death in Texas

 Red_Dragon wrote:
I still remember our health secretary Lauterbach (he can't even speak German without heavy accent) from the same high-school I went to one grade below me. He's working on a new "zoning" to defend his hospital killing spree. I.e. every German only needs one(!) hospital within 40 km reach.

Tell me, this is not apocalyptic capitalism. Politicians are string-puppets of the economy and democracy is a mere veil of capitalist exploitation and greed.

On top, I keep wondering why nothing changes after elections when only 30% yet bother to pitch their vote. - Could our elections be rigged?!
Or is the whole system so fucked up that only the established parties can be voted without any chances for newer movements? Why is it that the number of voters still keep declining every vote?


The media say, if the voting age be reduced to 16, the far right parties would gain significantly. At the same time, they blame this development on TikTok.

Man, I think they're just making fun of us, as usual, and TikTok is only on their list, because of Palestinian-friendly postings from around the globe (against their absolutist "democratic" betrayal of us all) fascism is globally taking, in it's common veil of 'democracy'.

I always used to joke: The best democracy that you can buy for money. ...oh.... and don't forget the 'necessary' sanctions that don't work anyway, but you have to pay (as always). 

 Steely_D wrote:

Hear! Hear!

Politicians should be involved to the extent that they need to create universal coverage; that's it.

 Steely_D wrote:
And yet they further the economization of health care, at least here in Europe which will most certainly amount to a larger catastrophe. The well established systems that were created after WW-II and functioned like a model for many decades after are now being de-mounted and disassembled. - Winter is coming. Darkness! Capitalism..!!!

Politicians aren’t typically knowledgeable about contemporary medical care. And they’re beholden to the masses so as to get elected, not to science.
The topic of abortion, proper treatments, vaccines, euthanasia - all of healthcare - needs to be off the table of legislators. Period. They lack the medical knowledge, objectivity, and compassion to pass laws about health care.

Evangelicals; intolerance on steroids. Tragical, when coupled with money and influence.

While I do believe that an incarnation begins on fertilization at an unconscious level, and theoretically amounts to a human life (in pre- and fetus stage during the earliest weeks) during which consciousness is not much different from say a microbe, or tiny insect, North America (the US to be more specific) is again unable to fight off the dark ages of dumbness, fundamentalism, and blind belief.

Just like slavery, just like genocide of Native Americans. I mean, come on America.

Why is this superpower and "world pole" so demented and behind in their handling of (some) moral questions? Abortion rights of the nineteenth century actually do still apply? Come on, folks, you can do better than that.

France is currently legalizing assisted euthanasia. Why does America have to be so religiously retarded? AFAIK in Europe, retarded pregnancies and those brought on by legal rape - as well as unwanted ones - for up to 12 weeks upon conception can be accepted for abortion, sometimes on condition of a social worker looking at the case more closely and talking to the mother, taking a look at her background.

The position of some Americans (Christians and Jews) is not different at all from those of Islamic theocracies, way back in the middle ages (and sadly today), where pets generally had more rights than women. How can this country venture to think being what they generally think they are, as brave, free, and beautiful and blah blah blah blaaahhh....... this is the often hard to grasp... American arrogance on steroids, imo.

Texas man wants court order to investigate woman’s out-of-state abortion

"Life" in the U.S. is a lot like purchasing a new car. It's highest value is while its on the lot. 
As soon as that baby drives off it, that value immediately depreciates.

 Red_Dragon wrote:

There will be tears. A family devastated and possibly sues.
Forced birth claiming Pro Life: Protect the fetus. Dismiss the Child. Kill the Mother.

Emergency rooms refused to treat pregnant women, leaving one to miscarry in a lobby restroom

Congratulations, fetus fetishists.

Bret: In the meantime, Gail, we have Wyoming outlawing abortion pills. We’ll need to devote more time to the subject soon, but all I’ll say for now is: When the world goes to hell, it has a way of getting there fast.

Gail: I’ve been thinking about Wyoming so much, Bret. Let’s go at it in depth next week. But if you hear that I was caught growling in public, you’ll know why.

From an opinion piece "Never Mind about Ron DeSantis" where Bret Stephens and Gail Collins discuss a bunch of stuff. This was at the end of it.

 Isabeau wrote: 
I wish that it were not true.  I wish that it was a live and let live scenario, but it isn't.  These little special interest groups are shaking down the government for special rights, money and reforming policies that affect everyone.  These groups are pushing our society to say that they are normal and the rest of us is crazy.  And no, I didn't take that away from Sander's rebuttal.  I have long had this thought as have many others.  They should adapt to society, not the other way around.

As someone still working beyond a so called retirement age to keep a roof over my head, the lights on, food on the table and gas in the tank, this is a real issue.  About two years ago the database we use for our records was amended for more than two sexes.  I think that there are currently 3 extra choices.  I'll check again on Saturday when I work next and also see what icons pop up with these identities.  Never got that far.

I'm serving people of all ages and all proclivities in a retail environment.  Selling fashionable prosthetic devices to people in order to just see better or in most cases help someone accessorize their wardrobes.  Some people are getting really pushy in how they are to be served. It is not the over 50 crowd as much as it is the 40 and under group.  This is more than just a trendy change in fashion and styles.  We're not talking about eating goldfish or stuffing phone booths.  We're talking about the state making children keep secrets from their parents.  Promoting doubt and expensive surgeries and off label uses of drugs to physically and irreversibly change children into something other than what they were born into this world. This is being pushed as normal and to object as crazy.

Those of these new identities are claiming to be offended and hurt by the reactions of others who do not share their beliefs.  They also forget that being offended can be and usually is a two way street.  Groundbreakers almost always face stiff resistance before acceptance.  Way it has always been.  You being pretty much the same age as me, have seen massive societal changes.  From the acceptance of mixed race marriages all the way to same sex marriages, in just 50 years, after centuries of what was the old normal.

This has infected the workplace.  There is no escape.  Sensitivity training, mandatory.  Which includes new definitions and practices among other things.  Ok, fine.  But is it ?  Is it because of what should be done or is HR acting out of fear of lawsuits and trying to cover their asses or what ?  Me, I just want to go to work, do a good job, get paid and go home and not take my work home with me.  I don't want to have to hang out and socialize with co workers.  I want to keep my life separate from my work.  Very hard to do these days in the corporate world.  I personally suspect that this is one of the main reasons our labor participation rate is at historic lows.  People don't want to be subjected to all of this woke crap and just want to work, get paid and go home.  Can't do it anymore, except in small business.  Which are in the process of being systematically destroyed by government at the behest of corporate interests.  Remember Rollerball ?  The original one ?  The one in which the world was reduced to 5 or 6 companies that controlled everything ?  Comply or essentially go away and die. You cannot disagree, with anything. There are only so many employers and you can only piss off so many and burn so many bridges before you become unemployable.  This is what the modern work world has become.  

I may be 70 but I got my BBA in Organizational Management in 2007 which is recent enough to speak with some sort of authority when it comes to the current work place environments. I'm sure that most here have degrees that are from the late 80's / early 90's as the most recent.  Things have changed, a lot.  They changed a lot from when I got my first degree in 1994.  I tried back in the early 1970's, too, but things were kinda crazy then.  I have observed the changes being taught and implemented in real time over the past 4 decades. 

Corporate culture was a large part of the curriculum.  How to identify it, manage it and find ways to become compatible with it or not and find another one that fits. I have seen the additions of graduation requirements go from just community service in 2007 to diversity training and other "social awareness" courses, unrelated to the actual courses of study.  These courses also cost money to the student and something else is deleted from the core curriculum to make way for these new required hours.  You cannot argue with the instructors or present alternative POV's anymore.  I had experience with this when I had to retake English 102 because earlier credits were in quarters and not semesters, even though I already had a 2 year degree which they were part of.  But, here I was a 50 something year old man taking courses with 18 to 25 year olds and an instructor who was maybe in his 30's.  We had some disagreements along the way as some of the literature involved discussions of the war in Viet Nam and Civil Rights. I was old enough to be an eyewitness to these things, rather than having been taught about these things and challenged some of his taught perceptions with my first hand experiences.  I cannot even imagine what it is like now.  There is no way I could go back to school now and be forced to remain silent in order to get a grade.

How many here, if you were to go back to school now, would shut up and jump through these new hoops ?  To be silent and allow things that you know are wrong to be taught to the unknowing as the true gospel ?  That things need to be looked at out of context in order to rewrite history and justify new ways ?

Ah, I see the hands !  Everyone one of you !!!  Yeah, I, we, should just shut up and worry about other things and get out of the way and take that little piece of paper home along with the loans, so we can still work.

I sell big ticket items to people that walk through the door.  I do not get to pick who I deal with, they pick me.  To still be doing it this long requires learning, listening and adapting.  Learning to deal with people on their terms and accept them and get them to accept the terms of their choices.  To make a living selling you need to be patient, understanding, thick skinned and able to handle rejection.  I used to say that if everyone worked retail for a year or so, the world would be a better place. 

Kids (young adults) are behaving like 90 year olds who think they know better than anyone else because they are young and current / or old and I say so.  I say this as now being the one who takes my soon to be 96 year old Mother to doctor appointments and finally seeing the difference from what she tells me and what she says the doctor(s) say back to her.  She painted the doctor to be vague, too busy for her, and not understanding her ailments.  He is far from it.  She reminded me of how a lot of my customers behaved.  After the last visit on Monday, I caught the doc in the hall and complimented him on his patience and genuine concern.  I am sure that there are many more out there like my Mother trying his patience they same way.  The same way my patience is tried to some degree everyday that I work in the current real world environment.

Saying ignore it just doesn't work.  I do not get to walk away from it.  This is not imaginary.  This is real.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it and waiting for VV (and anyone else) to tell me I have everything wrong and accuse me of more stuff.

 kurtster wrote:

You'd think it would be according to the media, eh?   But its not true Kurt.  Most of us, little ol center 'murica, aren't that concerned about transgender issues, drag queens, pronouns or books being banned. Leave those folks alone.  We're concerned with making our mortgages, buying enough food, affording energy and  healthcare that might keep us going beyond our working years.
The over-arch of concern over numerous special interest groups are a lovely way to distract from our Nation's most pressing issues and hard choices. 

 rgio wrote:
Now recruiting all MAGA culture warriors. Bone spurs welcome...

 Steely_D wrote: 
Not in today's world.  Gender is everything.

Time to watch Full Metal Jacket, again.  The other qualities you mentioned didn't matter back then, either.

 Steely_D wrote:
There's a draft?

 kurtster wrote:

Wouldn't be interesting if the draft were only based on certain qualities (strength, endurance, video game kill success, whatever). Leave gender out of it.

 oldviolin wrote:

Understood and your input is always appreciated OV. 

 kurtster wrote:

Good points. However, I doubt that with high incidents of sexual assault that drafting women into the military will succeed. In essence, its one thing to sentence young men to possible maiming and death, but to add rampant sexual abuse of women, would not be acceptable to most Americans. Forcing women into potential sexual abuse and in some cases, forcing them to give birth, in addition to facing combat, is a set of of cruelty beyond serving one's country.

Agreed. Likely no draft and if we are attacked, we're scrood.