Trump: American Origins

By Vlad Zeit

Phenomenon of President Trump is, first of all, the outcome of developments in the USA of the last 40 years. Cult of "Success", measured by wealth and popularity; degradation of domineering conservative ideology; humiliating reality of business culture are signs of degeneration in American life of this period. Concurrent process of triumphant swell of Popular Culture, mightily accelerated by Technology, is the terrifying peril of "uglification" of the spiritual life of the society and Culture and provides the powerful boost and support to Trump spectacle. But Trump is not only the perfect fit and culmination of such developments. Donald Trump is the frightening warning to Humanity of the grave, eternal danger of the victorious rise of what Joseph Brodsky called "the vulgarity of the human heart".

• Language: English
• Publisher: Vlad Zeit
• Release date: Jun 4, 2018
• ISBN: 9780463317907

Vlad Zeit

Classical literature reader.Hobbies: skiing, hiking, photography.Ca resident

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TRUMP: AMERICAN ORIGINS

By Vlad Zeit

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

1. THE CULT OF SUCCESS IN AMERICA

2. MODERN AMERICAN CONSERVATISM

3. AMERICAN BUSINESS WORLD

4. POP

5. MASTER OF SOCIAL MEDIA

6. TRUMP IS A JOKE

7. TRUMP IS NOT A JOKE

8. YAMSKAYA SLOBODA

THE CULT OF SUCCESS IN AMERICA

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

(Declaration of Independence, 1776)

This was the cornerstone on which the magnificent building of American Democracy was founded. The Founding Fathers of democracy in America were under profound influence of European thinkers, such as political philosopher of XVIII century John Locke.

Contemplating on the Ends of political Society and Government Locke stated that man seeks out, and is willing to join in society with others, who are already united, or have a mind to unite, for the mutual preservation of their lives, liberties, and estates, which I call by the general name property. The great and chief end, therefore, of men’s uniting into common wealths, and putting themselves under government, is the preservation of their property.

The right of the pursuit of Happiness delicately replaced the right of the pursuit and preservation of property. May be because the Founding Fathers secretly shared with their contemporary Edmund Burke the opinion that persistent pursuit of the property is somewhat vulgar: Philosophical happiness is to want little. Civil or vulgar happiness is to want much…

When thinking about happiness, one cannot disregard what Kant clearly expressed on the subject: Now it is impossible for the most intelligent… being to form here a determinate concept of what he really wills. Is it riches that he wants? How much anxiety, envy, and pestering might he not bring in this way on his own head!... Is it long life? Who will guarantee that it would not be a long misery?... In short, he has no principle by which he is able to decide with complete certainty what will make him truly happy, since for this he would require omniscience.

But still, for centuries the notion of achieving the happiness through success measured by the degree of financial prosperity dominated the World. It can be easily understood and justified in the World for generations suffering from poverty, starvation, miserable live conditions, pain, sicknesses and premature deaths. So the time and place, when and where the success found the widest acceptance and became a cult is somewhat surprising: prosperous final decades of XX century and the first decades of XXI; the wealthiest country in the history of the World – the United States of America.

…the attitude today when all that matters for far too many is success… is what historian David McCullough observed in modern America.

Celebrated editor Tina Brown (The Vanity Fair, New Yorker, Newsweek) in her interview with Time Magazine published in December 11, 2017 issue said: There is something so deeply American about his appeal. At the end of the day, Donald Trump is a man with a Golden tower, and a big airplane and a model wife. That’s a very easy thing to understand as a success story. Obviously, Tina Brown herself accepts such criteria of success and shares deeply American admiration.

What Tina Brown has a difficulty to contemplate is what David Mc Cullough is concerned about.

And why Nietzsche noticed: Success has always been the greatest liar…

If we measure our achievement by our success we are all failures.

In conclusion of his article When Boxing Goes Low, I Go High Wall Street Journal sport columnist Jason Gay wrote: …Las Vegas has always been a comical representation of our national ID. Loud, shameless and driven by money, Floyd Mayweather boxing Connor Mc Gregor was exactly the sporting event America deserved in 2017.

Though some people have a stronger stomach than others, overconsumption of food will always end with diarrhea. The misuse of, or too much ecstasy over, success is much more dangerous, is not treatable by available drugs and requires the cardinal therapy and treatment.

Tina Brown’s America, which for decades developed and perfected the cult