they go together. FPTP means two major parties. if those parties were “strong”, voters would have a menu of two insider-selected candidates, not satisfactory. so a broader range of public choice is provided through the (catastrophic) kludge of primaries. 1/
if you fix FPTP, you can have multiple strong parties with free entry for aspiring new parties, then there’s no need for primaries. /fin
one hopes there is hope.
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Some thread openers from X: “I cannot stress how important this is.” “Everything changed today.” “I present to you [XXX] that you will NOT believe are real.” “9 wild prompts for image and video” “10 wild examples + Try it now & Code” “WAIT UNTIL YOUR ALONE, YOU WON’T LAST 20s THROUGH THIS THRÈAD”
it’s not like Elon and Donald shook hands on giving all the contracts to Tesla, SpaceX, even The Boring Company (why not?). it’s just their interests were aligned, once Elon bought the election. can you really describe that as corrupt?
(my sense of humor is perhaps a bit too dry. yes, you can obviously describe it as corrupt, or at least i can. i was mocking a not-great post on corruption, linked below.) bsky.app/profile/eric...
Loading quoted Bluesky post...
“As with donations to a presidential inaugural committee, gifts to the library fund fall between the cracks of campaign finance regulations and rules governing ethics in office.” @jacobtlevy.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | Qatar’s gift to Trump reveals a loophole big enough to fly a jumbo jet through
Link Preview: Opinion | Qatar’s gift to Trump reveals a loophole big enough to fly a jumbo jet through: A $400 million present shows how presidential libraries remain a blind spot in U.S. corruption law.
"we don't need any kind of corruption law. that's what the ballot box is for, right?"
that would make it a dramatically better thing, for sure.
good discussion by @deanbaker13.bsky.social of alternative mechanisms for funding “innovation and creative work (ICW)”. cepr.net/publications...
Professor Stiglitz’s Contributions to Debates on Intellectual Property
Link Preview: Professor Stiglitz’s Contributions to Debates on Intellectual Property
this definition would exclude revolving doors, the common practice under which public officials whose actions favor an industry are foreseeably hired into extravagant sinecures after their terms. no, the Supreme Court won't convict this as bribery. but in ordinary (and correct) usage it is corrupt.
Loading quoted Bluesky post...
“Apple’s strategy in China has resulted in a transfer of technology and know-how so consequential as to constitute a geopolitical event” @patrickmcgee.bsky.social www.thetimes.com/business-mon... ht Brad Setser
How Apple helped China become America’s biggest tech rival
Link Preview: How Apple helped China become America’s biggest tech rival: Apple relied on cheap Chinese labour as it become the world’s most valuable company. But there was an unforeseen consequence: the millions of workers it trained would go on to transform the Middle Kin...
obviously i want to push out these authoritarians, even though of course not everything they do i’ll disagree with (substantively, i might procedurally). but much of the public is clearly more ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ about the authoritarianism. if it seems to deliver for them, they might increase their support.
how should one react to left populism by executive order? i think this is really hard. 1/
Loading quoted Bluesky post...
should one applaud him for at least making a clear attempt to finally deliver for people, rather than throwing up his hands, mumbling “Congress” and overselling the very modest reforms Congress permits? but then we are buttressing lawless authoritarianism, trading a “win” for losing everything. 2/
should one stand defiantly on procedural and “democracy” grounds, denounce the lawlessness, de facto present oneself an ally of rapacious pharma? 3/
maybe the right position is “support the idea, denounce the implementation, challenge Congress to make it law”. 4/
but the if Congress does finally deliver pharma price restraint in response to Trump’s bombasts, it’d be a huge victory, a real achievement for the administration. how does one weigh elevating the worst people in the world against providing a very real victory for the public? /fin
This is fascinating. The claim is an enzyme has a domain unrelated to its main binding site that (accidentally?) regulates transcription of genes implicated in Alzheimer’s. Binding that domain with a small molecule can inhibit its role in advancing the disease. scitechdaily.com/scientists-d...
Scientists Discover Hidden Cause of Alzheimer’s Hiding in Plain Sight
Link Preview: Scientists Discover Hidden Cause of Alzheimer’s Hiding in Plain Sight: Researchers found the PHGDH gene directly causes Alzheimer’s and discovered a drug-like molecule, NCT-503, that may help treat the disease early by targeting the gene’s hidden function. A recent study...
that’s what social media is famous for!
i guess that’s right. it’s like envying a heroin smoker and getting what you want by developing a fentanyl habit.
who got what who wanted?
it’s like elite Republicans believe their “Biden Crime Family” propaganda, but what they experience is not faux outrage over corruption, but a challenge to outdo their rivals in competition.
the symbolism that it will be Air Force One is really something. all those patriotically coded films, the President under threat or making hard calls from Air Force One. brought to you by the Emir of Qatar adds a new spin.