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Tribal Authoritarianism In The Age Of Trump And What It Means To Democracy Printer friendly page Print This
By Dallas Darling
Submitted by Author
Wednesday, Sep 19, 2018

Whether or not the rise of nationalism and the “strengthening” of the Republican Party in the Age of Trump is a sign of tribal authoritarianism, genetics just revealed some very interesting buried secrets. Scientists have now put forward a new theory about our human ancestors and its more brutal than we first thought. Called the “Neolithic Y Chromosome bottleneck,” men killed most of their peers and rival clans off.(1)

For those who think we’ve left this kind of tribal authoritarianism behind, it gets more interesting. Since fathers passed their Y chromosome on to their sons, there’s evidence that entire tribes must have been exterminated over wide areas. Given that the world population was estimated to have been between five and 20 million people, to leave such a stark genetic imprint behind meant that up to as many as 9.5 men must have been killed.

Cleansing The Democratic Party
Is our stone-age past in the midst of another revival, at least among some dominant male-transmitted genes? As Donald Trump attracts millions of followers it would seem so. Many Republicans have moreover pledged allegiance to his tribal instincts and brand of authoritarianism to the point that he’s become the GOP. Meanwhile, he’s the type of leader who insists on running the show and enjoys having power and control over others.

He and his followers’ tribal instincts would also like nothing more than to crush and destroy the Democratic Party. This would include the legacies of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, even Bill Clinton. Though a strong group identity promotes a sense of difference and competition - necessary for survival - it can lead to genocide of nearby tribes. Evidently, this occurred 5,000 to 7,000 years ago when carnage consumed the world.

Politicizing Power Equals New Social Orders
Tribal authoritarianism was also a way to politicize resources and power. The presence of group competition and violence meant more resources for those who survived. Since wiping out a clan would wipe out their unique Y chromosome markers, victorious tribes would expand to fill the power vacuum. With a leader like Donald Trump who sees the world as a jungle, this is exactly what Republicans would like to do to Democrats.

Leaders with tribal authoritarian instincts, flanked by their followers, want nothing more than to establish a new social order as well. For Donald Trump and the GOP, this means getting rid of left-wing ideas like the Affordable Healthcare Care Act, education and social welfare programs, minimum wage laws, Medicare and Medicaid, and even Social Security. They want to destroy socialism too, marginalization being the new norm.

Impossibility Of Complete Equality
Donald Trump and his followers also see complete equality as an impossibility. It’s the natural forces which inevitably govern the worth of individuals. This, despite class privilege, large inheritances, or the degree of good and bad breaks. In the end, people’s rights consist of earning their place in society no matter where -or how- they begin. Meanwhile, right and wrong can often boil down to “What you can get away with.”

Donald Trump may not have physically passed on his Y chromosome to the Republican Party’s lineage, but he’s passed it down politically. The fact that so many choose to live in ways that narrow the nation and public good to a very limited set of others, and define them as threatening to their way of life and values, is deeply worrying. Some even say this kind of tribal authoritarianism is downright scary  and a major threat to democracy.

Democracy No Indication Of Preventing Democide
Although a new CNN Poll showed that the president’s approval rating has fallen six percentage points, with 58 registering their disapproval and only 36 percent approving, it doesn’t mean that Donald Trump’s brand of tribal authoritarianism will be defeated in Midterm election-let alone in 2020. To be sure, his tribal core will always vote for him. As for Democrats, it depends on voter turnout to prevent a near partycide and democide.

But some question just how democratic a two-political party system is. The U.S. is unusual among modern democracies in its exclusive political system to allow alternative and new ideas to be expressed. Others warn America’s already on the path of democide - the complete and utter destruction of democracy. Both are concerned about indoctrination as exercised through the mass media and a majority of eligible voters who never vote.

Meaningful Democracy Anyone?
Though Stanford scientists are calling their findings a theory, brutal tribal cleansings in the past did occur. They can occur again. Today, some point to Donald Trump and his followers’ attacks on opponents, independent sources of information, investigative journalists and whistleblowers. In the Age of “Survival of the Presidency,” they also warn you can’t have a meaningful democracy without transparency and differing viewpoints.



Dallas Darling is the author of Politics 501: An A-Z Reading on Conscientious Political Thought and Action, Some Nations Above God: 52 Weekly Reflections On Modern-Day Imperialism, Militarism, And Consumerism in the Context of John’s Apocalyptic Vision, and The Other Side Of Christianity: Reflections on Faith, Politics, Spirituality, History, and Peace. He is a correspondent for www.WN.com. You can read more of Dallas’ writings at www.beverlydarling.com and  www.WN.com/dallasdarling.

(1) www.news.com. “Men Nearly Caused Human Extinction 7,000 Years Ago,” by Jamie Seidal. June 17, 2018.


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