Social media did to our parents what they thought video games were going to do to us.

And what our grandparents thought tv would do to them.

I thank my lucky stars to be in San Antonio where we have municipal power.

People complain about CPS (city public service) but we get a say in how the company is run and our bills are quite reasonable compared to the state average.

Bullshit.

Most of us don’t pay the market price hour to hour. Our electricity provider absorbs the risk of price spikes and raises our rates if the math stops working for them.

Griddy was a provider that sells at the market rate, which is usually below the general price you would pay, but you take the risk of price spikes during peak demand.

The algo assumes you must not be activated yet, and the most profitable way to do that is to make you a raging right winger.

Hillary was uniquely hated though. She was a solid first lady and an OK senator and pretty good secretary of State. And the discourse around her was brain boilingly toxic. Obama was the only Democrat that experienced something similar, maybe Pelosi. Biden, Clinton, and Gore did not get that level of visceral hatred.

Harris has been an active and progressive VP. She has been better and more effective than every VP going back to Dan Quayle.

Her only problems are charisma, and right wing propaganda. Same as Hillary.

That’s completely reasonable.

That’s tragic when it happens. I know that it will happen. Free lunches attract flies.

That doesn’t mean you can’t help people. It means you cut them off when it’s clear they are being hurt and not helped.

Then you have a hard conversation.

I’ve been that person. I lived with my grandparents for a year. Rent free, nearly no job. My aunt and uncle sat me down and explained that they appreciated my work helping to care for my grandparents, but if I stayed with them I would only be qualified for a career as a home health aid.

I talked to my extended family and moved out. Other arrangements were made for my grandparents. I found a job and started a new career. It’s certainly possible to enable bad behavior, but it’s also possible to help someone that needs it.

Don’t have to worry about your friend’s motives if you honestly want to help them.

Travel a little bit. Spend most of your time at home, either enjoying the simple pleasures, or with friends and family.

So what if they are taking advantage of you? You are rich! What’s the downside?

Sure, you have to be vigilant against con artists, grifters, and addicts. You have to draw a line somewhere. Maybe don’t fund their casino trips, drug trips, or Candy Crush high score.

Extravagant birthday gifts? College tuition for your niblings? Why not?

If someone is lying to you, you will find out eventually. I’d rather have friends now and let future me deal with the fallout from the grifters.

I’m happy they did the right thing. I lived under Clinton, Bush, Obama, and Trump. (Don’t really remember Bush Sr or Regan personally) And one team helps us, and the other fucks us over. I will remember this in the voting booth.

Then we got the leaks saying the Chinese Military is Fubared by corruption down to the warehouse workers.

Russia could at least limp into Donbas when their Kiev assault disintegrated. If China tries to invade Taiwan and their missiles don’t launch, it will be a stupidly expensive, deadly, embarrassment. Just ships and planes littering the ocean floor.

Xhi needs to be confident that his navy won’t get pulled into Taipei ports by tugboat like Russian Tanks in the cornfields.

They can’t do everything everywhere all at once.

Biden kind of adopted Trump’s economic policy. Except for tax policy

But in every other way, he is vastly Superior.

France has a powerful executive. More powerful than even the US president, inside their own system.

I have heard the French presidency described as an “elected dictator.”

Macron wants people to see what the far right has to offer and hopefully realize they don’t like it before the presidency goes up for grabs.

France made childcare and education free and relatively high quality and look at that! They have just under replacement level fertility!

Some people do want children. Not everyone, but lots of people do. It’s true that wealth depresses fertility, but you can have a sustainable society if you give people financial security.

I’m willing to believe there are some cultural issues at play, not just the economics, but that is for demographers to tease out.

The American congressional representatives have an average of 2 children. Replacement rate. Get our standard of living up to that and you will see fertility go up.

In what country?

I’m talking about raising wages by 40-70% in the US.

Pipe dream, but if it happened the fertility rate would increase.

I’m a fan of sortition over ballot, but what is the purpose of this? To have fun?

Raise the price of labor to the point that a working family can afford to have children at the standard they consider socially acceptable.

That would devalue investment accounts though, so it won’t happen until there is suffering on a scale not seen outside of major wars.