And, I am duly offended by that remark.

Have you been following the efforts of Israeli PM Naftali Bennett to mediate between the two sides?

He has appropriated the role of mediator in order to end on rational terms this nonsensical war and all of the suffering and death and destruction it is causing.

to be perfectly honest, i find your stance on this issue offensive and creepy.

My stance on this issue is that this war should never have happened and there was no reason whatsoever for Ukrainians to be suffering and dying, number one. And, number two, Putin is guilty of war crimes and, with any luck, he will be punished appropriately ... and, in any event, it is my hope that Russia will remain a pariah state, indefinitely, and will never have a highly functioning economy.

Also, Biden and NATO and Z should be laser focused on ending this war by way of negotiation with Russia in order to stop the suffering and death. As I see it, they are just prolonging the sheer agony of the Ukrainian people.

I have made this very clear.

What is so offensive (offensive!? ... are you kidding me?) and creepy about that?

If we are to err, let's err on the side of spending MORE money..

Wouldn't you agree??

It's better to HAVE the military hardware and not need it than to NEED the military hardware and not have it..

Again.. Wouldn't you agree??

Nice attempt at sidestepping an actual response! My child’s medical conditions were not known until after he was born… so abortion plays no role in this conversation. Why are you suggesting that I murder my child?!

That's the Democrat solution BEFORE birth...

Morally or ethically is it such a stretch AFTER birth???

Morally or ethically speaking, what's a few weeks either side of birth??

If you are OK with killing the baby a few weeks BEFORE birth, why do you have a problem with killing the baby a few weeks AFTER birth??

This year, the Air Force, for example, has wanted to retire dozens of legacy attack planes known as the A-10, but Congress wouldn’t let that happen in this bill. “We’ve got to get rid of some of those aircraft so we can free up resources, and get on with modernization,” Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall said recently.

We got out of Afghanistan, yet our military spending increased by $25billion. Our military spending is over $750 billion each year… are you suggesting that it is all necessary? Over half goes to the industrial military complex for them to spend with little if any oversight.

You support abortion.. So the solution to THIS problem you enumerate should be simple in your mind..

Nice attempt at sidestepping an actual response! My child’s medical conditions were not known until after he was born… so abortion plays no role in this conversation. Why are you suggesting that I murder my child?!

Yes, but not at 22 weeks which is the current....

Viability refers to the baby’s ability to survive outside the womb on its own.

Yes.. And viability has become earlier and earlier in the gestation... Thanks to...

Say it with me..

Medical technology..

Medical technology may be able to keep a baby alive technically, but does that mean that we must keep it alive no matter the costs?

It's a sentient life...

You tell me..

And who gets to decide that cost??

Sure, those born prematurely have a greater chance of suffering from medical problems than those born full term, but then again all you care about is quantity of life — not quality of life.

Who decides "quality"??

You caught up with Picard???

Babies have survived being born prematurely since the beginning of our species.

Viability refers to the baby’s ability to survive outside the womb on its own.

Medical technology may be able to keep a baby alive technically, but does that mean that we must keep it alive no matter the costs?

There have been cases where 22 week gestation babies have survived..

Which is why I said, “Fetal viability is generally considered to begin at 24 weeks gestational age.” Sure, those born prematurely have a greater chance of suffering from medical problems than those born full term, but then again all you care about is quantity of life — not quality of life.

Interesting factoid..

The actor who played OROS was none other than Osric Chau...

Kevin Tran from SUPERNATURAL..

I knew the voice sounded familiar but I couldn't place it...

http://mfccfl.us/BelieveWomen.jpg

:^/

Biden admin operated with missing data as CDC issued pandemic guidance, emails show

Dr. Anthony Fauci sent CDC Director Rochelle Walensky an article scientifically tearing down the 6-feet rule, emails
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/iden-admin-operated-with-missing-data-as-cdc-issued-pandemic-guidance-emails-show

CDC guidelines were based on politics..

NOT actual current scientific data..

Who could POSSIBLY have seen this!!???

Oh... Wait.. :D

I think I like that!

I can't take credit for that.. It was the Weigantian Administration who postulated it..

@liz,

perhaps if the study were merely cursory, one might argue that giving putin what he wants after he'd already launched an ongoing invasion (since february, 2014) would not constitute appeasement. however, i posit that any deep dive into history would yield a very different result.

to be perfectly honest, i find your stance on this issue offensive and creepy. it's like someone in 1938 deriding the allies for the mistakes they made in the (1919) treaty of versailles. apologies for the extreme analogy, but that's the level at which it strikes me. we are where we are because of putin's ambition, not because biden or zelenskiy (or anyone else for that matter) won't accede to his demands, regardless of how reasonable said demands might otherwise seem.

JL

I highly doubt that.. :D

From my perspective, Iowa should pay a price just on the basis of its dismal performance in the 2008 Democratic primary.

Yes, I am quite capable of holding a grudge for a very, very long time, given the right circumstances.

I'll never forget the fact that Biden got less than one percent of the vote in that primary despite being the only person on the planet - never mind the only one of all the candidates in that Democratic race - who had developed a sound plan for US policy in Iraq, supported by 95 members of the US Senate only to have it sabotaged by the Bush administration but, still ... less than one percent of the vote!?

I mean, I understand that it was Obama's time but, give me a freakin' break.

So, yeah ... I'd like to see Iowa get all that it deserves. :)

I still wear a mask at work where most of my time is spent on one-to-one customer interactions from the boutique floor to the fitting room to the cash desk.

It's not mandatory anymore and I would say that about 70% of staff and customers have chosen to keep wearing the mask for now. The positivity rate is close to 10% and we don't wish to contribute to transmission in any way if we can help it.

I also must still wear it on public transit - I take the bus to and from work.

Wearing a mask for now, while the pandemic rages on, is such a small sacrifice to make to keep the most vulnerable people around me safe. It's the very least I can do until we are sure that this thing is behind us. Besides, I look better with it on. :)

Yea?? So???

That's what a NON racist would say...

Which wouldn't have been such an issue in the here and now if President Trump had retained his rightful place in the Oval Office..

President Trump had NATO shaping up and flying right... He FORCED NATO countries to adhere to their commitments..

Further, NATO wouldn't have even had to enter the picture because Putin wouldn't have DARED try this crap in Ukraine under President Trump..

Ukraine only has to hold out for 3 more years..

Then President Trump is back in office and Putin will head for the hills.. :D

Indeed! Especially coupled with the sad state of affairs Re. the geopolitical leadership that has emanated from the US and NATO since the break up of the Soviet Union ...

Of course, there is no need to ever talk about it in that way, whatsoever.

Words matter, especially in war and peace.

"I know, right!??"
-Felix, WRECK IT RALPH

I vote for GLADIATOR COMBAT elections..

Let them fight it out with swords and pikes in a gladiator arena...

We'de never see a Democrat in office again!!! :D hehehe

Having said all of the afore, NATO does have.... well.. SHOULD have very valid reasons why NOT to admit Ukraine..

The afore mentioned corruption and systemic institutionalized racism are a couple of examples..

And why NATO would never admit Israel into NATO is a good case study on why admitting Ukraine is not a good idea..

But to take away a country's right to at least apply!??

"That's no bueno.."
-Agent J, MEN IN BLACK III

One has to wonder what kind of world we would be in today if Kiev hadn't given up it's nukes when the USSR broke up..

"Entropy!! Chaos!! Natural laws would cease to exist.."
-Jeannie Miller, STARGATE ATLANTIS

:D

Kudos on the new analogy reference.. :D

I have always been partial to 'apples and eskimos' with 'apples and alligators' running a close second..

It's a burst of brilliance to come up with 'apples and gorillas'.. :D

I respect that opinion.. Hell, I might even AGREE with it..

But part and parcel to being one's own sovereign nation is the RIGHT to make stupid moves..

Actually, that's apples and gorillas and, yes,

Not at all.. Our founders put the 2nd Amendment in our Constitution because they saw it as the ONLY WAY to protect their... OUR.. fledgling nation..

Much the same way that the OVERWHELMING majority of Ukrainians viewed joining NATO as the ONLY WAY to protect their fledgling nation...

yes, we certainly can tell Ukraine to change its constitution Re NATO aspirations.

I don't see how we can while still claiming we lead by example...

And, given the proclivity for Russia to settle things militarily....

Is Ukraine putting NATO membership in their Constitution REALLY such a stupid move??

Actually, that's apples and gorillas and, yes, we certainly can tell Ukraine to change its constitution Re NATO aspirations. But, unfortunately, it is far too late in the game for that kind of common sense.

Yes, I didn't cover it all.

My only point all along was that Biden and NATO and Z sticking to Ukraine's future NATO membership as a non-negotiable was not only a stupid move but one that has cost a lot of lives and destruction and, perhaps, Ukrainian independence, altogether.

Putting such a thing as NATO membership in your constitution when you are a country situated right next to Russia is also a stupid move resulting from very bad advice from the US.

Every security alliance as the right to determine its own membership based on its own security concerns. NATO has quite a lot to learn in this regard. Perhaps, it never will.

The reason season 2 of Discovery was so awesome because it dealt almost EXCLUSIVELY with Trek lore...

We got to see a revisit to Talos V.. We got to see a portion of the Origin Story of Captain Pike.. And a portion of the Origin Story of Spock. We got to see a portion of the Origin Story of T'Pau.. And we learned WHY Klingon of Star Trek look different than the Klingons from Star Trek TNG..

It's what made ENTERPRISE Season 4 so frakin' awesome..

It had TREK baked into it...

About the ONLY thing that Season 4 of Discovery had in the way of nostalgia was the reference to Gilligan's Island.. Which I admit was pretty awesome.. :D

Basically, TPTB of Discovery are making the EXACT SAME MISTAKE that TPTB of ENTERPRISE tried to do in the early seasons..

Disavow and disown everything about Trek that MADE it Trek...

In the early seasons of Enterprise, Beavis and Butthead (Braga and Berman) tried to drop STAR TREK from STAR TREK ENTERPRISE... It didn't work out too well..

So it is with Discovery... Although to my knowledge they are not trying to rename it, they ARE ignoring everything about Star Trek canon that makes Star Trek the phenomenon it is today..

They are forgoing the action and excitement for a deep dive into people's feelings.. They have to stop right in the middle of a very serious and dangerous situation to make sure everyone is comfortable in their skin and make sure everyone knows that they are valued and appreciated...

It's why I was able to condense each episode to about 10-15 mins of actual watching time.. And yunno what?? I didn't miss a thing!! I was able to follow exactly what's going on by skipping all the deep dives into feelings.. I skipped over 3/4ths of the show and I STILL followed the story line perfectly..

That says something about how irrelevant the obsession with feelings and worth is..

And for the love of the all that is decent and holy!!!

Put Tal and Gray in red shirts and send them on a mission!!!

http://www.chrisweigant.com/2022/03/23/fighting-the-russian-army-to-a-draw/#comment-187988

Excellent comment!! :D

You can Liz-splain to me ANY time!! :D

But here's the ONE thing that your comment doesn't address.

Russia has NO actual legitimate security claims about NATO..

Europe/NATO, on the other hand, has some real and documented security concerns about Russia...

So, while the Russia feels their security concerns are legitimate, facts and reality clearly show they are not..

And the other thing you don't address is that NATO membership is baked into the Ukraine Constitution by a SUPER majority of it's government..

To give you an analogy..

Canada claims they have legitimate security concerns about the US and the 2nd Amendment..

Canada amasses hundreds of thousands of troops at the northern border and demands that the US give up the 2nd Amendment..

The US gives the big finger to Canada and Canada invades...

Such is the situation with Russia and Ukraine...

Every sovereign country has it's right to self-determination...

We can no more ask Ukraine to give up it's right to determine NATO membership than Canada can ask the US to give up it's 2nd Amendment..

So, in other words..

A race-based selection process...

Which simply confirms the Democrat Party as one of two institutions that are systemically racist.. :^/

The argument for small states is a good one, because if (for instance) California or New York were the first state to hold a primary, many small-dollar candidates would be frozen out from the start. Without the financial resources to adequately compete, candidacies like Jimmy Carter's or Bill Clinton's might have never have gotten off the ground, this argument goes. By posting a strong finish in the early states, such candidates launch much larger fundraising efforts by being seen as more competitive than the others -- as early success builds a bigger campaign effort.

The solution to this problem is simple..

Allow candidates FREE AIR TIME... Give each candidate the SAME amount of free air time and prohibit candidates from buying their own air time..

This kills two birds with one stone.. It gives each candidate equal footing and negates the effects to BIG MONEY in campaigns..

DH would be SOOO proud of me!! :D

. Joe Biden didn't really catch fire in any way until the last of the four early contests, in South Carolina.

And WHY did Joe Biden catch fire in South Carolina.. Because he made a crass racist promise in exchange for political votes and support..

Thereby once again providing FACTS that prove the Democrat Party is systemically/institutionally racist...

The "competitiveness of the state in a general election" also seems directed at Iowa, since the state hasn't been truly competitive for Democrats for the last two presidential cycles. Iowa has been getting redder and redder.

Just like Democrats..

The agreed upon rules aren't working for them so they change the rules to obtain a political advantage.. :^/

I am betting that inertia and tradition win the day.. :D

And let us pray for the continued health of Justice Clarence Thomas.

A-Frakin-MEN to that..

I mean, beyond the fact that Justice Thomas is a good and decent man...

I don't think I could handle ya'all's gloating if the SCOTUS reverted back to a 5-4 Conservative... :D

So, you concede that Jackson Brown is an Affirmative Action hire.. I accept that...

Because THAT is **EXACTLY** what Affirmative Action is..

It's racism to "correct" racism..

It's making a selection based on race...

The very DEFINITION of racism...

Affirmative Action is one of ONLY TWO examples of Institutionalized/Systemic Racism left in this country..

The other example being the Democrat Party..

It’s ONLY the lower ranks that are not paid well??? Oh, well if it is ONLY them then I guess that is acceptable!

You seem to equate "acceptable" with "understandable"..

"I did not say I agree. I said I understand.."
-Spock, STAR TREK A TASTE OF ARMAGEDDON

^^^^^^^ REAL Star Trek... :^/

And the military has no problem spending outrageous amounts of money on questionable projects that could do wonders for the lives of our enlisted service members.

For example...????

I am making a bet with myself to see how far back in time you have to go to justify your faux-rage.. :D

Right… how stoopid of me to have a child born with a medical condition that requires medicine that costs thousands of dollars per prescription and causes me to need to miss work often in order to care for my sick child! This wasn’t a choice that I made to be burdened with this hardship — like you said, I’m just stoopid, I guess.

You support abortion.. So the solution to THIS problem you enumerate should be simple in your mind..

Republicans need to have someone to blame for life’s problems…

Yer kidding, right??

You Democrats blame racism ALL THE TIME for problems of many black Americans..

Talk about projection, eh?? :D

because they feel guilty when they realize the privileges that they have enjoyed while not being burdened with the pitfalls those less fortunate as they experience.

How one responds to pitfalls is what makes up character..

Take a Democrat and a Republican..

The Republican accepts the facts of minimum wage for unskilled labor and he goes out and works 3 jobs at wage to earn his way thru schooling and apprenticeship so he CAN earn more than min wage..

The Democrat doesn't want to work hard at all so he demands a much higher min wage so he live the HIGH (if you catch my meaning) life without actually having to EARN it.. This Democrat will also fight for more FREE STUFF including FREE MONEY so maybe he can live the HIGH life without having to work at all!!

And you want to convince me that the Democrat way is better for society?? :D

"Well... Good luck with that..."
-Jim Carrey, BRUCE ALMIGHTY

Democrats remind me of that guy living in his mom's basement from the old X-Files TV Show...

"I wish I could be abducted.. I wish they would take me to their planet and I could live there and never have to work.."
-Democrat Luser, X-FILES

:D

I've never seen a single episode of discovery. Should I?

Up until Season 4, yes, I would recommend it.

Despite the gross and perverse canon violations, Season 1 was good.. Season 2 was AWESOME, made even more enjoyable by addressing (albeit lamely) many the canon violations of S1..

Once freed from canon, Season 3 was OK.. Definitely did not live up to the awesomeness of S2...

Season 4 was abysmal... Is was if TPTB gave creative control to Occasional Cortex and Illan Omar and the most mindless America-hating progressive they could find and those 3 put all their wildest progressive fantasies into it.. And the cherry on top of this gross perversion of cherished Trek was casting Stacey BIG LIE Abrams as the President Of United Earth..

But that probably means you would love it as much as Russ did.. :D hehehe

Viability is NOT based SOLELY on medical technology and while it might be easy for you to postulate that a fetus could be “viable” at 6 weeks; it would be wrong for you to postulate such BS.

What other factors determine fetus viability?

The ability to survive outside the womb prematurely is SOLEY determined by the medical technology of any given era..

I am sincerely confused by your claim..

Fetal viability is the ability of a fetus to survive outside the uterus. Fetal viability is generally considered to begin at 24 weeks gestational age, since at this point in the pregnancy, most infants survive a preterm birth.

There have been cases where 22 week gestation babies have survived..

And that number is getting shorter..

Why? Because of medical technology..

Is it REALLY outside the realm of possibility that in the time of Kirk and Spock that babies at 6 weeks could be saved??

The viability argument is a fluid argument and is not suited for the black/white areas of the law..

Abortion is killing a sentient life form.. This is fact.

I am going to break my own rule for clarity's sake..

Should Dr Kovich have ordered the "death" of Zora simply because she didn't fit the definition of "life" as it is understood??

If Democrats REALLY care about the sanctity of life, with all it's possible diversity....

Then supporting abortion is illogical...

On the other hand, I see the logical argument from the military/economic side of the issue.

It's only the lower ranks that are not paid well. And those ranks are, in economic terms, "unskilled labor" and their pay is commiserate with that designation...

It’s ONLY the lower ranks that are not paid well??? Oh, well if it is ONLY them then I guess that is acceptable! They are only the front line soldiers in any conflict, those whose lives are most often given in their service to our country. And I always love it when conservatives want to bring up smart economic practices to excuse the low level of compensation they feel some deserve while ignoring the unadulterated greed by and privilege given to those in power. And the military has no problem spending outrageous amounts of money on questionable projects that could do wonders for the lives of our enlisted service members.

Which is why, in the olden days, it was always smarter for young bucks to WAIT until they were financially secure before starting families..

The vast majority of hardships in people's lives can, more often than not, be traced back to stoopid decisions made.. That goes for civilian, military, race, gender, lifestyle... Whatever kind of hardship you can name..

Right… how stoopid of me to have a child born with a medical condition that requires medicine that costs thousands of dollars per prescription and causes me to need to miss work often in order to care for my sick child! This wasn’t a choice that I made to be burdened with this hardship — like you said, I’m just stoopid, I guess.

The same “stoopid decision” you describe will have far different outcomes depending on the individuals’ socio-economic environment. Republicans need to have someone to blame for life’s problems… because they feel guilty when they realize the privileges that they have enjoyed while not being burdened with the pitfalls those less fortunate as they experience.

What exactly are we praying will happen to justice Thomas's health?

Lizsplaining, in all its glory. Heh

There have been a total of 120 SCOTUS Justices.

So Joe Biden keeps his promise to correct this and he's the racist?*smh*

Only a rotating schedule is really representative of and fair for all.