(October 18, 2021 at 8:36 am)Gwaithmir Wrote: Someone posted on another atheist forum that Colin Powell has just died.

Wow didn't see that one coming

---

(October 18, 2021 at 11:19 am)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(October 18, 2021 at 9:40 am)onlinebiker Wrote: I call dibs on the Volvos....


( he enjoyed restoring them.. My kinda guy)

I call dibs on the vial of fake anthrax he showed to congress.

Boru

Just be sure to wash anything you take off him

(October 18, 2021 at 3:13 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(October 18, 2021 at 3:04 pm)Brian37 Wrote: My take on him, is that he got suckered by Bush Jr and Cheney. . Is it lost on you that he went on to support both Biden and Obama? 

I'll be the first to say for decades, I have never been a fan of GOP economics, or right wing theocracy. But Powell never came across to me as a fascist or bully, like the former guy. Please keep in mind, he served under multiple presidents in his career and not all Republicans.

I was floored when he said he was going to support Biden. Now, you don't have to like Biden, but it said a lot to me he did, considering he was putting his foot down to Trump's authoritarian scapegoating bent.

Was Powell perfect? No, but name me one human who is. But the fact that he stood up to Trump, that means a lot to me.

Powell should have known better. 

Boru

In all seriousness, all kidding aside, I am sure in your personal face to face life, you have had family or friends whom did or said things that made you want to pull your hair out, but you still know they were decent people. I am not going to treat Powell like the orang turd. My late mother did and said things about politics and religion that made me want to pull my hair out. I see Powell in much the same way. I think he was honest but wrong sometimes.

(October 18, 2021 at 3:26 pm)Brian37 Wrote:

(October 18, 2021 at 3:13 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote: Powell should have known better. 

Boru

In all seriousness, all kidding aside, I am sure in your personal face to face life, you have had family or friends whom did or said things that made you want to pull your hair out, but you still know they were decent people. I am not going to treat Powell like the orang turd. My late mother did and said things about politics and religion that made me want to pull my hair out. I see Powell in much the same way. I think he was honest but wrong sometimes.

I didn’t say Secretary Powell wasn’t a decent person. I said he should have known better. You said it yourself - he was a sucker.

Boru

(October 18, 2021 at 3:31 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(October 18, 2021 at 3:26 pm)Brian37 Wrote: In all seriousness, all kidding aside, I am sure in your personal face to face life, you have had family or friends whom did or said things that made you want to pull your hair out, but you still know they were decent people. I am not going to treat Powell like the orang turd. My late mother did and said things about politics and religion that made me want to pull my hair out. I see Powell in much the same way. I think he was honest but wrong sometimes.

I didn’t say Secretary Powell wasn’t a decent person. I said he should have known better. You said it yourself - he was a sucker.

Boru

I expect General Powell' s biggest failing is the same as President Carter.

He is a decent human being who expected those around him to be decent human beings as well.

Colin Powell was Bush Administrations sacrificial lamb

(October 18, 2021 at 3:41 pm)onlinebiker Wrote:

(October 18, 2021 at 3:31 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote: I didn’t say Secretary Powell wasn’t a decent person. I said he should have known better. You said it yourself - he was a sucker.

Boru

I expect General Powell' s biggest failing is the same as President Carter.

He is a decent human being who expected those around him to be decent human beings as well.

That's a common mistake, unfortunately.

(October 18, 2021 at 2:19 pm)HappySkeptic Wrote:

(October 18, 2021 at 2:15 pm)Nomad Wrote: Good riddance to bad rubbish, honestly.

Wow, not my remembrance of the man.

A man who committed war crimes in Vietnam, Panama and Iraq. Calling him bad rubbish is ptting it mildly.

Just because he committed said crimes while wearing a US uniform or being a US minister, that doesn't give him a free pass. And frankly the fact that Powell is getting a free pass and being lionised after his death goes to the very heart of the rottenness at the core of the US.

(October 18, 2021 at 3:04 pm)Brian37 Wrote:

(October 18, 2021 at 2:15 pm)Nomad Wrote: Good riddance to bad rubbish, honestly.

My take on him, is that he got suckered by Bush Jr and Cheney. . Is it lost on you that he went on to support both Biden and Obama? 

I'll be the first to say for decades, I have never been a fan of GOP economics, or right wing theocracy. But Powell never came across to me as a fascist or bully, like the former guy. Please keep in mind, he served under multiple presidents in his career and not all Republicans.

I was floored when he said he was going to support Biden. Now, you don't have to like Biden, but it said a lot to me he did, considering he was putting his foot down to Trump's authoritarian scapegoating bent.

Was Powell perfect? No, but name me one human who is. But the fact that he stood up to Trump, that means a lot to me.

When Powell stood before the UN he knew he was spouting a pack of lies. He'd been told by CIA staff that the "intelligence" was useless. This is a matter of public record.

What's worse is that even after it was made public that Powell lied to the world he still tried to maintain that he was speaking in good faith. He blamed the staff for not telling him, even though records showed they did.

(October 19, 2021 at 7:40 am)Nomad Wrote: When Powell stood before the UN he knew he was spouting a pack of lies. He'd been told by CIA staff that the "intelligence" was useless.  This is a matter of public record.

What's worse is that even after it was made public that Powell lied to the world he still tried to maintain that he was speaking in good faith.  He blamed the staff for not telling him, even though records showed they did.

Who are these "CIA staff"?  Do you mean that the director of the CIA told Powell that the intelligence was useless before that speech?  That would be news.

Picking which intelligrnce data is wrong and reporting it is not lying.

It' s a bad call.

If you get it right 60% of the time in intelligence work - you' re doing good.