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Trump lowers expectations. His priority is just greed. He’s anti-progressive. That’s enough for many.
miro_o-
"Trump is fat Jesus."
Hahaaa!
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This is interesting but doesn't tell the whole picture. I doubt that all of his genuine believers are self-consciously motivated by his normalisation of sin (for want of a better word...what is the opposite of virtue?). I think a lot of people are struggling to cope in a world they no longer recognise...whatever it might be, mass-migration, gloablisation of economies, the systematic dismantling of traditional social structures (family, industry, religion, even culture).
I genuinely feel that the post-modern, absolute relativism of the late 20th C has caused our societies a real identity crisis. A crisis that has been amplified by globalisation and the rise of social media. The rise of rightwing politics reflects this I think - Brexit was about notions of self-identity identity rather than anything else, so was the election of Johnson...and so is Trump. They all appeal to our fears of a post-modern world characterised by chaos, they draw on nostalgia.
The terrible irony is that they all offer false hope and by failing to honestly engage with the complications of the modern world, contribute to worsen our position in it. But people are drawn to them because they seem to be the only voices recognising the genuine fear and disconnect people feel from the world around them.
The left in politics righty criticises so much of this as destructive rubbish but fails I think to recognise or even acknowledge the social, existential crisis underpinning the right's appeal.
PhilPub
carson
I feel more or less safe to say that Trump believes his own bullshit - or at least truth is entirely naturally to him a relative concept. Likewise, his cap wearing AR carrying follows most likely believe his bullshit. But what of all his aides and more educated and worldly supporters? Have they all just drunk deep of the cool-aid and lost their minds or it is purely cynical self-interest / self-conservation at this stage?
It's a bizarre spectacle to watch.