Desensitization Through Sensationalism

I don't know about all of you, but the sensationalism of many, as especially seen on a day to day basis here on ATS, has turned me more and more skeptical and desensitized. When you read on what seems to be an almost daily basis things like, 'This is it, US dollar about to COLLAPSE!,' 'Martial law IMMANENT!,' 'China to take over United States land,' 'Government set to disclose reality of extra-terrestrials,' and on and on, it all starts to become unbelievable. I'm extremely open-minded towards any number of scenarios, and yet at this point when an online posting seems unlikely, it probably isn't true.

So, I think this over the top manner of presenting things and drawing conclusions may actually be counter-productive. In the short term, it may get people more interested and riled up. And yet after some time of being exposed to it, I'm guessing many, like myself, become desensitized and tend to assume things that seem outrageous and untrue...probably are. So, I think to get these ideas to be more seriously considered, over the top conclusions should be avoided. Cuz if/when any such thing does happen, it'll be the billionth time we've heard it, and many will brush it off.

reply to post by TheJourney


I know what you are saying and it annoys the hell out of me.
What I do is if I see a thread that says MUST SEE or MUST WATCH,I ignore them on purpose.
With all the people that seek attention,I don't need to give them mine.

I also stay away from the ALERT or WARNING.

Putting something in capital letters doesn't make it more or less important,it makes someone look like they need attention.

reply to post by TheJourney


I wouldn't say that such thread titles have had any sort of desensitizing effect on me but that's because I've always taken such attempts at inducing panic for that they are--attempts to induce panic. Perhaps that just means that I was already desensitized to them. I agree with Drums that these kind of shock titles are deliberate attempts to drive traffic to a specific video, blog or website. Alone, that doesn't distress me. What distresses me is when I see people falling for it entirely without verifying sources.

I try to stay away. Nine times out of 10, it's from some ultra-partisan site or (and I hate this) .blogspot.com.

I always like when people are like THREAT IMMINENT then go on to quote some person who is sure about something happening because his father's sister's cousin's uncle saw a train transporting a tank, obviously moving into position for the coming SHTF scenario.

I should add, that while I discount most of this nonsense, I am still mildly preparing myself for some kind of scenario. What can I say, once a Boy Scout, always a Boy Scout.

I make no apologies for my leftist leanings, but it does seem like most of those posts come from the rightward leaning members of this community.