cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/27891382
My social media environment (mostly Lemmy for the last year, after I left Reddit) is very leftist. I’m finding myself floating more and more left because y’all have a point and there’s not many counter-arguments in this social media environment. I sometimes wonder if that’s how MAGA folks feel–floating more and more right because that’s what they’re surrounded by.
Of course, my floating is (naturally /s) based on reason and leftists making good memes/arguments.
Anyways, that’s this morning’s introspection.
Side showerthought: my convictions are based on memes. Anyone have nice, accessible resources for giving those convictions a more solid base? I’d love something like a graphic history of leftist thought (similar to Queer: A Graphic History). Something approachable but with citations. Thanks :)
I think things that keep you engaged mentally, even if they’re memes, can keep you thinking about issues even when you’re away from that media.
I was raised solidly conservative, but through exposure to issues and talking with people and learning the finer points of issues, it really made me question things. I went from thinking things where the way they were for good reason (maintaining status quo) to more asking why things should stop where they are and not improve to help more people (progressiveness).
Some people can hear a “fact” and be satisfied they have an answer with no more desire to expand on that. You’re seeing things that make you question things you’ve felt were true as your mind saw them and your opinions are evolving. I don’t think there’s an inherit way people can form their opinions. You could read conservative media and see fallacy in it. I lean left a decent bit, but I read plenty on Lemmy that is ridiculous to me, especially authoritarian left views.
I think people go more conservative when they feel they are losing something. Prosperity, career trajectory, friendly/familial bonds, social status. I don’t think that is the way to get things back, but when you’re afraid of losing things, you tend to lose some rationality as you desperately cling to things. If you can blame wokeness on why your jokes and treatment of people isn’t cool anymore, if you can blame cheap migrant labor for why your career isn’t advancing, if you can blame other people why you aren’t getting paid enough to get by, you maintain your sense of self and can externalize a real problem.
I don’t want to outright say those problems aren’t real, because they are to those feeling them. I just think more of the root causes are systematic, and having those scapegoats helps maintain status quo.
I like Lemmy not because it is leftist, but moreso that it is small enough I get to know individuals a bit more deeply that I can from bigger platforms. People can keep it real without worrying about pleasing a very wide general audience. For example, I don’t personally know any trans people in real life. With the high visibility they have here, I’ve gotten a better grasp of many issues from just sitting here and paying attention. It’s given me great opportunity to start to learn about something I didn’t really know how to approach mentally. I feel it’s been really good to get to know them and understand a bit of where they’re coming from. If I hadn’t been here with an openness to get to know them, I’d still just be lost and confused and while I never had an issue with trans people, I just plain didn’t understand. For some people that can turn to distrust.
Point being, I think it is just as much what you personally are looking for out of the content as it is for you to be exposed to the content itself. If you want to expand your mind and grow, you can do that, and if you want to circle the wagons, you can do that too. I feel you will eventually shift naturally to things that support that desire to grow or become walled off, but it isn’t inherent to the content itself.