Where this relates to the overruling of Roe vs. Wade, in a very roundabout way, is that the political fallout will be a test of the viability of the new media ethos. Are those who cheer the Supreme Court’s decision, and/or support the enactment of laws that now entirely prohibit abortion — such as in states like Missouri or Louisiana — going to be treated by WaPo and company as people whose sensibilities must not be too egregiously offended, as was the case in 2010 with the gay marriage opponents? Or are they going to be lumped into the new all-purpose category of frightful right-wing aggressors, hellbent not just on outlawing abortion, but Destroying Our Democracy — and against whom no appeasement can be countenanced? We shall see.
The guns are here to stay. There’s just too many of them, the political movement in favor of them is too strong. The NRA is always talking about people coming in and confiscating your guns. We could never get all the guns if we wanted to. So I think we have to focus on reducing gun violence and doing what we can in a bad situation.
All across the Academy, schools are requiring “Diversity Statements” as a condition for new hires. Everyone has to submit a statement explaining how they are going to contribute to “diversity”. What you’re supposed to do in these, and what everyone damn well knows you’re supposed to do, is (i) talk about your race, gender, and other “identity group” traits that it would be illegal for the university to explicitly ask you about, and (ii) talk about your activism on behalf of left-wing identity politics.
Today we’re sharing a special “Dig Your Enemy” crossover event, as Daniel Denvir of Jacobin magazine’s The Dig podcast puts Matt and Sam in the hot seat. We answer all of Dan’s excellent questions about the state of the American right, including: the return of isolationism, the New Right, Peter Thiel, Curtis Yarvin, Blake Masters, Doug Mastriano, the prospects for a multi-racial conservative majority, the “groomer” panic, masculinity and gender politics, MAGA, authoritarianism, NYC’s new reactionary “downtown scene,” and the bad dialectic between racial liberalism and the anti-woke reactionaries. Enjoy!
The Democrats have paid a considerable price for their increasingly strong linkage to militant identity politics, which brands the party as focused on, or at least distracted by, issues of little relevance to most voters’ lives. Worse, the focus has led many working-class voters to believe that, unless they subscribe to this emerging worldview and are willing to speak its language, they will be condemned as reactionary, intolerant, and racist by those who purport to represent their interests. To some extent these voters are right: They really are looked down upon by substantial segments of the Democratic party—typically younger, well-educated, and metropolitan—who embrace identity politics and the intersectional approach. This has contributed to the emerging rupture in the Democratic Party’s coalition along lines of education and region.
Mattias Desmet is a professor of clinical psychology and Educational Sciences at the Ghent University, Belgium and a practicing psychotherapist. He is the author of “The Psychology of Totalitarianism” (Chelsea Green Publishing). Since he introduced the concept of “mass formation psychosis” into the arena of public discourse some months ago, his ideas have been discussed widely, especially in relation to the bizarre politics of Covid-19. He is also the author of over one hundred peer-reviewed academic papers and recipient of many prizes in his professional field.
What Shawn Eng Read, Listened To and Watched 