Politics 2: Electric Boogaloo — Page 291

TV’s Frink said:

Ha, this just keeps getting better.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/deputy-attorney-general-privately-acknowledges-recuse-russia-probe/story?id=48080253

That’s not better at all. Brand is much more politically connected than Rosenstein (in particular, with Ted Cruz). Even if she doesn’t kill the investigation outright, which is the most probable outcome, the next most likely scenario is she may politicize it to the advantage of the Cruz camp. Rosenstein really needs to sit tight–no recusal. You really should never make any decision based on the contents of a Trump tweet.

Warbler said:

oojason said:

Grenfell Tower will forever stand as a rebuke to the right

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jun/16/grenfell-tower-rebuke-right-rampant-inequality

^ this is well worth a read.

It should also stand a reason for why you need fire alarms and in a high rise like that building, a sprinkler system. I have to believe many lives could have been saved if the building had those things.

Indeed, seems to make more sense spending money of sprinklers and alarm systems - rather than on dangerous (and banned in other countries) cladding - so the rich people opposite don’t have to look at an ugly tower block.

Amazing in this day and age - and for the past 30 years or so - the UK hasn’t made it law for social housing or buildings with more than x amount of people in, that it must have sprinklers (or other fire-suppression systems) and building-wide alarms.

Hopefully we’ll see a review of building materials used and being used - and how dangerous they could potentially be. We’d do well to look at and learn from other countries laws and systems they have in place as a starting point (especially Germany, where there are many high-rise towers - and they have already banned low-resistant materials and also those materials which become toxic when exposed to heat/fire).

‘Grenfell Tower residents complained two years ago of ‘cheap materials and corner cutting’ in block’s refurbishment’:-

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/grenfell-tower-fire-residents-fears-warnings-ignored-kensington-chelsea-borough-council-tmo-a7794086.html

&

Theresa May interview on BBC Newsnight earlier tonight - still no empathy, responsibility or much compassion - and yet a continued refusal to answer or even address the questions asked - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftY1NlPk5YY

Queer is the Q in LGBTQ. There’s also the chant “We’re here. We’re queer. Get used to it.” The word is used within the LGBTQ community as a catch-all umbrella term for any gender nonconformity–including LGBT, but also things that don’t quite fit neatly into those categories. Like all reclaimed pejorative terms, the meaning changes significantly depending on the context, and can present outsiders with some anxiety about when it’s okay to use it. For example, it also still gets yelled at LGBTQ-perceived people in a threatening manner (the pejorative usage). So if you’re not sure you’re using the word correctly, it’s probably best to steer clear. But the headline seems fine to me.

Lord Buckethead’s first policy…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhzZCDh6VD4

I’d vote for that!

Ryan McAvoy said:

Lord Buckethead’s first policy…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhzZCDh6VD4

I’d vote for that!

Is it wrong that Lord Buckethead comes across more human than the current PM? - showing more empathy, compassion and humour -despite being an intergalactic space lord with a bucket for a head, and also being someone Theresa May likely targeted with her…

program as Home Secretary?

https://twitter.com/LordBuckethead/status/873806533074837504

He can also move on the dancefloor…

https://twitter.com/LordBuckethead/status/875681558262411264

and is probably polling higher than Theresa May (and Trump and Putin) right now too 😃

and here he is thanking the people of Maidenhead (which could well be a first, either in earth time or galactic time)…

http://www.maidenhead-advertiser.co.uk/news/letters-to-the-editor/116775/letter-lord-buckethead-thanks-the-people-of-maidenhead.html#.WUOwisLb538.twitter

‘Finsbury Park attack: Man dies as van hits worshippers’…

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-40322960

&

Finsbury Park terror attack: one dead near north London mosque – latest updates

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live/2017/jun/19/north-london-van-incident-finsbury-park-casualties-collides-pedestrians-live-updates

Spicey go bye-bye. (Sort of.)

http://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/2017/06/19/sean-spicer-takes-on-new-wh-role-may-no-longer-give-press-briefings.html

Spicer will likely no longer handle day-to-day press duties, including daily media briefings, and will instead oversee communications for the entire administration. His role would be similar to a deputy chief of staff and will go into effect in the near future, the White House indicated.

Could it be that we’ve finally reached Peak Conspiracy? One can only hope.

TV’s Frink said:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/06/19/why-wont-donald-trump-rush-to-tweet-criticism-of-attacks-against-muslims/?utm_term=.fb85f5565f96

That article pretty much sums up him and his words & actions quite well - and shows him up for what he actually is too.

On the 1st day of Brexit talks between the UK and EU…

‘UK caves in to EU demand to agree divorce bill before trade talks’…

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jun/19/uk-caves-in-to-eu-demand-to-agree-divorce-bill-before-trade-talks

& similar articles below…

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/david-davis-brexit-michel-barnier_uk_594809d4e4b0cddbb00887ba

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-talks-negotiations-latest-uk-eu-divorce-deal-government-agrees-caves-in-before-trade-deal-a7798076.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-40321271

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/david-davis-brexit-briefing-live-10649824

CatBus said:

Queer is the Q in LGBTQ. There’s also the chant “We’re here. We’re queer. Get used to it.” The word is used within the LGBTQ community as a catch-all umbrella term for any gender nonconformity–including LGBT, but also things that don’t quite fit neatly into those categories. Like all reclaimed pejorative terms, the meaning changes significantly depending on the context, and can present outsiders with some anxiety about when it’s okay to use it. For example, it also still gets yelled at LGBTQ-perceived people in a threatening manner (the pejorative usage). So if you’re not sure you’re using the word correctly, it’s probably best to steer clear. But the headline seems fine to me.

I really hate this LGBTQIA-EIEIO business. I wish they would just use the word “gay” and have done with it. Sheesh.

Seriously. The gay community doesn’t have to use the whole dang alphabet.

chyron8472 said:

CatBus said:

Queer is the Q in LGBTQ. There’s also the chant “We’re here. We’re queer. Get used to it.” The word is used within the LGBTQ community as a catch-all umbrella term for any gender nonconformity–including LGBT, but also things that don’t quite fit neatly into those categories. Like all reclaimed pejorative terms, the meaning changes significantly depending on the context, and can present outsiders with some anxiety about when it’s okay to use it. For example, it also still gets yelled at LGBTQ-perceived people in a threatening manner (the pejorative usage). So if you’re not sure you’re using the word correctly, it’s probably best to steer clear. But the headline seems fine to me.

I really hate this LGBTQIA-EIEIO business. I wish they would just use the word “gay” and have done with it. Sheesh.

Accurate terminology is important–for example, calling everyone under the LGBTQIA umbrella “gay” would be pretty dismissive/marginalizing to those who aren’t gay. But it’s also pretty well acknowledged that things that start out in a relatively small group of people with specialized knowledge rarely make it out the door making very much sense to the general population–copping to not really getting the terminology is pretty much a rite of passage for straight people. And there are times when the whole mouthful doesn’t apply, so it’s completely appropriate to just say “gay”.

It’s also (at least to me) interesting from a historical perspective: read from left to right, the acronym is basically a timeline of the larger society realizing that people like this existed. First came L & G, then B, then T, then Q, then really just a few years back I broke popular consciousness (“Middlesex” hit Oprah’s book club, etc), and now we’re on to A.

CatBus said:

Accurate terminology is important–for example, calling everyone under the LGBTQIA umbrella “gay” would be pretty dismissive/marginalizing to those who aren’t gay.

I disagree. Language is fluid and words mean what society wants them to mean. If a society wants to change a word’s meaning, then it changes. There can be an “umbrella” word to encompass the whole umbrella without having to explicitly enumerate each individual sect within it. Other minority groups in society don’t have to do this. I mean, what if the Native American tribes wanted to be known under the umbrella of combining the first letter of every tribe? The term “Native American” does not inherently marginalize the Cherokee or the Osage tribes.

I’m sorry, but I really feel that to be offended or feel marginalized simply because a community’s acronym doesn’t explicitly include one’s flavor of eccentricity–that, to me really is indicative of one who is highly-oversensitive.

chyron8472 said:

CatBus said:

Accurate terminology is important–for example, calling everyone under the LGBTQIA umbrella “gay” would be pretty dismissive/marginalizing to those who aren’t gay.

I disagree. Language is fluid and words mean what society wants them to mean. If a society wants to change a word’s meaning, then it changes. There can be an “umbrella” word to encompass the whole umbrella without having to explicitly enumerate each individual sect within it. Other minority groups in society don’t have to do this. I mean, what if the Native American tribes wanted to be known under the umbrella of combining the first letter of every tribe? The term “Native American” does not inherently marginalize the Cherokee or the Osage tribes.

Society at large wants “Eskimo” to mean all extreme-northern-latitude Native Americans. If we’re running with that metaphor, I’d say calling intersex people gay would be more like calling Inuits Eskimos. See how that works out for you.

I’m just saying–I get it that the acronym is unusual and a mouthful and ever-changing and even overused–but it works for the people described by the acronym, and that’s enough for me to accept it. Minority groups aren’t well-served when everyone votes on what a word means, because guess who always wins that vote? And I’m perfectly okay with the idea that I don’t get a vote on this matter.

EDIT: “Queer” was–and still is to some degree–an attempt to create a single overarching umbrella term for everyone. But it’s reclaimed, which is a problem (some people hate it because it will always be an insult to them), and even at the loosest definition, people tend to ascribe gender connotations to the word which still don’t really work for everyone. So the Q fails in its job to cap off the end of the acronym and it continues to grow.

CatBus said:

I’m just saying–I get it that the acronym is unusual and a mouthful and ever-changing and even overused

But that’s what I’m saying. That’s all that I’m saying.

Well… I’ll also add that I don’t agree with the concept of gender fluidity, but that’s another topic.