where will you go when you cant afford london?

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
Cheers for that post, I found it illuminating and I daresay what you've described might well be more common than I've allowed. I think perhaps what bugs me so much about this Kriss guy (gal, whatever) is not only the enormous sanctimoniousness, but the fact that it's hipsterish (ha, yes!) second-order sanctimoniousness, aimed mainly at people who are, or who he perceives to be, sanctimonious in a more straightforward way. A bit like how the right-wing press in this country specializes in moral outrage, while the left-wing press specializes in moral outrage at the right-wing press's moral outrage.

Haha, my secret evil plan has worked IT WORKED! MWUHAHAHA!!!

Thanks, glad to know it wasn't just formless ramblings that I thought were coherent. Yeah, sanctimony can definitely grate. One of my bugbears is people whose political actions/opinions I respect greatly, but who also use these in a sanctimonious way to make others (who may very well be sympathetic to the cause) feel inferior. Activist oneupmanship, quickly becomes just the same as any other kind of oneupmanship.
 

Mr. Tea

Let's Talk About Ceps
It's more than just a problem, it's a cancer eating the Left alive from the inside. The Right doesn't even have to attack anymore, they can just sit back and watch these lunatics tearing each other apart on social media for the crime of unchecked privilege or devoting themselves to policing everyone's langauge while neoliberalism and authoritarian government rumble on virtually unimpeded. It's a disaster.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
Who are you thinking of on social media in particular - famous/semi-famous people on twitter, or just general chat on facebook etc?

What irks me (and which is related) is the lack of common cause amongst people who are oppressed in different ways, and the frequent inability of the left to 'do' basic organisation (e.g. the month's postponement of the big anti-austerity protest planned for the weekend after the Tories got in, allegedly because two leftist groups involved couldn't coordinate due to ego issues - that's what I heard anyways...)
 
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Mr. Tea

Let's Talk About Ceps
Who are you thinking of on social media in particular - famous/semi-famous people on twitter, or just general chat on facebook etc?

Bit of both, really. It's just really sad that progressive politics is supposed to be based on values such as inclusivity, plurality, tolerance and cooperation, yet increasingly seems to be dominated by people who demonstrate precisely the opposite qualities. Time and again I've seen people who clearly regard themselves as the last word in radicalism and right-on-ness show themselves up to be more intolerant, judgmental, prejudiced and narrow-minded than pretty much any notionally 'conservative' person I've ever met. And it would be one thing if all this bile was aimed at people or organizations that really are perpetuating bigotry and inequality, but it often seems that the closer you are in ideology to people like this, the more likely they are to decide you're a THOUGHT ENEMY and must be publicly and righteously excoriated. (c.f. droid's Wiki link earlier in this thread)

The fact that Twitter encourages (in fact, utterly thrives upon) instant snap judgements and the dopamine reward-circuit rush of feeling like you have MADE A DIFFERENCE by bashing out some self-righteous invective after reading half a headline is a big part of the problem, but has been examined to death and probably isn't worth going into here.

What irks me (and which is related) is the lack of common cause amongst people who are oppressed in different ways, and the frequent inability of the left to 'do' basic organisation (e.g. the month's postponement of the big anti-austerity protest planned for the weekend after the Tories got in, allegedly because two leftist groups involved couldn't coordinate due to ego issues - that's what I heard anyways...)

Sounds like you've noticed much the same general phenomenon.

Also, Laurrie Penny. Christ on a bike.


A few years ago I'd have risen to that. Come on luka, you can troll harder than that!
 
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