Jim Young Freeport, ME on Letters from an American

[Jim Young Freeport, ME]

Perhaps a bit oddly, the mention of TPM reminded me of their take on Netflick's "Lost Pirate Kingdom" at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/cafe/what-netflixs-lost-pirate-kingdom-got-right-and-wrong-about-the-golden-age-pirate-gang

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

“…The Lost Pirate Kingdom is a 2021 docuseries created for Netflix. This historical drama portrays the rise and fall of the eponymous early-18th century pirate republic based in Nassau, Bahamas. The series begins in 1715, shortly after the close of the War of the Spanish Succession, which pitted England against Spain. England had waged the war on the cheap, resorting to the use of privateers rather than incurring the expense of fully funding the Royal Navy. It was released on March 15, 2021…”

Long story short, my view has been that the Spanish stole the gold from the indigenous people (making them seem the greater enemy of them). The English were originally more accepted by the indigenous people as a protective ally against the Spanish. Then the English unleashed the Privateers to steal what the Spanish stole, at least until there was no more need for them as allies, which left them unsanctioned (without franchise), so many modified their “tradecraft” into piracy, stealing as much treasure for themselves as they could. Hmmm, a society with no stable rules, just some rather vague ideas of how to not cannibalize fellow pirate gangs that would provide a bit more protection from the more “civilized” and orderly powers.

Makes me wonder who really hates us for our Freedoms as some told us during the GWOT, or the Heritage Foundation, “Con”-Federalist types who’s affinity and seeming support for Project 2025. Are they the modern Pirates actually stealing our treasured Freedoms?

[J L Graham]

Freedoms and treasure. The shift in total national wealth upward is documentation. Brush away the muddled sales pitch and "Reaganomics" was a prescription for neo-feudalism.