Main Character Syndrome is a more malicious and fucked up state of mind than anything so-called "NPCs" are accused to being.
I always found "Simulation Theory" to be a lazy Reddit version of Deism to begin with, but especially these days it's dire just how often undesirables are perceptibly stripped of personhood with that same belief system. It doesn't pass as a joke for me when too many rich creeps like sermonize about it on the regular and their sycophantic followers feel more like Main Characters by nodding along.
So many supposed deep profound insights and beliefs from techbros are old shit that they never realized was old shit because they had to bumblefuck around with drug retreats and discover a clumsier and less developed version of such things.
One of the things that I took up as a thought habit was to invert the messages that advertising conveyed and nine times out of ten it works really well.
Sometimes it's just a simple reversal like "I'm loving it" -> "I'm hating it" (or to elaborate a little bit more, "Eating here is a hateful experience") but sometimes it's a legit inversion like "Because you're worth it" -> "Because we're entitled to your money".
When it comes to political insight from armchair experts like this, I think taking the same approach works really well.
for many of the NPC "protestors"... it's just a social thing
= "I can't understand why people would gather unless it's to socialise"
They just go along
= "My politics is an act of following"
There is no deep understanding about the issues they are marching for
= "I have no understanding about the issues they are marching for"
It is all just slogans
= "The one feature I have noticed about protest marches is that they have slogans"
Am I doing a reverse armchair expert analysis of their psychology? Without any doubt. But not all armchair expertise is identical and I think this gives some insight into what's going on for people like this. All of liberal politics is projection.
There's an old saying that a thief believes everyone steals. Deeply flaky insincere people often believe everyone is deeply flaky and insincere, that it's impossible to actually care about things apart from immediate dopamine hits from consuming treats.
How is the left considered the condescending people and not the CHUDs who actually think they're perfect? CHUD ideology can literally be boiled down to "I am better than you."
This is coming from the same "genius" who has (among many other things) claimed to be a socialist, and a utopian anarchist (because of sci-fi books ) and most recently came to the epiphany that all of politics is actually just good vs evil.
If there's one guy who has a deep understanding of politics and doesn't just say random shit that he thinks is trendy it's definitely him
He's not really brighter than and shares the same "last person in the room that kisses his ass can likely change his entire opinion of something" trait.
And is decidedly more charismatic in a crude way overall in a way that nazis can more openly go for.
They were saying the same thing about the Freedom convoy shit right?
They were saying the same thing about the anti-mask "protests" right?
The irony of these right wing grifters turning around and using the same rethoric the libs use against them. Maybe its me but approaching this from simulation theory or whatever is entirely missing the point here.
There is nothing deeper than that.
Although if you asked me the whole "emotional roller coaster" line is entirely about alpha male grifter shit so there is that.
It's all about dehumanisation, that's all it is. It's removing the humanity from their enemies so they can justify their own violent thoughts for what they want to do to "the enemy"
"elitism" in American political discourse is almost entirely aesthetic imo. Anyone who's interacted with conservatives knows they're just as smug as liberals and share the same love for "I told you so" and "they just don't know any better'. We joke here about libs droning on about "the adults in the room" but conservatives actually do think that everyone that disagrees with them is a literal child.
The difference is that liberals watch TV shows with higher production values. They don't listen to country music. Right wingers in my area are putting chuck norris on their campaign posters.
I've heard a pretty similar bullshit theory from friends, that most people in youth communist groups are there because they want to belong somewhere. They're also very mindwashed about communism as are most middle class young people.
Nothing garners more social acceptance than openly being a communist and there isn't a single interest group which requires less study, less effort, and whose acceptance is more unconditional than a communist org.
that most people in youth communist groups are there because they want to belong somewhere
That's typically said by validation-seeking status quo warriors that want to be normal in performative ways while bullying the unhinged and deranged that need to touch grass.
that most people in youth communist groups are there because they want to belong somewhere.
I don't know if that's the primary reason, but it's certainly valid to want to belong. It's why people join gangs, terrorist organizations, etc. Perhaps it also applies to commie groups, we shouldn't think of them as holy mystical orgs free from real life issues. I get that your friends have no idea what they are talking about, but I do think that people join orgs not solely for helping others, but also helping themselves ('it's better to be together with like-minded people than to suffer alone' king of thing).
Very true, though the point my friends were making was that those people don't truly believe in communism and are just lonely and want to belong somewhere
Telling a bunch of 14 year olds that they actually are as important as they believe and that anyone who disagrees isn't a real person is going to have some terrifying consequences.
A lot of them never really got over their former religious beliefs before they became euphoric Reddit New Atheists. They don't stay there, often filling that unhealed god-shaped hole with "singularity" nerd rapture prophecies or maybe just substitute themselves as solipsistic deific beings destined for greatness or even rebound back to religion eventually with