General Political Thread

[Atticus]

Weiner

[KevinG]

 

These latest exchanges took place long after he resigned, so now it seems obvious that he's a serial creep and all of his apologies to his constituents and his wife were nothing but hot air.

 

It is so funny how so many people are obsessed with politician's private lives. 

 

There has been many politicians who have comeback form a sex scandal.  I don't see how Anthony Weiner is any different then the others I have mentioned.    

 

Also as a note, I am not sure why I should trust such a website like "The Dirty," nor do I know why Salon.com would be trusting it as well.  

[lost highway]

this is a bit, right?

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/30/world/the-reach-of-war-abu-ghraib-scant-evidence-cited-in-long-detention-of-iraqis.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

 

I don't really know what to say in the face of willful ignorance.  It's weird how the libertarian streak in some people dies down the second the military stomps around somewhere.  Somewhere somebody forgot about a decade of foreign policy blunders.

[rareair]

Here is an article on Weiner's legislative record.  

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/13/nyregion/weiners-record-in-house-intensity-publicity-and-limited-results.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

 

Not great, but enough to run on for the mayorship or any other office.  

 

But regardless of his accomplishments his personal life should not preclude him from office.  If you give Mark Sandford a pass, Elliott Spitzer a pass, Bill Clinton a pass then you have to allow Weiner the same pass.  I am not saying you should vote for him nor am I advocating for his campaign.  There just needs to be some consistency.  That is what I was trying to point out to LouieB.      

 

Also what the San Degio mayor did was likely illegal, what Weiner did was just dumb.   

 

i get your point but the san diego mayor was also probably just creepy before he was illegally creepy.

[ih8music]

i get your point but the san diego mayor was also probably just creepy before he was illegally creepy.

 

According to him he's just a "hugger" and this is all a big misunderstanding.  

[Atticus]

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/30/world/the-reach-of-war-abu-ghraib-scant-evidence-cited-in-long-detention-of-iraqis.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

 

I don't really know what to say in the face of willful ignorance. It's weird how the libertarian streak in some people dies down the second the military stomps around somewhere. Somewhere somebody forgot about a decade of foreign policy blunders.

So you're citing a 2004 article about a 2003 report that vaguely states there might be issues at detention facilities in order to basically call someone childish for using the convenient term "bad guys" to describe escaped detainees? Have I got that right?

[Hixter]

There has been many politicians who have comeback form a sex scandal.  I don't see how Anthony Weiner is any different then the others I have mentioned.    

This is a second sex scandal that came after he resigned for being caught doing the exact same thing in the past.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/30/world/the-reach-of-war-abu-ghraib-scant-evidence-cited-in-long-detention-of-iraqis.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

 

I don't really know what to say in the face of willful ignorance.  It's weird how the libertarian streak in some people dies down the second the military stomps around somewhere.  Somewhere somebody forgot about a decade of foreign policy blunders.

This has nothing to do with the Abu Ghraib prison of today. The United States emptied Abu Ghraib in 2006 and handed control of the prison to Iraq. The Iraqis reopened it in 2009 and filled it with thousands of Al Qaeda "bad guys" who have continued bombing and torturing their countrymen long after the United States withdrew its troops in 2011.

[lost highway]

This has nothing to do with the Abu Ghraib prison of today. The United States emptied Abu Ghraib in 2006 and handed control of the prison to Iraq.

 

And thereby raised its legitimacy, upgrading it from a U.S. prison to an Iraqi prison?

[Hixter]

And thereby raised its legitimacy, upgrading it from a U.S. prison to an Iraqi prison?

If you won't admit that it's possible for Iraq to have rounded up thousands of Al Qaeda "bad guys" after many years of terrorist attacks (more than 250 dead in the last week and a half) -- despite confirmation from Al Qaeda itself that they staged the raid to free their brothers in arms -- then you might want to refrain from charging other posters with "willful ignorance."

[lost highway]

So were the prisoners killed in the break "good guys", "bad guys", or just "guys"?  If Al-Qaida says that it freed 500 holy warriors does that make it a fact?

 

That prison site was full of injustice under Sadaam, and under Bush,  you'll have to forgive me if it seems dubious under Nouri al-Maliki.

 

You'll notice I didn't claim that the place was full of angels either, but the point I'm trying to make is that it's a hell of a lot easier to be so flippant about exactly who's in prison over there with the convenience of an American distance.

[Hixter]

If Al-Qaida says that it freed 500 holy warriors does that make it a fact?

 

There were conflicting accounts by Al Qaeda and Iraqi security officials on the number of escapees and casualties. But there appeared to be little dispute that hundreds of Qaeda militants, some of whom had been captured by the Americans during the war, were now on the loose, an outcome that sent new waves of fear through Baghdad and beyond.

 

“This attack is unlike any other attack when they target a coffee shop or a public market,” said Hamid Fadhil, a political science professor at Baghdad University. “They are targeting the most secured place with big numbers of security forces.”

 

Al Qaeda said 500 prisoners had escaped, all of them mujahedeen, or holy warriors. Iraqi officials said 800 prisoners had fled from Abu Ghraib alone but 400 had been recaptured or killed, implying that at least 400 were at large. Mr. Maliki’s committee said no prisoners had escaped from Taji and an unspecified number had been killed there.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/24/world/middleeast/al-qaeda-asserts-responsibility-for-iraqi-prison-breaks.html?_r=0

[lost highway]

That's not hard for me to acknowledge since my point was that you can't generalize a prison population.

 

And weirdly from: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/07/20137221126181914.html

 

We hear there are only 260 at large, and that some guards helped them escape.  Other guards were killed.

 

Yep, cut and dry....

[Hixter]

That's not hard for me to acknowledge since my point was that you can't generalize a prison population.

I feel quite confident describing a prison full of Al Qaeda terrorists as being filled with bad guys, even if the term is rather innocuous and even if there are a couple of jaywalkers locked up among the AQ folks.

 

We hear there are only 260 at large, and that some guards helped them escape.  Other guards were killed.

Yep, cut and dry....

Some bad guys attacked a prison to free some bad guys, some good guys and some bad guys were killed during the raid and now some good guys are rounding up the bad guys. 

[uncool2pillow]

They were most likely bad guys that were taking part in the Insurgency in Iraq. I'd imagine Iraqis have more to worry about than we do. Still, it's a bad thing.

I can't believe we've dedicated a page and a half to this statement.

[KevinG]

I can't believe we've dedicated a page and a half to this statement.

 

Can we return to talking about Weiner's weiner?

[Guest Jules]

wiener

[rareair]

wiener

 

I am told yesterday was also national hot dog day.

[lost highway]

I read an article yesterday from an economist stating that after the recent depression you have a pretty great laboratory in which to study various countries reactions and recoveries.  Apparently the data from this supports the theory that austerity measures don't work.

[LouieB]

I read an article yesterday from an economist stating that after the recent depression you have a pretty great laboratory in which to study various countries reactions and recoveries.  Apparently the data from this supports the theory that austerity measures don't work.

I suppose it depends on your economic point of view. IF you are a right wing economist austerity works, if you are left wing it doesn't. 

 

LouieB

[lost highway]

I suppose it depends on your economic point of view. IF you are a right wing economist austerity works, if you are left wing it doesn't. 

 

LouieB

 

There is a pretty clear partisan line, but you have to look at it upside down and sideways to claim that it has worked for Ireland, Italy, the UK, or France.

 

Then there's Iceland.  They turned things around remarkably fast by ponying up some cash and helping people who were struggling.  Their first investment was not in giant banks.  They dropped their deficit as GDP from13.5 in 2009 to a surplus of 1.5 percent this year.  All the aforementioned countries who have put belt-tightening in place have higher deficit as GDP than they did in 2010.

[lost highway]

** In other news, Elizabeth Warren is fighting to keep the government from raising interest on student loans:

 

http://elizabethwarren.com/blog/the-whole-system-stinks

 

It seems odd and disconcerting to have the government profiting like a bank off of usury.

[LouieB]

There is a pretty clear partisan line, but you have to look at it upside down and sideways to claim that it has worked for Ireland, Italy, the UK, or France.

 

Then there's Iceland.  They turned things around remarkably fast by ponying up some cash and helping people who were struggling.  Their first investment was not in giant banks.  They dropped their deficit as GDP from13.5 in 2009 to a surplus of 1.5 percent this year.  All the aforementioned countries who have put belt-tightening in place have higher deficit as GDP than they did in 2010.

You won't get any argument from me on this, but then clearly I am left leaning and think stimulus is a good idea.  But economics is a weird thing and you can prove just about anything you want if you put the right spin on it.

 

LouieB

[KevinG]

I read an article yesterday from an economist stating that after the recent depression you have a pretty great laboratory in which to study various countries reactions and recoveries.  Apparently the data from this supports the theory that austerity measures don't work.

 

I have being saying the same thing.

 

right now PBO is given a major speech on his plan for economic recovery.

[LouieB]

I have being saying the same thing.

 

right now PBO is given a major speech on his plan for economic recovery.

Yes, in beautiful and terribly depressed Galesburg, IL.  Hometown of Carl Sandburg.

 

LouieB

[IRememberDBoon]

Hixter thinks Glen Beck is a smarter economist than Elizabeth Warren