002 - This has to be a psychotic phenomenon…
I don’t understand at all how people can be so deluded.
Little bit of background: I know what it is like to be brainwashed. I went to an Independent Fundamental Baptist Christian academy when I was 10 - 14. The curriculum was one big hodge-podge of right-wing evangelical propaganda and religious dogma. I used to believe the world was only 6000 years old and that the Loch Ness monster somehow disproved evolution! I can only describe my brainwashing as me being in a bubble. I could see the rest of the world through the glass but I was told that allowing myself to be persuaded to learn worldly things would send me to hell.
But when I turned 19 and started college, I started having a crisis of faith. I thought I would get answers to my questions by reading the Bible but I only got more questions. Then I would have a rough few years of deconstruction and coming to terms with my brainwashing and my newly diagnosed bipolar disorder.
So I know how limited a brainwashed mind is. But for the life of me, I am baffled why people believe in Donald Trump like he’s a god-king. I remember life before 2016 being so different. There were political troubles, yes, Obama was often the topic of many arguments at the kitchen table for both racist and somewhat valid reasons.
How did I not see it coming, this orange wave cresting through 2015? Was I still too sheltered to see the attitudes changing or the virulent fascist rhetoric leaking from the darkest of online echo chambers into the mainstream? I’ve been listening to Alt-America by David Neiwert which is an eye-opening expose on how conspiracy theories have evolved for decades before Trump. Back in the days of 9/11, you had Alex Jones proclaiming it to be an inside job and Jerry Falwell Sr. blaming feminists, gays, and abortion clinics for the Twin Towers’ demise. Yes, the echo chambers were always there, I was just too young and naive to think beyond my limited knowledge.
Sometimes I find myself wanting those rose-colored glasses back. I think I was happier when I was misinformed and not burdened with knowledge of how humanity could end. Is that a part of it? Are they happier believing in the parallel narratives they’ve created? It’s not easy to admit you were manipulated. I was manipulated in my formative years, so I think that’s a big part of why I’m so maladjusted in the present. If the foundation of a house was made with spit and sand, how the hell are you going to build on that?
If I described the political stories of the day to a civilization that has far surpassed our progress, they would be baffled. Trump went on a childish rant about how much he hates a pop star for endorsing his rival. JD Vance admitted that he fabricated the rumors that Haitians eat cats and dogs. RFK Jr. is possibly getting indicted for cutting a whale’s head and strapping it to the roof of his car. Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, meanwhile, are doing normal things like campaigning and running the country. How in the fuck are people confused who to vote for?
Oh, can’t believe I forgot, Elon Musk went on blast on Twitter (I will NOT call it X) wondering why the current administration wasn’t being assassinated. Someone’s getting audited by the FBI soon. One can hope, anyway.
Time to wallow in misery until I fall asleep. Signing off.