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Never heard of the dude, but the reason the reaction to Trump's conviction might be worse than Steven's case, is because the knives were out for Trump for 8 years straight, to an absurd degree. It got so bad, that for all I know they got an actual case against him now, and I still think the proper response would be to vote for him, in retaliation for the circus show we've been put through.
I don't want to come off as callous, but they can kill him for all I care. The more officially, the better.
the problem is if they do kill trump then you can't vote for him. you will probably just end up accidentally voting for an establishment candidate in the end even if you try your best not to.
I don't know if that matters much. It's not like my hopes are that Trump wins and manages to fix anything, the point is to convince people that the establishment is illegitimate, and we need to build alternatives.
Why? What is "legitimacy," anyway? The difference between "Don Corleone" and "King Vito I" isn't that one has "legitimacy" and the other doesn't, it's whether or not there's a bigger, stronger "stationary bandit." Whatever group can most credibly tell you "follow this rule or I hurt you" is the government (and that's what "government" simply is).
I wish I could remember where I encountered the argument that Westerners deeply misunderstand the "Mandate of Heaven," mistaking it for a Chinese "divine right of kings" when it's really a much more materialist concept. That what it really means is that "legitimacy" follows from — is a product of — the de facto exercise of imperial power. Whoever most performs the functions of government (however badly) is the government (until someone else is actually doing it better).
…but what makes you think this is possible? Both in terms of the forces in opposition, and the qualities of the people in question?
I believe that where this regime is taking us is evil, and inhumane, possibly also unsustainable... and I don't wanna go there.
Varys: Three great men sit in a room. A king, a priest and a rich man. Between them stands a common Sellsword. Each great man bids the Sellsword kill the other two. Who lives, who dies?
Tyrion Lannister: Depends on the Sellsword.
Varys: Does it? He has neither crown nor gold nor favor with the Gods.
Tyrion Lannister: He has a sword, the power of life and death.
Varys: But if it's swordsmen who rule, why do we pretend Kings hold all the power? When Ned Stark lost his head, who was truly responsible? Joffrey? The executioner? Or something else?
Tyrion Lannister: I've decided I don't like riddles.
Varys: Power resides where men believe it resides. It's a trick, a shadow on the wall. And a very small man can cast a very large shadow.
For one thing, I don't think it matters. Sometimes you need to fight even if you lose. For another, like I mentioned, I don't believe that what the powers that be want is particularly sustainable, surviving as a coherent group for long enough might be all it takes.
Agreed — particularly on the unsustainable, at least in the very long term.
But where I differ is that it doesn't matter how much you or I or anyone else "don't wanna go there," there's nothing we can do about it. It's inevitable. So what does convincing people that the establishment is "illegitimate" matter? What difference can it possibly make?
Arguing from fictional evidence (and not very good, at that).
Not if losing is guaranteed. An unwinnable battle is never worth fighting.
Sure, but I think there's enough civilizational "seed corn" for it to consume to keep it going longer than the rest of us can hold out (which is why I also expect them to take out industrial civilization with them when they go — permanently, given that an industrial revolution is a once-per-planet event).
Ride out with me. Ride out an meet them!
Oh, right, you don't like references to fiction. Ok, to be honest, I'm not saying we should meet them in battle, my assessment of that being suicidal is more or less the same as yours. I was recently made fun of for my plan boiling down to "let's stick together", but yeah, unironically this. They had to wait a while, but it worked for the Jews.
Hey, you asked me for a definition. Ok, so it wasn't an an encyclopedia excerpt, but I thought it did the job. Do definitions require evidence?
So teach your children the ways of the Amish, except that pacifism is bullshit, and that they also need to learn HEMA. I can't guarantee your descendants surviving, but if enough of us do it, some part of us may survive in those that do.
I don't have any (it takes two to tango, after all).
Again, I'm not sure anyone in "the West" — or East Asia, for that matter — survives the coming collapse; that is, if our species survives it at all. (And if so, for how long?)
Well then - Step 1 is find a Mrs. Capital_Room, and make a bunch Secondary_Rooms. Step 2 is teach them HEMA.
Shit, I don't know either, but I can guarantee no descendants of yours survive, if you don't have any!
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