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more true every year
(lemmy.world)
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this post was submitted on 23 Sep 2023
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I'm an old guy. I think there are a few things that influenced this. For one, there's a basic kernel of truth in that we tend to be more naive when we're younger because we lack experience. We're unrealistic about what's feasible. Lots of folks also get a bit more jaded as they get older because it's hard to see the same bad shit over and over and react to it the same way the 100th time as you did the first time. Throw in that folks were generally less politically polarized for the older generations. Conservative vs liberal, for average people, tended to be more about how much money we spend on defense and how much on social programs.
So a lot of people moving through that landscape did feel that some of their liberalism came from unrealistic idealism. But things are different now. We're so polarized, and the wedge issues are so fundamental to peoples' lives. I know, I was personally raised in a relatively conservative household, and I've grown more and more into a flaming liberal because I see conservatism as an assault on personal freedoms and on science.
It used to be a conservation over the coffee table about the merits of taxing less and providing less, versus taxing more and providing more. Now it's devolved into identity politics and whatever the latest culture war is with opposite side vehemently against whatever culture war of the day is. Conversations rarely get past that point, and I think this has all been done by design.
Who designed it and why? I don't think there's actually anyone who benefits from this shit.
Christians have been a major driving force for this, namely evangelicals.
A lot of people will say it’s the nature of a 2 party system or some shit, but it’s really the natural conclusion to a society that’s driven by religion.
As far as I know, the modern ideology really started in the 70’s with the Jesus freaks movement, but the general attitude has been around forever (look at the Pentecostals and other big tent denominations as far back as the 1800’s and their constant war on secularism). But this batch of Christians have been systematically working toward taking over positions of power and even trying to out-produce everyone else in order to raise little versions of themselves (look up ‘The Joshua Generation’) with the ultimate purpose of simply outnumbering everyone else. There’s been an intentional and calculated plan that I’ve known of my whole life because we were literally and directly talking about it regularly in church.
Then evangelicalism went mainstream and became the loudest group of religious zealots in the country and everyone just sat back and said next to nothing while they started the satanic panic and the likes of Limbaugh latched on for powers sake and fomented the fear and anger on the right in a way that the left just never even tried to do. And for the last 40 years this cohort has grown and grown until we have what we have now.
The 2 party system isn’t the reason, it’s the tool.