Leaving MAGA Part 2: Why are we here?

The storytelling mind tells truth ... or lies when it can't tell truth.

Oct 19, 2024

Jonathan Gottschall in The Storytelling Animal paints a picture that reminds us that there is a bright side and a dark side to story.

“The storytelling mind is allergic to uncertainty, randomness, and coincidence. It is addicted to meaning. If the storytelling mind cannot find meaningful patterns in the world, it will try to impose them.

“In short, the storytelling mind is a factory that churns out true stories when it can,

but will manufacture lies when it can’t.”

Gottschall gives us a deep insight into the mind of MAGA. Unable to understand how something like Hurricanes Helene or Milton could have happened, they create a story about the big bad government controlling the weather just to make trouble for red states. They tell people that “big government” is going to bulldoze their land to build lithium plants. Or that FEMA is only going to give them $750 regardless of how much damage done to their property.

Or they create a story about an election that didn’t go their way so it must have been stolen … even though apparently the same election was just fine for the positions that won that they just happened to want to win.

Or they create stories about Hillary running a child trafficking ring in the basement of a pizza joint that actually had no basement.

When trust is broken, people are vulnerable to the wildest stories … “somebody” must have made these horrible things happen. It must be someone’s fault. Now we want a “Big Daddy” to save us.

“Only I can fix the mess we’re in,” says this year’s Big Daddy.

I understand everything [the economy, the world, hurricanes, windmills, COVID, tariffs … and so on) better than anyone. I’m the only one who can fix everything … the middle east, the border, the climate, the pandemic. Only I was able to overturn Roe vs. Wade. Only I was able to build a border wall and have Mexico pay for it. Only I will be able to make China pay 60% tariffs without raising prices on our consumer goods. Only I am anointed by God.
Only I can play golf every day and let JD Vance do all that boring presidential stuff. Only I can fit a million loyal fans into a venue that only holds ten thousand. Only I can dance wordless for 39 minutes in front of my loyal fans.
Only I can promise to be a dictator on Day 1 to Americans who have fought and died for almost 250 years to preserve democracy.
Only I can pay my wife (or other family members) to make campaign appearances for me.
Only I can be convicted of 34 felonies and have my fans feel sorry that I’m being persecuted.
Only I can take away funding to states I don’t like (such as $7.9 BILLION in school funding from California’s kids if they don’t do whatever I want. (i.e. make the mistake of teaching US history and the facts of slavery and Native American genocide.)
Only I can promise the oil industry favors if they just pony up a billion or so.

Trump badly needs to be elected.

If he doesn’t win, he might go to jail. Or go broke. There might not be more Bibles, high top golden sneakers, trading cards, over-valued coins, $100,000 watches, or perfume in $99 bottles to keep him in the life-style he has become accustomed to.