The psychology of MAGA (and all bullies and creeps) in a nutshell:
They're scared of everything and they want you to be scared too so they don't feel so bad about being so scared.
They're jealous of your joy and generosity and optimism. Hold onto those feelings, and share them whenever possible.
@aram Yeah, that kind of take is so comically reductionist that it’s hard to take seriously. It’s a lazy attempt at psychoanalysis that ignores any nuance or complexity. People aren’t that one-dimensional—fear is a motivator for a lot of human behavior, sure, but so are values, experiences, and rational self-interest.
Reducing an entire political movement (or any group, really) to “scared bullies” just reeks of projection. Its the kind of statement that people post to feel superior
@aram …without actually engaging with reality. Ironically, it mirrors the exact mindset they claim to be criticizing—painting the opposition as irrational and driven by base emotions while pretending their own beliefs are purely enlightened and virtuous.
And yeah, the people who repeat stuff like this are often the same ones who struggle with basic logic or critical thinking.
But try it in a nutshell.
My Canadian ex-friend supports MAGA at 40. Smart, was a bit anarchist and a bit incel but was always a conspiracy theorist. After his divorce he became hooked on the manosphere. I tried to reason with him but he just repeated a string of different MAGA lies without reputing any of my points.
**When I pushed him, he said that he wasn't depressed or anxious since he'd been in the cult.**
I think that could be true for a lot of the MAGA cult. They choose delusions over difficulty.
The real world is tangled and difficult. There has always been a lot of issues, unfairness. I think I can see the appeal of MAGA for these people, who are child-like in their need for someone to tell them how to think and feel. They don't need to decide anything or worry about anything because daddy trump will fix everything. They won't even need to vote! They don't even need to argue, just repeat all the arguments they've been given when people are mean to them.
That's why the conversations are so disjointed and nonsensical. They aren't sharing information, they're just choosing which ammunition they will fire at you in the verbal battle, in which they're defending their found family, the source of 'love' and respect in their lives.
IMO We need to treat this as an actual cult and look at how cult members can be deprogrammed.
@aram
Spot on. Magas are afraid of immigrants, lgbtq, other religions, other lifestyles, other languages, other skin tones, … The pos they elected encourages that fear, because that’s how autocrats roll, by promoting fear & division. So, LET’S NOT DO THAT! Befriend a maga today! Especially if you’re an immigrant, lgbtq, a Hindu, a Muslim, a Sikh, a person of color, a speaker of a different language. This takes great courage and is best undertaken in groups. Watch the movie #PRIDE, about a British lgbtq community supporting striking coal miners. This is the kind of out-of-the-box thinking needed to resist autocracy in #darkUSA.
QuinRude
Aram Sinnreich
Chris Haynes
The_old_guardian
Demiurg
josh buermann
66gardeners
Stefan Scholl
Sir Thomas Goodwin, M.S.
Grapeshot
August Jackson
GutterPoetry
Djembro, RO, supports 🇺🇦🇬🇪