The ability of the average guy to be heard is much higher today than it was when there were just newspapers and a few major television stations. The only way to be heard back then was to write a letter to the editor that might or might not be published. Now, all I have to do is write whatever bullshit I want and some guy in the Netherlands starts offering me his perspective (which I do appreciate). — Hanover

Is it higher?

If (and that's a big if) you got back then your letter to the editor being published in a major newspaper, I guess you were far more heard than discussing it here with our Dutch companion. You know the time when people read newspapers, the comment section was read by a lot of people.

Actually, in an economic recession (declining GDP) income inequality typically decreases. The poor stay poor, but the rich aren't getting the profits. This happened for example in my country when we had a serious economic depression (thanks to speculative bubble and a banking crisis) in the 1990's. — ssu

Having checked the New Yorker article that I was reading this morning it appears that I misread it. :yikes: It says that in many Western countries over the past couple of decades that slower growth has been accompanied by rising political polarization.

I started to read a book about The End of [economic] Growth today. Particularly interesting now that economic growth has truly stopped, if only temporarily.

Basically what happens is that when there is growth in these brave new neoliberal times, the rich take all the cream. When there's then a recession they live on that while the poor are told there's no milk left.

Lol. There was plenty of debate about Newton's theories, but the evidence was overwhelming. Nor was it proven "wrong" by Einstein or quantum theory. Not even close. Leave your simplistic Nickelodeon ideas of the history of science for Twitter. — Xtrix

Yes it was. Einstein completely overturned Newton's theory of gravity. Anyway, I'll respond to whatever nonsense you posted. Then I'm done. I'm not wasting my time anymore.

Einstein completely overturned Newton's theory of gravity. — h060tu

Take a university class, son. :shade:

:100:

Einstein completely overturned Newton's theory of gravity — h060tu

That's true.

Lol. There was plenty of debate about Newton's theories, but the evidence was overwhelming. Nor was it proven "wrong" by Einstein or quantum theory. Not even close. Leave your simplistic Nickelodeon ideas of the history of science for Twitter.
— Xtrix

Yes it was. Einstein completely overturned Newton's theory of gravity. — h060tu

No, it wasn't -- nor does any scientist believe that. Newton's theories are not "wrong," nor were "proven wrong." Yes, it's true that many simpletons like you believe that, but it's not true. What Einstein did was to expand on Newton with new conceptions of space and time. Newton's laws of motion remain absolutely intact, as does the calculations.

Quit while you're behind, buddy. No one, least of all me, thinks you know anything about science. You've repeatedly shown your incompetence and buffoonery. But keep it up for laughs if you'd like.

5 people in this poll voting for Trump.

I shouldn't be shocked that ignorance abounds everywhere, even in philosophy forums.

Xtrix
702
5 people in this poll voting for Trump.

I shouldn't be shocked that ignorance abounds everywhere, even in philosophy forums. — Xtrix

I guess you are correct...it shouldn't surprise.

But it does. I find it incredible that 5 people intelligent enough to want to engage in discussion in a Philosophy Forum...would still be willing to vote for Trump.

More than surprise me, though...it discouraged me.

I am beginning to think we do not deserve the great gift that has been passed down to us. Our only job was to protect and defend it for the short time it will be in our custody...and instead, MILLIONS of people are shitting on it.

More than surprise me, though...it discouraged me. — Frank Apisa

Getting discouraged is a surefire way to keep losing. Remember too: Even though 5 will vote for Trump, the large majority will vote for someone else (as was reflected in the 2016 election) with a plurality going to Biden. That's encouraging -- because despite putting up yet another weak candidate, most people are still sensible enough to vote against the sociopath in office.

There are more sane people in this country than not.

Most have no clue what's going on and don't bother with politics or voting at all. That's the largest "voting block" -- non-voters. The ones who do vote are stuck with the information they're given, depending on the geographical and cultural factors, and base their decisions on this information.

If it's conservative radio, it's far more likely you'll have a picture of the world colored by the interpretations of Rush Limbaugh and the rantings of Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, and Dennis Prager. The same is true for liberals in the cities and suburbs listening to NPR, watching MSNBC, and reading the Huffington Post. A certain picture of the world emerges there as well. Decisions get made on this (mis)information. Most of it is propaganda. This creates two pictures that gradually drift farther and farther apart and become more extreme, generating hatred. It's clear that we've now reached a point where's no common set of facts anymore and no notion of "truth" -- there's only pure tribalism: anything my side believes is true, anything we don't like is fake news, and anyone holding opposite views are anti-American traitors. I see it being much more problematic on the right, and it could even lead to a kind of civil war in the not-so-distant future.

But given all this, the more sane party -- the Democratic Party -- still has the advantage. The Republican coalition is dying out. They are old, less diverse, more rural, less educated, and increasingly more working class. It's this last group that the Democrats should focus on winning back with progressive policies -- not the neoliberal Clintonite policies of the 90s (and much of Obama).

I see this advantage more and more, despite how close things are right now (seemingly 50/50 in the key swing states). As years pass, the electorate becomes younger and more diverse. That's worth paying attention to. They're more progressive, have less bias against the evil version of "socialism" from the Cold War era, care deeply about the environment, are more organized and politically engaged than Gen Xers, etc. But will it be too late?

In many respects it will -- they'll have to contend with the damage done by these previous generations, on the environment especially, but also with nuclear weapons, with the US judicial system now stacked with lifetime-tenured reactionary judges, with the weakening of unions, and with the elite control of the educational system, media, campaign funding and lobbying.

I'm old enough to see where this is leading and young enough to care.

I'm 83...and I still care.

I'd say, "We'll see how things go"...but at 83, I most probably will not see how this plays out in the long run. The judiciary has become a political plaything...and THAT is not good.

I'm 83...and I still care.

I'd say, "We'll see how things go"...but at 83, I most probably will not see how this plays out in the long run. The judiciary has become a political plaything...and THAT is not good. — Frank Apisa

All of these things, as you well know, have been around for decades. But it's the degree to which they've been amped up. They don't even care about pretext anymore -- it's just in-your-face corporatism.

Judging from some recent polls in battleground states, looks like we're in for another four years of Trump -- largely owing to the DNC's putting up terrible candidates, and voters willing to sit out or protest-vote in response and thus helping Trump get another four years of systematically destroying environmental regulations (needed more than ever), accelerating climate change, appointing lifetime judges to the circuit court, giving department heads to his friends, massive tax cuts to the wealthy, etc. etc.

Let's hope the DNC "learns its lesson" this time. Let's also hope our grandkids have a planet to inhabit in 2060.

Joe Biden.

I think that Donald Trump is a Central Intelligence Agency godsend, and, therefore, a bane of our existence, but I am not voting, in part, because of that the National Security Agency was built under the administration that Joe Biden was the Vice President of, and, in part, because of the total unwillingness on the part of the Democratic Party to either put the Church Committee into effect or acknowledge that Harry S. Truman was one of the worst presidents that we have ever had.

I thought about voting for Howie Hawkins of the Green Party, as I had thought that it would be the last time that I could with any degree of conviction vote Green, as Bernie Sanders had finally done what the Green Party believed to be impossible, which was to more or less run a Democratic Party campaign as if it were a Green Party campaign, thereby making it impossible for the Green Party to take the place of the Democratic Party as the primary opposition to the Republican Party, and, thereby rendering the Green Party totally ineffective, as the only reason a person becomes a Libertarian is so that they can ignore the Republican Party, thereby making an alliance with them unlikely and a multi-party system in the United States as equally unlikely, thereby only leaving the Green Party with the aforementioned plan to replace the Democratic Party as the primary opposition to the Republican Party, which can no longer be done. They can still win elections in local campaigns, but the grand project of the Green Party is no longer tenable. I voted for Barrack Obama twice and have never voted Green. I thought that I should give them a vote as a kind of token of solidarity. I decided not to vote in protest instead.

I voting for Biden, but holding my nose. It is essential to get Trump out of office in November, just as it will be essential to get Biden out of office 4 years later. Bad choices. Bernie Sanders is a more attractive politician, but like most of the candidates, he is too old. So is Trump. So is Biden.

I hear you. It looks like Biden is pretty malleable, and so hopefully we can push him on progressive policies once he's in office. But one thing has become clear: four more years of Trump and we're toast.

Bernie Senders:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CDRbgpKn1Eq/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Bernie Sanders jumping off a cliff to sacrifice himself for the younger generation or for the Biden/(and woman soon to be picked) Presidential run?

Biden's lead in the poll average has fallen from 10+ to 7,4+. Not an issue, but notice that at lowest the Biden lead has been only 4+.

Bernie Sanders jumping off a cliff to sacrifice himself for the younger generation or for the Biden/(and woman soon to be picked) Presidential run? — ssu

Yes that was footage of him doing it, no symbolism required.

https://nypost.com/2020/07/27/sanders-co-chair-voting-for-biden-like-eating-half-a-bowl-of-s-t/

"It’s like saying to somebody, ‘You have a bowl of s–t in front of you, and all you’ve got to do is eat half of it instead of the whole thing.’ It’s still s–t’, ” Sanders co-chair Nina Turner told The Atlantic."

Yep.

I'll vote for third party

Not a good idea for a thread IMO. — jgill

I was gonna disagree, but then I started reading the thread...

Oh fuck me they went with Harris as VP

:vomit:

I still think what's most shocking is the 8 people on this site who said they'd vote for Donald Trump.

A milestone that a woman of color was chosen for such a high position. That’s all good.

They must be stupid and dull people, eh? If only you could tell them to their face.

It's a stupid decision, yes. Completely ignorant choice. But that doesn't make them stupid and dull people -- it means they're making a mistake.

I say it here, and I'd say it your face as well tough guy.

:strong: :kiss: