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All the Perl that's Practical to Extract and Report

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  • Members of the military are citizens too.
    • Churches can't be overtly political, and members of churches are citizens too. The point is that something as big as letting active-duty military people take part in the democratic process is a Big Deal, not something that should've been slid thru days just before the RNC. This reeks.
      • So I don't get to take part in the democratic process? How am I any less a citizen than anyone else?

        Who are you going to exclude next?
        • Maybe you missed the part brian, the one where it states that IT IS AGAINST THE LAW. Not that laws matter to these folks anymore. Not like the military coup didn't take place years ago, but it's nice to try to keep up the illusion.
          • Which law are you talking about?

            Some newspaper says something and you believe it? I've read the entire Uniform Code of Military justice and it doesn't say I can't take part in a political party as a citizen. They even have officers especially appointed to let us register to vote! The horror!
            • Vets and non-active duty, sure, but active duty guys in uniform? Hey, aren't they supposed to be out shooting at something brown and vaguely menacing? this DoD directive [sdmcp.org] seems pretty clear but, then again, I guess you don't count since you were just in the National Guard and it isn't listed. The contention is on active duty officers....like having a regiment show up at a political rally or something, even if it weren't considered illegal, it'd certainly be very worrisome for this thing the US continues to c
              • I don't recall anyone saying anything about people in uniform being at the convention. The law is pretty clear that that uniforms are right out, but I haven't seen any part of the linked discussion that said anything about what people were wearing. All I've seen is an unsubstantiated sentence in an AP wire report that looks like it's based on a RNC press release. That doesn't look like a credible chain of information to me.

                The RNC press release says "active military personnel will make up 3 percent" an [rnc.org]
                • Well, alright then, the more active duty military guys showing up at conventions the merrier. I don't have to care anymore as I left and I don't know why I bother. It should be very worrisome that any active personnel did in fact show up at the convention, law or not. I think people jump to conclusions because things are slipping away from democracy and when people get upset they're just told they're lefties and such.
                  • How are things slippiing away from democracy?

                    • Fascism Checklist ( source [secularhumanism.org])

                      1. Powerful and continuing expressions of nationalism.
                      2. Disdain for the importance of human rights.
                      3. Identification of enemies/scapegoats as a unifying cause.
                      4. The supremacy of the military/avid militarism.
                      5. Rampant sexism.
                      6. A controlled mass media.
                      7. Obsession with national security.
                      8. Religion and ruling elite tied together.
                      9. Power of corporations protected.
                      10. Power of labor suppressed or eliminated.
                      11. Disdain and suppression of intellectuals and the arts.
                      12. Obsession with crime and punishment.

                    • 1. Powerful and continuing expressions of nationalism.

                      That's not a bad thing, unless combined with some of the things you mention below.

                      2. Disdain for the importance of human rights.

                      Not happening, although there are some disagreements in implementation.

                      3. Identification of enemies/scapegoats as a unifying cause.

                      Nobody's been used as a scapegoat, and yes, we did need to unite in the presence of enemies.

                      4. The supremacy of the military/avid militarism.

                      Respecting the military is a bad thing? Dude, I'm a pacifist and I don't even feel like that.

                      5. Rampant sexism.

                      Nope.

                      6. A controlled mass media.

                      Nope.

                      7. Obsession with national security.

                      Also tends to happen in the fact of mass terrorist activity. Perfectly normal, given the situation. Who didn't obsess over their own security for at least a few days?

                      8. Religion and ruling elite tied together.

                      Statutorily prevented, in this country, so I don't know where you're seeing it.

                      9. Power of corporations protected.

                      If they own something, shouldn't their rights be protected? As long as the rest of us are protected from them.

                      10. Power of labor suppressed or eliminated.

                      Can't argue with you here; government needs to get completely OUT of private disputes. Note that that means not putting the corporations down, either.

                      11. Disdain and suppression of intellectuals and the arts.

                      Nobody's being suppressed. Arts don't need to be funded at public expense, however.

                      12. Obsession with crime and punishment.

                      If you don't like an attitude, it's an "obsession." That's an ad-hominem attack, not a point. Let's put it this way; when you're in danger of crime, you tend to be obsessed with it, at least for a while.

                      13. Rampant cronyism and corruption.

                      Thankfully, no!

                      14. Fraudulent elections.

                      Also, no! Everything's been legal!

                      However, the emergence of all of them at once

                      Oh, good! We have nothing to worry about!

                      --
                      J. David works really hard, has a passion for writing good software, and knows many of the world's best Perl programmers
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