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America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

derekthompson.org

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Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#101

Post by bryanlarsen »

WalterBright wrote: post #89
bryanlarsen wrote: post #7

You're a 26 year old in 1926. You're part of what history would later call the Greatest Generation. You will suffer through both the Great Depression and World War II. Perhaps due to those experiences, you will be the only generation that votes more left as you age.

> Perhaps due to those experiences, you will be the only generation that votes more left as you age. I doubt it. My dad lived through the Great Depression, and fought desperate battles in WW2 and Korea. As a young man, he was a socialist. His experience in fighting for American freedoms changed all that. Before he passed, he told me he regretted leaving me in a country that was significantly less free than when he wa…

In 1994, the Greatest Generation voted D+7, higher than any other generational cohort.

https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2015/04/30/a-different-...

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#102

Post by lovich »

artisinal wrote: post #87
pixdamix wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Freedom to say (almost) anything, publicly, including criticism of the elite and powerful. Most European nations strongly protect free speech, allowing open public critique and satire of politicians, the wealthy, and the powerful. > Freedom to do, to create a business with far fewer roadblocks than in, say, Europe. Several European countries actually lead global easy business rankings, some offering fully digital,…

> The schengen zone grants passport-free travel across 29 nations, spanning thousands of miles without a single border checkpoint. Not anymore. I got stopped between The Netherlands and Germany, between France and Spain, Denmark and Sweden. Germany has border checkpoints with most of its bordering countries. That is unheard of in the USA. You can travel thousands of kilometers without getting stopped by authorities f…

Eh, we kinda can’t crow about that with ICE now, especially since it’s not just at known checkpoints where they are demanding papers.

Free speech is also on the outs since we’re having people getting jailed for not carrying the flame appropriately with regards to the late Mr Kirk.

Oh, and people getting prosecuted for 8647 as the powers at be decided to interpret that as a death threat instead of call to impeach.

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#103

Post by achenet »

g42gregory wrote: post #75
vitorfblima wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since he is explicitly comparing 2026 to 1926 I think his statement holds up.

That's how good propaganda reads. You have to be both subtle and partially true.

Why do you refer to "good propaganda"?

The piece compares the USA and 100 years ago. He notices that we are still in a time of large social change, often in some of the same areas, while also noting that we are materially more comfortable.

I don't think "this some sort of a paid advertising piece, to make you feel better about inflation, lack of affordable medical care, lack of affordable housing, lack of jobs for recent graduates, etc...", I think it's just a historical retrospective.

Author is pointing out that material, we're more comfortable than 100 years ago, and it's true.

It was arguable also true in 1926 - I I'd rather have been 26 in 1926 than 26 in 1826 (especially if I were a woman or black), and I'd rather be 26 today than 1926.

Being educated enough to whine on the internet about how despite recently graduating from university, I've not found a job that pays me enough to buy a home in a super expensive metropolitan area, while not ideal, is still, in my opinion, than moving from the farm to go work in various factories and shops in the city.

Have you ever seen a graph of the stock market?

It doesn't always go up all the time, but in the long run, it generally goes up on average.

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#104

Post by achenet »

fc417fc802 wrote: post #85
bryanrasmussen wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How much and how little are logically equivalent, although in vernacular usage it is of course common to use how little when implying the amount is less than one might expect, and how much to imply the amount is more than one might expect.

Practical communication is not an exercise in logical deduction. The meaning of those terms is not equivalent for exactly the reason you noted.

human beings are not always perfect communicators, regrettably.

Luckily, other humans can 'clear things up' :)

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#106

Post by retired »

dgellow wrote: post #93
retired wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> And have freedom of movement within the whole EU To a certain degree. In the US you can drive to another state thousands of kilometers away and decide to just live there for the rest of your life.

I can do the same within the EU, what difference are you pointing at?

I moved to Spain from The Netherlands as a Dutch citizen. It was a lot of paperwork, lots of planning, needed close to €10k in my bank account and needed to get private healthcare with a pretty serious health check. I had to do multiple trips to the national police office and municipalities.

That is not needed when you switch states in the US. You just need to update your address and tax records. You do not needed to show financial means and you do not need private healthcare.

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#107

Post by achenet »

stackghost wrote: post #8
pfdietz wrote: post #2

So, we're about to have Great Depression 2 and WW3? Fun.

It has felt inevitable to me for a few years now. The market != the economy but a major crash can still trigger a credit crunch that will materially affect regular people. Look at the insane valuations on some of these companies. They can't continue forever. As for WW3, well, there's a diaper-wearing senile old man, with an inferiority complex to boot, in charge of a nuclear arsenal and major conventional forces.

> As for WW3, well, there's a diaper-wearing senile old man, with an inferiority complex to boot, in charge of a nuclear arsenal and major conventional forces.

Wait, which one are you talking about?

Putin? Trump? Nethanyayu? Kim Jong-un?

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#108

Post by jandrewrogers »

bryanlarsen wrote: post #7

You're a 26 year old in 1926. You're part of what history would later call the Greatest Generation. You will suffer through both the Great Depression and World War II. Perhaps due to those experiences, you will be the only generation that votes more left as you age.

You are off by a generation. The Greatest Generation was born in the 1920s. This was the generation that produced the Boomers.

I knew my great grandparents. Most were born in the last part of the 1800s and lived through the First World War as young adults. They always seemed significantly less scarred by the Great Depression than their children (the Greatest Generation). There was a communist undercurrent to the Greatest Generation but they didn't get it from their parents.

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#109

Post by scoofy »

WalterBright wrote: post #89
bryanlarsen wrote: post #7

You're a 26 year old in 1926. You're part of what history would later call the Greatest Generation. You will suffer through both the Great Depression and World War II. Perhaps due to those experiences, you will be the only generation that votes more left as you age.

> Perhaps due to those experiences, you will be the only generation that votes more left as you age. I doubt it. My dad lived through the Great Depression, and fought desperate battles in WW2 and Korea. As a young man, he was a socialist. His experience in fighting for American freedoms changed all that. Before he passed, he told me he regretted leaving me in a country that was significantly less free than when he wa…

“Left” doesn’t mean socialism. In the long run, it comes out of the enlightenment period, quite literally.

Traditionally, the left is associated with small “L” liberalism, and the right is associated with small “C” conservatism.

Generally speaking, it has been a historic debate between whether the “natural” way things are is good and prudent (e.g., monarchs, religion, castes, roles, and norms), or if the way things are should be challenged to try something that seems better (e.g., liberté, égalité, fraternité).

When one of these ideas is successfully, it is often adopted by the right, when one fails, it is often abandoned by the left. Whether or not socialism is part of the left depends on whether folks on the left think it’s an idea worth trying. In America, right now, the vast majority are still quite hesitant to include it in their platform.

Re: America, 1926: A forgotten 100-year-old report

#110

Post by g42gregory »

achenet wrote: post #103
g42gregory wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's how good propaganda reads. You have to be both subtle and partially true.

Why do you refer to "good propaganda"? The piece compares the USA and 100 years ago. He notices that we are still in a time of large social change, often in some of the same areas, while also noting that we are materially more comfortable. I don't think "this some sort of a paid advertising piece, to make you feel better about inflation, lack of affordable medical care, lack of affordable housing, lack of jobs for re…

That's exactly what a good propaganda is: We are now arguing whether we are better off than exactly 100 yrs ago, instead of focusing on the lack of jobs for recent grads, significantly higher prices than pre-COVID, etc...

When I read articles, in addition to thinking "good information", I now always ask 3 more quesitons: (1) why was it written? (2) who benefits? (3) who paid for it (not necessarily with money)?

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