only my closest friends can tell me not to look and I obey

However, I can not keep up with these yellow-press subjects.
Isn't 'bejewelled' also a suggestive expression? Never mind, never mind .... marton bring on some facts here, please.

Dan Coates, Director of National Intelligence, on finding out that Putin is set to visit the White House in autumn...

It is what it is...

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) office indicated Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not invited to Congress if he visits Washington, D.C., this fall.

Foreign leaders traveling to Washington to visit the White House are generally extended an invitation to Capitol Hill. French President Emmanuel Macron, for example, delivered an address before Congress during his trip to D.C. in April.
Source

Meanwhile

The National Football League announced Thursday that it will freeze its new policy requiring players to remain standing during the national anthem.

The NFL Players Association (NFLPA), one week ago filed a grievance against the league over its controversial anthem policy.
This is a controversy started by Trump.

Source

The NY State Department of Taxation and Finance is investigating the Trump Foundation and could refer its findings for criminal prosecution, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday.

This is in addition to the civil suit already pursued by NY versus the Trump Foundation.
Source

Peterson on the worst thing about Trump:



And I agree with him also on what we keep mentioning here, Trump did not win. Hillary lost.

It looks to me like Canada is politically maybe in a deeper mess than the US.

I don't even think his ridiculousness would be worth all the heavy outrage people keep granting him. But I grew up around some seriously ridiculous politicians, they weren't as orange nor entertaining.

Peterson makes valid points, but.....it‘s very top down.

About the polarization....I can‘t remember how many people did not vote in the 1970‘s and 1980‘s. But the the 2016 vote had a huge number of non voting citizens. How does that weigh into polarization?

It’s not just the proportion of Democrats versus Republicans, it‘s the distribution and the consequence of redrawn districts that favor one party over another.

Perhaps citizens are not so polarized, it‘s the law makers. Trump is a bombastic buffoon, but he honestly does matter less than the completely stymied Congress.

I do remember in the 70s and early 80s Democrats and Republicans worked together. It started to deteriorate after that and by 1994, with Gingrich and etc, polarization in Congress started to grow. I think Trump is the culmination of that - poor Democratic strategy, corporate ownership of both R and D politicians, 24 hour news cycle and regurgitation of every single fart as news. It‘s way more complicated than that, of course.

See Wiki. 2012 was an outlier. While turnout in the sixties was indeed higher, the difference isn't really earth-shattering, especially as that was a top as well.

In my laïc opinion, politics is the most boring stuff there is. It is close to accounting, in my books (look in Brussels, Prague, anywhere...boring meetings). Once you add people having too much time, cash and lazy disease as Slav call it, you start to pay media particularly for entertainment value, you start getting this political entertainment everywhere: any journalism, any admin, schools, concert halls, theaters, family dinners.

Campaigning has always been done imho primarily for socializing and entertainment value, I have doubts about any genuine interest to improve our status quo. People like to party, and it's ok. But then they start coercing eachother on the same povs and they start ostracizing.

I doubt that majority of those two extreme poles actually really know how to improve status quo, or who to advance in the name of progress. They might have theories, sure, that would work for a bit before funds run out. Any theory works before funds run out.

But the poles are pretty certain only about bashing together the same opponents. It is a bit of a Woodstock era, again. Just the music is worse and it is clean of drugs.

__________________
"L'homme ne peut pas remplacer son coeur avec sa tete, ni sa tete avec ses mains." J.H. Pestalozzi

“The only difference between a rut and a grave is a matter of depth.” S.P. Cadman

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." A. Einstein

I guess most people who disn't vote, don't talk politics too much either.

The polarization is among those who talk about politics.

I think the Internet and Social media have much to do with it. Sounding chambers and all that.

Also, I think at least part of it is controlled. We were all shocked by what Cambridge Analytica did, but maybe didn't stop to think that others are doing that too. That meme that you just shared and that you thought was just a good put down of that politician you can't stand, may actually have been put there intentionally by some reserach bureau who just wanted you to reveal your political opinion. By sharing that meme or story further, you are helping them get further data. The bureau then subjects you to poltical advertising / propaganda you agree with. By not showing you the other side of the argument, or at best selectively showing you only the bad stuff you are becoming polarized while fully believing you are still in an objective frame.

I for one sometimes like and share stuff I totally disagree with just to throw their algorithms a little.

Not really, at least not Congress. See this Higher Learning post and its underlying study. The following image illustrates the gist of it:

Long live Trump then?

Lol. I knew it.

Their algorithms cannot be so exact, though. Human mind is fickle. Anyone basing their business on past preferences, even if a day old is risking too much, imho. Machines don't detect sarcasm.

They base these particular algorithms on trends, not individuals.

President Donald Trump has indicated that he is willing to slap tariffs on every Chinese good imported to the U.S. should the need arise.

"I'm ready to go to 500 [$Billion]," the president told CNBC's Joe Kernen in a "Squawk Box" interview.

Source

Well that will crash the US stock market that was showing signs of life again!

I am not sure he understands how the stock market works!

Machines detect patterns. I do think that many people behave in predictable ways....even being fickle can be a pattern.

Trends are being engineered

Is my opinions mine or my morning news feed's. How come IP changes my news feed. Which of my IPs invites less fake news, lol.

There is no free lunch, nor unbiased search result.

I predict each of us will open the Trump thread at least one more time today. And I predict 95% of folks will be vehemently anti-Trump and gladly, collectively so.

Some numbers are useless.

They are only not useless when actively manipulated by 3rd party and steered certain direction. That's why diversity of opinion matters, gives people choice of cognitive alternatives. Agreeing has never taught anything new to anyone. Just feels good to those who need it.

Not wishing to be contradictory, but some of the most political people I know, don't talk politics because it's more than their job's worth.

One of them is one of my closest friends. Have you ever seen someone instantly become politicised? It's bizarre.

Known him since he was 20 and he had zero interest in politics. When he was 25, he called round to my house for a brew and a chat as was his normal 3 times a week ritual, except I was watching Colin Powell's speech to UN Security Council regarding the second resolution. We sat in silence throughout. My friend's current role in local government is ensuring that all sides get their fair say in all matters, and advising local politicians what they legally can and can't say. To this day, he says that UN meeting was the moment he became politicised, and he never talks politics on social media. The closest I ever get from him is if we're wasted on a night out and I ask him about certain MPs, and even then, the most he'll say is "Trust me, he's a rank dickhead"

yes, yes I do, I can do history


"Land of the Free" is meant to be ironic no? the USA incarcerates more of its people than any other country, I thought it was like the 'Democratic' in DPRK


If you'd asked me 2 years ago I'd have said "no definitely not", but today?? nope not so sure, it's like watching history being re-enacted, fascinating.

Central banks are supposed to be independent from the administration but now Trump has taken a leaf out of the Erdogan Playbook and attacked their bank interest rate policy.
His major concern is that the huge debts he is piling up (the White House forecast an extra trillion in 2019) have to be paid for and the interest charges will increase as the rates rise.

His comments have weakened the $ slightly but it is still stronger than last Tuesday, I assume investors do not believe he will really force the bank to stop raising their rates.
Dangerous territory; the risk of holding interest rates is that will drive inflation upwards which will not be popular with his base - especially if his tariffs also drive inflation!

Consider the effect on the economy. If (by some maic trick) the US stopped pilng up new debt tomorrow, the GDP would shrink by about 5%.

Not necessarily, debt erosion by inflation is the least painful way to reduce the debt's purchase power. Given Trump's spending spree that may be an Ok thing, though at the saver's expense.