Official Current Affairs & Politics Thread II

[MrDollarBills]

YES.

[Rich Rane]

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11-1. I'm so proud of my state. And I know at least one guy who's happy with MacArthur out.

Watch on YouTube

[Rich Rane]

Nathan Johnson, a composer for the English dub of DBZ, has won a Texas State Senate seat. I'm told he received over 9,000 votes.

[MrDollarBills]

Nathan Johnson, a composer for the English dub of DBZ, has won a Texas State Senate seat. I'm told he received over 9,000 votes.

^^^I saw that he used to work on the english dub before Funimation acquired the rights to use the actual music on the show. And he's a Dem which makes it even cooler. Good for him.

So in other news (I could post about the mass shooting in Cali but I'm just....I have no words. I'm just waiting to see if he's another radicalized Nazi emboldened by Trump), Bernie Sanders makes an ass out of himself. Again:

Read on Twitter

No Bernie, this is textbook racism. If a person's skin color prevents you from casting a vote for them instead of their platform and political positions, you ARE A **** ING RACIST. God damn, I am literally sick of this crap. You think Black people care about a candidate's skin color if he or she is running on a platform that is beneficial to them? NO. And Sanders giving these racist pricks a pass doesn't help. This kind of attitude should be condemned.

Also, Abrams did not lose, there will be a special run off in December.

Please keep this dude far away in 2020. If runs as an independent to siphon votes from whatever candidate wins the Dem nod, you will know exactly who Bernie is working for.

[Prokorov]

Glad to see so many women votes into congress. 100+, over 15 more then the previous high.

More women/minorities less old white racist dudes. keep that trend going and we will make america great (not great again, its never been great)

[Curns13]

Nathan Johnson, a composer for the English dub of DBZ, has won a Texas State Senate seat. I'm told he received over 9,000 votes.

^^^I saw that he used to work on the english dub before Funimation acquired the rights to use the actual music on the show. And he's a Dem which makes it even cooler. Good for him.

So in other news (I could post about the mass shooting in Cali but I'm just....I have no words. I'm just waiting to see if he's another radicalized Nazi emboldened by Trump), Bernie Sanders makes an ass out of himself. Again:

Read on Twitter

No Bernie, this is textbook racism. If a person's skin color prevents you from casting a vote for them instead of their platform and political positions, you ARE A **** ING RACIST. God damn, I am literally sick of this crap. You think Black people care about a candidate's skin color if he or she is running on a platform that is beneficial to them? NO. And Sanders giving these racist pricks a pass doesn't help. This kind of attitude should be condemned.

Also, Abrams did not lose, there will be a special run off in December.

Please keep this dude far away in 2020. If runs as an independent to siphon votes from whatever candidate wins the Dem nod, you will know exactly who Bernie is working for.

I honestly don’t know how you guys (ie. sane Americans) cope. I’m a middle class white Australian and even I spend a considerable amount of time in a rage over the Orange Monster and his disgusting cult.

[gigantes]

I honestly don’t know how you guys (ie. sane Americans) cope. I’m a middle class white Australian and even I spend a considerable amount of time in a rage over the Orange Monster and his disgusting cult.

Personally, it helped my sanity a lot when I realised how much racism and greed went in to the very founding of the country. We Americans talk about the Greatness of the USA a lot, and that's fine, but we never really dealt with the other stuff.

IMO disasters like Trump are arguably a consequence of neglecting to really look in the mirror across the nation's history. But I suppose one small perk about the Miserable Orange Wretch being in office is that it's kind of forced the worst elements of the country out in the open like rarely before.

[MrDollarBills]

I honestly don’t know how you guys (ie. sane Americans) cope. I’m a middle class white Australian and even I spend a considerable amount of time in a rage over the Orange Monster and his disgusting cult.

Personally, it helped my sanity a lot when I realised how much racism and greed went in to the very founding of the country. We Americans talk about the Greatness of the USA a lot, and that's fine, but we never really dealt with the other stuff.

IMO disasters like Trump are arguably a consequence of neglecting to really look in the mirror across the nation's history. But I suppose one small perk about the Miserable Orange Wretch being in office is that it's kind of forced the worst elements of the country out in the open like rarely before.

This country was founded by racist wealthy white slave owning men, set upon a foundation rape, theft and genocide. Trump is more than a fitting end result.

From here on out, substantial change is in order. This is why you have 100 women of multiple backgrounds elected into congress primed to start turning this entire thing on its head. And I'm sure there will be plenty more on the way in the 2020 elections and I'm all for it. Old white men need to sit their asses down and frankly any dude who has an issue with women, especially women of color taking considerable control of the decisions of the federal government need to sit down as well. We need sensible and empathetic government, not a cruel government run an authoritarian nutjob and his cult. Currently in the lame duck congress are grown ass white men capitulating themselves to Donald Trump as if he's some king....they have no business making decisions on policy.

[Rich Rane]

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Read on Twitter

Both FL race gaps are in recount territory and getting even narrower.

[Curns13]

I honestly don’t know how you guys (ie. sane Americans) cope. I’m a middle class white Australian and even I spend a considerable amount of time in a rage over the Orange Monster and his disgusting cult.

Personally, it helped my sanity a lot when I realised how much racism and greed went in to the very founding of the country. We Americans talk about the Greatness of the USA a lot, and that's fine, but we never really dealt with the other stuff.

IMO disasters like Trump are arguably a consequence of neglecting to really look in the mirror across the nation's history. But I suppose one small perk about the Miserable Orange Wretch being in office is that it's kind of forced the worst elements of the country out in the open like rarely before.

Every country in the western world was founded on those same principles. I wonder if the reason that it seems so much worse in America is that minorities are very large in number and have a strong voice, whereas in Australia and other places minorities are make up a smaller percentage of the population, so their voice isn’t as loud or heard as easily. I can’t wait for the day when I can have political discussion about differences in policy and not difference in morality.

[Curns13]

I honestly don’t know how you guys (ie. sane Americans) cope. I’m a middle class white Australian and even I spend a considerable amount of time in a rage over the Orange Monster and his disgusting cult.

Personally, it helped my sanity a lot when I realised how much racism and greed went in to the very founding of the country. We Americans talk about the Greatness of the USA a lot, and that's fine, but we never really dealt with the other stuff.

IMO disasters like Trump are arguably a consequence of neglecting to really look in the mirror across the nation's history. But I suppose one small perk about the Miserable Orange Wretch being in office is that it's kind of forced the worst elements of the country out in the open like rarely before.

This country was founded by racist wealthy white slave owning men, set upon a foundation rape, theft and genocide. Trump is more than a fitting end result.

From here on out, substantial change is in order. This is why you have 100 women of multiple backgrounds elected into congress primed to start turning this entire thing on its head. And I'm sure there will be plenty more on the way in the 2020 elections and I'm all for it. Old white men need to sit their asses down and frankly any dude who has an issue with women, especially women of color taking considerable control of the decisions of the federal government need to sit down as well. We need sensible and empathetic government, not a cruel government run an authoritarian nutjob and his cult. Currently in the lame duck congress are grown ass white men capitulating themselves to Donald Trump as if he's some king....they have no business making decisions on policy.

Surely prejudice is being bred out of the population by now. White people between 50 and 80 are far more likely to be racist than whites in their 30s, surely. And hopefully that should mean that the 30 year olds kids who are being born now are even less likely to be racist. Surely in the next 20 years racism will be confined to complete nutjobs and people in nursing homes. Now i’m not saying that minorities should just wait 20 years and they’ll have it made, we all need to fight prejudice every day. Even one extra day without equality and respect is too much. But surely that means that the change is going to get easier and lives will become better in the near future. Is that your perception from the States?

[MrDollarBills]

Read on Twitter

Read on Twitter

Both FL race gaps are in recount territory and getting even narrower.

Picking up two Senate seats would at least be a mini victory for the Dems, because if you count Sanders and Angus King that would make it 52-48 and there multiple GOP seats in play in 2020 so there is a chance to pick up the majority. Still though...literally nothing will get done legislatively for the next two years.

Also, the threat of Trump being a two term president is very real due to the electoral college and the blatant racism of the Baby Boomer/Gen X white american voter bloc. I hate to come off that way because by the numbers you see that there are a ton of white voters in that age group and below that are voting against what is happening, but look at the voting trends, they are the only subgroup that is actively split when it comes to propping this nonsense up. Trump could lose by 4 million votes in 2020 and still be in office.

The Mueller Investigation only works if the SCOTUS rules that a sitting president can be indicted for crimes while in office https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/31/politics/richard-nixon-watergate-national-archives-mueller/index.html and fat chance of that happening. And Ruth Bader Ginsburg fell and fractured her ribs today which makes this all the more worse.

The only hope is that between now and 2020 Millennials and Gen Z across the board will increase their turnout (which is likely since Presidential elections see higher turnouts than mid terms) to flip the senate, maintain dominance in the house, and flip battleground states that could possibly tip the edge to Trump's re election.

what a mess all of this. Shout out to Harry Reid who helped to pave the way for this crap in the Senate.

[MrDollarBills]

I honestly don’t know how you guys (ie. sane Americans) cope. I’m a middle class white Australian and even I spend a considerable amount of time in a rage over the Orange Monster and his disgusting cult.

Personally, it helped my sanity a lot when I realised how much racism and greed went in to the very founding of the country. We Americans talk about the Greatness of the USA a lot, and that's fine, but we never really dealt with the other stuff.

IMO disasters like Trump are arguably a consequence of neglecting to really look in the mirror across the nation's history. But I suppose one small perk about the Miserable Orange Wretch being in office is that it's kind of forced the worst elements of the country out in the open like rarely before.

Every country in the western world was founded on those same principles. I wonder if the reason that it seems so much worse in America is that minorities are very large in number and have a strong voice, whereas in Australia and other places minorities are make up a smaller percentage of the population, so their voice isn’t as loud or heard as easily. I can’t wait for the day when I can have political discussion about differences in policy and not difference in morality.

I'm not well versed on the modern day demographics of Australia but you are probably right. America has a large minority class comprised of several ethnic groups and we are on the precipice of the demographics shift, which begins in 2020 through 2045, where people of color will collectively be the majority of the USA.

Its crazy to think that you're living through moments in history, but as stated before what is happening right now in the USA is the last gasps of White supremacy and its not going out without a fight.

[gigantes]

I honestly don’t know how you guys (ie. sane Americans) cope. I’m a middle class white Australian and even I spend a considerable amount of time in a rage over the Orange Monster and his disgusting cult.

Personally, it helped my sanity a lot when I realised how much racism and greed went in to the very founding of the country. We Americans talk about the Greatness of the USA a lot, and that's fine, but we never really dealt with the other stuff.

IMO disasters like Trump are arguably a consequence of neglecting to really look in the mirror across the nation's history. But I suppose one small perk about the Miserable Orange Wretch being in office is that it's kind of forced the worst elements of the country out in the open like rarely before.

Every country in the western world was founded on those same principles. I wonder if the reason that it seems so much worse in America is that minorities are very large in number and have a strong voice, whereas in Australia and other places minorities are make up a smaller percentage of the population, so their voice isn’t as loud or heard as easily. I can’t wait for the day when I can have political discussion about differences in policy and not difference in morality.

Eheh, I think that's a Yes and a No there, matey.

The European powers of the day pursuing sources of new wealth is not a new story. Of course I'm also not saying that's something new or unique to the USA or to Oz, either; far from it.

But right, look at 'Straya, for example-- I mean, YES, it has some moderately-rich coastal areas, but the interior and the body of it is closer to a "resource sh-thole" when compared to the USA as a whole, and probably to other nations across the Americas, like Canada and Peru.

I mean, unfortunately, a big part of America's "Manifest Destiny," in fact involved scamming native peoples out of their working situation, by hook or by crook.

IMO it's a long, unfortunate story, without any real winners. But one thing seems clear to me-- Native Americans could have kept this whole business running endlessly, without doubt and without shame.

[MrDollarBills]

Read on Twitter

[gigantes]

This country was founded by racist wealthy white slave owning men, set upon a foundation rape, theft and genocide. Trump is more than a fitting end result.

From here on out, substantial change is in order. This is why you have 100 women of multiple backgrounds elected into congress primed to start turning this entire thing on its head. And I'm sure there will be plenty more on the way in the 2020 elections and I'm all for it. Old white men need to sit their asses down and frankly any dude who has an issue with women, especially women of color taking considerable control of the decisions of the federal government need to sit down as well. We need sensible and empathetic government, not a cruel government run an authoritarian nutjob and his cult. Currently in the lame duck congress are grown ass white men capitulating themselves to Donald Trump as if he's some king....they have no business making decisions on policy.

Btw, I don't disagree with all that, and yet I'm very unsure how this all plays out.

When you've built up 200+ years of attitudes and power accrued from such, you don't let go easy. I think we can agree there's been a level of desperation the last few years on the part of the GOP & "conservatives," and yet their base is substantial enough that the leaders are essentially empowered to get away with their F-d up desperation tactics, as we keep seeing.

I think a big factor in all this is that a lot of these rural people and "conservatives" are still largely clueless about how vicious, ignorant and racist theirs and their ancestors' behavior is / has been. This leads to a classic reaction of them feeling attacked whenever reality is pointed out to them, so to speak. So they get angry, they get defensive, and eventually get organised so that they can strike back against the 'threat.' Too much of their very identity is at stake not to act. So it turns in to sort of a war and a survival thing for them, and of course in war, anything goes. And a cornered animal fights with more desperate fury than anything outside a mama fighting to protect her young.

So yeah, I'm very unsure how this plays out if the greater part of the nation starts taking back seats and power and influence. What's the right-wing and extremist Plan C in that case? It kind of scares me.

[MrDollarBills]

This country was founded by racist wealthy white slave owning men, set upon a foundation rape, theft and genocide. Trump is more than a fitting end result.

From here on out, substantial change is in order. This is why you have 100 women of multiple backgrounds elected into congress primed to start turning this entire thing on its head. And I'm sure there will be plenty more on the way in the 2020 elections and I'm all for it. Old white men need to sit their asses down and frankly any dude who has an issue with women, especially women of color taking considerable control of the decisions of the federal government need to sit down as well. We need sensible and empathetic government, not a cruel government run an authoritarian nutjob and his cult. Currently in the lame duck congress are grown ass white men capitulating themselves to Donald Trump as if he's some king....they have no business making decisions on policy.

Btw, I don't disagree with all that, and yet I'm very unsure how this all plays out.

When you've built up 200+ years of attitudes and power accrued from such, you don't let go easy. I think we can agree there's been a level of desperation the last few years on the part of the GOP & "conservatives," and yet their base is substantial enough that the leaders are essentially empowered to get away with their F-d up desperation tactics, as we keep seeing.

I think a big factor in all this is that a lot of these rural people and "conservatives" are still largely clueless about how vicious, ignorant and racist theirs and their ancestors' behavior is / has been. This leads to a classic reaction of them feeling attacked whenever reality is pointed out to them, so to speak. So they get angry, they get defensive, and eventually get organised so that they can strike back against the 'threat.' Too much of their very identity is at stake not to act. So it turns in to sort of a war and a survival thing for them, and of course in war, anything goes. And a cornered animal fights with more desperate fury than anything outside a mama fighting to protect her young.

So yeah, I'm very unsure how this plays out if the greater part of the nation starts taking back seats and power and influence. What's the right-wing and extremist Plan C in that case? It kind of scares me.

You're seeing Plan C right now unfold. They are killing people and are being given the green light by their racist President.

These people know how awful they are. That's why they get defensive when they are confronted with it. Ever see how racist people react to being called racist? They don't embrace it, they get offended. You have to be fairly messed up to willingly hate other people based on something as trivial as their skin color and them uppity when you're called out on it.


anyway, more ignorance:

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This man is a psychopath. He's also stupid. You're really going to threaten California with prohibiting them from receiving federal dollars? Someone should write out in crayon for him the breakdown of who is actually subsidizing this **** hole of a country. It isn't West Virginia or Alabama.

[gigantes]

You're seeing Plan C right now unfold. They are killing people and are being given the green light by their racist President.

These people know how awful they are. That's why they get defensive when they are confronted with it. Ever see how racist people react to being called racist? They don't embrace it, they get offended. You have to be fairly messed up to willingly hate other people based on something as trivial as their skin color and them uppity when you're called out on it.

Well then, I'm worried about it being ratcheted up even further. Call it Plan D then, or Plan Zee, I don't know. All I know is that it can still get worse. :/

But... definitely an interesting question about how these people think about themselves. Are they moreso ignorant or are they moreso awful, knowing it very well?

Who enjoys being called a racist, anyway? Nobody, that's who. So I don't think that tells us much. Still, I guess a good portion of those dummies would love to embrace it publicly, but they know that that's against the 'rules.' So you're using the rules to try to make them feel bad about themselves, and that's the part they really resent.

I think most of them are probably in this zone right here-- they're chasing happiness, just like everyone else, but their culture / mindset / identity that brings them consistent happiness is not something they've really thought through. You don't find these people pursuing self-awareness or truly challenging their notions, because that kind of thing brings them doubt and less happiness, less swagger.

So in that sense, I think we can all relate to them. We all have some stupid habits and guilty pleasures that aren't quite right. Maybe we just need to age out of them and/or have life show us the consequences. And that's cool. But when you're committed to bigotry the way these people are, I would think you're in a certain quandary. Life itself would like to mature you in to a better person so to speak, but that's also going to be a pretty good load of unhappiness and suffering for you. That can't be very attractive. So you double-down and re-double-down, and get 'tougher' and 'stronger.' You become open to things which stave off reality and conserve your mindset, eventually twisting yourself in to a hateful, desiccated old pretzel that no amount of honey-mustard sauce can save.

I would think there's some people out there who are good at deprogramming these people and helping them substitute happiness from different means. Being especially good at not over-triggering them, of course. Or if there aren't, it's what this country badly needs. That black dude in the news comes to mind who befriended some Klansman a couple years ago. Pretty genius IMO.

[MrDollarBills]

I just can't comprehend the mindset of a person who looks at someone who is different from them and feels like they don't have the right to exist. It's vile. I don't even want to attempt to break down or understand them.

[gigantes]

Yep, that's understandable.