September 27, 2022

"[I]f the garden variety American liberal as represented by New York Times readers is almost universally against this, who is pushing it and why do they have so much power?"

Someone writes in a Reddit discussion of the NYT article "More Trans Teens Are Choosing ‘Top Surgery,'" which I blogged yesterday, here.

I've read a lot of the NYT comments myself, and I agree with the Redditor that "It's amazing how many of the reader comments on this article are basically horrified by all this...."

Other Redditors try to answer the question "why do they have so much power?"

One says: "Because the Garden Variety American Liberal As Represented By New York Times Readers will fold like a cheap suitcase when publicly called a bigot or even told that they are kinda sorta maybe sounding like a conservative, even if holding private misgivings."

Another says: "Political dynamics in the US is that the GOP is a moderate party beholden to extremist voters and the Dems are an extremist party beholden to moderate voters. It's a very odd dynamic."

Another question about these people with "so much power" is whether they will lose power if the NYT publishes articles like "More Trans Teens Are Choosing" that collect comments from "its garden variety American liberal" readers that clearly point in a different direction. 

ADDED: Is it "fold like a cheap suitcase"? I thought it was "fold like a cheap suit" — though I can't think why a cheap suit would fold any more readily than an expensive one. Fortunately I found a Grammarphobia post on the topic: What is the "X" in the phrase "fold like a cheap X"?
Suit would not have been my first choice as a filler for X, suits (even cheap ones) not being notable for ease of folding,” [the linguist Arnold Zwicky] writes. “But maybe the cliché ‘all over someone like a cheap suit’ promoted suit for X.” 
Zwicky mentions several other choices as a filler for X, including “shirt,” “umbrella,” “cocktail umbrella,” “lawn chair,” “deck chair,” “card table,” “pocket-knife,” “wallet,” “blanket,” and “accordion.” 
The earliest example in writing that we could find for any of these “fold like a cheap X” expressions is from White Rat: A Life in Baseball, a 1987 memoir by Whitey Herzog: “The Phils, I think, were secretly rooting for the Cardinals to win the second half because they knew they could throw Steve Carlton at us in the mini-playoffs and we’d fold like a cheap tent.” 
The earliest written example we’ve found for the “suitcase” version is from All Out, a 1988 novel by Judith Alguire: “She folded like a cheap suitcase.” And the first written example we’ve found for the “suit” formula is from Another 48 Hours, Deborah Chiel’s 1990 novelization of the Eddie Murphy/Nick Nolte film: “Wilson folded like a cheap suit to the ringing applause of everyone present.” 
And now we’ll fold like a cheap laptop and call it a day.

Ha ha. Hope you enjoyed that foray into metaphor — that metaphoray. Now, back to the horrible topic in the main post. 

 

97 comments:

Dave Begley said...

I looked at some of the comments and I thought NYT readers would be for top surgery on minors.

Consensus!

RideSpaceMountain said...

"[I]f the garden variety American liberal as represented by New York Times readers is almost universally against this, who is pushing it and why do they have so much power?"

Two words: Pritzker Family. Look it up buttercup.

Quayle said...

"Because the Garden Variety American Liberal As Represented By New York Times Readers will fold like a cheap suitcase when publicly called a bigot or even told that they are kinda sorta maybe sounding like a conservative, even if holding private misgivings."


The bitter fruit of pride. It robs you of personal autonomy and principle-based action. Your every move is analyzed based on whether it will take you "up" or "down" in your mind - in your struggle to always be or go "up". And here's the crux: the measure is ALWAYS taken by how many people are below you or above you in your chosen domain of struggle.

It is too big of a self-ask, of a prideful person, to do anything that puts them at par with the folks they deem to be below them - the folks they NEED to stay below them in order for them to feel "up".

For example, the more Trump voters are "below" you, the higher you are in your own esteem.

(This is what is ripping our country apart - the prevalence and persistence of price among each and all of us.)

hawkeyedjb said...

This human experimentation - on young people, no less - is appalling. Everyone involved in it is certainly going to Hell, but meanwhile we need earthly consequences for the perpetrators and enablers of this gruesome, sickening practice. Nobody with a conscience can participate in the mutilation and sterilization of teenagers.

WWIII Joe Biden, Husk-Puppet + America's Putin said...

I wonder when the left will start to wonder if the Russians or the Chi Coms are pushing the discord?

Nah. The phone call is coming from inside the house.

rhhardin said...

The point is the story, as in narrative. Will you pay to read it or not.

Lurker21 said...

Current liberalism means not interfering with what people want to do -- if it can be made to sound progressive enough -- and coming down hard on people on the other side.

Being "personally opposed, but" was a big thing for a long time. Why be surprised when it turns up here?

tim maguire said...

the GOP is a moderate party beholden to extremist voters and the Dems are an extremist party beholden to moderate voters.

Except for the part about extremist voters in the GOP, this sounds about right (extremist right voters are 95% myth peddled by an extremist left media that needs them to exist whether they do or not).

the Garden Variety American Liberal As Represented By New York Times Readers will fold like a cheap suitcase when publicly called a bigot or even told that they are kinda sorta maybe sounding like a conservative."

This is your answer. The lack of a vocal left opposition has allowed a vanishingly small portion of the radical left to take over the party and wield outsized power.

All that is required for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing. On far too many issues, good liberals are doing nothing for fear of being called conservative.

Michael K said...

This fad will end with a flurry of lawsuits. Big damages and malpractice insurance will disappear.

Christopher B said...

Another says: "Political dynamics in the US is that the GOP is a moderate party beholden to extremist voters and the Dems are an extremist party beholden to moderate voters. It's a very odd dynamic."

Word.

No enemies to the Left, for either set of elites.

Eric said...

I suspect that the NYT staff want their readers, and garden variety American liberals, to approve of this and the article is basically a sales pitch.

n.n said...

Misogyny with an em-pathetic appeal to a semblance of science. Lose your Pro-Choice ethical religion. #HateLovesAbortion

Sebastian said...

Garden variety liberals sometimes make a show of resisting the latest prog culture war offensive. See Obama: marriage is between a man and a woman, etc. But then they are eager to fall in line with the prog vanguard.

Perhaps actual child mutilation is different. I have detected hints of doubt among libs and progs of my acquaintance. But not enough to resist the overall demands of the vanguard. Good libs are good with it.

How many garden variety liberals are left in the U.S. anyway? Transideology aside, what parts of the prog gospel do they reject?

By the way, Althouse, what's this business about "garden variety"?

MadTownGuy said...

"Fold" is a card players' metaphor. Could a 'cheap suit' be low cards in a hand?

tim maguire said...

I always heard it as "fold like a cheap suit" and assumed that cheap suits wrinkle more readily than good suits. But I don't know, that's just a guess.

Kate said...

"Fold like a cheap tent" is so lyrical, so visual! I'm surprised the other Xs are more popular.

I would imagine that NYT readers are much like Trump supporters. We may not like everything about him, but he's the best representative of our priorities that's available. When pushed, we'll admit some things repulse us, but too many other things are more important.

n.n said...

The Chinese wicked solution was to simply abort excess female babies... fetuses and redistribute the change.

cubanbob said...

"Because the Garden Variety American Liberal As Represented By New York Times Readers will fold like a cheap suitcase when publicly called a bigot or even told that they are kinda sorta maybe sounding like a conservative, even if holding private misgivings."

Perfectly summed up. All you need to know about the average Democrat voter.

Lazarus said...

"Fold like a cheap camera" was a phrase that talk radio ranter Bob Grant used a lot. It had a certain poignancy and quaintness.

You could think of old-time cameras or of Polaroid's SX-70, which actually did fold, in contrast to the common models of (pre-cellphone) cameras which didn't.

Suitcases do "fold" in a way, but less literally. I suppose, though, in the very literal sense of folding a piece of paper or a pair of pants, cameras didn't "fold" either.

Kevin said...

It will be fun watching Trump run against, "the Party that cuts off young girls' breasts".

It seems to be one of many things he's holding back discussing for his next campaign.

Like "defund the police", each month that goes by without outrage from Dem politicians makes it that much harder for them to suddenly speak out during election season.

n.n said...

Trans/neo, pseudo, quasi, likely trans/homosexual, in the transgender spectrum is clearly not politically congruent ("=") deserving #NoJudgment #NoLabels Pro-Choice ethical. Yesterday's liberal is today's conservative. #PrinciplesMatter

Buckwheathikes said...

These people are fucking ghouls.

They're godless creatures with zero moral compass. They're psychopathic mutilators. They're worse than Nazi's and when Republicans take power, we need to begin holding war crime trials and put these Democrats down.

These people need a Hague-like tribunal treatment, including everyone in the media promoting "trans" this and "trans" that.

We must treat these people just like we would treat Mengele and his co-conspirators and the political party they belong to should be banned forever. Just like the Nazi party has been banned.

These must hang.

Publicly.

Rollo said...

Do cheap tents and expensive ones really fold differently?

RMc said...

In the old days, many young girls thought they might be gay when confronted with the crudity of boys. Now, many young girls want to be boys. Madness.

CJinPA said...

The power comes from The Narrative, which is:

In a world of 7.7 billion people, there are only two characters, The Oppressed and The Oppressors. Sex identity minorities are in The Oppressed side of the story. They simply cannot be wrong.

This is the script The New York Times and the modern left follow. Once you understand that, it all makes sense.

sean said...

Cheap suits are made of thin, synthetic fabric (or fabric with threads spun loosely from short fibers), so they are weaker than expensive suits which are made from long staple wool spun tightly.

rcocean said...

Folded like a cheap umbrella or tent makes sense to me. The "cheap suit" never did.

What about folded like a cheap pair of socks?

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

I appreciate the Redditor who posited the “political dynamics” theorem. Succinct and wise and presents the contrast in stark terms. Since I’m a sucker for most any portmanteau I smiled at metaphoray too.

mezzrow said...

The statement assumes "g-v liberal" agreement with progressive policy. The progressive nomenklatura in charge of the NYT, our Federal government, and basically everything else has decided trans is good, and so is profit. If you disagree, you may shut your mouth and avoid prosecution. Lives are at stake, and people are dying.

rcocean said...

Actually, the person quoted is correct. "reasonable" Liberals always given in when pressured by the extreme left. Its why the Republican Government in 1936 became controlled by the Communists and Anarchists, and Kerensky led to Lenin. Most "reasonable liberals" just hate the Righwing. Its the only group they want to fight. They can't muster any courage or energy to take on the Left. Its the opposite with "moderate Repubicans" they too only want to fight the Rightwing. Look at Romney or Bush, man the hate they have for those on the Right!

Richard said...

Thanks for the etymology. I'd pay extra for a tent which folded easily.

I'd like to think that folding in the face of the possibility of being called a bigot was rare. But if it has power, it would likely be in inverse proportion amount of actual work in the field under discussion. In the late Sixties, due to a confluence of events--none of which were my idea--I found myself doing civil rights work in Mississippi. Rust College in Holly Springs. When, as we used to say, those who spoke stoutly as being down with the struggle were soiling themselves (we didn't put it that way) at the thought of going south of Cincinnati.
So, if called a bigot for not being sufficiently down with the current issue, I can ask the other party what his CV is. "You paid some dues, buddy, to talk like that?"

Similar unlooked for combinations of left overs from government employment, hobbies, and sudden circumstances have given me other dues certs which sometimes apply to the kinds of issues where accusations of bigotry may occur or have occurred.

From which I draw the lesson that being active in such fields--whatever that looks like--has an additional benefit not often thought of.

Mr Wibble said...

Well-crafted suits have linings and stitching to help provide structure in the chest, allow the lapels to fall correctly, etc. Cheap suits, don't.

Jupiter said...

It appears that the people who are pushing it are a grotesque alliance of greedy scum with medical training and miserable perverts who desire company. As to why they have so much power, though, that is a good question. It appears that, having won the long march through the institutions, the Left is now considering how to make use of its gains. And the strategy they have settled upon is one of endless provocations, and endless laws requiring that we accept their provocations without complaint. Their plan is that those among us who have not fully accepted their victory will ultimately rebel, and they can send the FBI to our homes in 20 or 30 SUVs and haul us off to one of their gulags, giving a stern lesson to our friends and neighbors in the process. This is also why the "homeless" and Negroes are so popular with the Left. They are reliable sources of endless provocation.

Gusty Winds said...

I have a question. Are breast augmentations (boob jobs) considered gender reaffirming, and would University of Wisconsin Health consider doing those along with breast removal for a fourteen year old.

What if a 14 year old girl wants bigger boobs to reaffirm her gender as cis gender female wanting to attract cisgender boys. Wouldn't that make her feel better about her body? That's "body positive" right?

What about penis enlargements for 14 year old boys? Would UW Health consider that gender reaffirming or are they only into chopping things off?

I think I'm onto something here. If a person likes the sex assignment God gave them, and the sex organs they were born with why would it not be reaffirming to augment and enhance these features surgically?

I'm sure the insurance companies that pay for gender affirming surgeries would freak out, but hey...fair is fair.

Jupiter said...

"Do cheap tents and expensive ones really fold differently?"

Actually, there are some fairly expensive tents that fold themselves.

tim maguire said...

MadTownGuy said..."Fold" is a card players' metaphor. Could a 'cheap suit' be low cards in a hand?

Given how many popular sayings trace their roots to poker, that's a possibility.

pacwest said...

I've always heard fold like a cheap lawnchair.

pacwest said...

I've always heard fold like a cheap lawnchair.

veni vidi vici said...

MadTownGuy ftw. The cards metaphor is the winner.

As for apparel, the quality of the suit is in its inner carding, which is sewn-in high quality felt, etc. in high-end duds, and glued in crap in the cheap stuff. An expensive suit will hold its shape better and longer (potentially a lifetime) if cared for, whereas a cheap one, even if cared for as well, will tend to lose its shape and take on a shabby appearance (yes, with ripples and folds in the outer fabric as against the inner carding, even) over time.

You get what you pay for.

Lord Clanfiddle said...

And don't forget to follow the money. These surgeries are highly lucrative. Perhaps the craze will die out when the lawsuits begin?

Wilbur said...

"White Rat: A Life in Baseball, a 1987 memoir by Whitey Herzog: “The Phils, I think, were secretly rooting for the Cardinals to win the second half because they knew they could throw Steve Carlton at us in the mini-playoffs and we’d fold like a cheap tent.”

I assume White Man Herzog (that's what my Cub fan friends called him) was referring to the 1981 season, interrupted by a mid-season player's strike. When the strike ended, Major League Baseball decided to play a split season format, with a first and second half.

The most common cheap folding reference in my experience has been "cheap umbrella" or "cheap lawn chair". I had a poker friend who used to throw his cards in, lamenting "I fold like a sad sack of shit".

Gusty Winds said...

Adding to the theme above of what is exactly "gender reaffirming", if UW Health is willing to prescribe puberty blockers to 12-year-olds, what about puberty accelerators?

Can a 12-year-old and his parents call UW Health and say..."No. We want the accelerator. Kid wants to be loaded up with testosterone. He's hoping he can get a scholarship, and there are a few bullies in the 7th grade that need their asses kicked."

A 17-year-old should be able to call UW Health and get a Viagra prescription for prom. If your a cisgender male or a regular old gay male...a rock-n-roll boner is definitely gender reaffirming?

Or is UW Health and other like minded liberal "healthcare" institutions only interested reversing God's assigned gender by playing god themselves to push their gross societal destruction??? "Reaffirming" my ass....

n.n said...

Burden. Planned Personhood. Solution.

n.n said...

The quality suit is made from a thick wool that stands on its own diverse threads.

Misinforminimalism said...

Cheap suits fold easily because they're of flimsy fabric and likely unlined.

This sentence makes sense if you picture the suit in question being worn by Humphrey Bogart. The idiom has not aged particularly well.

n.n said...

Cheap suits are made of thin, synthetic fabric... expensive suits which are made from long staple wool spun tightly

Exactly. It's the difference between a mat and a rug, which have their own allusions.

Anthony said...

Quayle said...
"Because the Garden Variety American Liberal As Represented By New York Times Readers will fold like a cheap suitcase when publicly called a bigot or even told that they are kinda sorta maybe sounding like a conservative, even if holding private misgivings."


The bitter fruit of pride.


My own pet theory is that this sort of tribalism is a dirt cheap ego boost. As long as you're not one of those Bad People, you're automatically a Good Person by comparison. Being anything like Them just dirties you.

n.n said...

It is too big of a self-ask, of a prideful person, to do anything that puts them at par with the folks they deem to be below them

A bit of appropriation, but essentially correct, which is why pride is best left to a parade of lions, lionesses, and their [unPlanned] cubs playing in gay revelry.

n.n said...

This fad will end with a flurry of lawsuits. Big damages and malpractice insurance will disappear.

Society's progress from the twilight fringe to darkness.

Paddy O said...

It was originally applied to armor.

Paddy O said...

I think "fold like an unethical politician" would be more evocative these days.

Richard said...

Thanks for the etymology. I'd pay extra for a tent which folded easily.

I'd like to think that folding in the face of the possibility of being called a bigot was rare. But if it has power, it would likely be in inverse proportion amount of actual work in the field under discussion. In the late Sixties, due to a confluence of events--none of which were my idea--I found myself doing civil rights work in Mississippi. Rust College in Holly Springs. When, as we used to say, those who spoke stoutly as being down with the struggle were soiling themselves (we didn't put it that way) at the thought of going south of Cincinnati.
So, if called a bigot for not being sufficiently down with the current issue, I can ask the other party what his CV is. "You paid some dues, buddy, to talk like that?"

Similar unlooked for combinations of left overs from government employment, hobbies, and sudden circumstances have given me other dues certs which sometimes apply to the kinds of issues where accusations of bigotry may occur or have occurred.

From which I draw the lesson that being active in such fields--whatever that looks like--has an additional benefit not often thought of.

mikee said...

Cheap suits folded in cheap folding suitcases are a thing I can visualize. What else would be folding like a cheap suit or a cheap suitcase? Cheap underwear?

Do short pants fold better or worse than long pants?

This is a subject for a comedian like Stephen Wright.

Birches said...

I suspect that most of the NYT subscribers who commented have older children, whereas the woke cheerleaders either don't have children or have very young children. Think about most of the woke teachers on Libs of TikTok... most of those women are young and think they know everything.

Lars Porsena said...

This is your answer. The lack of a vocal left opposition has allowed a vanishingly small portion of the radical left to take over the party and wield outsized power.

------------------------------------------

"No enemies on the left" is a commandment that is religiously obeyed in 'D' circles.

Gerda Sprinchorn said...

X = tent, umbrella, or lawn chair makes the most sense.

The expression is meant to show that a person loses the ability to "stand up" for what they believe and that they "collapse" under pressure. The image is very similar to having "no backbone".

Therefore, you need something that represents a structural collapse due to a loss of strength. Folding a suit isn't the same thing. That has something to do with being tidy when put away ... or something.

Achilles said...


"[I]f the garden variety American liberal as represented by New York Times readers is almost universally against this, who is pushing it and why do they have so much power?"

As Mountain alluded to above, the Billionaire Pritzker family has made this a particular hobby horse.

But it is a part of a larger movement to reduce the population of the human race.

Climate Change, Vaccine Mandates, Abortion, Inflation, Elimination of Borders, Releasing Criminals into society.

They are all meant to reduce standards of living and life expectancy. They are not even guardian their language in Davos and their WEF forums.

They are saying it openly.

Ken B said...

I agree with Michael K.

Hey, noboby's perfect.

Birches said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
PM said...

I liked Ralph's "Fold like a cheap Corvair."

William said...

Liberals are not sure of the uses of such vestigial organs as the appendix, tonsils, and penis. Liberals do, however, retain an inordinate amount of the affection for the female breast. Something to do with breastfeeding I expect.

CJinPA said...

Wilbur said...
"White Rat: A Life in Baseball, a 1987 memoir by Whitey Herzog: “The Phils, I think, were secretly rooting for the Cardinals to win the second half because they knew they could throw Steve Carlton at us in the mini-playoffs and we’d fold like a cheap tent.”

I assume White Man Herzog (that's what my Cub fan friends called him) was referring to the 1981 season, interrupted by a mid-season player's strike. When the strike ended, Major League Baseball decided to play a split season format, with a first and second half.

-----

Alas, the Cardinals didn't win, the Montreal Expos did. And they beat Carlton and the Phils in the mini-playoff.

Carol said...

"Perhaps the craze will die out when the lawsuits begin?"

We'll see. Parent and child ostensibly waive their right to sue in an "informed consent" charade.

These kids take about 4-5 years to regret their decision and stop caring what the peer group on Instagram and TikTok think.

And boy, do they feel foolish!

William said...

I go with "fold like a cheap umbrella". A cheap suit that folds still works as a suit. A cheap umbrella that folds no longer functions as an umbrella. It's a more telling metaphor and conscientious grammarians should encourage this use... "Fold like a cheap camera" is obsolete in our era. "Fold like a cheap tent" is obscure. Fewer people go camping than toe the line or hoe the row. Fold like a cheap umbrella is the way to go. People should be resolute in their use of this metaphor and not fold like a paper mache accordion when people try to impose other uses of the metaphor.

SeanF said...

I prefer Joey's version from Friends: "I fold like a cheap hooker who got hit in the stomach by a fat guy with sores on his face."

Jeff Gee said...

"Fold like a [x]" surely comes from poker, where folding means you give up and forfeit whatever you anted up. "Fold like a cheap suit" (or whatever) likely began as a play on words and somehow caught on. Cheap suits don't fold easily and cheap tents, I assure you as someone who has worked way too many farmers markets, are not pleasant to breakdown and fold up.

stlcdr said...

"Fold like a cheap X".

X must be one syllable: more than one feels clunky.

Mark said...

The tide is turning with a definite split on the left. Particularly between the LGs and the Ts, which are not a monolithic unity, if they ever were. Lesbians especially are taking more strenuous exception to a growing number of trans-women telling lesbians, "suck my dick," when the lesbians insist on their girlfriends having vaginas. Being a TERF is more and more socially acceptable too.

Mark said...

One curious development is more people who previously identified as "gay" or "lesbian" or who spoke of "sexual orientation" are now using the term "same-sex attracted."

Mark said...

Of course, the erasure/cancellation of "women" in language and in public spaces and elsewhere in culture/society has not escaped even liberal/progressive women.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

"Garden Variety American Liberal"

Where? There's no such thing anymore. They don't get to stand at arm's length from what they pay lip service to.

I was thinking yesterday about the photo of Lia Thomas with the second and third place swimmers and trying to wrap my head around the idea that anyone could think it made sense. It's common to hyperbolically attribute insanity to your ideological foes, but we've reached a point where it doesn't seem a bit hyperbolic anymore.

gilbar said...

as RideSpaceMountain said...
Two words: Pritzker Family. Look it up buttercup.

yep, Follow the MONEY. ALL this is happening, because of the pervert Pritzkers' BILLIONS

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

The earliest “fold like a cheap X” I remember is “fold like a cheap camera”. It’s probably from a time when either Japanese cameras were thought to be, or probably were poorly designed and poorly built.

walter said...

Michael K said...
This fad will end with a flurry of lawsuits. Big damages and malpractice insurance will disappear.
--
Really? With parental consent?
I recently heard an argument (by a doctor) for practicing without malpractice insurance. The idea is that a good number of lawsuits would not be pursued if not for big pockets of insurance companies. Some docs practice "bare" and seem to actually be protected. I would guess this is more possible for the decreasing numbers of truly independent practices.

So..when they say teens are going toppy, does that include males getting boob jobs?

walter said...

Commonly referred to as "putting the top up"..I imagine.

Michael said...

“Fold like a cheap suit” refers to the wearer

gilbar said...

Parent and child ostensibly waive their right to sue in an "informed consent" charade.

AH! but, THERE is The Fun!!
A minor, CAN NOT enter into a legally binding contract... EVER*
It doesn't matter what they've signed, if they are not of age, it's null and void.

So, in the future, there are going to be multitudes of women, suing hospitals for what was done to them. With NORMAL procedures, the doctor can just point to the consent form, and say;
"Look! Your Legal Guardian (parent) Gave us consent, if you have a problem, it's with Them."
But today's modern doctors seldom bother asking the parents.. which means NO legal consent was given

Ever* if a minor sues for emancipation, they are suing to QUIT being a minor

boatbuilder said...

The earliest references to "fold like a cheap X" they could find were in the 80's?

That doesn't seem right. I am 63 and I'm pretty sure the phrase is older than me.

I think the poker thing is correct.

Narayanan said...

it could be that owner would not mind folding a cheap suit while preferring to hang up / pack expensive one properly!

Narayanan said...

This fad will end with a flurry of lawsuits. Big damages and malpractice insurance will disappear.
============
if insurance plans are paying for this has not law already been tailored to protect against damages and malpractice? as already done with COVID non-vaccines!

Doug said...

Like a cheap card table

walter said...

Fold like a cheap lawsuit.

TheOne Who Is Not Obeyed said...

Speaking of the 80s -- you gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away, know when to run......

MadisonMan said...

I've always thought it was 'fold like a cheap card table' -- because too much weight on a cheap card table causes it to fold.

But I also like 'fold like a cheap cigar' (which no one really says, but the visual cracks me up)

Joe Smith said...

The teachers' union and doctors push it.

“The Phils, I think, were secretly rooting for the Cardinals to win the second half because they knew they could throw Steve Carlton at us in the mini-playoffs and we’d fold like a cheap tent.”

TENT! This is the only answer. Always has been...

anonprof said...

This is just asking the question, "If most people support policy X, why isn't it enacted?" Richard Hanania has a good blogpost addressing this question:
https://richardhanania.substack.com/p/why-is-everything-liberal

Essentially, it isn't just the fraction of people that prefer X to Y. The intensity matters too. Couple that with the lack of real diversity at the top of elite institutions in journalism, entertainment, non-profits, education, and other opinion-forming institutions and you get what we have today.

Jamie said...

Actually, there are some fairly expensive tents that fold themselves.

My favorite of it carries tents, and probably the most expensive, didn't require folding at all. You just unhooked the three poles from the eyelets they were in, gathered them together into a fasces-like bundle (term used deliberately), and stuffed the whole shebang into the bag, first wrapping the still-attached fabric around the bundle of poles if you were feeling tidy. It took about one minute. Maybe two minutes to erect the tent (term used deliberately) because sometimes you had to sort of untangle the fabric from the poles as you extended them.

A CHEAP tent folds on top of you when faced with wind, rain, or other conditions in which you want it to keep acting like a tent.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Are any of the garden variety liberals actually classical liberals who believe in free speech, the Constitution and tolerance? Or have those been weeded out of the progressive garden?

Marc in Eugene said...

I watched a recording of Giorgia Meloni giving a speech; I'm pretty sure that the NYT knows she is bad, bad, bad (my subscription expired, for the time being anyway). Maybe politicians here need to begin imitating her rhetorical style as they lambaste the child mutilators and their enablers.

(Am 85% in agreement with what I understand of her program but there was a moment in the clip when she was shouting-- which is a fairly standard Italian way of doing public speaking, I guess-- and had her right arm extended upward in a simulacrum of the fascist salute... but she realized, I think, what pose she had manoeuvred herself into and quickly moved past it. Still, a memorable sight.)

Rick67 said...

Liberals might be against this. What we are dealing with here however is the Left. I've been following the work of James Lindsay over the last couple years. The Left wants to destroy Western civilization and convert everyone to have critical consciousness. That means destroying anything and everything that does not fit their framework. That includes biological sex.

And at this stage of Western history the Left controls nearly every lever of power. It doesn't matter if they represent a few percent of the population. To what extent have garden variety libs been coopted?

gilbar said...

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...
classical liberals who believe in free speech, the Constitution and tolerance?

those are Now Defined, as FASCISTS

gilbar said...

I've given this some thought; and i believe the Currently Correct answer is:

Fold like a MaleToFemale woman's penis, as the doctor turns it into her vagina

Tom said...

Cheap suits fold (crease and wrinkle) because of inferior fabric.

Well, uh, Normie, high quality wools will not wrinkle easily and, if wrinkled, can be hung up and the wrinkles will fall out - especially with a bit of steam.

In fact, I typically will take a suit I’m traveling with and hang it in the hotel bathroom while I shower. By the time I’m done, the suit will look freshly pressed.

Expensive lawyers love the “folks like a cheap suit” line because it insults lawyers who are poor and fighting up hill battles. So they may say something like “all these lawyers on my team look tough but get them in the golf course and they fold like a cheap suit” to a lawyer wearing a cheap suit.

#mansplaned

NYC JournoList said...

Doesn’t anyone buy bespoke any more? (sigh)

Suits should have three layers of different fabric: outer, canvas and liner. see https://blacklapel.com/thecompass/anatomy-of-a-suit-jacket-fused-vs-canvassed/

My father taught me how to properly fold a suit coat by the time I was 10. It takes time and care. A cheap suit skips the quality canvas and folds on its own … no effort needed.

MacMacConnell said...

"Folded" means Failed in any case. As in "the defensive line folded" against the run.

NYC JournaList is correct. A relatively expensive suit has hand sewn canvas. One can still buy them of the rack at places like J. Press or O'Connell's. "Bespoke" means hand made with very little machine work and made to measure, the fabric is expensive.

holdfast said...

A cheap tent or cheap lawn chair may fold under very mild stimulus, and not necessarily when intended. An unexpected, often deleterious collapse. Just like the noodle that passes for the spine of a modern liberal.

eLocke said...

I think it started as crumpled like a cheap suit, which makes sense, and the got conflated with folded like a cheap tent (which also makes sense).