Babbling Brooks

Submitted by konondrum on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 3:26pm

Why Sanders Will Probably Win the Nomination

David Brooks might be on to something here. Let's take a look:

For example, if you look at Mike Bloomberg through a certain lens you see a successful entrepreneur who took his management skills into public service and then started giving his wealth away to reduce gun violence and climate change. If, on the other hand, you look at Bloomberg through the Bernie lens you see a rapacious billionaire who amassed a gross amount of wealth, who became an authoritarian mayor and targeted young black men and then tried to buy his way to power.

Same person through different lenses.

Okay, so you have a lens of objectivity, and one of hagiography. Seems like an odd choice of lenses, but where's he going with this?

In the gathering myth, the heroes have traits Trump and Sanders lack: open-mindedness, flexibility, listening skills, team-building skills and basic human warmth. In this saga, leaders are measured by their ability to expand relationships, not wall them off.

The gathering myth is an alternative myth — one that has the advantage of being true.

Okay, now we're on to something. So it's not a rational lens, or an openly disingenuous lens... some kind of other option. Like if you came to a fork in the road, and there was a third path, in between..... what would you call that?

I'm sure there's an army of eager Marketing people down on K street, ready to come up with a jazzy name.

EDIT I changed the title of this piece. I think it's a better fit for the tone of the article. I hope no one minds.

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Comments

Submitted by edg on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 3:46pm

If I came to a fork in the road...

I'd look for a knife. As Bernie learned when Liz Warren stuck a knife in his back and twisted it, there are no friends in politics, only temporary alliances. The long knives are out. Bernie must keep watching his back.

Submitted by polkageist on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 4:00pm

Once again David Brooks shows how absurd he is.

He really believes all the corporate tools have "open-mindedness, flexibility, listening skills, team-building skills and basic human warmth?" What a waste of an education. I have always seen Brooks as the quintessential academic apologist for greed. He just proved it.

—

-Greed is not a virtue.
-Socialism: the radical idea of sharing.
-Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.
John F. Kennedy, In a speech at the White House, 1962

Submitted by Pluto's Republic on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 4:06pm

I predict:

We're going to cross an ocean of nervous breakdowns before this journey ends.

Submitted by konondrum on Sat, 02/22/2020 - 4:53pm

Maybe today even...

@Pluto's Republic

Submitted by boriscleto on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 5:19pm

David Brooks

David Brooks Only Enjoys The Farts Of His Equals

—

" In the beginning, the universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry, and is generally considered to have been a bad move. -- Douglas Adams, The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy "

Submitted by snoopydawg on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 5:28pm

Where's the myth?

Bernie Sanders is also telling a successful myth: The corporate and Wall Street elites are rapacious monsters who hoard the nation’s wealth and oppress working families. This is not an original myth, either. It’s been around since the class-conflict agitators of 1848. It is also a very compelling us vs. them worldview that resonates with a lot of people.

Anyone who is being honest with themselves can see that the economy has been rigged for the rich against the rest of us.

When you’re inside the Sanders myth, you see the world through the Bernie lens.

For example, if you look at Mike Bloomberg through a certain lens you see a successful entrepreneur who took his management skills into public service and then started giving his wealth away to reduce gun violence and climate change. If, on the other hand, you look at Bloomberg through the Bernie lens you see a rapacious billionaire who amassed a gross amount of wealth, who became an authoritarian mayor and targeted young black men and then tried to buy his way to power.

Same person through different lenses.

What an silly thing to say. Sure Bloomberg might have started out with not much money, but as he got richer he started getting more breaks from congress. And nothing like belittling the people who were affected by stop and frisk or had their lives ruined by it. Yeah I think that only because Bloomberg is rich. Idiotic fits better don't you think?

Warren was a devastatingly effective surrogate for Sanders, but she reinforced his worldview rather than establishing one of her own.

Groan. Warren was about identity politics then. She didn't take Bernie's views on Mike's wealth, she attacked him for being mean to women. You know..jokes.

Everywhere I go I see systems that are struggling — school systems, housing systems, family structures, neighborhoods trying to bridge diversity. These problems aren’t caused by some group of intentionally evil people. They exist because living through a time of economic, technological, demographic and cultural transition is hard. Creating social trust across diversity is hard.

This makes his opinion seem very hypocritical. IMO. But then it's Brock.

Submitted by Le Frog on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 6:24pm

"Devastatingly effective" surrogate?

@snoopydawg must have been another surrogate named Elizabeth Warren and not the one currently running. I remember her being devastatingly effective for Omnishambles Clinton though.

@konondrum, did I read correctly in another post that you are Canadian? My people! Hi from the Ottawa area!

Bernie Sanders is also telling a successful myth: The corporate and Wall Street elites are rapacious monsters who hoard the nation’s wealth and oppress working families. This is not an original myth, either. It’s been around since the class-conflict agitators of 1848. It is also a very compelling us vs. them worldview that resonates with a lot of people. Anyone who is being honest with themselves can see that the economy has been rigged for the rich against the rest of us. When you’re inside the Sanders myth, you see the world through the Bernie lens. For example, if you look at Mike Bloomberg through a certain lens you see a successful entrepreneur who took his management skills into public service and then started giving his wealth away to reduce gun violence and climate change. If, on the other hand, you look at Bloomberg through the Bernie lens you see a rapacious billionaire who amassed a gross amount of wealth, who became an authoritarian mayor and targeted young black men and then tried to buy his way to power. Same person through different lenses. What an silly thing to say. Sure Bloomberg might have started out with not much money, but as he got richer he started getting more breaks from congress. And nothing like belittling the people who were affected by stop and frisk or had their lives ruined by it. Yeah I think that only because Bloomberg is rich. Idiotic fits better don't you think? Warren was a devastatingly effective surrogate for Sanders, but she reinforced his worldview rather than establishing one of her own. Groan. Warren was about identity politics then. She didn't take Bernie's views on Mike's wealth, she attacked him for being mean to women. You know..jokes. Everywhere I go I see systems that are struggling — school systems, housing systems, family structures, neighborhoods trying to bridge diversity. These problems aren’t caused by some group of intentionally evil people. They exist because living through a time of economic, technological, demographic and cultural transition is hard. Creating social trust across diversity is hard. This makes his opinion seem very hypocritical. IMO. But then it's Brock.

Submitted by konondrum on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 6:30pm

Born in Manitoba

@Le Frog to a couple from Wisconsin. I used to be fluent in French, but I'm definitely an American at this point.

Submitted by Bollox Ref on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 9:08pm

I thought Brooks was an obsolete AI program

I didn't realize it was still 'functioning'.

—

Gëzuar!!
from a reasonably stable genius.

Submitted by janis b on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 9:16pm

Resurrected from the dead,

@Bollox Ref

in time to spew garbage again.

I hoped never to read his voice again. I hope it doesn’t last. He's awful.

Submitted by konondrum on Sat, 02/22/2020 - 2:39pm

Would it offend you too much

@janis b if I started a regular column here?

EDIT In retrospect this should have been the title of the diary.

Submitted by janis b on Sat, 02/22/2020 - 3:39pm

Not at all,

@konondrum

but if you do, I don't think you should include such pretty pictures ; ).

Submitted by PriceRip on Sat, 02/22/2020 - 6:13pm

A regular column

@konondrum

would be great, as long as you maintain the quality.

RIP

Submitted by Fishtroller 02 on Sat, 02/22/2020 - 9:51am

I usually find Brooks vapid and silly, but harmless.

However, last night he brought up something that I totally agree with...

He questioned the narrative that the Russians are skewing our elections. He said that as a citizen, he wants to know exactly what they are doing and how to look for it online, and that the intelligence agencies are not providing that information.

After he said that, Mark Shields laid into Bernie in a big way. I wanted to throw something at Shields. What a tool for the DNC!

—

"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin