May 15, 2021

Catnip Journalism. Epsiode 239 "Stefanik lied..."

Let me preface this:

When I was just a DU lurker, I saw that DU was full of intelligent people. I saw data scientists, medical professionals, lawyers, educators and just all around smart people.

I spend my day and frankly my whole life around people with 150+ IQ's.

I'm probably on the dumber end of my circle.

Anyways, PLEASE don't take what I'm about to say as:

a) sticking up for the GOP

b) criticizing other DU'ers

3) pushing GOP talking points

But as the Party of smart people, the party that respects science and reality... I really hate it when the MEDIA jumps on a topic and pushed HALF a story.

So Elise Stefanik (Idiot, NY) recently called the last jobs report "We see the worst jobs report in over 20 years," Stefanik said in reference to the April jobs report released last Friday.

And like that, here is the media reaction:

https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/14/politics/stefanik-worse-jobs-report-fact-check/index.html

https://www.rawstory.com/elise-stefanik-served-brutal-cnn-fact-check-after-brazenly-lying-about-bidens-jobs-record/

Headlines like this soon followed:

"Elise Stefanik served brutal CNN fact check after brazenly lying about Bidens job record"



Throngs at home clapped and cheered. Mission accomplished for the Media because they got clicks and users got to rub themselves all over the story like a cat does catnip.

Does it matter if CNN or RawStory were wrong?

Yes or No?

Remember, in debate it's strategic to pick a phrase of an opponent to exploit when the phrase is "non-specific".

Example: The new Ferrari is so damned fast, fastest car ever.

One, it's sloppy to NOT qualify a statement and leave it open ended.

Two, it's not accurate.

So Stefanik says "Worst jobs report in 20 years..."

CNN and others take the statement and INFER that she meant biggest jobs loss, that's what they pointed to in their fact check.

Smart move by CNN... when you frame the debate, when you define language, you control the narrative.

Was this jobs report the worst in 20 years based on the criteria used by CNN? No.

CNN wins, right?


Well, not necessarily.

As a matter of fact, the jobs forecast "miss" was the worst since 1998, 20+ years ago.

SO... Stefanik was stupidly repeating a talking point given to her by an aide but she didn't define the claim in the statement.

If she'd said "Worst jobs miss in 20+ years, she'd be accurate and CNN would have been shut out.

CNN parsed the statement to define the phrase to score a major "fact check" on her...

Cool.

So like I said... I'm not defending anyone, just really sick and tired of the progressive "Catnip Click Bait media" bullshitting us.

I really hope those that probably get this OP as a Jury read it carefully and think about it.

WG

May 12, 2021

What's with all this Liz Cheney "Atta-Girling"???

One, she's scum. She always has been. Her father is a disgraced war criminal and part of a Republican Party past that philosophically believed that every nation in the world "deserved" freedom as defined by neocons which led to the deaths of millions and civil instability.

Their movement caused ALL the destruction in the Middle East post 2000.

Dick is the father of ISIS and has bloody handprints in Egypt, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Two, she has NO political future. None. She has NO support other than the MSM giving her backslaps and Bill Kristol and the Lincoln Project.

She's going to be wiped out of the Congress in a biblical pounding in the Wy primary.

There's NO magical family power and hidden group of supporters who will propel her to political fame.

There's NO 3rd Party creation. The GOP just rec'd a record setting 74 Million votes for POTUS, almost took the House with a Boat anchor at the top of the ballot and maintained a near-stalemate in the Senate.

I IMPLORE all of you... please STOP dreaming and fantasizing about some 1 in a Billion shot at keeping Trump on the sidelines by whatever means... it's not fruitful nor based in reality.

Beat Trump and the GOP with good governance.

Watch Joe. He's working this thing masterfully, his approval numbers are A+ and he's sly enough to know where he can find bipartisan support from the GOP.

The GOP will LOSE in '22 and '24 (hopefully) because the population says "All that shit about communism and Border invasion never came true. The USA is a more compassionate country today and a more successful one, too. We're leading the world in protecting the environment AND my own life is better than before. We're now taxing the wealthy in a fair manner. Thumbs up for progressive policy."

May 11, 2021

Why all the tears for those left with lower SALT deductions?

I agree with Bernie.

I own a home in SoCal.

I paid more in taxes after losing SALT deductions.

Losing SALT deductions affects the top 10%, those making $138k+ a year. I've made 2x that for more than 10 years running...

Fortunately I own my home so I don't deduct mortgage interest. But my number still falls well above the $10k limit and I pay more in taxes than pre 2018.

Just a few facts:

If you're paying more than 10k/year on SALT, you're NOT hurting for money, in fact you're certainly a 10%'er.

YOU can still deduct mortgage interest up to a 1 MILLION dollar mortgage. You can't even QUALIFY for a 1 MILLION dollar mortgage without an income of $300k+

Like Bernie said... we really hurt our own position standing up for the Blue state wealthy after talking about wealth inequality.

May 9, 2021

Trump, the great Consolidator.

Saw someone ask if Trump passed away, would his "movement" go away?

The answer is no, of course not.

Trumpism is a catch-all phrase for 50 years worth of philosophies.

The following groups have been around for 50+ years.

Evangelical Christians
Rockefeller Republicans
Ayn Rand/John Galt types
Racists
The Disenfranchised


Evangelical Christians: Part of their belief structure revolves around the concept that THEY are the last "good parts" on a dying, decaying world being consumed by evil liberals. Only the final reckoning will cleanse the world.

Rockefeller Republicans: This group has actually been getting smaller as more and more "uber-rich" grow a conscience and become progressive.

Ayn Rand/John Galt types: Yup, the Paul family and their ilk. Live and let live or Live and let die, same shit. What's mine is mine, hands off. The alpha gets the girl and the 6 figure paycheck and the beta gets a can of beans and a cardboard box.

Racists: Always been here. Depending on the political cycle they've been more or less active. Not many racists got excited about Mitt.

The Disenfranchised: THIS was Trump's specialty. THESE included the Obama>Trump voters. Many of this group are old school Democrats who feel the Country has let them down. The type that like the "America First" rhetoric because they believed it meant help the people who are hurting first, the "My father worked in a factory 40 hrs a week, owned a home, my mom stayed home with 3 kids and we went on a Summer vacation every year. Why do I eat dirt today?" people.



So will the movement disappear?

No.

Because these groups won't disappear.

But certain R's can't bring the groups together. Mitt the shit and the Rick Wilson group of people can't bring together even HALF the groups.

Let's be honest. The GOP turned back a decades long threat to their power by expanding their base. 74+ Million votes is a record for a sitting POTUS, they nearly took the House even with repugnant Trump on the ballot, motivated Dems and universal mail-in balloting.

The GOP have ONE strength and ONE weakness. It's name is Trump.

They NEED him to rally the troops and raise hell from 2021-2024 BUT not run for POTUS himself. They need a Kristi Noem to run directly off the Orange playbook to bring the base together and be less "hate-able" than Trump to the general public.

May 3, 2021

The sad irony of our current political climate. If Trump pushed "Patriot Vaccination"...

Would 40% of DEMS refuse the jab?

Like I've said in the past... Doofus should have called up Presidents Obama, Carter, Shrub and Clinton on ZOOM and asked each to produce PSA's for TV, Radio and Social Media promoting the vaccination AND made them himself.

The politicization of a fucking GLOBAL PANDEMIC is disgusting.

We COULD have done sooooo much better.

I blame everyone. I blame CNN for daily C19 hit pieces on the GOP, I blame Trump's IDIOCY, the anti-mask zealots.

HOW did we get to a point that protecting your family and community is "liberal"???

I AM a Scientist and I can assure you there's no need to mask up walking your dog outside with sufficient social distancing.

I hike at a local spot and received glares from the Mask "karens" even though we were on a rugged hillside with 10'+ distancing...

I've spent time explaining "viral loading" and the fact that all 330 million Americans have come into contact with C19 particles.

It's like cyanide in tap water. It's there, just not enough to hurt you.

I hope lessons have been learned because I think we were served poorly by just about everyone.

TO ADD: Trump started it by making himself front and center for C19 policy.

This gave the response a political slant and 50%+ of the country instantly went on attack. He SHOULD have announced the formation of a non-political team to be the face of C19 response and then STAYED THE HELL out of it.

May 2, 2021

I hope we don't get bogged down in futile legislation. AKA Legislative masturbation.

What do you call it when the GOP House votes to abolish ObamaCare 58 times?

Legislative Masturbation: The process of writing, supporting and voting on legislation that stands NO CHANCE of finding willing partners in the Senate or the White House.

HR1 (or w/e it's called now) and DC Statehood, AWB, etc... all DEAD.

The Administration and the DEMS in total need to push hard for things that CAN BE DONE NOW.

I FIRMLY believe that enhanced firearm background checks and other logical regulations can be passed NOW.

ObamaCare can be fixed and improved NOW with the existing Congress.

Social Security can be improved, including Joe's promise to increase the minimum payment to 15.2k/yr

Infrastructure. GOP might not go for $2T but $1.5T would be great.

Tax Reform. Get the rich paying their fair share.



“Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”

May 1, 2021

Europe officially passes 1,000,000 COVID-19 fatalities... damn.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100215346354

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries

https://apnews.com/article/europe-coronavirus-pandemic-united-nations-geneva-445a05dc12e3bd86001b5e82172d966e

GENEVA (AP) — A top official from the World Health Organization says Europe has surpassed 1 million deaths from COVID-19 and the situation remains “serious,” with about 1.6 million new cases reported each week in the region.

When analyses are done in the future, it will show that widely and broadly, similar cultures and nations fared similarly. Western culture breeds this independence and desire for freedom that hurt the cause...

The US and Europe share similar cultures, economies, infrastructure, population density and medical systems... very similar C19 results.

April 30, 2021

The FBI already HAS Hunter Biden's Laptop...

Wtf with Rudy G?

The FBI subpoenaed a Laptop from a Delaware Computer shop in 2019, widely believed to belong to Hunter Biden.

CNN reported that it's unclear if the Laptop contains evidence to support the ongoing criminal investigations re: Biden's foreign business dealings... with China and Ukraine.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/02/politics/hunter-biden-laptop/index.html

April 28, 2021

Biden tax proposals too soft...

The chances for tax reform decrease the closer we get to '22

37 to 39.6? It's ok but uninspiring. The slice of the population who earns taxable regular income at that level is small.

Joe needs to explain to people that the C19 cost this country over $6T and as a great nation we must pay our debt.

Announce a set of tax proposals with a 10 year phase-out window.

Take the 37 to 50.

Per transaction Wall St. fees

Wealth Tax

And the Capital Gains increases, it's being said the limit will be $1M/yr in income. Really? That's NOT protecting senior citizens and hard working middle class families, that's protecting the RICH.

So one can ride around in the golf cart and make $1M a year and pay half the tax rate as the electrician/school teacher?

Don't get me wrong. I appreciate the direction. I'm just afraid it's too meek.

April 26, 2021

OFFICIAL Census results, Redistricting ahead... the numbers

Not as bad as feared for DEMS...

Changes House alignment by around R+6

Biden 2020 map would have lost just 3 EV's

https://twitter.com/Redistrict/status/1386760864267649032?s=20

https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1386766872612384776?s=20