All-purpose news and politics thread: One Step Beyond!

[o1pickleboy]

No, they'll be painted as victims and sterner laws will be enacted to "protect" them and their assets. It would be both morally wrong and politically ineffective.

Not to mention they would hire bodyguards who would infringe of the rights of nearby citzens to "protect' their clients. I see beatings, unwarrented searches, and even "exucutions".

But none of that stops me from wishes it would happen to scare the piss out of them.

[Winslow]

Not to mention they would hire bodyguards who would infringe of the rights of nearby citzens to "protect' their clients. I see beatings, unwarrented searches, and even "exucutions".

But none of that stops me from wishes it would happen to scare the piss out of them.

But then we will storm the Bastille!

[o1pickleboy]

But then we will storm the Bastille!

Close to my thinking, but I imagine gunshots more than be-headings. Then I think assassins, then I think "whoa cool" then time travel gets involved and begin to plot out a story in my head.

Then I get pissed because the corporate bad guys get to live until I have finished my 7 year arc and numerous sequels are finished.

[the4thpip]

Justice Department asks Supreme Court to take on Defense of Marriage Act

John Kerry is scratching his head going: How come gay marriage killed MY campaign but is helping Obama??

[MartinNL]

Uhm... why was this thread started? The 'old' one is still going beyond 10,000 posts.

[the4thpip]

Uhm... why was this thread started? The 'old' one is still going beyond 10,000 posts.

Moderators asked that threads be no longer than 10,000 posts. Used to be 5000, but the new software seems to be able to take more.

Out of tradition, Rita´s still gets rebooted every 5000 posts though.

[Alan Lynch]

So has anyone heard a coherent explanation of why the bastards involved with LIBOR fixing can't be charged with straight-up fraud?

Money, cash, greenbacks, bills, bread, dough, wonga. And various other synonyms.

[kane]

Hello Democracy, goodby ACTA

[king mob]

So has anyone heard a coherent explanation of why the bastards involved with LIBOR fixing can't be charged with straight-up fraud?

None. But Bob Diamond's daughter shows what a right cunt she is.

Really wish someone could tell her to her face her beloved waste of skin of a dad should be doing time in a rough as fuck nick somewhere rather than arrogantly telling elected MP's (crap ones, but still elected) he wants more money from the public purse.

[Iangould]

It appears Arafat may have been murdered.

I say "appears" and "may" because so far its all based on statements by his widow.

[Iangould]

The use of drones to attack terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan is a standard left-wing criticism of the Obama adminidtration.

Two points:

1. They work

2. The drone campaign of 2010 was so effective that since then the number of strikes has been reduced signficantly. In 2012 to date, not a single civilian has been killed in a drone attack.

Then there's this:

...the strikes may have contributed to a relative decrease in violence across Pakistan. There were 41 suicide attacks in Pakistan in 2011, down from 49 in 2010 and a record high of 87 in 2009. The 118 drone strikes carried out in 2010 coincided with an almost 50% drop in suicide attacks across Pakistan, according to the Pak Institute for Peace Studies, which monitors Pakistani militant groups.

(Another factor in the reduction in terrorism in Pakistan surely was the Pakistani military's own operations against the Taliban, particularly its 2009 campaigns in Swat and South Waziristan. Some 1,600 Taliban fighters were killed during "Operation Rah-e-Rast" in Swat while hundreds more surrendered to the government.)

The loss of the Swat Valley was the most signficant military defeat inflicted on the Taliban since the initial US invasion of Afghanistan both strategically and in terms of loss of man-power and it was an exclusively Pakistani operation.

There are undoubtedly elements within the ISI and the Pakistani military that either sympathize with the Taliban or see tactical advantage in supporting particular militant groups. To argue that "Pakistan" does so flies in the face of mountaisn of evidence to the contrary.

But it does provide a convenient "Stab in the Back" narrative for those who want to believe that the war in Afghanistan is being lost or is already lost.

[Charles RB]

Cameron's been talking about changing our laws so Greek migrants can't come here - can we even do that, under EU laws?

Or is having an artificial spat with the EU the point? He is eager to please the eurosceptic Tories so they won't... er... well, so they won't do what? The rebel Tories have no rallying figure and can't afford to make a move until 2015 anyway.

The Barclays bank scandal proves every single worst thing you could think of regarding banks and government.

Well, not everything yet, but give it time because this is going to run and run.

I did like Diamond's "every bank was doing this and the regulators ignored it" defence followed by "I had no idea it was going on at all, honest". Shut up and tell you the answer?

[Charles RB]

2. The drone campaign of 2010 was so effective that since then the number of strikes has been reduced signficantly. In 2012 to date, not a single civilian has been killed in a drone attack.

Under whose statistics though? Because the US's official stats have differed massively from groups like the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the NY Times has alleged that militants are judged as males of military age "unless there is explicit intelligence posthumously proving them innocent". (Article quotes a Pakistani Major General on low civilian casualties but what do the Pakistanis base their figures on?)

[mikekerrIII]

The use of drones to attack terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan is a standard left-wing criticism of the Obama adminidtration.

Two points:

1. They work

2. The drone campaign of 2010 was so effective that since then the number of strikes has been reduced signficantly. In 2012 to date, not a single civilian has been killed in a drone attack.

Then there's this:


The loss of the Swat Valley was the most signficant military defeat inflicted on the Taliban since the initial US invasion of Afghanistan both strategically and in terms of loss of man-power and it was an exclusively Pakistani operation.

There are undoubtedly elements within the ISI and the Pakistani military that either sympathize with the Taliban or see tactical advantage in supporting particular militant groups. To argue that "Pakistan" does so flies in the face of mountaisn of evidence to the contrary.

But it does provide a convenient "Stab in the Back" narrative for those who want to believe that the war in Afghanistan is being lost or is already lost.

I really would like for the people who oppose the drone attacks to come up with an alternative that will kill fewer people.

[Iangould]

assad is hinting he may leave power.