There are certainly enough people who grew up with immense privilege who have no problem hurting other people. Are they traumatized? I mean, we can’t rule out the possibility.

On the other hand, have they been cushioned from the painful consequences their own actions have on others? Absolutely.

Seconded. If we oust Texas, we can regain control over the content in school textbooks.

People who want to flee can still be welcomed as refugees.

Good catch! Thank you, I fixed my comment.

Police recovered bullets at the scene that read, "delay, deny, defend

Depose. Say it, DEPOSE.

I can understand this one instance being an editorial slip-up, but I’ve seen way too many news articles that reference the bullets while omitting that one particular word - depose.

It’s the word that scares the oligarchs the most. Which is all the more reason for us to repeat it, even if journalists won’t. DELAY, DENY, DEPOSE.

Who’s blowing whom?

It sounds like you mean we should focus on impacting and supporting our local communities. That is definitely something more of us should be doing.

It’s the use of the word “tribalism” that’s putting people off. That word has connotations that (I don’t believe?) you intended. To a lot of us, it’s a pejorative term that refers to the mindset of a small group that’s fiercely hostile to other groups (while only being protective to their own.) A group with a “tribalist” mindset is likely a bubble of xenophobia.

I’m impressed by her ability to recognize a particular butt as her own.

Then again, maybe she’s like Tina Belcher.

It’s ideal for when you want to have hot, steamy conversations about all your deepest, darkest desires. Like popping CEOs, overthrowing the oligarchy, and making enough money to afford all your basic human needs.

Damn, the other commenter seems hellbent on making you sound like a snob, despite every one of your comments being chill and relatable.

Do… do they think email accounts are a rare resource? Of all the things to be concerned about, they’re worried about conserving something so intangible, cheap, and abundant?

Not sure how that’s supposed to help Line Go Up, but okay.

Wow. This means that now, someone can say that medical bills literally cost them an arm & a leg.

And yet when we pointed out that Project 2025 talked about banning porn, a lot of people didn’t think it was serious. This is just one way that such an idea can play out.

I don’t think porn could ever be fully banned - prohibition doesn’t work. (Besides, I already made a promise to create erotic art specifically in order to spite any such enacted law.) But considering how modern porn and its variety has enabled many people to acquire niche preferences, this is still going to trigger a challenging time for a lot of people.

What might be interesting is (assuming it is indeed real infighting) if the focus on rich vs poor is brought more into the forefront due to this. That certainly isn’t something the MAGA leadership wants.

Which is why in the end, regardless of the motivations behind these stories, we must continue to use these opportunities to point out the underlying class war that unites us. No matter the superficial drama that creates the attention, keep redirecting the focus back to that fact. Major media outlets will do what they can to avoid conveying this message, so it’s on us to make it a normal conversation that can’t be ignored.

Don’t forget name-recognition (even outside the social media spheres.) When’s the last time so many cabinet picks were names the average American already knew? It’s not like we’re the most informed group of people. Yet out of all the millions of people in the United States, what are the chances that the best people for these jobs are ones the public has already heard of?

Trump has gotten as far as he has by treating his own name like a brand. It’s not surprising that he prefers to associate with others who’ve done the same.

My brothers: Punch each other, wrestle each other, cram each other into pillow cases and cardboard boxes, all the while yelling and screaming.

Mom: Says nothing.

Me (daughter): Doesn’t want to “sit like a lady” when watching TV, and wants to play in the dirt. Complains when she’s expected to keep herself to a higher standard than her brothers.

Mom: Sighs Girls are so much more difficult than boys!

Is the updated version worth it? I loved that game as a kid, but can’t find it in me to fork over $60 just to play with better graphics.

It started as a ruse, but when the pink guy bought into it, the green guy got confirmation that the ruse worked. “Fake it til you make it” and all that.

Social media rises and falls just like any other fad or fashion. It’s a never-ending churn, as people (particularly, young people) inevitably crave something novel. There’s little use in fighting the cycle, just as there’d be little use in fighting the trendy choices of a teenager.

It’s frustrating to watch people en masse continue to make choices that don’t make sense. It turns out that a lot of people are much more driven to follow the crowd than to have (let alone stand by) personal principles or rational decisions. Thankfully, we’re not obligated to be like that. There’s always some sort of counter-culture that bucks the main trends, and honestly? That’s where the most interesting people tend to be.

If you feel driven to educate people on the futility of trends, then by all means, go for it. I just know it can be draining, and not everyone is going to be receptive. On the plus side, you sound like a rational person who actually thinks about their decisions - in a world full of followers, that can be pretty powerful.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t the key difference in layaway that you didn’t have access to the item until it was paid off? I remember my mom putting holiday gifts on layaway at Walmart. They’d be kept in storage in the back of the store, and would be given over only after they were fully paid off.

Buy now/pay later plans allow the consumer access to the item now, with a payment plan to follow. It’s much more akin to credit than layaway.

What a peculiar line of attack. OP isn’t bragging about anything, they’re irritated that it’s taken at least a decade for a known problem to be addressed.

Being frustrated about a problem for a long time ≠ being into a thing before it was cool.