Modern America's Entire Social and Physical Infrastructure Was Built by Moderates and Progressives, Not Conservatives

 

Example One: Social Security. Democrat Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed Social Security into law in 1935, thereby insuring that retired Americans would have access to some income after the age of 65.

Two: The Interstate Highway System. President Dwight Eisenhower's administration pushed for the federal highway system, which was implemented after the passage of the Federal Highway Act of 1956. Eisenhower was a Republican; however, he was a centrist, not a conservative, and considered Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt to be his primary influences. The Federal Highway system cost 114 billion dollars, equivalent to 535 billion in 2020. Can't imagine Republicans spending that kind of cash today, eh? He also passed the National Defense Act, which increased science education, as well as expanded New Deal programs and Social Security. Christ, he was basically a socialist! Talk about a RINO.

Three: Medicare and Medicaid. Democract Lyndon Johnson signed Medicare into law in 1965, establishing socialized medicine for old and poor Americans. What a fucking communist! Why couldn't he just let the free market provide? Oh yeah, I guess he wanted to help people instead of fucking them. What a piece of shit.

Four: National Parks. Created in 1916 by Democrat Woodrow Wilson.

Five: Unemployment Compensation. Passed as part of Social Security by that commie FDR.

Six: Civil Rights. Passed in 1964 by Lyndon "I'll show you my Johnson" Johnson, the Civil Rights Act outlawed discrimination based on sex, color, religion, race, or national origin. It abolished segregation in schools and prohibited voting regulations designed to prevent minorities from voting. The reason black and white kids don't have to drink at separate water fountains is thanks to this piece of legislation. 

Seven: Voting Rights. Christ, I'm starting to think that Johnson guy was the real deal. The 1965 Voting Rights Act basically enforced the 14th and 15th amendments, and massively increased black voting registration. Unfortunately, a conservative-dominated Supreme Court has chipped away at this landmark piece of legislation in recent years using the absurd logic that such protections are no longer necessary. It's almost as if having your laws interpreted by an unelected body that serves for life isn't a great idea, no?

Eight: Affordable Care Act. Fucking Obamacare! They're gonna put old people in death camps! Wasn't that what they said? I dunno, I just remember the propaganda around the ACA being insane, and this was before social media rotted everyone's brains. What the ACA did was ensure that everyone had access to healthcare, even if their job didn't provide insurance. A record 31 million Americans signed up for coverage on the ACA marketplace in 2021. Motherfuckers should've pulled themselves up by their bootstraps!

Well, what were some big transformative bills passed by conservatives? Ummm... oh, there's the 1981 Economic Recovery Tax Act, which cut the top tax rate from 70 percent to 50 percent and led to the tripling of government debt by the end of Regan's administration. So yeah, I would say that's right around the time when America stopped investing in itself and starting letting the rich hoard their gold. Don't ever let anyone tell you that liberals ruined America because the truth is that without the progressives of the past, Grandpa wouldn't have any Medicare for hip surgery, schools would still be segregated, the poor wouldn't have unemployment or food stamps, and you wouldn't have any freeways to drive on. What the fuck have conservatives ever done besides protect the money of rich people while infringing on civil rights? Oh yeah, I remember the Compassionate Conservative George W. Bush's endless wars in Iraqi and Afghanistan. And of course the Trump Administration passed another tax cut for the rich in 2018. There is a reason why the modern Republican Party runs on hate, fear, and propaganda, and that's because they have nothing else. Conservatives are not interested in making anyone's life better; in fact, they are heavily invested in making the average American's life worse by dismantling the policies that have powered this country since FDR passed the New Deal.  

Cyberpunk 2077 review

 

I feel as though if Cyberpunk hadn't had that disastrous 2020 launch, with the PS4 version being pulled from Sony's online store, it would've been remembered as a classic. It's not quite a great game, but it is very good, and it's chock full of memorable scenes and characters, more so than any game I've played recently besides God of War. Jackie Wells, Johnny Silverhand, Rouge, Panam, Judy, River--they are all well-written and believable, and I felt for them all during my 40 odd hours of play. Sure, Johnny's a douche, but he's also an idealist, and there aren't many of those left in Night City. Night City itself is rendered in such incredible detail that walking its streets is worth the price of admission. Towering skyscrapers, giant holograms, obscene advertisements--it's enough to almost support the illusion that you're in another world. Of course, the NPC AI will break that illusion fairly quickly, but I've always been the kind of person that buys into a gameworld instead of trying to break it. Are there bugs, even after many patches? Sure. I had an elevator button disappear on me, as well as a cop car levitate a couple feet above the ground. I encountered a handful, but they didn't ruin the experience. Regarding gameplay, Cyberpunk is best played when you're switching things up. It's basically a first-person-shooter, even if those shooting mechanics are governed by RPG number-crunching. I started off trying to specialize in pistols and rifles, and ended up adding a bunch of points to Cool for knife-throwing, and ended the game with an automatic sniper rifle that smart-locked onto enemies' heads. On Normal difficulty, it's pretty easy. Driving in this game is weird and erratic, and only motorcycles handle decently. Still, I preferred cruising around to fast travel, just for the chance to view Night City in all its dilapidated splendor. There are a few meaty sidequests, with some of the best involving Johnny and his former Samurai bandmates. As for the open-world elements, they're pretty forgettable, and mostly consist of repeatable hit jobs for the Night City police or purchasable cars. Because the story is so good, I didn't mind, but certainly the lack of variety and detail in these mini-missions is a disappointment. When you realize Cyberpunk is basically a Bethesda game with decent writing, then you appreciate it for what it accomplishes, rather than hating it for what it isn't. Certainly the marketing team is to blame, but the internet shoulders its fair share. I never thought this would be the game to end all games, which is why I probably ended up enjoying it. I'd recommended Cyberpunk 2077 to anyone who enjoys single-player RPGs. Let's pour one out for the RedEngine while we're at it, eh? It's disappointing to see CDprojekt moving to Unreal Engine 5. The RedEngine powered the Witcher 2 and 3 as well as Cyberpunk, and all these titles feature graphics ahead of their time. I'm worried about the performance of Unreal as well as the prospect of losing a cool custom engine. Anyways, time will tell if the move works out.

Screenshots

New Music: The Sadness We Feel

 

Had a simple finger-picked guitar progression that I threw together into a sombre piece. Just a shitty old acoustic guitar that needs new strings and my telecaster. If last year was the year of covers, this might be the year of instrumentals. By the way, where the hell has the year went? I had plans for this blog. Ten posts a month! Unfortunately, time is not unlimited, and my creativity is stifled by my fatigue. Sometimes it's a lot easier to just sit on your ass and play video games and then go to bed. But then you have to remember that you are a person, and a person wasn't made to function solely as an automaton.