2020 Disunited States of America Election

[xerx]

Honestly, even if Sanders had managed to eke out a victory, it's not clear that his presidency would have been good for progressives in the long run. I'm sure he would have accomplished some important things, but his presidency, as a whole, would have been a damp squib. His policies would have been blocked by both Republicans and his own party, and these failures probably would have been spun as the failures of Socialism as a whole. The corporate media would have been relentless, and 'Brezhnev Sanders' could be primaried in 2024.

If he resorts to issuing executive orders in order to bypass the limitations imposed by his own parties, he would be painted as a tyrant along with the entire progressive movement.

The truth is that the Democratic and Republican parties are how they are because their voters want them to be. It isn't just corporations that have benefited from tax cuts, so have many wealthy suburbanites. Things will only change once the next generation of voters—which has been badly hurt by the current economic policies—dominates the electorate and votes according to its economic interests.

[aciaradh]

Honestly, even if Sanders had managed to eke out a victory, it's not clear that his presidency would have been good for progressives in the long run. I'm sure he would have accomplished some important things, but his presidency, as a whole, would have been a damp squib. His policies would have been blocked by both Republicans and his own party, and these failures probably would have been spun as the failures of Socialism as a whole. The corporate media would have been relentless, and 'Brezhnev Sanders' could be primaried in 2024.

If he resorts to issuing executive orders in order to bypass the limitations imposed by his own parties, he would be painted as a tyrant along with the entire progressive movement.

The truth is that the Democratic and Republican parties are how they are because their voters want them to be. It isn't just corporations that have benefited from tax cuts, so have many wealthy suburbanites. Things will only change once the next generation of voters—which has been badly hurt by the current economic policies—dominates the electorate and votes according to its economic interests.

I agree with you that Sanders would've had a tough time passing policies in office. However, I don't know if the third paragraph can necessarily be said to be the full story (at least in poor, rural areas). Even in counties where Trump won and other Republicans won, progressive measures (such as marijuana legalization, support for M4A) had clear majority support among the populace. While some might say that this is due to lack of education among the voters about what the parties truly stand for, an equally valid conclusion would be that this was a vote of lack of confidence for Democratic leadership, even when very progressive measures have widespread support. But I guess at the same time, the general populace may not care enough about politics to care to instill new leadership/want "radical policies," so I don't really know Aside from that though, I 100 percent agree that change won't even be possible until younger voters have much more sway in elections.

[Misfit]

the biggest terrorist is trump, not islamic terrorism. islamic terrorists are just reactionaries reacting in an unjustly brutal way to western antagonism and war crimes, and imperialism, these white nationalists are just the devil led by the antichrist.

[xerx]

I agree with you that Sanders would've had a tough time passing policies in office. However, I don't know if the third paragraph can necessarily be said to be the full story (at least in poor, rural areas). Even in counties where Trump won and other Republicans won, progressive measures (such as marijuana legalization, support for M4A) had clear majority support among the populace. While some might say that this is due to lack of education among the voters about what the parties truly stand for, an equally valid conclusion would be that this was a vote of lack of confidence for Democratic leadership, even when very progressive measures have widespread support. But I guess at the same time, the general populace may not care enough about politics to care to instill new leadership/want "radical policies," so I don't really know Aside from that though, I 100 percent agree that change won't even be possible until younger voters have much more sway in elections.

Yeah, it isn't the whole story. I agree about the general apathy and political ignorance. The media is good at manufacturing both.

[lkdhf qkb]

Yeah, it isn't the whole story. I agree about the general apathy and political ignorance. The media is good at manufacturing both.

There is a base tone of spiritual dissatisfaction that can be sensed in most Western democracies, it's a crisis not only of democracy and politics, but of the whole western way of life(capitalism included). Right now, nothing gives people something to look forward to, people believe in nothing and end up emprisoned by the present.

When I look at the pictures from the Capitol riot, I see that the big majority are men. Men that don't want to look forward, but want to have the past back. Wether it's the Confederation, a second Trump presidency, whatever makes them feel they have a hold on their lives and role to play. What does it mean to be a man in the 21rst century?

[xerx]

There is a base tone of spiritual dissatisfaction that can be sensed in most Western democracies, it's a crisis not only of democracy and politics, but of the whole western way of life(capitalism included). Right now, nothing gives people something to look forward to, people believe in nothing and end up emprisoned by the present.

When I look at the pictures from the Capitol riot, I see that the big majority are men. Men that don't want to look forward, but want to have the past back. Wether it's the Confederation, a second Trump presidency, whatever makes them feel they have a hold on their lives and role to play. What does it mean to be a man in the 21rst century?

I fully agree. These and other men haven't adapted well to the modern world, can't use their existing talents, and are being left behind. Trump and other populists are just symptoms of an underlying malaise that isn't going away anytime soon. Women, OTOH, have adapted to the modern world and are starting to beat men in a few important indicators.

[/QUOTE]

Fight Club is easily one of the most perceptive and underappreciated films ever made. The commodification—and the subsequent loss of control—of all aspects of life under capitalism is certainly unnatural and unliberating to a lot of people.

[consentingadult]

Fight Club is easily one of the most perceptive and underappreciated films ever made.

Nonsense. Fight Club is acclaimed by arts critics as well as academia (philosophy/cultural studies/social sciences) for its depiction of a social critique.

[xerx]

Nonsense. Fight Club is acclaimed by arts critics as well as academia (philosophy/cultural studies/social sciences) for its depiction of a social critique.

What I should have said is that it can never be overrated.

[Adam Strange]

What does it mean to be a man in the 21rst century?

If you look around, you will see that you are one man (or woman) among many others. Very, very, very many others.

If the world contained only you, then you could do whatever you wanted without restrictions. Add another person, and your rights are cut in half.

After you add a few billion other humans, then the fact that you have an existence AT ALL, much less one which allows you to live beyond the dreams of 99.999% of all the people who have ever lived, should make you realize that your scope for action has been radically curtailed. You need to walk a very narrow line to stay where you are.

You don't have to stay where you are. You can move to Somalia, or to the middle of the ocean, where your rights are whatever you can maintain, but if you want the easy life you have, you have to conform, as does every other person in your situation who enjoys the fruits of the labor of others.