aleph
@aleph@lemm.ee
- Comment on Britain ignored its far-right threat and demonized Muslims. Now racist mobs have spiraled out of control. 2 months ago:
But as I noted above, the average UK citizen is not in favor of strict immigration controls (legal or otherwise) and certainly not supportive of the recent riots.
Of those who are, the majority comes from lower-income areas that suffered the most under years of Tory austerity, which is understandable. But even then it’s really a case of the socioeconomic elites pointing the finger at immigrants rather than themselves.
As for the Muslim community, again there is good evidence to suggest that a lot of the fears you mentioned are unfounded. Surveys have shown that most feel British and have no problem with integrating with the culture. Again, the problem you tend to find is extremists like Anjem Choudary tend to be amplified by the press, giving the impressions that the Muslim community is incompatible with British values, when in fact the vast majority disagree with that statement.
- Comment on Britain ignored its far-right threat and demonized Muslims. Now racist mobs have spiraled out of control. 2 months ago:
It’s ironic you mention ‘reality’, since the hysteria surround immigration is largely built on misinformation and xenophobic propaganda being spouted by right-wing politicians and media for well over a decade, and people’s subjective fears about immigration are largely based on that.
The mass migration of peoples seeking refuge from war and other geopolitical disasters is a global issue rather than something that is unique to the UK, and even then the UK has taken in far fewer asylum seekers relative to other EU countries.
For instance:
- When measuring the number of asylum applications per 10,000 citizens, the UK only ranks 20th when compared to other EU countries.
- In terms of migrants arriving by boat, the UK is well behind other EU countries like Italy, Greece, and Spain.
- Despite the obsession with small boat crossings, they represent only a tiny fraction of overall arrivals. The vast majority of immigrants still come through official channels for work, study, etc.
Also, the UK population is actually pretty positive when it comes to immigration:
- In a global survey, 55% of UK citizens said immigration was a net positive, and only 30% were in favor of strict limits.
The paranoia about immigrants causing higher crime rates is also based on a myth:
- The overall rates of violent crime has been steadily falling for decades despite a steady rise in the number of foreign-born citizens.
- There is no evidence that an increase in the rate of foreign-born citizens even correlates with a rise in burglaries, thefts, and other property crimes.
All this is to say that a lot of the anger inflaming these racists riots come from a combination of political and media misinformation and many people’s innate prejudice towards non-Europeans.
- Comment on Why are people downvoting the MediaBiasFactChecker not? 2 months ago:
Just don’t take it too seriously, I would say. Not every news piece from the same source is going to be of the same quality or bias.
- Comment on Why are people downvoting the MediaBiasFactChecker not? 3 months ago:
When I was on in Reddit I used to do it all the time, but writing everything out, organizing it and including citations etc. can be rather time-intensive.
These days, I’ll leave a quick comment on a post if I have enough time, but nothing major.
- Comment on Why are people downvoting the MediaBiasFactChecker not? 3 months ago:
I used to be a fan of it, but in the past few years I’ve seen MBFC rate sources as “highly credible” that are anything but, particularly on issues involving geopolitics. That, plus the inherent unreliability of putting a media source at a fixed point on a simple Left <> Right spectrum, has rendered it pretty useless, in my opinion.
There days I’m much more of the opinion that it’s best to read a variety of sources, both mainstream and independent, and consider factors like
- is this information well-sourced?
- is there any obvious missing context?
- is this information up to date?
- what are the likely ideological biases of this writer or publication?
- What is the quality of the evidence provided to support the claims made in the article?
And so on instead of outsourcing your critical thinking to a third party who may be using a flawed methodology.
- Comment on The shooter donated to ActBlue according to AP. 3 months ago:
Right, which is a bit odd why OP chose to highlight this one fact as the headline for this article.
- Comment on The shooter donated to ActBlue according to AP. 3 months ago:
Ah, ok - I assumed that you linked an outdated source but yes, it does appear that they are the same.
For the record, here’s confirmation of the donation address:
- Comment on The shooter donated to ActBlue according to AP. 3 months ago:
20-year-old, registered Republican, Thomas Matthew Crooks is the shooter, yes, but the donation to ActBlue referred to in the healing of this post was apparently made by somebody else.
- Comment on The shooter donated to ActBlue according to AP. 3 months ago:
Looks like it wasn’t even him anyway – the ActBlue donation was registered to a Thomas Crooks, not Thomas Matthew Crooks:
- Comment on Which IELTS exam is necessary for work visa in UK? 3 months ago:
General is for work visas, whereas Academic is for applying to university courses. Generally speaking.
You should always double check with the institution you’re applying to, though.
- Comment on why isn't anyone calling for Trump to drop out. 4 months ago:
Because
- None of the above legally prevent him from running.
- Republicans voters will still vote for him en masse.
It’s really quite simple.
- Comment on The justices of the supreme court ruled that Trump was immune and effectively above the law while being president. What is now stopping Biden from bringing a gun to the next debate? 4 months ago:
It’s not that simple; A court must rule that the action in question is an “official act”. As the SCOTUS intentionally declined to elaborate further on who this is defined, it will be up for the courts to decide what is and what is not covered by immunity.
Not that this couldn’t become subject to abuse and partisan rulings, but it’s more complicated than the presidental equivalent of
- Comment on T-Mobile In Trouble After It Decides To Build Cell Tower That Is 'Not Safe' For Residents 4 months ago:
Or the EMF generators they carry around with them in their pockets, A.K.A their phones.
- Comment on The Antiquity to Alt-Right Pipeline 4 months ago:
Twitter was always toxic but lately it’s become a real cesspool. I created a new account the other just so I can keep tabs on how recent news plays out over there, and before I had really even followed anyone there were racist dogwhistles and alt-right content right there on the timeline.
- Comment on Spotify’s HiFi add-on could cost an extra $5 per month 5 months ago:
True, plus lossless is kinda pointless for streaming anyway since the difference between high-bitrate OGG Vorbis is basically undetectable even when using high-end gear.
- Comment on Baltimore bridge blown up in controlled demolition 5 months ago:
Grace Ocean and Synergy filed a petition on April 1 in Maryland federal court to limit their liability from the crash. If the court grants it, the companies’ liability could be limited to the present value of the ship, which they estimated to be $42.5 million, according to the petition. Source
Which would leave the tax payer footing the bill for the remaining $1.46B cost of reconstruction. Classic.
- Comment on 5 months ago:
That’s true if you’re only talking about what was once called ‘natural philosophy’, but there are still many areas where philosophy and physics don’t really overlap - ethics, epistemology, aesthetics, language, existentialism, etc.
- Comment on Why do arranged marriages persist in many cultures? 5 months ago:
It’s probably worth mentioning that an “arranged marriage” can mean anything from when two families agree to marry off their children without their children’s consent, to when families play match-maker and set their children up on dates but their children get the final say.
I’m India, for example, you get both, with the former being more common in conservative rural areas and the latter more common in urban and middle-class areas. So it’s not a one-size-fits-all situation.
- Comment on Siphonophorae are natures little horrors. 6 months ago:
I read that in Werner Herzog’s voice.
Shout out to Encounters at the End of the World, for those who haven’t seen it.
- Comment on Since 2016 the general publics knowledge about narcissism and manipulation has increased significantly. 6 months ago:
Not nearly enough, evidently.
- Comment on PSA: Nova Launcher has been owned by analytics company Branch since 2022 6 months ago:
More features, bug fixes, and better compatibility with the lastest version of Android.
- Comment on PSA: Nova Launcher has been owned by analytics company Branch since 2022 6 months ago:
Yup, it’s been some time since there was a coherent team development effort being made on it. Until they get their act together, maybe using Obtanium would work?
- Comment on PSA: Nova Launcher has been owned by analytics company Branch since 2022 6 months ago:
- Comment on Is there a more politically and ideologically diverse alternative for Lemmy? 6 months ago:
They’re right in that right-of-centre views are relatively rare on Lemmy, for sure.
- Comment on Is there a more politically and ideologically diverse alternative for Lemmy? 6 months ago:
Hexbear are not right-wing in the slightest. They’re basically Lemmygrad with even more shitposting.
- Comment on How to hide comments that mention a specific word ? (on lemmy of course) 6 months ago:
Boost does this too. I don’t think any Lemmy client offers this functionality for comments specifically, though.
- Comment on How is the US able to instantly stop an attack from Iran but powerless when Israel attacks hospitals? 6 months ago:
Two volunteer doctors working with Doctors Without Borders were killed by a direct hit by an Israeli airstrike on Al Awda hospital back in November, so that’s at least one example.
- Comment on Over 1,600 Scientists and Professionals Sign ‘No Climate Emergency’ Declaration 6 months ago:
Analysis of recent scientific publications finds widespread agreement among climate scientists that human activity is the primary cause of climate change.
As it very clearly states in the article you linked, there reason why some skepticism still exists is political, not scientific.
Conservatives are much more likely be skeptical of climate change because media outlets like FOX news and Republican politicians give credence to their natural bias that everything is fine and there is no pressing need to adjust their lifestyles or personal convictions regarding the environment.
The problem with trying to “both sides” everything is that there aren’t always two reasonable and equitable positions to take Quite often, one side is just plain wrong.
- Comment on Apple argues in favor of selling Macs with only 8GB of RAM 6 months ago:
There are multiple videos showing how the M3 MacBooks struggle with 8GB of RAM compared to 16GB when it comes to 3D rendering and 4K editing, though.
Sure, 8GB gets the job done but why are Apple selling “professional” grade laptops in this price range that clearly require additional memory to reach peak performance?
- Comment on Apple argues in favor of selling Macs with only 8GB of RAM 6 months ago:
That’s no justification for selling a >$1,000 MacBook Pro with only 8GB of RAM, though. It’s specifically marketed as a professional-class machine.
