Some thoughts, occasioned by this.
If you don’t feel like clicking through right now, the upshot is that people tend to rent cathartic experiences, but own addictive ones. The examples the author uses are movies vs. music. The primary form of movie consumption, he argues, is the rental, but people tend to purchase music (these days, generally individual songs).
One-off freakazoid exceptions like “a new Star Wars movie on opening night” aside, nobody watches movies back to back. Even if you loved it, you generally wait at least a year or so before you watch it again. It’s the narrative structure that does this, he argues. A movie takes you through the whole arc; it’s a big jolt of catharsis when it’s over, and you need time to recharge your emotional batteries. Honestly, how often do you re-watch the movies in your collection (if you even have one)? For most people, me included, it’s really more of a collection — I have a nice DVD box set of the Godfather films, but that’s because I was, at one point, the kind of guy who liked to think of himself as the kind of guy who owned a nice DVD box set of the Godfather films. I still like the movies, but I haven’t watched them in years. If I’m in the mood for a gangster flick, I’m much likelier to rent one I haven’t seen yet off Amazon than re-watch the ones I already own.
Songs, on the other hand, get replayed a lot. For instance, I know I’m getting a good workout in when the songs on my lifting playlist start repeating. It would be simple to have a constant stream of new music; Spotify etc. have “stations” devoted entirely to exercise, narrowed down by type of workout (stationary bike, weightlifting, etc.). But I’ve never heard of anyone actually using them for that purpose. Everyone I know has their playlist, and though they might tinker with it at the edges, it’s always the same songs, over and over. It’s like a whole series of little dopamine hits. If I get to “Ride the Lighting” the third time, I know I’m killing it… and hearing the song helps get me through that last set.
It’s an interesting theory that makes a lot of intuitive sense. I think it applies to other stuff as well, and is testable against the current unpleasantness.
The Establishment Left, I argue, sees street violence like a movie, in two different senses. The first, less important one is via narcissism. They’re narcissists, which means they see life as movie in which they’re the main character. Street violence, then, is just an action scene against which the hero — them — does heroic things. It’s the second, much more prosaic, sense that’s important here:
The Establishment Left seem to equate “participating in a riot” with “renting a movie.” You and your friends get together, pop some popcorn, drink some brews, topple some statues, hurl some bricks, wow, that was fun… and then back to Redbox it goes, to sit unremarked until it’s swapped out for something else. Rioting is cathartic for orcs of all races, lets ’em blow off a little steam every few years. It’s useful for cowing the Normals, and it’ll never get anywhere near my house, so why not rent one whenever the mood strikes? Lately they’ve grown tired of renting cut-rate “political thrillers” — Russiagate was just All the President’s Men with an all-retard cast — so why not rent Harold and Kumar Burn Down White Castle for a change of pace?
For the actual participants, though, rioting is getting to be a lot like listening to your favorite tunes when you’re working out — not only do you not get tired of it, the replays actually start to jazz you up after a while. It’s not catharsis, it’s addiction — and you own the addiction. The orcs, having gotten so many dopamine hits from being the center of attention, have to keep upping the ante. It’s not Social Justice: The Movie, it’s Social Justice Warrior: The Identity. Big difference, yuuuuuge.
Note that this is true no matter who wins this November. In a way, it’ll actually be worse for the Left if Biden wins. As we’ve remarked, the Establishment is desperate to stay in charge, to remain the star of the movie. If Biden wins, the orcs will be out for blood for real. The Left has to get them back on the leash… and they won’t have the Bad Orange Fascist to do it for them, or to take the blame. It’ll be interesting, to say the least.
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