its gettin really hard.

On this day, 7 May 1945, Nazi Germany unconditionally surrendered, leading to the end of World War II in Europe. But rather than be punished for their crimes, many Nazi and fascist leaders continued to hold onto power and wealth.
In West Germany, despite "denazification", most Nazi war criminals went unpunished, and many were rehired in official positions as the Cold War with the eastern bloc heated up. For example, out of around 1 million people involved in the Holocaust, only around 600 received life imprisonment or death sentences. Even convicted war criminals like Hanns Martin Schleyer rapidly regained power: Schleyer himself quickly became president of Germany's main employer associations, helping to break unions. Many Nazi scientists were employed to work in the US as part of Operation Paperclip, while others were put to work in the Soviet Union under Operation Osoaviakhim.
In Greece, the US and UK backed Greek fascists and Nazi supporters in a brutal civil…

The belief that individuals need to take care of themselves and are responsible for their own fortune and problems was associated with less support for climate policies. And in every country we studied, we found a strong relationship between support for the free market and lack of support for climate policies.
People who believe the free market is best at allocating outcomes efficiently and meeting human needs without government interference, and that it is more important than some local environmental concerns, show less support for the climate policies.
These two sets of beliefs – individualistic worldviews and support for the free market – are the core principles of neoliberal thought.

The superiority of the market over governments as an efficient and fair allocation machine has been the mantra of neoliberal politicians, thinktanks and institutions for more than half a century.
Neoliberalism opposes government regulation and spending, and supports the free market. It also fosters an individualistic worldview. Instead of seeing themselves as workers, citizens or members of a collective, people are persuaded to internalise market logic – to see themselves as individuals who are out to maximise their personal profit.
The cultural shift from more communitarian and egalitarian ideals towards an ideology based on the self-driven individual and the free market has been quite successful. Empirical evidence from 41 countries shows that individualist practices and values around the world have surged significantly over the past 50 years.

https://theconversation.com/people-with-neoliberal-views-are-less-likely-to-support-climate-friendly-policies-new-research-253478

Good Idea: Daydream

https://www.afterbabel.com/p/on-the-death-of-daydreaming

We are embodied creatures who are rapidly losing the analog world in which our bodies and minds evolved. She shows us that many of the technologically aided advances in convenience and efficiency exact a cost in our humanity, our civility, and ultimately our ability to live together in a democratic society.

Service dog doing his job

https://redd.it/1kg3609
@r_interestingasfuck

1. Amtshandlung: das Recht auf Asyl schleifen.
https://www.blick.ch/ausland/asyl-stopp-an-allen-grenzen-merz-setzt-wahlversprechen-um-und-verschaerft-asylpolitik-id20846945.html

i need your help:

i wrote a lesswrong.com article about corporations as paperclip/profit maximizers. and the article became a bit extensive.
i would like to ask you for feedback in case you have some time...
Lesswrong is a place where AI-safety people are exchanging ideas. Some have compared it to a silicon valley cult. So i think it could be useful to make them aware of the problems corporations bring with them...

Link to draft for constructive criticism:
https://www.lesswrong.com/collaborateOnPost?postId=b8v6AxbNGQvH8nxGC&key=6a217bfab0bbc776b1fab6578b1048

Der Untergang der braunen Elite: Das wurde aus der Führungsriege des «Dritten Reiches» https://www.watson.ch/!376357981

Droht eine «Weimer-Republik»? Die Ernennung von Wolfram Weimer zum deutschen Kulturstaatsminister löst heftige Reaktionen aus. https://www.woz.ch/!D7WSN46QAXCW

Dem marxistischen US-Autor Joshua Clover verdanken wir interessante linke Denkanstösse – etwa über die Gründe für die Rückkehr von Riots in den Klassenkampf. https://www.woz.ch/!JPDSCX249HS6

"No Pasaran"
Seen in Aydın, Turkey

TIL that Auschwitz had a brothel (Block 24) where female prisoners were forced to have sex with selected male inmates as part of a reward system. [source, comments]