Therein lies the major problem of the day (not Trump being a corrupt racist self-serving dick, which he clearly is and so requires no debate).

transform functional democracies into mere nominal ones — Baden

Totally agree with you there. Power despises democracy. They are antithetical. Now they have even greater means to pervert it. It will possibly take another 'great war' to return to the universal values that were so lauded after the 2nd world war. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights | United Nations.
pension reform, social security, health care. All these institutions they are trying to dismantle in order to get their oh so desired tax cuts.
The rich have always fed off the poor and they have bought the politicians to enable them in their greedy pursuit.

Join the resistance. Support the Young Turks and the progressives.

We don't need political labels for this. The basic idea goes back at least as far as Aristotle:

Poverty is the cause of the defects of democracy. That is the reason why measures should be taken to ensure a permanent level of prosperity. This is in the interest of all classes, including the prosperous themselves. — Aristotle—Politics, Book VI, Chapter 5

True but these democratic institutions were meant to keep the greedy in check. They are losing control.
These Trump supporters are like frogs in a tub of water. They think the water getting warmer is great until they are all forced to march off somewhere to sacrifice their sorry arses.

Lol I dont want to know

.

Any reason why? — NOS4A2

To exonerate himself, of course. I think Clinton testified during his impeachment...

Clinton perjured himself in a lawsuit and was impeached because of it.

I think that's why Trump doesn't want to testify... Same thing with the Mueller report he chickened out... LOL

Lol I dont want to know — NOS4A2

I'll tell you anyway. To trump means to fart.

Not as bad as I thought. I feared the worst.

The disease is corporate fascism perverting the democratic institutions. Now they have even greater tools of persuasion at their disposal. The Facebooks and Googles are the surveillance-state manipulating the weak and vulnerable minds in their political favor.

These “democratic institutions” have grown sclerotic by way of social democracy. They would have died sooner had they not adopted economic liberalism, which put them on life support, but they shot themselves in the foot with massive regulation and welfare statism. The people want their power back and will step behind the populists to do it.

why did you @ me? I dont even know what page to go to in order to see the rest of the conversation. I saw what you quoted, but not why.

If you click on your name in his quote it will take you to your comment.

Oh I see he was quoting me as an example of mass hysteria, even though the doomsday clock of the bulletin of atomic scientists is 2 minutes to midnight, and mass hysteria is warranted, because let's face it the politics are shit, the economic structure is shit based on selling useless shit to shit people for their addictions, and the planet is scheduled to catch fire.

But please tell me why there's no reason to be concerned.

Sure it all looks great on paper right now. "Useless shit for everybody, hurray, we can exploit other countries and improperly utilize energy and resources "

But isn't that entire premise just completely idiotic in the long term? Where is the self sustainability in a system that is isolated to sheer addiction curing for lack of it's ability to harness the sun or use other means for responsible energy and it's distribution?

Do we even really need all of this energy? I mean great I can watch Netflix and bullshit with the philosophy forum and I can drive to work because I got me one of them oil fart machines. What's the point of all of this shit if it's just run on advertising ?

Go look in a convenience store. The epitome of wastefulness to fulfill cravings for sugar, nicotine, alcohol. Prepackaged trash just for you.

Oh I see he was quoting me as an example of mass hysteria, even though the doomsday clock of the bulletin of atomic scientists is 2 minutes to midnight, and mass hysteria is warranted, because let's face it the politics are shit, the economic structure is shit based on selling useless shit to shit people for their addictions, and the planet is scheduled to catch fire.

But please tell me why there's no reason to be concerned.

The doomsday clock has never been right. A clock that never hits midnight is broken, which is ironic for atomic science. Rather the analogy should be a barometer, because it would symbolize the increased fears of atomic scientists and not any actual fact. These scientists are a part of the mass hysteria.

That's just too funny.

How the above relates to the report:

We also asked Steele whether his research was "opposition research" and biased. He provided a similar response and explained that his firm would not be in business if it provided biased information. Steele called the allegation that he was biased against Trump from the start "ridiculous." He stated that if anything he was "favorably disposed" toward the Trump family before he began his research because he had visited a Trump family member at Trump Tower and "been friendly" with [the family member] for some years. He described their relationship as "personal" and said that he once gifted a family tartan from Scotland to the family member.

I rest my case. — Brett

Your case is the following?

The comments made on this OP right from the start are full of hysterical nonsense about the end of the world, fascism, catastrophic consequences and war. It’s mass hysteria that plays into the hands of totalitarianism, which is what this OP amounts to. — Brett

Let's assume that you've shown the "mass hysteria" present in this topic, how exactly does it play into the hands of totalitarianism? Feel free to research Fox News opinion pieces, Breitbart, or whatever, in trying to rationally explain your claims.

As for the FBI's supposed "bias" against Trump, there were also agents invoved who favoured Trump:

We reviewed the text and instant messages sent and received by the Handling Agent, the
co-case Handling Agent, and the SSA for this CHS, which reflect their support for Trump in the 2016 elections. On November 9, the day after the election, the SSA contacted another FBI employee via an instant messaging program to discuss some recent CHS reporting regarding the Clinton Foundation and offered that "if you hear talk of a special prosecutor .. .! will volunteer to work [on] the Clinton Foundation. The SSA's November 9, 2016 instant messages also stated that he "was so elated with the election" and compared the election coverage to "watching a Superbowl comeback." The SSA explained this comment to the OIG by saying that he "fully expected Hillary Clinton to walk away with the election. But as the returns [came] in .. .it was just energizing to me to see .... [because] I didn't want a criminal to be in the White House."

On November 9, 2016, the Handling Agent and co-case Handling Agent for this CHS also discussed the results of the election in an instant message exchange that reads:
Handling Agent: "Trump!"
Co-Case Handling Agent: "Hahaha. Shit just got real."
Handling Agent: "Yes it did."
Co-Case Handling Agent: "I saw a lot of scared MFers on ... [my way to work] this
morning. Start looking for new jobs fellas. Haha."
Handling Agent: "LOL"

It's almost as if there are a varied bunch of people who work in government agencies and have their own political opinions.

:rofl:

As expected the IG report by Obama-appointed Horowitz was essentially a dud. It’s no surprise that a complicit media and their base is now gloating,

US attorney John Durham, who is not limited to investigating the DOJ, disagrees with the conclusion. Given that he has more scope and power in his investigation, his and the AG’s disagreement should not be taken lightly.

Statement of U.S. Attorney John H. Durham

“I have the utmost respect for the mission of the Office of Inspector General and the comprehensive work that went into the report prepared by Mr. Horowitz and his staff. However, our investigation is not limited to developing information from within component parts of the Justice Department. Our investigation has included developing information from other persons and entities, both in the U.S. and outside of the U.S. Based on the evidence collected to date, and while our investigation is ongoing, last month we advised the Inspector General that we do not agree with some of the report’s conclusions as to predication and how the FBI case was opened.”

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ct/pr/statement-us-attorney-john-h-durham

Statement by Attorney General William P. Barr on the Inspector General's Report of the Review of Four FISA Applications and Other Aspects of the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane Investigation

Attorney General William P. Barr issued the following statement:

"Nothing is more important than the credibility and integrity of the FBI and the Department of Justice. That is why we must hold our investigators and prosecutors to the highest ethical and professional standards. The Inspector General’s investigation has provided critical transparency and accountability, and his work is a credit to the Department of Justice. I would like to thank the Inspector General and his team.

The Inspector General’s report now makes clear that the FBI launched an intrusive investigation of a U.S. presidential campaign on the thinnest of suspicions that, in my view, were insufficient to justify the steps taken. It is also clear that, from its inception, the evidence produced by the investigation was consistently exculpatory. Nevertheless, the investigation and surveillance was pushed forward for the duration of the campaign and deep into President Trump’s administration. In the rush to obtain and maintain FISA surveillance of Trump campaign associates, FBI officials misled the FISA court, omitted critical exculpatory facts from their filings, and suppressed or ignored information negating the reliability of their principal source. The Inspector General found the explanations given for these actions unsatisfactory. While most of the misconduct identified by the Inspector General was committed in 2016 and 2017 by a small group of now-former FBI officials, the malfeasance and misfeasance detailed in the Inspector General’s report reflects a clear abuse of the FISA process.

FISA is an essential tool for the protection of the safety of the American people. The Department of Justice and the FBI are committed to taking whatever steps are necessary to rectify the abuses that occurred and to ensure the integrity of the FISA process going forward.

No one is more dismayed about the handling of these FISA applications than Director Wray. I have full confidence in Director Wray and his team at the FBI, as well as the thousands of dedicated line agents who work tirelessly to protect our country. I thank the Director for the comprehensive set of proposed reforms he is announcing today, and I look forward to working with him to implement these and any other appropriate measures.

With respect to DOJ personnel discussed in the report, the Department will follow all appropriate processes and procedures, including as to any potential disciplinary action."

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/statement-attorney-general-william-p-barr-inspector-generals-report-review-four-fisa

As expected the IG report by Obama-appointed Horowitz was essentially a dud. It’s no sunrise that a complicit media and their base is now gloating,

US attorney John Durham, who is not limited to investigating the DOJ, disagrees with the conclusion. Given that he has more scope and power in his investigation, his and the AG’s disagreement should not be taken lightly. — NOS4A2

As you felt the need to point out that Horowitz is an Obama-appointee, will you also point out that Barr is a Trump-appointee? I ask only because I read in this a suggestion that Horowitz is biased against Trump, given that he was appointed by Obama, who is a Democrat rather than a Republican like Trump, and so fairness dictates that we also suggest that Barr is biased in favour of Trump, given that he appointed him.

But holdovers of the previous administration are much different than appointees of the current administration.

I also stated that IG Horowitz was limited in scope and power. Durham’s report is quite the opposite.

But holdovers of the previous administration are much different than appointees of the current administration. — NOS4A2

In a way that suggests that the former are more biased than the latter?

As you felt the need to point out that Horowitz is an Obama-appointee, will you also point out that Barr is a Trump-appointee? I ask only because I read in this a suggestion that Horowitz is biased against Trump, given that he was appointed by Obama, who is a Democrat rather than a Republican like Trump, and so fairness dictates that we also suggest that Barr is biased in favour of Trump, given that he appointed him. — Michael

Barr has repeatedly shown that he is fiercely partisan in favour of Trump. This report, which he commissioned, didn't find the evidence that his boss wanted, and now he's attacking the umpire, which is only typical of this administration.

Let's all remember that John Mitchell, Nixon's AG, went to jail.

the backstory to all of this is that Trump really is convinced that the Mueller investigation was a hoax perpertrated by his enemies. He will never let go that belief, and, as we all know, in Trumpworld, facts don't matter, only what Trump wants, matters. This is why he's blathering on about the 'information' that Rudy is going to release on the Ukraine - even after everything that's happened.

Pop quiz: who is Prof. Mifsud, and why did Stephen Barr fly to Italy to interview him.

What is 'Crowdstrike', and why did Trump bring that up in his infamous telephone conversation with Zelensky?

In a way that suggests that the former are more biased than the latter?

If Trump’s holdovers exist in the next administration, I would feel the same way.