Moving Forward

Guest blogger, Ron Sacco, sent the following in response to my forwarding Garrison Keilor's OpEd from the Washington Post on November 9, 2016, and Jonathan Pie's YouTube blaming Lefty elitists for the Trump win. He didn't approve of either position as an "uplifting message," and responded with the following:

I read the Keillor op-ed and listened to the video.  I was hoping for something uplifting but I suppose that would be an illusion.  I don't agree with  either point of view:  Hillary (Fucking)[Note: Pie repeatedly uses this adjective in his video]  Clinton was a horrible candidate because the anti-democratic rhetoricians have been running a counter-campaign since 'ninety-two.  Nothing stuck but she developed a negative patina that repelled people.  She WAS probably the most qualified candidate ever to run for the office.i don't  disagree that she is about as charismatic as a spreadsheet and had no crusading message of cultural renewal.  Presidents don't actually punch people out of airplanes.  She would have been a steady, competent bureaucrat.

I also disagree that we should wait for the incoming administration to crash on the rocks and expect the masses to accurately attribute causation.  Bush couldn't  find a thousand ragged men in the rocks and then attacked the WRONG country and this is Obama's fault as well as all the other conflicts that rippled from the instability.

The oligarchy has effectively hid behind the government, the
AstroTurf political movements, and the professionals who profit by attracting ears and clicks by outrageous, counterfactual ,conservative commentary.

There are people who make their living by such pursuits as analyzing residence records to enable precise gerrymandering or the best way to muddy a message. we  have to become better at controlling the message so it carries through.  We have to actively attack people who are generating lies or using information out of context to obscure meaning.  It's not enough to counter their output.we have to stop them from continuing their task.  Much of what is coming out now has no basis in reality.  You can't debate fantasy;  (See Trevor Noah's monologue on 'are goblins faster than unicorns').

There was a good social structural reason why revolutionaries killed  the clerics, servants, etc. who surrounded the autocrats and profited from the status quo.  We need to find ways to squash false news purveyors whether they are just selling advertising or manipulating information to allow themselves to profit unfairly at others expense. 

In discussions of false news sites, I hear advise about how to be more discriminating.  I am not sure how many people want to question news that agrees with what they want to believe.  Does anyone really believe that the Clinton's are running a child prostitution site out of a pizza place that isn't looking for an excuse to grab his guns and play hero?This victory was partly due to the rise of the poorly informed voter.    We ignored them and the chickens cane home to roost. 

I don't know where to go with this .  we need to form networks that share techniques that can not be turned against truth for the public good.  simple, incorrect messages are attractive, especially to people who are dreading the future.  We need to find ways to reach those who aren't trained to process information or who actively find it threatening.

As for uplifting messages, after the election I sent each of the members of my family some TED talks that I hoped would cheer them.    I believe they have had zero viewings.  I now just dig a hole and shout into it.



Thank you Ron!!