1) it's been horrible because the world fell apart for 3 years! It began during the Trump administration, and by sandbagging on getting federal aid out quickly, many communities, and especially communities of color in big cities were the first to suffer, and suffered the most. Any similar scenario throughout history includes large increases in crimes because people are in dire straights. Now that all of the federal money that went out under the first 2 years of the Biden administration is starting to take effect, predictably, the economy is improving, and with it, lower crime rates.
2) Children have a right to the medicine and medical procedures needed to allow them to live happy, healthy lives. Diabetic kids need insulin. Kids with ADHD need their meds. Trans kids need hormones or hormone blockers. It's a health care issue, not an ethical debate. If you're listening to bible thumpers and politicians on this one, instead of doctors and scientists, you're on the wrong team. Also, there were fewer than 300 top surgeries performed on children in the U.S. last year. Over 5000 died from gun violence. If you're so concerned about kids lives, why are you focusing on the former issue, which kills no kids, and not the latter, which kills an insane amount. Again, you're on the wrong team.
3) Well, at least we now know that you are explicitly racist. Thanks for clarifying. You're making the case that skin color is causational with crime rates. Skin color is incidental. Economic class is the actual predictor of crime rates. Those in low income brackets commit crimes at higher rates than those in middle or upper income brackets. Gee, maybe because they're desperate and have no f*cking money to live?! But this raises the issue of why Black people are more likely to have lower income rates than white people, and since I'm sure you've opened a history book at some point in your life, perhaps we can discuss the overarching issues here, which is the 250 years of slavery, 100 years of Jim Crow, and continued economic, political, and social legislation that still relegate people of color to second-rate status and I *think* we might start to understand the economic connection. Or maybe you're trying to come up with a list of all the valuable skills that Black folks learned as slaves, right? *slams palm into forehead*
4) Who. Funded. Al Qaeda. And why didn't we go after Saudi Arabia?! (we already know the answer). Also, what about Iraq?
5) The fact that some women might be in leadership positions of the anti-choice movement doesn't mean that that is reflective of what women in America think about reproductive rights. Support for reproductive healthcare is at an all-time high, and growing fast after last year's SCOTUS decision. 62% of women in the U.S. now favor comprehensive reproductive rights, which is up SEVEN points from 55% just 3 years ago. Women are pissed, and in case you've had your head in the sand, you'll notice that every state measure that's come up since that awful decision has favored our side. Get ready for a whole lot more of those.
6) Hey I agree... rich people can spend their money on themselves if they want to. I don't think we should be a society that relies on charity from the wealthy. We should tax them fairly and progressively. Right now, the wealthiest often pay significantly less as a percentage of their income than working and middle class folks do, and that simply isn't fair.
7) I'm hoping that you were posting that last one a joke, because once you bring in ANYTHING from MTG and claim it as a serious point, you've lost the argument. Nice try.
