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6:00 am, July 19th, 2022 - 103 comments
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The current rise of populism challenges the way we think about people’s relationship to the economy.We seem to be entering an era of populism, in which leadership in a democracy is based on preferences of the population which do not seem entirely rational nor serving their longer interests. ...
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Lifted from The Spinoff’s Bulletin.
”Australian report finds profit, not wages, driving inflation
[unlinked copy and paste deleted]
So why not a windfall profits tax here? It’ll raise a little revenue, but more importantly send a message to big business to stop rorting the consumer. The optics that Labour look after the majority of the country, rather than the big end of town, wouldn’t be bad either.
No one in the southern hemisphere has appetite for major tax increases. Not even the neo-socialists in South America.
But even with the existing tax settings we have, it does not help that our government remains very, very weak at breaking oligopolies like we have in fishing, dairy production, supermarkets, fuel, red meat production, construction materials, insurance, sea ports, shipping, international airports, airlines, and so much more. We must surely have one of the most concentrated economies in the world.
We do not appear to have in Cabinet anyone with the business sense to regulate prices hard., or even in the Commerce Commission. Oligopolists are driving inflation because nothing resists them passing increases on.
The effective inflation fighter we have, our own Reserve Bank, has the dual mandate of low inflation and lowest possible unemployment, but according to them if we have maximum sustainable employment, we should not be having inflation at all:
"When more people find jobs and fewer people are unemployed, employers tend to offer higher wages to fill their vacancies. If this happens nationwide, it generates wage inflation and eventually widespread inflation as businesses pass on the higher wage costs to the prices of goods and services.
When employment is at its maximum sustainable level, there will be low and stable inflation. However, if employment is above the maximum sustainable level for too long, it will eventually cause prices to rise more and more quickly, requiring the MPC to raise interest rates to keep inflation under control."
Inflation and maximum sustainable employment – Reserve Bank of New Zealand – Te Pūtea Matua (rbnz.govt.nz)
SO apparently low and stable inflation should occur anytime now.
Does anyone in this joint know how to actually regulate?
I don't consider the dual mandate an issue. Many central banks have a dual mandate and have for some time, then NZ was an exception with its single mandate.
The actual issue is how the RBNZ approaches monetary policy which is not something which follows from any mandate. Previously the central bank policy was typically pre-emptive, steps would be taken to any increase in inflation, which would immediately aim to break a wage price spiral. Now, at least descriptively, there can be a wait and see to observe if the price increase would translate to a wage increase, and then seeing if there was a lead to more price increases, before policy shift. This is probably marginally more healthy a policy.
The other issue the RBNZ has is the cash rate is quite blunt a tool to target inflation and has poor distributional outcomes.
And its not going to resolve any of the supply side price increases (many coming from overseas) in anything like a fair way.
My simple observation was not with the dual mandate itself but with their stated expectation that "When employment is at its maximum sustainable level, there will be low and stable inflation".
This is clearly wrong. They need to re-consult their Moniac.
I agree that stronger trends in wage and salary increases would be much preferable, especially after 20 years of waiting for them to arrive.
I think your ultimately right that low and stable inflation has little to do with the employment level, but that the RBNZ would disagree their statement is wrong.
Essentially they are saying that there is an employment level at which there is low and stable inflation. This is called the NAIRU level in technical terms. The NAIRU replaced the Phillips curve though its conceptually incoherent. The modern mathematical replacement for the Moniac will (if consulted) tell the RBNZ to increase unemployment because the inflation rate is too high. Probably better that they actually use their brains, rather than acting mechanically, to determine monetary policy.
They would probably also disagree that the present NZ economic situation is a test of this given the amount of imported inflation and supply side issues involved. That's not a judgement which the Moniac is capable of.
On the other hand the underlying Wicksellian theory that there exists one single interest rate which is most appropriate for the prevailing economic situation is clearly not applicable. The actual occurring economy is more broad and varied than the model economy which could support such a theory existing. So I consider the most suitable monetary policy will typically be to set the rate at zero and leave it there. Inflation issues should be resolved either via fiscal policy and within the contextual understanding that somebody will lose out cost wise when external prices change and this cost should be fairly distributed.
Doing it via monetary policy gives the pretense that imported inflation doesn't have distributional impacts, but it doesn't make those impacts go away.
Its a political question introducing such a tax, the revenue is irrelevant.
The question is will the windfall tax discourage profit gouging, and at what cost in govt popularity. It might make sellers say why bother making extraordinary profits they just get taxed away, but it might also lead to price hikes just to make a point to the public about whos boss.
And also make that same point to any government that tried to impose a windfall tax. I don't know of any examples of it happening elsewhere in the world, but it's a level of spitefulness that wouldn't surprise me in NZ.
It should then be easier for an effective political leader to use the spiteful behaviour of the commercial bosses as an example of why we need to restrain their antisocial excesses.
Franklin Roosevelt's Address Announcing the Second New Deal
October 31, 1936 http://docs.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/od2ndst.html
[link required]
There has certainly been some piss taking with fuel, There has been a 30-40 cent per litre difference in diesel pricing between Auckland and not to far out of Auckland.
That's far more than can be explained by regional fuel tax etc. Could well call it price gouging.
Fuel companies pocket record margins, thanks to Govt excise cuts | Stuff.co.nz
"Piss taking".
Yet another reason to replace fossil fuels. Saving 9 billion a year, conservative estimate, in foreign exchange to subsidise the price gouging pricks.
I've deleted your copypasta. If you can copy and paste you can copy a link as well. It is a requirement here that all quoting comes with a link.
If you provide a link I will replace your text. And hope that you take this on board for next time.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/the-bulletin/19-07-2022/whats-driving-inflation
The Bulletin is a daily email newsletter from the Spinoff (I get it as well), but handily the Spinoff also publishes them on their website.
it's still possible to link from the Bulletin, there's a share button at the bottom of each segment.
Petrol prices drop across NZ as Government questions fuel companies
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/129313050/petrol-prices-drop-across-nz-as-government-questions-fuel-companies
"Fuel prices are dropping across the country after the Government questioned fuel companies’ profit margins.
In Auckland, the price of 91 octane petrol was between $2.88 and $3.05 a litre across stations on Tuesday morning, while diesel was between $2.79 and $2.97, according to PriceWatch.
Prices had dropped below $3 in Wellington and Christchurch.
AA principal policy adviser Terry Collins said the decline was down to two things: the drop in price of crude oil and refinery, but also the questioning of why fuel companies had high profit margins by the Government." (my bold)
So even the threat of the Government doing something causes the big boys to moderate their profits.
please read this and respond.
.https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-19-07-2022/#comment-1900913
Noted.Thanks.
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2022/07/18/federal-reserve-thinks-answer-inflation-imposing-class-war
Could someone please pass this onto Poto Williams.
Fark she must have been so full of herself to spout the shit she did while everyone in Auckland and NZ knew what the truth was.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/auckland-gang-warfare-city-sees-109-reported-gun-crimes-in-a-single-month/VERZANIUDJTL5VPP33O3KRHCFE/
If you had read your article instead of spray & walk away you’d known how stupid you sound.
If you keep up your dump & jump trolling here you’ll be treated that way.
Note: Poto Williams, and the police, efforts were starting to have an effect.
Of course stupid right wingers like you, expect instant solutions to the disasters that your policies have caused over decades.
Everyone knew Poto was well out of her depth. Hopefully Hipkins will manage to achieve something as he is their best minister.
How would you have dealt with a "perfect storm" caused by a combination of 501's, and a large number of disaffected youth caused by the loss of social cohension due to decades of Neo-Liberal "there is no such thing as society" cruelty?
As well as constant White anting by ignorant fools such as David Seymour, at your workplace.
You wouldn't have a fucking clue, and be "well out of your depth".
Now, because of the idiot chorus from the RW, actually getting to the causes and really cutting crime has been set back another decade.
How Finland reduced its prison population by two thirds – How to Cut New Zealand's Prison Population (cuttheprisonpop.nz)
Really? Aside from there being no actual evidence that she was out of her depth and the fact she was beginning to make headway before Nat white anting made her position untenable, are you plugged into some collective Borg-like consciousness that lets you know what "Everyone" knows?
Her problem was: she didn't have very good communication skills. Especially when dealing with the media who aided and abetted the white-anters by shoving their mikes into her face whenever she dared venture out of her office… asking pointed questions designed to throw her off balance.
A blind man on a fast horse could see she was promoted beyond her means. Even Jacinda realised it finally and moved her.
Unfortunately the criminals are getting bolder as the soft on crime approach has not worked. This guy shows how much respect or fear of the police (none) he has and absolutely nails the poor police woman. But then, I expect he is really a nice person just got mixed up with the wrong crowd and had a tough upbringing and was in the process of turning his life around. Hopefully the other officers gave out a bit of rough justice shortly afterwards.
Female police officer knocked unconscious by offender, vicious Manurewa assault caught on camera – NZ Herald
An illegal, violent reaction to the casual, un-provoked violence of a law breaker?
One can only imagine the state of your strides.
"An illegal, violent reaction to the casual, un-provoked violence of a law breaker?"
That's what he did to the policewoman in the first few seconds of the video.
I can just imagine you sitting down with him over a cup of tea and explaining to him "What you did to that Policewoman wasn't really appropriate behavior, and you need to reflect on what you just did…..another cuppa?"
Do you really think someone who's so casual with their use of violence would respond in any positive way to more violence?
They'd laugh at your pissant lust for vengeance.
They wouldn't laugh while they are being bent over in the showers in Mt Eden.
WTF is it with you lot and your rape fantasies?
It's how they view the world
[Mod note]
https://thestandard.org.nz/policy/#banning
[This is your warning]
Had a tradie rant about our high cost of timber being due to our FTA with china.
Im aware we don't own all our forests, so those we don't that timber goes where it's owners want.
So how plausible is it that it's all the FTA with china ?
but also:
– Who owns the NZ domiciled sawmills?
Hi tc. The Answer as always…..is not one thing. Carters…China….”Monopoly” . Does seem we in NZ are being shafted though.
Selling off the harvesting rights to publicly owned forest to private and overseas interests has pretty much meant we have very little control over where our logs go.
Pretty clear who we can thank for that…
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/2026-billion-sale-forestry-corporation-completed
The consortium comprises Fletcher Challenge (37.5 per cent); Brierley Investments (25 per cent); and Citifor, a subsidiary of China International Trust and Investment Corporation, (37.5 per cent).
https://accentuatepr.co.nz/chinese+soe+makes+long-term+investment+in+new+zealand+forestry+sector
China Forestry Group New Zealand Company Limited (China Forestry Group NZ) has agreed to acquire part of the NZ Superannuation Fund’s North Island forestry assets, following a competitive tender and Overseas Investment Office approval.
Hi Cricklewood. Oh fark yes…Bill Birch !. I'd maybe tried to suppress memories of THAT particular jerk. And of course what those a-holes legacy left Future NZ. Sad does not cover it.
Yeah, our trouble now with timber is demonstrable proof of how short sighted the Nats are with their assets sales.
Be worth pointing that out when the building supply issues are thrust at the current govt.
Here in the shadow of the hill,
Lies Mrs Birch, mother of Bill.
Her soul of course has fled this vale
of tears, and so this plot's For Sale.
Funny because..it might be true : ) ?
And, Bill rap.?
Ol' Bill forever, Think Big playa,
Planned the Dawn Raids to nab overstayer,
Unions another target thats a fact
A brain fart called Employment Contract Act,
If Bill ever had a sister,
She's down the river… to.. some… rich lister
Not wrong.
But other causes as well, like building supply monopolies price gouging in NZ.
Thanks folks it's rarely a single thing so appreciate that context.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/paula-bennett-jacinda-ardern-and-the-insidious-rumour-mill/6K7GD3SYGFVAGYZDQ37ILWZJ7Y/?dicbo=v2-fd1b224c1396237124f1bc3496e26fbb&&ref=topbox
That someone could decide to print this should be unbelievable.
Got to pay to read it.
Surprise surprise, what misinformation and disinformation are the Nat & Act Supporters spewing now? Pullya's article is paywalled.
It's nationals herald. It provides soapboxes and facilitates Dirty politics which is like rust….it never sleeps.
If you have an Auckland Library card, you can read all the Heralds free of charge via Pressreader. Great to bypass the paywall.
This article, while being typically self serving, actually made a reasonable point about the online abuse that the PM has been receiving.
Arch ladder kicker waxes kind…
I don't think I have ever seen the gossip, rumours and conspiracy theories to be as bad as they are now.
In my time in politics I heard them all – and many about myself. If I had a dollar for every time I heard about the untrue demise of Winston Peters and rumours of poor health then I would be a wealthy woman. I don't think a Green MP washes her hair in her own urine but this was told to me numerous times and as if it is fact.
I am sure that like a lot of workplaces the odd bit of after-hours shagging goes on but nowhere near as much as is rumoured and speculated on.
I had plenty of rubbish said about me and some of it still does the rounds on social media occasionally, all blatantly not true and actually insulting.
I once had to take out an injunction and get legal advice at my own expense to stop a so-called reputable radio station from repeating what someone who has obvious mental health issues had said about me on social media.
I understand at some level him projecting on to me just because he can – I couldn't reconcile tens of thousands of people believing and sharing it and mainstream media picking it up.
There aren't easy answers when you are under a full-on prolonged attack. By defending yourself you give them oxygen and although thousands might have seen it – I have to presume millions haven't – bringing it into the open just adds fuel and embarrassment. So they keep you quiet and reluctant to speak out.
Which brings me to the constant gossip about the Prime Minister and her partner.
I have been asked more times than I can remember if x is true about one or both of them. I am not in their lives and do not have intimate knowledge about them and I believe their private lives are exactly that – but I always answer no it's not true.
Purely because anyone with half a brain would not believe that in a country this size with two degrees of separation that the blatant extreme nonsense that people say would be ignored by our media if there was evidence to back it up.
My politics and ideology differ a lot from Jacinda Ardern's but as a woman, mum, partner and politician I would stand at her side and suggest everyone just leave her private life alone.
I have heard intelligent, respectable people repeating gossip about her. They all know someone who knows someone and as such they know it is true. Just because something is repeated a lot does not make it true.
Yes, by being in the public eye we open ourselves up to criticism, but let's leave that to being about performance and leave the personal stuff alone.
We need our best and our brightest putting their hands up for public office in the future and if it was your son or daughter would you want lies repeated about their private lives?
We are all guilty of enjoying a spot of gossip but when it comes to our leaders enough is enough.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/paula-bennett-jacinda-ardern-and-the-insidious-rumour-mill/6K7GD3SYGFVAGYZDQ37ILWZJ7Y/?dicbo=v2-fd1b224c1396237124f1bc3496e26fbb&&ref=topbox
I'm not so sure that's her motive. I think it's more about keeping the discussion about "rumours and gossip about the PM and her partner" alive, and that she's tried to do this in a way that disguises that motive.
I was being just a little sarky. When I happened upon this effort earlier my first impression was that there was pot-stirring going on. A Westie don't change it's spots…
Sorry – what's unbelievable about it.
The key point:
Basically Bennett is saying – STFU with the gossip – let people's private lives be just that.
Agree. Some of the stuff I have seen or heard about Clarke Gayford in particular is mind boggling crap. It has also beggared my belief that normally intelligent and respectable people have actually believed it. In one instance the person claimed a certain rumour had to be correct because someone she knew had been there when it happened. The 'someone she knew' was an arch enemy of Labour and was lying.
Respect for Paula Bennett for coming out and saying what she did.
Sorry, here's my response here:
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-19-07-2022/#comment-1900992
You might think that's Bennett's motive – but it would only apply if there was little gossip going on. I'm sorry to say, that's not the case – the trash being talked about Ardern and Gayford is increasing in volume – and spreading.
You may not like Bennett – but she's right on the money here.
Quite frankly, I find it disgusting. And choose not to participate (or link) to the rubbish which is being spread around.
Sure, I understand what you're saying – of course the sentiment may appear sincere. But I do not believe Bennett is capable of doing anything that does not have a self-serving aspect to it.
However, it's probably not you who is either the culprit, or the target audience for this piece.
Right-wing supporters are more likely to listen and/or believe a right-wing opinion writer. If/when a left-wing one contributes the same content, it's more likely to be dismissed by a right-wing audience (using exactly the same 'self-serving' justification).
I don't disagree that what you say happens, but I do not think the present situation is an example of that. There are, of course, right-wing politicians – even if fewer these days – who are or have been quite capable of holding opinions on particular matters that dedicated left-leaning people would agree with. I just cannot accept that Bennett could be one of them.
I had no idea there was gossip. Clearly I'm moving in the wrong circles. I did make a mental note to self to plumb the deeper depths of the darkweb and try and find out what Bennett is on about.
I'd call that a result.
Seems like the Covid number was getting to large for the Govt.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid19-omicron-outbreak-ashley-bloomfield-to-give-daily-update-changes-to-reporting-of-deaths/IBEIDDBTMU5RIK2JD4K4IT5CYY/
Any thoughts from other commentators on this?
Whist I think the current method is a crock of shit, it is the method used by all the other countries so why the change in NZ.
Changing the metric does seem an odd thing to do given we'll be an outlier in the way we report our data to the WHO makes comparing things all that much harder.
If you listened to/watched the press conference you would know your assertions are more BS. The change was prompted by the WHO and will be consistent with other countries we compare to. In addition, the current measure/statistic will continue to be reported.
To be fair the article linked to doesnt explain that. All you get is
" Until now, all deaths where someone had died within 28 days of a positive Covid 19 result have been reported, as had been done by other countries"
Not everyone is able or indeed willing to sit through the press conference.
I was being fair. It is fair to expect people to bring some logical consideration to things they may read, including actually being bothered to check they actually understand the the issues and facts, including their context. Just simple things we learn at school when we are taught how to think.
So where did you get "we'll be an outlier in the way we report our data to the WHO" from?
That is strange as we only just changed recently to this reporting method which is in line with overseas. Back in March per this article.
Why the hell are we changing again other than someone doesn't like the numbers?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/463975/measuring-and-reporting-covid-19-deaths-what-you-need-to-know
Fark…..what a P.O.S. . I have struck scum bags like this through my life. This is a 17 year old lad. He should have had a Boss worthy of that title. But I still recall when another young lad lost his leg….and the online vilification he was getting …from the same kind of scum. Just a sick mentality….
The kids are not alright. Don’t care about the cat role playing (although this seems more like something primary school kids would be doing), but there are some boundary issues here.
https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/1549105010729832448
Ah, tiktok.
https://amp.theguardian.com/technology/2022/jul/05/tiktok-girls-dead-blackout-challenge
Hi Weka
I've taken out a few links from my post (awaiting moderation) but I can't really take anymore out as I need them to illustrate my points
Also my pronouns are nya/nyan/nyanself
Number of links is fine. Someone might have put you in temp premod. You been misbehaving?
Nah, not yet; once a comment ends up in Pre-Mod queue because it has too many links, for example, editing and removing links doesn’t automatically undo the move. IDK if deleting the comment and starting fresh is an option.
Hesca fascinating guy, YoungRippa
He's basically taking care of everything himself, no middle man
Did the comic himself, self published it himself, set up his own warehouse, all his part time workers are now full time, organising the distribution himself, so all the profits are his which he's reinvesting
So of course he's getting attacked by the left
Politics is downstream from culture and the culture is changing
Ah, hate site.
/
https://twitter.com/MichaelEHayden/status/1536792584911306754
https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2022/06/14/far-right-influencers-hyped-coeur-dalene-pride-patriot-front-showed
here ya go, something you can watch.
https://twitter.com/ramseyboltin/status/1547606632187629569
The interwebs have always been a strange place full of strange people and children doing and saying strange shit. It's no reason to amplify hate mongers.
But if you do want something to be outraged about…
https://www.dailydot.com/irl/wren-eleanor-exploitation-tiktok/
The latest cover of Victoria University's student magazine: Salient.
https://twitter.com/kiriceilidh/status/1549199730206724096?s=20&t=rdkSE9dg_-USWgfa-ZOvbw
I went online to see the article, and website is articles predominantly promotion of gender ideology, and queer theory. Fair enough, I thought. Must be the rainbow community magazine for students, but no, it is the student magazine for all students.
Housing issues, courses, course fees, impact of Covid, etc. not apparent at first glance.
https://www.salient.org.nz/
"Annual" edition should be a clue when you stop clutching those pearls.
Thanks for pointing out the obvious, completely missed that. Make sense now!
(However, I still find it disturbing to see young women undergo cosmetic mastectomies, even though it is celebrated as autonomy. I know you feel differently.)
I mean, call me a bit thick, but if it's UniQ Victoria's official account and they literally say it's their "annual collaboration with Salient", doesn't that clearly indicate it's a once a year special issue for the rainbow student community at Vic? Because I'm pretty sure Salient regularly runs stories on "housing issues, courses, course fees, impact of Covid, etc" the rest of the year. So either there is something terribly wrong with my literacy skills or you're building a straw man that's just missing Dorothy, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion for the full Wizard of Oz.
Thanks for pointing that out. Sacha made the same point above.
Something I had completely missed in my comment.
OMG…do these people get to vote?
Yes they get to vote – it is not their franchise that has been removed ……
Perhaps I should try and get my two cats on to the electoral role.
Your cats are probably neutered …… so surely qualify
Maybe don't take every little bit of fringe eccentricity amplified by social media algorithms as being indicative of larger social trends? That's how you get Covid conspiracies.
De furries! De furries!
https://twitter.com/jonnykip21/status/1508491958662090764
https://twitter.com/HeartlandSignal/status/1519716100367429639
Luckily, we have more than social media to explain these identities.
Dedicated websites and research programmes. As one such site, FurScience.com says:
Probably of more relevance to this thread is the About Us page:
https://furscience.com/who-we-are/
A less academic take on furries can be found here: (1) Jesus Fox Forgives Your Yiffs | Facebook
Must be fun dreaming this shit up.
https://twitter.com/woot_master/status/1549180860183613440
The Bronies are something else – had a bunch of them in our Astroempires guild. Quirky – but waaay too fond of rape jokes.
What she is demonstrating is not rare, the thinking involved and the boundary issues is common enough for me to want to post it here on a political blog. Maybe don't knee jerk dismiss something that you are unaware of, that's how we dumb down politics.
I'm not certain the furries are a unitary community – they have been a presence at scifi & fantasy events for decades, as cosplayers. These ones at least are typically fond of the movie Zootopia.
I wasn't thinking of furries as a community or sub culture so much as the boundary issues that are in many of the online subcultures now. Like I said, I'm not bothered by the cat role play. Having watched it again, it's just as likely to be a piss take.
I am aware of furries though. They're been around for decades and are about as concerning as, oh, I dunno, trekkies, larpers or any other kind of cosplayer. Why do you feel the need to gatekeep boundary issues anyway? How does it affect you at all?
Certain things have been happening in the pop culture realm as of late thats leading me to believe the pendulum is starting to move back towards the centre
The failure of movies like Thor (amongst others), the success of Top Gun: Maverick, the rise of TV series like Terminal List and Reacher shows that there is a disconnect between what the people want and what the media corporations are giving us
I haven't spoken much about comics because (I'm guessing) most people here don't read them but as bad as I say movies and TV are comics are even worse
Basically Manga is outselling American comics, in America.
There are some theories why and one of them is that Manga is not beholden to "The Message" like American comics are, ie:
https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-pop-culture/12-superheroes-came-2021-rcna3599
However this opens the doors for others. Here is a list of the biggest comic kickstarters from 2021:
https://www.gamesradar.com/comics-kickstarter/
The number one comic raised just under 1.5 million and stars and co-written by Keanu Reeves and in total the top ten raised 6.9 million
Well theres a new player on the block, Eric July and he is singlehandedly changing the industry:
https://rippaverse.com/product/isom-1-campaign/
As of the time of writing hes got just under 2.6 million with 66 days to go.
https://nypost.com/2022/07/15/anti-woke-comic-book-defies-cancel-culture-earns-1-7m-in-four-days/
You sound like one of those alt right hacks on YouTube who thinks they're owning the libs by complaining about Western pop culture being too woke while apparently ignoring that manga and anime is full of queer themes.
Despite all the work women have done to be heard on the harms of surgical mesh, implants are back on the rise in the UK.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-11025933/Are-Britains-sexist-surgeons.html
Having a close friend who was severely injured by this here in NZ, some of the surgeons comments are familiar.
You sound like one of those alt right hacks on YouTube who thinks they're owning the libs by complaining about Western pop culture being too woke while apparently ignoring that manga and anime is full of queer themes.
Gay doesn't mean woke but retconning previously strait characters for the sake of diversity is woke and, given the drop in sales, its not what the readership want
Hence why Eric July is smashing it, I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up making more money than the last top ten made together
Sure, because new things erase old things from ever having existed or something.