The Republican Brain | Existential Ennui

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conservatives, global warming, liberals, projection, psychology, right-wing insane, The Republican Brain

“What we have here is a failure to communicate.”

So, I was minding my own business, just reading up on my favorite bloggers, when Denise sent me over to this hatefest called TownHall, wherein all the greats (leading off with Annie *nobody will touch that* Coulter) of ultra wacked conservatism reside. And I read this bilge by somebody called John Hawkins about how evil and super crazy all liberals are.

And I read the comments, which consisted of a long list of “yes, yes,” and “got that right” and “oh, John, you are the best” and other such drivel.

Now John said all the usual things, like:

that liberals are hateful people (almost all of them) We get up hating, and we go to bed hating. We hate all the wrong people (them) which is proof, while they hate only the right people.
that liberals promote race hatred at every turn. The Nazis couldn’t have done as well in creating groups to gin up hate like liberals do, even though the crazy right never uses analogies like Nazi.
that most liberals are immoral and therefore never have to apologize (as the right is constantly having to do) when their private immoralities become public. Conservatives are moral because they do apologize. And also liberals, having no morals, spend all their time lying about conservatives, which by definition, conservatives must refrain from (which explains why Willard is not required to tell the truth about nuthin’ since he ain’t no real conservative)
that liberals don’t care about whether their policies actually work, it just makes them feel good to force them on people, for some reason that Hawkins can’t explain. But it’s true nonetheless. “policies that kill millions but make them feel good about themselves are a win.”
that liberals are extremely intolerant. The entire MSM is liberal, yet they begrudge the Right a couple of puny radio shows and Fox. We don’t even know the meaning of tolerance–“Actual tolerance means that you realize people have different practices and views and even if you don’t agree, you understand that they should have the ability to live as they choose, just as you should have the leeway to live as you choose.” Liberalism is just the first step to fascism. (Except if you are gay, an immigrant, Muslim, a strong woman, a Democrat, a liberal, progressive, 99 9/10’s of all black race card players, European, Middle Eastern -except Israeli, college student, college professor, welfare recipient, sexually active woman, Commie, socialist, evolutionist, secularist, tree-huggin’ greenies, a climate changer . . . awww heck, anything other than white!)

There.

I mean.

Okay.

Classroom please.

PROJECTION:

Psychological projection or projection bias is a psychological defense mechanism where a person subconsciously denies his or her own attributes, thoughts, and emotions, which are then ascribed to the outside world, usually to other people. Thus, projection involves imagining or projecting the belief that others originate those feelings. . . .In this way, the subject may obtain ‘acquittal by his conscience. . . .Projection can also be established as a means of obtaining or justifying certain actions that would normally be found atrocious or heinous. This often means projecting false accusations, information, etc., onto an individual for the sole purpose of maintaining a self-created illusion. . . .Compartmentalization, splitting, and projection are ways that the ego continues to pretend that it is completely in control at all times. . . . [from Wikipedia]

Got that? And guess what?

Wanna know who is the best at this crap? The fundamentalist-authoritiarian follower. Or TeaPerson, or Ultra Right-Wing Wanger.

So, you know, you cannot talk to these folks.

There is a book that just came out called The Republican Brain. It looks like a good one. The author speaks about Republican views on global warming. This has always been an odd duck for me. Why does the extreme Right hate environmentalism? Some, the fringe evangelical crazies think that Genesis settled the issue by saying that God said he would never suffer the destruction of the world again, ala The Flood. But surely that is a fringe.

So what gives?

Is it just the herd mentality of the authoritarian follower to follow the dictates of the GOP elites who receive their campaign funds from oil and gas interests and thus echo the “green technology is bad” song?

Are Republicans just idiots?

Sort of. Smart idiots would be more like it.

It turns out that the more educated you are as a Republican, the more you deny global warming. How can that be?

Research also shows that it’s a white male, Tea Party position as well.

The reasoning goes this way:

The conservative mind is authoritarian. It likes clean black/white dichotomies, and it likes certainty. Fear and threat are bad. Once they have an opinion, it is held against all new information.
The conservative mind prizes individuality, dislikes government and accepts that society is hierarchical. If humans are responsible for global warming, then their free market philosophy has failed and government will have to step in.Since this is unacceptable, there must be a conspiracy to create a crisis in order to justify take over of economies. Scientists must be part of this, so scientists can’t be trusted.
The worst aspects of the conservative mind are met with a news outlet that is prepared to coddle their mis-beliefs, i.e., Fox News. Studies clearly show that Fox News watchers are the most uninformed on all issues, but clearly global warming.

So, again, we can talk with these folks.

Now you go out, and forget all the doom and gloom, and have a good day.