Crazy how we have a $1.4T national defense budget and yet we remain powerless in the face of some wind and rain.
Beginning to wonder if the budgets for the F-35A/B/C/D/I, the Virginia Class submarines, and STAR WARS anti-ICBM space laser systems might have been misspent relative to the need for sea walls, dykes, and storm bunkers.
Wind and rain that we knew a century ago how to prevent. The greenhouse effect was discovered during the French Revolution. Catastrophic anthropogenic climate change has been known for about 50 years now.
The thing is handling wind and rain sounds easy until you understand it as force carried through the media of air and water. As a midwesterner I know not to underestimate wind, it can destroy your home without slowing down. This is a bombing campaign of force in a different form.
Look, I agree its bad but let's not blow it out of proportions here. It is not the "world's strongest hurricane" it is only the 4th world's strongest hurricane. Major difference.
I kinda get the accelerationist-like game plan conservatives are doing here (voting down funding and then blaming the other political side), but it's just so evil considering that alternative options would actually help people and achieve the same effect.
Vote for relief funding, maybe do some "helping" for press photos to look good, spend some billionaire money that conservatives aren't lacking for fundraisers then boast about it, calling democrats and current administration ineffective. Same result but it might save lives with the added bonus that nobody can call you out on lying.
Is it really so hard to do some good every once in a while? It really feels like conservatives are allergic to morally good deeds.
This right here. If people are outside of a perpetual state of fear, they might get the room to think and question how things are done and who gets which share of the wealth.
That’s their platform, they obstruct anything that might help unless the democrats accept moving rightward in the process. They’ve been doing it since Obama at least
They have been doing it for 50 years, it has just expanded and grown increasingly sinister:
First, the Two Santas strategy dictates, when Republicans control the White House they must spend money like a drunken Santa and cut taxes to run up the U.S. debt as far and as fast as possible.
This produces three results: it stimulates the economy thus making people think that the GOP can produce a good economy; it raises the debt dramatically; and it makes people think that Republicans are the “tax-cut Santa Clauses.”
Second, when a Democrat is in the White House, Republicans must scream about the national debt as loudly and frantically as possible, freaking out about how “our children will have to pay for it!” and “we have to cut spending to solve the crisis!” Shut down the government, crash the stock market, and damage US credibility around the world if necessary to stop Democrats from spending money. https://www.milwaukeeindependent.com/thom-hartmann/two-santas-strategy-gop-used-economic-scam-manipulate-americans-40-years/
Wreck the government, then point to the Democrats and loudly claim everything is all their fault...
Our infrastructure is garbage. Our power was out for 2 days last time and Helene barely grazed us. Like one band hit us a bit. This one is heading straight at us so I expect to lose power for a few days at least. DeSantis is a fucking dumb piece of shit. But hey, he refused to talk to Harris to try to score a few political points and the braindead boomers will be going insane with joy.
Buckle up. From what you've said and my old experience with hurricanes from the past (I live in VA now and we rarely get touched), you're going to be out of power a week at minimum. I'd bet on much more. If you haven't already, get whatever supplies you can. I'm sure they're mostly gone at this point, but if you're in the path and your ground is already saturated, you're going to be hurting. Ideally, get the fuck out, but it's probably too late for that.
A few days? Mate, I hope that's the case, but my experience with direct hits from cat 3+ hurricanes is weeks to months. Only the lucky get it back quickly.
The conservative politicians will do everything they can to make sure the locals suffer as hard as possible so they can use the horrifying footage and stories for a Hail Mary marketing push.
Conservatives will play victim and pretend Dems did this to them. Their dumb bullshit will not work this time. The Dems are ready and will be campaigning with the fucking receipts.
I am truly sad that so many innocent people are being harmed by these conservative-caused climate disasters and the deadly conservative mishandling of them.
Victimhood is their identity. I was reading, just yesterday, about how christians were not persecuted any more than any other non-Roman religion. But we all know the stories of christians being fed to lions. They want the mythology.
I, sadly, call bullshit. The last time the democrats were actually good at pushing back forcefully with campaign messaging was when I was still in diapers. Now add in that democratic points actually need a modicum of thought put into them to accept them, while republican points are like grade school insults and comebacks that just 'sound good,' and I doubt we'll get big gains from republican-precipitated disasters.
Edit: Seriously... think about how many people believed that photo of trump wading through floodwaters. And how many others don't even care about obviously fake images like that, choosing to have the idea that such things are normal and okay.
True. There may not be a peaceful solution to this infestation. The peace agreement between normal people and conservative shitbags has been eroded to nearly nothing at this point.
It won't matter to these people how much Democrats fire back with messaging. In their proudly ignorant minds Democrats will always be liars and thieves who kept money from the poor Republican states even if the truth is staring them right in their stupid fucking faces.
Reminded of the aftermath of Ida, during which the wealthier districts in Mississippi and Alabama got immediate and substantive bailouts while the poorer municipalities were left to rot.
It's happened before, it will happen again. Your proximity to power will determine the relief you receive.
I strongly encourage all Florida pure bloods to stay out of the FEMA death camps. Shelter in place.
Fun Fact: when you're heating the sewage water to drink in your flooded town, you don't actually need to boil it. It's fine to just heat it up until you can't keep your hand in the water for ten seconds, that means it's hot enough to kill bacteria.
While you're giving good advice, remember to tell these poor folks in the path that staying in the house is not the safest option. They need to be outside the house, or any other form of potential collapse or collateral damage such as cars, sheds, trees, etc. They need to huddle about 15 feet away from any of those things, keeping the object of choice between them and the wind.
If an American flag is nearby, grab it and wrap yourself and your family in it, praying to god with all your might so he will protect you. My aunt Mildred had to do that in Helene, and god saved her by wrapping his holy hands over her family.
Tampa Bay and Orlando are two of the largest tourist cities in the state. I'm curious to see what the honorable representatives from Disney and Universal Studios are going to say in the aftermath of this thing.
Disneyland is in California, Disneyworld is in Florida.
Source: I live near Disneyland
Id wager the park would be mostly fine, Its in the center of the panhandlelong part that extends off the continent which should be the thing we call the pandhandle so the hurricane has to cover alot of ground to cover before it reaches it in force. Most likely looking at alot of damage to window and facades, with some flooding damage.
Source: I am a stranger on the internet doing guesswork and gutfeels on a natural phenomenon I've never experienced myself.
Edit: God damn... Disneyworld is like dead center in this hurricanes path. They're about to get wrecked.
Why would a maga rep actually live near the people they represent? They are grifters, not actual representatives of anyone. I'd be surprised if she even lives in Florida at all.
Lived in Panama City Beach during Hurricane Michael (2018). GOP mayor stole funds from hurricane relief, used them to hold parties on yaughts, bought a new house in Jacksonville and finally got sentenced.... To 1 month in jail.
Side note: when Trump came down to see the damage in Panama City Beach/Panama City/down to Tyndall Air Force Base, he only wanted to go with her, not the mayors of either of those 2 cities.
I was all set to say that a lot of Cubans seem to be so anti communist that they're pro fascist. But she's not Cuban. I assumed wrongly. She was born in California.
To be a traitor, you had to pretend at loyalty to begin with. I don't see anything in her background to suggest she was ever more than a stooge for the GOP.
That's very common among Cuban ex-pats. The community is inundated in right-wing revanchism and a burning sense of entitlement and hatred. Every time a liberal US politician tries to reopen diplomatic and trade relations with Cuba, the dead-enders lash out. Every time a conservative promises more sanctions, more embargo, and a tighter siege of the island, they start prepping their boats for Bay of Pigs 2. The Cuban lobby isn't as bad as AIPAC, but not for lack of trying.
I find it frustrating that she's so blazingly hot and simultaneously such an incredibly ugly person. I was explaining this to my girl, and she said "she's like the female Josh Hawley."
Yes, I immediately criticized her for saying he's hot, he looks like a goober d-bag to me. But, she pointed out, as a hetero man my vision isn't clouded by his looks, so all I see is the pure, Emperor Palpatine evilness of him.
She thinks he's evil too, but a good-looking evil apparently.
I can see his attractiveness to some extent, but I think it's mostly that he's an average looking dude of relative youth in comparison to his colleagues in the Senate. Put most men in a well-tailored suit and you'll set at least some hearts aflutter. Give him time and his lich core will take over.
And yeah, she looks like your typical Fox News broadcaster who has been chosen primarily due to their pretty face and ability to spread vitriol with reckless abandon.
She's cute so they will back her and continue to vote for her. Florida GOP has figured this out and flexing hard.
Run a cute vapid cunt and you're good.
What if this time instead of being decent, we just don't send aid. Too long we have let these voters elect these tools without consequences. They don't want aid? We shouldn't send it. Helping regardless sends the exact wrong message.
They shouldn't need emergency help because they should have evacuated. Evacuation orders were issued Monday.
Why should the rest of us subsidize their poor choice of living location? If you cannot afford adequate insurance, then you shouldn't live there. The cost of insurance should reflect the actual risk and not rely on taxpayer subsidy.
We have helped in the past, and it hasn't fixed the fundamental problem - see point 1.
It's different to send aid to Asheville, hurricanes aren't really expected to destroy elevated inland town. Coastal Florida should expect this weather.
Poor planning on their part shouldn't constitute an emergency for the rest of us.
Because in my version of America we look out for each other, even the assholes who don't subscribe. Helping regardless sends exactly the right message.
People can and do come around (especially young people) when they see you as the helpers rather than the rival tribe. One of the biggest stumbling blocks for Democrats - particularly in a state like Florida or Michigan or Pennsylvania - is how often they see politicians shower the state with attention in the six weeks before election day and then forget it exists as soon as the voting is done.
Another is the way both parties seem slavishly loyal to the biggest corporate interests in the respective states, despite groundswells of opposition to their gestapo-like municipal controls. The history of Disney in Florida is straight out of the most vile dystopian libertarian bullshit imaginable, straight down to Disney security officer collectable "challenge coins".
Because we have ethics and they don’t. Also because a lot of innocent people would die, not just republicans. I’m a queer socialist in a red state as are many of my friends. It sucks but it’s where we’re from and it’s not the easiest thing for everyone to find a job in a better area.
One of the savvier moves Trump made was to show up at every disaster scene with a campaign bus and a t-shirt cannon. He made a spectacle of every relief effort. He personally put his name on the COVID tax-relief checks. Consequently, he continues to be one of the most popular candidates to run for President.
Meanwhile, Biden took office in 2021 and immediately started compromising with his rightward flank. He billed everything as "Bipartisan". He traded away child tax credit extensions and Medicaid expansion to Senators in his own party as a condition for bailing out Intel and sending more weapons to Israel. Miserable politics. Deplorable approval ratings. He went the full Lyndon Johnson at the end, dropping out without even trying for reelection.