271 Comments
Dec 15, 2022·edited Dec 15, 2022Liked by Robert Reich

A system delivers the results that it is designed (intentionally or not) to deliver. The GOP's behavior is a symptom of a system in need of change. The U.S. evolved system will need to evolve to fix the underlying issues.

As long as there is a system of first-past-the post-voting, non-universal sufferage, and pay to play legalized bribery of elected and judicial officials, don't plan on seeing any signficant change.

New rules of the game such as universal voter registration, ranked-choice voting, and top-five (or two or three) primaries can change the behavior on the voting side. Under these systems a political party loses its tribal role.

To deal with bribery, I come back to my proposal that there should be a Federal exise tax on any funds used, directly or indirectly, paid to an entity to influence elected or judicial officals. A tax requires, of course, reporting and can achive Sheldon Whitehouse's Disclose Act objectives while yielding revenue. Interestingly enough, the war on corruption should learn something from the war on drugs and what has happened post legalization of marijuana.

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Doug, I really like your proposals for the change that must come to fix so much of what we are facing with things as they are. I like the concept of universal voter registration for every citizen upon turning 18. I would add that no one loses this privilege for any reason unless they specifically revoke their own citizenship. I also like rank choice voting and top vote getters in primaries toward the rank choice vote. When a political party is so tightly tied to one person as the Republican party is to Trump, it is hard for them to function for anyone but their leader and thus, for themselves until the leader doesn't need them anymore. Gerrymandering is cheating and should be outlawed everywhere in this country. Independent boards using computer assisted logic should be drawing lines for every elected office for fairness not political advantage. Congress could set a lot of this up if they had the will and could bypass the filibuster and shut down the worst of the rulings by the Supreme Court's conservatives.

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Dr. Gilbert, I love your proposal on the Federal excise tax

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Excellent ideas.

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Dec 15, 2022·edited Dec 15, 2022

A savvy Republican presidential contender should have a pow-wow with each of their would-be rivals, to cut a deal about who among them is best suited for the ultimate '24 presidential candidacy. It would clearly involve bartering for posts in the cabinet, or whatever high office appointments would serve as incentive. That way, the Republicans could avoid splitting the sanity vote - should there be any such thing left among Republicans - and perhaps arrive at a viable candidate who could handily silence ol' Tweety once and for all, while having a high probability of success against whoever the Democrats settle on to run against him.

For the moment, I consider Biden's bid a sort of "slug" candidacy, that will remain until the Democrats know who their presidential opponent will actually be. They may ultimately settle on Biden, but there's nothing that says they must.

Counterintuitively, this may be McConnell's moment to step into the breech, to broker such a consensus among likely Republican candidates. It doesn't mean he'd need to be among the potential candidates. On the other hand, it would be in the Democrats' interest to do everything they can to insure such a consensus can't be achieved.

A further thought, prompted by difny's objection:

While I agree that the system produces the results it's designed to produce, which >must< be addressed sooner - not later - I don't think that's what Dr Reich was talking about in this morning's essay. He was asking how the Republicans can possibly put ol' Tweety down within their ranks, once and for all, given his hard-core of constituent support. The key to all this is good, old-fashioned internal politicking, which may be a lost art among the current murder of "follow-the-leader" crows, fearful of being clubbed to death by the most hostile/aggressive "dominant males" - as it were - among them.

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DZK, I can see someone like DeSantis trying to stand up to Trump and maybe Cruz, but none of the rest of a really bad batch seems viable. The Trump cult wants their messiah and won't care who else runs. I am hoping the Republicans can't get anything together because they have no ideas, no thinking, no wish to make anything better for anyone but themselves, their white, rich, homo/transphobic, racist, misogynistic selves. The country is growing and changing and those backward looking evil mostly white male leaders have nothing positive to offer. The sad part is that interviewers rarely get to asking them about their ideas, how they plan to deal with global warming, homelessness, poverty, international relations, immigration (Oh wait, they want to keep building a wall), food and farming, and the rest of the issues that our nation is facing. There must be some kind of code that interviewers will only ask the questions the Republican wants asked. Then they distract, blame, whine, hoping no one will notice they have not answered. Trump did that in 2016 and 2020 yet still got many millions of votes. Disgusting!

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Dec 15, 2022·edited Dec 15, 2022

Well, a DeSantis bid >could< further fracture the Republican party internally - a desirable outcome, should party leadership itself broker for a more reasonable, traditional contender. Let'em bring it on themselves. It could also lead to ol' Tweety's forming a 3rd party, an outright MAGA party - so named - that could further fracture the Republican >voter< base - a most desirable outcome of all. It could be the only way to defeat Republican gerrymandering in the so-called "red states" - gray states, if you ask me!

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I fear you're expecting far too much psychologically-functional behavior on the part of our current Republican leaders. I don't believe they're capable of anything you describe. They can't deal with greater and lesser levels of power. It's all or nothing; all powerful "winners" and completely powerless "losers." If you're not one, then you're the other. I believe we can thank that widely-acknowledged-to-be-a-complete-scumbag, Newt Gingrich, for starting them down this no compromise, "winner take all" path.

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Greg, I suspect you may be right about Republican concepts of power being winner take all and everyone else is a loser. I also think you are right that Gingrich was a ringleader or maybe cheerleader for this. However, I think Nixon got the process well-underway by the end of the 1950s. He lied and knew he lied when he said after losing he would never run again. He did have to cheat to do it, though, another well-established practice of Republicans. He sabotaged the Vietnam peace talks so Johnson and Humfry would not get the credit, then continued the war for years afterward, supporting the military-industrial complex handsomely. Republicans have so many scum buckets to learn from, they will be undermining our nation for decades to come unless the people find ways to stop Republican bad behavior.

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I agree Greg, the current Republican hopefuls (DeSantis, Cruz, Hawley, MTG, Jim Jordan) will destroy their own party (and even the nation) in their lust for power. And I still love the comment someone made that even if Trump loses his primary, he'll claim victory, say he was robbed, it was rigged, stolen - then what, Republicans?

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Dec 15, 2022·edited Dec 15, 2022

LATER: Thanks, DZK. I still think the situation is beyond the rational solution you envision. I believe what's needed is a figurative "coup"—a blow, not physical but fatal. Joseph Welch's "You've done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?" is one of history's most effective examples. Nixon ending the draft effectively ended Vietnam war protests (the Ohio National Guard's contribution to that end was in fact fatal). I think only such an unexpected shock will shut djt down. Who has the imagination to plan it? (Granted, McCarthy's retreat left Roy Cohn standing, ready to tutor an eager trump. We can only hope that those who say de Santis lacks all of djt's appeal are right.)

——————

Such a warm feeling swept me while reading this I realized it's a script for something that might have happened in the good old before times, DZK. In the ice-cold present, not so much.

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"We can only hope that those who say de Santis lacks all of djt's appeal are right"

Oh, no. Please don't tell me we are relying on 'hope'. Make DeSantis tell us now if he stands with Trump or not. How do you do it? Ask him, and if he doesn't say he's against Trump, then paint him in the corner as with him.

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Touché! Of course you're right, DK Brooklyn, about both hope and holding DeSantis's feet to the fire.

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The right to protest the actions of our state govt. is under threat from a proposed rule change currently being considered by DeStupid's Dept. of Management Services (DMS) .If enacted, it would give law enforcement sweeping authority to determine if free speech is permitted,and remove or arrest anyone they deem disruptive.

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RedElisa, I concur, and I've believed for a long time that the Republican Party was becoming the American Fascist Party, and DeSantis would be a very dangerous leader of that party.

I've been working the last few months on a newsletter called Neo-Fascism: A Warning.

I hope people have a look - articles, book reviews, even some (admittedly sick) humor. Because in spite of the Red Wave not happening in the mid-terms, this Neo-Fascist Republican Party is still running strong and in contention to take over the gov't in 2024.

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@difny: See my further thought in the comment you replied to.

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I failed to include the disclaimer: "That's the kind of thing Republicans >need< to do." And of course "We all know that couldn't possibly happen."

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With regards to Dr Gilbert's well-taken observations on "the system" - as it were - I'd like to share with you a reply to my message to Sen Sherrod Brown, concerning revision and update of the Electoral Count Act of 1887:

Thank you for contacting me about the Electoral Count Act of 1887. I appreciate hearing from you.

The Electoral Count Act of 1887 established a procedure for how electoral votes are counted and certified in a presidential election and how Congress handles disputes about which candidate won in a particular state, including the process for rejecting or accepting certified electoral votes by states. While some praise the Electoral Count Act of 1887 for setting forth the process for certifying a presidential election, others criticize the legislation for failing to define certain processes and for allowing federal lawmakers to reject legally certified electoral votes for a presidential candidate simply because they disagree with the result - as we saw some federally elected officials attempt to do on January 6, 2021.

I have heard from Ohioans who believe it is time to update the Electoral Count Act of 1887 so that the law more clearly defines the process for certifying electoral votes in a presidential election and prevents any future attempts to overturn the will of the people.

I will continue fighting to protect the right of every eligible American to cast a ballot without unnecessary and discriminatory barriers, and to ensure our processes and procedures around certifying elections respect the will of the people. Should the Senate debate changes to the Electoral Count Act of 1887, I will be sure to keep your thoughts in mind.

Thank you again for reaching out to me.

Sincerely,

Sherrod Brown

United States Senator

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My question to one of our Senators recently is why the language is always about "fighting".

Unlike legislatures in some countries such as Ecuador, I haven't seen fist fights on the floor of the Senate or the House.

Biden has at least started to reframe the narrative to doing things for people rather than always making it about some fight. Still a long way to go.

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Precisely! Forming cross-party alliances in Congress not only puts the minority MAGA's in their rightful place (25% of 435 in the House), it also promotes the likelihood of progress addressing our real problems.

The possibility of forming a governing coalition is very real. It happens in other mature democracies all the time. Moving away from bitter, paralyzing partisanship requires nothing more than having the will to do it.

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I applaud your comments, Jerry. But there are no more John McCains in the Republican Party, and I don't see Jim Jordan or MTG or Kevin McCoward doing anything that would alienate their sacred "base" voters. Yes, you suggest an intelligent solution, but no, I don't think we'll ever see this current Republican party participate in any solutions. They're on a destructive lust-for-power journey that will either destroy the Republican Party or the nation. Or both,.

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The question is, when will the GOP reach the anti-Trump tipping point. Dr. Gilbert's response is insightful and refreshingly specific. But it's doesn't address the question. Indeed, most of the conversation today has been about what's wrong with the system, or with the Republicans, or with the human race. These abstractions minimize the urgency implied by the question, and lull us into thinking we're helpless to affect the answer.

It's a mistake to think Republicans have no vision for the future. What they have is competing ones within their party. About half are MAGA's who envision a white Christian nationalist future. The other half are normal Chamber of Commerce moderates who envision a stable, functioning free-market society, lightly-regulated and lowly taxed. One is dangerous, the other is subject to debate.

We (progressives/liberals/Democrats) have a real stake in the outcome of the Republicans' struggle. We all live in the same country. And it's self destructive to just sit back and do nothing, distracting ourselves with interesting theories

What's needed is a conversation about what we (progressives/liberals/Democrats) can do right now to help prevent those with a white Christian nationalist vision from gaining more political power. This is a serious moment. Our challenge is to actively assist moderate Republicans reach that elusive tipping point, to marginalize the MAGA faction and hasten the demise of their vision.

On January 3 the House will vote for a new Speaker. "Just let them stew in their own mess" is not a rational strategy. Here's a better one.

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Republicans won a majority of seats in the House of Representatives, 222 of 435. Since Democrats accept election results, we accept that Republicans are entitled to the Speakership. Normally Democrats would cast their 213 votes for minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, leaving Republicans to choose the Speaker themselves. But they can do something else.

Democrats can work with moderate Republicans to elect a compromise Republican candidate, thereby marginalizing the MAGA minority and vastly diminishing their influence in the new Congress.

This is not so far-fetched as it may seem.  We know that Republican congressman Don Bacon of Omaha has voiced his willingness to "work with Democrats to put in an agreeable Republican.”  That would be if Democrats would be willing to work with him. Speaking for dozens of his non-MAGA moderate colleagues, he added "We're tired of being pushed around (by the Freedom Caucus).”  The potential for a cross-party alliance is there.  

This is where we (you and I) come in. We can promote this as a viable alternative scenario. It's risky for D's to vote for an R without public support. Public support grows from media visibility. If you think it's a good idea, please pass it on to your contacts, to media personalities and to Representatives themselves. Maybe even mention it to Dr. Robert Reich.

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Great idea Jerry. I am going to send your post to my Congressman, Dr. Ami Bera. Dr. Bera has been ion Congress since 2012 and has worked with sane, intelligent Republicans so I believe he will be open to your suggestion, anything is better than Kevin McCarthy, even a western mountain rattlesnake. I have sent this post to Dr. Bera

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Dec 16, 2022·edited Dec 16, 2022

>Exactly!< The focus of my comment was on how to prevent said Republicans, sick of ol' Tweety and the gang, from splitting their vote by putting up a single A or B choice between their candidate and ol' Tweety. I don't think we'll really know how many are sick of ol' Tweety, until they begin speaking with a single voice of >their own.<

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Add to your list of "universal voter registration, ranked-choice voting, and top-five (or two or three) primaries," mandatory voting with consequences for failure to vote without a legitimate excuse (such as emergency surgery, accident, contagious illness).

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@Linda There are some "soft" ways to do this and avoid the antics that happen in Australia with protest votes for ridiculous candidates. Fay is perhaps referring to those negatives.

A voter registration card can become a free-of-charge "RealID" so it would serve for all the purposes of a RealID such as boarding an aircraft domestically. It could even go farther with models such as the Nordics and Baltics where the ID can be used to sign contracts with biometrics.

Then if the ID is used for fee-based public services (not taxes!), offer a discount if the ID-holder has accumulated points by voting. For example, a driver's license renewal might cost $27 instead of $33 if you had voting points or your car registration fee might be $25 less this year.

This would avoid "fines" for not voting, which is not the right narrative.

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Be careful what you wish for, Linda. Mandatory voting might result in a lot of totally politically ignorant people casting votes for the best actor, instead of the best qualified to do the job.

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Dec 15, 2022·edited Dec 15, 2022

And, this is different from today in what way? I believe in the people of the USA and that, with mandatory voting, both the people and the media would approach elections differently than they do today. Mandotory voting is not A solution, but one of several that would have to be established. An addition to the list of solutions would be periodic (but primarily during election years) civic educational programming on network Televison, similar to the kinds of programming that existed before the deregulations of the Reagan era.

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Good luck with that!

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Dec 16, 2022·edited Dec 16, 2022

This is a HOOT~~~~~~~~LOL! : https://youtu.be/p7_SEbIe_ag

Another take that touches on on today's discussion topic: https://youtu.be/BE-w0IkKl3c

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For me, the disheartening thing isn't the rotting GOP or the craven politicians that infest it. It's the sheer number of American voters that cannot see Trump for what he is and always has been. Not all of these people are "stupid". There's something else going on and it feels a lot like a death wish. When I think of them I flash on Jim Jones.

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Predisposed by collective racist subconscious.

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That plus the desire for someone telling them what to do so they don't need to think for themselves

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Fay, I think it is partly wanting other people to think for them, but also the fear that they have failed to attain "the American dream" and that their church is drumming into them that they are terrible sinners because they haven't done something or other and that those horrible people of color are coming to replace them and drive them even further from their dream, whatever that dream is. It is hard to fight that because of all the negative reinforcement you get for challenging what you are being told. Friends disappear, family becomes distant, Facebook and Twitter aren't as friendly and supportive anymore. A lot of the base is rural which means internet is probably not great and isolation with people who don't agree with you is a result. There is a lot of tribalism involved. I saw it when I lived for a year and a half in a small Central Pennsylvania town. It was hard being a caring liberal in a community that was so busy clinging to a past that never really existed, but memory said it did. I am not sure how to reach Trump's base, but we can nibble at the edges, trying to reach those who know what Trump stands for is wrong, but don't know how or where to express it. Maybe if we can reach those few, they can lead to others who are wanting positive change too.

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One of the tactics we could use is to LISTEN to what they really want and need when they get beyond the rhetoric of "trump loves us, he tells it like it is, he owns those dems (or libs)" Telling them it just ain't so doesn't help, asking what they really need personally and for their community could get us where we really need to be - looking for real solutions to their problems. You know and I know that catering to the wealthy as the 'grand old party of trump' does is not helping them, telling them this just raises their anger. But I think they could turn around, despite what their religious bigots are telling them, if their local Democratic representative could show them some headway and improvement on their real needs.

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Fay, I have heard from some groups that talking individually to the Trumpers and Trumpettes can have an impact, but how does one know? Just because someone says they voted a certain way does not mean they did, particularly people who are embarrassed that they support an ignorant fool like Trump. I would like to think Trumpers and Trumpettes can be reached but I am not seeing much evidence of it. They want so badly to believe Fox Not Really News and that ilk they can't get past it. They don't really consider what Trump is saying or not saying. They voted in large numbers for someone who told them she was going to try to steal the election if she lost, Keri Lake, and put back into office insurrectionists who tried to take over our government. Many think that was OK since the election, in their view was stolen from Trump, a giant lie, but they were/are OK with it. It is Democrats who have helped them get any of the services they have, any of the financial support or better working conditions and pay, but they still fawn over Trump who gave them nothing but a bunch of hateful, angry words. It is truly like we are in different worlds, speaking different languages, experiencing different realities.

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Yes it is disheartening. I still think if the DNC and DCCC would do their job instead of just raking in money, they would be out recruiting, grooming and supporting (literally, not financially) really good charismatic candidates and assisting those candidates to host town halls, coffee klatches, lunch counter 'get-togethers'. You, personally or me going to a group of people who don't know us, and we're not ourselves running for office would have no effect. We need candidates who are willing to get off their duffs, go out and speak to voters and listen to their concerns. Then either go back to tell those people their proposed solutions or if time doesn't permit mailers to explain what thy intend to do, if elected. Of course if the candidate does get elected they must follow through. If not elected then they can point out how their ideas didn't happen because the retrumplican didn't give them what they need, but in two years I will

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Perhaps not so subconscious. The expression of racism and of hate to every ethnicity that is not white has become unabashedly overt, even matter of fact.

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Tim Phillips explains it quite well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9loNz-kEag. In addition to Tim's understanding that brain science shows events that stimulate humiliation and notions of sacredness are processed in a different part of the brain from utilitarian decisions, we also must face the astounding ignorance, if not stupidity, of non-college educated white Christians. https://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/elections/2019/08/26/mayor-pete-buttigieg-democrat-presidential-candidate-appeal-rural-religious-voters/2070510001/

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I am not a neuroscientist, but I think it relates to development of the amygdala. Even more visceral: fight or flight. Awareness of danger.

In males, question of maturation. Emotional age.

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Daniel, I think you have the danger thing right. Trump and Kump are very good at pointing out danger to the base. Everything is dangerous to them and Trump et al are good at showing them over and over that people of color, Democrats in general, stopping use of fossil fuels and certain fertilizers, and more are dangerous to them and their way of life. Trump is pretty ignorant, but he understands how fear works and that it works really well with people whose lives are stressful and the "American dream" is or seems to be dying for them. Keeping those people unhappy and angry works well for a political party that has nothing to offer that is positive. Then, Trump and Kump have the white evangelicals and Roman Catholics working for him or he is working for them, it is not clear, but they are in harmony.

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These people have been damaged by those who raised them and beat out of them, psychologically or physically, whole aspects of their personalities which their superiors found unacceptable. Each missing piece takes with it abilities to see, and hear, and know and understand particular segments of reality and a stubborn inability to realize that anything is missing in their perspective and ability to reason. Fox news has made a science out of exacerbating, amplifying, and increasing these dysfunctions by constantly tweaking them, then pointing their audience toward whomever Rupert Murdoch would like them to blame (never the folk at the top of the economic system). In effect, those who raised them, and Fox news have reprogrammed their amygdalas so that they misfire in ways that make them easy to manipulate and make it impossible for these folk to realize that they are being jerked around and directed to do the bidding of the very people who are most responsible for their angry misery.

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Greg, I suspect there is a lot of violence in the lives of the most hardened Trumpers and Trumpettes. They do seem to lean toward wanting violence used on their behalf, but not wanting any directed their way. If that were pointed out to any of them, they could never believe it because they do not see themselves as violent. These same people claim to be so Christian but do not seem to follow the gospels' call to loving one's neighbor, caring for those who are sick, imprisoned, widowed, etc., and don't care that Jesus was not violent, well, except in turning over the tables of the money-changers in the Temple. I guess those Christians see that as the OK to do violence anywhere and everywhere they wish. Theirs is a really warped understanding of life.

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founding

@Greg. Respectfully, that is an interesting conjecture, but that isn't the science, at least not in political science terms. Some people emerge from such communities and families and become very main stream. Others are raised in nominally "healthy" families and yet harbor the "pathologies" that I made reference to. People remain individuals. However, I am aware of lots of science regarding the "inculcation" of children and the tendency for the nut not to fall far from the tree. I'm sure there are a wealth of explanations. I'm striving to define the problem in ways that might be amenable to solutions in policy and governmental institutions. I don't know of any ways to make incorrigible reactionaries into democrats...

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Check out Tim Phillips' Beyond Conflict. He's been at conflict resolution for 30 years.

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I was a mediator longer than that.

Once upon a time I was co-chair of CLE for ABA Judicial Division. I also put together CLE for two other judicial groups. I attended or arranged seminars with dozens of experts. I also heard thousands (literally) of cases with "experts". I attended several seminars produced by neurologists. In Florida, I was a board certified mediator.

I will testify that the big picture boils down to individuals. Through experience, I am a big believer in the MMPI.

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Well, I'm betting you like learning more stuff in the field as much as I do. I'm always puzzled by how many people allow mass media to influence their thinking. Didn't they ever even feel like critical thinking? What happened to horse sense? No more horses, I suppose. . .

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Martha, I think the mass media thing is like creating communities or tribes. People come to believe for some reason, that if they agree with the people they are watching or listening to, they are part of that community. Often, it seems they start out agreeing with one thing, then start finding themselves agreeing a lot even if previously they would never have agreed. I watched that happen with my mom when she, a widow of 11 years, married a Rush believer. She started spouting things Rush said that she would never have agreed to before starting to listen to that crap every day. We told her we couldn't visit when she was listening to that stuff or if she had it playing. When my stepfather died, she stopped listening and found other more positive things to listen to or watch on TV. She acknowledged how easy it had been to get caught up in Limbaugh's warped logic. She said it felt like being part of something bigger than herself when she listened. Scary!

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I grew up with horses.

They B dumb.

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Part of the issue is that many people, myself included, never heard the term 'critical thinking' until I went back to school later in life. I learned so much that I did not know in that last gig with higher education. Neither of my parents had even high school degrees. They were good people but they were ignorant of 'book learning'.

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Where is JanetR when we need her? (It's still pretty early in Colorado—maybe still at the stables.)

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founding

@Daniel. There is quite a bit of evidence that you are right on both counts. I could cite a few books and studies which draw out the evidence. You can get "Red genes, Blue genes" by Guillermo Jimenez for a good summary of the evidence.

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founding

@Martha. If you look closely at the ones who are educated, you can quickly conclude that education does not affect the syndrome these folks are exhibiting.

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You should check out my comment below. It explains this insanity exactly as the "cult" it has become. You are right... it is a cult! I wish I were joking. I am not.

Latest book by Helgard Müller: President Donald J Trump The Son of Man - The Messiah

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I personally believe that Americans are hooked on entertainment not on facts of government purpose.

Until we take the warnings about “ Facebook” et al’ social media that Maria Ressa has so eloquently stated in her Nobel Peace prize “How to stand up

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Jean, you are right about entertainment being what matters. Perhaps, we could get more of the facts into an entertainment type platform that people would watch. I, too, am concerned about not heeding the bad behavior of our social media like Facebook, Twitter, and the rest. We do have a freedom of Speech mandate by our first amendment, but the truth is, that does not extend to harming other people with one's speech. "Meta" is too large and needs to be broken into manageable pieces as with the other big tech corporations. It is not healthy to have "too big to fail" corporations of any kind, including banks, investment agencies, etc. When entities become too large, they do harm just because they can.

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LeMoine, I hadn't thought of the "death wish" concept. I do know that a lot of fundamentalist Christians are preparing for Armageddon and want to hasten it along. They are going with a late first century fantasy and want their heaven to come now because they are "tired" and don't care what happens to anyone else, just that they are "saved." Trump has a sense of their desire and is willing to go along with it as long as he stays in charge of them and in power. These are not stupid people, just brainwashed and unaware of what has been done to them, would-be caring, thoughtful people.

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How is this not stupid? What criteria are we using for "stupid?"

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founding

@Martha. It is well known and well-documented that intelligence falls along a spectrum from dumb to smart. Plenty of room below 3 sigma for really dumb people! Another thing that doesn't come up much is how being a pastor of a church is a form of entrepreneurialism, and those wanna be preachers have to keep their flock entertained or otherwise in sway. Meaning, the local flim flam man is in front of the congregation every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday...

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founding

@leMoine. I'm sorry I wrote so much given your pithy summation here!

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Not at all. Your comments were most interesting. Thank you.

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I agree with the "not stupid" part. What I think the "something else" is, is a kinship of morals and principles with *. I do not call these people * supporters. I call them *s.

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You are right LeMoine, there is something else going on. Don't try to understand these people in your gut, or identify with them. Empathy is distributed among the population as a long bell-shaped curve, similar to intelligence. Furthermore, 50 percent of them have IQ's below 100. In fact, most people really are stupid and can't identify with people outside of their immediate experience. That does not mean that democracy won't work, it means that people need leadership that is in their face and not mediated electronically. The only leadership that ever worked with most people is shop floor union leadership.

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It isn't that simple. Lots of people are against the migration across the Southern border and many realize that climate change will make it worse. Lots of of people fear the loss of jobs because of globalization. Lots of people see the USA as an English speaking, European kind of country and don't want to see that change (yeah, racist light), lots are against govt. regulations, lots don't want 'woke', lots were against mandatory vaccinations and masks. Look at it this way, we had Trump for 4 years and we got through it, what was so bad? Yeah, he isn't a good guy, but so what, I like what he does.

(By the way, I am not one of these people. Just saying we get no where when we assume other folks don't know what's good for them as well as we do. It isn't the way to switch people's mind.)

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Only those that drink orange kool aid.

None of that BS is accurate.

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Where are these people wrong? Is there not going to be mass migration from the equatorial regions to the Northern? Is there not a lot of regulation? Is this not becoming a beautiful melting pot that isn't all European like, which is the fear that Replacement Theory bases itself on? Are people not losing middle class jobs? We need to show them that the Republicans and Trump don't have the answers, not just say it is BS. They say we're all BS and the dialogue ends.

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I heard 22 kinds of visa cases for 19 years. It is a crime to hire illegals. The antidote is employer sanctions -- except the majority of employers are REPUBLICANS. The poster boy for sanctions is Donald J. Trump who was caught paying illegals and was fined. Also when you go to Mar a Lago check out the help -- uses temporary work visas to displace American workers.

You obviously haven't been following this. 245,000 illegal Cubans here. Lots more Venezuelans. We beg them to come. Republican Cuban Americans WANT them to remain.

How can a destitute Cuban guajiro afford to fly to Mexico? Africans? Ukrainians?

It's within the realm of possibilities that Republicans are paying the fares.

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Yes, I haven't heard all these details, but that doesn't mean those who are focused on migration at the border are stupid for having those concerns, even if it is Republican's who are the bad guys. How do your facts make those people feel any less fearful?

By the way, I hope you get what I'm saying. I am all for immigration and don't blame people for migrating here. My parents did and I would too, if I wasn't already here. We need more hardworking, motivated people. Employer sanctions is a terrible idea, in my mind, though it would put the onus where it belongs if we don't want the workers.

My original point is that those who support Trump aren't all doing it because they are blind to his malfeasance. They have issues on their mind that he is on their side with. Saying they are stupid, or drinking cool aide, is not addressing their concerns. The fact that Republicans are hypocrites and two faced is all besides the point.

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You're wrong. It's racism. They exacerbate the situation. and then sensationalize it

It also splits the Democratic Party. Ask ant union construction worker.

It's not as depicted at all. Must distinguish between refugees and migrants. Refugees have Constitutional rights.

We don't fund it properly. We have the capacity to provide due process, give refugees rights.

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I don't think it's 'stupidity' so much as "willful ignorance" coupled with significant to total self-

interest - a form of 'Libertarianism' if you will. My brother in OR proclaims himself to be Libertarian = get gov't out of my life, without really understanding the full nature and reason(s)

for the necessity of government agencies in the 1st place, which in my mind is: the more human populations grow, the greater 'need' for the reigning in of human behavioral excesses in most all

realms, hence government(s) of some sort. In these - difficult times - we're seeing the 'need' for

the kinds of government agencies that WILL reign in - those excesses ~

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Darn, that sent before I finished... lol.

Anyway, How To Stand Up to A Dictator “ great information to take and heed. We tend to want Polly Anna answers.

People deny anything that seems to be gloomy.

Remember Al Gore???

We can do this , we can if we stick together in our communities and as Mary Pipher says in her book, “ The Green Boat”, start small, make friends and grow like the waves.... we can make these changes and young people want us to and want to themselves! Honest🤗❤️👏🏻

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A feeling a/k/a hopelessness, LeMoine.

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I don’t understand why the laws we have are not enforced. Why has it taken over 2years to get the texts of Mark Meadows which show 34 sitting congress persons supporting overthrowing the 2020election. They swore to uphold the constitution. Why are they allowed to remain in office. Why are any military, police, secret service, FBI, ICE, etc who belong to the oath keepers, proud boys or any white supremicist group allowed to keep their job? Why hasn’t Congress required ethics requirements for the Supreme Court. Why has their been no consequences for Virginia Thomas or her husband, Judge Thomas? We have capitalpolice injured, dead, now having to leave work due to physical injuries and PTSD and Marjorie Taylor Green is allowed to “joke” that she and Bannon would have won and it would have been armed? Why doesn’t that disqualify her from continuing to serve? How can we get our legal system to work?

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Linda, those are all terrific questions that our Congress and Department of Justice should have answered a long time ago. It is almost as though no one wants to do anything about this because of the tumult it would cause. I, and clearly you too, say that we need the tumult if anything is going to be fixed for the good of our society. I have heard the analogy before that it is like an injury that will be extremely painful when treated, but needs to be before it can be made better. We were deeply injured as a nation on January 6th and it seems those who caused the injury are being allowed to go along their merry way, possibly planning to do it again, maybe even successfully this time. Greene needs to be immediately removed from Congress and forbidden to ever run for public office again. It is in our Constitution, the one our leaders have sworn to defend and more. Then the rest of the insurrectionists should be brought forth and questioned and told to swear their oath to upholding our Constitution individually, in public while they also swear the 2020 and 2022 elections were free and fair and that Biden is the legitimate president and that those elections that have been certified are closed and the winners in office. It needs to be fully public and recorded for local media to present. The ringleaders should not even get a chance to re-swear their oaths because the Constitution says that insurrectionists can never hold public office again. Then, finally, members of the white supremacist groups have no place in law enforcement or our military at any level. They should be given a small severance pay, then sent packing. It's time!

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Linda, Ther are many of us who feel your obfustcation over the apparent failings of our populace to rise to the occasion and demand "Corrective / Preventive Action" to this alarming conondrum. be stolid and resist the fear!!!

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Linda, you took the words out of my mouth.

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Linda Querry ; All excellent questions!!!!

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I agree with what you say, Dr. Reich, but there is an even scarier position of the trumpster adoration - The Move Toward Authoritarianism". As everyone on this Forum is aware authoritarianism in any of its various forms is the governing mechanism of the majority of Homo sapiens currently living on this planet. we insist on referring to them as "Communists" "Marxists" "Dictatorships" "Oligarchs" "Fascists"Religious extremists, jihadists, etc" But in each case what they really are is 'Big Daddy' . Personally I don't understand why anyone wants a dictator telling them what they may or may not do, but obviously I and we, are in the worldwide minority. Ron DeSantis has even gone so far as to take control of Florida public schools to assure that they all become little white automatons. The Floridian Cuban population supports them - gee, I wonder why? They fled Castro's version of dictatorship, but not because they embraced Democracy and independent critical thinking - no, they longed for their previous dictator, Bautista, the corrupt, money grubbing dictator. We will lose this country unless we start now, teaching our children that's it's ok to question, to think, to analyze, and getting rich is not the greatest goal. You are correct that the dissolution of the Republican Party is not a good thing. A functional Democracy, which we had until 1972, requires civil debate, a consideration of different ways to achieve a fair and just society. We need at least two major SANE parties for the type of government that has worked so well for 246 years. As Ben Franklin famously said 'A Republic, if you can keep it'

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Hear Hear Fay!! We need not a woke citizenry but an awakened citizenry aquainted with a Purposful persuit of knowledg and truth. Education not indoctrination.

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Fay, I, too am wondering why anyone wants to live in a dictatorship. I understand why those at the top do. Dictators are mostly what I call child-men. Like spoiled toddlers, they want to get what they want when they want it. A dictatorship is perfect for that. One can make everyone do just what the dictator and friends want and they can use all kinds of violence to harm those who don't go along. In Iran, they just killed a 23 year old protester who wanted things to be better and more open in Iran. I don't think that is going to scare too many people because the other side of dictatorships is that they can only do their thing for so long before people get sick of it. That time limit now is shorter because of tech and the internet. China just got a taste of public anger. Xi thought he had everything sewed up related to COVID. He didn't. He originally allowed the pandemic to spread when he knew well it was bad, then he locked his country down for more than two years, thinking he could stop a virus by just keeping folks confined. This time the challenge came when people couldn't get out of a burning building due to being locked in. ?Even though it was Xi's hated Uighurs, the people of China rose up anyway. COVID will now spread because vaccination was slowed and the vaccine used is not that good. It is still better than none. It is too bad so many countries are moving now toward dictatorship. The truth is dictatorships have a terrible record for caring about the people and for economic success. It works for a little while, then it doesn't. India is currently becoming unsettled because their president, a racist biggot is inciting violence among people who had been getting along rather well in many areas. He wants to distract the people from noticing the things he is doing to actually become dictator and do massive harm to the people he doesn't like. I don't know when the people will stop him, but it is coming.

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The orange muffin will whither away when we cease paying attention. But he is the consummate anti-entertainer. We look on in appalled enthrallment, disgusted by every word and action, yet still watching. And there are those who think chaotic misdirection is a fine way to govern. Oh that my neighbors could just see the buffoon for what he is and not a projection of their fantasies.

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His myth will last forever.

Trump is involved in litigation that will make headlines beyond his earthly existence. History will condemn him, to paraphrase another tyrant.

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Sadly, you are correct. History remembers bad actors, and our makeshift Mussolini will live on in fractured infamy.

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Wayne, you and Daniel are right about remembering Trump long past his lifetime. History has a way of remembering the wors pretty regularly, but the best, in a positive means, less often. When I was coming through school, I thought wars were the only things that mattered. I knew other things happened but thought those things were just preparing for the next war. Those people we learned about most were the warriors. Trump was a nothing, a terrible businessman, a poor student, a mean employer, a sociopath who wooed a lot of desperate scared people to his message of fear, hatred, anger, and incompetence disguised as toughness. Yes, his followers will see that he is remembered, even if history might like to forget him.

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I'm convinced he's the anti-Christ.

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I would not go that far. He lacks smarts.

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He is very cunning and manipulative.

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the base. indeed. trump is the leader of a cult founded in, built upon and based in hatred. people love trump cuz he gives them an excuse to be their worst, most vile, selves.

i've been reading a book that will open your eyes and (perhaps) give you nightmares: a brief history of fascist lies by federico finchelstein (amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0520346718/grrlscientist-20/ ) that has been like a real-life dystopian novel. you political scientists who know all this stuff already may not find much here to have nightmares over, but people like me who are in the intermediate phase of learning more details about the origins and realities of these extremist ideologies will be riveted.

comparing trump and his crowd of lunatics to the fascists of yore is terrifying and in some ways, prophetic, reading. almost like a how-to manual.

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Those who don't know history....

Rachel Maddow's Ultra.

It Can't Happen Here. Novel by Sinclair Lewis

They Want to Kill Americans: The Militias, Terrorists, and Deranged Ideology of the Trump Insurgency by Malcolm Nance.

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I FOUND AN ACTIVE LINK TO ULTRA

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-presents-ultra

just had to share.

okay everyone, back to your regularly scheduled programming.

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Girl Scientist. Thanks for sharing the link to Rachel Maddow's "Ultra." I think everyone should experience it. I would say it is the most powerful series I saw this year. I had known a bit of it before, but didn't know how deep the treason went. It seems from the evidence the only things that saved this nation from the Fascists were a few observant people, luck, and getting into WWII. I can't help but wonder what is going to save us when the attack comes again. The Supreme Court has said that states can't even make laws to stop people (white people) from having and carrying guns. The "Stand your ground" laws have let any white person shoot and kill someone claiming they feared for their life even if the person wasn't near them. These laws, of course are for the benefit of white people, the ones who will be involved in the next insurrection as they have been perpetrators of the previous insurrections. I don't know how we are going to successfully address this when fear has been stoked up so carefully among middle America's white people, "The Real Americans" according to Sarah Palin.

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i've seen sinclair lewis's novel mentioned numerous times and have never been able to get a copy (i currently live in a cultural backwater & sadly, cannot buy & ship books here via amazon.)

but your mention here is a good reminder that i need to poke around again in search of this title.

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GrrlScientist, I would like to gift you a copy of It Can't Happen Here, if you would like. I will mail it to you. Just email me at slestrella AT yahoo.com. ☀️

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Dec 15, 2022·edited Dec 15, 2022

The Internet Archive has PDF and EPUB copies to borrow see URL below:

https://archive.org/details/itcanthappenhere0000lewi

Your local library may have access to a lending service. Thankfully, even here in "the middle of nowhere" Arkansas Ozarks we can get almost anything through inter-library loan.

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Excellent resource! Thank you!

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Sorry to have to agree with you, Grrl. There is something that is common in humans that loves being given justification for hatred.

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Girl Scientist, I appreciate your observation that Trump and Kump has let a certain group of people behave at their worst. They can defend their bad, what would in the past have been considered sinful, behavior as the way to get what you want. Trump did it so we can too.

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There are people who think the world is flat and that Bitcoin is real. Even today. Next to that and equivalent loonies, belief in D. Trump as a meaningful and rational politician is merely silly. Beware of Dummheit, there’s a lot of it about!

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Hitler 2.0

History repeats itself in a toxic and regressive pattern.

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Even Steve Bannon is reported to have listened to him and exclaimed "That's Hitler!" Personally, I prefer "That's our Hitler!" in Mel Brooks' The Producers.

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widdershins twisted ways

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It means the only way to deal with this anti- American egotistic mob boss is to use the constitution, take his right to ever run for any U S office again away from him and place him in jail, where he should have been a year ago, according to the judicial laws of our great nation. Why are we waisting our time determining if he is guilty, when the whole world can see he is nothing but a crook? Get with it DOJ do your duty, that’s why your job was instituted

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Follow the money;

The wealthy oligarchs will spend for autocratic control of the nation to protect their money and status.

They’ve been thriving since they induced Reagan to cut their taxes and regulations.

Control the money: Tax Wealth More and The People less.

How? Vote the unpatriotic enabling plutocrats out and patriotic progressives in.

To save the republic, push Patriotic PROGRESSIVES.

Push illegality of private ownership of non-sporting guns.

Wiseup Americans!

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Hey Robert Reich: If we cannot reorder and reply to comments, I am out of here.

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At the top of the comments reorder them to chronological. You'll see your original comment and minutes later you'll find your follow-up.

I agree the origin of these right tilted concepts was made public by Reagan but it started by KKK in this country.

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tRump's base is smaller than the population of voters who don't want him ; those former 'minorities' who add to the diversity of the electorate presently ; people of color/indigenous, LGBTQ, women who now have seen how far the 'right' will/can go under him, educated/informed people who agree with the Democrats for many reasons and were behind the recent unusual wins this past midterm. Why would people vote against their own interests, when it has been demonstrated how bad the 'right's intent is? Even the tRump 'alternative'; DeSantis can't wait to lock people up as soon as he is able to.

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Laurie, I think people vote against what looks like their interests because what looks to us as their interests may not actually be. They may see acting tough, overturning our government on behalf of Baby Donnie, and white supremacy as their best interests. That will "trump" anything like food, shelter, and caring for their kids, for example, because they think all those things will come if they are tough enough, white enough, and loyal enough to those they think will save them, including their churches that keep telling them they have the right to stand up for god and take down the Democrats. It is a warped view, but I suspect it is held by a whole lot of those in middle and southern America, at least, the white ones. It is frightening!

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Yes, it is, Ruth!

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I agree that the problem is the dedication and fanaticism of trump supporters. We need someone on the Democratic side that can inspire the tenacity and dedication of Dems.

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Stephen, I wish we had that too. We actually have a lot of really good even exciting Democrats, but Dems don't seem to inspire the same kind of fanaticism Trump and Kump inspire among Republicans. I actually think that is a good thing. We have some excellent young leaders training to do more. Despite Biden's "low polling," I think a lot of Americans like him and his friendly manner and ability to communicate with people without shouting and spouting hatred and fear. Elizabeth Warren makes so much sense when she explains our economy and what needs to happen for consumers. Kamala Harris is a steady presence who stands with the law and that it needs to be applied fairly to all. The Democratic members of the January 6th Committee have been terrific in trying to follow all the leads while being maligned by those who participated and supported the insurrection. As you can see, leadership is a group thing if done well. Going for one big leader as Republicans have, is not a positive. Dems need to get more good people in office at all levels, and support them, so people can see what strong positive leadership looks like and how it can make a positive difference.

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“Money is the Mother Milk of Poltics” and “Them that Got the Gold Writes the Rules”.

Those are the rules of the Political Games we see the R’s are now in the same place the D’s were before The Civil War .

The cure ?

I propose a Constitutional Convention to re write the Rules of the Political Game.

1. Mandatory Universal Voting ($250 fine for not voting );

2. Abolishing the Electoral College and

3. Rank Voting Rounds with runoffs.

Our A archaic system of voting is killing Democracy it encourages The money gods alone to rule us.

Allowing unlimited campaign contributions by corporations and some individuals slews our system towards the rich”

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If FOX, talk radio, & other media stopped promoting them & their crazy ideas they’d be dead in the water. But now not only do we have FOX & Rush Limbaugh, we have hundreds of wanna he’s. Good luck.

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I have zero success pitching my own stuff, but....,

If NBC can sell the Apprentice and Shark Tank, they can show BANKRUPT REPUBLICANS, where registered Republicans who lost everything by putting their hard earned money at risk in ventures like Trump University, Bitcoin, etc. tell tales of revelation.

"I was a MAGAT until I bought hydroxychloroquine on Trump's recommendation." "Grandma died. Medical bills out the ying-yang." SHAZZAM!!!!!! "Now I'm a Democrat"

Or how about FRAUD TV: https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/cares-act-fraud

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This could be the making for a new Sitcom. Sounds like a good start at least.

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Daniel, I would watch a TV series that showed Republican business and political blunders because of Trump and Kump. They could even show an episode or two of the many lies Trump has told. There are a lot to choose from since he told more than 30,000 just in the 4 years he was in office. I suspect that number is quite a bit higher since more information has been found related to his White House shenanigans.

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In the early 1950s, there was a TV show called “I Was a Communist for the FBI.” Sounds like we need the opposite of that show today.

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Indeed I remember it well. I believe it was called "I led three lives". My parents were devoted fans of this show and we watched each episode on our miniscule "Dumont" TV. Devoted republicans they found themselve enthralled with this and worried over McCartyism. I awakened early in life.

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The subject of the “Communist” show was a real-life guy named Matt Cvetic, who lived not far from our house in Pittsburgh. He was well-hated by local members of the steelworkers’ union and may have been threatened with violence. He died in Los Angeles, probably a member of the witness-protection program.

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As someone born just too late to have watched this show "My Three Lives," was he a good guy or just another stooge?

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Stan, thanks for the historical reference. I was not aware of this background information.

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I agreed with today's post until Prof. Reich concluded that the rot of a Trumpified Republican party is bad for us all. No, it is not. The Republican party as currently constituted has built its power on dividing Americans against each other and convincing party loyalists that American institutions that are a counterpoint to demagoguery are the enemy -- that's the press, scientists, history teachers, the entire opposing political party, providers of healthcare, the list goes on. If Trump Republicanism rots it can be the fertilizer out of which grows the green shoots of a chastised and honest conservatism, the traditional doubters who can hold visionaries accountable for producing results.

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That was not his point, we need at least two civil, sane, political parties, to argue, discuss and analyze proposed legislature, otherwise you have a dictatorship, even a benign dictatorship of one party like the Democrats is not good for the health of a democracy.

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Right, and there's no evidence that Democrats, even now, are benign.

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Honest conservatism is an oxymoron.

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Daniel, I totally agree with you that "honest conservatives" is an oxymoron. I keep hearing those who are supposedly not supporting Trump but claim to be conservatives saying they are "honest conservatives" but that is an impossibility. Conservatives are trying to conserve things that were not worth conserving in the first place. They claim family values, but those values often involved beating kids and wives, isolation, and tribalism. They claim to be fiscally conservative while spending massively on war and the military and ignoring the needs of the people who have been condemned to poverty and injustice mostly for reasons out of their control. They claim to be socially conservative because they are opposed to abortion. The truth, they can't just not have abortions themselves, they have to dictate what happens to others who have different beliefs while their religious beliefs get put on people related to wedding cakes and websites. Conservativism is simply another term for hypocrisy.

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I'm thinking of "conservatism" in the sense that believing and doubting comprise a dialectic. A dialog between believers and doubters can yield progress paired with accountability. For general discussion of that principle, see "The doubting game and the believing game" by Peter Elbow.

https://peterelbow.com/writing_without_teachers.html

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DS: Intelligent conservatism is also an oxymoron.

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Dec 16, 2022·edited Dec 16, 2022

It's so easy to make blanket statements. If conservatism is making sure that you don't break everything (the idea of conserving) while initiating progress, that can be worthwhile.

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Gary, I think the Republican party is wrong at every level, but they are here and their appalling behavior corrups everything it touches. It behooves all of us, and in particular our legislatures to act to curb the Republican' party's power and influence and to hold accountable the guys who have done the most harm. We also need a media campaign at all levels to inform the people who will listen, of the damage Republicans have done to them while accumulating all kinds of money and power just for themselves. I think it would be worth the effort.

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Sure, but I am not saying conservatism is the same as "America First" MAGA Republicanism, nor am I equating it with corporate Republicanism (or corporate Democrats either). BTW, I am neither conservative nor Republican. ;-)

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We cannot look only at Congressional Republicans, but need to look at Governors, AG's, State Legislators, School Board members, Sheriffs, Judges, and every other elected Republican. We also must not consider silence and standing on the side lines as good enough. If a politician isn't actively speaking out against Trump, they are tethered to him. They cannot have it both ways, keeping the base with them by saying nothing and then trying to appeal to the center by saying they didn't support Trump. Every politician must be recorded being asked and answering, "Do you agree with Trump on the need to throw out the 2020 election and the Constitution?", "Do you support Trump for 2024?" "Do you think having meals with Ye and Fuentes is disqualifying?" No hemming and hawing. Yes or no, are you with Trump or not.

If we let DeSantis. Abbott, Cruz, etal. remain silent, then the DOJ and the Democrats are doing their work of bringing him down for their benefit. It's the Republican's job to clean their house, not the Democrat's. Saying nothing is being complicit.

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DK, you say: "It's the Republican's job to clean their house" but I don't believe they will. They're too addicted to Trump's base - they'll never say anything to alienate Trump's base. They can't get elected without Trump's base.

How on earth did this small minority get so much power disproportionate to their numbers?

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