Daniel Drucker
@danieldrucker.bsky.social
Philosophy professor at UT Austin who thinks about attitudes, epistemology, and communication. https://www.danieldrucker.info/
Do you think the reaction would've been meaningfully different if the 8 had tried to level with the base (say, here) before voting as they did? I guess I'm skeptical anything would've changed, but maybe.
November 11, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Do you think the reaction would've been meaningfully different if the 8 had tried to level with the base (say, here) before voting as they did? I guess I'm skeptical anything would've changed, but maybe.
I certainly get it, I just wish I saw more people treating this as a hard call rather than fuel for more rage. I think it disincentivizes Democratic politicians from being honest with their base or incentivizes them to choose irrational strategies in service of not being yelled at.
November 11, 2025 at 1:25 PM
I certainly get it, I just wish I saw more people treating this as a hard call rather than fuel for more rage. I think it disincentivizes Democratic politicians from being honest with their base or incentivizes them to choose irrational strategies in service of not being yelled at.
Surely part of it, though, is a kind of conflict-seeking maximalism in the base that disregards costs, especially non-political costs (e.g., to federal workers).
November 11, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Surely part of it, though, is a kind of conflict-seeking maximalism in the base that disregards costs, especially non-political costs (e.g., to federal workers).
Is 'fight every time, no matter the tradeoffs' the rule here? If not, is there a pain point for ordinary people (federal workers, SNAP recipients, air travelers) where this rule should be suspended in the face of opposition stubbornness?
November 10, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Is 'fight every time, no matter the tradeoffs' the rule here? If not, is there a pain point for ordinary people (federal workers, SNAP recipients, air travelers) where this rule should be suspended in the face of opposition stubbornness?
The anonymity of the crowd is another interesting factor though imo, it's a general disadvantage of elites in dangerous or unpredictable circumstances right?
November 6, 2025 at 9:35 PM
The anonymity of the crowd is another interesting factor though imo, it's a general disadvantage of elites in dangerous or unpredictable circumstances right?
I guess I'm just wondering who the person who is currently voting GOP but would vote for a person with that mix of positions is. When I imagine them, I would guess they would already vote for Democrats, but that's obviously not a rigorous method.
November 5, 2025 at 2:20 PM
I guess I'm just wondering who the person who is currently voting GOP but would vote for a person with that mix of positions is. When I imagine them, I would guess they would already vote for Democrats, but that's obviously not a rigorous method.
In American politics now, the wealthiest districts tend to be Democratic already, no? Quick Google search gave me this: www.businessinsider.com/marcy-kaptur...
This 40-year veteran lawmaker shows top Democrats one eye-popping chart revealing her party's problem winning over the working class
According to a chart compiled by Rep. Marcy Kaptur's office, Democrats overwhelmingly represent the wealthiest parts of the country.
www.businessinsider.com
November 5, 2025 at 2:16 PM
In American politics now, the wealthiest districts tend to be Democratic already, no? Quick Google search gave me this: www.businessinsider.com/marcy-kaptur...
I think you're right that that affect is mixed in in a lot of cases to be clear, probably drives it.
November 4, 2025 at 11:59 PM
I think you're right that that affect is mixed in in a lot of cases to be clear, probably drives it.
'Extrovert' lol, I dunno about that one. Overall I guess I think it's just hard to call someone a genuinely direct compliment in these contexts. 'Rebel' isn't wholly positive, MTG could be described by say the NYT as a rebel, ditto 'iconoclast'. 'Trailblazer' feels more descriptive.
November 4, 2025 at 11:58 PM
'Extrovert' lol, I dunno about that one. Overall I guess I think it's just hard to call someone a genuinely direct compliment in these contexts. 'Rebel' isn't wholly positive, MTG could be described by say the NYT as a rebel, ditto 'iconoclast'. 'Trailblazer' feels more descriptive.
Right, but a lot of 'aloof' usage comes in places where they just can't call any politician cool, at best they would for like Paul Newman types.
November 4, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Right, but a lot of 'aloof' usage comes in places where they just can't call any politician cool, at best they would for like Paul Newman types.
Is the thought process something like, "to say something clearly positively valenced like 'cool', even if objectively true, would appear to compromise our objectivity, so we'll say something less descriptively correct, like 'aloof', so as to get close to 'cool' but not risk losing credibility"?
November 4, 2025 at 11:53 PM
Is the thought process something like, "to say something clearly positively valenced like 'cool', even if objectively true, would appear to compromise our objectivity, so we'll say something less descriptively correct, like 'aloof', so as to get close to 'cool' but not risk losing credibility"?
What's the basis for the comparison, would you say? But either way, with Senate malapportionment, that explains why the GOP and Democrats would need to pursue different strategies. (It's not like the Democrats have a plan to fix the media environment, either way, though.)
November 4, 2025 at 2:58 PM
What's the basis for the comparison, would you say? But either way, with Senate malapportionment, that explains why the GOP and Democrats would need to pursue different strategies. (It's not like the Democrats have a plan to fix the media environment, either way, though.)
van Inwagen can do it one better
October 30, 2025 at 9:51 PM
van Inwagen can do it one better
It sounds like the plot of A Clockwork Orange, but with robots! I think a lot of people think that what was done to Alex is horrifying, but of course opinions may differ.
October 29, 2025 at 2:43 PM
It sounds like the plot of A Clockwork Orange, but with robots! I think a lot of people think that what was done to Alex is horrifying, but of course opinions may differ.
Waaaay too many Vance quotes for sure
October 29, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Waaaay too many Vance quotes for sure
Eh, I really dislike Peters, but I thought it did a good job of capturing the milieu and how it seemed to affect him.
October 29, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Eh, I really dislike Peters, but I thought it did a good job of capturing the milieu and how it seemed to affect him.
What? The article is about specifics.
October 29, 2025 at 1:03 PM
What? The article is about specifics.
This isn't quite right, I don't think. You can be a slave so long as if you _did_ want to do other things, you would still be forced to do what you're doing.
October 29, 2025 at 11:31 AM
This isn't quite right, I don't think. You can be a slave so long as if you _did_ want to do other things, you would still be forced to do what you're doing.
Much like 'aunt', 'FFIII' has a less marked meaning, and it's not FFVI.
October 28, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Much like 'aunt', 'FFIII' has a less marked meaning, and it's not FFVI.
I thought this was a little different, because while "the Liar doesn't express a proposition" is a relatively plausible position to me, it's not plausible that the question I'm pointing to isn't really a question.
October 27, 2025 at 12:08 AM
I thought this was a little different, because while "the Liar doesn't express a proposition" is a relatively plausible position to me, it's not plausible that the question I'm pointing to isn't really a question.
I was thinking there's nothing inconsistent about a "no" answer to your sort of question?
October 26, 2025 at 11:57 PM
I was thinking there's nothing inconsistent about a "no" answer to your sort of question?
That's from "Questions"; I think he modifies the view in "Questions in Montague Semantics", but I'd need to go back and check.
October 26, 2025 at 11:46 PM
That's from "Questions"; I think he modifies the view in "Questions in Montague Semantics", but I'd need to go back and check.
"A question is equivalent to a decomposition (or section, or division) of the possible universes. The set of possible universes is split up into a number of subsets, each subset representing an answer to the question, i.e., consisting of exactly those universes consistent with the answer."
October 26, 2025 at 11:46 PM
"A question is equivalent to a decomposition (or section, or division) of the possible universes. The set of possible universes is split up into a number of subsets, each subset representing an answer to the question, i.e., consisting of exactly those universes consistent with the answer."
"No": then it's not true, but it says of itself that it's not true, so it's true. Contradiction. Neither is a possibly correct answer. In fact, it seems to have no possibly correct answers at all. But the question seems meaningful. So, Hamblin's view of questions is wrong. What do people think?
October 26, 2025 at 9:34 PM
"No": then it's not true, but it says of itself that it's not true, so it's true. Contradiction. Neither is a possibly correct answer. In fact, it seems to have no possibly correct answers at all. But the question seems meaningful. So, Hamblin's view of questions is wrong. What do people think?