It's amazing to read this. I can't help but think about the trajectory of discourse today in the context this quote: "An arms race leading to a war was schismo

It's amazing to read this. I can't help but think about the trajectory of discourse today in the context this quote: "An arms race leading to a war was schismo­genesis on a grand scale, with no correcting feedback" This feels familiar to the trajectory of discourse in some social media societies. The 'correcting feedback' are just mirrored tactics used to widen divides. A newly politically awakened individual peruses the tenet listicals of two parties. He finds he likes 6 tenets from one and 3 from another. He wraps up his opinions in a bindle and sets off to join the conversation. If he brings up any of his traitorous opinions to his new community, he's met with a surprisingly concentrated method of "debate". Support for any tenet claimed by the opposition proves you directly support the opposition's atrocities. Modus Tollens, QED. Having a mixed plate at the political buffet is a recipe for being called things like 'racist', 'lazy', 'authoritarian' maybe 'baby murderer'. What he's called depends on where he's talking and what shade of grey he's discussing. No neurons are rubbed together about the specifics of your transgression. They don't need to be! By my radicalization conjecture, if we can associate your opinions or ideas with the opposition, then they are horrible anathema. It's not about context or meaning, it's about flavor! Few would be cowed by this immediately. "No, I do not support the wholesale slaughter of all baby giraffes because I like going to the zoo. You must be a rare internet denizen to draw such an extreme conclusion!" The proof is then repeated to you in different words, probably by a different person. Didn't you hear us? Support for any tenet claimed by the opposition proves you directly support the opposition's atrocities; it's almost worse -- really. Modus Tollens, QED. There's two ways out of this cycle, be cowed in mentioning unsavory things you support, eschew the whole game all together. If you signal that you're eschewing, you're greeted with "the world is political, it affects your life, you can't escapeee" and other bright "corrections". Also, the politically disenfranchised are responsible for <opposition atrocities>. The only people who aren't responsible for the destruction of freedom, happiness, and rainbows are people who aren't in this list: 1. The opposition 2. Centrists, moderates etc 3. The disenfranchised Who remains? Hmm. I wonder what x% who participate in those koan factories, naively thinking it's a discussion, would be driven to violence after a few months of having <flavor> = <pure evil> drilled into you. It's like chinese water torture, but people participate of their own volition! It's nice to read something new that corroborates and simplifies a hard to articulate uneasy feeling I've had for the last 10 years.