[sublinear]

The "realpolitik" is in fact, and almost by definition, not online.

I think a ton of people didn't get the memo during the first Trump term, and are still baffled by it during his second one.

Republicans have never used the media like the Democrats. Conservative values change very slowly and are disseminated through institutions like the military, religion, etc. Trump has taken it to the next level by only ever using the internet to troll the chronically online and anyone else out of the loop. That's radio discipline.

[rcxdude]

Nah, this is giving him far too much credit. I've read many a theory about how this or that thing that has been said is just a ruse or a troll and the real plan makes so much more sense and his actions have done nothing to demonstrate that.

[tsumnia]

I responded with a few theories about the attention economy here [1]. Not trying to troll, though I get what you're saying there too.

[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47668439

[sublinear]

I've also heard what you're saying before and I'm equally confused by this take.

I'm not saying the Republicans keep their plans secret. The brutal simplicity is the main appeal for Republican voters. They emphatically don't want discussion. They want action. There's nothing to pick apart or analyze, and that's the point. It's hard to argue with someone waving a big stick.

Here's a quote from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoconservatism

> Jonathan Clarke, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs and prominent critic of Neoconservatism, proposed the following as the "main characteristics of neoconservatism": "a tendency to see the world in binary good/evil terms", a "low tolerance for diplomacy", a "readiness to use military force", an "emphasis on US unilateral action", a "disdain for multilateral organizations" and a "focus on the Middle East".

This is the same game plan since the 1970s. If you want to hear any debate about it, you're gonna have to go that far back. Nobody in today's Republican party is ever going to entertain or reiterate any of this because it will just make them look weak to voters.

Worth a watch (the Chomsky episode of Firing Line): https://youtube.com/watch?v=9DvmLMUfGss

[rcxdude]

OK, then what's the ruse that's got the online people so distracted? Because what you've linked tends to be what people are getting angry about (I mean, there's other things as well, but this is the latest one). Like, the main thing is that there's lot's of action, pretty much none of it actually making much sense.

[sublinear]

> what's the ruse that's got the online people so distracted

Now you may understand why the Republicans are constantly and loudly asking that same question and insisting that all of social media is hoaxes/conspiracies/lies.

I know these answers all seem so simple and convenient, but they're just plain true. Take it for what it is.

> none of it actually making much sense

I think you just disagree with how little depth there is to this, and while that's understandable, I wouldn't go as far as saying it doesn't make sense.

[jojomodding]

Given that religions are losing members, especially the youth, and that the most people do not join the military, what will keep disseminating the ideas in the future?

[sublinear]

For now, the neoconservatives are running the Republican party. They also have a pretty clear game plan that doesn't require constant chatter. I am just stating where the values originate, and of course things can get murky over time without stronger leadership.

The equivalent question for the Democrat party would be where they expect to find new leaders when their voter base is increasingly antisocial and doesn't believe in higher education.