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Trump Declared Guilty

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  1. Yes, let’s see how this thing plays out.

    Okay, Steve, you ask, “Whaddaya think?”

    Well, I think several things:

    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    2) Trump eventually worked his act until he became what his is politically: Seemingly the only guy who stands for “Americans First.” Whether or not that title is true is another matter….

    3) It is terrible that our nation has reached the point that lawfare and the law can be used against political opponents the way it has been in communist countries.

    4) I personally don’t like Trump, and I have been considering not actually voting at all, in any election, even local….

    5) This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much….

    •�Agree: Voltarde, nebulafox
    •�Replies: @Dave Pinsen
    @Buzz Mohawk


    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.
    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @R.G. Camara, @Steve Sailer, @Erik L, @Not Raul
    , @Tony
    @Buzz Mohawk

    #4. So you want this country to decline into a 3rd world cesspool. At least Trump could temporarily slow that down.

    Replies: @Buzz Mohawk, @Prester John
    , @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality
    @Buzz Mohawk


    This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much….
    Yes. Steve was super passionate about Covid Lockdowns. He was emotionally invested in Zelensky.

    But the destruction of his own people ..... yawn.

    Replies: @Anon
    , @Sean
    @Buzz Mohawk

    Re 1, you could not build a lego set back then without the Mob taking a cut and it was done through control of unions. If you wanted the work done without strikes and go slows, you paid off, but thet was done by the contractors. Trump never made any illegal payments, his MO was agreeing to pay the contactors the amount of their successful tender and then telling the the contractors when it was too late for them to pull out that they would have to be satisfied with less or the project would collapse. He got the buildings competed on time and without cost overruns in a way others could not.

    Re 5. 'All enemies foreign and domestic'. One well known commentator wanted the Army to be called out to stop him taking office. Under Obama Tea Party donators were being targeted with IRS audits.

    Replies: @Buzz Mohawk
  2. If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they’re so thirsty for his blood, they’ll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    •�Replies: @JimDandy
    @vinteuil

    "If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they’re so thirsty for his blood, they’ll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts."


    Most of "these people" are useful idiots for a genuinely insane death cult, so, yeah.
    , @James N. Kennett
    @vinteuil


    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they’re so thirsty for his blood, they’ll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    They know exactly what they are doing. If in October Trump is beating Biden in the polls, prison will be the easiest place to assassinate him. There is no need for a gunman or even a patsy if Trump commits "suicide" in his cell.
    , @George
    @vinteuil

    If he ends up in jail there is a chance he will be murdered. Would he get secret service protection?

    Replies: @trevor
    , @Twinkie
    @vinteuil


    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.
    I hope so!
    , @HA
    @vinteuil

    "These people are completely nuts."

    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    https://youtu.be/Kml6WRiXQ2M

    Replies: @Cloudbuster, @PeterIke, @Richard B
    , @Hannah Katz
    @vinteuil

    Looks like Biden is adopting the Nicaragua strategy. Their "President-for-life" Daniel Ortega regularly has his political opponents jailed, especially those with the gall to run against him for President. Note his VP is his wife. At least "Plugs" has not gone that far. Yet.
    , @Pythas
    @vinteuil

    True. But there's only one way to deal with alien out-lander fanatics living in out Western Culture and Civilization and we know what that is. Now another question. What is a Colombian south american jungle shitter named juan merchan doing as a judge in our Anglo-Saxon Protestant legal system in the 1st place that the assholes did not create? Also what is a primitives negro who's name by the way is Bragg (the 80 I.Q. low life has a stolen name from a Confederated Southern General Braxton Bragg) doing as a D.A. in one of our major Western cities that these jungle shitters had nothing to do with creating also? Anybody want to answer my that? Now if the shoe was on the other foot and hypothetically these black and brown trash created our legal system or the industrial revolution or the Renaissance do you think any of these aliens would let any White man into their Cultural/Civilizational institutions? I already know the answer to that. You mentally colonized Western men better start waking up.

    Replies: @trevor
  3. People on the right seem confident of the verdict getting overturned on appeal because of the kangaroo court trail. I would be surprised if that happens. The regime has moved on to open lawfare. Biden’s speech on proudly ignoring the Supreme Court ruling his student loan forgiveness scheme was unconstitutional is a great example. We should anticipate an absurd sentence for Trump too, something like 120 years in Rikers.

    •�Agree: R.G. Camara, TWS
    •�Replies: @Master CPL Savage
    @Barnard

    Rikers? Lol

    If they are successful, I think they'll try to stick it to him good & hard & try to send him to Guantamo Bay 🫤

    Whole retched affair is/was a an unmitigated, appalling sham.
  4. Biden has an election-winning play here:

    Pardon Trump.

    •�Replies: @Jack D
    @Anon7

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @Anon7, @Paleo Liberal, @epebble, @Johann Ricke
    , @De Doc
    @Anon7

    Hunter gets first dibs on the pardon.
  5. Dee State Show Trial with AA judiciary.

    •�Thanks: Father Coughlin
  6. Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    People (like me) who have had good experiences when visiting the US will begin to despair.

    Wait, I hear you cry, there’s a mighty difference between the governing classes and The People. Aye, but it’s the governing classes who have the whip hand.

    •�Replies: @Jim Don Bob
    @dearieme


    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.
    Kevin O'Leary said yesterday that this trial has hurt the USA's "brand" in foreign countries. NYC is still the financial capital of the US and second only to London in the world.

    He said that the people in foreign countries he's talked to are incredulous that a county DA can indict and a local jury convict a former president. Banana republic indeed.

    Should Trump win in November, would a military coup led by former JCS head Milley be too far fetched?

    Replies: @trevor, @Tex
    , @trevor
    @dearieme

    Alan Dershowitz is adding another banana +🍌.

    https://dailycaller.com/2024/05/30/alan-dershowitz-doubts-conviction-overturned-because-judgestrump/
    , @Curle
    @dearieme


    America. You are now a Banana Republic
    In fairness, it has been for some time. At least since Nixon was set up.

    Replies: @epebble, @dearieme
    , @Joe Stalin
    @dearieme


    You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.
    All Democrat controlled areas are like this. In Illinois, our gun controller Supreme Court judges are PRE-BRIBED by Gov. "Jelly Belly" Pritzker.

    Pritzker, defendant in gun challenge, gave $2 million to two supreme court justices
    https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/article_a2c00992-bd36-11ed-b4f1-8fb9779f6a34.html
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUWs1EbzWhw

    YT comment:

    @roxannekean6025
    1 day ago
    I worked for the USAF as a civilian. After listening to the news that day, I commented aloud in my cubicle, "Why does the world hate us so much?" In answer, came a deep booming voice from another cubicle, which said: "Don't you believe it!" The voice belonged to one of our foreign-born lieutenants, (now an American citizen), from Nigeria. A few seconds later, he stood before me smiling. He said, "The people who hate you, are those with power. But the people who have no power, love you! This is a great country to them, and that is why they struggle to come here." It really made my day. I blame the media, and teachers, for brainwashing out kids to hate their own country. This needs to stop!
    , @Bragadocious
    @dearieme

    Pretty funny and ironic coming from a Brit whose government is complicit in this "prosecution" by funding Alvin Bragg and other woke prosecutors. Oh but His Majesty's government would never do that you say, to which I say it sure would, it's just smart enough to use NGO cutouts to do the dirty work. In this case, Soros >>>>> Color of Change >>>> Bragg. But it's a very British thing to engage in lies and disinformation, then mock the people who have been victimized by those lies. Israel does this too.
  7. Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?

    Honestly, I can’t keep track of all the show trials. I know they’ve fined him a billion dollars or something because some looney old woman says he fingered her at some unspecified date back in the 90s and Trump called her a liar. Then there’s some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten … or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump.

    What’s this one about? Dying his hair?

    Stalin did it better.

    •�Replies: @Michael Droy
    @AnotherDad


    What’s this one about? Dying his hair?

    Stalin did it better.
    Stalin's hair was terrific.
    , @Dieter Kief
    @AnotherDad


    Then there’s some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten … or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump. What’s this one about? Dying his hair?
    This passage of yours made me laugh - at the end of a long and a bit exhausting day - so: Thanks!

    - Apropos your last sentence: Will it all boil down to world war hair?

    - That would be a zeitgeisty and - iSteeve-y punch line . . . on the other hand: One that we'd have not much time left to enjoy, possibly - - - Life is full of strangenesses (Goethe: "Das Leben stickt voller Merkwürdigkeiten.")

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
    , @Anonymous
    @AnotherDad


    Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?
    Guilty of advocating policies that happened to be in the interests of the American White majority.

    The attempts to destroy Trump are part of the drive toward White Genocide.

    Replies: @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality
    , @trevor
    @AnotherDad

    None of his alleged "crimes" had any actual VICTIMS.

    NO ONE was physically hurt or suffered any financial loss.
  8. Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    •�Agree: BB753, Currahee, trevor, Ian M., mc23
    •�Replies: @AnotherDad
    @Father Coughlin


    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.
    Sadly, I fear you are right.

    The cultural and ideology has been changed, and even more importantly the demographics have been changed. We seem to be on the path of a slow ooze into Latino mediocrity--"slumping toward Brazil."
    , @Frau Katze
    @Father Coughlin


    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man
    …with a terrible VP.
    , @kaganovitch
    @Father Coughlin


    But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays.
    What we need is a man like Ray Epps!
    , @Jay Fink
    @Father Coughlin

    France isn't a third world country and their people are quick to hit the streets when angered. Then again they aren't fat and happy, at least not fat.

    Replies: @Almost Missouri
    , @Yancey Ward
    @Father Coughlin

    I tend to agree- the passivity will continue until the point Americans are thinking of eating the pets and standing nightguard at the windows with a rifle. Only then might we be aroused to action.

    I had hoped to die long before we reached even this point, but I could see it was coming with the prosecution of Ted Stevens and Bob McDonnell. My only surprise about this trial is that the jury didn't just tell the judge yesterday that they had a verdict when he finished telling them they had no choice but to convict in order to follow the law.
    , @Paul Jolliffe
    @Father Coughlin

    “Trump will lose to a senile old man”

    Oh Trump will lose alright, but it won’t be to Biden, but to RFK, Jr.

    RFK, Jr. absolutely will be on the ballot in all 50 states, and it’s likely he’ll be in at least one major televised debate despite CNN’s desperate efforts to keep him out.

    The readers of this blog may snicker and insult away, but RFK, Jr. will be a huge factor in this election and he just might win.

    (The Deep State fears and hates him more than they hate Trump. You think Trump is getting screwed?
    Wait until you see what they will throw at Kennedy.
    Anything, and I mean anything, is possible.
    As Kennedy gets closer to the White House, this might be the last election in our lifetimes.)

    Replies: @Manfred Arcane, @John Johnson, @Father Coughlin
  9. Winston Churchill, July 13 1934:

    “Politics in Germany are not as they are over here. There, you do not leave office to go into Opposition. You do not leave the Front Bench to sit below the gangway. You may well leave your high office at a quarter of an hour’s notice to drive to the police station …”

    •�Thanks: Hibernian
  10. Makes Trump pretty much unbeatable. He no longer needs to campaign.
    I thought the Dems would drop Biden-Harris for a more electable alternative.
    Might as well not bother now.

    •�Replies: @Jon Tormento
    @Michael Droy

    I don't even understand this argument. It's only the true believer MAGA morons who think Trump being convicted makes him more electable. Your average voter, particularly a swing voter, doesn't like criminals, regardless of whether the trial was fair or not (and the trial probably was fair, generally speaking). And the trial brought to the forefront damning testimony about Trump being a sleazeball who cheats on his wife with a porn star.

    Replies: @bomag
    , @Old Virginia
    @Michael Droy

    You don't think they'll come up with 100,000,000 ballots to beat Trump's 95,000,000 votes?
  11. I will withhold opinion until the jurors start their lucrative media tours and tell us how it all went down.

    •�LOL: Hibernian
    •�Replies: @Anon
    @Elmer T. Jones

    Speaking of the jurors… is no one skeptical that there were two lawyers as jurors? Most people tend to defer their decisions to experts in a particular field, especially when the stakes are so high such as this case. I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that our favorite three letter agencies weren’t going to leave this decision up to a bunch of rubes, and made sure a couple of lawyers were present as “experts” to help sway the decision in their favor…

    -Rooster
  12. @AnotherDad
    Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?

    Honestly, I can't keep track of all the show trials. I know they've fined him a billion dollars or something because some looney old woman says he fingered her at some unspecified date back in the 90s and Trump called her a liar. Then there's some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten ... or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump.

    What's this one about? Dying his hair?

    Stalin did it better.

    Replies: @Michael Droy, @Dieter Kief, @Anonymous, @trevor

    What’s this one about? Dying his hair?

    Stalin did it better.

    Stalin’s hair was terrific.

  13. Speaking as an attorney who has litigated in various courts, including SCOTUS, there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…The number of insanely bad rulings in this case undoubtedly breaks the record…

    •�Thanks: res, trevor, Master CPL Savage
    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @pyrrhus

    Do you have time to give us a breakdown?
    , @Hypnotoad666
    @pyrrhus


    there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…
    100%. Merchan is an anti-Trump partisan hack, yet (precisely for that reason) he managed to catch three anti-Trump cases. The odds of this happening by random chance are like 10,000 to 1. He sent the CEO of Trump enterprises to jail for for not declaring his parking spot as taxable income. Good God. Can you imagine if that standard were applied to other CEOs?

    If Trump gets elected from jail he absolutely must turn the DOJ into a scorched earth tool of retribution. It's a target rich environment of REAL crimes out there with all the Clinton Foundation graft, Zuckerberg election finance violations, and CIA treason by Brennan and his ilk. Heck bring a RICO case against the New York Times for all the classified material they publish daily. The precedent is set. No one can blame him.

    Replies: @Dr. X, @Master CPL Savage, @AceDeuce
    , @Mr. Anon
    @pyrrhus


    Speaking as an attorney who has litigated in various courts, including SCOTUS, there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…The number of insanely bad rulings in this case undoubtedly breaks the record…
    Given that the judge's daughter runs a fund-raising outfit for Democratic candidates and undoubtedly profits greatly thereby - this was a channel for wealthy democrats to essentially directly pay off a judge presiding over the kangaroo court that convicted the candidate they don't like.

    Yeah...........it's rotten.
    , @Erik L
    @pyrrhus

    Anyone can tell this is crap just by the lack of detail in the explanations in the press. I tried Googling to find out if there is precedent for using a federal crime as an aggravating factor (if that is the correct term and/or even what happened) for a state crime and Google turns up nothing but press reports on Trump with no examination of the question
  14. Trump Declared Guilty

    Whaddaya think?

    Prediction: Trump will win 60% of the Black vote

  15. Ok sorry, should have looked it up. My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of … something?

    There is a practical lesson in there somewhere. I guess I haven’t enjoyed the variety Trump has, but enjoying the same woman for 40 years has kept my life … simpler.

    Though I’m sure if a nationalist like me had a legit shot at the Presidency, they’d have a half-dozen cases launched at me. They’d just make shit up.

    ~~

    This is not going to stop Donald Trump. It is going to convince more Republicans and conservatives that our establishment and the Democrats are corrupt.

    It is going to further push open the political fissure in American society and convince more people that we are simply incompatible and belong in separate nations.

    •�Agree: Ron Mexico
    •�Replies: @Anon
    @AnotherDad


    Ok sorry, should have looked it up. My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of … something?
    Alleged affair.
    , @Sam Hildebrand
    @AnotherDad


    My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of … something?
    From what I understand, Trump used his own money to pay for the perfectly legal NDA with the porn star. The left says this is a violation of campaign finance law, Trump should have used campaign donations instead, since the NDA was meant to help his campaign. Like that would have made a difference. But all we hear all day long on every news break on radio and tv is “hush money” implying that Trump paid off someone to cover up a crime.

    Trump paid off a whore to keep his adultery secret, and this is election meddling and threatening to our democracy. The FBI pressured Facebook to block all posts about the Hunter laptop and 10% to the big guy right before an election, nothing to see here.

    Replies: @John Johnson
    , @Twinkie
    @AnotherDad


    There is a practical lesson in there somewhere. I guess I haven’t enjoyed the variety Trump has, but enjoying the same woman for 40 years has kept my life … simpler.
    Hear, hear. I've always maintained that clean living pays off, sooner or later.

    That said, I've also said repeatedly that Trump is a John the Baptist-like figure (Audacious Epigone would call him a figure akin to the Gracchi Brothers). They all died badly.

    But he extended the Overton window and showed that nationalist populism can win the presidency. That genie is not going to be put back in the bottle no matter how much the Establishment tries to suppress it with all means, legal or otherwise.

    My hope is that whatever happens in November 2024 (I personally hope he wins by even a bigger margin as a giant FU to all these bullshit anti-democratic* machinations), he will have paved the way for a nationalist-populist figure who is more personally attractive (I don't mean looks, but rather someone who has his personal life together and has lived cleanly with an appealing, wholesome family worthy of admiration and emulation). It's either such a figure leading a majoritarian/normie restoration or likely further polarization between elites pushing fringe-y policies and alienating normal people and leading to a far greater likelihood of civil strife (in which case, an American Franco is the next best hope).

    Just like the Democrats/leftists are the real racists, they are the real anti-democrats.

    Replies: @Anonymous
  16. I think, unfortunately, soft target assassinations.

  17. @vinteuil
    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they're so thirsty for his blood, they'll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    Replies: @JimDandy, @James N. Kennett, @George, @Twinkie, @HA, @Hannah Katz, @Pythas

    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they’re so thirsty for his blood, they’ll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.”

    Most of “these people” are useful idiots for a genuinely insane death cult, so, yeah.

  18. Kudo’s to the Florida legislature for having the foresight in 2018 to adopt constitutional amendment 4…

    •�Replies: @epebble
    @Jmaie

    If you are thinking that would help Trump vote for himself, that is unlikely unless he completes the probation or wins on appeal before the election.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Florida_Amendment_4

    It was a ballot initiative and not legislation.

    Replies: @Jmaie
  19. I voted for DeSantis in my state primary because I knew what the media/DOJ would put us through if Trump were the nominee, and that Trump, by unmasking just how rotten our uniparty/federal bureaucracy is, had already served his purpose for the country.

    I imagine Trump will appeal, and if he is elected while appealing, pardon himself. I imagine Trump will appeal all the way to the Supreme Court if they’d take the case.
    America must look like a banana republic with carrier groups and nukes to the rest of the planet now.
    People should keep this in mind before expanding their businesses to New York and its Soros-favored District Attorney and State Attorney General Letitia James’ juristictions. Just breathing the air in that state could get you charged with something. I wouldn’t visit the place while they are in office.

    •�Agree: Mr. Anon
    •�Replies: @Barnard
    @Gallatin

    Trump can't pardon himself, these are state crimes in New York. He needs to have the verdict thrown out on appeal.
    , @J.Ross
    @Gallatin

    This argument was always nonsense. We should either defeat the enemy or expect his weapons to be used as far as they need to be until we take away those weapons. DeSantis isn't characterized by unhinged TDS media liars as a reasonable guy, their word for him is "Nazi."

    Replies: @Corvinus
  20. Lawfare is a symptom of the decline of US law and the dispossession of whites. A justice system developed by and for white people does not work for an increasingly non-white nation. How could people with no history of individual rights have any reverence for the Constitution?

    https://www.amren.com/features/2024/04/race-and-the-decline-of-american-justice/

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @Bernie

    How many of the twelve jurors were White heterosexual males of Christian origin? Any?

    See: "jury of one's peers."

    Replies: @epebble
  21. Will Trump get “Epsteined” in custody? Was that the plan all along?

  22. I have never seen the verb “declared” used in this context.

    •�Replies: @ChrisZ
    @ScarletNumber

    Good observation Scarlet. “Declared” in the headline—instead of “found” or “judged”—jumped out at me, too.

    Certainly it was deliberate, and I suppose it represents Steve’s editorial comment on the result.

    Maybe overly subtle, judging from some of the comments.
  23. @Anon7
    Biden has an election-winning play here:

    Pardon Trump.

    Replies: @Jack D, @De Doc

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    •�Thanks: Hunsdon
    •�Replies: @R.G. Camara
    @Jack D

    Trump's also under federal heat, chumly, you two-faced lying Mossad Fed troll. A pardon by Biden, played up as his being a gentleman, would be pushed as his gift to a divided country. All the while pointing out Trump was still a convicted criminal.

    But you already knew that.

    Go back to celebrating with your comrades, you disgusting traitorous pig.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @Renard
    , @Anon7
    @Jack D

    You’re right. I suppose the play would have worked last year, with Biden offering to pardon federal crimes and pressuring state prosecutors to knock it off. Looking at the internet, I see that this was actually suggested a year ago.

    And Ford pardoned Nixon, taking the high road, and then lost the subsequent election.

    I guess now we’ll find out how many people will support Trump no matter what, or will vote against Biden no matter what.

    All of this focuses attention on people and personalities, rather than on issues, which can only benefit democrats.
    , @Paleo Liberal
    @Jack D

    True.

    Worse for Trump — the upcoming trial in Atlanta is not only a state crime, thus non pardonable by presidents, but one of the specific charges has a mandatory sentence of five years and the governor cannot legally pardon anyone before the term is served.

    Replies: @Ben tillman
    , @epebble
    @Jack D

    But I think the governor can. But probably won't if the sentence is only probation as it is likely for an old man with no prior criminal conviction history.
    , @Johann Ricke
    @Jack D


    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.
    What I'd like to see is whether a Trump administration would sic the DOJ on the people who have persecuted him, and how it goes about doing so. It's also not unreasonable to surmise that state and local prosecutors in deep red states are looking to see if they can go after prominent Democrat bigwigs, and how high they can go.

    Replies: @Almost Missouri
  24. @Father Coughlin
    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    Replies: @AnotherDad, @Frau Katze, @kaganovitch, @Jay Fink, @Yancey Ward, @Paul Jolliffe

    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    Sadly, I fear you are right.

    The cultural and ideology has been changed, and even more importantly the demographics have been changed. We seem to be on the path of a slow ooze into Latino mediocrity–“slumping toward Brazil.”

  25. If I were Trump, I’d retire from politics and move on.

    He made his point, he lost in 2020.

    Whoever the Dems put up will beat whoever the GOP puts up.

    The only Republican who would win or pull a Clinton-Carter wild card is Ray Kelly, former NYPD commissioner.

    Kelly would beat Biden.

    •�Agree: CalCooledge
    •�LOL: kaganovitch
    •�Replies: @AceDeuce
    @Gore 2004


    The only Republican who would win or pull a Clinton-Carter wild card is Ray Kelly, former NYPD commissioner.
    LOL.

    Kelly's a good man. But Presidential material? I don't know.

    And who the hell outside of NYC knows who he is? I do. You do, I mean the other 99%.

    Hell, NYC is half newcomer parasites from the 3rd World who just got here. None of those squat monsters know who he is either. Nor care.

    And those who do know him as far as libs--the knives are out for him -he won't get 1% of the nigro vote. He's tough on crime (which is good in my opinion-but not theirs) He's Mr. Stop and Frisk (because it works) and he says the Central Park 5 are guilty as hell (because they are). I love that, but he'd never get nominated, much less elected.

    Plus, he's a year and two months older than Biden. Nearly 83.

    Keep dreaming.

    Replies: @Gore 2004
  26. Trump is guilty of the crime they made up to convict him of. How could he not be?

    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @Angular momentum

    Agree. "Show me the man and I'll show you the crime make up a crime."

    Replies: @John Johnson
  27. Predictable, yet sad. Our republic officially, publicly died with the 2 x impeachment hoaxes (2!!!!!! including one after he was out of office ) and stolen 2020 election. Historians will mark it officially dead at that point.

    This was merely the aftermath, Soviet show trial stuff for the Deep State. Merely confirmatory of their power, their corruption, and the power of their propaganda — although corporate media consumers are small in number percentage wise, their consumers are rabid and powerful in their own right. Never underestimate the power of government propaganda. And never underestimate how much being embarrassed and losing just a tiny bit of control will enrage sociopaths to the point of scorched earth tactics –Trump tweaked them and beat them, and they are going to raze the institutions and salt the earth to claim vengeance.

    Ho-hum. Like physically throwing Marc Antony out of the Senate when he was Tribune of the Plebs, or the show trials the Romans did during Caesar’s time, those asleep will be aghast, while those awake will note it was a long time coming for The Powers That Be and the illusion of the democratic republic.

    Pray for Trump, America, and yourselves. For it is confirmed we are now a banana republic.

    •�Agree: Almost Missouri
  28. @Jack D
    @Anon7

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @Anon7, @Paleo Liberal, @epebble, @Johann Ricke

    Trump’s also under federal heat, chumly, you two-faced lying Mossad Fed troll. A pardon by Biden, played up as his being a gentleman, would be pushed as his gift to a divided country. All the while pointing out Trump was still a convicted criminal.

    But you already knew that.

    Go back to celebrating with your comrades, you disgusting traitorous pig.

    •�Agree: Twinkie
    •�Replies: @Hunsdon
    @R.G. Camara

    Well, kiddies, prepare to be shocked, because I'm going to stand up for my good buddy Jack D.

    Biden COULD pardon Trump . . . if Trump is convicted of a federal crime. That would not do, pardon my language, jack shit for the NY state conviction, nor any of the other crimes for which he will no doubt be convicted.

    In essence, Biden would look like a kindly old grandfather, and Trump would still be a convicted felon.

    Thinking is fundamental.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @The Anti-Gnostic, @Twinkie
    , @Renard
    @R.G. Camara

    I'm impressed! I've seen paying contributors permanently silenced for less than half of what you just spewed! What's your secret?
  29. The rules for the jury were as insane as the earlier one which threw out rules of evidence. The main prediction seemed to be that he would be found guilty, the near effect would be an increase in support, the convictions would eventually be overturned on appeal because of the wild dishonesty and unprecedented nature of these trials. So this is not really even a news item. 4chan is near unusable from crowing paid shills who still don’t see how this could backfire. I am hearing apoliticals and non-Trump supporters talking about how sick and decayed these trials were, more than just Piers Morgan, who was disgusted by an earlier threat to prevent Trump from attending his son’s graduation. Trump had reached a sort of limit of outreach (one very artificially imposed by the full weight of the mainstream media), and this trial extended his reach past the limit. The Trump campaign website briefly crashed as it’s swamped with donations.

    •�Thanks: Master CPL Savage
  30. Thomm says:

    It is going to further push open the political fissure in American society and convince more people that we are simply incompatible and belong in separate nations.

    You keep harping on this ‘separate nations’ idea, but have never presented any details about how this could be even remotely workable.

    i) What is the demographic split?
    ii) What is the geographic split? If your answer is as unoriginal as mere ‘red state/blue state’, then that means you really haven’t thought this through.
    iii) Neither country is large enough of an economy to have the world’s reserve currency. Without this status, the standard of living in the US would be about 20% lower, so each of these countries will experience that.
    iv) You assume your nation will be a more homogenous, cohesive one, but that requires ignoring this all-important detail :

    You otherwise seem very aware of how the modern ‘woke’ age is driven mostly by the female appetite for approval and virtue-signaling, but this obliterates any prospect of the separated nation you prefer actually working. Unless you want your half of the split to be a country that is 70% male (White Trashionalism, a small subset of your nation, is in fact 99% male).

    Don’t think you can keep left-wing media out of your new half of the erstwhile US. US ‘woke’ memes become normalized as far away as Australia and New Zealand almost immediately. There is ONE Anglosphere English-language media blob, to the same extent the Earth has one indivisible atmosphere.

    •�Agree: New Dealer
    •�Replies: @Elli
    @Thomm

    A problem with separate nations is control of ports and borders. They're bad enough now. Do we want California run entirely by Central Americans and Chinese? Leasing the Port of Los Angeles to China?

    Suppose the Deep South becomes the black homeland. China Belt and Road loans, working on infrastructure?

    Vermont and Minnesota nice? Borders are artificial, people aren't illegal, hate has no home here, we're glad you're our neighbor.

    Sure things are bad. They could get much worse.
    , @Prester John
    @Thomm

    "...the modern ‘woke’ age is driven mostly by the female appetite for approval and virtue-signaling..."

    Excellent point! And it is particularly noticeable among black women though it's hardly limited to blacks. Collectively they behave like latter-day suffragettes. The woke movement may be a spinoff thereof, with both having emerged, at least in this country, in part out of the Second Great Awakening--which makes the term "Great Awokening" uncannily appropriate.

    "Separate nations" is a dream. And I guess we can all dream, right?
  31. @vinteuil
    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they're so thirsty for his blood, they'll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    Replies: @JimDandy, @James N. Kennett, @George, @Twinkie, @HA, @Hannah Katz, @Pythas

    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they’re so thirsty for his blood, they’ll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    They know exactly what they are doing. If in October Trump is beating Biden in the polls, prison will be the easiest place to assassinate him. There is no need for a gunman or even a patsy if Trump commits “suicide” in his cell.

    •�Agree: Nicholas Stix
  32. @Gallatin
    I voted for DeSantis in my state primary because I knew what the media/DOJ would put us through if Trump were the nominee, and that Trump, by unmasking just how rotten our uniparty/federal bureaucracy is, had already served his purpose for the country.

    I imagine Trump will appeal, and if he is elected while appealing, pardon himself. I imagine Trump will appeal all the way to the Supreme Court if they'd take the case.
    America must look like a banana republic with carrier groups and nukes to the rest of the planet now.
    People should keep this in mind before expanding their businesses to New York and its Soros-favored District Attorney and State Attorney General Letitia James' juristictions. Just breathing the air in that state could get you charged with something. I wouldn't visit the place while they are in office.

    Replies: @Barnard, @J.Ross

    Trump can’t pardon himself, these are state crimes in New York. He needs to have the verdict thrown out on appeal.

    •�Thanks: Gallatin
  33. @Gallatin
    I voted for DeSantis in my state primary because I knew what the media/DOJ would put us through if Trump were the nominee, and that Trump, by unmasking just how rotten our uniparty/federal bureaucracy is, had already served his purpose for the country.

    I imagine Trump will appeal, and if he is elected while appealing, pardon himself. I imagine Trump will appeal all the way to the Supreme Court if they'd take the case.
    America must look like a banana republic with carrier groups and nukes to the rest of the planet now.
    People should keep this in mind before expanding their businesses to New York and its Soros-favored District Attorney and State Attorney General Letitia James' juristictions. Just breathing the air in that state could get you charged with something. I wouldn't visit the place while they are in office.

    Replies: @Barnard, @J.Ross

    This argument was always nonsense. We should either defeat the enemy or expect his weapons to be used as far as they need to be until we take away those weapons. DeSantis isn’t characterized by unhinged TDS media liars as a reasonable guy, their word for him is “Nazi.”

    •�Agree: TWS
    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @J.Ross

    “We should either defeat the enemy or expect his weapons to be used as far as they need to be until we take away those weapons.”

    So what is your step by step plan besides pissing and moaning.

    Replies: @Bel Riose
  34. It is hard to see how the Trump campaign can survive every news story about him calling him a convicted felon. But I am eagerly awaiting the public reaction.

  35. I predicted Trump a convicted felon before end of May. I predict he’s in jail/prison or house confinement before election day.

    The Repulicucks nominate that whiny high-caste Indian bish that Trump shlonged all during the primaries and Diaper Joe wins the electoral college 41-10.

  36. Because of this, anybody who doesn’t vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.

    Anybody who stays silent is just as bad — I’m looking at you, Steve.

    •�Replies: @Dieter Kief
    @Hypnotoad666

    Since nobody knows how things play out in the long run - - - I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something. - - - The religious equivalent of this idea is the Lutheran/Calvinian dogma, that in the end. it is God, who decides - - what was good - and what wrong.

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    , @vinteuil
    @Hypnotoad666


    Because of this, anybody who doesn’t vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.
    Yes.

    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.

    Replies: @Anonymous
    , @Luke Lea
    @Hypnotoad666

    Right. You should vote for Trump as a matter of principle. It's not even about him anymore.

    Replies: @Etruscan Film Star
    , @Corvinus
    @Hypnotoad666

    “Anybody who stays silent is just as bad — I’m looking at you, Steve.”

    Come on now. You had to know that Mr. Sailer on such matters is passive-aggressive and has to remain silent to protect his brand.

    “Because of this, anybody who doesn’t vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.”

    You are a coward like Mr. Sailer. Just say what you truly mean—anyone who does not support Trump is an enemy who ought to be hung or shot or deported. I mean, those people are the personification of pure evil, right? “Your” nation is under direct attack, correct? So the gloves must come off…

    Replies: @Whitey Whiteman III
    , @Anonymous
    @Hypnotoad666

    Try putting your real name on everything you write on every platform, plus everything you say in public. Steve is fully doxxed, and he has a family.
    Silence doesn't necessarily mean capitulation. It also means “you can fill in the blanks”. So go ahead and fill in the blanks using your real name.

    Replies: @Anonymous
  37. He’s not only been convicted, he’s going to do time. Maybe house arrest, but he will not be out campaigning. I warned people of this when he became the nominee. There is no way they would have let him take office again. It isn’t going to matter what this does to his poll numbers. If they go up, he’ll be convicted of something worse, like rape or manslaughter. Enjoy President Kamala Harris and Vice President Karine Jean-Pierre. We could have had Ron DeSantis, but no, he wears risers in his shoes.

    •�Replies: @TWS
    @Rusty Tailgate

    If, and it is a big if, if Desantis had a chance of making a real difference or changing anything that matters he'd get the same treatment as Trump.

    You aren't voting your way out of this.
    , @HA
    @Rusty Tailgate

    "He’s not only been convicted, he’s going to do time. Maybe house arrest, ..."

    Legal experts say Trump's conviction is unlikely to lead to a prison sentence

    Lauren-Brooke Eisen, a senior director at the nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice,[stated] that it's "very unlikely for someone who has never been convicted of a crime to go to prison ... for their first offense, which is nonviolent."

    Georgetown University law professor and attorney Paul Butler, a former federal prosecutor and expert on criminal law, also told NPR, on Thursday evening, that Trump is unlikely to get prison time...
    Note that Jared's father was not only convicted for "redirecting" other people's money into Democrat campaigns, but also with witness tampering afterwards. I.e. not a "first-time" offender by the time he got sent away for 2 years. (I wouldn't completely rule out Trump doing time at some point, but they'll likely need to nail him for something else.)
  38. @AnotherDad
    Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?

    Honestly, I can't keep track of all the show trials. I know they've fined him a billion dollars or something because some looney old woman says he fingered her at some unspecified date back in the 90s and Trump called her a liar. Then there's some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten ... or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump.

    What's this one about? Dying his hair?

    Stalin did it better.

    Replies: @Michael Droy, @Dieter Kief, @Anonymous, @trevor

    Then there’s some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten … or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump. What’s this one about? Dying his hair?

    This passage of yours made me laugh – at the end of a long and a bit exhausting day – so: Thanks!

    – Apropos your last sentence: Will it all boil down to world war hair?

    – That would be a zeitgeisty and – iSteeve-y punch line . . . on the other hand: One that we’d have not much time left to enjoy, possibly – – – Life is full of strangenesses (Goethe: “Das Leben stickt voller Merkwürdigkeiten.”)

    •�Thanks: Wendy K. Kroy
    •�Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @Dieter Kief

    Life is full of strangenesses (Goethe: “Das Leben stickt voller Merkwürdigkeiten.”)

    "Life is filled with holes." -- Patti Smith

    Earlier this evening, I broke my ankle: I was walking down the street when this gigantic flash-flood of Democrat jizz came swirling down the street, directly at me. I had to dive through a store window to avoid being drowned in a tidal wave of swirling leftard semen.

    Pretty sure I saw Tiny Duck riding on top of the wave, holding a giant spoon.

    So, happy first annual Founding of the New Banana Republic Day. Lexington and Concord was the "conviction" of Derek Chauvin, but henceforth, 5/30 will forevermore be Banana Republic Day.

    Instead of fireworks, we'll rattle coffee cups at Chinese tourists and landlords, and beg for spare change.

    Replies: @Dieter Kief
  39. @Father Coughlin
    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    Replies: @AnotherDad, @Frau Katze, @kaganovitch, @Jay Fink, @Yancey Ward, @Paul Jolliffe

    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man

    …with a terrible VP.

  40. Anon7 says:
    @Jack D
    @Anon7

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @Anon7, @Paleo Liberal, @epebble, @Johann Ricke

    You’re right. I suppose the play would have worked last year, with Biden offering to pardon federal crimes and pressuring state prosecutors to knock it off. Looking at the internet, I see that this was actually suggested a year ago.

    And Ford pardoned Nixon, taking the high road, and then lost the subsequent election.

    I guess now we’ll find out how many people will support Trump no matter what, or will vote against Biden no matter what.

    All of this focuses attention on people and personalities, rather than on issues, which can only benefit democrats.

  41. @Hypnotoad666
    Because of this, anybody who doesn't vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.

    Anybody who stays silent is just as bad -- I'm looking at you, Steve.

    Replies: @Dieter Kief, @vinteuil, @Luke Lea, @Corvinus, @Anonymous

    Since nobody knows how things play out in the long run – – – I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something. – – – The religious equivalent of this idea is the Lutheran/Calvinian dogma, that in the end. it is God, who decides – – what was good – and what wrong.

    •�Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    @Dieter Kief


    I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something.
    That's a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it's literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it's become pretty clear he doesn't stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Sam Haysom, @Anonymous, @Dieter Kief, @New Dealer
  42. Anonymous[295] •�Disclaimer says:
    @AnotherDad
    Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?

    Honestly, I can't keep track of all the show trials. I know they've fined him a billion dollars or something because some looney old woman says he fingered her at some unspecified date back in the 90s and Trump called her a liar. Then there's some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten ... or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump.

    What's this one about? Dying his hair?

    Stalin did it better.

    Replies: @Michael Droy, @Dieter Kief, @Anonymous, @trevor

    Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?

    Guilty of advocating policies that happened to be in the interests of the American White majority.

    The attempts to destroy Trump are part of the drive toward White Genocide.

    •�Troll: Corvinus
    •�Replies: @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality
    @Anonymous

    Whites can have their interests represented. All they have to do is ask for it. Loudly and repeatedly.

    Half the commenters on Sailer's blog are committed to making sure that never happens.

    Replies: @Corvinus
  43. @vinteuil
    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they're so thirsty for his blood, they'll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    Replies: @JimDandy, @James N. Kennett, @George, @Twinkie, @HA, @Hannah Katz, @Pythas

    If he ends up in jail there is a chance he will be murdered. Would he get secret service protection?

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @George


    If he ends up in jail there is a chance he will be murdered. Would he get secret service protection?
    No.

    The Secret Service does not have jurisdiction in state prisons.

    Also, as part of the "lawfare" against Trump, negro Democrat Representative from Mississippi has introduced a bill to relieve Trump of Secret Service protection uniquely applicable to Trump.

    They want him to get murdered.

    Check out the DISGRACED acronym (LOL). The DemocRATS must pay someone to think these up.

    https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-bennie-thompson-secret-services-rfk-1892371
  44. @Michael Droy
    Makes Trump pretty much unbeatable. He no longer needs to campaign.
    I thought the Dems would drop Biden-Harris for a more electable alternative.
    Might as well not bother now.

    Replies: @Jon Tormento, @Old Virginia

    I don’t even understand this argument. It’s only the true believer MAGA morons who think Trump being convicted makes him more electable. Your average voter, particularly a swing voter, doesn’t like criminals, regardless of whether the trial was fair or not (and the trial probably was fair, generally speaking). And the trial brought to the forefront damning testimony about Trump being a sleazeball who cheats on his wife with a porn star.

    •�Replies: @bomag
    @Jon Tormento


    ...this argument.
    There's an attraction to the "badboy". Also an attraction to someone who has been wronged and unfairly treated. Not sure this triggers that reflex; might trigger disgust at Trump as a loser who let himself get ensnared by some minor accounting misstep.

    Your average voter, particularly a swing voter, doesn’t like criminals, regardless of whether the trial was fair or not (and the trial probably was fair, generally speaking)
    True to some extent, but voters also realize a show trial. Polls did not go down when Trump became a criminal when he lost the case for overvaluing his properties. And these things will likely be overturned on appeal.

    And the trial brought to the forefront damning testimony about Trump being a sleazeball who cheats on his wife with a porn star.
    Such info has been out there in great quantities since 2016. We accept, maybe too much, such flaws in leadership. We discount too much guys like Pence and Romney,

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin
  45. ydydy says: •�Website

    I don’t follow politics but I think I have a better understanding of society than most.

    Here’s what I wrote 4 months ago and what I stand by today:

    Stack the odds against him 1000:1 and you’re looking at astonishing things coming from the man. Leave him free and with support from half the country and he’ll continue to flop and flounder.

    https://ydydy.substack.com/p/a-genuinely-silly-matter

  46. @AnotherDad
    Ok sorry, should have looked it up. My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of ... something?

    There is a practical lesson in there somewhere. I guess I haven't enjoyed the variety Trump has, but enjoying the same woman for 40 years has kept my life ... simpler.

    Though I'm sure if a nationalist like me had a legit shot at the Presidency, they'd have a half-dozen cases launched at me. They'd just make shit up.

    ~~

    This is not going to stop Donald Trump. It is going to convince more Republicans and conservatives that our establishment and the Democrats are corrupt.

    It is going to further push open the political fissure in American society and convince more people that we are simply incompatible and belong in separate nations.

    Replies: @Anon, @Sam Hildebrand, @Twinkie

    Ok sorry, should have looked it up. My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of … something?

    Alleged affair.

  47. Recently finished Richard J. Evans, Coming of the Third Reich (v. 1 of 3 vols). Mostly about the Weimar period.

    Down and dirty lawfare was practiced by all major political forces, just one more factor weakening popular allegiance to the liberal-democratic regime. Lawfare was routine and understood to be fake.

    Smart move Democrats, next it’s your turn. You’ve also introduced Antifa/BLM political thugs, on the assumption that their victims will indefinitely turn the other cheek.

    •�Replies: @TWS
    @New Dealer

    One kid with a set of testicles and a steady hand made the rioters think twice.

    Replies: @Ralph L
  48. Well, They’ve turned one orange man’s shitposting into a crusade.
    The Don and Ricky Vaughn.

  49. @Hypnotoad666
    Because of this, anybody who doesn't vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.

    Anybody who stays silent is just as bad -- I'm looking at you, Steve.

    Replies: @Dieter Kief, @vinteuil, @Luke Lea, @Corvinus, @Anonymous

    Because of this, anybody who doesn’t vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.

    Yes.

    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @vinteuil


    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    Replies: @Ex Machina, @Reg Cæsar, @Hypnotoad666, @Curle
  50. @dearieme
    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    People (like me) who have had good experiences when visiting the US will begin to despair.

    Wait, I hear you cry, there's a mighty difference between the governing classes and The People. Aye, but it's the governing classes who have the whip hand.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob, @trevor, @Curle, @Joe Stalin, @Bragadocious

    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    Kevin O’Leary said yesterday that this trial has hurt the USA’s “brand” in foreign countries. NYC is still the financial capital of the US and second only to London in the world.

    He said that the people in foreign countries he’s talked to are incredulous that a county DA can indict and a local jury convict a former president. Banana republic indeed.

    Should Trump win in November, would a military coup led by former JCS head Milley be too far fetched?

    •�Agree: Gallatin
    •�Replies: @trevor
    @Jim Don Bob


    He said that the people in foreign countries he’s talked to are incredulous that a county DA can indict and a local jury convict a former president. Banana republic indeed.
    It used to be in the former USA (now USSA) that the accused was entitled to a "jury of his peers".
    , @Tex
    @Jim Don Bob


    Should Trump win in November, would a military coup led by former JCS head Milley be too far fetched?
    Very much. They'll find someone else besides Milley.
  51. “As bad as convicting a potentially winning presidential candidate on trumped up sex charges my be, if our diversity is a causality, that would be worse”

    Farenheit

  52. @Dieter Kief
    @Hypnotoad666

    Since nobody knows how things play out in the long run - - - I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something. - - - The religious equivalent of this idea is the Lutheran/Calvinian dogma, that in the end. it is God, who decides - - what was good - and what wrong.

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666

    I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something.

    That’s a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it’s become pretty clear he doesn’t stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    •�Disagree: New Dealer
    •�Troll: Paleo Retiree
    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Hypnotoad666


    That’s a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it’s become pretty clear he doesn’t stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.
    Deep State/TPTB’s m.o. is inspired by Mao. Shoot ten, teach a thousand. And Sailer’s quick to notice.
    , @Sam Haysom
    @Hypnotoad666

    It’s been obvious for twenty years that Steve wants to be the the goy wonder (Steve knows he isn’t half Jewish) who reminds Jews of “our Negro Problem” and bask in adulation. It’s why 3rd rate Jewish fail some (who are nonetheless taken seriously by Jewish money guys) like Kristol and Poedhoretz tilt Steve so much.

    Realistically Steve is kind of a loser on material grounds- how many boomer UCLA MBA’s have a wife her earns more than them? Occasional hat tips from Steven Pinker and the original goy wonder Charles Murray are what keep him going.
    , @Anonymous
    @Hypnotoad666


    But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it’s become pretty clear he doesn’t stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.
    I don’t know anything about the merits of this trial and verdict and it is possible Steve doesn’t either. It isn’t wise or ethical to take positions on things when you don’t have or understand the facts.

    But it has always struck me as odd that Steve never seemed to like Trump, even though Trump had the best immigration platform of any presidential candidate in US history and did more than any modern president to try to stop the unrelenting flood of foreigners that the country is drowning in.

    Replies: @TWS
    , @Dieter Kief
    @Hypnotoad666


    But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things.
    Steve's a free man. And he clearly expressed the thought quite often, that he is no activist. - He is - these are my words: An analyst. He is not in the business of changing things actively - in other words: He is not directly involved in politics.

    Replies: @Hail
    , @New Dealer
    @Hypnotoad666

    Steve likes to do iStevy topics. He has never been interested in daily calling balls and strikes in partisan political contests. For big events, he provides an open thread for commenters to vent.

    And for anyone who has a need for instant boos and cheers there are a dozen 24-hour news channels.
  53. Sentencing is July 11. Many in the media are saying that Trump will get probation since he has a clean record, first offense. Sadly I think they underestimate the good judge from Bogota. Maybe, if Trump suffers a catastrophic drop in his swing state polls. If not, I fully imagine Judge Merchan sentencing him to 4 years, to begin immediately. It may seem like the Derp State when it comes to figuring out military threats and stuff, but this–imprisoning opposition– is in every Deep State’s wheelhouse.

  54. @Father Coughlin
    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    Replies: @AnotherDad, @Frau Katze, @kaganovitch, @Jay Fink, @Yancey Ward, @Paul Jolliffe

    But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays.

    What we need is a man like Ray Epps!

  55. As for the actual merits of Trump, Paul Craig Roberts has had a wake up call. It seems DT has been telling supporters that he would have bombed Moscow and Peking if there had been an attack on Ukraine or Taiwan.

    •�Replies: @Joe Stalin
    @Dutch Boy


    DT has been telling supporters that he would have bombed Moscow and Peking if there had been an attack on Ukraine or Taiwan.
    LOL. Russkies have been threatening to use nukes since...

    https://twitter.com/DarthPutinKGB/status/1795870292889268661

    Replies: @Anonymous
  56. Anonymous[409] •�Disclaimer says:
    @pyrrhus
    Speaking as an attorney who has litigated in various courts, including SCOTUS, there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict...The number of insanely bad rulings in this case undoubtedly breaks the record...

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Hypnotoad666, @Mr. Anon, @Erik L

    Do you have time to give us a breakdown?

    •�Agree: Almost Missouri
  57. Hail says:

    “Import the Third World, become the Third World. That’s what we just saw. This [conviction] won’t stop Trump. He’ll win the election if he’s not killed first. But it does mark the end of the fairest justice system in the world. Anyone who defends this verdict is a danger to you and your family.” — Tucker Carlson, May 30, 2024

    [MORE]

    •�Thanks: Mark G., TWS
  58. Dr. X says:

    America is now officially a corrupt shithole run by a clique of insane ideologues. If you still think you live in a “free country” under the “rule of law” with “free and fair elections” and the government represents “the will of the people” you are retard, a moron and a sucker.

    You can dislike Trump for a lot of reasons if you wish, and on some of those I would be inclined to agree, but every single charge against Trump, both civil and criminal, has been completely bogus and a transparent attempt to take him out. His real “crimes” were defeating Hillary and representing the working class hoi polloi in flyover country.

    You are now officially living in a one-party state. No Republican will ever be allowed to win ever again, unless he is the designated fall guy by the Deep State and the elites.

    If you vote for the wrong guy he will be arrested. Maybe you will, too.

    The Trump case should not be taken in isolation. It is part of a larger picture that includes the prosecution of Stone and Manafort and Giuliani and Flynn and Meadows, SWAT teams hunting down and kicking in the doors of people accused of misdemeanor “trespassing” on Jan. 6, the targeted execution of the airport guy in Little Rock, and really going all the way back to deliberately shooting Randy Weaver’s wife’s head off as she was holding a baby.

    Every time you hear Biden or Harris or any of these other creeps lecturing the rest of the world about “freedom” and “democracy” and “human rights,” you should laugh bitterly and sardonically.

    Understand exactly what kind of country you are living in, and when they come for you, treat them appropriately.

    •�Replies: @Hunsdon
    @Dr. X

    As Gonzalo Lira used to say, "Understand what's going on."
    , @TWS
    @Dr. X

    Randy Weaver was the first obvious sign for most.
  59. Trump probably belongs in jail for something. If not, he belongs in jail for hanging his supporters out to dry for standing up for him on 1-6. Still, if the Bidens, Clinton, Obama, and just about the whole political class hasn’t been strung up, Trump shouldn’t have been charged with a thing.

    And it figures that Biden is now saying that nobody is above the law. I guess Hillary is happy, too! What a joke. Hopefully, a real movement to to clean house can start now, with shysters like the Trumps out of the way.

  60. @Jack D
    @Anon7

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @Anon7, @Paleo Liberal, @epebble, @Johann Ricke

    True.

    Worse for Trump — the upcoming trial in Atlanta is not only a state crime, thus non pardonable by presidents, but one of the specific charges has a mandatory sentence of five years and the governor cannot legally pardon anyone before the term is served.

    •�Replies: @Ben tillman
    @Paleo Liberal

    Please. That case will never go to trial. All the prosecutors will be imprisoned/disbarred before that can happen, and at some point a normal person will stand in and stop it.
  61. Trump will be America’s first gangsta president. Rappers are going to write songs about him, and James Clyburn will endorse him. Trump needs to start dressing like Rocky in the Tennessee Tuxedo show.

  62. My understanding is that there’s no legitimate charge in the first place: the statute of limitations expired on one, and the other isn’t subject to this court’s jurisdiction.

    …so it should get chucked on appeal. If it doesn’t we’re seeing the end of our democracy. It’ll definitely be their ‘democracy.’

  63. Hail says:

    Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, speaking on the Trump conviction of May 30, 2024:

    “The Democrats are showing you what real power is like. It’s the type of power we usually see dictators exercise, say, in China, in Cuba, or in North Korea.

    And if anyone threatens ‘the Establishment’ in the future, the Democrats will use the same playbook. They’ll charge others, like a J.D. Vance or a Ron DeSantis, in some liberal jurisdiction, on some bogus charge, and then have a radical judge hand down jury instructions that will make it almost impossible for a jury not to convict them, of ‘something’.

    These ‘great defenders of democracy’ would rather ruin the public’s faith in the entire American system…than risk the possibility that the people will elect a common-sense populist like Trump.”

    •�Agree: Colin Wright
    •�Replies: @Humane Conservative
    @Hail

    OK, but Republicans will be doing the same things to Democrats too.

    This isn't "dictatorship" or "communism" or "totalitarianism", just a general collapse of the standards of fair play which used to be expected in American politics.

    Lots of people didn't vote for or voted against Trump because they felt that his election would lead to the end of "the rules". I scoffed at the time, but at this point it's hard for me to say they weren't on to something, whether or not it was Trump's fault.

    Replies: @Hunsdon
  64. Time for the Donald to channel his inner Sulla.

  65. @pyrrhus
    Speaking as an attorney who has litigated in various courts, including SCOTUS, there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict...The number of insanely bad rulings in this case undoubtedly breaks the record...

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Hypnotoad666, @Mr. Anon, @Erik L

    there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…

    100%. Merchan is an anti-Trump partisan hack, yet (precisely for that reason) he managed to catch three anti-Trump cases. The odds of this happening by random chance are like 10,000 to 1. He sent the CEO of Trump enterprises to jail for for not declaring his parking spot as taxable income. Good God. Can you imagine if that standard were applied to other CEOs?

    If Trump gets elected from jail he absolutely must turn the DOJ into a scorched earth tool of retribution. It’s a target rich environment of REAL crimes out there with all the Clinton Foundation graft, Zuckerberg election finance violations, and CIA treason by Brennan and his ilk. Heck bring a RICO case against the New York Times for all the classified material they publish daily. The precedent is set. No one can blame him.

    •�Replies: @Dr. X
    @Hypnotoad666


    If Trump gets elected from jail
    WTF is wrong with you people? Don't you get it, even now?

    Let me spell it out for you: HE'S NOT GOING TO "GET ELECTED," the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that's what this sham "trial" was about!

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    , @Master CPL Savage
    @Hypnotoad666

    Agree. Thank you.
    , @AceDeuce
    @Hypnotoad666

    This morning on MSNBC, the talking zombies were talking about Merchan. Evidently, yesterday after the verdict was read, he put his head down, but his face was visible enough where it appeared to onlookers that he was smiling-one of them actually said "smirking". Another female panelist immediately tried to reframe it as not really smiling, but just that his face was contorted with emotion at the end of a grueling ordeal.

    Yeah, right.
  66. @Bernie
    Lawfare is a symptom of the decline of US law and the dispossession of whites. A justice system developed by and for white people does not work for an increasingly non-white nation. How could people with no history of individual rights have any reverence for the Constitution?

    https://www.amren.com/features/2024/04/race-and-the-decline-of-american-justice/

    Replies: @Hail

    How many of the twelve jurors were White heterosexual males of Christian origin? Any?

    See: “jury of one’s peers.”

    •�Replies: @epebble
    @Hail

    May be three.

    https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/meet-the-first-7-jury-members-as-trumps-hush-money-trial-progresses-rcna148198
  67. Anonymous[366] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Hypnotoad666
    @Dieter Kief


    I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something.
    That's a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it's literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it's become pretty clear he doesn't stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Sam Haysom, @Anonymous, @Dieter Kief, @New Dealer

    That’s a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it’s become pretty clear he doesn’t stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    Deep State/TPTB’s m.o. is inspired by Mao. Shoot ten, teach a thousand. And Sailer’s quick to notice.

  68. @Hypnotoad666
    Because of this, anybody who doesn't vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.

    Anybody who stays silent is just as bad -- I'm looking at you, Steve.

    Replies: @Dieter Kief, @vinteuil, @Luke Lea, @Corvinus, @Anonymous

    Right. You should vote for Trump as a matter of principle. It’s not even about him anymore.

    •�Agree: Harry Baldwin, MEH 0910
    •�Replies: @Etruscan Film Star
    @Luke Lea


    You should vote for Trump as a matter of principle. It’s not even about him anymore.
    Yes. I'm lukewarm about The Donald for many reasons, especially his loyalty to Israel. But this obscene trial and verdict so resembles what we expect in a totalitarian state that it must be challenged in every possible way, even if for many of us casting a ballot is our sole resource.
  69. 1) RFK Jr went live on Twitter after the verdict and he said that federal prosecutors can convict a tomato if they wanted to and that it’s all about prosecutorial discretion.

    2) America needs its own color revolution, but there’s no CIA to organize one.

  70. @AnotherDad
    Ok sorry, should have looked it up. My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of ... something?

    There is a practical lesson in there somewhere. I guess I haven't enjoyed the variety Trump has, but enjoying the same woman for 40 years has kept my life ... simpler.

    Though I'm sure if a nationalist like me had a legit shot at the Presidency, they'd have a half-dozen cases launched at me. They'd just make shit up.

    ~~

    This is not going to stop Donald Trump. It is going to convince more Republicans and conservatives that our establishment and the Democrats are corrupt.

    It is going to further push open the political fissure in American society and convince more people that we are simply incompatible and belong in separate nations.

    Replies: @Anon, @Sam Hildebrand, @Twinkie

    My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of … something?

    From what I understand, Trump used his own money to pay for the perfectly legal NDA with the porn star. The left says this is a violation of campaign finance law, Trump should have used campaign donations instead, since the NDA was meant to help his campaign. Like that would have made a difference. But all we hear all day long on every news break on radio and tv is “hush money” implying that Trump paid off someone to cover up a crime.

    Trump paid off a whore to keep his adultery secret, and this is election meddling and threatening to our democracy. The FBI pressured Facebook to block all posts about the Hunter laptop and 10% to the big guy right before an election, nothing to see here.

    •�Agree: trevor
    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Sam Hildebrand

    From what I understand, Trump used his own money to pay for the perfectly legal NDA with the porn star.

    But they were logged as legal charges for services rendered.

    The left says this is a violation of campaign finance law, Trump should have used campaign donations instead, since the NDA was meant to help his campaign.

    The campaign finance part was dropped.

    34 felonies is excessive but he isn't innocent.

    The classified documents case is much worse.

    The FBI pressured Facebook to block all posts about the Hunter laptop and 10% to the big guy right before an election, nothing to see here.

    The Hunter laptop was a cover-up.

    That doesn't make Trump any less of a sleaze-ball.

    I shouldn't have to choose between a NYC real estate con and a corrupt system that wants Mr. Magoo to win.

    Replies: @Precious, @Colin Wright
  71. @Hypnotoad666
    Because of this, anybody who doesn't vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.

    Anybody who stays silent is just as bad -- I'm looking at you, Steve.

    Replies: @Dieter Kief, @vinteuil, @Luke Lea, @Corvinus, @Anonymous

    “Anybody who stays silent is just as bad — I’m looking at you, Steve.”

    Come on now. You had to know that Mr. Sailer on such matters is passive-aggressive and has to remain silent to protect his brand.

    “Because of this, anybody who doesn’t vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.”

    You are a coward like Mr. Sailer. Just say what you truly mean—anyone who does not support Trump is an enemy who ought to be hung or shot or deported. I mean, those people are the personification of pure evil, right? “Your” nation is under direct attack, correct? So the gloves must come off…

    •�Replies: @Whitey Whiteman III
    @Corvinus

    Calm down, lady. You're hysterical.
  72. @Hypnotoad666
    @Dieter Kief


    I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something.
    That's a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it's literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it's become pretty clear he doesn't stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Sam Haysom, @Anonymous, @Dieter Kief, @New Dealer

    It’s been obvious for twenty years that Steve wants to be the the goy wonder (Steve knows he isn’t half Jewish) who reminds Jews of “our Negro Problem” and bask in adulation. It’s why 3rd rate Jewish fail some (who are nonetheless taken seriously by Jewish money guys) like Kristol and Poedhoretz tilt Steve so much.

    Realistically Steve is kind of a loser on material grounds- how many boomer UCLA MBA’s have a wife her earns more than them? Occasional hat tips from Steven Pinker and the original goy wonder Charles Murray are what keep him going.

    •�Troll: Ministry Of Tongues
  73. •�Replies: @JohnnyWalker123
    @JohnnyWalker123

    https://twitter.com/ElijahSchaffer/status/1796325327301734847
  74. Anonymous[264] •�Disclaimer says:
    @vinteuil
    @Hypnotoad666


    Because of this, anybody who doesn’t vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.
    Yes.

    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.

    Replies: @Anonymous

    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.

    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    •�Agree: Hail
    •�Replies: @Ex Machina
    @Anonymous


    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.
    No, that single issue it to a return to original intent: deport all non-whites, rescind universal suffrage and reinstate voting eligibility to only straight, white, Christian males.

    About as equally as realistic as your single issue. Perhaps also as realistic as voting for Trump expecting that would do anything.
    , @Reg Cæsar
    @Anonymous



    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.
    That could be done simply by imposing standards. Hell, a large part of the way requires only the enforcement of present-- i.e., on-the-books-- standards.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    , @Hypnotoad666
    @Anonymous


    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.
    The only way to do that is elect Trump, so it's all the same.
    , @Curle
    @Anonymous


    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    Yes. But, if you listen to some who post here (on a foreign country payroll perhaps?) that issue is are you or are you not a Putinist. Whatever that’s supposed to signify.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
  75. Anonymous[264] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Hypnotoad666
    @Dieter Kief


    I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something.
    That's a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it's literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it's become pretty clear he doesn't stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Sam Haysom, @Anonymous, @Dieter Kief, @New Dealer

    But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it’s become pretty clear he doesn’t stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    I don’t know anything about the merits of this trial and verdict and it is possible Steve doesn’t either. It isn’t wise or ethical to take positions on things when you don’t have or understand the facts.

    But it has always struck me as odd that Steve never seemed to like Trump, even though Trump had the best immigration platform of any presidential candidate in US history and did more than any modern president to try to stop the unrelenting flood of foreigners that the country is drowning in.

    •�Replies: @TWS
    @Anonymous

    Immigration was Sailer's thing. Past tense. He's at the whistling past the graveyard stage of his walk through life.

    We all get old and lose something. There's no longer a peaceful path out of demographic defeat. He's too old tired and has too much to lose to advocate for any of the workable options. The country will split, it's too big and diverse not to.

    Replies: @Hail
  76. JLK says:

    Yes, Alvin Bragg was out to get Trump. It was lawfare, and a disgrace. But Trump is a victim of his own narcissistic personality. Being married to a series of beautiful women wasn’t enough, he had to have a dalliance with a low grade porn star. Then he had to cover it up. Instead of getting top grade legal advice not to falsify his business records, he listened to the likes of Michael Cohen, who is everything a lawyer isn’t supposed to be. Starting with loyal.

    I feel sorry for my Republican Party, not particularly for Donald Trump. A loss in November means four more years of liberal non-white male judges being appointed, in addition to incalculable other damage to the Republic we inherited.

    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @JLK

    But Trump is a victim of his own narcissistic personality.

    "A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults."

    I don't think Aaron Haspel wrote that about Trump, but he might as well have. There is no replacement for Trump other than agents of the UniParty. Either forgive him his faults or embrace the status quo. BTW, you mention the "falsifying business records" charge, which is penny-ante crap.

    Replies: @res, @The Anti-Gnostic
    , @Precious
    @JLK


    Instead of getting top grade legal advice not to falsify his business records
    A personal check is not a business record. Not legally, not ever. Merchan arbitrarily decided that it was a business record, which, of course, will be reviewed on appeal. And considering that the check to Cohen went through John McEntee who is INFAMOUS for FORGING TRUMP"S SIGNATURE, AND Cohen admitted on the witness stand he embezzled from Trump previously, we don't even know if it was Trump who signed that check.
  77. Anonymous[245] •�Disclaimer says:

    This is the county white men are supposed to defend?

  78. @Hypnotoad666
    @pyrrhus


    there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…
    100%. Merchan is an anti-Trump partisan hack, yet (precisely for that reason) he managed to catch three anti-Trump cases. The odds of this happening by random chance are like 10,000 to 1. He sent the CEO of Trump enterprises to jail for for not declaring his parking spot as taxable income. Good God. Can you imagine if that standard were applied to other CEOs?

    If Trump gets elected from jail he absolutely must turn the DOJ into a scorched earth tool of retribution. It's a target rich environment of REAL crimes out there with all the Clinton Foundation graft, Zuckerberg election finance violations, and CIA treason by Brennan and his ilk. Heck bring a RICO case against the New York Times for all the classified material they publish daily. The precedent is set. No one can blame him.

    Replies: @Dr. X, @Master CPL Savage, @AceDeuce

    If Trump gets elected from jail

    WTF is wrong with you people? Don’t you get it, even now?

    Let me spell it out for you: HE’S NOT GOING TO “GET ELECTED,” the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that’s what this sham “trial” was about!

    •�Agree: Bardon Kaldian, BB753
    •�Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    @Dr. X


    Let me spell it out for you: HE’S NOT GOING TO “GET ELECTED,” the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that’s what this sham “trial” was about!
    If they knew they could always rig the vote count why would they need the lawfare?

    Incidentally, I believe 2020 was indeed rigged by good old ballot stuffing - facilitated by mass mail-in ballots and centralized vote counting in Democrat controlled operations in Atlanta, Detroit, and Philadelphia.

    But it will be difficult to pull the same scam if Trump is sufficiently ahead in swing state polls and the actual vote margins are indeed be "too big to rig."

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @BB753, @Anonymous
  79. Hail says: •�Website

    Robert F. Kennedy Jr., on the Trump conviction of May 30, 2024:

    America deserves a President who can win at the ballot box without compromising our government’s separation of powers or weaponizing the courts. You can’t save democracy by destroying it first.

    [MORE]

    I’m also running against President Trump in this election. The difference is I’m challenging him on his record. His lockdowns during Covid. His atrocious environmental record. His cozy relationship with corporate America. His support for the war machine. His failure to root out waste and corruption in Washington. His service to the billionaire class. His bloating of the national debt. These are the issues that shape American lives.

    I’ll challenge him on these things, but the Democrats won’t. You know why? Because they pursue the very same policies.

    •�Replies: @Hibernian
    @Hail

    If Kennedy somehow got elected you'd find he might be worse than Biden.

    Replies: @Hail
  80. @Buzz Mohawk
    Yes, let's see how this thing plays out.

    Okay, Steve, you ask, "Whaddaya think?"

    Well, I think several things:

    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with "Mob-type" characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    2) Trump eventually worked his act until he became what his is politically: Seemingly the only guy who stands for "Americans First." Whether or not that title is true is another matter....

    3) It is terrible that our nation has reached the point that lawfare and the law can be used against political opponents the way it has been in communist countries.

    4) I personally don't like Trump, and I have been considering not actually voting at all, in any election, even local....

    5) This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much....

    Replies: @Dave Pinsen, @Tony, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Sean

    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    •�Replies: @Reg Cæsar
    @Dave Pinsen



    Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.
    One lesson Fred taught Donald was to make friends with those on both sides of the aisle. Or at least don't make enemies.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    , @R.G. Camara
    @Dave Pinsen

    He's probably going with "Trump worked in real estate and casinos in NY and NJ, whose unions are heavily mob-controlled, therefore Trump is mobbed up."

    Replies: @Dave Pinsen
    , @Steve Sailer
    @Dave Pinsen

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But ... nada.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Anonymous, @Mike Tre, @Dave Pinsen, @Corvinus
    , @Erik L
    @Dave Pinsen

    I don't know that real estate developers had to deal directly with organized crime. They would end up paying "street taxes" in the form of more expensive labor (unions) and materials (cement).

    I have a memory of Sammy Gravano claiming to have objected to his boss about the takeover of cement in the 1970s saying that it would be the end of the mob because (He might have stated this in a round about way or I might be adding in info from another documentary) because they would be taking money out of the pockets of guys like Trump.

    I never cared for Trump but after years of every investigative reporter having an incentive to be the guy who got Trump, and this is all they've come up with? I figure he must be a pretty decent guy
    , @Not Raul
    @Dave Pinsen


    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York
    Giuliani might have been the scourge of Italian mobsters; but he has been very friendly with “Russian” mobsters. I guess the “Russians” pay better.

    https://projects.voanews.com/impeachment/giuliani.html
  81. •�Replies: @Master CPL Savage
    @Dave Pinsen

    LOL!!! Thanks!
  82. @J.Ross
    @Gallatin

    This argument was always nonsense. We should either defeat the enemy or expect his weapons to be used as far as they need to be until we take away those weapons. DeSantis isn't characterized by unhinged TDS media liars as a reasonable guy, their word for him is "Nazi."

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “We should either defeat the enemy or expect his weapons to be used as far as they need to be until we take away those weapons.”

    So what is your step by step plan besides pissing and moaning.

    •�Replies: @Bel Riose
    @Corvinus

    And yet again....another variation of your insipid "but what are YOU going to do about it" canned response.

    Can't you think of something original?

    Replies: @Corvinus
  83. (((They))) control US politicians via carrot (AIPAC $$$) and stick (Epstein kompromat).

    Trump had his own billions, and they had no kompromat on him. I.e., they could not control him.

    Therefore, Trump had to be destroyed.

    So he was destroyed.

    Let’s rewind:

    Police–and Congress–took a collective knee when BLM and antifa were rioting, looting, and torching communities to ruin.

    But when students peacefully protested Israel’s actions in Gaza? They were immediately crushed by the police.

    These things are not unconnected. And it does not require a searing IQ to connect them.

    •�Agree: OilcanFloyd, Harry Baldwin, Tex
    •�Replies: @Bragadocious
    @Ex Machina

    BLM is a Soros, and therefore a British, psy-op. The main funder of BLM is Open Society which is run by Mark Malloch-Brown, a British spook with deep connections to GCHQ.

    The Brits started all this with the piss dossier, which spawned Russiagate, which crippled Trump's Presidency. GCHQ wiretapped Trump at the Trump Tower. They didn't come up with anything, and thus needed to concoct a fantasy that he was a Russian agent. In the middle of all this, they sent an assassin, Michael Sandford, to take him out. Sandford failed, was quickly whisked back home and the story memory-holed.

    Britain now has what it wants--a damaged front-runner to the Presidency, a guy who has stated that he wants to negotiate and settle the Ukraine war, a war the Brits have recklessly provoked since day one. They will settle for nothing less than setting the world on fire.
    , @Je Suis Omar Mateen
    @Ex Machina

    'Trump had his own billions, and they had no kompromat on him. I.e., they could not control him.

    Therefore, Trump had to be destroyed.'

    Great observation. Since 2017 I averred they hate President Trump because he is a White man of blatantly normal sexuality - three qualities the pedosodomist child-raping Democrats can. not. tolerate.
  84. @Anonymous
    @vinteuil


    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    Replies: @Ex Machina, @Reg Cæsar, @Hypnotoad666, @Curle

    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    No, that single issue it to a return to original intent: deport all non-whites, rescind universal suffrage and reinstate voting eligibility to only straight, white, Christian males.

    About as equally as realistic as your single issue. Perhaps also as realistic as voting for Trump expecting that would do anything.

  85. @Anonymous
    @vinteuil


    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    Replies: @Ex Machina, @Reg Cæsar, @Hypnotoad666, @Curle

    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.

    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    That could be done simply by imposing standards. Hell, a large part of the way requires only the enforcement of present– i.e., on-the-books– standards.

    •�Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Reg Cæsar

    "We have the nukes" > words on paper.
  86. He’s his own worst enemy.

    •�Agree: John Johnson
    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @Hibernian

    He’s his own worst enemy.

    No way, he's got lots worse. If they could do what they'd like he'd get the William Wallace treatment.
  87. @Anon7
    Biden has an election-winning play here:

    Pardon Trump.

    Replies: @Jack D, @De Doc

    Hunter gets first dibs on the pardon.

  88. My understanding is this.

    1. Sentencing will be on July 11th, 2024. That will be the date when the exact punishment is decided.
    2. Trump will have the opportunity to appeal. Then the next court will decide his final guilt (and fate).
    3. Even if’s sentenced to jail, he can still get out, on bail.

    Is this correct? Anybody have the answers?

  89. Hail says: •�Website

    Richard B. Spencer, who opposes Trump and campaigned for Biden in 2020, says this in reaction to the Trump “felony” conviction of May 30, 2024:

    Well, it’s now real. A prisoner will become president of these United States.

    One silver lining of Donald Trump getting re-elected—and his support of the destruction of Gaza —would be the direct identification of Zionism with America’s most toxic political movement.

    People—especially educated people—already hate Trump; they are going to hate Israel almost as much, as Trump becomes synonymous with butchering Palestinians.

    [MORE]

    •�Replies: @Wielgus
    @Hail

    And Biden isn't synonymous with butchering Palestinians?

    Replies: @Hail
  90. @Hail
    Robert F. Kennedy Jr., on the Trump conviction of May 30, 2024:

    America deserves a President who can win at the ballot box without compromising our government’s separation of powers or weaponizing the courts. You can’t save democracy by destroying it first.

    I’m also running against President Trump in this election. The difference is I’m challenging him on his record. His lockdowns during Covid. His atrocious environmental record. His cozy relationship with corporate America. His support for the war machine. His failure to root out waste and corruption in Washington. His service to the billionaire class. His bloating of the national debt. These are the issues that shape American lives.

    I'll challenge him on these things, but the Democrats won't. You know why? Because they pursue the very same policies.
    https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr/status/1796320918156841339

    Replies: @Hibernian

    If Kennedy somehow got elected you’d find he might be worse than Biden.

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @Hibernian

    Kennedy has announced his first executive order, if elected:
    A command that the CDC "remove fluoride from U.S. drinking water."

    Replies: @Thea, @Tex
  91. I was planning on staying home rather than endorsing the lie that the current USA resembles a democracy in any meaningful way.* However, after the ruling elites’ successful kangaroo court proceeding today, I’ve decided to vote for Trump. I will do this even though I despise the man, doubt his ability to change anything if elected, and loath some of his policies, e.g. support for the long running, Jewish/Israeli genocide against Palestinians. I suspect my motivation is the same as that of many others, i.e. solely pour ennuyer nos dirigeants.
    ———
    * How can anyone even pretend we live in a democracy when the electorate overwhelmingly opposes supporting the ruthless genocide of Palestinians Israeli Jews but the Congress, Executive Branch, and Judiciary almost entirely support it and indeed often bay for even more Palestinian suffering and blood?

  92. I thought this was a show trial. No?

  93. @R.G. Camara
    @Jack D

    Trump's also under federal heat, chumly, you two-faced lying Mossad Fed troll. A pardon by Biden, played up as his being a gentleman, would be pushed as his gift to a divided country. All the while pointing out Trump was still a convicted criminal.

    But you already knew that.

    Go back to celebrating with your comrades, you disgusting traitorous pig.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @Renard

    Well, kiddies, prepare to be shocked, because I’m going to stand up for my good buddy Jack D.

    Biden COULD pardon Trump . . . if Trump is convicted of a federal crime. That would not do, pardon my language, jack shit for the NY state conviction, nor any of the other crimes for which he will no doubt be convicted.

    In essence, Biden would look like a kindly old grandfather, and Trump would still be a convicted felon.

    Thinking is fundamental.

    •�Agree: Twinkie
    •�Replies: @R.G. Camara
    @Hunsdon


    Biden COULD pardon Trump . . . if Trump is convicted of a federal crime. That would not do, pardon my language, jack shit for the NY state conviction, nor any of the other crimes for which he will no doubt be convicted
    Sigh.

    Moron, Biden could pardon Trump RIGHT NOW even without CONVICTIONS, because the spectre of investigations and indictments and proapaganda have the commies claiming he's guilty By pardoning him, Biden could appear magnaminous but still keep Trump as felon (state).

    Ford pardoned Nixon before Nixon could be convicted of anything. Biden could do the same for Trump--but with the added bonus of Trump remaining a felon (NY) that Biden could do nothing about *wink wink*.

    And Jack D is a Mossad fed troll, liar, and traitor.
    , @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Hunsdon

    It doesn't matter. After the 2020 DMV-ladies election it's pretty clear the Republicans are finished as a national party. Non-citizens already vote in municipal elections in California, Vermont, Maryland, and the District of Colombia. The Bolshevik party is just getting started.
    , @Twinkie
    @Hunsdon


    In essence, Biden would look like a kindly old grandfather, and Trump would still be a convicted felon.
    To be clear, I agreed with this bit.
  94. “Show me the man and I’ll find you the crime.” Laventiy Beria.

    •�Agree: R.G. Camara
  95. @Anonymous
    @vinteuil


    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    Replies: @Ex Machina, @Reg Cæsar, @Hypnotoad666, @Curle

    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    The only way to do that is elect Trump, so it’s all the same.

  96. @Hunsdon
    @R.G. Camara

    Well, kiddies, prepare to be shocked, because I'm going to stand up for my good buddy Jack D.

    Biden COULD pardon Trump . . . if Trump is convicted of a federal crime. That would not do, pardon my language, jack shit for the NY state conviction, nor any of the other crimes for which he will no doubt be convicted.

    In essence, Biden would look like a kindly old grandfather, and Trump would still be a convicted felon.

    Thinking is fundamental.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @The Anti-Gnostic, @Twinkie

    Biden COULD pardon Trump . . . if Trump is convicted of a federal crime. That would not do, pardon my language, jack shit for the NY state conviction, nor any of the other crimes for which he will no doubt be convicted

    Sigh.

    Moron, Biden could pardon Trump RIGHT NOW even without CONVICTIONS, because the spectre of investigations and indictments and proapaganda have the commies claiming he’s guilty By pardoning him, Biden could appear magnaminous but still keep Trump as felon (state).

    Ford pardoned Nixon before Nixon could be convicted of anything. Biden could do the same for Trump–but with the added bonus of Trump remaining a felon (NY) that Biden could do nothing about *wink wink*.

    And Jack D is a Mossad fed troll, liar, and traitor.

  97. @Hibernian
    @Hail

    If Kennedy somehow got elected you'd find he might be worse than Biden.

    Replies: @Hail

    Kennedy has announced his first executive order, if elected:
    A command that the CDC “remove fluoride from U.S. drinking water.”

    •�Replies: @Thea
    @Hail

    Fluoride levels in tap water represent one of the few local issues that communities control at the municipal level.

    Some towns add to one level, others to a different level and then some have aquifers with naturally high levels so do not add any. All that power will be handed to Washington.
    , @Tex
    @Hail


    Kennedy has announced his first executive order, if elected:
    A command that the CDC “remove fluoride from U.S. drinking water.”

    Peace On Earth, Preserve Our Essence are the best campaign slogans ever.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1KvgtEnABY
  98. @Rusty Tailgate
    He's not only been convicted, he's going to do time. Maybe house arrest, but he will not be out campaigning. I warned people of this when he became the nominee. There is no way they would have let him take office again. It isn't going to matter what this does to his poll numbers. If they go up, he'll be convicted of something worse, like rape or manslaughter. Enjoy President Kamala Harris and Vice President Karine Jean-Pierre. We could have had Ron DeSantis, but no, he wears risers in his shoes.

    Replies: @TWS, @HA

    If, and it is a big if, if Desantis had a chance of making a real difference or changing anything that matters he’d get the same treatment as Trump.

    You aren’t voting your way out of this.

    •�Agree: Tex
  99. @Dave Pinsen
    @Buzz Mohawk


    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.
    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @R.G. Camara, @Steve Sailer, @Erik L, @Not Raul

    Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    One lesson Fred taught Donald was to make friends with those on both sides of the aisle. Or at least don’t make enemies.

    •�Agree: Not Raul
    •�Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Reg Cæsar

    I think the most important lesson Trump didn't learn was, "It's not lonely at the top if you bring people with you."

    He's a one-man band and egomaniac showboat. He also doesn't like lawyers, which is actually kind of shortsighted when you live in a "nation of laws" (John Adams). George W. Bush lawyered up with James Baker and Baker Botts in 2000, and he got to be President.

    Replies: @J.Ross, @Prester John
  100. @Dave Pinsen
    @Buzz Mohawk


    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.
    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @R.G. Camara, @Steve Sailer, @Erik L, @Not Raul

    He’s probably going with “Trump worked in real estate and casinos in NY and NJ, whose unions are heavily mob-controlled, therefore Trump is mobbed up.”

    •�Replies: @Dave Pinsen
    @R.G. Camara

    The Italian mob barely exists today, thanks in part to zealous Italian (Giuliani) and half-Italian prosecutors (Christie), and in part to Italians being able to make more money with less risk legally (even if sometimes semi-shadily). It was more of a thing when Trump started out, but mobsters themselves said they couldn't get to Trump, and there's no reason a real estate developer would need to deal directly with them anyway, even if they did control the unions. He'd just deal with the offical union leaders themselves, or have his subcontractors do it.

    Replies: @Corvinus
  101. @Hunsdon
    @R.G. Camara

    Well, kiddies, prepare to be shocked, because I'm going to stand up for my good buddy Jack D.

    Biden COULD pardon Trump . . . if Trump is convicted of a federal crime. That would not do, pardon my language, jack shit for the NY state conviction, nor any of the other crimes for which he will no doubt be convicted.

    In essence, Biden would look like a kindly old grandfather, and Trump would still be a convicted felon.

    Thinking is fundamental.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @The Anti-Gnostic, @Twinkie

    It doesn’t matter. After the 2020 DMV-ladies election it’s pretty clear the Republicans are finished as a national party. Non-citizens already vote in municipal elections in California, Vermont, Maryland, and the District of Colombia. The Bolshevik party is just getting started.

    •�Agree: Hunsdon
  102. Increased support among a certain demographic

  103. @AnotherDad
    Ok sorry, should have looked it up. My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of ... something?

    There is a practical lesson in there somewhere. I guess I haven't enjoyed the variety Trump has, but enjoying the same woman for 40 years has kept my life ... simpler.

    Though I'm sure if a nationalist like me had a legit shot at the Presidency, they'd have a half-dozen cases launched at me. They'd just make shit up.

    ~~

    This is not going to stop Donald Trump. It is going to convince more Republicans and conservatives that our establishment and the Democrats are corrupt.

    It is going to further push open the political fissure in American society and convince more people that we are simply incompatible and belong in separate nations.

    Replies: @Anon, @Sam Hildebrand, @Twinkie

    There is a practical lesson in there somewhere. I guess I haven’t enjoyed the variety Trump has, but enjoying the same woman for 40 years has kept my life … simpler.

    Hear, hear. I’ve always maintained that clean living pays off, sooner or later.

    That said, I’ve also said repeatedly that Trump is a John the Baptist-like figure (Audacious Epigone would call him a figure akin to the Gracchi Brothers). They all died badly.

    But he extended the Overton window and showed that nationalist populism can win the presidency. That genie is not going to be put back in the bottle no matter how much the Establishment tries to suppress it with all means, legal or otherwise.

    My hope is that whatever happens in November 2024 (I personally hope he wins by even a bigger margin as a giant FU to all these bullshit anti-democratic* machinations), he will have paved the way for a nationalist-populist figure who is more personally attractive (I don’t mean looks, but rather someone who has his personal life together and has lived cleanly with an appealing, wholesome family worthy of admiration and emulation). It’s either such a figure leading a majoritarian/normie restoration or likely further polarization between elites pushing fringe-y policies and alienating normal people and leading to a far greater likelihood of civil strife (in which case, an American Franco is the next best hope).

    Just like the Democrats/leftists are the real racists, they are the real anti-democrats.

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Twinkie

    Ted Heath was the Prime Minister of the UK from 1970 to 1974.

    A period of tumult in British politics, but distinguished by some rather great pop music and similar cultural exports, anyhow, Heath reigned like a Sun-King over this key, pivotal period in post war UK history, a glam rock, technicolor helter skelter ride of strikes, power cuts, sporadic acts of terrorism, the highest rates of economic growth ever seen in the UK, accompanied by Ziggy Stardust howling down the extra terrestrial gods. A truly odd time well remembered by anyone old enough.

    Whatever might be said about Ted Heath, Heath was a lifelong committed bachelor who had absolutely no time for women in any way shape or form, and subliminated every ounce of energy into national service.

    What is need is a cadre of Ted Heaths in leadership. Perhaps we might get decent pop music back as a side product.

    Replies: @G. Poulin, @YetAnotherAnon, @Anonymous
  104. @Reg Cæsar
    @Anonymous



    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.
    That could be done simply by imposing standards. Hell, a large part of the way requires only the enforcement of present-- i.e., on-the-books-- standards.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic

    “We have the nukes” > words on paper.

  105. @vinteuil
    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they're so thirsty for his blood, they'll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    Replies: @JimDandy, @James N. Kennett, @George, @Twinkie, @HA, @Hannah Katz, @Pythas

    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    I hope so!

  106. @Hunsdon
    @R.G. Camara

    Well, kiddies, prepare to be shocked, because I'm going to stand up for my good buddy Jack D.

    Biden COULD pardon Trump . . . if Trump is convicted of a federal crime. That would not do, pardon my language, jack shit for the NY state conviction, nor any of the other crimes for which he will no doubt be convicted.

    In essence, Biden would look like a kindly old grandfather, and Trump would still be a convicted felon.

    Thinking is fundamental.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @The Anti-Gnostic, @Twinkie

    In essence, Biden would look like a kindly old grandfather, and Trump would still be a convicted felon.

    To be clear, I agreed with this bit.

    •�Thanks: Hunsdon
  107. Anon[289] •�Disclaimer says:

    It will be overturned on appeal.

    1) Paying a whore to keep her mouth shut isn’t illegal under New York law.

    2) Altering business records to hide something was a misdemeanor until recently under New York law, with a statute of limitations of 2 years. Any chance to try Trump under this particular law already expired before this trial.

    3) New York changed the law so that altering business records is now a felony, and then retroactively applied this new law to Trump. This is an ex post facto law, which is illegal, and it’s being used to go after a political enemy.

    The Supreme Court will bitch slap it down. They have a conservative majority, and they know the conviction is nonsense, and they know at this point they have a duty to end this crap before the election because the consequences would be dire for the welfare of the country if they don’t. They have a duty to protect the functioning of the basic normal political process of our country.

    •�Replies: @res
    @Anon

    But will it make it all the way through the Supreme Court before the election?

    P.S. I'm trying to figure out if the furor over trying to get Alito to recuse himself is really about Jan. 6th or whether it is looking a move ahead to Trump's appeal for this case. Any thoughts?

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    , @Anonymous
    @Anon


    2) Altering business records to hide something was a misdemeanor until recently under New York law, with a statute of limitations of 2 years.
    Can you provide us with some evidence that both these claims are true?

    Replies: @Ben tillman
  108. @Buzz Mohawk
    Yes, let's see how this thing plays out.

    Okay, Steve, you ask, "Whaddaya think?"

    Well, I think several things:

    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with "Mob-type" characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    2) Trump eventually worked his act until he became what his is politically: Seemingly the only guy who stands for "Americans First." Whether or not that title is true is another matter....

    3) It is terrible that our nation has reached the point that lawfare and the law can be used against political opponents the way it has been in communist countries.

    4) I personally don't like Trump, and I have been considering not actually voting at all, in any election, even local....

    5) This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much....

    Replies: @Dave Pinsen, @Tony, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Sean

    #4. So you want this country to decline into a 3rd world cesspool. At least Trump could temporarily slow that down.

    •�Replies: @Buzz Mohawk
    @Tony


    At least Trump could temporarily slow that down.
    He got my vote and he had four years to do something. He fucked it up so bad I wonder if he even cared about delivering what he was selling. The guy is a fast-talking phony -- and an awful, awfully stupid manager.

    There is not going to be any slowing it down. We're screwed. Be prepared, Boy Scout.

    Replies: @Tony
    , @Prester John
    @Tony

    Presidents--indeed no one--can control the direction of history. Anyone who thinks so engages in wishful thinking. "Events have a dynamic of their own" is a tried-and-true axiom.
  109. @Michael Droy
    Makes Trump pretty much unbeatable. He no longer needs to campaign.
    I thought the Dems would drop Biden-Harris for a more electable alternative.
    Might as well not bother now.

    Replies: @Jon Tormento, @Old Virginia

    You don’t think they’ll come up with 100,000,000 ballots to beat Trump’s 95,000,000 votes?

  110. Elli says:
    @Thomm

    It is going to further push open the political fissure in American society and convince more people that we are simply incompatible and belong in separate nations.
    You keep harping on this 'separate nations' idea, but have never presented any details about how this could be even remotely workable.

    i) What is the demographic split?
    ii) What is the geographic split? If your answer is as unoriginal as mere 'red state/blue state', then that means you really haven't thought this through.
    iii) Neither country is large enough of an economy to have the world's reserve currency. Without this status, the standard of living in the US would be about 20% lower, so each of these countries will experience that.
    iv) You assume your nation will be a more homogenous, cohesive one, but that requires ignoring this all-important detail :

    https://www.americansurveycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/SV15g-young-women-are-much-more-liberal-than-young-men.png

    You otherwise seem very aware of how the modern 'woke' age is driven mostly by the female appetite for approval and virtue-signaling, but this obliterates any prospect of the separated nation you prefer actually working. Unless you want your half of the split to be a country that is 70% male (White Trashionalism, a small subset of your nation, is in fact 99% male).

    Don't think you can keep left-wing media out of your new half of the erstwhile US. US 'woke' memes become normalized as far away as Australia and New Zealand almost immediately. There is ONE Anglosphere English-language media blob, to the same extent the Earth has one indivisible atmosphere.

    Replies: @Elli, @Prester John

    A problem with separate nations is control of ports and borders. They’re bad enough now. Do we want California run entirely by Central Americans and Chinese? Leasing the Port of Los Angeles to China?

    Suppose the Deep South becomes the black homeland. China Belt and Road loans, working on infrastructure?

    Vermont and Minnesota nice? Borders are artificial, people aren’t illegal, hate has no home here, we’re glad you’re our neighbor.

    Sure things are bad. They could get much worse.

  111. @Hail
    @Hibernian

    Kennedy has announced his first executive order, if elected:
    A command that the CDC "remove fluoride from U.S. drinking water."

    Replies: @Thea, @Tex

    Fluoride levels in tap water represent one of the few local issues that communities control at the municipal level.

    Some towns add to one level, others to a different level and then some have aquifers with naturally high levels so do not add any. All that power will be handed to Washington.

  112. @Dr. X
    America is now officially a corrupt shithole run by a clique of insane ideologues. If you still think you live in a "free country" under the "rule of law" with "free and fair elections" and the government represents "the will of the people" you are retard, a moron and a sucker.

    You can dislike Trump for a lot of reasons if you wish, and on some of those I would be inclined to agree, but every single charge against Trump, both civil and criminal, has been completely bogus and a transparent attempt to take him out. His real "crimes" were defeating Hillary and representing the working class hoi polloi in flyover country.

    You are now officially living in a one-party state. No Republican will ever be allowed to win ever again, unless he is the designated fall guy by the Deep State and the elites.

    If you vote for the wrong guy he will be arrested. Maybe you will, too.

    The Trump case should not be taken in isolation. It is part of a larger picture that includes the prosecution of Stone and Manafort and Giuliani and Flynn and Meadows, SWAT teams hunting down and kicking in the doors of people accused of misdemeanor "trespassing" on Jan. 6, the targeted execution of the airport guy in Little Rock, and really going all the way back to deliberately shooting Randy Weaver's wife's head off as she was holding a baby.

    Every time you hear Biden or Harris or any of these other creeps lecturing the rest of the world about "freedom" and "democracy" and "human rights," you should laugh bitterly and sardonically.

    Understand exactly what kind of country you are living in, and when they come for you, treat them appropriately.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @TWS

    As Gonzalo Lira used to say, “Understand what’s going on.”

  113. 1). If the glove don’t fit you must acquit

    2) If the testimony of the porn actress is. now irate, you must show the defendant the justice of your hate.

  114. Anonymous[308] •�Disclaimer says:

    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore. In Italy or France people laugh about this.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Anonymous

    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore.

    Cheated on his wife with a whore and setup a shell scheme with his lawyer to pay her off and anyone else that might talk. That scheme misrepresented the services provided which is a form of fraud.

    If he had paid her off with a bag of cash it would have been legal.

    But you can't hand a lawyer some cash and say "make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it".

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    , @Twinkie
    @Anonymous


    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore. In Italy or France people laugh about this.
    No. This happened because he trusted a shifty Jewish lawyer, who felt jilted that Trump didn't make him AG or bring him along to DC and so stabbed him in the back.

    Trump's Achilles' heel has been - always - personnel. And personnel is policy.
  115. A friend said, “Maddow just had her first orgasm due to a male.”

    •�LOL: Bardon Kaldian
  116. @Buzz Mohawk
    Yes, let's see how this thing plays out.

    Okay, Steve, you ask, "Whaddaya think?"

    Well, I think several things:

    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with "Mob-type" characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    2) Trump eventually worked his act until he became what his is politically: Seemingly the only guy who stands for "Americans First." Whether or not that title is true is another matter....

    3) It is terrible that our nation has reached the point that lawfare and the law can be used against political opponents the way it has been in communist countries.

    4) I personally don't like Trump, and I have been considering not actually voting at all, in any election, even local....

    5) This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much....

    Replies: @Dave Pinsen, @Tony, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Sean

    This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much….

    Yes. Steve was super passionate about Covid Lockdowns. He was emotionally invested in Zelensky.

    But the destruction of his own people ….. yawn.

    •�Replies: @Anon
    @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality

    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you'd want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you'll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Mr. Anon, @Mike Tre
  117. @Reg Cæsar
    @Dave Pinsen



    Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.
    One lesson Fred taught Donald was to make friends with those on both sides of the aisle. Or at least don't make enemies.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic

    I think the most important lesson Trump didn’t learn was, “It’s not lonely at the top if you bring people with you.”

    He’s a one-man band and egomaniac showboat. He also doesn’t like lawyers, which is actually kind of shortsighted when you live in a “nation of laws” (John Adams). George W. Bush lawyered up with James Baker and Baker Botts in 2000, and he got to be President.

    •�Replies: @J.Ross
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    I am so fucking tired of sacrificing my life to nobody managers and sacrificing my best years to "Turd Blossom" Dumbya and sacrificing vital things taken for granted by all previous generations to hear that our forty-fifth president misspelled a word on Twitter. Remember when you were 100% cool with a jerk president who called people names, misspelled words, made sexual indescretions, and wasn't a vet?
    , @Prester John
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    "a nation of laws"

    At least that's how it appears on the label.
  118. @JohnnyWalker123
    https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1796290488976228406

    Replies: @JohnnyWalker123

  119. Trump’s highest purpose may just be making the forces that have been destroying our Republic over the last 50 years show themselves, as evil and completely unprincipled. This law fare cases against him are a perfect example: this IS how justice works in any jurisdiction controlled by the Democrat Party. It has been true for those of us living in those places for longer than we wanted to see, but now we know. What is to be done, what we are willing to risk to restore the Republic, whether there is any realistic way to restore it, are all questions most of us have spent the last 25 years avoiding. Whatever our own answers to those questions, we cannot avoid them any longer. Damn him.

    •�Thanks: Harry Baldwin
    •�Replies: @Anonymous Jew
    @Rahuthedotard

    Agree. On a long enough timeline, it has to get worse before people are moved to action. Trump may be a horrible executive but he exposed Conservative Inc and the illusion of a fair and principled democratic process. The worst thing that could happen would actually be a moderating Democrat party that garners enough support - and creates enough indifference on the right - to facilitate the left’s continual erosion of the nation. We need the left/ Democrat's crazy to push some kind of national backlash or red state secession.

    The left are sore winners, and so they continue to humiliate (bad) White America via lawfare, the media, etc. What will it take to push normie Americans over the edge?
  120. @dearieme
    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    People (like me) who have had good experiences when visiting the US will begin to despair.

    Wait, I hear you cry, there's a mighty difference between the governing classes and The People. Aye, but it's the governing classes who have the whip hand.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob, @trevor, @Curle, @Joe Stalin, @Bragadocious
  121. @Anonymous
    @AnotherDad


    Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?
    Guilty of advocating policies that happened to be in the interests of the American White majority.

    The attempts to destroy Trump are part of the drive toward White Genocide.

    Replies: @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality

    Whites can have their interests represented. All they have to do is ask for it. Loudly and repeatedly.

    Half the commenters on Sailer’s blog are committed to making sure that never happens.

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality

    “Whites can have their interests represented. All they have to do is ask for it. Loudly and repeatedly.”

    We do. It’s just that you disagree with what we are interested in and how we pursue it.

    “Half the commenters on Sailer’s blog are committed to making sure that never happens@

    I would say 90 percent.
  122. @AnotherDad
    Guilty of what? Being Donald J. Trump?

    Honestly, I can't keep track of all the show trials. I know they've fined him a billion dollars or something because some looney old woman says he fingered her at some unspecified date back in the 90s and Trump called her a liar. Then there's some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten ... or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump.

    What's this one about? Dying his hair?

    Stalin did it better.

    Replies: @Michael Droy, @Dieter Kief, @Anonymous, @trevor

    None of his alleged “crimes” had any actual VICTIMS.

    NO ONE was physically hurt or suffered any financial loss.

  123. What do I think.
    I think he’s unfit for office.
    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @CalCooledge

    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Nikki Haley is John McCain in pantyhose. How would it have benefitted us to vote for her?

    Replies: @John Johnson
    , @Hunsdon
    @CalCooledge

    Nikki Haley? Wow. Just wow.

    Nikki "The Russian intelligence services gave information to Hamas to make 7th October possible" Haley?
    , @Thea
    @CalCooledge

    Desantis has some positive points but Nimrata has none.
    , @Rick P
    @CalCooledge

    DeSantis yes, as he's a smart and effective conservative. Haley no, as she folds to the cultural left every time.
    , @Jus' Sayin'...
    @CalCooledge

    Haley??? Isn't that the same Nimarata Haley, née Randhawa, who was caught painting pro-genocide messages on one of the US artillery shells that Israel is using tyo murder Palestinian women and children?
  124. @Father Coughlin
    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    Replies: @AnotherDad, @Frau Katze, @kaganovitch, @Jay Fink, @Yancey Ward, @Paul Jolliffe

    France isn’t a third world country and their people are quick to hit the streets when angered. Then again they aren’t fat and happy, at least not fat.

    •�Thanks: Father Coughlin
    •�Replies: @Almost Missouri
    @Jay Fink


    France isn’t a third world country and their people are quick to hit the streets when angered.
    And what has it gotten them?

    Besides thoughtcrime laws, rule by Rothschilds, and endless hostile invaders whom they are not allowed to count, I mean?
  125. Anon[408] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Elmer T. Jones
    I will withhold opinion until the jurors start their lucrative media tours and tell us how it all went down.

    Replies: @Anon

    Speaking of the jurors… is no one skeptical that there were two lawyers as jurors? Most people tend to defer their decisions to experts in a particular field, especially when the stakes are so high such as this case. I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that our favorite three letter agencies weren’t going to leave this decision up to a bunch of rubes, and made sure a couple of lawyers were present as “experts” to help sway the decision in their favor…

    -Rooster

  126. J.Ross says:
    @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Reg Cæsar

    I think the most important lesson Trump didn't learn was, "It's not lonely at the top if you bring people with you."

    He's a one-man band and egomaniac showboat. He also doesn't like lawyers, which is actually kind of shortsighted when you live in a "nation of laws" (John Adams). George W. Bush lawyered up with James Baker and Baker Botts in 2000, and he got to be President.

    Replies: @J.Ross, @Prester John

    I am so fucking tired of sacrificing my life to nobody managers and sacrificing my best years to “Turd Blossom” Dumbya and sacrificing vital things taken for granted by all previous generations to hear that our forty-fifth president misspelled a word on Twitter. Remember when you were 100% cool with a jerk president who called people names, misspelled words, made sexual indescretions, and wasn’t a vet?

  127. How to decrease the prevalence of peanut allergies.

  128. @Dieter Kief
    @AnotherDad


    Then there’s some case where Trump is guilty of taking out and paying back bigger loans than he should have gotten … or something. Where the governor announced that the law only applied to bad people like Trump. What’s this one about? Dying his hair?
    This passage of yours made me laugh - at the end of a long and a bit exhausting day - so: Thanks!

    - Apropos your last sentence: Will it all boil down to world war hair?

    - That would be a zeitgeisty and - iSteeve-y punch line . . . on the other hand: One that we'd have not much time left to enjoy, possibly - - - Life is full of strangenesses (Goethe: "Das Leben stickt voller Merkwürdigkeiten.")

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease

    Life is full of strangenesses (Goethe: “Das Leben stickt voller Merkwürdigkeiten.”)

    “Life is filled with holes.” — Patti Smith

    Earlier this evening, I broke my ankle: I was walking down the street when this gigantic flash-flood of Democrat jizz came swirling down the street, directly at me. I had to dive through a store window to avoid being drowned in a tidal wave of swirling leftard semen.

    Pretty sure I saw Tiny Duck riding on top of the wave, holding a giant spoon.

    So, happy first annual Founding of the New Banana Republic Day. Lexington and Concord was the “conviction” of Derek Chauvin, but henceforth, 5/30 will forevermore be Banana Republic Day.

    Instead of fireworks, we’ll rattle coffee cups at Chinese tourists and landlords, and beg for spare change.

    •�Agree: Prester John
    •�Replies: @Dieter Kief
    @The Germ Theory of Disease


    So, happy first annual Founding of the New Banana Republic Day. Lexington and Concord was the “conviction” of Derek Chauvin, but henceforth, 5/30 will forevermore be Banana Republic Day.

    Instead of fireworks, we’ll rattle coffee cups at Chinese tourists and landlords, and beg for spare change.
    Hopefully not the whole story. But for sure a part of it.

    (your - visio maladetta - - - thx. for posting it!)
  129. trevor says:
    @George
    @vinteuil

    If he ends up in jail there is a chance he will be murdered. Would he get secret service protection?

    Replies: @trevor

    If he ends up in jail there is a chance he will be murdered. Would he get secret service protection?

    No.

    The Secret Service does not have jurisdiction in state prisons.

    Also, as part of the “lawfare” against Trump, negro Democrat Representative from Mississippi has introduced a bill to relieve Trump of Secret Service protection uniquely applicable to Trump.

    They want him to get murdered.

    Check out the DISGRACED acronym (LOL). The DemocRATS must pay someone to think these up.

    https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-bennie-thompson-secret-services-rfk-1892371

  130. @Hail
    Fox News' Laura Ingraham, speaking on the Trump conviction of May 30, 2024:

    "The Democrats are showing you what real power is like. It's the type of power we usually see dictators exercise, say, in China, in Cuba, or in North Korea.

    And if anyone threatens 'the Establishment' in the future, the Democrats will use the same playbook. They'll charge others, like a J.D. Vance or a Ron DeSantis, in some liberal jurisdiction, on some bogus charge, and then have a radical judge hand down jury instructions that will make it almost impossible for a jury not to convict them, of 'something'.

    These 'great defenders of democracy' would rather ruin the public's faith in the entire American system...than risk the possibility that the people will elect a common-sense populist like Trump."

    Replies: @Humane Conservative

    OK, but Republicans will be doing the same things to Democrats too.

    This isn’t “dictatorship” or “communism” or “totalitarianism”, just a general collapse of the standards of fair play which used to be expected in American politics.

    Lots of people didn’t vote for or voted against Trump because they felt that his election would lead to the end of “the rules”. I scoffed at the time, but at this point it’s hard for me to say they weren’t on to something, whether or not it was Trump’s fault.

    •�Replies: @Hunsdon
    @Humane Conservative

    Humane Conservative said: This isn’t “dictatorship” or “communism” or “totalitarianism”, just a general collapse of the standards of fair play which used to be expected in American politics.

    Hunsdon said: Well, it isn't communism.
  131. @Sam Hildebrand
    @AnotherDad


    My news feed is telling me, this is the one where Trump paid some whore to keep quiet about their affair, then she cheated one their deal so Trump is guilty of … something?
    From what I understand, Trump used his own money to pay for the perfectly legal NDA with the porn star. The left says this is a violation of campaign finance law, Trump should have used campaign donations instead, since the NDA was meant to help his campaign. Like that would have made a difference. But all we hear all day long on every news break on radio and tv is “hush money” implying that Trump paid off someone to cover up a crime.

    Trump paid off a whore to keep his adultery secret, and this is election meddling and threatening to our democracy. The FBI pressured Facebook to block all posts about the Hunter laptop and 10% to the big guy right before an election, nothing to see here.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    From what I understand, Trump used his own money to pay for the perfectly legal NDA with the porn star.

    But they were logged as legal charges for services rendered.

    The left says this is a violation of campaign finance law, Trump should have used campaign donations instead, since the NDA was meant to help his campaign.

    The campaign finance part was dropped.

    34 felonies is excessive but he isn’t innocent.

    The classified documents case is much worse.

    The FBI pressured Facebook to block all posts about the Hunter laptop and 10% to the big guy right before an election, nothing to see here.

    The Hunter laptop was a cover-up.

    That doesn’t make Trump any less of a sleaze-ball.

    I shouldn’t have to choose between a NYC real estate con and a corrupt system that wants Mr. Magoo to win.

    •�Replies: @Precious
    @John Johnson


    The classified documents case is much worse.
    For Jack Smith. Jack Smith is stuck with a judge who is willing to give Trump due process. Trump has already won the Florida case, and Jack Smith will be lucky if he can get it to trial in 2025.
    , @Colin Wright
    @John Johnson


    '...I shouldn’t have to choose between a NYC real estate con and a corrupt system that wants Mr. Magoo to win...'
    Indeed -- but the sad fact of the matter is that you (and I) do need to make this choice.

    I've come to realize that now I'm going to have to get a Trump bumper sticker for the car.

    ...just no goddamned hat. That's a bridge too far.
  132. Democracy won

    The rule of law won

    The People won

    It’s over. You guys lost. Get over it.

    Downright appalling how many Republicans had a “this is an affront to the rule of law” statement teed up.

    They are disgusting and dead wrong: this IS the rule of law. This is as American as it gets. The Founders would be proud of our system today, regardless of the verdict.

    •�Troll: Jus' Sayin'...
    •�Replies: @Evan Drince
    @Ebony Obelisk

    N
  133. @Anonymous
    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore. In Italy or France people laugh about this.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore.

    Cheated on his wife with a whore and setup a shell scheme with his lawyer to pay her off and anyone else that might talk. That scheme misrepresented the services provided which is a form of fraud.

    If he had paid her off with a bag of cash it would have been legal.

    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.

    •�Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    @John Johnson


    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.
    That's not even what the prosection alleged. You have no clue what the case was about.

    That's not surprising, however, because there was literally no crime and even the usual TDS outlets can't explain what law was supposedly violated or why.

    Replies: @John Johnson
  134. @Angular momentum
    Trump is guilty of the crime they made up to convict him of. How could he not be?

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin

    Agree. “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime make up a crime.”

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Harry Baldwin

    Agree. “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime make up a crime.”

    I think 34 felonies is politically motivated but he is hosed in the documents case.

    You can't play stupid if you asked two employees to help you hide evidence.

    Trump is the worst enemy of Trump and not the MSM.

    All he had to do was give back the documents when they asked for them.

    He is a classic silver spoon brat that thinks the rules don't apply to him.

    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @GeneralRipper
  135. res says:
    @Anon
    It will be overturned on appeal.

    1) Paying a whore to keep her mouth shut isn't illegal under New York law.

    2) Altering business records to hide something was a misdemeanor until recently under New York law, with a statute of limitations of 2 years. Any chance to try Trump under this particular law already expired before this trial.

    3) New York changed the law so that altering business records is now a felony, and then retroactively applied this new law to Trump. This is an ex post facto law, which is illegal, and it's being used to go after a political enemy.

    The Supreme Court will bitch slap it down. They have a conservative majority, and they know the conviction is nonsense, and they know at this point they have a duty to end this crap before the election because the consequences would be dire for the welfare of the country if they don't. They have a duty to protect the functioning of the basic normal political process of our country.

    Replies: @res, @Anonymous

    But will it make it all the way through the Supreme Court before the election?

    P.S. I’m trying to figure out if the furor over trying to get Alito to recuse himself is really about Jan. 6th or whether it is looking a move ahead to Trump’s appeal for this case. Any thoughts?

    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @res

    You're right to assume it's about taking Alito off the board before Trump's case comes before the SCOTUS. The Democrats plot these things in advance, the way Pelosi envisioned what a Jan 6 Trump rally could turn into if she turned down Trump's recommendation for National Guard troops at the Capitol and sprinkled the crowd with feds acting as provocateurs. You have to have that demonic mentality to plot things like that. On the Republican side, we have gentlemanly naifs like AG Jeff Sessions appointing a special counsel to look into the baseless Russia collusion accusations, assuming good faith on the part of the Democrats.
  136. Two ironic notes:

    1) Trump’s dual reputation for what Ben Franklin delicately called “intrigues with low women” and for petty corruption goes back to the 1970s. It was not unknown to the American voter, nor to his wife and children. People were not going to not vote for him over that. The American public has more dire concerns than they used to have. Like whether the President is mentally competent to handle nuclear weapons.

    So this whole mess was… unnecessary. To say the least.

    2) Biden has thrown the iron dice. He has to stay in office now at all costs, or he will immediately have corruption charges thrown at him the moment he leaves the White House.

    Could this be the beginning of the end for the farcical system of intricate blackmail that characterizes the reality TV show that is American politics? I sure hope so! Being the age of the Internet, it’s like we have a massive arsenal of hydrogen bombs to cleanse everything in a MAD inferno and allow a poetic fresh start. Hell, it would be so awesome if too many of us labouring under this example stopped living this way, in fear, debt peons or lie peons or whatever have you! Wouldn’t it be great if we stopped talking constantly about empathy in favor of doing it and bonding together for the tough times to come? I suppose I’d better start and set an example then, then. Will I have the balls?

    Find out next week on… LIFE!

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @nebulafox


    1) Trump’s dual reputation for what Ben Franklin delicately called “intrigues with low women” and for petty corruption goes back to the 1970s.
    Trump never had a reputation for either of those things.
    , @EdwardM
    @nebulafox


    he will immediately have corruption charges thrown at him the moment he leaves the White House.
    No, he won't.
  137. @Hibernian
    He's his own worst enemy.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin

    He’s his own worst enemy.

    No way, he’s got lots worse. If they could do what they’d like he’d get the William Wallace treatment.

    •�Agree: kaganovitch
  138. @Harry Baldwin
    @Angular momentum

    Agree. "Show me the man and I'll show you the crime make up a crime."

    Replies: @John Johnson

    Agree. “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime make up a crime.”

    I think 34 felonies is politically motivated but he is hosed in the documents case.

    You can’t play stupid if you asked two employees to help you hide evidence.

    Trump is the worst enemy of Trump and not the MSM.

    All he had to do was give back the documents when they asked for them.

    He is a classic silver spoon brat that thinks the rules don’t apply to him.

    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @John Johnson


    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.
    If history is an any guide, a boring moderate will not be a meaningful change from Biden.

    Mass immigration will continue unabated (“legal” or “illegal”). The United States will continue to destroy lives in the Middle East in service to the Zionists. United States will continue to fund the destruction of the Ukraine.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @John Johnson
    , @GeneralRipper
    @John Johnson

    Here's a little gift from all us "virus deniers", Johnboy...lol

    Feel good story of the month.

    BTW, I sure hope your supposed wife and kids are all vaxxed up and boosted.

    https://twitter.com/marbles34/status/1796010295715885394
  139. @res
    @Anon

    But will it make it all the way through the Supreme Court before the election?

    P.S. I'm trying to figure out if the furor over trying to get Alito to recuse himself is really about Jan. 6th or whether it is looking a move ahead to Trump's appeal for this case. Any thoughts?

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin

    You’re right to assume it’s about taking Alito off the board before Trump’s case comes before the SCOTUS. The Democrats plot these things in advance, the way Pelosi envisioned what a Jan 6 Trump rally could turn into if she turned down Trump’s recommendation for National Guard troops at the Capitol and sprinkled the crowd with feds acting as provocateurs. You have to have that demonic mentality to plot things like that. On the Republican side, we have gentlemanly naifs like AG Jeff Sessions appointing a special counsel to look into the baseless Russia collusion accusations, assuming good faith on the part of the Democrats.

  140. trevor says:
    @Jim Don Bob
    @dearieme


    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.
    Kevin O'Leary said yesterday that this trial has hurt the USA's "brand" in foreign countries. NYC is still the financial capital of the US and second only to London in the world.

    He said that the people in foreign countries he's talked to are incredulous that a county DA can indict and a local jury convict a former president. Banana republic indeed.

    Should Trump win in November, would a military coup led by former JCS head Milley be too far fetched?

    Replies: @trevor, @Tex

    He said that the people in foreign countries he’s talked to are incredulous that a county DA can indict and a local jury convict a former president. Banana republic indeed.

    It used to be in the former USA (now USSA) that the accused was entitled to a “jury of his peers”.

  141. Anonymous[177] •�Disclaimer says:
    @John Johnson
    @Harry Baldwin

    Agree. “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime make up a crime.”

    I think 34 felonies is politically motivated but he is hosed in the documents case.

    You can't play stupid if you asked two employees to help you hide evidence.

    Trump is the worst enemy of Trump and not the MSM.

    All he had to do was give back the documents when they asked for them.

    He is a classic silver spoon brat that thinks the rules don't apply to him.

    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @GeneralRipper

    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.

    If history is an any guide, a boring moderate will not be a meaningful change from Biden.

    Mass immigration will continue unabated (“legal” or “illegal”). The United States will continue to destroy lives in the Middle East in service to the Zionists. United States will continue to fund the destruction of the Ukraine.

    •�Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @Anonymous

    White Americans must at all costs continue to be denied any political voice whatsoever in the future of the country which they, and they alone, built. The project of white elimination and replacement MUST continue, precisely on (((schedule))), exactly as planned.

    The ironic thing is, the J-Left has gone all out in its embarrassing efforts to destroy its imagined nemesis, except forgetting the part that Donald Trump never did a single useful thing for White America while in office, and was and is effectively fully complicit in Project Crush Whitey for all practical intents and purposes. The J-Left never really had anything to worry about to begin with.

    The ZUSG death-to-whites juggernaut is pretty much impossible to halt, as currently constituted, no matter who's in the White House. Elections will continue to be worse than meaningless: viz both meaningless and deceptive. You're gonna need some serious Lexington and Concord to end this properly.

    America 7/4/1776 - 5/30/2024

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLuVHgs1Phs
    , @John Johnson
    @Anonymous


    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.

    If history is an any guide, a boring moderate will not be a meaningful change from Biden.

    A boring moderate will be able to find the exit and will remember his lines. Biden is not medically qualified to run for office of any kind.

    Mass immigration will continue unabated (“legal” or “illegal”).

    Trump was given a chance to fix the border. He not only left it open but let his pal Bannon rip off his followers with the "we will build it" scam.
  142. @Jack D
    @Anon7

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @Anon7, @Paleo Liberal, @epebble, @Johann Ricke

    But I think the governor can. But probably won’t if the sentence is only probation as it is likely for an old man with no prior criminal conviction history.

  143. @Hail
    @Bernie

    How many of the twelve jurors were White heterosexual males of Christian origin? Any?

    See: "jury of one's peers."

    Replies: @epebble
  144. Anyway if Netanyahu rather likes Trump and it is the case indeed, Trump will win. Netanyahu is also a jailbird by the way. The American people is so corrupt that they will choose Trump in the same way the Black community backed OJ Simpson. Everything Trump does to look like a felon of the lowest order will help him.

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Francis Miville


    The American people is so corrupt that they will choose Trump in the same way the Black community backed OJ Simpson.
    What is corrupt about voting for Trump?
    , @Anon
    @Francis Miville

    Here, have a banana.
  145. @Jmaie
    Kudo's to the Florida legislature for having the foresight in 2018 to adopt constitutional amendment 4...

    Replies: @epebble

    If you are thinking that would help Trump vote for himself, that is unlikely unless he completes the probation or wins on appeal before the election.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Florida_Amendment_4

    It was a ballot initiative and not legislation.

    •�Replies: @Jmaie
    @epebble

    Yah, wasn’t being serious…
  146. as a convicted felon, Donald Trump can now not vote in the 2024 election. in most states, he can never vote ever again.

    he’ll also need to give up his personal firearms, and in most states, can never take possession of those again, or ever purchase any new ones.

    i would venture that as a convicted felon, Trump will no longer be able to do high dollar business with most banks or finance operations. he’ll never be able to get a big loan again, and he may be debanked (“Company policy prohibits us from doing business with convicted felons, as such, we are suspending your account permanently. Thank You.”)

    on the bright side, thanks to Democrats’ long campaign to protect criminals, Trump WILL be able to apply for a job at Sheetz without having to disclose his convicted felon status. so there’s that.

  147. @Father Coughlin
    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    Replies: @AnotherDad, @Frau Katze, @kaganovitch, @Jay Fink, @Yancey Ward, @Paul Jolliffe

    I tend to agree- the passivity will continue until the point Americans are thinking of eating the pets and standing nightguard at the windows with a rifle. Only then might we be aroused to action.

    I had hoped to die long before we reached even this point, but I could see it was coming with the prosecution of Ted Stevens and Bob McDonnell. My only surprise about this trial is that the jury didn’t just tell the judge yesterday that they had a verdict when he finished telling them they had no choice but to convict in order to follow the law.

  148. @Dave Pinsen
    @Buzz Mohawk


    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.
    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @R.G. Camara, @Steve Sailer, @Erik L, @Not Raul

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But … nada.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Steve Sailer


    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But … nada.
    Ah, probably because that also involved a lot of Democrats? Trump used to be one, as you well know.

    Replies: @kaganovitch
    , @Anonymous
    @Steve Sailer


    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But … nada.
    So what does that tell you?
    , @Mike Tre
    @Steve Sailer

    Him being second generation developer, I find it hard to believe he would have allowed himself to be even remotely connected to any of the shady practices that go on in construction. He has people who have people who have people that handle that stuff and I doubt his name would have ever even been mentioned.

    Further, dredging up some scandal from 30 years ago might require bringing up the names of a lot of investors, politicians and other business people who were involved as well.
    , @Dave Pinsen
    @Steve Sailer

    If they’d had real dirt on Trump, they wouldn’t have had to rely on manufactured nonsense like the Steele dossier.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Chrisnonymous
    , @Corvinus
    @Steve Sailer

    “I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him…”

    Either you are ignorant or you are being coy. Probably besr you don’t comment on such things.

    https://time.com/4465744/donald-trump-undocumented-workers/

    —For 36 years, Trump has denied knowingly using undocumented workers to demolish the building that would be replaced with Trump Tower in 1980. After Senator Marco Rubio raised the issue of undocumented Polish workers during a Republican primary debate this year, Trump described himself as removed from the problem. “I hire a contractor. The contractor then hires the subcontractor,” he said. “They have people. I don’t know. I don’t remember, that was so many years ago, 35 years ago.”

    But thousands of pages of documents from the case, including reams of testimony and sworn depositions reviewed by TIME, tell a different story. Kept for more than a decade in 13 boxes in a federal judiciary storage unit in Missouri, the documents contain testimony that Trump sought out the Polish workers when he saw them on another job, instigated the creation of the company that paid them and negotiated the hours they would work. The papers contain testimony that Trump repeatedly toured the site where the men were working, directly addressed them about pay problems and even promised to pay them himself, which he eventually did.—

    Replies: @Prester John
  149. @Anonymous
    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore. In Italy or France people laugh about this.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore. In Italy or France people laugh about this.

    No. This happened because he trusted a shifty Jewish lawyer, who felt jilted that Trump didn’t make him AG or bring him along to DC and so stabbed him in the back.

    Trump’s Achilles’ heel has been – always – personnel. And personnel is policy.

    •�Agree: Mr. Anon
  150. @Steve Sailer
    @Dave Pinsen

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But ... nada.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Anonymous, @Mike Tre, @Dave Pinsen, @Corvinus

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But … nada.

    Ah, probably because that also involved a lot of Democrats? Trump used to be one, as you well know.

    •�Replies: @kaganovitch
    @Twinkie


    Ah, probably because that also involved a lot of Democrats? Trump used to be one, as you well know.
    Nah, they would have gladly burned at the stake any incidental Dems scooped up in such an inquiry if only they could take down Trump.
  151. Anonymous[310] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Steve Sailer
    @Dave Pinsen

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But ... nada.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Anonymous, @Mike Tre, @Dave Pinsen, @Corvinus

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But … nada.

    So what does that tell you?

  152. @Twinkie
    @Steve Sailer


    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But … nada.
    Ah, probably because that also involved a lot of Democrats? Trump used to be one, as you well know.

    Replies: @kaganovitch

    Ah, probably because that also involved a lot of Democrats? Trump used to be one, as you well know.

    Nah, they would have gladly burned at the stake any incidental Dems scooped up in such an inquiry if only they could take down Trump.

  153. Anonymous[310] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Anon
    It will be overturned on appeal.

    1) Paying a whore to keep her mouth shut isn't illegal under New York law.

    2) Altering business records to hide something was a misdemeanor until recently under New York law, with a statute of limitations of 2 years. Any chance to try Trump under this particular law already expired before this trial.

    3) New York changed the law so that altering business records is now a felony, and then retroactively applied this new law to Trump. This is an ex post facto law, which is illegal, and it's being used to go after a political enemy.

    The Supreme Court will bitch slap it down. They have a conservative majority, and they know the conviction is nonsense, and they know at this point they have a duty to end this crap before the election because the consequences would be dire for the welfare of the country if they don't. They have a duty to protect the functioning of the basic normal political process of our country.

    Replies: @res, @Anonymous

    2) Altering business records to hide something was a misdemeanor until recently under New York law, with a statute of limitations of 2 years.

    Can you provide us with some evidence that both these claims are true?

    •�Replies: @Ben tillman
    @Anonymous

    Are you serious? After all this time you're asking this question? Penal Code 175.05.

    Replies: @Anonymous
  154. Whaddaya think?

    I think you had better turn your dollars into durable goods (including guns and ammo) because this is 1860 schon wieder.

  155. @Jack D
    @Anon7

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    Replies: @R.G. Camara, @Anon7, @Paleo Liberal, @epebble, @Johann Ricke

    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.

    What I’d like to see is whether a Trump administration would sic the DOJ on the people who have persecuted him, and how it goes about doing so. It’s also not unreasonable to surmise that state and local prosecutors in deep red states are looking to see if they can go after prominent Democrat bigwigs, and how high they can go.

    •�Replies: @Almost Missouri
    @Johann Ricke


    It’s also not unreasonable to surmise that state and local prosecutors in deep red states are looking to see if they can go after prominent Democrat bigwigs, and how high they can go.
    Is it? This hardly ever happens while the reverse is very common, so I see no reason to expect it suddenly to start.

    The only instance I can recall of a kinda sorta red-on-blue possibly politically-motivated prosecution is Ken Starr-on-Bill Clinton, and perjury is an actual crime unlike the vague and murky campaign finance laws or whatever.
  156. @Anonymous
    @Anon


    2) Altering business records to hide something was a misdemeanor until recently under New York law, with a statute of limitations of 2 years.
    Can you provide us with some evidence that both these claims are true?

    Replies: @Ben tillman

    Are you serious? After all this time you’re asking this question? Penal Code 175.05.

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Ben tillman

    That code section appears to contain only a second degree offense that is a misdemeanor. Is there a first degree offense that is a felony?

    The OP indicates both the offense and the statute of limitations were changed to charge Trump. Where is the evidence that either were changed ever?

    Replies: @ben tillman
  157. @Paleo Liberal
    @Jack D

    True.

    Worse for Trump — the upcoming trial in Atlanta is not only a state crime, thus non pardonable by presidents, but one of the specific charges has a mandatory sentence of five years and the governor cannot legally pardon anyone before the term is served.

    Replies: @Ben tillman

    Please. That case will never go to trial. All the prosecutors will be imprisoned/disbarred before that can happen, and at some point a normal person will stand in and stop it.

  158. Anonymous[216] •�Disclaimer says:
    @nebulafox
    Two ironic notes:

    1) Trump’s dual reputation for what Ben Franklin delicately called “intrigues with low women” and for petty corruption goes back to the 1970s. It was not unknown to the American voter, nor to his wife and children. People were not going to not vote for him over that. The American public has more dire concerns than they used to have. Like whether the President is mentally competent to handle nuclear weapons.

    So this whole mess was… unnecessary. To say the least.

    2) Biden has thrown the iron dice. He has to stay in office now at all costs, or he will immediately have corruption charges thrown at him the moment he leaves the White House.

    Could this be the beginning of the end for the farcical system of intricate blackmail that characterizes the reality TV show that is American politics? I sure hope so! Being the age of the Internet, it’s like we have a massive arsenal of hydrogen bombs to cleanse everything in a MAD inferno and allow a poetic fresh start. Hell, it would be so awesome if too many of us labouring under this example stopped living this way, in fear, debt peons or lie peons or whatever have you! Wouldn’t it be great if we stopped talking constantly about empathy in favor of doing it and bonding together for the tough times to come? I suppose I’d better start and set an example then, then. Will I have the balls?

    Find out next week on… LIFE!

    Replies: @Anonymous, @EdwardM

    1) Trump’s dual reputation for what Ben Franklin delicately called “intrigues with low women” and for petty corruption goes back to the 1970s.

    Trump never had a reputation for either of those things.

  159. Anonymous[216] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Francis Miville
    Anyway if Netanyahu rather likes Trump and it is the case indeed, Trump will win. Netanyahu is also a jailbird by the way. The American people is so corrupt that they will choose Trump in the same way the Black community backed OJ Simpson. Everything Trump does to look like a felon of the lowest order will help him.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Anon

    The American people is so corrupt that they will choose Trump in the same way the Black community backed OJ Simpson.

    What is corrupt about voting for Trump?

  160. @R.G. Camara
    @Jack D

    Trump's also under federal heat, chumly, you two-faced lying Mossad Fed troll. A pardon by Biden, played up as his being a gentleman, would be pushed as his gift to a divided country. All the while pointing out Trump was still a convicted criminal.

    But you already knew that.

    Go back to celebrating with your comrades, you disgusting traitorous pig.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @Renard

    I’m impressed! I’ve seen paying contributors permanently silenced for less than half of what you just spewed! What’s your secret?

  161. Anonymous[225] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Ben tillman
    @Anonymous

    Are you serious? After all this time you're asking this question? Penal Code 175.05.

    Replies: @Anonymous

    That code section appears to contain only a second degree offense that is a misdemeanor. Is there a first degree offense that is a felony?

    The OP indicates both the offense and the statute of limitations were changed to charge Trump. Where is the evidence that either were changed ever?

    •�Replies: @ben tillman
    @Anonymous

    Yes. 175-10.
  162. @Barnard
    People on the right seem confident of the verdict getting overturned on appeal because of the kangaroo court trail. I would be surprised if that happens. The regime has moved on to open lawfare. Biden's speech on proudly ignoring the Supreme Court ruling his student loan forgiveness scheme was unconstitutional is a great example. We should anticipate an absurd sentence for Trump too, something like 120 years in Rikers.

    Replies: @Master CPL Savage

    Rikers? Lol

    If they are successful, I think they’ll try to stick it to him good & hard & try to send him to Guantamo Bay 🫤

    Whole retched affair is/was a an unmitigated, appalling sham.

  163. What do I think ?

    When Lawfare is used to attack a candidate favored by ~50% of the population…..

    Civil War is on its way

  164. @Anonymous
    @John Johnson


    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.
    If history is an any guide, a boring moderate will not be a meaningful change from Biden.

    Mass immigration will continue unabated (“legal” or “illegal”). The United States will continue to destroy lives in the Middle East in service to the Zionists. United States will continue to fund the destruction of the Ukraine.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @John Johnson

    White Americans must at all costs continue to be denied any political voice whatsoever in the future of the country which they, and they alone, built. The project of white elimination and replacement MUST continue, precisely on (((schedule))), exactly as planned.

    The ironic thing is, the J-Left has gone all out in its embarrassing efforts to destroy its imagined nemesis, except forgetting the part that Donald Trump never did a single useful thing for White America while in office, and was and is effectively fully complicit in Project Crush Whitey for all practical intents and purposes. The J-Left never really had anything to worry about to begin with.

    The ZUSG death-to-whites juggernaut is pretty much impossible to halt, as currently constituted, no matter who’s in the White House. Elections will continue to be worse than meaningless: viz both meaningless and deceptive. You’re gonna need some serious Lexington and Concord to end this properly.

    America 7/4/1776 – 5/30/2024

  165. HA says:
    @Rusty Tailgate
    He's not only been convicted, he's going to do time. Maybe house arrest, but he will not be out campaigning. I warned people of this when he became the nominee. There is no way they would have let him take office again. It isn't going to matter what this does to his poll numbers. If they go up, he'll be convicted of something worse, like rape or manslaughter. Enjoy President Kamala Harris and Vice President Karine Jean-Pierre. We could have had Ron DeSantis, but no, he wears risers in his shoes.

    Replies: @TWS, @HA

    “He’s not only been convicted, he’s going to do time. Maybe house arrest, …”

    Legal experts say Trump’s conviction is unlikely to lead to a prison sentence

    Lauren-Brooke Eisen, a senior director at the nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice,[stated] that it’s “very unlikely for someone who has never been convicted of a crime to go to prison … for their first offense, which is nonviolent.”

    Georgetown University law professor and attorney Paul Butler, a former federal prosecutor and expert on criminal law, also told NPR, on Thursday evening, that Trump is unlikely to get prison time…

    Note that Jared’s father was not only convicted for “redirecting” other people’s money into Democrat campaigns, but also with witness tampering afterwards. I.e. not a “first-time” offender by the time he got sent away for 2 years. (I wouldn’t completely rule out Trump doing time at some point, but they’ll likely need to nail him for something else.)

  166. @Hypnotoad666
    @pyrrhus


    there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…
    100%. Merchan is an anti-Trump partisan hack, yet (precisely for that reason) he managed to catch three anti-Trump cases. The odds of this happening by random chance are like 10,000 to 1. He sent the CEO of Trump enterprises to jail for for not declaring his parking spot as taxable income. Good God. Can you imagine if that standard were applied to other CEOs?

    If Trump gets elected from jail he absolutely must turn the DOJ into a scorched earth tool of retribution. It's a target rich environment of REAL crimes out there with all the Clinton Foundation graft, Zuckerberg election finance violations, and CIA treason by Brennan and his ilk. Heck bring a RICO case against the New York Times for all the classified material they publish daily. The precedent is set. No one can blame him.

    Replies: @Dr. X, @Master CPL Savage, @AceDeuce

    Agree. Thank you.

  167. @Francis Miville
    Anyway if Netanyahu rather likes Trump and it is the case indeed, Trump will win. Netanyahu is also a jailbird by the way. The American people is so corrupt that they will choose Trump in the same way the Black community backed OJ Simpson. Everything Trump does to look like a felon of the lowest order will help him.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Anon

    Here, have a banana.

  168. @vinteuil
    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they're so thirsty for his blood, they'll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    Replies: @JimDandy, @James N. Kennett, @George, @Twinkie, @HA, @Hannah Katz, @Pythas

    “These people are completely nuts.”

    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    •�LOL: epebble
    •�Replies: @Cloudbuster
    @HA

    Troll.

    Replies: @HA
    , @PeterIke
    @HA


    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    Show me where they burned down some buildings and attacked police cars. I'll wait.

    Oh by the way, I don't read Steve that much anymore. Have you ever admitted you were wrong about every single aspect of Covid? Probably not.

    Replies: @HA
    , @Richard B
    @HA

    These guys are so obviously fake Trump supporters. They put together videos like this exactly so trolls like you can post it. In fact, you're probably the guy in the video.

    Granted, Trump supporters are crazy for supporting him at all. But that's another story.
  169. The world is watching you America and you aren’t looking good.

    We thought you were better than imprisoning your Leader of the Opposition! What’s next? A ‘suicide’ in his cell?

    •�Replies: @anon
    @Gordo


    The world is watching you America and you aren’t looking good.

    We thought you were better than imprisoning your Leader of the Opposition!
    You are surprised? We have been providing weapons and political cover to the Zionist butchers to commit their atrocities.
  170. Anonymous[156] •�Disclaimer says:

    Donald Trump
    Fell to earth with a thump
    He (allegedly) f*cked a whore
    So, we will see him no more.

  171. @Dave Pinsen
    https://twitter.com/dpinsen/status/1796296708596621465?s=46&t=_KWVuhP3oxRCTCdNl94gBw

    Replies: @Master CPL Savage

    LOL!!! Thanks!

    •�Thanks: Dave Pinsen
  172. Anonymous[156] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Twinkie
    @AnotherDad


    There is a practical lesson in there somewhere. I guess I haven’t enjoyed the variety Trump has, but enjoying the same woman for 40 years has kept my life … simpler.
    Hear, hear. I've always maintained that clean living pays off, sooner or later.

    That said, I've also said repeatedly that Trump is a John the Baptist-like figure (Audacious Epigone would call him a figure akin to the Gracchi Brothers). They all died badly.

    But he extended the Overton window and showed that nationalist populism can win the presidency. That genie is not going to be put back in the bottle no matter how much the Establishment tries to suppress it with all means, legal or otherwise.

    My hope is that whatever happens in November 2024 (I personally hope he wins by even a bigger margin as a giant FU to all these bullshit anti-democratic* machinations), he will have paved the way for a nationalist-populist figure who is more personally attractive (I don't mean looks, but rather someone who has his personal life together and has lived cleanly with an appealing, wholesome family worthy of admiration and emulation). It's either such a figure leading a majoritarian/normie restoration or likely further polarization between elites pushing fringe-y policies and alienating normal people and leading to a far greater likelihood of civil strife (in which case, an American Franco is the next best hope).

    Just like the Democrats/leftists are the real racists, they are the real anti-democrats.

    Replies: @Anonymous

    Ted Heath was the Prime Minister of the UK from 1970 to 1974.

    A period of tumult in British politics, but distinguished by some rather great pop music and similar cultural exports, anyhow, Heath reigned like a Sun-King over this key, pivotal period in post war UK history, a glam rock, technicolor helter skelter ride of strikes, power cuts, sporadic acts of terrorism, the highest rates of economic growth ever seen in the UK, accompanied by Ziggy Stardust howling down the extra terrestrial gods. A truly odd time well remembered by anyone old enough.

    Whatever might be said about Ted Heath, Heath was a lifelong committed bachelor who had absolutely no time for women in any way shape or form, and subliminated every ounce of energy into national service.

    What is need is a cadre of Ted Heaths in leadership. Perhaps we might get decent pop music back as a side product.

    •�Replies: @G. Poulin
    @Anonymous

    Would this be the same Mr. Heath mentioned in the line "Ah-ah, Mr. Wilson. Ah-ah, Mr. Heath"? And are we sure that he didn't sublimate some of his energy into something other than national service?
    , @YetAnotherAnon
    @Anonymous

    Heath unpersoned Enoch Powell for his anti-immigration speech, and took Britain into the EU with no mandate to do so.

    The Conservatives had promised at the 1970 general election in relation to the Common Market. "Our sole commitment is to negotiate; no more, no less".

    When Heath signed an accession treaty before Parliament had even debated the issue, the second reading of the Bill to put the Treaty into law was passed by just eight votes on second reading, and it became clear that the British people would have no further say in the matter, Powell declared his hostility to his party's line.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enoch_Powell#Departure_from_the_Conservative_Party
    , @Anonymous
    @Anonymous

    People don't want to be governed by monkish philosopher-kings.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
  173. I think that Trump’s conviction goes a long way to undermining the idea of the “loyal opposition.” Part of the reason that the opposition remains loyal is that the government treats them with some measure of respect, even if, as I think Speaker of the House Joe Cannon once said, that the rights of the minority party in Congress were limited to voting and collecting their pay. I don’t think Joe Cannon would have ever conceived of putting the leader of the minority (out of power) party in jail.

  174. @Luke Lea
    @Hypnotoad666

    Right. You should vote for Trump as a matter of principle. It's not even about him anymore.

    Replies: @Etruscan Film Star

    You should vote for Trump as a matter of principle. It’s not even about him anymore.

    Yes. I’m lukewarm about The Donald for many reasons, especially his loyalty to Israel. But this obscene trial and verdict so resembles what we expect in a totalitarian state that it must be challenged in every possible way, even if for many of us casting a ballot is our sole resource.

    •�Agree: Gordo
  175. @Gordo
    The world is watching you America and you aren’t looking good.

    We thought you were better than imprisoning your Leader of the Opposition! What’s next? A ‘suicide’ in his cell?

    Replies: @anon

    The world is watching you America and you aren’t looking good.

    We thought you were better than imprisoning your Leader of the Opposition!

    You are surprised? We have been providing weapons and political cover to the Zionist butchers to commit their atrocities.

    •�Thanks: YetAnotherAnon, Gordo
  176. @Johann Ricke
    @Jack D


    The President can only pardon Federal crimes.
    What I'd like to see is whether a Trump administration would sic the DOJ on the people who have persecuted him, and how it goes about doing so. It's also not unreasonable to surmise that state and local prosecutors in deep red states are looking to see if they can go after prominent Democrat bigwigs, and how high they can go.

    Replies: @Almost Missouri

    It’s also not unreasonable to surmise that state and local prosecutors in deep red states are looking to see if they can go after prominent Democrat bigwigs, and how high they can go.

    Is it? This hardly ever happens while the reverse is very common, so I see no reason to expect it suddenly to start.

    The only instance I can recall of a kinda sorta red-on-blue possibly politically-motivated prosecution is Ken Starr-on-Bill Clinton, and perjury is an actual crime unlike the vague and murky campaign finance laws or whatever.

  177. Thoughts here about the trump-trial and separation of powers – – –

  178. @Jay Fink
    @Father Coughlin

    France isn't a third world country and their people are quick to hit the streets when angered. Then again they aren't fat and happy, at least not fat.

    Replies: @Almost Missouri

    France isn’t a third world country and their people are quick to hit the streets when angered.

    And what has it gotten them?

    Besides thoughtcrime laws, rule by Rothschilds, and endless hostile invaders whom they are not allowed to count, I mean?

  179. @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @Dieter Kief

    Life is full of strangenesses (Goethe: “Das Leben stickt voller Merkwürdigkeiten.”)

    "Life is filled with holes." -- Patti Smith

    Earlier this evening, I broke my ankle: I was walking down the street when this gigantic flash-flood of Democrat jizz came swirling down the street, directly at me. I had to dive through a store window to avoid being drowned in a tidal wave of swirling leftard semen.

    Pretty sure I saw Tiny Duck riding on top of the wave, holding a giant spoon.

    So, happy first annual Founding of the New Banana Republic Day. Lexington and Concord was the "conviction" of Derek Chauvin, but henceforth, 5/30 will forevermore be Banana Republic Day.

    Instead of fireworks, we'll rattle coffee cups at Chinese tourists and landlords, and beg for spare change.

    Replies: @Dieter Kief

    So, happy first annual Founding of the New Banana Republic Day. Lexington and Concord was the “conviction” of Derek Chauvin, but henceforth, 5/30 will forevermore be Banana Republic Day.

    Instead of fireworks, we’ll rattle coffee cups at Chinese tourists and landlords, and beg for spare change.

    Hopefully not the whole story. But for sure a part of it.

    (your – visio maladetta – – – thx. for posting it!)

  180. @HA
    @vinteuil

    "These people are completely nuts."

    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    https://youtu.be/Kml6WRiXQ2M

    Replies: @Cloudbuster, @PeterIke, @Richard B

    Troll.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @Cloudbuster

    "Troll."

    You prefer one of these?

    Now that it has been pointed out to me, why yes, the obvious parallels between Trump'c current predicament and the Gospels are clear ndeed. He that hath ears, let him hear.

    For verily I say unto thee, if thou hast a comely daughter, whose hair is yellow and thin, see to it that your chosen harlot be like unto her in appearance, telling her so that she may rejoiceth therefore.

    But beware, beware -- if thine advocate concealeth the shekels paid unto her, verify that he concealeth rightly and ket not his left hand know what his right hand doeth. For woe be unto thee if his works are revealed unto the feds, if thou catchest my drift.

    Replies: @vinteuil, @Mark G.
  181. What goes around comes around.

    Megyn Kelly Warns Donald Trump’s Conviction Opens ‘Pandora’s Box’ for Bidens, Obama, and Clintons

    https://www.inquisitr.com/megyn-kelly-warns-donald-trumps-conviction-opens-pandoras-box-for-bidens-obama-and-clintons

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @trevor

    Megyn, like Tucker. are trying to keep themselves relevant when they are both past their prime. The fact of the matter is Trump surrounds himself with patently shady characters. The testimony of Cohen, who was personally chosen and entrusted by Trump to fix things, was the death blow. No, let radical Republicans bring forth charges toward any and all Democrats. I look forward to it. They better have evidence and a person who knows where the bodies are buried.

    Replies: @Hail, @Prester John, @Curle
    , @Etruscan Film Star
    @trevor

    I'd vote for Megyn Kelly if she ran for president. Seriously.

    Back in the day, when she was on Fox News, I read about her far more often than I actually watched her on the telly (almost never). The hard line on Megyn was that she was the standard void-headed bimbo that news show producers install to decorate the screen. With little to go on but negative criticism of the lady, I didn't expect she was worth spending time on.

    Maybe she's grown in intellectual stature since then. Anyway I've been impressed by her recently. She comes across as, if I dare say so, sharp witted. I don't know if Megyn writes her own scripts or someone else does, but -- by the debased standards of mainstream commentary -- they are first class. More: her delivery is striking, pitch-perfect even when she seems to be detouring spontaneously. Has she taken acting lessons?

    And of course she's easy on the eyes, perhaps in a more mature way than heretofore.

    Insofar as time allows, I will go out of my way to watch Megyn's program.
    , @Etruscan Film Star
    @trevor

    Re-posted because my original comment is lost in the deep space of moderation while others with a later time stamp are published:

    I’d vote for Megyn Kelly if she ran for president. Seriously.

    Back in the day, when she was on Fox News, I read about her far more often than I actually watched her on the telly (almost never). The hard line on Megyn was that she was the standard void-headed bimbo that news show producers install to decorate the screen. With little to go on but negative criticism of the lady, I didn’t expect she was worth spending time on.

    Maybe she’s grown in intellectual stature since then. Anyway I’ve been impressed by her recently. She comes across as, if I dare say so, sharp witted. I don’t know if Megyn writes her own scripts or someone else does, but — by the debased standards of mainstream commentary — they are first class. More: her delivery is striking, pitch-perfect even when she seems to be detouring spontaneously. Has she taken acting lessons?

    And of course she’s easy on the eyes, perhaps in a more mature way than heretofore.

    Insofar as time allows, I will go out of my way to watch Megyn’s program.
  182. @Hypnotoad666
    @Dieter Kief


    I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something.
    That's a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it's literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it's become pretty clear he doesn't stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Sam Haysom, @Anonymous, @Dieter Kief, @New Dealer

    But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things.

    Steve’s a free man. And he clearly expressed the thought quite often, that he is no activist. – He is – these are my words: An analyst. He is not in the business of changing things actively – in other words: He is not directly involved in politics.

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910
  183. @Ebony Obelisk
    Democracy won

    The rule of law won

    The People won

    It’s over. You guys lost. Get over it.

    Downright appalling how many Republicans had a “this is an affront to the rule of law” statement teed up.

    They are disgusting and dead wrong: this IS the rule of law. This is as American as it gets. The Founders would be proud of our system today, regardless of the verdict.

    Replies: @Evan Drince

    N

  184. @Anonymous
    @Twinkie

    Ted Heath was the Prime Minister of the UK from 1970 to 1974.

    A period of tumult in British politics, but distinguished by some rather great pop music and similar cultural exports, anyhow, Heath reigned like a Sun-King over this key, pivotal period in post war UK history, a glam rock, technicolor helter skelter ride of strikes, power cuts, sporadic acts of terrorism, the highest rates of economic growth ever seen in the UK, accompanied by Ziggy Stardust howling down the extra terrestrial gods. A truly odd time well remembered by anyone old enough.

    Whatever might be said about Ted Heath, Heath was a lifelong committed bachelor who had absolutely no time for women in any way shape or form, and subliminated every ounce of energy into national service.

    What is need is a cadre of Ted Heaths in leadership. Perhaps we might get decent pop music back as a side product.

    Replies: @G. Poulin, @YetAnotherAnon, @Anonymous

    Would this be the same Mr. Heath mentioned in the line “Ah-ah, Mr. Wilson. Ah-ah, Mr. Heath”? And are we sure that he didn’t sublimate some of his energy into something other than national service?

  185. @Corvinus
    @Hypnotoad666

    “Anybody who stays silent is just as bad — I’m looking at you, Steve.”

    Come on now. You had to know that Mr. Sailer on such matters is passive-aggressive and has to remain silent to protect his brand.

    “Because of this, anybody who doesn’t vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.”

    You are a coward like Mr. Sailer. Just say what you truly mean—anyone who does not support Trump is an enemy who ought to be hung or shot or deported. I mean, those people are the personification of pure evil, right? “Your” nation is under direct attack, correct? So the gloves must come off…

    Replies: @Whitey Whiteman III

    Calm down, lady. You’re hysterical.

  186. @vinteuil
    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they're so thirsty for his blood, they'll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    Replies: @JimDandy, @James N. Kennett, @George, @Twinkie, @HA, @Hannah Katz, @Pythas

    Looks like Biden is adopting the Nicaragua strategy. Their “President-for-life” Daniel Ortega regularly has his political opponents jailed, especially those with the gall to run against him for President. Note his VP is his wife. At least “Plugs” has not gone that far. Yet.

  187. @trevor
    What goes around comes around.

    Megyn Kelly Warns Donald Trump's Conviction Opens 'Pandora's Box' for Bidens, Obama, and Clintons
    https://www.inquisitr.com/megyn-kelly-warns-donald-trumps-conviction-opens-pandoras-box-for-bidens-obama-and-clintons

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Etruscan Film Star, @Etruscan Film Star

    Megyn, like Tucker. are trying to keep themselves relevant when they are both past their prime. The fact of the matter is Trump surrounds himself with patently shady characters. The testimony of Cohen, who was personally chosen and entrusted by Trump to fix things, was the death blow. No, let radical Republicans bring forth charges toward any and all Democrats. I look forward to it. They better have evidence and a person who knows where the bodies are buried.

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @Corvinus

    Hello, Professor Corvinus:
    Your view on Tucker Carlson's interest in UFOs?
    Is it to "keep himself relevant"?
    , @Prester John
    @Corvinus

    " No, let radical Republicans bring forth charges toward any and all Democrats."

    They've been trying that for 60+ years and for their efforts have seen one president forced to resign from office and a former president on the brink of being tossed into the hoosegow--Republicans both of them. How ironic is that!
    , @Curle
    @Corvinus


    Trump surrounds himself with patently shady characters
    I hear Trump even met Hunter Biden once. Probably not true. Trump wouldn’t lower himself to that level of shady or would he?
  188. When I saw that photo of the judge who goes after Trump, Judge Engoron at https://nitter.poast.org/MarkTay60038140/status/1796478909778952490#m is it my imagination or his face reminds me of Jimmy Saville?

    Btw, some said a precedent was set, but I guess they won’t be so much in an hurry to go after Dubya, Bill Clinton, Obama. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @Hrw-500

    Let's not forget Hillary.
  189. @Steve Sailer
    @Dave Pinsen

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But ... nada.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Anonymous, @Mike Tre, @Dave Pinsen, @Corvinus

    Him being second generation developer, I find it hard to believe he would have allowed himself to be even remotely connected to any of the shady practices that go on in construction. He has people who have people who have people that handle that stuff and I doubt his name would have ever even been mentioned.

    Further, dredging up some scandal from 30 years ago might require bringing up the names of a lot of investors, politicians and other business people who were involved as well.

    •�Agree: Not Raul
  190. @Anonymous
    @Twinkie

    Ted Heath was the Prime Minister of the UK from 1970 to 1974.

    A period of tumult in British politics, but distinguished by some rather great pop music and similar cultural exports, anyhow, Heath reigned like a Sun-King over this key, pivotal period in post war UK history, a glam rock, technicolor helter skelter ride of strikes, power cuts, sporadic acts of terrorism, the highest rates of economic growth ever seen in the UK, accompanied by Ziggy Stardust howling down the extra terrestrial gods. A truly odd time well remembered by anyone old enough.

    Whatever might be said about Ted Heath, Heath was a lifelong committed bachelor who had absolutely no time for women in any way shape or form, and subliminated every ounce of energy into national service.

    What is need is a cadre of Ted Heaths in leadership. Perhaps we might get decent pop music back as a side product.

    Replies: @G. Poulin, @YetAnotherAnon, @Anonymous

    Heath unpersoned Enoch Powell for his anti-immigration speech, and took Britain into the EU with no mandate to do so.

    The Conservatives had promised at the 1970 general election in relation to the Common Market. “Our sole commitment is to negotiate; no more, no less”.

    When Heath signed an accession treaty before Parliament had even debated the issue, the second reading of the Bill to put the Treaty into law was passed by just eight votes on second reading, and it became clear that the British people would have no further say in the matter, Powell declared his hostility to his party’s line.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enoch_Powell#Departure_from_the_Conservative_Party

  191. @Tony
    @Buzz Mohawk

    #4. So you want this country to decline into a 3rd world cesspool. At least Trump could temporarily slow that down.

    Replies: @Buzz Mohawk, @Prester John

    At least Trump could temporarily slow that down.

    He got my vote and he had four years to do something. He fucked it up so bad I wonder if he even cared about delivering what he was selling. The guy is a fast-talking phony — and an awful, awfully stupid manager.

    There is not going to be any slowing it down. We’re screwed. Be prepared, Boy Scout.

    •�Replies: @Tony
    @Buzz Mohawk

    You crazy. Trump is a 1,000 times better than the dickhead in the Whitehouse now. Trump did the best he could going up against congress and most of Washington. Hey Jimmy Carter is still alive. Maybe you'd like to see him back in the White House.
  192. Anonymous[354] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Anonymous
    @Twinkie

    Ted Heath was the Prime Minister of the UK from 1970 to 1974.

    A period of tumult in British politics, but distinguished by some rather great pop music and similar cultural exports, anyhow, Heath reigned like a Sun-King over this key, pivotal period in post war UK history, a glam rock, technicolor helter skelter ride of strikes, power cuts, sporadic acts of terrorism, the highest rates of economic growth ever seen in the UK, accompanied by Ziggy Stardust howling down the extra terrestrial gods. A truly odd time well remembered by anyone old enough.

    Whatever might be said about Ted Heath, Heath was a lifelong committed bachelor who had absolutely no time for women in any way shape or form, and subliminated every ounce of energy into national service.

    What is need is a cadre of Ted Heaths in leadership. Perhaps we might get decent pop music back as a side product.

    Replies: @G. Poulin, @YetAnotherAnon, @Anonymous

    People don’t want to be governed by monkish philosopher-kings.

    •�Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @Anonymous

    "People don’t want to be governed by monkish philosopher-kings."

    You're right. In reality, people want to be ruled by... well, me. ;-)
  193. The Onion headline writes itself.

    “Trump declared guilty… of something we don’t know what it is either.”

    In fact it’s amazing that CNN has been breathless for weeks reporting on something neither they nor their viewers ever understood.

    •�Replies: @res
    @Altai4

    As if The Onion will engage with this. Here is the Onion on Trump's trials. What do you think?
    https://www.theonion.com/trump-organization-found-guilty-on-all-counts-of-tax-fr-1849872152
    https://www.theonion.com/trump-found-liable-for-sexual-abuse-defemation-1850425845
    https://www.theonion.com/trump-s-criminal-trial-in-manhattan-begins-1851414157

    Plus this.
    https://www.theonion.com/the-president-has-fallen-what-to-know-about-trump-s-po-1850258361

    The bravery. I am swooning. I'm not sure which is more impressive. The bravery or the humor.

    The Baylon Bee is at least engaging.
    https://babylonbee.com/news/judge-warns-trump-criminal-trial-may-last-until-say-november-6
    https://babylonbee.com/news/biden-administration-stations-circus-clowns-jugglers-lion-tamers-outside-trump-trial
  194. OT, and surprised you haven’t already posted about this.

    Bonfire of the Golf Ball Tees in Louisville.

    •�Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    @countenance

    You can't even get Steve to post about the PGA-LIV gazillion dollar hijinks, much less some hothead cop in Louisville. Or the NIL/transfer portal Great Leap Forward in Division 1.
  195. Peripity, wait for the next turn, Greek drama.

    •�Thanks: Thea
  196. @John Johnson
    @Harry Baldwin

    Agree. “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime make up a crime.”

    I think 34 felonies is politically motivated but he is hosed in the documents case.

    You can't play stupid if you asked two employees to help you hide evidence.

    Trump is the worst enemy of Trump and not the MSM.

    All he had to do was give back the documents when they asked for them.

    He is a classic silver spoon brat that thinks the rules don't apply to him.

    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @GeneralRipper

    Here’s a little gift from all us “virus deniers”, Johnboy…lol

    Feel good story of the month.

    BTW, I sure hope your supposed wife and kids are all vaxxed up and boosted.

  197. As ol’ Ben Fruitlin said “A banana Republic, if you can keep it”.

    •�Replies: @Jim Don Bob
    @dearieme

    Mark Steyn is on fire today: https://www.steynonline.com/14343/a-republic-you-can-keep-it

    Replies: @Hail
  198. @Tony
    @Buzz Mohawk

    #4. So you want this country to decline into a 3rd world cesspool. At least Trump could temporarily slow that down.

    Replies: @Buzz Mohawk, @Prester John

    Presidents–indeed no one–can control the direction of history. Anyone who thinks so engages in wishful thinking. “Events have a dynamic of their own” is a tried-and-true axiom.

  199. Hail says: •�Website

    The anti-Sailer critic Will Stancil, today, on the Trump “non-crime felony conviction” of May 30, 2024:

    I think there’s a powerful urge among liberals to immediately step back and engage in meta commentary here: “How will voters react?”

    That’s useless, resist the instinct. Give YOUR sincere reaction.

    Mine: He’s a felon, it’s an embarrassment he’s running, and he should step down.

    [Trump] is a convicted felon, he faces massive future legal jeopardy, it’s completely inappropriate for a man like him to run for president of the United States

    [MORE]

    •�Replies: @nebulafox
    @Hail

    "And Biden is too senile to be one."
    , @scrivener3
    @Hail

    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.

    Replies: @trevor, @ChrisZ, @AceDeuce
  200. @ScarletNumber
    I have never seen the verb "declared" used in this context.

    Replies: @ChrisZ

    Good observation Scarlet. “Declared” in the headline—instead of “found” or “judged”—jumped out at me, too.

    Certainly it was deliberate, and I suppose it represents Steve’s editorial comment on the result.

    Maybe overly subtle, judging from some of the comments.

    •�Thanks: ScarletNumber
  201. @Corvinus
    @trevor

    Megyn, like Tucker. are trying to keep themselves relevant when they are both past their prime. The fact of the matter is Trump surrounds himself with patently shady characters. The testimony of Cohen, who was personally chosen and entrusted by Trump to fix things, was the death blow. No, let radical Republicans bring forth charges toward any and all Democrats. I look forward to it. They better have evidence and a person who knows where the bodies are buried.

    Replies: @Hail, @Prester John, @Curle

    Hello, Professor Corvinus:
    Your view on Tucker Carlson’s interest in UFOs?
    Is it to “keep himself relevant”?

  202. @Hail
    The anti-Sailer critic Will Stancil, today, on the Trump "non-crime felony conviction" of May 30, 2024:

    I think there's a powerful urge among liberals to immediately step back and engage in meta commentary here: "How will voters react?"

    That's useless, resist the instinct. Give YOUR sincere reaction.

    Mine: He's a felon, it's an embarrassment he's running, and he should step down.

    [Trump] is a convicted felon, he faces massive future legal jeopardy, it's completely inappropriate for a man like him to run for president of the United States

    https://twitter.com/whstancil/status/1796306798036607009

    Replies: @nebulafox, @scrivener3

    “And Biden is too senile to be one.”

  203. So… am I gonna have to be the first to make the rather obvious “Orange Jumpsuit Man Bad” joke?

  204. Hail says: •�Website
    @Dieter Kief
    @Hypnotoad666


    But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things.
    Steve's a free man. And he clearly expressed the thought quite often, that he is no activist. - He is - these are my words: An analyst. He is not in the business of changing things actively - in other words: He is not directly involved in politics.

    Replies: @Hail

    Steve Sailer…is not directly involved in politics

    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game — hence “The Sailer Strategy.” (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It’s funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This “secession” or “partition” question is one I’ve never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    •�Replies: @silviosilver
    @Hail


    and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.
    I don't know if he considers it crazy or evil, but I'm quite certain he considers it scary.
    , @OilcanFloyd
    @Hail


    It’s funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy....
    There was never a need for a Sailer-Strategy in the past, since Whites have long voted for their own interests, which is why immigration is used as a tool by anti-Whites. What is needed is a strategy to force the representatives that Whites elect to serve the interests of the Whites who elected them in the first place. Trump didn't do a damn thing for the people who voted for him, and he is just one in a long line of politicians who abandoned his mostly White base once elected.
    , @Hail
    @Hail


    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness
    https://dennisdale.com/2024/05/26/noticing-and-nothingness/
    And my response:

    "Dennis Dale on Steve Sailer: the perils of success" (May 31, 2024).

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    , @Anon
    @Hail

    I read your article and Dennis Dale's. Neither makes any mention of abortion. That's the real issue here, not (lol) COVID lockdowns. The Sailer strategy was about appealing to the white working class in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The problem is that the white working class in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin are not on board with the Bible Belt anti-abortion agenda. This wasn't as big of an issue in 2016 because the Supreme Court assured that people could vote for "pro-life" candidates knowing they couldn't actually prohibit abortion. That is no longer the case.

    So what do you do? You could moderate your position on abortion to expand your appeal. Or you could double down on calling people murderers, hoping to shame them into changing their minds. The latter strategy hasn't worked for the past fifty years, but no doubt will start working this year. /sarc
    , @Dieter Kief
    @Hail

    I differentite between

    a)being active in politics and

    b) writing analyses that can be used in politics

    And I did so in response to Hypnotoad's posts above - No. 37 and 53 - in which he seems to ignore this differentiation.
    , @Reg Cæsar
    @Hail


    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant.
    How'd that work for Kevin Phillips? The "proto-Steve".
    , @MEH 0910
    @Hail


    And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This “secession” or “partition” question is one I’ve never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory.
    Chronicles Magazine:
    https://chroniclesmagazine.org/view/the-hate-that-dare-not-speak-its-name/
    https://archive.ph/11W9l

    The Hate That Dare Not Speak Its Name
    BY STEVE SAILER
    MAY 2024
    [...]
    This lack of coherent pushback against anti-white racism encourages the left to keep it up. Meanwhile, the few rightists who do see what’s going on are driven to desperate, despairing recommendations, such as calling for the breaking up the United States on the assumption that nothing else can prevent genocide.
    [...]
    So, do demands for diversity inclusion, and equity spell DIE for whites?

    Nah. It’s a philosophy that appeals less to hard men than to overweight women. Nor is the spread of anti-white hate terribly likely to lead to apocalyptic outcomes such as genocide or civil war.

    There are no practical ways to divide up the country when the political dividing lines don’t follow something simple like latitude or longitude, but instead run roughly between the inner and outer suburbs of our top 100 metropolitan areas.

    Replies: @Hail
  205. @New Dealer
    Recently finished Richard J. Evans, Coming of the Third Reich (v. 1 of 3 vols). Mostly about the Weimar period.

    Down and dirty lawfare was practiced by all major political forces, just one more factor weakening popular allegiance to the liberal-democratic regime. Lawfare was routine and understood to be fake.

    Smart move Democrats, next it's your turn. You've also introduced Antifa/BLM political thugs, on the assumption that their victims will indefinitely turn the other cheek.

    Replies: @TWS

    One kid with a set of testicles and a steady hand made the rioters think twice.

    •�Agree: Fluesterwitz
    •�Replies: @Ralph L
    @TWS

    It's surprising now that Kyle's arrest and indictment didn't give them the green light again, but outside Portland, the riots stopped, as I remember. I sure hope he lives happily ever after all that.
  206. @Hail
    Richard B. Spencer, who opposes Trump and campaigned for Biden in 2020, says this in reaction to the Trump "felony" conviction of May 30, 2024:

    Well, it’s now real. A prisoner will become president of these United States.

    One silver lining of Donald Trump getting re-elected—and his support of the destruction of Gaza —would be the direct identification of Zionism with America's most toxic political movement.

    People—especially educated people—already hate Trump; they are going to hate Israel almost as much, as Trump becomes synonymous with butchering Palestinians.

    https://twitter.com/RichardBSpencer/status/1795204225766711299

    https://twitter.com/RichardBSpencer/status/1796288471516242130

    Replies: @Wielgus

    And Biden isn’t synonymous with butchering Palestinians?

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @Wielgus

    Richard Spencer says that Biden's support for Israel and Jewish power ("the administration" having a comically lopsided ratio of Jews to White-male heterosexual Protestants, if any of the latter) led him, Spencer, to break off his support for Biden.

    Spencer says this horrible Israel problem -- a semi-maniacal-looking, genocidal, 'gangster' state with quasi-world-power aspirations, whose m.o. is to continuously use the USA and White-Europeans as puppets, all the while undermining and mocking their own puppets -- if handed off to Trump in full, would finally end the Trump movement.

    That is how I understand Richard Spencer's new position. He is so anti-Israel he 'almost' wants Trump to win again so that the toxic Israel problem gets hung around Trump's neck. Spencer's position could be criticized on grounds of involving a few too many steps, and being too emotional. His committedly anti-Trump position (after being a big Trump backer, ca. 2015-17) may be distorting his thinking.

    Replies: @Charlesz Martel
  207. @Dr. X
    America is now officially a corrupt shithole run by a clique of insane ideologues. If you still think you live in a "free country" under the "rule of law" with "free and fair elections" and the government represents "the will of the people" you are retard, a moron and a sucker.

    You can dislike Trump for a lot of reasons if you wish, and on some of those I would be inclined to agree, but every single charge against Trump, both civil and criminal, has been completely bogus and a transparent attempt to take him out. His real "crimes" were defeating Hillary and representing the working class hoi polloi in flyover country.

    You are now officially living in a one-party state. No Republican will ever be allowed to win ever again, unless he is the designated fall guy by the Deep State and the elites.

    If you vote for the wrong guy he will be arrested. Maybe you will, too.

    The Trump case should not be taken in isolation. It is part of a larger picture that includes the prosecution of Stone and Manafort and Giuliani and Flynn and Meadows, SWAT teams hunting down and kicking in the doors of people accused of misdemeanor "trespassing" on Jan. 6, the targeted execution of the airport guy in Little Rock, and really going all the way back to deliberately shooting Randy Weaver's wife's head off as she was holding a baby.

    Every time you hear Biden or Harris or any of these other creeps lecturing the rest of the world about "freedom" and "democracy" and "human rights," you should laugh bitterly and sardonically.

    Understand exactly what kind of country you are living in, and when they come for you, treat them appropriately.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @TWS

    Randy Weaver was the first obvious sign for most.

  208. TWS says:
    @Anonymous
    @Hypnotoad666


    But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it’s literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it’s become pretty clear he doesn’t stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.
    I don’t know anything about the merits of this trial and verdict and it is possible Steve doesn’t either. It isn’t wise or ethical to take positions on things when you don’t have or understand the facts.

    But it has always struck me as odd that Steve never seemed to like Trump, even though Trump had the best immigration platform of any presidential candidate in US history and did more than any modern president to try to stop the unrelenting flood of foreigners that the country is drowning in.

    Replies: @TWS

    Immigration was Sailer’s thing. Past tense. He’s at the whistling past the graveyard stage of his walk through life.

    We all get old and lose something. There’s no longer a peaceful path out of demographic defeat. He’s too old tired and has too much to lose to advocate for any of the workable options. The country will split, it’s too big and diverse not to.

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @TWS


    [Steve Sailer] has too much to lose to advocate for any of the workable options.

    The country will split, it’s too big and diverse not to.
    "Racial partition for racial preservation," essay and sketch-map by Richard McCulloch, Racial Compact, ca. 1999; revised ed., 2010.
  209. @JLK
    Yes, Alvin Bragg was out to get Trump. It was lawfare, and a disgrace. But Trump is a victim of his own narcissistic personality. Being married to a series of beautiful women wasn't enough, he had to have a dalliance with a low grade porn star. Then he had to cover it up. Instead of getting top grade legal advice not to falsify his business records, he listened to the likes of Michael Cohen, who is everything a lawyer isn't supposed to be. Starting with loyal.

    I feel sorry for my Republican Party, not particularly for Donald Trump. A loss in November means four more years of liberal non-white male judges being appointed, in addition to incalculable other damage to the Republic we inherited.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Precious

    But Trump is a victim of his own narcissistic personality.

    “A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults.”

    I don’t think Aaron Haspel wrote that about Trump, but he might as well have. There is no replacement for Trump other than agents of the UniParty. Either forgive him his faults or embrace the status quo. BTW, you mention the “falsifying business records” charge, which is penny-ante crap.

    •�Agree: The Anti-Gnostic
    •�Replies: @res
    @Harry Baldwin

    Thanks. Very first quote in the chapter on Ruling in his book Everything: A Book of Aphorisms.

    Any idea if there is an earlier source? The closest thing I see is something about Andrew Jackson.
    http://www.musicbysunset.com/Great%20Literature/Long%20Full%20text%20of%20American%20literature.htm

    And when from the very heart of this newer America came iVndrew Jackson, a rough, primitive, original kind of man, with the petty faults and the big virtues of his kind, there was no longer any doubt that this whole country was irretrievably committed to the plain principles of "democracy.^
    For additional fun, try the following search on Google (0 results) and Yandex (5 pages of results):
    A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults "Aaron Haspel"

    It is interesting how hard it was to find your 2018 use of this quote here.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/paul-krugman-has-brett-kavanaughs-number/#comment-2524394
    This search on Yandex did it: "large virtues" "petty faults"

    Google did not find it even with a site:unz.com specifier (usually works around the unz.com blacklisting) added to either of the searches above (well, the second resulted in no exact match and 730 results I did not check past the first page).

    P.S. Fun sample from the book.
    https://muse.jhu.edu/article/728506/pdf

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic, @Harry Baldwin
    , @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Harry Baldwin

    The Left has always known it's all about who gets to live where and run things, and they set policy accordingly; Lenin's Who/Whom, as our host points out.

    Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don't need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies. Politics are territorial; if you want a polite, principled, classical liberal polity, you've got to evict and keep out the anti-classical liberals. Otherwise, QED, they will use your own classical liberal tenets against you; your Constitution really does become a death pact.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @Corvinus
  210. Well this’ll be a first: Trump will campaign from prison as Biden campaigns from his basement.

  211. @Corvinus
    @trevor

    Megyn, like Tucker. are trying to keep themselves relevant when they are both past their prime. The fact of the matter is Trump surrounds himself with patently shady characters. The testimony of Cohen, who was personally chosen and entrusted by Trump to fix things, was the death blow. No, let radical Republicans bring forth charges toward any and all Democrats. I look forward to it. They better have evidence and a person who knows where the bodies are buried.

    Replies: @Hail, @Prester John, @Curle

    ” No, let radical Republicans bring forth charges toward any and all Democrats.”

    They’ve been trying that for 60+ years and for their efforts have seen one president forced to resign from office and a former president on the brink of being tossed into the hoosegow–Republicans both of them. How ironic is that!

  212. It’s likely been pointed out before, but one of the reasons Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon was because he was going to be sued out of existence when he got back to Rome.

    •�Replies: @William Badwhite
    @MM


    but one of the reasons Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon
    Small quibble, but Caesar didn't so much cross the Rubicon as follow his army, which had already crossed it.
  213. @countenance
    OT, and surprised you haven't already posted about this.

    Bonfire of the Golf Ball Tees in Louisville.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic

    You can’t even get Steve to post about the PGA-LIV gazillion dollar hijinks, much less some hothead cop in Louisville. Or the NIL/transfer portal Great Leap Forward in Division 1.

  214. @Corvinus
    @trevor

    Megyn, like Tucker. are trying to keep themselves relevant when they are both past their prime. The fact of the matter is Trump surrounds himself with patently shady characters. The testimony of Cohen, who was personally chosen and entrusted by Trump to fix things, was the death blow. No, let radical Republicans bring forth charges toward any and all Democrats. I look forward to it. They better have evidence and a person who knows where the bodies are buried.

    Replies: @Hail, @Prester John, @Curle

    Trump surrounds himself with patently shady characters

    I hear Trump even met Hunter Biden once. Probably not true. Trump wouldn’t lower himself to that level of shady or would he?

  215. @CalCooledge
    What do I think.
    I think he's unfit for office.
    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Hunsdon, @Thea, @Rick P, @Jus' Sayin'...

    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Nikki Haley is John McCain in pantyhose. How would it have benefitted us to vote for her?

    •�Agree: Mr. Anon, TWS, MEH 0910
    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Harry Baldwin

    Nikki Haley is John McCain in pantyhose. How would it have benefitted us to vote for her?

    Polls show that she is a safer choice for defeating Biden.

    Moderates and independents hate both Trump and Biden.

    I supported Trump in 2016 and stand by that vote. He kept out Hillary.

    But he has proven himself to be a silver spoon brat who views the law as beneath him.

    I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It's also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
  216. Trump Declared Guilty

    I believe the official charge he was convicted of was: Just guilty of something – I know it!

  217. @pyrrhus
    Speaking as an attorney who has litigated in various courts, including SCOTUS, there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict...The number of insanely bad rulings in this case undoubtedly breaks the record...

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Hypnotoad666, @Mr. Anon, @Erik L

    Speaking as an attorney who has litigated in various courts, including SCOTUS, there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…The number of insanely bad rulings in this case undoubtedly breaks the record…

    Given that the judge’s daughter runs a fund-raising outfit for Democratic candidates and undoubtedly profits greatly thereby – this was a channel for wealthy democrats to essentially directly pay off a judge presiding over the kangaroo court that convicted the candidate they don’t like.

    Yeah………..it’s rotten.

  218. @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910

    and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    I don’t know if he considers it crazy or evil, but I’m quite certain he considers it scary.

  219. @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910

    It’s funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy….

    There was never a need for a Sailer-Strategy in the past, since Whites have long voted for their own interests, which is why immigration is used as a tool by anti-Whites. What is needed is a strategy to force the representatives that Whites elect to serve the interests of the Whites who elected them in the first place. Trump didn’t do a damn thing for the people who voted for him, and he is just one in a long line of politicians who abandoned his mostly White base once elected.

  220. @dearieme
    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    People (like me) who have had good experiences when visiting the US will begin to despair.

    Wait, I hear you cry, there's a mighty difference between the governing classes and The People. Aye, but it's the governing classes who have the whip hand.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob, @trevor, @Curle, @Joe Stalin, @Bragadocious

    America. You are now a Banana Republic

    In fairness, it has been for some time. At least since Nixon was set up.

    •�Replies: @epebble
    @Curle

    Started with Clinton. At least in Nixon's case, there were issues concerning the public.

    Replies: @Curle
    , @dearieme
    @Curle

    Good point. Or perhaps since Lee Harvey Oswald was assassinated.

    Maybe I should have said You are now conspicuously, undeniably a Banana Republic.
  221. @Anonymous
    @John Johnson


    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.
    If history is an any guide, a boring moderate will not be a meaningful change from Biden.

    Mass immigration will continue unabated (“legal” or “illegal”). The United States will continue to destroy lives in the Middle East in service to the Zionists. United States will continue to fund the destruction of the Ukraine.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @John Johnson

    His best move is to quit and let a boring moderate defeat Biden.

    If history is an any guide, a boring moderate will not be a meaningful change from Biden.

    A boring moderate will be able to find the exit and will remember his lines. Biden is not medically qualified to run for office of any kind.

    Mass immigration will continue unabated (“legal” or “illegal”).

    Trump was given a chance to fix the border. He not only left it open but let his pal Bannon rip off his followers with the “we will build it” scam.

  222. @Harry Baldwin
    @CalCooledge

    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Nikki Haley is John McCain in pantyhose. How would it have benefitted us to vote for her?

    Replies: @John Johnson

    Nikki Haley is John McCain in pantyhose. How would it have benefitted us to vote for her?

    Polls show that she is a safer choice for defeating Biden.

    Moderates and independents hate both Trump and Biden.

    I supported Trump in 2016 and stand by that vote. He kept out Hillary.

    But he has proven himself to be a silver spoon brat who views the law as beneath him.

    I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It’s also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency.

    •�Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @John Johnson

    "I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It’s also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency."

    Stop kidding yourself. It doesn't matter. No matter who is elected, or what, even (we could elect a pineapple for instance) what you WILL get, no matter what, is a faceless junta/clique of sinister unelected Jews.

    Jews who will simply, doggedly continue their task of destroying America and its people, a task which they have been at tirelessly since 1913 and before.

    Replies: @John Johnson
  223. @Hypnotoad666
    @pyrrhus


    there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict…
    100%. Merchan is an anti-Trump partisan hack, yet (precisely for that reason) he managed to catch three anti-Trump cases. The odds of this happening by random chance are like 10,000 to 1. He sent the CEO of Trump enterprises to jail for for not declaring his parking spot as taxable income. Good God. Can you imagine if that standard were applied to other CEOs?

    If Trump gets elected from jail he absolutely must turn the DOJ into a scorched earth tool of retribution. It's a target rich environment of REAL crimes out there with all the Clinton Foundation graft, Zuckerberg election finance violations, and CIA treason by Brennan and his ilk. Heck bring a RICO case against the New York Times for all the classified material they publish daily. The precedent is set. No one can blame him.

    Replies: @Dr. X, @Master CPL Savage, @AceDeuce

    This morning on MSNBC, the talking zombies were talking about Merchan. Evidently, yesterday after the verdict was read, he put his head down, but his face was visible enough where it appeared to onlookers that he was smiling-one of them actually said “smirking”. Another female panelist immediately tried to reframe it as not really smiling, but just that his face was contorted with emotion at the end of a grueling ordeal.

    Yeah, right.

  224. Erik L says:
    @Dave Pinsen
    @Buzz Mohawk


    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.
    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @R.G. Camara, @Steve Sailer, @Erik L, @Not Raul

    I don’t know that real estate developers had to deal directly with organized crime. They would end up paying “street taxes” in the form of more expensive labor (unions) and materials (cement).

    I have a memory of Sammy Gravano claiming to have objected to his boss about the takeover of cement in the 1970s saying that it would be the end of the mob because (He might have stated this in a round about way or I might be adding in info from another documentary) because they would be taking money out of the pockets of guys like Trump.

    I never cared for Trump but after years of every investigative reporter having an incentive to be the guy who got Trump, and this is all they’ve come up with? I figure he must be a pretty decent guy

  225. Erik L says:
    @pyrrhus
    Speaking as an attorney who has litigated in various courts, including SCOTUS, there has never been a more corrupt trial, beginning with the judge and jury being handpicked to convict...The number of insanely bad rulings in this case undoubtedly breaks the record...

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Hypnotoad666, @Mr. Anon, @Erik L

    Anyone can tell this is crap just by the lack of detail in the explanations in the press. I tried Googling to find out if there is precedent for using a federal crime as an aggravating factor (if that is the correct term and/or even what happened) for a state crime and Google turns up nothing but press reports on Trump with no examination of the question

  226. @Jim Don Bob
    @dearieme


    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.
    Kevin O'Leary said yesterday that this trial has hurt the USA's "brand" in foreign countries. NYC is still the financial capital of the US and second only to London in the world.

    He said that the people in foreign countries he's talked to are incredulous that a county DA can indict and a local jury convict a former president. Banana republic indeed.

    Should Trump win in November, would a military coup led by former JCS head Milley be too far fetched?

    Replies: @trevor, @Tex

    Should Trump win in November, would a military coup led by former JCS head Milley be too far fetched?

    Very much. They’ll find someone else besides Milley.

  227. @trevor
    What goes around comes around.

    Megyn Kelly Warns Donald Trump's Conviction Opens 'Pandora's Box' for Bidens, Obama, and Clintons
    https://www.inquisitr.com/megyn-kelly-warns-donald-trumps-conviction-opens-pandoras-box-for-bidens-obama-and-clintons

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Etruscan Film Star, @Etruscan Film Star

    I’d vote for Megyn Kelly if she ran for president. Seriously.

    Back in the day, when she was on Fox News, I read about her far more often than I actually watched her on the telly (almost never). The hard line on Megyn was that she was the standard void-headed bimbo that news show producers install to decorate the screen. With little to go on but negative criticism of the lady, I didn’t expect she was worth spending time on.

    Maybe she’s grown in intellectual stature since then. Anyway I’ve been impressed by her recently. She comes across as, if I dare say so, sharp witted. I don’t know if Megyn writes her own scripts or someone else does, but — by the debased standards of mainstream commentary — they are first class. More: her delivery is striking, pitch-perfect even when she seems to be detouring spontaneously. Has she taken acting lessons?

    And of course she’s easy on the eyes, perhaps in a more mature way than heretofore.

    Insofar as time allows, I will go out of my way to watch Megyn’s program.

  228. @Curle
    @dearieme


    America. You are now a Banana Republic
    In fairness, it has been for some time. At least since Nixon was set up.

    Replies: @epebble, @dearieme

    Started with Clinton. At least in Nixon’s case, there were issues concerning the public.

    •�Replies: @Curle
    @epebble


    At least in Nixon’s case, there were issues concerning the public.
    John Dean being trapped in a honey pot operation concerns the public?
  229. @CalCooledge
    What do I think.
    I think he's unfit for office.
    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Hunsdon, @Thea, @Rick P, @Jus' Sayin'...

    Nikki Haley? Wow. Just wow.

    Nikki “The Russian intelligence services gave information to Hamas to make 7th October possible” Haley?

    •�Agree: Thea
  230. @CalCooledge
    What do I think.
    I think he's unfit for office.
    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Hunsdon, @Thea, @Rick P, @Jus' Sayin'...

    Desantis has some positive points but Nimrata has none.

  231. @Humane Conservative
    @Hail

    OK, but Republicans will be doing the same things to Democrats too.

    This isn't "dictatorship" or "communism" or "totalitarianism", just a general collapse of the standards of fair play which used to be expected in American politics.

    Lots of people didn't vote for or voted against Trump because they felt that his election would lead to the end of "the rules". I scoffed at the time, but at this point it's hard for me to say they weren't on to something, whether or not it was Trump's fault.

    Replies: @Hunsdon

    Humane Conservative said: This isn’t “dictatorship” or “communism” or “totalitarianism”, just a general collapse of the standards of fair play which used to be expected in American politics.

    Hunsdon said: Well, it isn’t communism.

  232. @Hypnotoad666
    @Dieter Kief


    I never attack somebody for not taking a stand at something.
    That's a good and fair policy for normal people. But Steve is advertised as an alleged right-wing pundit, so it's literally his job to take stands on things. When he conspicuously refuses to take a stand, he is taking a stand. And it's become pretty clear he doesn't stand for the same values as the majority of his readers.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Sam Haysom, @Anonymous, @Dieter Kief, @New Dealer

    Steve likes to do iStevy topics. He has never been interested in daily calling balls and strikes in partisan political contests. For big events, he provides an open thread for commenters to vent.

    And for anyone who has a need for instant boos and cheers there are a dozen 24-hour news channels.

  233. @Anonymous
    @vinteuil


    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    That issue is to put a stop to immigration.

    Replies: @Ex Machina, @Reg Cæsar, @Hypnotoad666, @Curle

    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.

    Yes. But, if you listen to some who post here (on a foreign country payroll perhaps?) that issue is are you or are you not a Putinist. Whatever that’s supposed to signify.

    •�Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Curle

    I actually don't think you need to pay Jewish and Slavic partisans to come on iSteve and argue that Americans need to enlist in the ancient inter-ethnic grudges back home, and must themselves be un-American and unpatriotic for not doing so.
  234. @Ex Machina
    (((They))) control US politicians via carrot (AIPAC $$$) and stick (Epstein kompromat).

    Trump had his own billions, and they had no kompromat on him. I.e., they could not control him.

    Therefore, Trump had to be destroyed.

    So he was destroyed.

    Let's rewind:

    Police--and Congress--took a collective knee when BLM and antifa were rioting, looting, and torching communities to ruin.

    But when students peacefully protested Israel's actions in Gaza? They were immediately crushed by the police.

    These things are not unconnected. And it does not require a searing IQ to connect them.

    Replies: @Bragadocious, @Je Suis Omar Mateen

    BLM is a Soros, and therefore a British, psy-op. The main funder of BLM is Open Society which is run by Mark Malloch-Brown, a British spook with deep connections to GCHQ.

    The Brits started all this with the piss dossier, which spawned Russiagate, which crippled Trump’s Presidency. GCHQ wiretapped Trump at the Trump Tower. They didn’t come up with anything, and thus needed to concoct a fantasy that he was a Russian agent. In the middle of all this, they sent an assassin, Michael Sandford, to take him out. Sandford failed, was quickly whisked back home and the story memory-holed.

    Britain now has what it wants–a damaged front-runner to the Presidency, a guy who has stated that he wants to negotiate and settle the Ukraine war, a war the Brits have recklessly provoked since day one. They will settle for nothing less than setting the world on fire.

    •�Troll: YetAnotherAnon
  235. @Curle
    @dearieme


    America. You are now a Banana Republic
    In fairness, it has been for some time. At least since Nixon was set up.

    Replies: @epebble, @dearieme

    Good point. Or perhaps since Lee Harvey Oswald was assassinated.

    Maybe I should have said You are now conspicuously, undeniably a Banana Republic.

  236. res says:
    @Harry Baldwin
    @JLK

    But Trump is a victim of his own narcissistic personality.

    "A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults."

    I don't think Aaron Haspel wrote that about Trump, but he might as well have. There is no replacement for Trump other than agents of the UniParty. Either forgive him his faults or embrace the status quo. BTW, you mention the "falsifying business records" charge, which is penny-ante crap.

    Replies: @res, @The Anti-Gnostic

    Thanks. Very first quote in the chapter on Ruling in his book Everything: A Book of Aphorisms.

    Any idea if there is an earlier source? The closest thing I see is something about Andrew Jackson.
    http://www.musicbysunset.com/Great%20Literature/Long%20Full%20text%20of%20American%20literature.htm

    And when from the very heart of this newer America came iVndrew Jackson, a rough, primitive, original kind of man, with the petty faults and the big virtues of his kind, there was no longer any doubt that this whole country was irretrievably committed to the plain principles of “democracy.^

    For additional fun, try the following search on Google (0 results) and Yandex (5 pages of results):
    A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults “Aaron Haspel”

    It is interesting how hard it was to find your 2018 use of this quote here.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/paul-krugman-has-brett-kavanaughs-number/#comment-2524394
    This search on Yandex did it: “large virtues” “petty faults”

    Google did not find it even with a site:unz.com specifier (usually works around the unz.com blacklisting) added to either of the searches above (well, the second resulted in no exact match and 730 results I did not check past the first page).

    P.S. Fun sample from the book.
    https://muse.jhu.edu/article/728506/pdf

    •�Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    @res

    Thanks those are fantastic. I especially liked this one.

    The consolation prize for being out of power is unswerving commitment to timeless civic principles.
    , @Harry Baldwin
    @res

    I recommend Aaron Haspel's book "Everything," sold on Amazon. I first learned of the author years ago when Steve Sailer quoted some of his aphorisms.

    Replies: @res
  237. @Dutch Boy
    As for the actual merits of Trump, Paul Craig Roberts has had a wake up call. It seems DT has been telling supporters that he would have bombed Moscow and Peking if there had been an attack on Ukraine or Taiwan.

    Replies: @Joe Stalin

    DT has been telling supporters that he would have bombed Moscow and Peking if there had been an attack on Ukraine or Taiwan.

    LOL. Russkies have been threatening to use nukes since…

    •�Agree: Bardon Kaldian
    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Joe Stalin

    Putin always does the opposite of what he says. It's when he starts saying he will not use nuclear weapons that you need to worry.
  238. @epebble
    @Jmaie

    If you are thinking that would help Trump vote for himself, that is unlikely unless he completes the probation or wins on appeal before the election.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Florida_Amendment_4

    It was a ballot initiative and not legislation.

    Replies: @Jmaie

    Yah, wasn’t being serious…

  239. Both Trump and Putin supporters seem to be unaware of how their support for unprincipled men continue to drag them into a moral abyss. If you string together their arguments they really sound like a parody from The Onion of a corrupt president or dictator:

    The sex was consensual. Why did she take so long to bring charges if it was rape? It isn’t real estate fraud if no one notices. You can’t prove he commits real estate fraud in other states. He is on trial in NY and the other states aren’t relevant. That came out in the trial but it isn’t a charge. The porn star pay-off was on the books. His lawyer is lying to get out of it. Well his guilty part. Trump just paid her off. It’s all a conspiracy to stop him from running. The classified documents case is also politically motivated. He can look at whatever he wants and can pardon himself when in office. The allegation that he was showing them to other people is hearsay. It’s all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    – Proud Trump Supporter

    No one knows what happened to Navalny. Could have been anything. Putin was forced into invading Ukraine. And Georgia. The journalist that went to prison could have been a spy. Putin is only talking about nuking the world because he is being goaded by the West. He wants peace. We don’t know what happened to that General. It probably was an accident. You can’t prove he didn’t fall down the stairs. The poisoning was made-up. Yes all cases. All Western lies. That opposition leader was probably killed by the West to make Putin look bad. We don’t know what happened to that blogger. Could have been a suicide. You can’t prove otherwise. It’s all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    – Proud Putin Supporter

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    •�Agree: Frau Katze
    •�Troll: Tex, YetAnotherAnon
    •�Replies: @Alexander Turok
    @John Johnson

    The difference is that the war in Ukraine is actually happening. You can see it on video. It's not about re-litigating a bunch of crap that happened behind closed doors years or decades ago that nobody complained about at the time.

    Replies: @Hail, @The Anti-Gnostic, @John Johnson
    , @Hapalong Cassidy
    @John Johnson

    Since you still don’t get after all this time, let me try to define it more clearly.

    Hardly anyone opposed to US involvement in Ukraine is a “Putin Supporter”. Rather, they’ve determined an end to the war as soon as possible with terms favorable to Russia is the best possible outcome, in terms of world stability and the possibility of a nuclear WW3. NATO and the US may get some egg on their faces, but no worse than what happened to the US in Afghanistan. Myself and most others give two shits about Putin as a person. But we are not stupid enough to fall for any “domino theory” about the rest of Europe either.
    , @PeterIke
    @John Johnson

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    I love when the Feds join the chat.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Anonymous
    , @Reg Cæsar
    @John Johnson

    Trump's opponent dissuaded the victim of aggravated rape from considering pressing charges, to protect her husband's, and more importantly, her own career prospects. The two have been celebrated for decades, regardless. This is the amoral nature of the opposition. Do you have an alternative alternative?


    Do you really want to look too closely into the backgrounds of the generals and admirals fighting our wars? Admiral Morrison's son was as scandalous as Hunter Biden, albeit without foreign connections. (His roommate in Paris was a native of Weed, California.) General Patton believed in reincarnation-- how did that affect his deployment of troops?

    Trump has a base, but hasn't built a bench, unless you count his sons. (Don Jr as our Justin?) This is his biggest failing.

    In comparison to the forces lined up against him, Trump is like Casper the Friendly Ghost. As with Casper, the screams he elicits can be laughed at.

    Replies: @John Johnson
  240. @Harry Baldwin
    @JLK

    But Trump is a victim of his own narcissistic personality.

    "A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults."

    I don't think Aaron Haspel wrote that about Trump, but he might as well have. There is no replacement for Trump other than agents of the UniParty. Either forgive him his faults or embrace the status quo. BTW, you mention the "falsifying business records" charge, which is penny-ante crap.

    Replies: @res, @The Anti-Gnostic

    The Left has always known it’s all about who gets to live where and run things, and they set policy accordingly; Lenin’s Who/Whom, as our host points out.

    Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don’t need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies. Politics are territorial; if you want a polite, principled, classical liberal polity, you’ve got to evict and keep out the anti-classical liberals. Otherwise, QED, they will use your own classical liberal tenets against you; your Constitution really does become a death pact.

    •�Thanks: Whitey Whiteman III
    •�Replies: @Reg Cæsar
    @The Anti-Gnostic


    Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don’t need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies.
    It's not all-or-nothing. You need both attitudes. Not just to inspire your own side, but to call out the other. Either they share some of these principles, and those can be used to divide them-- the circular firing squad-- or their only principle is the-end-justifies-the-means, and that need be exposed.

    Otherwise your only objection to Louis Till's crimes is that they came too late, after the Italian surrender.
    , @Corvinus
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    “Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don’t need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies.”

    You mean like Jews and corporatists? If anything, he is beholden to their interests.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
  241. And the next time the US lectures some foreign state about their internal political repression?

    “My brother in Christ, please take that weak ass shit back to your own country.”

    •�LOL: The Anti-Gnostic
  242. @res
    @Harry Baldwin

    Thanks. Very first quote in the chapter on Ruling in his book Everything: A Book of Aphorisms.

    Any idea if there is an earlier source? The closest thing I see is something about Andrew Jackson.
    http://www.musicbysunset.com/Great%20Literature/Long%20Full%20text%20of%20American%20literature.htm

    And when from the very heart of this newer America came iVndrew Jackson, a rough, primitive, original kind of man, with the petty faults and the big virtues of his kind, there was no longer any doubt that this whole country was irretrievably committed to the plain principles of "democracy.^
    For additional fun, try the following search on Google (0 results) and Yandex (5 pages of results):
    A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults "Aaron Haspel"

    It is interesting how hard it was to find your 2018 use of this quote here.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/paul-krugman-has-brett-kavanaughs-number/#comment-2524394
    This search on Yandex did it: "large virtues" "petty faults"

    Google did not find it even with a site:unz.com specifier (usually works around the unz.com blacklisting) added to either of the searches above (well, the second resulted in no exact match and 730 results I did not check past the first page).

    P.S. Fun sample from the book.
    https://muse.jhu.edu/article/728506/pdf

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic, @Harry Baldwin

    Thanks those are fantastic. I especially liked this one.

    The consolation prize for being out of power is unswerving commitment to timeless civic principles.

    •�Thanks: res
  243. @dearieme
    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    People (like me) who have had good experiences when visiting the US will begin to despair.

    Wait, I hear you cry, there's a mighty difference between the governing classes and The People. Aye, but it's the governing classes who have the whip hand.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob, @trevor, @Curle, @Joe Stalin, @Bragadocious

    You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    All Democrat controlled areas are like this. In Illinois, our gun controller Supreme Court judges are PRE-BRIBED by Gov. “Jelly Belly” Pritzker.

    Pritzker, defendant in gun challenge, gave $2 million to two supreme court justices
    https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/article_a2c00992-bd36-11ed-b4f1-8fb9779f6a34.html

    YT comment:

    @roxannekean6025
    1 day ago
    I worked for the USAF as a civilian. After listening to the news that day, I commented aloud in my cubicle, “Why does the world hate us so much?” In answer, came a deep booming voice from another cubicle, which said: “Don’t you believe it!” The voice belonged to one of our foreign-born lieutenants, (now an American citizen), from Nigeria. A few seconds later, he stood before me smiling. He said, “The people who hate you, are those with power. But the people who have no power, love you! This is a great country to them, and that is why they struggle to come here.” It really made my day. I blame the media, and teachers, for brainwashing out kids to hate their own country. This needs to stop!

  244. @res
    @Harry Baldwin

    Thanks. Very first quote in the chapter on Ruling in his book Everything: A Book of Aphorisms.

    Any idea if there is an earlier source? The closest thing I see is something about Andrew Jackson.
    http://www.musicbysunset.com/Great%20Literature/Long%20Full%20text%20of%20American%20literature.htm

    And when from the very heart of this newer America came iVndrew Jackson, a rough, primitive, original kind of man, with the petty faults and the big virtues of his kind, there was no longer any doubt that this whole country was irretrievably committed to the plain principles of "democracy.^
    For additional fun, try the following search on Google (0 results) and Yandex (5 pages of results):
    A regime of many laws is a great aid in the destruction of men of large virtues and petty faults "Aaron Haspel"

    It is interesting how hard it was to find your 2018 use of this quote here.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/paul-krugman-has-brett-kavanaughs-number/#comment-2524394
    This search on Yandex did it: "large virtues" "petty faults"

    Google did not find it even with a site:unz.com specifier (usually works around the unz.com blacklisting) added to either of the searches above (well, the second resulted in no exact match and 730 results I did not check past the first page).

    P.S. Fun sample from the book.
    https://muse.jhu.edu/article/728506/pdf

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic, @Harry Baldwin

    I recommend Aaron Haspel’s book “Everything,” sold on Amazon. I first learned of the author years ago when Steve Sailer quoted some of his aphorisms.

    •�Replies: @res
    @Harry Baldwin

    Thanks. Here is a link to his blog. The first has MANY (thousands of) aphorisms.
    https://aaronhaspel.com/

    The only reference to Aaron Haspel I see searching the unz.com archives for Haspel is this recent piece about something else.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/criticism/

    But searching Google with: "aaron haspel" site:unz.com
    returns this post. (Which you and I both commented on ; ) As well as many comments mentioning his aphorisms in other posts.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/shut-up-they-explained/
  245. @trevor
    What goes around comes around.

    Megyn Kelly Warns Donald Trump's Conviction Opens 'Pandora's Box' for Bidens, Obama, and Clintons
    https://www.inquisitr.com/megyn-kelly-warns-donald-trumps-conviction-opens-pandoras-box-for-bidens-obama-and-clintons

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Etruscan Film Star, @Etruscan Film Star

    Re-posted because my original comment is lost in the deep space of moderation while others with a later time stamp are published:

    I’d vote for Megyn Kelly if she ran for president. Seriously.

    Back in the day, when she was on Fox News, I read about her far more often than I actually watched her on the telly (almost never). The hard line on Megyn was that she was the standard void-headed bimbo that news show producers install to decorate the screen. With little to go on but negative criticism of the lady, I didn’t expect she was worth spending time on.

    Maybe she’s grown in intellectual stature since then. Anyway I’ve been impressed by her recently. She comes across as, if I dare say so, sharp witted. I don’t know if Megyn writes her own scripts or someone else does, but — by the debased standards of mainstream commentary — they are first class. More: her delivery is striking, pitch-perfect even when she seems to be detouring spontaneously. Has she taken acting lessons?

    And of course she’s easy on the eyes, perhaps in a more mature way than heretofore.

    Insofar as time allows, I will go out of my way to watch Megyn’s program.

  246. Anonymous[277] •�Disclaimer says:

    Stalinesque Political Show Trial.

    Apparently wholly conducted by those Americans closest unto God (blacks).

  247. @Ex Machina
    (((They))) control US politicians via carrot (AIPAC $$$) and stick (Epstein kompromat).

    Trump had his own billions, and they had no kompromat on him. I.e., they could not control him.

    Therefore, Trump had to be destroyed.

    So he was destroyed.

    Let's rewind:

    Police--and Congress--took a collective knee when BLM and antifa were rioting, looting, and torching communities to ruin.

    But when students peacefully protested Israel's actions in Gaza? They were immediately crushed by the police.

    These things are not unconnected. And it does not require a searing IQ to connect them.

    Replies: @Bragadocious, @Je Suis Omar Mateen

    ‘Trump had his own billions, and they had no kompromat on him. I.e., they could not control him.

    Therefore, Trump had to be destroyed.’

    Great observation. Since 2017 I averred they hate President Trump because he is a White man of blatantly normal sexuality – three qualities the pedosodomist child-raping Democrats can. not. tolerate.

  248. @Rahuthedotard
    Trump's highest purpose may just be making the forces that have been destroying our Republic over the last 50 years show themselves, as evil and completely unprincipled. This law fare cases against him are a perfect example: this IS how justice works in any jurisdiction controlled by the Democrat Party. It has been true for those of us living in those places for longer than we wanted to see, but now we know. What is to be done, what we are willing to risk to restore the Republic, whether there is any realistic way to restore it, are all questions most of us have spent the last 25 years avoiding. Whatever our own answers to those questions, we cannot avoid them any longer. Damn him.

    Replies: @Anonymous Jew

    Agree. On a long enough timeline, it has to get worse before people are moved to action. Trump may be a horrible executive but he exposed Conservative Inc and the illusion of a fair and principled democratic process. The worst thing that could happen would actually be a moderating Democrat party that garners enough support – and creates enough indifference on the right – to facilitate the left’s continual erosion of the nation. We need the left/ Democrat’s crazy to push some kind of national backlash or red state secession.

    The left are sore winners, and so they continue to humiliate (bad) White America via lawfare, the media, etc. What will it take to push normie Americans over the edge?

  249. res says:
    @Harry Baldwin
    @res

    I recommend Aaron Haspel's book "Everything," sold on Amazon. I first learned of the author years ago when Steve Sailer quoted some of his aphorisms.

    Replies: @res

    Thanks. Here is a link to his blog. The first has MANY (thousands of) aphorisms.
    https://aaronhaspel.com/

    The only reference to Aaron Haspel I see searching the unz.com archives for Haspel is this recent piece about something else.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/criticism/

    But searching Google with: “aaron haspel” site:unz.com
    returns this post. (Which you and I both commented on ; ) As well as many comments mentioning his aphorisms in other posts.
    https://www.unz.com/isteve/shut-up-they-explained/

  250. @John Johnson
    Both Trump and Putin supporters seem to be unaware of how their support for unprincipled men continue to drag them into a moral abyss. If you string together their arguments they really sound like a parody from The Onion of a corrupt president or dictator:

    The sex was consensual. Why did she take so long to bring charges if it was rape? It isn't real estate fraud if no one notices. You can't prove he commits real estate fraud in other states. He is on trial in NY and the other states aren't relevant. That came out in the trial but it isn't a charge. The porn star pay-off was on the books. His lawyer is lying to get out of it. Well his guilty part. Trump just paid her off. It's all a conspiracy to stop him from running. The classified documents case is also politically motivated. He can look at whatever he wants and can pardon himself when in office. The allegation that he was showing them to other people is hearsay. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Trump Supporter

    No one knows what happened to Navalny. Could have been anything. Putin was forced into invading Ukraine. And Georgia. The journalist that went to prison could have been a spy. Putin is only talking about nuking the world because he is being goaded by the West. He wants peace. We don't know what happened to that General. It probably was an accident. You can't prove he didn't fall down the stairs. The poisoning was made-up. Yes all cases. All Western lies. That opposition leader was probably killed by the West to make Putin look bad. We don't know what happened to that blogger. Could have been a suicide. You can't prove otherwise. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Putin Supporter

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    Replies: @Alexander Turok, @Hapalong Cassidy, @PeterIke, @Reg Cæsar

    The difference is that the war in Ukraine is actually happening. You can see it on video. It’s not about re-litigating a bunch of crap that happened behind closed doors years or decades ago that nobody complained about at the time.

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @Alexander Turok

    Alexander Turok:

    The editor-in-chief of Peak Stupidity, the man known around here as A. E. Newman, has taken an interest in your work and wishes to convey his "thanks." Namely, for the re-constructed conversations you've posted, about your interactions at "the Robinson Crusoe Society" with a "motley crew of white nationalists, hereditarian IQ researchers, conservative opinion journalists, and former white nationalists in the process of moving left [...] the exploded remnants of the “Alt-Right”."

    Given his firm resolution not to post comments here for the rest of the year, I'm acting as his intermediary.

    Peak Stupidity's Mr. Newman also has a question for you: "Why do you think Ann Coulter is (still!) extremely pissed at Trump?" (see link below for more context).

    Your work was discussed at the recent Peak Stupidity entry No. 2999: "Donald Trump convicted - now we're all in." (https://peakstupidity.com/index.php?post=2999)

    Your reconstructed conversations were critical of Trump, for running a personality cult and not really being a committed pro-Western ideologue who is to some White Revival future. At the kinds of moments which we are now in -- I refer to the "non-crime felony conviction" and so on -- it's worth keeping your contrarian(?) view in mind and not getting 'too' carried away and falling back into old-style unreflective pro-Trumpism.

    https://alexanderturok.substack.com/p/another-whynat-meeting

    Replies: @Alexander Turok
    , @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Alexander Turok

    "John's" just giving us that baseball-apple pie, founding stock-American perspective on which group of Slavic oligarchs runs a Russian imperial province. You know, the sort of bread-and-butter issue dear to American hearts.
    , @John Johnson
    @Alexander Turok

    The difference is that the war in Ukraine is actually happening. You can see it on video. It’s not about re-litigating a bunch of crap that happened behind closed doors years or decades ago that nobody complained about at the time.

    So scheming with a lawyer to protect his image as he ran for president should be ignored because it was a success.

    Got it.

    What about the documents case? Or does he get a pass on those felonies because he isn't actively showing off classified documents to friends at his mansion?
  251. @John Johnson
    Both Trump and Putin supporters seem to be unaware of how their support for unprincipled men continue to drag them into a moral abyss. If you string together their arguments they really sound like a parody from The Onion of a corrupt president or dictator:

    The sex was consensual. Why did she take so long to bring charges if it was rape? It isn't real estate fraud if no one notices. You can't prove he commits real estate fraud in other states. He is on trial in NY and the other states aren't relevant. That came out in the trial but it isn't a charge. The porn star pay-off was on the books. His lawyer is lying to get out of it. Well his guilty part. Trump just paid her off. It's all a conspiracy to stop him from running. The classified documents case is also politically motivated. He can look at whatever he wants and can pardon himself when in office. The allegation that he was showing them to other people is hearsay. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Trump Supporter

    No one knows what happened to Navalny. Could have been anything. Putin was forced into invading Ukraine. And Georgia. The journalist that went to prison could have been a spy. Putin is only talking about nuking the world because he is being goaded by the West. He wants peace. We don't know what happened to that General. It probably was an accident. You can't prove he didn't fall down the stairs. The poisoning was made-up. Yes all cases. All Western lies. That opposition leader was probably killed by the West to make Putin look bad. We don't know what happened to that blogger. Could have been a suicide. You can't prove otherwise. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Putin Supporter

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    Replies: @Alexander Turok, @Hapalong Cassidy, @PeterIke, @Reg Cæsar

    Since you still don’t get after all this time, let me try to define it more clearly.

    Hardly anyone opposed to US involvement in Ukraine is a “Putin Supporter”. Rather, they’ve determined an end to the war as soon as possible with terms favorable to Russia is the best possible outcome, in terms of world stability and the possibility of a nuclear WW3. NATO and the US may get some egg on their faces, but no worse than what happened to the US in Afghanistan. Myself and most others give two shits about Putin as a person. But we are not stupid enough to fall for any “domino theory” about the rest of Europe either.

  252. The dynamics of nearly all these cases are interesting. Back in Washington, DC, you have a gaggle of ultra corrupt but smart, wily lawyers working for Biden. They are nearly all Jews. They dream up the cases and the “approach.” What, you really think that black woman who wore her dress backwards, or nitwit Alvin Bragg could come up with these triple-bankshot prosecutions?

    No, the blacks involved are all too stupid. But over and over, the Jews who actually dream up these cases hand them off to nitwit blacks to implement. It’s easy enough to find judges who are weaklings or political partisans, and happy to break all known legal precedents. Why not? Who is going to go after Merchan for his endless series of nonsensical, frequently openly unconstitutional decisions? Places like NYC or Atlanta are progressive hives. There are no other bees in the hive, and they all protect one another.

    Now, Republicans could be engaging in similar shenanigans at the state level, but of course they are feckless and useless, and as long as McConnel can keep the Chinese cash flowing and Lindsey Graham can keep diddling boys and get away with it, they’re perfectly happy with scraps from the table.

    Kunstler sums it up well here, but I find him far too optimistic. He truly feels a day of reckoning is coming for these Luciferian malcontents that rule us. I don’t see it.

    https://kunstler.com/clusterfuck-nation/gloat-while-you-still-can/

  253. @John Johnson
    Both Trump and Putin supporters seem to be unaware of how their support for unprincipled men continue to drag them into a moral abyss. If you string together their arguments they really sound like a parody from The Onion of a corrupt president or dictator:

    The sex was consensual. Why did she take so long to bring charges if it was rape? It isn't real estate fraud if no one notices. You can't prove he commits real estate fraud in other states. He is on trial in NY and the other states aren't relevant. That came out in the trial but it isn't a charge. The porn star pay-off was on the books. His lawyer is lying to get out of it. Well his guilty part. Trump just paid her off. It's all a conspiracy to stop him from running. The classified documents case is also politically motivated. He can look at whatever he wants and can pardon himself when in office. The allegation that he was showing them to other people is hearsay. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Trump Supporter

    No one knows what happened to Navalny. Could have been anything. Putin was forced into invading Ukraine. And Georgia. The journalist that went to prison could have been a spy. Putin is only talking about nuking the world because he is being goaded by the West. He wants peace. We don't know what happened to that General. It probably was an accident. You can't prove he didn't fall down the stairs. The poisoning was made-up. Yes all cases. All Western lies. That opposition leader was probably killed by the West to make Putin look bad. We don't know what happened to that blogger. Could have been a suicide. You can't prove otherwise. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Putin Supporter

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    Replies: @Alexander Turok, @Hapalong Cassidy, @PeterIke, @Reg Cæsar

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    I love when the Feds join the chat.

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @PeterIke

    “I love when the Feds join the chat.”

    So says the Mossad agent.
    , @Anonymous
    @PeterIke


    I love when the Feds join the chat.
    Nah, JJ the NPC is just lazy, arrogant, and stupid. Come to think of it, maybe she is a fed.
  254. @HA
    @vinteuil

    "These people are completely nuts."

    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    https://youtu.be/Kml6WRiXQ2M

    Replies: @Cloudbuster, @PeterIke, @Richard B

    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    Show me where they burned down some buildings and attacked police cars. I’ll wait.

    Oh by the way, I don’t read Steve that much anymore. Have you ever admitted you were wrong about every single aspect of Covid? Probably not.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @PeterIke

    "Show me where they burned down some buildings and attacked police cars."

    Is that what the judge and jurors did? Funny how I missed that.

    Some [outraged Trump supporters] called for attacks on jurors, the execution of the judge, Justice Juan Merchan, or outright civil war and armed insurrection.
    Is calling for civil war, armed insurrection, and execution of judges up there on the level of attacking a police car? Or are you saying the Trump side is just spewing a bunch of hot air and they'll never actually do any of the things they say they're gonna do? Either way, it's about as effective as your COVID trutherism. You keep making lame defense arguments like that, and Trump might just ask you to join his legal team. You'd fit right in, given how they're doing.
  255. imagine witnessing everything that’s happened so far, in broad daylight, in front of the entire world, but ALSO thinking, the Democrats WON’T rig the 2024 election behind the scenes as well, and will just allow Trump to compete fairly and maybe even win.

    huh?

    there’s a -1000% chance Trump wins the 2024 election.

    forget the fears that maybe Trump will win, but once in office again he will still not be as serious as he needs to be, or that maybe he will be a lot more serious this time, but the entire DC apparatus will utterly stonewall him the second time around and nothing will get done.

    he’s NOT getting back into office. WHY ON EARTH would Democrats ALLOW him to get back into office? they control everything here, with nearly zero pushback from Republicans. most of who want Trump gone about as much as the Democrats want him gone. Democrats rigged the last election. they’re throwing him in prison. they’ll be rigging this election too. Trump is NOT going to “Win the Presidency from a jail cell”. please think this thru and the ludicrous idea that Democrats will allow him to fairly compete for the White House again so that he can try to hurt them and get them back, at least a little. the level of boomer cope here is off the charts.

    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @prime noticer

    It's not just the Democrats who don't want Trump in the presidency, it's the CIA and FBI and Military Industrial Complex, so yeah, he's up against some heavy hitters.
    , @Fluesterwitz
    @prime noticer

    Trump may win by votes cast; he will lose by votes counted.
  256. @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness
    https://dennisdale.com/2024/05/26/noticing-and-nothingness/

    And my response:

    Dennis Dale on Steve Sailer: the perils of success” (May 31, 2024).

    •�Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    @Hail

    Wow. Reading that article is like reading a collection of my own posts on how Steve has changed. Like Dale, I make these comments not to tear Steve down but to "notice" what's going on, and put my two cents in for how he could up his "public intellectual" game.

    Another way to look at it is that I am praising Steve 1.0 and suggesting that the 2.0 version could be invigorated by checking him out.

    It is with a profound sense of pathos that I consider this supposed revival and belated recognition of Sailer who seems to have acquired a whole new generation of admirers to replace the many more who have fallen away in recent years, some embittered with a sense of betrayal, some depressed with a sense of futility and some perhaps exhausted by the repetition of points long ago proved—and now proven to make no difference.

    Steve’s victory lap in promotion of the book is not the beginning of Sailer’s long-overdue influence on the national dialogue, but the end of it; more whimper than bang. Sailer is being given the equivalent of a belated lifetime achievement award with relief that whatever threat he posed is long gone and with the apparent confidence that his ideas on race and IQ can now be the grounds for defending Jewish domination of American politics.
  257. @nebulafox
    Two ironic notes:

    1) Trump’s dual reputation for what Ben Franklin delicately called “intrigues with low women” and for petty corruption goes back to the 1970s. It was not unknown to the American voter, nor to his wife and children. People were not going to not vote for him over that. The American public has more dire concerns than they used to have. Like whether the President is mentally competent to handle nuclear weapons.

    So this whole mess was… unnecessary. To say the least.

    2) Biden has thrown the iron dice. He has to stay in office now at all costs, or he will immediately have corruption charges thrown at him the moment he leaves the White House.

    Could this be the beginning of the end for the farcical system of intricate blackmail that characterizes the reality TV show that is American politics? I sure hope so! Being the age of the Internet, it’s like we have a massive arsenal of hydrogen bombs to cleanse everything in a MAD inferno and allow a poetic fresh start. Hell, it would be so awesome if too many of us labouring under this example stopped living this way, in fear, debt peons or lie peons or whatever have you! Wouldn’t it be great if we stopped talking constantly about empathy in favor of doing it and bonding together for the tough times to come? I suppose I’d better start and set an example then, then. Will I have the balls?

    Find out next week on… LIFE!

    Replies: @Anonymous, @EdwardM

    he will immediately have corruption charges thrown at him the moment he leaves the White House.

    No, he won’t.

  258. @Corvinus
    @J.Ross

    “We should either defeat the enemy or expect his weapons to be used as far as they need to be until we take away those weapons.”

    So what is your step by step plan besides pissing and moaning.

    Replies: @Bel Riose

    And yet again….another variation of your insipid “but what are YOU going to do about it” canned response.

    Can’t you think of something original?

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Bel Riose

    “And yet again….another variation of your insipid “but what are YOU going to do about it” canned response.”

    It’s true what I say about their lack of guts to solve the problems at hand. You’re no different.

    “Can’t you think of something original”

    That’s rich coming from you.
  259. @Hail
    @Hibernian

    Kennedy has announced his first executive order, if elected:
    A command that the CDC "remove fluoride from U.S. drinking water."

    Replies: @Thea, @Tex

    Kennedy has announced his first executive order, if elected:
    A command that the CDC “remove fluoride from U.S. drinking water.”

    Peace On Earth, Preserve Our Essence are the best campaign slogans ever.

  260. Rick P says:

    I can’t wait for Trump to go away. He was a mediocre president who gave us tax cuts, a few miles of wall, and pardons of violent criminals. He was completely unable to deal with the massive riots of 2020 that are still harming our country. Then again, these charges are unprecedented and totally out of line. So I probably have to vote for Trump.

  261. @CalCooledge
    What do I think.
    I think he's unfit for office.
    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Hunsdon, @Thea, @Rick P, @Jus' Sayin'...

    DeSantis yes, as he’s a smart and effective conservative. Haley no, as she folds to the cultural left every time.

  262. Hail says: •�Website

    Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orban has taken the opportunity provided by the “non-crime felony conviction” to endorse the Trump-2024 campaign. Quote:

    I’ve known President Donald Trump to be a man of honour.

    As President, he always put America first, he commanded respect around the world and used this respect to build peace.

    Let the people make their verdict this November! Keep on fighting, Mr. President!

  263. @TWS
    @Anonymous

    Immigration was Sailer's thing. Past tense. He's at the whistling past the graveyard stage of his walk through life.

    We all get old and lose something. There's no longer a peaceful path out of demographic defeat. He's too old tired and has too much to lose to advocate for any of the workable options. The country will split, it's too big and diverse not to.

    Replies: @Hail

    [Steve Sailer] has too much to lose to advocate for any of the workable options.

    The country will split, it’s too big and diverse not to.

    Racial partition for racial preservation,” essay and sketch-map by Richard McCulloch, Racial Compact, ca. 1999; revised ed., 2010.

  264. @John Johnson
    Both Trump and Putin supporters seem to be unaware of how their support for unprincipled men continue to drag them into a moral abyss. If you string together their arguments they really sound like a parody from The Onion of a corrupt president or dictator:

    The sex was consensual. Why did she take so long to bring charges if it was rape? It isn't real estate fraud if no one notices. You can't prove he commits real estate fraud in other states. He is on trial in NY and the other states aren't relevant. That came out in the trial but it isn't a charge. The porn star pay-off was on the books. His lawyer is lying to get out of it. Well his guilty part. Trump just paid her off. It's all a conspiracy to stop him from running. The classified documents case is also politically motivated. He can look at whatever he wants and can pardon himself when in office. The allegation that he was showing them to other people is hearsay. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Trump Supporter

    No one knows what happened to Navalny. Could have been anything. Putin was forced into invading Ukraine. And Georgia. The journalist that went to prison could have been a spy. Putin is only talking about nuking the world because he is being goaded by the West. He wants peace. We don't know what happened to that General. It probably was an accident. You can't prove he didn't fall down the stairs. The poisoning was made-up. Yes all cases. All Western lies. That opposition leader was probably killed by the West to make Putin look bad. We don't know what happened to that blogger. Could have been a suicide. You can't prove otherwise. It's all a conspiracy and you have been indoctrinated by the MSM.

    - Proud Putin Supporter

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    Replies: @Alexander Turok, @Hapalong Cassidy, @PeterIke, @Reg Cæsar

    Trump’s opponent dissuaded the victim of aggravated rape from considering pressing charges, to protect her husband’s, and more importantly, her own career prospects. The two have been celebrated for decades, regardless. This is the amoral nature of the opposition. Do you have an alternative alternative?

    Do you really want to look too closely into the backgrounds of the generals and admirals fighting our wars? Admiral Morrison’s son was as scandalous as Hunter Biden, albeit without foreign connections. (His roommate in Paris was a native of Weed, California.) General Patton believed in reincarnation– how did that affect his deployment of troops?

    Trump has a base, but hasn’t built a bench, unless you count his sons. (Don Jr as our Justin?) This is his biggest failing.

    In comparison to the forces lined up against him, Trump is like Casper the Friendly Ghost. As with Casper, the screams he elicits can be laughed at.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Reg Cæsar

    Trump’s opponent dissuaded the victim of aggravated rape from considering pressing charges, to protect her husband’s, and more importantly, her own career prospects.

    I don't support Biden.

    I know this can be mind-blowing at Unz but some of us view Trump as a NYC con artist and Biden as a corrupt Mr. Magoo.

    These candidates are terrible. Pointing out how one candidate is worse in some area only affirms my opinion. Yet another election where everyone is voting against the other guy. It's so tiring. Everyone knows that Biden is too old and Trump is a con. Everyone. Every damn person in this country knows that Biden can get lost in a room with one door and Trump has the ethics of a sewer rat.

    You're not telling me what you like about Trump. You're telling me about what I shouldn't like about the other guy.

    You can't force anyone to pick between drinking turpentine and motor oil. I don't have to vote.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic, @Reg Cæsar
  265. Hail says: •�Website
    @Alexander Turok
    @John Johnson

    The difference is that the war in Ukraine is actually happening. You can see it on video. It's not about re-litigating a bunch of crap that happened behind closed doors years or decades ago that nobody complained about at the time.

    Replies: @Hail, @The Anti-Gnostic, @John Johnson

    Alexander Turok:

    The editor-in-chief of Peak Stupidity, the man known around here as A. E. Newman, has taken an interest in your work and wishes to convey his “thanks.” Namely, for the re-constructed conversations you’ve posted, about your interactions at “the Robinson Crusoe Society” with a “motley crew of white nationalists, hereditarian IQ researchers, conservative opinion journalists, and former white nationalists in the process of moving left […] the exploded remnants of the “Alt-Right”.”

    Given his firm resolution not to post comments here for the rest of the year, I’m acting as his intermediary.

    Peak Stupidity’s Mr. Newman also has a question for you: “Why do you think Ann Coulter is (still!) extremely pissed at Trump?” (see link below for more context).

    Your work was discussed at the recent Peak Stupidity entry No. 2999: “Donald Trump convicted – now we’re all in.” (https://peakstupidity.com/index.php?post=2999)

    Your reconstructed conversations were critical of Trump, for running a personality cult and not really being a committed pro-Western ideologue who is to some White Revival future. At the kinds of moments which we are now in — I refer to the “non-crime felony conviction” and so on — it’s worth keeping your contrarian(?) view in mind and not getting ‘too’ carried away and falling back into old-style unreflective pro-Trumpism.

    https://alexanderturok.substack.com/p/another-whynat-meeting

    •�Replies: @Alexander Turok
    @Hail

    No idea why Ann's pissed at Trump. She does have a college degree and Trump has a way of repelling college-educated Americans and attracting no-college Americans, similar to daytime court shows.

    Replies: @G. Poulin
  266. Anon[292] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910

    I read your article and Dennis Dale’s. Neither makes any mention of abortion. That’s the real issue here, not (lol) COVID lockdowns. The Sailer strategy was about appealing to the white working class in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The problem is that the white working class in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin are not on board with the Bible Belt anti-abortion agenda. This wasn’t as big of an issue in 2016 because the Supreme Court assured that people could vote for “pro-life” candidates knowing they couldn’t actually prohibit abortion. That is no longer the case.

    So what do you do? You could moderate your position on abortion to expand your appeal. Or you could double down on calling people murderers, hoping to shame them into changing their minds. The latter strategy hasn’t worked for the past fifty years, but no doubt will start working this year. /sarc

  267. @Dr. X
    @Hypnotoad666


    If Trump gets elected from jail
    WTF is wrong with you people? Don't you get it, even now?

    Let me spell it out for you: HE'S NOT GOING TO "GET ELECTED," the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that's what this sham "trial" was about!

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666

    Let me spell it out for you: HE’S NOT GOING TO “GET ELECTED,” the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that’s what this sham “trial” was about!

    If they knew they could always rig the vote count why would they need the lawfare?

    Incidentally, I believe 2020 was indeed rigged by good old ballot stuffing – facilitated by mass mail-in ballots and centralized vote counting in Democrat controlled operations in Atlanta, Detroit, and Philadelphia.

    But it will be difficult to pull the same scam if Trump is sufficiently ahead in swing state polls and the actual vote margins are indeed be “too big to rig.”

    •�Replies: @Reg Cæsar
    @Hypnotoad666


    But it will be difficult to pull the same scam if Trump is sufficiently ahead in swing state polls and the actual vote margins are indeed be “too big to rig.”
    As they've long said in Illinois, to get to 50%, you'll need 55%.
    , @BB753
    @Hypnotoad666

    "If they knew they could always rig the vote count why would they need the lawfare?"

    Because they want citizens to still believe in their sham democracy. It's amazing an intelligent man like yourself can't figure it out.
    , @Anonymous
    @Hypnotoad666

    The key to pulling off the 2020 fraud was excluding the observers from the counts.

    This was mainly done using bogus COVID social-distancing mandates, whereby observers were either excluded entirely (forced to watch proceedings through windows), or else confined to a corner of a large hall. (This is aside from the broken water-pipe and similar shenanigans.)

    Without COVID it's hard to see them pulling this off a second time.
  268. @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Harry Baldwin

    The Left has always known it's all about who gets to live where and run things, and they set policy accordingly; Lenin's Who/Whom, as our host points out.

    Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don't need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies. Politics are territorial; if you want a polite, principled, classical liberal polity, you've got to evict and keep out the anti-classical liberals. Otherwise, QED, they will use your own classical liberal tenets against you; your Constitution really does become a death pact.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @Corvinus

    Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don’t need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies.

    It’s not all-or-nothing. You need both attitudes. Not just to inspire your own side, but to call out the other. Either they share some of these principles, and those can be used to divide them– the circular firing squad– or their only principle is the-end-justifies-the-means, and that need be exposed.

    Otherwise your only objection to Louis Till’s crimes is that they came too late, after the Italian surrender.

    •�Agree: Fluesterwitz
  269. @Hypnotoad666
    @Dr. X


    Let me spell it out for you: HE’S NOT GOING TO “GET ELECTED,” the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that’s what this sham “trial” was about!
    If they knew they could always rig the vote count why would they need the lawfare?

    Incidentally, I believe 2020 was indeed rigged by good old ballot stuffing - facilitated by mass mail-in ballots and centralized vote counting in Democrat controlled operations in Atlanta, Detroit, and Philadelphia.

    But it will be difficult to pull the same scam if Trump is sufficiently ahead in swing state polls and the actual vote margins are indeed be "too big to rig."

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @BB753, @Anonymous

    But it will be difficult to pull the same scam if Trump is sufficiently ahead in swing state polls and the actual vote margins are indeed be “too big to rig.”

    As they’ve long said in Illinois, to get to 50%, you’ll need 55%.

  270. @Alexander Turok
    @John Johnson

    The difference is that the war in Ukraine is actually happening. You can see it on video. It's not about re-litigating a bunch of crap that happened behind closed doors years or decades ago that nobody complained about at the time.

    Replies: @Hail, @The Anti-Gnostic, @John Johnson

    “John’s” just giving us that baseball-apple pie, founding stock-American perspective on which group of Slavic oligarchs runs a Russian imperial province. You know, the sort of bread-and-butter issue dear to American hearts.

  271. @JLK
    Yes, Alvin Bragg was out to get Trump. It was lawfare, and a disgrace. But Trump is a victim of his own narcissistic personality. Being married to a series of beautiful women wasn't enough, he had to have a dalliance with a low grade porn star. Then he had to cover it up. Instead of getting top grade legal advice not to falsify his business records, he listened to the likes of Michael Cohen, who is everything a lawyer isn't supposed to be. Starting with loyal.

    I feel sorry for my Republican Party, not particularly for Donald Trump. A loss in November means four more years of liberal non-white male judges being appointed, in addition to incalculable other damage to the Republic we inherited.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Precious

    Instead of getting top grade legal advice not to falsify his business records

    A personal check is not a business record. Not legally, not ever. Merchan arbitrarily decided that it was a business record, which, of course, will be reviewed on appeal. And considering that the check to Cohen went through John McEntee who is INFAMOUS for FORGING TRUMP”S SIGNATURE, AND Cohen admitted on the witness stand he embezzled from Trump previously, we don’t even know if it was Trump who signed that check.

  272. @Hail
    The anti-Sailer critic Will Stancil, today, on the Trump "non-crime felony conviction" of May 30, 2024:

    I think there's a powerful urge among liberals to immediately step back and engage in meta commentary here: "How will voters react?"

    That's useless, resist the instinct. Give YOUR sincere reaction.

    Mine: He's a felon, it's an embarrassment he's running, and he should step down.

    [Trump] is a convicted felon, he faces massive future legal jeopardy, it's completely inappropriate for a man like him to run for president of the United States

    https://twitter.com/whstancil/status/1796306798036607009

    Replies: @nebulafox, @scrivener3

    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @scrivener3

    Yeah, but those were all banana republics or the functional equivalent.

    But wait ... so is the USSA.
    , @ChrisZ
    @scrivener3

    Suitable text for a cleanly-designed lawn sign or t-shirt.

    (White text on a MAGA-red background.)
    , @AceDeuce
    @scrivener3


    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.
    And don't get me started on what (((they))) did to Jesus...

    Replies: @Hail
  273. @Curle
    @Anonymous


    For any honest person, this is now a one issue election.
    Yes. But, if you listen to some who post here (on a foreign country payroll perhaps?) that issue is are you or are you not a Putinist. Whatever that’s supposed to signify.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic

    I actually don’t think you need to pay Jewish and Slavic partisans to come on iSteve and argue that Americans need to enlist in the ancient inter-ethnic grudges back home, and must themselves be un-American and unpatriotic for not doing so.

    •�Agree: vinteuil
    •�Thanks: Curle
  274. @John Johnson
    @Anonymous

    All this scandal originated only because he fucked a whore.

    Cheated on his wife with a whore and setup a shell scheme with his lawyer to pay her off and anyone else that might talk. That scheme misrepresented the services provided which is a form of fraud.

    If he had paid her off with a bag of cash it would have been legal.

    But you can't hand a lawyer some cash and say "make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it".

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666

    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.

    That’s not even what the prosection alleged. You have no clue what the case was about.

    That’s not surprising, however, because there was literally no crime and even the usual TDS outlets can’t explain what law was supposedly violated or why.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Hypnotoad666


    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.
    That’s not even what the prosection alleged. You have no clue what the case was about.

    I know what I am talking about and here it is directly from the court:

    One component of this scheme was that, at the Defendant’s request, a lawyer whothen worked for the Trump Organization as Special Counsel to Defendant (“Lawyer A”),covertly paid $130,000 to an adult film actress shortly before the election to prevent her from publicizing a sexual encounter with the Defendant. Lawyer A made the $130,000 payment through a shell corporation he set up and funded at a bank in Manhattan. This payment was illegal, and Lawyer A has since pleaded guilty to making an illegal campaign contribution and
    https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-indictment-34-felony-counts-charges-new-york-read/

    He had his lawyer create fake charges to hide a payment to a porn star.

    Maybe try reading about the case from the actual indictment and not Fox News.

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666, @trevor
  275. HA says:
    @PeterIke
    @HA


    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    Show me where they burned down some buildings and attacked police cars. I'll wait.

    Oh by the way, I don't read Steve that much anymore. Have you ever admitted you were wrong about every single aspect of Covid? Probably not.

    Replies: @HA

    “Show me where they burned down some buildings and attacked police cars.”

    Is that what the judge and jurors did? Funny how I missed that.

    Some [outraged Trump supporters] called for attacks on jurors, the execution of the judge, Justice Juan Merchan, or outright civil war and armed insurrection.

    Is calling for civil war, armed insurrection, and execution of judges up there on the level of attacking a police car? Or are you saying the Trump side is just spewing a bunch of hot air and they’ll never actually do any of the things they say they’re gonna do? Either way, it’s about as effective as your COVID trutherism. You keep making lame defense arguments like that, and Trump might just ask you to join his legal team. You’d fit right in, given how they’re doing.

  276. res says:
    @Altai4
    The Onion headline writes itself.

    "Trump declared guilty... of something we don't know what it is either."

    In fact it's amazing that CNN has been breathless for weeks reporting on something neither they nor their viewers ever understood.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t61VUYK0DWU

    Replies: @res
  277. @Hypnotoad666
    @Dr. X


    Let me spell it out for you: HE’S NOT GOING TO “GET ELECTED,” the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that’s what this sham “trial” was about!
    If they knew they could always rig the vote count why would they need the lawfare?

    Incidentally, I believe 2020 was indeed rigged by good old ballot stuffing - facilitated by mass mail-in ballots and centralized vote counting in Democrat controlled operations in Atlanta, Detroit, and Philadelphia.

    But it will be difficult to pull the same scam if Trump is sufficiently ahead in swing state polls and the actual vote margins are indeed be "too big to rig."

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @BB753, @Anonymous

    “If they knew they could always rig the vote count why would they need the lawfare?”

    Because they want citizens to still believe in their sham democracy. It’s amazing an intelligent man like yourself can’t figure it out.

  278. @Bel Riose
    @Corvinus

    And yet again....another variation of your insipid "but what are YOU going to do about it" canned response.

    Can't you think of something original?

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “And yet again….another variation of your insipid “but what are YOU going to do about it” canned response.”

    It’s true what I say about their lack of guts to solve the problems at hand. You’re no different.

    “Can’t you think of something original”

    That’s rich coming from you.

  279. @PeterIke
    @John Johnson

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    I love when the Feds join the chat.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Anonymous

    “I love when the Feds join the chat.”

    So says the Mossad agent.

  280. @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Harry Baldwin

    The Left has always known it's all about who gets to live where and run things, and they set policy accordingly; Lenin's Who/Whom, as our host points out.

    Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don't need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies. Politics are territorial; if you want a polite, principled, classical liberal polity, you've got to evict and keep out the anti-classical liberals. Otherwise, QED, they will use your own classical liberal tenets against you; your Constitution really does become a death pact.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @Corvinus

    “Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don’t need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies.”

    You mean like Jews and corporatists? If anything, he is beholden to their interests.

    •�Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Corvinus

    Trump has all the right enemies.

    Replies: @Corvinus
  281. Sean says:
    @Buzz Mohawk
    Yes, let's see how this thing plays out.

    Okay, Steve, you ask, "Whaddaya think?"

    Well, I think several things:

    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with "Mob-type" characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.

    2) Trump eventually worked his act until he became what his is politically: Seemingly the only guy who stands for "Americans First." Whether or not that title is true is another matter....

    3) It is terrible that our nation has reached the point that lawfare and the law can be used against political opponents the way it has been in communist countries.

    4) I personally don't like Trump, and I have been considering not actually voting at all, in any election, even local....

    5) This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much....

    Replies: @Dave Pinsen, @Tony, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Sean

    Re 1, you could not build a lego set back then without the Mob taking a cut and it was done through control of unions. If you wanted the work done without strikes and go slows, you paid off, but thet was done by the contractors. Trump never made any illegal payments, his MO was agreeing to pay the contactors the amount of their successful tender and then telling the the contractors when it was too late for them to pull out that they would have to be satisfied with less or the project would collapse. He got the buildings competed on time and without cost overruns in a way others could not.

    Re 5. ‘All enemies foreign and domestic’. One well known commentator wanted the Army to be called out to stop him taking office. Under Obama Tea Party donators were being targeted with IRS audits.

    •�Replies: @Buzz Mohawk
    @Sean

    Hey, listen, you and all others:

    By simply writing that Donald Trump has cavorted with shady characters I am not saying anything disputable. I am saying that he and the people he hired -- like Michael Cohen -- are shady, gross New Yorkers.

    Trump is a con man who hires either slimy dip shits or deep staters or family members who don't share your concerns.

    What amazes me most is that the guy is apparently the best and only presidential choice we have.

    Garbage.

    Absurdity.

    I am not voting again. I am hunkering down, selfishly, while this rotten, stupid, silly world goes on...

    The rest of you can continue pontificating here in your efforts to prove how intelligent you are.

    Replies: @Sean
  282. @Hypnotoad666
    @John Johnson


    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.
    That's not even what the prosection alleged. You have no clue what the case was about.

    That's not surprising, however, because there was literally no crime and even the usual TDS outlets can't explain what law was supposedly violated or why.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.

    That’s not even what the prosection alleged. You have no clue what the case was about.

    I know what I am talking about and here it is directly from the court:

    One component of this scheme was that, at the Defendant’s request, a lawyer whothen worked for the Trump Organization as Special Counsel to Defendant (“Lawyer A”),covertly paid $130,000 to an adult film actress shortly before the election to prevent her from publicizing a sexual encounter with the Defendant. Lawyer A made the $130,000 payment through a shell corporation he set up and funded at a bank in Manhattan. This payment was illegal, and Lawyer A has since pleaded guilty to making an illegal campaign contribution and
    https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-indictment-34-felony-counts-charges-new-york-read/

    He had his lawyer create fake charges to hide a payment to a porn star.

    Maybe try reading about the case from the actual indictment and not Fox News.

    •�Replies: @Hypnotoad666
    @John Johnson

    Those are the facts that Bragg claimed he would prove at trial, not the evidence actually presented.

    Cohen has always admitted he made the payment on his own initiative and then later sought reimbursement after the fact.

    And more to the point there's still no crime alleged.

    This payment was illegal
    LOL. It absolutely wasn't illegal. Paying for an NDA is totally legal and commonplace. No one disputes that. You can't make something illegal just by saying it is illegal. Bragg is just making shit up in his indictment.

    This was the entire bullshit legal strategy however -- just imply something bad happened and that it must be illegal for reasons.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @John Johnson
    , @trevor
    @John Johnson

    Alan Dershowitz offers a good summation of the case

    ALAN DERSHOWITZ: A Prosecution So Crooked It Would Even Make Joseph Stalin Blush

    This prosecution was even worse because, though DA Bragg tried desperately to find a crime with which to charge Trump, he failed to find one, as did his predecessor Cyrus Vance.

    So Bragg went a dangerous step further than Stalin ever did: he made up a crime.

    He found a misdemeanor that was past the statute of limitations — making a false bookkeeping entry on a corporate form — and magically converted it to a felony that was within the limitation period by alleging that the false entry was intended to cover up another crime.

    Throughout the trial, many people inferred that crime to be an alleged attempt at election interference. But Bragg never actually explicitly stated that.
    "In fact, the prosecution didn’t tell the court what Trump’s other “crimes” were until their closing arguments on Wednesday — by which point the defense had no opportunity to respond.

    And even then, the supposed crimes outlined were vague.

    In his closing instructions, Judge Juan Merchan exposed his already apparent bias once more – telling the jurors that they didn’t actually have to agree on the specifics of Trump’s unlawful behavior.

    How could someone defend themselves against such vague allegations?"
    �https://dailycaller.com/2024/05/31/opinion-a-prosecution-so-crooked-it-would-even-make-joseph-stalin-blush-alan-dershowitz/
  283. @John Johnson
    @Sam Hildebrand

    From what I understand, Trump used his own money to pay for the perfectly legal NDA with the porn star.

    But they were logged as legal charges for services rendered.

    The left says this is a violation of campaign finance law, Trump should have used campaign donations instead, since the NDA was meant to help his campaign.

    The campaign finance part was dropped.

    34 felonies is excessive but he isn't innocent.

    The classified documents case is much worse.

    The FBI pressured Facebook to block all posts about the Hunter laptop and 10% to the big guy right before an election, nothing to see here.

    The Hunter laptop was a cover-up.

    That doesn't make Trump any less of a sleaze-ball.

    I shouldn't have to choose between a NYC real estate con and a corrupt system that wants Mr. Magoo to win.

    Replies: @Precious, @Colin Wright

    The classified documents case is much worse.

    For Jack Smith. Jack Smith is stuck with a judge who is willing to give Trump due process. Trump has already won the Florida case, and Jack Smith will be lucky if he can get it to trial in 2025.

  284. @Reg Cæsar
    @John Johnson

    Trump's opponent dissuaded the victim of aggravated rape from considering pressing charges, to protect her husband's, and more importantly, her own career prospects. The two have been celebrated for decades, regardless. This is the amoral nature of the opposition. Do you have an alternative alternative?


    Do you really want to look too closely into the backgrounds of the generals and admirals fighting our wars? Admiral Morrison's son was as scandalous as Hunter Biden, albeit without foreign connections. (His roommate in Paris was a native of Weed, California.) General Patton believed in reincarnation-- how did that affect his deployment of troops?

    Trump has a base, but hasn't built a bench, unless you count his sons. (Don Jr as our Justin?) This is his biggest failing.

    In comparison to the forces lined up against him, Trump is like Casper the Friendly Ghost. As with Casper, the screams he elicits can be laughed at.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    Trump’s opponent dissuaded the victim of aggravated rape from considering pressing charges, to protect her husband’s, and more importantly, her own career prospects.

    I don’t support Biden.

    I know this can be mind-blowing at Unz but some of us view Trump as a NYC con artist and Biden as a corrupt Mr. Magoo.

    These candidates are terrible. Pointing out how one candidate is worse in some area only affirms my opinion. Yet another election where everyone is voting against the other guy. It’s so tiring. Everyone knows that Biden is too old and Trump is a con. Everyone. Every damn person in this country knows that Biden can get lost in a room with one door and Trump has the ethics of a sewer rat.

    You’re not telling me what you like about Trump. You’re telling me about what I shouldn’t like about the other guy.

    You can’t force anyone to pick between drinking turpentine and motor oil. I don’t have to vote.

    •�Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic
    @John Johnson

    A con man who didn't gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    Replies: @John Johnson
    , @Reg Cæsar
    @John Johnson


    I know this can be mind-blowing at Unz but some of us view Trump as a NYC con artist
    Like the one on the dime? The one who cheated on his wife, and cheated us into war?

    You’re not telling me what you like about Trump. You’re telling me about what I shouldn’t like about the other guy.

    That he has the nerve, and the means, to stand up to "the other guy", whoever that may be (it sure isn't Geronto-Joe) is enough to "like". "Appreciate" and "be grateful for" and "encourage" are even better terms.

    Long-expired state misdemeanors onto which federal charges are dumped-- for the first time ever by any state prosecutor-- are less a sign of the man's own corruption than of that of his opponents'. Zombie justice at work.


    For eight years now, I've been ignoring all the talk and Twittering on both sides, and judging these men only by results. The Trump years were fine (until the DNC turned Antifa loose), if disappointing.

    Obama's third term? In a nutshell:



    https://i0.wp.com/nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/04/kamala-harriss-book-is-at-the-border-index.jpg?quality=80&strip=all&ssl=1
  285. @Hrw-500
    When I saw that photo of the judge who goes after Trump, Judge Engoron at https://nitter.poast.org/MarkTay60038140/status/1796478909778952490#m is it my imagination or his face reminds me of Jimmy Saville?

    Btw, some said a precedent was set, but I guess they won't be so much in an hurry to go after Dubya, Bill Clinton, Obama. What's good for the goose is good for the gander.

    Replies: @trevor

    Let’s not forget Hillary.

    •�Agree: Hrw-500
  286. Elon Musk does not have a good opinion about the Trump trial and conviction.

    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/great-damage-elon-musk-host-trump-town-hall-ripping-nyc-guilty-verdict

    •�Replies: @res
    @trevor

    Thanks. This quote makes a good summary.

    "Indeed, great damage was done today to the public’s faith in the American legal system," Musk posted on the platform he owns. "If a former President can be criminally convicted over such a trivial matter – motivated by politics, rather than justice – then anyone is at risk of a similar fate."
  287. @Hail
    @Hail


    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness
    https://dennisdale.com/2024/05/26/noticing-and-nothingness/
    And my response:

    "Dennis Dale on Steve Sailer: the perils of success" (May 31, 2024).

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666

    Wow. Reading that article is like reading a collection of my own posts on how Steve has changed. Like Dale, I make these comments not to tear Steve down but to “notice” what’s going on, and put my two cents in for how he could up his “public intellectual” game.

    Another way to look at it is that I am praising Steve 1.0 and suggesting that the 2.0 version could be invigorated by checking him out.

    It is with a profound sense of pathos that I consider this supposed revival and belated recognition of Sailer who seems to have acquired a whole new generation of admirers to replace the many more who have fallen away in recent years, some embittered with a sense of betrayal, some depressed with a sense of futility and some perhaps exhausted by the repetition of points long ago proved—and now proven to make no difference.

    Steve’s victory lap in promotion of the book is not the beginning of Sailer’s long-overdue influence on the national dialogue, but the end of it; more whimper than bang. Sailer is being given the equivalent of a belated lifetime achievement award with relief that whatever threat he posed is long gone and with the apparent confidence that his ideas on race and IQ can now be the grounds for defending Jewish domination of American politics.

    •�Thanks: Hail
  288. @Corvinus
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    “Trump represents the Right who have learned this lesson: we don’t need a Principled Principletarian quoting the Federalist Papers; we need a sonuvabich who hates our enemies.”

    You mean like Jews and corporatists? If anything, he is beholden to their interests.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic

    Trump has all the right enemies.

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    “Trump has all the right enemies.”

    You mean like those Christian men and women who oppose his con man ways?

    Regardless, you’re missing the point. Your “enemies” include Jews (not corporatists, since you serve them). For Trump, they are an important ally. Now for the Alt Right, corporatists are vile. But for Trump, signing into law tax breaks and deregulating industry to benefit them over the working classes is standard operating procedure. Yet, whites are supposed to back him?

    “A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office”

    Bullshit on your part.

    https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/news/press-releases/oversight-democrats-release-report-proving-trump-pocketed-millions-from-at-least

    “and is willing to die in prison if he has to”.

    Now you’re gaslighting us. He is scared to death of being locked up for the rest of his miserable life. But, as you said, Trump is a con man.
  289. @Sean
    @Buzz Mohawk

    Re 1, you could not build a lego set back then without the Mob taking a cut and it was done through control of unions. If you wanted the work done without strikes and go slows, you paid off, but thet was done by the contractors. Trump never made any illegal payments, his MO was agreeing to pay the contactors the amount of their successful tender and then telling the the contractors when it was too late for them to pull out that they would have to be satisfied with less or the project would collapse. He got the buildings competed on time and without cost overruns in a way others could not.

    Re 5. 'All enemies foreign and domestic'. One well known commentator wanted the Army to be called out to stop him taking office. Under Obama Tea Party donators were being targeted with IRS audits.

    Replies: @Buzz Mohawk

    Hey, listen, you and all others:

    By simply writing that Donald Trump has cavorted with shady characters I am not saying anything disputable. I am saying that he and the people he hired — like Michael Cohen — are shady, gross New Yorkers.

    Trump is a con man who hires either slimy dip shits or deep staters or family members who don’t share your concerns.

    What amazes me most is that the guy is apparently the best and only presidential choice we have.

    Garbage.

    Absurdity.

    I am not voting again. I am hunkering down, selfishly, while this rotten, stupid, silly world goes on…

    The rest of you can continue pontificating here in your efforts to prove how intelligent you are.

    •�Replies: @Sean
    @Buzz Mohawk

    Buzz you used the word "Mob", and that means the Five NYC Families of the Mafia.

    Why be surprised that Trump is a con man, he is a successful politician. He certainly had trouble getting competent experienced people for appointments.

    A distant relative who worked in Union construction business interface knew Nelson Rockefeller, and said he was " a pig" in his private life. Everyone knew what Trump was like. He always gave journalists a quote they could use, so the coverage of him was in excess of his importance for decades. Trump is a con man? Politicians talk rhetoric and you cannot hold him to the fire with each word.
  290. @John Johnson
    @Reg Cæsar

    Trump’s opponent dissuaded the victim of aggravated rape from considering pressing charges, to protect her husband’s, and more importantly, her own career prospects.

    I don't support Biden.

    I know this can be mind-blowing at Unz but some of us view Trump as a NYC con artist and Biden as a corrupt Mr. Magoo.

    These candidates are terrible. Pointing out how one candidate is worse in some area only affirms my opinion. Yet another election where everyone is voting against the other guy. It's so tiring. Everyone knows that Biden is too old and Trump is a con. Everyone. Every damn person in this country knows that Biden can get lost in a room with one door and Trump has the ethics of a sewer rat.

    You're not telling me what you like about Trump. You're telling me about what I shouldn't like about the other guy.

    You can't force anyone to pick between drinking turpentine and motor oil. I don't have to vote.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic, @Reg Cæsar

    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    •�Thanks: Hypnotoad666
    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don't know if that is true.

    Biden would also tell you that he hasn't made a dime from his son's scheming. Does anyone believe that?

    The Trump/Johnson aid bill is filled with porky pay-offs. Who knows what kind of swamp monster drew that up. Probably not Trump but he certainly green-lighted it. There could very well be some financial play for Trump. Presidents in the past have setup long term schemes where they later make money from a company that just happened to get a sweetheart deal when they were president.

    If Trump gets a prison sentence it will be a short stint in a Federal hotel for white collar criminals.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @Precious
  291. @prime noticer
    imagine witnessing everything that's happened so far, in broad daylight, in front of the entire world, but ALSO thinking, the Democrats WON'T rig the 2024 election behind the scenes as well, and will just allow Trump to compete fairly and maybe even win.

    huh?

    there's a -1000% chance Trump wins the 2024 election.

    forget the fears that maybe Trump will win, but once in office again he will still not be as serious as he needs to be, or that maybe he will be a lot more serious this time, but the entire DC apparatus will utterly stonewall him the second time around and nothing will get done.

    he's NOT getting back into office. WHY ON EARTH would Democrats ALLOW him to get back into office? they control everything here, with nearly zero pushback from Republicans. most of who want Trump gone about as much as the Democrats want him gone. Democrats rigged the last election. they're throwing him in prison. they'll be rigging this election too. Trump is NOT going to "Win the Presidency from a jail cell". please think this thru and the ludicrous idea that Democrats will allow him to fairly compete for the White House again so that he can try to hurt them and get them back, at least a little. the level of boomer cope here is off the charts.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Fluesterwitz

    It’s not just the Democrats who don’t want Trump in the presidency, it’s the CIA and FBI and Military Industrial Complex, so yeah, he’s up against some heavy hitters.

  292. @Alexander Turok
    @John Johnson

    The difference is that the war in Ukraine is actually happening. You can see it on video. It's not about re-litigating a bunch of crap that happened behind closed doors years or decades ago that nobody complained about at the time.

    Replies: @Hail, @The Anti-Gnostic, @John Johnson

    The difference is that the war in Ukraine is actually happening. You can see it on video. It’s not about re-litigating a bunch of crap that happened behind closed doors years or decades ago that nobody complained about at the time.

    So scheming with a lawyer to protect his image as he ran for president should be ignored because it was a success.

    Got it.

    What about the documents case? Or does he get a pass on those felonies because he isn’t actively showing off classified documents to friends at his mansion?

  293. @John Johnson
    @Hypnotoad666


    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.
    That’s not even what the prosection alleged. You have no clue what the case was about.

    I know what I am talking about and here it is directly from the court:

    One component of this scheme was that, at the Defendant’s request, a lawyer whothen worked for the Trump Organization as Special Counsel to Defendant (“Lawyer A”),covertly paid $130,000 to an adult film actress shortly before the election to prevent her from publicizing a sexual encounter with the Defendant. Lawyer A made the $130,000 payment through a shell corporation he set up and funded at a bank in Manhattan. This payment was illegal, and Lawyer A has since pleaded guilty to making an illegal campaign contribution and
    https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-indictment-34-felony-counts-charges-new-york-read/

    He had his lawyer create fake charges to hide a payment to a porn star.

    Maybe try reading about the case from the actual indictment and not Fox News.

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666, @trevor

    Those are the facts that Bragg claimed he would prove at trial, not the evidence actually presented.

    Cohen has always admitted he made the payment on his own initiative and then later sought reimbursement after the fact.

    And more to the point there’s still no crime alleged.

    This payment was illegal

    LOL. It absolutely wasn’t illegal. Paying for an NDA is totally legal and commonplace. No one disputes that. You can’t make something illegal just by saying it is illegal. Bragg is just making shit up in his indictment.

    This was the entire bullshit legal strategy however — just imply something bad happened and that it must be illegal for reasons.

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Hypnotoad666

    I congratulate you on a masterclass in gaslighting in comment 295.

    Replies: @Mr. Anon
    , @John Johnson
    @Hypnotoad666

    Cohen has always admitted he made the payment on his own initiative and then later sought reimbursement after the fact.

    No he said in the trial that Trump told him to do it:
    https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-michael-cohen-hush-money-trial-c8b39c498f354cb8b2b67dc429bdc456

    You are saying the Cohen came up with the payment scheme on his own and then later told Trump he paid off a porn star?

    This payment was illegal
    LOL. It absolutely wasn’t illegal.

    That wasn't my comment. I copy and pasted from the court documents and you responded as if I said it.

    It was up to the jury to decide if he broke the law.

    I think 34 felonies is excessive but they are Class D.

    If you are going to setup a shell payment system to hide hush money payments to various people then you want to trust that your lawyer won't later testify against you.

    But the real lesson is to not put your trust in a silver spoon reality TV star who dodged questions about taxes and was already on record as having cheated on multiple wives. He in fact did an interview where he laughed about it. Cheat on your wife and then humiliate her even further. What a guy.
  294. @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910

    I differentite between

    a)being active in politics and

    b) writing analyses that can be used in politics

    And I did so in response to Hypnotoad’s posts above – No. 37 and 53 – in which he seems to ignore this differentiation.

  295. @TWS
    @New Dealer

    One kid with a set of testicles and a steady hand made the rioters think twice.

    Replies: @Ralph L

    It’s surprising now that Kyle’s arrest and indictment didn’t give them the green light again, but outside Portland, the riots stopped, as I remember. I sure hope he lives happily ever after all that.

  296. @John Johnson
    @Reg Cæsar

    Trump’s opponent dissuaded the victim of aggravated rape from considering pressing charges, to protect her husband’s, and more importantly, her own career prospects.

    I don't support Biden.

    I know this can be mind-blowing at Unz but some of us view Trump as a NYC con artist and Biden as a corrupt Mr. Magoo.

    These candidates are terrible. Pointing out how one candidate is worse in some area only affirms my opinion. Yet another election where everyone is voting against the other guy. It's so tiring. Everyone knows that Biden is too old and Trump is a con. Everyone. Every damn person in this country knows that Biden can get lost in a room with one door and Trump has the ethics of a sewer rat.

    You're not telling me what you like about Trump. You're telling me about what I shouldn't like about the other guy.

    You can't force anyone to pick between drinking turpentine and motor oil. I don't have to vote.

    Replies: @The Anti-Gnostic, @Reg Cæsar

    I know this can be mind-blowing at Unz but some of us view Trump as a NYC con artist

    Like the one on the dime? The one who cheated on his wife, and cheated us into war?

    You’re not telling me what you like about Trump. You’re telling me about what I shouldn’t like about the other guy.

    That he has the nerve, and the means, to stand up to “the other guy”, whoever that may be (it sure isn’t Geronto-Joe) is enough to “like”. “Appreciate” and “be grateful for” and “encourage” are even better terms.

    Long-expired state misdemeanors onto which federal charges are dumped– for the first time ever by any state prosecutor– are less a sign of the man’s own corruption than of that of his opponents’. Zombie justice at work.

    For eight years now, I’ve been ignoring all the talk and Twittering on both sides, and judging these men only by results. The Trump years were fine (until the DNC turned Antifa loose), if disappointing.

    Obama’s third term? In a nutshell:

  297. @CalCooledge
    What do I think.
    I think he's unfit for office.
    I think Republicans are stupid for not nominating Desantis or Haley.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Hunsdon, @Thea, @Rick P, @Jus' Sayin'...

    Haley??? Isn’t that the same Nimarata Haley, née Randhawa, who was caught painting pro-genocide messages on one of the US artillery shells that Israel is using tyo murder Palestinian women and children?

  298. Calling this “the face of evil” is a bit much but:

  299. @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant.

    How’d that work for Kevin Phillips? The “proto-Steve”.

  300. @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Corvinus

    Trump has all the right enemies.

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “Trump has all the right enemies.”

    You mean like those Christian men and women who oppose his con man ways?

    Regardless, you’re missing the point. Your “enemies” include Jews (not corporatists, since you serve them). For Trump, they are an important ally. Now for the Alt Right, corporatists are vile. But for Trump, signing into law tax breaks and deregulating industry to benefit them over the working classes is standard operating procedure. Yet, whites are supposed to back him?

    “A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office”

    Bullshit on your part.

    https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/news/press-releases/oversight-democrats-release-report-proving-trump-pocketed-millions-from-at-least

    “and is willing to die in prison if he has to”.

    Now you’re gaslighting us. He is scared to death of being locked up for the rest of his miserable life. But, as you said, Trump is a con man.

  301. I did not vote for Mr. Trump. In fact, I haven’t voted in a presidential election since George W. Bush’s re-election. I became so dismayed at having voted for who I believe became the worst president of modern times that I wrote to my county board of elections asking to have my voter registration expunged from the records. They kindly obliged.

    I will admit to some enjoyment when he was elected if only for the “spanner in the gears” factor and the national humiliation of Hillary Clinton when she was denied what she assumed was rightly hers. But I had no illusions that he would fundamentally change anything.

    Trump’s conviction only confirms what has long been coming: The US is no different from any Third World banana republic (I know you’re supposed to say “Global South” but I’m an old man and you can’t change the rules in the middle of the game).

    I won’t be participating in this every four years national circle jerk which doesn’t really matter in the long run. The presence of the Walking Dead in the Oval Office proves its futility. In spite of my Christian faith, I don’t have much hope for this country or Western Civilization. I may think like a Dutch Calvinist but I feel like a nihilist.

    “I see leper colonies on the horizon, as far as the eye can see.”

    •�Replies: @Ralph L
    @Enemy of Earth

    What in particular soured you on Bush and political participation after 2004?

    1984 is the last election I can think of that wasn't obviously the lesser of two evils.

    Replies: @Enemy of Earth
  302. @dearieme
    As ol' Ben Fruitlin said "A banana Republic, if you can keep it".

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob
    •�Replies: @Hail
    @Jim Don Bob

    Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA, sometime before the mid-2030s, with millions of deaths and an uncertain outcome for the White-West and its viability. I quote:

    Much of the United States - certainly the bits that matter - is now institutionally evil, and I am not sure that evil can be reversed, whether we're talking about the bodily mutilation of middle-school girls or the sacrifice of a generation of a distant nation's men in the meat-grinder of the Ukraine war. On America's watch, the entirety of western civilisation is sliding off the cliff, and very fast - which is all anyone will remember about it.

    And yet any alternative to the Uniparty consensus is not to be permitted, and must be hunted down and crushed. There is no future in the post-constitutional polity the Democrats are constructing. "Decline" is a choice - in the Austrian or Portuguese sense. But that's not in the offing here: America's death will be bloodier and more convulsive than anything seen in post-imperial Europe. Check back with me in ten years, and see who's right.
    This is surprising rhetoric from someone like Mark Steyn. It was batted around often in the lean-and-mean far-dissident circles in the 2000s, including spaces overlapping with Sailer blog and its "Sailertariat." But no one in the mainstreamed touched such views.

    Events of the 2010s mainstreamed the view of alarmist-fatalistic decline. By ca. 2018, the views were near-mainstream, but realignments never really occur overnight (even when they appear to). By some point in the 2020s, it no longer seemed like Mark Steyn is being "the crazy one" here for predicting such a thing. It is even now commonly heard.

    It's sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.

    Replies: @Thea, @Corvinus, @Jim Don Bob, @Nicholas Stix
  303. @Hypnotoad666
    @John Johnson

    Those are the facts that Bragg claimed he would prove at trial, not the evidence actually presented.

    Cohen has always admitted he made the payment on his own initiative and then later sought reimbursement after the fact.

    And more to the point there's still no crime alleged.

    This payment was illegal
    LOL. It absolutely wasn't illegal. Paying for an NDA is totally legal and commonplace. No one disputes that. You can't make something illegal just by saying it is illegal. Bragg is just making shit up in his indictment.

    This was the entire bullshit legal strategy however -- just imply something bad happened and that it must be illegal for reasons.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @John Johnson

    I congratulate you on a masterclass in gaslighting in comment 295.

    •�Troll: Mr. Anon
    •�Replies: @Mr. Anon
    @Corvinus

    I only use the "troll" button, because there isn't a button for "a**hole". Or "Corvinus".

    Same thing.

    Replies: @Corvinus
  304. @The Anti-Gnostic
    @John Johnson

    A con man who didn't gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don’t know if that is true.

    Biden would also tell you that he hasn’t made a dime from his son’s scheming. Does anyone believe that?

    The Trump/Johnson aid bill is filled with porky pay-offs. Who knows what kind of swamp monster drew that up. Probably not Trump but he certainly green-lighted it. There could very well be some financial play for Trump. Presidents in the past have setup long term schemes where they later make money from a company that just happened to get a sweetheart deal when they were president.

    If Trump gets a prison sentence it will be a short stint in a Federal hotel for white collar criminals.

    •�Replies: @Hunsdon
    @John Johnson

    John Johnson said: If Trump gets a prison sentence it will be a short stint in a Federal hotel for white collar criminals.

    Hunsdon said: So we only lock up political opponents for "short stints" in "hotels"? Tyranny, but now with a human face!
    , @Precious
    @John Johnson


    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don’t know if that is true.
    Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true.

    Replies: @HA, @John Johnson
  305. @dearieme
    Well done, America. You are now a Banana Republic in the eyes of the world: people who used to hate you will now also despise you.

    People (like me) who have had good experiences when visiting the US will begin to despair.

    Wait, I hear you cry, there's a mighty difference between the governing classes and The People. Aye, but it's the governing classes who have the whip hand.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob, @trevor, @Curle, @Joe Stalin, @Bragadocious

    Pretty funny and ironic coming from a Brit whose government is complicit in this “prosecution” by funding Alvin Bragg and other woke prosecutors. Oh but His Majesty’s government would never do that you say, to which I say it sure would, it’s just smart enough to use NGO cutouts to do the dirty work. In this case, Soros >>>>> Color of Change >>>> Bragg. But it’s a very British thing to engage in lies and disinformation, then mock the people who have been victimized by those lies. Israel does this too.

  306. @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality
    @Buzz Mohawk


    This is all like some communist or third-world country, and you, Steve, seemingly have no opinion about it or any other, certain issues that mean as much….
    Yes. Steve was super passionate about Covid Lockdowns. He was emotionally invested in Zelensky.

    But the destruction of his own people ..... yawn.

    Replies: @Anon

    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you’d want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you’ll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.

    •�Agree: Frau Katze
    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Anon

    Those who pushed the tyrannical Covid lockdown will never be forgotten. And they will never be forgiven.

    Unless we’re going to start forgetting historical injustices? I mean, can we quit talking about anything that happened during World War II now?
    , @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality
    @Anon

    The point is, Steve Sailer plays the "above it all" person when the stakes are the fate of White people. He claims he is a sober minded person not given to passion.

    But that's not true. Sailer was very passionate (along with Cochran) in pushing Covid lockdowns and in supporting the dictator Zelensky (who isn't even Ukrainian).

    So, the point is, how do you get away from calling Steve Sailer a liar who just carries water for those who want to keep Whites from being on their own side?
    , @Mr. Anon
    @Anon


    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you’d want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you’ll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.
    That's right. A lot of us will not forgive recommending house arrest for the entire World's population.

    We will not forgive tyranny.

    You know how I knew that lockdowns were a bad idea?

    Because they are called "lockdowns" - a term that comes from prison administration.

    Oh, and by the way, f**k you.

    Replies: @Mark G.
    , @Mike Tre
    @Anon

    Since you brought it up, the following article highlights the exchange between Kovid Klown Kris Kuomo and some comedian who thoroughly embarrasses him:

    https://www.zerohedge.com/covid-19/watch-dave-smith-burn-chris-cuomo-ground-epic-covid-debate

    And lockdowns weren't just supported by liberals. A significant number of boomer-cons were perfectly ok with the entire affair, and their numbers are reflected by several commenters here.
  307. So fascinated by some of the responses I’m seeing to the convictions. Whatever you think about the process, how do you get from “I think this person was treated unfairly by the legal system” to “Therefore, he should run the United States”?

    This is a valid question. I’d say Americans should do everything to help Trump win so that this sort of lawfare fails and is seen to fail. If not, it will become the “new normal” and “just another tool in our toolkit”. It would be better to have that lovable goof back in the White House than to have these dirty tricks become normal.

    •�Replies: @Curle
    @Cagey Beast


    “I think this person was treated unfairly by the legal system” to “Therefore, he should run the United States”?
    False dilemma. The math is:

    1) this person was mistreated by the legal system for the benefit of the only other person with a chance to become president; 2) the only means I have to stop more of the same is to punish the beneficiary of the wrong doing; and, 3) Trump is no worse than the only other possible president; therefore the only vote I can exercise that will have corrective effect is a vote for Trump.

    Replies: @Cagey Beast
  308. @Hail
    @Dieter Kief


    Steve Sailer...is not directly involved in politics
    Some time ago, definitely in the 2000s and into the 2010s, Mr. Sailer was making suggestions for how Whites in the USA could win a political game --- hence "The Sailer Strategy." (Let me here re-nominate The Sailer Strategy to be the title of his next book.)

    It's funny, but Steve Sailer no longer much talks about his own titular political-electoral strategy, that long-time followers know so well, that was so influential over the past decade, because the Trump MAGA movement used the Sailer Strategy.

    See also the excellent Sailer-analysis essay by Dennis Dale published this week:

    https://dennisdale.substack.com/p/noticing-and-nothingness

    Updating the Sailer Strategy for the 2020s and the soon-upcoming 2030s would seem relevant. And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This "secession" or "partition" question is one I've never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory. It would be interesting to see what he would do with it, if taking it seriously and not making a light joke of it and dismissing it as either crazy or evil to even think about.

    Replies: @silviosilver, @OilcanFloyd, @Hail, @Anon, @Dieter Kief, @Reg Cæsar, @MEH 0910

    And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This “secession” or “partition” question is one I’ve never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory.

    Chronicles Magazine:
    https://chroniclesmagazine.org/view/the-hate-that-dare-not-speak-its-name/
    https://archive.ph/11W9l

    The Hate That Dare Not Speak Its Name
    BY STEVE SAILER
    MAY 2024
    […]
    This lack of coherent pushback against anti-white racism encourages the left to keep it up. Meanwhile, the few rightists who do see what’s going on are driven to desperate, despairing recommendations, such as calling for the breaking up the United States on the assumption that nothing else can prevent genocide.
    […]
    So, do demands for diversity inclusion, and equity spell DIE for whites?

    Nah. It’s a philosophy that appeals less to hard men than to overweight women. Nor is the spread of anti-white hate terribly likely to lead to apocalyptic outcomes such as genocide or civil war.

    There are no practical ways to divide up the country when the political dividing lines don’t follow something simple like latitude or longitude, but instead run roughly between the inner and outer suburbs of our top 100 metropolitan areas.

    •�Thanks: Hail
    •�Replies: @Hail
    @MEH 0910

    This is about the limit of Mr. Sailer's comments on the increasingly-talked-about subject of a post-USA political order.

    Meanwhile, the few [White, U.S.] rightists who do see what’s going on are driven to desperate, despairing recommendations, such as calling for the breaking up the United States on the assumption that nothing else can prevent genocide [of Whites]
    I believe this phrasing, or framing, qualifies as "strawman."

    One problem with this dismissiveness is most of the Diversity in North America is recent and weakly rooted. These are not ancient blood-and-soil communities that strangely overlap within different sections of single metropolitan areas as through some magic.

    The rooted elements do have a coherence, which cannot be waved away. The foreigners, children of foreigners, and the many elite dual-citizens who surround the core, rooted elements, -- they can always move on, just as easily as they wandered in. Does Ilhan Omar's family really have deep ties to Minnesota, to the extent they'd fight over it rather than move to wherever else hands out Diversity-benefits, if Minnesota closes off?). I believe this applies to most parts of the USA. Realignments could happen rapidly, I think, in a 1989-to-1991 Soviet-bloc-like scenario.

    Maybe just as likely, and less risky, would be slower processes, similar to the use of the word "gentrification" and how that works, where one almost has to speak in "decades."

    Most likely, North America's future could in the middle of the "sudden breakup, South Asia late 1940s" scenario and the "decades-long ethno-regional gentrification" scenario. The latter is already happening, of course, and has been since the mid-20th century, entirely against the interests and viability of the White core-population.
  309. @John Johnson
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don't know if that is true.

    Biden would also tell you that he hasn't made a dime from his son's scheming. Does anyone believe that?

    The Trump/Johnson aid bill is filled with porky pay-offs. Who knows what kind of swamp monster drew that up. Probably not Trump but he certainly green-lighted it. There could very well be some financial play for Trump. Presidents in the past have setup long term schemes where they later make money from a company that just happened to get a sweetheart deal when they were president.

    If Trump gets a prison sentence it will be a short stint in a Federal hotel for white collar criminals.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @Precious

    John Johnson said: If Trump gets a prison sentence it will be a short stint in a Federal hotel for white collar criminals.

    Hunsdon said: So we only lock up political opponents for “short stints” in “hotels”? Tyranny, but now with a human face!

  310. @epebble
    @Curle

    Started with Clinton. At least in Nixon's case, there were issues concerning the public.

    Replies: @Curle

    At least in Nixon’s case, there were issues concerning the public.

    John Dean being trapped in a honey pot operation concerns the public?

    •�Troll: Corvinus
  311. @scrivener3
    @Hail

    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.

    Replies: @trevor, @ChrisZ, @AceDeuce

    Yeah, but those were all banana republics or the functional equivalent.

    But wait … so is the USSA.

  312. @John Johnson
    @Hypnotoad666


    But you can’t hand a lawyer some cash and say “make up some work like you charged me and then go deliver it”.
    That’s not even what the prosection alleged. You have no clue what the case was about.

    I know what I am talking about and here it is directly from the court:

    One component of this scheme was that, at the Defendant’s request, a lawyer whothen worked for the Trump Organization as Special Counsel to Defendant (“Lawyer A”),covertly paid $130,000 to an adult film actress shortly before the election to prevent her from publicizing a sexual encounter with the Defendant. Lawyer A made the $130,000 payment through a shell corporation he set up and funded at a bank in Manhattan. This payment was illegal, and Lawyer A has since pleaded guilty to making an illegal campaign contribution and
    https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-indictment-34-felony-counts-charges-new-york-read/

    He had his lawyer create fake charges to hide a payment to a porn star.

    Maybe try reading about the case from the actual indictment and not Fox News.

    Replies: @Hypnotoad666, @trevor

    Alan Dershowitz offers a good summation of the case

    ALAN DERSHOWITZ: A Prosecution So Crooked It Would Even Make Joseph Stalin Blush

    This prosecution was even worse because, though DA Bragg tried desperately to find a crime with which to charge Trump, he failed to find one, as did his predecessor Cyrus Vance.

    So Bragg went a dangerous step further than Stalin ever did: he made up a crime.

    He found a misdemeanor that was past the statute of limitations — making a false bookkeeping entry on a corporate form — and magically converted it to a felony that was within the limitation period by alleging that the false entry was intended to cover up another crime.

    Throughout the trial, many people inferred that crime to be an alleged attempt at election interference. But Bragg never actually explicitly stated that.

    “In fact, the prosecution didn’t tell the court what Trump’s other “crimes” were until their closing arguments on Wednesday — by which point the defense had no opportunity to respond.

    And even then, the supposed crimes outlined were vague.

    In his closing instructions, Judge Juan Merchan exposed his already apparent bias once more – telling the jurors that they didn’t actually have to agree on the specifics of Trump’s unlawful behavior.

    How could someone defend themselves against such vague allegations?”

    https://dailycaller.com/2024/05/31/opinion-a-prosecution-so-crooked-it-would-even-make-joseph-stalin-blush-alan-dershowitz/

  313. @Enemy of Earth
    I did not vote for Mr. Trump. In fact, I haven't voted in a presidential election since George W. Bush's re-election. I became so dismayed at having voted for who I believe became the worst president of modern times that I wrote to my county board of elections asking to have my voter registration expunged from the records. They kindly obliged.

    I will admit to some enjoyment when he was elected if only for the "spanner in the gears" factor and the national humiliation of Hillary Clinton when she was denied what she assumed was rightly hers. But I had no illusions that he would fundamentally change anything.

    Trump's conviction only confirms what has long been coming: The US is no different from any Third World banana republic (I know you're supposed to say "Global South" but I'm an old man and you can't change the rules in the middle of the game).

    I won't be participating in this every four years national circle jerk which doesn't really matter in the long run. The presence of the Walking Dead in the Oval Office proves its futility. In spite of my Christian faith, I don't have much hope for this country or Western Civilization. I may think like a Dutch Calvinist but I feel like a nihilist.

    "I see leper colonies on the horizon, as far as the eye can see."

    Replies: @Ralph L

    What in particular soured you on Bush and political participation after 2004?

    1984 is the last election I can think of that wasn’t obviously the lesser of two evils.

    •�Replies: @Enemy of Earth
    @Ralph L

    The war on terror, No Child Left Behind, the Patriot Act, invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, Dick Cheney, John Roberts, the Troubled Asset Relief Program to name a few. I bailed on electoral politics when I realized there is no real difference between the two parties. Republicans lie about being fiscally responsible and being for limited government, then they grow the federal government and budget as large as they are able. Democrats don't lie about it, they tell you how they plan to expand the size and power of government.

    In the end it doesn't matter who gets elected to most offices. They've all been bought and sold by those who really wield the power, financial institutions, large corporations, the lobby industry, etc.

    Remember that old slogan from the Sixties? "What if they gave a war and no one came?" Well, I look forward to the presidential election where practically no one votes.
  314. Anonymous[349] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Hypnotoad666
    Because of this, anybody who doesn't vote Trump is on the side of systemic corruption, rule by the Deep State, and destroying the Constitution. And is therefore un-American scum.

    Anybody who stays silent is just as bad -- I'm looking at you, Steve.

    Replies: @Dieter Kief, @vinteuil, @Luke Lea, @Corvinus, @Anonymous

    Try putting your real name on everything you write on every platform, plus everything you say in public. Steve is fully doxxed, and he has a family.
    Silence doesn’t necessarily mean capitulation. It also means “you can fill in the blanks”. So go ahead and fill in the blanks using your real name.

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Anonymous


    Try putting your real name on everything you write on every platform, plus everything you say in public. Steve is fully doxxed, and he has a family.

    Silence doesn’t necessarily mean capitulation. It also means “you can fill in the blanks”. So go ahead and fill in the blanks using your real name.
    Good points.

    However, silence is one thing. It can also be observed that Steve says affirmatively some pretty harmful stuff. No one is forcing him to say such things. I am recalling here his moralizing on racial integration (and his silence on Zionism), on the conflict in the Ukraine (and his silence on Zionism), and on skepticism of the official story of the jewish experience during World War 2.
  315. @scrivener3
    @Hail

    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.

    Replies: @trevor, @ChrisZ, @AceDeuce

    Suitable text for a cleanly-designed lawn sign or t-shirt.

    (White text on a MAGA-red background.)

  316. Curle says:
    @Cagey Beast
    https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1796557579004547126

    So fascinated by some of the responses I'm seeing to the convictions. Whatever you think about the process, how do you get from "I think this person was treated unfairly by the legal system" to "Therefore, he should run the United States"?
    This is a valid question. I'd say Americans should do everything to help Trump win so that this sort of lawfare fails and is seen to fail. If not, it will become the "new normal" and "just another tool in our toolkit". It would be better to have that lovable goof back in the White House than to have these dirty tricks become normal.

    Replies: @Curle

    “I think this person was treated unfairly by the legal system” to “Therefore, he should run the United States”?

    False dilemma. The math is:

    1) this person was mistreated by the legal system for the benefit of the only other person with a chance to become president; 2) the only means I have to stop more of the same is to punish the beneficiary of the wrong doing; and, 3) Trump is no worse than the only other possible president; therefore the only vote I can exercise that will have corrective effect is a vote for Trump.

    •�Agree: Cagey Beast, trevor
    •�Replies: @Cagey Beast
    @Curle

    Amoral people only recognise whether a technique is effective or ineffective. An appeal to higher principles is pointless, so the only way to prevent tit-for-tat lawfare in the future is for them to fail now. That means Trump must win.
  317. @Curle
    @Cagey Beast


    “I think this person was treated unfairly by the legal system” to “Therefore, he should run the United States”?
    False dilemma. The math is:

    1) this person was mistreated by the legal system for the benefit of the only other person with a chance to become president; 2) the only means I have to stop more of the same is to punish the beneficiary of the wrong doing; and, 3) Trump is no worse than the only other possible president; therefore the only vote I can exercise that will have corrective effect is a vote for Trump.

    Replies: @Cagey Beast

    Amoral people only recognise whether a technique is effective or ineffective. An appeal to higher principles is pointless, so the only way to prevent tit-for-tat lawfare in the future is for them to fail now. That means Trump must win.

  318. @Hypnotoad666
    @John Johnson

    Those are the facts that Bragg claimed he would prove at trial, not the evidence actually presented.

    Cohen has always admitted he made the payment on his own initiative and then later sought reimbursement after the fact.

    And more to the point there's still no crime alleged.

    This payment was illegal
    LOL. It absolutely wasn't illegal. Paying for an NDA is totally legal and commonplace. No one disputes that. You can't make something illegal just by saying it is illegal. Bragg is just making shit up in his indictment.

    This was the entire bullshit legal strategy however -- just imply something bad happened and that it must be illegal for reasons.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @John Johnson

    Cohen has always admitted he made the payment on his own initiative and then later sought reimbursement after the fact.

    No he said in the trial that Trump told him to do it:
    https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-michael-cohen-hush-money-trial-c8b39c498f354cb8b2b67dc429bdc456

    You are saying the Cohen came up with the payment scheme on his own and then later told Trump he paid off a porn star?

    This payment was illegal

    LOL. It absolutely wasn’t illegal.

    That wasn’t my comment. I copy and pasted from the court documents and you responded as if I said it.

    It was up to the jury to decide if he broke the law.

    I think 34 felonies is excessive but they are Class D.

    If you are going to setup a shell payment system to hide hush money payments to various people then you want to trust that your lawyer won’t later testify against you.

    But the real lesson is to not put your trust in a silver spoon reality TV star who dodged questions about taxes and was already on record as having cheated on multiple wives. He in fact did an interview where he laughed about it. Cheat on your wife and then humiliate her even further. What a guy.

  319. @Steve Sailer
    @Dave Pinsen

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But ... nada.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Anonymous, @Mike Tre, @Dave Pinsen, @Corvinus

    If they’d had real dirt on Trump, they wouldn’t have had to rely on manufactured nonsense like the Steele dossier.

    •�Agree: Harry Baldwin, MEH 0910
    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Dave Pinsen

    JFC, just stop. 34 felonies is a big deal. Trump is a known law breaker. He just happened to use good fixers to get out of jams.

    As far as Giuliani is concerned, he sold his soul for fame and fortune. What did it get him?

    https://apnews.com/article/giuliani-trump-election-indictments-georgia-eb2ff2ca7a94f9f80e95e897584c8e7d
    , @Chrisnonymous
    @Dave Pinsen

    In retrospect, the Steele dossier was a weird tactic for the Clinton campaign to pursue. The connections to Putin were a bit too high-concept to be effective campaign fodder, as evidenced by the fact that Trump's supporters stayed with him through thick and thin of it. It seems like either the Clinton campaign was out of touch* or the dossier was meant to rally the establishment and the gay, Putin-hating left, which is exactly what it did. If the Clintons had really wanted to manufacture something that struck at his base, they would have done something that showed him to be a hypocrite on immigration, the wall, and Muslims.

    * I mean, like, the hookers peeing on Obama's bed bit was almost an own goal from a campaign perspective. What red-blooded American wouldn't have loved for that to be real?

    Replies: @That Would Be Telling
  320. @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality
    @Anonymous

    Whites can have their interests represented. All they have to do is ask for it. Loudly and repeatedly.

    Half the commenters on Sailer's blog are committed to making sure that never happens.

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “Whites can have their interests represented. All they have to do is ask for it. Loudly and repeatedly.”

    We do. It’s just that you disagree with what we are interested in and how we pursue it.

    “Half the commenters on Sailer’s blog are committed to making sure that never happens@

    I would say 90 percent.

  321. @Steve Sailer
    @Dave Pinsen

    I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him involving mobbed-up private sanitation on a Trump construction project or the like. But ... nada.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Anonymous, @Mike Tre, @Dave Pinsen, @Corvinus

    “I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him…”

    Either you are ignorant or you are being coy. Probably besr you don’t comment on such things.

    https://time.com/4465744/donald-trump-undocumented-workers/

    —For 36 years, Trump has denied knowingly using undocumented workers to demolish the building that would be replaced with Trump Tower in 1980. After Senator Marco Rubio raised the issue of undocumented Polish workers during a Republican primary debate this year, Trump described himself as removed from the problem. “I hire a contractor. The contractor then hires the subcontractor,” he said. “They have people. I don’t know. I don’t remember, that was so many years ago, 35 years ago.”

    But thousands of pages of documents from the case, including reams of testimony and sworn depositions reviewed by TIME, tell a different story. Kept for more than a decade in 13 boxes in a federal judiciary storage unit in Missouri, the documents contain testimony that Trump sought out the Polish workers when he saw them on another job, instigated the creation of the company that paid them and negotiated the hours they would work. The papers contain testimony that Trump repeatedly toured the site where the men were working, directly addressed them about pay problems and even promised to pay them himself, which he eventually did.—

    •�Replies: @Prester John
    @Corvinus

    "The papers contain testimony that Trump repeatedly toured the site where the men were working...".

    Maybe. Need more than mere "testimony."

    Replies: @Corvinus
  322. universities openly ignore the Supreme Court on Affirmative Action. now Joe Biden is openly mocking and ignoring the Supreme Court on student loans. and again note, in broad daylight, in front of the entire world. Democrats aren’t sneaking around behind the scenes. they are calling press conferences and telling the SC to F off.

    things have changed. what makes anybody think the Supreme Court can save Trump here? New York will OPENLY IGNORE any SC ruling in Trump’s favor. if SC even has anything to say about it in the first place, since they punted on the election. and that’s just the first trial of many. Trump will be on trial all year in multiple states.

    as noted by lots of people, Supreme Court has no integral enforcement mechanism. if good faith actors are leaving the building, then rulings requires force. Democrats have started openly ignoring the court. who’s going to show up to FORCE them to obey the court? not Republicans, that’s for sure.

    things are about to bust wide open.

    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @prime noticer

    Also, the Democrats have intimidated the Supreme Court justices by threatening to pack it. An outrageous move which will receive no criticism from the mainstream media.
  323. @Dave Pinsen
    @Steve Sailer

    If they’d had real dirt on Trump, they wouldn’t have had to rely on manufactured nonsense like the Steele dossier.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Chrisnonymous

    JFC, just stop. 34 felonies is a big deal. Trump is a known law breaker. He just happened to use good fixers to get out of jams.

    As far as Giuliani is concerned, he sold his soul for fame and fortune. What did it get him?

    https://apnews.com/article/giuliani-trump-election-indictments-georgia-eb2ff2ca7a94f9f80e95e897584c8e7d

    •�Agree: Not Raul
  324. Anonymous[153] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Anon
    @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality

    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you'd want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you'll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Mr. Anon, @Mike Tre

    Those who pushed the tyrannical Covid lockdown will never be forgotten. And they will never be forgiven.

    Unless we’re going to start forgetting historical injustices? I mean, can we quit talking about anything that happened during World War II now?

  325. @scrivener3
    @Hail

    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.

    Replies: @trevor, @ChrisZ, @AceDeuce

    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.

    And don’t get me started on what (((they))) did to Jesus…

    •�Replies: @Hail
    @AceDeuce

    A new pro-Trump meme, released on conviction night, is making some big waves:

    -
    https://hailtoyou.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/trump-may-2024-post-conviction-meme-jesus-comforts-him-they-called-me-guilty-too.png
    -

    A Northern-European Jesus comforts Donald Trump. Behind them, the American flag.

    "It's okay, Don, they called me guilty too."

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Prester John
  326. @Gore 2004
    If I were Trump, I'd retire from politics and move on.

    He made his point, he lost in 2020.

    Whoever the Dems put up will beat whoever the GOP puts up.

    The only Republican who would win or pull a Clinton-Carter wild card is Ray Kelly, former NYPD commissioner.

    Kelly would beat Biden.

    Replies: @AceDeuce

    The only Republican who would win or pull a Clinton-Carter wild card is Ray Kelly, former NYPD commissioner.

    LOL.

    Kelly’s a good man. But Presidential material? I don’t know.

    And who the hell outside of NYC knows who he is? I do. You do, I mean the other 99%.

    Hell, NYC is half newcomer parasites from the 3rd World who just got here. None of those squat monsters know who he is either. Nor care.

    And those who do know him as far as libs–the knives are out for him -he won’t get 1% of the nigro vote. He’s tough on crime (which is good in my opinion-but not theirs) He’s Mr. Stop and Frisk (because it works) and he says the Central Park 5 are guilty as hell (because they are). I love that, but he’d never get nominated, much less elected.

    Plus, he’s a year and two months older than Biden. Nearly 83.

    Keep dreaming.

    •�Replies: @Gore 2004
    @AceDeuce


    the knives are out for him -he won’t get 1% of the nigro vote. He’s tough on crime
    Kelly was David Dinkins' 2nd police commissioner before Giuliani forced Kelly and Dinkins out in 1994, so he would get some middle class Black votes.
  327. @Anon
    @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality

    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you'd want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you'll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Mr. Anon, @Mike Tre

    The point is, Steve Sailer plays the “above it all” person when the stakes are the fate of White people. He claims he is a sober minded person not given to passion.

    But that’s not true. Sailer was very passionate (along with Cochran) in pushing Covid lockdowns and in supporting the dictator Zelensky (who isn’t even Ukrainian).

    So, the point is, how do you get away from calling Steve Sailer a liar who just carries water for those who want to keep Whites from being on their own side?

  328. @Anon
    @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality

    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you'd want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you'll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Mr. Anon, @Mike Tre

    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you’d want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you’ll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.

    That’s right. A lot of us will not forgive recommending house arrest for the entire World’s population.

    We will not forgive tyranny.

    You know how I knew that lockdowns were a bad idea?

    Because they are called “lockdowns” – a term that comes from prison administration.

    Oh, and by the way, f**k you.

    •�Agree: BB753
    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Mr. Anon

    Florida did not engage in extensive lockdowns. Adjusted for age distribution, Covid deaths were not much higher than a number of other states that did have lockdowns. Florida also had much less economic devastation than the lockdown states.

    Florida voters had a chance to express their approval or disapproval of DeSantis and his Covid policies in 2022. He won his election that year in a landslide.
  329. @Corvinus
    @Hypnotoad666

    I congratulate you on a masterclass in gaslighting in comment 295.

    Replies: @Mr. Anon

    I only use the “troll” button, because there isn’t a button for “a**hole”. Or “Corvinus”.

    Same thing.

    •�Agree: trevor
    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Mr. Anon

    I’m take great pride that you say that, because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @Anonymous
  330. @R.G. Camara
    @Dave Pinsen

    He's probably going with "Trump worked in real estate and casinos in NY and NJ, whose unions are heavily mob-controlled, therefore Trump is mobbed up."

    Replies: @Dave Pinsen

    The Italian mob barely exists today, thanks in part to zealous Italian (Giuliani) and half-Italian prosecutors (Christie), and in part to Italians being able to make more money with less risk legally (even if sometimes semi-shadily). It was more of a thing when Trump started out, but mobsters themselves said they couldn’t get to Trump, and there’s no reason a real estate developer would need to deal directly with them anyway, even if they did control the unions. He’d just deal with the offical union leaders themselves, or have his subcontractors do it.

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Dave Pinsen

    “It was more of a thing when Trump started out, but mobsters themselves said they couldn’t get to Trump, and there’s no reason a real estate developer would need to deal directly with them anyway, even if they did control the unions”.

    Straight up gas lighting on your part.

    https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/donald-trump-2016-mob-organized-crime-213910/

    — that one, it’s possible to assemble a clear picture of what we do know. The picture shows that Trump’s career has benefited from a decades-long and largely successful effort to limit and deflect law enforcement investigations into his dealings with top mobsters, organized crime associates, labor fixers, corrupt union leaders, con artists and even a one-time drug trafficker whom Trump retained as the head of his personal helicopter service.—
  331. Hail says: •�Website
    @MEH 0910
    @Hail


    And what about a variant Sailer Strategy for a 1989-to-1991, Soviet-sphere-like geopolitical earthquake in North America, in which the USA could break into multiple new political entities?

    This “secession” or “partition” question is one I’ve never seen Steve Sailer discuss, even in terms of pure theory.
    Chronicles Magazine:
    https://chroniclesmagazine.org/view/the-hate-that-dare-not-speak-its-name/
    https://archive.ph/11W9l

    The Hate That Dare Not Speak Its Name
    BY STEVE SAILER
    MAY 2024
    [...]
    This lack of coherent pushback against anti-white racism encourages the left to keep it up. Meanwhile, the few rightists who do see what’s going on are driven to desperate, despairing recommendations, such as calling for the breaking up the United States on the assumption that nothing else can prevent genocide.
    [...]
    So, do demands for diversity inclusion, and equity spell DIE for whites?

    Nah. It’s a philosophy that appeals less to hard men than to overweight women. Nor is the spread of anti-white hate terribly likely to lead to apocalyptic outcomes such as genocide or civil war.

    There are no practical ways to divide up the country when the political dividing lines don’t follow something simple like latitude or longitude, but instead run roughly between the inner and outer suburbs of our top 100 metropolitan areas.

    Replies: @Hail

    This is about the limit of Mr. Sailer’s comments on the increasingly-talked-about subject of a post-USA political order.

    Meanwhile, the few [White, U.S.] rightists who do see what’s going on are driven to desperate, despairing recommendations, such as calling for the breaking up the United States on the assumption that nothing else can prevent genocide [of Whites]

    I believe this phrasing, or framing, qualifies as “strawman.”

    One problem with this dismissiveness is most of the Diversity in North America is recent and weakly rooted. These are not ancient blood-and-soil communities that strangely overlap within different sections of single metropolitan areas as through some magic.

    The rooted elements do have a coherence, which cannot be waved away. The foreigners, children of foreigners, and the many elite dual-citizens who surround the core, rooted elements, — they can always move on, just as easily as they wandered in. Does Ilhan Omar’s family really have deep ties to Minnesota, to the extent they’d fight over it rather than move to wherever else hands out Diversity-benefits, if Minnesota closes off?). I believe this applies to most parts of the USA. Realignments could happen rapidly, I think, in a 1989-to-1991 Soviet-bloc-like scenario.

    Maybe just as likely, and less risky, would be slower processes, similar to the use of the word “gentrification” and how that works, where one almost has to speak in “decades.”

    Most likely, North America’s future could in the middle of the “sudden breakup, South Asia late 1940s” scenario and the “decades-long ethno-regional gentrification” scenario. The latter is already happening, of course, and has been since the mid-20th century, entirely against the interests and viability of the White core-population.

  332. @Anonymous
    @Anonymous

    People don't want to be governed by monkish philosopher-kings.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease

    “People don’t want to be governed by monkish philosopher-kings.”

    You’re right. In reality, people want to be ruled by… well, me. 😉

  333. @John Johnson
    @Harry Baldwin

    Nikki Haley is John McCain in pantyhose. How would it have benefitted us to vote for her?

    Polls show that she is a safer choice for defeating Biden.

    Moderates and independents hate both Trump and Biden.

    I supported Trump in 2016 and stand by that vote. He kept out Hillary.

    But he has proven himself to be a silver spoon brat who views the law as beneath him.

    I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It's also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease

    “I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It’s also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency.”

    Stop kidding yourself. It doesn’t matter. No matter who is elected, or what, even (we could elect a pineapple for instance) what you WILL get, no matter what, is a faceless junta/clique of sinister unelected Jews.

    Jews who will simply, doggedly continue their task of destroying America and its people, a task which they have been at tirelessly since 1913 and before.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @The Germ Theory of Disease


    “I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It’s also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency.”
    Stop kidding yourself. It doesn’t matter. No matter who is elected, or what, even (we could elect a pineapple for instance) what you WILL get, no matter what, is a faceless junta/clique of sinister unelected Jews.

    How am I kidding myself? It's not primarily a matter of politics.

    I don't think Biden or Harris can perform the requirements of the job.

    It's like explaining why I don't want to hire a 10 year old to work on my plumbing.

    I feel like the world has gone mad if I'm asked to provide an explanation.

    Biden is on video getting defeated by a cardboard box. Harris can't do a scripted interview without giving some bizarre response. She can't even be fed lines.
  334. Hail says: •�Website
    @Wielgus
    @Hail

    And Biden isn't synonymous with butchering Palestinians?

    Replies: @Hail

    Richard Spencer says that Biden’s support for Israel and Jewish power (“the administration” having a comically lopsided ratio of Jews to White-male heterosexual Protestants, if any of the latter) led him, Spencer, to break off his support for Biden.

    Spencer says this horrible Israel problem — a semi-maniacal-looking, genocidal, ‘gangster’ state with quasi-world-power aspirations, whose m.o. is to continuously use the USA and White-Europeans as puppets, all the while undermining and mocking their own puppets — if handed off to Trump in full, would finally end the Trump movement.

    That is how I understand Richard Spencer’s new position. He is so anti-Israel he ‘almost’ wants Trump to win again so that the toxic Israel problem gets hung around Trump’s neck. Spencer’s position could be criticized on grounds of involving a few too many steps, and being too emotional. His committedly anti-Trump position (after being a big Trump backer, ca. 2015-17) may be distorting his thinking.

    •�Replies: @Charlesz Martel
    @Hail

    What all these anti Israel douchebags don't understand is what it is truly like living with Muslim Arabs.

    How many here have ever lived in a city that had a large Muslim population?

    I have.

    Blacks on steroids.

    You have no idea how bad things will get.

    Your daughters will quickly find out.

    Have fun, assholes.

    Muslims are nothing like Christian Arabs. Your women will not go out uncovered.

    Don't think because you're living in America that you'll be immune.

    After a good dose of living with Muslim Arabs, you'll be surprised how sympathetic to Israel the local population can become. Even the Irish, a people hardly known for their intellect, are beginning to wake up and smell the coffee.

    Trading your Jewish population for your Muslim population has got to be one of the dumbest ideas that's ever been floated in the entire history of the world.

    France has learned this first. Now it's England's turn.
    Sweden's right behind them. Norway, Denmark,Germany,Holland, all the rest will learn this soon enough.
  335. Banana Republic indeed

    One show of support came from David Sacks, a billionaire tech investor who is reportedly set to host a Silicon Valley fundraiser for Trump in the coming weeks.

    He immediately reacted to the verdict by posting that “there is now only one issue in this election: whether the American people will stand for the USA becoming a Banana Republic.”

    https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-friendly-billionaires-from-elon-musk-to-bill-ackman-offer-new-support-following-conviction-115411598.html

    •�Replies: @Anon
    @trevor

    Reg Cesar, where you at?

    https://themommymess.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/banana-780x439.jpg
  336. Sean says:
    @Buzz Mohawk
    @Sean

    Hey, listen, you and all others:

    By simply writing that Donald Trump has cavorted with shady characters I am not saying anything disputable. I am saying that he and the people he hired -- like Michael Cohen -- are shady, gross New Yorkers.

    Trump is a con man who hires either slimy dip shits or deep staters or family members who don't share your concerns.

    What amazes me most is that the guy is apparently the best and only presidential choice we have.

    Garbage.

    Absurdity.

    I am not voting again. I am hunkering down, selfishly, while this rotten, stupid, silly world goes on...

    The rest of you can continue pontificating here in your efforts to prove how intelligent you are.

    Replies: @Sean

    Buzz you used the word “Mob”, and that means the Five NYC Families of the Mafia.

    Why be surprised that Trump is a con man, he is a successful politician. He certainly had trouble getting competent experienced people for appointments.

    A distant relative who worked in Union construction business interface knew Nelson Rockefeller, and said he was ” a pig” in his private life. Everyone knew what Trump was like. He always gave journalists a quote they could use, so the coverage of him was in excess of his importance for decades. Trump is a con man? Politicians talk rhetoric and you cannot hold him to the fire with each word.

  337. @Dave Pinsen
    @Steve Sailer

    If they’d had real dirt on Trump, they wouldn’t have had to rely on manufactured nonsense like the Steele dossier.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Chrisnonymous

    In retrospect, the Steele dossier was a weird tactic for the Clinton campaign to pursue. The connections to Putin were a bit too high-concept to be effective campaign fodder, as evidenced by the fact that Trump’s supporters stayed with him through thick and thin of it. It seems like either the Clinton campaign was out of touch* or the dossier was meant to rally the establishment and the gay, Putin-hating left, which is exactly what it did. If the Clintons had really wanted to manufacture something that struck at his base, they would have done something that showed him to be a hypocrite on immigration, the wall, and Muslims.

    * I mean, like, the hookers peeing on Obama’s bed bit was almost an own goal from a campaign perspective. What red-blooded American wouldn’t have loved for that to be real?

    •�Replies: @That Would Be Telling
    @Chrisnonymous


    In retrospect, the Steele dossier was a weird tactic for the Clinton campaign to pursue.
    It is all but impossible to overstate how fantastically incompetent Hillary is. But history helps, and I'll start that here with noting how she exited the brainwashing she got at Wellesley College ready to set the US on literal fire with the (((Saul Alinsky))) tactics she used as the subject of her senior thesis.

    She immediately ruined her career in D.C. by failing its bar exam and being part of a Watergate Committee conspiracy to deny Nixon legal representation if he was impeached. The best she could do after that was to accept Bill Clinton's outstanding offer of marriage and exile herself to Arkansas!!! She never psychologically recovered from that, always thinking the top billing should go "the smart one" of the pair. Much more follows, and was well documented in the "two for the price of one" Clinton Administration where she quickly flamed out on nationalized healthcare.

    For political campaigns that weren't wired, see for example her contribution to Bill's first attempt at reelection as governor. She didn't do him many favors in 1992, see for example "I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies and had teas, but what I decided to do was to fulfill my profession...," a classic type of attack for her on would be voters.

    Fast forward to 2008 and she again thinks it's "her turn," completely underestimates the threat of a Chicago politican (!), and she's DEI to the core, her campaign manager for too long was a Latina who would lock herself in her office watching telenovelas for hours a day. By the time that manager was replaced, with as I recall her Negress White House Chief of Staff it was probably too late, although it occurs to me today that woman had divided loyalties, much like the McCain campaign deciding they'd go through the motions so as to not beat the first negro Presidential candidate.

    2016 is much fresher in our memories as well as her continued screw ups. Like taking the actual voting with Plan A cheating for granted, and instead spending time and money to try to get a majority of all total votes. Which both failed, and of course is not how you win a US Presidential election, which from memory she lost by a total of thirty thousand votes in three swing states.

    That she would conspire with Team Obama to blame Russia, Russia, Russia!!! for things like the self-verifying leak of her illegal Secretary of State communications, the probable Seth Rich (RIP) leak of DNC emails, and ultimately her razor thin loss in the election should surprise no one. This BTW is why smart countries always consider military capabilities first, you never know if an internal faction fight will suddenly turn a county into a deadly enemy (although that of course started long before, even before 2014).

    That the Democrats starting in 2000 would become "election deniers" and interfere with the peaceful transfer of power if they lost should also surprise no one who watched them over the decades, as well as how much damage it's done, ultimately destroying the Republic which they want gone anyway....

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob
  338. Hail says: •�Website

    The political-philosopher Curt Doolittle, writing today on the significance of the Trump ‘conviction’ and the future of the USA:

    There are a great many things that are not codified in the Constitution or legislation that are ‘not done’ among gentlemen because of the consequences not only if applied in reverse, but because of the detriment to our deliberative system of government, its ability to function, and its legitimacy in the eyes of the people.

    Note that all of these violations have been perpetrated by the Left. Suing a past president, especially for a misdemeanor administrative classification of a payment to a hooker is simply not done, because of the future consequences of doing it.

    This version of the USG is done.

    [We at the Natural Law Institute] have done the work to replace it [this version of the USG], by plugging many of these ‘unstated’ holes in [the Constitution], and basing it on both empirical evidence and formal logic that is so detailed it’s unassailable.

    But I fear that my attempts over the past twenty years to complete this project [may be too late,] before we descend into brutal civil war that at the very best creates red oceans of high trust and blue free cities of low trust, and where migration is no longer guaranteed between them, especially from blue to red, and at worst the total fracture of the federal government into at least three or four territorially independent federations most of whom will desperately hate one another.

    https://naturallawinstitute.com/

    •�Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @Hail

    "red oceans of high trust and blue free cities of low trust, and where migration is no longer guaranteed between them, especially from blue to red, and... the total fracture of the federal government into at least three or four territorially independent federations"

    Great! How soon can we start?
    , @res
    @Hail

    Thanks. Some interesting thoughts in that thread about whether or not the case will make it past the appeals court to the Supreme Court and the possible repercussions.
  339. Hail says: •�Website
    @Jim Don Bob
    @dearieme

    Mark Steyn is on fire today: https://www.steynonline.com/14343/a-republic-you-can-keep-it

    Replies: @Hail

    Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA, sometime before the mid-2030s, with millions of deaths and an uncertain outcome for the White-West and its viability. I quote:

    Much of the United States – certainly the bits that matter – is now institutionally evil, and I am not sure that evil can be reversed, whether we’re talking about the bodily mutilation of middle-school girls or the sacrifice of a generation of a distant nation’s men in the meat-grinder of the Ukraine war. On America’s watch, the entirety of western civilisation is sliding off the cliff, and very fast – which is all anyone will remember about it.

    And yet any alternative to the Uniparty consensus is not to be permitted, and must be hunted down and crushed. There is no future in the post-constitutional polity the Democrats are constructing. “Decline” is a choice – in the Austrian or Portuguese sense. But that’s not in the offing here: America’s death will be bloodier and more convulsive than anything seen in post-imperial Europe. Check back with me in ten years, and see who’s right.

    This is surprising rhetoric from someone like Mark Steyn. It was batted around often in the lean-and-mean far-dissident circles in the 2000s, including spaces overlapping with Sailer blog and its “Sailertariat.” But no one in the mainstreamed touched such views.

    Events of the 2010s mainstreamed the view of alarmist-fatalistic decline. By ca. 2018, the views were near-mainstream, but realignments never really occur overnight (even when they appear to). By some point in the 2020s, it no longer seemed like Mark Steyn is being “the crazy one” here for predicting such a thing. It is even now commonly heard.

    It’s sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.

    •�Replies: @Thea
    @Hail

    I don’t believe any of the civil war talk.

    American culture focuses too much on comforts like sitting in front of a screen and eating soporific foods one did not even need to prepare.

    It would take a major food shortage to get people off the couch.


    There will be lots of angry internet posts, however.
    , @Corvinus
    @Hail

    “Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA… Curt Doolittle, writing today…”

    It isn’t surprising these two men from their ivory towers and safe suburban redoubts would pontificate about impending civil war, when we both know they wouldn’t be front and center to lead it. And you’re kidding yourself if you think you can muster up the guts to take the bull by the horns and remove your “enemies” by force of arms.

    Listen, I’ve heard this rhetoric for over five decades. And it’s always “just wait, it’s going to happen” or “it’s in the near future” or something similar. But I thought the threat is so dire, that we are being genocided out of existence, since (checks notes) “Jews who will simply, doggedly continue their task of destroying America and its people, a task which they have been at tirelessly since 1913 and before.”

    Yet, somehow, removing this alleged scourge and their non-white or anti-white allies is something that can wait??? Give me a f—- break.

    “The latter is already happening, of course, and has been since the mid-20th century, entirely against the interests and viability of the White core-population.”

    Does this “white core-population” include those whose ancestors came from Eastern and Southern Europe? You know, the “paper Americans”, or as the Anti-Gnostic refers to as “Arby’s Americans”?

    I thought Poles, Slavs, Greeks, and Italians were considered to be second rate Europeans, especially if they were Catholic? What changed…magic dirt?
    , @Jim Don Bob
    @Hail


    It’s sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying.
    I went on the last MS cruise in late February. MS now has white hair and uses a wheel chair and crutches to get in and out of it. He has been seriously weakened financially, if not ruined, by Michael Mann dragging him through the DC courts for 13 years. I would not be surprised if he dropped dead tomorrow.
    , @Nicholas Stix
    @Hail


    “It’s sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.”
    This is what they planned for the President, but they shot the wrong man.
  340. bomag says:
    @Jon Tormento
    @Michael Droy

    I don't even understand this argument. It's only the true believer MAGA morons who think Trump being convicted makes him more electable. Your average voter, particularly a swing voter, doesn't like criminals, regardless of whether the trial was fair or not (and the trial probably was fair, generally speaking). And the trial brought to the forefront damning testimony about Trump being a sleazeball who cheats on his wife with a porn star.

    Replies: @bomag

    …this argument.

    There’s an attraction to the “badboy”. Also an attraction to someone who has been wronged and unfairly treated. Not sure this triggers that reflex; might trigger disgust at Trump as a loser who let himself get ensnared by some minor accounting misstep.

    Your average voter, particularly a swing voter, doesn’t like criminals, regardless of whether the trial was fair or not (and the trial probably was fair, generally speaking)

    True to some extent, but voters also realize a show trial. Polls did not go down when Trump became a criminal when he lost the case for overvaluing his properties. And these things will likely be overturned on appeal.

    And the trial brought to the forefront damning testimony about Trump being a sleazeball who cheats on his wife with a porn star.

    Such info has been out there in great quantities since 2016. We accept, maybe too much, such flaws in leadership. We discount too much guys like Pence and Romney,

    •�Replies: @Harry Baldwin
    @bomag

    Trump as a loser who let himself get ensnared by some minor accounting misstep.

    You're not serious, are you? When a person is subjected to this kind of politically motivated prosecution, the prosecutor will always find something to hang his case on. This wasn't even a time until they made it one. There's no escaping determined injustice.
  341. @Thomm

    It is going to further push open the political fissure in American society and convince more people that we are simply incompatible and belong in separate nations.
    You keep harping on this 'separate nations' idea, but have never presented any details about how this could be even remotely workable.

    i) What is the demographic split?
    ii) What is the geographic split? If your answer is as unoriginal as mere 'red state/blue state', then that means you really haven't thought this through.
    iii) Neither country is large enough of an economy to have the world's reserve currency. Without this status, the standard of living in the US would be about 20% lower, so each of these countries will experience that.
    iv) You assume your nation will be a more homogenous, cohesive one, but that requires ignoring this all-important detail :

    https://www.americansurveycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/SV15g-young-women-are-much-more-liberal-than-young-men.png

    You otherwise seem very aware of how the modern 'woke' age is driven mostly by the female appetite for approval and virtue-signaling, but this obliterates any prospect of the separated nation you prefer actually working. Unless you want your half of the split to be a country that is 70% male (White Trashionalism, a small subset of your nation, is in fact 99% male).

    Don't think you can keep left-wing media out of your new half of the erstwhile US. US 'woke' memes become normalized as far away as Australia and New Zealand almost immediately. There is ONE Anglosphere English-language media blob, to the same extent the Earth has one indivisible atmosphere.

    Replies: @Elli, @Prester John

    “…the modern ‘woke’ age is driven mostly by the female appetite for approval and virtue-signaling…”

    Excellent point! And it is particularly noticeable among black women though it’s hardly limited to blacks. Collectively they behave like latter-day suffragettes. The woke movement may be a spinoff thereof, with both having emerged, at least in this country, in part out of the Second Great Awakening–which makes the term “Great Awokening” uncannily appropriate.

    “Separate nations” is a dream. And I guess we can all dream, right?

  342. @The Anti-Gnostic
    @Reg Cæsar

    I think the most important lesson Trump didn't learn was, "It's not lonely at the top if you bring people with you."

    He's a one-man band and egomaniac showboat. He also doesn't like lawyers, which is actually kind of shortsighted when you live in a "nation of laws" (John Adams). George W. Bush lawyered up with James Baker and Baker Botts in 2000, and he got to be President.

    Replies: @J.Ross, @Prester John

    “a nation of laws”

    At least that’s how it appears on the label.

  343. @prime noticer
    imagine witnessing everything that's happened so far, in broad daylight, in front of the entire world, but ALSO thinking, the Democrats WON'T rig the 2024 election behind the scenes as well, and will just allow Trump to compete fairly and maybe even win.

    huh?

    there's a -1000% chance Trump wins the 2024 election.

    forget the fears that maybe Trump will win, but once in office again he will still not be as serious as he needs to be, or that maybe he will be a lot more serious this time, but the entire DC apparatus will utterly stonewall him the second time around and nothing will get done.

    he's NOT getting back into office. WHY ON EARTH would Democrats ALLOW him to get back into office? they control everything here, with nearly zero pushback from Republicans. most of who want Trump gone about as much as the Democrats want him gone. Democrats rigged the last election. they're throwing him in prison. they'll be rigging this election too. Trump is NOT going to "Win the Presidency from a jail cell". please think this thru and the ludicrous idea that Democrats will allow him to fairly compete for the White House again so that he can try to hurt them and get them back, at least a little. the level of boomer cope here is off the charts.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin, @Fluesterwitz

    Trump may win by votes cast; he will lose by votes counted.

  344. @Hail
    The political-philosopher Curt Doolittle, writing today on the significance of the Trump 'conviction' and the future of the USA:

    There are a great many things that are not codified in the Constitution or legislation that are 'not done' among gentlemen because of the consequences not only if applied in reverse, but because of the detriment to our deliberative system of government, its ability to function, and its legitimacy in the eyes of the people.

    Note that all of these violations have been perpetrated by the Left. Suing a past president, especially for a misdemeanor administrative classification of a payment to a hooker is simply not done, because of the future consequences of doing it.

    This version of the USG is done.

    [We at the Natural Law Institute] have done the work to replace it [this version of the USG], by plugging many of these 'unstated' holes in [the Constitution], and basing it on both empirical evidence and formal logic that is so detailed it's unassailable.

    But I fear that my attempts over the past twenty years to complete this project [may be too late,] before we descend into brutal civil war that at the very best creates red oceans of high trust and blue free cities of low trust, and where migration is no longer guaranteed between them, especially from blue to red, and at worst the total fracture of the federal government into at least three or four territorially independent federations most of whom will desperately hate one another.
    https://naturallawinstitute.com/

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @res

    “red oceans of high trust and blue free cities of low trust, and where migration is no longer guaranteed between them, especially from blue to red, and… the total fracture of the federal government into at least three or four territorially independent federations”

    Great! How soon can we start?

  345. @Dave Pinsen
    @R.G. Camara

    The Italian mob barely exists today, thanks in part to zealous Italian (Giuliani) and half-Italian prosecutors (Christie), and in part to Italians being able to make more money with less risk legally (even if sometimes semi-shadily). It was more of a thing when Trump started out, but mobsters themselves said they couldn't get to Trump, and there's no reason a real estate developer would need to deal directly with them anyway, even if they did control the unions. He'd just deal with the offical union leaders themselves, or have his subcontractors do it.

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “It was more of a thing when Trump started out, but mobsters themselves said they couldn’t get to Trump, and there’s no reason a real estate developer would need to deal directly with them anyway, even if they did control the unions”.

    Straight up gas lighting on your part.

    https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/donald-trump-2016-mob-organized-crime-213910/

    — that one, it’s possible to assemble a clear picture of what we do know. The picture shows that Trump’s career has benefited from a decades-long and largely successful effort to limit and deflect law enforcement investigations into his dealings with top mobsters, organized crime associates, labor fixers, corrupt union leaders, con artists and even a one-time drug trafficker whom Trump retained as the head of his personal helicopter service.—

  346. HA says:
    @Cloudbuster
    @HA

    Troll.

    Replies: @HA

    “Troll.”

    You prefer one of these?

    Now that it has been pointed out to me, why yes, the obvious parallels between Trump’c current predicament and the Gospels are clear ndeed. He that hath ears, let him hear.

    For verily I say unto thee, if thou hast a comely daughter, whose hair is yellow and thin, see to it that your chosen harlot be like unto her in appearance, telling her so that she may rejoiceth therefore.

    But beware, beware — if thine advocate concealeth the shekels paid unto her, verify that he concealeth rightly and ket not his left hand know what his right hand doeth. For woe be unto thee if his works are revealed unto the feds, if thou catchest my drift.

    •�Replies: @vinteuil
    @HA

    So what's your current "thinking" about the Gaza slaughter?

    Have your paymasters worked that out, yet?

    Replies: @HA
    , @Mark G.
    @HA

    In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. The average age of a Ukrainian soldier is 43. The Russians also now have a 10 to 1 artillery advantage over the Ukrainians. The Ukrainians are now forming new infantry brigades rather than armored or mechanized brigades because they are running out of tanks and armored vehicles.

    Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve's blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.

    Replies: @HA, @Twinkie
  347. @Hail
    @Jim Don Bob

    Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA, sometime before the mid-2030s, with millions of deaths and an uncertain outcome for the White-West and its viability. I quote:

    Much of the United States - certainly the bits that matter - is now institutionally evil, and I am not sure that evil can be reversed, whether we're talking about the bodily mutilation of middle-school girls or the sacrifice of a generation of a distant nation's men in the meat-grinder of the Ukraine war. On America's watch, the entirety of western civilisation is sliding off the cliff, and very fast - which is all anyone will remember about it.

    And yet any alternative to the Uniparty consensus is not to be permitted, and must be hunted down and crushed. There is no future in the post-constitutional polity the Democrats are constructing. "Decline" is a choice - in the Austrian or Portuguese sense. But that's not in the offing here: America's death will be bloodier and more convulsive than anything seen in post-imperial Europe. Check back with me in ten years, and see who's right.
    This is surprising rhetoric from someone like Mark Steyn. It was batted around often in the lean-and-mean far-dissident circles in the 2000s, including spaces overlapping with Sailer blog and its "Sailertariat." But no one in the mainstreamed touched such views.

    Events of the 2010s mainstreamed the view of alarmist-fatalistic decline. By ca. 2018, the views were near-mainstream, but realignments never really occur overnight (even when they appear to). By some point in the 2020s, it no longer seemed like Mark Steyn is being "the crazy one" here for predicting such a thing. It is even now commonly heard.

    It's sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.

    Replies: @Thea, @Corvinus, @Jim Don Bob, @Nicholas Stix

    I don’t believe any of the civil war talk.

    American culture focuses too much on comforts like sitting in front of a screen and eating soporific foods one did not even need to prepare.

    It would take a major food shortage to get people off the couch.

    There will be lots of angry internet posts, however.

  348. Hail says: •�Website
    @AceDeuce
    @scrivener3


    Sakharov was a convicted felon.
    Solzhenitsyn was a convicted felon.
    Vaclav Havel was a convicted felon.
    Martin Luther King was a convicted felon.
    Nelson Mandela was a convicted felon.
    And don't get me started on what (((they))) did to Jesus...

    Replies: @Hail

    A new pro-Trump meme, released on conviction night, is making some big waves:

    A Northern-European Jesus comforts Donald Trump. Behind them, the American flag.

    “It’s okay, Don, they called me guilty too.”

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Hail

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    Both but mostly un-ironic. In real life you can find Trump Tribe members that think it is all a grand conspiracy. They would absolutely share that image on FB and agree with it.

    His fans at Unz are actually pretty reasonable and most fall into the position of sure he is a sleezeball but Biden is worse. They know he made the pay-off but view the case as politically motivated. I would agree that the case has a political motivation but the truth is somewhere in the middle. Trump isn't innocent but I don't believe that most people would get 34 felonies in the same case.

    But I would also add that such precedents do exist because of race.

    You have to understand that prosecutors in these cities are completely frustrated with the reality of crime and race. Their job requires them to constantly lie about reality. They salivate over a wealthy White man in a white collar fraud case. It's the stuff of dreams for them.

    Replies: @anonymous, @Jonathan Mason
    , @Prester John
    @Hail

    Blasphemy!
  349. @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @John Johnson

    "I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It’s also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency."

    Stop kidding yourself. It doesn't matter. No matter who is elected, or what, even (we could elect a pineapple for instance) what you WILL get, no matter what, is a faceless junta/clique of sinister unelected Jews.

    Jews who will simply, doggedly continue their task of destroying America and its people, a task which they have been at tirelessly since 1913 and before.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    “I want Biden out more than I want Trump elected. It’s also not purely a Biden election. We could still face the worst case scenario which is a Harris presidency.”

    Stop kidding yourself. It doesn’t matter. No matter who is elected, or what, even (we could elect a pineapple for instance) what you WILL get, no matter what, is a faceless junta/clique of sinister unelected Jews.

    How am I kidding myself? It’s not primarily a matter of politics.

    I don’t think Biden or Harris can perform the requirements of the job.

    It’s like explaining why I don’t want to hire a 10 year old to work on my plumbing.

    I feel like the world has gone mad if I’m asked to provide an explanation.

    Biden is on video getting defeated by a cardboard box. Harris can’t do a scripted interview without giving some bizarre response. She can’t even be fed lines.

  350. @Hail
    @Wielgus

    Richard Spencer says that Biden's support for Israel and Jewish power ("the administration" having a comically lopsided ratio of Jews to White-male heterosexual Protestants, if any of the latter) led him, Spencer, to break off his support for Biden.

    Spencer says this horrible Israel problem -- a semi-maniacal-looking, genocidal, 'gangster' state with quasi-world-power aspirations, whose m.o. is to continuously use the USA and White-Europeans as puppets, all the while undermining and mocking their own puppets -- if handed off to Trump in full, would finally end the Trump movement.

    That is how I understand Richard Spencer's new position. He is so anti-Israel he 'almost' wants Trump to win again so that the toxic Israel problem gets hung around Trump's neck. Spencer's position could be criticized on grounds of involving a few too many steps, and being too emotional. His committedly anti-Trump position (after being a big Trump backer, ca. 2015-17) may be distorting his thinking.

    Replies: @Charlesz Martel

    What all these anti Israel douchebags don’t understand is what it is truly like living with Muslim Arabs.

    How many here have ever lived in a city that had a large Muslim population?

    I have.

    Blacks on steroids.

    You have no idea how bad things will get.

    Your daughters will quickly find out.

    Have fun, assholes.

    Muslims are nothing like Christian Arabs. Your women will not go out uncovered.

    Don’t think because you’re living in America that you’ll be immune.

    After a good dose of living with Muslim Arabs, you’ll be surprised how sympathetic to Israel the local population can become. Even the Irish, a people hardly known for their intellect, are beginning to wake up and smell the coffee.

    Trading your Jewish population for your Muslim population has got to be one of the dumbest ideas that’s ever been floated in the entire history of the world.

    France has learned this first. Now it’s England’s turn.
    Sweden’s right behind them. Norway, Denmark,Germany,Holland, all the rest will learn this soon enough.

    •�Agree: trevor
  351. @Hail
    @Alexander Turok

    Alexander Turok:

    The editor-in-chief of Peak Stupidity, the man known around here as A. E. Newman, has taken an interest in your work and wishes to convey his "thanks." Namely, for the re-constructed conversations you've posted, about your interactions at "the Robinson Crusoe Society" with a "motley crew of white nationalists, hereditarian IQ researchers, conservative opinion journalists, and former white nationalists in the process of moving left [...] the exploded remnants of the “Alt-Right”."

    Given his firm resolution not to post comments here for the rest of the year, I'm acting as his intermediary.

    Peak Stupidity's Mr. Newman also has a question for you: "Why do you think Ann Coulter is (still!) extremely pissed at Trump?" (see link below for more context).

    Your work was discussed at the recent Peak Stupidity entry No. 2999: "Donald Trump convicted - now we're all in." (https://peakstupidity.com/index.php?post=2999)

    Your reconstructed conversations were critical of Trump, for running a personality cult and not really being a committed pro-Western ideologue who is to some White Revival future. At the kinds of moments which we are now in -- I refer to the "non-crime felony conviction" and so on -- it's worth keeping your contrarian(?) view in mind and not getting 'too' carried away and falling back into old-style unreflective pro-Trumpism.

    https://alexanderturok.substack.com/p/another-whynat-meeting

    Replies: @Alexander Turok

    No idea why Ann’s pissed at Trump. She does have a college degree and Trump has a way of repelling college-educated Americans and attracting no-college Americans, similar to daytime court shows.

    •�Replies: @G. Poulin
    @Alexander Turok

    Ann is pissed for good reason. She was Trump's most visible and loyal supporter, and part of the reason he got elected in 2016. When he took office and immediately starting reneging on his promise to build the wall, Ann called him out for it. Trump's response was to call her a crazy dame. Ann realized she'd been used, like the girl who got pumped and dumped at the prom. Of course she's pissed. Donald Trump needs to learn that loyalty is a two-way street.
  352. Anonymous[206] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Anonymous
    @Hypnotoad666

    Try putting your real name on everything you write on every platform, plus everything you say in public. Steve is fully doxxed, and he has a family.
    Silence doesn't necessarily mean capitulation. It also means “you can fill in the blanks”. So go ahead and fill in the blanks using your real name.

    Replies: @Anonymous

    Try putting your real name on everything you write on every platform, plus everything you say in public. Steve is fully doxxed, and he has a family.

    Silence doesn’t necessarily mean capitulation. It also means “you can fill in the blanks”. So go ahead and fill in the blanks using your real name.

    Good points.

    However, silence is one thing. It can also be observed that Steve says affirmatively some pretty harmful stuff. No one is forcing him to say such things. I am recalling here his moralizing on racial integration (and his silence on Zionism), on the conflict in the Ukraine (and his silence on Zionism), and on skepticism of the official story of the jewish experience during World War 2.

  353. res says:
    @trevor
    Elon Musk does not have a good opinion about the Trump trial and conviction.

    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/great-damage-elon-musk-host-trump-town-hall-ripping-nyc-guilty-verdict

    Replies: @res

    Thanks. This quote makes a good summary.

    “Indeed, great damage was done today to the public’s faith in the American legal system,” Musk posted on the platform he owns. “If a former President can be criminally convicted over such a trivial matter – motivated by politics, rather than justice – then anyone is at risk of a similar fate.”

  354. @Hail
    @AceDeuce

    A new pro-Trump meme, released on conviction night, is making some big waves:

    -
    https://hailtoyou.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/trump-may-2024-post-conviction-meme-jesus-comforts-him-they-called-me-guilty-too.png
    -

    A Northern-European Jesus comforts Donald Trump. Behind them, the American flag.

    "It's okay, Don, they called me guilty too."

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Prester John

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    Both but mostly un-ironic. In real life you can find Trump Tribe members that think it is all a grand conspiracy. They would absolutely share that image on FB and agree with it.

    His fans at Unz are actually pretty reasonable and most fall into the position of sure he is a sleezeball but Biden is worse. They know he made the pay-off but view the case as politically motivated. I would agree that the case has a political motivation but the truth is somewhere in the middle. Trump isn’t innocent but I don’t believe that most people would get 34 felonies in the same case.

    But I would also add that such precedents do exist because of race.

    You have to understand that prosecutors in these cities are completely frustrated with the reality of crime and race. Their job requires them to constantly lie about reality. They salivate over a wealthy White man in a white collar fraud case. It’s the stuff of dreams for them.

    •�Replies: @anonymous
    @John Johnson


    They know he made the pay-off but view the case as politically motivated.
    Since when are non-disclosure agreements illegal?
    , @Jonathan Mason
    @John Johnson

    The only reason there were 34 felonies was that there were 34 installments paid to Michael Cohen to pay off Stormy Daniels and Cohen himself.

    If it had been reduced to 33, or 32 to allow for paying a normal retainer to Cohen, would it make any difference?

    Replies: @John Johnson
  355. @Hail
    @Jim Don Bob

    Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA, sometime before the mid-2030s, with millions of deaths and an uncertain outcome for the White-West and its viability. I quote:

    Much of the United States - certainly the bits that matter - is now institutionally evil, and I am not sure that evil can be reversed, whether we're talking about the bodily mutilation of middle-school girls or the sacrifice of a generation of a distant nation's men in the meat-grinder of the Ukraine war. On America's watch, the entirety of western civilisation is sliding off the cliff, and very fast - which is all anyone will remember about it.

    And yet any alternative to the Uniparty consensus is not to be permitted, and must be hunted down and crushed. There is no future in the post-constitutional polity the Democrats are constructing. "Decline" is a choice - in the Austrian or Portuguese sense. But that's not in the offing here: America's death will be bloodier and more convulsive than anything seen in post-imperial Europe. Check back with me in ten years, and see who's right.
    This is surprising rhetoric from someone like Mark Steyn. It was batted around often in the lean-and-mean far-dissident circles in the 2000s, including spaces overlapping with Sailer blog and its "Sailertariat." But no one in the mainstreamed touched such views.

    Events of the 2010s mainstreamed the view of alarmist-fatalistic decline. By ca. 2018, the views were near-mainstream, but realignments never really occur overnight (even when they appear to). By some point in the 2020s, it no longer seemed like Mark Steyn is being "the crazy one" here for predicting such a thing. It is even now commonly heard.

    It's sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.

    Replies: @Thea, @Corvinus, @Jim Don Bob, @Nicholas Stix

    “Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA… Curt Doolittle, writing today…”

    It isn’t surprising these two men from their ivory towers and safe suburban redoubts would pontificate about impending civil war, when we both know they wouldn’t be front and center to lead it. And you’re kidding yourself if you think you can muster up the guts to take the bull by the horns and remove your “enemies” by force of arms.

    Listen, I’ve heard this rhetoric for over five decades. And it’s always “just wait, it’s going to happen” or “it’s in the near future” or something similar. But I thought the threat is so dire, that we are being genocided out of existence, since (checks notes) “Jews who will simply, doggedly continue their task of destroying America and its people, a task which they have been at tirelessly since 1913 and before.”

    Yet, somehow, removing this alleged scourge and their non-white or anti-white allies is something that can wait??? Give me a f—- break.

    “The latter is already happening, of course, and has been since the mid-20th century, entirely against the interests and viability of the White core-population.”

    Does this “white core-population” include those whose ancestors came from Eastern and Southern Europe? You know, the “paper Americans”, or as the Anti-Gnostic refers to as “Arby’s Americans”?

    I thought Poles, Slavs, Greeks, and Italians were considered to be second rate Europeans, especially if they were Catholic? What changed…magic dirt?

  356. @Hail
    The political-philosopher Curt Doolittle, writing today on the significance of the Trump 'conviction' and the future of the USA:

    There are a great many things that are not codified in the Constitution or legislation that are 'not done' among gentlemen because of the consequences not only if applied in reverse, but because of the detriment to our deliberative system of government, its ability to function, and its legitimacy in the eyes of the people.

    Note that all of these violations have been perpetrated by the Left. Suing a past president, especially for a misdemeanor administrative classification of a payment to a hooker is simply not done, because of the future consequences of doing it.

    This version of the USG is done.

    [We at the Natural Law Institute] have done the work to replace it [this version of the USG], by plugging many of these 'unstated' holes in [the Constitution], and basing it on both empirical evidence and formal logic that is so detailed it's unassailable.

    But I fear that my attempts over the past twenty years to complete this project [may be too late,] before we descend into brutal civil war that at the very best creates red oceans of high trust and blue free cities of low trust, and where migration is no longer guaranteed between them, especially from blue to red, and at worst the total fracture of the federal government into at least three or four territorially independent federations most of whom will desperately hate one another.
    https://naturallawinstitute.com/

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @res

    Thanks. Some interesting thoughts in that thread about whether or not the case will make it past the appeals court to the Supreme Court and the possible repercussions.

  357. @MM
    It's likely been pointed out before, but one of the reasons Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon was because he was going to be sued out of existence when he got back to Rome.

    Replies: @William Badwhite

    but one of the reasons Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon

    Small quibble, but Caesar didn’t so much cross the Rubicon as follow his army, which had already crossed it.

  358. anonymous[281] •�Disclaimer says:
    @John Johnson
    @Hail

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    Both but mostly un-ironic. In real life you can find Trump Tribe members that think it is all a grand conspiracy. They would absolutely share that image on FB and agree with it.

    His fans at Unz are actually pretty reasonable and most fall into the position of sure he is a sleezeball but Biden is worse. They know he made the pay-off but view the case as politically motivated. I would agree that the case has a political motivation but the truth is somewhere in the middle. Trump isn't innocent but I don't believe that most people would get 34 felonies in the same case.

    But I would also add that such precedents do exist because of race.

    You have to understand that prosecutors in these cities are completely frustrated with the reality of crime and race. Their job requires them to constantly lie about reality. They salivate over a wealthy White man in a white collar fraud case. It's the stuff of dreams for them.

    Replies: @anonymous, @Jonathan Mason

    They know he made the pay-off but view the case as politically motivated.

    Since when are non-disclosure agreements illegal?

  359. @Chrisnonymous
    @Dave Pinsen

    In retrospect, the Steele dossier was a weird tactic for the Clinton campaign to pursue. The connections to Putin were a bit too high-concept to be effective campaign fodder, as evidenced by the fact that Trump's supporters stayed with him through thick and thin of it. It seems like either the Clinton campaign was out of touch* or the dossier was meant to rally the establishment and the gay, Putin-hating left, which is exactly what it did. If the Clintons had really wanted to manufacture something that struck at his base, they would have done something that showed him to be a hypocrite on immigration, the wall, and Muslims.

    * I mean, like, the hookers peeing on Obama's bed bit was almost an own goal from a campaign perspective. What red-blooded American wouldn't have loved for that to be real?

    Replies: @That Would Be Telling

    In retrospect, the Steele dossier was a weird tactic for the Clinton campaign to pursue.

    It is all but impossible to overstate how fantastically incompetent Hillary is. But history helps, and I’ll start that here with noting how she exited the brainwashing she got at Wellesley College ready to set the US on literal fire with the (((Saul Alinsky))) tactics she used as the subject of her senior thesis.

    She immediately ruined her career in D.C. by failing its bar exam and being part of a Watergate Committee conspiracy to deny Nixon legal representation if he was impeached. The best she could do after that was to accept Bill Clinton’s outstanding offer of marriage and exile herself to Arkansas!!! She never psychologically recovered from that, always thinking the top billing should go “the smart one” of the pair. Much more follows, and was well documented in the “two for the price of one” Clinton Administration where she quickly flamed out on nationalized healthcare.

    For political campaigns that weren’t wired, see for example her contribution to Bill’s first attempt at reelection as governor. She didn’t do him many favors in 1992, see for example “I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies and had teas, but what I decided to do was to fulfill my profession…,” a classic type of attack for her on would be voters.

    Fast forward to 2008 and she again thinks it’s “her turn,” completely underestimates the threat of a Chicago politican (!), and she’s DEI to the core, her campaign manager for too long was a Latina who would lock herself in her office watching telenovelas for hours a day. By the time that manager was replaced, with as I recall her Negress White House Chief of Staff it was probably too late, although it occurs to me today that woman had divided loyalties, much like the McCain campaign deciding they’d go through the motions so as to not beat the first negro Presidential candidate.

    2016 is much fresher in our memories as well as her continued screw ups. Like taking the actual voting with Plan A cheating for granted, and instead spending time and money to try to get a majority of all total votes. Which both failed, and of course is not how you win a US Presidential election, which from memory she lost by a total of thirty thousand votes in three swing states.

    That she would conspire with Team Obama to blame Russia, Russia, Russia!!! for things like the self-verifying leak of her illegal Secretary of State communications, the probable Seth Rich (RIP) leak of DNC emails, and ultimately her razor thin loss in the election should surprise no one. This BTW is why smart countries always consider military capabilities first, you never know if an internal faction fight will suddenly turn a county into a deadly enemy (although that of course started long before, even before 2014).

    That the Democrats starting in 2000 would become “election deniers” and interfere with the peaceful transfer of power if they lost should also surprise no one who watched them over the decades, as well as how much damage it’s done, ultimately destroying the Republic which they want gone anyway….

    •�Agree: trevor
    •�Thanks: Mark G.
    •�Replies: @Jim Don Bob
    @That Would Be Telling

    This is evergreen. I got a gold box out of it.

    https://www.unz.com/isteve/ex-clinton-staffer-brad-delongs-post-on-hillarys-management-skills/

    June 07, 2003

    TIME TO POUND MY HEAD AGAINST THE WALL ONCE AGAIN

    … My two cents’ worth–and I think it is the two cents’ worth of everybody who worked for the Clinton Administration health care reform effort of 1993-1994–is that Hillary Rodham Clinton needs to be kept very far away from the White House for the rest of her life. Heading up health-care reform was the only major administrative job she has ever tried to do. And she was a complete flop at it. She had neither the grasp of policy substance, the managerial skills, nor the political smarts to do the job she was then given. And she wasn’t smart enough to realize that she was in over her head and had to get out of the Health Care Czar role quickly.

    So when senior members of the economic team said that key senators like Daniel Patrick Moynihan would have this-and-that objection, she told them they were disloyal. When junior members of the economic team told her that the Congressional Budget Office would say such-and-such, she told them (wrongly) that her conversations with CBO head Robert Reischauer had already fixed that. When long-time senior hill staffers told her that she was making a dreadful mistake by fighting with rather than reaching out to John Breaux and Jim Cooper, she told them that they did not understand the wave of popular political support the bill would generate. And when substantive objections were raised to the plan by analysts calculating the moral hazard and adverse selection pressures it would put on the nation’s health-care system…

    Hillary Rodham Clinton has already flopped as a senior administrative official in the executive branch–the equivalent of an Undersecretary. Perhaps she will make a good senator. But there is no reason to think that she would be anything but an abysmal president.

    Posted by Brad DeLong at June 7, 2003 10:15 PM | TrackBack
  360. Anonymous[932] •�Disclaimer says:
    @PeterIke
    @John Johnson

    What new low will Putin and Trump supporters bend to next?

    I love when the Feds join the chat.

    Replies: @Corvinus, @Anonymous

    I love when the Feds join the chat.

    Nah, JJ the NPC is just lazy, arrogant, and stupid. Come to think of it, maybe she is a fed.

  361. @Father Coughlin
    Trump is going to lose to a senile old man who has no business being president. And a significant percentage of the voters will feel very ripped off by this obvious lawfare. But there will never be any kind of revolt or revolution. Americans are too fat and happy for that. That can only happen in a third world country nowadays. What will happen is kind of a slow disengagement from civic life and volunteerism which will not be very pleasant for the country.

    Replies: @AnotherDad, @Frau Katze, @kaganovitch, @Jay Fink, @Yancey Ward, @Paul Jolliffe

    “Trump will lose to a senile old man”

    Oh Trump will lose alright, but it won’t be to Biden, but to RFK, Jr.

    RFK, Jr. absolutely will be on the ballot in all 50 states, and it’s likely he’ll be in at least one major televised debate despite CNN’s desperate efforts to keep him out.

    The readers of this blog may snicker and insult away, but RFK, Jr. will be a huge factor in this election and he just might win.

    (The Deep State fears and hates him more than they hate Trump. You think Trump is getting screwed?
    Wait until you see what they will throw at Kennedy.
    Anything, and I mean anything, is possible.
    As Kennedy gets closer to the White House, this might be the last election in our lifetimes.)

    •�Replies: @Manfred Arcane
    @Paul Jolliffe

    RFK Jr. is a raging far-leftist--pro-reparations, pro-abortion right up to birth, in favor of the tyrannical, anti-human "climate change" movement. Yes, he's right about the Covid shot, and his criticism of Biden's weaponization of the government is welcome, but that doesn't mean he should be allowed anywhere near the White House. The pervasiveness of the Kennedy mystique never ceases to make me shake my head; a clan of Irish criminals with a fake WASP facade and a burning hatred of real WASPs, but somehow they represent a lost Golden Age to many people who should know better.
    , @John Johnson
    @Paul Jolliffe

    The readers of this blog may snicker and insult away, but RFK, Jr. will be a huge factor in this election and he just might win.

    More of a laugh than a snicker. He is a terrible third party candidate.

    Anti-vaxx liberal with a history of supporting gun control and sounds like Heathcliff.

    Wait until you see what they will throw at Kennedy.

    Which makes him even worse than he appears. No one is slinging mud because he isn't a threat.

    If he somehow got to #2 in polling then the mud would fly.

    It isn't just COVID. He opposed the MMR vaccine which led to a measles outbreak.

    Who knows how many statements they could dig up during his time as a spoiled limousine liberal.
    , @Father Coughlin
    @Paul Jolliffe

    I am Pro-Kennedy and think he's the only way to heal the impassable divide in America. Deus vult, he will win.
  362. @trevor
    Banana Republic indeed

    One show of support came from David Sacks, a billionaire tech investor who is reportedly set to host a Silicon Valley fundraiser for Trump in the coming weeks.

    He immediately reacted to the verdict by posting that "there is now only one issue in this election: whether the American people will stand for the USA becoming a Banana Republic."


    https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-friendly-billionaires-from-elon-musk-to-bill-ackman-offer-new-support-following-conviction-115411598.html

    Replies: @Anon

    Reg Cesar, where you at?

    •�LOL: trevor
  363. @Hail
    @AceDeuce

    A new pro-Trump meme, released on conviction night, is making some big waves:

    -
    https://hailtoyou.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/trump-may-2024-post-conviction-meme-jesus-comforts-him-they-called-me-guilty-too.png
    -

    A Northern-European Jesus comforts Donald Trump. Behind them, the American flag.

    "It's okay, Don, they called me guilty too."

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Prester John

    Blasphemy!

  364. @Mr. Anon
    @Corvinus

    I only use the "troll" button, because there isn't a button for "a**hole". Or "Corvinus".

    Same thing.

    Replies: @Corvinus

    I’m take great pride that you say that, because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die.

    •�Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease
    @Corvinus

    "because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die."

    Sort of like... oh, Deng Xiao-ping.
    , @Anonymous
    @Corvinus


    I’m take great pride that you say that, because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die.
    That isn’t very nice of you, Corvinus. Why would you take pleasure in someone’s unhappiness or impending death?
  365. @Corvinus
    @Steve Sailer

    “I figured that when Trump ran for President in 2016 that the Democrats would dig up some 1980s scandal on him…”

    Either you are ignorant or you are being coy. Probably besr you don’t comment on such things.

    https://time.com/4465744/donald-trump-undocumented-workers/

    —For 36 years, Trump has denied knowingly using undocumented workers to demolish the building that would be replaced with Trump Tower in 1980. After Senator Marco Rubio raised the issue of undocumented Polish workers during a Republican primary debate this year, Trump described himself as removed from the problem. “I hire a contractor. The contractor then hires the subcontractor,” he said. “They have people. I don’t know. I don’t remember, that was so many years ago, 35 years ago.”

    But thousands of pages of documents from the case, including reams of testimony and sworn depositions reviewed by TIME, tell a different story. Kept for more than a decade in 13 boxes in a federal judiciary storage unit in Missouri, the documents contain testimony that Trump sought out the Polish workers when he saw them on another job, instigated the creation of the company that paid them and negotiated the hours they would work. The papers contain testimony that Trump repeatedly toured the site where the men were working, directly addressed them about pay problems and even promised to pay them himself, which he eventually did.—

    Replies: @Prester John

    “The papers contain testimony that Trump repeatedly toured the site where the men were working…”.

    Maybe. Need more than mere “testimony.”

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Prester John

    “Maybe. Need more than mere “testimony.”

    Not, no maybe, but definitively. You do realize that this testimony was from eye witness accounts. In other words, people with direct knowledge of what happened.
  366. @Paul Jolliffe
    @Father Coughlin

    “Trump will lose to a senile old man”

    Oh Trump will lose alright, but it won’t be to Biden, but to RFK, Jr.

    RFK, Jr. absolutely will be on the ballot in all 50 states, and it’s likely he’ll be in at least one major televised debate despite CNN’s desperate efforts to keep him out.

    The readers of this blog may snicker and insult away, but RFK, Jr. will be a huge factor in this election and he just might win.

    (The Deep State fears and hates him more than they hate Trump. You think Trump is getting screwed?
    Wait until you see what they will throw at Kennedy.
    Anything, and I mean anything, is possible.
    As Kennedy gets closer to the White House, this might be the last election in our lifetimes.)

    Replies: @Manfred Arcane, @John Johnson, @Father Coughlin

    RFK Jr. is a raging far-leftist–pro-reparations, pro-abortion right up to birth, in favor of the tyrannical, anti-human “climate change” movement. Yes, he’s right about the Covid shot, and his criticism of Biden’s weaponization of the government is welcome, but that doesn’t mean he should be allowed anywhere near the White House. The pervasiveness of the Kennedy mystique never ceases to make me shake my head; a clan of Irish criminals with a fake WASP facade and a burning hatred of real WASPs, but somehow they represent a lost Golden Age to many people who should know better.

  367. @Corvinus
    @Mr. Anon

    I’m take great pride that you say that, because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @Anonymous

    “because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die.”

    Sort of like… oh, Deng Xiao-ping.

  368. Well, you have nothing else to take pride in, you yammering nitwit, so…………….knock yourself out.

  369. @Buzz Mohawk
    @Tony


    At least Trump could temporarily slow that down.
    He got my vote and he had four years to do something. He fucked it up so bad I wonder if he even cared about delivering what he was selling. The guy is a fast-talking phony -- and an awful, awfully stupid manager.

    There is not going to be any slowing it down. We're screwed. Be prepared, Boy Scout.

    Replies: @Tony

    You crazy. Trump is a 1,000 times better than the dickhead in the Whitehouse now. Trump did the best he could going up against congress and most of Washington. Hey Jimmy Carter is still alive. Maybe you’d like to see him back in the White House.

  370. Anonymous[377] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Corvinus
    @Mr. Anon

    I’m take great pride that you say that, because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die.

    Replies: @The Germ Theory of Disease, @Anonymous

    I’m take great pride that you say that, because it means you are just an angry old man who yells at clouds and is waiting to die.

    That isn’t very nice of you, Corvinus. Why would you take pleasure in someone’s unhappiness or impending death?

  371. @Hail
    @Jim Don Bob

    Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA, sometime before the mid-2030s, with millions of deaths and an uncertain outcome for the White-West and its viability. I quote:

    Much of the United States - certainly the bits that matter - is now institutionally evil, and I am not sure that evil can be reversed, whether we're talking about the bodily mutilation of middle-school girls or the sacrifice of a generation of a distant nation's men in the meat-grinder of the Ukraine war. On America's watch, the entirety of western civilisation is sliding off the cliff, and very fast - which is all anyone will remember about it.

    And yet any alternative to the Uniparty consensus is not to be permitted, and must be hunted down and crushed. There is no future in the post-constitutional polity the Democrats are constructing. "Decline" is a choice - in the Austrian or Portuguese sense. But that's not in the offing here: America's death will be bloodier and more convulsive than anything seen in post-imperial Europe. Check back with me in ten years, and see who's right.
    This is surprising rhetoric from someone like Mark Steyn. It was batted around often in the lean-and-mean far-dissident circles in the 2000s, including spaces overlapping with Sailer blog and its "Sailertariat." But no one in the mainstreamed touched such views.

    Events of the 2010s mainstreamed the view of alarmist-fatalistic decline. By ca. 2018, the views were near-mainstream, but realignments never really occur overnight (even when they appear to). By some point in the 2020s, it no longer seemed like Mark Steyn is being "the crazy one" here for predicting such a thing. It is even now commonly heard.

    It's sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.

    Replies: @Thea, @Corvinus, @Jim Don Bob, @Nicholas Stix

    It’s sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying.

    I went on the last MS cruise in late February. MS now has white hair and uses a wheel chair and crutches to get in and out of it. He has been seriously weakened financially, if not ruined, by Michael Mann dragging him through the DC courts for 13 years. I would not be surprised if he dropped dead tomorrow.

  372. @prime noticer
    universities openly ignore the Supreme Court on Affirmative Action. now Joe Biden is openly mocking and ignoring the Supreme Court on student loans. and again note, in broad daylight, in front of the entire world. Democrats aren't sneaking around behind the scenes. they are calling press conferences and telling the SC to F off.

    things have changed. what makes anybody think the Supreme Court can save Trump here? New York will OPENLY IGNORE any SC ruling in Trump's favor. if SC even has anything to say about it in the first place, since they punted on the election. and that's just the first trial of many. Trump will be on trial all year in multiple states.

    as noted by lots of people, Supreme Court has no integral enforcement mechanism. if good faith actors are leaving the building, then rulings requires force. Democrats have started openly ignoring the court. who's going to show up to FORCE them to obey the court? not Republicans, that's for sure.

    things are about to bust wide open.

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin

    Also, the Democrats have intimidated the Supreme Court justices by threatening to pack it. An outrageous move which will receive no criticism from the mainstream media.

  373. @That Would Be Telling
    @Chrisnonymous


    In retrospect, the Steele dossier was a weird tactic for the Clinton campaign to pursue.
    It is all but impossible to overstate how fantastically incompetent Hillary is. But history helps, and I'll start that here with noting how she exited the brainwashing she got at Wellesley College ready to set the US on literal fire with the (((Saul Alinsky))) tactics she used as the subject of her senior thesis.

    She immediately ruined her career in D.C. by failing its bar exam and being part of a Watergate Committee conspiracy to deny Nixon legal representation if he was impeached. The best she could do after that was to accept Bill Clinton's outstanding offer of marriage and exile herself to Arkansas!!! She never psychologically recovered from that, always thinking the top billing should go "the smart one" of the pair. Much more follows, and was well documented in the "two for the price of one" Clinton Administration where she quickly flamed out on nationalized healthcare.

    For political campaigns that weren't wired, see for example her contribution to Bill's first attempt at reelection as governor. She didn't do him many favors in 1992, see for example "I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies and had teas, but what I decided to do was to fulfill my profession...," a classic type of attack for her on would be voters.

    Fast forward to 2008 and she again thinks it's "her turn," completely underestimates the threat of a Chicago politican (!), and she's DEI to the core, her campaign manager for too long was a Latina who would lock herself in her office watching telenovelas for hours a day. By the time that manager was replaced, with as I recall her Negress White House Chief of Staff it was probably too late, although it occurs to me today that woman had divided loyalties, much like the McCain campaign deciding they'd go through the motions so as to not beat the first negro Presidential candidate.

    2016 is much fresher in our memories as well as her continued screw ups. Like taking the actual voting with Plan A cheating for granted, and instead spending time and money to try to get a majority of all total votes. Which both failed, and of course is not how you win a US Presidential election, which from memory she lost by a total of thirty thousand votes in three swing states.

    That she would conspire with Team Obama to blame Russia, Russia, Russia!!! for things like the self-verifying leak of her illegal Secretary of State communications, the probable Seth Rich (RIP) leak of DNC emails, and ultimately her razor thin loss in the election should surprise no one. This BTW is why smart countries always consider military capabilities first, you never know if an internal faction fight will suddenly turn a county into a deadly enemy (although that of course started long before, even before 2014).

    That the Democrats starting in 2000 would become "election deniers" and interfere with the peaceful transfer of power if they lost should also surprise no one who watched them over the decades, as well as how much damage it's done, ultimately destroying the Republic which they want gone anyway....

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob

    This is evergreen. I got a gold box out of it.

    https://www.unz.com/isteve/ex-clinton-staffer-brad-delongs-post-on-hillarys-management-skills/

    June 07, 2003

    TIME TO POUND MY HEAD AGAINST THE WALL ONCE AGAIN

    … My two cents’ worth–and I think it is the two cents’ worth of everybody who worked for the Clinton Administration health care reform effort of 1993-1994–is that Hillary Rodham Clinton needs to be kept very far away from the White House for the rest of her life. Heading up health-care reform was the only major administrative job she has ever tried to do. And she was a complete flop at it. She had neither the grasp of policy substance, the managerial skills, nor the political smarts to do the job she was then given. And she wasn’t smart enough to realize that she was in over her head and had to get out of the Health Care Czar role quickly.

    So when senior members of the economic team said that key senators like Daniel Patrick Moynihan would have this-and-that objection, she told them they were disloyal. When junior members of the economic team told her that the Congressional Budget Office would say such-and-such, she told them (wrongly) that her conversations with CBO head Robert Reischauer had already fixed that. When long-time senior hill staffers told her that she was making a dreadful mistake by fighting with rather than reaching out to John Breaux and Jim Cooper, she told them that they did not understand the wave of popular political support the bill would generate. And when substantive objections were raised to the plan by analysts calculating the moral hazard and adverse selection pressures it would put on the nation’s health-care system…

    Hillary Rodham Clinton has already flopped as a senior administrative official in the executive branch–the equivalent of an Undersecretary. Perhaps she will make a good senator. But there is no reason to think that she would be anything but an abysmal president.

    Posted by Brad DeLong at June 7, 2003 10:15 PM | TrackBack

  374. @bomag
    @Jon Tormento


    ...this argument.
    There's an attraction to the "badboy". Also an attraction to someone who has been wronged and unfairly treated. Not sure this triggers that reflex; might trigger disgust at Trump as a loser who let himself get ensnared by some minor accounting misstep.

    Your average voter, particularly a swing voter, doesn’t like criminals, regardless of whether the trial was fair or not (and the trial probably was fair, generally speaking)
    True to some extent, but voters also realize a show trial. Polls did not go down when Trump became a criminal when he lost the case for overvaluing his properties. And these things will likely be overturned on appeal.

    And the trial brought to the forefront damning testimony about Trump being a sleazeball who cheats on his wife with a porn star.
    Such info has been out there in great quantities since 2016. We accept, maybe too much, such flaws in leadership. We discount too much guys like Pence and Romney,

    Replies: @Harry Baldwin

    Trump as a loser who let himself get ensnared by some minor accounting misstep.

    You’re not serious, are you? When a person is subjected to this kind of politically motivated prosecution, the prosecutor will always find something to hang his case on. This wasn’t even a time until they made it one. There’s no escaping determined injustice.

  375. @Paul Jolliffe
    @Father Coughlin

    “Trump will lose to a senile old man”

    Oh Trump will lose alright, but it won’t be to Biden, but to RFK, Jr.

    RFK, Jr. absolutely will be on the ballot in all 50 states, and it’s likely he’ll be in at least one major televised debate despite CNN’s desperate efforts to keep him out.

    The readers of this blog may snicker and insult away, but RFK, Jr. will be a huge factor in this election and he just might win.

    (The Deep State fears and hates him more than they hate Trump. You think Trump is getting screwed?
    Wait until you see what they will throw at Kennedy.
    Anything, and I mean anything, is possible.
    As Kennedy gets closer to the White House, this might be the last election in our lifetimes.)

    Replies: @Manfred Arcane, @John Johnson, @Father Coughlin

    The readers of this blog may snicker and insult away, but RFK, Jr. will be a huge factor in this election and he just might win.

    More of a laugh than a snicker. He is a terrible third party candidate.

    Anti-vaxx liberal with a history of supporting gun control and sounds like Heathcliff.

    Wait until you see what they will throw at Kennedy.

    Which makes him even worse than he appears. No one is slinging mud because he isn’t a threat.

    If he somehow got to #2 in polling then the mud would fly.

    It isn’t just COVID. He opposed the MMR vaccine which led to a measles outbreak.

    Who knows how many statements they could dig up during his time as a spoiled limousine liberal.

  376. @HA
    @Cloudbuster

    "Troll."

    You prefer one of these?

    Now that it has been pointed out to me, why yes, the obvious parallels between Trump'c current predicament and the Gospels are clear ndeed. He that hath ears, let him hear.

    For verily I say unto thee, if thou hast a comely daughter, whose hair is yellow and thin, see to it that your chosen harlot be like unto her in appearance, telling her so that she may rejoiceth therefore.

    But beware, beware -- if thine advocate concealeth the shekels paid unto her, verify that he concealeth rightly and ket not his left hand know what his right hand doeth. For woe be unto thee if his works are revealed unto the feds, if thou catchest my drift.

    Replies: @vinteuil, @Mark G.

    So what’s your current “thinking” about the Gaza slaughter?

    Have your paymasters worked that out, yet?

    •�Replies: @HA
    @vinteuil

    "So what’s your current 'thinking. about the Gaza slaughter?"

    As desperate as you are, you really think you're going to dig yourself out of a failed argument with some best-2-out-of-3 play involving Gaza?
  377. Yet more influential Trump converts and supporters:

    https://ssnews.page.link/oJk82YFnRYPEFJDy7

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @trevor

    How disconcerting is it to you that those supporters are concerned about the rise of anti-semitism? It appears they are beholden to the tribe. No big deal, right?

    —As this column first predicted, antisemitism on campus, stoked by elements of the Democratic Party and Biden’s mere half-hearted support of Israel eradicating the Hamas maniacs after Oct. 7, has made Schwarzman a born-again Trumper”.

    Replies: @trevor, @trevor, @Jonathan Mason
  378. As a friend of mine who went to law school in Massachusetts put it:

    “People in Massachusetts would elect shit if it ran as a Kennedy, and frequently do!”

    He told me this over 30 years ago.

    The Kennedy cult in this country is simply insane.

    Trump’s affairs with women? Kennedy would’ve mounted a bird cage if someone told him there was a canary in it.

    Look up a book called “JFK and his women”. There’s a brief mention of a dead hooker after one of his “girling” trips on a yacht on the French Riviera, back in the 1950’s. This was after his affair with a Nazi spy.

    Why that piece of crap JFK is so revered is beyond all comprehension. Most of his “achievements while in office” turned out to be utter bullshit, carefully stage-managed to turn his defeats into victories. Look up the real reason the Russians pulled their missiles out of Cuba- because we pulled our Jupiter missiles out of Turkey first. Of course, this wasn’t revealed until about 30 years or so later.

    •�Replies: @AceDeuce
    @Charlesz Martel


    “People in Massachusetts would elect shit if it ran as a Kennedy, and frequently do!”
    Massachusetts is the place that elected a man, a high school grad with no economic, financial, or political experience, to three terms as State Treasurer (1955-1961). His previous career was spent working in a stockroom at a Gillette razor blade factory.

    He simply got his name put on the ballot, and spent a grand total of $200 on his first “campaign”. In 1960, he ran for Governor, and received 9% of the statewide vote.

    His name? John F. Kennedy.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Francis_Kennedy_(politician)
  379. @John Johnson
    @Sam Hildebrand

    From what I understand, Trump used his own money to pay for the perfectly legal NDA with the porn star.

    But they were logged as legal charges for services rendered.

    The left says this is a violation of campaign finance law, Trump should have used campaign donations instead, since the NDA was meant to help his campaign.

    The campaign finance part was dropped.

    34 felonies is excessive but he isn't innocent.

    The classified documents case is much worse.

    The FBI pressured Facebook to block all posts about the Hunter laptop and 10% to the big guy right before an election, nothing to see here.

    The Hunter laptop was a cover-up.

    That doesn't make Trump any less of a sleaze-ball.

    I shouldn't have to choose between a NYC real estate con and a corrupt system that wants Mr. Magoo to win.

    Replies: @Precious, @Colin Wright

    ‘…I shouldn’t have to choose between a NYC real estate con and a corrupt system that wants Mr. Magoo to win…’

    Indeed — but the sad fact of the matter is that you (and I) do need to make this choice.

    I’ve come to realize that now I’m going to have to get a Trump bumper sticker for the car.

    …just no goddamned hat. That’s a bridge too far.

  380. @trevor
    Yet more influential Trump converts and supporters:

    https://ssnews.page.link/oJk82YFnRYPEFJDy7

    Replies: @Corvinus

    How disconcerting is it to you that those supporters are concerned about the rise of anti-semitism? It appears they are beholden to the tribe. No big deal, right?

    —As this column first predicted, antisemitism on campus, stoked by elements of the Democratic Party and Biden’s mere half-hearted support of Israel eradicating the Hamas maniacs after Oct. 7, has made Schwarzman a born-again Trumper”.

    •�Troll: trevor
    •�Replies: @trevor
    @Corvinus


    They also really think that Biden has sold out to sinister and leftist elements of the party. He needs to go, along with his half-witted VP, Kamala Harris, who will likely finish out our barely sentient president’s term if he’s re-elected, given his fragile mental acuity.

    They believe the DA’s case was a farce and the trial a sham: A noncrime over a porn-star hush-money payment brought by a defund-the-police, Soros-funded hack DA before a lefty judge — all to bring down the Democrats’ most hated target.

    I am more concerned about their concern for America than whatever else they might be concerned about.

    Most of all, they fear the alternative: The hapless administration of Sleepy Joe Biden that is an existential threat to the nation.

    Replies: @trevor
    , @trevor
    @Corvinus


    They also really think that Biden has sold out to sinister and leftist elements of the party. He needs to go, along with his half-witted VP, Kamala Harris, who will likely finish out our barely sentient president’s term if he’s re-elected, given his fragile mental acuity.

    They believe the DA’s case was a farce and the trial a sham: A noncrime over a porn-star hush-money payment brought by a defund-the-police, Soros-funded hack DA before a lefty judge — all to bring down the Democrats’ most hated target.
    I am more concerned about their concern for America the nation than whatever else they might be concerned about.

    Most of all, they fear the alternative: The hapless administration of Sleepy Joe Biden that is an existential threat to the nation.

    Would you rather they not be?

    Replies: @Ralph L
    , @Jonathan Mason
    @Corvinus

    If it is true that anti-Semitism is on the rise, then it must be largely caused by the well publicized bad behavior of the government of Israel, the world's only Jewish state.

    The fact is that the tribes in that part of the world have been trying to exterminate each other for at least 3,000 years, so really nothing is new.

    Even in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, you can find Jewish leaders like Joshua boasting in their blogs about exterminating whole cities and killing every man, woman, child, and beast.

    Replies: @Corvinus
  381. @HA
    @vinteuil

    "These people are completely nuts."

    Meanwhile, Trump supporters are completely cool, calm and collected.

    https://youtu.be/Kml6WRiXQ2M

    Replies: @Cloudbuster, @PeterIke, @Richard B

    These guys are so obviously fake Trump supporters. They put together videos like this exactly so trolls like you can post it. In fact, you’re probably the guy in the video.

    Granted, Trump supporters are crazy for supporting him at all. But that’s another story.

  382. @AceDeuce
    @Gore 2004


    The only Republican who would win or pull a Clinton-Carter wild card is Ray Kelly, former NYPD commissioner.
    LOL.

    Kelly's a good man. But Presidential material? I don't know.

    And who the hell outside of NYC knows who he is? I do. You do, I mean the other 99%.

    Hell, NYC is half newcomer parasites from the 3rd World who just got here. None of those squat monsters know who he is either. Nor care.

    And those who do know him as far as libs--the knives are out for him -he won't get 1% of the nigro vote. He's tough on crime (which is good in my opinion-but not theirs) He's Mr. Stop and Frisk (because it works) and he says the Central Park 5 are guilty as hell (because they are). I love that, but he'd never get nominated, much less elected.

    Plus, he's a year and two months older than Biden. Nearly 83.

    Keep dreaming.

    Replies: @Gore 2004

    the knives are out for him -he won’t get 1% of the nigro vote. He’s tough on crime

    Kelly was David Dinkins’ 2nd police commissioner before Giuliani forced Kelly and Dinkins out in 1994, so he would get some middle class Black votes.

    •�LOL: AceDeuce
  383. @Corvinus
    @trevor

    How disconcerting is it to you that those supporters are concerned about the rise of anti-semitism? It appears they are beholden to the tribe. No big deal, right?

    —As this column first predicted, antisemitism on campus, stoked by elements of the Democratic Party and Biden’s mere half-hearted support of Israel eradicating the Hamas maniacs after Oct. 7, has made Schwarzman a born-again Trumper”.

    Replies: @trevor, @trevor, @Jonathan Mason

    They also really think that Biden has sold out to sinister and leftist elements of the party. He needs to go, along with his half-witted VP, Kamala Harris, who will likely finish out our barely sentient president’s term if he’s re-elected, given his fragile mental acuity.

    They believe the DA’s case was a farce and the trial a sham: A noncrime over a porn-star hush-money payment brought by a defund-the-police, Soros-funded hack DA before a lefty judge — all to bring down the Democrats’ most hated target.

    I am more concerned about their concern for America than whatever else they might be concerned about.

    Most of all, they fear the alternative: The hapless administration of Sleepy Joe Biden that is an existential threat to the nation.

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @trevor

    To the moderator - I posted the same comment twice by mistake. This one is unedited, do please delete this one.

    It puts my words in blockquotes and leaves off my question at the end. TIA.
  384. @Corvinus
    @trevor

    How disconcerting is it to you that those supporters are concerned about the rise of anti-semitism? It appears they are beholden to the tribe. No big deal, right?

    —As this column first predicted, antisemitism on campus, stoked by elements of the Democratic Party and Biden’s mere half-hearted support of Israel eradicating the Hamas maniacs after Oct. 7, has made Schwarzman a born-again Trumper”.

    Replies: @trevor, @trevor, @Jonathan Mason

    They also really think that Biden has sold out to sinister and leftist elements of the party. He needs to go, along with his half-witted VP, Kamala Harris, who will likely finish out our barely sentient president’s term if he’s re-elected, given his fragile mental acuity.

    They believe the DA’s case was a farce and the trial a sham: A noncrime over a porn-star hush-money payment brought by a defund-the-police, Soros-funded hack DA before a lefty judge — all to bring down the Democrats’ most hated target.

    I am more concerned about their concern for America the nation than whatever else they might be concerned about.

    Most of all, they fear the alternative: The hapless administration of Sleepy Joe Biden that is an existential threat to the nation.

    Would you rather they not be?

    •�Replies: @Ralph L
    @trevor

    Within the 5 minute editing window, you can remove a comment entirely by deleting the text and saving.
  385. @trevor
    @Corvinus


    They also really think that Biden has sold out to sinister and leftist elements of the party. He needs to go, along with his half-witted VP, Kamala Harris, who will likely finish out our barely sentient president’s term if he’s re-elected, given his fragile mental acuity.

    They believe the DA’s case was a farce and the trial a sham: A noncrime over a porn-star hush-money payment brought by a defund-the-police, Soros-funded hack DA before a lefty judge — all to bring down the Democrats’ most hated target.

    I am more concerned about their concern for America than whatever else they might be concerned about.

    Most of all, they fear the alternative: The hapless administration of Sleepy Joe Biden that is an existential threat to the nation.

    Replies: @trevor

    To the moderator – I posted the same comment twice by mistake. This one is unedited, do please delete this one.

    It puts my words in blockquotes and leaves off my question at the end. TIA.

  386. @Ralph L
    @Enemy of Earth

    What in particular soured you on Bush and political participation after 2004?

    1984 is the last election I can think of that wasn't obviously the lesser of two evils.

    Replies: @Enemy of Earth

    The war on terror, No Child Left Behind, the Patriot Act, invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, Dick Cheney, John Roberts, the Troubled Asset Relief Program to name a few. I bailed on electoral politics when I realized there is no real difference between the two parties. Republicans lie about being fiscally responsible and being for limited government, then they grow the federal government and budget as large as they are able. Democrats don’t lie about it, they tell you how they plan to expand the size and power of government.

    In the end it doesn’t matter who gets elected to most offices. They’ve all been bought and sold by those who really wield the power, financial institutions, large corporations, the lobby industry, etc.

    Remember that old slogan from the Sixties? “What if they gave a war and no one came?” Well, I look forward to the presidential election where practically no one votes.

  387. It is unfortunate that the judicial system in the United States is so politicized, but this is nothing new.

    It really seems like we are getting quite close to the point where people are going to have to admit that the good old Constitution is broken when we have a presidential candidate who could potentially be elected while in prison, and then pardon himself and jail his jailers.

    Not to mention a Supreme Court that is increasingly showing its ass.

    Two of them apparently cannot control their crazy wives, and. Justice Kavanaugh has yet to explain his road to Damascus conversion from saying that Roe versus Wade was settled law at the time of his confirmation hearings.

    I would not be surprised if we soon hear that Venezuela and Nicaragua are considering sanctions against the regime in the USA.

  388. @Corvinus
    @trevor

    How disconcerting is it to you that those supporters are concerned about the rise of anti-semitism? It appears they are beholden to the tribe. No big deal, right?

    —As this column first predicted, antisemitism on campus, stoked by elements of the Democratic Party and Biden’s mere half-hearted support of Israel eradicating the Hamas maniacs after Oct. 7, has made Schwarzman a born-again Trumper”.

    Replies: @trevor, @trevor, @Jonathan Mason

    If it is true that anti-Semitism is on the rise, then it must be largely caused by the well publicized bad behavior of the government of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state.

    The fact is that the tribes in that part of the world have been trying to exterminate each other for at least 3,000 years, so really nothing is new.

    Even in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, you can find Jewish leaders like Joshua boasting in their blogs about exterminating whole cities and killing every man, woman, child, and beast.

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Jonathan Mason

    "If it is true that anti-Semitism is on the rise, then it must be largely caused by the well publicized bad behavior of the government of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state."

    I would tend to agree. Too bad Trevor has a dilemma on his hands. Trump donars advocate for Israel. A number of commenters here are not fond of Jews. Yet, Trump is smitten with them. What to do.

    Replies: @trevor
  389. @John Johnson
    @Hail

    Take your guesses: those sharing it and promoting this, are they doing it ironically or un-ironically (Trump being compared to Jesus)?

    Both but mostly un-ironic. In real life you can find Trump Tribe members that think it is all a grand conspiracy. They would absolutely share that image on FB and agree with it.

    His fans at Unz are actually pretty reasonable and most fall into the position of sure he is a sleezeball but Biden is worse. They know he made the pay-off but view the case as politically motivated. I would agree that the case has a political motivation but the truth is somewhere in the middle. Trump isn't innocent but I don't believe that most people would get 34 felonies in the same case.

    But I would also add that such precedents do exist because of race.

    You have to understand that prosecutors in these cities are completely frustrated with the reality of crime and race. Their job requires them to constantly lie about reality. They salivate over a wealthy White man in a white collar fraud case. It's the stuff of dreams for them.

    Replies: @anonymous, @Jonathan Mason

    The only reason there were 34 felonies was that there were 34 installments paid to Michael Cohen to pay off Stormy Daniels and Cohen himself.

    If it had been reduced to 33, or 32 to allow for paying a normal retainer to Cohen, would it make any difference?

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Jonathan Mason

    The only reason there were 34 felonies was that there were 34 installments paid to Michael Cohen to pay off Stormy Daniels and Cohen himself.

    Yes I get that.

    If it had been reduced to 33, or 32 to allow for paying a normal retainer to Cohen, would it make any difference?

    If it was one felony for all of them then yes it would make a difference in sentencing.

    Maybe that is how they do it in NYC but the white collar fraud cases I have read about did not add a felony for each ongoing payment. It was a felony for the entire scheme and then additional felonies for money laundering or for similar schemes with other people.

    You could probably dig up some of the kickback cases where a politician was making ongoing payments. Might be interesting to compare but I honestly don't care enough. I wouldn't care if this case was dropped. I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob
  390. @Jonathan Mason
    @Corvinus

    If it is true that anti-Semitism is on the rise, then it must be largely caused by the well publicized bad behavior of the government of Israel, the world's only Jewish state.

    The fact is that the tribes in that part of the world have been trying to exterminate each other for at least 3,000 years, so really nothing is new.

    Even in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, you can find Jewish leaders like Joshua boasting in their blogs about exterminating whole cities and killing every man, woman, child, and beast.

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “If it is true that anti-Semitism is on the rise, then it must be largely caused by the well publicized bad behavior of the government of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state.”

    I would tend to agree. Too bad Trevor has a dilemma on his hands. Trump donars advocate for Israel. A number of commenters here are not fond of Jews. Yet, Trump is smitten with them. What to do.

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @Corvinus

    No "dilemma" as per my response made about an hour after Corvinus' post, that is still hung up in moderation.

    But let's see if Corvinus answers MY question.

    I guess he would like Trump donars[sic] to help destroy the USA rather than support Trump

    Replies: @Corvinus
  391. @Jonathan Mason
    @John Johnson

    The only reason there were 34 felonies was that there were 34 installments paid to Michael Cohen to pay off Stormy Daniels and Cohen himself.

    If it had been reduced to 33, or 32 to allow for paying a normal retainer to Cohen, would it make any difference?

    Replies: @John Johnson

    The only reason there were 34 felonies was that there were 34 installments paid to Michael Cohen to pay off Stormy Daniels and Cohen himself.

    Yes I get that.

    If it had been reduced to 33, or 32 to allow for paying a normal retainer to Cohen, would it make any difference?

    If it was one felony for all of them then yes it would make a difference in sentencing.

    Maybe that is how they do it in NYC but the white collar fraud cases I have read about did not add a felony for each ongoing payment. It was a felony for the entire scheme and then additional felonies for money laundering or for similar schemes with other people.

    You could probably dig up some of the kickback cases where a politician was making ongoing payments. Might be interesting to compare but I honestly don’t care enough. I wouldn’t care if this case was dropped. I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.

    •�Replies: @Jim Don Bob
    @John Johnson


    I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.
    I dunno. The FBI seems to have messed up the chain of custody, and the judge is skeptical of Jack Smith who may very well be tossed by SCOTUS.

    Replies: @John Johnson
  392. @Corvinus
    @Jonathan Mason

    "If it is true that anti-Semitism is on the rise, then it must be largely caused by the well publicized bad behavior of the government of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state."

    I would tend to agree. Too bad Trevor has a dilemma on his hands. Trump donars advocate for Israel. A number of commenters here are not fond of Jews. Yet, Trump is smitten with them. What to do.

    Replies: @trevor

    No “dilemma” as per my response made about an hour after Corvinus’ post, that is still hung up in moderation.

    But let’s see if Corvinus answers MY question.

    I guess he would like Trump donars[sic] to help destroy the USA rather than support Trump

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @trevor

    “I guess he would like Trump donars[sic] to help destroy the USA rather than support Trump”

    Strawman. Never said that.

    “No “dilemma” as per my response made about an hour after Corvinus’ post, that is still hung up in moderation.”

    Indeed, you have a dilemma.

    You support Trump. But his donors support Jews. Trump’s daughter is married to a Jew.

    But you oppose Jews. Aren’t they murdering whites and Palestinians? But Trump is taking their donations and has said he will support Israeli policy.

    So, how can you support Trump when supports Jews and is getting their money? Isn’t he doing their bidding?

    Replies: @Anonymous
  393. @HA
    @Cloudbuster

    "Troll."

    You prefer one of these?

    Now that it has been pointed out to me, why yes, the obvious parallels between Trump'c current predicament and the Gospels are clear ndeed. He that hath ears, let him hear.

    For verily I say unto thee, if thou hast a comely daughter, whose hair is yellow and thin, see to it that your chosen harlot be like unto her in appearance, telling her so that she may rejoiceth therefore.

    But beware, beware -- if thine advocate concealeth the shekels paid unto her, verify that he concealeth rightly and ket not his left hand know what his right hand doeth. For woe be unto thee if his works are revealed unto the feds, if thou catchest my drift.

    Replies: @vinteuil, @Mark G.

    In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. The average age of a Ukrainian soldier is 43. The Russians also now have a 10 to 1 artillery advantage over the Ukrainians. The Ukrainians are now forming new infantry brigades rather than armored or mechanized brigades because they are running out of tanks and armored vehicles.

    Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve’s blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @Mark G.

    "In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. "

    So let me guess -- the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over? Where have I heard that before? What was the manpower advantage when Russia decided Afghanistan wasn't really worth it? And are the Russian soldiers being sent out in state-of-the-art chariots like this?

    https://twitter.com/JayinKyiv/status/1797267962220458308



    "Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve’s blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you."

    Yeah, there's nothing like tossing petty personal vendettas into your comments in a failed effort to try and patch the holes in your lame arguments.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie
    , @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.
    Stop projecting your own anti-religious fanaticism ("Christians serve an evil god") and lying ways onto others.

    I am on record as stating that Ukraine - historically in recent years - has been a more corrupt country than Russia. Moreover, I am categorically opposed to any NATO or US troops being used in Ukraine. We ought to provide material aid to repulse Russia from unlawfully making territorial gains by force of arms, but I am not willing to shed one drop of American blood for Ukraine.

    In any case, I can't go over there right now, because I am busy getting cattle-prodded in your fantasy: https://www.unz.com/isteve/125000-twitter-followers/#comment-6592583

    we should just put Catholic Asians on a boat and send them back home. If that happens, I plan to be there and watch as they poke your little Catholic Korean ass with a cattle prod to get you on the ship.

    Replies: @res, @Mark G.
  394. @Anon
    @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality

    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you'd want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you'll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.

    Replies: @Anonymous, @Loyalty is The First Law of Morality, @Mr. Anon, @Mike Tre

    Since you brought it up, the following article highlights the exchange between Kovid Klown Kris Kuomo and some comedian who thoroughly embarrasses him:

    https://www.zerohedge.com/covid-19/watch-dave-smith-burn-chris-cuomo-ground-epic-covid-debate

    And lockdowns weren’t just supported by liberals. A significant number of boomer-cons were perfectly ok with the entire affair, and their numbers are reflected by several commenters here.

    •�Thanks: Mark G.
  395. Wat do I think? About the same as when O.J. was declared not guilty.

  396. @Hail
    @Jim Don Bob

    Wow. Mark Steyn has just predicted civil war in the USA, sometime before the mid-2030s, with millions of deaths and an uncertain outcome for the White-West and its viability. I quote:

    Much of the United States - certainly the bits that matter - is now institutionally evil, and I am not sure that evil can be reversed, whether we're talking about the bodily mutilation of middle-school girls or the sacrifice of a generation of a distant nation's men in the meat-grinder of the Ukraine war. On America's watch, the entirety of western civilisation is sliding off the cliff, and very fast - which is all anyone will remember about it.

    And yet any alternative to the Uniparty consensus is not to be permitted, and must be hunted down and crushed. There is no future in the post-constitutional polity the Democrats are constructing. "Decline" is a choice - in the Austrian or Portuguese sense. But that's not in the offing here: America's death will be bloodier and more convulsive than anything seen in post-imperial Europe. Check back with me in ten years, and see who's right.
    This is surprising rhetoric from someone like Mark Steyn. It was batted around often in the lean-and-mean far-dissident circles in the 2000s, including spaces overlapping with Sailer blog and its "Sailertariat." But no one in the mainstreamed touched such views.

    Events of the 2010s mainstreamed the view of alarmist-fatalistic decline. By ca. 2018, the views were near-mainstream, but realignments never really occur overnight (even when they appear to). By some point in the 2020s, it no longer seemed like Mark Steyn is being "the crazy one" here for predicting such a thing. It is even now commonly heard.

    It's sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.

    Replies: @Thea, @Corvinus, @Jim Don Bob, @Nicholas Stix

    “It’s sad, though, to hear that Mark Steyn says he is dying. He blames his impending death on the series of crippling malicious prosecutions by left-wing North American courts, which he says have left him almost penniless. The charges and trials keep coming, his health keeps declining.”

    This is what they planned for the President, but they shot the wrong man.

  397. Anonymous[354] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Joe Stalin
    @Dutch Boy


    DT has been telling supporters that he would have bombed Moscow and Peking if there had been an attack on Ukraine or Taiwan.
    LOL. Russkies have been threatening to use nukes since...

    https://twitter.com/DarthPutinKGB/status/1795870292889268661

    Replies: @Anonymous

    Putin always does the opposite of what he says. It’s when he starts saying he will not use nuclear weapons that you need to worry.

    •�Troll: Corvinus
  398. A day or two ago, someone wrote at twit, that the solution “rhymes with silence.” But that’s been the case ever since The Big Steal. Halfway measures, like impeachment, were no measures at all.

  399. @Dave Pinsen
    @Buzz Mohawk


    1) Trump has always been a carnival barker who frolicked with “Mob-type” characters, or unsavory people. In other words, he worked with the underbelly of NYC.
    What evidence do you have in support of this assertion?

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York as a U.S. Attorney, and Trump never being even charged with a crime of any kind, IIRC, in the first 75 years of his life.

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @R.G. Camara, @Steve Sailer, @Erik L, @Not Raul

    Evidence against it includes Trump being longtime friends with Giuliani, who was the scourge of the mob in New York

    Giuliani might have been the scourge of Italian mobsters; but he has been very friendly with “Russian” mobsters. I guess the “Russians” pay better.

    https://projects.voanews.com/impeachment/giuliani.html

    •�Thanks: Corvinus
  400. Pre-Me Too.

    •�Replies: @anonymous
    @JohnnyWalker123

    Why would the Me Too concept even be an issue in the Senfeld-Lonstein relationship? Cute women comminly fall for funny guys, and Jerry was fairly good-looking as well. As fir the X-poster's question, the easy answer is New York's age of consent has long been 17.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob
  401. Anonymous[354] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Hypnotoad666
    @Dr. X


    Let me spell it out for you: HE’S NOT GOING TO “GET ELECTED,” the entire system is fucking RIGGED, that’s what this sham “trial” was about!
    If they knew they could always rig the vote count why would they need the lawfare?

    Incidentally, I believe 2020 was indeed rigged by good old ballot stuffing - facilitated by mass mail-in ballots and centralized vote counting in Democrat controlled operations in Atlanta, Detroit, and Philadelphia.

    But it will be difficult to pull the same scam if Trump is sufficiently ahead in swing state polls and the actual vote margins are indeed be "too big to rig."

    Replies: @Reg Cæsar, @BB753, @Anonymous

    The key to pulling off the 2020 fraud was excluding the observers from the counts.

    This was mainly done using bogus COVID social-distancing mandates, whereby observers were either excluded entirely (forced to watch proceedings through windows), or else confined to a corner of a large hall. (This is aside from the broken water-pipe and similar shenanigans.)

    Without COVID it’s hard to see them pulling this off a second time.

    •�Troll: Corvinus
  402. @Charlesz Martel
    As a friend of mine who went to law school in Massachusetts put it:

    "People in Massachusetts would elect shit if it ran as a Kennedy, and frequently do!"

    He told me this over 30 years ago.

    The Kennedy cult in this country is simply insane.

    Trump's affairs with women? Kennedy would've mounted a bird cage if someone told him there was a canary in it.

    Look up a book called "JFK and his women". There's a brief mention of a dead hooker after one of his "girling" trips on a yacht on the French Riviera, back in the 1950's. This was after his affair with a Nazi spy.

    Why that piece of crap JFK is so revered is beyond all comprehension. Most of his "achievements while in office" turned out to be utter bullshit, carefully stage-managed to turn his defeats into victories. Look up the real reason the Russians pulled their missiles out of Cuba- because we pulled our Jupiter missiles out of Turkey first. Of course, this wasn't revealed until about 30 years or so later.

    Replies: @AceDeuce

    “People in Massachusetts would elect shit if it ran as a Kennedy, and frequently do!”

    Massachusetts is the place that elected a man, a high school grad with no economic, financial, or political experience, to three terms as State Treasurer (1955-1961). His previous career was spent working in a stockroom at a Gillette razor blade factory.

    He simply got his name put on the ballot, and spent a grand total of $200 on his first “campaign”. In 1960, he ran for Governor, and received 9% of the statewide vote.

    His name? John F. Kennedy.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Francis_Kennedy_(politician)

    •�LOL: BB753
  403. @trevor
    @Corvinus

    No "dilemma" as per my response made about an hour after Corvinus' post, that is still hung up in moderation.

    But let's see if Corvinus answers MY question.

    I guess he would like Trump donars[sic] to help destroy the USA rather than support Trump

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “I guess he would like Trump donars[sic] to help destroy the USA rather than support Trump”

    Strawman. Never said that.

    “No “dilemma” as per my response made about an hour after Corvinus’ post, that is still hung up in moderation.”

    Indeed, you have a dilemma.

    You support Trump. But his donors support Jews. Trump’s daughter is married to a Jew.

    But you oppose Jews. Aren’t they murdering whites and Palestinians? But Trump is taking their donations and has said he will support Israeli policy.

    So, how can you support Trump when supports Jews and is getting their money? Isn’t he doing their bidding?

    •�Replies: @Anonymous
    @Corvinus


    But you oppose Jews. Aren’t they murdering whites and Palestinians?
    In your opinion, are Jews murdering Palestinians?

    Replies: @Corvinus
  404. @Prester John
    @Corvinus

    "The papers contain testimony that Trump repeatedly toured the site where the men were working...".

    Maybe. Need more than mere "testimony."

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “Maybe. Need more than mere “testimony.”

    Not, no maybe, but definitively. You do realize that this testimony was from eye witness accounts. In other words, people with direct knowledge of what happened.

  405. Anonymous[245] •�Disclaimer says:
    @Corvinus
    @trevor

    “I guess he would like Trump donars[sic] to help destroy the USA rather than support Trump”

    Strawman. Never said that.

    “No “dilemma” as per my response made about an hour after Corvinus’ post, that is still hung up in moderation.”

    Indeed, you have a dilemma.

    You support Trump. But his donors support Jews. Trump’s daughter is married to a Jew.

    But you oppose Jews. Aren’t they murdering whites and Palestinians? But Trump is taking their donations and has said he will support Israeli policy.

    So, how can you support Trump when supports Jews and is getting their money? Isn’t he doing their bidding?

    Replies: @Anonymous

    But you oppose Jews. Aren’t they murdering whites and Palestinians?

    In your opinion, are Jews murdering Palestinians?

    •�Replies: @Corvinus
    @Anonymous

    “In your opinion, are Jews murdering Palestinians?”

    Deranged Anony, I’ve already answered that question.

    So, yes. But why do you all of a sudden care about Palestinians when you believe they are a subhuman race?

    Replies: @trevor
  406. @trevor
    @Corvinus


    They also really think that Biden has sold out to sinister and leftist elements of the party. He needs to go, along with his half-witted VP, Kamala Harris, who will likely finish out our barely sentient president’s term if he’s re-elected, given his fragile mental acuity.

    They believe the DA’s case was a farce and the trial a sham: A noncrime over a porn-star hush-money payment brought by a defund-the-police, Soros-funded hack DA before a lefty judge — all to bring down the Democrats’ most hated target.
    I am more concerned about their concern for America the nation than whatever else they might be concerned about.

    Most of all, they fear the alternative: The hapless administration of Sleepy Joe Biden that is an existential threat to the nation.

    Would you rather they not be?

    Replies: @Ralph L

    Within the 5 minute editing window, you can remove a comment entirely by deleting the text and saving.

  407. @John Johnson
    @Jonathan Mason

    The only reason there were 34 felonies was that there were 34 installments paid to Michael Cohen to pay off Stormy Daniels and Cohen himself.

    Yes I get that.

    If it had been reduced to 33, or 32 to allow for paying a normal retainer to Cohen, would it make any difference?

    If it was one felony for all of them then yes it would make a difference in sentencing.

    Maybe that is how they do it in NYC but the white collar fraud cases I have read about did not add a felony for each ongoing payment. It was a felony for the entire scheme and then additional felonies for money laundering or for similar schemes with other people.

    You could probably dig up some of the kickback cases where a politician was making ongoing payments. Might be interesting to compare but I honestly don't care enough. I wouldn't care if this case was dropped. I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob

    I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.

    I dunno. The FBI seems to have messed up the chain of custody, and the judge is skeptical of Jack Smith who may very well be tossed by SCOTUS.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Jim Don Bob


    I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.

    I dunno. The FBI seems to have messed up the chain of custody, and the judge is skeptical of Jack Smith who may very well be tossed by SCOTUS.

    He has two ex-employees that are going to testify that he tried to hide evidence.

    He is on tape showing someone a document that he describes as top secret
    https://abcnews.go.com/US/audio-recording-trump-heard-discussing-classified-document-held/story?id=100346060

    His only hope is a delay so he can pardon himself when president.

    Replies: @Precious
  408. @John Johnson
    @The Anti-Gnostic

    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don't know if that is true.

    Biden would also tell you that he hasn't made a dime from his son's scheming. Does anyone believe that?

    The Trump/Johnson aid bill is filled with porky pay-offs. Who knows what kind of swamp monster drew that up. Probably not Trump but he certainly green-lighted it. There could very well be some financial play for Trump. Presidents in the past have setup long term schemes where they later make money from a company that just happened to get a sweetheart deal when they were president.

    If Trump gets a prison sentence it will be a short stint in a Federal hotel for white collar criminals.

    Replies: @Hunsdon, @Precious

    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don’t know if that is true.

    Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @Precious

    "Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true."

    Did finance somehow stop in 2021? Because if it didn't, you might want to note that he's raking it in in 2024 -- thanks in large part to what happened in 2016-2020 -- what with the $1.3bn he's gonna get for his social media company despite its "volatile" performance. Assuming he's able to liquidate (or, more likely, use his "reported" net worth to secure financing just like he did with DB) he could pay off all the judgments against him and still be in the black.

    Replies: @Precious
    , @John Johnson
    @Precious


    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.


    We don’t know if that is true.


    Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true.

    That's not what I was saying.

    No one knows if he is willing to die in prison.

    It's entirely possible he could take a deal in the documents case to avoid prison. Exit politics in exchange for zero prison time.
  409. Overall, this is very good for Trump’s re-election campaign, and very bad for Biden. I expect the polls to reflect this in about three weeks. It has already helped Trump’s fundraising.

    It also helps Trump’s presidential immunity case. The entire counter-argument against immunity provided by the federal appeals court has been eviscerated by events. Those judges argued that it was implausible that anyone would target an ex-president with vindictive lawfare, and we now see the exact opposite in both the civil courts and in this case where the judge deliberately violated Trump’s due process rights.

  410. HA says:
    @Mark G.
    @HA

    In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. The average age of a Ukrainian soldier is 43. The Russians also now have a 10 to 1 artillery advantage over the Ukrainians. The Ukrainians are now forming new infantry brigades rather than armored or mechanized brigades because they are running out of tanks and armored vehicles.

    Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve's blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.

    Replies: @HA, @Twinkie

    “In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. “

    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over? Where have I heard that before? What was the manpower advantage when Russia decided Afghanistan wasn’t really worth it? And are the Russian soldiers being sent out in state-of-the-art chariots like this?

    “Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve’s blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.”

    Yeah, there’s nothing like tossing petty personal vendettas into your comments in a failed effort to try and patch the holes in your lame arguments.

    •�Troll: BB753
    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @HA

    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?

    Putin's fans have been telling us that Russia is about to take off the gloves in 2 weeks for 2 years.

    Replies: @res
    , @Twinkie
    @HA


    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?
    You are, of course, not wrong that Russia-triumphalists have been comically wrong for the past two years. Our very own Ron Unz has been parroting Douglas Macgregor's "Ukraine is about to collapse in the next few days" for the past two years.

    I initially concurred with estimates of most intelligence agencies that Russia would overwhelm Kyiv in the first few weeks, if not days. They - and I - turned out to be very wrong, because the Russian military turned out to be quite inept at almost every level (about which I commented extensively on Unz) and the Ukrainians turned out to be far more courageous and skillful than previously thought, despite getting caught with their pants down (despite the bellicose Russian rhetoric, their leadership considered the invasion highly unlikely and hadn't mobilized bulk of their troops).

    After I examined various data and evidence, it became pretty clear to me that - despite the proclamations of the imminent Ukrainian fall as the likes of Macgregor and Unz asserted every week - Russia had incurred substantial casualties and experienced a significant reduction in its combat power. That assessment was proven correct when the Ukrainians launched a surprise counterattack and collapsed the Russian lines around Kharkiv, which they could not exploit due to their material weaknesses in armor, IFV, and air defense/air support, but which they did utilize adroitly to force the Russians to vacate Kherson without firing a shot.

    At that point, I cautioned Ukraine-triumphalists (e.g. Jack D) that although the Russians suffered significant losses, so did the Ukrainians and that, while the Ukrainians had done exceedingly well against all previous estimates and material imbalances, the long-term correlations of forces still favored Russia, because the Russians can regenerate substantial combat power on their own (manpower + industrial capacity + learning from their mistakes and altering their tactical and operational doctrines) while Ukraine depends on the goodwill of its Western backers that has an expiration date.

    I further cautioned them not to expect too much of the Ukrainian summer offensive (everyone was talking about a spring offensive, but I correctly pointed out that the offensive would be delayed due to the core of the Ukrainian troops to be used for it was still being trained and not ready for deployment soon). I estimated the chance of any significant success - cutting the land bridge with Crimea - as low. I thought, at the time, that it'd have been better for the Ukrainians to husband their limited resources and use them to engage in an elastic defense and judicious counterattack against further Russian offenses into Ukraine (the model being both the second battle of Kharkov in 1942 and the third in 1943). But they chose not to do this and roll the dice on an offensive, because they - and their Western backers - were fixating on taking as much territory back from Russia as possible.

    My sense at the time was that there would be short- to medium-term stalemate as both sides experienced significant attrition in combat power on futile attacks and the tide would eventually turn favorably for the Russians as they regenerated their forces while the Western support for Ukraine started to falter.

    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets
    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. Its catastrophic losses of previously highly trained combat personnel (esp. among Spetsnaz, marine infantry, specialized independent infantry brigades) - which was a result of using them to plug the gaps due to lack of quality infantry - will not be reconstituted for years to come, but Russia has used what capacity it has resourcefully to create/acquire more PGMs and drones, and even armor (increasingly less useful due to drones and PGMs).

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition. That said, as I often say, the future depends on innumerable contingencies and is stochastic. If the Ukrainians use their limited resources well, it is entirely possible that the Russians will continue to suffer large losses and this is liable to destabilize the Russian government (especially if Putin were to become critically ill or dies). No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. The Soviets "only" lost somewhere between 14,000-26,000 men in the Afghan war (and when the Soviet Union was a far more militarized society with much greater military manpower and materiel), yet it contributed to their demise. So, as I wrote several times before, this is a race - between Ukraine running out Western material support and Russia continuing to suffer large casualties. One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin's longevity.*

    *I also pointed out in the past that Putin's death does not mean an automatic victory for Ukraine. We don't know enough to prognosticate who will inherit power - there will likely be a period of internal struggle, long or short - and the successor may disavow this Putin's war as a folly and withdraw or he may double-down to establish his nationalist bona fide.

    Replies: @Frau Katze, @BB753, @HA, @John Johnson
  411. @vinteuil
    @HA

    So what's your current "thinking" about the Gaza slaughter?

    Have your paymasters worked that out, yet?

    Replies: @HA

    “So what’s your current ‘thinking. about the Gaza slaughter?”

    As desperate as you are, you really think you’re going to dig yourself out of a failed argument with some best-2-out-of-3 play involving Gaza?

  412. trevor says:

    EMERGENCY PETITION

    1 Million Signatures Needed.

    STOP ALVIN BRAGG!

    Soros-funded Alvin Bragg is a disgrace to America, and he should not be able to practice law any longer.

    House Republicans are calling for his IMMEDIATE DISBARMENT, and we’re asking you to join us in this fight.

    Sign our Emergency Petition ASAP

  413. @Mr. Anon
    @Anon


    Always with the COVID lockdowns. Aliens could land on the white house lawn and all you’d want to talk about is how horrible the lockdowns were and how you’ll never forgive anyone who advocated for them.
    That's right. A lot of us will not forgive recommending house arrest for the entire World's population.

    We will not forgive tyranny.

    You know how I knew that lockdowns were a bad idea?

    Because they are called "lockdowns" - a term that comes from prison administration.

    Oh, and by the way, f**k you.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    Florida did not engage in extensive lockdowns. Adjusted for age distribution, Covid deaths were not much higher than a number of other states that did have lockdowns. Florida also had much less economic devastation than the lockdown states.

    Florida voters had a chance to express their approval or disapproval of DeSantis and his Covid policies in 2022. He won his election that year in a landslide.

  414. @Paul Jolliffe
    @Father Coughlin

    “Trump will lose to a senile old man”

    Oh Trump will lose alright, but it won’t be to Biden, but to RFK, Jr.

    RFK, Jr. absolutely will be on the ballot in all 50 states, and it’s likely he’ll be in at least one major televised debate despite CNN’s desperate efforts to keep him out.

    The readers of this blog may snicker and insult away, but RFK, Jr. will be a huge factor in this election and he just might win.

    (The Deep State fears and hates him more than they hate Trump. You think Trump is getting screwed?
    Wait until you see what they will throw at Kennedy.
    Anything, and I mean anything, is possible.
    As Kennedy gets closer to the White House, this might be the last election in our lifetimes.)

    Replies: @Manfred Arcane, @John Johnson, @Father Coughlin

    I am Pro-Kennedy and think he’s the only way to heal the impassable divide in America. Deus vult, he will win.

  415. Why did the website format suddenly change?
    Many links are too small to read and the comment numbers are off the page and therefore unreadable, making the site very difficult to use.

  416. @vinteuil
    If they put him in prison, he will soar in the polls.

    But they're so thirsty for his blood, they'll probably go for it.

    These people are completely nuts.

    Replies: @JimDandy, @James N. Kennett, @George, @Twinkie, @HA, @Hannah Katz, @Pythas

    True. But there’s only one way to deal with alien out-lander fanatics living in out Western Culture and Civilization and we know what that is. Now another question. What is a Colombian south american jungle shitter named juan merchan doing as a judge in our Anglo-Saxon Protestant legal system in the 1st place that the assholes did not create? Also what is a primitives negro who’s name by the way is Bragg (the 80 I.Q. low life has a stolen name from a Confederated Southern General Braxton Bragg) doing as a D.A. in one of our major Western cities that these jungle shitters had nothing to do with creating also? Anybody want to answer my that? Now if the shoe was on the other foot and hypothetically these black and brown trash created our legal system or the industrial revolution or the Renaissance do you think any of these aliens would let any White man into their Cultural/Civilizational institutions? I already know the answer to that. You mentally colonized Western men better start waking up.

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @Pythas

    Sailer's Law mass shooting in Ohio by the sub 80 IQ savages.

    Doesn't mention race, but there sre plenty of clues including a 27:1 ratio in a crowd of 200+, not to mention the name of the 1 killed.

    "The Akron man killed during the shooting has been identified as LaTeris Cook,"


    https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/crime/2024/06/03/akron-ohio-mass-shooting-what-to-know-suspect-kelly-avenue/73953761007/
  417. anonymous[234] •�Disclaimer says:
    @JohnnyWalker123
    Pre-Me Too.

    https://twitter.com/missfacto/status/1797124694589726984

    Replies: @anonymous

    Why would the Me Too concept even be an issue in the Senfeld-Lonstein relationship? Cute women comminly fall for funny guys, and Jerry was fairly good-looking as well. As fir the X-poster’s question, the easy answer is New York’s age of consent has long been 17.

    •�Replies: @Jim Don Bob
    @anonymous

    As they say, that girl had a balcony you could do Shakespeare from.

    https://cirrkus.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Jerry-Seinfelds-Comment-About-Masculinity-Spark-Debate.jpg
  418. Florida did not engage in extensive lockdowns.

    As far as I am concerned that is kind of like saying “Florida did not engage in extensive human sacrifice” or “Florida did not engage in extensive slavery” or etc.

    Lockdowns were a bad idea, an immoral policy, and no governor should have entertained them at all, not even for a day.

    There is a reason for drawing sharp lines. There is a reason for moral absolutism on some issues.

  419. Trump says they stole the last election, and all the evidence proves it is more likely than not true. This 2024 election would be much easier to steal because of the chilling effect they put on everyone protesting a fraudulent election. They have the media to censor or calumniate anyone of importance saying it was stolen. They have the DOJ putting everyone else protesting on the street in jail for many years, as those who protested 2020 are still in jail. If they stole the election in 2024, there would not be a whimper of protest, in my opinion. Much easier to steal the election in 2024 than it was in 2020.

    So why wouldn’t they steal it? If Trump gets into office, in my opinion, he was put in office. But why? To lead the nation into WWIII? Maybe they weren’t quite ready in 2020 for Trump to do that?

    Would Biden be as effective in leading the country into its doom? Biden would have both the right and the left on the street in protest. He would have half of congress criticizing him, (but maybe not in this case). Trump wouldn’t have these potential problems politically. He’d have half the country behind him, and when millions die, his adversaries have the perfect scapegoat.

    If Trump gets in office as I am predicting, we are all in the kind of trouble from which there is no escape, and those who put him in office will be forever silenced. https://foreignpolicy.com/2017/08/09/donald-trump-is-dropping-bombs-at-unprecedented-levels/ https://au.news.yahoo.com/trump-suggested-fundraiser-bombed-russia-192922343.html https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-israel-gaza-finish-problem-rcna141905 https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/trump-wanted-bomb-iran-still-could-leaving-biden-pick-pieces-ncna1248186

  420. trevor says:
    @Pythas
    @vinteuil

    True. But there's only one way to deal with alien out-lander fanatics living in out Western Culture and Civilization and we know what that is. Now another question. What is a Colombian south american jungle shitter named juan merchan doing as a judge in our Anglo-Saxon Protestant legal system in the 1st place that the assholes did not create? Also what is a primitives negro who's name by the way is Bragg (the 80 I.Q. low life has a stolen name from a Confederated Southern General Braxton Bragg) doing as a D.A. in one of our major Western cities that these jungle shitters had nothing to do with creating also? Anybody want to answer my that? Now if the shoe was on the other foot and hypothetically these black and brown trash created our legal system or the industrial revolution or the Renaissance do you think any of these aliens would let any White man into their Cultural/Civilizational institutions? I already know the answer to that. You mentally colonized Western men better start waking up.

    Replies: @trevor

    Sailer’s Law mass shooting in Ohio by the sub 80 IQ savages.

    Doesn’t mention race, but there sre plenty of clues including a 27:1 ratio in a crowd of 200+, not to mention the name of the 1 killed.

    “The Akron man killed during the shooting has been identified as LaTeris Cook,”

    https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/crime/2024/06/03/akron-ohio-mass-shooting-what-to-know-suspect-kelly-avenue/73953761007/

  421. trevor says:

    District Attorney Alvin Bragg is a CRIMINAL who should be DSIBARRED & PROSECUTED!

    The Radical District Attorney just CONVICTED Trump through unfair LAWFARE!

    We need an OVERWHELMING response for the Official GOP Petition to IMMEDIATELY DISBARR & PROSECUTE ALVIN BRAGG!

    PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE

    Go on the record & DEMAND District Attorney Alvin Bragg be DISBARRED & PROSECUTED!

    SIGN THE GOP PETITION

    (blockquote button no longer available?)

  422. HA says:
    @Precious
    @John Johnson


    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don’t know if that is true.
    Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true.

    Replies: @HA, @John Johnson

    “Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true.”

    Did finance somehow stop in 2021? Because if it didn’t, you might want to note that he’s raking it in in 2024 — thanks in large part to what happened in 2016-2020 — what with the $1.3bn he’s gonna get for his social media company despite its “volatile” performance. Assuming he’s able to liquidate (or, more likely, use his “reported” net worth to secure financing just like he did with DB) he could pay off all the judgments against him and still be in the black.

    •�Replies: @Precious
    @HA


    Did finance somehow stop in 2021?
    No, but he stopped being President in 2021... right?

    he’s raking it in in 2024 — thanks in large part to what happened in 2021-2024 — what with the $1.3bn he’s gonna get for his social media company despite its “volatile” performance.

    ^Fixed.

    Replies: @HA
  423. @HA
    @Precious

    "Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true."

    Did finance somehow stop in 2021? Because if it didn't, you might want to note that he's raking it in in 2024 -- thanks in large part to what happened in 2016-2020 -- what with the $1.3bn he's gonna get for his social media company despite its "volatile" performance. Assuming he's able to liquidate (or, more likely, use his "reported" net worth to secure financing just like he did with DB) he could pay off all the judgments against him and still be in the black.

    Replies: @Precious

    Did finance somehow stop in 2021?

    No, but he stopped being President in 2021… right?

    he’s raking it in in 2024 — thanks in large part to what happened in 2021-2024 — what with the $1.3bn he’s gonna get for his social media company despite its “volatile” performance.

    ^Fixed.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @Precious

    "No, but he stopped being President in 2021… right?"

    So? You really think those appointed to leave us honorably stop raking it in once they're kicked out of office?
  424. @Jim Don Bob
    @John Johnson


    I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.
    I dunno. The FBI seems to have messed up the chain of custody, and the judge is skeptical of Jack Smith who may very well be tossed by SCOTUS.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.

    I dunno. The FBI seems to have messed up the chain of custody, and the judge is skeptical of Jack Smith who may very well be tossed by SCOTUS.

    He has two ex-employees that are going to testify that he tried to hide evidence.

    He is on tape showing someone a document that he describes as top secret
    https://abcnews.go.com/US/audio-recording-trump-heard-discussing-classified-document-held/story?id=100346060

    His only hope is a delay so he can pardon himself when president.

    •�Replies: @Precious
    @John Johnson


    He has two ex-employees that are NOT going to testify that he tried to hide evidence.
    ^Fixed.

    He is on tape showing someone a document that he describes as top secret...
    ...which, if you compare to the transcripts of Biden talking to the ghostwriter of his planned memoirs... is an EXACT MATCH OF WHAT BIDEN SAID.

    Which means Trump ALREADY KNEW that BIDEN HAD STOLEN CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS, most likely something Trump learned while he was president, and DELIBERATELY COPIED what Biden said. Scary how Trump managed to learn that information, but hey, FISA warrants are intrusive.

    His only hope is a delay so he can pardon himself when president....
    ...OR he can point to Hur not prosecuting Biden as an example of selective prosecution... OR he can point to presidential immunity which the US Supreme Court is going to grant in some capacity... OR he can point to the Presidential Records Act... OR he can point out that he had a Department of Energy security clearance that was separate from his time as President and that, despite their attempt to retroactively revoke it, which you can't do because you can't retroactively revoke a security clearance... means he still had it when Jack Smith filed charges in the first place.
  425. @HA
    @Mark G.

    "In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. "

    So let me guess -- the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over? Where have I heard that before? What was the manpower advantage when Russia decided Afghanistan wasn't really worth it? And are the Russian soldiers being sent out in state-of-the-art chariots like this?

    https://twitter.com/JayinKyiv/status/1797267962220458308



    "Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve’s blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you."

    Yeah, there's nothing like tossing petty personal vendettas into your comments in a failed effort to try and patch the holes in your lame arguments.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?

    Putin’s fans have been telling us that Russia is about to take off the gloves in 2 weeks for 2 years.

    •�Replies: @res
    @John Johnson

    Is that anything like the "next Ukrainian offensive" we keep hearing about?

    Replies: @John Johnson
  426. @Alexander Turok
    @Hail

    No idea why Ann's pissed at Trump. She does have a college degree and Trump has a way of repelling college-educated Americans and attracting no-college Americans, similar to daytime court shows.

    Replies: @G. Poulin

    Ann is pissed for good reason. She was Trump’s most visible and loyal supporter, and part of the reason he got elected in 2016. When he took office and immediately starting reneging on his promise to build the wall, Ann called him out for it. Trump’s response was to call her a crazy dame. Ann realized she’d been used, like the girl who got pumped and dumped at the prom. Of course she’s pissed. Donald Trump needs to learn that loyalty is a two-way street.

  427. Yngvar says:

    As an Auslander it looks pretty obvious to me that this felony conviction was the result of a show trial in a kangaroo court.

    My prediction is that the judge will give — what was it? A possible 136 year sentence? — Trump at least 50 years for his ‘crimes’.

    Very sad to see the US decay into this. Cultural Marxism.

    There are two types of cultural Marxists. One type believe capitalism (a.k.a. White supremacy) and the bourgeoisie (a.k.a whiteness) have to be destroyed, to usher in Communist Utopia. The other type think the reason ‘poor people, in poor neighborhoods’ stays ‘poor’ is that they’re not represented enough in media, in ads, in academia and so on, and the have to be given a leg up, so their social problems can be fixed.

    It is the same play in Christianity; Cultural Christians. You have the true believers, and then those who have rejected the faith, but still thinks the 10 Commandments, The Sermon on the Mount, and other Biblical teachings are wise advice for a good life.

    Socialism is an offshoot of Christianity, determined to create Paradise here in our realm, and not after death. Neither is possible. We must reject the teachings of Christianity and its evil son Socialism, for this good Earth to prevail.

  428. @Anonymous
    @Corvinus


    But you oppose Jews. Aren’t they murdering whites and Palestinians?
    In your opinion, are Jews murdering Palestinians?

    Replies: @Corvinus

    “In your opinion, are Jews murdering Palestinians?”

    Deranged Anony, I’ve already answered that question.

    So, yes. But why do you all of a sudden care about Palestinians when you believe they are a subhuman race?

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @Corvinus

    By more than 1,000 years, “Israel” predates “Palestine.” The land then became home primarily to an Arab population, again for more than a millennium. Both Jews and Arabs thus have a legitimate claim to the land. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has seen myriad wrongs and brutalities on both sides.Jul 6, 2021

    (blockquote button no longer available?)
  429. @anonymous
    @JohnnyWalker123

    Why would the Me Too concept even be an issue in the Senfeld-Lonstein relationship? Cute women comminly fall for funny guys, and Jerry was fairly good-looking as well. As fir the X-poster's question, the easy answer is New York's age of consent has long been 17.

    Replies: @Jim Don Bob

    As they say, that girl had a balcony you could do Shakespeare from.

  430. @Corvinus
    @Anonymous

    “In your opinion, are Jews murdering Palestinians?”

    Deranged Anony, I’ve already answered that question.

    So, yes. But why do you all of a sudden care about Palestinians when you believe they are a subhuman race?

    Replies: @trevor

    By more than 1,000 years, “Israel” predates “Palestine.” The land then became home primarily to an Arab population, again for more than a millennium. Both Jews and Arabs thus have a legitimate claim to the land. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has seen myriad wrongs and brutalities on both sides.Jul 6, 2021

    (blockquote button no longer available?)

  431. @John Johnson
    @Jim Don Bob


    I think he is hosed in the documents case and this is just tea talk.

    I dunno. The FBI seems to have messed up the chain of custody, and the judge is skeptical of Jack Smith who may very well be tossed by SCOTUS.

    He has two ex-employees that are going to testify that he tried to hide evidence.

    He is on tape showing someone a document that he describes as top secret
    https://abcnews.go.com/US/audio-recording-trump-heard-discussing-classified-document-held/story?id=100346060

    His only hope is a delay so he can pardon himself when president.

    Replies: @Precious

    He has two ex-employees that are NOT going to testify that he tried to hide evidence.

    ^Fixed.

    He is on tape showing someone a document that he describes as top secret…

    …which, if you compare to the transcripts of Biden talking to the ghostwriter of his planned memoirs… is an EXACT MATCH OF WHAT BIDEN SAID.

    Which means Trump ALREADY KNEW that BIDEN HAD STOLEN CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS, most likely something Trump learned while he was president, and DELIBERATELY COPIED what Biden said. Scary how Trump managed to learn that information, but hey, FISA warrants are intrusive.

    His only hope is a delay so he can pardon himself when president….

    …OR he can point to Hur not prosecuting Biden as an example of selective prosecution… OR he can point to presidential immunity which the US Supreme Court is going to grant in some capacity… OR he can point to the Presidential Records Act… OR he can point out that he had a Department of Energy security clearance that was separate from his time as President and that, despite their attempt to retroactively revoke it, which you can’t do because you can’t retroactively revoke a security clearance… means he still had it when Jack Smith filed charges in the first place.

  432. @John Johnson
    @HA

    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?

    Putin's fans have been telling us that Russia is about to take off the gloves in 2 weeks for 2 years.

    Replies: @res

    Is that anything like the “next Ukrainian offensive” we keep hearing about?

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @res

    Is that anything like the “next Ukrainian offensive” we keep hearing about?

    I actually haven't heard of one.

    I've seen some limited counter-attacks but no plans for anything major. Both sides have done better on the defensive.
  433. @Precious
    @John Johnson


    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don’t know if that is true.
    Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true.

    Replies: @HA, @John Johnson

    A con man who didn’t gain a dime from political office and is willing to die in prison if he has to.

    We don’t know if that is true.


    Check his net worth in 2016, and check his net worth in 2021. Forbes magazine has everything you need. You will confirm it is true.

    That’s not what I was saying.

    No one knows if he is willing to die in prison.

    It’s entirely possible he could take a deal in the documents case to avoid prison. Exit politics in exchange for zero prison time.

  434. @res
    @John Johnson

    Is that anything like the "next Ukrainian offensive" we keep hearing about?

    Replies: @John Johnson

    Is that anything like the “next Ukrainian offensive” we keep hearing about?

    I actually haven’t heard of one.

    I’ve seen some limited counter-attacks but no plans for anything major. Both sides have done better on the defensive.

  435. @Mark G.
    @HA

    In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. The average age of a Ukrainian soldier is 43. The Russians also now have a 10 to 1 artillery advantage over the Ukrainians. The Ukrainians are now forming new infantry brigades rather than armored or mechanized brigades because they are running out of tanks and armored vehicles.

    Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve's blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.

    Replies: @HA, @Twinkie

    When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.

    Stop projecting your own anti-religious fanaticism (“Christians serve an evil god”) and lying ways onto others.

    I am on record as stating that Ukraine – historically in recent years – has been a more corrupt country than Russia. Moreover, I am categorically opposed to any NATO or US troops being used in Ukraine. We ought to provide material aid to repulse Russia from unlawfully making territorial gains by force of arms, but I am not willing to shed one drop of American blood for Ukraine.

    In any case, I can’t go over there right now, because I am busy getting cattle-prodded in your fantasy: https://www.unz.com/isteve/125000-twitter-followers/#comment-6592583

    we should just put Catholic Asians on a boat and send them back home. If that happens, I plan to be there and watch as they poke your little Catholic Korean ass with a cattle prod to get you on the ship.

    •�Replies: @res
    @Twinkie

    Any thoughts on whether or not the Ukraine should be permitted to use US weapons to strike targets in Russia?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Jim Don Bob
    , @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "fantasy"

    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco? When immigrants become citizens, they take an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. You don't belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @John Johnson
  436. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.
    Stop projecting your own anti-religious fanaticism ("Christians serve an evil god") and lying ways onto others.

    I am on record as stating that Ukraine - historically in recent years - has been a more corrupt country than Russia. Moreover, I am categorically opposed to any NATO or US troops being used in Ukraine. We ought to provide material aid to repulse Russia from unlawfully making territorial gains by force of arms, but I am not willing to shed one drop of American blood for Ukraine.

    In any case, I can't go over there right now, because I am busy getting cattle-prodded in your fantasy: https://www.unz.com/isteve/125000-twitter-followers/#comment-6592583

    we should just put Catholic Asians on a boat and send them back home. If that happens, I plan to be there and watch as they poke your little Catholic Korean ass with a cattle prod to get you on the ship.

    Replies: @res, @Mark G.

    Any thoughts on whether or not the Ukraine should be permitted to use US weapons to strike targets in Russia?

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @res


    Any thoughts on whether or not the Ukraine should be permitted to use US weapons to strike targets in Russia?
    There are several layers to this question.

    First of all, Ukraine has struck inside Russia already on multiple occasions. Second, it is odd to suggest that Ukraine cannot attack across the border into Russia when Russia is occupying Ukrainian territory and is continuing to rain down destruction on its cities and towns. Russia is continually attacking Ukraine's power grid, which is a lifeblood of any modern society. This is like saying I can poke you in the eye and kicking you in the groin, but you are only allowed to punch me on the chest.

    I tend to view the Russian government's rhetoric on escalation - nuclear or otherwise - as a bluff. Despite what its officials say aggressively in public, its actions have stated quite otherwise - Russian forces have assiduously avoided transgressing into NATO territory and hitting NATO targets, even when the immediate military benefits of interdicting supply to Ukraine would have been significant (almost war-winning vis-a-vis Ukraine). I suspect this is so, because an escalation of that magnitude - a direct attack on NATO - would likely lead to direct military intervention into the conflict by NATO and the U.S. forces and Russia's leaders know full well that it cannot resist such an intervention conventionally, given that it's struggling to defeat a much weaker foe. Despite large Western military aid to Ukraine, it seems to me that Russia would rather fight only Ukraine rather than take on an alliance that has massive economic and military advantage over it, especially considering how stretched the Russian forces are. And Putin never struck me as an insane person who wants to resort to first use of nuclear weapons.

    So, back to your question. I think the answer depends not so much on whether U.S.-supplied weapons can strike inside Russia or not, but on what kind of targets. Unless they are used to attack strategic nuclear arsenal and supporting infrastructure, my sense is that the Russians would not escalate. Afterall, Western-supplied arms are already killing lots of Russians and they are already striking inside Russia. The biggest advantage Russia has right now is air assets (which have been launching PGMs from inside Russian air space to avoid Ukrainian air defense) as well as its ballistic missiles and PGMs. Russia seems to be saber-rattle to make sure that the Ukrainians do not acquire the capability to neutralize these.

    What gains the Russians forces have made in the recent weeks were possible due to the increasingly capable Russian air support* for their ground forces. Devoid of that, Russia's ability to gain further territory and come close to defeating the Ukrainians would fade, making this war a long-term stalemate, with consequent danger for Putin's government.

    *People - usually the Russian-triumphalists - tend to fixate on artillery differential between the two sides. It's true that through World War II, artillery was "the god of war" and accounted for bulk of casualties. However, in a modern battlefield where there is extreme dispersal (in historical terms) of forces, artillery's best effect is suppressive rather than outright force destruction - that is, unless the artillery munition in question is precision-guided. In terms of actual force destruction, air attacks using PGMs and drones reign supreme now. There are, of course, many related issues - e.g. counter-battery, etc. - but I won't go into that now.

    Replies: @Mark G.
    , @Jim Don Bob
    @res

    Lawrence Person over at BattleSwarm Blog has a post detailing HIMARs and ATACMs wreaking havoc on Russia's highly touted S300 and S400 air defense systems.

    https://www.battleswarmblog.com/?p=58313

    OTOH, Russia's loitering Lancet drone has blown up a lot of high value targets in Ukraine. So who knows.

    https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1796655707241980045
  437. @HA
    @Mark G.

    "In a new interview with Glenn Greenwald, John Mearsheimer says the Russians now have a 2 to 1 manpower advantage over the Ukrainians. "

    So let me guess -- the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over? Where have I heard that before? What was the manpower advantage when Russia decided Afghanistan wasn't really worth it? And are the Russian soldiers being sent out in state-of-the-art chariots like this?

    https://twitter.com/JayinKyiv/status/1797267962220458308



    "Rather than spending time attacking Trump and Trump supporters here at Steve’s blog, you need to be heading over there to fight for your hero Zelensky. When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you."

    Yeah, there's nothing like tossing petty personal vendettas into your comments in a failed effort to try and patch the holes in your lame arguments.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?

    You are, of course, not wrong that Russia-triumphalists have been comically wrong for the past two years. Our very own Ron Unz has been parroting Douglas Macgregor’s “Ukraine is about to collapse in the next few days” for the past two years.

    I initially concurred with estimates of most intelligence agencies that Russia would overwhelm Kyiv in the first few weeks, if not days. They – and I – turned out to be very wrong, because the Russian military turned out to be quite inept at almost every level (about which I commented extensively on Unz) and the Ukrainians turned out to be far more courageous and skillful than previously thought, despite getting caught with their pants down (despite the bellicose Russian rhetoric, their leadership considered the invasion highly unlikely and hadn’t mobilized bulk of their troops).

    After I examined various data and evidence, it became pretty clear to me that – despite the proclamations of the imminent Ukrainian fall as the likes of Macgregor and Unz asserted every week – Russia had incurred substantial casualties and experienced a significant reduction in its combat power. That assessment was proven correct when the Ukrainians launched a surprise counterattack and collapsed the Russian lines around Kharkiv, which they could not exploit due to their material weaknesses in armor, IFV, and air defense/air support, but which they did utilize adroitly to force the Russians to vacate Kherson without firing a shot.

    At that point, I cautioned Ukraine-triumphalists (e.g. Jack D) that although the Russians suffered significant losses, so did the Ukrainians and that, while the Ukrainians had done exceedingly well against all previous estimates and material imbalances, the long-term correlations of forces still favored Russia, because the Russians can regenerate substantial combat power on their own (manpower + industrial capacity + learning from their mistakes and altering their tactical and operational doctrines) while Ukraine depends on the goodwill of its Western backers that has an expiration date.

    I further cautioned them not to expect too much of the Ukrainian summer offensive (everyone was talking about a spring offensive, but I correctly pointed out that the offensive would be delayed due to the core of the Ukrainian troops to be used for it was still being trained and not ready for deployment soon). I estimated the chance of any significant success – cutting the land bridge with Crimea – as low. I thought, at the time, that it’d have been better for the Ukrainians to husband their limited resources and use them to engage in an elastic defense and judicious counterattack against further Russian offenses into Ukraine (the model being both the second battle of Kharkov in 1942 and the third in 1943). But they chose not to do this and roll the dice on an offensive, because they – and their Western backers – were fixating on taking as much territory back from Russia as possible.

    My sense at the time was that there would be short- to medium-term stalemate as both sides experienced significant attrition in combat power on futile attacks and the tide would eventually turn favorably for the Russians as they regenerated their forces while the Western support for Ukraine started to falter.

    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets

    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. Its catastrophic losses of previously highly trained combat personnel (esp. among Spetsnaz, marine infantry, specialized independent infantry brigades) – which was a result of using them to plug the gaps due to lack of quality infantry – will not be reconstituted for years to come, but Russia has used what capacity it has resourcefully to create/acquire more PGMs and drones, and even armor (increasingly less useful due to drones and PGMs).

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition. That said, as I often say, the future depends on innumerable contingencies and is stochastic. If the Ukrainians use their limited resources well, it is entirely possible that the Russians will continue to suffer large losses and this is liable to destabilize the Russian government (especially if Putin were to become critically ill or dies). No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. The Soviets “only” lost somewhere between 14,000-26,000 men in the Afghan war (and when the Soviet Union was a far more militarized society with much greater military manpower and materiel), yet it contributed to their demise. So, as I wrote several times before, this is a race – between Ukraine running out Western material support and Russia continuing to suffer large casualties. One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin’s longevity.*

    *I also pointed out in the past that Putin’s death does not mean an automatic victory for Ukraine. We don’t know enough to prognosticate who will inherit power – there will likely be a period of internal struggle, long or short – and the successor may disavow this Putin’s war as a folly and withdraw or he may double-down to establish his nationalist bona fide.

    •�Agree: Jim Don Bob
    •�Replies: @Frau Katze
    @Twinkie


    One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin’s longevity.
    He’s currently 71. Parents lived to 87 and 88.

    As for his current health, there’s been so many rumours floating around over the years that there’s a Wikipedia entry on it. There’s even been a rumour of death with a body double in use (lol).

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claims_of_Vladimir_Putin%27s_incapacity_and_death

    Replies: @Twinkie
    , @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. "

    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them. Where's the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022? Now there are barely 350k Ukrainian troops left to defend the border with pre- 2015 and post 2022 Russia. They're overstretched and undermanned and underpowered. On the other hand, Ukraine has no military industrial capacity ( it lacks even electrity after all of its power plants were destroyed by Russia), barely any military defenses left, no aviation to speak of, very limited air defense, running out of ammunition and missiles, etc. Now compare that to Russia.
    Mind you, the Russian army is not following a 100 % offensive strategy. They push back a little and then wait for an Ukrainian counter- attack, which favors Russia 10 to 1 in casualties or more.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @HA, @Twinkie
    , @HA
    @Twinkie

    "Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. "

    It is still, as far as I've been able to gather, pulling tanks out of a limited supply of museums and warehouses to maintain its quotas, hence the recourse to contraptions such as the one shown. And those sunk battleships and missile factories aren't coming back all that quickly.

    https://twitter.com/IAPonomarenko/status/1797588979157533031
    , @John Johnson
    @Twinkie


    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets

    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces.

    It isn't propaganda. I think your overall analysis is well founded and thought out but Putin is not on a war-footing and they really are using motorcycles.

    Putin is in trouble. If he had the armored force available to take Kharkiv then he would be doing it before the F-16s arrive. Instead we are seeing lone Mad Max type attacks on the border.

    This is from an FPV drone:
    https://funker530.com/video/russian-dirt-bike-squad-rocked-by-drones/

    That's a dirt bike squad.

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition.

    Manpower attrition is the plan but I don't see how they can hunker down and take 500 to 600 ATACMS along with Ukraine's drone army that they have been building. Russia is planning to win by manpower but their troops are demoralized. Would you like to sit in a trench waiting for ATACMS? In the Soviet war they were fighting for their existence but the Russian soldiers are fully aware that they would be better off at home.

    Putin needs to throw in the towel. Offer an armistice. Putin was hoping that Johnson could hold out on the Ukraine aid and probably never expected Trump to greenlight it.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  438. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    When you go, you should take your religious fanatic soulmate and fellow Zelensky fanboy Twinkie with you.
    Stop projecting your own anti-religious fanaticism ("Christians serve an evil god") and lying ways onto others.

    I am on record as stating that Ukraine - historically in recent years - has been a more corrupt country than Russia. Moreover, I am categorically opposed to any NATO or US troops being used in Ukraine. We ought to provide material aid to repulse Russia from unlawfully making territorial gains by force of arms, but I am not willing to shed one drop of American blood for Ukraine.

    In any case, I can't go over there right now, because I am busy getting cattle-prodded in your fantasy: https://www.unz.com/isteve/125000-twitter-followers/#comment-6592583

    we should just put Catholic Asians on a boat and send them back home. If that happens, I plan to be there and watch as they poke your little Catholic Korean ass with a cattle prod to get you on the ship.

    Replies: @res, @Mark G.

    “fantasy”

    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco? When immigrants become citizens, they take an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. You don’t belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco?
    Keep making up things, Mr. Cattle Prod.

    And the Constitution was torn up long before by radical leftists, including by your fellow anti-Christian atheists who destroyed the Christian consensus in this country. Try waving it and telling the looters about to burn you and your house that you voted for Ron Paul and see what happens. Maybe you can also tell them that you don't have any guns, but your "friends" do, so they should just go away.

    Words on paper mean nothing unless there are men ready to fight with force - men like Franco in his time and place. By an American Franco, I don't specifically mean a Catholic (though that'd be nice) or even a general, but someone who won't shy away from force when confronted by those intent on violence. In any case, that's not my first preference: https://www.unz.com/isteve/trump-declared-guilty/#comment-6592653

    That said, I’ve also said repeatedly that Trump is a John the Baptist-like figure (Audacious Epigone would call him a figure akin to the Gracchi Brothers). They all died badly.

    But he extended the Overton window and showed that nationalist populism can win the presidency. That genie is not going to be put back in the bottle no matter how much the Establishment tries to suppress it with all means, legal or otherwise.

    My hope is that whatever happens in November 2024 (I personally hope he wins by even a bigger margin as a giant FU to all these bullshit anti-democratic* machinations), he will have paved the way for a nationalist-populist figure who is more personally attractive (I don’t mean looks, but rather someone who has his personal life together and has lived cleanly with an appealing, wholesome family worthy of admiration and emulation). It’s either such a figure leading a majoritarian/normie restoration or likely further polarization between elites pushing fringe-y policies and alienating normal people and leading to a far greater likelihood of civil strife (in which case, an American Franco is the next best hope).
    As for this:

    You don’t belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.
    Who's going to do it? You? Or The Government? What happened to your libertarianism? It's funny you play a libertarian extremist, but always resort to the government in the end (e.g. "free" stimulus money for your kin, building restrictions, "cattle prod").

    Replies: @Mark G., @Corvinus
    , @John Johnson
    @Mark G.

    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco?

    Oh give me a break. Half the posters here would support that fantasy. At least half.

    We have posters in the Russia threads that are begging for Putin to strike against Western civilian targets. They would cheer as the bombs reign in on their neighbors. That would stick it to "world jewry" according to them.

    The Putin tribe doesn't believe in anything. A bunch of resentful nihilists that support a totalitarian state that is anti-individual to the extreme. Of course they would take a Franco. Heck they would settle for a Lukashenko.

    Well the Putin tribe is about to take a dip in their zealotry. It's going to be hard for them to maintain their baseless fantasy of Dwarf Hitler after Putin's latest praise of the Jews.

    Gonna be some yummy tears tomorrow when they wake up and see his comment.
  439. @res
    @Twinkie

    Any thoughts on whether or not the Ukraine should be permitted to use US weapons to strike targets in Russia?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Jim Don Bob

    Any thoughts on whether or not the Ukraine should be permitted to use US weapons to strike targets in Russia?

    There are several layers to this question.

    First of all, Ukraine has struck inside Russia already on multiple occasions. Second, it is odd to suggest that Ukraine cannot attack across the border into Russia when Russia is occupying Ukrainian territory and is continuing to rain down destruction on its cities and towns. Russia is continually attacking Ukraine’s power grid, which is a lifeblood of any modern society. This is like saying I can poke you in the eye and kicking you in the groin, but you are only allowed to punch me on the chest.

    I tend to view the Russian government’s rhetoric on escalation – nuclear or otherwise – as a bluff. Despite what its officials say aggressively in public, its actions have stated quite otherwise – Russian forces have assiduously avoided transgressing into NATO territory and hitting NATO targets, even when the immediate military benefits of interdicting supply to Ukraine would have been significant (almost war-winning vis-a-vis Ukraine). I suspect this is so, because an escalation of that magnitude – a direct attack on NATO – would likely lead to direct military intervention into the conflict by NATO and the U.S. forces and Russia’s leaders know full well that it cannot resist such an intervention conventionally, given that it’s struggling to defeat a much weaker foe. Despite large Western military aid to Ukraine, it seems to me that Russia would rather fight only Ukraine rather than take on an alliance that has massive economic and military advantage over it, especially considering how stretched the Russian forces are. And Putin never struck me as an insane person who wants to resort to first use of nuclear weapons.

    So, back to your question. I think the answer depends not so much on whether U.S.-supplied weapons can strike inside Russia or not, but on what kind of targets. Unless they are used to attack strategic nuclear arsenal and supporting infrastructure, my sense is that the Russians would not escalate. Afterall, Western-supplied arms are already killing lots of Russians and they are already striking inside Russia. The biggest advantage Russia has right now is air assets (which have been launching PGMs from inside Russian air space to avoid Ukrainian air defense) as well as its ballistic missiles and PGMs. Russia seems to be saber-rattle to make sure that the Ukrainians do not acquire the capability to neutralize these.

    What gains the Russians forces have made in the recent weeks were possible due to the increasingly capable Russian air support* for their ground forces. Devoid of that, Russia’s ability to gain further territory and come close to defeating the Ukrainians would fade, making this war a long-term stalemate, with consequent danger for Putin’s government.

    *People – usually the Russian-triumphalists – tend to fixate on artillery differential between the two sides. It’s true that through World War II, artillery was “the god of war” and accounted for bulk of casualties. However, in a modern battlefield where there is extreme dispersal (in historical terms) of forces, artillery’s best effect is suppressive rather than outright force destruction – that is, unless the artillery munition in question is precision-guided. In terms of actual force destruction, air attacks using PGMs and drones reign supreme now. There are, of course, many related issues – e.g. counter-battery, etc. – but I won’t go into that now.

    •�Thanks: res
    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression. Iraq never attacked us so our war against them was a war of aggression too.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war. It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @John Johnson, @Twinkie
  440. @Twinkie
    @HA


    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?
    You are, of course, not wrong that Russia-triumphalists have been comically wrong for the past two years. Our very own Ron Unz has been parroting Douglas Macgregor's "Ukraine is about to collapse in the next few days" for the past two years.

    I initially concurred with estimates of most intelligence agencies that Russia would overwhelm Kyiv in the first few weeks, if not days. They - and I - turned out to be very wrong, because the Russian military turned out to be quite inept at almost every level (about which I commented extensively on Unz) and the Ukrainians turned out to be far more courageous and skillful than previously thought, despite getting caught with their pants down (despite the bellicose Russian rhetoric, their leadership considered the invasion highly unlikely and hadn't mobilized bulk of their troops).

    After I examined various data and evidence, it became pretty clear to me that - despite the proclamations of the imminent Ukrainian fall as the likes of Macgregor and Unz asserted every week - Russia had incurred substantial casualties and experienced a significant reduction in its combat power. That assessment was proven correct when the Ukrainians launched a surprise counterattack and collapsed the Russian lines around Kharkiv, which they could not exploit due to their material weaknesses in armor, IFV, and air defense/air support, but which they did utilize adroitly to force the Russians to vacate Kherson without firing a shot.

    At that point, I cautioned Ukraine-triumphalists (e.g. Jack D) that although the Russians suffered significant losses, so did the Ukrainians and that, while the Ukrainians had done exceedingly well against all previous estimates and material imbalances, the long-term correlations of forces still favored Russia, because the Russians can regenerate substantial combat power on their own (manpower + industrial capacity + learning from their mistakes and altering their tactical and operational doctrines) while Ukraine depends on the goodwill of its Western backers that has an expiration date.

    I further cautioned them not to expect too much of the Ukrainian summer offensive (everyone was talking about a spring offensive, but I correctly pointed out that the offensive would be delayed due to the core of the Ukrainian troops to be used for it was still being trained and not ready for deployment soon). I estimated the chance of any significant success - cutting the land bridge with Crimea - as low. I thought, at the time, that it'd have been better for the Ukrainians to husband their limited resources and use them to engage in an elastic defense and judicious counterattack against further Russian offenses into Ukraine (the model being both the second battle of Kharkov in 1942 and the third in 1943). But they chose not to do this and roll the dice on an offensive, because they - and their Western backers - were fixating on taking as much territory back from Russia as possible.

    My sense at the time was that there would be short- to medium-term stalemate as both sides experienced significant attrition in combat power on futile attacks and the tide would eventually turn favorably for the Russians as they regenerated their forces while the Western support for Ukraine started to falter.

    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets
    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. Its catastrophic losses of previously highly trained combat personnel (esp. among Spetsnaz, marine infantry, specialized independent infantry brigades) - which was a result of using them to plug the gaps due to lack of quality infantry - will not be reconstituted for years to come, but Russia has used what capacity it has resourcefully to create/acquire more PGMs and drones, and even armor (increasingly less useful due to drones and PGMs).

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition. That said, as I often say, the future depends on innumerable contingencies and is stochastic. If the Ukrainians use their limited resources well, it is entirely possible that the Russians will continue to suffer large losses and this is liable to destabilize the Russian government (especially if Putin were to become critically ill or dies). No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. The Soviets "only" lost somewhere between 14,000-26,000 men in the Afghan war (and when the Soviet Union was a far more militarized society with much greater military manpower and materiel), yet it contributed to their demise. So, as I wrote several times before, this is a race - between Ukraine running out Western material support and Russia continuing to suffer large casualties. One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin's longevity.*

    *I also pointed out in the past that Putin's death does not mean an automatic victory for Ukraine. We don't know enough to prognosticate who will inherit power - there will likely be a period of internal struggle, long or short - and the successor may disavow this Putin's war as a folly and withdraw or he may double-down to establish his nationalist bona fide.

    Replies: @Frau Katze, @BB753, @HA, @John Johnson

    One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin’s longevity.

    He’s currently 71. Parents lived to 87 and 88.

    As for his current health, there’s been so many rumours floating around over the years that there’s a Wikipedia entry on it. There’s even been a rumour of death with a body double in use (lol).

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claims_of_Vladimir_Putin%27s_incapacity_and_death

    •�Agree: Mark G.
    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Frau Katze


    He’s currently 71. Parents lived to 87 and 88.
    Running a country and a difficult war takes a toll.
  441. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "fantasy"

    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco? When immigrants become citizens, they take an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. You don't belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @John Johnson

    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco?

    Keep making up things, Mr. Cattle Prod.

    And the Constitution was torn up long before by radical leftists, including by your fellow anti-Christian atheists who destroyed the Christian consensus in this country. Try waving it and telling the looters about to burn you and your house that you voted for Ron Paul and see what happens. Maybe you can also tell them that you don’t have any guns, but your “friends” do, so they should just go away.

    Words on paper mean nothing unless there are men ready to fight with force – men like Franco in his time and place. By an American Franco, I don’t specifically mean a Catholic (though that’d be nice) or even a general, but someone who won’t shy away from force when confronted by those intent on violence. In any case, that’s not my first preference: https://www.unz.com/isteve/trump-declared-guilty/#comment-6592653

    That said, I’ve also said repeatedly that Trump is a John the Baptist-like figure (Audacious Epigone would call him a figure akin to the Gracchi Brothers). They all died badly.

    But he extended the Overton window and showed that nationalist populism can win the presidency. That genie is not going to be put back in the bottle no matter how much the Establishment tries to suppress it with all means, legal or otherwise.

    My hope is that whatever happens in November 2024 (I personally hope he wins by even a bigger margin as a giant FU to all these bullshit anti-democratic* machinations), he will have paved the way for a nationalist-populist figure who is more personally attractive (I don’t mean looks, but rather someone who has his personal life together and has lived cleanly with an appealing, wholesome family worthy of admiration and emulation). It’s either such a figure leading a majoritarian/normie restoration or likely further polarization between elites pushing fringe-y policies and alienating normal people and leading to a far greater likelihood of civil strife (in which case, an American Franco is the next best hope).

    As for this:

    You don’t belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.

    Who’s going to do it? You? Or The Government? What happened to your libertarianism? It’s funny you play a libertarian extremist, but always resort to the government in the end (e.g. “free” stimulus money for your kin, building restrictions, “cattle prod”).

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "radical leftists"

    This is not nineteen thirties Spain. We have plenty of people in this country who still support the Constitution and will fight the radical leftists and also Francoists like you.

    Don't worry, Mr. Catholic Parrot. Any federal government agents will look at your comments here and see you are just a pompous windbag with delusions that a bunch of Americans are eager to join you in putting a Catholic dictator in charge of the country. You are no danger to anyone and will not be deported.

    Replies: @Twinkie
    , @Corvinus
    @Twinkie

    “And the Constitution was torn up long before by radical leftists”

    Indeed, keep making things up.

    “By an American Franco, I don’t specifically mean a Catholic (though that’d be nice) or even a general, but someone who won’t shy away from force when confronted by those intent on violence”

    Of course, that can work in this way— a “liberal” Franco who confronts the violence of the “radical right”.

    But the fact of the matter is you, along with Ennui, have an obsession with a despot who murdered his “enemies”…even though you both do not have anyone specific in mind.
  442. @Twinkie
    @res


    Any thoughts on whether or not the Ukraine should be permitted to use US weapons to strike targets in Russia?
    There are several layers to this question.

    First of all, Ukraine has struck inside Russia already on multiple occasions. Second, it is odd to suggest that Ukraine cannot attack across the border into Russia when Russia is occupying Ukrainian territory and is continuing to rain down destruction on its cities and towns. Russia is continually attacking Ukraine's power grid, which is a lifeblood of any modern society. This is like saying I can poke you in the eye and kicking you in the groin, but you are only allowed to punch me on the chest.

    I tend to view the Russian government's rhetoric on escalation - nuclear or otherwise - as a bluff. Despite what its officials say aggressively in public, its actions have stated quite otherwise - Russian forces have assiduously avoided transgressing into NATO territory and hitting NATO targets, even when the immediate military benefits of interdicting supply to Ukraine would have been significant (almost war-winning vis-a-vis Ukraine). I suspect this is so, because an escalation of that magnitude - a direct attack on NATO - would likely lead to direct military intervention into the conflict by NATO and the U.S. forces and Russia's leaders know full well that it cannot resist such an intervention conventionally, given that it's struggling to defeat a much weaker foe. Despite large Western military aid to Ukraine, it seems to me that Russia would rather fight only Ukraine rather than take on an alliance that has massive economic and military advantage over it, especially considering how stretched the Russian forces are. And Putin never struck me as an insane person who wants to resort to first use of nuclear weapons.

    So, back to your question. I think the answer depends not so much on whether U.S.-supplied weapons can strike inside Russia or not, but on what kind of targets. Unless they are used to attack strategic nuclear arsenal and supporting infrastructure, my sense is that the Russians would not escalate. Afterall, Western-supplied arms are already killing lots of Russians and they are already striking inside Russia. The biggest advantage Russia has right now is air assets (which have been launching PGMs from inside Russian air space to avoid Ukrainian air defense) as well as its ballistic missiles and PGMs. Russia seems to be saber-rattle to make sure that the Ukrainians do not acquire the capability to neutralize these.

    What gains the Russians forces have made in the recent weeks were possible due to the increasingly capable Russian air support* for their ground forces. Devoid of that, Russia's ability to gain further territory and come close to defeating the Ukrainians would fade, making this war a long-term stalemate, with consequent danger for Putin's government.

    *People - usually the Russian-triumphalists - tend to fixate on artillery differential between the two sides. It's true that through World War II, artillery was "the god of war" and accounted for bulk of casualties. However, in a modern battlefield where there is extreme dispersal (in historical terms) of forces, artillery's best effect is suppressive rather than outright force destruction - that is, unless the artillery munition in question is precision-guided. In terms of actual force destruction, air attacks using PGMs and drones reign supreme now. There are, of course, many related issues - e.g. counter-battery, etc. - but I won't go into that now.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression. Iraq never attacked us so our war against them was a war of aggression too.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war. It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression.
    It's against international law to enlarge territory by force of arms (which is also wrong when Israel does it). A major power doing so is doubly destabilizing for the international order.

    The sad thing for Russia is that Putin was enjoying a great deal of popularity in Russia, having brought up the standard of living and restored much of Russia's economic power and political influence (capping with a Winter Olympics). If he wanted to influence Ukraine, he had many options to do so. He chose a direct invasion, with a severe repercussions for both his country and the surrounding region (he ought to have remembered the admonition "The use of power begets more power, but the use of force consumes it").

    And as the saying goes, "Wars begin when you will, but they don't end when you please."

    I have a lot of misgivings about the NATO expansion and American policy that preceded this conflict, but the choice for the largest conventional war in Europe since World War II is squarely on Putin. He apparently thought he'd have a quick "shock and awe" campaign, not dissimilar to the takeover of Crimea and be able to present the rest of the world with a fait accompli. He miscalculated badly.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war.
    As we learned in the Soviet-Afghan War, a proxy war is infinitely preferable to one where the blood of our own is spilled.

    Back to more of your strawmen and ad hominem, eh, Mr. Cattle-Prod?

    Replies: @BB753
    , @John Johnson
    @Mark G.

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression.

    So would Ukraine then be defending themselves if they were only using their own weapons?
    , @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?
    When you earlier thought I was a "chicken hawk" who didn't serve in the Middle East, you leveled an accusation of being "a yellow coward." Now that you think that I served in the Middle East, your personal attack is "you Muslim women and children killer."

    This is pure ad hominem and an intellectually dishonest and bankrupt one at that. It's "heads I win, tails you lose" type of bullshit.

    Plainly, put, you are not good people, Mark G... which is par for the course. In all my years of life, I have yet to meet a radical, Christian-hating atheist who was a good person and who was happily married with nice wife and children. All have been - to a man (always lonesome men) - people like you, quick to ascribe moral inferiority to those who disagreed with them and evincing outwardly their disturbed and even malevolent soul. Your apparent delight at the fantasy of me being cattle-prodded and expelled from the country (I supposed without my wife and children) "tracks."

    Replies: @Mark G.
  443. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco?
    Keep making up things, Mr. Cattle Prod.

    And the Constitution was torn up long before by radical leftists, including by your fellow anti-Christian atheists who destroyed the Christian consensus in this country. Try waving it and telling the looters about to burn you and your house that you voted for Ron Paul and see what happens. Maybe you can also tell them that you don't have any guns, but your "friends" do, so they should just go away.

    Words on paper mean nothing unless there are men ready to fight with force - men like Franco in his time and place. By an American Franco, I don't specifically mean a Catholic (though that'd be nice) or even a general, but someone who won't shy away from force when confronted by those intent on violence. In any case, that's not my first preference: https://www.unz.com/isteve/trump-declared-guilty/#comment-6592653

    That said, I’ve also said repeatedly that Trump is a John the Baptist-like figure (Audacious Epigone would call him a figure akin to the Gracchi Brothers). They all died badly.

    But he extended the Overton window and showed that nationalist populism can win the presidency. That genie is not going to be put back in the bottle no matter how much the Establishment tries to suppress it with all means, legal or otherwise.

    My hope is that whatever happens in November 2024 (I personally hope he wins by even a bigger margin as a giant FU to all these bullshit anti-democratic* machinations), he will have paved the way for a nationalist-populist figure who is more personally attractive (I don’t mean looks, but rather someone who has his personal life together and has lived cleanly with an appealing, wholesome family worthy of admiration and emulation). It’s either such a figure leading a majoritarian/normie restoration or likely further polarization between elites pushing fringe-y policies and alienating normal people and leading to a far greater likelihood of civil strife (in which case, an American Franco is the next best hope).
    As for this:

    You don’t belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.
    Who's going to do it? You? Or The Government? What happened to your libertarianism? It's funny you play a libertarian extremist, but always resort to the government in the end (e.g. "free" stimulus money for your kin, building restrictions, "cattle prod").

    Replies: @Mark G., @Corvinus

    “radical leftists”

    This is not nineteen thirties Spain. We have plenty of people in this country who still support the Constitution and will fight the radical leftists and also Francoists like you.

    Don’t worry, Mr. Catholic Parrot. Any federal government agents will look at your comments here and see you are just a pompous windbag with delusions that a bunch of Americans are eager to join you in putting a Catholic dictator in charge of the country. You are no danger to anyone and will not be deported.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    who still support the Constitution
    Says the guy with cattle prod fantasies.

    As I wrote in an earlier comment: https://www.unz.com/isteve/125000-twitter-followers/#comment-6592909


    Instead, we should just put Catholic Asians on a boat and send them back home. If that happens, I plan to be there and watch as they poke your little Catholic Korean ass with a cattle prod to get you on the ship.
    Just “watch”? Why, do you not have the courage to actually do the dirty work yourself? What a sniveling coward and a weakling even in your fantasy!

    And who’s going to do this whole cattle car business, an atheist militia? Or are you talking The Government? Whoa, fella, what happened to your libertarianism?

    You talk long enough with commenters like Jack D, you find soon enough their own hateful nature (“gooks” this, “gooks” that) that they project onto other (“antisemitism!”). You are the same. You rail against those who are not libertarian and and those who are Christian as “evil,” but this is nothing but a projection of your own malevolence and eagerness to dehumanize other people.

    So in one fell-swoop, in one comment, you reveal that you are cowardly, unprincipled, and malevolent all at once – a hat trick! Good job. I guess the secret sin theory of politics strikes again.

    Look, even though you are a hypocrite and clearly not “good people” as we say here in the South, I don’t wish you harm, because you are my fellow American citizen. But should our society ever come to civil strife, unarmed atheist loners like you without any people are going to be at the mercy of wolves and would be begging for help from people like me.
  444. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco?
    Keep making up things, Mr. Cattle Prod.

    And the Constitution was torn up long before by radical leftists, including by your fellow anti-Christian atheists who destroyed the Christian consensus in this country. Try waving it and telling the looters about to burn you and your house that you voted for Ron Paul and see what happens. Maybe you can also tell them that you don't have any guns, but your "friends" do, so they should just go away.

    Words on paper mean nothing unless there are men ready to fight with force - men like Franco in his time and place. By an American Franco, I don't specifically mean a Catholic (though that'd be nice) or even a general, but someone who won't shy away from force when confronted by those intent on violence. In any case, that's not my first preference: https://www.unz.com/isteve/trump-declared-guilty/#comment-6592653

    That said, I’ve also said repeatedly that Trump is a John the Baptist-like figure (Audacious Epigone would call him a figure akin to the Gracchi Brothers). They all died badly.

    But he extended the Overton window and showed that nationalist populism can win the presidency. That genie is not going to be put back in the bottle no matter how much the Establishment tries to suppress it with all means, legal or otherwise.

    My hope is that whatever happens in November 2024 (I personally hope he wins by even a bigger margin as a giant FU to all these bullshit anti-democratic* machinations), he will have paved the way for a nationalist-populist figure who is more personally attractive (I don’t mean looks, but rather someone who has his personal life together and has lived cleanly with an appealing, wholesome family worthy of admiration and emulation). It’s either such a figure leading a majoritarian/normie restoration or likely further polarization between elites pushing fringe-y policies and alienating normal people and leading to a far greater likelihood of civil strife (in which case, an American Franco is the next best hope).
    As for this:

    You don’t belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.
    Who's going to do it? You? Or The Government? What happened to your libertarianism? It's funny you play a libertarian extremist, but always resort to the government in the end (e.g. "free" stimulus money for your kin, building restrictions, "cattle prod").

    Replies: @Mark G., @Corvinus

    “And the Constitution was torn up long before by radical leftists”

    Indeed, keep making things up.

    “By an American Franco, I don’t specifically mean a Catholic (though that’d be nice) or even a general, but someone who won’t shy away from force when confronted by those intent on violence”

    Of course, that can work in this way— a “liberal” Franco who confronts the violence of the “radical right”.

    But the fact of the matter is you, along with Ennui, have an obsession with a despot who murdered his “enemies”…even though you both do not have anyone specific in mind.

  445. @Frau Katze
    @Twinkie


    One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin’s longevity.
    He’s currently 71. Parents lived to 87 and 88.

    As for his current health, there’s been so many rumours floating around over the years that there’s a Wikipedia entry on it. There’s even been a rumour of death with a body double in use (lol).

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claims_of_Vladimir_Putin%27s_incapacity_and_death

    Replies: @Twinkie

    He’s currently 71. Parents lived to 87 and 88.

    Running a country and a difficult war takes a toll.

    •�Agree: Frau Katze
  446. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression. Iraq never attacked us so our war against them was a war of aggression too.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war. It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression.

    It’s against international law to enlarge territory by force of arms (which is also wrong when Israel does it). A major power doing so is doubly destabilizing for the international order.

    The sad thing for Russia is that Putin was enjoying a great deal of popularity in Russia, having brought up the standard of living and restored much of Russia’s economic power and political influence (capping with a Winter Olympics). If he wanted to influence Ukraine, he had many options to do so. He chose a direct invasion, with a severe repercussions for both his country and the surrounding region (he ought to have remembered the admonition “The use of power begets more power, but the use of force consumes it”).

    And as the saying goes, “Wars begin when you will, but they don’t end when you please.”

    I have a lot of misgivings about the NATO expansion and American policy that preceded this conflict, but the choice for the largest conventional war in Europe since World War II is squarely on Putin. He apparently thought he’d have a quick “shock and awe” campaign, not dissimilar to the takeover of Crimea and be able to present the rest of the world with a fait accompli. He miscalculated badly.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war.

    As we learned in the Soviet-Afghan War, a proxy war is infinitely preferable to one where the blood of our own is spilled.

    Back to more of your strawmen and ad hominem, eh, Mr. Cattle-Prod?

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    This post shows that Twinkie has absolutely no military background.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  447. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "radical leftists"

    This is not nineteen thirties Spain. We have plenty of people in this country who still support the Constitution and will fight the radical leftists and also Francoists like you.

    Don't worry, Mr. Catholic Parrot. Any federal government agents will look at your comments here and see you are just a pompous windbag with delusions that a bunch of Americans are eager to join you in putting a Catholic dictator in charge of the country. You are no danger to anyone and will not be deported.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    who still support the Constitution

    Says the guy with cattle prod fantasies.

    As I wrote in an earlier comment: https://www.unz.com/isteve/125000-twitter-followers/#comment-6592909

    Instead, we should just put Catholic Asians on a boat and send them back home. If that happens, I plan to be there and watch as they poke your little Catholic Korean ass with a cattle prod to get you on the ship.

    Just “watch”? Why, do you not have the courage to actually do the dirty work yourself? What a sniveling coward and a weakling even in your fantasy!

    And who’s going to do this whole cattle car business, an atheist militia? Or are you talking The Government? Whoa, fella, what happened to your libertarianism?

    You talk long enough with commenters like Jack D, you find soon enough their own hateful nature (“gooks” this, “gooks” that) that they project onto other (“antisemitism!”). You are the same. You rail against those who are not libertarian and and those who are Christian as “evil,” but this is nothing but a projection of your own malevolence and eagerness to dehumanize other people.

    So in one fell-swoop, in one comment, you reveal that you are cowardly, unprincipled, and malevolent all at once – a hat trick! Good job. I guess the secret sin theory of politics strikes again.

    Look, even though you are a hypocrite and clearly not “good people” as we say here in the South, I don’t wish you harm, because you are my fellow American citizen. But should our society ever come to civil strife, unarmed atheist loners like you without any people are going to be at the mercy of wolves and would be begging for help from people like me.

  448. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "fantasy"

    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco? When immigrants become citizens, they take an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. You don't belong here. You should be sent back to Korea.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @John Johnson

    You mean like your fantasy of tearing up the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco?

    Oh give me a break. Half the posters here would support that fantasy. At least half.

    We have posters in the Russia threads that are begging for Putin to strike against Western civilian targets. They would cheer as the bombs reign in on their neighbors. That would stick it to “world jewry” according to them.

    The Putin tribe doesn’t believe in anything. A bunch of resentful nihilists that support a totalitarian state that is anti-individual to the extreme. Of course they would take a Franco. Heck they would settle for a Lukashenko.

    Well the Putin tribe is about to take a dip in their zealotry. It’s going to be hard for them to maintain their baseless fantasy of Dwarf Hitler after Putin’s latest praise of the Jews.

    Gonna be some yummy tears tomorrow when they wake up and see his comment.

  449. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression. Iraq never attacked us so our war against them was a war of aggression too.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war. It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression.

    So would Ukraine then be defending themselves if they were only using their own weapons?

  450. BB753 says:
    @Twinkie
    @HA


    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?
    You are, of course, not wrong that Russia-triumphalists have been comically wrong for the past two years. Our very own Ron Unz has been parroting Douglas Macgregor's "Ukraine is about to collapse in the next few days" for the past two years.

    I initially concurred with estimates of most intelligence agencies that Russia would overwhelm Kyiv in the first few weeks, if not days. They - and I - turned out to be very wrong, because the Russian military turned out to be quite inept at almost every level (about which I commented extensively on Unz) and the Ukrainians turned out to be far more courageous and skillful than previously thought, despite getting caught with their pants down (despite the bellicose Russian rhetoric, their leadership considered the invasion highly unlikely and hadn't mobilized bulk of their troops).

    After I examined various data and evidence, it became pretty clear to me that - despite the proclamations of the imminent Ukrainian fall as the likes of Macgregor and Unz asserted every week - Russia had incurred substantial casualties and experienced a significant reduction in its combat power. That assessment was proven correct when the Ukrainians launched a surprise counterattack and collapsed the Russian lines around Kharkiv, which they could not exploit due to their material weaknesses in armor, IFV, and air defense/air support, but which they did utilize adroitly to force the Russians to vacate Kherson without firing a shot.

    At that point, I cautioned Ukraine-triumphalists (e.g. Jack D) that although the Russians suffered significant losses, so did the Ukrainians and that, while the Ukrainians had done exceedingly well against all previous estimates and material imbalances, the long-term correlations of forces still favored Russia, because the Russians can regenerate substantial combat power on their own (manpower + industrial capacity + learning from their mistakes and altering their tactical and operational doctrines) while Ukraine depends on the goodwill of its Western backers that has an expiration date.

    I further cautioned them not to expect too much of the Ukrainian summer offensive (everyone was talking about a spring offensive, but I correctly pointed out that the offensive would be delayed due to the core of the Ukrainian troops to be used for it was still being trained and not ready for deployment soon). I estimated the chance of any significant success - cutting the land bridge with Crimea - as low. I thought, at the time, that it'd have been better for the Ukrainians to husband their limited resources and use them to engage in an elastic defense and judicious counterattack against further Russian offenses into Ukraine (the model being both the second battle of Kharkov in 1942 and the third in 1943). But they chose not to do this and roll the dice on an offensive, because they - and their Western backers - were fixating on taking as much territory back from Russia as possible.

    My sense at the time was that there would be short- to medium-term stalemate as both sides experienced significant attrition in combat power on futile attacks and the tide would eventually turn favorably for the Russians as they regenerated their forces while the Western support for Ukraine started to falter.

    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets
    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. Its catastrophic losses of previously highly trained combat personnel (esp. among Spetsnaz, marine infantry, specialized independent infantry brigades) - which was a result of using them to plug the gaps due to lack of quality infantry - will not be reconstituted for years to come, but Russia has used what capacity it has resourcefully to create/acquire more PGMs and drones, and even armor (increasingly less useful due to drones and PGMs).

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition. That said, as I often say, the future depends on innumerable contingencies and is stochastic. If the Ukrainians use their limited resources well, it is entirely possible that the Russians will continue to suffer large losses and this is liable to destabilize the Russian government (especially if Putin were to become critically ill or dies). No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. The Soviets "only" lost somewhere between 14,000-26,000 men in the Afghan war (and when the Soviet Union was a far more militarized society with much greater military manpower and materiel), yet it contributed to their demise. So, as I wrote several times before, this is a race - between Ukraine running out Western material support and Russia continuing to suffer large casualties. One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin's longevity.*

    *I also pointed out in the past that Putin's death does not mean an automatic victory for Ukraine. We don't know enough to prognosticate who will inherit power - there will likely be a period of internal struggle, long or short - and the successor may disavow this Putin's war as a folly and withdraw or he may double-down to establish his nationalist bona fide.

    Replies: @Frau Katze, @BB753, @HA, @John Johnson

    “No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. ”

    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them. Where’s the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022? Now there are barely 350k Ukrainian troops left to defend the border with pre- 2015 and post 2022 Russia. They’re overstretched and undermanned and underpowered. On the other hand, Ukraine has no military industrial capacity ( it lacks even electrity after all of its power plants were destroyed by Russia), barely any military defenses left, no aviation to speak of, very limited air defense, running out of ammunition and missiles, etc. Now compare that to Russia.
    Mind you, the Russian army is not following a 100 % offensive strategy. They push back a little and then wait for an Ukrainian counter- attack, which favors Russia 10 to 1 in casualties or more.

    •�Agree: Mark G.
    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @BB753

    So you are declaring that Ukraine is out of resources and near finished?

    Ok BB753......hang on.....let me load up my spreadsheet.

    We are using a grid based betting system. Only one bet per poster.

    You can pick the month that Ukraine collapses and then you get your share of the winners pot.

    It was a hoot last year. A lot of bets on a summer offensive.

    So which month can I put you down for?

    Replies: @BB753
    , @HA
    @BB753

    "Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them."

    No, the vast majority of conscripts are showing up, happy or not. There's always a sizable chunk in any war that doesn't want to fight, and in that case, you can bet that the ones who do or did show up are very eager to make the recalcitrant do the same, and if that means press-ganging them, so be it.

    Ukraine still hasn't resorted to conscripting murderers like those "successful" recruiters Russia has had to -- we're talking psychos and other convicts (some of whom then return home to Russia and resume killing). It hasn't had to entice/trick Nepalese, or Indians, or Cubans, or Africans to do their fighting.

    A month or so ago, fanboys were breathlessly echoing Simplicius in assuring us "the war is all but over". You're apparently a fan yourself. And yet, Putin is purging his military, and (when he isn't whining about meanie NATO members who allow Ukraine to use their weapons to smack Russia when it hurts -- "the Putin cries out in pain as he strikes you", isn't that how the saying goes?) is preparing for a long war. What does he know that the fanboys aren't willing to admit?

    Replies: @BB753
    , @Twinkie
    @BB753


    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them.
    The two countries have been pursuing different recruitment strategies.

    Russia has been trying hard to avoid impacting its main population centers and industrial areas. Its recruitment has fallen disproportionately on distant rural areas where economies are depressed (and where there is much less press attention), non-Russian ethnic regions, and, of course, notoriously, prisons. Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses.

    I should note also that Russia raised its maximum age of conscription from 27 to 30 last summer (the minimum draftable age is 18 in Russia).

    Ukraine's strategy has been to rely on an existing core of battle-hardened veterans, keep them in line (which has generated considerable resentment at the front as many have fought two years straight with no rotation) and only augment them with relatively older recruits who are trained in the rear areas (and in the West) sufficiently. Ukrainian's government has been fairly reluctant to throw its younger male citizens into the cauldron of combat and burn its "seed-corn."

    Ukraine recently lowered the draftable age from 27 to 25 in order to make up the battlefield losses.

    Currently, the average age of combatants for both sides is early 40's.

    Where’s the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022?
    There was no "million men army" in Ukraine in 2022. When the war started, Ukraine had under 200,000 men in active force (900,000 in reserves, for whatever that's worth) while Russia had about 900,000 active, 2 million in reserves. As of early 2024, Russia's active military personnel is about 1.3 million and Ukraine's is about 900,000.

    Ukraine has no military industrial capacity
    As I mentioned repeatedly, Russia's defense-industrial complex dwarfs Ukraine's. That's why I stated several times, that Russia has a large autarkic force regeneration capacity, but Ukraine has to rely on Western aid. That said, Ukraine inherited about 30% of the Soviet defense industrial sector when it became independent (it was the 4th largest exporter of military equipment prior to the 2014 Donbas conflict) and, despite the ravages of war, continues to produce indigenous equipment (and refurbishments of older Soviet weaponry): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_industry_of_Ukraine

    Replies: @BB753, @BB753
  451. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. "

    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them. Where's the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022? Now there are barely 350k Ukrainian troops left to defend the border with pre- 2015 and post 2022 Russia. They're overstretched and undermanned and underpowered. On the other hand, Ukraine has no military industrial capacity ( it lacks even electrity after all of its power plants were destroyed by Russia), barely any military defenses left, no aviation to speak of, very limited air defense, running out of ammunition and missiles, etc. Now compare that to Russia.
    Mind you, the Russian army is not following a 100 % offensive strategy. They push back a little and then wait for an Ukrainian counter- attack, which favors Russia 10 to 1 in casualties or more.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @HA, @Twinkie

    So you are declaring that Ukraine is out of resources and near finished?

    Ok BB753……hang on…..let me load up my spreadsheet.

    We are using a grid based betting system. Only one bet per poster.

    You can pick the month that Ukraine collapses and then you get your share of the winners pot.

    It was a hoot last year. A lot of bets on a summer offensive.

    So which month can I put you down for?

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @John Johnson

    "A lot of bets on a summer offensive."


    Indeed, and the Ukrainian Summer offensive happened last year and was a total disaster. Remember that?
    Listen, you can either face the facts on the ground or keep on being delusional. Whatever makes you happy.

    Replies: @John Johnson
  452. @John Johnson
    @BB753

    So you are declaring that Ukraine is out of resources and near finished?

    Ok BB753......hang on.....let me load up my spreadsheet.

    We are using a grid based betting system. Only one bet per poster.

    You can pick the month that Ukraine collapses and then you get your share of the winners pot.

    It was a hoot last year. A lot of bets on a summer offensive.

    So which month can I put you down for?

    Replies: @BB753

    “A lot of bets on a summer offensive.”

    Indeed, and the Ukrainian Summer offensive happened last year and was a total disaster. Remember that?
    Listen, you can either face the facts on the ground or keep on being delusional. Whatever makes you happy.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @BB753

    Indeed, and the Ukrainian Summer offensive happened last year and was a total disaster. Remember that?
    Listen, you can either face the facts on the ground or keep on being delusional. Whatever makes you happy.

    How am I being delusional? You're projecting your own fanboyism.

    I am on record as being skeptical of a great offensive and I said it is definitely a bad idea to announce one before you do it. I was in favor of small probing attacks while maintaining a defensive advantage if the Russians (mostly Wagners at the time) kept running into machine guns.

    I also said that it is overly ambitious to expect that they get all of their territory back including Crimea.

    In fact I didn't think Ukraine was in a good position until the Trump/Johnson bill passed. Thanks again to Trump for ignoring the Putin nutcases in your party like Marjorie and coming up with a swamptastic bill that mostly favors the defense industry but still gives Ukraine our ATACMS inventory. Quite clever actually.

    Now go back to making up stats like your "10 to 1" casualties in favor of Russia. No one knows the actual casualties.

    Replies: @BB753
  453. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression.
    It's against international law to enlarge territory by force of arms (which is also wrong when Israel does it). A major power doing so is doubly destabilizing for the international order.

    The sad thing for Russia is that Putin was enjoying a great deal of popularity in Russia, having brought up the standard of living and restored much of Russia's economic power and political influence (capping with a Winter Olympics). If he wanted to influence Ukraine, he had many options to do so. He chose a direct invasion, with a severe repercussions for both his country and the surrounding region (he ought to have remembered the admonition "The use of power begets more power, but the use of force consumes it").

    And as the saying goes, "Wars begin when you will, but they don't end when you please."

    I have a lot of misgivings about the NATO expansion and American policy that preceded this conflict, but the choice for the largest conventional war in Europe since World War II is squarely on Putin. He apparently thought he'd have a quick "shock and awe" campaign, not dissimilar to the takeover of Crimea and be able to present the rest of the world with a fait accompli. He miscalculated badly.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war.
    As we learned in the Soviet-Afghan War, a proxy war is infinitely preferable to one where the blood of our own is spilled.

    Back to more of your strawmen and ad hominem, eh, Mr. Cattle-Prod?

    Replies: @BB753

    This post shows that Twinkie has absolutely no military background.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    This post shows that Twinkie has absolutely no military background.
    Please do elaborate.

    Replies: @BB753
  454. @res
    @Twinkie

    Any thoughts on whether or not the Ukraine should be permitted to use US weapons to strike targets in Russia?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Jim Don Bob

    Lawrence Person over at BattleSwarm Blog has a post detailing HIMARs and ATACMs wreaking havoc on Russia’s highly touted S300 and S400 air defense systems.

    https://www.battleswarmblog.com/?p=58313

    OTOH, Russia’s loitering Lancet drone has blown up a lot of high value targets in Ukraine. So who knows.

  455. @Precious
    @HA


    Did finance somehow stop in 2021?
    No, but he stopped being President in 2021... right?

    he’s raking it in in 2024 — thanks in large part to what happened in 2021-2024 — what with the $1.3bn he’s gonna get for his social media company despite its “volatile” performance.

    ^Fixed.

    Replies: @HA

    “No, but he stopped being President in 2021… right?”

    So? You really think those appointed to leave us honorably stop raking it in once they’re kicked out of office?

  456. HA says:
    @Twinkie
    @HA


    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?
    You are, of course, not wrong that Russia-triumphalists have been comically wrong for the past two years. Our very own Ron Unz has been parroting Douglas Macgregor's "Ukraine is about to collapse in the next few days" for the past two years.

    I initially concurred with estimates of most intelligence agencies that Russia would overwhelm Kyiv in the first few weeks, if not days. They - and I - turned out to be very wrong, because the Russian military turned out to be quite inept at almost every level (about which I commented extensively on Unz) and the Ukrainians turned out to be far more courageous and skillful than previously thought, despite getting caught with their pants down (despite the bellicose Russian rhetoric, their leadership considered the invasion highly unlikely and hadn't mobilized bulk of their troops).

    After I examined various data and evidence, it became pretty clear to me that - despite the proclamations of the imminent Ukrainian fall as the likes of Macgregor and Unz asserted every week - Russia had incurred substantial casualties and experienced a significant reduction in its combat power. That assessment was proven correct when the Ukrainians launched a surprise counterattack and collapsed the Russian lines around Kharkiv, which they could not exploit due to their material weaknesses in armor, IFV, and air defense/air support, but which they did utilize adroitly to force the Russians to vacate Kherson without firing a shot.

    At that point, I cautioned Ukraine-triumphalists (e.g. Jack D) that although the Russians suffered significant losses, so did the Ukrainians and that, while the Ukrainians had done exceedingly well against all previous estimates and material imbalances, the long-term correlations of forces still favored Russia, because the Russians can regenerate substantial combat power on their own (manpower + industrial capacity + learning from their mistakes and altering their tactical and operational doctrines) while Ukraine depends on the goodwill of its Western backers that has an expiration date.

    I further cautioned them not to expect too much of the Ukrainian summer offensive (everyone was talking about a spring offensive, but I correctly pointed out that the offensive would be delayed due to the core of the Ukrainian troops to be used for it was still being trained and not ready for deployment soon). I estimated the chance of any significant success - cutting the land bridge with Crimea - as low. I thought, at the time, that it'd have been better for the Ukrainians to husband their limited resources and use them to engage in an elastic defense and judicious counterattack against further Russian offenses into Ukraine (the model being both the second battle of Kharkov in 1942 and the third in 1943). But they chose not to do this and roll the dice on an offensive, because they - and their Western backers - were fixating on taking as much territory back from Russia as possible.

    My sense at the time was that there would be short- to medium-term stalemate as both sides experienced significant attrition in combat power on futile attacks and the tide would eventually turn favorably for the Russians as they regenerated their forces while the Western support for Ukraine started to falter.

    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets
    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. Its catastrophic losses of previously highly trained combat personnel (esp. among Spetsnaz, marine infantry, specialized independent infantry brigades) - which was a result of using them to plug the gaps due to lack of quality infantry - will not be reconstituted for years to come, but Russia has used what capacity it has resourcefully to create/acquire more PGMs and drones, and even armor (increasingly less useful due to drones and PGMs).

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition. That said, as I often say, the future depends on innumerable contingencies and is stochastic. If the Ukrainians use their limited resources well, it is entirely possible that the Russians will continue to suffer large losses and this is liable to destabilize the Russian government (especially if Putin were to become critically ill or dies). No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. The Soviets "only" lost somewhere between 14,000-26,000 men in the Afghan war (and when the Soviet Union was a far more militarized society with much greater military manpower and materiel), yet it contributed to their demise. So, as I wrote several times before, this is a race - between Ukraine running out Western material support and Russia continuing to suffer large casualties. One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin's longevity.*

    *I also pointed out in the past that Putin's death does not mean an automatic victory for Ukraine. We don't know enough to prognosticate who will inherit power - there will likely be a period of internal struggle, long or short - and the successor may disavow this Putin's war as a folly and withdraw or he may double-down to establish his nationalist bona fide.

    Replies: @Frau Katze, @BB753, @HA, @John Johnson

    “Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. “

    It is still, as far as I’ve been able to gather, pulling tanks out of a limited supply of museums and warehouses to maintain its quotas, hence the recourse to contraptions such as the one shown. And those sunk battleships and missile factories aren’t coming back all that quickly.

  457. Fat Alvin (pictured) called a “menace”.

    Criminal lawyer and former Bronx Assistant DA Michael Discioarro said Bragg’s office has 300 prosecutors.

    “What exactly is he working on?” Discioarro asked.

    Definitely not getting criminals off the streets.

    … or just not working?

    https://nypost.com/2024/06/04/opinion/nothing-to-bragg-about-nyc-mayhem-proves-da-is-no-hero/

  458. @Twinkie
    @HA


    So let me guess — the Russians are finally taking the gloves off and in another 2 weeks or so, this will all be over?
    You are, of course, not wrong that Russia-triumphalists have been comically wrong for the past two years. Our very own Ron Unz has been parroting Douglas Macgregor's "Ukraine is about to collapse in the next few days" for the past two years.

    I initially concurred with estimates of most intelligence agencies that Russia would overwhelm Kyiv in the first few weeks, if not days. They - and I - turned out to be very wrong, because the Russian military turned out to be quite inept at almost every level (about which I commented extensively on Unz) and the Ukrainians turned out to be far more courageous and skillful than previously thought, despite getting caught with their pants down (despite the bellicose Russian rhetoric, their leadership considered the invasion highly unlikely and hadn't mobilized bulk of their troops).

    After I examined various data and evidence, it became pretty clear to me that - despite the proclamations of the imminent Ukrainian fall as the likes of Macgregor and Unz asserted every week - Russia had incurred substantial casualties and experienced a significant reduction in its combat power. That assessment was proven correct when the Ukrainians launched a surprise counterattack and collapsed the Russian lines around Kharkiv, which they could not exploit due to their material weaknesses in armor, IFV, and air defense/air support, but which they did utilize adroitly to force the Russians to vacate Kherson without firing a shot.

    At that point, I cautioned Ukraine-triumphalists (e.g. Jack D) that although the Russians suffered significant losses, so did the Ukrainians and that, while the Ukrainians had done exceedingly well against all previous estimates and material imbalances, the long-term correlations of forces still favored Russia, because the Russians can regenerate substantial combat power on their own (manpower + industrial capacity + learning from their mistakes and altering their tactical and operational doctrines) while Ukraine depends on the goodwill of its Western backers that has an expiration date.

    I further cautioned them not to expect too much of the Ukrainian summer offensive (everyone was talking about a spring offensive, but I correctly pointed out that the offensive would be delayed due to the core of the Ukrainian troops to be used for it was still being trained and not ready for deployment soon). I estimated the chance of any significant success - cutting the land bridge with Crimea - as low. I thought, at the time, that it'd have been better for the Ukrainians to husband their limited resources and use them to engage in an elastic defense and judicious counterattack against further Russian offenses into Ukraine (the model being both the second battle of Kharkov in 1942 and the third in 1943). But they chose not to do this and roll the dice on an offensive, because they - and their Western backers - were fixating on taking as much territory back from Russia as possible.

    My sense at the time was that there would be short- to medium-term stalemate as both sides experienced significant attrition in combat power on futile attacks and the tide would eventually turn favorably for the Russians as they regenerated their forces while the Western support for Ukraine started to falter.

    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets
    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces. Its catastrophic losses of previously highly trained combat personnel (esp. among Spetsnaz, marine infantry, specialized independent infantry brigades) - which was a result of using them to plug the gaps due to lack of quality infantry - will not be reconstituted for years to come, but Russia has used what capacity it has resourcefully to create/acquire more PGMs and drones, and even armor (increasingly less useful due to drones and PGMs).

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition. That said, as I often say, the future depends on innumerable contingencies and is stochastic. If the Ukrainians use their limited resources well, it is entirely possible that the Russians will continue to suffer large losses and this is liable to destabilize the Russian government (especially if Putin were to become critically ill or dies). No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. The Soviets "only" lost somewhere between 14,000-26,000 men in the Afghan war (and when the Soviet Union was a far more militarized society with much greater military manpower and materiel), yet it contributed to their demise. So, as I wrote several times before, this is a race - between Ukraine running out Western material support and Russia continuing to suffer large casualties. One of the the biggest contingencies in the equation is Putin's longevity.*

    *I also pointed out in the past that Putin's death does not mean an automatic victory for Ukraine. We don't know enough to prognosticate who will inherit power - there will likely be a period of internal struggle, long or short - and the successor may disavow this Putin's war as a folly and withdraw or he may double-down to establish his nationalist bona fide.

    Replies: @Frau Katze, @BB753, @HA, @John Johnson

    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets

    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces.

    It isn’t propaganda. I think your overall analysis is well founded and thought out but Putin is not on a war-footing and they really are using motorcycles.

    Putin is in trouble. If he had the armored force available to take Kharkiv then he would be doing it before the F-16s arrive. Instead we are seeing lone Mad Max type attacks on the border.

    This is from an FPV drone:
    https://funker530.com/video/russian-dirt-bike-squad-rocked-by-drones/

    That’s a dirt bike squad.

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition.

    Manpower attrition is the plan but I don’t see how they can hunker down and take 500 to 600 ATACMS along with Ukraine’s drone army that they have been building. Russia is planning to win by manpower but their troops are demoralized. Would you like to sit in a trench waiting for ATACMS? In the Soviet war they were fighting for their existence but the Russian soldiers are fully aware that they would be better off at home.

    Putin needs to throw in the towel. Offer an armistice. Putin was hoping that Johnson could hold out on the Ukraine aid and probably never expected Trump to greenlight it.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @John Johnson


    If he had the armored force available to take Kharkiv then he would be doing it before the F-16s arrive.
    Ukraine destroyed ("rendered combat-ineffective") Russia prestigious 1st Guards Tank Army during the Kharkiv counterattack. That formation is now almost back to its previous strength. There is considerable evidence that Russia's armor production has climbed and restored much of its depleted forces (well-trained tank crews are a different story).

    The reason Russians aren't using massed tank formations is that they are - for both sides - ineffective and costly in this day of mass drone attacks, PGM-firing artillery, etc.

    Given the ubiquity of early warning systems and the swift response this brings, it is now very difficult to achieve operational-level surprise with massed mechanized formations. In light of this, the order of the day is dispersal, which is much easier to do with infantry.

    lone Mad Max type attacks
    Those are probably probes to elicit reaction and to expose the latter (so they can be targeted).

    500 to 600 ATACMS
    The thing with ATACMS is volume of fire. They shouldn't be used on troop formations, given the scarcity and, indeed, are used on supply depots, command and control infrastructure and the like.

    Putin is in trouble.
    I don't know what "in trouble" means, but Russia has regained initiative after the ineffective Ukrainian "counter-offensive" and is now probing along the lengthy border. I expect a rough summer for the Ukrainians. The question is, how rough is it going to be on the Russian forces?

    So far, the Russo-Ukraine War has had uncanny resemblances to the Iran-Iraq War (drone wars instead of "the War of the Cities" ballistic missile exchange of the latter) - with one side repelling the other side's offensive with heavy casualties for the attacker, then the erstwhile defenders going on a counterattack, then being repulsed in turn with high casualties, rinse and repeat. This is a comparison I made a while back and it still stands.

    Replies: @John Johnson
  459. HA says:
    @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. "

    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them. Where's the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022? Now there are barely 350k Ukrainian troops left to defend the border with pre- 2015 and post 2022 Russia. They're overstretched and undermanned and underpowered. On the other hand, Ukraine has no military industrial capacity ( it lacks even electrity after all of its power plants were destroyed by Russia), barely any military defenses left, no aviation to speak of, very limited air defense, running out of ammunition and missiles, etc. Now compare that to Russia.
    Mind you, the Russian army is not following a 100 % offensive strategy. They push back a little and then wait for an Ukrainian counter- attack, which favors Russia 10 to 1 in casualties or more.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @HA, @Twinkie

    “Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them.”

    No, the vast majority of conscripts are showing up, happy or not. There’s always a sizable chunk in any war that doesn’t want to fight, and in that case, you can bet that the ones who do or did show up are very eager to make the recalcitrant do the same, and if that means press-ganging them, so be it.

    Ukraine still hasn’t resorted to conscripting murderers like those “successful” recruiters Russia has had to — we’re talking psychos and other convicts (some of whom then return home to Russia and resume killing). It hasn’t had to entice/trick Nepalese, or Indians, or Cubans, or Africans to do their fighting.

    A month or so ago, fanboys were breathlessly echoing Simplicius in assuring us “the war is all but over”. You’re apparently a fan yourself. And yet, Putin is purging his military, and (when he isn’t whining about meanie NATO members who allow Ukraine to use their weapons to smack Russia when it hurts — “the Putin cries out in pain as he strikes you”, isn’t that how the saying goes?) is preparing for a long war. What does he know that the fanboys aren’t willing to admit?

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @HA

    You neocons are totally clueless or in denial.

    Replies: @HA
  460. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "No matter how much manpower one has, at some point the willingness sacrifice it collapses especially in an expeditionary war. "

    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them. Where's the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022? Now there are barely 350k Ukrainian troops left to defend the border with pre- 2015 and post 2022 Russia. They're overstretched and undermanned and underpowered. On the other hand, Ukraine has no military industrial capacity ( it lacks even electrity after all of its power plants were destroyed by Russia), barely any military defenses left, no aviation to speak of, very limited air defense, running out of ammunition and missiles, etc. Now compare that to Russia.
    Mind you, the Russian army is not following a 100 % offensive strategy. They push back a little and then wait for an Ukrainian counter- attack, which favors Russia 10 to 1 in casualties or more.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @HA, @Twinkie

    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them.

    The two countries have been pursuing different recruitment strategies.

    Russia has been trying hard to avoid impacting its main population centers and industrial areas. Its recruitment has fallen disproportionately on distant rural areas where economies are depressed (and where there is much less press attention), non-Russian ethnic regions, and, of course, notoriously, prisons. Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses.

    I should note also that Russia raised its maximum age of conscription from 27 to 30 last summer (the minimum draftable age is 18 in Russia).

    Ukraine’s strategy has been to rely on an existing core of battle-hardened veterans, keep them in line (which has generated considerable resentment at the front as many have fought two years straight with no rotation) and only augment them with relatively older recruits who are trained in the rear areas (and in the West) sufficiently. Ukrainian’s government has been fairly reluctant to throw its younger male citizens into the cauldron of combat and burn its “seed-corn.”

    Ukraine recently lowered the draftable age from 27 to 25 in order to make up the battlefield losses.

    Currently, the average age of combatants for both sides is early 40’s.

    Where’s the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022?

    There was no “million men army” in Ukraine in 2022. When the war started, Ukraine had under 200,000 men in active force (900,000 in reserves, for whatever that’s worth) while Russia had about 900,000 active, 2 million in reserves. As of early 2024, Russia’s active military personnel is about 1.3 million and Ukraine’s is about 900,000.

    Ukraine has no military industrial capacity

    As I mentioned repeatedly, Russia’s defense-industrial complex dwarfs Ukraine’s. That’s why I stated several times, that Russia has a large autarkic force regeneration capacity, but Ukraine has to rely on Western aid. That said, Ukraine inherited about 30% of the Soviet defense industrial sector when it became independent (it was the 4th largest exporter of military equipment prior to the 2014 Donbas conflict) and, despite the ravages of war, continues to produce indigenous equipment (and refurbishments of older Soviet weaponry): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_industry_of_Ukraine

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses."

    The bulk of the Russian army in combat are volunteers and professionals who signed up after 2022, while Ukraine now has to rely on draftees and gang presses.

    "There was no “million men army” in Ukraine in 2022. When the war started, Ukraine had under 200,000 men in active force (900,000 in reserves, for whatever that’s worth) while Russia had about 900,000 active, 2 million in reserves. "

    When the SMO started, Ukraine mobilized most of its reserves and regional guards. Meanwhile, Russia initially committed only 50k troops. Those were enough to take over half of Southern Ukraine ( Russian speaking territories), and win the decisive battle of Mariupol.

    After October 2022, Ukraine instituted a draft. And now, there's another one this month. Again, where did those troops go? The reality is too sad to contemplate, I know.


    "As I mentioned repeatedly, Russia’s defense-industrial complex dwarfs Ukraine’s"
    And NATOs's

    Replies: @Twinkie
    , @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses."

    No need to guess or make up figures of Russian casualties. There's a BBC/ US State department outfit documenting the real numbers based in London, called MediaZona. Here's the link.
    About 55k Kia.
    https://en.zona.media/article/2022/05/20/casualties_eng

    Now multiply that number by 12 and you get Ukrainian casualties.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  461. @John Johnson
    @Twinkie


    The fact that Russians are now sending infantry into battle in these sweet DIY meat buckets

    This is a silly propaganda. Ever since the humiliation of Kharkiv and Kherson, the Putin government has put Russia on something of a war-footing and has successfully regenerated much of its military forces.

    It isn't propaganda. I think your overall analysis is well founded and thought out but Putin is not on a war-footing and they really are using motorcycles.

    Putin is in trouble. If he had the armored force available to take Kharkiv then he would be doing it before the F-16s arrive. Instead we are seeing lone Mad Max type attacks on the border.

    This is from an FPV drone:
    https://funker530.com/video/russian-dirt-bike-squad-rocked-by-drones/

    That's a dirt bike squad.

    Ceteris paribus, Russia is on its way to grind the Ukrainians down in a war of attrition.

    Manpower attrition is the plan but I don't see how they can hunker down and take 500 to 600 ATACMS along with Ukraine's drone army that they have been building. Russia is planning to win by manpower but their troops are demoralized. Would you like to sit in a trench waiting for ATACMS? In the Soviet war they were fighting for their existence but the Russian soldiers are fully aware that they would be better off at home.

    Putin needs to throw in the towel. Offer an armistice. Putin was hoping that Johnson could hold out on the Ukraine aid and probably never expected Trump to greenlight it.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    If he had the armored force available to take Kharkiv then he would be doing it before the F-16s arrive.

    Ukraine destroyed (“rendered combat-ineffective”) Russia prestigious 1st Guards Tank Army during the Kharkiv counterattack. That formation is now almost back to its previous strength. There is considerable evidence that Russia’s armor production has climbed and restored much of its depleted forces (well-trained tank crews are a different story).

    The reason Russians aren’t using massed tank formations is that they are – for both sides – ineffective and costly in this day of mass drone attacks, PGM-firing artillery, etc.

    Given the ubiquity of early warning systems and the swift response this brings, it is now very difficult to achieve operational-level surprise with massed mechanized formations. In light of this, the order of the day is dispersal, which is much easier to do with infantry.

    lone Mad Max type attacks

    Those are probably probes to elicit reaction and to expose the latter (so they can be targeted).

    500 to 600 ATACMS

    The thing with ATACMS is volume of fire. They shouldn’t be used on troop formations, given the scarcity and, indeed, are used on supply depots, command and control infrastructure and the like.

    Putin is in trouble.

    I don’t know what “in trouble” means, but Russia has regained initiative after the ineffective Ukrainian “counter-offensive” and is now probing along the lengthy border. I expect a rough summer for the Ukrainians. The question is, how rough is it going to be on the Russian forces?

    So far, the Russo-Ukraine War has had uncanny resemblances to the Iran-Iraq War (drone wars instead of “the War of the Cities” ballistic missile exchange of the latter) – with one side repelling the other side’s offensive with heavy casualties for the attacker, then the erstwhile defenders going on a counterattack, then being repulsed in turn with high casualties, rinse and repeat. This is a comparison I made a while back and it still stands.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Twinkie

    There is considerable evidence that Russia’s armor production has climbed and restored much of its depleted forces (well-trained tank crews are a different story).

    I see no reason to believe that when we actually saw a T-54 in battle recently.

    The reason Russians aren’t using massed tank formations is that they are – for both sides – ineffective and costly in this day of mass drone attacks, PGM-firing artillery, etc.

    They're still using tanks and they are older models:
    https://funker530.com/video/nsfw-russians-dismount-on-fire-after-javelin-strikes/

    Are you going to suggest those older tanks with cope cages are basically on suicide runs and Putin is building the real reserve that will have shiny new T-90s? Well that claim was made last year by Putin defenders...repeatedly.

    Given the ubiquity of early warning systems and the swift response this brings, it is now very difficult to achieve operational-level surprise with massed mechanized formations.

    Well MacGregor and Ritter are back to claiming that Putin is building up a massive force to finish off Ukraine. Do you think they are wrong?

    The thing with ATACMS is volume of fire. They shouldn’t be used on troop formations, given the scarcity and, indeed, are used on supply depots, command and control infrastructure and the like.

    You have some good information but you are wrong here. They have cluster models that are designed for troops and vehicles in the open.

    One ATACMS missile on a 100+ troop formation on video is an excellent use of one. It's extremely demoralizing and saves the lives of your infantry. That video has made the rounds and made a mockery of the Putin defenders that try to diminish all things from the US. And if you have 600 of them then why not? They have plenty more for command centers.

    Prigozhin is on record talking about much he hated HIMARS. He said it terrified the troops because you had no chance to escape. It's a demoralizing weapon and you can't counter-battery them. The Z crowd is being too dismissive.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  462. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Russia never attacked us so our proxy war against them in the Ukraine is a war of aggression. Iraq never attacked us so our war against them was a war of aggression too.

    You support this war and you also supported the Iraq war. It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?

    When you earlier thought I was a “chicken hawk” who didn’t serve in the Middle East, you leveled an accusation of being “a yellow coward.” Now that you think that I served in the Middle East, your personal attack is “you Muslim women and children killer.”

    This is pure ad hominem and an intellectually dishonest and bankrupt one at that. It’s “heads I win, tails you lose” type of bullshit.

    Plainly, put, you are not good people, Mark G… which is par for the course. In all my years of life, I have yet to meet a radical, Christian-hating atheist who was a good person and who was happily married with nice wife and children. All have been – to a man (always lonesome men) – people like you, quick to ascribe moral inferiority to those who disagreed with them and evincing outwardly their disturbed and even malevolent soul. Your apparent delight at the fantasy of me being cattle-prodded and expelled from the country (I supposed without my wife and children) “tracks.”

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children. He was a high school science teacher. The same thing was true of my atheist grandfather, who had a PhD in biology, and my atheist great-grandfather, who was a college math professor.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA
  463. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    It sounds like you also went over to the Middle East and fought there. Tell me, how many Muslim women and children did you accidentally shoot and kill while you were over there?
    When you earlier thought I was a "chicken hawk" who didn't serve in the Middle East, you leveled an accusation of being "a yellow coward." Now that you think that I served in the Middle East, your personal attack is "you Muslim women and children killer."

    This is pure ad hominem and an intellectually dishonest and bankrupt one at that. It's "heads I win, tails you lose" type of bullshit.

    Plainly, put, you are not good people, Mark G... which is par for the course. In all my years of life, I have yet to meet a radical, Christian-hating atheist who was a good person and who was happily married with nice wife and children. All have been - to a man (always lonesome men) - people like you, quick to ascribe moral inferiority to those who disagreed with them and evincing outwardly their disturbed and even malevolent soul. Your apparent delight at the fantasy of me being cattle-prodded and expelled from the country (I supposed without my wife and children) "tracks."

    Replies: @Mark G.

    My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children. He was a high school science teacher. The same thing was true of my atheist grandfather, who had a PhD in biology, and my atheist great-grandfather, who was a college math professor.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children. He was a high school science teacher. The same thing was true of my atheist grandfather, who had a PhD in biology, and my atheist great-grandfather, who was a college math professor.
    Sure, sure.

    And you are just like they were, right?

    Replies: @Mark G.
    , @HA
    @Mark G.

    "My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children."

    "Atheists have had an average of 1.6 children, and agnostics have had 1.3 children. Mainline Protestants [i.e., training-wheel agnostics] also have below-average fertility rates."

    Meanwhile, Catholic TFR is 2.3 while Mormon is 3.4.
  464. BB753 says:
    @Twinkie
    @BB753


    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them.
    The two countries have been pursuing different recruitment strategies.

    Russia has been trying hard to avoid impacting its main population centers and industrial areas. Its recruitment has fallen disproportionately on distant rural areas where economies are depressed (and where there is much less press attention), non-Russian ethnic regions, and, of course, notoriously, prisons. Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses.

    I should note also that Russia raised its maximum age of conscription from 27 to 30 last summer (the minimum draftable age is 18 in Russia).

    Ukraine's strategy has been to rely on an existing core of battle-hardened veterans, keep them in line (which has generated considerable resentment at the front as many have fought two years straight with no rotation) and only augment them with relatively older recruits who are trained in the rear areas (and in the West) sufficiently. Ukrainian's government has been fairly reluctant to throw its younger male citizens into the cauldron of combat and burn its "seed-corn."

    Ukraine recently lowered the draftable age from 27 to 25 in order to make up the battlefield losses.

    Currently, the average age of combatants for both sides is early 40's.

    Where’s the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022?
    There was no "million men army" in Ukraine in 2022. When the war started, Ukraine had under 200,000 men in active force (900,000 in reserves, for whatever that's worth) while Russia had about 900,000 active, 2 million in reserves. As of early 2024, Russia's active military personnel is about 1.3 million and Ukraine's is about 900,000.

    Ukraine has no military industrial capacity
    As I mentioned repeatedly, Russia's defense-industrial complex dwarfs Ukraine's. That's why I stated several times, that Russia has a large autarkic force regeneration capacity, but Ukraine has to rely on Western aid. That said, Ukraine inherited about 30% of the Soviet defense industrial sector when it became independent (it was the 4th largest exporter of military equipment prior to the 2014 Donbas conflict) and, despite the ravages of war, continues to produce indigenous equipment (and refurbishments of older Soviet weaponry): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_industry_of_Ukraine

    Replies: @BB753, @BB753

    “Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses.”

    The bulk of the Russian army in combat are volunteers and professionals who signed up after 2022, while Ukraine now has to rely on draftees and gang presses.

    “There was no “million men army” in Ukraine in 2022. When the war started, Ukraine had under 200,000 men in active force (900,000 in reserves, for whatever that’s worth) while Russia had about 900,000 active, 2 million in reserves. ”

    When the SMO started, Ukraine mobilized most of its reserves and regional guards. Meanwhile, Russia initially committed only 50k troops. Those were enough to take over half of Southern Ukraine ( Russian speaking territories), and win the decisive battle of Mariupol.

    After October 2022, Ukraine instituted a draft. And now, there’s another one this month. Again, where did those troops go? The reality is too sad to contemplate, I know.

    “As I mentioned repeatedly, Russia’s defense-industrial complex dwarfs Ukraine’s”
    And NATOs’s

    •�Agree: Mark G.
    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    When the SMO started, Ukraine mobilized most of its reserves and regional guards. Meanwhile, Russia initially committed only 50k troops. Those were enough to take over half of Southern Ukraine ( Russian speaking territories), and win the decisive battle of Mariupol.
    This is completely false and is made up from the thin air.

    The Russian military committed 60 BTGs (battalion tactical groups, the smallest operational combat units in the army) in the initial invasion. That's about 21,000 just in frontline trigger-pullers, not including any combat support and support services (artillery, logistics, aviation, command and control, etc.). In total, Russia committed about 150,000 to 200,000 military personnel in the initial invasion force. Within a few months, as casualties mounted significantly, Russia had to increase this to 120 to 160 BTGs (meaning up to 56,000 trigger-pullers, with the total force rising to 300,000 to 400,000). This was a result of the initial BTGs suffering enormous casualties (e.g. as documented by leaked US SIGNINT and SATINT data, the 100th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade with 2 BTGs deployed from its base in Murmansk - it's a specialized infantry force that guards the Soviet "boomer" submarines - lost 35% of its force within 3 months of deployment in Ukraine).

    Ukraine had about 200,000 active troops on the eve of the war. Within a few weeks to early few months, it recalled about 250,000 in reserves (there are tiers to reserve troops, whose readiness varies a great deal). Because the Ukrainians lacked sufficient heavy equipment, the bulk of the reserves were activated as infantry and light infantry troops rather than as heavy armor or mechanized forces.

    Anyone who thinks the casualty differential is 12-to-1 while battlefield fortunes have shifted back and forth and largely stalemated is living in a fantasy world and indeed has no military experience. In reality, likely casualties estimates range from 2-to-1 in Ukrainian favor to roughly similar to 2-to-1 in Russian favor. I tend to favor the middle ground (say 100,000 to 125,000 KIA on each side).

    You can see a good summary of the ranges and arguments here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Russo-Ukrainian_War#Total_casualties

    Replies: @BB753
  465. BB753 says:
    @Twinkie
    @BB753


    Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them.
    The two countries have been pursuing different recruitment strategies.

    Russia has been trying hard to avoid impacting its main population centers and industrial areas. Its recruitment has fallen disproportionately on distant rural areas where economies are depressed (and where there is much less press attention), non-Russian ethnic regions, and, of course, notoriously, prisons. Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses.

    I should note also that Russia raised its maximum age of conscription from 27 to 30 last summer (the minimum draftable age is 18 in Russia).

    Ukraine's strategy has been to rely on an existing core of battle-hardened veterans, keep them in line (which has generated considerable resentment at the front as many have fought two years straight with no rotation) and only augment them with relatively older recruits who are trained in the rear areas (and in the West) sufficiently. Ukrainian's government has been fairly reluctant to throw its younger male citizens into the cauldron of combat and burn its "seed-corn."

    Ukraine recently lowered the draftable age from 27 to 25 in order to make up the battlefield losses.

    Currently, the average age of combatants for both sides is early 40's.

    Where’s the million men army Ukraine had in February 2022?
    There was no "million men army" in Ukraine in 2022. When the war started, Ukraine had under 200,000 men in active force (900,000 in reserves, for whatever that's worth) while Russia had about 900,000 active, 2 million in reserves. As of early 2024, Russia's active military personnel is about 1.3 million and Ukraine's is about 900,000.

    Ukraine has no military industrial capacity
    As I mentioned repeatedly, Russia's defense-industrial complex dwarfs Ukraine's. That's why I stated several times, that Russia has a large autarkic force regeneration capacity, but Ukraine has to rely on Western aid. That said, Ukraine inherited about 30% of the Soviet defense industrial sector when it became independent (it was the 4th largest exporter of military equipment prior to the 2014 Donbas conflict) and, despite the ravages of war, continues to produce indigenous equipment (and refurbishments of older Soviet weaponry): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_industry_of_Ukraine

    Replies: @BB753, @BB753

    “Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses.”

    No need to guess or make up figures of Russian casualties. There’s a BBC/ US State department outfit documenting the real numbers based in London, called MediaZona. Here’s the link.
    About 55k Kia.
    https://en.zona.media/article/2022/05/20/casualties_eng

    Now multiply that number by 12 and you get Ukrainian casualties.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    No need to guess or make up figures of Russian casualties. There’s a BBC/ US State department outfit documenting the real numbers based in London, called MediaZona.
    I know about it already. Note the caveat:

    Mediazona, in collaboration with a team of volunteers, is meticulously reviewing social media posts, local media reports, and official statements to verify casualties in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

    Our standard for confirmed deaths is stringent—it requires an official publication or social media post from a relative with corresponding details, accompanying photos or dates of burials from local messaging groups, or photos from cemeteries.

    We exclude casualties sustained by units of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR republics, and we do not rely on photographs of bodies (even with accompanying documents) published by Ukraine as these are difficult to verify. [Boldfaces mine.]
    Now, you do realize almost all Russians combat deaths have occurred in Ukraine? Can you think of why this methodology might miss a significant portion of Russians casualties, particularly KIA?

    Now multiply that number by 12 and you get Ukrainian casualties.
    Based on what do you get the multiplier of 12?

    Replies: @HA
  466. @HA
    @BB753

    "Russia is successful in recruiting soldiers while Ukraine has to gang press them."

    No, the vast majority of conscripts are showing up, happy or not. There's always a sizable chunk in any war that doesn't want to fight, and in that case, you can bet that the ones who do or did show up are very eager to make the recalcitrant do the same, and if that means press-ganging them, so be it.

    Ukraine still hasn't resorted to conscripting murderers like those "successful" recruiters Russia has had to -- we're talking psychos and other convicts (some of whom then return home to Russia and resume killing). It hasn't had to entice/trick Nepalese, or Indians, or Cubans, or Africans to do their fighting.

    A month or so ago, fanboys were breathlessly echoing Simplicius in assuring us "the war is all but over". You're apparently a fan yourself. And yet, Putin is purging his military, and (when he isn't whining about meanie NATO members who allow Ukraine to use their weapons to smack Russia when it hurts -- "the Putin cries out in pain as he strikes you", isn't that how the saying goes?) is preparing for a long war. What does he know that the fanboys aren't willing to admit?

    Replies: @BB753

    You neocons are totally clueless or in denial.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @BB753


    You neocons are totally clueless or in denial.
    “It’s OVER For Ukraine & Zelensky Will Be GONE Within 60 Days.” Col. Douglas MacGregor"

    Did you get that? It's OVER...as in OVER... and this time (unlike the dozen or so times that he's said this over the last 2 and a half years), Macgregor really, really means it. Over,..finito....my only friend, the end...законченный!

    And yet, despite that emphatic prediction, Putin is gearing up for a long war. What does Putin know that his fanboys are "totally clueless or in denial" about? Maybe that's what you need to ask yourself.
  467. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    This post shows that Twinkie has absolutely no military background.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    This post shows that Twinkie has absolutely no military background.

    Please do elaborate.

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    You seem clueless.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  468. HA says:
    @BB753
    @HA

    You neocons are totally clueless or in denial.

    Replies: @HA

    You neocons are totally clueless or in denial.

    “It’s OVER For Ukraine & Zelensky Will Be GONE Within 60 Days.” Col. Douglas MacGregor”

    Did you get that? It’s OVER…as in OVER… and this time (unlike the dozen or so times that he’s said this over the last 2 and a half years), Macgregor really, really means it. Over,..finito….my only friend, the end…законченный!

    And yet, despite that emphatic prediction, Putin is gearing up for a long war. What does Putin know that his fanboys are “totally clueless or in denial” about? Maybe that’s what you need to ask yourself.

  469. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children. He was a high school science teacher. The same thing was true of my atheist grandfather, who had a PhD in biology, and my atheist great-grandfather, who was a college math professor.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA

    My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children. He was a high school science teacher. The same thing was true of my atheist grandfather, who had a PhD in biology, and my atheist great-grandfather, who was a college math professor.

    Sure, sure.

    And you are just like they were, right?

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Yes, I am like them. My mother said one time I am just like my great grandfather. He died when I was a child so I never knew him well. I just heard about him.

    You really do not belong here. Before becoming a citizen, immigrants take an oath they will support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. You are a Francoist who wants a dictator here instead.

    Of course, since you are just a religous nut who thinks such a fantasy is possible but really isn't, the government will not do anything about you. So, I can continue to laugh at the Crazy Catholic Clown here at unz.com.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA
  470. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses."

    No need to guess or make up figures of Russian casualties. There's a BBC/ US State department outfit documenting the real numbers based in London, called MediaZona. Here's the link.
    About 55k Kia.
    https://en.zona.media/article/2022/05/20/casualties_eng

    Now multiply that number by 12 and you get Ukrainian casualties.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    No need to guess or make up figures of Russian casualties. There’s a BBC/ US State department outfit documenting the real numbers based in London, called MediaZona.

    I know about it already. Note the caveat:

    Mediazona, in collaboration with a team of volunteers, is meticulously reviewing social media posts, local media reports, and official statements to verify casualties in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

    Our standard for confirmed deaths is stringent—it requires an official publication or social media post from a relative with corresponding details, accompanying photos or dates of burials from local messaging groups, or photos from cemeteries.

    We exclude casualties sustained by units of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR republics, and we do not rely on photographs of bodies (even with accompanying documents) published by Ukraine as these are difficult to verify. [Boldfaces mine.]

    Now, you do realize almost all Russians combat deaths have occurred in Ukraine? Can you think of why this methodology might miss a significant portion of Russians casualties, particularly KIA?

    Now multiply that number by 12 and you get Ukrainian casualties.

    Based on what do you get the multiplier of 12?

    •�Replies: @HA
    @Twinkie

    "Mediazona, in collaboration with a team of volunteers, is meticulously reviewing social media posts, local media reports, and official statements to verify casualties in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine."

    Note that the "official" death toll of Russia's boondoggle in Afghanistan is 15K. So whatever multiplier you want to tack onto both those numbers to get actual death tolls, if the multipliers are roughly similar we can say that Russian deaths for Ukraine have already outstripped the deaths in Afghanistan by over a factor of 3 in less than 2.5 years (the Soviet-Afghanistan war lasted 9).

    I'm sure the fanboys will put a positive spin on all that (“Every day, in every way, Putin is getting better and better and gosh darn it, people like him"), but as for me, I can understand why Lil' BB is purging his military and trying to recruit gullible 3rd-worlders (by which I mean NON-Russian 3rd-worlders).
  471. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children. He was a high school science teacher. The same thing was true of my atheist grandfather, who had a PhD in biology, and my atheist great-grandfather, who was a college math professor.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA

    “My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children.”

    “Atheists have had an average of 1.6 children, and agnostics have had 1.3 children. Mainline Protestants [i.e., training-wheel agnostics] also have below-average fertility rates.”

    Meanwhile, Catholic TFR is 2.3 while Mormon is 3.4.

  472. @BB753
    @John Johnson

    "A lot of bets on a summer offensive."


    Indeed, and the Ukrainian Summer offensive happened last year and was a total disaster. Remember that?
    Listen, you can either face the facts on the ground or keep on being delusional. Whatever makes you happy.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    Indeed, and the Ukrainian Summer offensive happened last year and was a total disaster. Remember that?
    Listen, you can either face the facts on the ground or keep on being delusional. Whatever makes you happy.

    How am I being delusional? You’re projecting your own fanboyism.

    I am on record as being skeptical of a great offensive and I said it is definitely a bad idea to announce one before you do it. I was in favor of small probing attacks while maintaining a defensive advantage if the Russians (mostly Wagners at the time) kept running into machine guns.

    I also said that it is overly ambitious to expect that they get all of their territory back including Crimea.

    In fact I didn’t think Ukraine was in a good position until the Trump/Johnson bill passed. Thanks again to Trump for ignoring the Putin nutcases in your party like Marjorie and coming up with a swamptastic bill that mostly favors the defense industry but still gives Ukraine our ATACMS inventory. Quite clever actually.

    Now go back to making up stats like your “10 to 1” casualties in favor of Russia. No one knows the actual casualties.

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @John Johnson

    ". I was in favor of small probing attacks while maintaining a defensive advantage if the Russians (mostly Wagners at the time) kept running into machine guns."

    That never happened. "Human wave attacks" are a myth.You certainly wouldn't expect them from pros like Wagner mercenaries.

    "Now go back to making up stats like your “10 to 1” casualties in favor of Russia. "

    It's military math. Also, the numerous conscriptions can't be explained any other way than by massive casualties, even accounting for rotation on the frontlines.
  473. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    My atheist father was happily married with a nice wife and children. He was a high school science teacher. The same thing was true of my atheist grandfather, who had a PhD in biology, and my atheist great-grandfather, who was a college math professor.
    Sure, sure.

    And you are just like they were, right?

    Replies: @Mark G.

    Yes, I am like them. My mother said one time I am just like my great grandfather. He died when I was a child so I never knew him well. I just heard about him.

    You really do not belong here. Before becoming a citizen, immigrants take an oath they will support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. You are a Francoist who wants a dictator here instead.

    Of course, since you are just a religous nut who thinks such a fantasy is possible but really isn’t, the government will not do anything about you. So, I can continue to laugh at the Crazy Catholic Clown here at unz.com.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    You really do not belong here.
    Too bad. I am a citizen. There is nothing you can do about it, except fantasizing about me being cattle-prodded* onto some kind of an expulsion ship, which simply reveals your inner malevolence.

    *That was such a very specific fantasy on your part.

    Yes, I am like them.
    So, you do have a nice wife and children? Or was your claim about them having happy lives with nice wife and children made up?

    Replies: @Mark G.
    , @HA
    @Mark G.

    "Yes, I am like them. My mother said one time I am just like my great grandfather. He died when I was a child so I never knew him well."

    Clearly you're not just like him. He had a great grandson. Can you spot the difference yet? What, you think someone's gonna want to clone your remains after you're dead or something?

    It takes generations, and indeed centuries, for any movement or belief to seep in to a society and make things better or worse (as in "it sure seemed like a good idea at the time"). The Islamic world was more progressive and forward thinking than Christendom for a couple of centuries before the mental sterility of the madrasa mentality seeped in and stifled things. David Hume, the patron saint of atheists, so to speak, was a kindly and genial and "Christian" fellow, because he was brought up among and raised by the very Christians whose beliefs he ridiculed. Having seen Edinburgh recently, I'm thinking most of the residents were brought up among and raised by several generations of David Humes, and that's not a compliment. Atheists seem unusually confident that the passing of Christianity will lead to a smarter and more humane society. I'm thinking that's about as crazy as believing in a flying spaghetti monster.

    Your parents and grandparents imbibed enough of the culture around them to value family and children and all the self-sacrifice that entails. Whereas you prefer to pontificate about the future of this country from the comfort of your armchair. Even if you managed to do business with a sperm bank at some point in the past, it isn't quite the same thing.
  474. HA says:
    @Twinkie
    @BB753


    No need to guess or make up figures of Russian casualties. There’s a BBC/ US State department outfit documenting the real numbers based in London, called MediaZona.
    I know about it already. Note the caveat:

    Mediazona, in collaboration with a team of volunteers, is meticulously reviewing social media posts, local media reports, and official statements to verify casualties in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

    Our standard for confirmed deaths is stringent—it requires an official publication or social media post from a relative with corresponding details, accompanying photos or dates of burials from local messaging groups, or photos from cemeteries.

    We exclude casualties sustained by units of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR republics, and we do not rely on photographs of bodies (even with accompanying documents) published by Ukraine as these are difficult to verify. [Boldfaces mine.]
    Now, you do realize almost all Russians combat deaths have occurred in Ukraine? Can you think of why this methodology might miss a significant portion of Russians casualties, particularly KIA?

    Now multiply that number by 12 and you get Ukrainian casualties.
    Based on what do you get the multiplier of 12?

    Replies: @HA

    “Mediazona, in collaboration with a team of volunteers, is meticulously reviewing social media posts, local media reports, and official statements to verify casualties in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.”

    Note that the “official” death toll of Russia’s boondoggle in Afghanistan is 15K. So whatever multiplier you want to tack onto both those numbers to get actual death tolls, if the multipliers are roughly similar we can say that Russian deaths for Ukraine have already outstripped the deaths in Afghanistan by over a factor of 3 in less than 2.5 years (the Soviet-Afghanistan war lasted 9).

    I’m sure the fanboys will put a positive spin on all that (“Every day, in every way, Putin is getting better and better and gosh darn it, people like him”), but as for me, I can understand why Lil’ BB is purging his military and trying to recruit gullible 3rd-worlders (by which I mean NON-Russian 3rd-worlders).

  475. @Twinkie
    @John Johnson


    If he had the armored force available to take Kharkiv then he would be doing it before the F-16s arrive.
    Ukraine destroyed ("rendered combat-ineffective") Russia prestigious 1st Guards Tank Army during the Kharkiv counterattack. That formation is now almost back to its previous strength. There is considerable evidence that Russia's armor production has climbed and restored much of its depleted forces (well-trained tank crews are a different story).

    The reason Russians aren't using massed tank formations is that they are - for both sides - ineffective and costly in this day of mass drone attacks, PGM-firing artillery, etc.

    Given the ubiquity of early warning systems and the swift response this brings, it is now very difficult to achieve operational-level surprise with massed mechanized formations. In light of this, the order of the day is dispersal, which is much easier to do with infantry.

    lone Mad Max type attacks
    Those are probably probes to elicit reaction and to expose the latter (so they can be targeted).

    500 to 600 ATACMS
    The thing with ATACMS is volume of fire. They shouldn't be used on troop formations, given the scarcity and, indeed, are used on supply depots, command and control infrastructure and the like.

    Putin is in trouble.
    I don't know what "in trouble" means, but Russia has regained initiative after the ineffective Ukrainian "counter-offensive" and is now probing along the lengthy border. I expect a rough summer for the Ukrainians. The question is, how rough is it going to be on the Russian forces?

    So far, the Russo-Ukraine War has had uncanny resemblances to the Iran-Iraq War (drone wars instead of "the War of the Cities" ballistic missile exchange of the latter) - with one side repelling the other side's offensive with heavy casualties for the attacker, then the erstwhile defenders going on a counterattack, then being repulsed in turn with high casualties, rinse and repeat. This is a comparison I made a while back and it still stands.

    Replies: @John Johnson

    There is considerable evidence that Russia’s armor production has climbed and restored much of its depleted forces (well-trained tank crews are a different story).

    I see no reason to believe that when we actually saw a T-54 in battle recently.

    The reason Russians aren’t using massed tank formations is that they are – for both sides – ineffective and costly in this day of mass drone attacks, PGM-firing artillery, etc.

    They’re still using tanks and they are older models:
    https://funker530.com/video/nsfw-russians-dismount-on-fire-after-javelin-strikes/

    Are you going to suggest those older tanks with cope cages are basically on suicide runs and Putin is building the real reserve that will have shiny new T-90s? Well that claim was made last year by Putin defenders…repeatedly.

    Given the ubiquity of early warning systems and the swift response this brings, it is now very difficult to achieve operational-level surprise with massed mechanized formations.

    Well MacGregor and Ritter are back to claiming that Putin is building up a massive force to finish off Ukraine. Do you think they are wrong?

    The thing with ATACMS is volume of fire. They shouldn’t be used on troop formations, given the scarcity and, indeed, are used on supply depots, command and control infrastructure and the like.

    You have some good information but you are wrong here. They have cluster models that are designed for troops and vehicles in the open.

    One ATACMS missile on a 100+ troop formation on video is an excellent use of one. It’s extremely demoralizing and saves the lives of your infantry. That video has made the rounds and made a mockery of the Putin defenders that try to diminish all things from the US. And if you have 600 of them then why not? They have plenty more for command centers.

    Prigozhin is on record talking about much he hated HIMARS. He said it terrified the troops because you had no chance to escape. It’s a demoralizing weapon and you can’t counter-battery them. The Z crowd is being too dismissive.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @John Johnson


    I see no reason to believe that
    https://www.cnas.org/events/aukus-securing-the-indo-pacific-a-conversation-with-kurt-campbell

    We have assessed over the course of the last couple of months that Russia has almost completely reconstituted militarily...
    Campbell is Deputy Secretary of State.

    Are you going to suggest those older tanks with cope cages are basically on suicide runs and Putin is building the real reserve that will have shiny new T-90s? Well that claim was made last year by Putin defenders…repeatedly.
    If you look at Oryx's datasets, the number of destroyed and damaged upgraded T-80 variants and T-90 variants has been rising steadily, which speaks to increased deployment of these higher tier armor kits.

    Well MacGregor and Ritter are back to claiming that Putin is building up a massive force to finish off Ukraine. Do you think they are wrong?
    If you don't know my opinion of Macgregor and Ritter, you haven't been paying attention. That said, Putin's government has dramatically increased defense spending (6+% of the GDP) and has put tremendous resources into reconstituting the badly depleted military. Where they are having trouble is not so much manpower as trained manpower.

    One ATACMS missile on a 100+ troop formation on video is an excellent use of one.
    IF you have a large stock of the missiles. As I wrote before, the issue with ATACMS is the volume the Ukrainians can deploy.

    BTW, the cluster bomb version of ATACMS is not the long-range one.

    Replies: @BB753
  476. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "Nonetheless, the fact that it had to engage in several waves of large recruitment drives should clue a thinking person about the scale of its losses."

    The bulk of the Russian army in combat are volunteers and professionals who signed up after 2022, while Ukraine now has to rely on draftees and gang presses.

    "There was no “million men army” in Ukraine in 2022. When the war started, Ukraine had under 200,000 men in active force (900,000 in reserves, for whatever that’s worth) while Russia had about 900,000 active, 2 million in reserves. "

    When the SMO started, Ukraine mobilized most of its reserves and regional guards. Meanwhile, Russia initially committed only 50k troops. Those were enough to take over half of Southern Ukraine ( Russian speaking territories), and win the decisive battle of Mariupol.

    After October 2022, Ukraine instituted a draft. And now, there's another one this month. Again, where did those troops go? The reality is too sad to contemplate, I know.


    "As I mentioned repeatedly, Russia’s defense-industrial complex dwarfs Ukraine’s"
    And NATOs's

    Replies: @Twinkie

    When the SMO started, Ukraine mobilized most of its reserves and regional guards. Meanwhile, Russia initially committed only 50k troops. Those were enough to take over half of Southern Ukraine ( Russian speaking territories), and win the decisive battle of Mariupol.

    This is completely false and is made up from the thin air.

    The Russian military committed 60 BTGs (battalion tactical groups, the smallest operational combat units in the army) in the initial invasion. That’s about 21,000 just in frontline trigger-pullers, not including any combat support and support services (artillery, logistics, aviation, command and control, etc.). In total, Russia committed about 150,000 to 200,000 military personnel in the initial invasion force. Within a few months, as casualties mounted significantly, Russia had to increase this to 120 to 160 BTGs (meaning up to 56,000 trigger-pullers, with the total force rising to 300,000 to 400,000). This was a result of the initial BTGs suffering enormous casualties (e.g. as documented by leaked US SIGNINT and SATINT data, the 100th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade with 2 BTGs deployed from its base in Murmansk – it’s a specialized infantry force that guards the Soviet “boomer” submarines – lost 35% of its force within 3 months of deployment in Ukraine).

    Ukraine had about 200,000 active troops on the eve of the war. Within a few weeks to early few months, it recalled about 250,000 in reserves (there are tiers to reserve troops, whose readiness varies a great deal). Because the Ukrainians lacked sufficient heavy equipment, the bulk of the reserves were activated as infantry and light infantry troops rather than as heavy armor or mechanized forces.

    Anyone who thinks the casualty differential is 12-to-1 while battlefield fortunes have shifted back and forth and largely stalemated is living in a fantasy world and indeed has no military experience. In reality, likely casualties estimates range from 2-to-1 in Ukrainian favor to roughly similar to 2-to-1 in Russian favor. I tend to favor the middle ground (say 100,000 to 125,000 KIA on each side).

    You can see a good summary of the ranges and arguments here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Russo-Ukrainian_War#Total_casualties

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    For Russian casualties, again check out the Media Zona page. It's pro-Ukrainian. Please don't tell me you believe Wikipedia to be truthful!

    "Anyone who thinks the casualty differential is 12-to-1 while battlefield fortunes have shifted back and forth and largely stalemated is living in a fantasy world and indeed has no military experience"

    Not even NATO or the Pentagon declare this war a stalemate. Have you read the news lately? Capturing territory in itself is meaningless unless you're able to hold on to your position with minimum casualties while causing maximum damage to the other side. Russians advance bit by bit, then pull back slightly or dig in with the intent to grind down the enemy from a safe defensive position. It's the smart thing to do, particularly when your every move is monitored by NATO satellites and drones.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  477. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Yes, I am like them. My mother said one time I am just like my great grandfather. He died when I was a child so I never knew him well. I just heard about him.

    You really do not belong here. Before becoming a citizen, immigrants take an oath they will support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. You are a Francoist who wants a dictator here instead.

    Of course, since you are just a religous nut who thinks such a fantasy is possible but really isn't, the government will not do anything about you. So, I can continue to laugh at the Crazy Catholic Clown here at unz.com.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA

    You really do not belong here.

    Too bad. I am a citizen. There is nothing you can do about it, except fantasizing about me being cattle-prodded* onto some kind of an expulsion ship, which simply reveals your inner malevolence.

    *That was such a very specific fantasy on your part.

    Yes, I am like them.

    So, you do have a nice wife and children? Or was your claim about them having happy lives with nice wife and children made up?

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "nothing you can do"

    Can you read? I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at. When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC? When you are headed there I was thinking you guys would not need to take any boats because if you came to a river you could just have God part it like the Red Sea, right?

    You could come here to Indiana. Everyone here has pictures of Franco in their living room and will eagerly join your civil war. I promise! The majority of Asians here in this country may vote for liberal Democrats but will join you too.

    How can you lose?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA
  478. BB753 says:
    @John Johnson
    @BB753

    Indeed, and the Ukrainian Summer offensive happened last year and was a total disaster. Remember that?
    Listen, you can either face the facts on the ground or keep on being delusional. Whatever makes you happy.

    How am I being delusional? You're projecting your own fanboyism.

    I am on record as being skeptical of a great offensive and I said it is definitely a bad idea to announce one before you do it. I was in favor of small probing attacks while maintaining a defensive advantage if the Russians (mostly Wagners at the time) kept running into machine guns.

    I also said that it is overly ambitious to expect that they get all of their territory back including Crimea.

    In fact I didn't think Ukraine was in a good position until the Trump/Johnson bill passed. Thanks again to Trump for ignoring the Putin nutcases in your party like Marjorie and coming up with a swamptastic bill that mostly favors the defense industry but still gives Ukraine our ATACMS inventory. Quite clever actually.

    Now go back to making up stats like your "10 to 1" casualties in favor of Russia. No one knows the actual casualties.

    Replies: @BB753

    “. I was in favor of small probing attacks while maintaining a defensive advantage if the Russians (mostly Wagners at the time) kept running into machine guns.”

    That never happened. “Human wave attacks” are a myth.You certainly wouldn’t expect them from pros like Wagner mercenaries.

    “Now go back to making up stats like your “10 to 1” casualties in favor of Russia. ”

    It’s military math. Also, the numerous conscriptions can’t be explained any other way than by massive casualties, even accounting for rotation on the frontlines.

  479. @Twinkie
    @BB753


    This post shows that Twinkie has absolutely no military background.
    Please do elaborate.

    Replies: @BB753

    You seem clueless.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    You seem clueless.
    As opposed to you, right?

    In a few words, tell me about what led to the creation of the Russian battalion tactical group (BTG) system. And, more importantly, tell me what led to its reform in light of the experiences the Russians have had in the current war.

    Here I'll get you started: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battalion_tactical_group
  480. @John Johnson
    @Twinkie

    There is considerable evidence that Russia’s armor production has climbed and restored much of its depleted forces (well-trained tank crews are a different story).

    I see no reason to believe that when we actually saw a T-54 in battle recently.

    The reason Russians aren’t using massed tank formations is that they are – for both sides – ineffective and costly in this day of mass drone attacks, PGM-firing artillery, etc.

    They're still using tanks and they are older models:
    https://funker530.com/video/nsfw-russians-dismount-on-fire-after-javelin-strikes/

    Are you going to suggest those older tanks with cope cages are basically on suicide runs and Putin is building the real reserve that will have shiny new T-90s? Well that claim was made last year by Putin defenders...repeatedly.

    Given the ubiquity of early warning systems and the swift response this brings, it is now very difficult to achieve operational-level surprise with massed mechanized formations.

    Well MacGregor and Ritter are back to claiming that Putin is building up a massive force to finish off Ukraine. Do you think they are wrong?

    The thing with ATACMS is volume of fire. They shouldn’t be used on troop formations, given the scarcity and, indeed, are used on supply depots, command and control infrastructure and the like.

    You have some good information but you are wrong here. They have cluster models that are designed for troops and vehicles in the open.

    One ATACMS missile on a 100+ troop formation on video is an excellent use of one. It's extremely demoralizing and saves the lives of your infantry. That video has made the rounds and made a mockery of the Putin defenders that try to diminish all things from the US. And if you have 600 of them then why not? They have plenty more for command centers.

    Prigozhin is on record talking about much he hated HIMARS. He said it terrified the troops because you had no chance to escape. It's a demoralizing weapon and you can't counter-battery them. The Z crowd is being too dismissive.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    I see no reason to believe that

    https://www.cnas.org/events/aukus-securing-the-indo-pacific-a-conversation-with-kurt-campbell

    We have assessed over the course of the last couple of months that Russia has almost completely reconstituted militarily…

    Campbell is Deputy Secretary of State.

    Are you going to suggest those older tanks with cope cages are basically on suicide runs and Putin is building the real reserve that will have shiny new T-90s? Well that claim was made last year by Putin defenders…repeatedly.

    If you look at Oryx’s datasets, the number of destroyed and damaged upgraded T-80 variants and T-90 variants has been rising steadily, which speaks to increased deployment of these higher tier armor kits.

    Well MacGregor and Ritter are back to claiming that Putin is building up a massive force to finish off Ukraine. Do you think they are wrong?

    If you don’t know my opinion of Macgregor and Ritter, you haven’t been paying attention. That said, Putin’s government has dramatically increased defense spending (6+% of the GDP) and has put tremendous resources into reconstituting the badly depleted military. Where they are having trouble is not so much manpower as trained manpower.

    One ATACMS missile on a 100+ troop formation on video is an excellent use of one.

    IF you have a large stock of the missiles. As I wrote before, the issue with ATACMS is the volume the Ukrainians can deploy.

    BTW, the cluster bomb version of ATACMS is not the long-range one.

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    This guy knows his stuff. And he cites normie sources.
    https://youtu.be/aEnvbCxU4xM?si=nvjfWpQGXdb1-aTn

    Replies: @HA
  481. BB753 says:
    @Twinkie
    @BB753


    When the SMO started, Ukraine mobilized most of its reserves and regional guards. Meanwhile, Russia initially committed only 50k troops. Those were enough to take over half of Southern Ukraine ( Russian speaking territories), and win the decisive battle of Mariupol.
    This is completely false and is made up from the thin air.

    The Russian military committed 60 BTGs (battalion tactical groups, the smallest operational combat units in the army) in the initial invasion. That's about 21,000 just in frontline trigger-pullers, not including any combat support and support services (artillery, logistics, aviation, command and control, etc.). In total, Russia committed about 150,000 to 200,000 military personnel in the initial invasion force. Within a few months, as casualties mounted significantly, Russia had to increase this to 120 to 160 BTGs (meaning up to 56,000 trigger-pullers, with the total force rising to 300,000 to 400,000). This was a result of the initial BTGs suffering enormous casualties (e.g. as documented by leaked US SIGNINT and SATINT data, the 100th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade with 2 BTGs deployed from its base in Murmansk - it's a specialized infantry force that guards the Soviet "boomer" submarines - lost 35% of its force within 3 months of deployment in Ukraine).

    Ukraine had about 200,000 active troops on the eve of the war. Within a few weeks to early few months, it recalled about 250,000 in reserves (there are tiers to reserve troops, whose readiness varies a great deal). Because the Ukrainians lacked sufficient heavy equipment, the bulk of the reserves were activated as infantry and light infantry troops rather than as heavy armor or mechanized forces.

    Anyone who thinks the casualty differential is 12-to-1 while battlefield fortunes have shifted back and forth and largely stalemated is living in a fantasy world and indeed has no military experience. In reality, likely casualties estimates range from 2-to-1 in Ukrainian favor to roughly similar to 2-to-1 in Russian favor. I tend to favor the middle ground (say 100,000 to 125,000 KIA on each side).

    You can see a good summary of the ranges and arguments here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Russo-Ukrainian_War#Total_casualties

    Replies: @BB753

    For Russian casualties, again check out the Media Zona page. It’s pro-Ukrainian. Please don’t tell me you believe Wikipedia to be truthful!

    “Anyone who thinks the casualty differential is 12-to-1 while battlefield fortunes have shifted back and forth and largely stalemated is living in a fantasy world and indeed has no military experience”

    Not even NATO or the Pentagon declare this war a stalemate. Have you read the news lately? Capturing territory in itself is meaningless unless you’re able to hold on to your position with minimum casualties while causing maximum damage to the other side. Russians advance bit by bit, then pull back slightly or dig in with the intent to grind down the enemy from a safe defensive position. It’s the smart thing to do, particularly when your every move is monitored by NATO satellites and drones.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    For Russian casualties, again check out the Media Zona page.
    Are you illiterate? Read BBC/Mediazona's caveats on methodology:

    Our standard for confirmed deaths is stringent—it requires an official publication or social media post from a relative with corresponding details, accompanying photos or dates of burials from local messaging groups, or photos from cemeteries.
    First of all, BBC/Mediazona does not include the KIA figures of the Donbas proxy forces. It only counts KIA figures of Russian armed forces and PMCs and, among them, those deaths that have been confirmed with either official government pronouncements or social media post from a kin with burial/cemetery details. As such, it does not come close to capturing the total KIA tally for the Russian and its proxy forces. Hence:

    The BBC further stated that "Every week, we discover new evidence of Russian military funerals in different localities of Russia, which were not reported by local authorities. Based on these observations, we can assume that the list of confirmed losses maintained by the BBC contain at least 40–60% fewer names of the dead than actually buried in Russia."[74] Thus, the BBC stated that the actual death toll of Russian forces, counting only Russian servicemen and contractors (i.e. excluding DPR/LPR militia), was over 100,000 by early April 2024, "according to the most conservative estimate."[73]
    This 100,000 or so figure (125,000+ including Donbas militias) also fits well with the initial (crude) methodology I used - Oryx's equipment loss figures times the multiple I derived from U.S. KIA per equipment in Iraq. It is also consistent with USG estimates based on SIGINT and SATINT data (USG has been intercepting Russian military communications that provided internal Russian loss numbers of various units as well using satellite imagery to count activity and vehicle levels at bases of these units pre- and post-deployment to Ukraine).

    Not even NATO or the Pentagon declare this war a stalemate.
    The war is - at the strategic level - stalemated, because neither can deliver a knockout blow in the short- to medium-term. At the operational level, fortunes have been shifting back and forth, which is why I wrote the following above:

    So far, the Russo-Ukraine War has had uncanny resemblances to the Iran-Iraq War (drone wars instead of “the War of the Cities” ballistic missile exchange of the latter) – with one side repelling the other side’s offensive with heavy casualties for the attacker, then the erstwhile defenders going on a counterattack, then being repulsed in turn with high casualties, rinse and repeat. This is a comparison I made a while back and it still stands.

    Replies: @BB753, @BB753
  482. HA says:
    @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Yes, I am like them. My mother said one time I am just like my great grandfather. He died when I was a child so I never knew him well. I just heard about him.

    You really do not belong here. Before becoming a citizen, immigrants take an oath they will support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. You are a Francoist who wants a dictator here instead.

    Of course, since you are just a religous nut who thinks such a fantasy is possible but really isn't, the government will not do anything about you. So, I can continue to laugh at the Crazy Catholic Clown here at unz.com.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA

    “Yes, I am like them. My mother said one time I am just like my great grandfather. He died when I was a child so I never knew him well.”

    Clearly you’re not just like him. He had a great grandson. Can you spot the difference yet? What, you think someone’s gonna want to clone your remains after you’re dead or something?

    It takes generations, and indeed centuries, for any movement or belief to seep in to a society and make things better or worse (as in “it sure seemed like a good idea at the time”). The Islamic world was more progressive and forward thinking than Christendom for a couple of centuries before the mental sterility of the madrasa mentality seeped in and stifled things. David Hume, the patron saint of atheists, so to speak, was a kindly and genial and “Christian” fellow, because he was brought up among and raised by the very Christians whose beliefs he ridiculed. Having seen Edinburgh recently, I’m thinking most of the residents were brought up among and raised by several generations of David Humes, and that’s not a compliment. Atheists seem unusually confident that the passing of Christianity will lead to a smarter and more humane society. I’m thinking that’s about as crazy as believing in a flying spaghetti monster.

    Your parents and grandparents imbibed enough of the culture around them to value family and children and all the self-sacrifice that entails. Whereas you prefer to pontificate about the future of this country from the comfort of your armchair. Even if you managed to do business with a sperm bank at some point in the past, it isn’t quite the same thing.

    •�Agree: Twinkie
  483. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    You really do not belong here.
    Too bad. I am a citizen. There is nothing you can do about it, except fantasizing about me being cattle-prodded* onto some kind of an expulsion ship, which simply reveals your inner malevolence.

    *That was such a very specific fantasy on your part.

    Yes, I am like them.
    So, you do have a nice wife and children? Or was your claim about them having happy lives with nice wife and children made up?

    Replies: @Mark G.

    “nothing you can do”

    Can you read? I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at. When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC? When you are headed there I was thinking you guys would not need to take any boats because if you came to a river you could just have God part it like the Red Sea, right?

    You could come here to Indiana. Everyone here has pictures of Franco in their living room and will eagerly join your civil war. I promise! The majority of Asians here in this country may vote for liberal Democrats but will join you too.

    How can you lose?

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at.
    Meh. Transparent backtracking. It's clear you got angry, because you couldn't win the internet with your strawmen and ad hominem, and revealed your inner political commissar fantasy ("cattle prod" et al). As Jenner alluded, you are a raging leftist totalitarian larping as a libertarian. What kind a deranged person resorts to, "I hope 'they' expel you from the country and I am going to watch them cattle-prod you!" all the while ascribing authoritarianism to others?

    When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC?
    You clearly don't understand historical parallels. Par for the course.

    I am on record as preferring an electoral solution to our mess, but hoping for a Franco-like counter-revolutionary should the country descend into violence unleashed by the left. I am very mindful of what an ancient Roman wrote - "Let us fight every people in the world, but avoid civil strife - doubly because I've seen broken societies firsthand.

    Other commenters pointed this out to you several times, but like a retarded child, you keep repeating "You dirty Francoist!" because you think that label is some sort of an argument-winning talisman.

    You could come here to Indiana.
    My wife is from the rural Midwest. She and I own commercial farmland and other properties there. For a time, I even farmed for my father-in-law with my own hands. I know the rural Midwest and its people far better than you do, city boy. It's heavily Christian and they don't think too highly of radical, anti-Christian atheists like you.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/files/2013/12/2010-Largest-Group-by-County.jpg

    The country is much more Catholic than you think, by the way.

    Replies: @Mark G., @John Johnson
    , @HA
    @Mark G.

    "I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at."

    All this kvetching about alien foreign ideologies creeping in and destroying the fabric of this country. Did you ever stop to consider that maybe it's your ideology -- and the sterile, desiccated all-about-me lifestyles it leads to, once the tag-along let's-raise-a-family conformity of your ancestors has dissipated, as it did with you -- that is the real poisoned apple? Is that what all this is about?

    Again, it takes time -- generations and even centuries -- for the rot in any ideology to manifest itself. One of the biggest problems of Francoism, that ultimately led to its undoing, is the entrenched small-minded corruption that it produced when government eventually wound up (as it eventually always does) in the hands of petty and small-minded government drones (and you'd know all about that, wouldn't you?) Eventually, even the Francoists realized that some more democratic system had to be allowed to flourish, even if that meant the leftists would mess things up in their own way (which I'd claim they have). But to the Francoists' credit, that undoing happened with less mayhem than many of the left-wing overthrows we've seen in the past (and given how powerless the Spanish left proved to be with regard to the Soviet/Stalinist insistence that the revolution was theirs and theirs alone to control, I doubt the same would have been true of whatever state the Popular Front would have set up, though we'll never know for sure).

    You, on the other hand, seem unable to admit the ideological shortcomings of those dandy men in powdered wigs and silk stockings spouting on about universal rights of all mankind that remain stubbornly non-evident in large parts of the world, even when elections are (briefly) allowed. Instead, you sputter and project the failings of your ideology on others. As dumb as those godfearing spaghetti monster worshippers seem to you, with their sky fairy and Spanish inquisitions, you'd have probably done better for yourself if you had parasitically tagged along and conformed a little more to their backwards ways (like your parents did). There seems to be a wisdom in that reactionary outlook that your enlightened brave new world has yet to appreciate, distracted as they are with safe spaces and rainbows and puberty blockers and Instagram likes. I mean, I realize it's great to have all these 3rd-worlders doing jobs we don't want to do, and raising families we ourselves no longer want to make time for -- and just look at all those tasty and cheap burritos we get in exchange! -- but even someone like you ought to realize that something is getting lost along the way.
  484. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    You seem clueless.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    You seem clueless.

    As opposed to you, right?

    In a few words, tell me about what led to the creation of the Russian battalion tactical group (BTG) system. And, more importantly, tell me what led to its reform in light of the experiences the Russians have had in the current war.

    Here I’ll get you started: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battalion_tactical_group

  485. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    For Russian casualties, again check out the Media Zona page. It's pro-Ukrainian. Please don't tell me you believe Wikipedia to be truthful!

    "Anyone who thinks the casualty differential is 12-to-1 while battlefield fortunes have shifted back and forth and largely stalemated is living in a fantasy world and indeed has no military experience"

    Not even NATO or the Pentagon declare this war a stalemate. Have you read the news lately? Capturing territory in itself is meaningless unless you're able to hold on to your position with minimum casualties while causing maximum damage to the other side. Russians advance bit by bit, then pull back slightly or dig in with the intent to grind down the enemy from a safe defensive position. It's the smart thing to do, particularly when your every move is monitored by NATO satellites and drones.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    For Russian casualties, again check out the Media Zona page.

    Are you illiterate? Read BBC/Mediazona’s caveats on methodology:

    Our standard for confirmed deaths is stringent—it requires an official publication or social media post from a relative with corresponding details, accompanying photos or dates of burials from local messaging groups, or photos from cemeteries.

    First of all, BBC/Mediazona does not include the KIA figures of the Donbas proxy forces. It only counts KIA figures of Russian armed forces and PMCs and, among them, those deaths that have been confirmed with either official government pronouncements or social media post from a kin with burial/cemetery details. As such, it does not come close to capturing the total KIA tally for the Russian and its proxy forces. Hence:

    The BBC further stated that “Every week, we discover new evidence of Russian military funerals in different localities of Russia, which were not reported by local authorities. Based on these observations, we can assume that the list of confirmed losses maintained by the BBC contain at least 40–60% fewer names of the dead than actually buried in Russia.”[74] Thus, the BBC stated that the actual death toll of Russian forces, counting only Russian servicemen and contractors (i.e. excluding DPR/LPR militia), was over 100,000 by early April 2024, “according to the most conservative estimate.”[73]

    This 100,000 or so figure (125,000+ including Donbas militias) also fits well with the initial (crude) methodology I used – Oryx’s equipment loss figures times the multiple I derived from U.S. KIA per equipment in Iraq. It is also consistent with USG estimates based on SIGINT and SATINT data (USG has been intercepting Russian military communications that provided internal Russian loss numbers of various units as well using satellite imagery to count activity and vehicle levels at bases of these units pre- and post-deployment to Ukraine).

    Not even NATO or the Pentagon declare this war a stalemate.

    The war is – at the strategic level – stalemated, because neither can deliver a knockout blow in the short- to medium-term. At the operational level, fortunes have been shifting back and forth, which is why I wrote the following above:

    So far, the Russo-Ukraine War has had uncanny resemblances to the Iran-Iraq War (drone wars instead of “the War of the Cities” ballistic missile exchange of the latter) – with one side repelling the other side’s offensive with heavy casualties for the attacker, then the erstwhile defenders going on a counterattack, then being repulsed in turn with high casualties, rinse and repeat. This is a comparison I made a while back and it still stands.

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "First of all, BBC/Mediazona does not include the KIA figures of the Donbas proxy forces. "

    The Donetsk and Lugansk militias joined the regular Russian army after the referendum in 2022.
    , @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "The war is – at the strategic level – stalemated, because neither can deliver a knockout blow in the short- to medium-term. *

    This is a war of attrition. The war will end when one side runs out of men, ammunition, fuel and machines. Guess which side has plenty of those?

    Replies: @Twinkie
  486. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "nothing you can do"

    Can you read? I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at. When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC? When you are headed there I was thinking you guys would not need to take any boats because if you came to a river you could just have God part it like the Red Sea, right?

    You could come here to Indiana. Everyone here has pictures of Franco in their living room and will eagerly join your civil war. I promise! The majority of Asians here in this country may vote for liberal Democrats but will join you too.

    How can you lose?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA

    I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at.

    Meh. Transparent backtracking. It’s clear you got angry, because you couldn’t win the internet with your strawmen and ad hominem, and revealed your inner political commissar fantasy (“cattle prod” et al). As Jenner alluded, you are a raging leftist totalitarian larping as a libertarian. What kind a deranged person resorts to, “I hope ‘they’ expel you from the country and I am going to watch them cattle-prod you!” all the while ascribing authoritarianism to others?

    When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC?

    You clearly don’t understand historical parallels. Par for the course.

    I am on record as preferring an electoral solution to our mess, but hoping for a Franco-like counter-revolutionary should the country descend into violence unleashed by the left. I am very mindful of what an ancient Roman wrote – “Let us fight every people in the world, but avoid civil strife – doubly because I’ve seen broken societies firsthand.

    Other commenters pointed this out to you several times, but like a retarded child, you keep repeating “You dirty Francoist!” because you think that label is some sort of an argument-winning talisman.

    You could come here to Indiana.

    My wife is from the rural Midwest. She and I own commercial farmland and other properties there. For a time, I even farmed for my father-in-law with my own hands. I know the rural Midwest and its people far better than you do, city boy. It’s heavily Christian and they don’t think too highly of radical, anti-Christian atheists like you.

    The country is much more Catholic than you think, by the way.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "They don't think too highly of ... atheists"

    My atheist dad taught at a rural Indiana high school for 20 years. Some Christians complained he was not teaching the Biblical theory of the creation of the earth and his school administration, along with most of the local residents, took his side.

    It is hilarious you have such a bloated ego you think you know more about Indiana than someone born here and who has spent 67 years here. A recent Cato Institute ranking of states by economic freedom placed Indiana at number ten. We elect small government conservatives like Mitch Daniels. Daniels once said a book by Charles Murray, What it Means to be a Libertarian, is one of his favorite books.

    Replies: @HA, @Twinkie
    , @John Johnson
    @Twinkie

    The country is much more Catholic than you think, by the way.

    There are a lot more rural Catholics than people realize.

    Everyone on the internet imagines Hispanic Catholics and urban Irish/Poles/Greeks.

    But there are a lot of Swiss/Catholic German towns that were founded across America.

    I have seen tiny Catholic Churches in the most rural areas.

    Then there are all the Polish settlements in the NE.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  487. @Twinkie
    @BB753


    For Russian casualties, again check out the Media Zona page.
    Are you illiterate? Read BBC/Mediazona's caveats on methodology:

    Our standard for confirmed deaths is stringent—it requires an official publication or social media post from a relative with corresponding details, accompanying photos or dates of burials from local messaging groups, or photos from cemeteries.
    First of all, BBC/Mediazona does not include the KIA figures of the Donbas proxy forces. It only counts KIA figures of Russian armed forces and PMCs and, among them, those deaths that have been confirmed with either official government pronouncements or social media post from a kin with burial/cemetery details. As such, it does not come close to capturing the total KIA tally for the Russian and its proxy forces. Hence:

    The BBC further stated that "Every week, we discover new evidence of Russian military funerals in different localities of Russia, which were not reported by local authorities. Based on these observations, we can assume that the list of confirmed losses maintained by the BBC contain at least 40–60% fewer names of the dead than actually buried in Russia."[74] Thus, the BBC stated that the actual death toll of Russian forces, counting only Russian servicemen and contractors (i.e. excluding DPR/LPR militia), was over 100,000 by early April 2024, "according to the most conservative estimate."[73]
    This 100,000 or so figure (125,000+ including Donbas militias) also fits well with the initial (crude) methodology I used - Oryx's equipment loss figures times the multiple I derived from U.S. KIA per equipment in Iraq. It is also consistent with USG estimates based on SIGINT and SATINT data (USG has been intercepting Russian military communications that provided internal Russian loss numbers of various units as well using satellite imagery to count activity and vehicle levels at bases of these units pre- and post-deployment to Ukraine).

    Not even NATO or the Pentagon declare this war a stalemate.
    The war is - at the strategic level - stalemated, because neither can deliver a knockout blow in the short- to medium-term. At the operational level, fortunes have been shifting back and forth, which is why I wrote the following above:

    So far, the Russo-Ukraine War has had uncanny resemblances to the Iran-Iraq War (drone wars instead of “the War of the Cities” ballistic missile exchange of the latter) – with one side repelling the other side’s offensive with heavy casualties for the attacker, then the erstwhile defenders going on a counterattack, then being repulsed in turn with high casualties, rinse and repeat. This is a comparison I made a while back and it still stands.

    Replies: @BB753, @BB753

    “First of all, BBC/Mediazona does not include the KIA figures of the Donbas proxy forces. ”

    The Donetsk and Lugansk militias joined the regular Russian army after the referendum in 2022.

  488. @Twinkie
    @BB753


    For Russian casualties, again check out the Media Zona page.
    Are you illiterate? Read BBC/Mediazona's caveats on methodology:

    Our standard for confirmed deaths is stringent—it requires an official publication or social media post from a relative with corresponding details, accompanying photos or dates of burials from local messaging groups, or photos from cemeteries.
    First of all, BBC/Mediazona does not include the KIA figures of the Donbas proxy forces. It only counts KIA figures of Russian armed forces and PMCs and, among them, those deaths that have been confirmed with either official government pronouncements or social media post from a kin with burial/cemetery details. As such, it does not come close to capturing the total KIA tally for the Russian and its proxy forces. Hence:

    The BBC further stated that "Every week, we discover new evidence of Russian military funerals in different localities of Russia, which were not reported by local authorities. Based on these observations, we can assume that the list of confirmed losses maintained by the BBC contain at least 40–60% fewer names of the dead than actually buried in Russia."[74] Thus, the BBC stated that the actual death toll of Russian forces, counting only Russian servicemen and contractors (i.e. excluding DPR/LPR militia), was over 100,000 by early April 2024, "according to the most conservative estimate."[73]
    This 100,000 or so figure (125,000+ including Donbas militias) also fits well with the initial (crude) methodology I used - Oryx's equipment loss figures times the multiple I derived from U.S. KIA per equipment in Iraq. It is also consistent with USG estimates based on SIGINT and SATINT data (USG has been intercepting Russian military communications that provided internal Russian loss numbers of various units as well using satellite imagery to count activity and vehicle levels at bases of these units pre- and post-deployment to Ukraine).

    Not even NATO or the Pentagon declare this war a stalemate.
    The war is - at the strategic level - stalemated, because neither can deliver a knockout blow in the short- to medium-term. At the operational level, fortunes have been shifting back and forth, which is why I wrote the following above:

    So far, the Russo-Ukraine War has had uncanny resemblances to the Iran-Iraq War (drone wars instead of “the War of the Cities” ballistic missile exchange of the latter) – with one side repelling the other side’s offensive with heavy casualties for the attacker, then the erstwhile defenders going on a counterattack, then being repulsed in turn with high casualties, rinse and repeat. This is a comparison I made a while back and it still stands.

    Replies: @BB753, @BB753

    “The war is – at the strategic level – stalemated, because neither can deliver a knockout blow in the short- to medium-term. *

    This is a war of attrition. The war will end when one side runs out of men, ammunition, fuel and machines. Guess which side has plenty of those?

    •�Agree: Mark G.
    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    This is a war of attrition. The war will end when one side runs out of men, ammunition, fuel and machines. Guess which side has plenty of those?
    I see you have a stunning ignorance of the history of modern warfare.

    Wars - unless we are talking total wars - don't end when "one side runs out of men, ammunition..."
    To the extent that there are decisive victories, they usually end when there is a morale collapse - either on the part of the command authorities or the broader body-politic (examples being the French-Indochina War, the Vietnam War, the Soviet-Afghan War, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, ad nauseam). Otherwise, there are negotiated ends where one side may get "a bit more" than the other, but ends in strategic stalemate, the classic examples being the Korean War and the Iran-Iraq War. The kind of total victory - say, the first Gulf War - where one side completely annihilates the other is exceptionally rare and is contingent on dramatic technological and doctrinal differences.

    Earlier, you accused me of being "clueless" about military affairs. So, let's see who is truly clueless. Take up the challenge I threw down, to which you did not respond earlier: https://www.unz.com/isteve/trump-declared-guilty/#comment-6604111

    In a few words, tell me about what led to the creation of the Russian battalion tactical group (BTG) system. And, more importantly, tell me what led to its reform in light of the experiences the Russians have had in the current war.

    Here I’ll get you started: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battalion_tactical_group
    Too Russian for your taste?

    Okay, then, tell me in few words about how FM100-5 Operations, the U.S. army's doctrinal statement on warfighting at the level of operational art, came about and how it has evolved. I'll give you a head start on this too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_Manual_100-5

    Just remember that I can detect shallow, surface bullshit from web search. You may think I'm "clueless," but I've studied these issues for years professionally.

    Replies: @BB753
  489. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at.
    Meh. Transparent backtracking. It's clear you got angry, because you couldn't win the internet with your strawmen and ad hominem, and revealed your inner political commissar fantasy ("cattle prod" et al). As Jenner alluded, you are a raging leftist totalitarian larping as a libertarian. What kind a deranged person resorts to, "I hope 'they' expel you from the country and I am going to watch them cattle-prod you!" all the while ascribing authoritarianism to others?

    When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC?
    You clearly don't understand historical parallels. Par for the course.

    I am on record as preferring an electoral solution to our mess, but hoping for a Franco-like counter-revolutionary should the country descend into violence unleashed by the left. I am very mindful of what an ancient Roman wrote - "Let us fight every people in the world, but avoid civil strife - doubly because I've seen broken societies firsthand.

    Other commenters pointed this out to you several times, but like a retarded child, you keep repeating "You dirty Francoist!" because you think that label is some sort of an argument-winning talisman.

    You could come here to Indiana.
    My wife is from the rural Midwest. She and I own commercial farmland and other properties there. For a time, I even farmed for my father-in-law with my own hands. I know the rural Midwest and its people far better than you do, city boy. It's heavily Christian and they don't think too highly of radical, anti-Christian atheists like you.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/files/2013/12/2010-Largest-Group-by-County.jpg

    The country is much more Catholic than you think, by the way.

    Replies: @Mark G., @John Johnson

    “They don’t think too highly of … atheists”

    My atheist dad taught at a rural Indiana high school for 20 years. Some Christians complained he was not teaching the Biblical theory of the creation of the earth and his school administration, along with most of the local residents, took his side.

    It is hilarious you have such a bloated ego you think you know more about Indiana than someone born here and who has spent 67 years here. A recent Cato Institute ranking of states by economic freedom placed Indiana at number ten. We elect small government conservatives like Mitch Daniels. Daniels once said a book by Charles Murray, What it Means to be a Libertarian, is one of his favorite books.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @Mark G.

    "Some Christians complained he was not teaching the Biblical theory of the creation of the earth and his school administration, along with most of the local residents, took his side."

    Now, when it suits you, you shift gears to railing against "some Christians", whereas Twinkie is, even in your parlance, a specifically Catholic kind of clown. Why? I'm guessing that it's because -- despite all those ham-fisted distortions about Galileo that some atheists keep intoning like mantras -- Catholics are not exactly slouches when it comes to science. In particular, they conspicuously sat out the Scopes Trial, and since the days of Augustine, have cast doubt on biblical literalist/fundamentalist/inerrancy doctrines that led to wacky young-earth creation theories and the banning of evolution in schools. (Their resistance to sola scriptura doctrines is one of the reasons that fundamentalists hate them.) One of the founding fathers of geology was a catholic priest. So was the originator of the big bang theory. Copernicus was either a priest, or else just a church canon, but it was undoubtedly a bishop who persuaded him to publish his heliocentric model. You don't have to be a Catholic to know any of this. You just have to be willing to rise above your lame village-atheist prejudices and tendentious cherry-picked history.

    But any stick will do if you're desperate enough, as long as it suits your confirmation bias, eh?
    , @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Some Christians complained
    LOL.

    small government conservatives like Mitch Daniels
    Don't forget Mike Pence, Sue Ellspermann, and Eric Holcomb. Or Dick Lugar and Evan Bayh. Yeah, all libertarians, right?

    My atheist dad
    Did he tell the majority of the people of Indiana (and surely a large majority of the townsfolk) who are Christian that they all serve "an evil god"? Was he a wife-less, childless, cattle prod-loving joy like you?

    Replies: @Mark G.
  490. HA says:
    @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "nothing you can do"

    Can you read? I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at. When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC? When you are headed there I was thinking you guys would not need to take any boats because if you came to a river you could just have God part it like the Red Sea, right?

    You could come here to Indiana. Everyone here has pictures of Franco in their living room and will eagerly join your civil war. I promise! The majority of Asians here in this country may vote for liberal Democrats but will join you too.

    How can you lose?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @HA

    “I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at.”

    All this kvetching about alien foreign ideologies creeping in and destroying the fabric of this country. Did you ever stop to consider that maybe it’s your ideology — and the sterile, desiccated all-about-me lifestyles it leads to, once the tag-along let’s-raise-a-family conformity of your ancestors has dissipated, as it did with you — that is the real poisoned apple? Is that what all this is about?

    Again, it takes time — generations and even centuries — for the rot in any ideology to manifest itself. One of the biggest problems of Francoism, that ultimately led to its undoing, is the entrenched small-minded corruption that it produced when government eventually wound up (as it eventually always does) in the hands of petty and small-minded government drones (and you’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?) Eventually, even the Francoists realized that some more democratic system had to be allowed to flourish, even if that meant the leftists would mess things up in their own way (which I’d claim they have). But to the Francoists’ credit, that undoing happened with less mayhem than many of the left-wing overthrows we’ve seen in the past (and given how powerless the Spanish left proved to be with regard to the Soviet/Stalinist insistence that the revolution was theirs and theirs alone to control, I doubt the same would have been true of whatever state the Popular Front would have set up, though we’ll never know for sure).

    You, on the other hand, seem unable to admit the ideological shortcomings of those dandy men in powdered wigs and silk stockings spouting on about universal rights of all mankind that remain stubbornly non-evident in large parts of the world, even when elections are (briefly) allowed. Instead, you sputter and project the failings of your ideology on others. As dumb as those godfearing spaghetti monster worshippers seem to you, with their sky fairy and Spanish inquisitions, you’d have probably done better for yourself if you had parasitically tagged along and conformed a little more to their backwards ways (like your parents did). There seems to be a wisdom in that reactionary outlook that your enlightened brave new world has yet to appreciate, distracted as they are with safe spaces and rainbows and puberty blockers and Instagram likes. I mean, I realize it’s great to have all these 3rd-worlders doing jobs we don’t want to do, and raising families we ourselves no longer want to make time for — and just look at all those tasty and cheap burritos we get in exchange! — but even someone like you ought to realize that something is getting lost along the way.

  491. @Twinkie
    @John Johnson


    I see no reason to believe that
    https://www.cnas.org/events/aukus-securing-the-indo-pacific-a-conversation-with-kurt-campbell

    We have assessed over the course of the last couple of months that Russia has almost completely reconstituted militarily...
    Campbell is Deputy Secretary of State.

    Are you going to suggest those older tanks with cope cages are basically on suicide runs and Putin is building the real reserve that will have shiny new T-90s? Well that claim was made last year by Putin defenders…repeatedly.
    If you look at Oryx's datasets, the number of destroyed and damaged upgraded T-80 variants and T-90 variants has been rising steadily, which speaks to increased deployment of these higher tier armor kits.

    Well MacGregor and Ritter are back to claiming that Putin is building up a massive force to finish off Ukraine. Do you think they are wrong?
    If you don't know my opinion of Macgregor and Ritter, you haven't been paying attention. That said, Putin's government has dramatically increased defense spending (6+% of the GDP) and has put tremendous resources into reconstituting the badly depleted military. Where they are having trouble is not so much manpower as trained manpower.

    One ATACMS missile on a 100+ troop formation on video is an excellent use of one.
    IF you have a large stock of the missiles. As I wrote before, the issue with ATACMS is the volume the Ukrainians can deploy.

    BTW, the cluster bomb version of ATACMS is not the long-range one.

    Replies: @BB753

    This guy knows his stuff. And he cites normie sources.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @BB753

    "This guy knows his stuff."

    Translation: he tells you exactly what you want to hear.


    "And he cites normie sources."

    You mean, when he isn't a talking head for Russian state media?

    Replies: @BB753, @John Johnson
  492. HA says:
    @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "They don't think too highly of ... atheists"

    My atheist dad taught at a rural Indiana high school for 20 years. Some Christians complained he was not teaching the Biblical theory of the creation of the earth and his school administration, along with most of the local residents, took his side.

    It is hilarious you have such a bloated ego you think you know more about Indiana than someone born here and who has spent 67 years here. A recent Cato Institute ranking of states by economic freedom placed Indiana at number ten. We elect small government conservatives like Mitch Daniels. Daniels once said a book by Charles Murray, What it Means to be a Libertarian, is one of his favorite books.

    Replies: @HA, @Twinkie

    “Some Christians complained he was not teaching the Biblical theory of the creation of the earth and his school administration, along with most of the local residents, took his side.”

    Now, when it suits you, you shift gears to railing against “some Christians”, whereas Twinkie is, even in your parlance, a specifically Catholic kind of clown. Why? I’m guessing that it’s because — despite all those ham-fisted distortions about Galileo that some atheists keep intoning like mantras — Catholics are not exactly slouches when it comes to science. In particular, they conspicuously sat out the Scopes Trial, and since the days of Augustine, have cast doubt on biblical literalist/fundamentalist/inerrancy doctrines that led to wacky young-earth creation theories and the banning of evolution in schools. (Their resistance to sola scriptura doctrines is one of the reasons that fundamentalists hate them.) One of the founding fathers of geology was a catholic priest. So was the originator of the big bang theory. Copernicus was either a priest, or else just a church canon, but it was undoubtedly a bishop who persuaded him to publish his heliocentric model. You don’t have to be a Catholic to know any of this. You just have to be willing to rise above your lame village-atheist prejudices and tendentious cherry-picked history.

    But any stick will do if you’re desperate enough, as long as it suits your confirmation bias, eh?

    •�Agree: Twinkie
  493. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "They don't think too highly of ... atheists"

    My atheist dad taught at a rural Indiana high school for 20 years. Some Christians complained he was not teaching the Biblical theory of the creation of the earth and his school administration, along with most of the local residents, took his side.

    It is hilarious you have such a bloated ego you think you know more about Indiana than someone born here and who has spent 67 years here. A recent Cato Institute ranking of states by economic freedom placed Indiana at number ten. We elect small government conservatives like Mitch Daniels. Daniels once said a book by Charles Murray, What it Means to be a Libertarian, is one of his favorite books.

    Replies: @HA, @Twinkie

    Some Christians complained

    LOL.

    small government conservatives like Mitch Daniels

    Don’t forget Mike Pence, Sue Ellspermann, and Eric Holcomb. Or Dick Lugar and Evan Bayh. Yeah, all libertarians, right?

    My atheist dad

    Did he tell the majority of the people of Indiana (and surely a large majority of the townsfolk) who are Christian that they all serve “an evil god”? Was he a wife-less, childless, cattle prod-loving joy like you?

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "an evil god"

    I understand you think the Spanish Inquisition was a good thing but most people here in Indiana would disagree with that. Too bad for you the Spanish Armada didn't conquer England and force your religion on them.

    Also, I don't think you should show all the commenters here your map of the Southwest filling up with low IQ Catholic Hispanics and crow about it like you did with me. That is really not going to make you popular here.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  494. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Some Christians complained
    LOL.

    small government conservatives like Mitch Daniels
    Don't forget Mike Pence, Sue Ellspermann, and Eric Holcomb. Or Dick Lugar and Evan Bayh. Yeah, all libertarians, right?

    My atheist dad
    Did he tell the majority of the people of Indiana (and surely a large majority of the townsfolk) who are Christian that they all serve "an evil god"? Was he a wife-less, childless, cattle prod-loving joy like you?

    Replies: @Mark G.

    “an evil god”

    I understand you think the Spanish Inquisition was a good thing but most people here in Indiana would disagree with that. Too bad for you the Spanish Armada didn’t conquer England and force your religion on them.

    Also, I don’t think you should show all the commenters here your map of the Southwest filling up with low IQ Catholic Hispanics and crow about it like you did with me. That is really not going to make you popular here.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    I understand you think the Spanish Inquisition was a good thing
    As usual, you understand nothing, but opine moronically.

    The Spanish Inquisition was launched by the secular authorities of Spain - King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, the Spanish monarchy - in order to regulate conversos and Moriscos (crypto-Jews and -Muslims). As such, it hijacked the authority of the Pope.

    Indeed, those accused by the Spanish Inquisition would seek relief and redress by appealing to Rome, which was why the Spanish monarchy eventually forbade - on pain of death - those who were accused by its inquisition from appealing to the Pope.

    Also, I don’t think you should show all the commenters here your map of the Southwest filling up with low IQ Catholic Hispanics and crow about it like you did with me.
    I did no such thing. Why do you keep making up strawmen and spewing lies? Do you not realize everyone can see it here?

    Look at the Midwest, dufus. All those Catholic areas aren't because of Hispanics.

    Replies: @Mark G.
  495. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    I just said I am fine with having you here to laugh at.
    Meh. Transparent backtracking. It's clear you got angry, because you couldn't win the internet with your strawmen and ad hominem, and revealed your inner political commissar fantasy ("cattle prod" et al). As Jenner alluded, you are a raging leftist totalitarian larping as a libertarian. What kind a deranged person resorts to, "I hope 'they' expel you from the country and I am going to watch them cattle-prod you!" all the while ascribing authoritarianism to others?

    When is your Francoist army going to take over Washington DC?
    You clearly don't understand historical parallels. Par for the course.

    I am on record as preferring an electoral solution to our mess, but hoping for a Franco-like counter-revolutionary should the country descend into violence unleashed by the left. I am very mindful of what an ancient Roman wrote - "Let us fight every people in the world, but avoid civil strife - doubly because I've seen broken societies firsthand.

    Other commenters pointed this out to you several times, but like a retarded child, you keep repeating "You dirty Francoist!" because you think that label is some sort of an argument-winning talisman.

    You could come here to Indiana.
    My wife is from the rural Midwest. She and I own commercial farmland and other properties there. For a time, I even farmed for my father-in-law with my own hands. I know the rural Midwest and its people far better than you do, city boy. It's heavily Christian and they don't think too highly of radical, anti-Christian atheists like you.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/files/2013/12/2010-Largest-Group-by-County.jpg

    The country is much more Catholic than you think, by the way.

    Replies: @Mark G., @John Johnson

    The country is much more Catholic than you think, by the way.

    There are a lot more rural Catholics than people realize.

    Everyone on the internet imagines Hispanic Catholics and urban Irish/Poles/Greeks.

    But there are a lot of Swiss/Catholic German towns that were founded across America.

    I have seen tiny Catholic Churches in the most rural areas.

    Then there are all the Polish settlements in the NE.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @John Johnson


    There are a lot more rural Catholics than people realize.

    Everyone on the internet imagines Hispanic Catholics and urban Irish/Poles/Greeks.

    But there are a lot of Swiss/Catholic German towns that were founded across America.

    I have seen tiny Catholic Churches in the most rural areas.
    100%.

    When I was stationed in Hampton Roads years ago. I used to go to a Norwegian Catholic Church once in a while.

    As well, many of my wife's ancestors are buried in a cemetery next to a very old Catholic church in the rural Midwest. In point of fact, that parish wanted to expand its cemetery a bit and wanted to buy some of the surrounding land from us (our land holdings completely envelope the parish church and it has an easement for access), so we did sell - considerably below market value.

    I've been to lots of rural churches in the Midwest that were established by Germans (often Bavarians, like some of my wife's ancestors), Poles, Irish, Italians, English and Scots, Czechs and Slovaks, Croats, Ukrainians, and even Scandinavians. It's quite touching how long the parishes have endured and still persevere, despite declining rural populations and aging.

    Mark G seems unable to grasp that Notre Dame University and the Franciscan University of Steubenville are in Indiana and Ohio for a reason.
  496. https://vdare.com/articles/brimelow-at-the-castle-there-may-be-a-trump-landslide

    BRIMELOW AT THE CASTLE: There May Be A Trump Landslide
    Peter Brimelow writes: This is part of the introduction I gave to the panel discussion on the last day of our April 26-28 Conference with some citations, tweets, and a chart added.

  497. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    This guy knows his stuff. And he cites normie sources.
    https://youtu.be/aEnvbCxU4xM?si=nvjfWpQGXdb1-aTn

    Replies: @HA

    “This guy knows his stuff.”

    Translation: he tells you exactly what you want to hear.

    “And he cites normie sources.”

    You mean, when he isn’t a talking head for Russian state media?

    •�LOL: John Johnson
    •�Replies: @BB753
    @HA

    Watch the damn video or read the article.

    Replies: @HA
    , @John Johnson
    @HA

    Are there any pictures of Berletic with a girlfriend or wife?

    Thailand attracts sexual weirdos and creeps. I would advise women to not date men that have vacationed there.

    The guy also as flat affect and seems disconnected from certain emotions.

    I can tell is he good at absorbing information but clearly has an end goal in mind and is not trying to look at the bigger picture.

    Let me know when someone finds a Putin defender in the burbs that has a wife and family.

    And without a criminal record.

    Replies: @HA
  498. @HA
    @BB753

    "This guy knows his stuff."

    Translation: he tells you exactly what you want to hear.


    "And he cites normie sources."

    You mean, when he isn't a talking head for Russian state media?

    Replies: @BB753, @John Johnson

    Watch the damn video or read the article.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @BB753

    "Watch the da%n video..."

    I tried, though anyone who gets his news from Youtube videos is basically admitting to the world that he has no life. I mean, yeah, sad and pathetic is the life of a fanboy, but you don't have to keep reminding us.

    Anyway, I gave up when he said the best thing for Ukraine would be to have the same deal that Belorussia does. No duh. I've been saying for years that if Putin had instead kept on trying for a Lukashenko deal (like the kind he came close to getting with Yanukovych), he could have taken the whole of Ukraine without firing a shot and no one in the West would have lifted a finger.

    Then again, if that's what Putin wanted, maybe he shouldn't have started ripping off chunks of Ukraine and then, as if that wasn't enough, decided to invade and try to bomb it into oblivion. That tends to put a chill in the fraternal conviviality. He wouldn't have had to worry about NATO either, since before any of that happened, the Ukrainians had no interest in joining.

    Sorry, fanboys, that ship has sailed, and Lil' BB has no one to blame for that but himself.

    Replies: @BB753
  499. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "an evil god"

    I understand you think the Spanish Inquisition was a good thing but most people here in Indiana would disagree with that. Too bad for you the Spanish Armada didn't conquer England and force your religion on them.

    Also, I don't think you should show all the commenters here your map of the Southwest filling up with low IQ Catholic Hispanics and crow about it like you did with me. That is really not going to make you popular here.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    I understand you think the Spanish Inquisition was a good thing

    As usual, you understand nothing, but opine moronically.

    The Spanish Inquisition was launched by the secular authorities of Spain – King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, the Spanish monarchy – in order to regulate conversos and Moriscos (crypto-Jews and -Muslims). As such, it hijacked the authority of the Pope.

    Indeed, those accused by the Spanish Inquisition would seek relief and redress by appealing to Rome, which was why the Spanish monarchy eventually forbade – on pain of death – those who were accused by its inquisition from appealing to the Pope.

    Also, I don’t think you should show all the commenters here your map of the Southwest filling up with low IQ Catholic Hispanics and crow about it like you did with me.

    I did no such thing. Why do you keep making up strawmen and spewing lies? Do you not realize everyone can see it here?

    Look at the Midwest, dufus. All those Catholic areas aren’t because of Hispanics.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "making up strawmen"

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords. Now you have approvingly provided a map showing a large part of the Southwest as Catholic, largely due to a flood of Hispanic Catholic immigrants. As for the Midwest, Indianapolis has gone from one percent Hispanic to ten percent in 25 years. The Catholic churches here increasingly rely on Hispanics to fill their pews. Pope Francis, in a recent Sixty Minutes interview, called attempts to close the southern border "madness".

    You are just continuing to be the shifty evasive little weasel you always are. You and other Catholics obviously want to make this a majority Catholic country in order to further your goal of tossing aside the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  500. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "The war is – at the strategic level – stalemated, because neither can deliver a knockout blow in the short- to medium-term. *

    This is a war of attrition. The war will end when one side runs out of men, ammunition, fuel and machines. Guess which side has plenty of those?

    Replies: @Twinkie

    This is a war of attrition. The war will end when one side runs out of men, ammunition, fuel and machines. Guess which side has plenty of those?

    I see you have a stunning ignorance of the history of modern warfare.

    Wars – unless we are talking total wars – don’t end when “one side runs out of men, ammunition…”
    To the extent that there are decisive victories, they usually end when there is a morale collapse – either on the part of the command authorities or the broader body-politic (examples being the French-Indochina War, the Vietnam War, the Soviet-Afghan War, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, ad nauseam). Otherwise, there are negotiated ends where one side may get “a bit more” than the other, but ends in strategic stalemate, the classic examples being the Korean War and the Iran-Iraq War. The kind of total victory – say, the first Gulf War – where one side completely annihilates the other is exceptionally rare and is contingent on dramatic technological and doctrinal differences.

    Earlier, you accused me of being “clueless” about military affairs. So, let’s see who is truly clueless. Take up the challenge I threw down, to which you did not respond earlier: https://www.unz.com/isteve/trump-declared-guilty/#comment-6604111

    In a few words, tell me about what led to the creation of the Russian battalion tactical group (BTG) system. And, more importantly, tell me what led to its reform in light of the experiences the Russians have had in the current war.

    Here I’ll get you started: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battalion_tactical_group

    Too Russian for your taste?

    Okay, then, tell me in few words about how FM100-5 Operations, the U.S. army’s doctrinal statement on warfighting at the level of operational art, came about and how it has evolved. I’ll give you a head start on this too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_Manual_100-5

    Just remember that I can detect shallow, surface bullshit from web search. You may think I’m “clueless,” but I’ve studied these issues for years professionally.

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "The kind of total victory – say, the first Gulf War – where one side completely annihilates the other is exceptionally rare and is contingent on dramatic technological and doctrinal differences."

    Well, you're getting the idea of how this conflict will play out and end.

    ""Take up the challenge I threw down, to which you did not respond earlier"

    Now who's the armchair warrior? Please don't quote the Wikipedia on me!

    Replies: @Twinkie
  501. @HA
    @BB753

    "This guy knows his stuff."

    Translation: he tells you exactly what you want to hear.


    "And he cites normie sources."

    You mean, when he isn't a talking head for Russian state media?

    Replies: @BB753, @John Johnson

    Are there any pictures of Berletic with a girlfriend or wife?

    Thailand attracts sexual weirdos and creeps. I would advise women to not date men that have vacationed there.

    The guy also as flat affect and seems disconnected from certain emotions.

    I can tell is he good at absorbing information but clearly has an end goal in mind and is not trying to look at the bigger picture.

    Let me know when someone finds a Putin defender in the burbs that has a wife and family.

    And without a criminal record.

    •�Troll: BB753
    •�Replies: @HA
    @John Johnson

    "Are there any pictures of Berletic with a girlfriend or wife? Thailand attracts sexual weirdos and creeps. I would advise women to not date men that have vacationed there."

    Note that he was as a diehard defender of Coach Red-pill Gonzalo Lira (unlike Ritter and others, who insist Lira turned Russian names over to the Ukrainians in order tobe allowed to keep doing what he was doing).

    And with regard to shady doings in Thailand, note that the shaved head means less DNA evidence left behind -- clearly, he's really thought this through.
  502. @John Johnson
    @Twinkie

    The country is much more Catholic than you think, by the way.

    There are a lot more rural Catholics than people realize.

    Everyone on the internet imagines Hispanic Catholics and urban Irish/Poles/Greeks.

    But there are a lot of Swiss/Catholic German towns that were founded across America.

    I have seen tiny Catholic Churches in the most rural areas.

    Then there are all the Polish settlements in the NE.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    There are a lot more rural Catholics than people realize.

    Everyone on the internet imagines Hispanic Catholics and urban Irish/Poles/Greeks.

    But there are a lot of Swiss/Catholic German towns that were founded across America.

    I have seen tiny Catholic Churches in the most rural areas.

    100%.

    When I was stationed in Hampton Roads years ago. I used to go to a Norwegian Catholic Church once in a while.

    As well, many of my wife’s ancestors are buried in a cemetery next to a very old Catholic church in the rural Midwest. In point of fact, that parish wanted to expand its cemetery a bit and wanted to buy some of the surrounding land from us (our land holdings completely envelope the parish church and it has an easement for access), so we did sell – considerably below market value.

    I’ve been to lots of rural churches in the Midwest that were established by Germans (often Bavarians, like some of my wife’s ancestors), Poles, Irish, Italians, English and Scots, Czechs and Slovaks, Croats, Ukrainians, and even Scandinavians. It’s quite touching how long the parishes have endured and still persevere, despite declining rural populations and aging.

    Mark G seems unable to grasp that Notre Dame University and the Franciscan University of Steubenville are in Indiana and Ohio for a reason.

  503. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    I understand you think the Spanish Inquisition was a good thing
    As usual, you understand nothing, but opine moronically.

    The Spanish Inquisition was launched by the secular authorities of Spain - King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, the Spanish monarchy - in order to regulate conversos and Moriscos (crypto-Jews and -Muslims). As such, it hijacked the authority of the Pope.

    Indeed, those accused by the Spanish Inquisition would seek relief and redress by appealing to Rome, which was why the Spanish monarchy eventually forbade - on pain of death - those who were accused by its inquisition from appealing to the Pope.

    Also, I don’t think you should show all the commenters here your map of the Southwest filling up with low IQ Catholic Hispanics and crow about it like you did with me.
    I did no such thing. Why do you keep making up strawmen and spewing lies? Do you not realize everyone can see it here?

    Look at the Midwest, dufus. All those Catholic areas aren't because of Hispanics.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    “making up strawmen”

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords. Now you have approvingly provided a map showing a large part of the Southwest as Catholic, largely due to a flood of Hispanic Catholic immigrants. As for the Midwest, Indianapolis has gone from one percent Hispanic to ten percent in 25 years. The Catholic churches here increasingly rely on Hispanics to fill their pews. Pope Francis, in a recent Sixty Minutes interview, called attempts to close the southern border “madness”.

    You are just continuing to be the shifty evasive little weasel you always are. You and other Catholics obviously want to make this a majority Catholic country in order to further your goal of tossing aside the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    You and other Catholics obviously want to make this a majority Catholic country in order to further your goal of tossing aside the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco.
    Moron, I am on record as stating that I prefer a smaller Catholic Church* whose members are faithful, rather than a large Catholic Church where the self-identified members don't follow the teachings of the Church.

    Now, don't misunderstand me. I want God's grace and salvation to be grasped by all, even you. But given the choice between a large Church with pretend-Catholics and a small one with the faithful, I choose the latter.

    “making up strawmen”

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.
    There is a reason why your comments are entirely devoid of any quotations - because you make up things and ascribe them to me (you seem unaware of the fact that the two largest Asian immigrant groups today - Indians and Chinese - are the least Christian among Asians and, no coincidentally, evince the lowest assimilation indices among the Asian groups).

    And no comment on your uneducated ignorance about the Spanish Inquisition, as usual. I've been trying to educate on all manners of things with citations, statistics, graphs, etc. But, it's all been pearls before swine.

    No matter. When you die childless, there will be nothing of you left in this world. While the Faithful will go on through our children and our... posterity. And even as the civilization declines in an orgy of godless, selfish degeneracy, the Faithful will await in the catacombs and emerge to rebuild civilization.

    Replies: @Mark G.
  504. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "making up strawmen"

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords. Now you have approvingly provided a map showing a large part of the Southwest as Catholic, largely due to a flood of Hispanic Catholic immigrants. As for the Midwest, Indianapolis has gone from one percent Hispanic to ten percent in 25 years. The Catholic churches here increasingly rely on Hispanics to fill their pews. Pope Francis, in a recent Sixty Minutes interview, called attempts to close the southern border "madness".

    You are just continuing to be the shifty evasive little weasel you always are. You and other Catholics obviously want to make this a majority Catholic country in order to further your goal of tossing aside the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    You and other Catholics obviously want to make this a majority Catholic country in order to further your goal of tossing aside the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco.

    Moron, I am on record as stating that I prefer a smaller Catholic Church* whose members are faithful, rather than a large Catholic Church where the self-identified members don’t follow the teachings of the Church.

    Now, don’t misunderstand me. I want God’s grace and salvation to be grasped by all, even you. But given the choice between a large Church with pretend-Catholics and a small one with the faithful, I choose the latter.

    “making up strawmen”

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.

    There is a reason why your comments are entirely devoid of any quotations – because you make up things and ascribe them to me (you seem unaware of the fact that the two largest Asian immigrant groups today – Indians and Chinese – are the least Christian among Asians and, no coincidentally, evince the lowest assimilation indices among the Asian groups).

    And no comment on your uneducated ignorance about the Spanish Inquisition, as usual. I’ve been trying to educate on all manners of things with citations, statistics, graphs, etc. But, it’s all been pearls before swine.

    No matter. When you die childless, there will be nothing of you left in this world. While the Faithful will go on through our children and our… posterity. And even as the civilization declines in an orgy of godless, selfish degeneracy, the Faithful will await in the catacombs and emerge to rebuild civilization.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "you make things up"

    Res provided us the link on May 28th where you talk about bringing in Hispanics as worker bees. I told you then I did not know how to copy links on my phone. Are you senile?

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: "The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them." This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie
  505. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    You and other Catholics obviously want to make this a majority Catholic country in order to further your goal of tossing aside the Constitution and replacing it with a Catholic dictator like Franco.
    Moron, I am on record as stating that I prefer a smaller Catholic Church* whose members are faithful, rather than a large Catholic Church where the self-identified members don't follow the teachings of the Church.

    Now, don't misunderstand me. I want God's grace and salvation to be grasped by all, even you. But given the choice between a large Church with pretend-Catholics and a small one with the faithful, I choose the latter.

    “making up strawmen”

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.
    There is a reason why your comments are entirely devoid of any quotations - because you make up things and ascribe them to me (you seem unaware of the fact that the two largest Asian immigrant groups today - Indians and Chinese - are the least Christian among Asians and, no coincidentally, evince the lowest assimilation indices among the Asian groups).

    And no comment on your uneducated ignorance about the Spanish Inquisition, as usual. I've been trying to educate on all manners of things with citations, statistics, graphs, etc. But, it's all been pearls before swine.

    No matter. When you die childless, there will be nothing of you left in this world. While the Faithful will go on through our children and our... posterity. And even as the civilization declines in an orgy of godless, selfish degeneracy, the Faithful will await in the catacombs and emerge to rebuild civilization.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    “you make things up”

    Res provided us the link on May 28th where you talk about bringing in Hispanics as worker bees. I told you then I did not know how to copy links on my phone. Are you senile?

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: “The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them.” This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.

    •�Replies: @John Johnson
    @Mark G.

    Gosh if only we had some protestant GUD Whites in charge like speaker Johnson who for 6 months wouldn't allow a vote on anything but aid to Israel. Did Israel ask for aid? No. Did Johnson fight for our border like he did for Israel? Heck no but he has his own prayer room in the House so no worries.

    I'm completely sick of these Rapture Ready Evangelicals. They are completely full of sh-t and think this is all temporary as the apocalypse is already counting down.

    Rural White Catholics would not open the border and they would also not make excuses for starving Gaza.

    I do wish we had a Franco around and I grew up as a protestant. These Evangelicals are out of their damned minds.

    Twinkie if you find a Franco let me know pal, I'll send him some money.

    Replies: @Twinkie
    , @Twinkie
    @Mark G.

    You wrote:

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.
    You are functionally illiterate. What I discussed was the Establishment bringing in Asian immigrants as upscale immigrants and the Hispanics as the downscale, working class immigrants. Not that I approve of it. As an immigration restrictionist, I oppose it and have stated so numerous times. Look, it's pretty clear you are a deranged lonely asshole, cattle prod fetish and all, but learn to at least attack me accurately instead of stating the opposite of what I write and then ascribing your strawmen to me.

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.
    This is like saying Biden is a Catholic, so we have a Catholic American government.

    Ferdinand and Isabella hijacked the inquisition as a tool of secular government. Why do you think they threatened to kill - without a trial - anyone who was accused by their inquisition from appealing to the Papacy if their goal was to adhere to the Catholic teachings? Not only are you functionally illiterate, you have worse logical thinking skills than a child.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: “The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them.” This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.
    I know you are totally uneducated and ascribe all sorts of idiotic things to the Catholic Church teachings (e.g. sola scriptura, et al.), but in Catholicism, the Pope is inerrant only in the matters of dogma and morals. Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.

    This pope is pretty bad, as far as I am concerned, but he's no Borgia (that's another way of saying that history has seen good popes - saints - as well as bad popes). A priest once told me that, although only God knows, he thought it likely that Hell was full of priests. It was a stunning statement of humility.

    I know you won't, because you are not the learning type, but read the Catechism of the Catholic Church if you are actually serious about understanding what it is about and isn't.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Mark G., @BB753
  506. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "you make things up"

    Res provided us the link on May 28th where you talk about bringing in Hispanics as worker bees. I told you then I did not know how to copy links on my phone. Are you senile?

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: "The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them." This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    Gosh if only we had some protestant GUD Whites in charge like speaker Johnson who for 6 months wouldn’t allow a vote on anything but aid to Israel. Did Israel ask for aid? No. Did Johnson fight for our border like he did for Israel? Heck no but he has his own prayer room in the House so no worries.

    I’m completely sick of these Rapture Ready Evangelicals. They are completely full of sh-t and think this is all temporary as the apocalypse is already counting down.

    Rural White Catholics would not open the border and they would also not make excuses for starving Gaza.

    I do wish we had a Franco around and I grew up as a protestant. These Evangelicals are out of their damned minds.

    Twinkie if you find a Franco let me know pal, I’ll send him some money.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @John Johnson


    Rural White Catholics would not open the border and they would also not make excuses for starving Gaza.
    I mentioned this before, but my parish - indeed my diocese - has supported Palestinian Christians in the Holy Land for years.
  507. BB753 says:
    @Twinkie
    @BB753


    This is a war of attrition. The war will end when one side runs out of men, ammunition, fuel and machines. Guess which side has plenty of those?
    I see you have a stunning ignorance of the history of modern warfare.

    Wars - unless we are talking total wars - don't end when "one side runs out of men, ammunition..."
    To the extent that there are decisive victories, they usually end when there is a morale collapse - either on the part of the command authorities or the broader body-politic (examples being the French-Indochina War, the Vietnam War, the Soviet-Afghan War, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, ad nauseam). Otherwise, there are negotiated ends where one side may get "a bit more" than the other, but ends in strategic stalemate, the classic examples being the Korean War and the Iran-Iraq War. The kind of total victory - say, the first Gulf War - where one side completely annihilates the other is exceptionally rare and is contingent on dramatic technological and doctrinal differences.

    Earlier, you accused me of being "clueless" about military affairs. So, let's see who is truly clueless. Take up the challenge I threw down, to which you did not respond earlier: https://www.unz.com/isteve/trump-declared-guilty/#comment-6604111

    In a few words, tell me about what led to the creation of the Russian battalion tactical group (BTG) system. And, more importantly, tell me what led to its reform in light of the experiences the Russians have had in the current war.

    Here I’ll get you started: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battalion_tactical_group
    Too Russian for your taste?

    Okay, then, tell me in few words about how FM100-5 Operations, the U.S. army's doctrinal statement on warfighting at the level of operational art, came about and how it has evolved. I'll give you a head start on this too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_Manual_100-5

    Just remember that I can detect shallow, surface bullshit from web search. You may think I'm "clueless," but I've studied these issues for years professionally.

    Replies: @BB753

    “The kind of total victory – say, the first Gulf War – where one side completely annihilates the other is exceptionally rare and is contingent on dramatic technological and doctrinal differences.”

    Well, you’re getting the idea of how this conflict will play out and end.

    “”Take up the challenge I threw down, to which you did not respond earlier”

    Now who’s the armchair warrior? Please don’t quote the Wikipedia on me!

    •�Thanks: Mark G.
    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    Well, you’re getting the idea of how this conflict will play out and end.
    if you think this war is anything like the First Guif War, you are ignorant, period.

    That war lasted six weeks and the winning side suffered 147 KIA in combat.

    I see you don’t have anything to say about the either of the topics - Russian BTGs or US army operational art. Another troll.

    Replies: @BB753
  508. Anonymous[354] •�Disclaimer says:

    That’s a good point. Don’t expect good judgement and wise leadership from people who think the world is about to end. We rightly criticise homosexuals and childless people for not caring about the future, but nobody calls out Christians for doing the same.

  509. Fat Alvin accused of race discrimination. Who would have guessed?

    https://www.newsweek.com/alvin-bragg-hit-new-legal-complaint-1909347

  510. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "you make things up"

    Res provided us the link on May 28th where you talk about bringing in Hispanics as worker bees. I told you then I did not know how to copy links on my phone. Are you senile?

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: "The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them." This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.

    Replies: @John Johnson, @Twinkie

    You wrote:

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.

    You are functionally illiterate. What I discussed was the Establishment bringing in Asian immigrants as upscale immigrants and the Hispanics as the downscale, working class immigrants. Not that I approve of it. As an immigration restrictionist, I oppose it and have stated so numerous times. Look, it’s pretty clear you are a deranged lonely asshole, cattle prod fetish and all, but learn to at least attack me accurately instead of stating the opposite of what I write and then ascribing your strawmen to me.

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.

    This is like saying Biden is a Catholic, so we have a Catholic American government.

    Ferdinand and Isabella hijacked the inquisition as a tool of secular government. Why do you think they threatened to kill – without a trial – anyone who was accused by their inquisition from appealing to the Papacy if their goal was to adhere to the Catholic teachings? Not only are you functionally illiterate, you have worse logical thinking skills than a child.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: “The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them.” This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.

    I know you are totally uneducated and ascribe all sorts of idiotic things to the Catholic Church teachings (e.g. sola scriptura, et al.), but in Catholicism, the Pope is inerrant only in the matters of dogma and morals. Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.

    This pope is pretty bad, as far as I am concerned, but he’s no Borgia (that’s another way of saying that history has seen good popes – saints – as well as bad popes). A priest once told me that, although only God knows, he thought it likely that Hell was full of priests. It was a stunning statement of humility.

    I know you won’t, because you are not the learning type, but read the Catechism of the Catholic Church if you are actually serious about understanding what it is about and isn’t.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Twinkie


    Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.
    That should be "do NOT govern," not "do govern."
    , @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "his own personal opinions"

    What does it say about your Catholic church, though, that it picks a open borders advocate to be the head of it?

    If Catholics do not have to follow the Pope on a political issue like immigration and can still be considered Catholics then they do not have to follow the Pope on a political issue like whether or not to have a trial and can still be considered Catholics. Therefore, Ferdinand was still a Catholic and the Inquisition was perpetrated by Catholics.
    , @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large."

    Catholics are also bound to obey the Pope's magisterium, ex-Cathedra or not.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  511. @John Johnson
    @Mark G.

    Gosh if only we had some protestant GUD Whites in charge like speaker Johnson who for 6 months wouldn't allow a vote on anything but aid to Israel. Did Israel ask for aid? No. Did Johnson fight for our border like he did for Israel? Heck no but he has his own prayer room in the House so no worries.

    I'm completely sick of these Rapture Ready Evangelicals. They are completely full of sh-t and think this is all temporary as the apocalypse is already counting down.

    Rural White Catholics would not open the border and they would also not make excuses for starving Gaza.

    I do wish we had a Franco around and I grew up as a protestant. These Evangelicals are out of their damned minds.

    Twinkie if you find a Franco let me know pal, I'll send him some money.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    Rural White Catholics would not open the border and they would also not make excuses for starving Gaza.

    I mentioned this before, but my parish – indeed my diocese – has supported Palestinian Christians in the Holy Land for years.

  512. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.

    You wrote:

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.
    You are functionally illiterate. What I discussed was the Establishment bringing in Asian immigrants as upscale immigrants and the Hispanics as the downscale, working class immigrants. Not that I approve of it. As an immigration restrictionist, I oppose it and have stated so numerous times. Look, it's pretty clear you are a deranged lonely asshole, cattle prod fetish and all, but learn to at least attack me accurately instead of stating the opposite of what I write and then ascribing your strawmen to me.

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.
    This is like saying Biden is a Catholic, so we have a Catholic American government.

    Ferdinand and Isabella hijacked the inquisition as a tool of secular government. Why do you think they threatened to kill - without a trial - anyone who was accused by their inquisition from appealing to the Papacy if their goal was to adhere to the Catholic teachings? Not only are you functionally illiterate, you have worse logical thinking skills than a child.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: “The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them.” This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.
    I know you are totally uneducated and ascribe all sorts of idiotic things to the Catholic Church teachings (e.g. sola scriptura, et al.), but in Catholicism, the Pope is inerrant only in the matters of dogma and morals. Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.

    This pope is pretty bad, as far as I am concerned, but he's no Borgia (that's another way of saying that history has seen good popes - saints - as well as bad popes). A priest once told me that, although only God knows, he thought it likely that Hell was full of priests. It was a stunning statement of humility.

    I know you won't, because you are not the learning type, but read the Catechism of the Catholic Church if you are actually serious about understanding what it is about and isn't.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Mark G., @BB753

    Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.

    That should be “do NOT govern,” not “do govern.”

  513. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.

    You wrote:

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.
    You are functionally illiterate. What I discussed was the Establishment bringing in Asian immigrants as upscale immigrants and the Hispanics as the downscale, working class immigrants. Not that I approve of it. As an immigration restrictionist, I oppose it and have stated so numerous times. Look, it's pretty clear you are a deranged lonely asshole, cattle prod fetish and all, but learn to at least attack me accurately instead of stating the opposite of what I write and then ascribing your strawmen to me.

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.
    This is like saying Biden is a Catholic, so we have a Catholic American government.

    Ferdinand and Isabella hijacked the inquisition as a tool of secular government. Why do you think they threatened to kill - without a trial - anyone who was accused by their inquisition from appealing to the Papacy if their goal was to adhere to the Catholic teachings? Not only are you functionally illiterate, you have worse logical thinking skills than a child.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: “The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them.” This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.
    I know you are totally uneducated and ascribe all sorts of idiotic things to the Catholic Church teachings (e.g. sola scriptura, et al.), but in Catholicism, the Pope is inerrant only in the matters of dogma and morals. Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.

    This pope is pretty bad, as far as I am concerned, but he's no Borgia (that's another way of saying that history has seen good popes - saints - as well as bad popes). A priest once told me that, although only God knows, he thought it likely that Hell was full of priests. It was a stunning statement of humility.

    I know you won't, because you are not the learning type, but read the Catechism of the Catholic Church if you are actually serious about understanding what it is about and isn't.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Mark G., @BB753

    “his own personal opinions”

    What does it say about your Catholic church, though, that it picks a open borders advocate to be the head of it?

    If Catholics do not have to follow the Pope on a political issue like immigration and can still be considered Catholics then they do not have to follow the Pope on a political issue like whether or not to have a trial and can still be considered Catholics. Therefore, Ferdinand was still a Catholic and the Inquisition was perpetrated by Catholics.

  514. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.

    You wrote:

    It was you who suggested importing Hispanic Catholics as future worker bees while importing Asian Catholics like yourself as their future overlords.
    You are functionally illiterate. What I discussed was the Establishment bringing in Asian immigrants as upscale immigrants and the Hispanics as the downscale, working class immigrants. Not that I approve of it. As an immigration restrictionist, I oppose it and have stated so numerous times. Look, it's pretty clear you are a deranged lonely asshole, cattle prod fetish and all, but learn to at least attack me accurately instead of stating the opposite of what I write and then ascribing your strawmen to me.

    According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Ferdinand banned all religions in Spain except for the Catholic religion in 1475. So, yes, he was a Catholic monarch. In 1478 he instituted the Inquisition and in 1492 expelled all the Jews from Spain.
    This is like saying Biden is a Catholic, so we have a Catholic American government.

    Ferdinand and Isabella hijacked the inquisition as a tool of secular government. Why do you think they threatened to kill - without a trial - anyone who was accused by their inquisition from appealing to the Papacy if their goal was to adhere to the Catholic teachings? Not only are you functionally illiterate, you have worse logical thinking skills than a child.

    During the interview where Pope Francis said efforts to close the southern border were madness he also said the following: “The migrant has to be received. Thereafter, you see how you are going deal with them.” This is the head of your Catholic church saying this.
    I know you are totally uneducated and ascribe all sorts of idiotic things to the Catholic Church teachings (e.g. sola scriptura, et al.), but in Catholicism, the Pope is inerrant only in the matters of dogma and morals. Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.

    This pope is pretty bad, as far as I am concerned, but he's no Borgia (that's another way of saying that history has seen good popes - saints - as well as bad popes). A priest once told me that, although only God knows, he thought it likely that Hell was full of priests. It was a stunning statement of humility.

    I know you won't, because you are not the learning type, but read the Catechism of the Catholic Church if you are actually serious about understanding what it is about and isn't.

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Mark G., @BB753

    “Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large.”

    Catholics are also bound to obey the Pope’s magisterium, ex-Cathedra or not.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    Catholics are also bound to obey the Pope’s magisterium, ex-Cathedra or not.
    Magisterium is the teaching authority of the Church, which is one of the three sources of authority along with the Bible and the Traditions of the Church fathers, that interprets the other two authentically.

    It has nothing to do with the current (or any) pope's personal views on politics, arts, sports or any number of other topics that do not pertain to faith and morals.
  515. NYT Opinion:
    https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/06/opinion/maga-constitution-trump.html
    https://archive.ph/ppy3Z

    MAGA Turns Against the Constitution
    By David French
    June 6, 2024
    […]
    The fundamental argument on the Trump right since 2015 has gone something like this: If America isn’t a failed state, it’s at least a failing state. It’s an economic and military paper tiger that has rejected God, can’t tell male from female, and is lapsing into a state of chaos that only a strong leader can confront. He, alone, can fix it.

    But MAGA is frustrated. The Constitution blocks Trump from doing what must be done. It blocks him from seizing the level of control that the far right believes the moment requires. And so now, for parts of MAGA, the Constitution itself is part of the crisis. If it doesn’t permit Trump to take control, then it must be swept aside.

    Elements of this argument are now bubbling up across the reactionary, populist right. Catholic post-liberals believe that liberal democracy itself is problematic. According to their critique, the Constitution’s emphasis on individual liberty “atomizes” American life and degrades the traditional institutions of church and family that sustain human flourishing.

    Protestant Christian nationalists tend to have a higher regard for the American founding, but they believe it’s been corrupted. They claim that the 1787 Constitution is essentially dead, replaced by progressive power politics that have destroyed constitutional government.

    Still others believe that the advent of civil rights laws created, in essence, a second Constitution entirely, one that privileges group identity over individual liberty.

    •�Replies: @MEH 0910
    @MEH 0910

    https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/09/opinion/presbyterian-church-evangelical-canceled.html
    https://archive.ph/8wdXz

    The Day My Old Church Canceled Me Was a Very Sad Day
    By David French
    June 9, 2024

    This week, the leaders of the Presbyterian Church in America will gather in Richmond, Va., for their annual General Assembly. The Presbyterian Church in America is a small, theologically conservative Christian denomination that was my family’s church home for more than 15 years.

    It just canceled me.

    I am now deemed too divisive to speak to a gathering of Christians who share my faith. I was scheduled to speak about the challenges of dealing with toxic polarization, but I was considered too polarizing.

    I was originally invited to join three other panelists on the topic of “how to be supportive of your pastor and church leaders in a polarized political year.” One of the reasons I was invited was precisely that I’ve been the target of intense attacks online and in real life.

    The instant my participation was announced, those attacks started up again. There were misleading essays, vicious tweets, letters and even a parody song directed at the denomination and at me. The message was clear: Get him off the stage.

    And that’s what the conference organizers chose to do. They didn’t just cancel me. They canceled the entire panel. But the reason was obvious: My presence would raise concerns about the peace and unity of the church.
    [...]
    , @trevor
    @MEH 0910

    There can be no doubt that the civil rights and immigration acts passed under the LBJ administration by the "cowardly lion (liar) of the Senate" and (((others))) "fundamentally transformed" the USSA long before the Obamas came along to use that expression to take it even further left and now that the Biden/Harris puppet is completing Obama's third term, it is probably too late for Trump or any Republican to do much about it.

    Many of the measures needed to right the country would probably be "unconstitutional". It is ironic that the original Constitution of the USA that intended a white Republic now helps to protect those who would destroy it and the Republic.
  516. If Catholics do not have to follow the Pope on a political issue

    Period.

    Inquisition is a matter of dogma and morals. This isn’t like immigration. As another example, abortion might be a “political” issue in the U.S., but it belongs to “dogma and morals” category, so Catholics who obtain or assist in abortions is automatically excommunicated.

    To go back to the Spanish Inquisition, it was created and controlled entirely by the secular monarchical authority of the Spanish crown and was completely independent of the Vatican and Papal Authority. So, no, it was not Catholic (that is to say, not Catholic Church-authorized).

    Your understanding of Catholicism is almost comically nonexistent.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    In 1478 Pope Sixtus issued a papal bull giving monarchs exclusive authority to name inquisitors in their countries. This led to 6 people being burned alive in 1481. The Popes may have tried to regain control later but originally supported monarchial control of the Inquisition.

    You are arbitrarily tossing some political issues under dogma but not others. According to you, God tells the Pope the correct position on moral issues but not political issues. Why not on political issues too?

    You can't separate the moral from the political since a person's political beliefs are based on their moral beliefs. Why doesn't God give the Pope guidance on immigration so he can let his followers know what God wants?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Twinkie
  517. @Twinkie

    If Catholics do not have to follow the Pope on a political issue
    Period.

    Inquisition is a matter of dogma and morals. This isn't like immigration. As another example, abortion might be a "political" issue in the U.S., but it belongs to "dogma and morals" category, so Catholics who obtain or assist in abortions is automatically excommunicated.

    To go back to the Spanish Inquisition, it was created and controlled entirely by the secular monarchical authority of the Spanish crown and was completely independent of the Vatican and Papal Authority. So, no, it was not Catholic (that is to say, not Catholic Church-authorized).

    Your understanding of Catholicism is almost comically nonexistent.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    In 1478 Pope Sixtus issued a papal bull giving monarchs exclusive authority to name inquisitors in their countries. This led to 6 people being burned alive in 1481. The Popes may have tried to regain control later but originally supported monarchial control of the Inquisition.

    You are arbitrarily tossing some political issues under dogma but not others. According to you, God tells the Pope the correct position on moral issues but not political issues. Why not on political issues too?

    You can’t separate the moral from the political since a person’s political beliefs are based on their moral beliefs. Why doesn’t God give the Pope guidance on immigration so he can let his followers know what God wants?

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Why not on political issues too?
    Mark 12:17.

    Replies: @Mark G.
    , @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    In 1478 Pope Sixtus issued a papal bull giving monarchs exclusive authority to name inquisitors in their countries.
    You are referring to Exigit sinceræ devotionis, which authorized the Spanish crown to establish courts to root out those who professed the faith (and were baptized) under false premise. It was not "exclusive authority."

    But the Spanish crown coopted it and acted for its own purposes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition#The_%22Keeping_the_Pope_in_Check%22_hypothesis

    Once the bull of creation was granted, the head of the Inquisition was the Monarch of Spain. It was in charge of enforcing the laws of the king regarding religion and other private-life matters, not of following orders from Rome, from which it was independent. This independence allowed the Inquisition to investigate, prosecute and convict clergy for both corruptions and possible charges of treason of conspiracy against the crown (on the Pope's behalf presumably) without the Pope's intervention. The inquisition was, despite its title of "Holy", not necessarily formed by the clergy and secular lawyers were equally welcome to it. If it was an attempt at keeping Rome out of Spain, it was an extremely successful and refined one. It was a bureaucratic body that had the nominal authority of the church and permission to prosecute members of the church, which the kings could not do, while answering only to the Spanish Crown. [Italics mine.]
    As I wrote before several times, when the Spanish Inquisition became a tool of the secular state, those who were accused often appealed to the Pope, which led the crown to bar it on pain of death.

    Replies: @Mark G.
  518. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    In 1478 Pope Sixtus issued a papal bull giving monarchs exclusive authority to name inquisitors in their countries. This led to 6 people being burned alive in 1481. The Popes may have tried to regain control later but originally supported monarchial control of the Inquisition.

    You are arbitrarily tossing some political issues under dogma but not others. According to you, God tells the Pope the correct position on moral issues but not political issues. Why not on political issues too?

    You can't separate the moral from the political since a person's political beliefs are based on their moral beliefs. Why doesn't God give the Pope guidance on immigration so he can let his followers know what God wants?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Twinkie

    Why not on political issues too?

    Mark 12:17.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Immigration is not just a political issue. It is a moral issue too. Pope Francis said we need to let immigrants in and then decide how to deal with them. If we let them in, we often have to have the taxpayers pay for food and shelter for them.

    Some people would consider it to be immoral to force taxpayers to do this. Since this is a moral issue, God should tell the Pope what the correct moral position is here so he can relay it to his followers. As I said before, political decisions are based on underlying moral beliefs. So, why isn't God providing moral guidance here?

    Replies: @Twinkie
  519. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    In 1478 Pope Sixtus issued a papal bull giving monarchs exclusive authority to name inquisitors in their countries. This led to 6 people being burned alive in 1481. The Popes may have tried to regain control later but originally supported monarchial control of the Inquisition.

    You are arbitrarily tossing some political issues under dogma but not others. According to you, God tells the Pope the correct position on moral issues but not political issues. Why not on political issues too?

    You can't separate the moral from the political since a person's political beliefs are based on their moral beliefs. Why doesn't God give the Pope guidance on immigration so he can let his followers know what God wants?

    Replies: @Twinkie, @Twinkie

    In 1478 Pope Sixtus issued a papal bull giving monarchs exclusive authority to name inquisitors in their countries.

    You are referring to Exigit sinceræ devotionis, which authorized the Spanish crown to establish courts to root out those who professed the faith (and were baptized) under false premise. It was not “exclusive authority.”

    But the Spanish crown coopted it and acted for its own purposes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition#The_%22Keeping_the_Pope_in_Check%22_hypothesis

    Once the bull of creation was granted, the head of the Inquisition was the Monarch of Spain. It was in charge of enforcing the laws of the king regarding religion and other private-life matters, not of following orders from Rome, from which it was independent. This independence allowed the Inquisition to investigate, prosecute and convict clergy for both corruptions and possible charges of treason of conspiracy against the crown (on the Pope’s behalf presumably) without the Pope’s intervention. The inquisition was, despite its title of “Holy”, not necessarily formed by the clergy and secular lawyers were equally welcome to it. If it was an attempt at keeping Rome out of Spain, it was an extremely successful and refined one. It was a bureaucratic body that had the nominal authority of the church and permission to prosecute members of the church, which the kings could not do, while answering only to the Spanish Crown. [Italics mine.]

    As I wrote before several times, when the Spanish Inquisition became a tool of the secular state, those who were accused often appealed to the Pope, which led the crown to bar it on pain of death.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Pope John Paul apologizes for the Inquisition:

    http://www.jewishwikipedia.info/understand.html

    Twinkie: Catholics dindu nuffin.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  520. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Why not on political issues too?
    Mark 12:17.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    Immigration is not just a political issue. It is a moral issue too. Pope Francis said we need to let immigrants in and then decide how to deal with them. If we let them in, we often have to have the taxpayers pay for food and shelter for them.

    Some people would consider it to be immoral to force taxpayers to do this. Since this is a moral issue, God should tell the Pope what the correct moral position is here so he can relay it to his followers. As I said before, political decisions are based on underlying moral beliefs. So, why isn’t God providing moral guidance here?

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Immigration is not just a political issue. It is a moral issue too.
    For the Church, it is a secular issue. And rightly so.

    Replies: @Mark G.
  521. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    In 1478 Pope Sixtus issued a papal bull giving monarchs exclusive authority to name inquisitors in their countries.
    You are referring to Exigit sinceræ devotionis, which authorized the Spanish crown to establish courts to root out those who professed the faith (and were baptized) under false premise. It was not "exclusive authority."

    But the Spanish crown coopted it and acted for its own purposes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition#The_%22Keeping_the_Pope_in_Check%22_hypothesis

    Once the bull of creation was granted, the head of the Inquisition was the Monarch of Spain. It was in charge of enforcing the laws of the king regarding religion and other private-life matters, not of following orders from Rome, from which it was independent. This independence allowed the Inquisition to investigate, prosecute and convict clergy for both corruptions and possible charges of treason of conspiracy against the crown (on the Pope's behalf presumably) without the Pope's intervention. The inquisition was, despite its title of "Holy", not necessarily formed by the clergy and secular lawyers were equally welcome to it. If it was an attempt at keeping Rome out of Spain, it was an extremely successful and refined one. It was a bureaucratic body that had the nominal authority of the church and permission to prosecute members of the church, which the kings could not do, while answering only to the Spanish Crown. [Italics mine.]
    As I wrote before several times, when the Spanish Inquisition became a tool of the secular state, those who were accused often appealed to the Pope, which led the crown to bar it on pain of death.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    Pope John Paul apologizes for the Inquisition:

    http://www.jewishwikipedia.info/understand.html

    Twinkie: Catholics dindu nuffin.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.

    Did you actually read it?
  522. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Immigration is not just a political issue. It is a moral issue too. Pope Francis said we need to let immigrants in and then decide how to deal with them. If we let them in, we often have to have the taxpayers pay for food and shelter for them.

    Some people would consider it to be immoral to force taxpayers to do this. Since this is a moral issue, God should tell the Pope what the correct moral position is here so he can relay it to his followers. As I said before, political decisions are based on underlying moral beliefs. So, why isn't God providing moral guidance here?

    Replies: @Twinkie

    Immigration is not just a political issue. It is a moral issue too.

    For the Church, it is a secular issue. And rightly so.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "it is a secular issue"

    Why? What is the underlying reason why the morality of abortion would not be a secular issue but the morality of Hispanic Catholic immigrants receiving food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers without doing anything in return to earn it is a secular issue?

    Replies: @Twinkie
  523. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    Pope John Paul apologizes for the Inquisition:

    http://www.jewishwikipedia.info/understand.html

    Twinkie: Catholics dindu nuffin.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    Did you actually read it?

  524. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "The kind of total victory – say, the first Gulf War – where one side completely annihilates the other is exceptionally rare and is contingent on dramatic technological and doctrinal differences."

    Well, you're getting the idea of how this conflict will play out and end.

    ""Take up the challenge I threw down, to which you did not respond earlier"

    Now who's the armchair warrior? Please don't quote the Wikipedia on me!

    Replies: @Twinkie

    Well, you’re getting the idea of how this conflict will play out and end.

    if you think this war is anything like the First Guif War, you are ignorant, period.

    That war lasted six weeks and the winning side suffered 147 KIA in combat.

    I see you don’t have anything to say about the either of the topics – Russian BTGs or US army operational art. Another troll.

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @Twinkie

    I'm not responding to somebody who's arguing in bad faith. Sad to see you've sunk to the low level of Jack D, HA, Johnson, Art Deco and all the fanatical neocons on this site.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  525. HA says:
    @BB753
    @HA

    Watch the damn video or read the article.

    Replies: @HA

    “Watch the da%n video…”

    I tried, though anyone who gets his news from Youtube videos is basically admitting to the world that he has no life. I mean, yeah, sad and pathetic is the life of a fanboy, but you don’t have to keep reminding us.

    Anyway, I gave up when he said the best thing for Ukraine would be to have the same deal that Belorussia does. No duh. I’ve been saying for years that if Putin had instead kept on trying for a Lukashenko deal (like the kind he came close to getting with Yanukovych), he could have taken the whole of Ukraine without firing a shot and no one in the West would have lifted a finger.

    Then again, if that’s what Putin wanted, maybe he shouldn’t have started ripping off chunks of Ukraine and then, as if that wasn’t enough, decided to invade and try to bomb it into oblivion. That tends to put a chill in the fraternal conviviality. He wouldn’t have had to worry about NATO either, since before any of that happened, the Ukrainians had no interest in joining.

    Sorry, fanboys, that ship has sailed, and Lil’ BB has no one to blame for that but himself.

    •�Replies: @BB753
    @HA

    You choose to ignore the 2014 CIA/ State Department orchestrated Maidan coup, the civil war in the Donbass, the creation of the Ukro-Nazi regime as a weapon against Russia, the betrayal of the Minsk accords,etc. Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine joining NATO.
    You have a right to your neocon bias but do not distort the facts.

    Replies: @HA
  526. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Immigration is not just a political issue. It is a moral issue too.
    For the Church, it is a secular issue. And rightly so.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    “it is a secular issue”

    Why? What is the underlying reason why the morality of abortion would not be a secular issue but the morality of Hispanic Catholic immigrants receiving food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers without doing anything in return to earn it is a secular issue?

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Why? What is the underlying reason why the morality of abortion would not be a secular issue but the morality of Hispanic Catholic immigrants receiving food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers without doing anything in return to earn it is a secular issue?
    You seriously can't be this dense.

    For Catholics, the issue of abortion is examined through the framework of the sanctity of human life, especially one that is unable to advocate for himself. There is even a papal encyclical by Pope John Paul II called Evangelium vitae (the Gospel of Life): https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html

    It concerns not only abortion, but such topics as contraception, euthanasia, capital punishment, and murder.

    The issue of whether or not taxpayer money ought to be used for migrants is not even close to being in the same category. That's a political, legal, and social issue - it's not a moral one.

    By the way, you seem to be assuming that Hispanics are all or mostly Catholics. That is not the case. Although Hispanics are more likely to be Catholics than average American and Catholicism is the plurality religion among Catholics, the majority of Hispanics in the U.S. are not Catholics:

    https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/04/13/among-u-s-latinos-catholicism-continues-to-decline-but-is-still-the-largest-faith/

    https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/PR_NSL-religion_00-01.png

    Catholicism has declined among Hispanics while evangelical Protestantism has risen, but the big growth is among "unaffiliated," which includes categories such as atheists, agnostics, and those who do not subscribe to any particular religion. Moreover, this trend is only going to accelerate, because it's the older Hispanics who are highly Catholic while the younger ones are increasingly godless. In little over a decade, the unaffiliated fraction has tripled.

    Replies: @Mark G.
  527. HA says:
    @John Johnson
    @HA

    Are there any pictures of Berletic with a girlfriend or wife?

    Thailand attracts sexual weirdos and creeps. I would advise women to not date men that have vacationed there.

    The guy also as flat affect and seems disconnected from certain emotions.

    I can tell is he good at absorbing information but clearly has an end goal in mind and is not trying to look at the bigger picture.

    Let me know when someone finds a Putin defender in the burbs that has a wife and family.

    And without a criminal record.

    Replies: @HA

    “Are there any pictures of Berletic with a girlfriend or wife? Thailand attracts sexual weirdos and creeps. I would advise women to not date men that have vacationed there.”

    Note that he was as a diehard defender of Coach Red-pill Gonzalo Lira (unlike Ritter and others, who insist Lira turned Russian names over to the Ukrainians in order tobe allowed to keep doing what he was doing).

    And with regard to shady doings in Thailand, note that the shaved head means less DNA evidence left behind — clearly, he’s really thought this through.

  528. @Twinkie
    @BB753


    Well, you’re getting the idea of how this conflict will play out and end.
    if you think this war is anything like the First Guif War, you are ignorant, period.

    That war lasted six weeks and the winning side suffered 147 KIA in combat.

    I see you don’t have anything to say about the either of the topics - Russian BTGs or US army operational art. Another troll.

    Replies: @BB753

    I’m not responding to somebody who’s arguing in bad faith. Sad to see you’ve sunk to the low level of Jack D, HA, Johnson, Art Deco and all the fanatical neocons on this site.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @BB753


    I’m not responding to somebody who’s arguing in bad faith.
    What bad faith?

    You questioned my experience in military affairs. Since we are talking about the Russo-Ukrainian War, okay, let's talk about the Russian army's BTG system and see who know what.

    You won't engage, because you don't know anything about it.
  529. trevor says:

    Good message from Vivek:

    My fellow Americans:

    This is Vivek Ramaswamy. I hoped to message you on a lighter note but I didn’t have another choice with everything happening right now.

    The unholy alliance between Joe Biden, the corrupt Deep State, the DC Swamp, the Liberal Media, and the Radical Left Democrats is a national disgrace.

    We, the American People, will never forget what they’ve done to us. Luckily, we have a plan to stop these radicals who:

    – Desecrated Easter Sunday with wokeism

    – Arrested the leader of the Republican Party

    – Removed Trump from the ballot in key states

    – Raided Mar-a-Lago with armed agents

    – Censored Conservative voices

    – Spied on Catholic worshippers

    – Gutted election integrity measures

    – Peddled the Russia Hoax for years

    – Threw open our border to illegals

    – Abandoned Americans in Afghanistan

    – Caved to the Chinese Communist Party

    – Moved to pack the Supreme Court

    – Forced propaganda into classrooms

    And the list goes on and on and on! Never before in the history of the world has a truly great country fallen so far from grace in such a short time. If the Radical Left Democrats somehow win control of the White House, the Senate, and the House… America will be lost forever.

    I know this to be true. You know it too. But when everything is on the line, moments like this separate the strong from the weak. And make no mistake – the future of our country hangs in the balance.

    That’s why I’m partnering with Majority Leader Steve Scalise for the FIRST TIME. Together, we’re rallying the STRONGEST American Patriots from across the country and building the biggest surge of grassroots support this country has ever seen.

    If you consider yourself a strong American Patriot – like the two of us do – I’m personally asking for your full commitment right here and right now.

    The resources we collect today will help build the largest GOP voter turnout operation in history, deploy an army of volunteers in swing districts, run hard-hitting ads in battleground states, harvest ballots where it’s legal, and help make this the most secure election EVER.

    THAT is how Conservatives will win in a landslide…

    THAT is how we take control of the White House, Senate, AND House…

    THAT is how we stop the Radical Left Democrats from destroying America…

    THAT is how we save our country as we know it…

    AND THAT is how we send shockwaves through the heart of the Deep State, DC Swamp, and Liberal Media…

    I’m asking for 100% participation from every strong American Patriot reading this. If that’s you, we need your help for the sake of the country. It’s the only way we win. So what do you say? Can we count on you?

    If you can’t afford to pitch in $100 or $50 right now, I understand completely. If you can spare JUST $5 or $10, it will still go a long way in the fight for what we believe in. I only ask that everyone contributes SOMETHING.

    No matter what, I’m honored to fight alongside you.

    Thanks for all you do,

    Vivek Ramaswamy

    •�Replies: @res
    @trevor

    This looks like the original source.
    https://secure.winred.com/team-scalise/vivek-desecrated-lf/

    According to this it is from May 14, 2024.
    https://politicalemails.org/messages/1420815
  530. BB753 says:
    @HA
    @BB753

    "Watch the da%n video..."

    I tried, though anyone who gets his news from Youtube videos is basically admitting to the world that he has no life. I mean, yeah, sad and pathetic is the life of a fanboy, but you don't have to keep reminding us.

    Anyway, I gave up when he said the best thing for Ukraine would be to have the same deal that Belorussia does. No duh. I've been saying for years that if Putin had instead kept on trying for a Lukashenko deal (like the kind he came close to getting with Yanukovych), he could have taken the whole of Ukraine without firing a shot and no one in the West would have lifted a finger.

    Then again, if that's what Putin wanted, maybe he shouldn't have started ripping off chunks of Ukraine and then, as if that wasn't enough, decided to invade and try to bomb it into oblivion. That tends to put a chill in the fraternal conviviality. He wouldn't have had to worry about NATO either, since before any of that happened, the Ukrainians had no interest in joining.

    Sorry, fanboys, that ship has sailed, and Lil' BB has no one to blame for that but himself.

    Replies: @BB753

    You choose to ignore the 2014 CIA/ State Department orchestrated Maidan coup, the civil war in the Donbass, the creation of the Ukro-Nazi regime as a weapon against Russia, the betrayal of the Minsk accords,etc. Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine joining NATO.
    You have a right to your neocon bias but do not distort the facts.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @BB753

    "You choose to ignore the 2014 CIA/ State Department orchestrated Maidan coup,"

    You mean ousting the Russian stooge who decided to snub his own legislature's decisions in favor of what his master in Moscow demanded? (Note the vetoed agreement was with the EU and didn't even mention NATO.) At which point the Russian stooge decided to flee to Moscow to be with his paymaster? Yeah, the CIA and Nuland's cookies is the only possible explanation for why that happened -- you keep telling yourself that. You're not choosing to ignore anything.

    "the civil war in the Donbass,"

    You mean "Russian-instigated effort to swipe more territory"? I.e., the one in which a so-called "hero of Donbass" [Girkin] was receiving a paycheck from Moscow to come and "assist" the local residents to express their totally-uncoerced will to leave Ukraine? Hmmm.

    "the creation of the Ukro-Nazi regime as a weapon against Russia,"

    Oh, thanks for being so concerned about fascists, you brave antifa-supporting Unz-dot-com reader, you. I know that you hate the Nazis to your very core. Would this weaponizing have taken place -- just so coincidentally -- right about the time after Putin swiped Crimea and Donbass? Weird that swiping territory would put the victimized country into a more militarily aggressive mood. Whoever heard of that happening?

    "the betrayal of the Minsk accords,etc."

    You mean the the accords in which a 3-month survey of violations found that some 90% of the observed violations were happening on the Russian-controlled side? You want to blame Ukraine for that, too?

    "Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine joining NATO."

    Is that what the ol' roulette wheel of lame excuses for invading Ukraine is pointing to this week? You sure it's not about Putin trying to be Peter the Great? Or maybe because Ukraine is just a stepping stone to reclaiming the rest of Eastern Europe or recreating some new USSR 2.0 or something? Because as I told you, Ukraine's voters had precious little interest in joining NATO prior to Putin's swipe of Crimea. Again, if you want to act all shocked that a country whose territory was swiped (after having forked over its nukes in exchange for guarantees that its borders would be respected) would want to join the rest of its neighbors that had had enough of Russia's broken promises, you go right ahead. It's not going to impress anyone who isn't a fanboy.

    And you want to pretend that I'm the one choosing to ignore things?
  531. Someone just reading through the last hundred or so comments would think this thread is about the Israel-Hamas war, the Russia – Ukraine war, and now religious arguments.

    It is supposed to be about the Trump trial.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @trevor

    "It is supposed to be about the Trump trial."

    If you don't like the fact that the fanboys have yet again decided to intrude their OT obsession about Ukraine into another comment thread, take it up with them. Speaking for myself, I don't bring up Ukraine except to rebut yet another round of fanboy idiocy. Check the paper trail if you doubt me.

    Replies: @trevor
  532. Anonymous[204] •�Disclaimer says:

    A military dictator may sometimes be necessary to fix political problems. The problem of course is getting the dictator to go away once the problems are solved.

    George Washington in the Revolution showed how this is supposed to work: The dictator performs his duty, then retires to his country estate, leaving politics to the civilians.

    What we usually get however is the dictator remaining in power until he dies of old age. Meanwhile the country goes to crap because military dictatorship has a depressive effect on economic activity, intellectual innovation, artistic creativity, and all such similar things.

    People who advocate for dictatorship should be made to explain how they intend to get rid of said dictator when he is no longer necessary.

  533. @Anonymous
    @Ben tillman

    That code section appears to contain only a second degree offense that is a misdemeanor. Is there a first degree offense that is a felony?

    The OP indicates both the offense and the statute of limitations were changed to charge Trump. Where is the evidence that either were changed ever?

    Replies: @ben tillman

    Yes. 175-10.

  534. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    I'm not responding to somebody who's arguing in bad faith. Sad to see you've sunk to the low level of Jack D, HA, Johnson, Art Deco and all the fanatical neocons on this site.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    I’m not responding to somebody who’s arguing in bad faith.

    What bad faith?

    You questioned my experience in military affairs. Since we are talking about the Russo-Ukrainian War, okay, let’s talk about the Russian army’s BTG system and see who know what.

    You won’t engage, because you don’t know anything about it.

  535. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    "it is a secular issue"

    Why? What is the underlying reason why the morality of abortion would not be a secular issue but the morality of Hispanic Catholic immigrants receiving food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers without doing anything in return to earn it is a secular issue?

    Replies: @Twinkie

    Why? What is the underlying reason why the morality of abortion would not be a secular issue but the morality of Hispanic Catholic immigrants receiving food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers without doing anything in return to earn it is a secular issue?

    You seriously can’t be this dense.

    For Catholics, the issue of abortion is examined through the framework of the sanctity of human life, especially one that is unable to advocate for himself. There is even a papal encyclical by Pope John Paul II called Evangelium vitae (the Gospel of Life): https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html

    It concerns not only abortion, but such topics as contraception, euthanasia, capital punishment, and murder.

    The issue of whether or not taxpayer money ought to be used for migrants is not even close to being in the same category. That’s a political, legal, and social issue – it’s not a moral one.

    By the way, you seem to be assuming that Hispanics are all or mostly Catholics. That is not the case. Although Hispanics are more likely to be Catholics than average American and Catholicism is the plurality religion among Catholics, the majority of Hispanics in the U.S. are not Catholics:

    https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/04/13/among-u-s-latinos-catholicism-continues-to-decline-but-is-still-the-largest-faith/

    Catholicism has declined among Hispanics while evangelical Protestantism has risen, but the big growth is among “unaffiliated,” which includes categories such as atheists, agnostics, and those who do not subscribe to any particular religion. Moreover, this trend is only going to accelerate, because it’s the older Hispanics who are highly Catholic while the younger ones are increasingly godless. In little over a decade, the unaffiliated fraction has tripled.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    No, forcing people to pay taxes to support immigrants who have done nothing in return is a moral issue because there is a threat of force involved if they are unwilling to do that. They would be killed by the government if they refuse just as a baby in a womb would be killed by an abortionist if it is aborted.

    These distinctions your church comes up with are arbitrary and based on the subjective whims of those involved.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  536. @BB753
    @Twinkie

    "Unless the Pope speaks ex-cathedra on such matters, what he says are his own personal opinions that do govern thoughts and behaviors of Catholics at large."

    Catholics are also bound to obey the Pope's magisterium, ex-Cathedra or not.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    Catholics are also bound to obey the Pope’s magisterium, ex-Cathedra or not.

    Magisterium is the teaching authority of the Church, which is one of the three sources of authority along with the Bible and the Traditions of the Church fathers, that interprets the other two authentically.

    It has nothing to do with the current (or any) pope’s personal views on politics, arts, sports or any number of other topics that do not pertain to faith and morals.

  537. @trevor
    Good message from Vivek:

    ...

    My fellow Americans:

    This is Vivek Ramaswamy. I hoped to message you on a lighter note but I didn’t have another choice with everything happening right now.


    The unholy alliance between Joe Biden, the corrupt Deep State, the DC Swamp, the Liberal Media, and the Radical Left Democrats is a national disgrace.


    We, the American People, will never forget what they’ve done to us. Luckily, we have a plan to stop these radicals who:


    – Desecrated Easter Sunday with wokeism

    – Arrested the leader of the Republican Party

    – Removed Trump from the ballot in key states

    – Raided Mar-a-Lago with armed agents

    – Censored Conservative voices

    – Spied on Catholic worshippers

    – Gutted election integrity measures

    – Peddled the Russia Hoax for years

    – Threw open our border to illegals

    – Abandoned Americans in Afghanistan

    – Caved to the Chinese Communist Party

    – Moved to pack the Supreme Court

    – Forced propaganda into classrooms


    And the list goes on and on and on! Never before in the history of the world has a truly great country fallen so far from grace in such a short time. If the Radical Left Democrats somehow win control of the White House, the Senate, and the House… America will be lost forever.


    I know this to be true. You know it too. But when everything is on the line, moments like this separate the strong from the weak. And make no mistake – the future of our country hangs in the balance.


    That’s why I’m partnering with Majority Leader Steve Scalise for the FIRST TIME. Together, we’re rallying the STRONGEST American Patriots from across the country and building the biggest surge of grassroots support this country has ever seen.


    If you consider yourself a strong American Patriot – like the two of us do – I’m personally asking for your full commitment right here and right now.


    The resources we collect today will help build the largest GOP voter turnout operation in history, deploy an army of volunteers in swing districts, run hard-hitting ads in battleground states, harvest ballots where it’s legal, and help make this the most secure election EVER.


    THAT is how Conservatives will win in a landslide…


    THAT is how we take control of the White House, Senate, AND House…


    THAT is how we stop the Radical Left Democrats from destroying America…


    THAT is how we save our country as we know it…


    AND THAT is how we send shockwaves through the heart of the Deep State, DC Swamp, and Liberal Media…


    I’m asking for 100% participation from every strong American Patriot reading this. If that’s you, we need your help for the sake of the country. It’s the only way we win. So what do you say? Can we count on you?


    If you can’t afford to pitch in $100 or $50 right now, I understand completely. If you can spare JUST $5 or $10, it will still go a long way in the fight for what we believe in. I only ask that everyone contributes SOMETHING.


    No matter what, I’m honored to fight alongside you.


    Thanks for all you do,

    Vivek Ramaswamy

    Replies: @res

    This looks like the original source.
    https://secure.winred.com/team-scalise/vivek-desecrated-lf/

    According to this it is from May 14, 2024.
    https://politicalemails.org/messages/1420815

  538. HA says:
    @BB753
    @HA

    You choose to ignore the 2014 CIA/ State Department orchestrated Maidan coup, the civil war in the Donbass, the creation of the Ukro-Nazi regime as a weapon against Russia, the betrayal of the Minsk accords,etc. Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine joining NATO.
    You have a right to your neocon bias but do not distort the facts.

    Replies: @HA

    “You choose to ignore the 2014 CIA/ State Department orchestrated Maidan coup,”

    You mean ousting the Russian stooge who decided to snub his own legislature’s decisions in favor of what his master in Moscow demanded? (Note the vetoed agreement was with the EU and didn’t even mention NATO.) At which point the Russian stooge decided to flee to Moscow to be with his paymaster? Yeah, the CIA and Nuland’s cookies is the only possible explanation for why that happened — you keep telling yourself that. You’re not choosing to ignore anything.

    “the civil war in the Donbass,”

    You mean “Russian-instigated effort to swipe more territory”? I.e., the one in which a so-called “hero of Donbass” [Girkin] was receiving a paycheck from Moscow to come and “assist” the local residents to express their totally-uncoerced will to leave Ukraine? Hmmm.

    “the creation of the Ukro-Nazi regime as a weapon against Russia,”

    Oh, thanks for being so concerned about fascists, you brave antifa-supporting Unz-dot-com reader, you. I know that you hate the Nazis to your very core. Would this weaponizing have taken place — just so coincidentally — right about the time after Putin swiped Crimea and Donbass? Weird that swiping territory would put the victimized country into a more militarily aggressive mood. Whoever heard of that happening?

    “the betrayal of the Minsk accords,etc.”

    You mean the the accords in which a 3-month survey of violations found that some 90% of the observed violations were happening on the Russian-controlled side? You want to blame Ukraine for that, too?

    “Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine joining NATO.”

    Is that what the ol’ roulette wheel of lame excuses for invading Ukraine is pointing to this week? You sure it’s not about Putin trying to be Peter the Great? Or maybe because Ukraine is just a stepping stone to reclaiming the rest of Eastern Europe or recreating some new USSR 2.0 or something? Because as I told you, Ukraine’s voters had precious little interest in joining NATO prior to Putin’s swipe of Crimea. Again, if you want to act all shocked that a country whose territory was swiped (after having forked over its nukes in exchange for guarantees that its borders would be respected) would want to join the rest of its neighbors that had had enough of Russia’s broken promises, you go right ahead. It’s not going to impress anyone who isn’t a fanboy.

    And you want to pretend that I’m the one choosing to ignore things?

  539. HA says:
    @trevor
    Someone just reading through the last hundred or so comments would think this thread is about the Israel-Hamas war, the Russia - Ukraine war, and now religious arguments.

    It is supposed to be about the Trump trial.

    Replies: @HA

    “It is supposed to be about the Trump trial.”

    If you don’t like the fact that the fanboys have yet again decided to intrude their OT obsession about Ukraine into another comment thread, take it up with them. Speaking for myself, I don’t bring up Ukraine except to rebut yet another round of fanboy idiocy. Check the paper trail if you doubt me.

    •�Replies: @trevor
    @HA

    "Speaking for myself, I don’t bring up Ukraine except to rebut yet another round of fanboy idiocy."

    Yeah. You need to make sure that you bite
    on all those red herring fishbait hooks cast out by those fanboy idiots.

    Replies: @HA
  540. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    Why? What is the underlying reason why the morality of abortion would not be a secular issue but the morality of Hispanic Catholic immigrants receiving food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers without doing anything in return to earn it is a secular issue?
    You seriously can't be this dense.

    For Catholics, the issue of abortion is examined through the framework of the sanctity of human life, especially one that is unable to advocate for himself. There is even a papal encyclical by Pope John Paul II called Evangelium vitae (the Gospel of Life): https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html

    It concerns not only abortion, but such topics as contraception, euthanasia, capital punishment, and murder.

    The issue of whether or not taxpayer money ought to be used for migrants is not even close to being in the same category. That's a political, legal, and social issue - it's not a moral one.

    By the way, you seem to be assuming that Hispanics are all or mostly Catholics. That is not the case. Although Hispanics are more likely to be Catholics than average American and Catholicism is the plurality religion among Catholics, the majority of Hispanics in the U.S. are not Catholics:

    https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/04/13/among-u-s-latinos-catholicism-continues-to-decline-but-is-still-the-largest-faith/

    https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/PR_NSL-religion_00-01.png

    Catholicism has declined among Hispanics while evangelical Protestantism has risen, but the big growth is among "unaffiliated," which includes categories such as atheists, agnostics, and those who do not subscribe to any particular religion. Moreover, this trend is only going to accelerate, because it's the older Hispanics who are highly Catholic while the younger ones are increasingly godless. In little over a decade, the unaffiliated fraction has tripled.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    No, forcing people to pay taxes to support immigrants who have done nothing in return is a moral issue because there is a threat of force involved if they are unwilling to do that. They would be killed by the government if they refuse just as a baby in a womb would be killed by an abortionist if it is aborted.

    These distinctions your church comes up with are arbitrary and based on the subjective whims of those involved.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    No, forcing people to pay taxes to support immigrants who have done nothing in return is a moral issue because there is a threat of force involved if they are unwilling to do that.
    All issues relating to collection of taxes and distribution of government funds involve the intermixture of the public will* and coercion. I am pretty sure there are lots of people - especially libertarians (but not you) - who felt that their hard-earned money was being "robbed" to pay for upkeep of someone like your niece who failed to save for a rainy day and received the stimulus spending. Is that also a moral issue?

    No, these are political, economic, and social issues. Not everything you think is important or even an issue of fairness is a moral one.

    (*Even under less representative forms of government: for example, even in Saudi Arabia, a modern day absolute monarchy, if the tribes feel the government largesse is not being distributed adequately or somewhat fairly, there is popular anger, to which the rulers pay heed.)

    These distinctions your church comes up with are arbitrary and based on the subjective whims of those involved.
    The issue of the sanctity of human life, especially of those who cannot advocate for themselves - is a deeply moral and spiritual concern. This - which is tied to that of conscience - exists on a different moral plane than tax money usage, which is a highly secular issue.

    In any case, papal infallibility is very specific and narrowly defined. If you cannot bother to read the Catechism of the Catholic Church, at least read Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_infallibility

    Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, in virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the Pope when he speaks ex cathedra is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine "initially given to the apostolic Church and handed down in Scripture and tradition".[1] It does not mean that the pope cannot sin or otherwise err in some capacity

    Replies: @Mark G.
  541. @HA
    @trevor

    "It is supposed to be about the Trump trial."

    If you don't like the fact that the fanboys have yet again decided to intrude their OT obsession about Ukraine into another comment thread, take it up with them. Speaking for myself, I don't bring up Ukraine except to rebut yet another round of fanboy idiocy. Check the paper trail if you doubt me.

    Replies: @trevor

    “Speaking for myself, I don’t bring up Ukraine except to rebut yet another round of fanboy idiocy.”

    Yeah. You need to make sure that you bite
    on all those red herring fishbait hooks cast out by those fanboy idiots.

    •�Replies: @HA
    @trevor

    "You need to make sure that you bite on all those red herring fishbait hooks cast out by those fanboy idiots."

    I let plenty of them pass before I step in the water -- I'm downright indulgent. My first post on this thread to mention Ukraine or Russia is currently at number 414. By my count, at least 3 fanboys jumped in before then to mention Putin -- on what is, again, a thread about Trump being declared guilty. If you're reading this thread all the way down past 400 comments, let's face it, you're already in deep -- no need to hector me for that when the "ignore" button is just a click or two away.

    And if the fanboy idiot posts are such red herrings, you're more than welcome to call them out as such and beat me to the punch -- feel free to provide links and point out the holes in their empty arguments to the extent I have, while you're at it. I'm sure the fanboys will be most appreciative of any feedback you can provide that helps them to refine their narrative and their rhetoric.
  542. @MEH 0910
    NYT Opinion:
    https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/06/opinion/maga-constitution-trump.html
    https://archive.ph/ppy3Z

    MAGA Turns Against the Constitution
    By David French
    June 6, 2024
    [...]
    The fundamental argument on the Trump right since 2015 has gone something like this: If America isn’t a failed state, it’s at least a failing state. It’s an economic and military paper tiger that has rejected God, can’t tell male from female, and is lapsing into a state of chaos that only a strong leader can confront. He, alone, can fix it.

    But MAGA is frustrated. The Constitution blocks Trump from doing what must be done. It blocks him from seizing the level of control that the far right believes the moment requires. And so now, for parts of MAGA, the Constitution itself is part of the crisis. If it doesn’t permit Trump to take control, then it must be swept aside.

    Elements of this argument are now bubbling up across the reactionary, populist right. Catholic post-liberals believe that liberal democracy itself is problematic. According to their critique, the Constitution’s emphasis on individual liberty “atomizes” American life and degrades the traditional institutions of church and family that sustain human flourishing.

    Protestant Christian nationalists tend to have a higher regard for the American founding, but they believe it’s been corrupted. They claim that the 1787 Constitution is essentially dead, replaced by progressive power politics that have destroyed constitutional government.

    Still others believe that the advent of civil rights laws created, in essence, a second Constitution entirely, one that privileges group identity over individual liberty.

    Replies: @MEH 0910, @trevor

    https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/09/opinion/presbyterian-church-evangelical-canceled.html
    https://archive.ph/8wdXz

    The Day My Old Church Canceled Me Was a Very Sad Day
    By David French
    June 9, 2024

    This week, the leaders of the Presbyterian Church in America will gather in Richmond, Va., for their annual General Assembly. The Presbyterian Church in America is a small, theologically conservative Christian denomination that was my family’s church home for more than 15 years.

    It just canceled me.

    I am now deemed too divisive to speak to a gathering of Christians who share my faith. I was scheduled to speak about the challenges of dealing with toxic polarization, but I was considered too polarizing.

    I was originally invited to join three other panelists on the topic of “how to be supportive of your pastor and church leaders in a polarized political year.” One of the reasons I was invited was precisely that I’ve been the target of intense attacks online and in real life.

    The instant my participation was announced, those attacks started up again. There were misleading essays, vicious tweets, letters and even a parody song directed at the denomination and at me. The message was clear: Get him off the stage.

    And that’s what the conference organizers chose to do. They didn’t just cancel me. They canceled the entire panel. But the reason was obvious: My presence would raise concerns about the peace and unity of the church.
    […]

  543. trevor says:
    @MEH 0910
    NYT Opinion:
    https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/06/opinion/maga-constitution-trump.html
    https://archive.ph/ppy3Z

    MAGA Turns Against the Constitution
    By David French
    June 6, 2024
    [...]
    The fundamental argument on the Trump right since 2015 has gone something like this: If America isn’t a failed state, it’s at least a failing state. It’s an economic and military paper tiger that has rejected God, can’t tell male from female, and is lapsing into a state of chaos that only a strong leader can confront. He, alone, can fix it.

    But MAGA is frustrated. The Constitution blocks Trump from doing what must be done. It blocks him from seizing the level of control that the far right believes the moment requires. And so now, for parts of MAGA, the Constitution itself is part of the crisis. If it doesn’t permit Trump to take control, then it must be swept aside.

    Elements of this argument are now bubbling up across the reactionary, populist right. Catholic post-liberals believe that liberal democracy itself is problematic. According to their critique, the Constitution’s emphasis on individual liberty “atomizes” American life and degrades the traditional institutions of church and family that sustain human flourishing.

    Protestant Christian nationalists tend to have a higher regard for the American founding, but they believe it’s been corrupted. They claim that the 1787 Constitution is essentially dead, replaced by progressive power politics that have destroyed constitutional government.

    Still others believe that the advent of civil rights laws created, in essence, a second Constitution entirely, one that privileges group identity over individual liberty.

    Replies: @MEH 0910, @trevor

    There can be no doubt that the civil rights and immigration acts passed under the LBJ administration by the “cowardly lion (liar) of the Senate” and (((others))) “fundamentally transformed” the USSA long before the Obamas came along to use that expression to take it even further left and now that the Biden/Harris puppet is completing Obama’s third term, it is probably too late for Trump or any Republican to do much about it.

    Many of the measures needed to right the country would probably be “unconstitutional”. It is ironic that the original Constitution of the USA that intended a white Republic now helps to protect those who would destroy it and the Republic.

  544. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    No, forcing people to pay taxes to support immigrants who have done nothing in return is a moral issue because there is a threat of force involved if they are unwilling to do that. They would be killed by the government if they refuse just as a baby in a womb would be killed by an abortionist if it is aborted.

    These distinctions your church comes up with are arbitrary and based on the subjective whims of those involved.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    No, forcing people to pay taxes to support immigrants who have done nothing in return is a moral issue because there is a threat of force involved if they are unwilling to do that.

    All issues relating to collection of taxes and distribution of government funds involve the intermixture of the public will* and coercion. I am pretty sure there are lots of people – especially libertarians (but not you) – who felt that their hard-earned money was being “robbed” to pay for upkeep of someone like your niece who failed to save for a rainy day and received the stimulus spending. Is that also a moral issue?

    No, these are political, economic, and social issues. Not everything you think is important or even an issue of fairness is a moral one.

    (*Even under less representative forms of government: for example, even in Saudi Arabia, a modern day absolute monarchy, if the tribes feel the government largesse is not being distributed adequately or somewhat fairly, there is popular anger, to which the rulers pay heed.)

    These distinctions your church comes up with are arbitrary and based on the subjective whims of those involved.

    The issue of the sanctity of human life, especially of those who cannot advocate for themselves – is a deeply moral and spiritual concern. This – which is tied to that of conscience – exists on a different moral plane than tax money usage, which is a highly secular issue.

    In any case, papal infallibility is very specific and narrowly defined. If you cannot bother to read the Catechism of the Catholic Church, at least read Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_infallibility

    Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, in virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the Pope when he speaks ex cathedra is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine “initially given to the apostolic Church and handed down in Scripture and tradition”.[1] It does not mean that the pope cannot sin or otherwise err in some capacity

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    It was a use of force against my niece since she was prevented from working by the government. The owner of her restaurant would have been arrested by the government if he had persisted in staying open. It is typically dishonest of you that you bring up my niece receiving a government check during the Covid epidemic while remaining silent about this use of force against her and her employer.

    So, this use of force is a moral issue. It is not just an issue of how tax money is allocated. Immigrants receiving free food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers also involves a use of force as does the use of force against a fetus to kill it during an abortion. Your religion selectively only picks out abortion here to focus on.

    These feeble attempts at obfuscation by you are pretty sad and pathetic. Fortunately, you are too stupid to realize that. Also, fortunately for you this is an old comment thread where almost no one will see this is the best you can come up with.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  545. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    No, forcing people to pay taxes to support immigrants who have done nothing in return is a moral issue because there is a threat of force involved if they are unwilling to do that.
    All issues relating to collection of taxes and distribution of government funds involve the intermixture of the public will* and coercion. I am pretty sure there are lots of people - especially libertarians (but not you) - who felt that their hard-earned money was being "robbed" to pay for upkeep of someone like your niece who failed to save for a rainy day and received the stimulus spending. Is that also a moral issue?

    No, these are political, economic, and social issues. Not everything you think is important or even an issue of fairness is a moral one.

    (*Even under less representative forms of government: for example, even in Saudi Arabia, a modern day absolute monarchy, if the tribes feel the government largesse is not being distributed adequately or somewhat fairly, there is popular anger, to which the rulers pay heed.)

    These distinctions your church comes up with are arbitrary and based on the subjective whims of those involved.
    The issue of the sanctity of human life, especially of those who cannot advocate for themselves - is a deeply moral and spiritual concern. This - which is tied to that of conscience - exists on a different moral plane than tax money usage, which is a highly secular issue.

    In any case, papal infallibility is very specific and narrowly defined. If you cannot bother to read the Catechism of the Catholic Church, at least read Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_infallibility

    Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, in virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the Pope when he speaks ex cathedra is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine "initially given to the apostolic Church and handed down in Scripture and tradition".[1] It does not mean that the pope cannot sin or otherwise err in some capacity

    Replies: @Mark G.

    It was a use of force against my niece since she was prevented from working by the government. The owner of her restaurant would have been arrested by the government if he had persisted in staying open. It is typically dishonest of you that you bring up my niece receiving a government check during the Covid epidemic while remaining silent about this use of force against her and her employer.

    So, this use of force is a moral issue. It is not just an issue of how tax money is allocated. Immigrants receiving free food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers also involves a use of force as does the use of force against a fetus to kill it during an abortion. Your religion selectively only picks out abortion here to focus on.

    These feeble attempts at obfuscation by you are pretty sad and pathetic. Fortunately, you are too stupid to realize that. Also, fortunately for you this is an old comment thread where almost no one will see this is the best you can come up with.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    It was a use of force against my niece since she was prevented from working by the government.
    That argument can be used by almost anyone on virtually anything the government regulates.

    Immigrants receiving free food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers also involves a use of force as does the use of force against a fetus to kill it during an abortion. Your religion selectively only picks out abortion here to focus on.
    You are a moron. Worse still, you have a grossly distorted moral code who equates tax money usage with murder.

    Also, fortunately for you this is an old comment thread where almost no one will see this is the best you can come up with.
    Unfortunately for you, this comment is recorded here for all to see and for me to quote at will in the future, should I so choose.

    Replies: @Mark G.
  546. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    It was a use of force against my niece since she was prevented from working by the government. The owner of her restaurant would have been arrested by the government if he had persisted in staying open. It is typically dishonest of you that you bring up my niece receiving a government check during the Covid epidemic while remaining silent about this use of force against her and her employer.

    So, this use of force is a moral issue. It is not just an issue of how tax money is allocated. Immigrants receiving free food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers also involves a use of force as does the use of force against a fetus to kill it during an abortion. Your religion selectively only picks out abortion here to focus on.

    These feeble attempts at obfuscation by you are pretty sad and pathetic. Fortunately, you are too stupid to realize that. Also, fortunately for you this is an old comment thread where almost no one will see this is the best you can come up with.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    It was a use of force against my niece since she was prevented from working by the government.

    That argument can be used by almost anyone on virtually anything the government regulates.

    Immigrants receiving free food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers also involves a use of force as does the use of force against a fetus to kill it during an abortion. Your religion selectively only picks out abortion here to focus on.

    You are a moron. Worse still, you have a grossly distorted moral code who equates tax money usage with murder.

    Also, fortunately for you this is an old comment thread where almost no one will see this is the best you can come up with.

    Unfortunately for you, this comment is recorded here for all to see and for me to quote at will in the future, should I so choose.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    If the owner of the restaurant my niece worked at had refused to shut down, he would have been fined. If he refused to pay that fine, he would have been arrested. If he resisted arrest he would have been shot and killed. He ended up losing his restaurant anyway. Like a lot of other restaurants, he was not able to make up his business losses after he reopened and went under. My niece then lost that job permanently.

    So, you are the moron saying this is just about tax money usage. Your Hispanic immigrants are taking taxpayer money in the form of free meals and lodging and you and your Pope refuse to criticize it because the majority of them are Catholics. The little Catholic worm is squirming around here offering up his ridiculous arguments.

    Replies: @Twinkie
  547. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.


    It was a use of force against my niece since she was prevented from working by the government.
    That argument can be used by almost anyone on virtually anything the government regulates.

    Immigrants receiving free food and shelter paid for by the taxpayers also involves a use of force as does the use of force against a fetus to kill it during an abortion. Your religion selectively only picks out abortion here to focus on.
    You are a moron. Worse still, you have a grossly distorted moral code who equates tax money usage with murder.

    Also, fortunately for you this is an old comment thread where almost no one will see this is the best you can come up with.
    Unfortunately for you, this comment is recorded here for all to see and for me to quote at will in the future, should I so choose.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    If the owner of the restaurant my niece worked at had refused to shut down, he would have been fined. If he refused to pay that fine, he would have been arrested. If he resisted arrest he would have been shot and killed. He ended up losing his restaurant anyway. Like a lot of other restaurants, he was not able to make up his business losses after he reopened and went under. My niece then lost that job permanently.

    So, you are the moron saying this is just about tax money usage. Your Hispanic immigrants are taking taxpayer money in the form of free meals and lodging and you and your Pope refuse to criticize it because the majority of them are Catholics. The little Catholic worm is squirming around here offering up his ridiculous arguments.

    •�Replies: @Twinkie
    @Mark G.

    Hey, idiot. With the same logic, you can justify any government largesse. You are not a libertarian.

    Replies: @Mark G.
  548. @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    If the owner of the restaurant my niece worked at had refused to shut down, he would have been fined. If he refused to pay that fine, he would have been arrested. If he resisted arrest he would have been shot and killed. He ended up losing his restaurant anyway. Like a lot of other restaurants, he was not able to make up his business losses after he reopened and went under. My niece then lost that job permanently.

    So, you are the moron saying this is just about tax money usage. Your Hispanic immigrants are taking taxpayer money in the form of free meals and lodging and you and your Pope refuse to criticize it because the majority of them are Catholics. The little Catholic worm is squirming around here offering up his ridiculous arguments.

    Replies: @Twinkie

    Hey, idiot. With the same logic, you can justify any government largesse. You are not a libertarian.

    •�Replies: @Mark G.
    @Twinkie

    The purpose of government is to protect the right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness of its citizens. If that right was violated in the case of my niece, she needed to be compensated by the government that did that.

    Your Hispanic Catholic illegal aliens are not citizens. If they expect free meals and lodging without doing anything in return, they are violating the rights of American citizens who are being forced to pay for it. Your Catholic Pope supports that.
  549. HA says:
    @trevor
    @HA

    "Speaking for myself, I don’t bring up Ukraine except to rebut yet another round of fanboy idiocy."

    Yeah. You need to make sure that you bite
    on all those red herring fishbait hooks cast out by those fanboy idiots.

    Replies: @HA

    “You need to make sure that you bite on all those red herring fishbait hooks cast out by those fanboy idiots.”

    I let plenty of them pass before I step in the water — I’m downright indulgent. My first post on this thread to mention Ukraine or Russia is currently at number 414. By my count, at least 3 fanboys jumped in before then to mention Putin — on what is, again, a thread about Trump being declared guilty. If you’re reading this thread all the way down past 400 comments, let’s face it, you’re already in deep — no need to hector me for that when the “ignore” button is just a click or two away.

    And if the fanboy idiot posts are such red herrings, you’re more than welcome to call them out as such and beat me to the punch — feel free to provide links and point out the holes in their empty arguments to the extent I have, while you’re at it. I’m sure the fanboys will be most appreciative of any feedback you can provide that helps them to refine their narrative and their rhetoric.

  550. @Twinkie
    @Mark G.

    Hey, idiot. With the same logic, you can justify any government largesse. You are not a libertarian.

    Replies: @Mark G.

    The purpose of government is to protect the right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness of its citizens. If that right was violated in the case of my niece, she needed to be compensated by the government that did that.

    Your Hispanic Catholic illegal aliens are not citizens. If they expect free meals and lodging without doing anything in return, they are violating the rights of American citizens who are being forced to pay for it. Your Catholic Pope supports that.

    •�Troll: Twinkie

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