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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   Edited 1yr ago   34498 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of November 14, 2022

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the interests of land and cattle are less silly, and more fundamental.

You believe the interests of people are less fundamental than the interests of cattle and land?

I assume not.

I assume you believe the interests of people are less fundamental than the interests of the owners of the cattle and land. Why do you believe that?

What makes a rancher's interests more intrinsically valuable than a plumber's, policeman's, teacher's, or doctor's?

You believe the interests of people are less fundamental than the interests of cattle and land?

I assume not.

Not the one you asked but I will argue yes.

The farther you get from the mud and the blood, the less skin you have in the game, the more lawyers of abstraction that exist between you and the world, the less "fundamental" your interests become.

If the entire staff of Goldman Sachs dropped dead tomorrow there might be some momentary disruption in the stock market but society would continue as it has. If the entire staff of Tyson Foods dropped dead tomorrow much of the US's eastern seaboard would starve. Goldman Sachs might have a higher stock valuation than Tyson but Tyson is more fundamental. A society can survive without stock-brokers and think-piece writers but it can't survive without food.

Edit: that should have been "layers of abstraction" but serendipitous typo was serendipitous

What makes a rancher's interests more intrinsically valuable than a plumber's, policeman's, teacher's, or doctor's?

The land and the food.

"We are the Lorax, we speak for the trees. If DCers think they can do as they please, the trees 'bout to start speaking Vietnamese"

Please speak plainly.

Vâng thưa ngài

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