Brief Rant, [ugh, politics] Here's a Truck

"functionoverfashion" (functionoverfashion)
03/25/2020 at 09:33 • Filed to: None

Spotted this last spring, beautiful old Ford.

And now, ladies and gentlemen, read this in your favorite mafia movie head honcho angry voice:

Beyond all the offensive things that you’ve said and done, from generally transparent racism, to mocking the disabled, to literally calling other countries shit-holes; beyond all the questionable appointments to various offices, nepotism, crony-ism, obstruction of... everything; beyond the mountains of misleading statements and outright bald-faced lies spewing from your mouth every day ; the absolute worst thing you have done is not take any leadership in the face of a real, actual crisis. Thousands of people - hopefully not more! -are going to DIE because of your utter incompetence.

When people say “unfit for office” they don’t mean that you can’t sit in the office literally, and do some things that the power of the office gives you by statute. Yah, you can do that. Any mouth-breathing jackwagon can do that. What people mean by unfit for THIS office , is that when faced with a true difficult decision, perhaps one of the most difficult decisions faced by a president in a generation, you are avoiding making actual hard decisions, sending mixed messages, ignoring the advice of experts, and now you’re saying you think everything will be okay in a little over TWO WEEKS? Literally no one believes that because there is, as usual, NO evidence, and in fact there are mountains of evidence that the complete opposite is true.

If we ignore the advice of other countries that have been here already that are literally piling bodies in ice skating rinks, we will soon be in the same situation. Some countries aren’t waiting for the bodies to pile up before listening. We need real leadership. And you have proven, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you do not have what it takes to be a true leader. To unite your constituents, and make difficult sacrifices in the face of a common enemy , to defeat that enemy for our own good. The irony is, this is an opportunity to step up and really dictate to everyone what they must do to save lives - look at the Italians - and he can’t or won’t even do that.

COVID-19 is not Trump’s fault. But I fear that we are nonetheless in for a very difficult lesson here: that if we elect someone who is truly unfit for office, and keep him there because of some favorable policies that come as a result, ignoring the screams of incompetence and narcissistic personality disorder; a complete inability to unite anyone around anything, to take responsibility, to follow the facts, and to listen to expert advice in normal times, let alone a crisis; then when a true crisis strikes, we will pay for it with our lives. This is already happening. How many lives will it cost us to learn the lesson that a little humility in our leaders is not just admirable, not just desirable, but absolutely essential?

* update: here’s a kind-of counterpoint , at least in terms of what our overall strategy should be right now - a good read, in any case.

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DISCUSSION (89)

Snuze: Needs another Swede > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 09:48

How many lives will it cost us to learn the lesson that a little humility in our leaders is not just admirable, not just desirable, but absolutely essential?

Too many, because nobody is going to learn a thing from this, they will just double down on the finger pointing. We’ve allowed things to get to a point where the requirements to get elected to office are wholly incompatible with the characteristics of good leadership.

gin-san - shitpost specialist > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 09:50

I probably wouldn’t loathe Trump so much if he owned his mistakes. If I fuck up, I admit it and try not to make the same mistake. We’re all human, nobody is perfect.

When some asshole comes out and talks about how he’s the smartest, the best, the most whatever, and never admits any fault... That’s not a man, that’s a fucking delusional arsehole.

I underestimated COVID as well, so did many others. Looking at it now, obviously I fucked up, but am doing what I should to stay home.

DipodomysDeserti > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 09:52

R ead Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine. I’m not a socialist, or even really a liberal, but there is a strategy behind letting everything go to shit that’s been employed a few times over the last twenty years. Now we’re getting it on a national scale.

I think back to Mexico after the big quake in the ‘60s. Their government at the time was more concerned with shooting their own citizens and too incompetent too help. It was up to the Mexican people to help themselves , and they did. Hopefully everyone is realizing that right now it is up to their local community to keep each other safe.

Another good read is Brave New War. It had to do more with how to fight Fourth Generational Warfare, but the same strategies that protect communities from terrorism help mitigate the effects of other disasters.

We were given a preview of how this administration handles emergencies with how they failed to help Puerto Rico after hurricane Maria. Anyone who thought the rest of the US would fare any different was sorely mistaken.

That’s not to say anyone should be let off the hook. A failure to properly lead in a situation like this should have a more dire consequence than losing your job come next election. Failure to lead during a national emergency is treason. However, worrying about that won’t help right now. We as communities need to focus on the task at hand (which will now be more difficult than it would be with national leadership), and do what we need to do to survive.

Just Jeepin' > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 09:53

And yet his approval ratings are as high as they’ve ever been and half the country thinks he’s doing well with the pandemic.

I DON’T UNDERSTAND.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > gin-san - shitpost specialist
03/25/2020 at 10:00

What makes me incredibly frustrated is the delusional followers, as much as their delusional leader. Like , I get it. If I were American, I’d probably lean toward the Republican party in most things. But I could never get behind electing Trump or supporting him in any way. He’s a megalomaniac. Pure and simple. He doesn’t care about anyone or anything other than himself and his money.

It’s terrifying to see people so blindly follow him, and to accept everything that he has done - including hurting his own followers. It’s like a case of Stockholm syndrome, but on a national scale.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Snuze: Needs another Swede
03/25/2020 at 10:02

It’s almost like the Peter Principle, taken to an extreme. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle

Snuze: Needs another Swede > BaconSandwich is tasty.
03/25/2020 at 10:03

I’m to the point that, while I probably lean conservative/libertarian , I can’t stand Republicans.

jimz > Just Jeepin'
03/25/2020 at 10:04

you’ve got to remember their view of what he’s doing has been filtered through Fox News first.

AdamB > gin-san - shitpost specialist
03/25/2020 at 10:04

Exactly . People would like him more if he just admitted he was wrong once in a while. Everyone makes mistakes but you are supposed to admit you were wrong. Instead he chooses to act as if he were right the whole time and spread false information.

interstate366, now In The Industry > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 10:06

Thankfully a lot of governors are stepping up where he’s failing. Not all, mind you, but many, both Democrats and Republicans.

WildlyMild > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 10:10

And instead of 3 weeks of covering wages he wants an overly complicated plan that will undoubtedly leave many humans without while paying corporations for failing at everything.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > BaconSandwich is tasty.
03/25/2020 at 10:14

I’m very familiar with that, and you’re right, I think that plays a part. But I also think it’s a money thing, and a tribal thing. Donors pump money into the parties saying “I’ll give you this if you do X, Y, and Z” So everyone in the Party has to uphold those bought and paid for ideals. And of course then it becomes a popularity contest (and this is where the Peter Principle comes in) of who is the “most electable”. Not who is the best, who is going to be a good leader, but essentially it becomes a popularity contest of who can best uphold the party ideals. And at this point there’s no room for dissent.

I can’t get behind either P arty because I don’t think either particularly represents me. I think both have some good ideas, and both have some awful ideas. And that’s the other issue is they’ve squeezed out any alternative view points and most people fall into the trap of believing they have to pick one or the other, red or blue. It’s like we’re living in 1984, where people are too stupid to think of a third option if it’s not presented for them.

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > Snuze: Needs another Swede
03/25/2020 at 10:16

I don’t know how to get it done exactly, but we need to get to a point that politi cian is not a career or a stepping stone. Something like only being able to serve as an elected official on any level for a maximum of 12 years or something and a ban on politicians serving in lobbying industry or on company boards or leadership positions of publicly traded companies afterwards.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 10:21

Yeah we could have been and t o a point still be like South Korea, but without wide scale testing. No one knows if they should self quarantine. My state you have to have been in contact with a known case and have a doctors note. At that point it’s nearly moot.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
03/25/2020 at 10:30

I agree, there has to be a way to do this that’s still fair. I’m generally against term limits because I think an informed and active voting populace wouldn’t need them - if a politician is doing a good job why not keep them in? If they aren’t doing their job then get them out at first opportunity.

I do think we could put a lifetime cap on political service, though, similar to the military. One thing, and I’m not 100% on this, but it’s always been my understanding that serving in congress automatically entitles one to a congressional pension, regardless of length of service, so whether it’s a day or a decade, you get a pension. I’d rather see political office treated the same as federal/military service. In the military, for example, you get 2% of your average pay (highest 3 years of pay calculated at the point of retirement) per year of service, plus 1% of your pay contribution to TSP (basically a Federal IRA), plus matching for any extra TSP contributions you make up to a certain limit . You have to serve 20 years to be eligible for retirement, and they cap your service at 30 years without congressional wavier. The military is a bit different than Federal but there is a path to convert - for example I served 6 years in the Navy and I am now Federal and can apply my military time (since I didn’t make 20 years to get a retirement) towards my Federal retirement. Political service should be treated in a similar manner.

I also think this would allow people to explore other opportunities of federal service. Maybe someone in a particular branch sees an issue and wants to run for congress, this becomes more of a lateral move. Or a congress person decides they’ve had enough, they could make a lateral move to a federal agency.

I do agree that politicians shouldn’t be serving on company boards or doing lobbying immediately before, during, or immediately after their service. I don’t think it should be a lifetime ban, but I think there should be a cooling off period - 5 to 10 years, or something before they could do this. I also feel the same way about high ranking military members going to defense contractors.

One thing we really need to do, and I don’t know how to do this because it’s asking congress to shoot themselves in the foot, is roll corporate money back out of politics. I’m tired of all the PACs and Super PACs. Companies buy politicians, buy votes, flaunt the law, and there’s no recourse. It’s disgusting and it needs to stop.

jimz > WildlyMild
03/25/2020 at 10:31

that “stimulus” package supposedly includes tens to hundreds of billions to cruise lines, none of which are actually American companies. If our government wasn’t just a bunch of corporate slaves they’d have had the stones to say “Oh, you’re incorporated in the Bahamas? and Liberia? Go ask them for money.”

even the UK government apparently was able to tell airlines to go beg their shareholders if they need money.

jimz > BaconSandwich is tasty.
03/25/2020 at 10:33

it’s clear that he’s gone on this long simply because the people around (and under) him have been frantically putting out every dumpster fire so far. This one, they can’t. And the last time I heard him give an update (Sunday evening) I was surprised how drab and monotone his speech was. it was as if he was thinking “I didn’t know this job would be hard.”

gin-san - shitpost specialist > jimz
03/25/2020 at 10:55

Wait, you guys are bailing out cruise companies? I can see a need for keeping airlines afloat but cruises are pointless to keep around.

JustAnotherG6 > jimz
03/25/2020 at 11:02

I can’t help but think that o nce they come out of hiding at Easter their numbers will go down. Mind you, my dad and my mother in law fall in this camp, and it scares the shit out of me.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > Just Jeepin'
03/25/2020 at 11:19

https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/trump-approval-ratings/ well, 45%. And “as high as they’ve ever been” is still less than half approval.

RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 11:24

L iterally anyone else would be an improvement. I’d take President Pence in a heartbeat. Holy crap.

CobraJoe > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 11:31

Before the 2016 election, my friend was frustrated with the selection of Clinton as the democratic nominee, and he said something like “I hope Trump gets elected, lets burn the whole system down.”

Is the system burning yet?

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > gin-san - shitpost specialist
03/25/2020 at 11:33

Welcome to Trumponomics.

Tripper > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 11:34

That truck is CHRISTMAS!

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire
03/25/2020 at 11:35

I mean, at least Pence is holding prayer circles... Since Trump is too much of a megalomaniac to believe in god he's not even doing that... /sarcasm /stilldire

Spanfeller is a twat > DipodomysDeserti
03/25/2020 at 12:04

Lets see what happens here... Shamefully no amount of cama raderie can replace a mechanical respirator.

ZHP Sparky, the 5th > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 12:06

Check out his stupid tweet from this weekend about getting the country back to work, the cure can’t be worse (economically) than the disease etc. blah blah blah. Yes of course this is what he’s saying - it’s just discouraging seeing actual people starting to parrot these stupid thoughts.

1 - Pretty high likelihood that if we take away the restrictions this disease will get much, much worse and cripple our country for much longer - both in terms of lives lost and economically. So kind of a false premise to start with.

2- People going around saying “the elderly will take care of themselves, and yes some will die - that’s the price we are willing to pay for the freedoms we have in this country.” What utter BS. When it’s theoretical people I’m sure plenty of fools are willing to sing this brave song. If/when it comes down to our parents, loved ones, kids etc. dying - will they be happy with the sacrifice they’re making?

We mismanaged this from the beginning - and it’s out of the bag and running rampant. We must do what we can to limit the damage, not just accept that the damage is done (it’s not, it can and will get much worse if unattended) and go along with our lives.

ZHP Sparky, the 5th > CobraJoe
03/25/2020 at 12:12

Those people, along with people who don’t vote because “both options are the same” – this is the definition of privilege to me.

To see two very clearly distinct options and be in a position to think that your life won’t be (and honestly it might not be) materially affected no matter which option we go with. And of course the concept of empathy is non-existent too in this line of thinking.

functionoverfashion > AdamB
03/25/2020 at 12:25

You don’t have to dig deep to find examples, but here he was a few weeks ago saying this will be no big deal, then he says he knew all along it was going to be a pandemic.

functionoverfashion > jimz
03/25/2020 at 12:27

He did say that in the early days - first few months, I think - something about it’s harder than I thought. Like, almost an admission of some small level of fallibility - pretty remarkable, even if it was an idiotic comment.

fintail > jimz
03/25/2020 at 12:30

It’ll all trickle down though, the depl orable so- called right has been preaching it for 40 years , it has to happen any day now , right? Nothing to worry about.

fintail > Snuze: Needs another Swede
03/25/2020 at 12:32

Sometimes you just gotta choose the lesser evil. Hint: the lesser evil is not the party in power right now .

functionoverfashion > CobraJoe
03/25/2020 at 12:32

I think that line of thinking played a big role in his election. What ZHP says below is true - the definition of privilege, to be able to think it’ll be okay for you, so why not elect this volatile, unqualified, unstable, (I could go on) because it doesn’t matter.

Yeah, now it matters. I could have said “unqualified” in place of “unfit for office” and that might have been better, actually. I think people say “oh well just because you don’t have experience in public office doesn’t mean you’re not qualified” but that’s not what people meant when they said he was unqualified. His lack of humility or empathy or really any level of caring or thinking of others, is why I didn’t want him leading this country. In good times, meh at best but in bad times, it’s literally life and death.

jimz > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 12:33

and if you tell one of his supporters that he called it a hoax at first, they yell “FAKE NEWS” then demand evidence, then when you give it to them they ignore it or call it “FAKE NEWS” too.

functionoverfashion > RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire
03/25/2020 at 12:35

Pence would probably have taken this seriously, and listened to experts all the way.

I will say one thing, I think Americans as a species are too proud to admit we’re as vulnerable as the rest of the world, so the early trajectory of this would have been similar with just about any leader. It’s what’s happened since Pandemic day that could have been different. But we’ll never know.

jimz > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
03/25/2020 at 12:35

his approval rating has hovered around 43% for a long time now. it’s probably skewed by the people who are steadfast supporters of him who will never change their minds. I don’t put too much stock in approval ratings.

or polls in general.

functionoverfashion > ZHP Sparky, the 5th
03/25/2020 at 12:37

Just as an interesting read, you should check out the NY times article (Opinion!) I added to the bottom.

I still agree with what you’re saying, to be clear. But it’s a good read.

functionoverfashion > Tripper
03/25/2020 at 12:38

THANK YOU for commenting on the truck. I love it, and I’m not sure I’d do anything differently. It’s nearly perfect.

jimz > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 12:39

that pride is pretty much inherent to our society. We get it pounded into our heads that Americans are “rugged individualists” who are self sufficient, so we allow ourselves to be deluded into ignoring all of those societal benefits which help us. We also put up with higher expenses and worse living conditions/outcomes compared to other 1st world countries because we convince ourselves things are far better here than there.

look at the Americans who insist things like healthcare in Finland has already collapsed, while Finns hear that and say “what the fuck are you talking about?”

we’re all convinced we’re the smartest people in the world, and “reality” is whatever we happen to believe.

functionoverfashion > Snuze: Needs another Swede
03/25/2020 at 12:41

Probably 10 years ago we had a customer who was a federal district court judge in the DC area, and he said, “If we don’t get the money out of politics, we’re all doomed” and he wasn’t being alarmist, he was dead serious.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > fintail
03/25/2020 at 12:42

No, I refuse to pick any evil, and this sentiment is the entire reason that we’re in the mess we’re in.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 12:44

I absolutely believe it.

The thing is, I don’t think corporations shouldn’t have a voice, or don’t merit concern and thinking when it comes to legislation. But the ease with which they buy representation and votes is alarming and disgusting.

fintail > Snuze: Needs another Swede
03/25/2020 at 12:44

I agree, choosing not to vote when that vote means a minor fart vs a corrupt nightmare is a real problem.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > fintail
03/25/2020 at 12:46

It’s not that I don’t vote, it’s that I don’t vote for candidates who don’t represent me or who I feel will not do a good job running the country. And for the last several election cycles I don’t feel either major party candidate has met those requirements. But there are other options out there, so that’s where I cast my lot.

fintail > Snuze: Needs another Swede
03/25/2020 at 12:49

I don’t recall any candidates, no matter how much of a longshot, who would actually work to help real people. I just pick the viable candidate who will do the least damage. Looks like the upcoming election will be no different.

functionoverfashion > jimz
03/25/2020 at 12:50

I think the single thing that bothers me the most about the Trump presidency is the movement away from a shared set of facts that we can at least kind of agree on. Putting favorable spins on any given fact is as old as time, but denying the existence of some information is wholly counterproductive and genuinely frightening. We can’t be arguing about whether or not it’s raining, when there’s water coming from the sky. And yet, I give you, Inauguration Day 2017.

RallyWrench > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 12:57

I agree with you, and, like yours, that’s a really fucking coo l truck.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > fintail
03/25/2020 at 13:01

Looks like the upcoming election will be no different.

I’m with you there.

functionoverfashion > RallyWrench
03/25/2020 at 13:03

haha thank you

On a related note: coming soon to Oppo, putting my truck to work on my land. A little off-roading to collect firewood, maybe pull some small stumps, brush, etc. - nothing too violent but a good bit of hard work for the old beast. With pictures. Should be a good distraction.

jimz > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 13:06

sadly, it’s woven into far more than just politics. We’ve become so conditioned to defend our “team” (whatever it is) that all else is unimportant. Look at the Penn State mess from several years ago; a lot of students, alumni, and other people involved were enraged that anyone would dare blame St. Joe Paterno and hold him responsible for what happened (and what he knew was happening) under his watch. These shitbrains felt the school’s football program and coach’s reputation were far, far more important than the safety and well-being of a bunch of dumb kids they never met and didn’t care about. Penn State should have had its football program TERMINATED over that, but groupthink and money ruled the day.

And people should still be lining up daily to piss on Joe Paterno’s grave, but Penn State worshiping assholes still think he’s a saint.

You know, because he was a football coach.

CobraJoe > ZHP Sparky, the 5th
03/25/2020 at 13:28

In his case, I’m sure it’s less of a indication of privilege and more an indication of misinformation and a culture of “All government is ineffectual and/or evil”.

He lives in a town that is a solidly conservative bubble, even though he is likely very negatively affected by the current administration.

CobraJoe > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 13:39

In his case, I’m sure it’s less of a indication of privilege and more an indication of misinformation and a local culture of “All government is ineffectual and/or evil”.

In that culture, I could understand the “I’d rather have the dumb evil than the clever evil”, but that doesn’t appear to be the case among the followers. I honestly can’t understand the whole “Everything is worse now, but he’s doing a great job!” mentality.

Honestly, I’d take a leader with a complete lack of empathy or caring or thinking if they surrounded themselves with quality people they trusted. The current system of “You said something bad about me, so you’re gone” is highly disastrous .

VincentMalamute-Kim > gin-san - shitpost specialist
03/25/2020 at 13:48

This is why you’re not President of the USA, with your kind of reasonable attitude.

Tripper > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 13:49

Just gorgeous! The only mods I would make:

MTB install - truck bed

Frown delete - face

smile install - face

windows in down position, doggo companion, maybe a tasty soda pop?

RallyWrench > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 13:52

Well that’s a bright spot! Old trucks doing work makes me smile.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 14:00

I’ll go a step further. Unqualified, unfit, unhinged and unpresidential. 45 should be a warning for us in future elections that apathy can lead to very bad outcomes.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > CobraJoe
03/25/2020 at 14:04

I’d take a leader with a complete lack of empathy or caring or thinking if they surrounded themselves with quality people they trusted

Our problem is the people he’s surrounded himself with are not qualified. His inner circle are yes-men, and the experts like Dr Fauci are probably looked at with suspicion, as if they have some ulterior motive.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > fintail
03/25/2020 at 14:08

I don’t think HRC would’ve been evil at any rate. (I know it’s just a figure of speech) Uninspiring, maybe but I’m pretty sure this COVID thing would’ve been handled quite differently.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > fintail
03/25/2020 at 14:09

The next guy is going to have to undo the damage caused by the current guy. Same as in 2009.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > jimz
03/25/2020 at 14:11

We’re in a weird place when Trump’s own tweets are considered fake news by the cultists.

functionoverfashion > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom
03/25/2020 at 14:15

I agree. One can only hope that enough of the right people change their minds before the next election. And then future elections as well, but this November in particular is a big one.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > DipodomysDeserti
03/25/2020 at 14:16

I see the issue being tackled locally by governors due to the lack of leadership coming from D.C. But they have to kiss Trump’s ass to get help it seems, which is fucked up.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > interstate366, now In The Industry
03/25/2020 at 14:18

Yeah. The gov of Maryland (a Republican) surprised everyone by bucking Trump and doing what’s required, even if it’s not politically expedient.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/24/politics/coronavirus-larry-hogan-maryland-governor/index.html

functionoverfashion > Tripper
03/25/2020 at 14:19

ha, nailed it.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > gin-san - shitpost specialist
03/25/2020 at 14:20

Not sure what last night’s agreement contains, but they should make short term loans available and use aircraft and ships as collateral. Those companies used tax cuts for stock buybacks, and as mentioned elsewhere cruise lines are incorporated outside the US to avoid our taxes.

Grim > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 14:34

We americans hate, HATE dictators y et we love king NARRICIST. I voted for this dude hiwever i will not again, i WILL vote for donald duck before donnie. To side w a guy who is being followed and hailed by these young white nazi saluting american punks, is no party of mine, i sure miss reagan. When he fires everybody that diesnt kiss his ass especially a decorated veteran col vidman after testifyiny under oathe in which he took the constitution is TOTALLY FN UNEXCEPTABL E! you so called constitutionalists ougth to be ashamed of yourselves for putting ideogy over facts. Im a reg hard to the fn core Reagan republican and a vet, WILL VOTE FOR BIDEN 2020.

Future next gen S2000 owner > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 14:49

I owe you a beer, or whiskey, or your choice of drink. Well said.

BigBlock440 > CobraJoe
03/25/2020 at 14:51

I honestly can’t understand the whole “E verything is worse now, but he’s doing a great job!” mentality.

Probably because nothing’s worse, and when you ask someone, they can’t actually give any answers.

interstate366, now In The Industry > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom
03/25/2020 at 15:11

He’s definitely on the moderate side for the Republicans. I’ve been reading about him, being only a state away, and he seems to be pretty well liked by al most all demographics . Can’t say that about my own governor ...

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > interstate366, now In The Industry
03/25/2020 at 15:13

Where ya at?

ZHP Sparky, the 5th > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 15:17

Didn’t initially see the link - just shows up as a “read more” tab. Friedman can be pretty tiresome sometimes. Yes - in a perfect world where anything is possible, yes - isolating the sick and the elderly and expecting the rest of society to recommence activity with caution sounds like an excellent idea.

HOW do we actually make this happen? Especially in the land of the free where personal liberty rules (and in this case personally I think creates a lot of difficulty in actually solving the problem at hand).

fintail > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom
03/25/2020 at 15:41

Not evil, yes. Just another corporatist centrist D flying the progressive flag but not being terribly progressive socio-economically anyway. Relatively harmless that way, I suppose. Definitely wouldn’t have made the same stupid statements as 45, we’d just have idiots like that Texan and Glenn Beck to spout off.

fintail > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom
03/25/2020 at 15:47

The Simpsons predicted Lisa would be cleaning up the budget crunch left by Trump. I wonder who will be our Lisa. She does kind of look like Warren or Hillary.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > fintail
03/25/2020 at 15:50

Yep, she’s all of that. I doubt she’d have moved the needle very much, and it’s unknown if the House would’ve flipped in 2018 if she’d won. Which, of course, means the GOP would’ve hounded her the way they accuse the Dems of hounding Trump, only without any real reason to do so.

CobraJoe > BigBlock440
03/25/2020 at 15:55

Other than the pandemic widely spreading due to the actions and lack of actions from the white house? Or the insane drops in the market?

How about the trade war with China that resulted in a bunch of tarrifs? Or the tax cut that highly favors corporations and extremely rich people? Or gutting the ACA before it had a chance to prove itself ? Or the wider acceptance of racism and xenophobia? Or the increasing divide between conservatives and liberals driven by exaggerations, misdirection, and outright lies?

If someone can’t give you any answers, it’s either because they’re not paying attention, or it’s too difficult to single out specifics to make a coherent response.

fintail > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom
03/25/2020 at 15:57

Oh, had she won, the deplorables and adjacents would be losing their shit every day much worse than the left with 45. The base loves conspiracy theories, and the name “Clinton” is a dog whistle for them. It’d be 100x worse than with Obama, absolute gridlock and probably assassination attempts.

interstate366, now In The Industry > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom
03/25/2020 at 15:59

VA, home of this guy.

Kinja'd!!!

DipodomysDeserti > ZHP Sparky, the 5th
03/25/2020 at 16:09

Disenfranchisement is generally the result of lack of privilege.

DipodomysDeserti > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 16:18

Mike Pence is actually the one supposed to be heading our response right now. Have a look at how he handled an HIV outbreak in Indiana when he was governor. Not encouraging.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/03/02/how-mike-pence-made-indianas-hiv-outbreak-worse-118648

functionoverfashion > ZHP Sparky, the 5th
03/25/2020 at 16:37

It’s true, the article is very optimistic. And a friend said something similar, “Freedom is the worst solution to this problem. ”

functionoverfashion > Future next gen S2000 owner
03/25/2020 at 16:39

Thanks. Actually, this rant was at least contributed to by the bottle of local Bourbon I got into last night. I don’t usually drink bourbon on a Tuesday. But here we are.

functionoverfashion > DipodomysDeserti
03/25/2020 at 16:44

Great. I’ll have to read that later.

Tangent - I made the mistake of watching literally 3 minutes of a video on the web from the press conference with Fauci, Birx, and Trump. Trump says at one point, “... D r. Fauci, ... Deborah,” - I mean, come on. It’s Dr. Fauci, Dr. Birx. Just because she’s a woman doesn’t mean you can just skip the formalities that you just gave to the man standing behind you. But even in that little exchange, his true self oozes through.

gin-san - shitpost specialist > BaconSandwich is tasty.
03/25/2020 at 17:46

The unwavering support of some is scary - I’m more than willing to change opinion based on new information but the “I can’t be wrong, you guys are” mentality many people have can be scary.

Maybe it’s an oversimplification, but what you said reminds me of a comment I read on reddit recently:

Humans are totally imperfect, irrational, and emotional beings.

There are those that will support him simply because he is the current president and we are in a time of crisis, like Bush. There are those that support him because he platformed as a Republican, as well as claiming to be anti-establishment. There are many who so closely identify their personal existence with their political party, that it simply does not matter who they are or what they do; if they’re Republican, they’re absolved. There are the uneducated, who value the anti-immigrant, conservative populist rhetoric common in times of economic stagnation. Some people are purely anti-democrat, meaning that any non-democrat is a viable figure.

What’s fascinating is that Trump’s campaign did something I thought was almost impossible:

Making conservatism a counter-culture movement and “cool”.

In general, I wouldn’t worry about what he does outside of economic and environmental policies. Many before him have done much worse, and while that’s “whataboutism”, there’s truth in that statement you must acknowledge. We’re still paying for the shitty choices Truman made regarding the Middle East, decades ago.

I don’t really care what side people are on, just have some self awareness and try to limit the name-calling. That’s hypocritical given what I’ve just called Trump, but people need to realize that yelling at each other is what the people in power want. “Divide and conquer” is a scary reality in today’s world magnified by the fact that it’s easier than ever to find people who share the same opinions.

Dead_Elvis, Inc. > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 18:36

A New Hampshire bourbon?! What is it?

fintail > BigBlock440
03/25/2020 at 19:15

yeah, I am fucking sick and tired of all this winning, it’s gotta stop

fintail > jimz
03/25/2020 at 19:16

If polls were accurate we wouldn’t have this particular shitshow in general.

functionoverfashion > Dead_Elvis, Inc.
03/25/2020 at 20:31

Stroudwater... might be Portland, ME actually. Close enough, and still local. They have a Rye that is my favorite whiskey, hands down. And I haven’t seen it in NH stores for months, used to be around a lot. Gotta go to the source I guess. Um, not soon. But you know.

Dead_Elvis, Inc. > functionoverfashion
03/25/2020 at 21:13

I generally make it to very southern Maine (Wells Beach) a couple times each summer. I’ll have to check it out if that happens this year, and the distillery is still around.

eta: I love rye, maybe more than bourbon. Just checked out their site, and this is the lede on their home page.

Kinja'd!!!

Not quite 5 years, this time.

functionoverfashion > Dead_Elvis, Inc.
03/26/2020 at 07:41

Their distillery is on Thompsons’s Point where there’s a big brewery too - one of the ones that has lines out the door when they release a new beer - they have live concerts out there, too. Typical run-down industrial area turned into a mixed-use hipster-esque commercial / recreational / event space. And I do mean that as a compliment, haha.