It helps if we think of a Trump supporter as an angry business customer.
Telling a Trump supporter that their facts are wrong or that they are misguided is akin to telling an angry person, “Calm down.” It has the exact *opposite *effect. Very few people calm down when told to calm down when angry; in fact, “calm down” is pretty much guaranteed to throw fuel on the flames like nothing else.
By shunning and mocking Trumpers now, we are simply setting the stage for more Trumps to come. The reason for Trump is dissatisfaction. (To a certain extent, dissatisfaction fueled Bernie’s election bid, but Bernie is much classier than Trump.)
Mocking an angry business customer or Trumper wont’ make their anger go away - and in fact may make a bystander *sympathize *with the angry Trumper/customer. Telling them to “calm down” will further enrage them.
What needs to be done is to let the customer know that their anger is understandable, (while not necessarily valid,) and then address the issue in a way that is satisfactory to them, while not causing harm to other people. Reducing outsourcing of jobs is reasonable. Paying more attention to the Appalachian region is reasonable. Reducing double standards in media or society is reasonable.
Having 11 million illegal immigrants deported isn’t doable.
Different tactics work with different folks. Mockery works with some, shaming and strident criticism works with others, and calm and patient arguing works with others. No rhetorical tactic should be off the table – I’ve seen people change their minds and learn from all different approaches. Part of the reason that the vast majority of people don’t, for example, publicly challenge the legality of interracial marriage any more is that they know they will be savagely mocked and ridiculed.
Ridicule is a double-edged sword as far as swaying the undecided goes.
Mocking a fat woman might make bystanders think less of the fat lady - or it might make the bystanders sympathize *with *the fat woman and think less of the mocker. So it really depends on the audience. It’s not as easy as 'Mock Trump and the undecided vote will become ours!"
Modified SIZE tag as to not be so damn ostentatious … sheesh …
Far better to start focusing NOW on State legislature elections in 2018 and specifically 2020 … these are the people who re-draw the Congressional districts …
Ya’d think Democrats would someday begin to learn from their mistakes …
In this day and age I don’t think the “shame them” tactic is possible, let alone practical. There’s a lot of evidence pointing to the fact that negative dialogue, especially online just pushes people away and further pushes them to an extreme. Shaming just causes them to move to father reaches of the net. This applies to both sides.
Unless of course you are proposing to go to a public space, call someone deplorable, and proceed to give them a savage shaming in person. In which case I’d advise bringing a helmet
As far as undecideds go, neither side comes out looking good in comment section flame wars
And if a customer comes into your store screaming about how your product creates chemtrails that are used to control his brainwaves, and HOW DARE YOU do this to him…
Then it may be best to simply send him on his way with a firm “GOODBYE SIR” because you have actual customers in your store that want to buy things. And you don’t want them to see you cowtowing to the nutbar, while ignoring real customers. Some customers you don’t want.
I realize your comment wasn’t to me, but:
Address the Trumper grievances that are legitimate - especially if they are *small *and of little consequence - and make a big deal out of having addressed those small grievances. That will be a release valve for shedding a lot of pressure, harmlessly.
So, for instance, some Trumpers were making a complaint about “media bias” because the debate moderators in one debate allowed Clinton supporters to cheer and applaud, while clamping down on Trumper cheering and applause and suppressing it. (Technically neither side was supposed to be permitted to applaud or make noise.) I think that actually is a legitimate Trumper complaint; it does give the impression of bias.
So that would be an example of a minor issue - a legitimate Trumper complaint - which ought to be addressed, and the media should make a big deal of addressing this complaint by Trumpers. That makes them feel acknowledged.
That sort of concession might be helpful for the reasonable and sane Trump voters, amenable to compromise and civility. But could we get them both? Dunno.
I’m not sure addressing the minor points they don’t seem to be yelling about at the moment will do much, but if true, it shouldn’t have happened. BTW, would that be the same debate where the bigger complaint on their(and his) part was that Clinton got so much more speaking time than Trump, when the truth was that he spoke more than she did?
edited to add: the previous post makes a point in that the people that could be reached by reasonable means have already been reached by reasonable means, and there don’t seem to be any signs of any of those type remaining in the Trumpette Army.
I believe it was the 2nd debate or even the VP debate, not sure - to preserve my sanity, I haven’t watched much of any of the debates. I was just reading the FB comments of some Trumpers afterwards.
If there is any issue that can be used to persuade Trumpers, I think it would be the issue of Putin, Russia, China and isolationism. I really don’t think that the average Trumper, deep down, likes Putin or Russia at all, or of the US being pacifist and not intervening in conflicts - these are, after all, Trumpers who admire Reagan’s tough stance against the Soviet Union, who call for ISIS to be carpet-bombed by B-52s, who are all pro-military. So I think that would be the wedge issue to split the Trump camp - persuade their inner hawk to go along with the Hillary hawk. The more Hillary’s pro-Israel and anti-China, anti-Russia credentials are emphasized, the more likely these people are to reject Trump’s naive or dumb isolationism.
Trump supporters want the status quo from 50 years ago - where you didn’t have to bother much in high school and still could get a good job. Trump supporters blew off college and now they are made because the world has changed. Trump supporters want the old status quo where white men ruled, and where women should not complain about being assaulted.
And Trump supporters are gullible and stupid because they don’t want any real answers. What does Trump say about fixing this? Just trust him - it will be jobs, jobs, jobs. Where are these jobs going to come from? He doesn’t say. Will they be jobs his under-educated fans are qualifed for? He doesn’t say. We’ve had a lot of job growth in the past six years, but Trump - and his fans - don’t want to hear about it.
He wants to bring manufacturing back? Besides the problem of prices going way up, if Apple was forced to build a factory in the US they will be automated up the wazoo with few jobs for the Trump fans. Then what will happen? He’ll probably accuse the Mexicans and those with college degrees of ruining the economy.
I’m sure many Trump fans do good things. I bet Ky Klux Kallners hugged heir kids after a lynching.
Do Trump supporters not realize that Trump ripped off people just like them? They are exactly the people Trump U was meant for - wanting an easy path to money, wanting someone to give them the magic word that would liet them catch up to those who worked harder and were smarter.
This is the candidate whose campaint is in chaos, and who lies about it, and whose supporters would rather belikeve in a vast conspiracy to rig the election rather than admitting they might be in the minority.
What would happen if President Trump screws up, as he would, and things fall apart. Would he admit it, or would he start throwing critics in jail? Think about that.
Like calling Mexicans rapists. Let’s remember who started the name calling in this campaign. It wasn’t the Dems. It wasn’t the majority or Republican candidates. It was Trump.
Trump and his buddies are typical bullies. They can spit all over everyone, but if anyone fights back it is boo hoo hoo, they are mean to me, they are conspiring against me, they are waa calling me names.
You got your info from a Trumper Facebook page?
Apology rescinded until a cite with ties closer to reality is put forth. If there are actual injustices that can be smoothed over, no problemo. Trumped-up injustices get bupkis.
There has never been a time in in American politics where we bring everyone around to a common view. The beauty in it is that we don’t have to. This isn’t North Korea where the leader needs a 100% approval rating.
So yes, hopefully those tactic will convince half of the Trump supporters. The other half we live with even though we might think they are deplorable. And certainly don’t resort to calling them evil
That all might be true. But the bigger danger is concentration of power in the hand of the state. Trying to prohibit certain speech or press is not the solution.
In this particular election or with the apparent rise of discontent with the status quo in politics. The rise of populism isn’t due to racism per se. It’s more to do with the feelings of uncertainty in a world with global trade and migration.
I was just reading the FB comments of some Trumpers afterwards.