Why are Trump supporters so afraid of terrorism?

TraneWreck said:
Because it's a convenient way to express hatred and fear of brown people without saying, "I hate brown people."
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This sounds a little like a convenient way of saying I hate and fear those with different political opinions without saying, "I hate those with different political opinions."
 
Stacko said:
There's a reason Trump proposed the Muslim ban. To him and a significant number of his supporters Muslim = terrorist.
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To me, right wing xtian looks good for that charge!!! Of course, I prefer all terrorists to be captured, put in rockets to Mars - with doors that all open about 10,000 miles out from Earth and no space suits!!!
 
Disclaimer: Haven't read the thread in detail; someone's probably already said this.

I think it's not so much terrorism they're afraid of, as "others". People who don't look, think, or worship exactly like them. And it's not limited to Trump supporters. ISIS and their ilk are guilty of much the same thing.
 
phiwum said:
This sounds a little like a convenient way of saying I hate and fear those with different political opinions without saying, "I hate those with different political opinions."
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Nah, I grew up in Kansas. That's not the only reason, but it's a big one.

But fair enough, I do hate racists.
 
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Trebuchet said:
Disclaimer: Haven't read the thread in detail; someone's probably already said this.

I think it's not so much terrorism they're afraid of, as "others". People who don't look, think, or worship exactly like them. And it's not limited to Trump supporters. ISIS and their ilk are guilty of much the same thing.
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They do seem to share a lot of the same values of the others especially in regards to women.
 
Trebuchet said:
Disclaimer: Haven't read the thread in detail; someone's probably already said this.

I think it's not so much terrorism they're afraid of, as "others". People who don't look, think, or worship exactly like them. And it's not limited to Trump supporters. ISIS and their ilk are guilty of much the same thing.
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I wish you wouldn't say that.

You're right, of course, that fear of Islamic terrorism exceeds the danger. But there are many ways to explain this without racism or jingoism or religious bias. No single attack from dreadful ******** like McVeigh came within the effects of 9/11. We tend to exaggerate the danger from such dreadful attacks.

Oh, yes, some Trump supporters are racist and religiously bigoted, no doubt. How many is hard to say, but it's undeniable that some are. But that's not the whole reason behind the fear of Islamic terrorism. Even if we agree that some of the fear is irrational, we don't have to presume the worst of those exhibiting it.
 
The truly fun thing about the trumpf supporters of the lower economic/rural/rust and dirt belt end of the spectrum is they are gigantically more likely to be killed by a neighbor, an evangelical or other xtian fundy or other locals(druggies/bad seeds/environmentally poisoned enough to lose brain functions/bored kids) than by any Muslim. Multiple sets of statisticals strongly support/demonstrate that.
 
Argumemnon said:
That one group gets its way doesn't mean that they are more factually correct.
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Moderates can only get their way if their premise, that most people are decent, is correct. If it was incorrect they'd be flayed by the throngs of terrible people that would naturally prey on the naive.
 
Tony Stark said:
Most of them live in rural areas nobody cares about and aren't worth a terrorist even attacking. While the big cities like NYC that are the prime terrorist targets are overwhelmingly liberal.
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Jesus *********** Christ on a pogo stick.

Are you opposed to rural areas or just non-overwhelmingly liberal areas.
 
Tony Stark said:
I'm opposed to idiots/scum that voted for Trump.
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For goodness' sake, lots of us regret Trump's election, but dial it back a bit, Tony. Calling others garbage doesn't do a damned bit of good here.

Many Trump voters are basically decent folks. Yes, I think they made a terrible decision and a stupid choice, but they are also our fellow citizens and we've got to live together rather than presuming the worst in one another.

You're really not doing yourself any favors with this hateful attitude. Take a breath.
 
phiwum said:
For goodness' sake, lots of us regret Trump's election, but dial it back a bit, Tony. Calling others garbage doesn't do a damned bit of good here.

Many Trump voters are basically decent folks. Yes, I think they made a terrible decision and a stupid choice, but they are also our fellow citizens and we've got to live together rather than presuming the worst in one another.

You're really not doing yourself any favors with this hateful attitude. Take a breath.
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Yeah, some of them are just idiots. My post says that.
 
tyr_13 said:
You don't have to be an idiot to be conned.
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Tony Stark said:
You do if it is the most obvious conman ever.
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You both kinda have a point, but Tony, I mean this sincerely: your hateful attitude isn't helping.

It probably isn't hurting much either, because you and I are in a little backwater of the internet, but I would really encourage you to remember that those people who made this terrible decision are still our friends, neighbors and family, and treating them with gross hatred isn't helpful for anyone involved.

I'm sure I repeat myself here, but still, Tony, do think about the folks who were hornswaggled by the huckster. They aren't fundamentally bad or even stupid. They just got fooled, and we can fault them for that, but it's not worthwhile to hate or disparage them for that.
 
phiwum said:
You both kinda have a point, but Tony, I mean this sincerely: your hateful attitude isn't helping.

It probably isn't hurting much either, because you and I are in a little backwater of the internet, but I would really encourage you to remember that those people who made this terrible decision are still our friends, neighbors and family, and treating them with gross hatred isn't helpful for anyone involved.

I'm sure I repeat myself here, but still, Tony, do think about the folks who were hornswaggled by the huckster. They aren't fundamentally bad or even stupid. They just got fooled, and we can fault them for that, but it's not worthwhile to hate or disparage them for that.
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They're not my friends or family.
 
Tony Stark said:
They're not my friends or family.
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You might be surprised. Or else I might be surprised.

I talked to a guy a couple of months back, never would've guessed he went Trump. It was a little bit awkward as we each realized that I simply presumed this friend of mine would not vote for Trump. But no matter, he's my friend, and I'm sorry he did so, but in very blue MA, it mattered not one whit.

Another buddy re-registered as an independent instead of a Republican in very red OK. He voted for Trump nonetheless. This bothers me more. I was proud of his re-registration, sorry to see how he went.
 
phiwum said:
You might be surprised. Or else I might be surprised.

I talked to a guy a couple of months back, never would've guessed he went Trump. It was a little bit awkward as we each realized that I simply presumed this friend of mine would not vote for Trump. But no matter, he's my friend, and I'm sorry he did so, but in very blue MA, it mattered not one whit.

Another buddy re-registered as an independent instead of a Republican in very red OK. He voted for Trump nonetheless. This bothers me more. I was proud of his re-registration, sorry to see how he went.
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Well I guess it is possible that there are some I am unaware of. If I became aware, I would immediately think much less of them to the point I probably wouldn't even be friends with them.

I simply have no respect whatsoever for anyone that voted for Trump. Why would I be friends with someone I don't respect?
 
Tony Stark said:
Well I guess it is possible that there are some I am unaware of. If I became aware, I would immediately think much less of them to the point I probably wouldn't even be friends with them.

I simply have no respect whatsoever for anyone that voted for Trump. Why would I be friends with someone I don't respect?
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Because their political choices might matter less to you than the reason you value their friendship.

You might think they made a horrible choice. I think that of some of my friends and all of my parents and siblings. So it goes, sometimes, but my family are not human garbage. They're grossly misguided when it came to the last election. We can agree on that.
 
phiwum said:
Because their political choices might matter less to you than the reason you value their friendship.

You might think they made a horrible choice. I think that of some of my friends and all of my parents and siblings. So it goes, sometimes, but my family are not human garbage. They're grossly misguided when it came to the last election. We can agree on that.
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I can see why you wouldn't want to look down on your family. Luckily, I don't have that problem.

I think Trump supporters are, at best, so stupid that it is impossible for me to want to voluntarily associate with them.
 
Tony Stark said:
I can see why you wouldn't want to look down on your family. Luckily, I don't have that problem.

I think Trump supporters are, at best, so stupid that it is impossible for me to want to voluntarily associate with them.
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Good luck. Almost certainly, some of your neighbors voted for Trump. I live in a quite blue area of a quite blue state, and I know that some of my neighbors voted for Trump. And when I go to the less blue parts of MA, like the Cape, even more did so.

I'd like to get along with them. And I doubt you're in a bluer area than me, since there aren't many.
 
phiwum said:
Good luck. Almost certainly, some of your neighbors voted for Trump. I live in a quite blue area of a quite blue state, and I know that some of my neighbors voted for Trump. And when I go to the less blue parts of MA, like the Cape, even more did so.

I'd like to get along with them. And I doubt you're in a bluer area than me, since there aren't many.
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I'm sure plenty of my neighbors voted for Trump. But I don't really talk to them much anyway.
 
A common trait in Trump supporters seems to be a sense of victimization, of not being in control and blaming others for their misfortune.
And Trump is of course the crybaby in-Chief, the archetype of the "everything good in my life it due to my hard work, everything bad is the fault of others" mentality.

Feeling victimized by terrorists on principle, even if you are not ever dirctely affected b them, is just staying in character.
 
The terrorists will continue to target urban areas and kill mostly liberals. Conservatives will continue to be concerned about terrorism, and liberals will find some way to convince themselves that this is just another example of how hate-filled Republicans are.
 
Bikewer said:
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I listened to interviews with voters from Montana who were contemplating a law prohibiting "Sharia Law"..... These people seemed genuinely fearful of Muslims taking over their state

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Most of them being the same ones who would unreservedly welcome equally repressive "Christian Law" with mostly the same goals and strictures.

It isn't the what, it's the who.
 
dudalb said:
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But IMHO if some progressives are trying to just brush away the issue of Islamic Terrorism it is not going to work.

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Only progressives aren't doing that. They are pointing out that Islamic fundamentalism is not the only threat. Christian fundamentalism is a threat as well.

And it is right here with us, all the time. In numbers which dwarf any threats from mad Islamic jihadists. In churches right down on our street corners, preaching the fire and brimstone, egging on their congregations.

The conservatives who want to ignore and deny that are the ones doing the brushing away.
 
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phiwum said:
For goodness' sake, lots of us regret Trump's election, but dial it back a bit, Tony. Calling others garbage doesn't do a damned bit of good here.

Many Trump voters are basically decent folks. Yes, I think they made a terrible decision and a stupid choice, but they are also our fellow citizens and we've got to live together rather than presuming the worst in one another.

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There is no need to presume.

Trump wasn't particularly cagey about what he believed and what he said he was going to do. His appeals to bigotry and xenophobia were blatant and utterly straightforward.

The key word is "decision". They decided that they wanted to give their support to someone whose values crystallized that bigotry and xenophobia.

It was a choice. Their choice. They made it, now they can own it.

When they start expressing their shame and regret, and acting in a manner which demonstrates that they really mean it ... then I might consider revising my opinion of their moral and ethical bankruptcy. That they are fundamentally repugnant.

You say perhaps not irredeemably so.

I'll wait and see. Show me.

Until they do I am compelled to accept that they got what they wanted.

I regret that I have to live among them, but I certainly don't have to live with them or condone and try to excuse their actions.
 
phiwum said:
Because their political choices might matter less to you than the reason you value their friendship.
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In general, I think it's the sort of choices someone makes which is the basis of most friendships.

You might think they made a horrible choice. I think that of some of my friends and all of my parents and siblings. So it goes, sometimes, but my family are not human garbage. They're grossly misguided when it came to the last election. We can agree on that.
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They were "misguided" the last time?

If they knew then what they know now, would they have chosen differently?

Knowing what they know now, will they chose differently the next time?

If not, then how they were "guided" isn't the problem. Their core beliefs are.
 
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Brainster said:
The terrorists will continue to target urban areas and kill mostly liberals. Conservatives will continue to be concerned about Islamic terrorism while ignoring or dismissing any other religious terrorism, and liberals will find some way to convince themselves continue to recognize the simple fact that this is just another example of how hate-filled Republicans are.
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FTFY.
 
blutoski said:
This is more than just conjecture. There's an established physiological model that suggests conservativism is positively correlated with - and therefore possibly an effect of - visceral responses to fear and disgust.
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That seems obvious just in the name, "conservatism". Mind you, conservatives could make the argument that liberals positively correlate with emotions exactly opposed to those -- compassion and pity taken too far. People are emotional all around.
 
Kestrel said:
Driving home a couple of days after 9/11 I heard small town radio stations talk about things like guarding the county courthouse and keeping the high school football game on Friday safe from terrorists. :eek:

In some rural areas that fear seems to have morphed over the years into a fear of all Muslims. Urban dwellers are more likely to interact with Muslims and understand that Islamic terrorists are a tiny minority of all who practice that faith.
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While in the rural areas they know that the white nationalists who are the bulk of american domestic terrorist, makes it easy to relate to them and ignore their attacks, after all they don't target real Americans. Just government workers and minorities.
 
ponderingturtle said:
While in the rural areas they know that the white nationalists who are the bulk of american domestic terrorist, makes it easy to relate to them and ignore their attacks, after all they don't target real Americans. Just government workers and minorities.
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Yep, extremistly true!!!!!
 
fuelair said:
The truly fun thing about the trumpf supporters of the lower economic/rural/rust and dirt belt end of the spectrum is they are gigantically more likely to be killed by a neighbor, an evangelical or other xtian fundy or other locals(druggies/bad seeds/environmentally poisoned enough to lose brain functions/bored kids) than by any Muslim. Multiple sets of statisticals strongly support/demonstrate that.
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They are also more likely to be killed by lightning or a meteor strike.
 
ponderingturtle said:
While in the rural areas they know that the white nationalists who are the bulk of american domestic terrorist, makes it easy to relate to them and ignore their attacks, after all they don't target real Americans. Just government workers and minorities.
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Well, that's the core of the problem. The white nationalists are their friends and neighbors, and while they may be more extreme than the bulk of the population, their distrust and hatred of anyone who isn't a white, working-class Christian is a matter of degree more often than kind. The prevailing attitude is "Well, I may not agree with killin' folks or such violent methods, but those invasive liberal government types definitely needed to be put in their place". The difference in their mind is that the white supremacist terrorist are like them, understandable to them, even if they are taking things too far. By contrast, Muslim terrorists are completely alien, different skin, different origin, different religion, and anyone resembling the terrorists must have some sort of association or empathy with them, like the rural white majority has with the white supremacists and anti-government militias.
 
Tony Stark said:
Most of them live in rural areas nobody cares about and aren't worth a terrorist even attacking. While the big cities like NYC that are the prime terrorist targets are overwhelmingly liberal.
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I wonder how many of the Trump supporters who are afraid of muslim terrorism also believe at the same time there really is no muslim terrorism, just government false flags...
 
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