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The Death of Roe v Wade? The birth of a new Liberalism?True, though there have been 46 US Presidents and only 5 have lost the popular vote – the last two in 2016 and 2000. Before that was 1876. With 89% of US Presidents elected with the majority of votes Ivthink your statement in this instance is hyperbolic — 180 Proof
In 1876 women couldn't vote, so I don't think it's hyperbolic to suggest majority ruling has faced enormous hurdles in this country, to which my comment was as much about legislative (there are over 3.3M 18-29 YOs in NY. There are over 186K 60+ YOs living in West Virginia. They both get two senators.) and judicial branches (the latter being non-democratic of course), as it was about the executive branch. To further my point vis-a-vis the executive branch, if we are discussing modern political discontent and the onus of responsibility and blame between a political system and voters within that system, then it seems highly relevant that two out of five presidents who have lost the popular vote (i.e. 40%) occurred within the last 22 years of the county's history (within less than <9% of the country's history).
Agreed. We the Sheeple is only the symptom and not the problem. However, Dem voters aren't pushback as hard as GOP voters in the last four+ decades because Dem voters are "unenthusiastic" despite not having that luxury. — 180 Proof
I do not believe that democratic voters, particularly young democratic voters, are any more or less "unenthusiastic" than GOP voters; the issue is that the GOP don't actively marginalize and alienate their more radical voters in a way that the democratic establishment overtly and repeatedly do. In fact the GOP tends to court them. Nevertheless, this brings me to my final point.
Don't you think, however, the fact that the under-30 vote is consistently less than half the over-50 vote is a significant factor in the Dems being "a milquetoast gerontocracy"? No one willingly "relinquishes political power", they must be out-organized and out-mobilized to have it taken from them, and under-30 "youth vote" is consistently the least organized and most demobilized. Tell me how to reliably elect political parties with under-50 year old leaderships without significantly more and persistent under-30 participation. — 180 Proof
The 18-29 turnout for Obama in 2008 was the second highest in modern American history, second only to turnout in 1972 when Boomers were first able to vote. This was driven by Obama's youth-focused campaign and organizational team, which after having helped him win and defeat Hillary in the primary, was showered with praise by Obama as "the best political organization in America, and probably the best political organization that we’ve seen in the last 30 to 40 years". Shortly before Obama's inauguration, this momentum was transformed into a grassroots organization, Organizing for America, which would have "13 million email addresses, three million donors, and two million active members of MyBO, including 70,000 people with their own fund-raising pages." What happened to this organized, mobilized, grassroots machine with a progressive agenda in mind? It was sidelined by Obama within a year after his historic win and after he stacked his administration with democratic party operatives, and subsequently folded the organization within the DNC and effectively deactivated it. The result? When fight for Affordable Healthcare Act reached it's apex, "OFA was able to drum up only 300,000 phone calls to Congress."
According to Marshell Ganz who famously provided the organizational model and training for Obama's grassroots campaign, "Seeking reform from inside a system structured to resist change, Obama turned aside some of the most well-organized reform coalitions ever assembled — on the environment, workers’ rights, immigration and healthcare...Finally, the president demobilized the widest, deepest and most effective grass-roots organization ever built to support a Democratic president. With the help of new media and a core of some 3,000 well-trained and highly motivated organizers, 13.5 million volunteers set the Obama campaign apart. They were not the “usual suspects” — party loyalists, union staff and paid canvassers — but a broad array of first-time citizen activists. Nor were they merely an e-mail list. At least 1.5 million people, according to the campaign’s calculations, played active roles in local leadership teams across the nation. But the Obama team put the whole thing to sleep, except for a late-breaking attempt to rally support for healthcare reform. Volunteers were exiled to the confines of the Democratic National Committee."
Skipping 2016 and fast forwarding to 2020 (for the sake of brevity, I think my point is made regardless), we see similar grassroots momentum with the Bernie Sanders campaign with nearly 1.4M unique donors (the second highest was Warren with 892K...Biden at 451K), a 2020 election cycle total of $95M raised from individual donors (the second highest was Buttigieg at $76M with Biden at $60M), a rally in NYC with an astounding crowd of 26,000 people ("the largest number any Democratic presidential candidate has drawn" in 2019t) and an unsurpassed on-the-ground volunteer base. Of course Biden, the final entrant into the primary was the nuclear option for the Democratic establishment, having entered the primary two months after Sanders, who had been the leading nominee in polls by a wide margin. Long story short, the Sanders campaign sputtered in large part thanks to a hostile Obama, the Democratic party itself being more or less unified in their opposition to Bernie Sanders, the Clyburn endorsement for Biden prior to Super Tuesday helped to club Sanders' campaign (Bill Clinton thanked Clyburn for "ending the inter-family fight" with the "stroke of his hand"), and a sudden drop out of several other candidates who endorsed Biden .
My point is that youth voter organization and mobilization has existed during my entire adult life. But when preferred candidates gain power or come close to power, the Democratic party, the only viable political party in this country that isn't exclusively run by Hell's demons, disbands or works against it (not to mention a hostile media apparatus). -
The Death of Roe v Wade? The birth of a new Liberalism?Blaming an unenthusiastic electorate or democratic voters, for the ongoing societal breakdown is fallacious and counterproductive, beyond the consideration that Evangelical Christians are achieving their political goals despite never having achieved a political majority. In my lifetime only one Republican presidential nominee secured more votes than his Democratic opponent. The United States' political apparatus is structured against majority ruling, and the political establishment is broadly unwilling to produce legislation that runs counter to Capitalist interests. It's like criticizing Sisyphus for being unable to reach the top of the hill. How can we point fingers at unenthusiastic non-voters when establishment democrats routinely throw their weight behind conservative democrats when threatened by progressive alternatives (the latter lost by fewer than 300 votes). The democratic party is run by a milquetoast gerontocracy, one that would make the Soviet Politburo blush, and who refuse to relinquish political power.
Someone suggested how pivotal the 2014 and 2016 election were which betrays a myopic view of the conservative's legal movement to achieve political objectives; a 50 year old mobilization the very concept of which is so alien and anathema to how the modern democratic party functions it seems as a definitional contradiction. Regardless of how 2014 and 2016 turned out (had Hillary won in 2016 who knows how she would have fared in 2020), the conservative legal movement would be waiting by the wings. -
The Death of Roe v Wade? The birth of a new Liberalism?The problem with that is that it's relatively easy to overturn a law. Even if the Democrats are able to pass a federal law to protect these rights, when the Republicans are next the majority they'll just repeal it. Such rights need to be constitutional rights. — Michael
Unfortunately passing a constitutional amendment is not a realistic, and even if Democrats are able to pass a federal law to codify these rights it's assured that this Supreme Court will rule them as unconstitutional. -
The Death of Roe v Wade? The birth of a new Liberalism?IME, in light of this last week of wingnut rulings from SCOTUS, Biden and the Dems have no choice but to take these "emergency" actions asap (no later than August 1st, 2022) in the following sequence:
1A. By Executive Order of POTUS, issue permits to set up mobile abortion clinics on easily accessible federal lands in all states where abortion and abortion services are outlawed.
1B. CIC orders all miilitary bases, accessible to civilians, located in states where abortion and abortion services are outlawed, to immediately set up, within base hospital facilities, secure abortion clinics to be staffed by civilian abortion providers and open to both civilians and military personnel seeking reproductive healthcare.
2. Kill the US Senate's jim/jane crow Filibuster Rule.
3. Pass the Judiciary Act of 2021 which expands SCOTUS by four or more justices.
I think this achievable list constitutes a reasonable criterion by which to judge the political will and governing competence of POTUS and the Congressional Democratic Leadership. Are they antifascists or fucking collaborators? — 180 Proof
It's also clear that Griswold, Obergefell, Lawrence, & Loving should be codified -
Currently ReadingOh, that's a big one. Let me know if worth, if you can! — Streetlight
I'm a little over halfway through it and it's excellent so far. Very thorough. Helpful in filling some gaps in the period of Europe I was arguably most unfamiliar with. Going to read his book on Medieval Europe next.
Unfortunately had to take two days off of reading; finally caught Covid last week after successfully avoiding it for 2+ years, which were instead were lying on the couch watching mindless movies. -
The Death of Roe v Wade? The birth of a new Liberalism?Abortion rights are ideological insofar as you consider woman and your relationship to them to be immaterial.
Either way, even assuming this does provide a clarion call for democrats come this fall, it's all moot unless they have actionable policies including court packing to protect other civil rights that Clarence Thomas explicitly put in the chopping board. But since they've had two months since the leak with little messaging beyond "go vote" I'm not holding my breath. -
Anti-Communism, Anti-Capitalism: Tatenokai.Whenever someone presents a political philosophy that they purport to be neither left-wing or right-wing it's always just rephrased right-wing sentiments; as was the case with Mishima, who was definitely right-wing.
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Marxism and AntinatalismMarxisms were tried and failed. All you got is the Nordic model at best. — schopenhauer1
wow then I guess Marxists shouldn't have kids, you absolutely nailed it dude, congrats! -
Marxism and Antinatalism
This privately owned situation is near impossible to change.
It follows that it would then be best to not expose new people into this unjust, intractable situation. — schopenhauer1
:gasp: -
Marxism and Antinatalism
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Marxism and AntinatalismHippies in the 60s? What are we talking? Can’t be civil rights movement. — schopenhauer1
Christ dude you've been on a philosophy forum for seven years and somehow the French Revolution, the Haitian Revolution, the Civil War, the Russian Revolution, etc. escape you as examples in which presumed immutable social conditions dissolved. Social, economic, political conditions are not permanent. You need to get it through your head that to suggest otherwise is inconsistent with Marxism. -
Marxism and AntinatalismBecause since 1848, we’ve seen great strides in the whole Marxist revolution working out — schopenhauer1
Besides being historically false (re: social revolution), it's also irrelevant to what your opening post argues. Additionally, history is not destiny, and certainly not the last 174 years of history. -
Marxism and AntinatalismInternalized defeatism is antithetical to Marxism, so the argument demonstrates a lack of engagement with Marxism and so can't be taken very seriously
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Currently ReadingThe Inheritance of Rome: A History of Europe from 400 to 1000 by Christopher Wickham
Think I'm gonna lean mostly into history this summer -
Currently ReadingThe Making of Bourgeois Europe: Absolutism, Revolution and the Rise of Capitalism in England, France and Germany by Colin Mooers
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The American Gun Control DebateThis one is new - at least to me - and particulalrly horrifying. Like, imagine the saftey issues with this. A fire? Hell, say a shooter did get in? Like, these people would rather pick a fight against... doors, rather than address mass gun murder. — Streetlight
Walking, talking pile of shit Ted Cruz and others have suggested it.
“Have one door into and out of the school and have that one door, armed police officers at that door,” Cruz argued. “If that had happened, if those federal grants had gone to this school, when that psychopath arrived, the armed police officers could have taken him out and we would have 19 children and two teachers still alive.”
Unsurprised that Ted Cruz would forget a key incident in American labor history that shows how that's a god awful idea. Instead of 19 children shot Cruz would prefer over 500 burned to death since we can't ban fire. -
The American Gun Control DebateDamn shame we can't even get imbeciles in here to commit to the current wave of psychotic responses for deterring mass shootings measures, all of which evade the direct problem of guns. In the last few days I've seen gun fanatics suggest arming teachers, single entrances in schools, replacing school cops with army veterans since the former are apparently too pussy to engage shooters. Instead we get role players, boooring.
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The American Gun Control DebateAre all of you just completely unaware of what an insurgency is and how it works?
We can talk about how likely it is for a government to misbehave to where a large part of the citizenry is willing to take up arms against it, but if that were to happen the army isn't going to stop it.
If the citizenry is unarmed? All you have is hopes and prayers that it never comes to that. An unshakable faith in the incorruptibleness of power structures - one that I do not share.
The power structures of the US and the EU, and probably of just about every other country in the world, are already corrupt. The only question is whether they'll turn violent. — Tzeentch
This is too stupid to engage with further -
The American Gun Control DebateWe're really running the gamut on what gun proponents are asking us to imagine. On one end we're being asked by @Tzeentch to envision a vague government takeover that requires wide gun ownership to counter. Maybe if he repeats the phrase "armed peasants" in a mirror three times it will come true. On the other hand, we're also asked by @Moses to not use political imagination at all! Enforcement is too difficult, we cannot possible stop a determined mass shooter. So we're simultaneously being asked to use the fullest extent of our political imagination, i.e. a government takeover, in order to comprehend the necessity of gun ownership, as well as restrain our political imagination in order to accept the futility of gun control.
Both of course are examples of American exceptionalism; Americans being exceptionally stupid and myopic when there are plenty of comparative examples to limit and control gun ownership in other countries. Australia confiscated over half a million privately-owned guns through a mandatory government buy-back program, which helped decrease the suicide rate by 57% (down 74% in 2010) and homicide by 42% seven years after implementation. Japan requires a background check including criminal records, a mental health check, a strict limit on what type of gun they can buy, and a strict limit on how many gun shops are allowed to operate in each prefecture. America can also reinstate the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, which, as you can see from the chart, helped limit deaths from mass shootings until the GOP allowed it to expire in 2004.
The US government can also clamp down on firearm manufactures from making certain firearms, which coupled with mandatory buybacks, can greatly limit the amount of semi-automatics and automatics from the marketplace. The government can also end gun-maker liability protections (and impose heavy heavy fines and hold executives responsible). -
The American Gun Control DebateGuns used in-self defense are also pretty rare. They are far more likely to be used for suicide. So again we have arguments founded on adult fantasy.
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The American Gun Control DebateYou seem to be confusing our opinion of banning guns outright with banning guns exclusively for non-criminals.
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The American Gun Control Debate"How about if everything was different would you change your mind then"
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The American Gun Control DebateI would possibly be open to keep 2A on a very strict originalist interpretation, that is, the only gun someone could own would be a replica of a gun comminly used during the late 18th century, like a Brown Bess or something that takes 30 seconds to load and fire with a 50% accuracy at 300 feet.
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The American Gun Control Debateyou know shit is hitting the fan when even mainstream news like NYT, CNN, AP etc. are questioning what happened with security forces.
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What Are You Watching Right Now?I have completed my pandemic goal of watching all of Sight and Sound's Critics Top 250 Films list
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The American Gun Control DebatePeasants with guns have been besting professional militaries for decades (throughout all of human history, really), including the US military on several occasions.
And fighting against a guerilla on your own soil, against your own people? A modern military wouldn't stand a chance, no matter how much barbarism it is willing to resort to. — Tzeentch
If you are going to use historical precedence to justify your argument you ought to look at actual examples of US militia fighting against and being defeated by superior federal forces. US militia uprising are not the Viet Cong. They are not the Taliban. Otherwise, the argument that 2A is a viable bulwark against some sort of abstract military takeover remains a vague hypothetical in contradistinction to the tangible and on-going problem of gun violence and mass shootings that currently plague the country. We are sacrificing tens of thousands of lives to firearms each year in order to shelter an adult fantasy. -
The American Gun Control DebateGiven the last and the current US presidents, and the recent propensity in the US and the world towards authoritarianism, I'd say keep the second amendment right where it is. — Tzeentch
Civilians with guns are not going to stop the US military, there have been a number of militia uprisings within the US in the last two decades and they have all been handily defeated by federal forces. This is just role-playing fantasy. -
The American Gun Control Debate"Few crimes are more harshly forbidden in the Old Testament than sacrifice to the god Moloch (for which see Leviticus 18.21, 20.1-5). The sacrifice referred to was of living children consumed in the fires of offering to Moloch...The gun is our Moloch." — Maw
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Israel killing civilians in Gaza and the West BankOk these have been up for 2 hours where are the mods
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Currently ReadingWhat did you think of Smith and Suwandi? — Streetlight
I enjoyed them both very much, thanks for the recommendation. I found Smith's work very informative, albeit highly technical and dense at times, as you mention in your short review. Suwandi painted a clearer picture (she's a better writer too) that offered a more material understanding of some of the more abstract concepts Smith provided, e.g. concrete examples of global labor arbitrage, or labor flexibility, and the interviews she conducted with Indonesian factory managers, etc..
Maw
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