Politics

[Mannscho]

"Whoa there, don't be dissin' on the US, they can out plunder the best of 'em! Long history and a well polished act that leaves the host country wondering where this civil war came from, who stole our resources and why are all of these USAID and NGO folks swarming the hot zones."

Oh boy another troll. Best to avoid until dry, just like a fresh tootsie roll in the yard

Aww, c'mon take off those rose colored glasses and have a good gander. The US kicks ass in raping, pillaging and plunder! We were BORN of it! You guys always want to give that cred to some other poseur, wannabe country.

 

[geoff rath]

As my in-laws lived in Illinois, I was watching the 2004 Illinois senatorial election to replace Sen. Peter Fitzgerald closely.

The Republican nominee until he stepped down, Jack Ryan, was the perfect candidate. Local kid made good, Ivy League grad, partner at Goldman-Sachs, gave that up to teach for free in an inner city school, could self-finance his race, and the list goes on. Unfortunately, his ex, the actress Jeri Ryan made outrageous allegations in the custody paperwork as often happens. Somewhere, somehow, the Obama campaign got wind of it and used the newspapers to get sealed divorce proceedings opened. Both Jack and Jeri Ryan had requested that it be kept sealed but a Democrat judge opened it "in the public interest." That was the kiss of death for Ryan and Alan Keys jumped in.

This was not a first for Obama and his team. He was not even the leading Democrat when he entered the race. He used virtually the same tactic against the leader in the Dem primary and that guy was out.

The bottom line was that Obama and his team used the courts and the media to sabotage the stronger candidates. Without that, we never would have had a President Obama.

Obama? A BUMMER !!

 

[geoff rath]

And playing it wrong and poorly.

LOVE the sound of a well-played dobro; Awesome!!

 

[Tundra Tiger]

Yep. I am very disappointed in Vivek. I had high hopes that he would rise above the fray and he’s turned out to be the biggest mud slinger of the bunch. The point at which he claimed to be the only candidate on stage who is not already bought and paid for was totally out of line.

So far I feel that Scott, DeSantis and Pence have presented themselves well. Early days though.

Agreed. He would have some good answers... and then act like a weenie on a grade school playground.

I thought DeSantis and Haley came across pretty well, and Pence in spots. I thought Scott would have a stronger showing.

 

[Tanks]

Agreed. That guys position on Ukraine and understanding of the situation was appalling. I thought Pence was solid when he told him that we could help Ukraine and defend our border at the same time.

Not to mention Israel and Taiwan

 

[spike.t]

"Whoa there, don't be dissin' on the US, they can out plunder the best of 'em! Long history and a well polished act that leaves the host country wondering where this civil war came from, who stole our resources and why are all of these USAID and NGO folks swarming the hot zones."

Oh boy another troll. Best to avoid until dry, just like a fresh tootsie roll in the yard

Anyway, Ramaswamy lost me well before the debate. Too bad, he had potential. Either he is an idiot or his advisors are or both. He's toast and well should be after some of his foreign policy statements the last few days.

Didn't watch the debate. All trying to sell something and scratching around in the chicken yard desperately looking for recognition and some also-ran crumbs while our country implodes

Don't worry I have a sneaking suspicion the troll will vanish fairly soon....

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

In case you missed this...........waiting for Biden to claim credit.

NEW YORK, Aug 8 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil production is expected to rise by 850,000 barrels per day to record 12.76 million bpd in 2023, according to a monthly report from the Energy Information Administration on Tuesday.

Crude oil production is expected to rise by 330,000 barrels per day to 13.09 million bpd in 2024, EIA data showed.

The last record output was 12.3 million bpd in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic crushed demand and prices, and drillers were hit by higher costs that squeezed profit margins and investor demands to limit spending.

 

[Wheels]

Google search history during and after the debate. Looks like many just got their first glimpse of Ramaswamy and they are trying to learn more about him. Wonder how closely this will compare to polling numbers.

 

[BSO Dave]

Some very interesting and telling takes here on the republican debate... It never ceases to amaze me how a group of folks can watch the same thing at the same time and have 180-degree viewpoints on what they have just seen... Here's what I saw...

For what it's worth, since last night's debate, Vivek Ramaswamy is the most Googled candidate by far.... As trends go, folks usually don't Google somebody that they did not like.. He was by far the boldest and most outspoken among the candidates, which will most certainly resonate with the Trump base. Whatever you think of Ramaswamy, he's definitely not a RINO...

I literally laugh out loud when the MSM criticizes DeSantis for lacking charisma... Compared to who exactly? Pence and Hutchinson were miked-up cadavers. Stiff, bland, scripted, and completely unrelatable to the average working American which I will repeat is the common thread among the failings of the republican platform. I seriously doubt either of them will be on the next debate stage.

Christie embarrassed himself. He's an angry clown whose political window is years behind him.

Tim Scott is a solid candidate, and a good guy that was just underwhelming. Too many politically scripted answers. Plenty of room to improve, but not plenty of time...

Burgum seems like a nice enough guy who came off nervous, timid, and inarticulate at times. I doubt he makes the stage again.

Whether you agree with what they had to say or not, Ramaswamy, DeSantis, and Haley were the most successful in getting their messages out there... They are the 3 who are leading the conversations today.

I am partial to DeSantis. I have benefitted personally from his successful policies here in Florida. Of the field, I believe he has the best record to run on. He has all of the favorable Trump-like qualities with none of the bad ones. I honestly believe he could be one of the most successful conservative POTUS's of our lifetime. Regardless, none of this matters if Trump gets the nomination. These debates will be nothing more than an entertaining distraction.

 

[Wheels]

Some very interesting and telling takes here on the republican debate... It never ceases to amaze me how a group of folks can watch the same thing at the same time and have 180-degree viewpoints on what they have just seen... Here's what I saw...

For what it's worth, since last night's debate, Vivek Ramaswamy is the most Googled candidate by far.... As trends go, folks usually don't Google somebody that they did not like.. He was by far the boldest and most outspoken among the candidates, which will most certainly resonate with the Trump base. Whatever you think of Ramaswamy, he's definitely not a RINO...

I literally laugh out loud when the MSM criticizes DeSantis for lacking charisma... Compared to who exactly? Pence and Hutchinson were miked-up cadavers. Stiff, bland, scripted, and completely unrelatable to the average working American which I will repeat is the common thread among the failings of the republican platform. I seriously doubt either of them will be on the next debate stage.

Christie embarrassed himself. He's an angry clown whose political window is years behind him.

Tim Scott is a solid candidate, and a good guy that was just underwhelming. Too many politically scripted answers. Plenty of room to improve, but not plenty of time...

Burgum seems like a nice enough guy who came off nervous, timid, and inarticulate at times. I doubt he makes the stage again.

Whether you agree with what they had to say or not, Ramaswamy, DeSantis, and Haley were the most successful in getting their messages out there... They are the 3 who are leading the conversations today.

I am partial to DeSantis. I have benefitted personally from his successful policies here in Florida. Of the field, I believe he has the best record to run on. He has all of the favorable Trump-like qualities with none of the bad ones. I honestly believe he could be one of the most successful conservative POTUS's of our lifetime. Regardless, none of this matters if Trump gets the nomination. These debates will be nothing more than an entertaining distraction.

I don't agree completely with all your observations but overall a good synopsis of the debate from my viewpoint as well.

 

[cash_tx]

Some very interesting and telling takes here on the republican debate... It never ceases to amaze me how a group of folks can watch the same thing at the same time and have 180-degree viewpoints on what they have just seen... Here's what I saw...

For what it's worth, since last night's debate, Vivek Ramaswamy is the most Googled candidate by far.... As trends go, folks usually don't Google somebody that they did not like.. He was by far the boldest and most outspoken among the candidates, which will most certainly resonate with the Trump base. Whatever you think of Ramaswamy, he's definitely not a RINO...

I literally laugh out loud when the MSM criticizes DeSantis for lacking charisma... Compared to who exactly? Pence and Hutchinson were miked-up cadavers. Stiff, bland, scripted, and completely unrelatable to the average working American which I will repeat is the common thread among the failings of the republican platform. I seriously doubt either of them will be on the next debate stage.

Christie embarrassed himself. He's an angry clown whose political window is years behind him.

Tim Scott is a solid candidate, and a good guy that was just underwhelming. Too many politically scripted answers. Plenty of room to improve, but not plenty of time...

Burgum seems like a nice enough guy who came off nervous, timid, and inarticulate at times. I doubt he makes the stage again.

Whether you agree with what they had to say or not, Ramaswamy, DeSantis, and Haley were the most successful in getting their messages out there... They are the 3 who are leading the conversations today.

I am partial to DeSantis. I have benefitted personally from his successful policies here in Florida. Of the field, I believe he has the best record to run on. He has all of the favorable Trump-like qualities with none of the bad ones. I honestly believe he could be one of the most successful conservative POTUS's of our lifetime. Regardless, none of this matters if Trump gets the nomination. These debates will be nothing more than an entertaining distraction.

Seems like a good overall assessment of what I saw last night as well. Vivek brought the energy and intelligence (minus his foreign policy stance), DeSantis brought the street cred, and Haley brought the wisdom.

 

[BSO Dave]

I don't agree completely with all your observations but overall a good synopsis of the debate from my viewpoint as well.

Like I said, we all see things a bit differently. I would love to hear your take... I think it would be an informative, and inciteful perspective.

 

[BSO Dave]

 

[Brent in Az]

Gas up .60 to .70 cents a gallon in the last couple weeks.
Commie Joe, needs to go.

 

[Brent in Az]

As my in-laws lived in Illinois, I was watching the 2004 Illinois senatorial election to replace Sen. Peter Fitzgerald closely.

The Republican nominee until he stepped down, Jack Ryan, was the perfect candidate. Local kid made good, Ivy League grad, partner at Goldman-Sachs, gave that up to teach for free in an inner city school, could self-finance his race, and the list goes on. Unfortunately, his ex, the actress Jeri Ryan made outrageous allegations in the custody paperwork as often happens. Somewhere, somehow, the Obama campaign got wind of it and used the newspapers to get sealed divorce proceedings opened. Both Jack and Jeri Ryan had requested that it be kept sealed but a Democrat judge opened it "in the public interest." That was the kiss of death for Ryan and Alan Keys jumped in.

This was not a first for Obama and his team. He was not even the leading Democrat when he entered the race. He used virtually the same tactic against the leader in the Dem primary and that guy was out.

The bottom line was that Obama and his team used the courts and the media to sabotage the stronger candidates. Without that, we never would have had a President Obama.

Too many people feel that elections are clean and fair. I have some beach front property in south tucson I'd like to sell them.

Democrats have mastered the art of cheat & corruption.

 

[Wheels]

Like I said, we all see things a bit differently. I would love to hear your take... I think it would be an informative, and inciteful perspective.

In a political debate of this size, the individual that differentiates themselves often gains more ground. Ramaswamy definitely did that, leaving the other seven to split what is a larger portion of the pie yet end up with smaller pieces.

Ramaswamy was the brightest candidate. Quickest on his feet in unscripted responses. His smartest move was getting his hand raised first and then letting the other candidates look around and slowly raise theirs. It looked like a bunch of first graders on the stage! In my opinion he won the debate and will rise the most in the polls. He also positioned himself to become Trump's VP, which I think his candidacy is all about.

Haley did second best among the mainstream Republicans and will rise in the polls.

DeSantis had a good performance and probably has the best publicly known record of all the candidates. I don't know if he will rise in the polls or not. His timing his campaign to coincide with the start of the Trump indictments to try and siphon off Trump voters was off-putting to the Trump base and seen as a betrayal. I don't see him ever recovering from that.

Pence performed well but seemed stiff, and is viewed as part of the establishment. He won't get any votes from people under 50.

Christie's only job as a candidate is to attack Trump and walk away from the campaign with a few million in his pocket. He is a bitter man and will continue to fall.

Scott is a good guy and I like him. He is as you said, "underwhelming".

The other two aren't worth mentioning as candidates and the debate would have been better served if they hadn't participated and their time been allotted to the other candidates.

In the next debate I see the field whittled down to Ramaswamy, Haley, DeSantis, Pence and Christie, with Christie only to attack Trump.

At this point I don't see any of the above candidates being able to give Trump a run for the money. Millions more people watched Trump in a head to head interview than watched the other eight candidates combined in a debate. In my opinion, Trump became the Republican candidate somewhere around the time of the third indictment.

Many will disagree with these thoughts and that is fine. It is what makes America great.

 

[Red Leg]

"Gender fluid" is a euphemism for chemical confusion. It's no mystery that the preponderance of today's symptoms are caused by the now ubiquitous endocrine disrupting chemicals like atrazine, glyphosate, BPAs and PVC leachate. Pharma and medical sectors, never ones to miss exploiting an engineered problem-- we find the "transitioning" drugs and medical procedures are a burgeoning billion dollar industry. Find the primary sponsor of you local "pride" festival, don't be surprised to learn it's the corporation behind the healthcare in your state providing "support" to their future clientele.
Bottom line: endocrine disruption=subtle to permanent alterations including disturbed sex differentiation, feminized males, masculinized females, changed sexual behavior in mammals, birds, fish and mollusks--all effed!
Many will point fingers at society, parents, the kids, whatever. The blame really falls on the "regulatory" bodies who pandered to industry and allowed this endocrine disrupting shite to become a GD scourge upon the earth, almost ALL water has glyphosate (round-up) or atrazine in it now and domestic use often runs it through endocrine disrupting PVC or PEX plumbing.

Atrazine Acts as an Endocrine Disrupter by Inhibiting cAMP-specific Phosphodiesterase-4 - PMC

Atrazine, one of the most commonly used herbicides worldwide, acts as an endocrine disruptor, but the mechanism of its action has not been characterized. In this study, we show that atrazine rapidly increases cAMP levels in cultured rat pituitary ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Frontiers | Immune and Nervous Systems Interaction in Endocrine Disruptors Toxicity: The Case of Atrazine

Endocrine disruptors (ED) are natural and anthropogenic chemicals that can interfere with hormonal systems at different levels. As such, ED-induced alteratio...

www.frontiersin.org

Widely Used Hormone-Disrupting Pesticides Put Millions at Risk

The European Union just banned two agricultural weed killers linked to infertility, reproductive problems and fetal development – the first-ever EU ban on endocrine-disrupting pesticides. That's good news for Europeans. But as in Europe, many endocrine-disrupting weed killers remain widely used...

www.ewg.org

Glyphosate-based herbicides are toxic and endocrine disruptors in human cell lines - PubMed

Glyphosate-based herbicides are the most widely used across the world; they are commercialized in different formulations. Their residues are frequent pollutants in the environment. In addition, these herbicides are spread on most eaten transgenic plants, modified to tolerate high levels of these...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.0909519107

 

[Red Leg]

In a political debate of this size, the individual that differentiates themselves often gains more ground. Ramaswamy definitely did that, leaving the other seven to split what is a larger portion of the pie yet end up with smaller pieces.

Ramaswamy was the brightest candidate. Quickest on his feet in unscripted responses. His smartest move was getting his hand raised first and then letting the other candidates look around and slowly raise theirs. It looked like a bunch of first graders on the stage! In my opinion he won the debate and will rise the most in the polls. He also positioned himself to become Trump's VP, which I think his candidacy is all about.

Haley did second best among the mainstream Republicans and will rise in the polls.

DeSantis had a good performance and probably has the best publicly known record of all the candidates. I don't know if he will rise in the polls or not. His timing his campaign to coincide with the start of the Trump indictments to try and siphon off Trump voters was off-putting to the Trump base and seen as a betrayal. I don't see him ever recovering from that.

Pence performed well but seemed stiff, and is viewed as part of the establishment. He won't get any votes from people under 50.

Christie's only job as a candidate is to attack Trump and walk away from the campaign with a few million in his pocket. He is a bitter man and will continue to fall.

Scott is a good guy and I like him. He is as you said, "underwhelming".

The other two aren't worth mentioning as candidates and the debate would have been better served if they hadn't participated and their time been allotted to the other candidates.

In the next debate I see the field whittled down to Ramaswamy, Haley, DeSantis, Pence and Christie, with Christie only to attack Trump.

At this point I don't see any of the above candidates being able to give Trump a run for the money. Millions more people watched Trump in a head to head interview than watched the other eight candidates combined in a debate. In my opinion, Trump became the Republican candidate somewhere around the time of the third indictment.

Many will disagree with these thoughts and that is fine. It is what makes America great.

Some very interesting and telling takes here on the republican debate... It never ceases to amaze me how a group of folks can watch the same thing at the same time and have 180-degree viewpoints on what they have just seen... Here's what I saw...

For what it's worth, since last night's debate, Vivek Ramaswamy is the most Googled candidate by far.... As trends go, folks usually don't Google somebody that they did not like.. He was by far the boldest and most outspoken among the candidates, which will most certainly resonate with the Trump base. Whatever you think of Ramaswamy, he's definitely not a RINO...

I literally laugh out loud when the MSM criticizes DeSantis for lacking charisma... Compared to who exactly? Pence and Hutchinson were miked-up cadavers. Stiff, bland, scripted, and completely unrelatable to the average working American which I will repeat is the common thread among the failings of the republican platform. I seriously doubt either of them will be on the next debate stage.

Christie embarrassed himself. He's an angry clown whose political window is years behind him.

Tim Scott is a solid candidate, and a good guy that was just underwhelming. Too many politically scripted answers. Plenty of room to improve, but not plenty of time...

Burgum seems like a nice enough guy who came off nervous, timid, and inarticulate at times. I doubt he makes the stage again.

Whether you agree with what they had to say or not, Ramaswamy, DeSantis, and Haley were the most successful in getting their messages out there... They are the 3 who are leading the conversations today.

I am partial to DeSantis. I have benefitted personally from his successful policies here in Florida. Of the field, I believe he has the best record to run on. He has all of the favorable Trump-like qualities with none of the bad ones. I honestly believe he could be one of the most successful conservative POTUS's of our lifetime. Regardless, none of this matters if Trump gets the nomination. These debates will be nothing more than an entertaining distraction.

I can't really disagree with either overall assessment.

I did think that Haley absolutely schooled and exposed Ramaswamy with respect to foreign policy. As former UN ambassador she should be able to do so. I was watching him particularly because I had been impressed with some of his dialogue while campaigning. I personally came away thinking he was a lot shallower than I originally thought and was more interested in endearing himself to Trump than actually running for president.

I am not sure how good a campaigner he is, but I came away more certain than ever DeSantis would make a superb president.

I also spent the morning watching much of the Carlson interview. I found most of it typical Trump (my eyes hurt a little from rolling them), but was glad to see that he had somewhat moderated his stance on Ukraine. He seems to have gone from terrible thing that he will end in 24 hours to terrible thing that needs to end. I do really have a hard time dealing with the self-serving bluster.

 

[WAB]

In a political debate of this size, the individual that differentiates themselves often gains more ground. Ramaswamy definitely did that, leaving the other seven to split what is a larger portion of the pie yet end up with smaller pieces.

Ramaswamy was the brightest candidate. Quickest on his feet in unscripted responses. His smartest move was getting his hand raised first and then letting the other candidates look around and slowly raise theirs. It looked like a bunch of first graders on the stage! In my opinion he won the debate and will rise the most in the polls. He also positioned himself to become Trump's VP, which I think his candidacy is all about.

Haley did second best among the mainstream Republicans and will rise in the polls.

DeSantis had a good performance and probably has the best publicly known record of all the candidates. I don't know if he will rise in the polls or not. His timing his campaign to coincide with the start of the Trump indictments to try and siphon off Trump voters was off-putting to the Trump base and seen as a betrayal. I don't see him ever recovering from that.

Pence performed well but seemed stiff, and is viewed as part of the establishment. He won't get any votes from people under 50.

Christie's only job as a candidate is to attack Trump and walk away from the campaign with a few million in his pocket. He is a bitter man and will continue to fall.

Scott is a good guy and I like him. He is as you said, "underwhelming".

The other two aren't worth mentioning as candidates and the debate would have been better served if they hadn't participated and their time been allotted to the other candidates.

In the next debate I see the field whittled down to Ramaswamy, Haley, DeSantis, Pence and Christie, with Christie only to attack Trump.

At this point I don't see any of the above candidates being able to give Trump a run for the money. Millions more people watched Trump in a head to head interview than watched the other eight candidates combined in a debate. In my opinion, Trump became the Republican candidate somewhere around the time of the third indictment.

Many will disagree with these thoughts and that is fine. It is what makes America great.

Unfortunately, I think I agree with your assessment. Ramaswamy was terrible on foreign policy and extremely unprofessional. However, he presented himself well. As you said, the entire hand raising exercise made the rest of the field look weak.

 

[Josh P]

View attachment 553107

They really did turn the frogs gay though.