Winston Churchill once famously observed that “The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter.” The results of the most recent New York Times/Siena College poll reveal that Churchill was an optimist. Voters overwhelmingly believe American democracy is under threat, but seem remarkably apathetic about that danger, with few calling it the nation’s most pressing problem, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll.
Reminds me of the saying "What's worse, ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care." Unfortunately, it seems most people can't or won't see past their own nose. The dimwitted media have convinced to many that the loss of democracy isn't anything to be worried about.
Well, there will be a day of reckoning for those who failed their duty to be involved with democracy...and at that point, I won’t listen to the “would-a, could-a, should-a” BS remorse. As it is, I don’t want to hear it NOW when these people, who supported climate-deniers, find themselves victims of climate-induced catastrophe. The Fascists are at the Gates.
It's not just about voting, but about the loss of rights. I've heard quite a few comments from people who care to preserve the rights of only some people, not all. There are people who want to deny constitutional rights to those accused of a crime, and get pissed off when a defendant is freed "on a technicality," meaning in accordance with the law. There are wealthy people who don't think they should pay taxes that improve the lives of poor people, children, the elderly and disabled. In other words, we're losing the plot, forgetting what a democracy is supposed to do - not only to be able to vote in fair elections, but to create and sustain a society that recognizes the importance of taking care of all its people.
People are apathetic because the news media is apathetic, and has been. And our system itself has been apathetic for decades. Let's have a huge military and let's spend money on space wars nonsense, but let's cut money to public universities and school systems, and when our kids grow up to not understand even the basics of how our government works, let's all just go to the latest superhero franchise movie and forget about it.
Some here refer to Democrats as 'Dims'. In response to TC's report about what the recent New York Times/Siena College poll revealed about the Americans who took it, my response is BLAME IT ON THE DIMS. Have they made the case of The Republican Party against We the People? It's a powerful argument to make.
Point for point about what have the Biden Administration and the Democrats done for the people vs. how much the Republicans have been against that support -- against the people. What about the Republicans' plans for Medicare and Social Security? Holy _____ , you know what! Who fails this one?
'Rep. Brandon Lofton. A Democrat, Lofton thinks his party needs to answer Trumpist culture wars around race and immigration with a broader argument about how a more inclusive society is good for everyone, economically as well as socially.’
“What Trump did was use lies and misinformation to tap into the fear many voters feel about demographic and economic change,” he said. “For our part, we largely focused on dispelling the lies and promoting helpful policies. But you can’t fight a narrative with policy alone. We need an Obama-like or Kennedy-like call to action and vision for our future.'
“These next few elections are about more than policy,” Lofton added. “They are about the future of our nation and our democracy.”
‘…if this election is as important as Democrats claim (and it is), they need to do a better job describing the radically different futures at stake. A place to start: Calling out the contradictions of a Republican Party that claims to speak for the values of working-class voters without valuing their interests. It’s also a way to begin grappling with Lofton’s challenge.’ (WAPO)
I may regret this comment, but as a lifelong optimist, I resent that the winds blowing have made me lean towards sadness and pessimism. Oh, if I could only call Winston, and meet him for a scotch, neat, at an old pub with a fireplace... I would ask him to tell me, regardless of how painful it might be for him, or for me, what he truly believes lies ahead... November 9th... ? Will we be toasting the victory of freedom, democracy, our faith in the goodness of man... or will we retreat, sadly, to recalculate how we can go forward...
I had not read these pols. This is shocking. Just mind numbing. How can so many people hold their rights so lightly and their money so dear?
You know, Winston Churchill, notwithstanding his indomitable will, was an elitist snob. His comments about democracy as a governing system, of which there are many, are largely driven by his snobbery. In this he shares an attitude held by Madison and Hamilton (and many other Founding Fathers) who thought that with their complicated and distributed power allocation system enshrined in the Constitution, they had dissipated the risks presented by the mōbile vulgus. But snobs or not, they perceived a real risk, to which all democracies over the age of 200 have succumbed at one time or another. All democracies. Except Switzerland and ours—yet. Even Great Britain fell to the lure of authoritarianism in Cromwell. Great Britain did recover from it. Slowly.
If history was still relevant (apologies, TC), we would remember Athens and the Roman Republic and their devolution from democracy into ochlocracy which creates pressures for monarchy which decays into tyranny then overthrown by aristocracy which decays into oligarchy. (Borrowing from an excellent blog post from Prof. John DeLong this morning, taking Francis Fukuyama to task for still trying to find an end to history.) We who chose democracy are always at risk. But today we are at grave risk.
Democracy is a choice. It’s not the natural order of things. And that’s where Churchill comes back into the picture, and the Founding Fathers. It is only by will that we have a democratic government. We need to stress this every time we encounter a neighbor who worries more about their money than their liberty.
I live in a deep Red state and am BLUE to
my blood and bones. I live here because
my family was transferred here. I live in
a quiet mountain enclave of 18 people.
Everyone except me is republican, but
we rarely discuss politics, until recently.
Not 1 of these other people are going
to vote in this states Nov. 8 .mid term.
There are 2 ballot issues that involve
the legislature that I will vote against.
I will vote BLUE up and down my ballot..
EVERY vote counts in boosting the
Democratic party here.. We have 5
Dem candidates on the ballot. Sadly,
they've received little if any recognition
from the DNC and their supporting fund
raising. The Dem party here is better
organized this round, but were late in
contacting voters and organizing
voter outreach programs. Sara Huckabee
Sanders will be our next governor. Tom
"snake" Cotton is our primary beloved
Senator. We are ranked the 4th worst
state to live in the US. This is Arkansas.
Crime in Little Rock is sky high. The
state health dept has stopped posting on the Weather ap our daily Covid counts.
About 100,000 "reported and verified"
Covid deaths. I honestly don't see how
the Republicans have much to brag
about if you take their states apart one
at a time. The news media should be
doing this! Show the damn crime rates
in Red states! As a sophomore
in high school, I won an optimist award.
No matter the difficulties in my life,
I've tried to face the light, not the dark.
I'm still trying to do that and refuse to
let some right wing, fascist nuts and
MAGA freaks cow me. Bring it on!
Reminds me of the saying "What's worse, ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care." Unfortunately, it seems most people can't or won't see past their own nose. The dimwitted media have convinced to many that the loss of democracy isn't anything to be worried about.
Well, there will be a day of reckoning for those who failed their duty to be involved with democracy...and at that point, I won’t listen to the “would-a, could-a, should-a” BS remorse. As it is, I don’t want to hear it NOW when these people, who supported climate-deniers, find themselves victims of climate-induced catastrophe. The Fascists are at the Gates.
It's not just about voting, but about the loss of rights. I've heard quite a few comments from people who care to preserve the rights of only some people, not all. There are people who want to deny constitutional rights to those accused of a crime, and get pissed off when a defendant is freed "on a technicality," meaning in accordance with the law. There are wealthy people who don't think they should pay taxes that improve the lives of poor people, children, the elderly and disabled. In other words, we're losing the plot, forgetting what a democracy is supposed to do - not only to be able to vote in fair elections, but to create and sustain a society that recognizes the importance of taking care of all its people.
People are apathetic because the news media is apathetic, and has been. And our system itself has been apathetic for decades. Let's have a huge military and let's spend money on space wars nonsense, but let's cut money to public universities and school systems, and when our kids grow up to not understand even the basics of how our government works, let's all just go to the latest superhero franchise movie and forget about it.
I BLAME THE 'DIMS'.
Some here refer to Democrats as 'Dims'. In response to TC's report about what the recent New York Times/Siena College poll revealed about the Americans who took it, my response is BLAME IT ON THE DIMS. Have they made the case of The Republican Party against We the People? It's a powerful argument to make.
Point for point about what have the Biden Administration and the Democrats done for the people vs. how much the Republicans have been against that support -- against the people. What about the Republicans' plans for Medicare and Social Security? Holy _____ , you know what! Who fails this one?
'Rep. Brandon Lofton. A Democrat, Lofton thinks his party needs to answer Trumpist culture wars around race and immigration with a broader argument about how a more inclusive society is good for everyone, economically as well as socially.’
“What Trump did was use lies and misinformation to tap into the fear many voters feel about demographic and economic change,” he said. “For our part, we largely focused on dispelling the lies and promoting helpful policies. But you can’t fight a narrative with policy alone. We need an Obama-like or Kennedy-like call to action and vision for our future.'
“These next few elections are about more than policy,” Lofton added. “They are about the future of our nation and our democracy.”
‘…if this election is as important as Democrats claim (and it is), they need to do a better job describing the radically different futures at stake. A place to start: Calling out the contradictions of a Republican Party that claims to speak for the values of working-class voters without valuing their interests. It’s also a way to begin grappling with Lofton’s challenge.’ (WAPO)
MAKE THE CASE, DIMS, WITH FACTS AND FEELING!
I may regret this comment, but as a lifelong optimist, I resent that the winds blowing have made me lean towards sadness and pessimism. Oh, if I could only call Winston, and meet him for a scotch, neat, at an old pub with a fireplace... I would ask him to tell me, regardless of how painful it might be for him, or for me, what he truly believes lies ahead... November 9th... ? Will we be toasting the victory of freedom, democracy, our faith in the goodness of man... or will we retreat, sadly, to recalculate how we can go forward...
I will never give up
I just will hope....
We Are Fucked
This is super depressing
I had not read these pols. This is shocking. Just mind numbing. How can so many people hold their rights so lightly and their money so dear?
You know, Winston Churchill, notwithstanding his indomitable will, was an elitist snob. His comments about democracy as a governing system, of which there are many, are largely driven by his snobbery. In this he shares an attitude held by Madison and Hamilton (and many other Founding Fathers) who thought that with their complicated and distributed power allocation system enshrined in the Constitution, they had dissipated the risks presented by the mōbile vulgus. But snobs or not, they perceived a real risk, to which all democracies over the age of 200 have succumbed at one time or another. All democracies. Except Switzerland and ours—yet. Even Great Britain fell to the lure of authoritarianism in Cromwell. Great Britain did recover from it. Slowly.
If history was still relevant (apologies, TC), we would remember Athens and the Roman Republic and their devolution from democracy into ochlocracy which creates pressures for monarchy which decays into tyranny then overthrown by aristocracy which decays into oligarchy. (Borrowing from an excellent blog post from Prof. John DeLong this morning, taking Francis Fukuyama to task for still trying to find an end to history.) We who chose democracy are always at risk. But today we are at grave risk.
Democracy is a choice. It’s not the natural order of things. And that’s where Churchill comes back into the picture, and the Founding Fathers. It is only by will that we have a democratic government. We need to stress this every time we encounter a neighbor who worries more about their money than their liberty.