LOL, dumbest post in a long while.Morality isn't subjective.
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LOL, dumbest post in a long while.Morality isn't subjective.
Feds aren’t stopping NY or CA from instituting higher taxes in their states on their populaces and providing services they want in their states.Blue States are rich enough that our tax dollars subsidize the Red State voters who use the federal government to prevent us from having things we want..
I would just like it paid for. If it’s paid for I am a fan of letting each political party try what they want.Spending can be good if the spending is via the form of investment that pays dividends. Unfortunately, nobody signs on unless the dividend is votes.
I blame social media and our cable news networks. We got along much better when we could wind our day down by finding out how many people got shot in your city that day, what the weather would be tomorrow, a brief 90 seconds on sports, and onto your late night show for a few laughs. Now it's 24/7 political chaos. You can't even avoid this crap on linkedin where anybody with anything between his/her ears would use to make more money.
I think the sad truth is is that given the partisan divide and the current trajectory, it would/will only be a matter of time before a radical leftist populist becomes a similar "cult of personality" leader a la Trump but on the liberal side. It's not like there isn't plenty of global historical examples of that happening as well. I think the GOP just got to the full shark-jumping a little faster.
This is for sure true. And do not underestimate how much this was exacerbated by the pandemic. I think there is reason to be slightly more optimistic than this author as the pandemic gets further in the rear view.
The pandemic drove people into isolation and online more than ever before. It literally stifled the majority of the normal interaction between Americans, where people of all voting tendencies tend to get together and coexist...bars, concerts, sports, community spaces, gyms. The pandemic literally cut off the significant portion of life that was totally apolitical, online which is almost 100% politically polarized. Things were certainly fractious since the appearance of Trump, but before the pandemic there was a reasonable position to take that it was generally a unicorn event mostly tied to the Trump phenomenon, with a shelf life. The pandemic to me gave the opportunity to institutionalize and monetize all the bad elements of the Trump movement and anti-Trump movement - the lying, grifting, grievance hustling, anti-institution rhetoric, cancellations and counter-cancellations. Sending everybody online for the better part of two years turned that up to 11.
Unfortunately, the pandemic also made the most over-the-top rhetoric about your opponents totally mainstream. Rhetoric that used to be a step too far to be mainstreamed, in the pandemic all of a sudden was blatantly on display. Namely:
- "Republicans are trying to kill people with their policies"
- "Democrats want to use and abuse state power to crush your freedom if given the chance"
That went from extreme rhetoric usually reserved for firebrands to something that now seems totally obvious on the face of it for even casual Democrats and Republicans. Obviously things are nuanced, and partisans will argue against it, but politicians basically lived up to the worst things they have been accused of for years.
Finally, the damn mask situation put everyone's view of the "other" from online to real life. Never mind that it wasn't even that accurate, as many Republicans like myself masked up consistently until the vaccine, and many liberals (even politicians) didn't like masking and didn't mask up when they thought they could get away with it. It just did not help that we ended up with everyone basically walking around like Sneetches obsessed with what everyone around us was signalling.
It's going to be pretty tough to get beyond the fault lines that were solidified during the pandemic, but I don't think it's impossible. Its one of the reasons I think it could get worse, but I don't think its INEVITABLE that it gets worse.
“Tax the rich” is the mantra Dems pull out every election to pander for votes.I would just like it paid for. If it’s paid for I am a fan of letting each political party try what they want.
instead we get all kinds of spending and zero is paid for. Biden is well into his term and has yet to “tax the rich” yet he is well on his way to shattering all of Trumps records.
Maybe even more importantly, how is our military split up among the various interests? Would we even want/need a national military or would we fall back to so-called state militias?... and a question:
How does the author propose that the federal debt be managed? Like any divorce, money is usually the biggest sticking point.
True….true.So here's the fallacy that this article and everyone that sees the country dividing into two countries, including this article. The vast majority of people neither want to live in an autonomous zone, or in a theocratic Christian monarchy.
It's a mistake of mixing up the online world (including HROT) with the actual world. Most Americans don't want to live in EITHER a socialist utopia or antebellum restoration. But because the online world thrives and monetizes polarization, and the political parties keep offering a binary choice between extremes and make people choose the one that might be a little less worse.
Even most of the Trump haters on this board don't actually want to live in a world with no gendered language allowed, police funding cut to the bone or abolished, no-bail release and reduced prosecutions, government funded abortions through nine months, permanent making, etc.
And most of the Republican voters don't want slavery stricken from textbooks or condoms made illegal or mandatory church attendance or their neighbors to be able to buy a rocket launcher.
"Hey Nole Lou, you're specifically choosing the most extreme fringes, that doesn't really represent the views of the parties."
Well, no shit, but what do you think is going to happen when the 35-40% of Californians that are Republicans leave, or the 45% of Texans that are Democrats leave those states? Just look at the city of Portland or Marjorie Taylor Greene's district if you want the answer. The vast, vast majority of people don't want to live in either political environment.
So here's the fallacy that this article and everyone that sees the country dividing into two countries, including this article. The vast majority of people neither want to live in an autonomous zone, or in a theocratic Christian monarchy.
It's a mistake of mixing up the online world (including HROT) with the actual world. Most Americans don't want to live in EITHER a socialist utopia or antebellum restoration. But because the online world thrives and monetizes polarization, and the political parties keep offering a binary choice between extremes and make people choose the one that might be a little less worse.
Even most of the Trump haters on this board don't actually want to live in a world with no gendered language allowed, police funding cut to the bone or abolished, no-bail release and reduced prosecutions, government funded abortions through nine months, permanent making, etc.
And most of the Republican voters don't want slavery stricken from textbooks or condoms made illegal or mandatory church attendance or their neighbors to be able to buy a rocket launcher.
"Hey Nole Lou, you're specifically choosing the most extreme fringes, that doesn't really represent the views of the parties."
Well, no shit, but what do you think is going to happen when the 35-40% of Californians that are Republicans leave, or the 45% of Texans that are Democrats leave those states? Just look at the city of Portland or Marjorie Taylor Greene's district if you want the answer. The vast, vast majority of people don't want to live in either political environment.
I'm hoping it gets better but I don't see an exit back to normal politics.
It's not going to be easy, but it's not impossible. I think its probably going to take an individual to start to pull it back, just like it took one person primarily to pull it totally off the rails.
I'm fairly certain that someone like Mark Cuban could absolutely pull a Ross Perot but actually make it work. If he was a native citizen, Elon Musk could. Obviously Elon Musk is currently in the left's crosshairs, but not for anything that actually matters to any but the Very Online. He's certainly not some reactionary Republican.
Or, a guy like Mark Cuban could probably win either party's nomination as a moderate with very careful messaging. It wouldn't be easy, but we're in a cult of personality and celebrity phase at this point. Don't forget that Trump won the nomination running on many ideas (pro-LGBT and gay marriage, protecting pre-existing conditions, anti-free trade, anti-military intervention) that were totally counter to the last several decades of Republican standards. And they were thrown off like nothing.
The Democrats did it in the past (with Clinton) and came pretty close to doing it again in the other direction with an avowed and committed socialist in Bernie Sanders.
Ultimately, with the right message and some kind of charisma, many of the "issues" are just so many details.
Hence why I say we need to start over on our whole political system to create one that is actually representative of the people's views.
Most Americans don't want to live in those situations but the politicians are not playing to most Americans they are playing to their base because they live in gerrymandered districts where 10 to 20% of the population votes in the primary for the most extreme person on the ballot and the other 80% shows up at the general election and decides "I guess they are better than the other extreme." Which for the record is done simply because every election is nationalized now. There are no more conservative democrats running in conservative areas. There are no more liberal Republicans running in liberal areas. Even if you are that, they still try to tie you up with someone in national government even if you are running for the freaking school board.
We need a system that guts gerrymandering entirely out of the equation and at the same time encourages multiple parties and multiple viewpoints into congress.
We're working in a system that was designed 200 years ago and our politicians have gamed it in every way possible.
The problem is the moderates don't show up to vote in primaries for the most part. Especially on the right side.
On the left they still have some sway and got Biden.
Put it back at the state level.I would just like it paid for. If it’s paid for I am a fan of letting each political party try what they want.
instead we get all kinds of spending and zero is paid for. Biden is well into his term and has yet to “tax the rich” yet he is well on his way to shattering all of Trumps records.
Ideally states could govern as they chose like the flounders intended and breaking up wouldn’t be necessary.
LBJ sure loved using the n-word.I’ve been thinking about this since @torbee posted this and you know what I wish the left had (and make no mistake about it, Landslide Lyndon was L-E-F-T with his Great Society programs): a modern day LBJ. No honest person would say that LBJ with one hand tied behind his back wouldn’t make Donald Trump fill his depends with one glance. LBJ could put “the treatment” (see below) on the “radicals” in the Democratic Party to get his agenda through, and maybe even appeal to old school republicans. Of course the MTG and Madison (“There’s a video of me rubbing my penis on my male cousin’s face”) Cawthorn voters are a lost cause, but LBJ could win, in my opinion.
"modern day LBJ."LBJ sure loved using the n-word.
You know who would be an excellent national presidential candidate the Left and Right would get behind?It's not going to be easy, but it's not impossible. I think its probably going to take an individual to start to pull it back, just like it took one person primarily to pull it totally off the rails.
I'm fairly certain that someone like Mark Cuban could absolutely pull a Ross Perot but actually make it work. If he was a native citizen, Elon Musk could. Obviously Elon Musk is currently in the left's crosshairs, but not for anything that actually matters to any but the Very Online. He's certainly not some reactionary Republican.
Or, a guy like Mark Cuban could probably win either party's nomination as a moderate with very careful messaging. It wouldn't be easy, but we're in a cult of personality and celebrity phase at this point. Don't forget that Trump won the nomination running on many ideas (pro-LGBT and gay marriage, protecting pre-existing conditions, anti-free trade, anti-military intervention) that were totally counter to the last several decades of Republican standards. And they were thrown off like nothing.
The Democrats did it in the past (with Clinton) and came pretty close to doing it again in the other direction with an avowed and committed socialist in Bernie Sanders.
Ultimately, with the right message and some kind of charisma, many of the "issues" are just so many details.
But it has never actually been tried. The richest 1% often pay ZERO taxes.“Tax the rich” is the mantra Dems pull out every election to pander for votes.
Back in 1980 while a student at Iowa, some woman (can’t remember her name….was running on the dem ticket for the House…she lost) came to speak at my Political Science class. Made all the usual promises of all the great things that she would do. I asked her how they would be paid for. The answer? “Tax the rich.”
I can’t believe there are idiots that still fall for this.
My guess is whatever new entities (countries?) form will say, "not my debt" and people holding it will be SOL. I'm not sure what the IMF could do and international banks, I'm sure they can do something, but honestly whatever punishments they come up with might be better than being stuck with 23 trillion dollars of debt.... and a question:
How does the author propose that the federal debt be managed? Like any divorce, money is usually the biggest sticking point.
So here's the fallacy that this article and everyone that sees the country dividing into two countries, including this article. The vast majority of people neither want to live in an autonomous zone, or in a theocratic Christian monarchy.
It's a mistake of mixing up the online world (including HROT) with the actual world. Most Americans don't want to live in EITHER a socialist utopia or antebellum restoration. But because the online world thrives and monetizes polarization, and the political parties keep offering a binary choice between extremes and make people choose the one that might be a little less worse.
Even most of the Trump haters on this board don't actually want to live in a world with no gendered language allowed, police funding cut to the bone or abolished, no-bail release and reduced prosecutions, government funded abortions through nine months, permanent making, etc.
And most of the Republican voters don't want slavery stricken from textbooks or condoms made illegal or mandatory church attendance or their neighbors to be able to buy a rocket launcher.
"Hey Nole Lou, you're specifically choosing the most extreme fringes, that doesn't really represent the views of the parties."
Well, no shit, but what do you think is going to happen when the 35-40% of Californians that are Republicans leave, or the 45% of Texans that are Democrats leave those states? Just look at the city of Portland or Marjorie Taylor Greene's district if you want the answer. The vast, vast majority of people don't want to live in either political environment.
You know who would be an excellent national presidential candidate the Left and Right would get behind?
Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Too bad about that pesky native born resident thing.
Holy shit nice deflection.America is irrevocably broken. The sooner this fact is acknowledged the sooner peaceful solutions can be sought.
Another weird phenomenon of the current atmosphere, probably related to the monetary value of doom clicking to social media algorithms...both sides desperately feel like they are generally losing, if not getting routed, and are in the 11th hour to "save" America.
It is. The party that replaced it may have taken over the name, but this is not the "Republican" party of Reagan, the Bushes, Romney, Cheney, etc. It is a weird right wing populist front now and is anathema to actual conservative values.It wasn’t that long ago that some Dems on this board and in the media we’re saying the Republican Party is finished.
It wasn’t that long ago that some Dems on this board and in the media we’re saying the Republican Party is finished.
Not really true. That is as accurate as saying the democratic party are left wing socialists.It is a weird right wing populist front now and is anathema to actual conservative values.
There were a few on this board. But then, they were all loonies. And still are.I'm sure there were some people who were overly optimistic and had too high expectations for people and legitimately thought the Republican party would be gone and non existent.
However, what I understood people to generally mean is that the Republican party is dead in terms of what it once was, that it's a shell of its former self, that it's unrecognizable. It's finished as a functioning, reality acknowledging group that is capable of governance, etc. Became the party of Trump and Trumpism, etc.
That's just my understanding as opposed to the understanding that people legitimately thought the Republican party would just poof, disappear, finished.
What are Dolly Parton’s Kids like?I think we should just be a monarchy and call it good. Pick a family that seems nice and let them run with it.
HopefullyWhat are Dolly Parton’s Kids like?