Politics Thread

[GoMuskies]

We've got plenty of oil now. That should be pretty frightening to the Saudis.

[Xville]

We've got plenty of oil now. That should be pretty frightening to the Saudis.

Yeah could be wrong, but arent we the largest oil producer in the world now? Oil should no longer be an excuse for dealing with this stupid region.

[GoMuskies]

We are. We export more than we import, too, although we do still need to continue to import some oil. There's an overall mismatch between the type of crude produced here and the types that U.S. refineries can run.

[Caf]

Yeah could be wrong, but arent we the largest oil producer in the world now? Oil should no longer be an excuse for dealing with this stupid region.

That's true, but unless we exited the global market for it, our additional output can only help lower the price. So while we definitely have more sway over the price, true "energy independence" does not really exist as long as we're using oil.

[boozehound]

maybe the bureaucratic do-nothings we've been electing could also be described as "packs of morons". just a thought

Oh yeah, lots of them were/are definitely morons too. I'm not sure they are on the level of the current morons we have in the White House. I draw a distinction between dysfunctional bureaucracy and full-on reckless stupidity though. The current administration appears to have limited knowledge of the scope of their roles while also having a risk tolerance that (more than) borders on complete recklessness. It might work out, but it also might really really not work out.

Here's an example: Let's say that I work as a Doctor for the VA. I'm not a good Doctor, but I'm not the worst Doctor, and I know how to be a Doctor. I make every decision based on how it impacts the likelihood of me keeping my job. The result is that I don't really do anything out of the ordinary to help anyone (risky), but I also don't do anything wildly negligent to hurt anyone. I'm not advancing my field, but I'm not killing people. Now let's replace him with somebody who is smart, but also has a very high risk tolerance coupled with a massive ego and little knowledge of Medicine (although he has read some books). That is what we have now, IMHO.

[GoMuskies]

How the fuck is Tom Steyer one of the six Democrat candidates to qualify for the last debate before Iowa?!? I mean, I know Trump is President, so any dumb ass thing seems possible, but Tom fucking Steyer?!? Really?

[JTG]

Oh yeah, lots of them were/are definitely morons too. I'm not sure they are on the level of the current morons we have in the White House. I draw a distinction between dysfunctional bureaucracy and full-on reckless stupidity though. The current administration appears to have limited knowledge of the scope of their roles while also having a risk tolerance that (more than) borders on complete recklessness. It might work out, but it also might really really not work out.

Here's an example: Let's say that I work as a Doctor for the VA. I'm not a good Doctor, but I'm not the worst Doctor, and I know how to be a Doctor. I make every decision based on how it impacts the likelihood of me keeping my job. The result is that I don't really do anything out of the ordinary to help anyone (risky), but I also don't do anything wildly negligent to hurt anyone. I'm not advancing my field, but I'm not killing people. Now let's replace him with somebody who is smart, but also has a very high risk tolerance coupled with a massive ego and little knowledge of Medicine (although he has read some books). That is what we have now, IMHO.

The White House may have some morons, but we are not getting pushed around and being forced to pay off a bunch of third world terrorists (billions of $ to Iran) like we were with Barry the Muslim. Also we're nearly energy independent, and lastly my 401K has increased by $68k since Trump took office.

[boozehound]

The White House may have some morons, but we are not getting pushed around and being forced to pay off a bunch of third world terrorists (billions of $ to Iran) like we were with Barry the Muslim. Also we're nearly energy independent, and lastly my 401K has increased by $68k since Trump took office.

This is how I know not to take anything you say seriously. That is some racist shit right there.

[STL_XUfan]

How the fuck is Tom Steyer one of the six Democrat candidates to qualify for the last debate before Iowa?!? I mean, I know Trump is President, so any dumb ass thing seems possible, but Tom fucking Steyer?!? Really?

I can think of about 1.6 billion reasons.

[GoMuskies]

I can think of about 1.6 billion reasons.

Sure, but Bloomberg can't make the debate, and he's at least been a successful politician!