For me, this is still the game of comparison (who is more exciting, who
passes more bills...).  People are getting disenfranchised, killed,
threatened with death, allowed to die rather than sacrifice the foetus, and
it is those who like the kind of strength that Trump shows that are
complicit in this, with Trump's dog-whistle support.  No other issue comes
close to this.  Did Hitler or Merkel get the trains running more on time?!
Irrelevant in the context.

And Phil, you are one of the complicit.  All the passes you gave Trump when
it was absolutely obvious where he was going means that you are to blame
with everyone else, however much you are now worried by the monster you
yourself helped to create, and who the Republican Party and much of the
Christian church are too cowardly and short-sighted to shake themselves
free of.  So now either American democracy goes, or the Republican Party
and much of Christianity go.  And then which side will you be Phil?

Peter



On Sat, 10 Feb 2024 at 23:11, Dan Bloom <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> I am referring to the impulsive loyalty to him, not any considered
> judgment.
>
> In the early 1930’s, Emmanuel Levinas wrote an essay on what he referred
> to as “Hitlerism.”  He warned that the rational values of the Western
> Enlightenment were deficient and would collapse as against ideologies that
> could embrace irrationality, passion, and emotional.  The absence of the
> body from Enlightenment ideas of truth, justice, and the good doomed them.
> He referred to the drumbeats of National Socialism.
>
> I don’t think  the throngs unquestionably embracing Trump as National
> Socialists or even fascists.   He appeals to them as an authoritarian
> leader who will “body slam” the enemies.
>
> Sure. “Executive strengths.”  But those strengths are strengths of a
> bully, not an executive.  On the other hand, Biden has shown how to get the
> job done, how to work the  political system. He has been able to get more
> laws passed than Trump. How about the executive ability to keep a cabinet
> members. No one resigned under Biden.But  alll of them finally resigned
> under Trump and most of them are now against him. And Biden is a kind man.
>
> But Trump makes hearts beat and people shout.  Biden does not.
>
> Levinas’s observations linger with me as I note the advance of
> authoritarianism and watch  our politics become more and more irrational.
> I have no hope for us.   It’s a downward spiral.
>
> Dan
>
>
>
> On Feb 10, 2024, at 4:45 PM, Philip Brownell <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
>
> Whatever you want. Yes people cheer. Yes he’s enjoying it. But the people
> don’t support him because he’s from Wrestlemania. They support him because
> they believe he has executive strengths. In my opinion
>
> Phil
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Feb 10, 2024, at 7:07 AM, Dan Bloom <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> 
> Phil:
>
> I suggested the Trump phenomena is an offshoot of Wrestlemania.  You said
> it is closer to The Apprentice.
>
> Take a look at these videos.  And notice the cheering crowd.
>
> To me, Trump is closer here to how he behaves than the Trump of The
> Apprentice.
>
> Dan
>
>
>
> <oar2.jpeg>
> Trump DECKS WWE’s McMahon at Wrestlemania 🥊
> <https://www.youtube.com/shorts/BwaJ69P410U>
> youtube.com <https://www.youtube.com/shorts/BwaJ69P410U>
> <https://www.youtube.com/shorts/BwaJ69P410U>
>
>
> <oar2.jpeg>
> Donald Trump Pushes Mr. McMahon #shorts #subscribe #wwe #donaldtrump
> #vincemcmahon <https://www.youtube.com/shorts/oYb46Nxar-Q>
> youtube.com <https://www.youtube.com/shorts/oYb46Nxar-Q>
> <https://www.youtube.com/shorts/oYb46Nxar-Q>
> <maxresdefault.jpeg>
> Mr. McMahon and Donald Trump announce the Battle of the Billionaires
> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVxVDDYwNvU>
> youtube.com <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVxVDDYwNvU>
> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVxVDDYwNvU>
>
>
> <maxresdefault.jpeg>
> Mr. McMahon and Donald Trump's Battle of the Billionaires Contract Signing
> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVeVcVBW_CE>
> youtube.com <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVeVcVBW_CE>
> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVeVcVBW_CE>
> ______________ Gstalt-L is an independent eCommunity of people interested
> in gestalt therapy theory and its various applications. Its public archives
> can be found at
> http://listserv.icors.org/scripts/wa-ICORS.exe?A0=GSTALT-L, and
> subscriptions can be managed by clicking on "Subscriber's Corner," which is
> found at the archives.
>
> ______________ Gstalt-L is an independent eCommunity of people interested
> in gestalt therapy theory and its various applications. Its public archives
> can be found at
> http://listserv.icors.org/scripts/wa-ICORS.exe?A0=GSTALT-L, and
> subscriptions can be managed by clicking on "Subscriber's Corner," which is
> found at the archives.
>
>
> ______________ Gstalt-L is an independent eCommunity of people interested
> in gestalt therapy theory and its various applications. Its public archives
> can be found at
> http://listserv.icors.org/scripts/wa-ICORS.exe?A0=GSTALT-L, and
> subscriptions can be managed by clicking on "Subscriber's Corner," which is
> found at the archives.



-- 
Peter (Philippson)
[log in to unmask]

______________
Gstalt-L is an independent eCommunity of people interested in gestalt therapy theory and its various applications. Its public archives can be found at http://listserv.icors.org/scripts/wa-ICORS.exe?A0=GSTALT-L, and subscriptions can be managed by clicking on "Subscriber's Corner," which is found at the archives.