With all due respect, I find this view point to be pretty conceited and I found it rather ugly to read.
We’ve hit a lot of buzzwords here and the usual ‘talking down’ many europeans like to do to Americans, or liberals like to do to conservatives.
I find all this rather sneering and preening very dull because it doesn’t care to look at outcomes.
All of the Trump haters here have something in common, an over inflated opinion of themselves, a somewhat gleeful distain for people who don’t think like them and an inability to marry what they claim to care about, with reality.
Trump made more poor people better off than almost any democrat president or administration. If you care about the plight of such people, as the O’Briens of this world claim to, then what does the rest really matter?
Ooo he said a word you didn’t like, he’s racist, yet minorities were better under Trump. In fact more voted for him in the second run than in modern history. They must be soooo stupid. I mean that’s what you think right? How could anyone think otherwise, given you literally just implied it
So what does that make you? After you’ve done talking down to 350 million people. You’re the better man here?
You make an interesting point.
Society (mostly) regards material wealth as the principal measure of status and success. These perceptions are reinforced by the media in its reporting of news, film, TV, celebrity etc.
There are exceptions - those who take pleasure from contributing to the well being of others, for whom pursuit of the material seems shallow, who have reached a point in life's journey where health, relationships etc take priority. They are the minority.
But for many, continually challenged to afford the basics in life, it is easy to believe acquisition of the baubles will solve life's problems - cars, houses, clothes, jewellery etc. They also believe the perception by others of their status will be enhanced by the material.
Trump builds upon these aspirations - a vote for Trump will be an enabler of personal success. That it is ultimately shallow, may not deliver happiness, achieves its goals through denial of others, etc is not the point.
It is the philosophy of self interest in action - "make America great again" and "make me great". His popularity is no surprise - there is a clarity of intent many are very happy to endorse. That the ideology is simplistic and at its heart, unfair, is not a concern to his supporters.
Criticism will not change sentiment. His supporters need to be sold a better, more convincing, alternative future - one to which they will willingly switch support.
