(Thread) “You’re the puppet”
@scottygirl2014 asked me this ⤵️
Answer: “Fascists always deny what they are and ascribe their own features and their own totalitarian politics to their enemies.”
Quotation is from Prof. Finchelstein (h/t @jasonintrator )
@scottygirl2014 asked me this ⤵️
Answer: “Fascists always deny what they are and ascribe their own features and their own totalitarian politics to their enemies.”
Quotation is from Prof. Finchelstein (h/t @jasonintrator )
1/ So—according to the author of FROM FASCISM TO POPULISM IN HISTORY—the “you’re the puppet” moment when Trump called HRC Putin’s puppet was a standard propaganda technique.
I’ve heard people call this (Trump calling people what he is) "projection."
healthline.com/health/project…
I’ve heard people call this (Trump calling people what he is) "projection."
healthline.com/health/project…
2/ But projection is when you UNCONSCIOUSLY see your own bad qualities in someone else.
The fascist technique, OTOH, is deliberate.
C'mon. Trump knew HRC wasn't Putin's puppet. The very idea was ludicrous. She was critical & disdainful of Putin👇
politico.com/story/2016/07/…
The fascist technique, OTOH, is deliberate.
C'mon. Trump knew HRC wasn't Putin's puppet. The very idea was ludicrous. She was critical & disdainful of Putin👇
politico.com/story/2016/07/…
3/ What makes me so sureTrump deliberately uses fascist propaganda techniques?
Because Steve Bannon, Trump's former advisor, has been in Brazil coaching Bolsonaro (the Brazilian Trump) to do the same thing.
Because Steve Bannon, Trump's former advisor, has been in Brazil coaching Bolsonaro (the Brazilian Trump) to do the same thing.
4. Bolsonaro is flummuxing people by calling his liberal opponents “fascists.”
foreignpolicy.com/2018/10/05/bol…
Bolsonaro suggests criminals should be shot without a trial.
He calls indigenous people “parasites.”
He calls refugees from Africa and the middle east “the scum of humanity.”
foreignpolicy.com/2018/10/05/bol…
Bolsonaro suggests criminals should be shot without a trial.
He calls indigenous people “parasites.”
He calls refugees from Africa and the middle east “the scum of humanity.”
5/ He's openly misogynist as well as racist.
Fascists, by the way, know they’re not supposed to say ‘fascist’ or even the modern equivalent ‘nationalists.'
The label 'fascist' reeks of Hitler & Mussolini.
('Nationalism' means 'fascist' but doesn't sound as bad)
Fascists, by the way, know they’re not supposed to say ‘fascist’ or even the modern equivalent ‘nationalists.'
The label 'fascist' reeks of Hitler & Mussolini.
('Nationalism' means 'fascist' but doesn't sound as bad)
6/ This weekend, Trump said: “I am a nationalist.”
He also said, “we’re not supposed to use that word.”
bloomberg.com/news/articles/…
It’s easy to see why the technique of calling other people what you are is effective.
People tend to believe what they're told, so it confuses them.
He also said, “we’re not supposed to use that word.”
bloomberg.com/news/articles/…
It’s easy to see why the technique of calling other people what you are is effective.
People tend to believe what they're told, so it confuses them.
7/ Most people don’t know what fascism actually means, just that it’s something bad.
Calling liberals 'fascists' undermines rational discourse: There is no good way to answer when someone else engages in the third-grade-playground name-calling: “I know you are but what am I?”
Calling liberals 'fascists' undermines rational discourse: There is no good way to answer when someone else engages in the third-grade-playground name-calling: “I know you are but what am I?”
8/ The technique feeds into the “all politicians are liars” or “all politicians are corrupt” narrative which serves two purposes: it inoculates the autocrat: He isn’t any worse than anyone else.
It also undermines representative democracy by denigrating all politicians.
It also undermines representative democracy by denigrating all politicians.
9/ It also creates indifference: if all politicians are fascists—or like fascists—it doesn’t matter which one has power.
I think it's important to recognize that the technique is being done deliberately, and that it’s powerfully effective.
I think it's important to recognize that the technique is being done deliberately, and that it’s powerfully effective.
