U.S. Politics megathread (merged)

[Watt-Zeefuik]

32 minutes ago, indianajones said:

 

He said this back in 2019. 

 

And he isn't wrong. Extremely poor forest management. 

 

Global warming yep but you can help yourselves too. 

 

He said we needed to rake the underbrush.

 

Of an area bigger than Scotland.

 

That's a lot of rakes.

[Watt-Zeefuik]

Apparently the Greenland crap is actually tightly associated with the Musk et al tech bro fixation.

 

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/down-the-rabbit-hole-of-the-greenland-tech-bro-state/sharetoken/a58c74b6-2b95-4f8a-9fa2-571ffcdd9ce6

 

Sometimes two dumb things are tied together by something even more stupid.

[Ulysses]

3 minutes ago, Watt-Zeefuik said:

Apparently the Greenland crap is actually tightly associated with the Musk et al tech bro fixation.

 

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/down-the-rabbit-hole-of-the-greenland-tech-bro-state/sharetoken/a58c74b6-2b95-4f8a-9fa2-571ffcdd9ce6

 

Sometimes two dumb things are tied together by something even more stupid.

 

In the real world, yer man would be sectioned.   

[indianajones]

4 minutes ago, Watt-Zeefuik said:

 

He said we needed to rake the underbrush.

 

Of an area bigger than Scotland.

 

That's a lot of rakes.

 

Needs must. Better than losing a massive part of a city.

 

And if you do it as and when its not that big of an issue. 

[Watt-Zeefuik]

Just now, indianajones said:

 

Needs must. Better than losing a massive part of a city.

 

And if you do it as and when its not that big of an issue. 

 

FFS you cannot "rake" the underbrush for an area the size of California's forestlands. How is this still a thing that has to be pointed out.

 

More controlled burning would help, as has been pushed for by indigenous groups and environmentalists for decades now, but there is no forest management that will help you with 9 months of almost no rain and then 100 mph gusts of hot dry wind.

 

There is a list of things that actually could have been done better and then there are the things that Trump is pointing out should have been done and the overlap between them is non-existent.

 

He says they should move water from northern CA. First off, it's very difficult to do that and second of all there's plenty of water in the reservoirs in southern CA, but the municipal system is beyond its supply capacity.

 

He says "clear out the brush." To actually do that would require a massive increase in the resources of the US Forest Service among others, an organization that Trump's budgets routinely cut. For private land, it would require allowing rules on private land management that are probably good ideas but which Republicans have historically been diametrically opposed to.

 

I shouldn't still be boggled by the ignorance of people willing to give the man the time of day on stuff like this but here we are. This is literally the same as him using a sharpie to randomly extend the projection of a hurricane track.

 

[CavySlaveJambo]

1 hour ago, indianajones said:

 

He said this back in 2019. 

 

And he isn't wrong. Extremely poor forest management. 

 

Global warming yep but you can help yourselves too. 

You need the right conditions and lots of manpower if your going to do controlled burns.  

 

However if people don’t litter (cigarette butts, glass bottles) or deliberately set fire to the forest… 

 

And yes glass bottles can trigger fires. 

 

[Cade]

Sunlight refracting through condensation can set light to dry leaves FFS.

The lack of manpower/funding/forestry management has only hindered the response to the fires.

No rain for 9 months and very high winds is the root cause.

[JFK-1]

[JFK-1]

A forecast for more strong winds is raising fears that the blazes could spread further and a red flag warning - indicating critical fire conditions - is in place

[Maple Leaf]

Rudy Giuliani appears to have never heard the saying, "When you're in a hole, stop digging".

 

https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/10/politics/rudy-giuliani-contempt-hearing-defamation-case/index.html

[Lone Striker]

LAPD have arrested one man who was detained by residents who saw him trying to light a new fire.   Apparently a homeless man - quite ironic, since thousands of residents are also now homeless.   Maybe that was his revenge plan ?

[JFK-1]

The truth about why fire hydrants lost pressure and ran dry during the Los Angeles fires

 

 

Martin Adams, former general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, blows up some right-wing myths about the water supply in Pacific Palisades, and talks with Alex Wagner about the realities of municipal water systems and ideas for adapting a system built for occasional residential fires to deal with a large scale, community-wide fire.

 

 

[Gundermann]

Mel Gibson: The Braveheart and Mad Max actor confirmed his Malibu property had been "completely toasted" while he was in Texas recording an appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast.

 

[XB52]

1 hour ago, Gundermann said:

Mel Gibson: The Braveheart and Mad Max actor confirmed his Malibu property had been "completely toasted" while he was in Texas recording an appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast.

 

Where he said evolution was a joke amongst other ravings

[Footballfirst]

Some incredible images of the destruction in LA.

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-6789cf28-d4de-4dfd-9f4f-cf51ef1d6a54

[Maple Leaf]

8 hours ago, Footballfirst said:

Some incredible images of the destruction in LA.

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-6789cf28-d4de-4dfd-9f4f-cf51ef1d6a54

Canada has sent several 'super-scooper' water bombers and hundreds of firefighters to LA to help our American neighbours.  Just as we sent hundreds of recovery teams south after hurricanes Katrina, Maria, and Helene.  Trump won't be aware of this, of course, as he is huddled in his Florida mansion searching for new reasons to be angry.

[CavySlaveJambo]

Gavin Newsom has better things to do that deal with all the MAGA lies.  

 

 

[Ulysses]

1 hour ago, CavySlaveJambo said:

Gavin Newsom has better things to do that deal with all the MAGA lies.  

 

 

 

There are no fires and Newsom is a crisis actor.

 

Make America Grate Again.

[Tazio]

Just now, Ulysses said:

 

There are no fires and Newsom is a crisis actor.

 

Make America Grate Again.

Newscum surely? 

[FWJ]

27 minutes ago, Tazio said:

Newscum surely? 

I noticed that in a ‘tweet’

 

Pathetic playground patter from the ‘leader of the free world’

[Ulysses]

47 minutes ago, Tazio said:

Newscum surely? 

 

18 minutes ago, FWJ said:

I noticed that in a ‘tweet’

 

Pathetic playground patter from the ‘leader of the free world’

 

Gentlemen, if President PoopyPants wishes to refer to Newsom in that way, who are we to argue? 💩

[CavySlaveJambo]

As well as being a maritime fountain of knowedge Dr Sal Mercogliano is also a volunteer firefighter.  Explains some of the water issues in LA

 

 

 

[Ked]

President poopypants.

Heavy political thread.

[Watt-Zeefuik]

1 hour ago, Ked said:

President poopypants.

Heavy political thread.

 

It's okay, you can just keep calling Gavin Newsom "Newscum" just like the august President Elect is, and then it'll be all both-sidesy just like you like it.

[indianajones]

Biden telling Kamala to fire into her presser was good. 

 

'no pun intended'. 

[Pasquale for King]

Nurse, my nappy needs changed.

[Pasquale for King]

12 hours ago, CavySlaveJambo said:

As well as being a maritime fountain of knowedge Dr Sal Mercogliano is also a volunteer firefighter.  Explains some of the water issues in LA

 

 

 

That was a brilliant watch, was just talking about salt water last night, thanks for that 👍🏽.

[Ked]

15 hours ago, Watt-Zeefuik said:

 

It's okay, you can just keep calling Gavin Newsom "Newscum" just like the august President Elect is, and then it'll be all both-sidesy just like you like it.

I don't or haven't.

[Watt-Zeefuik]

30 minutes ago, Ked said:

I don't or haven't.

Trump has.

[Ked]

15 minutes ago, Watt-Zeefuik said:

Trump has.

I'm neither Trump or a supporter.

 

[Watt-Zeefuik]

40 minutes ago, Ked said:

I'm neither Trump or a supporter.

 

 

You came on to tut-tut people calling the President silly names.

 

Which was in direct response to him calling people silly names. But maybe you missed that bit.

 

You say you're not a supporter, and fine, but about 75% of your posts on this thread seem to be you rising to Trump's defence, or to make false equivalence with other politicians.

[Maple Leaf]

Only 7 days left for Trump to stop the Russia / Ukraine war by Inauguration Day, as promised.  He's cutting it close.

[Tazio]

22 minutes ago, Maple Leaf said:

Only 7 days left for Trump to stop the Russia / Ukraine war by Inauguration Day, as promised.  He's cutting it close.

However I reckon he’ll be in office just in time to claim credit for any ceasefire in Gaza. 

[Ulysses]

32 minutes ago, Maple Leaf said:

Only 7 days left for Trump to stop the Russia / Ukraine war by Inauguration Day, as promised.  He's cutting it close.

 

[Maple Leaf]

58 minutes ago, Tazio said:

However I reckon he’ll be in office just in time to claim credit for any ceasefire in Gaza. 

The Republicans will either praise Trump for a wonderful achievement, or criticise Biden for not having done it sooner.

[Lone Striker]

Trump's 2 unelected bag-carriers now upping their hatred of each other. 

 

 

 

[Watt-Zeefuik]

9 minutes ago, Lone Striker said:

Trump's 2 unelected bag-carriers now upping their hatred of each other. 

 

 

 

 

Even the darkest cloud has a silver lining . . . 🍿

[Gundermann]

4 hours ago, Lone Striker said:

Trump's 2 unelected bag-carriers now upping their hatred of each other. 

 

 

 

 

Cold War Steve.  😄

 

[The Real Maroonblood]

What a farce.
Trump would have been convicted of election interference, DoJ report says https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpqld79pxeqo

[Dirty Deeds]

22 minutes ago, The Real Maroonblood said:

What a farce.
Trump would have been convicted of election interference, DoJ report says https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpqld79pxeqo

It was obvious at the time, four years of procrastination then, he's president again.

 

That said, everyone voting for him knows exactly what they getting this time, Hell mend them.

[The Real Maroonblood]

3 minutes ago, Dirty Deeds said:

It was obvious at the time, four years of procrastination then, he's president again.

 

That said, everyone voting for him knows exactly what they getting this time, Hell mend them.

Exactly.

Over 77 million idiots.

[Lone Striker]

6 hours ago, Gundermann said:

 

Cold War Steve.  😄

 

🤣   ColdWar Steve nails it again. 

[Lone Striker]

1 hour ago, Dirty Deeds said:

It was obvious at the time, four years of procrastination then, he's president again.

 

That said, everyone voting for him knows exactly what they getting this time, Hell mend them.

Well, yes and no. 

 

His pre-election stance was to end the Ukraine war in week 1, and prevent the U.S. from getting sucked into new wars.     Cut  inflation and  even cut prices on essentials.

 

Once elected, both of these seem to have changed.  He's not ruling out sending the military to take control of Greenland (a country that was not mentioned during the campaign), and his fixation with tariffs is likely to increase inflation and prices.   Plus, his South African billionaire buddy seems to be rowing back on how much "Govt efficiency" savings he said he'd find.

 

 

[Dirty Deeds]

34 minutes ago, Lone Striker said:

Well, yes and no. 

 

His pre-election stance was to end the Ukraine war in week 1, and prevent the U.S. from getting sucked into new wars.     Cut  inflation and  even cut prices on essentials.

 

Once elected, both of these seem to have changed.  He's not ruling out sending the military to take control of Greenland (a country that was not mentioned during the campaign), and his fixation with tariffs is likely to increase inflation and prices.   Plus, his South African billionaire buddy seems to be rowing back on how much "Govt efficiency" savings he said he'd find.

 

 

What I mean is, they'd witnessed four years of his presidency plus his end of term insurrection and voted for him regardless. They know what they're getting and don't care about shifting election promises.

[Ulysses]

Just now, Dirty Deeds said:

What I mean is, they'd witnessed four years of his presidency plus his end of term insurrection and voted for him regardless. They know what they're getting and don't care about shifting election promises.

 

That's fair.

 

I think @Lone Striker's point might be that if Trump had run an honest election campaign based on what he would actually do, he might not have won.

 

After all, a platform of "I'll suck up to Putin, play golf, watch TV, tweet like a lunatic and crap myself when I'm least expecting it" is hardly going to be all that popular.

 

Though of course it might appeal to some numbnuts.   

[Lone Striker]

2 minutes ago, Dirty Deeds said:

What I mean is, they'd witnessed four years of his presidency plus his end of term insurrection and voted for him regardless. They know what they're getting and don't care about shifting election promises.

👍 Ah ok, I get you now.  Yes, instant newsfeeds  and social media seems to have made large sections of the public more gullible than ever. Personality/celebrity over policy matters more to them.

[Dirty Deeds]

15 minutes ago, Ulysses said:

 

That's fair.

 

I think @Lone Striker's point might be that if Trump had run an honest election campaign based on what he would actually do, he might not have won.

 

After all, a platform of "I'll suck up to Putin, play golf, watch TV, tweet like a lunatic and crap myself when I'm least expecting it" is hardly going to be all that popular.

 

Though of course it might appeal to some numbnuts.   

Got to disagree, I think he would have have regardless. They voted for a racist, financially corrupt sexual pest (plus his other well documented flaws) because he represents their values.

 

I've no idea what he can actually do to lose votes, it beggars belief but here we are.

[The Real Maroonblood]

53 minutes ago, Dirty Deeds said:

Got to disagree, I think he would have have regardless. They voted for a racist, financially corrupt sexual pest (plus his other well documented flaws) because he represents their values.

 

I've no idea what he can actually do to lose votes, it beggars belief but here we are.

 

[ƒιѕнρℓαρѕ]

1 hour ago, Ulysses said:

 

That's fair.

 

I think @Lone Striker's point might be that if Trump had run an honest election campaign based on what he would actually do, he might not have won.

 

After all, a platform of "I'll suck up to Putin, play golf, watch TV, tweet like a lunatic and crap myself when I'm least expecting it" is hardly going to be all that popular.

 

Though of course it might appeal to some numbnuts.   

 

He said he'd be a dictator on day 1, that people wouldn't have to vote again, it would be fixed.

He could have said anything, he still got about the same amount of votes as the last 2 elections.

 

The democrat vote collapsed though, so I reckon it wouldn't have made much difference.

[Maple Leaf]

2 hours ago, Lone Striker said:

👍 Ah ok, I get you now.  Yes, instant newsfeeds  and social media seems to have made large sections of the public more gullible than ever. Personality/celebrity over policy matters more to them.

The white Christian nationalists love Trump.  Many of them think he has been appointed by God. 

Watch for America to become even more overtly Christian in the short term with, for example, the Ten Commandments posted in every classroom, creationism being added to the school curriculum, and evolution removed. Some states will be more blatant than others.