Friday, September 9, 2016

The Creed of Losers

What the Perpetually Aggrieved Mean by ‘Winning’
Excerpt: I couldn’t help but think about her when I heard from an enraged Trump supporter who was displeased with my characterization of Trump’s stance on immigration, i.e., that on this or any other issue he will say literally anything at any moment if he believes that it will advance his interests. The Trumpkin did not believe that I was wrong in that characterization, but that I am hypocritical: “What about you?” he demanded. “You don’t say whatever advances your interests?” It is the creed of losers everywhere: No one has any principles, no one tries to do the right thing. The implicit belief expressed by those sentences is the creed of losers everywhere: No one has any principles, no one tries to do the right thing, no one tries to uphold any standards of conduct — everyone is only in it to win, to get what he wants. It isn’t that the world does not provide some evidence supporting that view, but it also provides evidence for the contrary view. Bill Clinton was, so far as I can tell, the first American president who was actively admired for his dishonesty.

No comments:

Post a Comment