Another author that doesn’t understand. That’s understandable, most people don’t understand. We can’t analyze it intellectually, in terms of reasoning about policies and outcomes, because it’s an emotional phenomenon that bypasses the conscious mind. That is, authoritarian movements around the world use a sort of language-based ‘mind hack’ to convert people. I first learned of this from the writings of Scott Adams (the Dilbert guy), who called a Trump victory a year in advance, and explained his prediction in detail. And even though he was aware of it, this ‘mind hack’ got him, too.
This article gives a neuropsychology spin on the same effect.
And, hey, you can think I’m nuts, or promoting some woo-woo bullshit, but at least I have a theory that is internally consistent, explains our political situation, and even has predictive power. Compare that to the long parade of articles like this one, written by people trying to make sense of the rise of MAGA.
That’s a 1-hour flight, plus an hour to get to ORD, plus getting there the recommended 2 hours before the flight time to clear security and board, plus baggage claim at MSP. Flying is still faster, but the train is far more chill. High-speed rail would completely beat a plane.
But also, the train makes intermediate stops. I’ve seen a number of Chicago people on social media excited about taking the Borealis to Wisconsin Dells, and that travel time is pretty comparable.
It’s particularly embarrassing because the Chicago & Northwestern began Twin Cities to Chicago train service in 1935, called “The 400,” because the railroad advertised “400 miles in 400 minutes.” And they did it with steam.
It may serve a narrower range of travel needs, but it’s worth noting that the reason that Amtrak added the Borealis train on the Twin Cities-to-Chicago route is the existing high customer demand for that segment on the Empire Builder train.
Indeed. I keep asking what is the plan to stop a fascist MAGA candidate from winning the Presidency in 2028, when the Democrats don’t have incumbent advantage, and the historical pattern is a party flip, and have received only one (joke) answer. I have heard no talk whatsoever about how to handle a Biden win this year, although the MAGA politicians are signaling another attempt to overturn the election. (My state AG is still “investigating” the fake elector scheme from 2020; no way a prosecution will happen before the election, and likely never.) “Vote harder” is not going to be effective.
I’ve heard of Project 2025. It seems like the Democrats in office have not. Heck, just this morning, I read Jennifer Rubin’s op-ed about how Sen. Durbin (chair of the Judiciary Committee) is so peeved he’s almost on the verge of sending a Very Sternly Worded Letter about one of our Supreme Court justices being an insurrectionist.
Several other Lemmings have reported that playing Trump speeches for their MAGA relatives at 1.5x speed breaks the spell. The hypnotic effect vanishes, and all that they hear is the words, which are drivel.
Absolutely. I would just emphasize something that you alluded to in the fourth paragraph. A populist movement feeds not only the deep-seated human desire for Belonging, but also our profound yearning for Meaning. (War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedges is a fantastic book which describes it in the context of war.)
I’ve long thought that the U.S. is ripe for a takeover of populism because of our hyper-individualistic culture, and the way that our lives have been systematically strip-mined of meaning in pursuit of profit.
Yes and no. The Republicans have great messaging, and have had some PR savants working for them going back to the Reagan era. The Democrats are shit at talking to people. Everybody votes emotionally, but Democrats have this delusion that their side is the logical one, and makes decisions based on data and policy. Sure, data and policy influence some of those emotions, but you have to speak to voters’ emotions, in terms of their values. This is why Democratic voters constantly say that they can’t understand why anybody would vote Republican. Of course, you can’t understand, if your analytical framework is wrong.
(Ever notice how you can tell the Republican and Democratic politicians apart almost instantly on talk shows? The R’s have a self-assured energy, as if the things they say are self-evident, while the D’s come across as slightly shrill and scolding. Obama was different, he had the self-assurance, which is part of the reason he did so well.)
I would agree with you, but who’s working on fixing things? It’s looking close this time, and the historical pattern is that the Presidency flips parties when an incumbent can’t run. What’s the plan so we can ensure that a GQP authoritarian doesn’t win in 2028? This was the talking point in 2020, and very little happened; Biden’s AG even waited almost 3 years to appoint a special counsel, only after being buffaloed into it by the House January 6th committee, virtually ensuring that there trial will be delayed until after the election. And there’s still no action whatsoever to hold Bush administration officials accountable.
I’ve asked the question “what’s the plan to stop fascism in 2028?” several times now, with no other response, so I guess the answer is, “pull off a communist revolution in just 4 years.”
Then there are those of us in Group D, who said 30 years ago that this exact thing would happen if we didn’t do the hard work of developing an agricultural system. Now Group A blames us instead of Group B, and it’s really too late anyway, the food will run out on either side of the bridge.
I haven’t forgotten that George H.W. Bush (the President’s father) was literally in a meeting with a member of the bin Laden family when the attacks occurred. The Bush and the bin Laden families were highly entangled in oil business dealings. I remember, too, that the only airplanes allowed to fly in U.S. airspace in the days after 9/11—all other traffic everywhere being grounded, stranding Americans far from home—were the flights taking members of the bin Laden family out of the United States, and back to Saudi Arabia.
I wonder why that attack on Saudi Arabia never happened?
I do not, so I’ll take that back. It was widely discussed at the time, so I remembered it as Bush being there when the attack occurred, not that he left shortly before. I will say that I think it’s close enough for the point to stand that the Bush and bin Laden families had business interests in common, and had had personal dealings prior.
Edit: Due to popular demand FatTony Search servers are down for the time being. but has gone open source just in time (Yes that’s how it works 😡) . You may now get responses from other users. Servers will be back up some time later.
“Connected.” Another weasel word. A genealogy web site that I use can tell me how I’m “connected” to King Charles. (At least 32 degrees of separation, including through many marriages.) What are the specific allegations here?
Correct. If journalists know something as a fact, they should state it, and share the source of that fact. If they don’t know something, but have a guess, they can say that it’s their own inference.
But to use weasel words to lead the reader to infer things that are not factually supported is, well, not a good look.
Trucks are far more dangerous to other road users, especially pedestrians and bicyclists, especially those with the 5 foot tall, blunt front end that’s fashionable these days. But the high bumper height makes them much more dangerous to other drivers, as well.
Well, you’re wrong. There’s no nice way to phrase it. Bumper height is definitely an issue, blunt front ends are a visibility and impact danger, and bumper height regulations do exist for various classes of vehicle, and in various jurisdictions. Not Just Bikes covers it pretty comprehensively.
That’s why every semi trailer has a back bumper below the deck height. Those bumpers are mandated by law for safety. Also, the EU mandates those skirts underneath the sides, to prevent other road users from going under the wheels, and the skirts are becoming more common on U.S. trucks, too.
And, yes, the regulations for cars mandate compatible bumper heights, so it’s not just me that thinks so. It’s just that pickup trucks don’t have the same regulations, for stupid political reasons.
Incorrect. The regulations on car bumpers require that they be between 16" and 20" off the ground. The rear guard on a semi trailer must be no more than 22" off the ground. True, that’s not exactly lined up with a car bumper, but it’s enough to prevent underride crashes.
This is kind of far afield from my point, though, that what somebody else chooses to drive is my business, because they’re on the road with me. Pickup trucks are much, much more dangerous to me, because they’re much more likely to cause head and chest injuries to pedestrians and bicyclists, and much more likely to push them under the wheels instead of onto the hood. The traffic casualty rates in the past couple of years prove this empirically.
What If Trump Is Right About America? (www.thebulwark.com)
It’s time to ask some hard questions about ourselves.
Amtrak Borealis launches, connecting Chicago and Twin Cities – NBC Chicago (www.nbcchicago.com)
Americans, what's the plan if Trump wins the election in November? (serious)
Democrats don't even respect your most primal needs. (lemmy.world)
I just want a ‘dear leader’ like the fascists have, is that so wrong?
Bernie would have won... (lemmy.world)
Reminder... (lemmy.world)
New 9/11 Evidence Points to Deep Saudi Complicity (www.theatlantic.com)
Two decades of U.S. policy appear to be rooted in a mistaken understanding of what happened that day. archive
Pedestrian and bicycle bridge in Warsaw 2 months after opening (www.facebook.com)
Concerns over lack of pedestrian and bicycle separation had been raised one year before opening....
Now that DuckDuckGo is out. Give me your search prompts and I'll answer them as best I can. That includes images (based on what I have saved on my PC). So what is it you wish to know or see?
Edit: Due to popular demand FatTony Search servers are down for the time being. but has gone open source just in time (Yes that’s how it works 😡) . You may now get responses from other users. Servers will be back up some time later.
Amid campus protests, organizers with past ties to Hamas support also emerge (www.usatoday.com)
On Day 7 of the pro-Palestinian protests on the Columbia University campus, Osama Abuirshaid stopped by the student encampment....
Conservative Owns the Libs by Paying $4,000 a Month for His Ford F-350 (thehardtimes.net)