The Echo Chamber

Here’s the best damn description of “The Left” you ever will see, and from a conservative point of view, no less!

Here’s a breakdown of how wealth is distributed in America. Where do you fit in?

Devil’s Advocate: This wasn’t Fox suggesting that violent games make people violent. It was about a lack of empathy created when people connect via facebook, absorb what they see on reality TV or spend more time in worlds where their actions lack accountability. It’s a scientific fact, as far as I know, that we emotionally resonate with our experiences, including TV. You are what you eat. It’s why Mad Men makes people feel cool just by watching it. 

Obviously I don’t believe games turn people crazy by letting them live in a fantasy world. A lack of empathy from reduced face-to-face interactions does exist, however. Facebook conversations are more vitriolic than face-to-face conversations. People curse at each other under the protection of anonymity in multi-player games. 

I don’t think that playing Grand Theft Auto increases violent tendencies. The science doesn’t support this, beyond the few minutes of adrenaline-induced agitation that comes with any visceral experience. I believe it’s more about a lack of learned skills that comes from dealing with other people face-to-face, like a muscle that grows stronger with time. Without positive interactions with other people we may grow lonely, depressed and isolated. 

Is that what happened today? I have no idea.

Just sayin’.

Says a member of the HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SCIENCE COMMITTEE. 

I’m so fucking sick of this. 

Notice how he equates “the left” directly with people who want a welfare state, and therefore socialism or communism, and “the right” with the American Dream.

Anyone who promotes the idea that is what “the left” wants is an asshole. 

Why in the hell would anybody want that? “The left” merely understands that we can pool some of our resources to give everyone a chance to make the most of their lives. That’s not even close to the same thing. 

These lies are destroying our government’s ability to function. This man is not fit to govern jack shit. 

I wish the right wingers would understand this. 

This is a fantastic interview that clarifies the lingering question: How did the transition from the “white picket fence” middle class golden age to the current economic quagmire?