The Refuge of the Toads

#67321

AndrewV69 wrote:So,

I finally got around to reading Darwin's Radio

I'll have to get back into Greg Bear. He wrote four of my favourite books: Blood Music, Eon, Eternity and Legacy

#67322

fuzzy wrote:
Lsuoma wrote: Extra points for making it do either a Wu or an Oolon grimace.

Holy crap. That is some kind of bent Gilliam-esque horror :shock:

You're rocking the GIMP tonight :dance:

#67323

Ape+lust wrote:
You're rocking the GIMP tonight :dance:

I hope that is not another suggestion.

#67324

wow!!! PZ finally came out and slammed the Berlin truck of peace.

Wait. No he didn't. But he did launch a crusade against a fake video which deflected from real anti Islam bigotry.

How many fucking times removed is this?

#67325

Sometimes I wonder if people are ugly on the outside because they're shit people or if they're ugly on the inside because they look like shit.

/deepthoughts

It's your fault because you keep posting pictures of that ridiculous PR failure.

#67326

rayshul wrote:Sometimes I wonder if people are ugly on the outside because they're shit people or if they're ugly on the inside because they look like shit.
...

From 'Dead Ringers' (1988)

Elliot Mantle wrote:I've often thought that there should be beauty contests for the *insides* of bodies.

#67327

Another mystery solved

[youtube][/youtube]

#67328

MarcusAu wrote:
Ape+lust wrote:
You're rocking the GIMP tonight :dance:
I hope that is not another suggestion.

Bring a raincoat if you're coming along.

http://imgur.com/NMOCbEK.jpg

#67329

AndrewV69 wrote:So,

I finally got around to reading Darwin's Radio* and i came to this:
He had always thought of himself as separate, a little superior perhaps but infinitely sympathetic. The self-delusion of an educated and intellectually isolated fool
Guess who I thought of immediately? PeeZuss Christ!
What did you think of the novel? The ending kind of ruined it for me.

* I was not that interested when it first came out for some reason.

#67330

katamari Damassi wrote:
AndrewV69 wrote:So,

I finally got around to reading Darwin's Radio* and i came to this:
He had always thought of himself as separate, a little superior perhaps but infinitely sympathetic. The self-delusion of an educated and intellectually isolated fool
Guess who I thought of immediately? PeeZuss Christ!
* I was not that interested when it first came out for some reason.

What did you think of the novel? The ending kind of ruined it for me.

Fuck! Need coffee.

#67331

I also need reading recommendations. Any subject.

#67332

Wodehouse
Clark Ashton Smith
Joe R Lansdale

#67333

MarcusAu wrote:Wodehouse
Clark Ashton Smith
Joe R Lansdale

I'm reading Clark Ashton Smith but his (pseudo?)-archaic English is a tough nut at times.

#67334

feathers wrote:
I'm reading Clark Ashton Smith but his (pseudo?)-archaic English is a tough nut at times.

He was a fairly prolific writer of short stories - many of which are on youtube - so you can download them as an mp3 file - if you find listening easier than reading.

One of my (creepy) favourites:

[youtube][/youtube]

Here's another one where the reader was attempting an NZ accent (in character with the story's narrator) - which seemed slightly off to my ears:

[youtube][/youtube]

#67335

feathers wrote:
MarcusAu wrote:Wodehouse
Clark Ashton Smith
Joe R Lansdale
I'm reading Clark Ashton Smith but his (pseudo?)-archaic English is a tough nut at times.

I've read some of his work. One story about a mission to reignite the Sun anticipates Sunshine by decades; another, about an alien parasite, has a lot of similarities with Alien

#67336

I've have also enjoyed Charles Stross's 'Atrocity Archives' books - a Lovecraft / Spy-Fiction mash up.

Here's a brief free taste of something he did in the same vein:

http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/stories/colderwar.htm

Similarly I've enjoyed Cory Doctorow's stuff. (SF author and BoingBoing proprietor) - even if he was on the wrong side of GamerGate).

And for variety how about Robert Lacey's 'Great Tales from English History' - sort 1-3 pages that can be dipped if you don't have much time.

I bought a copy of Albion's Seed that we were discussing here a while back - as an audio book - but it's a little dense, and requires full attention so doesn't work so well for casual listening

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albion's_Seed

#67337

katamari Damassi wrote:I also need reading recommendations. Any subject.

Next on my list I is Michelle Paver's Thin Air, a horror story about a Himalayan expedition early last century.

Paver's earlier novel, Dark Matter, was a superb ghost story about an Arctic expedition in the same period. I can't recommend that enough.

#67338

katamari Damassi wrote:I also need reading recommendations. Any subject.

Knight with armour

The book follows a young knight, a second-son with zero chance of an inheritance, as he embarks upon the first crusade. The story is well paced, historically accurate and has a grisly sense of humour. Very enjoyable if a little short.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3593 ... ith_Armour

#67339

Taken from the ED forums...

https://anonmgur.com/up/3315148ea23b945 ... ea9ca4.jpg

:D

#67340

Kirbmarc wrote:
Really? wrote:
free thoughtpolice wrote:dub in 1:46- 1:49 for audio?
[.youtube][/youtube]
Fucking great. First we were divided by Pizzagate. Then we were cleaved in two by borequatch. Now we're going to war over the obvious truth that Jar Jar Binks is a Sith infiltrator, which is the only thing that redeems the shitty Prequel Trilogy.

We'll even have to pretend that the New Trilogy is palatable, even if Snoke isn't some form of Jar Jar.
Plot twist: Snoke is actually Jar-Jar the Secret Sith! :lol:

As they say: there's no Snoke without Jar Jar.

Worst Post Evah? I reckon so. :burn:

#67341

This page keeps reminding me that I wish Disney would get David Cronenberg to direct the Star Wars movies. It would be an interesting and risky artistic decision and the fanboys would lose their shit. Win win.

#67342

Mr. X, Indeed wrote:This page keeps reminding me that I wish Disney would get David Cronenberg to direct the Star Wars movies. It would be an interesting and risky artistic decision and the fanboys would lose their shit. Win win.

I thought 'Naked Lunch' was a Star Wars film.

#67343

New SyeTen...

[youtube][/youtube]

#67344

The nominations have been made, the poll has been started, and the votes are in.

In line with an earlier suggestion there will be three categories for the Cunties this year, becuase otherwise most individuals would not get a look in due to the infinite Cuntiness of the group winner.

So, without further ado, the result.

Pit Cunt - for the member of the Pit who displays the greatest Cuntitude

This year we had just two nominations.

In second place: FT - for edit-button-denying cuntishness, with four votes.

The winner: Steersman - because he is a robo(cunt), with seven votes

Individual non-Pit Cunt
In third place, we have a three-way tie, with 11 votes each.

Donald Trump - Shredded Wheat-headed cunt
Cenk Uygur - genocide-denying Islam apoligist cunt who lost his shit on election night
Dr. Richard Carrier PhD - for not catching "the gay" and trying to bum lots of easy-to-manipulate tail at Camp Quest (with benefits). Also a cunt

In second place: Peezy Myers - Cuntus Maximus, with 20 votes

The winner: Zarna Joshi - Hugh Mungus plus various other nut-cuntery, with 22 votes

2016 was really the year of the Organizational Cunts. We had lots of strong contenders this year, several unexpected, several expected.

The top three are:

Third place: Ontario Human Rights Commission - for even thinking about making it a hate crime to not use someone preferred pronoun. Real cunts, with 18 votes

Second Place: ISIS - goat-fucking, towel-headed, kiddy-raping, gay-throwing, culture-destroying, etc., etc. cunts, with 21 votes

The winner, by a HUGE margin: SPLC - Hypocrytical money-grubbing cunts, with an amazing 46 votes.

Overall Top Three Cunts for 2016
Third Place: ISIS - goat-fucking, towel-headed, kiddy-raping, gay-throwing, culture-destroying, etc., etc. cunts, with 21 votes
Second Place: Zarna Joshi - Hugh Mungus plus various other nut-cuntery, with 22 votes
Grand Cuntie Winner: SPLC - Hypocrytical money-grubbing cunts, with an amazing 46 votes

#67345

Lsuoma wrote:The winner: Steersman - because he is a robo(cunt), with seven votes

http://tshop.r10s.com/aa2/2c4/a9c9/565f ... ex=700x700

#67346

Bhurzum wrote:
Lsuoma wrote:The winner: Steersman - because he is a robo(cunt), with seven votes
http://tshop.r10s.com/aa2/2c4/a9c9/565f ... ex=700x700

Yeah, I can't believe I wasn't nominated either. Maybe if I post a bunch more bigf**t stuff...

#67347

Lsuoma wrote: ...
Donald Trump - Shredded Wheat-headed cunt
...

Penn Jillette has pointed out on multiple occassions, that it looks like Cotton-Candy made out of Piss.

Respect this description - or there will be Hell Toupee!

#67348

That last post was my Waterloo moment - 1815.

#67349

katamari Damassi wrote:I also need reading recommendations. Any subject.

M. John Harrison's sci-fi novel Light. A truly astonishing book.

Harrison's other stuff is also very good. But Light is in a class by itself.

#67350

Recommendations - going to second the Laundry series by Stross. It helps to have a good understanding of British politics and culture to get some of the finer points, but they're cracking reads anyway (apart from The Annihilation Score, which was pants).

There are short stories and novellas too - I especially liked Equoid, and for that it really helps to have read Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons (which is also a stonker).

#67351

Lsuoma wrote:The nominations have been made, the poll has been started, and the votes are in.

In line with an earlier suggestion there will be three categories for the Cunties this year, becuase otherwise most individuals would not get a look in due to the infinite Cuntiness of the group winner.

So, without further ado, the result.

Pit Cunt - for the member of the Pit who displays the greatest Cuntitude

This year we had just two nominations.

In second place: FT - for edit-button-denying cuntishness, with four votes.

The winner: Steersman - because he is a robo(cunt), with seven votes ....

"Thank you, thank you ver much ..."

http://s2.quickmeme.com/img/f0/f0cda7c9 ... 10b6fe.jpg

#67352

What about the winner of the Mainly Venal Pervert award?

#67353

Lsuoma wrote:Recommendations - going to second the Laundry series by Stross. It helps to have a good understanding of British politics and culture to get some of the finer points, but they're cracking reads anyway (apart from The Annihilation Score, which was pants).

There are short stories and novellas too - I especially liked Equoid, and for that it really helps to have read Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons (which is also a stonker).

Equoid is another free sample - so try before you buy everyone:

http://www.tor.com/2013/09/24/equoid/

As well as the politics mentioned above- he likes to write books in the style of (or inspired by) other authors - so in one he was doing a James Bond riff, and in another he was modeling it on Len Deighton's work (think Harry Palmer or Micheal Caine if you like).

And of course the protagonists name 'Bob Howard' is a double in-joke (ie the writer of Conan, and a reference to general computer support geekery).

#67354

Also, if anyone likes 'Weird' fiction there is also the 'New Weird' fiction.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Weird

I like China Mieville's 'Bas Lag' series, I've not read Gormenghast and Tim Powers stuff has proved enjoyable.

I've not strayed into the Bizzaro fiction genre (yet) - the titles sound entertaining eg 'Shatnerquake' or 'Ass Goblins of Auschwitz'

#67355

But, speaking of cuntishness, one might suggest that the estimable H.J.Hornbeck should have gotten an honourable mention, not least for his "critique" of Jerry Coyne's recent posts on sexual dimorphism, and for his insistence that "the link between behavior and sexual dimorphism is probably weak or nonexistent in human beings". Bit of a dog's-breakfast of highly questionable "logic" and inferences - "weak" and "non-existent" being entirely different kettles of fish, entirely different categories - but, offhand, I'd say he might have a point or two, even if they're more or less trivial. For instance:

Hornbeck wrote:Jerry Coyne seems like a nice guy. He’s a biology professor, written some good books on evolution, done some great work pushing back against creationists…. but he also writes things like this.
Coyne wrote:One distressing characteristic of the Left, at least as far as science is concerned, is to let our ideology trump scientific data; that is, some of us ignore biological data when it’s inimical to our political preferences. ...
.... Let’s buy into Coyne’s premise that “the Left” rejects scientific evidence in favor of ideology, without exception, and see where it takes us. ....

Bit of a stretch, a strawman, to argue that Coyne is saying that "the Left rejects ... without exception", but Coynes' "distressing characteristic of the Left" is maybe a bit too categorical - or simply careless.

In any case, a couple more instances of cuntishness - non justifiable subclass - or evidence thereof, we have:

And:

#67356

Wow Steers. I guess that proves that liberals and people that don't like Trump are all bad people. :drool:

#67357

MarcusAu wrote:Also, if anyone likes 'Weird' fiction there is also the 'New Weird' fiction.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Weird

I like China Mieville's 'Bas Lag' series, I've not read Gormenghast and Tim Powers stuff has proved enjoyable.

I've not strayed into the Bizzaro fiction genre (yet) - the titles sound entertaining eg 'Shatnerquake' or 'Ass Goblins of Auschwitz'

Gormenghast is hardly new - the first book in the trilogy (Titus Groan) was published 70 years ago. However, if you can get through the very, very dense descriptive writing the trilogy is outstandingly good. Shatnerquake is fun, but welch like AGoA, so beware...

#67358

So Steers - does 'Sexual Dimorphism' only exist between menarche and menopause because outside of that range the people that are considered by some (maybe even the majority) to be female - are not actually women?

#67359

free thoughtpolice wrote:Wow Steers. I guess that proves that liberals and people that don't like Trump are all bad people. :drool:

:lol: Took the words right out of my mouth ....

But you don't think that "Liberal thug" is accurate and justified? Maybe the shot at the "party of tolerance and love" was overly categorical, but there seems no shortage of equally demented behaviour by others in the same tribe:

Accused killer of UPS driver believes he assassinated Trump

ITHACA, N.Y. — A 38-year-old man charged with killing a seasonal UPS driver in a Wal-Mart parking lot has been ordered to undergo a mental evaluation after telling a judge he believed he killed President-elect Donald Trump.

Justin Barkley of Dryden appeared in Tompkins County Court on Monday to be arraigned for the murder of 52-year-old William Schumacher, who was shot shortly before 1 a.m. on Dec. 8 outside a Wal-Mart in Ithaca ....

You might give some thought to the argument that the members of a group have some responsibility for the depredations perpetrated by other members of it:

#67360

MarcusAu wrote:So Steers - does 'Sexual Dimorphism' only exist between menarche and menopause because outside of that range the people that are considered by some (maybe even the majority) to be female - are not actually women?

:lol: Seems you're conflating, or are not clear about the differences between, a particular attribute that undergirds the criteria for being a member of a particular class - i.e., the ability to produce ova being the essence, the essential element of the precise definition for "woman" - with the general set of attributes that generally correlate, to a greater or lesser extent, with the larger class of those who are nominally women - i.e, particular sets of hormones, karyotypes, and physiologies.

#67361

Just because you come into contact with Squatch spunk doesn't make you go ape. :?
[youtube][/youtube]

#67362

Steersman wrote:
MarcusAu wrote:So Steers - does 'Sexual Dimorphism' only exist between menarche and menopause because outside of that range the people that are considered by some (maybe even the majority) to be female - are not actually women?
:lol: Seems you're conflating, or are not clear about the differences between, a particular attribute that undergirds the criteria for being a member of a particular class - i.e., the ability to produce ova being the essence, the essential element of the precise definition for "woman" - with the general set of attributes that generally correlate, to a greater or lesser extent, with the larger class of those who are nominally women - i.e, particular sets of hormones, karyotypes, and physiologies.

Well, if I don't understand your point now - I expect I never will.

#67363

ConcentratedH2O, OM wrote:Professor fucking Privilege complains about a specific airline.

Could this cunt be any less self-aware? I can just see him side-eyeing the cabin crew as he boards his Delta flight to some freebie speaking engagement, and thinking "Ha! That's taught Delta a lesson they won't soon forget. And just wait until I start complaining about the temperature, legroom, food, and how the crew are all a bunch of ancient fucking hags".

PZ's safe seeing as airlines these days aren't allowed to dump their shit before landing.

#67364

free thoughtpolice wrote:Just because you come into contact with Squatch spunk doesn't make you go ape. :?
[youtube][/youtube]

If bath houses are involved, it's more likely to be bears.

#67365

MarcusAu wrote:
Steersman wrote:
MarcusAu wrote:So Steers - does 'Sexual Dimorphism' only exist between menarche and menopause because outside of that range the people that are considered by some (maybe even the majority) to be female - are not actually women?
:lol: Seems you're conflating, or are not clear about the differences between, a particular attribute that undergirds the criteria for being a member of a particular class - i.e., the ability to produce ova being the essence, the essential element of the precise definition for "woman" - with the general set of attributes that generally correlate, to a greater or lesser extent, with the larger class of those who are nominally women - i.e, particular sets of hormones, karyotypes, and physiologies.
Well, if I don't understand your point now - I expect I never will.

Bit of a tricky concept that I'm not belabouring just for the sake of garnering a Cunty award; it's related to Bacon's "therefore shoddy and inept application of words lays siege to the intellect in wondrous ways": not being precise about definitions causes no end of grief and animosity, not to mention being decidedly unproductive.

But you might wish to read in some detail the Wikipedia articles on taxonomy and principal component analysis. While the latter is definitely tricky and something I don't have as good a handle on as I would like, although it seems to address the issue of which attribute correlates strongest with the largest segments of a population - and hence is determinative for definitions, the one on taxonomy seems a little more tractable:

Taxonomy (from Ancient Greek: τάξις taxis, "arrangement", and -νομία -nomia, "method"[1]) is the science of defining groups of biological organisms on the basis of shared characteristics and giving names to those groups. Organisms are grouped together into taxa (singular: taxon) and these groups are given a taxonomic rank; groups of a given rank can be aggregated to form a super group of lower rank, thus creating a taxonomic hierarchy. ....

#67366

Steersman wrote:In any case, a couple more instances of cuntishness - non justifiable subclass - or evidence thereof, we have:

So that's two of you who think sex means what you say it is.

#67367

Anybody else seen the funny story of two liberal (in the American sense) gay men who "abused" and "harassed" Ivanka Trump and her kids on a plane? It is a typical OUTRAGE story, but with the right/Trump supporters using the SJW tactics of calling for them to be fired (contacting the college president, etc.) from Hunter College in New York.

#67368

Bhurzum wrote:
Lsuoma wrote:The winner: Steersman - because he is a robo(cunt), with seven votes
http://tshop.r10s.com/aa2/2c4/a9c9/565f ... ex=700x700

I just hope these award figurines can't spin like dancers...

#67369

katamari Damassi wrote:
What did you think of the novel? The ending kind of ruined it for me.

Fuck! Need coffee.

It was fine. I could follow more or less, the proposals about the genetics involved. This was something I would have had some difficulty with five years ago before I had started reading population genetics.

I am still not a fan of the punctuated equilibrium model, and I tend to favor the weak garden of eden hypothesis but I certainly found the story interesting.

I had no problem with the ending either. If you want a downer ending try reading Evolution by Stephen Baxter.

I am currently reading the sequel Darwin's Children. My model of humanity is a pretty grim one, based on the stories written in population genetics so pretty much any ending that is less than grim is a happy one to me.

Imagine a world where the likes of PeeZuss Christ are the majority. Yes, he is a keyboard warrior, physically a coward but a mob full of people like PeeZuss is a different story.

When times are good we can more or less ignore them and the damage they do is minimal relatively speaking. When times are bad and most people behave like him, it can get very ugly indeed.

We do not live in a peaceful world. Our corner may be peaceful, secure and prosperous but not for the majority of people who live in other corners of the world. Within a few decades I expect that we will join them, because our elites generally speaking are essentially no different than our PeeZuss and behave the same.

#67370

We'll get to the actual results in a few short seconds, but it appears to me that the Russians have been tampering with the results for MVP because it's inconceivable that the person who topped the poll could have won in a fair election, being a miserable Aussie cunt of the first water.

Anmyway, the results:

Special Award: John Greg is going to be awarded an Emeritus MVP award for all his contributions and his support of the Pit during his membership.

This leaves the other candidates, of whom the top three are, in reverse order:

* The Slyme Pit, with 12 votes
* Ape+Lust, with 18 votes

and the winner is:

* Breeeeeeve1987, with 20 votes!

Thanks to everyone who nominated and voted!

#67371

I'd also like to point out that Brive1987 is third overall in number of posts, nuzzling obscenely close behind comhinc, and probably beginning to insinuate himself between the latter's welcoming buttox.

#67372

The only awards show I'll watch.

#67373

Shatterface wrote:
Steersman wrote:In any case, a couple more instances of cuntishness - non justifiable subclass - or evidence thereof, we have:
[.tweet][/tweet]

So that's two of you who think sex means what you say it is.

:-) Though I don't think you've been paying attention - I certainly haven't been saying, as Matte is apparently saying, that there's no such thing as sex. But you might note that Wikipedia - and presumably most biologists - is apparently of the same view as me (not surprising given that I've based my argument on their science):

A woman is a female human; that is, of the species Homo sapiens. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent.

With female specified as:

Female (♀) is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, that produces non-mobile ova (egg cells). Most female mammals, including female humans, have two X chromosomes.

#67374

Are you willing to go full retard with Guardian? http://archive.is/ZJnTE

#67375

Shatterface wrote:
So that's two of you who think sex means what you say it is.

Maybe they should get a room.

#67376

MarcusAu wrote:
Shatterface wrote:
So that's two of you who think sex means what you say it is.
Maybe they should get a room.

:) Not my type. Besides which, I expect we have very different view on what it entails, so to speak.

#67377

Wow. 4 patreon paid for vids in a week.

Becky slices into the golden goose.

#67378

Lsuoma wrote:We'll get to the actual results in a few short seconds, but it appears to me that the Russians have been tampering with the results for MVP because it's inconceivable that the person who topped the poll could have won in a fair election, being a miserable Aussie cunt of the first water.

Anmyway, the results:

Special Award: John Greg is going to be awarded an Emeritus MVP award for all his contributions and his support of the Pit during his membership.

This leaves the other candidates, of whom the top three are, in reverse order:

* The Slyme Pit, with 12 votes
* Ape+Lust, with 18 votes

and the winner is:

* Breeeeeeve1987, with 20 votes!

Thanks to everyone who nominated and voted!

Thanks. Complicated business. But this is your victory.

Not mine.

And together we can ....

http://i.imgur.com/mHNIuHE.jpg

#67379

Steersman wrote:
Shatterface wrote:So that's two of you who think sex means what you say it is.
:-) Though I don't think you've been paying attention - I certainly haven't been saying, as Matte is apparently saying, that there's no such thing as sex. But you might note that Wikipedia - and presumably most biologists - is apparently of the same view as me (not surprising given that I've based my argument on their science):
A woman is a female human; that is, of the species Homo sapiens. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent.
With female specified as:
Female (♀) is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, that produces non-mobile ova (egg cells). Most female mammals, including female humans, have two X chromosomes.

There's a 'usually' and a 'usual' in that first quote.

Find an actual biologist who agrees with you that an infertile woman is not female.

Don't bother posting a reply till you do.

#67380

Shatterface wrote:
Steersman wrote:
Shatterface wrote:So that's two of you who think sex means what you say it is.
:-) Though I don't think you've been paying attention - I certainly haven't been saying, as Matte is apparently saying, that there's no such thing as sex. But you might note that Wikipedia - and presumably most biologists - is apparently of the same view as me (not surprising given that I've based my argument on their science):
A woman is a female human; that is, of the species Homo sapiens. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent.
With female specified as:
Female (♀) is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, that produces non-mobile ova (egg cells). Most female mammals, including female humans, have two X chromosomes.
There's a 'usually' and a 'usual' in that first quote.

Find an actual biologist who agrees with you that an infertile woman is not female.

Don't bother posting a reply till you do.

LoL. It's "usual" to say that the sun rises and sets - doesn't make it actually true; expect there are a great many other examples of the same idea. Somewhat apropos, do note the definition for nominally, as in "nominally a woman":

In name only; officially though perhaps not in reality:

‘the Republicans nominally controlled both houses of Congress but by slim margins’
‘nominally independent newspapers’

More example sentences
‘Songwriters and composers are only nominally compensated when a CD is purchased.’

‘The visual quality is nominally better than that of the original broadcast - nominally.’

‘This policy was the means by which the bureaucracy sought to defend its own narrow and selfish interests, in opposition to the needs of the workers it nominally represented.’ ....