What is the optimal amount of attention to pay to political news? I’ve been trying to cut down to reduce stress over things I can’t control, but ignoring it entirely seems a little dangerous. For an extreme example, consider the Jews in Nazi Germany—I’d imagine those who kept an eye on what was going on were more likely to leave the country before the Holocaust. Of course something that bad is unlikely, but it seems like it could still be important to be aware of impactful new laws that are passed—eg anti-privacy laws, or internet piracy now much more heavily punishable, etc.
So what’s the best way to keep up on things that might have an impact on one’s life, without getting caught up in the back-and-forth of day-to-day politics?
Are there actual political threats to you in your own polity (nation, state, etc.)? Do you belong to groups that there’s a history of official repression or large-scale political violence against? Are there notable political voices or movements explicitly calling for the government to round you up, kill you, take away your citizenship or your children, etc.? (To be clear: An entertainer tweeting “kill all the lawyers” is not what I mean here.)
Are you engaged in fields of business or hobbies that are novel, scary, dangerous, or offensive to a lot of people in your polity, and that therefore might be subject to new regulation? This includes both things that you acknowledge as possibly harmful (say, working with poisonous chemicals that you take precautions against, but which the public might be exposed to) as well as things that you don’t think are harmful, but which other people might disagree. (Examples: Internet; fossil fuels; drones; guns; gambling; recreational drugs; pornography)
Internationally — In the past two hundred years, how often has your country been invaded or conquered? How many civil wars, coups d’état, or failed wars of independence have there been; especially ones sponsored by foreign powers? How much of your country’s border is disputed with neighboring nations?
For the extreme stuff, I think you’ll get clues from things like how people like you are treated on the street.-- if it’s your country. If you’re at risk of being conquered by a government that hates you, the estimate is more complicated.
For the more likely things to keep track of, think about what’s likely to affect you (like changes in laws) and use specialist sources.
This is harder than it seems. For example, to find out when you need to withdraw your money ahead of a banking crisis, like what happened in Cyprus and Greece, you need to figure this out ahead of everybody else. Furthermore, the authorities are going to be doing their best to cover up the impending crisis.
What is the optimal amount of attention to pay to political news?
To electioneering, zero would be about right (unless you appreciate the entertainement value). To particular laws and/or regulations which might affect you personally, enough to know the landscape.
Get weekly updates from light, happy sources (The Daily Show, The News Quiz, Mock the Week), and then specific searches for things that sound important.
Those strike me as worse than useless for the kind of things ShardPhoenix is interested in, e.g., they are the kinds of shows that would mock the “idiots” who believe the “ridiculous conspiracy theory” that the Nazis are actually planning to systematically exterminate the Jews.
What is the optimal amount of attention to pay to political news? I’ve been trying to cut down to reduce stress over things I can’t control, but ignoring it entirely seems a little dangerous. For an extreme example, consider the Jews in Nazi Germany—I’d imagine those who kept an eye on what was going on were more likely to leave the country before the Holocaust. Of course something that bad is unlikely, but it seems like it could still be important to be aware of impactful new laws that are passed—eg anti-privacy laws, or internet piracy now much more heavily punishable, etc.
So what’s the best way to keep up on things that might have an impact on one’s life, without getting caught up in the back-and-forth of day-to-day politics?
Some things to think about:
Are there actual political threats to you in your own polity (nation, state, etc.)? Do you belong to groups that there’s a history of official repression or large-scale political violence against? Are there notable political voices or movements explicitly calling for the government to round you up, kill you, take away your citizenship or your children, etc.? (To be clear: An entertainer tweeting “kill all the lawyers” is not what I mean here.)
Are you engaged in fields of business or hobbies that are novel, scary, dangerous, or offensive to a lot of people in your polity, and that therefore might be subject to new regulation? This includes both things that you acknowledge as possibly harmful (say, working with poisonous chemicals that you take precautions against, but which the public might be exposed to) as well as things that you don’t think are harmful, but which other people might disagree. (Examples: Internet; fossil fuels; drones; guns; gambling; recreational drugs; pornography)
Internationally — In the past two hundred years, how often has your country been invaded or conquered? How many civil wars, coups d’état, or failed wars of independence have there been; especially ones sponsored by foreign powers? How much of your country’s border is disputed with neighboring nations?
I do like the list :-)
For the extreme stuff, I think you’ll get clues from things like how people like you are treated on the street.-- if it’s your country. If you’re at risk of being conquered by a government that hates you, the estimate is more complicated.
For the more likely things to keep track of, think about what’s likely to affect you (like changes in laws) and use specialist sources.
This is harder than it seems. For example, to find out when you need to withdraw your money ahead of a banking crisis, like what happened in Cyprus and Greece, you need to figure this out ahead of everybody else. Furthermore, the authorities are going to be doing their best to cover up the impending crisis.
To electioneering, zero would be about right (unless you appreciate the entertainement value). To particular laws and/or regulations which might affect you personally, enough to know the landscape.
If you live in the US I would guess that if you read LW you will see comments about really important political events.
how I do it -
Things that I care about: local events (likelyhood of terrorism; or safety threats nearby)
Things I don’t care about: any politics that is further away than that. (and not likely to affect my life)
global, country-wide, natural disasters that are far away.
Get weekly updates from light, happy sources (The Daily Show, The News Quiz, Mock the Week), and then specific searches for things that sound important.
Those strike me as worse than useless for the kind of things ShardPhoenix is interested in, e.g., they are the kinds of shows that would mock the “idiots” who believe the “ridiculous conspiracy theory” that the Nazis are actually planning to systematically exterminate the Jews.
I wondered how something called “Mock the Weak” would be considered a “happy source”… then I noticed the two “e”s