Psychologists call this projection, and it's on a grand scale, with Trump & Co. providing the permission structure for the full assembly to express themselves honestly. This is how f*cked up things are in child-rearing these days -- too much "obedience training" (for dogs) and massive neglect (absentee parenting). Kids are growing up without a sense of their own worth, and it comes out as hate for everything and everyone. Nihilism, gorilla shit-throwing, petulance, infantilism. History is replete with shit to throw around; Hitler is just the greatest current example. I'm surprised they haven't chosen Nakba, too (too ignorant?). Genghis Khan anyone? Pol Pot? Idi Amin? (too brown?)
At least Trump knew the fundamental difference between men and women which Kamala -- "she's for they/them" -- Harris clearly didn't have a clue about, given her gushing over transwoman Dylan Mulvaney "living authentically as a woman".
When someone tells you what they are, believe them. The republinazis have been telling us what they are for years. These baby nazis learned from their parents who learned from their parents, etc. White supremacy has been going on since the beginning of our country, and since Trump it has burst out in open proudly.
If a hypothetical Young Democrats of America group chat with phrases like "I love Kropotkin" and "But murder it remains" (any posts of "I love Stalin" or "I love Mao" would likely be met with at least three jeers of "tankie") leaked, every Republican would be metaphorically bald from how much their hair would be on fire over it.
Well, they've invaded Democratic strongholds with a military custom built to evade Constitutional regulation, they're openly gerrymandering population centers into disenfranchisement, they're petitioning the Supreme Court to legitimize factionalism of American cities... And they're saying they like Hitler, rape and overt racism, as they are taking people off the streets without warrant or due process.
Kids'll be kids, right?
The good ol' boys never meant no harm.
I guess those evil cities are going to learn their lesson for trying to expand freedoms to people "Real America" thinks of as the butt of their "offensive jokes."
You may have covered this in your probably overly long-winded peregrinations on the topic, but I wonder if the "pro-Hitler" "arguments" were more based on "blood and soil" "principles" than any understanding of the consequences of Hitler's "misuse" of the concept.
ETA: It has always amused me, at least for 6 or 7 decades, the extent to which the emblem and defining icon of fascism -- the fasces of Imperial Rome -- are replicated and given "pride of place" throughout much of American government, and those of other countries:
Here too, in the Netherlands, they also use the same tactics Vance used to minimize or normalize the far right. When on the 20th of September a far right anti immigration march went violent, the right wing politicians didn't even want to admit that the protesters were far right, saying instead that they were hooligans, football supporters, when in reality, it was crystal clear who they were: they were pictures of people doing the nazi salute, flags related to the Dutch nazi party from the second world war, they chanted racist slogans, and attacked the headquarters of a center left liberal party. But no, they weren't political, no, just some too energetic jongens.
I’m glad you got to agreeing with JVL that Jones should drop out or resign after winning.
I do think you unfairly diminished what Jones wrote. This included a joke that his Republican colleague Gilbert deserved death over Hitler and Pol Pot. But he also said that he wished Gilbert’s children died so that Gilbert and his wife would feel the pain personally and then change their policy views.
I’m glad that Jones said he was ashamed of having said those texts.
As for Vance defending the Young Republicans… Vance would do anything for power. The man has no moral core. And neither do the Young Republicans in that group chat.
Excellent piece, but I think there is one addendum to add. What Vance is doing is not just moral inversion but also moral solace, and he is backed in this by other Republicans who express shock, indignation, even "concern" but never do anything.
This show provides nice cover for all the normie Republicans to ignore what they are enabling while he goes on indoctrinating the youth so that the rest of us have to turn to older relatives and force them to even admit that they voted for people who defend this crap. And yet they always reply by insisting that they "just wanted lower taxes."
The comforting self-delusions of people who ignore the horrors they enable are an essential feature of Vance and Trump's program. It allows Vance et al. time to cultivate a generation of violent Republicans that will rise after all the normie boomers are gone.
You are held to standards that are unreasonably high while their transgressions aren’t taken seriously. Cons can say and do whatever they want and it’s fine. You are scrutinized for whatever you do. What that’s called is PRIVILEGE.
Because they aren’t arguing issues. They aren’t even arguing about what behavior is acceptable and what isn’t. They aren’t even arguing just blindly ASSERTING their right to do and say whatever they want and FORCE people to think it’s acceptable.
It’s an act of DOMINATION. Just as much as the right to pull over any Brown skinned person they want and push that that isn’t just acceptable, it’s necessary. Just as the idea of a Black kid getting shot by police shouldn’t strike people as offensive. They probably deserve it. They want to bring an instinctive PREJUDICE against Liberals and Democrats.
When folks from Libbylib, Libtardland have been pointing to outrages against immigrants, saying that it’s the First *sign*, where in the list of “First they came for the ______,” did you think YOU were going to fit? All the troops on the street attacking immigrants and “Antifa” is softening up the country for when Trump comes after his main enemy: YOU.
All this talk about radical, far Left Communist Fascist Vegan Trans Crustacean Cannibal Demonazis has been excused as hyperbolic ridiculousness, but so did the stupid tabloid style articles that loaded up everyone’s Facebook feed back in 2016. Nobody takes that junk seriously. Until they do.
They are counting on when someday they turn machine guns on the Frog brigade, people will CHEER.
Psychologists call this projection, and it's on a grand scale, with Trump & Co. providing the permission structure for the full assembly to express themselves honestly. This is how f*cked up things are in child-rearing these days -- too much "obedience training" (for dogs) and massive neglect (absentee parenting). Kids are growing up without a sense of their own worth, and it comes out as hate for everything and everyone. Nihilism, gorilla shit-throwing, petulance, infantilism. History is replete with shit to throw around; Hitler is just the greatest current example. I'm surprised they haven't chosen Nakba, too (too ignorant?). Genghis Khan anyone? Pol Pot? Idi Amin? (too brown?)
Appreciate that you supplied the quote by Vance. I didn’t know that. To me his own words really speak to lack of character.
And grabbing women by the pussy is just "boy talk."
At least Trump knew the fundamental difference between men and women which Kamala -- "she's for they/them" -- Harris clearly didn't have a clue about, given her gushing over transwoman Dylan Mulvaney "living authentically as a woman".
When someone tells you what they are, believe them. The republinazis have been telling us what they are for years. These baby nazis learned from their parents who learned from their parents, etc. White supremacy has been going on since the beginning of our country, and since Trump it has burst out in open proudly.
their truth
is a lie
don't let 'em win the fight
Don't march to the
beat of their drum
our resistance has begun
Don't march to the
beat of their drum
fuck all nazi scum!"
Rise up, Tear Down - The O'Reillys and the Paddyhats
If a hypothetical Young Democrats of America group chat with phrases like "I love Kropotkin" and "But murder it remains" (any posts of "I love Stalin" or "I love Mao" would likely be met with at least three jeers of "tankie") leaked, every Republican would be metaphorically bald from how much their hair would be on fire over it.
Well, they've invaded Democratic strongholds with a military custom built to evade Constitutional regulation, they're openly gerrymandering population centers into disenfranchisement, they're petitioning the Supreme Court to legitimize factionalism of American cities... And they're saying they like Hitler, rape and overt racism, as they are taking people off the streets without warrant or due process.
Kids'll be kids, right?
The good ol' boys never meant no harm.
I guess those evil cities are going to learn their lesson for trying to expand freedoms to people "Real America" thinks of as the butt of their "offensive jokes."
You may have covered this in your probably overly long-winded peregrinations on the topic, but I wonder if the "pro-Hitler" "arguments" were more based on "blood and soil" "principles" than any understanding of the consequences of Hitler's "misuse" of the concept.
ETA: It has always amused me, at least for 6 or 7 decades, the extent to which the emblem and defining icon of fascism -- the fasces of Imperial Rome -- are replicated and given "pride of place" throughout much of American government, and those of other countries:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fasces
Here too, in the Netherlands, they also use the same tactics Vance used to minimize or normalize the far right. When on the 20th of September a far right anti immigration march went violent, the right wing politicians didn't even want to admit that the protesters were far right, saying instead that they were hooligans, football supporters, when in reality, it was crystal clear who they were: they were pictures of people doing the nazi salute, flags related to the Dutch nazi party from the second world war, they chanted racist slogans, and attacked the headquarters of a center left liberal party. But no, they weren't political, no, just some too energetic jongens.
I’m glad you got to agreeing with JVL that Jones should drop out or resign after winning.
I do think you unfairly diminished what Jones wrote. This included a joke that his Republican colleague Gilbert deserved death over Hitler and Pol Pot. But he also said that he wished Gilbert’s children died so that Gilbert and his wife would feel the pain personally and then change their policy views.
I’m glad that Jones said he was ashamed of having said those texts.
As for Vance defending the Young Republicans… Vance would do anything for power. The man has no moral core. And neither do the Young Republicans in that group chat.
Excellent piece, but I think there is one addendum to add. What Vance is doing is not just moral inversion but also moral solace, and he is backed in this by other Republicans who express shock, indignation, even "concern" but never do anything.
This show provides nice cover for all the normie Republicans to ignore what they are enabling while he goes on indoctrinating the youth so that the rest of us have to turn to older relatives and force them to even admit that they voted for people who defend this crap. And yet they always reply by insisting that they "just wanted lower taxes."
The comforting self-delusions of people who ignore the horrors they enable are an essential feature of Vance and Trump's program. It allows Vance et al. time to cultivate a generation of violent Republicans that will rise after all the normie boomers are gone.
You are held to standards that are unreasonably high while their transgressions aren’t taken seriously. Cons can say and do whatever they want and it’s fine. You are scrutinized for whatever you do. What that’s called is PRIVILEGE.
Because they aren’t arguing issues. They aren’t even arguing about what behavior is acceptable and what isn’t. They aren’t even arguing just blindly ASSERTING their right to do and say whatever they want and FORCE people to think it’s acceptable.
It’s an act of DOMINATION. Just as much as the right to pull over any Brown skinned person they want and push that that isn’t just acceptable, it’s necessary. Just as the idea of a Black kid getting shot by police shouldn’t strike people as offensive. They probably deserve it. They want to bring an instinctive PREJUDICE against Liberals and Democrats.
When folks from Libbylib, Libtardland have been pointing to outrages against immigrants, saying that it’s the First *sign*, where in the list of “First they came for the ______,” did you think YOU were going to fit? All the troops on the street attacking immigrants and “Antifa” is softening up the country for when Trump comes after his main enemy: YOU.
All this talk about radical, far Left Communist Fascist Vegan Trans Crustacean Cannibal Demonazis has been excused as hyperbolic ridiculousness, but so did the stupid tabloid style articles that loaded up everyone’s Facebook feed back in 2016. Nobody takes that junk seriously. Until they do.
They are counting on when someday they turn machine guns on the Frog brigade, people will CHEER.
Great work, Mike, raising these fundamental moral questions. It’s a damn shame we have to look to Substack for this — all Americans need this.
Mike: “Get off my lawn!”
Kids: “Russiagate attempted coup, Motherfucker!”