Here Is The Democracy Progressives Imagine

JK Rowling voted person of the year by Guardian newspaper readers, but then the newspaper suspended the contest.

The Best Perspective on China

Will probably come from the Japanese, their longtime rival. 

I suspect this analysis is largely right: the Chinese are dangerously overconfident and with power shifting towards 1 guy away from a group, the risk of miscalculation on their part is high.

A thing I didn't know: Xi knows very little about the West - even less than Kim Jong Un. That's a worrisome thing. At the highest levels, they probably analyze the West through social media -- a huge mistake.

George Constanza Cultural Politics

Thinking of becoming socially conservative and fiscally liberal.

Prediction

Any sentence using the words "people of color" will some type of obfuscation. 

Return to Normal

I basically think we ought to return to normal re: COVID. So does this guy and he seems smarter than me. It does not seem feasible to me any of us can permanently escape COVID. But it does make sense to be extra vigilant if you have a thing you really want to do: like Christmas with family or a vacation.

Health Equity

A somewhat interesting Kareem rebuttal to LeBron's COVID meme (can't believe I just wrote that).

“The overrepresentation of African Americans among confirmed COVID-19 cases and number of deaths underscores the fact that the coronavirus pandemic, far from being an equalizer, is amplifying or even worsening existing social inequalities tied to race, class, and access to the health care system.”

How come when these type of statements are written the proper context never accompanies it? So for instance, among vaccinated African Americans, is the coronavirus still more deadly? Or are these numbers simply reflective of how aggressively different communities use vaccinations? For instance, Asian people have the lowest death rates and highest vaccination rates. Coincidence or a cause?

And similarly with respect to educational achievement-- all we hear about is equity, equity, equity. But me wonders what happens when you look at another variable: time spent studying. Asian students do better on SATs but also spend the most time studying for the SATs. What happens if you equalize study time - do racial disparities still exist?

Doesn't anyone concerned with actual health and educational equity want to know the answers to these questions?

Logging

Film: Matrix Resurrections

Dead on arrival...too bad. Because Keanu plays depressed middle aged man incredibly well. And damn, if Carrie Ann Moss still doesn't command the frame. Some of the new cast was fine to look at. But the writing and story design lacked. Did every proper scene need to be a total info dump? Was it too much trouble to bother creating character chemistry? Why didn't they scrap the entire beginning and enter on Keanu as a depressed middle aged game designer seeing a shrink, etc. Incorporate clever nods to the past movies and how the memories lurk within Neo...

And the meta sequel stuff was annoying.

UPDATE: The only thing worse than watching the Matrix is reading The Ringer commentary on it.

Good God!

Irma Kostroski is played by Tracey Ullman! 

I didn't realize. I thought LD had found gold...

Vaccination

For good or bad, I pretty much don't know anyone who refuses to get vaccinated. The most vaccine skeptical I come across are children who resist needles. What I do come across are the people who insist everyone must be vaccinated and have basically no limit on what type of policies they'd support to push those vaccine hesitant or anti-vax into getting the vax. I find this position rather equally puzzling. The way I see it: you're getting vaccinated with this thing in one of two ways - via naturally getting the disease or getting a shot. And I suppose I don't mind if someone opts to just get the disease instead -- stupid as it may be.   

Logging

TV: S11 Curb

The times and television have gotten worse around it, so Curb gets progressively better. Irma Kostroski one Larry's very best foils. 

Film: Home Alone

The kids loved it.

Emblematic of the Times

Just got a notice about a COVID contact in a classroom for my kindergartener from 7 days ago because it went to spam folder. 

He's fine, fyi.

"Privilege"

Is it possible that when we dismiss arguments for things like SAT testing, following instructions by police officers, and paying back your own student loans as being "privileged" that we are in fact confusing cause for effect? Might it be that certain thoughts and behaviors lead to "privilege" as opposed to being "privileged" leading to certain thoughts and behaviors?

Student Loans = Policy Violence

A member of the house of representatives calls out non-government repayment of student loans "policy violence." 

Does she realize the Federal Government sponsors student loans? Wouldn't the first step against this awful policy violence to stop the Feds from sponsoring student loans in the first place? 

Thanks Internet

So apparently I misunderstood the Sex in the City reboot pilot. The Asian girl didn't kill Mr. Big with her piano playing, but rather the Peloton killed Mr. Big by pushing him too hard to be in good shape.

The 52 Genders

A thought on the 52 genders - this sort of categorization somewhat resembles Pokemon and other anime "world creation" as we call it in screenwriting. Could it be all this gender stuff - at least for some people - is just one giant attempt to turn life into a cosplay?

What The Actual fuck?

3rd graders reenact the Holocaust at a DC public school? 

DEI

All liberal minded people should push back against everything labeled DEI. Suspend all support for any DEI initiatives, any foundations seeking $ that have DEI initiatives or statements. 

DEI stole right from the LGBT++---1224 playbook -- meaning, an initially OKAY idea - more diversity has been subsumed into the most terrible of all ideas - equity. These are not the same things nor do they belong together. The concept of equity ruins and corrupts everything.

And there is my rant of the day.

White Supremacy 

Rears it's ugly head: 70 attacks in Bay Area against Asian women. 

Coming Around

I'm beginning to come around to Trump and his people deserving some culpability in the January 6th chaos. I don't think their incompetence and disorganization ought to diminish the fact they were flirting with treason. They couldn't offer any proof of election malfeasance. They had no grounds.

Indoor Mask Policies

CA abruptly announces a mask mandate. Guess what? No one's listening anymore. Not in LA, at least. I was at the Glendale Americana yesterday day drinking and movie watching -- hardly anyone was wearing a mask. Certainly no one was enforcing it. Masking is defacto optional now. 

Legacy of Gavin Newsom, Kamala Harris, etc

Their left wing policies and cultural advocacy during a time of enormous wealth creation in the Bay Area turned SF into shit. 

Now they are spreading it to a state and national level. Great job guys. Worst politicans ever. 

Ah Ha Moment

I should've understood this earlier, but listening to Bari Weiss podcast on the Smollet hate crime hoax had a lightbulb moment about why this kind of shit keeps happening. Why are the national media obsessed with race? Why are there so many fake hate crimes? Why do we give so much oxygen to morons like DiAngelo, Kendi, Nicole Hannah Jones, etc. And I finally understand it: it's an industry.

BLM alone raised 10 billion dollars. Prior to BLM, there are roughly 70+ organizations with over 10 million dollars in assets pledge to "fight racism." And the reality is that we fought and defeated what we'll call "Racism Type A" in America, these organizations remained (like the military industrial complex post WW2) and now these organizations - in order to continue to exist - have sought out and frankly, made up "Racism Type B."

So why do we have do all this? Because it's an industry and billions of dollars are sloshing around, making it happen.

Logging

TV: And Just Like That... Pilot

Icing my knee, my wife turns on the Sex and the City reboot. My favorite part was when the Asian teenager kills Mr. Big with her piano playing. 

The certainty is a pathology. https://t.co/xOBkVCFrmx

— Andrew Sullivan (@sullydish) December 10, 2021

Actors be actors, but the people who ought be the most ashamed are those clapping hysterically for they are the mob that does nothing in the face of lies and will be the ones history asks "how come you just stood around when the horror happened"

Racist House Appraisal

It's a good headline, but of course, also incredibly misleading. Couple hides their race, house appraises for more, etc. 

Things to note:

1) House prices change. And things have gone up for anyone paying attention.

2) Staging in general matters 

3) Appraisals mean very little -- houses sell for what they sell for

4) If such disparity was a real thing, the easiest buck to make in the world would be white people buying black homes and flipping them. Are people doing this? Does anyone put any of the actors in the real estate world above this?

The news media is gaslighting our country. 

Google

I just had a notion and googled Mickey Rourke. Here's what I found.

Re: Marvel, Iron Man 2: Rourke added, “At the end of the day you’ve got some nerd with a pocketful of money calling the shots. You know, Favreau didn’t call the shots. I wish he would have.”

Good God

Our freaking government sounds so goddamn incompetent and China and Iran are filling the vacuum. We just appear to be utterly lost with no sense of who we are or what we stand for nor how to win. A football team without an identity...

Italian Lives Matter

Left wing Italian newspaper chastises the NY Times. I've said it before, I'll say it again: we saved the world in the 20th century. In the 21st, we need the favor returned. A ridiculous spell has been cast across our society -- we're lead by incompetent fools who know only how to scratch, claw, and whine for power and then break things that work. 

CA Public Schools

Are trying to remove 8th grade algebra. What a joke. It's almost as if the goal of these "progressive" educators is to make us dumber.

Dems Sour on Mask Mandates

Is a sign some sanity remains.

Good Line

News stories make it seem like wet streets caused the rain. 

Unfortunately 

All the evidence points this way:

The key insight I had as a historian working on the totalitarian regimes of the mid-20th and late 20th century was that, however possible it may be to live as an atheist, as a family, as an individual, it is a very unsatisfactory operating system for a society. Regimes that proclaim themselves atheist and seek to eradicate Christianity, have been among the worst regimes in history. It's really important to understand that, to see why the most anti-clerical regimes were also very, very wicked. This is I think a very important lesson that I learned. I came to realize, reading Tocqueville as you mentioned, that it would actually be very, very difficult to make a stable and harmonious society without some religious cement, some religious glue to hold it together. Atheism does not provide that; it's not actually a viable operating system for a stable society.

It'd be nice if someone was working on how to reconcile this issue as I fear we're pretty much headed into an ugly direction without some sort of reconciliation. 

Denying Service to Cops

A SF restaurant refuses services to cops. The cops ought to return the favor. 

Logging

Film: Spencer

Turned off after the scene when Kirstin Stewart began speaking to a jacket. One of the plusses and minuses of watching things at home, I suppose.

Boycott White Companies

Add it to list of beyond dumb (and overtly racist) ideas espoused by the BLM movement. 

BLMs ability to squander goodwill is almost impressive.

Abortion

It seems the Supreme Court will be limiting abortion. I can only imagine this will throw fire back onto the culture war. Ross Douthat makes a pretty compelling case against abortion and specifically abortion laws in the Times this week. It's a strange subject for myself as I get older with kids of my own. What I suppose has changed in my thinking is that it's become pretty undeniable to me that a fetus at an early stage - from any rational way of thinking - must be considered a form of life. The position that I might've considered as a younger person - that a fetus unable to survive on its own isn't life yet, does not hold up to rational scrutiny. If any one of us were on some form of life support for 9 months knowing we would be "alive" after the support - would we opt for non-existence? 

And Douthat makes the point that if we want to lower abortions performed (an admirable goal for pro life or pro choice folks) that laws against it actually work. Supposedly, Texas has seen the number of abortions cut in half since enacting their own draconian law? Not that I support the law, but the overarching point he makes holds.

But I still can't imagine an America where a scared, not-fully-developed brain-wise 17-20 year old girl who gets pregnant from a boyfriend or a fling is expected to suddenly drop her life plan to raise a child. We must consider this situation realistically - is this a good life for the child? Is it good for society? Good for the mother? The reality is that many women in this situation opt for abortion - whether legal or not. I don't think we can consider these women murderers - do you? Does anyone?

It's not an easy issue.

Logging

Film: King Richard

2/3 of the way through the film I thought this one deserved best picture. The reality is that Hollywood does three things really well: spectacle, melodrama, and elevating their stars. King Richard does 2 of the 3. Will Smith's performance is strong. The melodrama works. I was completely pulled into the theme exploring the role of the father in the family. Sure, there are other themes, but to me, the overriding subject is fathering. To which I relate. Solid all around performances - the young actors were great - not asked to do a tremendous amount which again was the right choice - their characters were not as interesting or complex. Mother character ably plays a background role and thunders into the picture absolutely killing one of the great melodramatic scenes of the film. Either tennis coaches could garner a supporting actor nomination, IMO. And solid music.

But the most impressive part of the film: they shot the tennis well!

What holds the movie back is the 3rd Act. It drags. I don't see a screenwriting solution. The idea was right, but when your climax is a character walking off court for a pee break with the crowd and characters sitting around...well...it isn't exactly finding its way into great endings lectures. And by necessity, more of the story falls to the Venus character - again the right choice - but our emotions are not with her by this point. Still, I applaud this film. It layers issues of race with sport, family, class, in a vastly more complex and humane way than most films of the last 5 years (yes, I'm talking about you, Get Out).

But the movie is not "cool" and so I wonder whether it'll be given the Green Book treatment (harder tho to do with this one).

Travel Bans

So am I to understand there is still no scientific consensus about whether travel bans help mitigate the spread of COVID?

Crypto

On a recent BS podcast, Haralabob argues for crypto. His points: it's math. Limited supply. Governments are overprinting money, devaluing currencies. Governments can't touch crypto. Crypto is gold for the digital age. 

I don't buy it. It's not math. It's perception. All money is perception. It's a store of value that is only worth something when everyone agrees it is worth something. 

On a practical level, I can't yet buy things in crypto. I can't pay my mortgage in crypto. Or buy groceries. They only reason for me to buy crypto is this idea that it will continue to go up in value. Therefore, crypto is an investment. I prefer my investments to be productive, ie stocks. Or, to think about it more broadly, my own skills and/or relationships. Those, to me, are the most productive investments. 

The best argument FOR crypto seems to be: a lot of smart people are in the space. Well...okay...that's good for them. How is it good for me? If I'm playing poker, I don't want to sit down with Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu. I'd rather play against schlubs. 

And as for the limited supply/can't trust governments argument - aren't real estate and gold more time tested protections? Or, international stocks?

I could - and probably am - very wrong about this stuff. But the real thing that makes me suspicious is that if crypto were so valuable, why would all the advocates be screaming it from the rooftops all the time? If I knew it were valuable, I'd keep my ass quiet, hope the price goes to near nothing and buy it all up. But the flipside is happening. Color me still skeptical.

Oahu Observations

In no particular order:

1. The best $20 spent: sunglasses from ABC store

2. The worst $24 spent (plus $6 tip): French Press coffee at a fancy hotel

3. I could eat poke bowls from Foodland all day.

4. One should be contractually obligated to eat at Zippy's when here

5. The COVID restrictions in Hawaii are the strictest I've encountered. You must supply vaccine proof to dine indoors along with ID, DOB, address, etc. To get onto the island, you go through rigorous vaccine screenings as well. And my casual observation is that wait people, hotel and airport employees, etc enforce the restrictions with conviction. I cannot tell you why this is. The season? The culture in Hawaii? Job requirement? COVID experiences on the island? Tourism being a major industry? Word out on Omi variant?

6. Beach recommendations: Turtle Beach (near Turtle Bay Resort) on the North Shore for kids. Kailua beach on the east side of the island for quiet.

7. With the time change, you feel somewhat disconnected from the rest of the world here. Or at least I did. It feels like at any time of the day, everyone is doing something else than you. I rather like it for a short period of time.

8. Homelessness in Honolulu resembles the situation in LA and SF. It makes one wonder if there is something beyond progressive DAs going on in the Pacific Coast.

9. In my time here, I saw only one movie theater. But there are Red Box kiosks around. 

10. A car is vital

11. Venus was incredibly bright in the night sky

12. Things I wish I had while here: boogie board for kids, snorkel, telescope. But not really worth buying a snorkel or board for 1 day... 

13. Shaved ice was much better in Maui

14. Easy to hate on Waikiki, but as a central place to stay/eat I thought it worked well. If I could do again, I might try to stay in nearby part of Honolulu closer to Al Moana beach. The problem with shacking up on the North Shore or anywhere else is that I imagine it starts to feel very small very quick.

15. I heard sirens all the time in Honolulu

16. In our final night the hotel was evacuated at 4am for an emergency. It turned out a transient slipped into the hotel and pulled a fire alarm.

17. The meals overall were quite enjoyable: thanksgiving plates from a hipster take out spot (Moku Kitchen), Kona Brewery - which was pretty similar to any brewery except you're sitting on a harbor with a beautiful, lush green mountain in the background -- pretty much one of the best views in a restaurant I've personally encountered, and a favorite: shrimp scampi from a food truck in North Shore.

18. Kids get as much pleasure from buying choco pie from a 75 cent vending machine in an Alamo car rental as seeing some of the great views on earth. 

19. I actually felt like reading fiction while traveling. When I got back home for some reason Selling Sunset season 4 was more appealing.

20. Pearl Harbor memorial was ok. Flying off the island it struck me being a bomber pilot would've been a tricky job -- wouldn't their targets be at least a little bit difficult to find? They were flying over places they've never been or seen before with precise targets to hit. Yet, I haven't heard a ton of stories about pilots being unable to find their targets. Maybe I haven't looked hard enough? 

Logging

Films: The Harder They Fall and Clifford The Big Red Dog 

Similar caliber films get put together in a review. I turned off The Harder They Fall after about 10-15 minutes. I don't know if Netflix forces films to be lit in a certain way, but I find the overlit TV look to be atrocious. Say what you will about the GOT darkness -- not being able to see some of the action -- I'd take it any day over watching every single Netflix film (exception - Mindhunter). Anyhow, I'm predisposed to like a Western, but honestly, it felt so cheap and pointless...I just couldn't bring myself to hate watch.

My kids didn't even like Clifford - first hardcore negative film review by the both of them. 

Nu/Omi Varient

So we've got a new dangerous variant out of South Africa. We know little about it or whether the vaccines work against it. No matter, tons of people aren't vaccinated anyway. 

Here's a thought, based upon how we fucked up before:

1) Develop a rapid test with immediate (within 15-60 minutes) results.

2) Get the tests available EVERYWHERE and FAST.

Indigenous People Day Eve

On this eve of indigenous people day, let us remember the genocide and rape committed by indigenous peoples against the neanderthals. We should honor neanderathal land stolen by early humans. 

Systemic Racism

Why do all the cases involving "systemic racism" never quite hold up to actual scrutiny? I mean, it would be nice for those who believe in it to have more of a slam dunk example, don't you think? Rittenhouse case to a rational person pretty much reads as self defense. Jussie Smollett case was absurd from the get-go. Chauvin was convicted. Oddly, the best case they've got is Kaepernick, but that one only really meets the systemic racism case if you know nothing about football or Kap himself. Plus, a bit hard to argue the NFL is systemically racist when the majority of players are African American and there are tons of black coaches and successful QBs other than Kap? The arguments just don't hold up.

The CCP

A thing the world needs to come to terms with quick - within the next 10-20 years the world's largest economy and richest country will be run by what amounts to a smart gangster organization. They just disappeared a gal for her claim she was raped by an old, powerful man. Think about it. 

Now, the world still remains a big place. But the spoils of this world go to people who make the rules and have the resources. If they have the money, the CCP will recruit the talent to press their position going forward. 

Probably Too Much To Expect

That the Right might choose to be a bit circumspect about the Rittenhouse kid and maybe not try and make him into some sort of hero and give him a platform, etc. 

Isn't this episode better put in the rearview?

Liberal Fascists

They don't believe in the rule of law. 

I'm No Economist...

But if you juice the stock market and give people stimulus money while also encountering supply issues due to the virus + virus rules and regulations...inflation is the logical result.

Delta Spikes

In heavily vaccinated places (Gibralter and Israel), along with places with massive lockdowns (China). It does make one wonder... 

Psychos

So it seems we now have psychopaths running our public schools. 

My takeaway is: critics of the liberal project were right- the ideology ultimately collapses upon itself because it cannot provide a robust enough defense against relativism. Which is to say, a liberal has trouble defending the powerful and the morally correct over the weak and evil - which is why so many liberals have trouble with Israel and support the Palestinian cause. Similarly, a boy wants to call themselves a girl and a liberal says - kudos! Go with God. You have the freedom to choose. But the problem is now this: if a boy can be a girl, we liberals must also provide support and institutions to validate this absurdity. So what went from a non-violation of the harm principle, now rather becomes a question of resource allocation. And on what grounds can a liberal defend against trans-education, support, healthcare, and brain washing? There is no defense except in perhaps marginal cases. But people and democracies are not animated by marginal cases. They need a cause. 

Logging

TV: Succession S3 E4-5 

Show is losing it a bit. Getting repetitive and a tad boring. 

Lie

Newsom disappears for two weeks and cancels trip to climate conference to "stay home for Halloween with his kids." If you believe this BS, I have a bridge to sell you.

Personally, I'd be fine with him saying "private matter." But it's pretty hard to simultaneously hold the the belief that climate change is an urgent issue and then cancel meetings about it for trick or treating. 

It would be rather ironic if we find out Newsom had an allergic reaction to the vaccine he's been touting -- almost ironic as Trump getting COVID after downplaying the disease.

My Fucking God

This man nails it.

Also, they propose sweeping changes to K-12 curricula, but you can’t call it CRT, even though the curricular documents specifically reference CRT, and if you do you’re an idiot and also you’re a racist cryptofascist. Also nobody (nobody!) ever advocated for defunding the police, and if they did it didn’t actually mean defunding the police. Seems to be a real resistance to simple, comprehensible terms around here.

Because "they" are a bunch of not-very-intelligent-totalitarian-liars.

Aaron Rogers

"People" are mad because he lied about his vaccine status. No they aren't. They gave Kyrie the same "he's a dumbass" treatment. This is the exact public shaming and ridicule Rogers wanted to avoid, and the public reaction to him getting COVID validates his point.

I'm pro vaccine. I would've gotten the vaccine tested on myself last year before the approval. I think it's the best thing we've built in my lifetime. 

But the question around Rogers is simple: do we have tolerance for grown up Americans opting out of using vaccines? I vote we ought to tolerate it. Others don't. 

And for those who don't, I have questions:

1) How much pressure are you willing to put on the non-compliant? Will you not let them in restaurants? Movies? Will you take their jobs? Not allow them in school? Refuse them medical care?

2) Do you think your pressure will work? Can you reasonably demonstrate the pressure you apply will get more people vaccinated?

3) And with the extra vaccinations you brought to bear with your pressure, how many fewer severe cases, hospitalizations, and deaths have you prevented? Can you show any numbers?

4) How long do you intend to pressure people into vaccinations? Do you intend to require boosters for employment, school, restaurants, etc?

5) How about children? Should children be required to be COVID vaccinated even with the rate of death for children being around 1 in 100,000? Have you seen the list of vaccinations children are already required to take? I count 7-8. 

6) How do we factor in natural immunity? Not at all? Do all those people who caught chicken pox as youngsters therefore need a chicken pox vaccine now, too?

Ouch!

"You are not educated enough to oppose critical race theory. How dare you oppose critical race theory?" Is not a political argument, but rather a class argument: you don't belong. You don't get to question. 

Marvel

Wonder if phase 2 crashes and burns and everyone realizes Robert Downey Jr was worth every single penny (and in fact earned everyone else their salary). 

Candid Health Discussion

We are getting a more candid and open health discussion through our professional athletes than our public health authorities.

“It’s a virus of health, and the most important thing would be educating people on how to live a healthier life,” Rodgers said regarding the pandemic that was exacerbated mightily by comorbidities and especially obesity.

If the public health authorities were properly concerned with "health" they could've been hollering from the rooftops early on -- get in shape, lose some weight, eat better -- in order to prepare your body for survival both against the virus and more generally...

A Week For Moderate Democrats

A bi-partisan spending package on infrastructure! A referendum on CRT in schools! This is why we elected Biden. 

Unexciting, incremental improvements in American life.

Democrats Deny Political Reality

Democrats could moderate, or... they could also double down on calling everyone who disagrees even slightly with a progressive agenda a white supremacist.

Aim for the bushes.

Interesting Take

Mother of boy who raped 9th grade girl: she didn't struggle enough. 

Can someone answer what we're all really thinking: what was she wearing?

Liberals

Liberals: we need to change institutional racism across our entire society, but also we aren't doing it at all and conservatives are making it up. 

The liberal mind has become pathological. 

Math(s)

California working on revising math. Rather than injecting social justice into the teaching of math, why don't we just copy what countries like Singapore and Taiwan do to instruct students. With the goal of being the #1 country in math?

I know the real reason: because that would actually demand students do work and parents and teachers hold them accountable -- things no one in our society wants to do. Since complaining on twitter is a much more productive use of time.

"Reporting"

Hollywood Reporter does an interesting article on the Rust film budget, but uses the passive voice to suggest a narrative where the math does not add up.

Given that a dispute over hotel rooms for crew was part of what inspired much of the camera team to walk off the set on the morning Hutchins died, it is noteworthy that producers budgeted $25,000 for hotel rooms for themselves, an amount to cover five people, and $95,200 for below-the-line crew, an amount to cover 21 people.

Anyone capable of answering a basic SAT question? 

Yep

He's been saying this for awhile:

We're letting a noisy wing of our party define the rest of us. And my point is we can't do that," Carville told Cuomo. "I think these people are all kind of nice people. I think they're very naive, and they're all into language and identity. And that's all right. They're not storming the Capitol. But they're not winning elections." 

and

 "Some of these people need to go to a 'woke' detox center or something," Carville told Woodruff. "They're expressing a language that people just don't use, and there's backlash and a frustration at that."

And to be fair, I've been saying similar things for a decade and am basically told to shut the f up by fellow Dems and criticized as a Republican apologist or worse, a Trump supporter. 

 

Problem With the Big Bang Theory

If you can understand the content of this article, congrats you are smarter than me. Money quote:

While those people who crave certainty in their life might be unhappy because of the new measurement, it's important to remember that there are no sacred cows in science, and scientists are always checking and rechecking even their favorite universal models.

Except of course when it comes to not at all verified or tested pandemic responses. 

Yes It Is

Culture war is code for class war. 

Talking about the yellow-vest movement, French geographer Christophe Guilluy observes: “Immediately, the protesters were denounced as xenophobes, anti-Semites and homophobes. The elites present themselves as anti-fascist and anti-racist, but this is merely a way of defending their class interests. It is the only argument they can muster to defend their status, but it is not working anymore.”

Same here in the US. 

Logging

TV: Succession S3, E3 

Is it just me or is Logan's argument to Shiv about not bearing responsibility re: the cruise line pretty compelling? At least so far...

And I'm sure others have said it, but Brian Cox is out of this world as Logan -- powerful, yet out of time and place, and physically deteriorating. 

TV: Curb S11, E2

LD offers an understated critique of either Netflix or Hollywood - the power dynamics of the studio are thus: white dude named Don Jr in charge with 3 minions who barely speak: a character meant to read as trans, a black guy, and someone in a wheelchair.

He makes no comments about it. It lingers there like the children playing on a noose next to an American flag in a Peckinpah film.

My Side Bias

We all sort of know it to be true, but interesting to hear how it's been replicated in lab settings and unlike many biases, smart people are just as susceptible.

Losing A War to China

We should not frame the question as a war with China. The war would be against the CCP. And it ought to be made clear to the top 500-1000 leaders members of that organization that they would not survive any war against us or Taiwan. At least that's how I'd handle it.

Rust Shooting

A story you won't see in the press is how COVID safety measures are very expensive for independent productions and some of the corners cut might be a result of those budget constraints.

Colin in Black and White

Dominick Patton has his critic's license renewed by speaking favorably about Colin in Black and White.

I could write the reviews for this thing without seeing it.

Logging

Film: Fat City

Sly Stallone owes John Huston and Leonard Gardner some residuals, methinks for the Rocky franchise. 

Logging

Film: Dune

Packed IMax theater on a Tuesday night -- impressive. Visually stunning, of course. Overall experience satisfying but not exhilarating. The logical comparison are Star Wars and Game of Thrones, each of which surpass Dune by quite a bit...Star Wars by the sheer storytelling propulsion, energy, and landing of character/emotional moments. The world, pace, and tone more resembles Game of Thrones, but GOT earns their narrative twists and patient character revelations whereas those are quite clunky and inorganic in Dune. I mean, Dany's hero transformation with the Dothraki was much better traced that Chalamet's, was it not?

But despite all of that, I quite liked the religiosity elements of the film alongside the trippy visuals and of course, the score.

In Chicago

Just 14 percent of black 11th-graders are proficient in English Language Arts and just 13 percent are proficient in math. Hispanics aren’t much better, with just 25 proficient in reading and 27 percent proficient in math.

So how long before the woke adopt the exact same position as the slave holders in the South that reading is a really just for whites?

Taxing Unrealized Capital Gains ie Billionaire Tax

I wonder how the populists will feel when during a terrible down year in stock prices, the government will be refunding billionaires for their unrealized losses. 

Will be quite the spectacle to see a year in which the government is paying out tax revenue to the richest people and everyone's 401k balances are in the shitter.

GOAT

"First of all, you cannot come if you have not watched my special from beginning to end. You must come to a place of my choosing at a time of my choosing, and thirdly, you must admit that Hannah Gadsby is not funny.”

Anyone Else Find It Strange

That the folks most concerned with structural and systemic racism seem to think government agencies and rules will do the trick to fix it? By their own argument, aren't these the same structures and rules that caused the "systemic racism" in the first place?

Logging

TV: Succession S3 E2

Are we supposed to forgot Kendall killed someone in a car accident in season 1 while high out of his mind? Why doesn't Logan use this as leverage? 

Yep

The reason woke demands are so outrageous is because they are meant to break your will and doubt your sanity. The objective is gaslighting not persuasion.

Average Net Worth

California = 884K

West Virginia = 376K 

For all the egalitarians in California, I've never heard a single one suggest redistributing our riches to other States.

Uhhh...

Nike celebrates a senior executive who confesses to having committed a murder. 

Sounds like America in 2021. 

Manchin and Sinema

Are examples to me of the how our system actually still manages to function despite the craziness of our populace. Damn, those founding fathers were actually pretty goddamn smart. 

Logging

Film: Misery 

An emotional reading of the film--

Paul Shelton = America

Annie Wilkes = trans activists

People

You can tell quite a lot about a person by how they feel about Jojo Rabbit.

I stopped watching it.

Logging

TV: Can't Get You Out Of My Head E1

The Cultural Revolution began with Mao's wife seizing the film studios and producing classic Chinese operas to convey her political ideas about struggling against the ruling class. The next move was canceling school for kids to focus on protesting.

Netflix Walkout

I will definitely evolve my views if we get a news story about a regular guy who watched the Dave Chapelle special and then decides to go out and kill a trans person. But somehow I don't really see this happening. Do they?

Weird Thing To Think About

China created a society whereby everyone aged 45 and younger has no experience of having a sibling.

Kyrie

To be sure, I have no clue what point he's trying to make about vaccines but I find his position at least as coherent as Colin Kaepernick's. What did Kap want?

Logging

TV: Succession S3 E1

Don't quite get why this show is so incredibly watchable given the repetitive and seemingly non-visceral nature of the conflicts. But it is. Perhaps the unpredictability of Kendall and Logan's behaviors makes it so. 

On a thematic level, it's probably the best expression of how the American ruling class sees itself. Power hungry sycophants where morality exists only as a tool to shame rivals and enemies.

Film: Reappraisal of Deuce Bigalow Male Gigalo

While by no means an excellent movie, I laughed harder at these series of scenes with William Forsythe than anything I've watched in awhile. He's out Leslie Nielsening Leslie Nielsen.

Carmen Mola

That three Spanish men were cowriting under single female pseudonym and won a prize makes me want to read all of her books. 

Especially the one set in the cholera epidemic.

Logging

Film: Smooth Talk

A rather banal, mediocre film up until the final sequence featuring Treat Williams and a young Laura Dern that merits any cinema lovers attention and reexamination. Vexing.

Film: Duece Bigalo Male Gigalo

Only watched the first act so far, but I prefer the Sandler films and Night at the Roxbury. 

Renewable Energy

It fits entirely with my understanding of the American ruling class "logic" that we would advocate for renewables at home, protest local usage of fossil fuel, and then refuse to pay the bill when it comes. Instead, behind closed doors, we encourage OPEC and other nations to increase their energy outputs (thus harming the environment in an exact equal amount had we produced it on our own).

Because at the core of our (now) ruling liberal elite is a moral vanity paired with no understanding of basic economics.

Safe nuclear was and is the answer. It's never too late.

Bravo

To Sarandos and Hastings for standing up to the mob. Finally! Public support of free speech and art.

If the employees really cared, they'd quit and build their a competitor netflix where they only show non-offensive and non-oppressive entertainment. Good luck with it.

What Netflix Ought To Do

Is fire any employee that walks out to protest. 

Logging

TV: Ted Lasso s2

I'll just repeat what others have been saying: something is WAY off. I guess they decided to take a comedy and turn it into a melodrama? What happened here? 

Also - check the storytelling pace. In season 1, the show was super patient. Moved at almost a slow clip. Season 2 they rush through story. Characters make sudden leaps. Roy Kent is a brilliant TV host right out of the gate?  Sam becomes an expert on Nigerian government corruption after reading one text message?

Ridiculous.

Wokeness as a Smokescreen

Say you do something wrong in the workplace or elsewhere, a pretty clever strategy would to be employ a "woke criticism" of your employer or authority figure to distract from the issue at hand. You'd get automatic public support and contrition from your employer. 

For instance, you get criticized for coming in late for work. You speak to HR about the workplace not being diverse enough. You get criticized for not being a team player, we need gender neutral bathrooms right now. 

A woke smokescreen.

The Closer

Wanted to link this from twitter, but can't figure it out. Critics score: 33%, Audience score: 97%.

Elite vs. Masses.

Logging

Film: Young Frankenstein 

Humor a bit dated. I've never totally vibed with Mel Brooks. 

Thought

Anyone who thinks the purpose of art is to validate their political ideology is a fucking idiot.

Logging

Comedy: Chapelle - Closer

The reason Chapelle is the GOAT - in his worst comedy specials, there will be a joke or two funnier than other comedian alive can deliver. 

And this is his best show I've seen.

Censorship 

Various fill-in-the-blank groups asking to pull Chapelle special from Netflix. 

Censorship has come roaring back into the picture and I'm baffled by how unoffended Americans are by it. It's happening at many levels - local schools, online, in political speech, and now the arts as well. That the forces excited by censorship feel bold enough to attack the GOAT comic of all time tells you all you need to know: we are in trouble.

Hmmm...

Pretty prescient of these Chinese institutions to start ordering PCR tests in May 2019, several months before the virus made a leap from animals to humans.

Great Countries

Pound for pound, South Korea and Denmark make the best films.

Facebook

As much as I hate Facebook, I cannot imagine Congress regulating it will accomplish much of anything. 

Solution here is obvious: Facebook buys the WSJ with its pocket change.

Logging

TV: Reservation Dogs and Squid Game Pilots

Reservation Dogs feels like a student film.

Squid Game was pretty terrific. 

Logging

Film: The Many Saints of Newark 

I really wish there was an empirical way to study how film studios depict black characters post George Floyd. It's almost as if they portray every black character as the same person - good heart, victimized by the social structure, forced to do bad for the right reasons, and most importantly, cool. No flaws. No subconscious. No quirks. No humanity. And all movie reviews must praise the performance automatically. It's a template. 

If you want to see real black characters on TV, reality tv set on islands do a much better job. Love Island and F-Boy Island for starters.

I hate to beat up on the Sopranos film but it seems we've gotten a lot better at making trailers than movies.

Metaverse

What Zuckerberg calls the Metaverse, I call a bunch of obese people laying on the couch with goggles on eating cheetos. 

Think I'll be living out my time in the physical world. Thanks, though.

State Funded Pre-K

Let's be honest here: this is for the parents, not the kids. 

America

In the 20th century, we saved the world. In the 21st, I expect the world to return the favor. 

NBA Vaccinations

I'm not heavily invested in the NBA vaccination debate, but it strikes me there is a stronger argument for mandatory vaccinations in an NBA setting (vs normal workplaces) due to physical proximity, etc.

A bit inegalitarian to force refs, team employees, etc to get vaccinated while not also mandating the same for players. Not that I'm an egalitarian. 

Unintended Consequences

Thousands of NYC teachers may be suspended on Tuesday.

Underdiscussed

78% of those hospitalized with COVID are overweight or obese. 

Given how much we discuss masks and vaccines, there's been relatively little discussion how we could've avoided the huge COVID death toll by being generally in better shape. Why isn't this part of our national discussion?

Indicators

I know you can't fully know a person's character by the mere presence of a face tattoo, but as a simple heuristic, I would probably avoid hiring them for say...childcare or many other jobs that require good judgement. 

Similarly, if a person in power spends a lot of other's people time and/or money on "anti-racism" or CRT, I'd be willing to bet they are attempting to distract you from some form of thievery on the other end.

Like, he opts to give his employees CRT training and pay Kendi versus giving them a matching 401k contribution. Which would you rather have?

Defund The Police

Someone needs to study the policy implications of defunding the police. Do they lead to more crime and murders of black and brown people? Are those policies therefore racist?

Do You Have An Allergy to Lies Or Not?

Kendi claims POC don't have access to vaccines. 

Are they unable to get to CVS?

Polio Vaccine    

Apparently, people were skeptical of the polio vaccine when it came out and Elvis himself got vaccinated on the Ed Sullivan show to help encourage people. Huh. 

Makes one wonder if anyone in the public health establishment was even thinking about vaccinate hesitancy and how one might get the message out. Did they decide upon name calling and nagging as their marketing policy?

No one thought to get in touch with Nicki Minaj's swollen balled cousin?

Thought

Joe Pesci is the American Bob Hoskins. 

The Big Lie: 1619

I understand the Nicole Hannah Jones's of the world. They got a hustle. The sickness is with the people who won't call it what is. In other words, many of us.

It required no advanced knowledge of American history to understand the perversity of The 1619 Project’s lead essay’s treatment of the Revolution. If it were a high school history paper, that discussion alone would have been grounds for failure. It’s rare, after all, to read a student get every single stated fact perfectly wrong, in support of a proposition for which there is no other evidence cited, on two of the most important topics in all of U.S. history, indeed, all of modern history, the causes of the American Revolution and the origins of antislavery. But this wasn’t a high school paper, it was the New York Times Magazine, and the author was, according to her contributor’s biography, a highly acclaimed journalist. The essay may have been historically fallacious, but it was also inflammatory and attention-getting.

It's a gigantic, deliberate lie. In a real society, NHJ would be an unemployable laughing stock who hangs at Starbucks all day to use the bathrooms. Instead, she's a leading intellectual in our fractured joke of a society. 

Ouch

More on the idiocy of public health officials. 

Also, one of the No votes on boosters said that he feared approval would effectively turn boosters into a mandate and change the definition of fully vaccinated. So, it appears that the overzealousness to demand vaccine mandates has actually contributed to fewer people getting access to (booster) vaccines, thus paradoxically contributing to spread. A vivid illustration of the problem with, “That which is not mandatory should be prohibited.”

and

 (2) leading them to “shade” their interpretation of data to promote their preferred behavioral outcome rather than answering positive (non-normative) questions with positive scientific statements, (3) thus undermining the credibility of public health institutions (FDA, CDC) and leading to things like vaccine hesitancy.

Sums it up well. 

I Wasn't There

But the lawyers from the Texan ladies who attacked the NYC hostess over covid vaccination cards claim she called them the n word and accused them of having fake vac cards. The plausibility of a 24 year old female hostess 2 weeks on the job calling a group of tourists the n word in NYC seems pretty implausible to me. But still, lawyer gotta lawyer, right? 

And just for my own knowledge, are we legally allowed to attack people if they make racial slurs? Asking for friends.

So Is There A Mask Mandate Or Not?

A bit of a weird take here by SF Mayor London Breed.

I basically agree with her that we ought to be loose with mask wearing, but when we wonder why Americans basically don't listen to politicians -- this is why. She's saying: don't follow my rules when it suits you -- use your judgement. So what happens when people disagree about which rules to follow?

Political Activists 

People do understand these people are basically conwoman and crooks, don't they?

Incoherence

We don't need vaccine boosters but the vaccinated do need to keep masking and social distancing and testing. So which is it? Is Delta dangerous or not? 

We need to prioritize vaccines for the 3rd world, but had we done so, we would be "testing" the vaccines on the poor.

You need vaccine proof to enter a bar in LA, but we won't stop unvaccinated illegal immigrants from streaming into the US along the Texas border.

We need to threaten jobs to ensure the hesitant get vaccinated to have a simple, consistent policy. However, if and when a Republican were and was President, you should definitely not trust the vaccine.  

Everyone needs to wear a mask, except everyone also knows we don't really need to wear masks which is why they don't at events like Obama's birthday party and the Met gala.

Science should not be political if your politics are wrong, but if your politics are right, they should be taken into account.

$

I would pay $25 to watch a pay per view debate between Fauci and Nicki Minaj.

I would pay $50 if it includes Fauci examining her cousin's swollen testicles.

Sick

Facebook knows Instagram increases suicidal ideation and eat disorders amongst teen girls. And Zuckerberg's response? You don't even need me to tell you.

Is it really any mystery why suicide, depression, anxiety, and body dysmorphia, etc has exploded over the past 8-9 years? I find it about as mysterious as whether COVID was created by a lab leak.

Logging

Film: Mona Lisa

Bob Hoskins, Neil Jordan film from 1986. First time I saw this, I was a bit underwhelmed. Not enough violence or action for my younger self. Now...one of the best character studies in the neo noir genre and top 10 or 20 films made in the 1980s.

To Get This Outta The Way

The new Matrix trailer looks incredible. What a moment for a movie reboot... low expectations from the debacles of the other Matrix sequels plus well, the past 22 years, where the Matrix themes have only become more relevant (sadly). Plus... with COVID winding down, we are ready to go out to the theaters again, plus Carrie Ann Moss and Keanu really rediscovering themselves as middle aged actors, with a good number of small to medium-sized creative wins of late. Yes, it's a good time. 

Reflections Upon A Trip to France

1) The various rules and bureaucracy related to COVID in different countries, airlines, etc makes travel considerably more stressful and annoying

2) Coach seats for international travel feel a lot less comfortable than they used to.

3) American Pickle is an excellent movie. Full stop.

4) The Paris subway is not a very pleasant place to be these days.

5) The last time I was in France 20+ years ago, it was pretty common to feel an anti-American vibe out on the streets. This time, there was none of that. Perhaps because I spent most my time in Normandy versus Paris. Perhaps because I was there for an American film festival. But I think the true reason is that European anti-Americanism was always a bit petty and in the wake of COVID, the oppressive nature of social media, and all the political and social tensions in the Western world, the French have bigger things to concern themselves with than old fashioned anti-Americanism.

6) Do not order steak in Normandy near the coast, but rather the seafood.

7) Eat the butter and bread at every opportunity. 

8) Seeing a film you helped create on the second biggest screen in France with an adventurous film festival audience is a unique experience I will always be grateful for. 

9) Pig is a pretty good movie. Maybe a very good one.

10) When on the beach in Normandy in the AM, sunbathers face away from the water, which is surreal for someone from California. Do they do this to face the sun? I don't totally understand.

11) On casual observation, there were a lot of mother-daughters hanging out together in Normandy. I have no idea why.

12) Paris feels incredibly multi-cultural whereas Normandy feels very "French."

13) The French seem to adore Johnny Depp.

14) They still smoke in France.

15) You get COVID tested in pharmacies

16) The best casual food to try is salami from a deli where they slice it for you. Ask them what to try. They do something different with the cured meats in France and Europe in general and it is much better than even the best stuff you get in America. 

17) In contrast, the coffee you can now get in the US rather easily (Philz, Equator, etc) is better than the espresso (cafe) you get in France.

18) I did not have the urge to turn on the TV the entire time I was there. I watched films on the plane and in the cinema.

19) City of Lies was not a good film.

20) One of the best lines someone said to me was "even the decent looking women in France are hot."

21) Train service from Paris to Deauville is comfortable and pleasant.

22) In St. Germain at night, you cannot tell there is a pandemic from the street other than showing your vaccine card to eat/drink.

23) The hosts and hostesses aren't looking very hard when they check your vaccine card. A piece of cardboard with two dates written on lines would probably pass.

24) On the air flight home, one passenger refused to wear a mask and caused a lot stress for the flight attendants. 

25) Overheard at LAX shuttle to Uber: "it used to be easier to just hail a taxi." I agree. 

Recall

An argument for Newsom's recall based upon his mismanagement of the drug crisis and homelessness. The proof is in the pudding. In an era of unprecedented riches in California, we have simultaneously mismanaged our political affairs to such a degree, our streets in LA and SF have turned into 3rd world blights. 

The LA Times today published 4-5 panicked pleas to vote for Newsom over the "nihilism" of Larry Elder. 

Please. 

The Democrat playbook is the same every single time: panic over the evil Republican (fill in the blank name). They are fascists, nihilists, etc, etc. 

Meanwhile, hold no Democrat responsible for anything. The LA Times articles say Newsom got unlucky with COVID and inherited problems of homelessness, drug abuse, and EDD. And he's brave for granting gay marriage licenses before the rest of the country in the gayest fricking city in the entire world -- my home - San Francisco. Gimme a break!

Meanwhile, we haven't had a real Republican in any sort of power in California for 30 freaking years. So let's ask this question: how are we supposed to register dissatisfaction with our government in California?

Seriously? Who can we call to cut this ridiculous lowering of standards in education? To cut out the anti-racist nonsense from our jobs and our politics? To clean up the streets, to help the drug addicted, the homeless, to do something about the astronomical housing costs, or the crazy amount of taxes, or the wildfires, or the gas prices, or the global fucking warming, or the EDD scandals, or rolling blackouts? Seriously, LA Times....what should Californians do? Just suck it up and keep electing the same cabal of incestuous, incompetent Democrats like Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsom, and Eric Garcetti? The Democrats have had 30 years to tackle these issues and as far as I can tell, they've all gotten worse under their watch. Is this because of George W Bush, or Donald Trump, or all the racists out in the heartland? All the crazy Republicans blocking the Democrats from brilliant policies to solve these problems? Nope.

It's a bunch of lies for corrupt incompetents to hold onto power. 

Military Brass

So while Mark Milley was reading up on white rage, our actual enemies the Taliban and Al Queda were busy plotting our humiliation and the slaughter of our allies. Glad our military leaders have their priorities straight. 

And for the record -- what's the argument we can't sustain the small presence in Afghanistan to keep the Taliban off balance for the next 50 years? Unless I'm missing something, it seems like we're bringing home the troops to pay for the child tax credit and free school lunch. Not that I'm positive this is the wrong decision, but what's so unsustainable about keeping a couple thousand active troops to support those who oppose some of the worst people on the planet?

Biowarfare Lab

The US has a biowarfare lab in Utah the same way China has one in Wuhan. Imagine the outbreak started in Utah, do you think the US government and press would've "not" investigated the possibility of the lab leak theory? Would anyone in the entire world believe the "it occurred naturally" nonsense peddled by scientists.

When they say "trust the science" what they really mean is don't question authority. If you want the public to trust the public health experts, perhaps behave in a trustworthy manner? So...perhaps don't lie. Don't cover up for powerful interests. Be candid. Be honest. Be clear. Don't twiddle your thumbs with bureaucratic BS (like they've done with vaccine approval) and vaccines for those under 12. 

Logging

Film: No Sudden Move 

Despite the cast, it does not feel like a massive movie by a master filmmaker, but rather a genre mash up exercise made by someone with a fondness for 70s films like Network and Charley Varrick.

By biggest lingering question: What happened to Benicio Del Toro? He had more of a presence in Somewhere during a single scene in an elevator.

Welp

History has caught up to us. 

Against White Feminism

This looks relevant.

In Zero Dark Thirty (and the truish story behind it), American feminism — once a movement that existed in opposition to the state, as a critique of its institutions and mores — was recast as one that served the state’s interests through any means imaginable. This identification with state interests, and the idea of going out to conquer the world with the same mindset of subjugation and domination possessed by white men, seems to have become a warped feminist goal.

In other words,  “The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”

What Hath Free Britney Wrought

From CNN, who appears to be needing clicks:

She went on to write that she was posting the topless photos "because I was born into this world naked and I honestly feel like the weight of the world has been on my shoulders and it's made me view myself that way!!!!" "I wanted to see myself in a lighter way ... naked ... like the way I was born and to me looking back at my pictures when I shoot it's insane the psychology in seeing myself in my purest form gives evidence that pain ... hurt ... tears ... and heavy burdens aren't who I am," she wrote. "I am a woman .... a beautiful ... sensitive woman who needs to look at myself in my purest form!!!"

Logging

TV: White Lotus

Show fell off for me a bit in the 2nd half 

TV: F Boy Island

No mas. 

Question

Does the Afghanistan "smart war" failure make anyone else reconsider Iraq in a more positive light?

Maybe It Should Not Be A Surprise

That a country who cannot agree upon what human beings are male and female would have trouble nation building a tribal, warlike, devout set of 38 million people in rough terrain halfway around the world.

Disgrace

What's happened in Afghanistan in a national disgrace. I don't really know what to say about our country anymore. 

Question on Vaccines

Why don't the Democrats direct their ire at the plodding pace of FDA approval for young kid vaccinations? The national association of pediatricians wrote a strongly worded letter to the FDA to basically let kids over age 5 get vaccinated already. What is the hold up? How are we doing this again? 

Am I the only one that sees no basic public health policy improvements between the Biden Admin and Trump? The only successful element of public health policy during COVID was the creation of the vaccine. Would mask policy have helped much? I'm not really sure. 

Someone Must

Write a movie trivia question for the answer Armond White Lotus 

Laughing Out Loud

American Express does a training program about CRT and the racist evil of capitalism. What an absurd joke. A freaking credit card company. 

We all know what this is, right? A fucking payoff. A shakedown. Enough to make you sick. 

Not A Bad Idea

Hungarian PM: Have Four Kids and never pay taxes again. 

For all the valid fears of the far right wing populism, some of their ideas are not terrible. Maybe that is discourse working?

Interesting Take

I'm gonna have private security, but we need to defund the police. 

There's maybe logic in there...somewhere...

Numbers

CDC: 25% of the Black community are vaccinated.

The new Jim Crow would be vaccine passports.

And pandemic attitude by group.

I'm in group C (15%). 

I've accepted the fact that everyone is going to get Delta sooner or later. It'll be an endemic. So plan accordingly, but masks will only delay the inevitable. 

Heuristic on Teachers 

Not that one has a choice, but if you're below college aged, opt for older teachers but once in college and grad school opt for younger teachers. Why?

Old teachers are more "stuck in their ways" and for younger kids, those ways are good. They teach classics and basics and foundational elements with tried and true methodology. 

Younger teachers are not so much and more connected to the way things are now. And that will help you transition out into the workforce as one is preparing to do when in college and grad school.

Caveat: I don't just mean in age, but also soul. So an old teacher can feel "young" and those folks would be good college/grad school professors. Likewise, a young teacher could feel "old school" and they'd be good in elementary school.

No proof, just my instinct.

Hispanics Prefer To Be Called Hispanics

Or Latino.

But since 5% of them would prefer Latinx, the cultural elite think we ought to go for that one. 

I guess everyone can be called by whatever gender, race, pronoun they want except for the largest minority in the country. 

Thank God For the Republicans

For not which, the Democrats would eat each other.  

The Woke vs. Karens would be an enjoyable cage match.

"When we are combating a deadly virus & vaccine hesitancy in some communities, this kind of rhetoric is dangerous,” tweeted City Councilor Andrea Campbell tweeted. “Showing proof of vaccination is not slavery or birtherism. We are too close to give ground to COVID. Science is science. It’s pretty simple – Vax up and mask up.” 

 Janey responded to the criticism later Tuesday while at a block party, the Boston Globe reported. “What I said was there is a long history of asking people to show their papers,” Janey explained. “What our focus here in Boston is in making sure that everyone has access to the vaccine, making sure that we are doing everything to vaccinate our workforce in the city of Boston, making sure that our residents have access to the vaccine.”

After The Woke

The woke will die out eventually because they cannot build anything. They could do a lot of damage on the way down...but I very much doubt they could be as "successful" as say, the Bolsheviks (they lack the ruthlessness, organization, and picked the wrong home country). Ask yourself...do you know any Bolsheviks today?

But after the woke, I can picture a new ideology centered around a group I'll call The Enthusiasts. I've noticed this type of person in a variety of walks of life. They are a know-it-all about minor subjects and love to slam mainstream opinion. A few recent examples: I started shopping for a BBQ a few months ago. And jesus, how complicated that's become. I started to settle on a Traeger for the combo of ease and cooking flavor, but then I started stumbling upon these BBQ enthusiast boards who were slamming Traeger for the expense, for the lack of searing ability, for the flavor, etc. They all suggested going for this Kamado Joe thing. Meanwhile, I'm exhausted by all the choices - I started this thing charcoal vs. propane. And now I'm looking at some $2500 egg grill. So after almost being "talked" out of the Traeger by the Enthusiasts I said f-it, I'll trying this Traeger and am happy as a clam. And now I'm thinking to myself what was the point of the hardcore Enthusiast disdain? 

In a similar fashion, I stumbled upon another online discussion of the Peloton. Now, we got one because my wife wanted one. It's that simple. I'm aware it'll probably be a clothes rack in 5 years. But I ride it now and it's totally great, especially because we have small children and it's frankly really hard to get out and do exercise. So hopping on a bike for a 20 minute ride is better than the alternative of falling asleep on the couch with a bag of cheetos watching White Lotus. You dig? And I don't think Peloton is a good deal. Fuck no. It's expensive. You get the thing when you're in your 40s, if you both work, and it's not easy to get out of your house. A single guy in his 20s with student loan payments should not get this thing. Nevertheless, you go onto a "Is a Peloton worth it" discussion board and you get people coming out of the woodwork explaining how stupid it is, what a waste of money, why it's bad for your knees compared to an elliptical, how they go running on the beach instead for 3 hours a day, how they'd rather spend the money on a home gym, how they'd rather use some random other brand I've never heard of instead. Etc. 

Who are all these people? Who spends all this time micro-analyzing workout regimens? Doesn't this just boil down to individual preference? A Peloton is worth it if the cost doesn't affect you and you'll use it. But the Enthusiast insists the Peloton or the Traeger or (fill in the blank) sucks and you should check out this XYZ other thing that undoubtedly sucks even worse, but it doesn't matter because I'd never go in that fucking direction anyway. I'm not getting an elliptical. I've never even done an elliptical. But the Enthusiast insists the elliptical is better than the bike. Who cares? It's like asking if Mammoth is a good place to ski and the response is: skiing sucks compared to sky diving. What is the appeal of this weirdo rabbit hole of logic?

20 years ago you could find what we'd now call a "woke" person on every college campus asking some stupid question about Che Guevara every lecture, but you never thought such people would amount to anything. I figured that person would either change their tune or be unemployed. Instead, they run newspapers, public schools, and corporations. Joke's on me. So I wonder what happens to these Enthusiasts in 20 years, especially after all the woke are finished eating each other. Just asking...

Truth Commissions

To be honest, I could do without a January 6th commission. I know what happened. A mob got riled up by reckless Republicans pushing the election was stolen narrative. They could've caused some damage, even gotten a public official killed, but guess what: these were clowns. They weren't in the least bit dangerous. There was not a single person or group plotting anything that could be said to be a coup or something of that magnitude. 

But what I do want a commission on: corona virus origins. And how the NY Times helped quashed any initial inquiries. And how the virus sequence was published by Chinese scientists only to be taken down and now over a year later, republished. I'm sure with no edits. 

Let's get our priorities straight.

And note: I'm sure it's true Rupert Murdoch and his fox empire have been searching diligently for the CCP-made origins of the virus theory. Liberal reporters cite this as a negative -- that Murdoch is pushing an anti-China agenda in the West, leading us down a path to war. But to me, he's doing the job of what places like the NYTimes OUGHT to be doing -- tracking down the freaking truth. Now, apparently, the NY Times thinks their job is to make things copacetic between the great powers in the world? Thereby entrenching those already in power...like the CCP and our current elite. And they wonder why the hatred and backlash from the public.

Follow Up Question

How old were you? 2 or 3? 

Interesting

At around 5th grade, most semi-intelligent kids can figure out this logic puzzle. 

But, the interesting find: if the 5th grader gets it wrong, the adult version of this (let's call them not semi-intelligent) still does not get it right. Some people are not capable of 2nd or 3rd level logic and never will be. Which is why we have lots of folks who would benefit from getting vaccinated, not getting vaccinated. And income inequality, btw.

Yikes

The teacher's unions insisted upon prolonged school closings and getting to jump in line for vaccinations, but over 40% (in NYC) didn't get vaccinated.

And now let me guess: they'll argue for school closings again because of Delta. Nitwits.

To Paraphrase Godfather 2

The "tell" about wokeism, ie how you know it's corrupt and dangerous, is the corporate elite embrace it. 

I think about corporations the way Frankie Pentangeli thinks about Hyman Roth - I'll do business with them, I'll respect them, but I'll never trust 'em...

LeBron Mural Defaced

From the artist: "[W]hy would you even take time our of your day to go f*** up what someone else did for the community"

Now ask: how do you feel about all the statues vandalized and tore down across America last year?

A Little Bit of Harsh Truth 

Isn't wokism a nice way for upper class people to disguise the fact they've never had a lower class people (of any color) in their homes?

Security Theater

This guy's convinced me masks are pointless now.

He makes an incredible point about the philosophical debate of personal responsibility vs. obligation to others, the dynamic of which so much of our public policy debate hinges. But here, with vaccines, we have almost a perfect real world example where we ought to have basically zero obligation to protect those who refuse vaccines from the virus because they choose not to protect themselves.

And he makes an interesting case for why partisanship in the US is actually good -- because reveals through hatred and dichotomy, the flaws of both sides. Ideal world, in other words, is one with no masks, no security theater, no safetyism, but a lot of private and public incentives to vaccinate. 

On a separate note, the vaccine rollout somewhat confirms my preexisting concern that 20-25% of the population is too stupid to make even semi-optimal decisions for themselves (and much less others) and I have no idea what do about that fact given we live in a liberal democracy. 

Noble Lies

I'm all in favor of noble lies if they work. But Fauci's "lies" have been transparently wrong to moderately intelligent Americans. He doesn't know his audience. 

It's a noble lie to tell a 4 year old about Santa Claus. But try the same with a teenager and you're up shit creek. 

The important part of a noble lie - you've got to have the right explanation for the lie once uncovered (as it will be) that will make the person understand why you needed to tell it. Fauci can't even play this 3D level chess, much less the 12D chess he imagines himself playing. 

Newsom

So the camp he trusts enough to send his kids to doesn't even respect his mandate. Good luck with the red parts of California.

I Fucking Like This Guy

Eric Adams. 

A Form of Projection

"Weird/telling thing about left of center twitter discourse right now is that for coalition reasons all the wrath directed at MAGA country for this delta spike is absent wrt the POC in blue cities that are a big reason for the vax stalling where Blue Check Twitter actually lives"

We might need a new word for this phenomenon, where folks criticize behaviors of out groups but simultaneously defend the same behavior by in groups. Maybe it's just hypocrisy...but the neurosis involved is such that I really think the white liberal mind really blames Trump supporters for non-vac and blocks out the fact that POC communities right next door to them are doing the exact same thing. 

New Media

Is it the job of the news media to get folks vaccinated? 

Logging

Film: Black Widow

Inoffensive, and rather enjoyable. Family stuff the best part.

Film: Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Pretty unique, but not a film I care to continually revisit. A good worldwide introduction/document of Bob Hoskins, however.

TV: White Lotus, pilot

Intriguing insight into the depression and unhappiness evident in our coastal elite class. And a clever twist on the murder mystery plot - who is dead? Who is the killer? 

Film: Space Jam, A New Legacy

My children insisted I turn off the film after 15 minutes and it's one of the better decisions they've made this week. A disgusting Lebron vanity project - god this guy is gonna be insufferable after he stops playing bball. Are we gonna have to see a Last Dance - LeBron documentary? Is there anything I'd like to watch less? And PS - I'm a LeBron fan. 

Film: The Tax Collector

Interesting as a crime drama/thriller concept -- story of Job set in the Mexican Mafia, but stretched believability for me - and not because I didn't buy Shia LeBouf in La Eme, but more because the Bloods suddenly team up with the main character at the end (spoiler). Also, let's be real, Shia didn't get to kick enough ass.

So She Quit

Without having seen a single minute of the Olympics, I'm hearing about this Simone Biles situation and as far as I can tell, she basically quit on her team. What am I missing?

Taiwan

Agree, the US will not shed blood over Taiwan. But if Taiwan is willing to fight for their own freedom, we ought to support and fund them without condition. 

The Many Saints of Newark

I could hardly be more excited for something. Must temper expectations.

Nationalized Anything

For anyone who thinks the answer to any question is more government systems, I suggest they try renewing their driver's license with the DMV to disabuse themselves of the notion.

Acting

Logging

Film: Captain America: The Winter Soldier

The best Marvel film -- although that's not saying much. How did they get both Shandling and Redford?

Opposite Greg (Gregorio) take: Marvel Universe is one of the most brilliant innovations of the past 20 years - 22 films that manage to weave their storylines into each other using different actors, filmmakers, writers, etc, and satisfy millions (if not billions) of movie goers.

Yep

We should study the lab leak theory - whether it turns out to be true or not - so we can know how to prevent future outbreaks.

That any person or entity opposes this idea is an absurdity.

NFL

I'll be curious about the dynamic that unfolds when the NFL makes vaccinations mandatory. 

You will have a number of players criticizing the heavy handedness (not unusual). But you will have the sports media, who usually takes the sides of players, perhaps jumping over to the side of the NFL on the issue.

Then, you'll have the red state fans, who normally would be on the side of the teams, perhaps taking the sides of the players.

I find this sort of stuff entertaining. 

Our Species Is Doomed

For those who criticize Bezos and other billionaires going to space, perhaps you will rethink upon seeing one of your fellow Americans notions on vaccinations.

The reason they won't get vaccinated is because "they" want you to get vaccinated.

I'm hard on how the CDC, FDA, US, World, and local governments handled COVID, but at this point, it's on the rest of us to use common sense. But we gotta face reality that there's a good 25% of folks out there who a) just want to see it burn or b) cannot make rational decisions even with all the information. 

Government Policy

So...is this what passes for government policy these days: giving out child tax credit monthly instead of applied at the end of the year when taxes are due? This is what's called six or a half dozen. If you like this policy, you could just have less withheld from your paycheck.

Ugh.

A Tell

That China won't support a transparent investigation into the virus origin is the "tell" that makes it much more likely it was created in a lab. I mean for crissake, they were testing "gain of function" coronaviruses in a Wuhan lab where the weird, new coronavirus first showed up. Then they covered it up for months and scrubbed all the evidence and punished anyone who talked about it. And the "natural transmission" story is pure speculation based upon...what evidence? The word of the government whose main interest is not taking blame for the lab leak theory? Even in the best case, the natural transmission hypothesis is still just a hypothesis and no new information has come out in the past year to further support the thesis. It's all very fishy.

Yep

The best defense of Fauci. Here is the issue:

Essentially, Paul is outraged by the 12D chess official system and wants to break out one question. Fauci wants to protect that system which probably believes that it’s safer to be in bed w/ CCP than to be shut out. Fauci is playing dumb on GoFR and Rand is insinuating too much. 

and this: 

In the end the system creatures are correct that we need grand strategies that are at times counter intuitive. The populists are correct that many grand strategies are batshit crazy. Hence the two incompatible world views. I expect this thread to be popular with neither. Alas...

Eek

Fauci does not come across well here. He makes a deliberately narrow point in order to avoid answering Paul's question about gain of function and NIH funding of the Wuhan lab. 

"Did you cheat on your wife?"

"No, I did not cheat on my wife on December 22nd as you allege."

"Sir, I did not say that, I said did you cheat on your wife?"

"My whereabouts on December 22nd are well documented. And let me say this: to suggest I cheated on my wife on December 22nd -- well, that's an outright lie."

This might get ugly. 

Gen Z / Millenial Contributions to Society

My favorite is the term "extra" which is perfect descriptor/insult for a certain type of person or behavior that existed, but lacked a word to aptly describe.

In contrast, I don't care for the term "fire" nor the emoji for it. It has the same meaning as the word "rad" or "awesome" from earlier generations.

Logging

Film: 42

After school special.

Plot Twist

Are we all about to regret #freeBritney?

Reminds me of the Seinfeld episode when Jerry gets sentimental but is scared straight when George tells him his deepest darkest feelings.

CA Energy Policies

So, the state government is asking people to limit their energy use. Hmmm. Is this the same state government that's been hell bent on promoting the use of electric vehicles.

Does this add up?

Logging

Film: Legally Blonde

I laughed twice. 

Alien PHD Student

If I had to guess, there's some alien PHD student gathering data for her thesis about how humans in America around 2021 decided a godless life lacked meaning and thus decided to put their faith in one of the three options: Peloton instructors, the MCU, or Black Lives Matter.

Logging

TV: Sopranos...

...is both the best drama and comedy ever made. 

And I love the Miley Cyrus video for Nothing Breaks Like A Heart

Vague, Generalized, and Probably a Series of Lousy Thoughts

The powerful have always told the public lies. But in the old days, the lies were noble in intent. They were hypocritical for sure, convenient for those in power, but the lies had an ennobling purpose. Today, the ruling elite still lie, but the intent is no longer noble...the intent is to seize power at all costs and eliminate dissent. It feels different because it is.

While a lot of the economic reports are good with respect to jobs, household debt, etc, it's pretty obvious to me we are borrowing heavily against the future.

2+2=5

Speech is violence. Violence is speech. 

And this is funny-- health experts: only protests against communism spread COVID.

Newsom Recall

He should be recalled for the EDD scandal alone. 

If the CEO of a company lost $31 billion to scammers, he would've been removed by the board months ago.

And it would be another thing if EDD actually functioned, but it both doesn't work for Californians and has been scammed by criminals. It's unbelievable.

News Media Matrix

You would think with all the emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion, the news media might report on the reluctance in the hispanic and african american communities to get vaccinated, but...crickets...

Logging

Film: The Tomorrow War

Halfway through, but I want to make note that in the story world of this film, human beings can travel through wormholes to the future, but opt to fight an invincible alien species with untrained, out of shape 40 year old draftees carrying machine guns and pistols. Hmmm.

Note

There are few things I hate more than CRT or the obscurantism of "anti-racism," but I also don't favor laws banning it. And I'm also coming around to the idea that this CRT shit is a drama being acted out by sick liberals and conservatives who want a culture war to give their sad, lonely lives meaning.

All that is to say, this fire needs no more of my oxygen.

Random Aside

Pulp Fiction is the best film ever made and nothing will ever be made like it again. 

And for the record, Tarantino is not an ironist or a sadist or a foot fetishish, but a romantic.

Smart

A twitter thread about what's going on in our "culture war."

We ignore at our peril - and yes, this is part of my book's argument - the idea that a bored and affluent middle-class, raised on a steady diet of narcissism and self-actualization are the real danger here. We have to stop making up noble excuses for illiberal ideas.

Sounds About Right

The instructor shared historical data on implementing “cultural relevant/ anti-racist” education dating back to the 90’s. Academic achievement got worse. Her solution is to do more of it.

Dystopian Hell

Or college campus. 

Is this how some colleges in America really are? I don't understand why this guy didn't leave decades ago. 

More Violence

Twitter thread on increased violence in America. 

But it definitely doesn't look as simple as "the protests caused the violence." And any explanation needs to account for the effects of gun proliferation and carrying which pre-dates the killing of George Floyd.

This is probably right, but both the protests, defunding the police, and the increased rates of violence are related to a similar underlying factor: a group of elites in America who no longer believe in the country they rule. As a collective, they see it as part piggy bank part a playground and not a country or people they love.

Happy 5th of July.