US General Election 2016

Good thing Bungo isn't here to shit on your circlejerk. Oh, wait here he is. And here we go.

Wow! You all hate the president! What a controversial opinion to have! So, so, brave of all of you to come online and constantly bash his very existence. I've heard he's going to go full dictator and put everyone into concentration camps and start the 4th Reich. I'm so glad we have an army of #Resistance^TM (Donald Drumpf is literally Kylo Ren and the First Order/every Nazi that has ever existed) keyboard warriors to keep our country safe. Did you know there are actual adults in the White House keeping us safe from Drumpf who literally wants to blow up the entire planet right now?!?!? The New York Times told me, it must be true!!!!! WOW!!!!!

I'm so glad we have Diane Feinstein to conduct the high-tech lyncing 2.0 to keep our country safe from Nazi Kavanaugh who wants to make the USA into the Handmaid's Tale!!!!! So glad she's keeping us safe from that devil; let's destroy his life and his family! YAY! But don't you dare pose any questions to Keith Ellison... Domestic Abuse (even with documented evidence from the victim) is A-OK when a democrat does it!!!!!! That's right Keith, you beat up and verbally abuse all the girlfriends you want, you've still got my vote!!!!!!! Just like Teddy and Bill, you are the best Keith!!!!!!!!

An Official Message from The Office of The Mayor:

What are you trying to accomplish, bungo? It's felt to me for a long time like you return here mainly to vent your frustration at "the libs" but this cycle so clearly makes you miserable by the time you leave that I'm honestly kinda baffled as to why we're still going through it. I have never wanted you to leave the forum because of your political views but--while I can't be certain of your intentions--it often seems as though you see us more as your personal whipping boys/girls than as people you wish to engage in conversation with, much less as (online) friends. I can't imagine that it's a pleasant experience for anyone on any side but people have consistently welcomed you back despite repeated insults against both individuals and the forum as a whole seemingly to no avail, and I'm not really sure what would improve the situation other than people never disagreeing with you about politics, which isn't fair or reasonable to ask of other forum members.

I totally agree with you Bungo when you say the media and liberals in general attack much in Trump that they wouldn't otherwise, such as his joke about the man in South Carolina who got a boat out of the deal: I thought that was pretty good natured. But much of this is due to his need to drag any of his opponents through the mud - can he really expect anything less in return?

{{Forgive me Bungo but that seems a bit of a rent a rant, by which I mean yes its a rant about politics, but not anything anyone here has actually mentioned. No one has voiced an opinion on the so called 'resistance' or on the judge claims and counterclaims (personally I think your whole system is a bit bent out of shape here as the legal wing has way too much power and keeping judges on till they drop instead of sensible retirement age is also a mistake in my view).

But to get back on topic, a bit, that you come back to rant to us about stuff no one was talking about rather implies you've just assumed what was being talked about based on CNN headlines or something, not on what is actually under discussion here- which incidentally was Trump related, his tarriffs and trade wars and how its hitting US farmers. But you dont mention that in your post, reinforcing the idea your post is a sort of copy and paste right wing tirade, modified for Forumshire sure, but not in substance. (Though would be great to hear your views on the subject f they differ from what's being said, I dont know if you support the tariff policy or not).

As to US media- is it anti-Trump?- yes of course it is, the majority of your news outlets are mainly left of centre. But if the Fox news types of the world were in the majority then it would be all positive, and no less bias for it. Hell if the Obama White House had the sort of leaked info coming out of it Trumps has Fox would be in 'impeachment him/lock him up' meltdown long ago and a certain citizen Trump would be tweeting about how Obama was never the real President anyway and praising the brave men and women willing to speak out against him. Your country is hugely polarised, your news outside maybe PBS, is just as polarized.

As an American you could just whine about this state of affairs in your country or you could try understanding and talking with others you disagree with instead, actually doing something to help your country heal its divisions, or just keep throwing insults about and deliberately putting up barriers to debate and discussion, and so understanding in the end.
Can always start here. }}

I think our mayor has taken up the sport of trolling.

Hello everyone.

Pettytyrant101 wrote:{{ Whooo Blue is back! What you doing in Catalonia Blue? It a holiday or you there fighting the good fight? }}

Mostly holidaying, but I did get to take in the Diada (Catalan national day), might try to share some photos later.

bungobaggins wrote:Kavanaugh

How many times did Kavanaugh lie, directly and demonstrably, under oath? What other SCOTUS nominee would get away with that?

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/09/five-times-brett-kavanaugh-appears-to-have-lied-to-congress-while-under-oath/

Kavanaugh is the rope the GOP has chosen. Trump made a bad pick, and the GOP has tied itself to the mast, in the middle of an election cycle, no less. Perhaps it would be better for Trump and the GOP to not blame others for their own failings.

{Had the chance to see most of both sides of the Kavanugh/Ford testimony (if thats the right word for it) and one thing that struck me most was this is really unfair- on everyone involved. The format of these hearings is  not at all suitable for reacting to such claims- all we got was two credible testimonies that completely opposed one another- which is what we had before the hearings started so hat was the pont of them?

It should never have come to this- the democrats shouldn't have sat on this as long as they did for political reasons (its obvious they want to push this into the midterms) and Trump should have called for a new FBI investigation of the allegations as soon as the accusations arose- the Republicans say no to this because the FBI dont reach conclusions, but thats not the point, they do investigate, find witnesses or lack of- they clear things up a lot which right now they are not.
Of course Trump is playing politics here as much as the Dems, the main reason he hasnt called for the investigation is he wants Kavanaugh selected because Kavanaugh is on record as saying a sitting President cant be subpoenaed. And Trump cant afford any delays as he might lose the House in the mid-terms.

So these two people, Kavanaugh and Ford are simply being used by both sides, for largely political reasons, and having their lives publicly destroyed in a forum completely unsuited to dealing with such accusations.
Its a horrible mess. }}}

Four people have accused Kavanaugh. He gave a wildly unhinged testimony yelling at democratic senators for people credibly accusing him of wrongdoing. Trying to reduce the matter to a yes/no question, when any judge hears yes/No arguments almost daily, and know that is not a way to credibly solve disputes. It doesn't help that he has demonstrably lied under oath several times already. He clearly doesn't have the tempererament, or the mentality to be a judge, never mind on a Supreme Court. That he hasn't been dismissed already is shocking. Passing him now will be a heavily phyrric victory that will hurt the Republicans badly in the next elections.

{{Four people have accused him- one I would dismiss as trivial- Deborah Ramirez. The former Yale University classmate has said Kavanaugh once exposed himself to her at a party- if I was arrested for every time Id flashed my arse whilst pissed Id still be in jail now! Many a drunk thats whipped it about and waved the old chap around cheerily thinking its funny, because they are drunk. Might be very bad form but its not sexual assault- the mere sight of a penis is not an assault by one!

The anonymous letter is as good as useless, could be written by anyone and what it charges could easily have been misinterpreted depending on context- Anonymous A woman sent a letter to a Congresswoman alleging her daughter had witnessed Mr Kavanaugh pushing a woman he was dating "very aggressively and sexually" against a wall in 1998.

So that leaves two credible claims- neither of which at this point have any collaboration or evidence backing them up. Which is why I say this is not the format, nor the place to fairly test such claims and accusations and denials. Both parties deserve proper justice-if she and others were assaulted by this man then they deserve justice for that, if his life and family are being destroyed by false accusations then he deserves justice for that-  and this kangaroo court style hearing is not the way to get to the truth or anything remotely like justice. Its a circus.}}}

Those parts of the hearings should have been closed door. Anything for which simple rumor is enough to destroy people's lives should be private, simple as that.

Petty- "not the way to get to the truth or anything remotely like justice. Its a circus."

Well of course it's a circus. It's an election year! Anybody in the audience who voluntarily steps into the ring with the clowns can expect to get a bucket of water at the very least...

I'll guess we have to wait and see what the FBI has to say.



Seems like a FBI investigation is only desired when you're trying to delay, and it's politically convenient.

I didn't watch it because: 1. I have a job. 2. I can't stomach any of this. It's all posturing and galvanizing.



I do like this, though. Lindsey Graham is a new man. Oh no, he's unhinged! How unprofessional! This is what fighting back looks like.

Blue thinks if they confirm Kavanaugh there will be a "blue wave." Well he's so certain because he's biased. People on the left, their minds weren't going to be changed by any of this. I can only hope it reaches those in the middle, and they can see how ridiculous all of this is. I honestly don't know what will happen in November (I'd never be that pompous to assume I can see into the future), but I will never vote for a democrat, that's for sure.

didn't watch it because: 1. I have a job.-Bungo

{{I am not sure in what way this is relevant. Is it a boast? Cause if it is Im just home from a 12 hour nightshift and want a golden star!!!!

On the subject at hand, Trump finally got the FBI to do the enquiry they should have been told to do as soon as these allegations came to light- and that would have saved everyone the hopeless scenes of this so called 'job interview' }}

Trump actually said nice things about Christine Blasey Ford, and for a moment there the world stopped spinning. If he had been treating all (ANY??) opponents to his agenda with similar respect all along, maybe people wouldn't be attacking everything he did so relentlessly.

As I said elsewhere I think testimony like this should have been given behind closed doors. The French don't allow ANY reporting of court proceedings (including names) until a guilty verdict is delivered. We should do the same here - and though these aren't court proceedings some similar application of innocent until proven guilty to claims like this would have shut down these broadcasts.

Hear hear!

Pettytyrant101 wrote:
Im just home from a 12 hour nightshift and want a golden star!!!!

What better way to wind down than staying up late talking to us bunch of nutters

@petty

{{{hardly a boast, boy I wish I could sit at home and watch tv all day. My job and my life are not anything to boast about. Well I will be getting laid off in a couple months and my inability to find a job of comparable pay and responsibility is causing me a lot of stress and poor feelings, and I’m engaging in a lot of self destructive behavior in the mean time to take my mind off of it. So yeah not a boast by a long shot.}}}

Pettytyrant101 wrote:{{Four people have accused him- one I would dismiss as trivial- Deborah Ramirez. The former Yale University classmate has said Kavanaugh once exposed himself to her at a party- if I was arrested for every time Id flashed my arse whilst pissed Id still be in jail now! Many a drunk thats whipped it about and waved the old chap around cheerily thinking its funny, because they are drunk. Might be very bad form but its not sexual assault- the mere sight of a penis is not an assault by one!

The anonymous letter is as good as useless, could be written by anyone and what it charges could easily have been misinterpreted depending on context- Anonymous A woman sent a letter to a Congresswoman alleging her daughter had witnessed Mr Kavanaugh pushing a woman he was dating "very aggressively and sexually" against a wall in 1998.

So that leaves two credible claims- neither of which at this point have any collaboration or evidence backing them up. Which is why I say this is not the format, nor the place to fairly test such claims and accusations and denials. Both parties deserve proper justice-if she and others were assaulted by this man then they deserve justice for that, if his life and family are being destroyed by false accusations then he deserves justice for that-  and this kangaroo court style hearing is not the way to get to the truth or anything remotely like justice. Its a circus.}}}

I have certainly not prejudged Kavanaugh, my comment mentioned specifically due process and I defend a proper investigation, something, note, Kavanaugh the judge does not... when it comes to himself.

My judgment on the matter in general:

Kavanaugh is unfit for the Supreme Court or indeed any past because of (1) his past, (credible allegation that can be dismissed if found not credible by an official, independent and thorough investigation) (2) his multiple lies under oath and (3) the fact that he is a party-political operator without the temperament of a neutral arbitrator, i.e. a judge. Note the two latter are not connected to the voracity of the allegation.

Kavanaugh has repeatedly lied under oath to the Judicial Committee in this hearing, and reportedly in the hearing that got his his current judicial position.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/07/how-kavanaughs-last-confirmation-hearing-could-haunt-him/565304/
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/09/kavanaugh-lied-senate-judiciary-committee.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/28/us/politics/brett-kavanaugh-fact-check.html
https://t.co/H6bBmF38Ji

Small lies doesn't matter? It is the tendency to blatantly lie about the unimportant that is extremely worrying, because it is a sign of character. For Kavanaugh pride, opinion and expediency is more important than the truth. These simple blatant lies of little importance are most striking:

https://twitter.com/AoDespair/status/1046004662313390081

Finally, and perhaps most worrying of all, Kavanaugh seems completely unsuited to any judicial position. His completely unhinged testimony, interrupting, insulting, yelling at members of the judicial committee was stunning. The man does not have the temperament to be a judge: he is a political operative, he does politics, he does not neutrally arbitrate.

Kavanaugh interrupts Diane Feinstein and starts screaming at her
https://twitter.com/AynRandPaulRyan/status/1045405514857820160

Every time Ford and Kavanaugh did and did not answer a question
https://twitter.com/pauloCanning/status/1045759736275234816

Nominee’s attack on Democrats poses risk to Supreme Court
https://www.apnews.com/8ef877d649a3448f9d270e975932ee81

In the end, perhaps this article captures it best:

https://jacobinmag.com/2019/09/brett-kavanaugh-banality-elites-meritocracy

Hey Bungo - I know it's hard not to self destruct when you see unfair doom approaching. But so long as physical destruction doesn't come you're still alive and kicking. Just remember all those "successful" people who went through periods living out of their car. It ain't a defeat, not by a long shot.

And if it helps, despite all the political rigmarole, we still care about you.

I wish I could sit at home and watch tv all day- Bungo

{{Work nights- works for me! (and you tend to get a better hourly rate for working unsociable hours too  ) but having been in the position of being unemployed in the past, and living somewhere where job opportunities are not exactly abundant and who you know is far more important than what you know, I do sympathise Bungo. Being self destructive however will probably not help, does explain why- to use a good Scots phrase thats only slightly offensive and non-pc these days- you've been a bit of a nippy-sweetie of late! }}

Best of luck, Bungo. In an uncertain future there are also opportunities.

"Kavanaugh even lied about having no connections to Yale. “I have no connections there. I got there by busting my tail,” Kavanaugh said under oath about getting into Yale Law School after attending Yale as an undergrad. In fact, he was a legacy: His grandfather, Everett Edward Kavanaugh, also went to Yale for undergrad, as this yearbook shows."
https://theintercept.com/2018/09/29/the-unbearable-dishonesty-of-brett-kavanaugh/

Can't believe I haven't seen this impression before:



Of course you have to compare to the original:

A very clear delineation of the partisan divide in America, probably clear because it comes from outside the country (the Guardian):

https://www.yahoo.com/news/why-democrats-republicans-see-kavanaugh-164732550.html