Hunter Biden Update (09/05): Hunter pleads guilty to all charges in federal tax case

[stepee]

I love this because I bet chuds will try to use it as a gotcha and it’s gonna be so good 

[Spork3245]

30 minutes ago, stepee said:

I love this because I bet chuds will try to use it as a gotcha and it’s gonna be so good 

“they only did this conviction on Hunter so people don’t think the Trump one is corruption”

[SuperSpreader]

1 hour ago, mclumber1 said:

If Joe Biden believes in gun control and enforcing gun laws, he should absolutely not pardon his son.

 

1.  I don't think Joe Biden actually cares about enforcing gun laws.  

2. Joe Biden loves his son above all else.

 

I would not be surprised if does end up pardoning his son, however.  

 

I wonder if they let it go to the Supreme Court first.

 

Also what everyone else is saying, if it's just probation or a fine - not worth pardoning really. Everyone knows who he is and even if pardoned they still know!

[SaysWho?]

Live updates: Hunter Biden found guilty on all counts in gun case | CNN Politics

WWW.CNN.COM

---

A federal jury found Hunter Biden guilty on all three federal felony gun charges he faced. Follow here for the latest live news updates, analysis and more.

Quote

Three jurors who spoke to CNN after they reached a guilty verdict said that they believed they had no choice but to find Hunter Biden guilty — but said that they question whether the criminal case ever should have been brought against the president’s son. 

 

The case “seemed like a waste of taxpayer dollars,” one female juror told CNN. 

 

Quote

“I really don’t think that Hunter belongs in jail,” Juror 10 said.

 

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

I for one will never vote for the felon Hunter Biden

[Jason]

Honestly this could help Joe, given what we've seen before about a lot of people sympathizing with him for having to deal with having a major failson.

[SaysWho?]

1 minute ago, Jason said:

Honestly this could help Joe, given what we've seen before about a lot of people sympathizing with him for having to deal with having a major failson.

 

Plus having two other kids die.

 

Gee zuz, I still can't imagine losing two kids AND your spouse, the only people I've ever heard are worse than losing a parent.

[Jason]

[Chairslinger]

5 hours ago, Spork3245 said:

“they only did this conviction on Hunter so people don’t think the Trump one is corruption”

 

 

I read that earlier and I had to turn off for a while so I didn't get a brain aneurysm out of pure rage.

 

All the shit Republicans have done to go after Hunter, the fact that this was a Trump appointed special counsel, the fact that Hunter tried to take a plea deal on this but the judge rescinded it.

 

But none of that matters. Joe must have done this because the timing of it hurts Republican claims that Joe had his DoJ go after Trump.

 

Trump, COVID, and rightwing media have combined to make mainstream Republican thought indistinguishable from what I would have considered downright nutty beliefs from your run of the mill conspiracy theorist 15 years ago. Like UFO/JFK/Bigfoot type stuff.

 

Like, it's not the only defining trait, but their reliance on building an ever expanding, ever more rickety scaffolding of conspiracies to explain away every time their stance is proved wrong is textbook conspiracy theory thinking.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

Someone cc Don jr

 

[Greatoneshere]

17 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

Someone cc Don jr

 

 

Party of family values prefers the other candidate, libcucks get fucked.

[finaljedi]

18 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

Someone cc Don jr

 

 

This picture probably just confuses the Trump men.  This has never happened between any Trump father and son.

[marioandsonic]

36 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

 

 

 

Is Biden showing his son too much love and compassion? --NYT

[Reputator]

39 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

Someone cc Don jr

 

 

That hit me right in the feels, man.

[LazyPiranha]

I occasionally dip my toes in conservative waters just to see what they think in the looney bin.  It’s a seemingly 50/50 mix of this being a distraction from the REAL Biden crimes to convince the chumps that the system is fair, and this is bad because shal not infringe means shall not infringe.

 

I have not nearly enough sweet, sweet mercury fumes to understand these people.

[Greatoneshere]

3 hours ago, LazyPiranha said:

I occasionally dip my toes in conservative waters just to see what they think in the looney bin.  It’s a seemingly 50/50 mix of this being a distraction from the REAL Biden crimes to convince the chumps that the system is fair, and this is bad because shal not infringe means shall not infringe.

 

I have not nearly enough sweet, sweet mercury fumes to understand these people.

 

I commend you for even dipping your toes into those waters, as I was curious but didn't bother. Sounds maddening.

[TUFKAK]

I refuse to engage withe chud verse in any capacity so no clue how you manage dude.

[GeneticBlueprint]

4 hours ago, LazyPiranha said:

I occasionally dip my toes in conservative waters just to see what they think in the looney bin.  It’s a seemingly 50/50 mix of this being a distraction from the REAL Biden crimes to convince the chumps that the system is fair, and this is bad because shal not infringe means shall not infringe.

 

I have not nearly enough sweet, sweet mercury fumes to understand these people.

You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become ort

[MarSolo]

I can't wait for Trump to try and use this in an attack during the debate and have it blow up in his face like last time.

 

But also, he's totally not going to debate.

[LazyPiranha]

12 hours ago, TUFKAK said:

I refuse to engage withe chud verse in any capacity so no clue how you manage dude.

It’s mostly morbid curiosity.  I’ve always been weirdly fascinated by people who fall for conspiracy theories and cults.  

[SaysWho?]

12 hours ago, TUFKAK said:

I refuse to engage withe chud verse in any capacity so no clue how you manage dude.

 

Not only do I agree, but sometimes I think we're amplifying right-wing voices a little too well by discussing all their viewpoints.

 

I dunno if it makes them look stupid; maybe it's good if people hear them? But in 2016, unfiltered Trump got free advertising, so since then, I'm averse to looking at right-wing media and amplifying what they're saying.

[Greatoneshere]

41 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

Not only do I agree, but sometimes I think we're amplifying right-wing voices a little too well by discussing all their viewpoints.

 

I dunno if it makes them look stupid; maybe it's good if people hear them? But in 2016, unfiltered Trump got free advertising, so since then, I'm averse to looking at right-wing media and amplifying what they're saying.

 

It's a touch balancing act - you have to address their viewpoints, which inherently means amplifying them, because you want to educate those around you and people in general who might be susceptible to that kind of BS. You're not really amplifying it when it's amongst a group that already knows better (echo chamber), so the only worry is amplifying it without redress amongst people who don't know better. I think just letting all those viewpoints run rampant without pushback would be worse, I'd imagine.

[SaysWho?]

20 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

It's a touch balancing act - you have to address their viewpoints, which inherently means amplifying them, because you want to educate those around you and people in general who might be susceptible to that kind of BS. You're not really amplifying it when it's amongst a group that already knows better (echo chamber), so the only worry is amplifying it without redress amongst people who don't know better. I think just letting all those viewpoints run rampant without pushback would be worse, I'd imagine.

 

I hope you're right. I'm not 100% gung-ho only because I don't really know if it's good or not to always discuss right-wing media. I mean, "amplifying" QAnon scared the shit out of my fiancee when I told her about it in 2020. She thought I was making one of my normal dumb nonsense jokes.

 

After learning about it, she really really really really hates Boebert and Greene.

 

So I dunno if it's good to never discuss them, but I do feel like I know way more about right-wing media than I ever cared to know. >_>

[TyphoidHater]

I can't wait for the shenanigans discussing this verdict alongside Trump's current gun issues.

[Greatoneshere]

17 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

I hope you're right. I'm not 100% gung-ho only because I don't really know if it's good or not to always discuss right-wing media. I mean, "amplifying" QAnon scared the shit out of my fiancee when I told her about it in 2020. She thought I was making one of my normal dumb nonsense jokes.

 

After learning about it, she really really really really hates Boebert and Greene.

 

So I dunno if it's good to never discuss them, but I do feel like I know way more about right-wing media than I ever cared to know. >_>

 

I do have this same worry, to be fair. As I've gotten way back into politics ever since 2015 I've grown tired, more than anything else, with right wing media, right wing talking points, etc. It's exhausting, and I don't even do what LazyPiranha or Ort do, I just learn about it these days through more neutral or objective news sources or osmosis from others. I definitely know way more about right wing media than I ever wanted to know and being reminded of it daily can be depressing when you know better. It's a constant reminder that now (and throughout history) there is a portion of humanity that is like this and that these sorts of fear tactics and conspiracy theories are so successful on them.

 

My one worry becomes that the media makes so much fun of the right wing (rightfully so) that we mostly only hear about right wing politicians and people over and over again because everyone wants to mock and ridicule for clicks and views. Perhaps that's the "amplifying" that's the concern here? For me, I feel like doing that makes everyone aware of Greene and Boebert and Gaetz while no one knows Katie Porter, for example. Yes, hopefully everyone is associating people like Greene and Gaetz in a negative way (which seems to be the case I think) but they also say any kind of fame is good fame and that feels like a bad thing. Like, even I feel like I know what's going on with the right wing way more than I do on the left simply because the left is competent and doing their jobs (compared to the right wing anyway) whereas the right wing is constantly in the news (in a bad way, but still). And that could be problematic. 

 

At the same time, your fiance is one more person in the "actively hates Boebert and Greene" column, which is a win, so maybe something is working.  I think we frequently underestimate, as people following politics closely, that most people truly don't know a lot of what is going on and just tune out and that means the right wing gets away with a lot more than they otherwise would. Imagine if all those people who stay away from politics knew what we did about right wing talking points, grifters, etc. I imagine a lot of them would have a similar reaction to it all as we do. I'm sure the right wing would get some new followers but I'd hope younger people would know better given their social values, etc. 

[Jason]

Donald Trump admits he still has a gun, despite felony convictions | Salon.com

WWW.SALON.COM

---

It is a violation of federal law for someone convicted of felonies to possess a firearm

 

[SaysWho?]

9 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

I do have this same worry, to be fair. As I've gotten way back into politics ever since 2015 I've grown tired, more than anything else, with right wing media, right wing talking points, etc. It's exhausting, and I don't even do what LazyPiranha or Ort do, I just learn about it these days through more neutral or objective news sources or osmosis from others. I definitely know way more about right wing media than I ever wanted to know and being reminded of it daily can be depressing when you know better. It's a constant reminder that now (and throughout history) there is a portion of humanity that is like this and that these sorts of fear tactics and conspiracy theories are so successful on them.

 

My one worry becomes that the media makes so much fun of the right wing (rightfully so) that we mostly only hear about right wing politicians and people over and over again because everyone wants to mock and ridicule for clicks and views. Perhaps that's the "amplifying" that's the concern here? For me, I feel like doing that makes everyone aware of Greene and Boebert and Gaetz while no one knows Katie Porter, for example. Yes, hopefully everyone is associating people like Greene and Gaetz in a negative way (which seems to be the case I think) but they also say any kind of fame is good fame and that feels like a bad thing. Like, even I feel like I know what's going on with the right wing way more than I do on the left simply because the left is competent and doing their jobs (compared to the right wing anyway) whereas the right wing is constantly in the news (in a bad way, but still). And that could be problematic. 

 

At the same time, your fiance is one more person in the "actively hates Boebert and Greene" column, which is a win, so maybe something is working.  I think we frequently underestimate, as people following politics closely, that most people truly don't know a lot of what is going on and just tune out and that means the right wing gets away with a lot more than they otherwise would. Imagine if all those people who stay away from politics knew what we did about right wing talking points, grifters, etc. I imagine a lot of them would have a similar reaction to it all as we do. I'm sure the right wing would get some new followers but I'd hope younger people would know better given their social values, etc. 

 

Just to elaborate more, she used to vote for both parties each election and go seat by seat on who she knew or had experience with. 2022, she voted straight Democratic for the first time. So I can see some ways it helps, but I also wonder if it's just because she trusts me. People are more likely to change their minds, I feel, when it's a friend or family member speaking with them. If I changed the mind of a stranger online, I may never know unless they sought me out.

 

I think one of the things that influences my opinion was actually in this old NeoGAF thread after the election. Someone had used a website to see Hillary 2016 and Obama's 2008 schedule in August and September:

 

Quote

You spend time in the final weeks in swing states to get out the vote. The most important states will be focused on in the last week.

 

They did not wait until the final week, like I said, Tim Kaine and Bill Clinton had events in Wisconsin as well.

 

Clinton neglected campaigning in swing states. Look at her schedule compared to Obama's schedule in his election campaign:

 

This was Clinton's schedule in late August:

August 18 - New York, NY
August 19 - Martha's Vineyard, MA
August 20 - Nantucket, MA, Martha's Vineyard, MA
August 21 - Provincetown, MA, Osterville, MA
August 22 - Beverly Hills, CA
August 23 - Los Angeles, CA, Laguna Beach, CA, Piedmont, CA
August 24 - Redwood City, CA, Los Altos, CA, Woodside, CA
August 25 - Reno, NV
August 26 - None
August 27 - White Plains, NY
August 28 - Sag Harbor, NY, Southampton, NY, Bridgehampton, NY
August 29 - East Hampton, NY, Quogue, NY
August 30 - Sagaponack, NY, North Haven, NY
August 31 - Cincinnati, OH
 

This was Obama's schedule in the same period in 2008:

August 18 - Albuquerque, NM
August 19 - Orlando, FL, Raleigh, NC
August 20 - Greensboro, NC, Martinsville, VA, Danville, VA, Lynchburg, VA
August 21 - Richmond, VA, Chester, VA, Petersburg, VA, Emporia, VA, Chesapeake, VA
August 22 - Chicago, IL
August 23 - Springfield, IL
August 24 - Eau Claire, WI
August 25 - Davenport, IA, Kansas City, MO
August 26 - Kansas City, MO
August 27 - Billings, MT, Denver, CO
August 28 - Denver, CO
August 29 - Monaca, PA, Aliquippa, PA, Beaver, PA
August 30 - Boardman, OH, Cleveland, OH, Marengo, OH, Dublin, OH
August 31 - Lima, OH, Toledo, OH, Hamilton, IN, Battle Creek, MI
 

We can compare her September schedule to Obama's as well:

1 Ohio event, 0 Michigan events, 1 Pennsylvania event, 0 Wisconsin events, 15-16 days in New York
September 1 - None
September 2 - None
September 3 - None
September 4 - None
September 5 - Cleveland, OH, Hampton, IL
September 6 - Tampa, FL
September 7 - New York, NY
September 8 - Charlotte, NC, Kansas City, MO
September 9 - New York, NY
September 10 - None
September 11 - New York, NY, Chappaqua, NY
September 12 - Chappaqua, NY
September 13 - Chappaqua, NY
September 14 - Chappaqua, NY
September 15 - Greensboro, NC, Washington, DC
September 16 - Washington, DC, New York, NY
September 17 - Washington, DC
September 18 - None
September 19 - Philadelphia, PA, New York, NY
September 20 - None
September 21 - Orlando, FL
September 22 - Chappaqua, NY
September 23 - Rye Brook, NY
September 24 - Rye Brook, NY
September 25 - New York, NY, Rye Brook, NY
September 26 - Hempstead, NY
September 27 - Raleigh, NC
September 28 - Durham, NH, Boston, MA
September 29 - Des Moines, IA, Chicago, IL
September 30 - Fort Pierce, FL, Coral Springs, FL, Miami Beach, FL

 

Obama:
3 Ohio events, 5 Michigan events, 5 Pennsylvania events, 2 Wisconsin events, 4 days in Illinois
September 1 - Detroit, MI, Monroe, MI, Milwaukee, WI
September 2 - Chicago, IL
September 3 - New Philadelphia, OH, Dillonvale, OH
September 4 - York, PA, Columbia, PA, Lancaster, PA
September 5 - Duryea, PA, Wyoming, PA, Middletown, NJ
September 6 - Terre Haute, IN
September 7 - Chicago, IL
September 8 - Flint, MI, Farmington Hills, MI
September 9 - Riverside, OH, Abingdon, VA Lebanon, VA
September 10 - Norfolk, VA, New York, NY, Washington, DC
September 11 - Harlem, NY, New York, NY
September 12 - Dover, NH, Hopkinton, NH, Concord, NH
September 13 - Manchester, NH
September 14 - Chicago, IL
September 15 - Grand Junction, CO, Pueblo, CO
September 16 - Golden, CO, Beverly Hills, CA
September 17 - Elko, NV, Las Vegas, NV
September 18 - Albuquerque, NM, Bernalillo, NM, Española, NM, Albuquerque, NM
September 19 - Coral Gables, FL
September 20 - Daytona Beach, FL, Jacksonville, FL
September 21 - Charlotte, NC
September 22 - Green Bay, WI, Chicago, IL
September 23 - Clearwater, FL
September 24 - Clearwater, FL, Dunedin, FL
September 25 - Clearwater, FL, Washington, DC
September 26 - Oxford, MS
September 27 - Greensboro, NC, Fredericksburg, VA, Washington, DC
September 28 - Detroit, MI
September 29 - Westminster, CO
September 30 - Reno, NV

 

A lot of those August dates for Hillary were just fundraisers. And either in that thread or another thread, somebody had mentioned, from a perspective of someone who's not American, that it seemed like Trump controlled the news the entire time. So we were showing rallies and all his surrogates were on the news, and he slowly climbed the polls throughout the month with barely anything to be seen from Clinton.

 

Keep in mind that not all these stops were rallies; some are fundraisers or maybe a short stop at a business. Just making the point that instead of amplifying the right-wing message, I've done more to amplify the message Democrats are running on.

[Greatoneshere]

32 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

Just to elaborate more, she used to vote for both parties each election and go seat by seat on who she knew or had experience with. 2022, she voted straight Democratic for the first time. So I can see some ways it helps, but I also wonder if it's just because she trusts me. People are more likely to change their minds, I feel, when it's a friend or family member speaking with them. If I changed the mind of a stranger online, I may never know unless they sought me out.

 

A lot of those August dates for Hillary were just fundraisers. And either in that thread or another thread, somebody had mentioned, from a perspective of someone who's not American, that it seemed like Trump controlled the news the entire time. So we were showing rallies and all his surrogates were on the news, and he slowly climbed the polls throughout the month with barely anything to be seen from Clinton.

 

Keep in mind that not all these stops were rallies; some are fundraisers or maybe a short stop at a business. Just making the point that instead of amplifying the right-wing message, I've done more to amplify the message Democrats are running on.

 

I agree with all of this. I've never found I've really ever changed anyone's mind all that much despite all the effort I've made in the past to do so (both online and offline) but I think it coming from a friend or family helps a lot in terms of potentially educating someone/changing their mind. Trust is a major factor for sure.

 

And as to the rallies, that's a good way of illustrating what it seems we both think: sure, the media is addressing Trump stuff, but they're also showing so much Trump stuff that that's all anyone's seeing, and exposure alone can win elections, even if its bad exposure (or in Trump's case, it seems to help if it's bad exposure) and that is amplifying the right wing in a way.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

54 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

Just to elaborate more, she used to vote for both parties each election and go seat by seat on who she knew or had experience with. 2022, she voted straight Democratic for the first time. So I can see some ways it helps, but I also wonder if it's just because she trusts me. People are more likely to change their minds, I feel, when it's a friend or family member speaking with them. If I changed the mind of a stranger online, I may never know unless they sought me out.

 

I think one of the things that influences my opinion was actually in this old NeoGAF thread after the election. Someone had used a website to see Hillary 2016 and Obama's 2008 schedule in August and September:

 

 

A lot of those August dates for Hillary were just fundraisers. And either in that thread or another thread, somebody had mentioned, from a perspective of someone who's not American, that it seemed like Trump controlled the news the entire time. So we were showing rallies and all his surrogates were on the news, and he slowly climbed the polls throughout the month with barely anything to be seen from Clinton.

 

Keep in mind that not all these stops were rallies; some are fundraisers or maybe a short stop at a business. Just making the point that instead of amplifying the right-wing message, I've done more to amplify the message Democrats are running on.

Clinton being an arrogant shit cost us all

[stepee]

I pay attention to right wing fantasy land nonsense just so I know what people are referencing when they tell me weird shit. I don’t bother ever bringing any of it up to anyone. Pointing it out or trying to explain what is actually going on, doesn’t seem to do much. 

 

I’ve mostly moved on to “I see.” or “Oh wow, that’s crazy” and if I keep getting pressed on it then “I just think that our realities are not compatible at this time so I don’t think we are capable of understanding each others views here”

 

If you are trying to anger a chud, you don’t need to debate them or whatever. All that stuff pisses them off also. All you have to do is not offer your full throated support to whatever crazy garbage and it’s taken extremely personally as an insult to them.

[stepee]

One thing I’ve noticed is that people who fall for the MAGAVerse desperately want acceptance for their crazy ideas more than almost anything else. They feel shaky about the belief and won’t say it but they know it’s not exactly accepted by the majority of society and feel victimized by that. 

 

You’d think that shaky foundation of belief would make them easy to put back on the path of reason but it actually makes them double down. It makes it impossible to really say anything because the points and policies don’t matter, they need that acceptance and them changing for you isn’t the acceptance they want.

 

 

[Kal-El814]

2 hours ago, stepee said:

One thing I’ve noticed is that people who fall for the MAGAVerse desperately want acceptance for their crazy ideas more than almost anything else. They feel shaky about the belief and won’t say it but they know it’s not exactly accepted by the majority of society and feel victimized by that. 

 

You’d think that shaky foundation of belief would make them easy to put back on the path of reason but it actually makes them double down. It makes it impossible to really say anything because the points and policies don’t matter, they need that acceptance and them changing for you isn’t the acceptance they want.

 

The appeal of cultural war stuff is that it provides a sense of community that's self-reinforcing and for the most part, low cost and low stakes. Yeah some of these people lament that the woke mind virus made their kids break contact but for the most part it's eye rolls and a refusal to bring up politics over holidays or something like that. 

 

It's difficult to get people to change their mind politically when there's just content reinforcement of this stuff that doesn't directly impact them and is mainly vibes. I visited a buddy of mine in Wisconsin recently and a bunch of local election ads were about the security of the border with Mexico, which is often cited by local voters as their top concern. In Wisconsin. Where fewer than 4% of the population is Hispanic / Latino. There's no fucking reason for that perspective beyond relentless marketing.

 

So you're not going to be able to convince someone who probably never notices or interacts with that <4% (or who somehow does a mental gymnastics routine where they employ some of those folks or eats at their restaurants or whatever) that the border isn't a problem. It's more about trying to tie it to an issue relevant to them. I know people who are conservative and who vote republican that might not decide to vote for Biden because they realized that terminating their third pregnancy was an abortion... but they might just not vote this time around, which... fuck it I'll take it. Or it's a similar outcome for someone who's allegedly terrified of trans people they've never knowingly interacted with but do genuinely dislike the notion of the the government coming between a medical decision they'd want to make about their child that's not related to gender affirming care.  Or dudes who appreciate that women not having access to birth control is generally bad for straight men too. I know and am close to a few guys who voted for Biden or just didn't vote for Trump because their wives told them they shouldn't even though nothing gets their dicks harder than tax cuts. It does happen.

 

Yeah you may get that goldilocks republican who realizes that the Fox Cinematic Universe is going to keep pumping out ragebait until the ratings dip, regardless of who's in power for how long. That happens. But I generally try to pick a hobby horse that's relevant and try to make that an issue compelling enough to at least contemplate and leave it at that. There's only so much time and energy I can spend on this bullshit before I decide to see how far into the sea I can walk.

 

EDIT - also I should say... one thing that has "worked" insomuch as it seems to have set off a lightbulb for some people particularly if they're older than I am (44)... when they say that democrats / liberals have shifted way over to the left when it comes to whatever topic they're whinging about, I point out that I genuinely don't think there's a single issue the left has moved on in my entire lifetime as much as the right has on Russia in like... ten years. And yeah of course as people like Wade have pointed out there IS a natural alignment with their and Putin's authoritarianism, sure. But as I said so much of this is vibes based and when I ask if they can imagine Reagan or either of the Bushes being as tight with Russia as Trump and the right wing media have become with Putin... yeah that lands sometimes.

[Signifyin(g)Monkey]

I’ve simply found that, the further time goes on, the more people I find that get their news solely off of social media.  And that just keeps making the info-bubble of right-wing paranoia bigger and more impenetrable.

 

When your source of information is algorithmically determined, and the algorithm is geared towards the maximization of clicks, then the information you get fed will naturally favor things that make you angry and paranoid.  And while there’s certainly fear and loathing on the left, in general those emotions favor the narratives of the right.

 

I once hoped that one could fight against this info-bubble by presenting high-quality contravening evidence to its prisoners.  But I’ve found that what happens is that the contravening information simply makes people uncomfortable, and to get back to their comfort zone they either A.) double down, or B.) throw up their hands and embrace a cynical ‘it’s all rigged/corrupt/etc. anyway’ ethos.  Which once again just reinforces the fear and paranoia of the info-bubble.

 

I honestly think this dissonance has made it so that  ‘reality’ for a plurality of the population is just a matter of ‘vibes’.  No one knows what to believe, so they just navigate everything based on the feels.  Social media biases the feels towards a fearful, pissed off state, and other sources of information just don’t make it past the membrane of the info-bubble.

 

People’s perceptions of the economy are imo the clearest examples of this.  Good news from the ‘authorities’ is disregarded, and the statisticians are included among said authorities, so only the directly perceptible signals—such as prices—count.  Which means things like, say, a hot job market are only perceived by people switching jobs.  The strong stock market is only perceived by people who actually look at their portfolios.

 

COVID and the shutdowns I think essentially destroyed what was left of the old information ecosystem, and ever since then we’ve been living in a kind of infoanarchy.

 

TL/DR:

 

There is a lyric from an old song some of you might know that describes the situation perfectly:

 

Quote

Now there is no sound, ‘cause we all live underground.

(i.e., sound=information about actual reality from authoritative sources, underground=everyone's custom-made social media info-bubble constructed from angry, paranoid YouTube podcasters) 

 

Welcome to the future, guys.  It's made of virtual insanity.

 

@MarSolo

Encore Edit:

And, at this point, it's a wonder we can live at all, when things are big (Hunter Biden, QAnon, Stop the Steal, etc.) that should be small...

[MarSolo]

I’m drinking coffee before I go for my run and I’m just here to say that I have Virtual Insanity on my running playlist.

[SuperSpreader]

What.About.Hunter!?

 

Can I still ask this ironically or no?