How to manipulate the masses....

[daveman]

No, it's hilariously random, weird and perfect to me.

Like I said...you believe it.

 

[daveman]

Depends on what you mean by "worked".

In the US system you have people on two different sides telling people what to think.

The Koch Brothers picked up on the idea in 1980 after losing the Presidential election (one of them was VP candidate for the Libertarian Party).

Instead of trying to get elected, they decided to change right wing politic. And have they changed the politics? Definitely. It's gone crazy.

And the Democrats have gone crazy too.

So, people are growing up with this crazy politics and thinking it's NORMAL.

Now, let's take Germany.

They also have a crazy right wing party, the AfD. They actually did well in the last election 10 days ago.

They got 20.8% of the vote. Although this was higher in former East German regions and lower in former West German regions. Why do you suppose that is? But the AfD didn't get enough to lead a government, the CDU/CSU got 28% of the vote, so it'll be a coalition of CDU/CSU and AfD and die Linke.

But what does this say?

A) that in Germany they have political parties that represent different political thoughts. So you have traditional left, traditional right, center right, green left, further left and further right.

B) People have a choice and don't need to vote NEGATIVELY.

In the US people who are fed up with the Democrats don't get to vote for another, different, left wing party. So they can choose to vote AGAINST the Democrats or AGAINST the Republicans.

In Germany, they just vote for a party they think will represent them.

C) It's easy to punish political parties.

So, the SPD were in govt, people think they did badly, so they didn't vote for the SPD. They went from 25% in 2021 to 16% in 2025. That's 9% of people who stopped voting for them. That punished them severely. Die Linke gained 4% of the vote.



So, overall German politics is much more healthy. The PEOPLE have control over their politics. THE PEOPLE decide who their government will be.

In the US, if the country had PR, many people would NOT vote for the Reps or the Dems. Looking at Germany where 27% of the country voted traditional right and 16% voted traditional left... that's 43% voting for the main two parties.

You can see why the Dems and the Reps put so much money into telling people they're the only solution, and nobody talks about changing the electoral system, because they'd lose out, and the country would benefit.

I agree. Too many people, however, pay attention only to what the parties say.

Not too many people pay attention to what the parties do.

 

[daveman]

Without "leftism" you wouldn't have pensions, you would have a safety net, you wouldn't have work safety, you would be subsistence farmers.

And I doubt you have much knowledge of politics in the world to even make such a claim.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

Like I said...you believe it.

Believe what?

 

[IDIOCRACY]

Rule number one: Tell them they're smart (especially if they're voting for you)
Rule number two: Tell them you're listening to the, (when in reality you're doing the exact opposite)

JD Vance Accidentally Spills The GOP’s Strategy In Stunning Self-Own

The vice president's "insane ideas" comment was flipped right back at him on social media.

uk.yahoo.com

"“There is this crazy idea in the Democratic Party that if you just repeat insane ideas, eventually the American people are going to believe them,” the vice president said during an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity that aired Monday.

“We actually think the American people are smart and we should listen to them rather than preach at them and I think that’s the core right now of the president’s political strength,” Vance added."

So, Trump's idea is that you win an election by saying stuff. Then you ignore everything you said and do whatever you want to do. Here's a quote of Trump saying that very same thing after "listening to the people" who wanted Hillary locked up, and then told his supporters "you're smart for knowing I wasn't actually going to do this, right?" When actually they thought he would do it, so he's telling them they're stupid, while pretending to call them smart.

Trump says he’s not interested in pursuing case against Clinton

‘It’s just not something that I feel very strongly about,’ Trump told The New York Times.

www.politico.eu

"“Look, there’s a tradition in American politics that after you win an election, you sort of put things behind you,” he told reporters inside Trump Tower. “And if that’s the decision he reached, that’s perfectly consistent with sort of a historical pattern of things come up, you say a lot of things, even some bad things might happen, and then you can sort of put it behind you in order to unite the nation.”"

Just what we needed, a leftist telling us the right are brainwashed.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

Just what we needed, a leftist telling us the right are brainwashed.

Independent here. The magaturds are brainwashed. Sad!

 

[martybegan]

Yeah, of course I'm dumb and you're smart. Exactly what we've been talking about, see posts 58 and 67.

Turkeys voting for Christmas - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

"Turkeys voting for Christmas​

Turkeys voting for Christmas is an English idiom used as a metaphor for a situation in which a choice made is clearly against one's self-interest. In the United Kingdom, turkeys are commonly eaten as part of the English Christmas dinner."

Yeah, I'm dumb because you don't know shit.

No, you are full of yourself and like most progs, think you are smarter than you think you are.

Yeah, in England. Here it's Thanksgiving dumbass.

 

[IDIOCRACY]

Independent here. The magaturds are brainwashed. Sad!

When left says it's so it's projection, a distortion, distraction, absurdity, antonym, ambition and/or confession. Every time, all the time.

 

[scruffy]

Independent here. The magaturds are brainwashed. Sad!

No, Trump is doing exactly what he said he'd do and exactly what he was elected to do.

Brainwashing is when you think there are 72 genders. Because you never would have reached that conclusion on your own

 

[frigidweirdo]

Just what we needed, a leftist telling us the right are brainwashed.

Yeah, just want you need, someone telling you something you do like, so you can just ignore it because... you're a genius

 

[frigidweirdo]

When left says it's so it's projection, a distortion, distraction, absurdity, antonym, ambition and/or confession. Every time, all the time.

So, every person on the left is exactly the same? Wow, you must have a PhD in sociology or something.

 

[frigidweirdo]

No, you are full of yourself and like most progs, think you are smarter than you think you are.

Yeah, in England. Here it's Thanksgiving dumbass.

I'm as smart as I am. But it's not smart that the issue here.

What I do is try and find the truth. I look at the evidence, I'm open to changing my views. I have changed my views on a lot of things from the days when I first started talking on the internet, and I've learned that when I first started talking on the internet I'd decide what was right and then try and prove it. Now I don't do that.

I also try and no insult, unlike you. I guess that's why you're on my ignore list.

And yes, in the US it's Thanksgiving, so what? It's still an expression in the English language. I guess I'm just more worldly than you having lived in lots of countries and having experienced lots of things. Unlike you.

 

[frigidweirdo]

No, Trump is doing exactly what he said he'd do and exactly what he was elected to do.

Brainwashing is when you think there are 72 genders. Because you never would have reached that conclusion on your own

No, he's not.

On tariffs he said a lot of things.

Trump’s tariff plans would be disastrous for America and the world

You may think his worst ideas won’t get far. Sadly, on trade he has been singularly influential

www.economist.com

"Trump’s tariff plans would be disastrous for America and the world"

"He has proposed slapping a 10% tariff on all imported goods,"

This is from 2nd Nov 2023.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/04/trump-floats-more-than-60percent-tariffs-on-chinese-imports.html

Then he went to 60% on China but still 10% on the rest of the world.

"Trump floats ‘more than’ 60% tariffs on Chinese imports"

"Trump confirmed that he would impose tariffs of 60% or higher on Chinese goods were he to win a second term in office."

"Beyond China, the former president has said he would impose a blanket 10% tariff on all U.S. imports, despite broad criticism over how that could hurt consumers."

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/11/economy/trump-tariffs-trade-jobs-inflation/index.html

" a 60% tariff on imports from China and a 100% tariff on foreign cars – including from Mexico."

Then a 100% tariff on foreign cars in April.

In September he went up to 20% on the whole world

Trump favors huge new tariffs. What are they, and how do they work?

Former President Donald Trump has proposed a 60% tariff on goods from China and a 20% tariff on everything else the United States imports.

apnews.com

"This time, he’s gone much further: He has proposed a 60% tariff on goods from China — and a tariff of up to 20% on everything else the United States imports."

So what has he done?

20% of Chinese products. His whole campaign was 60% of Chinese products.

25% on Mexican and Canadian products except 10% for energy.

So, did he lie? Yes.

 

[xyz]

OP is just mad because Trump learned.....End sermon.

He couldn't learn his way out of a paper bag.

 

[Mac1958]

So you're saying Trump supporters are dumb.

Why is it okay when you do it?

But I didn't say that. That only happened in your mind.

Another example of why I have given up with you people here.

It only happened in your mind. There is nothing I can do about that. Sorry.

 

[The Irish Ram]

I'm not a Democrat. And yes, the Democrats manipulate too. But Trump does it even more and even worse.

And what do people do when confronted with the fact that they're being manipulated? Divert attention to something.

"You're stupid"
"But they're stupid" (therefore I'm not)
"Er... you didn't talk about the thing I said."

What if you're actually stupid, and it doesn't have anything to do with politics, cause...

 

[frigidweirdo]

What if you're actually stupid, and it doesn't have anything to do with politics, cause...

Well, what is "stupid"? Most people are a mixture of stupid and not stupid. People can earn money because they're good at something, but then they can't do simple stuff.

Most of the time it's "ignorance" or even just an inability to think about things properly.

 

[ShahdagMountains]

. I guess I'm just more worldly than you having lived in lots of countries and having experienced lots of things. Unlike you.

Travel does not broaden the mind.

 

[frigidweirdo]

Travel does not broaden the mind.

Yeah, it does. Just traveling doesn't make you a genius, but it makes you see things differently.

When I was 19 I went to another country to work. I came back and I spoke loads to people about my experiences. I would often compare my country with the other country. A lot of people didn't really like this, as I'd say that it was better there than here, without even realizing I was doing it.

So, I started the process that would lead me to accept that things I used to believe were wrong. That's a huge step in broadening the mind.

 

[ShahdagMountains]

Yeah, it does. Just traveling doesn't make you a genius, but it makes you see things differently.

When I was 19 I went to another country to work. I came back and I spoke loads to people about my experiences. I would often compare my country with the other country. A lot of people didn't really like this, as I'd say that it was better there than here, without even realizing I was doing it.

So, I started the process that would lead me to accept that things I used to believe were wrong. That's a huge step in broadening the mind.

It all depends on your perception and what you look at.

A humble parish priest who hardly steps out of his domain could have more knowledge of the world around him, simply because he is interested.