Bread and Circuses, with a Side Order of Hate

Ryan Holiday, a writer I would recommend to anyone, gave a fascinating YouTube blog post comparing and contrasting The Donald to Emperor Nero. Nero, who had Seneca as a tutor, was a sadistic, narcissistic psychopath who, though honored and surrounded by yes people and sycophants in his lifetime, was reviled and despised after his death. Holiday goes on to contrast Nero with Marcus Aurelius, a great emperor, someone who left a legacy of justice, prudence, rationality and tremendous leadership values. This is despite the unbelievable tragedies and wars that beset Aurelius’ time in office. As Trump celebrates his 80th year with some form of cage fights on the Whitehouse lawn (so grotesquely Neroesque its hilarious), one has to ask the question, why do so many support him? To answer that you have to hand it to Trump. From his earliest days he was always an excellent frontman. He is a cross between a mob boss and an entertainer. He’s got authority and he makes one listen. He made a fortune on TV. As he has no filter he is rude, sexist, racist, condescending, shocking and at times funny. His mind is going now, but in his day it was hard not to listen, even though at times one wished one didn’t. Trump also really knows how to handle a crowd. He is an excellent communicator, and one of his crucial gifts being, as he rarely tells the truth, one is passively participating in his own reality distortion chamber, the one that constantly surrounds him, which is horrifyingly entertaining, or vice vera- I’m unsure. The tens of thousands of lies, documented lies, he has told, only adds to the sheer bizarreness of watching his lips move, and listening to the word salad coming out of them. The brilliant psychologist, philosopher and thinker, Gustav Le Bon (please check him out too) helps explain just why Trumpism is so popular. He adheres to these rules, which can be found in The Crowd – A Study Of the Popular Mind (1895) – by le Bon, a book abused by many totalitarians: 1. In crowds its emotion, not reason that dominate the collective mind. 2. In crowds repetition creates belief. One does not need to repeat that. Just repeat after me: Make America Great Again, forget fake news with their Trump derangement syndrome, etc etc. 3. In crowds Visual Symbols overpower words. Think of red MAGA hats and other powerful primary coloured paraphernalia. 4 In crowd psychology prestige paralyses judgement. So if the president says it, it’s not only true, but its the law. Think also of law 1- about emotion not reason captivating crowds. . 5. In crowds, its the leader who moulds the crowds will. The great leader holds the crowd’s unconscious in his hands. He directs their emotions, and he does it brilliantly. 6. Crowds wordship absolute certainty. Keep it simple and clear and avoid ambiguity. 8. In crowds its illusions that influence crowds more than truth. Crowds simply aren’t moved by hard cold facts, rather they want the dream. Give it to them and they will love you.