HeyYou

So, supplanting a form of government, that while it may be distasteful, actually WORKS, with anarchy, sectarian violence, and more death than when the dictator was in charge... is a "good plan"? If the end goal was to destabilize the region, give terrorists new training grounds, and lots of new recruits, then, it came off beautifully. If the 'end goal' was stability, and a working government, we failed miserably. Back when Saddam was in charge in Iraq, Baghdad was listed as one of the top ten cities to live in. Now, it rates in the ten WORST. Face it, our (USA) skills at nation building flat out suck. We are terrible at it, and if our government even makes noises about considering doing something akin to it, we should immediately impeach every last one of them, and start all over again. Our track record shows that we have no concept of what we are doing, whom we are dealing with, or what the people in those regions actually want, or need.

Trouble is, the good ol' US of A seems to think that we have 'better ideas' than everyone else.... even though we have amply demonstrated that instead, we seem to have the schmidas touch. (everything we touch turns to s#*!.) Look at Iraq, Afghanistan, Egypt, Lybia, Yemen..... Are those places better off now because of American 'intervention'? Is the area more stable? Is ANYTHING there improving? Not that I have seen..... And now, we are trying to do the same thing in Syria, that we KNOW simply doesn't work. The american government is being led by the nose by the military/industrial complex, for the profit of a selection of companies..... To the detriment of the rest of the world. The global economy is coming about for the very same reasons. Profit. Not 'the good of the people'...... The US is starting to look a lot more like some of those third world nations we are trying to 'help'.....

So you believe that ISIS is a product of the west? I am real curious how you come to that conclusion, considering that ISIS started up in Syria, and we did nothing there until it became obvious that ISIS was NOT the JV team of terrorism. Also, I don't do 'hints', spell it out for me.

And you think because we have never lived under muslim rule, we are ignorant of those little tidbits? You seriously underestimate westerners. Probably not politicians though......

The OP read it, did not dismiss it, but, still doesn't know quite what to think. :smile: I just know that Islamic extremist are becoming a huge problem throughout the world, and, that we shouldn't get hung-up on semantic technicalities....I don't give a damn what flavor of religion(s) have been corrupted in self-righteous indignity, It's the corrupters that are the enemy, not the religion....as has been the case throughout history. Right now, at this moment in our history, it is Islamic extremist.....Period. You dont get out much or are heavily influenced by your propaganda spewing media if that is your conclusion. Then again we in the West can very easily point and label others while clearly dismissing the real culprits and "terrorists". So please enlighten me. Who are the real culprits?

Erm, there is very little difference between dems, and repubbies, when it comes to assigning/admitting guilt. The respective media organizations all scream from the hills that X politiican did Y, and now the rest of them are circling the wagons, and assigning blame everywhere but where it belongs. I would probably drop dead of a heart attack if a politican (of any party) actually stood up and said: "Yep, I did it. It was a mistake. I have no one to blame but myself."

Hardly silent contempt, true Mokustsu would have been to refrain from any comment. :facepalm: And I know you just couln't resist. :D

Our 'let'? So it would go a long way toward improving our 'hindrances'?...chuckles evilly....and takes another sip of my single malt. :tongue: Should have been "lot". Fixed it........ Must need new batteries in the keyboard.... Yeah, yeah! that's it. New batteries....... :D

I suspect the corporate agenda already has a lot more power than what is seen on the surface. The mere thought of corporations being able to sue governments for 'interfering with profit' simply stinks of corporate greed. That would open the way to corporations suing a government because their environmental laws 'impede profit'...... (they have to spend money to dispose of hazardous waste, instead of just dumping it in the nearest river). Money in politics is the biggest problem here. If we could balance that equation some, it would go a long way toward improving our lot. Hopefully. :D

Now they are admitting Imperial Stormtroopers to Star Fleet Academy?? ....damn...first Klingons now this. It'll end in tears, mark my words. Of Joy or Sorrow? Or is it all the same in the end?

Hhhmm.... I am a pessimist, and will freely admit. (yes, I know, there is a twelve step program for that, yet, being a pessimist, I don't believe it will help. :) ) I don't see much hope for a bright future at this point. Things have become far to polarized, and fringe groups are asserting rights over the majority, and society seems to be supporting them in that. Our society is also becoming ever more stratified, with all the power concentrated at the top. Given that this group pretty much has full control over who runs for what office, and a disproportionate amount of influence over who wins, I see this trend continuing, instead of balancing. I do not see any method, short of revolution, to alter that course either. But then, it appears to me that the majority of folks here (USA), see it as too much trouble to take any steps whatsoever to apply any pressure at all toward change. Hence, nothing will change..... we will continue on our current course, until we look just like all those third world nations that we are supposedly trying to help.......

Facebook connect? What the heck is that? (I don't have a facebook page, so, it just isn't an issue for me.) Crazy Egg thing? Again, what the heck is that? :) The site is mostly supported by advertising......

Very little, actually. It is up to our government to enforce the laws they put on the books. With a president signing executive orders telling various agencies NOT to enforce them, what are we left with? Sure, we could vote for some other party/candidate...... but, will they actually DO anything different? From what I have seen, the answer to that is a resounding "NO!".

Hey You is correct, a simple perusal of United States vs Wong Kim Ark will illuminate the facts...it's settled case law. Being a strict constitutionalist I have to abide with the precedents set by the seven wise men whether I like what they decided or not. I've been wrong before. Water off a duck's back as I do not want the responsibility or headache of having to be right all of the time. :ermm: Edit: I recant. After a little research I'm under the impression the Ark case is not a precedent for children of illegal aliens who do not have permanent residence. In Ark's instance he was the child of Chinese immigrants who domiciled in the United States. For children born to illegal aliens who live in this country permanently, Ark's case law would indeed apply. It would not apply to the 'anchor babies' or illegal aliens who do not reside in the United States. Back to my point, being born in the United States does not guarentee citizenship as provided by the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment. Jus sanguinis. So far as I know, the only folks that AREN'T subject to the jurisdiction of the united states, are diplomats. Whether you are here legally or not, you are still under the jurisdiction of US law. Else, coming here "illegally", wouldn't be illegal.

Exactly. :) Careful, your knife might make you a killer.

The 14th amendment doesn't make any distinctions in parentage for birthright citizenship. Children of foreign nationals, whether they are here legally or not, CAN and DO get american citizenship. That is a fact, and easily proven to be so with a simple google search.

I agree with you on this, a large majority of people realize that "most" politicians do lie. Which is ironic why someone like Clinton for some reason is getting a lot of heat for the current email scandal she is facing. It really comes down to how the media rails a story. The Clinton email scandal wouldn't even be any concern to anyone if it wasn't even talked about. The New York times first started railing Clinton in three stores by accidentally reporting falsely and printing info about the story that even they eventually redacted. Since then the right wing media jumped in and took the story to a whole different level. Getting rid of even "part" of the 14th amendment would fundamentally just destroy one of the things that makes America actually such a great country. I mean how far would one go to just getting rid of part of it, as only applying to "illegal" immigrants? Would this apply to immigrants that are here legally that happen to have a child in the U.S.? would this mean if a couple has a baby born in this country and just one of them isn't an actual a citizen but still here legally their child would be automatically labeled as an "illegal"? If you are talking about a person giving birth to a child in this country who is completely undocumented, there is no statistical data showing this even being an actual problem in this country other then making America a richer and more diverse society. Citizen children cannot sponsor their parents for citizenship until they turn 21. If the parents are illegal, they would have to return home for at least 10 years before even applying to come in. Having a baby to secure citizenship for the parent is an extremely long-term and uncertain process anyways... Citizen child can produce some short-term benefits but not enough that creates any sort of statistical problem. Having a child can help an undocumented parent qualify for relief from deportation, but only 4,000 unauthorized immigrants can receive such status per year, and the person has to have been in the U.S. for at least 10 years to begin with. Stuff like this is so small in comparison to any other problem this nation faces. It's just ridiculous why anyone would want to get rid of birthright citizenship when there isn't even a real problem that America faces. But more to the point Trump doesn't just want to stop there. Trump wants to force deport every undocumented immigrant in this country. How exactly do you think one can accomplish this? Crate a separate police that targets anyone who isn't white/caucasian? does this mean me being an Asian American citizen could be randomly pulled over in order to prove I am actually a citizen? Maybe you can see why I do not like Trumps position on immigration. I am sure you wouldn't support someone who would set forth some policy that would potentially or even automatically target you as some type of 2nd class citizen just based on your race. What part of "children of illegal immigrants don't get citizenship' did you miss? The operative word there being "ILLEGAL". Currently, that system is exploited in a major way by illegals that come here, squeeze out a baby, that is automagically an american citizen, thus, cannot be deported. Hence "Anchor Baby". This practice needs to stop. We are the ONLY country in the world that grants citizenship to children of illegals. If an immigrant is here legally, it should be obvious that this wouldn't apply to them. Deporting all the illegals is more than likely impossible. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that they come in faster than we could deport them. Even if we made a concerted effort. But, as it stands today...... we are like folks at a fishing contest. It's 'catch and release'. Regardless of their history. Some of them have been here for years, been caught several times, and still they are released. What strikes me as even stupider is, a cop is forbidden by law from questioning anyones citizenship when they are pulled over....... I am thinkin' if the person doesn't understand english, doesn't have a drivers license, nor any other form of identification, that should be a pretty major clue, and SHOULD bring up the question. If the answer is "illegally here", then deportation should be the answer. Sure, this country was built on immigration. But, now we have a population of over 300 million, and in some areas of the country, (like those where most of the illegals come in....) are desparately running short of resources. Especially water, and money. So, why are we spending billions on benefits for folks whose very first act of coming to this nation was to break its laws? We would anyone think that is a good idea? We are trillions of dollars in debt, and going even further down, we don't have the money to spend to 'save the world', or even a small corner of it. We can't even afford to save ourselves. And please don't try and convince me that the illegals pay taxes/contribute to the economy. That is a losing proposition. We spend FAR more on illegals, than they put in to our economy. It is a hugh net loss. Of course, I don't think we should be sending 10 billion a year to Iraq either, or 4 billion to Israel. Etc.......

All politicians lie. Some more so than others, but, I don't trust anything that comes out of a politicians mouth. Even if they told me the sky is blue, I would go out and look for myself. (and it would probably be grey.) Trump wants to drop the 'born here, get citizenship' part of the 14th amendment. Or at least, alter it so it does NOT apply to the children of ILLEGAL immigrants. I don't have a problem with that.

Oh no, I didn't think you were 'trolling me'. From what I have seen, that isn't something you do. Besides, I agree with you. :D

Actually, I agree with him. :) It may not be politically correct, but, it is indeed accurate. :D But, you quoted me.......

You were touched/chosen by Akatosh. :)

Well, it's already apparent that Hilary hasn't been as honest about the whole deal as she claims. (and has sworn to....) At this point, no, no charges have been filed, because the investigation is still ongoing. "Missing" emails from the record Hilary turned over, are still coming to light, so, the committee still doesn't have a complete picture of what all went down. Are the republicans simply dragging out the investigation, in hopes of a nice bomb to drop further into the election cycle? Entirely possible. Are the republicans in trouble due to the fact that The Donald is the most viable candidate they currently have? Undoubtedly. Is either party going to do a damn thing to help america? Highly doubtful. Is whoever gets elected going to do their damndest to make sure they leave some variety of 'legacy', be it good or bad? Yep. Do I expect the next adminsistration to be any more effective than the last four? Nope. Not at all. American government has become a beast with many heads, all of which are hungry, and all of which want dollars to eat. They don't care where they come from, or whom they hurt to get them. NONE of them have the best interests of the country at heart, only their own best interests. It is government of the rich, for the rich, by the rich. And that's the end of it. The rest of us don't matter. No, neither do our votes. Why do you think voter turnout was the lowest it has ever been since the 30's? The american people are fed up with politics, realized they have no power, so, pretty much just ignore it, and hope it goes away without causing too much damage to their lives. A rather forlorn hope.

I would point out that better than 60% of population doesn't vote for ANYONE...... So stating they won't vote for Trump is pretty much meaningless. I am curious how "hilariy's emails being investigating" does NOT imply that Hilary herself is NOT being investigated. Did those emails send themselves? Will they be charged in a criminal court? Or will it be the person that wrote them? The mere fact that she HAD her own, personal, private, email server, on a federal government network, was in and of itself an illegal act. The additional fact that it is now gone, along with the data, implies that she did indeed have something to hide there. Why else would she pull the disappearing act? She may not be convicted in a court of law, but, in the court of public opinion, she pretty much already has been. That is not going to help her campaign, and that is already showing in her slipping poll numbers. I am of the opinion that ANY program that supports criminals in their acts, should not exist. I.E. any program that helps ILLEGAL immigrants stay in this country. If we aren't going to enforce the laws equally, what is the point of having them at all?

So far, Beth hasn't had any continuity between player characters from game to game. For the most part, the previous PC is 'legendary', so, something similar. Given the time span between Oblivion, and Skyrim, it is impractical to think that any but PC not of Elvish descent would even still be around........ humans just don't live that long. Granted, Oblivion was just a few short years after Morrowind.... But, each game has been stand-alone, you needn't have played any of the previous games to get the full experience of the current game. I really don't see that changing.... Given that by the end of the game, most PC's are god-like in their power in any event. Would be tough to make a new game that was even remotely challenging for them.... and resetting them back to first level would just piss folks off. :)

You do realize Trump's plan on taking down ISIS is to "take the oil".... To take something like "the oil" would actually equate for the need of sending hundreds of thousands of troops on the ground. Most of the things that Trump constantly keeps preaching about sounds great to those who are just angry but logically nothing really adds as being even realistic or possible... Donald Trump wants to make America great again... for Donald Trump! I would still rather have trump, than billary. But, we are still a long way from election day. Let's wait and see how it plays out, before we go predicting the future. As you will recall, all it really takes is ONE wrong statement, and that particular candidate is no longer in the running.