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PaperclipPerfector  14d ago (text post)   33670 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of February 24, 2025

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I'll respond by saying it's unsurprising that one who argues on behalf of science targeted by DOGE is also in the corner of lobbyists.

LOL, not my most tactful argument but this forum is about "light not heat" so I'm willing to be less persuasive if it means I'm more intellectually honest.

One of these days I do want to do a top-level post about lobbyists. Maybe this isn't the right spot, but it simply isn't obvious to me that there's anything inherently evil or awful about a collection of lobbyists and special interest groups duking it out on a variety of issues and competing for lawmaker attention. I mean, first of all, what's the alternative? Second of all, how can you tell the difference between a well-meaning non-profit advocacy group and the "bad" kind of lobbying? And finally, it seems objectively true that for better or worse, there are numerous areas where good legislation literally cannot be created by a well-meaning, completely fair, and intelligent individual with a little extra time. At some point you do need people with specific industry/subject matter knowledge, and there's a limited pool of people with those qualifications. And absolutely zero of them are going to be completely impartial.

Second of all, how can you tell the difference between a well-meaning non-profit advocacy group and the "bad" kind of lobbying?

That's one of the inherently awful things about them?

And just because you can't eliminate bias doesn't mean you have to allow it.

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