leicsmac

Or any one of a great many other possible solutions, yes. It's an undeniable fact that this isn't the first time this kind of thing has happened and it won't be the last. Problem is, there's only a very short journey from deeming it inevitable to deeming it acceptable, and then the death of this woman, among others, is not only tragic but utterly meaningless.

Oz is a difficult place to tour, but this team and setup did themselves no favours with their preparations or their style. That being said, Agnew saying this is the most disappointing tour he's covered in 10 of them is a mite hyperbolic given the way the last three have gone. Bring on the summer, this year and next. Need Smith to find form or get a better keeper, to get a world class spinner from somewhere (would be a miracle but there you go) and both the leading batters and bowlers need some county time playing red ball cricket.

Because I'm not asking for policy to be set around what I say, other than when there's cited expert evidence for it. I understand the point you're driving at here, but saying "believe what demonstrably trustworthy people say" is rather different to saying "believe me". Edit: and, pardon me, but I know you're a smart person and I think you know where the concept of the truth being the reserve of the loudest and most convincing voice, rather than what actually is ends, as much as I do.

And on the topic of "believing", "Reputable news agencies and expert individuals are not to be believed, but Mr. Random Comment on Social Media is to be believed and have policy set around his thoughts" is a nice epitaph for our species that can be left for the next supposedly intelligent one to find. Seeing as a lot of the harm being caused to a lot of living beings right now, and more in the future, can be traced back to that sentiment.

Given the current situation, I think people should believe that only when they see it, to be honest.

The death of that woman in Minneapolis is tragic, but not surprising. The only surprise, to my mind, was that it didn't happen sooner. This administration has put guns in the hand of the kind of people who showed up at the Capitol on January 6th 2021 and made any acts of brutality, false detention and removal from their homes and intimidation without any kind of due process institutional and therefore acceptable to all of their social media flying monkeys. That they have gone from those things to shooting someone who just happened to be in their way and then coming up with a flimsy self justification that she represented a capital threat to them is not the biggest leap. And, sadly, I doubt it will be the last time that it happens.

I would be most interested to hear how this particular problem might be remedied while maintaining civilisational function and human quality of life.

Likely so, but for me Miller stands out as someone who is a "true believer" in both racial and cultural superiority and appears perfectly happy to employ people to demonstrate that superiority through violence and oppression.

Clearly. As self evident as the lack of understanding (pretended orotherwise) from some parties regarding the damage their actions are doing and will do to everyone's future, including their own.

Is there more of a point to this besides a snappy meme which, ironically enough, itself shows a pretence of lack of understanding?

Restricting US air carriers from flying over Danish or Greenland airspace might also be an option.

Pick any one that genuinely believes in the superiority of his "tribe" and is ready to back up that feeling with coercion and sometimes outright violence. The attitude and lack of any kind of class are relatively unique, though. In any case, such mentality has no place in power in the world we live in today, given the harm it can and does cause.

Honestly, the idea being floated that Trump is no different from previous presidents in terms of overall policy decisions and what's happening now is just business as usual is genuinely absurd to me, even if we just go with the idea that applies to foreign policy alone. Not only is it absurd, but also worrying, because that thought process combined with a lack of action to address what this administration are doing will end up harming everyone.

That's entirely possible. However if it is, it's still another example of the ugly Kissinger realpolitik that had its place in the Gilded Age and the Cold War but has no place in a truly modern society if that society is to continue for very long.

Also if the point attempting to be made here is that Trump and those before him are equal in terms of destructive self interest overall, then that is as ludicrous as it is demonstrably inaccurate.

Stephen Miller. I'm not sure any more elaboration is required.

Goodness, Luddism is so annoying. Transitioning to carbon neutral methods of generating energy while maintaining at least current quality and comfort of life through tech advances is possible and should be the goal. Mindlessness of either the short term self interested "the Earth is ours to exploit" or the extreme end of the "return to nature" type won't end well. It's not dramatic, in fact it's an increasing nonzero possibility that grows higher with every day that vital resources decline and nationalist Might Makes Right mentality continues to ascend again. I'm not sure if people can't see it, or are just in denial about it, but we face an imminent and critical civilisational threat- not just to the idea of "Western civilisation" (whatever that means) that Trump and his ilk feel should be prioritised, but to all civilisation. And the idea that one type of civilisation is superior to another and that superiority should be enforced, is the key thing driving that threat, either from the ignorance or the malice of those involved. Either there is simply human civilisation, or there is no civilisation. The future and the challenges it will give to us will not accept it any other way.

The mentality that he embodies, that is unfortunately shared by quite a few people, is the more frightening thing, I think.

Oh, and exactly five years ago we all stood rather taken aback at the US trying for violent regime change in its own backyard, rather than someone else's. And, five years later, those coup engineers are succeeding in their objectives through media manipulation and savvy manner where an attempt to take the Capital with almost all of Congress in failed.

Well, that's a point of view, certainly.

Stephen Miller doubling down on the Greenland rhetoric and saying that nations shouldn't have given up their colonies after World War II. Seems the resemblance to Goebbels isn't just physical, then.

Anyhow, in other news: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c70lw9x581no South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung has called for a "new phase" in ties with China as he met its leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on Monday. Regional security and lifting Beijing's unofficial ban on Korean pop culture is high on Lee's agenda, as he continues his four-day trip in China. He is set to meet China's Premier Li Qiang and the chairman of parliament, Zhao Leji on Tuesday. It marks the first visit by a South Korean leader since 2019. Bilateral ties had soured under Lee's predecessor, impeached ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol, who was very critical of China. Xi, meanwhile, has appeared keen to shore up ties with South Korea amid a diplomatic row between China and Japan. South Korea is a US security ally - like Japan - but also relies on China for trade. Experts say Lee is expected to keep walking a diplomatic tightrope between Beijing and Tokyo. Korea looking to balance things a bit more in terms of diplomacy, then.

Try "EUSSR" or similar. To add to the points above, I have to repeat that reasoned and nuanced discussion is important but it is also a fact that quite a few smart people are smart enough to dress up their intent in just enough obfuscation to say "that's not what I said" when challenged, but the same intent is clear enough. Having such obfuscation and delaying tactics is one the reasons some truly vital matters that cost lives are either not being focused on or are being permitted to be focused on by those whose intent is entirely selfish, short term and destructive.

Also think it's something of a consequence of both the FPTP system (that tends to force pretty dichotomous outcomes) and modern society in general where online discourse is very tribal. The above being said, there are a few issues that are very "black and white" and where if you don't endorse one point of view, you are giving tacit support for the other and the consequences that result from it. Not everything has a large amount of nuance, some issues are very simple in their understanding, process and logical outcomes.

Also, none of this actually addresses the very real issue that the sentiment of self interest and Might Makes Right that drives people like Trump and his followers doesn't end anywhere good for them or for anyone else. It's in everyone's interest to find a way to address that. Sharpish, because the clock is ticking.