Chit-Chat: The Feels

[Anela]

8 minutes ago, isalicat said:

More fact checking (Google is your friend) indicates Trump had nothing to do with this and did not know anything about Romania releasing the Tate brothers:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpq222rqv4po

https://www.npr.org/2025/02/27/nx-s1-5311621/andrew-tate-brothers-romania-florida

And it looks like they are not very welcome:

"When asked about their arrival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters that while the decision to rebuff their entry lies with the Trump administration, the state's attorney general is looking into what authority "we may have to be able to deal with this."

"The reality is: No, Florida is not a place where you're welcome with that type of conduct up in the air," DeSantis said. "I don't know how it came to this. We were not involved, we were not notified." "

You know if you want to complain about stuff, its always good to make sure its real stuff. 😺

A recent article:

https://www.ft.com/content/3f951e0b-a9cb-489a-be89-fdf9f996ed27

Quote

Trump administration presses Romania to lift restrictions on Andrew Tate 

 

Donald Trump’s administration has pressed Romanian authorities to lift travel restrictions on the self-described misogynist influencer Andrew Tate, a champion of the US president who is facing criminal charges in Bucharest.

Andrew and his brother Tristan Tate, who are dual US and UK nationals, have become a cause célèbre in rightwing social media after having been arrested in Romania in 2022 and charged with human trafficking, sexual misconduct and money laundering, as well as starting an organised crime group. They have denied wrongdoing. 

The Tates’ case was first brought up by US officials in a phone call with the Romanian government last week and then followed up by Trump’s special envoy Richard Grenell when he met the Romanian foreign minister at the Munich Security Conference, said three people familiar with the matter. 

A fourth person said a request was made to return the brothers’ passports and allow them to travel while they wait for court proceedings to conclude. 

Romanian foreign minister Emil Hurezeanu declined to comment on his exchange with Grenell. His spokesperson said Hurezeanu initiated the meeting and that they had “known each other for a long time” as they had both served as ambassadors in Berlin during the first Trump presidency. 

The spokesperson did not comment on their specific discussions but said: “Romanian courts are independent and operate based on the law, there is due process.”

Grenell said he had “no substantive conversation” with Hurezeanu, whom he denied knowing. He “saw me in the hallway” in Munich and “asked for a meeting”, but there was no other follow-up encounter, Grenell said. “I support the Tate brothers as evident by my publicly available tweets,” he added.

This month Grenell wrote on X that Romania was the “latest example” of how funds disbursed by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) had been “weaponised against people and politicians who weren’t woke”. The Trump administration has slashed USAID payments and attempted to fire many of its staff.

Tristan Tate has called on supporters to find out “if any USAID went to Romania to fund any particular Lawfare base investigations” — in an apparent reference to his and his brother’s own cases.

The Tate brothers have millions of online followers in the “manosphere” — online platforms targeted at young men that promote male superiority and reject feminism — which played a role in Trump’s re-election. Tucker Carlson, a Trump ally and former Fox anchor, has carried out sympathetic interviews with both brothers, calling on viewers to “make up their own mind” about them.

Tristan Tate boasted on X in November about the brothers’ role in the US election, claiming “millions of young men in Europe and the USA have a healthy rightwing approach to politics that they would NOT have if Andrew Tate had never appeared on their phone screens”.

The UK is also seeking the brothers’ extradition after police in Bedfordshire obtained an arrest warrant as part of an investigation into allegations of rape and human trafficking. A Romanian court ruled last year that they can be extradited once there is a final decision in their case in Romania.

A separate civil lawsuit was filed last week by a woman in Florida, which alleged the brothers coerced her into sex work after having lured her to Romania and accused them of defaming her after she testified against them in Bucharest. 

The pair have recently secured a legal victory in Romania, after an appeals court sent their case back to prosecutors. They were also released from house arrest, but are not allowed to leave the country.

“The Tate brothers remain fully dedicated to working alongside their legal team to explore every legal avenue available within the framework of Romania’s judicial system,” the brothers said in a written statement. 

“Their sole focus is on ensuring that due process is followed and that their innocence is established in a court of law.”

US vice-president JD Vance last week lashed out at Romanian authorities for annulling a presidential election, as an example of an alleged crackdown on rightwing politicians threatening Europe’s democracy “from within”. 

The country’s constitutional court in December said it took the unprecedented step because the electoral process had been “flawed” by a highly sophisticated social media campaign suspected of having been co-ordinated by Moscow.
 

Vance said the vote cancellation was based on “flimsy suspicions of an intelligence agency and enormous pressure from its continental neighbours”. 

The US vice-president’s criticism was seen as vindication by the far-right candidate who topped the cancelled vote, Călin Georgescu, who plans to run again in a May rerun. His campaign chief’s home was raided by police last week after Georgescu declared having spent zero money on his election campaign. If criminal proceedings are brought against him, the constitutional court could dismiss his bid for the presidency.

Georgescu was interviewed on Sunday by another “manosphere” influencer, Mario Nawfal, who described him on X as “Romania’s rightful president” who risked being barred from running. “The EXACT playbook they tried against Trump,” he added.

 

 

[isalicat]

2 minutes ago, Anela said:

A recent article:

https://www.ft.com/content/3f951e0b-a9cb-489a-be89-fdf9f996ed27

 

If you actually read this article there are various "persons" quoted but the U.S. envoy says he never met or spoke with the Romanians about this issue (although he says he is a supporter of the Tates). And the UK wants them extradited to Britain to stand trial there. From all the other sources it seems like the Romanians can't come up with enough actual evidence to hold them and they (the Tates) still have not been convicted of anything anywhere, no matter how scummy the allegations. (I'm not supporting or defending them but if you want to champion human rights you have to apply that across the board, right?)

[Anela]

3 minutes ago, isalicat said:

If you actually read this article there are various "persons" quoted but the U.S. envoy says he never met or spoke with the Romanians about this issue (although he says he is a supporter of the Tates). And the UK wants them extradited to Britain to stand trial there. From all the other sources it seems like the Romanians can't come up with enough actual evidence to hold them and they (the Tates) still have not been convicted of anything anywhere, no matter how scummy the allegations. (I'm not supporting or defending them but if you want to champion human rights you have to apply that across the board, right?)

It was first brought up in a phone call. Why should I trust a known and convicted con man, over them? 

I have just been arguing with a MAGA who recently quoted trump calling Zelenskyy a dictator, and accusing him of starting the war with Russia. He quoted  it all as fact.  Now trump can’t recall saying such a thing, he can’t believe that he said that.  His own supporters have (and provided) receipts. 

I did read the whole article, by the way.  

[Dimity]

If the UK wants them extradited I'm sure Trump will move as swiftly to comply with this as he has to snatch food out of starving children's mouths.

 

[Anela]

Just now, Dimity said:

If the UK wants them extradited I'm sure Trump will move as swiftly to comply with this as he has to snatch food out of starving children's mouths.

 

Dimitri, I’ve just seen a post stating that we’re more likely to give Bezos money by posting in Facebook, than boycotting Amazon.  Remember me talking about twitch? 
I’ll link the link public post. 
 

https://www.facebook.com/adam.levenstein/posts/pfbid021eDJN6LEPcPjDySRUcxuHbW15ro6nDt7ntbXtYw1QXH2ADpwT48vxGHf2qjbbd2pl

Quote

Hi all, your friendly neighborhood misanthrope and naysayer here to burst y'alls's bubble.

So Jeff Bezos is a jerk, and people (understandably) want to boycott Amazon.

But there's a problem...Amazon will likely make more money from you posting on Facebook that you're boycotting Amazon than they would from you shopping from Amazon.

One of the issues with mega-corps like Amazon is that you *cannot* boycott them - because every day when you use the Internet you're using their services whether you know it (or want to) or not.

If you're not a techie, you may not have heard of Amazon Web Services. AWS is the largest US provider of what they call "cloud computing," basically the ability to create and scale virtual computers on the internet. (This is a MASSIVE oversimplification, but I'm trying to keep this short. Ish.)

AWS is not the only Cloud provider - Microsoft has Azure, and Google has GCP, and there are others - but AWS has the largest marketshare and this is not something that you, the end user, have any control over whatsoever.

Most of the websites you use on a daily basis are hosted or run largely, if not entirely, through AWS. Facebook, Netflix, Disney - all run on AWS. Want to turn on your Playstation? PSN runs on AWS. Want to order a homemade craft from Etsy? AWS. Watch something on Hulu? AWS.

And the part that REALLY sucks is that AWS is Amazon's biggest profit center by far; something like 3/4 of Amazon's income comes from AWS, not retail sales or Prime video. Amazon could completely shutter the retail business and they would still be massively profitable.

Literally the only way to *completely* boycott Amazon is to log off from the internet entirely - and even then, someone else will likely be doing something on your behalf; for example, restaurants and retail establishments usually have an aptly-abbreviated Point-Of-Sale system. Many of those, like FreedomPay, run via AWS.

None of this should be taken to mean that boycotts *in general* can't or don't work. But when it comes to Amazon, you need to understand the scope of the problem - it is SO much worse than you think, *because* Amazon is so entrenched into the modern economy. It is literally impossible to boycott them without going Full Amish or moving to a country with an independent ecosystem like Russia or China.

If you buy from them, they make money. If you *don't* buy from them, they still make money.

Back in the 80s, they used the phrase "too big to fail" to describe companies like GM who were so large that if they collapsed, it would destroy the economy.

Now we face a different kind of "too big to fail" - a form of capitalism in which it is literally impossible for an organization to lose money, marketshare, or power.

And *that* is a massive problem that a boycott simply cannot fix.

I cancelled my trial for KU, a day before they were due to charge me, but I also can’t afford it. 

[Eri]

I believe the Tate douchebros are only here (in the US) because there's a lawsuit involving them pending there (Florida). 

See for background: https://apnews.com/article/andrew-tate-lawsuit-human-trafficking-romania-florida-aacca97560a25848b03131d4aecd8ffe 

They accused the woman of defamation (gross) and the woman countersued. It was arranged by the federal government. Though, anything that makes DeSantis look bad is okey-dokey in my book. I mean, he still looks bad because he's *him*, so you can still feel good about that lol.

 

[Turquoise]

28 minutes ago, anony.miss said:

Many younger parents have no idea how to cook nutritious meals from scratch, and even if they do, they often don't have the time  - calling them 'lazy' (or any other name) does nothing to help them or their kids, imo.

I was on my local food pantry board a decade ago-we got a large donation of bagged dried beans, but we noticed people were bringing them back or complaining that they weren't good, because they didn't know what to do with them. I grew up in a household with a mom who taught me how to cook, who was taught by her mom, and I went on to teach my son and now starting with my grandchildren when they stay with me. We realized that just because we had that didn't mean everyone else had the same. So we made up a little sheet with how to soak them, how to cook in a crockpot, on stove, or make baked beans in oven, how much liquid, inexpensive ingredients you could add to them and put a sheet in each bag. It was very well received.

[heatherchandler]

1 hour ago, Lugal said:

I agree with all of that, and if governments want to ban them as unsafe, I'm fine with that. But to just say that poor people can't have it, I can't agree with it.  And for the record, I haven't drank soda for probably twenty-some years.  Don't miss it.  People should not be drinking it for hydration.

It’s not saying poor people can’t have it, it’s more that SNAP is for nutrition and soda is the opposite of that.

[Dimity]

1 hour ago, peacheslatour said:

I was dropping my son off at daycare once and I saw that the two year old son of the owner was drinking something brown out of his baby bottle. Thinking the kid was maybe constipated, I said "Prune juice?" and she answered "Diet Coke." I got a new daycare soon after that.

I remember being in a food court when we were visiting Atlanta years ago and seeing a woman pouring a bottle of Dr. Pepper into a baby bottle.  What surprised me almost as much as someone giving a baby a soft drink was that someone didn't mind other people knowing she was giving a baby a soft drink.

[peacheslatour]

7 minutes ago, Dimity said:

I remember being in a food court when we were visiting Atlanta years ago and seeing a woman pouring a bottle of Dr. Pepper into a baby bottle.  What surprised me almost as much as someone giving a baby a soft drink was that someone didn't mind other people knowing she was giving a baby a soft drink.

I was blown away. I had never heard of anything like that. What a rotten thing to do to a defenseless child.

[Dimity]

1 hour ago, anony.miss said:

Many younger parents have no idea how to cook nutritious meals from scratch, and even if they do, they often don't have the time  - calling them 'lazy' (or any other name) does nothing to help them or their kids, imo.

Also, and I am sure this is true for food pantries in the US just as here, they are very often used by people who are working, sometimes two or three jobs.  And those kinds of jobs tend to be physical and often very hard work.  The last thing these young, and not so young, people are is lazy.

[tres bien]

I went to MANA Nutrition’s website. They’re located a small town in GA. Population just over 9000

Their website lists quite a few other organizations they work with so at least they won’t go out of business and employees hopefully won’t be laid off 

Edited Yest. at 12:19 AM by tres bien

[Browncoat]

We have a food pantry on campus for our students, many of whom work full-time, and are parents in addition to taking classes.  The opposite of lazy.

[nokat]

We get taxed when we earn, when we save, when we spend. When we learn we pay, pay, pay. And there is some sh!tstain saying we're lazy. Who has done nothing in his life.

[Dimity]

If this is actually legit I have issues.  Putting aside that they are now trying to replace people they fired why is Elon Musk in anyway involved with hiring air traffic controllers? And second if we accept that this is not WRONG why the hell is  he using twitter to recruit people.  This is just utterly and completely beyond insane.

[MostlyContent]

5 minutes ago, Dimity said:

Putting aside that they are now trying to replace people they fired

They've always said no air traffic controllers were fired.  They're looking for over 3,000 new ones in addition to those we have because many towers are woefully understaffed.   

From what I remember, the tower at the time of the DC crash should have been staffed by 30 people, but because of being understaffed only 19 were working.  That sort of thing.  

[Makai]

3 hours ago, isalicat said:

More fact checking (Google is your friend) indicates Trump had nothing to do with this and did not know anything about Romania releasing the Tate brothers:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpq222rqv4po

https://www.npr.org/2025/02/27/nx-s1-5311621/andrew-tate-brothers-romania-florida

And it looks like they are not very welcome:

"When asked about their arrival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters that while the decision to rebuff their entry lies with the Trump administration, the state's attorney general is looking into what authority "we may have to be able to deal with this."

"The reality is: No, Florida is not a place where you're welcome with that type of conduct up in the air," DeSantis said. "I don't know how it came to this. We were not involved, we were not notified." "

You know if you want to complain about stuff, its always good to make sure its real stuff. 😺

Trump lies so his denial means nothing to me. No one wants to take credit for this one but someone in power did it. Frankly, it would be  more concerning to me if Trump is telling the truth because Tate was allowed back into Florida so how does the President and Governor of Florida have no clue how it happened? 

I am wondering if there are some behind the scenes things happening with the UK that no one wants to make public yet. Tate is also facing criminal charges there and Romania wasn’t willing to extradite. UK’s PM was at the White House today. 

2 hours ago, heatherchandler said:

It’s not saying poor people can’t have it, it’s more that SNAP is for nutrition and soda is the opposite of that.

As with so many other things happening now, it is far more complicated than just saying you’re banning soda. It’s hard to word the law in the perfect way to effectively ban foods that are deemed bad. Plus millions of low income Americans live in a food deserts where there aren’t a lot of viable alternatives. 

Personally, I have a hard time supporting anything restricting what food stamps can be spent in until we can guarantee kids are fed breakfast and lunch in school. The population most in need of resources are the ones who have no say in what food is bought for them. 

[Annber03]

8 hours ago, lookeyloo said:

Agree with comments and also support Food Banks.  Some folks don't have anything to cook on, as in stove, pots, etc.  This is in addition to foods that need some extra ingredients to prepare.  I read Viola Davis's memoir and since I am a social worker it didn't surprise me but it did horrify me all over again.  We (we in general, not us who are aware)  who have a roof over our heads and food we can at least heat up and add a thing or two sometimes just can't relate to the abject poverty that is all around us.  Our community has a homeless population.  So much talk of "get rid of them". they are human beings and most of them would love a job and a place to live.  When it is suggested "will you hire them?"  Oh no, not me.  Someone else.  Very complicated.  

Alongside that refrigerator statistic, I also remember bit from Fox News years ago where some idiot pundit was going on about how people who had microwaves couldn't really be THAT poor. 

Which was news to my family, who have lived in motels when we've been going thorugh financial hard times. Said motels had microwaves in the rooms. And refrigerators. 

And guess what? Didn't magically make us any less poor. 'Cause, y'know, living in a motel. 

8 hours ago, Anela said:

All of my phones have been secondhand. 

That's another thing - do people not think about the fact that some out there might've received these items as gifts? Or got them at a time when they were in a better ifnancial situation? 

And even if they did blow some of their limited funds on something nice? So what? Being poor sucks. Having to worry about your finances every single day sucks. It's stressful. So god forbid that poor people might occasionally, when they get a chance, want to splurge and buy at least one nice thing that distracts them from or briefly makes them forget about the fact that they're in a really shitty, stressful financial situation. Rich people can blow thousands, nay, millions of dollars on fancy toys and that's okay, it's their money, they can do what they want and if they happen to overspend a little, it's no problem, someone'll be there to bail them out and help them get financially stable again.

But poor people dare to splurge, and suddenly they have to account for every single fucking penny and prove that they're using that money the "right" way. 

And some out there still can't figure out why assholes like Musk are some of the most hated people on the planet right now. 

[Makai]

3 hours ago, Dimity said:

If this is actually legit I have issues.  Putting aside that they are now trying to replace people they fired why is Elon Musk in anyway involved with hiring air traffic controllers? And second if we accept that this is not WRONG why the hell is  he using twitter to recruit people.  This is just utterly and completely beyond insane.

The Transportation Secretary (I refuse to acknowledge him by name) had already said that he will offer extensions to ATCs that are approaching the normal mandatory retirement age (he can extend it by 5 years) a few weeks ago. Musk is just an idiot. 

Edited 22 hours ago by Makai

[nokat]

59 minutes ago, Annber03 said:

And even if they did blow some of their limited funds on something nice? So what? Being poor sucks. Having to worry about your finances every single day sucks. It's stressful. So god forbid that poor people might occasionally, when they get a chance, want to splurge and buy at least one nice thing that distracts them from or briefly makes them forget about the fact that they're in a really shitty, stressful financial situation.

You can buy and use a phone for a lot less than renting a room. I was that dumb person who thought, well they can't be that desperate if they have a phone. Also, that you can be desperate and have preferences. That you can want certain things to make your life better.

I still remember the homeless woman in my previous town, who saw me and noticed I was in pain. This woman was the only one that day who acknowledged I was hurting. By the time I came back with socks and toiletries, there were police around her. It made me so angry at the time.

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, Annber03 said:

Being poor sucks. Having to worry about your finances every single day sucks. It's stressful.

Studies conclude "money doesn't buy happiness" is true, but only once you're past a certain point -- having enough money to not worry about paying for bills and other necessities each month removes a giant source of daily stress, which significantly affects happiness as it's an entirely different way of living.  But happiness doesn't keep increasing along with one's bank account.  (And, on the flip side -- while accumulating wealth doesn't increase happiness, using it to help others does.)

[nokat]

43 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Studies conclude "money doesn't buy happiness" is true, but only once you're past a certain point -- having enough money to not worry about paying for bills and other necessities each month removes a giant source of daily stress, which significantly affects happiness as it's an entirely different way of living.  But happiness doesn't keep increasing along with one's bank account.  (And, on the flip side -- while accumulating wealth doesn't increase happiness, using it to help others does.)

I had struggles early on, but I was so happy to have a roof over my head, and enough food to eat. Later on you are conservative with your money, and then worry if it's enough for your retirement. Money buys you fewer worries, and then others come in.

I do wonder at billionaires still wanting more money. It's never enough with them.

[Absolom]

14 hours ago, Dimity said:

I am sure they would love nothing more than to be able to micro-manage every cent that someone on benefits receives.  What a lot of the electorate may soon learn, to their dismay, is that things like Social Security are also considered to be "hand outs" and if Musk has his way (assuming they still even receive their SS) there will be many strings attached.

I read another ill-informed article today about upcoming changes to Medicaid and Medicare and learned to my dismay that the author had conflated those two and also SSI and SSDI.  SSI is for aged or disabled people with almost no income and resources while SSDI is social security disability just in case there was a tiny possibility of confusion.  So one part of the article said there would be a resources test to receive social security.  ::smh::

If they want to mess with programs or even report potential messing with programs, at least learn the basics.  

[nokat]

10 minutes ago, Absolom said:

I read another ill-informed article today about upcoming changes to Medicaid and Medicare and learned to my dismay that the author had conflated those two and also SSI and SSDI.  SSI is for aged or disabled people with almost no income and resources while SSDI is social security disability just in case there was a tiny possibility of confusion.  So one part of the article said there would be a resources test to receive social security.  ::smh::

If they want to mess with programs or even report potential messing with programs, at least learn the basics.  

People coming in with what I consider willful ignorance. They have no idea and can't be bothered to learn.

[anony.miss]

Ha - Tesla shareholders are using Musk’s tactics against him ; )

"Tesla shareholders want Elon Musk to get a taste of his own DOGE medicine...Trump’s government efficiency czar sparked a backlash this past week when he demanded civil servants justify their paycheck by listing five things they accomplished in a week—a tactic he first used to thin the ranks at Twitter."

https://fortune.com/2025/02/27/tesla-investors-furious-at-share-plunge-turn-tables-on-elon-musk/

Edited 18 hours ago by anony.miss

[Soapy Goddess]

15 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

If they were really concerned about anyone's health or dental care they would want health insurance and/or dental insurance/care be more accessible and affordable.  Otherwise this looks like another way to punish and control poor people.

They're trying to keep them healthy, not punish them. Cookies, candy and other sugary treats is why we're seeing more obese children. If they were taught to eat right, they would only have to see their DDS twice a year for cleanings. Ditto with primary care.

 

14 hours ago, Dimity said:

What a lot of the electorate may soon learn, to their dismay, is that things like Social Security are also considered to be "hand outs" and if Musk has his way (assuming they still even receive their SS) there will be many strings attached.

I doubt it since I just read in today's paper that they're actually considering increasing SS benefits to those who retired with pensions.

14 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

it is beyond asinine that you can use your benefits to buy a whole raw chicken using your benefits but not the precooked rotisserie chickens.

It's actually the reverse since a whole chicken costs less than a cooked/prepared chicken. It's just that these folks are too damn lazy to cook them!

 

[Soapy Goddess]

10 hours ago, tres bien said:

I’m serious when I say I hate these fucking people. They’re reducing the most prosperous country in the world into an evil cold hearted shit hole

No, they're saving our citizens millions of dollars in unnecessary waste. Remember, charity begins at home.

[Soapy Goddess]

9 hours ago, isalicat said:

What I have observed over the many years I have worked at the pantry is that people are LAZY and prefer packaged garbage food to fresh, nutritious food that they have to cook themselves. I see moms come in with little kids and ASK for soda and candy and cookies and sugary cereal and these 3 and 5 year old children are already substantially overweight. Low income people should be encourage to eat healthily, not given benefits to get free garbage food!

Brava! I just posted a very similar observation. Unfortunately, we can't help those who refuse to help themselves (healthy cooking, etc.)

[Soapy Goddess]

9 hours ago, Lugal said:

I remember some Republican years ago talking about how poor people shouldn't have frozen pizzas and only should get rice and beans.  Despite the fact that a frozen pizza can be made into a family meal in about 20 minutes which works out for people between shifts.  Rice and beans take much longer to cook let alone what it takes to make them flavorful.

The idea that poor people are wasteful spenders is clearly from people who have never been poor.  Poverty is expensive.  Not to mention the poverty tax (can't afford to see the dentist for a filling, wait a year or so and it will be a crown. Still can't afford it?  Wait a little longer and it will be a root canal)

Nothing pisses me off more than the idea poor people don't deserve any pleasures in life.

I don't know what Reps you're speaking with, but that blanket statement is false.

Poverty isn't expensive. I've been there. You just have to learn how to put a chicken in the oven along with a few baked potatoes. But as I've already posted, these people are lazy. They want things ready-made handed to them on a silver platter. If they'd only learn to boil water, they could make a delicious and nutritious pasta primavera, which can be made with frozen veggies if they can't afford fresh. However, I've always found fresh veggies cheaper.

EVERYONE deserves to have pleasure in their life. They just need to STRIVE for it by learning how to cook and making healthy choices. It's not that difficult. 

[Soapy Goddess]

9 hours ago, Lugal said:

I agree with all of that, and if governments want to ban them as unsafe, I'm fine with that. But to just say that poor people can't have it, I can't agree with it. 

We're not saying poor people can't have it. What we're saying is it shouldn't be a staple in their diet. But when the adult in the family (responsible for their child's health) spends half their budget on unhealthy treats, that's a choice they make... which is bad for the whole family. IOW, if benefits are limited, they're only left with half that amount for nutritious food. 

9 hours ago, anony.miss said:

Many younger parents have no idea how to cook nutritious meals from scratch, and even if they do, they often don't have the time  - calling them 'lazy' (or any other name) does nothing to help them or their kids, imo.

You see, that's the problem. If you love your family and want to raise healthy children, you MAKE time. As I said upthread, a bag of frozen veggies and a pot of boiling water for pasta takes what? 15 minutes?!? If mom or dad can't find 15 minutes to prepare a decent meal, then IMO they're either lazy or simply don't care about their child's health.

Edited 18 hours ago by Soapy Goddess

[Makai]

Since the House passed the Republican budget I have noticed a lot of Republicans thrilled that it would mean no taxes on tips or overtime. But that’s not in the budget and I couldn’t figure out why so many people seemed to think it was. Turns out it’s because Republican politicians are lying. Shocking, I know.

Lauren Boebert Called Out Over Tax on Tips Comment: 'Didn't Even Read'

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna Hit with Two Twitter Community Notes for False Claims on GOP Bill

[Soapy Goddess]

5 hours ago, Annber03 said:

But poor people dare to splurge, and suddenly they have to account for every single fucking penny and prove that they're using that money the "right" way. 

When you're given 'free' money to buy food to feed and nourish your family, we don't expect that you're going to do just the opposite.

[anony.miss]

26 minutes ago, Makai said:

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna Hit with Two Twitter Community Notes for False Claims on GOP Bill

Luna posted more lies than just 'no tax on tips' (she must be an overachiever 😉 )

Edited 18 hours ago by anony.miss

[Makai]

2 hours ago, Soapy Goddess said:

I doubt it since I just read in today's paper that they're actually considering increasing SS benefits to those who retired with pensions.

I’m guessing you’re talking about the retroactive payments and higher monthly benefits that have been in the news for the last few days. That it the result of a law that was passed by the previous Congress with bipartisan support and signed into law by Biden before the end of his term. 

It has nothing to do with how SS will be impacting by Trump and Musk going forward.

Edited 17 hours ago by Makai

[Soapy Goddess]

5 minutes ago, Makai said:

I’m guessing you’re talking about the retroactive payments and higher monthly benefits that have been in the news for the last few days. That it the result of a law that was passed in 2023 with bipartisan support and signed into law by Biden before the end of his term. 

It has nothing to do with how SS will be impacting by Trump and Musk going forward.

While that may be true, IMO it shows that they're not taking away anyone's benefits. To quote his own words (if that were to happen) "they'll be hell to pay".

[Makai]

NVM. Not worth it. 

Edited 17 hours ago by Makai

[Soapy Goddess]

5 minutes ago, Makai said:

It may be true? 😂

I see no point in continuing a conversation if basic facts can’t be agreed upon. 

It's a figure of speech. No need to get offended.

[tres bien]

I saw an interview with a Trump voter. A 30 something woman a federal worker who’s been fired from her job. She said her supervisor sent her a text telling her sh’d be fired the next day 

The interviewer asked why she voted for Trump and she said because she’s been dealing with infertility for over a year 

Did she regret her vote? She says yes 

I don’t even understand why a woman who says her #1 issue was her infertility would chose to vote for the candidate/party of anti women 

 

[tres bien]

I agree that charity begins at home and I am a charitable person. Every year I donate to charities for children, animals and local charities that support the communities where I live 

I posted on here a couple of months ago that would never donate to a political party/candidate again and use that money to support other organizations that help people

But I don’t see how Secretary of State Marco Rubio tasked with gutting the USAID could terminate the contracts of 5800 when more than 90% of it was aid programs supporting malnourished children around the world 

Examples: all tuberculosis programs, all malaria programs, emergency food packets, contracts supporting the prevention and detection of Ebola and bird flu, all deployable US teams for earthquake assistance, services for the Elizabeth Glasser AIDS Foundation for up to treating 10,000 children and more

 

[bluegirl147]

58 minutes ago, tres bien said:

I saw an interview with a Trump voter. A 30 something woman a federal worker who’s been fired from her job. She said her supervisor sent her a text telling her sh’d be fired the next day 

The interviewer asked why she voted for Trump and she said because she’s been dealing with infertility for over a year 

Did she regret her vote? She says yes 

I don’t even understand why a woman who says her #1 issue was her infertility would chose to vote for the candidate/party of anti women 

 

Didn't Trump say he would make infertility treatments free? I mean obviously he was never going to do that but his voters tend to take whatever he says as gospel.

[Cementhead]

Yes, he anointed himself "the father of IVF." You can't make this shit up.

[EtheltoTillie]

7 hours ago, Absolom said:

I read another ill-informed article today about upcoming changes to Medicaid and Medicare and learned to my dismay that the author had conflated those two and also SSI and SSDI.  SSI is for aged or disabled people with almost no income and resources while SSDI is social security disability just in case there was a tiny possibility of confusion.  So one part of the article said there would be a resources test to receive social security.  ::smh::

If they want to mess with programs or even report potential messing with programs, at least learn the basics.  

There has been talk by the conservatives over many years of creating a means test for ordinary Social Security retirement. It’s another one of their goals. 

Edited 12 hours ago by EtheltoTillie

[Annber03]

3 hours ago, tres bien said:

I saw an interview with a Trump voter. A 30 something woman a federal worker who’s been fired from her job. She said her supervisor sent her a text telling her sh’d be fired the next day 

The interviewer asked why she voted for Trump and she said because she’s been dealing with infertility for over a year 

Did she regret her vote? She says yes 

I don’t even understand why a woman who says her #1 issue was her infertility would chose to vote for the candidate/party of anti women 

 

I saw a thing last night about how some Trump supporters are experiencing buyer's remorse because prices aren't going down like they hoped, and things of that sort.

And I'm just sitting here like, "No shit, really, you don't say?" 

[Dimity]

3 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

There has been talk by the conservatives over many years of creating a means test for ordinary Social Security retirement. It’s another one of their goals. 

But isn't regular social security the one working people pay into? You don't get it if you didn't contribute to it. Or am  I confusing this with something else?

[Mollywolly555]

13 hours ago, Dimity said:

Also, and I am sure this is true for food pantries in the US just as here, they are very often used by people who are working, sometimes two or three jobs.  And those kinds of jobs tend to be physical and often very hard work.  The last thing these young, and not so young, people are is lazy.

Yes, in her book,   Nickel and Dimed, Barbara Ehrenreich documents how the working poor ... those working 2 or 3 poorly paid/no benefits jobs are staying poor.

She even tried it herself, working as a wait staff (waitress) and realized how rigged the system is against the poor succeeding. She was afraid for her life as well in unsafe conditions as a woman.  

More tecently, Sarah Smarsh documents generations of her poor, white working class  family in the midwest, in Heartland. 

It's criminal not to tax the billion- and million-aires, and then have the nervev to complain about the poor needing help. 

[EtheltoTillie]

1 minute ago, Dimity said:

But isn't regular social security the one working people pay into? You don't get it if you didn't contribute to it. Or am  I confusing this with something else?

You are correct, but it is a goal of some conservatives to change it so even if you’ve paid in you might not get the same share as you get now. It’s like some of these people don’t need the money so why should we give it to them. it’s not like they’re going to redistribute it to poorer people, though. Ugh. 
 Higher income people pay income tax on some of their Social Security anyway. It’s also hard to explain the economics of Social Security. I don’t claim to be an expert but it’s not that you’re getting back what you put in. It’s more like younger workers are paying for older workers.  Your payout is calculated according to formulas related to what you previously earned. 

[nokat]

3 hours ago, tres bien said:

I agree that charity begins at home and I am a charitable person. Every year I donate to charities for children, animals and local charities that support the communities where I live 

I donate to things I care about. There is a fantastic library where I live with a concert hall. It is thanks to an endowment, and I want to do something similar. I don't have children, and relatives can take care of themselves. Libraries were so important to me throughout my life, and thinking they may disappear just guts me. The access to so much knowledge, and just enjoyment, is so important.

[krankydoodle]

2 hours ago, tres bien said:

I saw an interview with a Trump voter. A 30 something woman a federal worker who’s been fired from her job. She said her supervisor sent her a text telling her sh’d be fired the next day

I saw that article yesterday (Washington Post gift link: She hoped Trump’s victory would change her life, but not like this). I've been reading the increasing number of posts in the leopards ate my face subreddit with a bit of grim satisfaction, but this story hit different--maybe because I'm also from Michigan or because some of the details are just so tragic: one of the poorest areas of the state being so pro-Trump, her family crowing about the federal job cuts, that she was sexually assaulted but held her nose and voted for him anyway because she was so desperate for the possibility of free IVF, etc. I don't know that I feel sorry for her, but I at least give her credit for agreeing to the article since she must be getting it from both sides now.

[nokat]

5 minutes ago, krankydoodle said:

leopards ate my face subreddit

The realization that when the ship sinks, we all go down.

[Mollywolly555]

15 hours ago, heatherchandler said:

Yes it’s so important to remember that for some people, their pets are all they have.  Please donate (if you can) to the pet food banks.  
 

 

My sister is retired and volunteers at her local pet shelter 5 days a week. 

Her best friend manages the place-- as a volunteer also. 

They could not operate without donations as the county $ is minimal.

Vets offer aid for no cost. High schoolers also volunteer and do fund raising thru car washes or other events.