Trump wins!

[noddy]

Australia backs us up in every war, you don't even have to ask. God bless those alcoholics 'cause let me tell you somethin'-- it's not a secret that they have a drinking problem. But they always show up for us in every war and they don't have to show up for anybody, 'cause technically, they're not even part of the globe. They're not on the globe, I know that. There's six planets closer to us than Australia right now.

heh, sad but true - it was England before it was you guys - in both cases for the somewhat misguided belief you would help if China or Indonesia decided it needed more space.

I think we accept that while that may or may not have been true in the previous century, its probably not true anymore.

Someday soon, Strayans will regard American politicians as highly as Americans do.

Hate to say we told you so, but we told you so!

well, the thing is that before, politicians came and went but America was mostly consistent in its external policy and promises with treaties and foreign policies.

it seems to be quite whimsical at the moment, more like dealing with zimbabwe - are we going to get AOC or Trump, will either of them be reliable for rules made before their reign.

[Simple Minded]

well, the thing is that before, politicians came and went but America was mostly consistent in its external policy and promises with treaties and foreign policies.

it seems to be quite whimsical at the moment, more like dealing with zimbabwe - are we going to get AOC or Trump, will either of them be reliable for rules made before their reign.

yeh, but that was before we learned that all white people are evil...... try to be less like the UK, Canada, and the US, and maybe the gods of fashion will smile upon you as a minority worthy of supporting.

African-Americans are considered a minority, Australian-Americans should be even more so.

the gods are whimsical, none more so the the gods of fashionable zeitgeist, the politicians....

[crashtech66]

...heh, sad but true - it was England before it was you guys - in both cases for the somewhat misguided belief you would help if China or Indonesia decided it needed more space.

I think we accept that while that may or may not have been true in the previous century, its probably not true anymore...

Actually defending one of our greatest allies would, for once, be a war worth fighting. I know my elected reps would get a hot earful if there was ever any hesitation in that regard. I'm fairly certain we'd not let a real violation of Australia's sovereignty go unchallenged.

Constitutionally, the POTUS does not have a say in declaring a real war, Congress does that.

[noddy]

whilst that is certainly true in many ways (especially for Indonesian aggression) the ugly question for not just Australia but also South Korea,Japan , Phillipines - all traditionally pro american places in south asia, is how much we truly believe you lot would go to war with China on our behalf.

the answer to that is that every year that passes , America turns more inward with local problems and China turns outward with more aggresive ownership of the region and it seems very unlikely that you *could* do anything, even if some sectors of your government wanted to.

a pair of Nuclear armed countries with the will to use them, destroying eachother for a few million folks in the southern hemisphere.. many think not.

[NapLajoieonSteroids]

a pair of Nuclear armed countries with the will to use them, destroying eachother for a few million folks in the southern hemisphere.. many think not.

well there's the problem- if you Aussies are gonna get yourselves into a war, pick an easier opponent and we'll definitely show up.

I'm thinking an Emu War Redux...

[NapLajoieonSteroids]

...heh, sad but true - it was England before it was you guys - in both cases for the somewhat misguided belief you would help if China or Indonesia decided it needed more space.

I think we accept that while that may or may not have been true in the previous century, its probably not true anymore...

Actually defending one of our greatest allies would, for once, be a war worth fighting. I know my elected reps would get a hot earful if there was ever any hesitation in that regard. I'm fairly certain we'd not let a real violation of Australia's sovereignty go unchallenged.

Constitutionally, the POTUS does not have a say in declaring a real war, Congress does that.

Beat me to it...

Australia has a lot of goodwill and on that list of countries where popular sentiment here would be gun-ho to support.

[NapLajoieonSteroids]

whilst that is certainly true in many ways (especially for Indonesian aggression) the ugly question for not just Australia but also South Korea,Japan , Phillipines - all traditionally pro american places in south asia, is how much we truly believe you lot would go to war with China on our behalf.

the answer to that is that every year that passes , America turns more inward with local problems and China turns outward with more aggresive ownership of the region and it seems very unlikely that you *could* do anything, even if some sectors of your government wanted to.

a pair of Nuclear armed countries with the will to use them, destroying eachother for a few million folks in the southern hemisphere.. many think not.

I don't see it as an ugly question, it's a very reasonable one. The fact of the matter is no one knows unless and until it happens.

But it is not all that dissimilar to the question of would Americans really show up in Europe during the Cold War....

The funny thing is, at least as far as popular sentiment goes, I have greater confidence that Americans would want to be there for South Korea; for Japan; for Australia and New Zealand and even the Philippines than during the Cold War when the Germans and French were asking the same questions.

But popular sentiment, whatever it may be, and a few bucks gets you a cup of coffee. And no one goes to war without making sure that they get something from it; nor does willingness equal ability. Unlike the Cold War, we may not be able to...and then we have the extra complications of Pacific reaching Russia, and the Indians and Pakistanis.

I'm sure the Indians and Pakistanis would be thrilled with China and the US blowing up the South Pacific.

[noddy]

the real answer is probably a combination of the 2 positions in that we ask for a nuke, you sell us one, and then we have our own version of MAD to keep China honest.

that way it isnt ww3 and an all in nightmare, its just us becoming another north korea

---

the other being how much we dont already have one and this is all just a matter of going public and changing perceptions, not realities.
We are a first world country which suspiciously runs a couple of non productive nuclear facilities and have scientists with the full training to build such things, the time frames to delivery are perhaps rather short anyway.

[Simple Minded]

whilst that is certainly true in many ways (especially for Indonesian aggression) the ugly question for not just Australia but also South Korea,Japan , Phillipines - all traditionally pro american places in south asia, is how much we truly believe you lot would go to war with China on our behalf.

the answer to that is that every year that passes , America turns more inward with local problems and China turns outward with more aggresive ownership of the region and it seems very unlikely that you *could* do anything, even if some sectors of your government wanted to.

a pair of Nuclear armed countries with the will to use them, destroying eachother for a few million folks in the southern hemisphere.. many think not.

I am often amazed that anyone takes the words of a US politician as meaningful. Even if they say "water is wet." IIRC, most have no qualms about completely reversing positions, and even denying they ever voiced their earlier opinions. Often within less than a year. Very surprising in this day of everything is recorded. I suspect it requires a complicit media. As Napster said, no one knows until it happens.

Maybe a PR campaign to point out that Strayans are a minority in the Eastern hemisphere, or getting as crazy the latest version of Kim Jung would give you guys some "critical mass."

FWIW, I'm fine with shipping you guys and a few of your neighbors some nukes. We could probably spare a couple hundred. I suspect they are the weapon of the last war. Bio weapons and ones and zeros are the weapon of the future, IMO.

All that said, it would be nice to see the US turn inward and focus on internal problems that are solvable. More fun to talk about abstract things and proselytize, than deal with boring subjects like borders, infrastructure, and budgets. So I don't expect that to change anytime soon.

[Doc]

Trump highlights the "smugnorance" of the left

MdLCRGNXAYE

[Simple Minded]

https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... im-with-20

I would have answered the question by saying. "I like to carry some cash with me in case I need to pay off some Russians....... or Democrats..... or Republicans."

[Doc]

https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... im-with-20

I would have answered the question by saying. "I like to carry some cash with me in case I need to pay off some Russians....... or Democrats..... or Republicans."

Waiting for the Democrats and MSM to insist this is grounds for impeachment.

[Typhoon]

https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... im-with-20

I would have answered the question by saying. "I like to carry some cash with me in case I need to pay off some Russians....... or Democrats..... or Republicans."

Waiting for the Democrats and MSM to insist this is grounds for impeachment.

Well, you did not have to wait long.

NY Times | Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry of Trump

[Nonc Hilaire]

https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... im-with-20

I would have answered the question by saying. "I like to carry some cash with me in case I need to pay off some Russians....... or Democrats..... or Republicans."

Waiting for the Democrats and MSM to insist this is grounds for impeachment.

Well, you did not have to wait long.

NY Times | Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry of Trump

Can’t believe DNC is so insular that they think giving Trump free air time on MSM is going to work out well for them.

[Typhoon]

https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... im-with-20

I would have answered the question by saying. "I like to carry some cash with me in case I need to pay off some Russians....... or Democrats..... or Republicans."

Waiting for the Democrats and MSM to insist this is grounds for impeachment.

Well, you did not have to wait long.

NY Times | Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry of Trump

Can’t believe DNC is so insular that they think giving Trump free air time on MSM is going to work out well for them.

Taki's Mag |Understanding the Impeachment Charade

Sadly, Nadler and Pelosi were right in 1998. Republicans should not have impeached Clinton, and they paid the price. Democrats today hate Trump. It’s not about justice or truth. What they care about is winning the 2020 presidential election. Democratic leaders have decided that impeaching Trump is essential if they’re going to win next year. So they’re staking everything on this bizarre, flimsy scandal that the rest of us can barely understand.

The issues aren’t really complicated. Why in the world would a Ukrainian company pay Hunter Biden $50,000 a month? We still haven’t heard an answer. If we’re talking about Ukraine and impeachment, we’re talking about Biden’s alleged corruption. That can’t help his campaign for president. In fact, it’s likely to tank it. It looks like sabotage, really. They must have gamed this up. Or maybe Democrats have just become so obsessed with destroying Trump that they’re accidentally destroying themselves.

[Nonc Hilaire]

Trump has little access to MSM. Not even debates this year. So the Dems give the media master a week of free MSM grandstanding in the house which will be carried by every station and watched by a Superbowl size audience?

Idiots.

[Simple Minded]

Trump has little access to MSM. Not even debates this year. So the Dems give the media master a week of free MSM grandstanding in the house which will be carried by every station and watched by a Superbowl size audience?

Idiots.

It almost seems like CNN, MSNBC, etc. might be giving the nut jobs in the DNC lots of air time to cull the field for a Hilary, Michelle Obama, or Oprah.

As Mark Twain said "It is better to remain silent and appear to be an durian, than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt."

[Doc]

Breaking Biden Campaign demands networks stop inviting Giuliani on their networks !!

biden.jpg (128 KiB) Viewed 1180 times

[Parodite]

It seems to me the trick in beginning to even start to find out about this Ukraine situation is to not believe anything. The Ukraine, torn apart by years long Russian interference and their Ukrainian stooge oligarchs, vis a vis Ukrainian nationalist groups from pro western/EU to ultra nationalist with opportunistic business people from anywhere lurking around aiming a play and ride here or there for as long as a good buck can be made.

There is no "rule of law" anyone agrees on or could refer to. Lies dominate over truth, deliberate and calculated false accusations via "lawfare" a daily survival strategy. Me thinks if it was possible to truly get to the truth in detail on anything in the Ukraine, it would be an onion where you keep peeling of layer after layer of lies and tragedy. Where nobody is safe, where the richest oligarch fears for his existence as much as daily Jacovich does. A Black Morass where the food chain has no head or tail and everything just stinks.

Both Russia and the West are fighting to keep or get the Ukraine into their own muddy mold. For the power, the money, for any value or virtue as a reason and excuse. No "clean" fight is ever possible there. It's like diving into the mud and expecting to come out clean and shaved looking like a teeth whitened Jo Biden. (His son looks indeed a more muddy, but that might be a coincidence).

An interesting piece of info I find the Shokin Statement:



Probably half-true and half-false and certainly not the whole story. But is seems to give directions down into the muck where you can find even more valuable waste. Maybe even the perfect poo.

[NapLajoieonSteroids]

It seems to me the trick in beginning to even start to find out about this Ukraine situation is to not believe anything. The Ukraine, torn apart by years long Russian interference and their Ukrainian stooge oligarchs, vis a vis Ukrainian nationalist groups from pro western/EU to ultra nationalist with opportunistic business people from anywhere lurking around aiming a play and ride here or there for as long as a good buck can be made.

There is no "rule of law" anyone agrees on or could refer to. Lies dominate over truth, deliberate and calculated false accusations via "lawfare" a daily survival strategy. Me thinks if it was possible to truly get to the truth in detail on anything in the Ukraine, it would be an onion where you keep peeling of layer after layer of lies and tragedy. Where nobody is safe, where the richest oligarch fears for his existence as much as daily Jacovich does. A Black Morass where the food chain has no head or tail and everything just stinks.

Both Russia and the West are fighting to keep or get the Ukraine into their own muddy mold. For the power, the money, for any value or virtue as a reason and excuse. No "clean" fight is ever possible there. It's like diving into the mud and expecting to come out clean and shaved looking like a teeth whitened Jo Biden. (His son looks indeed a more muddy, but that might be a coincidence).

An interesting piece of info I find the Shokin Statement:



Probably half-true and half-false and certainly not the whole story. But is seems to give directions down into the muck where you can find even more valuable waste. Maybe even the perfect poo.

+1

The audacious thing is that the Ukraine has been a toilet dump for political spyfare/shakedowns for over decade now but the media strategy is to blunt-force deny all of it with a fire hose of propaganda.

[Doc]

What is going on with "Ukraine" WRT to Trump is actually quite simple to understand:

hSG800M8n9c

[Parodite]

+1

The audacious thing is that the Ukraine has been a toilet dump for political spyfare/shakedowns for over decade now but the media strategy is to blunt-force deny all of it with a fire hose of propaganda.

Indeed. The media just makes sure to produce news with the most views; fake and gossipy news plus smear campaigning is their business model. They appear to be on the dem side, but more likely they don't give a damn. The dems themselves are lost and in the process being torn apart. To beat Trump all they need to do is be, or even just make the effort to appear, reasonable and policy focused.

[Parodite]

What is going on with "Ukraine" WRT to Trump is actually quite simple to understand:

There are no grounds for impeachment, but Biden's son working for Burisma is also sort of a nothing burger. But Ukraine-gate will be like Russia-gate: all that will come of it is Dems shooting themselves in the foot once again, where in time more and more people people will realize it was the same dems and their "friends" in the media and in the intelligence services who accuse Trump of what they themselves have been doing. This will not go away in the post-Trump era and be used in future political battles against the dems probably quite succesfully. Lies don't tend to have very long life expectancy. No matter the intensity of the assault, facts and truth have some very durable qualities and enough people will always be hungry for them.

[Simple Minded]

What is going on with "Ukraine" WRT to Trump is actually quite simple to understand:

There are no grounds for impeachment, but Biden's son working for Burisma is also sort of a nothing burger. But Ukraine-gate will be like Russia-gate: all that will come of it is Dems shooting themselves in the foot once again, where in time more and more people people will realize it was the same dems and their "friends" in the media and in the intelligence services who accuse Trump of what they themselves have been doing. This will not go away in the post-Trump era and be used in future political battles against the dems probably quite succesfully. Lies don't tend to have very long life expectancy. No matter the intensity of the assault, facts and truth have some very durable qualities and enough people will always be hungry for them.

One of the most interesting aspect of modern US politics is how the Dems and the MSM can take an arrogant, obnoxious, jerk like Trump and make him almost likable by turning him into a victim that people can empathize with. While trying to claim victim status as their personal brand to market, they have turned Trump into the awkward kid every knew or could identify with that was often getting bullied.

Trump reminds me of the kid who finds the pain of getting beat up is superseded by the joy of knowing that you irritated your attackers to the point where they lost their temper.

[Doc]

What is going on with "Ukraine" WRT to Trump is actually quite simple to understand:

There are no grounds for impeachment, but Biden's son working for Burisma is also sort of a nothing burger. But Ukraine-gate will be like Russia-gate: all that will come of it is Dems shooting themselves in the foot once again, where in time more and more people people will realize it was the same dems and their "friends" in the media and in the intelligence services who accuse Trump of what they themselves have been doing. This will not go away in the post-Trump era and be used in future political battles against the dems probably quite succesfully. Lies don't tend to have very long life expectancy. No matter the intensity of the assault, facts and truth have some very durable qualities and enough people will always be hungry for them.

Except when you factor in a few things like Apparently Kerry's stepson had a falling out with Hunter over Hunter taking the job and who else was appointed to the board of directors at the same time. Including the CIA's former Counter Terrorism Center director. As they say: "Once a spook always a spook", things begin to add up.