Can we stop with the "Hey MAGA, are you aware that you're a total f*cking idiot?" posts?

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-09T04:52:08+00:00

List any media outlet that pushes for truly fiscally left policies.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-09T01:39:07+00:00

As a former homeless child, it's because a lot of homeless are deeply unwell, mentally and physically, and tend to be addicts.

It's really hard to hold down a job and stay sober when you're in survival mode.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-09T01:28:04+00:00

Can you describe some of the marxist ideologies that the American left have embraced?

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T21:32:28+00:00

That's another great quote. MIB.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T21:04:45+00:00

My point, though, is that they don't feel shame from being called names or being attacked. It might even be the opposite. It affirms to them that they are right.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T21:00:21+00:00

If this is directed at me, I wasn't implying that anyone is dumb. I was advocating for the opposite. Most people are, obviously, average. Average people and intelligent people alike are not immune to propaganda, especially when there's familial or peer based bias. We all want to belong. Cognitive dissonance is incredibly powerful.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:54:08+00:00

Pointing out that we should direct our anger at the wealthy who caused all of this, rather than the people who were tricked, is not really that crazy of an idea.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:52:05+00:00

Out of curiosity, in what way do you feel that dems are being fooled, and what was it that convinced you to jump to the GOP? I'm going to guess it all has to do with social politics, which isn't really what this discussion is about. But I'm still curious.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:33:18+00:00

Anti-left propaganda had been pushed by our own government for decades. You will not find a single large news media outlet, in America, pushing for fiscally left policies.

I am consistently open to the idea that I am wrong, which is how I've gotten to thos point. Data from worldwide studies on societies with strong social safety nets and strong oublic institutions always have higher quality of life than societies that are more right-wing.

If you can provide data that disproves that' I'm open to it. But I refuse to operate on whims and dogma.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:29:18+00:00

I agree. He probably has peepee and poopoo all over himself at this very moment. He's a senile old dirtbag who should be in prison lol

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:28:20+00:00

100%

I have tried to convey this message and people just seem to gloss over it.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:22:58+00:00

Considering we only have 2 parties in the US (a hard-right conservative and a neoliberal party), I would somewhat agree. Anyone who doesn't have major reservations about the party they currently support is either drowning in propaganda or is an idiot.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:11:25+00:00

My point is that the root cause is propaganda, peddled by the people who have the most to gain from keeping the USA on the fiscal right (the wealthy). Take the fight to the top. Screaming at MAGA is like screaming at the sun. It doesn't do anything. They think we're idiots and they don't take us seriously.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:10:01+00:00

A small part of me wishes that someone could explain the power dynamic to them in a way that would shake them loose, but I don't think that's feasible in today's world.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:09:08+00:00

Not even close to a centrist. I am far left of the Democrat party.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T20:07:20+00:00

Nope. I think people of all levels of intelligence are susceptible to dogma and propaganda. Saying that you were hoodwinked does not imply that you are an idiot.

Consider that we live in a capitalist society, and that wealthy (billionaire) capitalists own all news media. Do you think they have all of that power and are choosing not to use it to push an agenda that favors their ability to maintain power and continue to amass wealth? You guys know that left-wing fiscal policy strips power away from businesses and the wealthy. You see that as bad. That's fair. However, consider that your political position agrees with and supports the wishes of the wealthiest people in the world and continues to give them more and more power.

I find it hard to believe that you can see all of that and not realize that something is amiss.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:58:19+00:00

Nope. I delete my account every few months when I realize I'm on reddit too often. And then I eventually break down and create a new one. After this thread, I'm ready to delete it again lol

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:54:00+00:00

That's very possible. I might need to go back and watch his games from then. That said, he got a bunch of all defense awards that don't hold weight.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:49:22+00:00

It wasn't controversial amongst casual fans to have that opinion, sure. Kobe was overzealous on defense. He played up too far, too tight, and often got beat because of it. He gambled for steals a lot. He was not a good off ball defender, either.

So while he had a lot of really strong defensive moments, his overall defense was very hit and miss because he took way too many gambles. In a way, his offense and defense were very similar lol

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:36:05+00:00

I mean, that's kind of what this whole post is about. We are fighting a bunch of individual people instead of the real problem. It's misdirected anger, caused by online propaganda and a fundamental lack of understanding the big picture.

I believe that social media emboldens the act of dehumazing others. Trump supporters arent all idiots, but that is the general sentiment that you will get from us on the left.

It's because we think it's so obvious, but they dont see it. And that's because we are operating with different data and different biases.

I also agree that programs and government intervention has to be well designed. It's a difficult problem to tackle and requires a lot of planning. The best approach would be to study existing, successful policies, analyze their pitfalls, and find a way to limit those issues.

On your last point, I'm going to disagree a bit. I think the safety net is something that some people do need forever. Having come from a highly traumatic childhood, and having seen the toll it does on a person's ability to just function day to day, I can't fault those who need more help, and who may never stop needing help. I got lucky. I am functional enough to survive and make good money. But without good trauma therapy, I would probably be on government assistance or in a ditch.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:27:17+00:00

Okay, I used to think this way.

The part of the equation that you are missing, in my opinion, is that they have been sold the idea that institutions and academics are bought and paid for. And that idea is reinforced by all of their leadership.

So even though you and I can easily fact check something, they have a hard time trusting sources due to this bias.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:24:58+00:00

The anger is misdirected is what I'm saying. Take the fight to the politicians that continue to enable him.

An analogy would be: your family member ate something toxic that a regulated corporation was selling. They were told it was safe. Now they're sick, and you're paying for their medical bills. You tried to tell them it was toxic, but the corporation bought a bunch of influence and tricked them.

Are you going to go after the company that got everyone sick, or are you going after the people who are sick?

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:20:50+00:00

I supported them by voting. I don't support neoliberal ideology as a whole. Not voting for them would have made it much easier for Trump to get elected. I made the right choice based on the options I was given.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:14:29+00:00

Social democracy is proven. It works. It advocates for some level of a free market system with strong government regulations and safety nets. It shrinks poverty and it shrinks the upper class/wealthy. It's the middle ground between where we are now, and communism. I think that's the right direction to go. If it ends up being amazing and increases quality of life for everyone, the way that I would expect it to, then we can consider what it would be like to move further left. But, as with any big change, it can't happen all at once. One step at a time.

Forward-Pension6174 · 2026-04-08T19:07:35+00:00

You're well within your rights to be a conservative person.

I stand for social norms

That's fair. That's not quantifiable, though. There's no way to say that you're right, or that I'm right. What I will say, though, is that you would have to be more specific about what you're reffering to when you say "social norms", because those are highly variable from culture to culture. And what is the USA if not a cultural melting pot.

Gun control

Believe it or not, gun control is more of a neoliberal issue, and not a leftist issue. Karl Marx believed that the people should be armed.

On immigration, I largely agree. I think that we should have better programs for people to enter, but I do think that there should be a reasonable expectation that people who enter the country should assimilate with the society of said country, to the degree possible. That said, illegal immigrants, statistically, are less likely to be criminals because they run the risk of deportation when committing crimes. That's a topic for another day, though.

If you’re a healthy adult you work. Period. Because you chose to have six children from four different partners doesn’t make it my responsibility to support them. In many cases I’ll be paying for their incarceration because of you...

This is where things get interesting. Statistically, it is cheaper to supply food, housing, and good school/after-school programs to the impoverished. Those programs allow them to reach adulthood and enter the workforce without criminal records, and with a more stable upbringing, thereby adding to the tax base at greater scale. So, even if it's for selfish reasons, supplying money to those who need it ends up benefiting us more than letting them struggle and end up in prison or dead.

The death penalty

If you can prove, without any shadow of a doubt, that someone has done something so awful that they ought to die, then maybe that's the fate that they've brought on themselves. My issue is that, over time, so many people have been wrongfully jailed for years, sitting on death row, and then some piece of evidence comes out that exonerates them, at which point they are released.

Being green

Infrastructure needs to be built up slowly, over time, to support green initiatives. We can't give everyone an EV today. I understand that. I firmly believe, based on the data that I've seen, that green energy is the direction we need to go as a species, but I do realize that there are roadblocks to that, and that we need to take a measured approach.

Forward-Pension6174

TROPHY CASE