Now that we have a new thread, in order to ensure that this thread continues to meet TL standards and follows the proper guidelines, we will be enforcing the rules in the OP more strictly. Be sure to give them a complete and thorough read before posting!
NOTE: When providing a source, please provide a very brief summary on what it's about and what purpose it adds to the discussion. The supporting statement should clearly explain why the subject is relevant and needs to be discussed. Please follow this rule especially for tweets.
Your supporting statement should always come BEFORE you provide the source.
I see the propaganda works very well, and I think that polling in the EU countries shows that as well.
The UK just had a huge protest with said Billionaire phoning directly in, he's also phoning in at AfD rallies and Bannon and CO are working lockstep with European dictators like Orban.
I see it in the people around me, I have a buddy who despite being surrounded by people who pay attention to news and are very, very worried about Trump & CO still keeps parroting that Kamala was weird and if he was an American he'd still vote for Trump.
He also, because his family is bought into it, fully buys all the Russian propaganda about Ukraine. These are not dumb people, but they are on Facebook and that shit is full of propaganda.
I also have gaming buddies I hang out with, we just had a hang and I came in to the friends apartment only to be greeted by Asmogold's stream on the TV, now, it was something about WOW, but from the rhetoric I see in the group chats I can see that his bullshit is seeping into their consciousness.
This shit is everywhere, it's deliberate and it's being backed by the most powerful attention grabbing algorithms ever conceived, all of the tech bros are fully on board with Fascism and are actively putting their thumbs on the scales.
I don't think that the golden age of Right wing is close to being over, unfortunately.
Illegal immigration shouldn‘t just be an issue for the right wing, there‘s that. It feeds them. ICE and the like might be harsh in their approach but it‘s what the population wanted. isn‘t it ?
As long as they don‘t get relocated straight to prisons that resemble death camps outside of their country of origin.
Tackling unchecked greed and privilege should be a priority before tackling the broader population though. Resource consumption by consumer net worth would be a handy graph right now…
It has become apparent that people have not actually learned and internalised what 'right to live', 'human rights', 'rule of law', 'due process', etc., actually mean and how these concepts can be derived from them. For example, government officials should make snap decisions based solely on their surface understanding of the situation and not do any investigations. Any contradicting information is just lies. People do not see how arbitrary these kinds of decisions would be, or how this would be against the values and ideals.
Interestingly, I believe that education has placed a greater emphasis on these values, at least in certain areas. Antibullying programs have become a common occurrence, for example. These programs are not effective for everyone, but some individuals still learn from them quite well. It just becomes a bit weird when children who have been told to be kind and not discriminate against others have to face politics and work life that do not actually follow any of that. This is something that probably gets younger generations to demand that people follow the things they were taught. It probably also causes mental health issues. I would even question whether it would be better for the mental health of future generations to learn morals and ethics that align with how people actually behave. Actions of older generations will not look as bad then. This, however, would likely be detrimental to humanity in general when moral standards are compromised.
On November 01 2025 17:19 CuddlyCuteKitten wrote: So what would the justification be for invading Venezuela? Because it looks like it's becoming more likely.
Drugs, probably. That is what they have been using to blow up boats for a while now.
Those filthy brown people are murdering us with their poison, we have to fight back. They are probably doing this to replace us with lazy communist godless brown people. Or something like that.
On November 01 2025 17:19 CuddlyCuteKitten wrote: So what would the justification be for invading Venezuela? Because it looks like it's becoming more likely.
Invasion doesn't seem very likely. But air raids and a naval blockade seem like what they're aiming for. Maybe there's plans for some special ops targeted specifically at key infrastructure/people, but I'm not sure sending Delta Force qualifies as an invasion. E: and don't get me wrong, all of the above is plenty fucked up enough without being a full-scale invasion.
And all that said, a "3-day special operation aimed at regime change" does sound like something Trump might've heard about from a close friend :S So who actually knows!
Casual reminder that the embargo on Cuba is basically the US equivalent of Israel starving the people of Gaza.
UNITED NATION (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to condemn the U.S. economic embargo of Cuba for a 33rd year..
The vote was 165-7, with 12 abstentions. Last year, it was 187-2, with “no” votes from the United States and Israel and one abstention. This year, countries including Argentina, Ukraine and Hungary also opposed the measure
“Mr. Waltz, this is the United Nations General Assembly. It is not a Signal chat. Nor is it the House of Representatives,” the Cuban envoy said.
“I am well aware of the location in which we are speaking. And this is also not a communist illegitimate legislature in Havana,” Waltz responded.
Waltz, a former Republican congressman, served as President Donald Trump’s national security adviser earlier this year before unintentionally adding a journalist to a private Signal chat used to discuss sensitive military plans. Waltz has insisted the chat met government cybersecurity standards.
great move by Canadian PM Carney to apologize to Trump. Idiotic move by the people running Ontario to allow that anti-tariff ad to run.
while the ad produced by Province of Ontario uses real words from Ronald Reagan’s April 25 1987 “Radio Address on Free and Fair Trade,” it does not quote him word-for-word in the exact sequence or full context of his speech.
Here are the key details:
The ad incorporates sentences from Reagan’s address, such as:
“When someone says, ‘Let’s impose tariffs on foreign imports,’ it looks like they’re doing the patriotic thing by protecting American products and jobs. And sometimes for a short while it works—but only for a short time. … High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars. Then the worst happens: Markets shrink and collapse; businesses and industries shut down; and millions of people lose their jobs.”
However:
The ad rearranged sentences out of their original order.
Some context from the original speech was omitted — for example, that Reagan was making an exception when he announced duties on Japanese goods, and that he stated he was “loath to take” any trade barriers.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute has said the ad “misrepresents the Presidential Radio Address … by using selective audio and video” and that the Ontario government did not seek their permission to use or edit the remarks.
So while the core message of the ad (that tariffs can hurt workers and cause trade wars) aligns with what Reagan said, the presentation is not the full unedited speech and is not strictly verbatim in the original order and context.
Generally overall, both Reagan and the Republicans were anti-tariff in 1987 which is why the 1988 FTA came into existence. The 1988 FTA broke down many trade barriers. However, the Province of Ontario ad is slightly deceptive.
In 1987, both countries agreed to the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement (CUSFTA). Negotiations toward a free trade agreement with the U.S. began in 1986. The two nations agreed to a historic agreement that placed Canada and the United States at the forefront of trade liberalization.
Key elements of the agreement included the elimination of tariffs, the reduction of many non-tariff barriers, and it was among the first trade agreements to address trade in services. It also included a dispute settlement mechanism for the fair and expeditious resolution of trade disputes.
Reagan was in power and had a tonne of power during these negotiations. In this era the "right wingers" were strongly against tariffs and the "left wingers" were either neutral or against it.
Any how, the Premier of Ontario screwed up big time. He is part of the reason I left Ontario. Also, I saw no great visionary leaders on the horizon to replace him. Sure enough, he is still winning elections and running the province.
On November 02 2025 03:07 WombaT wrote: Yeah it is idiotic to call out idiocy
do you know any Republicans personally? ever hang out with them? every Republican over 40 that I know ... especially my in-laws talk about Reagan like he walked on water.
it was really dumb to present things as though Reagan said it word for word. he did not. Also, they did not get permission from the Reagan whatever library thingee. They could have crafted a different kind of ad that didn't have Reagan's voice in it. and again, good move by Carney to apologize.
Having a Canadian government entity put out an ad with Reagan's voice in it... is dangerous territory... it better be absolutely word for word.
In past decades Canadians used to know and understand Americans extremely well. That gave Canadians a huge advantage in dealing with the USA. This latest fumble by the Ontario government makes me question how much Canadians really know and understand Americans.
I don't think Americans understand Americans extremely well, right now.
It's also kind of moronic to point to Canada rearranging the words but not changing the message as some great failing, meanwhile Trump points to a picture and insists the characters MS13 are a literal tattoo and not superimposed on the hands, and also that they're eating the dogs.
Truth and accuracy don't seem politically important.
Why do you need permission from Reagan's library to use Reagan's public addresses? Publicly recorded speeches are not copyrighted by Reagan's library so far as I know.
Furthermore, you are allowed to use ellipses and partial quotes so long as you do not change the original meaning of the quotations. MAGA talking heads seem to be making the argument that you have to always play the full clip every time even if the original source was an hour long or else it's out of context.
Quite frankly, Ontario could have used Reagan's direct address to Canada after our election and it would get the same idea across.
Carney apologizing is tactically sound because Trump is a big baby and wildly petty. But if playing Reagan's defense of Free Trade to MAGA is wrong, I don't know what's right when Trump is claiming it was AI and actually Reagan hated free trade, nobody hated free trade more than Reagan (except Trump). Who is the flagrant liar here?
On November 02 2025 03:07 WombaT wrote: Yeah it is idiotic to call out idiocy
do you know any Republicans personally? ever hang out with them? every Republican over 40 that I know ... especially my in-laws talk about Reagan like he walked on water.
it was really dumb to present things as though Reagan said it word for word. he did not. Also, they did not get permission from the Reagan whatever library thingee. They could have crafted a different kind of ad that didn't have Reagan's voice in it. and again, good move by Carney to apologize.
Having a Canadian government entity put out an ad with Reagan's voice in it... is dangerous territory... it better be absolutely word for word.
In past decades Canadians used to know and understand Americans extremely well. That gave Canadians a huge advantage in dealing with the USA. This latest fumble by the Ontario government makes me question how much Canadians really know and understand Americans.
It’s actually super hilarious to see how mad Trump got about a little ad just showing the TRUTH, that Reagan would hate Trumps economic policy. It is a huge embarrassment for the US that the way Trumps government decides who gets the best deal is by who kisses Trumps ass the hardest. Anyone with half a brain sees through the “American first” agenda. Any farmer who votes Trump is an absolute moron with how he has treated their industry.
They gave the Dems the exact blue print of what ads to run for the mid terms.
On November 02 2025 03:07 WombaT wrote: Yeah it is idiotic to call out idiocy
do you know any Republicans personally? ever hang out with them? every Republican over 40 that I know ... especially my in-laws talk about Reagan like he walked on water.
it was really dumb to present things as though Reagan said it word for word. he did not. Also, they did not get permission from the Reagan whatever library thingee. They could have crafted a different kind of ad that didn't have Reagan's voice in it. and again, good move by Carney to apologize.
Having a Canadian government entity put out an ad with Reagan's voice in it... is dangerous territory... it better be absolutely word for word.
In past decades Canadians used to know and understand Americans extremely well. That gave Canadians a huge advantage in dealing with the USA. This latest fumble by the Ontario government makes me question how much Canadians really know and understand Americans.
It’s actually super hilarious to see how mad Trump got about a little ad just showing the TRUTH, that Reagan would hate Trumps economic policy. It is a huge embarrassment for the US that the way Trumps government decides who gets the best deal is by who kisses Trumps ass the hardest. Anyone with half a brain sees through the “American first” agenda. Any farmer who votes Trump is an absolute moron with how he has treated their industry.
They gave the Dems the exact blue print of what ads to run for the mid terms.
Dems are lame ducks, they will achieve nothing. It's time for the Democratic Socialist party
Donald Trump on Saturday said he had ordered the Pentagon to begin planning for potential military action in Nigeria as he stepped up his criticism that the government was failing to rein in the persecution of Christians in the west African country.
“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the USA will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” Trump posted on social media. “I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians!”
Is Nigeria persecuting Christians in particular? I searched for any non-Trunp source (e.g. Amnesty International or the Vatican). I can't find anything. I can find continued reports about Boko Haram being a huge problem. I can find reports about a general shitshow in the south-east of the country with separatists and the army fighting and causing mass displacement and lots of violence. Unfortunately, nothing out of the ordinary for West Africa (or Africa in general). I can find 0 reports of anyone there explicitly targeting Christians, let alone that being sanctioned by the government.
With this government shut down dragging on so long it's going to be interesting seeing its impact on GDP. Trump sold himself to voters on his ability to create great economic conditions for Americans. Welp, that has not happened yet.
On November 02 2025 04:27 Falling wrote: Ford did nothing wrong.
Bad negotiation tactic on Ford's part.
It is a classic example of winning a theoretical debate with your negotiating partner and that theory win results in no deal being signed. So far, Mark Carney is a better diplomat than Doug Ford.
Doug Ford's province has been falling apart since 2009 and he has done nothing to stem that tide. Ontario needs a genius level leader ... and Doug Ford ain't it.
We can give Doug Ford the "Semanticist Of the Year Award". Personally, I want a leader who wins the "Economic Developer of the Year Award".
On November 02 2025 19:59 Acrofales wrote: Trump really making his case for the Nobel Peace Prize. With the aircraft carrier still parked off the coast of Venezuela, we have this!
I wish C&C was at peak popularity. We'd get some quality memes. The AI art promptists could remove that bird's nest on top of Trump's head so he is as bald as Kane and screaming "Peace Through Power".
It will be hard to measure how much economic damage the long shutdown did because there are so many other ongoing factors influencing the economy... but it can't be good at all.
EPT
