Democracy is a Spectrum, II: 2024 and Beyond
The immediate course of action is removing Republicans from power by voting for Democrats, but we also shouldn’t expect that voting for anyone will actually make things more democratic.
Democracy is a Spectrum: A History of the USA
The US history lesson I wish I was taught: An overview of how democratic the US has been over time, the driving forces behind the changes, and what that means for the present and future of the USA
Understanding the US Media, Part II: How & Why it Controls Public Sentiment
The issues the media chooses to amplify are generally those of the “culture war”, which to rich people are nothing more than window dressing. The culture war distracts viewers from the issues rich people care the most about, which is exactly why they don’t even want them discussed. You can’t lose a political debate if no one even realizes your position is up for debate.
Understanding the US Media, Part I: Centrism and Being “Unbiased” Is Bad
Claiming to be unbiased is an act of deception used to gain legitimacy, instead of using evidence to demonstrate legitimacy. Centrism is not actually unbiased. Instead, it’s biased towards the people who, thanks to their power within society, get to tell everyone else what “unbiased” is.
Hunter-Gatherer Hardware in an Industrial World
How lessons from early humans are useful in understanding human psychology in the modern world, and the politics that results in.
Reaganomics Celebrates 43 Years of Making the USA Worse
The derailment of a train carrying dangerous chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio is once again a problem whose cause lies entirely at the feet of the free market system and everyone who upholds it, meaning 2023 has already locked itself in as the 43rd straight year that the free market system has made the United States a worse country
Inflation: The Fed’s Coffin Corner
The situation the Fed is in now can be broadly equated to aviation’s coffin corner. The best way to deal with a coffin corner is to avoid it in the first place, but we already failed at that. This situation has been inevitable for decades, and at this point, inflation is unfortunately the best option left to get out of it.
Democracy Survived Trump, But The Fight Is Far From Over
After the January 6 attack on the Capitol, it’s clearer than ever that democracy itself was on the ballot in 2020. The only reason it ever got to that point was because the rest of the Republicans helped Trump.
How to Undermine Democracy
A list of 20 steps to undermine a democracy, and how Republicans have done all but the last one.
Our Own Worst Enemy
A look at how the USA has recently become more like Russia, Venezuela, and the Middle East
The Next Pandemic: Fascism
At best, Trump has been an incompetent leader who allowed tens, maybe hundreds, of thousands of Americans to die unnecessarily, and just happens to echo the tactics and rhetoric of some of history’s worst leaders.
That’s the best case scenario.
Republicans: The Party of Fiscal Irresponsibility
When Obama signed the stimulus bill into law, Republicans and conservative commentators harped on its historically large impact on the national debt. However, today, I hardly hear any of the same chatter from the right over Trump’s even larger deficit.
You’re Not On Their Team
Do you really think, once a select group of people that’s keen on oppressing others takes authoritarian control of a country, that they’ll spare those who voted for them in the past? If you do, you need to read up on your history.
Everyone Should Support Free College
It can be tempting for those who don’t have student loan debt to say “that’s not my problem”, and oppose any sort of loan forgiveness or tuition subsidy effort, but that’s missing the most important point about this student loan debt burden: it impacts everyone.
Master’s is the New Bachelor’s
The quicker we can realize that, over time, more people will need to go to college, the quicker we can start to address how to accommodate it, and prevent further negative economic side effects.
George Floyd, and So Much More
This country was like a gas leak, just waiting for a spark to ignite. George Floyd’s death was that spark.
The 1%’s Playbook
There are two kinds of policies the ultra-wealthy people support:
Those that benefit the ultra-wealthy
Those that keep in power the people who support the policies in [1]
The Political Cycle
What arises is a cycle of populist uprising, which typically happens quickly, followed by a slower degradation of power among commoners, until elites regain control. If the elites are oppressive enough, this leads to the next round of upheaval from the commoners to repeat the cycle.
The Problem With Inequality
Inequality has been rising for decades in the US, and the US has the worst inequality of any western nation.
Overcoming Nature
It was only once a robust enough society with law and order was built up that humans were able to achieve truly remarkable feats