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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
That now-deleted "structure of the alt-right" actually covers this: The alt-right gets its talking points from neo-Nazis and the neoreactionary movement (because "Dark Enlightenment" is really pretentious and I am not giving them the satisfaction) at the top, which tend not to be especially photogenic. The next tier down, which is Milo et al., does it because there's money in book contracts or in "shock value".
Not like this will hurt him. There are more than enough insecure idiots whining on the internet about some girl with dyed hair they have never met "friendzoning" them that a Patreon of his is going to be a smashing success. Unless some more ideologically pure militant type has enough of him, he's safe.
I have disagreed with her a lot, but comparing her to republicans and propagandists of dictatorships is really low. - An idiotOn the Laurie Penny analysis: Rather good piece, thought I don't share her idea that the right will be willing to part with their idea that they defend free speech. Far too convenient of a debate weapon. And it saddens me, if you want to stick to free speech as principle, it's your lot to hang around those who use it as their shield of convenience. If you defend the right to speak about witchcraft, you'll end up surrounded by witches.
On the subject in question: I wonder what persona will he have next. I bet on "I took on the media and survived" or somesuch.
That article about Yiannopolous' entourage is pretty much exactly what I expected. And it's a real tragedy, honestly. While it does not excuse their actions in any way, I can't help but pity them mostly because I know what it's like to be an awkward, lonely, lost and fragile young man. While they are obviously accountable for their actions, they are also the result of a society where toxic masculinity reigns and men often don't get the proper guidance and emotional support to learn to respect others, much less than themselves, or to properly deal with their emotions in a healthy way. Instead of recognizing that system and rejecting it, it just leads them to double down and try to over-compensate.
edited 22nd Feb '17 5:09:54 AM by Draghinazzo
The rising risk of showdown between Trump and Iran
After the ban was announced, BBC Persian received hundreds of messages from anxious Iranians whose lives have been plunged into uncertainty.
They come from all walks of life - research students, LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) refugees and grandparents on family visits - and many are worried the story is far from over.
"Last year our family applied to migrate to the US," wrote Bardia, a 16-year-old from the persecuted Bahai religious minority. "Now there's a big hold-up in the process."
But since President Trump moved into the White House it is not just Iranians with travel plans who are feeling unsettled.
Across the country people are asking themselves if he will really deliver on his promise to "rip up" the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and "triple-up" sanctions.
For someone used to rallying his supporters with denunciations of the "Great Satan", Mr Khamenei clearly feels on familiar ground responding to tougher rhetoric from Washington.
"We appreciate Trump! Because he largely did the job for us in revealing true face of America," he Tweeted recently.
One person for whom Mr Trump's ascendancy is less welcome is President Hassan Rouhani.
He is standing for re-election in May, and the accelerating war of words between Washington and Tehran casts a long shadow over his two biggest achievements - securing the nuclear deal and improving relations with the US.
As the election campaign gets under way Mr Rouhani's hardline opponents will seek to use the Trump administration's actions to undermine him.
whether the hardliners will succeed is open to question.
Even if the tangible benefits of the end of sanctions have yet to be widely felt in Iran, the prospect of the country returning to the international stage and opening up for business has given hope to millions of ordinary voters.
It is clear they do not want to see these achievements reversed.
Since Mr Trump's travel ban thousands of young Iranians have taken to Twitter using the hashtag #Love Beyond Flags to reach out to Americans.
And among the traditional anti-American slogans on display at the annual rally to commemorate the Revolution in Tehran last week there were some in English with a rather different message: "Americans are welcome and invited to Iran".
Too bad this understanding only seems to be aiming at young, white men.
Many black/latino gangbangers and Muslim terrorists are lonely, sexually desperate young men, who were even worse off. Where's their sympathy? Because unlike the alt-right, they're sure not doing it literally for the lulz
edited 22nd Feb '17 6:16:43 AM by NoName999
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Many of these people are victims of abuse, are of low economic standing, and generally have rather shitty lives, hence the attraction to a radical ideology. People of minority backgrounds of similar economic standings frequently have it even worse, but for someone with a life that's already in the dumps, an appeal to worse problems is likely to fall on deaf ears, and that's something that democrats should keep in mind when campaigning in places that have been hit hard by economic shifts caused by globalization.
edited 22nd Feb '17 6:21:58 AM by CaptainCapsase
I agree that the lack of a similar sympathy and understanding for minority people in similarly radicalized situations is pretty telling of our societal problems, although that's another can of worms entirely.
A lot of the internet beyond the alt-right seems to have missed the point of Fight Club, knowingly or not. They seem to think Tyler Durden was actually supposed to be right about anything.
edited 22nd Feb '17 6:36:10 AM by Draghinazzo
Profiling the enemy aside, the AJC at least is showing new self-awareness... note
Looking behind a poll that shows – gasp! – a Democrat leading in Sixth District
Ossoff at 32 percent! Handel at 25 percent! Bob Gray at 11 percent! Democrats are marching, spreading chaos and mayhem, and there’s nothing Republicans can do but panic!
Or, if you’re the Handel campaign, put out a fund-raising email:
“National Democrats have placed a large target on Karen’s campaign, and the poll numbers show they’re going all-in against Karen. Will you step up right now to fight back against Nancy Pelosi and her liberal allies?”
The poll that Handel cites was conducted by Clout Research of Dublin, Ohio. It first appeared on Monday at zpolitics.com. You can find the questions and crosstabs by clicking here.
We’re not saying the poll was rigged. But we are saying that if you wanted to rig a poll to portray all Republicans in the race as underdogs and thus in desperate need of campaign cash, this would be one way to do it.
There are 18 candidates, including five Democrats and 11 Republicans. The Clout Research poll listed only six candidates – not just by name, but by party: See what happened? Clout Research did what the Georgia Democratic party itself only dreams it could do – funnel all Democratic votes into the arms of a single candidate. Thus boosting his total.
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Hell it's not even race. The actual out and proud Nazis? The skinheads? They most likely come from broken homes and have self esteem issues as well. They sure as hell deserve more empathy than the alt right, who apparently views the entire thing as a video game and that they're biggest problem seems to be.... having less charisma than someone who clips their toenails over your dinner
Hopefully this anger that the left is feeling can last until 2020.
edited 22nd Feb '17 6:38:27 AM by NoName999
I say if Jon Ossoff has the best chance of taking Georgia, then the best thing is for the other 4 Democrats to drop out and throw complete (or near complete) support at Ossoff. Sure, that may slightly backfire if something Ossoff did that was bad surfaces, but it's the best chance the Georgian Democrats have, and I think it's worth it to go with this plan.
If there's anything the Democrats can learn from the Republicans, its that ideological purity and inflexibility are not the way to go. Trump abandoned decades of Republican orthodoxy in terms of foreign policy, trade, dogwhistels and more. And he won.
I'm not say that the left should find the first charismatic demagogue and take them even if they are a rapist/bigot/utterly unqualified for the position. But they do need to learn to accept imperfect candidates. If these fringers force left-wing policies on the national party, they'll lose races where they might have an option of winning. And having both parties embrace trade and foreign policy voodoo is bad for just about everyone.
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.One of my main issues with the left, aside from the idiotic purity testing bullshit, is that they conflate "Left/progressive stance" with "practical and workable in reality." That annoys the hell out of me.
There's a reason politics generally favors centrists or moderates.
New Survey coming this weekend!The problem with the hard left is that they let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Being progressive is preferable; I'm personally tired of consummate milquetoast centrists who basically believe in nothing. I want a genuine progressive who'll stand by their beliefs, but I don't need them to be at the avant-garde of leftist political thought for them to be an acceptable candidate.
"For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."That's actually one of the core problems with the Republican party. They simply can't accept the fact that eventually things have to change for one reason or another. A nation's social mores, economic situation, and relationships with other countries are in a constant state of change and no matter what you prefer you have to accept that maybe the way you're doing things isn't working anymore.
Instead of being a proper conservative party and seeking to make a compromise with the democrats to implement change in a controlled and principled way, they instead are petulant reactionaries who would rather let America crumble rather than live in an America that is in any way different from what they envision.
If the Republicans were willing to return the favor, the Democrats compromising wouldn't be that big of a problem.
edited 22nd Feb '17 8:59:45 AM by Draghinazzo

On the Bus with Milo and Lost Boys of America's Far Right.
This is a really good article about Milo and the "Lost Boys" of America's new far right. I recommend that everyone read it especially since it's written from the perspective of a former friend of Milo before he got famous.
It paints them as a group of easily manipulated fragile and immature losers wanting to be heroes that think this whole thing is a game.
edited 21st Feb '17 10:33:36 PM by MadSkillz