News Us politics - read first post before comment

[Justmehere]

The shutdown has cost more than the wall itself and had a huge impact on a lot of people. Non-profits are cutting back left and right. Many of them get federal funding. If the Trump administration actually does build the wall, it won't stop (or even slow much) immigrants coming into the US illegally or undocumented, it will be tied up in the courts for years, and some Democrat will get all the glory of symbolically tearing it down. Both sides actually already voted into law to build the wall in 2006... this is all just wrangling about funding it.

Declaring it a national emergency and pulling funding from the military to build it appears to be something the president has a right to do, but is a very bad road to go down.

The tit for tat between the democrats and republicans is a bigger issue and will be the downfall of the US.

 

[blackemerald1]

The tit for tat between the democrats and republicans is a bigger issue and will be the downfall of the US

Yep - it's like a school yard brawl to an outsider.

 

[blackemerald1]

I read that a lot of government employees are beginning to apply for unemployment benefits or similar because they've not been paid. What I wonder is who is processing these applications and all of the other government funded essential organisations? How is it that essential services are continuing to run at all or are these workers doing work for nothing? Will they get paid back when this mess is finally resolved?

 

[Justmehere]

They are filing for state-based unemployment. The government of all 50 states is still open, and they handle unemployment. Some states like California do not allow furloughed federal employees to qualify for state unemployment, but some other states do provide unemployment payments to federal workers.

The 50 states were supposed to be experiments in democracy, and the federal government in a quite limited role... but the federal government has grown too large.

Two things I hope that come out of this: term limits and letting states have more power, and the feds less power. Then a shutdown won't impact so much. Sometimes a state does shutdown, but it never impacts so many people.

All "essential" workers (like federal prison guards and etc) are still working. A law was passed that all the furloughed non-essential workers will be paid when they get back on the job, and all the essential workers will be paid when the government is not shutdown anymore. Right now, it's like they are essentially dealing with an on-going IOU from the government for when the budget is passed.

Many matters are not being processed. Some IRS text returns will be delayed, immigration courts are mostly shut down, etc. Yet, the taxpayers are still paying and will still pay for all this non-work, and for all the work to catch up. It's a lose-lose-lose situation.

 

[Justmehere]

George Washington mural ‘traumatizes’ San Fran students; high school may remove art
I’ve read in other articles the art is of George Washington. It’s at George Washington high school.

I don’t think the image of someone who threw off colonization is actually glorifying colonization.

I don’t think the word “traumatized” means what they think it means.

Remove the mural, that’s fine. It’s their school they can have whatever art that fits for the school and it’s educational goals, but it’s not trauma to see a mural of a historical figure.

 

[Friday]

It would have been gold to see a student body pic complete with Che Guevera & MalcomX tee shirts.

Even if they actually disagree with Revolutionary heroes... and aren’t just seeing how stupid adults are... how passive aggressive pansified has this country become that disagreeing with anyone about anything is “traumatic”? Grow a spine.

 

[Ronin]

That reminds me Bradley Campbell & Jason Manning wrote a brilliant book on that type of (originally) US colleges culture pansy, named The Rise Of Victimhood Culture.

... Similar conclusions, Grow a pair, though it had useful academic (and quote SJW sensitive) discourse on how they are actually harming themselves / free speech that they seem to be arguing FOR.

 

[Justmehere]

Then there are protests against free speech happening on college campuses.

They don’t quite understand what gives them the right to protest.

 

[Sideways]

From the outside looking in: the US seems to be swinging to the far right in its politics. Simultaneously (unrelated or not), it seems to be failing fairly spectacularly in its international relationships, particularly with China...

Is our media giving us overwhelmingly biased news, or is this accurate? It’s really unsettling to watch...

 

[Justmehere]

Considering the rise of socialism in the US, no, it has not swung far right. It’s become more statist. More people looking to government to fix all the problems, both left and right versions of it.

If you look at the left, Joe Biden is the most popular presidential candidate and it’s because he is seen as the most moderate. (He isn’t actually... but that’s a whole other thing...)

Trump is far into authoritarian measures and things like tariffs. The right hates tariffs.

It’s a culture of a few outraged talking heads that want someone to get the “other side” while most folks are just trying to feed their kids and pay the bills.

 

[scout86]

the US seems to be swinging to the far right in its politics.

I think that depends on what you mean by "the US". I don't think we, the people, have changed all that much. The person who thinks he's running the show still got less than half the popular vote and his approval ratings aren't that good. The mid-term elections favored either liberal or middle of the road views, for the most part. There wasn't really a chance to change the Senate..... For my money, we have a minority of people with extreme conservative views forcing their opinions down everyone's throats. But then, no one ever accused me of being conservative. LOL I have to say, there's stuff happening that I never really expected to see in my lifetime.

 

[EveHarrington]

I read somewhere that we are a left-center society. However, gerrymandering has skewed political representation in many areas (including mine) so the makeup of Congress isn’t an accurate representation of the USA. There are multiple states where political lines need to be redrawn as ordered by the courts.