Most Leftists come out of universities where, with admin and faculty cheering it on, they’re able to bully conservative students into silence, cancel scheduled speakers with dissenting views, foster an “agree with our position 100% or we’ll call you a bunch of names” culture. Then down the road when they’re in DC they try this same approach, and it does nothing to help their constituents whatsoever unless they’re into the whole virtue signaling circle jerk thing.
The New Lounge
- Thread starter hpnole
- Start date
I'm not saying the Right is good, cause they aren't. But they don't hold a candle to the Left. They are a cunning bunch, evil to the bone. They plant liberals into positions of power, and let that thinking be what most kids hear. Like a pyramid, where it all flows down. What better place to indoctrinate than in education?
It's been said a lot that many parents have sent their kids off to college only to have them come home almost hating them.
I'll bet you $100 to a busted condom that our newest resident @DuckDevil is well educated, and most likely under 30.
Your constant whining regarding criticism of Trump and the Republican Party is a bit sad and pathetic. For six years in this thread, you’ve complained about, made fun of, and never shut up about Biden’s health and his ability to perform his duties as president. You’ve spent years attacking not just Biden, but his family as well, while constantly screaming about supposed corruption that, even if true, pales in comparison to what Trump does on any given Tuesday.
That’s not to mention all the times you’ve attacked and belittled anyone who disagreed with you, or all the times you’ve pushed insane right wing conspiracy theories. Quite frankly, hearing you, of all people, complain about toxic behavior is hilarious. You’ve spent years contributing to it, encouraging it, and participating in it whenever it suited your political side.
Yet, in the last election, you voted for a man who is not only older than Biden was and arguably in worse health, both physically and mentally, but who was also unqualified for the job based on the results of his first term. A convicted felon who sought the job only as a means of staying out of prison and who, unsurprisingly, now appears more concerned with interior design, monument building, attending and hosting sporting events, and looting the country than with actually governing or performing his duties as president.
But now, suddenly, it’s supposed to be off limits to point out any of it.
And now that no one in their right mind can defend what Trump is doing, your argument shifts from defending his every action and being his biggest fanboy to “both sides are bad,” and “if only everything wasn’t so toxic.” And you expect people to take you seriously?
Trump is the current president. Republicans currently control Congress, and the Supreme Court. They are responsible for everything that’s going on: the terrible economy, rising inflation, the cost of living, and all the wars Trump has started, as well as the ones he will start in the near future. They own it, and so do you. You voted for him, after all. It’s not like any of this is out of character for him, surprising, or the least bit unexpected. You knew what he was, and you voted for him anyway. You fell for it. He got you. So own it. We all make mistakes. Don’t clutch your pearls now and pretend otherwise.
This is a midterm year, and this election will be a referendum on Trump whether you like it or not. His and the GOP’s performance, or lack thereof, should be discussed and dissected so people can make an informed decision about whether they support this or want the country to move in a different direction.
Back to this again.
Formal education teaches critical thinking. It's the exact opposite of indoctrination. It's how we protect ourselves from indoctrination. That's why conservatives attack it. They want a dumb, uneducated populace that is easy to manipulate. You don't trust school because educated, empowered people take away your own control.
What better place to indoctrinate? How about church? Organized religion. Just stop thinking for yourself and "give it all to God." Or else you'll be shunned.
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Says the education lifer.Back to this again.
Formal education teaches critical thinking. It's the exact opposite of indoctrination. It's how we protect ourselves from indoctrination. That's why conservatives attack it. They want a dumb, uneducated populace that is easy to manipulate. You don't trust school because educated, empowered people take away your own control.
What better place to indoctrinate? How about church? Organized religion. Just stop thinking for yourself and "give it all to God." Or else you'll be shunned.
Pure laughable. Reading definitely isn’t your friend. If so, you’d have seen that we have been critical of Trump some. Which any is more than you guys showed from 21-25. Oh wait, you weren’t around those years. Maybe you were in college, or the basement.
You also haven’t said anything about my point on how old you are. It’s because I’ve pegged you isn’t it?
You are nothing, and I mean nothing, but a puppet to the left wing media. You have no thoughts on your own. They’re merely what you want to see.
Every time I strike a nerve, you immediately retreat to your safe space of identity politics. You don’t have the ability to win arguments through debate, so you default to the tried and true: attacks regarding age, gender, religion, or whatever else makes you feel superior that day.
You’ve shown once again that you’re not capable of discussion because you generally don’t have a clue what you’re talking about beyond the talking points you’ve picked up from Fox News or whatever right wing outlet you tune in to. So instead, like always, you default to identity politics because it’s the only thing you truly grasp.
As I’ve said before, you know nothing about me, and you never will. You’ll have to find a different line of attack. Also, my comment wasn’t directed at anyone other than you, so I don’t know why you’re saying “we” in your post. Every other regular poster in here is at least capable of discussion and debate, with the exception of you.
And that’s pretty sad for a 53 year old. Some might even call that “toxic” behavior. You’re going to have to step up your game, Mac.
Your whole post is rich, but this part is dripping. I used to watch a lot of Fox News. Key word is used to. Also because of AI, who knows what’s real or not anymore.
You hear others, but don’t listen. You’ve been conditioned to be that way though, and your childish posts, memes… are evident of that.
The conservatives here not being in love with Trump are not enough. Though small, we have taken issue with him. You guys? Not a chance. You and your alter ego Datt have no desire to find middle ground.
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“Formal education teaches critical thinking skills”. Ideally, yes. In reality, most employers and college students themselves are not so sure.Back to this again.
Formal education teaches critical thinking. It's the exact opposite of indoctrination. It's how we protect ourselves from indoctrination. That's why conservatives attack it. They want a dumb, uneducated populace that is easy to manipulate. You don't trust school because educated, empowered people take away your own control.
What better place to indoctrinate? How about church? Organized religion. Just stop thinking for yourself and "give it all to God." Or else you'll be shunned.
From the research I’ve come across, most professors can’t even adequately define ‘critical thinking skills’, let alone explain how it’s being taught in their classrooms. Reading textbook passages and studying lecture notes for periodic tests does little to develop critical thinking skills. The material is filtered through the ideological prism of the author and the lecturer, nothing more nothing less. The professor has already sifted through the material, separating what he/she has determined to be the wheat from the chaff substantively and also selecting that text that fits neatly into his/ her political/ philosophical framework.
None of this develops a student’s ability to develop a coherent argument or to think critically with the ability to recognize his or her own cognitive biases.
The State of Critical Thinking Today
Why Students Graduate Without Learning to Think
Critical thinking, or the lack thereof among the American populace, lies at the heart of today’s greatest challenges. UT Austin’s Plan II Honors program offers a proven blueprint for cultivat…
thetexasorator.com
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What I do know is you're most likely educated. Easy to tell, by the way you post here. Don't confuse that with intelligence though. Your age (pride) stunts that at this point in your life. Do you take your computer to Starbucks?
I used to be a lot like you are, with the exception of course being I lean right, whereas you're falling to the left. I do think generally the right has better ideas, but they've been bought, so they aren't much better (if any) than the left. You still think the left are the champions of the people, and the right of the wealthy, greedy, white men. The only way you'll change is if your puppet masters (media) start condemning their side too.
But to be safe, I'm not going to hold my breath.
Yes, says the education lifer. Why is it easier for you to believe such vile things about educators than to accept that like anyone who stays in any profession for a long time, there's genuine passion for it?
You also didn't address a single thing I said. You just dismissed it completely based on who I am.
What do you know about "most"?“Formal education teaches critical thinking skills”. Ideally, yes. In reality, most employers and college students themselves are not so sure.
From the research I’ve come across, most professors can’t even adequately define ‘critical thinking skills’, let alone explain how it’s being taught in their classrooms. Reading textbook passages and studying lecture notes for periodic tests does little to develop critical thinking skills. The material is filtered through the ideological prism of the author and the lecturer, nothing more nothing less. The professor has already sifted through the material, separating what he/she has determined to be the wheat from the chaff substantively and also selecting that text that fits neatly into his/ her political/ philosophical framework.
None of this develops a student’s ability to develop a coherent argument or to think critically with the ability to recognize his or her own cognitive biases.
The State of Critical Thinking Today
www.criticalthinking.org
Why Students Graduate Without Learning to Think
Critical thinking, or the lack thereof among the American populace, lies at the heart of today’s greatest challenges. UT Austin’s Plan II Honors program offers a proven blueprint for cultivat…
Nothing more, nothing less than your simple summary.
You should probably read the links before you embarass yourself furtherWhat do you know about "most"?
Nothing more, nothing less than your simple summary.
Liberals are in quite the predicament these days, especially on college campuses. They know it’s not normal or intellectually rewarding to have so little diversity of thought on campus, but yet they’re so easily triggered by anyone who disagrees with them, that it’s quite the conundrum.
This is why so many Americans across the political spectrum have such a dim view of higher education. Or at least one of the reasons. More and more elite students are migrating southward for college to get away from this bull ****.
www.fire.org
Survey shows majority of college students feel ‘intimidated’ to share opinion, unlikely to disagree with professor
Buckley Program releases eighth annual college student survey showing students are more likely than ever to self-censor
Education isn’t the problem. It’s your views. An example is we’ve made a few negative comments about President Trump. Show where you've ever been critical at all on your Party. You can't, because you aren't critical of them. It's all Orange Man bad, Trump is the worst President ever... after what we had to live through from 2020 through 25?
This is why it's almost impossible for you (and your little brother duckey devil) to be taken seriously, and why I dismiss almost all of what you say.
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“All but three of the 27 individual investors interviewed for this article said they knew of Donald Trump’s history of bankruptcies, unpaid contractors and failed ventures. Still, most said they believed that his position at the apex of American political power and what they perceived as his business acumen ensured lucrative returns on their investments. Many acknowledged doing little or no due diligence. Some said they still hold on to the hope that Trump will make things right. Others expressed regret, anger and embarrassment.”
It’s shameful, but is there any legal recourse available based on what we know right now?
I don’t think they have any recourse but I haven’t gone to the website and read everything, but this is another section of the article that makes me think these people are screwed:
“World Liberty disclosed in fine print at the bottom of its website and elsewhere that the Trump family would receive the lion’s share of revenue from token sales. In marketing materials, it included disclaimers that its token was not an investment and that buyers should not expect to make a profit. The website for the $TRUMP meme coin contains similar warnings.
More broadly, U.S. financial regulators for years warned investors large and small that crypto was highly volatile and rife with scams. While such alerts have dissipated since Trump returned to the White House, financial authorities in many other countries have continued with that message.”
While I like to have fun and make fun of Trump supporters on here, these are real people who have lost a substantial amount of money that has either wiped out their retirement savings or, at the very least, seriously set it back. It’s impossible not to feel bad for these people.
“When a stock has presidential backing in a way – at least from his sons – you would think it would go up,”
This shows why the President and his family should not be allowed to operate this way. It creates an illusion that this is a legitimate investment when really all of these meme coins are simple pump-and-dump schemes.
Also, even as the values of these tokens continue to fall, World Liberty has restricted their ability to sell, essentially locking them in.
“Then in April this year, World Liberty put forward a proposal, later approved by the largest holders of World Liberty tokens, that would prevent holders from fully unlocking their tokens until 2030, after Donald Trump is scheduled to leave office. World Liberty said the move would ensure long-term participation in the venture and a healthy market supply of tokens.”
“The locking of the tokens….“is a complete sham” meant to extract as much money from investors as possible before Trump leaves office. He said that World Liberty has not responded to a notice of dispute and formal complaints he has filed with the company about the token lockup and that he is exploring legal options. “The community is being ghosted regarding this issue,”
In a normal presidency, this would be all the news talked about. The ironic thing here is that it wasn’t a bunch of liberals buying $TRUMP coins. It was his most ardent supporters. You’ve literally scammed the people who believed in you the most here. How could you sleep at night after that?
As bad as this is, I think it will pale in comparison to what Trump and his family will start doing after the midterms when they never have to worry about elections again. They’re going to suck out every single dollar they can before he leaves office, and so far, no one seems willing to stop them.
It’s a sad commentary on our media and our society that if you do enough corrupt sh- that it creates kind of a dizzying effect where media outlets don’t even know which corruption angle to focus on and the general public just shrugs its shoulders and says, “ they’re all corrupt. Who cares?” I know you Dems get tired of us bringing Biden into this, but if Trump followed a Bush or Obama I do sense that this Trump level of corruption would feel like a more jarring departure from ethical norms
Joaquim Boumtje-Boumtje: Why Duke Landed One of Europe’s Most Intriguing Prospects
https://basketballsphere.com/en/joaquim-boumtje-boumtje-duke-scouting-report/Congrats Graham Platner for winning the Senate nomination in Maine. Cool tattoo. For those of you in the back of the class he doesnt just have any ol Nazi tattoo like a swastika for example.
He has a totenkampf, a symbol of the concentration camp guards, you know the ones who transported the Jews, gypsies, gays, other undesirables to the gas chamber. For the hundreds of thousands who starved to death, I assume these guards were responsible for ensuring the “prisoners” didn’t get their hands on illegal contraband, or as we like to call it ‘food’.
So this guy clearly did his homework on who the coolest Nazis were. And yet here we are, a trust fund baby cosplaying as an oyster farmer, winning the endorsement of Bernie, RonKhanna, and the like after proudly wearing this tattoo for twenty years before deciding he didn’t like it only after it was politically inconvenient. But I guess it didn’t really matter after all. He thought it would be a political liability, only it wasn’t. No one in Maine cared. Posters on message boards make light of antisemitism on a regular basis as if it’s the coolest, edgiest thing when it’s obvious that criticism of Israel laid the permission structure for more overt, more traditional antisemitism to emerge which is what we’re seeing now.
Good luck Maine.
He has a totenkampf, a symbol of the concentration camp guards, you know the ones who transported the Jews, gypsies, gays, other undesirables to the gas chamber. For the hundreds of thousands who starved to death, I assume these guards were responsible for ensuring the “prisoners” didn’t get their hands on illegal contraband, or as we like to call it ‘food’.
So this guy clearly did his homework on who the coolest Nazis were. And yet here we are, a trust fund baby cosplaying as an oyster farmer, winning the endorsement of Bernie, RonKhanna, and the like after proudly wearing this tattoo for twenty years before deciding he didn’t like it only after it was politically inconvenient. But I guess it didn’t really matter after all. He thought it would be a political liability, only it wasn’t. No one in Maine cared. Posters on message boards make light of antisemitism on a regular basis as if it’s the coolest, edgiest thing when it’s obvious that criticism of Israel laid the permission structure for more overt, more traditional antisemitism to emerge which is what we’re seeing now.
Good luck Maine.
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I have followed the rise of Platner for a while now. He says a lot of things that I agree with. I also believe that he has the best chance to finally take out Susan Collins. Janet Mills was DOA.
However, I have several issues with him, including his story regarding the tattoo. I can believe that a drunk group of Marines got questionable tattoos while on leave in Croatia. I find it very hard to believe that, in the years that followed, you never had a clue that it was a Nazi symbol. How did your extended family, who are Jewish, never say anything to you about it? How did you pass multiple security clearances after you got it? Was the tattoo so poorly done that people couldn’t actually tell what it was? This is not an obscure Nazi symbol after all . It’s the second most recognizable one behind only the swastika itself.
I can believe that a Marine who served four combat tours could come home pretty messed up mentally and venture into some pretty dark places. I also believe that people can rise above that and overcome their demons.
If we give Platner the benefit of the doubt, at best, he has displayed incredibly poor judgment regarding the tattoo, especially for someone who has described himself as a history buff in the past. Poor judgment is not a trait I generally like in politicians.
Ten years ago, Platner would have never come close to sniffing the nomination with the baggage he carries. The same can be said for Ken Paxton in Texas, who was indicted on securities fraud charges, impeached over allegations of bribery and abuse of office, and investigated by federal authorities for corruption. But he was nominated by Trump a month ago and cruised to victory in the primary over Cornyn.
Like it or not, this is the Trump effect. The 2016 election proved that the normal rules of decency no longer apply in our political system. Candidates aren’t vetted like they used to be because people will vote straight party regardless. If you have enough money and charisma, it doesn’t matter what you’ve done or what you’ll do in the future. And that’s a really sad place for our country to be.
I am extremely torn on Graham Platner. He says all of the right things, and he actually talks like a real human being, which is extremely rare in politics today. But the demons in his closet should, at the very least, make people ask questions. In this case, I’m glad that I don’t live in Maine and have to make that decision.
Fair enough. The old rules no longer apply. As you alluded to, it sets a dangerous precedent. Is anything disqualifying anymore? It’s sad that we can’t find decent people to run for office. Does Maine not have anyone who can run on the same platform as Platner without the baggage, not just the tattoo but the despicable posts about veterans or the abhorrent treatment of women he dated?
You’re right, though. The fact that Trump was able to get elected a second time has normalized all manner of previously unacceptable behavior.
Meanwhile our dear friends in Europe seem to be rethinking their immigration policies after one stabbing too many:
apnews.com
UK leaders call for calm as protests break out after Belfast street stabbing
U.K. leaders have called for calm after the arrest of a Sudanese man accused of a stabbing in Belfast sparked anti-immigration protests.
apnews.com
I would hope that some things are disqualifying, but I have yet to see where that line is in our current political discourse. I do have hope that we’ll correct it as a nation, though. And that hope that things will get better is all we can hold onto currently.
I try to remind myself constantly that, as a nation that is soon to be 250 years old, we’ve gone through many similar cycles in the past. General unrest, political violence, insane wealth inequality, etc., are not new topics in the American discourse. Periods like the one we’re in now have always led to substantial reform in the past.
The wealth inequality and corruption of the Gilded Age was immediately followed by the political reforms of the Progressive Era initiated by Theodore Roosevelt. The corruption of that period was combated and exposed by early investigative journalists like Lincoln Steffens, who wrote The Shame of the Cities, which focused on the political corruption of the time, and Ida Tarbell’s The History of the Standard Oil Company, which brought the fight to big business and the monopolies it had created. I bring up these two specifically because they targeted many of the same issues we’re dealing with today. And this is just one set of examples of how bad cycles were corrected in subsequent ones. When things get bad enough, people unite and force change, and that will happen again.
I think the question always comes down to this: Do you believe in the promise of America? Do you believe in the American dream? And if a person really does believe in this country and what it has always stood for, then they have to be willing to stand up and fight for what is right. We are all on the same team regardless of political views and we all have a vested interest in making this country better.
I personally believe that we will weather this and come out better on the other side, but I have no illusions that it will be a quick process. I think it’s going to take a lot more pain before people wake up to what’s going on around them.
I think historians will look back on this decade and see that a key turning point politically (shift towards socialism/ larger government) were two key factors: more and more young people, 40 and under, will never be able to buy their own home despite doing all the “right things”, and the skyrocketing costs of health care.
To the first point I was visiting a relative in soCal a while back and the most pedestrian homes were listed at 3-4 million. Some of them a generation ago would be labeled starter homes.
To the second point, I was at the cardiologist’s the other day and I asked if many of their patients were now uninsured due to the Rep allowing Covid subsidies to expire. She said about 20% are now uninsured but went on to tell me that her hubby and two kids are on ACA. High wage earners saw the most dramatic increase in premiums this year and their mo premiums went from around 1200 to 3500/ mo. This is insanity They’re torn on whether to continue coverage. Housing and health care: the status quo is unsustainable
This is the scary part no one likes talking about. History repeats itself, right? If so, the saying "Hard times create tough men, tough men create good times, good times create weak men" would mean that things will have to get hard again before things improve. Take technology for example. We have all become so reliant on it, that if something were to happen to our cell phone towers, we are all basically screwed. If I want to drive anywhere in the country, all I have to do is open up my Waze app, and it will take me to that exact spot, and the time it will be when I get there. Same with looking up information.
We have allowed "them" to gradually dumb us down.
None of us want the system to crash, but things will have to somehow get harder before they get better, and whoever is in the President at the time will most likely get the blame.
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True. We’ve confused access to information at our fingertips with actually knowing stuff. There’s a growing trend where people swear off their mobile devices for a week, and they all report improved moods and better sleep after just a couple of days. We’re like the frog in boiling water where the temperature has increased slowly over time. By the time you realize you’re cooked, it’s too late
Re: healthcare I’d be happy paying say 5% more taxes for universal health care or at the very least the funding of subsidies to make ACA more feasible. An estimated 5m stopped paying their premiums at the beg of this year which will likely make coverage even more expensive for those still in the pool. And the ones dropping out are more likely to be young and healthy.
The concern is whatever it costs now will be dwarfed by what it will cost ten years from now and before you know it we’re at Europe level tax rates, which suppresses economic growth imho.
To clarify, the person referenced re: ACA premiums was the NP. I haven’t actually seen the cardiologist in years. Well, that’s not entirely true. He walked past me in the waiting room, I said hello, but I’m pretty sure he had no idea who I was.
Gen Z is the first generation in American history that will experience a lower quality of life than that of their parents. Is it really surprising that they’ve adopted such a nihilistic attitude toward life?
Take the housing crisis. At its core, it’s a simple supply and demand issue. The recession of 2008 shut down housing construction in this country, and we did not reach pre-recession levels of construction again until 2023. That created a supply shortage, which caused prices to increase drastically. Now factor in the historically low interest rates of the late 2010s and the COVID period. Anyone who owned a house refinanced at a rate that will likely never be available again in their lifetime. So now, if you need a new house, you’re going to pay a premium for it while also getting hit with a much higher interest rate. What do you do? You stay where you’re at and be thankful that you locked in those historic rates.
This has essentially frozen the housing market in place. Families are not leaving their starter homes because of the financial ramifications. Those homes are not opening up for the next generation of families. Seniors can’t downsize because a smaller condo with a higher interest rate is often going to cost them more than the larger house they currently occupy.
The only solution is to create more supply. But increased supply would lower home prices, which threatens the primary source of wealth for most Americans. That’s why there’s always heavy pushback against building housing, and don’t get me started on NIMBYs and the havoc they create.
And this is only one issue among many but it cascades into a variety of other problems, from the cost of living to homelessness. It exposes a flaw in our system of government where corporations and the wealthy have an outsized influence on policymakers. Our laws and public policy cannot be designed solely to funnel money to the wealthy. Government should be focused on solving the housing crisis, fixing the broken health care system, and ensuring that the next generation has the ability to actually raise a family in this country. You can’t complain about declining birth rates when you’ve made it virtually impossible for young people to afford families.
These are the issues our leaders should be talking about. Instead, we’re fed a constant stream of culture war nonsense designed to divide people and keep them angry at one another. Tackling the housing crisis, fixing health care, addressing the cost of living, and creating opportunities for the next generation requires difficult choices and actual courage. It’s much easier to manufacture outrage over symbolic issues than it is to solve actual problems. That’s why voters on both the left and right are increasingly turning to outsiders. People are reaching a breaking point, and when they feel like the system no longer works for them, they’ll gravitate toward anyone willing to challenge it and promise something different.
That isn't accurate about me whatsoever.
I am not a member of any political party. The Democratic Party is Republican Light. You think they're Leftist. The rest of the world knows they are right of center. I wish they were actually Leftist. I've said all of that before.
I am far more eloquent than "orange man bad." I back up my positions with logic and receipts. I've never said President Trump was the worst President ever. I know that it is bad form to judge something without a historical lens and some hindsight.
You dismiss what I say before even listening. Then you make up things about me to fill the void. The post I'm replying to is a great example, as I've explained in my response.
I suppose you want credit for the acknowledgment you then proceed to shrug off. The rest of the GOP has the power to hold him accountable but they won't.
He did follow Obama. And he was doing similar things throughout his first term. You voted for him 2 more times anyway.
I looked up totenkopf. They look like pretty ordinary skull & crossbones to me. Like the kind someone who wanted a skull tattoo would point at in the book of examples.
Elsewhere, I heard a Jewish person say they didn't recognize it as a Nazi emblem. Platner says he didn't know, either, and I'm pretty sure he has had it removed. He also owned it and apologized.
When has our current President ever apologized for anything? When have you ever called him a trust fund baby cosplaying as a successful businessman?
How have establishment politicians helped the people of Maine?