Thread by @JoshuaCypess

1/ Were the Trump (ym'sh) supporters I know always cruel/evil/crazy? IMO, no, and I'd even say to suggest they were has shades of essentialism, an almost biological view of character. Or even physics: that there's potential evil and when it's expressed, it's kinetic evil.

2/ As expected, I see things behaviorally and culturally: they weren't this bad beforehand because:

(a) society kept them in check; Trump (ym'sh) as head of the nation & culture gave permission for previously taboo acts and with the guardrails removed, their impulses went wild.

3/ And (b) as their permission structure/cultural model became threatened, the subconscious recognition that social stigma was about to come crashing down made them more desperate and crazed.

They act and acted like addicts about to lose their fix.

4/ There's overlap with addiction and cult-adherence; MAGA is a cult, and the descent into that mindset is familiar to other forms of addiction.

When I see/hear current MAGA, they are different people from those I once knew

see
researchgate.net/publication/26…
& sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

5/ Now, why did certain people join MAGA while others in same cult-vulnerable cohorts didn't is a question of inherent character, I'll grant you that. But as for the question of "were they always this bad" I really feel the answer is no

But they're REALLY bad/dangerous right now

6/ @threadreaderapp please unroll.

@threader_app please compile.