36 Comments
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Sonya's avatar

All I keep thinking is imagine if they used all this to actually do things to help people. And sorry (not sorry) bros, but you are all mortal and you can't take it with you.

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Taylor Holstrom's avatar

Yes, like what happened to billionaires funding public works as the competition?

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Alexandra's avatar

They were taxed if they didn’t give away enough of their money. They got to keep up to a certain amount and then had to give it away or be taxed majorly.

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Veronica's avatar

I think about this every day.

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Elise Tosun's avatar

No comment, just want to give you praise for an excellent analysis and extremely well written essay. Saving this and sharing it x100.

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Cherice Godard's avatar

Me too. Saved this and will be sharing with the people in my life who give a damn.

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Kary Moltzan's avatar

This is terrifying. I just don't understand how every day Americans don't see that none of these people, including Trump, could give two shits about them....I hate that this is where we are. How do we stop it?

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Anna Crollman's avatar

This is what has me baffled too

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Jennifer Adams's avatar

Holy cow, this is all super frightening!!! Thanks for putting it all together like this. The thing that just kills me about all of this is the whole return to traditional values, and using religion/religious groups to get there. And sure, I get those groups naturally lean conservative, but the level of hypocrisy it requires, and from so many, to associate any of that hot garbage world view with Jesus!! I'm not even a religious girl, but I've read enough, and I understand quite clearly that this is NOT what Jesus would do.

And separately, why can't these losers just calm down? Cripes, if I had that kind of money, I would just want to chill out somewhere, enjoy myself. Make other people happy too. Spread some joy, instead of becoming literal comic book super villains. It's so much work!

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Astrid's avatar

Terrifying but succinct and easy to understand. I admit my husband and I did shake our heads and laugh at these admitted lord of the rings nerds pushing their twisted world-building agenda to the rest of us. Thank you for being my deep dive resource in my news diet Emily.

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Taylor Holstrom's avatar

I came her to share my appalled reaction to co-opting LOTR considering the message is extremely anti evil dictator 😅

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Rowe Carenen's avatar

Me too! Especially because the masculinity in LOTR is deeply vulnerable, compassionate, and sensitive. The literal opposite of what they are glorifying.

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Taylor Holstrom's avatar

Right!! And would they be siding with Sauron…. lol

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ElizaG's avatar

Thank you for putting it all down in one succinct post. One thing I’ve always found amazing is the number of mid-level people at tech companies that think they’re one step away from joining the broligarchy. Like they will support the most dangerous of policies because they feel like they’re a hop, skip, and jump away from being a billionaire. 🤦‍♀️

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Veronica's avatar

The egos the men have. I can’t imagine being so filthy rich and using it to actively make others lives worse and try to add another billion to my worth.

Thank you for this deep dive and well written work!

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Kristin Rogers's avatar

Well, that is frightening all tied together. Thank you for synthesising all of the crazy very real objectives of these technocrats. No one is coming to save us. Buckle up

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Susan Beebe's avatar

Oh Emily, how frightening! This sounds like an actual deep state not just the fictional one the Right has been ranting about for the past several years. As they project it they manifest it. I never really liked science fiction, probably because it all seems possible and not fictional at all. Thank you for warning us and informing us!

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Katie's avatar

It’s helpful to have this all written out and also terrifying. Holding on that I believe the greater good will ultimately overcome these bros. May take awhile! Their egos are their weakness. And also, as much as they think they’re the best, none of them can actually give birth to children. They don’t actually have medical degrees or know how women work. None of them have ever had a period! Women are tougher than they give us credit for!

Art, caregiving, creativity are also super powers and these dudes do not even give space for understanding the grey areas.

All is not lost and I appreciate that in this community we can look at all of this clear-eyed and problem solve together!

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Katie's avatar

This is the most terrifying thing I’ve read in a long time.

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kaydee's avatar

Great piece--insightful and sobering. The way the right is trying (and in many ways, succeeding) at rewriting the history of January 6th is a perfect example of how our current information ecosystem is so fragile and susceptible to manipulation.

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SarahM's avatar

I kept this article open to revisit when I could metabolize it more deeply. Hah! The craziness just keeps coming. What I wanted to comment on, before last week and my perspective was galvanized, is that it is immature/unintegrated/stunted/injured masculine energy that is the domineering, power hungry, self-centered, insecure, etc behavior we are seeing. Lo and behold look at the crew of 19 to 25 year olds dismantling systems. Masculinity, like femininity, is a collection of traits that complement each other ie Yin/Yang and reside in each of us. And, there is mature/integrated masculinity (ie Tim Walz) when one has integrated their feminine energy to care for, to nurture, AND empower others, using their active power to uplift. So a person who identifies as either gender has both masc and fem within them, and it's expressed uniquely and on a spectrum. No matter our identified gender, We get into trouble when we aren't mature, whole/healed, supported and have role models about what an emotionally mature person is like and how they navigate the world. An immature feminine presentation is a passive trad wife, or a Karen, who relies on proximity to and defers to masculine 'power'. Someone like Oprah is in touch with her heart and then uses the best of masc and fem energy to navigate the world. Right brain/Left brain. Heart/Head. We need both within ear person, evolved and intact. We truly have a bunch of immature men, very rich teenagers some who are still growing their executive functions, messing with gov computers. The broligarchs might be older, but they are psychologically stunted/wounded, reject the gifts of their inner feminine energy in seek of feeling some kind of power/wholeness that will never ever be satisfied.

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Anne E.'s avatar

Well said!

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Jeannie's avatar

Is this the advent of Make America Male Again (MAMA)?

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Meghan's avatar

The most important post-election article I have read.

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Maria Bertram's avatar

This is so well researched and written. It’s hard to keep track of all the connections between these people and their bizarre ideas. I think a key point here is that Trump is not the end game, he’s a pawn in a bigger strategy.

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