I’m still in disbelief that we are going to do this again with him. I have loathed the man since I was young growing up in NY and have had family members stop doing business with home because of how horrible he is. The lies, the cheating, the utter lack of empathy and yet, he’s going to run the country. MSM normalizing the mistruths is mind bending and I really can’t watch them anymore. I’ve taken a somewhat break from political news and social media but there’s no escaping it. Thank you for your continued resistance and making my anxiousness calm a bit. I know I’m not the only one and that helps me. 🙏🤘
Thanks, Chris. I likewise grew up in NY and in the 80's, he was an egomaniacal goof that I could never foresee having this level of support, especially given the sheer quantity of his business failures. He got rescued and remade time and again and he worsened - because his pathology requires him to crave legitimacy he can't broadly get by merit, so he grew more malign and vengeful, and tapped into the angry and aggrieved - with help of course. Thanks a lot, Mark Burnett and thanks a lot, Deutsche Bank and thanks a lot, Rupert.
Yes - there's a certain amount of auto-response (or as you aptly put it - learned behavioral response) in partisan politics, but the level of it that we see among the RW electorate, is downright cultish. I think a % of the RW electorate is cult-captured, but I think some others are not - and when Pavlov/Trump's bell is seen to be false or flawed, maybe they'll start listening to a different tone. We have to relentlessly put forth truth and when the Trump apparatus makes visible missteps, and they will, those must become opportunities to shift the narrative.
It's clear to me now that the rules regarding truth, honesty, honor, and decency have changed -- and it is painfully disheartening. I'm not sure how to defend against such despicable behavior, let alone what we can do about the wholesale acceptance of it from one side of the divide.
Yet another excellent banter. I'm looking really forward to the next iteration with chat! Thanks so very much!
Hi Chance! He overturned the rules and the media let him. We’re in for a wild Trump 2.0 without many guardrails and his cabinet will be all loyalists. The dude has presidential immunity - my gd! -
We have to resist using our most powerful tool in our arsenal :: the truth!
Chats are soon 👏🏼 we’re so excited to get to know you and everyone else
"the very narrow majority" we are referring to are Trump voters and those words in that context is correct. We know he didn't win by a wide margin or the 'mandate' they scream about -- we're not referencing that here. Thanks for reading us so closely, William ;)
While you folks were waiting for Trump's brain to explode I did a little light summer reading. 3 books by Timothy Snyder, Plus Hannah Arendt and Masha Gessen. Being one of the people EXPECTING Biden to lose.
In "The Road to Unfreedom" Prof. Timothy Snyder of Yale explains Russia's abandonment of trying to enter the West's good graces and sinking back into tyranny and using that as a possible roadmap for the US to follow suit.
In the late Soviet era, around the time of Brezhnev ca. 1970, thew USSR changed it's propaganda. No longer insisting like Krushchev, "We will bury you," that Communism was going to lead to a greater world than decadent capitalism, Brezhnev just decided to declare victory and insist the "Worker's Paradise" had been PERFECTED.
Now, the West with the US at the helm was trying to DESTROY all the USSR achieved. It was a total reversal of the promise of Communism. It made the USSR BACKWARDS looking instead of optimistic.
In order to achieve this they had to convince Soviet citizens that there was no possible way better. "Whataboutism" had been a standard. But Soviet citizens had grown weary of relentless propaganda. They didn't believe anything the government said as a matter of course. They had to attack any possible outside source of Truth, to disorient people so badly they stop believing in Truth itself.
This, Shallow State, where you need to attack MAGA. MAGAism is a NIHILISTIC world view that will always look back, always bitch about the present, always scapegoat and always punch down. When Trump said, "The American Dream is dead," Trump telegraphed his intent TO KILL IT.
Ken- I don't disagree with much of what you say. The authors you reference are excellent and astute. And you articulately point out the complexity of the problems and challenges we face. But I have to correct you on this: Tyrants do not always win. Tyrants who win do not always sustain. Public exhaustion IS one of the most important things for us and our "avalanche" of truth to combat ... and combat it - we MUST.
What makes the Firehose so potent is who the hell are you to say what is the Truth. What "Avalanche" are you going to come up with? Why accept you vs. the Noise? Everyone now distrusts the Media, they are all compromised.
When the Firehose meets the Avalanche, all you get is SLUSH. The sad truth is that most people don't have the time to try to discern the Truth. Autocracy doesn't win by getting everyone to cheer enthusiastically for Dear Leader. They win when the masses between Dear Leader and the Opposition get EXHAUSTED. They stop caring and they stop resisting. This is how tyrants ALWAYS win.
You should read me more on socials then — this is a fairly new pub, and I’ve repeatedly said when the resistance becomes exhausted authoritarianism takes root. I’ve also read those authors. I’m confused by your anger at Banters. The avalanche of truth is a figurative expression on trying being the best arsenal for countering the lies. Thanks.
“The quacks at Newsmax and the fools at Fox”! 👌Chef’s kiss!
😏
An avalanche of truth. I hope it’s enough to counter all this bullshit.
Another great article from both of you.
You’re always so hopeful, I’m trying to be - the most powerful tool in our resistance arsenal is truth. Thank you!!
I’m still in disbelief that we are going to do this again with him. I have loathed the man since I was young growing up in NY and have had family members stop doing business with home because of how horrible he is. The lies, the cheating, the utter lack of empathy and yet, he’s going to run the country. MSM normalizing the mistruths is mind bending and I really can’t watch them anymore. I’ve taken a somewhat break from political news and social media but there’s no escaping it. Thank you for your continued resistance and making my anxiousness calm a bit. I know I’m not the only one and that helps me. 🙏🤘
Thanks, Chris. I likewise grew up in NY and in the 80's, he was an egomaniacal goof that I could never foresee having this level of support, especially given the sheer quantity of his business failures. He got rescued and remade time and again and he worsened - because his pathology requires him to crave legitimacy he can't broadly get by merit, so he grew more malign and vengeful, and tapped into the angry and aggrieved - with help of course. Thanks a lot, Mark Burnett and thanks a lot, Deutsche Bank and thanks a lot, Rupert.
I’m totally on the Avalanche of Truth page! (Gotta admit I looked up Firehouse of Lies on Wikipedia! 😜)
The lying is like a learned behavioral response. People have become Pavlov’s dog & Trump’s ringing the damn hell! 😵💫
Yes - there's a certain amount of auto-response (or as you aptly put it - learned behavioral response) in partisan politics, but the level of it that we see among the RW electorate, is downright cultish. I think a % of the RW electorate is cult-captured, but I think some others are not - and when Pavlov/Trump's bell is seen to be false or flawed, maybe they'll start listening to a different tone. We have to relentlessly put forth truth and when the Trump apparatus makes visible missteps, and they will, those must become opportunities to shift the narrative.
It’s the best we’ve got to hose his bullsh*t and it’s going to be even more insane and dangerous this time around.
What started as a play on words with the title took us right back to Putin —. Because of course it did 🙄 always that way with Trump.
It's clear to me now that the rules regarding truth, honesty, honor, and decency have changed -- and it is painfully disheartening. I'm not sure how to defend against such despicable behavior, let alone what we can do about the wholesale acceptance of it from one side of the divide.
Yet another excellent banter. I'm looking really forward to the next iteration with chat! Thanks so very much!
Hi Chance! He overturned the rules and the media let him. We’re in for a wild Trump 2.0 without many guardrails and his cabinet will be all loyalists. The dude has presidential immunity - my gd! -
We have to resist using our most powerful tool in our arsenal :: the truth!
Chats are soon 👏🏼 we’re so excited to get to know you and everyone else
Stop saying he won a majority. It was a plurality of the popular vote
"the very narrow majority" we are referring to are Trump voters and those words in that context is correct. We know he didn't win by a wide margin or the 'mandate' they scream about -- we're not referencing that here. Thanks for reading us so closely, William ;)
I have some bad news for you folks...
While you folks were waiting for Trump's brain to explode I did a little light summer reading. 3 books by Timothy Snyder, Plus Hannah Arendt and Masha Gessen. Being one of the people EXPECTING Biden to lose.
In "The Road to Unfreedom" Prof. Timothy Snyder of Yale explains Russia's abandonment of trying to enter the West's good graces and sinking back into tyranny and using that as a possible roadmap for the US to follow suit.
In the late Soviet era, around the time of Brezhnev ca. 1970, thew USSR changed it's propaganda. No longer insisting like Krushchev, "We will bury you," that Communism was going to lead to a greater world than decadent capitalism, Brezhnev just decided to declare victory and insist the "Worker's Paradise" had been PERFECTED.
Now, the West with the US at the helm was trying to DESTROY all the USSR achieved. It was a total reversal of the promise of Communism. It made the USSR BACKWARDS looking instead of optimistic.
In order to achieve this they had to convince Soviet citizens that there was no possible way better. "Whataboutism" had been a standard. But Soviet citizens had grown weary of relentless propaganda. They didn't believe anything the government said as a matter of course. They had to attack any possible outside source of Truth, to disorient people so badly they stop believing in Truth itself.
This, Shallow State, where you need to attack MAGA. MAGAism is a NIHILISTIC world view that will always look back, always bitch about the present, always scapegoat and always punch down. When Trump said, "The American Dream is dead," Trump telegraphed his intent TO KILL IT.
Ken- I don't disagree with much of what you say. The authors you reference are excellent and astute. And you articulately point out the complexity of the problems and challenges we face. But I have to correct you on this: Tyrants do not always win. Tyrants who win do not always sustain. Public exhaustion IS one of the most important things for us and our "avalanche" of truth to combat ... and combat it - we MUST.
Hi Ken, what’s your @ on bluesky? I’ve replied below
@sun-sawed.bsky.social
What makes the Firehose so potent is who the hell are you to say what is the Truth. What "Avalanche" are you going to come up with? Why accept you vs. the Noise? Everyone now distrusts the Media, they are all compromised.
When the Firehose meets the Avalanche, all you get is SLUSH. The sad truth is that most people don't have the time to try to discern the Truth. Autocracy doesn't win by getting everyone to cheer enthusiastically for Dear Leader. They win when the masses between Dear Leader and the Opposition get EXHAUSTED. They stop caring and they stop resisting. This is how tyrants ALWAYS win.
See my response to your earlier comment (above).
You should read me more on socials then — this is a fairly new pub, and I’ve repeatedly said when the resistance becomes exhausted authoritarianism takes root. I’ve also read those authors. I’m confused by your anger at Banters. The avalanche of truth is a figurative expression on trying being the best arsenal for countering the lies. Thanks.
There were some typos / autocorrects there.
We can’t give up. We combat the lies with truth. It’s the best tool in our arsenal
Intelligent insight and enjoyable reading despite the desperate topic.
The media has a lot to answer for. But why have they swung Trumps way?
Why doesn't he go to California and show "the incompetent pols" how to put out a fire. He'd probably try to piss on it.