The PC narrative that we've got going on is working towards being poised for a complete collapse. It's not at its breaking point yet, but it's getting there, and it's going to be interesting to watch it all unfold.
Meanwhile, the shit is profitable as fuck. Men are making a ton of money selling stupid shit to stupid people like "I bathe in male tears" t-shirts.
To which boost replied:
Quote:
Originally Posted by boost
This little bit of writing, culminating in the bold, is pretty much amazing. You should pen a long form article with this as a punchline and shop it around for publication.
For the sake of simplicity, let's call the ruling class rich white men. That's not strictly true, but close enough. I'm going to break this up into a couple of somewhat-disjointed parts so that I can keep it as short as possible.
...
Consider the following: Every single social movement that has flourished has done so because rich white men have allowed it to. They don't do this on accident: It's in their best interests and the best interests of increased profits.
Example: The only reason women were allowed [socially] to smoke is because rich white men manipulated public opinion to make it acceptable (so they could make money off of selling cigarettes to women as well).
...
If you want to use feminism as another example, consider how many thousands of years went by before women were able to have any real amount of social mobility on any meaningful scale. Women didn't suddenly grow strong enough to get that shit on their own. It was given to them by rich white men who wanted to profit from it.
Who gets the most useless, over-priced degrees? Women by far.
Who carries the most credit card debt? Women by far.
Who initiates divorce (and receives alimony) the most often? Women by far.
Who receives child support the most often? Women by far.
* The point is that women are systematically given more and more financial power.
The list of examples goes on. What's really awesome about this (in the sense of it being beautiful how it works) is that the whole "men and women are equal" argument plays right into their hands. You can't talk about why women are financially irresponsible as fuck compared to men (on average) without having people coming for your head. Because you can't talk about it, you can't actually do anything about it. The very people who are the most vocal about attacking sexism (and other -isms) are the ones who are perpetuating it the most by protecting the power structures that exploit women.
This is the reason that there's such a big push behind the "pay gap." They want women to have more financial control because it's easier to separate them from their money. Men are the tight rocks and women are the loose fish (on average) at the poker table of life.
...
Getting back around to something more directly-related to what you quoted in the above, if you want to look at how rich white men keep a stranglehold on every group, there's a very easy process to follow:
1. Consider what dumb shit that particular group blows money on.
2. Consider what perpetuates that particular group blowing money on that particular dumb shit.
Rich white men have power because they're rich, not because they're white, but they also have power because no one else can challenge them (since they never have the money to do so). People blowing money on dumb shit maintains the power of rich white men in two ways:
1. It directly gives them the money that they need to maintain power.
2. It indirectly keeps anyone from ever being able to oppose them because it keeps people from being able to develop their own wealth.
...
This is why a higher minimum wage isn't the way to get people out of poverty. It addresses a symptom of the problem (ie: not having much money) instead of the problem itself (that they blow money on stupid shit). It doesn't matter what you change the minimum wage to because rich white men will just adjust and get that money too.
Capitalism isn't the problem here. Rich white men thrived in the middle of communism too. Capitalism without the influence of government actually offers more social mobility than probably any other structure that we could have, and that's why rich white men don't want that.
...
Look at the wars we've been fighting basically fucking forever in different parts of the world. Why does it keep going on? Because rich white men can profit from it. Rich white men created the Taliban, and then they made a lot of money in the war against them. Al Qaeda, ISIS, whoever, it's all the same shit. The scarier they can make the enemy, the more they can profit from it. It's that simple.
...
The Matrix is real (in this sense), and you can't get out. Even the king is confined to the board. You have to play the game because you are hopelessly stuck in it with no way to get out ever. You might as well learn to play it as well as you can in the brief time you have here.
This scene from The Devil Wears Prada (which is an amazing movie) exemplifies what I mean by this. After she realizes the above truth (that she's stuck in the game without a choice about it), she finally decides to try to play it well.
...
If you want to make a lot of money, all you have to do is follow the path of rich white men. Find some dumb shit that people spend a lot of money on (or come up with your own dumb shit) and sell it to them. Take your profits and scale up your operation. It's not as difficult as you might think it is.
Anyway, I thought this could be an interesting discussion and that it deserved its own thread.
More on-topic -- so what is going to cause the collapse of the PC movement?
12-07-2015, 07:28 PM
spoonitnow
Quote:
Originally Posted by NightGizmo
Wow, I love this line.
More on-topic -- so what is going to cause the collapse of the PC movement?
I want to point out that I may have misspoke earlier: I don't think that the PC/SJW movement will collapse, but I do think it will evolve and eventually be replaced by something else that's more fashionable (and likely more ridiculous).
One aspect of the situation is that the SJW movement is cannibalistic. There's always a way to one-up someone on being offended. I'll give an example of what I mean:
Quote:
Some recent campus actions border on the surreal. In April, at Brandeis University, the Asian American student association sought to raise awareness of microaggressions against Asians through an installation on the steps of an academic hall. The installation gave examples of microaggressions such as “Aren’t you supposed to be good at math?” and “I’m colorblind! I don’t see race.” But a backlash arose among other Asian American students, who felt that the display itself was a microaggression. The association removed the installation, and its president wrote an e-mail to the entire student body apologizing to anyone who was “triggered or hurt by the content of the microaggressions.” --The Atlantic (source)
The first primary source of the SJW movement right now is the American university campus. You've had multiple presidents and professors removed from positions for dubious reasons, and it's all about protecting their profits. The idea is that if you have pissed off students, then you aren't able to take their money, so it makes sense to meet ridiculous demands.
The main result of this is that university campuses are being taken less and less seriously. One theory is that it'll eventually reach a point where there will be a large enough demand for a "serious" university that doesn't put up with this type of bullshit. They'll be back to offering value instead of just being a daycare for 18-23 year olds, but it will come at the price of much higher tuition.
Another theory is that nothing will come up to replace the current university system, and the value of a college degree will just be ran into the ground even moreso than it already is. I mean people are still taking out upper five figures in student loans for absolutely useless liberal arts degrees so that they can have trouble finding a job and then end up working at Starbucks. We're not to the point that people are really figuring out that going for these degrees and putting themselves into his level of debt isn't worth it (which could happen if the market continues to be flooded with them and/or tuition prices keep going up).
The second primary source, which is largely just a communication mechanism for the first, is the Internet (specifically Twitter and Tumblr). That's going to keep on going because of the money tied up in advertising dollars.
12-08-2015, 01:37 PM
spoonitnow
Quote:
Originally Posted by NightGizmo
Wow, I love this line.
More on-topic -- so what is going to cause the collapse of the PC movement?
Related:
Quote:
Colorado College has suspended and banned a student from campus for nearly two years in response to a comment intended as a joke on the anonymous social media application Yik Yak.
In November 2015, Thaddeus Pryor sent an anonymous reply to the comment “#blackwomenmatter” on Yik Yak. Pryor’s response read, “They matter, they’re just not hot.” On November 20, Colorado College found that Pryor’s post violated its “Abusive Behavior” and “Disruption of College Activities” policies and suspended him from the college until August 28, 2017. In the meantime, the college has banned Pryor from setting foot on campus and has forbidden him from taking classes at other institutions for academic credit. Pryor has appealed his suspension.
12-08-2015, 06:32 PM
spoonitnow
You people are ridiculously boring.
12-08-2015, 07:41 PM
wufwugy
i may or may not have something to say about this after finals are over
Such a joke. It's like children getting offended when someone imitates them.
12-10-2015, 06:46 AM
rong
It seems that's the attitude that's formally enforced at colleges across America, and it's likely to seriously effect the long term mental health of students and politics as a whole.
It seems that's the attitude that's formally enforced at colleges across America, and it's likely to seriously effect the long term mental health of students and politics as a whole.
I've linked to that same article in other threads. It's a great read. The way these people are being milked for more and more money is absolutely amazing, and it's a great blueprint for anyone who wants to control people on a large scale because they don't see the puppet strings.
12-10-2015, 07:18 AM
rong
I was thinking how much future lawyers will be loving this.
12-10-2015, 08:29 AM
spoonitnow
Quote:
Originally Posted by rong
I was thinking how much future lawyers will be loving this.
Students at a small Pennsylvania college are demanding that administrators rename a building called "Lynch Memorial Hall" because of the racial overtones of the word "lynch."
The building is named after Clyde A. Lynch, who was president of Lebanon Valley College from 1932 until his death in 1950.
Students want school officials to either rename the building entirely or add Lynch's first name and middle initial, saying the word recalls the public executions of black men by white mobs in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
It was included on a list of demands that students presented to the school on Friday. Other demands include a more diverse curriculum, more sensitivity training for staff and regular surveys of the racial climate on campus.
12-11-2015, 07:05 AM
spoonitnow
Alright guys. I stumbled across literally the absolute 100 percent perfect fucking example of what I'm talking about in the OP. This is absolutely incredible. First, here's the source.
So here's the title: Protesters march against ‘corporate greed’
Quote:
About 50 people protesting “corporate greed” marched Thursday from Westlake Park, around downtown and to South Lake Union.
Some of the protesters waved signs that read “Eat the rich” while others decried the so-called “one-percenters.”
They were protesting right in front of some offices of Amazon's:
Quote:
The march prompted Amazon to warn employees that they could be targeted by protesters.
“Please remember to not wear anything that has Amazon logos and keep your badges covered or put away and out of site [sight],” an internal Amazon memo read.
Marchers walked by the Amazon buildings as employees watched from inside, many filming the protest.
Now, if you want the big fucking finale and to laugh your asses off:
When did we become so afraid of everybody though? I walked to and from school alone when I was as young as 7. Now kids aren't even allowed to play outside. This fear of others and always assuming the worst isn't good for us.
Quote:
Originally Posted by wufwugy
when did we become so afraid of each other? i think when we started changing the narrative from responsibility to victimhood. and when we focused only on the idea that aggressors are victims themselves and that the only people truly responsible for solving problems are official authorities.
the safer places to be are the places where people take responsibility for their own situations. you're much more likely to get shot in one of the many inner city victimhood capitals of the world than at a rural montanan's ranch.
If you look at who controls the narrative, you see that it's rich white men (ie: the ruling class). It's much easier to control and profit from people who are scared as fuck of each other and who blame everyone else for their own problems. When people are too busy fighting each other, it's extremely difficult for any of them to rise to a point where they can challenge your power or accumulate real wealth, so you have fewer people actually do it. This leads to the destruction of the middle class, for example.
For JKDS's example of walking to school alone at that age, it ties into teaching people that they can't be self-reliant and that they have to rely on the government, which is controlled completely and totally by rich white men. This is the point of the systematic indoctrination of the victim mentality. It's an institutionalized crab mentality.
This shows up in a lot of arenas, and I'll give a few examples of the wide range of influence this type of shit has:
1. I had a close female friend who got drunk and had sex with a guy she met at a party. She ended up getting pregnant and had an abortion. Her chick friends almost unanimously told her that she was raped, and they directly opposed her taking responsibility for what had happened. She was socially ostracized for taking responsibility for herself.
2. I grew up with a black kid who always caught shit for "acting white." Bill Cosby used to talk about how it was stupid for black people to say that type of shit to each other and try to shame each other for wanting to be successful.
3. I have a couple of next-door neighbors who could possibly qualify as white trash. They're a very young married couple, something like 18 and 21. One of them made a comment about me being up so early and seeing the light on in the room I use for my office and actually tried to make fun of me for getting up around 6-6:30 to get started on some work.
We've been taught to attack the act of taking responsibility for yourself so that we can turn around and applaud being a victim.
12-12-2015, 12:26 PM
wufwugy
my issue with your premise for the op is you apply all sorts of agency where it's unnecessary or inapplicable. for example, the pay gap isn't being pushed by people who want women to have more money so they can spend more. actualization of that policy couldn't even have the proposed desired effect of creating more wealth for the rich white men in the first place. regardless, the women-are-oppressed narrative is emergent from society things we don't understand that well. there are no people at the top pushing it for a hidden agenda. it's pushed because people believe it.
12-12-2015, 05:07 PM
spoonitnow
Quote:
Originally Posted by wufwugy
my issue with your premise for the op is you apply all sorts of agency where it's unnecessary or inapplicable. for example, the pay gap isn't being pushed by people who want women to have more money so they can spend more. actualization of that policy couldn't even have the proposed desired effect of creating more wealth for the rich white men in the first place. regardless, the women-are-oppressed narrative is emergent from society things we don't understand that well. there are no people at the top pushing it for a hidden agenda. it's pushed because people believe it.
I want to focus on the bold for a moment, particularly the part where "...because people believe it."
The question to ask here is why people believe it. Do you believe that human beings have been around for thousands of years, and it just so happens that in the past 60-80 years, women have suddenly grown strong enough to figure out how to get the right to vote, etc? Or do you think it's more likely that the ruling class manipulated people into thinking that this was what needed to happen (and had the politicians in their pockets push it through)?
12-12-2015, 05:22 PM
JKDS
The answer to that question relies on the answer to another. Was the Civil War profitable? A lot of rights for minorities and women spawned from that, so if it makes sense for the wealthy to have that war, it makes sense that it could have been driven by that.
But...I think it's more likely that this is a bunch of independent actors than one conspiracy of a select few. The rebellious teen on twitter is doing what she wants, influenced by hundreds of people she's interacted with...each of whom are no different than you or me. So how'd the rich guys do it? Advertising messages maybe? Idk, but I find it hard to believe that this is a master plan
Here's one example. The beauty of the situation, and the key to all of it, is that the puppet can't see the strings up until a certain point. However, once you're past the point of no return, it doesn't matter if the puppets see the strings because they're not going to change their behavior.
And no, rich white men (what I'm calling the ruling class) is not a single group of people, but they're too smart to fight each other on anything important.
12-12-2015, 07:05 PM
wufwugy
Quote:
Originally Posted by spoonitnow
I want to focus on the bold for a moment, particularly the part where "...because people believe it."
The question to ask here is why people believe it. Do you believe that human beings have been around for thousands of years, and it just so happens that in the past 60-80 years, women have suddenly grown strong enough to figure out how to get the right to vote, etc? Or do you think it's more likely that the ruling class manipulated people into thinking that this was what needed to happen (and had the politicians in their pockets push it through)?
there's a third way, that the individual incentive to stop something was small enough that a movement emerged unstopped. it's not so much that rich white men had a plan but that they were okay with changes that were coming. this is the common course history takes.
even if rich white men had a plan, the plan doesn't make sense. rich white men don't get richer or more power by putting more money in the hands of women. that's a lefty faux economics idea (the currently popular notion that spending money creates money).
12-12-2015, 07:08 PM
wufwugy
about smoking specifically, yes that is the type of thing where rights can become new norms by effort of the powers that be seeking profits.
i would argue that this is the greatest form of rights creations. i dont see how it encompasses everything you're talking about though.
also profits and power are different in some important ways and sometimes i think the distinction is relevant
