OrnluWolfjarl

joined 2 years ago
[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

Chang is Chinese-American (has a Chinese parent I think), so the author is saying Chang is selling off his people?

[–] [email protected] 12 points 18 hours ago

To me both comments sound ironic, though that may be because I'm still an optimist.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 days ago

Of course, Jesus was an excellent capitalist. If he had 2 shirts, he sold one. One time at a wedding he took advantage of the huge demand for alcohol and sold watered-down wine for 10 times its price. It was a miracle! He made a killing providing quality healthcare at a premium price to the blind who needed eye correction surgery. He always preached about saving money and selling for a profit. And my favourite is when he visited the temple and congratulated all the merchants for their incredible business acumen.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

The military agreement is not in effect yet.

The US is going along because of elections, and the funding of Ukraine is an issue. Adding hated enemies to the pot makes it more desirable.

I'm not saying there's no possibility DPRK sent troops. I'm saying we don't know how true it is, and we shouldn't operate as if this is a certainty. It plays into Ukrainian propaganda if we do.

If Ukraine and the West had evidence they'd show it already.

The DPRK minister going to Russia and saying "we'll support Russia until victory" might seem a bit suspect, but it doesn't actually say anything concrete.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 6 days ago (2 children)

A reminder that so far all we have to go on are Western and Ukrainian officials saying DPRK troops are being deployed in Russia to attack Ukraine with no evidence. The only credible evidence we have is a few Tik Tok videos posted by Russian soldiers, showing soldiers picking up uniforms in a military camp in Siberia. The makers of the videos claim these are North Koreans, and some random South Korean internet users are saying they can pick up a few words in Korean being spoken by these soldiers.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 6 days ago

There were also reports that during covid, Boeing charged the Pentagon 600 000 to produce 15 trash cans. That's 40 000 dollars per trash can. Previously, the same trash cans cost the Pentagon 300 dollars per item.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago

Oh, you are right, I read that wrong. Apparently it started out at 100 000 rubles, and doubles every week. So yeah, we are getting there.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago (2 children)

It might get there eventually. The fine increases by 100 000 rubles every day that Google keeps Russian media blocked. So in about 40-50 universe lifetimes, if Google doesn't reverse its decision, the fine will be approaching a googol dollars. Depending on inflation :P

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 week ago (2 children)

The reason I liked Andor was that it portrays the revolutionaries (Luthen, his assistant, and later Andor himself) as understanding that they need to do the "bad stuff" to achieve results. They are not burdened by idealistic notions of a utopian and pure fight of good vs evil. There's a scene where Luthen monologues that he sacrificed his soul to the cause. That he is trying to bring about a sunrise he will never be able to enjoy.

Liberal media usually use the arc of the gruff vengeful revolutionary softening towards the end, as they are faced with fateful choices, and not having the courage to go through with it. Andor reverses this arc and I think it's better for it.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 week ago (1 children)

If you like sci-fi read Red Rising.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 week ago

Yes, communist movements in Europe and the US are getting suppressed. The violent phase occured 60-70 years ago. Now whatever is left is getting infiltrated and chopped up immediately through psyops. They are allowed to operate "unmolested" because they've been suppressed to hell and are now just husks used to sheepdog and manipulate people.

Take a look at Greece. KKE is vehemently anti-government but nobody cares to listen to it or takes it seriously, because there's constant infighting for nonsensical reasons. That's the controlled parts of the leadership constantly creating issues to prevent unified action. Any efforts by other communist movements are quickly destroyed by planting provocateurs in their marches and actions. Any spontaneous protest is immediately and violently suppressed by police forces. Similar things are happening in France, Spain and Germany.

Don't get me started on the state of communist movements in the US and the UK.

I'd suggest you take a look at the history of communism in all these places and understand that what is happening to all the former Soviet countries now, has already happened after 1945 all over the West.

This is just Western exceptionalism talking.

I said I'm not going to pretend Western communist movements are perfect. But you are quick to blame the strawman Western communist for imperialism. That's nothing more than sectarianism.

Yeah, Western communists ought to take up arms. But what arms? We are talking about extremely diminished movements in a fairly demotivated population, fighting against tanks, jets and drones. In countries like Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece, the communists tried to fight in the last century and failed. They are still carrying the stigma to this day. And yeah, a bunch of movements are bought for or otherwise institutionalized. How is that the fault of an everyday communist?

Lastly, you blame Western communists of decrying "all Ukrainians" as Nazis. Yet, you do the same exact thing by lumping all Western communists in the same basket.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 week ago (10 children)

And when the country is finally beaten into submission all you armchair communists will start spewing “all Georgians are Nazis” within a week

I'm not gonna sit here and pretend that all is well with communists in the imperial core, but what are they expected to do? If Georgian communists, and Ukrainian communists got beaten down, imagine the situation for communists in Europe, or even worse, the US.

19
Pokémon Revolution (existentialcomics.com)
 

Archive Link: https://archive.ph/1zsEr

 
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submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
 

The main points:

  • Apparently, the direct cause was Japan raising its interest rates. Apparently investors globally used to borrow yen (which had low interest rates) and then invest elsewhere, turning a quick profit on the difference between the yen's interest rate and the return of the investment. When the yen's interest rate went up, a bunch of investors started selling off their yen assets, which carried over to the US market.

  • The issue was exacerbated by recent reports of US economic shrinkage.

  • Most stocks and all major indexes have dropped significantly

  • Tech companies particularly affected. Especially Nvidia, Apple and Tesla. Also, US-based and Taiwan-based chip manufacturers.

  • Cryptos are crashing, as investors are liquidating assets

  • Japanese and Korean stock markets were also severely affected directly, with similar downwards spirals.

  • European markets started getting affected as well.

I have no idea about the yen actually being the culprit to this. I'd say it's probably a contributing factor or a catalyst. But we've been seeing the US tech companies faltering for some time now, after the US initiated a trade war with China. Chinese tech companies have been making huge strides in the past year alone, while Western tech companies remained stagnant or regressed.

My interpretation, at least as far as the fire-sale involving US tech companies, is that they've been losing ground to China for some time, and they've been underperforming in the stock market for a while (recall that Nvidia's stock has been dropping for the past 2 weeks or so). Whatever arbitrary event caused Wall Street investors to start dumping their stocks, the recent poor performance of American tech companies made them a prime target for unloading stocks first. In essence, the US tried to start a tech and trade war with China and ended up shooting its own foot. Meanwhile, China yet again proven to be taking the right actions.

Worth noting, that there's talks that the US Federal Reserve could have taken actions to prevent this crash being so severe, but they didn't. The Fed says there's still time to act and there's nothing to worry about, without elaborating further.

This is entirely my own speculation, but it's quite possible that a crash was expected and was allowed to unfold to blow up in Trump's face when elected. It just happened a few months earlier than expected.

Edit: I'm not an economist, and I'm not involved in finances, so if anyone would like to correct me on anything, feel free. Also, apologies for using CNBC, but it was the only place I found that listed the events neatly, without dressing them up (and with minimal intrusion of Cookies notifications)

 

In a significant move to reshape its immigration policies, Germany is set to implement a new citizenship law on Thursday that explicitly requires applicants to acknowledge Israel's right to exist. This reform, spearheaded by Chancellor Olaf Scholz's socially liberal government, aims to streamline the naturalization process while simultaneously addressing growing concerns about antisemitism and far-right sentiment in the country.

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser emphasized the dual nature of the new law, stating, "Anyone who shares our values and makes an effort can now get a German passport more quickly and no longer has to give up part of their identity by giving up their old nationality." However, she also underscored the stringent requirements, adding, "But we have also made it just as clear: anyone who does not share our values ​cannot get a German passport. We have drawn a crystal-clear red line here and made the law much stricter than before."

The reform, which allows dual citizenship for first-generation migrants and reduces the waiting time for naturalization to five years, comes amid a complex political landscape. Germany has witnessed a surge in antisemitic incidents, with Felix Klein, the government commissioner for fighting antisemitism, reporting an alarming 83% increase in hate crimes against Jewish people in 2023, totaling 4,782 incidents.

To address these concerns, the interior ministry has introduced new elements to the citizenship test. "New test questions have been added on the topics of antisemitism, the right of the state of Israel to exist, and Jewish life in Germany," a ministry spokesperson confirmed. The test will also assess applicants' commitment to gender equality, democracy, and Germany's historical responsibility towards Judaism in light of its Nazi past.

However, the government's approach has not been without controversy. Its handling of criticism towards Israel's actions in Gaza has sparked a heated debate on free speech, particularly among artists and academics. The resignation of Sabine Döring, junior minister for higher education, following her ministry's exploration of defunding researchers who criticized police actions against anti-Israeli protests, highlights the delicate balance the government is trying to strike.

The new citizenship law has also become a contentious issue for young Muslims in Germany, with officials expressing concern about potential radicalization due to perceived limitations on freedom of expression.

As Germany implements these changes, it faces the challenge of maintaining its commitment to inclusivity while addressing complex geopolitical and social issues. The success of this reform will likely depend on its ability to navigate these tensions and foster a sense of shared values among its increasingly diverse population.

Archive Link

 
 
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