# Why Is The S Emulating Soviet Communism? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 11, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616 "2011-07-11T12:08:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/21 "2011-07-11T16:25:55Z")
What the S? šŸ˜• I think someoneā€™s posting from his phone - itā€™s almost like English, but not quite. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/22 "2011-07-11T17:00:42Z")
Iā€™m still trying to figure out who or what ā€œThe Sā€ is, and in what way itā€™s emulating the Soviet Union. It seems to have something to do with light bulbs that somehow pollute the planet Mercuryā€¦ šŸ˜• ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/23 "2011-07-11T17:12:54Z")
Is this all a big whoosh? Is there anyone who genuinely doesnā€™t know what the S is? ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/24 "2011-07-11T17:20:50Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Is this all a big whoosh? Is there anyone who genuinely doesnā€™t know what the S is? - stops molesting rabbit. Raises hand \* ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/25 "2011-07-11T17:25:48Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > I take issue with the statement ā€œlow flush toilets work fineā€. I had to replace two-clogged constantly and require two flush cycles. You just bought crappy toilets. (pun intended). Seriouslyā€¦ thereā€™s a Kohler model at Home Depot for like $165 that will flush ANY monstrous dump that Iā€™ve produced in the past year, and more toilet paper than my wife can use at a sitting. I think this thing would flush a softball, and it was dirt cheap. Beyond that, itā€™s not ā€œSoviet style central planning.ā€ If it was, the DOE or whatever pertinent Federal agency would be setting production quotas, prices, distribution, etcā€¦ All theyā€™re doing is mandating that some light bulbs canā€™t be used, or that a car makerā€™s fleet has to make a certain minimum MPG, or subsidizing certain industries in what they perceive to be the interest of the nation. If you want to really get pissed off, read about the protectionist sugar tariffs we have in place. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/26 "2011-07-11T17:31:06Z")
In Soviet Russia, The S emulates you! [QUOTE=yanceylebeef] The "Free Market " gave us the biggest financial meltdown in the last 80 years. Not to mention the auto manufacturers bailout. But you just keep believing the nonsense. Pull the other one, it has bells on. [/quote] Iā€™m pretty sure itā€™s a bit more complicated than that. ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/27 "2011-07-11T17:45:53Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > I take issue with the statement ā€œlow flush toilets work fineā€. I had to replace two-clogged constantly and require two flush cycles. Change your diet, not the toiletā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/28 "2011-07-11T17:47:26Z")
Maybe the S is half of SS, or possibly half of _the_ SS. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/29 "2011-07-11T17:48:34Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > In Soviet Russia, The S emulates you! I see what U did there. ---
**Author:** ![Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swords_to_Plowshares)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/30 "2011-07-11T17:49:02Z")
My low-flush toilet can flush twelve golf balls at once. Twelve! They even proved it in the in-store demo! Now I have to get those golf balls out of my septic tank somehowā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/31 "2011-07-11T17:57:20Z")
> [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](#): > > Now I have to get those golf balls out of my septic tank somehowā€¦ I think the more pressing concern would be to figure out why you are shitting golf balls. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/32 "2011-07-11T17:58:11Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Is this all a big whoosh? Is there anyone who genuinely doesnā€™t know what the S is? You decide. Is it a woosh, or did I really believe he was complaining about light bulb pollution of the planet Mercury. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/33 "2011-07-11T17:59:13Z")
> [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](#): > > My low-flush toilet can flush twelve golf balls at once. Twelve! They even proved it in the in-store demo! Why were you shitting golf balls?!:eek: ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/34 "2011-07-11T18:01:46Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Seriouslyā€¦ thereā€™s a Kohler model at Home Depot for like $165 that will flush ANY monstrous dump that Iā€™ve produced in the past year Great user name/post combo! ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/35 "2011-07-11T18:10:36Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Is this all a big whoosh? Is there anyone who genuinely doesnā€™t know what the S is? Please explain for the benefit of us grubby unwashed foreigners. šŸ™‚ > [@msmith537](#): > > In Soviet Russia, The S emulates you! Wouldnā€™t that be the ā€œŠ”ā€? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/36 "2011-07-11T18:37:30Z")
The thread title is supposed to be ā€œWhy Is The US Emulating Soviet Communism?ā€ The answer of course is that weā€™re not. Our system is more Maoist. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/37 "2011-07-11T19:02:45Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > Why do so many Americans (even some Dopers, it now seems) believe such a **farrago** of nonsense? Why do they have so little idea about what Soviet Communism was actually like? Ooh, new word. Iā€™ll take it. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/38 "2011-07-11T19:03:05Z")
I have it on good authority that this is being done specifically to defuse **Commissarā€™s** anti-ā€˜Empireā€™ arguments in GD and The Pit. > [@ralph124c](#): > > The insane decisions coming out of Washing defy explanation- Yes, it is a stain on the fabric of the nation. By making our opinions known, however, we the people will scrub the whole deal. No spin cycle will stop it; we will put our elected officals through the wringer until DC is cleaned up once and for all. > [@](#): > > it seems that the government doesnā€™t believe in the free market anymore. We get crazy edicts like the ā€œlow flushā€ toilets (that didnā€™t work), the banning of incandescent lamp bulbs (that will result in massive mercry pollution), and the ethanol subsidy program Setting aside for a moment the OPā€™s blatant mischaracterizations of the issues under discussion, I take it the OP likewise objects to things like mandatory testing of new drugs and the process of certificating passenger aircraft. After all, donā€™t these things cost vast amounts of money and inhibit free market rights? > [@](#): > > And yet, this contry professes to be ā€œfreeā€-what a joke. I hear you, and I fully support your intention to preserve our freedoms by insisting on using as many gallons per flush as you want. To the barricades! ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/39 "2011-07-11T19:08:13Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Why were you shitting golf balls?!:eek: > [@Telemark](#): > > I think the more pressing concern would be to figure out why you are shitting golf balls. Heā€™s not chewing adequately. ---
**Author:** ![rebelson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@rebelson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rebelson)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616/40 "2011-07-11T19:10:08Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > Low flush toilets work fine. > Incandescent light bulbs are not banned. I have some. > Ethanol subsidies are as much a product of big business influencing congress as they are of environmental interests. > > The DOE **is** expensive to run, but thatā€™s not what people mean when they say they want a ā€œfreeā€ country. Low flush toilets work fine for those people who can wipe their butt with one square of paper. Incandescent bulbs are being phased out by law (attempts to repeal that are underway), beginning with the 100 watt version scheduled to be gone as of Jan '12. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-s-emulating-soviet-communism/588616.md?page=3)