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Trump’s Rise Marks the End of Progressive Utopianism

by Richard Eldred
26 January 2025 5:00 PM

In UnHerd, Mary Harrington argues that while the Trumpian era may come with flaws, it signals a welcome end to the Biden administration’s progressive utopianism. Here’s an excerpt:

With hindsight, Covid was a high-water mark of elite idealism: an apparently widespread belief that you could simply decide what was real, then make it so via a combination of fiat declaration and media censorship. And whatever else Trump brings, the end of the Biden administration stands as a sharp rebuke to elite hubris. …

Between Biden’s increasingly obviously scripted appearances and the accumulating visual evidence for his frailty, conspiracies proliferated. He was characterised as fake, played by actors or even computer-generated. Such claims were easy enough to “fact check”, but they conveyed a fundamentally true intuition: Biden was a cipher, and no one knew who was really in charge. Consensus just seemed to coalesce, as if by otherworldly telepathy, often followed by policies everyone was assumed to agree with, and which you’d then be ostracised for questioning.

This sense of rule by a headless, faceless and monolithically ideologically aligned swarm was characterised by writer Curtis Yarvin as “the Cathedral”: an architecture of political coordination that comprises journalism plus academia, NGOs, foundations, the permanent bureaucracy and other institutional actors. In Britain we might just call this “the Establishment” and shrug; but as David Samuels showed recently, the digital revolution turbocharged a specifically modern, progressive American version of this “Cathedral” to such potency, that its partisans seemingly came to believe they really could re-write reality just by posting.

The phenomenon gained momentum through the early 20th Century with the Obama-era discovery that digital communications could be wielded to transform public opinion in progressive directions, using an activist technique known as “permission structures”. This method of persuasion, developed by consultant David Axelrod, induces people to vote against their own prior convictions, by convincing them they’ll gain moral standing among their peers by adopting the approved viewpoint. …

Its moment of peak hubris (and, arguably, a crucial nemesis) was encapsulated in its adherents’ adoption of the belief that someone could become the opposite sex simply by verbal declaration: as though words really were magic spells.

And if there’s a lesson from the pitiful end of the Biden simulation, in a wholly ineffectual attempt to make lawn-sign type updates to the U.S. Constitution via blog post, it’s that this mechanism always had hard limits. Around this time four years ago, I glimpsed a harbinger of these limits, in the strange story of Hilaria Baldwin. Hilaria, wife of the actor Alec Baldwin, was accused of having spent a decade pretending to be Spanish — even though she grew up in Massachusetts. Even four years ago, this read as a cautionary tale for the reality-engineers: no matter what you say, if the gap between “Hilarity” and reality is too large, eventually someone will point this out and the whole thing will implode.

And so it has transpired with the civilisation-scale Hilarity that was the Biden simulation. …

What will reality look like, once the dust settles on their antics? There is reason to expect at least a correction toward pragmatic engagement with the world as it is and away from Hilarity’s progressive dream of the world as it should be. Signals include Trump’s scepticism toward Net Zero, already prompting a cascade of corporate indifference to its once sacrosanct green edicts. American foreign policy shows indications of an analogous turn away from liberal internationalism; a shift with uncertain geopolitical implications, but that would at least mean an end to the “peacekeeping” bellicosity characteristic of the “global policeman” stance.

And, importantly, from almost the moment he became President, Trump signalled an explicit re-orientation away from utopian gender politics, declaring in his inauguration speech itself that “as of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States Government that there are only two genders, male and female”. …

The incoming regime has one characteristic we should all welcome: personalism. When the progressives tried to save democracy and bring about their vision of utopia on earth, what we got was Hilarity: democracy-like simulacra as a skinsuit for managerial tyranny, all enforced by a distributed digital propaganda machine. Against this, the new Trumpian order may have many flaws but Trump is obviously and irreducibly real and human. That is the point of him.

Worth reading in full.

Tags: Biden AdministrationIndoctrinationPoliticsProgressive LeftTrump

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32 Comments
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stewart
stewart
6 months ago

I’m not sure how we can attribute this “utopian progressivism” to Biden when it’s been going on for a couple of decades, long long before Biden became president.

Perhaps Biden presided over it’s apex. Or at least what most of us hope is its apex. But let’s see. There is little sign of this insanity letting up in the UK any time soon.

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transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
6 months ago
Reply to  stewart

Longer than a couple of decades sadly. Race relations act 1965.

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Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago

His tenure will have the opposite effect in my view. It might even make a few people nostalgic for Woke. I have listened to what he has said in recent days in terms of global politics and I have to say it sounds like the bellowing of an imbecile. If you think that there will be anything positive about his tenure then you are impossibly naive. Impossible to talk to and impossible in the sense of having anything valuable to contribute towards anything.

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Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago

I love how the Trump fanboys dismiss any of his little mistakes as movements in a game of 5D chess. It would be funny it if weren’t talking about dialogue between superpowers. Multi-dimensional simultaneous warfare is a reality and this dude is like a nasty dose of mustard gas or chemotherapy. Have clear vision any evil that exists he functions to maginify it.

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Marque1
Marque1
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

Oh boy! You have TDS in abundance. There is no arguing with idealogues who are also crazed God botherers. The impossible to talk to or reason with is you.

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jeepybee
jeepybee
6 months ago
Reply to  Marque1

He’s had a few drams I think. Spewing out multiple nonsensical comments.

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stewart
stewart
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

I don’t see it like that at all. I’m not a “fanboy” of his. But I see him, for example, presiding over a meeting with the mayor of LA to talk about people clearing their destroyed houses after the fires and how they aren’t even allowed to go anywhere near their wrecked homes, let alone start clearing them until the government allows them to and I see him taking sides with ordinary people and calling for the government to get out of their way and let them sort themselves out and quite frankly I like what I see.

The problem with people who look down their noses at Trump is that they don’t realise that all politicians are putting on an act, including Trump. It’s just that his act is wildly different. But do you think Boris Johnson isn’t putting on a persona? Starmer? Sunak? Cameron? Macron? The difference is that most of them put on the same act – the serious, polished, well spoken, slightly haughty but not too much, “I care about ordinary people” act. But it’s an act all the same. Trumps act is a unique very brash, nobody is stopping me, plain speaking for the masses act. Also just an act.

The substance behind the act is what matters to me and I’ll take Trump’s substance every day of the week and twice on Sundays before what the regular sociopath cut outs have to offer.

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Climan
Climan
6 months ago

Progressive … Utopia, those two words don’t belong together, when “progressives” are the biggest group of haters on the planet.

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Mogwai
Mogwai
6 months ago
Reply to  Climan

Yep. Also, I did not know that the UK has the highest number of DEI employees in the world. That’s shameful isn’t it?

https://x.com/GBNEWS/status/1882191414542336146

The U.K also has more civil servants per capita than China;

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/does-the-uk-have-more-civil-servants-than-communist-china/

Last edited 6 months ago by Mogwai
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Gezza England
Gezza England
6 months ago
Reply to  Mogwai

Well it makes sense that we have a large number given their idleness and incompetence resulting in low productivity. It would be even worse if we didn’t. Of course a proper review of what they actually do and a huge reduction in that would be a good start.

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Gezza England
Gezza England
6 months ago
Reply to  Climan

Regressives would be more accurate given they believe 21st century economies can be powered by technology from the 4th century.

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Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago

You like it because it is the perfectly calibrated dose of red meat. Trust me you won’t like it in six months time I would bet money on it. And then what are you? Your forfeited your right to be an ignorant sap given the events of the last five years. You are just inadvertently perpetuating a nightmare which is the most ghastly of spirits in a time like ours. You will be wiped out when anything serious happens.

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transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

Who is this “you” to whom you refer? Me? You have no idea who I am.

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Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago

He said that Russia defeated Hitler in order to help the United States. He also said that Starmer is doing a good job so far. And you want to follow a prat like that around?

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Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago

You want to sit in the back seat and get the good times roll. I’m afraid it doesn’t work like that the back seat is where the real nightmares happen. Your strategy of risk aversion is underpinned by what? Pure laziness because you will never allow the warrior spirit to enter you. The state of your physical body tells you everything.

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Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago

Consider your own ineptitude and insignificance. Consider the hope that Trump might assuage such insecurities. The sad fact is that he is just as stupid as you if not more so. How will you handle that one? You won’t handle it because you can’t see your own weakness and you will have nowhere left to turn. You career as a sheep will be brought to an abrupt end. You will be left with nary a pot to pee in nor a titty to suck on. Just your eyes to cry with.

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huxleypiggles
huxleypiggles
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

Who exactly are these comments directed at and what purpose do they serve?

Boring shyte.

Pack it in.

9
0
Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago
Reply to  huxleypiggles

It is just directed at weakness in general and this pathetic hope that some knight might come along so that you don’t have to make any effort yourself. If someone did come alone who was the business then I would love to sit back and let then deal with it. This man’s understanding of world affairs is at the level of a seven year old. We have human will. You have to aim for something better then that.

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-4
transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

I doubt anyone here believes in “white knights”. We’re not that stupid – give us some credit. Of course he is flawed – so is everyone else. Government is a dirty, messy business, as if life itself. But none of that means that one political leader is completely equivalent to another one, and that we cannot be relieved that the anti-white loonies have been kicked out of the White House for at least 4 years, and that we can to an extent get back to a more open dialogue about how to organise our affairs.

5
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Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago
Reply to  transmissionofflame

Maybe you are right but my impression is one of subterfuge and betrayal whether it is willing or not. These are not good-hearted people and that is all that matters in the end. Tell me one good deed that any one of them did in the whole course of their life I mean something truly selfless. There should be plenty to choose from given how much these people enjoy the limelight.

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transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

I expect people who go into politics are not especially “good-hearted” on average, but that doesn’t mean they can do no good. I’d like to see a much smaller state and a much reduced role for politicians, but that’s a bit like hoping turkeys vote for Christmas. Occasionally there’s a step in the right direction – seems like that’s the best we can hope for.

4
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Mogwai
Mogwai
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

This is how you deport illegals back to Colombia. I read elsewhere that Trump has located 75,000 missing migrant children. A few hundred thousand went missing when the Demtards were in charge but I’m confident his team will find them because the Dems never even tried to find them;

https://x.com/JackBMontgomery/status/1883593296708337804

President Petro caved in under an hour, even offered his own plane to help with deportations;

https://x.com/JackBMontgomery/status/1883604260719603979

Last edited 6 months ago by Mogwai
3
0
huxleypiggles
huxleypiggles
6 months ago
Reply to  transmissionofflame

Hear, hear.

1
0
jeepybee
jeepybee
6 months ago
Reply to  huxleypiggles

Whiskey fuelled tirades is my guess

1
0
Jabby Mcstiff
Jabby Mcstiff
6 months ago
Reply to  jeepybee

You seem to have a thing about whisky with an ‘e’ in it. Whiskey or not you have no answer perhaps you should be more concerned about that.

0
-1
jeepybee
jeepybee
6 months ago
Reply to  Jabby Mcstiff

Where was you seem to have a thing about glasses with whiskey in them. Stop drinking and commenting absolute shite.

Last edited 6 months ago by jeepybee
0
0
jeepybee
jeepybee
6 months ago
Reply to  jeepybee

At least, I hope you’re drinking… If you’re spewing comments sober then you have issues way beyond alcoholism

2
0
huxleypiggles
huxleypiggles
6 months ago

“The phenomenon gained momentum through the early 20th Century with the Obama-era discovery that digital communication…”

I don’t think so.

1
0
Matt Dalby
Matt Dalby
6 months ago

Trump means a pause in “progressive utopianism”. Woke ideas will be waiting in the wings and could make a comeback in 2029, depending on who’s the next president.

1
0
marebobowl
marebobowl
6 months ago

I ‘ove our president, but there are a few red flags to watch out for. Inviting Altman, Ellison and SoftBank into the WH on day two? That is worrying. No mention of the damages of the plandemic nor the dangerous vaxxes that followed. Rumours he will not follow through on his executive order to leave the WHO, and then a promise to the WEF he will be attending next year, because the inauguration got in the way this year.

1
0
Kornea112
Kornea112
6 months ago

TDS- Trump Derangement Syndrome is a real condition. I am always amazed how wide spread it is and the numbers of seemingly highly educated it affects. Usually the people it affects are watchers of US main stream media.

Last edited 6 months ago by Kornea112
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blunt instrument
blunt instrument
6 months ago

Can we stop calling them and their ideas “progressive.” Don’t allow them any word that sounds positive. Removing 85% of the global population, and reducing the rest to perpertual slavery, are not progress.

Last edited 6 months ago by blunt instrument
1
0

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