Hate and the Ownership of Identity Politics

 

Many conservatives these days claim to be exhausted by identity politics.

Hell, I’m an Old Leftie, and some days even I find myself wishing the news cycle would focus more on the immediate existential problems of corporate greed, war, and climate change.

But here is the problem.

Identity goes to the very heart of human existence.

What we think we are, what others think we are, and the contested ground in between – this is where our self-confidence, our concept of history, ideology, culture and national identity are formed.

Are we really who we think we are in our heads?  Are we what others see us as?  Are we a mix of the two?  Are we something else altogether, which neither side is able to see clearly through the fog of bias?

I’ve said it before, and see no reason to change my mind:

The Political Right, the wealthy, and the powerful HATE identity politics because they invented identity politics.  They believe that only they should be allowed to dictate the terms of “identity”.

It’s a simple power thing.

Patriarchy is a way of wielding power in order to define and limit female identity.

The “lazy poor” and the “self-made man” are other identities constructed by those in power as a way to justify their position of power.

But the invention of “race”, and the enforcement of a “racial” caste system, were (and still are) the ultimate expressions of identity politics.

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It has always been easy for those who control identity to gather willing minions to do the dirty work of patrolling caste boundaries.

This is why it has become a truism in America today to say that the white underclasses consistently vote against their own self interests.

People on The Left ponder why this should be so.

It is really quite simple.

Most humans crave status.  Siblings vie for the attention of parents.  As adults we seek the approval and admiration of our friends and colleagues.  We want to be “identified” as “special”.

This is why children love superheroes.  Deep down, children do not want to be FANS of superheroes.  They are projecting, because they want to BE a superhero.

The status.  The adulation of the masses.  Being able to kick the school bully’s ass.  Just being born “special”.

But most of us grow up eventually.  We learn that being generous, that doing good, is its own reward.  We don’t rescue a drowning child to hear the cheers of onlookers.

It is damning indictment of contemporary American culture that superhero movies have become the mainstay of ADULT entertainment.

Boys used to outgrow the dumb Chuck Norris/Steven Seagal stuff.   Girls without a note in their head eventually learned to accept that singing into their hairbrush in front of a mirror wasn’t going to turn their Broadway dreams into reality.

But most humans will still never outgrow a deep-seated wish to feel “special”.

Those with real access to opportunity (and yes, those with luck and determination) can eventually “feel special” through their achievements.  Rewarding career, nice house, good education, relationships, nurturing of talents and interests, etc.  It’s called “self-actualisation” in the language of psychologists.

Many of the white underclasses are born into challenging circumstances, where the odds of having attentive parents, attaining a good education, a level of economic security, and reaching personal fulfilment are slim in the extreme.

Circumstances which are usually even more challenging for people of color.

Which leaves very few routes to a feeling of being special, let alone having a realistic shot at “self-actualisation”.

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Psychologists have long recognised that humans’ sense of happiness and well-being is tied to their status in relation to those around them.  The countries in the world which consistently place highest in the happiness ranks are those with the least disparity between rich and poor.  Where each citizen feels empowered.

Humans can be very happy with very little, as long as everyone is in the same boat.

In the USA, where wealth disparity is absolutely shocking, there are a lot of unhappy people – to put it mildly.

“The System” seems rigged, and in many ways, it is.

Higher education is out of reach for many.

Health problems can lead to bankruptcy.

People are widely addicted to opioids and other substances.

Working-class wages barely cover the rent. A house mortgage is now a pipe dream for most.

Crime and violence caused by economic and social inequity creates a nagging sense of constant fear.

Living paycheck to paycheck doesn’t leave a lot of room for “empowerment” or “feeling special”.

And yes, I know.

Not everyone is a victim, and some people are just too lacking in motivation to put in the hard work required to earn their feeling of “specialness”.

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So here we have hundreds of thousands of members of the “white” underclasses (yes, the word “underclasses” hurts, because it’s an accurate description of the disempowered).

A group of people who will often turn toward quick-fix methods of feeling empowered or “feeling special”.

Never quite became a martial arts master?  Buy a few guns.  Pretend it’s not about fear and feeling disempowered.

It’s about simple self-defence, right?

No, even better, it’s about protecting your family and community.  Noble, and manly.

Wait, wait.  It’s about “protecting freedom and liberty”.   Now you can feel very special indeed.

Go the whole hog and join a militia.  Now you’re the real Alpha dog.  Go online and troll all the “Libtards” and “Beta cucks”.

Show up at the US capitol for the next election!

But then again, maybe all of that sounds a bit too much like work.

There is one super-easy last resort.  No effort whatsoever required.

Just choose to believe that you were actually “born special” in some way.

Born American.  Born “white”.

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Everybody knows how hard it is to build a big cardhouse (do kids still build cardhouses?).

And everybody who ever built one, and has siblings, knows how easy it is to blow down a house of cards.

The American racial caste system was designed by people who blow down other people’s cardhouses.

Because it’s easier to elevate oneself socially by denigrating others than to actually earn your social status through hard work, generosity, or other achievements.

It is not “I feel proud and special because I can take my parents out for dinner”.

Instead, it’s “I feel proud and special because someone is stuck cleaning dishes while I dine out”.

This is not a social behaviour unique to the USA – it’s only been developed and perfected there in a very specific way.

And when there is no obvious difference in wealth or physical appearance, unpleasant people will make themselves superior to others in other ways.

It’s just so much easier than trying to earn respect through actions, ability, or simple decency.

Don’t believe it?  For centuries in France, there was a social class called the Cagot.

They were treated to all intents and purposes the exact same way people of colour were treated in the USA under Jim Crow.

But they looked no different to anyone else.  No one knows why they were so hated and despised.

It just seems that having someone to look down on, to feel superior to, is a habit practiced by lazy, hateful, and unthinking people everywhere.

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Back to identity politics in the USA.

Anyone who claims that racism is now only part of America’s past is either wilfully blind, or a master gaslighter.  Probably both.

I am no fan of the American two-party system.  Both parties are in the pocket of Big Business.

But one party is now teetering on the edge of becoming a White Christian Nationalist neo-fascist front.

55% of voters for this party support a man who is a grifter and inveterate liar.  A racist.  A misogynist.  A mocker of disabled people.  A criminal.  A sexual predator and assaulter of women.

Their superhero.

Why?  Because while pretending to be an enemy of “wokeness” and “identity politics” he actually speaks to the oldest form of identity politics in America.

That some people are better than others by birth.  Go back and listen to his “good genes” speech at a campaign rally in Minnesota.

“You have good genes, you know that, right?” Trump said.

“You have good genes. A lot of it is about the genes, isn’t it, don’t you believe? The racehorse theory. You think we’re so different? You have good genes in Minnesota.”

And who has “bad genes”?

Well, Barack Obama, I’d imagine – at least according to The Book of Donald.

Does anyone, anyone, believe that Obama would have even been elected, never mind served-out his term if he had been caught on tape bragging about grabbing women “by the pussy”?

Yes, conservatives hate identity politics.

BUT ONLY WHEN IT’S NOT THEM CHOOSING WHO IS IDENTIFIED AS WHAT.

It is the business of this blog and podcast to put the concept of “white race identity” in the trash can of history.

It is one thing for scholars and academics to say that “race is a social construct”.

It is quite another to demonstrate it with historical records, DNA, and photographs.

Americans are all brothers and sisters, whether they like it or not, and we’re gonna prove it.

 

#beforewewerewhite #identitypolitics