Let's make fun of Trump, bash him, etc. while we can!

[Eric the Green]

The conservative, maverick host John McLaughlin made fun of moderate panelist Mort Kondracke by saying this to him when John thought Mort was correct on an issue.

[Eric the Green]

Shouldn't we be concerned, at a time of danger, who we give nuclear triggers, generals and armies to?



quote, Roy Rigordaeva
Yesterday · Edited
I understand that it's impossible to take this asshole seriously.....but MAYBE we should stop laughing and consider the FACT that someone will be following THIS sociopath around night and day for the next four years with a nuclear trigger .

MAYBE we should stop laughing....because the entire world is freaking out now.

[Eric the Green]

In case you missed it:

[gabrielle]

(09-07-2016, 09:05 PM)pbrower2a Wrote: Having worked in retail soon after graduating from college (d@mned undiagnosed Asperger's!), I can tell you that retail sales clerks are among the laziest, stupidest, materialistic, and hollowest people that you will ever meet in the workplace. Those who don't fit that pattern simply took the job in desperation and believe that it is easier to get a job elsewhere if one can work nights and weekends (employers find such people hard to find and will accommodate that) and interview for jobs by day. Some go into the work saying things like "I don't want to be a mere office clerk or assembly-line worker"... and three months later they are happy that they got a job as an office clerk or an assembly-line worker. Turnover is high enough that someone can often get into a low-level managerial job (with similar pay and more responsibility) within a year. But being a 'manager trainee' means little on a curriculum vitae. People who have any intellectual substance or work ethic don't stay on that job for long. "Office clerk" has more promise for someone with a college degree.

Id you wonder why the traditional department store has practically disappeared in America (Kohl's, one of the biggest chains in America, has gone to a grocery-style checkout, which may be good for thwarting shoplifting) ... it's because American shoppers have caught on. If you want good advice on merchandise at Wal*Mart, then ask a fellow customer.

I work retail.  I work for a mid-size company that buys and sells books, games, music, movies, toys, comics and collectibles.  I am in charge of the book section, and we have a fairly large one in our store, thousands of titles.  I have a bachelor's degree in history.  It's not a prestigious or high paying job, but I like what I do.  I don't want an office job, sitting at a desk all day long, getting fatter and more unhealthy, doing boring repetitive work and seeing only the same few faces every day (whom I may or may not even like).  I sure as hell wouldn't want to be an assembly line worker.  I love books, love to see new titles and interesting things people bring in to sell.  I get to move around all day, shifting and shelving merchandise and keeping relatively fit, and occasionally do creative stuff like build and arrange my own displays.  A lot of families come into my store, and it's fun to help kids find the books and toys they want and show them books I liked as a kid.  I suppose I am not a terribly ambitious person, but I don't think I am "lazy, stupid, materialistic, and hollow."  And I like the majority of people I work with, thanks in large part due to shared interests related to the merchandise we sell.  Only a small minority over the years have proven to be dishonest. 

The irony of you writing that ignorant passage immediately following a criticism of Galen's prejudice against vegans.  "What people say about the rest of humanity as a whole says what that person is himself." 

Sorry everyone, had to get that off my chest.  Carry on with your Trump vs Clinton, red/blue divide conversation.

[Eric the Green]

Donald Trump Defends His Awful Claim About Military Sexual Assault
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/dona...2d45985347

Donald Trump said Wednesday he was “correct” in 2013 to blame sexual assault in the military on men and women serving together in the armed forces.

In 2013, the Pentagon released data illustrating the sharp rise in reports of sexual assault in the military. Trump tweeted his thoughts on the matter, arguing the problem was a result of women serving alongside men:

Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump
26,000 unreported sexual assults in the military-only 238 convictions. What did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together?
4:04 PM - 7 May 2013

Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump
The Generals and top military brass never wanted a mixer but were forced to do it by very dumb politicians who wanted to be politically C!
4:13 PM - 7 May 2013

When NBC’s Matt Lauer asked Trump about his claim during the network’s Commander-In-Chief forum, the GOP presidential nominee stood by it.

“It is a correct tweet. There are many people that think that’s absolutely correct,” Trump said.

[Bob Butler 54]

(09-10-2016, 01:11 AM)gabrielle Wrote: I work retail.  I work for a mid-size company that buys and sells books, games, music, movies, toys, comics and collectibles.  I am in charge of the book section, and we have a fairly large one in our store, thousands of titles.  I have a bachelor's degree in history.  It's not a prestigious or high paying job, but I like what I do.  I don't want an office job, sitting at a desk all day long, getting fatter and more unhealthy, doing boring repetitive work and seeing only the same few faces every day (whom I may or may not even like).  I sure as hell wouldn't want to be an assembly line worker.  I love books, love to see new titles and interesting things people bring in to sell.  I get to move around all day, shifting and shelving merchandise and keeping relatively fit, and occasionally do creative stuff like build and arrange my own displays.  A lot of families come into my store, and it's fun to help kids find the books and toys they want and show them books I liked as a kid.  I suppose I am not a terribly ambitious person, but I don't think I am "lazy, stupid, materialistic, and hollow."  And I like the majority of people I work with, thanks in large part due to shared interests related to the merchandise we sell.  Only a small minority over the years have proven to be dishonest. 

The irony of you writing that ignorant passage immediately following a criticism of Galen's prejudice against vegans.  "What people say about the rest of humanity as a whole says what that person is himself." 

Sorry everyone, had to get that off my chest.  Carry on with your Trump vs Clinton, red/blue divide conversation.

My niece went to school to get a degree as a marine biologist.  Lots of millenials went after that degree.  There are not enough jobs in the field.  After bouncing around doing assorted teaching jobs for several years, she recently picked up a job as curator of a shark museum at the elbow of Cape Cod.  She's the go to interview when a TV station wants a fluff piece on the local Great Whites.  She recently got an invite to guide a local news helicopter looking for shark footage.

There aren't enough cool jobs out there in fields that people can come to love.  I'm happy that my niece made it work, though she had a long hot summer tourist season.  The week following labor day seems to be her designated catch up on sleep week.  

Bet you didn't know who currently has custody of the shark robot used in the filming of Jaws?

I'd agree that one shouldn't sneer at the more or less routine jobs that people can come to like and find fulfillment in.  We can't all chase sharks in helicopters, but the local car mechanic or in my experience a software programmer can get into what they do.  As jobs get fewer, if life isn't to become a boring drudgery relieved only by football games, beer and drug induced haze, we need jobs people can buy into.  Different people will buy into different things.

As an tangent, my niece is also the closest I know to a militant vegan. My grand niece, her niece, was a picky eater as a two year old. Her parents were constantly looking to have her gain weight. One thing the kid would eat was fish sticks... at least until the marine biologist spoke up. "Fish are our friends. We don't eat our friends." The parents at that moment would have sympathized with the negative feelings towards militant vegans. The result was a very small off and on vegan. The two year old's verdict?

"Fish may be our friends, but they TASTE so GOOD!"

[Galen]

(09-10-2016, 01:22 AM)taramarie Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 01:11 AM)gabrielle Wrote:

(09-07-2016, 09:05 PM)pbrower2a Wrote: Having worked in retail soon after graduating from college (d@mned undiagnosed Asperger's!), I can tell you that retail sales clerks are among the laziest, stupidest, materialistic, and hollowest people that you will ever meet in the workplace. Those who don't fit that pattern simply took the job in desperation and believe that it is easier to get a job elsewhere if one can work nights and weekends (employers find such people hard to find and will accommodate that) and interview for jobs by day. Some go into the work saying things like "I don't want to be a mere office clerk or assembly-line worker"... and three months later they are happy that they got a job as an office clerk or an assembly-line worker. Turnover is high enough that someone can often get into a low-level managerial job (with similar pay and more responsibility) within a year. But being a 'manager trainee' means little on a curriculum vitae. People who have any intellectual substance or work ethic don't stay on that job for long. "Office clerk" has more promise for someone with a college degree.

Id you wonder why the traditional department store has practically disappeared in America (Kohl's, one of the biggest chains in America, has gone to a grocery-style checkout, which may be good for thwarting shoplifting) ... it's because American shoppers have caught on. If you want good advice on merchandise at Wal*Mart, then ask a fellow customer.

I work retail.  I work for a mid-size company that buys and sells books, games, music, movies, toys, comics and collectibles.  I am in charge of the book section, and we have a fairly large one in our store, thousands of titles.  I have a bachelor's degree in history.  It's not a prestigious or high paying job, but I like what I do.  I don't want an office job, sitting at a desk all day long, getting fatter and more unhealthy, doing boring repetitive work and seeing only the same few faces every day (whom I may or may not even like).  I sure as hell wouldn't want to be an assembly line worker.  I love books, love to see new titles and interesting things people bring in to sell.  I get to move around all day, shifting and shelving merchandise and keeping relatively fit, and occasionally do creative stuff like build and arrange my own displays.  A lot of families come into my store, and it's fun to help kids find the books and toys they want and show them books I liked as a kid.  I suppose I am not a terribly ambitious person, but I don't think I am "lazy, stupid, materialistic, and hollow."  And I like the majority of people I work with, thanks in large part due to shared interests related to the merchandise we sell.  Only a small minority over the years have proven to be dishonest. 

The irony of you writing that ignorant passage immediately following a criticism of Galen's prejudice against vegans.  "What people say about the rest of humanity as a whole says what that person is himself." 

Sorry everyone, had to get that off my chest.  Carry on with your Trump vs Clinton, red/blue divide conversation.

Btw i understand you getting it off your chest. It was totally called for. Hopefully it will educate a certain someone.

There is not much chance of that is there.

You have to live near the People's Republic of Portland to understand my problems with the vegans and bicyclists.  Its a more intense version of the left's virtue signaling.  Probably why I like the Seventh-Day Adventists better, they just obsess about the end of the world which I find much less annoying.

[Eric the Green]

A Closer look at the candidates' foreign policy

[Eric the Green]

(09-10-2016, 01:35 AM)Galen Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 01:22 AM)taramarie Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 01:11 AM)gabrielle Wrote:

(09-07-2016, 09:05 PM)pbrower2a Wrote: Having worked in retail soon after graduating from college (d@mned undiagnosed Asperger's!), I can tell you that retail sales clerks are among the laziest, stupidest, materialistic, and hollowest people that you will ever meet in the workplace. Those who don't fit that pattern simply took the job in desperation and believe that it is easier to get a job elsewhere if one can work nights and weekends (employers find such people hard to find and will accommodate that) and interview for jobs by day. Some go into the work saying things like "I don't want to be a mere office clerk or assembly-line worker"... and three months later they are happy that they got a job as an office clerk or an assembly-line worker. Turnover is high enough that someone can often get into a low-level managerial job (with similar pay and more responsibility) within a year. But being a 'manager trainee' means little on a curriculum vitae. People who have any intellectual substance or work ethic don't stay on that job for long. "Office clerk" has more promise for someone with a college degree.

Id you wonder why the traditional department store has practically disappeared in America (Kohl's, one of the biggest chains in America, has gone to a grocery-style checkout, which may be good for thwarting shoplifting) ... it's because American shoppers have caught on. If you want good advice on merchandise at Wal*Mart, then ask a fellow customer.

I work retail.  I work for a mid-size company that buys and sells books, games, music, movies, toys, comics and collectibles.  I am in charge of the book section, and we have a fairly large one in our store, thousands of titles.  I have a bachelor's degree in history.  It's not a prestigious or high paying job, but I like what I do.  I don't want an office job, sitting at a desk all day long, getting fatter and more unhealthy, doing boring repetitive work and seeing only the same few faces every day (whom I may or may not even like).  I sure as hell wouldn't want to be an assembly line worker.  I love books, love to see new titles and interesting things people bring in to sell.  I get to move around all day, shifting and shelving merchandise and keeping relatively fit, and occasionally do creative stuff like build and arrange my own displays.  A lot of families come into my store, and it's fun to help kids find the books and toys they want and show them books I liked as a kid.  I suppose I am not a terribly ambitious person, but I don't think I am "lazy, stupid, materialistic, and hollow."  And I like the majority of people I work with, thanks in large part due to shared interests related to the merchandise we sell.  Only a small minority over the years have proven to be dishonest. 

The irony of you writing that ignorant passage immediately following a criticism of Galen's prejudice against vegans.  "What people say about the rest of humanity as a whole says what that person is himself." 

Sorry everyone, had to get that off my chest.  Carry on with your Trump vs Clinton, red/blue divide conversation.

Btw i understand you getting it off your chest. It was totally called for. Hopefully it will educate a certain someone.

There is not much chance of that is there.

You have to live near the People's Republic of Portland to understand my problems with the vegans and bicyclists.  Its a more intense version of the left's virtue signaling.  Probably why I like the Seventh-Day Adventists better, they just obsess about the end of the world which I find much less annoying.

Hey there, Galen. I have a major surprise for you! You and I are annoyed by different things!!!

[Galen]

(09-10-2016, 01:39 AM)taramarie Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 01:35 AM)Galen Wrote: There is not much chance of that is there.

You have to live near the People's Republic of Portland to understand my problems with the vegans and bicyclists.  Its a more intense version of the left's virtue signaling.  Probably why I like the Seventh-Day Adventists better, they just obsess about the end of the world which I find much less annoying.

Some bicyclists here have a death wish and vegans, well i have met some who want to stop meat eaters eating what they wish which i do not agree with. Would be interesting to hear your perspective.

In the case of the bicyclists they seem to think that they are saving the planet and never stop telling you about it. I have been threatened with every possible end of the world scenario and none of them have been even remotely true.  There is some truth to George Carlin's view of saving the planet.   They also have no sense of humor which they share with the vegans.





The other thing bicyclists do is ignore traffic laws.  It wouldn't be so bad except they like getting out in the middle of the road and obstructing traffic.  They got the previous Mayor to ignore road maintenance in favor of building bike paths.  During Monsoon season many drivers like to see if they can drown cyclists by driving fast through puddles to thank them for all they have done.

The vegans also go on about saving the planet and how cruelty free they are.  As a consequence they are even more smug about it.  The Seventh Day Adventists do vegetarianism right but they have been at it since at since the mid-nineteenth century.  Many of the vegans look very unhealthy because they don't know what they are doing.  This clip from Portlandia is not far from the truth except that you need to replace the chicken with some vegetable.

[Galen]

(09-10-2016, 02:40 AM)taramarie Wrote: Well before I gave my bike to my mate I did not fit that mold. I simply did it because it was freedom. I also made sure I was never in the way of traffic. (My mother did not want me biking till I was an adult). So I will not judge them all into one group. I will just think yes some would be like that.

That is because you are a normal person who just wants to get through life.  The Tri-County area is infested with a bunch of politically correct people virtue signaling assholes.  Like Eric the Obtuse they don't have enough sense to leave everyone else alone.  Its ironic when you think about it, if they weren't busy stealing from me and trying to run my life I wouldn't give a shit what they did.

[Eric the Green]

(09-10-2016, 02:26 AM)Galen Wrote: In the case of the bicyclists they seem to think that they are saving the planet and never stop telling you about it. I have been threatened with every possible end of the world scenario and none of them have been even remotely true. 

They ARE true. If we don't stop using fossil fuels, we literally are toast.

Quote:The other thing bicyclists do is ignore traffic laws.  It wouldn't be so bad except they like getting out in the middle of the road and obstructing traffic.  They got the previous Mayor to ignore road maintenance in favor of building bike paths.  During Monsoon season many drivers like to see if they can drown cyclists by driving fast through puddles to thank them for all they have done.

Then THEY are the mean idiots. I hear that your fellow conservatives down south hate bicyclists and chase them down and attack them. And if we had more bike paths, they would get in drivers' way less often. It's a great investment.

Quote:The vegans also go on about saving the planet and how cruelty free they are.  As a consequence they are even more smug about it.  The Seventh Day Adventists do vegetarianism right but they have been at it since at since the mid-nineteenth century.  Many of the vegans look very unhealthy because they don't know what they are doing. 

Bike riders here in the capitol of Silicon Valley almost never get in the middle of the road and obstruct traffic. Drivers are polite to them too. On the other hand, we have some streets in which bikes are allowed and encouraged to ride in the middle of the road. You wouldn't like that! Fortunately it doesn't happen too often; I still ride on the side on those streets. Not that trusting. You never know, a Galen might be driving behind me. Just kidding, I'm not attributing that to you. I hope I'm right.

I think vegans should brag about how healthy and cruelty free they are. I suppose they can do that without insulting non-vegans, even if some don't. Vegan has much to recommend it, although lots of folks can't or won't join them. Including me, so far. They may not do it "right," but at least they are making the attempt. But I don't live in the People's City of Portland. But I hear it's perhaps the most livable city in the country; probably rivalled only by Seattle. Having lots of vegans and bike riders around just might be a sign that this is true. People like that and similar folks care about the things that make a city livable, too. It just goes with the territory. People who care about health, and the health of the planet, care about making a city livable too, and they do it!

[Eric the Green]

(09-10-2016, 02:58 AM)Galen Wrote: The Tri-County area is infested with a bunch of politically correct people virtue signaling assholes.  Like Eric the Obtuse they don't have enough sense to leave everyone else alone.  Its ironic when you think about it, if they weren't busy stealing from me and trying to run my life I wouldn't give a shit what they did.

Pay your taxes without complaint. Be a citizen.

[Galen]

(09-10-2016, 03:00 AM)Eric the Obtuse Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:26 AM)Galen Wrote: In the case of the bicyclists they seem to think that they are saving the planet and never stop telling you about it. I have been threatened with every possible end of the world scenario and none of them have been even remotely true. 

They ARE true. If we don't stop using fossil fuels, we literally are toast.

The Earth's temperature has varied by far more than the global warming people are whining about long before man ever showed up on the scene.  In the seventies no doubt you were whining about the impending ice age that everyone was predicting that strangely never happened.


 
The funny thing about this graph is that the phrase global warming was replaced with climate change.  The policy prescription is always the same no matter what is used to make people panic: tax and regulate the shit out everyone.  

(09-10-2016, 03:00 AM)Eric the Obtuse Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:26 AM)Galen Wrote: The other thing bicyclists do is ignore traffic laws.  It wouldn't be so bad except they like getting out in the middle of the road and obstructing traffic.  They got the previous Mayor to ignore road maintenance in favor of building bike paths.  During Monsoon season many drivers like to see if they can drown cyclists by driving fast through puddles to thank them for all they have done.

Then THEY are the mean idiots. I hear that your fellow conservatives down south hate bicyclists and chase them down and attack them. And if we had more bike paths, they would get in drivers' way less often. It's a great investment.

You are an idiot if you think that pushing people around isn't going to generate this kind of response.  Add some economic stress and it gets even worse.  I have known quite a few southerners, nice people in general until you start fucking with them.  I don't recommend you going there because they will not react well to your smug self-righteous attitude.

I don't agree with them in many respects but they aren't a problem because I don't do things to them for their own good and I don't treat them like idiots the way you would.  Funny how easy it is to get along with people who mind their own business.

(09-10-2016, 03:00 AM)Eric the Obtuse Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:26 AM)Galen Wrote: The vegans also go on about saving the planet and how cruelty free they are.  As a consequence they are even more smug about it.  The Seventh Day Adventists do vegetarianism right but they have been at it since at since the mid-nineteenth century.  Many of the vegans look very unhealthy because they don't know what they are doing. 

Bike riders here in the capitol of Silicon Valley almost never get in the middle of the road and obstruct traffic. Drivers are polite to them too. On the other hand, we have some streets in which bikes are allowed and encouraged to ride in the middle of the road. You wouldn't like that! Fortunately it doesn't happen too often; I still ride on the side on those streets. Not that trusting. You never know, a Galen might be driving behind me. Just kidding, I'm not attributing that to you. I hope I'm right.

I haven't ran over any cyclists nor do I try to. On the other hand the cyclists don't seem to understand physics.

(09-10-2016, 03:00 AM)Eric the Obtuse Wrote: I think vegans should brag about how healthy and cruelty free they are. I suppose they can do that without insulting non-vegans, even if some don't. Vegan has much to recommend it, although lots of folks can't or won't join them. Including me, so far. They may not do it "right," but at least they are making the attempt. But I don't live in the People's City of Portland. But I hear it's perhaps the most livable city in the country; probably rivalled only by Seattle. Having lots of vegans and bike riders around just might be a sign that this is true. People like that and similar folks care about the things that make a city livable, too. It just goes with the territory. People who care about health, and the health of the planet, care about making a city livable too, and they do it!

The militant vegans have problems with Christianity as so many on the left do and so will not take advice from the Adventists. Which is why so many of them fuck up their health in the way the Seventh Day Adventists don't. Seattle is crowded and expensive, approaching San Franciso and Los Angles levels. The Tri-County area is rapidly heading that way for much the same reasons with the added attraction of the Urban Growth Boundary. It really isn't all its cracked up to be except the crime rates are relatively low because of the concealed weapon permit holders. The muggers and car jackers hae a pretty hard time of it these days.

[Galen]

(09-10-2016, 03:04 AM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:58 AM)Galen Wrote: The Tri-County area is infested with a bunch of politically correct people virtue signaling assholes.  Like Eric the Obtuse they don't have enough sense to leave everyone else alone.  Its ironic when you think about it, if they weren't busy stealing from me and trying to run my life I wouldn't give a shit what they did.

Pay your taxes without complaint. Be a citizen.

Citizenship these days is badly overrated.  Medieval serfs got to keep more of their earnings.

[Eric the Green]

(09-10-2016, 04:31 AM)Galen Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 03:04 AM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:58 AM)Galen Wrote: The Tri-County area is infested with a bunch of politically correct people virtue signaling assholes.  Like Eric the Obtuse they don't have enough sense to leave everyone else alone.  Its ironic when you think about it, if they weren't busy stealing from me and trying to run my life I wouldn't give a shit what they did.

Pay your taxes without complaint. Be a citizen.

Citizenship these days is badly overrated.  Medieval serfs got to keep more of their earnings.

They couldn't buy much with them, though, and they didn't have a government that served them in any way except (maybe) to protect them from brigands and other lords. Nor did they have any social and economic mobility, nor much freedom or much of a life. At least some Americans still have that mobility, though much less since the conservatives took over in 1980. What you forget is that quality of life is about more than just your own personal stash of money/wealth.

[Galen]

(09-10-2016, 03:07 AM)taramarie Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:58 AM)Galen Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:40 AM)taramarie Wrote: Well before I gave my bike to my mate I did not fit that mold. I simply did it because it was freedom. I also made sure I was never in the way of traffic. (My mother did not want me biking till I was an adult). So I will not judge them all into one group. I will just think yes some would be like that.

That is because you are a normal person who just wants to get through life.  The Tri-County area is infested with a bunch of politically correct people virtue signaling assholes.  Like Eric the Obtuse they don't have enough sense to leave everyone else alone.  Its ironic when you think about it, if they weren't busy stealing from me and trying to run my life I wouldn't give a shit what they did.

Stealing from you? Ad oh well I do not live in that area so i would not know tbh. There are some like that here with not considering others and some kiwis who are vegans who want people to be like them. But if idealistic partisanship in politics is anything to go by with people trying to convert people in one way or another I would be not surprised. Some Americans tell me that it is not like that at all. Not all Americans are not like that they say. They could be right to a certain degree but from what I see it makes me feel like they are used to the conversion/partisan tactic. It is not normal whether it be political or lifestyle choice.

It is a product of the last fifty years of centralization in the US.  Coercion no matter how well intended always generates a violent reaction in the end.  Economic stress makes the problem worse.  As the fiscal problems get worse the tax payers will continue to get angrier with the tax consumers.  Libertarian class analysis is better at explaining the current fault lines in the US than a simply left right divide.

[Galen]

(09-10-2016, 04:35 AM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 04:31 AM)Galen Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 03:04 AM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(09-10-2016, 02:58 AM)Galen Wrote: The Tri-County area is infested with a bunch of politically correct people virtue signaling assholes.  Like Eric the Obtuse they don't have enough sense to leave everyone else alone.  Its ironic when you think about it, if they weren't busy stealing from me and trying to run my life I wouldn't give a shit what they did.

Pay your taxes without complaint. Be a citizen.

Citizenship these days is badly overrated.  Medieval serfs got to keep more of their earnings.

They couldn't buy much with them, though, and they didn't have a government that served them in any way except (maybe) to protect them from brigands and other lords. Nor did they have any social and economic mobility, nor much freedom or much of a life. At least some Americans still have that mobility, though much less since the conservatives took over in 1980. What you forget is that quality of life is about more than just your own personal stash of money/wealth.

True enough but that society was the product of technological limits and the high costs of projecting force.  See Davidson and Rees-Mogg for a full explanation.  My personal quality of life is very much a function of the amount of my wealth that I can keep.  Actually, wealth inequality started getting worse in 1971 which was before Reagan.  An interesting year for a number of reasons.

[John J. Xenakis]

Wow! You guys are gonna have a lot of fun with "Basket of
Deplorables!"

[pbrower2a]

Recognizing the limits of technology in the Middle Ages... if the State could hardly exercise power beyond the property of the King and the little State property as there was, the lord of the manor as a rule had absolute power of life and death upon the serfs, parish priests, shopkeepers, and tradesmen.  Persecutions of Jews, witches, and heretics was as brutal as ever. The medieval manor had as brutal tyranny as the Third Reich or the Soviet Union in more recent times.

It is not clear whether the jus primae noctis applied on the medieval manor, but in view of the life-and-death power of feudal lords, its existence would make perverse sense. If being burned at the stake, being broken on the wheel, or being impaled in an iron maiden for refusing to be cuckolded was a prospect for insisting on getting one's wife as a virgin and ensuring that your first child if a son would really be yours in a world in which primogeniture was the norm... then that's what absolute power of a medieval lord could do, at least in legend and theory.

Considering that Bolshevism ended up as serfdom in all but name, in the name of the State (but in fact the Communist Party), the analogy between the feudal manor and a collective farm isn't far off.