Rust Belt Voters Are Sick of Both Parties
Rust Belt Voters Are Sick of Both Parties
Polling shows Americans are ready to support independent populists running on economic platforms. But what they don’t want is anything associated with the Democratic Party’s brand.
So they voted for a dictator to end all this party business.
Edit: I feel like I need to explain this. For those who don't know, this is from Silence Of The Lambs. The person in the top panel is a serial killer who has the woman in the bottom panel trapped in an old well. He's telling her that she has to rub lotion on her skin or else he will punish her.
The meme is that we, independent American voters, are the woman trapped in the well, and the two-party, American political system is the serial killer. Liberal technocrats tell us that we must vote for them, regardless of whether or not we feel they will actually represent us, because if we don't we will get "punished" with the Republicans.
There is no question that complying with the serial killer is a better option than failing to comply and receiving his punishment. But, regardless, we're trapped in a fucking well, held against our will, by a psycho. Similarly, there's no question the Democrats are a better option than the Republicans, but either way we're being ruled against our will, by people we do not like or believe in.
You have a choice between a room temperature Pepsi and being hit in between the eyes with a hammer repeatedly, and while I am also sick of this stupid binary choice, I don’t keep voluntarily choosing the hammer. This is truly a “we’ve tried nothing and are all out of ideas” scenario.
If you cannot refuse both, there is no choice. You're just forcing people to drink lukewarm pepsi by threatening them with a hammer between the eyes.
For the most realistic path to that end, the hammer would become so unpopular that an actually decent choice would stand a chance of being more than a spoiler to the Pepsi. For that to work, the Pepsi would need at least twice the approval of the hammer, which would require compromise for the sake of common purpose. Then, the decent alternative would need to be united enough to start pulling the balance, which would also require compromise on lesser points.
But that level of unity seems impossible for many of the progressive factions I see. They're fed up with compromise, and I get it. I just don't think a lasting improvement will happen without it.
Edit: This whole comment thread proves my point. We can't even agree whether we hate the Hammers more than we hate Warm Pepsi.
Then enact a form of ranked-choice or instant-runnoff, or quit complaining.
We will do that when we rebuild from the rubble and reinvent government again. Til then, we need practical action now to preserve lives, not ineffectual righteous exhortation.
Unless you have a concrete plan to enact sweeping electoral process changes within our current system. That’s sort of the problem, our system is designed to resist change.
Sorry to be curt, but we all know there are better ways to enact democracy. Being right about the way we should have been voting all along helps no one.
Unless you have a concrete plan to enact sweeping electoral process changes within our current system. That’s sort of the problem, our system is designed to resist change.
Fortunately Trump is helpfully taking a sledgehammer to the whole thing, so there's an opening for this kind of sweeping reform but the work for that starts now.
Oh, darn! If only we'd thought of that sooner! Hold my beer for a moment while I go push the "enact a form of ranked-choice or instant-runnoff" button, that's just been sitting there this whole time. Why didn't you suggest that sooner? It would have saved everyone so much trouble.
Ok but that has been a button for decades and we keep deciding other things are more important.
I don't think the Democrats or the Republicans would like that. XD
I only see that as a plus.
they agree on what's good for them but bad for the pubic
It's true. I'm sick of Republicans but I'm also sick of weak, ineffectual Democrats who keep rolling over and snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. When it comes down to it, most Democrats are still capitalists which does not help to solve the issues at hand. We need a real leftist party who will actually take action and change this country for the better.
guess who is sick of both rust and bible belt voters
People who don't want to change their positions to appeal to the electorate.
true. but i guess there might be a bigger party than that...think outside the box...outside the country.
Party A told me that party B is bad. I supported party A but now they are hurting me specifically... BoTh PArTieS!!
i always knew we had more in common than we did dividing us
Because the only thing both parties have to offer is capitalism, which inevitably always morphs into oligarchy and fascism.
Prove it
I mean, give them someone else to vote for first. Have you seen how liberals react when you even hint at the idea of a third party?
Or that they meaningfully be a second party?
So is the rest of the world. Get your shit together, you maniacs!
How about the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)?
Someone needs to run third party promising to run for only one term and clean up politics in Washington. Ethics reform, a ban on lobbyists, ban advertising in political campaigns, set up public funding for campaigns that reach a certain threshold of support, enact bribery laws with teeth that apply to public servants, etc.
Promote the best advisors and use best judgment on other pressing matters, but focus on taking a sledgehammer to this broken system and restoring democracy.
I'm afraid you'll need more than one term for that.
