I am truly lucky I get to read the news from a historical perspective (Heather Cox Richardson) and from a literary one, too. I may be one of the dumb ones but you're making me smarter, Greg. Gracias!
I'm really stuck on this thing about Democrats being seen as elitists. I see neoliberal oligarchs as elitists. I see billionaires suck the life out of this country as elitists. Why are smart educated people called elitists? I mean, there are the paper intellectuals that have not experienced take a walk in my shoes. Since 1980, this country has attacked education with vengeance, and we all know why. We have a very shaming culture. It feeds people's insecurities. Politics is always a reflection of the public. Shame on us.
Democrats do have higher standards. We are the ones cleaning up every fucking mess every 4 to 8 yrs. Republicans are misogynistic greedy knuckle dragging grifters that do not care about voters. Oh, except the white Christian heterosexual wealthy ones. And there Phyllis Shaflay wives. The media beats the fuck out of Democrats which of course need to be held to higher standard. Fuck the media. And fuck this double standards bullshit. If it was a white male, would it be different?
Higher standards can’t compare with the wresting milieu that the haters feel right at home in. Inauguration Day may have “poetry” by Hulk Hogan. Maybe written by Putin.
I wish I knew. The GOP in general, and MAGA in particular, has been waging war on expertise for decades, as you point out. Sooner or later this will come back to bite us. is it because we have so much knowledge at our fingertips, and that makes knowledge seem not special?
In politically mixed comments columns elsewhere, I have seen people write, with sarcastic zeal that, "truth has a liberal bias." These days that may actually be true, but that doesn't make it elitist, it's still just TRUTH. Keep truthing, Julie!
Elsewhere in the play, Stockmann explains that truth is mutable, and only lasts about 18-20 years. I think that was a veiled reference to critics not understanding the previous play, but still. Interesting idea.
Thanks for the perspective, I always learn something. I have frequently thought about this very play, which I saw at least 40 years ago, in the context of the election, and those very lines, where, I think, Stockman says something to the effect that "it takes 20 years for the public to be right about anything." Often it is longer.
Thanks, Frank. Yes, that's an odd part of his rant. My guess is, that is as close as Ibsen got to "you foolish critics will eventually realize how genius my play is!"
I also LOVE your Sunday columns. Greg, you make me smarter and wiser. That is a great combination in these surreal and frightening days. Thank you. I know it is unkind and mean to keep thinking how absolutely stupid and thoroughly shallow the majority is, but boy, it has helped me keep what is left of my sanity. Today was thought provoking, entertaining and comforting in some indescribable way(at least by me). Thank you.
Notwithstanding his top hat, the multiple ironies of character & circumstance in this Ibsen play point to the truth, that as to all of the different things to be known about who we are & what's going on, we're all the idiots until something puts us on a path to get smart. And as the benighted followers of Trump have yet to learn, there may be some justice in the laying of everything to waste but in that course there's no mercy for our species or for the progress which has consumed generations of generations to get us to that point of perversion & nihilism.
Well put, Richard. I will add that the thing about knowledge is that we have to keep acquiring it, and reviewing our positions, and questioning our own belief sets. When we stop trying to learn, we die. At least, that's how I feel.
I am reminded by your column as I often have to remind myself, if you look at the bell-shaped IQ graph of average intelligence, half of the people are at 100 IQ points or lower. Yes, it is not list to assume that half of the population in this country are at 100 IQ points or lower! Let's keep our expectations realistic and while under educating them learn how to educate them. Ibsen simply pointed out the self-serving nature of most, or at least the vocal half........many of the elite talk down to the lesser half and probably can be self-serving also, and might not go to town meetings as they are not worthy of their time. Trump and his cohorts know how to influence the relatively easily influenced. Savvy Democrats do also, e.g. "it's the economy, stupid", and so on. Know how to run and then how to govern. The economy was not the issue....race, immigration, the price of bacon, etc. are apparently more important today. Campaigning is poetry, governing prose. Know your audience and speak to them if you want applause and satisfy the average (90 to 110 IQ points) voter, not the more not-average.
Sadly, I know brilliant people who worship stupid. Sounds like a juxtaposition but maybe our current reality is hopelessly impaired. Maybe Ibsen would recognize us.
Describes perfectly a family I knew well. They dumb-mouthed and poor-mouthed all the time. I knew better. I have on occasion, tried to make uneducated people not feel “less” by not using vocabulary that they would likely not understand.
I'm not sure Kamala's message was lost in policy-wonk-speak. My suspicion is that, when faced with two different simple, emotional messages, more people gravitate towards the angry than the joyous.
On the topic of Biden and Harris surrendering without a fight (seeing Biden shake that monster's hand in front of the cozy fire was truly retch-worthy), this has been on my mind all morning: When the Electoral College installed DT in 2016, Hillary self-exiled into the wilderness with her dogs, and frankly, I don't think hordes of her voters really wanted to see her for a while. I don't think this is the case with VP Harris. I think there are hordes of us who want to see and hear from her. I mean, she packed 75,000 people onto the Ellipse. She could do it again today. She (and Biden) have another chance to come out and name this menace for what it is. The awful cabinet nominees give them a good opening.
I know this is unlikely to happen, but I wish Biden and Harris would appear at a place of their choosing (I think an Ellipse reprise would be great). B could give a BRIEF speech affirming the seriousness of the threat and turn the stage over to Harris to reaffirm her economic populist stance against price gouging corporations and billionaires and fascists. No more playing footsie with fascists.
Wouldn't that be great? We can dream, I suppose.
Sorry I took up so much space. I just so want Harris to exercise her duty to warn the public.
Thanks, McLain. And please never worry about taking up space. That's what this page is here for!
I agree with the difference in the elections...HRC roaming the wilderness, and now, where is Kamala? (That was one of their hashtags, right?) I'm hoping she is marshalling her forces for a defense of democracy, but I also cannot imagine what it feels like to lose an election, especially THIS election, especially when you know the stakes and you were the one campaigning on joy and inclusion. If we feel devastated, how must she feel? With that said, it is time, and we need our leaders to lead, and anyone who can't accept losing should pick another line of work.
This has me thinking about LB’s comments on the Five8 Friday… and how difficult it is to confront others with hard truths without coming off as elitist and alienating them. We’re sure in a pickle in this post-truth world. It’s alternatively depressing and enraging.
Generally, while out in the world, I keep my mouth shut unless someone asks. if they don't ask, they don't want to know and won't listen. And even if they ask, they may not really take it in. It's a pickle for sure.
My mouth has a hard time with that intention. I don’t start a useless exchange but I don’t always walk away or let stupidity hang in the air like a dark cloud.
IMHO we're not dealing with intellectual ignorance or stupidity. We're dealing with energies that are stunted spiritually and emotionally because they are fueled by hatred. I think James Baldwin recognized root causes:
"I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain."
Thank you. It's the most profound and succinct description of the underlying malady that infects our nation's cellular ecosystem (though it's the main problem in all countries).
The GOP has perfected information warfare over the last 50 years. If you lie to people over and over again you can invoke fear in them and easily pry them loose from a fact based reality. Fear is the tool. Media is the delivery vehicle. Billionaires and their enablers make this happen.
The Big Lie that so many get tricked into believing: The rich are smarter so we need to let them rule. All of the shitty things that are happening right now are a result of that.
In an era where change is accelerating, we need to stay grounded and work from the bottom up. We need to reconnect people with the truth of what's really going on around them. Ask them if they really think billionaires would be concerned about them and not just their own wealth. A grounded truth is not so easily swayed by lies.
Thanks, Rick. Was it Steinbeck who had the quote about how Americans all view themselves as temporarily down on their luck millionaires? That goes with what you're saying: the myth that wealth is easily attainable to anyone who works hard, etc., when most of it is just inherited.
WE (and when I say that I mean the people who still traffic in objective truth) are no longer qualified to deal with the people that voted for Donald Trump for president AGAIN. I now believe that for the most part they are lost. They don't think like us. They no longer have the capability of seeing objective truth, and in all seriousness, that's a damned shame, especially for ALL the citizens of a country call the UNITED States of America. They are in their corner, and we are in ours. This has become no longer JUST about politics, it's become about almost everything, maybe because everything has become political. FFS, a few years ago, people were losing their minds over Bud Light!
One of the bigger complaints from the right has been this alleged "wokeism" thing. Before that it was "political correctness." I always saw both concepts as, "Don't be an asshole." But there are people that can't seem to NOT be assholes, and that's where we are now. Trump is an asshole who has now been Grover Clevelanded into a second term by the other assholes. In the months to come, there will be essays, and columns, and whole books about "What Happened," but the TRUTH of the matter will never be known because the essays, columns and books will always have the bias of the author firmly in place, as it is here in my little paragraph.
I know one thing: the Enemy of the People is never who Trump or anyone in his orbit says it is. Since to the truthtellers he's only known for one thing, LYING accompanied by projection, we know immediately who the Enemy of the People is. I expect we'll find that out for sure in the coming months and years. On the other hand, he's also lazy AF so who really knows what will happen? He WILL cause chaos, and we're going to have to recover from that. I don't think the country is "done." WE will just have to clean up the mess left behind, as historically we've always had to do.
I'm toying with the idea of "BlueSky," but haven't joined because I realize that I just don't LIKE social media. If one is "active," it takes time and curation that I end up failing at. I had a Twitter account that I hardly ever used (and is now FIRMLY closed), and an account at Mastodon that I abandoned. I may check it out, just to see, but I'm more a "pontificate and move on" kind of guy. LOL
Well, I'm very pleased that you "pontificate" here, as I always enjoy hearing what you have to say.
I wish "don't be an asshole" were a frame, because while 95% of it is MAGA-aligned folks being assholes to other people -- inconsiderate, hateful, discriminatory, rude, violent, etc -- the remaining five percent are assholes on the other side (our side) who turn people off by humiliating anyone who doesn't move along with changes quickly enough. It doesn't bother me, but I certainly understand why "woke," or whatever name they give it, resonates with people, and why Musk's promise of "free speech," while bullshit, has appeal.
And YES to this:
>>the Enemy of the People is never who Trump or anyone in his orbit says it is<<
I’d love to have seen Jeremy Strong as Dr. Stockman. Jesse Green, as you quoted from the Times, has also described my current angst of being a “defanged idealist”. I feel simply put, disillusioned. Hegseth is now famously on film saying he doesn’t wash his hands because he can’t see the bacteria. Maybe he needs a microscope, but God help us…
I should have gone down to see it. I keep missing things.
Handing control of the country to people who collectively don't believe in germ theory or vaccines is...well, let's just say, I know how this would end if it were a movie. I've seen "War of the Worlds."
Greg, I played Hedda in one of our community theater productions about 50 years ago when I was going through some not so pleasant marital stuff at home. Dark time to be in a dark play. In light of today’s presentation I may have to revisit Ibsen for a bit. It looks to me as though that times really haven’t changed all that much.
I am truly lucky I get to read the news from a historical perspective (Heather Cox Richardson) and from a literary one, too. I may be one of the dumb ones but you're making me smarter, Greg. Gracias!
Thanks, Mindy! You're certainly not one of the dumb ones.
I stocked up on Depends.
In case the president visits you?
That's shitty!
To send to trump while he is in isolation, I hope?
I do love your Sunday classes. Left questioning how to lead with truth and not make it sound elitist. Tired truth?
I'm really stuck on this thing about Democrats being seen as elitists. I see neoliberal oligarchs as elitists. I see billionaires suck the life out of this country as elitists. Why are smart educated people called elitists? I mean, there are the paper intellectuals that have not experienced take a walk in my shoes. Since 1980, this country has attacked education with vengeance, and we all know why. We have a very shaming culture. It feeds people's insecurities. Politics is always a reflection of the public. Shame on us.
Dems have to deal with a lot of DINOs and repubs just trash anyone who won’t gee and haw.
I'm not saying Democrats aren't accountable. Revisiting the mirror never hurt anyone. We can't bring a piece of cake to a knife fight though.
Dems do it ad nauseam. They have that “going high” history so repubs know that they will never act as vile as they do.
Democrats do have higher standards. We are the ones cleaning up every fucking mess every 4 to 8 yrs. Republicans are misogynistic greedy knuckle dragging grifters that do not care about voters. Oh, except the white Christian heterosexual wealthy ones. And there Phyllis Shaflay wives. The media beats the fuck out of Democrats which of course need to be held to higher standard. Fuck the media. And fuck this double standards bullshit. If it was a white male, would it be different?
No lies detected.
Higher standards can’t compare with the wresting milieu that the haters feel right at home in. Inauguration Day may have “poetry” by Hulk Hogan. Maybe written by Putin.
Yes, I always say that Dems bring a butter knife to the fight. Sigh…
You speak the truth, LIsa! We are a shameful bunch and a sickened one, at that.
I wish I knew. The GOP in general, and MAGA in particular, has been waging war on expertise for decades, as you point out. Sooner or later this will come back to bite us. is it because we have so much knowledge at our fingertips, and that makes knowledge seem not special?
In politically mixed comments columns elsewhere, I have seen people write, with sarcastic zeal that, "truth has a liberal bias." These days that may actually be true, but that doesn't make it elitist, it's still just TRUTH. Keep truthing, Julie!
Elsewhere in the play, Stockmann explains that truth is mutable, and only lasts about 18-20 years. I think that was a veiled reference to critics not understanding the previous play, but still. Interesting idea.
Thanks, Julie. I suspect that truth needs to have some strong emotional underpinning, amplified by social media. That's how the other side operates...
Thanks for the perspective, I always learn something. I have frequently thought about this very play, which I saw at least 40 years ago, in the context of the election, and those very lines, where, I think, Stockman says something to the effect that "it takes 20 years for the public to be right about anything." Often it is longer.
Thanks, Frank. Yes, that's an odd part of his rant. My guess is, that is as close as Ibsen got to "you foolish critics will eventually realize how genius my play is!"
You mean most people don't feel that way? Ruh-oh...
Greg, we are powerless to stop their runaway human planet destruction.
It's been in motion since the advent of human civilization.
And will likeky end in a big bang.
OPPIE
[looks up for asteroid]
Thank you for that. As one of our newer Federalist/Heritage Foundation judges said, "the majority doesn't know what's best for themselves."
Back before they assumed the mantle of majority
Thanks, Lisa. Stockmann would fit right in with those SCOTUS justices...
I also LOVE your Sunday columns. Greg, you make me smarter and wiser. That is a great combination in these surreal and frightening days. Thank you. I know it is unkind and mean to keep thinking how absolutely stupid and thoroughly shallow the majority is, but boy, it has helped me keep what is left of my sanity. Today was thought provoking, entertaining and comforting in some indescribable way(at least by me). Thank you.
Thanks, Rick. I appreciate it.
At some point in my lifetime, the culture started to ASPIRE to dumbness. Joe Rogan is the natural product of that. It's all very strange.
Notwithstanding his top hat, the multiple ironies of character & circumstance in this Ibsen play point to the truth, that as to all of the different things to be known about who we are & what's going on, we're all the idiots until something puts us on a path to get smart. And as the benighted followers of Trump have yet to learn, there may be some justice in the laying of everything to waste but in that course there's no mercy for our species or for the progress which has consumed generations of generations to get us to that point of perversion & nihilism.
Btw, I am, as usual,
Forever Antifa @richismo.bsky.social
Well put, Richard. I will add that the thing about knowledge is that we have to keep acquiring it, and reviewing our positions, and questioning our own belief sets. When we stop trying to learn, we die. At least, that's how I feel.
Followed!
Yeah, in humanistic terms, the modern conflict between the unexamined life not worth living and the unlived life not worth examining, lol.
Good morning Greg
I am reminded by your column as I often have to remind myself, if you look at the bell-shaped IQ graph of average intelligence, half of the people are at 100 IQ points or lower. Yes, it is not list to assume that half of the population in this country are at 100 IQ points or lower! Let's keep our expectations realistic and while under educating them learn how to educate them. Ibsen simply pointed out the self-serving nature of most, or at least the vocal half........many of the elite talk down to the lesser half and probably can be self-serving also, and might not go to town meetings as they are not worthy of their time. Trump and his cohorts know how to influence the relatively easily influenced. Savvy Democrats do also, e.g. "it's the economy, stupid", and so on. Know how to run and then how to govern. The economy was not the issue....race, immigration, the price of bacon, etc. are apparently more important today. Campaigning is poetry, governing prose. Know your audience and speak to them if you want applause and satisfy the average (90 to 110 IQ points) voter, not the more not-average.
Sadly, I know brilliant people who worship stupid. Sounds like a juxtaposition but maybe our current reality is hopelessly impaired. Maybe Ibsen would recognize us.
There is nothing I more despise on principle than smart people pretending to be dumb.
Describes perfectly a family I knew well. They dumb-mouthed and poor-mouthed all the time. I knew better. I have on occasion, tried to make uneducated people not feel “less” by not using vocabulary that they would likely not understand.
Thanks, Dennis. Excellent points.
I'm not sure Kamala's message was lost in policy-wonk-speak. My suspicion is that, when faced with two different simple, emotional messages, more people gravitate towards the angry than the joyous.
In Texas, hate and anger rule.
Thanks for this, Greg. Excellent as usual.
On the topic of Biden and Harris surrendering without a fight (seeing Biden shake that monster's hand in front of the cozy fire was truly retch-worthy), this has been on my mind all morning: When the Electoral College installed DT in 2016, Hillary self-exiled into the wilderness with her dogs, and frankly, I don't think hordes of her voters really wanted to see her for a while. I don't think this is the case with VP Harris. I think there are hordes of us who want to see and hear from her. I mean, she packed 75,000 people onto the Ellipse. She could do it again today. She (and Biden) have another chance to come out and name this menace for what it is. The awful cabinet nominees give them a good opening.
I know this is unlikely to happen, but I wish Biden and Harris would appear at a place of their choosing (I think an Ellipse reprise would be great). B could give a BRIEF speech affirming the seriousness of the threat and turn the stage over to Harris to reaffirm her economic populist stance against price gouging corporations and billionaires and fascists. No more playing footsie with fascists.
Wouldn't that be great? We can dream, I suppose.
Sorry I took up so much space. I just so want Harris to exercise her duty to warn the public.
She did, over and over, people yawned, at least more than our country can overcome
Thanks, McLain. And please never worry about taking up space. That's what this page is here for!
I agree with the difference in the elections...HRC roaming the wilderness, and now, where is Kamala? (That was one of their hashtags, right?) I'm hoping she is marshalling her forces for a defense of democracy, but I also cannot imagine what it feels like to lose an election, especially THIS election, especially when you know the stakes and you were the one campaigning on joy and inclusion. If we feel devastated, how must she feel? With that said, it is time, and we need our leaders to lead, and anyone who can't accept losing should pick another line of work.
This has me thinking about LB’s comments on the Five8 Friday… and how difficult it is to confront others with hard truths without coming off as elitist and alienating them. We’re sure in a pickle in this post-truth world. It’s alternatively depressing and enraging.
Deport Rupert for starters. Oops, he rules. Too late
[points to actuarial tables]
Generally, while out in the world, I keep my mouth shut unless someone asks. if they don't ask, they don't want to know and won't listen. And even if they ask, they may not really take it in. It's a pickle for sure.
My mouth has a hard time with that intention. I don’t start a useless exchange but I don’t always walk away or let stupidity hang in the air like a dark cloud.
IMHO we're not dealing with intellectual ignorance or stupidity. We're dealing with energies that are stunted spiritually and emotionally because they are fueled by hatred. I think James Baldwin recognized root causes:
"I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain."
Thanks for that. Hate overrides pain and fear
I think you’re right. Hurt people hurt people plays out more and more these days.
Oh wow, that's a great quote. Thanks for sharing that. And I agree.
Thank you. It's the most profound and succinct description of the underlying malady that infects our nation's cellular ecosystem (though it's the main problem in all countries).
The GOP has perfected information warfare over the last 50 years. If you lie to people over and over again you can invoke fear in them and easily pry them loose from a fact based reality. Fear is the tool. Media is the delivery vehicle. Billionaires and their enablers make this happen.
The Big Lie that so many get tricked into believing: The rich are smarter so we need to let them rule. All of the shitty things that are happening right now are a result of that.
In an era where change is accelerating, we need to stay grounded and work from the bottom up. We need to reconnect people with the truth of what's really going on around them. Ask them if they really think billionaires would be concerned about them and not just their own wealth. A grounded truth is not so easily swayed by lies.
Rupert made it de rigueur
Thanks, Rick. Was it Steinbeck who had the quote about how Americans all view themselves as temporarily down on their luck millionaires? That goes with what you're saying: the myth that wealth is easily attainable to anyone who works hard, etc., when most of it is just inherited.
WE (and when I say that I mean the people who still traffic in objective truth) are no longer qualified to deal with the people that voted for Donald Trump for president AGAIN. I now believe that for the most part they are lost. They don't think like us. They no longer have the capability of seeing objective truth, and in all seriousness, that's a damned shame, especially for ALL the citizens of a country call the UNITED States of America. They are in their corner, and we are in ours. This has become no longer JUST about politics, it's become about almost everything, maybe because everything has become political. FFS, a few years ago, people were losing their minds over Bud Light!
One of the bigger complaints from the right has been this alleged "wokeism" thing. Before that it was "political correctness." I always saw both concepts as, "Don't be an asshole." But there are people that can't seem to NOT be assholes, and that's where we are now. Trump is an asshole who has now been Grover Clevelanded into a second term by the other assholes. In the months to come, there will be essays, and columns, and whole books about "What Happened," but the TRUTH of the matter will never be known because the essays, columns and books will always have the bias of the author firmly in place, as it is here in my little paragraph.
I know one thing: the Enemy of the People is never who Trump or anyone in his orbit says it is. Since to the truthtellers he's only known for one thing, LYING accompanied by projection, we know immediately who the Enemy of the People is. I expect we'll find that out for sure in the coming months and years. On the other hand, he's also lazy AF so who really knows what will happen? He WILL cause chaos, and we're going to have to recover from that. I don't think the country is "done." WE will just have to clean up the mess left behind, as historically we've always had to do.
I'm toying with the idea of "BlueSky," but haven't joined because I realize that I just don't LIKE social media. If one is "active," it takes time and curation that I end up failing at. I had a Twitter account that I hardly ever used (and is now FIRMLY closed), and an account at Mastodon that I abandoned. I may check it out, just to see, but I'm more a "pontificate and move on" kind of guy. LOL
United no more. Sad to say…
Well, I'm very pleased that you "pontificate" here, as I always enjoy hearing what you have to say.
I wish "don't be an asshole" were a frame, because while 95% of it is MAGA-aligned folks being assholes to other people -- inconsiderate, hateful, discriminatory, rude, violent, etc -- the remaining five percent are assholes on the other side (our side) who turn people off by humiliating anyone who doesn't move along with changes quickly enough. It doesn't bother me, but I certainly understand why "woke," or whatever name they give it, resonates with people, and why Musk's promise of "free speech," while bullshit, has appeal.
And YES to this:
>>the Enemy of the People is never who Trump or anyone in his orbit says it is<<
I’d love to have seen Jeremy Strong as Dr. Stockman. Jesse Green, as you quoted from the Times, has also described my current angst of being a “defanged idealist”. I feel simply put, disillusioned. Hegseth is now famously on film saying he doesn’t wash his hands because he can’t see the bacteria. Maybe he needs a microscope, but God help us…
Have a nice Sunday!
I should have gone down to see it. I keep missing things.
Handing control of the country to people who collectively don't believe in germ theory or vaccines is...well, let's just say, I know how this would end if it were a movie. I've seen "War of the Worlds."
Greg, I played Hedda in one of our community theater productions about 50 years ago when I was going through some not so pleasant marital stuff at home. Dark time to be in a dark play. In light of today’s presentation I may have to revisit Ibsen for a bit. It looks to me as though that times really haven’t changed all that much.
Oh, wow, what a great part to play! I'm sure you were excellent.