A great example of a common Conservative double-think
Now, both sides have their double standards, mostly with only wanting to point out flaws of the opposition while overlooking flaws of their own side.
But I can't get past this quote, which was simply a comment about an animated Batman movie. It reflects something I see a LOT on the Conservative side, a very significant double-standard that is embedded DEEP into a tribalist mindset:
On the contrary he's right. He's being a conservative. Meaning keep your politics to yourself and sexual fantasies in your bedroom. And lately DC, along with sex, is injecting leftist feminist politics into their animated Batman films. Just like with the last Batman/Harley Quinn film. It's unnecessary.
(FYI, they were complaining about "sexual fantasies" because the movie is about Batman going up against Jack the Ripper... EVEN THOUGH the victims were referred to as "poor women" early in the trailer instead of as "prostitutes"!!!)
So yes, this is the literal view being expressed:
Conforming to specific Conservative views = "keep(ing) politics to yourself"
Rejecting and/or suppressing specific Liberal views = "keep(ing) politics to yourself"
Rejecting and/or suppressing feminism = "keep(ing) politics to yourself"
Thus, the unavoidable result is this: "Conservative views = Apolitical"
That is a very disturbing, reality-rejecting mindset, and it's SO common among Conservatives. They tend to think their views are a "default" for humanity and that any Liberal view is an aberration. This also leads to an arrogant stance that INVITES an opposition of stereotypically reactionary and "whiny" Liberals.
Now here's where it gets dangerous. This double-think is the exact mindset that leads people to the following...
Conservative Christianity = Being a war-hawk
Worshiping Jesus who said to love thy neighbor as thyself and to turn the other cheek =
Supporting military and war and being intolerant of other cultures and religions
Being a "small-government Conservative" = Vehemently supporting the ever-expanding military-industrial complex to an absurd degree (in 2015, military costs were 54% of Federal government spending!!! The next largest percentage is SIX PERCENT!!!!!)
Being a "small-government Conservative" = Supporting increased Police presence, military weapons for Police, dangerous anti-drug policies that destroy society, more prisons and more inmates, basically supporting the prison industrial complex
Being a Conservative Christian = Conforming more accurately to a belief in the vengeful Old Testament version of Yahweh
(Notice how both of the major things supported by this double-think are so vehemently supported that they both get the "industrial complex" label!!!!!!!!!!)
Now, remember in the beginning when I referenced this as a tribalist view? Tribalism is behind every example and every description I just gave. It's an insular view all about protecting one's own at the expense of others, it's a strong "us vs. them" mindset, and it encourages conflict against anyone who does not conform to the views of the "tribe."
Also, this: Tribalism and social bonding help to keep individuals committed to the group, even when personal relations may fray. That keeps individuals from wandering off or joining other groups. It also leads to bullying when a tribal member is unwilling to conform to the politics of the collective.
Bullying... Yes, a very common trait of hardcore Conservatives. Trump has brought public bullying to the White House because he knows it well and he knows it will appeal to his voter base. Bullying has also spiked ever since Trump took office, even kids bullying kids specifically over Trump politics, because Trump basically endorses and promotes that kind of behavior.
I think the reason that this view has become so commonplace is BECAUSE it allows people to "have their cake and eat it too," it allows people to normalize contradictory views and it legitimizes political hypocrisy. People can get the best of both worlds, can hold conflicting views, and then they get the support of the "tribe" because it becomes a populist thing to promote self-serving contradictions.
As a middle-of-the road type who is big on psychology, it's very interesting to see this kind of mindset so often. Like I said, this also invites a weak and reactionary "Liberal" opposition that becomes "whiny," and that may very well be because they are opposing an objectively inconsistent Conservative political view which is blindly promoted by the Conservatives as being consistent. It's like trying to debate a view that water is dry and getting bullied for pointing out that water is wet.
That leads to a basic populist view I've seen all my life, where "Conservative=Stubborn/Aggressive" and "Liberal=Reactionary/Weak." I think it also promotes paranoid Conservative conspiracy theories, like the hilarious "FBI secret society" one which was based on an interpretation of a joke that had been removed from its context! share