Demagoguery and Xenophobia
The dictionary defines "Demagoguery" as "political activity or practices that seek support by appealing to the desires and prejudices of ordinary people"....rather than by using principles and logic. When Hitler argued that "all Jews" were evil because they are nothing but "parasites," he was engaging in demagoguery. And because we think in categories that may not be based on perfect and complete information, we must take care to avoid acting more on prejudicial fears than fact.
When fear is added to the technique, such as Hitler's assertion that the Jewish "parasite" will destroy our nation if we don't destroy it first. Then our "mentality" does not actually correspond with reality. This means it is delusional.
"Xenophobia" is the fear or hatred of that which is seen as foreign or strange. It sees conflict between an in-group and an out-group. We psychologically identify with our "in-group." Conversely, an out-group is that with which we seem unable to identify. In-groups consist of peers, family, community, sports teams, political party, gender, religion, or a nation.
Powell and Menedian define "demagogues"--as leaders who use rhetoric to incite fear for political gain. Describing an example they say:
Demagogues actively inculcate and organize that fear into a political force. Where prejudice was latent, it is being activated; where it is absent, it is being fostered.... Adolf Hitler's anti-Semitic rhetoric blamed the economic conditions of the Weimar Republic on the nation's minority Jewish population.
And we know where that led.
Healing Division: End the Power of Delusion-making
Xenophobia is classified under Anxiety Disorders. The Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) assigns 'phobic' as a diagnosis if two of six criteria are met: 1) contact with immigrants creates intense fear and anxiety; 2) the fear/anxiety is disproportionate to any actual danger; 3) the affected person goes to extremes to avoid foreigners or strangers; 4) the anxiety triggered renders the person unable to function normally; 5) the fear lasts for six months or longer, and/or 6) All other anxiety disorders can be ruled out. How many of us know individuals who display two of these six features?
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