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Your plan for rational public debate being used to determine social norms instead of standard social animal behaviour is very flawed. A lot of people are scare

Your plan for rational public debate being used to determine social norms instead of standard social animal behaviour is very flawed. A lot of people are scared or confused by the fact that the internet and globalization has fractured the mainstream media narrative into multiple narratives and exposed the underlying politics (not "politics" as in "the discourse", I mean "politics" as in "the application of power to allocate resources"). But not much has changed materially, you are just exposed to more personal conversations in public spaces than we used to be. It is weird. What you are actually seeing happen: politically engaged people are ignoring you or just brushing you aside or even telling you to shut or get lost because you don't matter to them politically. This might be an adjustment for you but no one has to answer your questions or convince you to accept the new consensus. If you mattered to them they would, but you got left behind because you don't.

stcredzero 8y ago
But not much has changed materially, you are just exposed to more personal conversations in public spaces than we used to be. It is weird. It is less public conversation, and more "shut up and submit!" What you are actually seeing happen: politically engaged people are ignoring you or just brushing you aside or even telling you to shut or get lost because you don't matter to them politically. This is the authoritarian telling the supposed "inferiors" to submit. This might be an adjustment for you but no one has to answer your questions or convince you to accept the new consensus. If you mattered to them they would, but you got left behind because you don't. Spoken like any oppressor would have put it. "Just submit and accept. You don't matter, and there's nothing you can do about it." No answering questions on matters of principle. No curiosity about the other side. Just lay back and take it. It's exactly the behavior of the people who are on the "power" side of "speaking truth to power." The long arc of history bends towards justice. In the end, principles will win out over the temporary contextual power of "social consensus." It's what got us here to the most free and prosperous multicultural civilization in all of history in the first place.
- freshhawk 8y ago
  You are confusing "there is no debate taking place" with "I am not involved in the debate". It is happening, it is just happening among people with a different worldview, using different language than you prefer.
  - stcredzero 8y ago
    You are confusing "there is no debate taking place" with "I am not involved in the debate". Sounds like you are trying to disenfranchise, or declare people disenfranchised. Sounds like you're just wishing entire swathes of the mainstream/center to disappear, or keep quiet and put up.

stcredzero 8y ago

But not much has changed materially, you are just exposed to more personal conversations in public spaces than we used to be. It is weird. It is less public conversation, and more "shut up and submit!" What you are actually seeing happen: politically engaged people are ignoring you or just brushing you aside or even telling you to shut or get lost because you don't matter to them politically. This is the authoritarian telling the supposed "inferiors" to submit. This might be an adjustment for you but no one has to answer your questions or convince you to accept the new consensus. If you mattered to them they would, but you got left behind because you don't. Spoken like any oppressor would have put it. "Just submit and accept. You don't matter, and there's nothing you can do about it." No answering questions on matters of principle. No curiosity about the other side. Just lay back and take it. It's exactly the behavior of the people who are on the "power" side of "speaking truth to power." The long arc of history bends towards justice. In the end, principles will win out over the temporary contextual power of "social consensus." It's what got us here to the most free and prosperous multicultural civilization in all of history in the first place.

freshhawk 8y ago
You are confusing "there is no debate taking place" with "I am not involved in the debate". It is happening, it is just happening among people with a different worldview, using different language than you prefer.
- stcredzero 8y ago
  You are confusing "there is no debate taking place" with "I am not involved in the debate". Sounds like you are trying to disenfranchise, or declare people disenfranchised. Sounds like you're just wishing entire swathes of the mainstream/center to disappear, or keep quiet and put up.