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Lathum 02-27-2019 10:06 AM

So I guess Jordan’s strategy is going to be try and discredit Cohen despite the fact it’s well established he is a scumbag.

Ben E Lou 02-27-2019 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lathum (Post 3232185)
So I guess Jordan’s strategy is going to be try and discredit Cohen despite the fact it’s well established he is a scumbag.


JPhillips 02-27-2019 05:29 PM




Trump will give Kim Hawaii if it will take the Cohen testimony off the front page.

Atocep 02-27-2019 05:55 PM

Just catching up on the Cohen stuff from today.

So we have a member of Congress under investigation by the Florida Bar for possible witness tampering related to an investigation into the President.

We had a member of the House bring a black woman into the hearing to defend the racist claims against Trump and then we had a pissing match about whether it was more racist to bring a black person in as a prop or to call someone out for bringing a black person into a hearing as a prop.

The President, prior to becoming president, used his charity to pay for a painting of himself at an auction so he could then brag about it being the highest bid item.

The President's son wrote the check to Stormy Daniels.

Roger Stone has already broken his gag order by publicly responding to Cohen's testimony.

We had Jordan peddling the same deep state nonsense linking the Clintons to Cohen's testimony.

And during a hearing investigating possible crimes committed by the President featuring the guy who did the heavy lifting for the President not a single Republican asked a question related to possible crimes committed by the President.

I'm sure I'm missing some things.

Atocep 02-27-2019 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou (Post 3232190)



It's amazing that people are latching onto some things Cohen said as proof there was no collusion with Russia and other things while at the same time tearing him apart as a pathological liar and unreliable witness.

PilotMan 02-27-2019 07:31 PM

I don't really understand the whole argument that Cohen is a piece of shit as a support in his testimony against trump. This is a man who worked for trump for 10 years, gradually got closer and closer and was intimately involved in multiple projects for trump and the trump organization. He is exactly the kind of person that trump draws. How many people have we found that fit this exact same profile in trump's orbit? I thought he only hired the very best people? I mean, the bottom line is, testimony aside, the fact that he IS a piece of shit, worked closely with trump for over 10 years and wouldn't have that position if he didn't have certain personality traits and a willingness to do very certain things that trump desires. How is the R tack today anything but supporting this line of thinking?

spleen1015 02-28-2019 06:10 AM

It is kind of comical to me how people are treating Cohen's testimony. Yes, he's a liar. He's going to jail for lying. Why did he lie? He was protecting your man for 10 years. He's a piece of shit because your guy wanted him to be a piece of shit. Thus, your guy is a piece of shit.

Then the Dems, come on. Let's not pretend you guys don't have someone out there doing your bidding, cleaning up your dirt.

They're all the same. Pieces of shit.

JPhillips 02-28-2019 06:45 AM

Trump defends his friend Kim.



PilotMan 02-28-2019 07:25 AM

But his personal lawyer for 10 year's word is crap and he's a liar, but this dictator of a foreign enemy, yeah, he's totally believable.

miked 02-28-2019 07:51 AM

Yet the dems are treasonous for promoting universal healthcare and climate change research/reversal harming our country.

stevew 02-28-2019 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spleen1015 (Post 3232223)
It is kind of comical to me how people are treating Cohen's testimony. Yes, he's a liar. He's going to jail for lying. Why did he lie? He was protecting your man for 10 years. He's a piece of shit because your guy wanted him to be a piece of shit. Thus, your guy is a piece of shit.

Then the Dems, come on. Let's not pretend you guys don't have someone out there doing your bidding, cleaning up your dirt.

They're all the same. Pieces of shit.


Don’t “both sides” this

spleen1015 02-28-2019 08:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevew (Post 3232234)
Don’t “both sides” this


I get it. This is all about Trump and all that.

This whole process seems so ridiculous. So many smart people doing and saying so many stupid things.

Julio Riddols 02-28-2019 10:42 AM

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see which party is mostly made up of people trying to do good for the country and which party is mostly made up of privileged old white men and redneck gun nut religious zealot lunatics who hunger for the america their parents knew back when "n*****s knew their place". We argue over pointless and short sighted shit like gun control and abortion and "religious freedom" instead of dealing with actual issues that have much larger and more widespread and long term consequences.

If we let things like low wages, poor healthcare, underfunded and undervalued education, bad working conditions, weakened environmental protections and unregulated financial bullshit to keep going on, there won't be a country left. There will simply be a controlling hierarchy and a bunch of stupid slaves. Innovation will slowly die as we lose more and more of our best and brightest to the continuing battle against intelligence. As our supply of innovators dwindle, our ability to continue leading the world will die. Eventually all that will be left is fast food, garbage and depression. Those who would eschew thinking of a future that they won't even be a part of for personal gains right now are dooming the future of our nation and world in favor of greed and pie in the sky bullshit.

God ain't coming back to save us. The rapture isn't going to protect anyone from their own self destruction, and whatever fucking deity anyone believes in isn't going to give a flying fuck about any of this shit, because they don't exist. It's time for us to evolve beyond small brain blind faith and make whatever sacrifices are needed in order to ensure that none of these fictional gods end up being the last hope humanity has left. We have to stop thinking only of what we ourselves want personally and start addressing what we as a whole need instead.

If we continue to cling to the past, we won't be able to take hold of the future.

Sorry if I offended anyone, I'm just so tired of how fucking stupid everything is every time Republicans hold power. History says all that needs to be said about that. Nobody gives a shit about history though, because nobody wants to look past what their coal miner daddy told them about the bad men trying to get them for all they're worth and think rationally. Either that or they were born too privileged to even know what it is like to have to earn your way.

I'm done.

Thomkal 02-28-2019 10:48 AM

I see now why Trump likes Netanyahu so much:


https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/i...harges-n977571

larrymcg421 02-28-2019 11:42 AM

AOC continues to impress me more and more. She was by far the most effective person at the Cohen hearing.

PilotMan 02-28-2019 11:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spleen1015 (Post 3232237)
I get it. This is all about Trump and all that.

This whole process seems so ridiculous. So many smart people doing and saying so many stupid things.



the trump spin would be:


corruption = politics; politics = corruption, and you can't split them apart so why should you try. It's just about trying to win, and who doesn't want to win? We're winning, right?

stevew 02-28-2019 11:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thomkal (Post 3232241)
I see now why Trump likes Netanyahu so much:


https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/i...harges-n977571


Is the proper response “Fake News” or something about a “politically motivated prosecution”. Need to refresh my playbook

CU Tiger 02-28-2019 11:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Julio Riddols (Post 3232240)
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see which party is mostly made up of people trying to do good for the country and which party is mostly made up of privileged old white men and redneck gun nut religious zealot lunatics who hunger for the america their parents knew back when "n*****s knew their place". We argue over pointless and short sighted shit like gun control and abortion and "religious freedom" instead of dealing with actual issues that have much larger and more widespread and long term consequences.

If we let things like low wages, poor healthcare, underfunded and undervalued education, bad working conditions, weakened environmental protections and unregulated financial bullshit to keep going on, there won't be a country left. There will simply be a controlling hierarchy and a bunch of stupid slaves. Innovation will slowly die as we lose more and more of our best and brightest to the continuing battle against intelligence. As our supply of innovators dwindle, our ability to continue leading the world will die. Eventually all that will be left is fast food, garbage and depression. Those who would eschew thinking of a future that they won't even be a part of for personal gains right now are dooming the future of our nation and world in favor of greed and pie in the sky bullshit.

God ain't coming back to save us. The rapture isn't going to protect anyone from their own self destruction, and whatever fucking deity anyone believes in isn't going to give a flying fuck about any of this shit, because they don't exist. It's time for us to evolve beyond small brain blind faith and make whatever sacrifices are needed in order to ensure that none of these fictional gods end up being the last hope humanity has left. We have to stop thinking only of what we ourselves want personally and start addressing what we as a whole need instead.

If we continue to cling to the past, we won't be able to take hold of the future.

Sorry if I offended anyone, I'm just so tired of how fucking stupid everything is every time Republicans hold power. History says all that needs to be said about that. Nobody gives a shit about history though, because nobody wants to look past what their coal miner daddy told them about the bad men trying to get them for all they're worth and think rationally. Either that or they were born too privileged to even know what it is like to have to earn your way.

I'm done.


Wowza...

Bro...that is uh...as out there as Trump is.

I think the first point of deviation in our political views comes from

Quote:

If we let things like low wages, poor healthcare, underfunded and undervalued education, bad working conditions, weakened environmental protections and unregulated financial bullshit to keep going on,

You think the government can fix these things.

I agree all of them need to be fixed, I think they are private problems beyond the ability of government to fix.

Please tell me 1 single solitary government entity or program that operates efficiently. On any level state or federal.

I agree healthcare needs to improve for all. But universal health or single payer? I mean lets turn doctor's offices into the DMV, it works so well.
There is no point in even debating the spiritual part of your diatribe. That isnt the core of the issue.

SackAttack 02-28-2019 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Atocep (Post 3232207)
It's amazing that people are latching onto some things Cohen said as proof there was no collusion with Russia and other things while at the same time tearing him apart as a pathological liar and unreliable witness.


When you tell a truth in the service of a lie, it's generally a small truth to cover a greater lie.

"He didn't collude with Russia" as the truth to make people swallow the lie that, what, he paid off a porn star at Trump's direction? You've got that ass-backwards if you're trying to undermine his credibility.

There are three options here.

1) The President consistently surrounds himself with the worst people because those are the only people who will have anything to do with him (and that says as much about him as about them);

2) Cohen is the most incompetent liar ever, surpassed, I suppose, only by all the other "liars" who have turned coat on Trump in the last two years, and that really just redounds to the first point: these are the people who will give him the time of day, and that means he's either a mark, or One of Them;

3) Cohen is nailing Trump's ass to the wall, and when he said "I don't have direct proof," it didn't mean "he didn't do it," but rather "I don't have the receipts but here's all the other shit he's lied about where I can prove otherwise, draw your own conclusions."

whomario 02-28-2019 12:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CU Tiger (Post 3232252)

I agree all of them need to be fixed, I think they are private problems beyond the ability of government to fix.



Then why are they doing uniquely bad (pedestrian in some, if you want to be kind) in the US compared to other big, industrial countries even before the Trump madness ? Either your citizens are uniquely terrible human beings and incompetent (for not being able to fix it) or because the framework in place sucks.



On Health Care: It is crazy that the debate is "private or not private" when essentially every developed country mixes the 2 to varying degrees and all have better coverage/benefits than the US in the end.


https://www.vox.com/health-care/2019...harris-sanders

JPhillips 02-28-2019 12:16 PM

Looks like Trudeau in Canada is in a shit ton of trouble for pressuring the AG to drop an investigation of an ally and then firing her.

molson 02-28-2019 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whomario (Post 3232257)

On Health Care: It is crazy that the debate is "private or not private" when essentially every developed country mixes the 2 to varying degrees and all have better coverage/benefits than the US in the end.

Debate over eliminating private health insurance offers a false choice - Vox


I don't expert conservatives to be impressed by other countries' governments, but I'd think at least SOME true fiscal conservatives would prefer a single-payer system which is much cheaper for taxpayers. Conservatives instead cling to a healthcare system that costs U.S. taxpayers more, per capita, than any other country's system in the world, by far.

Thomkal 02-28-2019 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevew (Post 3232250)
Is the proper response “Fake News” or something about a “politically motivated prosecution”. Need to refresh my playbook



both

CU Tiger 02-28-2019 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by molson (Post 3232262)
I don't expert conservatives to be impressed by other countries' governments, but I'd think at least SOME true fiscal conservatives would prefer a single-payer system which is both much cheaper for taxpayers. Conservatives instead cling to a healthcare system that costs U.S. taxpayers more, per capita, than any other country's system in the world, by far.



I think our system definitely needs to be fixed.
Im not smart enough to know how nor will I pretend to be.


I think the problem is we are "half-pregnant"....its not truly private and capitalistic and its not truly public and socialistic. I certainly fall on one side of that debate, but Im at the point where I feel like either side would be better than what we have today.


But...I also dont want to glamorize the alternate. I have friends in the UK who talk about having the flu and the next doctor appointment being 3 weeks out.



I do think, for all of the patriotic feelings I have that American bureaucracy is a special level of dysfunction not found everywhere else.

Atocep 02-28-2019 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by molson (Post 3232262)
I don't expert conservatives to be impressed by other countries' governments, but I'd think at least SOME true fiscal conservatives would prefer a single-payer system which is both much cheaper for taxpayers. Conservatives instead cling to a healthcare system that costs U.S. taxpayers more, per capita, than any other country's system in the world, by far.



The fact that the Trump administration has done everything they can to weaken and make it more difficult to sign up for ACA Healthcare and its still popular and an improvement says a lot about the current state of Healthcare in this country.

Thomkal 02-28-2019 04:16 PM

Trump Org CFO Allen Weisselberg to testify before House Intelligence Committee. They had wanted him too for months, but with Cohen name dropping him alot in his testimony, they pushed forward on it.


Attention Required! | Cloudflare

miami_fan 02-28-2019 04:17 PM

The question I am struggling with is who has the incentive to "fix" the healthcare system in the U.S.? Obviously the people receiving services say they want a better healthcare system but I don't know if They are incentivized to fix the current system so why would the government? I don't see an incentive for the professionals that provide medical services or the insurance companies either.

Thomkal 02-28-2019 05:04 PM

And Felix Sater will appear on March 14

JPhillips 02-28-2019 05:23 PM





This is so bad Ben Sasse may express concern.

Warhammer 02-28-2019 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CU Tiger (Post 3232282)
I do think, for all of the patriotic feelings I have that American bureaucracy is a special level of dysfunction not found everywhere else.


From my dealings with the post office, DMV, police, etc., I do not know why I would want our government more involved with anything.

Also, I have family in the UK. They were pleased when my grand uncle had heart issues it was here in the States because they could go in and have it fixed, rather than "wait in queue" as they put it.

cuervo72 02-28-2019 07:43 PM

From my experiences working as a contractor, I would say the biggest problems I saw were:

1. Resources. Especially at my old job, we were always working with old hardware, old software, and continual attrition. There were always things that were identified that could be done to help with processes, but too many competing priorities. I only had so much time. Or if I did sometimes have time, I didn't have the go-ahead to do something because money hadn't been approved for it (even if I was going to be there anyway).

2. Leadership turnover. And related to that, new leadership wanting to make their mark. New higher-ups come in, and they want to do things their way. Old projects which had been invested in by previous leadership would wither (who cares if they were good or not), new ones would pop up. New leadership wouldn't necessarily have the benefit of knowing what wouldn't work or had been tried before, so the same mistakes would be repeated.

3. Territorialism. Branches of organizations competing with each other or operating without knowledge of what the others were doing. This resulted either in repeated efforts (how many ticketing systems do we need, exactly?) building things which already existed or supporting multiples of the same thing.

As a contractor, you have little say over these issues because Feds > all, and if you annoy the wrong people you are easily replaced. Of course most of the work force (at least technical) is contract.

-----

So, the public sector vs private sector. Like the post office, DMV, etc. (which sometimes could simply be alleviated by...having more staff). Is private sector really that much better? You guys like customer service calls with AT&T, Verizon, etc.? Have you never gotten annoyed waiting at the deli counter? Ever waited 1.5 hours to get examined before surgery? ( ;) ) Spent half a day waiting for a cable guy, or for the dealership to actually get your car in one of the service bays?

PilotMan 02-28-2019 09:00 PM

Enron? Enron anyone?

bhlloy 02-28-2019 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Warhammer (Post 3232315)
Also, I have family in the UK. They were pleased when my grand uncle had heart issues it was here in the States because they could go in and have it fixed, rather than "wait in queue" as they put it.


Counterpoint, my mum had cancer three times and got world class care for nothing each time, where we probably would have been bankrupted sometime during treatment #2 in the States.

Also (and this point is to CU above as well), presumably your family knows that they can do exactly what they probably ended up doing in the States and paying for it, either via something that is very similar to paying for health insurance here or just out of pocket?

The NHS is wildly inconsistent between areas, and absolutely has it's problems but as a free national health care system that keeps millions alive, generally in better health than they are in the US and prioritizes critical problems, I still think it's absolutely incredible.

bhlloy 02-28-2019 10:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuervo72 (Post 3232319)
So, the public sector vs private sector. Like the post office, DMV, etc. (which sometimes could simply be alleviated by...having more staff). Is private sector really that much better? You guys like customer service calls with AT&T, Verizon, etc.? Have you never gotten annoyed waiting at the deli counter? Ever waited 1.5 hours to get examined before surgery? ( ;) ) Spent half a day waiting for a cable guy, or for the dealership to actually get your car in one of the service bays?


I think the main difference there is that innovation and disruption is generally possible and incentivized in the private sector, whereas it's generally not possible and disincentivized by the nature of government.

But I definitely agree with your point, it's human nature for things to get bloated over a certain size, for inefficiencies to manifest themselves at scale and for people who have huge realms of power and budget to protect it at all cost rather than prioritize the interests of the company. Government is just the worst example of that, but there certainly are enough of them in the private sector to make you scream as well.

I'm a contractor at a very well-known large company that blurs the lines between private and public sector but is technically private and I'm very familiar with what you are talking about. Mercifully I'm moving on after next week, it's been a very challenging 9 months.

Atocep 03-01-2019 10:18 AM

The Kushner clearance story should be massive scandal.

Just another day in the Trump administration though.

spleen1015 03-01-2019 10:37 AM

It surprises me that someone can get a clearance just because the President said so.

miked 03-01-2019 11:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Warhammer (Post 3232315)
From my dealings with the post office, DMV, police, etc., I do not know why I would want our government more involved with anything.

Also, I have family in the UK. They were pleased when my grand uncle had heart issues it was here in the States because they could go in and have it fixed, rather than "wait in queue" as they put it.


This completely ignorant, maybe they have no idea for how medicine works. If you are in the UK and you have heart problems, you do not have to wait in some imaginary queue to get examined and medicine.

CU Tiger 03-01-2019 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by miked (Post 3232361)
This completely ignorant, maybe they have no idea for how medicine works. If you are in the UK and you have heart problems, you do not have to wait in some imaginary queue to get examined and medicine.



Not if you have known problems. But to discover those problems intiially, yeah you may very well be waiting weeks to be see.

thesloppy 03-01-2019 12:34 PM

If I tried to make a non-urgent appointment with my primary care doc right now, I would undoubtedly have to wait AT LEAST a month, even if I assured them I was paying in uncut unicorn dust.



Are y'all living somewhere where the health demands are so low that you can actually get a same-day appointment with your GP? Conversely, are you saying same-day, urgent care clinics don't exist in the UK (as far as I understand, they do), or are we just arguing about the standards of some hypothetical American private healthcare system that nobody actually receives?

Lathum 03-01-2019 12:42 PM

My sister in law, an American, lives in England with her husband and 2 kids who are British. She raves about how much better the health care system there is.

miked 03-01-2019 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CU Tiger (Post 3232364)
Not if you have known problems. But to discover those problems intiially, yeah you may very well be waiting weeks to be see.


This is still not entirely true. If you need to see a doctor (like your blood pressure is 180/100) you will get to see a doctor (and no, not an expensive ER visit like the states).

I tried to make an orthopedic appointment at the hospital in which I work here in Atlanta and I was given an appointment time of >3months. I have also been given appointments of 2+ months for other issues including imaging tests. I also tried to make an appointment to get snipped (yay) and it was over a 6 month wait. Long lines are everywhere, but people who need to see doctors in both places generally do.

spleen1015 03-01-2019 01:03 PM

So, how would this work outside of the US where they have universal healthcare like the UK?

My daughter back in November started to feel some pain in her left leg during a softball tournament. Monday morning my wife calls our ortho and she's seen that day.

bhlloy 03-01-2019 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CU Tiger (Post 3232364)
Not if you have known problems. But to discover those problems intiially, yeah you may very well be waiting weeks to be see.


Unless you go private, which can work on the exact same parameters as the US, either insurance or out of pocket based.

And yeah, getting a doctors appointment if you just have unknown symptoms in the US (or more accurately getting multiple appointments and referrals) isn't exactly a utopia or painless process either. Not that I'm suggesting the NHS is either, but having had 10+ years living under both systems at this point, I know which I'd prefer.

PilotMan 03-01-2019 01:34 PM

There has to be a certain amount of benefit to knowing that when you go to the hospital that you're not going to come out bankrupt. And just the overall benefit of access to regular health care in general, that is one of the first things that gets skipped when you're poor.

bhlloy 03-01-2019 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spleen1015 (Post 3232368)
So, how would this work outside of the US where they have universal healthcare like the UK?

My daughter back in November started to feel some pain in her left leg during a softball tournament. Monday morning my wife calls our ortho and she's seen that day.


I'm assuming this is because you have good enough insurance that you can go directly to an ortho, or were comfortable paying the out of pocket costs to do so. Which is definitely an option in the UK. For many people with other insurance in the US, that option to go directly to a specialist isn't there.

On the NHS, I definitely think you wouldn't be seeing that kind of "go straight to specialist" option, but I guess it does depend on your situation and how critical you felt the problem was. Obviously the option of going into an ER would be there for you.

I think there's too many variables and hypotheticals in any discussion to really make a solid statement either way, but it does annoy me some of the BS that gets thrown around about how bad the healthcare in the UK is just to prove a political point.

Warhammer 03-01-2019 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by miked (Post 3232361)
This completely ignorant, maybe they have no idea for how medicine works. If you are in the UK and you have heart problems, you do not have to wait in some imaginary queue to get examined and medicine.


All I can relate is what they said at the time. They were in VA at the time visiting Civil War battlefields when the issue cropped up. They went to a local hospital and had it taken care of.

EDIT: Now in my personal case, when I blew up my back last year, it took me 3 months to get in and see a GP doctor for the first time. I had to jump through hoops to get to see the back doctor because they wanted a referral from my GP, not from the ER. This was due to their procedures not my insurance. I wound up having to see a nurse practitioner, who still took a week to get into, to get the referral to see the back doctor. I wound up waiting 3-4 weeks before getting to see the back doctor.

Radii 03-01-2019 02:27 PM

We have over 30 million uninsured in this country.

Even for those insured, a study published in the American Journal of Medicine showed that 42% of patients diagnosed with cancer will exhaust their life's savings within a 2 year period. "Across the population, the average patient saw a loss of $92,098" ( Study Link Here )

We can argue all we want about the imperfections in the British system or the canadian system and maybe learn from them and see if we can improve upon them, but the basis for any discussion of healthcare to me seems to start from a point of reference that we in the United States do healthcare worse than any other developed nation in the world. Adopting any other nation's imperfect system would be a dramatic, drastic and instant improvement over a system here that ignores an embarrassingly large percentage of its citizens, and bankrupts millions who have done everything right their entire lives.

As for those who fear government run healthcare that much, I would remind you that unless you plan on dying before 65, we're all going to end up on government healthcare in the end, and despite the fact that it ONLY insures the oldest and most high risk among us, it functions remarkably decently.

BYU 14 03-01-2019 03:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Radii (Post 3232376)
We have over 30 million uninsured in this country.

Even for those insured, a study published in the American Journal of Medicine showed that 42% of patients diagnosed with cancer will exhaust their life's savings within a 2 year period. "Across the population, the average patient saw a loss of $92,098" ( Study Link Here )

We can argue all we want about the imperfections in the British system or the canadian system and maybe learn from them and see if we can improve upon them, but the basis for any discussion of healthcare to me seems to start from a point of reference that we in the United States do healthcare worse than any other developed nation in the world. Adopting any other nation's imperfect system would be a dramatic, drastic and instant improvement over a system here that ignores an embarrassingly large percentage of its citizens, and bankrupts millions who have done everything right their entire lives.

As for those who fear government run healthcare that much, I would remind you that unless you plan on dying before 65, we're all going to end up on government healthcare in the end, and despite the fact that it ONLY insures the oldest and most high risk among us, it functions remarkably decently.


Thank you, working in the health insurance industry for almost 30 years it baffles me why so many people can't fucking grasp this. You can level plenty of legitimate criticism against the ACA, but the concept itself was both needed and practical. The implementation and structure, poor.

But regardless, that should be the model that we should be looking at and comparing it to Canada, Britain and others to find a sweet spot between affordability, practicality and outcome of care.

ISiddiqui 03-01-2019 04:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thesloppy (Post 3232365)
If I tried to make a non-urgent appointment with my primary care doc right now, I would undoubtedly have to wait AT LEAST a month, even if I assured them I was paying in uncut unicorn dust.



Are y'all living somewhere where the health demands are so low that you can actually get a same-day appointment with your GP? Conversely, are you saying same-day, urgent care clinics don't exist in the UK (as far as I understand, they do), or are we just arguing about the standards of some hypothetical American private healthcare system that nobody actually receives?


I can see my GP within a week, but specialists take forever. My GP wanted me to get an endoscopy and sleep study done. For both the earliest appointment was 3 months. I got lucky with the endoscopy and called up for the secondary location and was able to get it done in a month for just a 10 miles further drive.

Though when I try to schedule a physical with my GP it takes 4 months.

BishopMVP 03-01-2019 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Radii (Post 3232376)
We can argue all we want about the imperfections in the British system or the canadian system and maybe learn from them and see if we can improve upon them, but the basis for any discussion of healthcare to me seems to start from a point of reference that we in the United States do healthcare worse than any other developed nation in the world.

My quibble with this is that I think we do very well on the actual health care part, it's the payment system that's completely FUBAR.

Then I think way too much focus gets spent on how to pay for exorbitant costs that are often created by administrative bloat and poorly designed incentives or checks and balances, instead of how to reduce the amount of administration, or better incentivize efficiency. If people want to disagree on that part, cool let's have a discussion, but I reflexively oppose people who say the whole American health care system is broken because every interaction I've had with actual health care professionals has been quite quick and satisfactory, both when I was on my parents very good insurance, and when I was on my own through MassHealth.

Just like the larger economy I'd love for a very capitalistic system with limited but effective oversight that prevents monopolies etc, but I think we claim to be capitalist but don't allow the creative destruction to take place and that hurts us more in the long run than the short term pain of even very large businesses failing due to corrupt and/or ineffective practices. Big businesses being able to buy influence is a huge problem, but just allowing the government to take over those things doesn't solve the issue because they don't have to buy influence they already intrinsically have it, and despite many civil servants being good people they aren't all good people, and they obviously don't have the same urgency to innovate and get better when there are no competitors and no punishment for putting out an average product.

BishopMVP 03-01-2019 05:15 PM

It sounds like Atlanta also has longer wait times and fewer health care professionals than where I grew up in Boston. But that's not too surprising with the number of universities and the focus on health care companies in the Boston area, so I know I should be careful projecting that experience towards other parts of the country.

Down here in Charlotte it's still got a decent amount of hospitals etc compared to the rest of the state, but there's also been huge class action lawsuits for monopolization etc, so I'm guessing wait times aren't too bad but costs are higher than they should/could be.

PilotMan 03-01-2019 10:04 PM

I guess some shit went down in West Virginia that would normally be good for a few days of news cycles, but instead it's a blip and nothing more. That's crazy.

Chief Rum 03-02-2019 02:26 AM

You all should read An American Sickness: How Health Care Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back by Elisabeth Rosenthal.

I never actually got to the "take it back" part. I got too pissed off at how we're all getting fucked by Big Pharma, Health Insurance, Hospitals, the big banks that support them and the politicians being bribed/lobbied to look the other way or keep the system in place.

Thomkal 03-04-2019 11:09 AM

House Judiciary sends over 80 people associated with Trump/Trump Org document requests for their investigation into corruption and obstruction of justice. Just about everybody who's been named in connection to Mueller/Russia/ethical violations are on the list including Donald Trump Jr, Kushner, Trump campaign. I think one of the few missing is Ivanka

PilotMan 03-04-2019 07:13 PM

At least he's consistent, but no government shutdown this time.

The NDSU Bison football team went to the White House today and trump brought out the fast food buffet again. Why? Why even have any food at all?

NobodyHere 03-04-2019 07:58 PM

The Libertarian in me asks why spend any money on food at all or invite a football team for that matter?

JPhillips 03-04-2019 09:41 PM

Traditionally the President pays for the food for these events with private money. My guess is Trump desperately wants to fit in with what he thinks college students are like while also spending as little money as possible.

stevew 03-04-2019 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NobodyHere (Post 3232561)
The Libertarian in me asks why spend any money on food at all or invite a football team for that matter?


Well don't worry cause there will never be a Libertarian in the white house.

molson 03-05-2019 12:25 AM

I think it's somebody in the administration's attempt to make Trump look more folksy. Somebody else might have gotten away with it. Who cares what the athletes eat? I don't think I ever expected they had some luxury spread. A regular box lunch kind of thing would probably cost less than fast food at those volumes.

Thomkal 03-05-2019 02:23 PM

Former white house lawyer Ty Cobb says Mueller is an "american hero"


Former White House lawyer Ty Cobb calls Mueller 'an American hero' - POLITICO

Chief Rum 03-05-2019 04:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PilotMan (Post 3232559)
At least he's consistent, but no government shutdown this time.

The NDSU Bison football team went to the White House today and trump brought out the fast food buffet again. Why? Why even have any food at all?


With the wealth of idiocy this President and administration engages in, this seems like way too small a thing to be concerned about.

bbgunn 03-05-2019 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chief Rum (Post 3232653)
With the wealth of idiocy this President and administration engages in, this seems like way too small a thing to be concerned about.


Fast food for thought.

*drops mic*

Thomkal 03-07-2019 01:14 PM

Paul Manafort's sentencing today around 3:30 (the first one)

JPhillips 03-07-2019 02:56 PM

Another item for the things that should be scandals but won't be:

The President's son-in-law, who was denied a security clearance until his father-in-law overruled those responsible for the clearances, met with Saudi officials without including anyone from the State Department and so far has refused to release any details of the meetings.

Thomkal 03-07-2019 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thomkal (Post 3232766)
Paul Manafort's sentencing today around 3:30 (the first one)



Judge denies Manafort's lawyers asking for leniency on foreign banking and tax offenses. Now moving on to discussing the severity of his mortgage fraud.

QuikSand 03-07-2019 03:54 PM

Brown out, won't run for Pres. Maybe we should start counting the Dems who aren't running, it feels like a shorter list.

Thomkal 03-07-2019 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thomkal (Post 3232773)
Judge denies Manafort's lawyers asking for leniency on foreign banking and tax offenses. Now moving on to discussing the severity of his mortgage fraud.



Judge rules Mana does not get credit today for accepting responsibility for his crimes. Basically because he hasn't. But judge noted Manafort spent over 50 hours talking to Mueller.

Scoobz0202 03-07-2019 06:31 PM

47 months. America is awful.

NobodyHere 03-07-2019 06:38 PM

I've known people sentenced for longer for selling ecstasy

RainMaker 03-07-2019 06:41 PM

Texas woman jailed for five years for 'accidental' voter fraud - BBC News

Scoobz0202 03-07-2019 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RainMaker (Post 3232789)



You see, she hasn't "lived an otherwise blameless life.”

Thomkal 03-07-2019 06:49 PM

Wow, its like the judge completely ignored Manafort's history-a blameless life? I'm sure his daughter would not agree. And he even gave a lesser sentence than the defense asked for. Disgusting.

BishopMVP 03-07-2019 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RainMaker (Post 3232789)

Weird. The North Carolina judges were much more understanding. Korean green card holder avoid prison time for illegal voting in NC | Raleigh News & Observer

JPhillips 03-08-2019 07:50 AM

Somehow the Miami Herald found out the owner of the spas busted in Miami was at Mar-a-Lago for the Super Bowl party.

And there's a selfie with her and Trump.

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/pol...227186429.html

QuikSand 03-08-2019 08:03 AM

Krugman finds the nail I have been fondling here on and off, and just hammers it.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/07/o...p-deficit.html

Money quote:

Quote:

What about the ignorance? As many people have pointed out to no avail, Trump is all wrong about what trade deficits do. True, at times of high unemployment deficits can cost us jobs. But in normal times they don’t reduce overall employment, nor do they make us poorer.

On the contrary, other countries are sending us valuable goods and services, which we’re paying for with pieces of paper — paper that pays very low interest rates. Who’s winning, again?

Beyond that, however, Trump is completely wrong about what causes trade deficits in the first place. In fact, his own policies have provided an object lesson in the falsity of his vision.

In the Trumpian universe, trade deficits happen because we made bad deals — we let foreigners sell their stuff here, but they won’t let us sell our stuff there. So the solution is to throw up barriers to foreign products. “I am a Tariff Man,” he proudly proclaimed.

The reality, however, is that trade deficits have almost nothing to do with tariffs or other restrictions on trade. The overall trade deficit is always equal to the difference between domestic investment spending and domestic saving (both private and public). That’s just accounting.

albionmoonlight 03-08-2019 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JPhillips (Post 3232819)
Somehow the Miami Herald found out the owner of the spas busted in Miami was at Mar-a-Lago for the Super Bowl party.

And there's a selfie with her and Trump.

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/pol...227186429.html


It sometimes feels like we are beta-testing a political sim. And the feedback is going to be like "First, this is a really fun idea, and I'm excited for when this gets released! I do think, though, that there are some issues with the 'stickiness' of the parties' bases. Last night, I ran a scenario where I made a candidate who had very low intelligence and temperament and wisdom and ethics. I gave him high charisma and gave his opponent maximum unlikability so he could just barely get elected. I then wanted to see how badly he could lose re-election. So I pretty much set major scandals and crimes to be revealed every week (I'm talking like collusion with enemy countries and stuff and pictures of him with human traffickers). And I also just had him do nothing (I know that the the developer said that he was going to come up with effects for the 'executive time' setting, but I'm just using it in beta to fill out the schedule with no actual work (In my head, I'm pretending that the President is just sitting in bed watching TV for 8 hours a day, lol)). And every time he meets with a foreign leader in a summit, I have nothing happen from it.

"It would seem that this should tank his approval, right? But it is just sitting at 45%, and nothing is changing it. I understand that each party has a 'base' and the engine won't have a guy get, like, zero votes. But I am wondering how much our actions will matter if someone trying to lose cannot get below 45% approval. What do y'all think about that?"

PilotMan 03-08-2019 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight (Post 3232826)
It sometimes feels like we are beta-testing a political sim. And the feedback is going to be like "First, this is a really fun idea, and I'm excited for when this gets released! I do think, though, that there are some issues with the 'stickiness' of the parties' bases. Last night, I ran a scenario where I made a candidate who had very low intelligence and temperament and wisdom and ethics. I gave him high charisma and gave his opponent maximum unlikability so he could just barely get elected. I then wanted to see how badly he could lose re-election. So I pretty much set major scandals and crimes to be revealed every week (I'm talking like collusion with enemy countries and stuff and pictures of him with human traffickers). And I also just had him do nothing (I know that the the developer said that he was going to come up with effects for the 'executive time' setting, but I'm just using it in beta to fill out the schedule with no actual work (In my head, I'm pretending that the President is just sitting in bed watching TV for 8 hours a day, lol)). And every time he meets with a foreign leader in a summit, I have nothing happen from it.

"It would seem that this should tank his approval, right? But it is just sitting at 45%, and nothing is changing it. I understand that each party has a 'base' and the engine won't have a guy get, like, zero votes. But I am wondering how much our actions will matter if someone trying to lose cannot get below 45% approval. What do y'all think about that?"



This is gold. Thank you. I so badly want to steal it.

Radii 03-08-2019 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight (Post 3232826)
It sometimes feels like we are beta-testing a political sim. And the feedback is going to be like "First, this is a really fun idea, and I'm excited for when this gets released! I do think, though, that there are some issues with the 'stickiness' of the parties' bases. Last night, I ran a scenario where I made a candidate who had very low intelligence and temperament and wisdom and ethics. I gave him high charisma and gave his opponent maximum unlikability so he could just barely get elected. I then wanted to see how badly he could lose re-election. So I pretty much set major scandals and crimes to be revealed every week (I'm talking like collusion with enemy countries and stuff and pictures of him with human traffickers). And I also just had him do nothing (I know that the the developer said that he was going to come up with effects for the 'executive time' setting, but I'm just using it in beta to fill out the schedule with no actual work (In my head, I'm pretending that the President is just sitting in bed watching TV for 8 hours a day, lol)). And every time he meets with a foreign leader in a summit, I have nothing happen from it.

"It would seem that this should tank his approval, right? But it is just sitting at 45%, and nothing is changing it. I understand that each party has a 'base' and the engine won't have a guy get, like, zero votes. But I am wondering how much our actions will matter if someone trying to lose cannot get below 45% approval. What do y'all think about that?"


This is beautiful. And immensely depressing. So, just about right for the current times, well done!

QuikSand 03-08-2019 02:54 PM

+++so good

Thomkal 03-08-2019 07:44 PM

House passes along party lines a bill that requires presidents to release their tax returns.


House passes bill to require presidents to disclose their tax returns | TheHill

Thomkal 03-08-2019 07:47 PM

Trump surveys tornado damage in Alabama, then signs Bibles for survivors.

PilotMan 03-08-2019 08:33 PM

He wrote that, right?

Thomkal 03-08-2019 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PilotMan (Post 3232874)
He wrote that, right?



I'm sure his followers think so

Edward64 03-08-2019 11:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by QuikSand (Post 3232821)
Krugman finds the nail I have been fondling here on and off, and just hammers it.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/07/o...p-deficit.html

Quote:

Money quote:
In the Trumpian universe, trade deficits happen because we made bad deals — we let foreigners sell their stuff here, but they won’t let us sell our stuff there. So the solution is to throw up barriers to foreign products. “I am a Tariff Man,” he proudly proclaimed.

The reality, however, is that trade deficits have almost nothing to do with tariffs or other restrictions on trade. The overall trade deficit is always equal to the difference between domestic investment spending and domestic saving (both private and public). That’s just accounting.


Interesting. I do believe in the first bolded for the most part when talking about China and not sure I really understand the second bolded (and don't have anymore free nytimes read).

Trade deficits are when imports exceeds exports so not sure what that has to do with domestic investment spending. Appreciate anyone able to shed some light here.

Edward64 03-09-2019 05:20 AM

Go shale oil ... but only for enough time where Tesla or like can become the norm. Hate being under the yoke of ME oil.

But from what I understand, there's a difference between oil quality and we will still need some oil from ME and Venezuela.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/08/busin...bia/index.html
Quote:

Move over, Saudi Arabia. America is about to steal the kingdom's energy exporting crown.

The United States will surpass Saudi Arabia later this year in exports of oil, natural gas liquids and petroleum products, like gasoline, according to energy research firm Rystad Energy.

That milestone, driven by the transformative shale boom, would make the United States the world's leading exporter of oil and liquids. That has never happened since Saudi Arabia began selling oil overseas in the 1950s, Rystad said in a report Thursday.

"It's nothing short of remarkable," said Ryan Fitzmaurice, energy strategist at Rabobank. "Ten years ago, no one thought it could happen."

The expected breakthrough reflects how technology has reshaped the global energy landscape. Drilling innovations have opened up huge swaths of oil and natural gas resources that had been trapped in shale oilfields in Texas, North Dakota and elsewhere.

Edward64 03-09-2019 05:33 AM

Some pictures of unauthorized immigration. Puts some humanity into the discussion and from both sides.

Migrants surrender to US Border Patrol agents | 1 | New York Post

Mistakes have obviously been made (most egregious is how we screwed up separating kids from parents) but would like to think 98% of Border Patrol etc. are enforcing laws compassionately.

JPhillips 03-09-2019 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JPhillips (Post 3232819)
Somehow the Miami Herald found out the owner of the spas busted in Miami was at Mar-a-Lago for the Super Bowl party.

And there's a selfie with her and Trump.

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/pol...227186429.html


Now this goes from embarrassing to a real scandal. MotherJones is reporting that the owner of the spas has been advertising her ability to connect Chinese business people with the President and Minister of Commerce and even arrange White house and Capitol Hill dinners.

If she was so open about her activities just imagine what's going on at Mar-a-Lago with people who don't want their activities to be known.

kingfc22 03-09-2019 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thomkal (Post 3232871)
Trump surveys tornado damage in Alabama, then signs Bibles for survivors.


I prefer the Fake Melania storyline for entertainment :popcorn:

Thomkal 03-09-2019 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kingfc22 (Post 3232900)
I prefer the Fake Melania storyline for entertainment :popcorn:



Certainly better than the real ones :)

Edward64 03-09-2019 10:12 PM

I don't know the details of her proposal (I'm sure its not all baked out) however I'm not against the concept.

I do remember bits and pieces about the AT&T breakup and I think its been shown that it was a net positive.

Break up monopolistic (however that's defined) companies. I think Amazon and Google fits. Don't think FB is one. But not sure I want to do this if it puts us at a disadvantage with China.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics...ialism-at-sxsw
Quote:

Warren also ramped up criticism of the tech giants such as Amazon, Facebook and Google while speaking in front of an Austin crowd containing at least a few of their employees. Hours earlier, she unveiled a proposal to curb the power of tech companies through various means, including the reversal of what she called “anti-competitive” mergers such as Facebook’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp and Amazon’s purchase of grocery chain Whole Foods. Warren also called for Amazon and Google’s various businesses – in the latter’s case, its search engine and ad platform -- to operate as separate entities.

The 2020 Democratic candidate likened Amazon’s business practices to a game of baseball, asserting that the e-commerce platform “sucks out an incredible amount of information about every buyer and seller,” and then uses that data to gain an unfair advantage when selling its own products through “Amazon Basics."

“You can be an umpire – a platform – or you can own teams,” Warren said. “But you can’t be an umpire and own one of the teams that’s in the game.”

Warren added her plan would level the playing field between tech giants and smaller businesses.

“My view is, break those things apart and we will have a much more competitive, robust market in America,” she said.

Edward64 03-09-2019 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JPhillips (Post 3232894)
Now this goes from embarrassing to a real scandal. MotherJones is reporting that the owner of the spas has been advertising her ability to connect Chinese business people with the President and Minister of Commerce and even arrange White house and Capitol Hill dinners.

If she was so open about her activities just imagine what's going on at Mar-a-Lago with people who don't want their activities to be known.


TBH, don't think this is worthy of "scandal" yet (or at least not for Trump).

JPhillips 03-10-2019 07:45 AM

The key insight into the Trump years, the more bad shit you do, the less any of it matters.

JPhillips 03-10-2019 07:47 AM

dola



Lathum 03-10-2019 07:50 AM

Just another day in Trumps America.

SackAttack 03-10-2019 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edward64 (Post 3232890)
Go shale oil ... but only for enough time where Tesla or like can become the norm. Hate being under the yoke of ME oil.

But from what I understand, there's a difference between oil quality and we will still need some oil from ME and Venezuela.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/08/busin...bia/index.html


The thing is, what you say you want and what you're quoting are diametrically opposed.

You're touting America's emergence as a leading exporter of oil products. That isn't the same thing as energy independence. We import like 8 million barrels a day of crude, and export like 1.2 million barrels per day of the same.

JPhillips 03-10-2019 01:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by corbes (Post 3232973)
So it's almost two months in power for the House Democrats. Can you articulate what their agenda is?

And, to the extent you can name anything, is that the same agenda upon which they were elected in purple districts five months ago?


Anti-corruption.

Yes.

Atocep 03-10-2019 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by corbes (Post 3232973)
So it's almost two months in power for the House Democrats. Can you articulate what their agenda is?

And, to the extent you can name anything, is that the same agenda upon which they were elected in purple districts five months ago?



As stated above, Anti-Corruption and Voting rights are the top agenda items right now.

Net Neutrality and Legalization are backburner topics.

albionmoonlight 03-11-2019 09:27 AM

Last week, President Trump introduced Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, as "Tim Apple."

That was an easy slip of the tongue to make. Some people jumped on it and made fun of him on Twitter for it. But, whatever. Famous people who speak a lot in public sometimes mis-speak. And people make fun of them for it. And then we all go on.

Much more telling has been Trump's reaction. First, he started telling people that he said "Tim Cook, Apple," but that the microphone did not pick up the Cook. Then, when even a casual review of the tape showed that was a lie, he changed the story to this



A President who flubs a name: fine. A President who is so pathologically thin-skinned that he cannot handle the idea of people making fun of him for flubbing that name: scary.

Kodos 03-11-2019 09:57 AM

Fake flub news!

Lathum 03-11-2019 12:03 PM

Fox's Tucker Carlson's 'Bubba the Love Sponge'Â*comments spark uproar


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