Perhaps the strangest trend on social media people putting significant effort into an image based on a dramatic quote or a song lyric which actually has nothing whatsoever to do with their life.

I'm left to guess how -- or even if -- it applies to them.

@TrueBloodNet I understand that.

@nursefrombirth @LlamaMountainStudioArts @poemblaze And also, this is why a functional society has to have consequences for people, whether or not they feel shame.

@poemblaze I'd say that shame is likely, for most people, in most situations where they've breached their own moral code (especially in such an extreme way), whether extrinsically imposed or not.

But I want to complicate this a bit by introducing a point that Amanda Ripley raises in her book High Conflict: shame (humiliation) is a common *motive* for murder.

Where does this fit into our collective relationship with shame? Does it change anything?

@TrueBloodNet Okay, let's pull away from the extreme hard-edges of morality (eg murder and rape).

Even in this cursory list of moral concerns, you're separating out killing animals for food vs other reasons.

But to an ethical vegan, for example, what's the difference? To them, killing animals is immoral, full stop.

So here's my question: Do we really want all of society to be caught up in a crossfire of intentional shaming? And who is allowed to decide which of their ends justify any means?

Someone I'm close to recently spoke positively about shame. Like, there are good reasons and uses for shame.

I'm going to be clear: the only way you can talk positively about shame is if you're comfortable with control and manipulation.

Any system that depends on shame is fragile. Its people are fragile. Their relationships and affiliations are fragile. Shame is unpredictable except that it is destructive.

*Most* people I share my life with know this, and are working to remove shame's power.

@holon42 He is going to need so much support, in ways that people haven't even envisioned.

He will face heightened pressure and scrutiny from so many sides.

I hope he is able navigate this well, and make these important changes in healthcare -- as just one example -- that are generally recognised as improvements.

Parents have implicitly trusted education as a thing that is done with their children by experts.

I think this is behind the large current push to "parental rights" -- a recognition that parents, by choice, have been largely disconnected from their children's schools.

But rather than processing that, parents are being ushered into outrage by motivated politicians sowing suspicion and fear about educators, and education in general. So the system becomes the scapegoat.

#education
#politics

Media literacy: when a diaper ad says that it "prevents up to 100% of leaks," that is not actually a statement.

It surprises me that this kind of crap is still being pulled in ads. Sadly, I expect that it still works on people, instead of repelling them from the blatant attempt at manipulation.

The manufactured crises of "reality TV" were never a good idea. But it's infinitely worse that now they're dominating #politics, too.

#politics

It seems like everyone has a different strategy for dealing with a loose-cannon chaos-agent like Trump.

And not one of them works. It's bizarre and uncanny.

I just deleted my Mastodon account. I keep feeling like I'm spreading myself too thin, and the instances I tried didn't live up to their potential.

Maybe you can relate?

It's crucial to continually curate our attention.

@Kaysymmetry The (threatened) weaponisation of the notwithstanding clause is being witnessed. It is provoking a well-reasoned, well-articulated response.

The harm Canada's conflict entrepreneurs are causing to children by the hypocritical claim that they are *protecting* children is being witnessed.

The hollow, flailing fearmongering on the side of trans-antagonism is being witnessed.

We cannot allow these strong-arm, bully tactics to have a foothold here.

@killingfloorman This would be equally valid if it said "unwillingness" as well.

Generosity in communication is to accept that it happens on the receiver's terms.

@thewebrecluse @IronButterfly I think all ice-breakers should be designed by introverts.

I think of all the times a "moment" like this is casually forced on people who it just doesn't work for, and I can't help but wince.

@jordicusmaximus I've been thinking about it for a long time -- this just made me subscribe.

"You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make."

— Jane Goodall

@thewebrecluse This takes away another level of accountability, conscience and by extension, credibility.

News anchors are already too much like automatons. This is the ultimate abstraction.