iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 12/12/2024

That’s fair, it’s definitely a major “read the room, please” moment for him, though he’s had no shortage of those these past months as anyone who reads his weekly discussions with Gail Collin’s will be familiar with.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 12/12/2024

I mean, to be fair articles like this are Bret Stephens’ whole brand. Anyone who finds this a surprising take of his is not familiar with his writing (not that I blame anyone for not reading him lol).

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Danielle B. @danibky.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

Imagine the return of liberal Republicans w/ multi member districts. & the creation of a centrist third party w/ fusion voting. Ditch the neoliberal economic actor for liberalism's individual & we can talk a fiduciary responsibility to stakeholders over just investors.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

This, this, and more of this please. Foundational political reforms towards greater democracy and public participation won’t be crafted by a purely left or right wing populist movement, like it or not it will require an across the aisle collaboration to create more democratic systems.

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General George Fella @jezko.bsky.social · 30/11/2024

Fellas, I don’t post here a lot but you should absolutely know this // help me spread the word! Violent crackdowns are happening in Tbilisi, Georgia. We are fighting for our lives here. Please, please, please help us spread the word.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

I fully agree. The Democratic Party is the only currently functional national framework to protect and reinforce our institutions, but for long term success things need to change and that starts at home in local and state efforts.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Apologies, I think I should be clear. This should 100% happen on the state and local level and I absolutely agree. The Democratic Party has a rich history of it even. But on the national level I do feel at least the image of unity is really important to an effective coalition.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

I don’t disagree with any of that. To refer to my other reply though, there’s just not a route to get them an option those voters would like that doesn’t involve supporting the Democratic Party right now. I get that it can be deeply unsettling but in a two party system that’s just reality.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

While I think claims of DNC corruption are typically exaggerated, I understand the concern and definitely sympathize with it. Likewise with the philosophical divergence, but again, as of right now the only realistic path to having a further “left” option is a strong and successful Democratic Party.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

…effecting positive change is a long and arduous affair, and that it requires compromise. I think that’s ultimately the biggest flaw of the online left, an unwillingness to compromise that while coming from a genuine desire for positive change instead instead stunts that change from taking form.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

…on the left if you take away the toxifying, socially corrosive effects of social media, there is a genuine desire to help people and alleviate suffering. And if people are suffering, shouldn’t we try to help them as much and as quickly as possible? The problem comes when you realize that…

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

I’m always hesitant to cast too wide a brush in generalizing any group of people, and especially one as diverse and (oftentimes) sectarian as the American left. In my personal experience at least, I’ve noticed not so much a distrust from the left as an impatience. I think for many people…

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Biden has always been pro-union and anti-trust, I would disagree that he nominated Khan or pursued the support of unions as a concession to the life. I’ll grant some level of his climate policies, but the Democratic Party has been getting more environmentalist since Al Gore, it’s hardly new.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

I meant organically held, not originally, whatever the latter means. I’m not disagreeing that, at the very least, the idea that Biden was some socialist did immense political damage to him and the Democratic campaign, but I’m just not seeing what concessions the admin actually made in that vein.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Will I’ve been with you on most of this, but what concessions did “the left” take from the Biden admin? The only position the admin took which I see as primarily left-driven and not originally held was student loan forgiveness, which while certainly politically controversial I don’t think was fatal.

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The Kyiv Independent @kyivindependent.com · 29/11/2024

The long-awaited release of “S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl” has been one of the biggest gaming events of the year. But for members of the Ukrainian military, it is more than just a game — it’s a way to wind down from the stress of combat and a source of national pride.

kyivindependent.com

‘For some it’s a game, for me it’s a manifesto’ — Ukrainian soldiers join S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 frenzy

Editor’s note: In accordance with the security protocols of the Ukrainian military, most soldiers featured in this story are identified by first names or callsigns only. One soldier is mentioned by fi...

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

…their primary contact point for politics isn’t the President or even their Governor, it’s their coworkers, neighbors, and friends, and if we want lasting change and progress of any sort we have to win and shore up those local battles if we ever want to be able fight the national ones.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

I worry that the very national nature of this past election will make people lose sight of the importance of local and regional politics and organizing. Yes, the internet and social media have made politics more national, to (in my opinion) the nation’s detriment. But for a lot of people…

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Absolutely love all of these! Eberron has always been my favorite setting, and these perfectly capture the pseudo-late nineteenth, early twentieth century vibe of I’ve always gotten of Khorvaire. Certainly going to have to get some of these to put up at some point.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

…as a political strategy. Not to mention, while there are absolutely national and state level changes that can and should be made in that interest, the most effective and long-lasting support for it will need to take place locally on the ground, not in a presidential race.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Yup. A big political shift for me - and I think should’ve been for the left but I haven’t personally seen happen as much - is that while we absolutely should support unions and their formation, because it’s the right thing to do, it alone isn’t winning votes and it shouldn’t be seen…

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Absolutely. I’m still closer to the online left than the real moderate in my preferred economic policies, but only one of them is attaining any level of electoral competency/success and I’d rather a less comprehensive policy that gets enacted than a more comprehensive one that never gets to a vote.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

…and if people are experiencing real suffering in the meantime while they wait for it, oh well. There’s a difference between wishing somebody went a bit further in their policies and acting like they’re the reincarnation of Reagan because they didn’t punch Liz Cheney.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

I’ll admit I was there with them during the heart of the first Trump term when I was an undergrad, but the refusal of some parts of the left to recognize even a modicum of the success of the Biden administration really has made clear they’re not interested in anything but ideological purity…

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

I’ve got really bad news for you about the Dems who did win if this is the hill you want to die on.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

There’s a difference between being honest that prices won’t just magically go down to pre-COVID levels and hand waving grievances. Dems across the country ran on addressing economic pain, and whatever issues occurred with communicating that saying they didn’t care is just disingenuous.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

What Dem campaign handwaved grievances? Biden made support for unions and job growth, opposition to price gouging, and legitimate deflationary measures central to his campaign before he dropped out and Harris dialed it up while Senate and House campaigns near universally stood on economic populism.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Whatever credibility they may have had with their point immediately evaporated with that claim. Really did just say “[insert prominent Senate Dem here] lost by being too centrist” without any further thought.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 28/11/2024

It really is the easiest of tests. The moment somebody says woke non-ironically there’s not really much need for further discussion, it’s already reached its reasonable conclusion.

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Bethany @betcoll.bsky.social · 28/11/2024

I’m really bad at this whole social media thing but figured I should at least post so people don’t think I’m a bot. Mostly just here to browse, but feel free to follow if you want to see my occasional deranged video games or history takes.

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