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 -
From a Christian standpoint, the whole world is essentially the domain of Satan and his demons. For instance, Satan is referred to as the 'prince' of the world, and offers worldly power to Jesus when he tempts him.
Certainly, many physical events are not tied to the action of angels and demons, since the world generally follows material laws. But Christians will talk often about 'spiritual warfare', which is when the influence of demonic forces coming against the will of God or the work of the Holy Spirit. Because the world is fallen, the demons have influence here, and it seems that this is the way God has set things up. He could, of course, redeem the world and cast down all the demons - indeed, He has promised that He will do this when Jesus returns - but until then, the demons continue to have influence. I would also argue that most demonic influence comes through people, not through them causing earthquakes or the like (disease might fall somewhere in the middle).
As to why this is a helpful view? Firstly, if it's true then it will help you understand the world. Second, it accurately describes how many people act. The 'demonic' is often seen in self-interest, cruelty or callousness, the kind of behavior that we pretend is not normal. Having a perspective that includes the demonic will allow you to better predict human behavior, because it overcomes a positivity bias that many people have i.e. 'thinking the best of people'. Thirdly, people have better psychological outcomes if they see purpose in the things that happen to them. This is a bit of a cynical take, but it can actually be more healthy for many people to believe in demons than to believe that bad things happen with no reason.
More options
Context Copy link