i give you - the Daily Fail!

[pilvikki]

the rubbish they dish out is unreal!

http://inktank.fi/13-reasons-why-the-da ... ilest-rag/

[yogi]

Of late there has been a lot of attention paid to "fake news" in this country. Most of the complaints are political in origins, but there re a lot of people who rely on the likes of the Daily Mail for their news on current events. Oddly enough, it's the Right Wingnut Conservatives who tend to promote that crap in this country too.

[pilvikki]

rather baffling, were not the Right Wingnuts originally the conservatives?

[yogi]

The conservative minded folks of this country are commonly known as the Right Wing. Liberals are on the Left, of course. It seems that conservatives tend to be more dramatic and ultra in their assertions and beliefs, thus the modification of "Wingnuts" being added to their description. There are many tactics used by the extremists; fake news is but one of them. It all resolves down to flawed critical thinking and cognitive dissonance. It used to be that there were simply disagreements between opposing parties. Now it's more militaristic, vengeful, and destructive. The next presidency will be the test of democracy. It may not exist four years from now.

[pilvikki]

it really is interesting how one's mind works... i'm embroiled in a heated discussion with silja's eldest about politics and she's an avid trump supporter because Hillary is a liar and consorts with pedophiles and EVERYBODY who does any thinking knows that! she also wants me to get educated about how Russia is being smear-campaigned about chrimea and Ukraine, where the majority of people Russians and...... if people didn't just swallow any old crap and EDUCATE themselves... and blah-blah-blah.

I said fine, i'm more than willing to change my mind once you bring me this proof you speak of. so she told me again I should not just spread lies and Hillary is a liar and the Ukrainians started the war.

funny that. some people believe that the finns started the winter war.

yep, totally logical!

[yogi]

You describe cognitive dissonance beautifully. It's nothing new even with the fancy psychological name. You and I have seen it in the forums we lurked in for many many years. It's extremely visible on Farcebook wherever a discussion is held. No amount of evidence or proof will change a person's mind when they have this dissonance. They create their own reality and nothing is allowed to disturb it. It was funny to see it in the chat forums we visited. Now it's part and parcel of everyday politics here in America. Nothing can be more dangerous to our way of life. I fear for our future as a democracy.

[pilvikki]

well, being silja's daughter, you can imagine the way it goes. interestingly, silja has the opposite point of view. perhaps that is relevant?

[yogi]

The millennials are the ones who feel disenfranchised and disgruntled with the establishment. HRC certainly represented the old school while King Donald played to the whims of the teens and twenty-somethings on Twitter. Silja isn't a millennial so that a different point of view would be expected.

[pilvikki]

true enough, she's now a half centennial.

how's that for making one feel ancient?