Inauguration Day 20 Jan 2021

Archie Gemmill Goal said:
It's a statement of fact.

Which was my point. That Trump has lowered the bar so much that anyone who isn't him brings tears to people's eyes.
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Nobody wants herpes but if it had to be herpes or AIDS everyone would pick herpes. Consider Biden as a series of cheerful red bumps, oozing with the promise of a less terrible tomorrow.
 
Archie Gemmill Goal said:
It's a pretty sad statement on where we are right now that the appointment of a centre-right rich old white man as president has people in tears but I guess we should be thankful for small mercies at the moment. it could have been a lot worse.
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Despite suggestions from some progressives that Biden is some sort of Republican in Democratic clothes, he is not "centre-right". He is a moderate (yes, closer to the center than Sanders/Warren) but he is still definitely on the left side of the political spectrum... He wants improves social programs, he wants increased taxes on the wealthy, he wants to protect abortion and minority rights.

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acbytesla said:
Funny, I was thinking the same thing. Everett's speech was written down so we do know what he said.

Still I use to know Lincoln's Gettysburg Address by heart. Can't say I know a single line of Everett's speech.
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Here's a typical paragraph from Everett's remarks:

So we had a big day in the stock market, things are coming back and they're coming back very rapidly, a lot sooner than people thought. But then the -- then the virus came in and the world is a different place but we're now getting back and one of the reasons the market's doing so -- it's almost at the point that it was at prior to the plague -- almost. China has 1.4 billion people, we have 325 -- probably 325 million approximately -- nobody can give the exact count, it’s amazing, we're trying to get an exact count but you have, over the years, many illegals who have come into the country, so it depends on how you want to count it. But we’ll have an accurate and complete, very complete because that is so important to know, in two weeks. Two weeks, ten days, soon, very soon, because that is so very important.
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Just kidding. Here is a link to Everett's speech, which is typically florid and grandiose, in stark contrast to Lincoln's short, to the point remarks. In his day, Lincoln received a mixed reaction from the press for his address, with some critics praising the speech for its deep sincerity and encapsulation of the meaning of sacrifice, others calling it an embarrassment.
 
Meadmaker said:
The more I think about Joe Biden, the more I think he might be the perfect man for the job at this time. I see basically the same thing you do, but I think there's also a hard edge underneath. He does not suffer fools gladly, and he's not afraid to call BS when he sees it. I think he'll have some interesting reactions to pompous grandstanding, especially when the Republicans do it, but maybe even for his own party.

I think he'll be willing to work with Republicans, and I think he would rather compromise and get some of what he wants than score political points by getting nothing. We'll see.
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I think (and hope) you have a point here. Even though I tend to be a bit more progressive and radical than some, and would have preferred some other candidate initially, I'm pleasantly surprised by Biden's firmness and seeming commitment to core ideas. Of course talk and action are not the same. We'll see how he actually does soon enough.

But as for compromise, after a long career of walking the political tightrope, it might be that Biden, now not only an old man but a president, will find himself emboldened, ready to lay down a legacy of something more substantial than mere survival. Compromise is great only if it actually gets you something.

I'm put in mind of the Affordable Care Act, large parts of which I recall reading, were based on attempts to compromise with Republicans, who insisted on conditions then turned around and voted against it anyway and blamed the Democrats for their mess. Obama and Biden got suckered there, I think. I would not count on it happening again.
 
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Apparently QAnon and Proud Boys are deflating now that their Führer wasn't reinstated for four eight 12 more years after all.

Let's hope a lot of Trump supporters go quiet now.
 
Safe-Keeper said:
Apparently QAnon and Proud Boys are deflating now that their Führer wasn't reinstated for four eight 12 more years after all.

Let's hope a lot of Trump supporters go quiet now.
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Give them a bit of time to come up with a rationalisation. ;)
 
acbytesla said:
Calling Joe Biden a rich old white guy is absurd especially in light of who was just POTUS.

I challenge you to look at the people he just hired and compare it to the group who was there. This is easily the most diverse in history.
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I wonder if there is a difference between hiring/placing the best qualified person for the job regardless of skin color as opposed to the best qualified person of a certain skin color for that job.

Seems that one would attain the best person for the job without race being a factor and the other way makes the person a "token" position for their particular race. Which of the two would seem more racist to you?


Or viewed another way. Say we take out a few hiring ads in a local paper.

One ad reads: "Seeking qualified individuals for specific job. All applications considered regardless of race."

To me, this first ad would be the way to go. Skin color is not considered.

And the other: "Seeking qualified White person for specific job. Other races need not apply."

Yikes!

Does one of those seem racist to you?

Or yet another: "Seeking qualified Black person for specific job. Other races need not apply."

Yikes!

To me only the first ad was acceptable as non racist. How you view the others is up to you I suppose.

Setting an example of token positions sends a message and it is akin to two of those hypothetical ads I find unacceptable for the same reasons.
 
acbytesla said:
I certainly would have preferred someone more progressive. But I believe more than ever we made the right choice for this time in history. Biden is a good man with a good heart.

I see a man of character and kindness. Someone who thinks of others before himself. Someone who doesn't thirst for the spotlight, but for the light of truth. He doesn't need to prove that he is smarter than the experts.
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And from a progressive point of view don't forget Bernie Sanders is going to be the Chair of the Budget Committee, that should provide a bit of excitement.
 
Safe-Keeper said:
Apparently QAnon and Proud Boys are deflating now that their Führer wasn't reinstated for four eight 12 more years after all.

Let's hope a lot of Trump supporters go quiet now.
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You can hope. I'd rather the Trump supporters be vocal. If they go quiet there's a greater chance that they are plotting.
 
The Don said:
Give them a bit of time to come up with a rationalisation. ;)
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Oh, they have rationalizations ;) .

Q has the flu, and has delayed the coup. They'll try again on March 20th.
Biden wasn't really sworn in, Trump will continue as "shadow president".
Biden is Q.

I'm just wondering how many people will stick with them. Like when a sect gathers in the corn field on the date they've been anticipating, and the mothership doesn't appear.
 
Archie Gemmill Goal said:
It's a statement of fact.

Which was my point. That Trump has lowered the bar so much that anyone who isn't him brings tears to people's eyes.
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Biden may be rich now but his wealth has come as a result of, and after, his vice-presidency from book deals and speaking fees.

https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/politics/a31265187/joe-biden-net-worth/

As recently as November 2009, Joe Biden's net worth was less than $30,000, according to CBS, but life post-vice presidency has been quite lucrative for President Obama's former number two. When Biden released his financial disclosures in July of 2019, they showed that he and his wife Jill had earned more than $15 million in 2017 and 2018.

More specifically, the Bidens reported an adjusted gross income of roughly $11 million in 2017 and $4.6 million in 2018. The bulk of that number comes from a multi-book deal with Flatiron Books valued at $8 million per Publishers Weekly, but the Bidens also earned a sizable income from speaking engagements.

The AP reports that Biden's basic speaking fee was $100,000, but it ranged from $40,000 to $190,000. The New York Times also notes that Biden made additional unpaid speaking engagements during this time which are not listed on the disclosure, citing his campaign.

Additionally, the disclosures reveal that the former VP earned $540,000 as a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement.
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So for most of his life he was not rich.

Trump's net worth estimates range from zero (after paying his debts or declaring bankruptcy) to $3.3-billion (his estimate). See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wealth_of_Donald_Trump#Trump_on_his_own_net_worth
 
Safe-Keeper said:
I'm just wondering how many people will stick with them. Like when a sect gathers in the corn field on the date they've been anticipating, and the mothership doesn't appear.
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I saw someone draw parallels to Millerism in an article. Some will move on and some will dig in and reformulate.
 
Dr. Keith said:
I saw someone draw parallels to Millerism in an article. Some will move on and some will dig in and reformulate.
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I'm always reminded of the very funny sketch from Beyond the Fringe, in which the faithful gather on a mountain to await the end of the world, as timed by "the ancient pyramidic scrolls and me Ingersoll watch," which ends with the minister acknowledging that it was not quite the conflagration they'd expected, but "never you mind. Same time tomorrow."
 
Bubba said:
Meanwhile, in other inauguration day news....
‘We Are Ungovernable’
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I am glad our mockery about you being gone for x weeks after 20 Jan caused you to be back so quickly after your dreams dashed.

ChrisBFRPKY said:
One ad reads: "Seeking qualified individuals for specific job. All applications considered regardless of race."

To me, this first ad would be the way to go. Skin color is not considered.

And the other: "Seeking qualified White person for specific job. Other races need not apply."

Yikes! Does one of those seem racist to you?

Or yet another: "Seeking qualified Black person for specific job. Other races need not apply."

Yikes!
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It is pretty much first time I agree with ChrisBFRPKY, at least as he wrote. I consider quotas, gender parity, etc as feel-good measures that won't actually do anything except fulfilling ideological wankery of left.

Actual problem is equality (or rather lack of it) of opportunity, lack of social mobility, increasing wealth inequality etc. Gender/race/whatever quotas are, at best, small pink bandaid on gaping wound.
 
Dr. Keith said:
No, it is never correct to start with a lie. Do better.
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A quick review will reveal my post begins as a reply to another. How I begin or end depends on where I intend to go within that post as my personal literary choice. You may be a bit behind as the response and the hypothetical was not addressed to you. You can choose to like it or not but there it is.

I can feel something from your multiple replies to my posts that seems like a seething desire to scorn a Trump supporter. By all means feel free to play. I'm not here at the ICF as a Conservative because I fear debate....:thumbsup:

I voted Trump in 2016, 2020, and I'll likely vote for him in 2024 if he runs.
 
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