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PaperclipPerfector  1d ago (text post)   4074 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of November 9, 2026

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They said to vote Trump to teach the Dems a lesson? May I see it?

Ethnic Arabs/Muslims in greater Detroit voting for Trump over Gaza

I can't find links to regular blue white leftists doing this in the general - Google wants to keep sending me stories about blue white leftists not voting for Biden in the primary. But there are numerous press stories after the election, mostly featuring push polls by pro-Palestinian groups claiming that voters staying home over Palestine cost Harris the election.

Dem post-defeat analysis says Gaza did cause people to stay home

Yeah I will grant you that one. Dearborn went 80% for Trump in 2024 and then 99% for El Sayed in 2026. Don’t you love ethnic voting blocks?

"I never thought the leopards would eat my face" says ethnic machine politician who delivered the bloc vote to the Face-Eating Leopard Party.

I have very little sympathy for Trump voters who are suffering because of Trump policies, but there are two groups which provoke negative sympathy. One is people who voted for Trump because Biden was insufficiently pro-Palestinian - I mean WTF, but they did. And the other is small business owners who employ illegal immigrants. What did you think "Mass Deportations Now" meant - vibes, papers?

I'm with you here. Zero sympathy.

But can also just say that ethnic machines in general are bad? The Dearborn Arabs were somewhat unique in that they voted for the Republicans one time. Maybe there are a couple other niche groups that do to.

But generally ethnic machines go left. Unfortunately, in our newly diverse society, Republicans will also have to play the ethnic spoils game. This will not result in an improvement in our governance.

Also, darkly funny that the Chaldeans (Iraqi Christians) fled to Detroit to get away from the Arabs who were ethnically cleansing them and now the Arabs were like "hey, we followed you!"

Ethnic machine politics sucks, but my experience growing up in London in the Loony Left era was that public employee union machine politics sucks worse (my understanding is that SF and NYC are the main victims in the US). Ethnic machine politicians have a mandate to provide good public services to their ingroup, and the nature of urban local government is that often (but by no means always) means providing good public services that benefit everyone in the borough.

To avoid both you appear to need competitive partisan local politics, which is difficult in a world where politics is nationalised and urbanites and right-wingers consider each other permanent enemies on culture war grounds.

True. It is kind of funny that, in some case, ethnic spoils can actually lead to improved development. For example, in British Columbia, first nations are using their special rights to get things built that would never be allowed otherwise. I wouldn't be surprised if this loophole started getting used a lot more in the U.S. as well, particularly when involving data centers.

Another example, although I might press D to doubt, is that the Italian Mafia was supposedly able to keep Italian neighborhoods relatively safer from black street crime when cities had abandoned other areas.

So I guess ethnic spoils aren't all bad. Wish that my group was eligible.

Another example, although I might press D to doubt, is that the Italian Mafia was supposedly able to keep Italian neighborhoods relatively safer from black street crime when cities had abandoned other areas.

As I understand it, an important part of any protection racket is that you do in fact protect people from outside groups as well as your own.

As I understand it, an important part of any protection racket is that you do in fact protect people from outside groups as well as your own.

With the Ankh-Morpok Thieves Guild being the paradigmatic example.

An interesting question about the next 5 years or so in El Salvador is whether there is going to be a big increase in disorganised crime now that the gangs are unable to suppress it and Bukele's police almost certainly lack the necessary skills.

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