The Real timschochet

I seriously believe I would get along with most of the people here if we met. Even dudes like @Brahma Bulls and @seafoam1 who seriously can’t stand what I write. Even guys like @Strike and @Horseman. If they met me we’d get along fine. But CDub might be the exception. Not on my part. But he’d have to get over the whole Jew hatred thing. Not sure he can. @squistion both you and I have been called pedophile here and other stuff nearly as bad. I don’t take it seriously; you shouldn’t either.

This question is itself a tell.

I’m sorry he’s banned. I found his anti-Semitic and bigoted posts to be extremely repellent but also revealing. he strikes me as a sad human being; I hope he gets some help.

It doesn’t affect me personally. I’m not poor. I care about people who are less fortunate than me. It’s called empathy.

If I was truly a narcissist I would be more grateful to you than nearly any other poster in this forum.

The Democrats are essentially leaderless and will be until they nominate a new candidate for President sometime in early 2028. Until then, the two closest we have to leaders is Schumer and Hakim Jeffries. Which is like currently having Jake Browning and Carson Wentz as your quarterbacks. It’s not preferred.

If you’re referring to me I haven’t weighed in. I don’t know the specifics about this gentleman, I don’t know his history or what he’s done wrong with regard to crime. I think you know that, as a general rule, I don’t think ICE should be detaining and deporting anyone who is not a violent criminal, regardless of their legal status. I think it’s morally wrong and hurts our nation to pursue that. Violent criminals are fair game.

I like her for her snappy comments about Trump. She’s got spunk, and unlike Lou Grant, I like spunk. I enjoy listening to her. But she’ll never be the leader of the Democrats and I wouldn’t want that. Her political positions are too leftist for me.

Of course people will point out that South Carolina isn’t a blue state. But I’m told, though I’ve never been there, that Charleston is a diverse, woke paradise in the heart of redness all around it. I very much want to visit.

Blue states are the best places to live. California, Mass, New York- there’s a reason why it’s so expensive to live there.

So @Gepetto that is my argument. You can dismiss it as so many people here do by simply mocking any source as “liberal” or “leftist”, but I think knowledgeable folks realize the CBO is neither. Or you can make Mike Johnson’s argument: that the states that lose the federal money will simply take over the cost of this funding- but there is no evidence that this is the case. Or you can make the @Horseman’s argument: that so long as wealthy people are getting more tax breaks, who the Fock cares what poor people lose? Or you can decide that this was a bad bill and the correct response is to oppose it and oppose those politicians who supported it. Entirely up to you.

Here is the main point from the above summary which backs up my claim that the “Big Ugly Bill is going to hurt a lot of folks on the poorer side who will no longer have access to health benefits”: “The bill cuts over 1 trillion from health programs- the largest rollback of federal support in American history. These cuts will result in an estimated 10 million people losing their health insurance coverage.” The source for this claim is the Congressional Budget Office: https://www.cbo.gov/publication/61569

Sure. Here’s a summary: https://medicareadvocacy.org/impact-of-the-big-bill-on-medicare/ Now, some people here will no doubt point out that this was written by an advocacy group opposed to the Bill and opposed to Trump. And that’s fair. But the summary makes several points based on what appear to be the facts. So if you disagree with it, then you need to explain where and how the writers get things wrong.

I listened to Chuck Schumer on Meet the Press this morning. He is so weak, so awful, so unconvincing. I get the argument being made by @Fnord and others. I really do. This shutdown is the only way for Democrats to defy Trump for at least another year. I get the desire to “let it all burn down”. Except that won’t happen. Because with Schumer the Democrats just don’t have the leadership to carry this fight through to the end. What will happen instead is that shutdown will start, Trump will start firing people, and Schumer will cave after a few weeks. It’s entirely predictable. Conservatives will cheer Trump, independents will blame the Democrats, and the Democratic base will be infuriated and start primarying anyone who goes along with Schumer which will jeopardize next years elections. It’s entirely predictable.

I made an interesting argument 10 years ago when this film had its 30th anniversary; it was more pertinent then because of the plot of the movie, but it’s still relevant now: I think the cultural changes to our society between 1955 and 1985 (featured in the movie) are much more significant than the cultural changes since the movie was made. In terms of technology it’s the opposite: the technological advancements between 1955 and 1985 are not nearly as significant as the technological advancements since the film was made (and this despite the fact that the first sequel to the movie offers a glimpse of a future predicted for 2015 that was far in advance of what we actually achieved by then.) Just my opinion but I always thought this an interesting topic.