The American Politics thread

[Top_Cat]

Unfair; singing Rev Al Green is cheating. The entire front-row probably walked out of there pregnant just from that snippet of raw, honeyed soul. Every black man worthy of the title can do a passable Green/Gaye/Neville.

EDIT: Or Bailey.

[silentstriker]

Obama mocked for releasing skeet shoot photo during gun-control debate - NYPOST.com

[Jono]

Lol, gold.

[silentstriker]

Karl Rove launches initiative to keep tea party candidates out of elections | The Raw Story

The republican civil war has begun....

[Spark]

Originally Posted by silentstriker

Karl Rove launches initiative to keep tea party candidates out of elections | The Raw Story

The republican civil war has begun....

At the risk of saying I told you so... yeah

[silentstriker]

[Jono]

That is hilarious. As if these ****s only figured out now that bat **** crazy candidates will little to no credentials may actually not be good for the party's long term aspirations.

[Spark]

They'll keep getting bat**** cray-cray representatives unless they do something substantial to broad their base, because the simple truth is that bat**** cray-cray is rather common amongst the Republican core nowadays.

[Spooony]

Gun control: The theory that people willing to ignore laws against rape, torture, kidnapping, theft, and murder will obey a law telling them they can't own a gun.

[silentstriker]

Well, it's a very clear fact that the places where guns are completely banned have very low levels of crimes with guns, so that theory doesnt really hold.

In the US, we have 300 million guns already, so it's not a reasonable thing to account for them and get rid of them. Plus, the culture makes it unlikely that the sort ban that's required (mainly handguns, which cause the vast majority of the problems ) would ever pass. Because it would require a constitutional amendment to pass (Supreme Court has said that handgun bans are illegal), it will never happen.

So we just have to make the best of what we have. I think things like background checks will help. And I support it - it makes no sense to have loop holes like the gun shows. But almost ALL the gun crimes in the inner cities are caused by illegal handguns, not legal handguns. I don't think its realistic unfortunately to remove that secondary market, considering the prevalence of guns. I think doing something about the war on drugs would probably improve violence a lot more than any gun law -- and it would help a lot more people get out of poverty (and save our government trillions over the long term).

[Spark]

SS I fear you are being too logical here

[grecian]

I really hated Newsroom that American Sorkin thing, mainly because it had some brilliantly innovative ideas for a way of talking about the odd state of news in America, but then threw it all away with trite and boring soapy plots.

The best point they made was about Palin. The anchor didn't want to run with her paticular nutty view of a news story (take your pick) because she wasn't a credible expert on it, or indeed anything. It made me think, why has this woman become so influential, and well-known. The extreme right do love her, but the left (for wont of a better word) love her more whilst really despite being just another senator she should be ignored, for a total lack of heft on any subject.

I bring this up, because at the moment the UK are having a Gay Marriage debate, and TBH some of the views would make the Tea Party seem saneish. Roger Gale liking it to incest: Edward Leigh saying we shouldn't "let Equality get in the way of Tradition" also used the phrase "Merciless prism of equality"; and on and on, through, Bone, Howarth, Dorries, and probably others I've wiped from my brain.

Should also be said that the Lesbian Tory MP, Margot Jones very good on backing it, and actually saying that the Tories don't want to become like the Republicans in the US.

Now, my point being is we can all slag off the septics for having a mentalist bunch of politicians, but clearly we have too, but we just don't give them the time of day, most of the time.

Is this undemocratic, or is it just sane, or do our whips just have them under better control here. Not really sure in summary.

[silentstriker]

Originally Posted by grecian

I really hated Newsroom that American Sorkin thing, mainly because it had some brilliantly innovative ideas for a way of talking about the odd state of news in America, but then threw it all away with trite and boring soapy plots.

The best point they made was about Palin. The anchor didn't want to run with her paticular nutty view of a news story (take your pick) because she wasn't a credible expert on it, or indeed anything. It made me think, why has this woman become so influential, and well-known. The extreme right do love her, but the left (for wont of a better word) love her more whilst really despite being just another senator she should be ignored, for a total lack of heft on any subject.

She has never been a senator. She's never held national office at all.

Originally Posted by grecian

I bring this up, because at the moment the UK are having a Gay Marriage debate, and TBH some of the views would make the Tea Party seem saneish. Roger Gale liking it to incest: Edward Leigh saying we shouldn't "let Equality get in the way of Tradition" also used the phrase "Merciless prism of equality"; and on and on, through, Bone, Howarth, Dorries, and probably others I've wiped from my brain.

That's remarkably tame and civilized compared to the tea party....

[grecian]

Originally Posted by silentstriker

She has never been a senator. She's never held national office at all.



That's remarkably tame and civilized compared to the tea party....

Oh even more perplexing then, that she's giving a national platform. Anyway Fox have finally giving her the boot I hear.

The language may be more civilised, but the sentiment is similar surely.

[silentstriker]

People like her...I think it's simple as that.