Resisting the pressure to normalize

[_MeDotOrg]

Repetition normalizes. Saying something over and over again may not make it true, but repeating falsehoods over and over again eventually makes the falsehoods themselves become normal. And it is tempting to let the repetition normalize what is happening.

Either Donald Trump lies, or he literally does not remember what he said 3 days ago. On Saturday that he never encouraged House Republicans to vote for an immigration bill, despite tweeting such an encouragement three days earlier.


Here's what the President tweeted 3 days earlier:



Donald Trump's version of the Truth exists in a the semi-permeable membrane that exists around the President. Trump rallies, Trump Country Clubs, sycophants and Fox News have the easiest time passing through the membrane. His truth floats within that bubble, safe from the demostrable reality outside.

At least in your own head, do not let this become normal.

Idle thought: I wonder how many thousands of his Twitter followers gave a ❤ to both messages?

[_Jersey Girl]

Idle thought: I wonder how many thousands of his Twitter followers gave a ❤ to both messages?

Many or most? We're so used to getting information in disconnected and rapid sound bites from our politicians (and I would say our news as well) that we never bother to piece it together and connect the dots as it were.

I'm guessing not many of his followers are paying attention. I'm not his follower, so I wouldn't know.

All I do know is that most of us don't know what end is up in any given hour on any given day because we're pummeled with reports that more resemble an ADHD random thought salad--day in and day out, 24/7 and not many of us can keep up with it, read it, hear it, categorize it, and assimilate information because it flies at us in chaotic and fast paced ways.

I don't even know where we stand environmentally any more. I don't know what's going on with health care or the opioid crisis. I was all over those issues like white on rice. I barely know if immigrant children and parents are actually being reunited, incarcerated, detained or deported. I've totally lost the narrative because of contradicting reports that jerk me around nearly to the point of TBI.

You urge us to resist the pressure to normalize his lies, his contradictions and such, however, I hope I'm not the only one admitting that resistance fatigue started to kick in quite some time ago.

And what is there to do about it?

[_honorentheos]

There is a lot of information that comes at us faster than ever it seems. But the demand to drink from that fire hose is fabricated. I don't think the information age is special when it comes to practising critical thinking. The urge to react with emotion or to be First! to reply to something with the response that gets the most likes all play into making it less informative. But one has the ability to turn the volume down on those impulses, take the time to fact check. I think it requires more of a conscious effort than it may have before the 24 hour news cycle, but it can't be so overwhelming and still have a plug that can be pulled without some complicity.

[_Jersey Girl]

honor will you name news sources that you believe are reputable and accurate?

[_moksha]

Trump knows to avoid the truth when a good lie will suffice. Trump is the embodiment of all things Republican.

[_canpakes]

Trump knows full well what this sort of contradictory lying will result in. You are actually spelling out the strategy and its result within your two posts above:

All I do know is that most of us don't know what end is up in any given hour on any given day because we're pummeled with reports that more resemble an ADHD random thought salad--day in and day out, 24/7 and not many of us can keep up with it, read it, hear it, categorize it, and assimilate information because it flies at us in chaotic and fast paced ways.

I don't even know where we stand environmentally any more. I don't know what's going on with health care or the opioid crisis. I was all over those issues like white on rice. I barely know if immigrant children and parents are actually being reunited, incarcerated, detained or deported. I've totally lost the narrative because of contradicting reports that jerk me around nearly to the point of TBI.

You urge us to resist the pressure to normalize his lies, his contradictions and such, however, I hope I'm not the only one admitting that resistance fatigue started to kick in quite some time ago.

The planned result is to get the folks in the crossfire asking questions like this:

honor will you name news sources that you believe are reputable and accurate?

And that's the aim.

Divide and conquer through lies and subterfuge.

If a person can get enough good people starting to doubt every organization that could check questionable ambitions and actions by bombarding and confusing the senses with a constant barrage of lies, then that person neuters and dismantles all barriers to those ambitions.

[_Jersey Girl]

The planned result is to get the folks in the crossfire asking questions like this:

honor will you name news sources that you believe are reputable and accurate?

And that's the aim.

Divide and conquer through lies and subterfuge.

If a person can get enough good people starting to doubt every organization that could check questionable ambitions and actions by bombarding and confusing the senses with a constant barrage of lies, then that person neuters and dismantles all barriers to those ambitions.

cp the question that I posed to honor has nothing to do with Trump or politics. It has to do with contradictory reports, inconsistencies, and inaccuracies from the news media.

ETA: If you'd like to answer the same question that I posed to honor, I'd be interested in your reply to it.

[_Chap]

There is a lot of information that comes at us faster than ever it seems. But the demand to drink from that fire hose is fabricated.

Yup. People don't spray us with information as we walk down the street. We choose to receive it, and we are perfectly able to make rational choices in that aspect of our lives. What is more, we have an obligation as responsible citizens to make those choices carefully.

Here's how I do it:

1. I get none of my news from television: the pressure on competing channels to follow a story with pictures and 'dramatic' events is just too great. And of course boring factual analysis from an expert talking head - who may even refer to numbers and show charts (like, uncool!) - will get viewers switching channels in a heartbeat. One gets a highly distorted view of the world that way. Luckily, I live in a country where a rich tradition of public radio broadcasting has survived quite well. I listen selectively to that.

2. I read one serious newspaper critically every day; I pay a subscription because I want it to continue in existence. I don't agree with everything I read there, but it does separate fact and comment fairly well, and I can easily cross-check with other papers if I feel the need.

3. I subscribe to a political and cultural weekly review, and also look at the Economist every week.

4. On US affairs, apart from the above sources, I follow links I see on this board - especially the ones from people I disagree with.

All those are acts of choice. Earlier this year I was in the States for a while and, just to share the experience of so many Americans, I deliberately chose to seek out Fox News (slightly to the horror of my US colleagues when I told them.) But no-one made me watch it, and the minute I clicked on the power button of the remote control, it went away (which was nice ...).

[_Hawkeye]

This is the same moron who said he wouldn't sign a bill unless he was given a line-item- veto, which was deemed illegal/unconstitutional during the Clinton administration.

[_honorentheos]

There is a lot of information that comes at us faster than ever it seems. But the demand to drink from that fire hose is fabricated.

Yup. People don't spray us with information as we walk down the street. We choose to receive it, and we are perfectly able to make rational choices in that aspect of our lives. What is more, we have an obligation as responsible citizens to make those choices carefully.

Here's how I do it:

1. I get none of my news from television: the pressure on competing channels to follow a story with pictures and 'dramatic' events is just too great. And of course boring factual analysis from an expert talking head - who may even refer to numbers and show charts (like, uncool!) - will get viewers switching channels in a heartbeat. One gets a highly distorted view of the world that way. Luckily, I live in a country where a rich tradition of public radio broadcasting has survived quite well. I listen selectively to that.

2. I read one serious newspaper critically every day; I pay a subscription because I want it to continue in existence. I don't agree with everything I read there, but it does separate fact and comment fairly well, and I can easily cross-check with other papers if I feel the need.

3. I subscribe to a political and cultural weekly review, and also look at the Economist every week.

4. On US affairs, apart from the above sources, I follow links I see on this board - especially the ones from people I disagree with.

All those are acts of choice. Earlier this year I was in the States for a while and, just to share the experience of so many Americans, I deliberately chose to seek out Fox News (slightly to the horror of my US colleagues when I told them.) But no-one made me watch it, and the minute I clicked on the power button of the remote control, it went away (which was nice ...).

A lot of good advice here.