leh-nerd skin-erd

My god your posts just scream hipster doofus!

First, I want to suggest that you and I would likely agree on a lot of issues, but I feel like I'm coming to these moments of clarity later in life that shape the way I look at all this. At the same time, I'm acutely aware of all the things I don't know on a macro-geo-political-economic level...and increasingly feel like those who claim they do are mostly full of ****. I don't mind paying taxes, in fact, I think it's my duty to contribute to the greater good. To what level is the question, I think. A sensible place to start on what's "fair" (a political marketing phrase if there ever was one) or "reasonable" really starts with a deep dive into whether or not we are anywhere near efficient in the use of the massive volumes of money rolling through the system. Spoiler alert--I think the American tax payer has been getting bamboozled forever. I think the tax situation is out of control and while Trump may appear quite brutish and crass in approach--and there surely is an ugliness about it--when you have a system that feeds itself the way ours does, that's probably what's necessary. I do agree we hear an awful lot about how someone else, the other guy, the rich, isn't doing his part. I saw the Harris campaign partnering with lots of billionaires and multi-millionaires under the guise of the rich paying more...but not one of them has actually seemed to pony up as is their right as an American citizen. That's why I wanted to go the direct route and ask you what you would be comfortable contributing now, at this time. I'm +50, have lived a good life, contributed to the greater good and feel pretty good about where I am at. I don't feel any compulsion whatsoever towards shouldering the blame for political decisions made over the decades I've been around, and respectfully reject your insinuation that I owe any great debt beyond what I have offered thus far. That said--if the government in all it's forms is truly beyond reproach, and the only sensible solution is for me as one of the silver sneaker crowd to pony up another percent or three, I'd be happy to oblige. For now though, I'm a hard pass. I've got you marked down for $7,500.

I was in a dance marathon in college. 24 hours of reckless rhythm and two-left-footedness. I believe this extended yapfest will move Booker as close to the Obama mystique as my experience moved me to the status of Pat Swayze in Dirty Dancing.

How much can we put you down for, Andy?

Ironically, 19 hours of virtual non-stop chit chat from Sen Booker and no time for "Hey, remember....no guns!". https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/04/01/congress/cory-booker-staffer-arrested-00263354 Capitol Police arrested a staffer for Sen. Cory Booker for on charges of carrying a pistol without a license, the department announced Tuesday. Authorities arrested the staffer, named by Capitol Police as Kevin Batts, Monday evening after Batts told officers outside the Senate galleries he was armed, the department said. Batts had been led by Booker around security screening at a Senate office building earlier in the day, according to the department.

Absolutely fascinating to watch, and seeing this poser scramble to block the testimony was pretty funny. “Nooooooooooooooooooo”, he was likely doing the math and watching the clock to run it out.

What got you here, I believe, was in large part due to Biden et al going Ultra Left, kicking in doors and raiding houses and seeking to jail his enemies for life. Glad to hear some common sense on the dangerous criminals being deported. As for the impact on the economy if deportations continue, well, I have to go with Americans paying less for eggs through the exploitation of people here in violation of our laws doesn’t leave a warm, fuzzy feeling either.

I'd tell you I'm angered by the reference, but obviously as an aging boomer I was angry before you wrote it.

Bernie Sanders is a d-bag, a guy who has gotten wealthy in govt and serves primarily to scream “Fair share” over and over. Congress will be a better place when this fool retires, at least until the next chump takes his place. I didn’t catch the exchange today, but having watched these things in the past, it sounds like the garden variety open ended gotcha question and the garden variety noncommittal response. 🥱 As for yesterday, I did see that and this crazy haired communist screaming about onesies was about as funny as you see out of this sort of thing. If SNL has a shred of integrity left they’ll do a skit on it this weekend. I also saw the exchange referenced in the meme. Again, classic scripted q and a, the obligatory screaming about yes or no answers, an attempt to answer, and the predictable response. Meanwhile, pharma makes it rain on members of the senate and congress…

It's not political....well, it is, but it isn't...it's human nature. On the bright side, human nature can change. Btw--I grew up in a very nice, blue collar community that was union strong. The vast majority of my friends had parents that were union members (one of both), as were mine. These were everyday Americans trying to figure out how to get through life, and I feel blessed to have had the experiences with them and for the lessons taught. However, by the standards of today, some might be perceived as closed-minded and provincial. The point I'm always mindful of is that then wasn't now, and some of the fiercest critics today would likely have been the most closed-minded and provincial then.

Daz, we've found some common ground here over the past few days and weeks, but if you believe the "GQP" was the only reason the country needed affirmative action/DEI, you haven't been paying attention. The exceptionally powerful labor unions of the past--were they all about diversity and inclusion? Was there outreach to people of color, immigrants from places like Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala? What about Japanese workers--were the unions looking to bring on those people? How about the police departments of the days of old--were they ahead of the curve on this sort of thing? Did they load up on black officers? In democrat strongholds and neighborhoods across the country--were people from different cultures or skin tone accepted and offered a friendly path to assimilation? Come to think of it--was President-emeritus Joe B known for his diversity and inclusion program during his early years in the Senate? The history of our country is the history of civilization--people tend to gravitate toward people who look like them, who sound like them, and who share cultural values with. That was essential to survival, and as a result, employment practices mirrored that philosophy. In that regard, I always felt that affirmative action was a necessary element of the workplace as viewed from a guy who began his career in the mid-1980s. However, I would never fool myself into believing that this was purely a GOP-driven issue--that defies logic.

Thanks--I'll pop over there.

Just wondering your thoughts on how a collision can occur, especially in the area where it happened. Maneuvering aircraft in/around busy air space goes on the pile of things I know nothing about, and the pile is growing.

Andy, it’s silly to reimagine history on this topic. You make it sound as if the Democrat leadership rallied the nation around Trump. That simply did not happen up to, and including comments designed to scare people by then VP candidate Harris. On public officials, please Andy, you’re one of the most decent posters on here imo, but your analysis stops at “they didn’t model perfect behavior”? That’s an absurd understatement. At the time of the mass protests, it was widely accepted that standing within 6 feet of another individual was dangerous. That walking about without a mask on was dangerous. That visiting your family in the house across town was dangerous. That holding the hand of a critically ill loved one as they prepared to depart this life was dangerous. That going to the gym was dangerous, a liquor store less so. Yet..tens of thousands of people traveling the country to march arm and arm was perfectly fine, and a mass inauguration made sense? That’s before we get to dem leaders telling you to hunker down, keep your mouth shut and let people die alone we’re hanging out and partying in defiance of the rules they set in place. You want people to come together as one but fixate on some dopey Fox News reporter and complete it, almost inconceivably write all that off to bad behavior? This was a pandemic of the compliant, and after a while, the compliant started to smell the bs in the air. Pandemic are real, viruses can mutate. We agree. That makes the action of those in leadership positions all the more devastating to the notion of trust in government. Fox News is nothing when compared to what happened on the political level.

It wasn’t a matter of destroyed or not, imo, it’s simply that she has very little credibility left. Between her I’m just Liz from the block and “Imadrink me a beer” moments, her tall takes about dancing with wolves, and the god-awful theatrics today, she brings nothing to the table. When she quizzed the nominee about big pharma money in Washington, the crowd laughed when RFK sarcastically responded along the lines of “Wait…you’re worried about big pharma and me?!”. She was…irrelevant, like milk that’s past its expiration date.