Cont: The Biden Presidency Part II

[Delphic Oracle]

What bothers me most about this thread is the lack of discussion about infrastructure and our neglect of it and the need to address it.

It would appear we have done all that our current electoral and political variables will allow.

 

[Stacyhs]

Since Machin and Sinema have derailed BBB, there is talk of breaking it into different bills and focusing on the more popular ones. Infrastructure would be one of those. Even the GOP knows we have to fix out infrastructure when it comes to our roads, bridges, and railways.

I had a friend from Germany visit several years ago and he was shocked by the state of our roads.

 

[gnome]

Since Machin and Sinema have derailed BBB, there is talk of breaking it into different bills and focusing on the more popular ones. Infrastructure would be one of those. Even the GOP knows we have to fix out infrastructure when it comes to our roads, bridges, and railways.

I'm quite certain the GOP will refuse to pass it and then say how incompetent Biden is for not getting it passed.

 

[Aridas]

What bothers me most about this thread is the lack of discussion about infrastructure and our neglect of it and the need to address it.

Speaking of infrastructure, here's a poke at related ongoing dispute.

Everything you need to know about the Pennsylvania school-funding case

From that, to poke near the end -

Chalkbeat found that more than half of Pennsylvanians are unable to access public preschools. Republicans, in their infinite wisdom, argued that Dr. Barnett’s point makes it clear that Pennsylvania shouldn’t even bother with preschools to begin with if students are destined to fail due to lack of resources. At one point, an attorney for Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman asked why students would even need required courses like math and science in the first place. “What use would someone on the McDonald’s career track have for Algebra 1,” lawyer John Krill argued during week four proceedings. He then went even further in his musings: “The question in my mind is, thorough and efficient to what end? To serve the needs of the Commonwealth. Lest we forget, the Commonwealth has many needs,” Krill said. “There’s a need for retail workers, for people who know how to flip a pizza crust.”

Ahh, rich Republicans working hard to retain and push a cradle to slave pipeline. No American Dream for nigh all of those who aren't wealthy from the start!

 

[Stacyhs]

Speaking of infrastructure, here's a poke at related ongoing dispute.




Everything you need to know about the Pennsylvania school-funding case

From that, to poke near the end -

Chalkbeat found that more than half of Pennsylvanians are unable to access public preschools. Republicans, in their infinite wisdom, argued that Dr. Barnett’s point makes it clear that Pennsylvania shouldn’t even bother with preschools to begin with if students are destined to fail due to lack of resources. At one point, an attorney for Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman asked why students would even need required courses like math and science in the first place. “What use would someone on the McDonald’s career track have for Algebra 1,” lawyer John Krill argued during week four proceedings. He then went even further in his musings: “The question in my mind is, thorough and efficient to what end? To serve the needs of the Commonwealth. Lest we forget, the Commonwealth has many needs,” Krill said. “There’s a need for retail workers, for people who know how to flip a pizza crust.”

Ahh, rich Republicans working hard to retain and push a cradle to slave pipeline. No American Dream for nigh all of those who aren't wealthy from the start!

Those two are complete asses. These are the entitled elitists that the white, rural, non-college educated GOP base claim they distrust and dislike asking for their votes...and they'll likely get them.

What do they think they should take instead of science and math? Burger Flipping 101? Advanced Pizza Making? Walmart Greeter for Beginners? I get not everyone will make it into college...or choose to go. But even non-college required jobs can and do use science and math.

Most plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters go through a four or five year apprenticeship program, which includes studying math, physics and chemistry, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Registered nurses, by far the fastest growing STEM job that does not require a bachelor's degree, need to take courses in anatomy, chemistry and microbiology.

Jonathan Rothwell, associate fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of the report told 24/7 Wall St., "the course requirements for some of these jobs [include] things like electronics, physics, engineering, technology. There's usually some math requirement too." These workers, Rothwell added, also "have longer periods of on-the-job training" than many jobs that require a college degree.

Many sub-bachelor STEM jobs have grown fairly quickly. According to Rothwell, there has been strong growth in health care and computer systems occupations, while production occupations have been shrinking. According to BLS projections, from 2010 to 2020, the numbers of registered nurses and computer systems analysts will rise 26% and 22%, respectively. Meanwhile, the number of workers employed as machinists — or in similar occupations — is expected to rise just 7%

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/07/06/high-tech-jobs-no-college-degree/2487025/

 

[TurkeysGhost]

Since Machin and Sinema have derailed BBB, there is talk of breaking it into different bills and focusing on the more popular ones. Infrastructure would be one of those. Even the GOP knows we have to fix out infrastructure when it comes to our roads, bridges, and railways.

I had a friend from Germany visit several years ago and he was shocked by the state of our roads.

Infrastructure and giveaways to the rich via the SALT tax deduction seem like something ghouls like Manchin and Sinema would support, though you might wonder what motivation the progressive wing would have to support such a measure now that they have been denied the half-a-loaf that was the BBB.

Any pretense of a workable coalition is shattered.

 

[Beelzebuddy]

there is talk of breaking it into different bills and focusing on the more popular ones

It worked last time so of course there is. I imagine there's also pinky swears to keep the less popular parts of this already less popular part of the original bill on the table?

 

[Stacyhs]

Infrastructure and giveaways to the rich via the SALT tax deduction seem like something ghouls like Manchin and Sinema would support, though you might wonder what motivation the progressive wing would have to support such a measure now that they have been denied the half-a-loaf that was the BBB.

Any pretense of a workable coalition is shattered.[/QUOTE]

That became apparent when one side declared that they were 100% focused on stopping Biden's agenda.

 

[Delphic Oracle]

That became apparent when one side declared that they were 100% focused on stopping Biden's agenda.

A threat they could not deliver on without inside help.

 

[Armitage72]

Ahh, rich Republicans working hard to retain and push a cradle to slave pipeline. No American Dream for nigh all of those who aren't wealthy from the start!

I don't remember the context now, but I remember an episode of "Bones" in which Dr. Brennan casually commented on whatever situation they were dealing with by stating that throughout history civilizations had always depended on the existence of a poorly educated underclass. Her friends pretty much all had a "Why the **** are you talking like that's acceptable?!?" reaction. It was early in the series, when she still didn't understand things like human interaction.

 

[Stacyhs]

I don't remember the context now, but I remember an episode of "Bones" in which Dr. Brennan casually commented on whatever situation they were dealing with by stating that throughout history civilizations had always depended on the existence of a poorly educated underclass. Her friends pretty much all had a "Why the **** are you talking like that's acceptable?!?" reaction. It was early in the series, when she still didn't understand things like human interaction.

That is actually true and there will always be a certain segment of society that is poorly educated or minimally educated because there are people who 1) choose not to be educated through their own actions and/or 2) are not intellectually capable of more than a basic education. However, everyone should be given the tools and opportunity to achieve the level of education that they choose and are capable of obtaining.

Pre-judging what that level is can be a self-fulfilling prophecy. People can surprise you. My sister is one. She had an undiagnosed reading disability which hindered her learning severely. In second grade, she was tested and classified as 'slow'. She barely graduated high school in the upper half of her class (by two) and she passed more than one class because her teachers said she tried so hard and always did all assignments, etc. Her counselor told my mother that college was not really an option for her.

My sister was not intellectually slow: she was a visual and hands on learner but could not retain what she read. She ended up with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and went on to become a major in the USAF and Army Reserves. She ran the OB-GYN clinic at the King Faisal Royal Hospital in Riyahd, Saudi Arabia for 3 years and they tired everything they could to get her to stay when she left. She retired after 35 years as a highly respected RN who had nothing but excellent reviews.

 

[Beelzebuddy]

Infrastructure and giveaways to the rich via the SALT tax deduction seem like something ghouls like Manchin and Sinema would support, though you might wonder what motivation the progressive wing would have to support such a measure now that they have been denied the half-a-loaf that was the BBB.

Any pretense of a workable coalition is shattered.[

That became apparent when one side declared that they were 100% focused on stopping Biden's agenda.

I think he was referring to progressives, who would like to enact all of Biden's agenda but have already been burned by the rest of their party sidelining them.

 

[llwyd]

Simply put, Biden negotiating with Putin is not nearly in as strong a position as American presidents used to be, as almost half of the US population is deranged and anti-empirical and thus for example perfectly able to choose Trump again. Or agree to falsifying the actual results of the election. And at the very least the radicalized Republican party is set to win the midterms, so who knows what's to come if Russia really will call the cards in former Eastern Europe? Can we trust the USA?

 

[Beelzebuddy]

Can we trust the USA?

We already broke our treaty with Ukraine (part of their denuclearization agreement) when Putin invaded Crimea, and that was under Obama. That ship's sailed.

 

[theprestige]

We already broke our treaty with Ukraine (part of their denuclearization agreement) when Putin invaded Crimea, and that was under Obama. That ship's sailed.

Technically not a treaty, but pretty much this.

The world would be a very different place, if western Europe didn't trust the US, and saw to its own robust defense, and the stability and security of the buffer states between it and the Bear.

It's a bit late for that now, though. I wonder for how long Ukraine has seen the writing on the wall.

 

[Armitage72]

That is actually true and there will always be a certain segment of society that is poorly educated or minimally educated because there are people who 1) choose not to be educated through their own actions and/or 2) are not intellectually capable of more than a basic education. However, everyone should be given the tools and opportunity to achieve the level of education that they choose and are capable of obtaining.

Pre-judging what that level is can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

There was a famous and controversial (at the time) science fiction story published by E.C. Comics in 1953, "Judgment Day". A human astronaut visits a planet inhabited by sapient robots in order to determine if they're ready for membership in a Federation-style organization. Some robots are orange, and others are blue, with the orange robots being in charge while the blue robots perform menial or unpleasant jobs, live in squalor, and have few rights. The orange robots claim that this is natural, since the blue robots are intellectually inferior and can't do any better, but the robots are physically identical other than their color. The real difference is that the orange robots receive full educational programming when constructed, while the blue robots only receive rudimentary programming, forcibly keeping them in their inferior position.
(The controversy came from the final panel, in which the astronaut removed his helmet and was revealed to be black, producing a reaction similar to what was shown in the DS9 episode "Far Beyond the Stars" when it was reprinted in 1956, post-Comics Code.)

 

[Tero]

Simply put, Biden negotiating with Putin is not nearly in as strong a position as American presidents used to be, as almost half of the US population is deranged and anti-empirical and thus for example perfectly able to choose Trump again. Or agree to falsifying the actual results of the election. And at the very least the radicalized Republican party is set to win the midterms, so who knows what's to come if Russia really will call the cards in former Eastern Europe? Can we trust the USA?

Who knew? I was almost 50 by the time I realized how stupid the average person was. Long before Trump, early 2000s.

I spent too much time in the lab till then. The chemicals were 90% predictable, compared to humans.

 

[acbytesla]

Maybe I give people too much credit. I don't think people are as stupid as some are saying. But I do think people don't apply critical thinking skills to many of their beliefs.

I'm reminded of the lyrics to the Simon and Garfunkel song The Boxer.

Such are promises
All lies and jest
Still, a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest

People get attached to a position and then only look to reinforce it.

 

[bruto]

Maybe I give people too much credit. I don't think people are as stupid as some are saying. But I do think people don't apply critical thinking skills to many of their beliefs.

I'm reminded of the lyrics to the Simon and Garfunkel song The Boxer.

Such are promises
All lies and jest
Still, a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest

People get attached to a position and then only look to reinforce it.

I think, though, that the two preceding lines probably belong too: "I have squandered my resistance for a pocket full of mumbles..."

 

[acbytesla]

I think, though, that the two preceding lines probably belong too: "I have squandered my resistance for a pocket full of mumbles..."

I agree.