Hard News: Unreasonable people vote
407 Responses
First ←Older Page 1 2 3 4 5 … 17 Newer→ Last
-
Apropos of exactly this, I was reading this Atlantic story the other day,
link on yahoo
Usually for stories on this, it canvases several reasons for the American people's gap between perception and reality, rather than arguing for the gap being the symptom of a particular cause. -
Loudon is apparently a Tea Party groupie and mates with fellow Auckland conspiracy theorist Barbara Faithfull. Is he still an ACT Party member?
Craig Y
-
Loudon is apparently a Tea Party groupie and mates with fellow Auckland conspiracy theorist Barbara Faithfull. Is he still an ACT Party member?
As far as I know, yes.
-
Apropos of exactly this, I was reading this Atlantic story the other day,
link on yahooGah. Read the comments under it and just weep. People don't want reality getting in the way of their anger.
-
Gah. Read the comments under it
I would rather remain in happy oblivion, having been running the "Shut Up" Safari extension, based on the Shut Up css file which blocks comments (but not those of Public Address).
-
Moe Tucker, is now a Tea Partier with giant sack of grievances, not all of which seem particularly reasonable
Heroin fucks you up.
Alternatively:
Propertarianism. Just say no.
-
this is an interesting analysis by Jonathan Raban in the Guardian. His take is that the American public have largely failed to grasp what the Obama administration have achieved so far, which is actually quite considerable - and that it is essentially Obama's fault for not articulating it clearly enough to them as he probably over-rates their ability to think like grown-ups.
The ghastly thing is that as horribly condescending as that sounds, Carol's paraphrase is on the money. I also really love how its "essentially" Obama's fault, when I wouldn't vote for the shape-changing alien jellyfish who've decided it's a jolly wheeze to be the Democratic Congressional leadership. Lyndon Johnson may have been a sociopathic rat-bastard, but at least he managed to advance a legislative agenda.
-
People don't want reality getting in the way of their anger.
I watched a pop-science documentary quite some time ago about how powerful and addictive anger is. It's effect on the body is like a drug, with regular 'users' hooked on the adrenalin rush like crack hos.
Fox News and talk radio figured it out first, and years ago became the crack pipe of the angry Right. They realized early on that there's no money in real journalism any more but they could get rich feeding our insatiable need...
When was the last time you saw a guest on a cable station advocate a nuanced, pluralistic position and acknowledge the partial truth of opinions of the other side? My friends who used to appear frequently on these programs now say they can't get on the air unless they promise to be rabidly partisan.
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/larry-gellman/feeding-the-beast--our-ad_b_476852.html
Wish I could find a link to the doco, but I can't remember it's name. and generic searches don't reveal much. Though pages relating to anger management and "rageaholism" touch on the addictive nature of rage/anger.It's bloody shameful that it's so exploited by media pundits. They scream patriotism, but they're ripping apart the very heart of their nation. Sick.
-
made everyone feel good about how fucked up their political system is
I think that's the main weakness of his 'plague on both your houses' schtick, because it is abundantly clear that one house is much, much worse than the other.
-
I didn't entirely agree with Raban's analysis, but it is, as always for him, well argued. He made quite an effort to get in among the Tea Party and fathom their mysterious ways.
-
It really is hard to fathom how different the political discourse is over here.
It seems to me that it's different in many ways. Their parties don't seem to have an active grass roots that form distinct party policies. They seem to operate more on a lobby system 'I am your senator and, to you who lobbied hardest and most expensively, I will remove the tax on fairy dust.' Or am I being unfair?
-
the "enthusiasm gap" will not close enough to prevent the Democrats losing their majority in the House of Representatives.
OK, this might sound insanely counter-intuitive but would it be such a bad thing if the GOP had (slim) majorities in House and Senate. You know, a position where the GOP's mindless obstruction (and policy black hole) would actually matter.
Don't think it would Obama's stock any harm if he had to stand up and say "this is fucking insane, and I'm going to keep vetoing idiotic legislation like this until the GOP stop doing crack in the cloak rooms."
-
Heroin fucks you up.
Front page stuff sending a pretty clear message to the kids
Or perhaps the stereotypes about drummers are bang on.
how powerful and addictive anger is. It's effect on the body is like a drug, with regular 'users' hooked on the adrenalin rush like crack hos...They scream patriotism, but they're ripping apart the very heart of their nation. Sick.
Thanks for posting that Petra. Relevant.
-
It seems to me that it's different in many ways. Their parties don't seem to have an active grass roots that form distinct party policies. They seem to operate more on a lobby system 'I am your senator and, to you who lobbied hardest and most expensively, I will remove the tax on fairy dust.' Or am I being unfair?
Sounds about right to me. But they also add, "and we'll get Rush, Hannity, Coulter, Malkin, Beck et al, on board with the right rage to sell it to the public.
-
"this is fucking insane, and I'm going to keep vetoing idiotic legislation like this until the GOP stop doing crack in the cloak rooms."
Oh, please Craig, please, send him exactly this wording and ask him to use it.
-
Rage - yes. We've all witnessed rage right here in our fair land just lately, haven't we? It's certainly powerful.
-
Indeed, Jacqui. NZ (oh, shit, that includes me) is not above it.
An old acquaintance of mine, who is now a friend on Facebook, is still raging against us liberal/left hypocrites and our "CLOYING, MAWKISH DRIVEL!!!"
!!1111!!!!!one!!!!!!!!!1!!!!!!!sothere!!!!!!111!!!!!!!!
*sigh*
-
Don't think it would Obama's stock any harm if he had to stand up and say "this is fucking insane, and I'm going to keep vetoing idiotic legislation like this until the GOP stop doing crack in the cloak rooms."
He would get hit with the big old "Obama's not being bi-partisan!" schtick until he caved. I mean, you would never know from the reporting, but this Republican minority has used the most filibusters of any term ever. Yet "Republican obstructionism" is considered business as usual, while Democrats who try to stand up against it and get stuff done are "radical liberals".
And don't get me started on the "angry black man" subtext.
-
like the John Birch Society, the Tea Party movement receives significant financial backing from the wealthy Koch family
Twatkochs.
America has high unemployment and low growth, independents want a change. They don't much care if its left or right wing.
And they're apparently still wedded to a belief in an American omnipotence that means a President can fix in a few months what a decade of financial lunacy has created. Ironically, I can almost understand the Tea Partiers' rage, since they're (a) bonkers and (b) never going to support Obama, but anyone who voted for Obama and then turns on him for not delivering miracles is really of sub-prime intelligence.
-
Here's how Obama handles this sort of thing though. He's very good at not seeming confrontational:
President Obama deflected heckling by AIDS protesters during a Saturday rally, suggesting they take up their cause with “the other side” that’s opposed to funding.
A group of people interrupted Obama’s speech before 9,000 in Connecticut chanting “Fund Global AIDS.”
The president was quick to respond to the chorus of protesters saying, “You’ve been appearing at every rally we’ve been doing. And we’re funding global AIDS. And the other side is not. So I don’t know why you think this is a useful strategy to take.”
Obama was in Bridgeport as part of a four-state swing during the final days before the midterm elections, stumping for Rep. Jim Himes, who is in a tight re-election race, and the state attorney general, Richard Blumenthal, who is seeking the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Chris Dodd, who is retiring.
“I think it would make a lot more sense for you guys to go to the folks who aren’t interested in funding global AIDS and chant at that rally,” Obama said. “Because we’re trying to focus on figuring out how to finance the things that you want financed, all right?”
That led to chants of “Obama, Obama” as the crowd stirred and the president tried to calm emotions as the protesters were escorted out of the rally.
(via)
-
And don't get me started on the "angry black man" subtext.
OK, I don't think hiring Samuel L. Jackson as White House Director of Tea-Bagger Outreach is a good call, but how many times do the Republicans get to tell you to fuck off and die (and court a crowd for whom "secret Muslim Marxist baby-killer" isn't subtext but a blaring neon text) before you get a wee bit pissed? That's not being grown-up, it's being the bottom in a nasty BDSM scene that is neither safe, sane nor consensual.
-
Craig, he just *can't* get angry (or more to the point, be seen to be angry), ever.
-
Tub thumping...
I feel let down by Ms Tucker. I have defended her stomping drumming style to many a paradiddling drum snob and this is how she repays me?!
I assume you is sprinkling salt over that statement... ;- )
Lou and John were never the friendliest of people either, the VU may have been counter-culture it doesn't mean they embraced humanitarian or leftist ideals...
I've never known there to be a correlation between minimal drumming styles (or any of one's favourite musical stylings) and political thought processes... -
OK, this might sound insanely counter-intuitive but would it be such a bad thing if the GOP had (slim) majorities in House and Senate. You know, a position where the GOP's mindless obstruction (and policy black hole) would actually matter.
There's apparently a glass-half-full group in the Democrats who is thinking that way, yes. And they don't seem very good at having power, so what the heck?
-
There's apparently a glass-half-full group in the Democrats who is thinking that way, yes. And they don't seem very good at having power, so what the heck?
The "heck" is that the Republicans would have to be propose something and be responsible for it -- which would have sheer novelty value, if nothing else. And the US federal government was designed to be a bicameral legislature separate from the executive branch for a reason.
Post your response…
This topic is closed.