Donald Trump Is One More Bullyboy in a World of Strongmen … Watching Donald Trump skulking behind Hillary Clinton on the debate stage Sunday night, muttering about locking her up if he wins, was a reminder that we are drifting toward a kind of bullyboy-world, where power is everything.  – RealClearPolitics/Washington Post

Populism has now been linked directly to tyranny as we can see from this above article. We have been reporting on the elite-generated “populism versus globalism” meme here and here.

We suspected there would be a further move and now it is taking place. If you are a political populist, you are also legislator to whom “power is everything.”

More:

You see this coarsening climate of relations around the globe, in the debasement of the norms that make civilized life possible.

Dictators push the limits of power in new ways almost daily: China brazenly builds military bases on disputed rocks and sand in the South China Sea and dares anyone to stop them;

Russia pillages America’s political system and baldly denies it, just as it denies connivance in the shoot-down of a civilian airliner over Ukraine and the bombing of a humanitarian aid convoy in Syria,

The leading bullyboy in this part of the world is North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un. His regime is a calculated act of defiance. He terrorizes his population, shoots his relatives and governs his nation as if by whim …

Dealing with the world’s bullies is complicated by having a wannabe member of the club running for president. How does the United States credibly reinforce the rules of behavior among nations when a leading U.S. presidential candidate proclaims his support for torture,religious discrimination, tax dodging and abusive sexual behavior?

Analyzing this sort of meme reveals the importance of understanding elite propaganda in this modern age.

The idea, as we have stated previously, is to compare and contrast globalism to populism. Globalism is to be presented as the preferred societal choice, but one that is under attack by short-sighted populist leaders and their followers.

The question for us was always how populism would be negatively portrayed and whether it would be aimed directly and decisively at Trump himself. This article gives us the answer by extending populism to include such people as North Korea’s Kim Jong-un.

In fact, we had our answer in September when Barack Obama gave a speech at the UN, which ABC reported under the headline, “Barack Obama hits out at ‘populist strongmen’ Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump in last UN address.”

Hard to get more obvious than that. Increasingly, therefore, populism will equate with tyranny whereas globalism will be portrayed as the enlightened choice of empathetic leaders. The sex-abuse attacks on Trump surely reinforce this meme.

Certainly there are many alarming points in this analysis, not the least of which is Donald Trump’s complicity – knowing or unknowing – in this latest positioning of propaganda.

When first announcing his presidency, Trump castigated Mexicans as criminals and rapists. He is now openly speaking about what the mainstream media describes as “conspiracy theories.”

Even now he is verbalizing conclusions rather than evidence and impelling narratives. More importantly he has already participated in two debates without bringing  up “conspiratorial” issues in a way that would include easily referenced, historical resources.

Of course, let us not be overly critical.  It is almost unfathomably difficult to do what Trump is doing, especially in a presidential race. He seems to have great courage. Assuming the credibility of what is taking place, Trump must be worried for himself and his family. In fact, he must have considerable doubts that he will complete a term if he manages to win.

Also, even referencing what’s going on is a service as people can use the Internet to find out more. Here’s another somewhat optimistic observation amidst the pessimism: In order to impose this meme, elites need justification. The passage of Brexit was one such – evidence of populism undermining globalism. It is intended  that the British will pay for their temerity.

Therefore another justification would be offered via victory by the “populist” strongman Donald Trump. (Every meme of this sort needs a thesis and antithesis in order to generate the approved synthesis.) The question would then become just how complicit Trump would be.

Time will tell how this meme is being applied and how it evolves. But the next step seems to have been taken. Populism is tyranny now and Trump is an incipient dictator, even though we should also recall that elite memes often work in reverse. (“Peace-keeping” is one that comes to mind.) Within this context it may well be that Hillary Clinton would take on the behaviors this meme predicts rather than Trump.

In any event, the world’s media and enlightened politicos will stand on the other side of the divide, beckoning people toward a renewed and more generous globalism that may even include debt forgiveness.

If you are aware of these trends please don’t be fooled by the rhetoric.  Ultimately modern politics makes little difference, though to be sure we would prefer Trump to Hillary.

But ultimately as wars draw closer and economies worldwide continue to be undermined in the service of additional globalism, you will have to take care of yourself and your family as best you can.

Conclusion: Seek to be as independent as possible from a monetary and survival standpoint. Your independence is your most important resource.