Bouvard on Vance Cult Politics and Vibes

Vance became a kind of token for the elements of the alt and dissident right that were no longer playing by the "old rules"--you know you belong by insisting that it must be Vance, Vance is inevitably, we'll get you if you're not with Vance, etc. So they went in on Vance very

early and have used stances toward him as a means of determining their own stance toward any figure or faction. And they will stick with and are stuck with him, but the problem is that their buy-in on Vance is mostly vibes--his youth, his groyper adjacency, familiarity with the

relevant codes, irreverence toward authority figures, etc. It's a cult, fragile and irritable, ready to close ranks, formulaic. The only way to keep this going is by identifying absolute enemies, defining them narrowly, framing them, and attacking them relentlessly.

The problem is that they're not in a position to do this very effectively--referringly endlessly to neocons and Never Trumpers will grow old quickly, especially since they have no basis in truth. Analogies between Vance and Trump 2016 are preposterous. But they're dug in deep.