Conversation

Notices

1. Embed this notice
   myrmepropagandist (futurebird@sauropods.win)'s status on Friday, 04-Sep-2026 21:03:57 JST myrmepropagandist

   Jean Baudrillard has written about economics but I think very few people can stomach what he's saying. Listening to some academic say that money is fake and meaningless (this isn't a good summary of what he's saying, but it is what a lot of what he is saying sounds like) is intolerable when rent is due. When you suffer the toothache that blinds you with pain ONLY because you cannot pay a dentist.

   Money is as real as pain, starvation, housing, death.

   But also? Completely fake and meaningless.

   • Embed this notice
     Marc (marc@fosstodon.org)'s status on Friday, 04-Sep-2026 21:07:38 JST Marc

     in reply to

     • Dror Bedrack
     • That’s a moray

     @futurebird @DrorBedrack @Bumblefish
     @futurebird

     Perhaps remaining in a position where one country has that much leverage over you is not wise?

     I help Americans with #genealogy research to obtain 2nd citizenships

     Many Americans with European #ancestry and *nearly all* with #African ancestry are either entitled to apply for citizenships, or already have that citizenship, even if they're unaware (Italian, Canadian)

     Just reach out to me directly. Or:
     Oceaneditors.com/genealogy/Genealogy.html

   • Embed this notice
     myrmepropagandist (futurebird@sauropods.win)'s status on Friday, 04-Sep-2026 21:07:40 JST myrmepropagandist

     in reply to

     • Dror Bedrack
     • That’s a moray

     @DrorBedrack @Bumblefish

     States have people and people need to have a citizenship with a state. (being stateless is nearly unsurvivable.)

     I was confused when Trump started selling US citizenship "gold cards" for a million dollars. I expected everyone to get angry. But somehow very few people cared.

     Will citizenship be traded on the market next? Will you have fractional membership in multiple states?

   • Embed this notice
     Dror Bedrack (drorbedrack@mastodon.social)'s status on Friday, 04-Sep-2026 21:07:41 JST Dror Bedrack

     in reply to

     • That’s a moray

     @futurebird @Bumblefish another way to phrase it is that we have to use the country's money to buy services / goods from the state

   • Embed this notice
     myrmepropagandist (futurebird@sauropods.win)'s status on Friday, 04-Sep-2026 21:07:42 JST myrmepropagandist

     in reply to

     • That’s a moray

     @Bumblefish

     I always say that money is real because it's the only thing you can use to pay taxes.

   • Embed this notice
     That’s a moray (bumblefish@mastodon.scot)'s status on Friday, 04-Sep-2026 21:07:43 JST That’s a moray

     in reply to

     @futurebird Money is real because we collectively agree it is. That's the basis of bitcoin and all the others. People have decided to agree that it has value, so it does. In countries with subsidized healthcare we have agreed that people get treatment first and making sure the doctor gets paid is a separate issue.