Politics And Current Events

[MR25]

See above

[Troy Loney]

Trophy hunting is bad, people that get their rocks off shooting endangered species are bad.

IMO.

[Viva la Ben]

The Gallup Poll just announced that 69% of our great citizens expect their finances to improve next year, a 16 year high. Nice!

[shafnutz05]

Wow.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national ... story.html

An investigation released Wednesday into an encounter between Covington Catholic High School students and Native American activists at the Lincoln Memorial last month largely supports the students’ accounts of the incident, which prompted immediate and widespread condemnation of the boys after a video of the encounter went viral.

The report, prepared by Greater Cincinnati Investigation, Inc. and dated Feb. 11, employed four licensed investigators for approximately 240 hours to take statements from students and chaperones, as well as to interview third-party witnesses and review about 50 hours of video. Investigators were not able to interview either Phillips or Sandmann in person and instead reviewed the student’s written account.

The investigators said they found no evidence that the students responded in an offensive manner to the black Hebrew Israelites or that they chanted “build the wall.” After asking chaperones, they performed a school cheer, according to the report, to drown out the black Hebrew Israelites.

How many times must we be taught the lesson that the media's first priority is narrative-building? All of the ridiculous things that have been said about these children, the death threats/wishes for violence from the Left (and even several media personalities), etc. And just as several of us called from the first time this story was mentioned ITT, the whole thing was a hoax, a lie, a narrative-driven bullsht story to trash white people/conservatives/men etc.

Think about how many stories that have gained national traction over the last five years or so, that were racial/gender/orientation-driven, that eventually came out as being grossly exaggerated, misrepresented, or false. The number is staggering. But as always, once the story gets put out there, the damage is done. People are never held responsible for the damage they cause to families, individuals, etc.

[Troy Loney]

Reverse racism.

[shafnutz05]

Reverse racism.

I know you are being facetious, but there is a large contingent out there that subscribes to the "white men/boys and/or the patriarchy are the root of all evil" philosophy. And that was the narrative that was pushed when this story was blasted out into the national consciousness.

Yes, yes, I get it...no one is crying for the "plight" of white men. We have it coming.

[Troy Loney]

I think most people recognize the twitter outrage machine for what it is.

In this case it turned a benign encounter in DC into a national controversy. The Daily podcast did a good job putting that whole fiasco into context.

[blackjack68]

There are very few actual journalists remaining and we are left with sensationalistic reporters instead. They are beholden to ratings and headlines rather than details and so we get this type of mess.

They'd rather be first than right, peoples' lives and careers be damned.

[AuthorTony]

When reporters began to include Twitter comments in the midst of their articles, I stopped paying attention to to the news.

[MrKennethTKangaroo]

There are very few actual journalists remaining and we are left with sensationalistic reporters instead. They are beholden to ratings and headlines rather than details and so we get this type of mess.

They'd rather be first than right, peoples' lives and careers be damned.

i don't know if anyone saw axios's blurb (I mean I guess all of their stuff is blurbs but whatever) about how California's decision to postpone the high speed railroad boondoggle was some sort of blow to the green new deal and a setback for climate change. the article didn't mention any of the governor's reasoning (which is very well within reason) and focused on something that is loosely related to the situation.

[Freddy Rumsen]

My only comment on that, which I think Freddy was referencing, was that women should be the ones legislating abortion since it primarily affects them.

But I'm not really seeing the parallel here.

I was referencing Smollett and the phone.

[Troy Loney]

There are very few actual journalists remaining and we are left with sensationalistic reporters instead. They are beholden to ratings and headlines rather than details and so we get this type of mess.

They'd rather be first than right, peoples' lives and careers be damned.

i don't know if anyone saw axios's blurb (I mean I guess all of their stuff is blurbs but whatever) about how California's decision to postpone the high speed railroad boondoggle was some sort of blow to the green new deal and a setback for climate change. the article didn't mention any of the governor's reasoning (which is very well within reason) and focused on something that is loosely related to the situation.

Hot takes abound, and every story, no matter how inane, is framed in the Dem vs Rep context.

[NailedPenguin]

In this case it turned a benign encounter in DC into a national controversy. The Daily podcast did a good job putting that whole fiasco into context.

More like in most cases. But explain it away as a simple 'nothing to see here' because people who I'm sure you identify with both socially and politically are once again the aggressors, and for the millionth time since 2016, took things so friggen over the top that the only recourse is to just hope people forget about it, because theres not an ounce of excuse making you could provide to justify this constant crap.

[CBear3]

So three weeks after we knew what happened, we're trudging this back up. Why? Because an investigative firm hired by those who were accused of bad behavior interviewed the people who they were hired to exonerate and a couple others. They didn't interview those that accused them of disrespectful behavior.

The firm also said the children didn't do anything "racist or offensive," despite acknowledging they directed the Tomahawk chop at a Native American.
Color me surprised they've been "exonerated"

That's not to say that they deserved any of the hatred or threats of violence they got. The left seems to have abandoned "when they go low, we go high" and decided that jackassery should be met with greater jackassery. Conservatives or the administration does something abhorrent or insulting, and the left decides to try to be more deplorable.

[NailedPenguin]

It's being trudged back up because God forbid people might start facing consequences for this stuff.

And L-O-L at the left abandoning "going high." As if that was ever reality.

And wow, directed a tomahawk chop. They should have opted for slinging homophobic slurs like whoever the hell else was there. The smirk and a tomahawk chop. Guess everyone was equally to blame for it all.

[Factorial]

It's being trudged back up because God forbid people might start facing consequences for this stuff.

What sort of consequences? Legal or just civil?

[NailedPenguin]

It's being trudged back up because God forbid people might start facing consequences for this stuff.

What sort of consequences? Legal or just civil?

Not talking exclusively this situation. But this stuff is happening constantly now. Something other than just forgetting about it because it turned out to be BS and makes the left look bad would be fine with me. Seemed CBear has more of a problem with people still bringing it up than people who caused it.

[eddy]

JUST IN: A federal judge overseeing the Paul Manafort case says prosecutors for Special Counsel Robert Mueller have proved 3 of the 5 examples they cite as occurrences when Manafort lied to them in the course of his cooperation.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller no longer has to recommend a lighter sentence because Paul Manafort lied to federal prosecutors in the course of his cooperation, judge in Manafort case says. https://t.co/AofLrozjbn

[MWB]

Happens constantly... that’s another false narrative perpetuated by social media. Just like everything, social media makes it seem like things are “more” than they actually are. This works for and against both extremes.

[Factorial]

Pffft, process crimes.

[tifosi77]

i don't know if anyone saw axios's blurb (I mean I guess all of their stuff is blurbs but whatever) about how California's decision to postpone the high speed railroad boondoggle was some sort of blow to the green new deal and a setback for climate change. the article didn't mention any of the governor's reasoning (which is very well within reason) and focused on something that is loosely related to the situation.

You know what else precious few outlets included in their social media-friendly reporting? That they are continuing with construction of the Phase 1 bit of the HSR between Bakersfield and Merced.

[eddy]

California has been forced to cancel the massive bullet train project after having spent and wasted many billions of dollars. They owe the Federal Government three and a half billion dollars. We want that money back now. Whole project is a “green” disaster!

[tifosi77]

JUST IN: A federal judge overseeing the Paul Manafort case says prosecutors for Special Counsel Robert Mueller have proved 3 of the 5 examples they cite as occurrences when Manafort lied to them in the course of his cooperation.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller no longer has to recommend a lighter sentence because Paul Manafort lied to federal prosecutors in the course of his cooperation, judge in Manafort case says. https://t.co/AofLrozjbn

Absent some kind of intervention (pardon, polonium, etc.), Manafort is of an age where he can now reasonably expect to die in prison.

It was a better option for him to risk this outcome, than be truthful. The why behind the lies is quite intriguing.

[count2infinity]

I'm genuinely curious where the 3.5 billion figure came from...

[tifosi77]

I'm genuinely curious where the 3.5 billion figure came from...

There was $3.3 billion in federal money given for the HSR project.

The comedy: It is for the bit that's still being constructed.