Why we should name the unashamed at Trump rallies
By Spocko
When Trump mocked Dr. Ford at a rally I watched the video of the people behind him smiling, laughing and clapping. My first thought was, “Name ’em and shame ’em!” But as many pointed out to me, “These people HAVE no shame!” So is naming the unashamed at Trump rallies a useless activity? No, and I’ll Vulcansplain why.
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| Who is 1) Gold Tie Guy? 2) Tan Hat Guy? 3) Grinning Glasses Guy? |
These people chose to attend the rally. They volunteered to stand behind Trump. They are the opposite of ashamed, they are proud to be on national TV showing their support for Trump as he mocked Dr. Ford. It was an honor.
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| Who is 4) Mutton Chop Guy? 5) Beaded Laughing Guy 6) Red Hat Logo Guy 7) Happy Mocking Woman |
People suggest name and shame, because they know it would work on them if they said something considered shameful by themselves, their friends and family.
If you showed a video of me laughing, clapping and cheering for Trump as he mocked Dr. Ford, my family, friends and clients would be shocked. Someone would ask me, “What the what!? Is that Spocko’s brain tumor talking?”
My activist friends would ask, “A new deep cover action?” My close personal friend George Soros would call and ask “What’s wrong with you Spocko?” Then he would thank me for volunteering my services.
That is what my friends, family and business associates would do based on who they are and what they believe is shameful. In this case we have shared beliefs. They also know from my writing and activism that this behavior would be out of character.
But the people at the Trump rally liked what Trump was saying. You can tell by the looks on their faces right after he talked followed by their applause. (I’ve circled them in the video when they started smiling, laughing and applauding while he mocked Dr. Ford. )
If we found those people now and asked, ‘Is this you in the photo?” they wouldn’t run away from it like we would, they would embrace it. We need to remember that supporters laughing as Trump mocked Dr. Ford is viewed as a good thing and importantly, a NORMAL THING. This is an example of normalizing something that is repugnant.
Trump’s rallies show the country that it is okay to bring out your inner misogynist. This behavior is approved by the GOP. It now the acceptable social norm in the Republican conservative community.
Trump’s goal is to link winning with his misogynist views. Because greed is his driving force, he also wants people who agree with his views on women, business, and truth to believe it will MAKE them money. (This is why he hid his father’s constant influx of cash to shore up his massive business failures.)
Trump wants to show everyone there are no social, political or financial penalties for holding his misogynist views. “Look at me! I said this and I’m a winner!”
He wants GOP members to believe that holding these views will lead to more votes in the upcoming election. If they do, it strengthens them. If they don’t, it should weaken them.
These events are supposed to support local politicians. Maybe Gold Tie Guy holds an elected position. At the Council Bluffs Iowa Trump rally two state senators were spotted.
It appears Nebraska state Sens. Steve Erdman (left) and Steve Halloran (right) had good seats at Tuesday’s Trump rally in Council Bluffs. Their hats say “Make Our Farmers Great Again.” pic.twitter.com/mKTbTmATvg— Chris Dunker (@ChrisDunkerLJS) October 10, 2018
That photo identification of those two politicians was useful. I then found video of Nebraska state senator, Steve Halloran, chanting, “Lock her up.” referring to Senator Dianne Feinstein. So much for innocent until proven guilty, eh Senator Halloran?
But Why Name Them Now?
Each new Trump rally is an opportunity to identify more people who are proud supporters of what Trump says. After Plaid Shirt Guy was spotted making faces during a rally, the Trump advance team only puts real supporters behind him so now is the time to name them.
The people who let out their inner misogyny, bigotry, racism and sexism when supporting Trump’s comments need to be named now when Trump appears to be winning. Because soon Trump and the views he expresses will experience a huge setback. The excuse “we won, so it doesn’t matter” will no longer provide an excuse.
When Trump stops getting away with his misogynistic comments and faces consequence for them, people will go into denial mode and claim they never agreed with Trump. That is why the video of all these people supporting morally repugnant views needs to be saved and repeated.
Some politicians are more clever about being caught on camera saying equally hideous things (I wonder if Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith was laughing while Trump mocked Dr. Ford. She voted to confirm Kavanaugh)
This specific video has been seen by 10’s of millions of people, yet I didn’t find any identification of the people in the videos.
Each rally will bring people cheering, laughing and approving new horrible things said by Trump. As Chris Hayes said tonight, “Trump is best at bringing out the worst in people.”
On Thursday night in Montana he praised a politician for his felony assault of a journalist. And he said that the assault helped him win. (This is part of normalizing violence against journalists. He said this following the murder of journalist Khashoggi.)
Where will these Trump supporters be next? Here a link to the complete list.
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| I’m just like Jesus. He said let the children suffer too! |
Mesa, Arizona
Friday, October 19, 2018
Elko, Nevada
Saturday October 20, 2018
Houston, Texas
Monday , October 22, 2018
Prepare For The Trump Crash
I’ve worked with brand managers for major corporations who sponsored athletes and movie stars. When a celebrity athlete or performer says or does something that is considered horrible by the company, they often drop sponsorship. Even if that celebrity made them 100’s of millions of dollars. Words can sometimes be clarified or “walked back” but no amount of previous Jello pudding pops sales will buy continued support for a convicted rapist.
This is especially the case when the words or actions of a person they sponsor are not in line with what the company stated they stand for. That said, I’ve learned that not everyone has the same values! Surprise!
There are employers, clients and sponsors who said, “Yes! Way to go Gold Tie Guy! Laughing and applauding Trump while he mocks Dr. Ford is in line with our values.” There will also be employers and clients who were disgusted by the laughter, cheering and applauding of Trump mocking Dr. Ford.
I want to make clear that Gold Tie Guy and the rest definitely should be free to express their political views. Two points:
- The First Amendment protects Americans’ free-speech rights from being restricted by the government, not their employer.
- Freedom of speech is the right to freely express an opinion. It is most assuredly not the right to express an opinion with freedom from the consequences.
When @YesYoureRacist tweeted the photo of some men who were at Charlottesville Virginia the internet identified them. One was Cole White. His employer, Top Dog of Berkeley, had a conversation with him and he resigned. There was much discussion about employee’s rights and if a company could fire someone for being a white supremacist.
There is a possibility that when Gold Tie Guy and others are identified there might be negative consequences. If so, they will lash out and attack the people who named them. Employers would be wise to review how Top Dog dealt with the Cole White situation.
“We pride ourselves on embracing and respecting all our differences and every individual’s choice to do as that person wishes within the boundaries of the law. We do not endorse hatred or any illegal conduct. It simply is not part of our culture.
We do respect our employees’ right to their opinions. They are free to make their own choices but must accept the responsibilities of those choices,” the statement said.”
— Top Dog LLC
Even though the behavior of the people at the rallies is clear, I believe it is important for employers and organizations to gather all the information and consider the context when confronted with a situation like this, because video can be manipulated and info taken out of context. Then, if warranted, appropriate action should be taken.
As a follow up note, people should know that in the case of Cole White, on October 2, 2018 four men, including White, were charged with inciting a riot in Charlottesville.
Soon more illegal, immoral and traitorous actions leading to Trump’s and the GOP’s wins will be revealed. That is when we should bring out the video of the unashamed at the rally applauding Trump as he mocked Dr. Ford.
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| Trump kissing Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, at Mississippi rally right before he mocked Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony about her sexual assault. Five days later Hyde-Smith voted to confirm Bart Kavanaugh. |
Losers Double Down
I believe in people’s ability to change and grow in both wisdom and compassion. I also know some people chose not to change. The unashamed will double down on their views following a loss at the polls.
They knowingly chose to celebrate the mocking, lying, cheating, bullying and law breaking of Trump and the GOP. They believed that nothing mattered on the way to a “win.”
They trumpeted their support of cruelty on national TV. They knew what they were doing when they hitched their wagon to this dark star.
It is important to name these proud misogynists at that rally in Southhaven Mississippi. I’m hoping that people from Mississippi can identify the people in this video. When the rationale for their horrible views — winning — is gone, we can show they are misogynists AND losers.
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