10-31-2019
Congress will return to their Districts this week
This is potato.txt, a GitHub Gist file
| For a while those in my circles have heard me speak about a “potato” as a unit of data. | |
| So what is a “potato” in this context? Surely through learning about the lifecycles of potatoes, we can learn something. | |
| Potatoes, when they refer to “real news” or are about something of importance to the greater discussion. | |
| Donald Trump has rather often referred to stories as “big potatoes” or “small potatoes”. | |
| The audience understood when Trump said on Hannity (immediately following release of the Mueller Report) that the | |
| things the 2016 Trump Campaign did were “small potatoes” compared to what was done by the other side. | |
| What is being discussed when a “small potato” story is talked about may amount to many shared or divergent opinions. | |
| Some factors exist (such as the available facts) which make varying standpoints (in a small potatoes way) valid and | |
| relevant to the greater discussion. For instance in certain cities across the Country we see a trend in crime which points to | |
| the emergence of a state of public unrest in an area. Though a San Francisco Democrat will surely turn the other cheek at the | |
| addition of a Sharps Disposal Unit on every downtown block, or by the 20 lb. bags of shit which can be readily found abandoned | |
| and in a cooled off state… it is a “big potato” in terms of its potential damage to the society which we still call the “land | |
| of the free”. And while 99.0% of those in SF do properly dispose of their waste, it is the growing 1% that leads me to be gravely | |
| concerned and therefore vocal on this issue. | |
| >>> One could say that small potatoes become big potatoes. Everyone knows that potatoes cannot become big unless they are first small. But not always, and it is of course always relative to a number of factors. It is up to the speaker to say why | |
| they feel one thing or another is a small or big “deal” and it often comes down to whether more or less time should be devoted to speaking about or addressing the issue. And as far as labels are concerned, a potato is only useful as a label as long as others are using their time to discuss either the affirmative or negative side of the referenced issue. Additionally, whenever new facts can be brought into a potato debate, there is a chance for the potato to grow. Facts Matter. | |
| When we hear “so what” or “no big deal” about a claim this often indicates that the facts which matter to either side of the debate lack common visibility or are being spoken about in different venues. There is now a form of segregation in our society in this way. For this reason it’s important that a potato post incorportates both sides of the argument you’re making. Show the root of your non-agreement with the other side by trying to publicly illustrate the logic or motive of the other side. Give it a try! | |
| So the correct thing to do, the revolutionary thing to do, is to make progress no matter what the cost. No barrier in human inginuity should intimidate us. We should be driven to be best as we can be. | |
| There are merits in saying the other side of the argument (if you happen to feel there is a real one, or if you have a go-to explanation for opposition). If there are notable facts (or a label, or even a lie that gets repeated but is false), include it alongside your argument and try to make your own view clearer by explaining another view that you think suits the argument. Even if you must include a particularly sarcastic or challenging counterargument, it helps to clarify your reasons by simply sharing something. Like if you say, “DEPLORABLES” in your reasoning, that means something. Like, the only way someone would want to support [THIS CANDIDATE] is that they’re deplorable and lack moral ground to stand on. To me, that sounds pretty harsh to one candidate. | |
| As is the case with the IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY there are arguments to be made, about the actions of the 44th and 45th administrations. | |
| I believe that Barack Obama and Joe Biden breached their oath of office during the course of their 8 years destroying the sole of Democracy. It’s time that we investigate all of the serious wrongdoing that’s in plain sight. Principal over party, US Constitution over US corruption. Let’s see justice be served, and the good vs. evil and right vs. wrong not be hindered by an unfair presentation of abuse of power, betrayal, corruption and wrongdoing on the part of BO and JB. | |
| “We are fighting for the sole of Democracy” | |
| -E. Cummings (RIP 2019) |
