His intellectual defenders make their case that the danger is overblown.

    • ceenote@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      He literally already tried to be.

      “Does he want to?” is not up for debate. “Can he?” is the question. People downplaying the danger he poses are pushing the needle towards “Yes, he can.”

    • xor@infosec.pub
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      10 months ago

      i don’t see how there’s any other topic in the discussion at this point
      “well moving on from the plan of a brutal, unending dictatorship, what’s your position on corn subsidies?”

    • OpenStars@startrek.website
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      10 months ago

      It is not. Conservatives are gaslighting you, and the media is trying to sell their clickbait. Possibly unpopular thought: at some point it becomes our own fault for choosing to engage? Like the big bad wolf asks “are you home right now?”, where even if you answer “no!” then you have still fallen for the trick? (i.e., of COURSE he would be a dictator, that’s not even a point, but why allow them to control the conversation to switch to the talking points that they choose, rather than driving our own points that we would rather be discussed, like what to do about school shootings or climate change and such?)

      Innuendo Studios has a fascinating whole entire video series called “The Alt-Right Playbook” if anyone wants to learn more about their limited variety of tactics, that are nonetheless extremely effective for those who do not recognize them.

        • OpenStars@startrek.website
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          10 months ago

          IRK? It totally changed my method of responding to the world… I used to painstakingly attempt to respond unless it was extremely obvious that someone was 110% a troll, but now I know that even halfway reasonable people simply cannot be “reasoned” with, if they have an entirely different worldview than me. i.e., don’t give someone a list of 100 reasons to not allow Trump to win - they don’t care (after the 1st impeachment, and the 2nd impeachment, and January 6, and everything else), nor are they looking for facts and willing to change their minds. I would change my mind in a heartbeat if the facts pointed in a different direction, but they will not, b/c it is not “facts” that are causing them to support him, even if for some people that once was true.

          Ofc I still fall for the tricks, but like 90% less often now:-).