General US Politics

[Etrurian emperor]

2 hours ago, Crysta said:

Pundits: "The debate was a draw. Biden did well only because of low expectations for him." 

That's indeed a possibility but it is they themselves along with Trump who insisted the expectations be so low to begin with. 

If you spend a large amount of time insisting someone is extremely senile then he indeed doesn't need to do much to prove you wrong. 

[Lord Raven]

1 hour ago, Excellen Browning said:

https://mobile.twitter.com/danielggarza/status/1311139548706074626

For what it's worth, there's this: https://www.google.com/amp/s/thehill.com/policy/technology/518118-disinformation-qanon-efforts-targeting-latino-voters-ramp-up-ahead-of%3famp

I was listening about this and there's just massive conspiratorial targeting towards spanish speaking social media, especially in Florida and texas. WhatsApp is a huge one.

I really wonder how much is lost in translation too. I don't think translators can really capture that nonsense. It's been a uniquely american experience.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Lord Raven

[whase]

Can someone explain to me why there's no factchecking at debates? Only reason I heard is that not having that "makes for better TV", which makes no sense to me. Is this a political debate or a television show? (Or just a screaming contest?)

Also, I'm sad that simply yelling over someone is a valid debate strategy?

[Crysta]

I think if the moderator attempts to factcheck live most of the debate will just be them arguing with Trump, because he lied just about every time he opened his mouth. You got a lot of that even in this debate.

It's playing chess with a pigeon. 

 

[Lord Raven]

It's not. Chris Wallace had no control over that fuckhead.

This cunt talked over Joe talking about Beau to attack Hunters addiction. I'm glad he went to bat for both his sons, especially Hunter. He said on TV how proud he was of Hunter.

It's rest despicable. I was told Trumpees were too sad and addicted to opium, and Trump is mocking someone who overcame addiction issues?

Fuck this cunt.

[Shoblongoo]

Frank Luntz (A Republican strategist and pollster famous for using focus groups to test messaging + figure out what exact wording illicits the strongest positive response and negative response from voters) ran a focus-group of voters who were undecided going into the debates.

The words they attached to Trump’s debate performance were: “arrogant,” “obnoxious,” “unpresidential,” “unamerican,” “impossible to watch,” and “crackhead”

 

Edited September 30, 2020 by Shoblongoo

[Dr. Tarrasque]

10 hours ago, Lord Raven said:

what? Biden's was nowhere close to Trump.

I thought Biden had moments where he was sharp and moments where Trump would not shut the fuck up. He made some strong statements, but sadly undecided voters are fucking idiots and will probably go over to Trump briefly after that.

Trump said "stand back and stand by" to white supremacists instead of denouncing them. Sirius, no offense, but you're way better than this; doing anything resembling equivocating the bullshit we saw on TV.

Trump told his guys to stand by the polls too, whereas Biden said to trust the process and the ballots. And you're saying that they were both equal in any way, shape, or form? The only thing comparable about them is their age, race, and the fact that they're from the northeast.

EDIT:

The thing is that some undecideds will eat the Trump shit up.

Calm yourself. Where in my post did I state they're equal?

Quote

 

Two boomers and an internet troll walk into a bar...

Basically what this debate was.

 

As if to say this debate was a fucking joke.

Quote

They should make a vod with a lie counter for each.

Frankly, any vod where Trump is present should include a lie counter, but you can't just put it on Trump and not Biden without assisting his "Fake News is any news that talks bad about me" rhetoric. Biden had a few cases where a fact check would say he's wrong but no one in their right mind is going to argue that he lied anywhere as much as that clown we currently have for a President.

Biden acted like you would expect any politician to act and folks were sick of that in 2016. I only hope more undecided voters see what a clown and how unfit Trump is for the presidency and decide to vote against him instead of think that he won the debate and thus earned their vote. You said it yourself, "The thing is that some undecideds will eat the Trump shit up". The debate is irrelevant to people who've already decided to vote against Trump like us.

The real winners of the debate were pretty much anyone that tuned in to it and doesn't live in the US cause they probably see it as a hilarious shitshow.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Dr. Tarrasque

[XRay]

31 minutes ago, Dr. Tarrasque said:

The real winners of the debate were pretty much anyone that tuned in to it and doesn't live in the US cause they probably see it as a hilarious shitshow.

I think Americans got a few good laughs out of it too. On just the first question, Trump was so senile that he forgot to answer the rest of Wallace's question and just droned on about Barrett.

But yeah, I am not sure how much influence the debate has over undecided voters. It does not really change anything for Republicans and Democrats, but maybe it will convince some in the middle. Trump literally has no plan and cannot even talk about broad, surface level policy coherently.

[Excellen Browning]

Trump definitely has a plan and that's to keep doing what he does, i.e. enable Christian extremists, his super rich friends and himself. Oh, and the racists.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Excellen Browning

[Shoblongoo]

...well I was way off...
 

19 hours ago, Shoblongoo said:

_____

I'll throw this out there as a prediction:

Highlight of the night that gets replayed on all the headline reels tomorrow is the exchange thats gonna happen when Trump's taxes come up. 

Highlight of the night thats getting replayed on all the headline reels is Trump refusing to condemn white supremacist violence + telling the Proud Boys to "stand by." 

Edited September 30, 2020 by Shoblongoo

[Rukina]

Trump loves fighting dirty.  I think Joe handled the debate fairly well since he had to juggle answering questions and countering Trump’s attacks.

[Shoblongoo]

I mean what else could Joe have done besides try to yell over Trump during his time and be the bigger asshole???

Trump's strategy last night was to just ignore the rules of the debate, talk-out-of-turn, and speak over Biden every time he tried to give an answer + not let him get a word in edgewise.

Biden's choice was to match-up and do the same.

Or to just follow the rules, and let Trump be an asshole. 

I wouldn't have done that. I'd have been shouting over Trump and calling him a lying sack-of-shit and probably coming off just as bad as him tbh.

________

Biden's strategy was probably the correct one. 

Insofar as the reaction from the undecideds today appears to be by-and-large: "Biden came off like a normal person having a normal conversation. Trump came off like a kid who took too much Adderall."    

Edited September 30, 2020 by Shoblongoo

[Tryhard]

I wasn't expecting anything else, but Trump mocking Biden's son for drug addiction after he was just talking about his other dead son was also very low. As if the opioid crisis doesn't exist under Trump and such addictions don't affect a lot of families with at least someone they know. Trump's own brother died from alcoholism, you think he should actually maybe give a fuck. That is, if he did care about anyone other than himself.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Tryhard

[Dr. Tarrasque]

25 minutes ago, Tryhard said:

I wasn't expecting anything else, but Trump mocking Biden's son for drug addiction after he was just talking about his other dead son was also very low. As if the opioid crisis doesn't exist under Trump and such addictions don't affect a lot of families with at least someone they know. Trump's own brother died from alcoholism, you think he should actually maybe give a fuck. That is, if he did care about anyone other than himself.

There is no such thing as "too low" for him. However bad you think he is, he's worse. He's incapable of improving, specially with a base performing mental gymnastics to portray him as someone succeeding against all odds
 

 

Edited September 30, 2020 by Dr. Tarrasque

[indigoasis]

I usually like to lurk on this thread, but I figured I'd give my two cents on the debate, even though I only watched a few minutes of it. But those few minutes that I watched were pretty funny. I don't know how long it was into the debate, but I had seen the part where Biden had asked Trump to show his taxes or something like that. I'm not really all that caught up or interested in the president's taxes, but saying "millions of dollars" seemed just a lil' sketch to me. The moderator's question to him that was asking if the president payed $750 in taxes really only needed a yes or no answer, in my opinion. Also, the way he said that the economy had BOOMED like it never BOOMED before was funny, even if he meant it to be serious. 

The last part that I watched before I left was when Trump said that he got more done in 47 months than Biden had in 47 years. I also saw this tweet:

Don't know if this is a joke or not, but at the very least, this debate has good memes... which really goes to show how much of a joke it was. 😞

[Shoblongoo]

2 hours ago, indigoasis said:

 this debate has good memes

Aye.

The country is on fire. The president is instructing nazi gangs to standby + watch over the polls on election day. And to call the current state of the race a clown show would be an insult to the circus.

But at least the memes are extra 🔥🔥 🔥 today.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Shoblongoo

[Phoenix Wright]

3 hours ago, Dr. Tarrasque said:

There is no such thing as "too low" for him. However bad you think he is, he's worse. He's incapable of improving, specially with a base performing mental gymnastics to portray him as someone succeeding against all odds
 

 

lmfao last night should have been the nail in the coffin, like countless times before, and instead we get people deeper into psychosis...

[Crysta]

they're gonna be so mad lol

[Moblin Major General]

3 minutes ago, Crysta said:

they're gonna be so mad lol

This pleases me.

[Shoblongoo]

watch that be the excuse for Trump to not do the next one 

[Dai]

2 hours ago, Crysta said:

they're gonna be so mad lol

“Trump was muted 100 times tonight! Joe Biden was only muted 12 times! Biased, deep-state liberal fake news media bias!”

[XRay]

2 hours ago, Crysta said:

they're gonna be so mad lol

Thank God. Taking away his voice and shoving the rules down his throat is the best thing to do.

6 hours ago, indigoasis said:

I usually like to lurk on this thread, but I figured I'd give my two cents on the debate, even though I only watched a few minutes of it. But those few minutes that I watched were pretty funny. I don't know how long it was into the debate, but I had seen the part where Biden had asked Trump to show his taxes or something like that. I'm not really all that caught up or interested in the president's taxes, but saying "millions of dollars" seemed just a lil' sketch to me. The moderator's question to him that was asking if the president payed $750 in taxes really only needed a yes or no answer, in my opinion. Also, the way he said that the economy had BOOMED like it never BOOMED before was funny, even if he meant it to be serious. 

I am no a tax expert, but there is difference between taxes and income taxes. All income taxes are taxes, but not all taxes are income taxes. Trump might not be paying much in the way of income taxes, but I am almost certain he pays taxes in some way, shape, or form, if not personally and directly, then indirectly through just simple day-to-day living expenses and business operations. There simply is not a way to get around sales taxes for example (unless you live in Alaska or something), since if you buy anything or eat anywhere, you automatically pay sales taxes that way. There also is not really a way to get around property taxes since somebody has to pay it or else the government can file a tax lien against the property, and that is usually a bad idea.

As for one possible way on how to pay little to no income tax, you could say that you are living off of the good will and gifts from friends and family and you are not earning any income. I do not remember the exact amount, but people can give away over $10,000 annually without being taxed, so he can say that he received $5,000 from person A, $7,000 from person B, $6,000 from person C, etc. The important thing to keep in mind is that it is the gift giver that generally pays the gift tax, NOT the receiver that pays the tax. If he has 100 employees and everyone on average gives him $5,000 annually, that is half a million in "tax free" income right there, but doing it through employees sounds extremely crude, and I am pretty sure it is illegal and he has more sophisticated ways of reducing his taxes without triggering alarm bells.

Edited October 1, 2020 by XRay

[indigoasis]

4 hours ago, Shoblongoo said:

The country is on fire. The president is instructing nazi gangs to standby + watch over the polls on election day. And to call the current state of the race a clown show would be an insult to the circus.

But at least the memes are extra 🔥🔥 🔥 today.

If those kinds of groups end up actually watching over the polls, wouldn't that seriously deter people from voting? Unless there are police to keep those groups away (which either wouldn't happen or wouldn't work), I wouldn't want to go out and vote if it means I might get my teeth kicked in for voting for someone they don't like.

Also, regarding memes, it really goes to show how far the influence of memes has spread. I understand that it's a good escape from reality, but I feel like it's gotten to the point where it's merged with reality, if that makes any sense. I guess another way to put it is that it's gotten really ingrained in human culture to the point where memes are more focused on than serious issues. Might just be me that thinks that, though.

3 hours ago, Crysta said:

they're gonna be so mad lol

He'd probably just shout over it all anyway, or maybe even bring his own mic, like one of those plastic toy microphones that echoes your voice.

55 minutes ago, XRay said:

I am no a tax expert, but there is difference between taxes and income taxes. All income taxes are taxes, but not all taxes are income taxes. Trump might not be paying much in the way of income taxes, but I am almost certain he pays taxes in some way, shape, or form, if not personally and directly, then indirectly through just simple day-to-day living expenses and business operations. There simply is not a way to get around sales taxes for example (unless you live in Alaska or something), since if you buy anything or eat anywhere, you automatically pay sales taxes that way. There also is not really a way to get around property taxes since somebody has to pay it or else the government can file a tax lien against the property, and that is usually a bad idea.

As for one possible way on how to pay little to no income tax, you could say that you are living off of the good will and gifts from friends and family and you are not earning any income. I do not remember the exact amount, but people can give away over $10,000 annually without being taxed, so he can say that he received $5,000 from person A, $7,000 from person B, $6,000 from person C, etc. The important thing to keep in mind is that it is the gift giver that generally pays the gift tax, NOT the receiver that pays the tax. If he has 100 employees and everyone on average gives him $5,000 annually, that is half a million in "tax free" income right there, but doing it through employees sounds extremely crude, and I am pretty sure it is illegal and he has more sophisticated ways of reducing his taxes without triggering alarm bells.

Even if you aren't a tax expert (and trust me, neither am I), I'd say that's a pretty good rundown of how it works.

Also, it'd be very silly if someone received money as a gift, and then had to pay a portion of that gift in taxes. Kinda ruins the point in the gift of money. Anyway, the article you linked says that a gift tax doesn't even show up if it's under $15,000 (in 2019, it might've changed for 2020), so he could theoretically get away with the method you mentioned as long as it's counted as a gift and is under $15,000. Call me crazy, but it sounds like more effort than it's worth, and I'm not sure if many people would really be willing to give so much money as a "gift."

[Lewyn]

Trump could release his tax returns and clear all the questions up.  However it is at least as bad as the NY Report, and likely much much worse.  His denials about fake news are very weak, when he could just show us the 'truth' with releasing his tax returns like every president has done.

He's going to use Proud boys as poll watchers and intimidators along with other white nationalism militia groups.  I guess the left has to send out their own militias to prevent this or something.  Or people need to come armed and be prepared to fire if necessary.  

Belarus is a preview.  I thought another 4 years of Trump would erode America and maybe be kill it as a democracy, however it could end this year with Trump rigging the election, stealing it, or encouraging militias to spread violence and terror cause he claims he was cheated out of the election.  Also Democrats aren't going to accept he results either, I sure as hell won't, most will have good reason to believe Trump cheated in some way.  So even if say Trump won fairly, many would believe he didn't.  Tons of violence, rioting, and it would never end.

Trump supporters, it isn't just on Trump either, it is on you.  You take responsibility for who you vote into power.  Remember that.  

[XRay]

17 minutes ago, indigoasis said:

Also, it'd be very silly if someone received money as a gift, and then had to pay a portion of that gift in taxes. Kinda ruins the point in the gift of money. Anyway, the article you linked says that a gift tax doesn't even show up if it's under $15,000 (in 2019, it might've changed for 2020), so he could theoretically get away with the method you mentioned as long as it's counted as a gift and is under $15,000. Call me crazy, but it sounds like more effort than it's worth, and I'm not sure if many people would really be willing to give so much money as a "gift."

If he did indeed attempted the trick I mentioned, I am sure it will raise a huge red flag for the IRS, or at least I think so. Having a 100 employees gifting you half a million dollars just sounds like a huge payroll fraud.

As for whether it is more effort than it is worth, I do not think it is that difficult to do. As a business, he could just automate the process and withhold a certain amount of pay from his employees. His employees are nominally paid an extra $5,000 each, but they all choose to have that amount withheld and then gifted to Trump instead. Alternatively, he could pay all his employees an extra $5,000, but have the employees set up an automatic payment system in their bank accounts to donate $5,000 to Trump's nonprofit organization every year or something like that.