Now, for the record, I haven't said anything about James Talarico: the only mentions of him here have come from Texan99, who is as advertised a Texan and whose business this candidacy therefore is. If I were to say something about him, it would be to question not his manhood but his theology; not his testosterone but his sense. However, it is true that some folks like Colonel Kurt* have mixed those critiques.
In Texas, they picked a white male Democrat who makes Tim Walz look like Sylvester Stallone—he’d be particularly excited about the getting oiled-up part. James Talarico could be kindly called gender ambiguous, but there’s no real ambiguity. He’s a male in the way that Boone’s Farm is a wine.Talarico, of course, also allowed them to try the Christian grift. They know about as much about Jesus followers as they do about dudes. It was kind of hilarious how they were completely blind to the fact that all his stuff about Jesus is heretical blasphemy. It was beyond their comprehension that there might be different kinds of Christians—in this case, Christians who are Christian as opposed to pseudo-Christians who subscribe to whatever kind of Unitarian pinko baloney this little demon spews. The fact that he thinks meat is murder doesn’t help, and until Graham Platner’s latest revelations, Talarico’s laughable attempts to convince us that he was down with a hot Latina chick—she was not hot and there was no way they were down to anything—were the funniest meme in American politics.
I think the good colonel is on stronger ground in his criticism of the choice of Platner, to whit, that their view of men is so toxic that his own extreme toxicity made him seem authentic to them. That's a genuine blindness arising from their bubble and their worldview. Something like that is going on with Talarico's version of Christianity, if it is indeed a version of Christianity; but it's a very big tent, as no less than Chesterton pointed out.
Still, this female Briton has some harsh words for American judges of manhood. (Also a great line: "I recommend watching the clip of Watters and Miller in full, because Miller has the kind of natural comic gifts that usually persuade people to forsake a career in stand-up and become a funeral director instead.")
She comes around to the idea that the two criticisms are linked: that the debate over the theology is also a debate over the kind of Jesus people are imagining. How muscular a Christianity? In Texas, I would have imagined a fairly muscular one. Less so in other places; it's a big tent.
UPDATE: Perhaps they're on to something, actually. Collins leads among voters until they are informed of Platner's scandals -- then he takes a commanding lead.
Shockingly, when voters are informed of sexual assault rumors, Platner improves, leading by 8.1%This confirms suspicions that Democrats may be looking for their own Trump. Even more surprisingly, 75% of voter age 18-29 support Platner after being informed of the rumors.
'This confirms... that... may be' is a bad formulation. That remains a theory; this might be evidence for that theory, but not confirmation.
However, it does suggest that Platner's viciousness is being taken as a strong positive by previously undecided voters. What is surprising is that many who were going to vote for Collins switch; maybe an accused sexual abuser with Nazi and male-rape fantasies is exactly what they've been looking for? That seems like the thing they've been railing against for a decade. If you can't beat 'em, I guess the Democrats are thinking.
* That Kurt article uses the word "normal" seven times. I've met Colonel (R) Kurt Schlichter through our mutual friend Jim Hanson, and Kurt is a wild and crazy guy. How strong his claim on the idea of "normality" is I would consider an open question; certainly not normal in the sense of ordinary. Why would you want to be that?
I'm not myself, not nearly; what is wanted is to be exceptional in some good or virtuous way. That isn't normal: the ordinary course which gives rise to the norms is to make exceptions to the exceptional standards to allow for an easy, humane middle way that ordinary people can achieve. Getting there is easy, but it isn't especially good. It shouldn't be something to take as the proper end of an action or a life, a fact these two gentlemen know well since both have numerous exceptional accomplishments each.
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... their view of men is so toxic that his(Platner) own extreme toxicity made him seem authentic to them. That's a genuine blindness arising from their bubble and their worldview.
Platner is also what I've sometimes heard called a 'champagne socialist' or 'limousine liberal'. I suspect what Talarico and Platner (and Walz, and Beto before them) share is an ability to spin their life stories to make it seem they grew into Progressivism from their former selves when they've really simply been chameleons blending in to the social background. The problem might be something more general than a view of normal male attitudes as toxic but an inability to tell when you're being BS'ed. The trajectories of Liz Cheney and Marjorie Taylor-Green would seem to indicate this isn't an exclusively male club.
Or Elizabeth Warren, right? The kind of people who gravitate to politics seem to be disproportionately likely to be lifestyle frauds.
I don't know that I think Platner is, though. I think he might be serious about all that stuff he keeps spouting. The other kind of people that political power draws disproportionately is psychopaths. They can be very successful in life, psychopaths. They're good at obtaining power and rewards for themselves. There are, however, reliably negative consequences for agreeing to associate with them -- or for promoting them into positions of power in your organization.
The "looking for their own Trump" spin presupposes Republicans support Trump because he was accused of sexual assault when it's far more likely that both men are benefiting from the rally to colors effect generated by attacks that seem to come from their opposition regardless of content. Note that it's not Janet Mills, who suspended her campaign a couple weeks ago, pushing the attacks on Platner.
If the defection from Collins upon hearing of the sexual accusations is even partly true, it is a very bad sign.
Despite living in NH, I know very few people from Maine, and all of those are over 70. I'm afraid I'm no help here on the culture.
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