Political Funny Pictures DISCUSSION thread

[Hatin Since 87]

NATO was not suppose to be, and shouldn't be a police force. It's a defensive pact.

Do you think the German defense budget is only $688M?




EDIT: OK, you're saying one thing, but reality is something else.

You said we pay for Germany's defense forces. When in reality we pay a substantial portion of NATO's budget. The latter doesn't buy panzers, MG 3's, or pay for Hans salary, it pays for all the overhead of maintaining an alliance that's ready to fight together should the time come. Right?


So we pay $650M for NATO... that's 1/1000th of our total defense budget. That's what you're complaining about?

I may be wrong, but I believe that it was the US that most recently called NATO allies to help us in Afghanistan and Iraq. One might argue, that if we use it, we should pay for it. And it's based on GDP, ... ah... someone else can do the math.

I wasn’t necessarily pointing at us paying Germany’s defense budget, just that we’re the highest contributor to NATO funding, while the Germans are doing business with the country that NATO was set up to protect from. But I see what you’re saying, it’s a small price for a big reward. My only point is, they are the biggest beneficiaries of the deal. What’s the probability Russia would invade the US? A lot lower than the probability of them invading Germany or other EU countries. And as far as Afghanistan and iraq, NATO didn’t provide very much help IIRC, they sent a very small amount of troops to help, and it’s arguable if that even made a impact on anything. Seemed more like a training exercise

 

[BugI02]

Is Germany's Military Readiness Problem a Critical Vulnerability for NATO?
Is Germany's Military Readiness Problem a Critical Vulnerability for NATO?

Germany’s military is virtually undeployable and security experts say it is too weak to meet its obligations to its allies, as it prepares to assume command of NATO’s crisis response force next year.
Pressure on Berlin is mounting after a series of revelations has exposed the German military as one of the least combat ready in NATO, despite its economic heft.
“The readiness of the German military is abysmal,” said Jorge Benitez, a NATO expert with the Atlantic Council in Washington. “For years, German leaders have known that major elements of their armed forces, such as tanks, submarines and fighter jets, are not fully operational and can’t be used for actual military missions....”

Among the failures: none of Germany’s submarines are currently operational, only four of its 128 Eurofighter jets are combat-ready and the army is short on dozens of tanks and armored vehicles needed for NATO missions....
On Monday, Merkel conceded German “credibility” was at stake and that defense expenditures must increase.
Yet Merkel also vowed during last year’s election campaign that spending on Germany’s welfare state — including a national pension plan, public health care and nursing care, generous unemployment benefits, social welfare and education — would continue to take precedence over the increased military expenditure demanded by Trump.

 

[JettaKnight]

Ouch.

That's really, really sad and somewhat ironic.

 

[Hatin Since 87]

Look at the bright side. At least they have public health care and an evil capitalist country to fend off any threats.

 

[ghitch75]

Is Germany's Military Readiness Problem a Critical Vulnerability for NATO?
Is Germany's Military Readiness Problem a Critical Vulnerability for NATO?

Trump needs to keep chewing there ass!!!!

 

[JettaKnight]

Trump needs to keep chewing there ass!!!!

No argument from me on this - or the German people. One poll I saw shows overwhelming support for increased spending.

 

[Liberty Sanders]

RE: the caricatures of the Queen.

She has some ways about her. But for a woman who was barely a kid when she was thrust into the job of monarch of a world-wide empire and who has done that job 24/7 with astonishing grace and dignity into her nineties...well, she's entitled to a few eccentricities, and if I could buy the old girl a Guinness I'd do it.

 

[jamil]

All things that are best taught in the home.

And do you seriously think there's no lesson on the Constitution? Or lessons capitalism and socialism?


I think critical thinking is a better thing that needs taught.

I agree that schools should not be teaching morality, which is subjective. I think, however, that to the extent that values can be objective, they should teach that.

I disagree about the constitution, capitalism and socialism. Those should all be taught in school. I don't see a lot of evidence that when they're taught, they're taught honestly and objectively. The constitution is a subjective "living document" and should be interpreted to support the morals of the majority, rather than objectively, that it should mean what it meant when it was duly ratified. What's being taught Capitalism is evil and is therefore inferior to socialism, which is moral; all of which are subjective value judgements.

Teaching that America is exceptional is propaganda. I don't want that in school. However, teaching the facts of American history, comparing and contrasting the historic values of Americans, good and bad, and how that impacted the US versus other nations, is a good thing. Students, given all the facts honestly, will likely conclude that America IS exceptional on their own.

Of course critical thinking is what we should most want taught in schools. However, there's much evidence that teaching critical thinking is being/has been replaced by teaching critical theory, which is, of course, bat-**** nonsense.

 

[Leadeye]

For which we have shouldered most of the burden. Do you envision the Russian horde sending tank armies through the Fulda Gap? I don't. Do we need a presence in Europe. Well, it does pay dividends beyond the obvious defensive ones. IMO there is still value in having NATO and for us to be a part of it. But that value isn't infinite and I think having them pay their end of what the treaty they signed requires isn't asking too much.

You're like me Birds, a cold war person. Once the Fulda gap was of strategic importance, today it's in the middle of nowhere Germany. So much has changed over the years.

 

[actaeon277]

I was more worried about the GIUK gap.

 

[JettaKnight]

I agree that schools should not be teaching morality, which is subjective. I think, however, that to the extent that values can be objective, they should teach that.

I disagree about the constitution, capitalism and socialism. Those should all be taught in school. I don't see a lot of evidence that when they're taught, they're taught honestly and objectively. The constitution is a subjective "living document" and should be interpreted to support the morals of the majority, rather than objectively, that it should mean what it meant when it was duly ratified. What's being taught Capitalism is evil and is therefore inferior to socialism, which is moral; all of which are subjective value judgements.

Teaching that America is exceptional is propaganda. I don't want that in school. However, teaching the facts of American history, comparing and contrasting the historic values of Americans, good and bad, and how that impacted the US versus other nations, is a good thing. Students, given all the facts honestly, will likely conclude that America IS exceptional on their own.

Of course critical thinking is what we should most want taught in schools. However, there's much evidence that teaching critical thinking is being/has been replaced by teaching critical theory, which is, of course, bat-**** nonsense.

I'm going out on a limb and saying, "What we perceive is being taught Capitalism is evil and is therefore inferior to socialism..."

We on INGO tend to see the stories of liberal teachers gone wrong, we don't see the stories of honest teachers just doing things right.

 

[Leadeye]

I was more worried about the GIUK gap.

I wonder if the SOSUS stuff is still out there.

 

[jamil]

I'm going out on a limb and saying, "What we perceive is being taught Capitalism is evil and is therefore inferior to socialism..."

We on INGO tend to see the stories of liberal teachers gone wrong, we don't see the stories of honest teachers just doing things right.

Well, hold on. I'm not saying that it's all or none. There's an in-between. I think it depends on the district, and how off the wall insane progressive the school boards are. They choose the administrators, and the administrators choose the teachers.

It's safe to say that the evidence supports that there are more insane social justice teachers now, than fewer. There are more kids having their heads filled with postmodern bull**** now, than fewer.

Take the "Safe space" bull****. That nonsense isn't even in a majority of schools...yet. But it's in way more schools than it was just a few years ago. It's a recent phenomenon.

 

[actaeon277]

I wonder if the SOSUS stuff is still out there.

Why would they remove it?

 

[edporch]

What's with the poster in the Political Funny Pictures thread that keeps posting repeated strings of empty posts?

 

[Leadeye]

Why would they remove it?

No reason, but I've always wondered how much upkeep that stuff requires.

 

[actaeon277]

No reason, but I've always wondered how much upkeep that stuff requires.

It's at the bottom. I think things don't get fixed.

Maybe the stuff on shore.

I think you can seal the building, put a dehumidifier in it, like they do ships in mothballs.

 

[rob63]

I'm going out on a limb and saying, "What we perceive is being taught Capitalism is evil and is therefore inferior to socialism..."

We on INGO tend to see the stories of liberal teachers gone wrong, we don't see the stories of honest teachers just doing things right.

Exactly!

Having spent a number of years working in schools, my experience was that the vast majority of teachers are pretty conservative. Furthermore, almost all of them, regardless of their personal politics, work very, very hard to teach what is in the state standards that are approved by the state.

If anyone is interested, here is a link where you can go to see what is actually being taught in schools: https://www.doe.in.gov/standards

Teacher's performance evaluations are based upon how well they teach these standards, nothing else. I don't doubt there are a handful that go off script, but they are few and far between. They make the news precisely because they are the exception, not the rule.

It's like the rare teacher that turns out to be a child molester, they make the headlines. However, the average teacher is more like the guy that took bullets stopping a shooter to protect the kids.

The progressive views of our youth are coming from the TV and social media, not the schools.

 

[jamil]

Exactly!

Having spent a number of years working in schools, my experience was that the vast majority of teachers are pretty conservative. Furthermore, almost all of them, regardless of their personal politics, work very, very hard to teach what is in the state standards that are approved by the state.

If anyone is interested, here is a link where you can go to see what is actually being taught in schools: https://www.doe.in.gov/standards

Teacher's performance evaluations are based upon how well they teach these standards, nothing else. I don't doubt there are a handful that go off script, but they are few and far between. They make the news precisely because they are the exception, not the rule.

It's like the rare teacher that turns out to be a child molester, they make the headlines. However, the average teacher is more like the guy that took bullets stopping a shooter to protect the kids.

The progressive views of our youth are coming from the TV and social media, not the schools.

In how many districts across the nation have you taught? I don't think you can extrapolate your experience to all school systems nationwide. There are enough anecdotal accounts from the other side of it to say it does happen. To what extent I think can't really be measured. I don't think it's everyone. But I do think it's a lot more prevalent over the past few years.

I can give my experience. I went to a middle school function with the in-laws in Denver. OMG, it dripped with insane social justice. Probably most of the teachers teaching in that school were sane. But the ones who weren't, together with the school's administration, made the whole thing play like a giant safe space with participation trophies. But the kids acted like they were pretty on to it. I saw a lot of eye-rolling among students. It's just one school. One event. I'm not going to extrapolate that to every school everywhere.

But one thing I can say, is that the experience supports a belief that some things haven't changed. Adults still think they're spreading their grand moral virtues to the next generation. Kids just roll their eyes and move on in the opposite direction.

 

[KLB]

Exactly!

Having spent a number of years working in schools, my experience was that the vast majority of teachers are pretty conservative. Furthermore, almost all of them, regardless of their personal politics, work very, very hard to teach what is in the state standards that are approved by the state.

If anyone is interested, here is a link where you can go to see what is actually being taught in schools: https://www.doe.in.gov/standards

Teacher's performance evaluations are based upon how well they teach these standards, nothing else. I don't doubt there are a handful that go off script, but they are few and far between. They make the news precisely because they are the exception, not the rule.

It's like the rare teacher that turns out to be a child molester, they make the headlines. However, the average teacher is more like the guy that took bullets stopping a shooter to protect the kids.

The progressive views of our youth are coming from the TV and social media, not the schools.

In many areas of this country teachers are judged on how well their students do on standardized tests. That is the only thing they care about.