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I've been rereading this trying to see a coherent argument, but I honestly have no idea what you're trying to say. The thing that you quote seems like it could

by jmcqk6 9y ago

I've been rereading this trying to see a coherent argument, but I honestly have no idea what you're trying to say. The thing that you quote seems like it could win an award for stretching metaphors.

ogre_magi 9y ago
It's part of the charm. The issue of course is that if you don't flit in a distant metaphor, you tread disrespectfully upon _sacred ground_. To toe the line a little for you, the witch-hunters are activists (good, noble ones) looking for sinners (bad, evil ones) and preaching about a world where the sinners have all the power. In such a world, why would there be so many successful witch-hunters?
- forapurpose 9y ago
  > a world where the sinners have all the power. > In such a world, why would there be so many successful witch-hunters? Because neither group has all the power (and there are many other groups too). The allegory, as someone pointed out, and the reasoning are both stretched past breaking.
  - rhizome 9y ago
    Because neither group has all the power About 45 years ago there was a chance that they might, but Nixon saw to that by inventing the War on Drugs.
    - forapurpose 9y ago
      > Because neither group has all the power > About 45 years ago there was a chance that they might There was no chance. In the 1972 election, Nixon was re-elected winning 49 states (not a typo - he won 49 of 50 states) and won the popular vote by 23%. And that was while the Watergate scandal was exploding. Per Wikipedia, not long before the November election, "On October 10, the FBI reported the Watergate break-in was part of a massive campaign of political spying and sabotage on behalf of the Nixon re-election committee."[0] There was no chance that the Democrats or anyone on the left was going to take "all the power". [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal#Cover-up_and_its_unraveling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal#Cover-up_and...
- stcredzero 9y ago
  In such a world, why would there be so many successful witch-hunters? Jon Ronson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9G6L4ZNuWk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9G6L4ZNuWk Evergreen State College: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1RoBi5HKWc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1RoBi5HKWc
observation 9y ago
It is clear to me. It is hard to explain without attracting the attention of the moderators. I'm not sure it's possible to even talk about it without offending somebody, but fortunately I'm gradually losing the will to care. A simple example would be this recent shooting in Las Vegas. Now: the fact is that this number of people die on a regular basis in certain cities, making it Vegas x 1000, but it doesn't attract uproar or congressional investigations. Why not? Another example would be the problem with certain gangs in the UK. I lived there for years and never realized the scale of it. It's not that the media doesn't report events, it's that we don't live in a world where posters line the streets saying "Watch out for Pakistani pedophiles". The media works very hard to tell us everything and nothing by neglecting to join up obvious dots. We easily could live in a world of right wing witch hunts. But we don't. This is because the exact contours of the arguments that would be lost by one side are being routinely ignored. Most of the public, especially the younger generations live in an unreality. Once you're old enough you become aware that the information streams are badly lopsided.
- microcolonel 9y ago
  I think this thread needs to be less nebulous and more concrete.

by jmcqk6 9y ago

I've been rereading this trying to see a coherent argument, but I honestly have no idea what you're trying to say. The thing that you quote seems like it could win an award for stretching metaphors.

ogre_magi 9y ago

It's part of the charm. The issue of course is that if you don't flit in a distant metaphor, you tread disrespectfully upon _sacred ground_. To toe the line a little for you, the witch-hunters are activists (good, noble ones) looking for sinners (bad, evil ones) and preaching about a world where the sinners have all the power. In such a world, why would there be so many successful witch-hunters?

forapurpose 9y ago
> a world where the sinners have all the power. > In such a world, why would there be so many successful witch-hunters? Because neither group has all the power (and there are many other groups too). The allegory, as someone pointed out, and the reasoning are both stretched past breaking.
- rhizome 9y ago
  Because neither group has all the power About 45 years ago there was a chance that they might, but Nixon saw to that by inventing the War on Drugs.
  - forapurpose 9y ago
    > Because neither group has all the power > About 45 years ago there was a chance that they might There was no chance. In the 1972 election, Nixon was re-elected winning 49 states (not a typo - he won 49 of 50 states) and won the popular vote by 23%. And that was while the Watergate scandal was exploding. Per Wikipedia, not long before the November election, "On October 10, the FBI reported the Watergate break-in was part of a massive campaign of political spying and sabotage on behalf of the Nixon re-election committee."[0] There was no chance that the Democrats or anyone on the left was going to take "all the power". [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal#Cover-up_and_its_unraveling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal#Cover-up_and...
stcredzero 9y ago
In such a world, why would there be so many successful witch-hunters? Jon Ronson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9G6L4ZNuWk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9G6L4ZNuWk Evergreen State College: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1RoBi5HKWc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1RoBi5HKWc

observation 9y ago

It is clear to me. It is hard to explain without attracting the attention of the moderators. I'm not sure it's possible to even talk about it without offending somebody, but fortunately I'm gradually losing the will to care. A simple example would be this recent shooting in Las Vegas. Now: the fact is that this number of people die on a regular basis in certain cities, making it Vegas x 1000, but it doesn't attract uproar or congressional investigations. Why not? Another example would be the problem with certain gangs in the UK. I lived there for years and never realized the scale of it. It's not that the media doesn't report events, it's that we don't live in a world where posters line the streets saying "Watch out for Pakistani pedophiles". The media works very hard to tell us everything and nothing by neglecting to join up obvious dots. We easily could live in a world of right wing witch hunts. But we don't. This is because the exact contours of the arguments that would be lost by one side are being routinely ignored. Most of the public, especially the younger generations live in an unreality. Once you're old enough you become aware that the information streams are badly lopsided.

microcolonel 9y ago
I think this thread needs to be less nebulous and more concrete.