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Continuing the Water Cooler Fundraiser: Your Thoughts

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By Lambert Strether of Corrente.

Many readers said nice things about Water Cooler. That makes me happy. So I’ll quote them here! (And if you are pressed for time, or saw no Water Cooler on Monday and realized how much you’d miss it, you can skip directly to the tip jar.

UPDATE 🌡️ We are at 212 donors. 212 donors / goal of 375 = 56.5%. Thank you!

In no particular order and on no particular principle, some from comments, some from PayPal:

Propertius: “Water Cooler is essential daily reading for me.”

tegnost: “Thanks for your many years of fantastic effort!”

IM Doc: “I have placed a check in the mail – Thank you for all you do….”

JB: “Most valuable service on all the Internets. Thank you.”

MH: “In the comments, The Flying Lizards song ‘I want money’ inspired me.” The commentariat introduced me to Pulp’s “Common People,” for which I will be forever grateful. –lambert

BP: “You’re welcome, Lambert. You’re doing exceptional work.”

JN: “Go Lambert, go!!!:

Acacia: “Thanks so much, Lambert. Kudos +100 especially for the much-needed clarity on COVID.”

FlyoverBoy: “I depend on you literally for my health — thanks for what you do.”

SC: “Great work. You’re saving brains! Much appreciated.”

antidlc: “All of your coverage has been exceptional, but I think your COVID coverage has helped keep the antidlc household safe.”

Alan: “Hey Lambert thanks for the thoughtful and thorough coverage of American life in the face of our onrushing dystopia. The jackpot is on. Stay healthy and don’t burn out.”

RW: “Keep it up, and ‘don’t let the bastards wear you down,” we appreciate your work.” I won’t. –lambert

LK: “Thanks for the aerosol and corsi-box news!”

thoughtfulperson: “Truly a light in the darkness. Especially appreciate the ‘news you can use’ features. I have a corsi box with the nice quiet computer fans going now.”

WC: “You continue to produce an amazing quantity and breadth of information. Thanks especially for the ongoing COVID coverage.”

CC: “Thank you so much for all the time and effort you put in to provide meaningful, intelligent reporting on current events, especially Covid and politics. You provide a bright light of sanity and reason in the ever-thickening (sickening?) darkness.”

CB: “I wish I could do more. I value you so very much. Omg please don’t go away.” I won’t –lambert

farmboy: “Lambert’s outage is not too uncommon when you bathe in truth, it’s a direct channel to heaven complete with all downloads. Happy Immersion! Donation forthcoming.”

AB: “As always, Lambert, thank you.”

You’re welcome. And thanks to all of you! I’m pleased that old school blogging still has a place.

* * *

Readers, you may donate here:




Here is the screen that will appear, which I have helpfully annotated.

If you hate PayPal, you can email me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, and I will give you directions on how to send a check. Thank you!

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About Lambert Strether

Readers, I have had a correspondent characterize my views as realistic cynical. Let me briefly explain them. I believe in universal programs that provide concrete material benefits, especially to the working class. Medicare for All is the prime example, but tuition-free college and a Post Office Bank also fall under this heading. So do a Jobs Guarantee and a Debt Jubilee. Clearly, neither liberal Democrats nor conservative Republicans can deliver on such programs, because the two are different flavors of neoliberalism (“Because markets”). I don’t much care about the “ism” that delivers the benefits, although whichever one does have to put common humanity first, as opposed to markets. Could be a second FDR saving capitalism, democratic socialism leashing and collaring it, or communism razing it. I don’t much care, as long as the benefits are delivered. To me, the key issue — and this is why Medicare for All is always first with me — is the tens of thousands of excess “deaths from despair,” as described by the Case-Deaton study, and other recent studies. That enormous body count makes Medicare for All, at the very least, a moral and strategic imperative. And that level of suffering and organic damage makes the concerns of identity politics — even the worthy fight to help the refugees Bush, Obama, and Clinton’s wars created — bright shiny objects by comparison. Hence my frustration with the news flow — currently in my view the swirling intersection of two, separate Shock Doctrine campaigns, one by the Administration, and the other by out-of-power liberals and their allies in the State and in the press — a news flow that constantly forces me to focus on matters that I regard as of secondary importance to the excess deaths. What kind of political economy is it that halts or even reverses the increases in life expectancy that civilized societies have achieved? I am also very hopeful that the continuing destruction of both party establishments will open the space for voices supporting programs similar to those I have listed; let’s call such voices “the left.” Volatility creates opportunity, especially if the Democrat establishment, which puts markets first and opposes all such programs, isn’t allowed to get back into the saddle. Eyes on the prize! I love the tactical level, and secretly love even the horse race, since I’ve been blogging about it daily for fourteen years, but everything I write has this perspective at the back of it.

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13 comments

  2. converger

    As of this morning the Donate PayPal link seemed to work OK, but returned to a weird-looking 404 error page on Naked Capitalism.

  3. lambert strether

    So it does. The donation works, however.

    It looks like I’ll have to PayPal and fix that link. But I’d rather have a tooth pulled than touch PayPal’s backstage area. So I will leave this as is for now, unless the bad post-donation return link really bothers anyone.

  7. Festoonic

    When I “look for the helpers,” this is where I look first. I honestly can’t imagine life during the dissolution of so much I’ve always known and loved without the clarity, compassion, and great good humor that NC — and Lambert and the Water Cooler — in particular provide.

  8. Laughingsong

    Don’t know whether you are looking for 375 donors or 375 donations . . . Maybe it’s both . . . But I will try to send a bit more this weekend when we get paid. As many have already stated above, WC and NC are must-haves in this madhouse world!

    1. Lambert Strether Post author

      I mean individual donors, although as we come down the home stretch from 68%, I might as those who have already given and can spare it to chip in once more.

  9. Veronica

    I wish I could donate, but I am between jobs right now. Fwiw, I think it is essential reading – good luck!

    1. Skip Intro

      I can spot you. 2nd donation incoming Lambert.
      This resource and community are well worth it.

  10. The Rev Kev

    Just now made a donation via PayPal – which insists on making things more complicated with its workings over time. I sometimes wonder how many people have been saved from a severe Covid infection – or worse – because they see all your material on the Pandemic with each Water Cooler and decide to act accordingly. It must be more than a few the past three years.

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