site banner
PaperclipPerfector  5d ago (text post)   18332 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of June 29, 2026

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.

2
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

Just out of curiosity, why 'Italian' brainrot?

Someone once told me I had to try Italian soda, so I did, and it was just soda. Then someone said I had to try '''gelato''' so I did and it was just mid ice cream. Neither point is probably relevant. Sometimes I think I just come here to get my rambling out before hitting real old age.

I can't speak to Italian brainrot, but Italian soda is just your basic syrups you might put in coffee, except put into seltzer. I don't know if it's really Italian, but it is good, and different from what I'd consider American soda to be, which is usually cola based and heavily sweetened and kinda proprietary.

Someone once told me I had to try Italian soda, so I did, and it was just soda

No it isn't. Italian Cola is more citrusy, less carbonated and slightly less sweet. I think they use more ppm from the flavor essence. It is also available in 500ml cans which is the right amount and packaging.

1.24L is the correct amount for us Americans.

You can always drink multiple cans and not lose carbonation.

Americans buy 2 liter bottles or 12 oz cans, I don't know where that's coming from.

An example supermarket webpage lists 1.25-liter (<del>12</del><ins>42.2</ins>-ounce) bottles of soda for sale.

Yeah, those are bought sometimes, but not as commonly as 12 oz ≈ 355 ml cans. But the smaller bottles are common at businesses or vending machines, where it's tacky or unexpected to buy a can rather than a bottle. So for instance a pizza parlor might offer a choice between a 2-liter or a 1.25 liter. (Also, 12 fluid ounces is much less than 1.25 liters.)

I've never been a fan of the 2-liter bottles because you have to use them quickly or they go flat, but they're bought commonly for parties, cookouts, as a way to get a lot of soda for several people at once.

Interestingly enough cans closer to the 500 ml can size in the US are associated mostly with energy drinks, only rarely soda. And of course there's the Arizona tallboy with 23 oz ≈ 680 ml, but you wouldn't buy a soda in that size.

Buh? 12 oz is not 1.25L, it is 355 mL.

Sorry, I got confused betwen the nutrition label (12 ounces or 355 milliliters per serving) and the bottle label (1.25 liters or 42.2 ounces).

Yup, they trip you up in that way. "That's way too much soda for one sitting!" "Well read the label, it has OVER THREE servings in it!"

Maybe it's just me, but I find the Italian sodas I've had to feel different carbonation-wise from American soda.

Similarly, yes, gelato is basically a type of ice cream, but that's like saying "someone told me I had to try Chicago deep dish, and I did, but it was just a mid thin-crust pizza."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_brainrot

It's a specific thing, not just brainrot that's Italian. It's these weird characters with Italian-sounding names and with Italian-language narration, which most of the audience doesn't understand but find funny. It's mostly to entertain kids. Same audience that Elsagate reached. Adults jumped on it ironically and it's just stupid all the way through. It's stupid to like it sincerely, stupid to like it ironically, stupid to get upset about it, stupid to even mention it. It just rots your brain upon contact in any way.

Regarding soda, I guess it's to distinguish it from "regular" soda, like Coke, Fanta, Sprite, which Americans call soda.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats