Flaser Posts

Nothing so conspiracy-like. Unlike countries like Britain, the United States has never had a true class system in the sense of inherited social hierarchy. Instead, the myth of the American Dream propagated long beyond the days when it was actually possible. During the early settlement of the 13 colonies, it was indeed possible and not entirely uncommon for someone to come from abroad and greatly increase their standard of living. However, this was a result of two things: (1) a large, unclaimed land mass, and (2) decentralized governing structures. With the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the subsequent creation of the United States, government began the long process of increasing centralization and expansion of territorial interest. This pushed new immigrants further and further into the interior of the continent, and many of them did not have the financial resources to push inland. The American Dream is only possible through freely available property space and promotion of agriculture.

What is commonly known as the American Dream today - rags to riches stories of people who work hard and get ahead - is a complete myth. Hard work alone does not escalate social status (though it can elevate income level) and eventually even the hardest worker may hit a social ceiling, at which point further income growth becomes exponentially more difficult. This is because part of increasing wealth is having it in the first place in order to make the social contacts with banks, industry, etc. There are exceptions; every now and then you run across someone who has totally changed their social status level, but this is an anomaly rather than the rule.

However, because of the mythos concerning rags-to-riches stories in the United States, it is convenient to maintain the idea of the American Dream despite the fact that it is a rare anomaly because it gives the lower classes hope and reduces discontent. This is actually the reason why the only Western country to endure a Marxist-based revolution was Russia, and also why it failed so spectacularly (aside: Karl Marx was an absolutely brilliant guy who would have hated everything that Communism has become). In Russia, the elite structure did not have a mythos to contain popular unrest at social disparity, and it result in a revolution (that made things worse). Marx actually predicted the countries likely to switch to a communist system were Britain and Germany, and the entire premise of communism was based on the assumption that the country would be industrialized. Instead, however, Britain and Germany evolved the "middle class," a class structure which was entirely unheard of prior to the late 1850s.

The middle class in the United States is actually the result of that American Dream mythos we were talking about. Poor people do not live with the hope of entering the upper classes (the 2% of the population that controls 80% of the wealth in a Western nation), but rather they aspire to the middle class. Middle-class folks, on the other hand, aspire to a sub-divide frequently referred to as the Upper-middle class (typically this encompasses the income bracket of $300,000 to $5000000 gross family income). The class system in the United States is entrenched based on finances, rather than influence, but there is also a social component that is derived from it and creates an invisible ceiling on upward mobility.

The more the rich consolidate their wealth, the more legal influence is directed toward the maintenance of it. This also serves to produce limits on upward mobility and increase income disparity in all social classes except the upper class, as any legal tools that benefit the maintenance of wealth tend to be to the detriment of wealth accumulation (through no intent, it just tends to work out that way). So it's not a case of the rich sitting down together and scheming how to keep the masses poor, but rather an attempt to keep themselves rich. However, the American Dream myth continues to be propagated to reduce social upheaval. This last year is truly the closest we've come to revealing the truth wealth disparity in Western nations as the finances of the upper classes were exposed when financial institutions collapsed. You will, however, note how quickly the outrage over corporate bonuses has diminished and been swept out of the spotlight, and how no real revision to these practices has occurred.

Like I said, the strongest predictor of your income level is the income level of your parents. Class mobility is exceedingly rare, despite the fact that the American Dream myth is pervasive.

Incidentally, I should mention that, politically-speaking, my beliefs are virtually neutral on a left-right political scale, but skewed heavily towards libertarian principles. I'm a student of sociology, so I'm quite familiar with the writings of Mill, Marx, Durkheim, Foucault, Adam Smith, and others. Don't make the mistake of thinking that I'm some "Liberal" (as the term has become demeaning in the United States) hack that ideologically believes in nothing but socialism. Individual responsibility in society should be paramount, but the reality is that individuals are responsible for very little when it comes to their social status. Anecdotes of bankruptcy actually support that, as we are all conditioned to aspire outside our actual means.

The problem with self-proclaimed "conservatives" today is that the majority don't actually understand what conservativism versus liberalism is. Politically, I vote Conservative; ideologically, I associate with liberalism - as did virtually all of the founding fathers of the United States. People get all wrapped up in political ideology and then tack emotions to the idea of the Unites States as the great capitalist republic, but the truth is that the founding fathers weren't even capitalists in the modern sense of the word; Washington, Franklin, and Jefferson were fellows of the great liberal thinkers, and actually incorporated their ideals into the US Constitution. The zealous ideals of modern conservatism are actually what a lot of them stood squarely against.

I'm not saying that they are the same (...although, I kinda did), I'm just a person that sees "power" as a transcendental entity that corrupts anyone that comes into contact with it.

As I stated earlier elsewhere, my ideal society would be communist in nature; though I disagree with those who think that taking over the power is a means to that end.

To me, the whole idea of communist state theory is absurd; power strives to perpetuate itself, so being able to "dismantle the state from within" is only an illusion in my opinion. Though I may be biased here, I have yet to see a government that proves me wrong.

Most anime fans break the law, in some way, due to their fandom. It's been this way for years. Scanlations and fansubs are, technically, illegal. The only things that have changed over time has been the ease with which fans can get scanlations and fansubs, and the lengths companies will go to in order to get people to keep people from using fansubs and scanlations. (FYI, I'm talking about America here, though I suppose some points work the same for anime fans in other countries.)

It's not hard to be a casual anime fan that follows the law. If you want to watch the latest episodes of Naruto, you can do so on Crunchyroll, and if you want to read the latest chapters, the volumes in America have pretty much caught up with the Japanese volumes. Same with a lot of series, though not all of course. (Still no way to watch the latest episodes of Bleach, I believe.) So, if someone likes to watch anime and read manga, he/she can easily do so without breaking the law (as long as the person has money to spend, that is). However, there is a lot of stuff that isn't available in English, and probably never will be. Mahjong Legend Akagi is a prime example of this - it has a rather large English-speaking fanbase, but because the show focuses on the playing of mahjong, a game most Americans are unfamiliar with, it probably wouldn't sell well in America. If an American wants to watch Akagi legally, he is shit out of luck. The only thing he could do is learn Japanese and buy the Japanese DVDs, but isn't that a hell of a lot to ask for, just to watch a TV show?

To spell it out simply, is it possible to be a hardcore anime fan (meaning, you watch/read a lot and cannot be easily satisfied) and still follow the law to the letter? Isn't it expected that an anime fan will break the law if a show comes on in Japan that will never, ever be licensed in America?

To be honest, I don't really see a difference in either; both are oppressive state forms that strive to crush their ideological enemies with power.

The only difference is the political theory behind them; practice shows that both are about the same. Both try to suppress any kind of resistance within the population.

While I think the principles of Communism are sincere at their core, the fact that communist states are ruled by a single party corrupts these principles, turning them into a horrible abomination.

While I think that violence only spawns more violence, I don't think I could argue that point... that dilemma creates some moral conflicts for me though :\

can u make a List Of Loli Manga In Fakku???

i would appriciate it....

In the past, the soldiers who went to war, were the same soldiers who went to war to defend our rights. So to restrict
(not deny) the right of protesting, would be inept.

Now before I am raged at, I 100% do not condone their actions.

Now then, although they do have to protest, they are disturbing the peace. In the video it was stated that they were not disturbing the peace, because they were protesting in silence, however, that is not necessarily true. They are disrupting a ceremonial event at the expense of others sorrow and grief, and therefore should be classified as disturbing the peace.

Although regarding the situation at hand, I believe this is where utilitarianism comes in hand, as to maintain a balance between the rights of everyone, by producing the greatest good, for the greatest number of people.

Hey Flaser, you read that book?

I enjoyed it very much, the ending was kinda... weird though. The predictions were accurate, I think... but some of the technological stuff was a bit exaggerated.

I lean the seat way back, left hand at 6, right hand on the shifter. automatic is for sissies.

uninstall winrar first, then you should be able to use 7zip to extract files the same way (by accessing it in the right click menu or using the 7zip application from the start menu)

In America

the top 1% pay about 40% of tax revenue.
2-5% paid 20%
6-10 paid 11%.
11-25% paid 15%
26-50%11%

40+20+11+15+11=97% of all tax revenue to the United states government came from the top 50% of income earners while the bottom half of society pays nothing.

Middle and lower class people support socialism as it's not their money that is being taken at gunpoint (yes, gunpoint because if you don't cough up then the government sends it's attack dogs out to take it from you). What supporters don't realize is that if you take money away from the people who open businesses or heavily tax businesses then that money can't be used to create jobs or fund research.

I'll add more when I get back tomorrow evening.

Who gets all that liquid capital? Farmers like Stuart Woolf, a typical specimen of a Westlands welfare queen. The Woolf family operates the “biggest farming operation in Fresno County,” receiving $4.2 million annually in subsidized water — enough to supply a city of 150,000 people — and Stuart Woolf alone got roughly $8 million in federal crop subsidies over the past decade. Yet, he recently appeared on 60 Minutes, pretending to be a struggling farmer who’s dying of thirst because government regulations enacted by big city elitists to protect some worthless little fish are cutting into his water supplies. In 2008, he did what any small farmer would do to defend his livelihood: he threatened a congressional subcommittee that he’d move his family’s farm holdings to Portugal, Spain, Turkey and even China if the feds didn’t give him more taxpayer-subsidized water.

Nah i think it'll be ok for you to join.
I think the summary of the sessions has become a chore for Flaser and he's playing hooky.