Democracy can be both a mechanic-- “we have elections”, and a philosophy-- “the state responds to and serves public interest.”
Ironically, fixation on the mechanic can hinder the philosophy. Winning elections can come through short-term plays that sell long-term outcomes out (for example, low taxes by scrimping on infrastructure and state services) or dueling sabotage to sink the other party’s prospects.
The message was weak though. The policy was fairly limited-- like limits on gouging in emergencies-- and not expressed in terms of a tangible achievable metric. And it’s not like we have direct economic control that would allow for specific deliverables-- how exactly are you goung to get Kroger to bend the knee? A fine that’s 12 seconds of their turnover?
‘I’ll get the 99-cent Taco Supreme back’ (or the $2 gallon of milk/dozen eggs) would have helped-- a graspable specific rallying cry. “We’ll tax gougers back into the stone age” maybe too. ISTR there’s some rightwing scumball in Canada who achieved most of his political rise by literally campaigning on $1-per-can beer. Again, a tangible goal, and one more achievable because there’s direct state controlled alcohol sales in much of the country…
We need to convince Trump that the way to win a legacy is to deliver something like universal health care. Present it as a display of personal power and his unique talents, and as a branding moment like no other (beyond Obamacare). 'The Democrats couldn’t do it in 50 years, but I rammed it through in 2. Got the chair of Cigna on the phone and fired him personally. Now we all have Trumpcare and even Hillary has to praise it through gritted teeth…"
The GOP tied themselves so tightly to his star that they’d have to own the pivot, or find some way to retract their allegiance. And the rest of us could at least enjoy the historic worst-person-you-know-makes-a-greatipoint moment.
While prestigious, I have to think the type of lawyer who wants Trump for a client is hardly goingbto want to do heavy government work for a civil servant’s salary. Surely there’s way more cash in skip-and-falls and “get six divorce punches on your loyalty club card and the 7th is free”.
What I hate about the current situation is that there’s no room for “Russia is a significant power that won’t suddenly vanish, so maybe if we can avoid being at complete loggerheads with them 24/7, it might avoid decades of tension and expensive military grandstanding.”
You must either fellate Putin or demand the entire 82 billion square kilometres of the Russian state turned to glass. No other options. It worries me that any more nuanced takes on Russia get pushed into the “Kremlin talking points” file.
Not that she isn’t a screwball all on her own, but we could use a less militaristic take here.
ISTR having some hallucinogenic colour issues when Vulkan wasn’t properly installed.
Thr death wave virus that crippled mankind requires a tech hegemony beyond belief.
I think it’s not even 100% a superiority thing, but the loss of position, purpose, place.
Stable jobs and healthcare would do so much to defuse the “I need to outcompete/hobble everyone else to WIN” grindset hustle mentality.
In my field (a “successful” one in the modern economy), the conventional wisdom is to intentionally change jobs every two years or so to get a bigger raise than loyalty yields. Other fields have either intentional high turnover or mismanagement that sabotages long-term employment. Nobody develops a pride of position and it creates more easily replacable workers. Of course this ripples to “nobody even stays in the same neighbourhood anymore” as we Grapes of Wrath ourselves across the map looking for opportunity.
If you aren’t forced to chase the ever-moving brass ring, maybe you can find satisfaction in being part of long-lived communities which encourage mutual support. If you know your needs are going to be taken care of, different faces and lifestyles are less of a risk to destabilize your world.
The Apple II’s big selling point, compared to the other two big brands introduced in 1977 (the Radio Shack TRS-80 and Commodore PET) was colour.
But it was a weird and colour scheme that took advantage of clever Wozniak hacks to make it viable on a cheap machine. Good video hardware, and enough memory for the colour display, were spendy. That’s why even into the 1980s you’d have machines like the ZX Spectrum with limitations like “every 8x8 block can only have 2 colours” which used less memory, and 40-column screens that were readable on TVs instead of dedicated high-res monitors…
The only appropriate family hauler is a 20-year-old Camry with 850,000 km on the odometer and the obligatory rear bumper dent.
If we can pick home computers that lean into cartridges, the Atari 800XL is a real winner. Nice two-tone finish, classy silver buttons with a plexi trim oiece covering the power light.
Can we bring back George III? Or at least poofy powdered wigs?
As a reptile keeper who knows full well they don’t know when to stop eating, I find this story charming. I want to feed her a basket of eyes (pre-frozen to kill parasites)
One hour from new classic myth to kawaii. I think that’s near Rule 34 turnaround speed.
The Nando’s menu is a document that’s both still relevant, and successfully binds the powerful.
Unfortunately, most of our non-poultry-related problems can’t be fixed by threatening to call Corporate and get their franchise yanked.
Trident TGUI9440 on a VL-bus card. Surprisingly peppy on a 486/66 overclocked to 80.
I was always disappointed that celebrity and character voice packs weren’t a thing for the voice-assistant platforms. I’d pay literal ones of dollars for a voice assistant with a Sebastian Michaelis intonation and theming.
Cortana for Windows Phone came closest, I think they did use the same voice actress as the game character.
I doubt they enjoy having their balls in TSMC’s vice.
Intel is the only option remotely available to leverage against them.
(Frantically smashing “himbo harem” button)
How about Delete, since I don’t see it on the layout.
Or the Most Scroll Lock Ever.
Not necessarily precise, just a more resonant presentation. She didn’t have a killer sound bite. If details actually mattered, we’d be in the closing months of the second Warren administration after all.
I literally saw scads of signs saying “Trump - Low Prices/Kamala - High Prices” and one that specifically claimed “Want $2.15 gas, vote Trump.” She didn’t counter well at the slogan/vibes level. There was no “Harris/Walz/$2-per-pound ground beef” signage.
It’s also an audience problem. The Democrats, as incumbents, were stuck with higher expectations. They couldn’t pad their numbers with low-hanging “I just want different” and “let’s burn it all down” crowds, so they have to chase voters who are harder to activate.