Culture Warriors category archive
Trumpling the Women 0
At the Boston Review, Kate Manne explores the relationship between sexism and misogyny as manifested in Donald Trump and his supporters. She argues that misogyny can be thought of as the enforcement mechanism for sexism: sexism is believing that women belong “in their place,” which is inherently inferior to and servile to men, while misogyny is a means of putting and keeping them there if they dare step foot beyond their prescribed bounds.
It is a long and thoughtful piece that warrants your attention. Here’s a bit.
But his misogyny is, for better or worse, strictly limited. This is because of a striking and alarming limitation of Trump generally: he seems to lack a superego, or even the ability to mimic one. This explains both his remarkable shamelessness and the non-moralistic quality of his misogyny. It isn’t moralistic because Trump isn’t either. His normative words are simplistic and aesthetic terms of praise: “best,” “beautiful,” “great,” and “winning,” are some of his favorites. When he tries to engage in moral talk, he becomes uncharacteristically flummoxed.
Deplorable and Proud Of It, By Gum 0
Voter intimidation was what it was all about, was it not?
And, in more news of the deplorables . . .
The stupid. It burns.
The Trumplets of God 0
These folks worship no Jesus that I know.
Arbiters of Civility 0
Genteel is as genteel does. This was not genteel.
As my mother would have said, “The nerve, the absolute nerve!” (She wouldn’t in a million years have said, ‘arrogant a$$hole,” so I’ll say it for her.)
Words fail me. (Well, no, they don’t, but I prefer not to sputter profanities in these electrons.)
Trumpling the Ladies 0
Click to see the image at its original location.
In related news, writing at Psychology Today Blogs, Azadeh Aalai explores the assumptions and behavior of rape culture as personified in Trumpery. Here’s just a bit of her long and thoughtful article; do please follow the link for the rest:
The self-proclaimed party of “family values” has come out of the closet to reveal that “family values” was never anything more than a pick-up line for grabbing voters by the ba**ot.
Video via Boing-Boing.
A Deplorable Calvacade 0
Now we switch to Spocko for the round-up.
“Some People Are More Equal Than Others”* 0
Andres Oppenheimer wonders why it took so long:
Where were McCain, New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and dozens of other high-profile Republicans who didn’t break with Trump until the Oct. 7 release of Trump’s now infamous video?
Most of them, like McCain, explained that they had made their difficult decision because “I have daughters.” Where were they when Trump demonized Hispanics? Don’t they have any Hispanic friends?
Read the rest.
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*With apologies to George Orwell.
Sleazy Is as Sleazy Thinks 0
I have two daughters. I never ever thought–I cannot conceive of having ever thought–of dating either one of them.
Guess I’m not Republican Presidential candidate material.
Pardon me now while I take a few moments to stop my skin from crawling.
Afterthought:
Today’s Republican Party is a vile and loathsome thing.
The Bright Side 0
Dick Polman:
He goes on to point out that he’s writing in the morning, and no one knows what today might bring.
Meanwhile, in The Charlotte Observer, Keith Larson marvels at this coarse discourse (emphasis added–more at the link):
“Minced Trump” 0
(Link fixed.)
Solomon Jones writes of his recent interview of Tim Kaine. Not surprisingly, the Trump Tape came up as a topic. Mr. Kaine did not mince words; he minced Trump. Here’s an excerpt; follow the link for the rest.
“No, it’s not. It’s what sexual abusers do, but it’s not what men do.”
I wholeheartedly agree. Talking about grabbing strange women by the genitals without their permission is not locker-room talk. It’s sociopath talk.
As Ye Sow, So Shall Ye Reap* (Updated) 0
The Rude One points out that the Republican Party brought Trump on themselves. (He’s so upset he doesn’t even cuss.) Here’s a bit; follow the link for the rest:
Today’s Republican base is a vile and loathsome thing, and the Republican Party did it to itself.
The Republican Party created its base when Richard Nixon decided to woo racist, segregationist bigots with his odious Southern Strategy. The bright minds–at least they called themselves the “bright minds,” as the old man back home would have said–of Nixon’s Republican Party believed that they could control and manipulate the rubes and hayseeds, as no doubt they conceived of them, to short-term political advantage.
Their plan succeeded so well that the rubes and hayseeds now control and manipulate them, to the peril of the polity.
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*That’s not just scripture. It’s also sociology.
Addendum, Late That Same Night:
The peril to the polity manifests itself: This is the reaping of what the Republican Party’s hate-full, apocalyptic war on the Clintons over the past two and a half decades has sown.
Where is HUAC when you need them?