"Is Israel committing the very crimes it seems to be fighting against? At this point, my view results in an answer: yes."

"Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you."

"I'm old enough to remember when a scheme like this would have had righties frothing at the mouth."

It still does.

It's just that Republicans are no longer "righties." I a few ways, Trump is further left than any president in US history, outside FDR maybe.

So...something happened in 2023 and this lady just now comes out and says she was abused???

Screw his silly, immature political positions, but this is ridiculous.

I suppose if he had kept to raising oysters, she wouldn't have said a word.

"Do you understand that Iran can end western civilization or at a minimum most of the middle east's, including Israel's civilization?"

How on earth would they do that?

Seriously. Walk me through it.

"I've been reading good things about Eastern Europe as cheap, off the beaten path sort of destinations (Albania and Croatia being the two most frequently mentioned), so I'll add that to the list."

Enjoy the whole region. If you're pad in EUR, you're golden.

Your kids will never want to leave. Mine didn't. The oldest just did it for college.

You're a younger dude. You have your whole life ahead of you. You're going to LOVE it.

It's probably also worth mentioning that the Norwegians are crazy bad-asses. They literally start their day with a morning swim. In the Arctic Circle. In the middle of winter.

It's probably why the conquered much of the world.

"Yup. I'm moving to Europe at the end of the month because it's a better deal there for me."

Where to?

I think you're going to like it.

A suggestion, if you have time, check out Albania before the summer ends. Karaburun. Best beaches on this planet.

"And the long, so long, winter nights ..."

Norway is by far the most conservative county I've been to, outside of the Gulf states. Alcohol is expensive and not readily available.

The long winter nights are offset by the long summer days.

The weather is what drives me crazy. If it weren't for the year-round rain and sleet, I might have moved there already.

Is this a drunk thread???

And I thought it was a decent speech, BTW. I might begrudgingly have a bit of respect for this commie.

"Yup, it's a real degree in a real field from a real place."

Uh...yeah.

You're telling us that a degree in "African studies" studies is going to get you a job.

This is something you major in if you know that you'll never need a job. Because mom and Dad are rich.

Attack Poland???

So...here's how that would go. Finland would join in immediately. Both of them HATE commies. Russia wouldn't stand a chance.

Poland has the strongest military in Eastern Europe. And from my vantage point, they're itching for a fight with the commies. If you're Russia, invade a Baltic country. You might get something out of it. Invade Poland and the only leverage the commies have is nukes. And that won't play well on the global stage.

"And in turn, they'd receive far more under the European model."

Understood, but try selling that to USans.

Like I said, I'm a fan of the European models. I think it's progressives who would ultimately be against it.

"The real reason European style Benefits programs are never proposed in the US is Because the "Donors" don't want Another set of "Entitlements" jacking up THEIR Tax Rates."

You do know that the poor in the US would pay far more under a European model, do you not?

Do you know what a VAT is?

"In 2018 the lowest fifth of earners on average paid no net federal taxes at all. The top 1% paid a total rate (ie, after all deductions) of 30%, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Include state and local levies, and high earners face a marginal tax rate on each extra dollar they take home"the rate that matters for work incentives"which is middling by rich-country standards. Tax refunds for poor families are exceptionally generous. In 2019 a single parent of two children earning two-thirds of average pay faced total net labour taxes of only 10%, according to analysis by the OECD, a club of mostly rich countries. In egalitarian Sweden the rate was nearly 33%."

"America will never have a European-style welfare state without a VAT"

And to be clear, I've never-not once, seen a US politician proposing any sort of European-style economic model. I doubt I ever will.

Maybe centuries of war shaped European nations into what they are today. The US has not learned those lessons, or learned from them.

Progressives claim they want to be more like European countries. When they say that, they're telling me that they've never been to Europe without telling me they've never been to Europe.

To clear up any confusion, European countries are not Marxist. There is no "to each according to need, to each according to ability" mantra in Europe. The poor pay taxes, just like the rich. Rights are afforded by the responsibilities of the populations.

And that's the BLUF. Europe is about rights couples with responsibilities. US progressives want rights decoupled from responsibility.

If USans want Universal healthcare...cool. Do it. But if you take away private options, the country is ------.

"In fact, our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines are the only Americans who understand universal healthcare, as enjoyed by hundreds of millions of people in Israel, Germany, Canada, Cuba, Taiwan, tiny Albania, or Denmark, as did our US Merchant Mariners from 1798 to 1981."

That's not entirely true.

If you're based in the US, you rarely, if ever, go to a government healthcare provider. You go to the same clinics you would go to if you had Cigna or BCBS.

Overseas, it's different. You're restricted to seeing on-base providers. And it takes months to get an appointment. If you have a private plan, it takes days.

I guess I survived, but knowing what I know now, I should have gotten a private plan for my family while I was still on active duty.

"If the rich wish to stay in America they best learn to be nice to the folks they are fleecing."

Fleecing?

How?

"What if the poor decided to eat the rich? They easily could."

And then what?

When you bite the hand that feeds, you no longer get fed.

"Why isn't anyone think about how his policies are affecting multimillionaires and billionaires!!!"

It's a great question, considering that Mamdani is relying on them to fund his pet projects.

What if they choose not to, which they easily can.

I seriously considered taking a job in Norway. Love the people, but the weather where I would have been in unreal. I don't know that I could do that year round. My buddy is sailing around Lufoten right now, and he sent me pictures. You think they would have been in Antarctica or something.

"The United States is considered a capitalist country, not a democratic socialist one. Its economy is primarily driven by free markets and private property ownership, though the government utilizes certain social programs like Medicare and Social Security, making it a mixed-market economy."

Dude, I've never been to a country that didn't fit this same description. Including the Scandinavian countries.

"Millionaires, billionaires and especially the "worlds first trillionaire" have done nothing beneficial for society and are actively destroying the world."

Really? Starlink, Tesla, and SpaceX have not benefitting society?

I think there are a lot of Ukrainians who would disagree with that statement.

And I could care less about millionaires, billionaires, and trillionaires. You're the one who gets yer panties in a wad over their existence.