What’s valuable about the US? The story of how the hacker revolution grew out of the railroad modeling club at MIT gets at it. There were 2 groups there in the 1960s. One focused on aesthetics, accurate train models, landscapes, etc. Other was into railroads as “systems”.
-
-
Other identities are kinda essentialist whether you like it or not. Much as I detest the Hindutva brigade in Modi’s India, it’s harder to challenge their claim to primacy in defining the idea of India and Indianness, because there isn’t a robust non-reactionary alternative basis.
Show this thread -
The genius of the US is that if you can grok the way the machine works, hack it for your own idea of your best life (aka “the American dream”), and remake the country itself in a small way in doing so, that *is* how you earn an American identity.
Show this thread -
If you make the mistake of thinking it’s about being born here, and about cowboy hats, guns, garage startups, country music, rock, black culture, or any other absolute signifier, there’s a very good chance you’ll end up being more Russian than American.
Show this thread -
“American” is a post-national relativist, mutualist identity, and trying to adopt (or grow into) via absolute signifiers is a security hole. An attack surface that makes you pwnable by Putin or Xi. Both of whom will cheerfully manufacture a firehose of cowboy-hat memes to own you
Show this thread
End of conversation
New conversation -
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.