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PaperclipPerfector  9mo ago (text post)   35876 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of June 16, 2025

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I wrote here:

It just so happens to be that we don't see a world where the lack of slavery is causing all sorts of real world problems for individuals and societies. Plus all the good moral arguments and everything. Funny that, both those factors cut the other way for the instant question.

Perhaps see also this chain of comments by @FCfromSSC. He focused on porn in the last comment, but also:

...Conservative Christians no longer need to argue what might happen if the other side gets their way, but rather what has happened, and what results the other side is accountable for. Christians can now operate as a genuine counter-culture, offering a cogent critique of the conditions we are all living in every minute of every day. We can offer meaningful answers to the myriad discontents created by our present society, and through those answers coordinate the systematic withdrawal from and dismantling of that society.

But instead, you seem to want some specific predictions of specific mechanisms that are headline-style events. Things like:

If I wanted to argue that America could become communist, maybe I predict that AOC will finally wrest control of the rudderless Democratic Party.

These are kind of silly. "I predict that [POLITICIAN] will ascend and promote [THING]." Like, okay? Swap someone/something in there. I'm again not particularly interested in playing that silly game.

But instead, you seem to want some specific predictions of specific mechanisms that are headline-style events.

Headline-style events are probably the most effective way to shift public consensus, and were in the slavery example we keep going back to, but not a requirement. In the case of:

It just so happens to be that we don't see a world where the lack of slavery is causing all sorts of real world problems for individuals and societies.

Society doesn't seem to be paying attention to the claimed harms, and/or aren't attributing the problems in society to single parenthood. At least not to any statistically relevant degree. What would make them start now? That's why I mentioned "A point at which society realizes the status quo is unsustainable and agrees to a specific fix?"

FC's argument is actually a good example of what I was asking for, just missing which politician or group would have the interest and influence to push for something like surgeon general's warnings on porn. If Trump pushed for it he'd have a decent shot of passing legislation, but he doesn't strike me as interested in the least. And there seems to be a huge popularity gap between Trump and, well, just about anyone in the Republican Party.

Society doesn't seem to be paying attention to the claimed harms

We conveniently got a new top-level comment a couple hours ago.

For the sake of good faith, I'll count it. Thank you.

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