Saved comments from April 2016
Aug. 9th, 2017 10:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
neonvincentMy comment on An Unfiltered Mind.
"Of course, the trouble with operations based on lies is that sooner or later reality intrudes with all its implacable wrath and you get a mighty correction impossible to ignore." That's happening on a smaller scale here in Michigan regarding the Flint Water Crisis. First, Snyder testified before Congress. He had to suffer through calls for his resignation from the Democrats. At the same time, the EPA Director got the same treatment from the Republicans. Next, his own task force issued its findings. They repeated Snyder's mantra that this was "a failure of government at all levels," but this time they focused on the state of Michigan, declaring it “fundamentally accountable” for the problems. One of the main culprits they identified was the state's Emergency Manager Law. Good luck changing that, as the lawmakers like it. The previous version was repealed by a vote of the people and the legislature passed a new version the next month, they approved of it so much!
My comment on The End of Ordinary Politics.
@Eric S. "Cruz on the other hand has a consistent, solid lead over Clinton and would take the presidency without much of a fight." What are you basing that conclusion on? It's not the polls. Looking through the Real Clear Politics General Election polls page, I see both Clinton and Sanders consistently beating Trump and Cruz. Only one poll of the entire country has Cruz beating Clinton, and that was a Fox News poll from two weeks ago. Otherwise, only polls of safely Republican states show Cruz winning. This is true where I live. I reporte on a poll showing Clinton and Sanders beating Trump and Cruz in Michigan.
@JMG I agree that the country desperately wants change. What people seem to want, at least based my experience, is Trump vs. Sanders. Instead of a putative outsider (a Senator or billionaire as outsiders--yeah, right) vs. an obvious insider, the U.S. would get what it wants, two insurgent candidates. Instead, it's the woman who wins the mainstream media vs. Springtime for Trump.
My comment on The Mystery Revealed "The reason is that the problems are unfixable, at least not within the acceptable terms of the zeitgeist, namely: the secret wish to keep all the rackets going at all costs." It's hardly secret. As you wrote, even the middle class wants to keep some version of suburban happy motoring going. You were right about people electing maniacs who promise to keep the entitlements of suburbia, but you might just have gotten those entitlements wrong. They're not the physical things you listed 13 years ago. Instead, they're the psychological entitlements of being insulated from urban problems, real, metaphorical, and imaginary. Trump is making that promise, even if it's not expressly about McMansions and SUVs. Surprise, you predicted Trump! Of course, there are some rackets that have finally been exposed and the people are clamoring for them to end. Here in Michigan, it's the Emergency Manager Law, the blowback from which has resulted in Congressional inquiries and lawsuits along with eroded approval ratings for Governor Rick Snyder. That last is the least of the state's problems, but it seems people are enjoying the Schadenfreude.
My comment on American Narratives: The Rescue Game "The Rescue Game...Here’s how it works. Each group of players is assigned one of three roles: Victim, Persecutor, or Rescuer." I know this by a different name, Karpman's Triangle AKA the Dreaded Drama Triangle. In this version, the roles are self-chosen and the participants are engaging in these behaviors not to fill some greater social need, but to manage their own psychological needs, especially their anxieties, in a way that allows the participants to ignore the dysfunction and harm done to others. The Persecutors get to be "one up" and say to the Victims "It's all your fault." Unlike the version you describe, there are actual benefits to being in this role other than negative attention. In both versions, the Victims get to say "poor me" to themselves and seek sympathy from the Rescuers, who says "poor you" to the Victims. However, the Drama Triangle acknowledges that the Victims can be engaging in self-destructive behaviors and the Rescuers end up enabling the Victims and keeping them dependent. The result is very unhealthy for all involved, as it just keeps the conflict going without achieving solutions. On a personal level, we should all try to break out of these roles for more constructive ways of dealing with each other and our environments. A healthy society should strive to get out of the game, too. However, as you've been pointing out for ten years (next month will be the tenth anniversary of your first post on this blog), we do not live in a healthy society. I can see the Dreaded Drama Triangle playing out here in Michigan. A . Did the actual solutions get people's attention? No. What really made them notice was the opportunity to use the crisis to play Victim, Persecutor, or Rescuer through holding Congressional inquiries and filing lawsuits along with ridiculing Governor Rick Snyder. That last is the least of the state's problems, but it seems people are enjoying the Schadenfreude. "The most lively games of “Circular Firing Squad” in town were in the Marxist splinter parties..." That's the situation satirized by Monthy Python's Flying Circus in "The Life of Brian." It's just as pointedly hilarious now as it was 36 years ago. Mind you, the Left isn't alone in this these days. There are pseudoconservatives who engage in that game as well.
My comment on The Elephant Cometh. Cars, suburbia, health care, and higher education--welcome to the rackets that must keep going at all costs. I'm surprised our host didn't take aim at another easy target, Tax Day, like John Oliver and FiveThirtyEight did. John Oliver suggested funding the IRS more. FiveThirtyEight recommended eliminating Tax Day as we know it. The first will make it easier to take money away from Americans. The latter will minimize the math involved. I bet I know which will be more popular. Also, tomorrow is the New York Primary. On the Democratic side, the choice is Clinton vs. Sanders. Both of them promise to do something about the rackets that our host mentioned, Sanders more so than Clinton. However, their "somethings" will not be sufficient to prepare us for the future our host predicts is coming and some of their fixes will actually make things worse. Geez, no wonder some people will be picking the elephant tomorrow, even if the pachyderm is named Trump!
"Of course, the trouble with operations based on lies is that sooner or later reality intrudes with all its implacable wrath and you get a mighty correction impossible to ignore." That's happening on a smaller scale here in Michigan regarding the Flint Water Crisis. First, Snyder testified before Congress. He had to suffer through calls for his resignation from the Democrats. At the same time, the EPA Director got the same treatment from the Republicans. Next, his own task force issued its findings. They repeated Snyder's mantra that this was "a failure of government at all levels," but this time they focused on the state of Michigan, declaring it “fundamentally accountable” for the problems. One of the main culprits they identified was the state's Emergency Manager Law. Good luck changing that, as the lawmakers like it. The previous version was repealed by a vote of the people and the legislature passed a new version the next month, they approved of it so much!
My comment on The End of Ordinary Politics.
@Eric S. "Cruz on the other hand has a consistent, solid lead over Clinton and would take the presidency without much of a fight." What are you basing that conclusion on? It's not the polls. Looking through the Real Clear Politics General Election polls page, I see both Clinton and Sanders consistently beating Trump and Cruz. Only one poll of the entire country has Cruz beating Clinton, and that was a Fox News poll from two weeks ago. Otherwise, only polls of safely Republican states show Cruz winning. This is true where I live. I reporte on a poll showing Clinton and Sanders beating Trump and Cruz in Michigan.
@JMG I agree that the country desperately wants change. What people seem to want, at least based my experience, is Trump vs. Sanders. Instead of a putative outsider (a Senator or billionaire as outsiders--yeah, right) vs. an obvious insider, the U.S. would get what it wants, two insurgent candidates. Instead, it's the woman who wins the mainstream media vs. Springtime for Trump.
My comment on The Mystery Revealed "The reason is that the problems are unfixable, at least not within the acceptable terms of the zeitgeist, namely: the secret wish to keep all the rackets going at all costs." It's hardly secret. As you wrote, even the middle class wants to keep some version of suburban happy motoring going. You were right about people electing maniacs who promise to keep the entitlements of suburbia, but you might just have gotten those entitlements wrong. They're not the physical things you listed 13 years ago. Instead, they're the psychological entitlements of being insulated from urban problems, real, metaphorical, and imaginary. Trump is making that promise, even if it's not expressly about McMansions and SUVs. Surprise, you predicted Trump! Of course, there are some rackets that have finally been exposed and the people are clamoring for them to end. Here in Michigan, it's the Emergency Manager Law, the blowback from which has resulted in Congressional inquiries and lawsuits along with eroded approval ratings for Governor Rick Snyder. That last is the least of the state's problems, but it seems people are enjoying the Schadenfreude.
My comment on American Narratives: The Rescue Game "The Rescue Game...Here’s how it works. Each group of players is assigned one of three roles: Victim, Persecutor, or Rescuer." I know this by a different name, Karpman's Triangle AKA the Dreaded Drama Triangle. In this version, the roles are self-chosen and the participants are engaging in these behaviors not to fill some greater social need, but to manage their own psychological needs, especially their anxieties, in a way that allows the participants to ignore the dysfunction and harm done to others. The Persecutors get to be "one up" and say to the Victims "It's all your fault." Unlike the version you describe, there are actual benefits to being in this role other than negative attention. In both versions, the Victims get to say "poor me" to themselves and seek sympathy from the Rescuers, who says "poor you" to the Victims. However, the Drama Triangle acknowledges that the Victims can be engaging in self-destructive behaviors and the Rescuers end up enabling the Victims and keeping them dependent. The result is very unhealthy for all involved, as it just keeps the conflict going without achieving solutions. On a personal level, we should all try to break out of these roles for more constructive ways of dealing with each other and our environments. A healthy society should strive to get out of the game, too. However, as you've been pointing out for ten years (next month will be the tenth anniversary of your first post on this blog), we do not live in a healthy society. I can see the Dreaded Drama Triangle playing out here in Michigan. A . Did the actual solutions get people's attention? No. What really made them notice was the opportunity to use the crisis to play Victim, Persecutor, or Rescuer through holding Congressional inquiries and filing lawsuits along with ridiculing Governor Rick Snyder. That last is the least of the state's problems, but it seems people are enjoying the Schadenfreude. "The most lively games of “Circular Firing Squad” in town were in the Marxist splinter parties..." That's the situation satirized by Monthy Python's Flying Circus in "The Life of Brian." It's just as pointedly hilarious now as it was 36 years ago. Mind you, the Left isn't alone in this these days. There are pseudoconservatives who engage in that game as well.
My comment on The Elephant Cometh. Cars, suburbia, health care, and higher education--welcome to the rackets that must keep going at all costs. I'm surprised our host didn't take aim at another easy target, Tax Day, like John Oliver and FiveThirtyEight did. John Oliver suggested funding the IRS more. FiveThirtyEight recommended eliminating Tax Day as we know it. The first will make it easier to take money away from Americans. The latter will minimize the math involved. I bet I know which will be more popular. Also, tomorrow is the New York Primary. On the Democratic side, the choice is Clinton vs. Sanders. Both of them promise to do something about the rackets that our host mentioned, Sanders more so than Clinton. However, their "somethings" will not be sufficient to prepare us for the future our host predicts is coming and some of their fixes will actually make things worse. Geez, no wonder some people will be picking the elephant tomorrow, even if the pachyderm is named Trump!
