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Tuco

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Everything posted by Tuco

  1. I don't think Biden is taking a shit on anyone. I do think there are plenty of moderate Democrats who talk a lot about party unity, but whine like entitled pricks when a more progressive candidate wins primaries. (I'm talking Congressional candidates.) But, for now, the focus is on winning as many positions as possible in the general elections, particularly for President, in the Senate, and in the House. After the election is over, I'll worry about the interparty squabbling.
  2. I freakin love coal plants. I know: it's nerdy weirdness. It was what I was interested in working on coming out of college in '94. I didn't find anything at that point, but seven years later I was able to get a job in the industry. I think I've done work in every coal plant in a 100 mile radius, and even did some preliminary design for a Peabody plant that never went. Sure, there were always environmental concerns, but they were all concerns that could be addressed with more investments and better engineering. The back end systems (air quality control systems) grew to the point that they were roughly the size of the main part of the plant. But, better engineering meant less pollution, so I did not have a problem working on them. Now, I can't. There is really no way to get away from the fundamental chemistry that dictates the ratio between a BTU of energy released and the CO2 that gets released with it. Carbon capture on the scale needed for one of these plants? It's possible, but certainly less realistic than alternative energy options. It's too bad. They are beautiful dinosaurs.
  3. But Biden has this ability to actually understand something without it personally experiencing it. I think they call it "empathy.' Weird, I know.
  4. I get the feeling with NoVA, there is has to be some effect of Trump attacking DC on a regular basis. It's one thing to use rhetoric about working to change the dysfunctional culture of "Washington", referencing the government. It's another thing to be actively working to relocate jobs out of DC, regularly attacking the Washington/DC governments, and generally just attacking the city itself.
  5. I believe that Silver runs models based off of different demographic turn-outs and polling, but not necessarily on the state polling. Or maybe the demographics are used to adjust state polling. Oregon is 75% Non-Hispanic White. Mississippi is 56.4% Non-Hispanic White. Non-Hispanic Whites, in general, are for Republicans. If you push demographic turnouts to their edge of reasonability, I could see why it might give results that aren't that reasonable.
  6. Yeah, but Trump (and the Republicans) won white women in 2016. I don't get how women work, but I have seen enough to know they don't all work like many of the women I respect. I wish it were different. As we get closer to the election, I am hopeful with many of the signs of enthusiasm (or anger). But until the votes are counted, I have to admit there is a lot of uncertainty with how shit will play out.
  7. This is a good BBC article. It's a story of Tony Vargas (a Nebraska State Senator), his father who died of Covid, and Tony's fight to get legislation requiring meat packing plants to adhere to CDC guidelines. Tony is is one of my favorite politicians. It probably could have expanded on this a bit: In a special session which was called to deal with the COVID health crisis, the Unicameral passed two major bills: 1) property tax "relief", which will further reduce revenue as the government is having to pull back services, and 2) an abortion bill that restricts what types of abortions are allowed in the second trimester, ultimately requiring women to give birth to a second trimester fetus even if the pregnancy is having medical concerns. Rather than doing anything to deal with COVID, they passed red-meat bills in preparation of the up coming election.
  8. Polls released this weekend so far:: NYT poll has Biden+7 in PA and Biden +5 in Florida; CBS+7 in PA. If Biden wins PA and FL, he can lose Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, AND Arizona, and still get to 271 EVs.
  9. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
  10. He's either terrified or too sick to be terrified. I honestly hope it's the first.
  11. On a side note, you have to wonder how much Paul Manafort is sweating Trump's health. It's not like Pence is going to pardon the guy on the way out. Edit: ...and any information that he has on Trump may suddenly become much less valuable.
  12. I know these idiots like to look back on the "Greatest Generation" and World War II, and they see it as one of the shining examples of American heroism and awesomeness. Do they understand there was forced conscription, requiring able body men to join the military, take orders from anyone with a higher rank, risk their lives, and kill other people? Do they understand there was rationing of almost all consumer goods? Do they understand that industries were required to change their production to meet military demands? Do they understand that coasts were required to black out their lights, in case enemy ships might attack? Some time in the next few months, American fatalities from four years of WW2 (292k) will be surpassed by those from Covid in one year. And these fucking idiots think that wearing a mask at the White House is some unprecedented imposition on freedom.
  13. Absolutely agree. And I would much prefer to never see Pence as a President, even if for a short while. Our nation has suffered enough.
  14. I know that's the conventional wisdom, but I do wonder if there may be some counter-effect if some conservative, anti-Trump voters begin to get concerned about a Dem sweep. It's one thing to vote against a Senator who has empowered Trump if you think Trump has a shot of getting re-elected. But, if Trump is off the table, some might start getting concerned about what Biden might do with both Houses. There are a lot people who prefer a divided government, and if the White House and House are foregone conclusions, it might push them to the right on the Senate. Wild speculation on my part.
  15. My recollection is that the governor of Missouri was a Democrat. She campaign to have people vote for Mel. Mel won posthumously The Governor then appointed her as his replacement. It was more of a side agreement, than any official mechanism. The problem here is that nobody appoints a President. There is a succession. But I imagine Trump could win posthumously, and then Pence would succeed him. But it would very weird, since Pence would get sworn in (to finish out the term), not win an election, and then get sworn in again, without ever winning an election.
  16. I am convinced he has it. He sees sickness as a weakness, and he abhors looking weak. But, playing devil's advocate: the only advantage I could see for faking it is if he has already concluded that he is going to lose the election. He will spend the next month in his basement, rage-tweeting at FoxNews. After he loses, he would use the illness as an excuse. That would be the best way to fleece his flock of morons after he loses. If he gets blown out in the election, it will damage his image as a powerful figure. He needs an excuse - election fraud being the most obvious, but an illness would augment that. But, I really don't believe that is what is happening. The idiot didn't take precautions during a pandemic, and getting sick is the logical consequence.
  17. I believe Florida doesn’t start counting them until the polls close, because they are attention whores.
  18. 4) The majority of their net worth was in their house, which is now worth a fraction of it did before the plant closed. For folks that are of working age, they have to move because they need to find a job. But for the old folks, they ain't going anywhere. They couldn't afford to even if they wanted to. With all of all my complaints about small town/rural folks, I can see why a "Make America Great Again" slogan is effective. The world has gotten better. The US has gotten better. For many of them, their town has gotten worse. It doesn't forgive the racism and stupidity that is wrapped up with being a Trump fan, but I can understand why his message resonates. I think it also provides some solace when they are told that the US as a whole, particularly the big cities, are in decline. It makes them feel better about their place in the world.
  19. Yeah, she's pretty cool. She is also generous with her time by being joining other candidates for their fundraisers. I got to sit in on one with her and Kara Eastman (NE-2). Smart and funny, and no fucks given.
  20. Sure. And rents are dropping now because of COVID. A small town can go to shit as soon as "the plant" closes.
  21. No, she can't find a safe place to live in Chicago for 1200 per month. That's because there are ton of people who love the city who are willing to spend a lot of money to live there, unless it's in a dangerous neighborhood. The fact that Chicago is cool as fuck is part of what drives that dynamic. Yes, homicides are up in 2020, after declining the three years prior. Yes, there are dangerous parts of the city. But so many hicks think that is what defines the city. It doesn't. I had a conversation with some dude who used to live in Seattle and was telling me about the city was imploding, just absolutely falling to pieces. He went on for likely twenty minutes on it. I then asked him if the rents were dropping. "Uh...no." Then it ain't fucking crumbling.
  22. I think one of the more effective things that social media propaganda has done is to convince people in rural America that cities are post-apocalyptic outposts of crime and sin. They really believe that Chicago is some cautionary tale of despair. Hell, they believe Omaha is frightening.
  23. Nah. Trump would come out and just throwing shit. Proof of UraniumOne conspiring with Hunter. Maybe some advanced QAnon theories that no one has thought of. Anything to change the conversation.
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