● Could Be Amazing: I encourage everyone to listen to Trump's victory speech... all of it. You will hear the perfect speech. He was conciliatory, genuine and hopeful. He sounded like the perfect president with the right priorities. It was the speech you would want to hear if you hired someone to run your company. What's more, the people you saw on stage with him were the type of people to carry out those kinds of policies. This was not a bunch of yahoos.
Whether Trump manages to keep that tone or not is a good question, but I think he will. He came across as "businessman Trump," a man who wants to work with people to fix our problems rather than make more, and that seems to be the Trump his employees talk about. What's more, he knows that his record is what will matter and I don't see him wanting to be a failure. Also, he showed tremendous character by being kind to all the people who smeared him so vilely. That's not something his detractors think he had within him and it's not something Obama or Hillary could have done.
● GOP Are Big Winners: The GOP got the House and the Senate while feuding with Trump and while smacking down their fringe. I think this bodes well. I think this suggests a more responsive and less fringe GOP. Hopefully, it also pushes them to start listening to the public rather than their echo chamber, but we'll see.
● Strange: Trump won states he shouldn't have (Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Iowa) and lost states he shouldn't have (Colorado, Virginia, Nevada). I think what is behind this is a new class war going on. States that are middle class are becoming more red while states that are wealthier are becoming more blue.
● Not This Woman: A lot of chickies (yes, I'm being insulting at a certain group of women) are upset that women actually voted for Trump. I would say this... (1) this shows that most women are rational and they are looking at policies rather than getting their feelings hurt, (2) it shows that women will not ignore the bad things about female candidates, and (3) it shows that women don't vote with their genitalia and they will not vote for any woman. Indeed, Hillary was an awful candidate for "the first female President," and I think a lot of women got that.
● Angry White Bullsh*t: The leftist spin on the election is that this was a "Whitelash" of uneducated angry white men rising up to take a stand against our black president and against women. Of course, this is crap. This was an election with massive turnout and there aren't nearly enough rural voters to make this happen. Trump won this election in suburbia. Tens of millions of women voted for him. So did college educated people. What this was, was a Middle Class-lash. This election was the middle class flipping the bird at the elites who have run the country into iceberg after iceberg.
● There's Your Anger I: I watched NBC to see their reaction. They were in shock last night. Check out the comments in the prior post. The media was spinning an end of the world scenario in which they assumed all of Hillary's smears were true and then they were aghast that anyone would vote for Trump. They couldn't understand how these ignorant hicks could win an election, and they spun it into racism, sexism and every other -ism they could. They spewed things that were purely ignorant of our laws and how our government works. It was leftist talking points as obituary.
● There's Your Anger II: The left is freaking out this morning. They are all over twitter and Facebook and the such whining about this being the end of the world. They deserve their anguish. They and their celebrity friends lied and screamed their way through this election, living happily in the world of groupthink. Their group failed... their world shattered. Let them suffer.
● Black Turnout: I suspect that blacks didn't turn out for Clinton. That's why he won North Carolina and Michigan and why Ohio was called so easily. I will be curious to see what the final numbers say.
● Not What People Think: So what happens next? I think it won't be what people expect. Trump is going to hire a lot of people from across the aisle is my guess. Then he's going to propose a combination of tax cuts and infrastructure spending. They will tweak Obamacare, probably with the GOP replacement plan. After that, I'm not sure. I don't think he will be the most hands-on president. Somewhere along the way, he will demand that they tighten our borders and then he will probably drop the "path to citizenship" bomb.
● Bernie: Oh, and I think Bernie would have beaten Trump.
Thoughts?
Bernie might well have beaten Trump - but the Dems rigged their primary. You reap what you sew.
ReplyDeleteI'm optimistic today. Trump will be a good president.
LL, I agree on all points.
ReplyDeleteI slept on it (hoping it was all a dream) but you hit the nail on the head with the "less fringe GOP." My fear if Hillary won would be that the right would get even more rabid. Hopefully this will pacify certain elements and give the left time to regroup.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, I do fear for my LGBT friends. You say the public won't tolerate right-wing social politics but when has that stopped politicians from trying?
And Trump doesn't concern me as much as the bad shit he's stirred up. (David Duke, the alt-right, etc.) "But Scott, it's only a small part of his base and they have no real power," you'll tell me.
And lastly, fuck the media. They wanted a cage match and they got it. They babble about e-mails (a legit issue to be fair) non-stop and it's like, do they know Trump's going on trial for child rape next month?!
Scott, The woman claiming child rape withdrew her claim because it doesn't stand up.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of the LGBT community, Trump has been pro-gay, so I'm not sure why you're worried about that. Not to mention that the Supreme Court backs them. And gay rights have basically been sweeping the country. The gay issue is over.
In terms of the alt-right, assholes thought they are, how are they different than the Hollywood left?
You'll say most of this is either state-level stuff or examples of Obama overreaching, but this article didn't help.
ReplyDelete(Sorry for putting words in your mouth, by the way!) :-)
To answer your question... one could say many on the left in Hollywood (not all!) genuinely want to make the world a better place, but they simply go about it the completely wrong way. The alt-right just wants to watch the world burn... and my fellow Jews along with it. I know a lot of that is just trolling but still.
Scott - "In terms of the alt-right, assholes thought they are, how are they different than the Hollywood left?"
ReplyDeleteThe answer to that is that "they aren't any different. They are all wingnuts who get the loudest microphone. But what won this election for Trump was...THE MIDDLE! Or as used to be called - Silent Majority. Those people who no one listens to because they live their lives in quiet desperation trying to feed, clothe, house their families while watching everyone demean them at every turn.
All I can say as person that has many more years on you, stop believing what you hear in the media, and start seeing for yourself.
The real take-away from this is that you can't win votes by insulting the voters. The Dems should have learned that in the last 3 election cycles, but they haven't obviously. People aren't stupid.
Heard this morning Trump won in Youngstown (and other long-Demo stronghold cities in the NE Ohio I grew up in). Speaks as loudly as New Hampshire and Vermont electing GOP governors.
ReplyDeleteScott, Lena Dunham may think she wants to make the world better, but her method is to destroy those she thinks are holding her back. And she's typical of that portion of the left. The left is the home of Ecoterrorists who dominate the FBI's most wanted list. It is the home of Black Lives Matter who are cool with people shooting cops. It is the home of people who push fake rape allegations, who riot and set fires and attack innocent people. Think back to the rapey days of OWS. Those are the people you overlook when you look left. It is the home of the anti G-20 anarchists. They want to watch the world burn more than anybody, and they say very much hate Jews -- bankers and Israelis.
ReplyDeleteYou really should take a genuine look at these people without dismissing it as harmless or just a few bad apples.
As for the article, it is standard heavily-biased stuff from the left that find the fringe and assumes their views will be adopted. Even if Trump did that, which he won't, the courts strike it down. The legal writing is on the wall. The issue is over.
Eric, I think this was a shift in the electorate. Or rather, it was the conclusion of a shift. Middle/working class are now Republican. Upper class and dirt poor are Democrat.
ReplyDeleteBev, Exactly. Trump shifted away from the alt-right a couple months back and all of his policies/rhetoric are aimed right at the middle.
ReplyDeleteI find it funny, for example, that Trump is proposing to fix the ghettos, improve schools, improve infrastructure, and provide child care for women... yet people want to call him alt-right. How does that work?
Andrew -
ReplyDeleteI knew you were gonna mention Dunham and I wanted to edit my comment to reflect that she's definitely an exception! I say that not as a political moderate but as a creative person who hates when people get to skyrocket to the top because they say the right things and go to the right parties.
Shit, I sound like a Trump voter right now!
I'm also well-aware of the FBI list. This is why, as much as I might agree with certain things, I can never be "of the left" or even donate to most of their charities. Because they'll overplay their hand and ruin it for all of us.
Scott, Let me add, to debunk the article.
ReplyDelete1. The GOP platform was written by a tiny group of Religious Right types who control the platform committee. No one takes either party's platform seriously.
2. Trump also fought the GOP... remember?
3. Trump has repeatedly expressed pro-LGBT views.
4. The courts have already ruled that gay marriage is required by the Constitution. In so doing, they basically forced the states to pass gay rights as well, which is happening.
5. Not having an AIDS policy is a stupid criticism as AIDS is on autopilot at the federal level.
6. The "religious discrimination" they are whining about protects churches from having to accept gay employees. This same protection was created even in pro-gay places like Europe.
7. The 2014 Executive Order extending gay rights to contractors is purely for show. Trust me, I work with it in contracts I write all the time. It's as stupid as the anti-text messaging stuff that goes into these contracts. It's all for show and has no meaning.
8. Most LGBT stuff at the Supreme Court has not been 5-4. The procedural stuff has been 5-4.
9. The rest is just "he's Trump, we know he hates us in a general sense!!!"
Interesting exit polling. Trump got:
ReplyDelete52% of white women
13% of black males (4% of black women)
33% of Latino males
26% of Latino females
32% of other minorities (e.g. Muslims, Asians)
Can't find any figures on gays.
So he did better than Romney with each of these groups.
If you want some schadenfreude, check out the headlines at the Daily Beast. It's the end of the world over there. LOL!
ReplyDelete"Why Hispanics Didn't Save America"
"Van Jones: This Is A Nightmare"
"Noah: How Can America Be This Hateful?"
Dreams of a Democrat takeover of Texas, dashed. That was one of the things they were wish-casting on NBC last night. What they forget is that Hispanics have been integrating in the southwest since before statehood.
ReplyDeleteWow, lots of "This is worse than 9/11" kind of rhetoric going around...
ReplyDeleteI agree with most of what you have stated and I understand Scott's concern. At least he (Scott) is rational and intelligent. Right now the left is in the first phase of grief with shock and disbelief; some have even moved into anger. We will see if they can pull out anything useful going forward. So far this morning they are blaming "the ground game" for not being good enough. Kind of like GOP blaming fraud and right wingers for causing Romney to lose.
ReplyDeleteTrump is not conservative. To compare him to that is a mistake. In addition, convervatism did not win; it just wasn't as bad as the fascist liberalism-this time.
ReplyDeleteI fear the GOP party won't learn anything from this race and still have stupid planks such as a constitution amendment outlawing abortions. The general populous is against abortion but otherwise doesn't care.
Koshcat, The core GOP lives in a fantasy world where they truly think that their little list of pet peeves will win over some silent majority. So I agree that they are unlikely to learn anything.
ReplyDeleteWhat I'm hoping more is that the office holders start to realize they don't need to pander to the hard right because they just beat them, and then Trump and the Roberts court eliminate some of the GOP hot button issues whether they like it or not, so they don't have those to make fools of themselves anymore.
I also hope that Trump forces them to think in terms of "what would make middle class families happy."
In terms of Trump being conservative, I think he will most likely try to be like JFK or FDR as a model. So not a liberal who believes the government should do everything, but not a libertarian either. Kind of an "old-school democrat."
On the left, they are super insane right now. But then, they don't handle disagreement well and they just got their entire belief system slapped down by the public. What's more, everything Obama "achieved' (whatever that was) is now going to be undone.
tryanmax, The problem with the Hispanic dreaming is that the demographics are against them. Also, as they age, they become Republican in the same numbers as whites. And with the wave of Mexicans ending, they will soon vanish into the white community.
ReplyDeleteBev, Obnoxious, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteFavorite doom & gloom quote from the office, so far: "Good mornings are canceled till 2020."
ReplyDeleteOh, the joys of being surrounded by Euro-socialists.
Here's something interesting. Remember how Bill Clinton won in 1992 because Perot took on average about 15% of the votes away from Bush Sr.? Yeah, well, in at least Florida, Rachel Maddow is bemoaning that Johnson & Stein took just enough votes away from Clinton for Trump to win. Same for Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan...oopsie.
ReplyDeleteThis was actually a wonderful comment made to Maddow which is...yeah, pretty spot on: "...@maddow so, if thousands of people had voted for a different candidate, the election might've gone differently? trenchant insight
ReplyDeleteAndrew,
ReplyDeleteIt was the right-wing crazies, the Hannities, the Michael Savages, etc., who won this election. They were the Trump-supporters.
Movement conservatism, heck, conservatism, is dead. All that's left is a hard-left, pro-big government, pro-welfare, and anti-immigration nationalism.
Heck, Alex Jones is more representative of modern conservatism than Ronald Reagan.
ReplyDeleteNot much I can add to this. I still have my reservations about Trump, but I absolutely could not stand the idea of Hillary winning. Of course now I can look forward to a 4-8 year tantrum from Hollywood as well, limiting my entertainment options (Entertain these people? They voted Trump! Destroying him and his Reich Wing RethugliKKKan Christo Fascists is The Most Important Issue of Our Time!). Well, nothing to do now except see how things go.
ReplyDelete- Daniel
Kit - I think you need to take a deep breath. But like I told you earlier, rage against the machine if you have to. We can take it.
ReplyDeleteBut that being said -
- These people never HAD control of anything. They just thought they did because they made the most noise and they had the professional politicians catering to their every whim and telling them how wonderful they were - participation trophies for ALL. Do you really think Alex Jones had ANYTHING to do with this? Only in his dreams, same for Limbaugh etc.
What is happening is what was supposed to happen in the early days of the Tea Party. Remember those guys? Yeah, they were the Silent Majority - I was one of them. All we wanted was for our elected officials to listen to us and show us a little respect. What we got was ridicule from the Left and Obama et al. What we got from the Right/"Establishment Republicans" was a bunch of politicians who took us for granted and just assumed that we were a bunch of sheep who just needed a politician to lead the way. When the politicians started co-opting the TP, that's when the numbers began to dwindle drastically and all that was left were the wingers. It took 3 election cycles for the Silent Majority/Middle Of The Road Centrists to wrestle out of the control of the Party Faithful and the Party Elite (that's both parties, mind you) No one wanted to listen especially the DC cronies. And remember that it was the Dems who begged for Trump because they just assumed they could bully, shame, and ridicule their way around him.
I don't know what you think "Conservative" means, but for me it has ALWAYS been about fiscal sanity and responsibility.
Eric, I won't lie... I'm loving their pain.
ReplyDeleteBev, That's hilarious. As my dad always says, "And if the dog hadn't stopped to sh*t, he would have caught the rabbit."
ReplyDeleteAndrew, I agree. While I enjoyed Trump's victory speech for what it was, I noted shades of FDR and JFK. Not a bad road to go down, but not small government by any means. On the bright side, I feel as if the nation has dodged another LBJ.
ReplyDeleteDaniel, Just enjoy their pain and live your life. Politics does not control your life. Make yourself happy. By a success. Let them suffer... you just put a boot up the ass of every Hollywood blowhard. Enjoy it. :)
ReplyDeletetryanmax, That's the vibe I got. I think it matches the middle class pretty well. Build a better world. Provide some help to average people. Don't tolerate laziness. Don't tolerate corruption. We'll see if that's how it turns out, but that's the vibe he sent.
ReplyDeleteI really was impressed with his speech. It felt amazingly genuine and good natured.
Bev, I agree completely. Trump may have started out pandering to the alt-right, but the people who supported him last night are the Tea Party as it was meant to be. And I think he responded to that. I can't say this enough, but listen to what he said last night. He really laid down a fantastic vision of modern conservatism.
ReplyDeleteKit, Hi there.
ReplyDeleteSmiles my friend... smiles.
Ok. As for this ==> Movement conservatism, heck, conservatism, is dead. All that's left is a hard-left, pro-big government, pro-welfare, and anti-immigration nationalism.
That's not what I'm seeing. Outside of a tiny fraction of idiots like Alex Jones, I just don't see that.
That was the plan, Andrew! Honestly, Hollywood lost me during the BDS years so my life won't change significantly once TDS sets in. Like you, I can't say I feel sorry for the media and general activist left either. I've never particularly cared for their constant shouting but the SJW hate mobs really drove the point home. As for me I've got a game backlog to clear out, I found several neat authors who don't write hard left propaganda through Larry Correia and his book bombs, and the curse of vampirism that's plagued me since I got hired at my current job will be broken Thanksgiving week when I move to Day Shift! Not a bad way to wind down the year. =)
ReplyDeletePerfect Daniel!
ReplyDeleteAs for the left and their SJW types, I'm sick of them. I'm sick of the whining, the hate, the stupidity. I'm sick of the intolerance. The contests to be the most pathetic. The desire to force the rest of the word to change to suit their loserism. I love that Trump scares them and makes them cry. It's well-earned pain and I hope they get their fill and then some.
All we need now is for Trump to have major success and expose how small their numbers really are.
I like Larry and his books a lot, btw. He's fun and I love not being insulted.
ReplyDeleteThere's a huge Anti-Trump protest taking over NYC right now...that will end well, I sure.
ReplyDeleteWell put. Trump has talked a good game in the last few weeks and since he won but I'm still remaining skeptical until I see some action. If he does good non-fringe stuff and can actually push the GOP and conservatives to make the moves they need to win and keep the public then I'll consider my vote well cast!
ReplyDeleteLarry is good for that, isn't he? It really is hard to find entertainment that doesn't get insulting and preachy so the Grimnoir Chronicles, which I started with, and Monster Hunter International were great finds. Larry himself being such a huge admitted geek is awesome, too. Finding any kind of conservative geek feels like an impossible task most days.
- Daniel
Eric, I won't lie... I'm loving their pain.
ReplyDeleteCome on, be better than that. I frown on schadenfreude.
Unfortunately, I also practice it sometimes. If Hillary won, I was soooo looking forward to sharing this ever-present gif. ;-)
Whatever... like you said, I won't be much affected at all. And there will always be new books to read, film scores to listen to, and movies to watch.
P.S. Go easy on the boycotting - my livelihood depends on it now!
P.P.S. There are no doubt plenty of distraught women out there. I should try to get laid from this! ;-)
Scott, When unreasonable, intolerant assholes work themselves up into a frenzy because they didn't get their way, then I'm cool with the schadenfraude. These aren't people who ever had an ounce of good faith, nor is their whining now even close to justified. It's like a bully whining that his victim refused to be bullied. No sympathy.
ReplyDeleteThat gif is awesome.
In terms of boycotting, I never said anything about boycotting. I will, however, continue to avoid films that include themes and people I can't stand, just as I suspect you would avoid a film that pushed Christian fundamentalism. My money is easy to earn, but I'm not paying to have someone sh*t on me.
On your final PSS, I would seriously avoid the women who are distraught. They are nut jobs. Go find a woman with a brain... they're much more rewarding.
Bev, What could possibly go wrong with a mob of irrationally angry fanatics getting together to protest their bogeyman? Can't see a problem with it.
ReplyDeleteDaniel, I really like reading Larry's stuff. It's nice knowing that you aren't going to get painted as a villain for not sharing the author's extremist views.
ReplyDeleteAndrew -
ReplyDeleteI know you didn't mention it - that was for the room. Should've been clearer.
Re: a brain, I can't disagree... but oh you should've met this girl I chatted with while working as an extra a few weeks ago. I'll e-mail you about it some time. It's quite the soap opera!
I can't wait to hear about it. LOL!
ReplyDeleteScott - That's just mean...I wanna hear about the soap opera girl too! Seriously though, oh, who am I kidding, I want the dirt! ;-D
ReplyDeleteJust for the record, I was going to post something tonight, but I just spent 2 1/2 hour having a wonderful discussion, a real discussion btw, with a friend working out the world's problems. I will be back with something substative next week. Hey, it's not all bad, but if you voted for Hillary, don't try collect on Madonna's pledge. Someone had already tried, but apparently she wasn't serious...I would post a link to the NY Daily News article where someone tried to collect, but Google isn't cooperating. 8-/ Oh, and Miley Cyrus and Lena Dunham really aren't moving to Canada. But apparently Barry Diller announced that he is...does he know that he still would have to pay taxes here? Prolly not...
Bev, check your Facebook messages. :-)
ReplyDeleteScott, got it...;-D
ReplyDeleteJust as aside: Trump is the first President-elect in 40 years who does not have a degree from Yale and/or Harvard. Wharton..yes, but Yale or Harvard, no.
ReplyDeleteNo fair! The rest of us deserve to live vicariously through Scott as well.
ReplyDeleteOkay, maybe it's the Irish Whiskey talkin', but the collective meltdown of my Leftist FB friends et al.
ReplyDeleteis kind of entertaining...it's late, but still...entertaining.
LOL, that's one way to make the best of it, Scott! Hopefully it turns out better than the soap opera!
ReplyDeleteOMG! Idiots in California are talking about breaking away from the US because of Trump. Do you know how great that would be? I will absolutely vote for that!
ReplyDeleteBuild the wall! Build the wall! Keep Californians out!
As an aside, I'm still loving the tantrum. Keep it up, kiddies! Your pain inspires me! :D
ReplyDeleteOh, and one more thing. This could well be the end of the Bush and Clinton Dynasty's. Yeah! A great day for American history!
ReplyDeleteI will put together some "what to expect" articles next week.
Argent -
ReplyDeleteAndrew reminded me to shoot a bit higher in that department. ;-)
Kosh -
It's not that exciting, I assure you!
Andrew -
ReplyDelete[sigh] Come on. Yeah, I've rolled my eyes at some of the stuff I've read but there are other perfectly sane and normal people who are scared, if not for themselves then for their neighbors, loved ones, etc.
I was thinking about this yesterday... when it comes to elections, is it always gonna be like this? I mean one side has their states, the other side has their states, and the only important ones are those five or six swing states and everything just divides down the middle?
Will we ever get someone who just wins in a Reagan-style landslide? (I guess it depends on the person.)
Scott, Excellent question!
ReplyDeleteI think the answer is both "no" and "it depends."
First, the "no." Both sides have fringe. The left fringe is very vocal and very whiny, especially on college campuses and in Hollywood. They will always do what they are doing right now no matter what if a conservative wins -- protest, riot/loot, scream about the end of the world, cry racism, sexism, rapey-rapey, hate hate hate. So any time a conservative wins, you will see what you see right now coming out, even if the conservative wins 50 states.
You won't really see that on the right though. They tend to glower in their bunkers. But talk radio will always hate liberals.
So in that respect, there will always been a refusal to accept the legitimacy of the election if it's a conservative and grumbling if it's a liberal.
But those are actually small numbers. It is possible to have a candidate sweep most of the nation.
A conservative Democrat could sweep both blue and (a lot of) red states against an unliked Republican. BUT... can a conservative Democrat get through their primary? No chance.
A liberal Republican would still lose all the blue states.
An affable conservative with minority traits (Hispanic, black or female) who was pro-gay, pro-middle class, and promised the types of things I talk about in my political book would likely win all but Vermont and California if the Democrats ran an angry progressive. Could such a person get through the primary?
That's the "it depends." IF Trump acts as a pro-middle class candidate who doesn't obsess over hot button issues, then he could expand the base just enough to make that possible. If Trump dives right or left or the party chooses to circle their wagons against him, then I think it's unlikely.
For it to happen though, one party or the other needs to refocus on average voters rather than their pet peeves. That's the hard part since the parties exist as pet peeve pushing organizations (PPPO's).
BTW, the first time you MAY see this could be if Trump does well, stays clean from controversy, and runs for re-election.
I'm sorry Scott but at this point the answer to your question is not for the foreseeable future. It has to do with the current make up and district drawing of the country i.e. Gerrymandering. This has led to very partisan districts being more common than truly mixed. In addition, people with a general liberal bent tend to want to live in Urban areas while those with a more libertarian or conservative view live in rural. The suburbs are where mixing occurs but even here people tend to gravitate to those areas that are more similar to their views.
ReplyDeleteFor all the hatred toward Trump, he did attract those non-government union type people (Reagan democrats). The hyperbole is obnoxious and the news agencies are doing nothing to help. For example, on NPR this morning they had a black lesbian talk about how scared she was now that Trump was president. However, as Andrew pointed out, Trump never mentioned anything about gays or gay marriage. He doesn't care; it isn't important to him in terms of changing anything. SCOTUS has already ruled on it and even if he tried with an EO, they would swat it down rapidly. Their fear is a form of denial and anger because they aren't in charge and don't get to set the agenda anymore. Everyone has moved on to more important things such as the economy, trade, immigration.
Scott, On your other point...
ReplyDeleteFirst, I'm clearly not talking about your friends if they aren't out there acting like assholes, so why do you assume I am? I'm talking about the celebrities throwing tantrums, the media swearing they will resist Trump, the people hypocritically questioning the legitimacy of the election, the people on Facebook who seem to think Nazi Germany has arrived and who are smearing anyone who disagrees with them, the rioters who destroy other people's property and loot in the name of the election because it's fun, etc. If your friends aren't those people, then frankly, they should be joining me in condemning that shit because it's Nazi-tactics.
Moreover, ask yourself if you wouldn't be just as disapproving if it was alt-right types rioting after a Hillary win? Would you be telling your gay friends not to poke fun at those people?
Anyways, secondly, your friends' fears are irrational. What do you think is really going to happen? Do you think Trump is going to criminalize gays? Make it illegal for women to work? Wipe out rape laws? Re-institute slavery? What bad thing is it Trump will do that will hurt these people exactly? And I don't mean this facetiously. I mean it genuinely, tell me what you think is going to happen and then we can discuss if that's even possible and, if so, likely.
I certainly have no sympathy for the rioters who are destroying property. They were blocking the 101 last night but I don't need the freeway to get to work. Heaven help them if they had been blocking Sunset or Melrose this morning!
ReplyDeleteAnd if the alt-right was rioting in the streets, I'd be sitting back smiling, just like Heston in that gif I posted. And I would probably tell my friends to simply let them have their day and get it out of their system. Much like I'm telling my friends on the right to let these protestors get it out of their system.
(And yes, it's a fair to mention most of these people - the constantly offended, etc. - will never get it out of their system.)
Trump doesn't scare me. But he has stirred up something unpleasant. And we discussed this once before I think... it's not Trump per se, but now that a Republican is in the White House again, you know there are certain factions just waiting to roll back this law or that one.
[sigh] At the end of the day, even if Hillary won, I suppose much of the same would continue to happen anyway. Some politicians would defend, say, Roe v. Wade while others try to chip away at it... some states would institute LGBT protections in the workplace while others wouldn't... some would institute certain environmental regulations while others roll them back, etc.
I'm just getting this out of my system. My programming will return to normal soon. :-)
Astonishingly for a German word, schadenfreude isn't precise enough to capture what I believe to be the general feeling among the anti-Hillary (Trump supporters included). Schadenfreude is merely a compound of harm and joy. As such, it can encompass anything from sadism to laughing at slapstick, though it tends to reside nebulously somewhere in the middle.
ReplyDeleteThe feeling among the anti-Hillary is focused on satisfaction at seeing an entitled schemer receiving a degree of comeuppance. I'll dispense with the perceptual question because even her admirers regard her as deserving and ambitious--nicer terms for the same traits.
If there is another ingredient to the feeling, it is that Hillary supporters are freaking out about an imaginary thing they made up. Schadenfreude is the only healthy response because one cannot join them in their irrational fear and attempts to disabuse them of it are inherently risky given the fight-or-flight state of these people. It is schadenfreude as a protective mechanism.
Your programming? LOL! The ScottBot2000!
ReplyDeleteNext week, I'll hit all the topics I can think of and talk about what is likely under Trump. We can discuss the issues then.
For now, realize that what your friends are worried about is that the left has been trying to scare the hell out of them and now "the unthinkable" has happened... so they are scared because their friends lied to them about what would happen to trick them into voting.
Your gay friends have won what they wanted and the rest is being delivered at fairly quick speeds. Abortion is frozen forever. Women's rights are here to stay, but "women's privilege" (the ERA) is not coming. Muslims cannot be singled out. It's not possible or wanted to deport millions of people, though fewer new ones may be allowed in -- which is good in many ways. Etc.
Nothing to fear.
Scott, I think you're whittling down to the nut of it. With Republicans in control of all the federal branches and many states, there is a very real possibility of some rightward tweaking of some recently passed laws at the margins. We're talking about restricting abortion at 20 weeks as opposed to 21 weeks and not specifically using the word "transgender" in laws against gender discrimination.
ReplyDeleteMichael Moore compares this stuff to Kristallnacht--which I find deeply offensive as a student of history. I can't speak for anyone of a more directly implicated persuasion; maybe they go in for that.
tryanmax, Check out this article. It's fascinating. Talk about a prescription for suicide:
ReplyDeleteWhy Hillary Failed
tryanmax, Yes! This ==> The feeling among the anti-Hillary is focused on satisfaction at seeing an entitled schemer receiving a degree of comeuppance.
ReplyDeleteThis feels like watching that scene in the movies when things finally blow up for the rotten character who has been trying to stop the heroes, e.g. Peck in Ghostbusters.
I think what is key here is the hatred and hostility of these people. These people don't disagree with the rest of America, they HATE the rest of America. They hate everything about us. Everything they think about us is that we are evil and stupid and motivated by the worst possible motives. What's more, many of them leech off us, which makes their contempt and anger doubly galling.
And now the public has spoken up and told them no, right after a week of INTENSE gloating on their part. So yeah, we're pretty happy about that. And the more obnoxious their tantrum is now, the happier it makes us.
It feels like justice.
I totally agree with Koshcat above too.
ReplyDeleteThese key Trump voters are, no doubt, either actively racist or fine with electing an obvious racist and admitted sexual predator.
ReplyDeleteI just read The Week article. Of all the reasons he give for maybe why Clinton lost, he skipped over (and doubled down on) the obvious...that quote from above there.
Dems need to put this as the #1/most important issue to live by in their "Election Strategy For Dummies" handbook:
Never, ever, ever insult the voters ever, ever, ever. The only name that you should ever call the voters is "the voters"...full-stop.
Bev, That line shows the crazy. Then there's this:
ReplyDeleteThe Democrats, at least if you believe their fire-breathing media sycophants, are the party of social justice, economic redistribution, good government programs, environmental preservation, helping the poor, and so forth...
I really hope this is what they decide and that they lurch far left in their rhetoric.
Good choice, Scott, and sorry I overlooked your post, Andrew! That is a relief, as well as not being sucker punched. I still remember one scene in a book my mom had around about supernatural events in Romania when the main character's grandfather got hit on the head and had to go to the doctor. The doctor decided to test his memory by asking him who the last five presidents were in reverse order and my first thought was "incoming Bush bash." The book didn't disappoint. Nothing else in it was political but it was completely unnecessary and just looked like a moment for the author to show her liberal pride (because do those...things even know how to read?). If none of you don't keep an eye out for the book bombs on Larry Correia's blog I'd suggest keeping posted and checking them out. He always recommends good stuff and you know you won't be dealing with left-wing propaganda and sucker punches. Brian Niemeier has been my favorite discovery so far since his work has a distinct anime/JRPG flavor to it (not to mention some awesome characters, like the cold and calculating Malachi of Nethereal and the tragic Astlin of Souldancer).
ReplyDeleteNot much else to add on the policy stuff except that I think you and the others are right about the system keeping Trump from doing the whole liberal nightmare scenario as well. And if the Democrats decide to go full TDS and whip their SJW-class nutjobs into a potentially violent frenzy I won't feel sorry for them when it blows up on them. Hopefully the Republicans can take advantage of that. The sooner identity politics is dead and buried the better off we'll all be. Also, something similar to Peck's downfall was exactly what I had in mind with Hillary's loss, too, Andrew and tryanmax.
- Daniel
They can read Daniel, they just don't understand the words right. For example:
ReplyDelete"Dave walked to the store to buy some coke."
Comes across as:
"Rapist mocked wheelchair bound people on way to use assets stolen from slaves to acquire poison."
Makes books hard to understand.
In terms of TDS, the left is in full TDS mode already! LOL!
Andrew, great translation!
ReplyDeleteLOL, true, though I meant it more as condescension on the author's part. Then again I suppose a more accurate author's thought on the passage I mentioned would be "Stupid Reich Wingers! We must educate them by reminding them of The Only Way to Be a Good Person in all we do!" Either way none of us here will be bored!
ReplyDeleteYahoo! News reports that Justin Trudeau announced willingness to renegotiate NAFTA.
ReplyDelete"If the Americans want to talk about NAFTA, I'm more than happy to talk about it," he said, adding that it was important to periodically reassess trade deals to ensure that they continue to be of benefit to Canadians.
Really, it's a no-brainer.
I don't think this will phase the Dims. They will rationalize this and the same old people and same old policies will continue..I honestly believe that if the Dims would stop it with gun control, climate change and pandering to every goofy made-up group out there and concentrated on being the party of the working Americans, they would be hard to beat..but as it is they are a coalition party.
ReplyDeleteCritch, I agree and let me add that even though, after enough time passes, the Dems will eventually change their playbook, it will still be in service to their collectivist ideology. Race and gender will fall out of vogue as rally flags but something will take their place.
ReplyDeleteWhat a flipping turd! Roger Goodell since a trump presidency could hurt the NFL's efforts to confront domestic violence.
ReplyDeleteWords. I have none.