I can’t quote Yglesias directly because he has me blocked, but all of his opinions as a neoliberal progressive are worthless because of the simple fact that any additional revenue collected for Dem governance will be wasted or stolen. All of these guys have their little schemes for how they’d like more taxes added on here or there, but none of it matters because it will just be squandered. They know this, they know there’s nothing they can do about it, they know progressive technocracy is scam that is incapable of doing anything meaningful, and so they just ignore the facts and talk about how MOAR revenue is obligated. Dem policy and governance isn’t run by people like Yglesias, people like him actually have no say, he’s just trotted out to try to legitimize the enterprise to bien pensant midwits.
Worked with a guy for 3+ years at a company with a few hundred employees. Dude was probably the worst, was always on a performance improvement plan and always got the lowest bonus possible for just being shit. Well I guess he could see the writing on the wall that he was getting fired the next review cycle. So one day he comes to the office in a dress, the worst wig you can imagine, and badly applied makeup. He looked like a cheap whore.
At first I thought he was fucking insane for that. Even though trooning out is common in tech companies for autist employees, this guy showed zero signs. Instead of getting fired, he was taken off his pip, was given a higher bonus and was allowed to work from home, which is only really given to the top employees.
Whenever he's on a Zoom call he doesn't even try to hide that he's faking it. Just throws on the wig and goes about the call normally. It's extremely jarring. But it's fucking genius tbh. No matter what you see in the news, woke is still very much alive in big tech. The HR goblins wouldn't dare to fire him or her or whatever he actually is now. Starting to think the troon stuff is just a massive grift to secure a high paying job.
The AK-47 is the most overrated piece of garbage ever adopted by a national military, and nostalgia-blinded fanboys need to hear it.
People act like it’s an indestructible magic wand because it can function while caked in mud, while completely ignoring the fact that it has a trash-tier stamped receiver, terrible ergonomics, a safety selector that sounds like a bear trap closing, and accuracy so bad you couldn't hit a dumpster from the inside.
An AR-15 will outshoot it, out-ergonomic it, and out-perform it in every single category that actually matters in a real firefight, but internet commandoes keep drooling over Soviet surplus just to larp in the woods.
It feels like the midterms ended the "Trump Era," and this is the real end of the 20th century.
Trump is the ultimate 20th century man: a boomer narcissist, real estate & casino & TV & golf guy, multiple wives & kids, oddly sincere with some values but also a total bullshitter. He's post-WW2 ethos played out to its fullest expression.
A new era is here, no one knows whats coming, but it's going to be different.
The End of "The End of History."
I'm long term very optimistic, but also as I've been telling you all for years: this transition is going to be EXTREMELY PAINFUL for most people.
Very few are ready, and even the ones ready don't know what's going to happen.
H/t to @rizomaschool@blockhead4000 for the idea.