flipht, 1 year ago to memes in Second Cousins

It's not hard.

Cousin # = # of generations back to your shared direct ancestor - 1.

So if you share a grandparent (2 generations away), you're 1st cousins.

removed is how many generations away you are from each other.

So if your parent is first cousins with someone, you're first cousins once removed. You're second cousins to their kids. You're second cousins once removed to their children.

flipht, 1 year ago to mensliberation in Opinion: Why do so many young white men in America find fascism ‘cool’?

Because they are immersed in an ecosystem that pretends that respect for human dignity and unearned respect for authority are identical because they use the same word.

They believe that others should respect the innate authority they feel they should hold as men. Simultaneously, since they don't get that, they don't feel like they need to respect other people's right to exist.

And then a group promises them everything they've ever wanted, if they are willing to do fascist shit. Of course they're into it.

flipht, 1 year ago to memes in The art of saying nothing

I usually say oof when the conversation is a trainwreck I wouldn't want to contribute to.

flipht, 2 years ago to bestupdates in Company throws a corporate retreat at a plantation in southern Alabama with a period-appropriate costume ball, only black guy that works for the company shows up dressed as a slave.

The difference between Napoleonic, victorian, etc. eras vs. slavery and/or WW2 is that we have a subsection of the population that has been very clear that they see themselves as the spiritual successors to the slaveholders AND the Nazis, and that given a chance they will try to re-enact those policies.

People can have fun with historical periods that don't have direct current events tie-ins, but when normal people are confronted with weird fascist dog whistles, it gets very uncomfortable very quickly.

flipht, 2 years ago to asklemmy in What would you call a monarchist government where multiple families rules in turns?

Look at historical examples like the Serene Republic of Venice.

Basically you have an oligopoly that controls the levers of power and elects one of their own to be the leader.

Also read up on selectorate theory. There's a good book called The Dictator's Handbook that goes into detail, and for a shorter way to consume this info you can watch the YouTube video Rules for Rulers which is based on the same book.

All governments are nested resources distribution streams. Resources flow up to the decision maker, which then distributes resources back down the chain to buy loyalty to maintain power. Regimes change when one side or the other experiences a major disruption.