From Realclearpolitics this morning, written by a man named Ryan Streeter

Are political activists lonely? Maybe. With so much acrimony in our politics today, one wonders why any young person aspiring to make the world a better place would choose politics over humanitarian or other nonprofit work. Why not work with groups producing tangible results, such as teaching schoolchildren or beautifying community parks, instead of a job that involves shouting at your Twitter feed and wondering who will stab your back tomorrow?

One reason young people get involved in politics might be loneliness. In a nationally representative survey conducted by the American Enterprise Institute, 18- to 35-year-olds who are lonely and socially active (it is possible to be both) choose to volunteer for political organizations and campaigns at seven times the rate of their peers who are not lonely (22% vs. 3%). Conversely, socially active young adults who are not lonely choose to volunteer for faith-based organizations at six times the rate as their lonely peers (24% vs. 4%).

Lonely, socially active young adults — defined as those who have multiple friends with whom they interact every week yet report high levels of loneliness — participate in nearly every type of political activity at considerably higher rates than those who are not lonely. This includes expressing support for a candidate on social media (51% vs. 33%) to displaying campaign posters and bumper stickers (30% vs. 18%). Ironically, the only activity in which non-lonely young adults outperform their lonely peers is in voting in elections. The lonely crowd is apparently better at telling others whom to vote for than actually getting to the polls themselves.

Partisanship plays no role in this phenomenon. Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, if you are young and socially active, your loneliness level is a better predictor than your political ideology of whether you will choose to get involved in politics instead of some other community-based activity.

Lonely young adults attracted to politics seem much less enthused about community-based civil society — the part of the private sector endeavoring to address public challenges with non-governmental resources. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they balance out their low view of civil society with a higher view of government.

Americans of all ages have been losing confidence in the federal government for several decades, but socially active, lonely young adults hold it in higher esteem than non-lonely young adults. Thirty-seven percent of the lonely group say you can trust the federal government most of the time or almost always compared to 16% of their non-lonely peers. The lonely group is also more likely to believe they can influence the federal government and more inclined to believe that inequality is an issue that government needs to address.

We see even bigger differences between the lonely and non-lonely groups on issues pertaining to civil society. People who have a lot of faith in government and politics tend to think less of civil society. Thirty percent of the lonely group answer “not much” or “not at all” when asked whether local charities make their community successful, compared to 16% of the non-lonely group. About one in four (26%) of the lonely group says the same about families’ value in the community, compared to 7% of the non-lonely group. An astonishing 33% of the lonely group say local schools do not matter much for community success, compared to just 5% of their non-lonely peers. Their lower opinion of community institutions extends to community amenities such as grocery stores, parks, libraries and community centers. They simply do not regard the role of local institutions as importantly as young adults who are not lonely.

The picture that emerges of socially active young adults suggests that politics fulfills the tribal needs of lonely individuals more than it does for those who are not lonely. The latter group generally has a higher opinion of all sorts of community institutions. This may be because their lack of loneliness is directly attributable to their embeddedness in richer local networks. For lonely young adults, politics provides the sense of purpose and mission that their non-lonely peers get from church, their favorite local charity, or their kids’ school.

Maybe.

But its a good article and it raises good points. Might explain a lot about the membership of your hero organization, AntiFa.

I've not read anything from the raw research, but the article includes a potential throwaway line that this phenomenon is non-partisan but I'm not sure. Leftist join together in numerous little political groups protesting this or marching against that. Some snowflake groups sure seem to be full of a bunch of sad, lonely people.

WebsterMark wrote on 10/01/19 at 09:55:56:

T And T Garage wrote on 10/01/19 at 10:02:04:

And your hero organizations,

So you believe that it is perfectly OK,
To throw, (what looks like a milk shake), quick setting concrete at people that simply disagree with you ?

So you believe that it is perfectly OK,
To block the movement of a old lady using a Walker, because she disagrees with you ?

So you believe that it is perfectly OK,
To block traffic on a Federal Freeway, because you perceive they disagree with you ?

So you believe that it is perfectly OK,
To beat up someone, who is a reporter, and writes what they see.

So you believe that it is perfectly OK,
To Set fire to, and steal property from someone they don’t even know, or have any idea what their Political opinion is ?

So you believe all that it is perfectly OK.

T And T Garage wrote on 10/01/19 at 12:03:08:

Yet, YOU are the one constantly telling everybody,
YOU are on board with their Ideals !

(Your, 'no violence', mantra means nothing,
AntiFa ideals, ARE, Violence)

T And T Garage wrote on 10/01/19 at 13:02:03:

their matra is not violence.  

Really ?
From a Favorite UL place, Wikipedia:
"...The principal feature of antifa groups is their use of direct action, with conflicts occurring both online and in real life. They engage in varied protest tactics, which include digital activism, property damage, physical violence, and harassment against those whom they identify as fascist, racist, or on the far-right..."
"...Their stated focus is on fighting far-right and white supremacist ideologies directly, rather than through electoral means..."
"... antifa activists feel the need to participate in violent actions ..."
"...Antifa tactics include 'no platforming,' i.e. denying their targets the opportunity to speak out in public; obstructing their events and defacing their propaganda; and, when antifa activists deem it necessary, deploying violence to deter them..."


'property damage, physical violence,', are the ideals of 'antifa',
As loose and poorly organized as they are,
you, Support, antifa, ideals.
And even the UL FDS Sites, says antifa is, VIOLENT.
Because that is the only way they believe their voice will be heard.

show me just one example where I condone any type of violence
LOLOLOL, You SUPPORT the Ideals of anitfa.
And again, as loose and poorly organized as they are,
VIOLENCE, IS/ARE, the Ideals of anitfa !

T And T Garage wrote on 10/01/19 at 14:30:06:

Hmmm... also from Wiki:
According to Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at the California State University, San Bernardino, antifa activists feel the need to participate in violent actions ...

Thank you so much for reinforcing the fact that,
Antifa Ideals, ARE, Violence.

T And T Garage wrote on 10/01/19 at 14:42:54:

where's the word "all"?

What ?????   LOLOL

Now the word, 'all', is important.
when Trump said:
“were very fine people on both sides,”

Oh BTY, another quote:
From a Very, VERY, UL source.
"...These counter-protestors ranged from peaceful ones to a small subset of violent ones known as “Antifa,” ..."

And your hero organizations, the proud boys, the neocons and the white nationalists.

The difference again....I never said any of those groups were, what did Sew call them; defenders of peace or some other BS.