As Richard Hofstadter observed in "the Pseudo- Conservative Revolt" back in December 1954:
Unlike most of the liberal dissent of the past, the new dissent not only has no respect for non-conformism, but is based upon a relentless demand for conformity. It can most accurately be called pseudo-conservative — I borrow the term from the study…
As Richard Hofstadter observed in "the Pseudo- Conservative Revolt" back in December 1954:
Unlike most of the liberal dissent of the past, the new dissent not only has no respect for non-conformism, but is based upon a relentless demand for conformity. It can most accurately be called pseudo-conservative — I borrow the term from the study of The Authoritarian Personality published five years ago by Theodore W. Adorno and his associates — because its exponents, although they believe themselves to be conservatives and usually employ the rhetoric of conservatism, show signs of a serious and restless dissatisfaction with American life, traditions and institutions. They have little in common with the temperate and compromising spirit of true conservatism in the classical sense of the word, and they are far from pleased with the dominant practical conservatism of the moment as it is represented by the Eisenhower Administration. Their political reactions express rather a profound if largely unconscious hatred of our society and its ways — a hatred which one would hesitate to impute to them if one did not have suggestive clinical evidence.
From clinical interviews and thematic apperception tests, Adorno and his co-workers found that their pseudo-conservative subjects, although given to a form of political expression that combines a curious mixture of largely conservative with occasional radical notions, succeed in concealing from themselves impulsive tendencies that, if released in action, would be very far from conservative. The pseudo-conservative, Adorno writes, shows “conventionality and authoritarian submissiveness” in his conscious thinking and “violence, anarchic impulses, and chaotic destructiveness in the unconscious sphere. . . . The pseudo conservative is a man who, in the name of upholding traditional American values and institutions and defending them against more or less fictitious dangers, consciously or unconsciously aims at their abolition.”
And that man is as dangerous as he is intimidating and horrifying, TC! We should be on the alert for bone-chilling violence around this country.
As Heather has highlighted:
“The Department of Homeland Security today issued a new bulletin in the National Terrorism Advisory System, stating that the U.S. ‘remains in a heightened threat environment.’ It noted that ‘[t]he continued proliferation of false or misleading narratives regarding current events could reinforce existing personal grievances or ideologies, and in combination with other factors, could inspire individuals to mobilize to violence.’ Stories that the government is unwilling or unable to secure the southern border and the upcoming Supreme Court decision about abortion rights might lead to violence, it said.
Also, it noted: ‘As the United States enters mid-term election season this year, we assess that calls for violence by domestic violent extremists directed at democratic institutions, political candidates, party offices, election events, and election workers will likely increase.’”
I read an article this week on what is going on in Idaho and unfortunately, can't remember where I saw it. Lots of wing nuts moving there and the sane trying to decide if they should stay. There has been a move here in some counties in Oregon to join up with Idaho. Also there was in yesterday's Oregonian an excellent article on the milieu in south Texas. I am also sure there are some people here in Salem who would happily shoot me for being on the left side of the political spectrum...I have seen a few black flags, always in lower income neighborhoods. Had a round on Facebook with two members of the patriarchy about gun laws. They are now blocked. I do fear that we are going to see lots of increased violence.
Yes! “…[B]lack flags always in lower income neighborhoods.” And Republicans plus senators Manchin and Sinema are making certain that “socialism,” that is helping to restore the middle class hollowed out by Republicans (think corporate and SCOTUS), doesn’t happen. The dispossessed are furious, as well they should be. And as Republicans and SCOTUS destroy voting, they are applying the coup de grâce to this democracy
A home in our area (not low income) was flying a black they have recently replaced it with an Ultra MAGA flag. My blood boils each time I drive by that house.
I was also unaware of the significance of the black flag. I will keep my eyes open from now on. It's good to know where your neighbors stand on the issue. But still...REALLY?
From article in Daily Telegraph….”Neiwert observed that “‘No quarter shall be given’ is the black flag’s traditional message — and in the context of the building drumbeat of right-wing ‘civil war’ talk, a deeply ominous one. People flying them are essentially signaling that they’re prepared to kill their liberal neighbors.”
This is one explanation. I’ve also seen that it signifies a counterpart to Black Lives Matter. I was disappointed that our dog groomer and husband started flying this flag. She was great with my dog(s), but bye bye groomer.
I have not seen the counterpoint explanation. I am reading black flags as gun nuts live here and we are willing to kill any liberal we find. I haven't seen any in my neighborhood, but our street is torn up and we can only go one way to go places. I saw a few in Salem proper. We leave outside the city limits in a county enclave.
To me, the black flags signify Pirates, the black flags with a white skull and crossbones on it. Pirates were out to plunder. When they encountered a ship at sea, they had to decide if the other ship was plunder or peril. If they decided to plunder, they would raise the black flag ("the Jolly Roger")on their ship and head straight toward the other ship to battle.
Michele, Don't know that I found the article you referred to but thought you might be interested in the following info about why folks have been moving to Idaho.
'Over the past year, Idaho has gained 53,151 new residents for a growth rate of 2.9%. The biggest driver for growth was people moving to Idaho from other states. Census data shows 48,876 of Idaho's newest residents came from another state. Idaho's population now sits at an estimated 1.9 million people.' Dec 22, 2021 (google)
'The main reason people say they live in Idaho is family and quality of life, but for some, it’s politics.'
'That’s according to Boise State University’s 2022 Idaho Public Policy Survey. The survey of 1,000 Idaho residents found 5.4% of respondents said political climate was the main reason they were in the state, ahead of factors like cost of living, school or taxes.'
'It might not seem like much (about 45% said “family”), but political climate was the fifth most common response. “People are identifying the political culture of Idaho as attractive,” said Jaclyn Kettler, a political science associate professor at Boise State.'
'Republicans hold every statewide office and supermajorities in the state legislature, and former President Donald Trump won Idaho in 2020 by nearly 64%. The state is such a conservative beacon in the region that a group of rural, conservatives Oregonians are trying to join.'
“Historically, it was my understanding not that many people were moving to another state for political reasons, this is something that we’re starting to see people say,” Kettler said.'
'Idahoans are more politically active than the average American. The Boise State survey found 22% donated money to a political cause or party in the past year, eight points higher than the national level, 32% contacted a public official in the past year, nine points higher than the national level.' (DesertNews)
No this is not the article, but it certainly talks about some of the same trends. The one I read interviewed several people who had been threatened one way or another or were having second thoughts about living in such a right wing state and described some the groups and pols. Thank you for this cite.
He is one of many far-right activists who have flocked to Idaho in recent years, where a large and growing radical MAGA faction in the state’s Republican Party has openly allied itself with extremists to a shocking extent, even for the Trump era. This faction is accruing more and more power in Boise, the state capital: Imagine a statehouse full of Marjorie Taylor Greenes and Steve Kings. At the local level, they have seized seats on school boards and county commissions at a fast clip
That is really scary. I have in-laws in Idaho and I usually drive through the state on my way to Montana in the summer. It used to feel like a good, safe place to be, but this is pretty terrifying.
There's a ultra Libertarian group that started in NH about 10 years ago called the Free State Project. They have been allying w/the Republican majority in the Legislature. Jason Osborne, the founder of FSP, is currently the leader in the House. The group got so far as to put forth a bill to secede from the state of NH. Fortunately, the bill was massively voted down 323 to 3. Recently a member of the group managed to cut the public education budget in a small town by 50% by staying after most of the people @ a town meeting had left. Once the people understood what had been done, another town meeting was held and the cuts were overturned. Here's an article written by a Progressive group about the FSP. https://freestateprojectwatch.org/
I am a ceramic artist and sell a little work on Etsy. Last year I had a customer from Idaho who I got to know a little bit. She told me that "There didn't seem to be a Democrat left in Idaho and that she was afraid for her grandchildren." I contacted her again recently and she said, "So many people are moving to Idaho from out of state with their guns..." This is bone-chilling indeed.
It does look like they are more and more leaning toward an anarchic mess. Weird rules and laws that don’t appear to have much to offer in cooperation or benefits with and for all of the stakeholders. The pseudo folks. Falsifiers. Pretentious fakers.
I recently had a "conversation" on my Facebook page (briefly, I'd asked teacher friends to weigh in on arming teachers in the classroom.) Among my teacher friends, there was an overwhelming "oh, hell no" response, although there were a couple who indicated that in a high school or front office setting of a non-elementary school they would be willing to be armed. There was some counterpoint, usually from my community friends (not teachers) that offered up some almost reasonable conversation. Then there were two retired cop friends, who jumped in with both feet. The line you quote above "Their political reactions express rather a profound if largely unconscious hatred of our society and its ways..." seems to fit them like a glove. Well that, and an incredible foundation of white male privilege and display of some pretty deep mansplaining.
The NYT has a timeline for what happened in the years during the ban on assault weapons and the years afterwards. The Washington post also has an article on a reassessment of the assault weapons ban where people have rethought the idea that it didn't do much. It did.
Incredible connection. I was a soldier trained in the American South then a History Student in the Eisenhauer era and in both roles I encountered a growing tension from racism along with strong urges to conformity. It was also the time of the “grey flannel suit,” when strict conformity affected success.
In college and society I sensed the growing numbers of black people didn’t mean greater integration to institutions but emphasized their separation amongst the white population.
I think the SCOTUS Brown decision of 1954 also propelled a hidden racism in America that was part of the fuel for Conservative radicalism.
I agree, Art. I moved with my parents to the south when I was eight. Even in the 4th grade I was introduced to the "South will rise again," group think. Not only racism, but misogyny. I could not apply for a paper route because of being female. In high school girls could not join the future physician's club for the same reason.
The racism was obvious in the South that nurtured a strenuous Jim Crow discipline that permitted no breaks.
But in Buffalo, New York’s UB (Hofstadter’s Alma Matter) the adjacent community was getting mixed and a small group of black students attended school in isolation.
I joined a Veterans Group and was surprised a separate black veterans group was developed but never learned if it was self induced or forced.
Still, much of the negative reaction I got in that time for my consternation at the separateness was very strong.
I suspect it’s similar to Arms Control with most people all for it until they have the opportunity to impose it. Like equality it’s praised but not adopted.
Racism has always been alive and well in the north. I never even saw a black person until I got to high school among my schoolmates. At that time they were found only south of the railroad tracks in Elkhart and nowhere else in Elkhart County. They could not stay overnight in Goshen, the county seat that was and probably is full of good "Christians".
I grew up in Massachusetts, pretty much the same experience. Interesting, the recent HBO show "Lovecraft Country" centered my particular region as a place full of "sundown towns" - there was a brief sequence in the first episode where they showed a map, and practically pointed to my street, in a tiny little town east of Worcester.
The tacit arming of Brown Shirts as Homeland Security warns of increased violence towards Democratic Institutions and individuals by domestic terrorists, as fomented by fear mongering lies from the RED
Should be sent to every 'media' outlet in the US, along with this Thomas Merton quote, In 1968, Thomas Merton remarked, 'The abuse of language really blocks thinking and is a substitute for it." It may well be that they are all 'entertainment' masquerading as 'news' and using language which masquerades as 'meaning.'
Thank you for your history lesson. How widely can this quotation be published? I have seen the Great Unraveling, but did not see it as beginning so early. The Southern Strategy of Nixon cemented it then. Afterwards it was too late.
Interesting sidelight: the lowest 25% SAT scorers in 1952 were getting education degrees to teach in public schools. Twenty(?) years later the Koch network attacked public colleges and universities, installing pro-business presidents. An international scholar (Medieval Literature, 15 languages, internationalist) told all of us in his classes that he had graduated from Harvard “while it was still a university—the year before the business school opened.”
That bit about SAT scores really hits. In 1965 when I went to Colorado State College, "the nation's number two teacher training institution" (their words), I worked in the PR office and once saw a survey that really chilled me: for 90% of the students surveyed, CSC wasn't in their top three of schools they wanted to go to - it was the school that accepted them (by 1965, entrance requirements had risen from "high school graduate" to "high school graduation with a C average"). Back then, there was a well-known statement, "You can always be a teacher," if you couldn't do anything else, you could do that. When I finally took an "educational psychology" class (using the prof's book, with test questions being "fill in the blank" from the book - you were supposed to do rote memorization - and this guy had a national reputation as being good) and saw what they were making teachers out of and how they did it, all my questions about why I hated 12 years of public school were answered. Back then, if there were 2 teachers you could remember in 12 years, that was good - the good teachers were flukes, and when I reconnected with the one good one I had, I found he was mostly in trouble with the school administration for the way he did things. Sadly, I don't think education has moved further, though there may be more committed teachers - the system is still bad. "Rote memorization for the test" is NOT education!
I guess I was lucky as I had several remarkable wonderful people as teachers who helped me to be the person that I am. I can name a good number of them still and counted several as friends through the years. The not so good teachers were often hired as coaches and often taught social studies in the high school. In junior high the social studies teacher was an excellent teacher who never hid the fact that he lived with Wally. Naive times and we had no idea. One of my teacher's husband taught in Goshen (racially biased county seat that I mentioned in another post. His students loved him, but he was always in trouble with the administration and I am sure he was a lot smarter than all of them put together. When I worked at a high school, I was once again lucky that I had some fine colleagues. Once again bad teachers were usually hired as coaches. I should say here that this does not apply to all of them, but often to the basketball and football coach. Then we got a principal who liked to stir the pot and the place was so full of tension that you could cut it with a knife. I don't know how things are now, but the principal is a former teacher (I think English) who was a fine teacher. I can also say that teachers make a difference to many, many kids and they may take some time to show it, but I still get messages from ex-students that make me happy as do many of my ex-colleagues. Part of the problem now in terms of testing is the standardized tests. Teachers hate it.
I would love a convo about testing. It’s not really testing that teachers hate. It’s the test itself. If not a standardized test, then many times a test is designed to produce a curve…winners snd losers. Ridiculous. A good test is always diagnostic regarding a student’s strengths and weaknesses and purposed to drive instruction, not rate schools as an “A school” or a lower rung which does nothing except help
promote real estate or indicate”not a good area to live—-poor schools”.
Salud Michele. I loved so many things you said about students and teachers.
Salud, Christine. Lots of teachers do not like the constant standardized tests because they are busy teaching to the test and foregoing the things that teachers love about education. We do have a teacher friend in a very Latinx district north of us (he speaks fluent Spanish and his wife, also a teacher there, is from Ecuador), who has found a way to teach a class that bypasses that and I am sure his students thrive. He is also the world's greatest punner and can do it in Spanish as well. Today a recently retired teacher friend of mine posted something that she had to take (along with every other teacher in the district if I read what she said correctly) a multiple choice test which included a question on I Love Lucy. This after 30 years in the field. What was the point of that? Her feeling was that it was a money maker for the test makers. Yes, it's the test itself imposed from above so many times. I once taught a government class where I offered a class with the option of no quizzes, no tests, and no textbooks except a few for reference. I said they could choose that or the other option, but that they should not think they were getting out of work. We spent a great deal of time in the library and in discussion in the classroom. I told them it was a required course for them (if they wanted to graduate) and it was required course for me to teach and we might as well make the best of it. We had to give finals, but I gave them a chance to choose options on what would be on the final for each of them..most offered by me, but if they could come up with something that met my approval, that was good too. Each option had a certain number of points. Interestingly enough some of them hedged their bets and chose options that totaled over 100 points. In the two or three years, I taught this class, I had only one student fail, and he failed it twice. I should note here that the final test requirement was BS lauded by those teachers who wanted to give crap tests which could be graded by their student assistant while they plunked their behinds in the teacher's room (we actually had one by then) and discussed sports, etc. I felt sorry for teachers of choir, art, etc. Then the kids could get out of the final if they had perfect attendance which was designed to help our amount of money from the state. Yes, we had kits in the classroom to clean up vomit. I didn't buy this either, but by then I was regarded a total rebel.
That is not what rote memorization is for. The higher critical thing skills, the how and why, are approached successfully with a strong rote base of what, when, who. These are the facts accessed quickly when developing the how and why of a given problem or situation.
For instance, knowing your multiplication facts quickly and using them to focus on a more intricate solution is how we problem solve. Learn facts, apply facts.
Unfortunately, rote learning becomes exclusively the mechanical tool to keep “lesser minds” or so they think, busy.
I loved doing rote learning with children. One can incorporate all learning styles to acquire automaticity with facts. Once automaticity is there (think decoding print quickly and not struggling to “read” the words), then comprehension follows with questioning and reasoning techniques.
I started school in 1953. One room, 8 grades, max 20 pupils. Other than being bullied, it was great. Once I finished my work, I listening on the next class. Was reading way beyond my grade level. I can name all my teachers from Grades 1 to 12. A couple stand out. From them, I got an education and am grateful.
Thank you for a good idea. Please become one of those who drop by That's Another Fine Mess (if you don't already) and you will see a post on this in the next day or so.
Well written, TC. Chills me to the bone, but it's good info for understanding the intensity of hatred and destructive personalities of some highly volatile Americans. Yikes!
As Richard Hofstadter observed in "the Pseudo- Conservative Revolt" back in December 1954:
Unlike most of the liberal dissent of the past, the new dissent not only has no respect for non-conformism, but is based upon a relentless demand for conformity. It can most accurately be called pseudo-conservative — I borrow the term from the study of The Authoritarian Personality published five years ago by Theodore W. Adorno and his associates — because its exponents, although they believe themselves to be conservatives and usually employ the rhetoric of conservatism, show signs of a serious and restless dissatisfaction with American life, traditions and institutions. They have little in common with the temperate and compromising spirit of true conservatism in the classical sense of the word, and they are far from pleased with the dominant practical conservatism of the moment as it is represented by the Eisenhower Administration. Their political reactions express rather a profound if largely unconscious hatred of our society and its ways — a hatred which one would hesitate to impute to them if one did not have suggestive clinical evidence.
From clinical interviews and thematic apperception tests, Adorno and his co-workers found that their pseudo-conservative subjects, although given to a form of political expression that combines a curious mixture of largely conservative with occasional radical notions, succeed in concealing from themselves impulsive tendencies that, if released in action, would be very far from conservative. The pseudo-conservative, Adorno writes, shows “conventionality and authoritarian submissiveness” in his conscious thinking and “violence, anarchic impulses, and chaotic destructiveness in the unconscious sphere. . . . The pseudo conservative is a man who, in the name of upholding traditional American values and institutions and defending them against more or less fictitious dangers, consciously or unconsciously aims at their abolition.”
And that man is as dangerous as he is intimidating and horrifying, TC! We should be on the alert for bone-chilling violence around this country.
As Heather has highlighted:
“The Department of Homeland Security today issued a new bulletin in the National Terrorism Advisory System, stating that the U.S. ‘remains in a heightened threat environment.’ It noted that ‘[t]he continued proliferation of false or misleading narratives regarding current events could reinforce existing personal grievances or ideologies, and in combination with other factors, could inspire individuals to mobilize to violence.’ Stories that the government is unwilling or unable to secure the southern border and the upcoming Supreme Court decision about abortion rights might lead to violence, it said.
Also, it noted: ‘As the United States enters mid-term election season this year, we assess that calls for violence by domestic violent extremists directed at democratic institutions, political candidates, party offices, election events, and election workers will likely increase.’”
Yes, patriarchy is not going to go quietly, I fear.
I read an article this week on what is going on in Idaho and unfortunately, can't remember where I saw it. Lots of wing nuts moving there and the sane trying to decide if they should stay. There has been a move here in some counties in Oregon to join up with Idaho. Also there was in yesterday's Oregonian an excellent article on the milieu in south Texas. I am also sure there are some people here in Salem who would happily shoot me for being on the left side of the political spectrum...I have seen a few black flags, always in lower income neighborhoods. Had a round on Facebook with two members of the patriarchy about gun laws. They are now blocked. I do fear that we are going to see lots of increased violence.
Yes! “…[B]lack flags always in lower income neighborhoods.” And Republicans plus senators Manchin and Sinema are making certain that “socialism,” that is helping to restore the middle class hollowed out by Republicans (think corporate and SCOTUS), doesn’t happen. The dispossessed are furious, as well they should be. And as Republicans and SCOTUS destroy voting, they are applying the coup de grâce to this democracy
A home in our area (not low income) was flying a black they have recently replaced it with an Ultra MAGA flag. My blood boils each time I drive by that house.
There may be black flags in south Salem or West Salem, but we are seldom in those places.
What do black flags signify? I have not heard of this.
I was also unaware of the significance of the black flag. I will keep my eyes open from now on. It's good to know where your neighbors stand on the issue. But still...REALLY?
From article in Daily Telegraph….”Neiwert observed that “‘No quarter shall be given’ is the black flag’s traditional message — and in the context of the building drumbeat of right-wing ‘civil war’ talk, a deeply ominous one. People flying them are essentially signaling that they’re prepared to kill their liberal neighbors.”
Here is link to article. https://www.thetelegraph.com/insider/article/Black-flags-fly-across-America-16555426.php
I could not Like this comment/explanation. We live in frightening times.
This is one explanation. I’ve also seen that it signifies a counterpart to Black Lives Matter. I was disappointed that our dog groomer and husband started flying this flag. She was great with my dog(s), but bye bye groomer.
https://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/story/opinion/2021/10/27/mychalejko-why-your-neighbor-flying-all-black-american-flag/8565341002/
I have not seen the counterpoint explanation. I am reading black flags as gun nuts live here and we are willing to kill any liberal we find. I haven't seen any in my neighborhood, but our street is torn up and we can only go one way to go places. I saw a few in Salem proper. We leave outside the city limits in a county enclave.
See Christine's explanation because that is exactly what black flags mean.
To me, the black flags signify Pirates, the black flags with a white skull and crossbones on it. Pirates were out to plunder. When they encountered a ship at sea, they had to decide if the other ship was plunder or peril. If they decided to plunder, they would raise the black flag ("the Jolly Roger")on their ship and head straight toward the other ship to battle.
The number of guns and ammo being stored away over the years in places like Idaho and parts of Oregon, etc. is staggering.
Michele, Don't know that I found the article you referred to but thought you might be interested in the following info about why folks have been moving to Idaho.
'Over the past year, Idaho has gained 53,151 new residents for a growth rate of 2.9%. The biggest driver for growth was people moving to Idaho from other states. Census data shows 48,876 of Idaho's newest residents came from another state. Idaho's population now sits at an estimated 1.9 million people.' Dec 22, 2021 (google)
'The main reason people say they live in Idaho is family and quality of life, but for some, it’s politics.'
'That’s according to Boise State University’s 2022 Idaho Public Policy Survey. The survey of 1,000 Idaho residents found 5.4% of respondents said political climate was the main reason they were in the state, ahead of factors like cost of living, school or taxes.'
'It might not seem like much (about 45% said “family”), but political climate was the fifth most common response. “People are identifying the political culture of Idaho as attractive,” said Jaclyn Kettler, a political science associate professor at Boise State.'
'Republicans hold every statewide office and supermajorities in the state legislature, and former President Donald Trump won Idaho in 2020 by nearly 64%. The state is such a conservative beacon in the region that a group of rural, conservatives Oregonians are trying to join.'
“Historically, it was my understanding not that many people were moving to another state for political reasons, this is something that we’re starting to see people say,” Kettler said.'
'Idahoans are more politically active than the average American. The Boise State survey found 22% donated money to a political cause or party in the past year, eight points higher than the national level, 32% contacted a public official in the past year, nine points higher than the national level.' (DesertNews)
https://www.deseret.com/2022/1/29/22901470/are-people-moving-to-idaho-for-the-politics-governor-brad-little-republican-party
No this is not the article, but it certainly talks about some of the same trends. The one I read interviewed several people who had been threatened one way or another or were having second thoughts about living in such a right wing state and described some the groups and pols. Thank you for this cite.
Is this the article you are referring to? https://www.huffpost.com/entry/far-right-idaho_n_628277e2e4b0c84db7282bd6?29e
Yes, thanks for posting the cite.
White nationalist Vincent James Foxx -
He is one of many far-right activists who have flocked to Idaho in recent years, where a large and growing radical MAGA faction in the state’s Republican Party has openly allied itself with extremists to a shocking extent, even for the Trump era. This faction is accruing more and more power in Boise, the state capital: Imagine a statehouse full of Marjorie Taylor Greenes and Steve Kings. At the local level, they have seized seats on school boards and county commissions at a fast clip
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/far-right-idaho_n_628277e2e4b0c84db7282bd6
That is really scary. I have in-laws in Idaho and I usually drive through the state on my way to Montana in the summer. It used to feel like a good, safe place to be, but this is pretty terrifying.
There's a ultra Libertarian group that started in NH about 10 years ago called the Free State Project. They have been allying w/the Republican majority in the Legislature. Jason Osborne, the founder of FSP, is currently the leader in the House. The group got so far as to put forth a bill to secede from the state of NH. Fortunately, the bill was massively voted down 323 to 3. Recently a member of the group managed to cut the public education budget in a small town by 50% by staying after most of the people @ a town meeting had left. Once the people understood what had been done, another town meeting was held and the cuts were overturned. Here's an article written by a Progressive group about the FSP. https://freestateprojectwatch.org/
I am a ceramic artist and sell a little work on Etsy. Last year I had a customer from Idaho who I got to know a little bit. She told me that "There didn't seem to be a Democrat left in Idaho and that she was afraid for her grandchildren." I contacted her again recently and she said, "So many people are moving to Idaho from out of state with their guns..." This is bone-chilling indeed.
I have a friend who lives in Moscow and I may send her a note before Christmas to see what she says. She and her husband are both liberal.
It does look like they are more and more leaning toward an anarchic mess. Weird rules and laws that don’t appear to have much to offer in cooperation or benefits with and for all of the stakeholders. The pseudo folks. Falsifiers. Pretentious fakers.
I recently had a "conversation" on my Facebook page (briefly, I'd asked teacher friends to weigh in on arming teachers in the classroom.) Among my teacher friends, there was an overwhelming "oh, hell no" response, although there were a couple who indicated that in a high school or front office setting of a non-elementary school they would be willing to be armed. There was some counterpoint, usually from my community friends (not teachers) that offered up some almost reasonable conversation. Then there were two retired cop friends, who jumped in with both feet. The line you quote above "Their political reactions express rather a profound if largely unconscious hatred of our society and its ways..." seems to fit them like a glove. Well that, and an incredible foundation of white male privilege and display of some pretty deep mansplaining.
The NYT has a timeline for what happened in the years during the ban on assault weapons and the years afterwards. The Washington post also has an article on a reassessment of the assault weapons ban where people have rethought the idea that it didn't do much. It did.
Incredible connection. I was a soldier trained in the American South then a History Student in the Eisenhauer era and in both roles I encountered a growing tension from racism along with strong urges to conformity. It was also the time of the “grey flannel suit,” when strict conformity affected success.
In college and society I sensed the growing numbers of black people didn’t mean greater integration to institutions but emphasized their separation amongst the white population.
I think the SCOTUS Brown decision of 1954 also propelled a hidden racism in America that was part of the fuel for Conservative radicalism.
I agree, Art. I moved with my parents to the south when I was eight. Even in the 4th grade I was introduced to the "South will rise again," group think. Not only racism, but misogyny. I could not apply for a paper route because of being female. In high school girls could not join the future physician's club for the same reason.
That is so sad. I do not want that South to rise again. We can do better than that. It won't be easy.
I think racism was more open then - today as bad as it is doesn't really hold a candle.
The racism was obvious in the South that nurtured a strenuous Jim Crow discipline that permitted no breaks.
But in Buffalo, New York’s UB (Hofstadter’s Alma Matter) the adjacent community was getting mixed and a small group of black students attended school in isolation.
I joined a Veterans Group and was surprised a separate black veterans group was developed but never learned if it was self induced or forced.
Still, much of the negative reaction I got in that time for my consternation at the separateness was very strong.
I suspect it’s similar to Arms Control with most people all for it until they have the opportunity to impose it. Like equality it’s praised but not adopted.
Racism has always been alive and well in the north. I never even saw a black person until I got to high school among my schoolmates. At that time they were found only south of the railroad tracks in Elkhart and nowhere else in Elkhart County. They could not stay overnight in Goshen, the county seat that was and probably is full of good "Christians".
I grew up in Massachusetts, pretty much the same experience. Interesting, the recent HBO show "Lovecraft Country" centered my particular region as a place full of "sundown towns" - there was a brief sequence in the first episode where they showed a map, and practically pointed to my street, in a tiny little town east of Worcester.
Yeah, that separation like that was pretty strong through VVAW back in the day.
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Call them what they are…
Brown Shirts may apply.
The tacit arming of Brown Shirts as Homeland Security warns of increased violence towards Democratic Institutions and individuals by domestic terrorists, as fomented by fear mongering lies from the RED
We’ve seen this movie before
Yes.
My thoughts exactly. All the techniques of intimidation going strong in Idaho for example.
Should be sent to every 'media' outlet in the US, along with this Thomas Merton quote, In 1968, Thomas Merton remarked, 'The abuse of language really blocks thinking and is a substitute for it." It may well be that they are all 'entertainment' masquerading as 'news' and using language which masquerades as 'meaning.'
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very enlightening, TC. Thank you. I think 'anarchists' is also an applicable word.
I know many anarchists. This is NOT them.
Thank you for your history lesson. How widely can this quotation be published? I have seen the Great Unraveling, but did not see it as beginning so early. The Southern Strategy of Nixon cemented it then. Afterwards it was too late.
Interesting sidelight: the lowest 25% SAT scorers in 1952 were getting education degrees to teach in public schools. Twenty(?) years later the Koch network attacked public colleges and universities, installing pro-business presidents. An international scholar (Medieval Literature, 15 languages, internationalist) told all of us in his classes that he had graduated from Harvard “while it was still a university—the year before the business school opened.”
That bit about SAT scores really hits. In 1965 when I went to Colorado State College, "the nation's number two teacher training institution" (their words), I worked in the PR office and once saw a survey that really chilled me: for 90% of the students surveyed, CSC wasn't in their top three of schools they wanted to go to - it was the school that accepted them (by 1965, entrance requirements had risen from "high school graduate" to "high school graduation with a C average"). Back then, there was a well-known statement, "You can always be a teacher," if you couldn't do anything else, you could do that. When I finally took an "educational psychology" class (using the prof's book, with test questions being "fill in the blank" from the book - you were supposed to do rote memorization - and this guy had a national reputation as being good) and saw what they were making teachers out of and how they did it, all my questions about why I hated 12 years of public school were answered. Back then, if there were 2 teachers you could remember in 12 years, that was good - the good teachers were flukes, and when I reconnected with the one good one I had, I found he was mostly in trouble with the school administration for the way he did things. Sadly, I don't think education has moved further, though there may be more committed teachers - the system is still bad. "Rote memorization for the test" is NOT education!
/rant. :-)
I guess I was lucky as I had several remarkable wonderful people as teachers who helped me to be the person that I am. I can name a good number of them still and counted several as friends through the years. The not so good teachers were often hired as coaches and often taught social studies in the high school. In junior high the social studies teacher was an excellent teacher who never hid the fact that he lived with Wally. Naive times and we had no idea. One of my teacher's husband taught in Goshen (racially biased county seat that I mentioned in another post. His students loved him, but he was always in trouble with the administration and I am sure he was a lot smarter than all of them put together. When I worked at a high school, I was once again lucky that I had some fine colleagues. Once again bad teachers were usually hired as coaches. I should say here that this does not apply to all of them, but often to the basketball and football coach. Then we got a principal who liked to stir the pot and the place was so full of tension that you could cut it with a knife. I don't know how things are now, but the principal is a former teacher (I think English) who was a fine teacher. I can also say that teachers make a difference to many, many kids and they may take some time to show it, but I still get messages from ex-students that make me happy as do many of my ex-colleagues. Part of the problem now in terms of testing is the standardized tests. Teachers hate it.
I would love a convo about testing. It’s not really testing that teachers hate. It’s the test itself. If not a standardized test, then many times a test is designed to produce a curve…winners snd losers. Ridiculous. A good test is always diagnostic regarding a student’s strengths and weaknesses and purposed to drive instruction, not rate schools as an “A school” or a lower rung which does nothing except help
promote real estate or indicate”not a good area to live—-poor schools”.
Salud Michele. I loved so many things you said about students and teachers.
Salud, Christine. Lots of teachers do not like the constant standardized tests because they are busy teaching to the test and foregoing the things that teachers love about education. We do have a teacher friend in a very Latinx district north of us (he speaks fluent Spanish and his wife, also a teacher there, is from Ecuador), who has found a way to teach a class that bypasses that and I am sure his students thrive. He is also the world's greatest punner and can do it in Spanish as well. Today a recently retired teacher friend of mine posted something that she had to take (along with every other teacher in the district if I read what she said correctly) a multiple choice test which included a question on I Love Lucy. This after 30 years in the field. What was the point of that? Her feeling was that it was a money maker for the test makers. Yes, it's the test itself imposed from above so many times. I once taught a government class where I offered a class with the option of no quizzes, no tests, and no textbooks except a few for reference. I said they could choose that or the other option, but that they should not think they were getting out of work. We spent a great deal of time in the library and in discussion in the classroom. I told them it was a required course for them (if they wanted to graduate) and it was required course for me to teach and we might as well make the best of it. We had to give finals, but I gave them a chance to choose options on what would be on the final for each of them..most offered by me, but if they could come up with something that met my approval, that was good too. Each option had a certain number of points. Interestingly enough some of them hedged their bets and chose options that totaled over 100 points. In the two or three years, I taught this class, I had only one student fail, and he failed it twice. I should note here that the final test requirement was BS lauded by those teachers who wanted to give crap tests which could be graded by their student assistant while they plunked their behinds in the teacher's room (we actually had one by then) and discussed sports, etc. I felt sorry for teachers of choir, art, etc. Then the kids could get out of the final if they had perfect attendance which was designed to help our amount of money from the state. Yes, we had kits in the classroom to clean up vomit. I didn't buy this either, but by then I was regarded a total rebel.
That is not what rote memorization is for. The higher critical thing skills, the how and why, are approached successfully with a strong rote base of what, when, who. These are the facts accessed quickly when developing the how and why of a given problem or situation.
For instance, knowing your multiplication facts quickly and using them to focus on a more intricate solution is how we problem solve. Learn facts, apply facts.
Unfortunately, rote learning becomes exclusively the mechanical tool to keep “lesser minds” or so they think, busy.
I loved doing rote learning with children. One can incorporate all learning styles to acquire automaticity with facts. Once automaticity is there (think decoding print quickly and not struggling to “read” the words), then comprehension follows with questioning and reasoning techniques.
Never settle for less.
Exactly right (again)!
I started school in 1953. One room, 8 grades, max 20 pupils. Other than being bullied, it was great. Once I finished my work, I listening on the next class. Was reading way beyond my grade level. I can name all my teachers from Grades 1 to 12. A couple stand out. From them, I got an education and am grateful.
Yeah, but that's Canada, the Civilized Sector of North America. :-)
In some ways perhaps.
I wrote a long comment and am trying to post it. Will try again later.
It would be helpful if you woruld refect on this a bit for thsoe who dont remember Hofsteder and how signficant he was.
Thank you for a good idea. Please become one of those who drop by That's Another Fine Mess (if you don't already) and you will see a post on this in the next day or so.
A great idea from a Karen!! :-)
The last sentence is revelatory — and chilling.
Well written, TC. Chills me to the bone, but it's good info for understanding the intensity of hatred and destructive personalities of some highly volatile Americans. Yikes!
Thank you TCinLA. With a few terminology updates, this fits my own clinical experience.
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