2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumuponit7771
(91,767 posts)The Velveteen Ocelot
(120,909 posts)... I'm not sure exactly what. Maybe we were just being held together with the duct tape and baling wire of a shared belief in our "system" but then it all started falling apart when the system couldn't contain the anger of people who thought they weren't in control any more? Not that long ago a candidate like Trump would have been unthinkable; his own party would have tossed him out the back door into the alley. I think Sarah Palin was the first sign that really overt awfulness was acceptable in politics, at least to some people. She opened the door and all that festering hate came out and was validated. I don't how it can be fixed - most people still believe in political decency but enough don't, or are willing to overlook gross indecency if they think the'll get a tax break and the Mexicans and Muslims will get kicked out, that we might be looking at some kind of civil war. Maybe not a shooting war, but some kind of collapse of the US as we now know it.
Orsino
(37,428 posts)Trump's lack of talent, intellect and integrity were fairly plain, but it doesn't matter when he's always on the TV, hurling entertaining insults.
Emilybemily
(204 posts)unblock
(54,157 posts)frankly, if you think about it, given:
- the biased purging of voting rolls
- the biased voter id laws
- the biased disenfranchisement through the criminal courts
- the biased allocation of voting locations
- the biased electoral college system
- the biased forms of voting (whether or not and how much early voting, most notably)
- a media that gave 85+% of the coverage to donnie
- a media that, when it did cover hillary, focused almost entirely on fake scandals and baseless allegations
- criminal activity from donnie in soliciting hacking of private data of americans (by a foreign entity, no less!)
- a media that failed to point this out and declare donnie disqualified for this
- criminal activity in gaining access to campaign-related private information (did the media even ever point out that the hacking was a criminal act?)
- criminal activity in the accepting and publication of contraband (the media had no basis for publicizing the stolen information).
- criminal activity from the fbi (comey violated the hatch act by committing a blatantly political act in an effort to swing the election).
- and we can't discount the possibility that vote totals were outright manipulated.
america did pretty well to give hillary markedly more votes.
we need to do better, but we're fighting the wrong war if we focus on the usual issues, candidates, messaging, etc.
if we don't to something about republican cheating, they'll beat us every time.
you can't beat a cheater by simply playing better.
k2qb3
(374 posts)You'll never understand 2016 until you put it in context.
LaydeeBug
(10,291 posts)JI7
(90,547 posts)mdbl
(5,488 posts)Not even this time. Unfortunately, they held true to it.
sellitman
(11,671 posts)Probably the most honest.
Auntie Bush
(17,528 posts)to Rush and all the other multitude of hate radio stations when not at home listening to Fauck News.
Hard to convince people of our way of thinking/voting when they listen to propaganda all day.
How the hell can we do that? What a daunting task...but we MUST find a way or this nation is going down the tube.
redstatebluegirl
(12,482 posts)He drives a delivery truck, has 3 girls, two his own and 1 from his wife's previous relationship. He treats them all, including his wife, like property he controls. They go to a very tea party Baptist Church where he leads a group of men teaching them to be "strong family men".
He feels he has been left behind by our economy, he hates Blacks,Hispanics, LGBT and women, not necessarily in that order. He is a really angry white guy who happens to be 6 ft. 4 and around 300 pounds.
He had 4 Trump signs in his yard and two stickers on his truck. He threw a fit because his boss would not let him put one on his delivery truck. I haven't bought a product they produce since early last year.
He said if he could have he would have "pulled a Chicago voter" and voted multiple times for Trump.
I am really sad about the lack of thought these people put into their voting.
YoungDemCA
(5,714 posts)PatSeg
(49,725 posts)As a country we've been heading towards this for some time now. Perhaps it was inevitable. If not Trump, it would have been someone else.
hadEnuf
(2,707 posts)right wing hate "news" stations, and right wing hate internet sites and forums.
You don't pretty much own the entire communications media and not get a result from your 24/7 propaganda.
Oh, and help provided from various totalitarians from around the world too.
Guy Whitey Corngood
(26,748 posts)StevieM
(10,541 posts)the fake email scandal to the American people.
Response to StevieM (Reply #13)
Name removed Message auto-removed
HoneyBadger
(2,297 posts)The GOP establishment (Ryan) wanted Jeb, they fought Trump all the way, handed the presidency to Hillary in October, and decided to devote all resources to down ticket candidates. At that point, GOP was rescinding what few endorsements there were, and declaring that they would vote Democrat.
http://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2016/10/09/secondary-protocol-paul-ryan-wants-trump-out-rnc-reportedly-diverts-funding-to-down-ticket-races-n2229724
The speed and breadth of the abandonment of Mr. Trumps candidacy shocked some long-time party members and exposed a shattered party without a clear path forward.
Martin Eden
(13,480 posts)How could any rational person of normal intelligence not see Donald Trump for the vile con man that he is?
Far too many of our fellow citizens either did not see that, or saw it and liked it.
sellitman
(11,671 posts)Not for long I suspect.
Martin Eden
(13,480 posts)Hair Twitler fed their anger and hate, which ultimately will consume them.
uponit7771
(91,767 posts)Garrett78
(10,721 posts)See here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/12512659983
And, if you get a chance, read an article from the October 17 issue of Time magazine titled, "The Truth Is Out There."
*Many* of Trump's supporters are, simply put, batshit crazy.
Exilednight
(9,359 posts)The fact that many on this very board were celebrating the day after the nomination shows that we took this election for granted.
oasis
(51,705 posts)Wait 'n see what the Cheeto has in store for all of you shit-for-brains, Trump loving dolts.
Garrett78
(10,721 posts)For the most part, they exist within an alternate reality from which there is no return.
uponit7771
(91,767 posts)MFM008
(20,000 posts)i gave WWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY to many people credit for brains or patriotism , when they had neither.
I NEVER thought we would face this maggot in a serious way.
Va Lefty
(6,252 posts)thought he would be easier to beat than Cruz. Just couldn't see all the bible thumpers voting for Comrade casino. Bill Mahr said on his show after the election "Don't ever say the American People aren't that dumb. They'll say I'll show you how dumb I can Be!"
bowens43
(16,064 posts)YoungDemCA
(5,714 posts)nt
jfern
(5,204 posts)aikoaiko
(34,202 posts)Trump showed an amazing dedication to his message when I'm sure many, many people advised, confronted, threatened, etc to change it.
djsunyc
(169 posts)was about folks unable to get over their own sh t for the betterment of the country.
that and about how non-whites need to take elections more seriously.
the country is easily swayed to be conservative. change is tough - even in 2016. it took a super duper charismatic person to help foster that along but that was short lived. i'm not sure the path we are on can really change unless non-whites force the change or we just let time take it's natural course and have non-whites severely outnumber whites.