Lovstuhagen

Kinda funny

Interesting lines from 'the Socialist Phenomenon' (1975):

The word "socialism" often implies two quite different phenomena:

• 1. A doctrine and an appeal based on it, a program for changing life, and
• 2. A social structure that exists in time and space.

The most obvious examples include Marxism as contained in the "classic" writings of Marx and others and the social structure that exists in the U.S.S.R. and the People's Republic of China. Among the fundamental principles of the state doctrine in these countries is the assertion that the connection between the two phenomena is very simple. On the one hand, it is asserted, there is a scientific theory which proves that after achieving a definite level in the development of productive forces, mankind will pass over to a new historic formation; this theory points the way to the most rational paths for such a transition. And on the other hand, we are assured, there is the embodiment of this scientific prognosis, its confirmation. As an example of quite a different point of view we cite H. G. Wells, who visited Russia in 1920 and, though infected by the worship of socialism, fashionable then as now, nevertheless almost instinctively refused to accept Marxism, in this sense reflecting the antipathy toward all scholastic theories typical of an Englishman. In his book Russia in the Shadows, Wells writes: "Marxist Communism has always been a theory of revolution, a theory not merely lacking in creative and constructive ideas but hostile to creative and constructive ideas." (1: p. 60) He describes the communism that governed Russia as "... in so many matters like a conjurer who has left his pigeon and his rabbit behind him and can produce nothing whatever from the hat." (1: p. 64)

From this point of view, Marxism does not set itself any goal other than that of preparing for the seizure of power. The state system established as a result is therefore defined and shaped by the necessity of holding power. Since these tasks are entirely different, the official theory and the actual implementation have nothing in common.

In a sense, he is suggesting that whatever theories may exist in Marxism that may even include truth values are absolutely irrelevant because the real purpose of it is the seizure of power, and the socialism that goes forward after this is completely different than that which is theorized.

A massive theory / praxis divide, if you will.

I am just starting the book so I am not completley positive as to where any of this is going to go but def. worth sharing, IMO, and worth your feedback.

An airman for the Special Forces could be sacked after he was caught taking drugs during an 'unheard of' crackdown in an elite unit which flies Chinook helicopters.

Compulsory testing teams reportedly circled in on the RAF Special Forces Flight, 7 Squadron three separate times in just three weeks, which led to the airman's drug taking being discovered.

The RAF has a zero tolerance policy towards drugs, so he is likely to be booted off the force, sources were reported to have claimed.

British news sites are OK but half of them are like "<Name you've never heard of> Wears Cheeky One Piece at Mallorca" and it's just a grainy shot of a middle aged woman in a thong to the side of the news story about Uighur concentration camps.

"Kyle Richards’ estranged husband Mauricio Umansky praised her for ‘crushing’ workouts as they laughed off Ozempic claims"

No idea who this is and I don't know if I'll ever recover from hearing that someone named their daughter Kyle.

Disney’s She-Hulk star Mark Ruffalo is pleading with his followers to “organize the vote” after the U.S. Supreme Court overturning affirmative action in college admissions, and in a separate ruling, struck down President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, ending a $430 billion debt write-off that critics said had been a midterm election gimmick Biden knew was unconstitutional.

“Okay. So we all understand that the Supreme Court has become a right-wing ideological political institution under Alito, Thomas, Gorsuch, Barrett, Kavanaugh, & Roberts. They’re for sale & illegitimate. Now, we have to beat them in the executive branch & the legislature,” Ruffalo tweeted on Saturday.

Former Vice President Mike Pence is just returning from Ukraine, being the first presidential candidate to pay a visit to the war-torn U.S. ally, but he expressed "pride" for the landmark Supreme Court decisions this week.

"Like every other conservative American, I couldn't be more proud of this new conservative majority on the Supreme Court of the United States," Pence told Newsmax host Tom Basile in an interview that aired Sunday.

Pence said he interviewed all the candidates for the Supreme Court during the Trump administration and advised former President Donald Trump on the conservative nominees that ultimately provided the deciding votes on three landmark cases this week.

Investment honcho Larry Fink is attracting outrage from conservatives for an old admission that his firm would "force behaviors" on diversity, equity, and inclusion standards amid pushback on companies setting similar goals.

"Behaviors are gonna have to change, and this is one thing we're asking companies. You have to force behaviors, and at BlackRock we are forcing behaviors," Fink said in a 2017 video interview with the New York Times.

BlackRock Inc., the world's largest asset manager, with shares in companies like Amazon, Apple, MasterCard, Johnson & Johnson, Walmart ,and Walt Disney Co., bragged in the 2017 interview about adding "4 more points of diverse employment.”

"What we're doing internally is if you don't achieve these levels of impact, your compensation could be impacted," Fink said in the interview video.

"You have to force behaviors. If you don't force behaviors, whether it's gender or race or just any way you want to say the composition of your team, you're going to be impacted. That not just recruiting, it's development," Fink said. "We're gonna have to force change."

The video circulated on social media after resurfacing online, Fox News reported, with Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, tweeting on Monday that BlackRock is "destroying value and are engaged in illegal and immoral conduct."

"There are two schools of thought within the GOP on BlackRock. The old guard thinks they're creating value and need to be rewarded with tax cuts," the message stated. "I think they're destroying value and are engaged in illegal and immoral conduct. They need to be dealt with accordingly."

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/169421

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/169420

Days after a national alert about cases of locally acquired malaria in Texas and Florida, public health officials in those states said they continue to monitor for further illness and to conduct mosquito surveillance but have found no further cases.

The Texas Department of State Health Services said Friday that it is aware of only one case of malaria there, and no infected mosquitoes have been found.

Malaria spreads when an Anopheles mosquito infected with a protozoan parasite from the Plasmodium genus bites a human. Most cases diagnosed in the United States are imported, usually after someone has traveled to a country where malaria is more common. These malaria cases are the first locally acquired cases in the US in the last 20 years, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the Texas case, the person did not have a recent history of overseas travel, but the health department said they had spent time working outdoors in Cameron County.

The Texas Department of State Health Services said it has been coordinating with local health departments and plans to follow up to see if anyone else has been exposed.

The Florida Department of Health said Friday that it also is not aware of any new cases there. The department is continuing to take a “very proactive approach” to its malaria cases and is reminding people going out on the Fourth of July holiday to take precautions against mosquito bites.

The agency issued a statewide mosquito-borne illness advisory Monday about four confirmed local cases of malaria in Sarasota County. It also issued a mosquito-borne illness alert for Sarasota and Manatee counties last Monday.

All four people with malaria were treated and have recovered, the department said.

A spokesperson for the Florida Department of Health said that it has amped up testing and surveillance for malaria and continues to assist with routine testing of the mosquito population.

The department is doing aerial and ground spraying in the general area around the local malaria cases.