***Official Political Discussion Thread***

I think Democrats really need to take and run with his wealth inequality issue, the problem is Republicans always tie it to socialism but I really think if positioned correctly the right candidate can take Bernies movement and continue it. It's issue NUMBER 1 for me.

In the shadow of Goldwater, Pat Buchanan was able to forge a coalition of the wealthy and old guard, evangelicals, and racists. On the face of it, you’d imagine that tent was a fractious as any in the current left. And a big part of the strategy was identifying a common enemy: global communism.

Now, at the risk to angering rexanglorum rexanglorum , I think it’s not controversial in 2024 that the mid-century Communist regimes were actually pretty terrible and their defeat was almost certainly a good thing for the world. So I guess good on Pat? Certainly throughout the second half of the twentieth century, the 2nd world probably enjoyed more support from the American left than was merited. A lot like some of my dumb friends who liked Hugo Chavez 20 years ago.

Anyways, as I think about it, I think my own instinct it to always fight the aggregation of power by any entity that has no accountability to the public. I mean, we should be careful of empowering *any* entity - but special scrutiny to those we can’t simply vote out. Stalin and Mao really answered to no one and that’s why they were able to do so much damage.

These days, I think the biggest unchecked aggregation of unaccountable power is to international mega corporations. A lot of the problems we see: inflation, wage stagnation, income inequality can be tied to the degradation of markets under oligopoly. Every industry is so heavily concentrated that rent seeking has permeated international commerce.

Oligopoly is anti-capitalist. It breeds laziness and corruption. It has infiltrated our government. It’s antithetical to American values. It creates misery an across the globe and in almost every American household. It’s 21st century’s biggest challenge to liberty and meritocracy and we need a new coalition to recapture all American institutions that are corruptly occupied by the agents of oligopoly.

It’s not anti-business. It’s pro business and the restoration of fair, competitive, and capitalist markets.
 


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He was given the advice. To not vote for TRUMP :lol :lol
 
I’m feeling close to exhausted by these discussions. Some of you speak in absolutes, assuming everything you say is fact, and then react strongly when others challenge you. It would help if we all took a step back, listened, and avoided being dismissive. Not everyone here shares the same background—our group is diverse in race, ethnicity, gender, and experiences.

Some are quick to argue that certain issues, like Kamala Harris’s performance, are non-issues, but that perspective might overlook how these topics resonate with communities outside your own. For example, LGBTQ+ and transgender issues may seem inconsequential to some, but it’s important to listen to those who may have a different perspective and acknowledge that these topics might matter more in other demographics.

Here’s another example: when Trump said, “They are taking Black jobs,” many people were outraged, calling it racist. But he also directed a similar message to Hispanic communities, and a significant number agreed, feeling that undocumented immigrants were affecting their job opportunities in fields like housekeeping, construction, and landscaping. This highlights the cultural differences I’m talking about—not every message resonates the same way across groups.

Ultimately, the Democratic Party needs to approach these conversations with open minds and be willing to engage with different groups to understand what truly matters to them.
 
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Who are these moderate democrats?
The ones that didnt show up on Tuesday?
Latino and black men?
The celebrities who endorsed her?
The wall street firms who give 50/50 to dems and republicans?
Oh ...the college educated DINKS who live down the street from me in San Mateo County Harris/Walz signs?

Bernie Sanders is not even a Democrat so can we stop bringing him up. He is as irrelevant as Jill Stein.
 
Every time Democrats lose an election people want to bring up Bernie Sanders. We don't want him!

Nothing is stopping him from running for President as an Independent. If he wants to be President, he can go ahead and run for President.
 
Sanders beat Kamala in her own state of California yet mainstream Dems thought he was not a viable candidate but she was.

This is why the party is in the state it is in.

Anyway he is too old to run but anyone who has progressive messaging like him should be considered.



But Dems wont..they find another corporate interest shrill to parade out there with Robert Deniro and Beyonce. Gavin PG&E Newsome? Oh how about we go the celebrity route and nominate The Rock. 🤦‍♂️
 
The middle class people that voted for him are going to regret their decision when they realize that he’s not looking out for them. Dumb-asses.

Well let's hope he does! lol
Bernie Sanders is not even a Democrat so can we stop bringing him up. He is as irrelevant as Jill Stein.

what would you place him as? I feel like he's as liberal as it gets no?
 
Well let's hope he does! lol


what would you place him as? I feel like he's as liberal as it gets no?

Yes, he is liberal, but he can't be a viable candidate if he is not even a part of the Democratic party. He is like Jill Stein, he every four years he pops out for attention and acts like he wants to be President. In the meantime he does no campaigning for up or down ballot Democrats. He is all about himself.
 
Sanders beat Kamala in her own state of California yet mainstream Dems thought he was not a viable candidate but she was.

This is why the party is in the state it is in.

Anyway he is too old to run but anyone who has progressive messaging like him should be considered.



But Dems wont..they find another corporate interest shrill to parade out there with Robert Deniro and Beyonce. Gavin PG&E Newsome? Oh how about we go the celebrity route and nominate The Rock. 🤦‍♂️
One of my issues is that we have to figure out a way to get our baseline of support to the Republican baseline such that no matter what we have a 51% chance to win in every election. Our top line is way higher than theirs but how to we get to that level of support?

I’m all for progressive or moderate positions if they will achieve this goal. Bernie talks about Dems abandoning the working class but the reality is that the White working class left the party almost entirely because they didn’t like the progress they perceived minorities attaining. Economic Anxiety is funny when most working class minorities are still in the party. Makes you wonder what this is really about?
 
One of my issues is that we have to figure out a way to get our baseline of support to the Republican baseline such that no matter what we have a 51% chance to win in every election. Our top line is way higher than theirs but how to we get to that level of support?
My man, I know you mean well, but they need to feel the pain. They won't learn without feeling the pain.

They were warned for years about the consequences of voting for Trump, but they wanted to be stubborn. It is what it is.
 
I’m feeling close to exhausted by these discussions. Some of you speak in absolutes, assuming everything you say is fact, and then react strongly when others challenge you. It would help if we all took a step back, listened, and avoided being dismissive. Not everyone here shares the same background—our group is diverse in race, ethnicity, gender, and experiences.
This is JUST NOT, going to happen.
This group is much too big and spread out for everyone to catch your request and give it a chance.
One or two might say "you know, I'm going to make a concerted effort to do just that" and listen and avoid being dismissive. Shortly after a few more may pop in and follow suit and we are in a decent dialogue.
Next 3-5 NT'ers from the group comes in and reads something from a Trump Supporter or just someone genuinely curious or DOESN"T LOVE TRUMP or didn't vote for him but can agree with him on one or two things, or in their eyes( A TROLL) and those 3-5 posters that DID NOT See your post/request and missed the "you know, I'm going to make a concerted effort to do just that" speech by their contemporaries and they come in with the guns blazing pew pew pew shots when someone says "I voted for Trump because I don't want my Daughter sharing the locker room with boys" so they reply to that person with the "let me know how you feel when your daughter gets R worded and ends up pregnant and can't have an abortion so she gets one on the black market and has no access to proper healthcare and she dies" shots w/ the let me know how you feel then you transphobic misogynist bigot cherry to top it off.

I got a pretty big history lesson in the art of Rhetoric today.
I just can't see how this thread changes.
This is a bubble that is not popping.
Too many Gorgias and not enough Socrates.
 
This is JUST NOT, going to happen.
This group is much too big and spread out for everyone to catch your request and give it a chance.
One or two might say "you know, I'm going to make a concerted effort to do just that" and listen and avoid being dismissive. Shortly after a few more may pop in and follow suit and we are in a decent dialogue.
Next 3-5 NT'ers from the group comes in and reads something from a Trump Supporter or just someone genuinely curious or DOESN"T LOVE TRUMP or didn't vote for him but can agree with him on one or two things, or in their eyes( A TROLL) and those 3-5 posters that DID NOT See your post/request and missed the "you know, I'm going to make a concerted effort to do just that" speech by their contemporaries and they come in with the guns blazing pew pew pew shots when someone says "I voted for Trump because I don't want my Daughter sharing the locker room with boys" so they reply to that person with the "let me know how you feel when your daughter gets R worded and ends up pregnant and can't have an abortion so she gets one on the black market and has no access to proper healthcare and she dies" shots w/ the let me know how you feel then you transphobic misogynist bigot cherry to top it off.

I got a pretty big history lesson in the art of Rhetoric today.
I just can't see how this thread changes.
This is a bubble that is not popping.
Too many Gorgias and not enough Socrates.
Oh is that what just happened with 1995 1995

🤣

Honestly, people keep saying I don't understand, yet act like they know everything. In what world does that make sense?
 
I almost took a job at the IRS this past summer in the group I actually wanted to be in. Specialty group in a business department where I’d talk with treasury on guidance, impact on the industry I’d specialize in, consult revenue agents on application of certain rules on who they are auditing, and develop teaching for revenue agents. But what made me not take it was a potential Trump presidency and essentially firing a bunch of people before I got my 1 year of tenure to get full union protection. In hindsight I probably have made the right decision.
 
the reality is that the White working class left the party almost entirely because they didn’t like the progress they perceived minorities attaining.
This too.

Biden's policies overwhelmingly propped up white, republican, working class areas. I'm listening to these analyses and I'm wondering if I'm taking crazy pills. Very little of the green economy policies are meant for affluent, more densely populated areas because we are talking about creating huge projects (solar farms, wind turbines, green factories, etc...) that only fit in sparsely populated areas.

There are just way too many folks who can't live with themselves if they can't be disrespect others. Let's see if being able to call people slurs all day long feeds them.
 
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