We do not write anymore, not with pen, pencil, paper. We write in virtual reality, in "word processors," in electronic mail, on virtual "pages" of paper-blogs, twitter, etc. It all has the "feel" of reality. It is reality, meta-reality, it transcends the "old" reality.
There is no rock music anymore. Google it. Rock has fragmented into a thousand bites of sound, most of it has a vague "feel" of being rock. It is meta-rock.
Barack Obama is biracial, self-identifies Black, Okay, you're Black, "feels" to us "Black-ish," is multi-cultural, feels to some quintessentially modern American in his identities, "quintessentially modern American" being ~meta-being; feels un-American, completely foreign, to others. Obama is traditional political.
Donald Trump is America's first meta-political candidate for president.
Trump has had multiple political identities, self-identifies, now, Republican, Okay, you're Republican, feels "Republican-ish" to us, although some feel squeamish about how Republican-ish; says he's conservative, Okay..., but has supported Democrats, which is a liberal-ish thing to do, so we do not feel entirely comfortable with him in either the liberal or the conservative box; feels, to some, "populist," which is not conservative, is vaguely liberal, democratic as in mob democratic, is an authoritarian strongman which is illiberal.
The genius of Olivia Nuzzi's Trump writing is its focus on Trump's supporters as the way to define Trump.
Olivia Nuzzi@OliviaNuzzi
There is no rock music anymore. Google it. Rock has fragmented into a thousand bites of sound, most of it has a vague "feel" of being rock. It is meta-rock.
Barack Obama is biracial, self-identifies Black, Okay, you're Black, "feels" to us "Black-ish," is multi-cultural, feels to some quintessentially modern American in his identities, "quintessentially modern American" being ~meta-being; feels un-American, completely foreign, to others. Obama is traditional political.
Donald Trump is America's first meta-political candidate for president.
Trump has had multiple political identities, self-identifies, now, Republican, Okay, you're Republican, feels "Republican-ish" to us, although some feel squeamish about how Republican-ish; says he's conservative, Okay..., but has supported Democrats, which is a liberal-ish thing to do, so we do not feel entirely comfortable with him in either the liberal or the conservative box; feels, to some, "populist," which is not conservative, is vaguely liberal, democratic as in mob democratic, is an authoritarian strongman which is illiberal.
The genius of Olivia Nuzzi's Trump writing is its focus on Trump's supporters as the way to define Trump.
Olivia Nuzzi@OliviaNuzzi
The problem with a lot of Trump writing is it fundamentally misunderstands his supporters
Olivia Nuzzi@OliviaNuzzi
They largely do not care about his various policy positions to the degree that he even has policy positions. That's not what it's about.
Olivia Nuzzi@OliviaNuzzi
They do not care about planned parenthood or what he said last week about common core vs. what he said this week. They don't care!
Olivia Nuzzi@OliviaNuzzi
They care about him. They trust him as a leader who won't allow them to be fucked over, because he himself has never been fucked over.
They care about him. They trust him as a leader who won't allow them to be fucked over, because he himself has never been fucked over.
The genius of Olivia Nuzzi's Trump writing is its focus on the feelings of Trump's supporters for him, not their thinking.
Trump supporters have a meta-rational attachment to him. Other Trump writing, including my own, focused on Trump, we tried to understand Trump by who he was and what he said. We took that information and then tried to put him into the traditional boxes and we were flummoxed that he didn't fit. "A lot of Trump writing," that did analyze Trump's followers, Ms. Nuzzi educates us, "fundamentally misunderstood" those followers.
Trump supporters have a meta-rational attachment to him. Other Trump writing, including my own, focused on Trump, we tried to understand Trump by who he was and what he said. We took that information and then tried to put him into the traditional boxes and we were flummoxed that he didn't fit. "A lot of Trump writing," that did analyze Trump's followers, Ms. Nuzzi educates us, "fundamentally misunderstood" those followers.
I do not know what boxes in which to fit Olivia Nuzzi. She wrote with nuance and sensitivity about Trump followers, to the extent that two responded to her tweets and said appreciatively that she had gotten them right; to the extent that I thought she, Ms. Nuzzi, was a Trump supporter. I googled her and I now think not--But, I'm not sure! I googled "The Daily Beast" which I had at least heard of, I had never heard of Ms. Nuzzi before; Ms. Nuzzi writes for "The Daily Beast" and I could not pigeon-hole it either.
All I can tell you is that Olivia Nuzzi either is a Trump supporter, personally knows Trump supporters, has spent a great deal of time hanging around Trump supporters for her writing, or has some uncanny sixth sense for understanding Trump supporters, because she absolutely NAILED
Trump supporters there and in so doing helped us pigeon-holers understand Trump.
Trump supporters there and in so doing helped us pigeon-holers understand Trump.
The very first reaction I had to Ms. Nuzzi's tweets was "Trump's support is limited." I had written that before, as had others, and I was glad to read what I took to be consistent with my opinion that a cockroach has limited appeal in America. I thought that what Ms. Nuzzi wrote was consistent with my view of his appeal because his appeal was so personal to his supporters:
"They care about him..."
That is a feeling, a very personal feeling. Today, when a person says "I care about him," that is taken as very close to "I love him," romantically. Think of the photograph of the worshipful young women at a Trump rally that I found on Trump's Twitter account and re-posted here. Very interesting. I am completely flummoxed by this because when I look at Trump I see a cockroach.
"They trust him as a leader..."
"Leader" is the term Sarah Palin also used for Trump. Her usage though, with "our," "our leader," was more fascistic sounding, and I believe intended so by Palin, than "a leader." Where in Trump do his supporters see a "leader?" I don't know.
"Trust" is not as personal as "care about," is a common feeling for supporters of politicians, is more benevolent than "leader," and can be dependent:
"Trust" is not as personal as "care about," is a common feeling for supporters of politicians, is more benevolent than "leader," and can be dependent:
"...who won't allow them to be fucked over...
That is dependent.
By whom? Who is trying to fuck them over? In what manner?
Nuzzi does not write, e.g., "who will protect them," like from IS, there is not the meaning conveyed there of fear of physical harm; "fucked over" means "cheated," "wrongfully denied" as used here, as
understood by moi. How? In what manner have they been, or fear they will be, fucked over? Since "they don't care" about issues, "largely don't care about" Trump's positions on the issues, we don't know specifically, but oh, how that informs their "trust" in Trump, and imbues "leader" with meaning.
They trust Trump so much that whatever he proposes they support. Which means they follow blindly their leader, the Leader, the Fuhrer.
So that's the manner. Who? Who is it that Trump "won't allow" to fuck them over? I don't know.
By whom? Who is trying to fuck them over? In what manner?
Nuzzi does not write, e.g., "who will protect them," like from IS, there is not the meaning conveyed there of fear of physical harm; "fucked over" means "cheated," "wrongfully denied" as used here, as
understood by moi. How? In what manner have they been, or fear they will be, fucked over? Since "they don't care" about issues, "largely don't care about" Trump's positions on the issues, we don't know specifically, but oh, how that informs their "trust" in Trump, and imbues "leader" with meaning.
They trust Trump so much that whatever he proposes they support. Which means they follow blindly their leader, the Leader, the Fuhrer.
So that's the manner. Who? Who is it that Trump "won't allow" to fuck them over? I don't know.
"...because he himself has never been fucked over."
I guess (which means I don't know) this is "The Art of the Deal" Trump that is appealing so much to his supporters. Trump is shrewd, he has negotiated with some real cockroaches over the years (in his supporters' minds) and he has always, or on the whole, won; he may be a cockroach himself, but he's our cockroach:
@Shamsher1111 @Olivianuzzi You are the first pundit to have got it. We the working men and fighting men of America love Trump for the tough sob he is.
