I've noticed lots of conservatives on this board and in congress in the Tea Party and GOP and to a degree Democrats as well like to bend reality in order to make an excuse to push their ideals around. I've noticed that this alone is seemingly the root cause for nearly every policy that had a good chance of going through and then being shut down. Liberals and Conservatives can't even agree on what reality is. We have institutions designed around creating false realities which are little more than mud in the water. If there's 8 different, independently funded institutions saying "Reality is 2+2=4" and then there's just this one saying "Reality is 2+2=3", and that reality fits in line with a policy that a congressman or representative wishes to push through, they will parrot that finding and ignore the other 8 saying anything to the contrary. Until everyone can agree what reality is, do you think we'll ever move forward with attaining real policies? I don't doubt that everyone outside of congress (because they're effectively bought off nearly 100% now), wishes to harm themselves or others via any policy. They want the country to become better. However, if these ideas of making things better are based on false reality, then it would make sense to make sure that person knows reality, yet on these forums and in congress, you don't see reality being enforced. It's pliable, bendable. So all policies make sense when you think of the reality of the sponsor. But in actual reality, the one that is shown through extensive, multiple studies agreeing on the what reality is, that policy makes zero sense. So how about it...should we push for understanding reality first and THEN solutions? Or just keep on the old "I think this is reality, here is my policy"? Because the latter is doing nothing productive.
Who will be the ultimate judge of what really is 'reality'? And why do I have the feeling the answer to that question will be you?
Forget it, dude. The day is gone when Uncle Walter would tell us "...and that's the way it is..." and we believed him. The media has forfeited its putative status of honest broker of information. Now we are approaching the way it was before high speed printing and radio/TV broadcasting (with their high entry fee) forced information to consolidate. Like it the early days of the Republic information now comes from many sources, and its up to the individual to decide what reality is.
But there is a point there - Back in the day parties could agree on the issue, but often divided over the solution. Now it seems no one can agree what the problem might be
I disagree. The proper role and size of the government is indeed a source of contention. But everyone agrees that it is a source of contention, the disagreement is over what it should be.
Well, take any number of issues: The results of teaching sex education in relation to abortions and teen pregnancies. The reality of the typical kind of abortion that occurs and who is the typical kind of woman who decides to get one The reality of significance or lack thereof of institutionalized white privilege The reality of whether a good economy is made by production or by stockholders trading The reality of the root cause of median income dropping The reality of man's influence on global warming The realities listed here are only a few. However, it seems that reality is a highly contested thing these days, with facts being shoved aside. As the famous quote from Mythbusters goes, "I reject your reality and substitute my own". However, that's not how reality works. It's observed and analyzed by people in experts of different areas of reality. Based on their observations and peer reviews, we define what is reality and accept it. Then, we decide how to move forward. That's how policy should work. However, it seems reality is basically what each person says it is, regardless of studies on the contrary or not. "Poor people are lazy" is not reality. It's just something I just said in order to provide a basis for my policy to cut social welfare programs. "Poor people are victims" is not reality. It's just something I said in order to provide a basis for my policy to fund more social welfare programs. See what I'm getting at here?
