Anyone who thought Trump was going to 'lighten up'
or retreat into familiar politics should by now recognize the truth: it is only going to
get worse. He is like a drug
dealer, one who sells designer hate to a sizeable audience vulnerable to his
wares. The recent ban on travelers from seven
Muslim-majority countries is a starter dose. Trump darkly nurtures his
blood-boiled base. As a charismatic narcissist, he also needs increasing amounts of his own drug: adulation.
Although he only mimics a drug dealer, he is, in fact, a real abuser. As such, he employs mind control techniques that twist reality backwards.
In both Trump and followers, the subconscious reigns. Unacknowledged insecurity yokes Trump to his course. He is never wrong in his eyes (on rare occasions, out of tactical necessity, he might say that he is wrong). Similarly, his core followers do not admit anything wrong or contradictory in their own behavior, even though it is overtly and grossly destructive. They blame others for anything bad on the level of national or international strife.
In both Trump and followers, the subconscious reigns. Unacknowledged insecurity yokes Trump to his course. He is never wrong in his eyes (on rare occasions, out of tactical necessity, he might say that he is wrong). Similarly, his core followers do not admit anything wrong or contradictory in their own behavior, even though it is overtly and grossly destructive. They blame others for anything bad on the level of national or international strife.
This is a lot like the imploding alcoholic who denies they
have a problem. Reality is not real for them. Critical thinking is ineffective.
Trump sends dog whistles to
his followers and the followers cheer.
They cheer especially loud and long if Trump hits the right mental
chords. There is, then, a feedback
loop. Stimulus/response. Give
me what I want, and I will praise you.
A dark gravity takes hold, a malign back-and-forth of innuendo that moves ominously toward abyss.
In terms of depth psychology, the followers basically indicate to Trump:
Just make
America white again. If you do this, you
can be our king.
This Id-like, taboo-ish statement is shocking to vocalize. Indeed, that is why people repress it. But there it is. The unspoken, seditious core.
It is that serious.
It is that serious.
Some will object to my argument: the economy and jobs are what concern Trump's
followers.
No. Trump
has masterfully welded the trope of jobs to fear. Fear
of the 'other'; of the outgroup of Muslims, blacks, liberals, feminists, LGBT,
intellectuals...
'Economy and jobs' is symbolic. Money represents food and shelter. Trump to followers: your food
and shelter are being threatened. And
not just by anyone: by an encroaching,
disgusting horde. The dark foe. I, Champion
Trump, shall lead you to victory.
Why delve into the painful intricacies of
self-doubt when Good v. Evil is
simpler?
By the way, this sort of psychological sketch that I am giving is pretty much useless in terms of reaching Trump's followers. Months ago, Trump himself pointed out that he
could shoot someone in the street, and his masses would not desert him. Fear and hate take root below the cerebral
cortex.
Confront the unrepentant addict and see what happens. You get nowhere. Mass addiction by a populist is worse, in a sense, than an isolated addict--because the populist provides ready-made scapegoats and denialisms. Those buying hate from the hate-peddler don't even have to come up with their own deflections.
Confront the unrepentant addict and see what happens. You get nowhere. Mass addiction by a populist is worse, in a sense, than an isolated addict--because the populist provides ready-made scapegoats and denialisms. Those buying hate from the hate-peddler don't even have to come up with their own deflections.
So, what to do in terms of reaching out? Can bridges be built that cross the us-vs-them gap?
First of all, I want to say that activism is
essential. Protest is vital. Maybe protest alone is enough to defeat
Trumpism, if it is intense and forceful.
However, if it tilts into violence, (a) that is egregious in itself, and (b) we might see irreparable
harm. Violence could meet defeat at the hands of a militarized
resistance (the new Trump-driven police state). Violence could also transform us into the very thing we despise.
I suggest the route of the Civil Rights
movement. Satyagraha is the approach most
likely to build bridges, preserve the union, and draw support from the
undecided.
Below are some points that move us in the
direction of holism, not dualism. First, though, I want to emphasize how frustrating it is that Trump won the election; that he now proceeds to dismantle what made
America great in the name of making America great. It is Orwellian. It is tragic.
Globally, it could be the end of the Enlightenment era and the beginning of the Totalitarian.
Maybe Trump will alienate enough people to lose the next election. Maybe he will foment a tremendous backlash that stifles his thrust. Maybe. But history shows that hatred feeds off the masses to escalate.
Trump is not making people racist. He augments a bias already there. It started long ago: in the 60's with Goldwater; the victory of Reagan in the 80's; George HW Bush's racist commercials, and so on.
Maybe Trump will alienate enough people to lose the next election. Maybe he will foment a tremendous backlash that stifles his thrust. Maybe. But history shows that hatred feeds off the masses to escalate.
Trump is not making people racist. He augments a bias already there. It started long ago: in the 60's with Goldwater; the victory of Reagan in the 80's; George HW Bush's racist commercials, and so on.
Indeed, all the stuff about "State's Rights"
goes back to the Civil War, the bitterness of the
slavery-defending South. The collective consciousness of the USA still bears that primal scar.
Unless we heal the divide, we are going
down fast. As part of my activism, I
want to try and reach out across the chasm.
Anyway, here are some bridge-building points, for what they are worth.
Anyway, here are some bridge-building points, for what they are worth.
(1) Stop
calling Trump stupid. He is a genius at
what he does. His followers think he is
smart, and they are right. Just admit
it. However, his followers are turned
off by him, too. Seek out commonalities.
(2) Insults don't help. They hand entrenched minds a bigger
shovel. Outraged chanting, while
cathartic and necessary, might make Trumpsters gleeful--in the same sense that
liberals become gleeful when right-wingers are upset. It is important to vent anger and
frustration--but find hate-defusing ways to protest as well.
(3) Projecting
superiority is a kind of insult. It is
true, those of us not trapped on an accelerating treadwheel of racist rancor are superior, in
some important fashion. However, humans
are complex, society is complex, and there are many ways to praise or condemn
people--all people. Yes, you and I are in that category.
I guess what I'm saying is: humility. Assertive tactics, but married to humility. The more you threaten, the less they listen.
I guess what I'm saying is: humility. Assertive tactics, but married to humility. The more you threaten, the less they listen.
(4) Rational arguments about racism, narcissism, and
so on, won't work. If you hammer on
someone's denial, even using heavy logic, it only sinks them deeper.
(5) I read a great article today by an educated man who
suffered under Cesar Chavez's populist dictatorship. I strongly recommend this piece. Here is one point:
In Venezuela, we fell into this trap in a bad way. We wrote again and again about principles, about separation of powers, civil liberties, the role of the military in politics, corruption and economic policy. But it took opposition leaders 10 years to figure out that they needed to actually go to the slums and the countryside. Not for a speech or a rally, but for a game of dominoes or to dance salsa — to show they were Venezuelans, too, that they weren’t just dour scolds and could hit a baseball, could tell a joke that landed. That they could break the tribal divide, come down off the billboards and show that they were real. This is not populism by other means. It is the only way of establishing your standing. It’s deciding not to live in an echo chamber. To press pause on the siren song of polarization.
(6) The enemy is Hatred and Fear, not
people. If you become hateful or fearful in behavior, you play into the worsening gyre. However, you will experience hate, fear, rage, anger, etc., and these can be channeled into activism, ways to seek justice (not easy, I know, but the power is immense, and can work for good!)
(7)
Validate Trump's followers. Like everyone,
they have suffered immensely. Like
everyone, they tread life's difficult paths.
They feel. They struggle. They sacrifice. They belief in higher Good. They have passions. They love.
They are smart, accomplished, capable.
They are you and me.
(8) If someone challenges you, by saying, "You think
you're better than us!" then perhaps a decent response is honesty: "I think you're wrong about certain
things, yes; but I admit I am often wrong about things. None of us is perfect."
(9)
Develop patience. Patience is almost
ultimate. Trump is patient in his own
dark way. He expresses anger with
precision.
(10) Trump thrives on conflict and chaos. Violence works for him. It is like an injection of fear straight to his followers' femoral arteries. He wants violence. When it happens, people are afraid. They give up freedom for (perceived) security. Higher thought ceases. Read Naomi Klein's Disaster Capitalism.
(10) Trump thrives on conflict and chaos. Violence works for him. It is like an injection of fear straight to his followers' femoral arteries. He wants violence. When it happens, people are afraid. They give up freedom for (perceived) security. Higher thought ceases. Read Naomi Klein's Disaster Capitalism.
(11) Again, Trump wants chaos. If you refute him by saying, "You're
sowing chaos!" he responds in a way that ups the ante. Chaos is his anvil. It will help him forge his 'law and order' police
state.
(12) Keep aware of what
is at stake. Trump craves more praise
and power. Soon, the only route to these
will be open fascism. White, misogynous
fascism.
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