mdk

The Political Thread

Supply side economics or demand side economics? Discuss. (Because I've been thinking about it, and I can't say for certain which I believe is more valuable/important for the economy.)

@SleepingSilence

Things rarely work out for the best when we try to outsmart the invisible hand.

The Political Thread

Heh. Well.... yeah you got me there, nobody memes Donald Trump.

I'm just here to mine salt from the Infinity War premiere.

FEED ME YOUR TEARS, MORTALS.

The Political Thread

Right, obscure references to vaguely right wing maybe maybe not people aside, is there anything interesting going on elsewhere in the world?

It's kingsday here at the moment which is naturally the best time to discuss whether we should keep or abolish the monarchy here. It's a distinctively Dutch problem since, well, our monarchs have always been... sorta like the average Joe except with a lot more money paid by us, the people. I can see pro's and con's to abolishing and keeping him. Him and his family are the face of the Netherlands after all. On the other hand the only thing he ever seems to be doing is going to the Olympics and cheering on the athletes.

IDK. Having some sort of 'country-idiot' that looks goofy and does stupid shit is kinda funny but I can't help but wonder how much we actually spend on this country-idiot.

@Odin

As an American, I'd kill to have a Head of State separate from our Head of Government. Imagine if we could have Barrack Obama as the image of our country and Donald Trump's dragon-energy running the engine. We'd be unstoppable.....r. Unstoppabler.

The Political Thread

@mdk ethnicities shun their own members for voting a certain way - it's the pillarization all over again. It's very undemocratic in my eyes.

@Odin

Eh, I figure it's not my place to tell anyone how they're SUPPOSED to feel about anyone. The black vote (insofar as there can be said to BE a "black vote") has gone Democrat for a loooooooong time, and the black community in general is much more knit together than the white one at least, probably most others as well. If Kanye's announcement shocks people from that community, that's their prerogative, and I wouldn't ever call it "undemocratic."

That said.... it's not something I admire in another person, either. The whole concept of 'shunning' is ugly no matter where it's coming from. Just possibly, nonstop seething from the media brings this out in people. *shrug*. My point being.... idunno, let's not be dramatic, I guess? It's Kanye.

does put add perspective to his music though

The Political Thread

Land of the free, spreading liberty and democracy everywhere, while it dies in your own country.

@Odin

How so?

The Political Thread

I am pretty damn white, pale white. I have both Native American and African ancestors.

I don't know how far back Warren claims here Native American heritage comes from but it is possible. She refuses to prove it so I doubt it.

@Burning Kitty

I THINK -- based on some geneology books we found and looked at one time -- that I've got Native American heritage technically as well, but I don't exactly claim it for affirmative action. Also it may have been like an aunt/cousin-type situation so I dunno if I've actually got the blood anyway. Also based on location and history there's a good chance it was a rapey situation.

The Political Thread

Apparently Elizabeth Warren is getting attacked by an Indian Women who is now her running rival, over an ad or slogan that she deemed was insensitive?

@POOHEAD189

It's Shiva, in this case a guy. The ad in question is being run by Shiva, and the offensive part (to Warren) is "Only a real Indian can beat the fake Indian." Shiva being really an Indian (as in, born in Mumbai). The 'fake indian' bit regarding Warren comes from how she claimed Cherokee heritage to advance her early career, to which we're all kinda raising an eyebrow like "Uh.... Liz, you're whiter than me."

side by side

Anyway Massachusetts is all "YOU CAN'T SAY THAT, take down the signs," and Shiva's like "Well you're just saying that because she runs the DNC, you partisans," and the ads are pretty not-that-offensive-to-anyone-but-Warren except for the photoshopped headdress she's wearing on the sign, which seems like possibly a step too far (gasp, someone going on the attack in a campaign?! Inconceivable!). The signs should probably come down, but also they've had their effect already so who even cares anymore.

The Political Thread

<Snipped quote by mdk>

I can't really say for sure. You make some good points - CBRN isn't your everyday asset so having access to one of these facilities might already have been a stroke of luck for the Kim's. On the other hand, they're pretty good at security (in it's most brutal form) and much of what you have said is already there - they've produced this crap before so research requirements are... limited? The problem was delivery of the payload, not the payload itself.

@Odin

Well they got nuclear detonation, yes. They never quite got "miniaturized nuke," though, as in "one you could put on an ICBM." So presumably they were working on that crucial development alongside their rocket tests.

The Political Thread

<Snipped quote by mdk>

That's the beauty of NK - don't have to be rich, just have to be in control. When your people are starving you don't need to pay them, you just give them something else, like food or privileges. I'm 100% positive that there are North Koreans crazy enough to go into a mountain that may or may not be leaking radiation to retrieve some assets. Just promise them some food.

@Odin

But for a nuclear program you need, like, engineers, specialized equipment, rare resources, processing facilities, time, etc. I get that the labor is cheap but the nukes aren't -- and even if they are, the equipment needed to research and produce them ain't. Without swathes of top secret intel, who knows, but it's entirely possible their program was EXTREMELY damaged by that one mountain collapse. If you had the resources to set the program up with redundancies and safeties, you would in fact be smart to do so -- but maybe they don't, even with the slavery.

I think you're giving the Kim's too little credit, though. It's a carefully orchestrated and engineered miracle that NK is still standing, almost 60 years after the Korea war (or more?). It's not all up to the Kims ofcourse, since they're advised by people who do know what's up, but to say it's short-sighted and terrible... I don't know. They have survived where other countries in similar situations have fallen. For a longer time than any of them have been around. Short-sighted? I'd say they've been very good at maintaining the status quo from their underdog position for as long as they have.

I meant that as a joke, like, ha ha, kims are short and fat and wear glasses and are evil. BUT YOU'RE RIGHT THOUGH -- Jong Il was a goddamn genius, and Jong Un totally takes after his pappy. Anyway the family's more savvy than their advisers -- DPRK advisers get publicly blown to smithereens for disagreeing with the glorious leader, how much sway could they possibly have? Kims are smart. Nobody plays the wildcard as long, as consistently, and successfully as they have without being well ahead of the game.