Birb_at_Arms
@birblib.bsky.social
Skeets about history, politics, martial arts, birbs and post-Soviet space. He/Him
Are you sure you live in New York?
November 12, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Are you sure you live in New York?
Ooh any "legitimate" poll
Getting your excuse ready, I see.
Getting your excuse ready, I see.
November 12, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Ooh any "legitimate" poll
Getting your excuse ready, I see.
Getting your excuse ready, I see.
Why don't you start by specifying what kind of data you would accept?
November 12, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Why don't you start by specifying what kind of data you would accept?
Do you have amnesia? We just explained that being a good legislator was related to one's ability to affect the legislation coming out of congress, not to individually sponsor bills.
November 12, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Do you have amnesia? We just explained that being a good legislator was related to one's ability to affect the legislation coming out of congress, not to individually sponsor bills.
Yeah, so the important election there was the primary, where AOC beat Joseph Crowley to become the Democratic Party nominee. Given Crowley's senior position in the party, this was a notable achievement.
November 12, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Yeah, so the important election there was the primary, where AOC beat Joseph Crowley to become the Democratic Party nominee. Given Crowley's senior position in the party, this was a notable achievement.
We were talking about whether or not she was a good legislator. Ignoring whether your claim is right or wrong (it's probably wrong), it seems like a massive pivot.
November 12, 2025 at 2:54 PM
We were talking about whether or not she was a good legislator. Ignoring whether your claim is right or wrong (it's probably wrong), it seems like a massive pivot.
What does that have to do with influencing congressional legislation?
November 12, 2025 at 2:49 PM
What does that have to do with influencing congressional legislation?
Yes, and he's saying she is a good legislator because she is good at exercising influence over congressional legislation.
November 12, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Yes, and he's saying she is a good legislator because she is good at exercising influence over congressional legislation.
You are conflating "legislating" with "writing/sponsoring legislation" which are not the same thing.
November 12, 2025 at 2:36 PM
You are conflating "legislating" with "writing/sponsoring legislation" which are not the same thing.
That's your assumption, which is wrong.
November 12, 2025 at 2:26 PM
That's your assumption, which is wrong.
The issue here is that you're making some assumptions about what it means to be a "good legislator" that are not shared by your interlocuters.
November 12, 2025 at 2:24 PM
The issue here is that you're making some assumptions about what it means to be a "good legislator" that are not shared by your interlocuters.
"Hey babe, if you've got the money I'll do whatever you want!"
"Great! Now, it's important for my political career that I be credibly accused of rape. So I need you to pose for some pictures looking a bit roughed up and then make an anonymous complaint."
"Man, why don't I get normal Johns anymore"
"Great! Now, it's important for my political career that I be credibly accused of rape. So I need you to pose for some pictures looking a bit roughed up and then make an anonymous complaint."
"Man, why don't I get normal Johns anymore"
November 12, 2025 at 2:57 AM
"Hey babe, if you've got the money I'll do whatever you want!"
"Great! Now, it's important for my political career that I be credibly accused of rape. So I need you to pose for some pictures looking a bit roughed up and then make an anonymous complaint."
"Man, why don't I get normal Johns anymore"
"Great! Now, it's important for my political career that I be credibly accused of rape. So I need you to pose for some pictures looking a bit roughed up and then make an anonymous complaint."
"Man, why don't I get normal Johns anymore"
I guess it requires you to have that little voice in your head that says "wait a minute, I haven't thought about this topic since 2017. Am I sure I got this detail right?"
November 11, 2025 at 8:46 PM
I guess it requires you to have that little voice in your head that says "wait a minute, I haven't thought about this topic since 2017. Am I sure I got this detail right?"
Wild that he never picked up the little trick of skimming the wikipedia article before hitting "send" to pretend he knows what he's talking about lol
November 11, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Wild that he never picked up the little trick of skimming the wikipedia article before hitting "send" to pretend he knows what he's talking about lol
There's probably a school near you if that's something you want to do! www.hemaalliance.com/club-finders
Find a Club — HEMAA
A Hema Alliance provided service, our club finder will help you find a group of like minded individuals near you, rediscovering the arts together.
www.hemaalliance.com
November 11, 2025 at 7:41 PM
There's probably a school near you if that's something you want to do! www.hemaalliance.com/club-finders
And look, as someone whose only current job is teaching people to fight with sticks and swords, someone like Musk agreeing to spar full contact with rattan, fencing masks and lacrosse gloves would be like Christmas. If someone recorded me KO-ing that mptherfucker, I could die happy. Won't happen tho
November 11, 2025 at 4:47 AM
And look, as someone whose only current job is teaching people to fight with sticks and swords, someone like Musk agreeing to spar full contact with rattan, fencing masks and lacrosse gloves would be like Christmas. If someone recorded me KO-ing that mptherfucker, I could die happy. Won't happen tho
Because as soon as the merchant class was allowed to LARP as the warrior class, they could never resist doing so.
And what was left of the warrior class mostly let them, because the men of merchant class were the ones whose cheques cleared.
And what was left of the warrior class mostly let them, because the men of merchant class were the ones whose cheques cleared.
November 11, 2025 at 4:32 AM
Because as soon as the merchant class was allowed to LARP as the warrior class, they could never resist doing so.
And what was left of the warrior class mostly let them, because the men of merchant class were the ones whose cheques cleared.
And what was left of the warrior class mostly let them, because the men of merchant class were the ones whose cheques cleared.
Now now, Elon is something of an authority on ships full of maidenless individuals...
November 11, 2025 at 4:29 AM
Now now, Elon is something of an authority on ships full of maidenless individuals...
Yeah, it's wild how good the sequel trilogy makes the prequels look tbh
November 11, 2025 at 3:25 AM
Yeah, it's wild how good the sequel trilogy makes the prequels look tbh
One imagines that Donald Trump's experience of the real estate market involved a lot of yelling at lawyers and accountants and not a lot of reading legal texts.
November 11, 2025 at 1:35 AM
One imagines that Donald Trump's experience of the real estate market involved a lot of yelling at lawyers and accountants and not a lot of reading legal texts.
In the US, a political party is a largely toothless civil society organization that can do almost nothing to enforce a party line or discipline elected members.
This was intended to offset the problems inherent to a two-party system, but the results have not been great. jwmason.org/slackwire/po...
This was intended to offset the problems inherent to a two-party system, but the results have not been great. jwmason.org/slackwire/po...
Political Parties Are Illegal in the United States – J. W. Mason
jwmason.org
November 11, 2025 at 1:19 AM
In the US, a political party is a largely toothless civil society organization that can do almost nothing to enforce a party line or discipline elected members.
This was intended to offset the problems inherent to a two-party system, but the results have not been great. jwmason.org/slackwire/po...
This was intended to offset the problems inherent to a two-party system, but the results have not been great. jwmason.org/slackwire/po...
Sure, but those are separate works not relevant to an assessment of the prequel trilogy
November 10, 2025 at 11:11 PM
Sure, but those are separate works not relevant to an assessment of the prequel trilogy
This is also a fair criticism of some of the characters and ideas in the original trilogy (e.g. Boba Fett), but the prequels and *especially* the sequels take the "cool idea/bad guy that goes nowhere" problem and fucking run with it.
November 10, 2025 at 10:57 PM
This is also a fair criticism of some of the characters and ideas in the original trilogy (e.g. Boba Fett), but the prequels and *especially* the sequels take the "cool idea/bad guy that goes nowhere" problem and fucking run with it.
Darth Maul is cool, then they kill him and that's pretty much it. In the next movie, Palpatine has another cool catspaw who gets killed and never heard from again. In the third movie, there's General grievous, who... wait a minute.
November 10, 2025 at 10:57 PM
Darth Maul is cool, then they kill him and that's pretty much it. In the next movie, Palpatine has another cool catspaw who gets killed and never heard from again. In the third movie, there's General grievous, who... wait a minute.
The idea of a trade dispute kicking off political drama in the Republic is a genuinely good one, actually! The only problem is the rest of the movie.
November 10, 2025 at 7:01 PM
The idea of a trade dispute kicking off political drama in the Republic is a genuinely good one, actually! The only problem is the rest of the movie.