I think it’s many things, but the big one is a reaction to the polarization of politics by the media and the radicalization of the right/rise of fascism. Fascists will spout any nonsensical belief that they can come up with, because they know they sound ridiculous and they don’t care. Because that’s not the point. The point is to make you have to waste energy debunking it while they do something else. Add in the often used Republican strategy of rendering useful words into meaningless garbage, like “woke” and “politically correct” before it, and the thinking man is left two steps behind and always trying to play catch-up with those trying to torch everything they can get their hands on.
So with a group spouting nonsense with the sole purpose of having their opponents be too busy disproving it to prevent them from destroying the rights of minorities, and a group that claims that both sides are equally as bad because they agree with the fascists but don’t want to take responsibility or face the consequences for having those opinions, is it any wonder that actual disagreement is being mistaken for that disingenuous “enlightened centrism”?
Plus, there’s a time for discourse, and a time for action. And I think people are starting to feel that we’ve spent too many years doing the first and we need to start doing the second. In short, I think people are starting to feel that there’s some kind of deadline fast approaching and the stress is starting to get to them.
Yes, that’s a good point. The nonsensical arguments meant to consume energy were a master stroke against actual discourse online and in person. Unfortunately it has had the desired effect, and many of us aren’t engaging in discourse with like-minded people about things we mostly agree on. The right has done such a good job of making every point contentious that any statement against the commonly accepted group think is treated as an outsider trying to sow discord. I see it all the time online, and I’m sure you’ve seen it too, where someone who is very liberal gets jumped all over and accused of being a trumper, or a racist, or a homophobe, or whatever, just because they have their own unique perspective of an argument that they’ve obviously put time and thought into. I’ve even encountered it with close personal friends when discussing new radical evaluations of old conceptions. We’re in a rough spot as a society right now. We just might be on a deadline if we can’t figure out how to talk to each other again.
I think it’s many things, but the big one is a reaction to the polarization of politics by the media and the radicalization of the right/rise of fascism. Fascists will spout any nonsensical belief that they can come up with, because they know they sound ridiculous and they don’t care. Because that’s not the point. The point is to make you have to waste energy debunking it while they do something else. Add in the often used Republican strategy of rendering useful words into meaningless garbage, like “woke” and “politically correct” before it, and the thinking man is left two steps behind and always trying to play catch-up with those trying to torch everything they can get their hands on.
So with a group spouting nonsense with the sole purpose of having their opponents be too busy disproving it to prevent them from destroying the rights of minorities, and a group that claims that both sides are equally as bad because they agree with the fascists but don’t want to take responsibility or face the consequences for having those opinions, is it any wonder that actual disagreement is being mistaken for that disingenuous “enlightened centrism”?
Plus, there’s a time for discourse, and a time for action. And I think people are starting to feel that we’ve spent too many years doing the first and we need to start doing the second. In short, I think people are starting to feel that there’s some kind of deadline fast approaching and the stress is starting to get to them.
Yes, that’s a good point. The nonsensical arguments meant to consume energy were a master stroke against actual discourse online and in person. Unfortunately it has had the desired effect, and many of us aren’t engaging in discourse with like-minded people about things we mostly agree on. The right has done such a good job of making every point contentious that any statement against the commonly accepted group think is treated as an outsider trying to sow discord. I see it all the time online, and I’m sure you’ve seen it too, where someone who is very liberal gets jumped all over and accused of being a trumper, or a racist, or a homophobe, or whatever, just because they have their own unique perspective of an argument that they’ve obviously put time and thought into. I’ve even encountered it with close personal friends when discussing new radical evaluations of old conceptions. We’re in a rough spot as a society right now. We just might be on a deadline if we can’t figure out how to talk to each other again.