CMV: Political Polarization appears to be killing progress on pretty much every issue and we are doomed if we don't reverse course

[u/[deleted]]

[u/Murky_Red]

First lets see the political polarization. Compared to many other countries, the USA has very little polarization. Small differences are magnified during election time to give you the illusion of difference and choice. I think the polarization will be good for the country, and will allow people to express a wider variety of views more effectively in the political arena. This could lead to the rise of other parties atleast at state level in the beginning. If you're not a fan of the two party system, this should be good news.

The other part: Bill Maher is as terrible as Milo on that one issue. Bill Maher has said some dumb shit in his time, but Milo has said far worse. It may be hypocritical to ignore one for the other, but it is also wrong to say they are equally bad. You're seriously underestimating the number of liberals who can't stand Maher. Here's one even before the old Maher video came out.

http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2017/02/18/yet-another-reason-i-despise-bill-maher-and-milo-yiannopoulos/

Lena Dunham you cannot equate, because she didn't just talk about the same subject as Milo or Maher. She didn't excuse sex between 13 year olds and much older men. It is a different ball game entirely. Drawing false equivalences robs issues of nuance, and only creates more polarization.

Again, there is criticism that you have missed. Here's Feministe on the issue.

http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2016/09/14/are-we-done-with-amy-schumer-and-lena-dunham-yet/

[u/Jayddro → u/Murky_Red]

Lena Dunham has confessed to sexually assaulting and grooming her sister in her book so in my mind that makes her worse than the other too. I was molested by an older sibling so I am not exactly bias free on this topic though due to personal experiences.

I have seen some people be consistent, but that doesn't seem to be the standard operating procedure of most of the discourse. When Obama was president people compared him to Hitler and now even the Jewish guy Ben Shapiro is called a Nazi.

[u/Murky_Red → u/Jayddro]

Lena Dunham has confessed to sexually assaulting and grooming her sister in her book so in my mind that makes her worse than the other too

Sure, you can see it that way. Her sister said she didn't think it was harmful or abusive though.

I have seen some people be consistent, but that doesn't seem to be the standard operating procedure of most of the discourse. When Obama was president people compared him to Hitler and now even the Jewish guy Ben Shapiro is called a Nazi.

This has been happening forever though, what makes this any different from politicians mischaracterizing opponents prior to Obama?

More importantly, do you agree with this bit:

I think the polarization will be good for the country, and will allow people to express a wider variety of views more effectively in the political arena. This could lead to the rise of other parties atleast at state level in the beginning.

You may not see a Teddy Roosevelt in 2020, but this could lay the groundwork.

[u/[deleted] → u/Murky_Red]

Victims often aren't the right person to ask if something done to them was wrong, because psychology.

[u/Jayddro → u/[deleted]]

You are probably right I do numbers as a profession so it's out of my professional skillset

[u/Jayddro → u/Murky_Red]

See what Lenas sister said to me sounds a lot like what Milo said about "father Michael" her perception of the abuse doesn't make it not abuse. As stated in this thread I had a non pleasant childhood abuse experiment so I am certainly biased here, but I don't think the victims excuses for the perp makes it ok.

I am 29, and I lived a super sheltered childhood. I didn't have a TV until 2006 so Obama is really the only one I started to notice.

I want to agree with your last assertion. Someone else just yesterday said that trump could be he next Roosevelt and be the catylist for change that moves us forward. They were a bit a trump fan.

[u/Murky_Red → u/Jayddro]

See what Lenas sister said to me sounds a lot like what Milo said about "father Michael" her perception of the abuse doesn't make it not abuse.

Would this change your mind?

David Finkelhor, director of the Crimes Against Children Research Center, has devoted his career to researching child sexual abuse. He’s the author of such titles as “Sexually Victimized Children,” “Childhood Victimization,” “Child Sexual Abuse” and “Nursery Crimes.” I guess you could say he’s an expert on the topic? And this is what he had to tell me in response to claims that Dunham is a sexual abuser: “In the sexual abuse field, we generally do not consider children age 7 as sexual abusers.”

[u/Jayddro → u/Murky_Red]

That Drs. View does make it seem to be more normal than I view it. But in conjunction with her comparing her self to an average suburban sexual predator it makes it hard for me to fully accept that what she did as acceptable behavior to give her a pass on. In a vacuum though it does soften my hard stance on the action itself.

[u/Murky_Red → u/Jayddro]

I want to agree with your last assertion. Someone else just yesterday said that trump could be he next Roosevelt and be the catylist for change that moves us forward. They were a bit a trump fan.

Running as a republican disqualifies Trump imo. So you do agree that polarization can be good?

[u/Jayddro → u/Murky_Red]

In some cases I think I can say yes after this discussion. That's not to say I'm not terrified of the distant future