Koch brothers raise 2016 election warchest that's bigger than either party's spend

[goodpasture]

@popobawa4u

A shattering of the monolith into a political and economic diaspora of uncontrollable micro-societies which find their equilibrium through the optimizations of ecology.

Thanks for clarifying!

Thomas Jefferson had a similar idea 200 years ago (though he wrote in English instead of graduate school-ese ). He called the idea “ward republics.”

He believed …

… wards of such size as that every citizen can attend, when called on, and act in person … will relieve the county administration of nearly all its business, will have it better done, and by making every citizen an acting member of the government, and in the offices nearest and most interesting to him, will attach him by his strongest feelings to the independence of his country, and its republican constitution.

[popobawa4u]

Probably more “eccentric-nerd-ese” in my case!

But thanks for the info and links I haven’t read much Thomas Jefferson but this sounds a lot like what I have in mind, so I will follow up on this.

[Brainspore]

@popobawa4u

Why would anybody in 2015 rely upon newspaper or television to keep informed of current events? That we have instantaneous, practically cost-free media now seems obvious to me, so it seems hard to install an effective “propaganda machine” when people have a practically infinite number of channels.

The vast majority of “news” on the internet—including information about political candidates and ballot measures—is information originally reported through large media organizations. Most blogs simply don’t have the resources to do original in-depth investigative reporting, and few small-time bloggers are likely to get invited to follow the candidates on a cross-country political campaign.

At best most of the “channels” out there get to sort through the mainstream reporting and press releases to try to parse out some version of the truth. Whoever controls the sources still gets to control the discussion.

[jackbird]

@goodpasture

coordinated by a central, Lex Luthor-figure

Or perhaps two central, Lex Luthor-like brothers? As described in the headline and body of the article you’re commenting on?

[anon73430903]

@japhroaig

I suspect, as you are intuiting, that tides will change. But as of 2016 they haven’t.

I don’t expect things to change for at least 20 years, unless life expectancy suddenly has a significant drop in the west.

[davide405]

The anti-vaxxers are working on that problem right now.

[goodpasture]

Are you claiming the Koch brothers organized a massive smear campaign and cost someone the presidency? If not, then we’re not talking about the same thing.

You know, back in the mid-2000s, I could never understand why Republicans freaked out about George Soros so often. Do you remember that? All the time, it was George Soros this, George Soros that. I remember thinking, “How goofy – don’t you realize you’re in complete control of the federal government? Why do you need to invent a boogieman?”

I feel the same way about the Koch brothers. They have a political agenda and money and that freaks people the hell out. Never mind that their agenda is something most liberals would support.

No one talks about their $20 million dollar contribution to the ACLU to fight the Patriot Act or their 25-year-long support of the New York City Ballet.

I mean, I realize critical thinking is harder than simply foaming at the mouth and shouting “KOCH!” but I think it’s worth it.

[anon73430903]

@goodpasture

I feel the same way about the Koch brothers. They have a political agenda and money and that freaks people the hell out. Never mind that their agenda is something most liberals would support.

No one talks about their $20 million dollar contribution to the ACLU to fight the Patriot Act or their 25-year-long support of the New York City Ballet.

You do know people can do the right thing for the wrong reasons. I don’t trust either the Kochs or Soros to look out for my well being.

[Brainspore]

@anon73430903

I don’t trust either the Kochs or Soros to look out for my well being.

Even if I did, the fate off a democracy should not rest with a handful of benevolent plutocrats.

[goodpasture]

@anon73430903

people can do the right thing for the wrong reasons

If someone is doing the right thing, who the hell cares about his reasons?

[goodpasture]

@Brainspore

the fate off a democracy

“The Fate of Democracy”? Are you kidding me?

If you think a bunch of inane tv commercials are some sort of existential threat to democracy, you have a really low opinion of democracy.

[pixleshifter]

@goodpasture

you have a really low opinion of democracy

Have you looked at democracy lately?

[anon73430903]

If it is used to push forward other ideologies that I believe are extremely damaging to the world, then I care.

[goodpasture]

Well, I think that’s the dictionary definition of cutting off your nose to spite your face.

If you won’t work with anyone who doesn’t pass some sort of ideological purity test, you’ll find yourself with few allies.

[anon73430903]

@goodpasture

If you won’t work with anyone who doesn’t pass some sort of ideological purity test, you’ll find yourself with few allies.

And that worked out so well for POUM and CNT-AIT in the Spanish civil war!

[goodpasture]

@pixleshifter

Have you looked at democracy lately?

Yep! Orderly transitions of power, no food shortages, working electrical grids. Democracy seems to be doing all right by me.

Why, what did you mean?

[goodpasture]

Worked out pretty well when Stalin worked with FDR in World War 2.

[davide405]

Did I just catch a faint whiff of Godwin?

[anon73430903]

By that time FDR knew to watch his back when Stalin was concerned. POUM and CNT had already been wiped out by his treachery.

[goodpasture]

You’re sort of losing the thread of the point, which is that it’s possible to accomplish mutually agreeable goals with ideological opponents. In fact, that’s often the way things get done. Refusing to do so because of some perceived sinister motive is childish.