Continue To Engage

With Modifications:

Earlier Today

          I sent the following to our (Rabble Rousers) group:

          A modest proposal: I would like, in the not too distant future, to be displaying a very large banner, supported by many people, reading "popular vote".

          As everyone (should know) (knows), virtually every aspect of the formation of this country involved compromise.

          As everyone (should know) (knows), the ability to modify the structure of our self-governing society was institutionalized because, in part, the founders were aware that they were not omniscient.

          A contemporary discussion of instituting a constitutional change to implement the National Popular Vote should be quite different than the original discussion. I suspect, however, that there is a certain well defined segment of our population that are very upset by the possibility of "we the people" each of us having an equal influence on the election. Some people still have trouble understanding that state, even county, lines do not a personhood make. I am stunned by the number of individuals that are unable to understand the notion of a distant state, even a different county, being populated by autonomous individuals embodying a variety of personalities. Prejudice runs deep ...

          A National Popular Vote would, at the very least, complicate the process of buying a presidential election.

          So, what say you, my co-conspirators;

RIP

          Shortly thereafter one member suggested:

          Ok, I had an idea of using the 2 banners to say LET"S TAKE OUR DEMOCRACY BACK

          The really good thing about this group is that it is filled with really motivated individuals. As a result I am expecting the continuation of fruitful conversations. Perhaps some that have chosen to take a break will choose to get back into the game.

RIP

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Comments

a wild variety of species here
can't thank you enough for making
the effort to congeal our DNA
in an intelligent way

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PriceRip's picture

@QMS

          DNA => DeoxyriboNucleic Acid

          DNA => Democratic National Assembly

          DNA => Democratic National Alliance

          DNA => Do Not ?

          DNA => ?

RIP

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@PriceRip @PriceRip

Dipolar Nerdiness Association

or

Drag Net Accumulation

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Alligator Ed's picture

@QMS Depressed Neuronal Access

Dubious Noetic Assimilation

Deploring Non-common Acronyms

etc.

Please more puns. Both a request and a target.

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travelerxxx's picture

Your Rabble Rousers group sounds like something I was involved with back in the day. Ours was known to its members as the Midnight Ramblers Bicycle Club. Gradually, we all faded into the winds. Sometimes I wonder how to find such like-minded folks. In a way, I'm like Groucho in that I wouldn't be a member of any group who would have me. On the other hand, here I am.

PriceRip, I know you haven't been in your present locale all that long. How'd you run into your Rousers so quickly? Natural gravitation to like souls?

(By the way, our MRBC was just below your dear Nebraska, where the wind blows from the south.)

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PriceRip's picture

@travelerxxx

          Serendipity and three degrees of separation is the method. It was a convoluted sequence of contacts starting with joining the Lifelong Learning Institute and then connecting through a series of local groups involved in various civic projects.

          As a result of my experience in Nebraska I have a bit of an adeptness w.r.t. "reading" the sociological "terrain". The "new age", "self-flagellating" index presented a bit of noise masking the signal, but once I began to get that sorted out it wasn't too hard to make this connection. The concomitant connection with the environmental contingent is in the works. So, in the not too distant future (fingers crossed) I should be able to start futzing around with the status quo.

          Speaking of Nebraska and locales just to the south: My initial impression of intractable conservatism gave way to a more nuanced view of the social dynamics. Field biologists divide roughly into two opposing philosophies, Lumpers versus Splitters. At first I was struck by the lack of diversity (like a Lumper) until I started noticing the subtle variations (like a Splitter) in the population. In some ways Nebraska was a very good place to learn to do social engineering to facilitate conflict resolution.

          The real challenge now is that it is possible the intensity of the conflicts may have taken us too far into the nonlinear realm. If the stress drives the strain to too great a value, distortions become irreversible and structural failure becomes imminent. If this is the situation the only remedy available will require annealing and I suspect the heat would need to be beyond endurable.

RIP

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travelerxxx's picture

@PriceRip

So, in the not too distant future (fingers crossed) I should be able to start futzing around with the status quo.

From what I've read of some your experiences in NE, it sounds as though you've got the background to do exactly that. I've been impressed that you folks impeded or stopped destruction of the Platte River. At least, that's how I understand part of what you did in NE. That's pretty damn impressive. Besides, I like the Platte.

As a scientist, you're light years ahead of anything I've been involved with. Takes all kinds, though. You've also got my respect with regard to your overpass display. Doing that where I live would endanger one's health bigly unless bulletproof undergarments were worn.

"Intractable conservativism..." is something I grew up in the midst of, so I never had your "initial impression" of it. Or so I thought. When I moved to Louisiana and later Texas, the baked-in degree of it left a mark. I'm still not comprehending it sometimes. However, working alongside native Southerners for decades also led me to something akin to your somewhat "nuanced view of the social dynamics." Probably a lot of that had to do with listening rather than talking. So I discovered that what, at first, I thought was baked-in was often just something to wear on one's sleeve. A lot of my conservative co-workers ran far deeper than your Platte. They usually weren't comfortable showing it publically. However over time, with a developed rapport they often amazed me. Perhaps not so conservative at all.

I often mention that I was a known Bernie Sanders supporter in the previous horse race. This was well known to my co-workers. I had quite a few come to me with questions regarding Sanders. Usually, these were the most (outwardly) conservative of my co-workers. I was shocked at first, not only by the large number of them, but also shocked by their views – especially when they started mentioning how they agreed with Sanders' ideas. None of these men (they were all men) spoke publicly to me re Sanders, but rather in private. In public, they were all still redneck bluster. Get them alone, and it was a different matter. Of all of them I spoke to re Sanders, all but one would have voted for him ... given the chance.

I wonder when you allude that today's situation "...may have taken us too far into the nonlinear realm" you are speaking as if looking at a graph, where the trend is spiking vertically and rapidly. If so, I'm thinking you're right about the heat needed for "annealing."

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