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>anything WikiLeaks says about the US government will be eaten up by their supporters It used to be a saying that geeks can't do politics. And now after what I
by drzaiusapelord 10y ago
>anything WikiLeaks says about the US government will be eaten up by their supporters
It used to be a saying that geeks can't do politics. And now after what I've seen of years of slashdot, digg, Reddit, and HN I think its fair to say that saying is true. The problem I see is that people who think they're smart think they must automatically be immune to propaganda, bias, etc because, well, they're so smart. I find the techie personality to be unusually vulnerable to propaganda and conspiracy theories. I think this type of thinking gives simple answers and black and white thinking that are intellectually satisfying and dismiss the incredible complexity of human interactions. Its very easy to just eat up anti-US college identity politics and make the US be the devil in all things. Its simple and is emotionally satisfying. The problem is that its also incorrect, especially when your "good guys" are Russia, China, and Iran.
- ccallebs 10y agoI agree with you 100%. Most political talking points on sites like Reddit (and even HN) are just platitudes. The problem is they've been repeated so often that even questioning something is ground for a public tar and feathering. We cannot have any sort of meaningful dialog when the opposition on both sides is painted into a caricature. George W. Bush had an amazing quote during the memorial service for the fallen Dallas PD officers. Paraphrasing but: "We judge other groups by their worst and ourselves by our intentions"