Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
@Crash, I am not registered either. When I clicked the link it took me to the bottom of the page where, yes, it appeared I needed to register. I happened to notice the scroll bar was down at the lower level and when I grabbed it and pulled it back to the top, I found the article.
@Anna I don't think anything is inevitable, but good people must resist any advance in fascism. Also, I think it's essential to recognize however it materializes itself, it won't be exactly like the 1940s, but it's own distinct American version of it, and it won't be called fascism even if it really is. Some I've read say we may have what is called "soft fascism" or oddly democratic fascism where people opt for an authoritarian government even through the voting process. Meanwhile, dissenting people's voting right already have been suppressed.
......Just read the piece. Yes, they are well on their way. Typically, the Party in the WH loses mid-term seats. We already have a 50-50 split in the Senate. Will the Demublicans lose the House, too? That will create Obama-era gridlock. Which they will accept, if these Orban-types can't actually push forward what they are trying to do. McC the douche-nozzle famously said his goal was to make Obama a one-term President. It did not work, back only several years ago. But Biden just might be a "one-er."
They have no shame, with all the propaganda. None. It's deplorable. Auntie Hillary was correct in her reference to the "deplorables." .... I know of a woman who voted for the Trumpster in '16, but after one term, she could not bring herself to do it again. The question remains: how can ANYONE who claims to own a conscience actually vote for a man who is clearly, transparently, utterly WITHOUT one? Even ONCE? That alone scared the hell out of me, back in 2016.
...The state of the American electorate. Dull-witted, willing to swallow any kind of bullshit, and any sort of ethical compromise. Scary. But Orwell wrote in 1984: "With enough football and beer, the crowds were easy enough to control."
Ya. We are living in the midst of a growing majority who are almost as dumb as rocks. Who cannot think critically. And who never learned enough in school to avoid the dangers of what this article describes.
I'm very tired of all the woke business, myself. I want an open and tolerant society. But anything can be taken too far. Hairstyle legislation? There is a Bill that's already been introduced in the Congress.... And compelledspeech? It's already the law in Canada: someone insists that you or I must refer to them as "they" or "she" when that person is clearly a single individual (not plural) and clearly not female.
"They was really great in that performance onstage last night." (Ork? No. Just, no. Because I care about language.) I might decide to oblige a male who presents to me as female. And vice-versa. But not if the law REQUIRES it of me.
The majority can be wrong, and often is. What is true is true, whether a majority can admit it or not. One of the first logical fallacies I learned about carries the label: "Ten Thousand Frenchman Can't Be Wrong." The majority is not always right, just because it is the majority. Democratic rule by an ignorant, brainwashed majority is frightening. Democratic rule by a free-thinking "woke" majority that refuses to recognize some basic standards of Reality, and wants to require me to think a particular way, is just as frightening.
"What if the Party says 2 + 2 = 5, Winston? What then?"
I ask: can we not have an open, tolerant society which nevertheless collectively understands a few basic things? Like the fact that there are 2 sexes? People who suffer from gender dysphoria must not be judged and condemned. They need help, treatment, by whatever means. But those individuals are a tiny minority. So let's not have the tail wagging the dog, either. Political Correctness is censorship. I can't go along with it. Which means I'm screwed, because I can't go along with the Repugnants, nor the Demublicans. And between them, they've got the System locked up.
@Crash I would agree that the issue of “wokeness” is really just a distraction and a tool the GOP is using to win votes when there are much larger issues at play. In fact, I am fairly certain that the term “woke” is now used more by the right wing than the left. I also believe, given the term originated in black speech for someone conscious of racial injustice, that for senior members of the GOP it is really just code for the “N” word to them and their base. They recognize that there is a generational divide between what I would call Bill Maher Democrats and Millennials and Gen Z. The older generation do not like “wokeness” just like the older generation once didn’t like rock n roll, long hair and civil rights. The word is now a tool, a wedge to divide and conquer. Regarding pronouns, I would ask you to consider this: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32345113/ Given what’s at stake—people’s lives—is it so much to ask that you call this sliver of our population the pronouns they wish to be called? You could argue they just need treatment to teach them not to feel what they in their hearts know they are but that hasn’t worked for millions of other people with gender differences in the past and is cruel and dismissive of their own beliefs. Democracies by their nature require tolerance of individual differences.
@LewisBraham. You misunderstood me. Don't dismiss folks with gender dysphoria. Gay is gay. Lesbian is lesbian. That's one thing. People with gender dysphoria genuinely do not even feel at home in their own skin. I don't want them to be "converted" not to feel what they genuinely feel. Get them whatever they need.
"Suicidality Among Transgender Youth..."
Ah, there's a sticking point. YOUTH. Gender-switching is a serious business. Maybe the most basic, serious thing one can engage in. Let THAT sort of thing be for ADULTS. "Transgender YOUTH" to me ought to be a contradiction in terms.
I am indeed apt to indulge the male or female who presents to me as vice-versa, but NOT if the State compels it--- as in Canada, already. The whole pronoun-thing is by now a litmus test, too: "Don't you have any compassion in your heart?"
I do, actually. At the same time, I just don't like to disregard a little thing called Truth.
Comments
@Anna I don't think anything is inevitable, but good people must resist any advance in fascism. Also, I think it's essential to recognize however it materializes itself, it won't be exactly like the 1940s, but it's own distinct American version of it, and it won't be called fascism even if it really is. Some I've read say we may have what is called "soft fascism" or oddly democratic fascism where people opt for an authoritarian government even through the voting process. Meanwhile, dissenting people's voting right already have been suppressed.
They have no shame, with all the propaganda. None. It's deplorable. Auntie Hillary was correct in her reference to the "deplorables." .... I know of a woman who voted for the Trumpster in '16, but after one term, she could not bring herself to do it again. The question remains: how can ANYONE who claims to own a conscience actually vote for a man who is clearly, transparently, utterly WITHOUT one? Even ONCE? That alone scared the hell out of me, back in 2016.
...The state of the American electorate. Dull-witted, willing to swallow any kind of bullshit, and any sort of ethical compromise. Scary. But Orwell wrote in 1984:
"With enough football and beer, the crowds were easy enough to control."
Ya. We are living in the midst of a growing majority who are almost as dumb as rocks. Who cannot think critically. And who never learned enough in school to avoid the dangers of what this article describes.
I'm very tired of all the woke business, myself. I want an open and tolerant society. But anything can be taken too far. Hairstyle legislation? There is a Bill that's already been introduced in the Congress.... And compelled speech? It's already the law in Canada: someone insists that you or I must refer to them as "they" or "she" when that person is clearly a single individual (not plural) and clearly not female.
"They was really great in that performance onstage last night." (Ork? No. Just, no. Because I care about language.) I might decide to oblige a male who presents to me as female. And vice-versa. But not if the law REQUIRES it of me.
The majority can be wrong, and often is. What is true is true, whether a majority can admit it or not. One of the first logical fallacies I learned about carries the label: "Ten Thousand Frenchman Can't Be Wrong." The majority is not always right, just because it is the majority. Democratic rule by an ignorant, brainwashed majority is frightening. Democratic rule by a free-thinking "woke" majority that refuses to recognize some basic standards of Reality, and wants to require me to think a particular way, is just as frightening.
"What if the Party says 2 + 2 = 5, Winston? What then?"
Meanwhile, in Italy:
https://www.vox.com/2022/9/24/23369572/italy-election-meloni-brothers-of-italy-far-right
I ask: can we not have an open, tolerant society which nevertheless collectively understands a few basic things? Like the fact that there are 2 sexes? People who suffer from gender dysphoria must not be judged and condemned. They need help, treatment, by whatever means. But those individuals are a tiny minority. So let's not have the tail wagging the dog, either. Political Correctness is censorship. I can't go along with it. Which means I'm screwed, because I can't go along with the Repugnants, nor the Demublicans. And between them, they've got the System locked up.
Regarding pronouns, I would ask you to consider this: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32345113/ Given what’s at stake—people’s lives—is it so much to ask that you call this sliver of our population the pronouns they wish to be called? You could argue they just need treatment to teach them not to feel what they in their hearts know they are but that hasn’t worked for millions of other people with gender differences in the past and is cruel and dismissive of their own beliefs. Democracies by their nature require tolerance of individual differences.
"Suicidality Among Transgender Youth..."
Ah, there's a sticking point. YOUTH. Gender-switching is a serious business. Maybe the most basic, serious thing one can engage in. Let THAT sort of thing be for ADULTS. "Transgender YOUTH" to me ought to be a contradiction in terms.
I am indeed apt to indulge the male or female who presents to me as vice-versa, but NOT if the State compels it--- as in Canada, already. The whole pronoun-thing is by now a litmus test, too: "Don't you have any compassion in your heart?"
I do, actually. At the same time, I just don't like to disregard a little thing called Truth.