It's Time to Disavow and Replace The NRA - The Liberalists

timon_phocas comments on Aug 27, 2019:

Howdy @Naomi, The article is idealist libertarian drivel. No, I really don't want to buy a tank. They cost millions, get wretched fuel mileage, and are a pain in the butt to maintain. Ever replace a thrown track? Another grotesque pain in the butt. No, the fantasy of a volunteer militia swarming out of the suburbs with machine guns, tanks, APCs and artillery is ridiculous. Simply having a machine gun (or automatic rifle) is impractical. With an M-16 you can empty a 30-round clip in less than 5 seconds. Even if I get the ammo at $0.50 a round, that means it's costing me $15 every 10 seconds, $60 a minute. Sorry folks, too rich for my budget. The chief of the Imperial Japanese Army said he never even considered invading the US. He said the idea of being a hostile army in the middle of a country where every family had rifles and knew how to use them was too frightening. This vision of a volunteer militia is valid. As for the NRA. I think it's stuck in the last century. I started reading its magazine about forty years ago, and then joined when my father-in-law died. It hasn't changed, and, by and large, neither has the NRA. They need to figure out how to market themselves to a new generation; how to make new friends.

South Africa Seizes Tanzanian Airbus Amid Land Expropriation Compensation Case.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 26, 2019:

So South African Courts will seek redress for a Tanzanian expropriation, but approves of South African expropriations? Or is it because South African expropriations haven't made their way up through the courts?

Russia Probe Twist: A Billion Dollar CEO, A Convicted Russian Agent And The FBI [saraacarter.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 26, 2019:

"Curiouser and Curiouser." When will we ever get to the bottom of this can of worms?

Do you think greed is actually good for economy?

timon_phocas comments on Aug 26, 2019:

Proverbs 16:11 Honest scales and balances belong to the LORD; all the weights in the bag are of his making. ... Timothy 2:6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. I quoted these to illustrate that real capitalism has a moral, even religious, basis. Since these quotes are thousands of years old, it illustrates these moral expectations are millenia old. Levitical passages stretch these moral expectations back to Pharonic times. And the Bible is not alone in its exhortations about moral business practices. We have learned in the last forty years that the most prosperous countries are the least corrupt and the most poverty stricken are heavily corrupt. In other words, businesses are most prosperous where business operates within a moral framework. Look at Hong Kong. It has 0.6% of China's population, yet 2.5% of China's GDP. The difference? A British legal system and a largely Catholic educational system. So greed, or ambition (whatever you wish to call it) is important to capitalism. But it must be balanced by morals, an equitable framework, for it to succeed.

I guess I need to apologize for posting that video about the horse and his rubber chicken, since it ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 25, 2019:

Howdy @DuranDuran, No apologies needed. Funny things lighten the mood.

SteynPost 9 - Steyn on Sweden - YouTube

timon_phocas comments on Aug 24, 2019:

Love hearing Steyn. He has both hilarious rifs and thoughtful insights.

Just Saying

timon_phocas comments on Aug 24, 2019:

Although only an Italian would think of doing it nude...

Opinion: The U.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 24, 2019:

wow, markets work! Somebody tell Adam Smith! Better yet, tell the Democrats!

Rainbow Nation, eh? [m.facebook.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 23, 2019:

You know, Henry Ford had a joke about the Model T, "you can have any color you want, as long as it's black." It looks like that's the national policy of the ANC.

Speaking to reporters in advance of the G-7 conference in Biarritz, French President Emmanuel Macron...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 23, 2019:

Leftists/Progressives look at academia, entertainment and the MSM and assume they are the overwhelming majority. Conservatives look at enduring principles and then remember the old saying about the fish rotting from the head first. The "yellow vest" movement in France is a populist movement. Populist parties all across Europe are surging. The leftists/progressives feel their world order is crumbling. It might be.

South African Rustenburg High-School Choir. Stunning. [m.facebook.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 23, 2019:

Beautiful rendition.

Epstein Strangled? An ER Doctor Weighs In - YouTube

timon_phocas comments on Aug 22, 2019:

Thank you. Real information about a subject everybody seems ro be throwing dust about.

Gun control and the politics of fear- [bearingarms.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 21, 2019:

I've read the 'American Rifleman' magazine for about 40 years. I've never seen anything incendiary. No calls for violence. No calls for vengence. Just a steady stream of articles saying the goal "common sense gun control" is to confiscate common guns. It's a pretty innocuous group. It spends less on politics in any given election cycle than Tom Steyer, Michael Bloomberg or George Soros. And yet it is the favorite boogyman of leftist politicians.

Why isn't anyone talking about Abraham (Ibrahim) and Islam?

timon_phocas comments on Aug 21, 2019:

Islam claims the Patriarchs and Prophets of the Old Testament were all Muslims. Islam claims the Jesus, His Apostles and the New Testament writers were all Muslims. Islam claims the Biblical accounts have been hopelessly altered by apostates and are therefore unreliable. So they are free to make up their own versions of Patriarchs, Prophets and Jesus more or less out of whole cloth.

Earth's inner core is doing something weird

timon_phocas comments on Aug 20, 2019:

Howdy @Naomi, Thanks for the interesting article.

Tlaib & Omar “Story about being Banned” is CRAP!!! OANN Kills their narrative in Less than 3 ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 20, 2019:

Rashida Tlaib's grandmother is really suffering. Why she can barely put on her suicide vest in the morning...

[gellerreport.com] Palestinian authorities are LGBTQ haters

timon_phocas comments on Aug 19, 2019:

Even though Yassir Arafat was as queer as a three dollar bill and died of AIDS...

Violence is surging in Republican-run cities

timon_phocas comments on Aug 19, 2019:

I think the graph actually has more to do with the opioid epidemic. America recorded 70,759 opioid overdose deaths In 2018. That was a reduction of about 2,000 from 2017. My mother died of a heroin overdose in March of 1962. Her habit cost her $50 a day. The average family income in the early 60s was $5,000. That meant she was burning through an annual income every 100 days. I guess crime pays (for drug lords). I've read that today's heroin costs $5 dollars a hit and $20 to $30 a day. My wife and I spend $20 - $25 going to Carls Jr for 1 meal. Today's heroin is actually cheaper than food. So every year we suffer more opioid overdose deaths than we lost soldiers in the whole Vietnam War.

Clinton Foundation behind the NHI in South Africa. [youtu.be]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 18, 2019:

And they're propably being paid for all kinds of consulting services. The Clinton Foundation is, despite its non-profit legal status, is a vehixle for shoveling cash to the Clintons and their close associates. They collected about a billion dollars for Haitian disaster relief and delivered miniscule relief to actual Haitians.

Beijing was “Caught by Surprise”?

timon_phocas comments on Aug 18, 2019:

I've not read about this perspective. Interesting. Thank you.

Her father was murdered at a Kroger. Now she wants the grocery chain to ban guns- [bearingarms.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 17, 2019:

My mother died of a heroin overdose in San Francisco. Should I sue to outlaw syringes or sue to outlaw San Francisco?

What's the point of allowing trolls?

timon_phocas comments on Aug 17, 2019:

Howdy @chuckpo, I know there are people here who delight in insult and aspersions. Fortunately there aren't many. If they're willing to engage in real discussions, then I find it worthwhile to engage with them. If they will not actually discuss anything, then I file them under "casting pearls before swine" and ignore them.

Summary of African history [youtube.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 17, 2019:

Not bad. He does not mention the slave economies of Morocco or Timbuktu in his argument that African slavery was far less pernicious than European/American slavery.

‘The green movement has become hysterical’ -- Brendan O'Neill on Greta Thunberg - YouTube

timon_phocas comments on Aug 16, 2019:

wow, every time you make a point they go into a fugue sequence. It's like listening to Captain Queeg explain how he can mathematically prove his strawberries were stolen (Caine Mutiny reference).

Go big or go home! The New Space Race is heating up fast.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 16, 2019:

Howdy @Judah80, Thanks, good summary. You explained just how radically SpaceX is gambling and the other companies are more conservative. It going to be a fascinating series of test flights.

tlaib and omar are huge anti-semites and wonder why they are barred from Israel.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 15, 2019:

"They cannot be this stupid?" Why deny the evidence of your eyes and ears?

California's Largest Recycling Business Shuttering Hundreds Of Centers - YouTube

timon_phocas comments on Aug 15, 2019:

Another progressive fairy tale crumbles when it hits reality.

So, Greta Thunberg is coming to you, American folks.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 15, 2019:

Is she coming on a sailboat? Will she wander through America like Johnny Appleseed; barefoot, wearing rags and a pot on her head? Will birds and small animals gather round when she sings? Will she part the Mississippi with a wave of her staff, and will barge traffic be really pissed off when they're stranded on the bottom of the Big Muddy? I can hardly wait! Yawn...

EPSTEIN UPDATES! - YouTube

timon_phocas comments on Aug 14, 2019:

I heard Epstein cremated himself while the medical examiner was away on a coffee break...

Not the Jesus I know!

timon_phocas comments on Aug 14, 2019:

It's even worse than that. The only human sexuality Jesus approves of is heterosexual monogamy. Everything else? A terrible mistake at best. That includes me putting the moves on some girl back in high school. Or looking at something purient. The point is not just what points of conduct you have transgressed. It is what you can become when you allow yourself to be transformed by faith in Jesus and the Holy Spirit. As John Newton wrote, "I am a great sinner, Jesus is a great savior." And that is the Jesus I know.

Bill Gertz: Nuke accident and Russia's nuke powered cruise missile [freebeacon.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 14, 2019:

There have been a number articles about isotope power generators in spacecraft. Apparently they're not just for space. I rhink an isotope generator would have to be very hot to generate thrust like a conventional jet engine. Almost like a fission bomb fizzle. Tricky engineering.

Get a coffee quick....Fredo...IS BACK. [youtu.be]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 14, 2019:

Chris Cuomo has all but tattooed "Fredo" on his forehead. What a dufus.

Fredo Cuomo That's gold. [youtu.be]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 13, 2019:

Reacting as he did made the 'Fredo' nickname universal. He could have laughed it off and that would have been the end of it. Instead, he shot himself in the foot. He'll be limping a long time from this self inflicted wound.

God, Family, And Community gave us life and meaning. Now they're all but gone. What happens next?

timon_phocas comments on Aug 13, 2019:

First I would say that God and His purposes exist whether we choose to believe in them or not. And so, as Twain said, reports of his death are greatly exaggerated. Jesus compared the church to leaven and to salt; both invisible and both affecting the whole loaf. That's how it's working today and that's how it has worked through history. Emperors marched their armies and built their arches while the church worked invisibly, transforming the whole empire. His church is still working today. Not because we believe in Him, but through His power and for His purposes.

China has apparently decided they don’t “Need to Follow No Stinkin’ Agreement” about Hong ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 12, 2019:

This looks like an escalation of Hong Kong riot police tactics, but not an invasion by mainland PLA.

If anyone's following the pro-democracy protests, social media is saying the Chinese Army is massing...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 12, 2019:

Bryan Suits (A Dark Secret Place) says the PLA will flood Hong Kong streets with nine thousand troops trained as riot police within two weeks. They hope this overwhelming strength will make for a "soft takeover " There are 7 million people in Hong Kong, or about 0.2% of China's population. But Hong Kong produces 2.6% of China's GDP. Central authorities are well aware this is a "goose that lays golden eggs." Anything other than a soft takeover with a swift return to status quo could increase capital flight in an already slowing economy. OTOH Xi Jinping is in the middle of a China-wide crackdown on dissent of any kind. He has to view democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong with a very jaundiced eye. I am afraid Hong Kong is in the position of a mouse on a hippo's back.

CityJournal: Epstein's Death is very Strange [city-journal.org]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 12, 2019:

Oh boy! The FBI and the Justice Dept IG will be investigating! We can expect their reports to be released on Labor Day of 2070...

So, this meme landed on me with a comment: "Well, Tescos (a UK supermarket chain) are sacking 4300 ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 12, 2019:

Back in the early 1960s Walter Reuther (head of the United Auto Workers union) and Henry Ford III were watching a new Ford plant being built. Reuther pointed out that the excavating machines were doing the work of a hundred men with picks and shovels. Mr Ford replied, "Why stop there? Why not hire a thousand men with spoons?"

Chinese Persecution of Christian Churches [mnnonline.org]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 12, 2019:

This reminds me of Nazi pressure on Jewish families. "If you tell the trurh about us, we will be harder on your family left in Germany..." I suppose all totalitarians act alike.

Trump raises over $12 million at Hampton fundraisers despite unhinged leftist mob.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 12, 2019:

I remember when Obama's peregrinations landed him on every billionaire's front porch with a tin cup in his hand. The sycophant press said nothing about "the rich" corrupting politics with their "dark money." How times change...

'Switzerland is in a key position to play a revolutionary role in changing how global banking ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 12, 2019:

There's an old saying that if you owe the bank $150,000 and can't pay, then you have a problem. If you owe the bank $150 billion and can't pay, then the BANK has a problem. I think the world's financial structure is stuck in the latter half of that saying. I think they're frantically juggling, trying to keep as many balls in the air as possible.

I would like to feel sorry for Jeffrey Epstein but I have teenage daughters and he is a dirt bag ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 11, 2019:

I tried to remember what I really knew about sex back when I was fourteen and it was all pretty vague. I was a child morphing into an adult body. Earning a hundred dollars would have seemed like the keys to the US mint. To subvert someone like that into prostitution for what amounts to chump change is deeply evil. To do it again and again, to use it as a business model, is appallingly evil. I think about my daughters and granddaughters and I don't feel sorry for him at all.

NRO: losing the Afghan War [nationalreview.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 10, 2019:

Here are some logistical constraints to fighting a war in Afghanistan. Everything has to be shipped over 10,000 miles to Karachi, Pakistan. Last time I looked, there were no direct rail links to the Afghan border, and no freeways. So every container has to be unloaded onto trucks and trucked over wretched roads to the Khyber Pass. There it has to be approved by thoroughly corrupt federal and then tribal authorities. Lots of bribery going on. Lots of pilfering. Or you can ship containers to Russia and use their railroads. They are only too happy to charge premium prices for the traffic Not quite as much bribery or pilferage. For either route, there are no rail lines once the containers get to Afghanistan. For weapons and ammunition, everything is shipped to Diego Garcia and then flown directly to Afghanistan in cargo planes. If Walmart had these kind of shipping expenses, your average candy bar would cost fifty bucks. We've been doing this for almost twenty years and we still don't have an idea of just what "victory" is supposed to look like. Maybe it's time to give this festering, septic mess to China and let them have at it.

The Hunt cancelled

timon_phocas comments on Aug 10, 2019:

I think this stems from people living within their own subcultural bubbles. They assume they are the overwhelming majority since that's how their bubble is populated.

[youtu.be] The U.N is a Failing Institution | Prof Anne Bayefsky | 7 of 8

timon_phocas comments on Aug 10, 2019:

The United Nothing is kleptocrat's club

Epstein found dead in his cell. Now there's a surprise!

timon_phocas comments on Aug 10, 2019:

Epstein knew he was going to be found guilty. All the people he had dirt on wanted him dead. He knew he had the life expectency of a fruit fly if he was ever released into the general prison population. Even if he was kept in solitary confinement in a supermax, he would be the only inmate in the system who needed a food taster. He did not have much reason to live. Epstein escaped human justice only to stand before the most terrifying Judge in the universe. We use "beyond a reasonable doubt" as a defense. Before that Judge it is a damning endictment. That Judge will repay loss for loss, pain for pain and injustice for injustice. That is why it is so terrifying to end this life only to stand before an all knowing God.

After the terrible El Paso shooting (young white man targeting "Mexicans"), commentators on the Left...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 9, 2019:

In previous congressional debates Republicans offered total immigration amnesty if Democrats agreed to no voting rights for the illegal immigrants. If this wasn't about changing the electoral landscape they would have agreed.

Love Joe Biden comparing Trump to racist Governor George Wallace of Alabama, who by the way is a ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 9, 2019:

Joe Biden, one of the only people in the National Guard who ever achieved an expert marksman badge by consistently shooting himself in the foot.

US, Israel, Syria, Russia and Iran walk into a bar... [besacenter.org]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 9, 2019:

Howdy @RobBlair, Useful info. Thank you

“It’s both clear language and in code,” Biden said.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 9, 2019:

When people stopped saying overtly racist things, race hustlers needed new accusations. The "dog whistle" (statements alluding to, but not directly mentioning, racially charged issues) became one of those accusations. This was so abstruse that normal people just living their lives ignored it. The "dog whistle" and "code" and other allusions are critical to their claims of systemic racism, however, and so they progressed from accusation to axiom. It's kind of like blaming the Jews for both plutocracy and communism. It's illogical and counterfactual, but it doesn't matter. They accuse Candace Owens (a black woman) of being racist and misogynast. It's irrational, counterfactual and it doesn't matter.

El Paso Shooter's Manifesto [thefederalistpapers.org]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 5, 2019:

"is not cowardly to pick low hanging fruit. AKA Don’t attack heavily guarded areas to fulfill your super soldier COD fantasy. Attack low security targets. Even though you might out gun a security guard or police man, they likely beat you in armor, training and numbers. Do not throw away your life on an unnecessarily dangerous target. If a target seems too hot, live to fight another day. " This struck me as a cold blooded admission he wanted to shoot where nobody would shoot back. It would seem that gun free zones work. For mass murderers, at least. God save us from the barbarians in our midst.

El Paso Shooter's Manifesto [thefederalistpapers.org]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 5, 2019:

The screed doesn't sound like a Trump manifesto. It sounds mostly leftist. It's anti corporation and environmentalist. It's both anti Democrat and anti Republican. He advocates for universal basic income. And he goes out of his way to deny any connection with Trump or motivation from Trump.

Has anyone else been noticing this, any clue what it could be about, besides destabilizing the group...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 5, 2019:

This became inevitable when Mr Gates opened scouting to homosexuals.The Catholic Church was sued for the same kinds of abuses, but the BSA has far fewer resources. Their aim has always been the destruction of the Boy Scouts and they are succeeding.

8chan is now a normal part of mass shootings [slate.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 4, 2019:

I think this may be an opportunity. An internet "Amber Alert" feature could be constructed as part of our counter terrorism system.

So Chris Mathews still gets a thrill up his leg when he thinks of the Obama administration.

timon_phocas comments on Aug 3, 2019:

Thrill down his leg? Well, all old guys have prostate problems... Maybe he should try Depends.

The following is my screenshot response to Insponews - Frederico Intelligence Report on YouTube ...

timon_phocas comments on Aug 3, 2019:

If the IG gets around to FISA Court abuse and false testimony to secure surveillance warrants, the "Cardinal's" goose is cooked. So far, however, the IG's devastating report has been like that phrase from "the Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe," "always winter and never Christmas..."

Woke to Broke: Gillette Loses Billions After Anti-Men, Transgender Shaving Ads

timon_phocas comments on Aug 3, 2019:

It goes even farther. A decade ago they jacked the price of their blades up so high I stopped buying them. Then they tarred themselves with the toxic masculinity ads and I won't buy them. P&G's marketing teams used to be the best in the business. Whatever's coming out of the business schools these days must be pure dreck. What in heaven's name convinced them that you can boost sales by insulting your customers?

More right-wing violence

timon_phocas comments on Aug 2, 2019:

And here's another instance of left wing violence. So let's just say rhetoric and actions are escalating from both ends of the political spectrum. https://pagetwo.completecolorado.com/2019/08/01/polis-recall-circulator-attacked-by-anti-trumper-police-looking-for-suspect/

Finally, a Democrat worth supporting - spiked

timon_phocas comments on Aug 2, 2019:

Info on Tulsi Gabbard is kind of sparse. Her father served in the military, has a family business and is a politician. She had followed in his footsteps, working in the family business, being a politician, and serving in the Army National Guard. She served 1 tour in Iraq (2004/05) and another in Kuwait (2008/09) as an officer in a medical unit of the Hawaii National Guard. She is currently a Major in the Hawaii National Guard. Interestingly, she did not express antiwar views until 2012. She is a Hindu believer. A vegetarian. A strong supporter of "renewable energy." She is a strong opponent of Islamist terrorism. She was against LGBTQ marriage, and even against civil unions. She supported Bernie Sanders in 2016. She is not a doctinaire Democrat. She has angered the established powers in her party a number of times.

Gun-free zones, mass shootings, and the leftist media's attempt to hide reality- [bearingarms.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 2, 2019:

I am truly sorrowful the exaltation of violence in our society has fostered these mass shootings. The only practical response is tactical. Engage the shooter immediately. That's what the police did in Gilroy, but we're not all as protected as the people at that festival. So an armed citizenry becomes our stern necessity.

Tulsi Gabbard sounds off after ripping Kamala Harris at debate - YouTube

timon_phocas comments on Aug 2, 2019:

finally, a real dissenting voice in the herd of socialist candidates. Not my cup of tea, but an honest voice.

NASA to retain SLS Green Run test [spacenews.com]

timon_phocas comments on Aug 2, 2019:

Just when you think NASA will develop a sense of urgency, they return to their CYA, "zero defect on my watch" mentality. NASA and Lockheed have marvelous, brilliant engineers. They just don't seem to have a competitive bone in their bodies.

DCCC faces mass staff upheaval after uproar over diversity - POLITICO

timon_phocas comments on Aug 1, 2019:

When your enemies are shooting themselves, don't just stand there, hand out ammo!

James Comey referred by I. G. D.O.J. Declines to Prosecute. Is This Two Tier Justice?

timon_phocas comments on Aug 1, 2019:

I have a couple conjectures about the FBI IG Investigation. It's been like the coming of the Messiah, always imminent, never delivered (even so come, Lord Jesus). One is that they keep uncovering more violations by more people and so they have to track each trail down. The other is that the IG is loathe to issue a damning report that will stain rhe FBI. Institutional self preservation. Maybe both...

RADICAL EXTREMISTS AGAINST EXTREMIST RADICALS Spot on! [frontpagemag.com]

timon_phocas comments on Jul 31, 2019:

RealClearPolitics writers have the same opinions. A bit more detailed. https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2019/07/31/democratic_debate_winners_and_losers__140896.html

Chinese forces mass at Hong Kong border [bloomberg.com]

timon_phocas comments on Jul 31, 2019:

I think it is more or less inevitable that China will abrogate their Hong Kong agreement and institute absolute control. Xi Jinping has restored totalitarian control over the mainland, he will not tolerate freedom and dissent in Hong Kong. Taiwan had better watch out.

[yahoo.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 29, 2019:

1. Germany could not participate in a convoy operation in the Persian Gulf even if it wanted to. It has zero seaworthy frigates and zero seaworthy submarines. 2. Iran is going through an economic melt down. The world ignores them as they bubble in their misery. Threatening traffic in the Straight of Hormouz is the only way they can get the world's attention. 3. Any convoy operation that ensures the free flow of trade through the Straight of Hormouz would allow the world to ignore Iran and Mr Trump's sanctions to bite deeper. BTW, here's an article on Germany's astonishing lack of military readiness/ https://globalriskinsights.com/2018/03/state-germanys-military-readiness/

Unmanned Subs [cosmosmagazine.com]

timon_phocas comments on Jul 29, 2019:

StrategyPage has had a few articles on unmanned submarines used vy the Navy. They're battery powered. Their propulsion is very clever. They glide gradually downward and forward, then the blow ballast and rise to shallow depth (or surface) and do it over and over again. They upload sensor data when they're surfaced. They're cheap. They're small and stealthy. Not to mention quiet. You can deploy swarms of them. This article talks about something larger and more capable, much more complicated.

Christian Charged with Hate Crime for Sharing Truth | CitizenGO

timon_phocas comments on Jul 28, 2019:

What is it with the BC Human Rights Tribunal?

BBC News - Hong Kong protests: Police fire tear gas at Yuen Long rally [bbc.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 27, 2019:

Other reports have said the CCP is using gangs to attack demonstrations. I think it's pretty much certain they have.

Could we classify Islam as a terrorist movement/ideology?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 27, 2019:

I would submit that the difficulty is not what the hijab means to Muslims, but what it means to Americans. Mennonite women in my community dress very modestly and always wear small, lacy head coverings. Amish and Hutterites dress even more conservatively. They do this to be faithful to their religion and they are free to do so. How do we ban the hijab, or burkas, and allow the Mennonites, Amish and Hutterites to continue their own distinctive dress?

U.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 27, 2019:

New information, thank you

I'm tired of listening to Trump calling people "clowns" and "losers", and giving people ridiculous ...

timon_phocas comments on Jul 27, 2019:

Howdy @DuranDuran, I remember when Trump made his run for the nomination. I disliked the taunts and gibs he threw at other Republicans. Why was he acting like a Democrat in a Republican primary? And that's the rub. Democrats have always acted this way and Republicans never do. But he used those tactics and he won. I have since come to the formulation that Trump reminds me of the SOBs I met in the Corps. They trampled egos everywhere they went. But, if they were talented and determined, they accomplished amazing things. Trump has accomplished amazing things. Things traditional Republicans have been piusly promising (but never delivering) for a generation. So I don't have to "like" Trump, but I do like what he is accomplishing.

Indulge me with few tidbits, will you?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 25, 2019:

quirky genius not all that uncommon as geniuses go

NOT EXONERATED!!! WTF?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 25, 2019:

In the Soviet Union they had show trials. In the US we have show investigations. They hurt the subjects because only billionaires can afford to lawyer-up against the resources of the US government. And even then the government outmatches them because the government doesn't care how much money it spends. My formulation is that Lisa Paige and Peter Strozk exchanged texts about there being no collusion when Mueller's team was just getting started. Yet the investigation ground on for almost two more years. So the investigation couldn't be about what they said they were investigating.

Your take on this one?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 25, 2019:

I remember reading Ayn Rand's assertions that true innovative titans were a different breed. They only thirsted for head to head competition with other titans like themselves.They spurned effete, underhanded attempts to manipulate, or the golden shakles of government subsidy. Sure, and they also ride unicorns to work in the morning. Conservatives watched in awe as a new generation of Edisons transformed an unregulated corner of the economy into a massive powerhouse of wealth and innovation. A new generation of entrapeneurial inventors. Our belief in the gospel of capitalism was being reaffirmed. We forgot Edison, Tesla and Westinghouse had their inventions legally extorted away from them to form General Electric (J. P. Morgan's work). We forgot that the first Trust Busters were Republicans. Entrapeneurial titans are not a different breed. They are the same flawed humans as the rest of us. And just like economic titans of history, as they achieve extraordinary wealth, they reach out to manipulate government and the rest of society.

It is getting bad out there for the Christians of the world. [gatestoneinstitute.org]

timon_phocas comments on Jul 25, 2019:

Romans 8:37 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Psalm 141:7 Our bones are scattered at the grave's mouth, as when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the earth.

Is academia conformist?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 25, 2019:

Bill Bennett, PhD, (Drug Czar, Secretary of Education) described academics as "a herd of independent minds."

Rush Limbaugh is speculating that Michelle Obama might announce her candidacy for President in 2020.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 24, 2019:

Well, I did wonder about that sudden "poll" extolling Michelle.

Wealth Across Epochs, Part 1

timon_phocas comments on Jul 24, 2019:

Howdy @Facci, Washington was, I think, in the top tier of wealth in the Colonies. It's hard to measure in an economy where money was scarce. He and his wife owned something like 10,000 acres. He started many businesses to exploit the opportunities available to him. The Colonies' main exports were dried fish, timber, tobacco and indigo. These were required to be shipped to Britain, where British merchants set prices and shipped back finished goods on order. So relatively little money actually got back to the Colonies. Trump is in the 2nd or 3rd tier of rhe wealthy in America. The top tier being financiers and Silicon Valley moguls.

VDH can sure turn a phrase: "silk-stocking Republican Marquis of Queensberry rules" ...

timon_phocas comments on Jul 24, 2019:

Couldn't get the link to work. Probably an android version incompatibility. I did some searching and found it on the amgreatness site. Well worth the read.

Der Spiegel: Blaming Brexit on Boris [m.spiegel.de]

timon_phocas comments on Jul 22, 2019:

The current EU is everything Kaiser Wilhelm II ever wanted to achieve. The Germans dominate Europe economically and all of Europe's policies revolve around her. Britain has never wanted to be dominated by Europe. The Brits aren't the only one chaffing, many want to leave. If Britain succeeds, others would be encouraged to try. This would upset Germany's sweet deal. This makes Germans angry, and they're blaming Boris Johnson.

Iranian coastguard's radio exchange with UK warship emerges [theguardian.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 21, 2019:

Thanks @ObiRonMoldy I've be following this in the news stream. It's more info.

Soon guys.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 21, 2019:

I find it both absurd and repellent to even write a sentence about someone being sued for sexual discrimination because they "refused to hot wax a woman's testicles." Absurd and repellent. This is an "Alice In Wonderland" moment in history.

Are poor black Americans already receiving "slavery reparations" in the form of receiving more from ...

timon_phocas comments on Jul 20, 2019:

I was born into a drug using, criminal family. My childhood was a confusing series of homes, foster homes and insitutions. One foster home in particular stands out. A woman of volcanic temper and inventive cruelty. I survived her, but the next child didn't. I spent years hating her. I spent years raging at her cruelty; at the love and affirmation she never gave. I wanted my childhood back. I wanted reparations. It never happened, and it doesn't matter. As an adult, I realized forgiveness was not my gift to her, but to myself. Every moment I spent hating her was a moment she still dominated me. And, at any rate, the things I really wanted were were impossible for anyone to give, much less her. Slavery steals lives and legal standing from people. Jim Crowe laws protected people who tried to do the same. Their real injuries, however, are matters of time and heart, not money. And remember, forgiveness is not something you give to your enemy, it's something you give to yourself.

Wise Advice

timon_phocas comments on Jul 18, 2019:

"Four score and seven likes ago..."* *Excepted from Lincoln's Gettyburg IRL

Does the IDW Trumpian identity mean its doomed? Asking for a friend.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 18, 2019:

I tried two other alternatives to FB before landing here. Their problem was they were right-wing echo chambers. That's not a discussion. There are real discussions at IDW. There are dissenting ideas. People not wanting a relentlessly leftist online culture will always tend to fall on the right side of the bell curve. But not exclusively. I think that represents the population at IDW. As for "Trumpian," well, that's something we conservatives have been wrestling with since 2015. I can say the rest of the online culture's absolute loathing of him led me to the IDW (where we can actually discuss him).

[youtu.be] Katie Hopkins | The Eric Metaxas Radio Show

timon_phocas comments on Jul 18, 2019:

From Katie Hopkins' descriptions of the intrusive reach of anonymous UK bureaucrats into everyday life, I think I've gotten a better idea the reaction to Tommy Robinson. Ordinary people are angry that police are more concerned with protecting cultural sensitivities than protecting people from crimes. Tommy Robinson tapped into that anger. The British establishment knows he tapped that anger and they are afraid of him.They decided to come down on him like a ton of bricks. Make an example of him. No more uppity ordinaries making a fuss. Or so they hope.

Should Trump control/reprimand crowds from chanting bad things?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 18, 2019:

Part of this is the sheer illicit joy of chanting something un-PC; something shocking to the chattering class. The audience is half the show at Trump's rallies, and they know it. This is not Abraham Lincoln at the Cooper Union. It's more like a pre-game rally. I think you'll notice, from Trump's earlier rallies, that when the crowd chanted, "Lock her up!" Trump would follow with a demurral; sort of side stepping the chant's demand. I think you'll see the same with this chant as well.

In the present heyday of left and right lobby groups, social justice activism and previously ...

timon_phocas comments on Jul 18, 2019:

Humans are intrinsically moral. We all think in terms of right and wrong, good and evil. The problem is we've divorced ourselves from any trancendant definition of good or evil. The prophets of Greenpeace, as morally relativistic as any, denounce any dissenter to their gospel as selfishly evil. Once you step away from transcendent definitions of moral values, morality becomes a wilderness of mirrors. Or, as Paul wrote in his letter to the Roman, "Professing themselves wise, they became fools..."

[summit.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 18, 2019:

I hope she invests her life savings in it, and her family's as well. Such stupidity deserves to be rewarded.

Silica Aerogels for Terraforming [seas.harvard.edu]

timon_phocas comments on Jul 17, 2019:

If you heat one part of Mars to near Earth temps, how does that affect neighboring terrain? Would it affect weather patterns? Will the warm terrain act like permafrost does in Alaska and Canada?

Trump Goes Full Idiot: Hot Take Episode 18 - YouTube

timon_phocas comments on Jul 16, 2019:

"If you don't like it here, you can always leave!" I've heard that phrase hundreds of times. I've heard it on farms, factory floors, gas stations and living rooms. I've heard it at the supper table. Just about every working class person has heard it and most have said it. It doesn't refer to race or ethnicity. It doesn't refer to religion. It refers to ungrateful, privileged people loudly denouncing my country as a pestilential, malignant hell hole every time they exit their limosines. So now the media, who have always objected to that phrase, say it's blatantly racist. Well, all I've got to say is they're the people stepping out of limosines.

What exactly is the role of the diversity official in companies?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 16, 2019:

Hipocrisy is the homage vice shows to virtue. These positions are the homage companies show to government.

Gut-wrenching dilemma - What would you have done if you were her?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 15, 2019:

Bring the babies here. Parents desperately want babies to adopt.

How many people are we?

timon_phocas comments on Jul 15, 2019:

Still here

Incindiary Rhetoric Escalates into Incindiary Actions [thegatewaypundit.com] [defensemaven.io]

timon_phocas comments on Jul 15, 2019:

This is what happened during the the Vietnam War. Left wing liberals used incindiary rhetoric about the war and Nixon. They morphed from reformers into violent revolutionaries. There were massive sponsored demonstrations, incited riots, bombings and assassinations. Back then they had support from foreign communist powers. Now they have support from leftist billionaires, Big Tech, Hollywood and academia. Not to mention part of Congress. We're heading into dangerous territory. On one hand, this will probably lead to Trump's re-election. On the other, (if history is any guide) leftists will become even more violent when they lose.

[dailysignal.com] Choose to be free.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 14, 2019:

Britain was the world's preemminant power after the Seven Years War (our Franch and Indian War). Militarily, naval, industrially and financially it was in a class by itself. Sort of like the US after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The men signing the Declaration knew this. It took courage, vision and faith to sign that document.

Everyone is as free as they choose to live.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 14, 2019:

The great Vlaclav Havel (Czech diissident and later president) said everyone could choose to live as a free man. He said this when he was still the leading dissident in Communist Czechoslovakia. It was a statement of singularly perceptive courage.

[theintercept.

timon_phocas comments on Jul 13, 2019:

Google had an extension office in the White House during the Obama years. In 2012 the Obama campaign analytics team downloaded FB's entire database to target potential voters. Big Tech has already demonstrated it will turn over every scrap of customer data to any progressive administration. And of course it will act like a Victorian spinster aunt if a Republican asks for it. We already have Big Brother as far as Big Tech is concerned. Want to find out who the illegal aliens are and where they are? Google knows, but it won't divulge that unless it's to a leftist Big Brother. And then they'll be only too happy to cooperate