Monday 28 December 2020
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Howdy y’all!
This blog was born of my frustration with the endless arguments around gun ownership and regulations and climate change idiocy. Not only did I KNOW the conservative arguments on those topics and so many more were wrong, but I knew why we were having so much trouble convincing the country to vote in Democratic candidates who would actually enact the changes that polling said Americans so desperately wanted and needed.
But, then, the very model of a very stable genius decided to join the deep back bench of Republican candidates for president, some how screwed up and actually won! and we’ve been fighting the deepening cognitive dissonance of the conservative voter ever since. #COVID19 just compounded and magnified the problems that we were already experiencing.
I hope that in some small way all the snarky, sarcasticky, profaney ramblings of have helped my readers understand the reasons these things are happening and what we as citizens can do about them and cope with the incredible stress that Trump’s America has put us all through.
I have to say that as a full-time citizen and part-time blogger it has been tough to keep going. Real life has a tendency to bite you in the ass at times. It helps that I have some loyal readers who comment as frequently as they do. I can see from the statistics that WordPress publishes that it is only a very small percentage of visitors who do leave any sign that they’ve been there, a like, a rating, a comment, or a share. It’s nice when they do. We appreciate it.
Well, y’all, that’s the story of Ye Olde Blogge for now. If you have any questions or comments to make, I’d be happy to answer or respond.
Huzzah!
Jack
The Psy of Life 
It’s hard to know how much what we say gets heard. All we can do is keep talking, keep writing. If we don’t, we know that we won’t be heard. It’s a small thing, but it’s doable, and the more people do it, the less small it will be.
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Howdy Ellen!
Surely you are right. And, the truth is, I write what I write in the way I write because I like it. That other people read it and enjoy it is a bonus.
But, it is also true that few who do read the blog leave any sign that they were here other that the views on the stat page.
Keep on writing.
Huzzah!
Jack
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Yup. I’ve seen that in action.
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Dear Jack,
I concur with you. The USA has been plagued by ignorance, dogma, falsity, blind faith, spiritual stagnation and epistemological impasse . . . . .
We can be justified for being snide, snarky and facetious in characterizing Trump as the symbolic messiah who is going to lead his misguided supporters to glory on Earth and the promised land!
It is often futile to reason with such misguided folks. Perhaps only when the country truly becomes autocratic or fascist will they wake up, but then it will be too late.
Instead of “Flattening the Curve”, the USA is now “Steepening the Curve”, so much so that the MAGA tagline “Make America Great Again” should be changed to MASA: “Make America Sick Again”!
Regarding the POTUS’ Twitter and Facebook accounts, some would even argue that they should have been suspended or terminated a long time ago for continually unleashing falsehood, misinformation and mass distrust. Fortunately, he has not (yet) been given free access to software or button(s) with which to launch weapon(s) of mass destruction.
In any case, those who are fair-minded and discerning are not easily swayed by his constant thrashing around and beating in the bush. Speaking of whether “the president really is a very stable genius”, SoundEagle’s adage is that Trump is a fool’s idea of a genius. In addition, the POTUS has long slid from being a “Law and Order” President to a “Flaw and Border” President.
2020, the Year of the Rat, has brought us not the plague (black death) but Covid-19. And 2020 also brought out the worst of divisive politics and demagogic incitement. I wonder whether it could get even worse in 2021. What a day it was to unfold with sedition, insurrection and coup d’état on the 6th!
Whilst some of us may take some comfort in our living somewhere else, there is the danger that oppressive politics may spread elsewhere or be mirrored by other corrupt politicians outside their origins.
Democracy is not a given. It can be quite fragile, can fail rather badly, and often is approximately as good and benevolent (or bad and malevolent) as the members who practise, control and/or legislate it. We all need to do our parts in contributing to the smooth and equitable functioning of a civil country and democratic society. I have done mine in highlighting many of the most fundamental causes through my writings, and I hope that you will find more answers and solutions to these thorny issues in my latest post entitled “Misquotation Pandemic and Disinformation Polemic: Mind Pollution by Viral Falsity”.
I would be delighted if you could kindly submit your comment to my said article, as I am very keen and curious to know what you think or make of it.
I would like to wish you a very happy New Year. May you find 2021 very much to your liking and highly conducive to your writing, reading, thinking and blogging!
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Howdy Sound!
I agree with most of your assessment here. Democracy is quite fragile and is easily destroyed. As we are fond of saying at Ye Olde Blogge, compromise is the heart of democracy. If you eliminate the voice of the minority, you will eventually get revolution. Many on the conservative side of the equation have given up on democracy and think they can suppress any revolution that comes from the left. They’ve given up on it because, philosophically, they believer they are right, and, practically, they are greedy. They believe that they can string just enough of the population along with the emotionally loaded issues to remain in office and stave off any real conflict until after they have made theirs and are gone from the scene. Everything else, deaths from #COVID19 and climate change can be damned as long as they are getting theirs.
It is interesting to see that many of the Republicans who were indeed frightened for their lives on 6 January are now singing a different tune. They have decided that they can ride this out and if it comes to another insurrection, it will only be the “bad” Republicans and the Democrats who are summarily executed by the mob. It is such a cynical stance to take that it boggles the mind.
There are a number of psychological tendencies that account for it though. Not the least of which are the many cognitive biases that you discuss in your post, cognitive dissonance, diffusion of responsibility, and motivated reasoning. All of which, we’ve discussed at length here at Ye Olde Blogge during the past four years.
Huzzah!
Jack
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Dear Jack,
I am delighted to read your comment here. Thank you for your feedback and insight, and for clarifying further issues. At this point in time, I am not very optimistic about the US. Moreover, social and economic polarizations can further exacerbate the issues of wealth and power distribution.
Given that your comment also pertains to my post entitled “Misquotation Pandemic and Disinformation Polemic: Mind Pollution by Viral Falsity”, I would really appreciate it if you could kindly submit your comment to the comment section in my said post too.
You can simply copy and paste your previous comment and perhaps add more if you have something extra to say. Thank you in anticipation.
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