Deep Thoughts By Jack Handey

Why are there so few devil's advocates who realize that there are pluses and minuses to both left and right ideology? It really baffles me how subscribed everyone is to one or the other, considering we here at ATS are *supposed* to be critical thinkers.

Polarization is what's dragging us down, down, down. One could argue it's being done to us deliberately by our rulers but it's our own fault for falling prey to the paradigm that we have to choose one and only one set of ideals to live by. It's really sad. People just parroting talking point after talking point. Will we ever learn to think for ourselves, to transcend this simpleton way of perceiving things?

Not expecting much response from this considering 99% of people are committed to an ideology set, (probably one of the two most popular ones, archaic as they may be), but, if this makes someone think outside the box for just one second I'm happy with that.


On a lighter tip, my favorite Deep Thought by Jack Handey:

"I can picture in my mind a world without war, a world without hate. And I can picture us attacking that world, because they'd never expect it." lol

a reply to: humanityrising

Most critical thinking left the net after 2001 and most of the remainder by about 2010,go back and check out the archives...

a reply to: humanityrising

Mods, this is not showing up in Recent threads. Sup with that?

ETA: Nevamond.

originally posted by: khnum
a reply to: humanityrising

Most critical thinking left the net after 2001 and most of the remainder by about 2010,go back and check out the archives...

Yeah it really feels like we've devolved quite a bit since those days. I remember a time when many lefties were Alex Jones fans...lol

a reply to: humanityrising

Rants show up one the new but not on the recent, at least for me..

a reply to: humanityrising

Kent Steadman and Cyberspace Orbit and this site were cutting edge 10 years ago,dont get me wrong I still love this site but there were once far more greater brains than mine here in abundance.

originally posted by: TechniXcality
a reply to: humanityrising

Rants show up one the new but not on the recent, at least for me..

Ahh thanks. TIL that.

originally posted by: khnum
a reply to: humanityrising

Kent Steadman and Cyberspace Orbit and this site were cutting edge 10 years ago,dont get me wrong I still love this site but there were once far more greater brains than mine here in abundance.

It's just sad that we went from being aware of manipulation through polarization to being completely oblivious to it again...

a reply to: humanityrising

I think that there are a large number of people on ATS that don't subscribe to the left or the right, however, the people that do are extremely annoying and tend to be more noticeable.

originally posted by: Metallicus
a reply to: humanityrising

I think that there are a large number of people on ATS that don't subscribe to the left or the right, however, the people that do are extremely annoying and tend to be more noticeable.

Yes. It's an overwhelming majority.

a reply to: humanityrising

I guarantee you most people under 25 could not pass my 1982 high school senior English and Mathematics exams just as I would not pass my fathers 1952 exams,whether its via tv hand held technology or social programming they are making people stupider these days- the last ten years in particular.Therefore the divide and rule by not just two but dozens of groups and mostly victim groups at that.

I don't know how people can fit down one side on everything.

I actually thought I was pretty liberal when I was younger. Then, when I actually took a minute to look at different issues and form an opinion, I found out my views were surprisingly conservative.

I am conservative in just about every category other than social issues. I am an advocate of personal freedoms as far as your lifestyle, faith, and even drugs...but then, somehow, I end up far right on most other topics.

The bad part is...I consider social issues to be the most important, so I have to sacrifice a lot of other beliefs when I vote.

The end result is that I don't ever feel really represented by any candidate...so imagine my horror in 2016.




I don't remember the exact words, but my favorite Jack Handey - "If a kid asks why it is raining, I think a cute response is 'Because God is crying.' When he asks why God is crying, tell him 'Probably because of something you did.'"

originally posted by: khnum
a reply to: humanityrising

I guarantee you most people under 25 could not pass my 1982 high school senior English and Mathematics exams just as I would not pass my fathers 1952 exams,whether its via tv hand held technology or social programming they are making people stupider these days- the last ten years in particular.Therefore the divide and rule by not just two but dozens of groups and mostly victim groups at that.

Yup. The propaganda/subversion + distractions are being flung at us from all directions, unilaterally. It's working. I will say this though, it's not just one generation; even the older, previously smarter generation has taken the bait hook, line, and sinker and are now zombies too.

originally posted by: BarefootInWinter
I don't know how people can fit down one side on everything.

I actually thought I was pretty liberal when I was younger. Then, when I actually took a minute to look at different issues and form an opinion, I found out my views were surprisingly conservative.

I am conservative in just about every category other than social issues. I am an advocate of personal freedoms as far as your lifestyle, faith, and even drugs...but then, somehow, I end up far right on most other topics.

The bad part is...I consider social issues to be the most important, so I have to sacrifice a lot of other beliefs when I vote.

The end result is that I don't ever feel really represented by any candidate...so imagine my horror in 2016.




I don't remember the exact words, but my favorite Jack Handey - "If a kid asks why it is raining, I think a cute response is 'Because God is crying.' When he asks why God is crying, tell him 'Probably because of something you did.'"

LOL
Another one: "To me, clowns aren't funny. In fact, they're kind of scary. I've wondered where this started and I think it goes back to the time I went to the circus, and a clown killed my dad."


We are similar in regards to our political stance. What perplexes me is that, to claim allegiance to the R or D parties, you must take on an arrayed laundry list of positions, from abortion to war to immigration to social issues to religion...the list just goes on and on. People tend to just accept the entire platform of their party without taking into consideration whether they actually agree with all of them. This is the opposite of individualism.

"I'm Christian so I must be republican" or "I'm anti-death penalty so I must be a democrat." Barf.

I like that any and all Jack Handey quotes will be considered on-topic in this thread

a reply to: humanityrising

As a member, I usually steer clear of the political threads because people go there to fight. Nobody has ever had their mind changed and I've seen big-hitters tie themselves in knots rather than concede an eensy weensy minor detail to the other side. Spending any time in there is naturally polarising.

As it stands, a good half of ATSers now come here to chat about politics and get into debates/arguments. Nobody travels to argue unless they're passionate about their politics. This means (imo) the political posters, by nature, are out towards the extremes and poles apart from their chosen opponents.

I like the optimism of your member name

Sounds much better than humanitymuddlingalongasbestwecanconsideringourdifferences.

a reply to: Kandinsky

Thanks! Call me altruistic but I like to think that, if there really was a shadow cadre running the world with complicit intent to oppress...humanity and righteousness would eventually prevail.

I try to leave the U.S. at least once a year, if possible, to gain fresh perspectives. There really is no room to breathe at home, at least in my opinion. It doesn't take long to become overwhelmed by fear, polarization, dissatisfaction, disenchantment, etc...just general negativity. There is tension like I've never seen it before, and it's starting to simmer. Hopefully it isn't brought to a boil and/or the stove doesn't catch the curtains on fire.

a reply to: humanityrising

There's that old economist cliché that 'when America sneezes, the world catches a cold.' It goes both ways imo.

The tension you describe is felt by all of us because a great power can't go down the dark path without taking all of us part of the way. Naturally, I have to remain as objective as possible when most of my impressions of America are being piped in by a conspiracy site lol. It looks fairly bad in our future, but how bad could be prejudiced by the choices of media we have.

a reply to: humanityrising

Because the power of Kool Aid has no equal.

a reply to: Kandinsky

Definitely. And it is sad because people that don't make media choices end up with the worldview they're force-fed without even realizing it.

Humans can be jerks, and they will most of the time imho. If there's anything I've learned, it's that people seem to never, ever change their mind once it's made up. Ever. No matter what evidence they're confronted with, or what belief system they hold. I wonder what it is in us that makes us that way. It's really quite a destructive quality.


DTBJH:
"When I saw the old bum pushing his grocery cart down the street, at first I felt sorry for him. But then when I saw what was in his cart I thought, well, no wonder you're a bum, look at the dumb things you bought."

originally posted by: Tarzan the apeman.
a reply to: humanityrising

Because the power of Kool Aid has no equal.

Oooohhh Yeahhhh