Anyone trading on the stock market?

[superdave]

Kinda like Trump was president but he was anything but presidential? The guys counter protesting white supremacists, neofascists, neo nazis and the rascist alt-right are the facists? I hope that one day you come to the realization of what you actually are...

You just might be one of the baddies.

 

[Elly]

It's a real image. It hasn't been shopped.

I suspected as I've seen plenty of the red hats with these types of signs but that one seemed really specific.

 

[Elly]

I think you may be wrong about him being a wind up merchant. If you read enough of his tripe, I think you'll come to understand that he drank the cool aid. He is a true believer.

Okay. It's a shame this thread was hijacked into a political thread.

Won't happen again.

 

[superdave]

Weed stocks are the next GameStop/Silver.

 

[Elly]

Weed stocks are the next GameStop/Silver.

Yeah, I saw that yesterday. I did some research earlier last year on that but it didn't look to be the right time.

I'm carrying some debt in silver and gold right now but have done well out of copper and lithium.

 

[Glurin]

The guys counter protesting white supremacists, neofascists, neo nazis and the rascist alt-right are the facists?

Hmm, lets see. Marching through the streets in black clothes and masks (pre-covid), assaulting bystanders, breaking windows, burning buildings, judging people by their skin color, otherising and calling for the death of anyone who disagrees with them, threatening to burn it all down if they don't get their way, physically assaulting journalists whom they believe might not report on them favorably....

I'm gonna go with yes.

 

[superdave]

When Parler was taken down, I knew the cancer would spread to the rest of the internet. Shame one of them found their way here.

 

[Glurin]

Okay then superdave. Why don't you explain to me exactly what a fascist is. Do it without using the words Trump, right wing, alt-right (alternative to right is left by the way), republican, America, white, conservative, nazi, or any other group identifier as your definition. I want you to tell me what you think a fascist is, not who you think is a fascist.

 

[superdave]

What is fascism?

Well start with racism add some xenophobia and nationalism. Stir in some anti liberalism and heaping spoonful of anti intellectualism. Let sit for 45 minutes and top it with a sprinkle of misogyny and queer phobia. Serve with a side of populist slogans and catch phases, militarized police and flawed "strongman".

You all know the recipe. We've been eating the same meal for 4 years.

 

[Glurin]

Ah, see, you're still trying to define it by person or group rather than action or belief. For now we'll put aside the validity or lack thereof of your accusation that all of these things have been the case for the past four years, as well as the implication of who are the perpetrators.

Racists, xenophobes, etc. aren't necessarily fascists, though they are commonly associated as being a result of fascism. Nationalism is a rather broad concept that could be good or bad, depending on context. Anti-liberalism is just you saying anyone not left wing is bad, so we'll disregard that entirely. Anti-intellectualism is an interesting accusation coming from the side that believes feelings trump facts. And as for populist slogans, you mean things like "black lives matter"? "eat the rich"? "white privilege"?

As far as militarized police goes, that one is a little tricky because there's a connection, but it's not really a direct one. Yes, fascists pretty much always have or desire to have a militarized police force, but you also need at least a little "militarization" in order for the police force to be effective. Particularly in situations involving riots, like we've just witnessed over most of last year. As such, I'm not willing to say it's a telltale sign, but it is one to keep an eye on.

 

[jmervyn]

It would admittedly be better to have kept this thread about economics, but unfortunately that *does* involve politics. As one of the best minds alive once said,

The first lesson of economics is scarcity: There is never enough of anything to satisfy all those who want it. The first lesson of politics is to disregard the first lesson of economics.

As to fascism, since those with biologically processed pudding for brains demonstrably aren't able to define it better than "something bad!" as in calling anyone they dislike NSDAP, and that allows them to punch the NSDAP. By the same token, claiming to not be fascist ipso facto means they are not fascist.

It's really quite simple, actually. The NSDAP existed only in Hitler's Germany, but many of the hallmarks claimed by Progressives and socialists as what they are "not" are common to all kinds of authoritarian regimes. Progressives and other socialists adore authoritarian regimes, as long as they're the ones in authority and able to enslave & crush the other guy.

Fascism is simply a different flavor of authoritarian socialism where an all-powerful state coerces behavior from individuals 'for the common good'. It was defined glibly but correctly by Mussolini as "Everything in (sometimes 'within') the State, nothing outside the State, nothing against the State." Fascism allows private enterprise but regulates it, controls it, and directs it towards goals the State considers desirable.

In contrast, Communism does not allow private enterprise, but attempts to run enterprise as nationalized institutions to the greatest degree possible. That's why Fascism generally can run for longer than Communism before failing; it harnesses the power of the individual to a superior degree.

Claims seen here about Fascism involving racism or nationalism are nothing but demonstrations of historical ignorance. ALL Socialist, totalitarian schemes involve racism or nationalism. The USSR's eradication of the kulaks was anti-Semitic in nature and might have actually killed more Jews than Hitler (hard to say with any certainty). Burma's government ethnically cleansed other tribes which outsiders would be hard-pressed to identify as any different from the Communist regime's own members. AOC's chief of staff was fired because of his open anti-Semitism... and that he openly wore a T-shirt of the NDSAP ally Subhas Chandra Bose, who only true morons (ahem) could assert was a white supremacist.

To loop it back, THAT is why the actions of Robin Hood are so egregious - they have openly violated their own policies in support of the oligarchy; "nothing against the State". It was interesting to see that even a dimwit like Russell Brand is starting to recognize the cozy relationship between the oligarchs and Federal power, but he remains stupid enough to try to claim that it's all the corporations' fault and nothing to do with the politicians holding the leash of those corporations.

P.S. Love me some B5. I was quite saddened to discover that the beautiful & talented Mira Furlan died on January 20th. RIP, Ambassador Delenn.

 

[krischan]

But the nazis killed 6 million people in concentration camps, 6 million Poles, 20 million Russians and a couple of millions of others within 6 years. Their kills per year count is way beyond anything else that humankind has ever done. Stalin, Mao, Genghis Khan etc. needed several decades to "achieve" that. The nazis were without doubt the most terrible people in human history who ever came to power and turned their words into deeds. You may compare certain people with certain nazis, but equalling a group with the nazis altogether in this manner is silly and despicable.

I agree that the Antifa has a couple of scumbags and idiots in their ranks though. I'm not on their side at all.

Those crimes against Jews in Russia aren't tied to communism, but were commited because people there were antisemitic in general. Russia still has problems with treating minorities fairly and to my knowledge, there's still significant antisemitism among the people there. I think that Western Europe has less of it than Eastern Europe. Regarding antisemitism in Germany, its amount is a matter of perception. Antisemitism here obviously catches much more attention than elsewhere. That's OK though.

 

[superdave]

You may compare certain people with certain nazis, but equalling a group with the nazis altogether in this manner is silly and despicable.

Every facist had to start somewhere. Just because the current facist is not Hitler circa 1940 doesn't mean that he is not Hitler circa 1921.

 

[krischan]

I agree. Hitler was a particular nazi, so it's OK to compare others with him, a I said.

 

[Elly]

What is fascism?

Well start with racism add some xenophobia and nationalism. Stir in some anti liberalism and heaping spoonful of anti intellectualism. Let sit for 45 minutes and top it with a sprinkle of misogyny and queer phobia. Serve with a side of populist slogans and catch phases, militarized police and flawed "strongman".

You all know the recipe. We've been eating the same meal for 4 years.

I don't think Trump losing the election will have any effect on the resurgence of white supremacy and racism, however.

I think what Trump has shown us is that that faction was there all along but for the most part kept their bigotry under wraps. With the help of the republican news channel, Trump was able to make it okay to say those things out loud and to even march down streets with banners that proclaimed it.

He made it okay for many to proudly proclaim a pandemic a hoax that wasn't that deadly and would 'magically disappear' without any sense of embarrassment. Who thought that, with the sort of regularity we saw, that would be the case in a modern country? I never thought I'd see it that's for sure.

That rot won't go away. There's still fox news, Brietbart, Parler, Facebook, Reddit and other places that even more lost, bored and impressionable people can be radicalised to do the things we saw on the 6th of Jan.

Four years ago it would have all sounded so far-fetched but I bet on your bingo card for the last four years you didn't have 'people smearing shit on the walls of the capitol' either.

 

[Glurin]

I think what Trump has shown us is that that faction was there all along but for the most part kept their bigotry under wraps. With the help of the republican news channel, Trump was able to make it okay to say those things out loud and to even march down streets with banners that proclaimed it.

Excuse me. That didn't happen. There were no more marches by white supremacists than before and nobody was on board with their nonsense when they did march, including Trump who disavowed white supremacists many, many, many, many times. Not that you would ever hear about that since it doesn't fit the orange man bad narrative we've had shoved in our faces for four years straight.

On the other hand, what we have seen is a dramatic increase in non-white supremacist marches chanting and carrying banners that say the most disgusting, racist, hateful things you can imagine. And they even went several steps further. Arson, assault, looting, intimidation, terrorism, "autonomous zones", etc. I guess you could say Trump made that okay though because they were anti-Trump, and anything goes as long as it's anti-orangeman, right? I mean, even viruses will leave you alone as long as you're for "social justice".

He made it okay for many to proudly proclaim a pandemic a hoax that wasn't that deadly and would 'magically disappear' without any sense of embarrassment.

FYI, he never said the pandemic was a hoax. I remember the specific incident that's built on. He was talking about the latest bullshit accusations being hurled against him at the time, which I believe were that he was claiming the pandemic was a hoax. That was the hoax he was referring to. It does come out weird though, I'll give you that, but the guy never was the most eloquent of speakers.

As for being "not that deadly", that's because it isn't. Don't get me wrong, it's bad, and it's bad enough that extra precautions are warranted. But it's not the new black death that the lockdown fascists want you to believe it is as you suffocate trying to breath through thirty layers of magic forcefield masks in your own home. The numbers and the science just do not support that and this hysteria isn't helping the situation any more than the idiots who think it's a hoax. (There's also the fact that these same lockdown fascists don't believe their own bullshit, as repeatedly demonstrated by them being seen at hair salons and restaurants and parties, usually shortly after telling everyone else they aren't allowed to do any of that.)

Four years ago it would have all sounded so far-fetched but I bet on your bingo card for the last four years you didn't have 'people smearing shit on the walls of the capitol' either.

True, they weren't smearing shit on the walls of the capitol. They were smearing shit on cars and buildings on Wall Street, and the people doing it called themselves "the 99%".

 

[Glurin]

You may compare certain people with certain nazis, but equalling a group with the nazis altogether in this manner is silly and despicable.

I don't particularly care for nazi comparisons either. Mainly because they are overblown or lacking in context and generally carry about as much water as children in the playground calling each other poopheads.

But when you've got a strong legitimate comparison, it would be silly not to bring it up. As the old saying goes, "If the jackboot fits..."

 

[jmervyn]

But the nazis killed 6 million people in concentration camps, 6 million Poles, 20 million Russians and a couple of millions of others within 6 years. Their kills per year count is way beyond anything else that humankind has ever done. Stalin, Mao, Genghis Khan etc. needed several decades to "achieve" that.

This is true to an extent, though I think you shouldn't mix war casualties as I believe you have. The Russians gave Hitler a run for his money by any measure, yet Progressives cooperated and admired them up until Trump was elected.

I agree that the Antifa has a couple of scumbags and idiots in their ranks though. I'm not on their side at all.

Those crimes against Jews in Russia aren't tied to communism, but were commited because people there were antisemitic in general. Russia still has problems with treating minorities fairly and to my knowledge, there's still significant antisemitism among the people there.

Actually, the USSR explicitly targeted Jews for political purposes, though not on the scale Hitler did, and they aren't unique. Surprisingly, while both the USSR and China also explicitly targeted Christians, only under Xi have we seen a policy going towards tolerance dramatically reversed. Chinese people I know and have read both indicate it was due to what we might call an Evangelical Christian contingent during the Tiananmen massacre. Nobody talks about that, of course, but it's probable that 10,000 people died, and Evangelicals were definitely among the so-called "students".

 

[jmervyn]

I don't think Trump losing the election will have any effect on the resurgence of white supremacy and racism, however.

I think what Trump has shown us is that that faction was there all along but for the most part kept their bigotry under wraps.

As reported by the Wall Street Journal, there aren't enough white supremacists in America to fill a bus in Washington D.C. on their own "Pride Day". The existence of a statistically significant number of them is a fairy tale spread by grifters such as the Southern Poverty Law Center for consumption by retarded socialists with money.

There ARE white supremacists. Once my wife & I stopped at a restaurant on the South side of Indianapolis and noticed a weird feeling in the area - we found out that the KKK had just conducted a march. Democrats, of course, because the KKK are and always were the militant arm of the Democrat Party.

The march numbered under twenty people. One could doubtless find ten times as many furries willing to participate in a march in Indianapolis. Naked.

Nobody but a statistically insignificant number of losers even pretends white supremacy is a "thing", but what happens is that groups like the SPLC conflate *those* losers with others, like the so-called "Boogaloo Boyz" (again, a group which largely exists online and whose 'active' members number in the low dozens) or the Proud Boys, who are a multi-ethnic Western Civilization supremacist organization (again, of very low numbers, but I've actually encountered at least one in real life).

The media furthermore considers every feckin' member of 4chan to be white supremacists, because they managed to get the goddess Hillary to look the skithead she always has been, on national television. At one point there were attempts to define the "alt-right" meaning not GOP, and the "alt-lite" as being the 4chan types who were just in the mix for the lulz, but the media screamed that every one of them (including blacks, Hispanics, and Asians) are ALL white supremacistsssttttsttsssststsstt!!!!!!

He made it okay for many to proudly proclaim a pandemic a hoax that wasn't that deadly and would 'magically disappear' without any sense of embarrassment.

I believe someone already pointed out the blatant ignorance of that claim, but I'll be happy to cover it if needed.

That rot won't go away. There's still fox news, Brietbart, Parler, Facebook, Reddit and other places that even more lost, bored and impressionable people can be radicalised to do the things we saw on the 6th of Jan.

What, get murdered by a plainclothes cop of undetermined kind while in the middle of a crowd of heavily armed DCPD officers? Or take stupid pictures of oneself dressed up in some sort of Viking costume? That sort of thing?

 

[zemaj]

Not to dwell on anything, but it was suggested in an ongoing PM chain that I share a bit of info I dug up on the image contained in the post that I am so upset over.

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/swastika-flag-trump-pence-michigan/

There are other sources confirming the Snopes conclusion, in case anyone dislikes Snopes for whatever reason....

So... a genuine nazi flag, captioned and carried by fake Trumpers, for the purpose of inciting people against those they disagree with, by catering to thier confirmation bias. There is a good lesson wrapped up in that.

For clarity, I don't think the image itself is the real issue here. The point that has me so worked up is that someone who holds an authority position just dropped such a charged image, without preamble, explanation or insight. To have done so bespeaks of a lack of those things, and implies a disregard for the position one holds, particularly when the one posting has spoken on how they believe that authority figures irl should be held accountable for what they put out (which I agree with, fwiw).

***

To not derail the attempts to bring this back to original topic:

I've been putting more and more into 5G techs, trying to avoid the roulette spin of which big carrier gets in it the most, quickest, focusing more on the small developers and infrastructure companys that have more potential to really blow up as new tech becomes more widespread. Its been doing pretty good, I'd recommend a look into it.

Also, yeah, weed stocks are also on the rise... I'll refrain from making puns on that, too easy.