Thank you, Disney Jingoism 
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For anyone interested, itās election day in Greenland. While a US buyout is probably unlikely, independence from Denmark and the RigsfƦlleskab has been a major topic in the election campaign, which could have pretty significant implications for the geopolitics in the arctic region.
Stuff to keep in mind:
Which of the major parties becomes the biggest
Greenland uses a multi-party system, but the two biggest parties, Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA) and Siumut, have traditionally been in power. IA is socialist while Siumut is social-democratic (politics in Greenland is generally pretty leftist). Both parties are projected to keep their majority and to stay in power, but are both being worn down (especially Siumut, who has experienced significant turmoil this election with their most high profile candidate leaving the party because of disagreements on their policy for independence). As far as Iām aware the current government has a relatively more pragmatic stance on independence, while the oppositional parties are more radical.
Indepedence how soon?
Since the majority of parties are left-aligned, the actual political divide in Greenland is basically how hard theyāre pushing for independence. The nationalistic party Naleraq has been on the rise on a platform that, among other things, have argued for a change in election laws so only ātrueā inuit would be eligible for voting (yikes). On the other hand thereās Atassut as the only party speaking in favour for staying in the RigsfƦlleskab with Denmark. Instead of independence, theyāre arguing for a revision of the the law of self-governance that is currently in effect. IA and Siumutās stance is to wait and see while a commission finishes their work for a roadmap of sorts that can outline the steps for independence (so basically they want independence, but says itās premature).
What will the line against Denmark and USA
The majority of people in Greenland havenāt taken well to the Trump administrations attempts at strong-arming a sale, but it has ignited a wish to renegotiate the terms of the relation to Denmark. In general thereās a strong drive for Greenland to be able their own international policies and relations (currently Denmark has to approve). Secondly, the current law says that the Danish block grant will be gradually reduced, if Greenland is successful in capitalizing on their wealth of raw materials. The raw material industry has for many been a big hope for economic independence. If IA and Siumut stays in power itās likely theyāll try to renegotiate these terms.
Anyways, itā'll be interesting to follow no matter the turnout.
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confession: i did not watch more than a combined 15 minutes of the video i posted yesterday.
i say that because i DID watch all of this video, a charming little PBS documentary on americaās gilded age:
for those not american or for those who fell asleep in history class, the gilded age refers to a period in late 19th century america that was defined by a few thingsāmass industrialization, mass emigration of the ellis island type, and a mass acceleration of the wealth gap. this was when a lot of the infamous capitalists like jp morgan, vanderbilt, and carnegie made their money. itās referred to as āgildedā because beneath the ostensible growth and progress being made, working people suffered in poverty if they could even get a job at all. workers rights were still a fantasy, not to mention any sort of social safety net. the political system was nakedly corrupt with the interests of big business.
as iām sure you can imagine, many have pointed out the parallels to our current epoch of amerikkkan history, especially with the wealth gap (the documentary opens with the description of a lavish ball the vanderbilts threw in new york while literal children worked in the factories next door). and while most things are certainly better now than they were then in terms of progress, it feels like there is less hope for change than there was in the past. the gilded age saw legitimate opposition parties arise, mass workers rights movements (and riots) that led to unions, and a genuine sense of class consciousness ripple across america. traces of those things still exist, but not with any robust vitality.
you could argue that iām being misled by narrativeāthat we can only tell these stories after they have happened and only then can we connect the dots in a way that makes sense. and thatās true. but you could also argue that things simply arenāt bad enough yet for real change to happen. henry george became the leader of an opposition party because he nearly robbed a man for $5 to eat. mine workers fought en masse for rights because many of them died on the job. class consciousness arose because people were starving. and of course we canāt forget how the ruling class fought back against this progress with actual violence.
so whatās my point? i donāt know. iām simultaneously grateful for the life i live that others before me fought to earn, worried that the compromised order is backsliding once again, and curious if we can achieve change without suffering.
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got confused by conservatives being sad that Kevin Drumm died for a minute there
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A small follow-up on the election in Greenland:
In a landslide victory, the center-right party Demokraatit has tripled in size and become the largest party in parliament on an agenda of āopen for business, not for saleā. Seems likely that the process for independence will be put on hold, with a focus on economic development instead.
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A wise person once told me many years ago, when we were brainstorming strategies for how to respond to the actions of a corrupt government agency, that they played a chess move, and they want you to respond with another chess move. But you never agreed to play chess! Donāt let the aggressor set the rules of engagement.
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Donāt let Death pick the game you play to fight for your life.
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I just got to this point and I think it triggered nerve pain.
For real, it caused actual physical pain in my body.
Looking at their reactions and body language, they 100% believe that tax funded entities pay taxes. After Sam tells them that government agencies are funded and operated by the government and they respond with āThat is not true!ā you can see some of the light leaving Samās eye.
The weather is really nice, gonna go take a walk.
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honestly its an open question if they know what taxes, the government, or jobs are
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Lmao
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not cool
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It seems like a mistake that so many American laws have a āunless someone powerful thinks itās okayā clause.
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A nice conversation between two sane people
Outside of this conversation, both of them make nice, short, cohesive youtube videos that are well-produced and that I would feel comfortable sending to my parents
Michaelās videos with Wisecrack are more politics-lite (his background is in philosophy). Katās are more explicitly political (she worked for Media Matters where her job was to watch Fox News all day and report on it; she now works for Mother Jones).
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some of this stuff is getting pulled back under legal pressure, perhaps the trend will hold with the Palestinian dude
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I dont got nowhere to post UFO stuff no more
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I give you permission to revive and repurpose my long dormant UFO Catchers thread.
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I had been waiting for the team meeting at work to address everything thatās been going on nationwide and its potential implications for us. It reminded me a lot of the work meeting I attended on the Friday before Covid lockdown, with a lot of uncertainty and assumptions that there would surely be some way to just keep our heads down and ride it out. And then it was all different by Monday.
In a roundabout way, my work is kind of funded through the Dept of Education, and everyone we serve is extremely impacted by the new executive order. But the way it all will play out is such a huge, confusing question mark.
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One of the companies that millions of people willingly gave their genetic information to has now gone bankrupt and the genetic information is for sale.
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