5 ms·

We have got to stop acting like politics matters more than anything else. Yeah, it's kind of important. But so is having friends and family that you can talk

We have got to stop acting like politics matters more than anything else. Yeah, it's kind of important. But so is having friends and family that you can talk to, and recognizing that they may not agree with you but...so what. People are allowed to have different thoughts, feelings, and opinions, and overall that's a good thing. Which pompous air bag gets to pretend like they're running the country for a few years isn't really a hill worth dying on, no matter how much their breathless funding messages tell you it is.

bryanlarsen 2y ago
It's a hill that millions of people have died on. It's an incredible privilege to be in a position not to care.
- MarkusQ 2y ago
  No. At most a dozen people have died over Trump v. Harris, and possible no one has. That's exactly the hyperbolic conflation of the present petty squabble with the grand march of civilization, as if they were the same or even closely related, that I'm objecting to.
  - bryanlarsen 2y ago
    With that attitude, the old man ruling the country would be King Charles of Windsor.
giraffe_lady 2y ago
Not everyone is lucky enough to be able to treat it like sports teams. You can't be friends with someone who disagrees about whether you should exist. It's hard to have a member of your family who thinks having a family like yours should be a crime. Healthcare policy for example is life or death. You don't always choose the hill you die on. Sometimes you need lifesaving medical care that is considered illegal abortion now. This is politics too and exposure to its risks is not evenly distributed. I'm glad they're not particularly distributed to you right now but some of us experience it differently.
- tzs 2y ago
  An example was posted here a couple days ago: https://www.propublica.org/article/josseli-barnica-death-miscarriage-texas-abortion-ban https://www.propublica.org/article/josseli-barnica-death-mis...
PeterWhittaker 2y ago
Much of what you cite, being able to have and share opinions, etc., has been illegal in much of the world for at least parts of the twentieth century, e.g., Germany from sometime in the late twenties or early thirties, and definitely from the mid thirties on, until 1945; the Soviet Union for much of its existence; Mao's China; Khmer Cambodia; etc. Democratic politics with free association and free elections with secret ballots are what it possible for you to hold and share your opinions, especially the unpopular ones.
- MarkusQ 2y ago
  100% agree. Which is why it's sad to see all that trivialized in the hyperbole surrounding the present election. Both sides would have you believe that the other side's pompous windbag is a threat to western civilization, and only their pompous windbag can save it. And very few have the guts to say that the emperor is naked, they're both mostly worthless, the president doesn't matter all that much, and the real issue is this: can we maintain a civil society where we listen to and respect each other, even when we disagree? Because that's what really matters, and that's a hill worth standing on and fighting to defend. I may not agree with a word you say, etc.
acdha 2y ago
[flagged]
- carcudder 2y ago
  If a male has personal beliefs that lead to him imposing himself upon female-only spaces, should that be allowed just because those are his personal beliefs? Sometimes it's better to prevent people from acting on their personal beliefs, in particular where it adversely affects others.
  - acdha 2y ago
    Wouldn’t that be up to the owner of the space?
    - carcudder 2y ago
      Not necessarily, no. To give another example, bathroom facilities for disabled people would be practically non-existent if left up to the owners of the space to provide. It's only through legislation that this has been mandated, to the benefit of those with disabilities. Similarly with female-only spaces, legislation that protects these, for the benefit of women and girls, is becoming increasingly necessary in today's society.
      - acdha 2y ago
        There isn’t a problem with men forcing their way into “female-only” spaces unless you count the guys who sue gyms or bars which have ladies nights. There are people who are lying to you about trans women but that’s not a real threat and those people have caused far more harm to the women they’ve accused or even assaulted after deciding that they must be trans.
        carcudder 2y ago
        It is a very real threat. At the worst, we see cases like this, where female prisoners are raped and sexually assaulted by males who were transferred to women's prisons: https://4w.pub/male-inmate-charged-with-raping-woman-inside-california-womens-prison-cdcr-confirms-pregnancy https://4w.pub/male-inmate-charged-with-raping-woman-inside-... We see unfair competition and lost opportunities from male disruption of female sports, for example: https://quillette.com/2024/11/01/college-volleyballs-spartan-meltdown https://quillette.com/2024/11/01/college-volleyballs-spartan... We see lesbian women being harassed and attacked by males who they reject, such as: https://www.spiked-online.com/2024/04/03/trans-activists-shut-down-my-lesbian-speed-dating-event https://www.spiked-online.com/2024/04/03/trans-activists-shu... And many, many more cases like these. It's a pattern of abusive male entitlement and, even worse, far too many people with power enabling this while ignoring the harms to women and girls.

bryanlarsen 2y ago

It's a hill that millions of people have died on. It's an incredible privilege to be in a position not to care.

MarkusQ 2y ago
No. At most a dozen people have died over Trump v. Harris, and possible no one has. That's exactly the hyperbolic conflation of the present petty squabble with the grand march of civilization, as if they were the same or even closely related, that I'm objecting to.
- bryanlarsen 2y ago
  With that attitude, the old man ruling the country would be King Charles of Windsor.

giraffe_lady 2y ago

Not everyone is lucky enough to be able to treat it like sports teams. You can't be friends with someone who disagrees about whether you should exist. It's hard to have a member of your family who thinks having a family like yours should be a crime. Healthcare policy for example is life or death. You don't always choose the hill you die on. Sometimes you need lifesaving medical care that is considered illegal abortion now. This is politics too and exposure to its risks is not evenly distributed. I'm glad they're not particularly distributed to you right now but some of us experience it differently.

tzs 2y ago
An example was posted here a couple days ago: https://www.propublica.org/article/josseli-barnica-death-miscarriage-texas-abortion-ban https://www.propublica.org/article/josseli-barnica-death-mis...

PeterWhittaker 2y ago

Much of what you cite, being able to have and share opinions, etc., has been illegal in much of the world for at least parts of the twentieth century, e.g., Germany from sometime in the late twenties or early thirties, and definitely from the mid thirties on, until 1945; the Soviet Union for much of its existence; Mao's China; Khmer Cambodia; etc. Democratic politics with free association and free elections with secret ballots are what it possible for you to hold and share your opinions, especially the unpopular ones.

MarkusQ 2y ago
100% agree. Which is why it's sad to see all that trivialized in the hyperbole surrounding the present election. Both sides would have you believe that the other side's pompous windbag is a threat to western civilization, and only their pompous windbag can save it. And very few have the guts to say that the emperor is naked, they're both mostly worthless, the president doesn't matter all that much, and the real issue is this: can we maintain a civil society where we listen to and respect each other, even when we disagree? Because that's what really matters, and that's a hill worth standing on and fighting to defend. I may not agree with a word you say, etc.

acdha 2y ago

[flagged]

carcudder 2y ago
If a male has personal beliefs that lead to him imposing himself upon female-only spaces, should that be allowed just because those are his personal beliefs? Sometimes it's better to prevent people from acting on their personal beliefs, in particular where it adversely affects others.
- acdha 2y ago
  Wouldn’t that be up to the owner of the space?
  - carcudder 2y ago
    Not necessarily, no. To give another example, bathroom facilities for disabled people would be practically non-existent if left up to the owners of the space to provide. It's only through legislation that this has been mandated, to the benefit of those with disabilities. Similarly with female-only spaces, legislation that protects these, for the benefit of women and girls, is becoming increasingly necessary in today's society.
    - acdha 2y ago
      There isn’t a problem with men forcing their way into “female-only” spaces unless you count the guys who sue gyms or bars which have ladies nights. There are people who are lying to you about trans women but that’s not a real threat and those people have caused far more harm to the women they’ve accused or even assaulted after deciding that they must be trans.
      - carcudder 2y ago
        It is a very real threat. At the worst, we see cases like this, where female prisoners are raped and sexually assaulted by males who were transferred to women's prisons: https://4w.pub/male-inmate-charged-with-raping-woman-inside-california-womens-prison-cdcr-confirms-pregnancy https://4w.pub/male-inmate-charged-with-raping-woman-inside-... We see unfair competition and lost opportunities from male disruption of female sports, for example: https://quillette.com/2024/11/01/college-volleyballs-spartan-meltdown https://quillette.com/2024/11/01/college-volleyballs-spartan... We see lesbian women being harassed and attacked by males who they reject, such as: https://www.spiked-online.com/2024/04/03/trans-activists-shut-down-my-lesbian-speed-dating-event https://www.spiked-online.com/2024/04/03/trans-activists-shu... And many, many more cases like these. It's a pattern of abusive male entitlement and, even worse, far too many people with power enabling this while ignoring the harms to women and girls.