Speaking not-so-much as the political and foreign policy expert but as a more reflective fellow citizen speaking with a degree of pain, sadness and genuine confusion about what has happened.
Hegseth's conflating Christianity with military 'crusading' force is an old trope, but he has also taken a few pages from the more-recent Zionist playbook. Specifically, how to both weaponize religious fervour in a time of fear, chaos, and loss of moral guardrails, while using it as a stealthy vehicle fuelled by the volatile fumes of nostalgia. Destroying a woke military and the schism with the Pope are necessary to remove any external authority (accountability) and generate a 'home-grown' and 'truer' version of the strong (lethal) Christian, just as Zionism invented a strong Jewish man.
Agreed.And just below the surface strength of those super 'Christian' and 'strong' Jewish "Men" are psychologically broken, fragile little boys whose every accusation against a demonized group is a confession of their inner hollowness.
Yes, the plastering over fragile psyches with iconography of violent power. That intolerable inner hollowness which attempts to fill itself by resonating with 'great' hollow leaders, inducing slavish attachment to simplistic narratives and cultish beliefs.
we absolutely need these kinds of frank discussions. What is surprising is how far these ultra-Rightist Christian nationalists have gotten. This is showing everyone what the problem is, and I don't know how this will end but I assume somebody will in some way "take care of it." By which I mean that probably some corporatist elite will move in. But the Trump idiocy has gone so far it is astonishing, almost!
we cannot however get America "back" to what it was because we did not know what American was. We never thought these things could happen. Or I didn't. I don't think anyone did. There are and have always been many, many total fascist authoritarians. You knew them. They were your neighbors. But NOW we know, FOR SURE how bad that will turn out.
but. When some kind of political power in this country "takes care of" the extreme Right, what will it be replaced by? Remember that the ones cheering on Israel, and keeping the slaughter on in Ukraine were all representing the liberal side.
we are without leadership. What is a "democratic"-seeming republic with no leadership (except robotics, a.i.) What does that look like? It looks like money gone mad. As long as the bankers keep track of the money and money is real, everything else will be unreal. There will be nothing left. What does you money buy? Beer with skulls on the label. And meaningless per centages of alcohol. Beer is designed to be 4.5 to 5.5 alcohol because it TASTES better that way.
but. We already fu*ked that one up when we designed American beer which was always swill.
Hegseth's conflating Christianity with military 'crusading' force is an old trope, but he has also taken a few pages from the more-recent Zionist playbook. Specifically, how to both weaponize religious fervour in a time of fear, chaos, and loss of moral guardrails, while using it as a stealthy vehicle fuelled by the volatile fumes of nostalgia. Destroying a woke military and the schism with the Pope are necessary to remove any external authority (accountability) and generate a 'home-grown' and 'truer' version of the strong (lethal) Christian, just as Zionism invented a strong Jewish man.
Agreed.And just below the surface strength of those super 'Christian' and 'strong' Jewish "Men" are psychologically broken, fragile little boys whose every accusation against a demonized group is a confession of their inner hollowness.
Yes, the plastering over fragile psyches with iconography of violent power. That intolerable inner hollowness which attempts to fill itself by resonating with 'great' hollow leaders, inducing slavish attachment to simplistic narratives and cultish beliefs.
we absolutely need these kinds of frank discussions. What is surprising is how far these ultra-Rightist Christian nationalists have gotten. This is showing everyone what the problem is, and I don't know how this will end but I assume somebody will in some way "take care of it." By which I mean that probably some corporatist elite will move in. But the Trump idiocy has gone so far it is astonishing, almost!
we cannot however get America "back" to what it was because we did not know what American was. We never thought these things could happen. Or I didn't. I don't think anyone did. There are and have always been many, many total fascist authoritarians. You knew them. They were your neighbors. But NOW we know, FOR SURE how bad that will turn out.
but. When some kind of political power in this country "takes care of" the extreme Right, what will it be replaced by? Remember that the ones cheering on Israel, and keeping the slaughter on in Ukraine were all representing the liberal side.
we are without leadership. What is a "democratic"-seeming republic with no leadership (except robotics, a.i.) What does that look like? It looks like money gone mad. As long as the bankers keep track of the money and money is real, everything else will be unreal. There will be nothing left. What does you money buy? Beer with skulls on the label. And meaningless per centages of alcohol. Beer is designed to be 4.5 to 5.5 alcohol because it TASTES better that way.
but. We already fu*ked that one up when we designed American beer which was always swill.
And as Archie Bunker once observed to his wife as he exited the bathroom: "You don't buy beer, you rent it."
Pretty much sums up the reality of the US.
Thanks for bringing these two important pieces to our attention, Mark.