Cory1848

Well, I don’t know. I also live in Thailand (for almost 20 years total) and have had access to all levels of Thai society, from hi-so connections (via the US embassy) to village gatherings in the boondocks, and it seems to me that “feminism” has a strong presence up and down the line. The country has had two female heads of government (that’s two more than the US), and while women may be underrepresented as heads of large companies, they sure run (and own) a lot of smaller companies and in general seem to do 90 percent of the work in the country. I don’t see that local men have any control over what women do at all (excepting the criminally violent). Plus, Thailand is a very tolerant society and is also broadly accepting of trans people in all occupations. I find all of this very positive. I suppose I’m part of your “influx of feminist men” (from the US), but for me that means simply regarding women as no different from men with respect to their abilities and intelligence -- often, they have more intelligence and leadership potential, as they tend to think less with their body parts than men do. I’d like to think that, despite my “feminism,” I’ve had a positive influence on those Thais I’ve interacted with and become close to over the years; I live comfortably enough, but I’ve helped others do so as well. So tell me, what’s wrong with feminism?

For heaven’s sake, stop your sobbing. If you’re so intimidated by empowered women, or whatever your notion of “feminism” might be, go live with the Taliban in Afghanistan, with whom you might feel more kinship. Really, you only have one life to live: why torture yourself in an environment where working women, women wearing pantsuits, are lurking around every corner? Oh, the horror.

This is only one example (of your second alternative above), from several years ago, but I'm sure there's more. The tobacco industry's fake scientists were a good model for this sort of thing. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/feb/21/climate-change-denier-willie-soon-funded-energy-industry

I’m not sure what you’re saying, I assume that many American men, and some American women, believe that women are “not sufficiently intellectually nor mentally developed” to handle the job of president. I would revise that statement by saying that *dwindling numbers* of American men believe this, and that they are regarded by mainstream society as troglodytes.

No, not “nuff said.” You quoted me but left out my qualifying statements. Which is typical of your sort of argument. I’m not going to waste time repeating myself. As for Dr. Shiva, thanks but no thanks -- you go right ahead. Whatever helps you sleep at night.

Ah, I see where you're going with this. And you can certainly have all the sex you want with other men, but no matter how hard you try, unless you bring at least one woman into the mix (yuck!), you're not going to produce a child.

Oh, c'mon. Even the New York Post, hardly a standard bearer of liberal journalism, debunked that photo. https://nypost.com/2024/09/14/us-news/why-ohio-man-in-viral-photo-was-holding-two-geese/

Wow Dr. Shiva’s got it all figured out. How come nobody’s ever heard of him? From what I (briefly) read about him online, he’s a Class A nutjob; I lost interest pretty quickly. Sure, men and women of power and wealth conspire. When it suits their individual purposes. Other times, they compete, and sometimes they destroy each other, particularly corporations, for whom their own respective shareholder values are paramount (following the neoliberal economic system under which much of the world operates). Alliances are ad hoc and temporary, like when the tobacco companies came together before a Senate panel (in the early 1990s?) and jointly argued that their products weren’t addictive. On that occasion, the senators chose not to “conspire” with them. It’s probably comforting, and personally empowering, to believe that one knows exactly what’s going on behind the curtain, so to speak, with all the little bubbles on the whiteboard listing names of media companies, Hollywood agents, CEOs, university presidents, prime ministers, and the like, and to imagine that they all hobnob with each other and share the same worldview and send their kids to the same schools. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, that’s a complete fantasy.

I’ve been editing a book about cartoonist Rick Veitch, who worked extensively with Moore on superhero and other comics, and apparently the drugs fueled much of their inspiration! I’m not a reader of comics or graphic novels, but Moore seems to have a godlike status in that profession, and he sure makes some interesting statements ...

Dude, your thinking is right out of the Middle Ages; you’re shoulder to shoulder with the Taliban. Someday maybe it’ll hit you like a ton of bricks that human society actually evolves over the centuries, though admittedly it seems like it’s usually two steps forward, one and a half steps back. But we have learned that women can do anything men can do, given equal education, training, and opportunity. And this is a good thing, because it immediately doubles our labor pool for needed tasks up and down the line, at all levels right up to the highest leadership positions. As for this “God” thing you keep harping about, I honestly don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. Simply put: we make our own world, and if it turns out chaotic, haphazard, illogical, it’s only our own doing. We are at the same time capable of creating immense beauty, which makes it all worthwhile.

For one thing, journalists in the US have just as much right to a political opinion, and a vote, as anyone else. And the other obvious point here: professional journalists (or what you would call the mainstream media) generally have advanced degrees in journalism (which includes training in fact checking, verifying sources, journalistic ethics, etc.); i.e., they are educated, and educated people do tend to vote Democratic, no doubt about it. (Remember Trump’s bellowing about how he loves the uneducated?) Your favored brand of journalism, I take it, is not mainstream, but nor is it professional; as far as I can tell, non-mainstream media comprises scattered loser blowhards living in their mothers’ basements, blogging whatever comes out of their fevered brains. I’ll take CNN and the New York Times any day over that, thank you.

I have to admit, I can see the appeal; it’s fun to speculate. And sometimes I’m not 100 percent certain on the “granddaddy” of conspiracy theories, the JFK murder (thanks, Oliver Stone ...). But in the end, plain reason and common sense have to prevail ...

Graphic novelist Alan Moore put it best: “The main thing that I learned about conspiracy theories is that conspiracy theorists actually believe in the conspiracy because that is more comforting. The truth of the world is that it is chaotic. The truth is, that it is not the Jewish banking conspiracy, or the grey aliens, or the twelve-foot reptiloids from another dimension that are in control, the truth is far more frightening; no-one is in control, the world is rudderless.”

If Trump hadn’t broken so many damn laws, he would not be having problems with the Justice Department; that’s how the system works, right? You don’t give a hoot about a fair justice system; you just want your guy to be above the law.

What the heck kind of argument is that? I’ll apply the same reasoning. I’ll call you, Impulse, an eater of cats. I heard it somewhere; maybe it was on TV, I can’t recall. Do you have a link to footage of your movements 24/7 to conclusively prove that you’ve never eaten a cat? No? So you’re a cat eater, and a monster, and a destroyer of civil society, and you should be deported immediately.

It is, actually. Being accustomed to being around people who at first appear different humanizes them and makes us all less likely to want to kill each other over trivialities like religion, resources, money, “spheres of influence” ... I’m sure you were in London, by the way, and never too far from decent fish and chips!

Blaming the Other for perceived problems is the oldest political play in the book, and you've fallen for it hook, line, and sinker.

Conspiracy theorists always talk in circles: “If you think the folks we elect run the country,” without stating who they think actually runs the country. If you mean that corporate money, including the defense, health care, and gun industries (but many others), run the country, I would largely be in agreement. If that’s the case, you should vote for Harris. Both Democrats and Republicans take corporate money, but Democrats retain a sense of civic responsibility, as they favor taxing corporate money and using those revenues for social programs. Republicans have long since gone off the deep end in their enslavement to corporate money. If you mean that someone else runs the country (Jewish bankers? Reptiloids?), please do tell.

No, "they" (meaning the majority of Americans) just want him to go away because he's an idiot, he's a corrupt grifter, and he has no clue what it takes to be a public servant. In another post you said that "reading is important" -- I couldn't agree more, but so is being judicious about what one reads and what one trusts, and apparently you're lacking in that regard.

Right, and also because they (the campaign workers who resigned) may look for political jobs in the future, and staying on with a piece of work like Robinson would be a big stain on their résumé.

I don’t think he passes even that low bar; gnats can be pretty clever. They know exactly what blood type they need for nourishment, whereas Trump dives into a bucket of chicken parts deep-fried in oil without even thinking about it.

Do you even know what a Marxist is? Apparently, you haven’t absorbed much that’s useful from your “broad” reading.

He's absolutely terrified of debating her again. Last time, she shredded him to pieces. She made him small. He couldn't even look her in the face.

That’s a really good point. I think the number of dual (US/Israeli) citizens who primarily live in the US is significant; it’s my understanding that one can get Israeli citizenship by simply demonstrating one’s Jewish heritage in some documented way. However, given the overwhelming support for Democrats among American Jews, most dual citizens would also be voting along those lines. (Not surprising: two-thirds of Israelis living in Israel want Netanyahu to step down.) I’ve tried to convince some Jewish American friends of mine to obtain Israeli citizenship purely so they can vote in Israeli elections, but it’s not that simple apparently. In order to vote in Israeli elections, you have to live there for awhile.

No, that’s not what he said, either. What he said is precisely this: “I’m not going to call this a prediction, but, in my opinion, the Jewish people would have a lot to do with a loss if I’m at 40%” (meaning if only 40% of Jewish Americans voted for him; he’s actually polling at around 25% of the Jewish vote). This is clearly an example of “blaming the Jews” for one’s own (imminent) failure, and it’s one of the oldest antisemitic tropes in the book. And what does this do. Some very misplaced “verbage” from Trump and his running mate have brought bomb threats and Nazis in the street to an Ohio town. When Trump inevitably loses this election and starts blaming everything and everyone except his own lunacy, how secure do you think American Jews will feel? I don’t know if you support Trump or not, but stop apologizing for him. Don’t be part of the problem.