Interesting things too

So the vague possibility that Michelle Obama had heard rumours about Weinstein somehow rates as more important in your mind than the behaviour of the pussy-grabber in chief, who you support? Truly perverse stuff, Dude. I will need some time to do some research on abnormal psychology to find out how an apparently rational person might come to that view. For the moment I am struck dumb.

Trump’s inappropriateness is well established. Why would the Democrats field a candidate who is equally as unworthy ? I’m not sure how the US voters are expected to find confidence in a Democrat candidate who has been labelled as a sexual offender by his own running mate ? Surely I’m missing something here ? Maybe the USA is so far down the Sodom and Gomorrah road that no one cares ?

DSDS, I'm not sure it would be possible to find a candidate as unworthy as the one currently occupying the position, given that I assume convicted felons are not able to run.

Definitely possible the US is too far down too, again, look who they elected to lead...

DudeSweet x 2 is Mr B.lowin’s new alias yeah?

Not sure if anyone has said it elsewhere..?

Trump didn't come out of a vacuum.

The USA is a screwed up country. They dropped A bombs on civilian cities, the national guard killed students at Kent State University, there's been race riots for years, school shootings one after another, Hollywood peadophile rings... and the topper...the pentagon/US military budget.  The US military is also the largest user of fossil fuels on the planet.

Rioting broke out when Trump was elected, people thought he was bad news so they, ah, destroyed property.

The place is screwed up.  He is a distraction, a figurehead, a focal point for extreme emotions... he is not a cause. 

Biden is another distraction. 

Defund the military industrial complex.  Both parties approved budget increases just this year.

I've only been to the US once, in 2016. Two things stood out:
1 - It was like being on the movie set of my childhood... all the streetscapes and architecture I saw on the films and shows growing up.

2 - the amount of people who are homeless there... almost un-fucking-believable.

It's a third world country with an attitude problem.

It's the only place where I've been warned by locals not to get off the bus at certain areas.

A lot of global travellers say it's the country that they've felt the most unsafe in.

"Trump will announce and roll out a SARS-CoV2 vaccine in the weeks leading up to the election (whether they've got a safe and effective one ready or not by then; hopefully they do...)"

thinking the same

"...Biden has already been accused of sexual assault by his own VP nominate ."

what a ticket!

...all over the shop in an identity politics maelstrom...

POC, Kamala the cop, (ACAB), believing all women, whilst submitting to the old white male segragationist mansplainer from hell who's lost his marbles

can't wait for the debates

"Even Michelle Obama carries the stain . Her last glowing character reference was for Harvey Weinstein."

grubby stuff, they all knew, and backed him til the fall

just like epstien

I hate to go all qanon, but this elections gonna be a doozy

I was actually wondering if you were a Qanon fan Sypkan, some of the stuff you were putting up the other day was pretty out there.

If they do get a vaccine pre-election, whats the bet Trump will want his name stamped on it in some way shape or form, much like the stimulus cheques they sent out...

well thats politics jq, no matter who's doing it...

he just does it with such distastefulness

no qanon jq, they're kinda way wacky, way way wacky as a group. a contradictory witches brew of resentment and suspicioun

but they do have some good material... damning material, damning damn good material...

qanon is just the tip of a bunch nutters who've found common enemies, they've conglomerated into an amorphous blob of darkness

but then again, there is some pretty dark stuff...

I lived in the USA for most of the Clinton presidency so have a pretty good understanding of the people and the politics of the country.
The USA was a mess when Clinton took over. 12 years of Reaganomics had left the country broke. Services were gutted and homelessness was massive. We are talking about thousands of people camping outside the front of city hall in Santa Monica.
Clinton improved the economy but inequality of opportunity was still a massive problem when he left office.
Bush was a complete disaster, leaving the country in a deep recession, a collapsed property market, and he put two wars on the country's credit card.
Obama repaired much of the damage but he failed to improve the economic lot of the underclass. Like the majority of the western world, poorly educated blue collar workers were left behind.
The orange lunatic rode the poorly educated blue collar vote to a dubious victory and then his administration chucked the people who voted for him under the bus. The country is now a complete basket case, and there is severe and widespread poverty everywhere.
Can the USA come back? I'm saying no. The country is just too divided. Biden is not strong enough to turn things around, and the country was in much better shaped when bush left during the height of the GFC.
This coming election is going to be seriously violent and undemocratic. We are looking at a super power making the transition into a failed state. To stop the process , Trump would need to completely reverse his policies and rhetoric that are designed to undermine the election, lose the ballot, and then make a massively conciliatory exit speech. I've seen nothing to suggest this is going to happen.

Patrick, I've been to the US half a dozen times and met all sorts of people. Yes, there are homeless people but there are homeless people in many of the other countries I've visited.

I have found Americans to be nothing short of kind and fun and welcoming. It's a wonderful country imo.

In fact, planning a road trip with my wife there for 2022 fingers crossed. Gonna drive from LA to New York, up to Conneticut to visit a friend then up to Toronto and catch the train to Vancouver, drive down to San Jose to visit friends there and fly back from San Francisco home.

It's gonna be epic.

Thanks for your insights after living there VL.

Zen, I loved my time there. I stayed with a local and his Aussie wife (I knew them from when they lived in Melbourne). He was, at one time, a professional rock climber one of the Yosemite dirt bags. A real outdoors person, grew up hunting, hiking n climbing in Utah.

He took us to amazing places where we didn't see anyone else. The landscapes in the US are larger and grander and more numerous than in Aus. And we barely ventured out of Utah.

Like everywhere, there were a lot of nice people.

The thing is though, the image the country tries to portray to the rest of the world and to its own people is false. As VL just pointed out, it's a failed/failing state.

I have some great stories from my time there, a lot to do with the local we hung with... hilarious stuff.

I've been talking about doing a road trip around the country, it would be awesome. I wouldn't want to live there and I feel for the people on low incomes there.

We went shooting in the desert and stopped in a gun shop to pick up ammo. My friend and I were walking around the shop going 'there's fucking uzis here... .44 caliber bullets that explode on impact... look at this machine gun on a tripod sitting on the counter top... faaarkk'

Her husband said to the owner, "yeah, don't worry about them mate, they're from Australia, first time in a gun shop."

It was crazy what you could buy in that shop.

In Utah, nearly everyone I met was an ex-mormon, that was pretty funny. Kinda had to be there to really get the gist of how funny it was. As a couple of effin Aussie c*nts, we discovered pretty quickly that swearing wasn't part of their culture,

There were a lot of awkward silences after we spoke. Friend had to tell us "yeah, you two swear a lot, they don't like it, especially f and c. It's not like Australia here."

Which of course, were two of our favourite words.

One memorable moment we went into a pub (saloon) and mate was asked by young fella on the door for ID but he didn't ask me or his wife. So I said to her, "we must look like a couple of old cunts, haha". Silence from the young fella. Oh, he musn't have heard me, I'll say it again. So I did. Me and her were laughing but the young fella still wasn't. That's when her husband said, 'uh, guys, I think you should tone it down a bit'.
'But this is a pub and he's a young guy.'
'Yeah, this is Utah, it's a bit different here'.

In Salt Lake City was where I was warned not to get off the bus beyond a certain stop. Not by my friends, they weren't with me, but by strangers. It happened twice on the same route.

Classic tales Patrick.
I got cut off in Utah after 2 beers. Was mountain biking for 3 hours in the heat and the first beer went down quickly. Too quickly for Utah apparently, and they said one more and that's it.
One thing about the Americans is they are very generous hosts. Australians could learn from them about friendly welcome to tourists. It's genuine but tourists generally don't see how many Americans treat each other. Australia has seen a massive rise in exploitation of vulnerable people but we are B league compared to the yanks on that front.

a blue whale was seen off maroubra yesterday.
just incredible!!!!!!!!!
https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/117986013_4648531345160654...

Beautiful Chook.

Interesting thing - if you leave an open carton of bonsoy in the fridge for seven weeks it smells like mango.

If Bannon’s arrest for grifting off racist idiots doesn’t sum up the Trump Administration, nothing does. Basically it’s just a bunch of racist ruthless arseholes in it for themselves, and they couldn’t give a stuff about the country coming apart at the seams.

Classic stuff.

Getting arrested by the Postman? Only in the US.

One of the tweets: "Spare a thought for Steve Bannon's poor victims, they donated their money to racism in good faith."

How's the irony of getting arrested by the same organisation that your boss is trying to do away with....and for committing fraud in connection with the Trump 'wall', you know the one the one Mexico is paying for.... apparently.

Only in Amerika

Forget the partisan bickering for a second and contemplate how this person could possibly be in contention for a leadership role. Irrespective of who he is running against , how is it possible that we have arrived at this possibility ? Does no one find this bizarre ?

I’m also wondering if it’s achievable to focus a discussion on the subject in the video without descent into petty whataboutery . Whatever your political persuasion, surely there is consensus that this man is not the best candidate to be fielded ?

The sadness in her eyes is a familiar sight as my family is also experiencing the heart wrenching cognitive decline of a loved one.

I havent been following USA things and have no real opinion yet of him, so to be fair it just seemed like a silly slip of tongue
, but OMG how old is he? i know Trump is not young either, but seriously just on first appearances he seems very old.

Edit: he is 77 and Trump 74

He says "Jill Biden's husband".

Jill is his wife.

Ok...I just listened to it a few times and you may be right. You don’t have to look far to find examples of his mental decline which are indisputable and egregious . The point stands.

It does sound like he says Joe to me.

they look like they're pitching to lead the local caravan park committee, not be the leaders of the free world

but he did come from 'the largest and most talented field ever'

so we must put trust in that process

or not...

my prediction kamala will be boss within a year

...assuming they actually win...

I agree with you there syppo....it is their process....

As for the bizarreness of Biden being the best they've got to offer, it doesn't surprise me at all.

I mean they elected a baby into office, so why not an old fella losing his memory?

at least the baby can hold his ground, imagine world leaders meeting with biden, they'll have to sit through the most tedious ramblings, from the mansplainer from hell, before the functioning brains in the room take over the awkwardness of the the polite concessions we all extend to seniors

a bit like kamala now, yesterday, everyday...

poor woman, the pinnacle of a competent woman's polite submission to 'old white man privelage' before you can even think about getting down to business

everyday, every outing, every meeting

minute by precious tedious minute

the whole charade is just plain cruel

to kamala, joe, and the people

"The point stands."

No it doesn't.

There's a scene in the series 'Years and Years' where a number of left-wing politicians get embroiled in a deep fake scandal and populist politician Vivian Rook admits the videos probably are fake, but adds, "But we know they're thinking that."

And the muds sticks.

The point will stand when evidence of his "mental decline which is indisputable and egregious" appears.

Till then this is TDS with another initial - BDS. I expect we'll see a lot more of it.

As for the irony in accusing someone of cognitive decline while mishearing what they say...good for a laugh I guess.

"Till then this is TDS with another initial - BDS. I expect we'll see a lot more of it."

I don't think that's a fair comparison

BDS is just pure disbelief - that it's come to this...

TDS runs much deeper

TDS? What about TRS? Trump Reality Syndrome, otherwise know as COVID19. He is complicit in at least 100,000 unnecessary deaths.

whether that's true or not bindboy, we're talking about joe

can you honestly say you're happy or even remotely comfortable with their choice?

"....whether that's true or not"

It is true and it demonstrates more clearly than anything else that Biden, whatever his limitations or faults, is by far the better candidate.

so no then

Stunet, I’m not attacking the Democrat party , their policies or anything they stand for. I’m noting the public missteps in Biden’s speech and actions which are alarming in their similarity to the cognitive decline displayed by my own father. If you can relinquish your petty partisanship for two seconds and acknowledge that the point I’m making is not political point scoring at all , but rather a contemplation of how far Biden’s handlers are willing to let this issue slide before taking necessary action.

Your reference to a fictional TV series as some kind of parallel is strange. The evidence available to suggest Biden’s mental decline is not the result of political smoke and mirrors by the opposition, nor is it the result of propaganda or rumour mongering. His difficulties are there to see in speeches and public appearances he’s made and are freely available for viewing on the internet.

I’m also not really sure how a potential mishearing of an ambiguous sounding utterance is suppose to reflect on my own cognitive state ? I’m willing to concede that you may be correct in what he said as it’s not a topic of which I’m too emotionally invested. But if you are so involved that you’d so freely cast slurs over the issue then avail yourself of the many other unambiguous videos on the internet which support the proposition that Biden is in decline. I take no pleasure whatsoever from coming to the conclusion that his mind is weakening and I really don’t think that an anonymous poster on an Australian surf related website will have much bearing on the outcome of the US Presidential election. There is no victory for myself in announcing an opinion which I’ve gained from unfortunate experience.

The question is not whether he is a better candidate than Trump , the question is why he is a candidate at all. I’m sure the Democrats can beat Trump if they play to their strengths , I’m not sure why they’d choose to put forward someone who may be struggling to maintain their faculties .

Dude, the only reason to attack Biden is to support Trump. Biden's speech at the convention, as widely reported, clearly demonstrated that he is not in cognitive decline. Watching them both carefully, it is clear he is in much better physical and mental health than Trump.......which is admittedly a pretty low bar. In the event of Biden's incapacitation, he would have an administration of ethical professionals to deal with the issue. In the more likely scenario of Trump's incapacitation, the government would be in the hands of the criminals, incompetents and ratbags he has appointed.

if we're gonna reference fictional film forays...

weekend at bernie's springs to mind

Let's look at two scenarios where the candidates become incapacitated in office.
If it happened to Biden, there would be a relatively seamless transition of power to the Veep.
If it happened to Trump, it's highly unlikely Pence would get the job without a massive shit fight. People in the Trump Administration are in it for themselves, and the office of POTUS provides a Putin-like opportunity to make hundreds of millions of dollars. Does anyone seriously think Pence would just walk into that position with people like Don Jnr and Kushner hanging around?

“The only reason to attack Biden is to support Trump “

That’s like saying the only reason I note my Father’s mental decline is to annoy my Mother. As I stated unambiguously , I’m not attacking Biden. I understand why you refuse to accept this and am willing to grant the benefit of the doubt which says that it’s because you’re an impassioned partisan and not because the idea is too complex for you to comprehend.

I’ll leave you with the concept that my opinion is apolitical. Quaint idea in this day and age of bitter partisanship, I know. Up until recently, I too was also engaged in the futile ascription of personal pride to the desperate manoeuvring undertaken by politicians . My recommendation is that you relinquish this alignment with the superficial theatre acted out by those who seek power at any cost. You will feel much happier when you acknowledge that none of these people have your best interest at heart if it conflicts with their grasp for control.

As for Biden , one thing I can attest is that mental decline is not a relentless downward trajectory. Some days are better than others. The best days are when the person in question appears to be whole and it’s possible to fool yourself into believing that perhaps you’ve been imagining things or misinterpreting what’s happening. Sadly , I believe that Biden is no longer whole. I feel for those who love him.

"I’ll leave you with the concept that my opinion is apolitical"
Ha ha ha ha! Thanks for the laugh Dude, I'm grinning like a Cheshire cat at the thought of your "apolitical" comments. It's politics mate, you attacked the mental capacity of a candidate with no record of related medical problems based on nothing more than You Tube edits.........FFS how can that be "apolitical"?

Facto, I think the BDS they're referring to is Biden Derangement Syndrome, not the Boycott Divestment Sanction movement to stop the funding and support of Isreali crimes against Palestinians (for those playing at home who mightn't know what BDS is).

Speaking of which, Israel has been bombing Gaza for nine nights straight as of today. Haven't seen a mention of this in mainstream media or from the UN. And Israel is still an apartheid state which barely rates a mention too.

On facebook I have a diverse range of 'friends',  from around the world, so I can get all sorts of different viewpoints.  (I structured it that way).

Leading up to the last US election, heaps said they weren't going to vote for Hillary Clinton because of her, and Obama's, foreign policy record.  A lot were previous Dem voters and were disappointed in Obama & Hillary.

Trump didn't escalate fighting/tension with Syria, Lybia, North Korea and he reduced activity in Afghanistan.  But he did big arms deals with Saudi Arabia and gave Israel impetus to annex more Palestinian land and there's been a coup in Bolivia and attempted one in Venezuela.

The point is a lot of previously Dem voters backed Trump because of Democrats record of warmongering.  They were very disappointed with Obama. They believed Trump when he campaigned on bringing troops home and reducing tension around the world. He did deliver on some.

Now the chatter I'm seeing is that he was a bigger doofus than they thought possible but they still don't see an alternative... they could vote either way... they've kind of given up.

We'll see what happens.

All this posturing about Dems or Repubs, 'vote for my team because they're not as bad as your team', is a distraction though.

The figurehead doesn't matter because the system is rigged in favour of the extremely wealthy.
Defund the pentagon, that's where the power lies.