DL Open Thread: Fri., Dec. 13, 2019
Defeated Rethug Governor Pardons A Whole Shitload Of Prisoners Convicted Of Violent Crimes. 428 in all. Provided no notice to the public. When they lose, they try to take society down with them.
Boris To Get His Brexit. Can someone explain to me how Jeremy Corbyn came to be the leader of the Labour Party? I think that party deserves to die.
The Staggering Growth Of Income Inequality Since 1970:
For top 1%, average income has risen by $800,000 since 1970.
For top 0.1%, it has risen by $4 million.
For top .01%, it has risen $20 million.
Bottom 50%? $8,000.
All this is *after taxes and transfers.*
Read the entire article. Lotsa numbers, one inescapable conclusion.
House Rethugs Blow Up At Nadler For Vote Delay. After a day of delay on their part, they’re upset that their ‘travel plans’ were disrupted. Or so they say.
McConnell ‘In Total Coordination’ With The White House On Impeachment. An ongoing criminal conspiracy, and nobody is hiding it. Chris? Chris?
Federal Judge Grants Citizenship To American Samoans. It’s long past due.
On that rare positive note, I might as well conclude this otherwise gloomy list, one well-suited for Friday the 13th.
What do you want to talk about?
Corbyn miscalculated the Brexit strategy. That’s basically it.
The Labour manifesto is probably the broadest most ambitious plan for democratic socialism anywhere in the world.
The idea that this is because of some flaw with Corbyn (anti-Semitism, communist) is a product of Tory media propaganda. Granted that propaganda was quite effective. Usually is actually. This is not unique to Corbyn.
No, the problem for Labor is that it’s tied to labor unions, which are essentially in the business of keeping or expanding jobs for their members, which makes them resistant to anything that will reduce employment, even in polluting industries.
Labor unions are, therefore, actually conservative — they don’t want things to change, even when they are outdated. This has set up a tension between union members and progressivism.
Look at the U.S. A small fraction of unionists (in traditional union industries, I should say) are progressive. Most are the yahoos who supported Reagan and now support Trump.
Ignore it if you want, but this is an enormous problem for the left. You can see it in West Virginia — propose all the job retraining the world, but they don’t want it. They want to keep mining coal, because that’s what they know.
In short, we live in a world in which people are quite comfortable with the devils they know.
The applies an Americanized theory to the British sociopolitical parliamentary landscape. It’s also quite reductionist. I’d be careful doing this. To be honest, I absolutely wouldn’t do it.
Yes, I was speaking of the U.S. more than the U.K., but the problem of the conservatism of union workers is the same in both places.
My point is that a progressivism built on union labor is oxymoronic.
New episode dropped this morning. I’m sure Jason is listening right now (maybe for the second time).
Former Splinter news editor and freelance writer Paul Blest is in with Karl & me chatting Coons, Scarane, Chomsky, grassroots progessive challenges and the future of leftist media.
I also recall my confrontation with Senator Ben Sasse!
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/highlands-bunker/id1473981057
Consider a patronage.
Hell yeah.
https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/politics/2019/12/13/sanders–warren-could-boycott-next-democratic-debate-at-lmu
Scab debate!™
They aren’t debates anyway, and they make everybody on the stage look worse than they are.
Everybody should boycott them.
Strong agree.
Now Yang, Biden and Steyer have also pledged not to cross picket lines at Loyola Marymount.
McKinsey Pete and Amy K can just talk to each other and explain why they hate working people. Cool, cool.
Scab Debate!
Just imagine the pardon fire sale that will go in when Trump gets the boot.
the labor party led the decline of Europe
poor people are their own problem not anyone else’s
get an education stay out of court don’t have kids when not married
I would identify you as some kind of subhuman species akin to an animal but that would be insulting to most animals who have more feelings for their own species than scum like you have. Therefore I’ll just presume that you are some kind of devolved insect species to be stepped on as a mere afterthought. When your kind inbreed and have kids are you allowed to be married?
John Kowalko
Don’t waste your breath. This will be gone by morning.
You are so friggin angry. I think you are jealous of hard working successful people. I hope you enjoy your unearned “public paid” pension.
I think you misused the word “think” in the above comment. That’s not thought, that’s vomitus.
TRE (“T”rump “R”eviles “E”veryone else???)
Inbreed much? “I’ve (you) got mine, screw everybody else” Yeah Trumpism at its finest. “Hard working” and “successful” at hating, baiting and masturbating.
John Kowalko
You both represent the ugliness of Liberalism.
And you represent the cowardice of conservatism. I’d rather be ugly than a coward.