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RolStoppable on 12 August 2025

Nice to see that someone picked up on Trump's insanity and how strange it is that nobody is laughing at the nonsense Trump is spouting. Plus the hilarity of fact-checking on live TV.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRAjbgvj9Pc

It's also evident that people who support Trump never hear him talking, because otherwise they'd be stunned by how damaged his brain is. There's a segment around the eight minute mark that addresses Trump's brain. That's the guy who is making decisions in the USA, and we know it's only him because nobody dares to disagree with him.



Legend11 correctly predicted that GTA IV will outsell Super Smash Bros. Brawl. I was wrong.

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Torillian on 12 August 2025
konnichiwa said:
OdinHades said:

I agree, why don't we start with the one in the oval office?

That's fine by me, but let's face it, if it's true that illegal bording crossings are down, if it is true that riots are down in L.A. and if the Oval Office can make the murder/crime rate go down a lot in DC then the Republican Party will be known as the Party that stands for Law and Order and who can be against it? 

It seems the general population wants it and then see Democrats who are against it and try to turn it in to some Race bait thing or sum up how many vacation days Trump took, does it really matter?

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

Thankfully polling indicates that most Americans are taking issue with Trump's heavy handedness and he's underwater in approval ratings even for the things you are mentioning here like immigration. 

If there's one thing that I would call a cohesive American culture it's the sense that freedom is worth a lot of other sacrifices. We could probably decrease school shootings quite a bit if we cracked down on gun ownership similar to Australia but America by and large has decided we'd rather have the freedom to have guns even with the downsides. Similarly I'd rather have some crime in a city than a curfew. That so many on the right are ready and willing to give up their liberties to this tangerine Duarte to fight crime which is already down in a city they don't fucking live in is nuts. I guess conservative Americans are only interested in their own freedoms, not those of their fellows. 

https://www.ap.org/news-highlights/spotlights/2025/trumps-approval-rating-on-immigration-and-government-spending-has-slipped-new-ap-norc-poll-finds/



...

the-pi-guy on 12 August 2025
konnichiwa said:

Meh, going after criminals is a good thing, doesn't matter if their is an another reason why he does it, it is a fact that people in the West are so fed up with criminals getting away with so much stuff especially young teens who beat people up, getting arrested all the time for theft and all they get is some probation because they are 14-17 years old. Trump wins voted with going after them, the question is why no one else dit it before and why so many other countries in the West are so soft...

Except this isn't happening. 

America has more people in prison than any country in the world, even compared to India and China that have over 3x more people. We are #5 per capita for prisoners. 

Crime rates have been declining over the past few decades. If people think that isn't the case, it's largely due to 24 hour news and social media. People are constantly aware of everything.  

konnichiwa said:

That's fine by me, but let's face it, if it's true that illegal bording crossings are down, if it is true that riots are down in L.A. and if the Oval Office can make the murder/crime rate go down a lot in DC then the Republican Party will be known as the Party that stands for Law and Order and who can be against it? 

It seems the general population wants it and then see Democrats who are against it and try to turn it in to some Race bait thing or sum up how many vacation days Trump took, does it really matter?

Except people largely don't want a police state. 

People tend to be upset when other people are criminals, but they tend to not want the government and the military and the police watching them at all times. 

On some level, you have to pick your priorities and which freedoms you want. 

Do you want privacy or do you want security? Do you want freedom to do what you want, or do you want everything to be policed? 



SanAndreasX on 12 August 2025

Amazing how many people in the Western world villify the Communist Party of China because dirty commies, while wanting their countries to be just like China. We have China-style Internet firewalls going up in the "free" states of the South as well as in Britain.



konnichiwa on 13 August 2025
the-pi-guy said:
konnichiwa said:

Meh, going after criminals is a good thing, doesn't matter if their is an another reason why he does it, it is a fact that people in the West are so fed up with criminals getting away with so much stuff especially young teens who beat people up, getting arrested all the time for theft and all they get is some probation because they are 14-17 years old. Trump wins voted with going after them, the question is why no one else dit it before and why so many other countries in the West are so soft...

Except this isn't happening. 

America has more people in prison than any country in the world, even compared to India and China that have over 3x more people. We are #5 per capita for prisoners. 

Crime rates have been declining over the past few decades. If people think that isn't the case, it's largely due to 24 hour news and social media. People are constantly aware of everything.  

konnichiwa said:

That's fine by me, but let's face it, if it's true that illegal bording crossings are down, if it is true that riots are down in L.A. and if the Oval Office can make the murder/crime rate go down a lot in DC then the Republican Party will be known as the Party that stands for Law and Order and who can be against it? 

It seems the general population wants it and then see Democrats who are against it and try to turn it in to some Race bait thing or sum up how many vacation days Trump took, does it really matter?

Except people largely don't want a police state. 

People tend to be upset when other people are criminals, but they tend to not want the government and the military and the police watching them at all times. 

On some level, you have to pick your priorities and which freedoms you want. 

Do you want privacy or do you want security? Do you want freedom to do what you want, or do you want everything to be policed? 

Ofcourse people don't want a police state but something has to happen.

I mean their are people who wake up and are glad they had no scam call the last few days but have those annoying spam emails tho, does reporting those help? It feels useless but you keep on doing it,  they go outside and bring something with them pepper spray or something else, they check if the inside home camera and doorcam is working.  Then they bring the child to school, sure you wish the child who is 10 can go alone but the streets are not safe.

On your way you can cleary see some people dealing drugs...do you or the other hundreds of drivers report it?  Ofcourse not because the police knows this happens but they barely do anything.   Kids are at school and you finally park the car close to work, you see some addicts on the street, 10 years ago you would not see this but got normalized to it and you don't even want to think how they get money to buy their shit....   you arrive at the shop and say hi to the new extra hire security guard, clients then start complaining about how much stuff is now locked behind glass but you had to do it because so much stuff gets stolen, sometimes the thieves get caught but would return the day after and this is the only solution and it makes you angry....

Plenty of foreign tourists who went to USA, San Franciso, Seattle, Portland, NY, DC and so on will say they had a nice time but also that they are shocked by the homeless camps, drug addicts on the street, security measures in shops, Paris or London are not doing well either but it is a totally different level in some USA states/cities.






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Torillian on 13 August 2025
konnichiwa said:
the-pi-guy said:

Except this isn't happening. 

America has more people in prison than any country in the world, even compared to India and China that have over 3x more people. We are #5 per capita for prisoners. 

Crime rates have been declining over the past few decades. If people think that isn't the case, it's largely due to 24 hour news and social media. People are constantly aware of everything.  

konnichiwa said:

That's fine by me, but let's face it, if it's true that illegal bording crossings are down, if it is true that riots are down in L.A. and if the Oval Office can make the murder/crime rate go down a lot in DC then the Republican Party will be known as the Party that stands for Law and Order and who can be against it? 

It seems the general population wants it and then see Democrats who are against it and try to turn it in to some Race bait thing or sum up how many vacation days Trump took, does it really matter?

Except people largely don't want a police state. 

People tend to be upset when other people are criminals, but they tend to not want the government and the military and the police watching them at all times. 

On some level, you have to pick your priorities and which freedoms you want. 

Do you want privacy or do you want security? Do you want freedom to do what you want, or do you want everything to be policed? 

Ofcourse people don't want a police state but something has to happen.

I mean their are people who wake up and are glad they had no scam call the last few days but have those annoying spam emails tho, does reporting those help? It feels useless but you keep on doing it,  they go outside and bring something with them pepper spray or something else, they check if the inside home camera and doorcam is working.  Then they bring the child to school, sure you wish the child who is 10 can go alone but the streets are not safe.

On your way you can cleary see some people dealing drugs...do you or the other hundreds of drivers report it?  Ofcourse not because the police knows this happens but they barely do anything.   Kids are at school and you finally park the car close to work, you see some addicts on the street, 10 years ago you would not see this but got normalized to it and you don't even want to think how they get money to buy their shit....   you arrive at the shop and say hi to the new extra hire security guard, clients then start complaining about how much stuff is now locked behind glass but you had to do it because so much stuff gets stolen, sometimes the thieves get caught but would return the day after and this is the only solution and it makes you angry....

Plenty of foreign tourists who went to USA, San Franciso, Seattle, Portland, NY, DC and so on will say they had a nice time but also that they are shocked by the homeless camps, drug addicts on the street, security measures in shops, Paris or London are not doing well either but it is a totally different level in some USA states/cities.

You can probably find some people who welcome this in any city. Then again I'm sure there are some in trailer parks that would be down for the same treatment. But if we're sticking by our guns of democracy and local governance then the people of those cities can vote for if they want draconian measures to combat crime. And if they don't then Trump can shove his police state right back up his ass. 

Crime was already trending down in this city and every other. If we didn't need a police state back in the 90s we sure as shit don't need one now. 



...

Machiavellian on 13 August 2025
konnichiwa said:
the-pi-guy said:

Except this isn't happening. 

America has more people in prison than any country in the world, even compared to India and China that have over 3x more people. We are #5 per capita for prisoners. 

Crime rates have been declining over the past few decades. If people think that isn't the case, it's largely due to 24 hour news and social media. People are constantly aware of everything.  

konnichiwa said:

That's fine by me, but let's face it, if it's true that illegal bording crossings are down, if it is true that riots are down in L.A. and if the Oval Office can make the murder/crime rate go down a lot in DC then the Republican Party will be known as the Party that stands for Law and Order and who can be against it? 

It seems the general population wants it and then see Democrats who are against it and try to turn it in to some Race bait thing or sum up how many vacation days Trump took, does it really matter?

Except people largely don't want a police state. 

People tend to be upset when other people are criminals, but they tend to not want the government and the military and the police watching them at all times. 

On some level, you have to pick your priorities and which freedoms you want. 

Do you want privacy or do you want security? Do you want freedom to do what you want, or do you want everything to be policed? 

Ofcourse people don't want a police state but something has to happen.

I mean their are people who wake up and are glad they had no scam call the last few days but have those annoying spam emails tho, does reporting those help? It feels useless but you keep on doing it,  they go outside and bring something with them pepper spray or something else, they check if the inside home camera and doorcam is working.  Then they bring the child to school, sure you wish the child who is 10 can go alone but the streets are not safe.

On your way you can cleary see some people dealing drugs...do you or the other hundreds of drivers report it?  Ofcourse not because the police knows this happens but they barely do anything.   Kids are at school and you finally park the car close to work, you see some addicts on the street, 10 years ago you would not see this but got normalized to it and you don't even want to think how they get money to buy their shit....   you arrive at the shop and say hi to the new extra hire security guard, clients then start complaining about how much stuff is now locked behind glass but you had to do it because so much stuff gets stolen, sometimes the thieves get caught but would return the day after and this is the only solution and it makes you angry....

Plenty of foreign tourists who went to USA, San Franciso, Seattle, Portland, NY, DC and so on will say they had a nice time but also that they are shocked by the homeless camps, drug addicts on the street, security measures in shops, Paris or London are not doing well either but it is a totally different level in some USA states/cities.

Just wondering are you in agreement to a police state.  Do you want the Federal government to have soldiers on every corner, monitoring your every interactions whether private or public for the security that you believe you want.



SvennoJ on 13 August 2025
konnichiwa said:

Ofcourse people don't want a police state but something has to happen.

I mean their are people who wake up and are glad they had no scam call the last few days but have those annoying spam emails tho, does reporting those help? It feels useless but you keep on doing it,  they go outside and bring something with them pepper spray or something else, they check if the inside home camera and doorcam is working.  Then they bring the child to school, sure you wish the child who is 10 can go alone but the streets are not safe.

On your way you can cleary see some people dealing drugs...do you or the other hundreds of drivers report it?  Ofcourse not because the police knows this happens but they barely do anything.   Kids are at school and you finally park the car close to work, you see some addicts on the street, 10 years ago you would not see this but got normalized to it and you don't even want to think how they get money to buy their shit....   you arrive at the shop and say hi to the new extra hire security guard, clients then start complaining about how much stuff is now locked behind glass but you had to do it because so much stuff gets stolen, sometimes the thieves get caught but would return the day after and this is the only solution and it makes you angry....

Plenty of foreign tourists who went to USA, San Franciso, Seattle, Portland, NY, DC and so on will say they had a nice time but also that they are shocked by the homeless camps, drug addicts on the street, security measures in shops, Paris or London are not doing well either but it is a totally different level in some USA states/cities.

More policing certainly isn't going to fix any of that.

Yeah something needs to change, but locking even more people up is not the answer.

Social programs reduce drug use, homelessness, larceny etc and those are only getting slashed by Trump.
Higher minimum wages, more affordable housing, universal healthcare will stop people losing everything and ending up on the street.
Better care for people with mental issues, ptsd will keep more people from ending up wandering the streets.

I've toured the USA in the 80s and 90s. We never felt unsafe, well San Francisco felt a bit grim after dark. More for the contradiction than all the homeless out on the streets, same in LA.

What we were 'shocked' by was the police messaging "It's the law". Very different from what we were used to. In Europe signs on the road were promoting safety, in Belgium even using humor to combat speeding etc. For example new interactive signs:


In the USA it was all "It's the law" on signs. 


It's a different mindset.


For the homeless issues, some states are doing better than others
https://americaninequality.substack.com/p/homelessness-and-inequality-2024

And ofcourse, first comment is:

Crazy idea: maybe we shouldn’t let millions of homeless illegal immigrants walk across the border? James Madison high school in nyc just forced students into remote learning because they housed thousands of migrants.

In the article

While the influx of immigrants has led to some of the increase in homelessness, it has not been a leading cause as many pundits would lead us to believe. Instead, researchers at UC San Francisco conducted the largest survey of homeless people in the last 25 years and found that the leading cause was housing affordability. The overwhelming majority of the homeless population in California, for example, consisted of locals, with 90% of them losing their homes in the regions where they had already resided. 

As long as people keep blaming immigration instead of inequality and lack of affordable housing, they're only playing into the hands of the billionaire class that want you to believe more policing is the way to go...

In the 80s we were far less worried about crime and safety, even though it was much more unsafe than today...


https://letgrow.org/crime-statistics/

If for some strange reason you WANTED your child to be kidnapped by a stranger, how long would you have to keep them outside, unattended, for this to be statistically likely to happen?

750,000 years.

...

“The frightening crime increase that began in 2020 is looking more and more like a passing phenomenon and not a continuing national disaster like the crime wave of the late 1960s through early 1990s.”

Violent-crime rate in 2023 was near its lowest level in more than 50 years, crime analyst Jeff Asher wrote for his newsletter. Source: NYTimes piece.

Big point: The murder rate today is actually lower today than it was in the ’90s — even with the crime increase of the COVID era.

Murder has declined substantially in the U.S. since the early 1990s, although increases occurred in 2005 and 2006, and again in 2015 and 2016. In 2021, the homicide rate for the cities studied was about half what it was for those cities 29 years ago (15 deaths per 100,000 residents in those cities versus 28 per 100,000 in 1993).


There's plenty work to be done, but crime etc is still way down from the 80s, 90s when we grew up without a care... 

Reducing inequality and providing affordable housing is what needs to be done.



SanAndreasX on 13 August 2025
Machiavellian said:
konnichiwa said:

Ofcourse people don't want a police state but something has to happen.

I mean their are people who wake up and are glad they had no scam call the last few days but have those annoying spam emails tho, does reporting those help? It feels useless but you keep on doing it,  they go outside and bring something with them pepper spray or something else, they check if the inside home camera and doorcam is working.  Then they bring the child to school, sure you wish the child who is 10 can go alone but the streets are not safe.

On your way you can cleary see some people dealing drugs...do you or the other hundreds of drivers report it?  Ofcourse not because the police knows this happens but they barely do anything.   Kids are at school and you finally park the car close to work, you see some addicts on the street, 10 years ago you would not see this but got normalized to it and you don't even want to think how they get money to buy their shit....   you arrive at the shop and say hi to the new extra hire security guard, clients then start complaining about how much stuff is now locked behind glass but you had to do it because so much stuff gets stolen, sometimes the thieves get caught but would return the day after and this is the only solution and it makes you angry....

Plenty of foreign tourists who went to USA, San Franciso, Seattle, Portland, NY, DC and so on will say they had a nice time but also that they are shocked by the homeless camps, drug addicts on the street, security measures in shops, Paris or London are not doing well either but it is a totally different level in some USA states/cities.

Just wondering are you in agreement to a police state.  Do you want the Federal government to have soldiers on every corner, monitoring your every interactions whether private or public for the security that you believe you want.

He doesn't have to worry about it. He's running his mouth off over in Belgium. It's easy for him to talk shit.



SvennoJ on 13 August 2025

US judge orders partial restoration of UCLA funding suspended after pro-Palestinian protests

A US federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to restore part of the grant funding it recently froze for the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

US District Judge Rita Lin in San Francisco said the suspensions violated a June preliminary injunction, in which she had ordered the National Science Foundation (NSF) to reinstate dozens of grants it terminated at the University of California.

That order also blocked the agency from cancelling other grants within the university system. “NSF’s actions violate the Preliminary Injunction,” Lin wrote in her ruling.

Last week, UCLA said the government had frozen $584m in funding. US President Donald Trump had previously threatened to cut federal funds to universities over pro-Palestinian protests against Israel’s war on Gaza.

Protesters say the government wrongly equates criticism of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and its occupation of Palestinian territory with anti-Semitism, and advocacy for Palestinian rights with support for extremism.

 

Trump’s Police Takeover in D.C. Isn’t Random. It’s a Blueprint for Martial Law w/ Prof. Wolff


Trump has declared a police state in D.C., announcing a federal military takeover. Despite recent violent crime rates in D.C. at a 30-year low, he cited “crime” as the reason—but professor Richard Wolff & Brian Becker discuss his real goals.