I have to say that when I first heard they were remaking House Of Cards, I was dreading it.

There is no way that "Frank Underwood" could possibly hold a candle to Francis Urquhart, I thought.

But every clip I've seen makes me think this could be worth watching.

Now if only netflix would drop their ridiculous region blocking, I have some monies for them.

ok, so you have a peaceful revolt...




...then what?

saying you're pissed is easy. Saying there is a problem is easy.

But where is your solution to address these ills. How do you plan to stop it from happening again?

I find it interesting that you seem to imply that violence is a tool of a state. That's rather disingenuous, don't you think? As if the state is more predisposed to use violence than other groups? the state, like every organization, is made up of people. so if the state is violent, it's because people are violent and we really haven't solved that problem yet, have we. Violence is still part of the human condition and not an inherent part of the state...or playing video games, etc.

I would argue that many of the conflicts we are currently in are because of monied interests and their influence on gov't. remove that influence as I suggested and I'd wager that we've have a less violent gov't.

and I'm sorry, I must have missed something, but are you implying that Obama personally shut down Occupy Wall Street? gonna need you to provide a citation for that. Speaking for my city. The local occupy group was evicted from it's spot by our governor, a republican, but not that it matters because the whole Occupy movement was poorly thought out to begin with. very few people want to camp out 24/7 on with college hipsters and homeless people. It was just a badly implemented idea....period. It was one of the few times I genuinely agreed with our governor. While I might have agreed with Occupy's intentions, they were absolutely ineffective at conveying any meaningful message and an absolute nuisance to the area.

Bottom line, is that as that Japanese general alluded to, America is a sleeping giant. For all the rhetoric and for all these ills you have mentioned, the average American citizen is still largely insulated from it. American life has not fundamentally changed during the administration of Bush and/or Obama despite what the pundits on either side try to cry wolf about. Because we have an all-volunteer military, even the average american citizen is largely insulated from our wars as well.

When those things change, then maybe you'll see something happen.

And yes, I know my view is optimistic. But optimism works. Wasn't that long ago that many things we take for granted today was viewed as optimistic but niave or unrealistic.

@VoodooV
when i use the term "extreme nasty" i am not referring to a civil war but rather the american public finally reaching its boiling point.

it started bubbling with the tea party,and if people recall it was NOT the rabid christian rightwing fascist group it is today.
they had real grievances and rightly so.

but they got co-opted by private monies.

then occupy blew up and they too had real grievances and since the power elites could not co-opt them like the tea party they were systematically shut down by targeted governmental edict.

thanks Obama.

for years the poor and working poor were disenfranchised,made irrelevant in a political system that only used them as talking points to garner sympathy during an election cycle.

but now the middle class are finding themselves falling into the ranks of poor and working poor and ALL have been made irrelevant and inconsequential.

the american public has been kept in a constant state of fear for over 25 years.
fear of brown people.
fear of losing their job.
losing their house.
hell they even fear their own neighbors!

while the beautiful and poetic nationalism of american exceptionalism and ingenuity sound great,most americans are aware its all bullshit.
the political system is corrupt and sick on its own hubris and greed.

the american public know that this government no longer serves their interest.just look at the data.time and time again the public has a strong opinion on a subject and yet our elected officials vote to serve their masters.
war in iraq? americans shouted NO!
bank bail out? resounding NO!
the examples over the past (especially the past 15 yrs) are staggering.

so while i admire your optimism in still using the political system to enact positive change.i just dont see it ever becoming a reality.
mainly because the system is rigged and not in our favor.

so that leaves only ONE option:take to the streets.
refuse to go to work.
keep your purchases to a minimum and trade with each other.
refuse to feed the beast.
clog it with bodies.
clog the streets..halt business from operating properly.

but avoid violence.

thats what the state uses and to give it reason to engage in violence will only serve to beget more violence.

make those in power afraid.
remind them who they really work for and that if they dont the whole fucking thing is gonna come crashing down.

its the only real option i see and if it comes to pass you will see those who wield power do so..and it will be very nasty.

see:the labor movement
see:civil rights
see:anti-war
see:woman sufferages

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne!

Chorus.-For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne.
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.

And surely ye'll be your pint stowp!
And surely I'll be mine!
And we'll tak a cup o'kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

We twa hae run about the braes,
And pou'd the gowans fine;
But we've wander'd mony a weary fit,
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

And there's a hand, my trusty fere!
And gie's a hand o' thine!
And we'll tak a right gude-willie waught,
For auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

People are still an essential part of a working military, tanks and drones still require people to operate them, even in this day and age you still need boots on the ground to properly hold territory. And most of those people are not going to be coming from the monied elite but the middle an lower classes. Many often feel uneasy with the things we do to people overseas, I wonder how they'll feel about doing it to their neighbors right in their own backyards.

@Kofi. It's pretty hard not to horrifically oversimplify Pakistan in only a few paragrahs. Pakistan only enjoys the third government branch of power thanks to very heavy American pressure. The ISI and military have dominated Pakistan's prior history, this years elections mark the first and only time in Pakistan's history that a civilian government there managed to serve it's full term and pass power on to another civilian government. Past governments like Bhuttos were dismissed by the military, and then saw Bhutto executed. Pakistan's road democracy is hardly secure yet either since for all the gains, Bhutto's daughter was assassinated before finishing her bid to run the exiting civilian government.

Kashmir is just the bone of contention between India and Pakistan. Within Pakistani politics the discussion is all about Balochistan and FATA. The internal divisions over those two regions was and still is being manipulated to maximum effect by Pakistan's enemies. Particularly, in FATA you have Saudi dollars building Madrassah's were Pakistan's government either won't or can't do anything about education for the tribal people. So on one hand it's giving a lifeline to a poverty stricken people, and on the other that life line is tied to a brick being thrown into the deep end of jihadist teachings and training. And when I say Saudi charities, I don't mean to suggest it's government backed. It is by all accounts privately donated monies by private Saudi citizens, the ones that give out candy to kids when parade worthy things happen.

"Plus, I can name many muslim nations that did not have spontaneous celebrations. Afghanistan for one"
You've got to be kidding on this, right?
I'd ask you maybe look at my point and counter more closely though. I was speaking to the comment that Al Qaida was wanting for supporters and didn't have peoples support prior to 9/11. I did not declare that all muslim nations were dominated by celebrations, I in fact stated that very few failed to officially condemn the attacks. I just asked how many did not see spontaneous celebrations, and yes even America saw spontaneous celebrations by the likes of Westboro nutters. My point was not paint entire muslim nations as celebrating, but that there existed elements virtually everywhere celebrating. Would you disagree on that, or is that essentially correct. As I see it, that is a clear refutation of the idea that groups like Al Qaida were starved for support prior to 9/11.

"The third point you seem to provide your own refutation. Drones etc do indeed fuel Al Queda."

Maybe read my statement more closely again. My position is that while on one hand Drones help recruitment, and on the other they hurt not only recruitment and retention, but larger scale operational planning as well. Drones have done more than drive some angry youth to join the fight against America. They have also killed a great many of the Taliban's top leadership. More importantly, they have driven a near permanent wedge between the Taliban and Pakistan's military which is a value that is hard to underestimate. IMHO the 100% sole reason for the Afghan war was to either drive that wedge between Pakistan's military and extremists, or failing that to provide a location for waging a ground war with Pakistan. I also believe there was heavy calculations that the Afghan war would prove sufficient threat and deterrent that Pakistan's leadership would make the "right" choice.

I think it's important to make a distinction here. I almost feel like talking about "Al Qaida" as the problem is Bush(jr.) league type stuff. The bigger picture is jihadist terrorism, and who cares what label it wears. The reality after 9/11 was that jihadists terrorists in the form of the Taliban, Al Qaida and many other groups had a strong foothold inside of Pakistan. They were close friends and allies with the highest ranking officials within Pakistan. After the 9/11 attacks were committed, it was decided that a line needed to be drawn between the two and it was no longer acceptable to just let Pakistan hold these jihadist terrorist groups as friends and allies. After all, how emboldened would they be if they got to launch such an attack while still maintaining their alliance with Pakistan's ISI and military. Suddenly Pakistan's military has a pseudo mercenary/spec op force that is capable of organizing attacks on mainland America large enough to kill thousands in one round. The implications of that were deemed bad and in no uncertain terms the decision was made to put an end to it.

...And Bush 'sold' it to his demographic by giving a cowboy speech declaring your either with us or against us. I'm confident though that in the most bizarre of ways, that speech was carefully phrased diplomacy giving Pakistan a flashing red message without the public embarrassment of actually naming them in the process.(or Bush stumbled onto something in blind ignorance too, I'd flip a coin on it).

Yo Dystop:
My first state of the union address would include costumes, for starters, worn henceforth and according to level of corruption of current members of congress and senate: Data would be of course mined from our resources (those stalwart ass-grabbers of the distinguished intelligence community we have to thank for the dirt we would dredge and release), IMMEDIATELY,!....every phone call, every email every bit of naked boat-parties and teen-aged Thai prettyboys there for all to see…THEN decriminalize all drugs and release all offenders to their respective ends and relatives so charged in the past 100 years, immediately.
I’d make it mandatory that everyone be able to read and write, and provide the necessary means-
Two chickens in every pot
I’d tell everyone the real reason we’re in Afghanistan and will stay the fuck there is for their Lithium, because the world needs batteries to go with the new technology and to go fuck themselves if they don’t like us protecting their poppy fields from angry 4rth century thugs screaming , “AKBAR!”( i.e., I would disclose the actual motivations behind the current clusterfuck..) Oh, I’d have a monthly picnic on the white house lawn holiday, offer federal monies to female athletics, and outlaw fast food chains, billboard advertising, and landlords (I’d work to return ownership of land acquired through unsavory deals by oil-rich cocksuckers, anyone assoc. with any bank scandal in the last 50 years, etc. to the open market for restricted development based on projected models for our world in 50 years)

Just getting started, I’d fuck shit up is the answer to your question, jump-start the place based on the original doc and maybe get another 100 years out of it..

"I do not plead in the court of contracts."
http://www.katu.com/news/local/166407116.html

My grandfather never paid U.S. Income tax-He served in the Army air corps as a mechanic and like many people, slipped through the cracks because he was always self-employed and may have never been issued a number-

All this to reference my personal experience with the IRS:
Haven't filed in over 10 years and when I did last, it was to get money back that they had owed me from having not filed for about 6 years.

You may go back 3 years to get monies the IRS owes you, but they may go back as many years as they want if you owe THEM money. I received a letter from the IRS about 6 years ago informing me that they did not have returns for me from the past 3 years (at that time I was a contract employee whose employer was reporting my income and handing me a 1099-

I ignored the letter, and haven't heard from them since-I only heard from them because I probably owe them money according to their delusional and inequitable calculations. Fuck em. They are all bark and no bite in this man's paradigm. Let the insects swarm, I'll simply Obiwan the robots once again.

I am proud to be able to claim that my grandfather never paid his taxes his entire life, while contributing to the health, well-being, and happiness of all who knew him or did business with him.

I take pride in knowing at least one man in my family, fucked the gangsters before they fucked him.

Someone just gifted me some power points....enough to power a small city for a few days-
....treat em like all monies-Spend 'em around as fast as I can.

shut up and take all my monies dammit!

Gawd loves you, hates lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders and most of all he needs all your monies!

I find this whole discussion fascinating. First, I would like to point out that my original reaction was to the statement "This is why you have an obesity problem, America.". I highly doubt that it is just because of a drive-through ATMs and I find that statement too flippant. I am in Canada, and I think we have an obesity problem, too, just probably not as bad as the folks down south. I think the core problem is diet and exercise.

Second, and again speaking only for Edmonton, Alberta, there aren't hundreds of these things around. I know of 2 drive-through ATMs in the whole south-west area of the city, and they are specifically at the large bank branches. They exist, there just aren't everywhere. The only people probably using them are folks that bank at that bank.

Third, as charliem mentioned, we also have hundreds of these mini-ATMs around everywhere. They are very convenient, but they come with a $1-3 transaction fee on top. Most of my transactions are with credit/debit cards, so cash is pretty rare. When I need it, I don't feel like handing out extra monies to 3rd parties. If I need some cash I will probably go to the bank near my house that has this drive-through. I doubt parking my car and going inside to the ATM will help me lose weight

shut up and take my monies!

As much as I would like to agree with you that the government doesn't feel sorry for spending tax money; we have been led to believe that tax breaks and loopholes for the rich specifically, did not and will create more jobs. After 11 years of practice, this proved to be a fruitless that only benefited the upper echelon. You want an example? Take Romney's money in Switzerland and The Cayman Island for example. I am sure he has the right to do with his money whatever he wants, but a show of good faith would be to invest that money back into the economy (tickle-down) instead of parking it overseas. That, I have a HUGE problem with.

I would be taxed more under a re-elected Obama, and I don't mind that because of the greater good. Today, he is the lesser of two evils. I would vote for Romney if he actually believed what he said, but his actions and his words don't go together - see previous paragraph.

It would be dishonest for anyone to think that lowering taxes alone, or cutting the deficit alone would stop the hemorrhaging.

>> ^quantumushroom:

When tax rates are lowered, government revenue increases.
When tax rates are raised, the wealthy scapegoats remove monies from the system, either by parking them in things like tax-exempt bonds or investing in countries with lower tax rates.
However Obama tries to explain away what we on the right have known and have empirical evidence to back it up, his results have been negative. Such failure should not be rewarded by punishing the rest of us with 4 more years of this rubbish!

When tax rates are lowered, government revenue increases.

When tax rates are raised, the wealthy scapegoats remove monies from the system, either by parking them in things like tax-exempt bonds or investing in countries with lower tax rates.

However Obama tries to explain away what we on the right have known and have empirical evidence to back it up, his results have been negative. Such failure should not be rewarded by punishing the rest of us with 4 more years of this rubbish!