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calimary

(80,700 posts)
65. Might be an innate sense of wanting to punish.
Sun May 27, 2012, 09:31 PM
May 2012

My mom even had a bit of this. She'd been terribly wronged when she was very young. And some things about her young adulthood weren't exactly peachy, either. She always seemed to lead with an unspoken compulsion to punish. Someone had to be punished for what she suffered through. Someone had to pay.

The punishing thing, the desire or the compulsion to punish, to rule by tyranny and not just to defeat but to draw blood from an opponent. That goes to the drive to dehumanize, demean, and diminish all those people and ideas and policies in ol' newty's nasty little book of black magic that taught the terminology and verbiage - framing and other psy-ops - for describing your side versus your opponent's side. That's how "liberal" became a dirty word. That's how taxes became so bad. That's how government was suddenly some ridiculous Mother Goose and Brothers Grimm monster to be avoided, defied, wiped out, and the ground salted underneath. I read an essay in and around here whose premise was how the Dems and GOP look at politics and the whole concept of bipartisanship completely differently. Our side values reason, compromise, give-and-take, various kinds of power-sharing in the service of solving problems and dealing with issues for the common good. Their side views compromise as a dirty word, and whose longterm mission is not to find ways to work together but to keep Democrats out of power permanently.

There's also something else that, it seems to me, also feeds into that intrinsic, seemingly instinctive urge to cause pain that I learned about in great depth while I was pregnant. If you just start reading and exploring and learning, you eventually stumble into the little cul-de-sac of the history of pain relief or lack thereof during labor and childbirth. Those utterly merciful epidurals and other professional-grade pain medications are a relatively new thing, only becoming standard operating procedure in the last century or so. How come? Because the prevailing opinion in the (mostly male) medical establishment and, of course, the Church, was that women should not be given or offered any relief from pain during labor and childbirth because women were SUPPOSED TO suffer. It was their birthright stemming from the Sin of Eve. The "Original Sin"! Seriously. Therefore, to compel women to struggle and suffer in labor and childbirth was somehow a God-sanctioned position because that was womankind's lot in life, because of Adam and Eve and the snake and all that, and how women simply were expected to pay for Eve's disobedience as her surrogates, by enduring the full hurricane blasts of agony like you get a LOT of during labor and childbirth.

And when that whole Dark Ages mentality began to evolve and that barbaric philosophy started to change, church officials, meddling moralists, and establishment conservative opposed it and fought it vigorously. I swear to you I saw this stuff while I was learning about my pregnancies! And it was stunning as all-get-out. I just could not fathom it, especially as a pregnant woman myself, back then.

Maybe it's where we get that "authoritarian father," or the "domineering father," or the "tough love" approach, while the mother is purportedly the softer, more malleable, more accomodating nurturer. It just seems to be this general Puritan, Inquisitional, narrow, imperious, authoritarian, punishing ethic that much of the world struggled with during the Dark Ages. Like an overall smog that settles over us that we have to keep breathing for awhile until we can finally get all the air cleared. Seems to me this whole sick, stunted, Troglodyte mindset stems from the "Original Sin" curse and the vigorously insisted-upon penance foisted upon you as an heir of Adam and Eve. It's a whole "you were born into sin until you're rescued in baptism" thing - in which you start out a loser and a sinner the instant you're down out of the chute and breathing on your own, in religious and socio-religious terms.

VERY odd and twisted way to explain and justify extremist shit. It's sociopath and psychopath stuff, seems to me. And it's all the sadder that it may have its roots in religion.

There is this woman at work TBA May 2012 #1
Wow, she is "out there". Poe's Law Populist_Prole May 2012 #32
That's not an unusual position NewJeffCT May 2012 #52
Correct on everything except "stab you and laugh" nxylas May 2012 #2
"There really is no educating conservatives at this point." obxhead May 2012 #3
Yep, that's the way lark May 2012 #104
Battered Wife Syndrome B Calm May 2012 #4
Too generous quaker bill May 2012 #9
It's the Democrats who have been given that label, though. Keep trying to work with the GOP beast, freshwest May 2012 #49
I also occasionally visit some other sites and I can confirm your diagnosis. Scuba May 2012 #5
When you read the right message boards, race, hate and stupidity all are tied for #1. sarcasmo May 2012 #6
Good stuff, I enjoy your writing style. JNelson6563 May 2012 #7
I was thinking abour how very accurately this describes a guy I know DFW May 2012 #8
I've seen that kind of behavior from conservatives Mariana May 2012 #22
good point KT2000 May 2012 #60
The guy worked for Spiro Agnew DFW May 2012 #87
Honestly, this is the way it has been for over 30 years NNN0LHI May 2012 #10
Bingo! SheilaT May 2012 #41
Spot on boomerbust May 2012 #11
Not quite, but very close. The Doctor. May 2012 #12
That is my opinion too, they are driven by peer pressure not logic. xtraxritical May 2012 #62
Unfortunately, what you say is the case. It may not have always been the case - at least not with Douglas Carpenter May 2012 #13
The word is "sociopathic." TahitiNut May 2012 #14
For the masses, you are right. For their leaders, you are wrong. Motown_Johnny May 2012 #15
Yep.The plan they have is sold and bought by Republican leaders who then sells it to the T_Pty. The Wielding Truth May 2012 #44
I disagree harris8 May 2012 #16
Yep, some folks have simply swallowed the propaganda hook, line, and sinker Martin Eden May 2012 #23
Propaganda is still illegal. Why is there no prosecution of FOX? The Wielding Truth May 2012 #45
What country are you posting from? former9thward May 2012 #93
I'm sure he is just as you say, but I'm just as sure that he is not representative Egalitarian Thug May 2012 #47
Excellent Discussion going on here... ewagner May 2012 #17
Exactamundo! Egalitarian Thug May 2012 #48
I try to remember that internet posters are not necessarily a representative sampling of maggiesfarmer May 2012 #18
I am so very glad that you've found DU MrScorpio May 2012 #19
Partly true, I suspect Prophet 451 May 2012 #20
"the Republican party scares them with blacks / gays / muslims," - so true. pampango May 2012 #21
I mostly agree. toddwv May 2012 #24
the problem with absolutes cocopuff May 2012 #25
Well.. I maintain that he is in essence, if not virtually correct. annabanana May 2012 #55
Many voting conservatives are too dumb to know that they are actually liberals. Gregorian May 2012 #26
Exactly! Ship of Fools May 2012 #86
I agree but my only question is this: jimlup May 2012 #27
For a case study; my mother (sorry, mom!) Scootaloo May 2012 #34
... Fumesucker May 2012 #28
so basically you mean hfojvt May 2012 #29
Gosh, you've got me! Scootaloo May 2012 #33
yep, when you're a Jet, you're a Jet for life hfojvt May 2012 #35
hfojvt, I have just one question Scootaloo May 2012 #36
nah, that could never happen hfojvt May 2012 #38
Yep. It's all slight of hand with them. Baitball Blogger May 2012 #30
The online contributors are probably the worst of the worst. Kablooie May 2012 #31
I never understood Republicans until I caught on to this point. pa28 May 2012 #37
I know that firsthand. GoCubsGo May 2012 #71
I know there are plenty of more damaging examples out there but I've seen it firsthand too. pa28 May 2012 #74
Martha had the last laugh. GoCubsGo May 2012 #88
The people at the top of the conservative movement really are that mean Lydia Leftcoast May 2012 #39
they "think" by stringing together memorized slogans TrogL May 2012 #76
You are 100% correct. proud2BlibKansan May 2012 #40
The price of freedom for us is Phlem May 2012 #42
Yes; but we need to ask why they're so angry MannyGoldstein May 2012 #43
No, you overestimate their understanding of the world. edcantor May 2012 #58
Perfect. Phlem May 2012 #61
I have been saying this for years Cosmocat May 2012 #46
Who called that picolo player a piano player...? kentuck May 2012 #50
I think of their hate as an opiate. RagAss May 2012 #51
We need to define "conservative" Stuart G May 2012 #53
Murdoch is "the corporate media" does that explain it for you? xtraxritical May 2012 #64
You have described my family to a "T" Generic Brad May 2012 #54
The hate of the baggers is not "new" the huge money supporting them is... Stuart G May 2012 #56
DING DING DING.. we have a winner! edcantor May 2012 #57
I agree with you except I would like to add something lunatica May 2012 #59
Spot On. Phlem May 2012 #63
That is truly wonderful! lunatica May 2012 #68
Thank you. Phlem May 2012 #99
Great post socratease May 2012 #97
Might be an innate sense of wanting to punish. calimary May 2012 #65
I have no idea why people have so little self-esteem Manifestor_of_Light May 2012 #80
good post treestar May 2012 #94
I really hope you are wrong. nt ZombieHorde May 2012 #66
Sadly, I've come to the same conclusion. nt Live and Learn May 2012 #67
As I have posted numerous times, Doctor_J May 2012 #69
Monsters from the Id ThoughtCriminal May 2012 #70
Monster from the Id socratease May 2012 #78
Extremist hatred is a displaced hatred used to deny their powerlessness. AdHocSolver May 2012 #72
CPD - Conservative Personality Disorder Kablooie May 2012 #73
The majority of the conservatives I know raouldukelives May 2012 #75
Worst Johnny2X2X May 2012 #77
Worst thread ever? I didn't even mention Olive Garden... Scootaloo May 2012 #84
Your picture indicates that things should never change socratease May 2012 #95
them what are you doing here Phlem May 2012 #90
The CPD question? cutroot May 2012 #79
Welcome to the club! Hawkowl May 2012 #81
Ridicule socratease May 2012 #91
Succinct. I view them as the last refuge of primate behaviors learned ten million years ago. byronius May 2012 #82
Well said - and for the most part, I agree with you. NRaleighLiberal May 2012 #83
The fools... socratease May 2012 #92
They are true believers dedicated to their cause and Democrats are too F-ing nice to them dinopipie May 2012 #85
kr warrior1 May 2012 #89
Some like inflicting pain..... ProudToBeBlueInRhody May 2012 #96
I've found most conservatives to be horribly afraid TrogL May 2012 #98
The Euphio Question cutroot May 2012 #100
They really are living in a bubble. B Calm May 2012 #101
Yet another one wakes up to the truth. Zalatix May 2012 #102
Your theory is only valid kctim May 2012 #103
You've been spending too much time on those "numerous right-wing websites" Nye Bevan May 2012 #105
Are you about to stab me? Just joking. byronius Apr 2015 #107
your last paragraph is an axiom of political organizing: yurbud May 2012 #106
Succinct and truth-ringy. byronius Apr 2015 #108
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