He sold himself as master of the business universe who would fix everything. But at the end of the road we’ve found a floundering, vengeful bully who doesn’t even know what a tariff is.
This feels to me like the story of toxic masculinity--which makes sense, given that this man is essentially toxic masculinity's patron saint.
Men (as a class, not necessarily individual men, insert caveats, not all men, blah blah blah) talk constantly about being protectors and providers even as they never intervene to protect women in danger, even as they constantly create dangers for us. And we just keep meeting the debate on their terms, taking seriously these transparently false claims.
I don't think I have a fully formed thought here, except that Trump feels like an allegory for life as many of us in oppressed classes are currently living it.
Yes, yes, and yes. And I know women who have been in abusive relationships who can’t even look at him when he appears on tv. The sight of him is a trigger for their PTSD.
Musk, too. And Hegseth. And really, all of them. It seems all you have to do as a man is build up a myth rooted in toxic alpha male culture, and a significant portion of the population will buy it.
I'm not sure it's easier for some men to look at him in any context. A one minute video clip of Trump saying just about anything and I'm walking into the bathroom to feed the chickens or going to the garden to make coffee. My mind violent rejects all of this.
This analysis of what the hell is going on all around us is superb. Bordo gets it all -- the idiot, the psychopath, the mob boss, in such a smooth and easy-to-read format it should be dropped like a pamphlet from planes in the Washington, DC area.
Great stuff in this post....between the nose-picking and Crazy Elon Tesla's car sale in the White House Garden, it rips apart the mess we're in.
The link to "Ferris Bueller" and the Hawley-Smoot scene is great. The guy who played that teacher was some kind of GOP motormouth, and he was told to ad-lib those lines. He did so, brilliantly, and was quite accurate on the impact of Herbert Hoover's legislation.
This feels to me like the story of toxic masculinity--which makes sense, given that this man is essentially toxic masculinity's patron saint.
Men (as a class, not necessarily individual men, insert caveats, not all men, blah blah blah) talk constantly about being protectors and providers even as they never intervene to protect women in danger, even as they constantly create dangers for us. And we just keep meeting the debate on their terms, taking seriously these transparently false claims.
I don't think I have a fully formed thought here, except that Trump feels like an allegory for life as many of us in oppressed classes are currently living it.
Yes, yes, and yes. And I know women who have been in abusive relationships who can’t even look at him when he appears on tv. The sight of him is a trigger for their PTSD.
Musk, too. And Hegseth. And really, all of them. It seems all you have to do as a man is build up a myth rooted in toxic alpha male culture, and a significant portion of the population will buy it.
Their whole existence is triggering.
"It's a vomit" as my companheira says in her best Porglish.
I'm not sure it's easier for some men to look at him in any context. A one minute video clip of Trump saying just about anything and I'm walking into the bathroom to feed the chickens or going to the garden to make coffee. My mind violent rejects all of this.
This analysis of what the hell is going on all around us is superb. Bordo gets it all -- the idiot, the psychopath, the mob boss, in such a smooth and easy-to-read format it should be dropped like a pamphlet from planes in the Washington, DC area.
Thank you, thank you!! Let’s tape those pamphlets to bombs with precision aim at the White House.
We’re off to see the POTUS
The hideous POTUS of Oz.
We hear he is a wonderful whiz
Of drinking the piss of Musk!
The POTUS of Oz is one because
He wants to ruin the U.S. for us.
Because, because, because…
He’s a kisser of Putin’s butt.
Tariffs are something he knows not of.
He belongs in Attica.
Along with slimy President Musk
Who makes us vomit with such a rush.
We’re off to see the POTUS,
And protest his budget cuts!
We hear he hates the “felon” word,
So we’ll shout it from the sky like birds.
Let’s impeach the POTUS
And throw Republicans under the bus!
Continuing with the Godfather theme, Trump is Tattaglia and Musk is Barzini.
Great stuff in this post....between the nose-picking and Crazy Elon Tesla's car sale in the White House Garden, it rips apart the mess we're in.
The link to "Ferris Bueller" and the Hawley-Smoot scene is great. The guy who played that teacher was some kind of GOP motormouth, and he was told to ad-lib those lines. He did so, brilliantly, and was quite accurate on the impact of Herbert Hoover's legislation.
The teacher was played by Ben Stein. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Stein
Thanks…I couldn’t remember. Someone else reminded me, but every little bit helps.
It also lets me know that people read my stuff!