A Real Threat to Democracy

 

I feel as if I’ve just been kicked in the gut by a good friend. He was, for many years, the epitome of intelligence and reason, with a lively sense of humor. We’ve been estranged for a while, mainly because of his political positions. After hearing one too many of his podcasts a few years ago, I pretty much avoided him. After reading one of his latest pieces on the Bari Weiss blog, I’ve decided we’re done. I’m talking about Jonah Goldberg.

This is not really a post about Jonah Goldberg. It’s about my bewilderment about the defaming of Republicans and Conservatives by using the broad-brush of assuming that we are all Donald Trump fanatics, who continually fawn over him and apologize for him. I think this viewpoint about who we are, who I am, is deeply flawed, and I can’t figure out why it persists.

Goldberg and others seem to refuse to accept that a huge number of those who voted for Trump—not even necessarily people whom I would call “Trump supporters”—were desperate to dislodge the DC Swamp. We didn’t really like Donald Trump, but it was clear that he was fearless and prepared to take on just about anyone. Many of us became convinced, particularly after the attacks on Trump after he was elected, that the Washington establishment was determined to protect every ounce of abusive power that they had. And I don’t think there was another Republican who had the guts to do that. That he was rude and crude and held disdain for proper etiquette was not relevant.

So, what am I so upset about? I feel that most Republicans and Conservatives are not sycophants to the person and platform of Trump. Most of us would never riot at the Capitol. Most of us would not dress like crazy Shamans. Most of also would not have the gumption that Trump displayed. But he was willing to do it on our behalf (and probably for his own motives).

Most of us dreaded the Tweets but liked that Trump got things done. Most of us disliked his personal attacks but liked his pushback on Xi. Most of us were annoyed at his bragging but were amazed that he was able to deal with Covid-19 the way he did.

What especially disturbs me about Jonah and the criticisms of others who hate Trump is that they are defaming most of us in the Republican Party and those who are Conservatives.

How does that help the party? How does that contribute productively to the future of this country? How does that help re-establish conservative values?

If some people are misguided, they aren’t the people who support Trump; they are the people who are determined to keep the edifices from crumbling. The rest of us are tired of the status quo and those who malign our institutions and values.

Jonah and his ilk would be better off exerting their energies against our real enemies.

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  1. Bishop Wash Member
    Bishop Wash
    @BishopWash

    David Foster (View Comment):

    Does Trump really have less ‘proper etiquette’ than does, say, Joseph Biden?…a man who threatens to beat people up, makes assertions about people having lower IQs than himself, has consistently lied and plagiarized?

     

     

    Everything the Anti-Trump Republicans claimed they hated about Trump was actually found in Biden. I could have, well not respected, but maybe understood them supporting some of the Democrats in the primary, but not Biden. 

    • #31
  2. Vance Richards Inactive
    Vance Richards
    @VanceRichards

    Susan Quinn: It’s about my bewilderment about the defaming of Republicans and Conservatives by using the broad-brush of assuming that we are all Donald Trump fanatics, who continually fawn over him and apologize for him.

    Either you hate Trump with all of your heart mind and soul or you are some sort of Trump cultist. The is no middle ground with that crowd.

    • #32
  3. Victor Tango Kilo Member
    Victor Tango Kilo
    @VtheK

    MSNBC just compared January 6th to the Holocaust. Not sure where you can go from there. 

    • #33
  4. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    I don’t really like the title of this post but I endorse this last sentence because those enemies are right now in control of our government and they want to turn it into ‘their democracy’, never to be returned to the people.

    Bob, you did see that I called them A Real Threat, not The Real Threat. Do you believe the positions that Jonah is taking are not also a threat to us?

    Jonah and his ilk are real threats, acting as domestic enemies perhaps unwittingly , and claiming to be Republicans of which there are few acting as enemies, although there are many Republicans who support the causes of the enemies, again not purposely in most cases to undo the Republic. 

    • #34
  5. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Vance Richards (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn: It’s about my bewilderment about the defaming of Republicans and Conservatives by using the broad-brush of assuming that we are all Donald Trump fanatics, who continually fawn over him and apologize for him.

    Either you hate Trump with all of your heart mind and soul or you are some sort of Trump cultist. The is no middle ground with that crowd.

    The irony is that the Democrats in power actually understand that Trump is a true threat to our domestic enemies as compared to Jonah and his ilk who just fail to understand what is happening.

    • #35
  6. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    Henry Castaigne (View Comment):

    Well duh. But that’s not going to happen. For some reason, Trump bothers NTers more than the left making America poorer, more racially divisive and less safe. I didn’t like Trump’s tweets but those are merely annoying words compared to bad policies which have very negative consequences. Particularly, for poor Americans and Americans of color.

    Worrying about style over substance gets you a flashy car with a weak engine. 

    Luckily, Republicans rarely have that problem since we usually choose a boring car with a weak engine. 

    • #36
  7. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    Bryan G. Stephens (View Comment):
    I am tired of being told when I refute that “Well, I was not talking about you,” when the person painted with as wide a brush as possible

    That is SO annoying. No, I am not the exception! And I will not apologize for my positions and values. I don’t think the Never Trumpers are going to win out. I think they have very little support. The Left hates them (except for the ammunition they provide for them) and we certainly do not embrace them. I think they will find that their motley crew will be pretty well on their own.

    The popular girls’ table won’t seat Republicans matter how many of their friends they backstab. 

    • #37
  8. Percival Thatcher
    Percival
    @Percival

    DrewInWisconsin, Oaf (View Comment):

    LibertyDefender (View Comment):
    I pray that their NeverTrump demons will be driven from them, and enter a herd of pigs that will run down a steep embankment into the slaughterhouse, so that a sudden surplus will result in reduced prices for bacon, that will be the first victory in our ultimately successful war on inflation.

    I love it! . . .

    You can’t eat that pork – you know where it’s been.

    • #38
  9. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    DrewInWisconsin, Oaf (View Comment):

    Phil Turmel (View Comment):

    Yes, Susan, Jonah and friends have become the feckless crapweasels he used to denounce. Let your grief run its course. And then ignore them. It isn’t like there aren’t enough political pundits around. Consume the material of the sane ones.

    A rare breed. I have said before (and continue to say) that 95% of all political pundits could disappear tomorrow, and the country would be better off. I’d even go for 99.99999%.

    What would we do without professional natterers? 

    • #39
  10. Annefy Member
    Annefy
    @Annefy

    I received a gut punch from an actual friend of 20 + years. While aware of our political differences, we managed to maintain a close relationship. This was an email I received from her several months ago:

    Hillary Clinton was absolutely  right and prescient. The people supporting trump and the ones supporting the republican party were then and are more so now a basket of deplorables.Racists, selfish, insurrectionists, ignorant, climate deniers, science deniers.  The most deplorable people America ever vomited up in its most imperfect history. What a club to join, what a cult to follow.  Socialists are a much more humane group though there aren’t any real ones in government. Social Democrats are something else, and something deplorables can’t grasp. Stay in your ugly bubble. I’m getting out of your world as soon as I can. 

    Everyone was concerned about the last line, so we reached out to her son to see if she was suicidal. “No more than usual” was his reply. While always a little unbalanced, the Trump years truly sent her off the deep end. During a previous interaction, she patiently explained to me how difficult those four years  were for “smart” people (like her) and that I wasn’t capable of understanding the trauma it caused.

    • #40
  11. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    TBA (View Comment):

    Henry Castaigne (View Comment):

    Well duh. But that’s not going to happen. For some reason, Trump bothers NTers more than the left making America poorer, more racially divisive and less safe. I didn’t like Trump’s tweets but those are merely annoying words compared to bad policies which have very negative consequences. Particularly, for poor Americans and Americans of color.

    Worrying about style over substance gets you a flashy car with a weak engine.

    Luckily, Republicans rarely have that problem since we usually choose a boring car with a weak engine.

    That comes from a singular focus on money (earning and spending). There are many more things to watch out for in a sinister world. We really need Republicans in the coming election campaign to speak about our Constitutional foundation and point out all the ways that these elected Democrats have been working to destroy the Republic contravening the oaths the have taken.

    • #41
  12. Percival Thatcher
    Percival
    @Percival

    TBA (View Comment):

    DrewInWisconsin, Oaf (View Comment):

    Phil Turmel (View Comment):

    Yes, Susan, Jonah and friends have become the feckless crapweasels he used to denounce. Let your grief run its course. And then ignore them. It isn’t like there aren’t enough political pundits around. Consume the material of the sane ones.

    A rare breed. I have said before (and continue to say) that 95% of all political pundits could disappear tomorrow, and the country would be better off. I’d even go for 99.99999%.

    What would we do without professional natterers?

    I don’t know. How about fine cigars, finer brandy, and a game on the tube?

    • #42
  13. Ray Gunner Coolidge
    Ray Gunner
    @RayGunner

    Susan Quinn: This is not really a post about Jonah Goldberg. It’s about my bewilderment about the defaming of Republicans and Conservatives by using the broad-brush of assuming that we are all Donald Trump fanatics, who continually fawn over him and apologize for him. I think this viewpoint about who we are, who I am, is deeply flawed, and I can’t figure out why it persists.

    Here’s a theory, SQ.

    We who consume political commentary should keep in mind that Goldberg, Boot, Rubin, Kristol, Charen, et al. are high status people.  And to me, they have become exemplars of what happens to otherwise thoughtful, high-status people when their anxiety over their status becomes so intense that it reduces their capacity for nuanced thought down to a single, primal calculus:  the ancient, anxiety driven calculus of “in-group/out-group.”   It might be summarized like this:  “My social/professional survival depends on remaining in the good graces of my in-group, which means I can never leave any doubt as to my hostility to that horrible out-group.”

    As @BrianGStephens observes, the give-away is the regular use of the word “cult” or “cult of personality” when talking about Trump voters.  The word “cult” is as strong a signifier of an “out-group” as we have in English. 

    Here’s what proves it to me.  When I think of Mollie Hemingway, for example, I think of someone who is a serious, responsible conservative/libertarian thinker–just as serious and responsible as Jonah Goldberg has ever been.  Circa 2014, I would not have been able to discern any serious disagreements between them.  Today however, what makes Mollie Hemingway’s commentary different from Goldberg’s (and Boot’s, Rubin’s, Kristol’s, Charen’s, et al.) is that she exhibits no observable social anxiety over being perceived as supportive of Trump.  In sum, Mollie suffers none of the “in-group/out-group” anxiety that has paralyzed the minds of so many thoughtful conservative commentators. 

    I really think it just comes down to that.

    • #43
  14. LibertyDefender Member
    LibertyDefender
    @LibertyDefender

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    We really need Republicans in the coming election campaign to speak about our Constitutional foundation and point out all the ways that these elected Democrats have been working to destroy the Republic contravening the oaths the have taken.

    I said the same thing in 2016, and at the time I was certain that Ted Cruz was the perfect candidate to deliver that message.

    Five+ years later, Ted Cruz, instead of focusing on our Constitutional foundation, says

    “We are approaching a solemn anniversary this week. And it is an anniversary of a violent terrorist attack on the capitol.”

    For all of my misgivings back in 2016 (I was actually lobbying RNConvention delegates to ignore their pledges to vote for Trump and instead vote for Ted Cruz) – Trump has been a more aggressive defender of the Constitutional order than any President in my lifetime, including Ronald Reagan.

    • #44
  15. DrewInWisconsin, Oaf Member
    DrewInWisconsin, Oaf
    @DrewInWisconsin

    Yeah, good job using the left’s rhetoric there, Ted. Way to give them an assist.

    • #45
  16. BastiatJunior Member
    BastiatJunior
    @BastiatJunior

    Annefy (View Comment):
    During a previous interaction, she patiently explained to me how difficult those four years  were for “smart” people (like her) and that I wasn’t capable of understanding the trauma it caused.

    This particular sentence makes my blood boil.

     

    • #46
  17. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    LibertyDefender (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    We really need Republicans in the coming election campaign to speak about our Constitutional foundation and point out all the ways that these elected Democrats have been working to destroy the Republic contravening the oaths the have taken.

    I said the same thing in 2016, and at the time I was certain that Ted Cruz was the perfect candidate to deliver that message.

    Five+ years later, Ted Cruz, instead of focusing on our Constitutional foundation, says

    “We are approaching a solemn anniversary this week. And it is an anniversary of a violent terrorist attack on the capitol.”

    For all of my misgivings back in 2016 (I was actually lobbying RNConvention delegates to ignore their pledges to vote for Trump and instead vote for Ted Cruz) – Trump has been a more aggressive defender of the Constitutional order than any President in my lifetime, including Ronald Reagan.

    Same here. I was shocked to hear Ted Cruz say this. He must really be worried about something.

    • #47
  18. Annefy Member
    Annefy
    @Annefy

    DrewInWisconsin, Oaf (View Comment):

    Yeah, good job using the left’s rhetoric there, Ted. Way to give them an assist.

    I saw that clip of Cruz last night. W T H? I’m still scratching my head. 

    • #48
  19. Steven Seward Member
    Steven Seward
    @StevenSeward

    MWD B612 "Dawg" (View Comment):

    DrewInWisconsin, Oaf (View Comment):
    Jonah is a lightweight thinker, and probably knows it. He provides neither enlightenment nor insight into the political moment. He offers no solutions or direction. He only provides snark. Snark gets clicks, but it’s like empty calories with no nutritional value. (See also Kevin Williamson.)

    To be fair, Drew, Jonah did some really good work, IMO, with Liberal Fascism. Of course, one can’t make a living writing books like that.

    Where I’m not totally sure is if his beliefs have changed to where he appears to be, or if he’s just spouting nonsense for the money. Neither one is good. But I’m leaning more and more to he’s really changed his beliefs.

    My wife and I have had several long occasions to sit down and talk with Goldberg from about 2004 until the last time we saw him in 2015.  We even met his wife, “The Fair Jessica.”  He was always interested in discussing politics (no surprise there) and was very earnest in his beliefs.  He never gave any hint of the sort of anti-conservative values he is espousing now, but in those days there was no prominent Donald Trump-type Republican from which to reflect.

    My wife read “Liberal Fascism” a long time ago (as well as several others by him) and always gave it high praise after which I started reading it.  I only got through the first few chapters but I have to concur that it is an extremely well-written and researched book.  I learned a lot.  And I didn’t normally like his writing at that time because his political columns were always loaded with cutesy inside jokes and elaborate creative writing that annoyed me.  He sounded much more coherent and straightforward in person than his jumbled writings indicated.  “Liberal Fascism” was much more like his conversations than his writing that I had been used to.  I have also heard others bemuse at how a guy who has lost his conservative credentials could have written such a good book!

    • #49
  20. BastiatJunior Member
    BastiatJunior
    @BastiatJunior

    Goldberg is the most surprising and puzzling of the Never-Trumpers. 

    Though I never met him, I too felt like I lost a friend when he turned this way.  It’s like someone stole his brain and replaced it with that of David Frum.

    Like others on this thread, I wonder who wrote Liberal Fascism.

    • #50
  21. GlennAmurgis Coolidge
    GlennAmurgis
    @GlennAmurgis

    This is one of the things that bother me most about DC media

    they ignore the grossness of how people like Hunter Biden and Chris Heinz (John Kerry’s step son) used their connections to get deals.

     

    The abuse of the permanent bureaucracy is also ignored by this media. Is because their spouses, friends and relatives work in this orgs

     

     

    • #51
  22. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    Ray Gunner (View Comment):
    And to me, they have become exemplars of what happens to otherwise thoughtful, high-status people when their anxiety over their status becomes so intense that it reduces their capacity for nuanced thought down to a single, primal calculus:  the ancient, anxiety driven calculus of “in-group/out-group.” 

    That is a fascinating analysis, Ray. And it makes sense. Of course, they are oblivious to it.

    • #52
  23. Bryan G. Stephens Thatcher
    Bryan G. Stephens
    @BryanGStephens

    Ray Gunner (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn: This is not really a post about Jonah Goldberg. It’s about my bewilderment about the defaming of Republicans and Conservatives by using the broad-brush of assuming that we are all Donald Trump fanatics, who continually fawn over him and apologize for him. I think this viewpoint about who we are, who I am, is deeply flawed, and I can’t figure out why it persists.

    Here’s a theory, SQ.

    We who consume political commentary should keep in mind that Goldberg, Boot, Rubin, Kristol, Charen, et al. are high status people. And to me, they have become exemplars of what happens to otherwise thoughtful, high-status people when their anxiety over their status becomes so intense that it reduces their capacity for nuanced thought down to a single, primal calculus: the ancient, anxiety driven calculus of “in-group/out-group.” It might be summarized like this: “My social/professional survival depends on remaining in the good graces of my in-group, which means I can never leave any doubt as to my hostility to that horrible out-group.”

    As @ BrianGStephens observes, the give-away is the regular use of the word “cult” or “cult of personality” when talking about Trump voters. The word “cult” is as strong a signifier of an “out-group” as we have in English.

    Here’s what proves it to me. When I think of Mollie Hemingway, for example, I think of someone who is a serious, responsible conservative/libertarian thinker–just as serious and responsible as Jonah Goldberg has ever been. Circa 2014, I would not have been able to discern any serious disagreements between them. Today however, what makes Mollie Hemingway’s commentary different from Goldberg’s (and Boot’s, Rubin’s, Kristol’s, Charen’s, et al.) is that she exhibits no observable social anxiety over being perceived as supportive of Trump. In sum, Mollie suffers none of the “in-group/out-group” anxiety that has paralyzed the minds of so many thoughtful conservative commentators.

    I really think it just comes down to that.

    I think there is a lot too this. I think it is more than their status with their group though. Trump is a rival leader from them. He is leading their flock away from them.

    • #53
  24. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    Annefy (View Comment):

    While always a little unbalanced, the Trump years truly sent her off the deep end. During a previous interaction, she patiently explained to me how difficult those four years  were for “smart” people (like her) and that I wasn’t capable of understanding the trauma it caused.

    Good grief, Annefy. How tragic, in so many ways.

    • #54
  25. Full Size Tabby Member
    Full Size Tabby
    @FullSizeTabby

    Ray Gunner (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn: This is not really a post about Jonah Goldberg. It’s about my bewilderment about the defaming of Republicans and Conservatives by using the broad-brush of assuming that we are all Donald Trump fanatics, who continually fawn over him and apologize for him. I think this viewpoint about who we are, who I am, is deeply flawed, and I can’t figure out why it persists.

    Here’s a theory, SQ.

    We who consume political commentary should keep in mind that Goldberg, Boot, Rubin, Kristol, Charen, et al. are high status people. And to me, they have become exemplars of what happens to otherwise thoughtful, high-status people when their anxiety over their status becomes so intense that it reduces their capacity for nuanced thought down to a single, primal calculus: the ancient, anxiety driven calculus of “in-group/out-group.” It might be summarized like this: “My social/professional survival depends on remaining in the good graces of my in-group, which means I can never leave any doubt as to my hostility to that horrible out-group.”

    As @ BrianGStephens observes, the give-away is the regular use of the word “cult” or “cult of personality” when talking about Trump voters. The word “cult” is as strong a signifier of an “out-group” as we have in English.

    Here’s what proves it to me. When I think of Mollie Hemingway, for example, I think of someone who is a serious, responsible conservative/libertarian thinker–just as serious and responsible as Jonah Goldberg has ever been. Circa 2014, I would not have been able to discern any serious disagreements between them. Today however, what makes Mollie Hemingway’s commentary different from Goldberg’s (and Boot’s, Rubin’s, Kristol’s, Charen’s, et al.) is that she exhibits no observable social anxiety over being perceived as supportive of Trump. In sum, Mollie suffers none of the “in-group/out-group” anxiety that has paralyzed the minds of so many thoughtful conservative commentators.

    I really think it just comes down to that.

    I think the high status people you cite are reflecting a growing trend among the people in general to lump everybody into broad in-groups and out-groups. I first noticed this when hearing people talk about reality television shows, and insisting that one must be on (and 100% on, no partial support or opposition) “Team Alissa” or “Team Brandi” (or whatever the show’s contrived opposition was). This has spread to other areas, and the dehumanizing nature of “social media” exaggerates the trend to reduce people to one characteristic and then extrapolate that one characteristic to create an entire persona that may bear no resemblance to the actual person. 

    • #55
  26. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Bryan G. Stephens (View Comment):

    Ray Gunner (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn: This is not really a post about Jonah Goldberg. It’s about my bewilderment about the defaming of Republicans and Conservatives by using the broad-brush of assuming that we are all Donald Trump fanatics, who continually fawn over him and apologize for him. I think this viewpoint about who we are, who I am, is deeply flawed, and I can’t figure out why it persists.

    Here’s a theory, SQ.

    We who consume political commentary should keep in mind that Goldberg, Boot, Rubin, Kristol, Charen, et al. are high status people. And to me, they have become exemplars of what happens to otherwise thoughtful, high-status people when their anxiety over their status becomes so intense that it reduces their capacity for nuanced thought down to a single, primal calculus: the ancient, anxiety driven calculus of “in-group/out-group.” It might be summarized like this: “My social/professional survival depends on remaining in the good graces of my in-group, which means I can never leave any doubt as to my hostility to that horrible out-group.”

    As @ BrianGStephens observes, the give-away is the regular use of the word “cult” or “cult of personality” when talking about Trump voters. The word “cult” is as strong a signifier of an “out-group” as we have in English.

    Here’s what proves it to me. When I think of Mollie Hemingway, for example, I think of someone who is a serious, responsible conservative/libertarian thinker–just as serious and responsible as Jonah Goldberg has ever been. Circa 2014, I would not have been able to discern any serious disagreements between them. Today however, what makes Mollie Hemingway’s commentary different from Goldberg’s (and Boot’s, Rubin’s, Kristol’s, Charen’s, et al.) is that she exhibits no observable social anxiety over being perceived as supportive of Trump. In sum, Mollie suffers none of the “in-group/out-group” anxiety that has paralyzed the minds of so many thoughtful conservative commentators.

    I really think it just comes down to that.

    I think there is a lot too this. I think it is more than their status with their group though. Trump is a rival leader from them. He is leading their flock away from them.

    True, but those like Goldberg make that move away from them look very appropriate with their behavior since there is no discernible connection. Makes one wonder about the substance of the new flock.

    • #56
  27. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    BastiatJunior (View Comment):

    Annefy (View Comment):
    During a previous interaction, she patiently explained to me how difficult those four years were for “smart” people (like her) and that I wasn’t capable of understanding the trauma it caused.

    This particular sentence makes my blood boil.

    You can tell a lot about how much trauma a person has experienced from statements like that. I would never wish misery or trauma on people, but would it kill them to have some perspective? 

    Or is this a condition that we are all suffering from? I am deeply offended by some of Biden’s actions and inactions (not to mention things he says – when he’s coherent). 

    Sometimes I think reading commentary, etc. is a variety of poison intake. 

    • #57
  28. Full Size Tabby Member
    Full Size Tabby
    @FullSizeTabby

    I too have been baffled by how many people like Mr. Goldberg seem to think that by demonizing people they 70% agree with in order to support people they agree with only 20% – 30%, they will produce something they 90% agree with. Some have tried to explain the logic here on Ricochet, but I still can’t grasp it. 

    • #58
  29. Jerry Giordano (Arizona Patriot) Member
    Jerry Giordano (Arizona Patriot)
    @ArizonaPatriot

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    In looking over the “likes” on this post, it seems like we cover the whole spectrum of Republicans/Conservatives (since I know the view of many of you). So there, Jonah!

    Sadly, the penultimate paragraph of Goldberg’s essay strongly indicates that nothing will get through to him.  He wrote:

    In 2016, I wrote about how the right was succumbing to a kind of Invasion of the Body Snatchers dynamic whereby, one by one, principled conservatives would suddenly discover that blind loyalty to Trump was the essence of conservatism. For a long time, I thought I could argue my friends and fellow conservatives out of their conversion. It took me a long time to realize that as Marshall McLuhan put it, “In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is a hallucinating idiot . . . for he sees what no one else does: things that, to everyone else, are not there.” I do think the blind loyalty to Trump is fading at the margins. But the addiction to good-versus-evil narratives pitting the honorable and decent “us” against the villainous and sinister “them” is as strong as ever—and there is little appetite for the kind of argument and persuasion that sustains democracy.

    You see, everyone who disagrees has been body-snatched, and is blindly loyal to Donald Trump.

    The lack of self-awareness in that last sentence, after having done precisely the thing that he says that he deplores in the preceding three, is quite remarkable.

    • #59
  30. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    Jerry Giordano (Arizona Patrio… (View Comment):
    The lack of self-awareness in that last sentence, after having done precisely the thing that he says that he deplores in the preceding three, is quite remarkable

    I was going to make this point, Jerry ! Thanks for doing it for me. It’s a classic example of projection.

    • #60
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