Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Is the Problem That Brought Us Trump Racism or Sexism? Or Both? Commentary in Today's Newsfeed




A reader of Talking Points Memo gives Josh Marshall some feedback about the interconnection of racism and sexism in the rise of Donald Trump to power: 


A lot of people are talking about the fact that Trump is racist, but hardly anyone is discussing the role his sexism played in the campaign and how much of a factor it still is in our society. And also on the left. Let’s not forget that Bernie's attacks on "identity politics" have actually very little to do with racism. When Bernie talks about identity politics, he's talking about WOMEN who vote for WOMEN because they're WOMEN. I actually can't think of a single instance when a discussion of race has caused him to slam identity politics. It has always been the result of a discussion of women in politics. . . . 
The attacks on Hillary’s honesty and nastiness played right into a very typical (yet generally accepted) brand of American sexism that is so entrenched in our culture, we hardly even notice it. Trump's fundamental nature is being alpha to the point of near absurdity. And the alpha ALWAYS WINS. Most of these people who voted for Trump after voting for Obama were the same people who voted for Bush TWICE. Why? Because Bush was the alpha against Gore and Kerry. Obama was the alpha against McCain and Romney. And Trump was the Alpha compared to Hillary because our society doesn’t allow women to be alpha’s, no matter how experienced, or in command they are.

Immediately after reading the preceding valuable commentary, I happen on David Edwards' report about the free use of the N- word by the world's highest-paid YouTube star Felix Kjellberg and how "hordes of male gamers took to Twitter to express support for Kjellberg" when he called an opponent a N- in live video stream yesterday. Reading this report in light of the commentary of Josh Marshall's reader, I'm inclined to think the following:

The problem in our culture is racism AND sexism. It's heterosexual male entitlement. 
It's especially WHITE heterosexual male entitlement. 
This is why Trump is in the White House. 
This is why gay couples get demeaned in restaurants that serve 8 or 9 tables while the gay couple wait 45 minutes for their order. 
This is why we are living through unprecedented disasters directly related to climate change, and we shrug them off and pretend nothing out of the ordinary is happening. 
This is why immigrants are being targeted, hounded, sent packing, and we shrug our shoulders and carry on as if nothing is happening. 
This is why, any time Hillary Clinton opens her mouth and speaks, there is a huge outcry among men of both the right and the left who thought they had decisively silenced her, and who intend for her to shut up. 
This is why the bros who run our national media can pretend that Donald Trump keeps making "pivots" and is now excelling at "deal-making" and "reaching across the aisle." 
People who imagine they are on top, invulnerable, controlling everything can afford to pretend. 
The rest of the world cannot.

I find the graphic at the head of the posting at many sites online, with no clear indication of where it originates.

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