Leon Troutsky

Senior Democrats are abandoning a backup plan to increase the minimum wage through a corporate tax penalty, after encountering numerous practical and political challenges in drafting their proposal over the weekend, according to two people familiar with the internal deliberations. On Thursday, the Senate parliamentarian said that the $15-an-hour minimum wage included in President Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan was inadmissible under the rules Democrats are using to pass the bill through the Senate. After that decision, Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Senate Budget Ch

Everybody is a mutha f’ing critic, ain’t they?

I am the very model of a Marxist Major General, I disdain them all the same, whether Trumper or a liberal. I rip the Reagan legacy, and read Jacobin Mag as literal. Posts by Leon and by Sponge, I respond to them hysterical. I’m very well acquainted with all matters Das Kapital I decry the inequality, both central and peripheral, I cheerily post all the latest Left Twitter news, Wait for some reactions and ridicule their centrist views. I am the very model of a Marxist Major General. I’d go on but I’m lazy and out of rhymes.

And now “In the Air” by Phil Collins.

Who da **** picks the intro music for Trump? Billy Jean by Michael Jackson is such a weird introduction song.

I don’t think anybody in political science actually uses it and it’s more of a talking point than an actual social science theory. It certainly doesn’t make any predictions or hypotheses about real-world politics.

Sergeant Socialist?

I would have gone with Major Marxist, personally.

Um...I uh...I don’t think Maureen Dowd understands who “the left” is... WASHINGTON — I’ve been waiting for this moment. The moment when some on the left would react indignantly to journalists doing their job. It was so enthralling and gratifying to assail Donald Trump as a liar and misogynist that it was bound to be jarring when the beast slouched out of town and liberals had to relearn the lesson that reporters don’t — or shouldn’t — suit up for the blue team. The moment came on Wednesday in the Capitol basement when Seung Min Kim, a respected Washington Post reporter, asked Li

Let’s celebrate a bit of good news... The Virginia Legislature approved adult-use marijuana legalization Saturday in a historic vote marking the first state in the Old South to embrace full legalization. The House passed the measure in a 48-43 vote, and the Senate approved it in a 20-19 vote. Not a single Republican voted for the bill in either chamber.

He’s done.

I’m not sure this is a good substitute for an actual increase in the minimum wage... I’m also not sure that a penalty for not paying $15/hour would be as good as directly raising the minimum wage to $11/hour. I’d like to see some evidence about how the penalty would work on the ground.

Maybe there’s some plan to retaliate or hold him accountable that isn’t being made public, but right now this looks god awful. Has Biden even made a public comment criticizing MBS since the report was released?

Yeah, but after 12 years of hustling you move up to full professor making 75k like a baller! By the way, not sure how much (if any) help I can be depending on what field you’re studying, but hit me up if you have any questions or whatnot about academia, dissertations, the job market, etc.

Let’s be honest. You’re getting your PhD so you can make a middle class salary and not do any work.

One of the biggest disappointments for me regarding technology is how much of Star Trek technology we’ve copied (and moved beyond!) these past few decades to make our lives so much better. The problem is that the things we copied were on the entertainment side — cell phones and translation software and games/simulations. But we haven’t focused enough on the core part of sci fi and especially Star Trek, which is eliminating hunger and poverty. It’s a real flaw with humanity that we’ve created all of these miracle devices to entertain and educate us but people still die of hunger and disease.

I don’t think that’s what people are saying. At least, that’s not what I’m saying. Acknowledging that there are some people out there who don’t want to put in the work to climb into a good job doesn’t negate the fact that there are a ton more people who are struggling through no fault of their own. I’ve seen both types of people personally. At least, that’s my take on the conversation.

Haven’t heard anything about RBLX. What’s the deal?

Whatever happened to “slow feet don’t eat”?

No idea if there’s still a welding shortage, but a few years ago I heard about people getting a welding license/certification and making around $80-90k. And that doesn’t require a college degree. I still support a $15 minimum wage, by the way. I’m just saying that there are good jobs out there. I have a former student who is making $95k starting salary as a windmill safety inspector. She only has an undergrad degree and makes a lot more than I do.

All I’ve said is to hold them accountable for promises they actually made and don’t attack them for not doing things they never said they would do. And if people are going to attack someone, attack the ones who made those promises but can’t make good on them, not the people who never promised those things.

Right, but people in this thread are acting like it’s some kind of massive betrayal that Biden isn’t passing everything on the Progressive wish list when the reality is that, first, Biden never promised those things (e.g., “nationalize Medicaid”, whatever that means), and second, there are Democrats who strongly oppose some of those policies and they have a vote just like every other member of Congress. My problem is that people are attacking Biden and others based on completely unreasonable and unrealistic standards that no other politician has been held to in the past. It’s ridiculous.

Then progressives need to stop making promises they can’t keep. Or at least people need to direct their anger at the progressives instead of people who never made those promises. And I’m not directing this at you, but think about what kind of absolute ****ed up situation that creates. Biden runs on his platform and wins. But a handful of progressives come out and promise things well beyond that. Suddenly Biden is expected to make good on the progressive promises even though moderate Dems aren’t on board and will oppose it. Then people start attacking Biden and “Democrats” for not m