Wake-up Call

I normally stay away from politics in my posts but the rhetoric coming out of the Pennsylvania Republican primary elections made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up in alarm. Fear not, this is not a Republican-bashing article, it is a wake-up call for all those who have been sucked into the vortices and those too disengaged to even see the vortices. On both the far-right and far-left, autocracy is encroaching on our fragile democratic republic, and we need to stop it before it’s too late.

On the far-left it is disguised as “wokeness” and it is used to silence anyone deemed out of line with that way of thinking. The saddest part about this is that the left used to be the bastion of free speech and thought. It is now becoming more and more narrowly focused on only what it deems acceptable, with the minority opinion (even if that minority is only one person) dictating how the majority are to speak, act, and think. Messaging is designed to slice and dice us into smaller and smaller groups to be pitted against each other. The irony of their approach is almost beyond comprehension.

On the far-right we see examples daily from King Donald, his minions, and the evangelical mob. For them it’s about being the victims of any one of several fear-mongering tales spun to play on emotions. Again, messaging is designed to slice and dice us into smaller and smaller groups to be pitted against each other. The difference on this side is that fear is the main component of the messaging with the goal to make us afraid of whatever serves their purpose. These people tell you that “they” (the left) are to blame, and only adherence to the far-right doctrine and leaders can save you.

For you history buffs, that should remind you of the communication strategy used by the Nazis in their drive to power. No, I am NOT calling the far-right Nazis. I am just saying that they are using (masterfully by the way) well-documented, and very effective communication tactics that were employed with great success by the Nazis. Puzzling that the left is still too incompetent to master such effective techniques.

On to what triggered this post and its title.

As of Wednesday, 5/18/2022 the race that Dr. Oz (I won’t go into all the red flags with him) was in was too close to call with mail-in ballots still to be counted (now headed for recount). Trump posted to social media: "Dr. Oz should declare victory," "It makes it much harder for them to cheat with the ballots that they just happened to find.'" In 2020 “them” and “they” meant Democrats whom Trump and his minions accused – still without evidence – of stealing the election because Trump lost. In this primary election “them” and “they” now refer to Republicans who don’t agree with Trump. This vortex grows!

Next up, Doug Mastriano who won the Republican primary election for that party’s candidate for governor. A little about Mr. Mastriano: The Washington Post’s Greg Sargent recently explained that Mastriano, as a state senator, played a lead role in Trump’s effort to overturn his 2020 defeat, which is highly relevant to the near future: “Mastriano didn’t just try to help Trump overturn the election. At the time, he also essentially declared his support for the notion that the popular vote can be treated as non-binding when it comes to the certification of presidential electors.” In addition, Mr. Mastriano planted the seeds of election corruption prior to primary voting so that if he lost, he could claim there was fraud perpetrated against him. Of course, since he won, he acknowledged that the election was fair. Funny how that works. Once again, the “they” who would have “stolen” the election from him were fellow Republicans who disagreed with him. This vortex grows!

The call to action here is to wake up and see through the rhetoric no matter from the left or the right. In the above instances, the right provides a stark reminder that when extremists get power they slowly expand what “they” includes. It started with the far-left and Antifa, expanded to all Democrats, grew to include corporations that take a social stand in opposition to their views, and now it includes fellow Republicans. On the left, the thought police come up with ever-growing lists of what is taboo, or more accurately, what must be accepted as the norm – with those opposed now labelled “they”. Lookout, as each vortex expands outward you may become “they” – if you aren’t already. Take some time to think about that next time you throw your support behind a candidate or cause, and before you cast your next vote.

I’ll be taking next week off for Memorial Day so next post will be first week of June.

Enjoy the long holiday weekend!

www.RetiredandInspiredat55.com 5-23-2022