Official Current Affairs & Politics thread

[MrDollarBills]

Meanwhile.....the Dems colluded with the Russians to have the dossier made.

The Dossier was first funded by Republicans who were doing opposition research. Please stop lying.

and there's nothing illegal or wrong with the dossier being made, nor has anything in the dossier been disproved.

Trump dossier and Christopher Steele[edit]
Main article: Donald Trump–Russia dossier
In September 2015, Fusion GPS was hired by The Washington Free Beacon, a conservative political website, to do opposition research on Trump and other Republican presidential candidates. In spring 2016 when Trump had emerged as the probable Republican candidate, the Free Beacon stopped funding investigation into Trump.[27] From April 2016 through October 2016, the law firm Perkins Coie, on behalf of the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee retained Fusion GPS to continue opposition research on Trump.[28][29][30] In June 2016, Fusion GPS retained Christopher Steele, a private British corporate intelligence investigator and former MI-6 agent, to research any Russian connections to Trump. Steele produced a 35-page series of memos from June to December 2016, which became the document known as the Donald Trump–Russia dossier.[28][31] Fusion GPS provided Marc Elias, the lead election lawyer for Perkins Coie, with the resulting dossier and other research documents.[29][30]

Ok so the Clinton campaign paid to have Fusion GPS continue its opposition research on Trump. Research that had dealings with the Russians.

Yes, Republicans started up the dossier, Clinton's team paid for it after they dropped it. And?

You do realize that opposition research on a political candidate is not a crime, correct?

You do realize that there is nothing illegal about Christopher Steele, an MI6 agent, gathering information about a presidential candidate?

Also, do you realize that a Republican Senator is the person who brought the dossier's attention to the FBI?

It's funny how you ignore actual potential crimes and focus on things that aren't even illegal.

[MrDollarBills]

I have no idea who those names that you rambled off are. You seem to know 100x more about alt-right sources than I do. Anyway, as it stands right now the Trump administration have done nothing wrong.

sure you don't. You just parrot the same talking points that those names do, but you somehow....have no idea who any of them are, yet you are clearly up on what goes on in the alt right stratosphere. alright.

4 members of the campaign have been indicted, 2 plead guilty, one is now negotiating to cooperate. but you can continue to believe that no wrong doing connected to Trump has gone on. reality will tell a different tale.

I don't. Why would I lie about this? I don't need to justify anything do you as you are the one that is clearly obsessed with the alt-right, not me. It's no wonder you accuse anybody supporting Trump of being alt-right because that's the alt-world that you live in. Very strange.

I suggest that you quit delving into alt-right sources as it's messing with how you percieve normal people views in the real world.

There is literally nothing normal about your views, which are clearly detached from reality. No wonder you yell out "fake news" any time you come across something that isn't agreeable to you.

It's also funny that you, a fan of former breitbart editor at large Ben Shapiro, is trying to deny the alt right when your views are pretty much the same as theirs, you're up in here talking about MAGA and you sung the praises of Milo Yiannopoulos .

[MrDollarBills]

i'll ask again:

Do you agree with Trump's ideology behind saying that the US shouldn't allow people from African **** hole countries (the same African immigrants who are some of the most highly educated people in this country and are more educated than natural born Americans) and should be letting in people from places like Norway?

Do you happen to understand the underlying sentiment behind that statement?

Do you support that sentiment, since you also support Trump?

also, have you yourself ever been to said **** hole countries to make that assessment?

I already gave my opinion on this and don't need to answer anything more to you. I am not on trial here and you guys need to step back and not accuse anybody not sharing your views as being racist. It is quite disturbing actually.

I'm out, have to teach classes tomorrow morning and need to prep for them. Cheers.

'

You didn't give an opinion, you simply said that "it can't be proven that Trump said this" despite the fact that multiple people including a Republican said that he did indeed say it. You're dodging the question probably because an honest answer would already expose more than you're comfortable with sharing about your views, especially when it comes to non whites, non white countries, etc.

Also, you don't have to share my views, nor do I consider you racist because you don't share my view. However, I'm just pointing out that your views are in lockstep with white nationalist rhetoric. If that makes you uncomfortable, the problem then lies with you, not me.

[shakendfries]

An assault on a poster's character should be a ban-able offense. This thread is a disgusting microcosm of the deterioration of our society. Instead of open-minded dialogue, people have been manipulated into binary thinking and attack anybody that disagrees with their biases that get amplified within the comforts of their echo-chambers. Society is being manipulated into pure blue or red, but deep down most people are varying shades of purple.

The opposing side is not a bunch of racist hillbillies or whiny, entitled snow flakes. They are mostly educated people with unique needs, perspectives and experiences. Don't let the rating seeking media on either side plant seeds of manufactured outrage in your mind. The down turn of society began when the media stopped reporting facts and instead air opinions and editorials under a false sense of "news" legitimacy.

Watch on YouTube

[MrDollarBills]

I already gave my opinion on this and don't need to answer anything more to you. I am not on trial here and you guys need to step back and not accuse anybody not sharing your views as being racist. It is quite disturbing actually.

I'm out, have to teach classes tomorrow morning and need to prep for them. Cheers.

There you have it - 13th Man refuses to deny or denounce supporting racist ideologies, and is more likely than not a racist himself


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

An assault on a poster's character should be a ban-able offense. This thread is a disgusting microcosm of the deterioration of our society. Instead of open-minded dialogue, people have been manipulated into binary thinking and attack anybody that disagrees with their biases that get amplified within the comforts of their echo-chambers. Society is being manipulated into pure blue or red, but deep down most people are varying shades of purple.

The opposing side is not a bunch of racist hillbillies or whiny, entitled snow flakes. They are mostly educated people with unique needs, perspectives and experiences. Don't let the rating seeking media on either side plant seeds of manufactured outrage in your mind. The down turn of society began when the media stopped reporting facts and instead air opinions and editorials under a false sense of "news" legitimacy.

Did something make you uncomfortable in that exchange?

I tend to notice that when people with racist views get called racist for said views, or see someone else who shares their views get called out for them, they get really defensive about it.

you're calling for shakeandfries to be banned for calling 13th a racist, yet you're in here preaching about open mindedness? what if he actually is racist, and refuses to answer the question honestly because it would make it obvious that he is? then what? should shakeandfries be banned for telling the truth?

Also, you may have the luxury and privilege of being able to see things from both sides. That's fine. Many of us do not because that "other side" is expressing ideology and rhetoric that stems from white nationalism, such as "MAGA" and the nonsense that Donald Trump feeds to his base, and it's a legitimate threat to those of us that aren't white.

[13th Man]

sure you don't. You just parrot the same talking points that those names do, but you somehow....have no idea who any of them are, yet you are clearly up on what goes on in the alt right stratosphere. alright.

4 members of the campaign have been indicted, 2 plead guilty, one is now negotiating to cooperate. but you can continue to believe that no wrong doing connected to Trump has gone on. reality will tell a different tale.

I don't. Why would I lie about this? I don't need to justify anything do you as you are the one that is clearly obsessed with the alt-right, not me. It's no wonder you accuse anybody supporting Trump of being alt-right because that's the alt-world that you live in. Very strange.

I suggest that you quit delving into alt-right sources as it's messing with how you percieve normal people views in the real world.

There is literally nothing normal about your views, which are clearly detached from reality. No wonder you yell out "fake news" any time you come across something that isn't agreeable to you.

It's also funny that you, a fan of former breitbart editor at large Ben Shapiro, is trying to deny the alt right when your views are pretty much the same as theirs, you're up in here talking about MAGA and you sung the praises of Milo Yiannopoulos .

Ben Shapiro detatched himself from Breitbart. You realize that you can still agree with some stances from Breitbart and not be a racist right? When did I sing the praises of Milo? I don't listen to him much actually, maybe have caught 1 or 2 of his videos on Youube. I may agree with some of his stuff I may not, same goes for Ann Coulter. All it would mean is that I like some of their ideas. To you, they are Hitler, to others they make sense. Obviously, you will never accept that though, that there are normal people that have differing ideaologies, that doesn't mean that they are bad people.

It's so funny that you guys sit there and paint me a racist when I just came back from teaching a class full of multicutured people. I interact with people from all walks of life every single day through my teachings. I'm not going to post the picture but my facebook profile is me with 3 of my closest friends, a Loatian, a Lebanese and a Black guy who originated fron Congo....I'm just laughing my ass off right now because you guys are clueless. My black friend despises BLM btw, he realizes that it's a racist organization in itself.

Just because I, along with half of the United States, don't share your views means that we are racist right? Let's not stop there, we are Hitler too just like Trump. Note that Fox news has the highest ratings on TV, so I guess all of those people are detached from reality too right? Because they don't share the views that you do??

[13th Man]

I already gave my opinion on this and don't need to answer anything more to you. I am not on trial here and you guys need to step back and not accuse anybody not sharing your views as being racist. It is quite disturbing actually.

I'm out, have to teach classes tomorrow morning and need to prep for them. Cheers.

There you have it - 13th Man refuses to deny or denounce supporting racist ideologies, and is more likely than not a racist himself


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

An assault on a poster's character should be a ban-able offense. This thread is a disgusting microcosm of the deterioration of our society. Instead of open-minded dialogue, people have been manipulated into binary thinking and attack anybody that disagrees with their biases that get amplified within the comforts of their echo-chambers. Society is being manipulated into pure blue or red, but deep down most people are varying shades of purple.

The opposing side is not a bunch of racist hillbillies or whiny, entitled snow flakes. They are mostly educated people with unique needs, perspectives and experiences. Don't let the rating seeking media on either side plant seeds of manufactured outrage in your mind. The down turn of society began when the media stopped reporting facts and instead air opinions and editorials under a false sense of "news" legitimacy.

Well said. it's sad that people try to generalize and paint anyone that don't agree with them with the same brush.

"You like Shapiro". That means you must know everything about the alt-right and share all of their views!

I didn't even know what Breitbart was until recently yet I'm being accused of being their biggest fan boy. What a joke.

I like Jordan Peterson because he continually exposes the flawed mentality of the left. All they do is cry, whine, blame others then resort to violence as a last resort. I'm a big believer of taking full accountability for your life and for your actions, not taking handouts and blame your demise on everybody else. Jordan Peterson is the man, and I wish that I had his words of wisdom when I was younger, I would have grown up much faster that's for sure.

[13th Man]

The Dossier was first funded by Republicans who were doing opposition research. Please stop lying.

and there's nothing illegal or wrong with the dossier being made, nor has anything in the dossier been disproved.

Trump dossier and Christopher Steele[edit]
Main article: Donald Trump–Russia dossier
In September 2015, Fusion GPS was hired by The Washington Free Beacon, a conservative political website, to do opposition research on Trump and other Republican presidential candidates. In spring 2016 when Trump had emerged as the probable Republican candidate, the Free Beacon stopped funding investigation into Trump.[27] From April 2016 through October 2016, the law firm Perkins Coie, on behalf of the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee retained Fusion GPS to continue opposition research on Trump.[28][29][30] In June 2016, Fusion GPS retained Christopher Steele, a private British corporate intelligence investigator and former MI-6 agent, to research any Russian connections to Trump. Steele produced a 35-page series of memos from June to December 2016, which became the document known as the Donald Trump–Russia dossier.[28][31] Fusion GPS provided Marc Elias, the lead election lawyer for Perkins Coie, with the resulting dossier and other research documents.[29][30]

Ok so the Clinton campaign paid to have Fusion GPS continue its opposition research on Trump. Research that had dealings with the Russians.

Yes, Republicans started up the dossier, Clinton's team paid for it after they dropped it. And?

You do realize that opposition research on a political candidate is not a crime, correct?

You do realize that there is nothing illegal about Christopher Steele, an MI6 agent, gathering information about a presidential candidate?

Also, do you realize that a Republican Senator is the person who brought the dossier's attention to the FBI?

It's funny how you ignore actual potential crimes and focus on things that aren't even illegal.

The point of the FISA memo getting released was to expose how the dems did not follow proper protocol to obtain the search warrant. Their manipulation of the high-ranking officials within the FBI and the Justice System undermines the integrity of the system.

[13th Man]

i'll ask again:

Do you agree with Trump's ideology behind saying that the US shouldn't allow people from African **** hole countries (the same African immigrants who are some of the most highly educated people in this country and are more educated than natural born Americans) and should be letting in people from places like Norway?

Do you happen to understand the underlying sentiment behind that statement?

Do you support that sentiment, since you also support Trump?

also, have you yourself ever been to said **** hole countries to make that assessment?

I already gave my opinion on this and don't need to answer anything more to you. I am not on trial here and you guys need to step back and not accuse anybody not sharing your views as being racist. It is quite disturbing actually.

I'm out, have to teach classes tomorrow morning and need to prep for them. Cheers.

'

You didn't give an opinion, you simply said that "it can't be proven that Trump said this" despite the fact that multiple people including a Republican said that he did indeed say it. You're dodging the question probably because an honest answer would already expose more than you're comfortable with sharing about your views, especially when it comes to non whites, non white countries, etc.

Also, you don't have to share my views, nor do I consider you racist because you don't share my view. However, I'm just pointing out that your views are in lockstep with white nationalist rhetoric. If that makes you uncomfortable, the problem then lies with you, not me.

Again, I don't need to qualify anything to you guys, even though I just did in an earlier post. I don't work for Trump and don't need to defend his every action, go ask Sarah Sanders or something. Imo, the media made a huge deal out of heresay,

[13th Man]

I'm willing to bet that I come in close contact with more people of various races than anyone here on a daily basis. I just got back from teaching maybe 40 different people and spend an extra half hour conversing with them individually afterwards. This is a daily thing for me and I love connecting with people in real life. I'm just glad that I don't teach politics or else I'd have to take lessons from Jordan Peterson on how to deal with the over-sensitive people of today's generation.

It's hilarious to be accused of being a racist on a message board when you guys sit in your little bubble and hate on everybody that does not share the same view.

[tonman]

The point of the FISA memo getting released was to expose how the dems did not follow proper protocol to obtain the search warrant. Their manipulation of the high-ranking officials within the FBI and the Justice System undermines the integrity of the system.

This is how misinformation is passed along. The Nunes memo is NOT the "FISA" memo. You have no leg to stand on regarding the memo to be the SOLE source of the FISA. An of course you can't explain how a republican appointed attorney general EXTENDED the request for the FISA warrant for a 4th time. Anyone can state specific facts to make a person's point. When are you going to look at the entirety of the facts?

[shakendfries]

I'm willing to bet that I come in close contact with more people of various races than anyone here on a daily basis. I just got back from teaching maybe 40 different people and spend an extra half hour conversing with them individually afterwards. This is a daily thing for me and I love connecting with people in real life. I'm just glad that I don't teach politics or else I'd have to take lessons from Jordan Peterson on how to deal with the over-sensitive people of today's generation.

It's hilarious to be accused of being a racist on a message board when you guys sit in your little bubble and hate on everybody that does not share the same view.

and yet 13th Man still refuses to deny or denounce supporting racist ideologies, and is more likely than not a racist himself

[13th Man]

The point of the FISA memo getting released was to expose how the dems did not follow proper protocol to obtain the search warrant. Their manipulation of the high-ranking officials within the FBI and the Justice System undermines the integrity of the system.

This is how misinformation is passed along. The Nunes memo is NOT the "FISA" memo. You have no leg to stand on regarding the memo to be the SOLE source of the FISA. An of course you can't explain how a republican appointed attorney general EXTENDED the request for the FISA warrant for a 4th time. Anyone can state specific facts to make a person's point. When are you going to look at the entirety of the facts?

You're right, I got the terms mixed up. Even though the Nunes memo was not the sole source, some character (McCabe?) testified under oath that the FISA warrant would not have been granted if not for this memo. Since this memo was not vetted properly, this entire process comes into question. The memo also confirms that the political origins of the Steele Dossier, that it was bought and paid for by Hillary and the DNC, were not disclosed to the FISA court.

I'm not going to delve deeply into this memo thing. The takeaway here is that the Dems did some funny business with the help of their high level cronies at the FBI and Justice Dept. to get obtain a FISA warrant to spy on Trump's team.

That's all the American people need to know. Obama was able to spy on a Trump team member without following proper protocol which undermines the integrity of the system.

[13th Man]

I'm willing to bet that I come in close contact with more people of various races than anyone here on a daily basis. I just got back from teaching maybe 40 different people and spend an extra half hour conversing with them individually afterwards. This is a daily thing for me and I love connecting with people in real life. I'm just glad that I don't teach politics or else I'd have to take lessons from Jordan Peterson on how to deal with the over-sensitive people of today's generation.

It's hilarious to be accused of being a racist on a message board when you guys sit in your little bubble and hate on everybody that does not share the same view.

and yet 13th Man still refuses to deny or denounce supporting racist ideologies, and is more likely than not a racist himself

Yeah you got me. Because I need to answer everything to you to prove that I am not a racist. I don't work for Trump, go ask Sarah Sanders. I have no idea if he even said that or in what context. I don't trust the MSM, especially CNN so sorry, not going to comment on something I don't have proper info on.

[tonman]

An assault on a poster's character should be a ban-able offense. This thread is a disgusting microcosm of the deterioration of our society. Instead of open-minded dialogue, people have been manipulated into binary thinking and attack anybody that disagrees with their biases that get amplified within the comforts of their echo-chambers. Society is being manipulated into pure blue or red, but deep down most people are varying shades of purple.

The opposing side is not a bunch of racist hillbillies or whiny, entitled snow flakes. They are mostly educated people with unique needs, perspectives and experiences. Don't let the rating seeking media on either side plant seeds of manufactured outrage in your mind. The down turn of society began when the media stopped reporting facts and instead air opinions and editorials under a false sense of "news" legitimacy.

great post and I agree. however, when a person chooses to exercise their freedom of speech, they do make themselves open to criticism which in itself is a form of freedom of speech. Assaulting a person's character is a ban-able offense on this forum, but doesn't quite get the same treatment on say Twitter and especially if the person is say the POTUS?

now the flip side of the "news" media is the fact that there are those who use it as a method to deny or legitimize their actions. if the media is not "legitimate", then whatever they cover will not be "factual" thus there is no checks and balances on people's actions especially if the people who are needing the checks are the ones who run the justice department.

at the end of the day, it is the responsibility of all of us to get as much information as possible so we can make our own decisions. if we limit ourselves to a single source of "news", then we come a willing consumer of a slanted narrative. the problem is not that the country is red vs. blue. the problem is that the people of this country are unwilling to look beyond red vs. blue. if there are only two major parties (a travesty unto itself), the country will always be "red" vs. "blue". it's when "red" is more important than "blue" because "red" is "red" that we get into a stagnant and vitriolic political country.

[tonman]

The point of the FISA memo getting released was to expose how the dems did not follow proper protocol to obtain the search warrant. Their manipulation of the high-ranking officials within the FBI and the Justice System undermines the integrity of the system.

This is how misinformation is passed along. The Nunes memo is NOT the "FISA" memo. You have no leg to stand on regarding the memo to be the SOLE source of the FISA. An of course you can't explain how a republican appointed attorney general EXTENDED the request for the FISA warrant for a 4th time. Anyone can state specific facts to make a person's point. When are you going to look at the entirety of the facts?

You're right, I got the terms mixed up. Even though the Nunes memo was not the sole source, some character (McCabe?) testified under oath that the FISA warrant would not have been granted if not for this memo. Since this memo was not vetted properly, this entire process comes into question and is undermined. The memo also confirms that the political origins of the Steele Dossier, that it was bought and paid for by Hillary and the DNC, were not disclosed to the FISA court.

I'm not going to delve deeply into this memo thing. The takeaway here is that the Dems did some funny business with the help of their cronie high up with the FBI and Justice Dept. to get obtain a FISA warrant to spy on Trump's team. That's all the American people need to know. Obama was able to spy on a Trump team member without following proper protocol which undermines the integrity of the system.

and there is the problem. because you say there is some "funny business" thus "that's all the American people need to know". The American people need to know the truth so they can make up their own mind. The Nunes memo did nothing. Not releasing the Democratic memo represents your statement "that's all the American people need to know". BTW, the FISA warrant passed through 4 different FISA courts. And the warrant DID note that the dossier was paid for by a political entity. Read it. It still does not make the information in the dossier false nor would it prevent any information in it from being used against individuals if criminal activities have been exposed.

The FISA warrant was not against "Trump's team", it was against Carter Page who was already a target of investigation. (I thought Trump's team said Page wasn't an integral part of the campaign???) There was no spying by Obama. He was the President. Foreign espionage kind of fits under his command. And did he not warn Trump not to hire Flynn?

[shakendfries]

I'm willing to bet that I come in close contact with more people of various races than anyone here on a daily basis. I just got back from teaching maybe 40 different people and spend an extra half hour conversing with them individually afterwards. This is a daily thing for me and I love connecting with people in real life. I'm just glad that I don't teach politics or else I'd have to take lessons from Jordan Peterson on how to deal with the over-sensitive people of today's generation.

It's hilarious to be accused of being a racist on a message board when you guys sit in your little bubble and hate on everybody that does not share the same view.

and yet 13th Man still refuses to deny or denounce supporting racist ideologies, and is more likely than not a racist himself

Yeah you got me. Because I need to answer everything to you to prove that I am not a racist. I don't work for Trump, go ask Sarah Sanders. I have no idea if he even said that or in what context. I don't trust the MSM, especially CNN so sorry, not going to comment on something I don't have proper info on.

perhaps you should add this article to your reading list

Read on Twitter

[13th Man]

This is how misinformation is passed along. The Nunes memo is NOT the "FISA" memo. You have no leg to stand on regarding the memo to be the SOLE source of the FISA. An of course you can't explain how a republican appointed attorney general EXTENDED the request for the FISA warrant for a 4th time. Anyone can state specific facts to make a person's point. When are you going to look at the entirety of the facts?

You're right, I got the terms mixed up. Even though the Nunes memo was not the sole source, some character (McCabe?) testified under oath that the FISA warrant would not have been granted if not for this memo. Since this memo was not vetted properly, this entire process comes into question and is undermined. The memo also confirms that the political origins of the Steele Dossier, that it was bought and paid for by Hillary and the DNC, were not disclosed to the FISA court.

I'm not going to delve deeply into this memo thing. The takeaway here is that the Dems did some funny business with the help of their cronie high up with the FBI and Justice Dept. to get obtain a FISA warrant to spy on Trump's team. That's all the American people need to know. Obama was able to spy on a Trump team member without following proper protocol which undermines the integrity of the system.

and there is the problem. because you say there is some "funny business" thus "that's all the American people need to know". The American people need to know the truth so they can make up their own mind. The Nunes memo did nothing. Not releasing the Democratic memo represents your statement "that's all the American people need to know". BTW, the FISA warrant passed through 4 different FISA courts. And the warrant DID note that the dossier was paid for by a political entity. Read it. It still does not make the information in the dossier false nor would it prevent any information in it from being used against individuals if criminal activities have been exposed.

The FISA warrant was not against "Trump's team", it was against Carter Page who was already a target of investigation. (I thought Trump's team said Page wasn't an integral part of the campaign???) There was no spying by Obama. He was the President. Foreign espionage kind of fits under his command. And did he not warn Trump not to hire Flynn?

Agree for the people to get the complete story, I'd like to see the democrat's memo as well to see what their rebuttal is, whether it's all political or actually has substance. What I meant by the all you need to know is that the American people need to find out the bottom line on what happened. Sort out all the fluff in between but the bottom line on which party they should trust and which were the dishonest or even criminal.

The FISA warrant was to spy on the Trump campaign, in which Carter Page was a part of.

[13th Man]

and yet 13th Man still refuses to deny or denounce supporting racist ideologies, and is more likely than not a racist himself

Yeah you got me. Because I need to answer everything to you to prove that I am not a racist. I don't work for Trump, go ask Sarah Sanders. I have no idea if he even said that or in what context. I don't trust the MSM, especially CNN so sorry, not going to comment on something I don't have proper info on.

perhaps you should add this article to your reading list

Read on Twitter

Meh, doesn't change much. So the Russians were up to no good, how shocking. They did it on their own accord moreso out of spite for Hillary (could you blame them?). Whether Trump's administration colluded with them is a different story and has yet to be proven.

The American people should be more concerned about corruption from within their own administration, which is why the Nunes memo was released.

[13th Man]

The indictment cites no evidence of collusion whatsoever. The Russians in fact also tried to help out Bernie Sanders and later on had some anti-Trump campaigns as well. You just need to watch the first 5 minutes to get a summary of this Nothing Burger.

Watch on YouTube