It matters that the efforts were funded by Clinton and sourced by Russian intelligence for the same reasons people have been saying Russian influence is a threat to democracy. It’s election meddling. It’s political dirt sourced from Russian spies to damage an opponent. It’s supposed collusion. It’s everything they blamed Trump for but perpetuated by the Clinton campaign. — NOS4A2
For any true believer, or anyone interested in a perspective contrary the sensationalism regarding Russian collusion, read this wonderful article by Matt Taibbi.
It’s official: Russiagate is this generation’s WMD — NOS4A2
But a russian source is not Russian influence. If an FSB agent tells me Putin's favourite meal, that's information sources from russian spies, but basing a decision on it doesn't constitute russian influence.
There simply is no law that criminalizes collusion between a political campaign and foreign government. — NOS4A2
That’s true, but contrast these connections to the ones in the Trump campaign, where every Russian was in some way “connected to the kremlin”. FSB agents are quite literally Russian spies, and quite literally gave the DNC dirt for the purpose of influencing an election. There was no investigation or anything, even as this information was literally finding its way into American institutions, literally threatening democracy. — NOS4A2
But the key difference is that in the case of the Steele Dossier, domestic political players used information of dubious quality for domestic political gain. It just so happened that the information was allegedly based on russian sources.
Meanwhile, the allegation regarding the Trump campaign was that foreign political players directly influenced domestic affairs.
True, they weren’t comparable, but the dossier and the Russian dirt within it reached higher levels within our institutions, sowing the discord and meddling that we have been continually told were Putin’s objectives from the get go. Everyone who used it, peddled it, believed in it were the FSB’s useful idiots. It’s classic active measures, and unfortunately it worked. — NOS4A2
The US may have killed the Leader of ISIS. Good news. — NOS4A2
Good news and kudos to all involved in the successful mission to remove a truly evil human from this Earth. — ArguingWAristotleTiff
Murder and assasination is always good news when it's the enemy. For everyone to be consistent, next time a bunch of terrorists blow up "the enemy" in the US or Europe we should all just celebrate!
Ask what it is about trump that makes them feel good, listen to their beliefs about what he is going to do for them personally and instead of going directly up against them, try and find the rational route of the problem and explain how other candidates are genuinely more aware of this problem and have actually shown success in tackling said problem at a smaller scale than national or international and provide evidence that this candidate cares about what they do and can get things done about it, and show them all evidence of trump actually making things worse for the addict. — Mark Dennis
Trump and GOP attack Vindman's record: Former GOP Rep. Sean Duffy said about Vindman: "It seems very clear that he is incredibly concerned about Ukrainian defense." Trump also joined in the criticism of Vindman, claiming without evidence on Twitter that the White House's top Ukraine expert is a "Never Trumper." Vindman served multiple overseas tours as a US infantry officer, including a deployment to Iraq where he received a Purple Heart after being wounded in an IED attack. He has served in Trump's National Security Council since 2018.
Why do they approve of those things? — Mark Dennis
Trump fans are behaving a lot like addicts when you try and take their drugs away. — Mark Dennis
As I argue in my upcoming book, The Cult of Trump: A Leading Cult Expert Explains How The President Uses Mind Control , Trump has gotten where he is today in large part because he has exploited tactics straight out of [the cult leader] playbook. These include his grandiose claims, his practice of sowing confusion, his demand for absolute loyalty, his tendency to lie and create alternative “facts” and realities, his shunning and belittling of critics and ex-believers, and his cultivating of an “us versus them” mindset. These are the same methods used by Moon, Jones, and other cult leaders such as L. Ron Hubbard (Scientology), David Koresh (Branch Davidians), Lyndon LaRouche (LaRouche PAC), and, most recently, convicted trafficking felon Keith Raniere (NXVIM).
Of all these tactics, the “us versus them” mindset is probably one of the most effective. From the moment you are recruited into a cult, you are made to feel special, part of an “inside” group in opposition to unenlightened, unbelieving, dangerous “outsiders.” Playing on ancient human tribal tendencies, cult leaders extend this “us versus them” mindset outwards to an almost cosmic struggle. — Steve Hassan
I have a problem with the celebration of violence and death, regardless of how it comes. His last act was evil; I'd still not say he was evil as otherwise, I'm sure, he wouldn't have had any wives or children to begin with. Plus, I think the civility that we pretend puts us above such barbaric acts is very thin veneer that will come off as soon as life becomes slightly harder. Abu Ghraib, Guantanomo, rendition, torture, etc. etc. — Benkei
...they think that their situation is down to the evils of "globalism" and only Trump is willing to actually fight it. — Echarmion
Should Trump supporters be treated like addicts? — Mark Dennis
It’s a tacit defense in my mind. The idea that he is perhaps not evil because he had a family is absurd, especially in the context of him having murdered them all. — NOS4A2
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