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PaperclipPerfector  1mo ago (text post)   28318 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of September 23, 2024

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I feel like I encounter it less since I got out of the dating game. I don't really meet many young women anymore, and they were the main source of astrologists in my life. The comedians I've heard joke about it also tend to be young and single guys.

Are you suddenly more exposed to young women for some reason?

I'm pretty sure it's a phenomenon for most women, not just young ones. Its just that the young ones haven't picked up on how men think it is silly. My mother was really into astrology stuff, but the level of eye roll my dad gave off when she brought it up meant she preferred to talk to her children about it. My mom is also religious, and a microbiologist PhD. I've asked her about conflicting internal beliefs before, they don't seem to bother her.

Not a god-shaped hole. There is a witch-shaped hole. Its filled with astrology, seance, ghosts, crystals, etc. Its a common quirk among women, if you are straight I'd suggest making your peace with it and trying to ignore it.

Not a god-shaped hole. There is a witch-shaped hole.

This. The common people are absolutely obsessed with superstitio and always have been, and it’s gendered a bit female. Essential oils woo moms are the same thing. But, uh, bodybuilder bro lore is also the same thing.

Essential oils woo moms are the same thing. But, uh, bodybuilder bro lore is also the same thing.

I've been waiting for the perfect prompt for my erotica-trained LLM. Thank you, sir.

Just to even the scales a little, there is a conservative female coded astrology stand in: Lord of The Rings.

I was never a fan of either the books or the movies, but it's comes up all over the place (there are now like 5 different VC backed companies named after minor elements / characters --- Anduril, Palantir, etc.) As I understand it, Tolkien did intend for it to be a Christian allegory, but didn't want to make it as thinly veiled as things like The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.

That extent to which that is true or not doesn't matter. Conservative women get their fill of woo-woo, but in the context of being a princess / queen in a holy war against Satanic forces. They might join you in rolling their eyes at astrology, but will have strong thoughts about Galadriel.

Tolkien vehemently denied that he was writing any sort of allegory in the preface of LOTR, though I guess stating things plainly is the best way to be interpreted to have meant the opposite.

I offer no argument here. Like I said, I was never really a fan.

Let's say Tolkien didn't want to be an allegory. I surrender. My point was wrong. Please forgive my fundamental stupidity.

But people still treat it as a Christian Allegory. And some of those people woo it up.

I apologize if my counter came off as needlessly pedantic.I do enjoy both books and most of the films and feel a certain misplaced responsibility. Your wider point is of course evident.

I mean to what extent is being fans of a fictional world whose themes appeal to them comparable to astrology? LotR doesn't come with some woo-woo belief system attached.

The woo-woo belief system of astrology isn't a genuinely held belief system by 90% of astrology "practitioners." Elsewhere in the thread someone pointed out that the women who have astrology apps or know all of their moon signs don't truly believe that random musing on the constellations have causal validity. It's sort of a fun pastime paired with a "good vibes" aesthetic.

I'd say that's what LoTR is to many of its fans. It's not a cohesive belief system beyond being a re-telling of a Christian narrative. Nobody actually thinks they're fighting that bad guy spooky ghosts thingies (wraiths? Nazgul?). But it's fun to dig into the guts of the aesthetic.

Men tend to have a lot of superstition around gambling and sports teams. The cryptozoology and xenology "researchers" also tend to skew male.

I do wonder if there is a similar effect with women where enough social approbation will make people hide their magical beliefs. But people are much more ready and willing to make fun of men, so the magic beliefs get repressed harder.

I think it's tied in a bit with the neuroticism trait, which does skew more towards women.

My MIL and SIL honestly believe that a person could commit with their dogs on a spirit level. They sent a picture to the “dog psychic” who texted back basic cold reading techniques. My MIL and SIL feel for it hook, line, and sinker.

My MIL told my mother about it while at a family dinner. My mother became deeply concerned — she was concerned they were speaking with demons!

I was the only one who said it was an obvious fake!

Yeah I almost added "cats" to my list of witch shaped hole things, but I think the more accurate one would just be "familiars" aka deep spiritual connections to household pets.

aka deep spiritual connections to household pets.

This one seems to be a pretty common one, historically. I don't think of myself as very witchy, but I admit getting touched when I read ancient epitaphs for pets: "I am in tears, while carrying you to your last resting place as much as I rejoiced when bringing you home in my own hands fifteen years ago." Or reading about one of Muhammad's companions who was so devoted to his cats that he got nicknamed "father of kittens."

Are you suddenly more exposed to young women for some reason?

I recently changed jobs, but in my previous job most of the colleagues I was friendly with were women in their mid-twenties.

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