People like Thiel are a great reason why something needs to be done about the concentration of wealth among a few mega-rich folks. For all the good that some wealthy people do, such as Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, there are many more jerks like Thiel and Musk. Perhaps tax anyone with assets above a half billion at 90% for everything above $500,000,000. Raise taxes on everyone with $10 million to $500 million as well. This will never happen, of course, but it is a potential solution. In another vein, we somehow need to get better at debunking the junk put out by Fox News, OAN, and Newsmax. I'm not sure how to do this, but something should be done to get facts into the heads of people who spend their time watching such drivel. Maybe our friends from Gen Z will develop these solutions.
Both of these Parts are very interesting and enlightening. Clearly make the case that Trump and some of his supporters are "fascist-adjacent" to coin a phrase.
Thanks again for these posts, Damon. I appreciate the clear-eyed analysis, and (shockingly, I know) I very much agree with you. The epistemic nihilism that Trump and his ilk embrace is beyond concerning especially when coupled with the cult of personality and overtly aggressive nationalism. The pieces are certainly in place to tip Trumpism, for lack of a better term into American fascism.
To me, what makes Trump seem fascistic to many people is basically that he started life as a real estate promoter of the particularly nasty sort under the tutelage of his dad, Roy Cohn, etc., and proved to have a particular talent in that field.
Besides being essentially corrupt and greedy for money and gold toilets, he has been very successful (most of the time) in knowing exactly what lines would reel in the most customers (he seems to have failed in the markets for steaks and bottle water). And of course, he has a cruel streak of immense width. Characteristics of this kind have made him very successful in pursuing power over others for his own benefit (essential for any skilled capitalist), and make him look very much like a mob boss and Hitler, to whom he is often compared.
But I don’t think it’s very helpful just to brand him as a fascist or Hitler. It’s more accurate to classify him as an enormous bully—someone who has a great talent for grasping power by “any means necessary.”
"If Trump runs for president again in 2024 and these groups begin showing up to campaign events as a kind of defense force for the candidate, that would be the most obvious example of fasc-ish tendencies yet."
It seems prudent to consider that box checked: They're already essentially doing that for other Republicans like MTG and Mastriano, but also for #45. "Proud Boys" and presumably Oath Keepers, who are heavily represented in the area, were at his rally last weekend in Arizona. That they may not be officially on the Trump payroll doesn't mean they aren't performing the exact same function. They are there to threaten and inflict violence.
People like Thiel are a great reason why something needs to be done about the concentration of wealth among a few mega-rich folks. For all the good that some wealthy people do, such as Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, there are many more jerks like Thiel and Musk. Perhaps tax anyone with assets above a half billion at 90% for everything above $500,000,000. Raise taxes on everyone with $10 million to $500 million as well. This will never happen, of course, but it is a potential solution. In another vein, we somehow need to get better at debunking the junk put out by Fox News, OAN, and Newsmax. I'm not sure how to do this, but something should be done to get facts into the heads of people who spend their time watching such drivel. Maybe our friends from Gen Z will develop these solutions.
Both of these Parts are very interesting and enlightening. Clearly make the case that Trump and some of his supporters are "fascist-adjacent" to coin a phrase.
Thanks again for these posts, Damon. I appreciate the clear-eyed analysis, and (shockingly, I know) I very much agree with you. The epistemic nihilism that Trump and his ilk embrace is beyond concerning especially when coupled with the cult of personality and overtly aggressive nationalism. The pieces are certainly in place to tip Trumpism, for lack of a better term into American fascism.
To me, what makes Trump seem fascistic to many people is basically that he started life as a real estate promoter of the particularly nasty sort under the tutelage of his dad, Roy Cohn, etc., and proved to have a particular talent in that field.
Besides being essentially corrupt and greedy for money and gold toilets, he has been very successful (most of the time) in knowing exactly what lines would reel in the most customers (he seems to have failed in the markets for steaks and bottle water). And of course, he has a cruel streak of immense width. Characteristics of this kind have made him very successful in pursuing power over others for his own benefit (essential for any skilled capitalist), and make him look very much like a mob boss and Hitler, to whom he is often compared.
But I don’t think it’s very helpful just to brand him as a fascist or Hitler. It’s more accurate to classify him as an enormous bully—someone who has a great talent for grasping power by “any means necessary.”
Please have a look at Trump’s speech he gave in D.C. yesterday. In my view, it reinforces your “fasc-ish” case. I find it incredibly alarming.
"If Trump runs for president again in 2024 and these groups begin showing up to campaign events as a kind of defense force for the candidate, that would be the most obvious example of fasc-ish tendencies yet."
It seems prudent to consider that box checked: They're already essentially doing that for other Republicans like MTG and Mastriano, but also for #45. "Proud Boys" and presumably Oath Keepers, who are heavily represented in the area, were at his rally last weekend in Arizona. That they may not be officially on the Trump payroll doesn't mean they aren't performing the exact same function. They are there to threaten and inflict violence.