Pretty simple, really - when none of the news of the past new two years moves the needle -

[NRaleighLiberal]

when a completely ineffectual and ignorant person as a "leader" maintains his adherents and sycophants no matter what horrible, inhumane thing they do - it is a cult.

And we all know who runs the leader of the cult.

The brainwashing - hijacking - of so much of our country - and essentially an entire political party - shows the power of brainwashing and propaganda - and money, of course.

It is plain as day what is going on and we can take a good stab at how it happens and who is calling the shots.

The key question of course - how to stop this, how to reverse course back to sanity and decency before it is too late.

But if I think of this as a huge scale Heavens Gate or Branch Davidian type of thing (without the suicide pact....yet?) - that gets us toward what madness is unfolding before our eyes.

[Trust Buster]

1. I disagree. The problem is his base. The con man just played to their instinctual insecurities.

His base will not leave him because there whole self worth is on the line. He told them that all of their problems are the responsibility of others. They have been waiting their whole lives to hear that. In that sense, Don the Con merely played to his base’ OWN decades worth of self-brainwashing.

[NRaleighLiberal]

4. His base is the cult.

[ginnyinWI]

2. Yes it is.

It's been said before, and when you watch video of his followers you can see it. They have signed on to him and nothing is going to put them off. It's so easy that way--you don't have to think. Just maintain your blind faith and listen to your own RW media which will explain away anything that might look wrong or out of place in the Dear Leader.

And it's pie in the sky for most of them: you don't see much benefit now, but it's coming, it's coming...

[rainin]

3. We knew it even if we didn't want to believe it back during the campaign.

We live in two different worlds - republicans and democrats. Our sources of news are so different, we'll never agree on what we're seeing. It's as plain as if they showed one group a purple image and the other group a green image.

I live with a trump supporter who watches fox all day. I remember 15 years ago trying to talk to her about climate change and the Iraq war. She was completely in line with fox and rush limbaugh then.

We are on a path of destruction with these propaganda outlets. They are responsible for censoring what they think is too objectionable about trumps conduct (as well as anything positive about democrats) and working with trump to amplify his message so he looks like a victim who is working hard for the little people.

To turn this around, we have to go after the propaganda.

For a lesson from history, look at the Rwanda conflict where the media inciting neighbors to take machetes and kill their neighbors after calling them roaches (dehumanizing them).

[Cracklin Charlie]

5. Somebody reach up there and thump that gauge...

That needle may be stuck.

May not be readin’ true.

[2naSalit]

6. Jonesville...nt

[NRaleighLiberal]

7. Yes.

[murielm99]

8. Jonestown.

[2naSalit]

9. Thank you!!!

I wasn't sure if I had it right.

[murielm99]

10. I lost a friend there.

I have a lot of trouble with the expression "drinking the kool-aid."

[ProfessorGAC]

11. Especially Since. . .

. . .most of those people were forced at gunpoint to drink the stuff. It wasn't that much of a choice for many of them.

[2naSalit]

12. The

idiot's base will come to a similar end I suspect if he gets his way.