First World Problems of "Late Stage Capitalism"

[everything]

kind of hilarious, but also wth

https://jamiewheal.substack.com/p/movin ... late-stage

excerpt:

Moving the Goalposts on Late Stage Capitalism
Third World Problems, Coming for the First World

JAMIE WHEAL
JAN 18, 2024
(Note: this post may seem a little dark! Didn’t mean it to be. Just came out that way. Will be following up in a series of subsequent posts that are more oriented to solutions. This one highlights a particular dynamic we’re all gonna experience more of, so figured it was worth mapping first)

TSA airport lines: Chronicle of a mess foretold - POLITICO
Was with the fam over the holidays and we got up early to catch a flight. Only to arrive at the Austin airport to find lines snaking out the doors and onto the sidewalks. I navigated us through the sliding glass to find the Clear line, which I’d signed up for during COVID as a lazy man’s TSA Pre-Check.

(registering for Pre-check, was, for me, always like that bluegrass tune where one hillbilly points out to the other that his roof’s leaking. Then his neighbor responds “well, when it’s raining it’s too wet to fix it, and when it’s sunny it’s as good as any man’s.” Whenever I’m at the airport, I don’t have time to stand in a TSA application line, and when I’m home I never think about it. Forgive me)

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Only problem–the Clear line was also jam-packed and led us right back outside. We were victims of the company’s success. Any benefit of pay-to-play iris scanning had now been erased by excess demand.

Too late, I realized that regular ol’ Clear had been upstaged by Clear Plus, a newer shinier version that combined PreCheck with its own subscription service. So the regular one was now next to useless, even as they continued to over-enroll unsuspecting newbies in it, and upsell members to the pricier one that still (kinda) worked.

Fortunately, I was able to wiggle us through to a less-busy gate and get us onto our plane in time. But I’d damn nearly wrecked the trip by not planning for that unforeseen two hour queue.

We landed for a long layover in Mexico City and that’s when I pulled out my second travel hack to try and keep my family comfortable. The AmEx Centurion Lounge. That too, I’d signed up for during Covid as a slightly safer and quieter place to hang out during layovers.

In the same way I’d always punted on TSA PreCheck, I’d also resisted getting hooked into any loyalty programs with major airlines that would’ve (eventually) granted access to their lounges. I wasn’t keen on any of them, and only ever wanted to buy the cheapest flight to get someplace. This lounge program seemed a possible solve for all that.

But as we got to the front desk of the supposedly luxe Centurion “Membership has its Privileges” lounge, I realized that they too, had re-traded their deal. When signing up you were promised all sorts of bennies and perks, along with the obvious ability to have family come inside with you.

Apparently, too many folks had signed up for the AmEx card as well, and there weren’t enough seats in their lounges to welcome the new crowd. Now you had to do $75,000 of business with them each year to have guest privileges re-extended! Otherwise they cost $50 a pop. And oh yeah, BTW, those really nice buffets that used to be complimentary are now cash on the barrel too.

[origami_itto]

Yeah you know a public corporation is an immortal beast with one impulse, "MAKE MORE MONEY" and they will squeeze it from wherever they can find it.

[everything]

different angle, flailing "free" Evernote (why did I ever use it) has just become this beast of "ARE YOU SURE you don't want to give us a gazillion dollars per month" pop-ups and emails and other desperate measures. I once worked for a saas company that was cutting some of its free tiers and it was not pretty. a bunch of greedy execs probably getting giant bonuses from the MAKE MORE MONEY mandate is bleaugggh

[origami_itto]

[everything]

Socialism and tax cuts for billionaires

Capitalism for you suckas

[yeniseri]

How about "Late Stage Post Slavery" along with the cognitive dissonance of legally preventing 1/4 of the population from participating in the natural congress of the nation, preventing them from owning property, taking away their natural rights, burning them out of their homes, taking away their property while giving free land for the 'majority' to farm, own, cultivate...etc and then telling them to pull them up by their bootstraps wey dey don't even wear boots or they have no laces. The crap will catch up with US and it has the potential to be disastrous.

It is even more ominous when we have a candidate for POTUS saying he will become a dictator on his first day of office and people are clapping for joy! This multifaceted juxtaposition has caught up with us and the price has to be paid.
It is obvious that the system has been rigged for centuries but now it is more widespread and even those who benefitted from its past benefits are beginning to see the crap on the WC.

How do we think Wall Street came into being? From the backs of those who toiled for nothing while the same adherents to profit continue their reign of terror thinking it will last forever!

If anything, the descriptive "Late Stage Capitalism" would apply to those nations (given the Eurocentric naming convention of "Third World 'economies") currently reaping some benefit of financial profit but are penalized due to their own "environmental directive tasks to ensure equity in the marketplace.

[Steve James]

"First world" capitalism is illustrated by people who spend thousands on political merch to complain about the economy. Meanwhile, first world legislatures refuse funding school lunches on the grounds that "Then children will grow up to believe lunches are free." Or, they'll arrest a pastor for providing shelter to the homeless.

[windwalker]

AMERICAN FASCISM - BIDEN? TRUMP? THE NEOCONS???

[Steve James]

Well, yeah fascists in the US are capitalists.

[windwalker]

Washington AG Ferguson Wins Another $460,000 in Anti-Price-Fixing Case Against Chicken Producers



US AND EU VASSALS PREPARE MERCENARY ARMY TO SUPPRESS INTERNAL DISSENT

[Steve James]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frhLorB1wvo&t=19s

[origami_itto]

This is a pretty good breakdown of fascist characteristics.

At a certain point you have to get beyond "X is a fascist" and "Y is a fascist" the same way you have to move past "X is a racist" or "Y is a racist".

It's like Bezos and Gates arguing over who's the capitalist.

The system itself is racist, the people merely keep the machine moving. A certain amount of fascism is baked into the system, we need that patriotism to get people to go along with our national goals, but the system itself is becoming more fascist, to the detriment of the citizens.

So, I dunno, take a peek at this list and see how your favorite leaders stack up on the fascist score card. Draw your own conclusions.

All I know is I was watching somebody talk a few January 6th's ago and all I could think was how much he resembled Mussolini in message and manner.

Fourteen Defining Characteristics of Fascism

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism
Fascist regimes make constant use of:
 Patriotic mottos
 Slogans
 Symbols
 Songs
 Flags

2. Disregard for Human Rights
Human rights can be ignored because of fear of
enemies and the need for security.
As a result, people tend to:
 look the other way
 approve of torture
 approve of long incarcerations
of prisoners
 approve of executions and
assassinations

3. Identification of Enemies as a Unifying Cause
People are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy
over the need to eliminate a perceived common
enemy:
 racial
 ethnic or religious minorities
 liberals
 communists
 socialists
 terrorists

4. Supremacy of the Military
 The military is given a disproportionate
amount of government funding
 Soldiers and military service are glamorized
“The
guarantee
of German
military
strength!”
“Through military will, to military strength.”

5. Widespread Sexism
 The government tends to be almost
exclusively male-dominated
 Traditional gender roles are made more rigid
 Divorce, abortion, and homosexuality are
suppressed

6. Controlled Mass Media
 The media is directly or indirectly controlled
by the government
 Censorship is very common
Nazi book burning

7. Obsession with National Security
 Fear is used as a motivational tool by the
government over the masses

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined
 Governments use the most common religion
in the nation as a tool to manipulate public
opinion.
 Religious messages and terminology are
common from government leaders
The German Christians enthusiastically supported
Nazi propaganda, and sought to join Church and
State. To further this end, they wanted to join the
28 regional churches of the German Evangelical
Church into a national Reich Church.
Reich Bishop Ludwig Muller

9. Corporate Power is Protected
 Mutually beneficial business/government
relationship

10. Labor Power is Suppressed
 Labor unions are seen as a huge threat to a
fascist government
 Labor unions are either severely suppressed,
or are eliminated entirely.

11. Disrespect for Intellectuals and the Arts
 Open hostility to higher education
 Professors and other academics are censored, or
even arrested
 Free expression in the arts and writing is openly
attacked
In Germany, in 1937, there was a
traveling exhibit of degenerate art
intended to drum up public
disdain for modern styles. Pieces
were hung willy-nilly in poorly lit
rooms with mocking graffiti all
over the walls.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment
 Local police are given almost limitless power to
enforce laws
 People are often willing to overlook police
abuses in the name of patriotism
 Often a national police force with virtually
unlimited power

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption
 Friends and associates appoint each other to
government positions
 Officials use governmental power and
authority to protect their friends from
accountability

14. Fraudulent Elections
 Elections are often a complete sham
 Elections may be manipulated by smear
campaigns
 Manipulation of the
media to control elections
 Occasional assassination of
opposition candidates

[Steve James]

Aw, it doesn't mention the need for a charismatic, authoritarian figure who is placed above the law. More importantly, who desires and claims to be above the law. That's important, because the one thing they'd never want anyone other than That person to have that position. Everyone can't be immune, after all.

[yeniseri]

I can see the thinking clearly but what bothers me are the same edicts in place that prop up the 1-3%, they actually pass laws to prevents others
(them people, those people, etc) from accessing the same or equal tools to reach their potential. I always refer to the explicit removal of indigenous/
native peoples from their lands and sending them to the reservation we know of today (back then) then giving it to the white settlers to farm and
many of them didn't pay a 'red cent' to get the land. 100 years later evoking the mantra the bootstraps BS Aint dat a bi otch

[everything]

the entire thing is incredibly frightening. slightly (sort of) back on topic, I think what the author of the post is talking about is more the "10%" ( as he mentions, the "1%" already have their private plane and tarmac, no futzing around with the unruly herds ) who can do things like afford the middle of the plane (and not first class) or buy whatever tf Clear is, then they realize there are too many of them demanding all of that. In some sense, it should be a "good" first world problem, but unfortunately those of us in or near this category are "on the take" whether we realize it or not, many of us in jobs for corporations owned by the 1% pretty much hapless to change it .... so really your comments are on topic. but OTOH a lot of this type of urban, super educated, coastal city-dwelling voter base isn't for the fascist dickhead. maybe they are too checked out on vaca. boarding via Clear+ then in their Centurion Lounges while en route to the Disney Lightning Lane.