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BluRay76

(54 posts)
59. Beautifully said!
Mon Nov 11, 2024, 01:02 AM
Nov 2024

Thank you for this post; I completely agree, and you said it so well. Harris, Walz, and the whole team put together a remarkable campaign in a very short time. They told us who they are, what they stand for, and the specific policies they want to enact. They held huge rallies, and they went to small businesses. She won the debate by a mile, she gave interviews, she went to the swing states repeatedly. The website had information about her policy proposals.

What I am going to say here is more than a little idealistic; I hold no illusions that this is where are country is now, and I doubt it ever was this way. It is our job as voters to educate ourselves - to get truly informed and make reasoned decisions based on whose policies are likely to take our country in the right direction, and to actually show up and vote accordingly. Beyond that, there should be minimum standards of ethics that a candidate for elected office should have to meet - and if our laws and our Constitution don't require it, then we as voters should take the responsibility for ensuring that the person they elect is up to the task, in terms of capability and ethical standards. I feel like this is what our very best candidates have done, and I absolutely count Harris and Walz among that number.

I understand that the Republicans don't do that. For probably my entire lifetime, the Republicans have been playing a long game. They have acquired media outlets and abandoned any sense of truth in their version of "news." They probably saw in advance the inherent electoral college advantage that comes with getting rural voters aligned with them, and they targeted that population accordingly. They have increasingly created the narrative that the opposing party is an enemy; is less American; is less human. Every time the economy is down, or when there's war, or when there's a natural disaster, they take the opportunity to stoke any tendency toward grievances, and they give their viewers a target - Democrats or immigrants or people of color or the LGBTQ+ community. And their viewers believe it because they heard it on the "news." And as echo chambers have become more prevalent, it's even easier for them to believe the wildest conspiracies because they're seeing the stories in multiple places. They don't know that their news sources are all skewed, and they don't care. And of course, there's a massive problem with disengagement from the process. Too many people don't even bother to vote, or they decide whom they'll vote for as they are in the booth filling out their ballot. They just choose to be checked out, completely abdicating their responsibility as a citizen eligible to vote in this country. Then, there are the voters who want to vote but they can't take the time off work to stand in a line for an hour or more (and in some cases, many hours), or who do stand in that line and then there's a problem with the machines, or they were purged from the rolls. Between the electoral college, gerrymandering, and the cap of 435 on the House, there are numerous ways in which segments of the population are disenfranchised. These voter suppression efforts only add to it.

Personally, I was stunned at the result. I was as enthusiastic about this campaign as I have ever been, and I thought she hit almost all the right notes. And honestly, given trump's comments about cheating and "I have all the votes I need," and given his ties to Russia and to Musk/tech/voting machines, I would not be at all surprised if there was cheating. I am not making accusations because I don't have enough knowledge about the data to point to specific irregularities; I would like to believe that if there are irregularities, someone is quietly investigating and they are keeping it under the radar until they know more. But I would also not be at all surprised to learn that there was no foul play; it was just a matter of an electorate with, as you said, shitty priorities and shitty principles.

I don't want to continue to lose elections - of course not. I want our country to stop sabotaging itself and to actually care about helping people to build better lives for themselves. I want to find a way to actually get voters to do their job as participants in our electoral process. But I fear that it isn't simply a matter of politics or messaging; it would involve completely dismantling a system of indoctrination that the Republicans have been building for multiple generations.

Recommendations

1 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

Well said. I couldn't agree more. Marigold Nov 2024 #1
Absolutely. As I said elsewhere B.See Nov 2024 #58
Whether all of that is true or not is largely irrelevant. What we did clearly didn't work. TwilightZone Nov 2024 #2
That's the point - it isn't about what they did. D23MIURG23 Nov 2024 #10
Gold! appalachiablue Nov 2024 #23
I hear Bill Cosby is available. n/t Yavin4 Nov 2024 #50
Pandemic Aepps22 Nov 2024 #11
Vote gap krkaufman Nov 2024 #77
The answer to this is EASY!!!!!! Trueblue Texan Nov 2024 #51
I don't think it had much to do with what Dems did except that probably some people were not ready to elect a LymphocyteLover Nov 2024 #62
This and a lot of people's lives suck. Fish700 Nov 2024 #71
Seirously we got killed on just getting our messaging out through the media... it didn't matter what we said LymphocyteLover Nov 2024 #83
The majority of American adults are intellectually and morally bankrupt. RockRaven Nov 2024 #3
And purposefully ignorant! RainCaster Nov 2024 #89
The OP is well said 👏 Deuxcents Nov 2024 #4
All voters had the information. A majority didn't understand what they really voted for. OAITW r.2.0 Nov 2024 #5
"you can fool some of the people all of the time. rampartd Nov 2024 #93
Voters REJECTED Freedom, Democracy, and Going Forward. ProudMNDemocrat Nov 2024 #6
This message was self-deleted by its author Chin music Nov 2024 #17
Who said landlide? He will probably win by less than 3% TheKentuckian Nov 2024 #56
It would be well distributed if Elon and pals stole it. Pad a little here, take away some there. travelingthrulife Nov 2024 #72
It's white supremacy and patriarchy. yardwork Nov 2024 #79
I heard bdamomma Nov 2024 #29
And they rejected science kansasobama Nov 2024 #32
Many would not be alive without it.... ProudMNDemocrat Nov 2024 #70
Thank you! mcar Nov 2024 #7
He has a very small one. bdamomma Nov 2024 #36
I paid very little attention to what the Presidential Candidates said BOSSHOG Nov 2024 #8
Correct, and he vowed even higher tariffs...20%. brush Nov 2024 #9
The man has been on tv for 10years. Voters knew him for worse or Better FloridaBlues Nov 2024 #12
They voted for "different." This country goes through whiplash. It always wants "different", whether it be good or bad In It to Win It Nov 2024 #13
Yup Dem4life1234 Nov 2024 #15
We need an effective resistance kansasobama Nov 2024 #33
Yes we do! Magoo48 Nov 2024 #82
I think you have average voter psychology nailed. They're trying to hit refresh until they get what they want. D23MIURG23 Nov 2024 #67
Correct Cosmocat Nov 2024 #14
Religion is a factor - TBF Nov 2024 #21
it is definitely more than one thing Cosmocat Nov 2024 #63
Uuummm... Putin? GiqueCee Nov 2024 #16
And/Or they were not properly informed Jarqui Nov 2024 #18
I think you are right, Demiurge. Plus the misogyny stinks to high heaven. nt Hekate Nov 2024 #19
the problem is endless and pervasive disinfo form the right LymphocyteLover Nov 2024 #20
well said proud patriot Nov 2024 #22
You can't fix stupid and plenty of voters are idiots Tribetime Nov 2024 #24
Voters were well informed and chose criminality anyway. They're accomplices. Duncan Grant Nov 2024 #25
One More Thing To Consider DallasNE Nov 2024 #26
And now we have a huge cohort of young adults who missed almost two years of schooling due to COVID shutdowns... Mark.b2 Nov 2024 #35
Low media literacy Ndp5 Nov 2024 #42
Be tired all you want. But if you want to win again, you haven't said what people also WANTED that changed their votes ancianita Nov 2024 #27
Yes, the choice was clear...to us. BannonsLiver Nov 2024 #40
Yep, to us. ancianita Nov 2024 #41
Well said BannonsLiver Nov 2024 #45
Yep, it was a mass suicide event, the electorate drank the poison kool aid with there own free will yaesu Nov 2024 #28
Biden resign and save democracy. since you have immunity do something. rich7862 Nov 2024 #30
That explains the people who voted for trump oldmanlynn Nov 2024 #31
It's 10 mil now Terry_M Nov 2024 #38
Not if you don't really pay much attention Terry_M Nov 2024 #34
Well said. Good post. Thank you. ancianita Nov 2024 #53
What YOU said!!!!! LilElf70 Nov 2024 #37
If you don't vote demodonkey Nov 2024 #49
So you're prepared to continue losing? iemanja Nov 2024 #39
I can fix neither malignancy nor stupidity. TheKentuckian Nov 2024 #47
So the answer is yes iemanja Nov 2024 #52
Oh yeah, if winning is dependent on my fixing big bang level stupidity TheKentuckian Nov 2024 #61
Obviously I can't iemanja Nov 2024 #68
2008, 2012. 2020 are not material. TheKentuckian Nov 2024 #73
The electorate is going to get what it voted for, and a lot of them are going to discover they don't like it. D23MIURG23 Nov 2024 #64
"Reach" wasn't enough, had to convince them they wrong about better times ahead. Most were unreachable. Silent Type Nov 2024 #43
You Make a Lot of Good Points, D23! The Roux Comes First Nov 2024 #44
I really don't give a shit why they are Nazi scum. TheKentuckian Nov 2024 #48
THIS. B.See Nov 2024 #57
This message was self-deleted by its author Chin music Nov 2024 #46
Like I said in my OP a couple of days ago. We are not in control. 700 billionaires are. Initech Nov 2024 #54
So, you wouldn't have done ANYTHING differently? n/t hard2figure Nov 2024 #55
No. What do you think we should have done differently? D23MIURG23 Nov 2024 #65
Beautifully said! BluRay76 Nov 2024 #59
We gotta live in the real world, not in the world we'd rather live in struggle4progress Nov 2024 #60
I am tired as well. LisaL Nov 2024 #66
I agree 100% DiverDave Nov 2024 #69
Absolutely right. No eggs, but plenty of cigarettes and alcohol . . . hawkeye21 Nov 2024 #74
You got that exactly right DemonGoddess Nov 2024 #75
Democrats underestimated the moral and ethical depravity of the majority of American voters Zorro Nov 2024 #76
Yup. nt LAS14 Nov 2024 #78
I agree. The choice was clear. decency and democracy, or indecency and authoritarianism. Respect for the Constitution or Martin68 Nov 2024 #80
Thank you, you put your finger on it. AleksS Nov 2024 #81
Kamala Harris lost due due to the short sighted and poorly thought-out choices by those who "call" themselves Democrats. elocs Nov 2024 #84
Our division of wealth and resources is now worse than 18th Century France IbogaProject Nov 2024 #85
thanks, I needed that. Hamlette Nov 2024 #86
I regret that I can only rec this once. RandomNumbers Nov 2024 #87
You nailed it Progressive dog Nov 2024 #88
Goddamn right. Piratedog Nov 2024 #90
Disgusted Piratedog Nov 2024 #91
"They just elected a fucking Hurricane"? Seems more like a big yellow garbage disposal to me. calimary Nov 2024 #92
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