Surprised no one has brought it up yet...that I know of
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I do find it interesting, that someone supposedly as bright as you, is one of the first persons to not only drink the Kook-Aid but to say it is refreshing as hell. Interesting. I question everything, especially the CDC, WHO, and my Government and media. If that makes me a crackpot, so be it; I welcome it then.
You know, I have to add something here. The problem with conspiracy theories is they are a fabulous propaganda tool that can rope in otherwise smart people. The thing is, they feed the notion that we know something somebody else doesn't, and who doesn't want to believe they're more clever than the next person? So propagandists and manipulators spread them in order to get people to do things like be suspicious of their neighbor, their government, or anything else said people want to dismantle and/or control. So in the event of something that sounds like a conspiracy, I question it. In all your questioning of the media, government, etc, you forgot to question the conspiracy. It's simple, Slacker - Logos is a tool we can use to verify or discard something we're presented with, or something we believe. That's why I applied logos to your comments. Now if you'd like, I can point out the logical fallacies in your response to me, but I think it would just be easier if you answered the question I posed to you in my response. Let's start there.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
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Slacker007 wrote:
Does anyone have a problem with the coincidence of all of this?
Are you suggesting a conspiracy? because if you are... What could possibly be the motive? Vaccines are cheap compared to say, Vraylar. Hell, viagra is probably a much bigger payout for Pfizer than some vaccines they've spent decades researching and have to negotiate costs with the US government, who are distributing vaccines for free. Occam's razor, among other things suggests no grand conspiracy, because A) Humans simply are not good at keeping secrets. The bigger conspiracy, the greater the chance it being leaked. It's like sharing your passwords. It doesn't work. People don't work that way. B) There's no compelling motive C) There's no sort of trail anywhere. It's all just speculative. D) Bad things tend to happen in multiples. As the human population explodes, the odds of a virus jumping from animal to human increases exponentially due to exposure.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
honey the codewitch wrote:
B) There's no compelling motive
Sure there is -- fear sells. Think about the mainstream "news" services (of all political stripes). When interest in one major trauma dies down, they replace it with a new trauma. Then the other services jump on it, making things appear far worse then they actually are. This sells news, and it's been going on since newspapers were invented. You're right, there's no grand plan. It's just business as usual. Monkeypox is great for this purpose, as the visuals look horrifying. Remember, a picture is worth 1,000 words! The reality is that medical sources state that monkeypox is not very infectious and does not spread easily between people. Search on your favorite medical sites for details. Yes, any infectious disease is serious, especially with the potential spread due to global travel. But it doesn't deserve the level of fear that the media is pushing.
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honey the codewitch wrote:
B) There's no compelling motive
Sure there is -- fear sells. Think about the mainstream "news" services (of all political stripes). When interest in one major trauma dies down, they replace it with a new trauma. Then the other services jump on it, making things appear far worse then they actually are. This sells news, and it's been going on since newspapers were invented. You're right, there's no grand plan. It's just business as usual. Monkeypox is great for this purpose, as the visuals look horrifying. Remember, a picture is worth 1,000 words! The reality is that medical sources state that monkeypox is not very infectious and does not spread easily between people. Search on your favorite medical sites for details. Yes, any infectious disease is serious, especially with the potential spread due to global travel. But it doesn't deserve the level of fear that the media is pushing.
BryanFazekas wrote:
Sure there is -- fear sells.
Sells what though?
BryanFazekas wrote:
You're right, there's no grand plan. It's just business as usual.
Okay, we're on the same page. I can plausibly believe that something like social entropy leads to the decay of trust and the erosion of institutions, and that said vacuum is usually filled with tyrants. But that's not orchestration - conspiracy.
BryanFazekas wrote:
Monkeypox is great for this purpose, as the visuals look horrifying. Remember, a picture is worth 1,000 words!
That explains the media's obsession with it. But not any notion that it's manufactured. In fact, it would be a poor substitute for COVID as pandemics go as it doesn't spread nearly as well nor is it as deadly as covid was. It's relatively speaking, mild, despite the sensationalism in the media. But I'm not really speaking about the media - which is predictably banal and behaves like an attention starved child. I'm speaking about the notion that this virus was concocted by some nefarious actors to further some agenda.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
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BryanFazekas wrote:
Sure there is -- fear sells.
Sells what though?
BryanFazekas wrote:
You're right, there's no grand plan. It's just business as usual.
Okay, we're on the same page. I can plausibly believe that something like social entropy leads to the decay of trust and the erosion of institutions, and that said vacuum is usually filled with tyrants. But that's not orchestration - conspiracy.
BryanFazekas wrote:
Monkeypox is great for this purpose, as the visuals look horrifying. Remember, a picture is worth 1,000 words!
That explains the media's obsession with it. But not any notion that it's manufactured. In fact, it would be a poor substitute for COVID as pandemics go as it doesn't spread nearly as well nor is it as deadly as covid was. It's relatively speaking, mild, despite the sensationalism in the media. But I'm not really speaking about the media - which is predictably banal and behaves like an attention starved child. I'm speaking about the notion that this virus was concocted by some nefarious actors to further some agenda.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
honey the codewitch wrote:
Sells what though?
Mostly advertising, but also market share, as each service competes with its brethren.
honey the codewitch wrote:
But not any notion that it's manufactured. In fact, it would be a poor substitute for COVID as pandemics go as it doesn't spread nearly as well nor is it as deadly as covid was. It's relatively speaking, mild, despite the sensationalism in the media.
Yes, it is mild, but only because you are thinking. Far too many people are reacting to the pictures and not thinking. As public traumas go, this one is unlikely to last as the reality is minor, but it fills in until something else comes along.
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honey the codewitch wrote:
Sells what though?
Mostly advertising, but also market share, as each service competes with its brethren.
honey the codewitch wrote:
But not any notion that it's manufactured. In fact, it would be a poor substitute for COVID as pandemics go as it doesn't spread nearly as well nor is it as deadly as covid was. It's relatively speaking, mild, despite the sensationalism in the media.
Yes, it is mild, but only because you are thinking. Far too many people are reacting to the pictures and not thinking. As public traumas go, this one is unlikely to last as the reality is minor, but it fills in until something else comes along.
Seems we agree more than disagree on this. I'm just cautious of conspiracies, and frankly it's deeply tiring having them everywhere right now in the society in which I find myself ensconced. Someone said the point of modern propaganda is not to misinform, but to "flood the zone with bullshit" to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth. I forget who, but it seems right to me. That seems to be exactly what's happening in my country. I'm weary of the sifting and sorting. It makes me want to tune out altogether. In the end, I see a move to another country within the coming years. I'm done.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
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Seems we agree more than disagree on this. I'm just cautious of conspiracies, and frankly it's deeply tiring having them everywhere right now in the society in which I find myself ensconced. Someone said the point of modern propaganda is not to misinform, but to "flood the zone with bullshit" to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth. I forget who, but it seems right to me. That seems to be exactly what's happening in my country. I'm weary of the sifting and sorting. It makes me want to tune out altogether. In the end, I see a move to another country within the coming years. I'm done.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
honey the codewitch wrote:
Seems we agree more than disagree on this.
Seems so. The difference is I'm likely far more cynical ... :laugh:
honey the codewitch wrote:
Someone said the point of modern propaganda is not to misinform, but to "flood the zone with bullshit" to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth.
This sounds about right.
honey the codewitch wrote:
In the end, I see a move to another country within the coming years. I'm done.
Read international news ... it not necessarily better any place else, regardless of where you are now ... [this is that "cynical" thing I mentioned previously ...]
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honey the codewitch wrote:
Seems we agree more than disagree on this.
Seems so. The difference is I'm likely far more cynical ... :laugh:
honey the codewitch wrote:
Someone said the point of modern propaganda is not to misinform, but to "flood the zone with bullshit" to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth.
This sounds about right.
honey the codewitch wrote:
In the end, I see a move to another country within the coming years. I'm done.
Read international news ... it not necessarily better any place else, regardless of where you are now ... [this is that "cynical" thing I mentioned previously ...]
At the risk of getting too political, I live right on the border between two countries, and the difference is pretty stark. I am watching my country implode in real time. I've seen it coming for about 20 years, but now the rot is accelerating and my concerns are more ... specific. Plus I am a member of a class of people that is specifically being targeted by reactionary elements in my country, and that's only going to get worse in coming years. I have a lot of reasons for leaving.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
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At the risk of getting too political, I live right on the border between two countries, and the difference is pretty stark. I am watching my country implode in real time. I've seen it coming for about 20 years, but now the rot is accelerating and my concerns are more ... specific. Plus I am a member of a class of people that is specifically being targeted by reactionary elements in my country, and that's only going to get worse in coming years. I have a lot of reasons for leaving.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
honey the codewitch wrote:
I am a member of a class of people that is specifically being targeted by reactionary elements in my country
You're an old, white, Conservative male? :-D
If you think 'goto' is evil, try writing an Assembly program without JMP.
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honey the codewitch wrote:
I am a member of a class of people that is specifically being targeted by reactionary elements in my country
You're an old, white, Conservative male? :-D
If you think 'goto' is evil, try writing an Assembly program without JMP.
Poe's law stalks this response. That's all I can say here.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
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Is Monkey Pox the new COVID? Is it possible to discuss this without going into the obvious geo-political ramifications. Does anyone have a problem with the coincidence of all of this?
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Poe's law stalks this response. That's all I can say here.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.
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Covid conspiracy theories, like their flat earth, fake moonlanding and crop circle cousins have long since and many times been disproved and debunked. I figured the Code Project crowd were a more intelligent bunch...
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Poe's law is necessary in any medium of communication where facial and body queues are missing. It's been that way since FidoNet, if not before.
If you think 'goto' is evil, try writing an Assembly program without JMP.
There was nothing else I could say in response that wouldn't dive into the political arena so I stayed my hand.
To err is human. Fortune favors the monsters.