USA was impressively democratic for a state in the late 18th Century. It’s like other areas (cell phone data speeds) where the pioneers get passed up.
The “theory” for checks and balances is that everyone acts in good faith. Polity has America as a 10/10 democracy until 2015, where it then started to drop, imo largely because someone was put into power who was willing to install a bunch of people who would act in bad faith as long as it was to help him.
Even democracymatrix’s .811 score is extremely high considering it’s after the first 4 years of Trump. I don’t know what I’d set the over/under for the end of this second 4 years… Hungary is .585, maybe that’s a good line.
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I read an article today about Cracker Barrel that there is an organized campaign by the owner of steak and shake (who is hardcore maga) to paint it woke because they have been trying to take over Cracker Barrel for fifteen years.
I had so much trouble understanding how Yanukovych got elected, but it makes a lot more sense now.
The next dem admin is going to be mired down in turning back the clock on everything trump has done. I won’t be expecting much foward progress.
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I actually think people may be undervaluing how important the Newsom stuff is. Attention is like the whole ballgame now. Too many people have become phone addled freaks.
These crime graphics are great. People have been sharing them all over. They even got Fox News to ask Mike Johnson about the Louisiana one!
Go on offense. Use graphics. Use memes. Mock the other side. Whatever. But you gotta get people to pay attention. Sternly written letters and wonky nuance is just too boring. Democrats need to make attention grabbing emotional appeals.
Again, all the usual caveats that I haven’t been a fan of Newsom and I wish somebody else was doing this effectively and getting the attention. But I gotta say, if nobody else figures this out, he may end up being the best option. Attention is that important of a skill right now, IMO, and his staff is crushing it.
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Masked stormtroopers are lining up firefighters who are fighting wildfires, demanding ID and kidnapping some of them. Obviously just one example. The USA is full of this and cities are patrolled by the National Guard and active duty military. Newsom’s stuff is entertaining, but the democracy is done, the USA, such as it was, is completely ruined.
It’s pretty dumb of me to continue to post like this in a fascist country when it does absolutely no good.
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Ya, I changed the sense of “expect” in that sentence, edited it to make it clearer. Meant expect in the sense of a teacher who says, “I expect you to all get A’s”.
Good point, where did he get a Y chromosome? Maybe “he” wasn’t?
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I’m so glad someone got that joke.
Surprisingly, he led off with a true statement.
However, the judges said the tariffs can stay in place as the case proceeds.
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Resident (micro)biologist at your service.
https://x.com/Acyn/status/1961548635159822533
Fucking hell
Good news, guys. The tariffs are over!
Tariffs on your pony are still in effect.
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Just like the real tariffs.
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Grunching.
Re the supreme court I had often wondered the same thing. But i think it’s largely your second point.
With the parliament having ultimate power, then there’s much less incentive to put party hacks into the court. This allows the power of “norms” (which I do believe in) to step in.
EDIT. Re norms. I think there is both a cultural/values element, and also a harder, more power based version. It’s basically a coordination game.
If everyone else follows the rules you are better off following the rules too. If everyone breaks the rules. You are better of breaking the rules. You have two equilibria.
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America has hands down the fucking dumbest legal system ever devised.
The tariffs are illegal but you can keep them for the next 6 weeks. Gg.
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