? seeking employment? legitimate immigration?) and those leaving it (death, retirement, no longer seeking employment, exit from country for whatever reason) and most certainly should distinguish private and public sector employment. I am not in possession of such data, and don't even know if it is produced, but I'd like to see it.

[John 4]

You had about half a dozen posts by the time I glanced at the site, 7am EST. Is it always lies with you people?

[ducksalad]

1. He didn't say west coast of what.
2. Seriously, he could be referring to his second round. A lot of people are up late when EV opens the thread, then check back again in the morning after reading the news.

[Kazinski]

Its hard to keep track of other time zones, but the open thread posts about midnight, west Coast time. Arizona is MST, which is the same as PDT, and I don't usually go to sleep until 2am, or later, which is why I sleep until 9 or 10am.

And the Jobs report posted at 5:30am MST/PDT, so I was sawing logs then.

Its NG and Bumble that need to be investigated.

[Kazinski]

What's with people immediately assuming someone is lying when they can't figure out what's going on with the available data?

[John 4]

“I just got up”

[John F. Carr]

Vaccine policy is becoming decentralized.

Florida wants to end all vaccine mandates for attending school. Legislative action will be required for complete abolition. My understanding is federal law will continue to require insurance coverage for measles, DTP, and a few other vaccines.

The governor of Massachusetts ordered her people to require insurance coverage for COVID vaccines no longer mandated by federal law. California, Oregon, and Washington are joining together to issue press releases about their enlightened vaccine policies.

Aside from a few core vaccines like measles, none of this matters much. Politicians get to promote themselves.

[Malika la Maize]

What’s a “core” vaccination?

[LexAquilia]

All 842 of them. Every vaccine ever created, literally, is super mega important and literally every human should literally take every vaccine, literally.

WE LOVE BIG PHARMA AND RICH CDC BUREAUCRATS!

[John F. Carr]

A German man got 217 COVID shots and lived to tell the tale.

As far as anybody could tell his immune system was the same as if he got the recommended number of shots. That was last year. Maybe he has died suddenly since then or become immortal.

[jb]

"Aside from a few core vaccines like measles, none of this matters much."

Sure, but Florida's goal includes eliminating a mandate for the measles vaccine, no?

I wonder how many kids in Florida are going to die so that DeSantis can own the libs.

[Poxigah146]

If their parents are stupid enough to not vaccinate them against MMR, polio, and so forth, that's on the parents, not Florida nor DeSantis.

[JoeFromtheBronx]

The requirement protects children from "stupid" parents, including children who might, for medical reasons, not get vaccinated, and thus have to rely on herd immunity.

[Poxigah146]

I don't necessarily disagree, but you don't get to spout "My body, my choice" and then apply it only to aborting third trimester babies.

[Malika la Maize]

Are “babies” not in the woman’s body?

[Frank Drackman]

In the body? you mean like how your boyfriend's Schlong was up your (redacted)??, do you get to decide what to do with it also? Man, this is too easy, you were more competitive as Queenie, Queenie.

[Poxigah146]

They are. Vaccines are about bodies too.

[William of Brooklyn]

Fetuses are most certainly "in the woman's body." But they are also most certainly NOT the woman's body, but their own bodies. This is a Solomon's choice between a woman's agency and the life of a fetus, and I side with the European solution, which is to provide complete agency up to a certain point in time, and then restrictions thereafter. Not pure ideologically, but few things in life are.

[jb]

If only (a) vaccines were 100% effective and (b) these diseases were not contagious then this would make total sense, but it turns out that there's pretty big externalities to these decisions.

[Poxigah146]

There are pretty big externalities to letting women abort unborn children and to letting gay men practice buttsex, but you leftists seem pretty intent on protecting those "rights."

[Ska]

Grouping consensual anal sex and abortion in the same category is kind of odd.

[jb]

What's the externality to letting a woman abort a non-viable fetus? And who gets hurt from homosexual sex other than the participants?

[Poxigah146]

Regarding abortion, the declining birth rate, allowing human life to be eliminated, among others.

From gay buttsex, the spread of HIV was and is almost entirely a gay male phenomenon. It spread to others via bisexuals.

Not to mention the huge amount society pays for pre-exposure drugs.

[jb]

Oops, you said the quiet part out loud. You're not supposed to admit that anti-abortion policy is about forced breeding.

[Poxigah146]

And you're not supposed to admit that you want a low birth rate so that you can justify importing more worthless third worlders.

[Malika la Maize]

Stupid kids for choosing those parents!

[John F. Carr]

Florida's proposal goes too far. At least parents should have to take action to opt out of the measles vaccine. Vaccination rates are well over 90% even with a personal belief exemption as long as it takes some work to claim an exemption.

The problem is not so much parents who heard on Facebook that vaccines cause autism, wokeness, or whatever. Usually those are a couple percent. There are people who find it inconvenient to get the kids to a vaccination appointment. If they can just not show up, they may not show up.

Massachusetts law used to say unvaccinated students could be excluded from schools during a disease outbreak even if they had an exemption. Florida could consider a rule like that one.

[Sarcastr0]

Infectious diseases are not decentralized.

Partisanizing vaccines is what this is, and that's fucking terrible.

[bernard11]

Florida wants to end all vaccine mandates for attending school.

This is insane. Whenever you think they've hit the limit of stupidity they surprise you.

[Krayt]

If there are outbreaks, jail the politicians who rolled back vaccines. This is snake oil memery.

[loki13]

What I am looking forward to:

The Supreme Court taking on the Tariffs case.

Why?

Because then the Supreme Court will have to decide how they will apply one imaginary thing they made up (the "Major Questions Doctrine") would apply in the context of another thing they made up (the "Unitary Executive").

Now, I'm not saying that this has to be the grounds for the decision- there are numerous other reasons that the multiplicity of Tariffs enacted by Trump were unlawful. And I am not hopeful regarding the result (in the Calvinball era, actual law doesn't matter much, so why should imaginary law?). But I literally cannot wait to see the mental gymnastics applied to the opinion.

[JoeFromtheBronx]

Pretzels are good with mustard, including the one in those commercials where the actor dresses up as many different people.

[loki13]

Man, I'd kill for a good pretzel.

Also? Have you seen any of the footage of Trump's cabinet meetings? How can any rational person watch that and not feel sick?

If you were making a parody movie about, oh, North Korea (or Authoritarianstan) that's exactly how you'd show the underlings briefing the Great Leader. It's unreal.

[Keldonric]

“Mr. President, I invite you to see your big, beautiful face on a banner in front of the Department of Labor, because you are really the transformational president of the American worker.” — Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer

After that line, I figured the president probably had to have his shoes repolished.

[Frank Drackman]

During Barry Hussein's "Town Meetings" His supporters would literally get wet as they were asking Him questions, and cum with His responses.
The women were even worse!

Frink

[Michael P]

I look forward to loki13's rants about the Supreme Court making up one thing ("substantive due process") and refusing to explain it in the context of something that the Supreme Court pretends doesn't exist ("privileges and immunities").

But I'm not holding my breath in anticipation.

[Kazinski]

Earliest reference to "unitary executive" I can find is 1915 in google books, but it really started to take off in 1980 in the Carter adminstration:

Municipal Research - Issues 57-62 - Page 340
1915

Here in 1979 is a fuller discussion of Hamilton's "argument for executive unity":

Republicanism, Representation, and Consent: Views of the ...books.google.com › books
Daniel Judah Elazar · 1979

[William of Brooklyn]

I think what is made up is the Plural Executive Theory, where somehow there are independent sources of executive (and legislative and judicial!) power vested in agencies with no elected officials at all, nor report to any!

I make this comment separate and apart from the tariff question, where the Court must decide whether, and to what degree, Congress has vested authority in the president.

[JoeFromtheBronx]

Katherine Maher, the President and CEO of NPR, joins Stephen to talk about the impact of the devastating funding cuts pushed by President Trump and enacted by congressional Republicans, and why public media is an essential means of connection for local communities across America

https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/video/gfDVJI6orG4cLN3P26dXhEBmfHd0TJaH/

[ThePublius]

Gee, and all this time they've been telling us that government funding is just a tiny portion of their revenue.

[loki13]

Publius,

Do you actually care to understand, or are just trying to make a bad joke?

For example, if someone said that "X government funding is a small portion of the overall revenue," but also "X government funding is responsible for the free meals we give to the homeless," could you possibly understand that if government funding is cut, then there would be no more free meals to the homeless?

So, feel free to actually look at the issue and you'll quickly see why this is an issue, and for who. You can just look at what Murkowski did and why ... and then try and apply it to the rest of the nation.

Now, you might still argue that the government shouldn't subsidize this. That's fine. But either you understand the issue, and are being deliberately obtuse, or you don't, and you should at least try and understand what the issue is before being snarky.

[ThePublius]

That's a bogus analogy, because it's not automatic that the funding cut would result in no meals, they could find the money otherwise, like cutting exorbitant salaries, for example.

I understand the issue very well. Take a look at this:

"The highest salary at PBS is for the President and CEO, Paula Kerger, who received a total compensation of over $1.1 million in 2023 and over $1 million in 2020, according to ProPublica and Paddock Post. Other high-earning executive roles include the Chief Operating Officer, Chief Digital & Marketing Officer, and Chief Legal Officer, who also have salaries in the range of $500,000 to $700,000, based on 2023 compensation data."

And yet, they laid off 15% of their workforce. Nowhere have I seen these execs have taken a pay cut.

And their bias is legendary. I don't want my tax dollars funding them.

[loki13]

I appreciate that you quickly googled things and still don't understand the issue. Hint- I didn't see the word "grant" or a breakdown of how the funding works, so you didn't bother.

Try again.

Protip- try and figure out what the government was actually funding, where it was distributed to, and what it will hit. Again, you don't have to care. That's fine! But at least try and understand why (for example) someone in a big city listening to NPR won't notice a difference, but someone ... somewhere else, will.

[William of Brooklyn]

Loki13 -- I believe strongly that the government has every legitimate power to fund its own speech, whether that is something like Radio Free Europe or the Iwo Jima memorial. But it's a much, much harder case to make why government should fund private speech, which -- despite the name -- is precisely what NPR is. And the fact that it is biased is absolutely fine: so is right-wing radio. But the government is not paying for it. That's the whole idea: free speech is not banned, but neither is there a thumb on the scale. And the argument that without NPR Dorothy and her Auntie Em would have no idea that a tornado is coming is absolute hogwash.

[Don Nico]

TP,
Those salaries are peanuts compared to the $8.4 M compensation to the CEO of MassGeneral Brigham which had a $200M deficit last year and had had to layoff 2000 workers.

[Frank Drackman]

and they fund all their (redacted) with those (redacted) Tote Bags

[Bob from Ohio]

Publius, you disagree with loki, that's what he always means by "not understanding" something.

[ThePublius]

Indeed. The way Sarcastr0 calls me "poor summer child," and hobie calls me a slaver, whenever they reach for their quiver and find it empty.

[hobie]

I never called you a slaver. I called the icons you are trying to resurrect slavers

[ThePublius]

Oh, maybe it was Sarcastr0.

[hobie]

Maybe he meant you are slaver-curious. Here's an idea, why don't you disavow all these slaver statues and we'll have no reason to associate you with them

[LexAquilia]

We should do what the Liberal says or the Liberal is going to judge us poorly!!!

Sure thing, hobie!!! That's the best reason to change beliefs or to act, when someone anonymous stranger demands it!! lmao

[John F. Carr]

I made a small donation in support of the PBS Newshour, because I watch it. In general I don't think public media should be depending on federal support.

[Michael P]

What is the over/under on how long the City of Austin (Texas)'s ugly new logo will last? Will it take longer for them to correct their course because government is minimally accountable to the citizenry, and elections in Austin are largely a competition between the far left and the nutty-far left?

I can't tell whether the curvy bits are supposed to be hills or the letter "s", reading "ass" in a right-to-left direction.

https://www.kxan.com/news/austin-unveils-new-city-brand-logo-redesign/

[hobie]

Logo changes sure do seem to trigger you MAGA. What's up with that?

[loki13]

I assume they'd rather get all hot and bothered over logo changes than try to think about why the Trump administration has been whipping votes and threatening lawmakers in order to avoid releasing the Epstein files.

[ThePublius]

You can't have a rational discussion about anything with these guys, hobie, and loki and others. They immediately pivot to "but MAGA," "but Epstein," regardless of what the topic may be.

[Estragon]

Hang on a sec. You want to have a rational discussion about whether the City of Austin intentionally redesigned their logo to “ read[] ‘ass’ in a right-to-left direction?”

[Ska]

I mean, that wouldn't be the craziest thing to have a conversation about.

Does this logo look like it says "Ass"?

No, not really, not even if I squint really hard and read it from different angles in different directions.

Done.

[LexAquilia]

Atheist Arguments:

God is mean
Christians are mean
If God real why bad thing happen
I'm monkey
Shellfish polyester
Too many religion ;(
Why can't I look outside and see God
If God is real why do I like to take it up the ass
Out of context Bible verse

---
lmao @PatriarchPrimus nailed it lol

[loki13]

In other news ...

A while back, I did a deep dive into the claimed number of wars that Trump ended (shocker- he lied). But I've recently been looking and doing extra research on ... wtf is happening with India. Specifically, why did Trump slap those tariffs on India, when he did, and cause relations to deteriorate to such a point that Modi went to China's big authoritarian bash and has pivoted strongly to China?

Well... the two topics are related. So backstory- periodically (sometimes several times a year) hostilities break out between India and Pakistan. They did earlier this year. And then they countries resolve them, as they always do (which is good, since they both have nukes).

BUT ... Trump decided to tweet and claim credit for it. Because of course he did. And ... we (the US) didn't actually do anything.

And this is where the schism starts. India was like, "Yeah, thanks, but we resolved the issue with Pakistan the same way we always do." Pakistan, which has been on the outs with the US, saw this as an opportunity, and praised Trump and sent a nomination for him to win the Peace Prize.

See where this is going? One country told the truth, and the other country made the political calculation to thank Trump and nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize. So what did Trump do immediately thereafter?

That's when the sanctions started. And then kept ramping up.

In other words, and it's really hard for me to fully believe it ... and yet, we live in the stupidest timeline ... our President torpedoed relations with an ally because they refused to go along with a fake tweet and because it damaged what he thinks is his "campaign" to get a Nobel Peace Price. You can't make this up. I wish I could, but you can't.

I will leave it to others to decide whether Trump's actions and thirst are actually helping him, and why anyone is driven ... not for a desire for peace, but a desire to win a Swedish award. It's weird.

[LexAquilia]

Lotsa vibes in that post...

[loki13]

By the way, I suggest actually looking at the list of prior winners (many of them are organizations) if you want to see what is actually and customarily considered.

Fun fact- only four US Presidents have ever won the Nobel Peace Prize.

Teddy Roosevelt (1906). For ending the war between Russia and Japan. Often forgotten today, that was a big deal back in the "Great Powers" days.
Woodrow Wilson (1919). For the League of Nations. Given that US didn't join the League, and it never really worked (it made the UN look decisive and competent), it's ... eh.
Jimmy Carter (2002). Not for his work as President, obviously. Jimmy Carter may have been our greatest ex-President in history. And a good person. I think that should count for something.
Barrack Obama (2009). Yeah, this was definitely a weird one and a reaction to the end of the Bush administration. There have been worse ones*, but can't say that it was a good idea at the time, or that it aged well.

*Kissinger? Arafat in 1994? A lot of people would say Aung San Suu Kyi, but I'll give that a pass. That was both a message prize at the time, and arguably deserved. It was only decades later that ... well, you know.

Then again, a Nobel (not peace, of course) was given in 1948 to the person who invented the lobotomy. That might take the cake.

[hobie]

Yeah, I agree that Obama was entirely unmerited. Only Carter really fits the bill. Aung San Suu Kyi and that Ethiopian president were both disasters. They should probably just stop giving the award to politicians. Period. It's easy to get results when you're backed by a powerful government and nuclear weapons. But doing things quietly and selflessly (like Carter) or at great personal risk (Navalny) seem more meritorious or appropriate.

[loki13]

In fairness to Obama, he understood perfectly well that getting the award was ... not a great idea. It was a poisoned chalice- because once it has been awarded, you can't decline it- even if you officially refuse it, you still are the winner (there is precedent for that, and you can blame the French). You can refuse to go, but that would have caused further problems- the Obama administration even asked if it was possible to not go and accept it.

His speech was ... quite good, IMO.

https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-acceptance-nobel-peace-prize

But if you look at that, and a lot of the other past awards (especially to political figures) you really have to ask why someone would be driven to get it. Other than vanity. Which again, is weird. It's the Peace Prize, not the Time Man of the Year.

(Personally, I think that the best choices are usually private individuals and organizations that have struggled to make the world a better and more peaceful place, and those selections tend to be the better ones.)

[Sarcastr0]

They seem to every once in a while give a Peace Prize to try and push someone to be more peaceful in the future.

See also: Kissinger, Abiy Ahmed.

I don't think it works very well.

[Don Nico]

Still, Kissinger was our best SoS until George Shultz

[loki13]

....oh boy. I think that's definitely a debatable statement.

Look, I don't think you need to go full Chris Hitchens to realize that Kissinger's embrace of realpolitik (and role in the Nixon administration) left a complicated legacy, at best.

And saying he was the best? Or even the best post WW2?
Acheson? Marshall? Albright? Schultz?

Heck, I'd throw in Baker as well. If I thought longer of bothered looking it up, I might name some others.

Kissinger did accomplish some great things. But he also ... he did some terrible things. Kissinger has benefitted from fame, the poor memory of people, and the death of a lot of people who would remind you of all the other things that came along with his project of self-aggrandizement.

I think any balanced view of him would end up with not just the credits (which he happily claimed) but also the many demerits, which he sought to bury.

[hobie]

Plus, the White House tapes revealed Kissinger was present when Nixon went on his towering racist rants and planning his criminality. His accomplishments are severely tarnished by his passive complicity with Nixon

[Frank Drackman]

There's a video on Algores Youtubes where Barry Hussein says "Nigger", not just once but multiple times.
Find me one Nixon tape where he says it once.

Frank

[ducksalad]

You may be forgetting a few things Albright did and said.

[loki13]

No. I'm not. I'm trying to be balanced. Look, I think it's inarguable that the Marshall/Acheson combo can't be matched. They navigated the world after WW2, and are responsibly for the (comparative) peace and prosperity that was widely enjoyed for generations.

But when you're the SoS, you're going to make some mistakes. Big ones, even. I think (for example) both Albright and Baker were, overall and in context, excellent at their jobs. But that doesn't mean that you can't find a lot of things to not like.

I think that the difference with Kissinger is that he is so well-known (quick, how many commenters here actually can name the post-WW2 SoSs?) because that's exactly what he wanted, and that his ... other stuff ... isn't quite as well known, unless you, um, read and stuff.

[William of Brooklyn]

I'll give you a match by naming someone who did NOT win the prize: Herbert Hoover.
"Hoover worked 14-hour days from London, administering the distribution of over two million tons of food to nine million war victims. In an early form of shuttle diplomacy, he crossed the North Sea forty times to meet with German authorities and persuade them to allow food shipments.[74] He also convinced British Chancellor of the Exchequer David Lloyd George to allow individuals to send money to the people of Belgium, thereby lessening workload of the CRB.[75] At the request of the French government, the CRB began delivering supplies to the people of German-occupied Northern France in 1915.[76] In 1926, American diplomat Walter Page described Hoover as "probably the only man living who has privately (i.e., without holding office) negotiated understandings with the British, French, German, Dutch, and Belgian governments"."

[jb]

I'm still trying to reconcile Trump's desire to be the Peace President with this new War Department.

[Frank Drackman]

That's because you never served (How do I know that? Homo? much better now I hope)
Best way to keep the Peace is to prepare for Wah.
Feb 1991, on the way to Kuwait City we came upon a Platoon of Iraqui T-62's (which are what we call a "Tank" and a Platoon is 4 of them) Abandoned, one it's turret blown off, riddled with 30mm holes, calling card of the A-10 Warthog (Nobody calls it the "Thunderbolt II") interior was full of blood, some bones, and other remains the Buzzards had left (Picky Buzzards in Kuwait)
The other 3 tanks were Pristine, with Personal effects (Condoms! who takes Condoms into battle?? umm forget that one) left in them, but no Personnel. Full Ammo Cans, Hand Grenades, Gas Masks, Full Gas Tanks, Main Gun rounds, C-rations (I think they were better than our MRE's (Meals Rejected by Ethiopians)
Obviously, when the A-10's GAU-8 began it's solo (sounds like God's farting) Manny, Moe, and Moe-hammed exited stage left.
Actually they all walked forward to surrender, says something when they'd rather surrender to the Infidel Enemy than go back home.

Frank

[hobie]

China and India have had open hostilities the past few years. It takes a special kind of genius to drive India into the arms of China..but here we are.

I think your analysis is spot on, loki

[Don Nico]

"Specifically, why did Trump slap those tariffs on India, "
As a punishment for large crude oil purchases from Russia.
India has not simply pivoted toward China, it is an major component of the BRICS network that is forming as principal counterweight the the US-EU-ROK-Japan network. The world is jelling back into a bi-polar state

[loki13]

Yeah ... it's almost like you ignore the timing of this all and accept uncritically what the White House is saying.

Importing Russian Oil? That's why we have sanctions against China, right? No? That wasn't mentioned?

What about Turkey? No? Any others? No?

Okay, then how about we go after the financial centers that enable this. You know where they are ... oh, wait. Not them either.

Hmmmm....

Well let's see.
On June 17, Trump had a phone call with Modi (India's PM and formerly a BFF of Trump). Trump raised the issue, talking about how proud he was that Pakistan was going to nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize. Modi reminded him that he had nothing to do with it.

After the call, India put out a statement confirming that India did not and would not accept mediation (aka, the US involvement).

Four days later, Trump complained that wouldn't get a Peace Price "for stopping the War between India and Pakistan."

A few weeks later, Trump put in 25% tariffs against India, shocking and surprising them.

Shortly thereafter, the tariffs for "Russian Oil" were instituted on August 27, doubling the tariffs.

One more thing-
Pakistan's tariff rate is 19%.
India's rate is 50%.

Do you know what else Pakistan does? It imports Russian oil. Go on. Look it up.

So again, tell me - what do you believe? You can believe what you want. Because I agree- it would be CRAZY for a world leader to just try and use tariffs to extort other countries (and/or act out of spite) because that person wanted a Nobel Peace Prize. And the one thing we all agree on is that we can trust that the Administration never lies- like, for example, how it didn't lie about the complex formula it used to calculate the original tariffs.

[hobie]

"What about Turkey? No? Any others?"

Israel

[Fuzzyone]

Thought you mind find this interesting

https://nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2025/2025_04842.htm

Denial of City's Summary Judgment motion in civil forfeiture of $40K food truck for misdemeanor admin code violations upheld on appeal based on excessive fines clause.

[JoeFromtheBronx]

"Talks Between Adams and Trump Adviser Center on Saudi Ambassadorship" [NYT]

Huh. Would think Turkey would be more his speed.

Close advisers have been crafting a plan for President Trump to nominate Mayor Eric Adams to be ambassador to Saudi Arabia, in an effort to end the mayor’s long-shot campaign for re-election in New York City, according to four people familiar with the discussions.

Adams is denying it, but leaving some room for maneuvering:

https://www.cityandstateny.com/politics/2025/09/eric-adams-big-decision-trump-job-or-doomed-reelection-bid/407869

Cuomo is currently Trump's choice. The official Republican in the race was anti-Trump in the past & is generally seen as not a credible option overall. He also likes cats.

I don't think that factors in much, though.

[loki13]

"Huh. Would think Turkey would be more his speed."

Saudi Arabia pays better. You know, fringe benefits.

Eric Adams is all about the fringe benefits.

[jb]

You'd think Trump would want Adams to be the one who stays in since he's already a toadie.

(Also you stole my Turkiye/Turkey joke from above.)

[JoeFromtheBronx]

The idea is that Adams has no chance, so Trump wants him to go to ensure the anti-Mamdani vote is not split as much. He has already shown a willingness to help the Trump Administration out.

[jb]

Only one candidate has already proven their ability to lose to Mamdani, though. It seems crazy to expect enough Republicans to defect to Cuomo to get a different outcome than the primary, and you lose Adams' ability to try to reclaim some of the black Democratic vote that will likely shift to Mamdani now that a bunch of prominent black leaders have endorsed him.

[ducksalad]

It seems crazy to expect enough Republicans to defect to Cuomo

1. They will defect in large numbers if Trump tells them to defect.
2. The rumor is that Trump is also trying to find a DC job for Sliwa, if that works there will be no Republican to defect from.
3. Cuomo in many ways should appeal to Trump supporters. Cuomo lies a lot and gets away with it. He breaks laws but doesn't suffer the usual consequences. He claims to be the victim of persecution. He screws up and proclaims victory. He gets on honest people's nerves. As they say, Cuomo is "authentic".

[Frank Drackman]

Cuomo obviously appealed to some DemoKKKrat Voters, getting Erected (no typo) to Orifice 3 times, and probably would have had a 4th term if he hadn't Al Frankened out and resigned.
Still amazes me that sending hundreds of thousands of Elderly to their deaths (I'm 63, is that "Elderly"?? it is??, well fuck you, if you're lucky you'll be 63 some day) wasn't what drove AC from Orifice, but playing Hide the Salami with Mary Jane Nasty-Snatch
I'm hoping (the) Zoran wins, sort of like to see what happens, and not like he could fuck up LaGuardia or JFK anymore than they already are,
But then again, I like watching the Challenger Explosion

Frank "Obviously a major malfunction........

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Gun control, pandemic mismanagement--lots for Republicans to love, for sure, but I think Trump is probably more focused on his sexual misconduct allegations.

Trump always has room in his heart for a fellow celebrity pussy grabber...

[JoeFromtheBronx]

Only one candidate has already proven their ability to lose to Mamdani, though.

Because Adams figured he had such a poor chance that he didn't even run in the Democratic Primary.

Cuomo came in second. Anyone beating Mamdani is an uphill battle, but he already received about 45% of the Democratic vote. That was in a primary, which often leans more ideological. The hope is that the general has more moderate voters. Voters who might figure Mamdani is some dangerous socialist.

Adams is now, according to one commentary I read, polling in the single digits. The hope/dream is that Cuomo would mostly retain the Democratic votes he already received, + some Republicans and independents. Cuomo has significant Trump vibes, and now he has basically been endorsed by Trump.

Any black vote Adams would get would be small. The black vote leans liberal. If Adams were polling better, Trump might support him. He's not & Cuomo is someone Trump probably figures he can work with, and Cuomo seems to be in effect saying that already.

[Estragon]

Trump is so dumb. By so obviously intervening here he has given Mamdani the opportunity to hang every single one of Trump’s unpopular policies on Cuomo’s head. SNAP cuts are an obvious one. Add in Cuomo’s vile nature and Andrew is DOA and no number of Bill Ackman’s ducats will save him.

[Mr. Bumble]

If Madmani gets elected NYC will look like a set for "12 Monkeys".

[Estragon]

We’ll see

[Bob from Ohio]

"torpedoed relations with an ally "

Anyone who thinks India is an "ally" is too delusional to comment.

India started buying Soviet arms during the peak of the Cold War and continues buying Russian ones now. It imports tons of Russian oil in defiance of US and other sanctions. It never votes with the US in the UN.

We have had mostly friendly relations in the last 20 years after some courting by us but friendly is not "ally".

China has actually seized and hold Indian territory plus is Pakistan's patron yet Modi is sucking up to them, but Trump!. China is welcome to them.

[LexAquilia]

Wait, are you telling me loki13 was on the fainting couch because he got caught up in BlueSky/BlueAnon lies?

[Kazinski]

Don't forget BRICS.

[hobie]

I know a nation that continues to this day to buy oil and natural resources from Russia. The country, although it does not buy weapons from Russia, continues to sell them advanced weapon systems and drones:

Israel

[ThePublius]

"Historically, Israel has sold military technology to Russia, including drone technology, but direct weapon system sales stopped after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022."

[Frank Drackman]

350,000 women died from Cervical Cancer worldwide in 2024, the vast majority caused by the Human Papilloma Virus, which there's a Vaccine for, how many "Conspirators" here have had it*?? (the Vaccine, not the Virus, Queenie) As bad as any Cancer is, Cervical is one of the uglier ways to go, if you're lucky the tumor will obstruct your Ureters causing a (relatively) merciful death by Renal Failure, more commonly it spreads locally and distantly, resulting in disfiguring fistulas, Brain/Lung/Liver Metastases. Used to be an Operation "Pelvic Exenteration" which is as horrible as it sounds, removing all of the Pelvic Organs (I'm talking about YOU Bladder, Rectum, Anus, and yes, you get to piss and shit into a convenient plastic bag (one place you don't want the "Green" version)
The (sick) joke used to be
"Tell her she'll need to get some new shoes to go with her new bags"
Sad thing was they still died, just delayed a bit.
* and to significantly reduce the incidence you need every sexually active man to get vaccinated, as it's spread when the man loves the woman (OK, or man) very very much and puts his.........

Frink

[jb]

I get the impression that the typical poster here is rather too old to be eligible for the HPV vaccine.

[hobie]

I think this vaccine 'nonendorsement' is about as close as Frankie is willing to get without being heretical to MAGA. His Hippocratic Oath must still have a little sway in him.

[Frank Drackman]

Hippocratic Oath was outdated even in Hippo-Crates time, it says Docs will "give no deadly medicine" No Coumadin for You! (which is a Rat Poison), not do Surgery, Abortions, Sleep with their Patients, or tell anyone else what went on in the Exam room (see previous restriction). They gave us a framed one when we Grad-jew-ated, with the more controversial parts omitted (like the parts of Anne Frank's diary when she "touches herself"*) totally bogus, you don't sign it or even say "I do".

Frink

* It's a Teen Girls Diary fur cryin' out loud, Human Sexuality hasn't changed since 1944

[LexAquilia]

In what can only be stated as "inevitable", a bunch of Democrat sea cows were on MSNBC claiming the belief that ultra-processed foods is bad for you is a "conspiracy theory".

lmao, Democrats went from Occupy Wall Street to Pfizer tattoos and defending fake factory foods in the blink of an eye.

[John F. Carr]

An announcement from the Secretary of State yesterday:

Today, I am designating three foreign NGOs—Al Haq, Al Mezan Center for Human Rights (Al Mezan), and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR)—pursuant to Executive Order 14203, “Imposing Sanctions on the International Criminal Court.” These entities have directly engaged in efforts by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute Israeli nationals, without Israel’s consent.

This action was reported as being in retaliation for submitting complaints to the ICC about Israel's treatment of Gaza.

[LexAquilia]

Just a gentle reminder, during COVID, Biden gave federal shitstains an extra $5,000 a month while they stayed at home as hazard pay. Democrats like Sarcastr0 benefited greatly while we suffered.

[hobie]

I was in Portugal during the pandemic. We were having a blast. Everybody obeyed instructions, no one bitched (except some of the English expats), no one got sick, restrictions lifted in no time. But watching from afar you tough-as-nails patriots whining and crying was hilarious. HaHa! And you're still whining and crying.

[Frank Drackman]

so fucking leave, like your boyfriend Rosey Odonnell

[Kazinski]

I'm not a Blueskyer, but Nate Silver takes a look at it:

"What is Blueskyism?
And why is it so toxic for political persuasion?"

I one possible answer as to why its so toxic is because (liberal) White People ruin everything?

"Blueskyism should not be mistaken for general left-of-center political views. Google search traffic for Bluesky over the past year is highly correlated with Kamala Harris’s vote share, but has some other skews: controlling for the Harris vote, it’s (statistically) significantly higher in states with a large white population and where the percentage of people with advanced degrees is higher. Bluesky is disproportionately popular in D.C., but also in crunchy white states like Vermont and Oregon. Search traffic for Twitter/X over the same period shows the same bias toward highly educated states, but less toward Harris voters⁴ and actually an inverse correlation with the white population share. (X gets more search traffic in more diverse states.)"

Of course I see some of this on the right on X too, but its not pervasive:

"A healthy political movement, you’d think, would welcome people who agree with them on 70 percent of issues, particularly if it sees Trump as an existential threat to democracy and wants a broad coalition against him. Blueskyists do literally almost the exact opposite: their biggest enemies are people on the center-left like me and Yglesias and Ezra Klein. Or center-left media institutions like the New York Times, which are often viewed as more problematic than Fox News."

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Never heard of it.

Must be a Xitter thing?

[ThePublius]

Trump to Sign Executive Order Changing Department of Labor to Department of Work.

"it's a "W" thing. "W" words are much more powerful than "D" or "L" words. They're great words, beautiful words. War, Work. Beautiful words."

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

"Woke"?

[JoeFromtheBronx]

Adams not taking Trump's offers. Staying in the race and vows to win. His main message: "Andrew Cuomo is a snake and a liar."

[LawTalkingGuy]

It will be very funny if this ends with Mamdani just getting 50%+1 in the first round.

[Josh R]

The general election is first past the post. Unlike the primary, there is no second round.

[Frank Drackman]

In my world there's always a "second round"
and a 3rd, and a 4th, and a 5th......

[LawTalkingGuy]

Weird. But 50% + 1 in the general would still be very funny as it would demonstrate that the stubbornness of the other 3 didn’t matter at all.

[Moderation4ever]

I can not help but think that like Trump, Mamdani is benefitting from the media attention he is getting. It is like the old saying "I don't care what you say about me just spell my name right."

[William of Brooklyn]

That was Genghis Khan's philosophy also: if people wrote about him that he was cruel, bloodthirsty, and pitiless, great! They'll surrender faster. If they wrote about him that he was patient, kind, forbearing, and just, great! They'll surrender faster. But no one, EVER, wrote about him that he was a weak leader, with wishy washy ideas about what he wanted to do. I mean, NOBODY. 700 years and counting...

[hobie]

If you were offered $1B to name one person on the Epstein list. You get one guess and you get $1B if you're right. Who?

[Bwaaah]

What if you were offered, say, only $1,000? Wouldn't that still be the same dumb-ass question? Like, if you could do a swirly in your toilet with anybody's head, whose would it be?

Somebody mistakenly sent you to finishing school, which is such a waste of a perfectly crude person.

[Moderation4ever]

This is kind of silly because we already know one name, Andrew Windsor.

[JoeFromtheBronx]

One person keeps on saying it is patently obvious that only Epstein and his girlfriend are guilty. There is evidence that other people are involved. The victims themselves say so, too.

[Mr. Bumble]

Hey Mod, how about horn dog Billy Clinton or maybe Bill Gates.

[Armchair]

Sure. I guess Epstein is on the Epstein list.

[Estragon]

John Paulson

[Mr. Bumble]

Mallomars are back.

[Bwaaah]

Trump on vaccines (from The Hill):

“I think we have to be very careful. You have some vaccines that are so amazing,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, citing the polio vaccine and the COVID-19 vaccine, which was developed during his first term.

“You have some vaccines that are so incredible. I think you have to be very careful when you say some people don’t have to be vaccinated,” Trump continued. “It’s a very tough position. Just initially I heard about it yesterday, and it’s a tough stance.”

“Look, you have vaccines that work. They just pure and simple work. They’re not controversial at all, and I think those vaccines should be used, otherwise some people are going to catch it, and they endanger other people,” Trump added. “And when you don’t have controversy at all, I think people should take it.”

He spoke. And it didn't make me cringe. That makes it a special moment for me. (I think he saw Frink Drackman coming his way, and took evasive action.)

[JoeFromtheBronx]

He has no general beef against vaccines.

He also might tell us to use umbrellas when it rains.

So this isn't too surprising. He did nominate Robert Kennedy Jr., so there's that.

Also, the "not controversial at all" bit is dubious. That can lead to standard vaccine skepticism talk. "Hey, I'm for some vaccines! I'm just concerned about some of them!"

This "I heard it yesterday" stuff is also standard for him. He's like the guy in Momento. So many things are new to him.

[RedheadedPharoh]

What's wrong with that? Why shouldn't you be skeptical?

[Estragon]

This is in direct response to Sens Cassidy and Barasso cornering him in the hearing this week. With any luck they will toss this lunatic RFK overboard before he manages to kill us all.

[Mr. Bumble]

...and how do you suppose "he'll kill us all"?

[Bwaaah]

Probably death by chronic hyperbole (typically self-inflicted). I think Contemporary Liberalism is a known risk factor.

[RedheadedPharoh]

By rooting out the corruption and ineptitude that is already killing us.

[Estragon]

I can’t wait for you people to start calling John Barasso a RINO. These movements always begin to consume their own, eventually.

[Estragon]

By making measles great again? Let’s just say I share the concerns voiced by Cassidy and Barasso.

I notice you didn’t contest that he was a lunatic. What was it that tipped you off? His interest in amateur taxidermy?

[Mr. Bumble]

You may be right
[He] may be crazy
But it just may be a lunatic [we're] looking for

source: https://www.lyricsondemand.com/billy_joel/you_may_be_right
With edit and apologies to Billy Joel.

[Estragon]

Please, by all means— put your faith in the guy. And make sure to direct plenty of invective at people like Bill Cassidy.

[Mr. Bumble]

You are a humorless, droll troll.
Why would I direct invective at Cassidy, or anyone?

[Estragon]

The lack of self awareness is overdetermined.

I think we’re done here, in any event.

[Bwaaah]

humorless

droll

troll

(and excellent appropriation of lyrics by Bumble)

[Estragon]

Down in front!

[ThePublius]

Hall of Fame Canadiens goaltender Ken Dryden dies of cancer at age 78

He was great.

R.I.P.

[bernard11]

The Trump war on American science continues.

The satellites, ... came with huge risks. In 2009 the first launch attempt failed.... But two later missions were successful, and today the satellites are in “perfect health,” according to a government report issued in January.

Now, however, the Trump administration wants to scrap them as a money-saving measure.

It’s like buying a car “and then running it into a tree after a few years, just to save the price of tank of gas,” said David Crisp, a former scientist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory who led the missions to launch the satellites, which help monitor plant life and greenhouse gases and are used by forecasters, farmers and scientists.

He noted that most of the expense of the satellites was at the front end. “They cost a vast amount to build,” he said. But, once in orbit, “they cost a fraction of that a year to operate.” The satellites have more than a decade of life left in them, Dr. Crisp said.

A money-saving measure!!? Sure. And yet Trump, maximally destructive, still has his cultists, because "woke" or something.

[Armchair]

LOL! NYTImes!

Fake news. Get a real news source.

[bernard11]

Oh fuck off.

You think they made the story up? Really?

I guess if you don't see it on NewsMax you don't believe it. You're ridiculous.

[Mr. Bumble]

Of course, it's pay-walled so we only have your snippet to go by.
Of course since the new motto of the NYT is "All the News that Fits the Script, we Print" I do believe they make shit up.

[Estragon]

It also begs the question: assuming it’s true— would you be in favor?

[Estragon]

It was also reported a couple of weeks ago in the LA Times:

https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2025-08-19/trump-wants-nasa-to-burn-a-crucial-satellite-to-cinders-killing-research-into-climate-change

[Armchair]

The grade inflation / grade compression problem...and the end of meritocracy.

So, Grade Inflation has been around for a while. But, as we're starting to see with the leaders in Grade Inflation (ie, Harvard, which has some of the top GPAs in the country at 3.8), there's a different problem it runs into. Grade Compression.

See, you can only go up so far. 4.0 is the max. And if everyone is getting a 4.0, (>30% already are) everybody is equal.

See, grades serve two purposes. They serve as a reference for mastery of the material (both for students and for outside parties). And they serve as a way to differentiate students.

But when "everyone gets an A"...there's no way to tell if the students have actually mastered the material. The class is just "curved to an A". And there's no way to differentiate students. Everyone is the same in terms of classwork.

So, students seek to differentiate themselves in other ways. Letters of recommendation. Clubs. Internships. The "old boys network". Classes start "not to matter". You're going to get an A regardless, just like everyone else. So why bother trying hard? What really matters is having drinks with the son of that judge, so you can get recommended for law school by the judge. Everyone's going to get an A...but you caught the eye of the judge and have a recommendation, so you have the edge.

So, you get to a system where merit doesn't matter. What matters are your "connections". And god forbid you're a bright kid from poor Appalachia...you got no connections, no matter how much you excel in class.

This is where grade inflation, led by Harvard, is taking us.

https://www.mindingthecampus.org/2025/09/02/harvards-gpa-bubble-is-about-to-burst-faculty-need-to-let-out-the-hot-air/

[Magister]

You're assuming that all of the things that differentiate people with 4.0 GPAs are not actual merit. You get many recommendations and connections by being competent; yes, it may be that some "merit substitutes" are received without actual merit, but some high GPAs may be the same (hire somebody to take your exams or write your papers). And GPAs with a wide range in the past were never the sole metric of merit anyway.

Bright kid from poor Appalachia? How is any change in GPA at Harvard going to help him? Better score well on SATs or ACTs to get into Harvard. You do make a good argument for diversity, though, and for better public funding of education to give such a kid more opportunity so that the country doesn't waste such talent.

(And this is not a new complaint; Dr. Ed 2 perennially complains that the cute girls hogged all the CV building perks decades ago, but his general incompetence at facts is the obvious and adequate explanation for his academic failure.)

[Bwaaah]

"You get many recommendations and connections by being competent"

For that by rote stuff, it's typically sufficient to be compliant and not incompetent. Almost certainly, there's no need for excellence. (Although just showing up and participating now qualifies sometimes as "excellence.")

Toward a pernicious future steeped in lowering expectations. You'll probably be "successful" with that.

[Magister]

GPA was not by rote stuff? It's up to people judging a person's merit to discern the significance of each element. Hey, maybe they could ask tough questions in an interview or administer their own test instead of just hiring the highest GPA in Armchair's idyllic past. The worse rote stuff is when automated systems look for keywords in the résumé which may be why they seem to be getting longer and longer.

[Estragon]

Please don’t show anyone booing Trump at the tennis tomorrow!

“They’re not booing…. They’re saying boo-urns!”

[Mr. Bumble]

Let's go Brandon!

[Estragon]

10/10, no notes