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Notes -
Respectfully, isn't this just a refusal to employ conflict theory? I might be missing your point entirely because you don't really specify what you mean by "revenge narratives".
It seems entirely obvious to me that in an outright conflict between opposed groups, principle (i.e., mistake theory) doesn't need to enter the picture at all for "revenge" to make perfect sense. Revenge, as in a direct attack on the opponent's ability to wage the culture war, either by demonstrating that they cannot follow through on their promises, or that they are too weak to protect their confederates, or by eliminating their actors directly. But maybe I'm missing your point - direct culture warfare needn't be "revenge" for prior slights; one may also strike with initative.
I absolutely believe that in politics, the merits of a given idea are almost perfectly irrelevant. Especially in a representative democracy with elections every few years, where voters are memoriless idiots and politicans are necessarily sociopathic opportunists. The entire system selects for media impact, not merit. There is no mechanism for determining merit. Yes it looks good and virtuous when a principled individual takes the stage and makes his case, and we can nod along sagely, but when the chips are down and it comes to casting ballots, 9 out of 10 people will monkey-brain it and vote for whomever stuck in their memory as being on their tribal side.
I'm not saying that this is good or desirable, or that there is a better way, or that either side is wrong or right. Just...please acknowledge that there is an ongoing conflict, not just mistakes being made.
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