winsor

Whatever it takes to put a stake through his political heart.

Nice try. The Catholic Church (and to a greater or lesser extent its copycat cults) is an exemplar of the "banality of evil." The people who support the institution largely do not get in to the nuts and bolts of the institutions machinations, but are pivotal to its survival. I know/knew people who, after the humiliation of 1918 and the starvation of the early '20s, were supportive of the political system that turned it around and provided prosperity and victory (for a while at least). FWIW, people who have a literal interpretation of the Torah are, by definition, crazy. It's Bronze Age family lore, and its merits are akin to those of the Iliad and other contemporary works. BLM is 100% racist, and its apologists are generally those who qualify as "useful idiots" per Bolshevik definition. Whether their support is based on ignorance, denial, stupidity or a combination thereof, they are pivotal to the success of the organization. Interviews with key BLM personnel make this abundantly clear. "White guilt" is way fucked up. I haven't had any slaves for quite some time now, and don't support anyone who hasn't freed theirs. Having lived in very 'diverse' neighborhoods, I have witnessed more racism and 'oppression' from within the community of concern than from without. For the record, I am not cool with any variant. Your reference to Israel in another thread (I've never been there) suggests that you are projecting. You would be well advised to avoid such a one-dimensional view of complex subjects. BSBD, Winsor

Both the right and left have their barking mad extremists. I don't see a dimes worth of difference between the batshit crazy denizens of either side.

If there was some basis for giving Trump a medal for achieving in four years more than any elected official could possibly have in a lifetime, and thereby disqualifying him from ever holding elected office or other Government position, I'd go for it. Sending him back to the private sector or reality teevee or wherever else he winds up is preferable to wasting the bandwidth to deal with him further. Whoever he burns on deals in the future should chalk it off to tuition. BSBD, Winsor

Unfortunately, the extremists in any organization tend to discredit any moderates that may constitute the majority. An example that comes to mind is the drive to rewrite the Constitution in Chile. The old one was written under Pinochet's rule, and it included particulars that were suited to authoritarian rule. Some people took exception to this, and began to congregate in a park in downtown Santiago after work on Fridays. The Government wanted to keep a lid on any potential problems, and positioned Carabineros nearby. Unfortunately, a small percentage of the people drawn to these demonstrations were those with nothing to lose and chose to misbehave badly, and the authorities responded to their activities accordingly. The individual Carabineros I spoke with were generally on the side of the peaceful protesters, and the protesters generally had a clear and reasoned standpoint and lamented the few who were there just to stir up trouble for their own amusement. Eventually they wound up with a new Constitution and the peaceful transfer of power to a new President, so I hope it sorts itself out well. Tolerating extremists that are on your side of the divide is risky. Even GLAAD has nothing to do with NAMBLA. BSBD, Winsor

I've seen it in practice, and the solution is both simple and fundamental. Universal conscription, a la 'Starship Troopers,' as a basis for citizenship. Six months of training, to include bullet dispenser safety and handling, and one year of active duty for full citizen rights. This can include the Park Service and Coast Guard as well as the Marines and other Combat Arms branches. As in some countries, one is then recallable as part of the 'militia' until they are old and decrepit, say 45 years. If someone is so much of a conscientious objector that they don't want to personally participate in government? Fine, but they don't get full rights. A citizen is armed, a subject is not. If you don't think you are fit to own a firearm, you're right. If you think you are fit to own a firearm, you may or may not be. Only the Government should have arms. In a Democracy, the Government is the Citizens. BSBD, Winsor

Peggy Noonan's take on Ches Boudin's recall is insightful: https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-boiling-over-of-america-san-fransisco-crime-minority-voters-chesa-boudin-recalled-liberal-democrats-11654810568 She characterizes the Woke/Progressive mindset nicely.

As mental illnesses go, Woke is up there with rather a few popular systems of delusion. https://campusreform.org/article?id=19658 I guess people credulous enough to buy the patent nonsense upon which religion is routinely based will believe just about anything. 'Twas ever thus BSBD, Winsor

You're right, the idea that there is any merit to the content is laughable. Whoever these guys are: https://www.eutimes.net/2022/05/norwegian-feminist-faces-3-years-in-prison-over-saying-transgenders-arent-women/ I'm sure they are right wing whackos as well. That someone could be charged for stating the obvious, or even something debatable, is obviously false. It is reassuring to note that the Woke crowd is a case study in well balanced and reasonable tolerance. Thanks for pointing out the error of my ways. BSBD, Winsor

You can't make this up: https://summit.news/2022/06/06/norwegian-feminist-faces-three-years-in-prison-for-saying-biological-men-cant-be-lesbians/ For reasons that escape me, Woke ideology seems committed to impose Fantasyland rules on everyone, in as draconian a fashion as deemed necessary. Laws (like Sharia) which sanction gays, lesbians et al. are evil, and I avoid places where they are in effect. A society that opposes freedom of speech is similarly flawed. I don't give a rat's ass if someone wants to live as a different sex, or if they want to surgically transform into a Labrador Retriever for that matter. Whatever floats your boat. I draw the line at being legally required to identify someone as the gender or species with which they 'identify.' They can do whatever they want, but shouldn't take it personally if someone else doesn't buy into it. The fact that there is anyone anywhere who does not see the bulk of Woke ideology as being utter nonsense concerns me. BSBD, Winsor

Though I think there are better ways to deal with the misuse of firearms than to subject everyone to constraints befitting the lowest common denominator, I would very much like to know what medications were being taken by the people behind the most recent rash of wanton violence (to include BIlly). The proliferation of SSRIs is such that the occasional tendency toward batshit crazy violence has become comparatively commonplace. When there is reference to "mental health" issues and "financial" problems, it strikes me that someone being prescribed any one of a variety common meds, if faced with financial ruin from bad investments or what have you, might be a candidate for making some REALLY BAD DECISIONS. Giving troubled young men (usually ~17 - 22 yo, Billy was an outlier) meds to suppress problematic behavior may make sense in the short term, but doing so long term does not turn out so well. Something like 90% of mass murderers including and after Columbine were taking prescription mental health meds. I know correlation does not imply causation, but taking a moment to stop perseverating on scary looking firearms and figure out quite what would possess someone to engage in simply evil behavior might be useful. Beware of overly simplistic solutions. BSBD, Winsor

I was assigned to mentor Billy after he got off student status, and stayed in touch with him ever since. I am floored.

Wrong thread, but it sounds like a case for postnatal abortion.

Maybe "a 'lude" in the sense of a "disco biscuit? Likely one of those homo phones.

I was assured that it wasn't, in fact, COVID. A number of sources in the loop indicated that he had garden variety influenza and tried to tough it out. His lack of fluid retention resulted in succumbing to dehydration. It seemed unlikely, but I was assured that that was the sequence of events. BSBD, Winsor

Putin is in an untenable situation from most reports. We like to think that by removing a 'bad man' from power (think Saddam Hussein), sweetness and light will prevail. Unfortunately, the despot in charge is often the best you are going to get, and the process of replacement can, and often does, result in much, much worse. 'Pravda' meaning truth and 'Izvestia' meaning news, the common observation was "in Pravda there is no Izvestia, and in Izvestia there is no Pravda." Having said that, if you wanted background on any news story, a Soviet citizen would then parrot back the story published in Pravda or Izvestia verbatim. Thus, about the best scenario for which we might hope is for Putin to be able to declare 'victory' ('Mission Accomplished,' anyone?) and somehow distract the populous otherwise. Everyone will know it's bullshit - but then again, isn't everything? - and they could then move on. Both Niccolo Machiavelli and H. L. Mencken observed that successful uprisings against tyrants were invariably preceded by a lessening of oppression, which is rightly or wrongly perceived as a sign of weakness by the opposition waiting in the wings. Various pundits have claimed that for Putin, retiring to a Dacha to write his memoirs is not an option. Whoever takes over would likely ensure their successful transition by the unfortunate and untimely death of the much loved president, whose memory will be cherished. I do hope that conflict in Ukraine draws to a close in the very near future, but have not come across a scenario that does not include a breathtaking level of ugliness in the meantime. BSBD. Winsor

Nonsense.

In the same sense that there is greater commonality amongst the hard sciences at advanced than introductory levels, in that PhD candidates from various disciplines will be found in the same advanced courses, there is less difference between the 'left' and the 'right' when taken to the extreme. Fascism was created by Benito Mussolini, who was a lifelong Socialist from a Communist family. It was National Socialism that took hold somewhat North of Italy, and much of its power came from its espousal of Socialist tenets. The Catholic Church portrays itself as a wellspring of goodness and virtue, but the Vatican Bank underwrote the rise of both the Italian and German regimes in the early '30s to ensure its survival - quite the Devil's Bargain. I am much more skeptical of do-gooders than of pragmatists, since time and again the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. In the case of Florida, I understand what is intended by the laws that were passed, but consider the final result to be typically ham-handed. Another case of paving done with good intentions. When it comes down to it, trying to avoid going anywhere that does not have breathtakingly stupid laws on the books would present quite the challenge. It's only the new breathtakingly stupid laws that draw attention; we are simply accustomed to the ones already on the books. The addition of a couple of stupid laws isn't enough to impact my travel plans one way or another. BSBD, Winsor

If you have to compare yourself to Trump to look good, you're pretty fucked up.

As I understand it, Donald Duck was banned in Italy some time back. You have a character who: Wears a sailor suit with no pants, has a significant other with a group of youngsters in tow that look Just Like Him, they call him "Uncle Donald,' and gave no indication of other parents and somebody in charge of morals decided that it was not a proper role model. Whatever. The U.S. is one of the more hung up advanced societies around, though we don't behead people for infidelity or kill women for having been raped so we have that much going for us. Cruz is one of those elected officials for whom I change the channel immediately if I am close to the remote when he comes on screen. Having said that, I recently caught something he said in committee where it stuck me that he is not stupid, only despicable. It would be nice to live some place where there was no audience for such dreck. Unfortunately, diversity includes all kinds of seriously dreadful people, and I wish we wouldn't see that as a virtue. BSBD, Winsor

You're projecting again.

Again, I really don't understand your point. One of the unfortunate characteristics of elected representatives is that all sorts of cretins have been known to appeal to voters. Neither side of the aisle has a lock on truly despicable representatives, and I am as underwhelmed by Marjory Taylor Greene and her bellicose sidekick as I am by the Squad. Whatever bloc either group represents truly sucks out loud.

I phrased that badly. "Have you always acted rational?" With all due respect, wtf does that mean?

Let her run. She balances out the batshit crazy delegates across the aisle.

If you can address content, fine. If all you have is poison, that's on you.