The book is very different from the film, especially in tone. The film is pure satire, but the book was quite serious in its anticommunist themes, going so far as using the Arachnids as a metaphor for - specifically - Asian communists. Heinlein thought of Asian communists as virtually mindless, sacrificing themselves for the collective - like bugs.

People always talk like a civil war is inevitable here because of our “political divide”, but it’s not. The reactionary elements of the US have all the power that matters here. Even when elements try to make good on their progressive platforms they used to win elections, they show a total inability to meaningfully enforce things. The institutions meant to enforce laws are corrupt and conservative as hell. Pass an unconstitutional law to beat up pro-Gaza supporters, they’ll enforce it in a heartbeat; pass a constitutional law to demilitarize the border and they’ll let state NGs do whatever they want.

The only war that I ever see happening here is if enough rabid reactionaries slip the leash, believe their own hype, and try to take down their paymasters. A Night of the Long Knives, and it’ll end the same way: with the rabid dogs put down by their corporate masters.

I like my tree nuts, but why they have to make it so unethical to enjoy…?

Is that why pistachios are so goddamn expensive for the past few years? Or was that going to happen anyway?

I agree. I’m just saying I don’t think the person would sympathize.

Not really, no. I don’t seek out evidence to justify my worldview. In fact, any time I come across something that reaffirms what I believe, my first instinct is to verify by checking multiple sources and waiting for confirmation that it’s not just a lie. We don’t think getting banned on a liberal or fascist forum makes us martyrs or justifies our worldview. Some people do it to harass fascists, but most MLs who get shutdown on other forums honestly were just trying to explain their views and were punished for it. The only times I’ve ever seen people banned in ML circles were for repeated instances of bad faith argument and harassment.

You may get downvoted to hell, but as long as you aren’t being a thoughtless asshole, you’re not likely to get banned, lol. Even if you are, you can appeal and will probably be listened to.

You’re probably giving them too much credit. The spies would have to be US or UK, or puppets of those regimes, for them to say what we’re saying. I suspect they don’t favor the USSR over the Nazis.

Have you ever watched “Midnight Mass” on Netflix? There’s a Muslim sheriff in the small US town, and he talks about the same thing.

They have a need to justify their warped worldview. They believe we’re evil authoritarians, and they are taught to hate authority (unless it aligns with their wants), and so they will harass and argue with us in bad faith until they are inevitably banned, all so they can say “See? They silence those they disagree with!” They have a martyr complex and think harassing people online by talking out of their ass is like standing up to tyranny. It helps them deal with the dissonance of believing they’re free and righteous while supporting the most warmongering regime in human history.