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In the New Yorker...

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Jeff Wrangler:
Jill Lepore's article in the Jan. 16 issue critiquing the January 6 Committee report should be read. Is it a duty article? Yes. It is also very perceptive. It is also very depressing in the end. But it may be the most important criticism she has every written for TNY.

serious crayons:

--- Quote from: Jeff Wrangler on January 15, 2023, 08:51:06 pm ---Jill Lepore's article in the Jan. 16 issue critiquing the January 6 Committee report should be read. Is it a duty article? Yes. It is also very perceptive. It is also very depressing in the end. But it may be the most important criticism she has every written for TNY.
--- End quote ---

OK, thanks for that report! It might have ended up with the dozens of other articles I left the magazine open to and never finished. I'll keep going.

And for a refreshing break, I'll read the sentence construction article, thanks Lee!

Front-Ranger:
Lepore seems to be making the point that the mob's motivations should have been examined more by the Committee rather than just microfocusing on Trump. My theory is that the mob and the whole Trump movement is an outgrowth of the Industrial Revolution. At its beginning, 70% of the US population lived in the country and 30% lived in cities. A couple of decades later, that percentage was reversed. The 70% of people who have lived in cities for several generations have grown to be a more homogeneous society, much like people in Europe, Japan, or Sweden.

The 30% of people who live in rural places are more diverse but they do share some characteristics. There is less opportunity for them and they feel disenfranchised and disengaged. They feel left out of the mainstream of communication and cut off. These traits would make them more likely to be attracted to leaders who are mavericks. Leaders who can derail the massive influence of the city people. Most of this theory is cobbled together from things I've read, but I've also had many opportunities to get out of the city and mingle with country people and so part of it is from direct observation.

serious crayons:

--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on January 16, 2023, 12:42:36 pm ---Lepore seems to be making the point that the mob's motivations should have been examined more by the Committee rather than just microfocusing on Trump. My theory is that the mob and the whole Trump movement is an outgrowth of the Industrial Revolution. At its beginning, 70% of the US population lived in the country and 30% lived in cities. A couple of decades later, that percentage was reversed. The 70% of people who have lived in cities for several generations have grown to be a more homogeneous society, much like people in Europe, Japan, or Sweden.
--- End quote ---

I don't agree that, to take an example, people living in New York City are more homogenous than people living in Upstate New York. They're certainly not more homogenous ethnically, religiously or economically (although lower-income people are getting priced out of the city). But the city dwellers are also not more homogenous in terms of what they do for a living or their educational background -- since NYC is the capitol or one of the top cities for numerous industries, there's huge diversity there. And other city/rural situations across the country would mirror this in various ways. But maybe you're thinking of diversity of another sort?


--- Quote ---The 30% of people who live in rural places are more diverse but they do share some characteristics. There is less opportunity for them and they feel disenfranchised and disengaged. They feel left out of the mainstream of communication and cut off. These traits would make them more likely to be attracted to leaders who are mavericks. Leaders who can derail the massive influence of the city people. Most of this theory is cobbled together from things I've read, but I've also had many opportunities to get out of the city and mingle with country people and so part of it is from direct observation.
--- End quote ---

So they worship a guy who's from the country's biggest city and is at least nominally hugely wealthy.

I agree they feel those things, with sometimes an added pinch of inferiority complex -- the liberal elite look down on us and think we're stupid. And in fact, members of the liberal elite do often think that, but primarily because of things like their worship of that abovementioned guy.


 

Front-Ranger:
I was going to add another paragraph explaining why I think city dwellers are more homogeneous even though they may be more ethnically diverse and in other aspects such as wealth, sexual preferences, education, and so on. I'll bet I have more in common with Black or Latino people who live in Denver than white people who live in rural Weld County Colorado. My food preferences, political leanings, what music I listen to, groups I belong to, holidays I celebrate, books I read. The way I react to issues that crop up. I don't know why I left this out, but that's what I meant.

Yes, it is ironic that a white rich boy from New York City would become the poster boy for rural America. However, he made his reputation in television shows like "The Apprentice." There was a good New Yorker article that tracked his reinvention on television: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/07/31/the-tv-that-created-donald-trump And this, I suspect, is where his popularity with rural audiences was born.

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