As a conservative, what do you wish liberals understood?
I wish that everyone, both liberal and conservative, was able to understand what “unintended consequences” are.10 Fascinating Examples of Unintended Consequences - Toptenz.netLiberals often think that if the INTENT of a policy is NICE, then the OUTCOME of the policy will be NICE.Liberals are NICE. Their NICE eyeballs look out onto the world a see a place where we should all be NICE.But being NICE often has negative consequences.Like letting a child molester or a rapist out of prison is NICE because we want to believe that everyone has some good in them. We want to feel that the person can be rehabilitated.But in reality, 92% of violent criminals will commit the same violent crimes when released from prison.So letting criminals out of jail after a few years is NICE and is also EVIL.Another big delusion is that a politician must have STRONG support to be elected.Sometimes politicians get elected because the opposition got bored and stayed home.America is a nation of centrists, that's why we have close elections. They shrug their shoulders and vote for whoever they sort of like better.Trump can get re-elected even if not one single person in the USA likes him. We have a binary party system, so if the voters dislike Trump less than they dislike Hillary (or whoever), then he'll be re-elected.In a binary political system, a politician is turned either on or off by the voters, like a light switch. Whether the individual voter adores him or hates him but hates Hillary more, the pro-Trump vote counts the same.In the last election, the greatest number of voters voted to stay home and watch Dancing with the Stars on TV. 42% of the eligible voters voted for Dancing With The Stars, 26% voted for Trump and Hillary each. In a pure democracy, the cast of Dancing With The Stars would be president.That's what makes Trump Derangement Syndrome so hilarious. After the election, everyone twirled about in confusion and "realized" that their neighbor Timmy who voted for Trump is a secret FASCIST.It's not that Hillary was an unlikable candidate and ran a horrible, disjointed campaign and got beaten by a blowhard. The fun and exciting version is that "Trump activated his white supremacist base." The same people that elected Obama twice are apparently white supremacists. LOL.I’m not a fan of Michael Moore, but he nailed it:
Why is Israel not a signatory to the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC)?
jd - your article regarding Iranian/Syrian weapons test ends with this 'W. Patrick Lang, the former head of Middle East intelligence at the Defense Intelligence Agency, however, questioned the veracity of the Jane's report. He said he thought it was unlikely that a Syrian defense official would reveal information about the country's chemical weapons program. “This sounds like a planted story to me,” he said, speculating that the report could later be used to justify an attack on Syria. ' Given how eager the neocons are to protect the petrodollar cycle (Iraq trades in Euros and gets invaded, Iran now begins to sell oil in non-dollar currency and she's next) I would expect them, judging by their track record, to fabricate evidence. And if the former head of Middle East intelligence at the Defense Intelligence Agency suspects that the story is a fabrication then I am inclined to believe him.
In the US Navy, is it possible to board a ship at a different port, if it left you behind previously?
My dad is a merchant marine and he was telling me about how if the ship sails without you, they sail without you. They will not wait a second for you to show up, they will leave and carry on with the mission without you. For the sailor who was left behind, they will face career-damaging consequences once their leaders get a hold of him/her. What about the US Navy? I was wondering what would happen if a sailor was left behind at a port in say Italy, and somehow made his/her way to another port in Spain. I would imagine the people in charge would have known he was missing, but what if he managed to get back on the ship at a different port? Does that sailor still suffer severe consequences?
Do US doctors tell the truth about infant circumcision?
That is a bunch of rubbish. Especially in today's world of litigation. By the way, there are three or four methods of circumcision not just two. You have three different clamps, and some freehand methods. There is nothing wrong with circumcision. It has been around for thousands of years. It is the oldest surgical procedure. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Inter-Circ... http://www.penisdoctor.com/ http://www.circumcisioncenter.com/ http://www.aboutcirc.com/ http://www.medicirc.org/ http://www.circumcisioninfo.com/index_home_new.html http://www.circinfo.net/ http://www.circinfo.com/ http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/2754/wiswell.html http://men.webmd.com/guide/circumcision-decision-weighing-risks-benefits?page=1 Peter
Do Indonesians of Chinese ethnicity & non-Muslim Indonesians defend Ahok simply because he has the same ethnic and religious background?
No.For comparison, Harry Tanoe, James Riady, are Chinese. James Riady is a Christian ( I was one). I despise them. Felix Siauw is Chinese. I will happily do bodily harm to him if there were no repercussion.Jokowi is Muslim and Javanese. He’s 1 million times better than those two.I would not even support my own father were he make mistakes like committing corruption. (No, my dad is doing fine. He was a business man and now is retired. But if he were corrupt, I wouldn’t able to support him).Granted, as a Chinese I’m proud Ahok chooses to make a difference, to fight against prejudice and to rise above it. But I don’t support him because he’s Chinese or Christian. I support him because he’s brave, competent, intelligent, and honest.The ones who mostly play identity politics are his enemies.You don’t even have to like the guy to support him. You just have to weight the option between him and other guys, and you have your answer.Just think for yourself. Imagine Jakarta or even Indonesia as a huge corporation where you have some stakes. Would you choose a CEO to run the business based on his competence & integrity or based on unfounded prejudice?Jeff Bezos is probably an ass. Elon Musk too. Everyone knows Steve Jobs was one. They might even be atheists or Jewish. I bet you choose them to run your companies rather than Habieb right?ETA: Many many Chinese hates HATES Ahok They are mostly the ones who has shady businesses or take advantage of corrupt government officials, including one of my cousins. He is someone who you can call “mafia tanah” or mafia in dealing with permits and such.My other friend admitted her family business was affected by his strict policy, but she understood its necessity.ETA 2: I will also defend anyone who was accused of blasphemy, especially the one they didn’t commit. Blasphemy law has no place in progressive democratic society. If God is offended, He is more than able to defend himself. If you are offended, it’s not a basis to jail someone. Not to mention the double standard people who accuse someone for blasphemy. Majority can accuse someone of blasphemy but minority can’t.