When you are dead, you do not know it.
It is only hard for everyone else.
It is the same when you are stupid.
I apologize for the delay. Compiling the the Derponomicon was an excruciating task, and having to re-read is even more painful.
In this installment, I asked the prog to respond to 2 videos. The first was an argument against the income tax called “I’m allowed to rob you.” The speaker asks why a fancy piece of paper signed by a bunch of people makes it OK to rob someone.
The prog wrote:
“Ok, here it is; The problem (one of many) with Larkins argument is he is not an elected official in any position of leadership or authority. So his example is basically simplified nonsense. If he said he was going to come into your house and rob you, but then in return maintain your house, mow your lawn, fix the stairs and sidewalk and landscaping around your house, protect your house from foreign invaders and fire, and ensure that you receive electricity, food, and water through infrastructure that allows it’s easy transfer, he might have a point. You see for the taxes we pay aren’t just going to a bunch of “lazy freeloaders” who do nothing. A fraction. Of a percentage of our federal taxes go to the poor. A much larger percentage of our federal taxes goes to subsidize the very privatized industries that bring us things like food, fuel, electricity, and water…but we still have to PAY THEM out of our own pockets for the services they provide. Giving needy, desperate, destitute, and even lazy people that don’t want to work, the means to survive is essentially society’s payment to them to keep them from having to resort to crime and violence to feed their families. I am not sure who said it, but there is a quote out there that says “Taxes are the price we pay for civilization.” Every single day, no matter who you are, are benefitting from.the collective taxation of US citizens. Whether you walk on a sidewalk, turn on a light, use the internet, eat a candy bar, drive in a car, use a computer, use indoor plumbing, etc. All of these things have been facilitated by the government and would not exist in their current for if not for the organization and incentives the government provides. Perhaps instead of worrying about the crumbs the poor are tossed like so many pigeons behind a bakery dumpster, perhaps we should worry about the guys in business suits repossesing everything in the bakery and foreclosing on the property.”
The next video is a dialog between a human and an alien. The alien asks about government and its nature. It becomes clear that the essence of government is violence, which does not sit will with the human interlocutor.
For me, the best part is when the alien says: so you let politicians steal, enslave, and kill, because you’re afraid someone else might?
The prog wrote:
“As far as the British alien video…..I don’t even know where to begin on this one. It doesn’t really seem to be making a case for anything other than some of the laws we have are silly or superfluous. But I don’t think anyone would disagree that speeding laws, or traffic laws, or environmental laws, or drug laws, or gun laws, or many of the other laws we have are unnecessary. I find the ultimate irony is that many anti-government types take all their laws, like the one that tells them at all costs they must hate the gays, for instance, from a thousands of years old book of archaic and ridiculous laws written by men that thought the earth was flat. Truth of the matter is, if you want to live in a civilized society, there will be laws, and a system of government in place. It can’t just be the wild west all time. Look at these war torn lawless societies in Africa, even with all the rapes, child soldiers, and limb removal…it’s really hard to find anyone with any sort of quality of life. It’s easy to bitch about Mom and Dad when they are the only thing keeping warm and dry and fed. I find that anti-government sentiment is tantamount to a petulant 16 year old bitching about how much their parents suck, but without them, they’d be homeless, starving, sex slaves.”
When it comes to thinking, some people stop at nothing.
“If you had twice as much intelligence, you’d be a wit.”
If you had another brain you’d be lonesome.
Really? I get disagreeing with what the British Aliens say, but after watching the video it’s obviously making a very simple, straightforward argument that government is violence, and that this is wrong. Furthermore, the former point is widely regarded as the defining feature of what states are.
If at the very least, the prog absorbs these arguments and fails to ask himself questions like “Is this new ‘bike path tax’ so important that I think people should be kidnapped, maimed and/or killed for failing to pay for it?”, well at that point you can conclude this person’s moral philosophy is…..lacking.
You can’t expect people to have actually read Weber or the philosophical underpinnings of what they actually believe nowadays, they’re so consumed by the propaganda I’ve actually had someone throw a temper tantrum about how they don’t care what “an anarchist like this Weber guy thinks!”
Jesus right off the bat it’s an appeal to authority and ROADZ. The public schools have done their job.
Note to mods: Looks like one of us transposed the p with the r in Derponomicon. Currently reads Depronomicon.
And now, some impressive trolling: Saudi reggae parody, No Woman No Drive
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZMbTFNp4wI
“Deprnominon 8: The Fate of the Derpurious”
Unless the misspelling is intentional? Is it even possible to misspell a nonsense word?
Sorry- Stage 5 Ass Burgers strikes again
I wonder how many of the downvotes on that video are from people who don’t get it’s a parody and how many are from people who think it’s racist and islamaphobic.
I love how his initial sentence implies only democratic governments are “legitimate” and then he goes on to list a bunch of services that can be done by any type of government and that totalitarian governments assume more responsibility to do (albeit poorly). I wonder if he thinks the DPRK has a right to collect taxes, or if the North Koreans are better off with a powerful government that takes responsibilities for virtually all services in society. Or is that just another example of State Capitalism?
I would also like to point out that a corporation can’t put a gun to your head and force an exchange, I wonder how these people would feel if bill gates put a gun to their head and forced them to buy windows 10?
Ah, the old “they can’t help themselves” chestnut.
“You see, the poor would steal to support themselves if not for government, so we steal instead and give it to them. That way they can’t get shot!”
*Standard Glibertarian Paradox Interactive Games Advertising Plug Incoming*
Europa Universalis 4 and Hearts of Iron 4 along with most of their DLC is anywhere from 50%-75% off on Steam today. So if you’re a high functioning autistic into Age of Discovery or Second World War history check it out.
Don’t you have a book to shill or something?
Work in progress.
Never played Europa but have logged hundreds of hours on Crusader Kings 2 and Hearts of Iron series.
Which do you like best?
I’ve got way more hours in EU than HOI simply because it’s been out longer, but I generally enjoy the time period more and find the game is more balanced that HOI. EU games have a longer burn to them (what with almost 400 years of time) where its a lot of smaller wars mixed in with some bigger ones, usually ending with massive ones near the end when you’re picking on major powers, while HOI is more very rare small conflicts and 1-3 massive conflicts each game due to the alliance system. The only downside is that some of the DLC has basically become mandatory over time due to how the game plays, you at least need Art of War and Common Sense because they have key mechanics in them that the game suffers without.
HOI has some fun national management and supply mechanics, and doesn’t really need its DLC yet, at least for major powers. Also, it’s mod scene is fantastic, Kaiserreich alone is practically a standalone game and Road to ’56 is basically an expansion pack.
They’re both pretty good, HOI just suffers from a lack of polish right now. Whichever period you’re more interested in is probably a safe bet.
Derp, has this fellow seen the George Ought to Help video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGMQZEIXBMs
Let George do it.
RIP Bob Bailey.
That 2nd video with the alien is one of the most awesome things I’ve seen in a long time.
Since we’re linking to libertarian philosophical videos, I found this one recently that really nails the issue well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbNFJK1ZpVg&t
I always liked this one.
My own personal prog’s response was “but that would be anarchy!”
“‘ maintain your house, mow your lawn, fix the stairs and sidewalk and landscaping around your house, protect your house from foreign invaders and fire””
– all things people mostly do better themselves, or are better judges of how much $/time to adequately address these issue
” receive electricity, food, and water through infrastructure that allows it’s easy transfer”
– all things better done by flexible agencies directly serving their voluntary customers – not a faceless expropriating agency
many progs i know routinely assert that our society is “heavily socialized already” and point to things like utilities or roads and say these are *proof* that we need strong federal powers and high spending.
when i point out that most utilities are actually private, that they built their infrastructure with local bond-issues (not federal handouts), and that the same basic idea applies to roads (aside from interstate highways) and schools (paid for by local property tax)… and that the federal govt is literally not involved in *any* stage of these systems other than to impose a top-down role as often-unneeded regulator… the only reply i ever get is a blank stare, and pause, then something along the lines of “WELL THOSE ARENT THE BEST EXAMPLES BUT MY POINT IS STILL TRUE”
I would tell him to FUCK OFF. Any rational person would. He can offer me those services and state his requested fee and I would be free to choose his services or go elsewhere.
OT: Stay classy Dems
NJ Democratic Strategist Launches #HuntRepublicans and #HuntRepublicanCongressmen
I wish I was making this up.
Not wise to hunt something, that is a much better shot than you.
When microbrews are microaggressions: progs declare IPAs are a racist symbol of white supremacy since it was the preferred drink of British soldiers in India
https://www.liveleak.com/view?i=78d_1494960863&comments=1
Recently on NPR: whining about not enough diversity in stock photos. I face palmed so hard I almost drove off the road.
I don’t suppose there’s a chance that this would shut down stock photos entirely?
IPA’s are India Pale Ales because the bitterness allowed the beer to survive the trip from England to India without going bad. British soldiers preferred them because it was the only beer around.
because it was the only beer around.
That would be the only time I would drink one.
I find the hoppiness of many microbrew IPAs to be macroaggressive.
That is not macroaggression you taste. It is ass. Many are just horrible. I won’t even try an IPA anymore if there are other options.
The problem (one of many) with Larkins argument is he is not an elected official in any position of leadership or authority. So his example is basically simplified nonsense.
Ow, my head.
*Raises hand
“Taxes are what we pay for civilized society” is a quote from Oliver Wendell Homes Jr.
The Oliver Wendell Homes Jr. of Buck v. Bell (1927), who ruled that forced sterilization for the unfit and mentally disabled was A-OK, because “civilization.”
Sometimes, taxes are the price we pay to sterilize the undesirables out of society.
Totes awesome, if you ask me.
Violent oppression is the price we pay to live in a civilized society.
I have had conversations with people who think that is a very rational thing to do. These are people who are otherwise small government pro individual liberty sorts. The fact they could not see the contradiction in their logic kind of made me shake my head.
Do you have a source for your quote there? I would love to be able to throw that out there in conversations. My short search listed the quote as coming from a different case. Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas v. Collector of Internal Revenue.
I see now you are not saying the quote came from the Buck V Bell case. Disregard.
You know who else used video to share his political philosophy?
Ron Paul?
Titanic Sinclair?
Michael Moore?