The serious pitfalls of uncritical faith- the stock-in-trade of cults, including Trumpism
Monish R Chatterjee (2024)
[The following commentary appeared on my Facebook timeline, and I believe is serious enough as this nation and the world is faced with its quadrennial exercise in choosing it chief executive. While this is routine, and has gone on with myriad defects and serious problems, the exercise this time around is unlike any other in its near-250-year history. The exercise this time pits a duopolic candidate, Kamala Harris, standard yet highly unique because of her being the first woman of color to have been nominated (following a most unusual voluntary abdication from POTUS candidacy by the incumbent, Joseph R Biden, in late July- a first in US history), against a grotesque, uncouth, entirely dim-witted, self-obsessed, immoral, violence-inciting mob boss with a very long rap sheet, and with a 34-count conviction by a jury of his peers for felonies over a wide range of crimes, Donald J Trump, whose only public contribution is to simply lie and fabricate, ad nauseam, and to spew hatred, xenophobia and unlimited racism, misogyny and bigotry. I recounted in this write-up a personal experience involving one out of millions of DJT cult-members (considerably more sinister than Jonestown or Heaven's Gate), revealing a stupefying reality- cults are purely nihilistic. MRC]
[From Facebook, MRC], 10/102024]:
" Will recount here a brief interaction I had this morning at the auto dealership I went to for a car maintenance service. As our dear Arnab-da (a friend) had recently told me how he felt very pessimistic of what lies ahead in the wake of the maga rampage- he felt very apprehensive about the illiterate, brainwashed millions swept into this evil tide, fueled by unremitting lies and fear instilled by the deviant Christo-fascist agenda. I had told Arnab-da that I felt honestly there were more rational, logical and humane individuals in this country and also around the world. Hence, I held out the optimism for the horrific maga wave to be swept aside.
However- I came across just one sample of how into the deep end the right-wing, faith-based, xenophobic, propaganda-guzzling, utterly non- analytical segment of the hopeless rubes is.
As I sat in the customers' waiting room, an elderly lady (white/Caucasian) walked in, and having taken a seat right next to me, began a conversation. I was not particularly eager to get into any random conversation, but decided to listen to her. Rather interestingly, the LED TV on the wall was tuned into MSNBC- something which rarely happens- after all, from past experiences, these public radio/TV stations usually blare rabid right-wing hate babble, such as Rush Limba, Fox and the like.
At that moment, the TV channel was providing updates on Hurricane Milton, currently ravaging Florida. And as is well known- there has been a barrage of right-wing lies and racist pablum re. Helene and now Milton.
The lady I am referring to began telling me (and another lady next to her) how she had a house in Florida, and how, by "God's intervention", it has been protected from hurricanes and tornadoes. I mentioned to her how tornadoes have become more frequent in Ohio in the last 10 years.
At this point, I also pointed out how the frequency of high-intensity hurricanes during hurricane season has gone up dramatically (implying the ravages of climate change).
To the above- this otherwise pleasant-sounding lady (who also told me she does not live in FL any more, but that her husband and she are always on the move) came up with the following mind-blowing gems:
(1) They are manufacturing these hurricanes (these are man-made, manufactured for causing destruction).
[Please understand she was not remotely implying the hurricanes being caused by climate change brought about by human hubris and utter consumptive stupidity. She was as far from science and logic as imaginable].
Clearly, this lady with a simplistic mind was consuming and regurgitating the abject fantastic hate and lies propagated by that incredibly "bright" mind, Marjorie Taylor Green.
Oh my goodness- there actually are people who believe this infinitely stupid, barbaric garbage!! Indeed, are we ever completely doomed!!
(2) She then went on to spew the other current propaganda: "They have 7 or 8 billions to spare- but no, they will not send anything to the hurricane victims.
The above was no more than obvious pablum based on the current administration asleep at the wheel in their rescue effort; offering only $750 to the victims; diverting billions to the "demonic" migrants who are into murder, rape, and eating cats and dogs.
These dreadful simpletons consume all manner of pulpit and charlatan propaganda. They are absolutely, entirely beyond help. And most alarmingly, this non-analytical, surrendered-to-faith (here maga) individual is one out of many millions who are in this deadly cult led by a con-artist far more deadly than the many televangelist and evangelical charlatans. Their numbers may truly make or break any nation.
But their numbers, egged on by the demonically possessed R-party, are indeed reason for incredible concern. No one could ever have imagined the US getting sucked into a Hitlerian phenomenon within 80 years- but here we are, dangerously close to exactly that.
Thankfully, even as I was feeling nauseated and indeed quite unwilling to engage this "beyond redemption" individual in any sane conversation of any kind, my service job was completed and I was asked to go to the window to make my payment. It made me both profoundly sad, and yet quite relieved.
Voting by multiples of millions may be the only recourse left for humanity and its survival at this stage.
(Article changed on Oct 14, 2024 at 2:41 PM EDT)
(Article changed on Oct 14, 2024 at 2:43 PM EDT)
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