A reader sent me a link to the Scott Adams podcast from yesterday. It’s nearly an hour long, but I’ve transcribed a brief portion of it. Adams is talking about the feeling he has that people have had enough, that there’s a growing sentiment of: We’ve had enough. He goes on a mild rant about the way he—and we—used to think just a few years ago, compared to where we’re at now. Of course it’s subjective, but I think it can be supported by a wide range of events that speak to public sentiment:
Bottom line to me is that we no longer have a government 'of, by and for the people.' D.C. to me is DEAD. Yet I know that the dead can have power, and in this case do.
Avoiding them as best I can is currently where I am at. Although I will act if I can be convinced there is someone somewhere with a meaningful response.
Basically as I see it it is a matter of "Coke vs. Pepsi." Each wants me as a customer for the sake of their own profit margin. Froth and sugar is what they offer with silly, wordy, people-tuned slogans.
What you get, though, is rotting teeth.. THAT is D.C.
I guess I finally figured out they hate us, and will win at any cost, no matter any eggs that need to be broken. So many lies. The dual system of justice is wrong.
Another lie is the eGOP is on our side. Nope, uniparty dupes full of failure theater.
Another area ignored us the Chinese influence in the us.
I have thought for a long time that our best quality as Americans is that we are by nature optimists. Our ancestors came here because of their faith that they could make better lives for themselves and have freedoms here that they were denied in the places from which they came. For most all of our history we have inherited the belief that this is a land of opportunity and freedom and we want to have faith in our neighbors and support our civic institutions to further that belief.
Now I wonder if for us older folks at least this has not actually worked against us. It makes it harder for us to see and accept what has happened to our country. Perhaps we been blind as to how perverted our popular culture and our current educational system have become - how both of them are now enemies of traditional American values and of having faith in America's future. Have we been blind to how God (the belief in whom this country's principles were based) has now been denied by virtually every part of our society?
Scott Adams is now an older guy. I have seen him vacillate on a lot of things over the last few years but perhaps he is finally waking up to the horrible realities we WILL have to deal with in the coming years both as individuals and as a society - realities that we largely brought on ourselves over the last 50 years. The only remedy to our ills I see is repentance and a return to God and His promises of justice, grace, and mercy. Perhaps Mr. Adams will come to that conclusion as well (hopefully).
The one bright spot is this article and the comments. We are on to what is going on. Our government is not worth saving. We are now post-'1984'. The biggie for me was the 2020 election fraud and the fact that all Washington was on board with the cover-up to assure a Biden-Harris administration that will bring this country to ruin. The future is that we 'proles' will go about our business ignoring and being ignored by the administration. We will be clever enough to keep within the law, barely, but our productivity will be channeled so as not to benefit Washington.
Just wait, you ain't seen nothing yet! It's Way, Way, Worse than you even imagined. Funny how all the so called conspiracy theorist have been proven right on so many subjects, no?
Regular readers will know that I rarely miss a chance to tout the Progressive Era as the source of much if not most of our modern maladies. The book I regularly recommend in that regard is The Revolt Against The Masses by Fred Siegel. It was the introduction of German Idealism into American intellectual circles--especially Hegel.
< Liberalism has taken on a religious aspect. It’s a belief system, and not a system that represents political interests. Liberalism is seen as a source of grace, in religious terms.
It is hard to talk to people, when you are effectively suggesting they are not among the blessed (or, to use Thomas Sowell’s phrase, the ‘anointed’), that they are in fact mistaken. Trump is wrong about many things, but you *can argue* with Trumpism. But it is very hard to argue with contemporary liberalism, especially in its *West Coast* incarnation.
Collins: Yes, I am surprised how very few liberals were willing to engage in self-criticism after the election, not even to try to understand why they have been losing in recent years.
Siegal:... As one writer has pointed out, the environmentalists in Oregon have undercut the jobs traditionally filled by less-educated white males – ranching, lumber, fishing. These industries have been essentially regulated out of existence. It’s hard to see how that population can vote for Democrats in large numbers down the road....
... Or, when you tell them that Trumpism is not peculiar to America. In the Czech Republic, in Hungary, in Poland, in the Baltic states – you have variations on Trump. Liberals are incredulous.
First of all, they don’t pay much *attention to Europe*, which I think is unfortunate. Second, the idea that there is something larger at play, that it’s not all about Trump’s venality, is inconceivable for many American liberals. When I was a kid, *to be liberal was to be* open-minded and highly educated. Liberalism doesn’t represent that today. It represents a secular version of baptism....
Millennials who are so crazy about Corbyn and Sanders are the *dumbest generation*. They *know nothing*. History began the day they were born. The collapse of our educational system has political consequences.... >
Well, as it was going down, passengers on Titanic more than likely thought, “A brand new ship just off the ways…this can’t be happening!! An iceberg? Are you kidding? Titanic can’t sink! She’s reported to be “unsinkable” & has all the newest technologies!”
All of it, each and every instance is top-down corrupt government actors foisting fairy tales obviously convenient to them with the eager help of big media and big tech on the unwashed masses. You bet we've all had enough of the BS.
Your last paragraph hits the nail on the head, Mark. I was the same way, but increasingly felt that things just weren't right. About 8 months ago, I bought several books on the malfeasance of the CIA, FBI, and corporations. Many of them documented the insidious cooperation between these various institutions and for profit companies to the point they're undeniable. It was so unsettling since I had always had faith in our institutions and businesses and felt that there were still many who would do the right thing. Now I'm overwhelmed by the greed, corruption, and raw lust for power and alternate between depression and well, I'll just live my life as best I can and not worry about things I can't change. Fortunately, we're seeing some incredible people making a difference, such as Aaron Siri, Ron DeSantis, Dr. McCullough, Dr. Malone, Steve Kirsch, Joe Rogan, Glenn Greenwald, etc. People standing on their principles - who give me hope. The list is long and comprised of many ordinary people who are just fed up with the left's BS.
< ... The table shows the Killed vs. Saved from COVID death, in 6 months numbers. Units for both columns are per million doses. Saved assumes vaccines are 100% effective against projected COVID deaths.
That's one I've read. I'd also recommend Steve Coll's "Ghost Wars" and Sidney Powell's "Licensed to Lie". Then there's a great 15 minute youtube interview of former CIA Agent John Stockwell that's eye opening:
It's disconcerting that this has been happening for decades. It's just getting worse now that everyone just wants to "get mine". Disillusioning but necessary to understand the scope of our problems.
Waking up is hard to do. We need to reassure ourselves, so we cling to whatever scraps of the consensus we can justify. We stop looking. We allow ourselves to focus on distractions and detour down twisty paths following details that ultimately don't matter. We compartmentalize.
That's why "limited hangouts" work as well as they do, and in turn why they are so well developed.
Im of the opinion that even guys like Scott Adams are still living in a fair amount of denial as to where we've actually fallen to. We sugar coat it in the weirdest of ways by using dismissive or blatantly inaccurate terms of the real issues.
The other biggie for me is the belief that we can/will vote ourselves backwards in time or that some court will issue some magical course correction to our nation.
That's not how it works... at this point we're only debating the speed of the decent, not the direction of the downward spiral.
As someone who long knew that the deep recesses of government are very likely despicable, it's not surprising that the rot, the corruption has advanced to the front, the facade that we can all see. Welcome aboard, Scott!
C'mon man. With every western government following the same policy playbook we're supposed to believe ours is responding to the wishes of the people? Sorry, there is nothing that is going to save these criminals from prosecution for crimes against humanity. Adams or whomever makes a nice semi-subtle attempt to cast some doubt on the conspiracy, but there are so many places where they have revealed the plan and so many ways the actions taken by these governments make sense only when you consider the plan, that I think it is time to stop pretending not to know there IS a plan.
However you look at it, plan or not, there’s no way they would be getting away with it if not for the (at least tacit) support of the population. I read recently, for example, that Australia’s Dictator Dan will soon be up for reelection… and he’s expected to win easily.
Bottom line to me is that we no longer have a government 'of, by and for the people.' D.C. to me is DEAD. Yet I know that the dead can have power, and in this case do.
Avoiding them as best I can is currently where I am at. Although I will act if I can be convinced there is someone somewhere with a meaningful response.
Basically as I see it it is a matter of "Coke vs. Pepsi." Each wants me as a customer for the sake of their own profit margin. Froth and sugar is what they offer with silly, wordy, people-tuned slogans.
What you get, though, is rotting teeth.. THAT is D.C.
Trumps super power is he has ripped off so many masks, and showed how bad things are to regular voters.
I’m surprised at how angry I am.
I guess I finally figured out they hate us, and will win at any cost, no matter any eggs that need to be broken. So many lies. The dual system of justice is wrong.
Another lie is the eGOP is on our side. Nope, uniparty dupes full of failure theater.
Another area ignored us the Chinese influence in the us.
Another is value of higher education,
The Chinese influence here may be so great, that the Commies will be able to soon occupy a mostly empty country.
I have thought for a long time that our best quality as Americans is that we are by nature optimists. Our ancestors came here because of their faith that they could make better lives for themselves and have freedoms here that they were denied in the places from which they came. For most all of our history we have inherited the belief that this is a land of opportunity and freedom and we want to have faith in our neighbors and support our civic institutions to further that belief.
Now I wonder if for us older folks at least this has not actually worked against us. It makes it harder for us to see and accept what has happened to our country. Perhaps we been blind as to how perverted our popular culture and our current educational system have become - how both of them are now enemies of traditional American values and of having faith in America's future. Have we been blind to how God (the belief in whom this country's principles were based) has now been denied by virtually every part of our society?
Scott Adams is now an older guy. I have seen him vacillate on a lot of things over the last few years but perhaps he is finally waking up to the horrible realities we WILL have to deal with in the coming years both as individuals and as a society - realities that we largely brought on ourselves over the last 50 years. The only remedy to our ills I see is repentance and a return to God and His promises of justice, grace, and mercy. Perhaps Mr. Adams will come to that conclusion as well (hopefully).
A-M-E-N
The one bright spot is this article and the comments. We are on to what is going on. Our government is not worth saving. We are now post-'1984'. The biggie for me was the 2020 election fraud and the fact that all Washington was on board with the cover-up to assure a Biden-Harris administration that will bring this country to ruin. The future is that we 'proles' will go about our business ignoring and being ignored by the administration. We will be clever enough to keep within the law, barely, but our productivity will be channeled so as not to benefit Washington.
Just wait, you ain't seen nothing yet! It's Way, Way, Worse than you even imagined. Funny how all the so called conspiracy theorist have been proven right on so many subjects, no?
I agree.
It's that bad and much worse. It's been coming since Ike's farewell address.
Actually WAY before - decades before. Like was a part of the problem, IMO.
Yes, it goes back to WW2.
Regular readers will know that I rarely miss a chance to tout the Progressive Era as the source of much if not most of our modern maladies. The book I regularly recommend in that regard is The Revolt Against The Masses by Fred Siegel. It was the introduction of German Idealism into American intellectual circles--especially Hegel.
From a 2018 interview with Siegal, at https://www.spiked-online.com/2018/02/02/the-revolt-against-the-masses/ :
< Liberalism has taken on a religious aspect. It’s a belief system, and not a system that represents political interests. Liberalism is seen as a source of grace, in religious terms.
It is hard to talk to people, when you are effectively suggesting they are not among the blessed (or, to use Thomas Sowell’s phrase, the ‘anointed’), that they are in fact mistaken. Trump is wrong about many things, but you *can argue* with Trumpism. But it is very hard to argue with contemporary liberalism, especially in its *West Coast* incarnation.
Collins: Yes, I am surprised how very few liberals were willing to engage in self-criticism after the election, not even to try to understand why they have been losing in recent years.
Siegal:... As one writer has pointed out, the environmentalists in Oregon have undercut the jobs traditionally filled by less-educated white males – ranching, lumber, fishing. These industries have been essentially regulated out of existence. It’s hard to see how that population can vote for Democrats in large numbers down the road....
... Or, when you tell them that Trumpism is not peculiar to America. In the Czech Republic, in Hungary, in Poland, in the Baltic states – you have variations on Trump. Liberals are incredulous.
First of all, they don’t pay much *attention to Europe*, which I think is unfortunate. Second, the idea that there is something larger at play, that it’s not all about Trump’s venality, is inconceivable for many American liberals. When I was a kid, *to be liberal was to be* open-minded and highly educated. Liberalism doesn’t represent that today. It represents a secular version of baptism....
Millennials who are so crazy about Corbyn and Sanders are the *dumbest generation*. They *know nothing*. History began the day they were born. The collapse of our educational system has political consequences.... >
Tx
Maria B. has Scott Atlas on now, e.g. on vaxes, Fauci, & Birx.
Well, as it was going down, passengers on Titanic more than likely thought, “A brand new ship just off the ways…this can’t be happening!! An iceberg? Are you kidding? Titanic can’t sink! She’s reported to be “unsinkable” & has all the newest technologies!”
The joke was unfortunately on them.
1. The Russia Hoax
2. The Mueller Probe
3. The Flynn Persecution
4. Impeachment I
5. The George Floyd Race Hustle Riots
5. The COVID Hoax
6. The 2020 Election Fraud
7. The January 6th FBI Op
8. The White Supremacy Canard
9. CRT
All of it, each and every instance is top-down corrupt government actors foisting fairy tales obviously convenient to them with the eager help of big media and big tech on the unwashed masses. You bet we've all had enough of the BS.
Vax Effectiveness
Vax Side Effects
Demonization of hcq and Ivermectin
Need for masks
15 days to flatten the curve
Necessity / Effectiveness of lockdowns
2 shots and we can go back to normal
Vaxed do not spread Covid
Inflation
10. The Kavanaugh hearings
Your last paragraph hits the nail on the head, Mark. I was the same way, but increasingly felt that things just weren't right. About 8 months ago, I bought several books on the malfeasance of the CIA, FBI, and corporations. Many of them documented the insidious cooperation between these various institutions and for profit companies to the point they're undeniable. It was so unsettling since I had always had faith in our institutions and businesses and felt that there were still many who would do the right thing. Now I'm overwhelmed by the greed, corruption, and raw lust for power and alternate between depression and well, I'll just live my life as best I can and not worry about things I can't change. Fortunately, we're seeing some incredible people making a difference, such as Aaron Siri, Ron DeSantis, Dr. McCullough, Dr. Malone, Steve Kirsch, Joe Rogan, Glenn Greenwald, etc. People standing on their principles - who give me hope. The list is long and comprised of many ordinary people who are just fed up with the left's BS.
From Kirsh, at https://www.skirsch.com/covid/VaccineEssentials.pdf :
< ... The table shows the Killed vs. Saved from COVID death, in 6 months numbers. Units for both columns are per million doses. Saved assumes vaccines are 100% effective against projected COVID deaths.
This article https://www.skirsch.com/covid/VCage.pdf details how the numbers were calculated. Both columns are from US government data (VAERS and CDC).
Bottom line: It is nonsensical to vaccinate any age group. >
That's the one area that I disagree with Malone and some others about. Like Kirsch I don't see the point of vaxxing any age group.
What are your thoughts on this take?
https://noqreport.com/2021/11/19/mike-adams-only-purebloods-will-survive-the-vaccine-radiation-holocaust-being-unleashed-against-humanity/?utm_source=econ
And, from Siri's office, at https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2021/11/01/doctors-blow-the-whistle-on-vaccine-deaths-and-injuries/ , eleven physicians’ legal deposition testimony, on that they have suffered severe vax side effects, and also report post-vaccine neurological effects among their patients.
https://noqreport.com/2021/11/19/mike-adams-only-purebloods-will-survive-the-vaccine-radiation-holocaust-being-unleashed-against-humanity/?utm_source=econ
This is a great read about this topic.
John Perkins
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
That's one I've read. I'd also recommend Steve Coll's "Ghost Wars" and Sidney Powell's "Licensed to Lie". Then there's a great 15 minute youtube interview of former CIA Agent John Stockwell that's eye opening:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK1tfkESPVY
It's disconcerting that this has been happening for decades. It's just getting worse now that everyone just wants to "get mine". Disillusioning but necessary to understand the scope of our problems.
Thank you for the recommendations. I will give them a go. I did a research paper for my BA about the OSS. It was sadly eye opening.
Waking up is hard to do. We need to reassure ourselves, so we cling to whatever scraps of the consensus we can justify. We stop looking. We allow ourselves to focus on distractions and detour down twisty paths following details that ultimately don't matter. We compartmentalize.
That's why "limited hangouts" work as well as they do, and in turn why they are so well developed.
Im of the opinion that even guys like Scott Adams are still living in a fair amount of denial as to where we've actually fallen to. We sugar coat it in the weirdest of ways by using dismissive or blatantly inaccurate terms of the real issues.
The other biggie for me is the belief that we can/will vote ourselves backwards in time or that some court will issue some magical course correction to our nation.
That's not how it works... at this point we're only debating the speed of the decent, not the direction of the downward spiral.
I try to be optimistic, but I don't underestimate the dire straits we're in.
As someone who long knew that the deep recesses of government are very likely despicable, it's not surprising that the rot, the corruption has advanced to the front, the facade that we can all see. Welcome aboard, Scott!
But it's not just the deep recesses of government; it's also academia, the MSM, most of the big firms, and the bulk of the upper/ middle classes.
Yes, without all that the situation wouldn't be so worrisome.
You are correct.
Disabused, disillusioned, disaffected.
C'mon man. With every western government following the same policy playbook we're supposed to believe ours is responding to the wishes of the people? Sorry, there is nothing that is going to save these criminals from prosecution for crimes against humanity. Adams or whomever makes a nice semi-subtle attempt to cast some doubt on the conspiracy, but there are so many places where they have revealed the plan and so many ways the actions taken by these governments make sense only when you consider the plan, that I think it is time to stop pretending not to know there IS a plan.
However you look at it, plan or not, there’s no way they would be getting away with it if not for the (at least tacit) support of the population. I read recently, for example, that Australia’s Dictator Dan will soon be up for reelection… and he’s expected to win easily.
"I prefer text." Likewise.
Yes, I started reading him in 2016 but mostly stopped when he went to the podcast format