That is where I first remember hearing about the psychology of genocide–the Rawandan civil war. And yes, they were able to do it and then go home to their families at night because they did not view the other tribes as fully human
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They weren’t even different tribes. The difference between Hutu and Tutsi is more akin to a class one than anything, at least initially.
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His Odo looking ass calling people not people.
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Of corse liberal-minded folk aren’t people; we are much closer to demigod status.
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Well, given the whole Trump family’s penchant for projection, this means that…
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Does being Home Secretary change people?
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Sorry to say, I find it extremely hard to think of Trump, his administration, his family and his supporters as people. Their actions, values and thought processes are so utterly alien and opposite to my own that I can’t find a scrap of common ground. I acknowledge that they’re thinking, feeling, sentient beings, but when I think “people”, I think of fellow human beings that I can relate to. Trump and his ilk hold in contempt just about every trait that I used to think every human (except truly, seriously mentally ill sociopaths) universally admired, even if they weren’t perfect themselves. I can’t help but think of them as literally evil, and sadly every last thing they’ve done without exception has reinforced that belief again and again and again. At first I was quite glad that I didn’t know any Trump supporters, but now I almost wish that I did, just so I could at least try to understand where they were coming from.
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I’ve stated this elsewhere, but as a small blue dot in a really red state, I know and work with many Trump supporters. My younger child plays/has sleepovers at their houses (thankfully older child, now officially a teenager, has gravtitated to those with his own political beliefs, which mirror our own, but that simply doesn’t hold quite as true in younger elementary). Anyway, I do know these people, some of whom I actually like – smart, funny people. It has been the most challenging struggle with cognitive dissonance I have ever faced. How can I like somebody who supports that man? I’m not here to offer answers or excuses, only to say that I do know these people, who consider themselves good people, and I have yet to figure out how to confront this “banality of evil.” Am I also complicit because I avoid political discussions with them? Am I also part of the banality of evil? These questions keep me up at night.
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It’s almost as if an archetype of “stereotypical privileged douchebro” came to life.
(and yes, I realize that many here are against violence for any reason, but I ask you to look into your heart of hearts and answer "Is this truly not the most punchable face ever? (well, ok, maybe next to Shkreli?)).
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I’ve heard similar stories from others here on BoingBoing, and my thought is always the same: they’re monsters in disguise. No matter how kind they are to you, they’re perfectly okay with supporting racism, sexism, environmental destruction, broadening the gap between rich and poor, political corruption (granted, that’s a given no matter who you vote for, but Trump is on a whole other level), as well as having an astoundingly incompetent, ignorant man in charge of the country. I could see some of that support coming from ignorance, but all of it? They must know, on some level, just how badly they’re fucking up the country, and they either don’t care or are glad they’re doing it. I can’t really blame you for not getting in political discussions with them if you live surrounded by red state, for the sake of your own personal safety. My guess is that their friendly demeanor will be dropped like a hot stone as soon as you ask them to think critically. But then again, if I were 100% certain of that I wouldn’t be wishing I had a Trump supporter to communicate with.
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Or, a more simplified version:
There truly are monsters out there, and they don’t hide under beds or in closets. They’re not always serial killers or, well at least a standard definition of, psychopaths. True monstrosity exists in non-critical thinking combined with a total submergence in your own ego…
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https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Francisco_José_de_Goya_y_Lucientes_-The_sleep_of_reason_produces_monsters%28No.43%29%2C_from_Los_Caprichos-Google_Art_Project.jpg/508px-Francisco_José_de_Goya_y_Lucientes-The_sleep_of_reason_produces_monsters%28No.43%29%2C_from_Los_Caprichos-_Google_Art_Project.jpg
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I hear what you are saying, and I agree, to a point. It’s not nearly as black and white when you interact on a daily basis.
The most profound change occurs at the personal level. I generally avoid politics, but sometimes it does arise. Some Trump supporters actually like me, so if and when political ideology arises in conversation with someone I consider reasonably intelligent, I do express my opinions through the personal. I’ll give you an example: My son, an early teen, has a transgender friend. A woman with whom I worked, with whom I had a rapport, said something negative and ignorant about transgender children. I took the opportunity to share my son’s story with her, my son who she watched grow up and in whom she had at least minimal emotional investment. She truly listened and I believe was exposed to a different point of view she had not considered.
Another example: A different woman with whom I worked simultaneously experienced sexism in the workplace with me. Because we had a pre-existing relationship based on some measure of mutual respect, we talked about it and she expressed an altered opinion.
These conversations would never have been possible had she not thought I respected her, on at least some level. It is not true that [quote=“Hanglyman, post:65, topic:102321”]
They know, on some level, just how badly they’re fucking up the country, and they either don’t care or are glad they’re doing it
[/quote]
This is much too simplified an explanation of how they construct their worldview. Some of these people are not incapable of critical thought – to attack them solely on this is futile and gains no ground for true change. Again, I’ve witnessed some measure of true change by introducing the personal into any discussion of broader issues of sexism, racism, etc.
I clearly choose to live here, and you’re right, some rabid Trump supporters are beyond all hope. Those I avoid like the plague. But to cast them all in that category limits our ability to interact on a personal level and introduce real change.
I’m personally proud of some of these interactions and I refuse to abandon all hope for all Trump supporters.
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I don’t disagree. But there is a paradox that with the dissolving of the ego, one no longer necessarily identifies as a person or an individual. People seem more comfortable with those towards the middle with a differentiated sense of self and personal boundaries.
I really hope those interactions are making a difference. A good friend of mine going into politics feels similarly, though her solution is not critical reasoning but appealing to their emotion and fear, making them afraid of and emotional about real issues instead of the conspiracy theory bullshit the Republicans keep feeding them. Her idea is they’re immune to reason and logic, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be, um, “guided” into doing the right thing as long as you’re communicating to them on a level they understand and are familiar with.
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Knowing some of these folks myself, I genuinely think it comes down to everyone’s sources of information. When your main source of news is FOX, with the occasional peek at Drudge or Breitbart, you’re in an information bubble that’s keeping you in a comfortable cushion of ignorance; it’s telling you that the President is a brilliant man who’s lowered himself from his golden tower to take on this task because of his love for America, and that the true racist, sexist people are Democrats, and – most importantly – that anything you hear elsewhere in the “MSM” is suspect at best, most likely just a lie they made up.
So yes, they’re complicit, and are supporting terrible things, but in their minds, they’re the ones Making America Great. Which is incredibly frustrating and absolutely impossible to argue against.
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The evil within is slowly seeping to the outside…
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It does seem to. Either that or being a special kind of loon qualifies you for the job. It’s most likely a bit of both.
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