"I like friends who have independent minds because they tend to make you see problems from all angles." -Nelson Mandela

"Chess is a simple game. Understandable when all we had to play with were squirrels 🐿 and rocks, but now we have computers 💻." - Elon Musk

"The Economist is a journal which speaks for British millionaires." - Lenin

Here are some quotes from article #1,000 about China being about to collapse.

Last year the country achieved growth of 5%, but

but

Xi Jinping’s response is to double down on an audacious plan to remake China’s economy. Blending techno-utopianism, central planning and an obsession with security

techno-utopianism = using science to improve your country. central planning = when the government does stuff. obsession with security = protecting China from the United States' various proxy forces in the region

the mood in China is dour

What amazing reporting. "China will collapse because, like, the vibes are fucked."

consumers are depressed, deflation lurks and many entrepreneurs are disillusioned

Yes, unlike in the United States of America. All our consumers love the high price of rent and groceries! No disillusioned people in the USA!

Relations with America are steadier, as a phone call between Mr Xi and President Joe Biden this week attested. But they remain fragile.

WWIII will happen tomorrow, no actually it won't, wait actually I don't really know. Either way, this is bad for China. I am very smart.

Abnormal people. :kelllyemote:

The one good debate bro.

Starmer had previously refused to state whether trans women like Lia Thomas should be allowed to compete in women’s sport amid accusations from Harry Potter author JK Rowling that his party could “no longer be counted on to defend women’s rights”.

Ah, so this is what the Labour party is designed to do: make billionaire feel better about imaginary threats from minority groups.

The star-studded event featured 2,000 animals, a fireworks show, and a two-hour performance by Rihanna. Videos from the extravagant party show Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan chatting to guests Bill Gates and Hillary Clinton.

They were also seen admiring the groom's $1million Richard Mille watch, which featured Koi Fish models and bezel set diamonds. Priscilla joked she "might want that", while her husband commented: "You know I never really wanted a watch but after seeing that I was like, 'watches are cool'."

Literally commodity fetishism happening in real time.

Before the big bash, guests were given a nine-page dress code

Contractual drip.

The bride-to-be is the daughter of billionaire Shri Viren Merchant, CEO of private health firm Encore Healthcare. Ambani is the youngest son of India's richest man Mukesh Ambani.

So this is the fail-son of a billionaire who profited off building clothing sweatshops all over India and the fail-daughter of a billionaire who profits off exploitative medical care (which should be free and nationalized).

Radhika and RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani visited a number of temples across the country earlier this year to offer prayers. Radhika and Mukesh Ambani, along with RIL director Manoj Modi, paid a visit to the Shrinathji temple in September. They then went to Kerala's Guruvayur Shri Krishna Temple and Andhra Pradesh's Tirupati Balaji Temple. Mukesh Ambani donated Rs 1.5 crore to the nearby Tirumala hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara.

Oh, they're philanthropists. All is forgiven! https://www.wionews.com/trending/who-is-radhika-merchant-know-details-about-her-father-viren-merchants-net-worth-and-her-fiancee-anant-ambani-547773

By the way, Lord Venkateshwara is supposed to give wealth to all who worship him. It worked for these two, maybe it will work for you too. https://www.venkateswara.org.uk/shrines/lord-venkateshwara-balaji

English Kings named Charles and dying due to their own stubbornness - name a better duo.

I have not played Palworld but I love that it has exposed the greed and capitalist rot of the company that makes Pokemon. Seriously, the "old guard" video game giants like GameFreak, Valve, etc. are putting out lazy content and sucking up billions from micro-transactions, lazy retreads, and subscriptions. It's just funny to see capitalists be bad at capitalism.

Prelude 1: "Was it worth it Hamas? Now what? Whats your plan?" -Extreme_Attention_99

Prelude 2: "The plan is to blame Israel for the destruction of civilian infrastructure and have a bunch of idiot leftist college kids to echo it on their behalf when not demanding student loan forgiveness." - TheRealAuthorSarge

The Absolute Banger: "As a leftist who supports military action in Gaza (and who paid off my student loans early), I agree. Not so often these days we have issues that don't split neatly down party lines, but this is one of them. My entire circle is fairly progressive, and there is a ton of support for Israel." -citori421

I had to dig a little further into the profile of citori421. Here's his "progressive circle" btw:

I have so many friends who maybe make 100k per year between them and their partner, buying $500,000 houses. https://www.reddit.com/r/ImTheMainCharacter/comments/18tbjl9/im_awesome_because_i_quit_my_job_and_became_a/kfha7m9/

He also, surprise surprise, hates women:

Like 90% of women flexing their business prowess on tiktok, there's a solid chance some dude with a boring real job is financing this https://www.reddit.com/r/ImTheMainCharacter/comments/18tbjl9/im_awesome_because_i_quit_my_job_and_became_a/kfgmh9e/

Apparently he lives in... Juneau, Alaska? Which means he gets a yearly $1,600 dividend from the Alaska Permanent Fund. Checkmate, capitalist!

It's a graveyard of non-professionals who dreamed big and failed hard. Don't move to Juneau unless you have plans to hit six figures like tomorrow. But it is one of the most "big city" little towns in the world. https://www.reddit.com/r/alaska/comments/18se4ud/best_city_in_alaska/kf8qkzy/

Oh, and he also admits he's a "fed" in the subreddit r/fednews. No, I am not joking:

I'm in a position as a fed where I get reference checks for past interns with a whole form I'm supposed to fill out like I'm performing a fuckin background investigation for them. For basic entry level jobs that will just be OJT. https://www.reddit.com/r/fednews/comments/18rahwc/always_make_sure_you_have_rock_solid_references/kf1xr22/?context=3

And the COUP DE GRACE, an amazing anti-Trump post that both proves how "progressive" this guy is while also being incredibly classist AND using an anti-neurodivergent slur:

Trump belongs in jail, because he's a criminal. There's a mountain of evidence and literal court decisions and the only thing saving him at the moment is politics. He'll eventually die in prison, and you'll switch to beating yourself off to the next right wing wannabe dictator that makes you feel safe by lying about the world and pretending to be able to do things for sure white trash to pull themselves out of the hole they dug themselves into. Also, lmaooooooo at your "source". This comment should be in a textbook chapter 200 years from now about the extent of r-t-rdation trump worshippers engaged in. [my censorship] https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmTheMainCharacter/comments/18qnx8d/no_words/key7kag/?context=3

Guys, I think if we win in 2024 we can PUSH THIS GUY LEFT. His name is Timmy Blackstone Google, and he owns ten butlers, and a private helicopter. But at least he's a Democrat, right? We can't let those fascist right-wingers win next November, right?

Also, I love that Sachs Goldman led the impeachment trial against Trump. He is fine with inheriting a fortune based on extracting labor from children in sweatshops. But breaking the sacred traditions of democracy? Sir, that cheeto has gone too far!

Broke: Hijacking an airplane.

Woke: Getting HBO to pay you to hijack an airplane, as a joke.

I'm imagining the AI-generated films of the future, where you can change the gender of any character by pressing a button. Like choosing your own character in a video game. Or maybe auteurs could use this kind of like how Bob Dylan was played by four different actors in I'm Not There.

There is a tangled web of infuriating comments below. Some are calling this descendent of anti-Castro refugees a "Gigachad" for denying genocide. Others are quibbling over the definitions of "genocide," vs "ethnic cleansing," vs. "mass displacement."