25 December 2020 #MAGAanalysis Christmas Edition

The Great Reawakening - A Renewed Dream Of America

@GenFlynn tells me the JOY of the MAGA Movement has returned. Our Xmas gift is A Renewed Dream For America. In case you didn't know, it's his birthday too, he's a Christmas baby!

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Three years ago this week, I beat up a man who groped me in a club. It was fucking glorious. Celebrate that anniversary with me!
https://t.co/SSFfVCYvA0 #IBeatMyAssaulter

I’ve lost count of the # times I’ve been sexually assaulted and I know that my reactions have spanned a spectrum, all of them valid. That night it was: Are you fucking kidding me? And my body went into autodrive; it knew exactly what to do.
Tell me your #IBeatMyAssaulter stories

And sign up to FEMINIST GIANT.

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I know that we can’t always fight back. My priority is to survive. I never want what I have shared here to make anyone feel guilty for not beating up her assaulter.

I also know that we are not socialized to fight back. We are not taught to fight back. #IBeatMyAssaulter

Men are not socialized to expect us to fight back. I think of that when I hear of the spike in intimate partner terrorism during the pandemic. I wonder why those men never fear that those women could poison their food or simply kill them in their sleep for being abusive fucks.

Am prompted to do this 🧵 following @BEERG sharing of Gove 19 April’16 speech, @kevinhorourke observation on interests & ideas & @CER_Grant observation that historians will ponder the weakness of economic interests in Brexit negs at @InstituteGC yesterday @BrigidLaffan

1. Seems to me that @BorisJohnson has delivered on the @michaelgove 2016 speech in one important sense-not the sunny uplands of Brexit but the working out of what Brexit was to this clique who drove the Leave campaign @BrigidLaffan

2. That was a total rejection of the #EU model of internationalisation, its governance regimes, institutions, regulatory frameworks, its ideals & the political, economic & legal order it represents. @BrigidLaffan

3. This was evident in tone of Brexit negs, for example @DavidGHFrost dismissal of EU as ‘your organisation’ @MichelBarnier & refusal to recognise nature of EU re. Diplomatic states. Treating it an as IO despite the fact that there were U.K. MEPs in @Europarl_EN @BrigidLaffan

4. Evident also in refusal of a chapter on foreign & security policy & the preference for bilateral relations particularly the key capitals post Brexit. @BrigidLaffan

The pandemic has afforded all of us a refresher course on the five stages of grief, a theoretical and controversial framework for describing how people cope with tragedy: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.

https://t.co/nqPmjCvyab

1/

A far slower-moving unfolding of these stages can be seen in the reactions of the super-wealthy to the breakdown in neoliberal orthodoxy, the tale that says that inequality results from meritocracy, and makes us all better

Denial came out in the "rationalist" view: the world is better off than ever - richer, less violent, healthier, and any discontent you feel with your plummeting fortunes and the contracting possibilities for your kids is just your tunnel vision. Lack of perspective.

3/

But the Great Financial Crisis and Occupy triggered the anger of the elites: violent suppression of protests, the "Doom Boom" in new luxury bunkers, Howard Schultz's insistence that "billionaire" is a slur (he says we should call him a "person of wealth").

4/

The pandemic - and the "K-shaped recovery"- has revealed the existential threat inequality poses for our species, between price-gouging, fraud, profiteering, flouting health directives, and coercing the poor and vulnerable into risking their lives to keep the economy afloat.

5/

In "The Feeling of Power" (Asimov, 1958), ubiquitous computation causes humanity to forget the fundamentals of math, including how to count. A technician rediscovers it by studying computer schematics, and the tech spreads to the military. This is an allegory for Pickup Artistry

The common misconception is that Pickup Artistry (hereafter, PUA) is about "tricking" women into bed with you. In fact it has nothing to do with this, because you can't trick a woman into bed any more than you can trick a cat into eating a treat. The cat is complicit

At the turn of the century, millennial men were in a similar situation to the erstwhile mathematicians in Asimov's story; in a future of ubiquitous sex, we forgot how to seduce women, because we forgot the fundamentals of being a man

Notice how just saying this, "how to be a man" creates tension. Being a man is not the same as merely being male. When I stand up and tell you this, it's audacious, because if you don't match my definition, that implies your manhood is deficient

When a man says, "I am a man" he is making a declaration to the world, and I see today how often men are embarrassed to describe themselves this way. Instead they say "I'm a guy," or "I'm a dude." This is how slaves talk, when they doubt their own manhood

@danielashby @AdamWJT @Greens4HS2 @TheGreenParty @GarethDennis @XRebellionUK @Hs2RebelRebel @HS2ltd I'll bite. Let's try to keep it factual. There's a reasonable basis to some aspects of this question, that it might be possible to agree on. Then there are other, more variable, elements which depend on external factors such as transport and energy policy. /1

@AdamWJT @Greens4HS2 @TheGreenParty @GarethDennis @XRebellionUK @Hs2RebelRebel @HS2ltd First up, we know reasonably well how much energy it takes to propel a high-speed train along the HS2 route. We can translate that into effective CO2 generated by making some assumptions about how green the electricity grid is. /2

@AdamWJT @Greens4HS2 @TheGreenParty @GarethDennis @XRebellionUK @Hs2RebelRebel @HS2ltd Secondly, we have a reasonable grasp of how much CO2 is going to be generated by building HS2 - there are standard methods of working this out, based on the amount of steel, concrete, earthmoving, machine-fuelling etc required. /3

@AdamWJT @Greens4HS2 @TheGreenParty @GarethDennis @XRebellionUK @Hs2RebelRebel @HS2ltd Thirdly, we can estimate how much CO2 is generated by cutting down trees, and how much is captured by planting new trees. We can also estimate how much CO2 is needed to keep the railway running and generated by maintaining the track /4

@AdamWJT @Greens4HS2 @TheGreenParty @GarethDennis @XRebellionUK @Hs2RebelRebel @HS2ltd We know how much CO2 is saved by moving goods by freight train on the lines freed up by moving the express trains on to HS2, rather than by truck. /5

Thread: This is a long thread about my wife's grand-father: Vinayak Apte.
Born, brought up & lived in Pune. Aptewada, Sadashiv Peth. Qualified as an engineer in 1920s or so. Married around same time.
I promise you this is worth reading, so settle down with your cup of tea....1/n

Around 1921, young Vinayak writes to Mahatma Gandhi expressing his desire to join Bapu & work for freedom struggle.
Bapu writes back saying sending money for the ticket (₹5) & get your backside up here (not exactly these words, but you know what I mean!).
Bapu adds a PS...2/n

"If you change your mind, please return the ₹5 by money order to Sabarmati Ashram" Typical Bapu, you might say! Careful with money.
Vinayak quits his job & decides to go to Sabarmati. Entire extended Apte clan is horrified. Joining that fakir? Giving up your job? Ostracised.

Vinayak goes to Sabarmati with young wife & 2-3 yr old daughter. Wifey not impressed at all, bcoz on arriving there they are assigned to separate living quarters (men & women), celibacy & every1 (incl her, a Brahmin woman) was expected to clean toilets! Horror of horrors..3/n

Wife never forgave Vinayak & Bapu. She had married a engineer & was looking forward to a prosperous life. Life on other hand, was full of austerity. Everyone had to work & was paid a pittance. 5 am wake up.Cook. Clean. Khadi sarees (which btw weigh a ton!) & evening prayers...4/n

Wages, profits, and rents have “natural rates” regulated by the general conditions of the society in which they exist. (I.vii.1) #WealthOfTweets #SmithTweets

When the price of any commodity = price of rent + profit + labor + price of getting it to market, the commodity is sold at its “natural price.” (I.vii.4–5) #WealthOfTweets #SmithTweets

And that all means the commodity has been sold for what it is worth—what it really costs. (I.vii.5) #WealthOfTweets #SmithTweets

The price for which a commodity is sold ought to include a seller’s profit, because that’s how sellers pay themselves, just like they pay the wages of the laborers who work for them, who get their goods to market, etc. (I.vii.5) #WealthOfTweets #SmithTweet

Nerds among you may recognize the concept of economic profit here: it matters to the owners of stock whether they could have done better by using their stock elsewhere, not just whether they covered their costs. (I.vii.5) #WealthOfTweets #SmithTweets #WeLoveNerds

I'm a human being in the amazing diversity of our humanity, who just happens to be black, British, with Nigerian heritage and gay.
I'm mainly defined by my humanity with every other distinguishing factor a facet of my person and personality. I need to co-exist with all people. /1

Many of the rights, privileges, and freedoms I enjoy today have been hard fought for over long periods of time from when things were chimerical and unacceptable to a situation where they are accepted, popular and encoded in policies and laws. It's a process. /2

We have causes we each espouse and much as we would want everyone to follow and subscribe to our causes, we are rarely ever equally persuaded in the same causes, yet, we need a broader group of allies to make advancements in society. Activism needs temperance and conciliation. /3

Before my time, there was activism for human rights, against slavery, for democracy, to give the poor a say, to give women the vote and representation, for children and so on. I was actively involved in gay activism in the UK, others globally for AIDS research. /4

All these causes drew from the greater and diverse pool of our humanity to make progress, in the process people who did not originally believe in the causes needed persuasion and in it did not happen overnight. We cannot win causes with hothead activism alone. /5

@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur Interesting initial thread from Tom. And an equally interesting response from yourself. But I'm afraid I think you just don't get the point of Tom's thread or understand Nicola's approach. Let me explain.

What follows is a thread.

@ThomasCArthur 1. Firstly, you should know I'm a Yoon who voted No in 2014. I've followed the split in the Yes side with great interest. It may help to see this from a Yoons perspective.

*I hate the term Yoon, but I'll use it here for ease.

@ThomasCArthur 2. I'll start by telling you, imo, what the biggest threat to the Union is; Brexit. Many of us moderates and undecided were turned off Indy by the blood & soil stuff was so prevalent on the run upto 2014.

@ThomasCArthur 3. The blood and soil stuff returned with vengeance during the Brexit campaign and many of us who were turned off by Indy because of this started to question Britishness.

@ThomasCArthur 4. The shambolic exit and bumbling Boris government has compounded this and many of us moderates and pragmatic have started to become open to the idea of Indy.

Thread

"Main jab mar jaun to meri alag se pehchan likh dena,mere lahu se meri peshani pr Hindustan likh dena(After I die,write my identity differently,with blood,write India on my forehead)”- msg on wall in Brijpuri. It's faded.

A year on,we revisit where #DelhiRiots broke out.

Feb 2020 Vs Feb 2021
While the hustle and bustle of the area has returned in severely hit Shiv Vihar, some cracks in the walls, a black smoke patch on the door, a few burnt utensils and a pile of photographs remind the victims of the days and nights they lived in “terror”.

Khushnaz’s daughter Alfiza was six days old on February 25 when the riots broke out near her house. She recalled pressing her palm against the infant’s mouth to prevent her voice from being heard as she cried.

Shawra Begum’s single-storey residence near Medina Masjid has still not been repaired. Looking at the broken and burnt taps of her washroom, Shawra said, “That time reminds me of death.”

Sitting inside his house near Auliya Masjid, Nizamuddin had tears in his eyes thinking about the time. Over 5,000 men were walking and running amok on the streets destroying everything and everyone, he said.

Neuland Laboratories concall was today at 5:00 PM

@unseenvalue @darshanvmehta1 @drprashantmish6 @punitbansal14 @suru27 @rdkriplani

Hope customer book of Neuland to remain as booked and full just like today's conference call😂

Here are the Key takeaways from the earning call👇

Business Updates:
• Price growth drivers were Levetiracetam and Mirtazapine.
• Commercialization of Unit 3 has begun and 2 API have been shipped in.
• Neuland has filed Donepezil based with USDFA.

Q from @unseenvalue sir: Growth opportunity in Peptide (esp. on generic)

• Involved in many molecule discovery in generic side
• Co. has seen value on generic capacity, GDS being continuous play for the company
• Co. may have partnership for generic side of business as well.

NCE Buinssess:

• Portfolio of PMS project has mix of both orphan and convectional drugs.
• Few molecules of NCE has started generating revenue and benefits of those molecule will be discovered in future.

CMS Buinsess:
• Most of the molecules in pipeline has been increased and some are even in commercialization.
• New business momentum continues to remain strong, and lot of business are attracted through referral business.
• More focus remains on the quality of the molecules.

THREAD:
Ahmed Hassan and Khairi Saadallah share some interesting and troubling characteristics. Both are now serving huge prison sentences for Islamist terrorism - Hassan for the Parsons Green Tube bomb in 2017, Saadallah for the Reading attack last year.

Both Saadallah and Hassan entered the country from conflict zones as asylum seekers. Both claimed/were revealed to have been affiliated with Islamist militias & were combat seasoned. Both had extensive contact with counter terror Police/Prevent until days before their offences.

In both cases other professionals involved with the perpetrators or NGOs picked up on an accelerating descent into radicalised behaviour and alerted professional authorities. These concerns were either not taken seriously or not acted on.

I'm not going to comment on government policy for asylum seekers but it is well evidenced that such people, particularly if young or unaccompanied seem much more likely to suffer from PTSD and other psychological problems. There is a relationship between this & violent extremism.

So where we have large numbers of people escaping violence in other countries to UK/already settled and psychologically damaged/culturally disabled by their experience and socialisation we also have a clearly demonstrated *potential* security risk.

The errant Christian participation in the Capitol insurrection has its roots in the apocalyptic craziness espoused by the likes of the late Hal Lindsey and Tim Lahaye. Their 'end of the world' mania misled many, laying the foundation for conspiracy theories...

... and the horrid view of the civil government so many trapped in the maze of this nonsense espouse. In an odd-couple marriage, Christian post-millennialism was then married this movement to a 'save America', all in the name of a mythical 'lost' Christian America and hopes for a

... future Christianized state, a theocracy in the Christian sense. Opposition to Christian positions on moral issues was equated w/ opposition to God. How? Paul Weyrich and the Reagan-era GOP saw this as an opening to win the Evangelical vote for themselves & beat Carter in 1980

EVs had voted for Carter in large numbers in 1976, Carter identifying with them as a Baptist and Sunday School teacher, a humble, gracious, country boy. The GOP wrangled that support to itself by taking up the fearful millennialism of the EVs and making the Democrats...

... an embodiment of the Beast of Revelation. American could be a Christian Republic, saved from evil - from the Democrats in particular - and, later, from the swamp, the deep state, or whatever label worked best. Because a majority of people would never accept these wild views

one thing in Swordfish that bothered me was the scene where Jackman is forced at gunpoint to let a woman give him oral sex while he tries to hack into the defense department. 1

the oral sex is presented as distracting; it's a kind of sexy joke. but it's actually rape, is the thing. nonconsensual sex at gunpoint is rape.

which, the film doesn't realize at all because guys are supposed to always be willing to get oral sex from a sexy woman. even if he keeps saying no. even if he has to be forced into it at gunpoint.

there are plenty of really dicey things about the film (you're supposed to cheer at the end because the bad guy is using his billions to kill POC who you're told are terrorists.)

I feel like there's at least some limited awareness that there is some moral ambiguity in a lot of those instances. but there's absolutely no sense that Jackman has been raped or might be traumatized by being raped.