You're absolutely correct that history helps you see that none of this is new. However, is it better to be the person who sees the waterfall their boat is inevitably going to go over, or the person completely ignorant of it until it happens?

▲

mindwok a day ago | parent | next [-]

If we look at history, humanity has been through some pretty crazy shit and we haven't gone over the waterfall yet.

▲

watwut 12 hours ago | parent | next [-]

I dont want to go through ANY of that crazy shit. And I dont want my kids to go through it either. And based on hostory, violent, cruel, oppressive shit can take looong time a hit huge amounts of people.

	▲	mindwok 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Nobody in history wanted to either. Unfortunately we don’t get a choice.

▲

johnnyanmac 15 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

On the contrary: we've fall off waterfalls every few decades or so. Humanity simply survives and moves on, taking maybe 2% more caution for the next waterfalll

▲

JumpCrisscross a day ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> see that none of this is new

But this is. This sort of violent partisanship that self ensconces around identity versus issues is exactly what tears apart democracies and republics.

▲

suttontom 14 hours ago | parent | next [-]

"B-b-but this really is new!" The USA did have a Civil War. It was so violent that it killed more Americans than all other wars combined.

▲

card_zero 14 hours ago | parent [-]

Message unclear. You're saying the USA is an old hand at civil wars now and could do another one any time, no problem? Or perhaps I shouldn't look for a message.

	▲	suttontom 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		I misconstrued "new" with "this is the worst it's ever been."

▲

johnnyanmac 15 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

This isn't new either. The tools and technology are new. The strategies and psychologies aren't.

Even the identity part isn't new; even among Caucasian males only, see how many times society's woes will be blamed on whatever convinient immigrant there is in that period.

▲

ChickeNES a day ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> However, is it better to be the person who sees the waterfall their boat is inevitably going to go over, or the person completely ignorant of it until it happens?

Neither, it's better to be the person who realizes we're in for a bright future no matter what doomers think.

▲

II2II a day ago | parent | prev [-]

It's more like, is it better to be the person who:

- sees a waterfall in every river, even when one is not there?

- sees the waterfall, and is resigned about their fate?

- sees the waterfall, then struggles for survival no matter how hopeless the situation seems to be?

- is completely ignorant of the waterfall?

	▲	rightbyte 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		"sees the waterfall, then struggles for survival no matter how hopeless the situation seems to be?" You could consider that a variant of the voter's dilemma.