In September of last year, the podcast Behind the Bastards did a two part series on right wing blogger Curtis Yarvin, his connections to Peter Theil, and his influence on JD Vance. I highly recommend these episodes for anyone who wants to know where this is all headed.
Yarvin has, for years, pushed the notion of RAGE (retire all government employees), and his dark enlightenment movement centers on dismantling democracy and installing a neo-feudalistic system of government in which oligarchs rule as kings.
This is not some crazy new proposal that will be ignored by the people in power. This is the endgame. The oligarchs and right wing fascists Trump has surrounded himself with have been pushing this for years, just waiting for their moment.
If you don’t think this is a big deal, then you probably won’t realize until it’s too late.
It’s chilling that this article is from October and basically lays out how the overthrow of democracy would take place - exactly what’s been happening since then.
The speed at which we’re descending into the dark enlightenment period is beyond alarming.
Thank goodness we had a corporate media that not also did nothing to instruct on this, but played lots of stupid bothsiderist games for the horse race.
Not to mention lots of so-called leftists telling Americans to either sit out or do a protest vote because something something Gaza, BidenSoOld and KamalaSameAsBiden.
How does one push their elected to a desired position, if there’s nothing backing that push?
Remember: Our vote is like the only tool we have to hold electeds to account.
If you don’t think this is a big deal, then you probably won’t realize until it’s too late.
American history in one sentence.
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This is the dumbest branding exercise ever. There are no additional “freedoms” that you can get in a corporate-run city versus a regular city; except that perhaps the corporation has more freedom to trounce upon the rights of the citizenry.
If the future that Curtis Yarvin and his type envision starts to shape up, we’re gonna need to go full, 100% anti-corporation to push back.
except that perhaps the corporation has more freedom to trounce upon the rights of the citizenry.
That is exactly the kind of freedom they are looking for, and don’t underestimate the psychology there - it feels like freedom to them, the kind of freedom that allows for injustices to prevail. I’m reminded of an anecdote of Ẑiẑek, talking to a bunch of fascists in former Yugoslavia, where they in no uncertain terms revealed, that it had been tyranny to them to not be able to be violent, rape, plunder, etc. and that the chaos of the breakup had been a liberatory event for them, psychologically.
Never assume “freedom” is something, that opposing classes and groups in general agree upon when it comes to its definition.
We should really be doing that regardless, the corporation has outlived its utility and has become a chain on the collective neck of humanity
A city run by a corporation is the opposite of a “freedom city”
“It’s freedom when I do it and tyranny when you do it.”
Cyberpunk IRL
Honestly, the beauty of the game is the sheer irony of it all.
And I kinda wish those neo-kitsch high fashion Kevlar-lined clothing was real, because some of the Corpo drip in Cyberpunk looks cool as fuck.
Yes, but it does follow republican naming convention. Right to work states are anything but, for example.
Just look at SpaceX‘s town. Pure dystopia.
The one where they stole the land from cards against humanity?
It’s freedom from government regulations, many of which stem from the last time we let companies set up their own towns. What could possibly go wrong?
they tried it with a town before, it dint work out.
Last time we got full scale shooting wars between workers and companies. If I’m putting on my optimist hat then I’d say at least we’ll get to shoot some rich folk.
I doubt they’ll be on the front lines. It’ll just be the poor shooting at each other. The only real solution is Luigi, until they’re scared enough to negotiate in good faith.
Oh for sure, but if it gets to the point where I need to fire my gun at somebody it’s definitely not going to be aimed at some low level corporate thug. That is, unless they’re standing between me and their boss.
It makes much more sense when you understand the differences between the Northern version of freedom vs. the Southern version of freedom. These asshats think of freedom as the freedom to rule over others.
It’s not the people living in the city that are the free ones. It’s the owners
If it’s in the name you know it’s the opposite like “Democratic People’s republic of Korea”
Those already have a name - company town.
They failed the last time they were tried and will fail again.
But before they failed, they stole a ton of labor/profit from the residents.
I mean, they can only steal so much / so quickly WITHOUT building them…
Right. They worked very well for the companies!
America is truly going back to its roots. American towns, ethnic cleansing of native populations, all that’s missing is chattel slavery (of course we still got that modern slavery). This crumbling empire deserves to collapse, and collapse quickly
And what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt…
I’m always torn between this version and the Johnny Cash one.
They didn’t just fail on their own. They were very successful until the labor movement decided to meet violence with violence.
Now that’s a tradition I wouldn’t mind we go back to, seems like the only way we ever got labor protections in this country
Ask Appalachia about company towns. Folks here at least ought to know better.
“ You load 16 tons, what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt St. Peter, don’t you call me 'cause I can’t go I owe my soul to the company store “
Damn. Beat me to it!
Don’t forget “A mind that’s a-weak and a back that’s strong”
The French had an answer to “Let them eat cake.”
Me thinks the tech-bros won’t like that answer very much.
The French wouldn’t have let things get nearly this bad in the first place.
Good morning! Today is brought to you by our friends at ocular implant world. With their help you can see everyday through rose tinted digital filters! Just a reminder, you are now in debt to the corporation for $42,547,880.46. Would you like to listen to another targeted advertisement for $0.35?
Now I’m sad
You just need ocular implants!
I didn’t think I would live to see Cyberpunk become a reality. Or the return of Company Towns. Either one sounds preposterous.
We’re not even getting the cool parts of cyberpunk like cybernetic limbs.
Is anybody actually watching Severance? An underlying theme of the last episode was that this kind of crap specifically is a bad idea.
Frickin’ wild that Apple TV+ puts it out at all, honestly…
Cool. Let them.
So like a town, owned by a company, like some sort of company town, but now with freedom! The freedom to live in a house owned by your employer, shop at a store owned by your employer, and you have to use special money that your employer pays you in. Yup, nothing says freedom more the having incredibly limited choices.
anyone ever played shadowrun, because that is the way we’re heading…
Without all the nice tech and the magic
I can’t wait to live in DowIndustrialRunoffVille, 3Mcancertowne, and Exxondumpsiteburgh… Oh wait we already do. Can you imagine how bad it would be if they had pure control and zero oversight or restrictions? The US is really sprinting headlong into the worst kind of dystopic hellscape.
Don’t worry, surely any of those negative repercussions will be neatly contained within their city limits.
Then it will just be the problem of Merck county, P&G township, or the state of Pepsi to worry about.
Snow Crash anyone?
Tech bros love to rename terrible shit from the past and call it an invention.
That’s all fElon has ever done.
