I have attempted, when I think it is appropriate, to start some of these conversations. Especially during the Afghanistan debacle. Unfortunately, I am surrounded by liberals, and even the moderate and conservative leaning people I know are not interested in the conversation. The liberals I deal with in my work life and interact with in my community are quick with comebacks about how "Trump spent a lot of money too!"
Try engaging in a political conversation on Reddit and see how many hardcore liberal women and the men that support them attack you. It isn't an easy topic and there are no clear solutions (except not deficit spending, duh) but the liberal side of the aisle uses "zingers" and ridiculous arguments to shut down any interaction. I pray there are people like me that see the problem and just choose to be quiet to prevent ugly confrontations. Most of the people I interact with that are so closed minded to discussing the problems latch on to a handful of liberal talking points, but don't actually know much about the issues.
I live in a small community in Central Oregon, and used to live in the Intermountain West in Idaho. Oregon is becoming more liberal in the high desert, and I have looked into moving back to the Intermountain West. Unfortunately, since the pandemic debacle, the wealthy work-from-home crowd have infiltrated mountain towns and recreationally focused areas of the Intermountain West, and prices have skyrocketed. Idaho, Montana, and where I live in Oregon are very beautiful, and day-to-day feel similar to years past. But, when you look at the development trends and patterns, and see how politically these areas are moving from red to purple and approaching blue in the voting patterns, it is sad and concerning. Not only are people not talking about our $34T in debt, they are changing the last bastions of conservative living by increasing the cost of living with their votes in favor of more local government spending. We all know the large west coast cities are hopelessly liberal and their policies have created a mess. But, now that many of those liberals can work from home, and they have money, they are outsourcing those beliefs to the rest of the country. How many towns in the Intermountain West plead with new comers not to "bring your failed policies here," only to have it fall on deaf ears?
If you believe the last presidential election, and midterm elections were stolen (I do) and see the shenanigans the left is pulling trying to keep Trump and now other republicans off of ballots, one can only wonder the depths the left will go to trying to "win" another election. It won't take much longer at this pace before elections are a lock for the lefties, and these policies are pushed through with increasing ease.
As a self employed person, I pay for my own health insurance, and even though it wasn't cheap, I used to be able to purchase plans based on my needs, at a price that fit my budget. I also used to be an insurance agent and sold health insurance. When the Affordable Care Act was passed, I was very disappointed in the policies available to me, and the prices I had to pay. Fast forward a decade and health insurance is unrecognizable, astronomically expensive, and if you like you doctor, tough shit. There are no private practice primary care physicians. Many are nurse practitioners more skilled at deciphering medical insurance coding, paperwork, and prescribing statins than improving health. I have changed doctors a couple of times in the past few years in an attempt to find someone competent that can treat me as an individual, but have given up. It is all the same bullshit, quoting from the higher ups and asking if you are interested in getting caught up on all the latest vaccines. The mess of health care was planned, and is a direct result of the ACA, and the plan of the left all along. Most of the RINO CONgress happily supports these policies. Or maybe they will have subcommittee meetings ranting at someone like Fauci to get soundbites but never do a damn thing about it.
Considering how far left the millennials and Gen Z lean, I suspect things will continue to degrade. I would love to be wildly wrong, but the trends of the last decade, and the polarization since Trump and the plandemic don't leave me much hope. Chris, I agree the lack of conversations about our debt and other issues is concerning. But, it seems most don't care and are more concerned with the liberal narrative than looking at the issues honestly.
How many of the young products of elite universities on the journalism/activism/social justice track even possess the analytical tools to consider such questions?
He willingness to not only *refuse to participate* in these Moaist struggle sessions is great, but it's also excellent that he uses James Lindsay's technique of "name the dynamic".
He says clearly "I'm not doing this with you, and it's *because* you're running a play that looks like X, Y, Z, and your question is not sincere" ...and then he goes on to reframe, and deliver the answer to the question he thinks should have been asked.
This is the correct blueprint for dealing with authoritarian wokesters, and all the other Cluster B types screaming and tantrumming around us.
> DECLINE to participate in their narcissistic performance art
> NAME the dynamic — disempower the tactic by stating what it is
> REFRAME the issue on your own terms, and state your position
He is an excellent communicator, and I hope he keeps this up. It shows others what needs to be done, and how to go about it. Good job Vivek.
I think you've zeroed in here Chris on one of THE great delusions of modern times. 'The News' has always been a fraud on account of the inevitable Editorial Selectivity (whereby for instance, some murders warrant months of agonising and outrage whereas others don't even get a mention). Hence the very CONCEPT is a fraud........the illusion that you can know what the most important thing going on in the world is (without any effort on your part) just by checking 'The News'. And then came the great MSM invention of 24/7 'current affairs' which is really mostly about keeping the great army of MSM 'news' grifters in a job. Plus of course 'The News' has long handed the Lefty intelligentsia a huge power over what ordinary folks get to hear about.... and what they don't.
Chris, so much meat on this bone I just don’t know where to start. The referenced interview with Vivek goes so far beyond parody. The white liberal woman advocating for her beliefs and arguing with him loses any basis of credibility I may have been willing to concede to her with the obvious PMS episode she is experiencing. And what is with the mannequin sitting beside her? Is that a real person or did an AI generator drop her in the scene for some reason?
On our national debt situation- I have commented before that it is unsustainable and our “leaders” don’t have the ability (willingness, interest?) to self correct or change course. The best solution at this point is for the system to collapse, go through what will be a very painful time for people who aren’t prepared and hopefully come out the other side stronger and better prepared to manage our fiscal affairs more responsibly. The first step in that plan would be to get rid of the Federal Reserve and tie the value of our fiat currency to something that has real, sustainable and recognizable value (hmmm....wonder what that could be? Bueller, Bueller....)
On institutional failure- I believe this is a symptom of our national willingness to absolve anyone of any personal responsibility for anything. Between 1861 and early 1864 Lincoln went through three generals of the Army (not counting the period when Lincoln himself held that position) before finding Grant (who was not the logical or popular choice). Based on Lincoln’s demonstrated history I believe Grant’s tenure in the position would have been short lived if his performance was like that of his predecessors.
Not one American is truly concerned whatsoever about “white supremacy“, and that includes the left - Because it is essentially nonexistent. It is as stated here, a fake distraction. A false sensationalized argument of no true origin or merit.
Breads and circuses. I see it every day. Football 5 days a week, the boys addicted to the game.
However, what I want is the followng.
1) A return to pre-9-11
2) I want the FBI to go back to investigating crimes, not manufacturing them.
3) I want the ATF to know what they are talking about.
4) I want us out of all the forever wars
5) I want my country back, as it was in the 80's and 90's. When we all got along and worked together.
6) I want the government to focus on what's important and purge the communists and marxists from the universities, academia, and from the public schools.
Chris, you are on fire this week. Referencing Lorenzo Warby's comment above, J-School 20 years ago was a wasteland outside of a few highly regarded schools that were probably rather full of semi-marxists even then. One can only conclude how much worse it has gotten given the present obvious failures in the profession.
All I can envision when reading this is some 1980's SNL sketch merged with "Idiocracy."
Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho strides before the cameras and begins his speech with, " I denounce white supremacy.. " only to be cut off by a reporter asking if he still denounces white supremacy. He responds that he still denounces white supremacy, but has to answer the same question three more times.
His opponents look at the video and claim, "He doesn't really mean it. He never denied white supremacy at the 5:02 or the 7:19 marks on the video!"
Let me introduce the concept of the Iron Rice Bowl. When reformers of the 19th and 20th centuries tried to improve things in Asia, to implement new technology and efficient labor organization methodology, the biggest stumbling block they encountered was a phrase along the lines of: "We can't do it the way you suggest. If we did that, we would be stealing rice from many people's bowls." If you can, see the 1966 film "The Sand Pebbles" for many illustrations of this concept. New sailor reports to a U.S. Navy river gunboat in China. He discovers that the crew never shine their own shoes or wash their own clothes, or perform a whole host of other menial tasks, because there is a whole extended clan of Chinese laborers living and working on the ship. The new sailor wishes to do these things with his own hands, but is admonished and even formally reprimanded for threatening the livelihood of these Chinese laborers, for "stealing from their rice bowls." Now a rice bowl made of iron, thus being unbreakable and super long lasting and durable, illustrates the unassailable job of the bureaucrat, the magistrate, the functionary of the state. Not only are those Iron Rice Bowls unbreakable but they are heavy. The metaphor illustrates the incredible difficulty of reform. It can help you understand the extreme measures which the 'reformers' resorted to in Asia.
If there was a problem in 20th century America with attitudes and bias about race, which prevented or hindered people from achieving success in their careers, the approach known as 'EEO' solved that problem. A new problem manifested: an army of EEO bureaucrats and the educators and authors training and inspiring that army wanted to keep their jobs. More than that, they wanted to expand. They had discovered a pathway to a seldom admitted aspect of the American Dream: to get paid for frivolous, easy work. There was no feasible scenario in which they would Declare Victory and be forced to get real training and real jobs. So they had to Forge Ahead and Dig Deeper. They had to invent new problems to solve. Thus, they 'discovered' chimeras of the mind, Systemic Racism and Intersectionality. The first chimera largely depends on Thought Crimes and the Perceptions of Victims. The second is even more ingenious than the first, for it enables nearly every single person to discover the victim within themselves. Everyone except the large block of straight white males. They created a system of perverse incentives. They incentivized weakness and victimhood and hatred for the majority. The fact that they replaced the EEO offices in government agencies, corporations and academia with DEI offices, should have signaled that 'solving racism' was never an intended outcome.
(You may have forgotten, but once upon a time, there was general agreement that Racism was defined as depriving someone else of opportunity, service, accommodation, employment, promotion or recognition on the basis of their race.)
One wonders if this dunciation business is just a tactic, or if they *truly believe* that the most vital thing a presidential candidate absolutely must do, is dunciate. Like, do they think that's all being a president is? Going on TV three times a week to say racism is bad, then spending the rest of the day drinking Bud Light?
Spot on again Chris. I watch my local news for weather and sports. I turn off the national news when it comes on. Read Substack for relevant topics. The lamestream media is a joke.
The picture of those two women interviewing Ramaswamy is perfect. Two dimwitted, self-important, purse-lipped apparatchiks dutifully serving the regime.
This follows the pattern. Ramaswamy must denounce white supremacy for the same reasons that Substack must admit and denounce its “Nazi problem.” It is irrelevant whether there is any actual evidence to support the wild claims of “white supremacy” or “Nazi infiltration.” The point is to bring the target to heel, or at least muddy the waters enough so that the mind-numbed masses have been properly educated to equate the target (Ramaswamy, Substack, etc) with “white supremacist Nazis.”
Members of the media industrial complex have two primary functions these days: (1) parrot (loud and often) regime propaganda without asking serious questions, and (2) assist the regime in undermining any person who counters the approved narrative, and any platform where free speech and free thought flourish.
These HR Karens believe it is their solemn duty to demand that Ramaswamy denounce white supremacy over and over because the regime says that white supremacy is the greatest threat to the world, and anyone who supports the Orange Man or his policies is presumed to be a white supremacist unless they convincingly denounce and recite the regime-approved incantation (duh!). Likewise, because Substack is a platform where people can read and discuss information that has not been sanitized or approved by the regime, it is obviously a haven for Nazis/white supremacists and therefore the HR Karens must demand that Substack be denounced and burned to the ground.
I have attempted, when I think it is appropriate, to start some of these conversations. Especially during the Afghanistan debacle. Unfortunately, I am surrounded by liberals, and even the moderate and conservative leaning people I know are not interested in the conversation. The liberals I deal with in my work life and interact with in my community are quick with comebacks about how "Trump spent a lot of money too!"
Try engaging in a political conversation on Reddit and see how many hardcore liberal women and the men that support them attack you. It isn't an easy topic and there are no clear solutions (except not deficit spending, duh) but the liberal side of the aisle uses "zingers" and ridiculous arguments to shut down any interaction. I pray there are people like me that see the problem and just choose to be quiet to prevent ugly confrontations. Most of the people I interact with that are so closed minded to discussing the problems latch on to a handful of liberal talking points, but don't actually know much about the issues.
I live in a small community in Central Oregon, and used to live in the Intermountain West in Idaho. Oregon is becoming more liberal in the high desert, and I have looked into moving back to the Intermountain West. Unfortunately, since the pandemic debacle, the wealthy work-from-home crowd have infiltrated mountain towns and recreationally focused areas of the Intermountain West, and prices have skyrocketed. Idaho, Montana, and where I live in Oregon are very beautiful, and day-to-day feel similar to years past. But, when you look at the development trends and patterns, and see how politically these areas are moving from red to purple and approaching blue in the voting patterns, it is sad and concerning. Not only are people not talking about our $34T in debt, they are changing the last bastions of conservative living by increasing the cost of living with their votes in favor of more local government spending. We all know the large west coast cities are hopelessly liberal and their policies have created a mess. But, now that many of those liberals can work from home, and they have money, they are outsourcing those beliefs to the rest of the country. How many towns in the Intermountain West plead with new comers not to "bring your failed policies here," only to have it fall on deaf ears?
If you believe the last presidential election, and midterm elections were stolen (I do) and see the shenanigans the left is pulling trying to keep Trump and now other republicans off of ballots, one can only wonder the depths the left will go to trying to "win" another election. It won't take much longer at this pace before elections are a lock for the lefties, and these policies are pushed through with increasing ease.
As a self employed person, I pay for my own health insurance, and even though it wasn't cheap, I used to be able to purchase plans based on my needs, at a price that fit my budget. I also used to be an insurance agent and sold health insurance. When the Affordable Care Act was passed, I was very disappointed in the policies available to me, and the prices I had to pay. Fast forward a decade and health insurance is unrecognizable, astronomically expensive, and if you like you doctor, tough shit. There are no private practice primary care physicians. Many are nurse practitioners more skilled at deciphering medical insurance coding, paperwork, and prescribing statins than improving health. I have changed doctors a couple of times in the past few years in an attempt to find someone competent that can treat me as an individual, but have given up. It is all the same bullshit, quoting from the higher ups and asking if you are interested in getting caught up on all the latest vaccines. The mess of health care was planned, and is a direct result of the ACA, and the plan of the left all along. Most of the RINO CONgress happily supports these policies. Or maybe they will have subcommittee meetings ranting at someone like Fauci to get soundbites but never do a damn thing about it.
Considering how far left the millennials and Gen Z lean, I suspect things will continue to degrade. I would love to be wildly wrong, but the trends of the last decade, and the polarization since Trump and the plandemic don't leave me much hope. Chris, I agree the lack of conversations about our debt and other issues is concerning. But, it seems most don't care and are more concerned with the liberal narrative than looking at the issues honestly.
How many of the young products of elite universities on the journalism/activism/social justice track even possess the analytical tools to consider such questions?
I really like Vivek.
He willingness to not only *refuse to participate* in these Moaist struggle sessions is great, but it's also excellent that he uses James Lindsay's technique of "name the dynamic".
He says clearly "I'm not doing this with you, and it's *because* you're running a play that looks like X, Y, Z, and your question is not sincere" ...and then he goes on to reframe, and deliver the answer to the question he thinks should have been asked.
This is the correct blueprint for dealing with authoritarian wokesters, and all the other Cluster B types screaming and tantrumming around us.
> DECLINE to participate in their narcissistic performance art
> NAME the dynamic — disempower the tactic by stating what it is
> REFRAME the issue on your own terms, and state your position
He is an excellent communicator, and I hope he keeps this up. It shows others what needs to be done, and how to go about it. Good job Vivek.
I think you've zeroed in here Chris on one of THE great delusions of modern times. 'The News' has always been a fraud on account of the inevitable Editorial Selectivity (whereby for instance, some murders warrant months of agonising and outrage whereas others don't even get a mention). Hence the very CONCEPT is a fraud........the illusion that you can know what the most important thing going on in the world is (without any effort on your part) just by checking 'The News'. And then came the great MSM invention of 24/7 'current affairs' which is really mostly about keeping the great army of MSM 'news' grifters in a job. Plus of course 'The News' has long handed the Lefty intelligentsia a huge power over what ordinary folks get to hear about.... and what they don't.
Great post by the way.
Chris, so much meat on this bone I just don’t know where to start. The referenced interview with Vivek goes so far beyond parody. The white liberal woman advocating for her beliefs and arguing with him loses any basis of credibility I may have been willing to concede to her with the obvious PMS episode she is experiencing. And what is with the mannequin sitting beside her? Is that a real person or did an AI generator drop her in the scene for some reason?
On our national debt situation- I have commented before that it is unsustainable and our “leaders” don’t have the ability (willingness, interest?) to self correct or change course. The best solution at this point is for the system to collapse, go through what will be a very painful time for people who aren’t prepared and hopefully come out the other side stronger and better prepared to manage our fiscal affairs more responsibly. The first step in that plan would be to get rid of the Federal Reserve and tie the value of our fiat currency to something that has real, sustainable and recognizable value (hmmm....wonder what that could be? Bueller, Bueller....)
On institutional failure- I believe this is a symptom of our national willingness to absolve anyone of any personal responsibility for anything. Between 1861 and early 1864 Lincoln went through three generals of the Army (not counting the period when Lincoln himself held that position) before finding Grant (who was not the logical or popular choice). Based on Lincoln’s demonstrated history I believe Grant’s tenure in the position would have been short lived if his performance was like that of his predecessors.
Our military today could use a George Marshall. https://www.historynet.com/failure-not-option/
Not one American is truly concerned whatsoever about “white supremacy“, and that includes the left - Because it is essentially nonexistent. It is as stated here, a fake distraction. A false sensationalized argument of no true origin or merit.
Breads and circuses. I see it every day. Football 5 days a week, the boys addicted to the game.
However, what I want is the followng.
1) A return to pre-9-11
2) I want the FBI to go back to investigating crimes, not manufacturing them.
3) I want the ATF to know what they are talking about.
4) I want us out of all the forever wars
5) I want my country back, as it was in the 80's and 90's. When we all got along and worked together.
6) I want the government to focus on what's important and purge the communists and marxists from the universities, academia, and from the public schools.
Chris, you are on fire this week. Referencing Lorenzo Warby's comment above, J-School 20 years ago was a wasteland outside of a few highly regarded schools that were probably rather full of semi-marxists even then. One can only conclude how much worse it has gotten given the present obvious failures in the profession.
All I can envision when reading this is some 1980's SNL sketch merged with "Idiocracy."
Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho strides before the cameras and begins his speech with, " I denounce white supremacy.. " only to be cut off by a reporter asking if he still denounces white supremacy. He responds that he still denounces white supremacy, but has to answer the same question three more times.
His opponents look at the video and claim, "He doesn't really mean it. He never denied white supremacy at the 5:02 or the 7:19 marks on the video!"
Let me introduce the concept of the Iron Rice Bowl. When reformers of the 19th and 20th centuries tried to improve things in Asia, to implement new technology and efficient labor organization methodology, the biggest stumbling block they encountered was a phrase along the lines of: "We can't do it the way you suggest. If we did that, we would be stealing rice from many people's bowls." If you can, see the 1966 film "The Sand Pebbles" for many illustrations of this concept. New sailor reports to a U.S. Navy river gunboat in China. He discovers that the crew never shine their own shoes or wash their own clothes, or perform a whole host of other menial tasks, because there is a whole extended clan of Chinese laborers living and working on the ship. The new sailor wishes to do these things with his own hands, but is admonished and even formally reprimanded for threatening the livelihood of these Chinese laborers, for "stealing from their rice bowls." Now a rice bowl made of iron, thus being unbreakable and super long lasting and durable, illustrates the unassailable job of the bureaucrat, the magistrate, the functionary of the state. Not only are those Iron Rice Bowls unbreakable but they are heavy. The metaphor illustrates the incredible difficulty of reform. It can help you understand the extreme measures which the 'reformers' resorted to in Asia.
If there was a problem in 20th century America with attitudes and bias about race, which prevented or hindered people from achieving success in their careers, the approach known as 'EEO' solved that problem. A new problem manifested: an army of EEO bureaucrats and the educators and authors training and inspiring that army wanted to keep their jobs. More than that, they wanted to expand. They had discovered a pathway to a seldom admitted aspect of the American Dream: to get paid for frivolous, easy work. There was no feasible scenario in which they would Declare Victory and be forced to get real training and real jobs. So they had to Forge Ahead and Dig Deeper. They had to invent new problems to solve. Thus, they 'discovered' chimeras of the mind, Systemic Racism and Intersectionality. The first chimera largely depends on Thought Crimes and the Perceptions of Victims. The second is even more ingenious than the first, for it enables nearly every single person to discover the victim within themselves. Everyone except the large block of straight white males. They created a system of perverse incentives. They incentivized weakness and victimhood and hatred for the majority. The fact that they replaced the EEO offices in government agencies, corporations and academia with DEI offices, should have signaled that 'solving racism' was never an intended outcome.
(You may have forgotten, but once upon a time, there was general agreement that Racism was defined as depriving someone else of opportunity, service, accommodation, employment, promotion or recognition on the basis of their race.)
Nicely detailed description of the features of the IC psyop that seeks to create a color revolution here in the USA.
America watches cat videos while southern border is invaded (peacefully).
One wonders if this dunciation business is just a tactic, or if they *truly believe* that the most vital thing a presidential candidate absolutely must do, is dunciate. Like, do they think that's all being a president is? Going on TV three times a week to say racism is bad, then spending the rest of the day drinking Bud Light?
Spot on again Chris. I watch my local news for weather and sports. I turn off the national news when it comes on. Read Substack for relevant topics. The lamestream media is a joke.
Have been down with food poisoning, so I'm way behind on messages. Back at it today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbHxwsE2ZAI
The picture of those two women interviewing Ramaswamy is perfect. Two dimwitted, self-important, purse-lipped apparatchiks dutifully serving the regime.
This follows the pattern. Ramaswamy must denounce white supremacy for the same reasons that Substack must admit and denounce its “Nazi problem.” It is irrelevant whether there is any actual evidence to support the wild claims of “white supremacy” or “Nazi infiltration.” The point is to bring the target to heel, or at least muddy the waters enough so that the mind-numbed masses have been properly educated to equate the target (Ramaswamy, Substack, etc) with “white supremacist Nazis.”
Members of the media industrial complex have two primary functions these days: (1) parrot (loud and often) regime propaganda without asking serious questions, and (2) assist the regime in undermining any person who counters the approved narrative, and any platform where free speech and free thought flourish.
These HR Karens believe it is their solemn duty to demand that Ramaswamy denounce white supremacy over and over because the regime says that white supremacy is the greatest threat to the world, and anyone who supports the Orange Man or his policies is presumed to be a white supremacist unless they convincingly denounce and recite the regime-approved incantation (duh!). Likewise, because Substack is a platform where people can read and discuss information that has not been sanitized or approved by the regime, it is obviously a haven for Nazis/white supremacists and therefore the HR Karens must demand that Substack be denounced and burned to the ground.