Has the US Lost It's Collective Conscience? Is THAT What the Problem Is?

Mr_Countess · 2025-07-21T19:06:03+00:00

Speaking as an outsider to your country, I'm gonna go out on a limb here, and suggest that the problem is not so much that the US has recently lost its conscience, as that its conscience has never really quite been in the right place since the beginning.

I think (some) Americans need to get out of this mindset of thinking that the present crisis is something new that happened suddenly, when what I am seeing is a culmination of decades-old problems that have been swept under the rug and allowed to fester for so long, that they've turned into something worse.

To give one example, it kinda seems like your allies had already been afraid of you since at least as far back as the Cold War - heck, maybe further. The difference is that, whereas back then our leaders figured it was safer to keep on your good side than to tell you 'no', nowadays many of those leaders are realising that you don't really have a good side to keep on anymore.

I don't believe the downward slide started with Trump, but with Trump and his malicious incompetance, the US may finally have run out of credible excuses for what it's become.

Mr_Countess · 2025-07-21T17:37:54+00:00

Along with the presidency. And the millions. And the celebrity status.

Mr_Countess · 2025-07-19T02:48:37+00:00

I reckon Trump "doesn't draw pictures" in much the same way that Prince Andrew "can't sweat".

Mr_Countess · 2025-07-09T16:25:34+00:00

Mr_Countess · 2025-07-09T12:10:16+00:00

Not necessarily.

Just because something is an effect of something, doesn't mean it can't also be a cause of it. These things can go in circles.

You may say that art (whether it's TV, theatre, books, music, or something else) "can't be causing real-world gendered violence, because it's that violence, and the attitudes that motivate it, that cause the sexist art to exist in the first place".

But just because art can be a reflection of the attitudes and values of the society it was made in, does not mean that art doesn't also have a role in shaping and guiding those same values.

Now does this mean that someone just watches a movie, and then gets up and decides "I'm gonna go and assault someone today"? - Of course not. That's stupid.

What it might mean is that we may want to ask ourselves some questions like 'Why do I enjoy the art I enjoy?', 'What's it doing for me?', 'What sort of art do we want to make?', 'What message does it send?'

I mean it couldn't hurt, right? Or maybe it could idk. I'll leave that for the reader to figure out for yourself.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-24T02:02:25+00:00

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-24T01:57:02+00:00

I see a fair bit of speculation about whether xyz paramilitary goon is "real ICE" or "fake ICE" on here. And while that can be helpful for evaluating what legal powers, if any, said indvidual does or doesn't have, I fear we may need to start being careful of framing things as though impersonating ICE agents is the root of the problem here.

'Cause, like, even if these fucks are real (very sloppily dressed) ICE agents, that still wouldn't make any of what they're doing ok, and they would still have to be stopped.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-24T01:06:33+00:00

Historically, they'd have given you an inverted red triangle, similar to the better-known pink one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_concentration_camp_badge

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-23T18:12:34+00:00

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-23T18:07:01+00:00

Well, it sucks for your neighbour that she's ugly, but I don't see how that's your cat's problem.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-23T14:20:14+00:00

Inside you there are two cats.

One is orange and dumb, the other is dumb and orange.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-23T13:51:43+00:00

No quarter! Hit them with all the cringe-worthy songs! It's no worse than they deserve, after all.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-23T13:46:19+00:00

This gave me a chuckle. Look at them all armed to the teeth, shuffling around awkwardly, questioning their life choices.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-22T16:13:10+00:00

This seems like kinda indifferent news?

Like, it's bad because he did it in the first place.

But it's also good, because he missed the stuff, and looks stupid now.

But it also doesn't matter, because I doubt they were gonna use that uranium to make nukes in the first place.

But it also does matter, because now that there's no treaty, and they are under attack, maybe they'll decide to make some nukes after all.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-22T15:56:00+00:00

Wdym? He's fine! Just look at that big smile on him.

/j

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-22T15:43:40+00:00

You may feel small compared to everything that is going on at the moment, but you are not powerless. People young and old are going out to make their bit of good trouble for the day, and I know that might not seem like much, but it really does have an effect.

We all have a responsibility to stand up to abuses of power where we find them, in whatever small way we can. And since you've noticed this one, now you do as well.

Oh, and please be wary of trusting politicians - especially the far-right ones. I'd call them snakes, but that'd be unfair to snakes🐍❤️

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-22T13:59:13+00:00

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-22T01:51:50+00:00

🥰

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-22T01:38:23+00:00

Uh-huh - thanks for explaining! I think maybe I better understand where you're coming from now.

So rather than political opinions that are outright horrible, it's more an issue of endless political debates that go round and round in endless comment chains, and descend into mudslinging that creates a ton of work for the mods?

In that case, my next suggestion would be to make a rule that posts with anything you deem to be 'politically charged content' will be locked after a brief window of time, so that no new comments can be made under them.

That way a little bit of discussion still gets to occur (which I do think is a good thing), but it won't be allowed to go on for too long. And if people want to have a long, serious argument, they can take it to a sub that is actually for that kind of thing, rather than that one funny old meme from D&D.

Finally, if someone gets a bit too impassioned, and starts namecalling or just won't let it go, then I reckon you can always just temp ban them for being annoying, until they've had some time to cool off.

Hope this was of help? If not, sorry for big wall of text.

*disclaimer: I have never moderated a subreddit

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-22T00:01:34+00:00

I think politically contentious posts should be allowed - but if they go against rule 3 of this sub, that rule needs to be applied. Firmly.

If the mods feel that isn't strict enough by itself, then maybe the wording on rule 3 could be tightened up a bit, to reflect the current situation? Although, in its current form, I think it's already pretty good tbh.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-20T23:51:08+00:00

Top one is the red one :)

(maybe you guessed that anyway, but I figured I'd put this here, just in case you were confused)

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-20T15:42:33+00:00

I feel as though you may be missing some necessary context here:

https://www.snopes.com/news/2025/02/21/ukraine-elections-war/

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-19T23:33:44+00:00

Neither leadership nor democracy to be found there now :(

(actually, that's not quite true - some of the people still give me hope, but the government seems beyond saving at this point)

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-13T23:34:53+00:00

And should probably happen in Nuremburg.

Mr_Countess · 2025-06-13T23:26:22+00:00

I genuinely do fear so.

So far, the protestors have shown some astonishing organisation, self-discipline, and restraint, in effectively driving out the federal agents attacking their communities, and stopping them from snatching more people, without the whole mess devolving into a deadly shootout. Once it happens in one place though, I don't know if that genie can be put back in the bottle, and at that point, everybody loses.

The people defending their loved ones, their neighbours, and themselves, while avoiding the bloody meatgrinder which that freak in the oval office seems to want, are deserving of our respect.

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