Comments by "Ficus-lovin\x27 Capybara N\x27 pals • 🌟 • 25 yrs ago" (@YourCapybaraAmigo_17yrsago) on "Tom Nicholas"
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@lubu2960 nu person chiming in here- yes I'm by no means an expert but I have heard due to the conquest by the Spanish invaders in the 16th C., whiteness became a prized trait and has historically been viewed as more desirable, granting one access to the higher rungs of society. I don't know if this was true for everyone everywhere in South America, but this has been my impression that a prejudice in favor of whiteness was present. I imagine that even today there are lingering effects of this throughout the regions, considering these social realities presumably existed to a greater or lesser degree for 100s of years. There certainly is the case here in the US. I mean, it still amazes me when I look back over the last 400 years just how extreme and entrenched the policies of Black slavery (and later 100 years give or take of Jim Crow), and Native American removal/annihilation became amongst those who carried them out, and their sympathizers in the public.
The legacy of bigotry and white supremacy in the South still holds strong with a fair-sized segment of the population today unfortunately. You can see this in a lot of subtle and not-so-subtle ways, altho people are fighting back and this is changing, some in more symbolic ways and some more substantial.
I can only hope in time this prejudiced racialized nonsense will continue to die off, and not be replaced by getting passed down to the next generation as it has been in too many cases so far. I do think we're finally turning a corner on the last holdouts of bigotry and ignorance here, at least in the public sphere, altho it's by no means over. We still have a long ways to go to marginalize a major political party called the GOP, one whom openly courts racism and xenophobia in it's voters and members and leads attacks on voting rights for POC. We still have a lot of work to do to dismantle the system of mass incarceration, a racially-motivated system of oppression that has been in place now for 40 years, craftily begun under Reagan and carried out faithfully in many states since. There's still a LOT of hard work ahead of us to be done before anything like full equality, dignity and opportunity can be said to exist for ALL US citizens regardless of their color or financial background- and that is a shame. It sure as shit shouldn't be taking this long- but it is. (I'm sure there will probably always be some people who will refuse to give up their carefully-held prejudice for whatever reason, but as long as they keep it to themselves and don't use it as an excuse for violence, I can live with it.)
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@otov100 I still can't believe you said democracy is mob rule..... although technically you are correct, your negative connotation notwithstanding.
So you do want to be a serf, it seems. You want a master. You want no direct control over the laws that affect you. Ok. Got it. Fine. I do not.
Why doesn't everyone deserve a voice? Sure I'm not going to always love everyone's opinions around me, but with constant referenda and limited govt (in the right ways), I trust in due time most will choose to enact the most empowering and ethical policies from among the possible choices.
Nobody has the intrinsic right to rule over another. I mean man, they just DON'T. I'm not saying ANYTHING goes, but we all should have the right to be as free and empowered as possible within rational limitations. In my mind, so-called representative "govt' has long outlived it's usefulness, if it ever had one, and should be replaced or at a minimum expanded in it's numbers and supplemented by direct debate, commentary and referenda from the public.
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@jonasvogel3672 yeah I live in the US, and yeah, like everything else having to do with surviving, it's beyond disgusting. I have to pay $2000 for a 2bdrm unit barely worth $600 by my estimation- it doesn't even have laundry machines- and if you all could see it you'd no doubt agree. I could find a better quality rental unit in my area and I have plans to move soon, but I'll be lucky to find anything under $1850. This isn't a beautiful house we're talking about, this is for a very BASIC very average apartment.
With this kind of money I should be looking at homes and duplexes for real- if I'm going to be robbed blind every month it should at least be for something nice.
And believe me it's not that I'm not willing to work hard in order to try to save up for a house, but I just haven't been able to do that yet. This kind of rent extortion really isn't helping!
There are ways to try to defray my rent costs like having a paying roommate and I might do that and that would certainly help, but I don't think people should necessarily have to do that just to bring their rent down to an affordable level.
Without AGGRESSIVE and lasting rent price controls and strict provisions for renters'rights, NONE OF WHICH WE HAVE, this will never improve. But good luck with that. I have ZERO faith in these psychopaths and sociopaths in public office here. From a local level up to the White House, they are beyond corrupt and morally-bankrupt. They ALLLLL would sell their first-born and their mother for a shiny nickel. Other than in smaller towns with very little large commercial development, this is most certainly not an exaggeration.
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Tom I love you but I guess I got to take the libertarian view on this one. As a 40 year old adult I grossly resent the fact that a government thug feels they have the right to tell me what I can and cannot put in my own god-given body. IF I DON'T EVEN HAVE THE RIGHT TO EXERCISE FULL AUTONOMY AND CONTROL OVER MY OWN BODY WHAT EVEN AM I? BECAUSE I'M NOT A FREE HUMAN BEING IF THAT IS THE CASE, I'M A SLAVE; AND YET WE ARE ALREADY THERE.
WOULD-BE MASTERS OF ALL ARE FORCING US INTO EVER SMALLER AND SMALLER BOXES WE ARE NOTHING BUT POWERLESS OBJECTS, AND THIS IS JUST ONE OF MANY STEPS THEY HAVE TAKEN OVER THE PAST 100 YEARS TO DO SO, ESP THE PAST 40.
I can go on and on but what's going on right now is 'reefer madness' all over again. The criminalization of harmless vices or pleasures, THE CRIMINALIZATION OF EVERYTHING, whichever word you prefer, by a Big Brother political class that only wants to increase the ways they can oppress us, steal from us, and worst case scenario throw us behind bars should disturb everyone! This isn't a class issue. Everything doesn't go back to class, it goes back to basic civil rights. Without rights we are nothing!
I guess you all truly do want to live as dogs under a total dictatorship. Sorry- not me.
NOBODY should be supporting this constant desired expansion of State powers to take away ALL areas of self-ownership. This is disturbing and we should all push back against this vociferously. It is NOT the government's business who chooses to smoke, or consume alcohol, to seek a consenting prostitution partner, or any other private habit. I mean when we start looking to government to be our parent, to literally turn over our most precious rights of Free Will to, we become little better than pause, then slaves. This is something we should be highly disturbed by. The more power we give government the more they will use it against us. Why do we want masters? I don't want an owner, I have a brain. I have personal pride. I have self-respect. I shouldn't have to bow down to anyone. Why do YOU want to, Tom? You're too smart for that.
The ideal world is where there's no government at all, however I know we don't live in an ideal world. A minimum amount of fair regulation and organization is necessary for the ideal functioning of a healthy society, I know this. HOWEVER, when it comes to my personal life what I choose to do as a free will hard-working ADULT, and others like me, IS OUR HUMAN RIGHT TO DECIDE and they have gone WAY too far when they take it away. Why didn't we learn these lessons from Prohibition in the 1920s? Yes of course we did and yet these fucking filthy fucks just won't stop coming trying to take away every last zone of Free Will and control over our own lives that we have left. EVERYONE should be disturbed by this. THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT OR PROPER PURVIEW OF ANY GOVERNMENT PERIOD!! I DON'T NEED A FILTHY CRIMINAL FUCK WHO WOULD JUST AS SOON ROB ME BLIND TELL ME HOW TO LIVE MY LIFE OR MONITOR MY PERSONAL FREE WILL PRIVATE LIFE CHOICES FOR ME AND NOBODY ELSE SHOULD WANT THIS EITHER!
There is NOTHING wrong with an adult choosing to exercise their god-given free will to consume a substance of any kind!!. That is NOT the purview of government. Never has been and never will be. I mean where do we draw the line? I don't understand why I'm the lone voice of sanity on this. I didn't take you all for fools. Was I wrong?
NOBODY, no authority on the planet has the right to interfere with are basic human rights to choose when it comes to most situations in life, to choose our hobbies, to choose our personal pleasures, to choose anything in that category. In fact, unless it's causing deliberate harm to another human being or unjustly depriving them of their property, government has no right to step in at all! Here's what they DO have the right to do:
✓ Engage in common sense public education campaigns
✓ Encourage individuals to be more conscious of their health in general
✓ Place age limits and ID requirements for sale of tobacco and alcohol related items
✓ provide full comprehensive publicly-funded healthcare and never abridge it
✓ provide comprehensive drug and alcohol treatment facilities for all those who develop a usage problem, cost-controlled so all can afford access
AND THAT'S IT!!!! THAT. IS. IT!!!! THAT IS IT!
ANYONE WHO WANTS ANY MORE THAN THIS IS A MENTAL CHILD AND WANTS TO LIVE UNDER A TOTALITARIAN DYSTOPIA BECAUSE HONESTLY WE ARE NOT THAT FAR OFF FROM THAT RIGHT NOW. THIS IS WHERE IT STARTS. And it's already started in many obvious and not so obvious ways. We are long past the canary in the coal mine stage regarding the constant creep against our personal rights and the rights of small businesses to thrive. Living under a totalitarian big business corporate hellscape is like this. Respecting personal civil rights has never been the corporates first priority, or any. Not only that there are plenty in government who would just as soon see themselves with absolute power. None of us should be enabling this.
THE DRUG WAR WAS THE DEVIL'S GIFT TO DESPOTS TO DESTROY LIVES AND EMPOWER GOVERNMENT CRIMINALS TO ENRICH THEMSELVES TO THE TUNE OF BILLIONS AT THE COMMON PERSON'S EXPENSE & LIKE AN INFINITELY GREEDY CRIMINAL EMPIRE, THEY WANT TO EXPAND. DESPOTISM ALWAYS DOES.
I find it shocking that people think government has any role in dictating what a full-grown adult can and can't do with them themselves. After everything I've gone through in life, the LAST thing I need is government filth decapitating my head and feeling like they have the right to dictate anything to me about my personal life or who I choose to do business with. Absolutely not what I ever support such a measure, absolutely fucking not!
But if you people want to live in a hellscape dystopia who am I to stop you? We already have government filth telling women they don't have the right to own and control their own bodies why not just expand that to everyone now? Isn't that what the drug war is all about? We're all just government property, we're all just government slaves right?? So we don't have the right to use our bodies how we would choose? That seems to be the thesis of poorly thought-out reaction videos such as these and others that support these outrageous creeping attacks on personal sovereignty.
By all means, slaves, seek your dystopia if you must, but keep that away from me. Just don't try to force it on me because I WILL fight it tooth and nail by any means necessary.
There is a limited role for government in human society, yes, AND THIS ISNT IT!!!! EITHER WE OWN OURSELVES OR WE DON'T! WHAT'S IT GOING TO BE, SLAVES???
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE USE OF NON-FOOD SUBSTANCES FOR FREE WILL LUCID-MINDED MENTALLY DEVELOPED ADULTS OVER THE AGE OF 18 AND THE MOMENT WE ALLOW GOVERNMENT CRIMINALS TO TELL US OTHERWISE WE HAVE OPENED PANDORA'S BOX. PROHIBITION NEVER WORKS AND IT IS VILE AND IT GRANTS GOVERNMENT FILTH FAR TOO MUCH POWER THAN ANY HUMAN BEING DESERVES. IT BECOMES NOTHING BUT A LICENSE TO DESTROY YOUR LIFE AND RIGHTS AND DEPRIVE YOU OF ALL OF YOUR MATERIAL PROPERTY REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE GAINING OF SUCH WAS RELATED TO THAT PARTICULAR PROHIBITED ITEM OR NOT. AM I THE ONLY ONE THAT CAN THINK CLEARLY HERE AND SEE WHY THIS IS MADNESS!?! Guess so.
DO YOU ALL WANT FREE WILL AND RIGHTS .... OR NOT!?!?
Sorry Tom love you but Big L on this one. I just don't think you're old enough to understand as I am how this can go wrong so fast. I've lived a bit longer than you so I just have the benefit of experience. I'm not particularly smart I'm very average in fact I think you're much smarter than I am however life experience counts for a lot. Here in the US we proudly boast the world's largest prison colony and it's only getting worse. Any laws to increase government's power even beyond their already bloated distorted state should be fought against by every citizen. And ftr, I'm not on the Right that. I am left of left of left. But anyone with common sense, with or without political opinions should agree with me on this. I mean do you want to live under dystopia or do you want to be free- that's what it comes down to??
I mean this is insane. You'd think govt despots would have learned their lesson from alcohol prohibition, but apparently not and they won't stop trying to come for every other substance in creation including harmless and beneficial kratom. Don't you all wonder why that is? Or you all such so desperate to be slaves of someone you never question the chains as they continue to gather around your neck????
What's next, a government food cop banging down the door to my house shoving an AK-47 my face and telling me I can't have that cheeseburger or that sandwich or that soda or that beer!?!? It's literally already happening in some cases for those who make and or consume raw milk. You guys just don't understand what despotism really is cuz I guess you've never lived it personally.
You all are just too young to know what you're talking about, because unfortunately on this subject, and any that has to do with gross vicious violent ugly government despotic ovaries, you really don't. I've seen it. I've had people who have lost huge chunks of their life to it. I know exactly of what I speak. I see it in small ways and occasionally large every single day. I KNOW. YOU PEOPLE DONT, or you wouldn't be supporting this CONSTANT overreach and dangerous expansion of the powers of nameless faceless State authority. You just wouldn't.
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Well when you let the rich and big business take everything, ie; an ever-growing outrageous disproportionate share, and refuse to fund basic needs properly, sadly this is what you get.
It's been SOP in the US as long as I've been alive with all predictable negative and disastrous results.
Some people are doing very well but I would say at least half the country is insecure or poor, possibly more. I would say up to 70% live paycheck to paycheck with few savings.
And all this because a psychopathic tiny elite want everything, and they control the political discourse, via both Wall Street parties. (GOP and Democrats)
I think it's a shame that worthless selfish sociopathic people are still driving public policy via literal bribery to PACs and promises of future favor. It's the simplest thing in the world to end all poverty and provide equal opportunity to all, it just takes the political will. You literally HAVE to tax at the top and you redistribute downwards, and then you ensure basic needs are always properly funded in the future via fair tax policy and material guarantees enumerated under law. Providing actual job security, home security, food security, guaranteed medical treatment, better wages and labor protections, guaranteed education, public transport, some form of UBI and more.
The resources are there and then some, it's just getting them to where they're needed. But that's never going to happen when big business and the psychopathic 1% of private wealth gets to dictate everything.
Only a dictatorship of the people would ensure everyone had enough while also allowing business to operate within proper confines of heavy regulation (mostly directed at bigger business).
Also, federal governments literally create their own money, so no central government can ever claim they don't have money and be telling the truth. UK, like the US, creates its own currency. It can print more or digitally create more as needed. So I don't understand where this claim of having no money comes from- all currency-independent nation-states produce their own currency, or they can tax it, or they can borrow it. The money is always there somewhere but when these elite scum don't want to step on the toes of other elite scum, I guess they feel that they can't spend or raise anything. This of course is ridiculous because that ignores the reality of the federal Mint, or whatever the equivalent is in the UK. I mean where do people think the physical currency comes from in the first place???
Obviously all the money in circulation has come from somewhere, it didn't come from a goddamn money fairy, so where did it come from?? Obviously it came from whatever central authority prints money in that given country. Up to a point a country can for the most part print its way out of any economic problem. As currency is just a point of exchange for goods and services and labor man-hours, provided the amount of printing doesn't get super ridiculous, pumping more currency into a nation by funding worthwhile needs and increasing direct benefits will only help a population.
True, there have been very limited cases where central govt spending went awry but these were extremely rare and due to very specific conditions; which are not at all the case with the US and the UK today. "But Zimbabwe and Weimar Germany" are idiotic examples when compared to today's secure established major Western countries. (But don't take my word for it, feel free to look it up yourself)
While there might be some limited and modest cost increases by some merchants in response to perceived extra income by consumers, these tend to be transitory, cyclical, and relatively manageable.
Usually it's big business corps that are choosing to raise prices or gouge consumers when they feel they can get away with it, regardless of any pre-existing localized or national economic conditions. The only way to really stop this are laws and legislation, which never happen here in the US because big business owns every politician. Both parties here are but one single Wall Street party with two heads.
And until that changes, until we get government that puts average people's needs first, aka a Left government, then the parasitic 1% will continue to claim the right to serve their unlimited greed, and poverty will continue to plague the lives of more and more of the common population.
It's the same story everywhere. Refuse to limit business and 1% greed, watch poverty and avoidable death claim more lives. It really is incredibly simple when you boil it down. That's all fine of course with the elites, but it shouldn't be fine by us. Any average income or poor person that votes Tory or centrist in the UK, or for either of the two Wall Street parties here in the US and isn't already super financially secure, is a moron. They keep on voting for the same people who have no intention of doing anything to help them and will actively harm them through their tenure, one way of another. It's quite amazing to me actually.
I guess people think that government should be of, by, and FOR the elites and 60% of the population should have to live hand to mouth or with a very little actual security, all so the top 2% can live like kings and gods. I can't understand why everyone isn't a pro-fair trade communist like me. A lifetime of propaganda I guess.
I don't understand the logic behind thinking we should be ruled and impoverished by a parasitical 2% and this is good.
Humans are strange.
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@ ø
Perhaps we could have a chiller discussion and try to leave the emotional language and over-generalities aside. we may find we have some areas that we agree on more than we disagree.
The term I identify with most is Libertarian Socialist. I'm economically a Socialist,
but a civil libertarian. I could go into long detail on this but in a nutshell that means I believe in dropping the hammer on big corps and the 1%, ending poverty thru many detailed means; and dismantling the police and prison state by any means necessary. Liberty IS under attack from would-be fascists in DC but not because of the ridiculous reasons the dumb yokels claim- but due to attacks on truth tellers like Assange and Edward Snowden, and other lesser-known whistleblowers, and an unholy agenda of mass incarceration here at home which preys on the poor and those of color. I want to end all economic state extortion and theft, and I mean ALL. This includes all policing-for-profit, jailing-for-profit and adjudicating-for-profit. I'm mostly against forced taxation for most households, and I'm currently working out the finer details on my position on that. I'm fine with minor and reasonable use taxes, including property taxes so long as the public gets a vote on how much; but I believe the majority of the tax burden belongs at the top, especially in business.
I would readjust how schools are funded so they never have to worry about lack of funding again.
I believe in taking an iron fist to the big corps in all deserved ways and responding to threat of climate change by any means necessary.
I would rationally but radically decriminalize, decarcerate, and defund ALL organs of State force and oppression. Radical reform and radical accountability would be the new norm.
I believe in responsible and rational maximum access to firearms, with a period of required safety training; but if a type of gun or tool has proven especially deadly, then I say its fair to ban it from common use if that protects innocent lives. Such weapons can still be used at designated recreational gun ranges, but not be able to leave the premises. That's a fair compromise, I believe.
Native nations and black communities would get the entirety of the land justice and the reparations they have up until now so long been denied.
I support fully open borders, with those arriving to be met by 'processing agents', not militarized and savage border thugs; and I always have. I would mandate the immediate end of the brutalization of those who come here, and I welcome every person in pain who needs to relocate here for survival. If the wealthiest nation-state in the world can't help the most destitute and the wretched of this earth, something must be wrong.
Basically I just consider myself a common-sense hard-core compassionate Liberal, but compared to the savagery that's passed for governance here for the past 50+ years, I suppose to most I'd be considered some kind of radical; but I'm OK with that.
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Tom I love you but I guess I got to take the libertarian view on this one. As a 40 year old adult I grossly resent the fact that a government thug feels they have the right to tell me what I can and cannot put in my own god-given body. IF I DON'T EVEN HAVE THE RIGHT TO EXERCISE FULL AUTONOMY AND CONTROL OVER MY OWN BODY WHAT EVEN AM I? BECAUSE I'M NOT A FREE HUMAN BEING IF THAT IS THE CASE, I'M A SLAVE; AND YET WE ARE ALREADY THERE.
WOULD-BE MASTERS OF ALL ARE FORCING US INTO EVER SMALLER AND SMALLER BOXES WE ARE NOTHING BUT POWERLESS OBJECTS, AND THIS IS JUST ONE OF MANY STEPS THEY HAVE TAKEN OVER THE PAST 100 YEARS TO DO SO, ESP THE PAST 40.
I can go on and on but what's going on right now is reefer madness all over again. The criminalization of harmless vices or pleasures, whichever word you prefer, by a big brother political class that only wants to increase the ways they can oppress us, steal from us, and worst case scenario throw us behind bars for should disturb everyone. This isn't a class issue. Everything doesn't go back to class. It goes back to basic civil rights. I guess you all truly do want to live as dogs under a total dictatorship.
NOBODY should be supporting this constant desired expansion of State powers to take all areas of self-ownership from. This is disturbing and we should all push back against this. It is NOT the government's business who chooses to smoke, or consume alcohol, or any other private habit. I mean when we start looking to government to be our parent, to literally turn over our most precious rights of Free Will to, is this not something we should be highly disturbed by??? The more power we give government the more they will use it against us. Why do we want masters? Why do you, Tom? You're too smart for that.
The ideal world is where there's no government at all however I know we don't live in an ideal world. A minimum amount of fair regulation and organization is necessary for the ideal functioning of a healthy society, I know this. HOWEVER, when it comes to my personal life what I choose to do as a free will hard-working ADULT, and others in the same situation, IS OUR HUMAN RIGHT and they have gone way WAY too far when they try to take it away. Why didn't we learn these lessons regarding Prohibition in the 1920s? Yes of course we did and yet these fucking filthy demons just won't stop coming trying to take away every zone of Free Will and control over our own lives that we have left. EVERYONE should be disturbed by this.
There is NOTHING wrong with an adult choosing to exercise their god-given free will to consume a substance. That is not the purview of government. Never has been and never will be. "Big Brother Stay Back!" is what I hope they put on my tombstone. I don't understand why I'm the loan voice of sanity on this. I didn't take you all for fools. Was I wrong?
NOBODY, no authority on the planet has the right to interfere with are basic human rights to choose, to choose our hobbies, to choose our personal pleasures, to choose anything in that category. In fact, unless it's causing deliberate harm to another human being or unjustly depriving them of their property, government has no right to step in at all! Here's what they do have the right to do:
✓ Engage in common sense public education campaigns
✓ Encourage individuals to be more mindful of their health in general
✓ Place age limits and ID requirements for sale of tobacco and alcohol related items
✓ provide full comprehensive publicly funded healthcare and never tried to avruge it
✓ provide comprehensive drug and alcohol treatment facilities for all those who develop a use problem, cost-controlled so all can afford access
AND THAT'S IT!!!! THAT. IS. IT!!!!
ANYONE WHO WANTS ANY MORE THAN THIS IS A MENTAL CHILD AND WANTS TO LIVE UNDER A TOTALITARIAN DYSTOPIA BECAUSE HONESTLY WE ARE NOT THAT FAR OFF FROM THAT RIGHT NOW. THIS IS WHERE IT STARTS. And it's already started in many obvious and not so obvious ways. We are long past the canary in the coal mine stage regarding the constant creep against our personal rights and rights of small businesses to thrive.
THE DRUG WAR WAS THE DEVIL'S GIFT TO DESPOTS TO DESTROY LIVES AND EMPOWER GOVERNMENT CRIMINALS TO ENRICH THEMSELVES TO THE TUNE OF BILLIONS AT THE COMMON PERSON'S EXPENSE.
AND LIKE AN INFINITELY GREEDY CRIMINAL EMPIRE, THEY WANT TO EXPAND. DESPOTISM ALWAYS DOES.
I find it shocking that people think government has any role in dictating what a full-grown adult can and can't do with them themselves. After everything I've gone through in life, the last thing I need is government filth decapitating my head and feeling like they have the right to dictate anything to me about my personal life or who I choose to do business with.
But if you people want to live in a hellscape dystopia who am I to stop you? We already have government demons telling women they don't have the right to own and control their own bodies why not just expand that to everyone now? Isn't that what the drug war is all about? We're all just government property, we're all just government slaves right?? So we don't have the right to use our bodies how we would choose? That seems to be the thesis of poorly thought-out reaction videos such as these and others that support these outrageous abridgements.
By all means, slaves, seek your dystopia if you must, but keep that away from me. Just don't try to force it on me because I will fight it tooth and nail by all means necessary.
There is a limited role for government in human society BUT THIS ISNT IT!!!!
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE USE OF NON-FOOD SUBSTANCES FOR FREE WILL LUCID-MINDED MENTALLY DEVELOPED ADULTS OVER THE AGE OF 18 AND THE MOMENT WE ALLOW GOVERNMENT CRIMINALS TO TELL US OTHERWISE WE HAVE REALLY OPENED PANDORA'S BOX. PROHIBITION NEVER WORKS AND IT IS VILE AND IT GRANTS GOVERNMENT SCUMBAGS FAR TOO MUCH POWER THAN ANY HUMAN BEING DESERVES. IT BECOMES NOTHING BUT A LICENSE TO DESTROY YOUR LIFE AND DEPRIVE YOU OF ALL OF YOUR MATERIAL PROPERTY REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE GAINING OF SUCH PROPERTY WAS RELATED TO THAT PARTICULAR PROHIBITED ITEM OR NOT. AM I THE ONLY ONE THAT CAN THINK CLEARLY HERE AND SEE WHY THIS IS MADNESS!?!
DO YOU ALL WANT FREE WILL AND RIGHTS OR NOT!?!?
Sorry Tom love you but Big L on this one. I just don't think you're old enough to understand as I am how this can go wrong so fast. I've lived a bit longer than you so I just have the benefit of experience. I'm not particularly smart I'm very average but I think you're much smarter than I am however life experience counts for a lpr. here in the US live on the devil's favorite world's largest prison colony and it's only getting worse. Any laws to increase government's power even beyond their already bloated distorted State should be fought against by every citizen. Unless you think I'm on the right please don't believe that. I am left of left of left. But anyone with common sense, with political opinions and not should agree with me on this. I mean do you want to live under dystopia or do you want to be free that's what it comes down to??
I mean this is insane we're now I mean it's so funny cuz they learned they did learn their lesson with alcohol prohibition but they won't stop trying to come for every other substance in creation including kratom. Don't you all wonder why that is? Or you all such so desperate to be slaves of Big Brother you never questioned the chains as they continue to gather around your neck????
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@HoagMurkula a govt is indeed a monopoly on violence... Which I don't think is right- but total anarchy isn't the answer either. I have some ideas about the problem of tyrannical civil govt and what we should demand instead that I can get into later.
I want a just economic system NOW, there's really no time to wait; not to mention the elimination of all civil rights issues that are rotten here. That requires taking over state govt by a majority of aggressive and unapologetic Leftists. (I'm not even worried about DC right now, that's hopeless.) So taking the State House is going to be very hard, esp under the current death-grip by the big money class; but not impossible. It takes a lot of boring hard work and strategizing, with no guarantees of success, and almost certain guarantees of initial failure, but we have to try. We can't just keep letting the 1% and the corporate elite dictate everything.
Why do I need to wait for others' opinions before I work on my agenda? All leftists want only two things, economic justice and civil justice. It sound so simple stated like that doesn't it? With the kinds of scum we're up against it could take another 100 years to get there. I sure hope it doesn't, but US is pretty deplorable at both, so I wouldn't be surprised if it did. Real-world change is going to take time, but it won't happen without effort. It's going to take non-stop agitation and organization by grassroots groups of all kinds working together for a common socialistic outcome.
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@kawaiidoggo thank you for your well-considered response and I'll think about it and respond again, but I still believe that a representative system is mostly bad and inadequate, one that over time will be totally captured by elites to the general harm or neglect of the majority and that the only real way to prevent this is to ensure every major decision is put to a public vote on a regular basis, ie every month for example, and any interested adult public citizen is a de facto member of the ruling council along with its "official members" and can come and address, meet with, question, and debate any of them at any public session, for as long as is necessary, and not in the token way this is performed now (VERY token if you've seen any metro city council meetings. Those fuckers dngaf what the ordinaries have to say, they let us say our piece and give people usually a max of five minutes each, count the clock until it's over, then do what they were going to do anyways. They know whose interests they represent, and believe me, it ain't ours.)
Not very democratic.
Now sometimes matters do go on the public ballot and that's fine- but once every two years, as is done here in CA both for local and state issues is ludicrous. I guess nothing of public interest happens in between those time frames, having a direct voice once every 24 months is totally sufficient for those who are politically or publicly active. (Note sarcasm)
No this really doesn't work. I mean it works great for narrow special interests, not so much for the bottom 50%. No, a much more flexible and egalitarian system must be created or amended so a "people's Assembly" or a "people's council" can actually exist.
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@jeffreyepstein9641 when I say socialism I just mean material guarantees to all citizens who need them, say those under 60K income. All basic material needs met at a basic level. Not luxury, nothing fancy, but a baseline of protected and guaranteed material security; nothing more but nothing less. Food, clothing, housing, medical care, access to education and training, mental health care support, drug treatment, transportation assistance, and phone/internet help. A strong minimum wage. Labor protected. Homeowners protected, far better than currently. Renters STRONGLY protected. Taxes progressively higher on the top 10% and big business, low to none on everyone else. Corporate sector highly controlled and limited. Private wealth limited to something reasonable, ie 400M. Etc. That's all. When I say socialism all I mean is material assurance by the State. We could have that, if the right people were ever elected. I do think we can vote our way into a better system, but if not, then we do whatever else is necessary.
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@Sapiens_Imperialis I would say most private landlords (including commercial landlords) either charge excessively, actively slumlord, deny unfairly, or evict unfairly. This is a major problem. Recognizing these flaws that cause real difficulty for people, OP probably feels the govt should provide enough quality public housing at an affordable rate, or free for elderly/disabled/special needs, so people wouldn't have to depend on private landlords who are often assholes. I tend to agree with him. I feel we really need that, because we're all getting more and more squeezed and exploited by commercial or private landlords (I'm the US at least) and it needs to end.
There's no regulation or oversight on the private housing market and landlords and this is naturally bad for anyone who's not rich who has to rent. We need a lot of controls on rent limits, fees, eviction justifications and processes, landlord conduct, holding slumlords accountable, and so forth.
Right now it's basically a massive free-for-all for landlords and that's pretty crap for those who have to rent.
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@codenamepyro2350 I never suggest that we can be allowed to do actual harm to others. But this is going too far.
I know I'm a little hyperbolic but this is a very important issue to me because as a left libertarian it's very emblematic of the problem of creeping State oppression. I mean how much control and subjugation do we want?
We need business, but I agree that there need to be humane limits. I talk about this all the time in other forums.
But for God's sake there's nothing wrong with adults augmenting their existence with pleasant substances. In fact that's what humanity has been doing since before the dawn of time. We shouldn't be punished for this; we shouldn't have to apologize for this; we shouldn't have to request permission for this, etc!
I love drugs, but I also know how to use them responsibly. I don't have to answer to anybody for that. It's my body, god (or nature) gave it to me, and I don't have to bow to ANYONE for the rights to exercise self-ownership.
There's a place for sensible limitation, I agree, but not here.
In fact if they really truly wanted to get all unnecessary chemicals out of our food supply why don't they mandate that tobacco companies cannot add any non-tobacco chemicals into their cigarettes? Interesting that after supposedly 60 years of tobacco awareness they haven't done that? I smoke American Spirits and I feel very comfortable that I'm not harming my body because they don't have any of the toxic sludge that are in commercial cigarettes. Also, if Big Brother cared so much about our fragile little bodies they would go after the big corporates for the tens of thousands of harmful chemicals that they use evetyvsay. But they don't want to do that because they are on their knees to those groups so they come after our rights instead. Why? cuz we're the peasants and they feel empowered to fuck us over but they would never do so to their big money clients AKA owners aka big donors.
I'm not as extreme as a classic libertarian but yeah I will say that this is definitely serious Big Brother-ism. even here where I live they've had a ridiculous anti-vaping crusade going on for the past few years and while I don't even vape, I do respect the rights of other adults to do so if they so wish.
Adults shouldn't have to apologize or beg a government thug to allow them to enjoy a goddamn smoke! I mean I just find this bizarre and a complete misuse of State power.
The more power you give government thugs, the more they want to use it against you.
For hecks sakes what is the point of being an adult in this country anymore since all our rights are getting flushed down the toilet?
Look I consider myself to be a reasonable person so I understand that we can draw fair outlines- it doesn't have to be either/or. There's plenty of room for compromise and I'm willing to do it in most cases.
But the vape wars (ongoing), the alcohol war which ended in 1933, the drug war, the pain medicine war (ongoing), these are all gross things that government gestapos have used to do nothing but real harm and I believe with fully known malicious intentions, and that is why I am very enthused to speak out against them in very certain terms.
I didn't always feel this way, 20 years ago this might have sounded pretty strange to me, maybe extreme. But I've had time to ruminate on this for some years now and that's why I've become more decided and critical as I've gotten older.
Basically people have the right to indulge their bodies and their personal habits in whichever way they choose provided they don't get behind the wheel in an impaired state or deliberately harm another human being in the conduct of such. Now that's fair. Anything beyond that I will oppose and I've got to oppose.
Surely that is not unreasonable. We also have the right to conduct free trade provided it doesn't harm anyone. As an adult if I wish to patronize a smoke shop or a vaping business my god I want that right!
Don't get me wrong like I said there is definitely a place for a fair and controlled amount of limitation, but this just isn't it.
But I agree any big business that uses harmful or deceptive practices should be controlled. I've never wavered from that.
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Imagine being stinking filthy rich, (which I classify as making anything more than 1M a year), NOT being satisfied with it, and spending every waking moment thinking how you can destroy the rest of the world to pilfer its wealth, its peace of mind, its security, and its future in order to benefit your own bank account- and desiring no end to this process. In other words there is no final goal. if each one of them could own a trillion dollars, they certainly would.
This is what sociopathy looks like in $2000 suit.
I've always been militantly politically radical, but never more than in the last 3 years. I do believe ONLY bloody revolution will put these kinds of people out of business permanently along with the entire organized Right in general. These kinds of mentally-ill sociopaths, as far as I'm concerned, don't deserve to live. They should be, ahem, put out of business in a breathing sort of way and their assets equitably distributed amongst the lower half of the economic strata in whatever nation they claim residence. Short of that, at least we can work to make this kind of economic wackjob extremism non-grata in in the public sphere and to disconnect the Right from all levers of influence and control one by fucking one (no doubt will not be achieved overnight).
In the meantime, you're doing a fantastic job, Zoomer UK Doogie Howser MD PhD BA SmartBro™️, by spreading awareness through full-frontal-assault education, which is always the vital first step in this unfortunately long and ongoing process of achieving the eventual permanent disempowerment of these Rodeo Drive barbarians and the types of destructive interests they represent.
You're doing god's work out there, my amigo. Big Yeezy's work, no doubt about it.
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Although I'm not very well versed in this subject, yet; to my current understanding, our current US copyright and IP law is literally only in existence to benefit sociopath-level corrupt lawyers and of course, the big corporations.... Like everything else specifically legislated for in this country. I find it impossible to believe that any IP law written in the last 45 years was done to promote greater opportunity for the little guy. Why?? Who owns this govt??? Who do they bend over and get the kneepads for??? Yeah well, you get the idea.
Can't even get crumbs after a worldwide pandemic and 10 months after Biden took office.
So I may not know the ins and outs of who IP law helps, but I know who the fuck it DOESN'T help, because I know the scandalous good-for-nothings who hold office here. Know the tree, know the fruit.... If you know one, you certainly know the other.
Any IP law which protects ordinary creators but limits corporate monopoly and control is one I want to get all up close and personal with. Maybe swap bodily fluids with.... And so forth. I don't think the specifics matter as much (altho they matter) as do the broad strokes and goals of the law. Is this going to empower and protect the regular guy, or be yet another tool of wrongful accumulation by a business that's already far, far too large???
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Thatcher was Reagan in a dress and both were shite. I live in the US and the curse of Rightoid neoliberalism continues today and yeah, it's bad. But when you live under the iron fist of the capitalist State these are to be expected.
Things can always get better so that's what we work towards. Frankly, there needs to be a nonprofit alternative to provide every need and it's a betrayal of a country's people not to have this. The private sector alone cannot meet all needs at a price everyone can afford. And what of those that have needs, but little money??
People deserve the choice whether they want to patronize the for-profit provider or not, and so long as that choice is given, I don't have a problem with the private sector. The problem is it isn't given here, in the US, AT ALL, and that's why we have up to 80% of household existing in an economic gradient from extremely poor, to precarious, to managing but just barely, to living paycheck to paycheck and having less than $500 in reserve, to being generally OK in the middle class provided nothing serious goes wrong.
Next to no public healthcare means one serious medical problem and you are easily screwed. Medical bankruptcy dwarfs all of the causes of bankruptcy in the US.
This just isn't right. We can do better. I'm not totally against the private sector but it needs to be aggressively managed via hardcore regulation. Every country deserves a fully-funded public aka nonprofit sector to provide the universal basic services that life requires.
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