Michael Hardner

Sorry, studies are all we have to build agreement on politics. I'm fundamentally against your point of view on that. And you don't seem to understand what I said - don't bother posting long laboursome posts to me anymore, I'm not continuing. I don't think we have the right ingredients to discuss things to any positive outcome, my opinion.

Why? I can't figure out why you keep saying this...

I suppose so.... Like the equivalent of bad eyesight? Ok, yes, that actually makes sense...

First of all, how can a perception be weak? It can be flawed or wrong. Secondly, I was talking about a study. That's not my perception. That's a study, an ostensibly objective investigation and fact-finding initiative. Not my perspective Thirdly, I called off this conversation because I said I didn't think I could follow this line of thinking... Wherein you framed attacks on Muslims as being somehow provoked by their culture or whatever. I just don't think that's a healthy point of view and I don't want to build on that point any further. Your perceptions are yours, but if you think that way I don't think we can come to any understanding on how the world is.

1. Yes, yes, no, no. 2. No. 3. Yes, yes, no. 4. No. 5. No. 6. No. I guess you're not going to answer my answer about deporting NDP voters are you ? You don't think I know what I'm talking about, but you're not answering my questions... also getting a little angry with me. All I'm trying to do is understand you. Maybe we can take a little break, then. Things are getting overheated. Have a day.

1. That would be ... an institution. Which you said you don't trust I thought. It's a partisan non-profit advocacy group funded by Oil Companies Is this to do with Trade ? It's about Emissions Caps and the impact on ... Canadian Oil Companies. 2. Yes... From the numbers in that article I get a number of %0.3 of our budget for processing asylum seekers. 3. Who is "we" kimosave ? Based on my income taxes it works out to a little over $100 a year... I think it's money well spent. We saved many Ukranians, Hungarians, Slavs, and Central Americans if you want to know. 4. I'll go for Door #2 on that one. In fact, I think we're in a media ecosystem akin to the one that Gutenberg gave us with the printing press... before the 100 years wars happened. 5. Do I wonder ? Maybe a bit but i don't waste too much time wondering about things I will never know the answer to. Are you saying Israel and Russia are bribing Trump ? I guess I wouldn't be THAT surprised.

Commemorating not celebrating. Like I said above, they do it for Cancer. Who knows though... there's no saying why this changed, in retrospect.

I thought we were talking about commemorating World AIDS day per the subject. Sorry, I don't know about budget details and not interested. i agree that they can allocate budget as they like.

1. WTF does that even mean - "arguing in favour of Islam" ? I am not Muslim, I am Christian. i discuss policy. 2. You want to deport people who vote NDP.... okaay... Your opinions are yours... there's no response to make, I guess other than i disagree. I think freedom of opinion, freedom of religion and ability to form a political party or vote for one are rights that lead to a more open and better governed society. But ... you disagree. All fair...

Leaders are also managers, even if they manage a small portfolio of super important things. Clarity of mind is a MUST. Unless you are trying to say that sometimes a madman will randomly point in the right direction... which is cheating IMO. Managers are not always leaders though. This is verbal air hockey but still fun... I love that people see folks like Hockey Coaches as 'leaders'.... when some big names have been called out as having no plan, no vision, and terrible leadership traits .... Barry Melrose, are you on here ? Mike Keenan ?

Yeah... so. I for one don't want to be 'led'. I want to listen to ideas from someone with relevant experience that seem that they could help us. I don't get that very often...

The US government commemorates World Cancer Day Feb 4 https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-resolution/992/text#:~:text=Energy and Commerce-,RESOLUTION,the United States and globally. They don't add a footnote that say "Except for you selfish f*cks who smoke, drink or eat at McDonald's too much" But you know, with MAGA culture, the idea is to be brutally cruel and insensitive and smash away decorum, politeness, and so on... ostensibly because there are hard choices to be made. Ostensibly, but I would say it's actually just an echo, people aping the behaviour of the types of people who lead the movement.

`I think you double posted but ok... 1. But why ? What's the basis for your opinion ? Like I said Economists themselves are challenged to project an alternate path. Furthermore, a LOT of them say things are BETTER economically - for the average person than 50 years ago. I don't have a healthy dog in the fight but you have to back up your opinions or there's nowhere for the discussion to go. 2. Refugees have a negligible effect on the economy as I understand - state your case if you think otherwise but by sheer numbers (ie. small) I can't see how it can be so. 3. Not my opinion. 4. Kind of a version of Marx's theory but... no I don't buy it. There's no world cabal looking to crush the world that they already control and profit from. In tact it's the opposite: they do whatever they can to reap profits WHILE propping things up. 5. He's not as powerful as the investor class but I don't think he would agree with your perspective, since he's a Billionaire with his own Bitcoin that he's making hundreds of millions on.

1. Ok, your opinion is noted. But there's nothing to discuss in that. 2. Ditto. 3. I didn't suggest that... and don't insult me... I'm not interested in discussing with people who insult me. 4. What's your opinion though ? Seems like you should be for it...

Is leadership the most important thing ? We have lots of 'leaders' with bad ideas doing quite well ... everywhere

1. Based on reasonable discussion, I concur that there's a problem with Islamic Fundamentalism but I don't think banning Muslims will help anything. Muslims are like all people, they want to work and thrive ... they can live with other faiths in their midst. 2. "Small wrong doings" ... that's a matter of perspective. It's pretty horrific and happens on a very wide scale. How about mass murderers ? I read that they're predominantly White folks.... that's pretty horrific too ? And I got another poster to support the idea for keeping Black people out of Canada, based on US crime stats. I'm sure you can see where this goes...

Adding: What percentage our population growth do you think has come from Afghanistan immigration since 2000 ? As a percentage of overall population growth, how many were born there and came here ? Answer: 43,625 out of 7.5M or .5% https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810034901 https://www.google.com/search?q=canada+population+growth+2000-2021&oq=canada+popul&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqBggAEEUYOzIGCAAQRRg7MgYIARBFGDkyBggCEEUYPDIGCAMQRRg8MgYIBBBFGD3SAQgzNDY2ajBqOagCALACAQ&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

1. Economic reasons, period. Whether or not that's a good approach is a separate question. 2. What is the alternative reason ? 3. Are you able to project what Canada's economy would have been like without the population growth of this century ? Because even a great economist would have trouble with that. 4. Manufacturing sector was gutted on purpose. The trade off was higher exports (Western Canada) growth in services, etc. etc. If you are an unskilled wage earner supporting a household, though, your prospects are far worse than 2 generations ago. 5. I can't think of an Arab nation we attacked. Afghanistan isn't Arab and we weren't part of Iraq 2003. I don't think we got many Iraqis either. If you're talking about refugees then that's humanitarian, not economic. 6. You have a laundry list of complaints. Basically you're critical of the Liberal government policies and believe me I get that. Our debt is not much different than US debt federally. 7. 8. All I can conclude from this is that you think there's some secret conspiracy. There's no such thing. Governments world-wide are in trouble, including the USA which has elected the most right-wing president in memory and they're not doing very well either. Anyway, yes things are bad... but we have followed a laissez-faire neoliberal economic plan for almost 50 years so maybe that needs to be looked at a little more ? Just saying. In my day, business had to do well or fail. The government set the table so that the spoils of the economy helped the country overall. We have predatory combines today that control wages and prices to the point where folks struggle even though we are overall far wealthier than when I was a youth in 1970.

1. Coping ? 2. Yes, ok. Well that's consistent. Stop Black people from coming to Canada ? Check. 3. What are you proposing ?

Yes, the response is understandable. But people need to understand that a murder committed by a foreigner (as opposed to terrorism) doesn't say anything about the people. Leaders who trump up such crimes are doing it to gain political attention, IMO.

You can't import people and guarantee no crime.

1. I feel that this is a blame-the-victim type of framing. 2. By your framing, if the Jews didn't subjugate Gaza, the attack wouldn't have happened. I don't think that I can follow this line of discussion.

Stopping right there. This really reads like the innocent people who died had it coming. Sorry. That mentality is what drives terrorists to kill innocent people also. I think that we can't get past this point. I'm just not a warrior.

Any people who come here can commit murder. Studies show that domestics are worse in some measures. That means across the board judgments are flawed, if you are using them to set policy.

1. I'm not claiming equivalence, I'm showing how wide statements like this are flawed. 2. But there is still a wrongdoing by a small minority attributed to the whole. I'm talking meta here.