Thread by @ThyConsigliori

21 February 2021 #MAGAanalysis

Idealism Dies Hard, Pragmatism Births Hard

As I've shared, my diehard, Bastiat-Class Libertarian days were short lived: 2012 - 2016. You can't be an honest Libertarian and true Trump supporter at the same time. Let's talk about that.

2) I know Libertarians who at first more than detested Trump, they either didn't vote or truly pinched nose and squinted in the voting booth, hating every second and scurrying rapidly and stealthily away in self-disgust. I exaggerate, but only a little.

3) I know other Libertarians who were - unlike me - capable not only of liking and supporting Trump IN SPITE OF their ideals who were able to see him as a step in the right as opposed to the wrong direction. Those good souls are more naturally pragmatic than I am. I am a purest.

4) Which is to say I'm a natural radical. In my Socialist days, if I'd ever blundered into Alinsky, well, let's just say I'm glad I didn't. Still, I did find him during my Libertarian days and absolutely saw the power of his work, and am still in great awe of it. More...

5) It's not today's topic, but I have to again express that Alinsky's work is deceptive on so many levels. The most important is that it is a FAR MORE serious book than people realize. And I'm not just talking about practical morality, or immorality if you will.

6) To my read, none of the anti-Alinsky works come anywhere near replicating the interconnected might of his 13 maxims. Each build on the preceding, lead to the following, and all unite emergent as a true whole, more than merely the sum of the parts. It is a true system.

7) But let's get back to those more practical Libertarians than me. They're not radicals and are not attracted to Anarcho-Capitalism. That's a thing! And yeah, I sure tried it out during those years. I liked it. They don't. They're more well suited to the real world than me.

8) Before I found a temporary home in Libertarianism, I had been a staunch, if not to say single-issued anti-non-apportioned tax man. Which is to say an 100%, unabashed and unapologetic HATER of the 16th Amendment. In fact, a Jeffersonian tax man.

9) I thought I was a tax-is-theft man for much of the time. I wasn't, as I was unwittingly okay with apportioned, pre-16th Amendment taxation. I didn't really understand this until I discovered the American System many years later, after Trump's election.

10) But then, along comes the Prince of Pragmatism, Donald Trump, and I'm thinking I want to support him. BIG PROBLEM. He does NOT want to do away with tax. He wants to REDUCE it. He seems to have NO problem with 16A, at all. What to do?

11) When you're a radical like me, you have to renounce Libertarianism, or at least the true, anti-tax version. For me, without anti-tax it all become too weak to contemplate. I discovered that was the key point of attraction for me. If only I were better at compromise, you know?

Gab test pause. Let's see if this much posts successfully as one Gab...

Tada! Success!! The key was that I had to place zero line spaces between my paragraphs in the Word doc layout, and manually hit "enter" between each. Check out how it looks!

Last process point: I will continue to use 3,000-character limited Gabs as my break points, and post them as such there. But, I'll also limit my essay to four pages in total for the image limit there and elsewhere and then post across platforms. How fun!

12) And here's what I found. Trump was right. I was wrong, before, and I ended up constantly going against my instincts the entire time of his 1st term, and never once finding I actually disagreed. It was like being schooled, if not daily then weekly. I love/hate this guy. Wow.

13) Along comes the steal. Nov 4 - Jan 6, what do I want? I want to tear down the entire system. I've always hated the powers that be over the Republican Party, but never like then, before. My family stops watching FOX, first, then we stop watching the news. Completely.

14) We hear about the potential Patriot Party and for two or three minutes their JOY and JUBILATION. I was ready to register, boom, right then. Alas. Not to be. Silence and suppression, not to mention the great social media purge to boot. Alas twice. Sadness.

15) Let's skip over the post Jan 20 era, up until this coming week's CPAC. Appropriately, let's call that the mostly silent era of our leader's quietude. Hey, have I ever mentioned that I hate having a leader I call by the title: "leader?" I'm not naturally so respectful. Honest.

16) What did Trump just do? What did he do? He rededicated himself to the Republican Party. Uh huh. The Party I hate and detest and don't like much either. Yep. I'm not a registered Republican either. I've tried to make myself. I have never been able to go that far. Yuck.

17) I can't tell you if I'll ever "join the party" either. I'm not a partygoer. I don't throw them. I don't attend them. You'd have to point a shotgun at me (or a boatload of cash) to get me to attend anything like CPAC. I'm not a joiner. Yuck. I was never even in a frat club.

18) What I can tell you is that Trump is once again right. As in correct. Not as in ideologically, pragmatically. I could get behind the ideology of a Patriot Party. I'd be happy to, too. I'd join. I might even go to a Party Conference. Probably not, but I'd think about it!

19) Why is Trump right? Because there are thieves at the top of the Republican Party, who DO NOT represent the Party, or the Party's people, its voters, or America, Her principles. I have no idea what Trump will say at CPAC. I suspect there may be something about a new direction.

20) Did you hear that Pence declined his invitation? Ha! Now if he were going, and I could watch his face while Trump OWNS the crowd, that might be worth seeing. Trump does not give up his own power, ever. He is guided by the practical, the pragmatic principles of power.

21) There's more. If Trump left the Grand Old Party to die the ignominious death that radical, idealistic idiots like me would bring down on its head with joy, he'd be betraying all the wiser, faithful souls who wish to CONSERVE. He will not betray his voters. Ever. He's right.

22) I have a lot of conservative friends who tolerate me, often thinking I must be one of them, part of the crew. I never hide my natural radicalism, but I try not to flout it too much. I never criticize them, and that's both honest and natural. I almost wish I were one.

23) But a true Trump follower I am. Still a newly converted, awkward, and uncomfortable pragmatist of the Trump School. He is my leader, I his faithful follower. I know, I keep saying that to persuade myself as much as possible. I do work to live up to the calling. That's real.

24) Trump is once again doing his thing as only he can. I suspect he bristles over all this as much as many if not most of us, his followers do, too. But he maps the course, walks it, and yes...

WINS.

Thread ends at #24.

I forgot to limit myself to the Gab character count, but this will be just 4 screenshots, and postable across my platforms as such. See you over at Gab, Parler, and CloutHub, and will repost here, too!

Postscript: After an exercise and coffee break, I'll get those screenshots taken and posted at the other platforms. And, if you enjoyed my essay, do please share it and invite new followers here to help me fight the purge! Thank you!!