Is the throughline not more simply tech and more specifically the world wide internet? Ideology does not give people the means to create and support hyper individualism, eventually you have to talk to those around you without it. What does, is a world wide connection allowing us to outsource our own personal lives and gives people the opportunity to not have to participate in their real world communities. The web then goes a step further giving people the ability to delve into dark sub cultures and have their minds ceaselessly barraged with desensitisation materials....Its one thing to notice how harsh real life is and critize the currated culture but given the opportunity most people choose escapism no matter the culture difficulties. This is especially true when served on a silver platter from Apple or Samsung. Final thought, a painting can not come to be without the medium of paint. In a similar fasion the human mind has as much difficulty conceiving something unknown. Knowlege of such terrible things, that was discussed in your article, and commited by these people was transmitted to them via the medium of the internet. Without the medium these atrocities may have been avoided or greatly lessened.
America is not the only developed country with nihilistic young men. Yet it is the only developed country with regular mass shootings.
And for over 20 years, the US effectively banned research into firearms violence through the Dickey Amendment - a truly nihilistic decision. It’s not the nihilism of young men that worries me. It’s the nihilism of those in charge.
It’s only really in the last few years that research on this topic has been properly funded.
Yonny - Talk down to me all you want but I live in a country that doesn't have school shootings.
1. Devastating.
2. The US tends to rank at the top of most attempts to measure individualism. However other countries are near it but they have radically lower levels of gun violence: https://clearlycultural.com/geert-hofstede-cultural-dimensions/individualism/ - I suspect individualism and gun violence are not correlated but by all means do a regression analysis and prove me wrong.
3. If your country has a problem with gun violence then understanding who commits that violence and how and why means that you might be able to reduce it. Otherwise all you have are thoughts and prayers.
If the hypothesis is "liberalism / nihilism / atheism / individualism / insert favorite whipping boy causes school shootings" then there are things you can do to test those hypotheses. I don't find them convincing but I'm not the one cleaning up the blood.
Great read. In a meme, 'leave society, be a monke'. The Viagra Boys' newest record Cave World hits on alot of these themes. Worth a listen if you haven't already.
I don't think it's liberalism. We've had liberalism for two centuries now, and the rot only began to set in a few decades ago. I honestly think that it has a lot to do with the way that the intellectual world has come to push the idea that there is simply no God, and that it is foolhardy to believe. It's actually a nonsensical position (the chances of there being a God and not being a God are statistically identical), but the idea has certainly come to dominate academe, and has through it come to dominate the professions and the media and tech worlds, which means that it dominates pretty much everything in the West. The reason why people don't believe in meaning anymore is that the font of meaning has been torn away from them. I'm not saying you gotta believe, or that it's wise to believe. But I am saying if you have a society with a significant percentage who don't believe, and have that lack of belief constantly reinforced through mass culture, we shouldn't be surprised when the wheels of society start coming off. They're nihilists because they have been trained to believe that nihil is all there is.
Good job Katherine, now that you let the secret out they are going to try to "fix it", and I already have like 6 mandatory trainings to go to a year :D
Liberalism, Individualism, and Autonomy do not cause the Nihilism. Freedom simply allows for deeper self development, and to pursue that development, a person merely requires a higher purpose than YOLO. Authoritarian Governments crush the Individual Will and prevent both Individual Development and Social Prosperity. People should retain and even expand their Freedom, but also purse a sense of Meaning through Purpose - and that's mostly about helping, not hurting, other people.
Alienation, and behind that, the lack of values and communal feeling are culpable for nihilism. The massive pressure placed on popularity and social value as the ONLY meanings that matter also exacerbate the issue further
Yes, they’re constantly bombarded with the idea that Nothing Matters. That’s why it looks like mental illness to us who know Everything Matters. Every action adds up, to a net positive or deficit. They’re encouraged to give up.
Is the throughline not more simply tech and more specifically the world wide internet? Ideology does not give people the means to create and support hyper individualism, eventually you have to talk to those around you without it. What does, is a world wide connection allowing us to outsource our own personal lives and gives people the opportunity to not have to participate in their real world communities. The web then goes a step further giving people the ability to delve into dark sub cultures and have their minds ceaselessly barraged with desensitisation materials....Its one thing to notice how harsh real life is and critize the currated culture but given the opportunity most people choose escapism no matter the culture difficulties. This is especially true when served on a silver platter from Apple or Samsung. Final thought, a painting can not come to be without the medium of paint. In a similar fasion the human mind has as much difficulty conceiving something unknown. Knowlege of such terrible things, that was discussed in your article, and commited by these people was transmitted to them via the medium of the internet. Without the medium these atrocities may have been avoided or greatly lessened.
America is not the only developed country with nihilistic young men. Yet it is the only developed country with regular mass shootings.
And for over 20 years, the US effectively banned research into firearms violence through the Dickey Amendment - a truly nihilistic decision. It’s not the nihilism of young men that worries me. It’s the nihilism of those in charge.
It’s only really in the last few years that research on this topic has been properly funded.
1: America isn’t a country.
2: We have so many shootings because of the HYPER individualism… No other country has it to this level.
3: i don’t think we’re gonna hecking science research our way out of this, you’re welcome to try though.
Yonny - Talk down to me all you want but I live in a country that doesn't have school shootings.
1. Devastating.
2. The US tends to rank at the top of most attempts to measure individualism. However other countries are near it but they have radically lower levels of gun violence: https://clearlycultural.com/geert-hofstede-cultural-dimensions/individualism/ - I suspect individualism and gun violence are not correlated but by all means do a regression analysis and prove me wrong.
3. If your country has a problem with gun violence then understanding who commits that violence and how and why means that you might be able to reduce it. Otherwise all you have are thoughts and prayers.
If the hypothesis is "liberalism / nihilism / atheism / individualism / insert favorite whipping boy causes school shootings" then there are things you can do to test those hypotheses. I don't find them convincing but I'm not the one cleaning up the blood.
amazing
Great read. In a meme, 'leave society, be a monke'. The Viagra Boys' newest record Cave World hits on alot of these themes. Worth a listen if you haven't already.
I don't think it's liberalism. We've had liberalism for two centuries now, and the rot only began to set in a few decades ago. I honestly think that it has a lot to do with the way that the intellectual world has come to push the idea that there is simply no God, and that it is foolhardy to believe. It's actually a nonsensical position (the chances of there being a God and not being a God are statistically identical), but the idea has certainly come to dominate academe, and has through it come to dominate the professions and the media and tech worlds, which means that it dominates pretty much everything in the West. The reason why people don't believe in meaning anymore is that the font of meaning has been torn away from them. I'm not saying you gotta believe, or that it's wise to believe. But I am saying if you have a society with a significant percentage who don't believe, and have that lack of belief constantly reinforced through mass culture, we shouldn't be surprised when the wheels of society start coming off. They're nihilists because they have been trained to believe that nihil is all there is.
There are other countries that are less religiously observant than the USA that have much lower levels of gun violence.
This is the article that led me to you! It's brilliant, as are you.
Good job Katherine, now that you let the secret out they are going to try to "fix it", and I already have like 6 mandatory trainings to go to a year :D
Liberalism, Individualism, and Autonomy do not cause the Nihilism. Freedom simply allows for deeper self development, and to pursue that development, a person merely requires a higher purpose than YOLO. Authoritarian Governments crush the Individual Will and prevent both Individual Development and Social Prosperity. People should retain and even expand their Freedom, but also purse a sense of Meaning through Purpose - and that's mostly about helping, not hurting, other people.
Alienation, and behind that, the lack of values and communal feeling are culpable for nihilism. The massive pressure placed on popularity and social value as the ONLY meanings that matter also exacerbate the issue further
Now look at that. And I signed a trial subscription to CONTRA two weeks ago just to harvest the original for some hard-hitting quotes. ^^
Yes, they’re constantly bombarded with the idea that Nothing Matters. That’s why it looks like mental illness to us who know Everything Matters. Every action adds up, to a net positive or deficit. They’re encouraged to give up.
"We have a nihilism problem" = "News That Stays News"
One of my favorite's, glad to have it out from behind the paywall!