Waiting for the outrage over Minnesota’s new Somalian flag which cedes the state to Somalia just like Omar planned.

LMFAHS!!!…More projection.
I provide facts, usually with references.
You provide fascist fantasy drivel, lies, and whining diatribes that 9 times out of 10 have been thoroughly debunked before you post them. Remember the red tsunamis, remember how Covid was just a cold and wouldn’t hurt anyone, remember how Jan 6 was all BLM not Trumpists until that fell apart because every single defendant was a maggot and many pleaded guilty, then Jan 6 was a suddenly peaceful tour not a riotous insurrection and they should be allowed to retract their admissions of sedition? You are so incredibly far from having a point to make, ever. Your only point is “red/orange=good, blue/blacks=bad” and that simplicity is still well above your reading level.

Notice you can’t contradict a single letter of my post, as usual, so you just discard everything and deny reality again with a little insult, like infants do. They have the excuse that their brains aren’t formed enough to formulate a cogent thought….is that your excuse?

To you, “dribble” (dribble, not drivel, so I can only assume you intend to convey the idea that I’m “dribbling” the ball right past you on the court/field?. I suppose metaphorically I do dribble, with a connected stream of thoughts and facts from the beginning of each play across the field to the goal. You travel, flail jump skipping from disconnected points to try to score, but tripping up every time)
To the free world outside the cultist veil, it’s not dribble or drivel, it’s a plethora of schadenfreude.
(You claim to have graduated college and you don’t know the difference between dribble and drivel? Was it a college in Somalia?)

PS- Ready to discuss the treasonous traitor Ashley Babbitt, whose existence blows up any number of your fascist fact-free fantasies? I thought not….coward.

PPS- sounds like his ploy to delay his many many trials until 2024 (so he can then say “I’m a candidate for president, you have to wait until 2029 now”) may be falling apart. He got the phone card pyramid scheme (ACN Opportunities) trial delayed until 24 based on his October trial interfering with it being earlier, then he tried to get that October trial delayed, and got caught. Now the pyramid scheme trial judge has given him just weeks to convince her he’s not playing her or get a 2023 trial date reset.

Jan 6 transcripts now corroborate through multiple sources the claim that in his rage over losing bigly, Trump ordered an immediate withdrawal from Afghanistan and Somalia by the 15th of January 2021 on Nov 12….a written order that was questioned immediately and quickly rescinded, but an order none the less.

So much for your idiotic lie that Trump would have handled the withdrawal better.
Trump released the Taliban from prison, negotiated his unconditional surrender to them without involving the Afghan government at all, allowed any actions by the Taliban as long as they didn’t directly attack Americans, and developed absolutely no plan for withdrawal. If we followed Trump’s plan, there wouldn’t be 12 dead soldiers, there would be up to 12000. There wouldn’t be nearly $7 billion in decommissioned broken equipment left, there would be over $70 billion of operational equipment left. There would also be 100x more Americans abandoned to the Taliban.

D’oh

Edit: McCarthy lost his 3rd vote for speaker….the first time in over a century it took more than one vote. The Democrat is closer to winning than any Republican. Lol! MAGA is eating the Republican Party, making sure nothing happens for 2 years before the blue ocean rises and sinks your hopes of more MAGA.

@bobknight33, anything on the One America News Network is not news, so putting it in the news channel is bad channel assignment. It's at best uninformed biased opinion, and more often (like this one) it's misleading hyper partisan propaganda and faux outrage. Like Faux and infowars, it's just not news or journalism, it's "entertainment" dressed up as news. There was no honest history here, and no education, but she did spread fear and fail.

If this idiot actually listened to Oliver, he was pretty clear about why it wasn't simply socialism that destroyed Venezuela, in fact it was mostly reliance on oil for nearly all of the countries GDP that tanked them.

I note she didn't disagree when he said that many other socialist countries are doing well, just harped on that this one bad example of dictatorial socialism proves socialism is a failure....I guess Somalia and Haiti doubly prove that capitalism is an utter failure then? *facepalm

I'm sorry, but a claim isn't evidence.
There are African countries where there may not be gun rights, but neither are there restrictions, mainly because there's barely government. Armed tyrannical groups have still managed to seize control, even though the populace was moderately well armed. Somalia comes to mind. The same happened repeatedly in central America and South America in the past.

So I disagree it's impossible, but it is more difficult.

Here's a Canadian example:

http://nationalpost.com/news/canada/aly-hindy-salaheddin-islamic-centre

A mosque who's former founder has gone off to lead a team of Al Qaeda linked suicide bombers in Iraq. The mosque Ohmar Khadr's father brought their family to before relocating them to fight for Bin Laden in Pakistan. The mosque attended by the leaders of the largest terrorist ring Canada has broken up thus far. Other members have gone off to join terrorists in Somalia and Egypt.

The question of should we be setting up some manner of legal accountability for an organization that is clearly idealogically supporting these things isn't a clear and obvious, nope, nothing can be done. At least not any more than nope, nothing can be done is clearly the answer to the Vegas shootings.

In some cases, you're right. In others, not. Our treatment of natives is anything but consistent. Some reservations here are normal towns, others would stand out in Somalia.
The assumptions about crime, and statistics, sound similar to here in Northern California.

Well, I did get the count right. I'm even wondering if the "real count" (as in CIA run missions too) is more around 10-14 (depending on how active we are in SA and Africa, besides Somalia; potentially Eastern Europe like Turkey--even if they're in NATO, basically border stuff--and theUkraine--or around it; and SE Asia...it depends on the roles of other Intelligence Agencies AND other NATO countries...) right now...

I'm basically done with defending WikiLeaks as well, after the shit they pulled with the leaks of Turkish data. Completely irresponsible, that one.

However, WikiLeaks doesn't need credibility -- the data does. And the data they published vis-á-vis Clinton/Podesta/DNC is, as of now, solid. There was one fake document, but that was shown to have been injected by someone other than WL.

"Strong bias" -- oh, I do have a strong bias. Plural, as in biases, actually. For instance, I'm disinclined to take anything the US intelligence agencies say at face value, given how they manufactured more than one casus belli. I don't put much weight into (un-)official statements in general, but especially since all the misinformation they spread about issues like the coup in Honduras or the actions of Nazi militias in Ukraine.

In this particular case, however, my argument is much simpler: Occam's razor seems much more likely than malicious intent. Propaganda outlets on both sides are run by people. Maybe the propaganda outlet Sputnik intentionally twisted the content of email, or maybe they just fucked up, like people are wont to do. Maybe someone intentionally fed Trump this bad info, maybe his people are just as incompetent as he is.

There are too many parts in this that include people who have more than once proven themselves to be utterly incompetent, or in complete ignorance of even the concept of truth. I don't think Trump gives a shit about truth or facts, he strikes me as the typical blowhard who spouts whatever shit comes to mind, and spins stories on the fly like a 4-year-old when caught red-handing.

No need for a conspiracy there, with all this incompetence, naiveté and plain disregard for facts.

So when they keep on pushing the Russian angle in this, it just seems like a desperate attempt to conjure up the old unifying enemy. Why worry about Russian propaganda when there's plenty on FOX and MSNBC/CNN? Why worry about Russian hackers when you accept the unbelievably insecure method of eletronic votes, partly without paper trails, and completely controlled by private companies?

It's just very strange to an outsider like me to see them focus on perceived external influences when the internals are a complete clusterfuck. And this presidential election is the biggest clusterfuck I've seen in 30 years, which doesn't mean much, admittedly.

That said, we can't just be looking at it from the outside with binoculars, not when people are back to full-blown Cold War rhetoric. When the ruling class in the US and/or the ruling class in Russia start their pissing contests and other forms of grandstanding, it's usually brown people who pay the price, like they have been in Syria for the last couple of years. And Libya. And Yemen. And Somalia. And Afghanistan, And Iraq. And Pakistan.

Personally, all the rhetoric about "standing up to Russian aggression" and similar nonsense makes me keenly aware that the bridge just outside my hometown was constructed with a shaft to place explosives in, to slow down advancing Soviet troops... so yes, I would very much like to bitch-slap all these warmongerers on both sides, but particularly the ones in the US since they are currently the ones racking up the highest death toll.

Edit: I should have made it clearer. Yes, WL is absolutely biased against Clinton and they do seem to act in support of Trump. Assange in particular. Which bums me out to no end, since I actually met the guy in person when they presented WL at the 26C3.

"[the] world is actually healthier, wealthier, better educated, more tolerant, less violent than it has ever been."

Not in places like Afghanistan, Libya, Jemen, Syria, Iraq, Somalia, Lebanon, downtown Chicago, Detroit or Cleveland. Not in Greece. And I'm not entirely sure it's a better place for the hundreds of millions of Chinese who left their rural areas to become work nomads. Also not sure about the all the millions of people in Africa whose livelihood gets crushed by subsidised produce/corn from the West. Not sure about all the Indian farmers who are driven into suicide by the monopoly powers of seed suppliers. Not sure about India as a whole, now suffering from the third year in a row of a belated monsoon and horrific drought.

"Democracy means you don't everything you want, when you want it, all the time" ... "and occasionally comprise, and stay principled, but recognise that it's a long march towards progress"

He talks the talk, but even for a center-right guy, he doesn't walk the walk. Principles went out the window in Gitmo. Principles went out the window when the drivers behind the illegal war of aggression in Iraq were not prosecuted in accordance with the Nuremberg Principles. Principles went out the window when carpet surveillance pissed all over the Constitution. Principles went out the window when US military forces aid Al-Qaeda affiliates in Syria just because they oppose Assad. Even mentioning principles in the face of the gruesome, drone-driven terror campaigns in at least half a dozen countries makes me want to vomit.

And don't get me started on compromise. If you ban single-payer and drop the public option before negotiations begin, that's not compromise. That's theatre meant to mislead us plebs while you add an additional layer of "market" to an already dysfunctional market, which ends up profiting the insurance companies yet again.

Straight after submitting my earlier comment, I came across an article on the BBC site that covers this - http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-35966612

The author of that article shares my suspicions about Delaware LLCs (and drags out a quote that "Somalia has slightly higher standards than Wyoming and Nevada."), and also says that those who wanted to avoid taxes preferred other places, like Bermuda, the Cayman Islands or Singapore, and not Panama. FATCA has also made things harder.

Since you brought up unusual punishments, let's take stoning people for adultery (which exists in both the Koran and the Bible). When was the last time someone was stoned to death by a group in the U.S., U.K., Australia, or even Malaysia for adultery? Hundreds of millions of Muslims and Christians around the world seem perfectly fine ignoring that part of their holy texts. Just because something that we find distasteful today is written in the holy text doesn't automatically make the religion evil nor does it suddenly force the practioners to behave like savages.

You need to look at the specifics. Take a look at the countries where stoning actually does still occasionally happen and who actually carries it out: Iran, Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan. Invariably when it does occur it happens in rural areas where there are people who still actually live like it is the middle ages, with extreme poverty and little education to speak of (other than religious). Sure, the book gave them the idea but it wasn't the only factor in play and to ignore these other factors or the fact that honor killings are in fact common across a wide number of cultures with varying religious backgrounds (even the Romans did it) is what would be truly intellectually dishonest.

As for extremists--they exist in all religions including Christianity. It wasn't a mob of Muslims who attacked Charlie Hedbo--it was two deranged individuals. And while some Muslims might have applauded the attack others denounced it, such as the hunderds of thousands of Chechen protestors who who were upset with the cartoons but didn't think violence was the right response (see article here).

Again, it's a complex issue that can't be boiled down to "Islam = Good/Bad." Islam as practiced by ISIS or Boko Haram? Yeah, there's some dark shit going on there. Islam as practiced by average citizens in Kuala Lumpur or Boston? Not so much.

But again, moderate statements based on reason and facts are not what sell books, generate online clicks, or fill lecture halls to capacity.

This comes up a bit short on some issues.

For instance, the ongoing drought in the Euphrates-Tigris area pushed people in Syria into the cities, adding pressure to already overstretched infrastructure.

Also, what about the West's glorious idea to run illegal wars of aggression in Iraq and Libya, which destabilized the entire region? Nevermind Afghanistan or the bombing campaigns in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen. What about the gulag that is Palestine? What about the economic consequences of our obsession with free trade, taking away from developing countries the ability to protect and nurture their own industries? What about our subsidies of farm exports, thereby undercutting local farmers and destroying these peoples' ability to feed themselves?

All of these countries have heaps of issues of their own, but let's not forget that "we" not only didn't help, but actively made things worse in many cases. As cities drain resources from the hinterland, so do our centers of capitalism drain resources from developing nations. They are our hinterland.

Yugoslavia seems to have been forgotten by most people, but the split and following neoliberal treatment left the entire area in a state of instability. Kosovo today is basically run by organised crime.

So, as horrible as Assad's actions are, very few countries are in a position to offer meaningful criticism, having pissed away what little moral authority we had to begin with.

And as far as legal responsibilities towards refugees go, I'd say after torture, wars of aggression, global espionage, a stateless people in Europe (Roma/Sinti), destruction of a society (Greece), an openly xenophobic regime (Hungary), etc, it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that "rights" are meaningless unless actively enforced by someone with the required amount of power.

Look at Calais, look at Lesbos, look at Lampedusa, and tell me all about our European morals and values...

Written by the grandson of a man whose family fled from Silesia in '45 with nothing but two bags and walked all the way to Lower Saxony on foot.

Other than Yugoslavia and Czechslovakia there is the split of Sudan, name changes for Benin/Dahomey, Myanmar/Burma. Many are included as countries that are in fact possessions of other countries. (Puerto Rico, Guam, Bermuda, French Guiana). The Caribean is pointed to as a country but the actual countries of the region are left out mostly (Dominica, St. Kitts & Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Antigua & Barbuda etc). Like I said in my comment I'm sure this wasn't intended to be an absolutely accurate listing even for 1995 and things were included to make the song work. Gaum is rhymed with San Juan and neither one is a country. What can I say, I'm a trivia player whose strong suit is Geography. And don't get me started on places like South Ossetia, Nagorno Karabakh, Nakhchivan, Transnistria. People can't even agree on how to spell them let alone whether they qualify as independent countries. And I shouldn't forget Somalia, Somaliland and Puntland.

"I didn't think I would ever be in position that I would ever have to take somebody else's life"

That's the opening quote, from somebody in the military flying armed drone strikes. I am gonna call that unrealistic expectations, the army and military are not about negotiating with the enemy, their purpose is the threat of violence and death should negotiations fail. If you don't expect taking a life to be part of military operations, you didn't understand the entire concept of a military.

Then it's compounded, with this gem of a quote:
"I thought we were trying to rebuild their democracy"
Where did there exist a democracy in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Yemen or anywhere else he might have been flying a drone? Violent, repressive military dictatorships and stateless anarchy were the precursors.

Somewhere in between the cries to kill all Muslims and the Chomsky like claims that everything is the fault of the West is a middle ground I wish people would pay attention to and discuss.

There are parts of the world that are completely lawless, and for all intents and purposes have NO government despite the land itself falling within declared national borders. Tribal Pakistan and Afghanistan, as well as many African states like Yemen and Somalia are relevant examples. There are powerful non-state organizations waging war from this regions. Al Qaeda and the TTP being only the most popular examples, Al-Shabab and Boko-Haram are others. These non-state entities are pushing ideologies that are not simply counter to western values, but that violate all UN agreed notions for basic human rights.

The question isn't drones good or drones bad. It isn't America good or America bad. It's not even killing good or killing bad. That's all just propaganda.

The real question is when powerful non state actors wage war with the declared goal of revoking many globally upheld human rights, how do we respond? The idea that drones should never be part of that answer seems equally facile to the idea that they always should be.