7 ms·

We might not like Trump, but he is charismatic. I don't know if he's on the same level as Bill Clinton[1] or Obama, though "Make America great again" is the sam

We might not like Trump, but he is charismatic. I don't know if he's on the same level as Bill Clinton[1] or Obama, though "Make America great again" is the same slogan as "hope and change." They are both vague enough to inspire anyone, kind of like horoscopes. Scott Adams is not wrong, but I am surprised that people learn from reading his blog because non of Trump's tactics are new. To give Adams credit, he is a great blogger. Adams lures readers with "Let me share Trump's secrets with you because only us smart people know what is happening." People love to feel smart and be part of an exclusive group so they quote Adams' simple analysis as amazing insight. Also Adams fails to acknowledge that Trump overtly appeals to misogyny, racism, and xenophobia. Trump wouldn't be this popular without scapegoats. On a personal level, I feel depressed that a candidate will get more votes, not fewer, after making blatantly sexist comments. [1] Clinton during his candidacy: https://youtu.be/ckHfgqK_hcU?t=10m30s https://youtu.be/ckHfgqK_hcU?t=10m30s Notice the difference between Bill and Hilary near the end.

encoderer 10y ago
Worth mentioning, for any who don't know: "Make America Great Again" was lifted wholesale from the Reagan campaign. I haven't verified it, but I read that he trademarked it soon after Romney lost in 2012.
the_cat_kittles 10y ago
not sure why your getting lots of downvotes, i think your take on adams is pretty good. i was reading scott adams for a while as im sure lots of people were when trump was rising. i kept reading for a while and kept on seeing things that were just really stupid to me. he seems to think because he is a "master persuader" that he knows more about _everything_ than everyone else, but in one post he ventured in the realm of statistics and made some _incredibly ignorant_ arguments. then i saw old posts where he had just as confidently predicted herman cain. so part of what he is doing is just playing a long game, calling unlikely things so that when one of them eventually happens, he looks smart. i dont deny he has interesting insights, but he is wayyyyyy to high on himself and his special little lens. when he posted on twitter that he could convince anyone to vote for trump in 1 hour, i had to unfollow. i think manipulators are seen as smart by some people because they can be effective, but i have two points that seem to be forgotten: most of the time you eventually catch on to manipulators, and so they stop being effective, and, _more importantly_ they are just assholes. so, i say that it doesnt take intelligence to manipulate and bully and lie, it just takes gall. or heartlessness. as an analogy, i bet some of the lawyers who came up with the idea for ambulance chasing, or bankers who repackaged shitty subprime loans probably that they were really smart, when maybe it was just that there arent that many people willing to go that low.
- HillaryBriss 10y ago
  i up-voted your comment here because i really liked your distinction between "being smart and innovative" vs "having gall or heartlessness". someone who used a new level of heartlessness, rudeness or cruelty to attain a difficult goal is often lionized later by the masses and considered "a genius" but, is, in reality, something else entirely.
- kelukelugames 10y ago
  Yes, Adams has a history of predicting long shots because he takes the shotgun approach. People only remember the winners. Adams is like Trump. His megalomania helps with his existing fanbase. I think your second paragraph applies to both of them.
  - the_cat_kittles 10y ago
    totally agree
mistermann 10y ago
> Also Adams fails to acknowledge that Trump overtly appeals to misogyny, racism, and xenophobia. He alludes to it somewhat, in that any perception of actual -ism is in the critics mind, which for the most part is correct, but you are also correct in that Trump is successfully appealing to these base instincts in people. > On a personal level, I feel depressed that a candidate will get more votes, not fewer, after making blatantly sexist comments. This refers to Trump I assume, which comments would that be? edit: fixed italics
- kelukelugames 10y ago
  First the Trump quote. “The only thing she's got is the woman's card. If Hillary Clinton were a man, I don’t think she would get 5 percent of the vote,” Mr. Trump said. Adams is a genius and a weasel. He literally wrote the book on weasels. He knows exactly what he is doing. In fact, he has written about how to push agendas indirectly. You can recognize the described techniques in his writing. Promoting Trump benefits Adams directly. But Trump has gotten to the point where denying his dogwhistling is impossible, so Adams describes it in a non threatening manner.
  - mistermann 10y ago
    > “If Hillary Clinton were a man, I don’t think she would get 5 percent of the vote,” Mr. Trump said. Interesting that you think that is sexist, as to me it seems like he is describing a sexist scenario, and I happen to agree with that interpretation. I think you're pretty on point with Adams though.
    - deleted 10y ago
      [deleted]
    - kelukelugames 10y ago
      "The only thing she's got is the woman's card" is not sexist. Stay classy Hacker News! I had a haunch when I replied to your first comment. Shame on me for responding.
RogtamBar 10y ago
Let's be honest here. Racism and xenophobia isn't all about scapegoating. There is a number of nations with very low level of foreign ethnics who would like to keep it that way. You can't accuse them of scapegoating. Them being xenophobic is merely prudent? Which sane country would want a significant Arab minority - after witnessing the various bloodbaths and security scares plaguing Western Europe due to its Arab populations?
coldtea 10y ago
>People love to feel smart and be part of an exclusive group so they quote Adams' simple analysis as amazing insight. Well, if they haven't seen the same simple analysis elsewhere (much less any more advanced analysis), then they're right to consider it amazing insight.
- kelukelugames 10y ago
  People with little life experience react this way to all things. They lack the imagination to understand what they discover is not new. It's common in diet and exercise. "Hey I just discovered calorie counting/keto/crossfit/powerlifting!"
  - coldtea 10y ago
    https://xkcd.com/1053/ https://xkcd.com/1053/
    - kelukelugames 10y ago
      If listening to someone who just discovered psych 101 is fun then they probably need to meet more people.
bobsil1 10y ago
For educated voters he's anti-charismatic.
- kelukelugames 10y ago
  He's certainly unlikeable. I wonder if it's possible to separate the two: likability and charisma. I imagine there is a halo effect feedback loop for the two.

encoderer 10y ago

Worth mentioning, for any who don't know: "Make America Great Again" was lifted wholesale from the Reagan campaign. I haven't verified it, but I read that he trademarked it soon after Romney lost in 2012.

the_cat_kittles 10y ago

not sure why your getting lots of downvotes, i think your take on adams is pretty good. i was reading scott adams for a while as im sure lots of people were when trump was rising. i kept reading for a while and kept on seeing things that were just really stupid to me. he seems to think because he is a "master persuader" that he knows more about _everything_ than everyone else, but in one post he ventured in the realm of statistics and made some _incredibly ignorant_ arguments. then i saw old posts where he had just as confidently predicted herman cain. so part of what he is doing is just playing a long game, calling unlikely things so that when one of them eventually happens, he looks smart. i dont deny he has interesting insights, but he is wayyyyyy to high on himself and his special little lens. when he posted on twitter that he could convince anyone to vote for trump in 1 hour, i had to unfollow. i think manipulators are seen as smart by some people because they can be effective, but i have two points that seem to be forgotten: most of the time you eventually catch on to manipulators, and so they stop being effective, and, _more importantly_ they are just assholes. so, i say that it doesnt take intelligence to manipulate and bully and lie, it just takes gall. or heartlessness. as an analogy, i bet some of the lawyers who came up with the idea for ambulance chasing, or bankers who repackaged shitty subprime loans probably that they were really smart, when maybe it was just that there arent that many people willing to go that low.

HillaryBriss 10y ago
i up-voted your comment here because i really liked your distinction between "being smart and innovative" vs "having gall or heartlessness". someone who used a new level of heartlessness, rudeness or cruelty to attain a difficult goal is often lionized later by the masses and considered "a genius" but, is, in reality, something else entirely.
kelukelugames 10y ago
Yes, Adams has a history of predicting long shots because he takes the shotgun approach. People only remember the winners. Adams is like Trump. His megalomania helps with his existing fanbase. I think your second paragraph applies to both of them.
- the_cat_kittles 10y ago
  totally agree

mistermann 10y ago

> Also Adams fails to acknowledge that Trump overtly appeals to misogyny, racism, and xenophobia. He alludes to it somewhat, in that any perception of actual -ism is in the critics mind, which for the most part is correct, but you are also correct in that Trump is successfully appealing to these base instincts in people. > On a personal level, I feel depressed that a candidate will get more votes, not fewer, after making blatantly sexist comments. This refers to Trump I assume, which comments would that be? edit: fixed italics

kelukelugames 10y ago
First the Trump quote. “The only thing she's got is the woman's card. If Hillary Clinton were a man, I don’t think she would get 5 percent of the vote,” Mr. Trump said. Adams is a genius and a weasel. He literally wrote the book on weasels. He knows exactly what he is doing. In fact, he has written about how to push agendas indirectly. You can recognize the described techniques in his writing. Promoting Trump benefits Adams directly. But Trump has gotten to the point where denying his dogwhistling is impossible, so Adams describes it in a non threatening manner.
- mistermann 10y ago
  > “If Hillary Clinton were a man, I don’t think she would get 5 percent of the vote,” Mr. Trump said. Interesting that you think that is sexist, as to me it seems like he is describing a sexist scenario, and I happen to agree with that interpretation. I think you're pretty on point with Adams though.
  - deleted 10y ago
    [deleted]
  - kelukelugames 10y ago
    "The only thing she's got is the woman's card" is not sexist. Stay classy Hacker News! I had a haunch when I replied to your first comment. Shame on me for responding.

RogtamBar 10y ago

Let's be honest here. Racism and xenophobia isn't all about scapegoating. There is a number of nations with very low level of foreign ethnics who would like to keep it that way. You can't accuse them of scapegoating. Them being xenophobic is merely prudent? Which sane country would want a significant Arab minority - after witnessing the various bloodbaths and security scares plaguing Western Europe due to its Arab populations?

coldtea 10y ago

>People love to feel smart and be part of an exclusive group so they quote Adams' simple analysis as amazing insight. Well, if they haven't seen the same simple analysis elsewhere (much less any more advanced analysis), then they're right to consider it amazing insight.

kelukelugames 10y ago
People with little life experience react this way to all things. They lack the imagination to understand what they discover is not new. It's common in diet and exercise. "Hey I just discovered calorie counting/keto/crossfit/powerlifting!"
- coldtea 10y ago
  https://xkcd.com/1053/ https://xkcd.com/1053/
  - kelukelugames 10y ago
    If listening to someone who just discovered psych 101 is fun then they probably need to meet more people.

bobsil1 10y ago

For educated voters he's anti-charismatic.

kelukelugames 10y ago
He's certainly unlikeable. I wonder if it's possible to separate the two: likability and charisma. I imagine there is a halo effect feedback loop for the two.