US Politics December: Ferguson Explains It All

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > US Politics December: Ferguson Explains It All

Pohl: Jan 28, 2005; In the future, please post shit with the sole purpose of antagonizing the person running this site. Thank you.

Joementum posted:

Raul Labrador and family.

That is an Idaho house for sure.
I know that because I lived there 40 years. It cracks me up in a way that I can't even express.

Edit: I just looked it up, he has 5 loving kids.

Pohl fucked around with this message at 11:58 on Dec 25, 2014

# ? Dec 25, 2014 11:49

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# ? Jun 9, 2024 22:27

FAUXTON: Jun 2, 2005; spero che tu stia bene

Joementum posted:

This is a real thing, by the way. He gets cheap rent on an apartment in D.C. and his landlord is the chief lobbyist for the tanning industry.

well son of a bitch.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 11:56

Pohl: Jan 28, 2005; In the future, please post shit with the sole purpose of antagonizing the person running this site. Thank you.

FAUXTON posted:

well son of a bitch.

Haha, yeah, that is old news.

I mean it is perfectly crazy, who would expect it to actually be a thing?

# ? Dec 25, 2014 11:59

richardfun: Aug 10, 2008; Twenty years? It's no wonder I'm so hungry. Do you have anything to eat?

Me thinks old man McCain doesn't really enjoy spending the holidays with his wife.

quote:

US senator John McCain meets Afghan leaders
Eds: APNewsNow.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - U.S. senator John McCain is in Kabul for Christmas day.

The former presidential candidate met with Afghan president Ashraf Ghani and his chief executive officer Abdullah Abdullah in separate meetings during his visit on Thursday.

The vast majority of American and NATO combat troops will withdraw from Afghanistan on Dec. 31, leaving local forces to battle increasingly bold Islamic militants seeking to take advantage of the potential security vacuum.

Ghani praised the sacrifices of the U.S. troops during their 13 years in Afghanistan, while McCain emphasized America's long-term support for the country, according to a statement released by the presidency.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 12:02

Joementum: May 23, 2004; jesus christ

Spending Christmas in Afghanistan is peak John McCain.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 12:03

richardfun: Aug 10, 2008; Twenty years? It's no wonder I'm so hungry. Do you have anything to eat?

Joementum posted:

Spending Christmas in Afghanistan is peak John McCain.

Or maybe Cindy had plastered on the makeup like a trollop again, and he just had to get out of the house.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 12:10

AreWeDrunkYet: Jul 8, 2006; Can't post for 5 days!

computer parts posted:

2 wouldn't save that citizen we bombed ("active hostilities" presumably include terrorism) but it might save his son unless evidence was fabricated showing that he wanted to shoot someone or something (it's incredibly vague)

The argument made by the last two administrations is that the people we drone do get due process. It's a secret, executive process which is clearly bullshit from a constitutional perspective, but it's not like the courts have challenged this definition, so it is what we are stuck with. We just have to trust the president with the authority to kill people at will, and lol if you want to see the evidence because gently caress you is the position Bush took and Obama solidified.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 13:09

Taeke: Feb 2, 2010

FAUXTON posted:

It's partially because of the association with paramilitary goons, I'd say. But the same could be said for the armor. They probably had armor vests on under the coats they had before, but now it's effectively on display like some kind of statement. I don't think it's wrong to feel uncomfortable about a change like that, because using "combat readiness" (all that "tactical" poo poo like the black uniform, the armor, the hats) as a visual deterrent is just another way of controlling people via fear.

This is it, I guess. Then again, it's not really a big deal because the whole attitude and police culture is so different here.

chitoryu12 posted:

Ever spend time around American cops, Taeke?

Nope, and it's kind of weird to consider the fact that if I ever do visit the US (which I definitely want) I'm more nervous about the police than actual crime. Some other goon said somewhere that the most likely thing to happen when interacting with a criminal is that you get robbed or beaten up, but at least you won't be fined, locked up or have legal troubles for years afterwards. (Then again, I've heard/read stories of victims who reported a crime and got charged themselves for their trouble.)

Pohl posted:

That would most likely land you on the sex offender list here in the states.

I'm never sure how much of that is hyperbole, which is also unnerving.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 14:00

Post 9-11 User: Apr 14, 2010

Taeke posted:

To this:

A couple of officers were walking past and stopped a couple of meters away from us, which gave me the opportunity to really take a good look at them and I told my friends that while the new look is definitely more aesthetically pleasing, it does have a certain dystopian/authoritarian feel to it. Especially the caps give it a more tactical/oppressive feel. The cops overheard me and one of them kind of shrugged in agreement. Still, even with the new uniforms the Dutch police are generally very approachable even if you have minor questions, but then again, I'm white so I can't comment on the non-white Dutch experience with cops in a major city like Amsterdam or Rotterdam.

It is slightly more "tacticool" than the old vests but also adds very broad reflective stripes. They seem more functional than anything and help make officers visible, seems good to me.

The scary uniforms are the ones with a half dozen magazine pouches, matte black with no insignia. And assault trucks with sandbag pillboxes on top like the kind deployed against the peaceful demonstrators in Ferguson.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 14:16

Mooseontheloose: May 13, 2003

richardfun posted:

Calling yourself 'honourable' on your Christmas card. Subtle AND modest.

Also, Boehner's wife looks as leathery as he does...

Not to be that guy but that is the honorific for elected officials and judges. The Honorable John Smith and so on.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 15:08

richardfun: Aug 10, 2008; Twenty years? It's no wonder I'm so hungry. Do you have anything to eat?

Mooseontheloose posted:

Not to be that guy but that is the honorific for elected officials and judges. The Honorable John Smith and so on.

I know it is, but I find it rather pompous to put it on your christmas card. It's like my dad, who got a royal ribbon for the charity work he's done, and now wears the drat thing every single time he leaves the house.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 15:25

Fried Chicken: Jan 9, 2011; Don't fry me, I'm no chicken!

Christmas eve is a great time to news dump things, like say the report showing that the "White House is using the IRS to target conservatives" talking point is poo poo

quote:

WASHINGTON — An 18-month congressional investigation into theInternal Revenue Service’s mistreatment of conservative political groups seeking tax exemptions failed to show coordination between agency officials and political operatives in the White House, according to a report released on Tuesday.

The I.R.S. has admitted that before the 2012 election it inappropriately delayed approval of tax exemption applications by groups affiliated with the Tea Party movement, but the I.R.S. and its parent agency, the Treasury Department, have said that the errors were not motivated by partisanship.

Republican lawmakers, dismissing the Obama administration’s denials, have suggested that the delays were not only politically motivated but also orchestrated by the White House.

Some of the most strident comments have come from RepresentativeDarrell Issa, Republican of California and the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, which has issued subpoenas to compel testimony from administration officials and held a series of tumultuous hearings on the I.R.S. scandal.

Mr. Issa, who is stepping down from the chairmanship, has accused the I.R.S. commissioner of engaging in a Watergate-style cover-up and accused administration officials of obstructing his investigation.

In a parting shot, Mr. Issa released the 226-page summary of the panel’s findings on Tuesday. It said that language used in emails collected by the committee suggested that I.R.S. officials in the tax-exemption unit were trying to find ways to penalize groups they disliked.

In one email, for example, an I.R.S. official said of a conservative group, “I think there may be a number of ways to deny them,” adding, “This sounds like a bad org,” and “This org gives me an icky feeling.”

In all, the investigation’s millions of documents and dozens of interviews with Obama administration officials “show I.R.S. officials failed to limit their professional judgments to enforcing the tax code and instead inserted their own beliefs and judgments into federal matters to influence outcomes and decisions,” the report said.

The I.R.S. did not respond to a request for comment. A representative for Mr. Issa, Caitlin Carroll, would not comment on the failure to find a link to the White House but noted that the investigation was not over. It will continue in the 114th Congress under the committee’s new chairman, Representative Jason Chaffetz, Republican of Utah, after congressional investigators recovered thousands of I.R.S. emails thought to have been lost in a series of computer crashes.

Representative Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland, the ranking Democrat on the committee, who has compared the inquiry about the I.R.S. to Senator Joseph R. McCarthy’s investigation of suspected Communists in the 1950s, was sharply critical of the report.

“It is revealing that the Republicans — yet again — are leaking cherry-picked excerpts of documents to support their preconceived political narrative,” Mr. Cummings said, “without allowing committee members to even see their conclusions or vote on them first.”

# ? Dec 25, 2014 16:52

Shageletic: Jul 25, 2007

Taeke posted:

This is it, I guess. Then again, it's not really a big deal because the whole attitude and police culture is so different here.

Nope, and it's kind of weird to consider the fact that if I ever do visit the US (which I definitely want) I'm more nervous about the police than actual crime. Some other goon said somewhere that the most likely thing to happen when interacting with a criminal is that you get robbed or beaten up, but at least you won't be fined, locked up or have legal troubles for years afterwards. (Then again, I've heard/read stories of victims who reported a crime and got charged themselves for their trouble.)

I'm never sure how much of that is hyperbole, which is also unnerving.

They're not rampaging animals, at least for most people. They tend to be dicks, but avoidance is easy. I've interacted with cops maybe a handful of times in three years. That isn't counting off duty, people tend to be less dickish when they have a beer. Except if you're a fireman, of course.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 16:57

chitoryu12: Apr 24, 2014

If you're not black or in a high-crime area, you don't have much chance of suddenly being gunned down for doing something unassuming. On the other hand, it's very possible that the cop will be an authoritarian dick who tries to bust you for a billion minor crimes that are usually ignored or only exist in his mind (the Supreme Court recently ruled that ignorance of the law is, in fact, an excuse to legally arrest and search someone) or decides that you're in need of a good, rough arrest and a few hours in a cell.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 17:19

mandatory lesbian: Dec 18, 2012

NEED TOILET PAPER posted:

Fuckin' amateur hour of crappy Christmas cards compared to San Juan mayor Jorge Santini's:

TBF this is a few years old and he got voted out eventually, but still

this is loving awesome dude

# ? Dec 25, 2014 17:22

Gyges: Aug 4, 2004; NOW NO ONE
RECOGNIZE HULK

Pohl posted:

That is an Idaho house for sure.
I know that because I lived there 40 years. It cracks me up in a way that I can't even express.

Edit: I just looked it up, he has 5 loving kids.

Do all you Idahoans so blatantly flash gang signs in your Christmas photos? Why even the Congressman is doing the notorious Minneapolis gangster point.

Also who snuck the blonde in?

# ? Dec 25, 2014 17:28

computer parts: Nov 18, 2010; PLEASE CLAP

chitoryu12 posted:

(the Supreme Court recently ruled that ignorance of the law is, in fact, an excuse to legally arrest and search someone)

That's not what the ruling said and the person in that scenario had consented to the search.

Gyges posted:

Do all you Idahoans so blatantly flash gang signs in your Christmas photos? Why even the Congressman is doing the notorious Minneapolis gangster point.

Also who snuck the blonde in?

Idaho is the whitest state and Mormons are the whitest white people.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 17:46

ElMaligno: Dec 31, 2004; Be Gay!
Do Crime!

forbidden lesbian posted:

this is loving awesome dude

The best thing is this inspired lovely photoshops

The wrestler one is my favorite.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 17:53

My Imaginary GF: Jul 17, 2005; by R. Guyovich

Fried Chicken posted:

Christmas eve is a great time to news dump things, like say the report showing that the "White House is using the IRS to target conservatives" talking point is poo poo

But they are!

Just because tax evaders overwhelmingly tend to express conservative ideals doesn't mean the white house isn't having the IRS crack down on tax evaders.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 17:56

Grayly Squirrel: Apr 10, 2008

My Imaginary GF posted:

Solution for less dead cops: more comprehensive, grade-separated light rail transit systems through regional transit agencies

What gauge light rail?

# ? Dec 25, 2014 18:09

Variant_Eris: Nov 2, 2014; Exhibition C: Colgate white smile

Wikipedia posted:

Light rail or light rail transit (LRT) is typically an urban form of public transport using the same rolling stock as a tramway, but operating primarily along rights of way and having vehicles capable of operating as a single train or as multiple units coupled together.

I'm assuming that this is what you're talking about.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 18:12

Good Citizen: Aug 12, 2008; trump trump trump trump trump trump trump trump trump trump

My Imaginary GF posted:

But they are!

Just because tax evaders overwhelmingly tend to express conservative ideals doesn't mean the white house isn't having the IRS crack down on tax evaders.

Tax evaders like Al Sharpton? You have to ask why the Obama IRS is focusing on those little conservative groups while ignoring Sharpton.

Makes you think...

# ? Dec 25, 2014 18:14

FlamingLiberal: Jan 18, 2009; Would you like to play a game?

Fried Chicken posted:

Christmas eve is a great time to news dump things, like say the report showing that the "White House is using the IRS to target conservatives" talking point is poo poo

Literally all of this 'IRS mishandling' has to do with the myriad of political organizations trying to get tax exempt status thanks to things like Citizens United, and the IRS having to reject a lot of conservative groups. Those made up the majority of groups applying for tax exempt status.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 18:33

Gin and Juche: Apr 3, 2008; The Highest Judge of Paradise
Shiki Eiki
YAMAXANADU

Good Citizen posted:

Tax evaders like Al Sharpton? You have to ask why the Obama IRS is focusing on those little conservative groups while ignoring Sharpton.

Makes you think...

No it doesn't.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 18:41

My Imaginary GF: Jul 17, 2005; by R. Guyovich

Good Citizen posted:

Tax evaders like Al Sharpton? You have to ask why the Obama IRS is focusing on those little conservative groups while ignoring Sharpton.

Makes you think...

Make me think that tax evasion is a crime which the IRS should pursue to its fullest capacity.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 19:17

sullat: Jan 9, 2012

FlamingLiberal posted:

Literally all of this 'IRS mishandling' has to do with the myriad of political organizations trying to get tax exempt status thanks to things like Citizens United, and the IRS having to reject a lot of conservative groups. Those made up the majority of groups applying for tax exempt status.

Also there was a ruling that made a lot of "legitimate" charities reapply at the same time, so the overburdened office in charge of tax exemptions had to quickly figure out which of the applications were for real charities and which were for sketchy PACs. If I recall, the announcement that they had done this improperly came out just before the FBI was going to launch a joint investigation with the IRS into money laundering using PACs, but it had to be scrapped due to the scandal.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 20:21

Happy Noodle Boy: Jul 3, 2002

NEED TOILET PAPER posted:

Fuckin' amateur hour of crappy Christmas cards compared to San Juan mayor Jorge Santini's:

TBF this is a few years old and he got voted out eventually, but still

Reason #51 we should be 51.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 20:26

g0del: Jan 9, 2001; Fun Shoe

computer parts posted:

Idaho is the whitest state and Mormons are the whitest white people.

It's true. Idaho mormons are so white that they put mayonnaise on their jello.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 22:02

Jerry Manderbilt: May 31, 2012; No matter how much paperwork I process, it never goes away. It only increases.

It'll never stop being kosher to make fun of Ann Romney's cookbook, right?

# ? Dec 25, 2014 22:04

Evil Fluffy: Jul 13, 2009; Scholars are some of the most pompous and pedantic people I've ever had the joy of meeting.

NEED TOILET PAPER posted:

Fuckin' amateur hour of crappy Christmas cards compared to San Juan mayor Jorge Santini's:

TBF this is a few years old and he got voted out eventually, but still

The daughter on the left has just the weirdest pose and her gaze just :stare:

She also looks like a mini Mila Kunis(?).

# ? Dec 25, 2014 22:12

anonumos: Jul 14, 2005; Fuck it.

Evil Fluffy posted:

The daughter on the left has just the weirdest pose and her gaze just

She also looks like a mini Mila Kunis(?).

You creapin'?

# ? Dec 25, 2014 22:15

Pohl: Jan 28, 2005; In the future, please post shit with the sole purpose of antagonizing the person running this site. Thank you.

Evil Fluffy posted:

The daughter on the left has just the weirdest pose and her gaze just

She also looks like a mini Mila Kunis(?).

I don't know how you can see anything but the leopard and the gazelle.

anonumos posted:

You creapin'?

I honestly was wondering the same thing.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 22:16

richardfun: Aug 10, 2008; Twenty years? It's no wonder I'm so hungry. Do you have anything to eat?

Evil Fluffy posted:

The daughter on the left has just the weirdest pose and her gaze just

She also looks like a mini Mila Kunis(?).

I kind of got a Wednesday Addams vibe from her.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 23:14

hangedman1984: Jul 25, 2012

richardfun posted:

I kind of got a Wednesday Addams vibe from her.

I was thinking Selena Gomez

# ? Dec 25, 2014 23:19

Bip Roberts: Mar 29, 2005

It's clearly Jonbenet Ramsey.

# ? Dec 25, 2014 23:44

theshim: May 1, 2012; You think you can defeat ME, Ephraimcopter?!?

You couldn't even beat Assassincopter!!!

Jerry Manderbilt posted:

It'll never stop being kosher to make fun of Ann Romney's cookbook, right?

I'm reasonably certain that there's nothing kosher about it :rimshot:

# ? Dec 25, 2014 23:56

Branis: Apr 14, 2006

Post 9-11 User posted:

It is slightly more "tacticool" than the old vests but also adds very broad reflective stripes. They seem more functional than anything and help make officers visible, seems good to me.

The scary uniforms are the ones with a half dozen magazine pouches, matte black with no insignia. And assault trucks with sandbag pillboxes on top like the kind deployed against the peaceful demonstrators in Ferguson.

I can understand that it might look tacticool, from a comfort point of view being able to take it off easily would be wonderful. The vests american cops wear under the shirt is loving miserable in the summer time and once you sweat in it you will never be dry again until you take it off and it holds heat somethin fierce. The ability to take your vest off easily instead of having to basically get halfway undressed like we do now if we wanted to take it off would be wonderful. That dutch uniform looks modern and nice i'd take it over the polyester mess we have now.

# ? Dec 26, 2014 00:04

Happy Noodle Boy: Jul 3, 2002

I've done parrandas for a few of PR governors and Santini is exactly the kind of person represented by that Christmas card. Dude's loving crazy. Not Rosello crazy but almost there.

# ? Dec 26, 2014 01:38

Berke Negri: Feb 15, 2012; Les Ricains tuent et moi je mue
Mao Mao
Les fous sont rois et moi je bois
Mao Mao
Les bombes tonnent et moi je sonne
Mao Mao
Les bebes fuient et moi je fuis
Mao Mao

I'm very unfamiliar with PR outside of listening to Calle 13, but my first impression seeing that card was it was some crazy Mexican poo poo.

# ? Dec 26, 2014 01:44

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# ? Jun 9, 2024 22:27

chitoryu12: Apr 24, 2014

Branis posted:

I can understand that it might look tacticool, from a comfort point of view being able to take it off easily would be wonderful. The vests american cops wear under the shirt is loving miserable in the summer time and once you sweat in it you will never be dry again until you take it off and it holds heat somethin fierce. The ability to take your vest off easily instead of having to basically get halfway undressed like we do now if we wanted to take it off would be wonderful. That dutch uniform looks modern and nice i'd take it over the polyester mess we have now.

A lot of the people who criticize uniform or gear changes are unfortunately inexperienced with how the stuff actually works and feels, and so they can only go off of external appearance.

On the other hand, the stuff the riot cops in Ferguson were showing up with was almost 100% unnecessary.

# ? Dec 26, 2014 02:19

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > US Politics December: Ferguson Explains It All

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