For those who study authoritarianism, Steve Bannon's refusal to respond to the subpoena issued by the Congressional committee tasked with investigating Jan.
Hell, boys and girls, all we Dems gotta do is get up off our fat asses AND GET TO YOUR DESIGNATED VOTING POLL AND VOTE!!! it's that simple, nothing else works. 4 o'clock tea time won't a thing. 5 o'clock WON'T work a BUNCH. Nope, just get your nuts home, tickle your significant other and know you have purpose ahead of you. One is not letting the mudslingers see a target. You fire then get your head down so they cannot count. On the special day, shoe up em masse and overload THEIR ass. Elephants run when they see that many in front blocking the way. Very skittish, don't you know?
Steve, I bet you are PISSED OFF about some thing. That stare is very deliberate. You know "I'm a BAD MAN and all", you know. Well I been in jail. It's kind of hard to pee in there and especially for an old guy. Good luck wit dat!
I couldn't agree more. And, can I ask you some questions about effective campaigning next year? Both George Lakoff and Rick Wilson tell us we need to pitch to voters' hearts and guts at least as much as to their heads, and I for one agree. Here are some ideas I shared with Rachel Bitecofer on which I'd appreciate your feedback in the above-mentioned appeal.
If we vote with those with whom we identify, maybe we can make some spots such as one which, say, has people of all colors and conditions grasping each other by the forearm and making an 'unbreakable' change and then contrasting it with footage from, say, Charlottesville and/or Ferguson and/or Portland, for that matter. Then we ask the audience, which do they want and also say, for all of us, vote Democratic. Another ad might show a group of people of different colors, orientations and maybe different classes (marked by different dressing styles) working together and contrasting it with angry, separated groups ready to fight one another for what comes out to be crumbs. Do you think such spots would work? Maybe one of the 'harmonious' groups could be Service people; THAT would definitely make the point as to who is more truly 'American'. Finally, what about taking Norman Rockwell's 'Freedom of Speech' illustration, making sure that the people at the meeting come from all kinds and that the debate may get heated but afterward, for example, a black woman and a Hispanic/possibly white man share a drink or something. Contrast that with black uniformed SS-type police (with no ID on them) knocking on doors and demanding to know how people voted. Again, as the audience what they want and say, if you want to retain active yet civil debate, vote Democratic. Nothing is more urgent now. Thanks in advance for your consideration and feedback.
I want to believe the Democrats know exactly what they are doing (Schiff, Pelosi, Biden, Schumer), but I’m increasingly frustrated. (Synema & Manchin are sickening). My anxiety level is so high. In the community where I live I’ve gathered 70+ neighbors to share actions/ideas, etc. through all the ups and downs of the past 5 + years. In the beginning we were all really active. Now when I send actions or links I barely get a response. I see the same people outside. I know it’s not personal. I feel 2 things are happening…1. Most have checked out & 2. So, many don’t have a clue as to the gravity of the danger. All of this feels so helpless. My husband & I voted early in a primary for Mayor & city council. I read that 10-15% of registered voters showed up. People tell me to stop reading & take a break. “You think to much”, one person told me. They don’t want to hear what you, Timothy Snyder, Bandy Lee, even former Republicans who are raising the same alarms have to say. All I think of is the nearly 100 people who participate on your ZOOM every week and the fact that those who are actively sharing and problem solving in their own communities are like the small % of activists who have done the the same before the final nail in the coffin in Democracies that imploded. Only then do those who “checked out” wake up. I’m sooo sorry for being so ‘doom and gloom’. This is what I’m feeling.
Ms. Jones, the political work you have been doing is admirable and essential.
According to Ralph Nader, all it takes is 1% of the population working as activists in order to pass progressive legislation, if that legislation is supported by overwhelming bipartisan majorities. He knows this because he repeatedly got major legislation passed by Congress for many years, before neoliberalism began shutting down the valves of American democracy. Nader’s Raiders went to confront the levers of power in Washington being highly informed, organized, and disciplined, and won again and again. We all still benefit from their successes across many areas of our lives, from auto safety to environmental protection to food safety. Things have gotten immeasurably more difficult, but Nader is still at it, nothing daunted. Activism always seems like a Sisyphean task.
Nader tells the story of a paraplegic engineer who went to work with him in Washington in order to take on the wheelchair industry. The man succeeded in designing far cheaper and better wheelchairs than those produced by the industry, and in making them available around the world, including for the global poor. Then he was told he might become a quadriplegic. Nader asked him what he would do if that happened. The man said that then he would know what it is like to be a quadriplegic, and would be able to figure out what he could engineer to improve the lives of quadriplegics. If a paraplegic, who had to face the prospect of becoming a quadriplegic, could overcome such overwhelming disappointments in life in this way, how can the rest of us allow ourselves to become discouraged?
Schiff (like Raskin and Barbara Lee) is among the few national Democrats who actually believe in democracy and are willing to fight for it. I believe that your attitude towards Pelosi, Biden, and Schumer is false idealization, but that is irrelevant. Politics is a game of naked power, not love and kisses. Politicians need votes even more than they need money, and while the billionaires whose employees the Establishment Democrats are have the money, we the people have the votes. It was informed and organized Americans representing overwhelming bipartisan majorities—though they were never more than 1%—who made Nader’s successes possible. It was the numbers who rose up in mass demonstrations and civil disobedience in 1930s America who compelled FDR to enact the New Deal possible. And they faced not merely apathy, but brutal corporate and government repression.
Effective activism requires being realistic, which means among other things recognizing the class element in our political existence. As Adam Smith wrote, historically the informing principle of every ruling elite is always the same: everything for us and nothing for anyone else. Establishment propaganda after WWII made people believe there are no social classes in America. If you believe that, then you are easy prey; and polls always showed that nearly all Americans thought that they like all Americans were middle class. That day is over.
I intended my previous reply to your comment to be a general comment on the topics you raised in your own comment—with the two obvious exceptions of my first sentence, and my remark about “your attitude towards Pelosi, Biden, and Schumer.” My reply was otherwise not directed to you personally; it was not intended to be a lecture to you; nor to be mansplaining. I apologize for failing to make my intentions explicit.
I get it. It's rare that someone acknowledges or 'clarifies' their intent and I truly appreciate it. I'm certainly not a political science expert and learn from others. Always something to think about. Today on the Lucid ZOOM I commented to something about 'critical thinking' followed by a comment from Stephanie Clark which was really meaningful. I wanted to comment but didn't. We're all human and though I have no patience for Republicans shenanigans to put it mildly, I've learned so much from former Republicans that I continue to disagree with and say Sanders/Nader supporters. All I know, is we have to all be in this fight together. One person in our community is the nephew of a well known liberal who invokes the persons name often. During the election and within our group he would post that he might sit out the Presidential election. To me (and others) it was stunning. He would say there's no difference between Biden and Trump. I've heard others say that about Hillary and Trump. It's truly otherworldly for me to understand that Trump compared to anyone progressive or moderate is a "toss up". Look where we are...Thank you Alexander for your openness.
Now that the House investigative committee has in fact recommended a contempt charge against Bannon, the implementation of the recommendation is up to the Department of Justice. Those of you who wonder about Merrick Garland’s seemingly inexplicable passivity in the face of the obvious threat of the impending destruction of American democracy should look at his record in office (an account of his first half-year is quoted at the end of this comment). As Dennis Kucinich says, if you want to understand a politician, you have to look at the scorecard.
The Establishment defense of Garland is that he is an “institutionalist.“ From the point of view of a defender of democracy, this defense is obviously absurd. The institution he is defending has been corrupted: therefore what he is defending is a corrupt institution. He is not a stupid man, so he must know this.
The logical interpretation of this situation is that the people who control the government, including Biden, Garland, Schumer, and Pelosi, are not actually defending democracy. They know they could not do so if they wanted to, because the United States is not a democracy. That it is not a democracy has been definitively demonstrated by academic studies that show that over the last forty years, the desires of 70% of the United States population have never been enacted in legislation by the Congress that allegedly represents them, whereas those of the upper .1% have invariably been enacted. Most US senators and representatives are merely hired hands. The reason the Democrats cherish democratic process, even to the detriment of democratic functioning, is that democratic process is the form of the charade that makes their careers possible. We are currently seeing this pattern being repeated in real time as congressional Democrats day after day are being forced to abandon (or choose to abandon through self-negotiation) legislation supported by overwhelming bipartisan majorities, such as legislation directed against ultra-wealthy text cheats, because the Republicans oppose it on behalf of their employers, the .1%. These taxes, if duly paid, would shave a tiny bit off the fortunes of billionaires, while making life-transforming investments possible for millions. What could more clearly demonstrate the fact that America is not a democracy?
The correct model for this spectacle appears to be America Inc., a neo-liberal capitalist corporation whose owners are the .1%, and whose legal department consists of Congress, the Department of Justice, and the Supreme Court. That is why the government is acting like a corporation in damage control mode, rather than a government of representatives of the people who are actually trying to repair the damage and defend democracy. Biden told his plutocratic sponsors before he was elected that nothing would fundamentally change. Thus his Administration is merely trying to offer enough concessions, and enough of an appearance of concessions, to neutralize a revolt of the population that would interfere with business as usual in America Inc.
The problem with the Biden-Garland appeasement model of governance is that the .1% as a whole have shown, through their failure to discipline the proto-fascists—which they could easily do if they wanted to—that having a fascist era in America is acceptable to them. (Could they even tell the difference?) And a significant part of the .1% are actively promoting the advent of this era. Most of the plutocracy’s employees in Congress imagine that during the first fascist era in America they would be able to continue their careers, if in an uncomfortable political environment, and then move through the revolving door into lucrative private sector jobs. Of course, this entire scenario is insane. (Don’t they remember hiding in fear of their lives on January 6?) But our current rulers are merely a motley collection of billionaires and politicians, either sociopathic or contaminated by the prevailing sociopathic ethos of their alternative universe, and cannot be expected to behave sanely.
The following quote will make an already long comment even longer, but it is essential to look at Garland’s scorecard. His determination to act as Trump’s private attorney defending Trump against E. Jean Carroll’s lawsuit for rape is only the dismal beginning.
This quote comprises five paragraphs from a New Republic article of June 8, 2021 by Jeff Hauser and Max Moran, in which they conclude that “At this point, Garland himself is beyond saving,” and that “Every day Biden keeps Garland in charge of his legal agenda is a day Trumpism is normalized”:
“On several key matters, Garland’s DOJ has concealed the full extent of Trump’s wrongdoing; it has kept thousands of immigrants from obtaining green cards, while flooding the immigration system with Trump-selected judges; expanded the scope of police power; ensured oil and gas profits for decades to come; and explicitly protected one of Trump’s most hated Cabinet secretaries from accountability. Indeed, Garland has quietly emerged as Donald Trump’s unwitting hatchet man, doing almost everything in his power to protect the lawless former president’s legacy.
“On May 24, Garland committed the DOJ to keep much of the so-called “Barr memo”—through which Garland’s predecessor almost unilaterally decided that no part of the Mueller probe would result in criminal charges—secret. Even Trump enemies who scoffed at the Russia probe should be disturbed by Garland’s other decisions, though. He has committed the DOJ to defending a Trump-era policy slashing the number of legal immigrants who qualify for green cards. He’s hiring dozens of new immigration court judges who received their initial offers during the Trump era, and codified Trump-era rules restricting immigrants’ options to prevent their own deportations. Garland’s Civil Rights Division also remains perilously understaffed, enormously hampering its ability to conduct oversight of municipal police departments. It also pursued private chat logs between government employees and reporters, a censorious case that began in the last 15 days of the Trump administration.
“Late last month, the Justice Department urged a federal judge to dismiss lawsuits against Trump and former Attorney General Bill Barr over their decision to tear-gas Black Lives Matter protesters near the White House last summer so that the president would be able to take a photo near a church, holding the Bible upside-down. While Garland repeated throughout his confirmation process that he’d prioritize tackling white supremacy, almost six months into the administration, no part of the federal government has a plan for rooting out white supremacists who serve in federal law enforcement roles.
“Meanwhile, Garland’s DOJ is actively defending a new oil project in Alaska that was cleared under Trump’s shams of environmental tests and may generate new oil for 30 years. In its filing, the DOJ explicitly said that the Trump administration adequately considered the new site’s effect on wildlife and greenhouse gas emissions. Garland is also maintaining support for a new oil pipeline in New Jersey and isn’t rescinding Trump-era briefs that made it harder for states to sue Big Oil over downplaying the risks of climate change.
“And some of Garland’s lieutenants are almost as hackish and corporate as any Trump appointee. His acting assistant attorney general for the civil division, Brian Boynton, represented Google, Eli Lilly, and the notorious for-profit University of Phoenix just one year before entering the department—where Boynton wrote a legal brief protecting Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos from testifying about for-profit schools defrauding indebted students. (The courts, thankfully, ruled against Boynton’s position.) Acting Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar likewise represented Big Tech (Facebook, Uber, Snap, Twitter) and Big Pharma (Amgen, Lumos, Syneos) just months before revolving into the department.”
I believe that most people on this forum are aware that this nation is a corporate based plutocratic oligarchy, using neoliberal economics. It is no surprise that Garland is a part of the neoliberal order. Our two major parties are a part of the facade. Speaking of sociopaths, here is something I wrote recently about the connection between fascism and sociopathy.
It is commonly seen in those who believe in fascist politics, a retreat from reality in areas where politics are involved. The perception of science becomes influenced by their political beliefs. But so do other areas like foreign policy, education, military actions, social structure, the press, history and the worth of ethnic groups. The unrealistic demonization of other political thought, beyond their own, becomes rampant. Fascism exaggerates existing political bigotry and creates warring ideological camps, polarized against each other. Under fascism, only one political party is accepted, due to the sociopathic narcissism and closed mindedness of the leader.
Fascism is a lie-based system, simply because it is, in most cases, led by a sociopath (antisocial personality disorder). Sociopaths are inveterate liars so it makes sense that they use deception as their primary leadership tool. They set in place a foundation of fantasy among their listeners, based on their followers’ confirmation bias. The leader takes a concept that is suspected to be true by the followers, and then exaggerates it wildly, causing supposition to become truth. This was seen in older fascist countries like Germany and Italy where the past mediocre history of the country was modified into a grandiose past greatness, which the people wanted to believe and did. Fascist leaders drive a wedge between the under educated and the intellectual community. Most nations that are ripe for fascism have a majority, who do not have a higher education. This is exploited by fascist leaders by criticizing the intellectual minority. They are criticized because they are seen as a threat to the fascist lie machine. The under educated followers gladly join in on this hate parade. This is another case of using confirmation bias to affect thinking but in this case, to sow hate.
The concept known as post-truth occurs when people believe that their political feelings carry more weight than the truth. With the constant bombardment of lies from a fascist leader, followers can become unmoored from reality. Fascist leaders do not like reality, as they want to create their own reality in the minds of their followers. Once reality and truth are discredited, then lies can be spread with impunity. This is the “end state” desired by fascist leaders. Many sociopathic leaders have what is known as magical thinking, where they feel that they can create reality just by thinking it to be so. Once their followers are in the post-truth mode, the magical thinking of their leader does not seem magical at all to them but is accepted as reality. The most ridiculous statements will seem plausible. Trump’s false prediction of a wild path of a hurricane, was absurd but was deemed as acceptable to his followers. They will accept an absurdity from someone of authority in their political clan, over the truth from someone outside their clan.
Fascist leaders are infamous for their lack of ethics. The reason can be traced to their mental condition. Hitler, Mussolini, Slobodan Milosevic, Pinochet, etc were all brutal killers, which is easy when one has a sociopathic conscience (none). The destructive consequence of this lack of ethics is that when this behavior is seen in their role model position, followers start to emulate it, to be more like their hero. We start seeing ethical drift in society. But emulating a sociopath is dangerous for individuals and society as a whole because it destroys the foundation of the social order. Followers of the sociopathic fascist start acting like sociopaths themselves.
Sociopaths are known for their anger and rage and those traits spill over into their leadership style, when sociopaths attain a fascist leadership position. This rage is probably due to their narcissism and comes to the surface when their superiority is threatened. An example of this was seen in press conferences with Trump, when a reporter asked a question that demanded some sort of truth from Trump. Since he has trouble with being truthful, his power structure was threatened and he lashed out at the reporter. Sociopaths are all about dominance and submission and when that dominance is challenged, they become angry. Historically, challenging a sociopathic fascist leader has had dire consequences.
The cult-like following seen in fascism can be explained by the charismatic leader/follower relationship. There is a symbiosis between the leader and follower, where the leader needs the follower as much as the follower needs the leader. It’s a mutual addiction, so to speak. The omnipotence of the leader becomes worshiped by the followers, while the leader is needy for adoring fans. But charismatic fascists use angry rhetoric to convince their followers to hate all ideas outside their cult and polarize their followers against the outside enemy. Fascists badly divide societies.
One of the primary pillars of fascism is social Darwinism, so the question arises, how did this come to be? This concept is based on animal world “survival of the fittest” mentality where some members of society are considered to be worthy while others are not. Since sociopaths are all about pecking order and dominance and submission, it makes perfect sense that there would be a nexus between their mental state and the politics they use. The dark side of believing in social Darwinism is that the unworthy in society become blamed for the nation’s woes and therefore become punished.
Why do sociopaths prefer fascism? In their minds, sociopaths see themselves as a demigod and fascism gives them a platform to be what they feel they deserve. It also gives them the domination they crave. Fascism also gives them a structure where their mental illness is not noticed and they are deemed to be normal by their followers.
The psychology of fascism is closely related to the psychology of the sociopathic mind. Having a deeply disturbed individual leading a nation politically is a mistake that many nations are now experimenting with. Fascism is the politics of lunacy and should never be considered as a viable option for leadership. The US is one of many countries with a sizable fascist following, but these people do not see the danger that lies ahead.
I agree 100% concerning the Republican-oriented Fascist's use of the under-educated (White working class male) concerning their inability to understand (rationally think things through) making it rather easy for them to motivate unthinking numbskulls to follow along and engage in behaviour likely to destroy democracy. That's why it has been said that a democracy cannot be maintained unless it's people are educated.
We as a nation seem to be discouraging education and that is a self destructive concept. The costs of higher education are unsustainable. We need to benchmark off of other countries to see how they are doing it better. Looking at Germany and Australia would be a good place to start.
As a retired Professor of Psychology having taught college students for nearly forty years I would like to propose an idea. Wouldn't it be interesting if the government offered a program in which in students who have graduated from highschool were able to serve time in a guidance-oriented program in which young people could work on the county's infrastuucture, etc. in turn being able to collect the right to go to college for a specific period of time. Such a program would no doubt raise the level of maturity of the student population of our colleges as well as "justify" a so-called free education which would no longer be free.
What about putting together a proposal along the lines that I described referred to as what Steve so aptly alluded to as that of a "Domestic Peace Corps," and then sending it to a few congressmen or congresswomen who we feel might be receptive to such an idea perhaps even willing to sponsor such to the point of suggesting that it be developed into a bill taken up in congress. I really do think "the time has come" for such an idea..... especially since the President's idea of "free community college" was shot down by Kyrstan Synima. What do you think?
Absolutely brutal ....democracy is on its deathbed in the United States because people have completely different media diets. The polarization will be ramping up to 11 in 2022
The very people who need to read this article are nowhere near it.
They truly believe the January 6th near coup was just merely a visit to the capital...ugh
Congress has no teeth. Two time loser, in its pursuit of Impeachment. Democracy is on life support and the plug is about to be pulled. People like Bannon are showing America, the world, that this country is finished. It is just a matter of time, when the Military steps in to assume power. Go ahead.....laugh. Truly, what else is left? See how gun ownership goes after that!
No, that's right, sorry, it's tweets, not tanks, isn't it ,Stevebaby. Those dangerous, powerful, killing TWEETS. Hitler would have tweeted his way into France.
Outstanding piece! It is incredibly important for our news media to recognize the ascent of fascism here and talk about what fascism is, so that the voters know what they are dealing with and its dangers. Fascism in its infancy needs to be nipped in the bud to prevent it from metastasizing. Jason Stanley said fascism is "the politics of us and them". From my psychology background, I feel that fascism is also the politics of lunacy, given that so many fascist leaders and its advocates have been sociopaths (APD). This makes me wonder about Bannon's mental state. We already know that Trump is a sociopath ( along with Mussolini, Hitler, Pinochet, Josef Mengele, Slobodan Milosevic, Allen Dulles, etc.) When these people become role models in society, they become destructive charismatic leaders. Followers get sucked into the maelstrom of lunacy. We can't afford to let the lunatics take over the asylum.
Holding Bannon in contempt is an early test of the Biden administration's and congress's resolve to hold the line against Trump and his ongoing authoritarian leader cult girding to make a come back. Anything less is going to be seen as a sign of weakness. The rule of law must be vindicated and the legitimacy of democracy protected against debasement. This is a critical moment in the lead up to larger battles to come in 22 and 24.
My only input would be that rather than "noting that Bannon is defying the subpoena at Trump's request", I'd highlight that everyone around Trump only agrees with him out of (economic) self-interest. Trump is successful because he enables grifters. Bannon would surely try everything to duck the subpoena without Trump.
Thank you for your clarity and strong voice on this issue! It is so needed and far too rare. I have heard so few people on the MSM approach Bannon this way. Last night I think it was Clint Watts who did a decent job of saying that Bannon actually wants to dismantle the administrative state, putting his subpoena rejection in that context.
Hell, boys and girls, all we Dems gotta do is get up off our fat asses AND GET TO YOUR DESIGNATED VOTING POLL AND VOTE!!! it's that simple, nothing else works. 4 o'clock tea time won't a thing. 5 o'clock WON'T work a BUNCH. Nope, just get your nuts home, tickle your significant other and know you have purpose ahead of you. One is not letting the mudslingers see a target. You fire then get your head down so they cannot count. On the special day, shoe up em masse and overload THEIR ass. Elephants run when they see that many in front blocking the way. Very skittish, don't you know?
Steve, I bet you are PISSED OFF about some thing. That stare is very deliberate. You know "I'm a BAD MAN and all", you know. Well I been in jail. It's kind of hard to pee in there and especially for an old guy. Good luck wit dat!
I couldn't agree more. And, can I ask you some questions about effective campaigning next year? Both George Lakoff and Rick Wilson tell us we need to pitch to voters' hearts and guts at least as much as to their heads, and I for one agree. Here are some ideas I shared with Rachel Bitecofer on which I'd appreciate your feedback in the above-mentioned appeal.
If we vote with those with whom we identify, maybe we can make some spots such as one which, say, has people of all colors and conditions grasping each other by the forearm and making an 'unbreakable' change and then contrasting it with footage from, say, Charlottesville and/or Ferguson and/or Portland, for that matter. Then we ask the audience, which do they want and also say, for all of us, vote Democratic. Another ad might show a group of people of different colors, orientations and maybe different classes (marked by different dressing styles) working together and contrasting it with angry, separated groups ready to fight one another for what comes out to be crumbs. Do you think such spots would work? Maybe one of the 'harmonious' groups could be Service people; THAT would definitely make the point as to who is more truly 'American'. Finally, what about taking Norman Rockwell's 'Freedom of Speech' illustration, making sure that the people at the meeting come from all kinds and that the debate may get heated but afterward, for example, a black woman and a Hispanic/possibly white man share a drink or something. Contrast that with black uniformed SS-type police (with no ID on them) knocking on doors and demanding to know how people voted. Again, as the audience what they want and say, if you want to retain active yet civil debate, vote Democratic. Nothing is more urgent now. Thanks in advance for your consideration and feedback.
I want to believe the Democrats know exactly what they are doing (Schiff, Pelosi, Biden, Schumer), but I’m increasingly frustrated. (Synema & Manchin are sickening). My anxiety level is so high. In the community where I live I’ve gathered 70+ neighbors to share actions/ideas, etc. through all the ups and downs of the past 5 + years. In the beginning we were all really active. Now when I send actions or links I barely get a response. I see the same people outside. I know it’s not personal. I feel 2 things are happening…1. Most have checked out & 2. So, many don’t have a clue as to the gravity of the danger. All of this feels so helpless. My husband & I voted early in a primary for Mayor & city council. I read that 10-15% of registered voters showed up. People tell me to stop reading & take a break. “You think to much”, one person told me. They don’t want to hear what you, Timothy Snyder, Bandy Lee, even former Republicans who are raising the same alarms have to say. All I think of is the nearly 100 people who participate on your ZOOM every week and the fact that those who are actively sharing and problem solving in their own communities are like the small % of activists who have done the the same before the final nail in the coffin in Democracies that imploded. Only then do those who “checked out” wake up. I’m sooo sorry for being so ‘doom and gloom’. This is what I’m feeling.
Ms. Jones, the political work you have been doing is admirable and essential.
According to Ralph Nader, all it takes is 1% of the population working as activists in order to pass progressive legislation, if that legislation is supported by overwhelming bipartisan majorities. He knows this because he repeatedly got major legislation passed by Congress for many years, before neoliberalism began shutting down the valves of American democracy. Nader’s Raiders went to confront the levers of power in Washington being highly informed, organized, and disciplined, and won again and again. We all still benefit from their successes across many areas of our lives, from auto safety to environmental protection to food safety. Things have gotten immeasurably more difficult, but Nader is still at it, nothing daunted. Activism always seems like a Sisyphean task.
Nader tells the story of a paraplegic engineer who went to work with him in Washington in order to take on the wheelchair industry. The man succeeded in designing far cheaper and better wheelchairs than those produced by the industry, and in making them available around the world, including for the global poor. Then he was told he might become a quadriplegic. Nader asked him what he would do if that happened. The man said that then he would know what it is like to be a quadriplegic, and would be able to figure out what he could engineer to improve the lives of quadriplegics. If a paraplegic, who had to face the prospect of becoming a quadriplegic, could overcome such overwhelming disappointments in life in this way, how can the rest of us allow ourselves to become discouraged?
Schiff (like Raskin and Barbara Lee) is among the few national Democrats who actually believe in democracy and are willing to fight for it. I believe that your attitude towards Pelosi, Biden, and Schumer is false idealization, but that is irrelevant. Politics is a game of naked power, not love and kisses. Politicians need votes even more than they need money, and while the billionaires whose employees the Establishment Democrats are have the money, we the people have the votes. It was informed and organized Americans representing overwhelming bipartisan majorities—though they were never more than 1%—who made Nader’s successes possible. It was the numbers who rose up in mass demonstrations and civil disobedience in 1930s America who compelled FDR to enact the New Deal possible. And they faced not merely apathy, but brutal corporate and government repression.
Effective activism requires being realistic, which means among other things recognizing the class element in our political existence. As Adam Smith wrote, historically the informing principle of every ruling elite is always the same: everything for us and nothing for anyone else. Establishment propaganda after WWII made people believe there are no social classes in America. If you believe that, then you are easy prey; and polls always showed that nearly all Americans thought that they like all Americans were middle class. That day is over.
Well put.
Thank you.
Ms. Jones,
Second thoughts—
I intended my previous reply to your comment to be a general comment on the topics you raised in your own comment—with the two obvious exceptions of my first sentence, and my remark about “your attitude towards Pelosi, Biden, and Schumer.” My reply was otherwise not directed to you personally; it was not intended to be a lecture to you; nor to be mansplaining. I apologize for failing to make my intentions explicit.
I get it. It's rare that someone acknowledges or 'clarifies' their intent and I truly appreciate it. I'm certainly not a political science expert and learn from others. Always something to think about. Today on the Lucid ZOOM I commented to something about 'critical thinking' followed by a comment from Stephanie Clark which was really meaningful. I wanted to comment but didn't. We're all human and though I have no patience for Republicans shenanigans to put it mildly, I've learned so much from former Republicans that I continue to disagree with and say Sanders/Nader supporters. All I know, is we have to all be in this fight together. One person in our community is the nephew of a well known liberal who invokes the persons name often. During the election and within our group he would post that he might sit out the Presidential election. To me (and others) it was stunning. He would say there's no difference between Biden and Trump. I've heard others say that about Hillary and Trump. It's truly otherworldly for me to understand that Trump compared to anyone progressive or moderate is a "toss up". Look where we are...Thank you Alexander for your openness.
We need to be tweeting and retweeting excerpts of this article. Only a ground swell will get our legislators’ attention.
Thanks, Again, and Again, for your courage, Ruth, and the recognition that we need it to be repeated and we need it to remain in our sights.
thank you Stephanie!
Amen
Now that the House investigative committee has in fact recommended a contempt charge against Bannon, the implementation of the recommendation is up to the Department of Justice. Those of you who wonder about Merrick Garland’s seemingly inexplicable passivity in the face of the obvious threat of the impending destruction of American democracy should look at his record in office (an account of his first half-year is quoted at the end of this comment). As Dennis Kucinich says, if you want to understand a politician, you have to look at the scorecard.
The Establishment defense of Garland is that he is an “institutionalist.“ From the point of view of a defender of democracy, this defense is obviously absurd. The institution he is defending has been corrupted: therefore what he is defending is a corrupt institution. He is not a stupid man, so he must know this.
The logical interpretation of this situation is that the people who control the government, including Biden, Garland, Schumer, and Pelosi, are not actually defending democracy. They know they could not do so if they wanted to, because the United States is not a democracy. That it is not a democracy has been definitively demonstrated by academic studies that show that over the last forty years, the desires of 70% of the United States population have never been enacted in legislation by the Congress that allegedly represents them, whereas those of the upper .1% have invariably been enacted. Most US senators and representatives are merely hired hands. The reason the Democrats cherish democratic process, even to the detriment of democratic functioning, is that democratic process is the form of the charade that makes their careers possible. We are currently seeing this pattern being repeated in real time as congressional Democrats day after day are being forced to abandon (or choose to abandon through self-negotiation) legislation supported by overwhelming bipartisan majorities, such as legislation directed against ultra-wealthy text cheats, because the Republicans oppose it on behalf of their employers, the .1%. These taxes, if duly paid, would shave a tiny bit off the fortunes of billionaires, while making life-transforming investments possible for millions. What could more clearly demonstrate the fact that America is not a democracy?
The correct model for this spectacle appears to be America Inc., a neo-liberal capitalist corporation whose owners are the .1%, and whose legal department consists of Congress, the Department of Justice, and the Supreme Court. That is why the government is acting like a corporation in damage control mode, rather than a government of representatives of the people who are actually trying to repair the damage and defend democracy. Biden told his plutocratic sponsors before he was elected that nothing would fundamentally change. Thus his Administration is merely trying to offer enough concessions, and enough of an appearance of concessions, to neutralize a revolt of the population that would interfere with business as usual in America Inc.
The problem with the Biden-Garland appeasement model of governance is that the .1% as a whole have shown, through their failure to discipline the proto-fascists—which they could easily do if they wanted to—that having a fascist era in America is acceptable to them. (Could they even tell the difference?) And a significant part of the .1% are actively promoting the advent of this era. Most of the plutocracy’s employees in Congress imagine that during the first fascist era in America they would be able to continue their careers, if in an uncomfortable political environment, and then move through the revolving door into lucrative private sector jobs. Of course, this entire scenario is insane. (Don’t they remember hiding in fear of their lives on January 6?) But our current rulers are merely a motley collection of billionaires and politicians, either sociopathic or contaminated by the prevailing sociopathic ethos of their alternative universe, and cannot be expected to behave sanely.
The following quote will make an already long comment even longer, but it is essential to look at Garland’s scorecard. His determination to act as Trump’s private attorney defending Trump against E. Jean Carroll’s lawsuit for rape is only the dismal beginning.
This quote comprises five paragraphs from a New Republic article of June 8, 2021 by Jeff Hauser and Max Moran, in which they conclude that “At this point, Garland himself is beyond saving,” and that “Every day Biden keeps Garland in charge of his legal agenda is a day Trumpism is normalized”:
“On several key matters, Garland’s DOJ has concealed the full extent of Trump’s wrongdoing; it has kept thousands of immigrants from obtaining green cards, while flooding the immigration system with Trump-selected judges; expanded the scope of police power; ensured oil and gas profits for decades to come; and explicitly protected one of Trump’s most hated Cabinet secretaries from accountability. Indeed, Garland has quietly emerged as Donald Trump’s unwitting hatchet man, doing almost everything in his power to protect the lawless former president’s legacy.
“On May 24, Garland committed the DOJ to keep much of the so-called “Barr memo”—through which Garland’s predecessor almost unilaterally decided that no part of the Mueller probe would result in criminal charges—secret. Even Trump enemies who scoffed at the Russia probe should be disturbed by Garland’s other decisions, though. He has committed the DOJ to defending a Trump-era policy slashing the number of legal immigrants who qualify for green cards. He’s hiring dozens of new immigration court judges who received their initial offers during the Trump era, and codified Trump-era rules restricting immigrants’ options to prevent their own deportations. Garland’s Civil Rights Division also remains perilously understaffed, enormously hampering its ability to conduct oversight of municipal police departments. It also pursued private chat logs between government employees and reporters, a censorious case that began in the last 15 days of the Trump administration.
“Late last month, the Justice Department urged a federal judge to dismiss lawsuits against Trump and former Attorney General Bill Barr over their decision to tear-gas Black Lives Matter protesters near the White House last summer so that the president would be able to take a photo near a church, holding the Bible upside-down. While Garland repeated throughout his confirmation process that he’d prioritize tackling white supremacy, almost six months into the administration, no part of the federal government has a plan for rooting out white supremacists who serve in federal law enforcement roles.
“Meanwhile, Garland’s DOJ is actively defending a new oil project in Alaska that was cleared under Trump’s shams of environmental tests and may generate new oil for 30 years. In its filing, the DOJ explicitly said that the Trump administration adequately considered the new site’s effect on wildlife and greenhouse gas emissions. Garland is also maintaining support for a new oil pipeline in New Jersey and isn’t rescinding Trump-era briefs that made it harder for states to sue Big Oil over downplaying the risks of climate change.
“And some of Garland’s lieutenants are almost as hackish and corporate as any Trump appointee. His acting assistant attorney general for the civil division, Brian Boynton, represented Google, Eli Lilly, and the notorious for-profit University of Phoenix just one year before entering the department—where Boynton wrote a legal brief protecting Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos from testifying about for-profit schools defrauding indebted students. (The courts, thankfully, ruled against Boynton’s position.) Acting Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar likewise represented Big Tech (Facebook, Uber, Snap, Twitter) and Big Pharma (Amgen, Lumos, Syneos) just months before revolving into the department.”
I believe that most people on this forum are aware that this nation is a corporate based plutocratic oligarchy, using neoliberal economics. It is no surprise that Garland is a part of the neoliberal order. Our two major parties are a part of the facade. Speaking of sociopaths, here is something I wrote recently about the connection between fascism and sociopathy.
It is commonly seen in those who believe in fascist politics, a retreat from reality in areas where politics are involved. The perception of science becomes influenced by their political beliefs. But so do other areas like foreign policy, education, military actions, social structure, the press, history and the worth of ethnic groups. The unrealistic demonization of other political thought, beyond their own, becomes rampant. Fascism exaggerates existing political bigotry and creates warring ideological camps, polarized against each other. Under fascism, only one political party is accepted, due to the sociopathic narcissism and closed mindedness of the leader.
Fascism is a lie-based system, simply because it is, in most cases, led by a sociopath (antisocial personality disorder). Sociopaths are inveterate liars so it makes sense that they use deception as their primary leadership tool. They set in place a foundation of fantasy among their listeners, based on their followers’ confirmation bias. The leader takes a concept that is suspected to be true by the followers, and then exaggerates it wildly, causing supposition to become truth. This was seen in older fascist countries like Germany and Italy where the past mediocre history of the country was modified into a grandiose past greatness, which the people wanted to believe and did. Fascist leaders drive a wedge between the under educated and the intellectual community. Most nations that are ripe for fascism have a majority, who do not have a higher education. This is exploited by fascist leaders by criticizing the intellectual minority. They are criticized because they are seen as a threat to the fascist lie machine. The under educated followers gladly join in on this hate parade. This is another case of using confirmation bias to affect thinking but in this case, to sow hate.
The concept known as post-truth occurs when people believe that their political feelings carry more weight than the truth. With the constant bombardment of lies from a fascist leader, followers can become unmoored from reality. Fascist leaders do not like reality, as they want to create their own reality in the minds of their followers. Once reality and truth are discredited, then lies can be spread with impunity. This is the “end state” desired by fascist leaders. Many sociopathic leaders have what is known as magical thinking, where they feel that they can create reality just by thinking it to be so. Once their followers are in the post-truth mode, the magical thinking of their leader does not seem magical at all to them but is accepted as reality. The most ridiculous statements will seem plausible. Trump’s false prediction of a wild path of a hurricane, was absurd but was deemed as acceptable to his followers. They will accept an absurdity from someone of authority in their political clan, over the truth from someone outside their clan.
Fascist leaders are infamous for their lack of ethics. The reason can be traced to their mental condition. Hitler, Mussolini, Slobodan Milosevic, Pinochet, etc were all brutal killers, which is easy when one has a sociopathic conscience (none). The destructive consequence of this lack of ethics is that when this behavior is seen in their role model position, followers start to emulate it, to be more like their hero. We start seeing ethical drift in society. But emulating a sociopath is dangerous for individuals and society as a whole because it destroys the foundation of the social order. Followers of the sociopathic fascist start acting like sociopaths themselves.
Sociopaths are known for their anger and rage and those traits spill over into their leadership style, when sociopaths attain a fascist leadership position. This rage is probably due to their narcissism and comes to the surface when their superiority is threatened. An example of this was seen in press conferences with Trump, when a reporter asked a question that demanded some sort of truth from Trump. Since he has trouble with being truthful, his power structure was threatened and he lashed out at the reporter. Sociopaths are all about dominance and submission and when that dominance is challenged, they become angry. Historically, challenging a sociopathic fascist leader has had dire consequences.
The cult-like following seen in fascism can be explained by the charismatic leader/follower relationship. There is a symbiosis between the leader and follower, where the leader needs the follower as much as the follower needs the leader. It’s a mutual addiction, so to speak. The omnipotence of the leader becomes worshiped by the followers, while the leader is needy for adoring fans. But charismatic fascists use angry rhetoric to convince their followers to hate all ideas outside their cult and polarize their followers against the outside enemy. Fascists badly divide societies.
One of the primary pillars of fascism is social Darwinism, so the question arises, how did this come to be? This concept is based on animal world “survival of the fittest” mentality where some members of society are considered to be worthy while others are not. Since sociopaths are all about pecking order and dominance and submission, it makes perfect sense that there would be a nexus between their mental state and the politics they use. The dark side of believing in social Darwinism is that the unworthy in society become blamed for the nation’s woes and therefore become punished.
Why do sociopaths prefer fascism? In their minds, sociopaths see themselves as a demigod and fascism gives them a platform to be what they feel they deserve. It also gives them the domination they crave. Fascism also gives them a structure where their mental illness is not noticed and they are deemed to be normal by their followers.
The psychology of fascism is closely related to the psychology of the sociopathic mind. Having a deeply disturbed individual leading a nation politically is a mistake that many nations are now experimenting with. Fascism is the politics of lunacy and should never be considered as a viable option for leadership. The US is one of many countries with a sizable fascist following, but these people do not see the danger that lies ahead.
I agree 100% concerning the Republican-oriented Fascist's use of the under-educated (White working class male) concerning their inability to understand (rationally think things through) making it rather easy for them to motivate unthinking numbskulls to follow along and engage in behaviour likely to destroy democracy. That's why it has been said that a democracy cannot be maintained unless it's people are educated.
Doug Soderstrom
dougsoderstrom777@gmail.com
We as a nation seem to be discouraging education and that is a self destructive concept. The costs of higher education are unsustainable. We need to benchmark off of other countries to see how they are doing it better. Looking at Germany and Australia would be a good place to start.
As a retired Professor of Psychology having taught college students for nearly forty years I would like to propose an idea. Wouldn't it be interesting if the government offered a program in which in students who have graduated from highschool were able to serve time in a guidance-oriented program in which young people could work on the county's infrastuucture, etc. in turn being able to collect the right to go to college for a specific period of time. Such a program would no doubt raise the level of maturity of the student population of our colleges as well as "justify" a so-called free education which would no longer be free.
Sure, a domestic Peace Corps. We sure need it, and the link to education is a good idea.
well put!
Thanks!
What about putting together a proposal along the lines that I described referred to as what Steve so aptly alluded to as that of a "Domestic Peace Corps," and then sending it to a few congressmen or congresswomen who we feel might be receptive to such an idea perhaps even willing to sponsor such to the point of suggesting that it be developed into a bill taken up in congress. I really do think "the time has come" for such an idea..... especially since the President's idea of "free community college" was shot down by Kyrstan Synima. What do you think?
Absolutely brutal ....democracy is on its deathbed in the United States because people have completely different media diets. The polarization will be ramping up to 11 in 2022
The very people who need to read this article are nowhere near it.
They truly believe the January 6th near coup was just merely a visit to the capital...ugh
Congress has no teeth. Two time loser, in its pursuit of Impeachment. Democracy is on life support and the plug is about to be pulled. People like Bannon are showing America, the world, that this country is finished. It is just a matter of time, when the Military steps in to assume power. Go ahead.....laugh. Truly, what else is left? See how gun ownership goes after that!
When 74 million voters select a proto-fascist for the POTUS, our situation is not a trivial issue.
Up from 63 million voters in 2016. What will this number be in 2024? Joe Biden may be the last duly-elected president of The United States.
It tells me that people are suckers for fascism and that they haven't learned a damn thing from the days of Hitler.
So when are we going to see the blitzkrieg of Canada.? When are the tanks going to roll across the US - Canada border, Steve baby ?
Modern fascism does not involve tanks.
No, that's right, sorry, it's tweets, not tanks, isn't it ,Stevebaby. Those dangerous, powerful, killing TWEETS. Hitler would have tweeted his way into France.
Outstanding piece! It is incredibly important for our news media to recognize the ascent of fascism here and talk about what fascism is, so that the voters know what they are dealing with and its dangers. Fascism in its infancy needs to be nipped in the bud to prevent it from metastasizing. Jason Stanley said fascism is "the politics of us and them". From my psychology background, I feel that fascism is also the politics of lunacy, given that so many fascist leaders and its advocates have been sociopaths (APD). This makes me wonder about Bannon's mental state. We already know that Trump is a sociopath ( along with Mussolini, Hitler, Pinochet, Josef Mengele, Slobodan Milosevic, Allen Dulles, etc.) When these people become role models in society, they become destructive charismatic leaders. Followers get sucked into the maelstrom of lunacy. We can't afford to let the lunatics take over the asylum.
so yes to all that. But how long does that legal process take, especially when they just want to use up time?...
Write your representative. Do whatever you can to keep the heat on. Keep the faith.
Holding Bannon in contempt is an early test of the Biden administration's and congress's resolve to hold the line against Trump and his ongoing authoritarian leader cult girding to make a come back. Anything less is going to be seen as a sign of weakness. The rule of law must be vindicated and the legitimacy of democracy protected against debasement. This is a critical moment in the lead up to larger battles to come in 22 and 24.
Excellent piece.
My only input would be that rather than "noting that Bannon is defying the subpoena at Trump's request", I'd highlight that everyone around Trump only agrees with him out of (economic) self-interest. Trump is successful because he enables grifters. Bannon would surely try everything to duck the subpoena without Trump.
True!
Thank you for your clarity and strong voice on this issue! It is so needed and far too rare. I have heard so few people on the MSM approach Bannon this way. Last night I think it was Clint Watts who did a decent job of saying that Bannon actually wants to dismantle the administrative state, putting his subpoena rejection in that context.
Yes I have argued that too