Hard News: Unreasonable people vote
407 Responses
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They have no answer to Chinese capitalism, the starkest proof of both the effectiveness and the moral bankruptcy of the extreme right ideology.
Great response Ben
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I like to think I can still be surprised. It's happened dozens of times in the last decade, I can't think why it couldn't continue.
Hey don't grab all the pleasure for yourself. Cause now I have to play catch up. People always surprise me sometimes not in a good way, sometimes in astoundingly positive ways. But I love this planet, and everything on it. And I want generations after me to do the same. Till its heat death whenever that is. Mebbe some descendants will watch it from space - well not of mine 'cause I wont be having any thanks very much for asking. But someones.
The Third World will get more of it, which means less for the First World. Which means harder times for those of us in the First World. It's a hard idea to get used to because we are not accustomed to seeing our wealth in the context of the poverty of the rest of the world, and can delude ourselves into thinking we had a winning formula that could have become universal, rather than simply having seized a bigger piece of the pie than everyone else long before we were even born.
This was apparent oooooh, about 40 years ago. And many in a generation put their hand up to say 'Hey we'll take the hit'. But their parents weren't about to let their children become urchins - or so they thought. The echo back - as it was never verbalised - was 'bloody ungrateful little sods, we fought and died for this so you bloody well better keep on with it'.
But I wish I could live to see you succeed where others have failed.
Ah the optimism of youth, you have my support, for what its worth.Now the Third world will just take what it wants, and if the developed world suffers. They'll just say "Them the breaks" or whatever those sayings are in other cultures.
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'bloody ungrateful little sods, we fought and died for this so you bloody well better keep on with it'.
Man on train: Don't take that tone with me, young man. I fought the war for your sort.
Ringo: I bet you're sorry you won.A Hard Day's Night (1964)
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Time heals the actual recession - it's a boom and bust system, eventually it works it's way out of bust if you do a half-decent job of managing it.
It's worked before. But we haven't had a recession like this in my lifetime. I actually think it's indicative of broken fundamental value in the First World economies that property speculation has outperformed the stockmarket over a ten year period. Basically, they're not competitive.
This was apparent oooooh, about 40 years ago.
Heh, or longer, depending which prophet you read.
But I love this planet, and everything on it.
I like quite a lot of it, but I lack perspective, being earthbound.
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Boom and bust explainers and people who like to riff on how stocks will always outperform all other (less productive) forms of investment in the long run would do well to check out the Nikkei index every now and then.
In late 1989 it reached a peak of over 39,000 points. Last Friday it closed at 9,722.66 points. This is the long term trend.
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But the stock market is a bit different than the economy, and Nikkei pretty different than the US.
I'm not saying it will happen automatically. Incompetence caused the current situation, so incompetence can sure keep it going. But half-decent economic management will eventually see the US economy return to some growth as companies who had to overhack to survive start to re-hire (that's just happened in the last quarter), and weaker companies all die off (except those bits that the government thought were too big to fail) freeing up market space for others.
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Indeed Gio. Even the Dow hasn't done what they used to say it would always do, right before it stopped doing it.
@Kyle, I think the main thing that will happen is a readjustment of basic greed. If Americans learn to spend less, they might realize that it's not the end of the world, that the rest of the planet has been happily doing it forever.
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If Americans learn to spend less, they might realize that it's not the end of the world, that the rest of the planet has been happily doing it forever.
The merit of the global financial system that recently went off a cliff was said to be that the way it facilitated consumer debt would give people in developing countries a place to invest their savings; and let the people of developed countries keep on buying consumer products. It was perfect, apparently.
But she'll be a hard sell to the Americans. I'm sometimes struck by the expectation of impeccably liberal visitors from the US that every indoor space will be adjusted to a just-so temperature through the use of electricity. I'm not meaning this to be mean -- they were good people -- but there was an assumption of being able to control the environment at will.
OTOH, we New Zealanders could learn a lot about keeping homes warm from the northern hemisphere.
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Heh, or longer, depending which prophet you read.
Now you should know I dont go in for that stuff 'cos I weened myself off it. Pity I cant say the same about other folk.
And just cos I can.... "dont you get fresh with me young man!"
I lack perspective, being earthbound.
Easily solved, when your ready!
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My 2c is that America's greatest challenge is to come to grips with the end of the Cold War. The time when political dominance came from projection of military might is approaching its end, and they are bankrupting themselves trying to hold on to it.
Vaguely reminiscent of the British League of Empire Loyalists 50-60 years ago, and the lame-duck handling of the Suez Crisis. Trying to hold the Empire together, even though WW2 had rendered it an unaffordable luxury.
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Now you should know I dont go in for that stuff 'cos I weened myself off it. Pity I cant say the same about other folk.
We've all got our prophets. Mine are an eclectic bunch.
Easily solved, when your ready!
All right then, I can go as far as the moon tonight. But I'll be back in bed by midnight.
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Is John Lennon in there?
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After yer jaunt you'll feel refreshed and thirsty for knowledge.
There's this, this, and this
and then a relaxing laugh. -
OTOH, we New Zealanders could learn a lot about keeping homes warm from the northern hemisphere.
Indeed! and if we want to help wipe all that egg off Bill English's face (re the billion dollar budget shortfall) could we all go out now and buy a heap of expensive appliances, please...
...it seems there is a lot of gambling in those budget projections ! -
After yer jaunt you'll feel refreshed and thirsty for knowledge.
Actually I ended up feeling sleepy after my jaunts. But some of that was the mental exhaustion of watching an action packed 3D movie.
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there was an assumption of being able to control the environment at will
Heh. This is an ongoing joke in our extended family because three of us married Americans. 'Hey, you know what you could do to keep warm? PUT ON SOME PANTS.'
(Their *trailers* have central heating and cooling.)
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Meet some more unreasonable people who more than likely voted:
[quote]A decision by the Fountain Hills Town Council to hire a single trash hauler and begin a curbside recycling program has been met with angry protests from residents who accuse town leaders of overstepping their bounds and taking a leap toward socialism.[/quote]
As John Stewart would say, "the stupid! It burns!"
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(Their *trailers* have central heating and cooling.)
As I am becoming keenly aware, this seems less stupid when you realise exactly how hot and cold it can get in some parts of the country. I can put a jacket on, but the pipes can't.
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It's good to know that the Culture Warriors of the US have identified the real problem with the country: bears.
Truly beyond parody.
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this seems less stupid when you realise exactly how hot and cold it can get in some parts of the country
I don't even understand how my ancestral peeps survived in the fetid swamps of Louisiana, to be honest. Alligators, giant flying cockroaches and one thousand percent humidity. What an appealing prospect.
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More on tribalism: Ta-Nehisi Coates on Rush Liimbaugh
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It's good to know that the Culture Warriors of the US have identified the real problem with the country: bears.
We're here! We're queer! We don't want any more bears!
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We're here! We're queer! We don't want any more bears!
wine cooler?
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It's good to know that the Culture Warriors of the US have identified the real problem with the country: bears.
I just knew that would pop up again one day.
In my distant youth I spent a few months as a mail sorter in Sydney, where I made friends with a Canadian. One tea break we got talking with an old Australian, who'd been to visit his scientist son who worked in Canada. So, my Canadian friend asked, what did you think of the place? Oh, said Dad, the cities were very impressive, but once you got out in the wilderness it was an utter disgrace. Naturally we were keen to know what he meant by that. Well, said Dad, there were bears and things running around loose! Those Canadians, they really should be ashamed of themselves.
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