The American public isn’t unhappy with them, though. Republicans are at worst annoyed and the large segment of non-voting/non-political people aren’t invested either way. It’s Democrats who are unhappy with them, but they already knew that.
then, and only then, will it sink in: it wasn’t worth it, and they wasted whatever platform they thought they built
If this comes to pass it still has nothing to do with “scaring the rest of MAGA straight.” At best you’ll have these assholes crying into their pillow in prison, forgotten by any significant movement outside.
Then there’s the possibility that they never get pardoned but become martyrs/celebrities on the right (already happening), or the possibility that Trump wins in 2024 and they do get pardoned. Again, nothing here to dissuade the broader MAGA movement.
After being sentenced, Biggs called into a vigil held by pro-insurrectionists outside the jail and declared that his 17-year sentence was “insanity,” even though it was half what prosecutors had asked for. “They can kiss my ass. We’re still fighting all the way to the end,” he told the crowd, imploring them to “never give up.” He also called into “Infowars” to insist, “We didn’t do anything wrong.”
No one has been scared straight here. The ones who got got are martyrs to the cause and the ones who flip are traitors or plants.
They’ll either be more careful next time or they’ll be just as sloppy but convince themselves it’ll work out, because this time is different.
A bunch of people say they do have it, though. A “decent salary” (also self-defined) doesn’t guarantee financial freedom because of things like debt, the astronomical cost of healthcare, and the fact that you’ll never be able to comfortably retire unless you’re a literal multimillionaire.
You’re describing a developer. Most landlords aren’t developers.
And yes, the government should take on the role of developing residential properties and ensuring everyone has access to them. Housing is not a commodity, it’s a basic human need.
The status quo is hard to change. The British are responsible for changing the status quo from “don’t really care” to “illegal.” That also has effects on how people grow up thinking about LGBT rights, which is how you get support for a law that’s ratcheting up the oppression.
I don’t think this article should be read as “the Brits are fully responsible, period,” but as an example of how the many harms of colonialism still leave marks today.
My theory – based on us seeing numerous violations of the Prime Directive from main characters – is that the interpretation of the rule is “you better be willing to risk your career if you break this,” not “your career is 100% over if you break this.”
It’s a heuristic, and a good one, but there seems to be in-universe exceptions for exceptional cases.