General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: WillyT has been banned. [View all]senz
(11,945 posts)for the present environment. There is a positive hostility here toward any attempt to discuss what's going on at a broader level. I used to think the inability to see the big picture was a rightwing characteristic created through decades of propaganda. It's called "socially constructed reality," and I rejected the notion for ages until acquiescing to its validity. It's entirely natural, has been going on for ages, but can be very dangerous in the hands of the unprincipled, as anyone who's tried to talk followers of Limbaugh, et. al. can attest. Rightwing theorists like Newt Gingrich, Karl Rove, and especially Frank Luntz have almost perfected the art of dumbing people down and handing them ready-made realities. I wish there were a "meta" forum where progressives could talk freely about what's happening to our culture.
That photo of the white rat cowering in a corner of its open cage? It's called learned helplessness. I was there once upon a time. You really can't move. You don't know what to do.