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Saturday, November 12, 2016 - 1:14pmSanction this postReply
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It's been a long time since I've posted in RoR but after the election and seeing what is taking place I have to express my fear somewhere and gain strength from someone - please tell me it will be alright.

 

Like many of you I'm sure you have friends and family on both sides of the political aisle. What I see come across my FB feed and watching the riots has me worried for the future. I hear the same arguments from both sides - the same fears of the collapse of the economy, government, etc. I hear the same calls to action and the same rhetoric for revolt and patriotism. Am I the only one who thinks both sides are totally wacko-bonkersville? Sure the right wing extremism is bad but these people have me thinking they are quite possibly worse because they seem to feel entitled and justified in forcing their views on everyone - because they are tolerant.... shouting "Love Trumps Hate" while protesting a person and people they seem to hate.

 

Sorry - I need to get this out there and express my fear for the future because I can't help the feeling a civil war is coming. Am I being alarmist? I hope so - please tell me I am. Thanks for letting me get that off my chest - I am quite concerned.



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Post 1

Saturday, November 12, 2016 - 7:54pmSanction this postReply
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The far left wants to take over, and some of them would settle for just creating massive destruction.  But they don't have the numbers and in their cold little hearts they know it isn't their time.  There are those who want to force the state to overreach and become fascist.  They might get their wish.  But it won't help with an authentic revolution.  It won't serve to win over the average American.  It isn't a workable scheme.  But it won't be a fun time for the country.  It is my hope that it provides us with the national motivation to learn about the toxic nature of progressivism.  Only that will provide a real cure for our woes.

 

The right is fractured.  It was before this.  Now there is a relatively new faction: The Donald Trump Populist/Nationalism Movement.  We don't know how successful, or how fumbling and absurd his administration will be.  He is surrounding himself with people that no one needs to fear (even if they don't like any given one of them).  The concrete steps this presidency will attempt early on, and might be successful at are as follows:

 

1. Appoint a supreme court justice that will be close (or actually be) an Originalist.  That would be very good since the constitution is the only real protection we have against many kinds of government craziness.  If Trump jumps off the tracks and nominates someone that is A.) a progressive, or B.) a Right Wing nut job, or C.) just incompetent or a crony... well, then I suspect that congress will sadly see that they need to be the grownups and to give up on the idea of Trump the Savior.

 

2. Secure the southern border.  This should be done and shouldn't even be an issue.  The issue is what kind of legislation comes next to say who can come in, and legislation about who is already here.  If Trump abandons even a pretense at building his "wall" then he will lose support from his base and much of his political capital will disappear over night.  I expect that he will at least make some form of start on the "wall."

 

3. He is really big on infrastructure.  I've posted about this somewhere else on ROR in the last few days.  I hope that the conservatives reign him in on this - it is just progressive foolishness that doesn't stimulate the economy as much as the taxes or borrowing it requires would hurt us, and it doesn't create as many jobs as would be lost from the private sector when they pay for the boondoggles.

 

4. Revoke executive orders.  That's all good.  And should happen day one - if it doesn't, we want to know why.

 

5. Tax reform.  This, along with corporate reparations and a massive reduction of regulations will be very good for our economic health.  It will also be a place where we can watch and see if the special interests and the establishment capture Trump to any significant degree.

 

He will stop bringing in refugees, at least for a while.  But I see no dangers at this point.  I think he is enthralled with the idea of Trump going down in history as truely great - breaking the gridlock - accomplishing many things.  He will make deals with anyone to serve that end.  As with every president there will be unforseen events that take him places and occupy him in ways that have nothing to do with his proposed agenda. 

 

The Democrat party is very broken right now.  In terms of organization it had several major parts: The Clinton Machine that was widespread, respected, even feared and everyone supported it's ends as good and as inevitable.  That's now rubble.  There is a very large, loosely knit set of private organizations that are spread out and aren't really an "organization" but rather a loose federation of groups that are just on the same side.  Soros funded groups, liberal media stars, political action groups, special interest groups like BLM, etc.  There are the ardent supporters of various progressive ideals and they are stunned.  But many of them were already disallusioned because Bernie Sanders seemed so much more authentic and pure but he was trashed.  They have to find their direction.  Are they going to try to move more to the center and try to recapture the middle-class working stiffs that left for Trump?  Are they going to find a pure Progressive like Elizibeth Warren to be their new leader?  That would be a bet on going left and the hell with what is practical.  I don't have a clue as to what the Democrat party will look like in a few years.

 

In the end, the progressives will win (note: Progressivism is an ideology and a movement - and with a powerful life apart from any party).  Trump will have been a temporary delay in the march of progressivism - unless the voting public becomes educated to what Progressivism really is.  There isn't much time to do that and it doesn't look likely.  There aren't at this time any charismatic leaders who would step in and replace Trump.  And Trump  is only partially effective in opposing progressivism.  He doesn't undertand it, but does do a good job of spitting in the face of political correctness - and that is a good thing.

 

Each year there are far more young people who graduate from universities indoctrinated with various social justice/globalism/redistributive propoganda than those coming out with even a commonsense understanding of the political world - and only a tiny, tiny number who are liberatarian.

 

Tim, the far left creates fear as a motivator.  They would use violence if they thought it would work because they believe it is justified.  But they know they are still too a small number.  They work to use the media to make themselves seem to be more and to seem powerful and to make the threats and imagined dangers seem larger than they are.  My opinion is that there is nothing catastrophic to worry about near term (the next few years) but that the long term is different story. 

 

Trump is a wild card.  But as a variable he is more likely to fall between doing a number of good things and not too many bad things and the bad things won't be worse that a Bush or Christie or Hucklebe would have done.  At the other extreme, Trump might self-destruct in the sense of being unable to manipulate the arms of the state, being driven by his personality quirks and not be able to get much done, and losing his base over time.  I think that it is more a time to be sad than frightened.



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Saturday, November 12, 2016 - 8:08pmSanction this postReply
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Thanks Steve - that makes me feel a little better. 

 

I like to think the best of people and they want to pursue and find truth.  Sadly I am finding myself in a small minority.  It seems most people are more interested in winning, ignoring their own ideologies failures and falsehoods, and tarring the other group a bunch of mindless robots.  It's all very sad.



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Post 3

Saturday, November 12, 2016 - 10:19pmSanction this postReply
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Yes, it is sad. 

 

And we see a bizarre form of activism from the far left that is going on now.  During the campaign they tried to scare people to vote for Hillary by demonizing Trump - not an unusual campaign tactic and employed by politicians of all stripes.  But this time they went a bit far in their excitement and likened Trump to a Nazi, to a racist, and so forth (and his lack of political correctness, lack of political principles, and sloppy rhetoric helped them).

 

Now, fast foward to the immediate post-election period.  There are people with far left ideology who are painting swastikas on walls and saying that it is being done by Trump supporters.  There are progressive pundits who are shouting to the media that Trump supporters are starting to beat up people who supported Hillary - even though this isn't happening - and it is all a continuation of the the campaign DESPITE the fact that the election is over.  This tells us that there is a segment of the far left who aren't in this for elections.  They see themselves in a never-ending war.  They will attempt to bring down anything that is related to Capitalism, and anything that they see as threatening progressivism.

 

But, like I said, this kind of activist is few in numbers.  If they grow significantly, there will be a real danger.  But that will take quite a while.



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Sunday, November 13, 2016 - 5:19amSanction this postReply
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But, like I said, this kind of activist is few in numbers.

This is what prompted my post.  During the election I understand the politics of labeling an opponent with windy rhetoric.  My friends and family in the Clinton/Trump camps kept posting the typical media slobber and talking points.  Fine.

 

Once the election was over I thought things would return to normal.  Instead friends and family continue by posting vandalism, stabbings, etc fully believing them.  They are fully convinced.  These are smart people!  None one who supported Clinton is denouncing the rioting.  One went as far as saying these riots need to move to the small rural communities where the ignorance exists.  I am dumbfounded and really concerned.  They appear totally blinded by their ideological box.  They are more than happy to turn a blind eye toward the violence because it has been caused by Trump and therefore justified.

 

Trump isn't being attacked for what he has done or enacted but purely for what he is perceived to be and believe.  This scares the hell out of me because those that are supposed to be the more educated sit back and nod in full agreement.  They defend the behaviour and exclaim - You brought it on yourselves you stupid woman hating racists!



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Sunday, November 13, 2016 - 3:24pmSanction this postReply
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Tim said, "Trump isn't being attacked for what he has done or enacted but purely for what he is perceived to be and believe." 

 

This is an important thing to notice.  If Clinton had been elected she would have been seen as a kind of step in the right direction, as a lever that the left would try to use.  Trump is seen as a step backwards from moving towards progressive goals.  And the attacks on him are not for who he is, what he has done, what he might do, but rather for not being a step towards acceptance of progressivism.  Therefore, Trump will be used as a symbol to demonize any opponents of progressivism. 

 

If Clinton had been elected there would still have been demonstrations, but not as ugly, and the pundits would not be trying to use them to scare people.  Those demonstartions would have just been to pressure Clinton to move to the left.  The pundits would be doing the victim dance - saying things like, "Black Lives Matter is just reacting to the institutional racism in local law enforcement" - to encourage Clinton to move faster in nationalizing law enforcement.  No matter who is in power as leader or as party they will just be used by progressivm to move towards its goals.

 

A powerful, out-in-the-open conflict between progressivism and capitalism - as an explicit intellectual debate (with or without accompanying civil unrest) - would be a necessary step towards exposing progressivism (which is what would end it).  It is a part of the medicine that the disease of progressivism requires.

 

I'll take this opportunity to shamelessly plug my little book (it is only about 60 pages and $2.99 for the digital version):

https://www.amazon.com/Wolfers-Primer-Progressivism-Revealing-Destroying/dp/1532822413/ref=sr_1_1

 

(Edited by Steve Wolfer on 11/13, 3:34pm)



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Sunday, November 13, 2016 - 7:26pmSanction this postReply
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Purchased.  Could have gotten it using unlimited but felt purchasing was a nice way to say thank you. 



Post 7

Monday, November 14, 2016 - 12:24amSanction this postReply
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Thank you.  :-)

 

I hope you enjoy it.



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Post 8

Monday, November 14, 2016 - 8:38amSanction this postReply
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This book is very very good.  I have learned a lot from it.  I am 3/4 of the way through (love it that iphone can read Amazon books for you.)  I am so pleased with this book I am going to get your other book on the nature of government.  I am also going to buy these for my son.  He is a junior in high school and very much interested in what is going on.  He was continually caught up in piling on Trump and I offered my own insights playing devil's advocate and what not to temper him.  The angry rhetoric and demonizing seems to really work with the younger minds.

 

I hope you continue to write.

 

Thanks!



Post 9

Monday, November 14, 2016 - 6:26pmSanction this postReply
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Thank you, Tim.  It is really nice to hear that you like the book.  I'm writing one now on Human Nature.  It will be much longer, and won't be done for a while.



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