American Politics Discussion Thread

[Jowy]

I think its a joke...

Yes, I can't even tell the states apart.

Neither side is going to accept it if the other side wins, so I only have dark humour.

The difference between 269 and 270 is why it was a big deal when NE-2 was called for Biden (note that Maine also splits its vote by Congressional District, and Trump won one of those while losing the state).

Jowy, I think that's getting ahead of things. Us Americans are too fat and lazy for a civil war.. Note just how little Election Day violence there actually was. And it doesn't look like this election is going to be terribly close. It's nowhere near a 2008 or 1980 landslide (and the underperformance in the Senate/House is concerning), but this isn't 2000 where we genuinely didn't know until December who won (that type of outcome today probably would lead to a civil war). We'll know for nearly certain today or tomorrow that Biden has won.

Oh yeah, I was just joking. Even if this somehow ends up with Biden winning and Trump not giving up power, I honestly expect Dems will just let him walk all over them.

[Bobchillingworth]

In all seriousness and popcorn aside, I think the world's population has a vested interest in there not being a civil war in a nation with enough nuclear weapons to exterminate most human life.

[darrelljs]

If civ 4 has taught me nothing else, it’s taught me to use nukes if you got ‘em.

Darrell

[Bobchillingworth]

Get enough Workers together in their old timey coveralls, and you can scrub the fallout within a year!

[Jowy]

In all seriousness and popcorn aside, I think the world's population has a vested interest in there not being a civil war in a nation with enough nuclear weapons to exterminate most human life.

You know the biggest surprise of all is that Trump never tried to nuke something. Sure he talked about it dropping some nukes, but never actually gave the order.

As far as we know, anyway.

[BRickAstley]

Get enough Workers together in their old timey coveralls, and you can scrub the fallout within a year!

[Mjmd]

If 30 years from now some declassified government documentation show that Trump wanted to nuke someone and was only stopped by someone he then fired later would we be that surprised? Probably during 2020?

Half joke aside. This was not the denouncement of lying, corruption, cronyism, fear mongering, hate, voter suppression, and mismanagement of a major national crisis that I think most people expected. So question is are Americans that stupid / don't care or why? I chalked 2016 up to blind nationalistic fervor, which is an incredibly powerful political force. I'm not getting the same vibe this time around.

[Bobchillingworth]

Between Fox, OAN, talk radio, political pulpits, and Facebook (which seems to be transitioning from radicalizing young people for ISIS to radicalizing Boomers and mommy bloggers for "Q-Anon"), a lot of Americans are chronically and likely irreparably ill-informed. That, and for wide swaths of the country there's a disconcerting lack of moral forces discouraging tens of millions from indulging in their worst impulses- quite the opposite, in fact.


Of course, there's also plenty of people who are educated and theoretically intelligent and voted for the lying, corruption, etc. anyway either out of perceived self-interest and/or because they're hankering for a race war. You may have noticed a couple of them on this very site!

[superdeath]

[Miguelito]

In all seriousness and popcorn aside, I think the world's population has a vested interest in there not being a civil war in a nation with enough nuclear weapons to exterminate most human life.

I see people on the internet entertaining the idea of a US civil war surprisingly often (also Cyneheard above), but how would that work actually? I can somehow imagine the states mobilising their national guards against reach other,  but ultimate wouldn't it require the military and intelligence services at federal level you somehow split? Else they'd just crush whatever side they up opposed to,  and what remains are maybe some guerrilla/ terrorist groups, but not really an outright war? of course it would be nasty enough.  But from the US military's organizational structure,  is such a split feasible?

You know the biggest surprise of all is that Trump never tried to nuke something.

... yet.  I mean if he loses he's still president for 2.5 months,  might as well get out with a bang? But yes I was half expecting a war by September.  Maybe Covid saved us from that?



Also they're talking election fraud and voter IDs again. I've touched this before,and at the risk of eurochauvinism, I l'dike to ask again what the US folks would think of this model (like it? feasible?)

1. Every citizen gets photo ID from the state,  free of charge if poor (orjust for everyone,  easier)
   
2. Every citizen is automatically registered to vote (exceptions for felons etc). Before election,  every citizen is notified by mail or some electronic communication about their options to exercise their voting right
   
3. The state issued ID has to be used to verify the ballot. Bit difficult with mail in votes but there can surely be found a way
   

I understand that the union/ states apparently don't really know how many citizens there are,  so that might be a problem,  but not unsolvable,  I'm sure the NSA can tell.
Particularly interested in the opinion of the more leftie/ conservative posters .

I hope you get some rest