3 ms·

The U.S. House of Representatives, driven by the GOP Tea Party faction, threatened to default on US debt payments last year. You didn't find that destabilizing?

The U.S. House of Representatives, driven by the GOP Tea Party faction, threatened to default on US debt payments last year. You didn't find that destabilizing? Who is driving the Tea Party? I would contend economically disenfranchised (though, granted, not particularly young in a lot of cases) voters reacting to increasing economic polarization. Do Tea Party rank-and-file see their grievances in those terms? Not when they're talking about guns rights and Obamacare perhaps. But get them talking about Wall Street and bank bailouts and it's a different story.

yummyfajitas 13y ago
In the 70's, we had a number of large terrorist organizations setting bombs. We had race riots when I was a kid. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ku_Klux_Klan#Contemporary_Klan:_1970s.E2.80.93present http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ku_Klux_Klan#Contemporary_Klan:... Regarding the debt ceiling, congress cannot threaten or cause default, since the executive branch has the power to prioritize debt payments. In any case, similar things happened in 1995, so no, I wouldn't categorize more of the same as an increase in instability.
- ItendToDisagree 13y ago
  I seem to recall a pretty drastic race riot right around 1995 in LA. America is also still sounding the alarms about a rather large terrorist attack in 2001. The parent didn't say that instability had increased, rather economic polarization had, but by what metric are you implying instability has decreased considering your above examples?
  - yummyfajitas 13y ago
    No major race riots or domestic terrorist incidents in the past 19 years? That seems like reduced instability to me. Crime down? Check. What else should I be looking at? Klenwell said inequality is bad because it causes instability. That doesn't seem to be happening, so his theory seems to be wrong.
    - ItendToDisagree 13y ago
      2001 was 19 years ago? I didn't know that. That attack is still being used as justification for all sorts of things as well some which are causing their own destabilizing effects. Also there have been other (arguably smaller) acts of domestic terrorism... The Boston Marathon bombing would be one example. And to quote your prior post: in any case, similar things happened in 1995, so no, I wouldn't categorize more of the same as an increase in instability. So by your example, things that happened in 1995 are 'more of the same' but when presented with a counter example in the same time span (and even more recently) it shows that things have changed (reduced instability) because it has been a significant period of time? Check. That makes sense. I'm checking out of this conversation. The contortions in your logic are just a bit too much for me. Carry on.

yummyfajitas 13y ago

In the 70's, we had a number of large terrorist organizations setting bombs. We had race riots when I was a kid. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ku_Klux_Klan#Contemporary_Klan:_1970s.E2.80.93present http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ku_Klux_Klan#Contemporary_Klan:... Regarding the debt ceiling, congress cannot threaten or cause default, since the executive branch has the power to prioritize debt payments. In any case, similar things happened in 1995, so no, I wouldn't categorize more of the same as an increase in instability.

ItendToDisagree 13y ago
I seem to recall a pretty drastic race riot right around 1995 in LA. America is also still sounding the alarms about a rather large terrorist attack in 2001. The parent didn't say that instability had increased, rather economic polarization had, but by what metric are you implying instability has decreased considering your above examples?
- yummyfajitas 13y ago
  No major race riots or domestic terrorist incidents in the past 19 years? That seems like reduced instability to me. Crime down? Check. What else should I be looking at? Klenwell said inequality is bad because it causes instability. That doesn't seem to be happening, so his theory seems to be wrong.
  - ItendToDisagree 13y ago
    2001 was 19 years ago? I didn't know that. That attack is still being used as justification for all sorts of things as well some which are causing their own destabilizing effects. Also there have been other (arguably smaller) acts of domestic terrorism... The Boston Marathon bombing would be one example. And to quote your prior post: in any case, similar things happened in 1995, so no, I wouldn't categorize more of the same as an increase in instability. So by your example, things that happened in 1995 are 'more of the same' but when presented with a counter example in the same time span (and even more recently) it shows that things have changed (reduced instability) because it has been a significant period of time? Check. That makes sense. I'm checking out of this conversation. The contortions in your logic are just a bit too much for me. Carry on.