I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again:
Americans are doing a good enough job setting ourselves off against our domestic political opponents on our own; we don’t need Russia’s help.
Oh, they’re going to offer it. It’s been offered since the end of World War II – those who say the Cold War ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall in1989 just haven’t been paying attention.
And while it is a concern that a foreign nation is using disinformation and misinformation and fake news to try to set us off against each other, I’m not sure there’s a big difference between the parties doing that. Or domestic “news” organizations. Or partisans. Or the candidates themselves.
There’s so much disinformation and misinformation and fake news out there – even before fake news became a thing – it’s hard to feel frightened about any of it coming from Russia.
Sure, Russia doesn’t have our best interests at heart.
Show me how the other disinformation campaigns out there, domestically-driven, have our best interests at heart. Just because it has a foreign address on it doesn’t make it any less nefarious.
So maybe I am snoozing in my jammies.
Russia could be doing a bang-up job now simply by doing nothing. Just the idea that this “influence” could be out there, booping over our heads like Sputnik, is enough.
Should we be aware? Yes indeedy.
A while back, Facebook offered a feature where we could see if we’d interacted with any of their identified or suspected fake news sites. I came up clean.
So first of all, don’t get your news from social media.
Second of all, get a lot of news. Not just from one source. Lots of sources. But legitimate sources, and from sources that don’t always hoe your particular political leanings.
Learn to discuss politics, not just shout talking points. Be willing to learn, even if it hurts.
And stay away from the Landslide, lest this happens to you:
And if all else fails, go searchin’. Or forget politics and listen to the Coasters.
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