blungld said:
Cal88 said:
The cowardice of the Trump supporters comes as no surprise. They make wild claims and then when proven false they change the subject or disappear. Even with that in mind, Cal88s total disappearance after this post election night after a string of patronizing know-it-all posts stands alone as the greatest act of cowardice I've seen on these boards.
Don't typically post in OT but I saw this and felt compelled to respond since I've seen things about Cal88 posted a few times and I think they miss the point.
All you have to ask yourself when you see Cal88's posts are WWVPD (What Would Vladimir Putin Do?). His views align perfectly. Let's look at his greatest hits:
1. Climate Change. A relentless string of incorrect, cherry picked data and outright lies. Coupled with charts and graphics compiled by such world renowned climatologists as "some guy who does reports on a local weather channel in the Midwest." Lacking any shred of scientific rigor or even basic honesty. Designed to befuddle and wear down the opposition with a torrent of graphical diarrhea. And of course his single greatest hit of posting that fake Time Magazine cover allegedly from the 70s about "The Coming Ice Age", getting called on it and then a few weeks later posting it again . . . and again. He knew it was a lie and didn't care.
Climate change regulations and clean tech are existential threats to Putin. He would do anything to stop this from taking hold in the US. The fact that embracing the climate change deniers and spreading their lies could harm the US economy, poison it's citizens and cause more dissension and lack of cohesion in the US body politic were just gravy.
2. Covid-19, Part 1. When reports of the disease first started coming out of China, Cal88 was the first to sound the alarm, proclaiming this was the end of the world and would basically kill us all. We needed to shelter in place, lock our doors and prepare for the worst. I think he was as shocked as anyone when this actually came true.
Getting the US population to flip out and overreact to Covid-19 if it turned out to be no more impactful to the US than the swine flu, or Ebola or SARS1 or MERS would be good for Putin. Harm the US economy, cause angst and worry and dissension within your enemy and generally disrupt US society would all fit nicely into Putin's game plan for 2020.
3. Covid-19 Part 2. At this point it's clear that Covid-19 actually is the end of the world and is going to kill us all. The economy is shuttering, cases are skyrocketing and global oil demand and prices are plummeting. So Cal88 turns on a dime. Literally overnight. This is the clearest proof you could ask for that this guy is nothing but a Pravda mouthpiece, Now he argues Covid-19 is no big deal at all, the Swedish model of herd immunity is the smart approach, it's no more dangerous than the flu, Hydroxychloroquine is a miracle cure, etc etc. Why the radical switch?
Again the Putin angle explains it. Increase dissension, kill a bunch of Americans and for Gods sake get people buying oil again. He went hog wild on that.
4. The election. Ok this screed has gone on long enough, but the point is obvious. Increase distrust in the election, do whatever you can to get Americans to fight and do whatever you can to pump up the best friend Moscow has ever had or ever could have in the Oval Office.
And when the game is lost and your work is done, shut down your soviet made laptop, slip out to a bar in Vladivostok and get a nice chilled vodka or three. There's no point in engaging further since your job was finished when the last poling location closed. No need to waste more time.
So I don't say this lightly, but I have no other way to reconcile his posts. They aren't consistent with those of a died in the wool conservative. They are consistent with the postings of a Russian agent and that's exactly what I believe based on the above that he is.