MrSmiley

joined 1 week ago
[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 5 points 59 minutes ago

Democrats have been discussing strategy since their loss in November. They’ve come up with use populist rhetoric for elections but stick to neoliberal policy.

[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 16 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The introduction may be confusing but it wasn’t advocating for eugenics, the movie intro can be viewed as dumb people raise their kids to be dumb, not that intelligence was passed down genetically. And you are correct, religion and power need uneducated people to maintain hegemony.

 
[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

After repetitive exposure to this propaganda (repetition priming), the people were beginning to believe and stand up for what each respective government had been flashing before their eyes, without them even knowing it.

https://sites.psu.edu/psych256sp18003/2018/03/04/h/

The fact of being exposed to propaganda and misinformation, repeatedly and continuously, has a psychological affect over time.

The individual must not be allowed to recover, to collect himself, to remain untouched by propaganda during any relatively long period, for propaganda is not the touch of the magic wand. It is based on slow, constant impregnation. It creates convictions and compliance through imperceptible influences that are effective only by continuous repetition. It must create a complete environment for the individual, one from which he never emerges.

Propaganda, Jacques Ellul

[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 73 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Republican rhetoric follows Le Bon’s The Crowd method: Affirmation, Repetition and Contagion.

First they espouse an idea or belief (ex. Radical Left are violent animals). The crowd accepts these statements as true, regardless of reality.

Then blast it on repeat through every medium so it becomes internalized in their minds.

Finally, the contagion phase, where the crowd is spurned to action, whether it is getting out to vote, storming the capital or going door to door murdering “The Enemy Within.”

It’s not difficult to see what the fascist intent is behind the extreme violent rhetoric.

[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 44 points 4 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (3 children)

Gotta capture and warp the minds of the youth to transform them into obedient fascist dogs.

Only through concentration in a few hands of a large number of media can one attain a true orchestration, a continuity, and an application of scientific methods of influencing individuals. A state monopoly, or a private monopoly, is equally effective.

Propaganda, Jacques Ellul

[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 6 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

I expanded on the text, mostly from memory. I recommend people read the chapter though.

 

Chapter 2 of his 1991 book The Nature of Fascism provides the concise definition and describes structural weaknesses of fascist movements.

Edit:

Generic fascism consists of three elements:

  1. The core of the movement contains a palingenetic myth (death/rebirth). They see society as decadent and liberal, and on its way out. That by burning down the system, their mythical utopia will “rise from the ashes like a phoenix”.

  2. It is a populist movement with a charismatic leader who typically exerts a “top-down” populism where decisions of “the people” are made by the leader. The leader usually stresses a “meritocracy”, but ends up placing incompetent loyalists into positions of power.

  3. The movement’s ultranationalism goes “above” and “beyond” traditional and legal forms of politics. It rejects Enlightenment humanism and liberal institutions (things like rationality, logic, the rule of law)

Structural weaknesses of the palingenetic myth: The movement is prone to factionalization due to the vagueness of the utopian vision. It also cannot sustain itself without continually designating new enemies from within and without, because the utopian vision can never be realized, there must always be a new enemy hindering its success.

Structural weakness of populist ultranationalism: The movement cannot survive without its charismatic leader. No matter what, everyone grows old and dies, even dictators.

[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 9 points 1 week ago

The simulacrum is never what hides the truth - it is truth that hides the fact that there is none. The simulacrum is true.

Simulacra and Simulation, Jean Baudrillard.

 
[–] MrSmiley@lemmy.zip 42 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Welcome to hyperreality, sit back and enjoy the ride!