3 ms·

Yes. My mistake. I’m surprised people are low key defending these groups, even people on the right. This isn’t conservatism. It’s totalitarianism backed by new

by api 2y ago

Yes. My mistake. I’m surprised people are low key defending these groups, even people on the right. This isn’t conservatism. It’s totalitarianism backed by new age woo. I guess I shouldn’t be that surprised. Totalitarianism is back in fashion lately. Feels like we want to LARP the early 20th century.

lolinder 2y ago
> even people on the right. Since I'm assuming that I'm one target of this as the only person to contradict you in this subthread, I just want to be clear: I'm not on the right. As far as the conservatives in my (very red) state are concerned I'm a flaming liberal. As for how I'd describe myself, I'm basically in the "we desperately need to reverse the trend of everyone assuming that anyone who disagrees with them is evil" camp, which is why I strongly object to casual comparisons to fascism. Using that word or the word "cult" to label someone immediately frees you from any obligation to engage with them as a person, and I'm not okay with that tendency from either wing of modern politics.
- api 2y ago
  I agree broadly with the last part but I’m talking about the I AM cult and Qanon here not sane things. We need to stop handling psychotic totalitarian lunacy the same way we handle people we don’t agree with about the use of pronouns or tax policy.
worstspotgain 2y ago
Historically, I find that what's politically in fashion tends to be aligned with Russia's interests. One giveaway are those "polarizing figures" whose polarity suspiciously changed over time in alignment with Russia's magnetic field: Gingrich, Berlusconi, Dick Morris, just to pick on some whose mention won't start a flamewar. Coincidence is a thing but this ain't it. Some are contrarians with the opposite polarity, such as Arianna Huffington. Kudos, maybe.

3 ms·

Yes. My mistake. I’m surprised people are low key defending these groups, even people on the right. This isn’t conservatism. It’s totalitarianism backed by new

by api 2y ago

lolinder 2y ago
> even people on the right. Since I'm assuming that I'm one target of this as the only person to contradict you in this subthread, I just want to be clear: I'm not on the right. As far as the conservatives in my (very red) state are concerned I'm a flaming liberal. As for how I'd describe myself, I'm basically in the "we desperately need to reverse the trend of everyone assuming that anyone who disagrees with them is evil" camp, which is why I strongly object to casual comparisons to fascism. Using that word or the word "cult" to label someone immediately frees you from any obligation to engage with them as a person, and I'm not okay with that tendency from either wing of modern politics.
- api 2y ago
  I agree broadly with the last part but I’m talking about the I AM cult and Qanon here not sane things. We need to stop handling psychotic totalitarian lunacy the same way we handle people we don’t agree with about the use of pronouns or tax policy.
worstspotgain 2y ago
Historically, I find that what's politically in fashion tends to be aligned with Russia's interests. One giveaway are those "polarizing figures" whose polarity suspiciously changed over time in alignment with Russia's magnetic field: Gingrich, Berlusconi, Dick Morris, just to pick on some whose mention won't start a flamewar. Coincidence is a thing but this ain't it. Some are contrarians with the opposite polarity, such as Arianna Huffington. Kudos, maybe.