The First 100 days

[bystander]

I've been reading on foreign policy for 29 years now, and this might be the most ridiculous article on it I have ever seen. It's hard to be this wrong about anything.

I hope I can articulate what I'm thinking. It's been my impression that the Left refuses to accept or understand negotiating tactics. They become afraid or over-react to bombastic pronouncements by Republican Presidents. They apparently believe benevolence is the way to reach a despotic regime. It's like Trump's tariffs. They immediately became horrified by the strong head-on attack. They don't seem to understand that our willingness to make it hurt and accept some pain in the meantime is the way to back these nations down. Time and time again, we have proven that our economy can out-last anyone else's.

So if this article is to be believed then what we possibly saw was Reagan clearly and aggressively attacking the Soviet Union rhetorically and economically with the ramp up in defense spending. Maybe Gorbachev blinked and Reagan sensed this during their summit. And then what is so hard to believe that maybe these two men forged an agreement that included a change in tone. That Reagan agreed to treat Gorbachev and the Soviet Union not as evil but as salvageable and capable of good? Certainly it could have been a gamble to shift to a softer tone but we are all human and maybe Reagan gambled on what he saw in Gorbachev. He found someone he could work with. A human being and not a madman.

 

[Sangre Naranjada]

Simply put, you have to use the carrot AND the stick.

And, as noted, you have to be willing to accept some pain in the short term yourself.

 

[Joe Fan]

“Almost unnoticed, the world has reduced poverty, increased incomes, and improved health more than at any time in history.“​

Progress in the global war on poverty

 

[Joe Fan]

The population of Puerto Rico is over 3 million. The relief effort required tens of thousands of shipping containers full of food, clothing, medical supplies, generators, etc. I remember stories about how they didn't have enough trucks to drive the containers to where aid was needing, resulting in a backlog of several thousands containers in the port.
But yes, let's blame the entire debacle on a dozen or so misplaced containers.

A gigantic warehouse was discovered in Puerto Rico this week that was filled with US Survival aid sent there 2 years ago after Hurricane Maria. It was found because of the earthquakes.

 

[mchammer]

I've been reading on foreign policy for 29 years now, and this might be the most ridiculous article on it I have ever seen. It's hard to be this wrong about anything.

Gorbachev wasn’t president when Reagan was elected. There was no guarantee that Gorbachev was the start of a trend or a short term anomaly. The article is a lesson in abusing hindsight.

 

[Joe Fan]

“83% of farmers and ranchers approve of the president’s job performance. It is the highest level of support for Mr. Trump among farmers since he took office”​

Farmer Approval of Trump Hits Record, Poll Shows

 

[Garmel]

A gigantic warehouse was discovered in Puerto Rico this week that was filled with US Survival aid sent there 2 years ago after Hurricane Maria. It was found because of the earthquakes.

Makes me want to bring up some old Husker tweets.

 

[Joe Fan]

The US has the highest GDP and lowest unemployment rate among the developed countries

 

[Joe Fan]

CNN has had the Porn Star's lawyer, Michael Avenatti, on 59 times in less than two months

Avenatti is now in El Chapo's old jail cell.

 

[Joe Fan]

This has always been one of my major gripes about Obama, Hillary, Kerry and the rest of the Dems. They never seem to understand the nature of the job for which they were applying. Obama acted like he thought he was president of the world -- "we need to treat Central Americans fairly." OK, but you dont actually represent them. I would have brought this up in the debates at every chance.

Trump at Davos

“A nation’s highest duty is to its own citizens. Honoring this truth is the only way to build faith and confidence in the market system. Only when governments put their own citizens first will people be fully invested in their national futures.”​

 

[I35]

Makes me want to bring up some old Husker tweets.

HE GONE!
WINNING!!!

 

[Joe Fan]

 

[Joe Fan]

HE GONE!
WINNING!!!

They dont come here anymore because they do not want to be exposed to alternative news and viewpoints. They hate that. Anyone who comes in this forum, gets news from all over - video, articles, quotes, pictures. They not only do not want that but they actively seek to avoid it. They are afraid of it. They are scared of anything that challenges their worldview, or makes them think and make rational choices between competing alternatives. They only want news which is edited, spliced and handpicked for them by somebody else inside their chosen echo chamber. They are cowards.

Here they are now

 

[Horn6721]

Trump's speech was full of optimism for a brighter future.
He will be trashed by MSM and Dems.

 

[Garmel]

HE GONE!
WINNING!!!

He'll be back I'm sure. I don't mind his opposing opinions as long as they're backed up with facts and not MSM propaganda. Well, that and quit bullshitting.

 

[Horn6721]

That was the problem. Too frequently he would post provable bs then disappear when it was pointed out.

 

[bystander]

This has always been one of my major gripes about Obama, Hillary, Kerry and the rest of the Dems. They never seem to understand the nature of the job for which they were applying. Obama acted like he thought he was president of the world -- "we need to treat Central Americans fairly." OK, but you dont actually represent them. I would have brought this up in the debates at every chance.

Trump at Davos

“A nation’s highest duty is to its own citizens. Honoring this truth is the only way to build faith and confidence in the market system. Only when governments put their own citizens first will people be fully invested in their national futures.”​

Of course, the Socialist Totalitarians (TM Mr. Deez) would say he's being nationalistic, meaning a Nazi.

 

[Joe Fan]

Trump's speech was full of optimism for a brighter future.
He will be trashed by MSM and Dems.

Bloomberg News described that as "talking about himself," while the others wanted to talk about climate change

 

[I35]

They dont come here anymore because they do not want to be exposed to alternative news and viewpoints. They hate that. Anyone who comes in this forum, gets news from all over - video, articles, quotes, pictures. They not only do not want that but they actively seek to avoid it. They are afraid of it. They are scared of anything that challenges their worldview, or makes them think and make rational choices between competing alternatives. They only want news which is edited, spliced and handpicked for them by somebody else inside their chosen echo chamber. They are cowards.

Here they are now

He'll be back I'm sure. I don't mind his opposing opinions as long as they're backed up with facts and not MSM propaganda. Well, that and quit bullshitting.

That was the problem. Too frequently he would post provable bs then disappear when it was pointed out.

I’m quoting someone, but I can’t remember who.

“If you want to anger a Conservative, lie to him. If you want to anger a Liberal, tell him the truth.”

 

[NJlonghorn]

A gigantic warehouse was discovered in Puerto Rico this week that was filled with US Survival aid sent there 2 years ago after Hurricane Maria. It was found because of the earthquakes.

My original post was in response to proof that a dozen or so containers had not been distributed properly. I explained that this was a tiny fraction of the overall aid that was properly distributed.

Now, you counter with another example where aid was not properly distributed. Certainly, the failure to get these supplies into needy hands is inexcusable. Hopefully, an investigation will show whether the cause was corruption, incompetence, or a mix of the two. And it is certainly possible that there are other undistributed supplies out there (which may or may not ever be discovered).

But let's explore whether this new find is proof of a massive, systematic problem.

1. You say the warehouse is "gigantic". At 43k square foot, it would be better described as "small".

2. You say the warehouse was "filled" with relief supplies. From the video I've seen, one room was less than half full, and the other room was mostly empty. All told, it was probably something in the ballpark of 20% to 30% full.

3. According to one of the articles I read, the warehouse processed over 2,000 pallets of water during the 2017 relief effort. This week, some 80 pallets were found undistributed.

4. For what it's worth, 80 pallets of water would fit into 4 shipping containers. Thus, it is a smaller example than the previous one, which involved a dozen or so containers.

To be fair, there were also some other items in the warehouse (diapers, formula, etc.). I haven't found any quantification for those items.

Again, letting these supplies just sit there is inexcusable. But in terms of quantity, it is entire consistent with my previous point.

 

[NJlonghorn]

They dont come here anymore because they do not want to be exposed to alternative news and viewpoints. They hate that. Anyone who comes in this forum, gets news from all over - video, articles, quotes, pictures. They not only do not want that but they actively seek to avoid it. They are afraid of it. They are scared of anything that challenges their worldview, or makes them think and make rational choices between competing alternatives. They only want news which is edited, spliced and handpicked for them by somebody else inside their chosen echo chamber. They are cowards.

Here they are now

I assume you include me in "they", but if so you are dead wrong. I spend a lot more time reading alternate viewpoints than I do reading stuff I agree with, because I agree that that is the best way to learn and challenge opinions. My daily browsings include Fox News and Breitbart, amongst others. Also, I check out the West Mall very often -- at least daily.

I can't speak for Husker, but I can say why I don't post here much any more. That's because it typically leads to attacks, not discourse. I just don't have the time or energy to devote to the ******** one has to wade through just to get to a decent discussion. It's a perfect example of the mindless echo chamber you claim I'm looking for, when in reality I'm trying to get away from it.

 

[Garmel]

My original post was in response to proof that a dozen or so containers had not been distributed properly. I explained that this was a tiny fraction of the overall aid that was properly distributed.

Now, you counter with another example where aid was not properly distributed. Certainly, the failure to get these supplies into needy hands is inexcusable. Hopefully, an investigation will show whether the cause was corruption, incompetence, or a mix of the two. And it is certainly possible that there are other undistributed supplies out there (which may or may not ever be discovered).

But let's explore whether this new find is proof of a massive, systematic problem.

1. You say the warehouse is "gigantic". At 43k square foot, it would be better described as "small".

2. You say the warehouse was "filled" with relief supplies. From the video I've seen, one room was less than half full, and the other room was mostly empty. All told, it was probably something in the ballpark of 20% to 30% full.

3. According to one of the articles I read, the warehouse processed over 2,000 pallets of water during the 2017 relief effort. This week, some 80 pallets were found undistributed.

4. For what it's worth, 80 pallets of water would fit into 4 shipping containers. Thus, it is a smaller example than the previous one, which involved a dozen or so containers.

To be fair, there were also some other items in the warehouse (diapers, formula, etc.). I haven't found any quantification for those items.

Again, letting these supplies just sit there is inexcusable. But in terms of quantity, it is entire consistent with my previous point.

Don't know the exact amount but there have been several arrests over the Hurricane Maire situation so it was a serious problem. It also proves Trump was not at fault in Puerto Rico.

 

[Garmel]

I can't speak for Husker, but I can say why I don't post here much any more. That's because it typically leads to attacks, not discourse. I just don't have the time or energy to devote to the ******** one has to wade through just to get to a decent discussion. It's a perfect example of the mindless echo chamber you claim I'm looking for, when in reality I'm trying to get away from it.

Attacks? You've come in here several times just to instigate **** with Joe Fan (sometimes just over semantics) and you want to complain about the attacks here?

 

[Joe Fan]

I assume you include me in "they", but if so you are dead wrong. ....

Werent you the one who was pimping what great work The Clinton Foundation was doing and that their work was all legit? Until I blew that up with their own tax returns, and then disappeared. Or was that someone else? If so, sorry to associate you with that criminal organization.

 

[NJlonghorn]

Don't know the exact amount but there have been several arrests over the Hurricane Maire situation so it was a serious problem.

It is widely accepted that the hurricane relief was not handled well, and I'm sure there was both corruption and incompetence at play. But some degree of waste is inevitable under emergency conditions. I'm sure that there was even more of it in Puerto Rico than is normal elsewhere, but that is at least in part because the conditions were worse and the island is, well, an island.

Don't forget that the discussion was over whether we should refuse to provide more relief because the relief we did provide was wasted. I was pushing back on that, saying the known waste was not nearly widespread enough to justify such a reaction. I still stand by that.

It also proves Trump was not at fault in Puerto Rico.

Agreed. I never thought he was.

 

[NJlonghorn]

Werent you the one who was pimping what great work The Clinton Foundation was doing and that their work was all legit? Until I blew that up with their own tax returns, and then disappeared. Or was that someone else? If so, sorry to associate you with that criminal organization.

You posted their tax returns, and we had extensive discussions about why those returns didn't show what you claimed they showed.

My position was (and is) that the operations side of the CGI was legit -- or at least not proven to be otherwise. You suggested that the tax returns proved that money was misspent, and I disagreed.

On the flip side, I agreed with you that the fundraising side was shady. No doubt, donors gave to the foundation because they thought doing so would give them influence in Washington. I haven't seen any evidence of outright illegality, but it was what I would call "legally corrupt". I never defended it, and I don't plan to do so now.

 

[Joe Fan]

You posted their tax returns, and we had extensive discussions about why those returns didn't show what you claimed they showed.

My position was (and is) that the operations side of the CGI was legit -- or at least not proven to be otherwise. You suggested that the tax returns proved that money was misspent, and I disagreed.

On the flip side, I agreed with you that the fundraising side was shady. No doubt, donors gave to the foundation because they thought doing so would give them influence in Washington. I haven't seen any evidence of outright illegality, but it was what I would call "legally corrupt". I never defended it, and I don't plan to do so now.

So that was you. I thought so but couldnt say for certain. And then you disappeared for months after.

And werent you also the poster who argued with me about who started Obama birtherism? I said it was Hillary bag man and dirty trickster Sidney Blumenthal. You said no way that it had to be the crazy Republicans. Then I showed you. And you were gone. If this was not you then apologizes. I am somewhat infamous for getting usernames mixed up.

But, if so, then it qualifies as a pattern -- which is exactly what me and the other poster above were alleging.

 

[Joe Fan]

The EU is next. Already started.

 

[Horn6721]

The reactions from many at Davos supporting Trump and what he has done wil drive the haters nuts.
I am still trying to figure out why America First is bad.

 

[mchammer]

The reactions from many at Davos supporting Trump and what he has done wil drive the haters nuts.
I am still trying to figure out why America First is bad.

I travel to India, China, etc. Everyone but Dems understand what America First means. It’s like your kid who pretends not to understand something to avoid doing something.