The Real timschochet

Bump for @Patented Phil. Since you referred to my post as despicable I think you can explain what exactly I got wrong.

Really? What exactly did I get factually wrong? And did Trump lie?

Why do you believe lies? Sam Francisco has never decriminalized shoplifting. What they did is make shoplifting under $950 a misdemeanor rather than a felony. That’s basically for processing, a way to move the courts along and save the taxpayer money. It’s not like someone who shoplifts that amount is going to prison anyhow so why should it be a felony subject to the three strikes law, forcing trials, etc. The whole thing makes sense and Trump over again simply lied about it. You were suckered. Again. https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2024/aug/19/donald-trump/donald-trump-misleads-about-a-2014-california-crim/ ETA he also lied about Kamala’s role which was minimal in this case.

Most of them are low information folks not really paying attention. My guess is that in the end they don’t vote at all.

I would never vote for a crackpot conspiracy guy. Not from either party. Not a chance, never.

Latest national poll: Harris by 7 (and its prior to her speech). https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4846433-harris-leading-trump-by-7-points-poll/amp/ There’s a number hidden in this poll that cracks me up: among voters that identify as “MAGA” (perhaps around 20 million people in this country, possibly more), they prefer Trump to Harris 95% to 5%. Which makes sense, obviously. Except: who are the million MAGA folks who are planning to vote for Kamala Harris???

I think she will.

Why can’t we help immigrants and pump money into those schools? Both are good ideas. Why does it have to be either or?

Did you actually read these differences and absorb them? Truly? And do you think they’re going to make any difference to the consumer who goes to a store and discovers, thanks to Donald Trump, a 20% markup on half the goods he purchases? “Don’t worry about it Mrs Suburban Mom, @Patented Phil says it’s not a tax!”

For the record I am neither gloating nor predicting victory, much less a landslide. I THINK Kamala has the edge. I THINK she is more likely to win than lose at this point. But it’s still too close to call.

PT Barnum told us that people like you are born every minute….

Not any good kind of Econ: https://www.trade.gov/import-tariffs-fees-overview-and-resources#:~:text=A tariff or duty (the,different products by different countries. A tariff is a tax. Not technically otherwise. It’s a tax period.

They are absolutely a tax. And you still don’t get that Trump is going to take them to catastrophic levels. He’s going to crash the plane.

You’re absolutely right. She’s skeptical of free trade, she will continue Biden’s policies. Too bad. I would prefer a free trader. There isn’t one. But Kamala won’t put a 20% tariff on all imports and 60-% on China. Trump will. That makes Kamala far preferable- in fact it isn’t close.

By the way @Patented Phil only yesterday your guy Trump called Kamala a liar for suggesting that tariffs are a tax on the a American consumer- he stated his belief that tariffs are paid by other countries and make us richer and lowers inflation. Now I don’t think he is lying about this. I think he truly believes this nonsense. I think his economic knowledge is just about zero and without the guardrails he had last time he will do for our economy what he did for his various businesses over the years: namely drive us into bankruptcy. Those new tariffs will be catastrophic and you as a capitalist should know that.

Yes. And the problem is that both of those ideas are nowhere near the anathema to free market capitalism that tariffs are or controls on free migration. Compared to these two ideas which have taken over the Republican Party, what you’re talking about is minor.

Regarding my concerns in 2016: there was a poster at the other forum named SaintsInDome2006- a really smart guy who I miss talking to. We had several conversations about Hillary and Trump in the thread @Dizkneelande posted from, and whenever I would express my fears that Trump might win, Saints would tell me “Tim stop worrying about it there is NO chance Trump wins.” This same conversation occurs several times in that thread, if anyone wants to bother to look them up (I do not.) At other times, like the ones posted, I was more confident. But that only proves I am often mercurial; it doesn’t demonstrate any dishonesty, then or now.

Also capital gains tax- another bad idea- has been a Democratic priority for decades. It’s hardly socialist. It’s just not too smart (IMO). Major reason I voted for Mitt Romney in 2012.

I don’t see it that way. She’s not a leftist at all. And no I’m not being dishonest.

I can only repeat: I thought Hillary had about a 75% chance of winning and argued that. I predicted she would win certain states that she didn’t. I was not “Uber” confident, whatever that means. I was pretty nervous about it and posted that along with the other posts that were dredged up.

Not exactly. She wants penalties for companies who abuse pricing, that’s not quite the same as imposing top down price controls. But even if she did want price controls so did Nixon. It’s a dumb policy IMO but it’s hardly extremist and it doesn’t lead to socialism.

This is wrong in two major ways. First off Kamala Harris does not belong in the same category as Bernie or Elizabeth Warren. She is far more centrist than they are. Bernie is a leftist, Warren leans leftist, Harris is progressive but centrist. Conflating them all together is simply false. Second and even more important: Democratic socialists like Bernie Sanders do not belong in the same conversation as Chavez, Maduro, or Castro. For all of Bernie’s socialism he believes in democracy, the American system and our Constitution. He does not seek dictatorship. The three guys who mentioned are savage murdering dictators who seek their utopia through the suppression of freedom and the elimination of democratic government.

But I don’t lie. I didn’t lie in this case and I don’t lie at all. Sometimes I get things wrong and sometimes I don’t remember everything I wrote in the past (I post a lot) but I never deliberately try to mislead. That’s the honest truth. You have accused me in the past of making things up and I never do that. I don’t struggle at all to be honest.

Why? There’s no contradiction. I thought Hillary would win but I was unsure and nervous about it. I think Kamala will win but I’m unsure, though less nervous this time around. Why does any of this deserve ridicule? And why shouldn’t we try to have a rational discussion about it?

There is a big difference between us. First, if Trump wins you can gloat if you wish. I will congratulate you, wish you well, wish HIM well (he will be my President again after all) and hope for the best. If Kamala wins I will NOT gloat because this isn’t a game for me. I will be glad, obviously. But I will still wish you well and hope that we can find a way to settle our differences. As Americans we have much more in common than we do not.