Fake News Reporting Thread

[Kidlicious]

Allowing you to use bases on german soil free of charge also contributes huge loads to fulfilling our duty ... the bases on germn soil (especially Rammstein) played a large role in all major US wars of the past 2.5 decades, including US-Iraq War 2 (and despite our objections to the US casus belli).

Likewise doing peacekeeping missions means a much larger contribution to NATO, than spending the allotted 2% on your military budget, but only rarely taking part in peacekeeping missions.
And germany did and does a lot of peacekeeping, in Afghanistan and many other countries ... cannot say similar things about some of the (few) countries that have a military budget of 2+% (for example poland or estonia)

I would like to see some numbers. For example, what is the opportunity cost for the use of those bases. What did the peace keeping missions cost? Is it 1% of your GDP? I'm fairly certain that the opportunity cost of those basis is not anything like that. Anyway, you should have needed those bases for yourself if we didn't make use of them.

[Kidlicious]

And of course that doesn't say anything about the economic benefit of having US bases in your country.

[Proteus_MST]

I would like to see some numbers. For example, what is the opportunity cost for the use of those bases. What did the peace keeping missions cost? Is it 1% of your GDP? I'm fairly certain that the opportunity cost of those basis is not anything like that. Anyway, you should have needed those bases for yourself if we didn't make use of them.

Doesn't matter ... no matter whether I am able to prove that opportunity costs and peacekeeping costs make up the remaning percentage or not, one fact remains ... and that is, that germany doesn't owe the USA any money for not having its military spending at >= 2% of its GDP.

And that therefore Trump, once again, made himself a laughing stock (and showed how little he understands about international treaties) by presenting this made up bill to Angie

[Kidlicious]

Doesn't matter ... no matter whether I am able to prove that opportunity costs and peacekeeping costs make up the remaning percentage or not, one fact remains ... and that is, that germany doesn't owe the USA any money for not having its military spending at >= 2% of its GDP.

And that therefore Trump, once again, made himself a laughing stock (and showed how little he understands about international treaties) by presenting this made up bill to Angie

It matters if Germans are freeloaders or not. Freeloaders are treated as freeloaders.

[Aeson]

Let's just hand Europe to Putin because that will be so much better for US interests ...

[Kidlicious]

Let's just hand Europe to Putin because that will be so much better for US interests ...

The last time I checked the economic strength of the EU is a bit more than that if Russia.

[Proteus_MST]

It matters if Germans are freeloaders or not. Freeloaders are treated as freeloaders.

As Ursula, our Defense Ministress already says ... NATO doesn't work this way ... this is not one of Trumps Country Clubs where you have to pay a yearly fee

On a sidenote:
When was the last time, after the cold war, that the USA actually actively protected germany from anything?
Cannot remember even a single occasion

[Proteus_MST]

Regarding the thread topic "Fake News" here another pearl:
Fake News:

https://twitter.com/FoxNews/status/846112245797007360

The truth:

https://twitter.com/JustSchmeltzer/s...19496859467776

http://time.com/4713433/president-trump-golf-course/

But maybe one already has to be thankful that he didn't travel to Mar-a-Lago (and cause more than 3 Mio $ in costs for the trip)

[Kidlicious]

As Ursula, our Defense Ministress already says ... NATO doesn't work this way ... this is not one of Trumps Country Clubs where you have to pay a yearly fee

On a sidenote:
When was the last time, after the cold war, that the USA actually actively protected germany from anything?
Cannot remember even a single occasion

I'm fine with Germany leaving the alliance.

[Dinner]

Getting republicans to actually do something is like herding 300 cats.

They are an opposition party and do not know how to govern.

[Kidlicious]

Ryan is going to step down. Republicans don't tolerate failure the way democrats do. We will pass tax reform and a lot more.

[Proteus_MST]

I'm fine with Germany leaving the alliance.

Cannot do so.
This would mean that you will not only destroy other nations, but also will be responsible for rebuilding them.
And we know what happened last time when you were left alone with rebuilding a nation (i.e. Iraq)
Unfortunately your failure at nation building in iraq had a negative impact on europe/germany as well (due to the rise of ISIS) ... so it is in the self interest of germany, to not let you do it alone

It seems like the USA is notoriously bad at rebuilding nations when they have another culture than the western one.

May have to do with certain parts of the US population (especially the more conservative ones) having a certain superiority complex regarding their own culture and don't respect other cultures enough. And may have also something to do with conservative organizations sending christian missionaries into conquered lands in order to sell conversion to the christian faith in exchange for humanitarian aid

[Kidlicious]

Nation building is not our thing, not our responsibility. Iraq is responsible for rebuilding itself. But this is only one reason why freeloaders make horrible allies.

[Broken_Erika]

Military spending is a touchy issue in germany, it's as if they don't like waging war, for some reason....

[giblets]

Trump wants to make Germany great again.