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anonymous joan's avatar

For several weeks every time I've tried to comment or "like" a comment I've been told I wasn't subscribed to Meaning In History, and I've been asked to subscribe. Just curious, I've been subscribed from just about when MIH began. It happened again just now and asked for my password, then said it was sending an email because I was already a member. ::shrug:: I'm not sure what has happened. Anyway, this is a fascinating column, as always, and really good comments, as always. I hope 'things' haven't changed and I missed it as to commenting, etc.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

Sorry, that sounds like a Substack problem. If you're getting emails that means you're subscribed.

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anonymous joan's avatar

Thanks. Must be Substack because I receive your emails with your columns. I always click and read them in the browser.

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Hal's avatar

The Ukraine war, and our ruling class’s moral incompetence, in a picture.

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ML's avatar

You’re right, our ruling class’ moral degeneracy is on full display in this spiraling conflict. I always thought, and as Mark -and Crooke have shown, the battle has been lost on land (long known but brushed aside, looking for more “gains”) and so has now moved to the sea. “What need we fear who knows it when none can call our power to account?” Truly frightening.

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AmericanCardigan's avatar

Michael Morrell = CIA inbreeding.

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ML's avatar

Imagine if Trump said the things MM is free to say…as a friend in NYC once said: “I could, but I’d rather not.”

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Mark Wauck's avatar

The Polish President Said Kiev Isn’t Doing The West Any Favors & Its Counteroffensive has failed.

https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4174550/posts

Anyone with experience with both Poles and Ukrainians could see this coming. It's why I've never bought the idea of Poland trying to carve off part of Ukraine.

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Steghorn21's avatar

Maybe the Poles are finally seeing sense. Putin and Lukashenko have been very canny by building up their forces in Belarus. It has pulled a lot of Polish troops to the Belarus border and away from the Ukrainian one.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

Exactly what I was thinking of writing. As you know, I've never bought into the idea that Poland was going to invade West Ukraine, but drawing them off toward Belarus may have additional benefits, perhaps for the future.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

The_Real_The_Real_Fly

@The_Real_Fly

Russia warns ECOWAS not to take military action against Niger

Military action against coup leaders in Niger would lead to a "protracted confrontation", Russia has warned.

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Steghorn21's avatar

There's a new boss in town.

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Mike Zorn's avatar

Morell: Nice country you got here. Shame if sumthin' was to happen to it.

PS: There's a Congressman, Mike Morrell (2 L's)

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Steghorn21's avatar

The neocons only learn the hard way. Putin's going to have to up the ante against them. As for that poor Ukr kid who got killed, his picture sums up the pure evil of the neocons more than thousands of words ever could.

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AmericanCardigan's avatar

Neocons care less about poor Ukraine kids. They’ve absolved themselves of the war as a necessity to protect the global rules based order.

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Steghorn21's avatar

I don't think neocons even care about their own kids, except as extension of themselves.

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SMH's avatar

Can’t say I’m surprised, terrified yes, but not surprised. I’ve given up on the idea that any of these clowns are rational, they are totally frickin nuts! They believe that they can continue to ratchet up the provocation of Russia with impunity and ignore the rapidly approaching freight train labeled “Reality Express”. I am convinced that they are hell bent on pushing and pushing and pushing and damn the consequences. So what if 20-30 million people die, cost of doing business. No Republicans to stop them. Legacy media is so completely oblivious to the truth, or reporting on it that it’s laughable. An imbecile is sitting in the Oval Office while the world races toward an historic calamity that will make WW 1 and 2

look like a subway scuffle.

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Joseph Kaplan's avatar

The media. Our legacy media to use your phrase, are are 20 and 30 year olds who have zero historical sense. As well as being frickin nuts. And hyped up on pot and worse.

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Brenton Talcott's avatar

'hyped up on pot'...is a oxymoron

Yes the under 30 crowd has been criminally misled, imagine being...

Innumerate, Illiterate(with every form of ignorance this breeds), and jacked up on.....pharma

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SMH's avatar

100% agree Joe, except for one little thing: Chuck Todd, Britt Hume and a host of other “journalists” haven’t seen 30 in a loong time and they damn well outta have more than just a bit of historical sense, but if they do I haven’t seen it. When veteran journalists set such a lousy example for the “youngsters” guess we shouldn’t be surprised at how fatuous the reporting has become. Maybe if they actually familiarized themselves with what their responsibilities are in this republic, things would be different. But we all know that ain’t happening.

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Steghorn21's avatar

Yep. Key point: where are the Republicans? What do they do all day?

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Tamsin's avatar

They are on the phone with their brokers?

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Steghorn21's avatar

Or looking up new adjectives for their next strongly worded letter.

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ccdirtdawgs's avatar

Looking up adjectives for their next strongly worded tweet. Fixed it for ya - yw! ;-)

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Steghorn21's avatar

Good catch - Tweets have far more gravitas!

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Bruce-PNW's avatar

Gott in Himmel - are so many of our elites up to their eyeballs in corruption in Ukraine that we have come to this? Not a peep from DC as to the issues and risks being involved in a European land war with a nuclear advisary? May the Lord be with us and guide us - our leaders are not, and they are mad

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

Scott Ritter just got deplatformed by YouTube - why now?

http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/peace-and-prosperity/2023/august/11/youtube-deplatforms-shows-of-scott-ritter-prominent-critic-of-us-activities-in-ukraine-war/

My guess there is a mothership involved. Be a shame if the Russians boarded it.

I wonder how the Russia will retaliate.

Interesting the US is still focused on Syria. Interesting no mention of Niger.

Was the Waco-ing of the 300 lb, blind son caretaker, needed a cane, but posted threats about Biden to change the subject from Ukraine? Or from domestic concerns. Or just to show how awesome the fbi is?

The more I learn about the Utah Debacle, the more disgusted I am.

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AmericanCardigan's avatar

WH admin censors at work.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

"I wonder how the Russia will retaliate."

I forgot to include this:

https://twitter.com/Nikolai11449196/status/1689867519790637056

They also took out a brigade hq for a brigade that was NATO trained, presumably with lots of NATO officers at the hq. Also three Kinzhals hit the airfield where f-16 training was supposed to be going on.

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Steghorn21's avatar

Agreed. The Russians know exactly where all NATO staff are. I see more Kinzhals in their future.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

What I think.

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

My expectations is lots of locations with Nato Officers in Ukraine will be targeted soon. I have been surprised Russia has not done this yet. I don't think there are F-16's in Ukraine yet. Training is taking place outside of Ukraine as far as I know. There is shortage of English speaking pilots, so many have to take English classes first. And when the F-16's get to Ukraine, their range makes them useless, without air to air refueling for the version they are getting. Plus the issue they need a cleared airfield, with no small debris on it since the air intake is on the bottom. Soviet have the ability to get air from above the wing.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

This could be more like classroom training. I saw this here:

https://twitter.com/squatsons/status/1689998026608136193

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

It appears the Russians are heavily targeting any airfields used for the storm shadows.

I wonder how many storm shadow's are left? UK only had around 700-1,000 to begin with. And Russia is targeting them both on the ground and shooting them down. And now the UK is in talks to purchase an Israeli Missile because of it's low storm shadow stocks.

https://www.thedefensepost.com/2023/07/03/uk-israeli-storm-shadow/

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Mark Wauck's avatar

The French have a version that they're supplying after the UK basically ran out of what they could or wanted to provide.

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

France is going to give Ukraine around 50 missiles.

France supposedly only has 400 of their version:

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/7/11/what-are-frances-scalp-missiles-and-how-can-they-help-ukraine

Germany has 600 of their cruise missile the Taurus, and is going to give some to Ukraine:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/sure-sounds-like-germany-is-giving-ukraine-the-mighty-taurus-cruise-missile/ar-AA1f1ASi

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

I got the same thing.

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Maoz's avatar

Day later (Sabbath observer here), and I also get the "doesn't exist" message, FYI.

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Joseph Kaplan's avatar

Works ok

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

You may need to be logged in, or perhaps there is shadow banning going on. I could not get to it either.

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Steghorn21's avatar

Can't get it either. Hmmm, one could get paranoid in this business!

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

Steghom21- What does it say about my mindset, when I started laughing after reading your comment?

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Steghorn21's avatar

Yes, they really are playing for all the marbles. Trump is going to prison and the 2024 elections will be stolen. However, I believe that their other initiatives will fail. Scaring people into taking a deadly vaccine because of a glorified flu virus is one thing, but using "climate change" to scare them into exchanging their comfy, materialistic lives for the drab existence of a medieval peasant is another thing entirely.

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

So many dissidents and geopolitical pundits like Crooke foresee unrest coming perhaps as soon as this fall. I think in desperation the regime is now going into full crack down mode. Deplatforming is the tame way to shut down dissent, but the recent killing by the FBI is a message they will tolerate no dissent.

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Steghorn21's avatar

The FBI will get dissent whether they want it or not. Free speech is like a muscle: use it or lose it. Social unrest is definitely on the cards.

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

Totally agree. I see the violence being perpetrated by federal authorities as a catalyst for an increase in dissent and yes, social unrest. Their actions are proof that the progressives accusations of fascism on the right is projection.

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Steghorn21's avatar

We might need a bigger wall

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ML's avatar

…and 9/11? Now I wonder…

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Steghorn21's avatar

I have the normal person's fear of being labeled a tinfoil loon, but I have to wonder too. The NIST final report just doesn't hang together.

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

The smear is intended to steer you away from the inconvenient truth they are desperately trying to hide.

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

After the actions of Pence in the last two years you have to be inclined to believe Pence likely lied himself about Flynn's untruthfulness.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

But then how do you explain how the Republican establishment circled the wagons, marshalled all their resources, came to the aid of Trump and Flynn? :-)

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ML's avatar

Yes, I remember. The DS was ruthless with someone just doing his job but…but…Trump had to be stopped.

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Steghorn21's avatar

War solves a lot of problems for the evil ones. At some point, Europe is going to have to put on its man pants and save itself.

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Mark Wauck's avatar

Excellent, Ashowa.

All this is why I get so frustrated by the typical American attitude that 'philosophy' is a waste of time or is just words that make no difference. It makes all the difference in the world. We got here through the breakdown of Christian thought, that included philosophy. 25 words or less, we've reverted to forms of Platonism, riffs off a Platonic theme. The great sin of the Church was allowing Neo-platonic thought to gain entry (in the West esp. through Augustine) as if it were compatible with Christian faith and philosophy that lies behind that faith. It is not, and a return to Plato a la so many Straussians is not the way forward. The return to Christian faith and what Gilson calls the metaphysics of being or of Exodus. God as creative Act.

While we wait for that to happen :-( we would do well to how we got to this point, which is a start toward the right way forward. We are in the hands of madmen who have perverted philosophy into ideology and are now seeking to replace God as new creators. Understanding how we got here also tells us how to find our way out.

Re Putin as appeaser, I don't believe that's a fair assessment. Not to Putin, not to Chamberlain.

Re Chamberlain, consider that he may not have so much been an appeaser as a would be manipulator who, with the rest of the Anglo-American establishment, was attempting to direct Germany into a war with Russia, and that that grand scheme backfired.

Re Putin, he had several huge tasks to take in hand before he could say 'No more.' He had to get Russian back on its feet economically and socially. He had to get control of the government away from oligarchs in league with the West. He had to get control of the financial system and harden it against sanctions. He had to develop a network of international relationships that could also help Russia whether the coming assault--sanctions, trade disruption, etc. And he was waiting for the game changing hypersonic missiles to become operational (2018). He waited for a few more years because he didn't want to slaughter Ukrainians wholesale, as the West has forced him to do as proxies of the West.

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

"Re Chamberlain, consider that he may not have so much been an appeaser as a would be manipulator who, with the rest of the Anglo-American establishment, was attempting to direct Germany into a war with Russia, and that that grand scheme backfired."

great popint. The overarching fear of the Brits was Germany (and Russia) compromising their hold on mid-eastern oil fields and India, the "Jewel of the Crown."

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

I believe you are correct here, but the big problem is most people either know little of history or are still seeing Russia as the USSR. How often did you hear the lie at the beginning of this conflictthat Russia was intent on resurrecting the old Soviet empire. I believe Russia has moved on from the horror of communism. Instead of raping and plundering Russia in the 90's we should have been building a bridge to cooperation. Instead of building up China we could have helped rebuild Russia and the world might have been better off. Instead we let the neocons plot their revenge for issues of the past.

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Bruce-PNW's avatar

Dear Ashowa - one goodness in our lives is the truth of the aphorism tied to the frailty of man's big plans (... of mice and men ...). The WEFset was doomed from the get go (it is a near permanent condition of elites in every era that this lesson is constantly revisited the hard way). I do not know how things will play out, and they could still become dire, but with certainty the one thing I know won't come to fruition is the WEFset. Our times are frustratingly fluid & opaque - mind your local situation, watch your six. And know you are loved

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Steghorn21's avatar

Agreed, Bruce. Their plans will fail, as will Team Biden's. But at what cost to us? That's the rub.

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AmericanCardigan's avatar

I’ll take the under regarding the over/under at the point where you state “if they can’t force Putin to escalate@.

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Steghorn21's avatar

People are sound asleep in Europe. It's been a good summer and the football season has just started. Only serious pain will destroy the complacency. As for 2024, not going to happen. DC is gone forever. Solutions need to start lower down the food chain.

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Steghorn21's avatar

And they've just had a bumper harvest. With the grain deal dead because the West couldn't demean itself by fulfilling its obligations, Russia has now taken over all of Ukraine's agricultural markets and is making a killing selling cheap grain to whoever wants it. The only place that can't take advantage of this bonanza is the EU because they sanctioned Russian products. Nice job, neocons!

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Steghorn21's avatar

Very enlightening and confirming what many of us suspected. However, these kind of revelations, no matter how shocking and explosive, just seem to disappear into the ether without any effect. I wonder if anyone is listening out there and some kind of resistance is building?

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Mark Wauck's avatar

For those not in the historical loop, Greek Catholic Ukrainians are dominant in West Ukraine, formerly Polish controlled areas. They are the hard core Nazis--not all, but that area is the hotbed of Ukrainian nationalism. That is the area where the CIA recruited and tried to conduct irregular war against the USSR in the 50s.

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Steghorn21's avatar

"Greek Catholic Ukrainians are dominant in West Ukraine, formerly Polish controlled areas." No wonder no-one in the West understands the history and politics of this area! :)

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

Thank you for that anecdotal factoid. I thought it was because he was Ukrainian.

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Joseph Kaplan's avatar

Stupid. Greedy. Fools.

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Steghorn21's avatar

Stupid and psychopathic. A lethal cocktail. They simply can't stand to lose. They can walk away from Afghanistan and know that the sheep will forget it in a few months. But they can't slink away from Ukraine and survive.

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

I think people will forget about Ukraine if the West walks away, at least in the US. Msm stops covering it, just like the war in Congo that killed 6 million people, but no coverage. Most people still don’t know where Ukraine is. Perhaps Scott Ritters deplatforming is the start of the news blackout.

Europe is different, since the Ukraine War directly impacts them. From energy, inflation, currency, and refugees.

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Steghorn21's avatar

Or they'll give us a new "crisis" to take our mind off it.

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Ray-SoCa's avatar

Trial balloons for crises so far:

1. New pandemic - mink pox failed

2. Global warming, cooling, boiling?

3. Food shortages

4. Rise of right wing extremists

5. Lgbt hate attacks

6. Growth of online Hate speech

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

Constant chaos is needed to distract and confuse the proles. I'd like to think people are becoming wise to the con being perpetrated upon us. Have you ever chanced upon Helena glass? She has some terrific stuff at her site.

"Every action Congress initiates is dictated behind the scenes. Getting riled by their failure to actually act on their words is useless because their words don’t belong to them. They are simply following orders."

Try this:

https://helenaglass.net/2023/08/10/world-economic-forum-rebuilding-our-future/

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Steghorn21's avatar

They end up like Hillary: obese, smelly and perpetually drunk.

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ML's avatar

Zhou and cronies have the blood of 3-400,000 Ukrainian lives, and more walking wounded and maimed. But never mind! Anything’s better than Trump!

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

Not stupid, but rather committed to the great reset and the WEF. Destruction of America as it was and is at the moment is exactly what they are doing. They have been very open about this. Can’t have 8B+ people on earth it’s 7.5B too many according to the Malthusians

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Joseph Kaplan's avatar

And they all really believe “they” will be the ones who survive and be in control. Of what? Again no historical sense. No understanding that they are merely next in line to be eaten. Oh well, most of us will be long gone.

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

You are on point, Joseph, that’s the great fallacy of the great reset. The zealots do not realize they are the dessert to be eaten last, but eaten nevertheless.

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Steghorn21's avatar

It's funny how those who advocate for reducing the population never lead by example.

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Cosmo T Kat's avatar

I didn’t cite evil driving this. Just stating what’s been said and the implications and there is plenty of written about their position.. This is rather more ideological zealotry, in opinion, enabled by those who gain from the chaos and care little for those affected as they believe the power resides in them so they will not be hurt and do not not care. I agree Malthusian ideas are bunk and always have been. You can see their ideas as the root of eugenics. Powergrabbing indeed.

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Steghorn21's avatar

Ideological zealotry and evil are often synonymous. The first usually brings you sooner or later to the second.

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AmericanCardigan's avatar

Oh so maybe pigs will fly!

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