Bloomberg reported yesterday that if Sen. Sanders implemented his highly progressive tax plan, billionaires could face an effective tax rate of up to 97.5%. This will be met with complete apoplexy amongst the ruling-class, but, apart from the fact that it is entirely correct that governments use punitive tax regimes to discourage socially destructive behaviour such as ruthless exploitation and wealth hoarding, let’s put it in perspective.
If Jeff Bezos was hit by a 97.5% wealth tax, he would still be a billionaire. His fortune currently stands at roughly $108,200,000,000. After a Sanders wealth tax, he would still sit atop a hoard of almost $3.75bn. The tax from he alone would enable the federal government to wipe the debt of a million students (c. $50bn), to train half a million new grad nurses (c. $25bn), to pay the entire education budget of the five lowest spending states for a year(Utah + Idaho + Arizona + Oklahoma + Mississippi = c. $24bn) - andstill, still have enough spare change to double federal spending on energy efficiency and renewable energy ($4bn).
And that’s just one big fish.
Put in that sort of context there is simply no moral justification for any individual to have the private enjoyment of the sort of wealth that could seriously adjust the social outcomes of a entire nation’s working-class.
Pitchforks are an extremely moderate and conservative reaction.
Nerds These Days: You can’t have epic fantasy without epic battles, it’s a necessity of the genre!!!!
Jolkien Rolkien Rolkien Tolkien, originator of the genre: … anyway, Bilbo got hit on the head, and then when he woke up the battle was over!
Jirt writing “Helms Deep”: I guess I can tell you about the battle that happened, but I’m only going to spend half a page on it, so pay attention.
Some other post somewhere made this point before but it’s worth saying again: this is probably partially because Jirt served in WW1 and was kept from dying at the Somme by pure chance, and he knew better than to write lengthy scenes of glorious battle because war is not glorious, it is horrific and the less time spent in it the better.
How do you communicate when the government censors the internet? With a peer-to-peer mesh broadcasting network that doesn’t use the internet.
That’s exactly what Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters are doing now, thanks to San Fransisco startup Bridgefy’s Bluetooth-based messaging app. The protesters can communicate with each other — and the public — using no persistent managed network.
The app can connect people via standard Bluetooth across an entire city, thanks to a mesh network. Chatting is speediest with people who are close, of course, within a hundred meters (330 feet), but you can also chat with people who are farther away. Your messages will simply “hop” via other Bridgefy users’ phones until they find your intended target.
That’s incredibly futuristic
Pi Zero W is $10 and has built in Bluetooth connectivity.
You can find Solar USB Power Packs for ~$25.
So for less than $50 and a little time investment to load some programs you can have an autonomous bluetooth repeater.
I think they only run at Class 2 or 2.5mw so 10 meter range… but there are DIY solutions to amplify it to Class 1 for 100 meter range.
But even at 10 meters, given this sort of program uses a packet delivery system, if you are constantly on the move you’re effectively a postman for the system as it will transmit every time it comes in range of another compatible program.
Man do you ever think about how many places Zuko has broken into? Like
The Western Air Temple (twice), which was canonically built so that it could only be reached with airbending
(It’s also implied he broke into the other three too)
The Northern Water Tribe, whose defenses hadn’t been breeched in 100 years and was also currently under siege
Pohuai stronghold, which was on high red alert after capturing the fucking Avatar
Avatar Roku’s temple, mostly notable because he broke through a naval blockade to get there (dude wtf)
Lake Laogi, the secret underground headquarters of Ba Sing Se’s evil secret police that is also crawling with Earth benders
(Ba Sing Se at large doesn’t count since they forged their papers)
The Fire Nation capital’s prison, where the main threat to the Fire Lord’s rule (Iroh) was imprisoned for months
His own family’s vacation home (this isn’t an achievement I just thought it was funny)
A thousand+ year old sacred site dedicated the first firebenders that was also full of booby traps, Indiana Jones style, because why not
The Boiling Rock, the highest security prison in the Fire Nation
The headquarters of the Southern Raiders, an elite naval force on an island in the middle of nowhere
The Fire Nation’s royal palace, which was admittedly mostly empty at the time but still had Azula in it
His own family’s vacation home (again) after getting banished (again)
he’s…a rogue. How did I not realize that he’s a rogue. Who happens to firebend.
One of my favorite things about zuko is he thinks of himself as a failure for not being a firebending prodigy, but is actually INCREDIBLY competent (even prodigious!) At almost everything else
