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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat@shaidorsai.bsky.social |
70 followers 23 following 1111 posts
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Imagining the narrator of the 1941 Harper's Magazine "Who Goes Nazi?" essay seeing A.G. Sulzberger across the cocktail party and just going "Oh yeah, that asshole for sure."
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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At what point does it stop being "egotism" and start becoming "narcissism covering a howling void of insecurity and self-loathing"? These people exhibit patholgies that manifest in ways that threaten us all, and are just allowed to keep existing as they are, endangering humanity with their sickness.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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As an upper middle-class white kid that grew up in Reagan’s America, I was absolutely a middle-of-the-road Republican, even to the point of reading Ayn Rand essays…but whoa nelly, once the first scale dropped from my eyes, there was an avalanche of scales usually only seen at fish markets.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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You have to be a party member to vote on who the party nominates to the election. The rationale for this is that since the parties are private organizations, they can restrict access to “internal” votes to those who are members of the party or declare themselves (by taking a ballot) affiliated.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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TBH, it’s a Frankensteinian patchwork monster of ridiculous rules that vary as soon as you cross state lines, but U-S-A! U-S-A!
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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The other aspect is that primaries are in many states a weird quasi-private election, since the political parties themselves are private organizations. Many states have “closed primaries” where you have to be a member of the party to vote…so if you ask for a GOP primary ballot, you’re GOP, QED.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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We see your sneaky pro-Emperox propaganda in your fiction, revanchist! *begins singing The Internationale*
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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It’s not that he doesn’t know HOW to grow potatoes, it’s that all agriculture on Mars has DRM, and he doesn’t have the correct license key (his firm was unable to afford “Ag Worker” access permissions for everyone). Thus, the potatoes never sprout.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Because A.G. Sulzberger considers torching the country a fair price to pay to hold a grudge against Biden for not kowtowing to the New York Times.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Nothing says "party of the working class" like trying to nominate a nearly 20-year CEO of a too big to fail bank.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Fair, I was thinking more of the commitment and attention to detail that Villeneuve brings, but a good point about dialogue direction.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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And Villeneuve directing, tia.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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100%. The psychological damage (both trauma-related AND the conditioning to accept prison-style security apparatuses as the norm) is something that hasn’t been anywhere NEAR accounted for, and it’s going to be devastating.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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That’s the phrase that really gives away the game, tbh. It’s all about them salivating at the opportunity to be the convention whisperers, with no conception or care for what the ramifications are for such an unprecedented series of events.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Look, if “Old Man’s War” ISN’T about Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, I don’t want to know…
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Both combine to push folk to grasp tools that they consider means to keep the Illusion of Control alive. Guns are a perfect choice, because they’re in-line with cultural mythology and because they offer a way of directly feeling powerful and potent, in a world that they see as disempowering them.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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I’m sure that’s part of it, but I think a large part of it is both (a) a response to increased precarity (perceived and real) in a population that feels that it should be insulated from that, and (b) blatant fear-and-paranoia-stoking from the NRA. (ctd)
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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I find American "gun culture" 99% disgusting...thankfully I had a father who grew up on a ranch where firearms were just utility tools, and he refused to treat them as anything more or less (to the point of a ban on squirt guns, because they encouraged taking guns less seriously).
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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LGBTQ folks are already exhibiting an upswing in gun sales and training...and to be honest, the "Trigger Warning" LGBTQ gun club has the best name of any gun club ever, so well done there!
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Personally, even as a firearm owner, I'd like fewer guns out there, but I also think it's a terrible idea to unilaterally disarm in the face of expressed intent to visit violence on marginalized populations (as well as "the left" broadly)
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Lol, and WaPo is out here dragging democracy into the darkness so they can strangle it. "Boldly"! "Momentous"! This is what passes for journalism now.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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The much-ballyhooed “Hitler oopsie” that the NYT did where they evaluated his anti-semitism as overblown was 1922, well before the Nazis came close to power. Trump’s already been there. We know the LEAST of what he’ll do. How bad do you have to fuck up to do worse than your Hitler failure, NYT?
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Yeah, I was in full pedant mode. Apologies if it was condescending!
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Oh, okay, glad she’s redirecting her “brand offensive” to what are obviously the REAL enemies. Christ.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Yes, everyone’s tiptoeing around it. Who is the new Milkshake Duck?
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Oh, this country’s left the cliff edge long ago. The question is whether we get to the other edge before we look down. Signs are not encouraging.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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(Note: this is a recollection from a PoliSci class decades ago, so if I’m way off in my analysis, let me know!)
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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(an example of what I’m talking about: in Machiavelli’s time, killing someone was evil, full stop. The act itself was evil, regardless of circumstances. Might you have to do it to save your own life? Sure, and that’s understandable, but it’s still an evil act that results in a good end.)
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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“No, THIS is the guardrail that will save us!” I shout as I hang over thin air by an unravelling strip of galvanized steel, bolts popping off like zippers…
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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The example was deliberately chosen. Once the time for debate and diplomacy was past, we went to war, and didn’t stop until we had their unconditional surrender. Admitted, the motivation for post-war reconstruction was complicated by the Cold War, but the point remains.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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To wit: grind the Nazis into the dust, then extend a hand to them when they agree to stop being Nazis.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Further, I’d say that one thing that Machiavelli (and Douglass from @nycsouthpaw.bsky.social) is highlighting is that principle-based governance is ultimately higher than rules-based governance, as uncomfortable as it is to contemplate that. Laws derive from principle, not vice-versa
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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it’s an acknowledgment that the reality of politics is inherently messy and necessitates careful evaluation of what ones’ final, unalterable principles are.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Bear in mind that Machiavelli’s “Good people must sometimes do evil things for good ends” is predicated on the idea that there are some acts that are inherently evil, yet MUST STILL BE PERFORMED in certain circumstances to achieve the desired ends. That’s not just “the ends justify the means”…
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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themselves in their own way, consonant with not harming others, gives me confidence that I’m in a better moral position than those spouting “only those who agree with us and accept being bound by our restrictive set of codes are worthy of participating in governance”.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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At some point, as the systems break down, we’re all going to be confronted with “why do you believe the things you do?” and we need to be able to be confident in our moral position. Personally, the fact that my position aims for the ability of all people to fulfill (ctd)
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Ultimately, that requires getting back to first principles…and since first principles are necessarily unjustifiable beyond “this is what I think,” it feels at first blush that you’re in the same situation as Christian Nationalists, making stuff up to justify things being the way you want them to be.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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That’s because you’re an institutionalist…and I don’t say that as an insult. Ideally, we’re all institutionalists! Your discomfort is arising from the fact that the institution is breaking down, and that necessitates the discomfort of justifying WHY the institution is valuable, and (ctd)
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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It's not an accident that the one of the first instances of specifically-directed Nazi book burning was an attack on an institute of sexual research that advocated destigmatizing gay and transgender people.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Conservatives are under the impression that guns only point one direction.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Glad I've been working for years to normalize the term Trumpabteilung
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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But the existing behavior makes sense if you consider the idea that senior political positions are considered prizes for insiders, rather than means to further ideological goals.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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It’s obvious to anyone willing to open their eyes and see that there is one person and one person only who is able to turn back the tide of crime under the guise of immunity: Danny Glover
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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I have failed in my Bluesky duty.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Well, "generous" or "gigantically facetious," one or the other.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Current meaning of "checks and balances": Checks: please write them to Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, Amy Coney Barrett, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, and Neil Gorsuch Balances: When we, the aforementioned, deposit said checks, our bank balances will increase.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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REALLY weird that all those Originalists missed that point!
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Yes, but “Chaotic Neutral” is proper nerdbait, so I can’t help but approve.
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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Learned helplessness is a hell of a drug
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Voltaireon - 5 caustic French philosophers in a trenchcoat
@shaidorsai.bsky.social
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I should never even have allowed doubt to enter my mind!
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