Trump Says All Immigrants Are "Poisoning The Blood" of the US.

[EmmetK]

2 hours ago, unicorn said:

I didn't think I needed to qualify with "everyone except the most stupid idiots." Just like when Trump said "Proud Boys, stand back and stand by: " his implicit backing of white supremacy groups is well-understood by everyone (except the most stupid idiots). 

YOUR problem is that the only ones who object to Trump's comment about ILLEGAL aliens are the MSNBC watching, NYTimes reading, Volvo driving, Chablis sipping, out-of-touch elitist class who clutch their pearls over comments like that which most Americans agree with. Polls show that even Black voters, whose support Trump now has at 17%; and Hispanics, whose approval of Trump is at 38%, are opposed to the waves and waves of illegals flooding the country.  Illegal immigration is a BIG winning issue for Trump and the GOP. And the more President Trump can generate headlines by exposing Senile Joe Biden's open border policies, the bigger Trump's lead will continue to grow and guarantee himself a second term.

So frankly I hope Trump replays that New Hampshire speech at every campaign event. And I also hope that liars like @Bingo T Dog continue to mislead, misquote and lie about his comments. It exposes the weakness and lack of integrity and honesty of Trump's detractors.

[stevenkesslar]

1 hour ago, EmmetK said:

So frankly I hope Trump replays that New Hampshire speech at every campaign event

We agree.  So do I.  

I'll repeat what I said above, citing Trump fan boy Ben Shapiro.  Trump wins when the camera is on Biden and everyone is talking about the "I" words:  inflation, immigration, impeachment, Israel, idiot. 

Then Trump opens his mouth and says, "Hey.  I got a great idea.  Let's sound like Nazis, and throw kids in cages."  True, the elite clutch their pearls.  But maybe at best 1 in 3 Americans actually like the idea of sounding like Nazis and throwing kids in cages.  Just because America is unhappy with Biden doesn't mean they like Trump.  Shapiro worries that Trump will remind America that Trump lies and Trump loses.  He has a point.

I think Kamala Harris nailed it in this recent interview.  She acknowledged that Republicans see immigration as perhaps their best issue in 2024. Especially with inflation getting back to the low range the Fed wants it in.  For most of 2023 wages are rising faster than inflation.  Trump is of course confirming that Harris is right.  She's also saying that it's sad that Republicans can and maybe will hold immigration, Israel, and Ukraine all hostage to their political tactics. 

I think that may actually help Biden.  Because even more than in 2020, it does feel the soul of America is on the line.  Are we actually going to defend democracy, or let Putin slaughter hundreds of thousands more Ukrainians?  Are we actually going to defend ourselves?  Or say, "NATO?  Never mind!"

The thing that will help the most, I think, is a split screen of Trump and Putin.  On the left, I want Trump quoting Putin saying that the Jan. 6 indictments, which a majority of Americans support, make US democracy looks weak.  Thanks Vlad.  You're sure one to judge.  On the right I want Putin himself saying Americans are weak - especially Republicans.  And unlike Vlad and Russian men, American men - especially Republicans -  don't even have the balls to fight and defend themselves.  Even when it means all the pussies have to do is spend money creating well paying jobs in the US defense industry.  Putin's argument is simple:  Americans are weak, and stupid.  Thanks Vlad.  Back at ya.

.

Since I chose that video, I have to repeat my point to @Moses.   Russia is defunding schools and education to plow as much money as their weak economy has into Vlad's Big War Economy To Kill Hundreds Of Thousands Of Ukrainians.  In the short term, it is definitely creating some economic activity.  In the long run, it condemns Russia to further stagnation.  

But right now I'm worried about 2024.  I want the split screen, with Vlad absolutely in lock step with Trump to undercut Ukraine, US political and legal institutions, and democracy.

I think that will help call the question in 2024.

 

[EmmetK]

2 minutes ago, stevenkesslar said:

We agree.  So do I.  

I'll repeat what I said above, citing Trump fan boy Ben Shapiro.  Trump wins when the camera is on Biden and everyone is talking about the "I" words:  inflation, immigration, impeachment, Israel, idiot. 

Then Trump opens his mouth and says, "Hey.  I got a great idea.  Let's sound like Nazis, and throw kids in cages."  true, the elite clutch their pearls.  But maybe at best 1 in 3 Americans actually like the idea of sounding like Nazis and throwing kids in cages.  

 

I never bother to read more than the first sentence of your long-winded gibberish. Miraculously, I made it thru 2 sentences.

Saying that ILLEGALs are poisoning the blood of America's youth doesn't make Trump sound like a Nazi to the majority of Americans (yourself, Mike and Joe Scarboro and their acolytes excluded). Illegals bring fentanyl and other drugs into the US. They bring crime to border communities. That is POISON. The left can keep using words like Nazi, Hitler, fascist, etc. It rings hollow. Nobody believes it and therefore nobody cares. And Trump never said he will throw kids in cages. Just more lies as the polls continue to show Trump's lead over Senile Joe increasing every day.

[stevenkesslar]

20 minutes ago, EmmetK said:

I never bother to read more than the first sentence of your long-winded gibberish. Miraculously, I made it thru 2 sentences.

That's progress. 😉

But believe me, I'm not surprised.  Either that you don't like facts.  Or that you are proud of the fact that you don't like facts.

I kind of figured that out a long time ago, when that whole "I won the election thing" happened.  And also when I figured out that Trump seems more worried about the "hostages" that attacked the Capitol after he rallied them on than he is about the actual hostages in Israel.

Thankfully, you did not read my second and third paragraphs, in your own words.  So you won't feel insulted.  And you learned no facts that challenge your beliefs.  Congratulations!

[stevenkesslar]

19 minutes ago, EmmetK said:

And Trump never said he will throw kids in cages.

Again, we agree.  Trump rarely tells the truth.  He usually lies.

I never said that Trump said, factually, he will throw kids in cages.  I said that he did throw kids in cages.  Which, factually, most Americans do not support.  Which, factually, contributed to him being a big sorry old fat loser in 2020.  Which, factually, led his "hostages" to go beat the shit out of cops on Jan. 6th to show how much they love police, and democracy.

CBS News poll: Two-thirds of Americans say separating children, parents at border unacceptable

I'll always make sure to put the facts after the first paragraph so they never have to disturb you.  Seems like these facts do actually disturb the majority of Americans, though.

[floridarob]

39 minutes ago, EmmetK said:

I never bother to read more than the first sentence of your long-winded gibberish. Miraculously, I made it thru 2 sentences.

Sounds like something your students might say.... How much have you donated to Trumps campaign or email requests for donations?

[EmmetK]

28 minutes ago, stevenkesslar said:

Again, we agree.  Trump rarely tells the truth.  He usually lies.

I never said that Trump said, factually, he will throw kids in cages.  I said that he did throw kids in cages.  Which, factually, most Americans do not support.  Which, factually, contributed to him being a big sorry old fat loser in 2020.  Which, factually, led his "hostages" to go beat the shit out of cops on Jan. 6th to show how much they love police, and democracy.

CBS News poll: Two-thirds of Americans say separating children, parents at border unacceptable

I'll always make sure to put the facts after the first paragraph so they never have to disturb you.  Seems like these facts do actually disturb the majority of Americans, though.

And that picture of people behind a wire fence proves? It proves nothing. 

We do know that the cages were built by Obama to put kids in according to WaPo:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/kids-in-cages-debate-trump-obama/2020/10/23/8ff96f3c-1532-11eb-82af-864652063d61_story.html

The cages where OBAMA put kids in according to the ACLU?  Thosse cages?

https://www.aclu.org/news/smart-justice/president-obama-wants-continue-imprisoning-immigrant-families

 

If you're gonna cite facts, at least cite them correctly. It was OBAMA that put kids in cages. Not Donald Trump.

 

[stevenkesslar]

10 minutes ago, EmmetK said:

And that picture of people behind a wire fence proves? It proves nothing. 

Yet again, we agree.  In your mind, facts prove nothing.

Since you've stopped reading, I'll simply cite the facts that you don't want to know.

Quote

Sixty-seven percent of Americans call it unacceptable to separate children from parents who've been caught trying to enter the U.S. illegally. Much of this is driven by large percentages of Democrats (90 percent) and independents (66 percent) who find it unacceptable, while Republicans are more divided overall, with 39 percent calling it unacceptable, and one in five had not heard enough about it. Older, very conservative Republicans are more apt to say it is acceptable, while younger and more moderate Republicans do not.

What we don't know for a fact is what is actually being negotiated in the US Senate right now.  And how far Biden and Harris (she's the immigration czar) will go to make a deal with Republicans to get aid to Ukraine and Israel.  As well as address the "broken border" problem that most Americans agree on.

If I believe what I read, groups like the ACLU and SPLC are concerned that Republicans will push for things like a return to Trump's child separation policies, which a vast majority of Democrats and Independents oppose.  So we'll have to see whether any deal can be struck, and what it includes.  My guess is that if Republicans really want a poison pill to kill compromise, throwing in a cruel provision that Trump came up with that they know only older Republicans support would be one way to do it.

[EmmetK]

49 minutes ago, stevenkesslar said:

Yet again, we agree.  In your mind, facts prove nothing.

Since you've stopped reading, I'll simply cite the facts that you don't want to know.

What we don't know for a fact is what is actually being negotiated in the US Senate right now.  And how far Biden and Harris (she's the immigration czar) will go to make a deal with Republicans to get aid to Ukraine and Israel.  As well as address the "broken border" problem that most Americans agree on.

If I believe what I read, groups like the ACLU and SPLC are concerned that Republicans will push for things like a return to Trump's child separation policies, which a vast majority of Democrats and Independents oppose.  So we'll have to see whether any deal can be struck, and what it includes.  My guess is that if Republicans really want a poison pill to kill compromise, throwing in a cruel provision that Trump came up with that they know only older Republicans support would be one way to do it.

You claimed that Trump threw kids in cages and provided ZERO evidence.

I claimed that Obama built cages and threw kids in them and provided evidence.

No surprise that you changed the subject to avoid acknowledging your "facts" were lies. 

Keep following the polls, and keep calling Trump a Nazi and lie about him. Ya got nothing else.
And while you are thinking about that. Here's the new FOX News poll just out tonight. Biden approval rating at an all time low - 38%. That's lower than Trump's approval ever was.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-approval-rating-sinks-all-time-low-new-national-poll

 

[Moses]

2 hours ago, stevenkesslar said:

Russia is defunding schools and education to plow as much money as their weak economy has into Vlad's Big War Economy To Kill Hundreds Of Thousands Of Ukrainians

That's lie, dear. Budget'24 of education is +5.6% to 2023. Budget on social projects +19.1%. Budget  on healthcare is +3.2%. Your sources lie to you.

In addition, you forgot that the main costs for education and schools, as in the United States, are borne not by the federal budget, but by the budgets of the constituent entities of the federation and local budgets. Federal budget expenditures on education are the costs of maintaining the ministry and the Academy of Sciences + few federal UNI.

[stevenkesslar]

1 hour ago, EmmetK said:

You claimed that Trump threw kids in cages and provided ZERO evidence.

Yes I did provide evidence.  

By the way, glad that you want to engage in facts now.

As far as the evidence, which I will provide again, SPLC documented that the policy most Americans despise, separating children from parents, was started by Trump in 2017.  Once we have a real immigration debate, and Old Joe says, "I don't want to separate kids from their parents," 2 in 3 Americans will agree with him.  Trump's policy was cruel.  Why?  Because Trump is a cruel liar.  Just ask Rudy Ghouliani.  Or the cops his "hostages" beat the shit out of on January 6th.  Or the Ukrainian soldiers, women, and children Trump will leave to Putin's bloodbaths, if he is elected again.  The overwhelming majority of Americans don't support Trump's cruel policies.

The article you cited, @EmmetK, was about the ACLU going after Obama for "family detention."  According to FAIR, a conservative group that wants to reduce immigration, "family detention"  (as opposed to "catch and release" is the policy a plurality of Americans support.

 

Polls Show Voters Support Family Detention Over Catch-and-Release

If you read the whole article (which you won't, since you are on record as being against long factual arguments) it is more nuanced than FAIR's headline suggests.  But FAIR is basically saying, factually, that something like a majority of Americans supported Obama/Biden's "family detention" policy.  Meanwhile, 2 in 3 Americans opposed Trump's policy of separating kids from their parents.

These are the actual policies that are being debated.  I can't find a poll on "kids in cages."  Generally, in context, "kids in cages" usually was used to refer specifically to Trump's cruel and deeply unpopular policy of separating kids from their parents.

The deal Obama/Biden thought they had with Republicans is that if they tightened up the border, Republicans would support comprehensive bipartisan immigration reform.  In fact, the Senate enacted such a bipartisan compromise bill in 2013, with 2 in 3 Senators from both parties supporting the compromise.  Why did it not become law?  The right wing MAGA Freedom Caucus opposed it in the House.  Of course they can't tolerate Barack Obama, or Joe Biden, or Kamala Harris.  They can't even stand Kevin McCarthy.  McCarthy, to his credit, got a lot of younger Latina and Black conservatives elected to the House.  But the radical right wing MAGA crowd is now the last best hope of the outnumbered radical White conservative men clinging to power, and pushing Trump's lies and cruel policies.

[Moses]

@stevenkesslar

Let me help you. Because nobody reads your posts.

• Than shorter then better. Nobody reads long posts in the age of Twitter. 10-12 lines maximum.
• This 10-12 lines still needs to be divided into 2-3 paragraphs, because it is difficult for the human eye to hold a line of 80-100 characters (that’s why a column in a newspaper is 32-48 characters)
• There can only be one title per post and it must be at the top.
• Large font size in the middle of the text is perceived by the brain as a scream. You speak, and suddenly start yelling. This is unnatural behavior.

 

This looks crazy. Like Ransom note.

 

[stevenkesslar]

1 hour ago, Moses said:

That's lie, dear. Budget'24 of education is +5.6% to 2023. Budget on social projects +19.1%. Budget  on healthcare is +3.2%. Your sources lie to you.

Quell surprise!  The Trump lover who is fact free and the Putin lover who is fact free are teaming up on me!!!

Why am I not shocked?

My sources do not lie, dear.  In fact, your sources confirm my point:

From the English translation of a Russian article using your chart:

The President of the Russian Federation signed the law on the federal budget for 2024: what you need to know

What will the record 36.7 trillion rubles be spent on and what will the deficit be?

Quote

The budget growth is due to an unprecedented increase in defense spending. Together with the costs of security forces, they will exceed 14.5 trillion rubles and amount to almost 40% of all budget expenditures. This share was larger only in Soviet times.

Quote

National defense will become the largest budget item for the first time. The government plans to spend 10.8 trillion rubles on it. This is 29% of all expenses. Most of them are classified - only 2.2 trillion rubles are publicly available.   By 2023 levels, defense spending will increase by almost 70%, and compared to pre-conflict 2021, the increase will be threefold. 

Putin is flooding money into a War/Sadism/Butchering Economy that focuses on the areas that kill Ukrainian soldiers.  The security forces he wants to plow lots more money into are the very same ones who rape Ukrainian women and intentionally kill Ukrainian children, or cart them off to Russia.  It's a budget dedicated to sadism and butchering.  It is who Vlad is.  It is what Vlad does.  To his credit, he puts his money where his murder is.

I stand by my point.  As more and more money is spent on butchering Ukrainian soldiers, women and children, two things will definitely happen.  One, Ukrainians will deepen their resolve to never give up.  (See, Afghanistan, USSR invasion.  See Iraq, US invasion.)  So it guarantees hundreds of thousands more dead Russians.  Which is not something Russians like.  Two, it guarantees less money for everything else in Putin's already weak economy. 

Quote

Healthcare and education. The share of spending on education and health care in the budget has also been declining over the past three years, although not as noticeably, from 11 to 8.5%.

Health services and education both suffer in either relative or absolute terms.  Or both, eventually, as Putin bleeds out both Ukraine and Russia like they are both his powerless pigs for slaughter.  Sorry.  There is no way Ukrainians are going to be pigs for slaughter.  Their resolve to kill every Russian they can will only deepen.  It has already. The polls are clear that Ukrainians are less open to a peace agreement than a year ago.  Because the only thing they trust Putin to do is sit back and get rich as their women are raped and their children are slaughtered.

You think Xi Whiz wants World War 3?  Come on!  Putin is not only a sadist.  He is a stupid one.  Whatever the US does or does not do, and whatever the EU does or does not do, we know for sure Xi Whiz does not want World War 3.  Or a global depression caused by China.  Especially after what COVID did to global public opinion about China. So despite all his nice language about human rights, Xi is apparently fine with Vlad murdering a certain number of Ukrainian kids to keep the US and EU distracted.  But the EU is already saying, "Xi, get the fuck out.  We don't like doing business with you." That's not what Xi had in mind when he became Vlad's bosom buddy.  Because the economy of Germany, let alone the whole EU, makes Russia a  pathetic weak economy in comparison.

So Putin is like Xi's little pit bull on a leash.  And if things go bad for Putin, which they inevitably will., that's when Putin becomes Xi's pig on a leash.  And we all know what happens with pigs when they are no longer useful.  Again, if you don't believe me look at the entire history of invasions like this in this century.  It never works.  And it ain't gonna work in Ukraine.

Here's another way to think about it.  It's pretty clear that The US is leading the technological race in AI.  It's pretty clear that China is leading the technological race in electric cars.

What is Russia leading the race in?  Building weapons to kill Ukrainian soldiers, Ukrainian women, Ukrainian children, and democracy.  I am glad Trump supporters and Putin supporters are standing together for this cruel and unpopular agenda.  It shows what you are really for.

[Moses]

11 minutes ago, stevenkesslar said:

Building weapons to kill Ukrainian soldiers, Ukrainian women, Ukrainian children

So now you know why sending weaponry to Ukraine and prolonging war kills Ukrainians. 

Congratulation, dear.

Zelenskiy was ready for peace talk on first month of conflict, but Johnson told him don't do that.

[unicorn]

47 minutes ago, Moses said:

@stevenkesslar

Let me help you. Because nobody reads your posts.

• Than shorter then better. Nobody reads long posts in the age of Twitter. 10-12 lines maximum.
• This 10-12 lines still needs to be divided into 2-3 paragraphs, because it is difficult for the human eye to hold a line of 80-100 characters (that’s why a column in a newspaper is 32-48 characters)
• There can only be one title per post and it must be at the top.
• Large font size in the middle of the text is perceived by the brain as a scream. You speak, and suddenly start yelling. This is unnatural behavior....

 

This is one of the times I agree with @Moses. But asking SK to consolidate his thoughts and communicate concisely is like asking Putin to stop murdering, you to use google translate when attempting to communicate in English, or asking the fire hydrant to cross the street. Just for laughs and your own edification, just put whatever you were trying to say with "Than shorter then better" in google translate and see what it comes up with. One has to accept that in life there are many things which should happen, but never will. 

https://translate.google.com/

[stevenkesslar]

54 minutes ago, stevenkesslar said:

Putin is flooding money into a War/Sadism/Butchering Economy that focuses on the areas that kill Ukrainian soldiers.  The security forces he wants to plow lots more money into are the very same ones who rape Ukrainian women and intentionally kill Ukrainian children, or cart them off to Russia.

 

40 minutes ago, Moses said:

Building weapons to kill Ukrainian soldiers, Ukrainian women, Ukrainian children

 

40 minutes ago, Moses said:

So now you know why sending weaponry to Ukraine and prolonging war kills Ukrainians. 

Congratulation, dear.

Zelenskiy was ready for peace talk on first month of conflict, but Johnson told him don't do that.

You're like Putin's news, which dominates Russia.  You edited what I said to ignore the intentional killing of children and the rape of women.  You really don't like facts, do you?

So you are saying the problem is the US and EU are helping Ukraine defend themselves from a war Putin started that primarily focuses on killing Ukrainians?  You really are Russian, aren't you?  

That's doesn't need a long response.  It's just stupid, and sick.

And, again, the premise of your argument - that somehow Boris Johnson runs Ukraine - illustrates your contempt for facts and truth.  For same strange reason, Ukrainians just don't want to be War Economy Vlad's powerless pigs for slaughter.

In New Poll, 89% of Ukrainians Reject Ceding Land to Reach Peace With Russia

Ukrainians back Zelensky’s position that peace talks can’t grant Russia land it has seized, WSJ-NORC poll finds

[unicorn]

At least I figured out how to use google translate for your graph, so others can understand:

[stevenkesslar]

2 hours ago, Moses said:

Budget on social projects +19.1%.

I am curious on this one.  I don't speak Russian.  And you're a sweetheart.  So help me out, @Moses.

I've read a lot about how Vlad has a policy to pay Russian families to turn their husbands and sons into fertilizer for cows to shit on.  Basically, they get pushed into the army, they go to the front, they die, they become grass for cows to shit on.  The families of the dead guy/fertilizer gets paid to tolerate Vlad's butchering of Russians and Ukrainians.  That is how Vlad's War/Sadism Economy works.  Something like this:

Is this part of the budget on social projects?  Because unlike health care or education, it is getting a significant increase.  Although, given how much money is going into direct butchering - defense and security forces - even a 19 % increase means it gets a smaller percentage of Vlad's overall War/Sadism Economy budget.

This is what the Russian translation says.

Quote

Thus, insurance pensions for non-working pensioners will increase by 7.5% from January 1. For this purpose, the budget provides an additional 234 billion rubles. The average pension in the country will be 23,244 rubles. Also, from January 1, the minimum wage will increase by 18.5%. This will affect the salaries of public sector employees, the costs of which are also taken into account in the law.

So that is good news for Russian seniors, and the Russian working class.  At least in the short run.  It seems to me to reflect how desperately Vlad wants to win.  He's paying off seniors and workers to tolerate his War/Butchering/Sadism Economy. 

Seriously.  Is that what Trump and Republicans are for?  More money for Russian workers, so they tolerate Russian soldiers killing Ukrainian children, while Republicans cut taxes again for the richest Americans?   And maybe also more tax cuts for the wildly profitable corporations that helped spike prices for their products because they could?  I want that debate!

How about we instead raise taxes on the rich, mostly to help Americans, but also to pay for the small percentage of the US budget it takes to help Ukraine?  Bottom line that fact-oriented Republicans and Democrats understand.  Vlad has to spend a massive and unsustainable share of his budget to slaughter Ukrainians and attack democracy.  Americans have to spend a very small share of our budget to defend Ukrainians and democracy.

Vlad's budget is not sustainable, and it is based on fantasy. It makes up a fantasy oil price, and fantasy GDP growth, and a fantasy exchange rate.

Quote

For this plan to be realized, the most favorable combination of circumstances is necessary. They are includedin the forecasts of the Ministry of Economic Development, on which the budget is based. It provides for GDP growth in 2024 by 2.3%, the average dollar exchange rate is around 90 ₽ and the price of Urals oil is $71 per barrel.

Quote

 

These forecasts surprised not only independent economists, who called this order of numbers “artistic drawing for strategic objectives”, but even the Russian Accounts Chamber. In her conclusion on the draft budget, she pointed to the “risks of not achieving” even $60 per barrel. Auditors recalled how prices fell below this value in previous crises.

 

Quote

Servicing the national debt will cost Russia more and more. In three years, these costs will exceed the costs of healthcare and education.

What it also confirms is that Putin is desperate, and playing against time.  He doesn't really have the money to fund his War/Sadism/Butchering Economy for the long term.  The second biggest growth category in Vlad's butchering budget is a 50 % increase in public debt.  The Americans and Chinese, wisely, would rather build out electric cars or AI.  As opposed to turning themselves and their neighbors into fertilizer.  So Vlad can't just keep blowing up budgets - and budget deficits.

On blogs like this, I know I am a man of many words.  And many facts.

But in 2024, the split screen ad I want is mostly images, not words.  I want Trump praising Putin for attacking US political and legal institutions.  And attacking democracy.  And I want Putin boldly calling for House Republicans to go to their kitchen, pull out a knife, and castrate themselves.  And then put their testicles in a jar and give them to Vlad, to proudly display to the Russian people.  Because that is what Vlad is counting on Republicans to do.  Castrate themselves, and support or at least tolerate his attacks on Ukraine, the global economy, the international order, democracy, US elections, and US legal and political institutions. 

Sorry, but how does this help Trump and Republicans win?

I want Trump talking about this 24/7!

[stevenkesslar]

7 hours ago, EmmetK said:

YOUR problem is that the only ones who object to Trump's comment about ILLEGAL aliens are the MSNBC watching, NYTimes reading, Volvo driving, Chablis sipping, out-of-touch elitist class who clutch their pearls over comments like that which most Americans agree with.

GOP senators distance themselves from Trump's 'poisoning' immigration comments

It's reminiscent of Trump's presidency, when Republicans would commonly say they hadn't seen Trump's comments or only modestly push back on them.

I have to admit this one really surprises me.

I'm not surprised about Trump spreading lies, division, and hate.  That's his thing.

I'm surprised at Republican Senators like Shelley Moore Capito, Roger Wicker, and Thom Tillis. I was not aware that they were part of the MSNBC watching, NYTimes reading, Volvo driving, Chablis sipping, out-of-touch elitist class who clutch their pearls over comments like that which most Americans agree with.

How did I miss that?  

Anyhoo, it's started.  Trump is reminding Americans why they fired him.  And why they elected Democrats to the Senate.

[Moses]

2 hours ago, stevenkesslar said:

Is this part of the budget on social projects? 

Budget expenditures on social policy are expenditures of budget funds on the implementation of social policy, i.e. to pay for social services provided to elderly and disabled citizens at home and in social service institutions, as well as the costs of social assistance to low-income citizens

2 hours ago, stevenkesslar said:

Thus, insurance pensions for non-working pensioners will increase by 7.5% from January 1

It increasing every 6 months of every year by law on Jan 1 and on Jul 1.

 

2 hours ago, stevenkesslar said:

basically, they get pushed into the army, they go to the front, they die, they become grass for cows to shit on.

Only once, for one moth here was mobilization - in October'22. most of those mobilized serve in the protection of civilian objects in occupied territories in order to free the hands of the army

If you want to talk about "fertilizers", read this then. Poor Ukrainians now complains in foreign medias, because it is only way for them to be heard: Zelenskiy burns tens of thousands month by month.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/16/world/europe/ukraine-kherson-river-russia.html

Quote

Some of the dead marines have been lying there for as long as two months, as units have been unable to retrieve the bodies because of the intense shelling, said Volodymyr, a deputy company commander who was attending the funeral of one of his men, identified only as Denys, last week.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted a statement last month claiming they had established several strongholds.

But marines and soldiers who have been there say these accounts overstate the case. 

“There are no positions. There is no such thing as an observation post or position,” said Oleksiy. “It is impossible to gain a foothold there. It’s impossible to move equipment there.”

“It’s not even a fight for survival,” he added. “It’s a suicide mission.”

In Ukraine that has name "meat storms". And "meat hunting" is going nonstop on the streets of Ukrainian cities.

 

[Moses]

3 hours ago, stevenkesslar said:

Ukrainians back Zelensky’s position

Most ridiculus conclusion.

Wanna know real situation? Read real polls. 

Compared to December 2022, the trust of Ukrainian citizens in almost all government institutions has fallen. Ukraine (APU). Such data are provided in a study by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS).

• The share of those who trust the Verkhovna Rada decreased from 35% to 15%. The share of those who do not trust, on the contrary, increased - from 34% to 61%.
• Trust in the government decreased from 52% to 26%, while distrust, on the contrary, increased - from 19% to 44%.
• Trust in President Vladimir Zelensky has decreased from 84% to 62% now, the share of those who do not trust the president has increased - from 5% to 18%.
• Only 12% of Ukrainians trust the courts, only 9% trust prosecutors. 61% and 64% of citizens, respectively, do not trust these institutions. In December 2022, 25% of Ukrainians trusted courts, and 21% trusted prosecutors.
• The Armed Forces of Ukraine are trusted by 96% of Ukrainians, this figure has not changed compared to December 2022.

https://www.kiis.com.ua/ they are based in Kiev and have pages in English.

[stevenkesslar]

37 minutes ago, Moses said:

If you want to talk about "fertilizers", read this then. Poor Ukrainians now complains in foreign medias, because it is only way for them to be heard: Zelenskiy burns tens of thousands month by month.

Again, it is just sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.   Sick.

You are blaming Ukrainians for the fact that Putin is butchering hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian men, women, and children.  And you are stating, or implying, that it is Zelensky's fault that your butcher/sadist leader has made the situation such a horrific bloodbath that it is a "suicide mission" to simply retrieve the dead.

Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick. Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.

I can tell you one person who I am kind of glad is dead.  My Dad.  He was a WW2 veteran and Reagan Republican who died about 5 years ago after a very long and happy life.  And even though I have always been a liberal Democrat, he and I always knew we shared the same basic values.  Which I got from him.  He was one of those Republicans that bought all W.'s bullshit about how we were "liberating" Iraq for democracy.  And we had to defend ourselves from "WMD".  But he could not stomach Trump.  He voted for every Republican President he could except Trump.  And having fought in WW2 and even having supported a war like Iraq, I don't think my Dad would even recognize this Republican Party.  How could his beloved party NOT be the one standing up for people who were attacked and butchered, without cause, and are fighting for survival, and democracy?  

Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick. Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.

Here's an informative video on Putin's program to turn Russian men into "meat" and fertilizer.  Like with Ukrainians, it is such a bloodbath that Russian corpses are left to rot, because it is a "suicide mission" to try to retrieve them.  Understandably, the Moms and wives of the Russian men Putin turns into meat or fertilizer are not exactly pleased.

Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick. Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.  Sick.

Putin signs decree to pay families of Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine war

$68,800 to be paid to families of deceased soldiers, $41,300 to be given to the injured

This is part of the reason why Russia is fucked, @Moses.  Sorry to say.  Russia will be known for the rest of my lifetime in all of the world as the fucked up weak economy that finally got the respect it deserved by unleashing their butcher/sadist/authoritarian leader to start a horrific war.  Of course, Russians had no say in the matter.  And now Putin has to spend a huge chunk of money just to keep the mothers and wives and families of the Russians he turns into meat and fertilizer from protesting.   

Which of course explains why Putin is desperate to go into massive debt to try to win an unwinnable war before he runs out of money, or male bodies, or people just won't take it anymore.  Here's a news flash.  People don't like sadistic butchers.  People don't like being turned into meat and fertilizer.  Who knew? 

It is why Ukrainians are just growing deeper and more passionate in their commitment to kill as many Russians as they can.  It is why Putin will have to pay lots of money he has to borrow, based on fantasy economic scenarios he makes up, to build weapons to turn hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian men, women and children into meat and fertilizer.   Even as he has to pay off the families of the hundreds of thousands of Russian men he turns into meat and fertilizer.

Who would come up with a sick, sadistic plan to bleed out and butcher Ukraine and Russia like this?  Only one guy I can think of.  Murderous Vlad.

 

[Moses]

22 minutes ago, stevenkesslar said:

You are blaming Ukrainians for the fact that Putin is butchering hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian men, women, and children

Certainly. Zelensky refused negotiations at the beginning of the conflict. A year ago, he signed a law prohibiting peace negotiations with Russia.

Therefore, now the Russian army is standing in fortified positions, waiting for the “meat” to run out for “meat storms”. Not long left.

The famous Ukrainian summer counter-offensive ended with the loss of approximately 200-250 thousand Ukrainian soldiers, the retaking of 1200 sq km of the 120,000 sq km occupied by Russia on a 1500 km long front, and cost the West 111 billion dollars.

This is a Western-sponsored “war till the last Ukrainian”

[stevenkesslar]

4 hours ago, stevenkesslar said:

Ukrainians back Zelensky’s position

 

1 hour ago, Moses said:

Most ridiculus conclusion.

Wanna know real situation? Read real polls. 

Thank you.  This isn't even really a debate.  Your strategy is to concede all my points.  I said you are fact free.  And in your first short sentence you proved it.

I didn't say Ukrainians back Zelensky's position.  The poll I cited did.   9 in 10 Ukrainians does not want to cede territory to Russia for peace. This is not "most ridiculous conclusion."  This is truth.  This is fact.  Deal with it, my dear.

I won't make this post even longer by citing more polls and more facts.  But that is a big change.  At the start of the war, the majority that was absolutely opposed to a deal with Russia that gave him some of what he wanted was not anywhere near as big.  Ukrainians were not as hardened.  A lot more Ukrainians were willing to make some kind of deal for peace, and hoped the war would not be long.  

What changed?  I'm not a Ukrainian, nor are you.  But I think one good answer is the bloodbath changed everything. My sense from interviews and much of what I have read, which polls like this support, is that Ukrainians now hate Russians.  And basically want them dead.  Why?  Because they see what happened in places like Mariupol.  Their sons and husbands are dead.  And they believe that Vladimir Putin will happily rape, torture, butcher, and turn into fertilizer any man, woman, or child in Ukraine who gets in his way.  Which is not really a surprise.  We already know that Vladimir Putin will happily rape, torture, butcher, and turn into fertilizer any man, woman, or child in Russia who gets in his way.

1 hour ago, Moses said:

Wanna know real situation? Read real polls. 

Compared to December 2022, the trust of Ukrainian citizens in almost all government institutions has fallen.

Again, I did.  9 in 10 Ukrainians support Zelensky's position of not ceding any territory to Russia.  Frankly, if it were up to me, I wish they would.  Because then maybe the war could end.  But don't blame the fact that they have become harder and more bitter and more dug in on the US, or the EU.  Blame it on your own butcher and sadist.  He is pushing Russia into deeper and deeper debt to turn hundreds of thousands of Russians into meat and fertilizer so he can win his cruel war and hope maybe his weak economy can muddle through somehow.  That's not on the US, or the EU.  That is on your very own butcher and sadist.

Part of the unusually cruel approach you and Putin share is the idea that it's not only okay to butcher Ukrainians.  It's okay to blame Ukrainians for being butchered.

Survey reveals Ukrainians trust in military, but trust in Zelenskyy is dropping

Quote

The Armed Forces of Ukraine retain the highest trust among Ukrainians — 96%, while Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Valerii Zaluzhnyi is trusted more than President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to a survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), published on Dec. 18.

Is it a surprise that Ukraine is becoming a more militarized society, that is more distrustful of political institutions?  No, it's of course not a surprise at all.  People in Ukraine have to be utterly exhausted.  And if they are alive, and living in Ukraine - as opposed to living in Poland or some other country they fled to survive, or being dead and fertilizer in some field - they are arguably among the lucky ones. 

But not so lucky.  Why would 96 % of Ukrainians put their highest trust in the Armed Forces of Ukraine?  That's a no brainer.  They don't want to be turned into meat and fertilizer.  And the Ukrainian army is the only thing really standing between them and Putin and his War/Butchering/Sadism Economy.  Again, I don't live in Ukraine.  But I'm 96 % sure they are now almost unanimously committed to getting behind their military because they see this as a life and death battle.

In terms of Zelenskyy, I will say this.  Somebody fucked up.  In 2022 the Ukrainians stunned and inspired the world by being tougher than anyone thought.  Then in 2023, after expectations had been raised sky high, we were told that we'd see more of the same.  And there would be a breakthrough victory.  Hell, maybe Zelenskyy would be celebrating New Years in a reclaimed Crimea.  So I have to assume a lot of Ukrainians feel let down that what they were told to hope for didn't turn out as planned.  I'm 100 % sure a lot of Americans feel the same way.  I know I do.  Maybe some of that should be blamed on Zelenskyy.  If I had to single out one American, I'd name David Petraeus.  Every time he has opened his mouth in the last few decades and painted a picture of how glorious victory will be if we do it his way, he has been wrong.  Every fucking time.  I would actually watch Petraeus on in his TV consulting gigs in part to know what kind of propaganda about a wildly successful counteroffensive I should NOT expect to actually be true.  Petraeus did not disappoint me.  Most of what he said now sounds like bullshit.

That said, war is war.  It doesn't always turn out as planned.  Russia clearly learned from its massive fuck ups in 2022 and got better.  And Vlad doubled down on the idea that he'll gladly turn as many Russians into meat and fertilizer as it takes.

That said, 62 % of Ukrainians still say they support Zelenskyy.  Joe Biden or Donald Trump would kill to have numbers like that.  So would Murderous Vlad, if Russia actually had honest elections and honest polls.

This can not possibly end well for Russia.  Vlad already is racing against time and a fantasy budget to build up a War/Butchering/Sadism Economy as fast as he can.  He pays hundreds of thousands of Russian families to turn their loved ones into fertilizer.  The best and brightest are leaving to the West.  And the youngest and most courageous who protest are being sent to the front to become fertilizer.  Nobody admires Vlad.  They may fear him.  Or, like Xi Whiz, they may be perfectly happy to put him on a leash and use him to distract the West, as long as he doesn't push too hard.  

Everything that went wrong in Afghanistan for both the USSR and the US, and in Iraq for the US, is already happening on steroids in Ukraine.  And the bloodbath is just getting started.  Ukraine has no choice.  Vlad will have to bleed and spend Russia dry - of money, of men, of bullets - before Ukraine gives up.  They hate Russians.  They want Russians dead.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.  I give you credit for trying to twist facts.  Like the chart you posted in Russian that shows that, in fact, health and education are being defunded just as I said.  But, thanks.  You have helped me to better understand what is going on.  Yesterday I was not aware that Putin is bleeding Russia dry financially as well as militarily.  But that butchering budget he came up with is total bullshit.  He is desperate to win, and quickly.  Which he can't do.  But as every translated article I read said, he can't do another budget like that in 2025.  I assume he is hoping he can cut defense spending, since he'll win the war.  But he can't win the war.  If anything, he'll may have to spend even more money on defense just to keep what he has.  Remember.  Afghanistan.  Iraq.  Just when you think you're winning is when you actually start to lose.

I'm ashamed that America is being such a wimp right now.  That said, it's not so much actual weakness as it is partisanship.  When Reagan was President, it actually was true that politics stopped at the US border.  It no longer does.  The Republican Party of Reagan, which used to lift up immigrants as the hope of America and the world, and wanted to be the beacon of democracy, is now just playing politics.  With the lives of Ukrainians at stake.  It's an election year.  Biden still sounds like Reagan on democracy and immigration.  The problem is that the party of Reagan no longer sounds, or even believes, like Reagan.

I think Vlad really doesn't understand America or democracy very well.  Because some of what he is doing is absolutely going to backfire.  Like encouraging America to be weak, or calling us weak, is actually when we become strong.  Just look at 9/11.  So just play these videos of Vlad going after the US and democracy, please.  That will help. 

As long as this really remains a stalemate, that probably reinforces inertia in the US and EU.  Why fund a war Ukraine can't win?  If Vlad manages to demolish another city like Mariupol and kill another 25,000 women and children, that will add momentum to funding Ukraine.  But mostly, in the US, this about the 2024 election.  It seems very unlikely that Americans will be more likely to vote for Trump because Murderous Vlad is placing an extremely expensive and risky bet on hoping Trump will win.  So Trump can hand Ukraine - or at least big chunks of it - over to Vlad.  I genuinely believe that both Trump and Putin are so narcissistic and cruel that they don't even realize that.  Why else would Trump be quoting Putin in New Hampshire, and praising Putin for attacking democracy?

But, again @Moses,thanks.  After reading a lot of recent news articles on Ukraine, I feel better than I did 24 hours ago.  It was a better year for Putin than expected, and a worse year for Ukraine than hoped.  But, again, war is war.  You win some battles, you lose some.  If 96 % of Ukrainians place their highest faith in their military, that says loud and clear they will fight and kill Russians to the death.  

[Moses]

2 hours ago, stevenkesslar said:

He pays hundreds of thousands of Russian families to turn their loved ones into fertilizer

Number is much lower than 100,000. It is clearly visible from Russian and American researches. Total "estimated" number declared by CIA to Dec 1 is loss of 315,000. Typical ratio injured : died is 3:1. Most soldiers dies on war because of blood loss. Than more far are hospitals then smaller is ratio, then closer are hospitals to contact line, then ratio is bigger.

If we will take "typical" ratio then Russia lost 315,00 / 4 = 78,750. In Gaza Israel has 10:1 because hospitals aren't far. In Ukraine I think ratio should be 5:1 - 6:1. And that means what Russia lost 40,000 - 45,000. 

So, max died as per CIA should be around 80,000, but highly likely number is around 50,000.