What did you think of Bonhoeffer’s Theory of Stupidity? I thought his idea that nothing can be changed from within was disheartening. Bonhoeffer’s hope to bring about change was the victory of the Allied armies over Hitler. Unfortunately, he never saw that happen because he was executed just a couple of weeks before his camp was liberated.
Our country is in grave danger because one party has been turned into a cult. I don’t think anyone foresaw it or actively worked for it to happen. President Trump’s personality has made it happen. He didn’t plot to do it. His personality was created by past events as ours are also created. They are events which events neither he nor I nor even you have control over. It’s usually our parents who have the most decisive influence in shaping our personality. For our purposes here, we do not need to point the finger at anyone in his family to explain his narcissistic personality.
Marion Webster defines a narcissist as “an extremely self-centered person who has an exaggerated sense of self-importance.” It is the reason that President Trump could not believe he lost the election. He had to create a fiction, “the big steal,” because he knew he could not fail in his mind. Trump knew in his mind he was too important to lose the election. Trump can’t understand that he lost the election. How could he? He’s too important! Because Trump firmly believes he couldn’t lose the election, his speeches and comments have the ring of truth in them. Trump supporters believe him because of that fact.
That shouldn’t sound strange. We have all believed in something that we later learned was untrue. How about two examples? How about Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy? They are indeed innocent childhood beliefs. We also have some innocent adult beliefs; I have a friend who believes that the 1960 Corvette is the best design and the best Corvette ever produced. My friend’s opinion about the 1960 Corvette can provoke discussion among Corvette enthusiasts but generally cannot cause any harm.
On the other hand, President Trump’s belief that the election was stolen from him is dangerous to this country and its democratic traditions. President Trump’s belief is conveyed so powerfully by him that his supporters also believe it’s true. That is where the danger lies. If you believe the election was stolen, you will attempt to prevent it from happening in the future. You will pass strict voting laws and other measures in an attempt to prevent it from happening again. You will also see any legislation passed as illegitimate because the election was “stolen.”
You will want to undo all these illegitimate laws. You will want to take every possible action to delegitimize President Biden. After all, President Biden stole the election. He must be stopped.
I’m afraid I see the only solution to this problem as Bonhoeffer did in the 1940s. It will take an outside force to save us! Unfortunately, I don’t know what that outside force would look like. Do you?
