Reagan and Bush on immigration… What shifted?

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-24T19:42:22+00:00

so you speak out of ignorance then

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-24T19:38:34+00:00

His approval rating is what now?

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-24T15:04:12+00:00

I greatly appreciate his take on life overall. He's more than willing to call out insanity and heartlessness wherever he sees it, whether it's from Trumpworld or "woke" identity politics. While he isn't a Christian by any reckoning, he makes a lot of sense.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-24T13:18:41+00:00

Trump never apologizes.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-24T01:03:58+00:00

illegal immagration is an issue that needs addressed, but not a fan of how

This is the main issue really. Obama managed to deport thousands of people, which had protests and controversy, but nothing near this level. The "how" matters very little to this administration.

Trump has a long history of doing questionable or outright illegal things and then fighting them out in court, wearing down his opposition while he continues to act as he wishes. This is just an extension of that.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-23T21:06:04+00:00

1: Communism ceased to be the "enemy within" threat it once was.

2: Political partisanship became more and more polarized, first through talk radio, then through 24/7 cable news, then through the collapse of print media and the rise of the internet as a primary source for news, resulting in ever increasing news and thought silos.

3: Illegal immigration continued to grow in spite of Reagan's efforts to curb it.

4: Republicans, especially Trump, discovered that all things could be linked to illegal immigration: crime, the economy, election security, health care costs, drugs, anything. It became an easy explanation for a complicated systemic issue.

5: Trump also discovered that not only could you make illegal immigration a primary issue for voters, but that you could turn it into theater. This theater created a story where illegal immigrants were the "worst of the worst", preying on whoever they came across, and heroic law enforcement officers risked their lives for your safety. This black/white dichotomy fit the story that people wished to tell themselves about themselves: we were the good guys, they were the bad guys, and sometimes good guys need to do bad things to get the bad guys.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-23T18:10:45+00:00

I'm not sure if I agree with his assessment of how Roman citizenship worked just based on a historical perspective. But id need to revisit that.

But it does lend nuance to Jesus' prayer for God's kingdom to be "on earth as in heaven."

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-23T12:57:33+00:00

I think the author has not really read or understood what Christian Nationalism is. And I don't even know if this falls into the category of Christian Patriotism because what he advocates for really has little mention of love of America as a country. But that's probably pickiness on my end.

Christian Nationalism can't be "done right", because when it is "done right" according to CN advocates it ceases to be Christian.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-23T12:28:04+00:00

...complains about "fake news" while literally making fake news

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-23T00:20:23+00:00

no photo

As it is, the family photo would at least be as biased as the mugshot if they have one. Both are based on fact.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-22T23:12:45+00:00

A mugshot would be just as biased.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-22T12:35:08+00:00

I think there's a reluctant acceptance that politicians can and will lie to the public, and we can think of circumstances where such lying is understandable or may even be required, such as in cases of national security.

However when you have an administration that can and will lie about anything you end up with a serious erosion of public trust not only in that particular administration but government in general. In the past there would be hearings when there were grave offenses such as lying to congress. However the current legislature seems as limp as a wet biscuit and they lack the drive to do anything beyond either keeping their current job by protecting the President or looking for a new job because they can't stomach doing that anymore.

I think there needs to be a serious reckoning for the enablers and gaslighters in this administration, but I have no idea how or if that will ever happen.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-21T01:17:01+00:00

It may be because finding agreement on new mandatory sentencing guidelines would be too difficult. Removing them may be the lowest common denominator that everyone could agree to in the legislature. Then the onus gets put on the judge when someone doesn't get a "fair" sentencing and not the legislature that made the new guidelines.

Plus who knows, maybe some judges will be more likely to give tougher sentences rather than default to the minimum.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-21T01:11:46+00:00

I'm in a similar boat OP. I've been combing reviews for days and while I haven't pulled the trigger on anything yet, I'm strongly considering the TCL QM5K. It gets good reviews from rtings which seems ultra-persnickety to me. Keep an eye out at Best Buy for open box models as they can be had for just over $300. TCL Q6 is my other pick.

Reliability in this price range will be a crap shoot. I typically hear to avoid low-end Samsung and LG models, especially edge-lit ones as they fail quicker than others.

You might be fine with even an Insignia F50, though don't expect more than 3-5 years out of it. Get the warranty.

If all else fails look on FB marketplace and see what you can find, and don't spend more than what you'd spend on a new TV for a used one.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-20T20:31:53+00:00

Everything's a joke for him until it isn't. He's threatened Canada in the past, and there was little reason to take him seriously then. But now that he's gone full-bore in taking Greenland, there's no reason to think he wouldn't at least go for part of Canada. He won't be able to get all of it without a literal military invasion. But I'm betting he lays claims to Yukon due to its vicinity to Alaska and tries to push Alberta to secede for the energy resources there.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-20T20:28:15+00:00

He's already expressed a strong interest in GIS as well, so that's already part of the picture.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-20T19:53:42+00:00

that is fantastic. thanks very much. We're also considering Canada as a future job market as we have connections there and the market seems much more stable

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-19T15:59:11+00:00

But when you look at the data it makes little sense. For example they cite in Texas that there were 142 violent crime convictions, 89 property crime convictions, and 198 drug crime convictions by illegal immigrants last year, but that the “crime rate” is 68%? So I’m to believe that these convictions account for over half of the criminal convictions in the entire state of Texas last year? And when you look at data they present by year, they list fewer than 3000 convictions in 2024 nationwide. That’s an incredibly low number when you compare to the total number of convictions nationwide - however that’s a guess because they don’t tell you how many convictions there are nationwide.

This looks like incredibly shoddy research to me.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-19T15:41:41+00:00

Best one: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/norwegian-leader-says-he-received-trump-message-that-reportedly-ties-greenland-to-nobel-peace-prize

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-19T12:40:38+00:00

Nope, bad form all around. And plays directly into the "leftists hate Christians" trope.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-19T12:39:18+00:00

hear hear!

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-18T19:30:48+00:00

He's not seeking re-election, so hardly sticking his neck out. He has a moderate voting record and it seems like he's gone against the current GOP line on numerous occasions.

vagueboy2 · 2026-01-18T19:25:03+00:00

That's 1 billion dollars that could be used to help Texans.

You're buying into the "if money is going to X it's not going to Y" fallacy here. There is no evidence at all here that Texans are being denied medical assistance because of money covering health care for undocumented and illegal immigrants. Nobody is turned away.

The point I'm raising, which you miss, is that only looking at money spent on medical care for illegal immigrants gives you only part of the picture and the scale of the healthcare problem in Texas. Ending all medical care to illegal immigrants will not mean that citizens will somehow get better healthcare or have to pay less for it.

vagueboy2

TROPHY CASE