The Political Satire/Meme Thread

[GranTurNismo]

The image is misleading, though. It doesn't make it in any way clear that it's supposed to be parroting the views of a neo-con, or anyone else, it's not in quote marks, it's just presented as fact. "Myself and literally anyone with half a brain" doesn't cover it. I'm more inclined to believe that whoever made the image just didn't bother to look up if what they were saying was actually true. Which sort of casts everything else they're saying into doubt.

In the subreddit r/ABoringDystopia, memes which mock neocons' American Exceptionalist view of America are commonplace.

 

[MaxAttack]

In the subreddit r/ABoringDystopia, memes which mock neocons' American Exceptionalist view of America are commonplace.

But outside of the context of the injoke of that subreddit, that isn't clear at all. I don't even know that subreddit exists.

Reddit bad because echo chambers.

 

[Sander 001]

 

[GranTurNismo]

Good 'ol Prosperity Gospel.

 

[Touring Mars]

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2020/jul/11/20-photographs-of-the-week

 

[Chrunch Houston]

 

[Liquid]

View attachment 939704

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2020/jul/11/20-photographs-of-the-week

 

[UKMikey]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...presidency-could-be-dangerous-violent-trumps/

 

[FerrariF1GT]

In the subreddit r/ABoringDystopia, memes which mock neocons' American Exceptionalist view of America are commonplace.

I browsed that subreddit. Good [insert deity here] those takes are terrible. Mocking American exceptionalsim barely scratches the surface.* Poor economic takes, class reductionism, blaming people with opposing views for all the country's/world's problems (don't take this to mean that I think conservatives should be absolved of responsibilty though), and believing that the right person in charge would magically solve all those problems. There's no nuance or discussion; there's no understanding of how government and economics work (to be fair, both are very complex matters and I won't pretend that I know the answers to both). It's reactionary leftism, and it's no different than the reactionary right.

*To be clear, I don't approve of exceptionalism either; it's undeniable that the country has problems and you don't have to be left-wing to believe that; it doesn't mean that it's a 'boring dystopia' in the sense that it's used in the subreddit though.

 

[UKMikey]

Spoiler: language

 

[Dennisch]

 

[UKMikey]

 

[Dennisch]

 

[Sander 001]

 

[Danoff]

What does it buy us vs. what does it cost? You put zero thought into these.

 

[Sander 001]

 

[Danoff]

We have more information now. Keep not thinking about it. If we knew then what we know now, perhaps we'd have kept schools open.

I think you're literally just picking sides based on who is saying what.

 

[Sander 001]

 

[GranTurNismo]

No. That would be unpatriotic and socialist.

 

[Liquid]

He tried to warn us all. We should have listened.

 

[yas]

 

[Sander 001]

 

[Danoff]

Damned American companies hiring Chinese people. They owe 'Mericans those jobs!

 

[FerrariF1GT]

The guy who made that tweet doesn't realize how expensive labor is and can be. Corporations outsource labor because the labor is cheaper, not in spite of it. Labor, just like any other resource, can be exchanged between parties, so the jobs were never 'stolen;' just taken elsewhere. If people want something, someone's got to do the work to create it.

Want the jobs taken back here? The easiest way to do it is to abolish the minimum wage because the minimum wage here has a role as to why companies are moving their labor elsewhere. Yes, there are other reasons such as availability of resources, the costs to import resources, and the attitudes people have with working (which kind of has to do with pay). Besides that, people have to be willing to do the work for the pay the employer's providing because labor is voluntary. Only if people aren't willing to do the work will employers raise their wages.

Does abolishing the minimum wage sound scary to you? Well, here's the alternative: everything becomes more expensive and fewer people can afford things. This would only further separate the rich from the poor.

I don't know. I think I need a better libertarian and/or economist to make my case.

 

[Danoff]

The guy who made that tweet doesn't realize how expensive labor is and can be. Corporations outsource labor because the labor is cheaper, not in spite of it. Labor, just like any other resource, can be exchanged between parties, so the jobs were never 'stolen;' just taken elsewhere. If people want something, someone's got to do the work to create it.

Want the jobs taken back here? The easiest way to do it is to abolish the minimum wage because the minimum wage here has a role as to why companies are moving their labor elsewhere. Yes, there are other reasons such as availability of resources, the costs to import resources, and the attitudes people have with working (which kind of has to do with pay). Besides that, people have to be willing to do the work for the pay the employer's providing because labor is voluntary. Only if people aren't willing to do the work will employers raise their wages.

Does abolishing the minimum wage sound scary to you? Well, here's the alternative: everything becomes more expensive and fewer people can afford things. This would only further separate the rich from the poor.

I don't know. I think I need a better libertarian and/or economist to make my case.

It really smacks of Trumpist nationalism to me. It's not ok when corporations outsource a job to some foreigner. Those jobs are supposed to be given to our people at our prices. Who cares that it's putting food on the table of some foreigner, that's nothing important.

 

[Rage Racer]

 

[Danoff]

 

[NotThePrez]

I don't have a picture, I just came to say.......what the hell is that man smoking, and how can it be destroyed?

 

[GranTurNismo]

Want the jobs taken back here? The easiest way to do it is to abolish the minimum wage because the minimum wage here has a role as to why companies are moving their labor elsewhere. Yes, there are other reasons such as availability of resources, the costs to import resources, and the attitudes people have with working (which kind of has to do with pay). Besides that, people have to be willing to do the work for the pay the employer's providing because labor is voluntary. Only if people aren't willing to do the work will employers raise their wages.

I don't know how else to say it, but abolishing the minimum wage would inevitably lead to many employers will cut the wages of their lowest-income employees. Is this really what you want? It's been proven time and time again that multi-national corporations will do anything at the expensive of others to maximize their bottom lines. If anything, the minimum wage needs to be raised (in many places, significantly raised) all across the nation. My rationale is, if a business cannot afford to pay all of their workers at least somewhat adequately, they shouldn't be in business adequately. And most businesses, both big and small, absolutely could afford fairer wages for their employes. The "it's bad for business" argument has been used against literally every workers' reform in US history, whether it be banning child labor, allowing unions, strikes, giving unions bargaining power, and pay equality for women and POC, yet last time I checked none of these reforms directly impaired the US economy.

You're not wrong when you say that higher minimum wages will likely result in outsourcing, which is precisely why so many different items are manufactured in Southeast Asia. And if every Southeastern Asian nation decided to mandate fair wages, than I suspect many, not all but many, businesses will move their operations to other poorly regulated places, like Africa. Even leftists like me are faced with this tough question. How do we ensure fair wages for all without having mass outsourcing? The government can't just force a business to stay in the United States, nor can it nationalize every industry.

And of course, the issue for many low-wage workers across the country is that they don't have a strong enough say in their wages. If a low-wage worker asks for a raise, it will most likely get denied. If they protest for one, they will most likely be fired, as low wage workers, in most sectors, are very replaceable. More than half of states across the country, even majority-blue states, have Right-to-Work laws which ban unions from collectively bargaining with their employers. This is why unions form and strikes break out. Yet CEOs and upper-level management can virtually decide their salaries on a whim. A way to aid this problem would be mandating that all corporate boards have at least ONE worker (ideally more than one though) present. Virtually all multi-national corporations do not have any actual workers on their boards. This was something that Bernie Sanders as well as other progressive politicians campaigned on.

 

[Danoff]

I don't know how else to say it, but abolishing the minimum wage would inevitably lead to many employers will cut the wages of their lowest-income employees. Is this really what you want? It's been proven time and time again that multi-national corporations will do anything at the expensive of others to maximize their bottom lines. If anything, the minimum wage needs to be raised (in many places, significantly raised) all across the nation. My rationale is, if a business cannot afford to pay all of their workers at least somewhat adequately, they shouldn't be in business adequately. And most businesses, both big and small, absolutely could afford fairer wages for their employes. The "it's bad for business" argument has been used against literally every workers' reform in US history, whether it be banning child labor, allowing unions, strikes, giving unions bargaining power, and pay equality for women and POC, yet last time I checked none of these reforms directly impaired the US economy.

You're not wrong when you say that higher minimum wages will likely result in outsourcing, which is precisely why so many different items are manufactured in Southeast Asia. And if every Southeastern Asian nation decided to mandate fair wages, than I suspect many, not all but many, businesses will move their operations to other poorly regulated places, like Africa. Even leftists like me are faced with this tough question. How do we ensure fair wages for all without having mass outsourcing? The government can't just force a business to stay in the United States, nor can it nationalize every industry.

And of course, the issue for many low-wage workers across the country is that they don't have a strong enough say in their wages. If a low-wage worker asks for a raise, it will most likely get denied. If they protest for one, they will most likely be fired, as low wage workers, in most sectors, are very replaceable. More than half of states across the country, even majority-blue states, have Right-to-Work laws which ban unions from collectively bargaining with their employers. This is why unions form and strikes break out. Yet CEOs and upper-level management can virtually decide their salaries on a whim. A way to aid this problem would be mandating that all corporate boards have at least ONE worker (ideally more than one though) present. Virtually all multi-national corporations do not have any actual workers on their boards. This was something that Bernie Sanders as well as other progressive politicians campaigned on.

Most workers are not paid minimum wage. Most of them earn more than that, because they earn it. Minimum wage hurts poor people, it prevents them from accessing jobs that would otherwise exist. It creates a barrier to entry for the workforce.

2.3 percent of hourly workers make minimum age. You think this is some kind of huge problem that corporations will never pay more than they're required, but 97.7% of hourly workers are paid ABOVE minimum wage VOLUNTARILY by corporations. Why do you think that is?