the most important election of your lifetime: 2012 american general election thread

It's a good thing to expect the worst from politicians. That's the whole point of using money and grass roots efforts to push and push them.

It's a better thing to expect nothing from politicians.

it's best to expect them to shoot you in the face

esp if you're a good friend

And then declare executive privilege.

whoops, that slipped.

It's a better thing to expect nothing from politicians.

― dandydonweiner, Wednesday, June 20, 2012 10:02 PM (1 hour ago)

too bad we live in a democracy where politicians are supposed to earn their fuckin' salaries and do something

too bad we live in a democracy where politicians get a lot of money from special interests as well having to listen to the moron masses who unfortunately agree with virtually nothing I believe.

kinda think that this whole 'moron masses,' 'sheeple,' 'lol ppl are so gullible' talk ppl like to indulge in is inherently reactionary and anti-democratic.

Welcome to democracy

so many great alternatives to choose from

really though we had the graphs from the polling about where this country is in regards to the 'far left' and the 'far right' and the middle etc etc a few days ago. a lot of people in this thread - including me - want a lot of things done that most Americans, based on polling data at least, don't want done. that's democracy though.

and yes, when so many people are in favour of policies that benefit a tiny plutocracy because they're convinced it's against their interest for affordable healthcare or (DARE I SAY IT) a single payer system then I'm gonna go ahead and call a lot of the masses pretty fucking gullible.

i should probably refine the term to 'ignorant', especially going by that link from TNR about the Tennessee and the ACA, but I don't think those people will take kindly to either.

luckily the gullible rural masses to which you condescend will die soon

after all don't think the GOP doesn't condescend to them either -- they're just better at reaching them and getting them to vote against their interets. One of the reasons for liberalism's failure is their reluctance to talk to "the masses" in simple language.

At least a third of my students lack even the imagination to write a simple declarative statement. What fucking good does it do to sneer at them? I gotta deal with it. I have a job to do.

I don't! #fuckyeahtheinternet

saving Alfred's last post, will print and hand to anyone who asks why I didn't go into ed.

after all don't think the GOP doesn't condescend to them either -- they're just better at reaching them and getting them to vote against their interets. One of the reasons for liberalism's failure is their reluctance to talk to "the masses" in simple language.

― a regina spektor is haunting europe (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, June 21, 2012 12:21 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Fascists always have the simpler arguments.

fascism: it's just easier

like "I'm signing the NDAA but I think the indefinite detention thing is rrrrreally unfortunate"?

xp

Obama's enacted more fascism that Rand Paul or Romney. Deal.

thaN

Fascists always have the simpler arguments.

libs have a lot to learn then

Obama's enacted more fascism that Rand Paul or Romney. Deal.

― Pangborn to be Wilde (Dr Morbius), Thursday, June 21, 2012 1:43 AM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Sure he has, but try to follow along here.

libs have a lot to learn then

― a regina spektor is haunting europe (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, June 21, 2012 1:45 AM (12 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Arguments driven by xenophobia, jingoism and selfishness will always be simpler and more visceral than arguments for generosity and compassion.

Reagan, Clinton, and FDR, those ruthless exploiters of jingoism, selfishness, and xenophobia.

uh...? Reagan...

after all don't think the GOP doesn't condescend to them either -- they're just better at reaching them and getting them to vote against their interets. One of the reasons for liberalism's failure is their reluctance to talk to "the masses" in simple language.

― a regina spektor is haunting europe (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, June 20, 2012 7:21 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

this pundit received wisdom is total nonsense. 'if only obama had a different speechwriter' - get outta here. on the whole we need people to be better informed about the nuances of policy if we want them to understand how, idk, a low capital gains tax or the individual mandate affects them, 'simple language' doesn't do that. it doesn't in itself win elections either.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/05/21/153024432/sophomoric-members-of-congress-talk-like-10th-graders-analysis-shows

democrats already use 'simple language' and many talk about ~the right issues~ using 'simple language'. it just doesn't really matter.

after all don't think the GOP doesn't condescend to them either -- they're just better at reaching them and getting them to vote against their interets.

No, they get them to prioritize one set of interests over another that you think they would be better off prioritizing.

voila

Arguments driven by xenophobia, jingoism and selfishness will always be simpler and more visceral than arguments for generosity and compassion

I lol'd because if you consider the Democrats the party of generosity and compassion then there's some people whose names I don't know being held at sites whose locations & names are secret who I'd like you to meet, only they're busy being tortured right now

Obama's enacted more fascism that Rand Paul or Romney. Deal.

hahaha the Mind of Morbz

I'm talking about fascism vs. liberalism

xp

yeah this isn't the argument 'why you should vote for democrats' it's the argument 'why it's hard to get people to support gay marriage and health care for all' xp to aero

No, they get them to prioritize one set of interests over another that you think they would be better off prioritizing.

― Julie Derpy (Phil D.), Wednesday, June 20, 2012 10:07 PM (2 minutes ago)

same diff

one of the reasons nothing changes is Dems believing in most of the GOP's platform re union busting, deregulating Wall Street, etc

I lol'd because if you consider the Democrats the party of generosity and compassion then there's some people whose names I don't know being held at sites whose locations & names are secret who I'd like you to meet, only they're busy being tortured right now.

u r right they'd be better off under Republicans who have never and would never etc etc

Alfred otm xpost

can we really stop saying "fascism"? It's a simple request really. Corporatism or even plutocracy are more accurate.

it is what it is

unless the president assassinates one of us tonight

xp

a plutocracy that uses the tools of fascist politics, legalizes torture etc. deserves the label even if the money goes into the coffers of investment banks instead of the government.

fascism is really just a political style, one that's easier for modern American conservatives to pull off.

u r right they'd be better off under Republicans who have never and would never etc etc

the people getting detained w/o charge & tortured in secret prisons can't tell the difference between Republicans and Democrats because under both admins they are in secret prisons getting tortured. those people are kind of best qualified to talk about the differences between the parties.

well I can't see them making this thread any worse...let's invite them

I messaged several of them on Myspace but they never respond

there's some occupy dude on twitter getting RT'd by a HOOS, explaining how he's not gonna vote and he worked for MoveOn, was a field organizer for Obama in '08, etc - in my world of angry ppl the signal on these types comes through louder than I'd guess it does in normal lives, but will disenfranchised people who've come into contact w/Occupy be a meaningful bloc in this election? Has there been a "neither candidate!" movement as strong at any point?

feel like whenever I engage this thread I should remind some of you believers that I'm gonna vote the Democratic ticket. I don't really give a shit, if I believe there's no difference between the two then why not throw my hat in with other Democratic voters who I dig & generally see eye-to-eye with? no harm in it, really, why the hell not. I don't give any money to Democratic candidates any more, and if they hit me up they get a cranky old man speech about how the money I have & would be happy to give to them if they'd get right must now goes to abortion fund. Then I tell them Rainbow was a better band than Montrose and I prefer the Dead w/o Pigpen, man that really gets em goin

there are a lot of people who are fucked under either party, and a lot of people who would be fine under either party. but if you think about it, there are people who would genuinely be worse off under one party than the other.

said it before, but the overwhelming majority of people i know who can't bring themselves to vote for the lesser of two evils - or at the very least, whine about it a lot, myself included - file under "fine under either party".

feel like whenever I engage this thread I should remind some of you believers

who the fuck are the believers in this thread because i don't see 'em