I find myself often returning to 2 movie quotes again and again:
One spoken by the suffragette character Mrs. Winifred Banks in the 1964 film Mary Poppins during the "Sister Suffragette" musical number
“Though we adore men individually, we agree that, as a group, they're rather stupid.”
And from Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) in 1997 film Men In Black
"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals and you know it."
If you examine current conditions in US and look to history the direct correlation with Gilded Age and shift into the tumultuous Progressive Era are glaring.
People have limited Energy/Attention/Time, and Atomization (the isolation of individuals) causes vulnerability that opens anyone up to possibly be led astray in moment of weakness.
Pressures of late stage capitalism weigh heavy on many people causing emotions to run high. Add anonymity and the instinct to double down, escalate, or lash out are free of the barrier that would usually check them. Thus the often toxic online environment (which modern algorithms only reinforce and escalate further)
I think we much as we hold contempt for fools we aught try to balance, if at all possible, with some degree of pity and grace for human fallibility; especially in our trying times.
