J OdellNov 17, 2023
I moved to Mastodon.social

I want to follow up on the reason I see so much anger and cynicism.

(The anger isn't directed at me. It looks like this: "Trump is above the law! There is no accountability! The DOJ dragged its feet!")

There were some interesting comments about why I see so much of it.

I'll add another: People assume that I am liberal and in the same information bubble and therefore, I will agree with them when they repeat the current memes.

It's a group-think thing.

1/

Nov 17, 2023 at 11:01pmWeb
Show threadI moved to Mastodon.socialNov 17, 2023

They are unprepared for the shock of me pushing back.

I've been on lots of podcasts. They generally go well.

I agreed to do two that did not go well.

What happened was that the person interviewing me was shocked when the host repeated the latest meme, I didn't agree with it.

I was supposed to act like a reflector on cable talk shows and I didn't.

(One was being recorded, so I could stop it in the middle and cancel. Another was live so I had to suffer through a brutal 20 minutes).

2/

Show threadOggieNov 17, 2023

@Teri_Kanefield
I generally modeled you as 'liberal' in the sense of where you would stand on a few basic are-these-really-issues (LGBT people having basic rights, etc), but that's really stretching because of the current weirdly set up R/D stuff going on in the US.

I'll be entirely honest, most of your stuff that bleeds through is a deep respect for law, jurisprudence, and disregard for stupidity. I don't think that prepares me for any judgement on your personal ideology.

Show threadRoadskater, Ph.D.Nov 17, 2023
@Oggie @Teri_Kanefield
I may have made similar assumptions. But what I respect is someone who coherently discusses what's happening from a basis that here's the evidence, here's the law, and here's the procedure, and yeah all that takes more time than you'd guess. All the many folks out there who think justice arrives with the wave of a fairy wand drive me nuts.
Show threadOlympia IndivisibleNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield Stay authentic! We love you!
Show threadwijfiNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield
The push back is also why I'm following you. And I'm sure many others too.
Show threadMercurius GoldsteinNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield
The depth of your professional integrity and experience is apparent in everything you post.
That you are so generous with it is our boon.
If it makes some people uncomfortable or provokes them to ungracious comments, that’s a they problem.
Show threadDave VolekNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield
I had my first podcast interview three weeks ago. It went well.
But this is good reminder that future podcasts might not be so friendly. I hope I'm prepared.
Show threadKathy MortensenNov 18, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield
So sorry you had to go through it.
Can you explain how Trump is not an officer of government as ruled in CO? I do not understand. Cheers. Hang in there. Most of us adore you. We count!
Show threadRickey JamesNov 18, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield As a lifelong liberal, I, too, have encountered fellow liberals who get upset if I provide a differing perspective in order to defuse some of that reflexive outrage. But I feel it’s important to remind folks that not everything is as black or white as we want it to be - these issues are quite complex. So keep it up, Teri! I don’t always fully agree with you either (just 95% of the time), but I wouldn’t trade your posts for a golden monkey!
Show threadPhoto Ewen 📷Nov 18, 2023

@Teri_Kanefield

I've noticed a LOT of folks these days are keen to label people as "left" or "liberal" or "progressive" as though we've chosen a football team to root for. Seems to be a very shallow way to categorise a total stranger. But that's the internet huh.

A good many people, however, end up looking like lefties simply because we took the time to consider the implications of policies or govts instead of just rooting for a team.

No "sides" of politics is above criticism.

Show threadDaniel EllisNov 19, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield Have you not been on cable TV lately? Was it MSNBC, CNN, or both? I assume the lack of you being a reflector just resulted in them not really calling you back rather than them explicitly saying they were disappointed?
Show threadLAURENNov 17, 2023

@Teri_Kanefield This type of reaction and expectation is habit developed over the last 7 years. Reaction and reply. Reaction and reply. We all need therapy to undo this nonproductive behavior pattern.

See what I mean 😬

Show threadJoe BeamNov 17, 2023
@noondlyt @Teri_Kanefield
I just want people to think.
There is an absence of rationale and empathy in these absurd times.
People vote with their ass, not with their head.
Show threadLAURENNov 18, 2023
@JoeBeam @Teri_Kanefield They have fallen asleep in a field of poppies.
Show threadMarcNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield
If you expose the fact that almost all Americans, whether they regard themselves as liberal or conservative, are trapped in a misinformation bubble, you have to expect anger!
Show threadI moved to Mastodon.socialNov 17, 2023

@prairiedog But of course, the two bubbles are not at all the same.

On the right, disinformation is deliberately deployed as a tool to consolidate power and as an anti-democratic weapon.

On the left, the misinformation happens because of the nature of our current information disruption and the complexity of our legal and political system.

(I actually have a book coming out on disinformation soon with Macmillan, so I've thought about this.)

Show threadPamela EhnNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield @prairiedog I like that you push back. I may consider myself left, but I despise group-think and don’t like it when my side falls down a misinformation rabbit-hole. I’ve been pushing back very hard on the idea that the DOJ has been dragging its feet when from my perspective, they’ve been blisteringly fast. And I was doing that before I started following you, so it’s basically for moral support because I know im right. Better things be done deliberately and correctly rather than a fast acquittal. But even on other things: I consider myself a diehard feminist and I was just telling someone at lunch today that much of feminist theory is bunk. That doesn’t mean feminism is bunk, just that some of the people who theorize about it are cray. (I suspect a number of leftists are cray too.)
Show threadMarcNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield
I agree that the two bubbles are not identical, but I don't think it's as simple as intentional disinformation vs unintentional misinformation. (Maybe I'll feel differently after I've had a chance to read your new book. 😀) There is a difference in how porous (if that's the correct metaphor) each bubble is.
Just to consider the war in Gaza: the Biden Administration, as I see it, largely perpetuates Israeli government disinformation. But liberal media like the NY Times, Washington Post, & NY Times, although clearly sympathetic to this view, are also skeptical enough to question the disinformation.
Show threadMatt BlazeNov 17, 2023

@Teri_Kanefield I remember after January 6th people were confidently proclaiming that the rioters would get away with it and that the authorities would find every excuse not to prosecute. That never made sense to me. There were cops seriously injured and killed. Even the worst police departments investigate the hell out of *that*.

And in fact, there was an enormous investigation, with hundreds of convictions, often with serious jail time, with more in the pipeline. ...

Show threadMatt BlazeNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield As for Trump himself, it's grinding slowly, but it's clearly grinding on. It makes sense that prosecutors would be slow, cautious and deliberate with him. He's a former president and current candidate. But it was clearly a mistake for people to have confused slow and deliberate action with inaction.
Show threadBruceNov 17, 2023

@mattblaze @Teri_Kanefield

I'm completely fine with the insurrection delays. What I question is all the illegality that was (to all appearances) allowed to slip past the SOLs (viz the 2015/16 campaign finance law violations & the inauguration party grifting). Either there have been "activities in furtherance" that we don't know about or they just decided to let that stuff go. Which? Why?

Show threadMatt BlazeNov 17, 2023
@Teri_Kanefield Anyway, the fact that *you* of all people get shit about *this* of all things is just nutso.
Show threadJChristensenANov 17, 2023
@mattblaze @Teri_Kanefield I think that perception was a result of the previous 4 years of Trump's presidency vis a vis his meddling with the DOJ with impunity.
Show threadlnmnkatzNov 18, 2023
@mattblaze @Teri_Kanefield I would think that things "grinding on" slowly would have a more devastating effect on Mr. Trump's fragile ego than lots of showy events.
Show threadJonah SteinNov 18, 2023
@mattblaze @Teri_Kanefield But sadly lacking in Felony Murder charges. If the defendants hadn't been GOP soldiers then sure we would see large groups of them facing capital murder charges for conspiring to commit a felony that resulted in the death of member of law enforcement.
Show threadDaniel LakelandNov 18, 2023

@Teri_Kanefield

I mean I get the part about being annoyed by the current memes and I often find myself annoyed to be pigeonholed by meme-based political thinkers, but I find it hard to believe you aren't basically a fan of Liberalism as described here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism so I'm not sure I'm reading your comment correctly?

Liberalism - Wikipedia