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[kxo]

I'm not even a Christian anymore and this sent me into a rage.
You know, maybe I need to think of Beck like I think of Coulter; as a more subtle--but no less satirical--version of Stephen Colbert. I mean, no one is really that stupid, right?

Right?!

Comments

to sum up: ignore everything you hear on tv, see in movies, read in newspapers & magazines, etc etc

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during george w. bush's time in office, one of his speechwriters wrote him a harsh 'family values' speech for him that was mostly about denouncing gay marriage. george bush looked over the speech, and then told the guy to write something else because he wasnt going to tell some kid in the audience he can't get married.

george w. bush did that.

but he could never say that as president, because money was at stake. so he rode the horse that was the prettiest.

this is what all media is. taylor swift, glenn beck, stephen colbert, the people on the news, your local government, beck the musician, zooey deschanel, edward norton, george clooney, rush limbaugh, judge judy, all of them make money being X, whatever X is for their fans. because thats what makes money.

if we found out how untrue the world we think we live in is, we'd be shocked to the point of rioting.

related youtube:

Re: to sum up: ignore everything you hear on tv, see in movies, read in newspapers & magazines,

[kxo]

I can't watch that video while at work, sorry. But yeah, I know most these people are getting paid to do what they do, but that doesn't mean that they're reasonable when they're off the clock. With some people in the media, I can't help but think they're just earning a paycheck when they say far-out shit (I'm looking at you, Ann Coulter and Bill O'Reilly), but with others, I see no reason to think they're doing more than maybe exagerating their actual opinions.

Honestly, I think very few Americans would be shocked--even fewer to the point of rioting--to learn that the world we're used to is largely a facade. We know our actors, politicians, bankers, priests, and CEOs are all lying to us. Would it really be such a blow to add a few more people to that list?

Re: to sum up: ignore everything you hear on tv, see in movies, read in newspapers & magazin

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"I see no reason to think they're doing more than maybe exagerating their actual opinions."

but when the exaggeration is at glenn beck levels, the person he is irl cannot be near who he is on air.

"I think very few Americans would be shocked... to learn that the world we're used to is largely a facade"

this is because you underestimate how fabricated our whole existences are (not that you dont know). its like this: most people KNOW wal*mart sucks, but they dont really know how much it sucks. its not just about sweat shops, or mom & pop shops, or materialism. its much, much bigger than that.

im always shocked when my clients ask me if i can do anything for them in a month. but then i remember that they just dont know. theyve never built a website; from their pov, it looks like it takes a few seconds. just photoshop that shit and then go play xbox.

this is how we are about everything. until you live something, you dont really know that much about it. (not you-you, but the gen you)

Re: to sum up: ignore everything you hear on tv, see in movies, read in newspapers & mag

[kxo]

but when the exaggeration is at glenn beck levels, the person he is irl cannot be near who he is on air.

I know lots of people like that IRL, actually. Maybe it's because I grew up in a religious family in Central Florida, but maybe a quarter of the people I regularly came in contact with back home expressed opinions like the ones Beck espouses.

this is because you underestimate how fabricated our whole existences are

I'm sure pretty much everyone does to some extent. But I think the difference between my perspective and yours is that you think people would care if they knew the full extent of it. And why should they care? All those dirty consequences are so far away or so long delayed that nobody but the most empathetic and guilt-ridden would care to lift a finger to make substantial changes.

Re: to sum up: ignore everything you hear on tv, see in movies, read in newspapers &

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"I know lots of people like that IRL, actually. Maybe it's because I grew up in a religious family in Central Florida, but maybe a quarter of the people I regularly came in contact with back home expressed opinions like the ones Beck espouses."

"But I think the difference between my perspective and yours is that you think people would care if they knew the full extent of it. And why should they care?"

put those 2 together. if people really do think that way, then they would care to find out that what they believe is not true, and theyve been fooled into believing it.

or, alternatively, if people DONT really feel that way, and they wouldnt be surprised or motivated to rebel when they find out things theyve been told are not true, then glenn beck is not who he pretends to be.

also, my original comment was meant to cheer you up, not start an argument. i felt i was expressing the same exact opinion as you (that glenn beck & other uber conservatives are not really like that), so im not sure why this has snowballed this way.

TLDR I am an optimistic little ray of sunshine! :D

[kxo]

I didn't know we were arguing, sorry. This wasn't supposed to be an argument, I swear! My original post was supposed to be humorous, sort of like, "I'm tearing out my hair over here because Glenn Beck is such a dumbfuck!" I really do think he is one of those rare media conservatives who isn't just throwing BS out there for the paycheck.

Anyway, people are capable of going to incredible lengths to reconcile their world view with their environment. Even if all the illusions we live with were suddenly revealed, we're entrenched in this system and surrounded by so many immediate reinforcers for tolerating it and immediate punishers for stepping out of line. If the only reason a person has for changing their behavior is some vague notion of the superiority of a state of existence with minimal artificiality, how can that compete with the comforts of their current environment? I don't mean to be rude, but your own existence is evidence of this. If you know the full extent of the deception you're talking about and you cared enough to act,

Re: TLDR I am an optimistic little ray of sunshine! :D

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"If you know the full extent of the deception you're talking about and you cared enough to act, you'd be rioting right now, or you would have cut yourself out of the system completely

Re: TLDR I am an optimistic little ray of sunshine! :D

[kxo]

I feel like this discussion became about more than just the media a few comments ago, so to respond as if all I was saying was "Don't watch TV" fails to address the underlying issue. Perhaps I didn't communicate clearly enough, but what I was trying to say was that we, as members of this society, are complicit in our own ignorance, the ignorance of others, and the horrible things that are done to maintain that ignorance. I'm not going to say that living your life the way you've chosen is bad, but I will say that everyone who passively enjoys the benefits of this society, rather than actively fighting against it, is responsible for its perpetuation. People who are genuinely ignorant of the nature of the system (I will continue to use that word, as it refers to more than just social security numbers and library cards) can't really be held accountable for this, but honestly, it isn't just my education that allows me to see that people willfully deceive others. If that is an issue of privilege, it is only in that I am fortunate enough to

Re: to sum up: ignore everything you hear on tv, see in movies, read in newspapers & magazines,

[recommendation]

i think youre underestimating yourself, as well.

i flipped out at my parents for watching dr oz, and they couldnt figure out why i was so upset. its easier to just not think about it than it is to think about it, so most people really have no idea.

which is how the powers that be get away with it over and over and over again.

Re: to sum up: ignore everything you hear on tv, see in movies, read in newspapers & magazines,

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oh, and the video is just green screening in tv shows. its not like anything that will change your life or whatever.

unless you watch ugly betty.