DENIAL AIN’T A RIVER IN AFRICA
COMPILATION AND COMMENTS
BY LUCY M. WARNER
FEBRUARY 25, 2017


THE FOLLOWING EXCERPT IS TAKEN FROM: NEWSCIENTIST.COM’S ARTICLE ON THE PSYCHOLOGY OF THESE REACTIONARY MASS MOVEMENTS.

“…. The actions of many of our politicians are starting to feel dangerous, and it’s time we countered them by planting seed ideas for the future we want our society to grow in.”

ONE OF THE EARLY TERMS I LEARNED FROM HEARING AND READING POLITICAL NEWS IS “DENIABILITY.” THAT’S A CYNICALLY CONSTRUCTED CONCEPT THAT TELLS IT ALL, AS TO THE HONESTY OF POLITICS AS A GAME AND POLITICIANS AS PLAYERS. I DON’T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO ”STATESMANSHIP” AND “SERVING THE PEOPLE,” BUT IT IS NOT QUITE, BUT ALMOST, GONE, GONE, GONE. IF THE OLD STORY OF DIOGENES WANDERING AROUND WITH A LIGHT “LOOKING FOR AN HONEST MAN” IS TRUE; THEN MY ASSUMPTION, BASED ON THE BEST INFORMATION, THAT DISHONESTY IS AS MUCH A PART OF US AS THE NEED TO EAT, SLEEP AND MATE IS UNAVOIDABLE. SO, I FORGIVE SINS RELATED TO THOSE THINGS. WHAT WE MUST NOT FAIL TO UNDERSTAND, HOWEVER, IS THAT THIS PARTICULAR POWER SEEKING GAME IS ACTUALLY WARFARE. IT IS A WAR WAGED ON THE LESS WEALTHY AND HIGHLY PLACED IN SOCIETY, BY THOSE WHO ARE IN A SOCIALLY AND POLITICALLY HIGHER POSITION. THE AUTHOR REMINDS US THAT TO STOP THIS TREND WE HAVE TO PLANT THE RIGHT KINDS OF SEEDS. THAT IS SO TRUE. I BELIEVE THE RIGHT SEEDS ARE A GOOD AND HOPEFULLY WELL-ROUNDED EDUCATION THAT ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT EXCLUDE THE LIBERAL ARTS AS BEING SOMETHING “EXTRA,” OR UNNECESSARY, BECAUSE THEY ARE THE VERY BASIS OF A BETTER AND KINDER SOUL.

I AM NOT WITHOUT HOPE, BECAUSE EVERY TIME A BABY IS BORN, HE OR SHE CAN BE LED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTIONS -- AWAY FROM DOGMATISM, A HIGHLY NEGATIVE AND WARLIKE SORT OF PATRIOTISM, A LACK OF UNDERSTANDING OF OUR FELLOW MAN – AND TOWARD THE ENJOYMENT OF QUIET CONTEMPLATION OVER A CONSTANT DIN OF FOOTBALL GAMES, AND THE LOVE OF LEARNING FOR ITS’ OWN SAKE. IF A CHILD IS BROUGHT UP THAT WAY, HE WILL GRAVITATE TOWARD FAIRNESS AND HONESTY, AND BE THE ONE WHO SPEAKS UP AGAINST THE BULLY. IN OTHER WORDS, HE WILL HAVE A GENUINE MIND OF HIS OWN AND THE COURAGE TO STAND BEHIND THAT. THE FEWER CITIZENS OF THAT TYPE THAT WE HAVE, THE WEAKER WILL OUR DEMOCRACY BECOME. GIVEN THAT NOT EVERY BABY WILL EVER BE BROUGHT UP THAT WAY, LET US AS INDIVIDUAL CITIZENS SPEAK UP AND SPEAK OUT FOR THE KIND OF DECENCY TO WHICH WE NEED TO RETURN. IT WOULD BE INTERESTING IF GENTLY MOTIVATED AND CIVIC MINDED PEOPLE WOULD GO TO CHURCHES AND ASK TO START A DISCUSSION GROUP, NOT TO REPLACE THE CHURCH TEACHING, BUT TO SUPPLEMENT IT. ONE OF THE PROBLEMS WE HAVE THESE DAYS IS THAT SO FEW PEOPLE ARE BEING BROUGHT UP WITH A GOOD GROUNDING IN HOW TO DEVELOP OUR INNER BEING.

THE ACTUAL GOAL OF THE ALT-RIGHT IS TO STRIP OUT ALL INDIVIDUAL FREEDOMS – ESPECIALLY THE FREEDOM TO THINK, SPEAK OUR OPINIONS AND JOIN GROUPS TO IMPROVE OUR POSITIONS IN LIFE. THE REASON PEOPLE LIKE TOO MANY OF THE BILLIONAIRE CLASS DO PURSUE THIS “DIVIDE AND CONQUER” STRATEGY IS THAT THEIR OVERWEENING GREED AND DESIRE FOR MORE BLING AND MORE POWER, TELLS THEM THAT ONLY THEY AND PEOPLE LIKE THEM “MATTER.” REMEMBER LEONA HELMSLEY’S SHOCKING COMMENT THAT “ONLY THE LITTLE PEOPLE PAY TAXES?” THE IRS TAUGHT HER A MUCH-NEEDED LESSON, AS I REMEMBER. THE INTERNET HAS SEVERAL ARTICLES LINKING HER WITH TRUMP HIMSELF AS FRIENDS, UNTIL THEY HAD A FALLING OUT IN 1989, AT WHICH POINT HE WROTE HER “A VITRIOLIC LETTER.” LATER IN 2003 HIS WIFE IVANKA AND HE WERE AT A SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT WITH HELMSLEY AND HE – ACCORDING TO A FAIRLY GOSSIPY AND PROBABLY THEREFORE UNRELIABLE SOURCE – MALICIOUSLY POURED AN ENTIRE BOTTLE OF RED WINE INTO THE HOOD OF HER COAT. OH, DEAR, DEAR, DEAR! FOR THOSE STORIES, GO TO -- http://www.orbmagazine.com/the-orbiter/he-tells-it-like-it-is-trumps-war-on-leona-helmsley-was-first-revealed-by-donald-himself/.” WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE DOMINANT GROUPS BECOME AS POWERFUL AS THEY HAPPEN TO BE TODAY, IS THAT OUR COUNTRY AS A STABLE AND CIVILIZED NATION COULD SIMPLY DISAPPEAR, UNTIL THE POWERFUL FALL DUE TO THEIR OWN MACHINATIONS.

I CONSIDER THE GREAT DEPRESSION OF THE 1930S TO BE ONE OF THOSE EVENTS. SINCE THE FIST-TIGHTENING OF THE INDUSTRIALISTS ON WORKER WAGES IN THE 1920S ENDED IN SUCH EXTREME POVERTY AND LACK OF ACCESS TO A LITTLE BIT OF CASH TO SPEND AT THE GENERAL STORE, THE ECONOMY OF THE NATION SIMPLY DIED – UNTIL FDR, THAT IS. THE WEALTHY WERE FINANCIALLY STRESSED IN THAT TIME, ALSO. THERE ARE STORIES OF TYCOONS LOSING ALL THEIR MONEY, AND AT LEAST ONE SUICIDE OVER THAT. THE RESULT IS THAT THE DEMAND FOR PRODUCT WENT DOWN AND THE ECONOMY SLOWED TO ALMOST NOTHING. MY FATHER SAID THAT THERE WAS SO LITTLE MONEY FLOW THAT PEOPLE COULDN’T BUY, SO BUSINESSES WENT UNDER FINANCIALLY, AND MANY AMERICANS BEGAN TO OPERATE AGAIN ON A BARTER BASIS. PEOPLE TRADED THINGS LIKE HOME GROWN SWEET POTATOES FOR MEDICAL FEES, OR LABOR IN LIEU OF PAY, FOR INSTANCE.

ONE OF THESE DAYS AN ANGRIER, HUNGRIER GROUP – SUCH AS RUSSIA – MAY INDEED ENGAGE US MILITARILY AND WE MIGHT LOSE OUR SELF-DESCRIBED STATUS AS “THE GREATEST NATION ON EARTH.” I HOPE THAT FEAR DOES NOT PAN OUT TO BE FATED, BUT RATHER A PREVENTABLE POSSIBILITY. I ALSO HOPE THAT WHAT APPEARS TO BE AN OUTRIGHT ATTEMPT BY VLADIMIR PUTIN TO PUT IN A PUPPET GOVERNMENT, HAS BEEN CIRCUMVENTED, OR WILL BE, BY A DEEP PROBE INTO THE NEAR DESTRUCTION OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND THE TRUMP/RUSSIAN FINANCIAL COMPLICATIONS, ENDING IN TRUMP’S REMOVAL FROM THE PRESIDENCY. HIS IDEA THAT RUSSIA IS GOING TO BE A FRIEND TO THE USA OR HIMSELF PERSONALLY IS BIZARRE. WHERE HAS HE BEEN FOR THE LAST 70 YEARS? OR PERHAPS THAT’S JUST HIS WAY OF DEFLECTING THE EYE FROM HIS COLLUSION WITH AN ENEMY POWER FOR PERSONAL GAIN.

IN THIS FIRST ARTICLE, WE SEE WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN SEAN SPICER DEFENDING HIS GROUP AGAINST THOSE OF US WHO SEE THE EMPEROR WALKING DOWN THE STREET WITHOUT A STITCH ON AND CRY OUT THAT HE IS NAKED. A HIGHLY VOCAL CHORUS COMING FROM CLEAR-SIGHTED AND HONEST CITIZENS IS LINKING THE XENOPHOBIC RHETORIC OF DONALD TRUMP WITH A SHARP UPSURGE SINCE THE ELECTION, OF REAL LIFE ONGOING HATE CRIMES, ESPECIALLY AGAINST FOREIGNERS. IN THIS KANSAS EVENT BELOW, THE SHOOTER WAS DESCRIBED BY THE OWNER OF THE BAR AS YELLING “GET OUT OF MY COUNTRY.” SOMEBODY SHOULD TELL HIM IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS THAT THIS ISN’T “HIS” COUNTRY, BUT “OUR” COUNTRY, AND I FOR ONE WANT TO HAVE A THRIVING CULTURAL INTERFACE OF THE TYPE THAT IS FOUND IN PLACES LIKE LARGE COLLEGE CAMPUSES AND CITIES. TO A CERTAIN DEGREE, SPICER ET AL. CAN BE FORGIVEN FOR NOT TAKING RESPONSIBILITY, BECAUSE THE HUMAN BEING IS MORALLY FLAWED, AND WHEN CONFRONTED WITH A CRIME IN WHICH WE ARE AT LEAST COMPLICIT, ARE PRONE TO LYING ABOUT IT FIRST, AND THINKING ABOUT HOW THEIR STORY SOUNDS LATER. WE HAVE WATCHED SEVERAL OF THESE VERBAL MISSTEPS BEING CORRECTED AND “EXPLAINED” WITHIN A DAY OR SO, SO I’LL BET THIS CASE WILL BE ANOTHER ONE.

THAT HAS BEEN A PRIMARY CHARACTERISTIC OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION FROM THE BEGINNING, BUT IT IS A TOTALLY TRANSPARENT KNEEJERK DEFENSE IN THIS CASE. TRUMP’S RABBLE ROUSING HAS PRODUCED A LARGELY BLUE-COLLAR MALE AND FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIAN FOLLOWING FOR HIM, BUT INCLUDED IN THAT SHAMEFULLY CONDUCTED ELECTION ARE CASES OF SIMPLE HUMAN STUPIDITY AND CRUELTY. AS I’VE SAID ABOUT A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT THINGS LATELY, THAT ISN’T SURPRISING, BUT IT IS VERY, VERY SAD. OUR OFTEN DECENT, CARING AND HONEST POPULATION IS VEERING TOWARD AN ALMOST DEMONIC TRAIT SEEN IN LYNCH MOBS AND NAZI GERMANY. PEOPLE DISAVOW ANY PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR WORKING TO TURN THE TREND OF THE CROWD. THAT MAY MAKE SOME PEOPLE SAFER, BUT IT DOESN’T MAKE THEM HEROES.

SOME OF HIS FOLLOWERS HAVE BEEN CAUGHT ON VIDEO GIVING A HITLER-LIKE HAND SALUTE, WHICH IS CLEAR EVIDENCE OF APPROVAL OF EVENTS WHICH TRULY ARE ANATHEMA TO WHAT I CONSIDER A “REAL AMERICAN” TO BE. AND IN ONE PHOTO TRUMP WAS GIVING THE SAME SALUTE TO THE AUDIENCE. WHAT ARE THOSE OF US WHO FEAR SUCH A PAINFULLY FAMILIAR AND VIRULENT KIND OF EVIL TO THINK? IT’S LIKE SMALLPOX, EBOLA, RABIES.

JUST SAY IT ISN’T SO? WELL, WE WON’T DO THAT. THE PROTESTS AND FURIOUS INTERNET CHATTER WILL CONTINUE, AND VERY PROBABLY GET EVEN LOUDER AND MORE IMPLACABLE. STORIES LIKE THIS ONE OF KILLING AN INDIAN MAN – WHO MAY HAVE BEEN WEARING A TURBAN -- CAN’T AND MUSTN’T BE IGNORED. WHAT IT SAYS ABOUT OUR SOCIETY RIGHT NOW IS FRIGHTFUL. SPICER’S STATEMENT THAT “IT WOULD BE ABSURD” TO LINK THE VICIOUS AND POINTLESS KILLING TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP’S PERSONAL RHETORIC, IS ON A PAR WITH THE “BLOOD COMING OUT” COMMENT MADE JUST A FEW MONTHS AGO, BY HIS BOSS. SICKNESS AND EVIL ARE SPAWNING TOGETHER IN THE ALLEYWAYS ALREADY UNDER THE TRUMP INFLUENCE, AND WE ARE IN DEEP TROUBLE. UNFORTUNATELY, I NOW KEEP TRACK OF EVERY PIECE OF NEWS, NOT JUST BECAUSE IT’S FASCINATING, BUT TO REASSURE MYSELF THAT NOTHING WORSE HAS BEEN HAPPENING OVERNIGHT WHILE I SLEPT.



https://www.yahoo.com/news/white-house-says-too-early-guess-motive-kansas-192451250.html

White House says too early to guess at motive in Kansas shooting
Reuters
February 24, 2017

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A White House spokesman, addressing the fatal shooting of an Indian engineer and the wounding of two other men in Kansas this week, said on Friday any loss of life is tragic but it would be absurd to link the action to President Donald Trump's rhetoric.

Spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters it was too early to guess at the motive for the incident, in which a man opened fire in a bar, prompting concern that Trump's "America First" stance on immigration and jobs has fueled a climate of intolerance.

(Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe; Writing by Eric Walsh; Editing by David Alexander)



CONFIRMATION BIAS / HONOR CULTURE / CONSIDERATIONS / SEED IDEAS / THE TRUMP TWEETS AND RESPONSES TO THEM


FROM THE NEWSCIENTIST ARTICLE BELOW COMES A WHOLE BUNCH OF WISDOM. READ IT SLOWLY ENOUGH TO SAVOR AND CONSIDER IT FULLY. WE NEED BETTER “SEED IDEAS” AGAIN. OF COURSE, WE ALSO DO NEED TO BE AWARE THAT WE ARE NOT IN A NORMAL TIME PERIOD FOR THE USA, AT ALL, AND THAT IT IS NOT AN OPTION IN A RATIONAL PERSON TO IGNORE THE PROBLEMS AND TENDENCIES AS THINGS THAT OUR LEADERS WILL SIMPLY “TAKE CARE OF,” SO WE CAN JUST GO BACK TO OUR SOAP OPERAS AND BALL GAMES WITHOUT BECOMING MORE INVOLVED IN “THE SOLUTION.” THE WELL-WORN PHRASE “THE PRICE OF LIBERTY IS CONSTANT VIGILANCE,” APPLIES IN THIS CASE, ONLY THE ENEMY IS COMING FROM WITHIN. THE PRESENCE OF A FOREIGNER IS NOT NECESSARILY A THREAT, BUT OUR REACTING IN FEAR/HATRED/VIOLENCE TO A FOREIGNER ARE THREATS TO THE VERY NATURE OF WHAT AMERICA HAS BEEN WITHIN MY YOUTH. THE VOICES OF ALT-RIGHTISM WERE AROUND IN MY YOUNG DAYS, BUT NOT ON THE LIPS OF MANY CITIZENS IN OUR EVERYDAY LIVES. I DO CONSIDER WHAT WE ARE GOING THROUGH TO BE A NATIONAL “NERVOUS BREAKDOWN.” AS BERNIE SANDERS SAID RECENTLY, GIVING UP IS NOT AN OPTION. AS FOR THE DANGER OF CONSTANTLY SEEKING TO MAINTAIN "HONOR" WE SHOULD CONSIDER THAT MOST SHOCKING OF THE ISLAMIC FUNDAMENTALIST VIEWS THAT A YOUNG WOMAN WHO FINDS HER OWN BOYFRIEND, HER FATHER OR BROTHER OR PERHAPS BOTH TOGETHER WILL KILL HER FOR DAMAGING THE FAMILY HONOR! PRIDE GOETH BEFORE A FALL.

WE NEED FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT TO COME ALONG AND GIVE HIS “FIRESIDE CHATS” AGAIN. THERE IS ALSO A FUNCTION -- WHETHER PURPOSEFUL OR NOT IS NOT CLEAR TO ME -- TO THE VERY CONFUSION OF TRUMP’S CHANGES AND MISSTATEMENTS, BECAUSE THEY KEEP US OFF BALANCE. BALANCE IS A MENTAL STATE IN WHICH WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO SIMPLY STEP ASIDE FROM A VERBAL BOMB AS FARMERS STEP AROUND A COW PATTY. AN ORDINARY CITY DWELLER MIGHT NOT KNOW TO DO THAT. EVERY DAY OR TWO THERE’S ANOTHER SHOCKER, AND THAT DIMINISHES THE CONFIDENCE WE NEED IN OUR GROUP CONSCIENCE TO BE A HEALTHY SOCIETY. I KNOW THAT PARTICULAR IMAGE IS CRUDE, AND I APOLOGIZE, BUT IT SAYS WHAT I MEAN, SO I’M LEAVING IT IN HERE.



https://www.newscientist.com/article/2112272-the-psychology-that-explains-how-trumps-divisive-rhetoric-won/

The psychology that explains how Trump’s divisive rhetoric won
COMMENT Chris Simms
10 November 2016

How did Donald Trump's nationalist mantra that the US was becoming second-rate take such a strong hold in the American psyche, wonders Chris Simms

Photograph -- Donald Trump: winning the war of words, Mark Makela/Getty


“How could this happen?” seems to be the question on almost everyone’s lips. Republican Donald Trump has surfed his wave of divisive and racially charged rhetoric right into the White House. Like the Brexit vote in the UK, it’s a key moment that has left some people feeling ashamed of their country.

Millions, if not billions, of people around the world were hoping that US citizens would reject Trump. But that didn’t happen, and in a way, we are all responsible.

The outcome is not about the intelligence of voters, it’s about emotional arguments and outlook on life. Generally, when a politician gets into office, he or she has judged the prevailing mood correctly. And the mood in many parts of the world is nationalistic and pretty ugly.

To win voters to his cause, Trump tapped a vein of nationalism that social science calls honour culture (see “Reputation is everything: Unearthing honour culture in America“, and “An excess of honour could help explain the appeal of Trump“). His key message has been that foreign countries are doing better than the US and this makes the country look weak.

Honor Bound, a new book by social psychologist Ryan Brown, lists US states by how concerned residents are about their reputation and their desire to retaliate against perceived slights. The top 10 are South Carolina, North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee and Texas. Trump was victorious in all of these except for Virginia.

Using an external threat in this way also takes advantage of the fact that negative events influence us more strongly than positive events. Playing on fears is far more effective than promising good times.

Welcome to dystopia

This seems to be a clever tactic to win voters over, but it comes at a cost. Many of Trump’s core messages strike the same divisive chord: there is a crisis of identity and the only way to get through it is to club together to fend off outside influences. We are great, but outsiders aren’t to be trusted. It’s oddly reminiscent of the slogan in George Orwell’s dystopian novel Animal Farm: “Four legs good, two legs bad.”

Creating distrust in this way can result in enmity; if you’re not with us, you’re against us. Hardly the route to a united country or world.

Why did Trump’s us-and-them mantra take hold? Because of the way people build opinions, especially new ones.

John Zaller at the University of California, Los Angeles, has written about how this happens. It starts with hearing or reading information, and deciding whether to allow it to become a “consideration”, a kind of reference point that you refer back to when making your mind up and forming opinions.

If you are constantly bombarded with similar emotive us-and-them messages, chances are one will lodge in your head, perhaps because it’s tied to something you already believe. And because existing considerations work as filters for new ones (so-called confirmation bias), this makes it easier to accept the next campaign message.

On the shoulders of giants

This makes it possible to reshape opinions widely. It helped change long-held views on slavery, race, women’s rights and same-sex relationships. But just as advocates can pull us towards better ideals, they can move us in less desirable directions.

You could, perhaps, try to pin Trump‘s success on the man himself, but he wouldn’t have had a chance if the groundwork hadn’t been laid by others. Rhetoric about making your country great again, criminal foreigners and outsiders sponging off the state has been widely spouted by many political groups, including the Conservatives and UKIP in the UK and the National Front in France. So perhaps UKIP’s Nigel Farage and those who backed him are partly responsible.

You could also point at the language used to fuel suspicion of foreigners and give police and government agencies greater power to pry into our private lives in the name of fighting terrorism. You could blame terrorists themselves. But then you might have to conclude that they have won because we’ve played into their hands and are intent on self-destruction.

Be the change

The simple truth is that finding someone to blame is immaterial. If we’re thinking differently as a group, a large proportion of society has changed its outlook, and the only way to tug things back to something more morally acceptable is to speak up.

The onus is on all of us to think about what we really value and spread those ideas, but politicians in particular have to realise the responsibility on their shoulders.

Their statements carry further than those of the rest of us. Their job is not just to represent the electorate’s view, it is to guide society towards a better future. To do that, they need to consider the damage they could do if they keep spouting hyperbole that encourages a distrust of foreigners.

For every glib, contextless tweet designed to appeal to the masses and whip up emotional fervour, there is a response. It could be shock or cheap laughs. It could be a fractional move towards the politics of Mein Kampf. Or it could be a race-related stabbing in Leeds.

The actions of many of our politicians are starting to feel dangerous, and it’s time we countered them by planting seed ideas for the future we want our society to grow in.