There are a few ideological or political “ism’s” I thought of off the top of my head that are named for the people that inspired them. The first ism’s that came to mind were McCarthyism and Marxism. Both are extreme, one of them is on the far right and the other on the far left. Ghandhism is in the language but when's the last time you heard it?
Trumpism doesn’t have its own Wikipedia page yet. If you search Wikipedia for Trumpism you are directed to a page titled “The Political Positions of Donald Trump” which doesn’t address the social and cultural aspects of the phenomena.
Trumpism, as a named ism, does make it into Wikiquotes where it is defined as, crucially the philosophy as well as the politics espoused by Donald Trump. The quotes and references there tell a grim story of what Trump has wrought and what the history books will say about how he almost destroyed American democratic values. Here are the first of them:
- [T]he booing began. I’d been dreading it for days, but when it came, I almost welcomed it. There is nothing more freeing than telling the truth. And it must be done, again and again, by those of us who refuse to be absorbed into this brainless, sinister, clownish thing called Trumpism, by those of us who refuse to overlook the fools, frauds and fascists attempting to glide along in his slipstream into respectability.
- Trumpism is here to stay.
Trumpism is what got Donald Trump elected before it made it into the political lexicon. The people inhabiting his base didn’t even realize they were poised to become a part of the body politic forever to be called Trumpists.
Now Trumpism is a “thing” and so it will be for the rest of history. When Trump is long gone, not only out of office but resting for eternity under some monument constructed by those who consider him to have been worth of Mt. Rushmore, Trumpism will lurk and linger, fester and fulminate in American society and culture.
Pharaohs recognized their own mortality and like most ancient Egyptians prepared for their deaths.
They believed that while alive they represented the god Horus and after death represented another god, Osiris who would set the sun, while the new pharaoh, his son, in the image of Horus, would raise the sun. This process continued for hundreds of years and this is why it was important the pharaoh be protected eternally to avoid a cosmic disturbance. (Reference)
The pharaoh also believed that his death was an extension to a journey towards eternal life. In order to become a “being” of the afterworld, it was important the pharaoh’s physical body be safeguarded and recognizable by his spirit, this, in turn, lead to the process of mummification. The process itself consisted of being embalmed then wrapped in fine linen. Once the process of mummification was complete, the pharaoh was buried with his most prized possessions such as jewelry, funerary statues, and items that would aid him in his afterlife.
I am not sure whether Trump reflects on his own mortality and on his legacy. I rather doubt he has the self-awareness to engage in this kind of existential thinking even marked by the superstitions of the Egyptians. I doubt he has a smidgen or religious belief or believes there’s an afterlife.
I expect that Trump’s post-presidency plans involve making as much money as possible, assuring he remains a public figure who is adored by his cult.
When it comes to an actual presidential monument he will build the biggest and best and presidential library (cue the guffaws for calling it a library) which will be widely panned by art critics and architects as a testament to, well I have to say it the malignant narcissism I wrote about yesterday.
Putting aside Trump's multi-generational effect on the courts and on climate policy, Trumpism will be his lasting noxious legacy.