I recently read a Washington Post article: The cult of Trump is a threat to untold numbers of American lives.
I posted this article to my Facebook page and immediately a Facebook friend commented on the article saying New York and California were the hardest hit and insinuated that this article was bogus. Of course, this person did NOT read the article. They could not back up their claims.
I never “followed” this person on Facebook, in fact, it was a distant relative that I haven’t seen in probably in over 10 years or more. I went to their page and wow–I was struck by ignorance and hate. There was not one original thought on their Facebook page other than maybe personal photos. Every post was a meme or a copy and paste. They are now a FORMER Facebook friend.
Conspiracy COVID-19
On the page, I found fake news. Below is a post I found that plants a conspiracy theory. I found it disturbing to think that someone wrote this long Facebook post claiming that Democrats actually wanted COVID-19 to tamper with the election. Fake news lives in these types of posts. These posts are dangerous and are costing people their lives.
This Facebook post says “The common flu has killed more people this year already and the media is SILENT!” Supposedly COVID-19 “Seems fishy” and a “little too well-timed.” As if COVID-19 waited for an election year to decide to invade our lives.
The Washington Post article points out:
Yet at the same time, those who followed Trump’s lead may have put many in danger, as the AP concludes, without quite saying so directly:
The fierce tribalism that has characterized debates over immigration, taxes and health care is now coloring policymaking during a coronavirus outbreak that threatens countless lives and local economies across the nation.
That is both an exceptionally stark statement — these differences do “threaten countless lives and local economies” — and a retreat from clearly explaining what causes them.
The gulf between those demanding a response in keeping with public health expertise and those refusing such a response — and even claiming that demands for more action can only reflect animosity to Trump — is not mere “tribalism” or “partisanship.”
One side is prioritizing science and the imperative of erring on the side of caution to protect as many American lives as possible. The other is actively submerging both of those to a kind of cultish devotion to the perceived political needs and demands of the leader.
One side is prioritizing science and being overly cautious, and the other side is making a pandemic political so they can be in the good graces of the president.
Propaganda and Cultish Devotion
This cultish devotion is propaganda made. Propaganda is when someone plants a seed of doubt. A propagandist plants a seed. Then repeats the lie over and over until that seed grows into doubt and finally into the truth that the propagandist wants you to believe.
A cult is a group of people who has beliefs or practices that are regarded by others as strange or sinister. Most of the time they are religious beliefs, but any adoption of an ideology where a group of people has an excessive or unhealthy admiration for a person or I would even go as far as a belief system.
I categorized my FORMER Facebook friend as posting strange and sinister political beliefs that have absolutely no validity other than for the pure fact of spreading fake news and propaganda beliefs. Like the meme below:
How do these beliefs change a person’s mind? The rhetorical act of repetition.
The rhetorical figure repetition is powerful. If a person repeats the lie enough times–people start to believe it.
Donald Trump is the master at repetition. He repeats words and phrases. Remember how he repeated the “Rigged election” over and over. He wanted people to start to believe if he didn’t win, the election must have been rigged, right?
Trump repeats the nicknames of his opponents because he wants people to associate the nickname to how they start to FEEL about his opponent. Crooked Hillary, Lying Ted, Little Marco, and Elizabeth Warren is Pocahontas. He creates characters out of opponents for you to associate their worst quality. When you hear a nickname enough–you start to associate them with their worst trait. Not only did Trump repeat the nicknames and lies–he also had the media play clips of his speeches and read his tweets repeatedly.
Is critical thinking Dead?
What I have found in many people who are like my former Facebook friend is there are no original thoughts to posts. People mindlessly share with no original thought connected to the reshare. They let others speak for them. When you ask for proof–there is none other than a putdown–and usually in the form of something they heard repeated from another source. A few months ago, I had to delete another friend whose posts were the same. Degrading, sinister, and filled with fake news.
I was told I wasn’t open-minded. I responded I would be if this person had proof of their shared claims. I asked them to write their own posts with real evidence and I would listen. Fake news and embellished thoughts don’t convince me of their argument.
I’m convinced that critical thinking has become a lost art.
And, don’t worry, I know the Far Left is just as sinister. I was approached recently on LinkedIn by a Liberal Watchdog group who wanted me to film Republican events so they could feed the press with information that could be damaging. No, I don’t do those types of things. I know that’s how the political game works–but nope–I’m not going to spy and support more fake news spread. I ignored the job offer (which I have NO clue why they emailed me in the first place) and deleted the request because it just made me feel icky. I write about politics–and each side can become an equal target for me to write about.
At this time, we must be vigilant in fighting fake news. As I wrote in a previous article, fake news is a pandemic. The Washington Post is right–the cult of Trump is a threat if they don’t see COVID-19 as a threat to their health and others.
Remember how Spring Breakers made light of the Corona Virus? Twenty-eight UT-Austin college students who went to Mexico contracted the virus. Think about how many people they may have given the virus to.
One reason these spring breakers may not have taken this pandemic seriously is that the president didn’ even thought his rhetoric has changed over time.
Words Matter
Trump went from saying “this virus will disappear quickly” to “Nothing would be worse than declaring victory before the victory is won.”
The Washington Post’s timeline of Trump’s responses to the pandemic vs. what was actually happening shows how words matter. Leadership is about leading. How can spring breakers take the coronavirus seriously if the President of the United States isn’t taking it seriously?
Words Matter.
Let me repeat that (hey, it works for Trump)
Words Matter.
Words matter because words lead people to take action. Words motivate people. Words instruct people. Words inform people. Words stir emotions in people.
Words Matter.
Because our actions could save not only our lives but others.
