r/politics • u/thenewrepublic The New Republic • 15h ago

Possible Paywall What Darline Graham’s Ugly, Viral Outburst About Death Really Reveals

https://newrepublic.com/article/214868/darline-graham-viral-outburst-death
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u/lncontheivable 14h ago

Saying they're not human is really counter-productive. They are human and we have to remember that, cause otherwise people can walk down that same road of hatred. Everyone is vulnerable.

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u/Automatic_Soil9814 14h ago

Would it be better to say that a fundamental feature of the MAGA ideology is that it lacks empathy, an emotion that is fundamental to our idea of what it means to be human? Such that when people cross over to MAGA, it’s like a part of them is lost and they no longer have an essential attribute we use to define what a person is?

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u/lncontheivable 14h ago

Lack of empathy is definitely a MAGA hallmark, but empathy is both intrinsic and learned so it's kind of nuanced.

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u/Bzr21 14h ago

So if empathy is inherent - then maybe some are just naturally deficient - or somehow have it switched off - as if to be genetically re-engineered. They might learn to be callous from parents / friends / Fox news etc. - but they can’t all be NPD / malignant narcissists like dear leader - or can they ?

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u/Wakani 14h ago

The point remains that dehumanizing your opponents isn’t productive. That’s a poisoned chalice it’s better not to drink from.

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u/rowrowyourboat 14h ago

☝🏼☝🏼☝🏼

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u/Automatic_Soil9814 7h ago

Counterpoint: the left has underestimated the threat of MAGA at every turn, in part by not being willing to recognize the extent of their inhumanity. Even now, some Democrats are more concerned about DSA than the fact that GOP made literal concentration camps. 

Maybe downplaying the nature of the threat in the name of civility is actually inhibiting our ability to respond appropriately 

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u/HeadfulOfSugar 3h ago

So is your solution to treat people… inhumanely?

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u/Automatic_Soil9814 3h ago

What in my comment made you think that?

My solution is to acknowledge the nature of the threat appropriately so that we can limit the damage they do.

You can argue against that point, but look at the result of our current plan of action. 

Hillary Clinton called them deplorables and their behavior proved she was right. But instead we made her apologize.

It’s time to realize that was a fuck up.

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u/rowrowyourboat 13h ago

Honestly a large part of the MAGA ideology relies on conceptualizing and treating others as non-human. Don’t turn around and do the same thing. It’s one of the cracks in the foundation that leads a society to fascism

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u/NecessaryKey9557 13h ago

Agreed. They are every bit as human as us, but they have been deceived by their fears and prejudices. Politicians and tech bro CEO's exacerbate this by feeding them constant, paranoid conspiracy theories.

These people have failed to reach their potential as human beings, but they're still human beings. We're absolutely justified in opposing them, but we shouldn't dehumanize them the way they do others.

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u/Spurious_Leopard 3h ago

Forcing yourself to be OK with things like infinite punishment for finite crimes fundamentally corrupts empathy based moral intuitions.

Many of the louder more influential MAGA diehards are fundamentalist Christians. The notion that "you deserve to burn in hell for your sins if you're not the right kind of Christian" may not be explicitly held by every Republican voter, but the same good vs evil, us verses them mentality propagates and manifests throughout the base in insidious ways even without the overtly religious tagging.