[FRIAM] How democracies die

[Sarbajit Roy]

Steve

Just recalled a PBS "skit" (preserved on Youtube) from 2007. Just replace
"Bush" with "Trump".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Phr5TC_v_g

Sarbajit

On Fri, Nov 8, 2024 at 11:18 AM steve smith <sasmyth at swcp.com> wrote:

>
> Sarbajit wrote:
>
> "> ..,The people who voted for him probably do not read Paxton, Arendt or
> Levitsky and Ziblat ..."
> The people who voted for him don't read...
>
> We have a similar problem in India, the great semi-literate masses have
> been handed cheap smartp[hiones with cheap data plans so they are connected
> 24x7 to the Matrix.
>
> Thank you for this pithy bit of parallax, it cuts at least two ways.
>
> I believe that we 'elites' make the mistake of wanting the
> unwashed/semi-literate/??? masses to share our perspectives (whether we be
> progressive/conservative, liberal/authoritative) and support our vision for
> *their* future.   We then get upset when *they* listen to the *other*
> elites rather than us.
>
> I was completely convinced that Kamala & Co had made such a good argument
> for *our* vision of a future for humanity (American Exceptional Centric of
> course)  that it would *overwhelmingly* (at least by the margin Trump took
> over Harris but vice-versa) persuade the folks whose future we are hoping
> to define.   As it turns out, the *other* camp of elites managed to find
> the right chords to strike, notes to hit to resonate with 74M voters?
>
> I'm probably misusing "elite" here (or at least idiosyncratically) to
> reference those with agency in society above some arbitrary threshold.
> Education, Social Status, Professional/Trade Status, Ability, Insight, all
> combine to support this Agency-in-Context, and even more relevant perhaps
> is the *perception* of Agency?   When those who wield
> economic/political/practical power (the wealthy, the successful politician
> or rhetoritician, the champion fighter or consummate craftsman) speak, we
> listen.   Trump had Musk and Rogan and Hulk Hogan and the threat/promise of
> "the STRONG people" (Bikers, LEO, Soldiers, Truckers, Cowboys, ... )  while
> Harris had all the big name entertainment talent (except Lee Greenwood?)
> and Academics (except Dennis Prager and 6 other similar wankers) and the
> Generals ( who the rank and file can be taught or reminded to resent) and
> the intelligencia.
>
> I'm still waiting/hoping/ideating on a better way to achieve collective
> emergent "wisdom".   Glen's references to the tension between "liberal"
> individuality and any of the extant brands of collectivism (party
> membership, military marshalling, religious faithing, culting, etc)
> gestures in a useful direction.   Well formed (if not always understood)
> variations on Swarming (nod to Glen and Marcus) in biology are interesting
> and maybe the best route in, but I'm still stalled and the smash into a new
> era of explicit Trumpism is distracting me, even if it somehow forces the
> parallax I'm missing.
>
> Mumble,
>
>   - Steve
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