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#normalization

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Continued thread

If you're wondering why the pundit class and the mainstream media organizations that employ them have been so tepid in their criticism of Trump, so unwilling to name the fascist beast and draw the logical conclusions the regime's actions imply, perhaps it's because they know they've been complicit in this fascist nightmare? As Joan Westenberg notes in this brilliant March 15th drag out piece, the normalization of the fascist ideology the Trump regime is running on now has many fathers in American society, and not all of them are folks who'd want to be known as supporters of MAGA fascism; but that's precisely the role they've served, for personal gain:

theindex.media/the-pundit-clas

The Pundit Class Played Devil’s Advocate. Now the Devil’s at the Door.

"A revolving door of New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post columnists made a career of platforming people who—either blatantly or through implication—argued that transgender people shouldn't exist. That democracy had "gone too far." They raged against "wokeism" because they couldn’t conceive of a world where it wouldn’t prevail. They bemoaned "cancel culture" not because they cared about free speech, but because they mistakenly believed the right-wing ideologues they dined with had been cast out for good.

In their intellectual stupor, they decided that the forces of social change were so overpowering and unstoppable that the world needed a voice to speak up against them in an infernal balancing act. And it felt daring, didn't it? To be the literary equivalent of the Cool Girl—not like those Other Girls who care about freedom, equity, history, and common sense.

They dressed themselves up as the beatniks of cultural commentary. They convinced themselves of their "underground" status. They basked in institutional protection, indulging in a self-congratulatory circle-jerk of mock dissent where the stakes were always someone else's problem. They positioned themselves as lone voices against an imagined tide of unthinking dogma, pretending that they were fighting against orthodoxy when, in reality, they were just reinforcing the status quo with a hipster filter. They weren't holding truth to power. They were selling a brand: rebellion without responsibility, provocation without principle, and the posture of dissent with none of the burden of consequence.

They dined on the aesthetic of courage without ever taking a risk. And why not? The market for disaffected liberals playing footsie with fascists was lucrative and full of opportunities for highbrow grift."

The Index. · The Pundit Class Played Devil’s Advocate. Now the Devil’s at the Door.Pop intellectuals flirted with reaction, thinking history was on their side—now the backlash they fueled is here, and there's no escape.
#Fascism#Trump#Media

"No modern president has ever tried to unilaterally shut down a federal department."

This framing - "no modern president" or the very common "in modern times" - is an infuriating normalization of things that have *never* happened in the whole history of America.

#nytimes #normalization #ItNeverHappened #education

nytimes.com/2025/03/06/us/poli

Linda McMahon, the education secretary, would be instructed to dismantle her department under the planned order.
The New York Times · Trump Is Said to Be Preparing Executive Order That Aims to Eliminate Education Dept.By Michael C. Bender

“The Saudi–Israeli normalization 'delusion'”

by Stasa Salacanin in The Cradle

@palestine
@israel

“While Saudi–Israeli rapprochement may be Trump's diplomatic fantasy, deep-rooted regional realities, shifting West Asian interests, and Palestinian national aspirations make it an elusive mirage rather than an imminent deliverable”

thecradle.co/articles/the-saud

thecradle.coThe Saudi–Israeli normalization 'delusion'While Saudi–Israeli rapprochement may be Trump's diplomatic fantasy, deep-rooted regional realities, shifting West Asian interests, and Palestinian national aspirations make it an elusive mirage rather than an imminent deliverable.
#Press#US#Saudi
Replied in thread

@EUCommission

How is it allowed for any country int he #eu to elect #nazis then?

Your post is like showing off a huge building called #democracy. But if you look closely, the interior was hollowed out by #fascist rats.

The tunnel the rats got in is called #lobbying and #normalization.

Fascist, state-like #companies that „#deport“ 10.000+ people per year from their jobs because „higher profits!“ like #apple #google #microsoft.

Fascism behind a golden mask.

Replied in thread

@w7voa Has the CBS *paid trump* yet to settle the orange one's derangedly spurious lawsuit to settle the fact CBS... *interviewed presidential candidate Harris*, of all possible miscarriages of justice!

Looking at their online 'news' selection I might die of shame as well if my career was affiliated with the CBS network.