Our new and improved Iraq discussion thread!

[Stephanie B]

....
I get that none of this matters to you, because doing whatever possible to malign or impede Trump (and the administration overall) is the ultimate goal, and the ends justify the means for your crowd, regardless of what truth gets trampled or who gets hurt. Orange Man Bad, all that.

Truth? You defend Trump by talking about "truth"? Trump, a man who lies about everything and anything, even when it doesn't matter, even when the truth would be better for him?

Right, and your side of the debate, the side that spent eight years bandying about the "secret Muslim, show us the birth certificate" crap, all pushed for years by Trump, all that seems to be conveniently forgotten. "Tan Suit Gate" has also been flushed own the memory hole. The various crap pushed by the Right (Jade Helm, anyone) has been forgotten.

That's the way it is. But taking the position that the Right is full of patriots and the Left is full of subversives, which I have seen over and over on here for years, is a load of manure best spread on a farmer's field.

And with that, I'm done.

[BehindBlueI's]

You mean "we no longer have a press that thinks the way that I do", perhaps?

Funny thing about freedom of the press: The only agenda that they have to follow is that of the people that cut their checks. There's plenty of pro-Trump media to watch or read, if that's what floats your boat.

I think perhaps "we no longer have a press who cares about the truth" is the most valid. News is entertainment now, not news. The fact that the political bias can be selected for doesn't negate that, it only exacerbates it. Partisan news isn't new. Mark Twain spoke about it. I suspect the Civil War era press had the same issues we have now in a way. Dozens of newspapers vying for a small readership made being first and being interesting more important than being right and being neutral. Being first and inflammatory sells. The "good old days" most of the Boomers and Gen Xers harken back to is when there were maybe one or two newspapers in a decent sized city, three networks on TV, and that was it. Enough competition to keep people on their toes but not enough to flood the market. Now with the 24/7 cable news feeds and near infinite online news sources, the fragmentation is back to the point first/inflammatory is where the money is. The pride of being right, the "loss leader" approach to news, it's all dead. Outrage porn simply sells better, and the marketplace is so crowded that's all that matters.

[BehindBlueI's]

Right, and your side of the debate, the side that spent eight years bandying about the "secret Muslim, show us the birth certificate" crap, all pushed for years by Trump, all that seems to be conveniently forgotten. "Tan Suit Gate" has also been flushed own the memory hole. The various crap pushed by the Right (Jade Helm, anyone) has been forgotten.

In fairness, there is certainly a contingent here who's equally disgusted with that sort of thing: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....Wing-Doom-Porn as a small example.

I suppose we're not the ones dismissing any criticism of Trump as simply "OrangeManBad" or indicating anyone who disagrees is mentally ill. I wonder where Obama Derangement Syndrome was all those years? In meat space it seems that the same people who talk about TDS were also talking about Obama declaring martial law and stealing a third term because Jade Helm or something.

[blues]

The problem, as I see it, in regard to the last several posts is how the fuck would you know who's telling you the truth and who isn't? It's a leap of faith either way.

Since I have no way of determining it on my own, being out of the loop on classified material for the past several years, I rely on people and sources I trust. And those are very few and far between.

So basically, I trust nothing I hear or read. Not from Fox. Not from CNN. Not from Orange Man. Not from his detractors...unless I get info from a source proven trustworthy.

Everyone seems to have picked a side but I'm not sure anyone actually knows whether their side is either right or telling the truth unless they're personally in the mix.

[Zincwarrior]

In fairness, there is certainly a contingent here who's equally disgusted with that sort of thing: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....Wing-Doom-Porn as a small example.

I suppose we're not the ones dismissing any criticism of Trump as simply "OrangeManBad" or indicating anyone who disagrees is mentally ill. I wonder where Obama Derangement Syndrome was all those years? In meat space it seems that the same people who talk about TDS were also talking about Obama declaring martial law and stealing a third term because Jade Helm or something.

Whats this about Jade Helm? Its nice and all, but its kind of old.

[farscott]

My only comment on the media and trust is this: For every story of which I have had intimate knowledge, the media take has been 100% wrong from errors in timelines to errors in participants to errors in what was said. So I trust no one; I have to assemble a coherent story from many, many takes.

[BehindBlueI's]

My only comment on the media and trust is this: For every story of which I have had intimate knowledge, the media take has been 100% wrong from errors in timelines to errors in participants to errors in what was said. So I trust no one; I have to assemble a coherent story from many, many takes.

I think at this point the biggest value of the news is to determine what people think happened, not what actually happened.

[blues]

I think at this point the biggest value of the news is to determine what people think happened, not what actually happened.

Wow, you're a lot more forgiving than I am. I can't get past the obvious agenda by each of the media outlets and their attempts to bend the story to their chosen narrative. It's not just fiction. It's lies and putting in the fix.

Then again, I hear the same b.s. every time I listen to Trump or one of his handpicked minions mouthpieces, Schumer, Pelosi, McConnell and every other swinging genital of whatever persuasion that is affiliated to a political party and a vested interest in its power.

It's pretty damn sickening. I believe in telling the truth, the same truth I would testify to upon swearing an oath in court. Those who have sworn an oath of office to this country and the Constitution and who do not live up to that standard shouldn't just be voted out, they should be prosecuted.

I know it's never gonna happen, but at this point a rant is the only avenue of change I have at my disposal. Apologies for the wasted keystrokes.

[TGS]

Trump can declassify anything he chooses. Saying "he shouldn't be talking about that stuff" is a valid criticism, but he has the power to do so.

I've read no reports of embassies taking extra security measure, let alone sending families (if any are in the region) or sending non-vital staff home. My suspicion is that the "four embassies plot" is something Trump dreamed up.

A voluntary or ordered departure of non-essential staff/EFMs usually can't happen overnight.
Buying tickets for hundreds of people, when a lot of other westerners are trying to get out, is a bit different than buying a ticket for one person.

If the threat was negated in that time frame (suleimani killed, plot kaput) it wouldnt make sense to go on a departure status.

As for embassies taking extra security measures, you are 100% wrong. Im speaking from first hand experience here....you?

I'm not sure why you think that simply because you're not privy to certain information that you think things that are happening aren't happening.

[BehindBlueI's]

Wow, you're a lot more forgiving than I am. I can't get past the obvious agenda by each of the media outlets and their attempts to bend the story to their chosen narrative. It's not just fiction. It's lies and putting in the fix.

I think we're discussing different things. When I said, "I think at this point the biggest value of the news is to determine what people think happened, not what actually happened." I'm speaking of consumers of news, while I think you're talking about producers of news.