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It’s not so much about “Trump” as it is about being a Republican and its assault on the institution as a whole. You'll note I haven't been as engaged on here as before. We’ve all been around long enough to know that everything is cyclical. At no time during Obama’s era did you hear me say any of the vile things that you guys are saying now. Never called you an Obamette, uneducated, or the litany of other expletives directed at some’s value system as a whole. Never heard me say, “Piss on his grave, anyone with a thinking brain, if my guy was guilty of raping 47 women . . .etc.” I think the worst you’ve heard me say is, “I hate Hillary.” And, I had strong reasons as to why, but those fell on deaf ears, never mind the facts, because she was just the right person for you guys at the time. But again; I did not attack you personally as being uneducated, or hope to live long enough to piss on her grave. She represented your institution and philosophy. Even if she had won, in time, she too would have been voted out or left the office. I have sided with you guys on gun control and yet; you completely ignored the tactical point of “Well-regulated” and the ammunition I served up for your side to become more successful in your campaigns towards gun control. And, your battle cry remained “Ban.” Never mind that a fork or a baseball bat can be an assault weapon. I guess I’m fortunate enough to have been in weapons long enough to know that we shouldn’t be scared of the tool as much as the person wielding that tool. That is the real issue. We differed in opinion on healthcare, not so much on the point itself, but its deployment. We have a “social” healthcare system in the U.S. It’s called the VA. It can be a lifesaver at times but is fraught with process issues. My point has always been – “Fix that” and then you have a model to point to and say – it works. Until graduates of John Hopkins or any of the other prestigious medical schools have graduates applying to work at the VA; then something is wrong. Until they can excel in research as much as other institutions, then something is wrong. Until they can perform a live-saving cardio-thoracic surgery or even a knee replacement without farming it out to the private sector; then something is wrong. Due to education on this site; I changed my views on “Climate Change” to the point that I can’t even read the age-old thread without throwing up my hands and thinking even one of my own doesn’t get it. The environment here has changed so much that things that would have used to get you a ban doesn’t even merit a “One warning” anymore no matter which side. The value on here has degenerated from us knowing each other and having some modicum of respect to become another faceless soul on the internet left to defending personal attacks on one’s value system and if you don’t believe in their way; you must be an idiot. Well, this idiot is done with the verbal lashings that would be considered anywhere else other than the Internet to be - verbal assault. The US is a Banana Republic. Give me a break. There was a time when no matter what side you were on; we were patriotic enough to have shut that down; rather than amplify it. Trump? Well, there is a lot of people that believe he is right about one thing. We, as a nation; have to do something more about producing & manufacturing more goods here in the U.S than we do movies and fast-food franchises. That we shouldn’t be doing “business” with a communist country, much less have our entire supply steam interrupted. If that in of itself does not give us a wake-up call, then there are those of us that do believe we are doomed and our whole way of life jeopardized. That industry has to change to provide more jobs for the middle-class. That the middle-class is the backbone of this country. One cannot continue to complain about the inequities of wealth while not championing the need for more well-paying jobs that are based on production and competition, rather than legislation to increase the minimum wage. That used to be one of the primary tenets of the Democratic party. You know. The whole FDR thing of creating work programs, to produce, to give people pride in a work ethic. A lot of Americans believe the world needs to be a level playing field. If we are to lose jobs (entire industries) in steel, coal, cotton, aluminum, technology, automobiles (Harley for God’s sake) etc. or whatever because of EPA standards, then those same standards need to apply to the rest of the world. And, when people buy products from a communist country that have any of those elements that used to be “Made in America,” they get angry. Especially, if they or a member of their family lost their jobs in that industry. California alone has lost almost a million middle-class jobs to China. To hope that our children learn to respect and honor Veterans, Firefighters, and the like and to “follow” them rather than the Kardashians or Justin Beibers. Hell, most kids these days can tell you the exact location of a Kardashian in Wyoming, but cannot locate Belize on a map of Central America. Trump may not be the man, but he does represent the sentiment. I may not like or agree with the man on all things, but I do know that he is the only one saying these things – and, that’s what America wants to hear. That is why he has the base he does. But, I ramble. I guess I am left with some wonderful memories of times spent with Nigel, Wendy, Bill, Wendy, Turtlespeed, et.al. But, it is just memories and not a reflection of the interactions on here. Peace.

Nuns get arrested for protesting in a federal building Armed militia men storm federal building and nothing happens DOJ is a full on political body American mercenaries try to invade Venezuela Black man is lynched for taking a jog and nothing happens until authorities are forced to act due to the video coming out etc. etc. etc. Yeah, the US is a joke.

What I find interesting is that as a narcissist type person how Trump has literally got the entire world focussed on HIM. Look back at this forum, we used to have entire threads on war, guns, religion. Mostly arguments would deteriorate to nazi type allegations. Now nothing is spoken about without Trump coming into it. I feel the world has shrunk because of Trump. Intelligent discussion is extremely rare.

And, we used to respect each other for our differences. Many times it was an atmosphere of learning and open discussion. It was a time when getting close to those allegations were met with "Your one warning."

US mercenaries invade Venezuela Department of Justice is a political tool Armed people storming federal buildings for haircuts We are witnessing a slow march to dictatorship and a full collapse of American Democracy.

Stephen Miller is in the clear as there have been no recorded cases of infection in the undead.

Oh come on I expect more and better from you. Maybe you can do better? Can you think of a better geographical region that shares more similarity to the contiguous U.S than the Schengen area in terms of population, culture, travel, level of tourism, etc.? Because that's your problem, Phil. You start with the U.S and then compare it to some cherry pick countries with the lowest raw numbers, lol. It'd be nice if you were honest enough to start with the U.S and at least attempt to find similar regions to compare it to, and then run the numbers - especially if you're going to start drawing conclusions from the raw data. And I'm not saying that you can't compare the U.S to smaller countries, it's just that it'd be nice to discuss reasons for various disparities other than, "because Trump."

"In a test result he called 'a tremendous relief,' AG Barr has tested negative for integrity, Barr confirmed. Barr submitted to the test after learning he'd come into contact with career DOJ prosecutors found to be integrity carriers."

Thank you.

Both Pence and Trump are in high risk categories too. If both are incapacitated due to illness or death, I believe Pelosi would be next in line. The country is already a powder-keg, don't think that would be a good outcome.

Great post and very well said!

I hate having to change my breakoff altitude. I have to take my audible out of its pocket, remember the correct button sequence to change it, then fiddle with it until it gets seated properly in the pocket again. I had an idea to have an audible that contained rudimentary voice recognition so I could just shout at the damn thing. I sent this idea to L&B several years ago with no response.

Some of the refusal to engage is probably the dogpiling that happens when someone actually answers a question that is disagreed with by certain members. Discussion generally involves respect of the other person's right to their viewpoint, and an interest in how they got there. Which means that starting out with words that effectively equate to "how can you be so stupid" don't really encourage people to keep going. Yeah, I realize that's not very Socratic or tough-minded of me, but, well, tough shit. I'm probably not the only one who feels this way. Wendy P.

Hi Sky, You always refer to him as Sky, but doesn't Dekker just sound cooler? I mean look at his avatar, that could be the face of a new TV crime drama, Dekker - CSIS Toronto

Hannity tonight

I'm not mad, just really, really disappointed.

What stands out amongst the Trump supporters is the gaping void of anything positive or rational. They will instantly attack if Trump is criticised in any way. However I don’t actually recall any of them providing SPECIFIC positive traits of Trump, or successful outcomes. It’s just ‘you’re a Trump hater...’ We have both been here long enough to remember SC during the first gulf war. The debate then was very different, some defended Bush and his actions, but there was not this attitude of ‘doesn’t matter if he’s never achieved anything, you just hate him’. To be honest I’m tired of it. I’ve deactivated Facebook and should probably step away from dz.com as really it is just a circular argument that goes nowhere. The odd entertainment when Q+ or Q++ (god himself) talks to Ron but that’s about it. I am sick to death of Trump and Corona virus. Let’s have a good old discussion about religion of guns that doesn’t include those two

Bees kill more people than COVID. (Didn't look it up but it feels right, and I want to get a haircut.)

Why do you wonder that? Most people I know are anti-Trump because they want better for Americans and want better for the world. COVID-19 doesn't check any of those boxes.

I'd say it's more that conservatives can see where even the wackiest conservative viewpoints can com from, even if they disagree. Just as most liberals can see where even the wackiest liberal viewpoints can come from, even if they disagree. Then it becomes "don't mess with my brother, even if he is an asshole." Only I am perfect in my judgment . AND my brothers are nice Wendy P.

That is simply not true. It doesn't matter what you wish to believe.

FIFY.

He's out of the ICU now but still hospitalized.

Just a quick update. Life got in the way but I finally made it back to the DZ today. I had a long e-mail conversation with the owner and this morning my instructor and I had a long sit down face to face talk. I'm feeling so much better after it all got sorted. They are willing to work with me and I do appreciate their understanding and cooperation. So........after all of that.....it was time to gear up and get back in the plane. Things went SO MUCH better for me today. I was focused and even though it was a "little" late I made my first PRCP. Little steps.... but at least it's got me where I'm excited about it again. Thanks again for the positive replies. I got this. Gordon in NC

As others have mentioned, defer to medically trained people, be available to help them if they ask, but otherwise look for a non-medical way to make yourself useful. Gear needs to be dealt with, secured (if it's windy) or moved/hauled in. Crowds need to be controlled. You can hold up a canopy to shade the injured/responders. Has someone called an ambulance? Is there someone standing by the road to direct the ambulance to the scene? Is there a clear path for the ambulance to the injured? If not, is there a clear path for the medics to get in/out on foot? We had a jumper land hard behind a line of heavy brush. Some jumpers were able to wiggle through, asses his condition, and call the ambulance, but there was no way a medic with gear and a stretcher was getting in there, so I organized a handful of jumpers to grab shovels etc from the hanger and clear a path. I'm not medically trained for anything, but I can do yard work like a pro, and it turned out to be a valuable asset.