Reddit and Politics

I've reached a simple conclusion, one that many people have probably already reached on their own.

Reddit is the hemlock of civil society.

In real life people are atomizing themselves. Online people are Balkanizing themselves. Truth be told, this is a false dichotomy. A lot of things are going on, but I believe people are devaluing themselves and finding values in tribes.

Reddit is a platform, a battleground, for digital tribes. Reddit allows these digital tribes to engage in rhetorical combat. Upvote allies. Downvote enemies. This is nothing new.

I belong to the first generation that took the internet for granted. Sure, it was expensive and frustrating, but you could always count on a connection. But the generation before us were the true trail blazers of the internet. They were the first trolls, the first sock puppets, the first tribes.

Centuries ago, Rousseau answered a simple question with a simple answer. Has civilization benefited humanity? No, it hasn't, he answered. A simplistic answer, but at least he has the guts to bite the bullet.

When asked about the French Revolution, Zhou Enlai said it was too early to tell. Perhaps he's right.