Uncle Joe

[JKLivin]

Look up “Banana massacre”

Military force doing the bidding of corporate imperialism and suppression of native workers and such.

Heck, pretty sure that’s where “banana republic” came from

[zsn]

so....we should disband the military?

the military does do a lot of good things and provides opportunities and assistance to people who go that route.

Just quoting this for it's stupidity.

my brother in law is just getting out....he has decided to try and become an electrician. The military is paying for his schooling/apprenticeship training and part of his housing until he journeys out through the helmets to hard hats program. He would not have that opportunity without the military....not while also supporting his family.

You know not of what you speak.

Don’t you support cutting out the middle men and offering help directly? Couldn’t whatever the funds allocated be used directly as education grants without funneling through a layer of bureaucracy?

Oh wait…..that would be socialism!

[Mjl]

Qus would suggest maybe there’s some correlation between military footprint and things like resource control and global markets and such.

But that’s just what Qusdahl’s ex girlfriend said about it during her active duty in Syria. Or rather, does anybody else know what the hell she was doing on active duty in Syria?

At the very very least, bigger military footprint means more lucrative (maybe even no-bid) contracts for the MIC.

There’s also this bigger leftist narrative that less wealthy (and also often global south, often of color) countries are kept less wealthy cuz the resources there are controlled by global north (often white) colonists.

But Qusdahl’s tired of even asking if stuff like that is a possibility, cuz he knows so many here will loose their minds about even considering as much. Yall sleep better at night that way.

So you're saying you don't have anything to back the idea that we're looting oil and it just kinda feels like it because your ex girlfriend doesn't know what her mission was in Syria, who is 31st in terms of oil reserves, but it was the middle east and we can just paint that with a large brush.

Did I understand you correctly?

Oh, and bananas. If I understand correctly, the massacre was ideal. The US military didn't get involved and let the poorer country do as it pleased. Right?

[ProudBoy]

What I was reading indicated that there was some diplomatic pressure from the US being put on the Colombian government to resolve the issue.

[Mjl]

Ok that's bad.
In all fairness it was nearly 100 years ago...

[ProudBoy]

Right, which was the point I was trying to make earlier. I could be strong, and would happily admit as much, but that sort of behavior by “colonialist” countries doesn’t happen much anymore. Or, at least it doesn’t happen as much in democratic countries. Such behavior these days is political suicide, at least in the #WokeGotcha countries of the US and UK.

[ousdahl]

How is it political suicide? Yet another story dropped about how Merica is drone bombing kids and shit, and at least domestically the only one who cares is Qusdahl.

And rather than have any conscience or decency about that, most of you guys and most of Merica as a whole would rather vilify Qusdahl just for caring.

Merica is some of the most boorish militaristic bullies of all time. Most of the rest of the world views us not as the harbingers of freedom we tell ourselves we are, but as just a bunch of oppressive warmongers.

Know how Merica talks about what assholes China and Russia and the non “democratic” places are? That’s how the rest of the world talks about us.

Q’s ex was disenchanted cuz of just that. She thought joining the military was gonna make her some agent of freedom across the world, but ended up insisting she was just hired muscle for private corporations.

About the details, she never fully expanded/was able to. And that’s just one silly anecdote either way. And to clarify, she didn’t join to be an agent of freedom, she joined cuz of her own dire economic situation.

And with the banana republic, workers were demanding shit like, safer work conditions and an actual day off every now and then and being paid in actual cash instead of “coupons.” And if the Costa Rican military didn’t come in and bust them up, the marines were going to instead.

But to sit back and point out “in all fairness it was nearly 100 years ago” seems about as useful as suggesting racism too is just another thing of the past. Just ask psych!

[sdoyel]

[Deleted User 863]

First 1st time filers is staying steady. Because a lot of people are already receiving unemployment or have dropped out of the workforce entirely by not actively looking for jobs.


The U.S. had a near-record 11 million job openings in October, and 4.2 million Americans quit their jobs — just off September's record 4.4 million — because of the abundance of opportunities.

[ousdahl]

[ousdahl]

Giving a quarter million dollars to an 18yo for a degree in art history is the lender’s own poor choice, and if it’s paid back they’ll never learn personal responsibility

[TDub]

yep let's stop all lending....see what happens....good idea Qus.


plus, it's not like they could deny based on degree choice....you'd be screaming about classism or something again...

[ousdahl]

yep let's stop all lending....see what happens....good idea Qus.


plus, it's not like they could deny based on degree choice....you'd be screaming about classism or something again...

[ousdahl]

In the context of this thread, is whether Biden offered student loan forgiveness as a matter of campaign promises, and whether he’ll do anything more than punt

[TDub]

Punt. I hope.

[zsn]

yep let's stop all lending....see what happens....good idea Qus.


plus, it's not like they could deny based on degree choice....you'd be screaming about classism or something again...

Actually I am for stopping student loans. I think that’s the only way to bring down cost of higher education. Too many colleges, many of them with questionable credentials, rely on the students who pay for their “education” using these loans. Eventually students have nothing to show for except no prospects but hefty debt. Starve the beast. Besides the student loans servicing outfits have made a hefty profit based on what’s essentially a racket.

I also think that the way to reduce concussions in football is to eliminate the use of helmets, or at best use bicycle helmets. Same logic as above

[ousdahl]

Student loans do seem awful predatory.

It’s difficult to get a mortgage at age 18, but they’ll throw you a student loan no prob.

With perhaps the biggest difference being, at least you get equity with a mortgage

[TDub]

because there's no equity in education?

because everyone is forced to go to college?

life's about choices

[Mjl]

So if some poor kid wants to go get a comp sci degree and can't afford it, you're just going to say too bad? Being against student loans seems like a weird take for liberals.

[ousdahl]

Actually, “just going to say too bad” seems like more of a conservative take, don’t it?

I’m certainly not against education, and not necessarily against student loans per se. I’m against the predatory loans that seem to put students behind the economic 8 ball for years or decades after graduating.

I’d rather gummint (or the free market, or anyone in good faith) provide more options for citizens’ education. At least the gummint tho would instead rather provide more options for military aggression and shit.

Guess that doesn’t make me a liberal, either?