Recent posts

#41

Off the Record / Re: 2024 US Presidential Elect...

Last post by The Minsky Moment - Today at 09:21:59 AM

He's very mass market, TV watching, middlebrow not niche online subculture.

For me the Trumpiest moment was in the dog-eater colloquy when he basically said: I saw it on TV so it must be true. That's Trump in a nutshell, truth is meaningless, reality is defined by what and who is on TV.

#42

Off the Record / Re: Elon Musk: Always A Douche

Last post by crazy canuck - Today at 09:21:49 AM

Taylor Swift endorsed Harris today.

Terminally online cringe divorced guy:



Why are they so weird.

Is he going to give her one of his children or just pick a random child off the street and give that child to her?

I mean, he has so many children at this point that They may not mean much to him

#43

Off the Record / Re: TV/Movies Megathread

Last post by crazy canuck - Today at 09:20:01 AM

The story changes through the series, as do the main players, so I am not sure what you mean by one note.

I'm not sure story is even in the top 10 of why I enjoyed the Dune films

I get the story changes but I mean vibe - the aesthetic, the style, the mood and tone, the world it's built in.

I feel like it's easier to go from Star Wars (mass market adventure film for all the family) to then explore maybe the darker sides of that universe and it still works on a vibe level (Rogue One and, I've heard, Andor). I think it's more difficult to go from the Dune story to an extended universe - either the vibe stays which would become one note or it's really really jarringly different (a wisecracking Spice smuggler, say).

But that's just the thing, the Planet portrayed in the first book changes dramatically.  So there is no chance that There will be just one note.

And the planet changing dramatically is the least of the dramatic changes that occur.

#44

Off the Record / Re: Elon Musk: Always A Douche

Last post by Jacob - Today at 09:19:23 AM

That's creepy

#45

Gaming HQ / Re: Xbox Games

Last post by The Minsky Moment - Today at 09:18:14 AM

Agree with Grey Fox that even after a recent price increase, GamePass is a good deal if you are going to do a decent amount of gaming. Keys for ultimate can be acquired on sale for $30/3 months, which means a year of access is less than what 2 retail AAA games go for.

As for the X box itself . . . I don't think anyone is winning the console wars because the entire raison d'etre of the traditional console model is in question and sales for this generation are down for Sony and Microsoft. If there is a winner, it is definitely not Xbox on the hardware side because they are a distant 3rd in sales.  But as a company, Microsoft may be a winner as their strategy doesn't hinge on pushing X/S units. Seems like they are considering moving to a model where the "console" is just PC in a box that attaches to TV and has open access to Steam, EPIC, etc as well as MSFTs own store.  If Xbox hardware continues in that scenario, it would then be as a kind of reference series or premium branded product.

As for now, GamePass can be streamed but obviously quality and reliability are better from disk. MSFT seems to be pricing X-Box competitively and so viewed as reasonably priced platform for running GamePass games through the TV, it has a good use case and probably fits your needs.

Because I still work mostly from home, I have to have the best internet connection available, so personally I just stream, mostly through GeForceNow, which also incorporates GamePass titles. That adds some extra sub costs, but frees me from worrying about hardware requirements.  Everything is played either through the Steam Deck, direct on TV with an app, or through a three-year-old Surface.

#46

Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...

Last post by crazy canuck - Today at 09:17:24 AM

I think the reason every Chancellor in the last 30 years has vetoed that Treasury suggestion is political judgement.

But for me it's more whether it's indicative of a wider issue (and I think there's similar concerns with Starmer and the people around him). Ultimately the Treasury have a very particular view of the world which is still very Gladstonian. Part of the job of being a good minister is being able to resist your department's own vested interests and biases.

It might not mean anything but the fact Reeves has gone for something they've been pushing for years and had Chancellors block make me slightly worry that she'll be less able to spot what's the advice that's good and she should listen to, and what's institutional preferences where it's her job to override.

It's a line Blair's always flagged. I haven't read it and I won't because he creepily capitalises "the Leader" throughout, but in his new book on leadership he makes this point: "All bureaucracies are the same. They're not conspiracies for one side or another in politics; they're conspiracies for maintaining the system and they have a corresponding genius for inertia. They can be utilised and driven but should not be left with the first or final say".

I slightly worry that with their various institutional backgrounds Reeves, Starmer and Gray may be a little vulnerable on this in different ways. It's also where I sympathise a bit with the "blob" stuff - I don't think there's political bias but I think there is Treasury view/a civil service perspective and it bends to inertia

On Blair though very good to see his institute doing a big, very pro-building paper on the need to build more houses.

Yeah, throughout my career I have advised and interacted with ministries of governments of various stripes.

The thing that has struck me, is that regardless of who the minister might be the views of key public servants remains the same.  Some might view that as a good steadying influence.  Some might do that as a terrible deep state manipulation of their political masters.  Or as you have characterized it, something in between that-simply inertia.  My great disappointment is that nobody lived up to my expectations created by watching Yes Minister. 


I think it very much depends on the individual public servant because in my experience over the years individuals fall into one of those three categories to some extent.

#47

Off the Record / Re: TV/Movies Megathread

Last post by Valmy - Today at 09:14:42 AM

Why do people think things get weird?

Things like all the all-female military organizations. Especially the one with the sex assassins. Herbert had some weird gender stuff going on.

#48

Off the Record / Re: 2024 US Presidential Elect...

Last post by crazy canuck - Today at 09:09:08 AM

9/11 anniversary day, I hope people in the West use this day to reflect on the innate evil of Islam and its monstrous adherents.

Something to remember when considering a vote between a party that supports Israel in its defensive war against Muslim genocide and a party that increasingly embraces eliminationist ideology against Israel.

On this day, I reflect on two things.  First and foremost, I think about the tribute to the friend he lost, that PLJ used to post every year.

Second, I reflect on the fear of the people on a conference call I was on that morning, when they realized what had happened and they needed to check on friends and family who were in the towers.

#49

Off the Record / Re: 2024 US Presidential Elect...

Last post by Sheilbh - Today at 08:55:05 AM

I know I've mentioned it before but I think Trump's TV background is important in that. He was a mainstream mass-market celebrity who really cared about ratings.

He knows enough about celebrity to know not to pick a fight with Taylor Swift or, when faced with a six week abortion ban, to say it sounds a bit extreme.

The bright young things on the right are nerds deep on the internet imbibing Rod Dreher articles and tradwife content, which is why you end up with sonnenrads in an ad for the Governor of Florida's presidential campaign.

For all the stuff about the online side of Trump, I think a really important side of his success is that he's the guy who saw Evita five times on Broadway, had a prime time show and has the weirdest hits of the 80s playlist at his rallies. He's very mass market, TV watching, middlebrow not niche online subculture.

And when the weird subcultures (including "intellectual" conservatives) get too mouthy he disowns them because that's not his world (see Project 2025), while it absolutely is Vance's

#50

Off the Record / Re: 2024 US Presidential Elect...

Last post by Valmy - Today at 08:51:00 AM

Ah yes. But there was zero context both to who and what conspiracy you were talking about.