Ok, not football at all, but it matters, eventually.

[Ozwhites]

Are you related to Trump given you are known to spout bizarre and self-serving nonsense?

Very similar arrogance.....🤔

[Oranje White]

I'm afraid there are some here that are brainwashed by the media....the same media that told us "Joe is sharp as a tack" but some of us knew he was a demented fool 3 years ago. The same media that told us Covid came from a woman eating a bat, but some of us knew it was a Gain Of Function experiment in tbe Wuhan Lab. The same media that told us men can get pregnant. The media that told us the Southern Border is secure. The media that told us the covid vax gave us immunity from a deadly disease (with a 99.6% survival rate). The same media that tell us the US economy is just fine (with 20% inflation). The same media that approve of mentally ill men dressed as women, showering with 12 year old girls. The very media that told us BLM riots were peaceful. Now that media tell us Trump will destroy democracy....and still people lap it up. Stalin called these gullibles "useful idiots". Trump is the only hope for the US. 4 more years of corrupt Democrats will destroy the US.

[spaldy]

OW,

Many of my Brit friends really struggle with the "freedom of speech" thing. They profess to understand it and the superficially do but they can't really grasp the full significance of it. They don't understand it's the building block of the US. It's the first amendment for a reason and the second amendment was not granted to "protect your home or kill animals for food on your table". The second was put in to protect against the "tyranny of goverment". They knew you would have to fight to protect the first amendment.

The journalists were given absolute protection against the government and litigation. The founders did not envision that the journalists would become tools and propagandists. They are the lowest form of life in our country. They have sold their souls for 30 pieces of silver. They knew all of the above was lies and tripe and they know that Trump is not going to destroy democracy. No single person can do that but a cabal of soulless federal politicians and bureacrats can. They need a puppet to appear to lead while they run everything. They had the perfect one in a senile old fool that couldn't pass a drivers license or basic cognitive test. Now they have one that's never gotten a primary vote for president in her career and they've propped her up as the second coming.

I think the 17th amendment was the beginning of the end for us. As you know we aren't a "democracy". We are a representative republic and the Senate was created to act as a balancing act on the will of the people vs what's best for the country. They aren't always the same and without that balance "mob rule" tends to take over. The most important thing is that we have learned we have the power of the purse and can just vote ourselves the treasury. Politicians do this all the time to curry votes and no one worries about the $37,000,000,000,000 debt we've left our kids and grandkids. That will never be paid off on the day of reckoning when the world financial community collapses because it's all just paper money and IOU's will be incredibly ugly.

I will discontinue my doom and gloom rants. It's depressing and nothing anyone can do about it.

[WTF11]

OW,

Many of my Brit friends really struggle with the "freedom of speech" thing. They profess to understand it and the superficially do but they can't really grasp the full significance of it. They don't understand it's the building block of the US. It's the first amendment for a reason and the second amendment was not granted to "protect your home or kill animals for food on your table". The second was put in to protect against the "tyranny of goverment". They knew you would have to fight to protect the first amendment.

The journalists were given absolute protection against the government and litigation. The founders did not envision that the journalists would become tools and propagandists. They are the lowest form of life in our country. They have sold their souls for 30 pieces of silver. They knew all of the above was lies and tripe and they know that Trump is not going to destroy democracy. No single person can do that but a cabal of soulless federal politicians and bureacrats can. They need a puppet to appear to lead while they run everything. They had the perfect one in a senile old fool that couldn't pass a drivers license or basic cognitive test. Now they have one that's never gotten a primary vote for president in her career and they've propped her up as the second coming.

I think the 17th amendment was the beginning of the end for us. As you know we aren't a "democracy". We are a representative republic and the Senate was created to act as a balancing act on the will of the people vs what's best for the country. They aren't always the same and without that balance "mob rule" tends to take over. The most important thing is that we have learned we have the power of the purse and can just vote ourselves the treasury. Politicians do this all the time to curry votes and no one worries about the $37,000,000,000,000 debt we've left our kids and grandkids. That will never be paid off on the day of reckoning when the world financial community collapses because it's all just paper money and IOU's will be incredibly ugly.

I will discontinue my doom and gloom rants. It's depressing and nothing anyone can do about it.

"Many of my Brit friends really struggle with the "freedom of speech" thing. They profess to understand it and the superficially do but they can't really grasp the full significance of it.". What do you mean "the full significance"? It's not just the US where freedom of speech underpins all, democracy depends on it, wherever that form of government is practised, and the effects of the failure to enjoy such can be seen in Russia, China, North Korea, Iran etc etc.

What I find puzzling is that intelligent folks like yourself and some others who post here persist in believing that Trump and his acolytes believe in free speech. Were he to be elected, God forbid, his threat to be a Presidential dictator will become true, and your beloved freedom of speech will exist only for those who agree with him. The strength of a democracy isn't gauged by how much self serving agreement there might be, but how it copes with opposition and challenge. Trump hates challenge and opposition, his temperament and behaviour has shown that on every occasion where his views and actions have been challenged, the spots won't change were we to be faced with the horrific prospect of him as President.

BTW, just going back to the post by OW? Any real fact checking going on there?

One example from the list of supposed media snowstorms that caught my eye "The same media that tell us the US economy is just fine (with 20% inflation)."

So all these organisations, most of whom make their living from providing accurate, factual, peer-reviewed information regarding the economy in general and in this case inflation specifically, they're all conspiring with each other to provide false information?

https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/inflation-cpi

https://www.statista.com/statistics/273418/unadjusted-monthly-inflation-rate-in-the-us/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/244983/projected-inflation-rate-in-the-united-states/

https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/inflation/current-inflation-rates/

https://ycharts.com/indicators/us_inflation_rate

Criticise the media by all means, the get stuff wrong all the time, but at the very least do some homework before the "facts" that are given get held up to be as real as the eating cats and dogs story was.

[hopelesslyoptimistic]

Spaldy - it’s interesting if you trace the ownership of the various media outlets how concentrated it is into about 4 or 5 large groups. Some of those also have been (some might say with good reason) accused of pushing a particular left wing agenda (which some might call woke).

The stuff that came out recently about the pressure Facebook was put under during Covid and subsequently and some of the actions alleged by the Senate and Congress to have been taken by government departments are slightly concerning not least for a county founded on free speech.

Trump attracts a lot of attention for sure but some of it seems to be because be doesn’t play by the rules of the liberal elite so they portray him as a threat to society but it seems fit could really be because he wants to upset the status quo they so desperately want to maintain.

Listen to a lot of what the likes of Rand Paul and Jim Jordan who seem sensible as does Comer. The reaction to the Trump shooting seemed to bring out a lot of middle ground moderates from both sides united in trying to understand and get to the bottom of it all.

[Sniffer999]

Vote Trump or support Trump any way you can.
Peace and prosperity with Trump.
Bad news if the Democrats get in. Very bad news.
Too many points to make to put on here.
If you know you know.
Due to ownership of main stream media by the deep state, mainly TV news and papers, millions of people believe what they are told.
Good v evil. It really is.

[WTF11]

Vote Trump or support Trump any way you can.
Peace and prosperity with Trump.
Bad news if the Democrats get in. Very bad news.
Too many points to make to put on here.
If you know you know.
Due to ownership of main stream media by the deep state, mainly TV news and papers, millions of people believe what they are told.
Good v evil. It really is.

Absolute f00king insanity. I've offended Australians and others so why not the brain dead numbnuts who think a (nearly) brain dead geriatric convicted criminal (TRUMP!) who would turn the USA into an isolationist fascist dictatorship is worthy of ANY kind of support?

The man is seriously deranged and offers nothing but pain, division and disorder to a people who should be the happiest, most prosperous folks on earth. "Be careful what you wish for", doesn't come close.

[WTF11]

Vote Trump or support Trump any way you can.
Peace and prosperity with Trump.
Bad news if the Democrats get in. Very bad news.
Too many points to make to put on here.
If you know you know.
Due to ownership of main stream media by the deep state, mainly TV news and papers, millions of people believe what they are told.
Good v evil. It really is.

And "if you know you know"? Wtf? Know what, from what source, how verified/validated? Instagram? Tik-tok? YouTube? Surely not the Trump "organs"? Or maybe you and those who support the bronzed one are just that gullible.

[hopelesslyoptimistic]

The Yrump appearance on the Joe Rogan podcast was fairly interesting. American politics seems to be at least as broken as here but Trump (whether one likes it or not) does seem to have his own views, is pretty articulate and can relate to ordinary people whether one agrees with the words themselves or not.

[Oranje White]

On the oil rig I am on now, the US crew members are very pro Trump. To call him a brain dead geriatric only demonstrates your appalling gillibility and your indoctrination by the commie MSM.

[Ozwhites]

On the oil rig I am on now, the US crew members are very pro Trump. To call him a brain dead geriatric only demonstrates your appalling gillibility and your indoctrination by the commie MSM.

Cut him some slack. It's probably the 2nd bottle of red kicking in....

[WTF11]

On the oil rig I am on now, the US crew members are very pro Trump. To call him a brain dead geriatric only demonstrates your appalling gillibility and your indoctrination by the commie MSM.

Not sure what the significance of a bunch of US folks on your rig supporting Trump has? As for how I described him, its not based on anything from MSM (Main stream media?), but from watching the guy and listening quite carefully to what comes out of his mouth. He threatens his opponents with prison, threatens to use federal and state resources i.e troops, to control those who disagree with or oppose him. He and his cohorts treated Arlington cemetery staff with disgusting disrespect, he disrespects the memory of those who have fallen in the name of the republic, all from his own mouth. The media couldn't make up the drivel he spouts, no-one would believe them. For gullibility, look in the mirror.

[hopelesslyoptimistic]

So it’s based on your innate sense of judgement? If so, that explains an awful lot!

[MrsORichSenior_]

For me living in W. France.... we do not show enough consideration to the political debates and problems of other countries........ particularly the Trump/Biden ideologies which I do try to follow via the Euro press.
I also often speak and listen to American folks who arrive in St Nazaire by bus loads visiting WW2 sites..... so politics do often crop up when talking to Americans sat at waterside hangouts.

In my view, Trump appears not so much a fascist but rather part of a new 'authoritarianism'....... that subverts democracy from within and solidifies power through administrative rather than paramilitary means broadly speaking.

These new authoritarians do not necessarily take a sledgehammer to a nations institutions, for example, by doing away with elections....... they hollow out democracy from within, so it becomes a façade draped over a one-party state......... The new style authoritarians govern through the transformation of the civil service into their own personal political machines... is the way rightly or wrongly as I see it ?

More so..... as Trump keeps saying that if he is elected to a second term he will prosecute his political opponents [the enemies within]. On 22 October he stated, once again that as President he would use 'extreme power' …... stating 'We can’t play games with these people and these are people that are dangerous people … an enemy from within.'

In Europe, Spain’s socialist prime minister Sánchez described the recent French election results as a warning and a lesson for Spain..........stating....... 'you always beat the far-right by governing and bringing in progressive policies........ that one by one give the lie to all the fake news that the far-right movement often spreads'.

However, the French far-right Party share of the government votes offers a cautionary tale for European civil society to learn from if it is to hopefully help stave off the very real far-right threat.......
..... but in the context of a widening gap between French voters and the political elite then it actually fell to civil society to channel anger, fear and hope into a political force that countered the rise of the far-right in the end for French society in 2024, particularly from the vocal unified under thirty-five year old voters........

Ultimately......... French regional, as well as religious identity explained the far-right’s poor performances........ particularyn in my Western France home region 'Brittany' with its strong Breton independent identity.......
so from that perspective it certainly weakened arguments from the Far-rights political party about supposed threats to French identity........ as shared Christian culture, including among those who do not consider themselves Christians, which has been perceived for a long time as a major obstacle to the far-right throughout Europe.

So I do see comparisons when I look out across my coastal bay outwards to my Atlantic friends and remember how ever changing politics led me on new journeys in life.

MOT

[hopelesslyoptimistic]

Three things that are a little alien this side of the pond these days.

How important the constitution is and protecting it over there.

Religion pays a lot more of a role that it does here

Everything seems to have polarised so debate is almost impossible.

The various law suits against Trump have seemed a little bit political not least in timing. The fact the DAs are elected roles probably doesn’t help with blind justice.