An Axios article, echoed at msn.com, concludes with the following summation of Trump's 2nd term activism. It is somewhat accurate.
MAGA's utopia looks a lot like America in the 1950s -- before the sexual revolution, mass immigration, the Civil Rights Act, and expanded LGBTQ rights reshaped the country's culture and demographics.
MAGA is a claim things were once better than they are now, meaning important parts of the culture have become degraded. I believe a lot of us feel that, have nostalgia for good things lost along the way.
As it happens, I'm old enough to remember the 1950s. With the exception of the Korean War, it was a nicer place than many of the decades since. Both illegitimacy and divorce were uncommon, most kids had two parents, and automotive design still had some imagination. A college degree would buy you a perch on the first rung of the ladder to success. And pot was uncommon, if not unknown.
Do I like the tech marvels that have appeared since? Of course I do, the medium for which I write this hadn't been imagined yet. I spend significant time online every day. Liking many aspects of current life doesn't negate nostalgia for past good things now mostly gone.
Later … Ben Shapiro reacts to this same Axios piece with the following summary.
Actually, MAGA's utopia looks mostly like what most Americans think of as the American dream: upward mobility, solid family structure, safety in the streets, decent education, and a vibrant social fabric complete with community and church.The fact that so many on the left — and in the media — find this vision to be irredeemably "racist" demonstrates their utter disconnect with most Americans. And it's why Trump is president for the second time.
I believe Shapiro and I are on the same page, so to speak.
