Comment by runako | Hacker News Reader

Comment by runako | Hacker News Reader

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> He’s the elder statesmen of the party.

In US politics, that mantle holds until someone else takes the nomination. That role is Biden's. It seems really odd that a former leader other than the most recent would be in charge of the party anywhere. (Remembering here that Biden is still alive and generally capable if suffering age-related decline. Also contextualizing with the fact that the sitting president is also obviously suffering age-related decline.)

> control of the party might pass to Michelle (like happened at least four times in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan).

Yeah, I can see how someone from one of those countries might project onto US politics things that are not commonly done here. Relevant here is Obama beating Hillary for the nomination in 2008.

> After Biden’s disastrous debate in 2024, Obama was the one who swooped in to lead the party through the chaos

I am a political sicko, and I do not remember this happening. Are you perhaps elevating the importance of a single speech Obama gave?

> Yeah, I can see how someone from one of those countries might project onto US politics things that are not commonly done here

Yes, that was my point. Someone asked me why my mom lumped Obama in with “radicals” and I tried to explain that she probably thinks it’s his job as the most senior man. Biden isn’t because he’s too old and sick. The patriarch is someone like Obama’s age. Gray haired but still vigorous.

> Someone asked me why my mom lumped Obama in with “radicals” and I tried to explain that she probably thinks it’s his job as the most senior man.

Another explanation is that she is misinformed and brainwashed by all the Facebook memes targeted towards boomers. It's not exactly a secret that Meta continues to push right wing propaganda in order to help elect conservative politicians.

No she watches CNN in a loop. But she left an unstable third world country and viscerally dislikes what’s going on with DSA, immigration, etc. That said she also hates Trump’s Queens immigrant affect, unpredictability, populism, etc. She loves Obama’s Anglo-Protestant affect and mannerisms but seems to dislike that he’s so tolerant of the DSA types.

You said she's also on Facebook, that's why I guessed.

> But she left an unstable third world country and viscerally dislikes what’s going on with DSA, immigration, etc.

What does she dislike about DSA, immigration, etc.? What does she think of the rhetoric coming from the Republican party that America doesn't need and want third world immigrants such as herself and her family? And that you should be rounded up, denaturalized, and deported back to Bangladesh (see Laura Loomer's recent comments).

> That said she also hates Trump’s Queens immigrant affect, unpredictability, populism, etc.

I guess it's a rite of passage for all American immigrants to hate on immigrants. "I got mine and I'm the 'correct' type of immigrant. Others are not."

> What does she dislike about DSA, immigration, etc.?

She thought the future would be Bangladeshis acting like British people instead of Bangladeshis acting like Bangladeshis in Britain.

> What does she think of the rhetoric coming from the Republican party that America doesn't need and want third world immigrants such as herself and her family?

She doesn’t want “Little Bangladesh” in Queens to be happening anymore than Trump does. One of the few things she agrees with him on. We came to a red state in 1989 and a county with a Republican congressman who ran unopposed most years, and everything was fine because we were trying very hard to absorb the local culture instead of changing it with our own. Nobody had a problem with Bangladeshi immigrants when it was just a handful of people who left their culture of origin at the door. Americans are extremely tolerant and accommodating people.

> She thought the future would be Bangladeshis acting like British people instead of Bangladeshis acting like Bangladeshis in Britain.

I don't quite get this. What acting like Bangladeshis or acting like British people mean? And what does it have to do with DSA?

> She doesn’t want “Little Bangladesh” in Queens to be happening anymore than Trump does. One of the few things she agrees with him on. We came to a red state in 1989 and a county with a Republican congressman who ran unopposed most years, and everything was fine because we were trying very hard to absorb the local culture instead of changing it with our own. Nobody had a problem with Bangladeshi immigrants when it was just a handful of people who left their culture of origin at the door. Americans are extremely tolerant and accommodating people.

So similar to Little Italy or Chinatown and other ethnic places? Why do you have to leave your culture of origin at the door? I thought one of the great things about America was that everyone can celebrate their culture. What local culture did you try to absorb if everyone left it at the door? Or are you specifically talking about white vs other ethnicities? Are you ashamed of your ethnicity and country where your parents immigrated from?

"We are the right kind of people, not the others" Internalized racism is such a weird thing to me.

> I don't quite get this. What acting like Bangladeshis or acting like British people mean? And what does it have to do with DSA?

There's a lot going in Pakistan / India / Bangladesh that's been shaped by the effect of British commerce, manipulation, and rule over a long period.

The Brits imposed a local civil service structure that itself became one of many forms of caste, classism and hierarchy, this one associated with British dress, language, and mannerisms.

You can see similar attitudes in the UK from the now old and historic first waves of post WWII immigrant uncles and aunts, overly formally British in dress and manners and looking down on their own descendants for pushing back on that and adopting other attitudes in dress and speech.

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