I think the roseanne situation illustrates just how ensconced in their alternate reality these propaganda-brainwashed nutjobs are. They really think that it’s reality, and they don’t understand that people in real reality see them as profoundly ignorant. I mean, if their “reality” was real, why would anybody be upset when they tweeted about what, in their world, is true?
In their “reality,” comparing black people to apes is de rigueur. Believing in wacky conspiracy theories is normal. These things aren’t questioned in their “reality,” they’re applauded. How many times do you think roseanne has seen a tweet or an article in the right-wing nut-o-sphere that was vile and racist and yet was ignored by the mainstream (because it was from some nobody) and was met with nothing but support from similar-minded people? She probably thought, “yeah, this will get some LOLs and some retweets, just like I always see these things get.” Not understanding that there is a real world out there that she is a part of and where these things don’t fly.
When roseanne’s character on the show was a trump supporter, that caused a lot of conversation and an increase in viewership. But it didn’t really come with any condemnation. And why would it? You can vote for whoever you want. But I think she misunderstood this lack of condemnation for her being a trump supporter for a lack of condemnation for being the other things that frequently come with being a trump supporter. Like being ignorant and a racist and a conspiracy theorist and being ensconced in an alternate reality.
These people don’t just think they’re normal, they think they’re righteous and strong. And the reason that they think they’re righteous and strong is that, in their alternate reality, they are. And the reason that, in their alternate reality, they’re righteous and strong is brainwashing by right-wing media.
And that’s part of the reason why right-wing propaganda has such a strong hold on them and why they’re so reluctant to let go of their support for trump. For them to let go of their alternate reality, they have to go from being righteous and strong to admitting that they have no strength and are of low virtue and that they’ve been ignorant all this time. That’s quite a fall to take. Right-wing propagandists have them right where they want them, and they’re not letting go without a fight.[/quote]
