This weekly roundup thread is intended for all culture war posts. 'Culture war' is vaguely defined, but it basically means controversial issues that fall along set tribal lines. Arguments over culture war issues generate a lot of heat and little light, and few deeply entrenched people ever change their minds. This thread is for voicing opinions and analyzing the state of the discussion while trying to optimize for light over heat.
Optimistically, we think that engaging with people you disagree with is worth your time, and so is being nice! Pessimistically, there are many dynamics that can lead discussions on Culture War topics to become unproductive. There's a human tendency to divide along tribal lines, praising your ingroup and vilifying your outgroup - and if you think you find it easy to criticize your ingroup, then it may be that your outgroup is not who you think it is. Extremists with opposing positions can feed off each other, highlighting each other's worst points to justify their own angry rhetoric, which becomes in turn a new example of bad behavior for the other side to highlight.
We would like to avoid these negative dynamics. Accordingly, we ask that you do not use this thread for waging the Culture War. Examples of waging the Culture War:
-
Shaming.
-
Attempting to 'build consensus' or enforce ideological conformity.
-
Making sweeping generalizations to vilify a group you dislike.
-
Recruiting for a cause.
-
Posting links that could be summarized as 'Boo outgroup!' Basically, if your content is 'Can you believe what Those People did this week?' then you should either refrain from posting, or do some very patient work to contextualize and/or steel-man the relevant viewpoint.
In general, you should argue to understand, not to win. This thread is not territory to be claimed by one group or another; indeed, the aim is to have many different viewpoints represented here. Thus, we also ask that you follow some guidelines:
-
Speak plainly. Avoid sarcasm and mockery. When disagreeing with someone, state your objections explicitly.
-
Be as precise and charitable as you can. Don't paraphrase unflatteringly.
-
Don't imply that someone said something they did not say, even if you think it follows from what they said.
-
Write like everyone is reading and you want them to be included in the discussion.
On an ad hoc basis, the mods will try to compile a list of the best posts/comments from the previous week, posted in Quality Contribution threads and archived at /r/TheThread. You may nominate a comment for this list by clicking on 'report' at the bottom of the post and typing 'Actually a quality contribution' as the report reason.

Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
COULD IT BE that there are other forms of suffering than lack of excessive material prosperity?
Have you tried finding a spouse, raising a family, or buying a home lately? Have you tried finding a good career? Particularly if you're young enough to be competing with AI for entry-level positions? Have you tried finding a healthy community to be a part of?
By the grace of God I have succeeded in all these categories. But I can see the writing on the wall and now I'm terrified about the world in which my children are growing up.
Lots of people seem to be settling into pod life. Thin gray walls, netflix, delivery slop, no (or exclusively poor) romantic relationships, sterile sex only, if any. They do not know their neighbors. The prospect of ever having property or children -- especially multiple children -- recedes farther into the realm of fantasy every day. There is no unifying identity; no shared values. Just alienated fragments of what used to be a collective human organism, dying in infantilized isolation. More and more turn to substance abuse just to feel okay for a little while. Others turn to increasingly-radical political movements which blame the pain and horror of modernity on the other side. This is about to get much, much worse.
Man does not live by bread alone.
More options
Context Copy link