re: GOP Senator drops bill to federally outlaw all porn

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You've just eliminated every criticism of Democrats wielding power or any argument for limiting government. You're just presenting perpetual malleability in justifying government expansion.

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This only makes sense in your framing of libertarian neutrality as some sacrosanct thing

For most people, that some things are good and others are bad and some are worth protecting and others aren't is a normal, innate position. The modern view that we have to tolerate (often with feigned glee) things that are bad for us because of liberty, or related tether less concepts - like that anyone who shows up here can come in and be American because America is just a blank platform for whatever you want it to be - these dumb concepts are learned.

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This only makes sense in your framing of libertarian neutrality as some sacrosanct thing

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No, now you're trying to change what I said.

I used your own words/standards (which there were none).

I'm describing the result, not arguing for a side. You just don't want to own the result I said, so you're trying to spin what I said as some partisan/value-based comment.

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The modern view that we have to tolerate (often with feigned glee) things that are bad for us because of liberty

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Again, this is your side. You just don't want to own it when it's full extent is described.

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You're just presenting perpetual malleability in justifying government expansion.

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Reminder: The Left and Democrats get to do this, too. By rejecting any principles/standards, you cede any criticism of their actions made pursuant to the paradigm you're promoting.

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like that anyone who shows up here can come in and be American because America is just a blank platform for whatever you want it to be - these dumb concepts are learned.

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Societal trial and error, how all laws and morals have been developed since we discovered that we could intentionally grow crops and congregate in large groups (among various races, ethnicities, and cultures across vastly different geographic areas of the globe, mind you).

But that's a different discussion.

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But that's a different discussion.

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No, it’s not.

Conservatives and even libertarians aren’t anarchists. You’re trying to make this a digital issue and the reality is that it’s analog.

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Your argument is that you can't credibly criticize democrats anymore because they pick winners and losers (against our interests) and we're now advocating for picking winners and losers (arguably against their interests, although not really).

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You don't see the hypocrisy involved?

Or are you holding up attempting defense via subjective propriety and legitimacy ?

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Considering we got our asses handed to us doing that,

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Because Biden won a weird race in 2020 that Trump vindicated in 2024?

Otherwise, we're in a standard 2 term on/off pattern since 1992 (and that was after 3-GOP terms in a row from 80-92)

Clinton, Bush, Obama, Trump/Biden, Trump/x. Congress has basically rotated the same but in different timelines (the midterm flip, etc.)

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'm fine resuming efforts to attack progressive ideas on substantive rather than "procedural" grounds.

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Then you're arguing for nothing more than authoritarianism.

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Conservatives and even libertarians aren’t anarchists.

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The quoted language was not dealing with that argument at all, hence, "that's a different discussion".

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What some call porn others call art. Free speech & stuff.

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Some people consider child porn to be “art”.

Free speech & stuff.

Now THAT is excessive

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You don't see the hypocrisy involved?

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How on earth is "I like my ideas, I think they're better, I'm going to promote them over your ideas" inherently hypocritical?

It's not. It's only hypocritical from this hyper-liberal perspective of everything about America and conservatism needing to be a neutral platform that doesn't advocate for anything other than said neutral platform, which is, of course, self-defeating.

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Because Biden won a weird race in 2020 that Trump vindicated in 2024?

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You think this is about Presidential election outcomes? It's about an environment where a trans terrorist killed elementary school kids and then the President went on TV and repeated the conspiracy theory that led to the massacre. And somehow, the WH endorsing that position wasn't the story of the century.

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Then you're arguing for nothing more than authoritarianism.

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This is silly. First, it's silly because you genuinely can't see anything but a liberty-authoritarian dichotomy where the substance of any of the viewpoints bouncing around in said world are largely beside the point. That this is where right-leaning America has landed is the core idea behind my argument.

Second, it's silly because promoting the common good and opposing public vice being reduced to "mere authoritarianism" is the type of simplistic garbage you'd be quick to state when some MAGA dude says it about the left's version.

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The belief that the “development of humanity” is bending towards some sort of “progress” is a religious/non-scientific belief.

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For the atheist it’s an incoherent concept.

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How on earth is "I like my ideas, I think they're better, I'm going to promote them over your ideas" inherently hypocritical?

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With respect to power? Everything.

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It's only hypocritical from this hyper-liberal perspective of everything about America and conservatism needing to be a neutral platform that doesn't advocate for anything other than said neutral platform,

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Strawman.

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You think this is about Presidential election outcomes?

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I included Congress, too.

The GOP has taken a sizeable lead in state governments in that time frame.

How else are we to judge political support than actual elections?

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First, it's silly because you genuinely can't see anything but a liberty-authoritarian dichotomy

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When we're dealing with government, that's pretty much the discussion.

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where the substance of any of the viewpoints bouncing around in said world are largely beside the point. T

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As long as there is more than one team, it is besides the point.

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Second, it's silly because promoting the common good and opposing public vice being reduced to "mere authoritarianism" is the type of simplistic garbage you'd be quick to state when some MAGA dude says it about the left's version.

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Well it's a good thing this strawman doesn't describe the actual discussion/argument.

I'll get you back on track:

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Define the movement and its specific limitations. it just seems like an ad hoc power grab with no guiding principles.

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I don't think there is some definite value set of conservative ideas to pursue

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THAT is the language that led to my comments describing your arguments as nothing more than authoritarianism, NOT "promoting the common good and opposing public vice " (a reference back specifically to OP alone).