Mr.TaterSalad

If you listen to some fans and some of the sports radio talking heads, trading for Deshaun Watson was the better option or at least being in on that conversation. I know Valenti was pounding the desk on 97.1 for the Lions to be aggressive and go get Watson and so were a very small minority of Lions fans. I didn't want to do it, I'm glad we didn't do it because I don't know that Watson would even want to come here and stick around in the end . I also didn't want to give up that kind of draft capital just yet because this team isn't a QB away from winning it all. If Goff doesn't bounce back to close to 2017-2018 form next year I will join the chorus and start pounding the desk for someone better. For me, that probably involves finding a way to be at or near the top of the draft to get the one of the top QB prospects. I don't know if K12 wanted Watson or not, but when you talk about what the alternative scenario would have been, getting Watson in a trade was it versus drafting one of these underwhelming QBs this year.

Are you telling me Aqib Tlaib used to post here at MTS all these years?

Can we hire Aqib Tlaib as a scout?

I'm sure Matt DePerno would think a misarrange is murder too. So if something is medically wrong with the baby or fetus, I guess you just carry that dead fetus to term or else face the penalty of law. What a sick human being this man is. The election denial and fact that he believes in intuitional dictatorship was bad enough, this makes him even more repugnant. We can't let him be the next Attorney General of Michigan.

https://michigandems.com/ If you want to fight back sign up and become a dues paying member of the Michigan Democratic Party. Once you are a member, make sure to sign up on their volunteer list to help re-elect Governor Whitmer/Lt. Governor Gilchrist, AG Dana Nessel, SOS Jocelyn Benson, State Supreme Court Justices Richard Bernstein and new State Supreme Court Justice Kyra Harris-Bolden. After you sign up there find out who is running for State Representative, State Senate, County Commission, City Council, Mayor, and School Board where you live and volunteer with local candidates. Knock doors, make phone calls, send texts, offer to help with their social media, website, graphic design, whatever.

1000% this. There's a reason I've started using the term Christian Fundamentalist around here, because that's what these people and many Republic politicians are. The Democrats may not win with it, but they need to try going scorched earth as you said. Abortion rights, women's healthcare, gay marriage, LGTBQ equality, don't say gay laws, book bans, religious indoctrination in schools, saving democracy and the right to vote, they need to go after all of it. They need to show the average Democrat who doesn't normally come out to vote in a midterms what it means if these Republicans get a full grip on power. They also need to show the average independent/moderate and reasonable center-right voter what the Republican Party has become. Yes, inflation matters a great deal, yes gas prices matter a great deal, but so does saving democracy, so does a woman's right to choose, so does marriage equality, the books in your kids classroom and local library. People like all of us our essentially amateur pundits, who pay close attention to the news, current events, politics, shifting political climates, etc. The average voter who only casually watches the news, pays little attention to politics, or gets much of their political exposure from memes a far right friend or relative of theirs has shared needs to understand the consequences of staying home or voting Republican. I think one thing Republicans are masterful at is making a big freaking deal out of everything, a mountain out of a molehill. They never miss a chance to go on about socialism, defund the police, CRT, immigration, abortion, etc. Democrats need to be in the mud, fighting just as ruthlessly to defend decent, mainstream values and our democratic institutions. We need to go on a full court press to show just how radicalized the Republican Party and their base have become. How far out of the mainstream they are. Republicans are artful in doing it to us and we sit back and take it too often.

I watched the Shapiro clip in context just now and he does indeed call Obergefell a bad ruling. It will be curious to see where the Ben Shaprio's, Tucker Carlson's, and Dan Bongino's steer the conversation next. I would presume it will be for calls for a nationwide, federal ban on any and all abortions. After that, I presume Griswold and Obergefell will be top of their list. I think the far right media ecosphere will stay focused on abortion for the time being though until they get a Republican Congress and President willing to pass into law a full ban on abortion.

What happens when they overturn Obergefell to married couples whose spouse now enjoys employer benefits? Is the employer going to be required by law now to stop providing spousal benefits or will corporations willingly go along?

I can't speak to everyone's individual concerns or desires, but I know a lot of fans, myself included, have expressed interest in taking the gamble on a young QB because of the cap benefits a rookie contract brings and because some feel Goff hit his ceiling and regressed. We got screwed on the Stafford contract in comparison to other franchises who got the benefit of loading up a roster because they had a QB on a rookie deal. So the recency bias of teams like Seattle, Kansas City, and Cincinnati having Super Bowl success as a result of having top-tier QBs on rookie deals is appealing to Lions fans, me included, since we didn't get it with Stafford. Goff is a known commodity and neither Stroud or Young are. But fans want to take that gamble because they feel Goff won't bounce back to be the Super Bowl QB he was and like the appeal of what the new kid on the block could be and the fact that we could spend like gangbusters in free agency for a few offseasons with one on a rookie deal.

Yep! That was around 2019/2020 I believe and at that point Goff had done things Stafford had not, win multiple playoff games and lead a team to a Super Bowl. That was also before we saw the full regression of Goff as we have over the past two seasons, I think it was anyways. Clearly, Stafford proved me and a lot of other people wrong.

If Goff ends up as a middle of the pack QB at season's end, where he is somewhere between 14-17 or so in total yards, TDs, attempts, completion % does that warrant hanging onto him? What does the stat line look like if we're keeping Goff? For me, I'm almost always willing to take the gamble on the new guy and the unknown. If I was so willing to move on from Stafford, I'd be willing to move on from Goff if it means having a shot at a prospect like Stroud or Young.

I think they are really high on Ifeatu Melifonwu and between him and Okudah, they want to see what they have. Melifonwu was hurt for almost all of last season as well, so they anticipate getting something out of him and being able to develop him. He is another highly athletic corner who tested well and has a high RAS score at 9.69.

Curious question, what is everyone's 5-10 favorite songs of all time? We have a lot of eclectic music tastes on MTS/MTF and I wanted to see when it all boils down to it, what are your favorites? Here's my top 10 . . . 1. My Girl by The Temptations 2. Cover Me Up by Jason Isbell 3. The Boxer by Simon & Garfunkel (I also really love EmmyLou Harris' cover) 4. River by Joni Mitchell 5. Little Girl Blue by Janis Joplin 6. Red Dirt Girl by EmmyLou Harris 7. Take It Easy by The Eagles 8. Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old) by Garth Brooks 9. For What It's Worth by Buffalo Springfield 10. The Traveling Kind by EmmyLou Harris & Rodney Crowell

Of course. Making the world a better place for those who are born goes against the tenants of Christian fundamentalists. Just look at all the programs these alleged pro life fundamentalists are against that do indeed make life better for people and provide them with at least some means to subsist. And if you don't believe they are against them, the far right politicians they keep voting for have routinely voted to cut, eliminate and/or privatize these programs. I would be glad to provide the sourcing about all the times these allegedly pro life, Republican politicians voted to cut, eliminate, and/or privatize each of the programs. I would also be glad to provide the vote totals for the politicians who voted to cut, eliminate, and/or privatize these programs and show the votes they got from the allegedly pro life, Christian fundamentalists. Aid for Families with Dependent Children/AFDC (they believed that people on AFDC before it was reformed were welfare queens) Commodity Supplemental Food Program Community Development Block Grant and Related Development Funds Earned Income Tax Credit Free/Reduced Lunch Programs in Schools General Cash Assistance Housing and Urban Development Assistance/HUD Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program Medicaid Medicare Medicare For All legislation for universal healthcare Obamacare Medicaid expansion Section 8 Housing Vouchers Social Security (they want to privatize it and turn us into Chile) Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children/WIC State Children's Health Insurance Program Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program/SNAP Supplemental Security Income Temporary Assistance for Needy Families/TANF Title I Migrant Education Program Title One Grants to Local Education Authorities Unemployment insurance compensation Universal Service Fund Subsidized Low Income Phone Service WIA Adult Employment and Training (Formerly JTPA IIA Training for Disadvantaged Adults & Youth)

Your average progressive is working to move forward and make the world a better place, even if they are hypocritical at times. Your average conservative, Christian fundamentalist wants to take the world back to the 1950's and prior. That's the whole reason for the slogan Make American Great Again.

That's the Republican mantra and the mantra of far right Christian fundamentalists.

Middle class, white Republicans woman will still find ways to get abortions as needed. As will the mistresses of Republican politicians.

Let's first assume that at seasons end next year and after the combine and pro days, that CJ Stroud and Bryce Young are indeed the consensus top QBs. Let's also presume Stroud and Young are highly touted, top 10 prospects, unlike this years crop of QBs. What would we rather have . . . Goff plus the the 3 first round picks in 2023/2024 or take the gamble of knowing you will get one one of Stroud/Young when you trade up but will have given up the 3 picks to move up?

Right, Alito and company know what this will lead to. All the legal wrangling in the world won't change that. As MB said, Roe was the first step. When Republicans get control of the House, Senate, and Presidency again someday, possibly as soon as 2024, I have no doubt they will bring about legislation that will enact a nationwide ban. Mr. State's Rights Samuel Alito will suddenly and likely have forgotten by that time that he cares so much about state's rights.

If they know there is legislation already drafted and/or enacted into law that bans abortion, that is the court saying "we wish for these laws to be enacted". Thus, these laws that they know are on the books already or are a step away from being legalized, will ban abortion. This is a wink and a nod to say ok states and state legislatures, you may enact or enforce these laws now that ban abortion. These aren't stupid people, they know damn well what they did and did it with purpose and to allow others the legislative intent to ban abortion or enforce what is already being legislated. I'm not going to keep quibbling over legislative intent or not after this. But the GOP and GOP judicial minds always told us what a problem judicial activism was and that judges should not be imposing their personal will or legislating it on others, and I believe they did just that.

This is legislating from the bench. This is a group of justices saying, as coy as they may want to be about it, that they believe abortion should be illegal. They can frame it in any cute legal speak they want, but this is Justices of the Supreme Court enacting their religious beliefs against abortion on the rest of us. They know damn well there are trigger laws that will go into effect that will place a full ban on abortion once Roe is overturned.

I also used to remember when Republicans crowed on about judicial activism and legislating from the bench.

Now that they have essentially rid the country of legal abortion, you can be sure some radical, right wing, Christian fundamentalist group will come for marriage equality next. Under the guise of state's rights and government overreach, I'd bet money that Obergefell will get overturned if this country and court keep heading in the direction they are in.

While I don't think a Christian fundamentalist like Alito would want slavery back, I do think he'd love to leave issues like inter-racial marriage, gay marriage, LGBTQ equity, women's rights in the workplace, anti-discrimination laws, voting rights up to the states. States rights arguments are the same way of saying you don't support something. I think Alito, Barrett, Kavanaugh, and Thomas want this nation to look fundamentally different than it does now. They fundamentally don't believe the federal government should be in the business of promoting equity and equality. It's ironic for Thomas considering he is both black and from the south that without the federal government stepping in and mandating equity southern states in this country would still infringe on his right to vote and right to marry his wife Virginia.

As much as the radical Christian right loves kids, they love guns even more. Nothing trumps their love for guns. If the radical Christian right put the energy into ensuring well-funded schools, universal healthcare, nutritious food on everyone's table, shelter over everyone's head, as they do pimping out for guns, the world would be a better place. But you know, that would require you to act like a, um, Christian.