Kolya on 14/4/2017 at 16:31
Shitstorms happen all the time and hyperbole, lack of fact checking, band wagoning and holier than thou attitudes are their hallmarks. I don't see what your "virtue signalling" theory brings to the table here. Especially since it doesn't even try to explain these group dynamics. Instead it's transparently just a tool to target a specific group of people that you dislike.
SubJeff on 14/4/2017 at 17:47
What people are these then?
Kolya on 14/4/2017 at 22:42
I don't think there is a specific group of people who does this. They're normal everyday people who mean well. They're less likely to be old internauts like you and me, who know about filter bubbles, Streisand effects, manipulated polls and message permanence. More likely they consume computer mediated communication, unaware of its nature and pitfalls. So they sign a petition that sounds reasonable and get an emotional high on their perceived self-efficacy when their topic is trending on twitter.
If I had to name one thing they have in common it's their solid conviction that 99% of people (outside of their own personal circle) are either completely stupid, depraved or dangerous frauds. They fear the world is falling apart because of that. So when they address the rest of the world they feel this messianic sense of mission which ends up as unbearable patronising.
In their eyes the BoE tried to fool them - and they would have gotten away with it too, if they weren't so much smarter and vigilant than most of the sheeple out there!
It's all just basic human deficits exploding under the looking glass of the internet that you otherwise would hardly notice. It's aunt Judy feeling empowered.
SubJeff on 15/4/2017 at 06:06
Wow.
And you say I generalise? Ha ha.
But if you're right you paint a bleak picture. It's the kind of thing that an alien civilization would say "Hmmm, maybe we should destroy them then?" about.
Kolya on 15/4/2017 at 10:09
I just listed a few motivations that I can imagine leading to the phenomenon of shitstorms over minor ill-informed factoids and more generally the flood of online posts/comments/tweets/etc written apparently by lonely last men standing against the onslaught of a savage loco world out there.
I don't think it's a sign of failing civilisation at all, it's just our old monkey brains trying to deal with rapidly evolving technology that tends to emphasize the loudest and worst of us. Not least because any tech that works among a small group of academically trained liberals in Silicon Valley or San Francisco is considered to be fit for the world, or just thrown out there to see if it sticks. And when it turned out connecting everyone with everyone had huge negative social repercussions they gave us the finger. And it was an erect thumb. Content rating isn't a solution though, it's the manifest lack of a solution. Compare this to the multitude of reactions you can give to some guy in a sloganeering t-shirt walking down the street.
nickie on 17/4/2017 at 17:44
Surprisingly, (
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/brexit-voters_uk_58f47aefe4b0da2ff8619ddb) Brexit Voters Respond Angrily To News EU Agencies Will Withdraw From UK Within Weeks.
Quote:
Brexit voters have responded angrily to news that EU diplomats are plotting to withdraw flagship agencies from Britain ‘within weeks’.
The Daily Express reported the move was a ‘Brexit punishment’ - despite admitting the loss of the European Banking Authority and the European Medical Agency (EMA) was inevitable after the triggering of Article 50.
Readers of the paper who voted Leave reacted with outrage.
One wonders what people expected.
Renzatic on 17/4/2017 at 21:01
Quote Posted by nickie
One wonders what people expected.
Apparently something without consequences.
Starker on 17/4/2017 at 21:29
Yeah, why would EU institutions like these be located anywhere else than in the EU?
nickie on 18/4/2017 at 10:30
(
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-39628713) Snap general election could be on the menu for 8th June.
Quote:
Theresa May says that the only way to "guarantee certainty and stability for the years ahead is to hold this election and seek your support for the decisions I must take".
I wasn't expecting that. It's only just been announced so I'm still getting my head round ramifications.
Gryzemuis on 18/4/2017 at 11:07
Quote Posted by nickie
(
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-39628713) Snap general election could be on the menu for 8th June.
I wasn't expecting that. It's only just been announced so I'm still getting my head round ramifications.
This is what I wrote a year ago.
Quote Posted by Gryzemuis
Cameron will resign. (Already happened, I just read).
An interim-government will take over.
The interim-government will arrage new elections. These will take at least a year.
The interim-government will start work on actually leaving the EU.
The interim-government will say: "we take the voters in the referendum so seriously, we will already start implementing new laws for them". There will be slightly more border patrol in Dover and Calais. Maybe a few illegal immigrants will be deported (with lots of press attending, but low numbers of immigrants). A few new arrangements with the EU will be made. The UK will pay a little less money to the EU. Etc.
A new government will be in place in 18-24 months.
The new government will say: "the majority of Brits have voted for us. we believe a brexit is against the interest of the british people. we believe the majority of brits have changed their view on the issue. we believe the new laws have satisfied their wishes. we think a brexit is not necessary anymore. the referendum had only an advisery role, and was not binding".
The UK stays in the EU.I was a bit surprised when Brexit seemed to actually move forward after the referendum. It seemed the EU was pushing more than the UK was pushing. I had not expected that. The EU commission seemed dead set to kick the UK out of the EU ASAP. And to try to make the consequences as bad and painful as possible for the UK. Just to set an example, and scare other countries from trying or threatening to leave the EU as well.
But now the UK is back on track. :) New government. More delay. We'll see what happens. Personally I still think chances are less than 50/50 that Brexit will really happen.
