I wasted so much time in government and corporate lines when I was unemployed, of course I used the internet during that time. OP really did find a well dunk worthy post.
A staggering number of Trek fans are libertarians and that bewilders me. You'll see them on Star Trek Online zipping around in USS AYN RAND and USS FOUNTAINHEAD and the like, usually coming from tacticool Section 31 themed fleets.
I had a libertarian tell me that the minimum wage was racist the other day. They said this in the same breath as arguing that black people won't work without an incentive.
In the Romulan Republic campaign, there's a lore terminal in one of the Tal Shiar bases that namedrops the Communist Manifesto as one of the many literary works seized from rebel Romulans. In fact that whole campaign's first arc is fighting a civil war to overthrow the Empire.
It's so funny when you see someone complain about poor people having smartphones. Imagine being so out of touch that you think the standard is still a candybar dumbphone and touch screen smartphones are some kind of luxury. I guess there's a few companies making those phones, but they cost about the same as a cheap smartphone.
Quality, affordable smartphones do exist with almost all the luxury features of an iPhone. Unfortunately the US bans them because they’re mad China beat them to the punch despite being sanctioned
There are two types of dumb phones: burners you can buy at Walmart for $20 and “utility phones” for old people who can’t see well and young people who think it’s the answer to their dopamine regulation disorder. Still cheap but will get advertised more for specific features. Easy to read screens, extremely difficult to break (for swimmers or hikers). Stuff like that. They’re very purpose built and are not marketed as daily driver phones.
Even if there wasn't a program for it, having a phone is not optional in 2023. It is required. You have to have reliable access to email and phone in order to apply for jobs, apply for government benefits, have a social circle, etc.
Many people don't digest their entertainment critically at all, and take it in on a very superficial level. New Trek doesn't help this, being entirely superficial laserporn content without any substance - so any new fans are going to be extra like this.
Lots of people just grew up watching lasers and spaceships on TV as a kid and liked the aesthetics of it without ever interrogating any of the central themes or messages.
Even the idea of critically analyzing their treats is seen as a waste of time because it is not LE STEM. They're ideologically lead around by the nose by propaganda they can't even comprehend.
YOU CAN'T HAVE OPINIONS OR VOICE THEM IF YOU'RE POOR! GOT SHOULD ONLY BE WORKING EVERY POSSIBLE MINUTE OF YOUR LIFE UNTIL YOU'RE NOT POOR ANYMORE AND THEN YOU CAN SPEAK.
BUT YOU WOULDN'T DO THAT BECAUSE YOU'RE NO LONGER POOR AND YOU'D BE LOOKING DOWN ON ALL THE OTHER POORS WHO SHOULD BE WORKING AS HARD AS YOU DID TO GET WHERE YOU ARE!
"I grew up in a liberal (in the American sense) family, and I identify now as a socialist, though a lot of the liberalism I grew up in has stuck with me"
to
"The GOP is directly inspired by the homophobic attitudes in both countries [Russia and China]. Have you been living under a rock?"
in the course of a few hours. "ummm actually Americans are homophobic because of foreigners sweety, and I care about LGBTQ+ rights more than you"
The fact that you can live in the USA and think the anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment is anything but homegrown (you know, like the racism) is the definition of “living under a rock”. Either that or just good ol’ American exceptionalism - “we are so amazingly progressive that it must be someone else’s fault there are bigots here.”
"The GOP is directly inspired by the homophobic attitudes in both countries [Russia and China]. Have you been living under a rock?"
If anything, Republicans are the ones inspiring bigots around the world (at least in terms of tactics). There's a reason why right-wing groups in like a dozen other countries are also talking about "wokism" and "cancel culture" now.
The last post I saw of that liberal crybully was a circlejerk agreement with an enlightened centrist on another thread about how "both sides are equally right and wrong." Of course both of them had right wing opinions but wanted the both sides merit badge.
These people's argument always collapses when you press them for their solutions to the problems plaguing liberal democracies. They can't talk you in circles if you keep digging for answers that you can then dismantle credibility for.
Ultimately, liberalism collapses under the pressure of dialectical materialism's analyses. Just walk them through it and they'll prove themselves to be full of shit for you.
You know those charity drives where they buy kids on homeless shelters tablets for Christmas? Haven’t they ever considered just gifting them a JOB instead????
It's a byproduct of Great Man Theory: they think the supposed greatness is inherited, too, OR just have a "DONT TELL ME WHAT TO DOOOOOOOOOOOO" attitude when it comes to money, including dead people money.
proposing a business venture: we create a machine that harvests the electrical waves in the brain of poor people when they’re sleeping, so that way we can inject dreams of labor and harvest the electricity generated from said dream labor. We prevent them from being lazy by keeping them productive 24/7, and they provide a useful service to the world facing climate change and high energy costs due to current events in Europe.
Of course, we’re not like the orientals and their sweat shops. The poor would be compensated 50 cents for every hour they sleep.
If the labor dream injection is unsuccessful, we will either inject nightmares to harvest the adrenaline (also 50 cents an hour of sleep) or deduct compensation for the entire sleep session - the poor would choose which option suits their needs more.
Anyway, that’s my elevator pitch. Thoughts? I’m schedule to meet with JD Vance on Wednesday to ask for seed money.