Excellent framing of how movements succeed by disapearing into the mainstream. The observation that they "shed the alt" precisely because they swallowed the whole thing is spot-on. I've noticed similar patterns in tech where extremist positions gradualy normalize by sheer repetition until they're no longer considered extreme. The self-destructive infighting you mention might be the only brake on this.
I used to be sceptical about the theory of the Overton Window (it was until recently just an obscure theory and by no means a proven fact). However my scepticism has decreased over time because of exactly this - repeating things, "memeing them into reality" appears to have had some actual impact on politics. I still take issue with the idea that the window is a fixed frame that shifts left or right. If anything, it is expanding in several different and contradictory directions; despite all the free speech chicken littles the range of acceptable discourse is expanding in novel, strange, sometimes scary ways.
Known by one descriptor as 'mainstreaming bigotry' by following PR Comms strategy and tactics of late white nationalist John 'passive eugenics' Tanton.
His advice was to avoid open bigotry and racism, but focus on demography, borders & immigrants, dog whistle repetitively, to make immigrants and the Democrats/centre the target for blame.
It still works very well with too many middle aged and older voters in regions, see Brexit, Trump & Oz; coincidentally where Murdoch has an influential footprint.....
I feel the Democratic party in America has a lot to answer for. By patronising and shrugging off Trump's base, they engender his rise. Thankfully, several prominent Democrats seem to have found their moral compasses again, together with some righteous anger at the appalling events unfolding under Trump’s second term.
There’s plenty of blame to go around. Conservatives have been willfully against any sort of policing for a decade, and are dealing with the fallout now. On the Dems you’re totally correct on the patronizing count - HRC’s “basket of deplorables” was the rocket fuel that shot the alt-right into mainstream awareness. But she was also on one level correct - there are many Trump supporters who hold pretty extreme and abhorrent views. The issue was the weird phrasing and the ham-fisted lumping in of people with legitimate complaints with avowed white nationalists. And more than that one speech, the consistent failure of the party, while in power, to really address some of the biggest problems facing Americans.
Think the alt right ideological &/or 'philosophical' inspiration and lineage goes way back to the 18thC UK with Malthus on population then later Galton on eugenics.
Eugenics was then exported to justify colonialism or empire, plus deep south 'segregation economics' (Charles Koch's economics muse James Buchanan) to then be adopted by Madison Grant and Hitler....
Post WWII & Holocaust, the public focus became (via Rockefellers/Standard Oil) population & fertility via Population Council, Club of Rome (proto National Socialists for autarky?) 'limits to growth', Population Bomb, ZPG Zero Population Growth and Tanton Network (2 NGOs in UK & have advised Fox News....).
Now, with falling &/or below replacement fertility, it's 'immigrant' led population growth (ignoring ageing as a driver), and inflated demographic data and focus on borders, suggests 'the great replacement' thanks to 'liberal' policies......
Some of the 'architects' are still with us including Paul 'Population Bomb' Ehrlich, (Brit born) Peter Brimelow and Jared Taylor.
The latter Taylor recently visited the UK for a neo-Nazi conference (according to Searchlight)......and all were familiar with 'architect of the modern anti-immigrant movement' (SPLC), Dec. white nationalist John 'passive eugenics' Tanton......
It's always interesting when commentators refer to the 'anti-vax' movement but are oblivious to the wider movement to ignore the harms of disease. In terms of 'back to normal' behaviour whilst Covid circulates constantly and disables people through Long Covid, the alt-right has definitely won. Won everyone over except for those who still attempt to not spread disease - asking for ventilation, wearing proper respirator masks in shared public spaces, not holding events in unventilated rooms, asking for proper mitigations in healthcare...
Excellent framing of how movements succeed by disapearing into the mainstream. The observation that they "shed the alt" precisely because they swallowed the whole thing is spot-on. I've noticed similar patterns in tech where extremist positions gradualy normalize by sheer repetition until they're no longer considered extreme. The self-destructive infighting you mention might be the only brake on this.
I used to be sceptical about the theory of the Overton Window (it was until recently just an obscure theory and by no means a proven fact). However my scepticism has decreased over time because of exactly this - repeating things, "memeing them into reality" appears to have had some actual impact on politics. I still take issue with the idea that the window is a fixed frame that shifts left or right. If anything, it is expanding in several different and contradictory directions; despite all the free speech chicken littles the range of acceptable discourse is expanding in novel, strange, sometimes scary ways.
Well said. Even in democracies it seems large numbers of people are programmable.
Known by one descriptor as 'mainstreaming bigotry' by following PR Comms strategy and tactics of late white nationalist John 'passive eugenics' Tanton.
His advice was to avoid open bigotry and racism, but focus on demography, borders & immigrants, dog whistle repetitively, to make immigrants and the Democrats/centre the target for blame.
It still works very well with too many middle aged and older voters in regions, see Brexit, Trump & Oz; coincidentally where Murdoch has an influential footprint.....
Very interesting and informative argument for why the right has dominated our most ‘recent’ politics.
I feel the Democratic party in America has a lot to answer for. By patronising and shrugging off Trump's base, they engender his rise. Thankfully, several prominent Democrats seem to have found their moral compasses again, together with some righteous anger at the appalling events unfolding under Trump’s second term.
There’s plenty of blame to go around. Conservatives have been willfully against any sort of policing for a decade, and are dealing with the fallout now. On the Dems you’re totally correct on the patronizing count - HRC’s “basket of deplorables” was the rocket fuel that shot the alt-right into mainstream awareness. But she was also on one level correct - there are many Trump supporters who hold pretty extreme and abhorrent views. The issue was the weird phrasing and the ham-fisted lumping in of people with legitimate complaints with avowed white nationalists. And more than that one speech, the consistent failure of the party, while in power, to really address some of the biggest problems facing Americans.
Think the alt right ideological &/or 'philosophical' inspiration and lineage goes way back to the 18thC UK with Malthus on population then later Galton on eugenics.
Eugenics was then exported to justify colonialism or empire, plus deep south 'segregation economics' (Charles Koch's economics muse James Buchanan) to then be adopted by Madison Grant and Hitler....
Post WWII & Holocaust, the public focus became (via Rockefellers/Standard Oil) population & fertility via Population Council, Club of Rome (proto National Socialists for autarky?) 'limits to growth', Population Bomb, ZPG Zero Population Growth and Tanton Network (2 NGOs in UK & have advised Fox News....).
Now, with falling &/or below replacement fertility, it's 'immigrant' led population growth (ignoring ageing as a driver), and inflated demographic data and focus on borders, suggests 'the great replacement' thanks to 'liberal' policies......
Some of the 'architects' are still with us including Paul 'Population Bomb' Ehrlich, (Brit born) Peter Brimelow and Jared Taylor.
The latter Taylor recently visited the UK for a neo-Nazi conference (according to Searchlight)......and all were familiar with 'architect of the modern anti-immigrant movement' (SPLC), Dec. white nationalist John 'passive eugenics' Tanton......
It's always interesting when commentators refer to the 'anti-vax' movement but are oblivious to the wider movement to ignore the harms of disease. In terms of 'back to normal' behaviour whilst Covid circulates constantly and disables people through Long Covid, the alt-right has definitely won. Won everyone over except for those who still attempt to not spread disease - asking for ventilation, wearing proper respirator masks in shared public spaces, not holding events in unventilated rooms, asking for proper mitigations in healthcare...