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Politics
Politics | - Aristotle
8 posts | 24 read | 14 to read
Aristotle (384 - 322 BCE) has been referred to simply as The Philosopher, and Cicero called his literary style a river of gold. That said, Aristotle wrote primarily to teach his students at the Lyceum, so what remains of his writing are not highly polished tracts meant for wide readership. Thus Aristotle's Politics, which is a philosophical exploration of the ideal political community, reads like a series of jumbled lecture notes: scholars cannot agree which book goes where, or whether or not some of it was lost. He traveled widely, cataloguing every possible permutation of human governance from democracy to tyranny. The eight books in Politics, however tedious and complex, have central themes: that a state has a nature that is definable and knowable, and that the role of citizens cannot be determined without this knowledge. Also important is the role which political life plays in the development of the citizens of a state.
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vivastory
Politics | Aristotle
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I do talk about politics on my feed from time to time, however I don't often speak about how it impacts my job. That changed today when because of the government shutdown (& to be clear R's currently control the entire federal government); it was made clear that beginning 11-1 (SNAP AKA Food stamps for people w/ IDD ,in my field) end. We went from a yr ago when people complained about the price of eggs to *literally“ no longer being able (CONT);

vivastory To buy eggs whatsoever bc they will no longer have SNAP benefits. These are the most vulnerable people in our country, but we have politicized EVERYTHING to the point where I am seeing emergency meetings held in my agency. If you voted for this, WTF. IF this pisses you off, then you can explain to a vulnerable individual In your family on SNAP why they are no longer worthy of receiving the *bare minimum “ of being a human who should receive food (edited) 3mo
Readergrrl It is beyond exhausting, but we simply must not let this cruelty stand. I am so sorry that you are dealing with this as so many are. 🫂 3mo
vivastory @Readergrrl Where I work at I'm in the health department and we're already planning food drives etc. & Im not saying this to give my department self-congrats, but just to point out how cruel & absurd this is. My agency serves people with disabilities of varying types... it's not like a lot of them can go and get jobs that would pay enough...but their food benefits are being cut off (month of Thanksgiving no less) It's enough to make Scrooge blush (edited) 3mo
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DrSabrinaMoldenReads This is so awful 3mo
vivastory @DrSabrinaMoldenReads America 10-205.... 3mo
Prairiegirl_reading I also work with people with disabilities but I live in Canada. I‘m terrified for folks down there. I‘m so sorry this is happening to them and to you. I can‘t believe people voted for this. 3mo
Posh_Salad I was just talking about this. A women my friends and I know feeds her 5 kids with SNAP benefits and she voted for this regime. Now the kids aren't getting school lunches and they aren't going to have enough food for the holidays. Meanwhile, the government is handing out planes like Halloween candy. 3mo
TheBookHippie @vivastory I literally fought every day this summer and through the fall to make sure the kids got free breakfast and lunch. 3mo
TheBookHippie @vivastory we have the kids taking home food on the weekends we figured out sack lunches for supper… we are setting up pantries in the schools. My everyday is trying to get kids fed and it‘s abhorrent. There is enough food. I‘m terrified for my Teen moms WIC will be cut. SNAP running out soon. We‘re all just trying to figure out a plan. 3mo
TheBookHippie @vivastory I‘m terrified for the disabled as well. 3mo
Deblovestoread It is all devastating. We can afford to remodel the White House but not feed our most vulnerable citizens WTAF are we doing. 🤬🤬🤬 3mo
IriDas This must‘ve so hard for you and your coworkers. I‘m going to have to see if my work is doing anything. We are a TK-8 low income come district so we should be doing something. Maybe we‘ll all finally come together and create community to help. 3mo
AnnCrystal There seems to be no empathy in this new government...feels like empathy is outlawed ✊🏼🤬🥺🌟. 3mo
BarbaraBB I am so sorry for this. I hope it will at least finally open the eyes of people who voted for this mad government. 3mo
KT1432 I hate seeing nasty people gloat about it too. I hate it here. 3mo
Amiable @KT1432 Same. I vacillate between wanting to escape and wanting to march on DC with pitchforks, tar and feathers. 3mo
Cuilin @KT1432 yes! I watched a TikTok of someone criticizing people with snap as she herself was eating. It was disgusting. What happened to America first?? 3mo
lil1inblue My heart just aches. 💔 3mo
TieDyeDude I don't understand how, in one of the wealthiest countries on earth, we need to do food drive for community kitchens, teachers and parents have to buy supplies to stock their schools, and healthcare puts people in life-long debt, and half the country votes for those who say we are giving away too much. This is why you can't run the country like a business; the gov't is supposed to support all, not just those who can afford to pay for everything. 3mo
vivastory @Cuilin That is repulsive. That person needs to have the guts to walk up to an individual with a disability and tell them why they aren't worthy of a basic need. Hiding behind a social platform is easy, the title of this book keeps popping up in my mind 3mo
sarahbarnes I‘m sorry Scott. I was in a meeting this week where people were talking about needing to ask the public to make cash donations to food banks to brace for November without SNAP. Of course if the govt wanted the payments to go out to states they could do that, but they‘re choosing another way to hurt the people who have the least. Again. 3mo
Branwen I hate it here 😔 3mo
vivastory @sarahbarnes It's sickening 💝 2mo
Suet624 Pressure needs to be put on all of these Republicans. Sit-ins at their offices, at their homes. They are complicit. Lack of health care and food will kill so many people. 2mo
vivastory @Suet624 They'd probably see that as an act of terrorism now 😡 2mo
57 likes26 comments
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Suet624
Politics | Aristotle
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I‘ve been working at the City on the Mayoral election. In the town where Bernie Sanders won the 1981 election by 10 votes, Max, a Progressive, just lost by only 129 votes. It was a 3-way race against a Dem incumbent -a developer. Personally I was really sad to see Max lose but all the progressive ballot issues passed and he will remain the President of the Council. This is the last of 3 big elections for me and soon I‘ll have time to read again!

The_Penniless_Author Oh wow, I didn't know you were involved in Burlington politics. We had some crazy close votes here as well. The incumbent chair of our selectboard lost by just four votes, and the evergreen question of whether to merge the Village and Town failed again by only 17 votes! 5y
AmyG Max is my daughter‘s friend. She hated going anywhere public with him because everyone knows him and would stop him to talk. 🤣He is young and will run again....and hopefully win. My husband became mayor of our town (years ago)...he won by 13 votes. (edited) 5y
Suet624 @The_Penniless_Author Oh! Are you in Essex? How funny. Did you see that in Rutland they had a tie for a selectboard position? 5y
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Suet624 @AmyG I just feel as though ranked choice voting is the only way an election should be held. Otherwise you get stuck with only a two party system. Also, the current Mayor vetoed ranked choice voting for mayoral elections but is allowing the option for city council positions. He knows which side his bread is buttered. 5y
AmyG I agree with ranked choice voting. We were talking about this last night at dinner. Max will run again. We all think some day...he will be Mayor. 5y
Suet624 @AmyG fingers crossed. He‘s a good man. 5y
The_Penniless_Author @Suet624 I did see that. It's crazy how close these contests were all across the state. Wonder if that will encourage greater turnout next go around. 5y
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Jgotham
Politics | - Aristotle
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I‘m getting a little bit annoyed with Goodreads. They are allowing one-star reviews (even hundreds in a day) and saying it‘s not a violation-Must just be a coincidence it‘s from LGBT authors or discussions on immigration, etc..and it‘s always something like this “private” so you know it‘s a bot. They need to crack down on this crap

Riveted_Reader_Melissa Yes they do! I was just commenting with @GingerAntics about why GR can‘t keep better sortable categories, so you could easily track reading diverse authors....this is probably why, to prevent harassment! 6y
GingerAntics @Riveted_Reader_Melissa that could be something only each individual user can see for themselves. If GR doesn‘t want to crack down on this, they‘re never going to start tracking authors‘ genders, ethnicities, or LGBTQ+ status. I know Amazon has its issues, but they really need to step up here. 6y
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Bookwomble
Politics | - Aristotle
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TrishB Our house for the last 48 hours, I said no more and then started it again. ☹️ 6y
Leftcoastzen I weep for both sides of the pond.😢 6y
Bookwomble @TrishB Same! For the next 5 years, any time somebody complains about *anything*, I'll be asking how they voted, and if it's Tory = 🤬! 6y
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Bookwomble @Leftcoastzen A time for tears, and a time for action ✊🏻 6y
Leftcoastzen Agreed !✊ 6y
Weaponxgirl Knew you‘d be feeling the same. I‘ve only just managed to be able to watch the news again 6y
Bookwomble @Weaponxgirl I definitely needed a palate-cleansing break from the news, too. 6y
23 likes7 comments
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Emilymdxn
Politics | Aristotle
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I feel like brexit has used up all my emotions. Avoiding politics made my mental health so bad, so I‘m trying to embrace being involved - long term it‘s helping a lot but today I feel lonely and tired. My MP sent another dismissive letter today, and it took my whole lunch to even find the name of my councillor to contact.

I‘d love to connect with other littens feeling beaten down, and any recs of books to keep me fighting appreciated

suzisteffen Oh my gosh, it must be awful (it‘s also pretty depressing to live in the US right now, of course). I will say that reading history books about hopeless times and people DOING THINGS TOGETHER to change them helps me, but it can also just be so grim. That‘s when I read mysteries or romances that, you know, have reassuring endings. But ~ sympathies. It‘s a very tough time. 7y
suzisteffen Oh, & the first book I read post-2016 election that made me feel like we are gonna fight on was, interestingly, Alex Chee‘s 7y
Bookwomble I totally get your feeling. Brexit had left me exhausted and somewhat disillusioned by the political process, and what seems to me the path you isolationism and self destruction we seem to be on as a country. I still hope that "we shall overcome" though. The tagged book might help ? 7y
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Emilymdxn @Bookwomble @suzisteffen thank you so much for your solidarity and recommendations! Those books look amazing 7y
Amiable I‘m feeling like the state of American politics is beating the sense, hope and life out of me. I understand where you‘re coming from. 7y
Weaponxgirl I‘m with you! I‘m so exhausted by the whole thing and society as a whole right now. I‘ve been reading about pussy riot right now and I‘m finding them inspiring, if they can protest under putin then we can keep going knowing we aren‘t alone is how they‘ve made me feel. Got a few books on my radar if you fancy doing any buddy reads and feel free to just hit me up if you need to vent ect. 7y
Weaponxgirl @Bookwomble thanks for your recs as always 7y
Emilymdxn @Weaponxgirl always up for reading and sharing inspiration/education together. Consciousness raising 💪 I‘m so tired at this point, but also aware that I‘m so young and will have to fight for a lot more as I hope to be around for another 60-odd years and there‘ll be a lot of fights in that time, so I have to work hard on seeking out inspiration and optimism. Pussy riot is a great shout! I‘ll look into books about them 7y
Weaponxgirl Sorry, I‘m gonna spam you with books now. This is the one I just read and I got it for cheap on kindle 7y
Weaponxgirl I just got this one from the library today and is next up 7y
Weaponxgirl I haven‘t read this one yet, but it sounds like it would be good for the both of us . Remember taking care of yourself is just as important! You can‘t always look after others and not yourself 7y
Weaponxgirl And I read this one this year and it gave me stuff I can do! It was hopeful 7y
Libby1 ❤️ 7y
AlaMich Fellow beaten-down human here in the US. It‘s all so relentlessly awful, it feels like it will never get better, but it has to, right? Right??? 7y
Emilymdxn @AlaMich solidarity 😘 this too must pass right 7y
62 likes16 comments
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amb
Politics | - Aristotle
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1. I didn't even know he was running lol
2. Harry Potter series
3. Zero, I killed my lucky bamboo, so that's how it's going.
4. Gym
5. Deer, snowshoe hares, birds, spiders, hornets, butterflies, gopher, wild turkeys, occasional coyote. As an aside I live near an elementary school in a neighborhood with lots of activity but have more wildlife every year.
@MinDea #humpdaypost

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Vivlio_Gnosi
Politics | - Aristotle
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"For two principles are characteristic of democracy, the government of the majority and freedom. Men think that what is just is equal; . . . men should not think it slavery to live according to the rule of the constitution; for it is there salvation."