[Xmca-l] Re: a linguist and a child on D. Trump

Mon Jul 10 10:40:45 PDT 2017

I'm in red country here in Utah. Although Trump receives mostly tepid
support here, anti-Clinton and anti-Democrat voices are very strong here.
I'm also familiar with the Trumpista rhetoric because, well, as an
anthropologist seeking understanding of those who are different from me, I
find it fascinating to follow these threads of how people make sense of
something that I find to be entirely nonsensical.

One trouble in this is that it is very difficult to tell exactly what the
numbers are like here in the U.S. as far as just how many Trumpistas there
are. Polls can give a general idea (e.g., 538's tracking:
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/trump-approval-ratings/), and they
still show approval ratings holding around 40%. Yes, he's the first
president whose disapproval ratings have consistently remained above his
approval ratings, but that still means that 40% have remained true to DJT
(and his approval trendline seems to be downward - 45% at the original
high, 38% at the recent low). I think that there is probably a bit of
social psychology that could help explain those 40% or so who still support
him - they are the ones who voted for him and have made a major commitment
and feel a particular investment to that commitment.

As for what people are saying about him and why they continue to support
him, it seems that he is seen as an anti-establishment figure
(notwithstanding substantial evidence to the contrary). And I think that
people really strongly believe that this is the case. Their evidence for
this is that he opposes the establishments that they see as problematic.
These include a myriad array of different sorts of things, most of which
could be seen as politically left: political correctness ("grab 'em by
the..."), mainstream media (esp. CNN), big government (his department
secretaries all have harshly criticized the departments that they are
heading, save for perhaps Secretary of the Interior - I think).

The mainstream media provides a case in point where the medium is the
message, and the carrier is the content. Check out DJT's recent tweet:
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/881503147168071680 (btw, if you
want to better understand the Trumpista position, you can see posts in
response to his tweets that provide a decent sense of the Trumpistas'
arguments). In case you would rather not see it firsthand, it is a tweet of
a WWE wrestling match with DJT's face superimposed on one wrestler and the
CNN logo superimposed on the other, and, predictably, the Trump wrestler is
beating up the CNN wrestler. Trump's team here is very effectively playing
to their base not just by the Trump attack on CNN, but by the very nature
of the attack - a tweet using "professional" wrestling to tell his story (I
assume that everyone knows who watches professional wrestling). I should
add that in response to the bi-partisan outrage about this, his son
recently posted a tweet where DJT is in a fighter jet and he shoots down a
fighter jet with the CNN logo on it (images from Top Gun - a movie that is
American machismo incarnate) . This is the kind of blustery machismo that
will play to his base very well. (But, I fear, this is a sideshow
distraction, a tempest in a teacup while a storm is brewing elsewhere).

The critique of mainstream media also provides one of the great bulwarks of
the Trumpista camp - the notion that Trump is the little guy fighting
against the powerful forces of Washington.

My fear is that if he gets pushed out in a way that appears that the
Washington insiders forced him to leave, rather than that the American
people wanted him to leave. There will always be some who think this, but
just how many will depend on how he is removed.

(and, actually, my greatest fear is that Trump will start a war in order to
get his numbers turned around - if you look at the 538 poll numbers for
past presidents (further down on the page that I linked to above), you'll
see that the biggest jump of any president's approval ratings happened 237
days into his term when they jumped from around 51% to over 80% - I imagine
that DJT and his people are looking at that and wishing for, well, the
worst).

My hope is that some kind of solidarity can form in the U.S. (and
elsewhere) that is neither left nor right. But right now, I see little
possibility of that - Trumpistas are dedicated to him and unwilling to
criticize him just as Obamaistas remain entirely dedicated and unwilling to
criticize him.

But Andy, I like your hopeful spin.

-greg

On Mon, Jul 10, 2017 at 9:50 AM, Andy Blunden <ablunden@mira.net> wrote:

> An American friend said to me that if he had to choose between stupidity
> and evil, he would choose stupidity. All these options for removing Trump
> can only end in President Pence which is worse even if more predictable.
> But the longer Trump stumbles along with the GOP defending him the more
> likely the chumps who voted for them may ask questions of themselves by the
> time the next elections come along. True, all sorts of evil laws are
> slipping through Congress while Trump distracts us with his antics, but
> these measures are  reversible.
>
> It seems I was wrong in thinking that the repeal of ObamaCare would
> generate perezhivaniya for the millions of Trump voters reliant on Medicaid
> - they have lied so badly for the past 7 years that they actually can't
> "Repeal and Replace" or simply Repeal ObamaCare. Thanks to Fox News none of
> Trump's supporters realise this, but if ObamaCare is still in place in 3
> years' time and the government simply withholds funds, then who knows what
> the Trumpistas will make of it? Tragic. But he certainly has generated some
> activism round the country, hasn't he?
>
> How is Trump's sad antics in Europe being seen in America? Do flag-waving
> Americans realise how stupid America is looking at the moment in the eyes
> of the world?
>
> Andy
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> Andy Blunden
> http://home.mira.net/~andy
> http://www.brill.com/products/book/origins-collective-decision-making
> On 11/07/2017 12:51 AM, Peg Griffin wrote:
>
>> About regency?
>> There is a sort of "unfinished" amendment to the US constitution. The
>> 25th amendment calls for a body to be formed if there is a question of the
>> need for presidential succession.  And now there is a House bill to
>> "finish" the 25th and establish such a body.  Jamie Raskin is the chief
>> sponsor and there are some co-sponsors so far. Although relatively junior,
>> Raskin is on important related House committees for doing something about
>> presidential "inability" and he seems to me to be quite persuasive,
>> knowledgeable and thorough.
>> Here's the link to his bill:
>> https://raskin.house.gov/media/press-releases/raskin-introdu
>> ces-bill-establish-independent-commission-presidential-capacity
>> A clause in the middle of the second paragraph of Section 4 of the 25th
>> amendment is at issue (and if the bill gets introduced and/or passes would
>> be litigated, no doubt -- we have lots of "intent of the framers" ouija
>> boards to consult in courts ).  As it now it, it appears that the "other
>> body" proposed would be constituted only if the President's inability has
>> already been addressed up to a point by some procedures and there is an
>> impasse between executive and legislative branches of the government.  The
>> amendment's clause allows for the following: "...or such other body as
>> Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro
>> tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their
>> written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers
>> and duties of his office."  As it now provides, the issue then goes back to
>> the Senate and House (2/3 vote of both houses required or else the
>> president resumes power and duties)
>> shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the
>> President shall resume the powers and duties of his office."
>>
>> Raskin's bill provides for an additional route (besides impeachment) to
>> remove a sitting president.
>>
>> Right now (with the Republicans in charge of both houses of Congress and
>> the Presidency), practically speaking,  it seems that the most it will
>> provide is a venue for careful constitutional discussion.  If hearings are
>> not allowed (by the majority party) to occur officially in the House of
>> Representative, then it may well occur in forums  (Representative Conyers'
>> approach), People's Hearings or state hearings.  Whichever way, the
>> discussion may involve the judiciary, if Raskin and his growing list of
>> co-sponsors take that route.  And the discussion may move some voters and
>> votes.
>>
>> These aren't quite arrangements for a regent.  Jamie Raskin hasn't given
>> up on the impeachment route: He's active about various other clauses of the
>> constitution involving ethics, money, and about failures of the separation
>> of powers and coordination of relations among government branches.  But
>> Maxine Waters is the main member of the House for feeling hopeful (and a
>> bit happy) on the impeachment front!   And I think there are a few more
>> active and effective people and efforts behind the scenes.  Nothing wrong
>> with a bit of enfadado, though, huh?
>> PG
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: xmca-l-bounces@mailman.ucsd.edu [mailto:xmca-l-bounces@mailman
>> .ucsd.edu] On Behalf Of Carol Macdonald
>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2017 6:56 AM
>> To: Andy Blunden; eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity
>> Subject: [Xmca-l] Re: a linguist and a child on D. Trump
>>
>> That would be the vice-President!
>>
>> I think Trump enjoyed being the fly in the ointment at G20, and then ...
>> offered to work jointly with Russia on cyber security. And now we hear
>> that his son went to a meeting with a Russian because he believed they had
>> some damaging information on Clinton.
>>
>> Alfredo I think lots of us are feeling 'enfadado' -- but rather helpless
>> with it too.
>>
>> Carol
>>
>> On 8 July 2017 at 11:43, Andy Blunden <ablunden@mira.net> wrote:
>>
>> I was thinking ... does the US system allow for the appointment of a
>>> Regent?
>>>
>>> andy
>>>
>>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>>> Andy Blunden
>>> http://home.mira.net/~andy
>>> http://www.brill.com/products/book/origins-collective-decision-making
>>> On 8/07/2017 7:40 PM, Alfredo Jornet Gil wrote:
>>>
>>> We've been perplexed (some may say horrified) by Trump's speech in
>>>> this list before, as many others in the media have. A linguist in the
>>>> Washington post (see link below) comments on this and notes how
>>>> Trump's speech sounds like (American) everyday speech, like he 'could
>>>> be a family member or a friend'. She also notes his use of hyperbolic
>>>> verbal and gestural devices.
>>>> ??I was watching the video and my two-years old daughter passed by
>>>> and saw Trump talking. Pointing at him, my daughter said, 'enfadado'
>>>> ('angry' in Spanish). Honestly, I am glad that not many of my family
>>>> members or friends sound like that, even the American ones!
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/politics/this-linguist-
>>>> studied-the-way-trump-speaks-for-two-years-heres-what-she-
>>>> found/2017/07/07/12f310c6-627d-11e7-80a2-8c226031ac3f_video.html
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>> --
>> Carol A Macdonald Ph.D (Edin)
>> Cultural Historical Activity Theory
>> Honorary Research Fellow: Department of Linguistics, Unisa alternative
>> email address: tmacdoca@unisa.ac.za
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>

-- 
Gregory A. Thompson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Anthropology
880 Spencer W. Kimball Tower
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT 84602
http://byu.academia.edu/GregoryThompson