Itinerant Air-Cooled

I don't agree with him on everything, but he is smart, and comes at the issues analytically and with empathy. At least he gets why Trump was elected, and has ideas beyond denigrating 63 million Americans as racist idiots.

http://freakonomics.com/podcast/andrew-yang_radio/

Yang is an interesting candidate. So are many of the others. I'm looking forward to seeing them all articulate their issues and debating their merits.

hippiewannabe wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 10, 2019 9:14 pm

At least he gets why Trump was elected, and has ideas beyond denigrating 63 million Americans as racist idiots.

And (taking the trolling at face value) just who has said that 63 million Americans are racist idiots? Let's make good use of the wonder of the internet and find some quotes from the current presidential hopefuls saying that. I'd love to know.

Now, they may say that not all Trump voters are racists - but it is clear that almost all racists voted for Trump..

On Yang - I think you like him because he hasn't had a chance to be demonized yet. He is a progressive and supports policies that may be described as (gasp) socialist. Policies which would measurably make life better for me and you. Just like a number of other current Democrat candidates. Perhaps your realizing that, underneath it all, you really are naturally affiliated with the Dems?

tommu wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:29 pm

hippiewannabe wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 10, 2019 9:14 pm

At least he gets why Trump was elected, and has ideas beyond denigrating 63 million Americans as racist idiots.

And (taking the trolling at face value) just who has said that 63 million Americans are racist idiots? Let's make good use of the wonder of the internet and find some quotes from the current presidential hopefuls saying that. I'd love to know.

Now, they may say that not all Trump voters are racists - but it is clear that almost all racists voted for Trump..

On Yang - I think you like him because he hasn't had a chance to be demonized yet. He is a progressive and supports policies that may be described as (gasp) socialist. Policies which would measurably make life better for me and you. Just like a number of other current Democrat candidates. Perhaps your realizing that, underneath it all, you really are naturally affiliated with the Dems?

I am still looking, tommu ... really, all I find is that many Americans are very concerned about the collapse of morals, ethics, empathy, honesty, character, world awareness, and regard for history.

It does not surprise me that Trump supporters breathlessly declare that they are being demonized as they demonize.
Colin

tommu wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:29 pm

...just who has said that 63 million Americans are racist idiots? Let's make good use of the wonder of the internet and find some quotes from the current presidential hopefuls saying that. I'd love to know.

The candidates themselves have gotten more careful and left it to their media team to continue the theme. Google can give you virtually unlimited examples. It started here, but the backlash taught them to be more subtle:

https://www.npr.org/2016/09/10/49342760 ... y-campaign

"....you could put half of Trump's supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right? [Laughter/applause]. The racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic — you name it.

Racism, Not Economic Anxiety, Drives Trump Voters
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/paul-kru ... f883991b51

CNN’s Powers: All Trump Supporters Are Racist
https://freebeacon.com/politics/cnns-po ... re-racist/

HILLARY WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG. TRUMP SUPPORTERS ARE DEPLORABLE
https://www.newsweek.com/hillary-was-ri ... ble-652603

tommu wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:29 pm

On Yang - I think you like him because he hasn't had a chance to be demonized yet. He is a progressive and supports policies that may be described as (gasp) socialist. Policies which would measurably make life better for me and you. Just like a number of other current Democrat candidates. Perhaps your realizing that, underneath it all, you really are naturally affiliated with the Dems?

I have voted Democrat before, and always look at the platforms before making a choice. Both parties have many different policies, some I agree with and some I don't. And candidates I may like or dislike. I ended up punting last time and voted Libertarian.

I am definitely not a single-issue voter. There are people who won't vote Republican because Pro-Life people are part of the coalition, and there are people who won't vote Democrat because people who want to boycott Israel are part of their coalition. Right now a large part of the Democrat coalition seems to be people who hate our system, think life is not fair, and think people like me are to blame and should be punished for it. That's not going to get my vote.

There is no clear dividing line between socialism and capitalism, it's a spectrum. There are no pure "laissez faire" capitalist countries, and all experiments in pure "workers control the means of production" have failed.

The Universal Basic Income thing has me thinking. Right now there doesn't seem to be a way to pay for it, and human beings have proven to adapt their behavior to their incentives, so it could be a disaster. But technology is creating so much wealth, and destroying so many low-skill jobs, that it's worth a look.

hippiewannabe wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 17, 2019 12:22 pm

a large part of the Democrat coalition seems to be people who hate our system, think life is not fair, and think people like me are to blame and should be punished for it.

Snowflake Glenn Beck Sean Hannity Pity Party Alert!

Hate our system? Stop it right there. You need look no further than Trump who is denigrating the Press, the FBI the CIA, the military, the judicial system, what "part of the Democrat coalition is hating our system? Seriously? They are the ones promoting involvement and participation! For good grief's sake.
Colin

hippiewannabe wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 17, 2019 11:30 am

tommu wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:29 pm

...just who has said that 63 million Americans are racist idiots? Let's make good use of the wonder of the internet and find some quotes from the current presidential hopefuls saying that. I'd love to know.

The candidates themselves have gotten more careful and left it to their media team to continue the theme. Google can give you virtually unlimited examples. It started here, but the backlash taught them to be more subtle:

https://www.npr.org/2016/09/10/49342760 ... y-campaign

"....you could put half of Trump's supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right? [Laughter/applause]. The racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic — you name it.

Racism, Not Economic Anxiety, Drives Trump Voters
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/paul-kru ... f883991b51

CNN’s Powers: All Trump Supporters Are Racist
https://freebeacon.com/politics/cnns-po ... re-racist/

HILLARY WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG. TRUMP SUPPORTERS ARE DEPLORABLE
https://www.newsweek.com/hillary-was-ri ... ble-652603

It would have been quicker to admit that no presidential candidate has said that all those who voted trump are ‘racist idiots’.

Have you ever read of the luddites in the industrial revolution? Smashing up the weaving machines as they lost their jobs?

Have you read Andrew Yang’s book, “the war on normal people”. It’s fascinating and frightening. A huge number of middle class jobs will be lost due to automation. This will likely be accelerated after the next big recession. UBI is just an idea to mitigate the social upheaval that will cause.

tommu wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 17, 2019 8:30 pm

It would have been quicker to admit that no presidential candidate has said that all those who voted trump are ‘racist idiots’.

You made the assumption I was only referring to Yang vs. the other declared candidates. I never said that. NYT, CNN, the Democratic Party, the liberal blogosphere, it's all the same team.

hippiewannabe wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 18, 2019 6:28 am

tommu wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 17, 2019 8:30 pm

It would have been quicker to admit that no presidential candidate has said that all those who voted trump are ‘racist idiots’.

You made the assumption I was only referring to Yang vs. the other declared candidates. I never said that. NYT, CNN, the Democratic Party, the liberal blogosphere, it's all the same team.

I assumed that what you wrote was what you meant. My mistake.

tommu wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 18, 2019 5:16 pm

My mistake.

Spoken like a gentleman, sir.

You don’t need a smart person to be President. Who in their right mind thinks one woman or man has some monopoly of ideas on the problems of guiding the nation?

The Presidents job is to assemble andriven , passionate experienced team of professionals in The Cabinet who share the big vision and can get things done, not be some unicorn of divine leadership,

Abscate wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 30, 2019 3:47 am

You don’t need a smart person to be President. Who in their right mind thinks one woman or man has some monopoly of ideas on the problems of guiding the nation?

Well, you need a person smart enough to know who the smart people are, which people are the best fit for their jobs. You know, FEMA managers who have actually managed disasters instead of raising racehorses, Education secretaries who have actually taught school or administered public school systems, Interior secretaries who really understand climate change and the fragility of the environment ... need I go on?

That's what we are really electing presidents for. The success or failure of their administrations rests on their ability to make the government work for the citizenry and their citizenry's descendants, not for just the rich people who bought them. That's true of any public servant, anywhere.

JLT wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 30, 2019 3:02 pm

Abscate wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 30, 2019 3:47 am

You don’t need a smart person to be President. Who in their right mind thinks one woman or man has some monopoly of ideas on the problems of guiding the nation?

Well, you need a person smart enough to know who the smart people are, which people are the best fit for their jobs. You know, FEMA managers who have actually managed disasters instead of raising racehorses, Education secretaries who have actually taught school or administered public school systems, Interior secretaries who really understand climate change and the fragility of the environment ... need I go on?

That's what we are really electing presidents for. The success or failure of their administrations rests on their ability to make the government work for the citizenry and their citizenry's descendants, not for just the rich people who bought them. That's true of any public servant, anywhere.

^ this ...^