Lies.com in a nutshell
I was holding off posting this, but after catching up on the weeks posts and the resulting discussions I decided to go ahead.
Now it may seem that committing your loyalty to Sony, Microsoft or Nintendo is a world apart from committing to a political or religious stance – after all, the stakes of politics are the leadership and government of society and the world, and the stakes of metaphysical belief can seem even more serious to both atheists and theists. Why should videogame fanboys be so invested in their loyalty to one platform over another?
Remember that the parts of the brain activated in partisan response are those involved in assessing risk and reward, and cognitive dissonance is involved in protecting one’s prior decisions against disconfirming evidence. The reward in the context of videogame players is the enjoyment they will earn from playing the games on the various console systems, often in the form of fiero (triumph over adversity) – that hot and addictive emotional reward from overcoming immense challenge – but this is far from the only form of reward to be found in play. The decision each fanboy has made at some point in the past is which console will give them the greatest emotional reward from play – and for loyalists who stick with one console manufacturer from generation to generation, this decision was made a long time ago.
Take one tiny leap to replace the game manufacturers with political parties, and I feel the resolutely partisan arguments are explained.
from the site iHobo
November 3rd, 2008 at 8:30 am
However, wouldn’t you concede that some arguments that appear to be partisan are actually more fact based? Of course I’m a little biased towards the idea of my own brilliance, but I became a Democrat because of what I saw happening to our government. If I make an argument to vote for a Democrat, it’s because of those facts, not because of my registration.
November 3rd, 2008 at 11:27 am
Steve, I understand that. I feel like the posters here have a core factual basis for their beliefs. At the same time the facts don’t always support each individual argument for and against a given subject that have been made here.
November 3rd, 2008 at 2:42 pm
That is a fun site (I’ve been there before). Any site that has an essay about MM’s multiverse and the eternal champion is worth the eyeball time.
So an fMRI shows that the brain lights up in places that have the observer assessing risk/reward based on past experience. No wonder tomorrow will be a landslide for Obama, as the Rs have done a terrible job of running the country. For decades.
I think as a simile the platform/political party thing is ok up to a point, but one is somewhat trivial (games and gear in the $400 price range, big whup) and the other momentous (President Palin, need I say more?) Sure much of it is style: do you like fun, cute, active games? get a Wii Do you like sci-fi fps? try the x360 If you like, er, uh sci fi fps and racing games, mb Little Big Planet and a bluray player, nab the PS3. If you like economic incentives that favor the ultra-rich, social policy that caters to the ultra-extremists and violent numbskulls, then the Republican Party is for you! If you think giving the middle class better incentives and want a government that at least tries to balance the budget and delivers economic growth then the Democratic Party is for you! Socially they will stay towards the center and keep a balance on the Supreme court… it is tilted to the right now and with two more retirements coming up, the prospect of President Palin choosing two SC judges makes me feel ill (hmmm maybe Todd Palin for Supreme? you betcha! er, thanks, but no thanks)
The choice is clear, the polls are all in agreement, now we just need to turn out and vote these scumbags out of office and off the pages of history. Then maybe we can start uncovering their many crimes and slamming their corrupt keisters in jail where they belong.