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#61

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.

#62

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.

#63

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

#64

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.

#65

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

Last post by The Minsky Moment - Today at 08:50:45 AM

Oh she's absolutely an enemy of the climate. No conspiracy needed there.

Huh?

The song titles give it away:

"We are Never Ever Getting CO2 Down Together"
"Blank Space in the Ozone"
"Look What You Made Me Do: Frack"

etc.

#66

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

Last post by DGuller - Today at 08:49:06 AM

I agree that Trump seems to have a unique level of charisma that others would fail to match, and it's that charisma that enables this level of overt authoritarianism.  That said, Trump has been speed-running what other Republicans have been meticulously building up for several decades.  GOP has been hard at work Orbanizing American politics for a while, and eventually that would've strangled legitimate democracy even without charismatic politicians.

#67

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

Last post by Josquius - Today at 08:47:15 AM

Oh she's absolutely an enemy of the climate. No conspiracy needed there.

Huh?

https://phys.org/news/2024-08-taylor-swift-private-jet-usage.html

#68

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

Last post by garbon - Today at 08:41:49 AM

I don't see why means testing the fuel payments is such a heresy. Where the cutoff line needs to be can be open for debate, I am sure, but come on.

#69

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

Last post by The Minsky Moment - Today at 08:40:44 AM

Imagine a younger smarter fascist trying the same schtick for instance.... Imaginable a lot of working class people just wouldn't trust him.

We don't have to imagine, we have Ron DeSantis.  And you are right, people didn't trust him.

I suppose you could blame that on his specific personality.  But none the Trump lites - Hawley, Cotton, Cruz, New Coke Stefanik, etc. - have gained any traction either.

Even after a full Presidential term and almost a decade of continuous political campaigning, Trump still seems to benefit from a perception that he is some kind of anti-politician and that his confused ravings reflect underlying authenticity.  The Ivy League GOP types trying to channel Trumpian populism can't replicate it.  And when someone less slick tries to pull it off - like Herschel Walker or the Boebert/MTG Blunder Twins - they just come across as nuts.

#70

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

Last post by Valmy - Today at 08:37:15 AM

Oh she's absolutely an enemy of the climate. No conspiracy needed there.

Huh?