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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 8h

(And seriously, hope it turns up - post a picture if it does!)

ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 8h

I'm sure it wouldn't be the same, but it's still nice knowing there are more of that edition out there. And I assume no reason to think it won't turn up. And sincerely, that symmetry really is poetic regardless. Something meaningful to your life, and at worst it finished as it started.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 10h

(And sorry you lost one of them... I personally melt down over things like that, the symmetry is such a poetic way to think of it)

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 10h

It's got such a strong personality, I suspect I'd feel the same if I'd grown up with it. Like it's not just some picture thrown on the cover, it's this whole surreal magical world.

Mind you I didn't grow up with it so I don't exactly feel the same, but it's still neat, and you can feel the decades.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 11h

Those are so neat. I don't even mind the art on the 90s Scholastic ones I grew up with, but those feel like historic artifacts.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 15h

Or to put it another way, people who think social media clout is real. He didn't attack Newsom, he attacked them!

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 15h

The Maine race will be over before you know it. It only FEELS like it goes on forever, because they'll immediately move on to the next incoherent proxy fight and the next parasocial fandom candidate.

ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 17h

They know how mentally weak Trump is. Most Republicans they can push back against and everything is fine, but they know Trump is unwell and will hurt himself when pushed. They're managing a mad king because their only loyalty is to the conservative legal regime.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 18h

Rationally he should love a job like that, but honestly he wouldn't. Component people make him feel inadequate, restrictions make him feel week, and he would 100% make that our problem.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 1d

Trump-world levels of mediocrity seeking validation through Trump-world levels of cultural grievance.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 1d

Doing the right thing feels bad, it denies them their thrill and estranges them from social support, so they rationalize not doing it. It's the basic boring cause of most social evil, and no amount of obsession with capitalism or colonialism has allowed them to recognize it in themselves.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 1d

He's been in office 8 months. If they're saying he always had the power to stop it, that's unimaginably damning, why would you praise him for that?

If he didn't always have that power, then you're back to "we don't control Netanyahu", which is the argument they rejected under Biden.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 1d

If a food has to be locally invented for a place to claim it culturally, you would have to wipe out most European cuisine as well. Because of our size and population realistically we "invent" more cuisine than normal, but by far most of it is adopted.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 1d

Pizza was invented in Naples, developed deep cultural roots in America, and then was pushed into the rest of Italy largely by American cultural pressure. Food is like that! It's a deeply important part of culture, but it doesn't support these ethnic essentialist narratives.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

I get wanting to reject the glossy feel-good myth of American history, but take it too far and you end up skipping over some pretty basic historical facts. Some of the feel-good stuff is true!

ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

Trump throwing a temper tantrum at his own cabinet, technically fulfilling your wish for someone who would fight Nazis

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

I hate treating criticism of Israel as antisemitism. All she said was that the Israeli people (some of them... not the Arabs obviously... you know the ones she means) lack basic humanity and so can only steal culture from others. Obviously that's just policy criticism.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

I'll take things a dumb college libertarian would say for $1000, Alex

Answer: when they say something especially stupid, dumb college libertarians like to claim persecution from these Orwellian mental enforcers

ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

People overestimate very real media corruption, and underestimate how much they're just a bunch of baby brained morons capable of only the simplest narratives. And bless their hearts, "$50,000 in a paper bag" is a very simple narrative.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

The presidency is so important that it's worth a massive campaign to move small margins, but that's all a campaign can do. Realistically 1, maybe 2 points. A bit more for congress or governor, even more in local races, but never as much as people want to believe. It's always mostly fixed.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

For what it's worth, I love hopeful ambiguity. I'm very good at killing it I suppose, but I love it while I have it. It's just not always on offer. Anyway, thanks for being nice about my randomly jumping in on a post that hit me at a weird time.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

Maybe should note I was more responding to the post than the story... though I did figure I should read it before replying to a thread, and though it's not my genre it was moving and relatable, and there's a sharp pain knowing how that kind of sabotage will play out for her

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

Especially since you've probably muddled through layers of pain to reach that point. And then it's a kind of relief.

Anyway sorry for randomly jumping in. I've been going through some pretty intense bouts of "clarity", and so it kind of struck me in the moment.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

Always worth remembering, those gutter people are obsessed with him because they used to be his fans. He was convinced Democrats would win every election if they moved left, he was completely unhinged towards his critics (shocker), and they loved him for it.

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ranthacc.bsky.social @ranthacc.bsky.social · 2d

Why would they need humility? They didn't make a mistake. Fetterman has changed completely from the candidate they voted for, who was definitely a real person and not the parasocial creation of rose twitter.

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