Fear, Reaction, And Ignorance Of Facts Is No Way To Run A Country
Conservatives convinced that lies are the truth, truth are lies, and that the Left are nothing but ignorant haters
I’ve seen enough Conservative focus groups over the years to know what I’m going to hear. People are going to spew propaganda as if it’s Gospel. They’ll defend Donald Trump as if he’s the Prophet. They’ll deny provable facts as the worst sort of Leftist lies. And they’ll denounce Liberals as clueless haters who don’t know what they’re talking about because all they want to do is hate Trump.
Yeah, that must be it. ‘Cuz I’m just that ignorant and hateful.
Listening to Elise Jordan’s interview with this focus group, I was stunned at the smug arrogance and the collective self-satisfied sense of self-righteousness. Never mind the denial of facts and reality regarding the January 6th insurrection.
I thought, “Should people this ignorant and proud of it be allowed to vote? How can a group of people so poorly informed, thoroughly propagandized, and wholly convinced of the correctness of their views and opinions be so completely and utterly wrong?”
I’m not talking about a difference of opinions. I’d expect that. No, I’m talking about the willingness to cling to the provably untrue as if their lives depended on it and to sound as if they believed it was the ONLY possible correct opinion.
These are not people open to a robust exchange of ideas or examining their opinions. No, these folks KNOW they’re correct, and no stupid, hate-filled Librul will change anything.
So who are these people supporting? Who is it they think is doing what’s best for America?
One thing that jumps out about this focus group is that it’s all White. Perhaps that was by design, or perhaps it’s because there aren’t many colored Trump voters to be found. And most of these people seem to understand and accept the racist code words that are part of the Right-wing conversation about crime.
That’s not surprising; much of the GOP appeal during this election cycle has been based on generating fear and suspicion of those who aren’t White, Conservative, Christian, and heterosexual.
I know that an independent voter might read my critique and think I’m doing the same thing that someone on the Far-Right is doing from the opposite perspective. But there can’t be two diametrically opposed and accurate ways to view factual reality. There isn’t Left-wing “truth” and Right-wing “truth.” There is only truth that is immune to partisan political considerations. What happened on January 6th has been documented to the nth degree. That documentation tells the truth of what happened on that terrible day.
It wasn’t just people giving voice to their anger. It was a violent, deadly insurrection, an attempted coup.
It wasn’t- as many on the Far-Right seem to believe- Americans engaged in legitimate protest. It was an armed insurrection, a violent attack on law enforcement, and an attempt to reverse the results of the 2020 Presidential election.
There’s no way to justify or soft-pedal what happened on January 6th. There are hours of video and even more hours of testimony proving that the insurrection was planned with an eye toward overthrowing the government. Participants wanted to overturn the election and install Donald Trump as President for Life. They wanted to override the will of the American people.
And the focus group interviewed by Elise Jordan appeared to be fine with all of this. None of them had an issue with how January 6th went down. They even belittled the fact that a police officer died as somehow of less importance than the “right” of the people to protest.
The focus group also refused to recognize that people defiled the halls of Congress- the People’s house- by smearing human feces on the walls and committing other acts of vandalism.
I wonder how these patriots might have reacted if Liberals had committed similar acts? Somehow I can’t help but believe the rage and demands for punishment commensurate to the crime would’ve been loud, impassioned, and raised the blood pressure of more than a few to perilous levels.
Donald Trump could’ve stopped the violence that occurred on January 6th. He was involved in planning much of it. Insurrectionists were reading his tweets to the assembled rioters as soon as he issued them. They knew what he wanted, because he was in charge. He could have stopped the violence and destruction if he wanted to, but he loved what he saw.
As I watched people in the focus group answering Jordan’s questions, I found myself becoming progressively angrier. I have to assume these were well-meaning people, yet they insisted on believing things that were untrue. One man wondered why those of us on the Left never gave Trump’s policies a chance, which made me laugh. There were no real policies. What policies that did exist were based on cruelty, lack of compassion, and Trump’s life-long desire to screw people before they screwed him.
Policies?? You want to talk about policies???
The ignorance, smug arrogance, and sense of self-superiority were almost palpable. This focus group may not have said this, nor would they likely have ever admitted it, but it seemed clear they felt themselves to be the Chosen Ones. America is theirs and they resent others being part of it and trying to take what’s “rightfully” theirs.
What I didn’t sense from the group was happiness. To a person, they seemed sullen and resentful. Some seemed miserable, as if they resented having to watch others enjoy benefits they should be getting.
I grew up with people like this- folks who worked hard but understood little of the world around them and even less about those who weren’t White Christian Conservative heterosexuals. They feared what they didn’t understand and didn’t believe they bore any responsibility to try to understand others. They thought others need to be more like them. After all, America is a White Christian Conservative heterosexual country, and those who come here from elsewhere have a responsibility to assimilate.
Except that America isn’t “owned” by White Christian Conservative heterosexuals. Being a majority doesn’t connote ownership any more than it should mean social, political, or religious dominance. In America, people are free to think, believe, and worship (or not) as they deem appropriate. There’s no national standard to conform to- those who refuse to understand that often end up as Trump voters.
That’s why we have two competing visions of America:
One would take us back to when White Christian Conservative heterosexuals ruled without question, and all others waited for table scraps. Political power rested in the hands of male property owners who traded in the labor of those they deemed “less than.” America suffered because it refused to treat all men and women as equals under the law. (That’s “R,” as in “Republican,” or “reverse.”)
The other wants to create an America where all men and women, regardless of race, creed, color, religion, or favorite football team are treated equally under the law. The government is not involved in personal medical decisions, and the individual is trusted to be the captain of their ship. Government exists to assist and empower the people, not the reverse. (That’s “D,” as in “Democrat,” or “drive,” which moves us “forward.”)
American democracy may not be perfect, but it’s worked reasonably well for almost 250 years. Now it’s facing what may be its biggest and most serious challenge, and close to half the population is OK with voting against their own best interests.
That, of course, is one of the unfortunate side effects of democracy. Even people unwilling to fully consider the possible ramifications of their vote enjoy the legal right to exercise their franchise. And, yes, as arrogant as this may sound, even stupid people can vote. You know the type- those who voted for Donald Trump because they like those cool “MAGA” hats and his red (Made in China) ties. And they LOVE him because he hates the same people they do.
What will happen on November 8th? Who knows? All I know is that if you don’t get your ass off your couch and vote, we could be in for a VERY long two years.
Is that what you want?
Ignora