That's part of why it's not a question that can really be answered firmly. One person may find group consciousness of an identity really important, while another may find it stifling. How can you really evaluate something like that and say "it's good" or "it's bad"? It simply exists and has its effects, whatever…

Based on your stories, you're not kidding about the mixed signals. I never understand what the fuck any of the guys you've been talking about are doing. This breakup sounds like it was completely out of nowhere.

This may sound like a Mystery Men answer, but I think that identity politics often help people form a political identity. Everyone needs a way in if they're going to start trying to make sense of politics. Thinking about yourself in terms of what you see as your place and the way other people treat that is about as…

Maybe because he throws the balance of power right off. perhaps? It would be a bit BMX Bandit and Angel Summoner.

Now I'm curious. Do you recall why you found them so depressing? I thought they were melancholy, but that was part of the charm for me.

That Kinsey case was infuriating in so many ways. The actual act was the worst part, of course, but the clumsy lies of the department afterward were something special.

I always imagined that Reuters or whoever does something like that for the raw stories that newspapers and such then turn into finished articles, but maybe one of the actual journalists around here could point you in the right direction.

One interesting aspect of this is the premise that dominating a conversation is a matter of quantity of speech, not content. It seems to be true, but isn't that strange? I don't generally think of blathering as a skill to condone, but as this suggests, guys getting up and filling the air with words get to determine…

One way in which that system doesn't work is that it ties up a large portion of economic activity in loans. People take out a large amount of money in loans to pay for school and then pay them back, with interest, for quite a long time. That's money that could be flowing into any variety of other businesses, but is…

Makes sense, based on what I've been reading. I guess my only other question is whether you're specifically not voting Clinton (i.e. one of the other candidates besides Sanders would have been fine) or if it was specifically Sanders you supported and not the Democratic party. I'm just curious as to whether they lost…

It's definitely complicated and expensive, but Germany is, if anything, an argument in its favour as far as economic benefits go. Anyway, Sanders was really obviously not going to accomplish that goal for the reasons that you stated. It's beyond a cliche for me to point out that election promises are a byword for…

It's judge
Try it with some fudge
It's not very daring,
but might leave you bearing a grudge

Well, if we're just talking hypothetically here, it could probably be done with a minor-to-moderate increase in taxation and a reduction in the military budget. It's a tricky thing to sell; you're asking people to pay now in order for the nation to get a tangible, but invisible, benefit later on. Well-educated…

If you don't mind me asking, who are you going to vote for (if anyone)? You've been clear on not voting Clinton, and I don't recall you supporting Trump, so are you going to go third-party on this one?

Jesus, talking about politics is getting cumbersome. Now I'm learning, right here and now, that this word I've been treating as a neutral descriptive term is a horrible insult depending on who hears it? Maybe it's time to say goodbye to shorthand for a while. Trying to talk about politics is like building a…

Considering that a) I haven't heard a better term for what it describes (and believe me, I'd like one; it's not really very descriptive on its own) and b) this "Bernie or Bust" thing is probably going to seem about as memorable and influential as Kony 2012 in a few years, I think people are safe to stick with talking…

They're worried that you'll learn the secret of modern armoured vehicles: they're surprisingly weak against jousting.

What? Neoliberalism is a term used to describe a political and economic philosophy. I had a class on social policy two years ago that discussed it in reference to the influence of globalism on politics. I've always found it to be a generally-understood term. How is it meaningless and/or an insult?

That's true for most food. Home cooking is usually better than your average restaurant. When people eat at a fast food place, the "fast" part is the emphasis.

It's weird. I'm probably not going to get around to watching this whenever it comes out, but I hope it does well. Smith is odd for me in that I like him, but I haven't gotten around to watching anything he's made since, like, Dogma. I haven't really heard good things (though Red State sounded like it could be my…