naraburns nihil supernum
1yr ago
(text post)
30317 thread views
Israel-Gaza Megathread #2
This is a refreshed megathread for any posts on the conflict between (so far, and so far as I know) Hamas and the Israeli government, as well as related geopolitics. Culture War thread rules apply.
you are not qualified and have nothing to offer", and "your analyses are burdensome."
Every so often you get reminded just how based absolute monarchy is.
Seems like Saudi's leadership / MBS is tasking at least one religious authority (Imam? Ulema? mufti?) to tell people in Saudia to not talk about Gaza anymore (quote-tweeted video on twitter).
Didn’t MBS give Kushner a few billion to manage just to stay in the Trump family’s good books? MBS must know that if Trump’s in power then a combination of his own family and friends, his closeness to various conservative zionists, his moving of the embassy, congressional republicans including neocons and evangelicals, and various other things will drive him invariably to take a hardline (moreso than Biden) pro-Israel stance.
If that happens and Saudi Arabia is on the ‘Arab’ side of that kind of conflict, that risks his whole play with Kushner, risks support versus Iran and with the Houthis etc. Most Arab leaders clearly want this to go away as soon as possible, even if the status quo returns to where it was (which they were largely fine with).
Isn't that a fun trick of wordplay? It would be fair to say "Alice gave her car to Bob" if Bob is working the Valet Parking dropoff, but leave out that bit of context and suddenly the still-technically-accurate statement becomes grossly misleading. Bob is probably getting a nice tip for a nice car, but in the end he's not getting a nice car.
Most of the reporting I've seen on Kushner has been clear about the distinction, but not all...
Eh, giving kusher 2 bn to manage so he can collect fees is like giving him like $20 million each year while his expenses will be minimal (he could literally stick it in an index fund and laugh all the way to the bank), not as blatant as giving him 2 bn, but still giving him a substantial amount.
This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a
court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to
optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.
The weekly Culture War threads host the most
controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are
appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy;
if in doubt, post!
Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts.
You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.
Why are you called The Motte?
A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently,
it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey",
originally identified by
philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial
but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens
this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for
the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired
propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."
On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.
New post guidelines
If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it.
A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts
such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a
submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).
Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or
significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
Every so often you get reminded just how based absolute monarchy is.
Didn’t MBS give Kushner a few billion to manage just to stay in the Trump family’s good books? MBS must know that if Trump’s in power then a combination of his own family and friends, his closeness to various conservative zionists, his moving of the embassy, congressional republicans including neocons and evangelicals, and various other things will drive him invariably to take a hardline (moreso than Biden) pro-Israel stance.
If that happens and Saudi Arabia is on the ‘Arab’ side of that kind of conflict, that risks his whole play with Kushner, risks support versus Iran and with the Houthis etc. Most Arab leaders clearly want this to go away as soon as possible, even if the status quo returns to where it was (which they were largely fine with).
My understanding is Kushner is managing the $2 billion (and collecting fees on it) but was not given the $2 billion.
Isn't that a fun trick of wordplay? It would be fair to say "Alice gave her car to Bob" if Bob is working the Valet Parking dropoff, but leave out that bit of context and suddenly the still-technically-accurate statement becomes grossly misleading. Bob is probably getting a nice tip for a nice car, but in the end he's not getting a nice car.
Most of the reporting I've seen on Kushner has been clear about the distinction, but not all...
Eh, giving kusher 2 bn to manage so he can collect fees is like giving him like $20 million each year while his expenses will be minimal (he could literally stick it in an index fund and laugh all the way to the bank), not as blatant as giving him 2 bn, but still giving him a substantial amount.
I basically see this as bribery with extra steps.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link