Democrats couldn't handle the fact that Martin had every right to shoot and kill the attacker pinning him down and smashing his head into cement. "Broke no laws" is misplaced, and ultimately delusional.
Not about what he did or did not do before choosing to hang up his phone call, turn around and violently attack someone.
Obama interjecting for that was stupid. But wouldn't have meant anything... if the country was not so deeply polarized and incapable of agreeing on simple facts.
That's what parties do. White people don't deserve representation too?In other words, the GOP is a racist party. At least you sort of admitted it.
"Defending white voters" at the expense of all the others.
You said the GOP wasn't racist and then said the GOP tailors its policy to white people... which is racist.That's what parties do. White people don't deserve representation too?
The Dems defend minorities, etc. at the expense of white voters as well....
Hence why there should be diverse parties, where no group is put on a pedestal, every one has equal footing.
I am saying that the GOP doesn't see itself as racist.You said the GOP wasn't racist and then said the GOP tailors its policy to white people... which is racist.
So you agree the GOP is racist. We can move on now.
72% of the congress being white isn't representation?I am saying that the GOP doesn't see itself as racist.
What is wrong about the GOP tailoring it's policy to white people, when Dems do it to everyone else?
Don't white people deserve representation?
Why are you so obsessed with race?I am saying that the GOP doesn't see itself as racist.
What is wrong about the GOP tailoring it's policy to white people, when Dems do it to everyone else?
Don't white people deserve representation?
Democrats couldn't handle the fact that Martin had every right to shoot and kill the attacker pinning him down and smashing his head into cement. "Broke no laws" is misplaced, and ultimately delusional.
Not about what he did or did not do before choosing to hang up his phone call, turn around and violently attack someone.
Obama interjecting for that was stupid. But wouldn't have meant anything... if the country was not so deeply polarized and incapable of agreeing on simple facts.
Name one time Democrats defended minorities at the expense of white people.That's what parties do. White people don't deserve representation too?
The Dems defend minorities, etc. at the expense of white voters as well....
Hence why there should be diverse parties, where no group is put on a pedestal, every one has equal footing.
It is pretty good IMNSHo. He makes the point that the the media is focused on identity politics. I guess there must be an identity “Let’s fix this shit” that we should unite on.
@RalphTheCowWhat should be fixed in your own words?
I am not reading a book to post in this thread.
fair enough, you picked a tough hill to die on, this doesn't mean I disagree with you.Mainly the in-affordability of housing for young and not very affluent people, and we drive too much.
Yeah, I don’t think he is making many friends by leading the panic over Biden's age.Trump threw gas on the fire, but the fire has been burning for at least a couple decades.
Not gonna read Klein's book but his podcast has been pushing the idea that Dems should just fuck around until August, then have a contested convention to select someone to replace Joe Biden.
Let me guess. What emerged in a big way in that time period, could it be,... social media?Why are we polarized?
First let’s agree about where we are at right now. Right now we have essentially two types of Americans, one that believes in reality and one that believes in an alternative reality.
So how did we get here? That’s a complicated question and I think there can be debate on when it started and what caused it. In order to have different realities though you have to have a society that no longer shares common experiences and I think it could be argued that our shared experiences had been happening less and less with the advent of network news. I think if we look back to other times in our country’s history when we were most divided we might see a similar lack in commonality as well but I’m not a historian so that’s just a guess on my part.
As we started getting news from different sources and those sources either spun the story differently or eventually even the stories/issues covered by the networks were no longer similar, we started getting a taste of multiple realities. I think with the advent of social media and their algorithms that focused on reactions/interactions, it got even worse as it had the effect of bubbletizing us and separating us even further and lessening our common experiences. Of course it’s not just the news or social media that separated us, we also share fewer and fewer life experiences as well, for example it’s pretty common that people haven’t seen the same movies or tv shows any more and with access to every sport and sports team on the planet, even liking the same teams, despite sharing a locality, is becoming less common.
All that said, simply having different experiences doesn’t get us to where we are now and I think there might be a major difference between where we are now and similar times in our history. The difference being that in addition to the lack of common experiences, we also have a serious distrust in our institutions, whether they be government institutions (like the Supreme Court for example), educational institutions, news/journalism, and even in things such as the free market/capitalism, and democracy itself. Sure, during our history one could point to many times where there was a growing distrust in our institutions. I’d even argue that the experiences of the boomer generation, specifically their experience with civil rights and various wars but especially the Vietnam war, seeded that distrust that would later be added upon with multiple crises that seemingly came rapidly one after another (2000 dotcom bust, 9/11, 2008 housing bubble, Covid). The examples also seeded distrust in our institutions to the younger generations as well along with many others such as the overturning of roe v wade, the housing shortage, etc.
So a growing distrust in our institutions exists, coupled with a lack of common experiences has created the perfect storm where multiple realities exists.
To illustrate the points above, I can point to a relatively recent time where our trust in our institutions was high and our shared experiences were also very high. That particular time was 2001-2003 when 9/11 happened. The country was the most united then and I believe it’s because we all shared that experience and it was essentially from the same perspective (meaning we watched the same videos and we learned the same info around the same time). Of course that didn’t last and our shared experiences and trust in our institutions drastically changed after that.
Societies only work so long as there is trust in their institutions and people believe in a common good.
I’d love to know what the fix is but without drastic measures, I don’t see things getting better but actually getting worse.
24/7 news channels were stoking the flames since at least 2000.Let me guess. What emerged in a big way in that time period, could it be,... social media?
Limbaugh on AM talk radio really got it going. Everything since then has just been making the fire burn hotter.24/7 news channels were stoking the flames since at least 2000.
But it was the internet that poured gasoline all over society and lit a blowtorch to it all.
Mass information with no filter is just destructive noise.
Yes, social media is... just a medium. Combine that with bad actors specifically stoking the flames, and you get where we are now.Limbaugh on AM talk radio really got it going. Everything since then has just been making the fire burn hotter.
Let me guess. What emerged in a big way in that time period, could it be,... social media?
Kaepernick caused a lot of tension too, there is one thing no American should do and is touch the American flag or speak ill about it.Limbaugh on AM talk radio really got it going. Everything since then has just been making the fire burn hotter.
exactly. The GQP has been horrific for decades, social media just help more of them reveal themselves and spread their evil message.Yes, social media is... just a medium. Combine that with bad actors specifically stoking the flames, and you get where we are now.
The reactionary right came from Obama being elected. This is obvious to anyone with a brain.
Not just them, we specifically had/have foreign agents interacting as well, probably more effectively than ever before.exactly. The GQP has been horrific for decades, social media just help more of them reveal themselves and spread their evil message.
People might call me a conspiracy theorist but I think a decent part of it is Russian psyops conducted through social media. I think people radically underestimate the extent to which this is happening.But why is it just as bad everywhere? Was thinking today how the Tories are really going for it now, with full-on embrace of the racist far-right. Braveman, Truss, Anderson, all spouting crackpot far-right nonsense in the last few days (Khan is controlled by Islamists, Truss was bought down by a woke conspiracy, the whole _country_ is controlled by a vast communist-Islamist conspiracy, etc).
Surely Obama being elected was just the "starter's flag", the signal to start the war on democracy - but it itself was kind-of just a signifier of the fading power of conservative old white guys? Something that seems to apply all over the globe.
Agreed and add China to that mixPeople might call me a conspiracy theorist but I think a decent part of it is Russian psyops conducted through social media. I think people radically underestimate the extent to which this is happening.