But in one case the victim is a person with feelings and in the other case it’s a tree. I find it quite concerning that people seem to struggle to see the difference.

Just checked and can’t believe it only got 40 %. Perhaps it’s because it was too close to the Matrix hype at the time. In my friend group we even called all these movies “vermatrixt”.

As someone who was in the same shoes as the person you reacted to: I was absolutely repulsed. It’s the main reason why I waited until my late thirties to get a partner for life.

When I got the slightest whiff of the men being with me because he liked that I was short / skinny / childlike that was the end of the relationship. It’s not only superficial, but also highly questionable to find your partner attractive because of these traits.

He looks too happy and to pretty, this did not bode well with Turkish police!

What? No, what I mean is that it was known how people were increasingly aligning their opinions to the right for probably more than a decade now. Especially in exactly those areas which now voted for AFD. But instead of doing anything about it then, it was washed aside with: “Eh well it’s all Nazis there anyway! What a bunch of idiots!” and that was it.

Again and again there was the occasional article where all people agreed upon how bad those people are and for a while perhaps being called right-wing or Nazi had some weight in persuading people they should seriously question their opinions. But without any further action, I wonder what people were thinking how this would prevent those people from voting a party like AFD further down the line?!

Now some of them are already at a point where they will just proudly agree that they are right-wing or conservatives. What a surprise.

Depending on how it works out with the AFD in that town, I am sure people in similar places are watching closely. This can escalate quickly. I believe, when this doesn’t turn out as a complete desaster for the town, a kind of domino effect will happen and more people will feel comfortable voting for the AFD. I mean, they are already branded as right-wing Nazis, why not vote accordingly? When a 60 yo village dweller finds he agrees with some of the points the AFD makes and that makes him right-wing, perhaps being right-wing is a good thing? That’s how people work and we need to step in at that point and not wait for a miracle of them suddenly making a mental U-turn.

The concerns were raised but ignored by the media and in politics. It doesn’t stop people from voting for right-wing parties if you just insult them as right-wing and never do anything about their concerns. At some point they just accept that mark and act accordingly.

Sorry, I didn’t mean this on you specifically. Just that we can not tell people (as a society) to just live more frugal without addressing the overall problems that drive so many into consumerism. It’s a bit like how people treat drug addicts. I see the same in the recent climate debate. Instead of focusing on the root issue, it is reduced to judging other people’s morals or character.

People do these things to fight negative emotions. If you want people to change their ways being arrogant and not showing any empathy won’t help.

Anybody who is dependent on consumerism got to that point because society sells these things like tasty food, vacation, alcohol, tech gadgets, etc., as an easy fix for pain and other internal struggles. It’s not about teaching them to be frugal. Almost everybody has something they rely on to deal with their negative emotions, but it’s easier to see in others than in ourselves.