Mastodawn

Thommy 1d ago

@futurebird @aaron.rupar I honestly think part of this is almost a defense mechanism. These commentators are knee-deep in all the reasons to panic, and they just don't want to be in that mental state, so they imagine that Trump, however much they hate him, knows what he's doing.

@thomasjwebb @aaron.rupar

myrmepropagandist 1d ago

This kind of inability to recognize a crisis, a violation of the social order, a crime is what has us in this mess.

It's every person who thought "well he won't run again no need to put him in prison that's so extreme and makes me feel bad"

Some of it really felt like "but you know, maybe the trains will run on time soon" to me.

@futurebird @thomasjwebb @aaron.rupar oh, it's even worse than that. Firstly, no small percentage are invested in supporting fascism. Because if they say the 'bad things' then that may have consequences, but if they say 'good things' then surely they will be rewarded.

And nearly 100% of them are complete fucking idiots who in fact, are completely detached from reality. They believe that 'oh, next election will fix everything.' And they are so super-intelligent, they are never wrong.

@futurebird @thomasjwebb @aaron.rupar and to be clear, these are not people with actual moral or ethical stances of their own at all. They do not have any deeply held belief other than in their own 'wisdom.'

Though in the case of the NYT, they are unquestionably and provably on the side of not just fascism but Nazism. The evidence is well past overwhelming and incontrovertible. The NYT is a mouthpiece for Nazi ideology.

Thommy 1d ago

@rootwyrm @futurebird @aaron.rupar oh yeah many competencewash simply because they want to let him do his thing. I know the mentality of many of them is that they don't support his agenda wholesale but quietly see it as a counter-balance to scary young people getting their way.

But I'm just fascinated and disturbed by the people who seem to mostly know better and make their well-being and privileged inability to imagine shit hitting the fan everyone else's problem.

@thomasjwebb @futurebird @aaron.rupar see, that's exactly my point. You are giving the benefit of the doubt, that they "know better."

These are idiots who are so utterly full of themselves, and have such an inflated sense of their importance, they truly believe that they can never be wrong. If they say it will not happen, then it will not because it cannot. There will be elections with no problems because they say so. Everything is fine for them, so it's all fine.

@thomasjwebb @futurebird @aaron.rupar there is also a small segment that might actually know better, but will slobber all over the nearest boot because they think this will improve their survival chances. (See also: NPR.)

That's a whole other, even more dangerous kind of delusional behavior.

Thommy 1d ago

@rootwyrm @futurebird @aaron.rupar I don't deny the ulterior motive aspect of this (especially when it comes to NYT, ugh), I just think on top of that (and related to it), is a conceptual blind spot a certain kind of person with a lot of privilege tends to have. People who've never had shit hit the fan in their personal lives can't imagine the system breaking down. Conversely, ~some~ people who've been through really fucked up shit might also cling to any semblance of stability.

@thomasjwebb @futurebird @aaron.rupar that's exactly where the harmful delusion lies. It's not a 'blind spot.' And to be clear, I am using it in the terms of actual mental illness.

"It would never happen" here is a delusional belief, especially when the evidence is right there that it already has or is. "People are overreacting" is delusional behavior as well.

@thomasjwebb @futurebird @aaron.rupar there's a three part test that must be passed, and they consistently pass all three.

- certainty (held with absolute conviction)
- incorrigibility (not changeable by compelling counterargument or proof to the contrary)
- impossibility or falsity of content (implausible, bizarre, or patently untrue)

e.g. "They would never interfere in elections" and sticking to it IMMEDIATELY passes all three tests.

@thomasjwebb @futurebird @aaron.rupar another good example of delusion is "the courts will stop him" or "they can't do this because it's illegal."

Again, the full three-part test is instantly passed. They are certain the law will stop them. It doesn't matter that they are doing the illegal thing or ignoring the courts. Your proof that they are violating court orders doesn't matter. "They can't do that."

@thomasjwebb @futurebird @aaron.rupar while there's no debate about whether or not it's harmful delusion (it is,) there is room for it around the specific cause. Though for a lot of them, it is clearly a symptom of much deeper mental illness. e.g. when they keep moving the goal posts to preserve the delusion and doubling down on it, or abruptly rejecting and denying their prior delusional beliefs, that's a pretty clear sign of much more serious psychological disorder.