Posts by bohm

The rumors you are talking about did not make it to the mainstream media because ... they were unsubstantiated rumors. If they somehow had made it into the briefings of Obama then they too would have been news because what the president is briefed on is news. It's really rather simple.

BTW, if you think the opposition to Trump has anything to do with who peed on him you are not following the news...

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Why is Trump so effective???

by Coded Logic in

i think trump is an absolute idiot.

his tactics, however, are undeniably effective.

thought i'd just put together a short list of some of the things he does.

bohm

FMF: The sale of arms is a contract between the US government and the country that is receiving the sale.

This program is conducted through formal contracts or agreements between the U.S. government (USG) and an authorized foreign purchaser. These agreements are called U.S. letters of offer and acceptance (LOA)

It isn't the state department just selling arms to the afghans (nevermind I can't tell why that is such a bad thing considering the alternatives but I bet it is something Muslim-related).

Since you brought this up as a reason to reduce the state department, your idea is that the US should not be able to sell arms to other countries if it sees the need for that, or that it is okay but the state department should not approve it, or what?

It isn't even an argument; you just point out that the state department approved an arms sale, assume I know why this is such a bad thing (it would be better for the afghan government to fail?), and thereby, well, I should conclude that the problem is the state department and not the US government even if that would be an equally well-supported conclusion.

I am happy that you have returned from your exile to enlighten me.

74

Why is Trump so effective???

by Coded Logic in

i think trump is an absolute idiot.

his tactics, however, are undeniably effective.

thought i'd just put together a short list of some of the things he does.

bohm

Coded and I were having a good discussion, now that bohm is here I will leave and not waste my time as it took him no time to start jumping around with nonsense

The "my arguments are so awesome that I will just call you an idiot and run for the hills" response.

Well, you certainly showed me.

Just to summarize:

The state department is bad because the state department APPROVED a transfer of arms&training from the US government to be delivered to the afghan government which is a democracy fighting the remains of the Taliban....which is a totally bad thing.

Guess a better strategy would be to let the Afghans fail. I mean, it is halfway around the world so what bad could possibly come of that?

74

Why is Trump so effective???

by Coded Logic in

i think trump is an absolute idiot.

his tactics, however, are undeniably effective.

thought i'd just put together a short list of some of the things he does.

bohm

freemindfade:

Can you explain who requested the sale and what the state department's role in the sale was?

Hint: See table 5-1 of this document

http://www.disam.dsca.mil/pubs/DR/05%20Chapter.pdf

74

Why is Trump so effective???

by Coded Logic in

i think trump is an absolute idiot.

his tactics, however, are undeniably effective.

thought i'd just put together a short list of some of the things he does.

bohm

74

Why is Trump so effective???

by Coded Logic in

i think trump is an absolute idiot.

his tactics, however, are undeniably effective.

thought i'd just put together a short list of some of the things he does.

bohm

As I said, THE U.N. IS BAD VALUE FOR THE MONEY.

What can be asserted without evidence...

Russia invading eastern Ukraine, (...) Where is the U.N.?

Well, where is Trump? You mention problems that are largely due to the failure of nation-states to engage in diplomacy and lawful behavior, then use that as an argument to say that we should do away with the UN which provides an international forum to define lawful behaviour and impose consequences for unlawful behaviour, however imperfect. The argument makes as much sense as saying that because there are still fires we should do away with the fire department.

Here is a more relevant "where is"-question: Where is Polio?

74

Why is Trump so effective???

by Coded Logic in

i think trump is an absolute idiot.

his tactics, however, are undeniably effective.

thought i'd just put together a short list of some of the things he does.

bohm

So I think the media is presenting it as chaos, when rather it’s his move to redirect money into American problems within the country, not outside.

Let's fact-check that. The state department oversees negotiation of trade and foreign negotiations including diplomacy, i.e. looking after US interests to the outside world by non-violent means including trade.

Trump is slashing state department funding (and don't rely on what you think; read what people who work with these institutions are saying) to give money to (primarily) the military, who looks after US interests abroad by violent means.

So you have to define "American problems" in some way to conform to that reality; i.e. not as having to do with trade or negotiations, but about military power.

What problems are those, exactly? Syria/ISIS is trying to be solved using an international coalition (and with considerable success), but nobody suggested that it was a matter of military power, i.e. hundreds of thousans of US troops in Iraq & Syria.

Meanwhile, which "American problems" are Trump focusing on? Surely not the problem of getting health insurance if you are above 60 and not rich (24 mil. are projected to loose insurance), or the problem of global warming, or the problem of safety regulations if you are a minor, or the problem of various environmental problems which will be made worse by the slashing of e.g. the EPA, or the problem of getting your kids educated if you are not rich.

The budget can be spun various ways, but if you just look at the numbers Trumps budget can be more fairly described as "reducing funding for domestic programs that deal with health/safety for common people, reduce funding for US diplomacy and give tax reduction to the rich and increase military spending". If you disagree please show me which items I am missing out on.

Another thing to consider is what has out state department become? It has become a “political” state department. From 1789 to about 9/11 that’s not what it was. Now it’s another bloated government agency spilling and crossing over into other departments.

I got no idea what this means and It sounds like pure opinion.

Yes, the state department has expanded, reflecting the increasing needs for diplomacy and negotiation of trade agreements in a more and more globalized world where problems aren't resolved by military. Why is that bad?

16

EU court upholds an employer's right to ban religious symbols

by careful in

first i should say that i do not like islam for multiple reasons, not the least of which is the moslem treatment of women.

still, the free exercise of anyone's peaceful observance of their religion, including moslems, trumps my personal preferences.

also, living in america, i evidently enjoy a greater degree of religious liberty than i see in recent years in continental europe, something that continues to baffle me.. today the european court of justice, the same group that has stood up for the rights of jws, has decreed that it is ok for employers to ban the wearing of religious symbols among employees.

bohm

EdenOne: That is what I was thinking...

I would hate to be the one to decide on a law such as this.

74

Why is Trump so effective???

by Coded Logic in

i think trump is an absolute idiot.

his tactics, however, are undeniably effective.

thought i'd just put together a short list of some of the things he does.

bohm

Coded logic: Very nice summary, and it shows how difficult it is to keep up. I had forgotten some of the items and the list is not even complete! Imagine this was Hillary or Obama who just, whoopsie, forgot to staff the State department...

I think in particular (1) is one of the items that are very difficult to swallow. It seems that on many fronts the US is simply removing itself from its previous role in the international community. That can potentially have great consequences when someone (Putin, etc. ) tries to fill that vacancy. Just today reports of Russian troops in Egypt near the Border of Libya is floating in. I would not be surprised if that becomes the next refugee disaster...