Political Debates

[hoverfly]

My plan is to pick up one course at a time in academics, including during the summer. I hope in time that I manage to save enough money to finish my major(s) going full time for two years after that. But I won’t be ditching my GF, Actually she is working on her 2nd Bachelors in Nursing right now when she done, it will be my turn.

[j-turbo2002]

Ok, I will keep my yap shut.

No offence or anything but I think that this is probably the smartest thing that I have heard you say so far.

Still, either figuratively or literally, I cannot remember a time when we have ever come close to ripping each others throats out.

[hoverfly]

No offence or anything but I think that this is probably the smartest thing that I have heard you say so far.

Still, either figuratively or literally, I cannot remember a time when we have ever come close to ripping each others throats out.

Not me.......

Did or are you going to watch the live debate of the West Wing tonight JT.

[j-turbo2002]

My plan is to pick up one course at a time in academics, including during the summer. I hope in time that I manage to save enough money to finish my major(s) going full time for two years after that. But I won’t be ditching my GF, Actually she is working on her 2nd Bachelors in Nursing right now when she done, it will be my turn.

I would not do this if I were you. Picking up one course at a time is good but it will take a LONG time to finish your degree and you will eventually get "burned out" after a while. If I were you, I would seriously start thinking about going full-time right from the beginning.

Just a word of warning, if I may. Engineering Professors are brutal people. They WILL work your butt off with homework, projects, etc., to the point that you are literally exhausted. You are not going to have a whole lot of free time.

[j-turbo2002]

Not me.......

Did or are you going to watch the live debate of the West Wing tonight JT.

No, I hate that West Wing show. It gives a false impression of politics. Also, I think that the producer of the show has been arrested for cocaine possession.

I like to be entertained on Sunday night. This is why I watch Desparate Housewives.

[hoverfly]

No, I hate that West Wing show. It gives a false impression of politics. Also, I think that the producer of the show has been arrested for cocaine possession.

I like to be entertained on Sunday night. This is why I watch Desparate Housewives.

Oooooooooky….. and the producer on Desperate House Wives properly will get arrested for chilled molestation some day. Pleeeeeeeeeeease...

[BlondeBimbo]

....chilled molestation...

I didn't think it was that cold over there in the US - isn't it filmed in California?

BB

[j-turbo2002]

Oooooooooky….. and the producer on Desperate House Wives properly will get arrested for chilled molestation some day. Pleeeeeeeeeeease...

Well, I do not know about that one...........

Also, if you want to be an engineer someday we are definitely going to have to work on those grammar skills.

[hoverfly]

Well, I do not know about that one...........

Also, if you want to be an engineer someday we are definitely going to have to work on those grammar skills.

Yeah that's a hang up in my life, Dyslexia, did not take the time to double check the spell checker.

[RED KATIE]

Dr. Shoe, J-turbo, I am sorry I did not get to reply on the forum where we left off. While the British Labour party is a nominally socialist party, New Labour is a neo-liberal group that has betrayed the tradition of Clem Atlee, etc. That is why Blairites amended clause four of Labour Party constitution. To say that socialism does not work because Blair and Brown are pillocks is like condemning the New Deal or the Great Society programs in the U S because the Clintons are pathologically dishonest. J-Turbo, what can I say ? Republicans are well educated ? Why is that President Bush cannot complete an English sentence ? Why is that Vice-President Cheney resorted to the use of the foulest profanity in an argument with Senator Leahy in well of Senate ? Even the well educated Republicans like " Scooter" Libby are prone to extremely stupid conduct. If life is not fair and not meant to be. then, why not accept that society has decided that high heels are for women only ? Society is not meant to address unfairness and goose stepping in high heels is nearly impossible, Thank God. Cheers, Red Kate

[Dr. Shoe]

Actually, the failures of socialism has nothing to do with the fact that Messrs. Brown and Bliar are pillocks it is more to do with the inherent flaw of the socialist system- laziness. We will work damned hard for the basics of life: water, food and shelter, but if someone is prepared to give it to us then we won't work. A welfare state is fine when 95% of the work force have jobs but when unemployment goes through the 7% mark then welfare payments startto make a serious dent in the government's income so the net result is either cuts in spending in other areas such as defence, transport, health and education or increases in taxation. With an increase in taxation you get a phenominon called "welfare creep" where workers realise that they are better off on the dole so join the dole queue. This increases taxation so more join the queues etc. etc. If you reduce services then you get a situation where people are dying whilst waiting for operations, the NHS are denying live-saving medication on the grounds of cost and hospitals refusing to treat people on the grounds of their lifestyle. Socialism like communism is great in principal but unworkable in practice which is why even left wing governments still have selective schools (and send their own kids to them) and do not nationalise profitable industries.

[Dr. Shoe]

BTW You don't honestly think that these knock-abouts are anything more than an arguement between friends do you?

[RED KATIE]

Dr. Shoe, Of course I do not take political discourse at fetish site for anything but a bit of laugh. I think you are well aware that Blair, Brown, and Straw are not socialists. The late and lamented Robin Cook and Mo Mowlam were socialists and internationalists and correct about Iraq. The question should be, "who would let us wear our heels to a party function." Not Bush and not Galloway ! Blair ? I have seen "Red Ken" with people that make shoe fetishists look very normal. Now as Londoner, I expect you will be giving out to me about driving your car. There is no place better than the tube to practice balancing in heels. Speaking of balance, how is life without the time bell ? All the Best, Red Katie

[Dr. Shoe]

Actually, I agree with the congestion zone as it makes it a lot easier to drive my truck around in central London! There are pros and cons. I don't like the idea that Hackney council are sizing the idea up though! With or without the CCZ I have always used public transport because of the cost of parking and the inconvenience of getting stuck in the traffic. The shopping area is so large that you need to use public transport anyway...

[RED KATIE]

Dr. Shoe, You are avoiding my question. If you were going to wear heels to a party gathering, what party would it be ?. Labour, Torries, Lib Dems, BNP, Respect, SNP. You know the Lib Dems and Labour are the only ones that would not chuck you out. As the Lib Dems are an anachronism, that makes Labour the only choice. I am going to support RESPECT and end up wearing a burka or being beaten because by earrings rattle. I still want to hear about 24 pubs. Cheers, Red Katie

[Dr. Shoe]

The only party meeting I would go to is the inaugural meeting of the Anglo-Democrats but that is still some way off sadly. As far as the Respect Party goes I'm inclined to stay well clear because I catch a bit of whiff of rat with that one, George Galloway is a complete liar. He lied to the senate committee and the only reason he wasn't locked up pending further investigation is because he is British and this would not have reflected well on Bliar. He has probably made a fortune from Saddam but has hidden it so well, putting it in his wife's name or by running it through one of his dodgy "gentlemen's clubs". He comes across as a socialist but like Livingstone is a bigger capitalist than most tories! 24 hour pubs seems to have been a success because any problems would surely have been done to death by the media. I have always thought them a good idea for several reasons: 1. You don't get big crowds of drunken yobs spilling out of all the pubs at 11pm thus reducing fights etc. 2. Many drinkers would nip down the pub "for a quiet one" and then find they're still in the pub at 10 and think "I may as well stay til the end now." Now they would just go home at 10. 3. Many drinkers are more relaxed about getting as much down their neck as possible and can now pace themselves thus cutting down on binge drinkers.

[RED KATIE]

Dr. Shoe, I agree completely with you about Galloway. Anyone who calls the collapse of the Soviet Union "the saddest day of my life " is an unreconstructed Stalinist. When I lived in Glascow, Galloway was my M P. He and I agree on supporting Celtic and that is it. Is it Party like the American Democrats you wish to join ? You know the American humourist Will Rodgers once said. "I don't belong to any organized political party; I am a Democrat." There are as many positions on the Iraq War in the Democratic Party as there are elected Democrats. If you will take Bill and Hillary off our hands, will gladly send them over. They already live like royalty they might as well get titles as well. If you want no NHS at all, take the Democrats, please. Speaking of Celtic my ambition is to go to Celtic v. Hiberian match fully dressed and walk out of Celtic Park alive. Then you and I can go to pub for couple of jars, though I personally will always be listening for the time bell. Red Katie PS If London looses Red Ken, to the current tempest in teapot, London will also loose my tourist dollars/ pounds/ euros during the Olympics. If this foolishness blows over I will look forward to meeting you at some point during our holiday in London Cheers, Red Katie

[Dr. Shoe]

No, the Anglo Democrats is a party of my own devising. The aim is to bring common sense to bear on all strata of government. I would put an end to "Political Correctness" atleast as far as it's taken these days though I accept that many of the principles behind it are fine and have a purpose. I would introduce a system of referendae for many of the proposed bills. Emotive issues such as Hunting, The Death Penalty, Our position within the EU. Some laws will not be ratified without the nod from the country at large. I would abolish VAT on Fuel, Booze and Fags because most of the VAT is actually applied against the duty meaning that we pay tax on the tax! I would put long term patients awaiting operations into private hospitals or even send them abroad for treatment. I would replace ASBOs with corporal punishment. I would also look at ways to replace income tax either by raising it as a property tax or as a purchase tax. Road fund licence would be replaced by some kind of pay-as-you-drive strategy so that those who use the roads most will pay the largest contribution towards maintenance. I doubt if I would make heel wearing compulsory though!

[Dr. Shoe]

Just illustrates US government hypocrisy. They demand better "human rights" in other countries but deny the same rights to their own people because of their sexuality....

[Dr. Shoe]

True.

[Dr. Shoe]

I'm afraid that wiretapping is a fact of life and it will happen whatever. The moot point is what happens next: if the organisation has a warrant or not is not a matter of playing by different rules but playing a different game entirely. Evidence obtained without a warrant is not admissable in a court of law nor is any evidence obtained as a consequence. Evidence obtained as a result of following up a recorded conversation would be inadmissable and any subsequent arrests would not be legal. However, a warranted tap, though inadmissable in itself, can lead to evidence that can be used and a person can be arrested and held pending further enquiries. In answer to your question, anything is allowed when in a national defence scenario IMO but it is an abuse of power of the highest order to use these techniques in order to snoop on political opponents and to catch criminals who pose no real threat to the defence of the realm. In short: spy on the spies and the terrorists but leave the loyal citizens alone.

[Dr. Shoe]

The sooner you Americans get rid of that gangster the better! Ditto Tony "Mussolini" Bliar.

[Dr. Shoe]

These are dark days. At the moment Tony Bliar is pushing through a new law which is said to reduce red tape and beaurocracy. One of the side-effects would be to hand the Government the means to postpone a general election indefinitely and so Bliar could remain in office indefinitely riding roughshod over democracy and the only way we'd be able to do anything about it would be to have a civil war.

[Dr. Shoe]

Indeed. Say anything remotely anti-government and you're a terrorist, criticise the immigration policy and you're a racist.

This was sent as an Email to me today and as far as I can tell it's all totally true.

Can you imagine working for (or investing your hard earned cash in)

a company that has a little over 500 employees and has the following

statistics?

29 have been accused of spouse abuse

7 have been arrested for fraud

19 have been accused of writing bad cheques

117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses

3 have done time for assault

71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit

14 have been arrested on drug-related charges

8 have been arrested for shoplifting

21 are currently defendants in lawsuits

84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year

So, can you guess which organization this is?

That's right. It's the 535 members of the Houses of Parliament. The

same group that cranks out hundreds of new laws each year designed

to keep the rest of us in line. Democracy eh?

[dr1819]

Interesting reading here:

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/01/25/iran12535.htm

That's fairly myopic of the US government to ignore or attempt to oppress reality like that...

I personally do not agree with the gay and lesbian lifestyles due to my religious convictions but as a citizen I fully support their rights to do so.

Why the US government can't separate the two is utterly beyond me. It's not rocket science, folks - if it exists, it exists, and denying that it exists only makes the associated issues worse, not better.

They should get with the program, acknowledge it's existence, and deal with the issues appropriately, as mature people do, rather than sticking their fingers in their ears and saying "la-la-la-la-la I can't hear you!" like 6 year olds do.

The only thing that's been accomplished by this move is that the US Government has just made itself look incredibly immature, idealistic, and foolish, casting shame upon all Americans who're more objective.

[Guy N. Heels]

Indeed. Say anything remotely anti-government and you're a terrorist, criticise the immigration policy and you're a racist.

This was sent as an Email to me today and as far as I can tell it's all totally true.

Can you imagine working for (or investing your hard earned cash in)

a company that has a little over 500 employees and has the following

statistics?

29 have been accused of spouse abuse;

7 have been arrested for fraud;

19 have been accused of writing bad cheques;

117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses;

3 have done time for assault;

71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit;

14 have been arrested on drug-related charges;

8 have been arrested for shoplifting;

21 are currently defendants in lawsuits;

84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year;

So, can you guess which organization this is?

That's right. It's the 535 members of the Houses of Parliament. The same group that cranks out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us in line. Democracy eh?

AHEM! Actually, I think those stats refer to the 535 jerks we Americans have up on Capitol Hill. But I can't ever seem to find out just who is responsible for all that mischief. When you talk to them they'll all tell you that they're a bunch of nice guys.

At any rate, 468 have to get the lease on their office renewed every 2 years, so we at least get a chance to show 'em the door every once in a while - as Kaiser Bush just found out!

[hoverfly]

Washington Post 2/11/07

"....One ambassador in Washington said he was taken aback when John Hannah, Vice President Cheney's national security adviser, said during a recent meeting that the administration considers 2007 "the year of Iran" and indicated that a U.S. attack was a real possibility. Hannah declined to be interviewed for this article."

Newsweek 2/19/07

"...At least one former White House official contends that some Bush advisers secretly want an excuse to attack Iran.“They intend to be as provocative as possible and make the Iranians do something [America] would be forced to retaliate for,” says Hillary Mann, the administration’s former National Security Council director for Iran and Persian Gulf Affairs. …"

Oh dear....

Well if we don't do something about the Iran, the Israelis will defiantly do something about it and they may this time use nukes.

[Guy N. Heels]

Well if we don't do something about the Iran, the Israelis will defiantly do something about it and they may this time use nukes.

The modern day state of Israel has exactly one agenda - survival. They've been in the crosshairs of their neighbors for over 50 years and they have no illusions that most, if not all, want the present state of Israel gone! I too, believe that Israel will do whatever they think is necessary to survive.

Oh that men would learn the the simple truth that we are all brothers. That we are all more alike than we are different, and that the only way to truly live is to learn how love one another.

[JNR]

you can bet the farm that the Israelis will do something about it.

[Guy N. Heels]

Newsweek 2/19/07

"...At least one former White House official contends that some Bush advisers secretly want an excuse to attack Iran.“They intend to be as provocative as possible and make the Iranians do something [America] would be forced to retaliate for,” says Hillary Mann, the administration’s former National Security Council director for Iran and Persian Gulf Affairs. …"

Oh dear....

Never did the US have a better excuse for going to war with Persia than when they attacked the US embassy and held Americans hostage for almost a year and a half. However, president Carter lacked the will to respond to that act of war.

But as the news article correctly points out, tensions have been running high between the US and Iran (modern-day Persia) ever since. Right now the Persians are pursuing nuclear energy. They claim it's for peaceful purposes, but the fact is, that with almost 10% of the oil in the murder-east, they need nukes about like a whale needs roller skates.

If George Bush and company had not botched the war in Iraq, there's a good possibility that the US would already be involved in a war with Persia. But given America's enormous disatisfaction with both Bush and the war in Iraq, it is highly doubtful that Americans are in any mood to take on another enemy and another war. How things will play out in the coming months will be very interesting.