A minor observation...

[Deleted]

Something I noticed on here is the common scenario of somebody developing a polorised extreme view of something they themselves consider extreme and usually annoying. Example:

SJW: (I won't comment on my distaste for this acronym) A number of people find extreme SJW views annoying (be it feminism, LGBT or racial issues) and retaliate with an equally annoying polorised extreme view. It happens in politics to with the pointless Left v Right views, people seemingly ignore there's various degrees of Left & Right

I'm curious if this is common IRL too? Granted I only have my own limited personal experience within my circle of friends where such things never occur (perhaps they hide it well). So is this behaviour simply more previlent among online communities or would you say it's 50/50?

[Fortydragon]

I think its in real life too. From my experience people like to take sides. They tend to like being a member of a pro or con "team" on an issue so they don't feel left out. It's sad, because it causes people not to listen to each other and promotes arguing, but from what I've seen it's just one of the challenges of life. :C

[Gilgemesh]

It is definitely part of human nature. It doesn't even take an extreme view on things to cause an extremely polarized response. All one thing has to do is look like something they don't like, even if it is different on every level except how it looks. It's like the nazi cross or the confederate flag. These things are just things, inherent of no danger, no harm, and no value. But one very bad person uses this thing as decoration while doing evil things and this thing catches a taboo. Now when someone sees this thing, whether they intended for the thing to look evil like it did on that one person or not, it still raises question. Especially if you are or were related to one of the people who feared that symbol. A thing is just a thing, but the responses on both sides are overwhelmingly polarized.

edit:
And in situations like this, even an equanimous opinion on a matter can draw harsh and polarized views. "How can you be so thoughtless?" "Can't you see the damage it does to So-and-so" "I thought you were smarter than that"
This is human nature at work against societal structure. We want to group, get along, and be unified. We want to choose leaders, we want to live and love and be free. We also want to fight and take other kid's toys, get away with murder, and ignore the things we don't like. And we're very opinionated about all of these things.

[Krekal]

One of my old class mates thought that anyone that voted on anything else than Vänsterpartiet(Leftist party in Sweden) are racist nazi capitalists.
Another classmate thought that anyone who doesn't vote for Sverige Demokraterna(Considered extreme right for no reason but that they want to reduce the immigration) are selfloathing SJW communists.

I'm convinced that it's quite common, at least in political questions...
Maybe because it's a serious thing, not like nationality in WoW or cheering on certain football teams.

[Kjanaprik]

Well, yes. People tend to have opinion about something and often refuse anything that slightly challenges said opinion; Whether it be diesel/petrol* or if it's the colour of some stupid object.


*In my Engineering classes this discussion gets brought up quite a lot, Pro-Diesel don't want to see anything petrol and don't listen to any reason about how they are both good for different tasks, same goes for Pro-petrol.

[Deleted]

No. Irl people are often persuaded if you show them the numbers and they know denying it then will make em look retarded. On the internet u can just keep playing pretend.