politics

For me, it was the days and weeks after Jan 6th, when it became clear that outright insurrection, a violent coup, was not going to spark a course correct.

The republican party should have shattered. The non-fascists should have woken up, and fought with MAGA, and years later, a viable political party rise from the ashes.

But that didn't happen. A few conscientious dissenters fell on their swords, most at retirement age anyway. Fascism took over completely. And the American people ate it up.

Weeks after Jan 6th, it was clear that consequences were not coming. They took their mask off, and no one cared, or couldn't stop them.

And here we are. Convicted felon with absolute power on his way to the Whitehouse, who owns the SCOTUS, Senate, and likely the House.

Trump will have unchecked power to do whatever he damn well pleases.

Way to fucking go, America. I fucking hate my countrymen.

How old are you, if you don't mind me asking? I'm 40, started paying attention to politics in the Clinton years and then really paying attention with Bush v Gore in 2000. America was full on neolib vs neocon bullshit back then, a quarter of a century ago. The 2nd Iraq War was a big moment for me of realizing that the only thing America stands for is corporate hegemony. Project 25 is no different than the Project for a New American Century, and the "opposition" from the "left" isn't fundamentally against any of it, they just pay a bit more lip service to culture issues (which are of course important if you aren't a cis white christian male, but they are clearly not enough).

Tl;dr

I'm with you. It was absolutely soul crushing to watch the worst person to run for president get elected on no qualifications and give us reasons to despise him deeply every day for 8 years. But even worse was that people cheered him the fuck on. Then demanded more. This country is lost. We have no reason to hope anymore. Everything good is in danger and everything dangerous is a possibility. We're fucked. I'll never have another warm and fuzzy feeling about this country or its institutions.

Thanks for writing this for me.

I'm in the same boat. I'm a white straight guy. So, I guess I'm not in immediate danger, although I am an academic. So, I guess my choices are: fight, flee or essentially hide.

Fighting seems infeasible although I think violence is justifiable.

Fleeing would require leaving the country. I dunno if I can swing that.

So....I guess I just live my life and hope it's not quite as bad as I fear? I dunno. I'm open to advice.

I do now hate this country and the bulk of the people who live here. Fuck them.

America is not a nation of mostly good people with a few vocal "bad apples." We are a nation of hateful, scared bigots, and we proved it in a big way.

A big chunk of the rest of the world have telling you that for decades, but you guys believed the lie about some “shining city upon a hill”. The American dream was always built on the misery of others.

We are watching Nero burn Rome.

Watching? Hell, a third of us fucking gave Nero a match while spraying the city with gasoline, and another third said "You know, I do like s'mores..."

That horse sailed 8 years ago.

This honestly cements my view that America is a racist nation, no question.

You don't get 15 million missing votes without a solid chunk of those being Democrats, bog standard Democrats, that didn't want to vote for a black woman.

The large turnout in 2020 was more driven by the will to remove Trump than to elect Biden. This time it seems they forgot how bad it was and decided to stay home.

She ran a magnificent campaign

The entire point of a campaign is to attract voters...

Because Democrats stayed home. Roughly about 10% of them overall, nationwide.

So I don't see how both statement can be true...

Her campaign did a shit job at getting people to vote for her, how do you consider it magnificent?

Trump won because the DNC underestimated the sexists, racists and the idiot woke who think they somehow did something with this for palestine.

Editorial note:

i know woke is a poisoned word but I like to use to describe idiots who think they are so smart and better than others that they would rather let trump elected than admit that voting for the lesser evil is the right thing to do

"They're not hurting the people they need to be hurting"

We are so going to be hearing this again.

Do not underestimate the allure of a man who offers you a boogeyman to blame all your problems on, while promising you that only he can stop it. That allure is very difficult for many people to overcome. One of the other problems with it is that even if they do see the consequences of their choices, it's just as easy for Trump to convince them that those problems are the boogeyman's fault too. It doesn't have to make sense, and Trump doesn't care if it does as long as it keeps the rubes in line and focusing their anger on anyone else but him.

This is a cult following. Any attempt to show them that their problems were caused by Trump will only cause them to MAGA harder.

Healthcare is going away for most people as are women's rights and rights, really, for anyone who isn't a rich white Christian man. You guys really fucked yourselves, and to a great extent everyone else, this time. Get ready for the biggest deficit in global history followed by a depression for the ages.

sorry, best i can do is fascism

There won’t be more immigration. Quite the opposite. Get ready to see your friends, neighbors, and relatives deported. Get ready to see crops dying in the fields.

Christ - because it's not as though the media contributes massively to voter suppression.

Journalistic malpractice is one of the main causes - if not the main cause of this result.

Possibly benefit from some brain drain too

Second hand fascism

I hate this take so much. I have been a good person all of my life, went out of my way to think of others and their feelings, never been in trouble, always followed the rules, worked hard to get to where I am at, and you're telling me that I deserve this bullshit? Makes it all feel so worthless to have dedicated my time and energy for something that apparently no one else can even muster sympathy. Fuck man.