clownclown

okay so i read the sembler thing

so you know, I was in a WWASPS program, and I will never trust again

did you read the link i sent you

k so what's your point with the sembler thing? i forgot if you've already stated it

The world of the power elite is full of sociopathic fucks like Mel Sembler

and I wouldn't be surprised if many of their cheerleaders weren't the same

i am sorry that you had to endure the WWASPS thing

have you watched salo?

by paying the local sherrif's department

to hire a new deputy specifically for local schools

for some reason i say salo is my favorite movie

they "donated" that money

My favorite movie is C'est arriv? pr?s de chez vous

but yeah salo is my fav movie even though i can't watch it all the way through

i understand your sentiments

It doesn't just happen at the top

corruption in our society is at every level

average people will sell out

and, to one of your earlier points, i would not say that all the dumbdumbs happen due to privilege

it's due to ignorance

plenty of them just went to public school

okay i detract my last point

yes, it could be argued that it's due to privilege

a certain level of privelege

it doesn't even mean you have a trust fund

i was thinking of privilege as you noted it in reference to trust fund kids

but when you're poor, you dont' believe the lie

you CAN'T believe it

as in any other situation when you come face to face with the reality that our society's myths seek to cover up

but the more general term of privilege, as similarly used within theories of general "male privilege" or "white privilege" as used by feminist or equal rights studies

yeah, i would say that the dumbdumbness is due, in part, to privilege

america is a generally priveleged society

i also wouldn't associate it specifically to socio-economic status

not that you can't be a dumbdumb if you grow up in the ghetto

i just don't think there is a catch-all term for why people are ignorant to the atrocities that humans are capable of

you're just never going to become a tom friedman

i wouldn't just attribute it to the american society, though

because they haven't been exposed to them

because those things happen in faraway places

i'm not trying to say you do not have valid points and am not trying to simply be devil's advocate

we're too civilized for that

i'm just saying that it's more universal

and calling out specific people or names or attributing blame to specific industries

i don't think it can be that simple

i guess over the past year or two or so i've been studying/focusing moreso on just general sociology/applied and cultural anthropology

as far as "why are american's so misinformed?"

yes, I can blame the media, 100%

they are the problem

the media is just so broad

"the media" encompasses so much

I blame the television networks, the wire services, and local newspapers

i would probably specify the major, mainstream news outlets and such

rather that just television networks

except none of the other outlets do anything to challenge them

save, of course, the socialist or environmentally focused ones

there are other outlets that DO try

b ut who reads that shit?

you can't expect everyone that DOES sincerely try to actually be able to get to what they're after

that may have to do with intelligence, work ethic, not having time cause of personal things like family, etc

or they may not have the time and have to just cover boring shit because that is what pays and they have to put food on the table

i mean, many really do want something genuine

there are many that want to do that which is *real*

but that's not what pays

let's report on paris hilton

people eat that shit up

many people cannot handle the serious, dire topics

they're just incapable of handling it

some people are lazy about it, yes, and they should be ashamed of themselves

but many are inable to handle these things

not everyone is a revolutionary

is that americans are shielded by the media

from the reality of the human condition

not everyone has the capabilities or qualities of being a leader

in a way that allows them to remain mental children

not everyone is good at risk-taking

for their entire lives

i would not blame the media for many being children

many just *are* children

and do not develop past that

the media isn't going to do anythign to challenge it

there are just too many variables/factors involved

that people learn to be this way

it isn't really just that, though

most people cannot handle it

but that is an organizing factor in our society

when people are 20, 30 years old

and they have an encounter with reality

let's say they get mugged

also, our stages of development are changing (as with the times)

they don't know what to make of it!

there was some feature somewhere on psychologists coining a new developmental stage

like, a century ago, "adolescence" was being proposed as a developmental stage

I'm not talking about kidulthood

before that it was childhood

I mean 50 year old men and women

who still haven't figured things out

20-30 is considered a new developmental stage

some people are immature

some of that could be attribtued to intelligence

or environmental/situational factors

their rearing and developmental influences

what is the current american environment?

I would say it's in the realm of information

this is where we are headed

and who controls that world?

the people who produce media for it

the world of information

not the physical world

not the world that you live in to make toast

but the world that informs you of what the people inf rance are like

i mean, the past 50 years have been the information revolution

we are in the information age

if you hav enever been to france

(the terms have already been coined and established by academics)

where do your opinions on that country come from?

from television programs you have seen, comments from people you know, stuff you have read in the newspaper, maybe some high school textbooks

i don't usually formulate much solid opinions on things i am ignorant of or do not have a propensity for understanding

i'm not good at math

i don't have opinions on varying theories in theoretical physics

i know what i do, i know what i'm good at, and i pretty much stick to that

but, also, i have a very academic background

and am very cultured

i am not the typical american

there are always exceptions to the rules

you, sir, are an exception

recognize what culture is

and where your cultural beliefs come from

the main bit of your argument that i've been criticizing is that you're applying the standards you have for yourself, as an exception, to those whom are much, much different

and i just don't think it's very fair to judge them so *harshly*, is all

yes, it is good to be critical of things and such

I can't blame them for destroying america

even though they assisted it at every step

those people make up the job force

and could have/should have known better

yes, much of the 10%ers are amongst the top of their varying industries

because the top is the top

that many among the upper class

but if you're attributing your criticisms for the top 10%'s foibles

to the 90%ers within an *entire* industry

well, that's just not a fair criticism

everyone who works for cnn

how many people work for cnn?

I'mt alking the camera man, the woman who sweeps the floors

what types of jobs are at cnn?

Because they support evil

i know you feel very strongly about these things

and i do not dismiss your sentiments

nor am i saying they are invalid concerns

without them, it is not possible

they are very applicable concerns for society

but some people just need to eat

you can say they are only trying to support themselves

some people's concern is not for the world

I agree, I understand

but that doesn't excuse what they do

most people are just trying to live their life

most people just want a simple life

most people are simple

most people just want to have their family

You are the sum of your actions on this planet

they want to see their kids smile when they come home for dinner

one day you will dissipate

and the only thing that will be left

are your actions here

they want to have a family

they want to be able to feed their children

that is the extent of their concerns

a job is a job to most people

most people do not *care*

but that doesn't mean they aren't responsible

yes, most people that do not care are the cogs in the wheel

that bulldozes others less fortunate

and that is an unfortunate cycle

but i'm just saying that most people do not have the luxury to choose those things

when they need to provide the most basic things for themselves and their family to survive

most people lead simple lives and simply want to survive

all of their energy is put toward that

they are unable to achieve the upper bigs of maslow's hierarchy

i am not saying that they are unable to for their entire lives

for periods of time, yes, it happens

i've done a lot of things that i didn't want to do because i needed to eat

despicable things? no

have i done work for very vapid shit? yes

i'd obviously rather be paid to do work for things that align with my personal philosophy

but i didn't have other options

many people do not have many options at times

throughout this conversation

we keep speaking in generalizations

so that convolutes the message a bit

I understand, completely that sentiment

and I don't blame you, or anyone, for cooperating with evil

i wouldn't say vapidity is neccessarily "evil"

but that doesn't change that you are cosmically responsible for all of your actions during this lifetime

i worked at an alt weekly

i dunno why it popped in my head

i dunno, it sorta reminds me of what i'd say to people sometimes

you know, like, those people that always have to "win"?

especially with arguing and arguments and such

i was talking to one of my clients the other day about it

he's one of those types of people