I see that “3.5% of the population” figure starting to wander into my TL (understandably) and soon (understandably) the backlash to it, and…OK…look…
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I see that “3.5% of the population” figure starting to wander into my TL (understandably) and soon (understandably) the backlash to it, and…OK…look…
No, I don’t think any switch magically flips when exactly 3.5% of a population joins the opposition to authoritarianism.
Yes, I think that threshold matters.
A thought here — not an expert!! grain of salt! — but here’s a thought that might help clear things up:
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I see that “3.5% of the population” figure starting to wander into my TL (understandably) and soon (understandably) the backlash to it, and…OK…look…
No, I don’t think any switch magically flips when exactly 3.5% of a population joins the opposition to authoritarianism.
Yes, I think that threshold matters.
A thought here — not an expert!! grain of salt! — but here’s a thought that might help clear things up:
1./
This is like the "signs of fascism" checklists all over again.
The ones with all of the boxes checked and extra things written on the bottom too now.
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I see that “3.5% of the population” figure starting to wander into my TL (understandably) and soon (understandably) the backlash to it, and…OK…look…
No, I don’t think any switch magically flips when exactly 3.5% of a population joins the opposition to authoritarianism.
Yes, I think that threshold matters.
A thought here — not an expert!! grain of salt! — but here’s a thought that might help clear things up:
1./
Recipes are full of directions like “when the top starts to brown” or “when it is firm to the touch but not hard.”
Very often, the thing the directions are taking about is not the actual important trait, but a •proxy• for something important you can’t see directly. Maybe the inside of the bread is fully baked when the top starts to brown. Maybe dangerous bacteria are killed when the quiche is firm to the touch. (I am making this up; don’t @ me about quiche.)
Proxy indicators, heuristics, rules of thumb, call them what you like: they’re essential in cooking.
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F myrmepropagandist shared this topic
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Recipes are full of directions like “when the top starts to brown” or “when it is firm to the touch but not hard.”
Very often, the thing the directions are taking about is not the actual important trait, but a •proxy• for something important you can’t see directly. Maybe the inside of the bread is fully baked when the top starts to brown. Maybe dangerous bacteria are killed when the quiche is firm to the touch. (I am making this up; don’t @ me about quiche.)
Proxy indicators, heuristics, rules of thumb, call them what you like: they’re essential in cooking.
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But here’s the thing: if you spray paint the top of your loaf with a lovely layer of golden brown paint, that doesn’t mean the loaf is now fully baked! You have to actually •do the work• until you see that perfect golden brown.
As I read it, the much-cited 3.5% figure from that study is •not• the thing that magically stops the authoritarian slide. It is an •indicator• that all of the important but semi-invisible things that can topple an authoritarian are actually happening.
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This is like the "signs of fascism" checklists all over again.
The ones with all of the boxes checked and extra things written on the bottom too now.
A "signs of fascism" checklist seems very helpful and comforting as you are certain that as you and everyone else keeps checking off more things on the list everyone will become suitably alarmed.
But, then you have a peek and they haven't been paying enough attention to check off half of the things and are ready to nit-pick and argue about the others.
And now you are arguing about if firing a comedian is "really state censorship" instead of getting anything done.