Great piece. Given where all this could be heading, I find it odd that the media aren't talking about the military / National Guard and how they would or should react in the face of widespread Trumpist violence or a Trump coup attempt.
Authoritarian types tend to be spiritually impoverished and existentially fragile. They attempt to hide all that under toxic masculine narratives, including the use of violence. At least Trump, as a convicted felon, cannot legally purchase or own a firearm.
True, Kevin, but Trump feeds on getting others to do the dirty work of carrying out his vengeful deeds. He gets off on hiding behind plausible deniability...never the guy holding the smoking gun.
Trump may not be able to legally purchase or own a firearm, but multitudes of his MAGAts can. He never does his own dirty work, anyway. He, like his idol Putin, always leaves that to others.
Authoritarians tend to be psychopaths or sociopaths, and these people tend to be sadistic. They see nothing wrong with hurting others because they have no conscience. tRump attempted to throw a fellow cadet out of a second story window when he was at military school.
Without intimidation, there would be no MAGA. Without the constant threat of violence – moreover, without violence itself, as we all saw on January 6 – there would be no MAGA. Hate-based intimidation and violence are the twin pillars of Trumpism. This is not a political movement; it's a fascist movement.
I don't quite make such a distinction between fascist and political. Clearly Trump has had some major political objectives, such as reversing Roe v. Wade, making guns easier to obtain and helping disenfranchise voters who are likely to vote Democratic. But I would certainly agree that criminality is given a pride of place we've never seen before. For example, he hopes to pardon many of the Jan 6 insurrectionists. He literally celebrates their criminality.
I am vaguely aware that SCOTUS is going to decide another 2nd amendment case this term, regarding the prohibition of gun ownership of convicted domestic abusers =/ I can not think of a worse group of people (blood thirsty ammosexuals) to extend gun rights to! And I think it is super important to always connect Russia's deep deep involvement with the NRA when discussing these issues. AGH!! =]
Yes...Trump sends messages to his followers that he wants them to be violent on his behalf. He misleads them into believing that it's for their own good and he'll pay their legal bills or pardon them when he's president again, but it's really for the power-surge he gets to feel when he commands others to be tough and enact his violent fantasies. 😕 That's my opinion, JA.
I'm absolutely convinced he *will* pardon many of the January 6 insurrectionists. It sends a message to all Americans, and moreover, he needs them as future "enforcers."
And, just as with the Nazis, our plutocrat captains of industry, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley, are on board, believing that they can control Trump/MAGA with their wealth and influence, ride the whirlwind, and reap the rewards. Someone needs to send each and every one of them a copy of "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" or comparable chronicle of how it went for the German moguls.
Also worth noting is what's being euphemistically called the "abrupt exit" late Sunday of Sally Buzbee as executive editor of The Washington Post, owned by Jeff Bezos. The deed was carried out by Bezos's handpicked publisher, Will Lewis, a Rupert Murdoch disciple who came aboard in January. Lewis has busily filled key positions with other Murdoch acolytes from The Wall Street Journal and Fleet Street to create a right-wing bro culture at the very top. Yes, The Washington Post, once led by the likes of Katharine Graham, Ben Bradlee, Len Downie and Marty Baron, is now 100% controlled by Murdochites. And if that doesn't chill your bones, then probably nothing will.
Ty for filling us in on this change at the Wa Post. Chilling is right. Just read the 6/4/24 NYT article about how "the newsroom reels from the sudden exit of top editor." It all jives with your summary only you got more to the core of what is really happening. Murdoch acolytes indeed. This article said how unusual it is for a change of this magnitude to take place in the home stretch of a presidential election.
This time, the Trumpists won't be leaving anything to chance. And what better way to gain momentum than to heavily slant campaign coverage, Murdoch-style, at The Post?
Gene, you are right on the money again. Well said. And I can readily see how Jeff Bezos enters in as well, one of the billionaire class without outsize influence in our nation along with the Jamie Dimon’s who think no problem, we will be fine with a second Trump presidency. All prob thinking as Ruth says what happened in Germany, “we can control him.” Uh huh.
It is certainly in keeping with the fascist play book with the top priority being to control the press and the flow of information to the public. I am cancelling my WP subscription.
Ravi, thanks for the link to your YouTube channel...I've found a lot of really interesting videos regarding the larger psycho-social context that's called Neo-liberalism, and how it can perpetuate inequalities that cause emotional distress and may lead to violence.
This essay is spot on and in the coming months it will prove to be even more relevant. The interesting thing for me is that when the convicted felon calls for crowds to storm in the streets , they don’t materialize. On the other hand, his cult sent him $52 million dollars( they say) for his campaign/ legal bills, in the days following the guilty verdict. Thank you for your essay.
Don't forget that even before Trump, militia- and survivalist-types were stockpiling weapons and munitions like crazy. On a long ride across Idaho in the aughts with the tow-truck driver who rescued us when or vehicle broke down many miles from nowhere, the driver told us that locals were hoarding vast quantities of bullets and ammunition boxes in which to store them. If true, and there were no obvious signs that he was having us on, this doesn't bode well for the future. Let's hope that at least some of the most volatile individuals there heeded Trump's call and are doing time for their actions on January 6.
I once lived in a Regressive (as opposed to Progressive) Oregon town. The day after Obama's election the entire firearms and ammunitions section of a multipurpose store was sold out. I suppose those folks still have their armaments.
The chat with Hawa Allan last night held much salience. One point: non-violent resistance is most effective in the form of local and national civic engagement (throughout each year, as well as in electoral years), but the unspoken poignant reality is that the efficacy of non-violence is best displayed by the scope and size of the resistant cohort. In light of the fact that violence is now at the core and on the face of the MAGA movement, we mustn't allow fear to diminish the numbers of active resistors. Size and scope are crucial, and that requires a resolute unwillingness to be threatened, chilled and/or intimidated in any way. Inversely put: resistors must be non-violent but also willing to sustain harm. It's a simple formula, but it presents the most formidable challenge: the willingness to be hurt. That is at the heart of all effective passive resistance. If we abjectly outnumber the brutes, we will defeat them. If we're cowering chilled (not engaged) we're already defeated.
You know it! The Jan 6 goobers barely had a drum to beat. No grace. Just blecch. Folks who’d spurn a home on the Champs Elyseé because there was no Home Depot nearby. At any rate…our music is better https://youtu.be/Znl0Tc1Dolk?si=lmUMItpdg7uOiTfY
Hmm. I feel the things you advocate are certainly helpful, but depending on how much violence is used in the future, it might not be sufficient. For example, I hope constitutional democracy can count on the military to support it.
I was referring to a situation in which Trump tries to terminate the Constitution and set up a new form of government in all or part of what is currently US territory, using violence and intimidation to do so.
As one who grew up with pretty constant violence against me, I want to stay as far away from it as I can. What I see in Matt Gaetz and others, is that violence is what you turn to when you have no ideas and you don't want to do the job you are being paid to do. But you want power.
These trumpers are traitors. I think a systemic sociological approach to this problem might be helpful if it isn’t too late. Meaning, trump didn’t emerge from a vacuum. Unless and until the system that enabled trump and which continues to perpetuate inequality and injustice is changed, unfortunately bullies will increasingly bamboozle people and operate violently. Sad to say, but many people lack political sophistication and advanced higher education in areas like the humanities. And that too is a contributing factor in trump’s rise.
It appears trump and his gang are being enabled (and have been long enabled) by the very system they are threatening to dismantle. That sounds a bit convoluted and there’s a complex dynamic at play that I’m not qualified to delve into on my own. Threeway Fight and the book Insurgent Supremacy: The U.S. Far Right’s Challenge to State and Empire by Matthew Lyons digs into that pretty thoroughly.
Great piece. Given where all this could be heading, I find it odd that the media aren't talking about the military / National Guard and how they would or should react in the face of widespread Trumpist violence or a Trump coup attempt.
Sad and sickening that this post is even more relevant now.
Authoritarian types tend to be spiritually impoverished and existentially fragile. They attempt to hide all that under toxic masculine narratives, including the use of violence. At least Trump, as a convicted felon, cannot legally purchase or own a firearm.
True, Kevin, but Trump feeds on getting others to do the dirty work of carrying out his vengeful deeds. He gets off on hiding behind plausible deniability...never the guy holding the smoking gun.
Yes, this is narcissistic triangulation.
Stochastic terrorism.
Trump may not be able to legally purchase or own a firearm, but multitudes of his MAGAts can. He never does his own dirty work, anyway. He, like his idol Putin, always leaves that to others.
And he and Dr. Ronnie Jackson better stop playing fast and loose with the drugs.
The DEA needs to bust that quack!
Esp now Jackson is nominated to the Intelligence Committee...
Extremely scary, Ruth
Authoritarians tend to be psychopaths or sociopaths, and these people tend to be sadistic. They see nothing wrong with hurting others because they have no conscience. tRump attempted to throw a fellow cadet out of a second story window when he was at military school.
Without intimidation, there would be no MAGA. Without the constant threat of violence – moreover, without violence itself, as we all saw on January 6 – there would be no MAGA. Hate-based intimidation and violence are the twin pillars of Trumpism. This is not a political movement; it's a fascist movement.
I don't quite make such a distinction between fascist and political. Clearly Trump has had some major political objectives, such as reversing Roe v. Wade, making guns easier to obtain and helping disenfranchise voters who are likely to vote Democratic. But I would certainly agree that criminality is given a pride of place we've never seen before. For example, he hopes to pardon many of the Jan 6 insurrectionists. He literally celebrates their criminality.
I am vaguely aware that SCOTUS is going to decide another 2nd amendment case this term, regarding the prohibition of gun ownership of convicted domestic abusers =/ I can not think of a worse group of people (blood thirsty ammosexuals) to extend gun rights to! And I think it is super important to always connect Russia's deep deep involvement with the NRA when discussing these issues. AGH!! =]
Love "Ammosexuals"
I forget where I read that but its so awesome =]
Trump will be fine in Florida where there is OPEN CARRY! Hope he stays “in state.”
He is egging for conflict and violence? Openly, cheering his MAGA supporters?
How pathetic and appalling. Definitely add that to the Trump resume for dictatorship!
Yes...Trump sends messages to his followers that he wants them to be violent on his behalf. He misleads them into believing that it's for their own good and he'll pay their legal bills or pardon them when he's president again, but it's really for the power-surge he gets to feel when he commands others to be tough and enact his violent fantasies. 😕 That's my opinion, JA.
Michael Cohen warned sometime ago that Trump always speaks in “codes.”
Perfect example! Thanks.
I'm absolutely convinced he *will* pardon many of the January 6 insurrectionists. It sends a message to all Americans, and moreover, he needs them as future "enforcers."
Ugh...the thought that he could ever be in the White House again sickens and alarms me beyond words to describe.
And, just as with the Nazis, our plutocrat captains of industry, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley, are on board, believing that they can control Trump/MAGA with their wealth and influence, ride the whirlwind, and reap the rewards. Someone needs to send each and every one of them a copy of "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" or comparable chronicle of how it went for the German moguls.
PBS and The BBC recently aired a documentry sieries about Hilters inner circle. I think it was made with these plutocrats directly in mind. https://www.pbs.org/video/gradual-rise-nazi-germany-fosvk4/
agh!!! it aired in 2022! Time seems all messed up and accelerated. I think that is a know affect of these situations =/
Actually I think this is the series I meant to reference: https://www.pbs.org/video/trailer-infzaz/
Also worth noting is what's being euphemistically called the "abrupt exit" late Sunday of Sally Buzbee as executive editor of The Washington Post, owned by Jeff Bezos. The deed was carried out by Bezos's handpicked publisher, Will Lewis, a Rupert Murdoch disciple who came aboard in January. Lewis has busily filled key positions with other Murdoch acolytes from The Wall Street Journal and Fleet Street to create a right-wing bro culture at the very top. Yes, The Washington Post, once led by the likes of Katharine Graham, Ben Bradlee, Len Downie and Marty Baron, is now 100% controlled by Murdochites. And if that doesn't chill your bones, then probably nothing will.
!!!
Ty for filling us in on this change at the Wa Post. Chilling is right. Just read the 6/4/24 NYT article about how "the newsroom reels from the sudden exit of top editor." It all jives with your summary only you got more to the core of what is really happening. Murdoch acolytes indeed. This article said how unusual it is for a change of this magnitude to take place in the home stretch of a presidential election.
This time, the Trumpists won't be leaving anything to chance. And what better way to gain momentum than to heavily slant campaign coverage, Murdoch-style, at The Post?
Gene, you are right on the money again. Well said. And I can readily see how Jeff Bezos enters in as well, one of the billionaire class without outsize influence in our nation along with the Jamie Dimon’s who think no problem, we will be fine with a second Trump presidency. All prob thinking as Ruth says what happened in Germany, “we can control him.” Uh huh.
On X I called it the Merdochification of US news media
It is certainly in keeping with the fascist play book with the top priority being to control the press and the flow of information to the public. I am cancelling my WP subscription.
It's awful
I'm trying to keep a playlist going on the subject -
Extremism: Leaders push an ecosystem for violence
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEIC7U9CNsrKiUFbX1XiLy-ORaTTuCPDJ&si=8TguA0mDGztp5Qms
Ravi, thanks for the link to your YouTube channel...I've found a lot of really interesting videos regarding the larger psycho-social context that's called Neo-liberalism, and how it can perpetuate inequalities that cause emotional distress and may lead to violence.
That's a chilling image, Ruth, but an accurate "brand" for maybe a third of the country..."A MAGA hat and a gun." 😕
I wonder how we might "brand" ourselves if we were going to think like that?
This essay is spot on and in the coming months it will prove to be even more relevant. The interesting thing for me is that when the convicted felon calls for crowds to storm in the streets , they don’t materialize. On the other hand, his cult sent him $52 million dollars( they say) for his campaign/ legal bills, in the days following the guilty verdict. Thank you for your essay.
Don't forget that even before Trump, militia- and survivalist-types were stockpiling weapons and munitions like crazy. On a long ride across Idaho in the aughts with the tow-truck driver who rescued us when or vehicle broke down many miles from nowhere, the driver told us that locals were hoarding vast quantities of bullets and ammunition boxes in which to store them. If true, and there were no obvious signs that he was having us on, this doesn't bode well for the future. Let's hope that at least some of the most volatile individuals there heeded Trump's call and are doing time for their actions on January 6.
I once lived in a Regressive (as opposed to Progressive) Oregon town. The day after Obama's election the entire firearms and ammunitions section of a multipurpose store was sold out. I suppose those folks still have their armaments.
Fascists will kill if necessary to get their way.
@ Ollie I have traveled out West and let me tell you, there are places where the hatred of libs from the East coast , is palpable.
The chat with Hawa Allan last night held much salience. One point: non-violent resistance is most effective in the form of local and national civic engagement (throughout each year, as well as in electoral years), but the unspoken poignant reality is that the efficacy of non-violence is best displayed by the scope and size of the resistant cohort. In light of the fact that violence is now at the core and on the face of the MAGA movement, we mustn't allow fear to diminish the numbers of active resistors. Size and scope are crucial, and that requires a resolute unwillingness to be threatened, chilled and/or intimidated in any way. Inversely put: resistors must be non-violent but also willing to sustain harm. It's a simple formula, but it presents the most formidable challenge: the willingness to be hurt. That is at the heart of all effective passive resistance. If we abjectly outnumber the brutes, we will defeat them. If we're cowering chilled (not engaged) we're already defeated.
A little skulduggery and creative finesse doesn't hurt, either. We've got to be more creative than those guys, surely.
You know it! The Jan 6 goobers barely had a drum to beat. No grace. Just blecch. Folks who’d spurn a home on the Champs Elyseé because there was no Home Depot nearby. At any rate…our music is better https://youtu.be/Znl0Tc1Dolk?si=lmUMItpdg7uOiTfY
Hmm. I feel the things you advocate are certainly helpful, but depending on how much violence is used in the future, it might not be sufficient. For example, I hope constitutional democracy can count on the military to support it.
I prefer nonviolence. But we also have a right, and a duty, for self defense.
I was referring to a situation in which Trump tries to terminate the Constitution and set up a new form of government in all or part of what is currently US territory, using violence and intimidation to do so.
Yes glad you found the chat helpful
As one who grew up with pretty constant violence against me, I want to stay as far away from it as I can. What I see in Matt Gaetz and others, is that violence is what you turn to when you have no ideas and you don't want to do the job you are being paid to do. But you want power.
As a felon, he can legally own a gun, (whether or not it has a picture of his face on it,) in NEITHER New York nor Florida.
TRUMP: "I'd like to purchase this gun with my face on it please."
GUN CLERK: "Certainly, Mr President. I'll just need you to fill out this form ..."
And no lying on that form, mr president.
Adderal addiction will get him another rigged trial…
These trumpers are traitors. I think a systemic sociological approach to this problem might be helpful if it isn’t too late. Meaning, trump didn’t emerge from a vacuum. Unless and until the system that enabled trump and which continues to perpetuate inequality and injustice is changed, unfortunately bullies will increasingly bamboozle people and operate violently. Sad to say, but many people lack political sophistication and advanced higher education in areas like the humanities. And that too is a contributing factor in trump’s rise.
I'm questioning why Trump and his MAGA followers aren't being prosecuted for terrorism. That's clearly their endgame.
It appears trump and his gang are being enabled (and have been long enabled) by the very system they are threatening to dismantle. That sounds a bit convoluted and there’s a complex dynamic at play that I’m not qualified to delve into on my own. Threeway Fight and the book Insurgent Supremacy: The U.S. Far Right’s Challenge to State and Empire by Matthew Lyons digs into that pretty thoroughly.