jakelafort

If you were against REAL efforts to placate Russia and effectuate a settlement you signed on for war crimes. A safer bet i can scarcely conceive.

Simon, nobody here is going to disagree that Putin is evil. But you portrayed ALL RUSSIANS being happy to invade Ukraine.

I am on board with Davis. Quite reasonable.

Seriously? That’s a pretty frightening and cynical world view. Putin is at war because it makes him and his country feel great.

Never would have guessed those words were written by Simon. I didn’t think you did the us/them, good v. evil game. As Robert points out the Republicans have gone from portraying Russia as the evil empire to licking a…[Read more]

Why would the west want a war with Russia?

Why would one power seek to eviscerate another power? Continuation of power struggles is nothing new. It is same old same. So is unprovoked invasion of neighbors. Getting others to spill the blood so your own citizens don’t have to? Priceless. And then benefiting by selling weapons… Particularly true…[Read more]

Assessing Putin’s intentions is a fool’s errand. It is just speculation. Even though he may have evinced his intentions the pressure of the moment might cause him to alter course. If he is defeated or dies there is a chance a power vacuum will be occupied by an even more reactionary dictator or government. If you are a hawk(supported the war…[Read more]

“Naming pets is not the cause of our love of them, it’s an effect. I would think that to be obvious. Apparently not, because one hears the “If we named (species), we wouldn’t eat it.”

It’s the role we let our pets assume in our lives that has us loving them and wanting to protect other’s pets and pet species as well through an unconscious…[Read more]

Lets give the chickens and cattle names. Frank, Big E. Pecker, Dispshit, Lipshitz, Shuttlecock, Anthony. That is just off the top of my head! If we personalize the cattle and chickens and they make us feel cozy and warm then we can insulate them from grievous human aggression. Similarly, the dogs that are slaughtered in Asian countries can find…[Read more]

Funny Pope cuz i meant to say it is only 27 minutes. Yay for onset of dementia!

Scum rises to the top in USA politics. Ya wanna hear a little discussion about RFK?

https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/making-sense-with-sam-harris-82382/episodes/325-a-few-thoughts-about-rfk-j-177680862

Unseen i think you know i was talking about this as a political issue in the public eye. Discussing it here is irrelevant. And this is not exactly a typical cross section of the public.

Unseen, my assumption is that this topic being front and center is destructive. No point in me elaborating cuz we all know about the political climate in contemporary murica.

*marionettist

Nice cool hand luke reference. Unlimited scope. Pope.

I know you have an interest in virology and have educated yourself. As a scientific topic it is as peachy as any other. On the other hand as a topic for public consumption it seems to me it is just another way to augment dissension between the mindless and brain-dead. Kung Flu! The marionettes…[Read more]

Color me ignorant. But i am not sure why ascertaining the origin is so important.

That’s what i was going on about. Human nature. Ideologues. It is in our nature. Beliefs, beliefs, beliefs. Echo chambers are the perfect medium to advance the pernicious and vicious along with meretricious and capricious. Free marketplace of ideas is a god damn stupid notion. I knew it as a child. It takes very little reflection to refute it. So…[Read more]

From Simon:I guess any zealous ideology can get its competitive purity spirals and its puritans and its thought police.

It happens during revolutions. It is universal in western religion. Probably eastern also. It happens in political movements and politics in general. There is something in human nature that is derived of our evolution that makes…[Read more]