blacknwhiterose
Rookie
Posts: 93
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« on: June 17, 2017, 03:00:41 AM » |
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« edited: June 17, 2017, 03:05:27 AM by blacknwhiterose »
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I chose:
1) America is a large and diverse nation 2) Decline in religiosity 3) Modern technology reinforcing "bubbles"
I think number 1 should be obvious, the more diverse the USA becomes, racially, economically, spiritually, and ideologically, the more likely there is to be divisiveness. Different people, with different experiences, different world views, different dreams...
Number 2 has been finally documented by some people, as many Americans of all stripes become less association with religion, the more likely they are to put their identity in other stuff: job/class status, race, ideology, etc, and become divided over these things. The declining influence of the Religious Right in politics coinciding with the rise of the Alt Right perfectly illustrates this. Churches used to be the number one institution of civic participation for Americans, many Americans used to have church-centered social lives, and churches used to be the number 1 place where men met their wives. There is no other institution that has replaced the powerful centerpiece to many people's lives that faith and church participation once did. In this vacuum, many have become less social, which leads me to my third choice:
#3 Modern technology promoting anti-social habits, internet hyperbole warping minds towards paranoia and despair, and social media/forums creating "bubbles" that further radicalize those minds. I believe this is a very large factor in the modern phenomenon of the mass shooter.
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