{"id":1227,"date":"2017-03-20T03:11:53","date_gmt":"2017-03-20T07:11:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/?p=1227"},"modified":"2017-03-20T14:08:59","modified_gmt":"2017-03-20T18:08:59","slug":"the-other-what-does-this-mean","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/blog\/2017\/03\/20\/the-other-what-does-this-mean\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;The Other&#8221;  &#8211;  What Does This Mean?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>Greetings and Salutations;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>I recently wrote a <a href=\"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/blog\/2017\/03\/16\/what-drives-republicans\/\">short entry on the works of Ayn Rand<\/a>, the philosophy of Objectivism that she created, \u00a0and, how this philosophy is the tap root that feeds the attitudes and actions of the \u00a0Republican Party. \u00a0 For the leaders of the Party to succeed, they must ensure that their followers will be motivated to support the Party without question.\u00a0\u00a0 To achieve this goal,\u00a0 the leaders of the Party\u00a0 have worked very hard at keeping the followers of the Party\u00a0 so fearful and distracted that, \u00a0even if they have the intellectual skills to look at the Party&#8217;s actions and words, \u00a0they remain distracted by the shiny things, smoke and mirrors \u00a0waved in front of them. \u00a0 This ensures that the followers will not actually look at what the leaders are doing; make rational decisions about whether they support these actions; or understand how those actions will affect them, personally.\u00a0 Rather,\u00a0 they buy into the Party Line, and\u00a0 vote for the Party no matter what arguments against such a vote are presented to them or evidence showing this is a bad idea is available..<\/div>\n<div>.<\/div>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">&#8220;Tribalism&#8221;<\/h2>\n<div>My first topic in this article is &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tribalism\">Tribalism<\/a>.&#8221;\u00a0 For as long as there has been life on the Earth,\u00a0 related or similar creatures have\u00a0 clustered together in exclusive groups. \u00a0This is true for almost every species from ants to humans. \u00a0There are benefits to this, \u00a0including better \u00a0protection against the dangers of the world, \u00a0an increased probability of finding and acquiring food, \u00a0and (once we \u00a0to the stages of individual, sexual reproduction) \u00a0finding a mate to perpetuate the group. \u00a0In the lower animals, \u00a0we call it herding, \u00a0being part of a pack, and similar terms. \u00a0 \u00a0When we reach the developmental level of the Human Animal, \u00a0we call it &#8220;Tribalism&#8221; \u00a0 \u00a0 This grouping of people into tribes \u00a0is typically so deeply rooted in our instincts that it is usually automatic, and \u00a0invisible to us. \u00a0 This happens in spite of the evidence available that shows that such exclusive grouping is <a href=\"http:\/\/bigthink.com\/risk-reason-and-reality\/how-tribalism-overrules-reason-and-makes-risky-times-more-dangerous\">NOT the best way of dealing with the world.<\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 Throughout history, beginning with the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/anthro.palomar.edu\/hominid\/australo_1.htm\">earliest Hominids appearing on Earth<\/a>, \u00a0 groups \u00a0of people have gathered together and formed a Tribal Group, \u00a0for the above mentioned reasons.\u00a0 A\u00a0 MAJOR objective of the tribe is its own protection against attack and destructive violence (This instinctive need to protect the tribe was one of the roots of the appearance of &#8220;The Other&#8221;, \u00a0and often shows up in today&#8217;s world as an almost insane obsession with spending huge sums of money \u00a0on enlarging the Military. \u00a0 More on this later).<\/div>\n<div>.<\/div>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: x-large;\">&#8220;The Other&#8221;<\/span><\/h3>\n<div>.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: left;\">Now, \u00a0let us look at the concept of &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Other\">The Other<\/a>&#8220;. \u00a0This concept is strongly rooted in &#8220;Tribalism&#8221; and, \u00a0 is a basic tool used in \u00a0philosophical \u00a0and sociological schools which examine the broad range of ways that we, \u00a0as humans, \u00a0look upon and interact with other humans. \u00a0&#8220;The Other&#8221;\u00a0 has a large\u00a0 influence on our building of\u00a0 a self-Image. \u00a0 \u00a0As we mature, everyone builds a self-image\u00a0 that defines us to ourselves and to the world. \u00a0 Much of that self-image is generated, \u00a0and re-enforced, \u00a0by a comparison with someone else &#8211; \u00a0&#8220;The Other&#8221;. \u00a0 \u00a0 Early on in our path to maturity, \u00a0this creation and feeding of the Self-Image is powered by our demonstrating how they are less than we are&#8230;and thereby, building ourselves up. \u00a0 We all do it to some extent:<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li>My dress is a LOT more elegant and well cut than hers is (So I have better taste and fashion sense)<\/li>\n<li>I \u00a0am the champion Quarterback on the Team (so the other Quarterbacks were losers)<\/li>\n<li>I have been to College and have a Master&#8217;s Degree in English and a Doctorate in Astronomy (so this \u00a0guy working as a stock boy in Walmart must be an idiot);<\/li>\n<li>I own the company and make a ton of money so I am much better than the losers that work for me<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div>\u00a0Hopefully,\u00a0 as we mature, \u00a0we disconnect our self-worth from how we compare to others, \u00a0and, \u00a0grow it<\/div>\n<div>\n<ol>\n<li>by traveling and continuing to explore new areas of knowledge,\u00a0 so as to expand our horizons<\/li>\n<li>by interacting with a more diverse group of people<\/li>\n<li>seeking \u00a0out new experiences<\/li>\n<li>adding to or increasing our skill set<\/li>\n<li>by self-study and understanding we achieve greater self-awareness.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>On this, \u00a0more positive path, \u00a0we cease to look at &#8220;The Other&#8221; \u00a0and say &#8220;I am so much better than that loser&#8221;. \u00a0 Alas, none of us achieve this goal to perfection, \u00a0but with luck, work, and an increased understanding of ourselves we can move towards it.<\/div>\n<div>.<\/div>\n<div>In the less developed members of \u00a0humanity, \u00a0 &#8220;The Other&#8221; is looked upon with suspicion, and fear. \u00a0 Since the survival of the The Tribe depended on its ability to gather sufficient food, \u00a0find a protected environment, \u00a0and reproduce safely, \u00a0 any stranger that showed up was viewed with suspicion. \u00a0They were &#8220;The Other&#8221; &#8211; an unknown part of reality and the tribe would not have any idea if the stranger was here on a peaceful mission, \u00a0or was looking to take any, or all of their three parts of survival by force. \u00a0 Today, \u00a0alas, \u00a0these same, \u00a0quite primitive instincts remain in place, and, too often, control our actions. \u00a0&#8220;Otherness&#8221; (<a href=\"http:\/\/academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu\/english\/melani\/cs6\/other.html\">as discussed Here<\/a>\u00a0) takes many forms. The Other may be someone who is of&#8230;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li>a different race (White vs. non-White),<\/li>\n<li>a different nationality (Anglo Saxon vs. Italian),<\/li>\n<li>a different religion (Protestant vs. Catholic or Christian vs. Jew),<\/li>\n<li>a different social class (aristocrat vs. serf),<\/li>\n<li>a different political ideology (capitalism vs. communism),<\/li>\n<li>a different sexual orientation (heterosexual vs. homosexual),<\/li>\n<li>a different origin (native born vs. immigrant).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div>The primal and instinctive fears we still harbor within us \u00a0can be inflamed by invoking any of these &#8220;Othering&#8221; \u00a0factors. \u00a0Then, \u00a0the resulting emotions can be used to motivate followers to action, \u00a0and blind them to the results of those actions. \u00a0 Let me take a moment to give some concrete examples from the current political world.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<ol>\n<li>During the campaign, \u00a0the donald undercut his opponents in the race to the Primary Election \u00a0 by emphasizing their differences, \u00a0and by claiming that they were &#8220;Low Energy&#8221;, stupid, \u00a0or &#8220;Flip-Floppers&#8221; &#8211; \u00a0implying that his Republican opponents were old, \u00a0feeble, or untrustworthing, \u00a0and so unable to deal with the pressures of the Presidency. \u00a0 For his one Female opponent, \u00a0he derided her for her appearance &#8211; saying with contempt that she was so ugly she could NOT possibly be considered to be presidential material.<\/li>\n<li>During the race to the General Election, \u00a0 he exaggerated Sec. Clinton&#8217;s state of health, implying she was about to keel over dead at any moment; \u00a0He pushed the misogynistic view that it was impossible for a woman to be President; \u00a0 He and his campaign staff would inflame the audience members at rallies to chant &#8220;Lock Her Up&#8221;, \u00a0in spite of the fact that after 40 years of investigations by his own party, \u00a0NO criminal acts had been uncovered.<\/li>\n<li>During the Campaign, \u00a0the donald said, over and over again, \u00a0that the ACA was failing, \u00a0was likely to disintegrate in a year or less, \u00a0and was a total failure. \u00a0 He said \u00a0HIS plan was to cover all Americans with a better plan, and make Premiums go down quite a bit. \u00a0He also NEVER used the act&#8217;s real name &#8211; \u00a0The ACA &#8211; Rather he continually called it &#8220;ObamaCare.&#8221; \u00a0to appeal to the latent racism in the hearts of his followers. \u00a0 This claim of his was, of course \u00a0a lie, \u00a0but by repeating it many times and being careful to avoid any questions on exactly HOW &#8220;his GREAT Plan&#8221; \u00a0was supposed to make these changes to the Health Insurance situation, \u00a0he distracted many Americans who were unhappy that their Premiums HAD gone up, and by connecting the ACA with &#8220;The Other&#8221;\u00a0 of President Obama, \u00a0 got their votes.<\/li>\n<li>During the campaign, \u00a0the donald KEPT pushing the theme of &#8220;Radical Islamic Terrorists&#8221; flooding into the country. \u00a0This, in spite of the fact that almost EVERY terrorist attack in America since the events of 2001\/09\/11 \u00a0have been done by citizens of the country who have been radicalized by the war that George W. Bush dropped us into shortly thereafter, \u00a0or have nothing to do with Islam or the Middle East at all &#8211; being perpetuated by White Supremacists against people of color, \u00a0and the like.<\/li>\n<li>Throughout the campaign,\u00a0\u00a0 the Republicans in general,\u00a0 and the donald in specific,\u00a0 characterized the news media as &#8220;The Other&#8221;\u00a0\u00a0 There were unsubstantiated claims that they were lying about him.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He claimed that the responsible and ethical journalists were creating &#8220;Fake News&#8221; about him.\u00a0\u00a0 He even went so far as claim such falsehoods as this:<\/li>\n<li><em>&#8220;A few days ago I called the fake news the enemy of the people, and they are \u2014\u00a0they are the enemy of the people,&#8221;\u00a0Trump told the annual Conservative Political Action Conference\u00a0 While praising some reporters as honest, and pledging fealty to the First Amendment, Trump claimed that &#8220;the fake news media doesn&#8217;t tell the truth.&#8221; He said reporters should not be allowed to use anonymous sources, and &#8220;we&#8217;re going to do something about it.&#8221;\u00a0<\/em> These comments and many more like them over the past couple of years,\u00a0 are an obvious attempt to make the Press into &#8220;The Other&#8221; &#8211;\u00a0 A danger to America,\u00a0 and to destroy their legitimate role in society as a watch dog of the government.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>The Concept of The Other permeates other parts of society too. \u00a0The Black Lives Matter movement has been vilified since its beginnings with a variety of unsupported claims. \u00a0 It was created when the institutional racism which has been growing in America for the past few decades reached a point that it appeared to the people of color in our society that it was open hunting season on them. \u00a0 Having tried petitions and filing complaints about blatant racism exhibited by the government on all levels from the leaders down to the LEOs who seem to be the strike forces for that racism, \u00a0and had NO positive results from them, \u00a0people of color have taken to more energetic activism. \u00a0 For this, \u00a0they have been peppered with claims of being Vandals whose only goal is to destroy businesses and loot them (in spite of the proven fact that only a tiny percentage of outside agitators in the crowds were doing this, \u00a0and a huge majority of the protestors were peaceably exercising their First Amendment Rights). \u00a0 They are accused of raising a war against Whites or cops, in spite of the fact that they \u00a0NEVER say &#8220;Black Lives Matter More than Other Lives&#8221;. \u00a0They are \u00a0threatened and arrested when filming examples of police abuse of unarmed civilians, \u00a0in spite of the fact they are doing nothing wrong and are not interfering with the events. \u00a0 They are called &#8220;Thugs&#8221; \u00a0and &#8220;Animals&#8221; \u00a0to the extent that many White folks automatically lock their doors when a person of color approaches their car. \u00a0 \u00a0The fact is that a vast majority of people of color are no different from you or me. \u00a0 They are people of good will, who worry about their children, and try to teach them good values. \u00a0They are trying to do the best job at work they can, \u00a0because they take pride in doing a good job.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Yet&#8230;they are changed into the &#8220;Boogie Man&#8221; because the Republicans need an enemy \u00a0to focus the emotions of their followers on. \u00a0 Look at the picture of the Black society in America as painted by the Republicans. \u00a0 \u00a0According to the donald, \u00a0 all people of color live in inner city ghettos that are filthy, \u00a0deteriorating, \u00a0and filled with violence. \u00a0 Added to that, \u00a0many Republicans portray them as parasites, \u00a0working only to get benefits from the Government, \u00a0so they can live the good life without working. \u00a0 They portray them as sexually promiscuous, \u00a0producing many children they cannot afford to feed, and continually aborting inconvenient fetuses. \u00a0 They are portrayed as criminals, \u00a0flooding the Perfect World of White America with drugs and prostitutes.<\/p>\n<p>.<\/p>\n<p>Another example of &#8220;The Other&#8221; \u00a0is the LGBTQ community in America. \u00a0 Again, \u00a0the Republicans scream out unsubstantiated claims about them, \u00a0and, \u00a0almost every legislative body from states up to the Congress has passed or tried to pass laws which remove the basic rights for Citizens as laid out in the Constitution. \u00a0 Some of these laws have taken root and are still there. \u00a0Most have been thrown out by the courts. \u00a0 The current tempest that the Republicans are using to stir up their followers is the amazingly silly, \u00a0but emotional, \u00a0fears over which gender bathroom that TransGender folks use to relieve themselves. \u00a0 The rhetoric on this is amazing, \u00a0as it is so far out of left field that one wonders what planet the folks that produce it live on. \u00a0There are a huge number of people who claim that if trans women are allowed in woman&#8217;s bathrooms, \u00a0they will sexually molest small children. \u00a0 There are some who say that allowing this will enable sexual predators who are NOT Trans \u00a0to claim &#8220;To be women today&#8221;, \u00a0head into the bathroom, \u00a0and engage in perverted acts. \u00a0 This view is unsupported by reality and has NEVER been shown to have any evidence of being the truth. \u00a0 The fact is that Trans folks have been using the facilities next to Cis folks for hundreds of years, \u00a0without problems. \u00a0 \u00a0Yet&#8230;by invoking &#8220;The Other&#8221; as a danger, the Republicans rile up their followers, \u00a0build support and get votes.<\/p>\n<p>.<\/p>\n<p>The last example of &#8220;The Other&#8221; I will touch on here are the immigrants and migrant workers who enter America. \u00a0 The Republicans have been painting every Refugee and immigrant that is not White as a possible terrorist. \u00a0 They produce a continual drumbeat of fear over a flood of Muslim Terrorists slipping into the country and destroying our infrastructure, and society. \u00a0 They \u00a0have pushed the idea of &#8220;Muslim Terrorist&#8221; \u00a0so hard that many of their followers believe that is one, \u00a0not two, \u00a0words. \u00a0 There are approximately 1.7 billion Muslims in the world. \u00a0 Less than 200,000 are the fanatical fundamentalists who are engaging in this (ultimately futile) \u00a0war to take their society back to a mythical time when the Caliphate ruled, \u00a0and all Muslims supported Religious Purity!<\/p>\n<p>.<\/p>\n<p>The fact is that, \u00a0since 2001\/09\/11, \u00a0there have been a few, fairly small\u00a0 acts of terrorism,\u00a0 but almost all of these were not perpetuated by immigrants, \u00a0but, \u00a0rather, \u00a0were by Citizens or legal residents of the country whose basic, \u00a0fundamentalist views of reality \u00a0had been inflamed and radicalized by the treatment of Muslims \u00a0in America since that day.<\/p>\n<p>.<\/p>\n<p>The issue of migrant workers is another use of The Other. \u00a0 The Republicans \u00a0have, for as long as I can recall, \u00a0 trumpeted how terrible these people who snuck into the United States to live and work are. \u00a0 As the donald said in his FIRST speech when he stepped into the ring to run for the Office of President:<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;\">\n<blockquote style=\"margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;\">\n<blockquote style=\"margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;\"><p><b><i>\u00a0When Mexico sends its people, \u00a0they are not sending their best. They&#8217;re not sending you. They&#8217;re not sending you. They&#8217;re sending people that have lots of problems, and they&#8217;re bringing those problems with us. \u00a0They&#8217;re bringing drugs. They&#8217;re bringing crime. They&#8217;re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.<\/i><\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The bottom line is that the concept of &#8220;The Other&#8221; is a useful tool for the Republicans to keep their followers stirred up. \u00a0 Their view of America is of a lily-white population, \u00a0and a society of bucolic peace rather like the fantasy presented in &#8220;The Andy Griffith Show&#8221;. \u00a0 In order to achieve the goal of controlling their followers, \u00a0they, rather cynically, \u00a0use the concept of &#8220;The Other&#8221; \u00a0to give Americans an enemy &#8211; a Boogie Man &#8211; to hate and look upon as the Enemy of their culture. \u00a0 Alas, \u00a0this is delusional on their part, \u00a0for a variety of reasons.<\/p>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li>America has NEVER been a homogenous society. \u00a0 it has always been a melting pot \u00a0from its origins with the Landing of the Pilgrims, until today. \u00a0 The country is too big, \u00a0and too diverse to be the sort of society that much smaller countries, \u00a0such as Japan, \u00a0or Norway \u00a0exhibit.<\/li>\n<li>They are blind to the fact that immigrants bring strength to the county, \u00a0and are NOT tearing it down. \u00a0 Diversity is the best survival tool on Earth. \u00a0 As a botanical\u00a0 example of the importance of diversity,\u00a0 let me tell this story.\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 Back about 40 years or so ago, \u00a0The Tennessee Valley Authority \u00a0wanted to perk up the park lands near one of their flagship dams, \u00a0so it would be more attractive to tourists. \u00a0 So, \u00a0being a bureaucracy, \u00a0they had crews come in and plant hundreds of pine trees over the entire park. \u00a0 This looked great for quite a while\u00a0 as the saplings rapidly grew into large shade trees. But,\u00a0 after a decade or so of growth,\u00a0\u00a0 we had a massive infestation of Pine Borer beetles. \u00a0 They must have thought they were in heaven when they landed on the grounds around the dam, \u00a0as there was nothing there but pine trees. \u00a0 Over a two year period, \u00a0the infestation killed off EVERY one of the pine trees. \u00a0 \u00a0Had the TVA paid attention to the forestry experts around the area, \u00a0they would have ended up with a mixed species forest that would have likely made it more difficult for the Pine Borers to survive &#8211; because the pine trees were far more scattered out &#8211; \u00a0and would have ensured that the appearance of the Reservation would not have been seriously impacted if the pine trees HAD been lost.<\/li>\n<li>The fact of the matter is that the ACA, while it does have problems, was a huge step forwards for Americans. \u00a0It shielded them from many of the abusive treatments that the Health Care Insurance industry profited from in years past. \u00a0 it \u00a0ended up getting 20 million Americans who had not had insurance before covered so they could have a net in case of catastrophe, \u00a0and, \u00a0could access preventative care &#8211; cutting the number of people in Crisis that showed up at the E.R. \u00a0 The Republican alternative, as it is turning out, \u00a0essentially returns us to the bad old days of unregulated Industry, \u00a0promising to kick 24 million people off their coverage, \u00a0and likely causing rural hospitals to have to close their doors. \u00a0 This is a moment where the folks that voted for the donald are getting a cold chill down their spine. \u00a0Many of them have just realized that the &#8220;Obamacare&#8221; they hated is the same package as the ACA &#8211; which is providing them with life-saving medications and treatments. \u00a0So&#8230;when the Obamacare goes away&#8230;they will be out in the cold again! \u00a0 A perfect example of &#8220;The Other&#8221; \u00a0distracting the voters so they will not realize that light at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming train.<\/li>\n<li>As I have pointed out earlier, \u00a0not all Muslims are insane, \u00a0fanatical fundamentalists; \u00a0 all but a tiny percentage are living life just like everyone else, \u00a0trying to rear their children to be good people, \u00a0trying to keep food on the table, \u00a0and trying to keep danger and violence out of their lives.<\/li>\n<li>Migrant workers do not come to America with the goal of putting Americans out of work. \u00a0 They come here because even the crappy wages they are paid are much better than they can get in Mexico, \u00a0which allows them to live here, and still send money back home to help their families. \u00a0 They come here as undocumented workers because there is a huge demand on the part of Americans for cheap labor to pick the produce, \u00a0clean the houses and hotels, \u00a0 run the restaurants, \u00a0and build the buildings here.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>What can we, as Liberals\/Progressives do to fight \u00a0against this use of &#8220;The Other?&#8221; \u00a0 That is a difficult question, \u00a0as I have demonstrated here, \u00a0the concept of &#8220;The Other&#8221; \u00a0is a basic instinct that cannot be eliminated. \u00a0 However, \u00a0each of us DOES have the ability to look at these instinctive reactions, \u00a0and choose not to allow them to control us. \u00a0 So, \u00a0I suggest that ways to help push back and keep the Republicans from exploiting this instinct include the following:<\/p>\n<div>\n<ol>\n<li>Continue to be aware of the basic concept of &#8220;The Other&#8221; as a tool of control, \u00a0and look at every statement from a politician with care.<\/li>\n<li>Be aware of the images their words generate. \u00a0 If it feels like those images are of faceless, \u00a0scary enemies&#8230;step back and do not accept what is being said without question.<\/li>\n<li>if you run into people on Social Media who are caught up in this madness&#8230;politely and calmly interact with them, \u00a0with the goal of confronting them with the truth, \u00a0in the hopes that this will bring them to see reality again.<\/li>\n<li>If they are ranting about &#8220;The Other&#8221; of the day &#8211; The Muslims, \u00a0folks from the LGBTQ community, \u00a0&#8220;Libtards&#8221;, \u00a0etc, \u00a0 give it a shot.\u00a0\u00a0 However keep in mind that\u00a0 sometimes there will be no &#8220;dialogue&#8221; or possibility of dialogue. \u00a0As <a href=\"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/blog\/2017\/01\/22\/interacting-with-trump-supporters\/\">I have pointed out elsewhere<\/a>, \u00a0 dealing with Right-Wingers who are caught up in that beau monde of delusion \u00a0can be frustrating \u00a0because they seem to be immune to facts. \u00a0 \u00a0In that case, \u00a0I suggest stating the truth, \u00a0and moving on.<\/li>\n<li>When you run across a person like this, \u00a0remember it is a waste of time and energy to attempt to argue with them, \u00a0as that is like playing chess with a pigeon. \u00a0 The pigeon may always lose, but, it will just strut around \u00a0crapping on the board and knocking pieces off it, \u00a0 and will claim to have won anyway.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>God Help Us All!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Bee Man Dave<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>(A) http:\/\/anthro.palomar.edu\/hominid\/australo_1.htm \u00a0&#8211; \u00a0Early hominids (5.3 million years ago)<\/div>\n<div>(B) https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Other<\/div>\n<div>(C) https:\/\/othersociologist.com\/otherness-resources\/ \u00a0 The concept of &#8220;Otherness&#8221; as it applies to the tribe, \u00a0and how it is often controlled by political movements.<\/div>\n<div>(D) http:\/\/academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu\/english\/melani\/cs6\/other.html \u00a0The other as it applies to other tribal groups<\/div>\n<div>(E) http:\/\/www.yiannisgabriel.com\/2012\/09\/the-other-and-othering-short.html \u00a0The other and &#8220;Othering&#8221; &#8211; a short introduction<\/div>\n<div>(F) http:\/\/www.academia.edu\/5033172\/The_Construction_of_the_Other_in_Saids_Orientalism_and_Fanons_Black_Skin_White_Masks<\/div>\n<div>(G)\u00a0http:\/\/bigthink.com\/risk-reason-and-reality\/how-tribalism-overrules-reason-and-makes-risky-times-more-dangerous<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>=-=-=-=-=<br \/>\n<i>Powered by <b><a href=\"http:\/\/blogilo.gnufolks.org\/\">Blogilo<\/a><\/b><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Greetings and Salutations; I recently wrote a short entry on the works of Ayn Rand, the philosophy of Objectivism that&#8230; <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/blog\/2017\/03\/20\/the-other-what-does-this-mean\/\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[22,386,9,10,12,13],"tags":[689,691,690,293,692,687,688],"class_list":["post-1227","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ethics","category-general-thoughts","category-humanity","category-nuttiness","category-politics-2","category-questionable-decisions","tag-enemies","tag-hominids","tag-oligharchs","tag-republicans","tag-self-worth","tag-the-other","tag-tribalism"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1227","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1227"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1227\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1237,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1227\/revisions\/1237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1227"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1227"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1227"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}