Victim Envy

January 16, 2017

Looking forward from here, the sixty-ninth day since the election, we see inauguration day bearing down on us like a Russian ICBM. But in this case, upon striking DC, most the damage will occur outside the blast radius. Political weapons differ from conventional in that we frequently aim them at ourselves expecting to only hurt others.

Woke up this morning to another “Understanding the Trump Voter” story on the morning news. (Got to stop turning on the TV before taking my blood pressure meds.) Once again, I was treated to a bunch of white folks sharing their stories about feeling left out, about how tough things are and about how they liked Trump’s aggressiveness. (Though, an aggressive Hillary was not to their liking one bit.)

They bemoaned that, African-Americans had advocates, Latinos and Gays too. But, what about the red white and blue collared real Americans? They’re the real victims here and envy the victim related benefits of others.

So, they voted for the guy most likely to take stuff away from those other people. Thinking, I guess, that whatever he took away from other “victims” would be redirected to them? Hilarious!

They also believed the Donald would somehow bring back the post World War Two manufacturing economy, because he said so. But, those same citizens just couldn’t believe Trump is a racist or misogynist – just because he said so. (Wow, I haven’t experienced thought that complex or nuanced since I gave up drinking in biker bars.)

The very best victim is, of course, the Donald himself. For instance, when, Trump supporter, Dr. Jan Halper-Hayes announced, “Trump’s a ‘Pig,’ But so are many other men.” She was actually revealing how the Donald was a victim – being held to a higher standard than other men. (Sad.)

Rant alert:
Doctor Halper-Hayes, while I appreciate your studied generalizations regarding my gender, I must disagree with your base premise. Given my sixty-eight years of field research, I find the notion “Many men are pigs” grossly incorrect. I’m gonna break protocol here and share some inside info – all men are pigs. The thing is, most of us, having benefited from socialization, have learned the difference between impulse and behavior. Just not your guy.
Rant end

The republic, limited by both riches and attention span, entertains a new victim class, limited only by self-interest.

In peace and Justice,
osv