The Batlord

Side with nationalism cause *hands in pockets shrug*.

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jwb

I didn't side with anything. We're talking about "where do we go with xyz rhetoric" and I'm just applying that to that specific line of rhetoric. It's equally aimless and fruitless as what LF said tbh. Iranians and Americans have stuff in common. Cool. What difference does that make??

jadis

Well, my position is that the utter irrelevance of the "workers unite" talk notwithstanding, the idea that "geopolitics" is divorceable from or anterior to ideology is every bit as ideologically-driven as insect metaphors.

More than happy to leave it at that, I'm here to talk about Siouxsie and the Banshees.

jwb

I didn't say geopolitics and ideology are divorced. I said the the sentiment that we're all just people is irrelevant to the geopolitical pressures which manifest themselves in actual conflict.

The Germans living under Nazi Germany had a lot in common with us too. Once again what difference does that actually make?

The Batlord

Well if you accept your place in the world under rich wealth extractors then it doesn't make any difference.

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jwb

And if you don't...?

jadis

I would say that yes, military combat indeed collapses whatever ideas of shared humanity that we may have.

I wouldn't confound this with something as vague and incoherent as "geopolitical pressures" though. It can mean anything from "in order to prosper, Germans must carve vast territories to the east into their Lebensraum by ethnically cleansing and enslaving local populations, who they regard as biologically inferior" to "we need to renegotiate the terms of our access to this source of water."

The Batlord

Well if nothing else you don't become a boring, passionless lump who might as well be an accountant in a thrift store suit.

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jwb

But I'm asking.... If you don't accept your status etc... Does it make a difference? I suppose that depends on what you mean by "not accept". If you mean resist, then that would involve action. Anything else is just words. Make believe. Imo.

The Batlord

If you don't think preserving your mind makes a difference to yourself at least rather than morosely internalising whatever reality you feel is the mental path of least resistance then go be a strip mall accountant.

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