Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

ProfessorPlum

(11,252 posts)
Wed May 11, 2016, 07:53 AM May 2016

Conservatives absolutely INSIST on living in a world of lies

From one of the best and most insightful bloggers around (The Slacktivist), comes a brief deconstruction of Rod Dreher's recent, laughably impossible story of gangs of transsexuals menacing the populace:

The story is not true. The story is flagrantly and extravagantly not true. It involves a swarm of “men in their early 30s who were obviously transgendered” harassing women and children in line at a suburban Texas movie theater where Dreher’s friend — a conservative “tough Texas chick” and apparent expert on visual gender identification — was taking her son to see Captain America: Civil War. More “transgenders” arrive, then still more, cutting in line and bullying everyone around them with crude language and sex talk to aggressively show everyone in Texas that roving transgender gangs are now in charge of law and culture and daily life in Texas.

And it’s all utter bullshit. None of this happened. The Bad Jackie of the tough Texas suburbs — if any such person really exists — is making stuff up. And she’s so focused on making her story shocking that she forgot to make any of it plausible. None of this would be believable even if she’d made this a story about taking her son to a midnight showing of Rocky Horror in Provincetown.
So is the devout and pious Mr. Dreher lying? Or is he just credulously passing along an obvious lie without feeling any compunction to examine this false witness against his neighbors first?

Doesn’t matter. That’s not interesting. “Religious conservative bears false witness against sexual minorities” isn’t news. That’s a dog-bites-man story.

What is interesting is that Rod Dreher wants this story to be true. He presents this fantasy as a nightmare, as a horror show that he condemns, but none of that purported revulsion quite manages to cover up his desperate longing to have stories like this be real. If one shows him otherwise — proves that the monster under the bed does not exist, he would not find that reassuring, but upsetting. It would make him sad, and angry, and disappointed.

...

The current trans-panic, like the earlier Satanic panic it imitates, isn’t mainly a matter of misinformation that misleads the credulous. It’s a fantasy that its proponents want and desire to be true despite, on some fundamental level, already knowing that it’s not. They need it to be true because it provides the basis for their identity as the special people, the extraordinarily virtuous, the heroes and champions of righteousness. Take away the fantasy story and what does that make them? They can’t bear to think about that. And so they won’t.


15 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Conservatives absolutely INSIST on living in a world of lies (Original Post) ProfessorPlum May 2016 OP
so according to her story d_r May 2016 #1
Only if "persecuted for belief" is the same as "no longer getting preferential treatment". DetlefK May 2016 #4
It's not lying per se. It seems to me more like a magical invocation. DetlefK May 2016 #2
"Trying to make the story true by telling it!" Mopar151 May 2016 #13
I prefer to think of it as... JHB May 2016 #15
My 68 years of living has shown me that madokie May 2016 #3
lol... Texans cowed by angry transgenders!!! fbc May 2016 #5
Surprising Proud Liberal Dem May 2016 #10
It does rather go a long way to explain the degree of obsessive gun foolishness among this crowd. Ford_Prefect May 2016 #6
^ THIS ^ mac56 May 2016 #7
Roving Transgender Gangs! forgotmylogin May 2016 #8
exactly ProfessorPlum May 2016 #9
it's a crying shame that stupidity isn't a terminal disease just4lulzidk May 2016 #11
True Believers usually do, doesn't matter their side. It's what makes them more dangerous. n/t. jtuck004 May 2016 #12
Rampaging Transsexuals awoke_in_2003 May 2016 #14

d_r

(6,907 posts)
1. so according to her story
Wed May 11, 2016, 08:41 AM
May 2016

this lady overheard some people in the ticket line talking about sex and it scared her so badly she "texted" this:

I found it very ironic that we went to see the movie Civil War last night. What I watched go on outside that theater while we were in line and inside that theater made me realize a civil war is coming. It is undeniable at this point. I kept thinking, someday. You know how you think that? ‘Someday it’ll get bad. Someday we’ll have to take a hard stand. Someday people will be persecuted for their beliefs.’

Rod, it’s not someday anymore. It is in our face. And I can easily see where this erupts into extreme violence. I can easily see where a civil war is coming. …

I don’t know which would be worse, Hillary and her liberalism, or Trump with his hatred and his wolf in sheep’s clothing politics. But it’s about to get really, really bad.

DetlefK

(16,423 posts)
4. Only if "persecuted for belief" is the same as "no longer getting preferential treatment".
Wed May 11, 2016, 08:55 AM
May 2016
http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/

From 2007 to 2014, the number of people in the US who are either atheists or agnostics or simply disinterested in religion jumped from 16% to 23%.
The biggest share in this non-religious sub-group are people who are just indifferent about religion, neither positive nor negative, and they jumped from 12% to 16%.



In the future, people won't get persecuted for their beliefs. It's just that nobody will f**king care about their beliefs.

DetlefK

(16,423 posts)
2. It's not lying per se. It seems to me more like a magical invocation.
Wed May 11, 2016, 08:44 AM
May 2016

It's all about Bible-style stories. Feel-good stories where content is less important than message. They have their own Bible-style stories how the righteous man gets mocked by the heathens, only to God suddenly perform a miracle and show the heathens their folly.





Rampaging gangs of transsexuals... This is a metaphor. This is how the extremist believers perceive the situation.

And by translating the thought into a story, you give it power. The power to become reality. These extremist believers might not realize what they are doing, but this act reminds of ancient middle-eastern principles/forms of magic: Mental images as catalysts for magic rituals. Only it has been absorbed into the traditions of Judaism and later Christianity.

I believe, on a subconscious level and guided by this magical tradition, these extremist believers are trying to make the story become true by telling it.

Mopar151

(9,965 posts)
13. "Trying to make the story true by telling it!"
Wed May 11, 2016, 03:31 PM
May 2016

EXACTLY! The fear is real, to them, so that it just needs a narative to explain the fear. If you call them on the whole thing being BS, they become very defensive - the fear is their truth, all those "facts" you mention must be lies.

 

fbc

(1,668 posts)
5. lol... Texans cowed by angry transgenders!!!
Wed May 11, 2016, 08:57 AM
May 2016

I guess when they chose the "Don't mess with Texas" motto they never knew things could get so rough

Proud Liberal Dem

(24,355 posts)
10. Surprising
Wed May 11, 2016, 10:08 AM
May 2016

that people whom live in such a tough gun nutty "stand your ground" state would be so afraid of Transgender persons.

Ford_Prefect

(7,830 posts)
6. It does rather go a long way to explain the degree of obsessive gun foolishness among this crowd.
Wed May 11, 2016, 09:00 AM
May 2016

If you are so certain that the "threat" is all around you it seems the obvious thing to carry weapons, legal and otherwise, and to assume you need to use them on a moment's notice with no training, no restraint, no clearly defined target, nor any supporting legal cause to use force in the situation. "Look out Jackie, there goes another one of them #%*&^# on their way to do mayhem and mischief!"

Don and Jackie, what happened to the right of those citizens around you to a safe and secure public place? I guess that's those activist judges creatively interpreting the constitution again. Can't have just anyone walking around free and unfettered by religious guilt or free flying .45 cal. rounds now can we?

forgotmylogin

(7,496 posts)
8. Roving Transgender Gangs!
Wed May 11, 2016, 09:26 AM
May 2016

It could be anyone!!! Sounds like a schlocky 60-70s Russ Meyer flick.

Obviously transgendered men. In my personal experience (one of my best friends is FtM), transitioned men who were born women are more successful at passing under the radar - many come across as young college or high school guys due to a lower mid-range voice and (often) slighter stature. And I can't imagine them gathering in "packs" to harass people of any gender because many have a history of being bullied or abuse themselves.

I'd be more worried about the cis dudes hanging out in packs.

ProfessorPlum

(11,252 posts)
9. exactly
Wed May 11, 2016, 10:03 AM
May 2016

the idea that this group of people, who have suffered from abuse and derision and downright danger at the hands of others, would suddenly become the abusers, just demonstrates the abusers guilt and nothing more.

I have a very good friend who is MtF, and her path has been incredibly difficult, including (of course) suicidal ideation and depression. I find it so awful that this most vulnerable of groups has been cynically picked out of the crowd to be abused by the divide-and-conquer fascists.

Latest Discussions»General Discussion»Conservatives absolutely ...