Doesn’t Matter Who Wins the K Race; We’re All the Same

[ThurgreedMarshall]

Originally Posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy

Nobody made him resign. Franken could have done what Northam is doing. He would have had to have borne some slings and arrows, and he'd probably have a lot fewer supporters today, because it would have been ugly.

I wish you wouldn't say shit like this. Yeah, he didn't have to resign. No one ever has to resign. We know the reality of why he resigned. If it were as you said, clear and inevitable, he wouldn't have asked for an inquiry. His request was rejected by those that decided he needed to be over. He was forced out. But, whatever. I'm sick of this shit.

TM

[LessinSF]

Ms. Akke has thrown her hat into the ring to be appoint to a Nevada trial court in Las Vegas. She was 3rd in her US law school class, is also a Dutch attorney, works for a top civil firm in LV, and was a dancer at Crazy Horse de Paris and a showgirl at the Stardust. That is a true Las Vegas story.

https://www.morrislawgroup.com/team-view/akke-levin/

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally Posted by ThurgreedMarshall

I wish you wouldn't say shit like this. Yeah, he didn't have to resign. No one ever has to resign. We know the reality of why he resigned. If it were as you said, clear and inevitable, he wouldn't have asked for an inquiry. His request was rejected by those that decided he needed to be over. He was forced out. But, whatever. I'm sick of this shit.

TM

I could be wrong, but my recollection was that it had been referred to the ethics committee but he resigned before the review happened. I don't think any request was rejected. But, yeah, a very large number of his colleagues said, Al, just leave, because we're sick of this shit.

but again, this is all a footnote to the fucking declaration of emergency to subvert the legislature's constitutional powers today

[ThurgreedMarshall]

Originally Posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy

I could be wrong, but my recollection was that it had been referred to the ethics committee but he resigned before the review happened. I don't think any request was rejected. But, yeah, a very large number of his colleagues said, Al, just leave, because we're sick of this shit.

Correct. The request wasn't rejected, the chorus just pushed him out before the review occurred.

Originally Posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy

but again, this is all a footnote to the fucking declaration of emergency to subvert the legislature's constitutional powers today

Can't wait for Republicans to talk about how the next Democrat President is a mad king when he or she declares actual national emergencies relating to gun control, climate change, white nationalist/supremacist groups, and voting rights.

TM

[Oliver_Wendell_Ramone]

Originally Posted by ThurgreedMarshall

I don't think anything I've said indicates that I think she was being insincere. I think it is an important issue to her. But I also think that (i) she wanted to make this her thing and forcing Franken out was part of that and (ii) I don't think she was particularly thoughtful about Franken in particular.

If I ask whether or not Franken should be heard and investigated, and if the behavior warrants banishment (as compared to other types of harassment), and you respond, "I can't tell my son it's okay to touch someone here, but not here," you are giving me a bullshit answer. Period. I watched her do it. She wanted to own the issue, but she didn't want to deal with any nuance whatsoever. Maybe that's not particular to her; maybe that's just what politicians do. But refusing to engage in a thoughtful discussion about how we deal with different levels or types of harassment and leading the charge to oust someone no matter what, is not what I want in a politician.*

Yeah. It's incredibly difficult to remember circumstances surrounding completely anonymous accusations. To the extent they weren't I believe Franken was completely respectful of the accusers and did not simply dismiss them. I do think he wanted an opportunity to dig in to them a bit and address them. He was not given that opportunity.

Are you fucking kidding with this shit?

You say this like you're not just redrafting your entire argument. Franken clearly wanted an inquiry and a chance to address the allegations formally. Gillibrand (and others, but her, the most and loudest) didn't want to give him that opportunity. I think that's wrong. You don't. I honestly don't understand how anyone (especially on this board) can be advocating for punishing people without giving them some sort of opportunity to get to the bottom of the truth and an opportunity to defend themselves.

Notice I have yet to defend Franken. You keep saying I'm blaming Gillibrand. That's kinda true, I guess. But I'm blaming her for trying to sweep the guy out before an ethics inquiry was carried out. That's what she tried to do and what she helped achieve.

It is only clear that he was going down because Gillibrand and a chorus of others decided that was what was going to happen. If Gillibrand and Bernie and Harris had said, "These allegations are extremely concerning. Let's conduct a thorough investigation before rushing to declare our colleague persona non grata. Make no mistake, he will not receive special treatment as a Democrat, friend, or colleague. Etc., etc., etc." it would only be clear that he was going down based on the results of the inquiry.

TM

*That said, if she's the nominee, she'll get all of my support.

You know, people might take you more seriously if you noted that you are one of her constituents...

[ThurgreedMarshall]

Originally Posted by Oliver_Wendell_Ramone

You know, people might take you more seriously if you noted that you are one of her constituents...

Check and mate, mate.

TM

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by ThurgreedMarshall

Fair enough, asshole.

This was a much more tolerant response than I expected.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy

Why the fuck aren't we talking about this national emergency bullshit.

We're suddenly a 1960s style banana republic. Fuck it, do two bit Latin American dictators even declare states of emergency any more?

[Replaced_Texan]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

That's a damn good article.

Generally, we need to break the stranglehold that big education is using to extort money from kids. At the same time, we need to get rid of the current student loan system.

Credentialism has gone way too far in this country. Kids study for the test so they can satisfy the criteria demanded by HR departments. Every position needs some moronic certification or degree, and most these certifications and degrees aren't worth shit. They're entirely academic and largely inapplicable to what one is doing in the real world. And yet, corporate America, lazy as it is, uses these silly measures to winnow out applicants.

Peter Thiel is wrong about a lot, but he's dead right in suggesting that many bright kids should bag college and go straight into the workforce. Tech seems to embrace the idea of talent over credentials as well. Hopefully, this trend will continue.

As to student loans, they should be dischargeable up to 50% in bankruptcy. No 18 year old should have to suffer a miserable existence because when she was immature she was allowed to take out a loan for $150k for a degree in social work or modern dance, or because she decided to do the right thing and get a STEM degree only to find that everyone else did that same thing and she found herself graduating into a job market glutted with STEM degree holders.

When the loans become dischargeable, you'll see the Feds act more prudently in lending. You'll see the private lenders exit the market entirely. This will force Big Education to provide value, rather than sushi bars in the student union. This might, if we're lucky, compel Big Education to run like an actual corporation -- to fire the dead weight on its employment rolls, stop wasteful spending on shiny new dorms to attract more govt backed loan money, and refocus on providing education at a reasonable price.

This will, of course, require a house cleaning of most of the management at universities as well. Having dealt with education professionals on projects, I can say, and would probably find much agreement here, that there is nothing more dangerous and clueless than a lifelong educator with an MBA. These people should be barred from all budgets and all funds save perhaps petty cash.

I believe Warren may make student loans dischargeable for at least millenials. That's one of the reasons that I like her, despite having strong reservations about many of her other policy prescriptions.

Physical therapists these days need to go get PhDs. It's the standard. And it's getting ridiculous.

I've been working at an institution of higher education for nearly 17 years now. Mine is slightly different than most in that it's also a massive clinical enterprise as well. Our highest paid folk are definitely faculty members, but they're also physicians. What I've seen over the years is a massive decrease in state and federal funding at all levels. It's scary, especially, in the funding of basic sciences. Do we really, as a society, want the corporations funding all of our scientific inquiry? Research dollars, allocations for education from the state, general government funding is harder and harder to come by. Living in a "business friendly" state means that we struggle to come up with revenue to pay for K-12, let alone help out our institutions of higher education.

[LessinSF]

Originally Posted by Oliver_Wendell_Ramone

You know, people might take you more seriously if you noted that you are one of her constituents...

As a mother, I think .....

LessiJasper, where it was -20 last night.

[LessinSF]

Unrelatedly, i'd like to run this by y'all. Shouldn't they all be impeached for incompetence?
https://www.mintpressnews.com/search...istory/253272/

[Icky Thump]

Originally Posted by Hank Chinaski

My best memory is trying to inch our way across a 5 lane highway- couldn't even figure how to start- finally just walked next to a mom holding an infant and walking a 2 year old- she knew the score.

For a true NYer you really don’t know how to cross streets.

It’s not so different from crossing the street in Manhattan. Substitute scooters for Citibikes. You dash out when there’s space.

[Icky Thump]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

My family member told me the airport people apologized profusely that they did not have a BMW or Mercedes to ferry them to the hotel. They were embarrassed they had to provide some lesser SUV.

Residents get something like $200k every new year's day. Like Alaska... only 20X better.

You fly the A380? Or the G5?

A380. I don’t get to use the G5. Just pay for it.

[sebastian_dangerfield]

Originally Posted by Replaced_Texan

Physical therapists these days need to go get PhDs. It's the standard. And it's getting ridiculous.

I've been working at an institution of higher education for nearly 17 years now. Mine is slightly different than most in that it's also a massive clinical enterprise as well. Our highest paid folk are definitely faculty members, but they're also physicians. What I've seen over the years is a massive decrease in state and federal funding at all levels. It's scary, especially, in the funding of basic sciences. Do we really, as a society, want the corporations funding all of our scientific inquiry? Research dollars, allocations for education from the state, general government funding is harder and harder to come by. Living in a "business friendly" state means that we struggle to come up with revenue to pay for K-12, let alone help out our institutions of higher education.

Interior decorators need licenses in some states. When I was vetting HR directors for someone a few years back, the list of mindless credentials behind each name went on forever. I never asked what any of them meant and never gave a shit. And I don't think anyone else did either. Except the little robots in HR who winnowed out all the candidates without these stupid letters after their names.

I bet I could apply for endless positions electronically and just submit random strings of capital letters occasionally separated by commas and get invited to interviews.

It's a barrier to entry that keeps the poor kids, or the people who couldn't be bothered to acquire a credit from some academic gatekeeper with no real world knowledge, at a disadvantage to kids whose folks could pay for the tutors or test classes, and less talented people who are willing to spend time collecting credentials. I have one friend who's already retired with cuckoo cash. Person has neither an MBA nor a CFA. Deemed both of them wastes of time -- things to do while he focused on generating returns. He's the one lucky bastard of the crowd. Everyone else I know burns untold hours studying for these certifications and degrees at tremendous opportunity costs. But here's the thing... If you discuss markets with this person, he's far more knowledgeable than anyone I've met with an MBA or CFA.

I acquired an utterly useless post-grad degree many years ago for the sole reason of using it to generate a pay raise. It worked. I doubled my money. I learned almost nothing, but the investment paid off. One hiring manager told me I showed commitment by pursuing additional education. You never fully realize how completely different the inside of another person's head can be until your hear something like that. The immediate thought is This person is amazingly credulous. Then you realize, perception is reality. And some people actually believe that what they see on the resume, and the ludicrous facade one presents, approaches the reality within the applicant's head.

The corporate world, as it automates more and more, is becoming frighteningly similar to a Matrix. Affluent little robots, taught to take tests, going through the ticky tack motions in the ticky tack world.

We need to prescribe LSD, mushrooms, and meditation to these kids. But, then again, if one never grasps that it's all a game, maybe he's better off. I'd never give up enlightenment, but ignorance delivers a lot more happiness.

Regarding the research institutions, I agree with you. I don't think it's good to have corporations take over that role. All we'd wind up with is newer forms of faster acting Botox and hard-on pills. I don't want corporations to take over academia at all. I just want academia to operate more like a corporation in terms of providing value, rather than acting as monopolists with an endless supply of fed backed loan income.

[sebastian_dangerfield]

Originally Posted by Icky Thump

A380. I don’t get to use the G5. Just pay for it.

If you have a G5 and you're still working, you either need to get rid of the G5 and the other items that require you to keep working or go to a terminal cancer ward and make the following inquiry to patients:

"How much do you regret not spending more time at the office?"