Who’s saying “nuh uh”? It could go both ways.

I’m saying (in winey child voice), “nuh uh! I’m not a communist! I’m an anarcho-blahblahblah, and there are nuanced distinctions between blah blah blah! Nyah!”

Marsupial is saying, “nuh uh! China doesn’t blame Western capitalism for the opium trade! They only blame the Brits!”

I have no disagreement that typical “tankies” would call the Five Eyes an empire and Western hegemony, but calling the idea “tankie” is just using a thought-stopper to avoid talking about the idea that empires serve those with power and not the other way around.

And I just fucking disdain fervent communists, so Marsupial struck a nerve. I’d rather be dismissed for what I actually think.

lmao, just to be clear, I think tankies are little CCP dick-sucking bitches, but anyone who throws around a thought-stopper like “tankie” really doesn’t deserve respect. C’mon, you can engage with the merits and flaws of an argument, right?

If you want to get into a whole ad hominem thing: I’m suspicious of communism (free markets are great for almost everything), and communist revolutions are a joke. I haven’t finished reading Das Kapital, but I’ve heard that the capitalism will inevitably create communism out of the consequences of its own actions, so any revolution is just trying to force the wheel of time forward. I also think it is plain to see that you can’t have a communist government without democracy (preferable direct democracy), because how can everyone be equal otherwise? China’s communism is just capitalism in a trench coat, which is why you see the same effects on its populace as elsewhere. Fundamentally, I’m an Anarcho-syndicalist or Anarcho-socialist. No hierarchies, free association, worker solidarity, and mutual aid.

Thanks for pointing that bit out!

So if this quote is to be believed:

“This represents a blow to (the cartel’s) financial operations and illicit activities, since the company receives chemical shipments from China,” Salazar said in a statement.

It looks like China is struggling to enforce their controls. I’m trying to think of a reason that doesn’t boil down to a lack of political will. I don’t blame them, though. They certainly have a bunch of more pressing, complex domestic problems (balancing environment, business, and social welfare). I would certainly shrug as well when Uncle Sam comes whining when those he trampled on are dying from poisons you’ve made illegal and are being produced somewhere else. It’s not like any other nation can perfectly control their imports and exports. They probably are just denying it altogether to save face with their people.

I’m always surprised at just how capitalist Chinese businesses are.

Interesting. Your quote says China controlled fentanyl, but states the precursors were restricted in the Hong Kong SAR, and they may go through the SAR.

Does China itself restrict the precursors? Or could they be making their way out through other routes?

China certainly helped get the ball rolling for the 4 years between 2015-2019, and then divested itself to some extent, which is driving the demand for other sources. I doubt India is going to stop exporting precursors anytime soon. Their pharmaceutical industry is insanely unethical.

Mexico is mostly owned by the narcos, so they’ll “cooperate,” but the fentanyl will continue to flow as long as they can get precursors. It seems the US has quite a pickle on its hands.

Hopefully, the crisis will die out over time? (oof, that’s a lot of bodies) Unless the US pharmaceutical companies have a new, “non-addictive” pain killer they’re promoting these days.

Eh. It’s one empire these days. Just a big ol’ Western hegemony.

EDIT: This video might provide some clarity on where I’m coming from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOF56wYTl1w

The powers that went to war with China over the opium trade are the same; they’ve just moved into a bigger house across the pond.

The fentanyl crisis is just revenge for the opium trade.

EDIT: My mind has been changed by the incredibly patient Carcosa. It’s certainly not top down, but I still think that the CCP remembers the opium trade when thinking about this issue, which contributes to how much they’re willing to disrupt their own pharmaceutical production to enforce their controls absolutely.

You hear that Venus? We’re coming for you!

https://web.archive.org/web/20230717194719/https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230717-death-toll-in-kenya-starvation-cult-case-passes-400

I fully support this. You do you. It’s your computer; you can do what you want with it. Whether you’re using it for work or play, if it’s the way you like it, then it’s not wrong.

I love that this implies Visual Studio is not worth its salt, because it most certainly isn’t.

Yeah, this feels like “premature optimization”. When you design your applications and databases, it should reflect your understanding of the problem and how you solved it as best as possible. Using DATETIMEOFFSET NULL when you actually mean BIT NOT NULL isn’t saying what you mean. If you already understand that you have a boolean option and you think you might need a timestamp to track it, use 2 columns. Or an audit table. So sayeth the holy SRP.