The GOP / RNC

[Kryptonic]

It also brings up another issue…. How old is too old for these politicians? These old, crusty bastards are running this country into the ground with their old money.

[Mori Chu]

I don't think we'll see real change to the political process in this country until we push for a change such as ranked-choice voting aka instant run-off.

[Nodack]

I don’t even know what that is. Age and term limits would be a start. Still, it seems big money runs the country anyway.

Our Supreme Court is a great example. Their name placards all say “Honorable judge” before their names as if they were beyond corruption. Then they accept vacations, tuitions, houses from billionaires who want them to vote a certain way and those judges see absolutely nothing dishonorable about it. You know deep down they know it’s wrong, They just don’t care. Money means more to them than honor.

There are a lot more lobbyists than there are politicians in Washington. Federal lobbying spending reaches $4.1 billion in 2022 4.1 Billion spent trying to influence politicians in just one year. Exactly where does that money go?

The Supreme Court ruled corporations are people and therefore their big money donations can buy politicians.

I don’t think we will see a change in this country until 300 million Americans demand it.

[JeremyG]

I don't think we'll see real change to the political process in this country until we push for a change such as ranked-choice voting aka instant run-off.

Yes, ranked-choice voting would be excellent for our country. But it could be bad news for the two big parties, which means they will do everything they can for it to not catch on.

[Mori Chu]

I don’t even know what that is. Age and term limits would be a start. Still, it seems big money runs the country anyway.

Ranked-choice voting is a cool system where, on election day instead of just voting for one candidate, you can vote for as many/few as you want, in a ranked order. So for example, if there are three candidates running A, B, and C, and I sort of like A but really like B but hate C, I can submit a ballot of (B, A). B is my first choice, A is my second.

Then when the votes are counted, they gather them all up and count only the first-choice votes. So mine above would count for B. If any candidate has > 50% of the vote, they win. If not, they figure out which candidate has the FEWEST votes, eliminate that person, then gather all the ballots for that person, and move them on to their next ranked choice.

The idea of ranked-choice voting is that you can support more than 2 parties easily. If you are more of a conservative Republican but really like the Libertarian in a given election, you can vote for that Libertarian first and the Republican second. Or something like that. Voting for the 3rd party candidate is not "throwing away" your vote, because if the longshot candidate loses, your vote just rolls over to another candidate you also like.

[Nodack]

Thanks

[Mori Chu]

Amazing.

[Nodack]

It’s time for McConnell, Feinstein and Biden to retire. It’s time for Trump to be banished to a small deserted island with Gilligan.

[Superbone]

It’s time for McConnell, Feinstein and Biden to retire. It’s time for Trump to be banished to a small deserted island with Gilligan.

And then who represents the Democrats?

[Nodack]

Harris is VP. She would be the first female President. If it happens before the election, Dems would have to pick someone and it probably wouldn’t be her. If it happens after the election and Biden wins, it’s Harris for a whole term.

She isn’t my first choice. I would vote for her if it came down to her or Trump. A old three legged dog with rabies would get my vote before voting for Trump. I would hope she would make a good President. I just don’t know.

[Superbone]

I hear a lot of people say they have a problem with Harris but they’re usually vague on the reasons. I haven’t read everything she’s said or done but I have no problems with her. But you’re right, I’d vote for a head of lettuce before Trump.

[virtual9mm]

I hear a lot of people say they have a problem with Harris but they’re usually vague on the reasons. I haven’t read everything she’s said or done but I have no problems with her. But you’re right, I’d vote for a head of lettuce before Trump.

I used to give money to her Senate campaigns. San Francisco's current state is a liability since London Breed is her protégé.

[Nodack]

Have been a lot of places but, I have never been to San Francisco. It looks like a beautiful city. All I have heard the past several years is how horrible it is there. Homeless people everywhere defecating on all the sidewalks and crime off the charts. I suspect it isn’t as bad as it’s portrayed.

[Nodack]

Found a decent article talking about San Fran and it’s crime and drug problems. Short synopsis. San Francisco is expensive. They built a bunch of office buildings and a lot of them sit empty because a lot of tech people are now working from home. Stores like Nordstrom are closing but not so much due to crime but do to the same reason malls across the country are closing. People don’t go out to shop anymore. They buy online. There are a lot of homeless people living in tent cities. Rule #1. The poorer you are, the more likely you will commit a crime or do drugs. A lot of people aren’t able to grasp this point. Putting them in jail won’t solve anything. Putting them on busses and shipping them to another place also solves nothing except to maybe make them someone else’s problem.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/03/politics ... index.html

[Nodack]

DeSantis suspends Democratic state attorney for ‘neglect of duty’
https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watc ... t-of-duty/
Worrell blasted DeSantis’s decision to suspend her at a press conference held later on Wednesday morning, calling the Florida governor a “weak dictator.”
“If we are mourning anything this morning, it is the loss of democracy,” she said. “I am your duly elected state attorney for the Ninth Judicial Circuit and nothing done by a weak dictator can change that. This is an outrage.”

This is not the first time DeSantis has suspended a state attorney. Last year, he suspended Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren for “neglect of duty” after the prosecutor refused to enforce bans on abortion and transgender surgeries.

[Mori Chu]

Found a decent article talking about San Fran and it’s crime and drug problems. Short synopsis. San Francisco is expensive. They built a bunch of office buildings and a lot of them sit empty because a lot of tech people are now working from home. Stores like Nordstrom are closing but not so much due to crime but do to the same reason malls across the country are closing. People don’t go out to shop anymore. They buy online. There are a lot of homeless people living in tent cities. Rule #1. The poorer you are, the more likely you will commit a crime or do drugs. A lot of people aren’t able to grasp this point. Putting them in jail won’t solve anything. Putting them on busses and shipping them to another place also solves nothing except to maybe make them someone else’s problem.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/03/politics ... index.html

SF is a cool city, but it has some problems. The cost of living is absolutely insane, mostly due to the tech boom. Now with COVID and its aftermath, fewer employees go in to their SF offices to work, so the real estate is losing money. The entire economy of the city changed, driving out the middle class, artists, folks who used to make the city thrive. It's now a bunch of rich tech bros, Ubers, and Doordash delivery. Folks who watch Fox think SF is like a warzone filled with drugs and crime; I honestly think that's way overblown. I've been there tons of times and don't think it is noticeably less safe than any other city center. In fact I think most of the crime numbers have gone down in recent years. I wouldn't walk down dark alleys at night or whatever, but I wouldn't do that in Tucson or Seattle, either.

There is a huge homeless problem, as you mentioned. There are like these entire blocks of tents and homeless camps; it's pretty bad. There is a real divide between folks who want to raid and destroy the camps, and folks who want to show lots of patience and tolerance for the "unhoused." And as you say it can lead to crime and other problems. There's no easy solution.

I think Fox and most Republican media does a horrible job covering SF. Ask any Fox viewer what SF is like, they'll say there is pee/poo all over the ground, there are used drug needles to step on, crime, broken windows, stores closing. That's just ridiculous, the kind of thing you'd say if you had never been there. Fox will make it a huge story when some store like Walgreens closes. It's usually just lack of business, since the rent is so crazy high there, if your store in the city isn't thriving you need to close it. Not some graffiti or broken window. It is true that sometimes a store owner will SAY they're leaving SF from the crime, but that is usually some Republican-ass store owner who's just trying to fuel a narrative. Go look at the actual stats and often the store didn't even face any crime problems, the guy just says that because he knows it will get attention, and it sounds better than, "My business failed."

Maybe SF will come back closer to how it used to be, if all the tech offices don't work out. I know a lot of folks lament the changes that have happened to the culture of the city and wish it were more like it was 30-40 years ago.

[Nodack]

I just had a long conversation over this. Times change. Sometimes big changes come to a city and they have to reinvent themselves. I think most of what you said is true. I think there is some truth to both narratives. Did the businesses shut down because of Covid, crime, insurance prices, lack of foot traffic or people just going somewhere else because of the bad press?

San Francisco decided to not prosecute shoplifting and petty crimes so the police stopped arresting people for shoplifting and petty crimes. That made it legal to steal and vandalize and some people have taken full advantage of that. I myself don’t think that was a good idea. Progressive is one thing. That is just bad.

Another thing they did was not arrest people for doing drugs in public. People stoned out of their minds sitting on the sidewalk hallucinating is a bad look for tourists. I heard they now have made areas they can go to to do their drugs that are out of site and monitored for safety. That is a good idea. They also have people walking around downtown to assist and monitor things. They aren’t the police. They answer questions from tourists and will call the police if need be.

You are right. The right portrays San Francisco as a crime ridden poo covered hell hole because Dems run it. When they mention a city they want to insult they first say it’s Dem run city. FOX does it every time. And every time FOX mentions Biden’s name it’s preceded by “The Biden Crime Family”. Trump is actually in multiple criminal trials and CNN or MSNBC never say “The Trump Crime Family” when talking about Trump.

San Francisco has its problems. Some of them self inflicted. Cons like Dems will always try to score political points and embellish their points for maximum effect.

[Nodack]

Watching the GOP Presidential race unfold has been interesting. Trump is clearly two miles ahead of everyone and so far most of the other candidates aside from Christy have treated Trump with kid gloves. Lately Pence and DeSantis have started to get into it with Trump. I have a feeling this race is about to get ugly between Trump and some of his challengers.

[Mori Chu]

The thing is, none of them can win the primary without going after Trump hard. But if they do that, they'll divide the base and lose the general. I don't think any non Trump candidate has a path to winning.

[Kryptonic]

We really need him to be removed from the GOP equation so we can see someone else, with marginally better ethical standing rise to the top. Unfortunately, Desantis would be the next one up. Too bad someone like Liz Cheney won’t run.