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Culture War Roundup for the week of September 30, 2024

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Why should a mistake costing one life shatter the government?

Keep in mind that the last 4 years have taught us that even intentional mistakes by the government can cost millions of lives. Nobody seems to bat an eye at that (probably because it raised their socioeconomic standing)- whereas the death penalty is not, has the disadvantage of being showy and dramatic, and the media class can't make money off of it.

Isn't "intentional mistake" an oxymoron?

There's a billion possible things ThisIsSin could be referring too, but a simple one would be delaying the COVID vaccine trials so it could not be an October surprise thereby dooming high 4 digit to low 5 digit elderly Americans to dying in winter 2020-2021.

"Intentional mistake" seems like a weird way to describe that. It was an indisputably evil thing done for tactical, realpolitik reasons. The term "mistake" implies that the perpetrators have come to regret that decision, and I very much doubt they have.

You really think someone would do that? Do the wrong thing on purpose just to spite their enemies?

I don't understand what you mean by "intentional mistake". I understand the concept of doing the wrong thing just for the sake of spiting your enemies. I understand the concept of doing what you thought was the right thing (morally or epistemically) at the time, but later coming to realise you were wrong. But I don't know what "intentional mistake" means in the context in which you're using it.

Eh? Which part are you talking about?

The simplest explanation is that Daddy Stalin was right about statistics. I don’t find that very compelling from a moral standpoint.