Are we going to talk about that thing that no one's talking about (3 Viewers)

[Mr. Blue Sky]

Hearing a lot more on both sides having these same thoughts. When we're all scared, that's scary.

Do i think that the USA is a sinking ship ? Do i think that the USA is a crumbling empire ? Yes, i do… Do i want our American experiment, an idea that has lit the world for the last 250 yrs, to fail ?? NO, i do not…. I myself will be spending the rest of this year and into 2025 working in Asia, and tbh im kinda secretly thrilled to not be around for the absolute s***show i think this election is going to bring along with it (and in fact already has)…. But I have too many people , too many family members i love here, that i dont want to see them suffer if/when s*** starts to go sideways….. If we are being honest, i am kind of expecting the worst, but I genuinely hope that i am wrong .

 

[Madmarsha]

I actually woke up this morning thinking we HAVE to be nearing some saturation point - the human body is not built to handle so much stress so continuously- especially a stress that we (by and large) are manufacturing
Maybe there’s a chance we arrive at a collective ‘chill out’ phase

I keep hoping for that. I'm a Republican, but I'm not down for all the prepper and doomsday prophecies that proliferate on "my" side constantly preparing for "the end". I call myself Republican/conservative, but I hate that that boxes me in to, Oh, so YOU believe this and you believe that. No. I don't consult GOP talking points to decide how I personally feel about
a subject. Just as I'll ask YOU what YOU think about something, ask ME before you decide what I believe in.


I have unfriended only one book of face friend so far (it was actually a friend I knew from real life, too). Within five minutes, he remarked about Trump being a "bumbling idiot". Another friend there (that I don't know in real life, just from online) this morning posted about being tired of hearing about a busted earlobe. Now, I know I have made jokes; but when people are dead, I haven't called this just a "busted earlobe" incident.

 

[Nisey55]

Keeping with the unpolitical take, why does hate and violence take precedence over Peace and unity? Money, Power, and Social Media.

Social Media sells ads to generate their revenue. A standard ad on a normal Facebook page generates approximately 1.7 cents/ad, but an ad for an "Engaged User" jumps up to 4 cents per ad. How do you change someone from a normal person to an "Engaged User"? You make them angry and show them things that cause them to "click through" to see additional content. This is why FB content is so "click-baity", they are trying to generate an additional 2.3 cents per user. Political Parties are capitalizing on this and have realized if the peons are too busy fighting each other, they can remain in power, so long as they keep the people angry and give them a target to focus their anger.

So why does hate take precedence? Because Facebook or whatever other Social Media wanted to make an additional 2.3 cents/ad. Why is Political Violence more common in our society? Because both sides are arguing that the other side is an existential threat to our Democracy and both sides feel as if they have no other recourse. Voting doesn't work, the Courts don't work, even a common agreed upon reality is no longer possible. Because both sides are too busy making their base angry to keep them engaged, the base lashes out violently against the other side when we are truly all one America. We have just been bastageized by politicians doing whatever it takes to maintain power and keep us all "Engaged" for that extra 2.3 cents per ad. We all love our Country, we are just being told the diversity which is our greatest strength is actually destroying us.

Will this country survive? I don't know, but I have serious doubts. I miss the days when Politicians would duel each other, there were a lot fewer actual citizens being killed.

Yes, I know the "why" from the broader sense of social media/political division side. I want to know why we, as citizens of America are so weak minded and easily influenced by fools. We are throwing our own country in the garbage and pointing the finger at everyone but ourselves.
Is it gratifying to live our lives divided? Don't we all deep down crave unity and acceptance even if we have differing views? Are we so damn bored and shallow that the excitement of violence and embracing your side versus my side is all that matters?
Sick to my stomach.
Zardnok, none of this is directed at you, I was just thinking out loud and thank you for your thoughts.

 

[Nisey55]

I actually woke up this morning thinking we HAVE to be nearing some saturation point - the human body is not built to handle so much stress so continuously- especially a stress that we (by and large) are manufacturing
Maybe there’s a chance we arrive at a collective ‘chill out’ phase

Well said.

 

[Madmarsha]

Don't we all deep down crave unity and acceptance even if we have differing views?

I had someone who I deeply respect tell me "I don't like your politics". Was very hurtful. I said, Why? We may have different ideas of how to get there, but don't we all want the same things essentially? I am neither radical nor extreme nor so certain in my views that I am unwilling to hear what someone else is saying.

I am probably more Libertarian, certainly prefer to think I'm Independent; but ever since that woman decided to call certain Americans deplorables, I "came out" as full-blown Republican. Now I'm downright MAGA.

But that still doesn't mean I consult the Republican playbook to find out what to think.

 

[Zardnok]

To get to your specific point, the answer is media literacy taught early and often- I’m really not sure anything else will work

To the broader point - while love (needed to form social bonds) is more important for the species to survive; fear (the primary ingredient in hate) is hardwired to protect the individual.
It’s also a much simpler, lizard brain response vs the more complex firings of the frontal lobe

I agree on the importance of Media Literacy. I went to a military school back in the 80s where we had an actual class on media literacy. We all had subscriptions to various magazines and newspapers and would spend the class reading articles about the same events and then discussing their slant. Newsweek vs US News and World Report vs Time were my three favorites to show left - center - right. There is no incentive to teach media literacy now since there is more disinformation than information on the internet. The line between news and entertainment is gone now, so long as users remain engaged and ad revenues increase there is no incentive to change. Want more money, engage more users, post content known to anger or inflame your user, user clicks through and replies, user is now engaged, Zappos now pays 4 cents for that shoe ad instead of 1.7.

Fear is a definite problem, but it is also one of the driving factors in modern politics since it is easier to scare someone than to win them over with ideas and principles. Scared people instinctually flock to the Alpha strongest type, so politicians are playing on these fears with both sides demonizing the other side. I am just saddened that some how we ended up with Donald Trump and Joe Biden as the two "Strongest" among us for the nation to polarize around.

Marsha is right that it is most scary when we are all scared. We need to all remember to take some time and go outside for some sunshine and blue skies. Just take a few deep breaths outdoors and let the sun's rays warm your skin. Depending on what time of day you read this, you may need to go back inside now, because a few breaths is fine, but no need to scald your lungs! Remember to laugh and most importantly, remember we all ultimately want the same things. Don't let social media or politicians turn your heart dark for an extra 2.3 cents.

 

[Zardnok]

Yes, I know the "why" from the broader sense of social media/political division side. I want to know why we, as citizens of America are so weak minded and easily influenced by fools. We are throwing our own country in the garbage and pointing the finger at everyone but ourselves.
Is it gratifying to live our lives divided? Don't we all deep down crave unity and acceptance even if we have differing views? Are we so damn bored and shallow that the excitement of violence and embracing your side versus my side is all that matters?
Sick to my stomach.
Zardnok, none of this is directed at you, I was just thinking out loud and thank you for your thoughts.

Ultimately this is what is so deeply upsetting to all of us. How have we gotten this divided?

And I didn't think it was directed at me, because I agree with you and Marsha and Guido. I am down-right agreeable this morning, because I truly believe we are all stronger for our differences.

Time to finish my yard-work and get some of that sunshine before my lungs are scalded.

 

[Madmarsha]

Well said.

Don't tell him that, it'll go his head.

 

[Nisey55]

Don't tell him that, it'll go his head.

Aw shoot, I didn't realize who I was addressing.
Retraction activated.

 

[Madmarsha]

Ultimately this is what is so deeply upsetting to all of us. How have we gotten this divided?

We are all going to have our own reasons for the how. We need to focus on just becoming un-divided like it's 9/12/2001 again. Most of us felt deeply wounded but wanted to rally around our countrymen. Since then, we've just wanted to break each other down.

So let's stop. I don't look like you? So what. Let's talk as what we both are, people.

ETA: Unless you're a Falcons fan.

 

[SystemShock]

I had someone who I deeply respect tell me "I don't like your politics". Was very hurtful. I said, Why? We may have different ideas of how to get there, but don't we all want the same things essentially? I am neither radical nor extreme nor so certain in my views that I am unwilling to hear what someone else is saying.

I am probably more Libertarian, certainly prefer to think I'm Independent; but ever since that woman decided to call certain Americans deplorables, I "came out" as full-blown Republican. Now I'm downright MAGA.

But that still doesn't mean I consult the Republican playbook to find out what to think.

That's a bit contradictory, don't you think?

Out of curiosity, before the incident you mention, how did you feel about the names other people were being called since the 1990s'?

 

[Madmarsha]

That's a bit contradictory, don't you think?

Out of curiosity, before the incident you mention, how did you feel about the names other people were being called since the 1990s'?

This feels baity. You want to be specific rather than vague so I can address whatever it is you're asking directly?

 

[HoustonSaint68]

… but ever since that woman decided to call certain Americans deplorables, I "came out" as full-blown Republican. Now I'm downright MAGA.

I suspect that strong emotion you felt then, elicited from an external source who you didn’t know personally and which pushed you in a direction you weren’t naturally inclined to go on your own, is at the root of all of this bullshirt.

This is definitely not a personal criticism in the slightest. That emotional response is simply part of the human condition - for folks on the right, the left and the middle - and it’s exacerbated by the non-stop barrage of social media and the 24 hour news cycle. And somehow we need to find a way to stay centered on ourselves, and carefully cultivate the external sources we use to challenge our own held beliefs while avoiding the echo chambers that cement our current beliefs.

 

[SystemShock]

Anyone offered T&P yet?

Incidentally, it's been 30 years since the assassination of Luis Donaldo Colosio, the presidential candidate in MX that fell out of favor with his PRI party, but was very popular with the people, as he was pushing for reforms that were going to end the PRI de facto dictatorship through violence and actual rigged elections.

Emiliano Zapata, Pancho Villa, Venustiano Carranza, Fransisco Madero, Colosio, even Paco Stanley, and so many others (37 the last 2 years) if there's something MX does well, is the political assassination.

 

[Madmarsha]

I suspect that strong emotion you felt then, elicited from an external source who you didn’t know personally and which pushed in a direction you weren’t naturally inclined to go on your own, is at the root of all of this bullshirt.

Not really sure how to take this.

This is definitely not a personal criticism in the slightest. That emotional response is simply part of the human condition - for folks on the right, the left and the middle - and it’s exacerbated by the non-stop barrage of social media and the 24 hour news cycle. And somehow we need to find a way to stay centered on ourselves, and carefully cultivate the external sources we use to challenge our own held beliefs while avoiding the echo chambers that cement our current beliefs.

The 24-hour news cycle is definitely not overall a good thing. I love the ability to access info and to "shrink the world" by being able to talk to people via social media all around the globe but it's not my only frame of reference. Now, I didn't grow up in the internet age, but I did grow up as the TV generation and the same things were said about us and our lack of socialization to the world and how TV would rot our brains. But this is different and they are only beginning to suggest that children should not have their own cellphones below the age of something like 13-15, I think. I don't think you can unring that bell now if parents hadn't already realized that for themselves.