Davis

Jared Bernstein, former chair of Biden’s Council of Economic Advisers, explains why he and other long-time “budget doves” now believe America’s debt has become dangerously unsustainable. He now considers himself a Hawk because America’s budget math just got a lot more dangerous.

For decades, low interest rates relative to economic growth ma…[Read more]

I read a book about the development of Christian sexual morality recently.  (“From sin to shame” by Kyle Harper.)

The Romans had very patriarchal attitudes towards women, and they said it was OK for a man to sleep with whoever as long as they were “smooth” (a boy or a woman) and didn’t take the passive part.

The new Christians were at odds with…[Read more]

Out of curiosity i asked an LLM the least homophobic nations in Africa. And guess what? Those nations all have low percentage of Muslims. Not that Christianity is any font of tolerance but it has progressed somewhat.

jakelafort wrote:
In Jamaica i think gay men are known as battie boys. Not sure of spelling.

Because they do it in the bottom or battie.  Men of Jamaican or African descent are usually pretty homophobic in the UK, but they keep it to themselves out of politeness towards the prevailing norm of tolerance.

Rivalry or healthy competition can be…[Read more]

Nailed shit out of that Reg.

Wagwan Jake 🙂

Enco,

I have nothing against competition. It is human nature. It is fun if directed or chanelled into something constructive like play or sports. And its application to capitalism is apt. Humans have competed to see which nation can explore such and such a hostile environment first, get to the moon first, climb a forbidding mountain first. Dumb…[Read more]

@Strega – I feel less weird about it now 

I don’t think you have ever written anything that was not well reasoned and on point.

Simon,

You wrote, “All of that’s true. I’m just saying it’s a lot more relaxed to live in the UK right now than the polarised and aggressive USA.

I am not buying the competition and dominance notion.

The reason is that we don’t have a narcissist heading the country winding everything up as hard as he can.

People and groups either coopera…[Read more]

Enco,

Thanks for the Marley link.

Quoting that article, “He had eleven children with seven women, abused his wife, and hated gays.” So doing the lefty calculus being a noble savage and oppressed it means cultural relativism applies and he is an upstanding citizen.

I had a Jamaican gf and have spoken to other women in Jamaica and they confirm…[Read more]

jakelafort wrote:
Regardless it is a woeful history. A history of classism. A history of exploitation. Native peoples divided and conquered. Their resources taken. White man’s burden and all of that, what? If that is not tribal, us and them, then what is it? Charley Dickens and exploitation of children… Having said that English are just human and…

[Read more]

Here is one article from today’s edition of JP. BTW it is also clear to me that Israel can’t trust the USA to sell it weapons if far left takes power again. I think i read other than USA after oct 7 only Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland or Serbia sold weapons to Israel. Other countries cancelled executory contracts. How fucked up is that? Israel…[Read more]

I am only half a moron. Yeah! I am a complete moron in terms of using the computer effectively. But your opening line is a strawman.

I never once boiled down antisemitism to left or right. Seemingly disparate interests can always share in hatred of Jews. When it is not manifest it is latent and liable to boil over as it has in so many…[Read more]

Boiling down antisemitism to “left or right” just tells me you are halfway to a moron. It’s like the guy living in a trailer on Social Security and Medicaid who votes for Trump because he hates Hispanics.

The betrayal of Trump voters happening in real time was totally predictable. The extra trillions added to the national debt, lower taxes for…[Read more]

Well said Enco. I like that-the oppression olympics. The cast of characters would be severely chopped by lefties.

I was gonna mention the Aztec, Inca and Maya. Just proves human nature in the impact of consolidation of power. Don’t forget how tough and brutal the Commanche were. I think the Cherokee had a lot of slaves if memory serves. You are…[Read more]

I know a guy who grew up in Utah and while the Mormons were not his friend he never heard any Jew hating rhetoric. Was surprised to learn how prevalent it is.

Here is Seinfeld on some of these issues and how it has touched his life. Interestingly Simon, he attributes extremism to i think he said consensus and the need for agreement as part of…[Read more]

I used the word ‘It’ as I knew from the tone of the question that I was just dealing with another one of ‘Them’. A useful idiot spewing “gotcha” type questions who had no comprehension of what had happened in Israel and did not even have the basic facts correct. I only bother speaking with ‘them’ for a few minutes when I can see that I am being…[Read more]

@Reg THANK YOU!! I feel less weird about it now 🙂

He said it.

Ha ha.

Ok so i have not even read these but quick search and here are a few among many indicating the trajectory.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/02/british-jews-experience-more-antisemitism-as-middle-east-war-escalates

https://www.timesofisrael.com/report-details-terrible-normalized-antisemitism-at-uk-universities/

Just a few comments.

I’ve only really come across the singling out of Jews since I’ve been in the USA.

I can say the same Strega. I lived for a few years on the East End Road in East Finchley, London. The population was mainly English, Jewish (English and East EuropeanRussian), Indian and Irish. But nobody cared about that. To the point that it…[Read more]