The Trumpian Civil War.

Trump is sure. There is not one person in the whole USA that is more sure. People who don’t know stuff are unsure and people who do know stuff are also unsure because that knowing includes the realisation there are many things one doesn’t know. That leaves Trump; totally 100% sure in a daunting world. He attracts people who want to be sure but don’t know stuff and haven’t realised there are many things they don’t know. He gives them cast iron surety without question or effort in finding out stuff. He is so sure he is above being challenged and his followers, in following his lead, also become beyond challenge. Any challenge that does occur is thus by definition false and must be expunged. Trump supporters have found the ultimate answer, surety, something we’d all like to find but can’t. We can’t for good reason. We either don’t know enough to be sure or know enough to realise it’s a false concept, one can never be 100% sure. But Trump has proved the immense attraction of feeling sure and the apparent success it can bring, apparent because he has not been at all successful in real world terms. His life has been a litany of failures and abuse. So the scene is set, the ‘sure’ against the majority unsure, but the ‘sure’ have the strength of surety on their side, a feeling they would rather die for than give up. I’m guessing Trump was a frightened youth brought up on high demands heavily policed emotionally, hence his highest fear as an adult is showing his fear and admitting failure. His followers love his fearlessness, which is merely his fear of showing any, and his success, which stems from his fear of admitting failure. So what to do? His followers will be angered by jokes at his and their expense and easily dismiss ‘false’ claims that run counter to their beliefs because they are in a similar state of fear. Difficult. ‘How does your fear give you strength?’ ‘You’re not alone.’ ‘ We are all afraid too.’ ‘Why does Donald looks afraid?’ ‘Would I wise to believe everything you say?’ Phrases like these don’t confront, they puzzle. They induce a question, ‘why are they saying that?’ and questions stimulate a need for an answer. They work in the mind of the listener when alone with no external pressure. Well that’s the best I can come up with.