bennett123 wrote:The US is not out of the woods yet.
These are scary times.
We certainly are not...
Avatar2go wrote:BN747 wrote:
America has a long way to go to recover from this, if it can the damage is so deep, so many minds warped into believing the Big Lie and worse
...and voting some 4 weeks away should give a clear picture of how disjointed American society is OR the possibility of of a brighter America.
How the hell did it come down this?
I think you've captured the sentiment of a large fraction of Americans. When I learned about the WW2 history of Germany and Japan in high school, I used to wonder how their leadership could come to power. I think Trump has given us a lesson on how it's done.
You first stoke, and then tap into, anger of the people against their own government. You tell them they've been abused, cheated, persecuted. Then you promise that you're on their side and will fix things for them, but you need their unconditional loyalty and support. It's essential for them to remain angry, to suppress any rational reflections they might have, on what's really happening.
I remember Trump's inaugural address, that was so dark, full of foreboding and laying out a terrible dystopian vision of America. Such a huge change from the optimism typically expressed by new Presidents.
I realize now that was a necessary component of the strategy. Happy and optimistic people won't support a maniacal person in pursuit of power. They have to be unhappy, pessimistic and angry. You have to stoke their fears and assure them they are real, and that only you stand between them and doom. Only you will stand up for them.
That essentially defines the MAGAs. Those who rely on them must keep asserting that "they are coming to get you, unless you support me". That is the magic MAGA formula.
So that is how we got here. It will probably take a generation to undo this damage to the fabric of America. There will always be public figures willing to exploit others. But the people have to learn not to be exploited. That's always been an American strength.
Your mention of WW 2 reminded me of watching Midway (2018) for the 20+ time...a brilliant depiction of how fragile new giant America really was.
Seeing these young guys flying in those buckets of bolts taking down a massive mightier opponent. This plus the Morgan Spector starred mini-series Plot Against America - where 1930s aviation hero Charles Lindbergh, bestie of Hermann Goehring succeed in talking America out even entering WW 2 - which in real life did come very close as the Lindberghs slunk back into shame
as many MAGA fans should be made feel...they're appreciation for America is limited only for themselves - not all other Americans.
It was Lincoln who had the foresight to state 'America is Humanity's last best hope...' paraphrasing but his point is clear...tyrants, kings, ruthless leaders always end in devastating fashion.
..and today his words are no more profound.
As the world is on edge with so much going on, stable leadership is needed more now that ever...and stable leadership has never come in the form of insecure men too afraid
to suit up for military service but will trash fallen soldiers at the drop of hat. In street vernacular, a punk bitch who has never throw a punch in a street fight. I'm not advocating violence as I'm
merely pointing out someone who doesn't know the pain of being hit or hitting and hurting someone should never be behind the tiller of power. Especially in a world were those like Trump's puppet
master Putin is not afraid of mass indiscriminate killing.
Get rid of guys like him..and then there is no need for military forces. But this is not that world.
America's military might is indeed something to marvel but in the hand of a stark raving lunatic calling them 'his generals' aka dictator speak..surely could have taken the world to it's worst nightmare.
Allow me to expand on your post a bit with what I have seen in my years.
As a young military brat, i was a flag waving Iron Mike (Ft. Bragg) kid, thought tough talking Calif. Gov. Reagan was great candidate against Nixon in 1968.
By 1976, the late RFK message had set in I was all in for Carter as I had learned of Reagan's cooperation with Red Scare Joe McCarthy.
But what I have observed in the progress of race relations was this...
Reagan's 3rd attempt (1980) was launched in Philadelphia, Miss - the same town where a young black man and young two white men James Cheney, Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman Civil Rights were killed (1964) trying to register Black voters.
When Reagan did that, it cause me to do some due diligence, which I have been since.
When Carter won, his call for worldwide respect of Human Rights a volley fired at brutal dictators including those the US had installed - this was met with scorn and ridicule at home and abroad.
This was the beginning of the lethal nastiness in politics, apparently two political assassinations combined with Civil Rights leaders being killed..politics had go extra nasty with words triggering action.
Republicans and politically frightened Democrats (most) totally roasted him for even suggesting America ween itself off Saudi oil...45 years ago. Imagine had we listened instead of resorting to ridicule.
Republicans exploited his first Black cabinet positions instead of cheering those achievements...yes they had the right to be racist, but did it help or hurt the nation?
The people saw, heard and got that message loud and clear.
Sure, pre-Reagan, Lee Atwater lit the match for Repubicans under Nixon in racial hatred, while Blacks were getting their act together politically, it became clear this had to be knee capped at every turn.
Reagan wins after successfully character assassination of Carter and running interference with the Iran Hostages event which was later exposed in Iran-Contra.
Reagan and Bush played the tough guy American leader role well, Bush was accomplished as he was a WWII pilot, Reagan..a B-rated actor playing the part with great speech writers
and periodic wife whispers in his ear, as ion telling him what to say... in front of the world.
Now, today it is exposed that Reagan's War on Drugs was merely a spinoff of Nixon's War on Crime - and outright Racist campaign against Black America.
..and it worked, white Americans saw welfare queens, crackheads everywhere. The message was getting through to them..steer clear of the Dems and the minorities.
Bush Sr, hit one out of the park when he replaced the seat on Supreme Court (noble Civil Rights champion) Thurgood Marshall with a younger Hershel Walker, Clarence Thomas, the kind of
Black man who hates his own skin so much he's employ the speed of light to out run it if he could. Blacks were taught to hate themselves for several hundreds of years..of course there are
residuals. By getting Thomas (Anita Hill would have been a far superior jurist) on the bench, he silenced white Liberals because he picked a Black man and silenced Black people with sheer
shock of pulling it off.
There has always been a white baklash in America when progress is made by Blacks, now women, now gays, now any sex anyone wishes to be that not to the liking of the Religious Right (the
largest gathering of perverts out there).
Clinton, played both sides, pacifying many conservative whites while sticking with the War on Drugs (while drug cargo filtered thru Arkansas while he was gov. see Eugene Hasenfuss story).
His reign sent white Americans toward another fake tough guy, George W. Bush..who looked into Putin's soul, and saw what exactly?
His madness sent the America toward wanting lesser war mongering - to Obama.
The world celebrate America's milestone - half of America did not see it that way at all. A Black dude in the White House. I don't recall Russia celebrating this, perhaps this when Putin
planned the idea in TraitorTrump's mind that Obama was not, actually an American. That's a muse on my part given Trump has no mind for factual historical interests in any shape or form.
Regardless, all the voting/polling data his 'caught & burned agent' Paul Manafort had shipped off to Russia during the Trump 2016 campaign paid off - on Facebook, where they would really
crank up the racial hatred on Obama paving the way for the MAGA Minds we saw raiding, fighting, pissing and shitting in the US Capitol.
That's how we got there from where I sit,
The old adage of History repeats itself does come to mind as I see that people have difficulties in transferring lessons learned generationally.
In 2022, we have a freakin' governor in Florida running a 'don't say Gay' campaign, in other states, don't talk about slavery, etc...
It's long past time for the War of Ignorance.
BN747