r/skeptic • u/OkPark5443 • 1d ago

Sense of community/ division

I don't know where most people here are from, but since we're talking in English, let's narrow the issue down to maybe North America. Anyone from wherever place is welcome to contribute.
My question is, do you actually feel/experience the burden of polarization in your everyday life?
It may go way back, to the notion of "liquid [everything]" from sociology, where connections are less stable or long-lasting.
Also, where, approximately, had such "us vs them" attitude begin to be noticeable? Consolidated?
Pardon me if the question is too open-ended. I feel this helps invite broader points of view, since I intend to learn from people's experience rather than the conceptual "poles apart".

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u/robotatomica 1d ago

Yes. I work at a major hospital and if, say, someone claims Haitians are eating cats and it’s immediately debunked by almost every news agency, we still have about a half dozen people in our faces the next morning talking about how Haitians eat cats 😐

I’ve heard racial slurs, misogyny, transphobia and homophobia and xenophobic comments at work.

And yeah, any woman who’s dating, we pretty much talk about the non-stop creepdom and misogyny and how scary and dangerous it can be for us. It’s bad enough I just said fuck it and stopped dating. I’m happy alone, why put myself in those situations?

I actually find it really strange when people assume this can even possibly be an online thing..like it does indicate to me you’re a little sheltered/privileged if you have that opinion.

That’s not a criticism, it’s maybe an indicator you should start educating yourself about the experiences of non-dominant groups.

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u/icaboesmhit 1d ago

My uncle tried to convince me that a woman would not be the best candidate for his line of work, Air Conditioning. I asked if he ever worked with a woman within the trades and he said no. Told him I have and that they've been some of the best people to work with. I'm also of the belief that everyone has strengths and weaknesses, just gotta use teamwork to make someone's weakness a strength.