Democratic Presidential Debate

[Raver]

It should be an interesting debate regardless of the country you're from and your political views, but more important
if you're an American and a registered Democrat obviously:



Today's debate just started at 9 PM EST for 10 candidates and it will continue at 9 PM EST tomorrow for the other 10 candidates.

Anyways, I am pro Andrew Yang, Tulsi Gabbard and Bernie Sanders because of their policies and integrity despite disagreeing with some of their policies. The other candidates I think are either incompetent, corporate shills, both or I don't know enough about them to judge them.

[Cheebs]

I will root for whoever is the most extreme and causes things to crash fastest in terms of demographics and quality of life. Conservatives are too distracted by Blumpf and his timid Reaganism and Zionism so we need a blatant anti-white demon we can point at instead to radicalize them.

[andreasdevig]

Andrew Yang is an intelligent and nice guy, but I'm growing more and more concerned about the opt-in part of his UBI plan. It doesn't feel right to give 1000 dollars to rich people but not give anything to people who are poor and on existing benefits of some kind.

[Raver]

Andrew Yang is an intelligent and nice guy, but I'm growing more and more concerned about the opt-in part of his UBI plan. It doesn't feel right to give 1000 dollars to rich people but not give anything to people who are poor and on existing benefits of some kind.

Someone asked him that question in an interview. He said that the solution was a VAT (value added tax) that should redistribute a portion of the wealth from the richest Americans to fund UBI. Tbh, I don't really fully understand how UBI will secure enough funding or even how VAT works, but VAT has been described as one way to do it.

[Aramas]

Someone asked him that question in an interview. He said that the solution was a VAT (value added tax) that should redistribute a portion of the wealth from the richest Americans to fund UBI. Tbh, I don't really fully understand how UBI will secure enough funding or even how VAT works, but VAT has been described as one way to do it.

VAT takes money from each part of the supply chain instead of just charging the end consumer sales tax. A portion of the VAT is refunded for each step of the production process except the last. The two can be equivalent in terms of net taxation. But the VAT places more responsibility on producers to pay for taxes based on what they produce. Most countries do VAT these days.

A VAT would be national and equal across all States.

[Dauphin]

I had the TV turned to it (although muted for the most part). I still don't have a firm grasp on what any of the candidates plan to do in office, although I suppose that isn't the point.
It was a popularity contest. People who got the big buzzwords in got the biggest applause.

[FreelancePoliceman]

I have an entirely unrealistic but nevertheless strong hope that Mike Gravel will win the primary.

[Dauphin]

If you are to check the trends on twitter you'll see that the people who hate Tulsi are all upper-class neolibs and identity politics devotees.

[Raver]

If you are to check the trends on twitter you'll see that the people who hate Tulsi are all upper-class neolibs and identity politics devotees.

Good, another reason to support her over other candidates.

[mfckrz]

Andrew Yang is an intelligent and nice guy, but I'm growing more and more concerned about the opt-in part of his UBI plan. It doesn't feel right to give 1000 dollars to rich people but not give anything to people who are poor and on existing benefits of some kind.

Are poors too lazy to opt-in or something?

[perpetuus]

I knew my girl would exceed expectations. Of course this means she's just made herself an even bigger target for the dem establishment to take out. Expect a whole lot more hit pieces and smears on her in the coming weeks and months. The better she does, the more vicious they'll be with their attacks. Expect some especially nasty allegations and conspiracy theories trying to link her to ******, C'Thulu and Miracle Whip.

https://qz.com/1653913/tulsi-gabbard...cratic-debate/

Gabbard was most searched Democratic candidate after debate despite getting third-lowest speaking time

[andreasdevig]

Someone asked him that question in an interview. He said that the solution was a VAT (value added tax) that should redistribute a portion of the wealth from the richest Americans to fund UBI. Tbh, I don't really fully understand how UBI will secure enough funding or even how VAT works, but VAT has been described as one way to do it.

The VAT sounds good (from what I understand of it, provided there's no loophole to avoid paying it) but the poor people (on benefits) still won't see that money. So I don't understand why the UBI can't be stacked on top of the already existing benefits that people receive.

[Raver]

The VAT sounds good (from what I understand of it, provided there's no loophole to avoid paying it) but the poor people (on benefits) still won't see that money. So I don't understand why the UBI can't be stacked on top of the already existing benefits that people receive.

I imagine it will be too expensive to fund UBI on top of existing benefits, but perhaps some crucial ones will be kept and introduced (universal health care) alongside of it. I guess we'll see what he says tonight in the debate. I am sure he will be asked at least once in the debate about UBI or he will bring it up on his own.

[xerx]

Taxing the rich to give to the poor would benefit the economy since the poor spend 100% of their money on consumer items. Rich people are much more likely to use their incomes for speculation, which veritably inflates the price of assets or real estate.

Libertarians can shove the Broken Window "Fallacy" up their ass.

[lemontrees]

I want E Warren to be my grandma

[Kill4Me]

I'll give that debate to Castro (LIE-Te 3w4 sp/so) in terms of delivery...that Katherine Fauvre lookalike put me to sleep. Klobuchar could not lead her way out of a paper bag but at least she did not have diarrhea of the mouth and gave concise answers. Beta Bitch O'Rourke and Cory Booker (SEE-Se 2w1 so/sp) are two Obama cliches....the media picked up on Beta Boy's misuse of spanish but missed the fact he was calibrating his cadence to sound like Obama.

[perpetuus]

I really don’t understand Beto’s appeal.

[Raver]

Part 2 of the Democratic Presidential Debate with the other 10 candidates has just started from 9 PM EST:

[Raver]

Summary of the second part of the debate for those who missed it: Sanders did great and killed it at certain points, Kamala owned Biden and talked a lot, Williamson did good overall and Yang was snubbed by the moderators and was asked the least questions compared to the other candidates, which was disappointing.

[Dauphin]

Marianne Williamson is a New Age wacko, lol
Still preferable to a lot of the Dem candidates.

[Kill4Me]

I'll give that second debate to Biden. Biden is the only one on the stage that communicated proven results...that he can get things done. Garbage things. Just about all of what he did deserved to be undone. Not all, most. Trump needs to find a better insult on Biden. "Sleepy Joe" is terrible...there's nothing Sleepy about Biden.

Last night's biggest loser was Bernie. Commie Bernie communicated zero proven results. Bernie, "How you going to get this done?" "Well, 10000 people will stand up and demand it!" What a fckin retard. He does all this ranting and raving about corporations and special interest groups. No proven results. That bum can't get anything done. He's a crazy idealist and last night's biggest loser.

Pete Buttigieg looks like the face from Mad Magazine.

Eric Swalwell impersonated Marco Rubio for two hours.

Kirsten Gillibrand had so much white make up on her face she looked a Kabuke performer.

Michael Bennet has a face only a mother could love on payday.

John Hickenlooper was duller than watching paint dry.

Kamala "mush for brains" Harris (IEE-Ne 9w1 so/sp) did Whackjob Warren proud.

Hey, there is an Asian guy on the stage...never figured out what he was doing there. Just grab an Asian guy off the street, dress him up in a suit and tell him to stand on stage for two hours.

[perpetuus]

Yeah you're not the first to make the Alfred E Newman joke. It's already been beaten into the ground by this point.

I don't have any love for any of them, but these are like Crowder level superficial observations, or worse. Not very original, but good try. Daddy Donald would be impressed.

[Raver]

I'll give that second debate to Biden. Biden is the only one on the stage that communicated proven results...that he can get things done. Garbage things. Just about all of what he did deserved to be undone. Not all, most. Trump needs to find a better insult on Biden. "Sleepy Joe" is terrible...there's nothing Sleepy about Biden.

Last night's biggest loser was Bernie. Commie Bernie communicated zero proven results. Bernie, "How you going to get this done?" "Well, 10000 people will stand up and demand it!" What a fckin retard. He does all this ranting and raving about corporations and special interest groups. No proven results. That bum can't get anything done. He's a crazy idealist and last night's biggest loser.

Pete Buttigieg looks like the face from Mad Magazine.

Eric Swalwell impersonated Marco Rubio for two hours.

Kirsten Gillibrand had so much white make up on her face she looked a Kabuke performer.

Michael Bennet has a face only a mother could love on payday.

John Hickenlooper was duller than watching paint dry.

Kamala "mush for brains" Harris (IEE-Ne 9w1 so/sp) did Whackjob Warren proud.

Hey, there is an Asian guy on the stage...never figured out what he was doing there. Just grab an Asian guy off the street, dress him up in a suit and tell him to stand on stage for two hours.

IMO, Biden lost the debate, Kamala nailed him on working with segregationists in the past and his reply was lackluster. Kamala probably won the debate judging by the crowd's reaction even though I disagreed with her most of the time on her policies and ideas. She strikes me as an ESE or maybe an EIE, lead backed up by demo or HA via her aggression to Biden.

Sanders did good in terms of promoting his social democratic ideas to his base, his goal is not to appeal to economic centrists or economic conservatives, but economic leftists. He also did good in terms of highlighting himself as anti-corporate corruption. As for Yang doing poorly, the moderators snubbed him because the establishment media must see him as threatening.

[andreasdevig]

Bernie Sanders did amazin'. He is a man of integrity. Biden worked with segregationists, Trump discriminated against black tenants.. and Bernie marched with Martin Luther King.

Apparently Yang's mic was cut off, the poor guy..

[Raver]

Bernie Sanders did amazin'. He is a man of integrity. Biden worked with segregationists, Trump discriminated against black tenants.. and Bernie marched with Martin Luther King.

Apparently Yang's mic was cut off, the poor guy..

It is likely even worse than I imagined. Not only did they ask him the least questions out of everyone in the debate, but they also possibly deliberately and selectively muted at him at certain times as confirmed in the video by Yang. The perfect example of corrupt corporate censorship and authoritarianism.

[Kill4Me]

Remember, I was the only one on the forum posting at the time of the last election who called Trump's victory.

Biden will go untouched to the nomination if all they can manufacture on him is a blemish or two on his Civil Rights Voting Record. Only Kamala "Poop For Brains" Harris would be the party puppet to manufacture a racist accusation against Biden (it's an IEE thing...think the paranoiac from the black panther thread)...if Kamala actually had a brain to think with she would know how fckin futile that is. Biden only served as Obama's VP for Eight Years. Obviously Obama (especially Michelle) vetted the piss out of Biden's Civil Rights Record prior to bringing him on as a VP...Kamala "Poop for Brains" shows that you don't need a high IQ to get elected to the Senate. I wanted to puke at her pathetic attempt at manipulation.

A Trump-Biden faceoff will be preferable....two guys that actually have gotten things done and know how to get things done...don't just hang their hat on having opinions like commie crackpot Bernie or manufacturing racist accusations like "Poop for Brains" Kamala. Obama's VP for crissake, give me a break.

[Raver]

Remember, I was the only one on the forum posting at the time of the last election who called Trump's victory.

Biden will go untouched to the nomination if all they can manufacture on him is a blemish or two on his Civil Rights Voting Record. Only Kamala "Poop For Brains" Harris would be the party puppet to manufacture a racist accusation against Biden (it's an IEE thing...think the paranoiac from the black panther thread)...if Kamala actually had a brain to think with she would know how fckin futile that is. Biden only served as Obama's VP for Eight Years. Obviously Obama (especially Michelle) vetted the piss out of Biden's Civil Rights Record prior to bringing him on as a VP...Kamala "Poop for Brains" shows that you don't need a high IQ to get elected to the Senate. I wanted to puke at her pathetic attempt at manipulation.

A Trump-Biden faceoff will be preferable....two guys that actually have gotten things done and know how to get things done...don't just hang their hat on having opinions like commie crackpot Bernie or manufacturing racist accusations like "Poop for Brains" Kamala. Obama's VP for crissake, give me a break.

IMO, I think Warren has the best chance of getting nominated and beating Trump. Biden is just a corporate neoliberal shill aka Hillary 2.0. Most Liberals tend to dislike him and think he will do nothing because he was already caught on video saying that he won't change much.

Warren has that perfect middle ground between Biden's neoliberal corporate centrism and Sanders' populist social democratic leftism. She has a good chance of beating Trump minus her flub with her obsession with her nearly non-existent Native American.

[xerx]

Poop for Brains" shows that you don't need a high IQ to get elected to the Senate.

Or to the presidency, for that matter.

[Muddy]

Who the fuck actually wants Joe Biden for president?

[Raver]

Who the fuck actually wants Joe Biden for president?

Partisan hacks that blindly vote Democrat no matter what and can't see the differences between the Democratic candidates and those that support pro neoliberal corporate policies.

[FreelancePoliceman]

Who the fuck actually wants Joe Biden for president?

Christ, if Biden gets the nomination, imagine the voter turnout rates.

[mfckrz]

Who the fuck actually wants Joe Biden for president?

Boomers. The most powerful race.

[andreasdevig]

[mfckrz]

Not hard to understand why UBI is one of the dumbest policies ever proposed.

Obviously there's no magical virtue in work. But simply showering people with money will pump aggregate demand without a commensurate increase in supply, resulting in everyone paying higher prices for the same things. Suddenly your brokeass $60/mo Boost Mobile service becomes $100/mo, $500/mo rent goes to $900/mo, etc.

[FreelancePoliceman]

Not hard to understand why UBI is one of the dumbest policies ever proposed.

Obviously there's no magical virtue in work. But simply showering people with money will pump aggregate demand without a commensurate increase in supply, resulting in everyone paying higher prices for the same things. Suddenly your brokeass $60/mo Boost Mobile service becomes $100/mo, $500/mo rent goes to $900/mo, etc.

It’s an attempt to save capitalism and keep the rabble from breaking down billionaires’ gates. People are increasingly being squeezed: underpaid and generally involuntarily underemployed. These conditions can’t continue forever. Businesses refuse to pay higher wages, and landlords refuse to accept lower rent, so people are thinking of alternatives.

[perpetuus]

I'm open to considering UBI but what irritates me is how a lot of people act like this is some revolutionary new idea when Sanders or Yang or anyone else touts it, despite it or similar versions having been around for decades. Irony is that it was an economic libertarian who was one of the earliest cheerleaders for the idea, yet these days most libertarians scoff at such suggestions and it's the left democrats who have instead become the loudest in favor.

I'm also concerned that some proponents want to add UBI on top of existing welfare programs, rather than offering it as a gradual replacement to those programs. They are either willfully ignoring the numbers or stupid. If this happens, there will be a lot of tax increases, and not just for the wealthy. That's fine, I just wish the candidates in favor of UBI would admit they're going to have to raise taxes across the board to fund UBI. Even UBI without other welfare programs will result in mass tax hikes.

[Raver]

UBI seems good in theory, but in practice I remain skeptical of it. The main reason Yang proposes UBI is because he fears automation will eventually take over a chunk of jobs and many will end up on the streets. If we don't use UBI to deal with that then an alternative solution is required to deal with automation, but we can't do nothing.

The fact that the vast majority of 1st world countries let in mass immigration instead of controlled immigration for cheap labor that automation will eventually replace is incredibly short sighted and makes zero sense in the long run. So controlled immigration is needed sooner rather than later because of looming automation.

[mfckrz]

It’s an attempt to save capitalism and keep the rabble from breaking down billionaires’ gates. People are increasingly being squeezed: underpaid and generally involuntarily underemployed. These conditions can’t continue forever. Businesses refuse to pay higher wages, and landlords refuse to accept lower rent, so people are thinking of alternatives.

UBI means effectively subsidizing businesses for the employment they're unwilling to create.

[mfckrz]

I'm also concerned that some proponents want to add UBI on top of existing welfare programs, rather than offering it as a gradual replacement to those programs.

Which is why UBI won't happen. Those programs aren't going anywhere, and even with highly aggressive taxation there'd be nowhere near enough revenue to monetarily sustain a UBI on top of them.

[Ave]

UBI seems good in theory, but in practice I remain skeptical of it. The main reason Yang proposes UBI is because he fears automation will eventually take over a chunk of jobs and many will end up on the streets. If we don't use UBI to deal with that then an alternative solution is required to deal with automation, but we can't do nothing.

The fact that the vast majority of 1st world countries let in mass immigration instead of controlled immigration for cheap labor that automation will eventually replace is incredibly short sighted and makes zero sense in the long run. So controlled immigration is needed sooner rather than later because of looming automation.

I don't think automation will hit jobs as hard as people think it will.

I think human creativity will just find ways to create other sectors of the economy which robots have a harder time participating in, for example now you have people being paid to play games professionally (which promotes the sale of those games to a greater public since the gamers who get paid to play often have charismatic personalities which people become attached to). Could you imagine that happening 50 years ago? The fact is, if robots replace the usually boring, often dangerous jobs people have, it will give us free time to do other things. And those things can become lucrative, and create economic opportunity. I can't imagine what those things are gonna be, not anymore than people 50 years ago could have imagined the rise of professional gamers. I do think humans do stuff, they don't just sit around idly (not most people anyways) so if you're doing something and it interests others you can always find a way to create economic activity.