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I just don't understand any kind of absolute egalitarianism philosophy. Whether it's branded as anarcho-capitalism or straight anarchism or sockfucking libertarianism, it always misses the same point.

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Which specific elements of The Machine™ piss you off?

Started by tyrannosaurus vex, July 31, 2010, 05:38:19 AM

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tyrannosaurus vex

We talk a lot about what the Machine is in general terms, but I'd like to know what specific things piss you off about the Machine. Right now, my list includes these:

- The Universal News Cycle. The series of "What's Happening Now" issues that streams through the media. Every day, there's a new Hot Button Issue that everybody's talking about, from Rush Limbaugh to Talk of the Nation. Elena Kagan, Shirley Sherrod, the military suicide rate, which team some athlete is going to play for, Blagojevich, blah blah blah. Why is it always so synchronized across media outlets? Why do some stories, especially minor ones, grab their attention when there are are always thousands of stories they could all choose from? If they're all independently owned and operated, what makes them all latch on to the same exact issues at the same exact times?

- Political Stunts. Obama drives a Chevy Volt. "Mission Accomplished." SB 1070. The incessant drone of politicians posing for photos or wearing funny hats or shaking hands with a momentary celebrity, posteuring, or soapboxing over nothing. It's incredibly transparent and everybody knows it's ultimately meaningless and it's all done for show and to score political points just to get to the next opportunity to do it again. Why do they bother? It seems to me it would actually involve a lot less effort to actually do something than to keep trying to look busy while people realize nothing is happening.

- Stranger Danger. 99.99% of people out there have no interest in hurting you, and the rest are going to hurt you if they get a chance, no matter how much cold-shoulder you give them in the checkout lane. Why do we have to mistrust everybody?
Evil and Unfeeling Arse-Flenser From The City of the Damned.

Captain Utopia


It's a good list so far!

- The truths we all know but never do anything about, and the lies thus created which we continue to spread.  Social inertia.  This might be more general in that it could be said to be part of the process described in each of the previous points but, specifically, this is what pisses me off.

Requia ☣

Even if the News actually tried to tell America about The Horrible Truth, everything would just change the channel back to American Idol to avoid it.
Inflatable dolls are not recognized flotation devices.

minuspace

what if people adopted to desire responsibility (weasily voice  :mrgreen: