Octopus Overlords

Remus West wrote: ↑Wed Jun 01, 2022 12:40 pm Seems like that is a result of the majority of the rational ones leaving the party because the national party is already insane and they want no part of it.

Senator Ted Cruz
The impact of President Biden being beholden to the Green New Deal radicals in his party has electricity costs through the roof in Texas.

The Texas grid is entirely cut off from the rest of the country’s electrical system, and Texas officials control the prices.

Tech investor and Arizona Republican Senate hopeful Blake Masters acknowledges that the United States has a gun violence problem. But he also has a theory about why there’s a problem—it’s “Black people, frankly.”

Masters boiled the issue down in an April 11 interview on the Jeff Oravits Show podcast, telling the host that “we do have a gun violence problem in this country, and it’s gang violence.”

“It’s people in Chicago, St. Louis shooting each other. Very often, you know, Black people, frankly,” Masters clarified. “And the Democrats don’t want to do anything about that.”

noxiousdog wrote: ↑Mon Jun 06, 2022 12:39 pm It's a faulty premise, but the fuel is still purchased on the global market and subject to national policy.

73 year old man who showed up at a Republican event in a BLM shirt is physically attacked and assaulted by AZ US Senate candidate Blake Masters.

Here is the Republican message on everything of importance:
1. They can tell people what to do.
2. You cannot tell them what to do.

This often gets mistaken for hypocrisy, there’s an additional layer of complexity to this (later in the thread), but this is the basic formula...

...You've watched the Republican Party champion the idea of "freedom" while you have also watched the same party openly assault various freedoms, like the freedom to vote, freedom to choose, freedom to marry who you want and so on...

...If this has been a source of confusion, then your assessments of what Republicans mean by “freedom” were likely too generous. Here’s what they mean:

1. The freedom to tell people what to do.
2. Freedom from being told what to do.

As you can see, this is a very stunning commitment to refusing to be told what to do. So much so that it is not in fact “pro-life.” But Republicans will nevertheless claim to be the “pro-life” party. That is because they recognize “pro-life” can be used to tell people what to do...

...The reason they say they are “pro-life” when they are trying to tell women what to do with their bodies is not out of genuine concern for human life, but because they recognize that in this position, they can tell women what to do with their bodies...

...That’s why when you use that same appeal—“pro-life”—when you ask Republicans to do something about gun violence in schools, it doesn’t work. Because you are now in the position of telling Republicans what to do. That’s precisely why they don’t want to do anything about it...

...Anyway, gun violence in schools is not a problem, but their children having to wear masks in schools is. Because somebody is telling their children what to do. Dead children don’t bother them, but telling their children what to do? Only *they* should do that...

...They claim to be for “small government”, but that really means a government that tells them what to do should be as small as possible. But when the Republican Party recognizes it has an opportunity to tell people what to do, the government required for that tends to be large.

Now here’s where things get interesting: when you explain to Republicans you want them to do something and explain it’s on the basis of benefitting other people. Now you have really crossed a line. Not only did you tell them what to do, you told them to consider others...

...The whole point of an arrangement where you can tell people what to do, but you can’t be told what to do, is precisely to avoid having to consider others. This is why this is their ideal arrangement: so they don’t have to do that.

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Wed Jun 08, 2022 1:35 pm Apparently we're going to be hearing quite a bit more about Blake Masters

73 year old man who showed up at a Republican event in a BLM shirt is physically attacked and assaulted by AZ US Senate candidate Blake Masters.

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Wed Jun 08, 2022 1:35 pm Apparently we're going to be hearing quite a bit more about Blake Masters

73 year old man who showed up at a Republican event in a BLM shirt is physically attacked and assaulted by AZ US Senate candidate Blake Masters.

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 12:46 pm I’ve spent the past week visiting my brother in Tennessee. We’ve spent time in Nashville, Gatlinburg, and Chattanooga.

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 5:00 pm I wouldn't call Nashville "Deep South" but semantics and all that.

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 5:24 pm At some point we are going to have to realign or reconsider the typical, easy "The South" as MAGA-land, or far right land even. MAGAts now infest most parts of the country, and have some very serious strongholds in states that are definitely not "Southern" geographically.

Yes, I'm a bit defensive about this, but I think we can all agree that far-rightism has spread far outside the typical core Southern states that it was once relatively contained in.

Proceed.

Holman wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 4:00 pm

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 12:46 pm I’ve spent the past week visiting my brother in Tennessee. We’ve spent time in Nashville, Gatlinburg, and Chattanooga.

I've been assuming that Nashville was one of the more decent places to live in the South. I haven't been there in 25 years, but the latest I've heard is that it (like Atlanta and some college towns) is one of the few Deep-South cities where you can be gay without being miserable.

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 6:48 pm Gatlinburg was MAGA central, complete with multiple Trump stores located in strip malls.

Holman wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 8:24 pm

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 6:48 pm Gatlinburg was MAGA central, complete with multiple Trump stores located in strip malls.

That's what I'd expect.

I visited Gatlinburg as a kid when it was a fun town-sized tourist trap. A decade or more ago I heard that it all burned to the ground in a wildfire. Has it recovered?

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 2:29 am Must have been interesting coming down the mountain without skis.

Unagi wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 6:18 am

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 2:29 am Must have been interesting coming down the mountain without skis.

I assume they rode the chairlift down as well.

Blackhawk wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 10:29 am The Gatlinburg Sky Lift isn't a ski lift. It's just a scenic ride.

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 9:39 am

Unagi wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 6:18 am

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 2:29 am Must have been interesting coming down the mountain without skis.

I assume they rode the chairlift down as well.

Doesn't mean it wouldn't have been interesting.

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 8:57 am During the summer, you can ride up many of the lifts at the Utah resorts then hike back down. It’s fun.

Holman wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 5:31 pm

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 5:24 pm At some point we are going to have to realign or reconsider the typical, easy "The South" as MAGA-land, or far right land even. MAGAts now infest most parts of the country, and have some very serious strongholds in states that are definitely not "Southern" geographically.

Yes, I'm a bit defensive about this, but I think we can all agree that far-rightism has spread far outside the typical core Southern states that it was once relatively contained in.

Proceed.

I think Red/Blue is a better indicator than regions. And that goes within regions as well: the good people of Atlanta and Nashville and Austin and the Research Triangle don't deserve to be lumped in with the Deplorable South, and Pennsylbama deserves none of the glory shed by Philly and Pittsburgh.

Don't get me started on the collapse of civilization in the Midwest.

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 9:39 am

Unagi wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 6:18 am

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 2:29 am Must have been interesting coming down the mountain without skis.

I assume they rode the chairlift down as well.

Doesn't mean it wouldn't have been interesting.

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 5:24 pm At some point we are going to have to realign or reconsider the typical, easy "The South" as MAGA-land, or far right land even. MAGAts now infest most parts of the country, and have some very serious strongholds in states that are definitely not "Southern" geographically.

Yes, I'm a bit defensive about this, but I think we can all agree that far-rightism has spread far outside the typical core Southern states that it was once relatively contained in.

Maybe consider "red states"? Hell, I like MAGA-Land (as a name!). Someone either in this thread or another, not too long ago, made a comment about deep sixing The South or something like that, and while I was not able to respond at the moment, I was thinking "OK, fine, now what about ALL those other Trump-loving, non-Southern red states?" Whoever made that comment needs to look at a CURRENT political map I think. Might be surprised.

Proceed.