V Stables

independent thinker, former Republican, follower of Christ but not of organized Christianity, fan of Musk’s work, but not his support of trump

[V Stables @vastables]

@r0ck3t23 This example is only valid if Bezos had solved the “similar problem” earlier as well. It’s hard to recognize something you haven’t seen. I suspect Yasantha ground on the original problem much longer than three hours. Those things stick with you.

[Bari Weiss @bariweiss]

What can we learn from our recent history? Of the way that the far left destroyed the center left? One big takeaway is that if a political movement does not police its ranks, does not draw lines, if it neglects to protect its borders, if it does not defend its sacred values, it cannot long endure.

What are those values? They include the rule of the law. The belief in the inalienable rights of each individual. That we are all created in the image of God and it is that—and not our ethnicity or our IQ score—that gives us our worth and that makes us all equal. It is a rejection of mob violence. It is the view that the West is good and that America is good, and that we deserve our heroes along with our whole complex history.

These values are not left or right. They are foundational. They are civilizational. And they have always required constant vigilance to preserve.

But that’s not the sense you get online these days—and some places offline, too—where power is celebrated instead of principle. Where power is quickly becoming the only principle.

If that continues without being challenged, we may wind up spending the next few years watching the same story we just lived through on the other side, as the far right (not the one defined by cable news, which includes many in this room) devours what remains of the center-right.

If you aren’t aware of the dangers that come with apparent victory, if you think, That’s impossible, I believe you are as naive as the professors at Harvard who still email me to say, “Can you believe what’s happening?!”

What does this group, which differs from the rest of the right in its open embrace of illiberalism, sound like? An awful lot like the far left.

This group says that we are in a war—a war here at home—and that because it’s war, because the stakes are life and death, the normal rules of the game must be suspended.

They say those who don’t go along are squishes or traitors or were secret leftists all along. Or they accuse them of being conservative or Republican in name only, which is a version of the “false consciousness” Marxists were so fond of telling people they suffer from.

They say that it’s not enough to return to normal—that returning to normal isn’t an option—and instead it’s time to give the other side a taste of their own medicine.

They say we were treated cruelly. And so cruelty is the necessary response.

They say that the thing we are trying to conserve has already been destroyed—and perhaps never even existed at all.

They say that reform is a losers’ strategy, and that the whole thing needs to be burned down.

Like the far left, they have no use for history, but judge people living and dead in the ideological light of presentism, or simply reimagine them from scratch. As the left defaced and desecrated statues of Churchill, the vandals on the right desecrate his name and his memory.

Again, it’s a question of borders. In this case, they actively erase the line between good and evil, and between past and present—looking backward to a place where “things went wrong,” as if it’s possible to turn back the clock.

While the left, long sympathetic with Stalin, today sympathizes with modern-day Nazis in the form of Hamas—this new right eulogizes the original ones. And in rehabilitating Hitler they are not merely demonizing Jews, but demonizing America, Britain, and the millions who fought and died to preserve our freedoms.

All of this seems as obvious to me as the notion that a girl cannot become a boy. But a lot of people seem to have a hard time saying these things out loud right now.

Why?

[V Stables @vastables]

@WalshFreedom Well if it’s good enough for the Supremes why isn’t it good enough for Elon?

[V Stables @vastables]

@daltonbrewer Buying. Yet again. I have shares with a basis of ~$10 each. I expect the ones I bought today at $370 to do as well as those original shares have so far.

[Dylan O'Sullivan @DylanoA4]

C. S. Lewis, you just live

[V Stables @vastables]

Maybe Collins, but Murkowski would be real tough because Alaska has an open primary and ranked choice general. Musk would have to find and fund not one opponent, but three if not four. Push for this in your state and support the National Popular Vote Act. Return the power of the vote to the people.

[V Stables @vastables]

@daltonbrewer Are the occupants of the driver’s seat driving? Or merely supervising?

[V Stables @vastables]

I think this is perhaps harsh and without the grace and kindness you expect him to extend. We have not walked in his shoes, nor understand his upbringing, which can be ever so difficult and lengthy to overcome, if even we can. Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by incompetence, or some such. And we are all, to some degree, incompetent.

[V Stables @vastables]

@elonmusk Good advice. Please demonstrate.

[V Stables @vastables]

I’m living the dream. Politics was fun and interesting but I’m so glad I got out when I did. Being a mom was by far the most rewarding job ever. While I’m still a mom, my kids are adults now so it’s different. When I was a teen I read an interview with Marilyn Mach vos Savant wherein she said she made her living managing her family’s money. I never forgot that. It took a long time of working for my money before I had enough extra to try making it work for me. Turns out I’m quite good at it, though the first few years it was a steep learning curve. I retired early and do what I want.

[NationalPopularVote @NatlPopularVote]

Good stuff here. No need to abolish the #ElectoralCollege. States are well on their way to using it differently so we elect the President by a national popular vote. #1person1vote #EveryVoteEqual

[V Stables @vastables]

@BoBbyPleWniaK Probably about the same amount you have to donate to Trump. Maybe less.

[Becca Lee @BeccaLeeBeauty]

I think we get so caught up in the “IG worthy” moments that we recap our year with. Remember most people just show their highlights.

It’s ok if your year was hard. It’s ok if you didn’t accomplish everything you wanted to. It’s ok if you struggled mentally, physically, or emotionally. It’s ok if this wasn’t your best year ever. Know that you’re not alone. A made up timeline shouldn’t dictate your life.🫶🏼

[V Stables @vastables]

That might be time to start building my village. I have property for about 8 cottages, but it’s quite sloping so the dirt/foundation work is extensive, and building costs here are high. I want well built, energy positive, sustainable housing, at a reasonable cost. Also, additional endowments to local arts organizations, especially for youth.

[V Stables @vastables]

@joehansen Whale, both meat and blubber. Or maybe Lynx. Both from a wild game bbq in Alaska. I always passed on the stinkheads.

[V Stables @vastables]

@alex_avoigt Alex that may be the funniest thing you’ve ever said. You know they all have unelected staff that write their speeches, filter their mail and calls, summarize the issues for them, and more.

[V Stables @vastables]

@LimitingThe @SenSanders Is it a contest? Let’s fix both.

[V Stables @vastables]

Reading the Bible, Genesis to Revelation, in a year, was good. Doing that several times was life changing. I saw patterns that I didn’t see the first time. I could fit the pieces together in different ways than I had been taught. I should do that again. “Why Religion Matters” by Huston Smith was pretty good. Anything by CS Lewis, I particularly liked the Space Trilogy. The older I get, the more I believe, and yet the lighter my certainty on individual positions. There is so much to learn and reevaluate.

[V Stables @vastables]

@joehansen Off the top of my head I’d say Peter Paul and Mary, up close at a small venue. You?