Why do Republicans make so many strawman arguments?

Why, do people get so weirded out when you say all lives matter after all aren't black lives a subset of all lives? When you take exception to the phrase 'all lives matter' like it or not you are telling me that only black lives matter.

 

If the electoral college to you Americans is so awful write your representatives and start a movement for a constitutional amendment. Don’t throw a four year temper tantrum. I have small children and teenagers who have more maturity than to do that!!

 

Well, after 250 years of systematically being EXCLUDED from many wealth building programs (The Homestead Act, Original GI Bill, Jim Crow Laws, etc) I'm going to cut them some slack if they tend to concentrate a bit more on themselves for a few decades. I guess that makes them horrible people in your eyes.

 

Democrats: Black lives matter.

Republicans: No! ALL lives matter!

Democrats: We agree lives matter. You seem to have a problem with the 'Black' part. Why is that?

 

FoxHastings said: ↑
I call this the "Bumper sticker" mentality.......if it's too long to fit on a bumper sticker, they don't understand it...

Nice rant but what it has to do with my post you quoted is a mystery....sorry it was too long for a bumper sticker

 

The other side says the same thing, and I agree with them. Nobody should be getting weirded out. The left has never been very good at slogans/names, and perhaps this is one of those instances. "Believe all women" is another poorly worded slogan.

The point is, if anyone is confused as to the meaning of "black lives matter," all they have to do is ask, or give it a little thought. Try this.

Let's use puppies. If I'm killing all the runts, you can say, "All puppies' lives matter," and it would be perfectly reasonable and understood. You could also say, "Runts lives matter," and that would also be reasonable and understood. Since the latter statement does not preclude the former, they are both saying the same thing. The use of "all" implies "to the inclusion of runts." The latter statement is direct.

If people are confused by the name, they should, by now, be aware of the real mission. A more sinister conclusion would be that certain people have an aversion to saying "black lives matter." Either way, when people stop weirding out about the organization's name, others will stop weirding out about people weirding out. Too much nonsensical division in this country.

 

Do you not think black falls under "all"? Do you view them as separate from humanity? The reason that it matters to say all lives matter is because people are being punished for saying that, and being called racist, or losing their jobs. That is absolutely wrong.

The whole idea of race is a trap. It will divide humanity whether you fall on the "good" or "bad" side of things. Calling out black or white or purple is only going to cause resentment and deepen the divide in this country. As I said earlier, these bodies are just vehicles for the soul/spirit. Hating someone for the color of their skin is as stupid as hating people who drive a certain color of car. It's ridiculous. We need to ignore the color of someone's skin and just say "yep, thats a human being".

 

But what those examples show are not simply "deception". They are basically a major political party's platform. They are repeated by Republican officials at all levels of the GOP structure. And when a political party's entire political platform is based on deception, there is a problem. The type of problem that can lead to a whole political party being taken over by a pathological deceiver like Trump.

This is an important thing to be addressed by the GOP when Trump is out of the picture. If they ever want to be considered a serious alternative again, they need to assure people that another Trump would not succeed. And to do that, they need to start speaking FACTS, not just "bumper sticker" deception, to their base. Even if their base doesn't like it.

 

The left assumes that people understand what they are saying. And the large majority of people, with an average intelligence or above, do understand. Even those who act as if they don't. Those people understand what "Black Lives Matter' means. Just like "Defund the Police". Sure... they can be twisted and used against Democrats by right-wing extremists. Some of them because they actually don't understand (see "average intelligence" rule above). The large majority of them do and think that they are "harming" proponents by twisting them. But Democrats don't care. The debate makes more people aware of the principle behind the phrase. And I think all this started with BLM. And the left has realized that the more "obscure" the bumper sticker phrase is, the more it will drive right wingers to make it popular.

It's a trap the left uses to get the right to promote legitimate points for them. And so long as right-wingers keep falling for it, the more traps the left will set.

 

Blacks are targeted. Always have been. "All lives" haven't been targeted.

 

Well they certainly have special rights and protections and access now.

I was reminded of that every time I filled out a job application when I had to indicate my race knowing that being white could only harm my chances of an offer.

 

Yeah, me too. I did okay, and I'm sure you have as well. Plus, how many times have you had to do that? Been 15 years for me. I tend to stay at my jobs for a decade or more. Seems to be a minor inconvenience, and I've never been denied a job because I'm white.

 

I agree that anyone without bias and with common sense understands these things. I would prefer nobody attack names and slogans, and rather discuss the issues themselves, but there will always be extremists on both sides. This is the first time that a POTUS has lived up to those expectations.

 

I was at one job for 20 years and was told I was hired due to my university educational background. Two African Americans followed me in the same job who never set foot in a college classroom. One sometimes wouldn’t even show up for work and when they tried to discipline him he threatened them with legal action due to their racism. After 9 months they did let him go but told me they would have to replace him with another African American to protect themselves legally. That man was even less qualified. And I doubt any company would ever admit anyone was not hired because they are white.

 

It doesn't make any difference. If Trump wanted to win the popular vote, he would have held rallies during the general election in CA, NY, IL and other states he conceded. The national popular vote is meaningless. Trump was brilliant in 2016.

 

According to his biography no one was more shocked that Trump won than Trump himself.
I’m shocked that he even ran given his businesses.

 

Life's a bitch. Lot's of unqualified people out there, of all races and ethnicities. I go to work, do my job, and go home. Idiots and *******s don't bother me.

Those were corporate decisions at your company. It's they who hired incompetent people.

 

I agree the PV is meaningless, but Trump isn't brilliant. He got lucky.

There's nothing wrong with the EC. I agree with it in principle, though a lot has changed since its inception. It's a rare occurrence that the winner of the EC loses the PV. The concern today isn't so much for the election process as it is for the fact Republicans have won the popular vote only once in the last 28 years.

 

Let's see what happens after Trump loses.

I think he'll go peaceably, but that's really only because his refusing, and the consequent spectacle his violent removal and riots by Trumpers would cause the Republican Party is something of a wet dream of mine and many others who think the Republican Party should cease to be a viable political influence in this country. The actual facts of the matter seem to belie it. Trump has given a substantial indication that he won't go easily, and this is not a man who kids (at least so he tells us.)

 

But would ANY answer from a Dem...be acceptable to you?
Am guessing no.

 

Well they are corporate decisions based on pressure from federal decisions.

But it’s their company so not much I can do.

 

Plagiarism and unoriginal. Says more about you than what you think you are saying.

 

There was a time when Irish were targeted; when Italians were targeted; when Jews were targeted. There's a little Italy in many cities. There are a few Chinatowns. My grandfather moved to the US in 1903 at 17 years old from Kolomyya, Ukraine. He too moved to a neighborhood of people who could help him assimilate and he became a sample maker in the garment industry.

What happened to blacks? First, Johnson needed their vote, so he transformed people who at one time worked but couldn't vote into people who could vote but not work. Johnson provided incentives for black fathers to leave the family and destine their children to failure. Then black leaders target blacks who try to assimilate ,,, because success in the Black Community is bad for the Jacksons and Sharptons.

In summary, blacks have been betrayed by the Democratic Party and their own leaders.

 

Sure, but it's always been that way. There are plenty of qualified people of all races, genders, sexual orientation, etc.

Here, we have a small but not insignificant black, Asian and native population, and a very large Hispanic population. Everyone is represented at my workplace, and the way to get ahead is with effort. Hasn't always been that way. For a good ten year period the way to get ahead was to kiss butt. I despise butt kissers, but I endured. Much better now with new owners. Perhaps ironically, our new owners are global, and they are big supporters of what are characterized as far left ideas; diversity, environmental responsibility and worker safety. That's just my anecdotal experience, but as I work with half-a-dozen different races and nationalities, I can quell anyone's fears that immigrants are "taking over." One co-worker is first generation American, parents Vietnamese, raised in New Orleans, loves the Saints and sea fishing, and talks like a New Awlns southerner. Just as American as you or me. Anyway, as I've wandered totally off topic, I'm saying diversity is at best beneficial (my view), and at worst benign.

 

Well I’m in Amsterdam now and the atmosphere is entirely different. But that’s a whole other story.