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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

#131

Post by WalterBright »

jshier wrote: post #123
WalterBright wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your link doesn't seem to cover the Greatest Generation. Also, the Democrat party has steadily moved leftwards over time. I don't have statistics, but combat veterans voice very negative opinions on Jane Fonda and her support for N Vietnam.

> Also, the Democrat party has steadily moved leftwards over time. What an absurd statement. During the Great Depression FDR was considering a worker's bill of rights that would guarantee employment. In the '60s LBJ used the specter of a dead president to push through the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts (which have been considerably undone). In the '90s, Clinton undid the what remained of the Federal welfare stat…

LBJ's "Great Society" programs still exist and are greatly expanded. The scope of federal entitlements have steadily expanded. And there are strident calls for Medicare for all.

Have you not noticed the recent elections of Democrat Socialists, and the Democrat leaders are endorsing them? This was unthinkable just a few years ago.

The Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act are not socialism. I am not sure the VRA has been undone - didn't Los Angeles just enact a law to allow non-citizens to vote?

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

#132

Post by clickety_clack »

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.

I’d love to hear what you think 1926 was like for the average person.

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

#133

Post by DonaldFisk »

scoofy wrote: post #109
WalterBright wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 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 a…

It's confusing because different people mean different things when using political terms. The political compass (https://www.politicalcompass.org) has two axes: left-right and libertarian-authoritarian. On it, socialists are definitely left wing (and communists far left), regardless of what the left/right wing meant at the time of the French Revolution.

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

#134

Post by tzs »

g42gregory wrote: post #61

Is 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...? "Life is much better in 2026. We live healthier, richer, and longer lives, with better medicine and more self-determination." - I can't speak for 1926, but compared to 1980s or 1960s, this is so patently not true. The US populat…

> Is 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 don't see how anything in the article would influence anyone to feel better about those things.

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

#135

Post by jandrewrogers »

axpy906 wrote: post #116
fluidcruft wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What food does Europe have that the US does not?

Its what’s not in the food like additives, preservatives, pesticides, gmos and growth hormone. EU has stricter regulations.

Not stricter, just different emphasis. For example, the US famously has stricter controls on bacterial contamination than much of Europe.

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

#136

Post by tzs »

g42gregory wrote: post #110
achenet wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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)?

> 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...

We are only arguing about that because you brought it up.

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

#137

Post by bryanrasmussen »

vitally3643 wrote: post #128
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.

English is a very context dependent language, so the phrases "surprised by how much" and "surprised by how little" actually have opposite denotations. Mechanically, sure, they're interchangeable, but using the "incorrect" form carries extra connotations. You've used the counterintuitive form, demanding the reader more carefully consider your meaning, which heavily implies you're making a point beyond what appears in…

What do you mean by "I've used"?

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

#138

Post by jshier »

WalterBright wrote: post #131
jshier wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Also, the Democrat party has steadily moved leftwards over time. What an absurd statement. During the Great Depression FDR was considering a worker's bill of rights that would guarantee employment. In the '60s LBJ used the specter of a dead president to push through the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts (which have been considerably undone). In the '90s, Clinton undid the what remained of the Federal welfare stat…

LBJ's "Great Society" programs still exist and are greatly expanded. The scope of federal entitlements have steadily expanded. And there are strident calls for Medicare for all. Have you not noticed the recent elections of Democrat Socialists, and the Democrat leaders are endorsing them? This was unthinkable just a few years ago. The Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act are not socialism. I am not sure the VRA has…

And none of those things are a move leftward, simply a return to FDR's Democratic Party, where universal healthcare and equal rights first had a chance of passing. That a handful of democratic nominees (most of the Democratic Socialists you allude to simply won their primaries, they aren't in power yet) are on the ballot for the first time demonstrates that the party itself has, in fact, moved rightward, as they wouldn't otherwise need to be described separate from the party itself. And your equation of left and socialism is deeply flawed. Ensuring equal rights with the CRA and VRA wasn't socialism (which is largely an economic framework, not political), but it was certainly a move to left. So much so the country essentially repolarized around those positions. Oh, and you do realize the difference between federal legislation and local laws about who can vote, right?

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

#139

Post by TacticalCoder »

fc417fc802 wrote: post #82
dctoedt wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you were born in 1900 you probably are at the tail end of the Lost Generation — the Greatest Generation is considered to be those born between 1901 and 1927. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greatest_Generation

Wild to think there were people who as adults lived through all of the railroad buildout, WWI, the 20s, the depression, and then WWII. Complaining about AI buildouts causing electronics prices to regress by a decade or so begins to seem rather trite in comparison.

[flagged]

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

#140

Post by lovich »

artisinal wrote: post #129
lovich wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

The numbers aren’t very clear but from what I can read online I see that the border checks in Germany resulted in a couple thousand deportations. Hundred of thousands of people checked. Not comparing that to ICE as deportations in the EU are typically peaceful.

If you can be compelled to produce your papers or get arrested by ICE then everyone will have to have their papers on them. ICE and leaders in this admin are also stating that they are aiming for millions of deportations.
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