This exactly. There was some article a few days after the election and I can't find it in my history. It was a broader look, like waaaaay back in history, talking about how in every civilization, eventually the civilized leaders let the brutal people have a foot in the door and they always – always – end up getting in and destroying the civilization. The writer said it more elegantly than that, but still.
If anyone knows what article I'm talking about, please post the link. It was linked to all over the place for like a week but I still don't remember and can't find it.
Also too, I am so goddamn angry at Hillary for her part in letting this happen. She didn't even step a foot in Wisconsin. WTF? Barely set foot in Michigan until the end. Her team should have seen this, should have not let it happen, and she is the person in the Captain Kirk chair, she had the final word. Obama said as much when, after the election, he talked about how he spent 87 days in Iowa eating hot dogs at every little Moose Club that invited him. I know that Hillary is not a "retail" politician, but she showed an inexcusable lack of judgement in dismissing the cries of the local Democratic engine in Michigan.
I am trying to hang on to the good in her message, but I also think that she should step out of the limelight and recognize that a lot of people are doing a slow burn and realizing that we want to look forward to new leadership, and to let us feel leaderless for however long it takes for a new coalescing voice to emerge. Also too Obama said as soon as he's out of office he's going to hit the ground.
IDK if her presence would have made as much of a difference as focusing on economic issues in her ads would have made. Remember, she did spend time in PA but still fucking lost, thanks to the fact that my home town is surrounded by TrumpPenceZees. But I'll never be able to hear the name Robby Mook without having a rage-fest, that's for sure…
I hear you, sister. While Hillz was clearly my choice in the general election, I was grateful to Bernie for not making the primary a coronation, and in fairness, she was not the strongest campaigner. On the other hand, Trump? Ugh.
Let's keep looking forward, learn the lessons of the past, and use them to change the future.
Also too, I have a feeling that we can all bet money on the Dems doing two things come next pres election:
1) A saturation of foot soliders in every red state
2) Lawyers and technical people and what few investigative journalists are left looking in to ballot tampering, fake news stories and the like.
What I don't think will happen is that anything will do any good except getting a strong leader in who inspires people, i.e., another Obama, and then getting people on the ground in red states. Whatever good-guy Internet hackers who watch for Internet bad-guys there are left are probably not strong enough to ever do anything about hackers, Russian or otherwise, and this past cycle we didn't have the strong investigative reporting making the rounds like we did last time, and we didn't have a Jon Stewart. I think what it will really take is people who voted for Trump feeling the terrible consequences themselves, combined with a strong Democratic candidate and a strong team behind him/her (probably a him, no one's going to get behind a "her" again for a while.)
Also, I seriously have issues with anyone I know that voted for Trump. I felt that way right after the election and it hasn't left me. I look around at white people I know who maybe seem like the "type" and I just find myself interacting with them circumspectly at best. There are some people that I stopped interacting with and don't intend to give them my time again. I mean, it just baffles me that people can be that angry and frightened and stupid (the stupid part especially), to put all logic aside and vote for a psychopath. ugh.
Also too, we should remember that the Nordic countries were at one time incredibly patriarchal. Old-school Lutheranism really took hold there, and these were people descended from pillaging Vikings. They didn't have racism to deal with, but still, after a 5th of their population emigrated in the 19th century, and then economic busts happened in the 1920s, and they saw a lot of their industry move to Germany, and then what happened there, they radically changed their society and did it very fast. It was entirely a reaction to bad things that had happened to them. The U.S. is a different situation, but still, there's no reason to think that we can't pivot on a dime as well. The circumstances and the leadership just have to be right, and if Trump keeps on the trajectory he's on, we may very well get those circumstances.
Per Mitch McConnell's attempt to downplay the Russian hacking: I wonder what they have on him? Remember, the reports are saying that the RNC was also hacked, but the Russians didn't release anything…yet…
Sorry if this sounds conspiratorial, but this is getting weird FFS.
It's been a long time since I read (Oh, fine. Skimmed.) Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I do remember his one thesis that the Empire could tolerate a few really bad emperors, but too many in a row was one of the things that led to the collapse. There are a lotta problems with elements of Gibbons analyses, but, to me that one seems true. I'm afraid that after the catastrophic Shrub administration, a cataclysmic Drumpf administration just may be the one that rings down the curtain on our Republic.
And yes, I know the US has come through terrible times before and had some awful leaders and come out fine. This one seems different, though, and an order of magnitude worse than any other. Maybe I'm just jaded, but I feel that the people who think all of Drumpf's corrupt, Fascist bullshit and his band of sociopaths who will run the government won't matter to them are in for a brutal surprise.
The sad thing too is that the ones who think like that – the little people who think like that, not the billionaires – will probably still vote for him. There's some subconscious thing going on where they want a strong daddy figure.
Kurt Eichenwald @kurteichenwald
When Obama used Dijon mustard, Fox attackd him 4 not using yellow mustrd (true) Yet they shrug when Trump says doesnt need daily intel brief
That seems like a good idea. I am guessing you're referring to the letter they wrote? Probably the more letters from us supporting them the better.
And if this isn't what brings down Trump then something like it will, and the take-down will have to be powered by people from the right, so anything we can do to help them facilitate that, the better.
You might try Susan Collins as well. But I would definitely encourage you to write or call–if nothing else, that would counter-balance the heat they are probably getting from the wingnuts.
Actually, Russia just won the Cold War and the Confederacy just won the Civil War. At the same time, without firing a shot.
Bullshit is cheaper than bullets.
This exactly. There was some article a few days after the election and I can't find it in my history. It was a broader look, like waaaaay back in history, talking about how in every civilization, eventually the civilized leaders let the brutal people have a foot in the door and they always – always – end up getting in and destroying the civilization. The writer said it more elegantly than that, but still.
If anyone knows what article I'm talking about, please post the link. It was linked to all over the place for like a week but I still don't remember and can't find it.
Also too, I am so goddamn angry at Hillary for her part in letting this happen. She didn't even step a foot in Wisconsin. WTF? Barely set foot in Michigan until the end. Her team should have seen this, should have not let it happen, and she is the person in the Captain Kirk chair, she had the final word. Obama said as much when, after the election, he talked about how he spent 87 days in Iowa eating hot dogs at every little Moose Club that invited him. I know that Hillary is not a "retail" politician, but she showed an inexcusable lack of judgement in dismissing the cries of the local Democratic engine in Michigan.
I am trying to hang on to the good in her message, but I also think that she should step out of the limelight and recognize that a lot of people are doing a slow burn and realizing that we want to look forward to new leadership, and to let us feel leaderless for however long it takes for a new coalescing voice to emerge. Also too Obama said as soon as he's out of office he's going to hit the ground.
/vent.
IDK if her presence would have made as much of a difference as focusing on economic issues in her ads would have made. Remember, she did spend time in PA but still fucking lost, thanks to the fact that my home town is surrounded by TrumpPenceZees. But I'll never be able to hear the name Robby Mook without having a rage-fest, that's for sure…
True. Good point. And yes, re Mook. grrrrr.
I hear you, sister. While Hillz was clearly my choice in the general election, I was grateful to Bernie for not making the primary a coronation, and in fairness, she was not the strongest campaigner. On the other hand, Trump? Ugh.
Let's keep looking forward, learn the lessons of the past, and use them to change the future.
Also too, I have a feeling that we can all bet money on the Dems doing two things come next pres election:
1) A saturation of foot soliders in every red state
2) Lawyers and technical people and what few investigative journalists are left looking in to ballot tampering, fake news stories and the like.
What I don't think will happen is that anything will do any good except getting a strong leader in who inspires people, i.e., another Obama, and then getting people on the ground in red states. Whatever good-guy Internet hackers who watch for Internet bad-guys there are left are probably not strong enough to ever do anything about hackers, Russian or otherwise, and this past cycle we didn't have the strong investigative reporting making the rounds like we did last time, and we didn't have a Jon Stewart. I think what it will really take is people who voted for Trump feeling the terrible consequences themselves, combined with a strong Democratic candidate and a strong team behind him/her (probably a him, no one's going to get behind a "her" again for a while.)
Everything is terrible. I need some chocolate.
/vent.
If there is a next time…
I'm trying not to think about that, lol.
Also, I seriously have issues with anyone I know that voted for Trump. I felt that way right after the election and it hasn't left me. I look around at white people I know who maybe seem like the "type" and I just find myself interacting with them circumspectly at best. There are some people that I stopped interacting with and don't intend to give them my time again. I mean, it just baffles me that people can be that angry and frightened and stupid (the stupid part especially), to put all logic aside and vote for a psychopath. ugh.
Also too, we should remember that the Nordic countries were at one time incredibly patriarchal. Old-school Lutheranism really took hold there, and these were people descended from pillaging Vikings. They didn't have racism to deal with, but still, after a 5th of their population emigrated in the 19th century, and then economic busts happened in the 1920s, and they saw a lot of their industry move to Germany, and then what happened there, they radically changed their society and did it very fast. It was entirely a reaction to bad things that had happened to them. The U.S. is a different situation, but still, there's no reason to think that we can't pivot on a dime as well. The circumstances and the leadership just have to be right, and if Trump keeps on the trajectory he's on, we may very well get those circumstances.
НЕ МОЯ ПРЕЗИДЕНТ
<img src="http://pics.filmaffinity.com/tovarich-473099228-large.jpg" width="400" height="400">
Per Mitch McConnell's attempt to downplay the Russian hacking: I wonder what they have on him? Remember, the reports are saying that the RNC was also hacked, but the Russians didn't release anything…yet…
Sorry if this sounds conspiratorial, but this is getting weird FFS.
I think he wanted to ensure that his wife got a cabinet appointment.
It's been a long time since I read (Oh, fine. Skimmed.) Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I do remember his one thesis that the Empire could tolerate a few really bad emperors, but too many in a row was one of the things that led to the collapse. There are a lotta problems with elements of Gibbons analyses, but, to me that one seems true. I'm afraid that after the catastrophic Shrub administration, a cataclysmic Drumpf administration just may be the one that rings down the curtain on our Republic.
And yes, I know the US has come through terrible times before and had some awful leaders and come out fine. This one seems different, though, and an order of magnitude worse than any other. Maybe I'm just jaded, but I feel that the people who think all of Drumpf's corrupt, Fascist bullshit and his band of sociopaths who will run the government won't matter to them are in for a brutal surprise.
The sad thing too is that the ones who think like that – the little people who think like that, not the billionaires – will probably still vote for him. There's some subconscious thing going on where they want a strong daddy figure.
Haha, Twitter:
Kurt Eichenwald @kurteichenwald
When Obama used Dijon mustard, Fox attackd him 4 not using yellow mustrd (true) Yet they shrug when Trump says doesnt need daily intel brief
That seems like a good idea. I am guessing you're referring to the letter they wrote? Probably the more letters from us supporting them the better.
And if this isn't what brings down Trump then something like it will, and the take-down will have to be powered by people from the right, so anything we can do to help them facilitate that, the better.
I'm waiting for someone in the crowd to yell (hopefully on national TV):
"Hey Mattis! Howzit feel workin' fer a Draft Dodger?"
You might try Susan Collins as well. But I would definitely encourage you to write or call–if nothing else, that would counter-balance the heat they are probably getting from the wingnuts.