Really enjoying this talk, the thumbnail isn't all that accurate. Topics discussed: gamification, social media addiction and mental health, parasocial relationships, influencers etc
#discuss
Discussion
Re: pessimism:
'...conservatives feel like there's nothing left to conserve any more. But I think that there is and the main thing to conserve is your humanity'.
💯💜
Didn't know about this land purchase from Stripe.
Virtual communities / real world communities / distributed republics
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/26/silicon-valley-elites-buy-800m-land-new-city
My critique of conservatives is that they consistently fail to paint a positive vision—instead they just complain about and resist change.
Defining an anthropology is an excellent place to start if you want to paint a positive vision of what to conserve, (or what to progress towards, as the case may be).
Do you think the right/ conservatives are more prone to pessimism/blackpills? I think the left can also be quite depressive too with their unachievable utopias or something. But it seems more prevalent on the right. 🤔
Collapse might actually be the unifying factor of left and right, maybe not necessarily along the same trajectories
Honestly, it's hard for me to say. Talking to conservatives, especially older ones, there seems to be more despair about the fate of the country or of society.
Underlying the despair, however, is an abiding love for the nation and its principles. Younger generations, on the other hand, seem to feel disenfranchised and are inclined to just check out of civil life entirely.
Young people don't think there's anything they can do, personally, so they just give up.
I feel like this feeling is probably tied to the possibility of home ownership, amongst other factors like job security. (I'm thinking mostly in the UK, but assume applicable to US).
That is absolutely true. Most people my age despair of ever owning a home, certainly in their 20s. Perpetually existing only as a renter (of everything, not just our homes) inevitably changes our level of investment in our communities.
The late Pope John Paul II, in his Theology of the Body, formulated a positive understanding of human nature that offers an alternative to the sexual revolution, transgenderism, and ultimately transhumanism that we're seeing today. Love and Responsibility is his definitive work on the subject.
Will look this up 🫡
I'm dubious about the statement made in the talk that religious belief is on the decline, it feels like there has been a bit of resurgence. Not that that contradicts the general point of gamification filling a spiritual void, and meaningful life goals
It seems to me that religion looks "cool" again in some circles. It didn't, for some time. Whether that translates into genuine faith is yet to be seen.
Yes, I was wondering if I should add this point myself. There is a bit of a lifestyle religion fashion. Suppose it's uncertain/not for anyone to say if that has anything below the surface or what may come of it.
I don't think it's unreasonable to think that someone could look further into something, be called to something (or however you would phrase it) from a starting point of 'cool'. The possibility is there at least, I would think 🤔
Truth, beauty, and goodness are, at the most fundamental level, the same thing. There is nothing wrong with being drawn to some good by an aesthetic sense, for aesthetics are a clue to the truth and goodness of a thing.
Someone who is drawn to religion because it's "cool" will, if he or she is genuinely seeking, come to engage with it on a deeper level in time.
Wonderfully put:)
Agreed, you can’t replace something with nothing and ultimately much of the conservative movement is actually liberal anyway. I suggest checking out what New Polity has to offer. It’s a magazine that constructs a Christian post liberal worldview addressing a variety of topics like gender, money, the State, etc.
I am somewhat familiar with New Polity! They are certainly advancing some refreshing ideas, outside the paradigm of liberalism. We definitely need thinkers like that.
just listened to this while working yesterday, the avatar thing—it’s sitting on my brain, which I guess is the point lol