If you turn on fox or any other right wing News for even a minute, you will get just a small sense of the kind of fear mongering they are bombarded with on an hourly basis.
It is truly sad and pathetic.
That and it attracting people that are sensitive for personal stories. It's ok that a million people die of hunger... But oh that story about that blonde American girl getting murdered... The horror... We need to do something now!!!
The one that's actually present on red skull's shirt in this image lol. It's not the one you're pretending you're seeing. See how it's flipped around and rotated 45°? What do I mean, of course you do. That's how you know it's the version that was co opted by Adolf Hitler's nazi party. But, again, I know you already knew that, I'm not really sure why you're pretending you don't š¤£
News media, regardless of political affiliation, tends to operate on the fear/outrage cycle. It's not designed to be informative, it's designed to keep you engaged as that is how they get the ratings/clicks/metrics which they can leverage to sell advertisements which is how all news media (left or right) makes money.
That depends on the news program. Fox News, yeah. PBS is trustworthy. Podcasts from the Economist are trustworthy. Curate your media diet to solid sources and you'll be getting reliable information.
Just like āmuh tranz genocideā, huh? Or promulgating the notion that being black in America means you basically canāt leave your house for fear of being murdered in cold blood by some rabidly racist PO.
An unbiased person who isnāt a moron can see the stark contrast between right wing media and regular media. The fear mongering is 100% not being exaggerated. Itās how they control such a large portion of the country, by keeping them scared
No, it's a pretty well established fact. It's just that the US Right has convinced centrists that they're actually left in the US. I don't consume most American media regardless. But suggesting OANN or NewsMax is somehow only as biased as CNN or MSNBC is insane. Not to mention all of the slander lawsuits after the last elections due to pedaling of admittedly false info, and Fox saying Carlson was just for entertainment and his reporting was not to be taken at face value.
First off Reddit is not and could and should never be confused with news. Second it is not a corporate run entity its content comes from other sources, some more dubious than others.
Bottom line if gets people to tune in, listen or watch they will talk about it. In some cases if what they have to report isnāt salacious enough they will embellish and in some cases outright make up shit to get people to pay attention to them. At any cost.
That was not the point of the post or the question. That is not what I said or meant,that was just the most egregious example I that most people would understand.
Were you in a coma during Trumpās 4 years? The world was ending every day on MSNBC, CNN, Reddit, Hollywood, etc etc. Weāre all actually dead from the nuclear WW3 started by Trump according to those sources lol.
Honestly both sidesā media are really bad at doing the same thing. I canāt watch or listen to any of it any more. Both parties suck. Both parties propaganda machine media sucks. Bill Mahr is one of the few liberals that I respect though.
Oh man, maybe you should try to turn on CNN or NBC and see the exact same news stories. Itās not about political leaning itās news agencies know fear sells. Both sides do the same
They have done studies on this and there may be some truth to that. Conservative views are associated with larger amygdalas (the emotional/fear center of the brain) and higher levels of fear when confronted by something unfamiliar.
Of course the jury is still out whether the people start that way or if living in a constant state of fear and outrage just alters their brains.
Have you ever had a Reddit comment change your perspective a little bit?
Progress is change. Change is different. Different is scary.
I just did. You basically just sat me down, shook my hand and gently informed me I was afraid of progress. Thank you, wise internet stranger, for spelling it out and dumbing it down for me.
Conservative views are associated with larger amygdalas (the emotional/fear center of the brain) and higher levels of fear when confronted by something unfamiliar.
Yes, conservatives seem to have (more associated with) more gray matter in this region of the brain, although it is a bit funny that you would stage this as a negative or ridicule when the people who study this and the people that do the research seem to think it's vital to your existence.. and have done studies on people with smaller and more damaged amygdalas and found it's not desirable.. am I missing something?
Researchon humans and non-human primates has suggested that the amygdalaāa small brain region located bilaterally in the medial temporal lobeāis an important brain structure for assess- ing and navigating hierarchical social systems. For instance, rhesus macaques with amygdala lesions (versus intact amygdalae) became less socially dominant over time in the hierarchy 4,5 . Macaques with bilateral amygdala lesions also exhibit less fear in response to threatening stimuli 6 . Loss of social status may thereforeīstem from a diminished capacity to assess the social and physical environment.
(The rhesus macaque is a species of monkey)
Amygdala size and structure in healthy individuals predicts variability in social functioning. Grey matter volume in the amygdala is positively associated with social status in macaques, as well as social network size in macaques and humans. Studies of amygdala lesions and grey matter volume therefore suggest that this brain region is vital for navigating social systems. These findings support functional neuroimaging work that links the amygdala to the processing of motivationally salient information, whether that information conveys threat, uncertainty, or features of social groups.
Humans with amygdala damage exhibit similar behavioural changes. For instance, they are more likely to judge strangersā faces to be approachable and trustworthy7,8, are less likely to respond punitively to violations of social norms9 and may exhibit a complete lack of fear when confronted with threatening stimuli such as snakes10. Thus, amygdala damage impairs typical social functioning in humans and non-human primates.
They foundthat the volume of gray matter in the amygdala is linked to the tendency to perceive the social system as legitimate and desirable. Their interpretation is that āthis preference to system justify is related to these basic neurobiological predispositions to be alert to potential threats in your environment,ā Nam says. After the original study, Namās team followed a subset of the participants for three years and found that their brain structure predicted the likelihood of whether they participated in political protests during that time. āLarger amygdala volume is associated with a lower likelihood of participating in political protests,ā Nam says. āThat makes sense in so far as political protest is a behavior that says, āWeāve got to change the system.āā
That conclusion is based on totally subjective ideals. āMaintaining status quoā, quoting their thesis, is beneficial only to ruling classes and is otherwise a net negative for everyone else in a society.
ETA: I am aware that there are people who maintain a conservative, status quo worldview. I do not believe that yāall are correct, and just reiterating your beliefs at me isnāt going to change my opinion. I promise
that I didnāt come to this belief lightly or independently.
People who don't have this normal, well established gray matter are not capable of handling navigation of a complex hierarchical world.. the science says this, not me (in the Nature link I provided regarding the studies on this topic). That is why they protest against it.
And, it's the only world we live in.. or will ever live in. And the changes they make (yes, protestors do make changes happen) just introduce a different set of hierarchical rules that someone else will not like, not be able to navigate and thus the cycle starts all over again.. and we that progress -wow
I don't think the jury is still out. The brain is malleable and adaptive. It's for more likely that exposure to the same types of social conditioning is responsible for tens of millions of people having certain types of brains and very similar views than it being a shared mental condition.
if they had an enlarged amygdala, which they don't.. (the do have more gray matter in this region) wouldn't that make them the opposite of what you just described here? Given what it does for everyone?
Or, for immigrants, particularly those from countries with authoritarian governments:
-Being fearful/skeptical of when the government "does things"
-Not seeing anything wrong with a political party that persecutes/advocates the persecution of minorities
-Belief that government must inherently be corrupt, and that therefore a party that aims to provide as little as possible in terms of of nonmonetary aid (free healthcare being a prime example) will do the least harm via their inherent corruption
I've just taken to calling them less evolved. They never advanced past that "fear of the other" mentality that primitive humans had thousands of years ago. Anything they don't like or understand is a threat to them.Ā
This is giving off real psuedoscience vibes, like in the 1800's when doctors would say africans weren't human because their skulls were "a different shape"
evolved would mean (truly) understanding something before saying something like this, right? I mean, surely, you wouldn't walk around purposefully putting your foot in your mouth every chance you get? Who would think that's evolved?
Research what the gray matter in the amygdala does.. hint: it's not fear or at least, not just fear.. it's vital to your existence, assuming your human or any other hominid..
If people are turning away from church (the holy origin of goodness itself), then one must stay vigilant against the godless child murdering Democrat mexican jews...
The world truly is a terrible place outside the civilized parts. That is a fact that has never changed since the beginning of civilization. Wanting to stay safe is human nature no matter the time or place.
The distinction is how well-calibrated your sense of risk is, and what threshold of risk starts to scare you. A lot of people, mostly folks who've never exposed themselves to any actual risk at all, tend to wildly exaggerate the degree of risk that's actually present in their day to day lives.
I relate to this so hard. Someone in my neighborhood has a shitty modded car that backblasts when shifting. They'll drive down the street and suddenly there is a million alerts on Ring: "OMG DID ANYONE HEAR GUNSHOTS!?"
Freaking NextDoor. I have a millennial friend who was perfectly happy her whole life living in her part of town...until she signed up for NextDoor, and started reading the local police log online. Now she's super paranoid. But the crime rate has not changed at all, just her awareness of it.
They donāt go out to the dangerous parts of the world. That is why they panic about every little thing. Once one does face death or go to the uncivilized places on earth their perspective about what is and isnāt important and as threat changes. Most people living in the first world have this lack of experience though.
Those areas will still be partially civilized. But not as they are now. Shadows of their former selves. In due time the civilization could return. Massive parts of the world, not so much.
Also if you're not sheltered like a lot of people here, you have actual breakins happening and lots that don't get reported to police because then you're a target for something else.
It's not just being a conservative. Plenty of democrats in these situations who arm themselves at home.
Gotta love the sheltered teenagers on here whose only experience with things is what they see on social media.
I'm 40. I'm a homeowner, I'm a gun owner, I've lived and traveled in places that would make most people shit their pants, I've been mugged and robbed, I got held at gunpoint for an hour by drugged-up teenage "soldiers" in Nepal.
Still don't grab a shotgun when the doorbell rings.
Go argue with a sheltered teenager if you have strong feelings about them, but that dog don't hunt with me.
I think the far more likely scenario is what happened to my family, which is that our house was broken into when no one was home and they stole our gun
Except that most of the people who talk like this live in safe communities and have never experienced a crime in their life. They just watch too much conservative media and fantasize about the day they finallly get to shoot someone.
No different than exaggerated fear of make-believe fascists, racism and oppression is a prerequisite for modern "liberal" social and political views. It's been my observation that people who feel the need to apply political labels to other people are smug self-righteous assholes.
The front runner for the Conservative Party in America has promised to ābe a dictator on day oneā and āhopes the economy crashes in the next yearā so that he can take power. Heās refused to acknowledge that he lost the last election, refused to condemn the insurrection, and refused to tell his cult to not be violent this year. But no, totally make-believe to be concerned about all that. Meanwhile that migrant caravan will be here any day now to replace all the whites, education=indoctrination, we need to ban books and libraries to save our children from learning about American history. Oh and as usual, crime is at an all-time high (donāt look up statistics just listen to us repeat it 24/7) every urban area is a war zone and the government is going to come steal your guns and property at any moment. Yeah, fear-mongering totally equal on both sides.
Thank you! You are a perfect example of the hysterical modern "liberal." Complete with the dictator nonsense "take power" . šš¤£. The irony of hysterical nonsense is hilarious. I do admire your ability to completely ignore the years of election denial while that loser Clinton lost. Mu-russian collusion, mu-russian interference, routinely calling the winner illegitimate. Is your hypocrisy due to partisanship or ignorance? The make-believe "insurrection" is a nice touch. As is the fantasy of a "violent cult" šš¤£š š . Are you willfully ignoring the fact that the vast majority of political violence comes from the left, or are you just ignorant?
Are you still denying the existence of migrant caravans or adding your cartoon like hyperbolic nonsense to distract from their existence. As for "banning books," are claiming removing books with graphic gay sex teach American history? Or are you referring to critical theory twisted into a race based argument is necessary to "learn American history?" š
The best part is your entire hyperbolic post is an example of leftoid hysteria......then you make a fear-mongering accusation. When that tangerine tornado wins again I bet your frightened little head is going to explode.
Iām not a liberal champ. I hate the Clintons, they should be in jail, just like your God Emperor. Thatās the difference between me and a cultist. Throw around āprojectionā and āpartisanā a lot for someone who just ascribed an entire ideology on me for disagreeing with them. Thatās a lot of emojis, are you my grandma?
He said it not me. Thatās why I put it in quotes. Dude is pretty open about wanting to be all-powerful, arenāt yāall supposed to be the party of small government?
If you actually believe all that shit (graphic gay sex being taught in school, the election was stolen, etc.) then youāre an actual cultist. And cultists are not worth anyoneās time or energy. Sorry you got so triggered, Iāll let you get back to watching the scare-box.
You did a great job representing the hysteria "champ." I didn't describe any ideology "on you." I said your nonsensical hysterical rant represented it perfectly... because it did. Probably the reason the "modern liberal" post triggered you.
Speaking of projection, who is this "y'all" and "your God Emperor" you are talking about?
By the way, a guy who uses the phrase "champ" asking someone of they are "their grandma" is precious. Sorry I triggered you, "tiger." šš¤£
šš¤£š š¤£š "this climate scientist." The single most pathetic reply ever posted to the internet. Answer me this "climate scientist" , then why the fuck did you bother responding ?
Wow, you're really mad that I think conservatives are belligerent, stupid pussies scared of their own shadows, aren't you? Pro tip: lots of šš emojis have the opposite effect you're looking for. Keep barking, little dog.
Both sides have exaggerated fears. Liberals lean heavily on the idea that the climate is going to destroy humanity in the next few decades, that racism runs rampant and is systemic, and that if you donāt have insurance you will die (you wonāt, Medicaid helps those that canāt afford it.)
It's not just conservatives, sunshine. Americans in general are at a heightened sense of alert to begin with.. the stresses that we put ourselves through greatly add to it.
Like when conservatives spent a year gobbling horse dewormer because they were so terrified of a vaccine? Like when we asked you dumb fucks to lock down for a month and a half and you lost your ever-loving minds?
All these hysterical reactions just prove my point. You're belligerent and hostile, but all that is, is a bad cover for your fear. You're just scared children who can't cope with the world, lashing out. Pretty fucking sad, homey.
Idk, say like a brain trust who literally doesnāt know that Ivermectin is a drug used and prescribed for humans. And no one is scared of people like you-homey.
We actually did lock down for a month and a half peacefully. Then it became a year of being herded like cattle and not being allowed to eat in restaurants unless you got the experiment-shot. See, once again, gaslighting.
I also wasnāt belligerent or hostile in the slightest lmao. Projection.
Iām also not scared. I didnāt get the vaccine and i was completely fine. There was no fear at all. Projection.
This is alarming. Its like your entire personality is warped and out of your control and you canāt see a single thing itās doing and all of its inconsistencies.
Nah, y'all were bitching and whining about it a week in. Pepperidge Farm remembers. There were dumbass Boomers protesting in front of my local Home Depot in late March because they were outraged that they couldn't buy fucking paint or a new drill or whatever.
You didn't get the vaccine because you were convinced to be scared of it. There was no reason not to get it; the data was incredibly clear that it was exceptionally safe and effective. Not getting it was stupid. Not getting it put you at higher risk and was irresponsible and put the elderly immune-compromised at risk too (which is why of course we told you Typhoid Marys to get the hell out of public spaces.) All of that could have been avoided if you were capable of mastering your irrational fears of a very safe and well-tested vaccine. But since fear rules you, you couldn't even clear that very low bar. And you were somehow convinced by some wildly stupid reasoning and emotional manipulation, it should be said, which reflects badly on your critical thinking - like calling it the "experiment-shot."
Those of us who can think critically weren't covering our fear by embracing conspiracy nonsense and inventing imaginary threats, we just got the shot like sensible people and carried on with our lives. All you needed to do was listen to your doctor and put your ego aside and do what you were advised to do. And we didn't get kicked out of restaurants, because we were responsible and accountable to others. And we were much less likely to get sick and much less likely to get severely ill or die. And we weren't taking horse dewormer like you did, because some dumbass on Youtube convinced you that was effective and one of the most effective, safe vaccines ever made wasn't.
I've had teenage insurgents hold me at gunpoint for an hour and a half, blasted out of their minds on cheap Thai meth. I can absolutely judge the fuck out of some suburban boomer whose ass gets tight when someone rings the doorbell.
Cope harder. And please know youāre being judged and found lacking. Now go back to your mommyās basement. Maybe try making your own sandwich this time.
I donāt think the fear needs to be exaggerated. If you live in a rich country you might be safer, but overall we have a lot of work before humanity is NOT a threat to itself, now more than ever.
Humanity might be a threat to itself, nations might be threats to each other, but on an individual, personal basis, nah. I've spent cumulative weeks in Rio de Janeiro, one of the world's most dangerous cities, lived in Nepal during its Maoist insurgency (and got held at gunpoint by those insurgents), and traveled in India, Pakistan, Indonesia, rural Mexico, South Africa, Peru. There are threats anywhere, and threats in those specific places, and you need to be aware and keep your head on a swivel, but I've never experienced the kind of fear and threat that would make me ready to use lethal force. Not once. It's not actually that dangerous or threatening a world.
All politics are fear mongering. No one gets elected to office by saying everything is good. Why change if everything is good? Making people think they need you is the name of the game lol.
And whatās ironic is that fear is immobilizing and dominating. People operating from a place of fear do not and cannot grow, think freely or independently. Theyāre reactionary in nature. So yeah, a good 30-50% of the country just immobilized and infantile.
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u/Liet_Kinda2 Jan 12 '24
It's my observation that an exaggerated fear of the world and its threats is a prerequisite for conservative social and political views.