Some posts that took some time
Do You Really Want Balkanization? Pre-Civil War 2 Checklist
From the thread I started Do You Really Want Balkanization?
Gee, I've been following this mess of yours for the past two years at least. What can I say, it's been deja vu all over. Plenty of deja vues. It brought me back to my ex country, ex Yugoslavia, all the way back to the late 80s.
Every single **** on the following list is the one we witnessed in the Balkans between 1987 and 1991 and the latter was the year when the war broke out. So, here you go:
- Removing/destroying/graffiti spraying monuments that one side sees as a source of pride and the other as offensive reminders of opression CHECK
- fun with flags - but not Sheldon Cooper style, unfortunately, also fun with holidays - some celebrate with fireworks, some not so eagerly and some say it's not my holiday at all, yeah, big CHECK
- individuals being killed and their death being reported and interpreted in two opposite versions CHECK
- two totally opposed interpretations of the same event/video/speech/you name it, and it goes on and on for weeks CHECK
- increased level of accusing other site that their news/videos/other are fake and/or taken out of context CHECK
- blocking roads CHECK
- honest attempts to critically assess both oposing camps, or to direct some criticism towards their own side get too small audience CHECK
- careers being destroyed over one sentence CHECK,
- while mentally deranged individuals get a platform and plenty of audience CHECK
- assassination attempts directed towards politicians CHECK
- killing police officers CHECK
- celebrities being loud and stupid on politics CHECK
- inability to have a reasonably civilised discussion on politics within many families CHECK
- extremists gloating, bloating and saying “bring it on“ CHECK (as a rule, the same geniuses are clueless about what they are inviting)
- unscrupulous profiteers trying to profit from increased conflict and general insecurity CHECK
- strange alliances (what-are-these-doing-together type of stuff) CHECK
- an overwhelming feeling it's never been ugly like this CHECK
- relatively fast demographic change in one part of the country, due to high fetrtility rates and/or uncontrolled immigration CHECK
- minority dissatisfaction with the government and majority, mutual accusations of discrimination in the area of other's influence, pet cases of people murdered, whose stories are then paraded around and used to further own agenda CHECK
- A polarizing figure appears, in some way substantially different from his predecessors. Half of the nation sees him as refreshing change or even savior, the other half as a serious threat CHECK
- followed and preceeded by emergence of bizarre, attention whoring characters on both sides who suddenly become opinion makers. Half of the nation approves, the other half wonders from under which rock this troll has crawled out CHECK
- proliferation of new and low quality media outlets whose strikingly unlikable hosts don't even try to hide their obvious bias. The same hosts getting overly agitated CHECK
- crisis and fall of established media outlets, helped by their own ineptitude and scandals CHECK
- talks of secession slowly enter mainstream from the fringe in which they've been brewing for years CHECK
- comedy shows or parts of them used to express political views, merciless mocking of the other side CHECK
This is by no means final. I saw it then over here and I'm seeing it now over there. Does it mean the same or similar outcome? I can't be sure. Freedom of speech and long democratic traditions may in the end be your saving grace. If you don't mess it up, of course.
Gee, I've been following this mess of yours for the past two years at least. What can I say, it's been deja vu all over. Plenty of deja vues. It brought me back to my ex country, ex Yugoslavia, all the way back to the late 80s.
Every single **** on the following list is the one we witnessed in the Balkans between 1987 and 1991 and the latter was the year when the war broke out. So, here you go:
- Removing/destroying/graffiti spraying monuments that one side sees as a source of pride and the other as offensive reminders of opression CHECK
- fun with flags - but not Sheldon Cooper style, unfortunately, also fun with holidays - some celebrate with fireworks, some not so eagerly and some say it's not my holiday at all, yeah, big CHECK
- individuals being killed and their death being reported and interpreted in two opposite versions CHECK
- two totally opposed interpretations of the same event/video/speech/you name it, and it goes on and on for weeks CHECK
- increased level of accusing other site that their news/videos/other are fake and/or taken out of context CHECK
- blocking roads CHECK
- honest attempts to critically assess both oposing camps, or to direct some criticism towards their own side get too small audience CHECK
- careers being destroyed over one sentence CHECK,
- while mentally deranged individuals get a platform and plenty of audience CHECK
- assassination attempts directed towards politicians CHECK
- killing police officers CHECK
- celebrities being loud and stupid on politics CHECK
- inability to have a reasonably civilised discussion on politics within many families CHECK
- extremists gloating, bloating and saying “bring it on“ CHECK (as a rule, the same geniuses are clueless about what they are inviting)
- unscrupulous profiteers trying to profit from increased conflict and general insecurity CHECK
- strange alliances (what-are-these-doing-together type of stuff) CHECK
- an overwhelming feeling it's never been ugly like this CHECK
- relatively fast demographic change in one part of the country, due to high fetrtility rates and/or uncontrolled immigration CHECK
- minority dissatisfaction with the government and majority, mutual accusations of discrimination in the area of other's influence, pet cases of people murdered, whose stories are then paraded around and used to further own agenda CHECK
- A polarizing figure appears, in some way substantially different from his predecessors. Half of the nation sees him as refreshing change or even savior, the other half as a serious threat CHECK
- followed and preceeded by emergence of bizarre, attention whoring characters on both sides who suddenly become opinion makers. Half of the nation approves, the other half wonders from under which rock this troll has crawled out CHECK
- proliferation of new and low quality media outlets whose strikingly unlikable hosts don't even try to hide their obvious bias. The same hosts getting overly agitated CHECK
- crisis and fall of established media outlets, helped by their own ineptitude and scandals CHECK
- talks of secession slowly enter mainstream from the fringe in which they've been brewing for years CHECK
- comedy shows or parts of them used to express political views, merciless mocking of the other side CHECK
This is by no means final. I saw it then over here and I'm seeing it now over there. Does it mean the same or similar outcome? I can't be sure. Freedom of speech and long democratic traditions may in the end be your saving grace. If you don't mess it up, of course.
