The Goat Pen

hedge wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 11:38 am I wouldn't say Trump was ever a Team Blue hero. His ranting about the Central Park Five way back in the 80's showed his true colors and certainly the progressive wing of Team Blue was never going to forget that, nor even less extreme factions within Team Blue. Bottom line is that Trump has always been an attention-seeking dolt. Maybe a more or less harmless dolt (until he became president, anyway), but an unmitigated, unrepentant dolt nonetheless. That's always been my main beef with Trump, and really, anybody who has followed his "career," however peripherally, recognized that very early on...

Well he was a media hero, and the members of the media are mostly #TeamBlue. Even as they villify him, they use him as the biggest, most popular media sensation maybe ever. They've managed to turn "how you feel about Donald Trump" into the single most important question anyone has to ask about themselves in this generation. It's literally the crux upon which our entire society is turning. They would not hesitate to bring him back and use him. I might even bet that he's on TV being interviewd by somebody within 5 minutes of the first time he says something inflammatory about a republican, which is definitely gonna happen at some point.

I hope and pray that Trump, for whatever grifty reason (or b/c he thinks it will keep him out of prison or from having to go thru the process even if he get acquitted) does run in 2024. It will be epic seeing what lengths he will go to to smear DeSantis, and I'd really like to see what DeSantis comes up with to counter it. That's the one thing we haven't seen, a legitimate Trumpy republican taking on Trump aggressively. Romney, et al., don't count, they can be discounted as RINO's (and I'm sure Trump will attempt that with DeSantis if it comes to it, no matter how Trumpy DeSantis is), but it will be fun to finally see some actual internecine mudslinging within the Trump faction of the republican party (which is 95% of the republican party)...

"Well he was a media hero, and the members of the media are mostly #TeamBlue."

My sense was always that he was a media clown, not a hero. He made for good copy (still does), but that doesn't mean he was a hero...

Clown/hero its all the same. The vast majority of these people on TV are themselves clowns. They have a goddamned boner just thinking about what it would be like to be as big of a clown as Trump.

Romney was an excellent Republican candidate running against a very popular incumbent. It didn't matter what Willard Mitt said or didn't say, he wasn't going to beat Obama. The end. And really the only reason why Obama isn't President today is the 22nd Amendment. He is still a very young man to be President.

Trump endorsed Romney in 2012. Trump was very pro-Romney in 2012. It didn't matter, Obama was unbeatable. That is probably why Trump didn't run in 2012. Why waste his shot?

Its only been since the then former Massachusetts Governor Romney has become Senator Romney of Utah, that Willard Mitt has begun to understand how important illegal immigration is to the GOP base. He had no idea (none at all) until he became Senator. With the border in crisis since Jan 20 of 2021, you should have seen some of his senate inquiry questions.

aTm wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 12:03 pm The vast majority of these people on TV are themselves clowns. They have a goddamned boner just thinking about what it would be like to be as big of a clown as Trump.

I won't dispute that...

Romney knows what immigrants can do to a place. I mean, look at what the Mormons did to Utah...

hedge wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 12:09 pm Romney knows what immigrants can do to a place. I mean, look at what the Mormons did to Utah...

Part of his campaign platform in 2012 was his desire to staple a "Green Card" to every Indian/Pakastani/Egyptian/whatever that came to the United States and earned a PhD in computer science at any university. He didn't want them leaving. He wanted them to stay, settle here, work here, and pay income taxes here. Although I totally get it and understand that desire from a common sense aspect, it won him NO VOTES among democrats that he needed to get to switch from Obama to him. None switched because well, abortion is everything to them. Most Obama voters have no idea what Computer Science even means. What Romney needed to do (to win) is increase the GOP base and get people who didn't vote to vote for him. His PhD Green Card policy was not going to help him there either. To increase the base, you restrict immigration.

Well ain't that the fucking kiss of death. Shut up IB.

rat I really don't understand your anger with me. I am on topic. I have said nothing personal to anyone. My political points are logical. what is the problem?

I hate you

hate is a strong word rat. You would really reserve that much negative emotion for someone you have never met, will likely never meet, and just chats in a blog with you from time to time? What did I ever do to you? Why am I that important to you such that you would feel anything other than "indifference" for me?

I just do. Carry on

The GOP was already against Romney, that foundation was laid by McCain

Both of them were carpet baggers (just like Hillary) and were classic RINO - hell Mitt might have been the inspiration for the term RINO.

No one was going to elect McCain admitting he wanted a democratic VP and Mitt who implemented the template for Obamacare as a republican.

The country wasn't ready for Trump yet but the GOP national committee wasn't listening to the heartland - especially on immigration. They'd see polls where 80% of the country wanted to curb immigration and clearly there was demand for manufacturing.

What should really piss republicans off, especially Ted Cruz, is all Trump did was hire some guys to watch Fox News and listen to Rush Limbaugh to develop his platform planks, and then he took it from there with his over the top invective. As soon as Obama talked about how Trayvon Martin could be his son, then Trump knew the the door was wide open for someone to come in, rebrand an old Reagan tag line into Make America Great Again with the implied sentiment that New York and California progressives are ruining this country. The Dems and the media played right into it - hell SNL had Trump host and non stop coverage of BLM burning down streets. Hillary goes to West Virginia and tells them coal is dead. They gave Trump the presidency.

Trump did a great thing for this country in shaking Washington out of its routine. Now, at least for the time being, politicians have to work to connect to their base, and both sides are fractured where one guy can't be everything to everyone. God knows Biden is trying putting gays and trannies up in office as if that is going to appease the progressives and make them forget about student loans, universal healthcare or racial equality.

I doubt you'll ever see two old white guys on the ticket for either side again - and having a fractured base is a good thing for both sides. Everyone has a voice, no one has power.

eCat wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 2:02 pm The GOP was already against Romney, that foundation was laid by McCain

Both of them were carpet baggers (just like Hillary) and were classic RINO - hell Mitt might have been the inspiration for the term RINO.

No one was going to elect McCain admitting he wanted a democratic VP and Mitt who implemented the template for Obamacare as a republican.

The best man at my wedding, his mother was one of the Massachusetts state reps who worked very closely with Mitt on Massachusetts Romneycare. They had me over for Christmas dinner and we started talking about Romneycare at a dollars and cents standpoint. She freely admitted, Romneycare was nothing more than a "bachelor tax" that was created to target the "invincibles" (the young bachelor professionals who work at Fidelity Investments in Boston all week as "high-paid-temps" and then risk a broken leg to go ski a double-black-diamond in New Hampshire every weekend with no healthcare coverage.) 94% of the people of Massachusetts already had health insurance and the Romney mandate meant nothing to them. What she wanted and what Mitt Romney wanted is those 6% (the "invincibles") to be FORCED to buy something that the state legislature knew they weren't going to use (health coverage) because these young men were not married, had no children, and would never go to the doctor and put in a claim. BUT by FORCING them to buy something they couldn't use, the other 94% who did have coverage, their premiums could go down ever slightly because the insurers could afford it by getting the "invincibles" covered.

Largely, democrats do not give a fuck about pissing off young, childless, bachelor professionals, because voting their own interests means voting Republican. The young bachelors of Massachusetts that DID vote democrat, well, it was either because legalized abortion was sacred to them (it is to many men there, sadly) OR because they were brought up catholic and were taught that if you ever vote Republican, you are going to hell. So that is why the entirely democrat state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was okay with a "bachelor tax." It didn't cost them any votes that they would or wouldn't be getting, either way. Romney was okay with it because he figured he was going to get the votes of the 6% whether they were forced to buy something he knew they were never going to use, or not. And he wanted cheaper state premiums for the other 94%. But if anyone had actually sat down with Romney and asked him to describe the difference between Romneycare and Obamacare (no one in the media ever did), he would have said that a health care mandate in Massachusetts makes financial sense when 94% of the people who worked for a living already HAD health insurance whereas just 60% (or whatever it is) of the entire working population of the United States had that same healthcare coverage. Massachusetts was the exception, not the rule. Massachusetts was special.

eCat wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 2:02 pmThe country wasn't ready for Trump yet but the GOP national committee wasn't listening to the heartland - especially on immigration. They'd see polls where 80% of the country wanted to curb immigration and clearly there was demand for manufacturing.

What should really piss republicans off, especially Ted Cruz, is all Trump did was hire some guys to watch Fox News and listen to Rush Limbaugh to develop his platform planks, and then he took it from there with his over the top invective.

It was Ann not Rush.

Before he came down the escalator, he had my Ex-Wife send him a signed hard-cover, first print copy, of this:



He read it. He took it. This was his platform. This was how he won the 2016 election.

You all just don't get it. It was the lesser of 2 evils. I don't think most my age care for Biden. He's hopefully just a 4 year calming bridge to someone better. But GOD DAMN is he 100 times better then that shit show circus we just suffered 4 years through. Trump came in a stoked the hate, racism, corruption in politics. Trump came in acting like his dick had no cheese and Republicans lapped it up because no one in there right mind believed he'd actually win. Another 2 evils situation. This past election, Americans who dropped the ball in 16 thinking he would never win came out to vote and fix their mistake. It wasn't stolen. America told Trump to fuck off and go away. And those riding his coattails and beliefs into 2022 are going to get shit on as well.

Republicans today are anti every day America. Anti compromise and anti class. And I don't get what they're bitching about. They created this hell we live in today. Remember, their golden boy said covid would poof, go away. How'd that work? Hedge? 10ac?

I bought my condo 2 years ago in March for 140. I'm listing it the 1st for 200 to open. It will go up. Inflation is worldwide. Shortages are worldwide. Employees are telling employers fuck you and moving on to where they are happy and appreciated. Labor has the upper hand. Between here and Beaufort there's a bunch of construction and when it's done it's going to be awesome. We NEED to rebuild our infrastructure. We are way behind. That costs money. That's fucking reality.

Republicans need to grow the fuck up.

Jungle Rat wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 8:06 pm You all just don't get it.

Alright what did I miss?

Jungle Rat wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 8:06 pmIt was the lesser of 2 evils. I don't think most my age care for Biden. He's hopefully just a 4 year calming bridge to someone better. But GOD DAMN is he 100 times better then that shit show circus we just suffered 4 years through. Trump came in a stoked the hate, racism, corruption in politics. Trump came in acting like his dick had no cheese and Republicans lapped it up because no one in there right mind believed he'd actually win. Another 2 evils situation. This past election, Americans who dropped the ball in 16 thinking he would never win came out to vote and fix their mistake. It wasn't stolen. America told Trump to fuck off and go away. And those riding his coattails and beliefs into 2022 are going to get shit on as well.

ok

Jungle Rat wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 8:06 pmRepublicans today are anti every day America.

Anti every day America? Really? Republicans are anti every day America? Which of the following would YOU say is every day America?

Build Back Better/Green New Deal
Elimination of the filibuster, because they think they’ll never lose control of the Senate again
Expansion of the Supreme Court
Statehood for the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico
Medicare for All, and/or eliminating private health insurance
Taxpayer-funded abortion on demand
Amnesty and a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants
$2,000 monthly stimulus checks

or

Make the Covid-19 pandemic something that we don’t worry about anymore — like Biden assured the country that he could do, over and over again, in the closing weeks of the 2020 presidential election.
Make sure the kids are going to school, Monday through Friday.
Make sure the kids are learning stuff they actually need to know, instead of this critical race theory propaganda.
Stop inflation.
Get stuff on store shelves again.
Get workers into the unfilled jobs so that not every business has a “Please be patient, we are short-staffed” sign in the window.

Which of those two is every day America rat? Because the Republicans are most certainly PRO one of them and ANTI the other. Guess which one?

Your comment about your condo and construction tells me that I think you and I know the answer and if you are honest, you will pick the correct selection that is a concern for every day Americans.

That a pos vulture capitalist like Mitt Romney who has destroyed untold number of lives is/was seen as a moderate candidate should tell you everything you need to know about the GOP.

We woke up about an hour ago, the MIF sounds much better, her temp has usually been checking highest when she first wakes up (but usually comes down after an hour or so) but this morning her first reading was 98, which is actually slightly under "normal," but that's good. Maybe the fever has broken. She sounds better too. Waiting to check her O2 until after she gets up and walks around a bit. Hope I'm not jinxing it, but I think she may have turned the corner. On another bright note, I'm sure everyone will be delighted to hear that my O2 level was at 98 (pulse at 57) shortly after I woke up...