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LO-freaking-L. Now you've degenerated into full Trump Derangement Syndrome. Let's talk Dakota Pipeline first, as this is such a slam dunk that I'm shocked your powers of ratiocination have been diminished that far.
1. The 33 Section 408 permits for crossing federal waterways was approved in 2012. Now, I'm not sure which administration you think that was in, but by my history books, that was the Obama administration.
2. The 33 Section 408 permit approvals were challenged in court and upheld in 2013. Again, I'll challenge you to note which administration that falls under.
3. The final No Significant Impact and Final Environmental Assessments were accepted on...wait for it...July 26, 2016. Still the Obama Administration.
The only reason the Obama Administration backed off on all the years of accepted permits and assessments was...well, I'll leave you to state your opinion, but it's clear as day to me that the only reason they backed off and issued a "new" environmental statement was due to political - not scientific, or real environmental engineering information. There's at least four years of work - more likely six - during the Obama administration that all indicated the pipeline was safe and environmentally sound. But as was his wont, once the political heat was turned up, Obama - not Trump - wilted and caved.
All Trump did was reinstate the original Obama Administration approval of the No Significant Impact and Final Environmental Assessments.
Now, on to round 2 - Prevention of Significant Deterioration Air Modeling, or as we know it in industry, PSD Modeling. Air modeling is the backbone of all BACT (Best Available Control Technology) that is required for new installations or significant rebuilds/upgrades. The Bush administration had put forth significant effort to determine the requirements for upgrading the modeling software, which dates from the 1970s, and, I kid you not, is written in FORTRAN. By 2007, this work was completed, with detailed recommendations on use of modern air dispersion software, 3-D modeling, and vastly better background data. By 2009, the Obama administration had completely torpedoed this project. So we remain saddled with air modeling software that was almost out of date when I was in college (and that was a loooooong time ago), with inferior results, and much poorer health impacts.
Again, for whatever reason you decide to make these things personal, it's totally irrelevant what permitting process was enacted under what administration. So what? Politics change, people change ideas. I don't care for the term flip flop, I like to think that people can evolve positions. And politics being played in a political arena? Shocking!
The most recent EIS was ordered and is in the process of being ignored. Again, I don't know if it's possible to do that, but I suspect that the courts will have their say, which may be the only way to keep the Trump administration in check.
"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
- Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)
"Your shitty future continues to offend me."
-Warren Ellis
He said he was a registered repub ... I think he's more concerned with who the repubs nominate.
that most likely is decided already for 2020. If its not Trump, then repubs are in such bad shape that it wont matter who they nominate.
"The Times found no pattern of sexual misconduct by Mr. Biden, beyond the hugs, kisses and touching that women previously said made them uncomfortable." -NY Times
"For a woman to come forward in the glaring lights of focus, nationally, you’ve got to start off with the presumption that at least the essence of what she’s talking about is real, whether or not she forgets facts" - Joe Biden
Dodd Frank didn't screw your buddies, the leaders of Goldman Sacks, B of A, Wells Fargo did. They took home millions while the global financial system was on the brink of collapse.
In fairness, I get what you're implying. And, while this is a generally held and promoted notion, it is so because it's the most simple and easiest way for non-experts to rationalize and to assign blame. Many in general public experienced the pain and suffering, me included, and its human nature to look for someone to blame. But, the someone was really many, many some ones; including, globalization, world politicians (make no mistake that both parties in the US have very dirty hands, for inaction and/or inadequate oversight), regulators (particularly in the US; such as SEC, The Fed, the banking and financial services industry regulators), bankers (investment bankers, to be sure, but also, commercial (my people), mortgage bankers and brokers, and consumer finance entities). The GSEs are also to blame, such Fannie, Freddie, and Sallie Mae, etc. But it was also all of us; the consumer. Anyone who had a 401k and wanted higher returns, any home owner who leveraged the value of their house like was a super credit card or wanted their value to increase so they could sell at top prices, any home purchasers who knew they were buying more home or car than they really could afford, etc.
As a result, the truth is that the causes of the Great Recession were very complex and predate the collapse by 20 to 30 years. The Great Recession and well documented Wall Street greed were the results of many factors coming together in a perfect storm that very few saw coming. Wall Street, though worthy of scorn and ridicule, was merely a symptom of the greater illness. The roots of the Great Recession predate the bundling of shitty subprime mortgages and sale of CDOs and synthetic CDOs
Thiugh well intended, Dodd Frank was a reactionary attempt to make everything right and to protect the consumer from Bailouts, bank failures, systemic risk from too big to fail banks and investment firms, the sale of products and services that only benefited the seller, controls over who could qualify for a mortgage, etc. Unfortunately, reactionary regulation makes sweeping changes that had unintended consequences and in many case didn't address the real causes.
BB, that seems like a very cogent and nuanced assessment that I suspect is much closer to the truth than the simplistic boogeymen/scapegoats that both political parties and much of the popular media has put forth. As you note, sometimes reactionary policies have unintended consequences, but your own assessment of the complex factors that led to the Great Recession points to clear failures of regulation and oversight, greed by both banks and investors, as well as home owners. While Dodd-Frank may be flawed (in fact, I'm convinced by you and other things I've read that it does have some flaws), I have not seen how the GOP will address those flaws while still recognizing the need for the sorts of regulation and oversight that was the impetus for Dodd-Frank.
And getting back to my previous point about Trump, he was not the only candidate to see flaws that needed addressing in Dodd-Frank; therefore, I still cannot come up with good reasons why your friends would actively support him over other candidates who would have also addressed these issues in a similar way. I so often see folks point to the parts of Trump that is in line with GOP policies as justification for supporting him, but as I've argued before, it is the stark differences he represents that disturb me most. I am not a believer in many Republican policies, but Trump not only supports those policies, he also represents a very clear move toward white nationalism, isolationism, xenophobia, racism, sexism, anti-intellectualism, authoritarianism, classicism, and incivility (although, I think a strong case can be made that much of this already existed in the GOP, Trump, to me, clearly represents a more overt push towards them, and my hope is that rational, moderate Republicans will push back to move their party away from those elements he represents).
Whether his supporters embraced all or some of the worst he represents, or were merely indifferent to them, or wanted to vote for him just as a big FU to some part of the country or world they feel deserved to be saddle with Trump as POTUS, we are now all stuck with him, and I hope, with each passing day, more and more recognize the need to fight much of what he is and represents.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by <a href="https://twitter.com/Nordstrom">@Nordstrom</a>. She is a great person -- always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!</p>— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/829356871848951809">February 8, 2017</a></blockquote>
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And getting back to my previous point about Trump, he was not the only candidate to see flaws that needed addressing in Dodd-Frank; therefore, I still cannot come up with good reasons why your friends would actively support him over other candidates who would have also addressed these issues in a similar way. I so often see folks point to the parts of Trump that is in line with GOP policies as justification for supporting him, but as I've argued before, it is the stark differences he represents that disturb me most. I am not a believer in many Republican policies, but Trump not only supports those policies, he also represents a very clear move toward white nationalism, isolationism, xenophobia, racism, sexism, anti-intellectualism, authoritarianism, classicism, and incivility (although, I think a strong case can be made that much of this already existed in the GOP, Trump, to me, clearly represents a more overt push towards them, and my hope is that rational, moderate Republicans will push back to move their party away from those elements he represents). .
I'm parsing your post only because it's lengthy (but who am I to talk? ) I don't mean that is a bad war either. Other than some frustration noted in your phraseology, I agree with nearly everything you wrote. I wish I could answer why intelligent people voted for him. I simply can't, and I have difficult wrapping my head around that as well. These were co-workers, but I suspect that we all know someone who voted for Trump whom we don't automatically think of as crazy nut jobs. Other than the much discussed voting for someone other than Hillary, I don't get it. And, you're right, several other candidates wanted to roll back portions of Dodd Frank so that certainly wasn't their only reason. It was one of mine and therefore I never took Trump seriously. But, and I may have simply forgotten, Hillary was heavily influenced by Elizabeth Warren and she most certianly wasn't interested in supporting any roll back.
I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph and there is purpose and worth to each and every life.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by <a href="https://twitter.com/Nordstrom">@Nordstrom</a>. She is a great person -- always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!</p>— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/829356871848951809">February 8, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Why doesn't some staffer take his fricking phone away. I say phone because the White House IT Department can block access to Twitter!!
I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph and there is purpose and worth to each and every life.
I still can't believe my own mother got conned into supporting him. It’s amazing to me how the fake news Facebook echo chamber convinced her that every negative half-truth and lie about HRC, from the somewhat plausible to the down-right ridiculous, like her gleefully cackling as she order the deaths of Americans in Benghazi, or was connected to a child porn sex ring run our of a pizzeria, while simultaneously dismissing every bit of Trump criticism as fake news. And she was historically a Democrat before this election. I’m still dumbfounded. And she is on disability SS, and directly benefits from Democratic policies. DMT mentioned congitive dissonance earlier in the thread, and that is spot on. I guess folks who decided they could not support HRC in the general just had to concoct a false vision of Trump that allowed them to reconcile their core beliefs with voting for such a person.
Meanwhile, my much younger sister was a single-issue non-voter who supported Gary Johnson, because he was 420 friendly. Maybe she’ll finally care about politics enough to vote if/when Jeff Sessions tries to role back weed legalization. If he manages to affect Florida’s new medical pot law, I’m sure it will get her attention.
The good thing is that the Price of Nordstrom stock appears to have gained 2 dollars a share today, up more than 4%, thanks Donald!
The other misadventures are a bit more serious, Trump continues to attack the judiciary, saying that "“If the U.S. does not win this case as it so obviously should, we can never have the security and safety to which we are entitled. Politics!”. This is of course after he called one of the Judges, "A so called judge", causing his Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch, to say that Trumps remarks were "Demoralizing", and "Disheartening", during a meeting with Senator Richard Blumenthal. The remarks were confirmed by an aide of Judge Gorsuch.
Yemen withdrew permission for future US ground missions, after the botched attack. Sean Spicer insisted that the Yemen raid was a success, and to categorize it otherwise was a disservice to the Navy Seal who lost his life. Spicer also made up another fake terrorist attack, apparently Atlanta was the target of Islamic terror...who knew?
In non-Trump News, the GOP handed Elizabeth Warren her campaign slogan for 2020 should she run. Warren was reading a letter from Coretta Scott King while debate was on concerning the nomination of Jeff Sessions. Mitch McConnell told her to stop, using an arcane senate rule. And afterword he said this..."She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted,". Expect to see a LOT of "nevertheless, she persisted" over the next 4 years.
Yemen withdrew permission for future US ground missions, after the botched attack. Sean Spicer insisted that the Yemen raid was a success, and to categorize it otherwise was a disservice to the Navy Seal who lost his life. Spicer also made up another fake terrorist attack, apparently Atlanta was the target of Islamic terror...who knew?
I'm doumbfounded that Spicer keeps doubling down on the Yemen raid being a success. In fact, he is now calling it a "huge success" and as you point out, says anyone who says otherwise, including McCain, owes an apology to the falled Seal, William Owens, for undermining the success of the raid. That is a weird word choice to me, because what McCain and others are doing is disputing the characteristic of the raid as a success. He is not undermining it. But then again, Spicer isn't the most eloquent and thoughtful speaker when under fire from the press.
McCain said, "My understanding of the parameters of the raid were they wanted to capture individuals and obviously they didn't want to kill children or women and obviously it was not the intention to lose a $75 million airplane as well as the loss of a life...When you lose a $75 million airplane and, more importantly, an American life is lost … I don't believe you can call it a success."
I didn't know Spicer enough before to have strong feeling for him, but I'm beginning to develop a Pavlovian negative response just from seeing his face or hearing his voice.
And yeah, that "and nethertheless, she persisted" is going to have long legs.
I'm doumbfounded that Spicer keeps doubling down on the Yemen raid being a success. In fact, he is now calling it a "huge success" and as you point out, says anyone who says otherwise, including McCain, owes an apology to the falled Seal, William Owens, for undermining the success of the raid. That is a weird word choice to me, because what McCain and others are doing is disputing the characteristic of the raid as a success. He is not undermining it. But then again, Spicer isn't the most eloquent and thoughtful speaker when under fire from the press.
McCain said, "My understanding of the parameters of the raid were they wanted to capture individuals and obviously they didn't want to kill children or women and obviously it was not the intention to lose a $75 million airplane as well as the loss of a life...When you lose a $75 million airplane and, more importantly, an American life is lost … I don't believe you can call it a success."
I didn't know Spicer enough before to have strong feeling for him, but I'm beginning to develop a Pavlovian negative response just from seeing his face or hearing his voice.
And yeah, that "and nethertheless, she persisted" is going to have long legs.
I find it great she finished reading it just outside the door and that Sanders read it in full, in chamber.
I still can't believe my own mother got conned into supporting him.
The Trump fans I know are still really happy with him. I have to admit I thought he'd gain a bit of grace when he became president but he didnt. Trump is pretty much the same guy who ran for president and his fans dont have a problem with that. The most important thing that happened in the first 3 weeks was the nomination of Gorsuch and I'm pleased with that pick. Everything else is just noise right now, wake me up if/when we get to taxes/economic stuff...
"The Times found no pattern of sexual misconduct by Mr. Biden, beyond the hugs, kisses and touching that women previously said made them uncomfortable." -NY Times
"For a woman to come forward in the glaring lights of focus, nationally, you’ve got to start off with the presumption that at least the essence of what she’s talking about is real, whether or not she forgets facts" - Joe Biden
I tuned out of social media around election time and am bit, I don't to say embarrassed, but lost maybe, on what the word "Snowflake" means and it's origin as an insulted no or derogatory term.
I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph and there is purpose and worth to each and every life.
) I don't mean that is a bad war either. Other than some frustration noted in your phraseology, I agree with nearly everything you wrote. I wish I could answer why intelligent people voted for him. I simply can't, and I have difficult wrapping my head around that as well. These were co-workers, but I suspect that we all know someone who voted for Trump whom we don't automatically think of as crazy nut jobs. Other than the much discussed voting for someone other than Hillary, I don't get it. And, you're right, several other candidates wanted to roll back portions of Dodd Frank so that certainly wasn't their only reason. It was one of mine and therefore I never took Trump seriously. But, and I may have simply forgotten, Hillary was heavily influenced by Elizabeth Warren and she most certianly wasn't interested in supporting any roll back.
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