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[Doktor Howl]

Not any time soon. Rouhani has been neutered by the conservative clerics, and they won't move against the Revolutionary Guard.  The war talk being pushed by Bolton also, of course, empowers the military factions over there as well, so even if some were willing, they'd say now is not the time.

I was rather hoping economic forces would render them less dangerous in the long run, but that does rely on the US lifting sanctions at some point.

Which we won't do, because Iran is the only functional enemy we have left that hasn't got nukes.

[Cain]

Yeah.  It's really stupid though, it's ceding the oil fields to other countries, and with the secondary sanctions, specifically to Russia and China.

It's also the one Middle Eastern state that has a chance of becoming a functional democracy anytime soon, and could actually help in Iraq, Afghanistan and checking local Russian influence.  So of course, Trump will do his damndest to push them away, aided and abetted by the usual neocon suspects who have proven to be such strategic geniuses in the past.

[Doktor Howl]

Yeah.  It's really stupid though, it's ceding the oil fields to other countries, and with the secondary sanctions, specifically to Russia and China.

It's also the one Middle Eastern state that has a chance of becoming a functional democracy anytime soon, and could actually help in Iraq, Afghanistan and checking local Russian influence.  So of course, Trump will do his damndest to push them away, aided and abetted by the usual neocon suspects who have proven to be such strategic geniuses in the past.

John Bolton.  That is all.

[Brother Mythos]

Brainy Crows Trained to Pick Up Trash at Theme Park

As per the article:

“A team of trained birds will really clean up at a French theme park, where they will collect and discard cigarette butts and other bits of trash.”

Here's the link: https://www.livescience.com/63320-crows-pick-up-trash-theme-park.html

This article has been out there for a while. But, I thought it would be nice to post something “uplifting,” while we endure our daily onslaught of political horror.

[Ziegejunge]

Thanks for that, Brother. Crows are pretty darn fascinating.

[Cramulus]

VOTER SUPPRESSION LINK ROUNDUP

North Dakota ensuring thousands of Native Americans can't vote - https://www.npr.org/2018/10/13/657125819/many-native-ids-wont-be-accepted-at-north-dakota-polling-places

Indiana illegally purging 20k voters https://www.snopes.com/news/2018/10/15/indiana-state-officials-accused-violating-court-order-improperly-purging-voters/

Florida - voter reg website went down a week before the deadline. The state says it's working fine, but thousands of people say they can't register. (not to mention the republicans fighting tooth and nail against extending the registration deadline to account for Hurricane Michael) https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2018/10/09/a-mess-floridas-online-voter-registration-system-panned-641953

Georgia - where the race is a dead heat and the south could potentially get its first black female senator... They froze over 50k registrations, 70% of which are African American. (African Americans are over 30% of the state) https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2018/10/09/a-mess-floridas-online-voter-registration-system-panned-641953

Georgia Also closed hundreds of polling places in black communities "to save money" - http://www.governing.com/topics/politics/sl-polling-place-close-ahead-of-november-elections-black-voters.html

Just today, GA threw a bunch of black people off a bus headed for the polls, for some reason I still don't understand: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/black-senior-citizens-georgia-ordered-off-bus-bound-for-polls-stacey-abrams-brian-kemp/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab6a&linkId=58376821

Nevada purged 90k people from voter rolls using a postcard removal scheme - https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/at-least-90000-voters-purged-from-nevada-voter-rolls-voting-rights-group-claims/

Texas purged 2K because the applications didn't have "a handwritten signature", which isn't actually a law https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Texas-rejects-2-400-online-voter-registrations-as-13282058.php

[Doktor Howl]

VOTER SUPPRESSION LINK ROUNDUP

North Dakota ensuring thousands of Native Americans can't vote - https://www.npr.org/2018/10/13/657125819/many-native-ids-wont-be-accepted-at-north-dakota-polling-places

Indiana illegally purging 20k voters https://www.snopes.com/news/2018/10/15/indiana-state-officials-accused-violating-court-order-improperly-purging-voters/

Florida - voter reg website went down a week before the deadline. The state says it's working fine, but thousands of people say they can't register. (not to mention the republicans fighting tooth and nail against extending the registration deadline to account for Hurricane Michael) https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2018/10/09/a-mess-floridas-online-voter-registration-system-panned-641953

Georgia - where the race is a dead heat and the south could potentially get its first black female senator... They froze over 50k registrations, 70% of which are African American. (African Americans are over 30% of the state) https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2018/10/09/a-mess-floridas-online-voter-registration-system-panned-641953

Georgia Also closed hundreds of polling places in black communities "to save money" - http://www.governing.com/topics/politics/sl-polling-place-close-ahead-of-november-elections-black-voters.html

Just today, GA threw a bunch of black people off a bus headed for the polls, for some reason I still don't understand: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/black-senior-citizens-georgia-ordered-off-bus-bound-for-polls-stacey-abrams-brian-kemp/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab6a&linkId=58376821

Nevada purged 90k people from voter rolls using a postcard removal scheme - https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/at-least-90000-voters-purged-from-nevada-voter-rolls-voting-rights-group-claims/

Texas purged 2K because the applications didn't have "a handwritten signature", which isn't actually a law https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Texas-rejects-2-400-online-voter-registrations-as-13282058.php

The bus thing was because political parties can't transport people to the polls, and someone called the bus in, so county officials decided that, based on what they were told by an anonymous tipster, BLM is part of the democratic party.

Real reason:  Black people in Georgia.

[Cain]

And this is how you become a dictatorship.

[Prelate Diogenes Shandor]

What we really need is another march to the sea

[Doktor Howl]

And this is how you become a dictatorship.

Well, yes.

[Bu🤠ns]

Seattle Motorists Stunned As 2-Pound Metal Balls Roll Down Street
The two-pound balls damaged several cars during their brief roll of terror.

[Cain]

And this is how you become a dictatorship.

Well, yes.

Oh, I know.  It's just disappointing, that it's happening at the hands of some banal, tanned egomaniac who struggles to string a coherent sentence together.  He doesn't even have good dress sense.

[Doktor Howl]

And this is how you become a dictatorship.

Well, yes.

Oh, I know.  It's just disappointing, that it's happening at the hands of some banal, tanned egomaniac who struggles to string a coherent sentence together.  He doesn't even have good dress sense.

I wanted someone like Sulla or Octavian. 

[Cain]

Even the Brazilian guy would be something.

[altered]

https://twitter.com/JeremyPoxon/status/1053037595771338753?s=19

Worth actually reading the paper. There’s no bad or shaky conclusions being drawn here, it’s legitimately the case. Hard to say showing support for “a strong leader” who “ignores parliament/congress” isn’t showing authoritarian beliefs.

UK spags might be interested in seeing the horrormirth of the chart of UK attitudes in one of the appendices: everyone else has a v notch on a near linear line, or an overall M shaped response to the questions.

The UK has a goddamn U shaped graph. Only the self identified political fringes are sane on (I forget what topic, I think immigration or civil rights?), anyone who doesn’t describe themselves as far-left/right cannot be trusted. It was like a 10% drop between far right and center right for fucks sake.