Remember when Kamala Harris and Tim Walz rolled out the campaign theme of “joy”? Harris presented herself as the “joyful warrior.” Her hyena laugh was not cringeworthy (even though people cringed) but “joyful.” When she said crazy things (which was routine), it was just Harris being silly—which is why she giggled her way through the constant stream of nonsensical ramblings. Readers might be interested in the essay I wrote about this before the 2024 election, A Fool’s Paradise: Democrats Rehash the Fake “Politics of Joy”.
The Republicans? Not joyful at all, Democrats implied. They dismissed Trump’s natural comedic talent (forgetting his appearances on SNL and all other shows and events). They would have Americans ignore the scenes of the conservative family on the lake, their backyard barbecues, hunting and fishing trips, laughing and joking around. There’s no celebration of life on the right side. For Democrats, working-class culture is reduced to signs to be used to manufacture fake affinity with the common man. “Look at me in the hunting outfit my campaign just bought, shooting the gun I borrowed. I’m just like you.” Sure, Elmer.
They do the same thing when appealing to black voters. During an April 2016 interview on The Breakfast Club, Clinton told her black brothers and sisters that she always carries a bottle of hot sauce in her bag. On the same program, during the 2020 election, hidden away in his basement, Biden remarked to the host Charlamagne, “Well I tell you what, if you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.” Charlamagne responded, “It don’t have nothing to do with Trump. It has to do with the fact, I want something for my community.” Biden shot back: “Take a look at my record, man!” In reality, neither side of that exchange had anything to offer working families—or black Americans—that would allow them to rise.
At the same time, the 2024 campaign branded Republicans as “weird.” Despite their patriotism, belief in equality and fair play, advocacy of the nuclear family and traditional norms, and appreciation of basic biology, Republicans were the odd ones. Communication advisers instructed Democrats to reframe political disagreement into everyday, relatable terms rather than heavy ideological warnings. It would do no good to disagree with orthodoxy; instead, reduce them to a single word. Otherwise, the country sees plainly that Democrats subvert equality with DEI, replace the nuclear family with the village, transgress child protective boundaries, and reject basic biology. To be sure, from their point of view, these aren’t weird. But Democratic operatives know others will see them that way because they are. So Republicans are weird.
Psychologists call this projection. Yet they attend Pride parades where men on estrogen (attempt to) swing their shrunken genitals in the faces of children while wearing leather gimp and puppy masks. They turn the obvious question around and put it to normal people: “Why are you so obsessed with genitals?” That’s strategic projection.
Francesca Hong, who was just defeated in the Wisconsin primary by David Crowley, is a paradigm of joylessness in the Democratic Party. She’s weird, too. You’ve probably already heard that a while ago she tweeted that Thanksgiving should be abolished. She took that back recently, but in the lead-up to feigned regret, she also expressed her dislike of Halloween and Valentine’s Day. Too much love and kindness—and joy. Asked why she didn’t like Halloween, she responded, “I’m just not a fun person.” No shit, Sherlock. None of them are. They’re a bunch of woke scolds. It’s why their conservative family members avoid Indigenous Peoples’ Day. They don’t want to sit through rants about how awful Trump and those who voted for him are. They don’t want to see another “In this House” yard sign. That’s not going “no contact.” It’s avoiding another Maoist struggle session.
Democrats suck the joy out of life. Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Valentine’s Day roll around, and progressives grumble about white supremacy, the capitalist cash-grab, or some other terrible thing those holidays represent. They see edgy comedians and smear them as “racists” and “transphobes.” Their own idea of comedy is some activist making unclever politically correct “jokes” to clapter, finger-snapping, or jazz hands (so as not to trigger those with sensory issues). The media transfigured Trump’s joyful rally at Madison Square Garden on October 27, 2024, into a “Nazi rally.” Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe horrified them. But there’s nothing weird about “Drag Queen Story Hour.”
As I explain in the essay cited at the top of today’s piece, the substance of the projection is familiar to history. Through the state-run “Strength through Joy” (Kraft durch Freude or KdF) program, the Nazi regime explicitly projected a politics of joy. To eyes wide open, the Nazis were covering a dark and grim project for world reordering with propaganda disguised as entertainment. Likewise, the Soviet Union ran an extensive, highly organized network of state-sponsored culture designed to showcase the “joyful” achievements of communism. Some went through the motions because that was the only party in town. But it is always sad to see, because Nazism and Communism are sad ways of living. Joy under totalitarianism is contrived because totalitarian regimes are joyless.
That a party or a state feels compelled to manufacture the appearance of joy distinguishes totalitarian design from the organic joy that naturally emerges from the people who live freely. The administered world of progressivism is inherently joyless because it compels people to live according to institution-sanctioned activities. It sucks joy out of people to tell them how to respond appropriately—and what that will be is determined by organizational doctrine. Humans find jokes about this or that group of people funny. They are scolded for “punching down.” Those who laugh at their fellow humans should feel shame—or be shamed—for laughing. The totalitarian will tell you who to laugh at.
For the totalitarian mindset, humans finding joy in life in ways the state disapproves of is dangerous. It’s a metric for too much freedom. Better that they hate people and things—and to know who and what that is, listen to the totalitarian. It’s as true for humor as it is for any other human expression. Movies set in eighteenth-century Denmark must cast black people, so those who can’t suspend their disbelief in the face of farce can be identified as dissenters (see Helen of Troy and the Falsification of History; The Deceit of AfroTurfing: Resisting the Siren Call of Nolan’s Monster Movie). To cover for how weird and awful that is, the party or state manufactures officially approved joy, which, as it is in any totalitarian situation, is the opposite of what it claims to be.
I noted earlier that Hong lost her bid to be the Democratic nominee for Wisconsin governor. After her loss, House Democrat Ro Khanna explained to his followers that he and “Fran” were close. You could tell they are close because he called her “Fran,” as if they were family. As I read Khanna’s tweet, my mind drifted to that scene from Elia Kazan’s Waterfront. In the back of a cab, Charley remarked to his brother Terry, “Look, kid, I—how much you weigh, Slick? When you weighed one hundred and sixty-eight pounds you were beautiful. You coulda been another Billy Conn, and that skunk we got you for a manager, he brought you along too fast.” Terry responded, “It wasn’t him, Charley, it was you. Remember that night in the Garden you came down to my dressing room and you said, ‘Kid, this ain’t your night. We’re going for the price on Wilson.’ You remember that? ‘This ain’t your night.’”
I did my part to get Hong into the general. Not just to make it easier for the Republican candidate Tom Tiffany (who won his primary in a landslide), but so the nation could have a good illustration of the lunacy of the Democratic Socialists of America, the totalitarian tendency colonizing the Democratic Party. I wasn’t counting on the establishment to pull out a Crowley win. The polling did not look good for him, as you can see from the polling the day before shared below. Now Tiffany has a fight, and the number illustrative of lunatics diminished. Not by much given the depth of the madness, but Hong was special. She brought a childlike quality to the mix. She doubled the AOC vibe, who recently admitted that “Woke 1 was crazy.” Cortez’s admission was designed to obscure the reality that Woke 2 is crazier.
Looking at the polling, and considering the “human error” in Milwaukee, it is hard to believe that Crowley legitimately won the Wisconsin primary. So why did Hong concede? In reflecting on this, I imagined the following conversation:
“Fran.”
“Yes?”
“We’re going to need you to concede. Crowley will win the election.”
“How do you know that? I am way ahead in the polls. Where are all these Crowley votes coming from?”
“Fran, this has to happen because Democrats must win the midterms. Republicans are killing us on the Democratic Socialism thing. You can’t win against Tiffany. But it’s worse than that. Republicans are going to use Wisconsin to portray Democrats as socialists and zero in on all the rest of the things we want.”
“How do you know that I can’t beat Tiffany? I am very popular.”
“Yes, you are. But we’ve looked at this closely and have determined that the people are not there yet. Tiffany will win if you are the candidate. We know you are way ahead in the polls. But everything is at stake here. We can’t risk the midterms.”
“Are you sure?”
“Look, you do want Trump impeached and his agenda thwarted, right?”
“Yes, of course.”
“You do want to continue the project of demographic transformation, right? Our plans depend on it.”
“Yes.”
“We knew you’d understand. After we’ve transformed the country, Democratic Socialism can reemerge. We’re not yet in a position to abolish the American Republic. As I said, the people just aren’t there right now. You’re young and your time will come. You do understand, right?”
“I understand.”
“Will you concede?”
“I will concede.”
“Good girl. The counterrevolution appreciates your service. We won’t forget about you.”
freedom and reason 