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Fear not, I haven't been hacked by some multi-level marketing promoter. I'm not even sure that "It Works" is still an ongoing thing; one benefit to checking out of most social media is that I miss out on a lot of stuff that I'd otherwise be subjected to in one way or another.
I'm also not talking about magic or astrology, which also work. Since I write on few topics that I obsess over relentlessly, that leaves my least favorite but still strong obsession, politics.
In a lot of ways, my own personal level of political polarization has lessened a bit with the more authoritarian phase of "pandemic management" seemingly behind us, although I still have grave concerns about the draconian censorship and methods of social control being unleashed on us. I've noticed that I'm becoming more polarized on other issues, though, and that a lot of that does seem to fall along the partisan lines of the media I consume.
As I scroll through the newsfeed my computer helpfully provides, I regularly encounter material custom designed and curated to make me feel anger, disgust, and hostility toward people who have different opinions than I do. I know this, I'm aware that it is all cynically created to manipulate me, and that awareness does basically doodley-squat to stop it.
I suppose the obvious answer is to just quit consuming "news" products, which is something I struggle with because I have always thought of myself as being an informed person. I've looked for news sources with less bias, but I haven't been able to find any. Even sites that claim to have "just the facts" have become politicized and partisan, and you can determine the editorial slant fairly easily just by seeing what stories they cover and what ones they don't.
Another aspect of the problem is that some of the differences of opinion I have with my political enemies are pretty serious and are about issues important to me. I've noticed, though, that I become pulled more into identifying with the political right even on issues that I don't care about very much. I'm guessing that I'm being drawn into an egregore or groupmind, which isn't necessarily bad but also isn't something I'm doing intentionally, either.
The divide and conquer polarization slime being churned out by the cacomages of the media works quite well, even if you know damn well what they're doing. I'm trying hard to stay balanced and in my center, because I think things are really to get very ugly very soon.
I'm also not talking about magic or astrology, which also work. Since I write on few topics that I obsess over relentlessly, that leaves my least favorite but still strong obsession, politics.
In a lot of ways, my own personal level of political polarization has lessened a bit with the more authoritarian phase of "pandemic management" seemingly behind us, although I still have grave concerns about the draconian censorship and methods of social control being unleashed on us. I've noticed that I'm becoming more polarized on other issues, though, and that a lot of that does seem to fall along the partisan lines of the media I consume.
As I scroll through the newsfeed my computer helpfully provides, I regularly encounter material custom designed and curated to make me feel anger, disgust, and hostility toward people who have different opinions than I do. I know this, I'm aware that it is all cynically created to manipulate me, and that awareness does basically doodley-squat to stop it.
I suppose the obvious answer is to just quit consuming "news" products, which is something I struggle with because I have always thought of myself as being an informed person. I've looked for news sources with less bias, but I haven't been able to find any. Even sites that claim to have "just the facts" have become politicized and partisan, and you can determine the editorial slant fairly easily just by seeing what stories they cover and what ones they don't.
Another aspect of the problem is that some of the differences of opinion I have with my political enemies are pretty serious and are about issues important to me. I've noticed, though, that I become pulled more into identifying with the political right even on issues that I don't care about very much. I'm guessing that I'm being drawn into an egregore or groupmind, which isn't necessarily bad but also isn't something I'm doing intentionally, either.
The divide and conquer polarization slime being churned out by the cacomages of the media works quite well, even if you know damn well what they're doing. I'm trying hard to stay balanced and in my center, because I think things are really to get very ugly very soon.