Politics

[rigbymauser]

"Broken society and system." Ain't that the truth. This country needs a little old fashion frontier justice. Arrest, trial, conviction and they swing--all in two or three days. No more of this dilly dallying for months or years.

Re-instate Roy Bean.

 

[fourfive8]

I hate going to the doctor, especially on any kind of “subscription plan”. Sad to see some go as a social event. I’ve gone years without seeing a doctor, going only after an injury requiring attention. After an extended absence and continual prompting by my PCP, I relented and went in for a check up a couple months ago. Of course they require you fill out a patient update form before being called in to see the doc, This time they had installed a couple of e-pads at the reception desk to use instead of the normal paper form.

I don’t know who wrote the questions but it was creepy and weird! Every other question was a prompt encouraging an answer indicating you have some form of mental problem or were contemplating suicide! They also used the old questionnaire trick of repeating same questions embedded throughout the questionnaire in obvious effort to catch you contradicting yourself. I have no idea what agenda this medical group is in on but something is afoot and I’m afraid there is some gov grant money dangling in the background enticing this behavior. It was a creepy experience! I wouldn’t doubt a company lawyer and/or gov rep used some form of AI to construct the questionnaire. I’m 76, an independent thinker, physically and mentally healthy and smart enough to recognize something wasn’t/isn’t right, at least in this example of our medical-government-industrial complex. BOLO

 

[Brent in Az]

I hate going to the doctor, especially on any kind of “subscription plan”. Sad to see some go as a social event. I’ve gone years without seeing a doctor, going only after an injury requiring attention. After an extended absence and continual prompting by my PCP, I relented and went in for a check up a couple months ago. Of course they require you fill out a patient update form before being called in to see the doc, This time they had installed a couple of e-pads at the reception desk to use instead of the normal paper form.

I don’t know who wrote the questions but it was creepy and weird! Every other question was a prompt encouraging an answer indicating you have some form of mental problem or were contemplating suicide! They also used the old questionnaire trick of repeating same questions embedded throughout the questionnaire in obvious effort to catch you contradicting yourself. I have no idea what agenda this medical group is in on but something is afoot and I’m afraid there is some gov grant money dangling in the background enticing this behavior. It was a creepy experience! I wouldn’t doubt a company lawyer and/or gov rep used some form of AI to construct the questionnaire. I’m 76, an independent thinker, physically and mentally healthy and smart enough to recognize something wasn’t/isn’t right, at least in this example of our medical-government-industrial complex. BOLO

I would have walked out. I don't answer invasive questions, especially the question if I have a firearm in the home.
It's none of their damn business
All it takes is some anti gun Doctor to try and red flag you as mentally unstable because of some "Gotcha " questions

 

[Brent in Az]

SCOTUS rules against Trump's authority on tariffs. A blow to the economic agenda.

 

[fourfive8]

I would have walked out. I don't answer invasive questions, especially the question if I have a firearm in the home.
It's none of their damn business
All it takes is some anti gun Doctor to try and red flag you as mentally unstable because of some "Gotcha " questions

I would have but it was literally the last day of work for my doctor. A rare, super good doctor who retired at the end of that day. I don’t know if I will continue with that group or not. I have no idea where that questionnaire came from. Maybe a third party app of a contracted legal service used by that medical group. Spooky experiences like that remind me of “1984”. The current discussions here about the situation in Canada prompted my posting this.

 

[WAB]

Not that I’m advocating for the maid program as I’m firmly against it for religious reasons but a couple of years ago my best friends father was dieing of throat cancer and tired of taking treatments and unfortunately chose to end his own life. If that is the way you bound and determined to go than I’m sure a doctors injection is easier on the family than taking the option available to us all as firearms owners. My buddy ended up staying with me until he was able to sell his property which was a home that his family had owned sense the loyalists fled America because he was unable to return there without seeing what he had walked in on.

another unfortunate fact of Canadian law if your elderly father who was a sportsman his entire life lets his pal lapse because he’s physically unable to go hunting anymore than the rcmp has grounds to seize firearms from the son because he allowed his father access to them and they were used in a shooting. Doesn’t matter that the guns in question were in the same cabinet they had been in the sons entire life.

I have seen the impact on friends and family when an individual has elected MAID. I am not entering the fray other than to say that I am absolutely opposed to it.

 

[Tanks]

SCOTUS rules against Trump's authority on tariffs. A blow to the economic agenda.

So, billions in refunds?

 

[Red Leg]

Most were expecting some sort of compromise ruling that would somewhat limit Trump's executive authority with regard to tariffs. However, the court seems to have gone strict constructionist in recognizing the authority of the Congress. The second and third order effects of this ruling will be interesting.

Supreme Court strikes down Trump tariffs, rebuking president's signature economic policy

Trump, as recently as Thursday, has talked up the consequences of the Supreme Court striking down his tariffs prior to the seismic ruling.

www.cnbc.com

 

[mdwest]

I have seen the impact on friends and family when an individual has elected MAID. I am not entering the fray other than to say that I am absolutely opposed to it.

Its Canada.. so not really my business..

but.. I will say, my own morals, ethics, and faith would make me absolutely opposed to it here in the US..

add in the inate corruption of man (in this case certain "medical professionals" and politicians) and I see it as a complete shit show administratively as well..

I had a very close friend commit suicide about 10 years ago.. he developed cancer 20 years ago.. he beat it.. but the doctors told him that it would absolutely come back (this was some really aggressive and somewhat rare form of testicular cancer) and that when it did, it would not be survivable.. They told him to plan on 3-5 years before it came back... he was blessed by being given 10..

He told me when he initially beat cancer that when it came back that his plan would be to take himself out.. he wanted to dictate the terms and conditions of his departure from this life and not allow the cancer to "win".. he was also a very strong, mentally sharp, etc guy.. a former Force Reconnaissance Marine that had done exceedingly well in business after leaving the military.. he wanted his daughter and wife to remember him that way, and not see a broken down, sick, weak, etc person that cancer was going to make him before it killed him..

He maintained this position for the entire decade before the cancer came back.. never wavering.. despite several of his friends (myself included) telling him that he needed to talk to his daughter and his wife about this and find out what their thoughts were.. they were the critical people he would be leaving behind.. He refused..

When the cancer came back, he did exactly what he said he would do.. he made his rounds, went and saw all of his close friends, spent time with them, spent time with his wife, etc.. but.. didnt tell anyone what was actually going on... he and I went and had lunch at a burger joint, shared a bunch of laughs, reminised (we had deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan together in a senior leader contractor role several times in the past).. and then went our separate ways.. it was just another lunch in my mind (we did this about once every six months to a year, and had been doing it for years)...

2 days later he was gone..

The anguish his daughter felt, and still deals with today is huge.. the anguish another one of his close friends feels even today has been incredibly impactful in the most negative ways.. etc..etc..

While I completely understand his mindset and his reasoning (we had talked about this in depth several times over the years).. I also completely disagree with it.. He felt like he was being "strong"... I actually feel the exact opposite.. I see it as weakness and selfishness.. a refusal to deal with a tough circumstance, that left the people that loved him the most, heartbroken, questioning their value, questioning their worth, etc..

Again, this was a very close friend.. A guy I had known for almost 20 years.. that I had worked closely with for 3 years (we had offices next door to each other).. that I had deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan with a dozen times or more.. that I shared countless meals with.. our families hung out together.. etc.. I loved him like a brother..

but.. if Im honest with myself.. Im still pissed at him.. its been difficult for me to find forgiveness (although I think I finally got there a few years ago)..

 

[RLD]

Or are numbers going up because we have an aging population, and people are realizing that it’s not as sinister as Jack Kevorkian was made out to be in the 90’s?

Do you have first hand knowledge of someone being offered MAID as the first solution to their medical/mental issues? If so, I’d be interested in hearing it.

I know @BRICKBURN likes to stay clear of this mud pit, but he would have great insight on the process. I’m not sure if any Canadian members are MD’s.

Interestingly enough, there is a mental health exclusion for the next year

I am not an MD, but having practised personal injury law for over 30 years many of my friends and hunting companions are. We have talked about how MAID works quite a bit. In addition the leading lawyer who has fought against MAID in Canada is a close friend. Oddly enough he is legally blind.

A number of comments here don't accurately reflect how MAID really works in Canada. I literally don't have time to correct the misconceptions typed here.

I know people who have chosen the MAID route, and have several friends whose parents made that choice. I respect all of their decisions. They are surely braver than I.

On a personal level, for religious reasons, I am opposed to MAID. However I don't believe the state should impose restrictions on people based on my religious beliefs. This is a personal decision for each person to make. I would counsel people not to take this route based on my worldview, but being a believer in individual liberty would not take away their right to do something even though I profoundly disagree with it.

 

[Tanks]

Lesson:
Please get your enduring power of attorney done.
Please get your advance medical directives done. Educate your family and friends on your wishes.
Please get your damned Will drafted.
If you want to make a choice about your care, hurry up and do it while you are capable of doing so. Be that advanced medical care or MAID.

My daughter-in-law has been salivating about my son's potential inheritance for a decade and a half now. When she was visiting our Mediterranean residence, she even thanked my partner/girlfriend for helping me decorate the place!!! Inside joke among all is that if something happened to me, she'd pull the plug right away.

Needless to say, I have all paperwork, trusts etc. done.

 

[RLD]

Most were expecting some sort of compromise ruling that would somewhat limit Trump's executive authority with regard to tariffs. However, the court seems to have gone strict constructionist in recognizing the authority of the Congress. The second and third order effects of this ruling will be interesting.

Supreme Court strikes down Trump tariffs, rebuking president's signature economic policy

Trump, as recently as Thursday, has talked up the consequences of the Supreme Court striking down his tariffs prior to the seismic ruling.

www.cnbc.com

On first blush it just looks like an extension of the "major questions" doctrine the court has liked for a number of years now. I don't see much new in their approach. It was used to stop several Biden initiatives dead in their tracks.

Many close court watchers were expecting exactly this result. Nobody should be surprised.

I hope to read the whole thing over the weekend, but I can't say I am surprised.

 

[steve white]

So, billions in refunds?

Not just refunds, but will the trade deals precipitated by tariffs hold together? Promises to invest in manufacturing in America?

 

[Altitude sickness]

The USSC tariff ruling will provide a huge boost to the economy. Businesses can finally have some stability and be able to plan ahead.

 

[RLD]

Not just refunds, but will the trade deals precipitated by tariffs hold together? Promises to invest in manufacturing in America?

Several of the countries who made trade deals made public statements that they would stand by them no matter what the outcome of the case IIRC.

 

[Brent in Az]

So, billions in refunds?

Trump was touting sending taxpayers $2000, as somewhat of a tariff revenue dividend check.
I think that would have been a good strategy before the midterms.

 

[Brent in Az]

The economy grew 2.2% in 2025, which exceeded expectations......or so they say.

 

[Brent in Az]

Trump can invoke tariffs on individual countries, if he shows cause and sets a rate , yes?
He just doesn't need to be using tariffs like wielding a Jedi light saber against countries that piss him off for some reason

 

[RLD]

Trump can invoke tariffs on individual countries, if he shows cause and sets a rate , yes?
He just doesn't need to be using tariffs like wielding a Jedi light saber against countries that piss him off for some reason

His power to impose tariffs is now greatly reduced in quantum and length. And subject to a great deal more congressional oversight.

 

[Newboomer]

My daughter-in-law has been salivating about my son's potential inheritance for a decade and a half now. When she was visiting our Mediterranean residence, she even thanked my partner/girlfriend for helping me decorate the place!!! Inside joke among all is that if something happened to me, she'd pull the plug right away.

Needless to say, I have all paperwork, trusts etc. done.

Likewise. I have everything in my estate plan except my vehicles and home. I excluded them to avoid sibling discord among my grandchildren. I didn't designate a recipient. I'll let my executor handle that.