Earlier quoted context omitted.
You are aware that the vast majority of countries are democracies, right?
Yes, lockdown gives them the power to be little totalitarian.
Sorry, but you make no sense.
For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
31–40 of 82 posts
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#32Didn't Rebecca West also write about Authoritarianism about the same time as Arendt did? How did they view the topic differently?
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#33That aspect of her thesis was called political "atomization," which was the creation of this lonely state by isolating people from each other, and ultimately from truth, so that they become neutralized to the totalitarian agenda. The destruction of communities, families, and social connections is a totalitarian process and agenda. It was the result of a campaign of arbitrariness and farcical lying because the real ta…
It should be recognized that the left, especially neoliberals, has played just as much a role in atomization of the public as the right. Indeed, it is usually conservatives that actually, in practice, attempt to promote community and family values. Although portions of the right have contributed to atomization via the 'free market', the left's project of scientism and eschewing of tradition arguably has also contribu…
> the left, especially neoliberals
It seems kind of funny to see these two lumped together ... I don’t think neoliberalism would be considered left by left people ...
I think the confusion arises from the different interpretation of liberalism on either side of the Atlantic.
Neoliberalism is an economic movement rather than a social one (unlike neoconservatism, the political ideology that funnily enough advocates neoliberalism) and it’s an iteration of classical economics aka “economic liberalism”.
Liberal economics is actually more like libertarianism which is paradoxically more closely aligned with the “right wing” mindset.
Neoliberalism does incorporate some notes about redistribution of wealth for reasons of economic expedience but this is rarely seen in practice.
This all goes to show that words are slippery and labels are bullshit and you’re far better off trying to understand where the people you’re disagreeing with are coming from than be lazily painting them as this or that.
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#34Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#35Earlier quoted context omitted.
It should be recognized that the left, especially neoliberals, has played just as much a role in atomization of the public as the right. Indeed, it is usually conservatives that actually, in practice, attempt to promote community and family values. Although portions of the right have contributed to atomization via the 'free market', the left's project of scientism and eschewing of tradition arguably has also contribu…
> the left, especially neoliberals It seems kind of funny to see these two lumped together ... I don’t think neoliberalism would be considered left by left people ... I think the confusion arises from the different interpretation of liberalism on either side of the Atlantic. Neoliberalism is an economic movement rather than a social one (unlike neoconservatism, the political ideology that funnily enough advocates neo…
I'm not sure what the point you're driving at is; it seems you did understand the gist of my point.
It seems like you want a semantics debate about how neocons and neolibs are are equivalent terms? Sorry, not the conversation for me, nor the main point I was making.
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#36Earlier quoted context omitted.
> the left, especially neoliberals It seems kind of funny to see these two lumped together ... I don’t think neoliberalism would be considered left by left people ... I think the confusion arises from the different interpretation of liberalism on either side of the Atlantic. Neoliberalism is an economic movement rather than a social one (unlike neoconservatism, the political ideology that funnily enough advocates neo…
I'm not sure what the point you're driving at is; it seems you did understand the gist of my point. It seems like you want a semantics debate about how neocons and neolibs are are equivalent terms? Sorry, not the conversation for me, nor the main point I was making.
You didn’t make it very well it seems.
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
That is not what I've seen from the crowd except during speeches. I, too, naturally tend to believe the worst about these people but there's definitely a sense of Trump supporter community there.
There is a community there, but for many the process of joining this new community has involved the destruction of their existing links to family and local society. QAnon is the most extreme example of this kind of cultish separation among Trumpists.
I think there is a push and a pull going on. Many people feel like outsiders or are otherwise unfulfilled with their communities, making new associations more attractive
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#38That aspect of her thesis was called political "atomization," which was the creation of this lonely state by isolating people from each other, and ultimately from truth, so that they become neutralized to the totalitarian agenda. The destruction of communities, families, and social connections is a totalitarian process and agenda. It was the result of a campaign of arbitrariness and farcical lying because the real ta…
It should be recognized that the left, especially neoliberals, has played just as much a role in atomization of the public as the right. Indeed, it is usually conservatives that actually, in practice, attempt to promote community and family values. Although portions of the right have contributed to atomization via the 'free market', the left's project of scientism and eschewing of tradition arguably has also contribu…
> It should be recognized that the left, especially neoliberals, has played just as much a role in atomization of the public as the right.
Neoliberalism is a center-right, corporate capitalist economic ideology. It has nothing to do with the Left, which it sees (and is seen by as) an enemy. (Americans are particularly likely to get confused by this because the dominant, more centrist faction of the Democratic Party is neoliberal, and the Democratic Party is the left-most of the US’s major parties.)
But, yes, it has played a central role in atomization of society.
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#39Earlier quoted context omitted.
> the left, especially neoliberals It seems kind of funny to see these two lumped together ... I don’t think neoliberalism would be considered left by left people ... I think the confusion arises from the different interpretation of liberalism on either side of the Atlantic. Neoliberalism is an economic movement rather than a social one (unlike neoconservatism, the political ideology that funnily enough advocates neo…
I'm not sure what the point you're driving at is; it seems you did understand the gist of my point. It seems like you want a semantics debate about how neocons and neolibs are are equivalent terms? Sorry, not the conversation for me, nor the main point I was making.
I think what he's driving at is that your point relies on the assumption that neoliberalism is left wing, when this is not true.
Re: For Hannah Arendt, totalitarianism is rooted in loneliness
#40Earlier quoted context omitted.
There is a community there, but for many the process of joining this new community has involved the destruction of their existing links to family and local society. QAnon is the most extreme example of this kind of cultish separation among Trumpists.
This. A slow toxic rot of self that erodes the family and community links until their thoughts and actions seem alien to the outside. Sounds like my ex-wife (fell victim to QAnon). :/
Since you brought it up, what factors do you think made you ex-wife susceptible to qanon ideas?