Understanding the US - Again

schinnas · Post by **schinnas** » 14 May 2020 13:20

NRI community in US and Hindu community in US should get organised and politically active. There are 0.8M muslims in US and 0.7M Hindus. But in terms of political activism, media space and lobbying and funding, Hindu Americans and Indian Americans are nowhere to be seen.

They should take a leaf from NRI community in UK which forced Labor to change its policy and publicly proclaim about not getting into internal legislative issues of India.

darshan · Post by **darshan** » 14 May 2020 19:38

UK Hindus case is bit different than US. Look at the composition of Hindus in UK. And, they got united briefly due to necessity and not by choice. Took years and years of getting kicked by Muslims to do that. In US, Hindus haven't observed kicking by Muslims to that level yet. Hack Hindus in India don't get united till there's some serious kicking looking at 1000+ years of history.

nachiket · Post by **nachiket** » 14 May 2020 22:49

There are differences between the situations in the UK and the US. The UK Conservative party is not an analogue of the Republican party in the US. The Christian fundamentalists and racist elements in the UK right wing all went to the UKIP and became a non-entity leaving the Conservative party mostly benign on that front. Meanwhile the left-wing nutjobs all remained in Labour with Corbyn himself being the chief nutjob. It was easy for the Hindus to switch their allegiance to the tories and they were welcomed.

There is no third party in the US. The right wing extremists (bible thumpers, white supremacists etc.) are all part of the Republican and especially the Trump base and the rest of the base tolerates them since they are useful in winning elections. It is difficult for Hindus to switch loyalties even if they were organized and united (which they are definitely not). A large section of them are also on temp visas or GC's and cannot vote anyway. The Muslims on the other hand (non-Indian ones especially) mostly arrived using family sponsorships from many different countries and quickly obtained citizenship. Absolute numbers do not tell the whole story here. A lot of Hindus also live in places which are Dem strongholds where the Republicans don't have a hope in hell of flipping seats even if the entire Hindu population voted for them.

Another option would be to try and get more India and Hindu-friendly candidates to rise to the top in the Democratic party itself. That is almost impossible now looking at how strong the hold of the radical neo-marxists (who call themselves progressives) is in the Dem party. These creatures reflexively hate Hindus and India especially when Modi is in power.

sanjaykumar · Post by **sanjaykumar** » 15 May 2020 00:08

That is a pertinant post.

Christianity seems to have evolved further in Britain than in mainstream US politics. Although it is a huge component of their culture, it has been depoliticised. It is significant that I do not know Boris Johnson's religion/denomination.

Some years ago, my non-Indian girlfriend, sitting next to me, prayed in St Paul's cathedral. Ever the metacogitionist, I found that it did not bother me.

Vayutuvan · Post by **Vayutuvan** » 15 May 2020 06:21

schinnas wrote:NRI community in US and Hindu community in US should get organised and politically active. There are 0.8M muslims in US and 0.7M Hindus.

Are you underestimating both the numbers? CAIR or whatever it is called claims that there 6 million muslims which probably is an overestimation by a factor of 2. Hindu population is about 2.5 million which, as per collective BRF wisdom is an underestimate by about 0.5 million.

Vayutuvan · Post by **Vayutuvan** » 15 May 2020 06:24

schinnas wrote:They should take a leaf from NRI community in UK which forced Labor to change its policy and publicly proclaim about not getting into internal legislative issues of India.

Possibly Sir <whatishisname> is getting a lot of flak from mosques in UK. He might very well be forced to change his stance reverting to the normal.

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 15 May 2020 23:51

https://disrn.com/news/biden-struggles- ... to-pile-up

Biden struggles badly during "virtual roundtable" as gaffes continue to pile up
https://twitter.com/DisrnNews/status/12 ... 9863377920

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 15 May 2020 23:52

https://disrn.com/news/gop-flips-congre ... since-1998
GOP flips congressional seat in California for 1st time since 1998

Anyone from CA can comment on this? What does this mean?

Mollick.R · Post by **Mollick.R** » 15 May 2020 23:59

X-post from china thread

Mollick.R · Post by **Mollick.R** » 16 May 2020 01:05

X-Post

US senator unveils 18-point plan to hold China accountable for coronavirus outbreak

WASHINGTON: A top US senator has unveiled an 18-point plan, including enhancing military ties with India, to hold the Chinese government accountable for its "lies, deception, and cover-ups" that ultimately led to the global coronavirus pandemic.

The prominent suggestions are moving manufacturing chain from China and deepening military-strategic ties India, Vietnam and Taiwan.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/ne ... 750561.cms

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 16 May 2020 01:40

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 16 May 2020 03:54

U.S. Moves to Cut Off Chip Supplies to Huawei

NOTE: Below is a partial quote and the header to the story in the WSJ. It may be behind a paywall.

New restriction stops foreign semiconductor manufacturers whose operations use U.S. software and technology from shipping products to Huawei without first getting a license from U.S. officials

WASHINGTON—The Trump administration announced export restrictions on Friday designed to cut off Chinese telecom-equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co. from overseas suppliers, threatening to ignite a new round of U.S.-China economic tensions.

The restrictions stop foreign semiconductor manufacturers whose operations use U.S. software and technology from shipping products to Huawei without first getting a license from U.S. officials, essentially giving the U.S. Commerce Department a veto over the kinds of technology that Huawei can use.

Under the new rules, the department can block the sale of semiconductors manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., for Huawei’s HiSilicon unit, which designs chips for the company, as well as chips and other software produced by manufacturing facilities in China and South Korea, which use American chip-making technology. The Commerce Department already had the ability to license software shipments from U.S.-based facilities.....

KLNMurthy · Post by **KLNMurthy** » 16 May 2020 04:24

vijayk wrote:https://disrn.com/news/gop-flips-congre ... since-1998
GOP flips congressional seat in California for 1st time since 1998

Anyone from CA can comment on this? What does this mean?

That headline is grabby but really doesn't mean that much.

The seat is in an affluent, conservative suburb of L.A. It was originally an R seat, and got narrowly flipped from R to D in 2018. The congresswoman who won got involved in some sexual shenanigans and had to resign. This is a special election to warm the seat till November 2020. The voter participation was probably quite low due to covid and the fact that the vote was held at a weird time.

It is a setback to the Democrats but not a major one.

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 16 May 2020 06:31

https://twitter.com/DarrenPlymouth/stat ... 0584203270

Kayleigh McEnany is new Press sec destroying media

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 16 May 2020 09:08

KLNMurthy wrote:
vijayk wrote:https://disrn.com/news/gop-flips-congre ... since-1998
GOP flips congressional seat in California for 1st time since 1998

Anyone from CA can comment on this? What does this mean?
That headline is grabby but really doesn't mean that much.

The seat is in an affluent, conservative suburb of L.A. It was originally an R seat, and got narrowly flipped from R to D in 2018. The congresswoman who won got involved in some sexual shenanigans and had to resign. This is a special election to warm the seat till November 2020. The voter participation was probably quite low due to covid and the fact that the vote was held at a weird time.

It is a setback to the Democrats but not a major one.

Out of 53 seats in CA, the elephants have 7. This particular seat has been with the donkeystanis since 1998.

mappunni · Post by **mappunni** » 16 May 2020 09:12

Mort Walker wrote:
Out of 53 seats in CA, the elephants have 7. This particular seat has been with the donkeystanis since 1998.

No wonder I see so many cars with California license plates in North Texas

Especially Post Toyota move to Plano TX

Wonder what happens when Tesla decides to move to Texas?

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 16 May 2020 11:18

mappunni wrote:
Mort Walker wrote:
Out of 53 seats in CA, the elephants have 7. This particular seat has been with the donkeystanis since 1998.
No wonder I see so many cars with California license plates in North Texas

Especially Post Toyota move to Plano TX Wonder what happens when Tesla decides to move to Texas?

Lots of small business owners have moved out of southern CA to north TX. The Korean community in north TX has grown by leaps and bounds. Tesla will become neighbors with Exon-Mobil.

Aldonkar · Post by **Aldonkar** » 17 May 2020 23:12

sanjaykumar wrote:That is a pertinant post.

Christianity seems to have evolved further in Britain than in mainstream US politics. Although it is a huge component of their culture, it has been depoliticised. It is significant that I do not know Boris Johnson's religion/denomination.

Some years ago, my non-Indian girlfriend, sitting next to me, prayed in St Paul's cathedral. Ever the metacogitionist, I found that it did not bother me.

Boris was baptised Catholic as he has a Catholic mother. However, as a student at Oxford he switched to Anglican and remains nominally Anglican. If he religion had been determined by Indian convention, he would be a Muslim as his paternal great grandfather was a Turk called Ali Kemal but after Ali's death his great grandmother changed her childrens' name to her maiden name Johnson.

Religion is very much a non issue to British people. Very few practice a formal religion but many will say they hold Christian values. Non organised religion such as Buddhism and even Hinduism are gaining respect among the thinking class.

mappunni · Post by **mappunni** » 17 May 2020 23:53

Mort Walker wrote: Lots of small business owners have moved out of southern CA to north TX. The Korean community in north TX has grown by leaps and bounds. Tesla will become neighbors with Exon-Mobil.

Walker Saab, Yes plenty of Korean moving in. And lots of the Koreans are moving in from Korea through the EB5 program thanks to Sam Moon Enterprise which diversified into Hotels. My Korean neighbors moved into my neighborhood a couple of years ago and speak no English. The kids attend my daughter's school and have an English coach coming in every week.

There are a couple of HMarts which is the sign of a growing Korean population in North TX. Tesla will be moving to Austin for all purposes. UT Austin is among the forefront in the research of Lithium-ion batteries plus lots of land for their Terra-Factory!

Exxon-Mobil has put up its campus in Irving TX for sale!

darshan · Post by **darshan** » 18 May 2020 00:04

Reading of political trends in big Texas metros indicates long term making California out of Texas isn't it?

mappunni · Post by **mappunni** » 18 May 2020 01:05

darshan wrote:Reading of political trends in big Texas metros indicates long term making California out of Texas, isn't it?

Don't think so. Everyone expected Texas to turn purple in 2016 and Blue in 2020. Not going to happen for sure.

The Hispanics even if they become majority will only vote for Republicans. The Hispanics are mostly 3rd and 4th generation Chicanos who are Americans in every way. Hispanics culturally are hardworking and very entrepreneurial folks. Haven't seen a Hispanic beggar!

Don't expect Texas to go California way!

darshan · Post by **darshan** » 18 May 2020 01:37

You're from DFW. Just take a look at monies being borrowed by Dallas, Collin, and Tarrant counties. And, how much they are wasting. California didn't turn into what it's overnight. Spend monies and leave someone else holding the bags.

KLNMurthy · Post by **KLNMurthy** » 18 May 2020 02:37

Mort Walker wrote:
KLNMurthy wrote: That headline is grabby but really doesn't mean that much.

The seat is in an affluent, conservative suburb of L.A. It was originally an R seat, and got narrowly flipped from R to D in 2018. The congresswoman who won got involved in some sexual shenanigans and had to resign. This is a special election to warm the seat till November 2020. The voter participation was probably quite low due to covid and the fact that the vote was held at a weird time.

It is a setback to the Democrats but not a major one.
Out of 53 seats in CA, the elephants have 7. This particular seat has been with the donkeystanis since 1998.

I don't think so, Mort. This used to be Steve Knight's safe seat before Katie Hill wrested it narrowly in 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Californi ... l_district

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 18 May 2020 02:48

darshan wrote:You're from DFW. Just take a look at monies being borrowed by Dallas, Collin, and Tarrant counties. And, how much they are wasting. California didn't turn into what it's overnight. Spend monies and leave someone else holding the bags.

darshanji,

The DFW metroplex consists of 11 counties including the ones you mentioned with a land area of over 10,000 square miles - this is more than twice of the greater Los Angeles area. Texas has no state income tax, no tax on food/medicine, cheap land, and is pro business. However, Texas has high property taxes and general sales tax is over 8%. The state and counties are building schools, road infrastructure and local airports very quickly.
You could call this waste, but it's more about building infrastructure first. Companies are moving to this area very quickly because of the connectivity (DFW Airport which has 8 runways), cheap land, energy and great schools. Texas high schools rank their students and state flagship universities select on rank.

Counties generate revenue generated from property taxes, sales taxes, and some from state oil/gas production taxes. It is very unlikely that Texas goes blue in the general election. In the past, donkey like LBJ and former governor Ann Richards represented the state well, but the national donkeys do not.

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 18 May 2020 02:50

KLNMurthy wrote:
Mort Walker wrote:
Out of 53 seats in CA, the elephants have 7. This particular seat has been with the donkeystanis since 1998.
I don't think so, Mort. This used to be Steve Knight's safe seat before Katie Hill wrested it narrowly in 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Californi ... l_district

Sorry. I must have been looking at another CA county.

KLNMurthy · Post by **KLNMurthy** » 18 May 2020 03:01

Mort Walker wrote:
KLNMurthy wrote:
I don't think so, Mort. This used to be Steve Knight's safe seat before Katie Hill wrested it narrowly in 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Californi ... l_district
Sorry. I must have been looking at another CA county.

Happens, no worries. I actually contributed to Katie Hill back then, just because Knight's seat was such a prize. Too bad Katie Hill decided to get involved in some weird sexual threesome, that too with a subordinate, instead of doing her job.

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 18 May 2020 03:04

CA has gone bonkers. Places like SFO use to be a beautiful city are terrible now.

KLNMurthy · Post by **KLNMurthy** » 18 May 2020 03:13

Mort Walker wrote:CA has gone bonkers. Places like SFO use to be a beautiful city are terrible now.

Leaders at all levels seem to be clueless on how to deal with homelessness. I am not sensing the level of vision, conceptualization, or administrative and management skills I had assumed or expected. Lots of drama and rhetoric, some localized sincere work, plus throwing money at the problem, but no comprehensive understanding or management. Homelessness was the covid before the covid, and we never flattened that curve.

vera_k · Post by **vera_k** » 18 May 2020 06:03

darshan wrote:Reading of political trends in big Texas metros indicates long term making California out of Texas isn't it?

Yes, but also largely depends on what happens with CA. Refugees from CA bring their politics with them, and their numbers are swelling.

The blue-state exodus gains momentum

darshan · Post by **darshan** » 18 May 2020 08:37

Mort Walker wrote:[

Mortji,

I have more than enough share of the south side including Texas. You can call me nostalgic or just glass half empty. I'm not fan of mainstream Americans spending money and sticking others with debts to pay. The way I see it, like Dallas county, Collin county is on its way. Traditional whites are the smart ones who get their kids to enjoy all infrastructure and move out as soon as they move in.

If things were so rosey, counties like Dallas won't be borrowing ridiculous sum of money on elections targeted to have very low turnout

darshan · Post by **darshan** » 18 May 2020 08:39

vera_k wrote:
darshan wrote:Reading of political trends in big Texas metros indicates long term making California out of Texas isn't it?
Yes, but also largely depends on what happens with CA. Refugees from CA bring their politics with them, and their numbers are swelling.

The blue-state exodus gains momentum

Yep. I remember living and visiting DFW and how it has changed over decades. Local ghettos have started looking like CA ones now.

mappunni · Post by **mappunni** » 18 May 2020 08:47

darshan wrote:
vera_k wrote:
Yes, but also largely depends on what happens with CA. Refugees from CA bring their politics with them, and their numbers are swelling.

The blue-state exodus gains momentum
Yep. I remember living and visiting DFW and how it has changed over the decades. Local ghettos have started looking like CA ones now.

Darshanji, I live in Denton County and can tell you when I moved to Dallas in 2007, the area where I live used to still have cows and even a horse ranch close by. In about 12 years' time, no trace of anything, Just homes, and the new Toyota Home office is about 4 miles from my home, new companies have moved. My daughters from elementary to High School had to go over 5 schools due to the amount of population moving in.

At least my city does not seem to be going the Dallas way in terms of development and taxes. We do have high property tax but that is more than offset by no state income tax and no taxes or low taxes.

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 18 May 2020 10:02

vera_k wrote:
darshan wrote:Reading of political trends in big Texas metros indicates long term making California out of Texas isn't it?
Yes, but also largely depends on what happens with CA. Refugees from CA bring their politics with them, and their numbers are swelling.

The blue-state exodus gains momentum

They might, but that's an opinion piece. If you look at it, TX has elected elephant governors with good margins of 55%+ over the last 30 years. The donekystanis in TX have been clamoring for a state income tax under their breath for over two decades, but are afraid to say it openly. If they do that, it will kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

As a state, TX is administered better than most other states in the US.

g.sarkar · Post by **g.sarkar** » 18 May 2020 10:37

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... s-or-china
US message to Britain in bilateral trade talks: it's us – or China
Proposed clause viewed by diplomats as lever to deter closer UK relations with Beijing
Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor, Tue 12 May 2020
The US government has been privately pressing the UK in bilateral trade talks to make a choice between the US and China.
The US is seeking to insert a clause that would allow it to retreat from parts of the deal if Britain reaches a trade agreement with another country that the US did not approve. The proposed clause made no mention specifically of China, but is seen by British diplomats in Washington as intended to be a lever to deter closer UK-China relations. It had been seen by the UK as equivalent to the public pressure the US had been placing on Britain not to reach an agreement with Huawei to provide the UK’s 5G telecoms network. Most of the controversy concerning the US-UK trade talks has so far focused on the prices of medicines, food standards and a digital tax. The proposed clause is based on article 30 of the US-Mexico-Canada agreement that locks out non-market economies. Although the UK does not formally oppose such clauses, British diplomats are worried that in the current context it would give the US extensive and unbalanced leverage over UK policy towards China.
UK diplomats are more broadly concerned that Donald Trump’s determination to use the coronavirus outbreak as a political stick with which to beat China, and secure his re-election, is going to place the UK government under intense external pressure to side with the US against China. Support for a stronger anti-China posture is growing across Conservative benches. The former chancellor George Osborne said he was nevertheless confident that Boris Johnson was not going to succumb, saying: “Curiously, the member of the cabinet most in favour of engagement with China is the prime minister. He is perfectly prepared to resist some of the pressure from his backbenches.”
.....
Gautam

darshan · Post by **darshan** » 21 May 2020 23:12

US Senator Kamala Harris and other Democrats introduce resolution against terms ‘Chinese Virus’ and ‘Wuhan Virus’ to describe coronavirus
https://www.opindia.com/2020/05/us-sena ... ronavirus/

https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/sres ... s580is.pdf

g.sarkar · Post by **g.sarkar** » 22 May 2020 14:42

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/2 ... rus-271313
China-U.S. diplomatic back channels dry up, making communication harder
Coronavirus travel restrictions and a more belligerent diplomacy style on both sides make constructive communication difficult.
By JUN MAI | SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST, WENDY WU | SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST and ADAM BEHSUDI, 05/21/2020 09:00 AM EDT
This story is part of an ongoing series on U.S.-China relations, jointly produced by the South China Morning Post and POLITICO, with reporting from Asia and the United States.
The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated a breakdown in the conversations that have so often underpinned — and sometimes rescued — relations between Beijing and Washington. Chinese foreign ministry officials are pursuing their Wolf Warrior brand of diplomacy, hurling insults over Twitter, a platform banned in their own country. For his part, President Donald Trump has taken to directly and repeatedly blaming China for the spread of the virus during his frequent press comments. The flurry of behind-the-scenes meetings and messages — between government officials, business executives, former officials and academics — has ground to a halt as a result of the rising hostility and travel restrictions caused by the pandemic, according to people usually involved in the discussions. “The pandemic has cut off personal meetings. That is very bad,” said Wang Huiyao, director with the Center for China and Globalization, a Beijing-based think tank that includes former Chinese officials and prominent Chinese scholars.
“Many messages can only be conveyed indirectly by spokesmen and media, which could compromise the effectiveness of the communication and easily lead to misunderstanding,” said Wang, who also sits on the advisory panel to the State Council, China’s cabinet.
The bravado is not just bad for diplomacy. Also at stake is a $200 billion trade deal, which Trump wants to use to boost the fortunes of U.S. farmers, energy companies and other exporters. Nevertheless, he has threatened to “cut off the whole relationship” — including the trade deal — and take additional actions against China over accusations that it covered up the initial outbreak of the virus.
.....
Gautam

ricky_v · Post by **ricky_v** » 23 May 2020 14:55

https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... -since-90s

Members of the Trump administration have explored conducting the first U.S. nuclear test since 1992 in a move that would mark a reversal from a decades-long freeze on such tests.

A senior administration official and two former officials familiar with the deliberations told The Washington Post that discussions were held at a meeting of senior officials from the top national security agencies last Friday. The conversations came in response to accusations that Russia and China are running low-yield nuclear tests, though no evidence has emerged to support the claims.

A senior administration official told the Post that showing Russia and China, two top adversaries, that the U.S. could conduct a “rapid test” could grant Washington leverage in seeking a trilateral nuclear deal.

Rony · Post by **Rony** » 23 May 2020 18:44

Black Americans are in an abusive relationship with the Democratic party

Biden asks Amy Klobuchar to undergo vetting as possible running mate

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 23 May 2020 20:52

ricky_v wrote:https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... -since-90s
Members of the Trump administration have explored conducting the first U.S. nuclear test since 1992 in a move that would mark a reversal from a decades-long freeze on such tests.

A senior administration official and two former officials familiar with the deliberations told The Washington Post that discussions were held at a meeting of senior officials from the top national security agencies last Friday. The conversations came in response to accusations that Russia and China are running low-yield nuclear tests, though no evidence has emerged to support the claims.

A senior administration official told the Post that showing Russia and China, two top adversaries, that the U.S. could conduct a “rapid test” could grant Washington leverage in seeking a trilateral nuclear deal.

The modernization program of the US was started under the Obama administration in early 2016. The Trump administration has inherited the plan.
https://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/ ... ernization

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) published a major report in October 2017 that estimates the nuclear weapons spending plans President Donald Trump inherited from his predecessor will cost taxpayers $1.2 trillion in inflation-adjusted dollars between fiscal years 2017 and 2046. This amounts to about 6 percent of all spending on national defense anticipated for that period, as of President Barack Obama’s final budget request to Congress in February 2016. When the effects of inflation are included, the 30-year cost would approach $1.7 trillion, according to a projection by the Arms Control Association.