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#despotism — Public Fediverse posts

Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #despotism, aggregated by home.social.

  1. A quotation from Hannah Arendt

    The chief difference between the despotic and the totalitarian secret police lies in the difference between the “suspect” and the “objective enemy.” The latter is defined by the policy of the government and not by his own desire to overthrow it. He is never an individual whose dangerous thoughts must be provoked or whose past justifies suspicion, but a “carrier of tendences” like the carrier of a disease. Practically speaking, the totalitarian ruler proceeds like a man who persistently insults another man until everybody knows that the latter is his enemy, so that he can, with some plausibility, go and kill him in self-defense.

    Hannah Arendt (1906-1975) German-American philosopher, political theorist
    Origins of Totalitarianism, Part 3, ch. 12 “Totalitarianism in Power,” sec. 1 (1951)

    More about this quote: wist.info/arendt-hannah/54483/

    #quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #arendt #hannaharendt #aggression #demonization #despotism #enemy #enemyofthestate #insult #ruler #scapegoat #secretpolice #selfdefense #totalitarian

  2. Some, like Secretary of #State #MarcoRubio & #JohnRatcliffe, the #CIA director, packed their speaking time with #praise, while others, like Vice President #JDVance, focused on #attacking Democrats. Many of these statements are exaggerated or not factually accurate [#lies].

    Compared with his 1st term, … #Trump has emphasized the importance of #loyalty this time around. Admin ofcls have complimented him far more in #cabinet meetings than in his 1st term…

    #vanity #narcissism #idolatry #despotism

  3. The New York Times reviewed over a dozen hours of cabinet meeting footage to analyze how Trump’s administration spoke to him. On average, at least one of every six sentences either flattered #Trump, gave him credit or criticized his political opponents.

    #POTUS #vanity #narcissism #gaslighting #propaganda #MentalHealth #dysfunctional #authoritarianism #autocracy #dictatorship #despotism #idolatry #tyranny #USpol
    nytimes.com/interactive/2026/u

  4. But they touch upon 2 key nerves in the body politic: The tension in a #democracy about how & to whom credit for #public works & programs should be given, & narratives of gratitude particular to #US history, including the gratitude freely offered by #immigrants & #refugees, & the forced gratitude demanded from #enslaved people.

    #Trump #narcissism #megalomania #vanity #authoritarianism #autocracy #despotism #dictatorship #fascism #tyranny #MadKing

  5. “As the Court expressly recognized, the #FirstAmendment draws a line, which the government may not cross, at efforts to use government power — including the #PowerOfThePurse — ‘to punish or suppress disfavored expression’ by others,” Boutrous said in a statement. “The Executive Order crossed that line.”

    #law #FreeSpeech #NPR #PBS #Trump #Congress #MafiaState #AbuseOfPower #authoritarianism #autocracy #despotism #dictatorship #fascism #tyranny

  6. How to Organize an #Assembly
    Preparing to Respond in an Era of #Disasters and #Despotism

    #Crimethinc
    2024-11-10

    "There are times when people who have kept to themselves, counting on politicians and specialists to solve their problems, suddenly realize that their only hope is to make contact with others like themselves and work together. Perhaps a #hurricane has just torn through the state, or a #demagogue has just won reelection on an explicitly #fascist electoral platform. For many people, this is one of those moments right now. But how do we connect with them—or at least connect them with each other? One answer is to host an open assembly.

    "Here, we’ll offer a brief guide, along with some sample discussion questions you could use to discuss how to prepare for the second Donald #Trump administration.

    [...]

    "If you want to organize with a modicum of confidentiality rather than turning out the largest possible crowd, you could limit your announcement to #handbills and #Signal messages. Generally speaking, you’ll want to maximize the number of earnest participants while keeping your assembly off the radar of people with bad intentions.

    "Hopefully, you’re already connected to local projects that have some reach through which to make the announcement. These could include #MutualAid projects, #CommunitySpaces, #bands, #SignalLoops, #ReadingGroups, #DJs, #StudentGroups [I would include neighbors and folks already involved with #activism whom you know and can trust and rely on]. Consider approaching other groups at the outset and inviting them to help organize or at least publicize the assembly. The more different groups are on board from the beginning, the wider the range of people you will bring together, and the less the gathering will feel like the private property of any one group."

    Read more:
    crimethinc.com/2024/11/10/how-

  7. Was das #Mobbing, wie es von z.B. mastodon.art, xim.ca, mstdn.social und deren Freaks mit einem machen können: https://tly.be/pbOoe

    Das Fediverse ist kein Safe-Space. Für niemanden, wenn Personen wie WelshPixie, Alex, Schratze oder Rysiek jemanden mit ihren Lügen bis hin zu Suizidgedanken treiben!

    I've not planned to translate the text to English. If you need it in another language, use deepl.com and NOT Google Translate!

    #FediBlockMeta #TheBadSpace #Oliphant #FediBlock #CyberMobbing #HassReden #Harassment #HateSpeech #Bullying #Framing #Gaslighting #Deplatforming #Derailing #Despotism #Discrimination #Disinformation #Dogmatism #Dogpiling #Fascism #Gatekeeping #Hatemongering #Narcissism #Sealioning #Scam #Sectarianism #WitchHunting #VictimBlaming #Antifa #Bigotry #Blackmailing #Censorship #Corrupt #Fearmongering #FediSeer

  8. The Oligarchic Revolution Unfolds:

    James Buchanan’s ideas began to have huge impact, especially in America and in Britain.

    In his home country, the economist was deeply involved in efforts to #cut #taxes on the wealthy in 1970s and 1980s and he advised proponents of #Reagan Revolution in their quest to unleash markets and posit government as the “problem” rather than the “solution.”

    The Koch-funded Virginia school coached scholars, lawyers, politicians, and business people to apply stark right-wing perspectives on everything from #deficits to #taxes to school #privatization.

    In Britain, Buchanan’s work helped to inspire the public sector reforms of Margaret #Thatcher and her political progeny.

    MacLean illustrates that in South America, Buchanan was able to first truly set his ideas in motion by helping a bare-knuckles #dictatorship ensure the permanence of much of the radical transformation it inflicted on a country that had been a beacon of social progress. The historian emphasizes that Buchanan’s role in the disastrous #Pinochet government of Chile has been underestimated partly because unlike Milton Friedman, who advertised his activities, Buchanan had the shrewdness to keep his involvement quiet.

    With his guidance, the Chilean #military #junta deployed public choice economics in the creation of a new #constitution, which required #balanced #budgets and thereby prevented the government from spending to meet public needs. #Supermajorities would be required for any changes of substance, leaving the public little recourse to challenge programs like the #privatization of social security.

    The dictator’s human rights #abuses and #pillage of the country’s resources did not seem to bother Buchanan, MacLean argues, so long as the wealthy got their way.
    #Despotism may be the only organizational alternative to the political structure that we observe,” the economist had written in "The Limits of Liberty".

    If you have been wondering about the end result of the Virginia school philosophy, well, the economist helpfully spelled it out...
    academic.oup.com/book/36885/ch

  9. The Oligarchic Revolution Unfolds:

    James Buchanan’s ideas began to have huge impact, especially in America and in Britain.

    In his home country, the economist was deeply involved in efforts to #cut #taxes on the wealthy in 1970s and 1980s and he advised proponents of #Reagan Revolution in their quest to unleash markets and posit government as the “problem” rather than the “solution.”

    The Koch-funded Virginia school coached scholars, lawyers, politicians, and business people to apply stark right-wing perspectives on everything from #deficits to #taxes to school #privatization.

    In Britain, Buchanan’s work helped to inspire the public sector reforms of Margaret #Thatcher and her political progeny.

    MacLean illustrates that in South America, Buchanan was able to first truly set his ideas in motion by helping a bare-knuckles #dictatorship ensure the permanence of much of the radical transformation it inflicted on a country that had been a beacon of social progress. The historian emphasizes that Buchanan’s role in the disastrous #Pinochet government of Chile has been underestimated partly because unlike Milton Friedman, who advertised his activities, Buchanan had the shrewdness to keep his involvement quiet.

    With his guidance, the Chilean #military #junta deployed public choice economics in the creation of a new #constitution, which required #balanced #budgets and thereby prevented the government from spending to meet public needs. #Supermajorities would be required for any changes of substance, leaving the public little recourse to challenge programs like the #privatization of social security.

    The dictator’s human rights #abuses and #pillage of the country’s resources did not seem to bother Buchanan, MacLean argues, so long as the wealthy got their way.
    #Despotism may be the only organizational alternative to the political structure that we observe,” the economist had written in "The Limits of Liberty".

    If you have been wondering about the end result of the Virginia school philosophy, well, the economist helpfully spelled it out...
    academic.oup.com/book/36885/ch

  10. The Oligarchic Revolution Unfolds:

    James Buchanan’s ideas began to have huge impact, especially in America and in Britain.

    In his home country, the economist was deeply involved in efforts to #cut #taxes on the wealthy in 1970s and 1980s and he advised proponents of #Reagan Revolution in their quest to unleash markets and posit government as the “problem” rather than the “solution.”

    The Koch-funded Virginia school coached scholars, lawyers, politicians, and business people to apply stark right-wing perspectives on everything from #deficits to #taxes to school #privatization.

    In Britain, Buchanan’s work helped to inspire the public sector reforms of Margaret #Thatcher and her political progeny.

    MacLean illustrates that in South America, Buchanan was able to first truly set his ideas in motion by helping a bare-knuckles #dictatorship ensure the permanence of much of the radical transformation it inflicted on a country that had been a beacon of social progress. The historian emphasizes that Buchanan’s role in the disastrous #Pinochet government of Chile has been underestimated partly because unlike Milton Friedman, who advertised his activities, Buchanan had the shrewdness to keep his involvement quiet.

    With his guidance, the Chilean #military #junta deployed public choice economics in the creation of a new #constitution, which required #balanced #budgets and thereby prevented the government from spending to meet public needs. #Supermajorities would be required for any changes of substance, leaving the public little recourse to challenge programs like the #privatization of social security.

    The dictator’s human rights #abuses and #pillage of the country’s resources did not seem to bother Buchanan, MacLean argues, so long as the wealthy got their way.
    #Despotism may be the only organizational alternative to the political structure that we observe,” the economist had written in "The Limits of Liberty".

    If you have been wondering about the end result of the Virginia school philosophy, well, the economist helpfully spelled it out...
    academic.oup.com/book/36885/ch

  11. The Oligarchic Revolution Unfolds:

    James Buchanan’s ideas began to have huge impact, especially in America and in Britain.

    In his home country, the economist was deeply involved in efforts to #cut #taxes on the wealthy in 1970s and 1980s and he advised proponents of #Reagan Revolution in their quest to unleash markets and posit government as the “problem” rather than the “solution.”

    The Koch-funded Virginia school coached scholars, lawyers, politicians, and business people to apply stark right-wing perspectives on everything from #deficits to #taxes to school #privatization.

    In Britain, Buchanan’s work helped to inspire the public sector reforms of Margaret #Thatcher and her political progeny.

    MacLean illustrates that in South America, Buchanan was able to first truly set his ideas in motion by helping a bare-knuckles #dictatorship ensure the permanence of much of the radical transformation it inflicted on a country that had been a beacon of social progress. The historian emphasizes that Buchanan’s role in the disastrous #Pinochet government of Chile has been underestimated partly because unlike Milton Friedman, who advertised his activities, Buchanan had the shrewdness to keep his involvement quiet.

    With his guidance, the Chilean #military #junta deployed public choice economics in the creation of a new #constitution, which required #balanced #budgets and thereby prevented the government from spending to meet public needs. #Supermajorities would be required for any changes of substance, leaving the public little recourse to challenge programs like the #privatization of social security.

    The dictator’s human rights #abuses and #pillage of the country’s resources did not seem to bother Buchanan, MacLean argues, so long as the wealthy got their way.
    #Despotism may be the only organizational alternative to the political structure that we observe,” the economist had written in "The Limits of Liberty".

    If you have been wondering about the end result of the Virginia school philosophy, well, the economist helpfully spelled it out...
    academic.oup.com/book/36885/ch

  12. The Oligarchic Revolution Unfolds:

    James Buchanan’s ideas began to have huge impact, especially in America and in Britain.

    In his home country, the economist was deeply involved in efforts to #cut #taxes on the wealthy in 1970s and 1980s and he advised proponents of #Reagan Revolution in their quest to unleash markets and posit government as the “problem” rather than the “solution.”

    The Koch-funded Virginia school coached scholars, lawyers, politicians, and business people to apply stark right-wing perspectives on everything from #deficits to #taxes to school #privatization.

    In Britain, Buchanan’s work helped to inspire the public sector reforms of Margaret #Thatcher and her political progeny.

    MacLean illustrates that in South America, Buchanan was able to first truly set his ideas in motion by helping a bare-knuckles #dictatorship ensure the permanence of much of the radical transformation it inflicted on a country that had been a beacon of social progress. The historian emphasizes that Buchanan’s role in the disastrous #Pinochet government of Chile has been underestimated partly because unlike Milton Friedman, who advertised his activities, Buchanan had the shrewdness to keep his involvement quiet.

    With his guidance, the Chilean #military #junta deployed public choice economics in the creation of a new #constitution, which required #balanced #budgets and thereby prevented the government from spending to meet public needs. #Supermajorities would be required for any changes of substance, leaving the public little recourse to challenge programs like the #privatization of social security.

    The dictator’s human rights #abuses and #pillage of the country’s resources did not seem to bother Buchanan, MacLean argues, so long as the wealthy got their way.
    #Despotism may be the only organizational alternative to the political structure that we observe,” the economist had written in "The Limits of Liberty".

    If you have been wondering about the end result of the Virginia school philosophy, well, the economist helpfully spelled it out...
    academic.oup.com/book/36885/ch