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mugtang

Twitter could be the death of Western Democracy

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Fascinating read.  I would encourage everybody to read it  

https://theweek.com/articles/818951/how-twitter-could-death-liberal-democracy

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Cultivating and sustaining liberal politics in a continent-wide nation of well over 300 million people is hard work. This is especially true when ideological polarization and technological developments encourage political and cultural trends that make it harder. Both conspired to help put Donald Trump in the White House. But they've also given us an illiberal reaction to his presidency on the part of progressive activists, journalists, and other media personalities.

Much has been made of the way Twitter serves as a megaphone for popular anger that's made more intense by the speed of the news cycle and the distinctive malice and ineptitude of the Trump White House. But too little attention has been paid to what may be the most potent facet of the social media platform: its ability to feed the vanity of its users. There's always an element of egoism to intellectual and political debate. But Twitter puts every tweeter on a massive stage, with the nastiest put-downs, insults, and provocations often receiving the most applause. That's a huge psychological incentive to escalate the denunciation of political enemies. The more one expresses outrage at the evils of others, the more one gets to enjoy the adulation of the virtual mob.

 

 

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What Twitter shows us is a real-time ultrasound of the souls of America's cultural and intellectual elite and its most committed activists — the people in charge of disseminating knowledge and who take the lead in organizing political action in our society. The picture it reveals is ugly, vulgar, shrill, and intolerant, with souls exhibiting an incapacity to deliberate, weigh evidence, and judge judiciously. They display an impulsiveness and unhinged rage at political enemies that is incompatible with reasoned thinking about how we might go about governing ourselves, heal the divisions in our country, and avoid a collapse into civic violence that could usher in tyranny.

 

thelawlorfaithful, on 31 Dec 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:One of the rules I live by: never underestimate a man in a dandy looking sweater

 

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32 minutes ago, mugtang said:

Fascinating read.  I would encourage everybody to read it  

https://theweek.com/articles/818951/how-twitter-could-death-liberal-democracy

 

 

IMO the statement that “What Twitter shows us is a real-time ultrasound of the souls of America's cultural and intellectual elite“ is a convenient and drastic oversimplification. The tweet that started the whole MAGA boy controversy originated from a troll in Brazil posing as a California schoolteacher. 

Thay Haif Said: Quhat Say Thay? Lat Thame Say

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IDK man. If you look at journalism standards around the turn of the 20th century they were terrible and deliberately contributed to pushing the US to war, as well as stirring up racist sentiment. I suppose that "constant vigilance, strong institutions, and a dedication by the populace to engagement" isn't a great headline though

Remember that every argument you have with someone on MWCboard is actually the continuation of a different argument they had with someone else also on MWCboard. 

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Technological advances have their costs and benefits. I think Twitter, long-term, will be a net negative. But I'm getting old, so I'm supposed to think that.

Planning is an exercise of power, and in a modern state much real power is suffused with boredom. The agents of planning are usually boring; the planning process is boring; the implementation of plans is always boring. In a democracy boredom works for bureaucracies and corporations as smell works for skunk. It keeps danger away. Power does not have to be exercised behind the scenes. It can be open. The audience is asleep. The modern world is forged amidst our inattention.

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11 hours ago, Old_SD_Dude said:

IMO the statement that “What Twitter shows us is a real-time ultrasound of the souls of America's cultural and intellectual elite“ is a convenient and drastic oversimplification. The tweet that started the whole MAGA boy controversy originated from a troll in Brazil posing as a California schoolteacher. 

I agree. And I'll add that the insular nature of the information supply chain on social media is not limited to one party.

MIT's Media Lab actually mapped the interconnectivity based on political bias during the last election cycle. What they found was that Trump supporters are more likely to exist in social media echo chambers than Clinton supporters, who were more interconnected with a broader spectrum of news sources.  

TwitterData1-01.png

*****

My issue with Twitter isn't just the existence of political echo chambers but the very fact that the the modality of communication is not conducive to the depth of conversation required to work through complex issues.

This in turn makes it more difficult for two people on opposite sides of an issue to actually discuss the merits of their respective ideas, and de-incentivizes us from finding common ground. And this doesn't just stem from the 280-character limit (and 144-character preceding it), but also from the very construct of social media mediums - FB, IG, and Twitter - which are designed to reward users with posting like-minded (read: group think) posts in trade for external loci of validation.

Little by little we seem to be willing to exchange depth for frequency, each day moving further away from the philosophers of yesteryear and one step closer to sounding like one giant (attempted) murder of f*cking crows.

St-Javelin-Sm.jpgChase.jpg 

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1 hour ago, toonkee said:

All things shall pass.

Here’s to hoping twitter dies and the mwcboard reigns supreme!

thelawlorfaithful, on 31 Dec 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:One of the rules I live by: never underestimate a man in a dandy looking sweater

 

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14 minutes ago, East Coast Aztec said:

I won't get on twitter for the simple fact I never want to hear myself start "I sent out/saw a tweet..."

 

A secondary factor is so I am not inundated with all of the silly shit that seems to find many of you on there.

I signed up for twitter simply for the sports.  I stayed for the suck of politics. Fml. 

thelawlorfaithful, on 31 Dec 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:One of the rules I live by: never underestimate a man in a dandy looking sweater

 

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20 minutes ago, East Coast Aztec said:

I won't get on twitter for the simple fact I never want to hear myself start "I sent out/saw a tweet..."

 

A secondary factor is so I am not inundated with all of the silly shit that seems to find many of you on there.

When I first heard about Twitter in 2007, I said "that's bullshit, it's just old people facebook for a service nobody needs. I'm never getting one."

While time did funny things to my "old people facebook" opinion, the last bit hasn't changed. Unfortunately about half the news articles you open are HERE ARE ALL THE TWEETS AGGREGATED TO VALIDATE YOUR CHOICE TO NOT HAVE A TWITTER

Remember that every argument you have with someone on MWCboard is actually the continuation of a different argument they had with someone else also on MWCboard. 

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There’s definitely a lack of understanding of complex issues found on twitter, but I think that’s more of a general problem, even outside of social media 

social media just makes tribalism easier

On 12/1/2016 at 12:26 PM, WyomingCoog said:

I own a vehicle likely worth more than everything you own combined and just flew first class (including a ticket for a 2 1/2 year old), round trip to Las Vegas and I'm not 35 yet. When you accomplish something outside of finishing a book, let me know. When's the last time you saw a 2 year old fly first class in their own seat? Don't tell me about elite.  

28 minutes ago, NorCalCoug said:

I’d happily compare IQ’s with you any day of the week.

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5 hours ago, youngrebelfan40 said:

There’s definitely a lack of understanding of complex issues found on twitter, but I think that’s more of a general problem, even outside of social media 

social media just makes tribalism easier

You talking about a "lack of understanding of complex issues", is hilarious.

You can't even admit the facts around the issues of immigration that you claim affects your family.

Keep voting with the idiot block.

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On 1/23/2019 at 4:33 PM, soupslam1 said:

I’ve never belonged to twitter nor Facebook or any of its clones. It’s the worlds biggest gossip column which I don’t really care to partake in. 

Not sure it's much different here than it is in those places.

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