The Many Faces of US Politics...

[muppet]

I hate this term liberal to describe people that are considered to the left of the political spectrum in America. I understand a liberal in politics is someone who believes in personal freedoms.
So at that rate of going considering the gun lovers, anti federal government crowd, not to mention the libertarians there is just as many Republican liberals as Democrat.

Progressive is a much more accurate term for those who its applied to in America

While Im at it there aren't many real conservatives in American politics either of the Fine Gael/Christian Democrat type, as Trump has exposed

I hate the term progressive as it suggests their views are somehow better and those of the other side are wrong...

If we weren't progressive, we'd still be living in trees.

[screenexile]

I don't really see anyone who lives the "live and let live" motto.

Live and let live only applies to those who have the same belief system..... lots of democrat/liberals here have no toleraance for republicans and vice versa.... but sometimes the response is surprising.... live and let live eh....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeOkybuCXX0

What does the video prove?

it proves that

One moron (actions AND words) went after him with his skateboard. Everyone else supposedly gave him the finger or said Trump was racist (not a completely baseless concern to raise).

However, even his own words demonstrate the ridiculousness of his "experiment" and the ludicrousness of his using to support his claim that Sanders supporters are more violent (assuming his edits even reflect the average response he received): He is obviously filming in an urban area which is heavily Democratic. All the middle fingers going to thumbs up, which he speaks about, surely reflect that.

Let's see him hold up the Bernie or Hillary signs in some southern white area or some white working class manufacturing town in the northeast.

The idiot with the skateboard aside (assuming he's actually a real person and not an actor), he's exercising his free speech rights, everyone else is doing the same. There's no one NOT allowing him to have his views.

Live and let live does NOT mean not having one's views and opinions remain free from challenge. And it doesn't mean standing idly by while people who oppose live and let live try to elect, govern and legislate against the principal.

It proves that in this small sample size that liberals have less manners than republicans, it shows that there is plenty of ignorance to the left and in essence it epitomises the state of the USA in that it shows people on both sides of the political spectrum are capable of ignorance and stupidity.

Why do you need a poorly made video to demonstrate that?? Of course there are ignorant lunatics on both sides but Trump is bringing the ignorance, hatred and bigotry of the right front and centre for the world to see!!!! Everything we've seen to date shows the right is waaaaaaayyyy more mental than the left!

[omaghjoe]

I hate this term liberal to describe people that are considered to the left of the political spectrum in America. I understand a liberal in politics is someone who believes in personal freedoms.
So at that rate of going considering the gun lovers, anti federal government crowd, not to mention the libertarians there is just as many Republican liberals as Democrat.

Progressive is a much more accurate term for those who its applied to in America

While Im at it there aren't many real conservatives in American politics either of the Fine Gael/Christian Democrat type, as Trump has exposed

I hate the term progressive as it suggests their views are somehow better and those of the other side are wrong...

If we weren't progressive, we'd still be living in trees.

But then by the same token if we weren't conservative we would likely have been wiped out by now

[omaghjoe]

I don't really see anyone who lives the "live and let live" motto.

Live and let live only applies to those who have the same belief system..... lots of democrat/liberals here have no toleraance for republicans and vice versa.... but sometimes the response is surprising.... live and let live eh....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeOkybuCXX0

What does the video prove?

it proves that

One moron (actions AND words) went after him with his skateboard. Everyone else supposedly gave him the finger or said Trump was racist (not a completely baseless concern to raise).

However, even his own words demonstrate the ridiculousness of his "experiment" and the ludicrousness of his using to support his claim that Sanders supporters are more violent (assuming his edits even reflect the average response he received): He is obviously filming in an urban area which is heavily Democratic. All the middle fingers going to thumbs up, which he speaks about, surely reflect that.

Let's see him hold up the Bernie or Hillary signs in some southern white area or some white working class manufacturing town in the northeast.

The idiot with the skateboard aside (assuming he's actually a real person and not an actor), he's exercising his free speech rights, everyone else is doing the same. There's no one NOT allowing him to have his views.

Live and let live does NOT mean not having one's views and opinions remain free from challenge. And it doesn't mean standing idly by while people who oppose live and let live try to elect, govern and legislate against the principal.

It proves that in this small sample size that liberals have less manners than republicans, it shows that there is plenty of ignorance to the left and in essence it epitomises the state of the USA in that it shows people on both sides of the political spectrum are capable of ignorance and stupidity.

That video is pretty funny.... the fact people would even rise to it is pretty silly.

Looks like it was in LA somewhere, not exactly Trump territory, I know plenty of places in Socal where where he could get a similar reception with an Obama sign

[seafoid]

I hate this term liberal to describe people that are considered to the left of the political spectrum in America. I understand a liberal in politics is someone who believes in personal freedoms.
So at that rate of going considering the gun lovers, anti federal government crowd, not to mention the libertarians there is just as many Republican liberals as Democrat.

Progressive is a much more accurate term for those who its applied to in America

While Im at it there aren't many real conservatives in American politics either of the Fine Gael/Christian Democrat type, as Trump has exposed

I hate the term progressive as it suggests their views are somehow better and those of the other side are wrong...

If we weren't progressive, we'd still be living in trees.

yeah but the arctic would be stable....

[muppet]

I hate this term liberal to describe people that are considered to the left of the political spectrum in America. I understand a liberal in politics is someone who believes in personal freedoms.
So at that rate of going considering the gun lovers, anti federal government crowd, not to mention the libertarians there is just as many Republican liberals as Democrat.

Progressive is a much more accurate term for those who its applied to in America

While Im at it there aren't many real conservatives in American politics either of the Fine Gael/Christian Democrat type, as Trump has exposed

I hate the term progressive as it suggests their views are somehow better and those of the other side are wrong...

If we weren't progressive, we'd still be living in trees.

yeah but the arctic would be stable....

We wouldn't know there was an arctic.

[whitey]

I don't really see anyone who lives the "live and let live" motto.

Live and let live only applies to those who have the same belief system..... lots of democrat/liberals here have no toleraance for republicans and vice versa.... but sometimes the response is surprising.... live and let live eh....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeOkybuCXX0

What does the video prove?

One moron (actions AND words) went after him with his skateboard. Everyone else supposedly gave him the finger or said Trump was racist (not a completely baseless concern to raise).

However, even his own words demonstrate the ridiculousness of his "experiment" and the ludicrousness of his using to support his claim that Sanders supporters are more violent (assuming his edits even reflect the average response he received): He is obviously filming in an urban area which is heavily Democratic. All the middle fingers going to thumbs up, which he speaks about, surely reflect that.

Let's see him hold up the Bernie or Hillary signs in some southern white area or some white working class manufacturing town in the northeast.

The idiot with the skateboard aside (assuming he's actually a real person and not an actor), he's exercising his free speech rights, everyone else is doing the same. There's no one NOT allowing him to have his views.

Live and let live does NOT mean not having one's views and opinions remain free from challenge. And it doesn't mean standing idly by while people who oppose live and let live try to elect, govern and legislate against the principal.

So attacking and chasing someone you disagree with is "exercising free speech"?.....its actually assault and battery.

[J70]

I don't really see anyone who lives the "live and let live" motto.

Live and let live only applies to those who have the same belief system..... lots of democrat/liberals here have no toleraance for republicans and vice versa.... but sometimes the response is surprising.... live and let live eh....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeOkybuCXX0

What does the video prove?

One moron (actions AND words) went after him with his skateboard. Everyone else supposedly gave him the finger or said Trump was racist (not a completely baseless concern to raise).

However, even his own words demonstrate the ridiculousness of his "experiment" and the ludicrousness of his using to support his claim that Sanders supporters are more violent (assuming his edits even reflect the average response he received): He is obviously filming in an urban area which is heavily Democratic. All the middle fingers going to thumbs up, which he speaks about, surely reflect that.

Let's see him hold up the Bernie or Hillary signs in some southern white area or some white working class manufacturing town in the northeast.

The idiot with the skateboard aside (assuming he's actually a real person and not an actor), he's exercising his free speech rights, everyone else is doing the same. There's no one NOT allowing him to have his views.

Live and let live does NOT mean not having one's views and opinions remain free from challenge. And it doesn't mean standing idly by while people who oppose live and let live try to elect, govern and legislate against the principal.

So attacking and chasing someone you disagree with is "exercising free speech"?.....its actually assault and battery.

Why don't you read what I said again... paying attention this time?

"The idiot with the skateboard aside (assuming he's actually a real person and not an actor), he's exercising his free speech rights, everyone else is doing the same. There's no one NOT allowing him to have his views."

The "he" and "him" in the second and the next sentence is clearly the guy who made the video and held the signs.

If that one bit doesn't make it clear, the rest of the post does.

[whitey]

I don't really see anyone who lives the "live and let live" motto.

Live and let live only applies to those who have the same belief system..... lots of democrat/liberals here have no toleraance for republicans and vice versa.... but sometimes the response is surprising.... live and let live eh....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeOkybuCXX0

What does the video prove?

One moron (actions AND words) went after him with his skateboard. Everyone else supposedly gave him the finger or said Trump was racist (not a completely baseless concern to raise).

However, even his own words demonstrate the ridiculousness of his "experiment" and the ludicrousness of his using to support his claim that Sanders supporters are more violent (assuming his edits even reflect the average response he received): He is obviously filming in an urban area which is heavily Democratic. All the middle fingers going to thumbs up, which he speaks about, surely reflect that.

Let's see him hold up the Bernie or Hillary signs in some southern white area or some white working class manufacturing town in the northeast.

The idiot with the skateboard aside (assuming he's actually a real person and not an actor), he's exercising his free speech rights, everyone else is doing the same. There's no one NOT allowing him to have his views.

Live and let live does NOT mean not having one's views and opinions remain free from challenge. And it doesn't mean standing idly by while people who oppose live and let live try to elect, govern and legislate against the principal.

So attacking and chasing someone you disagree with is "exercising free speech"?.....its actually assault and battery.

Why don't you read what I said again... paying attention this time?

"The idiot with the skateboard aside (assuming he's actually a real person and not an actor), he's exercising his free speech rights, everyone else is doing the same. There's no one NOT allowing him to have his views."

The "he" and "him" in the second and the next sentence is clearly the guy who made the video and held the signs.

If that one bit doesn't make it clear, the rest of the post does.

Lol...too many "he's" and "his" in that sentence for my liking. Thanks for clarifying....I thought you'd completely lost the plot

[seafoid]

I don't really see anyone who lives the "live and let live" motto.

Live and let live only applies to those who have the same belief system..... lots of democrat/liberals here have no toleraance for republicans and vice versa.... but sometimes the response is surprising.... live and let live eh....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeOkybuCXX0

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2014/01/09/can-he-save-gop-itself/
"Polarization in Congress maps onto one measure better than any other: economic inequality. The smaller the gap between rich and poor, the more moderate our politicians; the greater the gap, the greater the disagreement between liberals and conservatives. The greater the disagreement between liberals and conservatives, the less Congress is able to get done; the less Congress gets done, the greater the gap between rich and poor.
Actually, income disparity accords with many other things, as the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has found. The greater the income gap, the higher the teenage pregnancy rate (poverty, ignorance, lack of sex education, and opposition to contraceptives are all at play here). The greater the income gap, the more education suffers, the less there is of social mobility, the greater the difficulty of reaching higher education, and the higher the premium put on it."


The US is so fucked

[heganboy]

I thought this was a pretty sensible post, so I stole borrowed it and I'm posting it:

We don't need to take America back. No one stole it. It's right here...you're sitting in it. Chillax.

Mexico isn't going to pay for the wall and we're not going to deport millions of people and break up families. If you think either one is a good idea, you're not smart and probably not a person I want to hang out with.

We don't live in a democracy. Technically we are a Federal Republic. But in reality we are ruled by an oligarchy. If you don't know what that is, look it up. Reading will do you good. You probably need to do more of it.

FoxNews, CNN, and MSNBC have an agenda and are not "fair and balanced" or in any way unbiased. I'll reiterate...read more. Read newspapers (even online ones). Read lots of opinions and sources and then (stay with me here), THINK! Form your own opinion based on as many facts as your can brain can tolerate.

Speaking of facts...there actually is a difference between facts, opinions, and propaganda. You should learn the difference. (Another opportunity to show off your mad reading skills.)

Science is real. We know things because of science. Don't be afraid of it. You have an iPhone and Facebook because of science. It's your friend.

Global warming or "climate change" as the cool kids call it IS REAL. Anyone who tells you it's not real is not a smart person and probably should not be dressing themselves or caring for children.

Racism exists. And you are probably a little racist and should work on that. Seriously.

American Christians are not under attack. We are not being persecuted. We wield so much power in this country that politicians pretend to be Christian just so we will vote for them. No one is trying to take your bible away from you. The gay people are not destroying our families—we don't need any help from them, thank you. We do a fine job of that by ourselves. So stop saying we are persecuted. You sound stupid.

Poor people need help. If you're not helping them but complaining about how the government helps them with your money you are not a nice person.

Be nice to the people who teach your children. Don't send them nasty emails or yell at them. Their job is 10,000 times harder than your stupid job. You are not a professional educator so just shut your mouth and be thankful someone is willing to teach your offspring.

You don't know what Common Core is. You think you do, but you don't unless you're a teacher. So stop complaining about math problem memes on Facebook. You can't do the math anyway.

ISIS is not an existential threat to the United States. We do not need to rebuild our military. Our military is the strongest, scariest, most badass killing machine the world has ever seen. So stop being afraid and stop letting politicians and pundits scare you.

Guns do in fact kill people. That's what they are designed to do. If you feel you need a gun to protect yourself in America, you are probably living in the wrong neighborhood and should move before you go out and buy a gun. There are like a billion places to live where you won't need a gun, or even need to lock your front door.

If you do own a gun, then make sure you know how to use it really, really, really well. Seriously...get some training because you still don't know how to record stuff with your DVR. Go to the gun range and shoot the thing a lot. Learn how to clean it properly and be able to disassemble it and reassemble it with your eyes closed. It's a freaking gun and it deserves that level of care, proficiency and respect. And for God's sake, keep it locked up and away from your kids.

If you are even a little bit crazy, sad, or pissed off...you shouldn't have a gun. And the Founding Fathers would totally agree with me.

Stop being suspicious of American Muslims. I guarantee the guy sitting next to you in the cubicle at work is probably more of a threat to you than any Muslim. He has to listen to your uninformed ranting day after day and has probably already imagined very colorful and creative ways to end you.

Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, and all the rest are ENTERTAINERS! Stop getting your opinions from them. (Here's where that reading thing can really be an advantage.)

Stop sharing Facebook memes that tell me to share or else Jesus won't bless me with a laundry basket full of cash. That's not how prayer works. And I don't want money delivered (even from God) in a laundry basket. Nobody ever washes those things out and they just keep putting nasty dirty clothes in them. Yuck!

We are the United States of America and we can afford to house every homeless veteran, feed every child, and take in every refugee and still have money left over for Starbucks and a bucket of KFC.

Unless you can trace your family line back to someone who made deerskin pants look stylish and could field dress a buffalo, you are a descendent of an immigrant. Please stop saying that immigrants are ruining our country. Such comments are like a giant verbal burrito stuffed with historical ignorance, latent racism, and xenophobia all wrapped in a fascist tortilla.

That's all for now. I feel better.

[heganboy]

this is a very interesting  (and long) piece on why a lot of poor white voters are supporting trump (actually written by a poor white person...)

It's over the maximum allowed length of a post (30,000 characters- who knew?) so if you want to read it go here

http://www.stirjournal.com/2016/04/01/i-know-why-poor-whites-chant-trump-trump-trump/

[omaghjoe]

Thats a great article hegan boy the 2nd not the 1st.

It addresses some of the silly sneering that is at the core of alot of liberal middleclass thinking. It is off putting, polarising, spitful and helps no one.

Hillary Clinton will be a continuation of political corruption in America and will do much the same job as Trump Cruz Bush or any1 else. She will pander to her donors but will have make a few token changes that her spin doctors will dress it up to convince her liberal electorate that she is doing a good job at holding back the redneck agenda. But things will remain the same for the poor man and corporate America will go about its business unhindered

Bernie Sanders the only man who has the true will to close the wealth gap in America, and maybe he cant change things exactly the way he wants but if he gets voted in at least he will give it a go.

I think he would surprise a few people and could eat into Trumps voter base poor white males if he got the nomination. But thats a big if....Clinton looks to be sitting pretty with all her super delegates

#Feelthebern

[Hardy]

I thought this was a pretty sensible post, so I stole borrowed it and I'm posting it:

We don't need to take America back. No one stole it. It's right here...you're sitting in it. Chillax.

Mexico isn't going to pay for the wall and we're not going to deport millions of people and break up families. If you think either one is a good idea, you're not smart and probably not a person I want to hang out with.

We don't live in a democracy. Technically we are a Federal Republic. But in reality we are ruled by an oligarchy. If you don't know what that is, look it up. Reading will do you good. You probably need to do more of it.

FoxNews, CNN, and MSNBC have an agenda and are not "fair and balanced" or in any way unbiased. I'll reiterate...read more. Read newspapers (even online ones). Read lots of opinions and sources and then (stay with me here), THINK! Form your own opinion based on as many facts as your can brain can tolerate.

Speaking of facts...there actually is a difference between facts, opinions, and propaganda. You should learn the difference. (Another opportunity to show off your mad reading skills.)

Science is real. We know things because of science. Don't be afraid of it. You have an iPhone and Facebook because of science. It's your friend.

Global warming or "climate change" as the cool kids call it IS REAL. Anyone who tells you it's not real is not a smart person and probably should not be dressing themselves or caring for children.

Racism exists. And you are probably a little racist and should work on that. Seriously.

American Christians are not under attack. We are not being persecuted. We wield so much power in this country that politicians pretend to be Christian just so we will vote for them. No one is trying to take your bible away from you. The gay people are not destroying our families—we don't need any help from them, thank you. We do a fine job of that by ourselves. So stop saying we are persecuted. You sound stupid.

Poor people need help. If you're not helping them but complaining about how the government helps them with your money you are not a nice person.

Be nice to the people who teach your children. Don't send them nasty emails or yell at them. Their job is 10,000 times harder than your stupid job. You are not a professional educator so just shut your mouth and be thankful someone is willing to teach your offspring.

You don't know what Common Core is. You think you do, but you don't unless you're a teacher. So stop complaining about math problem memes on Facebook. You can't do the math anyway.

ISIS is not an existential threat to the United States. We do not need to rebuild our military. Our military is the strongest, scariest, most badass killing machine the world has ever seen. So stop being afraid and stop letting politicians and pundits scare you.

Guns do in fact kill people. That's what they are designed to do. If you feel you need a gun to protect yourself in America, you are probably living in the wrong neighborhood and should move before you go out and buy a gun. There are like a billion places to live where you won't need a gun, or even need to lock your front door.

If you do own a gun, then make sure you know how to use it really, really, really well. Seriously...get some training because you still don't know how to record stuff with your DVR. Go to the gun range and shoot the thing a lot. Learn how to clean it properly and be able to disassemble it and reassemble it with your eyes closed. It's a freaking gun and it deserves that level of care, proficiency and respect. And for God's sake, keep it locked up and away from your kids.

If you are even a little bit crazy, sad, or pissed off...you shouldn't have a gun. And the Founding Fathers would totally agree with me.

Stop being suspicious of American Muslims. I guarantee the guy sitting next to you in the cubicle at work is probably more of a threat to you than any Muslim. He has to listen to your uninformed ranting day after day and has probably already imagined very colorful and creative ways to end you.

Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, and all the rest are ENTERTAINERS! Stop getting your opinions from them. (Here's where that reading thing can really be an advantage.)

Stop sharing Facebook memes that tell me to share or else Jesus won't bless me with a laundry basket full of cash. That's not how prayer works. And I don't want money delivered (even from God) in a laundry basket. Nobody ever washes those things out and they just keep putting nasty dirty clothes in them. Yuck!

We are the United States of America and we can afford to house every homeless veteran, feed every child, and take in every refugee and still have money left over for Starbucks and a bucket of KFC.

Unless you can trace your family line back to someone who made deerskin pants look stylish and could field dress a buffalo, you are a descendent of an immigrant. Please stop saying that immigrants are ruining our country. Such comments are like a giant verbal burrito stuffed with historical ignorance, latent racism, and xenophobia all wrapped in a fascist tortilla.

That's all for now. I feel better.

Best commentary I've read in a long time. Where's that from, heganboy?

[Gmac]

I don't really see anyone who lives the "live and let live" motto.

Live and let live only applies to those who have the same belief system..... lots of democrat/liberals here have no toleraance for republicans and vice versa.... but sometimes the response is surprising.... live and let live eh....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeOkybuCXX0

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2014/01/09/can-he-save-gop-itself/
"Polarization in Congress maps onto one measure better than any other: economic inequality. The smaller the gap between rich and poor, the more moderate our politicians; the greater the gap, the greater the disagreement between liberals and conservatives. The greater the disagreement between liberals and conservatives, the less Congress is able to get done; the less Congress gets done, the greater the gap between rich and poor.
Actually, income disparity accords with many other things, as the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has found. The greater the income gap, the higher the teenage pregnancy rate (poverty, ignorance, lack of sex education, and opposition to contraceptives are all at play here). The greater the income gap, the more education suffers, the less there is of social mobility, the greater the difficulty of reaching higher education, and the higher the premium put on it."


The US is so fucked

can you name a country with a system you like or think is working.