2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

[Duchess]

Since you're familiar with the background could you please explain how it prevented the Biden admin from executing an orderly withdrawal?

It's my understanding there wasn't enough military left on the ground to facilitate  an orderly withdrawal. trump removed all the military except for about 2500 and Biden wasn't going to commit any more of our people. Biden followed through with the plan that had been set in motion months before by the trump administration. Keep in mind, the trump administration would only deal with the Taliban and went so far as to invite them to Camp David on or about the anniversary of 9/11. That administration didn't make these arrangements with the Afghan government, they dealt directly with the Taliban. 

That's about all I can recall without going back and reading to refresh my memory.

[Duchess]

These questions have been suggested for the debate tomorrow night.

[username]

He’s setting it up just like he did in 2020 (if I lose, it will be a RIGGED election). This is why the description of him as a “real and present threat to democracy” isn’t just hyperbole. He is. Fucking loon.

That presumes that genocide is compatible with democracy, and that our gov't is acting in accordance with the will of the people.

What does Trump forecasting a rigged election if he loses have to do with genocide? 

U already said u wouldn’t support either candidate because u don’t trust that they’ll stop the genocide of the Palestinians. I understand that although between Harris and Trump I think Harris is more likely to take a stronger stance against Israel. Trump already has a history of supporting Israel and is courting Jewish voters with the inference that Harris is somehow antisemitic (his words “I don’t know how any Jew could vote for her?”). 

What form of government is NOT “compatible” with genocide? Authoritarian? Nope. Socialist? Mmmm, warmer but still not a hard no there. Don’t really get ur point.

You imply we are a democratic society to which Trump is a threat. I don't see a person like Trump being on the ballot in a truly democratic society but let's go with that. What's the probability that a people who've established a democratic society would be inclined to support genocide? Somewhere in the vicinity of zero, I think. Nazi Germany is probably best characterized as ultranationalism, and Israel fits that bill to a tee. A military state. In our case, a military state pretending to be a democracy. Israel also happens to be an apartheid state.

Democracy is something I associate with philosophical enlightenment, and military states with philosophical bankruptcy.

You’re this.close to giving me a headache.   I think our democracy is far, FAR from perfect (have I mentioned campaign finance reform? How ‘bout that electoral college?) but I still view it as a democracy (granted with a large dose of militarism in our foreign policy. But I’m not an isolationist. I think we’ve participated in wars and killings that weren’t justified but I believe in maintaining a strong military for when we rightfully need to protect our interests overseas and aggression by other countries (like Russia and definitely concerned about China/Taiwan. I don’t support genocide or Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians (even before 10/7). There should be a two state solution although the counter argument to that has always been that many in the region don’t believe that Israel even has a right to exist so how do you negotiate from that starting point? Sucks. But what’s happening in Gaza and the West Bank is just wrong and I think the U.S. needs to do more to put a stop to it.

[rothschild]

Since you're familiar with the background could you please explain how it prevented the Biden admin from executing an orderly withdrawal?

It's my understanding there wasn't enough military left on the ground to facilitate  an orderly withdrawal. trump removed all the military except for about 2500 and Biden wasn't going to commit any more of our people. Biden followed through with the plan that had been set in motion months before by the trump administration. Keep in mind, the trump administration would only deal with the Taliban and went so far as to invite them to Camp David on or about the anniversary of 9/11. That administration didn't make these arrangements with the Afghan government, they dealt directly with the Taliban. 

That's about all I can recall without going back and reading to refresh my memory.

Thank you, Duchess.

What prevented the Biden admin from taking effective action to correct what they felt was a mistake on Trump's part?

The end result of choosing not to fix the perceived problem was a debacle that cost lives and a great deal of military hardware.

[rothschild]

He’s setting it up just like he did in 2020 (if I lose, it will be a RIGGED election). This is why the description of him as a “real and present threat to democracy” isn’t just hyperbole. He is. Fucking loon.

That presumes that genocide is compatible with democracy, and that our gov't is acting in accordance with the will of the people.

What does Trump forecasting a rigged election if he loses have to do with genocide? 

U already said u wouldn’t support either candidate because u don’t trust that they’ll stop the genocide of the Palestinians. I understand that although between Harris and Trump I think Harris is more likely to take a stronger stance against Israel. Trump already has a history of supporting Israel and is courting Jewish voters with the inference that Harris is somehow antisemitic (his words “I don’t know how any Jew could vote for her?”). 

What form of government is NOT “compatible” with genocide? Authoritarian? Nope. Socialist? Mmmm, warmer but still not a hard no there. Don’t really get ur point.

You imply we are a democratic society to which Trump is a threat. I don't see a person like Trump being on the ballot in a truly democratic society but let's go with that. What's the probability that a people who've established a democratic society would be inclined to support genocide? Somewhere in the vicinity of zero, I think. Nazi Germany is probably best characterized as ultranationalism, and Israel fits that bill to a tee. A military state. In our case, a military state pretending to be a democracy. Israel also happens to be an apartheid state.

Democracy is something I associate with philosophical enlightenment, and military states with philosophical bankruptcy.

You’re this.close to giving me a headache.   I think our democracy is far, FAR from perfect (have I mentioned campaign finance reform? How ‘bout that electoral college?) but I still view it as a democracy (granted with a large dose of militarism in our foreign policy. But I’m not an isolationist. I think we’ve participated in wars and killings that weren’t justified but I believe in maintaining a strong military for when we rightfully need to protect our interests overseas and aggression by other countries (like Russia and definitely concerned about China/Taiwan. I don’t support genocide or Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians (even before 10/7). There should be a two state solution although the counter argument to that has always been that many in the region don’t believe that Israel even has a right to exist so how do you negotiate from that starting point? Sucks. But what’s happening in Gaza and the West Bank is just wrong and I think the U.S. needs to do more to put a stop to it.

Re defending interests abroad, military aggression is a serious crime under international law. It's the primary threat to international peace and security, which falls under the purview of the UN Security Council, of which the US is a permanent member having veto power. If the US has so little confidence in the UNSC why does it maintain permanent member status? That strikes me as an arrangement that guarantees the UN will be impotent with respect to resolving serious international crises, and undermines the rule of law.

When you're a superpower the rule of law is something to be imposed on those nations that aren't superpowers, not to be applied consistently and without double standards. It's called gunboat diplomacy, the antithesis of actual diplomacy and free trade. We create a world that is hostile and chaotic, and use that as a pretext for foreign intervention.

As for Russia, it's human rights record compares favorably to the US. Be happy to go into detail if you like.

What I've said holds true for all of the permanent members of the UNSC, of which there are five. They are the primary arms proliferators, they are the nations that have the greatest adverse impact on international stability. Change this arrangement and I think global peace becomes a real possibility. Superpowers are antithetical to the concept of democracy. Those few who benefit from the status quo will never admit that, obviously, because people who believe they are free never try to escape. They are subservient and are extremely easy to manage.

Have a great day.

[Duchess]

The republican's nominee for President of the United States. 

[rothschild]

[Duchess]

Poop.

[username]

That presumes that genocide is compatible with democracy, and that our gov't is acting in accordance with the will of the people.

What does Trump forecasting a rigged election if he loses have to do with genocide? 

U already said u wouldn’t support either candidate because u don’t trust that they’ll stop the genocide of the Palestinians. I understand that although between Harris and Trump I think Harris is more likely to take a stronger stance against Israel. Trump already has a history of supporting Israel and is courting Jewish voters with the inference that Harris is somehow antisemitic (his words “I don’t know how any Jew could vote for her?”). 

What form of government is NOT “compatible” with genocide? Authoritarian? Nope. Socialist? Mmmm, warmer but still not a hard no there. Don’t really get ur point.

You imply we are a democratic society to which Trump is a threat. I don't see a person like Trump being on the ballot in a truly democratic society but let's go with that. What's the probability that a people who've established a democratic society would be inclined to support genocide? Somewhere in the vicinity of zero, I think. Nazi Germany is probably best characterized as ultranationalism, and Israel fits that bill to a tee. A military state. In our case, a military state pretending to be a democracy. Israel also happens to be an apartheid state.

Democracy is something I associate with philosophical enlightenment, and military states with philosophical bankruptcy.

You’re this.close to giving me a headache.   I think our democracy is far, FAR from perfect (have I mentioned campaign finance reform? How ‘bout that electoral college?) but I still view it as a democracy (granted with a large dose of militarism in our foreign policy. But I’m not an isolationist. I think we’ve participated in wars and killings that weren’t justified but I believe in maintaining a strong military for when we rightfully need to protect our interests overseas and aggression by other countries (like Russia and definitely concerned about China/Taiwan. I don’t support genocide or Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians (even before 10/7). There should be a two state solution although the counter argument to that has always been that many in the region don’t believe that Israel even has a right to exist so how do you negotiate from that starting point? Sucks. But what’s happening in Gaza and the West Bank is just wrong and I think the U.S. needs to do more to put a stop to it.

Re defending interests abroad, military aggression is a serious crime under international law. It's the primary threat to international peace and security, which falls under the purview of the UN Security Council, of which the US is a permanent member having veto power. If the US has so little confidence in the UNSC why does it maintain permanent member status? That strikes me as an arrangement that guarantees the UN will be impotent with respect to resolving serious international crises, and undermines the rule of law.

When you're a superpower the rule of law is something to be imposed on those nations that aren't superpowers, not to be applied consistently and without double standards. It's called gunboat diplomacy, the antithesis of actual diplomacy and free trade. We create a world that is hostile and chaotic, and use that as a pretext for foreign intervention.

As for Russia, it's human rights record compares favorably to the US. Be happy to go into detail if you like.

What I've said holds true for all of the permanent members of the UNSC, of which there are five. They are the primary arms proliferators, they are the nations that have the greatest adverse impact on international stability. Change this arrangement and I think global peace becomes a real possibility. Superpowers are antithetical to the concept of democracy. Those few who benefit from the status quo will never admit that, obviously, because people who believe they are free never try to escape. They are subservient and are extremely easy to manage.

Have a great day. 

Okay, so how are u going to disempower or disembody the UNSC? Wishful thinking? “Everybody go back to ur corners/time out”.

[Carsman]

I have been watching the debate for the last hour and a half and Kamala is holding her own against Donny! It's scary, as it definitely will be a close race, c'mon Kamala!   
Ok, back to watching. 

[username]

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday amplified false rumors that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were abducting and eating pets, repeating during a televised debate the type of inflammatory and anti-immigrant rhetoric he has promoted throughout his campaigns.

There is no evidence that Haitian immigrants in an Ohio community are doing that, officials say. But during the debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump specifically mentioned Springfield, Ohio, the town at the center of the claims, saying that immigrants were taking over the city.

“They’re eating the dogs. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” he said.

Lol.

[sally]

I don't know why he had to go with the Haitian cat eating crap, is there no one around to tell him to leave that alone and address the other issues with the influx of immigrants instead, Jesus. On the other hand I heard her tell dozens of straight out lies and came across as fake, but she was well prepared so I'll give her that.

[MirahM]

I am surprised at how well he did in terms of not messing up his words or slurring his speech like he sometimes does at his rallies and he sounded better than when he debated Joe.
That being said Trump is a liar and a con man who loves dictators and he was challenged tonight by someone who could take him on and effectively call him on his bullshit.
I did see Kamala stumble a couple of times and I could do with less "his side/ her side" arguements. Just talk about what you are going to do, are doing and not what the other side did or didn't do. Except of course key times when it was important to call hiim on his bullshit.

[MirahM]

I don't know why he had to go with the Haitian cat eating crap, is there no one around to tell him to leave that alone and address the other issues with the influx of immigrants instead, Jesus. On the other hand I heard her tell dozens of straight out lies and came across as fake, but she was well prepared so I'll give her that.

They were not allowed to consult with staff at all during this debate.

[rothschild]

I don't know why he had to go with the Haitian cat eating crap, is there no one around to tell him to leave that alone and address the other issues with the influx of immigrants instead, Jesus. On the other hand I heard her tell dozens of straight out lies and came across as fake, but she was well prepared so I'll give her that.

Officials are denying that a Venezuelan gang is running riot in Aurora, CO, in spite of security cam footage showing that it is in fact happening. The same could be happening in the case of the Haitian immigrants. Most people laugh it off thinking it's racist, but they have no idea how bad things are in Haiti. It's not as bad as Gaza but it's almost as bad. People coming out of a situation like that, irrespective of ethnicity, are highly likely to have PTSD, which is something else that few people understand.

[rothschild]

Okay, so how are u going to disempower or disembody the UNSC? Wishful thinking? “Everybody go back to ur corners/time out”.

Institutional corruption on a global scale is a byproduct of social evolution. Timeouts are probably not going to work.

Much like recovering from addiction, the first step is recognizing there's a problem, which requires the destruction of the denial mechanism. Copious amounts of pain are the only way to do that as far as I'm aware, and that's what I see unfolding across the First World. It will continue to get worse until the denial breaks down, or the patient dies, as it were.

Place your bets.

[username]

“Pop superstar Taylor Swift endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris' presidential candidacy on Tuesday night after the high-stakes debate with former President Donald Trump, calling the Democratic nominee a "steady-handed, gifted leader."

She signed it Childless Cat Lady.

[rothschild]

Appreciation of commonality is what makes a society healthy and vibrant. Polarization/fragmentation is what kills it.

[Duchess]

"They're eating the dogs! They're eating the cats! They're...they're eating the pets!" 

[Duchess]

“Pop superstar Taylor Swift endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris' presidential candidacy on Tuesday night after the high-stakes debate with former President Donald Trump, calling the Democratic nominee a "steady-handed, gifted leader."

She signed it Childless Cat Lady.

I wondered if she would. trump's plan backfired and I couldn't love that more. He shouldn't have posted the lie on his site, I feel like that may have played a role in forcing her hand. HaHaFuckinHa.