im doing online school

Ah that sounds fun.

Yeah I've been doing some school. Got a ton of work so that's really fun. <:Teeth:798301808996384828>

ya its ok

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I only had to do *two* things today <:KEK:795742276549607456>

Lol good.

I've been handed the opportunity of a lifetime, school without school

Sounds pretty decent.

It's not decent, it's a miracle. Tell me the last time four bone dry classes were all one had to shuffle

Lol yeah I get that, that's pretty amazing.

Online is rad 😎

Yeah it is for some reasons but there are some hefty downsides.

Downsides? What downsides?

Well the social part is a big one. I've gone insane from being stuck at home. Also I think the teacher to student connection is very important, something lost in online school.

You are right about those. My case happens to not involve either being factors

Really? That's good then.

I do suppose a lackluster academic profile isn't the best thing

Ah I see, well that's somewhat okay.

Have you guys heard about Biden's pick for Secretary of State?

who is it

Antony Blinken

He's stated he will recognize Guido in Venezuela, support an aggressive agenda against China, and supports the Abraham Accords

*against* china?

now that is interesting

That is interesting.

**From a WSJ article:** "There was a broad consensus that economic liberalization in China would lead to political liberalization—that did not happen,” Mr. Blinken said. “There is no doubt that [China] poses the most significant challenge of any nation-state in the world to the United States.”

"Mr. Blinken said he supports Tuesday’s finding by Mike Pompeo, the current secretary of state, that China has committed genocide in Xinjiang with its policies toward the Uighur ethnic group; he backed military and global diplomatic support for Taiwan as it faces pressure from Beijing; he questioned the future of Hong Kong as a center for global businesses; and he echoed President Trump and others in criticizing China for misleading the world about the origin of the coronavirus pandemic, contributing to its spread."

“President Trump was right in taking a tougher approach to China. I disagree very much with the way that he went about it in a number of areas, but the basic principle was the right one, and I think that’s actually helpful to our foreign policy,” Blinken told senators.

hmmmm very, very interesting

Certainly is.

i'm curious to see blinken's policy against china

and how long does he actually last in the admin

At the very least, I think Biden's foreign policy advisors are far more credible than on the domestic front

perhaps so

i shall be cautiously hopeful, but blinken would probably only have certain "soft" policies that are approved by biden & china if he wants to last long

Yeah that's what I was thinking too. Trump did a pretty good job.

In practice, this probably means genocide conviction, sanctions against IP theft, etc.

Trump's trade war was a complete mess

i'll take what i get, but i'm not trusting blinken. imo trump wasn't as tough as china as he could, but something is better than nothing

Trump was the best on China then most presidents in the past. The last thing we need is some softy.

@Benjamin. Do you think the trade war was successful?

personally? i'm not sure because i've mixed info on this. but i support any effort against china