gabbath

Cats want to let you know they know.

What's this? Ranking Linux number 2? Heresy! /s

Envy.

Spite. The dirty bomb of emotions.

I don't mean to equate the situations, they are completely different (I wrote a reply above about that just now). In Ukraine you don't have an ongoing genocide of a small population with no army on a small piece of land about which all of the west is lying while giving weapons to Russia. I was only pointing out that the aggressors in both cases are rabidly genocidal and medieval in their actions and goals.

Correct. And I really don't want it to come off that way, so I apologize if I did.

I'm maybe a little anxious when Russia comes up in leftist circles since there's a tendency among some to downplay their atrocities, which absolutely do come with genocidal intent if you follow their official propaganda via state media and such. And of course on the front their soldiers commit civilian massacres, kidnap children, and whatever else they can get away with.

But yes, the scale isn't even close, like you said: Ukraine has an actual army, western backing, and can actually fight back. Meanwhile, Palestinians have been been left to literally starve to death after being bombed to death. Not only is the west complicit through silence and manufacturing consent, but they actually give Israel the bombs. The Gaza genocide is the most horrific event I've witnessed in my entire life, even from halfway around the world it has left a permanent stain on my faith in humanity.

Let's not underestimate Russia either: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_safari_(terror_campaign)

We are dealing with genocidal demons in both cases.

Some. But there's still a long ways to go, sadly.

So many to choose from (for best, I mean)... I'll just say Jessica Jones and Boston Legal because I haven't seen them here.

EDIT: Correction. I did see Jessica Jones, but I'm leaving it here because it's just so gd amazing. Really it's a masterpiece.

That is absolutely golden. Thanks!

I'm curious: was there a specific episode about this that got you thinking, or was it more the exposure to the whole of the show which kept joking in that particular direction?

They care to a point. Most people want a populist anti-elite approach to politics and messaging but that's off limits. In reality, what you see is the following dynamic:

• Republicans get their cues by testing various talking points on their base to see what sticks. They respond to the response of their base and double and triple down on the most popular. So in a sense get their policy cues from their base, but I left out one crucial thing: they're extremely disingenuous about it because the talking points are mostly just culture war tabloid style outrage bait — moral panics filled with lies and half-truths. Still, to the common Republican voter, this seems like a dialogue.
• Democrats could do the same thing but with real stuff. Even appeals to emotion are fine as long as you're being truthful, because a lot of the time you need to meet people where they are. But Democrats do not talk to their voters at all, they despise them and feel entitled to their vote because hey, look how bad the Republicans are. But then where do they get the policy if they don't talk to voters? Oh, why, the Republicans of course! They triangulate a "common sense" position between their ivory tower ideas (mostly just "civility"), the Republicans and the (pre-programmed) Republican base. Except for the populism, you see, because that's "going low" and they're going to be the adults in the room who "go high".

I hate this worthless octogenarian club of a party, sometimes more than the Republicans.

(I apologize that this turned into a rant. I do want Dems to win, I just want them to stop being, you know, them.)

I don't mean break things so much as push things and not back down the instant some parliamentarian disagrees. I want them to put goals above process, if that makes sense. And obviously to have actual good goals.