Discussions on difficult subjects

[Stefan]

In light of this weeks horrific shooting, the right's attack on queer people will only get worse, but this is how their cruel bigotry should be replied to, anytime. The problem is guns. If gender idendity had any role in it, no cis men should be allowed within miles of any gun store:
https://twitter.com/SocDoneLeft/status/1640550826782478337

[Stefan]

https://twitter.com/TheDailyShow/status/1641564489865625600

[Csar]

I like the wording 

Make accountability great again!

[Conn6orsuper117]

Honestly I just needed to vent about this. this has been the most shit week ever (and I just worked a hotel on spring break, last week)

Spoiler because this might be too serious even for this topic

Spoiler

I didn't even have my drivers license for 3 months! Its been 2 days since this happened and I'm still shell-shocked from the whole fiasco.

I was on my way home from work, where this intersection is, right behind the Subway there is a Bi-mart (dunno if they even have these out of state, let alone out of country). As I was about to pull in, a white Prius with a pink sticker pulled out, and began riding inside the turning lane as I was trying to pull in.

I dunno what I did to aggravate the driver, but I kept trying to pull ahead so I can get in, and every time the Prius kept speeding up as if he was challenging me. The 3rd attempt I managed to get into the lane but that was when I lost control, and sideswiped a pole to an RV park sign (to the left off camera) and slid right into the sidewalk of the subway parking lot.

Fucker didn't even stop to check on me, he sped away after/while I crashed.

The one time I chose to take the highway, the 1 FUCKING time.

The good news is I am still keeping my license (DMV needed documentation of the accident within 3 days), and our insurance did not go up (we've been so careful for 20 years, our account reached a rank to where "not at fault" accidents won't be penalized)

The bad news is now I'm down a truck, at surface level, it appeared the bumper was popped out, many paint gashes, the drive shaft dislocated, and a totaled back right wheel, but really, the hind wheels are dislocated from the frame, which is bent so bad even if I wanted to go straight, I'm turning.

we still have a car yes, but getting everybody to and from places is now a chore again, AND it means we're gonna have to get a rental car (if we're still even going to Seattle).

I start work again tomorrow, and my buddy says he's able to pick me up for work and drop me back off. Honestly, I can't thank him enough, I just needed somebody to talk to while my parents assessed the damage, but he was on sight and stayed with me while I waited for the Tow Truck, and even took me to the mechanic & back home.

Nobody got hurt (thank god) but I honestly don't even know if I wanna drive again.

[Csar]

Honestly I just needed to vent about this. this has been the most shit week ever (and I just worked a hotel on spring break, last week)

Spoiler because this might be too serious even for this topic

Spoiler

I didn't even have my drivers license for 3 months! Its been 2 days since this happened and I'm still shell-shocked from the whole fiasco.

I was on my way home from work, where this intersection is, right behind the Subway there is a Bi-mart (dunno if they even have these out of state, let alone out of country). As I was about to pull in, a white Prius with a pink sticker pulled out, and began riding inside the turning lane as I was trying to pull in.

I dunno what I did to aggravate the driver, but I kept trying to pull ahead so I can get in, and every time the Prius kept speeding up as if he was challenging me. The 3rd attempt I managed to get into the lane but that was when I lost control, and sideswiped a pole to an RV park sign (to the left off camera) and slid right into the sidewalk of the subway parking lot.

Fucker didn't even stop to check on me, he sped away after/while I crashed.

The one time I chose to take the highway, the 1 FUCKING time.

The good news is I am still keeping my license (DMV needed documentation of the accident within 3 days), and our insurance did not go up (we've been so careful for 20 years, our account reached a rank to where "not at fault" accidents won't be penalized)

The bad news is now I'm down a truck, at surface level, it appeared the bumper was popped out, many paint gashes, the drive shaft dislocated, and a totaled back right wheel, but really, the hind wheels are dislocated from the frame, which is bent so bad even if I wanted to go straight, I'm turning.

we still have a car yes, but getting everybody to and from places is now a chore again, AND it means we're gonna have to get a rental car (if we're still even going to Seattle).

I start work again tomorrow, and my buddy says he's able to pick me up for work and drop me back off. Honestly, I can't thank him enough, I just needed somebody to talk to while my parents assessed the damage, but he was on sight and stayed with me while I waited for the Tow Truck, and even took me to the mechanic & back home.

Nobody got hurt (thank god) but I honestly don't even know if I wanna drive again.

Oh damn, Connor, I'm so sorry this happened to you, and so early in your driving career. Glad neither you nor enyone else got hurt!
Yeah, it's like what I always say: Besides oneself, you've got to look out for all the other idiots out there on the streets.
It's a real shame about what happened to your car. I know from first hand experience how dependent you guys are over there because public transportation is not an (apt) option lots of the times (we're a bit lucky in that regard here in Ger). And it was YOUR first car as well. I can feel the pain.

This Prius driver was just plain reckless.Because this is what we're taught in driving school: To not speed up when another car is next to you trying to get in or overtake, in order to not start a "race" or to "get even" with someone, even if that someone might have been in the wrong.
From what I can tell in your post is that you're not yet that at ease while driving that might have aggravated the situation a bit, which would be totally understandable. My god, I was really nervous the first weeks and months after getting my license, I still wonder how I managed to survive at that time .
Which is why I would absolutely encourage you to not give up driving or be discouraged by a-holes. You need as much practice as you can get and thus gain experience which in the near future will help you stay calmer and more in control in situations like these. Trust me. And even then, sometimes things just happen, no matter how vigilant you are.
Like with me, 3 years ago, right in the middle of the pandemic, I had an appointment in the city. There were practically no cars on the streets, really low traffic. I decided to park the car front first (parking spaces were arranged in an angle to the sidewalk). Next to my right side, there was a van which blocked the sight. So, when I tried to pull out again, I really looked carefully for traffic from both sides, one, two, three, four times, until I decided to finally give it a go. Yeah, and there it was. A Mercedes truck came towards my tail and there was no time left to react, even though I pulled back really slow. I was lucky that the car only sustained a big dent/scraches right above the tail lights, which would have been really expensive to repair/replace. The other guy driving the Mercedes was really calm as it "only" was a leasing car, so he didn't complicate the situation.
This was my first accident ever after 18 years of driving.

So please, don't give up and try to stay as calm and vigilant as you can and over time, you'll becoming a top notch fearless driver!

[Wolkenkrabber]

Stop the steal! Stop the ste...

Oh hang on.
https://twitter.com/jonsopel/status/1648424457680338945

https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1648423279282257925

https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1648434628292915201

I think it's a shame that the settlement doesn't incude an an-air acknowledgement. The people living in a Fox News bubble can probably just carry on with their blinkers on. They need to be told the truth by their "leaders".

I imagine the January 6th 'types' will claim this is a fix by the Deep State or by a pizza restaurant in Washington DC or something...


On a slightly different subject, I guess I could put this in the "funny shit" thread, but I'm in this thread now and I reckon someone here might like this.

[shakermaker]

and our capitalist system continues to enable the rich to avoid consequences.

[Csar]

Woman, this Dominoin settlement p*ssed me off so much last night, I can't tell how much. They had such a strong case already, the judge had already ruled that Fox did broadcast lies and Dominion had not to prove that anymore to the jury. Damn, I so wanted to see all these liars on stand (especially this a-hole Tucker Carlson, who wanted to get a female colleague fired because she reported facts!! ) admitting to their lies and defrauding of their own audience.

This settlement should have at least compelled Fox to air public acknowledgements, apologies and retractions of their disinformation for the next 6 months in each of these talking-heads shows. This would have been the real blow to Fox and their hosts because this is their true currency (the $1.6bn would have been almost petty cash).

But, oh well, justice always has to take a detour, I guess. At least we got their admissions from discovery that they fear (and loath) their own viewers as a consequence of their feeding them all this crap for the sake of profit.

On a slightly different subject, I guess I could put this in the "funny shit" thread, but I'm in this thread now and I reckon someone here might like this.

I thought it was funny until the very last part with the owner. I didn't get that.

[Wolkenkrabber]

When we discussed Funk D'Void here back in 2017, I hadn't previously heard of The Proud Boys. I must admit I just thought they were minor "assholes" like Mr D'Void himself (he later issued a half-assed apology for associating with them).
Who knew they would go on to be found guilty of seditious conspiracy in an attempted coup?!

BTW I also mention Gary Glitter in that 2017 Funk D'Void/Proud Boys post. And I mentioned Gary Glitter more recently right here in this thread.
Since then,  Glitter did actually get released from jail:
https://twitter.com/rtl_today/status/1621510081996267520

and then got recalled to jail the following month:
https://twitter.com/MetroUK/status/1635349704832630784

Keeping you abreast of all the Gary Glitter news!

[MadPooter]

Never liked the vibe of the Proud Boys.

If their intent was to *actually* try to bring down the U.S. government on behalf of Trump, and apparently a jury thought the answer to that was a "yes," fuck those guys--they deserve prison.

[MadPooter]

Not sure how many people are following the news this past week about Jordan Neely, a black, homeless, mentally-ill individual who had to be restrained on a NYC subway train by fellow passengers after he started shouting on the subway train, and verbally threatening immediate physical harm to other passengers.

Neely was apparently something of a known commodity on the NYC subway--he had a history of violently assaulting people on the subway, had been arrested over 40 times, and had an active warrant out for his arrest after he violently assaulted a 67 year-old woman (he broke her jaw).

Three people restrained him--one of them was a 24 year-old marine who put Neely in a chokehold--and police/emergency personnel were notified.

Tragically, Neely died as a result of asphyxiation--the coroner ruled it a homicide.

The Left is treating this as a race issue because Neely was black and the marine is white, and asking why the system failed Neely.

Here's my take.

https://twitter.com/DrPooter/status/1654940045919543296

Sources:

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/man-dies-on-subway-chokehold-incident/

https://nypost.com/2023/05/05/who-was-jordan-neely-the-man-killed-in-nyc-subway-chokehold/

Update:

from r/PublicFreakout

People were blocking the subway today in NYC in protest of... whatever they believe was wrong here.

[hstn]

Not sure how many people are following the news this past week about Jordan Neely, a black, homeless, mentally-ill individual who had to be restrained on a NYC subway train by fellow passengers after he started shouting on the subway train, and verbally threatening immediate physical harm to other passengers.

Neely was apparently something of a known commodity on the NYC subway--he had a history of violently assaulting people on the subway, had been arrested over 40 times, and had an active warrant out for his arrest after he violently assaulted a 67 year-old woman (he broke her jaw).

Three people restrained him--one of them was a 24 year-old marine who put Neely in a chokehold--and police/emergency personnel were notified.

Tragically, Neely died as a result of asphyxiation--the coroner ruled it a homicide.

The Left is treating this as a race issue because Neely was black and the marine is white, and asking why the system failed Neely.

Here's my take.

https://twitter.com/DrPooter/status/1654940045919543296

Sources:

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/man-dies-on-subway-chokehold-incident/

https://nypost.com/2023/05/05/who-was-jordan-neely-the-man-killed-in-nyc-subway-chokehold/

A man's crimes doesn't excuse him being restrained or murdered for a minor disturbance on the subway....also Ian Miles Chong is a crook

The Left is right btw...and it's not even black vs white as you shamelessly minimize it, the fact that the marine whose identity is being concealed by the media and police and the fact that he and many others are allowed to do acts of "vigilante justice" that may result in the deaths of people of color is more what's at play here

[MadPooter]

A man's crimes doesn't excuse him being restrained or murdered for a minor disturbance on the subway....also Ian Miles Chong is a crook

The Left is right btw...and it's not even black vs white as you shamelessly minimize it, the fact that the marine whose identity is being concealed by the media and police and the fact that he and many others are allowed to do acts of "vigilante justice" that may result in the deaths of people of color is more what's at play here

You have some serious conspiracy theories my friend.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/nyc-subway-rider-accused-jordan-neelys-chokehold-death-marine-veteran-rcna83068

https://nypost.com/2023/02/28/deshawn-thomas-allegedly-shoots-st-louis-homeless-man-execution-style-video/

[MadPooter]

https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1664424891372941312

Conservative pundit Matt Walsh made a documentary about the conversation of transgender issues in America, titled "What Is a Woman?"

Twitter initially made a deal to allow the Daily Wire to post the documentary and make it available to view for free for 24 hours.

Twitter reviewed the documentary and backpedaled. They stated that they could not allow the documentary to be available on Twitter because it is considered "hateful conduct," specifically two moments in the documentary where people apparently misgender individuals.

Ultimately Twitter allowed the Daily Wire to post the documentary, though the tweet containing the stream of the video was heavily restricted, labeled as hateful conduct, and people were not able to share the link to the tweet directly.

Having watched the documentary, it's just some conservative dude going around asking a bunch of basic questions and not reacting when people get flustered.

The documentary's perspective comes from the traditional limitations of Conservative thought--there's a certain amount of fear of the unknown of what is outside of the ideas of a nuclear family.

Nevertheless, there are important questions presented in how we're handling the transgender issues with our children. And what is more disturbing to me is an indication of repression of a full discussion of the topic, exemplified in how Twitter itself handled negotiating the availability of the documentary on its platform.

I certainly would not characterize the documentary as hate. I don't agree with the limited perspective of where Matt Walsh is coming from, but the point he's making seems to be grounded in genuine concerns.

Anyway. Enough transphobic ranting for one day.

[hstn]

https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1664424891372941312

Conservative pundit Matt Walsh made a documentary about the conversation of transgender issues in America, titled "What Is a Woman?"

Twitter initially made a deal to allow the Daily Wire to post the documentary and make it available to view for free for 24 hours.

Twitter reviewed the documentary and backpedaled. They stated that they could not allow the documentary to be available on Twitter because it is considered "hateful conduct," specifically two moments in the documentary where people apparently misgender individuals.

Ultimately Twitter allowed the Daily Wire to post the documentary, though the tweet containing the stream of the video was heavily restricted, labeled as hateful conduct, and people were not able to share the link to the tweet directly.

Having watched the documentary, it's just some conservative dude going around asking a bunch of basic questions and not reacting when people get flustered.

The documentary's perspective comes from the traditional limitations of Conservative thought--there's a certain amount of fear of the unknown of what is outside of the ideas of a nuclear family.

Nevertheless, there are important questions presented in how we're handling the transgender issues with our children. And what is more disturbing to me is an indication of repression of a full discussion of the topic, exemplified in how Twitter itself handled negotiating the availability of the documentary on its platform.

I certainly would not characterize the documentary as hate. I don't agree with the limited perspective of where Matt Walsh is coming from, but the point he's making seems to be grounded in genuine concerns.

Anyway. Enough transphobic ranting for one day.

The only repression going on right now is to the queer and trans individuals who have to face the BS of bigots constantly questioning their existence daily. The groomer/what is a woman mentality has been damaging to the LGBTQ+ community all over the country with all the laws being passed and perverts like Matt Walsh constantly riding this discourse when the general American really doesn't care about "wokeness" or whatever buzzword conservative bigots come up with to deny people like myself civil liberties

Also first Ian Miles Cheong, now Matt Walsh, kinda on the wrong side of history don't you think? Especially when there are so many conservatives/alt right people trying to frame LGBTQ+ people and drag queens as groomers when many seem to forget about the skeletons in their own closet, it's never been about the children at all


Protect Trans Kids

[MadPooter]

The only repression going on right now is to the queer and trans individuals who have to face the BS of bigots constantly questioning their existence daily. The groomer/what is a woman mentality has been damaging to the LGBTQ+ community all over the country with all the laws being passed and perverts like Matt Walsh constantly riding this discourse when the general American really doesn't care about "wokeness" or whatever buzzword conservative bigots come up with to deny people like myself civil liberties

Also first Ian Miles Cheong, now Matt Walsh, kinda on the wrong side of history don't you think? Especially when there are so many conservatives/alt right people trying to frame LGBTQ+ people and drag queens as groomers when many seem to forget about the skeletons in their own closet, it's never been about the children at all


Protect Trans Kids

I certainly feel for trans individuals that have to deal with idiots harassing them.

I don't think that asking questions about what is best for children is somehow responsible for that harassment, and there was nothing about Matt Walsh's disposition toward trans individuals in the documentary that made me feel that that was the intent (he actually talks to trans individuals directly and the conversations appeared very respectful).

I'm not sure why you mentioned Ian Miles Chong--he had nothing to do with the production of Matt Walsh's documentary and I didn't reference him. Are you referring to the entirely different topic of conversation regarding the NYC incident from weeks ago and tying it somehow to this discussion?

With regards to history, from what I've read there is an actual legitimate concern with the long-term health effects of puberty blockers, and there is a legitimate question with applying the treatment as a "salve" whenever a minor questions their gender. European countries have reversed course and are now calling for more data before relying on hormone blockers.

It would be particularly tragic if we ended up permanently and adversely affecting the health of minors because they were presented with a false dichotomy of either taking puberty blockers or dying.

I'm not a medical or psychological expert, but there appear to be real questions from experts in those fields that are suggesting there are known, permanent adverse health effects from prescribing puberty blockers, and there are no known studies that fully present an adequate consideration of the risks.

I'm not sure what you mean when you say "protect trans kids" when what you appear to be saying is "this shouldn't be discussed."

[Stefan]

This whole bigotry from the so-called conservatives is so laughable, since it's the very same people who argue that oh they care so much for the children, at the same time want firearms to be handed out basically like candy. Thoughts and prayers I guess.
And, while they dream up their conspiracy narrative of LGBTQ groomer culture, are often pretty silent when it comes to the countless abuse scandals in religious groups.
They care about the children? Gender-Affirming care acutally reduces suicide risk among non-heteronormative youth. It's not about protecting children, it's about denying neccessary healthcare.

The laughable idea that their bathroom bills are about protecting women from harrassment (lol, men do that all the time, no one ever felt the need to dress up for that), while in reality, it leads to women getting harrassed for using the bathroom. It's not about protecting women from harrassment, it's about denying people access to the public space who don't conform with white supremacists ideas of how women should look like.

Btw, in case you think there are any legitimate questions raised by Matt Walsh in this movie, here's an extensive fact-check on his pseudoscientific hit-piece: https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/in-what-is-a-woman-matt-walsh-asks-a-question/

If you are generally curious about the "transgender issue", aks yourself why trans people are far more likely to be victims of crimes and harrassement than cis people, why trans people have worse access to healthcare, why they are at higher risk for suicide.

I'm sorry that you think Walshs movie is a legitimate documentary and not see it for just another puzzle-piece in the "Conservative"'s hatred of non-heteronormative people.

[Stefan]

I'm not a medical or psychological expert, but there appear to be real questions from experts in those fields that are suggesting there are known, permanent adverse health effects from prescribing puberty blockers, and there are no known studies that fully present an adequate consideration of the risks.

Yes, which is why you shouldn't consult a TV production produced by a right-wing crook on a right-wing network for answers.
Here's a list of statements by actual reputable medical associations and organizations:
https://transhealthproject.org/resources/medical-organization-statements/

[hstn]

I certainly feel for trans individuals that have to deal with idiots harassing them.

I don't think that asking questions about what is best for children is somehow responsible for that harassment, and there was nothing about Matt Walsh's disposition toward trans individuals in the documentary that made me feel that that was the intent (he actually talks to trans individuals directly and the conversations appeared very respectful).

I'm not sure why you mentioned Ian Miles Chong--he had nothing to do with the production of Matt Walsh's documentary and I didn't reference him. Are you referring to the entirely different topic of conversation regarding the NYC incident from weeks ago and tying it somehow to this discussion?

With regards to history, from what I've read there is an actual legitimate concern with the long-term health effects of puberty blockers, and there is a legitimate question with applying the treatment as a "salve" whenever a minor questions their gender. European countries have reversed course and are now calling for more data before relying on hormone blockers.

It would be particularly tragic if we ended up permanently and adversely affecting the health of minors because they were presented with a false dichotomy of either taking puberty blockers or dying.

I'm not a medical or psychological expert, but there appear to be real questions from experts in those fields that are suggesting there are known, permanent adverse health effects from prescribing puberty blockers, and there are no known studies that fully present an adequate consideration of the risks.

I'm not sure what you mean when you say "protect trans kids" when what you appear to be saying is "this shouldn't be discussed."

The only thing that isn't up for discussion is the validity of the lives of real people, Stefan's sources sum it up best.

So many of my friends are queer and I'm witnessing this shit in real time, for crooks like Matt Walsh and all these other right wing grifters to prey on an already vulnerable group of people is unbelievably egregious. The last thing they should have to do is justify their existence...period.

 I said what I said. Protect Trans Kids.

[hstn]

This whole bigotry from the so-called conservatives is so laughable, since it's the very same people who argue that oh they care so much for the children, at the same time want firearms to be handed out basically like candy. Thoughts and prayers I guess.
And, while they dream up their conspiracy narrative of LGBTQ groomer culture, are often pretty silent when it comes to the countless abuse scandals in religious groups.

Ntm how many conservatives are actually predatory themselves (Matt Walsh especially)

https://www.mediamatters.org/matt-walsh/majority-report-sam-seder-cites-media-matters-research-argue-matt-walsh-fixated-bit

https://twitter.com/theserfstv/status/1595244230200688641
 
This is what I mean when I say "wrong side of history" because they don't care about our children, not at all, this is the type of stuff that should be fought against and denounced