Part I is here.
Part II is here.
We come now to the part when the Leader decides people must be willing to risk death (and die) and the Fox-Trump-GOP—conditioned to obey a leader—falls in line.
The goal of a hierarchical government is to preserve the hierarchy. In contrast, the goal of a democratic (fairness) government is to improve the lives of the people.
That’s why a democratic president like Obama came up with ideas like the Affordable Care Act, and why the Republican Party fought so hard against it. Hierarchical leaders don’t believe the purpose of government is to help people. (They call that “socialism.”)
That’s why the GOP is opposed to social security, health care for all, and widespread COVID-19 testing.
Just because someone insists on “fairness” doesn’t mean they are. They usually want “fairness” only for themselves. Here is McConnell claiming that Trump is a victim of “unfairness”:
(Life is too short for me to point out the absurdities and false equivalences in McConnell’s statement.)
The test of whether a person is hierarchical (as opposed to fairness) and therefore willing to institute death policies is they say things like “all politicians are evil liars. Trump is our evil liar because we like what he does.”
Exhibit A:
If you enjoy irony, notice where he left his comment.) People who think everyone is evil, and lies and cheats, assume that the people on top are better at cheating, and that’s why they win. That’s also why fascism is about “winning.”
The statement: “The other side is also evil and cheats,” indicates dangerous levels of cynicism. It’s also a complete renunciation of principles. “He cheats so I cheated, too” is not a statement made by a person with principles.
Sometimes hierarchy people just come right and tell you, “Different rules apply to people at the top,” thereby announcing themselves as both anti-democratic and hierarchical. Here’s Trump’s new press secretary:
Rule of law (fairness) literally means the same rules apply to everyone.
OK, now back to Trump, the pandemic, and GOP Death Policies.
When the pandemic hit, the Trump administration literally had no way to deal with it. They don’t know how and they don’t possess the capabilities.
This was partly because a hierarchical leader who disregards truth hires people who are “loyal,” not people who are competent.
If Trump actually was a good businessman, he’d know something about management, but the Trumps don’t add value. They con people and they take advantage of situations. (To read more about that, click here.)
Trump came to office on a promise that he would dismantle the federal government, where federal government means the “Deep State,” or all those regulatory and oversight agencies that hierarchy people—“free market economy” people— hate. (I laid this out in Part I.)
Trump spent 3 years dismantling the federal government, which means he now has no ability to deal with a national crisis.
Moreover, using levers of government to better the lives of the people goes against the Republican (hierarchical) theory of government. So they won’t (can’t) do it.
So Trump is incapable of dealing with the pandemic with a view to saving lives. Trump’s first “instinct” in February, recall, was to let the virus “wash over” the population. Fauci was (reportedly) shocked because this would mean widespread death:
Trump also believed that a strong economy would get him reelected. He treated the pandemic as a plot against him. The New York Times reported that Trump said, “They wiped out my economy!”
Eric Trump said that after the election, the problem will “magically” disappear and the country will “open,” implying that people are staying home as part of an evil plot to “wipe out” the economy and make sure Trump loses the election.
Because Trump has no way of dealing with the pandemic and saving lives, he did the only thing he knows how to do: Create a false narrative and force everyone to be actors in the play that he directs.
The story goes like this:
- Only the old, sick and weak are dying, and they were on their last legs anyway. (This argument was made explicitly by Bill O’Reilly)
- Moreover, health care workers are dying a heroic death to save the country:
Fox tells the “base” that social distancing is an evil plot to steal their liberty.
People who are allowed to speak for the administration are tightly controlled. If they can’t be controlled, they’re fired. Dr. Rick Bright was demoted for speaking against hydroxychloroquine. More recently, a Florida official was ousted for refusing to censor (falsify) COVID-19 data.
The GOP searches for “experts” who will lie:
We all have a role to play in the story Trump created.
People who refuse to accept Trump’s version of the truth are the enemies trying to bring down the Leader.
Umberto Eco describes how he won a prize as a child for an essay entitled: “Should we die for the glory of Mussolini and the Immortal Destiny of Italy?” (He said yes.)
A precept of fascism is that individuals sacrifice themselves for the Leader (the state).
Which brings us back to Death Policies. In hierarchical governments like fascism, people must be willing to die when called upon to do so by the Leader.
And now Trump has decided that American people must be willing to die to save the “economy” so he can get reelected, and the entire Fox-GOP falls in line.
I know it makes no sense.
Q: “What is Trump going to do when the facts prove him wrong and he ends up with widespread death and a collapsed economy?
A: Trump is not afraid of facts. They mean nothing to him. He’ll just tell another set of lies.
It doesn’t have to make sense. That’s what’s convenient about being free to disregard facts and create your own reality. You can be as inconsistent as you please, and your minions will adapt as your story changes.
So here we are: the GOP wants to open the economy before meeting health guidelines, which will result in widespread death.
People are working against this, including a few Democratic governors.
What can you do?
Stay safe. Become a guardian of truth. Keep as many people safe as you can. Do what you can to help the vulnerable members of your community. Work harder than you’ve ever worked to make sure we vote them all out.
