In praticular the mainly American kind of agism, and more specifically towards the younger people I’ve noticed, as an example: a 17 year old is somehow a child and knows absolutely nothing, but an 18 year old is suddenly a full grown adult that’s expected to do everything on their own now right away, unless it’s inconvenient in whatever conversation is occuring, then that 18 year old is still a “kid” when in another conversation they’re an “adult”, which I’ve never seen anyone point out whatsoever when it occurs, and with it also the “groomer” and “paedophilia” hysteria the American media is endlessly pushing onto the people and causing further age hierarchy and superiorites among the people (said “groomer” and “paedophilia” panic also being used against the LGBT+ community), only intensifying these points. I’m sure I’m not the only one noticing this trend, it’s overwhelmingly everywhere on the internet now in one form or another and has become or is becoming the norm beyond just America, it’s spread to other regions and is gradually becoming more and more prominent with each year, even in my day to day life now I’m noticing ageism becoming slightly ingrained in society with time, it’s now normal in certain societies and the internet as a whole to discriminate against an adolescent and harass them solely over their age or for doing anything even remotely hinting at sexual behaviour or any form of romantic relationship between them and others - basically anything and everything that can be used to discrimate against that adolescent will be used against them I’ve noticed (and in the case of older people: discriminating against them solely for being too old or talking to people younger then them), causing people to be treated on the basis of “higher number = human decency, too high or low of a number = discrimination, isolation, and harassment” and call pretty much anyone that doesn’t agree with them on this as a “paedophile” with full acceptance from the internet and certain societies as a whole - and completely distorting what that term even actually means, very remenisent of the red scare to an eerie degree (same exact way some Americans and especially the bourgeois and media call any social democrat a “communist” without even knowing what “communist” actually means - or purposefully leaving that detail out and creating a whole new definition of it by lying over and over again in the case of the latter, but now applied to age and with “paedophile” instead). To me it’s yet another way to divide us through hysteria and lies, it solely exists to weaken us, keep us afraid, keep us divided, and keep us biting at one another over anything and everything, be it skin colour, nationality, religion, hobbies, biology, sexual orientation, gender, language, or age, instead of looking to the roots of our systematic suffering and uniting in solidarity to end it, it’s nothing new whatsoever, especially from the United States who’s notorious for setting these trends in the first place, but nevertheless extremely saddening to see be pushed upon the masses until it becomes the norm in one form or another, adding further to our already fragmented and disjointed world and causing further suffering for everyone, be it young or old. Though what are you’re thoughts of this my fellow comrades? I’d love to see others’ analysations of this trend.

  • @Cysioland@lemmygrad.ml
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    91 year ago

    As @muad_dibber@lemmygrad.ml put it, there might certainly be a class/net worth element to the age differences, at least in the contemporary world. And in that sense we could certainly think of the age struggle as of a proxy for the class struggle.

    Yes, some of the age restrictions certainly seem a little bit reactionary at times (like being able to enlist at 18 in the US but not being able to drink until 21, and yes, I know what the science has to say about this but the science certainly wasn’t what motivated the MADD to run the campaign). What some people don’t consider is the inverse. People saying how elderly should no longer vote since they won’t have to live in the world they’ve created for very long. I disagree with that as especially with the lengthening lifespans there certainly might be some boomers who’ll feel the effects of their policies (also this thinking could certainly be used to cut retirement/elderly benefits, as a political version of the selection shadow).

    However, pointing out ageism is also a favourite pastime of the terminally online Western anarchists (eg. the cries of “abolish bedtime”), furthermore it might slippery slope into the “actually it’s ephebophilia” claims of someone being “mature for their age”. So we just gotta be careful when talking about that.