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It's literally not; how do you know I don't support the status quo? I'm just pointing out that being "apolitical" is a political stance, whether or not you agre

It's literally not; how do you know I don't support the status quo? I'm just pointing out that being "apolitical" is a political stance, whether or not you agree with that stance.

AbrahamParangi 6y ago
By this reasoning my dog supports the status quo.
- Cyph0n 6y ago
  If your dog had the mental capacity to understand the basics of the two main sides in US politics and chose to support neither, then sure.
  - kortilla 6y ago
    There aren’t “two main sides” in US politics. There are two parties and choosing either comes with a metric fuck-ton of positions. Generally supporting Democrats just because they support one position you agree with is dumber than not supporting either side.
    - Cyph0n 6y ago
      I think not voting at all is the dumbest possible position.
- ahelwer 6y ago
  Your ability to draw reason out of text is flawed, then. Your dog has no ability to influence human politics whatsoever; you do.
nickff 6y ago
You could also be apolitical because you find all available options to be unacceptable, or because you just don't know what's going on. Separately, not opposing the status quo is more like accepting it than supporting it, and these are all different. Your lack of nuance rather proves the point of the great grandparent post.
- notJim 6y ago
  Well ironically, the great grandparent also lacks nuance. I think your comment is the one the brings it forward, and is more valuable than the great grandparent for that reason. > You could also be apolitical because you find all available options to be unacceptable Is this apolitical, or is it having a politics that is not well represented? It seems more like the latter to me.
  - nickff 6y ago
    People who feel unrepresented often lapse into apathy; you can only struggle against an uncaring world for so long before you tire or go insane.
    - JAlexoid 6y ago
      Apathy towards issues of policy is a political position. You know the political positions, but you became apathetic about the political system. Being apolitical is implying that you think that it's good enough as it is to not care.
  - buran77 6y ago
    > having a politics that is not well represented I think being apolitical is more about having an objective view and judging opinions based on merit rather than the political spectrum they originated from. Could also mean you're either are against all political views, or have none, but this last one seems less likely to happen in practice. People tend to have an opinion, more or less informed or objective as it may be.
- catalogia 6y ago
  > or because you just don't know what's going on. Exactly. Anybody who earnestly tries to be informed will realize that there are limits to what they know and subjects for which they are not [yet] informed. There needs to be room for people to say "I'm not informed on that issue, so I don't have an opinion."
  - 6y ago
deleted 6y ago
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roenxi 6y ago
As I like to say; why would we have a word 'apolitical' if we can't imagine a thing that is accepted as apolitical? It would be a rather useless adjective. It is completely reasonable for someone to say they don't like the status quo but also are uncertain about whether a policy improves on the status quo due to their limited knowledge. If that isn't being apolitical we may as well strike the word from the dictionary. It is technically a political stance, but it is not forceful enough to be called support of anything.
amw-zero 6y ago
It is most certainly a coded message for “you have to believe in what I believe.” Being apolitical is not a political stance.
urbaneroust 6y ago
I keep to myself because I don't trust people to take my slight differences of opinion with appropriate calm. I've been burned one too many times by "you don't agree with my concept/idea/candidate you're a literal fucking monster." No thanks, I could have been your ally but I'll just stay home. I should add, this goes in both directions and I see it from both sides of the political spectrum. I consider myself an independent. I try to judge all issues individually and fall into different camps depending on what we're talking about, but political dialogue has become so toxic that I've gotten to the point where I just cast my vote and move on.
drewcon 6y ago
Fair enough. I read it as condemning apolitical folks for lack of engagement but I see your larger point.

It's literally not; how do you know I don't support the status quo? I'm just pointing out that being "apolitical" is a political stance, whether or not you agree with that stance.

AbrahamParangi 6y ago

By this reasoning my dog supports the status quo.

Cyph0n 6y ago
If your dog had the mental capacity to understand the basics of the two main sides in US politics and chose to support neither, then sure.
- kortilla 6y ago
  There aren’t “two main sides” in US politics. There are two parties and choosing either comes with a metric fuck-ton of positions. Generally supporting Democrats just because they support one position you agree with is dumber than not supporting either side.
  - Cyph0n 6y ago
    I think not voting at all is the dumbest possible position.
ahelwer 6y ago
Your ability to draw reason out of text is flawed, then. Your dog has no ability to influence human politics whatsoever; you do.

nickff 6y ago

You could also be apolitical because you find all available options to be unacceptable, or because you just don't know what's going on. Separately, not opposing the status quo is more like accepting it than supporting it, and these are all different. Your lack of nuance rather proves the point of the great grandparent post.

notJim 6y ago
Well ironically, the great grandparent also lacks nuance. I think your comment is the one the brings it forward, and is more valuable than the great grandparent for that reason. > You could also be apolitical because you find all available options to be unacceptable Is this apolitical, or is it having a politics that is not well represented? It seems more like the latter to me.
- nickff 6y ago
  People who feel unrepresented often lapse into apathy; you can only struggle against an uncaring world for so long before you tire or go insane.
  - JAlexoid 6y ago
    Apathy towards issues of policy is a political position. You know the political positions, but you became apathetic about the political system. Being apolitical is implying that you think that it's good enough as it is to not care.
- buran77 6y ago
  > having a politics that is not well represented I think being apolitical is more about having an objective view and judging opinions based on merit rather than the political spectrum they originated from. Could also mean you're either are against all political views, or have none, but this last one seems less likely to happen in practice. People tend to have an opinion, more or less informed or objective as it may be.
catalogia 6y ago
> or because you just don't know what's going on. Exactly. Anybody who earnestly tries to be informed will realize that there are limits to what they know and subjects for which they are not [yet] informed. There needs to be room for people to say "I'm not informed on that issue, so I don't have an opinion."
- 6y ago

deleted 6y ago

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roenxi 6y ago

As I like to say; why would we have a word 'apolitical' if we can't imagine a thing that is accepted as apolitical? It would be a rather useless adjective. It is completely reasonable for someone to say they don't like the status quo but also are uncertain about whether a policy improves on the status quo due to their limited knowledge. If that isn't being apolitical we may as well strike the word from the dictionary. It is technically a political stance, but it is not forceful enough to be called support of anything.

amw-zero 6y ago

It is most certainly a coded message for “you have to believe in what I believe.” Being apolitical is not a political stance.

urbaneroust 6y ago

I keep to myself because I don't trust people to take my slight differences of opinion with appropriate calm. I've been burned one too many times by "you don't agree with my concept/idea/candidate you're a literal fucking monster." No thanks, I could have been your ally but I'll just stay home. I should add, this goes in both directions and I see it from both sides of the political spectrum. I consider myself an independent. I try to judge all issues individually and fall into different camps depending on what we're talking about, but political dialogue has become so toxic that I've gotten to the point where I just cast my vote and move on.

drewcon 6y ago

Fair enough. I read it as condemning apolitical folks for lack of engagement but I see your larger point.