TotalBrownout [none/use name]

That sub is basically unmoderated/full of posts that are directly contrary to Chomsky’s writings… not sure there’s much to salvage tbh.

Are you encountering these Americans in the US or in another country? If it’s the latter, I would say you are engaging with wealthy Americans who are high on their own bullshit and used to getting their ass kissed regardless of how they behave because they have money. If it’s the former, I’d probably say the same thing . The whole “what is your job?” thing is pretty ubiquitous in the US though. American culture dictates that one’s employment defines them as an individual and is a both a class marker and a reflection that vocational training constitutes the vast majority of education here. It’s entirely possible that someone might not have much to contribute to any conversation that isn’t at least tangentially related to their career, regardless of how “educated” they perceive themselves to be. This also explains the very distorted and superficial comments you’ve observed regarding politics, history, anthropology, etc. The humanities are very maligned and chastised as being “useless” in the US. Pretty gross and sad… I consciously avoid talking about my occupation with anyone unless there is a very specific reason to do so and relish the opportunity to engage in a decent conversation that doesn’t devolve into the slop you posted about.

This was pre-COVID… much worse now.

“But just so we’re all clear, Ukraine is not a fascist state.”

LOL, a state with the following features:

Ethno-nationalist political platform, banning of political opposition, merging of an explicitly fascist paramilitary with the government… yup, totally clear, definitively not fascist at all. Massive debunking, myth busted!

“US commitment to provide.”

Joe Biden still owes me $1400

Star Wars is really just meant to be looked at…

To me al lot of the comments coming from economists have been pretty mask-off “if we boil the water too quickly, the frog will jump out of the pot.”

As luck would have it, “America” is little more than a confidence swindle at this point and the rest of the word is starting to realize “there is no pea.”

Yes, if one views the BLM protests as part of a larger war of attrition against the carceral state.

An experiment involving introducing the game “musical chairs” to children attempted to answer this question. In addition to the normal version, an alternative version where everyone would share fewer and fewer chairs was played.

The children almost ubiquitously preferred the cooperative version.