All_Pro_Bills

So what are you saying? This is what you said and I quote "as if there is some excuse besides easy access to murder weapons". What I'm hearing from that is nothing in particular about the disposition of the killer or their mental state, or life experiences are of any importance. Did I get it wrong? And if so can you explain your intent? My problem with that theory is that almost everyone has "easy access to murder weapons". You and I and probably everyone else on this board has easy access to weapons. But I expect nobody here is disposed to act in that manner. So while access to weapons is certainly one factor, the root cause is something other than access to weapons. And it sits between the ears of these maladjusted young men.

So you propose that happy, well adjusted young men are prone to shooting sprees because they have access to "murder weapons"? That's quite a theory.

It sounds like you did some rational and sound planning so you seem to be in relatively good shape. The majority of Americans don't have an emergency fund or financial plan that can cover an unexpected $500 expense.

I would add to this, the credit rating agencies knowingly attaching "A" ratings to mortgage bundles they knew were garbage. Which allowed Wall Street to peddle these investments as "safe" to both funds and individual investors. On top of it all for one reason or another, firms like AIG which provided insurance against loss on these bundles didn't have the "reserves" and capital on their books to pay off when lenders came calling. All in all a classic example of systemic fraud generated by a delusional policy to expand home ownership to unqualified buyers.

So you propose a war on mental illness? Because any way you look at it, somebody has got to be out of their mind to go into a school and kill a bunch of kids.

Fuel cells have been around for a few decades and several companies have been tinkering around with the technology with some niche products. The concept itself was demonstrated in the 1800's. Combine hydrogen and oxygen and you get combustion and water as output. Fuel cells can be very efficient which provides a solution to many needs. But unless you have a lot of "free" hydrogen floating around and available the problem is the energy to produce hydrogen is most often greater than the amount of energy the recombination of hydrogen and oxygen produce. And most of the current hydrogen production processes depend on other energy inputs to produce the gas. Its the financial equivalent of spending a dollar to earn 80 cents. I just can't imagine the technology scaling up to the necessary level unless the idea of using nuclear fission or fusion reactors to produce the gas could be scaled up. Or some yet to be discovered technology.

The problem is they're not very good at math or understanding the realities of the physical world. The fossil fuel era provided a one-time big boost to human existence and population facilitated by a high density energy source. A one-time endowment of nature. Everything around us is based on it. And social and economic progress over time have been built upon the ability to harness more and more efficient and higher output levels of energy. Human workers, animals, wind, water, burning wood, steam, petroleum. Renewables are a step backward unless you want to take a leap of faith in the all-mighty God of technology to come up with something more efficient. Where's the details of the plan? Just lots of high level horseshit. It would take close to 12 Billion standard solar panels to replace one day of US gasoline consumption. A conversion factor being 29 panels per gallon of gas, 44 gallons per barrel, 9.4 million barrels per day. Placed end to end about 8 million miles long (4x2 panels). Where's all the material, physical space, and construction for all that coming from? that's just one application. And only domestic consumption. We need a real plan produced by electrical & civil engineers and other professions, One that will work. Not pronouncements from political idiots.

My problem with Joe's team isn't so much they've caused all these problems but that they seem committed to making everything worse. You've got an Energy secretary that doesn't know anything about energy, a Commerce secretary that doesn't know anything about commerce, a Transportation secretary that doesn't know anything about transportation, an Agriculture secretary that doesn't know anything about farming. When Joe's first act was to kill Keystone I immediately started building investment positions in energy funds and ETF's. Given that and other moves designed to intentionally destroy the domestic energy sector it was an easy and almost 100% guaranteed investment decision.

Well thought out exchange of views, but I'll ask the same question I do anytime I see anyone quoting the validity of the Mueller investigation. Given the zeal of the anti-Trump camp to nail him for the smallest of infractions like j-walking, why hasn't anyone been indicted, tried, convicted, and sentenced for any crime or campaign violation if the investigation produced evidence of illegal activities such as conspiring with a foreign entity against the government? How can something that goes on for over a year and spends millions of dollars on legal fees and lawyers and interviews that produced tons of evidence just get a readout and then gets dropped? My read of the summary was Mueller's conclusion that they might be innocent but we can't prove it. A conclusion that defies the basic premise of the entire legal system. A presumption of innocence and the need to prove guilt, not disprove it.

The verdict comes as no surprise given the composition of the jury and the guardrails the judge imposed on the prosecutions case. In one instance the judge overruled objections from the prosecution and allowed a woman to remain on the jury, even though her daughter and Sussmann’s daughter play on the same high school team. Three other jurors that identified as Clinton donors were allowed to serve. Based solely on the composition of the jury a guilty verdict would have been a surprise. But the record of testimony made it clear the Clinton campaign was the source of the Russian collusion story, that they funded the misinformation research, and knew it as false when they approached the FBI to plant the seeds of their investigation.

Figures from the tax foundation for the year 2017 on the percentage of State government funds report WV received 38.1% of its funds from the Federal government and NY receive 35.9% of its funds from the Federal government. Ranks 9th and 15th respectively. https://taxfoundation.org/state-federal-aid-reliance-2020/

Based on observation in today's America conservative politicians don't care about kids after their birthday and liberal politicians don't care about them before it.

I'm not saying anything is synonymous. I'm saying the Clinton campaign and the DNC did something worse. Actual violations of the law. Purposefully presenting false evidence to the FBI, which enabled an investigation, and then used to existence of that investigation to create misinformation designed to influence the election and the voters and those responsible should be exposed and held accountable. That is what the testimony of witnesses involved in the act and aware of the act have clearly stated in court. You seem incapable of accepting the reality of it all. What you're incapable of admitting is the 3 talking points you obsess over are from the very Clinton/DNC manufactured collusion narrative they instigated. And nothing you accuse the Trump campaign of has been a crime or an indictable offense in almost 6 years of constant repetition and media carpet bombing of those narratives. Not a single charge or conviction of anyone has happened. I'm saying nothing of what you believe is true in any form consistent with reality.

First, even if those things were true, none of them absolve the Clinton campaign and the DNC from criminal conduct. Lying to federal agents. Feeding disinformation, known to be false about a political opponent to the FBI. With the intent to interfere with the election of 2016 by misinforming voters. Peddling the Russian collusion hoax and disinformation campaign while conducting their own disinformation campaign. Deception on a grand scale. Second. Other than Manifort, who was convicted on tax charges for activities which occurred prior to joining the 2016 campaign who has been charged, tried, and convicted of any of the three narratives you cling to? Who's serving time for any of those things? Exactly what sections of the criminal code or campaign regulations are you suggesting they broke? Are we all to believe there is credible and valid evidence to nail Trump to the wall but for some reason they're just letting him off the hook after going through the effort of two impeachments? That idea operates outside the boundaries of reality.

So still in denial and sticking to the scripted DQC misinformation talking points.

Given how the testimony has implicated the Clinton campaign in the fabrication of the Russia collusion hoax I'd ask how it feels to confront to truth that something you've believed in and defended for almost 6 years is a lie? I expect a major case of cognitive dissonance.

What do you expect? America is in a constant state of war with one country or another somewhere on the planet. Our society glorifies violence and killing. The education system is dysfunctional and family and social order are breaking down. Its the perfect breeding ground for psychos and misfits. Violence is the one thing America is still good at doing. Politicians can't agree on anything. But spending money and sending arms and troops to blow up crap and killing lots of people? That's something almost all of them can get behind. Militarize police departments with combat weapons and tactics and they usually wait outside while the place gets shot up. In this case one motivated border patrol agent passing by the scene decided to take charge and end it. And there's some bewilderment that shootings occur across the country on a regular basis? Its a wonder there aren't more of them. Generally, the white liberal majority and the white conservative minority only care about these mass shootings for two reasons. First, it can and might directly affect their family at some point assuming their kids attend public schools and not the usual heavily defended private schools. And two, it impacts the issue of stricter gun ownership rules and controls. But when it comes to most of those stats like people of color killing each other in the streets of the cities run by unqualified and ineffective mayors and other officials they could care less. As long as their asses are safe everything is okay. So after the obligatory "gun control" dance between the two camps with lots of moaning and groan, morning of the dead, and speeches along with some demonstrations and then its all back to "normal".

Yup, the obligatory flag pin represents you as a member of another virtue signaling group which grants you immediate moral and ethical superiority on any and all topics. But providing actual support for the Ukrainian people in need, likely not so much. I can top that. A week ago I was socializing at home with actual and certified Ukrainian born people last week for a family event. But they're a little heavy and too bulky to pin to my shirt collar!

Not slow. Just committed and frozen to a specific ideological position that give and take of opinions and facts cannot alter or adjust. That ideology based on an obsession with Trump and associating any and all issues and topics to said person and labeling any dissenters to their opinions as "Trump supporters" or "cult" members. Since I am neither of those I've learned to keep my engagement with the specific posters to a minimum.

Regardless of all the damning evidence, I'd be surprised if any of this results in a conviction as the Judge has put tight guardrails around areas the prosecution can cover and question, what evidence can be submitted, and add to that a DC jury composition being highly favorable to political positions of the defense team and their client. Either way half of the country will be happy and the other half unhappy with the result. In any event what it does is implicate the Clinton campaign in the fabrication and origin of the Russia hoax. Given this it's a mystery anyone can still believe in it.

Nothing to do with Trump. A failure to clearly articulate a roadmap and a legislative agenda along with some overall vision in contrast with the Biden agenda and record to date will undo Republican efforts to retake Congress. Just saying the other guys are doing poorly so don't vote for them isn't enough. What's the benefit to replace one group of representatives doing nothing with another group of representatives that will do nothing? But maybe that's what our system has devolved into?

The problem everybody avoids admitting exists is American's have been conditioned to love war and violence and have been desensitized from it due to constant exposure. Add in a failing education system and broken families due to a terrible economy for working people that results in lots of dysfunction and kids turning out mentally FUBARed. We had access to guns when I went to high school and lots of gripes and grievances with lots of other students and cliques but nobody on either side of these disputes went out and shot up the town because of it all. Today, there's simply was too many people running loose out there that are a couple cans short of a 6-pack. But embrace diversity. Even if they are criminally insane. Also, there's lots of guns in Switzerland too. Mass shootings not so much. Because of the culture and not because of gun control. The geniuses in our government left billions in military grade weapons in places like Afghanistan and Iraq and outside of their governments killing lots of people there aren't a lot of mass shootings perpetrated by disgruntled civilians. For the major source of violence look no further than the consensus blood lust for war in Washington's uni-party establishment. The same dick-wads that want to arm every person on Earth in every other country want to take all the guns out of hands of civilians here. How's that reconcile?

The sad fact is guns or no guns, Americans are a very violent people and our civil and social order are breaking down as a result of all the wars and conflicts brought to us by the Washington uni-party, Hollywood & video game industry violence peddling, and a general breakdown in family and civil order along with a failing educational system. Blame who you want but that's where it stands.

I can't imagine that anyone on this message board, or Americans in general, are rooting for more mass shootings. So when it comes to mass shootings there are no sides. The problem is that when one of these events happens with all too often regularity, the conversation immediately turns to a political crusade full of the usual talking points about white supremacy ideology and the need to suppress and weed it out or the need for more stringent gun control laws. In this case we can scratch off the first one but I'm almost certain somebody, somewhere out there will attempt to make that case. And as for gun control as long as the solution is always focused on infringing on the rights law abiding citizens to legally defend themselves its just a non-starter. And that's because most gun owners and many non-gun owners conclude the purpose of activists demanding more stringent gun laws is not to stop these shootings but instead to use them as an excuse to address their long-standing desire to disarm the private citizen. Which they believe will leave them living in the same type of shooting gallery environment that exists in cities like New York and Chicago which nobody in charge in those jurisdictions appear eager to address. And at the mercy of public officials who through the pandemic have demonstrated though their zeal for authoritarian control that they can't be trusted. A good start might be identifying and getting the nuts off the streets reversing the policies of letting them run loose.

So moving on from the 2020 campaign theme of racism to the 2022 theme for the mid-terms of class warfare. Along with the DNC's top slogan, "sure food and gas costs a lot more but think how thin you'll look from dieting and how healthy you'll be from walking everywhere". These people are so clever!