I never said we should sit here feeling sorry for ourselves. What are you actually talking about right now? You think the only way we can take action that betters ourselves is through manipulation?

Ah I see, you've included normal social etiquette into your definition of manipulation because you've found this argument can only be won through being pedantic. Manipulation is control towards an unfair outcome. That's the dictionary definition of the manipulation I'm talking about. Smiling when you make eye contact being labeled as manipulation falls under the same category as saying you're being manipulated by society to not shit on the counter at a tim Hortons, it's technically true but we both know it's not what I was talking about.