Straight Dope Message Board

[Ukulele Ike]

She should be CRUCIFIED.

And Ivanka’s should be forgiven, because she is the Anointed Sex Object of the Chosen One. 7051

[septimus]

Those hoping that Mar-a-Lago is damaged by the coming storm may overlook that Trump is rooting for the very same thing! Expect FEMA to spend hundreds of millions in taxpayer money to restore Mar-a-Lago and make it bigger and better than ever, with overpriced contractors giving kickbacks to Ivanka's secret bank accounts. The fraud will be advertised as God's work and a boon for the United States, since we do need a suitable place to entertain key allies like Putin and Kim.

Not one single Republican will complain. Democrats who object will be branded as traitors. Trending on Facebook will be evidence that Hurricane Dorian was targeted at Trump by evil Clintonian witchcraft.

(Some details above are slightly exaggerated, but a hit on the resort will play out along those lines.) 7052

[GIGObuster]

Well, that is less likely as the the latest projections have the Hurricane do a hard turn north and just follow the Florida coast up north with good space between the eye and the coast, that is good news, and one should always remember that heavy rain does fall on both the unjust and the just.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/weather...r-map-n1047911 7053

[El_Kabong]

Originally Posted by GIGObuster

Well, that is less likely as the the latest projections have the Hurricane do a hard turn north and just follow the Florida coast up north with good space between the eye and the coast, that is good news, and one should always remember that heavy rain does fall on both the unjust and the just.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/weather...r-map-n1047911

Yes, but it only causes one of those types to melt. 7054

[wolfpup]

Originally Posted by septimus

Those hoping that Mar-a-Lago is damaged by the coming storm may overlook that Trump is rooting for the very same thing! Expect FEMA to spend hundreds of millions in taxpayer money to restore Mar-a-Lago and make it bigger and better than ever, with overpriced contractors giving kickbacks to Ivanka's secret bank accounts. The fraud will be advertised as God's work and a boon for the United States, since we do need a suitable place to entertain key allies like Putin and Kim.

Don't forget the terrific opportunities for insurance fraud:

Hurricanes have often been a threat to Mar-a-Lago. In 2005, Trump said he received a $17 million insurance payment for hurricane damage to the resort, but an Associated Press investigation found little evidence of such large-scale damage. At the time, Trump said he didn’t know how much had been spent on repairs, but acknowledged he pocketed some of the money. He transferred funds into his personal accounts, saying that under the terms of his policy “you didn’t have to reinvest it.”
https://time.com/5665863/hurricane-d...mp-mar-a-lago/

7055

[Folacin]

Originally Posted by wolfpup

Don't forget the terrific opportunities for insurance fraud:

Hurricanes have often been a threat to Mar-a-Lago. In 2005, Trump said he received a $17 million insurance payment for hurricane damage to the resort, but an Associated Press investigation found little evidence of such large-scale damage. At the time, Trump said he didn’t know how much had been spent on repairs, but acknowledged he pocketed some of the money. He transferred funds into his personal accounts, saying that under the terms of his policy “you didn’t have to reinvest it.”
https://time.com/5665863/hurricane-d...mp-mar-a-lago/

Well, the highlighted is generally true - if my house burns down, I'm under no obligation to rebuild it. Of course, that is assuming that there was actually $17 million in damage, which given Trump's general track record would be absolutely insane. 7056

[Elendil's Heir]

Insurance fraud is among the lesser of his many sins, I'm sure. 7057

[Little Nemo]

Originally Posted by Folacin

Of course, that is assuming that there was actually $17 million in damage, which given Trump's general track record would be absolutely insane.

Forget about Trump's general record. This is Trump talking about numbers associated with a golf course. 7058

[running coach]

Originally Posted by wolfpup

Don't forget the terrific opportunities for insurance fraud:

Hurricanes have often been a threat to Mar-a-Lago. In 2005, Trump said he received a $17 million insurance payment for hurricane damage to the resort, but an Associated Press investigation found little evidence of such large-scale damage. At the time, Trump said he didn’t know how much had been spent on repairs, but acknowledged he pocketed some of the money. He transferred funds into his personal accounts, saying that under the terms of his policy “you didn’t have to reinvest it.”
https://time.com/5665863/hurricane-d...mp-mar-a-lago/

He may not have received any at all.
Did Trump get $17 million for hurricane damage to Mar-a-Lago that never happened? (Article from 2017)

President Donald Trump once said he got $17 million in a hurricane damage insurance payout for his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, but an Associated Press investigation couldn't find much evidence of the supposed damage.

During a 2007 deposition for a civil lawsuit that didn't have a whole lot to do with the insurance payment, Trump said he received the $17 million from an insurance policy and that the money went toward fixing up the "landscaping, roofing, walls, painting, leaks, artwork in the — you know, the great tapestries, tiles, Spanish tiles, the beach, the erosion," and added that the estate's "still not what it was."

He also mentioned that some of the insurance money went into his wallet, which was allowed based on the terms of the policy. However, the AP couldn't figure out which insurance company paid the bill, and the only confirmation of the payout amount is Trump's word at the deposition.

The payment allegedly comes from 2005, the year Hurricane Wilma hit Florida. Though the storm was powerful, the AP could only find evidence of some downed trees and missing roof tiles at Mar-a-Lago. The estate is valued at around $150 million, so, when you think about $17 million in damage, you'd think winds and water wrecked more than 10 percent of the structures and facilities.

Donald Trump Jr. got married there two weeks after Hurricane Wilma, which seems like an event unlikely to have taken place had Mar-a-Lago been the cracked, water-stained mess Trump seems to have claimed.

The AP also asked around, and couldn't find anyone who could come close to a reason for Trump's eight-figure claim.

7059

[Sage Rat]

Originally Posted by running coach

He may not have received any at all.
Did Trump get $17 million for hurricane damage to Mar-a-Lago that never happened? (Article from 2017)

Well, it is rumored that he inflates values for personal profit. So, he could be lying about getting $17m - though, I don't know what you get out of inflating your insurance payout - or he's telling the truth but inflated the cost of damage that he gave the insurance company.

If I was that insurance company, I'd be re-analyzing that payout to determine if that damage might have been inflated. 7060

[Really Not All That Bright]

Originally Posted by GIGObuster

Well, that is less likely as the the latest projections have the Hurricane do a hard turn north and just follow the Florida coast up north with good space between the eye and the coast, that is good news, and one should always remember that heavy rain does fall on both the unjust and the just.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/weather...r-map-n1047911

The most likely projections stilj have the storm making landfall, just not moving inland. That would still put the eyewall almost directly over Mar-a-Lago (but unfortunately also almost over my house by Tuesday night). 7061

[Elendil's Heir]

It's OK, because Twitler is totally well-informed on meteorological issues!: https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/01/polit...ian/index.html 7062

[Snowboarder Bo]

Can we pretend for a moment that the Thread title is "How has someone pissed off President Trump today?" ?

Sweden rejects TRUMP vanity license plate request:

Swedish authorities say that a man has been denied a vanity plate with the letters TRUMP because it violated motor vehicle department rules, calling the letter combination “offensive.”

7063

[Monty]

The lying sack of stupid says he'll release "‘extremely complete’ financial report before 2020 election".

Uh, yeah, right. No, he won't. Anyway, if it does not include the bridge his supporters bought, it'll be incomplete. 7064

[Uncle Jocko]

Originally Posted by Monty

The lying sack of stupid says he'll release "‘extremely complete’ financial report before 2020 election".

Uh, yeah, right. No, he won't. Anyway, if it does not include the bridge his supporters bought, it'll be incomplete.

That report will come right on the heels of the 10% middle-class tax cut he pledged to us just before the midterms. And after he deposits the check from Mexico to pay for the Wall™️. And it’ll be included with his tax returns he promised to release after he was elected. 7065

[wguy123]

Originally Posted by Uncle Jocko

That report will come right on the heels of the 10% middle-class tax cut he pledged to us just before the midterms. And after he deposits the check from Mexico to pay for the Wall™️. And it’ll be included with his tax returns he promised to release after he was elected.

He's going to be a busy guy, what with Infrastructure Week coming up and his plans for repealing, and replacing, Obamacare. 7066

[Nava]

The plan for Infrastructure Week is "let it crumble", isn't it? 7067

[wguy123]

Originally Posted by Nava

The plan for Infrastructure Week is "let it crumble", isn't it?

I think that is one of the planned outcomes. The other is lining many rich peoples pockets with a trillion dollars or so. 7068

[simster]

Originally Posted by wguy123

He's going to be a busy guy, what with Infrastructure Week coming up and his plans for repealing, and replacing, Obamacare.

But I've got my country's 500 mile wall to build, my election to fix, my wife to murder, and Hillary to frame for it. I'm swamped! 7069

[Elendil's Heir]

POTUS, sensitive to public sentiment on the anniversary of 9/11, doesn't tweet anything political, self-involved or offensive today.

Ha! Gotcha. Just kidding, of course: https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/11/polit...-11/index.html 7070

[Buck Godot]

Originally Posted by Liar in chief

"I was sitting at home watching a major business television show early that morning. Jack Welch, the legendary head of General Electric, was about to be interviewed when all of the sudden they cut away. At first there were different reports. 'It was a boiler fire.' But I knew that boilers aren't at the top of a building. 'It was a kitchen explosion in Windows of the World.' Nobody really knew what happened. There was great confusion,"

I recall a great deal of confusion as to what was happening, but I think everyone knew fairly early on that it was a plane the crashed into the first world trade center (although was thought to be pilot error). Was there anyone actually speculating that it was a boiler or kitchen fire? Or is this just Trumps way of saying he knew more than the TV pundits. 7071

[Rick Kitchen]

"all of the sudden" 7072

[Buck Godot]

Not actually something Trump has done, but it is Trump related, pissed me off and isn't worth its own thread.

Stupid misleading Newsweek article Donald Trump's Approval Rating Surpasses Obama's, Not Just on Rasmussen Reports. Obviously they are going for click-bait and hoping to cash in on a presidential tweet and MAGA-hat forwarding chain.

Of course this has nothing to do with Trump and instead just recognizes the 8 year anniversary of the worst poll ratings of Obama's first term, which puts him in spitting distance of Trumps uniformly dismal approval. This isn't a neck and neck race where Trump has managed to catch up and has the momentum to push on ahead of Obama. We can see the future, we already know that in two weeks Obama's approval ratings will improve, and that Trumps will still be where they have been for the last 2 and a half years, but that won't stop Trump and the MAGA-hatters implying that due to his great leadership Trump is now proved to be a more popular president than Obama, and so is on a trajectory to reelection.

I'm actually surprised that our resident cherry picker Hurricane Ditka hasn't touted this news already. 7073

[Sherrerd]

Originally Posted by Buck Godot

Not actually something Trump has done, but it is Trump related, pissed me off and isn't worth its own thread.

Stupid misleading Newsweek article Donald Trump's Approval Rating Surpasses Obama's, Not Just on Rasmussen Reports. Obviously they are going for click-bait and hoping to cash in on a presidential tweet and MAGA-hat forwarding chain.

Of course this has nothing to do with Trump and instead just recognizes the 8 year anniversary of the worst poll ratings of Obama's first term, which puts him in spitting distance of Trumps uniformly dismal approval. This isn't a neck and neck race where Trump has managed to catch up and has the momentum to push on ahead of Obama. We can see the future, we already know that in two weeks Obama's approval ratings will improve, and that Trumps will still be where they have been for the last 2 and a half years, but that won't stop Trump and the MAGA-hatters implying that due to his great leadership Trump is now proved to be a more popular president than Obama, and so is on a trajectory to reelection.

I'm actually surprised that our resident cherry picker Hurricane Ditka hasn't touted this news already.

Newsweek hasn't been a reliable source of news in at least a couple of decades. It's been bought and sold several times, and is currently owned by a company, IBT Media, with close ties to a right-wing fundamentalist university:

In January 2018 Manhattan District Attorney staff raided the company's offices, taking away eighteen computer servers, in what Newsweek reported was part of an investigation into company finances. On 1 February 2018 co-owner and chairman, Etienne Uzac, and his wife Marion Kim who acted as finance director, resigned.

On 20 February 2018 Newsweek reported on the DA's investigation into its parent company, and its relationship with Olivet University. Following the publication of the story, several Newsweek staff were fired and some editors threatened to resign stating that management had tried to interfere in the story's publication.

On 10 October 2018, it was reported by the Wall Street Journal that IBT Media was charged with defrauding lenders.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBT_Media

Pardon the Wikipedia citations but the quoted bits are well-sourced---and I don't see a single source that includes all the information in either the above or in this:

Factual errors
Unlike most large American magazines, Newsweek has not used fact-checkers since 1996.

In 2017, Newsweek published a story claiming that the First Lady of Poland refused to shake U.S. President Donald Trump's hand; Snopes described the assertion as "false".[64] Newsweek corrected its story.

In 2018, Newsweek ran a story asserting that President Trump had wrongly colored the American flag while visiting a classroom; Snopes was unable to corroborate the photographic evidence.

In August 2018, Newsweek falsely reported that the Sweden Democrats, a far-right party, could win a majority in the 2018 Swedish parliamentary elections. Polls showed that the party was far away from winning a majority. By September 2018, Newsweek's inaccurate article was still up.

In 2018, former Newsweek journalist Jonathan Alter wrote in The Atlantic that since being sold to the International Business Times in 2013 that the magazine had "produced some strong journalism and plenty of clickbait before becoming a painful embarrassment to anyone who toiled there in its golden age." Former Newsweek writer Matthew Cooper criticized Newsweek for running multiple inaccurate stories in 2018.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newsweek

Newsweek appears to be coasting on the 'okay' reputation it had for several decades, a long time back. 7074

[DesertDog]

Hell, I remember Newsweek being at the forefront of the "is Puff the Magic Dragon referring to drugs" controversy in 1964. 7075

[Sherrerd]

Originally Posted by DesertDog

Hell, I remember Newsweek being at the forefront of the "is Puff the Magic Dragon referring to drugs" controversy in 1964.

Hmmm; maybe I was being overly-generous in referring to a 'decades-long' decent reputation. 7076

[Ukulele Ike]

Wait....you mean “Puff the Magic Dragon” DOESN’T refer to drugs?

Shit, and all this time I was thinking Peter, Paul, and Mary were COOL. 7077

[Sherrerd]

Originally Posted by Ukulele Ike

Wait....you mean “Puff the Magic Dragon” DOESN’T refer to drugs?

Shit, and all this time I was thinking Peter, Paul, and Mary were COOL.

They were!

But they weren't winking at the drug culture (or so they say).*

And Newsweek is still a dubious citation (even if my father subscribed to it for years).


*https://www.laweekly.com/the-man-who...t-about-drugs/ 7078

[Elendil's Heir]

Trump asked a foreign government for dirt on a political opponent, withholding military aid $$$ as a carrot: https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/23/polit...all/index.html 7079

[Siam Sam]

Originally Posted by Elendil's Heir

Trump asked a foreign government for dirt on a political opponent, withholding military aid $$$ as a carrot: https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/23/polit...all/index.html

"Nice little country you've got yourself there. Be a shame for anything to happen to it."

I cannot decide if Chump is a real-life version of Tony Soprano or Michael Scott. Maybe a weird hybrid thereof. 7080

[Rick Kitchen]

Individual 1 calls two Jewish men and four women of color "savages"
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/...19923885969408 7081

[crowmanyclouds]

Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump

Can you imagine if these Do Nothing Democrat Savages, people like Nadler, Schiff, AOC Plus 3, and many more, had a Republican Party who would have done to Obama what the Do Nothings are doing to me. Oh well, maybe next time!

Umm, Donny? We already know what the Republican Party did to Obama, and Hillary, and Bill.

CMC fnord! 7082

[jsc1953]

“Do nothing” and “savages” seem like contradictory concepts.
Donald really should get an editor to help him refine his blithering idiocy. 7083

[BrickBat]

Originally Posted by jsc1953

“Do nothing” and “savages” seem like contradictory concepts.
Donald really should get an editor to help him refine his blithering idiocy.

It's makes perfect sense from the neocon POV, and I notice this weird dichotomy when "discussing" things with people from that crowd.

At times they'll say they're a besieged, oppressed group whose noble hegemony is withering away in a culture war they're losing. Circle the wagons.

Other times ( often after they've had a couple of drinks ) they're cocky, chest-beating blowhards that are going to kick some ass as their opposition flee in terror at their righteous indignation. 7084

[OttoDaFe]

Originally Posted by BrickBat

It's makes perfect sense from the neocon POV, and I notice this weird dichotomy when "discussing" things with people from that crowd.

At times they'll say they're a besieged, oppressed group whose noble hegemony is withering away in a culture war they're losing. Circle the wagons.

Other times ( often after they've had a couple of drinks ) they're cocky, chest-beating blowhards that are going to kick some ass as their opposition flee in terror at their righteous indignation.

And sometimes, true to the principles of doublethink, they're both at the same time. 7085

[John_Stamos'_Left_Ear]

You have to remember that they spent eight years calling Obama an empty suit who played basketball all the time yet he was also a fascist who wanted to take over everything. They have a lot of practice ascribing contradictory ideas two things.

Sent from my SM-G935P using Tapatalk 7086

[Monty]

Originally Posted by jsc1953

“Do nothing” and “savages” seem like contradictory concepts.
Donald really should get an editor to help him refine his blithering idiocy.

And "do nuthin" when applied to people of color is especially egregiously not cool. 7087

[Elendil's Heir]

Not for the first time and almost surely not, God help us, for the last. 7088

[enipla]

Originally Posted by John_Stamos'_Left_Ear

You have to remember that they spent eight years calling Obama an empty suit who played basketball all the time yet he was also a fascist who wanted to take over everything. They have a lot of practice ascribing contradictory ideas two things.

Sent from my SM-G935P using Tapatalk

And _dogwistle basketball is what those other people play.

Not a clean honest (HAHAHAHHA) game like golf that Trump plays. 7089

[septimus]

So here is the Trump campaign ad. "My name is Donald J. Fuckface and I approve these lies." This deserves its own thread, but I don't know where to start.

If you've swallowed poison and need to induce vomiting, read the comments at the YouTube page. 7090

[Nobody]

Originally Posted by enipla

And _dogwistle basketball is what those other people play.

Not a clean honest (HAHAHAHHA) game like golf that Trump plays.

Actually, Trump criticized the hell out of Obama for playing golf and said if elected he'd be too busy to play. Of course, after getting elected,

Originally Posted by https://presidentialgolftracker.com/trump-vs-obama-golf-games/

Trump has played 2.6 times more golf than Obama in his first 2 years and 91 days and has cost the tax payer an estimated $74 million more than Obama.

7091

[enipla]

Originally Posted by Nobody

Actually, Trump criticized the hell out of Obama for playing golf and said if elected he'd be too busy to play. Of course, after getting elected,

Yes, we know. Trump's so busy that he has to drive golf carts over the putting green. Think of the time he must save!

I think we shoul'd all use apostrophes' and hyphens as much-as possible to confuse hi'm. Give him some'thing to do.

My spell checker just quit and walked out the door. 'sigh-. 7092

[QuickSilver]

Originally Posted by septimus

If you've swallowed poison and need to induce vomiting, read the comments at the YouTube page.

'Have I shoved my tongue up your ass far enough, Mr. President?'

Calling it a "Trump Cult", doesn't even begin to describe these deplorable asslickers. 7093

[Elendil's Heir]

Trump picks on the teen Swede climate-change activist again: https://www.newsweek.com/trump-greta...tivist-1462909

He should pick on someone smaller than him. 7094

[Skywatcher]

He's jealous because she's a better actor. 7095

[Monty]

Originally Posted by Skywatcher

He's jealous because she's a better actor.

He's jealous because she is simply better than him, not just in acting. 7096

[needscoffee]

The tweet by @Opinion8dKellie, posted last Monday, said of Thunberg: "What an actress! 'I should be in school.' She's getting the best education socialism can steal.

I don't think they quite understand how the education system is run. 7097

[Nava]

To me one thing about Kellie's twit that's particularly aberrant is this:

Originally Posted by Kellie

I won't be held hostage by someone who just got a learner's permit.

Uhm, let's see: speaking as if driver's laws in Sweden were the same as in whichever corner of the US Kellie is from, check. Assuming that a specially-activist member of a very-non-driving generation will have jumped on her chance at getting a driver's license, check... Kellie knows less about Thunberg than I do about Kellie. 7098

[Kobal2]

I mean, yes (also, not sure how one's ability to drive is relevant to a debate in any way), but I figure it's just a crack at Greta's age. Which is just misdirection to not have to answer her actual points - not to mention, how the fuck and in what way is she holding you hostage, you degenerate bag of crazy ? 7099

[Nava]

Yes it is (no matter what Greta says, these people would dismiss it because of her age, and if they couldn't use her age they'd use her sex, and if not her nationality, and if not her hair color, and if not her lack of an education, and if not they'd call her an "elite" as if being good at what you do was somehow wrong...), but it's the blindered-ness of it that gets me. These are people who on one hand fear anybody not like them and on the other cannot conceive of any individual or culture being not like them.

Saying "a high-school junior" would still be using an American frame of reference which would even make sense, not just to Americans, but to anybody who's watched enough American media in English to know the expression. The reference to learner permits, though, is just completely head-up-her-exhaust-tube. It doesn't even apply equally in all of the US! 7100