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Mike 03

Mike 03's Journal
Mike 03's Journal
July 31, 2020

This is another instance where stories circulated for years, but for some reason reporters

either avoided or were unable to develop enough on-the-record sources to go to press.

Like Weinstein.
Like Bryan Singer.
Like Cosby, and John Landis' son, and Les Moonves, and Brett Ratner and so many others.

These people have very powerful lawyers who will do almost anything to make these stories "go away."

July 31, 2020

Haberman still doesn't understand something very elemental.

What she writes is true of Trump. He doesn't even allow himself to contemplate the possibility that he's the cause of harming others. But that's not true for people like Jared Kushner and Stephen Miller, and the others. They totally understand what they are doing.

Jared Kushner was even quoted months ago saying: "I don't care about any of that."

“I told Jared that if Trump won a second term, he wouldn’t have to worry about running again and you can really help people. Jared just looked at me and said, ‘I don’t care about any of that,’ ” the executive told the outlet.


https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/495270-insiders-describe-kushner-as-de-facto-president-who-played-key-role

It's important to get the pathology right. Trump is surrounded by advisors who completely understand they are killing Americans, and they intend to do so.

Haberman is still giving the White House an exit ramp they don't deserve. It's like that ridiculous (mostly discredited) argument about Auschwitz, that killing the Jewish people was so compartmentalized that the people involved weren't actually aware they were participating in The Holocaust.

They have blinders on and can't see

Give me a break.
July 29, 2020

Undo all the Executive Orders that rolled back environmental protections

Trump has set us back decades in terms of environmental law.

Also, anything he's done to ruin or privatize our National Parks, open wilderness preserves up to hunting, etc... Ridiculous projects like uranium mining in the Grand Canyon, Pebble Mine up in Alaska, pipelines that destroy Native American water supplies and sacred lands. Trump made it legal in Alaska to kill baby bears and wolf cubs in their dens! Didn't he also approve the use of cyanide bombs to kill wildlife in some state like Iowa or Montana? Those bombs are sometimes happened upon by children.

And it is a health issue too. Dirty air today is tomorrow's lung cancer, miscarriage or childhood asthma. Filthy water today is tomorrow's bladder and gallbladder cancer.

We need to restore the things that make our country beautiful.

July 29, 2020

Adam Schiff would sure be a desirable person for any number of roles,

if he's interested.

So much depends on who Biden picks for VP.

Susan Rice would be an amazing Secretary of State IMO.

Kamala Harris would be an amazing AG.

Jay Inslee for Climate Czar.

Almost all of our primary candidates would make splendid cabinet officers, so long as we don't rob the Senate of some of our stars.

There's an abundance of riches out there.

July 28, 2020

That is what a DUer with some medical background said.

I think he/she called it "foot drop".

Causes
Foot drop is caused by weakness or paralysis of the muscles involved in lifting the front part of the foot. Causes of foot drop might include:

Nerve injury. The most common cause of foot drop is compression of a nerve in your leg that controls the muscles involved in lifting the foot (peroneal nerve). This nerve can also be injured during hip or knee replacement surgery, which may cause foot drop.

A nerve root injury — "pinched nerve" — in the spine can also cause foot drop. People who have diabetes are more susceptible to nerve disorders, which are associated with foot drop.

Muscle or nerve disorders. Various forms of muscular dystrophy, an inherited disease that causes progressive muscle weakness, can contribute to foot drop. So can other disorders, such as polio or Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.

Brain and spinal cord disorders. Disorders that affect the spinal cord or brain — such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis or stroke — may cause foot drop.


https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/foot-drop/symptoms-causes/syc-20372628

But I don't know, and I'm definitely NOT a doctor. Just a curious person.
July 28, 2020

I would listen to Fauci.

You don't have to be an anti-vaxxer to want to be cautious about anything Trump is rushing into production and stands to profit from. It's no longer the old FDA--it's the FDA under Trump. I'd be more confident in a vaccine coming from Europe. My preference, as I've said before, would be to wait a few months and just make sure it's not another Swine Flu vaccine debacle. Nobody who has a good life and good health wants to end up with Guillain Barre syndrome, or some other potential negative outcome.

July 28, 2020

As other DUers have noted, Trump is looking increasingly frail. He's under constant

stress (of his own making) and has aged considerably, suffered cognitive decline, and there have been rumors (along with visual circumstantial evidence) he's used and abused various substances, so it's natural to wonder how his immune system would respond to a significant challenge.

Even if he doesn't get COVID-19, given his performance at that Rose Garden campaign event two weeks ago, it's realistic to wonder if he can hold out until November.

July 27, 2020

All fair points.

There's no question whatsoever, IMO, that Trump is the worst thing to happen to this country in my lifetime. It will leave a scar, too.

I'm not in favor of the wealthy suffering, just pointing out that they suffer less. I think it comes from the attitude my father had. We were economically comfortable and there were times when he said it was right and fair that we felt more economic pain than people who needed more help than we did. My feelings weren't hurt that I didn't get a stimulus check. I don't know. I'm sorry I don't have a stronger negative opinion about high-worth individuals taking a haircut during this emergency.

A little financial pressure on the wealthy might give them second thoughts about voting for Trump.



July 27, 2020

I'm not arguing with your point, just trying to figure this out.

Some things to keep in mind:

The very high wage earners you're talking about also get huge bonuses, and have a much easier time obtaining loans than medium or low income workers. It's not fair, but such employees have an easier time accessing capital in general.

They are likely to have a high net worth overall, separate from their annual salary.

They are more likely to have equity holdings they can liquidate for cash should the necessity arise.

This is one reason that people earning over a certain amount of money didn't receive stimulus checks. Having more money does make a difference because assuming you're sensible and prudent, you have a cushion.

July 27, 2020

Yep!

Although, to be fair, Britain struggled a bit to get engaged in the early stages of WW2. (Of course, it wasn't entirely their fault--there was the fiasco in Belgium). I almost hate to point that out, since they were tremendous heroes at most stages of the war and bore the brunt of many brutal aerial and sea attacks.

The British are our greatest allies.

We could use a Churchill now, or an FDR.

Profile Information

Gender: Male
Hometown: Modesto California
Home country: United States
Current location: Arizona
Member since: Mon Oct 27, 2008, 06:14 PM
Number of posts: 16,616
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