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The_jackalope

(1,660 posts)
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 05:22 PM Jun 2018

We will not end Trumpism by voting.

The USA may be able to vote Trump and the Republicans out of office. However, Trumpism itself is not a political movement, except incidentally. It's a revenge movement, a movement of total retaliation. It has spawned a "kind of politics that is nearly impossible to deal with using reason or empathy or awareness-raising or any of the other favorite tools of the left."

This why I have suspected since halfway through the campaign that the USA is headed toward an abyss that looks a lot like some kind of civil war. And I don't have the first clue about how to prevent that outcome.

This Political Theorist Predicted the Rise of Trumpism. His Name Was Hunter S. Thompson

Most people read Hell’s Angels for the lurid stories of sex and drugs. But that misses the point entirely. What’s truly shocking about reading the book today is how well Thompson foresaw the retaliatory, right-wing politics that now goes by the name of Trumpism. After following the motorcycle guys around for months, Thompson concluded that the most striking thing about them was not their hedonism but their “ethic of total retaliation” against a technologically advanced and economically changing America in which they felt they’d been counted out and left behind. Thompson saw the appeal of that retaliatory ethic. He claimed that a small part of every human being longs to burn it all down, especially when faced with great and impersonal powers that seem hostile to your very existence. In the United States, a place of ever greater and more impersonal powers, the ethic of total retaliation was likely to catch on.

What made that outcome almost certain, Thompson thought, was the obliviousness of Berkeley, California, types who, from the safety of their cocktail parties, imagined that they understood and represented the downtrodden. The Berkeley types, Thompson thought, were not going to realize how presumptuous they had been until the downtrodden broke into one of those cocktail parties and embarked on a campaign of rape, pillage, and slaughter. For Thompson, the Angels weren’t important because they heralded a new movement of cultural hedonism, but because they were the advance guard for a new kind of right-wing politics. As Thompson presciently wrote in the Nation piece he later expanded on in Hell’s Angels, that kind of politics is “nearly impossible to deal with” using reason or empathy or awareness-raising or any of the other favorite tools of the left.

Fifty years after Thompson published his book, a lot of Americans have come to feel like motorcycle guys. At a time when so many of us are trying to understand what happened in the election, there are few better resources than Hell’s Angels. That’s not because Thompson was the only American writer to warn coastal, left-liberal elites about their disconnection from poor and working-class white voters. Plenty of people issued such warnings: journalists like Thomas Edsall, who for decades has been documenting the rise of “red America,” and scholars like Christopher Lasch, who saw as early as the 1980s that the elite embrace of technological advancement and individual liberation looked like a “revolt” to the mass of Americans, most of whom have been on the losing end of enough “innovations” to be skeptical about the dogmas of progress.
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We will not end Trumpism by voting. (Original Post) The_jackalope Jun 2018 OP
Thanks, but no thanks. RandySF Jun 2018 #1
I never said don't vote. The_jackalope Jun 2018 #4
It's ALWAYS been here JustAnotherGen Jun 2018 #8
Dude, they've been running around with their swastikas and rebel flags for decades jberryhill Jun 2018 #12
Americans may not be aware of this but Putin surely was/is. BigmanPigman Jun 2018 #2
It's all we've got right now, and it's a start. The Velveteen Ocelot Jun 2018 #3
I sure hope there are some adults somewhere working on other responses. The_jackalope Jun 2018 #7
Just so you know... jberryhill Jun 2018 #11
Well, I am Canadian. The_jackalope Jun 2018 #15
cool story bro ! stonecutter357 Jun 2018 #5
This idea JustAnotherGen Jun 2018 #6
The nuts have always and will always be with us - the point is to OUTVOTE them jberryhill Jun 2018 #9
Another "We have to understand the angry white racists" analysis oberliner Jun 2018 #10
Stupid thing to say right before an election lame54 Jun 2018 #13
A "revenge movement" can be translated as a backlash to progress. Garrett78 Jun 2018 #14

The_jackalope

(1,660 posts)
4. I never said don't vote.
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 05:28 PM
Jun 2018

I'm talking about the phenomenon of Trumpism, not the political situation. Voting is essential. But even if you vote every Republican out of office, the reactive backlash known as Trumpism will remain, because it's not, at its heart a political movement. If you remove its political avenue of expression, expect it to emerge someplace else. Probably holding a gun.

JustAnotherGen

(31,686 posts)
8. It's ALWAYS been here
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 05:30 PM
Jun 2018

And it's most vile core beliefs. All 45 / 140 did is give them a platform.

This is why it's fine to be uncivil and evil towards them.

 

jberryhill

(62,444 posts)
12. Dude, they've been running around with their swastikas and rebel flags for decades
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 06:36 PM
Jun 2018

Yeah, the First Amendment guarantees that we'll always have people expressing, espousing and adopting odious beliefs.

And, yeah, we've had all manner of "America First", Nazi, Klan, you-name-it reactionary rightwing nutbars for a very long time before now.

Until now, we have made considerable progress despite them. Nobody got rid of racists, for example. You want to believe in White Supremacy, then you go right on ahead and believe that. But what you CAN'T do is to base official acts, public accommodations, and a range of economic activities on that belief system; and what you CERTAINLY can't do is to premise any number of crimes on that belief system.

The Rule of Law is never about what people believe, think, say or agree with. America guarantees the right to believe, think, say or agree with whatever you want. The Rule of Law is about behavior. That's all it can ever be about.

BigmanPigman

(51,432 posts)
2. Americans may not be aware of this but Putin surely was/is.
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 05:27 PM
Jun 2018

He used our country's deep down angst, racism, etc to help the moron to win. He continues to use it as he gives tRump his marching orders in steering policy and strategies.

The_jackalope

(1,660 posts)
7. I sure hope there are some adults somewhere working on other responses.
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 05:29 PM
Jun 2018

A ballot - even a paper, hand-counted one - is a poor defence against a .223.

 

jberryhill

(62,444 posts)
11. Just so you know...
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 06:30 PM
Jun 2018

Last edited Fri Jun 29, 2018, 08:05 PM - Edit history (1)

You might want to adapt to American English when addressing Americans.

"Defense" and "defence" are not two nuanced but distinct English words. It is one of those instances where American and British spellings simply diverge.

The_jackalope

(1,660 posts)
15. Well, I am Canadian.
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 09:47 PM
Jun 2018

I don't mean to make Americans defencive (sic) but a divergence in the spelling of one word hardly rises to the level of GBS' declaration,“England and America are two countries separated by the same language.”

JustAnotherGen

(31,686 posts)
6. This idea
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 05:29 PM
Jun 2018

Not yours - the writers -

Is actually designed to suppress the vote.

To depress people.

To make people think "It won't matter".

If this propaganda becomes 'truth' - my vote won't matter. All of those indies we've been courting in my district (effectively) will just stay home.

No one is promising 'one' election. But this ONE election is the one that is going to make Trump STROKE OUT.

 

jberryhill

(62,444 posts)
9. The nuts have always and will always be with us - the point is to OUTVOTE them
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 06:26 PM
Jun 2018

Nobody ever wins a war against an idea. But that's really not even the point.

Garrett78

(10,721 posts)
14. A "revenge movement" can be translated as a backlash to progress.
Fri Jun 29, 2018, 08:21 PM
Jun 2018

Undoing progress is not an option, so we must outvote them. Trump is a symptom and a monster of the Republican Party's making, going all the way back to the mid-'60s. Passage of Civil Rights legislation led to a transformation (the likes of Strom Thurmond switched parties). The response included everything from Nixon's Southern Strategy to Reagan's immense dog whistling (which Republicans have been doing ever since), along with The Powell Memo and The Moral Majority. And, finally, the dominance of a "liberal media" narrative, which has never received sufficient pushback from the Democratic Party--and we continue to suffer as a result.

And this is my obligatory response when I read references to "working-class white voters":

People often bemoan the fact that millions vote against their economic interests. But the reason why is clear. They are voting *for* their perceived cultural/social interests.

Absent racism, the Republican Party would cease to be viable. The Democratic Party message is infinitely better on every issue that should matter to working people.

In Ohio, Rob Portman (a major advocate of NAFTA) outperformed Trump. So much for the issue of trade being oh so important to Trump voters.

It's been postulated that social injustices are caused by wealth or income disparities. So, if we address the latter, we'll address the former. That reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of the relationship between social and economic justice.

I'm sympathetic to what many dismiss as "far left" points of view, but this is one major issue that many leftists get wrong. In fact, you might even say people who make the above claim have it completely backwards. The fostering and exploitation of bigotry (along with race-based voter suppression and gerrymandering) is what enables Republicans to win political victories, which leads to right wing economic policies being enacted. Those policies hurt more than anyone those who are already most oppressed. Then, the wealth gap between white individuals and persons of color is justified using various stereotypes.

This has been the case since the founding of the US on the genocide of one people and the enslavement of another. Remember, race is a social construct. And "whiteness" (along with its supposed superiority) was an invention borne out of the need to prevent a united front by all poor, oppressed people. Whites would be indentured servants with light at the end of the tunnel, while Negroes would be kept in bondage. Poor whites would be thrown a bone (and a whole lot of propaganda), enough to make them feel superior, enough to make them feel like they had more in common with their oppressors than their fellow oppressed.

Social Security (initially), the GI Bill, access to housing and other investment opportunities, the right to vote, access to higher education, access to employment with a decent wage, access to a fair trial and so much more was essentially denied to persons of color and women. Those injustices (even those that were seemingly resolved) continue to impact the present, including the wealth gap between white households and black and brown households, between men and women. Therefore, a rising tide has not historically lifted all boats. Ta-Nehisi Coates makes "The Case for Reparations."

This is why social justice victories (legalizing gay marriage) and breaking barriers (first Black POTUS, first woman POTUS, first transgender state legislator, etc.) constitute more than mere symbolism. They are cracks in the facade, and crucial steps toward addressing economic injustice.

Much has been made of the *white* working class, or even white working class men. Democrats already do better than Republicans among the working class. In saying Democrats shouldn't go out of their way to appeal to *white* working class men, the point isn't to denigrate that subset of the population. The point is that the Democratic Party platform should already appeal to the working class. And, for the most part, it does, based on exit polls following every election.

Why speak specifically of *white* working class folks? We all know why. Either it's because there's this assumption that only white people work or experience economic anxiety (horribly racist and obviously false), or it's because a certain portion of *white* working class folks are voting based on factors that have nothing to do with candidate positions on wage stagnation, workplace safety, health care, equal pay, paid family leave and all of the other issues that should matter to the working class. If that's the case, and I think we all know that it is, what does one suggest Democratic candidates do?


Should Democratic candidates not talk about criminal injustice, the race-based "War on Drugs," race-based voter suppression, a path to citizenship and the fact that US policy has been a driver of immigration all around the world, reproductive rights, equal pay, a culture that suggests sexual assault is tolerable, and so on? If not talking about those things, or - worse - taking the opposite position is what it will take to win over a certain subset of the population, then that's just too bad. As Dr. King said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." Just as some rich folks recognize the danger of extreme economic disparity, we should all want less disparity (in terms of wealth, criminal justice, medical care, housing, etc.) between white folks and persons of color, between men and women, between gay and straight. Get on board with Democrats or lose, because ultimately "the arc of the moral universe bends toward justice."

Going back to the invention of race/whiteness, the fostering and exploitation of bigotries has enabled economic disparities in the US. Economic disparities aren't what enable racism and sexism, though economic disparities are used - after the fact - as justification for social/cultural wealth disparities (again, stereotypes are used to justify the wealth gap between black and white households, for instance). Racism and sexism are what enable economic disparities. Whiteness and patriarchy had to be invented as a means to divide and conquer.

We must address racism (including xenophobia) and sexism head-on. If we don't, there's no hope of substantially redistributing wealth or opportunity. A common response to what I’ve written is that “we must fight for both economic and social justice” or that “it’s not an either-or situation.” Of course it isn’t. Of course Democrats and all people of conscience should be fighting for progressive taxation and closing tax loopholes, paid family leave, universal health care, ending imperialism, and so on. My point, though, is that right wing economic viewpoints survive and prosper precisely because of bigotry. Absent racism alone (to say nothing of other forms of bigotry), the Republican Party would cease to be viable.

And we must recognize that a rising tide is not sufficient. Measures must be taken to reverse history, so to speak. A good place to start: https://policy.m4bl.org/platform/.

Lastly, a message for the young folks and others who are hoping for a viable left wing alternative to the Democratic Party in this 2-party system of ours. The first step is ending the viability of the Republican Party. And we do that by significantly diminishing racism, sexism, heterosexism and xenophobia (because that, and not right wing economic policy, is what's keeping the GOP alive). In the meantime, you need to support the only viable party that stands in the way of fascism. And you need to recognize that addressing social injustice is key to addressing economic injustice.

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