9-25-22 9:38 • Joe Biden
Maybel: So, coming up on the midterms, how you all feeling about Joe Biden?
I do not actually heart Joe Biden. He is an institutional Democrat with a lot of privilege, and is part of the Clinton 'third way' political dynasty. I was not expecting a lot at first, and even so was disappointed, by the botched exit from Afghanistan and by legislative deadlock.
However several things have happened which have improved my views of Biden.
1. Getting the infrastructure and climate bills. For the first time, the United States is making a meaningful recognition of climate change and what causes it. The country is suffering from underinvestment in everything that matters, from education to health to infrastructure to changing our power systems. These bills are vital first steps and important accomplishments.
2. Leading in Ukraine. The system of alliances and sanctions that are preventing Russia from conquering Ukraine depend on a united front and Biden is the head of that alliance. His team is doing a credible job of keeping the pressure up.
3. Challenging the Washington Consensus. Presidents from Reagan forward, including Democrats, have subscribed to mass privatization, 'trickle-down' or supply-side economics. It's not working - the millionaires have become multi-billionaires and have a much greater share of the world's wealth than ever, while everyone else has stagnated or slipped.
Biden recently stated that he is done with trickle-down economics and wants an economy built "from the bottom up and the middle out." That's the kind of economy that lifted the standard of living for most in the United States to middle class in the 50s & 60s. It's a public/private partnership with strong emphasis on public education and good jobs. If Biden makes significant strides in creating demand for this kind of economy, his presidency will be pivotal.
4. Addressing the rising tide of authoritarianism. Right-wing Christian nationalism is gaining political traction in Europe. Sweden just elected a large number of hard right "former neo-Nazis". Italy is in the process of electing the first far-right government since WWII. Orbán in Hungary, Erdogan in Turkey, Bolsonaro in Brazil, and Trump in the U.S. are all using the same tactics - scapegoating, Big Lie grievances, and promises to return to a former age of glory.
This movement is rising on economic stagnation and is a threat to systems of self-government all over the globe. Very few other world leaders have called this out for the threat it is, but Biden has. If he puts America in the lead for fighting against this tide, with economic realism and by standing for public good, he will be a force the world needs right now. Presidents can't ask for too much more than that.
However several things have happened which have improved my views of Biden.
1. Getting the infrastructure and climate bills. For the first time, the United States is making a meaningful recognition of climate change and what causes it. The country is suffering from underinvestment in everything that matters, from education to health to infrastructure to changing our power systems. These bills are vital first steps and important accomplishments.
2. Leading in Ukraine. The system of alliances and sanctions that are preventing Russia from conquering Ukraine depend on a united front and Biden is the head of that alliance. His team is doing a credible job of keeping the pressure up.
3. Challenging the Washington Consensus. Presidents from Reagan forward, including Democrats, have subscribed to mass privatization, 'trickle-down' or supply-side economics. It's not working - the millionaires have become multi-billionaires and have a much greater share of the world's wealth than ever, while everyone else has stagnated or slipped.
Biden recently stated that he is done with trickle-down economics and wants an economy built "from the bottom up and the middle out." That's the kind of economy that lifted the standard of living for most in the United States to middle class in the 50s & 60s. It's a public/private partnership with strong emphasis on public education and good jobs. If Biden makes significant strides in creating demand for this kind of economy, his presidency will be pivotal.
4. Addressing the rising tide of authoritarianism. Right-wing Christian nationalism is gaining political traction in Europe. Sweden just elected a large number of hard right "former neo-Nazis". Italy is in the process of electing the first far-right government since WWII. Orbán in Hungary, Erdogan in Turkey, Bolsonaro in Brazil, and Trump in the U.S. are all using the same tactics - scapegoating, Big Lie grievances, and promises to return to a former age of glory.
This movement is rising on economic stagnation and is a threat to systems of self-government all over the globe. Very few other world leaders have called this out for the threat it is, but Biden has. If he puts America in the lead for fighting against this tide, with economic realism and by standing for public good, he will be a force the world needs right now. Presidents can't ask for too much more than that.
9-19-22 2:48 • North Vs. South
BritishGal:
The Crown Estates : property worth £14.1 billion, with urban properties valued at £9.1 billion representing the majority of the estate by value. These include many properties in central London, agricultural land and forest and more than half of the UK's foreshore, and retains various other traditional holdings and rights, including Ascot Racecourse and Windsor Great Park.
You often see Americans say "get rid of the monarchy". But would you allow the newly ex-royals to retain ownership of the Crown Estates? Or would you steal it from them, by passing a law saying "it's ours now!" and nationalising it? You see the problem.
So get the legendarily astute British minds on it and come up with a compromise, maybe a trust.
I'm sure you realize that caste systems always justify their existence by contending that it would just be too difficult to figure out how to change. But as societies advance, they muddle through.
I'm sure you realize that caste systems always justify their existence by contending that it would just be too difficult to figure out how to change. But as societies advance, they muddle through.
Maybel: I think Brexit kind of wrecked the place.
In my lifetime, Britain has been an example of surviving empire, contracting from colonialism almost all the way back to their own borders while remaining a world power. I quite admired this, and I had hope that the U.S. could slowly deflate from being the lone superpower to a more realistic and compatible role in the world. Now I do not know if either will evolve enough to last.
Maybel: I don't want to pick on the monarchy when the Queen just died. But people all around the world are still suffering from colonialism.
All of the greater wealth in the global North was basically plundered from people with less advanced technology in the global South, by exploiting their labor and extracting their natural resources. The surplus value of the labor of every person who has worked, and every bit of extracted resource, has been accumulating in piles for centuries. Recently we have pushed the biggest piles in front of guys like Zuckerberg and Bezos. But they did not make it. It's the accumulated commercial value of the industrialized world.
Now the natural systems of earth, and our civilization, are failing because we have extracted and exploited everything. And there is no way to sort out who owes what to who now. I'm of mixed heritage - what percentage of me owes how much to what percentage of you? It can't be told. The only thing we can do is acknowledge that we, human beings, plundered other cultures and the natural world and now we, human beings, have to repair that damage and restore what we removed.
That will not come from trying to sort through the piles. The people who have the piles - in the North, mostly - need to start reinvesting them in the South, and everywhere. The accumulated wealth of our world has to be used to save what's left of our world - investing in social and natural systems that provide for healthy lives.
That is the only way for our civilization to continue - take what we have accumulated from the past, and reinvest it all into the future.
Now the natural systems of earth, and our civilization, are failing because we have extracted and exploited everything. And there is no way to sort out who owes what to who now. I'm of mixed heritage - what percentage of me owes how much to what percentage of you? It can't be told. The only thing we can do is acknowledge that we, human beings, plundered other cultures and the natural world and now we, human beings, have to repair that damage and restore what we removed.
That will not come from trying to sort through the piles. The people who have the piles - in the North, mostly - need to start reinvesting them in the South, and everywhere. The accumulated wealth of our world has to be used to save what's left of our world - investing in social and natural systems that provide for healthy lives.
That is the only way for our civilization to continue - take what we have accumulated from the past, and reinvest it all into the future.
Maybel: Some say the Queen should have apologized for colonialism. But was it her fault?
The issue is not whether Her Late Majesty apologized, and it wouldn't help much if King Charles III did. They seem like okay people, and have tried to help others in some ways, but they personally are not the problem.
The problem is that they now have all the wealth. Charles personally just received one of the world's largest inherited fortunes and does not even have to pay taxes on it. This wealth was produced by generations of slaves and commoners and laborers and people who ate gruel. They did all the work, but the pile they made goes to him.
Meanwhile, Britain has become so poor that formerly middle-class people could freeze to death and starve in their homes this winter.
That hoarded wealth should *at least* be helping the people of Britain, who are still doing all the work. They don't need apologies. They need their share of Britain's wealth to keep them alive and give them a good life. And so do all the people who live in the places that were plundered. And so does almost everyone.
This is the problem - getting the hoarded wealth of the industrialized world into the hands of the people who made it and who need it. Apologies are nice, but nothing short of solving this will be good enough.
The problem is that they now have all the wealth. Charles personally just received one of the world's largest inherited fortunes and does not even have to pay taxes on it. This wealth was produced by generations of slaves and commoners and laborers and people who ate gruel. They did all the work, but the pile they made goes to him.
Meanwhile, Britain has become so poor that formerly middle-class people could freeze to death and starve in their homes this winter.
That hoarded wealth should *at least* be helping the people of Britain, who are still doing all the work. They don't need apologies. They need their share of Britain's wealth to keep them alive and give them a good life. And so do all the people who live in the places that were plundered. And so does almost everyone.
This is the problem - getting the hoarded wealth of the industrialized world into the hands of the people who made it and who need it. Apologies are nice, but nothing short of solving this will be good enough.
Maybel: They have a lot of problems in their history.
Very true, but I think it goes way beyond this family, or Britain. The entire accumulated wealth from generations of peons around the globe toiling to turn the planet into profit has concentrated into a tiny number of hands. That is why no one else has enough to afford groceries. This poor family just happens to be sitting on top of one of the piles.
Plexy: Yes, their critics were brutally clear. They lost support that they would have had if they waited for the funeral to end first.
Let’s see if an apology ever happens now… might have to wait for Wills to become King since this all happened when Charles’ emotions were so raw.
The Queen's death caused a lot of raw emotion, not all of it positive, and based on what people have endured, it's understandable. Those emotions are as important as that one guy's.
And if he would withhold an apology for the *rest of his life* over this, it's not worth the breath he would have wasted saying it anyway.
And if he would withhold an apology for the *rest of his life* over this, it's not worth the breath he would have wasted saying it anyway.
9-19-22 1:47 • Not Dead
AnxiousMom: My heart is racing with anxiety. I feel so horrible lately...everyday I wake up I am consumed with anxiety. It seems like everyone is dying. Besides my family dying one by one within a couple of years I see news stories everyday of random people dying. Its overwhelming. What really gets me is the random murders where you are just going about your day and some crazy person decides on a whim to end your life.
I'm afraid of dying in general always have been.
This is the human condition. But, if you are worrying about it, it means one glorious thing - you are alive! So rejoice!
9-19-22 5:45 • No Explanation
Plexy: This immigration thing is out of control. Biden has zero enforcement at the border.
What should we be doing?
Plexy: This exposes Democrats for who they truly are! They are fine with overwhelming Texas with migrants!
How are "Democrats" responsible for Texas being overwhelmed with migrants?
Plexy: This isn’t a new issue and this is not something the rest of these states should have any sort of surprised reaction about. It’s been years…years.
The Obama, Trump and Biden administrations have continued a long line of being tough on immigration, including massive deportations and violations of international law. What should they have been doing that would have prevented this?
* * * * *crickets* * * * * *
