Ah, the Epstein thing!

Wonder when that would pop up to the surface like a ballooned rotting corpse that the gangsters failed to put into cement and which the tides have brought back to the beach from the ocean. This carcass won't go away.

As correctly quoted, the real gem is the New York Magazine article from 2002, which then was totally innocent with Trump eagerly telling the Magazine what a close friend he is to Epstein. I urge anyone that hasn't read it, but is interested in this strange thing to read it: Jeffrey Epstein: International Moneyman of Mystery. It has everything, even Kevin Spacey!

Actually was it VICE NEWS in 2016 that quite correctly forcasted that this was so filthy to both sides it wouldn't be an issue. See The Salacious Ammo Even Donald Trump Won’t Use in a Fight Against Hillary Clinton.

So rape is fine as long as it's not with minors? Or grabbing them by the pussy doesn't count as such? — Benkei

I'm just thinking how terrible the books about Trump will be after some time has gone. I mean if some authors portray the Kennedy's with a shady brush, just how shady will it be with Trump.

None of this is evidence of Trump having sexual contact with underage girls, but then there is the story from 1994 of the 13 year old girl who filed suit against Trump for raping her in Epstein's apartment. From Newsweek, 11/16/17: — Fooloso4

Actually, didn't Trump settle with this rape victim? I remember it happening just before the election.

This was also corroborated by a friend of the 13 year old girl who she told, and also by an associate of Epstein. Will have to look up the details again, but there is evidence that Trump did rape a 13 year old girl. — Maw

I remember something similar. After all, one of the victims was working in Mar-a-Lago

Anyway, this is far more interesting and far less loony than Pizzagate or the Seth Rich conspiracy.

Actually, didn't Trump settle with this rape victim? I remember it happening just before the election. — ssu

According to Newsweek he lawyer claimed the suit was dropped because of "numerous threats" against her. It seems likely there was also money changing hands. It's a familiar pattern with Trump - deny, deny, and deny and if necessary intimidate and pay them off.

Aristotle said you can know the good man by his arete, phronesis, eunoia. That is, his character, judgment, and [good]will. These being manifest and discernible in his speech and his actions. Further, per A., these things matter because in terms of the future (as opposed to the present or past), they - his manifest character, judgment, good will - are predictive.

If you have a dog that you know bites, you shall have no grounds for complaint if that dog subsequently bites you. Trump is such a dog.

If you have any sort of argument against, I'll read with interest.

And it becomes at some point a question: if appropriate authority will not take control of the dog, but are content to let it bite. Then when are we the prospective bitees entitled - even obligated under our most solemn obligations - to take the dog out ourselves? Not while we are a nation of law, certainly. But this is not a man of law.

Not while we are a nation of law, certainly. But this is not a man of law. — tim wood

Both criminality and government have been subsumed by capitalism: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01qdzby

One thing I find interesting is the support of the "west coast Straussians", academic political philosophers, conservatives and followers of the late Leo Strauss who frequently teach and write about Aristotle. They may give lip service to issues of character and human excellence and yet seem to turn a blind eye when it comes to Trump. Despite their extensive learning with all their learning they seem to have not learned some very basic things about demagogues and tyrants.

Confidential communications sent by British ambassador to the United States critical of Trump and his administration were leaked. He hurt Trump's feelings and Trump now says he will not deal with the ambassador, thus demonstrating the legitimacy of the ambassador's concerns.

Confidential communications sent by British ambassador to the United States critical of Trump and his administration were leaked. He hurt Trump's feelings and Trump now says he will not deal with the ambassador, thus demonstrating the legitimacy of the ambassador's concerns. — Fooloso4

Trump responds to leaked private communications between a foreign government and their ambassador by publicly insulting the ambassador and publicly insulting the Prime Minister. So much for diplomacy.

The liar-in-chief is at it again (actually he never stops), touting under his administration “America’s environmental leadership”.

https://twitter.com/therealholli/status/1149046964715057152?s=12&fbclid=IwAR2rCbWvxbkkDKH6IudRFhGUY6gUFIzBOyelhQQjnsYjbswILaYHUoU4oQo

I wonder if any one here knows anything about this. Conspiracy theory, political smear, or something more?

I gather this Epstein bloke is notorious already and being indicted with new charges, meanwhile this Trump related story is also coming back, and Acosta is still working for Trump?

Here's Snopes from the previous 2016 story: https://www.snopes.com/news/2016/06/23/donald-trump-rape-lawsuit/

Edit. And now this...
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jul/09/labor-secretary-alexander-acosta-sex-trafficking-budget-cut?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR0QNjmRS4Wb1gy6wBS3UzyKOerM3JRq-dOKg8MoPitOOTsFEMH0EA3C-D4#Echobox=1562770204

Trump Tells Four Democratic Congressmen of Color to 'Go Back' to the Countries They Came From. Three of four of them were born and raised in America.

Just heard about 19 month old Mariee Juarez who died of a lung infection days after leaving an ICE detention centre.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/aoc-cry-mother-migrant-baby-death-mariee-yazmin-juarez-trump-border-ice-a9000161.html

When will this nightmare end? CHILDREN being put through inhumane and life threatening treatment?! Made to sleep on floors, eat spoiled food, have been assaulted, isolated and rumours of sexual abuse! These concentration Camps need to fucking stop! 2020 can't fucking come soon enough!

Which one wasn't? And which foreign country did she come from?

Ilhan Omar was born in Somalia

Do bad things not happen to children who live in Central America? Do no children get sick before they reach the southern border of the US? Does being taken on a hardship road trip up the length of Mexico have something to do with the condition they are in when they arrive at the Rio Grande?

We can do a better job of caring for people, especially children, who are detained at the border. Doing a better job doesn't mean just waiving and waving them through the border and on to where ever they want to go. The borders between countries are there for a reason.

The parents of these children are also responsible.

Thank you -- I should have known than -- #1, having read the story earlier, and #2 her being my congressmoslem.

I don't know what the Minnesota Democratic Farm Labor party was so hot to put her on the ballot. Or Ellison either, though he seems to be doing a good job as Attorney General for MN. We'll see whether she gets re-elected.

More about this here:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jul/15/donald-trump-immigrant-failed-integrate

There was a time, before January 2017, when presidents and prime ministers celebrated immigrants and diversity as one of the defining strengths of their countries. Now our leaders pretend their own families have nothing to do with immigrants.

Soon we’re going to have to watch a German-American president playing footsie with a British prime minister who was born in New York, with Turkish and Russian roots, who is actually named Boris.

With all these immigrants around, it makes you wonder why we can’t find any real white nationalists to play the racism card any more. All these foreigners are taking the jobs away from our pure-bred bigots. They ought to go back to where they came from. — Richard Wolffe

"We can do a better job of caring for people, especially children, who are detained at the border. Doing a better job doesn't mean just waiving and waving them through the border and on to where ever they want to go. The borders between countries are there for a reason.

The parents of these children are also responsible." I never said we should be waving them through, also a lot of these people are legal asylum seekers who are being refused a legal right to asylum to escape prejudice. The parents may be causally responsible for coming here but they are not morally responsible for what happens to their children and the mere suggestion that these parents want their children to be assaulted, raped, starved or killed is disgusting. If you think these parents are morally responsible then do you also think that the parents of jews in Germany were responsible for what happened to them?

This is an absolutely ridiculous statement and it is the same argument the trump administration is using to justify their mistreatment of these people. Laws are being fucking broken, human rights arent being respected. It isnt the parents doing it, they are just trying to bring their children to a better life away from extreme hardship. Also the Mother is still in the USA so evidently her being detained in a detention centre wasn't needed even to the people that took her and her child there in the first place.

If I hear one more pathetic "Oh the parents are to blame" argument instead of actually identifying those morally responsible (TRUMP, ICE and this SHITTY ALT RIGHT GOVERNMENT) I'm gonna lose my shit. How dare you ever make this argument. Do not reply to me if you are going to keep this up because it is absolutely a disgusting argument to make and you should frankly be ashamed of yourself for having made it. They are children for gods sake, who's parents are trying to do the extremely difficult right thing for them to give them a better future. Seriously if this is how you feel on the matter then you are using your own apathy as a form of prejudice. Which ethical view do you subscribe to? Clearly you are caught up in the new wave of moral apathy. That's okay, you'll just be part of the entire generation of philosophers that future philosophers will judge as the single most lazy and cowardly generation of philosophers. How does it feel to know that right now you are exactly like all the people in Germany who sat around and did nothing while Jews were burned?

Oh and one more thing, Immigration has been at record lows over the past few years. Borders might be there fro reasons but this governments attitude towards it is dangerous and counter intuitive. I mean, they want to build a wall to keep it immigrants when it is just going to increase immigration if it is built seeing as they will be cutting off circular flow and that most immigrants come legally through air travel and just overstay their visas. PLANES CAN FLY OVER WALLS!

With all these immigrants around, it makes you wonder why we can’t find any real white nationalists to play the racism card any more. All these foreigners are taking the jobs away from our pure-bred bigots. They ought to go back to where they came from. — Richard Wolffe

Funny.

This, on top of:

Mr Trump has been accused of racism before in connection with different incidents.

For years, he made false claims that former President Barack Obama was not born in the US - propagating the racist "birther" conspiracy. He has also made numerous slurs against Central American migrants, calling them criminals and rapists. In 2018, he faced criticism from both Democrats and Republicans after reports said that during a meeting at the White House he called African nations "shitholes".

When white supremacists marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, resulting in the death of 32-year-old counter protester Heather Heyer, the president said there were "good people on both sides".

Mr Trump and his father Fred Trump were sued by the Department of Justice in 1973 for discrimination against African Americans in their renting practices. They settled the case without admitting guilt in 1975 but were accused again by the justice department in 1978 of an "underlying pattern of discrimination" against black tenants. — BBC News

This man is clearly racist, and all the Republicans keeping quiet about his latest remarks should be ashamed of themselves. Very ashamed.

This man is clearly racist. — S

Amen. And equally clearly is not interested in truth or fact. He (Trump) is playing a vicious game that most of the rest of us are just not up to speed on: "alternate facts" and manipulation. Our (US) laws sometimes grind slow, but grind they do and grind they must. Trump and his must be held to account, or terrible things loom. If law fails, rage will have its day. And some of it will be exactly right and correct!

I find even the news about Trump so toxic I cannot watch. I used to wonder how newscasters could deal with it day after day, and smile and laugh while they did. I begin to understand it's a method of self-preservation.

He's actually named Alexander. Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson.

Man of the people.

His children all have ridiculous posh names too. Lara Lettuce Johnson, Theodore Apollo Johnson, Cassia Peaches Johnson...

TIL

He's actually named Alexander. Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson. — S

Yeah.
A bit of a mouthful, huh - and what comes out of his is...

'Spasms of incorrectitude' to say the least

:rage:

'Spasms of incorrectitude': Johnson's own words on lust, racism and the EU
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jul/15/spasms-of-incorrectitude-extracts-boris-johnson-writing

--------------

all the Republicans keeping quiet about his latest remarks should be ashamed of themselves. Very ashamed. — S

Indeed. It is disgusting but not surprising.

On Monday, the former Ohio governor and candidate for the presidential nomination John Kasich did speak up, tweeting that what Trump “said about Democrat women in Congress is deplorable and beneath the dignity of the office.

“We all, including Republicans, need to speak out against these kinds of comments that do nothing more than divide us and create deep animosity – maybe even hatred.”

But senior party figures in elected office, among them Utah senator Mitt Romney, a frequent critic of the president, were silent. Some, such as Graham, instead devoted media appearances to defending Trump over images from the southern border of migrant men held in cages amid what one reporter called “sweltering” heat and “horrific” stench.’

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jul/15/donald-trump-congresswomen-republicans-ocasio-cortez-tlaib-pressley-omar

His children all have ridiculous posh names too. Lara Lettuce Johnson, Theodore Apollo Johnson, Cassia Peaches Johnson... — S

Now that I didn't know :smile:
And that's only the kids we know about...

When you throw crap at Trump, he just eats it and shits roses.

In fact, this place is entirely a product of his colon.

I'm gonna lose my shit — Mark Dennis

Don't soil your Depends on my account. I wasn't suggesting that parents were responsible for what happens in US border control facilities. What parents are responsible for is crossing borders illegally with children or taking large risks--like swimming across the Rio Grande with one's very young daughter. What follows after that decision (being detained in poorly managed facilities) is--as you said--the fault of "TRUMP, ICE and this SHITTY ALT RIGHT GOVERNMENT".

As I understand refugee status, the bar set by the international system is fairly high. A large portion of claimants will not meet the conditions required for refugee status. Desiring better economic opportunities, the desire to live in a less chaotic country, and so forth do not meet the standard. So, most of the people arriving at, or crossing the border illegally, are economic migrants, not refugees. Any nations obligations to economic migrants is minimal.

I loathe Donald Trump as an incompetent executive, narcissistic personality, and capitalist pig, but Trump or not, controlling borders is the legitimate responsibility of all governments, and no nation is obligated to take all comers. Nations exist for the citizens who support them, not for all the people who just decide that X nation is a better place than Y nation.

Who Will Be Admitted is going to be a major issue around the globe as more and more people In an over-crowded world with insufficient resources and a deteriorating climate (and everything that entails) seek tolerable living conditions. The numbers of people on the move will rise into the hundreds of millions. They can not all go to Europe or North America, or New Zealand, Argentina, or wherever.

The tragedy of global warming and the concomitant environmental and economic disasters is that a lot of people are going to lose the competition for survival. I don't like that, but because the global community (that's everyone) has done very little to prepare for the climate and economic crisis, that's the way it is going to turn out.

In the short term, a better policy for the US would be assistance to the Central American countries to rebuild their economies and civil societies. In the long run (say, 2099) much of Central America might be too hot to live in. What we will all do in 2099 is... anybody's guess.

Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you. The reality of climate change is something eats away at me as it seems to me like a slow eugenics movement wherein the individuals who benefit the most from ignoring man driven climate change also have the resources to survive it and it's a sick joke to me which I'm sure you can understand makes my blood boil. "a lot of people are going to lose the competition for survival." While this might be true, I still believe the best course of action for a true humanist to take is to serve as big a collective as it is possible to change. After all, if all but the most unethical at the top of society are to serve, what has been the point of all moral debates? If we resign ourselves to defeatism and give up all hope then we are signing our own death warrants and those of our children. This is not an acceptable set of affairs for any parent.

So we might have to give up growth and switch to alternative clean energy? So we are asking the scientific community for Terraforming countermeasures. These things are possible, with the universe out there, the solutions do exist.

It is certainly true that "building a wall" will not work. If you are really going to guard your borders so that NO ONE gets in or out, you have to do it the way the Soviets did it in parts of Europe: double fences, no-man zones in between, mines, guard towers, armed guards, spot lights, (and more up-to-date), drones, robots, etc. Very expensive.

Obviously, illegal immigrants from India, Ireland, or Indonesia are not swimming their way to the US.

The technical means to keep track of illegals who settle in the US and work exist, but it requires that US employers perform their legal requirements. IF they don't, then the various technical systems work poorly.

Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you. The reality of climate change is something eats away at me as it seems to me like a slow eugenics movement wherein the individuals who benefit the most from ignoring man driven climate change also have the resources to survive it and it's a sick joke to me which I'm sure you can understand makes my blood boil. — Mark Dennis

I'm not offended. The climate crisis is eating away at a lot of us. I expect the richest 1%, wherever and whoever they are, will ride out climate change in comfort. The rest of us...

So we might have to give up growth and switch to alternative clean energy? So we are asking the scientific community for Terraforming countermeasures. These things are possible, with the universe out there, the solutions do exist. — Mark Dennis

Global warming is an unmitigated tragedy. The "survival of the fittest" won't be based on genetics, it will be based on geography. Various places on earth will be more severely affected and some places less so, and that includes the first world.

Just take for example the "bread basket" states of the USA. This area has been under cultivation for a short period of time, relative to climate change or world history. We have been fortunate in having pretty stable climate during this time. The soil was rich and the weather was very good most of the time.

Bread basket areas tend to be flat. Flat land doesn't drain very well. Nothing more dramatic than unseasonably heavy rains can wipe out a crop. A lot of land in the upper midwest is heading for a poor crop this year because of unseasonable wet weather, with water standing in the fields, or the soil being too wet to cultivate.

If the weather is too hot, too wet, too cool, or too dry, too many insects ... poor crop yields result. The same is true in Russia, Australia, and numerous other "bread basket areas". As the climate becomes more chaotic and hotter, crop yields (certainly in grains and soy) are going to decline. That means less food for everybody, around the world.

Alternative energy is here. Wind and solar with batteries (of various kinds) are now cheaper than coal in many places. That's one good thing. But coal is still being mined and burned, and the oil business is doing just fine. Transportation has become the leading emitter of greenhouse gases in the US (Europe and Asia aren't doing that much to lower emissions either), and we are doing very, very little to move to quality mass transit.

The fact is, nobody on earth has any experience with the gravity or magnitude of the unfolding crisis. A big rock might as well be heading our way for all the strategic responses we are collectively making.