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Culture War Roundup for the week of May 8, 2023

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I mean, because she was kinda proven correct? They lost to might makes right, even after gambling the entire future of humanity on her political enemies winning a battle where her aide could have been significant.

In a stunning upset, Jeb! won both the Democratic and Republican nominations simultaneously.

And everyone clapped.

Did we read to the same books or watch the same show? If anything ASOIAF's core thesis seems to be "might makes right is no basis for a system of government"

In GOT (the show at least, I'm telling myself I should wait till he finishes to read, lest I be disappointed as I was with the show), Cerise's reign is ended by an overwhelming army and a freaking dragon.

In the books (and for most of the show) Cersie's rise to power and reign is a continuous series of pressing the proverbial defect button for a short-term win only to find her long-term position substantially worse off.

Well, yes. She is like Skylar White. A C-tier trying to ape an A-tier.

Questionable. Every ASOIAF government that doesn't feature a central power with its boot firmly on the throats of its constituents, barring a few fringe polities that aren't explored at all, immediately dissolves into cycles of bloodshed, revolution and genocide. The Targaryens' death warrant was written the day they lost their dragons; it just took some time to execute the warrant. The Baratheon dynasty likewise falls apart once its founder, who stamped out rebellions with his own hammer, died and left no one of parallel martial ability to reign after him. Daenerys replaces the authoritarian slaveocracy of Astapor with a proto-communist government of the people, which rapidly disintegrates into civil war and a near-total genocide of the entire city. Arguably the only successful governments in ASOIAF, measured by the ability to stay in power for more than a couple of generations at the least, are those governments which make it clear that they rule by the sword.