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Constant Hysterics Damage Our Democracy
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Buzzsaw Checkerling
Dec 15, 2017, 4:03:31 PM12/15/17
to
We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
by David French
December 15, 2017
nationalreview.com
Late last night, while reading a stream of apocalyptic rhetoric about
the repeal of net neutrality and the “end of the internet as we know
it,” I reached the shattering conclusion that one of my favorite lines
from one of my favorite movies was wrong. The movie is the 2004 Brad
Bird masterpiece, The Incredibles. The line comes from the villain,
Syndrome, who outlines his plan to make “everyone super,” because when
“everyone is super [he chuckles maliciously] no one will be.”
It’s a great line, and it seems to convey an important truth. When you
make everyone or everything “the best” or “the greatest” or “special,”
then you inevitably end up devaluing the superlative. When everyone
gets a trophy, trophies matter less. The same truth applies equally in
reverse. Not everything is “the worst” or an “emergency,” and when we
pretend otherwise, it turns out that nothing is believed to be. That’s
the essence of “crying wolf.”
Except in politics. In politics, when everything’s a crisis, it turns
out that EVERYTHING’S A CRISIS!
We keep reading that Donald Trump is a unique danger to American
democracy, a threat we should put aside partisan tribalism to defeat.
Then, seconds later, we read that giving Americans the choice to buy
health insurance will kill people by the thousands. Seconds after that,
we learn that an entirely conventional Republican tax plan will not
only kill people but also extinguish American democracy as we know it.
Finally, we read that the end of net neutrality — a regulatory doctrine
that only the smallest percentage of Americans even remotely understand
— will extinguish American liberty.
Folks with decent memories will remember another danger to American
democracy. His name was Willard Mitt Romney — a corporate raider,
slaver (“put y’all back in chains“), and misogynist (“binders full of
women”) who actually killed people.
But everyone knows these progressives are completely, totally wrong.
Conservatives aren’t destroying this nation. Progressives are. Charge
the cockpit or you’ll die, right? One junior senator from Alabama will
save or kill millions of babies. The FBI’s like the KGB. The “deep
state” is launching its “soft coup,” and it’s time to man the
barricades.
For the average American, who pays less attention to politics than to
his professional and personal lives, all of this is exhausting. It’s
numbing to the point where he can’t possibly determine what’s important
and what’s not. So he checks out. He throws his hands in the air and
gives up. But for the Americans who care the most about politics and
drive our public debate, perpetual crisis is invigorating. It provides
meaning and purpose.
A nation’s political culture is always defined by the people who care
the most, and the people who care the most in our nation have lost all
sense of proportion. All too many activists, politicians, pundits,
celebrities, and ordinary political junkies will look at the rhetoric I
outlined above, and nod their heads in agreement with the examples that
suit their politics.
The bottom line is that even “normal” American politics are far more
broken than Trump’s Twitter feed. It’s debatable whether the public
temperature would be one degree lower if Trump tossed his phone into
the Potomac. Instead of solemn 86-tweet threads on why Trump’s
retweeting British fascists heralds the founding of Panem from the
Hunger Games, we’d get solemn 93-tweet threads explaining why lower
corporate-tax rates will lead to bodies stacked like cordwood in the
streets. And the same “serious people” will nod, tweet “The most
important thread you’ll read today” or “indispensable analysis,” and
continue to foster the notion that their political opponents are so
depraved that they don’t care if people die.
Yes, I recognize the irony of this entire piece. I’m ranting about
excessive ranting. But to fight against a political culture that
declares everything to be a crisis is not the same thing as arguing
that nothing is a crisis. We do face grave political problems. There
are genuine cultural emergencies (the opioid epidemic comes immediately
to mind). But when the response to conventional politics is something
closer to an apocalyptic fever dream than reasoned discourse, then the
true political problem is the reaction, not the political action (tax
cuts, regulatory reform, judicial nominations) that triggered it.
There’s a range of political emotion. The choices aren’t limited to
#nothingburger or endless screaming. Perhaps one of the greatest
services any pundit, writer, or reader can provide is not only
determining what’s right and wrong — good policy and bad — but also the
degree to which a normal person should care and the level of certainty
in the apocalyptic predictions. In other words, in our polarized times,
finding the proper sense of proportion might be among your greatest
patriotic duties. Save your fury for a real crisis. America needs you
to be calm.
______________
"Known fact that Leftists hate the President of the United States;
what's not known is why they hate The United States of America."
by David French
December 15, 2017
nationalreview.com
Late last night, while reading a stream of apocalyptic rhetoric about
the repeal of net neutrality and the “end of the internet as we know
it,” I reached the shattering conclusion that one of my favorite lines
from one of my favorite movies was wrong. The movie is the 2004 Brad
Bird masterpiece, The Incredibles. The line comes from the villain,
Syndrome, who outlines his plan to make “everyone super,” because when
“everyone is super [he chuckles maliciously] no one will be.”
It’s a great line, and it seems to convey an important truth. When you
make everyone or everything “the best” or “the greatest” or “special,”
then you inevitably end up devaluing the superlative. When everyone
gets a trophy, trophies matter less. The same truth applies equally in
reverse. Not everything is “the worst” or an “emergency,” and when we
pretend otherwise, it turns out that nothing is believed to be. That’s
the essence of “crying wolf.”
Except in politics. In politics, when everything’s a crisis, it turns
out that EVERYTHING’S A CRISIS!
We keep reading that Donald Trump is a unique danger to American
democracy, a threat we should put aside partisan tribalism to defeat.
Then, seconds later, we read that giving Americans the choice to buy
health insurance will kill people by the thousands. Seconds after that,
we learn that an entirely conventional Republican tax plan will not
only kill people but also extinguish American democracy as we know it.
Finally, we read that the end of net neutrality — a regulatory doctrine
that only the smallest percentage of Americans even remotely understand
— will extinguish American liberty.
Folks with decent memories will remember another danger to American
democracy. His name was Willard Mitt Romney — a corporate raider,
slaver (“put y’all back in chains“), and misogynist (“binders full of
women”) who actually killed people.
But everyone knows these progressives are completely, totally wrong.
Conservatives aren’t destroying this nation. Progressives are. Charge
the cockpit or you’ll die, right? One junior senator from Alabama will
save or kill millions of babies. The FBI’s like the KGB. The “deep
state” is launching its “soft coup,” and it’s time to man the
barricades.
For the average American, who pays less attention to politics than to
his professional and personal lives, all of this is exhausting. It’s
numbing to the point where he can’t possibly determine what’s important
and what’s not. So he checks out. He throws his hands in the air and
gives up. But for the Americans who care the most about politics and
drive our public debate, perpetual crisis is invigorating. It provides
meaning and purpose.
A nation’s political culture is always defined by the people who care
the most, and the people who care the most in our nation have lost all
sense of proportion. All too many activists, politicians, pundits,
celebrities, and ordinary political junkies will look at the rhetoric I
outlined above, and nod their heads in agreement with the examples that
suit their politics.
The bottom line is that even “normal” American politics are far more
broken than Trump’s Twitter feed. It’s debatable whether the public
temperature would be one degree lower if Trump tossed his phone into
the Potomac. Instead of solemn 86-tweet threads on why Trump’s
retweeting British fascists heralds the founding of Panem from the
Hunger Games, we’d get solemn 93-tweet threads explaining why lower
corporate-tax rates will lead to bodies stacked like cordwood in the
streets. And the same “serious people” will nod, tweet “The most
important thread you’ll read today” or “indispensable analysis,” and
continue to foster the notion that their political opponents are so
depraved that they don’t care if people die.
Yes, I recognize the irony of this entire piece. I’m ranting about
excessive ranting. But to fight against a political culture that
declares everything to be a crisis is not the same thing as arguing
that nothing is a crisis. We do face grave political problems. There
are genuine cultural emergencies (the opioid epidemic comes immediately
to mind). But when the response to conventional politics is something
closer to an apocalyptic fever dream than reasoned discourse, then the
true political problem is the reaction, not the political action (tax
cuts, regulatory reform, judicial nominations) that triggered it.
There’s a range of political emotion. The choices aren’t limited to
#nothingburger or endless screaming. Perhaps one of the greatest
services any pundit, writer, or reader can provide is not only
determining what’s right and wrong — good policy and bad — but also the
degree to which a normal person should care and the level of certainty
in the apocalyptic predictions. In other words, in our polarized times,
finding the proper sense of proportion might be among your greatest
patriotic duties. Save your fury for a real crisis. America needs you
to be calm.
______________
"Known fact that Leftists hate the President of the United States;
what's not known is why they hate The United States of America."
Mr. B1ack
Dec 15, 2017, 4:53:25 PM12/15/17
to
On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:03:29 +0000 (UTC), "Buzzsaw Checkerling"
<buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
Indeed ... and ARE paying even now.
<buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
Each "crisis" seems to evolve when some faction
really has nothing to say, nothing to support what
they say, no excuse to implement what they say ...
but they still WANT it anyhow.
The "crisis" is a TOOL, an artificial reason to
do 'X' no matter how pointless and stupid 'X'
might be. Get everybody riled up - "We MUST
do 'X' RIGHT NOW !!!".
And then you get the years/decades of suffering
for doing stupid pointless 'X'. Only a very few
profit from it ... and usually the secret reason
for 'X' *was* literal profit for those few.
So .... next time there's an abrupt sudden NEED
for something we never needed before - step
back and look at the 'crisis' carefully, figure out
what it's REALLY all about. Who's selling it, who
will profit, who will get screwed ....?
You'd THINK that after 15,000 years of civilization
We The People would be WISE to these tricks -
but we ain't. We fall for the same old BS every
goddamned time - and pay the price.
#BeamMeUpScotty
Dec 15, 2017, 7:15:17 PM12/15/17
to
On 12/15/2017 04:03 PM, Buzzsaw Checkerling wrote:
> We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
> by David French
> December 15, 2017
> nationalreview.com
>
> Late last night, while reading a stream of apocalyptic rhetoric about
> the repeal of net neutrality and the “end of the internet as we know
> it,” I reached the shattering conclusion that one of my favorite lines
> from one of my favorite movies was wrong. The movie is the 2004 Brad
> Bird masterpiece, The Incredibles. The line comes from the villain,
> Syndrome, who outlines his plan to make “everyone super,” because when
> “everyone is super [he chuckles maliciously] no one will be.”
>
> It’s a great line, and it seems to convey an important truth. When you
> make everyone or everything “the best” or “the greatest” or “special,”
> then you inevitably end up devaluing the superlative. When everyone
> gets a trophy, trophies matter less.
What you're suggesting is the same as the Liberals struggle for
> We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
> by David French
> December 15, 2017
> nationalreview.com
>
> Late last night, while reading a stream of apocalyptic rhetoric about
> the repeal of net neutrality and the “end of the internet as we know
> it,” I reached the shattering conclusion that one of my favorite lines
> from one of my favorite movies was wrong. The movie is the 2004 Brad
> Bird masterpiece, The Incredibles. The line comes from the villain,
> Syndrome, who outlines his plan to make “everyone super,” because when
> “everyone is super [he chuckles maliciously] no one will be.”
>
> It’s a great line, and it seems to convey an important truth. When you
> make everyone or everything “the best” or “the greatest” or “special,”
> then you inevitably end up devaluing the superlative. When everyone
> gets a trophy, trophies matter less.
mediocrity. When no one is allowed to be a failure and the successful
are reigned-in then liberal government will have made us all special.
*Strive to be the best at mediocrity that you can be* . It is the
essence of Liberalism. They all want to be equally stupid. That's one
hell of a goal to strive for.
--
That's Karma
*Rumination*
1160 - When a Liberal can't achieve greatness, he redefines greatness.
MattB
Dec 15, 2017, 7:20:23 PM12/15/17
to
Democrats want a socialist State. The middle class is just fucked in
either case.
>
>______________
>"Known fact that Leftists hate the President of the United States;
>what's not known is why they hate The United States of America."
Fact is the USA is it's people not a political party.
>______________
>"Known fact that Leftists hate the President of the United States;
>what's not known is why they hate The United States of America."
#BeamMeUpScotty
Dec 15, 2017, 7:20:37 PM12/15/17
to
On 12/15/2017 04:03 PM, Buzzsaw Checkerling wrote:
a mandate to force people to become part of the *FRACTIONAL SLAVE POOL*
thus turning Massachusetts into the first full fledged SLAVE STATE in
the 150± years since the civil war.
--
That's Karma
The *REAL CHILD PREDATORS* are the Democrats who support ABORTION.
Byker
Dec 15, 2017, 10:56:51 PM12/15/17
to
On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:03:29 +0000 (UTC), "Buzzsaw Checkerling"
<buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
We Baby Boomers grew up with 24/7 Earth-Day eco-doom. Millennials can expect
<buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
to do the same...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Growing Up With Climate Change
By Chloe Maxmin
JUNE 15, 2016
My generation will be the first to have lived an entire lifetime in a
climate changed world. We witnessed the first climate impacts. We will
experience the worst. We were born into this crisis and did nothing to cause
it. Everything that we know and love—from our backyards to the existence of
Planet Earth—is threatened.
This is a generation unlike any other.
What is it like to grow up with this new climate reality? I spoke to six
young people who have been working on climate change from a young age and
know what it’s like to grow up with this crisis. Their ages range from 13 to
29. Each confronts a different face of the crisis, from the coal mines of
West Virginia to the drought-stricken plains of Kenya. Their words offer a
glimpse into the challenges, heartaches, opportunities, and hope of growing
up with climate change. <snip>
https://www.thenation.com/article/growing-up-with-climate-change/
Gunner Asch
Dec 16, 2017, 12:42:44 AM12/16/17
to
---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus
Mr. B1ack
Dec 16, 2017, 1:28:07 AM12/16/17
to
On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:56:45 -0600, "Byker" <byker@do~rag.net> wrote:
>On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:03:29 +0000 (UTC), "Buzzsaw Checkerling"
><buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>
>>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
>We Baby Boomers grew up with 24/7 Earth-Day eco-doom. Millennials can expect
>to do the same...
Well, let's hope it gets hot enough to melt
>On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:03:29 +0000 (UTC), "Buzzsaw Checkerling"
><buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>
>>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
>We Baby Boomers grew up with 24/7 Earth-Day eco-doom. Millennials can expect
>to do the same...
all the snowflakes :-)
Governor Swill
Dec 20, 2017, 6:03:12 AM12/20/17
to
On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 16:53:19 -0500, Mr. B1ack <now...@nada.net>
wrote:
>On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:03:29 +0000 (UTC), "Buzzsaw Checkerling"
><buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>
>>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
>
> Indeed ... and ARE paying even now.
>
> Each "crisis" seems to evolve when some faction
> really has nothing to say, nothing to support what
> they say, no excuse to implement what they say ...
> but they still WANT it anyhow.
>
> The "crisis" is a TOOL, an artificial reason to
> do 'X' no matter how pointless and stupid 'X'
> might be. Get everybody riled up - "We MUST
> do 'X' RIGHT NOW !!!".
"1984"
> And then you get the years/decades of suffering
> for doing stupid pointless 'X'. Only a very few
> profit from it ... and usually the secret reason
> for 'X' *was* literal profit for those few.
>
> So .... next time there's an abrupt sudden NEED
> for something we never needed before - step
> back and look at the 'crisis' carefully, figure out
> what it's REALLY all about. Who's selling it, who
> will profit, who will get screwed ....?
>
> You'd THINK that after 15,000 years of civilization
> We The People would be WISE to these tricks -
> but we ain't. We fall for the same old BS every
> goddamned time - and pay the price.
That's because the 'deplorables' are too busy thinking with their
glands rather than their brains and are easily distracted by our
modern entertainments.
Swill
--
How do you propose we pay for Trumps trillion
dollar border wall and Trumps trillion dollar
infrastructure plan and Trump's trillion dollar
defense budget? - Mitchell Holman
With a trillion dollar tax cut? - Swill
wrote:
>On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:03:29 +0000 (UTC), "Buzzsaw Checkerling"
><buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>
>>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
>
> Indeed ... and ARE paying even now.
>
> Each "crisis" seems to evolve when some faction
> really has nothing to say, nothing to support what
> they say, no excuse to implement what they say ...
> but they still WANT it anyhow.
>
> The "crisis" is a TOOL, an artificial reason to
> do 'X' no matter how pointless and stupid 'X'
> might be. Get everybody riled up - "We MUST
> do 'X' RIGHT NOW !!!".
> And then you get the years/decades of suffering
> for doing stupid pointless 'X'. Only a very few
> profit from it ... and usually the secret reason
> for 'X' *was* literal profit for those few.
>
> So .... next time there's an abrupt sudden NEED
> for something we never needed before - step
> back and look at the 'crisis' carefully, figure out
> what it's REALLY all about. Who's selling it, who
> will profit, who will get screwed ....?
>
> You'd THINK that after 15,000 years of civilization
> We The People would be WISE to these tricks -
> but we ain't. We fall for the same old BS every
> goddamned time - and pay the price.
glands rather than their brains and are easily distracted by our
modern entertainments.
Swill
--
How do you propose we pay for Trumps trillion
dollar border wall and Trumps trillion dollar
infrastructure plan and Trump's trillion dollar
defense budget? - Mitchell Holman
With a trillion dollar tax cut? - Swill
Governor Swill
Dec 20, 2017, 6:38:12 AM12/20/17
to
>On Fri, 15 Dec 2017 21:03:29 +0000 (UTC), "Buzzsaw Checkerling"
><buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>
>>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
>We Baby Boomers grew up with 24/7 Earth-Day eco-doom. Millennials can expect
>to do the same...
>-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>Growing Up With Climate Change
>
>By Chloe Maxmin
>JUNE 15, 2016
>
>My generation will be the first to have lived an entire lifetime in a
>climate changed world.
BZZZZZZZZTT! Wrong. Three words: Little Ice Age
><buzz...@aol.com> wrote:
>
>>We’ll pay a high price for cultivating an air of perpetual crisis.
>
>We Baby Boomers grew up with 24/7 Earth-Day eco-doom. Millennials can expect
>to do the same...
>-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>Growing Up With Climate Change
>
>By Chloe Maxmin
>JUNE 15, 2016
>
>My generation will be the first to have lived an entire lifetime in a
>climate changed world.
>We witnessed the first climate impacts. We will
>experience the worst. We were born into this crisis and did nothing to cause
>it. Everything that we know and love—from our backyards to the existence of
>Planet Earth—is threatened.
>
>This is a generation unlike any other.
>
>What is it like to grow up with this new climate reality? I spoke to six
>young people who have been working on climate change from a young age and
>know what it’s like to grow up with this crisis. Their ages range from 13 to
>29. Each confronts a different face of the crisis, from the coal mines of
>West Virginia to the drought-stricken plains of Kenya. Their words offer a
>glimpse into the challenges, heartaches, opportunities, and hope of growing
>up with climate change. <snip>
>
>https://www.thenation.com/article/growing-up-with-climate-change/
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