November 20, 2020

Looks like the legal freak show is about to grind to a halt:

The way Rudy conducted himself yesterday--talking gibberish, leaking hair dye across his cheeks, sweating profusely and wiping boogers all over his face--how long before the announcement comes that he's tested positive?

November 20, 2020

He's given certain special interest groups legitimacy and favors they've

been craving for decades, especially the Christian Nationalists and Alt Right.

I also agree with others who've said that there's a lot of fear, because it's unclear how much power he will retain after leaving office.

Also, the "shared enemies" theory. Some people like him because he hates the same people they do.

November 19, 2020

I kind of get where this is going.

Reading the book description at Amazon, I'm remembering that Elton John song, The Ballad of Danny Bailey and this theory is making some sense. There is a certain hagiography that evolves around the "bad guys." To wit, the insane popularity of De Palma's remake of Scarface.

I still think there's a lot more going on, especially after reading Unholy by Sarah Posner and The Power Worshippers by Katherine Stewart, and The Cult of Trump by Steven Hassan and Dangerous Charisma by Dr. Jerrold Post.

I just think we can't ignore the appeal of strongmen like Putin, Duterte, Bolsonaro, etc... I see it has having to do with their perceived power, not necessarily their "badness," but the two are not unrelated because of their enemies.

Autocrats have this ability to absolve people who believe deep down they are failures of guilt, introspection, self-blame and personal responsibility by conditioning them to direct or project their self-loathing at "others" (immigrants, Jews, people of color, religious minorities). And the followers vicariously share the leader's perceived power.

But there is a place for what you're saying in a fully evolved theory of Trump's appeal, especially when you are talking about the Alt Right, the racists and people who feel beaten down by life; not so much with the Christian Nationalists.

I appreciate the book recommendation. May give it a look.

November 19, 2020

Great job

I was a coward and just emailed her.

You did great!



Emily's email address:

emily.murphy@gsa.gov

November 19, 2020

Some humble suggestions for the Trump Library:

Fire and Fury
House of Trump, House of Putin
The Apprentice (by Greg Miller)
Fear by Woodward
Rage by Woodward
Disloyal by Michael Cohen
The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, by Dr. Bandy Lee, et al
The Cult of Trump by Steven Hassan
Dangerous Charisma by Jerrold M. Post
Trump and His Generals by Peter Bergen
A Very Stable Genius by Rucker and Leonnig
Omarosa's book
Too Much and Never Enough by Mary Trump
The Room Where it Happened by Bolton
The Mueller Report

Some books about Putin:

The New Tsar
From Russia with Blood
Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible
The Less you Know the Better you Sleep

and really, on and on

Bottom line: The entire library could be filled with books about what a catastrophe the Trump administration was

November 19, 2020

I know I have no business giving Biden and Harris advice, because IMO they

are doing a spectacular job under extraordinary and unprecedented pressures.

But I sincerely wish Biden would make a statement at least saying "We will remove any person that Trump burrows into one of our agencies, regardless of rules or protections, because he is making these changes in bad faith for the sole purpose of sabotaging an incoming administration."

I wish he would prepare the way to kick these people out, let anyone who is not paying attention understand the purpose of Trump's moves, and make it clear he won't allow them to remain in place. They are "moles" intent on destroying the Biden/Harris administration.

Just my opinion.

November 19, 2020

The reason I'm similarly worried is that in other countries that have lost

their democracy, it's not like people weren't opposed, but they still couldn't stop it. And when it happens, it happens like an avalanche.

Thinking of:

Fujimori in Peru
Orban in Hungary
Poland
Moldova
Georgia
Almost Italy (Salvini)
Bolsonaro in Brazil
Some of the weird, disturbing shit that happened in Spain when Catalonia tried to declare independence.

Maybe Duterte (not sure if it fits) in the Philippines?

As some other posters have said, this is no joke. It happens very quickly. When Hitler made his moves to consolidate power, it was fast. You only have to alter a few things, and the rest falls into place, and then it's too late.

November 19, 2020

It's crazy. This is reminding me of what I've read about the Fall of the

Third Reich.

It was obvious to the German people that the war was lost, but Goebbels kept pounding the citizens with news of "secret weapons" that were just about to be unveiled that would save the day. It was definitely a kind of gaslighting, and there were no checks or oversights in place to prevent the onslaught of lies. Many citizens even believed the lies and eventually the (mostly-Nazi) citizens that believed it turned against those who didn't, even in some cases executing people for crimes like "faithlessness" or "lack of belief."

November 19, 2020

I'm having trouble keeping up too.

One group of Trump attorneys can't resign fast enough, and the other one or two are all over the media saying Trump has won Pennsylvania and has 400 electoral votes, and if you just don't count urban votes Trump won in a landslide.

It's Crazytown.

November 19, 2020

We have an enormous problem.

It deserves more space than is possible in a post.

I couldn't possibly agree more with that statement.

Europe is facing a similar crisis. We should see how, or even if, they can beat back the proponents of autocratic systems in nations like Hungary, Poland, Moldova, Georgia and Russia. Even in nations that have managed to preserve Democracy, they face the rising popularity of far right parties and factions (Germany is one example). Italy had a crisis with Matteo Salvini.

The Dictator Playbook is ancient, but it still works. How is it even possible that those old tricks still work on modern people? How gullible and uneducated have we become?

For most of us it seems like a no-brainer: Human beings should naturally prefer Democracy to autocratic forms of government, but it's simply no longer the case.

I've learned from reading the book Unholy by Sarah Posner that the Alt Right and the Christian Nationalists have found common ground, and part of that common ground is a growing rejection of Democracy. It's also global, with Christian Nationalism drawing succor (and outrageous financing) from allies in both Eastern and Western Europe. Russia figures into this crisis too.

IMHO, this issue of protecting Democracy and Global Warming are the two issues of our time.