ned nederlander

Cities are the engines of economic growth, science and innovation, and social mobility. In that regard it makes sense rural communities are more traditional/conservative leaning vs urban communities being more liberal/progressive leaning.

Cities are inherently a more complex existence with more regular interactions with people and entities. Complexity requires more of an arbiter of problems, disputes, rules. Government serves as that arbiter.

Economic inequality is more visible and pronounced in cities which fuels liberal populism. The target of liberal populism tends to specifically be the “rich” as the “rich” are the true “others” in urban communities. Every city has poor and middle class folks of every stripe and color.

Rural communities have plenty of inequality as well which likewise fuels conservative populism. However right wing populism tends to target other ethnicities or religions not present in rural communities as the targeted “others” as opposed to the “rich.”

quote:

---

In rural you are more accountable for your actions.

---

I don’t agree. Living in close quarters brings a lot of social accountability. That accountability though requires a regulatory state and system in a city. I’ve seen plenty of unofficial dumps on rural property in Mississippi and it happens because it’s out of sight. You cant ever be nearly as out of sight in a city. I’m not sure either breeds any more or less accountability than the other. But the systems of that accountability are different and likely explain this city mouse v country mouse political split.

quote:

---

President Trump, speaking on a tele-rally, says the United States can expect "total victory" over Iran in another two weeks. "You're really going to win it over the next two weeks when we declare total victory. It will be a total victory and it will happen very soon," Trump assured.

---

This is what I’ve been saying will and should happen.

Just declare victory and walk away.

His supporters will cheer and say something about a nuclear program blown back to the Stone Age.

His detractors will remain speechless at another failure and erosion of the American world order.

People who are ambivalent to politics but still vote won’t sweat it either way and continue vibing based on gas prices.

So . . . declare total victory and walk away. Qatar can figure out how to get its gas out on its own. Not our problem. Iraq, Saudi, Kuwait and UAE meanwhile will all be pivoted to pan arabian pipelines soon enough that bypass shipping lanes.

quote:

---

the fact that Saddam used WMD against the Kurds. It was well reported and verified. Does anyone believe after the use of those weapons Saddam said "well that was awful, I'm going to get rid of these horrible weapons!"?

---

I mean dude. It’s been 23 years. We got it 100% wrong in Iraq. It’s time to let it go.

quote:

---

Because 8 MILLION innocent people are trapped there with NO FOOD, NO WATER, NO ELECTRICTY, NO GAS, NO NOTHING.

---

Why don’t they just import some food, gas, fuel, something?

quote:

---

Yea.. unfortunately the dumb fricks in this thread can't comprehend the fact that we have three satellites pointed at the site 24/7. That's coming from Elon' mouth

---

Epstein is also in a secure cell under constant surveillance. Nothing can happen. And if it does we’ll see it all.

Josh Hart, Naji, Jose Alvarado, Jonas, CJ McCollum, Dyson, Trey.

We had the the role players to win and potentially win big.

We had two “stars” that failed the team and a C-tier coach that couldn’t deliver when plan A failed.

Congress passing a bill to stop the president from waging war . . . that can be vetoed by the President.

Just as the Constitution intended.

quote:

---

In June 2026, Cook led a delegation to an economic forum in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The American delegation—which included the far-right political commentator and conspiracy theorist Candace Owens and the US actor Steven Seagal, both of whom have voiced support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine—was the first in nearly a decade to participate in the forum.

---

We aren’t sending our best, folks.

quote:

---

Emotional women like you are why we fight with 2 hands tied behind our back.

---

At least you can admit we keep losing wars. You may not like the reason we keep losing wars. But the reasons exist so we should proceed with caution.

The truth is we haven’t won a meaningful war since 1900 without a robust international alliance fighting with us and clear domestic mandate to fight.

When we fight largely alone we typically lose.

When we fight to depose a government and install a new one we usually lose.

When we embargo and isolate a regime we usually embolden its extemism.

And here we are contemplating a war we would fight without meaningful allies, with a weak domestic mandate, with the ultimate goal of regime change.

It’s stupid, no Americans should die for the straits of Hormuz or uranium dust or Israel or the house of Saud or Emirati Sheiks and we should leave the whole region to itself.

quote:

---

Congress hasn't declared war in 80 years. Take a lap.

---

And what’s our war record over the last 80 years?

Seems like following the constitution might be worthwhile.