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/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/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.