Many of us have cast about in these crazed times in U.S. politics considering any political alternative to Tweedle Dee Trump and Tweedle Dum Biden. Briefly some of our eyes rested on Dean Phillips wondering: does this relative stranger have something better to offer, some basis for hope? Sadly no. Phillips is but another eager novitiate of the new feudal ruling class angling for his ticket to Davos.
The true center of power in the world now is geographically closer to Palo Alto than Washington, DC, and, for those who wield that power, quaint ideas like democracy and representative government are trivial options used when expedient but easily disabled with a click. Politics and government are like apps they have on their phone. Trumpism is but the agonal death shriek of those among us intuitive enough to feel their disenfranchisement, their impoverishment, and their impending relegation to a new kind of serfdom.
Your eloquent summary shows that whoever wins at the end of this year will not affect home behaviour in the USA. But it could seriously affect the rest of the world. Simply diverting money one way or another could change things in Europe – perhaps not so much in Australia.
We have always been serfs. Education teaches us to think about this, worry about it, even post on UnHerd about it. But nothing has really changed in politics. Perhaps 50 years ago we all thought the same way and being all serfs together didn’t feel so bad. Now, some are more serfs than others and that makes us worry.
Regrettably, I think your last sentence is all too true; o me miserum!
Alex Lekas
3 months ago
Considering that Joe Biden is more lifelike than actually alive, and no one believes he’s making any serious decisions, an AI candidate hardly seems like a far leap.
David Kingsworthy
3 months ago
Has this author, or any of the commenters before now, actually listened to Phillips or read his campaign info? He might be a Davos-ite but to say that the Demo party won’t go for hawkish or non-woke candidates is false. Fringe elements will go woke all the way but there are some towards the D/I (dem/independent) side who will vote against Trump but don’t want to vote Joe either. From what I’ve seen and heard, Phillips is more than an AI pretender…. and seems genuinely interested in bipartisanship as well.
Yes, he reportedly had some interesting and non-Democrat-narrative comments after he joined, for some chat, in a long line up (in the cold weather) waiting to enter a Trump extravaganza. The succinct version is that his experience prompted him to say that the (or some of the) Democrats were ‘delusional’.
Many of us have cast about in these crazed times in U.S. politics considering any political alternative to Tweedle Dee Trump and Tweedle Dum Biden. Briefly some of our eyes rested on Dean Phillips wondering: does this relative stranger have something better to offer, some basis for hope? Sadly no. Phillips is but another eager novitiate of the new feudal ruling class angling for his ticket to Davos.
The true center of power in the world now is geographically closer to Palo Alto than Washington, DC, and, for those who wield that power, quaint ideas like democracy and representative government are trivial options used when expedient but easily disabled with a click. Politics and government are like apps they have on their phone. Trumpism is but the agonal death shriek of those among us intuitive enough to feel their disenfranchisement, their impoverishment, and their impending relegation to a new kind of serfdom.
Your eloquent summary shows that whoever wins at the end of this year will not affect home behaviour in the USA. But it could seriously affect the rest of the world. Simply diverting money one way or another could change things in Europe – perhaps not so much in Australia.
We have always been serfs. Education teaches us to think about this, worry about it, even post on UnHerd about it. But nothing has really changed in politics. Perhaps 50 years ago we all thought the same way and being all serfs together didn’t feel so bad. Now, some are more serfs than others and that makes us worry.
No longer Serfing USA?
Regrettably, I think your last sentence is all too true; o me miserum!
Considering that Joe Biden is more lifelike than actually alive, and no one believes he’s making any serious decisions, an AI candidate hardly seems like a far leap.
Has this author, or any of the commenters before now, actually listened to Phillips or read his campaign info? He might be a Davos-ite but to say that the Demo party won’t go for hawkish or non-woke candidates is false. Fringe elements will go woke all the way but there are some towards the D/I (dem/independent) side who will vote against Trump but don’t want to vote Joe either. From what I’ve seen and heard, Phillips is more than an AI pretender…. and seems genuinely interested in bipartisanship as well.
Yes, he reportedly had some interesting and non-Democrat-narrative comments after he joined, for some chat, in a long line up (in the cold weather) waiting to enter a Trump extravaganza. The succinct version is that his experience prompted him to say that the (or some of the) Democrats were ‘delusional’.