***Official Political Discussion Thread***

[-Red-]

Do you mean framing nationalism/cultural hegemony as a civil religion? Good question. I don't know.

Yeah, either that or the other way around⁠—civil religion as a form of or particular element of nationalism/cultural hegemony. In all instances, historical phenomena are reified as transhistorical and above question, much less reproach. And this functions to obscure both the interests and stakes involved as well as the basic notion that things could possibly be different.

My joke about "there is no alternative" in my last post was an allusion to Margaret Thatcher's (in)famous quote declaring the ultimate victory of neoliberalism that speaks to this dynamic, as well. To use the civil religion framing, we have been programmed to worship at the altar of the market.

 

[Belgium]

 

[-Red-]

"I didn't read the article, so I'm just going to make baseless and disingenuous assumptions about what might be in it in service of my preferred 'narrative.' Which isn't a problem, because I know none of our viewers have or will read it, either."

 

[RustyShackleford]

"I didn't read the article, so I'm just going to make baseless and disingenuous assumptions about what might be in it in service of my preferred 'narrative.' Which isn't a problem, because I know none of our viewers have or will read it, either."

Famb is a graduate from the Ninjahood School of Journalism

 

[moderndarwin]

i used to really believe in the institution of government and country a lot as a kid. As an adult it’s sad to come to the realization (in America) it’s all about money and the haves and have nots though.

 

[IATT]

@dwalk31

 

[aepps20]

Famb is a graduate from the Ninjahood School of Journalism

Grey Market Sneakers too?

 

[Belgium]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/19/germany-likely-to-head-into-recession-bundesbank-warns
Germany likely to head into recession, central bank warns
Bundesbank says summer’s slump in exports is expected to continue into the autumn

Germany’s economy is heading into recession after the country’s central bank warned that a slump in exports during the summer was likely to continue into the autumn.

The Bundesbank said a downturn in orders for cars and industrial equipment in the second quarter of the year was likely to continue in the third quarter, leaving the economy on the brink of a technical recession, defined as two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth.

The bank, blaming a drop in exports, said Brexit and the trade war between the US and China were among the factors responsible for a 0.1% drop in GDP in the three months to June and would likely create a similar drop in the three months to September.

It said: “The overall economic performance could decline slightly once again. Central to this is the ongoing downturn in industry.”

Forecasts of growth this year of 0.5% by the Bundesbank and the European commission are likely to be downgraded to nearer 0.2% or 0.3%, though analysts at Deutsche Bank said even these figures were vulnerable to downward revisions.

“Given the increasingly fragile state of the global economy, the realisation of one or more risks could easily push the economy into a completely different scenario,” the bank’s analysts said.

The dip in economic performance, even if it proves to be short-lived, comes at a bad time for Angela Merkel’s coalition.

The junior coalition partner, the Social Democratic party (SPD), is awaiting the outcome of a leadership election that many observers believe will result in the left of centre party, which has slumped in the polls, pulling its support.

Stefan Schneider, Deutsche Bank’s chief economist, said the coalition was also heading for heavy losses in the important state elections in Saxony and Brandenburg, where the Green party and the rightwing Alternative for Germany are expected to make gains.

He said: “The fog over the [coalition’s] future is unlikely to lift before the end of October when the SPD will present the result of the membership ballot on its new leader(s). We think that Merkel’s government will become even more fragile.”

Germany has the fiscal strength to counter any future economic crisis “with full force”, said the finance minister, Olaf Scholz, suggesting Berlin could provide up to €50bn (£45.7bn) of extra spending.

His comments came after a report last week said Germany was prepared to ditch its balanced budget rule and take on new debt to counter a possible recession.

Confirmation that the country would use the threat of a recession to boost government spending helped calm markets rocked last week by concerns of a global slowdown led by the US, China and Germany.

Eurozone sovereign bond yields, which reflect the borrowing rate paid by governments in the 19-member currency bloc, lifted from record low levels. Germany’s 10-year bond yield was steady at -0.69%, above record lows hit last week at about -0.73%. German 30-year bond yields were also off record lows, trading at -0.22%.

World stock markets were also cheered by a decision from China’s central bank to alter the way it sets a key interest rate benchmark, a move seen by analysts as reducing borrowing costs for companies.

Peter Chatwell, the head of rates strategy at the Japanese bank Mizuho, said Berlin needed the threat of a recession before it could unleash government spending.

He said: “The point which is being missed is that the German fiscal stimulus is conditional on a recession, and existing law already allows for this.

“The European Central Bank [ECB] would probably restart QE [quantitative easing] before the German fiscal taps were at risk of being nudged open.”

Inflation in the eurozone has more than halved in the last year from 2.2% to 1%, leaving the ECB little option but to cut the cost of borrowing from its already low levels.

Mario Draghi, the ECB’s outgoing president, said last month that the outlook for eurozone growth was worsening and inflation remained well below the bank’s 2% target. He said Europe’s central bank would use every weapon at its disposal to mitigate deflationary pressures.

 

[elpablo21]

 

[RustyShackleford]

I wish the debate was over two nights.

5 people on stage would produce a much more better discussion.

 

[IATT]

 

[IATT]

 

[aepps20]

BEAUTIFUL AND ABOUT TIME.

 

[RustyShackleford]

Chuck gotta be on that narcotic

 

[IATT]

 

[aepps20]

Glad cooler heads are PREVAILING. Video Games and Lib conjecture and innuendo are the problems. We need more yappas not less, less regulation not more, more coal and WAYYYYYYYYYYY LESS KALE.

 

[Belgium]

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/08/sam-patten-mueller-report-witness.html
Mueller Was Listening to This Guy?
Sam Patten’s wild life as a cooperating witness.


Excerpt:

 

[aepps20]

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/08/sam-patten-mueller-report-witness.html
Mueller Was Listening to This Guy?
Sam Patten’s wild life as a cooperating witness.


Excerpt:

METHODICAL MANAGEMENT.

 

[deleted]

Chuck gotta be on that narcotic

Chuck's whole feed

I prefer Pat Sajak...his brand of "cranky old conservative game show host" is much more refreshing

 

[RustyShackleford]

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/08/sam-patten-mueller-report-witness.html
Mueller Was Listening to This Guy?
Sam Patten’s wild life as a cooperating witness.


Excerpt:

I know the first book he is checking out of the jailhouse library....

 

[RustyShackleford]

But real talk that passage is kinda insightful. Dude knows that given all the BS that has been fed to him by his family and friends he should have more ****ed up views regarding black people. But because he had positive interactions with black folk at a young age, when he was very vulnerable, so he can't fully adopt the white supremacists programming.

Now he is left in a state of cognitive dissonance.

Dude still sounded loony as hell doe. He all kinds of messed up. He wants to be locked up with dudes from the trenches instead of playing pickle ball with Bernie Madoff. What in the world

 

[dacomeup]

 

[Wargames]

Whose candidate is this?

 

[RustyShackleford]

I don't like Biden but don't know why I should think those comments as a bad look.

 

[gry60]

In all instances, historical phenomena are reified as transhistorical and above question, much less reproach. And this functions to obscure both the interests and stakes involved as well as the basic notion that things could possibly be different

This happens in pretty much every society because the powers that be have a vested interest in always being seen in a positive light by their constituents. It takes a lot more than controlling the narrative to make a political ideology a civil religion IMO: there needs to be symbols that are considered sacred and cannot be modified (the Constitution), an entity that is recognized by all constituents as the only authority that interprets the ideology (the supreme Court/government), the existence of exceptional figures who represent the best examples of how to follow the ideology (founding fathers, military), and the explicit expression of the exceptional status of all constituents under the political ideology (American exceptionalism).

My joke about "there is no alternative" in my last post was an allusion to Margaret Thatcher's (in)famous quote declaring the ultimate victory of neoliberalism that speaks to this dynamic, as well

Just like Americans proclaimed the end of History after the fall of the Berlin Wall.