Americas Elect 2012 - the Not Party

[Razgovory]

Yes, and idealism's infectious for sure.

I don't know. Back when I was politically involved, most people found the various splinter Trotskyist groups really annoying.

They are just cranky.  They always have people coming up to them trying to pick their brains.

Well, I thought it was funny.  I'm wasting good jokes on you people.

[Capetan Mihali]

And you're assuming that what people support is the wonky Scandinavian version instead of the kill the rich and fuck their skulls version that Grallon preaches.

I've known loads of hard-core lefties and they all love Scandinavia.  It's the socialist paradise.  And practically speaking I think Mihali and Ide are a bit more into Stockholm than Minsk

I don't think I'd be comfortable defining myself politically as more than a leftist generally.  Scandinavia seems nice and all, but my anarcho-syndicalist endocrine system wants more than a safe, pleasant welfare state for humanity. 

And I know it is totally out of line with the average patrons of this board, but I am kind of a contrarian at heart.   


In the words of the LOLcat: "I disagree." 





And in the words of Friedrich Nietzsche: "I mistrust all systematizers and avoid them.  The will to a system is a lack of integrity."

[The Brain]

Have you ever been to Stockholm, Cap?

[Capetan Mihali]

Have you ever been to Stockholm, Cap?

Unfortunately not.     

I had a dream a while back that you invited me to Stockholm and we went to an informal but pretty fancy nuclear scientists' meeting.  We drove there in your and discussed the necessity/desirability of having a car in Sweden vs. the US.   

At the meeting, there were not enough appetizers to go around which made me very anxious -- had I taken too much of the tiny sausages, or too little?  And the Swedes were visibly looking down at the German delegates for drinking too much white wine.   Eventually, we ran into Garbon and I needed to buy something at a state-operated store, but realized to my chagrin that I only had American greenbacks, so I had to race around looking for an ATM.

[Eddie Teach]

Well, I thought it was funny.  I'm wasting good jokes on you people.

[The Brain]

Have you ever been to Stockholm, Cap?

Unfortunately not.     

I had a dream a while back that you invited me to Stockholm and we went to an informal but pretty fancy nuclear scientists' meeting.  We drove there in your and discussed the necessity/desirability of having a car in Sweden vs. the US.   

At the meeting, there were not enough appetizers to go around which made me very anxious -- had I taken too much of the tiny sausages, or too little?  And the Swedes were visibly looking down at the German delegates for drinking too much white wine.   Eventually, we ran into Garbon and I needed to buy something at a state-operated store, but realized to my chagrin that I only had American greenbacks, so I had to race around looking for an ATM.

A beautiful dream. You must come to Stockholm some day.

[Ideologue]

The detestable creed of centrism claims another victim.

The thing is, Ide - you don't take your instructions from Pyongyang; you take them from Lulzland. On Languish, if it makes a funny quip or allows you to roll into a fantasia of Fourth Panzer Army Cocks or long-winded descriptions of labor camps that aren't labor camps, it becomes your political position. That's fine; that's all well and good, but it does make your politics - at least as presented here - a bit of a joke. Extremism lends itself well to jokes. There's a reason or two for that which is probably worth exploring.

I guess.  Obviously when I talk of camps and guillotines I'm either joking or venting.  Political discussion without a dose of humor is rather dry, particularly here when we've been taking roughly the same positions--with some exceptions--for a decade.  As for centrism, I'm as capable of pragmatic compromise as anyone, and perhaps moreso than most, but pragmatic compromise is not an inspiring vision of the future or an end goal to work toward.

[Eddie Teach]

  As for centrism, I'm as capable of pragmatic compromise as anyone, and perhaps moreso than most, but pragmatic compromise is not an inspiring vision of the future or an end goal to work toward.

Why do we need to be working toward something?

[The Brain]

If you're not towards us you're against us.

[Razgovory]

  As for centrism, I'm as capable of pragmatic compromise as anyone, and perhaps moreso than most, but pragmatic compromise is not an inspiring vision of the future or an end goal to work toward.

Why do we need to be working toward something?

You can work away from something.  Like being in rowboat getting away from a sinking ship.

[Ideologue]

  As for centrism, I'm as capable of pragmatic compromise as anyone, and perhaps moreso than most, but pragmatic compromise is not an inspiring vision of the future or an end goal to work toward.

Why do we need to be working toward something?

Are you satisfied with the state or structure of the world as it stands, or more generally feel it could not be improved?

[Eddie Teach]

The world, no. The West, yes. There's still much that could be improved, but the basic structure is the best we've come up with afaics.

[Razgovory]

  As for centrism, I'm as capable of pragmatic compromise as anyone, and perhaps moreso than most, but pragmatic compromise is not an inspiring vision of the future or an end goal to work toward.

Why do we need to be working toward something?

Are you satisfied with the state or structure of the world as it stands, or more generally feel it could not be improved?

I think there's always room for improvement.  I'm just distrustful of a total paradigm shifts to do it.  For instance, I don't see Obama's health care program as radical.  It's been stewing for over half a century and the rest of the industrialized world has already made that leap.

[Ideologue]

The world, no. The West, yes. There's still much that could be improved, but the basic structure is the best we've come up with afaics.

I'll grant that if you combined the best aspects of each of America and non-America--e.g., freedom here, egalitarianism there--and lost the horrible parts of each--e.g., massive income disparity and weak social safety net here, cowardly peacenikism and not speaking English there--it'd probably be all right.

[Neil]

  As for centrism, I'm as capable of pragmatic compromise as anyone, and perhaps moreso than most, but pragmatic compromise is not an inspiring vision of the future or an end goal to work toward.

Why do we need to be working toward something?

Because the current state of affairs isn't sustainable.