retrospectology , 1 month ago (edited 1 month ago)

I think what Trump’s following kind of reveals is a sad truth about humans generally; about a quarter of people are very stupid and very susceptible to cult-think. It doesn’t always manifest as support for a politician, it could be anti-vax beliefs, or racism, zionism etc.

Wherever you are, about 25-30% of people are simply not equipped to think critically, and that stupidity is activated or weaponized under various conditions, most often during times of economic stress or social chaos. People who can’t understand the complex causes of a problem are easy to manipulate – you give them a simplistic answer.

“It’s the jews” or “trans people are the root of your problems” etc.

It can happen anywhere because a certain demographic of people are just dumb, and there’s no way around it other than trying to reduce human suffering across the board and making it less likely that anyone is struggling.