It varies everywhere here I’m sure. I live in Maine, which is a purple state if there ever was one. I have some Mormon fundamentalist neighbors but they’re not petitioning the local government to enact any theologically-based policies, so I’m glad to have them as neighbors. They found me on facebook and want the best for my soul, presumably. Nice kids.
My general flavor of policy opinions is pretty common around here. I know some conservatives who still hold the most retrograde stereotypical conservative positions you can imagine, but not very many of them. I think I’m a pretty typical conservative around here, aside from being more outspoken on a forum like this.
I also now some left of lefties who seem to thoroughly believe that they are doing all kinds of virtuous things that they are not, like making the country more racially harmonious, helping poor people find fulfillment and success in life, or generally helping anyone, anywhere aside from their own misguided feelings of civic duty fulfillment. I’m sure it feels great to believe that you’re a civil rights crusader. That said, most liberals I know locally are good people who know a lot of things that aren’t really true or can’t hold up to very much scrutiny, which translates into their voting patterns.
To be fair, I also know a couple of self-described conservatives who are not necessarily racist against blacks, but most definitely bigoted against our large East African immigrant population. I know a self-described conservative who had the balls to make a Caitlyn Jenner joke, “Are you a decathlon athlete, LOL?” to the face of a trans person who would not only whoop their ass in the decathlon, but would also rag-doll him like a helpless child in a real fight.
For the record, that self-described conservative didn’t have the balls to say anything about it when my friend told him point blank… “Don’t touch me again. Don’t look at me again. I will choke you the fuck out if you do”.
All in high heels and mascara. It was a sight to behold.
It does. Hence why I’ve at times found myself confused with certain parameters people envelop around the left/right on here, only to remind myself democrats/republicans differ from what makes up the left/right over here.
In actual politics, neither the “left” or the “right” in Australia are morally just. Rather it boils down to relative apolitical beliefs catering towards one side or the other over here. Plenty of people have views associated with traditional liberalism and conservatism.
The avg Aussie’s stance on criminal justice is quite conservative (not in a libertarianistic fashion either). Typically many policies formed relate to a lack of insight relative to the topic at hand, at least I’ve perceived it to be this way.
Whenever people talk about an issue relating to criminal justice I keep hearing knee jerk “just lock ALL of them up for twenty years, better yet… fifty years”. That’s always the answer but no one takes into account mass incarceration is costly, arguably unconstitutional depending on the topic at hand (like locking up a kid for years because he/she was caught tagging a bench) and locking people up and throwing away the key isn’t always the way to go. Prison = close quarters with seasoned criminals, reduced employment opportunity for the rest of your days upon release etc.
What’s more, these opinions are only vested provided it fits the individuals narrative. So getting pissed in public and causing a commotion… fine, that’s Aussie culture. But those kids hooning on desolate roads in the middle of the night … they need to go to prison for a long time!
I don’t support hooning, it’s idiotic and equates to the damage of government property and thus resources that could have otherwise gone elsewhere now need to be poured into torn up roads. The working stiff has to now take time out of his day if you’ve been an inconsiderate ass and torn up his/her lawn.
You can go to a private track/on private property and spin doughnuts/burnouts to your hearts content, I don’t see the allure behind purposely fucking up public property or private property without permission. To me, it just makes you a dickhead. I used to roll with a group of kids who were into hooning because I suppose it made them feel tough or something? I hated being in the car with them when they pulled this shit, it wasn’t fun to me at all; as a matter of fact I outright despised this behaviour and no longer hang out with these folks as over time I found they were morally bankrupt (was in with a pretty bad crowd, I didn’t realise it at the time though. I wasted over a year of my life hanging out with them because it was exciting. I beat myself up over it though, how could I have been so stupid… I have a few interesting stories though)
Sounds like a sick (in this case meaning awesome) guy/gal. Good for him/her
Lol the virtue signalling is obnoxious isn’t it. “we need to speak up for this demographic because WE believe (for whatever reason), that they are currently being systematically oppressed to no end. It doesn’t matter what they think, I believe this and need to push my agenda and seem wholesome”. I’m sure most mean well, but it comes across as self righteous, a “holier than thou” type mentality,
It is. My SIL believes I’m a racist homophobe by extension of the fact that I oppose nearly every policy goal of hers and the dishonest rhetoric used to advance it. Plus silence is violence, of course.
If she actually believes the self-righteous memes she posts, she is a noble “ally”, which is a word that makes me cringe. She believes she is helping by “spreading awareness” and, of course, by voting D across the board.
Meanwhile I, racist homophobe, have pictures of me hanging out with my black and Asian friends, or hanging out at a bar with the queerest queer person in the tri-state area
I’ve had people hailing from four different continents as guests in my home recently. Africa, Asia, S America and of course N. America. I am also friends with an Aussie but he’s never been over to my home. There’s a reason you people were placed on a remote island inhabited by nightmare animals.
All of her friends are wealthy white liberals. The only black people she hangs out with are at political events. Don’t worry, she gets a lot of pictures there.
Supporting trans or any so-called “marginalized” people to me in actual practice means treating them the same way I do anyone else, not putting them on some special pedestal or giving deference to warped rules of speech and social norms.
Virtue signaling is the opposite of virtue, and I find it very obnoxious.
For the record, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to help black people or insert group here. Virtue signaling helps only the signaler. I swear I want to punch the next person who says “spreading awareness” helps anyone, anywhere.
You would do far more good by actual helpful actions. Go pick up trash. Offer free tutoring. Adopt a child. Pay a poor kids Jiu Jitsu tuition and buy him a gi.
The list of ways to help is endless, and none of it includes empty, self-righteous behavior online or voting for Democrats.
That’s a tough one to answer. I think there is some virtue signaling going on as well, but I don’t think being pro life is an inherently empty position.
I’m “pro choice” insomuch as I want nothing to do with a decision between a woman, her doctor and her god. I don’t support outlawing that procedure, but damn if I don’t have serious reservations about it the further along you go into the pregnancy.
I find the act to be generally revolting and would strongly discourage anyone who asked for my opinion (not that anyone has) from getting an abortion unless the circumstances were something other than not wanting the inconvenience of caring for the life you brought into the world. Rape, safety of mother, etc.
But yes, posting memes on Facebook doesn’t bring life into the world, let alone nurture it.
I agree with that. I will say I don’t think the most extreme pro lifers (the ones picketing planned parenthood), are doing much other than virtue signaling.
With you here. At a certain point a baby is viable outside the mother. At that point it is untenable to kill the baby IMO.
Well… I’ve taken this into account and today I openly extrapolated upon my views pertaining to Australian society. 20$ says this comes back to bite me in the ass
It has opened up avenues for suprisingly constructive, meaningful conversations though.
It should be noted pertaining to libertarianism/lack of government intervention and the likes. There is such a thing as too little regulation.
I am of South African descent despite being born in Aus (shit, I’ve said enough on here to get doxxed), I even have a little bit of a South African/Australian combo accent. Have you been to South Africa? It’s one of the most lawless, terrifying countries I’ve ever been to. I don’t think I have a single family member over there who hasn’t been held at gunpoint at least once.
South Africa is what you get with NO regulatory standards/extreme libertarianism and rampant corruption @mnben87@twojarslave
When I think of virtue signaling, I think of actions that first must cost nothing and carry no risk while also implying that this imparts some kind of moral high ground. Posting memes for example. All kinds of people do this for all kinds of reasons. I’ve even found myself guilty, which made me want to puke.
I think of picketers and the pro life movement in general as being single issue policy advocates, not unlike the NRA.
Regardless of your opinion on abortion laws, one cannot deny that actual lives are at stake here and pro life policy would undoubtedly prevent many, many lives from being snuffed out when the people getting killed have no agency.
Whether that’s good or bad is a long discussion for another thread and a subject I haven’t really given much thought. I think there is lots of room for good faith disagreement on that subject.
If I contrast that with critical race theorists and broader left wing virtue signaling, there are important differences. The main one is that they are typically advocating for policies that are either nonsense at best or clearly destructive at worst.
That’s what makes it uniquely obnoxious to me. Dimwits putting their own short sightedness, lack of understanding and faux-empathy on full display, typically with a staggering combination of ignorance and confidence.
Disagreed due to the wider implications associated with being forced to keep an unwanted pregnancy.
I suppose it depends on what you refer to as a pro life policy. Are we referring to strictly barring no fault abortion? Or full on pro life wherein you must bear a child that was the result of a rape. Where teenagers are unable to get an abortion despite not being able to afford the costs associated with pregnancy. Where those at risk of death due to complications can’t terminate the pregnancy etc.
I was once hospitalised for a few weeks. During my stay I conversed with many rape victims, some who had endured the most horrific of circumstances.
These individuals would be very unlikely to view pregnancy at the hands of their tormentors to be a blessing, I happen to think some might consider the baby a parasitic entity; the seed of evil. I also have a hunch based in the conversations I had that many would resort to drastic measures in effort to expel the baby… Perhaps even turn to suicide if forced to keep the child.
Me too. I cannot, cannot stand that stupid phrase or mentality. “Facebook activism” is bullshit. You either care enough to do something tangible with your money or time… or you don’t.
Pretty much. The pro life position is inherently a position on basic ethics and rights. There are some giant assholes, but you shouldn’t discount the philosophy based on assholes alone.
I don’t agree with this, and here’s why. If you believed millions of humans were being murdered picketing seems like a perfectly reasonable thing to do. Based on the seriousness of the wrong that some people view it as, I don’t really like the “I’m personally against it but won’t vote against it” line. That’s a copout designed by a politician.
Murdering more people with bomb attacks no. But… you could still make a theoretical argument that such a person may believe they have no other recourse to stop a massacre. Demented and unbalanced yes, but possible.
Hurling insults at vulnerable women who are confused and hurt is not acceptable.
Yeah, but largely that is all they do. You don’t see the mostly white protesters saying they will adopt the black baby out in front of planned parenthood.
I also don’t believe they think the aborted are equal to a human. I gave a pro lifer a common question. If you were in a burning room with 1000 fertilized eggs in a box, and a live baby, you can only save one, which do you choose? They refused to answer. What people would do IRL is obvious.
And yet he comes off as a thousand times more Presidential than his predecessor. While I have concerns about his age and mental abilities when compared to the last President he’s light years ahead. His approval ratings compared to his predecessor at this time reflect the American people being happier with this elder abuse than the narcissistic maniac who came before.
That’s subjective, but I can understand why someone might feel this way. Especially if you have a tendency to buy into fact free media narratives or spend any amount of time on Twitter. Assuming that what you read in the NYT or watch on CNN, NBC, PBS, etc is informative would understandably inform you of many things that aren’t true.
Remember how it took you over a dozen posts to explain what informed your belief that the GA voter law was racist and you ended up failing completely, eventually posting a fact free NYT article to make your case for you?
That’s kinda what I’m talking about here. You somehow end up with a very strong opinion that you seem completely certain are true, but can’t explain why in your own words.
There is nothing Presidential about Biden to me. There is nothing Presidential about lying to Americans about racism to advance clearly destructive policies designed to neuter the police.
The results are in hand already. Crime is skyrocketing in the cities that are stupid enough to elect leaders that enact anti police policies and use anti police rhetoric.
And Biden wants to turn up the heat. He’s openly advocating for an end to qualified immunity. Not modify. End. It is pure madness that leaves increasingly little room to assume any good will.
The border is also a man made policy disaster with all kinds of human problems arising from Biden’s insane rhetoric and destructive policy.
At least he didn’t lie about his inauguration crowd size.
Why did the Dems freak the fuck out when Trump sent a letter about the stimulus, only to have Biden send one that is even MORE political than Trump’s was. Pelosi held up stimulus from April until November–the worst of the pandemic–because she said she didn’t want Trump to put his name on another check.
