What Republicans and teabaggers do (the biggest thing that differentiates them from Progressives)

[ProfessionalLeftist]

..."But you sit atop your misguided soapbox, criticizing the government for trying to take some of the power away from the corporations, ultimately playing right into the hands of your puppeteers. God, you're pathetic."

That was one of the comments in response to Carlin's classic "The American Dream" rant:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acLW1vFO-2Q&NR=1

And that's what Republicans do. It's what differentiates them from us. Or, at least one of the very biggest things.

It's their ignorance. It's that ignorance fed to the lazy, complacent, willfully uneducated, near-illiterate masses (such as Republicans who call intellectualism "elitist") by the propaganda arm of the corporatocracy (ie: the media). There are those who buy it (Republicans, teabaggers), and those who don't (mostly everyone else). That is what got this country in the supreme shitter that it's currently in.

Not Obama.
Not Obama.
Not Obama.

It's part of what (I believe), Jon Stewart tried to point out yesterday. And the Ignorami didn't grok it and the Ministry of Corporate Propaganda remained (willfully) ignorant also and not one single piece written by them about the rally got the facts right. But since when does the media ever get the facts right about much of anything? It's rare. And it's intentional that they never do. They haven't since Cronkite was on the air.

That it's considered "elitist" NOT to be hoodwinked and led around by the nose by the propaganda arm of the corporatocracy is testimony to how utterly dumbed down America has become. We are absolutely #1 in at least one thing now: STUPID . The United States of STUPID. And if you're not stupid, you're "elitist". Education + ability to spell and write a complete sentence = "elitist".

It's how Palin even has any platform on which to speak at all. Or, Bachmann, or Glenn Beck. It's why they beat their chests, stomp heads, and carry guns. That's all they have left because they refuse to use their brains. It's why the likes of Breitbart are considered credible enough to talk, blog, or have anything to say on election night. It's how any of the obviously off-the-rails teabaggers have any platform as well. Ignorance. They peddle it. They feed it. And we ALL pay for it - with our lives and livelihoods.

I'm looking into moving to Costa Rica. Because IMO, this country is finished. Things are going to have to get a LOT WORSE here before people wake up and get in the streets and shut this crap down (shut down the corporatocracy). And when they do there will be another civil war between the Ignorami and the Rest of Us. It's gonna get a whole lot uglier before it gets better.

Think things are bad now? You ain't seen nothing yet. And it won't be Obama that caused it. . .

[jody]

1. Interesting but what definition of "Progressives" are you using? Thanks! n/t

[ProfessionalLeftist]

3. pick one (n/t)

[jody]

11. OK "Progressives" are socialists. Do you agree? If no then what do you mean? n/t

[MineralMan]

2. ¡Buen viaje!

[RC]

4. No matter how the coming election turns out, things will get a whole lot worse.

It Pailnist, Becktists, etc. lose, then they will feel they were cheated out of what they were told was rightfully theirs and the violence will escalate.
If they win, they will feel empowered and again the violence will escalate. Either way there will be riots and random violence directed against anyone 'not them'.
History is repeating itself and those paying attention are being ignored.

[ProfessionalLeftist]

5. well-said:

"History is repeating itself and those paying attention are being ignored."

[felix_numinous]

6. Authoritarians are followers.

They need a leader to think for them and a book of directions to be taken simply and literally. This is why they can be lead very easily to demonize one person, or smaller groups of people because they refuse or are incapable of examining whole systems or interrelationships between systems (critical thinking).

I think it would benefit the left to somehow take these people's psychological profiles into consideration when attempting to communicate with them. They get boggled by complex language and concepts, and so are alienated and humiliated by complex language. This is one root of their dis-ease.

[ProfessionalLeftist]

7. that makes sense too...

...why they get so frustrated and call intellectual thinking "elitist". It humiliates and alienates them. Have to stick to "sound-bite" sloganism and leave too much analysis out - it's lost on 'em.

[Poboy]

8. Authoritarian Followers= the Tea Party

Authoritarian Followers
If you read the book presented at this website, you‟ll find lots of evidence that, as a group, social conservatives share the psychological trait of being authoritarian followers.1 And you can hardly miss the authoritarian follower tendencies in the behavior of the Tea Partiers. Here are a dozen that seem pretty obvious.

1. Authoritarian submission. Authoritarian followers submit to the people they consider authorities much more than non-authoritarians do. In this context, Tea Partiers seem to believe without question whatever their chosen authorities say.
2. Fear. Fear constantly pulses through authoritarian followers, and Tea Partiers are mightily frightened.
3. Self-righteousness. Self-righteousness runs very strongly in authoritarian followers, and combines with fear to unleash aggression in them. The Tea Partiers commonly describe themselves
as “the good Americans,” “the true Americans,” “the people,” and “the American Patriots.”
5. A lack of critical thinking. Authoritarian followers have more trouble thinking logically than most people do. In particular, they tend to agree with sayings and slogans, even contradictory ones, because they have heard them a lot.
6. Our “biggest problem.” Authoritarian followers will readily believe that lots of things are our “biggest problem.” It can be drugs, the decline of religion, the breakdown of the family, you name it.
7. Compartmentalized thinking. Authoritarian followers can have so many contradictory beliefs and “biggest problems” because their thinking is highly compartmentalized. Ideas exist independently of the other ideas in their head.
8. Double Standards. Highly compartmentalized thinking makes it easy for authoritarian followers to employ double standards in their judgments.
9. Feeling empowered when in groups. Authoritarian followers seem to want to disappear as individuals. They‟re not comfortable taking stands on their own, or acting alone.
10. Dogmatism. We also know that authoritarian followers lead the league in being dogmatic. When their leaders set their opinions for them, those opinions are set in stone. Experiments show that nothing (aside from their authorities) can convince them they are wrong.
11. Ethnocentrism. Authoritarian followers are notably ethnocentric, constantly judging others and events through “Us versus Them” lenses.
12. Prejudice. Studies have found that authoritarian followers are among the most prejudiced people in society.


FULL-
http://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~altemey/drbob/Comment%20on%20the%20Tea%20Party.pdf

[felix_numinous]

9. Thanks

(a late reply) I think as a country, it would benefit us all to understand group psychology--cool site!

[ProfessionalLeftist]

12. Thank you. Very informative....bookmarking that one. n/t

[Left coast liberal]

10. Great rant! I agree but try to maintain positive attitude for my 2 kids.

But I have often thought it all may end up in revolution!