The message of progressive Democratic
candidates often falls on deaf ears with followers of conservative and
religious right leaders. Same goes for many Trump supporters. This is
because they speak the language of logic rather than emotion.
The right
wing recognizes and affirms the more negative emotions, angers, and
feelings of the voters, and starts there with their propaganda and
manipulations. And it’s not just those who one would classify as cult-like followers of these con men and women, who are being bamboozled.
Large swaths of voters are also swayed by their rhetoric.
The mass psychology of the right and Christian right is worth understanding, if for no other reason than you should know
your opponents' strategy and understand why they are often successful.
In very simple terms, it happens when an individual is so repressed and
confused by their life experiences and emotions that they eagerly give
up thinking, personal freedom, problem solving, and logic to someone
else, like an authoritarian leader, who in turn transmits back to them
an illusion of personal power and control.
Logic versus Emotion?
Logic can literally be Trumped.
It is NOT a logical process, but an emotional one.
Any authoritarian leader or religious hustler or cult leader can latch
on to that emotion and energy.
There is a strong repressed sexual aspect
to this, and true followers, as opposed to the opportunists that take
advantage of them, have had their spirits crushed by a lifetime of sex-negative religious dogma and emotional paralysis in dealing with sexual
and personal relations.
Every Patriarchal society and almost every
nation is plagued by this development, and has the potential to develop
in a fascist direction. The upper classes usually emphasize
independent thinking and leadership for their own class, but leave
submission to authority and upbringing to the lower classes.
Those of us who have not fallen victim to
such leaders are completely out of touch with the large segment of our
country which follows them blindly. These millions of followers are
quite naturally a valuable resource to be exploited by opportunist
politicians like Trump, who seek to hide their true loyalties and
irrational and destructive policies behind a public face of religious
sympathy and support.
Trump issues Presidential Medal of Freedom award.
Not surprisingly, the Republicans have
succeeded in trapping and using this resource. Whatever one likes or
dislikes about the Democrats, their appeal to voters is primarily to
logic. Whereas the Republicans long ago learned to appeal to the dark
side of people’s emotions, since they had no logical or progressive
policies to sell.
So the Republicans have become the party of hate,
misogyny, racism, bigotry, homophobia, war, and anti-immigrant sentiment
affixed to a false and extremist Christian face. They now, and have
been for some time, openly organizing people around these negative
emotions and behaviors. The mainstream media fails to recognize the
effects of the extreme polarization of the two party system, and blames
BOTH parties equally for the logjams in Washington.
People who have fallen under the influence of
an authoritarian or religious leader will hold on furiously to their
dependence. They have invested their self esteem into the identity and
success of these leaders, and by supporting them, they have built up
their own self worth - one of the reasons right wing religious leaders
can get their members to send them so much money for such ridiculous and
scandalous reasons.
We cannot assume that logic and reason will
prevail over emotional biases. There are too many tragic historical
examples of this human failing. As we all know, Christianity is the
dominant religion in America. And it has not been immune to class
compromise over the centuries and in America more recently.
The state
allows Christianity today a favored status as long as it remains
compromised, and does not pursue a class based policy that Jesus
reportedly followed, one which advocated for the poor. A policy which
eventually also cost the life of Rev. King and many others.
Progressive But Moral/Emotional Arguments?
Rev. Barber
So what can be done, if anything, about the
growing fascist movement in America today? One group, which is calling
for a progressive perspective on Christianity, is the one led by Rev.
William Barber. It calls for a moral revival and justice for both poor
blacks and whites. It’s formally known as “Repairers of the Breach”.
Work of this kind can not be underestimated. It has accomplished
wonderful things in North Carolina and parts of the South. It is
expanding across the country. As much as I sometimes may shy away from the
concept of good religious dogma fighting bad dogma, it opens a door
which is often closed to us, and one that will get the attention of any
religious person.
Remember that spiritual beliefs need not be connected
to a specific religion or supreme being concept. Most of us accept some
form of morality, and that can be a starting point for dialogue. It
should not be forgotten that without dialogue there is often violence
and oppression.
The problems which created the
conditions for fascism and the religious right will NEVER be solved
until they are clearly understood.
Among the well known individuals that have studied the problem is
Wilhelm Reich, psychiatrist and student of Freud and former member of
the German Communist Party in the 1920s. His book “The Mass Psychology
of Fascism” is still worth reading, especially the original version.
Harnessing Emotions with the Truth
Our wannabe fuhrer.
Candidates hoping to defeat Trump MUST
read the emotional mood of the voters, and deliver their message in an
emotionally credible and effective manner. All can easily be lost if
significant mistakes are made in this area.
No matter how sensible and
logical a message may be, it doesn’t guarantee it will be heard or
understood, or that it will win votes. One thing I’ve been kicking
around is the best emotional ground to go after Trump with?
That will energize and motivate those already against him, and perhaps
penetrate the walls of resistance of many of his supporters. Can there even
be such a strategy?
I think there is, and it’s not one that is
complicated or hard to follow. It must be simplistic, yet valid and
emotional. I would consider some simple, yet emotional propositions.
Such as a mass line saying: “What has he done as president? For
you? For the country? For our future? He offers a future of perpetual
conflict and corruption for the country.
Burying our heads in the sand
while American democracy crumbles will not change our fate. A Wall
between us and Mexico solves nothing and wastes valuable resources. Nor
will it pay your bills, solve global warming, mitigate and address
racism and racial conflict, get you a good paying job, or health care
insurance you can afford, or get your son or daughter into college.
He has
turned brother against brother, and sister against sister. American
against American. Enough of him.”
This content was created by a Daily Kos Community member.
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