what we're seeing is the final state of a political movement built entirely on spite, defined purely by its opposition. we used to joke that obama could recommend breathing and they would stop breathing, but that's only just barely hyperbole.

'do [x] to own the libs' is a fairly comprehensive statement of their beliefs. they don't know what's right except by opposing the left.

faced with the need to engage in collective action *or die*, they're choosing death. they don't have the mental apparatus to do otherwise.

it's important to note that this isn't stupidity, or ignorance. it's deeper than that. this is an entire way of seeing and thinking about the world that is incapable of anything but reaction.

adherents don't have the ethical toolkit with which to choose the right actions.

they've been trained out of them, out of anything like self-determination or critical thought, as part of a larger social push towards creating perfect consumers.

they're not stupid; they're conditioned to be incurious.

which is far, far worse.

because knowledge can no longer fix this. the system of thought to which they've fallen victim tells them to reject new knowledge as a plot by 'libs' to harm them. it tells them to reject self-examination as a 'lib' trick.

it's a death cult, as others have said.

voluntarily marching into the ocean to spite the 'libs'.

refusing to admit they're chest-deep in seawater because that's a 'lib' trick.

eagerly breathing in the water to prove how harmless it is.