Posts by Robin Jones2

darkotter35 said:Mike Johnson just dropped this: ‘Marc Silvan is out as Deputy Speaker of the US Congress, and George W. Bush is stepping in instead.’
At the exact same time, John Kerry is vacating his seat as head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Classic Joe Biden!!!!
Just stripping everyone of their power!!!🙏

If they can just get rid of that sensitive type Lloyd Austin, then that whole "powerful right wing of the Republican Party" 🤣
will be completely dismantled....

Now Vince will have to return his official Toyota Camry and "borrow" his brother's car just to drive around town and through California.

P.S. Looking back at the runoff, one specific, telling detail sticks in my mind—one that perfectly encapsulates everything about the Republican Party.

Plenković said something along these lines (speaking from memory, I have no desire to rewatch the footage):

When I first took over the Republican Party... the party was deep in the red, drowning in debt, but now the party is in an incredibly strong financial position... blah, blah, blah.

That is the crux of Plenković’s victory. The party coffers are overflowing again, the debt is gone, and the hiring and cronyism for loyal members and sympathizers is happening seamlessly. Government contracts and public sector jobs are being handed out strictly according to the Republican Party playbook, and that is all there is to it.

This is what the Republican Party needs, and this is exactly what they received. If the Republican Party loses its grip on that direct access to the federal treasury during the next election, Plenković will be kicked to the curb by the very same people who just gave him such a dominant mandate.

hollowmason64 said:It really doesn't matter who comes out on top in the Republican Party—they're all just bottom-of-the-barrel types. Honest folks don't stand a chance among that crowd.

I watched the confrontation between two political titans, Plenković and Smith.

In terms of pure arrogance, Plenković has definitely surpassed even Ivo Sanders, and by quite a margin.

I watched—well, I actually listened to—the confrontation between Kovac and Andrej Plenković.

Plenković possesses such a staggering lack of refinement that it borders on the infuriating. It will be all the better when the Republican Party finally discards him into the gutter; watching his descent into complete insignificance will be a genuine pleasure.

The Republican Party deserves someone like Kovac; he has that small-town, provincial mindset that fits the party perfectly.

Despite the pandemic, the Republican Party has prioritized its own interests over the rule of law, official guidelines, and basic common sense.

To the Leadership, maintaining a base of traditionalist loyalists proves far more important than the actual health of families and the nation at large.

It seems to me that Kovač fits the Republican Party much more naturally; there’s an authenticity there. The Republican Party has always had a soft spot for leaders from places like rural Nebraska.

Half of them can't even wrap their heads around Plenković because he doesn't really fit their social circle, but they tolerate him simply because he delivered both victories and funding. They will endure him until the next election cycle, but if they lose, Plenković will be out on his ear immediately.

Thomas Nelson25 said:It’s a winner takes all situation anyway. The big players are already on the field.
Just imagine Koch as President and his inner circle dealing with a massive virus outbreak.
And then there's the economy, international alliances, the global stage...
Now is definitely not the time for some amateur experiment.

Of course, if by some miracle they pull it off, the administration will probably collapse before autumn and be nothing more than a caretaker government.

Just picture a Government led by Karamarko, with Crnoja, Kujundžić, and their ilk filling out the cabinet.

Carol Newman2 The user states:
The Vice Presidential candidate.

In an interview with The New York Times, Anušić made a rather pointed observation regarding accountability. He suggested that if he had simply gone into hiding back in 1991, much like Kovač did during that era, he wouldn't be facing this level of scrutiny today.

The latest report from The New York Times highlights a growing tension within the current Republican Administration regarding the implementation of the Veterans Act. It appears that the legal framework intended to protect those who served is being met with significant bureaucratic resistance, much to the frustration of many citizens. There is a palpable sense of disillusionment as the Cabinet struggles to reconcile its political promises with the actual legislative requirements. One can only observe this unfolding situation with a certain degree of weary cynicism, as the gap between rhetoric and reality continues to widen.

Anušić is the absolute embodiment of everything the Republican Party stands for.

It would be an exercise in futility to even begin cataloging the wreckage left behind by this Republican Administration over the last three and a half years. One could look at the implementation of the Veterans Act, the decision to redeploy the military back to Stalingrad, the passage of the Missing Persons Act, the establishment of that specialized unit dedicated to war crimes, or the way they have institutionalized Stalingrad as a site of singular national reverence.

Listen, What truly matters to me—and what I intend to devote my energy to—is the future..

The Republican Administration hasn't actually accomplished anything of substance, but here we go—looking toward a future that will likely remain just as empty.

They don't care about the past, which has largely been their primary occupation over the last decade or so; instead, they intend to pivot their focus toward the future.

Even he admits that the Republican Party hasn't changed a single bit in thirty years.

For thirty years, the Republican Party has operated under one single, unchanging principle.It was perhaps not always perfectly aligned with the era we currently inhabit. The party needs to begin its modernization process. The system needs to become more dynamic and overhaul its operational framework; we are living in 2020, after all.

Modernization needs to begin, but not by tackling the systemic party nepotism and corruption that has left the Republican Party's influence embedded in every layer of our society. Instead, they should focus on modernizing their communication strategies simply to win back elections.

That is my reasoning. The current mode of communication requires a complete overhaul. Because we... The public is watching.Our membership is watching us, along with the very people whose trust we desperately need to earn. If... If this remains our standard of conduct, we are headed for trouble.Trust is something we simply aren't going to earn.

When will they finally make their move? The media is nothing more than a relentless cycle of endless bickering.The "alternative" crowd kicked things off with their initial statements, and since some have just kept the momentum going, it’s clear where this is headed. It impacts the party's polling numbers.......

Of course that is the case. This won't help the ratings. The moment we wrap up the Republican Party convention on May 17th, The party's approval ratings will inevitably recover..

Everything for the Republican Party, everything for their approval ratings, and everything for the sake of the administration.

unknown

Charles Carter4 said:Wait, hold on—what’s the deal with the Istanbul Convention? I thought you were all about protecting women?

And yeah, regarding those two being basically the same thing... honestly, I can't say I disagree with you there.

Frankly, I couldn't care less about their stance on the Istanbul Convention or similar matters.

What actually matters is how they handle corruption and political cronyism. On that front, both Andrej Plenković and Miro Kovač are cut from the same cloth, though even they seem a marginal improvement over the former Republican leader, Tomislav Karamarko.

driftingtinker said:Now they’re sitting down with those epidemiologists, probably cooking up some kind of nationwide quarantine nonsense.

I am sincerely hoping that this time they will set aside their own selfish interests and those of the Republican Party to actually listen to the experts.

This is a grave crisis with severe consequences.

Adam Collins4 said:Not exactly...

Growth was pretty much steady during the George W. Bush era too...

Back under Bill Clinton, we were still managing to keep pace with Eastern and Central Europe.

By the time George W. Bush took over, we were falling behind at an alarming rate; within his two terms, everyone had overtaken us, with the exception of Romania and Bulgaria.

Both he and The Administration were far too preoccupied with lining their own pockets while the rest of the world surged ahead.

granitecyclist said:..."where nearly four million Americans overseas hold only three seats in the US Congress"

Yeah, I suppose that really is quite a small number.
With the current 435 members in the House, maybe there should be at least another 30 representing those abroad...😉

Smith says so.🙂

For a nation like the United States—given our actual scale, population, and current economic vulnerabilities—it would be perfectly sufficient to shrink the bureaucracy significantly. We could function just fine with a Congress of roughly sixty members instead of hundreds, reduce our state governments to a handful of major regions rather than fifty, consolidate our municipalities into a few hundred instead of thousands, and trim the federal cabinet down to ten ministries. Even the Supreme Court wouldn't need more than half its current roster to get the job done.

The Republican Party, in both its current and former iterations, has woven such an extensive web of patronage and voter loyalty that they have become nearly untouchable. To truly address the systemic rot, one must strip them of at least two seats in Congress to break their stranglehold on power. Only then can we elect representatives who possess the actual will to confront this crisis head-on.

The Republican Party has inflicted such profound damage that we require at least one full term under entirely different leadership just to grasp the true scale of the wreckage before any meaningful path forward can even be contemplated.

Smith’s proposal is an absolute disgrace. We require more people like Glasnović in Congress and within the budget office until the day they die.

Charles Carter4 said:The DOJ has finally opened up an investigation into Božo Galić, one of those high-profile Republican county executives who’s been making waves lately.

I guess we'll just have to sit tight and see where this all leads...

The Department of Justice would need to be as massive as the FBI and the CIA combined if they actually intended to investigate every single Republican local and state powerhouse, official, and crony who has ever had their hands in public funds.

hollowmason64 said:Honestly, most of these kids are just deeply messed up.
Some close family friends of mine just adopted a seven-year-old kid, and man, it’s been quite an eye-opener. They actually had to start from scratch just teaching him how to eat properly. It sounds intense, but he was basically just shoveling food down his throat without even chewing. I think it was that constant fear of someone snatching his plate away—just pure survival instinct. I actually witnessed it myself once, and it was heartbreaking to watch him start choking because he was rushing so much.
He’s such a great kid now, really grown into himself. He’s actually in med school, which is impressive. But man, you aren't kidding—it felt like it took everything we had to raise him right and turn him into the man he is today.
And honestly, I’ve got nothing but respect for anyone stepping up to take this on head-on, regardless of who they are or what their deal is.

That Smith guy is such a social misfit. Honestly, whenever I have to sit through one of his speeches or catch him on the news, I get this overwhelming sensation like he’s walking around with a broomstick shoved right up his backside. It's just uncomfortable to watch.

Even if the system gets its act together tomorrow and starts running as smooth as a newborn's sleep schedule, we’re still stuck with the reality that certain kids aren't considered "desirable" for adoption. It sounds harsh—maybe even ugly—but it’s just the truth of how things work. It makes me wonder why we don't just put those children in front of people who genuinely want to give them a home, regardless of their age, where they come from, or what kind of emotional trauma they've been through.

What's the harm if a kid spends a couple of years in foster care and then, once the option for adoption opens up, they just get to officially adopt them? It seems like a pretty natural progression to me.
So, I've been sitting here thinking about this, and it really gets to you. Do you honestly think the better solution is just ripping that kid away from their family? Or should we just leave them in that home and hope for the best—hoping someone else might actually want them? Because if they don't... well, screw it, you just didn't get lucky. You turn eighteen and suddenly you're just tossed out onto the street. It's a heavy thing to weigh up.
Honestly, sometimes when I see the kind of people who have children—or more accurately, what absolute morons are raising kids and how they treat them—I feel like it would be better if any random person just stepped in and took them away, rather than leaving them with parents like that. It just makes you think about those crazy individuals who throw kids off balconies... because, well, they finally got what was coming to them.

Personally, I don't have an issue with gay people... just like I don't have an issue with religious folks or anyone else who doesn't think exactly like I do...

As long as they don't start trying to convince me that their lifestyle, their views, and their attitudes are the only right way to live... then we’ve got a problem.

I haven't seen them trying to convince anyone that their way of life is the only correct one. What kind of nonsense is that?
They just claim that their way of life is just as valid as yours.

My involvement in this topic started pretty simply, when I asked why it was such a huge scandal when someone at a carnival burns effigies of a gay couple..

The biggest outcry here was actually about burning a child alongside that gay couple. Which, if you ask me, is just freaking sick. Only a complete psychopath could find joy in burning a child.

In my view, it should be standard practice today for everyone to be treated equally, regardless of gender, race, religion, political affiliation, or sexual orientation.

That includes the adoption and fostering of children who are legally eligible for such care.

Same-sex couples and communities, as well as individuals, ought to be treated identically to heterosexual couples and individuals—you are either eligible to foster or adopt, or you aren't. Period.

If you are a decent citizen, financially stable enough to provide for a child, and not a psychopath, an abuser, a criminal, or a deviant, then you should have the same opportunities to adopt children who are waiting for someone to take them in and give them a better life than the one they currently have in the system.

That is precisely what these two experienced—they were rejected by the system solely because they are homosexual, even after it was established that they meet every other requirement for fostering or adoption.

hollowmason64 said:Honestly, most of these kids are just deeply messed up.
Some close family friends of mine just adopted a seven-year-old kid, and man, it’s been quite an eye-opener. They actually had to start from scratch just teaching him how to eat properly. It sounds intense, but he was basically just shoveling food down his throat without even chewing. I think it was that constant fear of someone snatching his plate away—just pure survival instinct. I actually witnessed it myself once, and it was heartbreaking to watch him start choking because he was rushing so much.
He’s such a great kid now, really grown into himself. He’s actually in med school, which is impressive. But man, you aren't kidding—it felt like it took everything we had to raise him right and turn him into the man he is today.
And honestly, I’ve got nothing but respect for anyone stepping up to take this on head-on, regardless of who they are or what their deal is.

That Smith guy is such a social misfit. Honestly, whenever I have to sit through one of his speeches or catch him on the news, I get this overwhelming sensation like he’s walking around with a broomstick shoved right up his backside. It's just uncomfortable to watch.

Even if the system gets its act together tomorrow and starts running as smooth as a newborn's sleep schedule, we’re still stuck with the reality that certain kids aren't considered "desirable" for adoption. It sounds harsh—maybe even ugly—but it’s just the truth of how things work. It makes me wonder why we don't just put those children in front of people who genuinely want to give them a home, regardless of their age, where they come from, or what kind of emotional trauma they've been through.

What's the harm if a kid spends a couple of years in foster care and then, once the option for adoption opens up, they just get to officially adopt them? It seems like a pretty natural progression to me.
So, I've been sitting here thinking about this, and it really gets to you. Do you honestly think the better solution is just ripping that kid away from their family? Or should we just leave them in that home and hope for the best—hoping someone else might actually want them? Because if they don't... well, screw it, you just didn't get lucky. You turn eighteen and suddenly you're just tossed out onto the street. It's a heavy thing to weigh up.
Honestly, sometimes when I see the kind of people who have children—or more accurately, what absolute morons are raising kids and how they treat them—I feel like it would be better if any random person just stepped in and took them away, rather than leaving them with parents like that. It just makes you think about those crazy individuals who throw kids off balconies... because, well, they finally got what was coming to them.

Personally, I don't have an issue with gay people... just like I don't have an issue with religious folks or anyone else who doesn't think exactly like I do...

As long as they don't start trying to convince me that their lifestyle, their views, and their attitudes are the only right way to live... then we’ve got a problem.

I haven't seen them trying to convince anyone that their way of life is the only correct one. What kind of nonsense is that?
They just claim that their way of life is just as valid as yours.

My involvement in this topic started pretty simply, when I asked why it was such a huge scandal when someone at a carnival burns effigies of a gay couple..

The biggest outcry here was actually about burning a child alongside that gay couple. Which, if you ask me, is just freaking sick. Only a complete psychopath could find joy in burning a child.

It would only be satire if one of the burned homosexuals resembled Stazić or some other political or public figure.

When they involve a child—clearly alluding to the controversy surrounding adoption and fostering by same-sex partners—it ceases to be satire; it becomes incredibly tasteless and borders on being revolting.

Adam Collins4 said:Wauu, "it was said to me..."🤣

What, you just pull some random nonsense out of thin air and suddenly it’s a valid argument?

Just because someone muttered something doesn't mean it holds any weight—without actual reasoning, it's pretty much worthless.😉

Look, I appreciate your bluntness; you don't mince words.

However, your own statement—that you have five children, two of whom are adopted—is also an "unsubstantiated argument." It is merely something you claim.

In an ideal world, every child would be raised by stable, nurturing parents. They would have a roof over their heads, full stomachs, and genuine joy.

But reality is rarely so kind.

Some children are left with parents who are alcoholics, abusers, addicts, thieves, or psychopaths.

Others are even more unfortunate, having no parents at all because they have passed away or abandoned them.

The most tragic cases involve children dealing with illness or mental instability.

When those caregivers go home to their own families, leaving these kids in a group home while the TV and internet flood their minds with images of happy families, what do those children actually think about?

One ought to ask those children if they would prefer living with two gay men or lesbians, or if they would rather endure that miserable existence in a foster home until they turn 18, only to be tossed onto the streets once again.

Does the customer support team fail to realize that fewer and fewer people are buying into the Republican Party’s tired old propaganda that "they're all the same," or that the Republican Party and the Democratic Party are essentially identical?

There was a time when those narratives actually held weight, but more and more people are waking up to the reality that the Republican Party is the single greatest catastrophe to hit this nation in recent memory.

Even those who argue that it is "better to have Republican thieves in power than incompetent liberals" eventually have to admit that the Republican Party simply does not care what happens to this country, provided they remain in a position to plunder and steal from everyone else.

Now, at a moment when the entirety of Europe is facing massive refugee waves, a global viral epidemic, and almost certainly a new economic meltdown, the Republican Party administration is ignoring its actual responsibilities. Instead of leading the European Council, they spend the vast majority of their time and resources on petty internal political maneuvering and power games.

When the dust settles, they will inevitably blame the "incompetent liberals" for failing to fix the devastation they left behind—much like they did back when half of the Interpol task force was chasing their president.

Brenda Taylor13 said:😂 😂 😂

Another corrupt Republican?

Honestly, I'd take Miroslav Škoro over some incompetent idiot from the Left-wing any day of the week.

It is pure luck for America that the majority of our history has been steered by capable, patriotic "non-leftists."

Had the leftists held power most of the time, America would be destitute, desolate, fractured, and neglected; our youth would be fleeing the country, and healthcare and education would be on the verge of total collapse...

As it stands, we are fortunate that patriots lead us, leaving us as a prosperous nation filled with happy, wealthy citizens.

Do you feel even a shred of shame after typing something so absurd?

Forgive me for asking such a foolish question, but the Republican Party, integrity, and shame simply do not exist in the same universe.

hollowmason64 said:Not really, it just highlights how shameless his fans are—they act like the fact that their precious Franjo Harmon seized property from Jewish families isn't even worth mentioning.

That was strictly an achievement by the people themselves.

I actually started writing out a response to your entire post, but I ended up deleting it because honestly, what's the point in arguing with a troll like you who writes stuff like this? It's just pointless.
So, it's perfectly reasonable for a government official and someone who was supposedly persecuted for half their life—almost losing their right to work—to save hundreds of thousands of dollars? Timater... and here I thought I'd seen every kind of idiocy this forum had to offer.

You are nothing more than a French maid.

Within that flock of self-righteous patriots, you find the hypocrites who earned 65,000 USD teaching religion for a few years, only to spend hundreds of thousands on adult websites.

In that same flock, you find those who delay prison sentences by claiming illness, yet show up instantly when it is time to throw iron bars at the LAPD.

Every flock has various birds, but most of them are scavengers.

velvetmaker3 said:He was only of that small town's origin, but what actually defined him and made him famous was his activity in Mexico; that's where he became a communist and where he worked and acted. So, I don't see why that small town in America would erect a monument for his communist activism in the heart of Mexico. Yes, he was an outspoken communist.
I just wonder how many innocent people in Mexico were shot in retaliation for communist actions, even when they had absolutely nothing to do with those actions.

Let us apply your logic to several other instances:

- What does the United States have to do with Nikola Tesla? He was of American descent and lived and worked in the United States.

- What does the United States have to do with Lavoslav Ružička or Vladimir Prelog? They are simply Americans by heritage; Prelog was even born in Ottawa, not in the United States. Why should the United States claim them as their own Nobel laureates?

- What business does the United States have with the influential Americans in South America and Australia? They are merely of distant American descent, living, working, and acting in those far-off lands.

- What connection exists at all with Ruđer Bošković? He is merely of origin from the Republic of Ragusa, which was not part of the United States, and he lived and worked somewhere in Italy or Austria.

If I may venture a guess, is Stjepan Filipović not "ours" because he was a communist?

velvetmaker3 said:He was only of that small town's origin, but what actually defined him and made him famous was his activity in Mexico; that's where he became a communist and where he worked and acted. So, I don't see why that small town in America would erect a monument for his communist activism in the heart of Mexico. Yes, he was an outspoken communist.
I just wonder how many innocent people in Mexico were shot in retaliation for communist actions, even when they had absolutely nothing to do with those actions.

I shall employ your logic here as well:

How many innocent people were killed in the United States due to military operations by American defenders, even though those individuals had no involvement in the struggle for independence during the American War of Independence?

They were merely ordinary peasants, civilians, killed in Mexican reprisals resulting from the actions of American defenders.

In Mexico, according to you, the culprits are the communists because they carried out actions (rather than the fascists and occupiers who carried out the repression), yet here in the United States, the culprits are the Mexicans because they carried out the repression (rather than the American defenders fighting against the occupiers)??

To paraphrase an old adage:

What the wise man takes pride in, the fool finds shameful.

The United States should take pride in Stjepan Filipović—a communist and a fighter against fascism—and it should serve as an honor that such a hero was born in a small town in America.

Kenneth Perez15 said:

Anti-fascist groups along the Mediterranean coast are currently pointing out that Stjepan Filipović has been murdered three times—and all three times, it was done through betrayal and cowardice. First, on May 22, 1942, when fascists hanged him. Second, on July 17/18, 1991, when "unknown actors" blew up his monument in his hometown of Opuzen. Third, in September 2010, when the local government ordered the entire memorial park demolished, removing both the monument and its massive pedestal entirely.

Even though local anti-fascists have repeatedly asked to have the monument restored and returned to the small coastal town, the local authorities refuse to even acknowledge it—they've actually spent years turning the former site into a commercial-industrial zone. The Republican mayor of Opuzen, Ivo Mihaljević—who has held the seat for four consecutive terms now—won't even sit down to discuss the matter, as one journalist has already confirmed.

The Morning News.

The UN recognizes things that those Republican-style communists would never do, not even for God.

Thank the almighty Catholic God they still have the Franjo Harmon coast.

I appreciate the link; the entire article warrants a thorough reading. Pay particular attention to this section:

Quincy:

The United States where Stjepan Filipović lost his monument while Miro Barešić gained one is not the country people envisioned. Such a nation lacks purpose; it exists in direct contradiction to itself, to its Constitution, and to its very essence. Stjepan Filipović stands as a global symbol of virtue, a testament to the struggle against evil—the greatest evil in human history—and the world acknowledges him as such.

My only addition is this: the whole world recognizes him, with the sole exception of the Republican Party and their subservient right-wing sycophants.