JoshFeb 25

Of the lessons that can be drawn from Mamdani’s campaign and now Mayoralty, one of them is talking about (and delivering) the efficient, high-quality public services that well-run, well-resourced government can provide.

We see time and time again that getting the “market” to deliver what the state should provide results in over-paying for substandard services. Or being unable to deliver anything at all — Auckland’s light rail and Kiwibuild being prime examples.

The state can, and should, have the capacity to plan, deliver, and maintain the high-quality infrastructure and services that modern life demands.

“Maintenance is always cheaper than repair, and one of the main differences between a business and a government is that a business's shareholders can starve maintenance budgets, cash out, and leave the collapsing firm behind them, while governments must think about the long term consequences of short-term thinking”

H/t to @pluralistic

#nzpol

https://pluralistic.net/2026/02/24/mamdani-thought/#public-excellence

Pluralistic: Socialist excellence in New York City (24 Feb 2026) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow

Show threadSuperstars of the ApocalypseFeb 25
@joshjacobsen @pluralistic
Show threadAndreas K
@CosmickTrigger @joshjacobsen @pluralistic Well, homelessness is profitable, it's the solution already.
Feb 25 at 12:54pmElk (canary)
Show threadSuperstars of the ApocalypseFeb 25

@yacc143 @joshjacobsen @pluralistic

Capitalism kills over 100 million people every five years. More than the over-estimated total communism killed in the entire 20th century.

I consider that to be genocide. Marx and Engels would call it "social murder" but I think quibbling over the difference between mass murder and genocide is just a matter of 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡, but the end result is the same.

(BTW the screenshot is from my Mastodon politics-posting account. This one is primarily for music)

Show threadSuperstars of the ApocalypseFeb 25

@yacc143 @joshjacobsen @pluralistic

People might say genocide is when you specifically try to wipe out a culture or ethnic group (like Biden's racist 1994 crime bill was intended to do, seeing as it was written *specifically* to target black people)

But I posit that poor and homeless people are a culture unto themselves.

People are saying Israel purposely denying Palestinians food and water is genocide.

Couldn't the same be said for food and housing?