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Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

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91–100 of 102 posts

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Part of "working to change it" is by publishing articles that point out that it's broken. Good grief!

So explain "broken". If you say "superdelegates" "ratifying temporary rules" or "DWS" or "Trump", I hate to break it to you: this is not what broken means.

Is the condescension actually necessary?

How about the first past the post voting system that guarantees two party dominance and thus the silencing of anything but the most extreme and/or most well-funded opinions?

That is what broken means.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#92
post #11

It depends on who you ask. The narrative here is of precarious terror. Other people will have a different story. Seattle attracts a lot of people, and they often have sticker shock because they didn't do enough research. And , a lot of people feel entitled to live in the hippest neighborhoods very cheap. That said. The writer needs to contextualize this. In 2001, the year I went to college, the Twin Towers fell and a…

Going by the numbers, terrorism is a really unlikely way to die. Most people on HN are likely to die from heart disease, cancer, or medical mistakes in that order. The most likely cause of death for a person before the age of fifty is a prescription drug mistake, suicide, or dying in a car crash.

Depends on your denominator. For example, WTC was bombed in the 90's but it didn't fall down. Lightning doesn't strike twice but terrorism does as it seeks out theatric and thematic targets in well known areas. So I wouldn't use the all 300 Million Americans as a denominator, more like those who work/visit iconic locations events e.g. Nice on Bastille day.

Also depends if being Jewish is relevant [not counting Israel] and if you frequent Kosher grocery stores, and synagogues, in which case the denominator is again much lower. Also depends if being actively Gay - nightclubs, parades, etc is part of your style. Again much smaller denominator means the proportion of untimely death is much higher.

Finally, there's the equivalent risk assesment of how many people in the US have been killed by a Tsunami? The answer is none...so far but it's not impossible in the future for an order or two of magnitude greater fatalities due to terrorist attack, e.g. a whole stadium full.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fine "We're not as bad as Syria, so that means we're not broken?" This is sliding scale, not binary

Ok now we have a valid disagreement. Our system has problems, but it truly is not broken . It needs people like you to want to improve on what we have. Throwing words like "broken" around to describe the problem gives fodder to the idea that they system should be burned to the ground. I don't think destruction is what you're aiming for. Is it?

Broken systems can be fixed. I don't see anyone saying that it should be burned to the ground. That's quite a leap.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So explain "broken". If you say "superdelegates" "ratifying temporary rules" or "DWS" or "Trump", I hate to break it to you: this is not what broken means.

Is the condescension actually necessary? How about the first past the post voting system that guarantees two party dominance and thus the silencing of anything but the most extreme and/or most well-funded opinions? That is what broken means.

Welcome to America, c. 1928. I'm not saying your criticism is incorrect, you're just really late to the party! With a voter participation that's as low as it is, is there any wonder why what you say is true? So, it's not condescension. I'm being complete sincere when I ask. Look at every democratic president since FDR. All of them are to the left of Clinton on many issues. Yet Sanders, to the left of her on many issues, actually moved the needle and almost unseated her. This is what progress actually looks like! I voted for Bernie yet I'm relieved Clinton will likely trounce Trump. So should you be. If you don't like the system, work to change it instead of claiming "it's broken" and throwing up your hands. I'll be right there beside you.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ok now we have a valid disagreement. Our system has problems, but it truly is not broken . It needs people like you to want to improve on what we have. Throwing words like "broken" around to describe the problem gives fodder to the idea that they system should be burned to the ground. I don't think destruction is what you're aiming for. Is it?

Broken systems can be fixed. I don't see anyone saying that it should be burned to the ground. That's quite a leap.

Good. Let's roll up our sleeves!

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#96
post #11

It depends on who you ask. The narrative here is of precarious terror. Other people will have a different story. Seattle attracts a lot of people, and they often have sticker shock because they didn't do enough research. And , a lot of people feel entitled to live in the hippest neighborhoods very cheap. That said. The writer needs to contextualize this. In 2001, the year I went to college, the Twin Towers fell and a…

As someone in Europe I just don't understand the level of fear among Americans who are in the safest position probably of any population ever. Is it just media bias? If I lived in eastern Europe any where near Turkey right now I'd be more afraid.

They're extrapolating from current trends. To them, everything seems worse 10+ years out.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#97
post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> As someone in Europe I just don't understand the level of fear among Americans who are in the safest position probably of any population ever. Is it just media bias? No. People really are that afraid. I don't know why.

Fear is a powerful political tool. If you can make people afraid, you can control them. Daesh knows this. Governments know this. Media knows this. The antidote is: 1. Practice information hygiene. Who is saying it? How do they benefit in making you afraid? What are the opposing viewpoints? Where is the evidence? 2. Be aware of cognitive biases. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases 3. Know history (t…

> Fear is a powerful political tool. If you can make people afraid, you can control them.

I don't think that's the whole of it though. A large part of the American media / news system is still profit driven -- I'd say a large enough part to swamp editorial intent if the two butt heads.

It seems to me another explanation for the evidence is that people like being afraid.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> the mortgage you made a huge stretch to take has reduced to affordable Yeahhhhhh but don't forget interest on that 30-year fixed was 12%+!

UK mortgages are usually variable, going up and down with changes in interest rates. You can fix, but often for just the first 5 years. Then switch to a different mortgage if you want another 5 or 10 years fixed. Is it usual to fix for full term in the US? With lower interest rates these days fixing is much more common than it was.

US has a variety of mortgage products, but yes, a fixed rate amortized over 30 years is pretty standard.

There are 5/1 ARMs and the like that are more similar to what you describe, but most rates are locked.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#99
post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fear is a powerful political tool. If you can make people afraid, you can control them. Daesh knows this. Governments know this. Media knows this. The antidote is: 1. Practice information hygiene. Who is saying it? How do they benefit in making you afraid? What are the opposing viewpoints? Where is the evidence? 2. Be aware of cognitive biases. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases 3. Know history (t…

> Fear is a powerful political tool. If you can make people afraid, you can control them. I don't think that's the whole of it though. A large part of the American media / news system is still profit driven -- I'd say a large enough part to swamp editorial intent if the two butt heads. It seems to me another explanation for the evidence is that people like being afraid.

People like being afraid because it creates an instant social bond with others who fear the same. It's probably the fundamental foundation for religion.

Re: Debt. Terror. Politics. To Seattle Millennials, the Future Looks Scary

#100
post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fear is a powerful political tool. If you can make people afraid, you can control them. Daesh knows this. Governments know this. Media knows this. The antidote is: 1. Practice information hygiene. Who is saying it? How do they benefit in making you afraid? What are the opposing viewpoints? Where is the evidence? 2. Be aware of cognitive biases. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases 3. Know history (t…

> Fear is a powerful political tool. If you can make people afraid, you can control them. I don't think that's the whole of it though. A large part of the American media / news system is still profit driven -- I'd say a large enough part to swamp editorial intent if the two butt heads. It seems to me another explanation for the evidence is that people like being afraid.

I've mentioned elsewhere that a profit driven media leads to sensationalism and emotion driven content over objective fact telling.

That is the one thing that I can think of that is particularly American but there does still seem an inverse instinct within the US, where someone in say Alabama, who is as likely to be touched by a terrorist as they are by aliens are more likely to be a doomsday prepper.

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