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Small-Scale Question Sunday for March 31, 2024

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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I was reading Javiér Bardem's Wikipedia page and found this little quote:

During the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, Bardem and Cruz signed an open letter denouncing Israel's actions as genocide.

Weird that you could change the "1" to a "2" and the sentence would still make perfect sense. Are we in the "tragedy" or "farce" stage of history repeating?

The insistence on referring to the conflict as "genocide" stands out as one of the best examples of how everything needs to be ramped up to 11 at all times. It's not enough for people to declare that they think Israel is being too aggressive and should have a more proportionate response, or even that Israel has a long-run goal of conquering Gaza and the West Bank, they need to believe that there is a plot to literally eradicate Palestinian people. With each new issue that comes up, I increasingly find myself struggling to treat my opponents like they've even trying to engage in a good-faith analysis of the world.