One thing I have noticed is that the state of political debate seems to have led to a "radicalization" of sorts on both sides (Democrats and Republicans). Even longtime moderate/diplomatic/friendly posters like @bobrek, @NoWorries, @Buck Turgidson and @DaDakota seem to have gotten angrier/more aggressive towards posters they consider "Republican". It's expected from crazies like @SamFisher, @NewRoxFan and @NewYorker, but I have been seeing it more and more from posters who used to be much more moderate. I blame Trump, and, even more so, the woke folks on the left. (I feel like the whole Trump phenomenon was basically an overreaction to wokism). Hard to have an "agree to disagree, but I respect you and your viewpoint" conversation anymore. It has become very black and white, not much room for nuance. Bit of a pity.
I blame Trump for a lot of stuff but I think he was more of symptom than a cause. My own view of Trump has been he is far less an ideological leader than a con man who has exploited a movement to benefit himself and his family. Even before Trump was running for President there was already so pretty big divides. Trump has exacerbated that but the divide likely would've happened without him. On the Left the movement towards "Woke" has been going on for awhile as even 30 years ago Political Correctness was an issue. For those who keep on bringing up Bill Maher remember 20 years ago his show then was "Politically Incorrect". I do also think that much of the division we see not just in US politics but across the Globe is due to social media. I like reading Golden Age Sci-Fi of the kind by Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov. In those writings they believed that the ability to communicate and trade globally would lead to greater understanding and unity of humanity. While I'm a fan of their writings it's almost laughably naive that view of humanity. I think it was inevitable that the growth of Global communication would lead to more division rather than less. That rather than increasing understanding it would reinforce biases. Having so much information available most humans would inevitably make sense of it through preexisting lens of cultural and political bias. The ability to communicate with almost anyone across the World would mean that many people would seek out people who shared their own views rather than who would challenge their views. The more you find those like you the more you would be willing to radicalize. That's happened for many groups from Right Wing anti-immigration views, to Animal Rights, to radical Islam.
Funny that someone complaining about "radicalization" of debates and how "polarized" the discussion has become also started these two threads: Forcing children to wear a mask is child abuse. The Left failed children. Psaki Says "Gender Affirming Care" for Kids Is 'Best Practice' Lots of "nuance" in those thread titles. Especially when they are built on untruths...
I like how people that support trump and his ideas like to deflect blame on those that oppose, not the people that voted for and continue to promote him...
A guy who has for 15 years claimed he had me on ignore while making random personal attacks on me, as well as doxing me twice as recently as a few weeks ago. The personal attacks he's made stoop to being just vile as well. And I see him do to it to other posters now such as @Major and @deb4rockets. Then he calls other people crazy? We have polarized politics, but it's because of people like him who adopt crazy views like "masks are evil", "LBGTQ's are pedophiles", and "Muslims are evil" and make personal attacks on anyone who disagrees with him. He's the problem and then creates a post trying to blame people he disagrees with. I know this will trigger him and send him into an assault on me probably. But man, he's nut case number one on this BBS.
I'm not saying I don't enjoy pushing certain people's buttons sometimes... I can certainly be one of the more polarizing posters here. I just noticed that much more restrained posters like the ones I mentioned seem to have gotten more aggressive themselves, calling other posters names, etc., behavior I hadn't seen from them in 20 years.
One other problem with our culture is that there is too much of an emphasis on not just establishing an identity but also on using that identity to bludgeon those who don't agree. As is it's not enough to say this is what I believe in stand for but also we need to "own" the others. As such in many cases identity is defined not by what you are but what you are not. As such fealty to principles often become less important as long as you can somehow stick it to the other side. This is why we so little sense of hypocrisy, irony or even shame in our debates. Marjorie Taylor Greene can complain about how bad it is that people are being canceled and that people are so sensitive and then call for Jimmy Kimmel to be investigated by authorities for making jokes about her. In many ways we have a Negative Golden Rule. Instead of thinking about how much we would like people to treat us so we treat them better we expect that since the other side will treat us badly we are fully justified in treating them badly.
@rocketsjudoka, we often disagree (which of course means you are wrong in those instances ), but you and a few others usually always manage to remain civil and focused on the point that is being discussed. I appreciate that.
I guess things like this make some people stand up and say this is wrong and it must stop. When Trump and his idiot followers try to circumvent fair and honest elections there is going to be a backlash.
That's understandable. These people are despicable. But that doesn't make every conservative (who despises these folks as much as you do) a fascist, and that's the rhetoric I have been seeing from some here.
Thanks I appreciate it to and my ego is flattered when other posters compliment me for being reasonable. My own view has been that I don't mind that people disagree with me and even expect it. Disagreement isn't a personal affront and even in the few cases where other posters have out rightly insulted me I find it funny. On Clutchfans I've been called a "moogoo gaipan", had a poster say I should be deported, called a racist, called a misogynist, called a racist misogynist, called an apologist for Chinese Communists, and said I would never be welcomed in China because I was a pro Western Imperialist. I find all of that pretty funny. I'm not going to say I'm immune or don't have a temper. Years ago on another forum I had a big flip out at another poster over the invasion of Iraq. Looking back I was embarrassed by that and quit that forum. I love being on Clutchfans and think this is a real community most of this still is virtual. When it comes down to it we are for the most part Internet Randos behind screen names. It's not worth it to get worked up over it. All of us have lives apart from this. Also as Houston Sports fans we already have a lot to get frustrated and enraged by.
Maybe because the GOP has radicalized, they protect pedophiles, and crooks, they try to overturn the government and make excuses for it, they moved so far to the FRINGES that it is time to fight back. Conservatism is dead, all that is left is people making excuses for malfeasance, they are the party of NO MORALITY.... The weird thing is I am a fiscal conservative and a social moderate, but there is no place for that anymore....and I can't stand...CAN'T STAND - hypocrisy. For instance, the Lincoln Project is more along the lines of my thinking, I voted Republican for years, but Integrity and honor are not a sometimes thing, you can't point fingers at one side while protecting the crooks on another. The GOP embraced the Bubbas and ignorant of the world now they are in the mud with em. I will vote blue until that party rights itself and finds it's honor again....the party of Lincoln and Ike is dead. DD
I agree that the polarization has gotten out of hand. So, being the contrarian that I am, my new default mode is: “tolerant, gentle thegary.”
Wokism needs to be destroyed If you can wear a Karl Malone jersey and identify yourself as a Rockets fan because of wokism then the world is screwed up. People are protesting chicken lives during an nba playoff game by chaining themselves to a goal post Woke lunatics turned will smith into a Manchuria candidate against comedians Woke suckers are after your kids , your comic books and your tv and music. Straight up mind control Also people who are against you can go to hell They would never say this to you in your face I stand with @AroundTheWorld
People can vote for whomever they want If Utah jazz fans vote for mark Eaton why should I be mad about it ? I can only control my vote And i vote for Hakeem
I think over-generalizing people is biggest problem. It strips the humanity away from political opponents that are in fact human. Taking one outlier from liberals or conservatives and attaching their actions to the whole group of left/right, conservatives /liberals, Democrats/Republicans while often also attaching unknown motivations to those actions increases division, anger, and polarization. I understand why it is done. It is effective, gathers attention and its easier for people to be fired up against an enemy than to be fired up towards a long, complicated, nuanced solution or direction towards solutions. So people (sometimes with good intentions) believe that they will use the generalizing of opponents to gain and maintain support while presuming they will still work on their larger more policy based projects.
