How Trump Makes Extreme Things Look Normal Carlos Maza Vox

[sagesnow]

[lapfog_1]

1. didn't know this had a name

but this has been obvious since trump announced his campaign

[Tobin S.]

2. Very good little video. Thanks for posting it. K&R. n/t

[rock]

3. Makes sense

I would have described it as trump rubbing shit one his face just before a speech, then declaring that he had discovered a new method of applying blackface! I.e the more ludicrous his claims the better. Trump is nothing if not ludicrous!

[tomhagen]

4. Why doesnt MSNBC Rehire Keith Olbermann????

[progressoid]

5. See also: Shifting Baselines

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shifting_baseline

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. That explains a whole lot.

We've been seeing it happen, but had no way to explain it.

A bit disquieting to know this can be created via the press.

[louis c]

7. Very interesting. Should be required viewing in all poli-sci classes

[Orange Free State]

8. So in a nutshell....

....Trumpists, by being so BSC, have made BSC the new normal. I guess you could say Orange is the new whack.

[mahigan]

9. It's nice to see this explained so well

I've been talking to people about the Overton Window for years but I don't recall ever explaining it so concisely. Keep in mind that it isn't just a case of moving the Window around - it can also be expanded or contracted to make a wider range of views more or less acceptable. In a country like N. Korea or a fundamentalist theocracy (eg Handmaids Tale) the Window probably isn't more than a 12" port hole while a vibrant diverse country might have a Window that looks more like a picture window where a wide range of different views is acceptable.

What we're seeing from Trumpco is both a move of the Window to the right as well as a shrinking of it so that any view that would now be considered centrist will be as unacceptable as an outright leftist viewpoint. The longer this bunch is in power the smaller and further right the Window will get.

Another thing related but not covered is the changing source of power in society. Back in the 50s one of my former professors wrote a Master's Thesis showing how control of the means of communication is as important or more so in modern society as control over the legitimate implements of violence. Fox News has been an excellent example of how more people can be moved through monopolization of the means of communication than by control of the police/military.

[Rhiannon12866]

10. K&R! This was fascinating! Thanks for posting!

He still scares the #%$! out of me - but now I understand a little better how he's been "normalized."

[The Wielding Truth]

11. Yes. I saw this happen under W's reign, too.