critical theory, especially baudrillard and zizek

Didn’t watch vid lol, but of course it’s a process and not likely to be a singular event, but for me, watching the film version of Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine freshman year of college in class (4 years ago) was pretty fundamental. I vividly remember sitting in that class, feeling familiar nationalist defensiveness turn into a new rage and disgust for America. I was suspicious of unfettered capitalism and liked Bernie prior to that, but was still entirely a reactionary with mostly shitty social and political beliefs.

In my experience, seeing the course of world history through an actually critical lense for the first time made a much more holistic image click into place. I feel like a lot more things regarding society and economics that I was confused about began to make sense after that

I was radicalized by watching Renegade Cut film analysis. No seriously, him and a few other channels like his. I came to the realization that the people that had the best analysis of popular media were a bunch of anarchists and communists and one day it clicked and I was like “oh shit I’ve always been a commie, it all makes sense now”.

I always had some ambient level of disgust with stuff like war, Black Friday, forcing people to work on holidays, and this performative civility with the republicans who allegedly are the worst people ever but we need to be polite. Then I read The Jungle in middle school, then 20 years later I watched as very little changed after handing the country over to a senile casino owner. Turns out the meat grinder is the problem and not which person is turning the crank. McCain’s funeral and the different responses from libs and you guys finally pushed me over the edge.