No. of Recommendations: 22
Not that I was ever particularly active or that anyone will care, but I’m leaving this board, and I’m sharing this only because I feel compelled to issue a warning and because I care about the long term survival of this board even if I will no longer take part.
This board is becoming a political echo chamber. Whether you realize it or not, it’s creating an environment that favors those who share a single political narrative. Opposing views are suppressed or marginalized. I already know of at least three other posters I enjoyed reading who have left because of what I would describe as “political bullying.” Sometimes it’s direct, but more often it’s subtle. It’s not every post of course. Maybe one in 20 or one in 50?
So now, another “MAGA idiot” (me) will leave. It’s a self-reinforcing cycle—each different thinker who leaves only strengthens the echo chamber, making it even more likely that the next dissenting opinion will be driven out too. Half the country votes for Trump, and when you push that group out of your life you may start to believe that everyone thinks like you. That’s one of the reasons so many people are continuously “shocked” at political developments.
I knew I would eventually have to leave when the board celebrated how “unpolitical” the “How To Invest under Authoritarian Trump” thread was. It was uncanny to see otherwise smart people trying to pass opinion for unbiased facts. I silently wondered how a similar thread on “Kamala communism” would have been received. I stuck around for another few months but lately the trend has been all too clear at least to me.
Good luck to all, and I genuinely hope your tolerance grows. To those other “different thinkers” who stick around—well done. You’re stronger than I am, I have to think about controlling my blood pressure and it has been spiking here lately. Peace.
