18 Comments
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Gecko1's avatar

Mr Dinh talks more medical sense than 99% of doctors:).

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Three Eyed Goddess's avatar

your photographs are magnificent, capturing the beautiful and scary quotidian of our time that people of the future(?) will cherish

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JustPlainBill's avatar

It’s doubtful that Biden will appear on Mt. Rushmore as Pelosi thinks proper; in fact, in any honest telling of it, Biden will indeed go down in history, but not for the reasons Hakeem Jeffries offers. Unfortunately, the historical record of our descent is unlikely to be told honestly for some time to come, if ever. Those facts are already being erased from the record as we speak.

Rather, Biden may mark the completion of the multi-decade project in the US to gradually replace the real presidency by, at first, an actor, but finally, by mindless avatars. In this way, the simulacrum of a democracy is maintained while the reins are quietly and gradually passed to an unelected managerial class without the clueless masses even realizing it. In Europe it is obvious that this transition is essentially complete—middle school kids now run the continent. In the US it will take just a little while longer.

As an aside, it is amusing that Hillary Clinton, despite being the ultimate insider, apparently didn't get the email--she still thinks the president is someone who is “in charge” and actually controls things. It is sheer vanity that drives her persistent desire to ascend to that now almost meaningless perch.

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Ernest Judd's avatar

'Rather, Biden may mark the completion of the multi-decade project in the US to gradually replace the real presidency by, at first, an actor, but finally, by mindless avatars. In this way, the simulacrum of a democracy is maintained while the reins are quietly and gradually passed to an unelected managerial class without the clueless masses even realizing it."

Yes! In retrospect, thanks to your tight comment, that is what went along all these decades! It makes perfect sense that the 'plan' takes decades to come to fruition while the plebes have their focus on much shorter term objectives; those objectives are getting shorter and shorter term.

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Irritable Farmer's avatar

Agreed. Hakeem Jeffries, like the rest of his allies, dumb as a stick. I was never much into partisan politics until the stolen 2020 presidential election. Needless to say America has been sliding faster down the shitter since. Tragic really.

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Aug 22
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Martin Dee's avatar

Fine words. Nick Dixon tweeted about that other malignant vacuity, Keir Starmer:

Starmer is a managerial midwit.

A brittle man of winter.

A dead-eyed shark pushing ever forward towards his next grim, mechanical task.

You could coax Shakespeare himself down from the heavens to tell him of all England’s beauty and he would only be annoyed that you had kept him from his busywork.

He is a ruddy-faced nothing, an interloper.

To call him a traitor flatters him, as the traitor surely has some sense of his own wrongdoing. Starmer lacks the imagination to arrive even at the foothills of his own wretchedness.

His emptiness could fill entire stadia.

He is the final form of managerial man, signing Britain’s death warrant before lunch and never thinking about it twice.

To detest him is normal, yet pointless.

Hatred slides off him like water off some cheap synthetic fabric.

He is the blank-faced destroyer of joy, freedom and invention. He is death on prescription, equally distributed.

He is nameless dread, the void, the negation that cannot be negated.

He is the end of hope.

In short, I am not a fan.

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Ernest Judd's avatar

That comment drips serious dedication and intestinal fortitude.

On top of that, he can never be Rickshaw-wallah Sunak!

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JustPlainBill's avatar

This has my vote for Comment of the Month!

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peggy bean's avatar

Great comments, ya'll!

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Al DuClur's avatar

At least the old man was honest about what the jab did to him. Many can't admit they were lied to because they see themselves as smart people who aren't influenced by anti The Science disinformation. It must be registering on some level though because there is no longer much enthusiasm for the jab.

Alas I see more and more fools wearing a mask lately.

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Charles's avatar

As always I was learning from a Linh essay, but then he stopped me momentarily with the mention of "eating contests". I can intellectually comprehend thievery, rape, or murder, but knowing the fact that 1) people really do compete in gorging themselves with food, and 2) there is an audience for such a contest, pushes the limits of what I can confront.

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Ernest Judd's avatar

Did Tom Herzog get pissed off and decide not to comment anymore?

Is he alright?

Just a concern as I found him to be quite the character.

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JustPlainBill's avatar

This is the first of Linh's blog entries he's missed lately.

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Ernest Judd's avatar

His last comment was August 10.

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JustPlainBill's avatar

I remember him mentioning he was moving into better housing. Maybe he's still getting himself situated.

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Ernest Judd's avatar

Where I live I have a good friend that has similar traits .

I guess I'm sorta looking out for him.

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Dan Duffy's avatar

Hi all, just a note to say that 29 more have read the Viet Nam letter about Linh's selection from his 7 books of poetry since I announced it here 2 days ago. Your attention has taken the audience for our study of his Blue Threads to the Soul from 161 to 190. Thanks!

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Billy Thistle's avatar

Japan and South Korea, the most westernized of our Asian allies, share this developmental malaise. The hikikomori make incels seem convalescent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hikikomori

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