Read Michael Hudson Read Noam Chomsky Read Chris Hedges Read Thomas Paine Read JS Mill Push back on Financial Imperialism Push back on War Push back on Time and Resource Theft Push back on Austerity Develop Public Works and Services Advocate for the Poor Disable Power of Large Corporations #Bitcoin!đđ
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npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Show more details
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2023-07-12T17:49:11+02:00 Event JSON
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"content": "{\"website\":\"\",\"nip05\":\"[email protected] \",\"picture\":\"http://www.joke-of-the-day.com/files/images/bigsquirrel.jpg\",\"lud16\":\"[email protected] \",\"display_name\":\"Aurelius\",\"about\":\"Read Michael Hudson\\nRead Noam Chomsky\\nRead Chris Hedges\\nRead Thomas Paine \\nRead JS Mill\\nPush back on Financial Imperialism\\nPush back on War\\nPush back on Time and Resource Theft\\nPush back on Austerity\\nDevelop Public Works and Services\\nAdvocate for the Poor\\nDisable Power of Large Corporations \\n#Bitcoin!đđ\",\"name\":\"Aurelius\"}" ,
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Last Notes npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Damusâ new âwho to followâ feature is as offensive as YouTube or Netflix or Amazonâs watch recommendations. Algorithms that guide thought inhibit personal exploration, and consolidate opinions into a unified groupthink. This is the proof of stake modelâŚthose who have the most (dollars or followers) encourage governing algorithms to boost their product selectively over the products of others. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius In Frederick Douglassâ Narrative, he describes being struck by the poverty of the northern people that he met upon his arrival in Newport. His conclusion was that without slavery as he had known in the south, there can be no wealth. In the modern world where half of the wealth is owned by 0.1% of the population, where 3 billion live in poverty, where a single country siphons away the resources from most of the third world countries, and where the predominant economic model keeps the masses in a perpetual state of wage dependence and debt peonage, the injustices of slavery persist. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I think about this every time TSA is feeling me up at the airport. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius âThe credit system, which has its focal point in the allegedly national banks and the big money-lenders and usurers that surround them, is one enormous centralization and gives this class of parasites a fabulous power not only to decimate the industrial capitalists periodically but also to interfere in actual production in the most dangerous manner - and this crew know nothing of production and have nothing at all to do wish it.â Citation: Avoid the ad-hominem fallacy to which you would likely fall victim. You donât know the man because you havenât evaluated his words. You only know what you have been told about him. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Sometimes I like to throw out a quotation without a citation⌠an excellent thought with which most people interested in delivering humanity from enslavement by the financial industry will agree. But when attached to the source, some of the best ideas are overlooked because so many of us submit to ad hominem fallacies⌠and assume we know what an author should sayâŚwhile ignoring what he did say. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius https://realprogressives.org/podcast_episode/episode-232-is-the-us-a-failed-state-with-michael-hudson/ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius When I studied Animal Farm in school, the teacherâs presentation was simply âcommunism badââŚand by extension, âAmericaâs alternative good.â Now I reread Animal Farm, read Orwellâs other works, learn about Orwellâs beliefs, and read the unpublished introduction to AF, and itâs clear that we all accepted an interpretation that was far from Orwellâs intention. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Debt for young people condemns them to a lifetime of wage slavery. Slavery exists, but the financial industry has renamed it, and has shifted its burden onto a larger cross section of the population npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Have you ever read Orwellâs intro to Animal Farm that wasnât published with the book? npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius đ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius In a hospital 20 year old male Bitcoin âBâ in black Left wrist. 3â tall. Like an ADD child, I forgot what I was explaining to him and immediately asked about his Bitcoining. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I had a client with a Bitcoin tattoo this morning. The conversation quickly went from the business at handâŚto the business of saving mankind. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius No idea is leftist or rightist. Ideas are true or untrue, logical or illogical. People are the only things that align themselves with cognitive camps wherein they allow or disallow those ideas based on their association rather than their validity. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I disagree with the vaccine comment too⌠but I donât lose site of an incredible message because of an unrelated opinion that I disagree with. If I shared my views on meat, people would probably unfollow me and assume that everything else I say is tainted. Ideas donât work like that. Compartmentalization and association of ideas is a logical fallacy. Ideas need to be evaluated on their individual merits. Iâll share excellent lectures and conversations at some point today. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Itâs not just that âcrime increases.â Crime is a symptom of mystery and need. Create a miserable and fearful population, and people have to look to antisocial behavior to fulfill their needs or find validation. AgainâŚthis helps the banking class. There is a great market to be found by having the highest rate of incarceration in the world. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Itâs a win-win for the banking class. 1. Drive interest rates unnaturally low at the expense of savers. 2. Cheap money leads to asset price inflation. The wealthy own most of the assets. 3. Wages follow much slower than asset and commodity growth 4. Life becomes more expensive for people who mainly purchase food, energy, and shelter 5. Higher cost of living and comparatively lower wages lead to a stressed, more controllable workforce. The fearful worker is a dream for the industrialist who employs him npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Good hash day Bad hash day Like playing the lottery. Without the irrationality npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius My fiat job a delight. I do twenty minutes of work, then sit back with my coffee and a Noam Chomsky lecture, to delight in a wealth of understanding about power and oppression. Few people have done more to elucidate the inequities of modern society than the Professor. If heâs new to you, consume three lectures or read one book, and see if your world view isnât vastly altered for the better. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I canât wait, Professor https://youtu.be/ZpzrIljG7hU npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius If your government and their media ask you to: Hate China. Ask why. Hate Russia. Ask why. Hate Immigrants. Ask why. Hate Communism. Ask why. Hate Gaddafi. Ask why. Hate Iran. Ask why. Hate Bitcoin. Ask why. The reason is always that these things fail to serve the financial interests of those that pull the strings. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius What is progressive taxation? It concentrates the burden on those whose wealth comes from rents, and minimizes the burden on those who labor. Rents from assets are the same as Etherium managers siphoning off value just because they own. Bitcoin is a progressive system that does not reward anyone unless they put in work. The US tax system should also be. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius #The Way of the Superior Man -David Deida This book may interest you based on your statement. It is about balancing the masculine and feminine essences of men and womenâs nature, and improving relationships with women by amplifying this balance npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius https://youtu.be/aLwRZibUqL0 npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius AhâŚnew cars. Borrow money at interest⌠To buy an asset that requires maintenance⌠And that depreciates rapidly over the first few years. Sounds like a winning financial decision. Iâll stick with my beater. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius ââŚfreedom is not an abstract philosophical concept, but the vital concrete possibility for every human being to bring to full development all the power, capacities, and talents with which nature has endowed him, and turn them to social account. The less this natural development of man is influenced by ecclesiastical or political guardianship, the more efficient and harmonious will human personality become, the more will it become the measure of the intellectual culture of the society in which it has grown.â Daniel Guerin Anarchism npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The only art form that we ever created and perfected was the television commercial. We have nothing else to our credit as a civilization. To try and persuade people to buy things they donât need that are probably bad for them and may blow up in their face⌠why not sell the next president in the same way and make him just as phony as detergent? Gore Vidal. Interview with Paul Jay npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius đ Too many examples. Imperialism with a moral justification for economic motivations is the norm, not the exception. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Nostr is probably the wrong market for airdrop shitcoinery⌠npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius A few days until Block 800,000. Whereâs the party? đżđđđ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The Romans conquered the Middle East to âcivilize the barbariansâ The British conquered the world to âspread Christianityâ The Nazis conquered Europe to âspread German ethnicityâ The Americans conquered the world to âspread democracyâ We conquer for money and resources. If you think youâre on the moral side of imperialism, think again. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Shitcoiners fall victim to the same logical fallacy. You have your work cut out for you đ Teach those children npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Well, you are a math teacher. A 25% chance of breaking even on slot machines actually means something to you. Other people make decisions based on emotion and the imagined feeling of winning. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius If youâre trying to flee your country, KYC vs Non-KYC could be the difference between safe emigration and indefinite holding in a cell until capital-gains is paid. For those doxed on an exchange whose records are hacked, the difference could be anonymous existence vs. a burglar showing up at your door with a hammer. There may not be a big difference at the moment in the US, but Bitcoin exists for the people around the world who need freedom of movement and freedom from oppression. Telling people that you have access to a tool will partly negate the value of that toolâŚby putting you at risk npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Always love a rodent-themed post npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I donât go to psychics, and I donât entertain PlanBâs endless forecasting about future values. Exciting predictions bring in likes on YouTubeâŚbut provide no value to an asset that needs to be appreciated by its users. Irrational exuberance doesnât help Bitcoin. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius âThe core of anarchist tradition is that power is always illegitimate, until it proves itself to be legitimate⌠âŚIt is the responsibility of those who exercise power to show that somehow itâs legitimate. Itâs not the responsibility of anyone else to show that itâs illegitimate. Itâs illegitimate by assumption⌠Harry Kreisler interview with Noam Chomsky npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius âAlthough various rationales were given for these wars, each was undertaken primarily to expand worldwide US military hegemony by gaining permanent American military bases in these countries. The delusionary impetus of these costly and destructive enterprises is captured by the definition of the philosophical phrase reductio AB absurdum: "a method of proving the falsity of a premise by showing that its logical consequences is absurd or contradictory."â https://original.antiwar.com/ronald_enzweiler/2023/03/28/iraq-afghanistan-and-now-ukraine-reductio-ab-absurdum/ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius BRICS countries have twice the population as dollar-obligate countries. Once they establish their currency based on proportional contributions of each memberâs currencies, and are able to make loans denominated in that currency, then debt denominated in dollars will lose all that luster that you find alluring. Weâre already well down the road toward that point where treasury notes held by foreign entireties will be dumped, and the corporate debt accounting for the 40% of the value of the S+P owned by foreign governments and business will be sold off. The fact that âeverybody uses the dollarâ is an observation, not an appreciation of the the worldâs trajectory. Inflation resulting from the âprintingâ of 2 trillion over the last three years is a drop in the bucket compared to the potential inflation that may result from the devaluation of the 45 trillion dollar bond market. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Bank bailouts do not stabilize the economy as billionaires would have us believe. They shift liabilities onto taxpayers. The financial class who yell âfree marketâ are precisely those who designed a legal system that protects the rich at the expense of the poor. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Debates about the quality of human nature seldom take into account the contribution that basic needs play in decision making. Itâs easy to be âgoodâ if you arenât hungry, stressed, at risk of losing your house, and are safe. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius To opt out of fiat is not to succumb to political ambivalence. In fact, Bitcoin is a politically relevant decision. Our democracy has been reduced to a form of representative government which is by nature, distanced from the citizen. A protocol that receives usersâ feedback directly by way of POW and nodes, embodies a democratic element that has been lost in real politics. This character strengthens its resistance to anti-political appeals to patriotism, fear, and demagoguery. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Designing an enemy for the population to fear. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius đExcited to read this when I have some time tonight. Manufacturing Consent is one of those books that redefines oneâs world view. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius To opt out of fiat is not to succumb to political ambivalence. In fact, Bitcoin is a politically relevant decision. Our democracy has been reduced to a form of representative government which is by nature, distanced from the citizen. A protocol that receives usersâ feedback directly by way of POW and nodes, embodies a democratic element that has been lost in real politics. This character strengthens its resistance to anti-political appeals to patriotism, fear, and demagoguery. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius There is no left-right conflict inherent in the system. There is only top-bottom conflict, and a dialogue controlled by the top with a purpose of fomenting resentment between the suffering masses below. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The power of decentralized money, communication, media⌠is not economic equality, but political equality. These protocols have the potential to undermine the eliteâs claim that economic status should dictate political participation. The current relationship is by nature illiberal. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius It is crucial to recognize the tension between political democracy and economic power. The demos strives for political equality, and the elite claims that political inequality is a natural and acceptable aspect of economic inequality. When economic status dictates political status, democracy becomes impossible. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Hello Brother, I like Jamison Lopp, but he is not a progressive person. If your intention is to have a progressive podcast, I recommend having conversations with people who study human rights, equality, and socially responsible political systems. Many Bitcoiners start with Bitcoin and work backwards to a set of tenets that really donât support their conclusion. One should the conversation start by sharing an understanding of plutocracy, of elitism, of the traditional power of corporations and monopolies over the masses. Your podcast should include conversations about labor struggles, about the dangers of austerity, about the finance/insurance/real estate sectors and their tactics to extract rents from the people. Letâs discuss US imperialism in Central America in the 80âs. Letâs discuss resource and labor extraction from third world countries in Africa. Letâs discuss managed democracy and the rise of inverted totalitarianism. Letâs discuss the works of Noam Chomsky, Michael Hudson, JS Mill, Sheldon Wolin, Richard Wolff, Brian Czech, Chris Hedges, Alex Vitale, Tim Parsons, Gore Vidal, Paul Craig Roberts, etc. Bitcoin is the most liberal economic system that has ever existed, and it is part of the answer to many of the criticisms put forth by Marx, Rocker, Trotsky, Lenin, and Kropotkin. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Awesome. Now you can sell your furnace to buy some more miners. 1. Theyâre super loud; donât put them under your bedroom 2. Filter that air really well. Thereâs some dirty air in those ducts, and miners do not care to be dirty. 3. One may want to consider whether placement of miners in series or in parallel would make more sense. In series would be easier, but then the hot exhaust gasses from one would become intake gasses for the next. 4. Bitmain says miners should not be placed in damp areas. Evaluate that crawl space. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Belief in species exceptionalismâŚor cultural exceptionalismâŚor national exceptionalismâŚor genetic exceptionalismâŚdepends on a mythical and imagined foundation. The only exceptionalism is in life itself. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius What do you mean by that? npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius đŤđż npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius đŤ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I think freedom from ideology is greatly liberating. Why find comfort in a set of collected beliefs and values designed for you by a political tribe? Designing your own set based on an independent world view, allows you to define your own tenets and then extract logical conclusions. The existing plutocracy would rather present you with allowable conclusions, and hope that you ignore the fact that the natural tenets of human need do not support them. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius At the fiat mine, making more money than most, because I know a thing about barriers to entry, trade monopolies, and state regulations... not because my time is worth more, or because my craft is more valuable. Itâs nice for meâŚbut really itâs a symptom of a broken system that allows powerful industries to write their own rules. Bitcoin fixes this. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Looks good đđż npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Agricultural practices in India and the western US are key causes npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2023GL103509 npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Weâre terrified of public opinion from the moment weâre born, partially due to religious training, partially due to an educational system that is not very interested in educating us. What, really, the rulers want are docile workers, who refuse to have anything to do say about minimum wage or labor unions, and passionate consumers⌠Gore Vidal History of the National Security State npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius According to Thorstein Veblen, wealth was historically measured in personal time: leisure, the ability to let your wife stay at home, the time to study and learn. Rent seekers and money lenders changed the dialogue, and convinced the world that wealth is things. Your leisure time, it turns out, yields them no interest and no rent. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius A concise explanation of how the US exports inflation to developing countries. âThe⌠thing about inflation in developing countries ⌠itâs usually the case of external inflation thatâs imported when you import food or fuel or whatever resources a particular country has. So, when you look at most developing countries, you realize that the reason they lose their monetary sovereignty is because they have structural economic issues, structural trade deficit issues. And when you zoom in, in most countries, those tend to be two reasons. One is a deficit related to food imports that just donât have enough food production domestically. So, they have to import food on a systemic basis. And number two, itâs energy or fuel trade deficit related. So, they have to import fuel to fuel their economy. And those are things that, no matter what you do as a central bank, youâre not going to eliminate those structural issues unless, as a country, you start investing in renewable energy so that you donât have to import fossil fuels anymore. Or you invest in a sustainable agricultural policy so that you have food self-sufficiency. So, if you have that hole in your trade deficit every single year, if you donât borrow in a foreign currency, as a developing country, if you donât borrow in dollars or euros, whatâs going to happen is that your exchange rate is going to depreciate. And, then, the next morning or the next month, when you as a country try to import food or fuel, youâre going to import it at a higher price. So, youâll be importing inflation into your domestic economy.â Fadhel Kaboub npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius All liberation depends on the consciousness of servitude, and the emergence of this consciousness is always hampered by the predominance of needs and satisfactions which, to a great extent, have become the individualâs own. â Herbert Marcuse npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The conditions, and the balance of leaders and followers that are necessary for successful and sustained revolution has been debated for years. So I think itâs humorous that this quotation came from a book entitled âEverything is Obvious.â đ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Youâre absolutely rightâŚthe House, full of the ultra-rich living off of rents and corporate bribes in exchange for legal favors certainly isnât representative of the people who labor for their money. I meant to say the House is the only body directly elected by the people, rather than appointed by another body supposedly representing the people (Senate, President, Sup Court). npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius And because of this sentiment, we have an elite class of managers that constantly enact polities that roll up our rights, shift wealth out of our hands into theirs, privatize public resources to sell back to us, sacrifice social services for more lucrative exploits, and create ever more Orwellian surveillance policies sold to us as âprotection.â Maybe the public are dumb and donât know whatâs best. Or maybe it is inevitable that a class of managers will abuse the power they have over the people. I am of the masses, and I think I know what is best for me better than an in-elected oligarch. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius We feel that we are losing our rights, but many of our ârightsâ were only ever imaginary. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The purpose of the Constitution was to shift power back away from the peopleâŚa democracy enacted by the Articles of Confederation. The Constitution reestablished a representative government over a republican government, wherein the only branch of government truly representative of the people would be the House of Representatives. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius ââŚto protect the minority of the opulent against the majority.â Our government was never intended to be a democracy representing all people. It was intended to protect a certain elite class. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius https://www.commentary.org/articles/sohrab-ahmari/terrible-american-turn-toward-illiberalism/ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius âThe man who is possessed of wealth, who lolls on his sofa or rolls in his carriage, cannot judge the wants or feelings of the day-laborer. The government we mean to erect is intended to last for ages. The landed interest, at present, is prevalent; but in process of time, when we approximate to the states and kingdoms of Europe, â when the number of landholders shall be comparatively small, through the various means of trade and manufactures, will not the landed interest be overbalanced in future elections, and unless wisely provided against, what will become of your government? In England, at this day, if elections were open to all classes of people, the property of landed proprietors would be insecure. An agrarian law would soon take place. If these observations be just, our government ought to secure the permanent interests of the country against innovation. Landholders ought to have a share in the government, to support these invaluable interests, and to balance and check the other. They ought to be so constituted as to protect the minority of the opulent against the majority. The senate, therefore, ought to be this body; and to answer these purposes, they ought to have permanency and stability.â Attributed to either James Madison or to John Adamâs, depending on the source. Likely 1787 npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius âBe a man of vision, Palamedes. A lookout and a statesman who perceives the whole of the politics that forms the needs of our people.â -The Lost Muse of Justice npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Programmatically, both the Republican and Democratic parties exist to advance corporate economic and political interests. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius When we use terms incorrectly to elicit feelings in the reader, we diminish the value of our communication npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Pursuit of ideologies leads to ignorance. Pursue understanding. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius People lose their ability to describe oppressive relationships with power when they use terms like âsocialist,â âfascist,â âcommunist.â These terms have been hijacked and reinterpreted for us so that the original meanings are misunderstood by most. To use such a term interchangeably for âbadâ belittles the original meaning and demotes whatever message youâre trying to share. I see these terms used incorrectly all the time. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Nationalism and patriotism, not ideology, suffice to control the American population and gain its support. Patriotism requires no collective self-examination. It needs only a spontaneous response to whatever threat is sold to the population npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius When did the people delegate âmost powerful force in the worldâ to the government? Our founding fathers and their documents did not delegate power over our lives, over the lives of people in Syria and Palestine and Lebanon, or over the time and resources of people in Venezuela, Nigeria, Turkey, etc. Such power is antagonistic to the concept of democracy. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius As long as Bitcoin uses the RIPEMD160 hash function, there are 2^160 Bitcoin addresses. That number is: 1,461,501,637,330,902,918,203,684,832,716,283,019,655,932,542,976 npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius There is no natural harmony among self interests, especially when a small part of the population has access to unlimited 0% loans, while the majority of the population is relegated to 17% interest contracts on credit cards. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I notice that all teaching about Adam Smith invokes a mythical yearning that unrestrained competition will somehow lead to a world of morally relevant economic interactions, rather than to a world of unrestrained monopolies growing ever larger. Smithâs âinvisible handâ was his imagination, and was only used once or twice within his works. His clearer message was about the dangers of monopolies. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The amorphous character assigned to the new world of terrorism justifies an ever-enlarging power of state. Donât fear enemies; fear those who tell you about enemies npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Real patriotism is a commitment to the wellness of all fellow creatures. Commitment to a flag, to a piece of paper, or to a myth of exceptionalism, is a cognitive trap sold to you, that you may dance in the game of global domination, and hate your brothers whose wellbeing stands in the way of wealth for the few npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius We live within an economic system that is designed to allow the exploration of the many in the service of the few. Yet we are surprised that we have mediocre healthcare, the greatest private debt in the world, longer working hours than any other civilized nation, 3.5 million people in prison, 850 military bases around the globe, decaying infrastructure, and millions of poor, hungry, and undereducated citizens. The glory of a civilization should be measured in its benefit to the populous, not in its willingness to step upon the people in the service of the masters. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius A normie gets a paycheck for doing his job all day. **Proof of work** A 1%er receives rents for controlling the means of production. **Proof of stake** npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Chris Hedges: Journalists Abandoned Julian Assange and Slit Their Own Throats https://www.mintpressnews.com/chris-hedges-journalists-abandoned-julian-assange-slit-throats/285250/ npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Donât you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it. â George Orwell, 1984 npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius This is excellent. On many occasions I have wrestled with the desire to start a cooperative of some sort. Maybe a public internet library. Maybe a homeschooling cooperative. Maybe a drainage company. I donât know; itâs the structure that frees workers from wage slavery that most interests me. One of the problems I run into is the management of funds and finding a voting structure that doesnât rely on a centralized party to approve community decisions. I canât wait to try this out npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius âThis is how the financial sector operates. It tricks the host economyâs brainâthe educational system and the government as planner and lawmakerâto make it think that the way to grow is to promote a financial oligarchy.â Finance Capitalism and its Discontents. Michael Hudson #bitcoin erodes the financial oligarchy npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The University has been remodeled from a study model, and is quickly becoming a credentialing model. Manâs desire to improve his life makes him a ready market for the elite to sell those credentials to him for a life of debt. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The perpetual need to hop investments is past. Mathematics, usability, and glaring improvement on the shortcomings of the largest industry (finance), make Bitcoin growth inevitable npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Thatâs the success of American Capitalism. To prioritize business profits over social good. Thatâs what itâs all about. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius Let us question all the establishments that are so ingrained in our lives that their existence is assumed to be normal, rather than parasitic. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius âthe West faces the dreadful prospect that it could become the standard-bearer of a new regime type: a socially totalizing, surveilling, information-monopolizing, biopolitical, and martial regime disguised in the feel-good casing of liberal democracyâ https://www.agonmag.com/p/the-crisis-of-liberal-modernity-and npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius The way to sell a book: 1. Find an eager audience 2. Find an audience with a minimal understanding of the topic 2. Tell them what they want to hear 3. Appeal to emotion 4. Never mind that your tenets do not support your conclusion. #Saif. #Read better books. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I donât blame the victim. I blame a system that values the extraction of profit and information over the natural rights of the public. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I retroactively salute those who participated in the Occupy movement, who understood that participatory democracy is about sit-ins, riots, strikes, pickets, and speeches. Whatever your opinion, do not accept that your vote is the proper and only outlet for amending the governmentâs actions. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I lived in NY during the Occupy Wall Street movement. At the time, I did not appreciate how participatory democracy has essentially vanished. It has been replaced with a mere ceremonial form of democracy that relies on voting as a tool of legitimation, but that so effectively fragments the public and stifles and replaces any mass sense of civic responsibility, that the public has been removed from its role as grantor of power to a servant government. npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius It is self-subverting for the managers of democracy to subordinate egalitarian convictions to the pursuit of expansive politics npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius I donât know a thing about that scale, but Iâm delighted to have something new to read about today at work! The closest I get to Carl Sagan is to read Lynn Margulis (his ex-wife) and her works on symbiogenesis npub169yu4d6xl8a6d4xvfyhstjdxr0cc7qtfq5pch5kwv4k2wkapa3pq8v2thg Aurelius And your endocrinologist