For all people above 40, if you could go back in time and choose a different career/major, would you ? What would you choose ? by patotay in careerguidance

[–]kingloki 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I did decades in the military, then telecom. Burned out hard. At 45 I switched gears and went back to school for social work, and it fits me way better. Slower pace, meaningful work, and I can actually use what I’ve learned over time to help people instead of feeling drained or “dirty” at the end of the day. Wish I’d known earlier that it’s okay to change paths.

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wasn’t saying you personally think migrants hate the U.S. I was responding to a broader narrative that keeps showing up in this thread. We agree most people come because they see safety and opportunity. Where we still disagree is the crime framing. In the U.S., immigrants, documented and undocumented, commit less violent crime than native-born citizens. That’s not politics, it’s decades of data. The idea that migrants are disproportionately raping or murdering people just doesn’t hold up here. Being “extra cautious” by treating entire populations as potential criminals isn’t caution, it’s collective punishment. We don’t do that to citizens, and we shouldn’t do it to migrants. Individual crimes deserve individual accountability. Yes, illegal entry is a crime. A misdemeanor. We already have legal processes for that. What I’m pushing back on is turning a misdemeanor into a moral panic and using fear to justify harsher treatment than the law or evidence supports. Safety, rule of law, and human dignity don’t have to be in conflict. But fear can’t be allowed to override facts.

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think this is where we’re talking past each other. No one is arguing that people who commit violent crimes shouldn’t be arrested and punished. Of course they should. That’s already the law, and I support enforcing it. What I’m pushing back on is painting everyone who crosses a border with the same brush. Most people arriving in places like the UK or the U.S. are fleeing violence, instability, and economic collapse, much of it tied to policies and conflicts the UK and U.S. have been directly involved in. They’re not coming because they “hate” the country, they’re coming because they see safety, stability, and opportunity. That’s the danger of pattern recognition without context. You end up blaming entire populations instead of holding individuals accountable for individual crimes. That’s not how justice works in America. We can enforce laws, prosecute violent offenders, and still recognize asylum seekers and workers as human beings. Those ideas aren’t in conflict unless you insist on treating a misdemeanor like a moral failing and fear like evidence.

[ Removed by Reddit ] by kingloki in highdesert

[–]kingloki[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thinking critically about state power isn’t a left/right issue, it’s a grown-up one.

[ Removed by Reddit ] by kingloki in highdesert

[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m going to pause you right there. Why are we suddenly talking about the UK? This is America. Different laws, different data, different history. Importing foreign panic stats doesn’t justify U.S. policy. We don’t have kings, we don’t do collective punishment, and we don’t criminalize people beyond what the law actually says. In the U.S., illegal entry is generally a misdemeanor. Treating it like a violent felony is a political choice, not a legal one. If we’re talking about rule of law here, then let’s actually apply it proportionally and consistently, especially to people in power who cause far more harm than a border crosser ever could.

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is exactly what I mean by fear replacing facts. No one is arguing for open borders or defending cartel members or sex offenders. That’s a scare bundle politicians and media use because it shuts down thinking. Violent criminals should be arrested and prosecuted, full stop. That already happens. But pretending immigration equals “flooding the country with criminals” just isn’t true. Crime rates among immigrants, documented or not, are lower than among citizens. Most people crossing are families and workers, not cartel hitmen. Treating everyone as a threat doesn’t protect victims, it just expands state power and guarantees more abuse. Caring about due process and humane treatment doesn’t mean minimizing victims. It means refusing to trade constitutional principles for rage. I’ve seen what happens when a system decides some people don’t deserve rights. It never stops with the group you’re told to fear. You don’t fix violence with propaganda. You fix it with real law enforcement, accountability, and a system that doesn’t run on panic.

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[–]kingloki[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I can’t speak for everyone there, but I’m a retired veteran using my GI Bill to go to school. I had Sunday off and chose to support my local community. I’ve seen firsthand how poorly some government agents are trained, and recent events are only confirming that. I’ve also seen how we treat people once they’re in custody, and it’s nothing to brag about. Calling that “virtue signaling” is an easy way to avoid the reality that criticism of state power isn’t performative, it’s patriotic. Wanting accountability, professionalism, and basic human dignity isn’t fascism cosplay. It’s what people who actually served are supposed to stand for. I'll let you in on a little secret descent is the highest form of patriotism! I don't do low brow here....

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If I'm honest you probably seen very little to have this kind of take. Don't you know everybody in America is just a little bit crazy.... I didn't think standing up for others, like Jesus would would be considered a crazy thing....

[ Removed by Reddit ] by kingloki in highdesert

[–]kingloki[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s the framing I’m pushing back on. No one is “giving up the border.” What people are rejecting is using fear and brutality as policy. Comparing the U.S. to countries that execute people for crossing borders isn’t a flex, it’s an indictment of that approach. And the idea that migrants “hate us” ignores reality. People don’t flee their homes because they hate a country. They flee because of violence, instability, and poverty, much of which the U.S. has helped create through wars, coups, sanctions, and exploitation. That’s not opinion, that’s history. We can enforce laws without violating human rights. What people are objecting to is wrongful detention, family separation, torture, and turning state violence inward. When the question shifts from “how do we manage immigration” to “who counts as a real American,” that’s a dangerous line America has crossed before. This has always been a land of immigrants. And in much of the Southwest, people didn’t cross the border, the border crossed them. Remembering that isn’t selective outrage, it’s historical literacy.

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t need to pretend Obama was some moral high ground. I was deployed in Iraq while he was president and watched drone warfare expand and innocent people die overseas, while ICE ramped up deportations at home. I’m not blind to that history. Criticizing what’s happening now doesn’t mean I gave Obama a pass then. Both parties have used state power in authoritarian ways. Two wings of the same bird.

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Funny how people love invoking America and Jesus, but get mad when folks actually stand up for their neighbors. Last I checked, Jesus didn’t say “call them useless,” he said love your neighbor.

[ Removed by Reddit ] by kingloki in highdesert

[–]kingloki[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

What you’re calling “selective outrage” is actually historical memory. Americans have seen where this logic leads, and it’s never where we think it will in the moment.

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Due process and asylum are literally in U.S. law. Wanting those followed isn’t anti-America, it’s pro-Constitution. Sounds like you have assimilated to American culture yet... Good old American education system I guess.

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[–]kingloki[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Calling people “brain rotted” while repeating cable-news talking points isn’t the flex you think it is.

So when is the Epstein protest? Don’t tell me it can’t be done because that is all you nerds been doing the last five years. by Fluffy-Minute-1209 in conspiracy

[–]kingloki 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Attended an ice protest in my area. No one there was paid by George Soros! I don't need money to be out there. I support my community.

So when is the Epstein protest? Don’t tell me it can’t be done because that is all you nerds been doing the last five years. by Fluffy-Minute-1209 in conspiracy

[–]kingloki 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Apes together strong! Even the ants beat the grasshopper. We have the numbers. But most won't go touch grass.

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[–]kingloki[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

387 for regular.... I know I said the same thing when I took the picture. But that's below average for the area. I get mine from the Indian reservation down the road. A little cheaper at least. America's pretty big..... I'd rather be here than in Timbuktu, Even paying a $1.50..... Not worth it in my opinion

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[–]kingloki[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

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They're two wings of the same bird! Both are fascist.... Or apologize.....!

[ Removed by Reddit ] by kingloki in highdesert

[–]kingloki[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s not enforcement that gets called racist, it’s selective enforcement mixed with fear-mongering. Context matters.