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seankenny said:
As for inequality, the world of 1900 seems to have been much more unequal than today.

The world was extremely unequal then. Belle Epoque France was at least as unequal as pre-revolutionary France 100 hundred years earlier.
 
What an insane turn of events. The next few months have just got a whole load more troubling.

Will this sway anyone on gun reform and use of violent messaging in political campaigning? I would certainly hope so, but I fear the republican party is too far gone for that now. I imagine the identity of the shooter could have a pretty big influence on the aftermath, and how Trump decides to play it.
 
edshakey said:
What an insane turn of events. The next few months have just got a whole load more troubling.

Will this sway anyone on gun reform and use of violent messaging in political campaigning? I would certainly hope so, but I fear the republican party is too far gone for that now. I imagine the identity of the shooter could have a pretty big influence on the aftermath, and how Trump decides to play it.

I think this is actually a massive win for Trump. He is going to use this to show what a strong man he is and how the violent left are trying to suppress him. The imagery of him bleeding with fist raised is powerful. And if anything he’ll lean into the violent messaging and the need to protect America. In contrast to how weak Biden is looking, this is basically a disaster for the democrats.

Edit: should have added that I think this is a genuine tragedy with at least one spectator being killed. A dark day for America. We should be so grateful how peaceful our elections are.
 
Whichever way this lands (and I think it'll land in Trump's favour), an inch to the L or R and things for the USA and the rest of the world would be quite different.

JamieG said:
Edit: should have added that I think this is a genuine tragedy with at least one spectator being killed. A dark day for America. We should be so grateful how peaceful our elections are.

Absolutely. I saw a Tweet that resonated though; it was something along the lines of "can I get America to care half this much when it's a room full of kids"? :worms:
 
JamieG said:
[Edit: should have added that I think this is a genuine tragedy with at least one spectator being killed. A dark day for America. We should be so grateful how peaceful our elections are.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_MPs_killed_in_office
 
AJM said:
JamieG said:
[Edit: should have added that I think this is a genuine tragedy with at least one spectator being killed. A dark day for America. We should be so grateful how peaceful our elections are.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_MPs_killed_in_office

It’s not a new thing there, it’s just been a while. Remember Reagan?
 
Indeed. Various quotes including from Biden that "there's no place in America for this kind of violence", despite America being really quite uniquely placed for exactly this to occur. Over 300 mass shootings in H1 2024 alone. But they never seem to learn.
 
Just opened the Monday UAE, most popular “paper”.
The Trump story is the 12th headline, after one about a children’s summer camp…
Was on a boat full of various nationalities yesterday, not one mention, even with an hour and a bit to kill between dives. The only Brit, I was wished much luck for the football (apparently Greeks don’t like the Spanish much). It’s not like politics was avoided, Palestine got a dissection (several Arab nations represented on board). ‍♂️
Anyway, dreading today with my Trumpanzee Canadian colleague…
Such a nice guy in so many ways, his weird world view seems mainly motivated by property taxes (in Canada) and the Trans community (fear that his sons might be influenced by it).
 
Oldmanmatt said:
Just opened the Monday UAE, most popular “paper”.
The Trump story is the 12th headline, after one about a children’s summer camp…
Was on a boat full of various nationalities yesterday, not one mention, even with an hour and a bit to kill between dives. The only Brit, I was wished much luck for the football (apparently Greeks don’t like the Spanish much). It’s not like politics was avoided, Palestine got a dissection (several Arab nations represented on board). ‍♂️
Anyway, dreading today with my Trumpanzee Canadian colleague…
Such a nice guy in so many ways, his weird world view seems mainly motivated by property taxes (in Canada) and the Trans community (fear that his sons might be influenced by it).
Update:
He thought it was funny and is slightly bemused that a “good white boy” fired the shot…
Seriously, it was a real time “does not compute” moment for him, I mean, it wasn’t even an immigrant.
 
I'm amazed when people still think it's possible to get most mass shootings to "compute" (this is directed at your colleague Matt, not you). The attempt on Trump will be of great political consequence, I've no doubt, but in terms of the shooter's intent it will quite possibly turn out to be void of any real meaning, purpose, or politics, as is so often the case. The desperate desire to find an understandable motive is often futile (there's still no meaningful "explanation" of the 2017 Las Vegas shooting, for example). Perhaps a manifesto will be found, but it's probably as likely that this is just another case of petty rage + guns + the biggest possible stage.
 
Bets on Biden’s covid being prelude to withdrawal on health grounds after such strident assertions of determination to run, anyone?
 
Oldmanmatt said:
Bets on Biden’s covid being prelude to withdrawal on health grounds after such strident assertions of determination to run, anyone?

That was my first thought.

Does Biden withdrawing (and any of the senators/governors being discussed coming in instead) lose the Democrats any voters to Trump? I'd have thought there are very few people only voting blue for Biden, and will flip if it's anyone else, so his withdrawal shouldn't be too risky. But there's obviously some reason some Democrats are reluctant and see it as a gamble, so what is it?
 
I've heard a lot of the campaign money is specifically pledged to the Biden / Kamala Harris ticket, and transferring it to anyone one else would be legally tricky. Picking Harris as the candidate would negate that issue, but she does not seem terribly popular (although, at this point, probably no worse than Biden).
 
As well as low popularity Harris also has both ‘Women’ and ‘Color’ potentially counting against her in the backward world of American politics.

Interestingly about the potential campaign finance issues if it’s not Biden or Harris. I suspect Trump’s choice of JD Vance is mostly motivated by campaign finance; wasn’t Vance being bankrolled by Peter Theil when he was running for presidential candidate (a man not short of a few quid), whereas Trump has been struggling to raise as much as he’d like (and sure as hell isn’t going to spend his own money).
 
Anyone know if there's any precedent for a candidate withdrawing this close to the election? Certainly can't think of anything similar in my lifetime.
 
I mean, the guy is so old that it wouldn't be unnatural for him to just not wake up one morning. He's of an age where, for ordinary people, you'd say "that's sad, but he's had a good innings, eh?"
He could quite realistically kark it on the campaign trail.
Madness. Bite the bullet and get someone new in.
 
It’s depressing watching the RNC stuff. Even clips of Farage looking shifty and Truss ignoring questions with a waxy face can’t lighten my mood…

Here’s a Q: assuming Bidens now toast (seems to be a matter of time) is there a golden candidate who can gather some momentum and capture some national mood to propel the Dems to victory or close?
 
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