The chickens voted for Colonel Sanders. They know the colonel, they know what he's promised to do, and they voted to put him in charge anyway. The saddest thing to me is knowing that the majority of Americans are not, and apparently never have been, worthy of the country and its principles that our Founders bequeathed to us. Yesterday was the day American democracy died.
The chickens voted for Col Sanders because they, and generations before them, have been indoctrinated to believe that he's the good guy and everybody is living in a happy place right now, and praise the colonel it's the best place in the world! The democracy didn't die. It never existed. And, oh yeah, saying that the best democracy money can buy is a slaughterhouse is (and always has been) criminal.
Democracy did die. But it lived for nearly 250 years before yesterday. I'm not going to deny the evidence of history because of what happened yesterday.
(shrug) There's that saying about those who don't learn from history...I lived through a bunch of it (first voted in 1972), and did my best to learn from it. I can, in fact, cite an article I wrote in 1976 about the same thing. It was entitled "And again. you think this is democracy?" It was in a campus/community, low-circulation newspaper, and the special election issue was called "Fed up with CarterFord." So, that's my experience: democracy never existed. At least in my lifetime.
I read some time back that we actually function as an oligarchy with democratic elements. The wealthy run (ran) the country through their proxies (politicians). Now, they are putting themselves in power in order to raid the countries coffers, and nothing is done about it. We've reached a point where the MAGAts think the 'capitalism' and 'democracy' are the same thing. We've been sliding back into the 1800s and "naked capitalism," when the nation was prosperous, even as it's citizens were not.
Interesting. I was telling my nephew a couple of weeks ago about the first election I clearly remember--for student council, when I was in fifth grade. There was one girl, a sixth grader, whose campaign slogan was "vote for me. I have a big pencil." Her dad had helped her make a papier-mache pencil that was almost as tall as she was, and she toted that thing to recess and out to lunch, yelling her campaign slogan. I remember thinking how dumb that was. Actually the other student council "candidates" were even less articulate, so that says something about the level of discourse at that school. The student council had no money, no power, not even any power to consult or represent other students. It was basically a popularity contest, but none of the actual popular kids, who *did* have social power, bothered. They were just the powers behind the kids who were on student council. That was true in every student council I remember, through college. Pretty much all the students recognized the lack of power, so few people voted (except the frats and sororities at my college.) Except once: some students who, against admin obstruction, had put a student initiative on the student council ballot, that would increase fees by $15 per term. That increase would allow all students to ride the local buses for free. About 70% of undergrad and grad students voted (the student council had to print extra ballots because they hadn't expected that turnout.) The initiative passed with over 3/4 of the votes. These apathetic students had just shown that, when it was something that materially bettered their lives, they would turn out and support it. The community college, and staff and faculty at the university, soon demanded the same benefit--and got it. The local bus company added a huge number of new buses and routes because they got a large infusion of money every term. They built service centers that were open 24/7 and hired people who were committed to expanding public transit and accessible transit for the disabled. Even the newly hired bus drivers got into the act, and clubbed together to get walky-talkies for all the drivers, allowing them to coordinate drop-off and pick-ups of passengers, if anybody was running late. The whole area benefitted, and by the time I moved out of town about 5 years later, the city and colleges were proudly holding up that bus initiative as forward-looking and a great positive change. But student politics were still on the "vote for me. I've got a big pencil" level. Power still did not lie with the students who paid fees--except that once. That, in brief, is what you get when you have a powerful few and a powerless many: sometimes reality breaks through and the many benefit--but not often.
I thought that was going to head in a different direction with voting against it.
The powers that be remain in power because they rely on creating that sense of disempowerment and general malaise to make the masses disenfranchise themselves.
I am very pro-public transportation, but tRump's Project 2025 wants to do away with it and move to an Uber/Lyft model. Public transportation is too communist for their liking.
There's considerable truth in that, and one good piece of evidence is that historically Trade Unions and forms of collective bargaining have been intentionally attacked and undermined by big money and corruption.
Sadly, even
many working think Unionism is a form of socialism.
Ironic, when you consider that business is unionised and feeds off corporate welfare.
The nation is now run and directed by mercenaries.
There is a belief in corporate 'Merica that if people are paid less, the bottom line goes up, which is true, but overly simplistic. When people can't afford to live, they spend less. Fewer customers means the bottom line goes down. To get around this, they export jobs to other countries to exploit workers there. Then they blame the foreigners. People buy it. Problem solved.
Unions were the cause of the rise of the middle-class throughout the 20th century. But understanding that takes long-term thinking, which is an anathema to short-term thinkers who are only concerned with the next quarter's profits.
I get that that's your perspective based on your own lifetime, but this country existed long before either of us were born, and for more than two centuries we had a democratic republic. Until yesterday. So, we'll just have to agree to disagree on your point.
I'm sorry. I don't even know how to engage with that comment. I know it's illegal in some places to teach the actual history of this country, but insisting that a country whose founding governing documents allow for the owning of other human beings as property, is somehow democratic--I'm speechless. (BTW, in my state of California, indigenous people could legally be enslaved til about a century ago, so not casting shade here. ) Like I said about not learning from history. I almost deleted this comment, so all I can say is (shrug) I can't force anybody to learn.
Yes, and there's no arguing with cult members who revere their leader as a god-like figure. That said, WE don't have to pretend that our view is wrong. It's not.
As Matt Dillahunty has said in 100 or more debates with christians, 'The number of people who believe something has no bearing on the truth of their claims.'
We NEED to get that on board as we face what's ahead of us now. It doesn't matter how many people believe a wrong thing, or how hard they try to convince us to buy it, too. They're still WRONG. And we're not.
I have no idea. I don't know to deprogram one person from a cult, let alone millions. They've chosen to live in their own bubble, detached from reality.
Yeah. Why couldn’t these Jesus creeps move to Poland or some Christian semi theocracy instead of trying to mutilate a secular country into a Christian one (whilst praising the founding fathers)
What'll remain puzzling is the amount of people, from his own speeches, Tiktok, Twitter, and even Facebook were voting blue even before the ultimate decision was made. So many, including myself, grew confident he'd lose. Now, the wonder of what could be after Kamala won, seeing that MAGA was still something inspite of; though obvious losses there were an obvious thing. The polls weren't accurate either, which upset me even? Because of how much he dwindled and Kamala just grew merciless in numbers. So when I saw that alone, you'd think they'd actually see where things really were.
One former republican pollster pointed out yesterday that this is the third election in a row where a majority of white women lied to pollsters about voting Dem and then voted for Trump. Pretty clear we can't trust the current iteration of polling. At. All.
This is infinitely worse than 2016. In 2016 no one expected Trump to win, and he entered office totally unprepared. He now has the total backing of the Heritage Foundation and a cabal of right wing billionaires ready to destroy democracy. We are likely to see an all out war on women, and reason itself. No one outside the Neanderthal right will be safe. I suspect they will at least try to persecute atheists. Hate and stupidity triumphed over decency and common sense. I do not expect the American Republic to survive a second Trump Presidency.
Thanks for the lecture. My family were third generation Americans at the time of the American Revolution. I'm also a third generation war veteran. U.S. citizens have always been referred to as 'Americans'.
No problem if one understands the history and meaning of America. Many American countries they don't want to be associated with the MAGAs. "In Latin America, "American" means anyone from the American continent. U.S. citizens claiming the word are considered gauche or imperialist" its embarrassing.
That's a bit of a semantic game. "America" has always been used by people in the United States to refer to themselves, and that's what oraxx was doing.
In 2016, I changed my FB profile pic to the Canadian flag and kept it that way for 4 years. 3 Years in, a coworker noticed it and blew up. I don't remember the specifics of the "conversation" that ensued (except he threatened to report me to security for not being patriotic so that I would lose my job), but it was clear to me, MAGAts are as volatile as they are stupid.
Yup MAGAS are violent and stupid. I live in a totally blue state. We don't get MAGAS here. Quebec is totally out of the question anyway. I am going to wear Kamala for President pins though the next four years. Cheaper and gets my point across.
There us no perfect government anywhere but trump? How the hell could he even run seeing he had two impeachments against him?!? Wtff?!? Trump is bad, bad news for America and if you haven't read Project 2025 please do. Scared. Really,really scared.
My biggest fears aren't for myself or my family. We'll be fine, except for that fact that it will no longer be safe to be an out atheist, agnostic, or none. I'm worried about the people the right wing has been targeting from trans kids and adult to LGBT folks whose marriages and adoptions could be invalidated, immigrants [legal and undocumented], federal employees who will be replaced with political sycophants, etc., etc. I worry for the people of Ukraine and Gaza who are going to be thrown to the wolves, and so many others.
Even many on the right won't be safe. These rubes have proven time and time again that they will vote against their best interests out of whatever bogeyman they need to cling to - 'live birth abortions', 'trans people using their bathrooms', 'immigrants taking all their jobs', etc. They'll lose their healthcare, their welfare, their social security... Every public service they might use will be privatized and triple the price. Unions will be banned. Protesting will be banned. That's if they don't simply get deported because they're brown. And those that remain will still ask daddy to spank them harder.
All the meanwhile, outside of the country, Ukraine will fall, bolstering Russia to continue their land-grab. Taiwan will be taken with zero fight. The US will pull out of NATO and lose all of our allies. We'll never have a true election again. The dollar will go nuclear. Eventually, it will all crumble and the former billionaires with piles of useless cash will be presiding over the ashes.
The country is done. And it will start happening the day after inauguration. Say goodbye to the filibuster immediately. Bills are already being drafted or have been sitting on shelves waiting to for this moment. Trump will drop a dozen XOs on day one. Thomas and Alito will retire to their RVs and new freakshow justices will assume the bench. I expect the 3 rational justices to just stop showing up. If any of this sounds far-fetched or like fearmongering... when someone tells you who they are - repeatedly - believe them.
Yep......Trump was totally honest on what he will do.....he spewed it at every hate rally. Project 2025 is coming! His voters will shit themselves when their SS checks are cut....and the age is increased. When ACA is drastically cut or eliminated. When food cost goes up after workers are deported. It gives me satisfaction to know those fuckers will suffer. I have no sympathy for them.
Jimmy Kimmel, while alongside his confidence in their losses even, is a concern with his show. Because even he saw that interview during Vance's clear walk on eggshells for obvious reasons. So that pop on the wrist was indeed a definite while taking clear blows logically and those dismissals. Positions by far matter.
2016: 136,787,187 Popular vote Clinton 65,853,514 Trump 62,984,828
2020: 158,481,688 Popular vote Biden 81,283,501 Trump 74,223,975
2024: 137,344,135 (Counted so far) Popular vote Harris 66,204,938 Trump 71,139,197
The rural conservatives got out and voted while the city liberals didn't (or couldn't). Voter apathy was a factor. The 24/7 Trump coverage (good and bad) didn't help. Sexism/racism were factors too.
What floors me about those numbers is that not as many people voted this time around, though the 2024 numbers may not be a complete count. Even with pending votes, it's not even close.
CNN was commenting that in one state a lot of Gen-Z mail-in votes were getting rejected, because many folks in the younger generation have never developed a singular signature to match to. They don't sign checks, and many things nowadays are click a box to e-sign. So it's just not something they practice enough to be consistent at.
Did people just not want to vote or were they prevented from voting? I know 15 million is a bit much for a conspiracy theory. But even Trump did worse in terms of numbers by a few million. People have lost faith in the system.
It is reasonable to assume that with so many trump loyalists in electoral offices things could have *oopsie daisy* gone missing. I don't like to be a conspiracy theorist myself, but it is so hard to believe he got a majority of votes when so many people thought he crossed a line with either January 6, the felonies, the nazi rally, and all the insults and Project 2025.
Will we find out the secret that he and Pious Mike Johnson had? Is there a good reason Trump occasionally told his supporters not to worry about voting?
I wouldn't be surprised if there was some shanagagains in Trump's favor, but not that much. Millions of people didn't vote this time and Trump had fewer people not voting.
Harris needed a cock to win. No vag as president. She runs circles around Trump and loves this country......but that doesn't matter. There were 2 choices: Freedom or Fascism. A elementary kid knows which to pick. My stomach is still in knots...I can't eat.
For the rural Americans living in your shack houses and mobile homes with your Trump 2024 flags: your day is coming brought to you by the Republican party you voted for.
And how she handled things while against him were so well; from a strategic perspective how the advantages taken just by notice of both where and how Trump presented himself throughout his campaigns. When Obama, and others of memory came out to further stress how much Kamala should and very much could, that confidence was or had to be there--versus him and Elon holding hands. Like I said though. Inaccurate polls are a crazy thing now after last night.
Not just those politicians, but several million voters who either failed to see the multiple flaws in the candidate they voted for or thought, "Yeah, I LIKE that. I want that in power again."
For myself, I saw this coming when I commented on yesterday's post, late in the evening, and waking up to the news this morning was less surprise than sad confirmation of what I had already expected. America has lived down to its lowest values with this election and this collective choice. Right now, I don't know exactly WHAT I'm going to do about it.
I just know that standing still is not an option. I got to do what I do ... and so does everyone else.
Not to come off as too negative here but what has come to mind here is his handling of another expansive virus should this once again occur; remaining of hopes here but it is where even he'll be, let alone Vance.
My daughter read that exit polls showed Democratic Party participation dropped 6%. If true, that’s a lot of people who stayed home. We can all thank them for setting our country on fire. We’re left with nothing but a leaky garden hose to put it out.
Don't forget the shitbrains who wasted their votes on third-party spoilers. They helped make this happen, too- and should be reminded of it at every possible opportunity. They have blood on their hands, no matter how hard they try to scrub it off- they could get all the way down to the bone, and it wouldn't be enough.
There was someone here a couple months back who said they hated Trump, it because Harris was neutral on Israel they won’t be voting for her.
I told them not voting is just another vote for Trump, and they just went off on a hate-filled rant against me.
YOU HEAR THAT YOU BRAINLESS BITCH?? The next four years is on you! You say Harris doesn’t care about Gaza, you don't think Trump will make it worse for them?
HE’LL DO IT WITH A SMILE ON HIS FACE!! The next however long years is on you and your pathetic narcissism!
That was that dumb Jill Stein/ RFK troll, yeah, she was an idiot. Fucking Purity Ponies will be the death of us all, buying Russian propaganda aimed at the left.
This is why I will never vote again. Let it burn like an 18th century fire. This country deserves exactly what it will get: from Republicans who ignored the fact that a convicted felon will be gifted with unlimited power, to Democrats who couldn’t be bothered to stop hand wringing long enough to vote.
Well, I’m joining them. The Democrats have to earn my loyalty while the Republicans never had it in the first place. The Democrats have a perpetual plan to fail, while the Republicans are irretrievable failures at their jobs and their lives.
I will be 60 years old next year. The news media and politicians in the United States can fuck straight the hell off. I have more years in the rear view mirror than ahead of me. Like Andy Dufresne said in “Shawshank Redemption”: “Get busy living or get busy dying.” I choose to live without the millstone of media or politics in my life.
Last night proved we don't think ourselves worthy of good things. So how is the evil we know better than the good we don't know. And if you think there wasn't any corruption in the results, that trump plays by the rules all the time-- then please think again. Kamala Harris is worthy of the recount. Today is a day of mourning for the United States of America for me as well: for all the good that Kamala Harris would have brought to this country but we didn't get to experience. Kamala I wish you every good as you go forward.
As a humanist, my greatest fears are for transpeople, women, the Ukraine and Gaza, and, well, planet earth. 'Merica has become a dog-eat-dog country where survival of the fittest (ironic for a bunch of people that reject evolution) is the way of life turning everyone into competition, and every "wrong" deserves death (unless you're the right color, gender, and religion). Along with all the scary and bizarre shit that boggles the mind is the number of academics that pander to anti-intellectualists for likes.
Totally agree. You have read Project 2025. It will be 1924 all over again. I just do not get it. Waking from a dream into a nightmare. I'm in Massachusetts one of the blue states we do not think or act like Magas here.
I haven't read Project 2025 (I'd rather read something that's less likely to suck my soul into oblivion), but I've listened to a lot of experts who have spoken out about what it says regarding their area of expertise. Not one liked it.
Project 2025 is soo bad. But hopefully like the wall he promised he won't deliver. Hopefully I write still thinking that trump is a human being. Yah, Nope
Yeah the saving grace is that he’s basically all talk… but I fear he won’t be so complacent this time round now with an even bigger ego , less to lose and no obstacles in his way.
I think this time around will be very different. His narcissism needs to be fed. There will be no adults in the room, only religious fascists that want to dismantle society as we know it.
DEI? Gone.
Trans? Eradicated.
Public transport? Cut. Pay your own way.
Roads? Widened.
Abortion? Gone.
Climate? Burning.
Gov't programs? Cut things that help people, and fund more police. Make sure they don't run out of ammo shooting liberals.
Tariffs? Raised and passed onto consumers.
Education? Dismantled.
Churches? Funded with vouchers.
Pedophile priests? Protected.
Churches used to administer justice, I don't see why they should be prevented from doing so again.
I once had a republican con-splain* to me that single women and childless couples should be fined and heavily taxed for not having children (they're flouting tax laws by not having them). Really. The communist dictator of Romania implemented just such a program. So, I'm hard pressed to see the difference between christian republicans and communist dictators. But, we are Russia's vassal now.
It's going to be a wild ride, so buckle up and watch while the anti-communist, woke-hating, racist suck their dictator god-king-messiah's dick. And love it. It's called patriotism.
I'm 77.. This is one of the worst times in my entire lifetime. I had no illusions about the ignorance of the american people but I saw a piece on TV a couple weeks ago that illustrates our ignorance. A white woman and her latino undocumented husband were being interviewed about an action that Biden was considering that would have legalized her husband's status and allowed him to get a decent job in the USA. He seemed thankful about it but the interviewer asked him and her about the upcoming election and the ignorant fucking woman stated that she was leaning towards trump-THE VERY PERSON WHO WOULD NOT PROPOSE SUCH A THING AND HAS THREATENED TO DEPORT ALL ILLEGALS-INCLUDING HER HUSBAND WHAT THE FUCK-WHAT THE FUCK!!! At this point Biden/Harris ought to put the car in neutral and let it drift towards it's inevitable conclusiono-the upcoming wreck which WILL happen. Fuck these goddamn ignorant hillbilly trash-including my family. I wrote them off-never see or talk to them again.
Full credit to the right for eroding the educational system in this country and manipulating the media for the last 40 years that we've gotten to this point. There have always been people who vote against their best interests, but not to this degree and no so egregiously so. To even see people in this comment section or other left wing blogs somehow blaming Harris/Dems for this loss. Any sane, rational, moral person only needed to listen to both candidates for 5 minutes, and read any amount of info on their 'policies' to make the right choice. And I'm sorry, that's OBJECTIVELY the right choice. Trump is a festering piece of human garbage and has always been one. There is no rational way anyone could justify a vote for him in my mind. But again, the machine has done such a good job of eradicating any critical thinking in these people, that they vote based on fear or their gut, or the fucking price of eggs. I'm really sorry you're spending your golden years with this shit. My parents are your age and they are gutted as well.
I read something similar about the "illegal alien" voter purge. A white woman had her right to vote rescinded because the state said she was an illegal immigrate. Apparently, she had filled a jury questionnaire wrong. She was shocked, not because of the errors like this would be common, but because she said she had the whitest sounding name and she couldn't figure out how they mistook her for an illegal alien. And she still supported Trump.
May those who decided to put this convicted felon (34 times), rapist and sexual predator back in the Oval Office by either votng for him directly or voting third party be among the first to pay dearly for that braindead decision. Because it WILL boomerang on them.
When the axe entered the forest, many trees feared not for they saw that the handle was one of them. In the case of Republicans they have rolled out the red carpet and will still cheer while being felled or blame it on the wind. Unfortunately we are all part of the forest
I agree, but at the same time, I understand that the gov't actively doesn't represent the people, creating a lot of discontent. The republican party co-opted that discontent and turn it into a force to maintain power. tRump was the right guy to weaponize insults and slurs, appealing to their social malaise and blind them to the fact that republicans don't give a shit about them. A typical abusive relationship.
Think tanks like the Heritage Foundation spew enough bullshit to control their beliefs. They used charter and religious schools to undercut public education to diminish general knowledge and hone the masses into producer-consumers. Only, corporate republicans shifted jobs overseas to inflate stock prices, and blamed the immigrants. Boomers created a post-scarcity society, then reviled every successive generation for benefiting from the fruits of the society that they created.
I understand their suffering. Yet, at the same time, they're inflicting more suffering by punching down even harder. I can't forgive that.
In Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land, they go to a zoo. They're watching the monkey when it's feeding time. A large monkey doesn't have a banana, so he hit a smaller monkey and takes its banana. The smaller monkey is angry, so it goes and hits an even smaller monkey and takes its banana. That's fucking 'Merica right now.
The folk I feel sorry for are the Blacks, LGBTs and migrants. We’re going to be targets of the right wing firing squad. This is going to be an ugly time for minorities.
I fear for anyone who looks 'foreign born'. I honestly expect that by this time next year we will have seen countless LEGAL CITIZENS rounded up (again) because f the fear and racism espoused by the MAGA. This time around they will be likely be called 'deportation camps' and anybody w/o the proper papers can expect the same treatment as last time. OK, maybe hair furor wont build ovens, but I suspect he will find something equally deplorable.
And even pure white bread will have to worry too, since anyone who's gender and/or sexuality goes against the 'norm' can expect the same treatment as last time too.
I think that's only the starting point. After all, those camps are expensive. They need to be kept full. It's just a matter of which group they hate the most each time the camps empty. I expect a rerun of the Holocaust, but not just for the usual suspects. All you'll have to do is have the wrong beliefs.
To the mainstream press who nitpicked every little thing that Kamala Harris and Joe Biden said while simultaneously laughing off Trump and whatever foul thing came out of his upper sphincter......
He has the press targeted. You know that, don't you? Bet you won't find him so funny then.
Yet his lemmings will still claim that he’s fighting for freedom of speech. I can’t actually bring myself to believe that people this stupid can exist in a first world country in such great numbers. But that’s more comforting than the thought that half the country is disgusting heartless bigots
If y'all aren't doing so already, consider archiving as many books, movies, TV shows, music, games, and so forth as you can, in any form you can- digital or physical; pirated if need be- with a particular focus on those which have been targeted by Republican censorship efforts in the states (LGBTQ+, atheist, and non-Christian religious material... and hey, throw some porn in for good measure, because they hate that too). If they think they have the votes to pass similar bullshit on the national level, they will. 𝘞𝘦 may have to become the libraries for a while- widely distributed, hidden, and safe.
In addition to LGBTQ+, atheist, and non-Christian religious books, may I add: books written by Black, Native American and Latinx authors, as well as any and all feminist writings you can get your hands on, and history books that deal with the dark side of American history, especially in its dealings with racial, religious, and ethnic minorities. Also any sociology/pschological tomes dealing with our government's history of mistreating many poor and marginalized groups such as dissidents. Won't be pretty, but those are the first types of history books that will disappear under a second Shit Hump term.
Yeah... stock up on everything you can get your hands on. Not everyone will be able to cover every source, genre, or subject, but we're at least beyond the era when entire bodies of research could be wiped out in one bonfire; storing and distributing copies of at-risk materials far and wide is much, much easier than it was in 1933.
So humiliating to be an American this morning
Agreed, in North, Central, and South America.
The chickens voted for Colonel Sanders. They know the colonel, they know what he's promised to do, and they voted to put him in charge anyway. The saddest thing to me is knowing that the majority of Americans are not, and apparently never have been, worthy of the country and its principles that our Founders bequeathed to us. Yesterday was the day American democracy died.
Slugs for salt! Slugs for salt!
It'd be nice if I could laugh at this, but right now, it's just not in me.
Nobody even the least bit sane can feel anything resembling good humour at this news.
Don't forget roaches for Raid.
Ooo! That's a good one!
The chickens voted for Col Sanders because they, and generations before them, have been indoctrinated to believe that he's the good guy and everybody is living in a happy place right now, and praise the colonel it's the best place in the world! The democracy didn't die. It never existed. And, oh yeah, saying that the best democracy money can buy is a slaughterhouse is (and always has been) criminal.
Democracy did die. But it lived for nearly 250 years before yesterday. I'm not going to deny the evidence of history because of what happened yesterday.
(shrug) There's that saying about those who don't learn from history...I lived through a bunch of it (first voted in 1972), and did my best to learn from it. I can, in fact, cite an article I wrote in 1976 about the same thing. It was entitled "And again. you think this is democracy?" It was in a campus/community, low-circulation newspaper, and the special election issue was called "Fed up with CarterFord." So, that's my experience: democracy never existed. At least in my lifetime.
I read some time back that we actually function as an oligarchy with democratic elements. The wealthy run (ran) the country through their proxies (politicians). Now, they are putting themselves in power in order to raid the countries coffers, and nothing is done about it. We've reached a point where the MAGAts think the 'capitalism' and 'democracy' are the same thing. We've been sliding back into the 1800s and "naked capitalism," when the nation was prosperous, even as it's citizens were not.
Interesting. I was telling my nephew a couple of weeks ago about the first election I clearly remember--for student council, when I was in fifth grade. There was one girl, a sixth grader, whose campaign slogan was "vote for me. I have a big pencil." Her dad had helped her make a papier-mache pencil that was almost as tall as she was, and she toted that thing to recess and out to lunch, yelling her campaign slogan. I remember thinking how dumb that was. Actually the other student council "candidates" were even less articulate, so that says something about the level of discourse at that school. The student council had no money, no power, not even any power to consult or represent other students. It was basically a popularity contest, but none of the actual popular kids, who *did* have social power, bothered. They were just the powers behind the kids who were on student council. That was true in every student council I remember, through college. Pretty much all the students recognized the lack of power, so few people voted (except the frats and sororities at my college.) Except once: some students who, against admin obstruction, had put a student initiative on the student council ballot, that would increase fees by $15 per term. That increase would allow all students to ride the local buses for free. About 70% of undergrad and grad students voted (the student council had to print extra ballots because they hadn't expected that turnout.) The initiative passed with over 3/4 of the votes. These apathetic students had just shown that, when it was something that materially bettered their lives, they would turn out and support it. The community college, and staff and faculty at the university, soon demanded the same benefit--and got it. The local bus company added a huge number of new buses and routes because they got a large infusion of money every term. They built service centers that were open 24/7 and hired people who were committed to expanding public transit and accessible transit for the disabled. Even the newly hired bus drivers got into the act, and clubbed together to get walky-talkies for all the drivers, allowing them to coordinate drop-off and pick-ups of passengers, if anybody was running late. The whole area benefitted, and by the time I moved out of town about 5 years later, the city and colleges were proudly holding up that bus initiative as forward-looking and a great positive change. But student politics were still on the "vote for me. I've got a big pencil" level. Power still did not lie with the students who paid fees--except that once. That, in brief, is what you get when you have a powerful few and a powerless many: sometimes reality breaks through and the many benefit--but not often.
I thought that was going to head in a different direction with voting against it.
The powers that be remain in power because they rely on creating that sense of disempowerment and general malaise to make the masses disenfranchise themselves.
I am very pro-public transportation, but tRump's Project 2025 wants to do away with it and move to an Uber/Lyft model. Public transportation is too communist for their liking.
There's considerable truth in that, and one good piece of evidence is that historically Trade Unions and forms of collective bargaining have been intentionally attacked and undermined by big money and corruption.
Sadly, even
many working think Unionism is a form of socialism.
Ironic, when you consider that business is unionised and feeds off corporate welfare.
The nation is now run and directed by mercenaries.
There is a belief in corporate 'Merica that if people are paid less, the bottom line goes up, which is true, but overly simplistic. When people can't afford to live, they spend less. Fewer customers means the bottom line goes down. To get around this, they export jobs to other countries to exploit workers there. Then they blame the foreigners. People buy it. Problem solved.
Unions were the cause of the rise of the middle-class throughout the 20th century. But understanding that takes long-term thinking, which is an anathema to short-term thinkers who are only concerned with the next quarter's profits.
I get that that's your perspective based on your own lifetime, but this country existed long before either of us were born, and for more than two centuries we had a democratic republic. Until yesterday. So, we'll just have to agree to disagree on your point.
I'm sorry. I don't even know how to engage with that comment. I know it's illegal in some places to teach the actual history of this country, but insisting that a country whose founding governing documents allow for the owning of other human beings as property, is somehow democratic--I'm speechless. (BTW, in my state of California, indigenous people could legally be enslaved til about a century ago, so not casting shade here. ) Like I said about not learning from history. I almost deleted this comment, so all I can say is (shrug) I can't force anybody to learn.
You should have gone with your first impulse.
Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it, but those who suppress history want to repeat it.
👆👆👆🎯
One of the problems, is that they don't see him that way. We made fun of those NTF trading cards. But that is how his supporters see him.
Yes, and there's no arguing with cult members who revere their leader as a god-like figure. That said, WE don't have to pretend that our view is wrong. It's not.
As Matt Dillahunty has said in 100 or more debates with christians, 'The number of people who believe something has no bearing on the truth of their claims.'
And he had to repeat it a hundred times because they never understood that it is true. I make this same point over and over online.
We NEED to get that on board as we face what's ahead of us now. It doesn't matter how many people believe a wrong thing, or how hard they try to convince us to buy it, too. They're still WRONG. And we're not.
But how do we deprogram them from Fox Propaganda channel? at least the Russian people know they are being lied to
I have no idea. I don't know to deprogram one person from a cult, let alone millions. They've chosen to live in their own bubble, detached from reality.
Yeah. Why couldn’t these Jesus creeps move to Poland or some Christian semi theocracy instead of trying to mutilate a secular country into a Christian one (whilst praising the founding fathers)
🎯May they reap their well deserved karma.
What'll remain puzzling is the amount of people, from his own speeches, Tiktok, Twitter, and even Facebook were voting blue even before the ultimate decision was made. So many, including myself, grew confident he'd lose. Now, the wonder of what could be after Kamala won, seeing that MAGA was still something inspite of; though obvious losses there were an obvious thing. The polls weren't accurate either, which upset me even? Because of how much he dwindled and Kamala just grew merciless in numbers. So when I saw that alone, you'd think they'd actually see where things really were.
One former republican pollster pointed out yesterday that this is the third election in a row where a majority of white women lied to pollsters about voting Dem and then voted for Trump. Pretty clear we can't trust the current iteration of polling. At. All.
Totally agree with you. Saddest day in American History,-even worse than the Civil War
One of the saddest days in America, but so far there's been no shooting as there was in the Civil War. That may yet come, though......
This is infinitely worse than 2016. In 2016 no one expected Trump to win, and he entered office totally unprepared. He now has the total backing of the Heritage Foundation and a cabal of right wing billionaires ready to destroy democracy. We are likely to see an all out war on women, and reason itself. No one outside the Neanderthal right will be safe. I suspect they will at least try to persecute atheists. Hate and stupidity triumphed over decency and common sense. I do not expect the American Republic to survive a second Trump Presidency.
I don’t expect American Civilization to survive a second Trump presidency.
If America was a civilized country, it would have never elected Donald Trump the first time, let alone twice.
If America was a civilised country, him and half the country would be receiving mental health care.
If "America" was a country that would make sense. Do some research about the word America and its 36 American countries.
Thanks for the lecture. My family were third generation Americans at the time of the American Revolution. I'm also a third generation war veteran. U.S. citizens have always been referred to as 'Americans'.
No problem if one understands the history and meaning of America. Many American countries they don't want to be associated with the MAGAs. "In Latin America, "American" means anyone from the American continent. U.S. citizens claiming the word are considered gauche or imperialist" its embarrassing.
That's a bit of a semantic game. "America" has always been used by people in the United States to refer to themselves, and that's what oraxx was doing.
Completely understandable, except many don't know the differences, and MAGAs are a good example of how easy to believe something no matter how wrong.
This isn't a crowd of MAGAs.
we could call ourselves 'US' /s
Nope. Now we know quite well what trump is capable of. We didn't in 2016. If I had money I would move to Canada right now.
I have the money, but do you honestly believe they want a country of US citizens? Seriously, that’s season four of The Handmaid’s Tale.
Right now I really REALLY don't want to live in the US. Give me a week I'll laugh it off but Canada seems good to me right now. Quebec. Oui.
In 2016, I changed my FB profile pic to the Canadian flag and kept it that way for 4 years. 3 Years in, a coworker noticed it and blew up. I don't remember the specifics of the "conversation" that ensued (except he threatened to report me to security for not being patriotic so that I would lose my job), but it was clear to me, MAGAts are as volatile as they are stupid.
Yup MAGAS are violent and stupid. I live in a totally blue state. We don't get MAGAS here. Quebec is totally out of the question anyway. I am going to wear Kamala for President pins though the next four years. Cheaper and gets my point across.
Maybe not a good idea. From my friends there their next prime minister is a mini drumpster.
There us no perfect government anywhere but trump? How the hell could he even run seeing he had two impeachments against him?!? Wtff?!? Trump is bad, bad news for America and if you haven't read Project 2025 please do. Scared. Really,really scared.
The entire North, Central, and South American civilization with its 36 American countries, MAGA is a misnomer. God Bless America?
Your pedantry is really helping right now. Go you.
Thanks, may the MAGA lord and savior Trump bless those who have everything all figured out.
Pure entertainment
My biggest fears aren't for myself or my family. We'll be fine, except for that fact that it will no longer be safe to be an out atheist, agnostic, or none. I'm worried about the people the right wing has been targeting from trans kids and adult to LGBT folks whose marriages and adoptions could be invalidated, immigrants [legal and undocumented], federal employees who will be replaced with political sycophants, etc., etc. I worry for the people of Ukraine and Gaza who are going to be thrown to the wolves, and so many others.
The evangelicals crave nothing more than power and control on this earthly plain. Power few groups would be more ill-equipped to exercise.
Even many on the right won't be safe. These rubes have proven time and time again that they will vote against their best interests out of whatever bogeyman they need to cling to - 'live birth abortions', 'trans people using their bathrooms', 'immigrants taking all their jobs', etc. They'll lose their healthcare, their welfare, their social security... Every public service they might use will be privatized and triple the price. Unions will be banned. Protesting will be banned. That's if they don't simply get deported because they're brown. And those that remain will still ask daddy to spank them harder.
All the meanwhile, outside of the country, Ukraine will fall, bolstering Russia to continue their land-grab. Taiwan will be taken with zero fight. The US will pull out of NATO and lose all of our allies. We'll never have a true election again. The dollar will go nuclear. Eventually, it will all crumble and the former billionaires with piles of useless cash will be presiding over the ashes.
The country is done. And it will start happening the day after inauguration. Say goodbye to the filibuster immediately. Bills are already being drafted or have been sitting on shelves waiting to for this moment. Trump will drop a dozen XOs on day one. Thomas and Alito will retire to their RVs and new freakshow justices will assume the bench. I expect the 3 rational justices to just stop showing up. If any of this sounds far-fetched or like fearmongering... when someone tells you who they are - repeatedly - believe them.
I fear you are right.
Yep......Trump was totally honest on what he will do.....he spewed it at every hate rally. Project 2025 is coming! His voters will shit themselves when their SS checks are cut....and the age is increased. When ACA is drastically cut or eliminated. When food cost goes up after workers are deported. It gives me satisfaction to know those fuckers will suffer. I have no sympathy for them.
Jimmy Kimmel, while alongside his confidence in their losses even, is a concern with his show. Because even he saw that interview during Vance's clear walk on eggshells for obvious reasons. So that pop on the wrist was indeed a definite while taking clear blows logically and those dismissals. Positions by far matter.
Fuck.
No.
FFFFUUUUUCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2016: 136,787,187 Popular vote Clinton 65,853,514 Trump 62,984,828
2020: 158,481,688 Popular vote Biden 81,283,501 Trump 74,223,975
2024: 137,344,135 (Counted so far) Popular vote Harris 66,204,938 Trump 71,139,197
The rural conservatives got out and voted while the city liberals didn't (or couldn't). Voter apathy was a factor. The 24/7 Trump coverage (good and bad) didn't help. Sexism/racism were factors too.
What floors me about those numbers is that not as many people voted this time around, though the 2024 numbers may not be a complete count. Even with pending votes, it's not even close.
What. The. Actual. Fuck?
I remember hearing that the Republicans managed to install their agents into the election committees of several states.
A co-worker had her mail-in ballot rejected because the signature did not "match". I wonder how often that happened to Democrats.
CNN was commenting that in one state a lot of Gen-Z mail-in votes were getting rejected, because many folks in the younger generation have never developed a singular signature to match to. They don't sign checks, and many things nowadays are click a box to e-sign. So it's just not something they practice enough to be consistent at.
They stopped teaching cursive years ago. Actual hand writing is a dying act.
Just traveled recently and my daughter commented on her printed signature in her passport. "How do they know it's actually mine?"
Did people just not want to vote or were they prevented from voting? I know 15 million is a bit much for a conspiracy theory. But even Trump did worse in terms of numbers by a few million. People have lost faith in the system.
It is reasonable to assume that with so many trump loyalists in electoral offices things could have *oopsie daisy* gone missing. I don't like to be a conspiracy theorist myself, but it is so hard to believe he got a majority of votes when so many people thought he crossed a line with either January 6, the felonies, the nazi rally, and all the insults and Project 2025.
Will we find out the secret that he and Pious Mike Johnson had? Is there a good reason Trump occasionally told his supporters not to worry about voting?
I wouldn't be surprised if there was some shanagagains in Trump's favor, but not that much. Millions of people didn't vote this time and Trump had fewer people not voting.
Harris needed a cock to win. No vag as president. She runs circles around Trump and loves this country......but that doesn't matter. There were 2 choices: Freedom or Fascism. A elementary kid knows which to pick. My stomach is still in knots...I can't eat.
For the rural Americans living in your shack houses and mobile homes with your Trump 2024 flags: your day is coming brought to you by the Republican party you voted for.
But...but..."[t]hey let you grab 'em by the pussy when you're famous."
And how she handled things while against him were so well; from a strategic perspective how the advantages taken just by notice of both where and how Trump presented himself throughout his campaigns. When Obama, and others of memory came out to further stress how much Kamala should and very much could, that confidence was or had to be there--versus him and Elon holding hands. Like I said though. Inaccurate polls are a crazy thing now after last night.
𝐼𝑡’𝑠 𝑑𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑒𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑘𝑖𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑒, 𝑏𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑠𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑢𝑛𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑑 𝑝𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑦.
Not just those politicians, but several million voters who either failed to see the multiple flaws in the candidate they voted for or thought, "Yeah, I LIKE that. I want that in power again."
For myself, I saw this coming when I commented on yesterday's post, late in the evening, and waking up to the news this morning was less surprise than sad confirmation of what I had already expected. America has lived down to its lowest values with this election and this collective choice. Right now, I don't know exactly WHAT I'm going to do about it.
I just know that standing still is not an option. I got to do what I do ... and so does everyone else.
Remember, this is the group of people taught that god uses flawed people. Hence the greater the flaws the greater the miracle.
UGH!!!
Not to come off as too negative here but what has come to mind here is his handling of another expansive virus should this once again occur; remaining of hopes here but it is where even he'll be, let alone Vance.
My daughter read that exit polls showed Democratic Party participation dropped 6%. If true, that’s a lot of people who stayed home. We can all thank them for setting our country on fire. We’re left with nothing but a leaky garden hose to put it out.
Also, don't forget to put the majority of the blame on Trump supporters who knew what he was like and still voted for him.
Don't forget the shitbrains who wasted their votes on third-party spoilers. They helped make this happen, too- and should be reminded of it at every possible opportunity. They have blood on their hands, no matter how hard they try to scrub it off- they could get all the way down to the bone, and it wouldn't be enough.
There was someone here a couple months back who said they hated Trump, it because Harris was neutral on Israel they won’t be voting for her.
I told them not voting is just another vote for Trump, and they just went off on a hate-filled rant against me.
YOU HEAR THAT YOU BRAINLESS BITCH?? The next four years is on you! You say Harris doesn’t care about Gaza, you don't think Trump will make it worse for them?
HE’LL DO IT WITH A SMILE ON HIS FACE!! The next however long years is on you and your pathetic narcissism!
That was that dumb Jill Stein/ RFK troll, yeah, she was an idiot. Fucking Purity Ponies will be the death of us all, buying Russian propaganda aimed at the left.
Stay at home, or had their ballots rejected?
Likely both.
Either or
Many Gen-Zers didn't like one of Biden's policies, so they decided to burn it all down with apathy. It's trending on TikTok right now.
When it bites them in the ass and it will, I’ll laugh mine off (bitterly, but I’ll laugh).
Wanna LYAO? Sign up for https://DictatorForADayShow.com .
I’ll follow them, thanks!
So even you noticed the amount of votes came from a much younger generation as well then.
This is why I will never vote again. Let it burn like an 18th century fire. This country deserves exactly what it will get: from Republicans who ignored the fact that a convicted felon will be gifted with unlimited power, to Democrats who couldn’t be bothered to stop hand wringing long enough to vote.
Well, I’m joining them. The Democrats have to earn my loyalty while the Republicans never had it in the first place. The Democrats have a perpetual plan to fail, while the Republicans are irretrievable failures at their jobs and their lives.
I will be 60 years old next year. The news media and politicians in the United States can fuck straight the hell off. I have more years in the rear view mirror than ahead of me. Like Andy Dufresne said in “Shawshank Redemption”: “Get busy living or get busy dying.” I choose to live without the millstone of media or politics in my life.
Last night proved we don't think ourselves worthy of good things. So how is the evil we know better than the good we don't know. And if you think there wasn't any corruption in the results, that trump plays by the rules all the time-- then please think again. Kamala Harris is worthy of the recount. Today is a day of mourning for the United States of America for me as well: for all the good that Kamala Harris would have brought to this country but we didn't get to experience. Kamala I wish you every good as you go forward.
As a humanist, my greatest fears are for transpeople, women, the Ukraine and Gaza, and, well, planet earth. 'Merica has become a dog-eat-dog country where survival of the fittest (ironic for a bunch of people that reject evolution) is the way of life turning everyone into competition, and every "wrong" deserves death (unless you're the right color, gender, and religion). Along with all the scary and bizarre shit that boggles the mind is the number of academics that pander to anti-intellectualists for likes.
Totally agree. You have read Project 2025. It will be 1924 all over again. I just do not get it. Waking from a dream into a nightmare. I'm in Massachusetts one of the blue states we do not think or act like Magas here.
I haven't read Project 2025 (I'd rather read something that's less likely to suck my soul into oblivion), but I've listened to a lot of experts who have spoken out about what it says regarding their area of expertise. Not one liked it.
Project 2025 is soo bad. But hopefully like the wall he promised he won't deliver. Hopefully I write still thinking that trump is a human being. Yah, Nope
Yeah the saving grace is that he’s basically all talk… but I fear he won’t be so complacent this time round now with an even bigger ego , less to lose and no obstacles in his way.
I think this time around will be very different. His narcissism needs to be fed. There will be no adults in the room, only religious fascists that want to dismantle society as we know it.
DEI? Gone.
Trans? Eradicated.
Public transport? Cut. Pay your own way.
Roads? Widened.
Abortion? Gone.
Climate? Burning.
Gov't programs? Cut things that help people, and fund more police. Make sure they don't run out of ammo shooting liberals.
Tariffs? Raised and passed onto consumers.
Education? Dismantled.
Churches? Funded with vouchers.
Pedophile priests? Protected.
Churches used to administer justice, I don't see why they should be prevented from doing so again.
I once had a republican con-splain* to me that single women and childless couples should be fined and heavily taxed for not having children (they're flouting tax laws by not having them). Really. The communist dictator of Romania implemented just such a program. So, I'm hard pressed to see the difference between christian republicans and communist dictators. But, we are Russia's vassal now.
It's going to be a wild ride, so buckle up and watch while the anti-communist, woke-hating, racist suck their dictator god-king-messiah's dick. And love it. It's called patriotism.
* Conservatives tell me things.
Recrudescence.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/bf504767aa1a38563a7acd1afceb39ef3003d05890f10ac27ec29816d5283d43.jpg
I'm 77.. This is one of the worst times in my entire lifetime. I had no illusions about the ignorance of the american people but I saw a piece on TV a couple weeks ago that illustrates our ignorance. A white woman and her latino undocumented husband were being interviewed about an action that Biden was considering that would have legalized her husband's status and allowed him to get a decent job in the USA. He seemed thankful about it but the interviewer asked him and her about the upcoming election and the ignorant fucking woman stated that she was leaning towards trump-THE VERY PERSON WHO WOULD NOT PROPOSE SUCH A THING AND HAS THREATENED TO DEPORT ALL ILLEGALS-INCLUDING HER HUSBAND WHAT THE FUCK-WHAT THE FUCK!!! At this point Biden/Harris ought to put the car in neutral and let it drift towards it's inevitable conclusiono-the upcoming wreck which WILL happen. Fuck these goddamn ignorant hillbilly trash-including my family. I wrote them off-never see or talk to them again.
Full credit to the right for eroding the educational system in this country and manipulating the media for the last 40 years that we've gotten to this point. There have always been people who vote against their best interests, but not to this degree and no so egregiously so. To even see people in this comment section or other left wing blogs somehow blaming Harris/Dems for this loss. Any sane, rational, moral person only needed to listen to both candidates for 5 minutes, and read any amount of info on their 'policies' to make the right choice. And I'm sorry, that's OBJECTIVELY the right choice. Trump is a festering piece of human garbage and has always been one. There is no rational way anyone could justify a vote for him in my mind. But again, the machine has done such a good job of eradicating any critical thinking in these people, that they vote based on fear or their gut, or the fucking price of eggs. I'm really sorry you're spending your golden years with this shit. My parents are your age and they are gutted as well.
All intentional too. Bread and circuses have many forms but the objectives and results are the same.
Control, exploit, enrich.
I read something similar about the "illegal alien" voter purge. A white woman had her right to vote rescinded because the state said she was an illegal immigrate. Apparently, she had filled a jury questionnaire wrong. She was shocked, not because of the errors like this would be common, but because she said she had the whitest sounding name and she couldn't figure out how they mistook her for an illegal alien. And she still supported Trump.
You had one job, America. One job.
May those who decided to put this convicted felon (34 times), rapist and sexual predator back in the Oval Office by either votng for him directly or voting third party be among the first to pay dearly for that braindead decision. Because it WILL boomerang on them.
The leopards are hungry, and an awful lot of short-sighted fools are about to discover that their faces are, in fact, just as edible as ours.
When the axe entered the forest, many trees feared not for they saw that the handle was one of them. In the case of Republicans they have rolled out the red carpet and will still cheer while being felled or blame it on the wind. Unfortunately we are all part of the forest
I agree, but at the same time, I understand that the gov't actively doesn't represent the people, creating a lot of discontent. The republican party co-opted that discontent and turn it into a force to maintain power. tRump was the right guy to weaponize insults and slurs, appealing to their social malaise and blind them to the fact that republicans don't give a shit about them. A typical abusive relationship.
Think tanks like the Heritage Foundation spew enough bullshit to control their beliefs. They used charter and religious schools to undercut public education to diminish general knowledge and hone the masses into producer-consumers. Only, corporate republicans shifted jobs overseas to inflate stock prices, and blamed the immigrants. Boomers created a post-scarcity society, then reviled every successive generation for benefiting from the fruits of the society that they created.
I understand their suffering. Yet, at the same time, they're inflicting more suffering by punching down even harder. I can't forgive that.
In Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land, they go to a zoo. They're watching the monkey when it's feeding time. A large monkey doesn't have a banana, so he hit a smaller monkey and takes its banana. The smaller monkey is angry, so it goes and hits an even smaller monkey and takes its banana. That's fucking 'Merica right now.
🎯
If I'm not mistaken, just a reminder here, drop all his charges upon winning too?
The folk I feel sorry for are the Blacks, LGBTs and migrants. We’re going to be targets of the right wing firing squad. This is going to be an ugly time for minorities.
I fear for anyone who looks 'foreign born'. I honestly expect that by this time next year we will have seen countless LEGAL CITIZENS rounded up (again) because f the fear and racism espoused by the MAGA. This time around they will be likely be called 'deportation camps' and anybody w/o the proper papers can expect the same treatment as last time. OK, maybe hair furor wont build ovens, but I suspect he will find something equally deplorable.
And even pure white bread will have to worry too, since anyone who's gender and/or sexuality goes against the 'norm' can expect the same treatment as last time too.
I think that's only the starting point. After all, those camps are expensive. They need to be kept full. It's just a matter of which group they hate the most each time the camps empty. I expect a rerun of the Holocaust, but not just for the usual suspects. All you'll have to do is have the wrong beliefs.
To the mainstream press who nitpicked every little thing that Kamala Harris and Joe Biden said while simultaneously laughing off Trump and whatever foul thing came out of his upper sphincter......
He has the press targeted. You know that, don't you? Bet you won't find him so funny then.
Yet his lemmings will still claim that he’s fighting for freedom of speech. I can’t actually bring myself to believe that people this stupid can exist in a first world country in such great numbers. But that’s more comforting than the thought that half the country is disgusting heartless bigots
THEIR freedom of speech, unencumbered by argument and counter argument. You will have NO speech, and they will control all speech.
BINGO!
Yes, he'll shut you down faster than you can yell "Stop the presses!"
If y'all aren't doing so already, consider archiving as many books, movies, TV shows, music, games, and so forth as you can, in any form you can- digital or physical; pirated if need be- with a particular focus on those which have been targeted by Republican censorship efforts in the states (LGBTQ+, atheist, and non-Christian religious material... and hey, throw some porn in for good measure, because they hate that too). If they think they have the votes to pass similar bullshit on the national level, they will. 𝘞𝘦 may have to become the libraries for a while- widely distributed, hidden, and safe.
In addition to LGBTQ+, atheist, and non-Christian religious books, may I add: books written by Black, Native American and Latinx authors, as well as any and all feminist writings you can get your hands on, and history books that deal with the dark side of American history, especially in its dealings with racial, religious, and ethnic minorities. Also any sociology/pschological tomes dealing with our government's history of mistreating many poor and marginalized groups such as dissidents. Won't be pretty, but those are the first types of history books that will disappear under a second Shit Hump term.
I nominate Howard Zinn for a start. He writes history from the underdog side.
David I. Kertzer, a Jew writing against the kkkatlik church.
I am making a list, and just added their names. Thank you!
Yeah... stock up on everything you can get your hands on. Not everyone will be able to cover every source, genre, or subject, but we're at least beyond the era when entire bodies of research could be wiped out in one bonfire; storing and distributing copies of at-risk materials far and wide is much, much easier than it was in 1933.
Fahrenheit 451.
I'm sad about this. Disappointed. There's really nothing else I can say. This should not have been even close.