Offside Chat Archives (2014-2021)

restlesssurfer97 said:I honestly don't get why people constantly obsess over historical figures and their monuments, because to me, a true historical figure is just someone who actually stays in the collective memory, and if someone were to step up in the next four years and completely flip the script on everything here in America—not that I want to list every single issue right now—they’d definitely be etched into history books. Of course, they’d need to be some kind of visionary, but at the same time, they've got to be a practical doer, especially since it's already blindingly obvious just how much work needs to get done.

The way sheep-like followers idolize certain personalities doesn't mean anything to me, but if you think that era of powerful leadership is dead and gone, you're seriously mistaken.

Jessica Gonzalez said:The point is that in the future, there won't be any monuments like this for Plenković, or even Vučić, and probably not for Trump either. Well, I might not be so sure about Vučić.

You're really not reading, are you? 🤣

Yeah, obviously Plenković isn't getting any kind of monument, because let's be real, he’s neither a visionary nor the type of guy who’s actually going to change the face of America.
If someone like that actually shows up, they won't even need a monument to make sure people remember them, because trust me, they’re going to be unforgettable regardless. I know I'm repeating myself here, but honestly, whatever.

ruggedjackal46 said:The news outlet is basically just a parrot repeating things we've heard a thousand times already. America is facing massive debt, a messy public sector, and rampant corruption. So, what's the professor's brilliant solution? Cut corruption and fire the bureaucrats. Wow, thanks, nobody else would have thought of that. 🙏

The United States is struggling because it hasn't nailed down its fundamental concept—basically, what should the government actually be doing? What services should it provide to its citizens? Once you answer that, the structure of the public sector follows, then you decide how much space to leave for the private sector, and finally, you determine how many people need to work and what their jobs should even be. Without those foundational ideas, the whole conversation just devolves into "fire the cronies." Everyone knows some guy in an office who does absolutely nothing, and sure, he should be fired. But how do we precisely define who is a "crony"? And more importantly, who gets to enforce that? The Republican Party or the Democratic Party? Hmm.

Anyway, I've spent plenty of time watching these professors look down their noses at us, explaining that corruption and nepotism aren't exactly great and definitely need fixing. As if we didn't know. But I haven't seen a single one offer a concrete plan. One such academic even ran for president and ended up with about 0.1% of the vote because, aside from diagnosing obvious problems, he had zero substance to offer.

Look, this guy laid out the problem using hard numbers, and his solution is also based on math.
Everything else he wrote was just to make it easier for regular readers to follow along, because obviously, not everyone processes data and statistics as quickly as he does.

There isn't much to remember them by; these are peaceful times, and people generally just deal with trivial nonsense. I guess there's a better chance of someone getting a monument if they actually go out and conquer half the world rather than for cutting 150 municipalities to save some budget. These are just the kinds of times we live in—times of bureaucrats and con artists—and maybe it’s better that way. I feel like I'm always trying to tell you that in times like this, one person can't really achieve anything massive because the system is just too sluggish. It's slow because things are peaceful, so the bureaucratic machine has to stay busy with busywork. And then there's the public. Heroes only seem to emerge when an existential crisis hits, but we haven't faced a crisis involving dodging bombs or bullets in a long time. In America, we have democratic states where elections happen constantly at every level, leaders rotate, and the same old stories just cycle through and restart themselves. The elected officials might tweak taxes or certain government investments, but mostly, they just exist for their own sake. If I had completely tuned out the media over the last 20 years, I guess I wouldn't even know who was in power or what they were doing.

restlesssurfer97 said:Look, this guy laid out the problem using hard numbers, and his solution is also based on math.
Everything else he wrote was just to make it easier for regular readers to follow along, because obviously, not everyone processes data and statistics as quickly as he does.

Actually, I disagree. The solution isn't just about crunching numbers. You're smarter than that. 🤦

Jessica Gonzalez keeps going on and on about those monuments 🤣

Jessica Gonzalez said:There isn't much to remember them by; these are peaceful times, and people generally just deal with trivial nonsense. I guess there's a better chance of someone getting a monument if they actually go out and conquer half the world rather than for cutting 150 municipalities to save some budget. These are just the kinds of times we live in—times of bureaucrats and con artists—and maybe it’s better that way. I feel like I'm always trying to tell you that in times like this, one person can't really achieve anything massive because the system is just too sluggish. It's slow because things are peaceful, so the bureaucratic machine has to stay busy with busywork. And then there's the public. Heroes only seem to emerge when an existential crisis hits, but we haven't faced a crisis involving dodging bombs or bullets in a long time. In America, we have democratic states where elections happen constantly at every level, leaders rotate, and the same old stories just cycle through and restart themselves. The elected officials might tweak taxes or certain government investments, but mostly, they just exist for their own sake. If I had completely tuned out the media over the last 20 years, I guess I wouldn't even know who was in power or what they were doing.

And while you're talking about how democracies just cycle through, look at how Estonia is building itself into a high-tech state of the future while the US falls behind, all because you claim "that's just how things are" and that we need to keep the public distracted, implying it's totally normal to be led by nothing but bureaucrats and con artists.

You get so caught up in your own narrative that you end up claiming stuff that I don't even think you actually believe yourself. Just chill out a bit and try to keep your thoughts from spiraling.

restlesssurfer97 said:And while you're talking about how democracies just cycle through, look at how Estonia is building itself into a high-tech state of the future while the US falls behind, all because you claim "that's just how things are" and that we need to keep the public distracted, implying it's totally normal to be led by nothing but bureaucrats and con artists.

You get so caught up in your own narrative that you end up claiming stuff that I don't even think you actually believe yourself. Just chill out a bit and try to keep your thoughts from spiraling.

There isn't really a fundamental difference between the US and some other parliamentary systems. Sure, they might be more efficient at certain things, but at the core, both are republics run by bureaucrats who aren't really good at much else.

Jüri Ratas (Estonian pronunciation: [ˈjy.ri ˈrɑ.tɑs]; born 2 July 1978) is an Estonian politician who has been Prime Minister of Estonia and Leader of the Centre Party since 2016. The Estonian government, active since April 2019, has been notable for its share of public scandals, resignations of ministers and the amount of public apologies from Ratas, mostly connected to the activities of the nationalist EKRE party, a coalition member.[1][2] His tenure has also seen the national budget of Estonia going into deficit after years of being in surplus.

Sound familiar?

Jessica Gonzalez said:There isn't really a fundamental difference between the US and some other parliamentary systems. Sure, they might be more efficient at certain things, but at the core, both are republics run by bureaucrats who aren't really good at much else.

Jüri Ratas (Estonian pronunciation: [ˈjy.ri ˈrɑ.tɑs]; born 2 July 1978) is an Estonian politician who has been Prime Minister of Estonia and Leader of the Centre Party since 2016. The Estonian government, active since April 2019, has been notable for its share of public scandals, resignations of ministers and the amount of public apologies from Ratas, mostly connected to the activities of the nationalist EKRE party, a coalition member.[1][2] His tenure has also seen the national budget of Estonia going into deficit after years of being in surplus.

Sound familiar?

Hold on, let’s clear something up first—what kind of perspective are you even using to make these judgments?
From where I'm sitting, it feels like you're some kind of alien thinking that all Western democracies are basically identical and there's zero distinction between them.

In terms of someone like that Japanese man or that Chinese man? Yeah, they're all pretty much the same.

But if you're looking at this from the perspective of an American citizen, you can't honestly sit there and tell me there's no difference between America and Estonia, or Germany, or Ireland.

Jüri Ratas (Estonian pronunciation: [ˈjy.ri ˈrɑ.tɑs]; born 2 July 1978) is an Estonian politician who has been Prime Minister of Estonia and Leader of the Centre Party since 2016. The Estonian government, active since April 2019, has been notable for its share of public scandals, resignations of ministers and the amount of public apologies from Ratas, mostly connected to the activities of the nationalist EKRE party, a coalition member.[1][2] His tenure has also seen the national budget of Estonia going into deficit after years of being in surplus.

Sound familiar?

Oh yeah, just like Plenković and the Republican Party. Not.

As far as I'm concerned, if this whole pandemic situation ends up being used as an excuse to kick out all those useless bureaucrats just to save some budget money, then honestly, good for them. 👋

Can we please bring back the discussion about Pop and that journalist—you know, the one crying over monuments 🤦

Man, restlesssurfer97 had two beers and suddenly he’s out here singing Plenković's praises.🤦

🤣

I remember back in the fog of my youth, women with beers in hand seemed to become infinitely more attractive, though this is the first time I’ve heard that such a phenomenon might also apply to politics.

Who knows? After a liter of Jagermeister, maybe even Dr. Ivo would find himself back in those good old days.

Anyway, I’m heading back to beer, because I ended up tossing the hard liquor straight into the trash, so the whole experiment was basically a bust.

brightpilot6 said:🤣

I remember back in the fog of my youth, women with beers in hand seemed to become infinitely more attractive, though this is the first time I’ve heard that such a phenomenon might also apply to politics.

Who knows? After a liter of Jagermeister, maybe even Dr. Ivo would find himself back in those good old days.

🤣

Honestly, after a liter of pure ethanol, Karamarko might finally be the solution we're looking for.

ruggedjackal46 said:🤣

Honestly, after a liter of pure ethanol, Karamarko might finally be the solution we're looking for.

Some pretty interesting political reshuffling going on here ☕

Returning to our recurring theme 🧐 it seems the virus has breached the senior living facilities—which implies there are staff members carrying it without showing symptoms, though one wonders how many... 🤔)
It appears the circus has only just begun; once they start scouring the homes, it will likely take several months before things finally settle down...

Those private nursing homes are a complete disaster zone. I know someone personally who worked at one near San Francisco for six months after being laid off before she finally found something else. Most of the staff there are working under the table, hygiene is nonexistent, the food is terrible, and people are just packed in like sardines. It’s heartbreaking—as soon as one resident passes away, they just shove another one right into their bed. There is absolutely zero care for the patients.

And don't even get me started on the quality of the staff; it’s honestly just one idiot after another.

steelharbor9 said:Some pretty interesting political reshuffling going on here ☕

😉

Elizabeth Mendoza said:Those private nursing homes are a complete disaster zone. I know someone personally who worked at one near San Francisco for six months after being laid off before she finally found something else. Most of the staff there are working under the table, hygiene is nonexistent, the food is terrible, and people are just packed in like sardines. It’s heartbreaking—as soon as one resident passes away, they just shove another one right into their bed. There is absolutely zero care for the patients.

And don't even get me started on the quality of the staff; it’s honestly just one idiot after another.

The one in Miami is state-run. ☕

ruggedjackal46 said:🤣

Honestly, after a liter of pure ethanol, Karamarko might finally be the solution we're looking for.

Honestly, Karamarko left because of some total nonsense, but when you actually compare things now to how Plenković won't even lift a finger on certain issues, it feels like they basically tricked Tom into being nothing more than a glorified maid.🤣