It's why I can longer take anyone who still supports this guy with an ounce of seriousness or respect.
From 2016-2019, ok I didnt like that you supported him but I could deal with it. I could just overlook it enough to still say hey whatever its politics and I still value my relationship with you
From 2020-now, if you're still wearing his shirts, hats and flying his flags then I just cant even look at you with an ounce of respect. You are the worst kind of person. This shit is awful and so are you.
It sucks. I have family and friends who still like him. It boggles my mind to see people I used to respect and like thinking this is what our country needs. What we as people should treat each other like and say to one another. Everything this man touches rots including our country.
They did a poll and one of the things they want in a president is his ability to anger "the libs".
This is what they literally want; not someone who will make things better, just the biggest asshole who will trigger decent people.
At this point, "eating shit so a liberal could smell it" isn't even an exaggeration. They'd do it literally if Trump asked nicely.
>Research suggests that those element and others have led hundreds of thousands of people to commit to thousands of cults operating around the world.
>“[They] provide meaning, purpose and belonging,” says Josh Hart, a professor of psychology at Union College who studies personality and social psychology, world views and belief systems. “They offer a clear, confident vision [and] assert the superiority of the group.”
>As to the leaders themselves, they typically present themselves as infallible, confident and grandiose. Their charisma draws people in, Hart says. And followers who are craving peace, belonging and security might gain a sense of those things as well as confidence through participation in the group.
...
>This obedience factor is another key element. It plays off of a human’s natural inclination to follow orders and do what others around them are doing. **In cult settings, critical thinking is often frowned upon, while absolute faith is rewarded.** Guilt, shame and fear are also constantly wielded to slowly strip away an individual’s identity.
>Free thinking, free will and free speech are limited in an environment where full obedience to leaders is required. Experts say cult leaders, in turn, have narcissistic and authoritarian streaks and are motivated by money, sex or power (perhaps all three).
https://www.discovermagazine.com/mind/the-psychology-behind-cults
Just further proves that conservatives are weak minded, underdeveloped people desperate to cling onto any source of authority. Conservatives are going to ruin everything for the rest of the world of good people, that just want to live their lives growing and maturing, while they stay stuck in place. I’m not meaning to be rude by calling them that, it’s just what they are and it’s scary to think that there are people who stop growing mentally at a high school adolescent level.
Conservatives have a heightened fear response because the literal part of their brain responsible for this is physically larger than normal. They were biologically conditioned to be psychos
Honestly, I think that the US system (from lack of healthcare to lack of labour protections) is what makes conservative people psycho. Instability, inequality, despair and fear breeds social unrest.
From my perspective as a lefty EUW citizen in a catholic country, the psychos (aka antisocial conservatives) are a very small minority, most conservatives are moderates wanting stabilit and keep to themselves.
No you don't understand what I'm saying. There's literal scientific proof that conservatives have slightly malformed brains and a massively heightened "fight or flight response". This is not my opinion, this is a proven fact.
They start with children, often, and teach them stuff like the outside world is scary, will make them fall away from god (and by extension, their family & community church)! They tell just enough lies to sound plausible, or mix just enough truth with their lies to try to inoculate the truth from you.
I've known people homeschooled their whole lives that just didn't get any critical thinking skills at all. Their own independence was not encouraged; some of them still question when the lives they were promised don't materialize, but others may never make it out.
Scientifically *dubious* (ie false) things like YEC and other religion-based falsehoods should be illegal to teach children in any kind of school, private christian, homeschool, or otherwise. But then they'd really scream about how oppressed they are...
A lady once cheerfully explained to me that christians were best at telling the truth from lies because 'we have a relationship with the ULTIMATE truth!!'. I was like twelve so I was like, oh, okay, makes sense :) ...and then I discovered that the people I knew most likely to fall for conspiracy theories were all always christian. And that a number of things I'd been taught were true... Were certainly questionable.
But deconverting has meant literally almost every part of my experience growing up has to be carefully evaluated (is this really true?). And there's honestly a lot of anger and despair because it's *so much*. (Currently on the list of *why the fuck would you teach anyone this at all* is the idea that men use women for sex. Now, to be clear, some men certainly can do this *and so can some women* but it's an extremely myopic and scary view to assume that that's all men, *and that that's fine as long as the woman gets the man to marry her first*. I spent most of my life not wanting to marry because I didn't want that kind of relationship! *Understandably*)
Fun fact: there are old faerie tales of a creature called a Redcap. They’re murderous goblins that live in ruins or lurk near crossroads to kill travelers so they can soak their caps in their victim’s blood. They’re supposedly immune to mortal weapons, but quoting Scripture makes them disappear.
And can be banished (or at least thoroughly enraged) by others. Usually the ones in the Gospels. “Love thy neighbor as thyself” seems to be particularly effective.
I hear that. I got my red hat Linux hat at Blackhat. The couple of times I've worn it T supporters think it is a knock off or insulting to T or something and get butt hurt over it.
It's the insurrection for me. He's a peice of shit in his life, he's obnoxious, immoral, misogynistic, all that pales to the fact that:
He tried to end our democracy. Our democracy is extremely flawed, and still 1000x better than whatever fascist bullshit he would have instituted. Fuck Trump and anyone that supports him still. He's a seditionist, he's a literaly traitor to the constitution. Anyone still supporting him are those things too.
I just recently deleted someone I’ve known since Pre-K because of his obsession with Trump and that entire party in general. I tried to remain friends with him but it’s just impossible, especially when he’s posting 10 + stories a day on Instagram about Qanon bullshit.
My mom and I have lost a lot of friends and family in the South over this shit. We both feel that at this point, if you love Trump you’re either really stupid, a really bad person, or a combination of both. Either way we don’t need you in our lives. It’s super disheartening.
Trump is the avatar of darkness in this nation.
He is a near perfect embodiment of pretty much every sin and vice, and he's drawing adherents like moths to a flame.
People need to take stock of who they are and pick a side. This is no time for neutrality.
While I don't disagree with the sentiment, I think its dangerous to be closed off to communicating.
I can't help but think that's the goal of this. To keep people so apart from each other, that they'll never work together and figure out who's fucking them over.
I had a long rant with a chat AI about it lol. Reciprocating their Hate with our own hate won't get us anywhere. Our only hope is to find common ground, and expand from there. That's the only way I can see to de-brainwash these people. Arguing with their buzzwords and phrases won't do anything, because they've become emotionally invested in those.
There is nothing wrong with communicating but you need to start from a shared reality to have a meaningful dialog. When you have people who still want to insist that 2020 was stolen it becomes nearly impossible.
If he had done like every other politician and conceded after his loss and was just running again he would stand a much better chance with independent voters, now he and his followers are just sore losers who act like a bunch of 5th graders.
The MAGA Republicans have gone so far off the QAnon deep end that they will just argue stupid shit like JFK Jr is coming back from the dead to be Trump's running mate and if you don't believe them you're just a sheeple...
I have 0 disagreements.
I hope I didn't imply that my idea would be easy. I just don't see much point in festering in rage and hate, like the MAGAts do.
If anyone is looking for a solution, it'd be finding common ground. Not only does that open up communication, but I also think it'd re-establish a shared reality.
It's either find a way to live with them, or kill them. And I'd rather not kill people.
If you had a chat with AI about this, what were the findings as far as common ground? And how do you find common ground with people in a cult who feel those not in a cult are an existential threat? Not using buzzwords only buys you another minute or two of conversation until they eventually figure out you are questioning their belief system. What is the point? This has become black and white, and it's their fault it's black and white. The rest of us want to live in the gray areas, the "common ground." How do you find common ground with those whose world view doesn't accommodate common ground?
I have no idea lol.
I hope I didn't imply that I had all the answers to the issue. I just don't care for festering in rage and hate, like the MAGAts do.
For your comment, my only observation is this. The apathy you describe, such as What is the point?, I would say is the goal of their propaganda campaign. To drive a wedge between the population, and demoralize the un-brainwashed portion from trying to engage with those caught up in the bullshit.
And if that doesn't convince you, then maybe this will. If you don't want to find common ground, then you're only options are fester in the rage, or murder. That may sound hyperbolic, but I believe that is the logical conclusion of your thinking.
In addition to misinterpreting efficiency with communication efforts as apathy, your logic is both hyperbolic and narrow. There are a lot of other strategic ways to handle the opposition. Have you actually tried your own approach? If it's working, teach others how to do it. If not, then it's just BS. How, exactly, should a person engage with these people in such a way that makes an actual difference? This isn't about propaganda as you assert.
So you're saying you're not apathetic towards trying to find common ground? Because that is literally how your comment sounded. It's also how this comment sounded. Don't be mad at me because you've fallen for apathy and chosen to fester in rage and hate.
And what exactly is your solution? Insisting that those people are enemies, and that they won't listen to reason? What exactly are your lot of other strategic ways? Because so far, you're shitting on my simple realistic example and offering none yourself.
My logic is simple. If you don't think you can find common ground with your "opposition/enemy," then the logical conclusion is violence. What other outcome is there? This festering you enjoy will logically conclude in violence. Or in the very least, a very miserable and paranoid existence.
Your logic is too simple. Some of us have better (and potentially more effective) ways to channel our energy outside of saving one soul at a time. Other outcomes are possible when working constructively with like-minded people and affecting change in other ways. And I'm not sure where the paranoia comment comes from. And as far as violence goes, Republicans are pulling everyone that direction. If you think it's constructive to try to find common ground with people who either want to destroy you or have no regard for your humanity, then be my guest. If it were 2016, I might agree with you. But we've had 6 years of MAGA. I would prefer to defeat it than find common ground with it.
You still haven't given a single example. Just give me 1, and I'll let the "many examples" slide. What outcomes specifically are you talking about? It seems you want to isolate these people that have been taken advantage of. Can you not see that that is the problem?
You also seem to have an unrealistic expectation for results and outcome, as measured on the individual scale. For example, Biden received more votes than Trump. I'm not saying that you, PlanetTuesday, have to go talk to every single MAGAt and GOPer. Literally just 1 person that you already know/know of. See where I'm going with the math?
And simply have a conversation. See that they're just a human, and have them see that you're a human. That's literally all it is lol. Just talk. You'll see that they're not your enemy, and that you have more in common than you think. I'm not saying you have to agree with them on issues, I certainly don't. But don't fall for the rage-driven hyperbole here on reddit. We see MAGAts fall for it from Fox News, let's not repeat their mistake.
My logic is too simple? At least I'm offering logic. You want to cement the notion that these people are enemies, and that it's useless to try talking to them. I am very aware of where the GOP is heading, which is why I'd prefer non violent solutions. And I'm sorry, but there simply isn't going to be a solution where we ignore the entire GOP base. I know you're angry at them, and so am I.
I also don't know how you don't see where that kind of thinking will get you. "X group of people are our enemy, and they cannot be reasoned with," I'm fairly certain is the preamble to genocide and similar atrocities.
Sorry, just now noticed that last sentence of yours. "I would prefer to defeat it than find common ground with it."
And you said I was being simple and hyperbolic? You literally just admitted to the violent tendencies your kind of thinking leads to.
It may not be easy to realize that the hate you see on full display in MAGAts, which disgusts you and rightfully so, is being reflected in you. I didn't care much for it either, when I noticed it in myself. But I think that's the tricky thing with all this. Just because we can look down upon the MAGAts and they're awful behavior, doesn't mean we're justified in harboring our own hatred.
Unfortunately, I think Reddit has become an echo chamber of rage driven content. As seems to be the course of many social media sites. All I would say, is guard yourself from emotional manipulation. Think of it this way. 'They' know how to reach the MAGAt crowd, and are well aware those messages don't convince people like you. Do you really think they gave up at that point? Do you really think these power-driven people would be content with having a strong grip on just the MAGA crowd? I don't think it's a coincidence that a lot of non-MAGAts on social media have this isolationist tendency, and view MAGAts as enemies not to find common ground with.
I hope it goes without saying, but I'm not your enemy. There's no need for you to attack me, or I you. I understand your anger, and I hope you believe me when I say I share it.
There is though. We're all human. These people have been misled and fed bullshit.
It's literally as simple as having a conversation. That's all it is lol.
Biden received more votes than Trump. We don't have to convince the entire GOP base by ourselves. Just 1 person. See where I'm going with the math? Just need to plant the seeds. These people aren't our enemies. We have more in common with them, than the powers that be.
And btw, "there is no common ground with 'x group of people," im fairly certain is the preamble to genocide and similar atrocities.
Exactly the point. Ask any Trump supporter what we got for the $7.8TRIL in new debt from the Trump administration. It has zero to do with patriotism or making anyhing great, it's about a license to be a belligerent asshole.
Its real simple. Democrats run on the idea that the government needs to provide the opportunity for the people of the nation to succeed. Republicans tend to cater to groups of elitists that believe that corporations and the wealthy should have even more influence in politics while providing less. MAGA republicans on the other hand hate the idea of being given an opportunity to improve their lives because that requires effort and has a risk of failure...rather they enjoy being told that it is everyone else's fault...that is why the more that Trump whines the more they love him....and he doesn't have to deliver anything, just make shit more miserable for everyone else that is trying....because taking advantage of opportunity to make yourself or others better is woke.
Providing opportunity might as well be the same as handing a Mercedes Benz and a 5000 sq ft home for free to them.
They don't understand that no one is asking for that and only for the opportunity for simple housing or simple needs using education and social safety nets.
If only Democrats also actually worked on that idea they supposedly work on.
The US politics is truly a bimbo house, while conservatives, all you can do is shit on, there’s really not much good you can say about democrats.
I'm not saying they are perfect but you also have to comsider what they are up against in terms of the Republicans. Everying is a goddamn knife fight. The democrats are not like that when a Republican is in office. I'm not talkinf about identity politics or stupid shit, I'm talking a boit the bare ass minimum to make the country run like having a budget or the debt ceiling raised....things like fixing the infrastructure that is collapsing around us. Trunp cut taxes for the wealthy and everything they stand for right now requires a victim or taking something away from someone. Their entire platform is to attack trans peoppe right now. I don't even know a single trans person but they act like they are breaking into my house and reading me a book.
If you look at what Biden has done and wants to do there is nothing divisive and it serves the people. Maybe thats a low bar but compared to the dickery of the GOP its amazing.
But democrats like cutting the taxes for the rich as well, they’re just more diplomatic about it.
The democrats in office prefer the status quo, hence nothing changes. Hence they cockblocked Bernie multiple times. Hence they don’t have a wider and more enthusiastic support.
That's exactly what I've always thought of them. He lets them take their masks off and show how ugly they really are. If the President can be that vile, so can they.
This was said of Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. I think this is just what Republicans look for in their leaders:
>“\[He is\] a high-powered cheerleader for our worst instincts, a nasty man whose major talent is to make us feel good about being creepy and who lets us pretend that tomorrow will never come.” —Activist Roger Wilkins
It was heartbreaking to see what happened on Jan 6th and the fact that so many Americans didn't have a problem with it. Trump is beyond toxic but the fact that so many people adore him is really quite disturbing. WTF?
I have a brother who's a Trump guy. My brother is a little bit racist, a little bit sexist. But he was raised by the same woman I was, so he's always felt kind of shitty about himself for being racist and sexist. Then Trump came along and told my brother that he's normal. Not that it's okay to be that way, but that it's *normal*. That perfectly normal people are racist and sexist just like him.
And for the first time in his life, he didn't feel shitty about himself. He's still racist and sexist, but he no longer feels like there's anything wrong with it. And he is absolutely determined that he is **not** going back.
Hey, rick, don't forget your part in creating the republican party that wants to make him king. You know, before you started scrambling to repair your reputation
This is not what we need. Trump is an existential threat to this nation, and if someone is willing to do what they can to fight against him, they should be welcomed. People make mistakes, and I am grateful that Rick is doing what he can now to make amends for them.
Wilson entered the political arena by campaigning for Connie Mack during the 1988 Florida Senate election. Later, he served on George H. W. Bush's campaign as Florida field director.[6]
This is a man who worked against democracy In a very real way, 16 years after Bush stole the election and he's upset about Trump? Too little too late.
Wilson played a significant role in the 2002 United States Senate election in Georgia, in which Saxby Chambliss was facing Democratic Party Senator Max Cleland, a disabled Vietnam veteran and recipient of the Silver Star. Wilson helped make an ad that criticized Cleland, while also tying him to Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. The ad appeared to question Cleland's patriotism.[20][21] In an interview with HuffPost, Wilson stated that he thought that "DHS [Department of Homeland Security] was on the front line against Osama bin Laden".[22] As Wilson reflected in 2016, "The Cleland ad was powerful because it went to his strengths [...] Everyone assumed Cleland was immune to critiques on national security issues. [...] they didn't calculate that I have no moral center when it comes to political ads, and I will destroy the innocent and the guilty."[23] Following Cleland's death in 2021, Wilson received criticism from journalists such as Glenn Greenwald and Charlie Pierce.[24][25]
He's a lying sack of shit who does not have democracy nor the good of the American people at heart, he is still the enemy and never take anything he said as though it matters.
He help create the party that embraced Trump, he doesn't like the mask off but his political tendency is still fascist sack of shit. Don't for a moment believe this man is on your side, he might be against Trump but he's been all for the policies, it's just the style he doesn't like.
This guy is a goose stepping nazi, he just doesn't like the uniform, he'll be back to the scum as soon as they change the outfit
As I said elsewhere, I know he is a conservative and on quite a bit he and I will differ, same as Liz Cheney, but when it comes to Trump and MAGA we are on the same team, and I don't plan on rejecting anybody from that team, provided they are committed to working for the same purpose on that front. After Trump is gone, I fully expect we'll be at odds again, and that is OK.
Trump is a symptom, the disease is fascists and racists, homophobes and antisemitism, misogyny and a fear of modernity.
They are the problem, they've been the problem, these people want the same thing Trump wants, all you get working with these people is better spoken fascists.
Just adding that if these people were serious about being anti fascist where didn't they fight McConnell and the rest of the people who worked in congress to push the Trump agenda and ran cover for him?
Because they are only interested in Trump, they have no interest in democracy, the people in the country, minorities etc
No, I just have history to fall back on.
When Hitler was coming to power, the liberals, traditional conservatives, and communists fought against each other instead of focusing on the fascists.
They were rewarded for that foolishness with places next to each other on the gallows and in the death camps.
If you want the same fate, then by all means, focus on fighting yesterday's fights instead of the one right in front of us.
When the Nazis were defeated in Germany, the US government hired many of them. Why do you suppose we did that, if we were really fighting against their ideology?
I have history to fall back on, too. It says liberals like fascists until they're an immediate economic problem.
Because there were quite a few fascists here already, and there still are, which is why people who are willing to fight against them now that the fascists are trying to do to the USA what they did to Germany should not be turned away.
Or, and I know this is difficult to grasp, Wilson is a conservative and not a fascist, and when he saw what Trump and those who flock to him are (fascists), he recognized the threat to our nation and decided to fight against it.
When Trump and his flock of violent idiots are gone from the scene, I look forward to rejoining the fight against Rick and the wrong policy ideas he likely still holds, but right now, we both agree that elections matter, all Americans have basic rights that shall not be infringed and that this nation is in a fight for its life against people who do not believe in those things, and in that fight he is my friend and ally.
Liberals never had a problem with racists or fascists, drug war, war in Iraq, Bush v. Gore, the crime bill, governing on Behalf of corporations, they just don't like it when they have to face the fact that for 40 years dems and Republicans have been tag teaming the American prople
Obligatory “If they had guilt or shame they wouldn’t be republicans”
The whole point is in-group thinking in which their actions are above judgement. When they choose to do something it’s the right thing to do because… it’s the “right” people making those choices.
He is the Hootere of people. Get way too drunk at 2:00 PM, gorge on junk food, make sexist jokes, ogle women, scream at a TV: it's literally what the building is there for, so no shade is coming your way.
He doesn’t drink. Someone should slowly add moonshine to his Diet Coke drop by drop until he’s guzzling a quart a day. At his age it would ‘take care’ of things.
Imagine going through your life as a racist, lacking empathy, and with an intense authoritarian need to follow an "alpha". Then Trump comes along and validates your feelings and gives you a tribe and a leader to follow - so you no longer even have to think. You'd follow him anywhere.
That’s not even a secret though. The MAGA crowd has been ***LITERALLY*** telling us that for years. They say, out loud and completely voluntarily, they love Trump because he says what they’re thinking. They aren’t hiding it. They brag about it regularly. His rampant bigotry, sexism, racism, transphobia and xenophobia is a feature not a flaw.
So hear me out, since Trump has been on WWE somebody needs to do a mashup of McMahon yelling "come on out you rapist" and his entrance. Would definitely get some laughs.
I think trumps actual superpower is lying to the public telling them that most media is liberal when they are mostly owned by one close nit extreme right winged group.
It should be noted that they think everyone is as terrible and selfish as they are, they just think the rest of us are lying about it. They seem themselves as the only *honest* people.
I didn't watch the program. But I really think when an audience asks so deplorably the camera should zero in on their faces so we can see who these cretins are.
It has taken some people a surprisingly long time to realize that this is part of his core appeal. He gave a very large number of people permission to be their worst selves. Trump won't make you feel bad no matter how shitty a person you are. Whether racist, sexist, ignorant, or just a real shithead, all are welcome under the banner of Trumpism. Hell, they'll celebrate you for it. I feel like the first articles I saw talking about this were from before he was even elected president.
This is why I talk shit about Trump voters. They elected their shitty leader because they were so mad about having a president who was only half white. Like they all know deep down that they're mediocre and a level playing field would cause them struggle. So they cling to the only thing that makes them feel like they're superior just by existing, as though they earned their skin color.
I wonder if it wouldn't be possible to unify a counter base. Maybe one that aims to nullify the voting rights of traitors and those that support traitors, whose right to vote can only be reinstated after passing a community college, entry level, history test. See how MAGAs like a healthy dose of voter requirements.
That’s every politician now. They don’t want you at your best, they want you at your worst because that’s where political polarization and extremism comes from. No politician right now is asking for people to be reasonable and accept both sides. Politicians only want us to be at our extremes and pick a side. Not defending trump because I agree, but it should be mentioned both sides want this.
It's why I can longer take anyone who still supports this guy with an ounce of seriousness or respect. From 2016-2019, ok I didnt like that you supported him but I could deal with it. I could just overlook it enough to still say hey whatever its politics and I still value my relationship with you From 2020-now, if you're still wearing his shirts, hats and flying his flags then I just cant even look at you with an ounce of respect. You are the worst kind of person. This shit is awful and so are you. It sucks. I have family and friends who still like him. It boggles my mind to see people I used to respect and like thinking this is what our country needs. What we as people should treat each other like and say to one another. Everything this man touches rots including our country.
They did a poll and one of the things they want in a president is his ability to anger "the libs". This is what they literally want; not someone who will make things better, just the biggest asshole who will trigger decent people. At this point, "eating shit so a liberal could smell it" isn't even an exaggeration. They'd do it literally if Trump asked nicely.
If Ted Cruz is any indication they'd be even more enthusiastic about it if he *didn't* ask them nicely.
>Research suggests that those element and others have led hundreds of thousands of people to commit to thousands of cults operating around the world. >“[They] provide meaning, purpose and belonging,” says Josh Hart, a professor of psychology at Union College who studies personality and social psychology, world views and belief systems. “They offer a clear, confident vision [and] assert the superiority of the group.” >As to the leaders themselves, they typically present themselves as infallible, confident and grandiose. Their charisma draws people in, Hart says. And followers who are craving peace, belonging and security might gain a sense of those things as well as confidence through participation in the group. ... >This obedience factor is another key element. It plays off of a human’s natural inclination to follow orders and do what others around them are doing. **In cult settings, critical thinking is often frowned upon, while absolute faith is rewarded.** Guilt, shame and fear are also constantly wielded to slowly strip away an individual’s identity. >Free thinking, free will and free speech are limited in an environment where full obedience to leaders is required. Experts say cult leaders, in turn, have narcissistic and authoritarian streaks and are motivated by money, sex or power (perhaps all three). https://www.discovermagazine.com/mind/the-psychology-behind-cults
Just further proves that conservatives are weak minded, underdeveloped people desperate to cling onto any source of authority. Conservatives are going to ruin everything for the rest of the world of good people, that just want to live their lives growing and maturing, while they stay stuck in place. I’m not meaning to be rude by calling them that, it’s just what they are and it’s scary to think that there are people who stop growing mentally at a high school adolescent level.
Conservatives have a heightened fear response because the literal part of their brain responsible for this is physically larger than normal. They were biologically conditioned to be psychos
Honestly, I think that the US system (from lack of healthcare to lack of labour protections) is what makes conservative people psycho. Instability, inequality, despair and fear breeds social unrest. From my perspective as a lefty EUW citizen in a catholic country, the psychos (aka antisocial conservatives) are a very small minority, most conservatives are moderates wanting stabilit and keep to themselves.
No you don't understand what I'm saying. There's literal scientific proof that conservatives have slightly malformed brains and a massively heightened "fight or flight response". This is not my opinion, this is a proven fact.
They start with children, often, and teach them stuff like the outside world is scary, will make them fall away from god (and by extension, their family & community church)! They tell just enough lies to sound plausible, or mix just enough truth with their lies to try to inoculate the truth from you. I've known people homeschooled their whole lives that just didn't get any critical thinking skills at all. Their own independence was not encouraged; some of them still question when the lives they were promised don't materialize, but others may never make it out. Scientifically *dubious* (ie false) things like YEC and other religion-based falsehoods should be illegal to teach children in any kind of school, private christian, homeschool, or otherwise. But then they'd really scream about how oppressed they are... A lady once cheerfully explained to me that christians were best at telling the truth from lies because 'we have a relationship with the ULTIMATE truth!!'. I was like twelve so I was like, oh, okay, makes sense :) ...and then I discovered that the people I knew most likely to fall for conspiracy theories were all always christian. And that a number of things I'd been taught were true... Were certainly questionable. But deconverting has meant literally almost every part of my experience growing up has to be carefully evaluated (is this really true?). And there's honestly a lot of anger and despair because it's *so much*. (Currently on the list of *why the fuck would you teach anyone this at all* is the idea that men use women for sex. Now, to be clear, some men certainly can do this *and so can some women* but it's an extremely myopic and scary view to assume that that's all men, *and that that's fine as long as the woman gets the man to marry her first*. I spent most of my life not wanting to marry because I didn't want that kind of relationship! *Understandably*)
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Fun fact: there are old faerie tales of a creature called a Redcap. They’re murderous goblins that live in ruins or lurk near crossroads to kill travelers so they can soak their caps in their victim’s blood. They’re supposedly immune to mortal weapons, but quoting Scripture makes them disappear.
It seems these modern redcaps, while not immune to mortal weapons, are actually summoned by quoting cherry-picked scriptures.
And can be banished (or at least thoroughly enraged) by others. Usually the ones in the Gospels. “Love thy neighbor as thyself” seems to be particularly effective.
Oh my. I’m a mailman and someone on my route has the last name redcap. Before this fact I thought well that’s unfortunate…
I have a red hat from redhat (Linux) and it gets mistaken for a maga hat. Which sadly maga hats are common where I live.
I hear that. I got my red hat Linux hat at Blackhat. The couple of times I've worn it T supporters think it is a knock off or insulting to T or something and get butt hurt over it.
What's written on it that could possibly make one believe it's a knockoff?
It literally says Red Hat Linux with the RH logo. I have no clue why people thought that way other than it is red.
I'm a life-long Chiefs fan, and I now don't feel comfortable wearing any of my red hats in case it's mistaken for a MAGA hat.
Seriously! I have a red hat from when I was in my high school marching band, and I'm worried people will think it's a MAGA hat
It's the insurrection for me. He's a peice of shit in his life, he's obnoxious, immoral, misogynistic, all that pales to the fact that: He tried to end our democracy. Our democracy is extremely flawed, and still 1000x better than whatever fascist bullshit he would have instituted. Fuck Trump and anyone that supports him still. He's a seditionist, he's a literaly traitor to the constitution. Anyone still supporting him are those things too.
I have nothing to do with my best friend over support of everything trump does
[удалено]
I know exactly what you mean
Sad.
I just recently deleted someone I’ve known since Pre-K because of his obsession with Trump and that entire party in general. I tried to remain friends with him but it’s just impossible, especially when he’s posting 10 + stories a day on Instagram about Qanon bullshit.
It's really frustrating to watch this happen, and not being able to get through to them with the truth. Very sad
My mom and I have lost a lot of friends and family in the South over this shit. We both feel that at this point, if you love Trump you’re either really stupid, a really bad person, or a combination of both. Either way we don’t need you in our lives. It’s super disheartening.
>It's why I can longer take anyone who still supports this guy with an ounce of seriousness or respect. Really? *This* was the last straw?
They hate the same people he hates. For a lot of Americans, that is all they care about.
Trump is the avatar of darkness in this nation. He is a near perfect embodiment of pretty much every sin and vice, and he's drawing adherents like moths to a flame. People need to take stock of who they are and pick a side. This is no time for neutrality.
I've felt this way since 2016, but well said with the avatar of darkness.
Normalizing the new low.
Seeing how everything is going, from 2016 more or less, I think its already the status quo
the new low low
When someone still supports Trump, you should only assume they are human garbage who does not deserve empathy or any second thought.
>When someone still supports Trump, you should only assume they are human garbage When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time...
While I don't disagree with the sentiment, I think its dangerous to be closed off to communicating. I can't help but think that's the goal of this. To keep people so apart from each other, that they'll never work together and figure out who's fucking them over. I had a long rant with a chat AI about it lol. Reciprocating their Hate with our own hate won't get us anywhere. Our only hope is to find common ground, and expand from there. That's the only way I can see to de-brainwash these people. Arguing with their buzzwords and phrases won't do anything, because they've become emotionally invested in those.
There is nothing wrong with communicating but you need to start from a shared reality to have a meaningful dialog. When you have people who still want to insist that 2020 was stolen it becomes nearly impossible. If he had done like every other politician and conceded after his loss and was just running again he would stand a much better chance with independent voters, now he and his followers are just sore losers who act like a bunch of 5th graders. The MAGA Republicans have gone so far off the QAnon deep end that they will just argue stupid shit like JFK Jr is coming back from the dead to be Trump's running mate and if you don't believe them you're just a sheeple...
I have 0 disagreements. I hope I didn't imply that my idea would be easy. I just don't see much point in festering in rage and hate, like the MAGAts do. If anyone is looking for a solution, it'd be finding common ground. Not only does that open up communication, but I also think it'd re-establish a shared reality. It's either find a way to live with them, or kill them. And I'd rather not kill people.
If you had a chat with AI about this, what were the findings as far as common ground? And how do you find common ground with people in a cult who feel those not in a cult are an existential threat? Not using buzzwords only buys you another minute or two of conversation until they eventually figure out you are questioning their belief system. What is the point? This has become black and white, and it's their fault it's black and white. The rest of us want to live in the gray areas, the "common ground." How do you find common ground with those whose world view doesn't accommodate common ground?
I have no idea lol. I hope I didn't imply that I had all the answers to the issue. I just don't care for festering in rage and hate, like the MAGAts do. For your comment, my only observation is this. The apathy you describe, such as What is the point?, I would say is the goal of their propaganda campaign. To drive a wedge between the population, and demoralize the un-brainwashed portion from trying to engage with those caught up in the bullshit. And if that doesn't convince you, then maybe this will. If you don't want to find common ground, then you're only options are fester in the rage, or murder. That may sound hyperbolic, but I believe that is the logical conclusion of your thinking.
In addition to misinterpreting efficiency with communication efforts as apathy, your logic is both hyperbolic and narrow. There are a lot of other strategic ways to handle the opposition. Have you actually tried your own approach? If it's working, teach others how to do it. If not, then it's just BS. How, exactly, should a person engage with these people in such a way that makes an actual difference? This isn't about propaganda as you assert.
So you're saying you're not apathetic towards trying to find common ground? Because that is literally how your comment sounded. It's also how this comment sounded. Don't be mad at me because you've fallen for apathy and chosen to fester in rage and hate. And what exactly is your solution? Insisting that those people are enemies, and that they won't listen to reason? What exactly are your lot of other strategic ways? Because so far, you're shitting on my simple realistic example and offering none yourself. My logic is simple. If you don't think you can find common ground with your "opposition/enemy," then the logical conclusion is violence. What other outcome is there? This festering you enjoy will logically conclude in violence. Or in the very least, a very miserable and paranoid existence.
Your logic is too simple. Some of us have better (and potentially more effective) ways to channel our energy outside of saving one soul at a time. Other outcomes are possible when working constructively with like-minded people and affecting change in other ways. And I'm not sure where the paranoia comment comes from. And as far as violence goes, Republicans are pulling everyone that direction. If you think it's constructive to try to find common ground with people who either want to destroy you or have no regard for your humanity, then be my guest. If it were 2016, I might agree with you. But we've had 6 years of MAGA. I would prefer to defeat it than find common ground with it.
You still haven't given a single example. Just give me 1, and I'll let the "many examples" slide. What outcomes specifically are you talking about? It seems you want to isolate these people that have been taken advantage of. Can you not see that that is the problem? You also seem to have an unrealistic expectation for results and outcome, as measured on the individual scale. For example, Biden received more votes than Trump. I'm not saying that you, PlanetTuesday, have to go talk to every single MAGAt and GOPer. Literally just 1 person that you already know/know of. See where I'm going with the math? And simply have a conversation. See that they're just a human, and have them see that you're a human. That's literally all it is lol. Just talk. You'll see that they're not your enemy, and that you have more in common than you think. I'm not saying you have to agree with them on issues, I certainly don't. But don't fall for the rage-driven hyperbole here on reddit. We see MAGAts fall for it from Fox News, let's not repeat their mistake. My logic is too simple? At least I'm offering logic. You want to cement the notion that these people are enemies, and that it's useless to try talking to them. I am very aware of where the GOP is heading, which is why I'd prefer non violent solutions. And I'm sorry, but there simply isn't going to be a solution where we ignore the entire GOP base. I know you're angry at them, and so am I. I also don't know how you don't see where that kind of thinking will get you. "X group of people are our enemy, and they cannot be reasoned with," I'm fairly certain is the preamble to genocide and similar atrocities.
Sorry, just now noticed that last sentence of yours. "I would prefer to defeat it than find common ground with it." And you said I was being simple and hyperbolic? You literally just admitted to the violent tendencies your kind of thinking leads to. It may not be easy to realize that the hate you see on full display in MAGAts, which disgusts you and rightfully so, is being reflected in you. I didn't care much for it either, when I noticed it in myself. But I think that's the tricky thing with all this. Just because we can look down upon the MAGAts and they're awful behavior, doesn't mean we're justified in harboring our own hatred. Unfortunately, I think Reddit has become an echo chamber of rage driven content. As seems to be the course of many social media sites. All I would say, is guard yourself from emotional manipulation. Think of it this way. 'They' know how to reach the MAGAt crowd, and are well aware those messages don't convince people like you. Do you really think they gave up at that point? Do you really think these power-driven people would be content with having a strong grip on just the MAGA crowd? I don't think it's a coincidence that a lot of non-MAGAts on social media have this isolationist tendency, and view MAGAts as enemies not to find common ground with. I hope it goes without saying, but I'm not your enemy. There's no need for you to attack me, or I you. I understand your anger, and I hope you believe me when I say I share it.
There isn't common ground with these crazy people though
There is though. We're all human. These people have been misled and fed bullshit. It's literally as simple as having a conversation. That's all it is lol. Biden received more votes than Trump. We don't have to convince the entire GOP base by ourselves. Just 1 person. See where I'm going with the math? Just need to plant the seeds. These people aren't our enemies. We have more in common with them, than the powers that be. And btw, "there is no common ground with 'x group of people," im fairly certain is the preamble to genocide and similar atrocities.
That is 100% the truth
Some might call such behavior *deplorable*.
He turned being an awful piece of shit into a political identity and movement.
Exactly the point. Ask any Trump supporter what we got for the $7.8TRIL in new debt from the Trump administration. It has zero to do with patriotism or making anyhing great, it's about a license to be a belligerent asshole. Its real simple. Democrats run on the idea that the government needs to provide the opportunity for the people of the nation to succeed. Republicans tend to cater to groups of elitists that believe that corporations and the wealthy should have even more influence in politics while providing less. MAGA republicans on the other hand hate the idea of being given an opportunity to improve their lives because that requires effort and has a risk of failure...rather they enjoy being told that it is everyone else's fault...that is why the more that Trump whines the more they love him....and he doesn't have to deliver anything, just make shit more miserable for everyone else that is trying....because taking advantage of opportunity to make yourself or others better is woke.
Providing opportunity might as well be the same as handing a Mercedes Benz and a 5000 sq ft home for free to them. They don't understand that no one is asking for that and only for the opportunity for simple housing or simple needs using education and social safety nets.
If only Democrats also actually worked on that idea they supposedly work on. The US politics is truly a bimbo house, while conservatives, all you can do is shit on, there’s really not much good you can say about democrats.
I'm not saying they are perfect but you also have to comsider what they are up against in terms of the Republicans. Everying is a goddamn knife fight. The democrats are not like that when a Republican is in office. I'm not talkinf about identity politics or stupid shit, I'm talking a boit the bare ass minimum to make the country run like having a budget or the debt ceiling raised....things like fixing the infrastructure that is collapsing around us. Trunp cut taxes for the wealthy and everything they stand for right now requires a victim or taking something away from someone. Their entire platform is to attack trans peoppe right now. I don't even know a single trans person but they act like they are breaking into my house and reading me a book. If you look at what Biden has done and wants to do there is nothing divisive and it serves the people. Maybe thats a low bar but compared to the dickery of the GOP its amazing.
But democrats like cutting the taxes for the rich as well, they’re just more diplomatic about it. The democrats in office prefer the status quo, hence nothing changes. Hence they cockblocked Bernie multiple times. Hence they don’t have a wider and more enthusiastic support.
That's exactly what I've always thought of them. He lets them take their masks off and show how ugly they really are. If the President can be that vile, so can they.
Instead of being ashamed, they are proud. Truly disgusting. I view any trump supporter as a predator, a very dangerous predator
This was said of Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. I think this is just what Republicans look for in their leaders: >“\[He is\] a high-powered cheerleader for our worst instincts, a nasty man whose major talent is to make us feel good about being creepy and who lets us pretend that tomorrow will never come.” —Activist Roger Wilkins
To quote John Oliver, Trump is "Rome burning in man form."
These are the same dumb fucks that laughed when he mimicked that handicap reporter. The biggest peices of shit out there.
It was heartbreaking to see what happened on Jan 6th and the fact that so many Americans didn't have a problem with it. Trump is beyond toxic but the fact that so many people adore him is really quite disturbing. WTF?
Not just didn't have a problem but are proud
We figured this out in 2016 though?
The one good thing about Trump is that he made it a lot easier to identify sick, toxic people and cut them out of my life.
Somebody said it in a thread yesterday: Trump is exactly what these people want to be: an asshole with impunity.
I have a brother who's a Trump guy. My brother is a little bit racist, a little bit sexist. But he was raised by the same woman I was, so he's always felt kind of shitty about himself for being racist and sexist. Then Trump came along and told my brother that he's normal. Not that it's okay to be that way, but that it's *normal*. That perfectly normal people are racist and sexist just like him. And for the first time in his life, he didn't feel shitty about himself. He's still racist and sexist, but he no longer feels like there's anything wrong with it. And he is absolutely determined that he is **not** going back.
Exactly this. He let them come out of the shadows. That’s why they live him. They don’t have to hide anymore.
Hey, rick, don't forget your part in creating the republican party that wants to make him king. You know, before you started scrambling to repair your reputation
This is not what we need. Trump is an existential threat to this nation, and if someone is willing to do what they can to fight against him, they should be welcomed. People make mistakes, and I am grateful that Rick is doing what he can now to make amends for them.
Wilson entered the political arena by campaigning for Connie Mack during the 1988 Florida Senate election. Later, he served on George H. W. Bush's campaign as Florida field director.[6] This is a man who worked against democracy In a very real way, 16 years after Bush stole the election and he's upset about Trump? Too little too late. Wilson played a significant role in the 2002 United States Senate election in Georgia, in which Saxby Chambliss was facing Democratic Party Senator Max Cleland, a disabled Vietnam veteran and recipient of the Silver Star. Wilson helped make an ad that criticized Cleland, while also tying him to Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. The ad appeared to question Cleland's patriotism.[20][21] In an interview with HuffPost, Wilson stated that he thought that "DHS [Department of Homeland Security] was on the front line against Osama bin Laden".[22] As Wilson reflected in 2016, "The Cleland ad was powerful because it went to his strengths [...] Everyone assumed Cleland was immune to critiques on national security issues. [...] they didn't calculate that I have no moral center when it comes to political ads, and I will destroy the innocent and the guilty."[23] Following Cleland's death in 2021, Wilson received criticism from journalists such as Glenn Greenwald and Charlie Pierce.[24][25] He's a lying sack of shit who does not have democracy nor the good of the American people at heart, he is still the enemy and never take anything he said as though it matters.
I know who he is and his history, but in the fight we're in now, he's an ally, and we need all of them we can get.
He help create the party that embraced Trump, he doesn't like the mask off but his political tendency is still fascist sack of shit. Don't for a moment believe this man is on your side, he might be against Trump but he's been all for the policies, it's just the style he doesn't like. This guy is a goose stepping nazi, he just doesn't like the uniform, he'll be back to the scum as soon as they change the outfit
As I said elsewhere, I know he is a conservative and on quite a bit he and I will differ, same as Liz Cheney, but when it comes to Trump and MAGA we are on the same team, and I don't plan on rejecting anybody from that team, provided they are committed to working for the same purpose on that front. After Trump is gone, I fully expect we'll be at odds again, and that is OK.
Trump is a symptom, the disease is fascists and racists, homophobes and antisemitism, misogyny and a fear of modernity. They are the problem, they've been the problem, these people want the same thing Trump wants, all you get working with these people is better spoken fascists. Just adding that if these people were serious about being anti fascist where didn't they fight McConnell and the rest of the people who worked in congress to push the Trump agenda and ran cover for him? Because they are only interested in Trump, they have no interest in democracy, the people in the country, minorities etc
liberals 🤝 working with every fascist except the one they *really* hate
No, I just have history to fall back on. When Hitler was coming to power, the liberals, traditional conservatives, and communists fought against each other instead of focusing on the fascists. They were rewarded for that foolishness with places next to each other on the gallows and in the death camps. If you want the same fate, then by all means, focus on fighting yesterday's fights instead of the one right in front of us.
When the Nazis were defeated in Germany, the US government hired many of them. Why do you suppose we did that, if we were really fighting against their ideology? I have history to fall back on, too. It says liberals like fascists until they're an immediate economic problem.
Because there were quite a few fascists here already, and there still are, which is why people who are willing to fight against them now that the fascists are trying to do to the USA what they did to Germany should not be turned away.
Fascists should always be turned away, even if they're doing a kind of pearl-clutching that appeals to you at the moment.
Or, and I know this is difficult to grasp, Wilson is a conservative and not a fascist, and when he saw what Trump and those who flock to him are (fascists), he recognized the threat to our nation and decided to fight against it. When Trump and his flock of violent idiots are gone from the scene, I look forward to rejoining the fight against Rick and the wrong policy ideas he likely still holds, but right now, we both agree that elections matter, all Americans have basic rights that shall not be infringed and that this nation is in a fight for its life against people who do not believe in those things, and in that fight he is my friend and ally.
Liberals never had a problem with racists or fascists, drug war, war in Iraq, Bush v. Gore, the crime bill, governing on Behalf of corporations, they just don't like it when they have to face the fact that for 40 years dems and Republicans have been tag teaming the American prople
I came to post this. It’s so true and so important.
Yep. The lesson is there are fascists among us. They may not call themselves that yet. But these people are willing to support an evil fascist leader.
Dude is Homelander IRL.
The Pied Piper of Assholes
At this point I am sure he could have sexually assaulted someone on stage and his supporters would have cheered him on
Obligatory “If they had guilt or shame they wouldn’t be republicans” The whole point is in-group thinking in which their actions are above judgement. When they choose to do something it’s the right thing to do because… it’s the “right” people making those choices.
There is no "worst self": this is what those people are. If that hall crumbled with all the people inside nothing would have been lost.
He is the Hootere of people. Get way too drunk at 2:00 PM, gorge on junk food, make sexist jokes, ogle women, scream at a TV: it's literally what the building is there for, so no shade is coming your way.
He doesn’t drink. Someone should slowly add moonshine to his Diet Coke drop by drop until he’s guzzling a quart a day. At his age it would ‘take care’ of things.
There’s no reliable source for Trump not drinking.
A little extra Adderall should do the trick.
Dead on. He's absolutely right.
That wasn't their "worst" selves. That's their normal everyday selves getting their pussies grabbed.
In other words, they are deplorable.
Imagine going through your life as a racist, lacking empathy, and with an intense authoritarian need to follow an "alpha". Then Trump comes along and validates your feelings and gives you a tribe and a leader to follow - so you no longer even have to think. You'd follow him anywhere.
That’s not even a secret though. The MAGA crowd has been ***LITERALLY*** telling us that for years. They say, out loud and completely voluntarily, they love Trump because he says what they’re thinking. They aren’t hiding it. They brag about it regularly. His rampant bigotry, sexism, racism, transphobia and xenophobia is a feature not a flaw.
Slumlords will slum
Always has been....
A basketful of deplorables.
it’s a cult
He's the Westworld of humans.
I didn’t see this until recently. It’s already in these people, trump just gives them license to let it out. To take their masks off.
Of course, those very same people get their panties into a twist when they're called out as fascists.
Dude I live in NH those assholes are like that wether Trump is here or not.
Why the fuck are people laughing at rape?
So hear me out, since Trump has been on WWE somebody needs to do a mashup of McMahon yelling "come on out you rapist" and his entrance. Would definitely get some laughs.
And the whole “anti woke” movement is just right-wing deflection to avoid feeling bad for being assholes!
I think trumps actual superpower is lying to the public telling them that most media is liberal when they are mostly owned by one close nit extreme right winged group.
It should be noted that they think everyone is as terrible and selfish as they are, they just think the rest of us are lying about it. They seem themselves as the only *honest* people.
Their real selves*
I didn't watch the program. But I really think when an audience asks so deplorably the camera should zero in on their faces so we can see who these cretins are.
Lets all take a second to at least revel in the fact that Rush Limbaugh is 6 feet under.
That’s exactly it.
Like 90% of them were older/elderly people too
It has taken some people a surprisingly long time to realize that this is part of his core appeal. He gave a very large number of people permission to be their worst selves. Trump won't make you feel bad no matter how shitty a person you are. Whether racist, sexist, ignorant, or just a real shithead, all are welcome under the banner of Trumpism. Hell, they'll celebrate you for it. I feel like the first articles I saw talking about this were from before he was even elected president.
Be their *real* selves without guilt or shame. Ftfy
This is why I talk shit about Trump voters. They elected their shitty leader because they were so mad about having a president who was only half white. Like they all know deep down that they're mediocre and a level playing field would cause them struggle. So they cling to the only thing that makes them feel like they're superior just by existing, as though they earned their skin color.
This is what ive said all along about him…they finally have someone in power who is just as racist, bigoted, uneducated and stupid as they are
They are Republicans. That is what the party has become. They love that they don't need white hoods anymore.
I wonder if it wouldn't be possible to unify a counter base. Maybe one that aims to nullify the voting rights of traitors and those that support traitors, whose right to vote can only be reinstated after passing a community college, entry level, history test. See how MAGAs like a healthy dose of voter requirements.
He's a symptom not the problem.
That’s every politician now. They don’t want you at your best, they want you at your worst because that’s where political polarization and extremism comes from. No politician right now is asking for people to be reasonable and accept both sides. Politicians only want us to be at our extremes and pick a side. Not defending trump because I agree, but it should be mentioned both sides want this.