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Modern Fascism Looks Like

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Re: Modern Fascism Looks Like

#7
I think this thread actually highlights how the modern internet can "hack" normal human perception due to the way it makes it very difficult to see how much support an idea/position actually has.

I mean, it doesn't surprise me in the slightest that there is some portion, even a sizable portion, of the Russian populace that supports the invasion of Ukraine. But, suppose the support is on the order of 5-10% (I have no idea what it is - more on that below). In the days before telecommunications, if you all had to go out to the town square, or heck just gossip with your neighbors, it would be easy to see that the invasion has so little support most people would just discount it entirely.

With the Internet, though, that 5-10% represents millions of people, which would make it easy to find video after video of people supporting the invasion. Worse, if you were someone on the fence about this issue (or any issue really), it's very easy to go down "the YouTube rabbit hole", see video after video of people telling you how noble the fight to "deNazify Ukraine" is, and convince yourself that all the sane people must be pro-invasion.

When it comes to present-day Russia, Putin obviously has a huge base of real support, but is it a majority? Hard to say given how opaque Russia's institutions are.

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