Big Talk

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What I wish a center-left politician or party would say on immigration:

1. We should have a system that is welcoming and hospitable

2. We should have a system that treats people with humanity and respect

3. We should have a system that is capable of setting limits

On the issue of people crossing the border to apply for asylum, I want a leader who has empathy for people crossing the border, but also an understanding that it would be better to have a system where people who cross the border to apply for asylum are not treated more favorably than people who apply for asylum from their home countries.

The rules of the asylum and refugee game are that you are allowed to claim asylum if you are craving peace, but not if you are craving prosperity. The reality, of course, is that most people who are seeking asylum and refugee protections are craving both peace and prosperity. I think there is a hunger for a no-fault asylum and refugee system, where anyone who wants asylum can get it, but not necessarily in their first-choice country.

An analogy, perhaps, to limits on immigration is restrictions on the number of overseas players in the IPL, or county cricket. People can accept restrictions on the number of overseas players. But people cannot accept rhetoric which suggests that overseas players are doing something wrong in coming to the country to play cricket.

If you are going to have restrictions on the number of overseas players, a simple numerical limit seems to me preferable to a system where every county is forced to document that every overseas player they are hiring has unique skills, not available on the domestic market.

An abundance-based mentality on immigration, perhaps, is "I do my thing. My immigrant buddies do their thing. Hopefully one of us comes up with a cure for cancer."

The anti-immigrant politicians are telling people that the reason they are not able to do their thing is because of the presence of immigrants. I do not believe this to be true, either in theory or in practice.

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 4 things I think Bill Clinton got right:

1. He gave the impression that he enjoyed politics, and talking to people

2. He gave the impression that he enjoyed policy & government, and talking to the press

3. He gave the impression that he enjoyed being in power, and enjoyed using his power to help people, and to do good.

One of the best things about the 1992 campaign was his challenge to the Republicans: "If you're not willing to use your power to help people, then stand aside, because I will!"

4.  His response to sectarian division seems to me to be simple and good: "Our differences matter, but our common humanity matters more."

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I was searching for "hamas sister", as one does, and came across this interesting article, by Hanan Lischinsky:

https://allisrael.com/how-3-sisters-of-one-of-israel-s-greatest-enemies-came-to-live-in-southern-israel-with-full-citizenship

"An Israeli man in Ashkelon even told the newspaper Maariv that he used to employ the 16-year-old Ismail, back in the 1970s when Palestinians could move freely into Israel.

“I knew him as a worker who only knew how to make tiles. I taught him to work, he worked with me for nine years. He was a great guy. He was honest and smart, not stupid. He was like a family member, he also attended my daughters’ weddings,” Danny Makhlouf said.

When he heard that Haniyeh became involved in terrorism, Makhlouf even drove to his Gaza home to confront him, but it was too late . . ."

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Little Talk

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How Much Subscription Media Does A Clerk Require?

My current answer:

next time!

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Next post: October 29, 2025

Big Talk

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Things I think the UK Labour party should do:

1. Reinstate Jeremy Corbyn. If I genuinely believed Corbyn had an antisemitic bone in his body, I might feel differently. But I don't. In the words of Jim Hacker, "I've had drinks at the Russian Embassy. That doesn't make me a Russian spy."

I don't think Corbyn is particularly suited to the role of Prime Minister, or Labour Party Leader. But I do believe he is a very valuable Member of Parliament.

2. Not flip-flop quite so violently on trans rights. The attitude should perhaps be a bit similar to Austin Powers apologizing for the excesses of the sixties: "If we'd known the consequences of trans rights clashing with women's rights, we might have done things a bit differently. But the spirit would have remained the same. Right now we've got trans rights, and women's rights. It could be a very groovy time."

3. Reverse course on winter fuel and PIP. "Fiscal responsibility is important. But we should not balance the budget on the backs of the poor.". I actually think that there might be better alternatives to PIP. But the alternatives have to be . . . better.

4. On Refugee and Asylum issues, they should determine the Number Of Refugees A Year (NORAY) that the UK asylum and refugee system has the capacity to resettle. Then once that number has been reached, they should start sending people who cross the border back to their home countries, or to an alternative safe country in the home region of the person crossing the border. If there is public demand for resettling more refugees, they should increase NORAY, and increase the capacity of the system to resettle more refugees.

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Little Talk

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How Many Times Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

morning: 5:30 - 12:30

afternoon: 12:30 - 5:30

evening: 5:30 - 12:30

night: 12:30 - 5:30

dawn, dusk: 5:30 - 7:30

midday, midnight: 11:30 - 1:30

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How Much Tabloid Reading / Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2-4 quick glances, 1-2 leisurely looks

possible times (perhaps):

leisurely look #1: late afternoon / evening

leisurely look #2: late evening / night

quick glance #1: dawn

quick glance #2: midday

quick glance #3: dusk

quick glance #4: midnight

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Next post: September 29, 2025

Big Talk

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I am grateful to Sen. Van Hollen for going to El Salvador and meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

Kevin Drum wrote a post in early 2024, "How should liberals feel about the border bill?"

https://jabberwocking.com/how-should-liberals-feel-about-the-border-bill/

My comment:

"I think the 2013 bill was a reasonable bill, negotiated in good faith. Not perfect, but reasonable. The inability to pass the 2013 bill has opened the door to bad faith negotiations."

In hindsight, I would perhaps not casually throw around a phrase like "bad faith". I would perhaps say "The inability to pass the 2013 bill undermined faith in the system to do the right thing." Once faith in the system has been undermined, it becomes easier to acquiesce in politics that breaks the system.

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Little Talk

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How Much Brat Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

In a previous post, I said "a politics with fewer spoilt brats, and more ballpark brats". On reflection, I think the phrase should be changed to "a politics with less spoilt brat, and more brat summer". The point is not to wag the finger at those spoilt brats over there, but simply to manage the spoilt brat that lives inside us all.

***

How Much Tabloid Reading / Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2-4 quick peeks, or slow pokes, or leisurely looks.

quick peek: perhaps 5-15 minutes

leisurely look: perhaps 15-25 minutes

slow poke: perhaps 30-50 minutes

one pattern, perhaps:

1. a quick peek towards the beginning or the middle of the day

2. a slow poke towards the middle or the end of the day

***

How Much Waking Up Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. un-tether the phone, and check whether the sky has fallen

4. set a timer (optional)

5. stare out the window some more (optional)

6. get up, stand up, people get ready

7. ???

8. profit!

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Next post: August 29, 2025

Big Talk

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I found this post, by Steve Randy Waldman, to be interesting:

https://drafts.interfluidity.com/2024/09/17/abundance-is-overcapacity/index.html 

Specifically, it introduced me to a phrase, "capital discipline", that I was not really aware of.

My favorite explanation for why his party lost the election comes from an old Indian politician: "When the body has had too much sweet, it craves for pickle."

For reasons I don't really understand, we currently have a politics filled with salty tears, and the bitter tang of half-remembered sins.

https://honoriaplum.wordpress.com/2016/10/02/i-have-dyspepsia/

But we have it in our power to choose a better politics, a politics with more solidarity and more joy, a politics with fewer spoilt brats, and more ballpark brats. Let's get to it.

Every so often I feel the need to read one of my favorite posts, by William Kaminsky, on listening to Johnny Cash sing Beat the Devil, a song written by Kris Kristofferson:

https://williamkaminsky.wordpress.com/2004/10/04/i-aint-sayin-i-beat-the-devil-but-i-drank-his-beer-for-nothing-then-i-stole-his-song/ 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3JTDo4Kzp0

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Little Talk

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How Much Sleeping In Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

If you feel the need to sleep in, sleep in one or two days a week:

1. Sunday

2. A day-er to be named later (DTBNL)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Player_to_be_named_later

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Next post: July 29, 2025

Big Talk

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https://jabberwocking.com/health-update-100/ 

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I am afraid my opinion is that the Democrats should say things they think are true, and do things they think are important. Things that I think are true / important:

1. An ethic of solidarity

2. An ethic of joy

3. An ethic of excellence

4. An ethic of moral and material progress

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHDwRECFL8M

I believe one of the lasting legacies of the Harris-Walz campaign will be its emphasis on the importance of joy. I also believe that one of the lasting legacies of the Corbyn campaign will be its emphasis on the importance of allotments.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allotment_(gardening)

With the caveat that there are any number of good slogans, one slogan I believe in is "jobs, joy & justice". We should reject the stuffed-shirt mindset that we need to give up on justice, the hair-shirt mindset that we need to give up on joy, and the lose-your-shirt mindset that we need to give up on jobs.

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Little Talk

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How Much Tabloid Reading / Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2-4 quick peeks, 1-2 slow pokes.

quick peek: 5-15 minutes or 15-25 minutes

slow poke: 15-25 minutes or 30-50 minutes

1. 9:30 pm - 9:30 am: no restrictions

Probably not the best idea to check the tabloids first thing in the morning. But they who can log off, let them cast the first stone.

2. 9:30 am - 1:30 pm: quick peek or slow poke

3. 1:30 pm - 5:30 pm: quick peek or slow poke

4. 5:30 pm - 9:30 pm: quick peek or slow poke

5. 9:30 pm - 9:30 am: no restrictions

Probably not the best idea to check the tabloids last thing at night. But they who can log off, let them cast the first stone.

The time restrictions are not a hard limit, perhaps more of a soft budget constraint.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budget_constraint#Soft_budget_constraint

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How Much Broadsheet Reading / Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Not sure!

1. Reading or skimming the paper (or the web) while eating or drinking seems to me a pretty good pattern

2. An occasional close read of a newspaper or magazine (or the web), taking notes and making clippings, also seems to me a pretty good pattern.

Open questions:

1. "An occasional close read". How occasional?

2. How much time to spend reading or skimming the paper, when not eating or drinking?

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Next post: June 29, 2025

Big Talk

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One comment on "distraction":

When a troll is taunting you, and miming the igniting of a match in a sensuous, suggestive manner, paying attention to the troll is a arguably a distraction from more productive activities.

But when the troll has graduated from threatening damage, to doing damage, dealing with the damage is not a distraction!

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081573/quotes/?item=qt0335467

Some of the actions of the groypers in government seem to me to be fundamentally acts of vandalism. And one appropriate response to vandalism seems to me to be cleaning, maintenance, repair and reconstruction.

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Little Talk

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How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2-4 quick peeks, 1-2 slow pokes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PEEK_and_POKE

"Slow poke" seemed to me too precious a phrase. Now, it seems to me acceptably precious.

1. A pretty quick, pretty unhurried look at the web towards the beginning of the day (phone, then laptop)

2. Quick peeks at the web throughout the day (phone or laptop)

3. An unhurried look at the web at some point during the day or night (laptop, then phone)

https://www.thewoodeneffect.com/be-quick-but-dont-hurry/

Perhaps a pattern of web-surfing:

1. a pretty quick, pretty unhurried look at the phone after waking up

2. 5-15 minutes of audio after checking the phone

3. 15-25 minutes checking the laptop after turning it on

4. quick peeks at the phone or laptop throughout the day

5. an unhurried look at the laptop at some point during the day or night

6. an unhurried look at the phone at some point before falling asleep

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How Much Waking Up Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

 

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. un-tether the phone, and check whether the sky has fallen

4. set a timer for 10 minutes

5. stare out the window some more

6. get up, stand up, people get ready

7. ???

8. profit!

I decided on a timer of 10 minutes, because I wanted enough time to play a long single / short EP. And the longest single I could think of was the REM "Time After Time Etc. (Live)" one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnzljwtEt3k

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How Many Times Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

pre-dawn, morning, midday, afternoon, evening, night

My personal definitions:

pre-dawn: 3:30 - 7:30

morning: 5:30 - 11:30

midday: 11:30 - 1:30

afternoon: 1:30 - 5:30

evening: 5:30 - 11:30

night: 11:30 - 5:30

Not sure why midday seems necessary to me, but midnight doesn't.

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Next post: May 29, 2025

Big Talk

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What I am looking for from politicians and political figures at this time:

1. Politicians willing to reach out

2. Politicians unwilling to bend the knee

3. Politicians unwilling to stand idly by when people and communities are being targeted and attacked

https://www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-foundation/orwell/essays-and-other-works/why-i-write/ 

I happened to know, what very few people in England had been allowed to know, that innocent men were being falsely accused. If I had not been angry about that I should never have written the book.

JB Pritzker seems to me to be providing political leadership at this time:

https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/state/2024/11/08/pritzker-warns-trump-you-come-for-my-people-you-come-through-me/76119550007/

 “To anyone who intends to come take away the freedom and opportunity and dignity of Illinoisans, I would remind you that a happy warrior is still a warrior,” Pritzker said. “You come for my people, you come through me.”

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Little Talk

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How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

0. waking up

1. early morning session

2. morning session

3. afternoon session

4. evening session

5. night session

6. late night session

7. winding down

8. falling asleep

All sessions are optional, of course, and the early and late sessions are perhaps especially optional.

in terms of labels (maybe):

early morning session: before breakfast

morning session: between breakfast and lunch

afternoon session: between lunch and tea

evening session: between tea and dinner

night session: after dinner

late night session: after nightfall; before and after midnight

in terms of times (maybe):

early morning session: 7:30 - 10:30

morning session: 10:30 - 1:30

afternoon session: 1:30 - 4:30

evening session: 4:30 - 7:30

night session: 7:30 - 10:30

late night session: 10:30 - 1:30

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Next post: April 29, 2025