Mother BonesNov 17, 2024

Getting older does not cause conservatism. That is a myth promoted by conservatives.

[H/T to @mattalhonte for the referenced article: "Seniors Are More #Conservative Because the #Poor Don’t Survive to Become #Seniors, By Ed Kilgore"]

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/05/poor-people-often-dont-survive-to-become-seniors-who-vote.html

Poor People Often Don’t Survive To Become Seniors Who Vote

A new study suggests that one reason seniors are more conservative politically than younger cohorts of Americans is that poorer people don’t live as long and suffer from health conditions that inhibit voting and other forms of political activity.

Intelligencer
Show threadBrambleBearGrrraulingNov 17, 2024

@_L1vY_ @mattalhonte

Raised a lib, got more radical with each decade. Paying attention will do that to you. The truth will piss you off.

Show threadIanto JonesNov 18, 2024
@BrambleBearGrrrauwling @_L1vY_ @mattalhonte my experience precisely. When younger I likely had more conservative influences, but never strayed that way even then. The ones who become more conservative with age are the insufferably selfish and racist.
Show threadAlex@rtnVFRmedia Suffolk UKJan 22, 2025
@ianto_jones @BrambleBearGrrrauwling @_L1vY_ @mattalhonte in countries with nationalised healthcare there's a few more left-wing seniors; but even here those on the Left who chose more risky/hedonistic lifestyles (especially if tobacco, alcohol and drugs were part of them) don't always make it to their 70s whereas a genuinely socially/religious conservative who avoided these temptations lives to 90-100+ (but even then the fact national healthcare exists tends to shift them to the centre)
Show threadHilaryJan 22, 2025

@vfrmedia @ianto_jones @BrambleBearGrrrauwling @_L1vY_ @mattalhonte

Health inequalities are largely due neither to lifestyle choices nor access to care. Being poor and disadvantaged is bad for one's health.

Show threadAlex@rtnVFRmedia Suffolk UKJan 22, 2025
@regordane @ianto_jones @BrambleBearGrrrauwling @_L1vY_ @mattalhonte its also the case that those who "settle down" (i.e conform to societies requirements) at least by middle age if not late youth are less likely to end up poor and disadvantaged (I've seen both upward and downward social mobility amongst my own peer group)
Show threadHilaryJan 22, 2025

@vfrmedia @ianto_jones @BrambleBearGrrrauwling @_L1vY_ @mattalhonte

I very much disagree with the rhetoric of "settling down" or "conforming" but yes, those who become rich and successful are likely to enjoy improved health and are probably also more likely to adopt right-wing views.

Show threadAlex@rtnVFRmedia Suffolk UKJan 22, 2025
@regordane @ianto_jones @BrambleBearGrrrauwling @_L1vY_ @mattalhonte I've seen this at first hand amongst folk I know from the rave/party scene - many from this scene were forced into sobriety due to harsher law enforcement (particularly against DUI and middle class drug use), have "settled down" but also gone down a weird rabbithole of healthier eating/lifestyles mixed in with various right-wing conspiracy theories (also fed by paranoia over ULEZ and Covid lockdowns)
Show threadNadia ☮️🍉🌲🐷🐮🐾
@vfrmedia
The more economically comfortable someone is the more they believe they have the right to protect and keep all their material comfort (And their family)...
Even people who say they're "liberal" or "progressive" seem disconnected/ unaware of the ways in which they participate in society that reinforce the status quo and the very things they say they're against.
Fear stops people from acting to change that which they benefit from even when they know it causes harm to others.
Feb 1 at 1:19amWeb