Post AjHwlTWmLlwO4ejyMa by ChrisWere@toot.wales
(DIR) More posts by ChrisWere@toot.wales
(DIR) Post #AjH32PsNaL0cErLTfs by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T03:12:24Z
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The choice is Biden or Trump, and if you sit out or vote for a third party you’re voting for Trump. Get over yourselves, grow up, and vote for harm reduction. That’s the only choice for sane people at this juncture. PS. Vote against the GOP for every office if you want to save US democracy. https://infosec.exchange/@dangoodin/112657742879554290
(DIR) Post #AjH32RKmAFJklDdfZg by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T03:51:25Z
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@jgkoomey I'm not American, so I don't have a dog in this fight, but if you have to vote for the same party in every election to save democracy, then what does that say about the democracy?It just seems to me like the Dems love putting voters in this position where they *have* to vote blue.And it seem like after every election, there's a bipartisan push to keep out third party voices.Without a step after this, it just looks like America is just staving off inevitable fascism.
(DIR) Post #AjH37R5EWX57QmkdO4 by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T03:52:18Z
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@jgkoomey I get the argument for tactical voting, and the supreme court situation is a good example of why, but it just doesn't seem like the Dems are really that democratic.
(DIR) Post #AjH4Tcmxmg6G3kLkcy by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T04:07:31Z
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@ChrisWere The Dems haven’t put people in this position, the GOP has (by going nuts). And the Dems aren’t perfect but they’re a normal flawed political party trying to do the right things. They’ve gradually moved leftward over time.
(DIR) Post #AjH6neFOGrIKHbK25o by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T04:08:57Z
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@ChrisWere In winner take all election systems only two parties are viable. It’s the result of how the system was designed, not some nefarious plot to prevent other views from surfacing.
(DIR) Post #AjH6nfJgIOJxbCKyQ4 by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T04:33:33Z
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@jgkoomey RFK could get like 20% of the vote and have nothing to show for it, and he's busting his balls to get onto the ballot. He faces a lot of challenges that even Ross Perot didn't have.The problem seems to be getting worse. The threat seems to be increase, with every election being the one that saves democracy.Like debates used to be put on by the League of Women Voters, but now under the direct control of the two parties.This just seems like an issue Dems don't want to solve.
(DIR) Post #AjH6okhPlg7EaCxNDM by cy@fedicy.us.to
2024-06-25T04:33:33Z
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implying winner-take-all elections aren't a nefarious plot to prevent other views from surfacing. The founding fathers knew exactly what they were doing.CC: @ChrisWere@toot.wales
(DIR) Post #AjH7DgE7X9Hzx38oC0 by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T04:38:16Z
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@cy @jgkoomey We have FPtP elections here in the UK, and there are huge problems with it, but at least there's an appetite on the left (Lib dems, Greens) and the right (Reform UK) to change it.I'm really hoping we can get some electoral reform soon, but we still have the institutionalised parties trying to barricade themselves in power.
(DIR) Post #AjH7lhyTXgV3DY36kS by Ollie@snug.moe
2024-06-25T04:39:40.167Z
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@ChrisWere @jgkoomey As an American I would agreeMore states need to adopt ranked choice voting so third parties will at least have a chance at that level of government. That being said, incomplete implementations of RCV won't have the same impact in national elections, because of not just the electoral college but because elections are largely conducted at the state level.I think the hope of the "Vote Blue No Matter Who" crowd is that the opposing side will calm their political ambitions if they lose enough elections (and there is precedent for that, since the democrats became the progressive party after a long string of losses). Either way though, the Republicans aren't exactly unpopular enough to make this a viable strategy, and because of the electoral college and geographic concentration of democrats (most blue states are blue just because they have the largest cities and aren't in the bible belt) it's inevitable that Republicans will win enough of the time to cause damages.With how aggressive Republicans are at legislating, and how lax democrats have been in the past few years, these few Republican victories could keep shifting America rightward. It's also true that every few election cycles democrats have also shifted rightward (to the point that in the global context democrats would be considered a right wing party, although it seems the whole world has been moving rightward lately tbh).It's not impossible that an actual progressive could get through democratic party nomination for president, and it's probably the party most likely to yield one, but the few progressives that have attempted to get through have been met with the DNC trying to find ways to hurt their chances, to great success. It also doesn't help that a lot of the people who vote in democrat primaries are extreme moderates.I think the salt in the wound to the above point is that we have to wait 4-8 years to even get another chance at selecting a half decent candidate from the democratic party, but maybe it will happen next time, if there is a next time.I'm also really trying not to give a fatalist outlook on this, but it's not easy to find a silver lining in this situation. It really just seems like a case of whether we want to experience a slow rot or a quick death in terms of the fate of the United States. The only benefit of the slow rot approach in my mind is that it might buy time for something to actually reverse this unfortunate course of history. The slow rot approach also gives people more time to adapt to the worsening state of the world I guess.
(DIR) Post #AjH7liZLKbzT3tIYDI by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T04:44:25Z
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@Ollie @jgkoomey Democrats had the chance to codified Roe v Wade, they didn't.Obama could have picked his Supreme Court nominee when he had the chance. He gave way to Trump.Ruth Bater Ginsberg could have resigned under Obama, rather than assuming Clinton would win, so she could retire under the first female president.Because it's a duopoly with 8 year term limits. Both parties are complicit. It's really a one party state that flips over every 8 years (with exceptions).
(DIR) Post #AjH9DOqyKLkLyeJ8c4 by Ollie@snug.moe
2024-06-25T04:55:49.005Z
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@ChrisWere @jgkoomey ExactlyEconomically speaking, democrats were also much more progressive in the post-FDR era up until around after Reagan's election and the impacts Reaganomics has had on the political thought of both parties.It was mentioned in another part of this thread that democrats have moved leftward, but this is only true for social issues, and really only at a surface level, because a ton of the democrat's "victories" are supreme court cases they won't even attempt to codify like in the case of Roe v. Wade.
(DIR) Post #AjH9DPvGLslzIFK4wK by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T05:00:35Z
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@Ollie @jgkoomey Of course Bill Clinton famously worked with Newt Gingrich to privatise social security.The things that gets me, is that Democrats let Florida turn Red, simply because Republicans out-gerrymandered them.Democrats seem to find ways of losing even when it's not an election. I'm not even particularly anti-Biden, it's just watching the Dems constant fail at politics for the past 20 years is just painful.
(DIR) Post #AjHtaATGYvUpvI0w1Q by Ollie@snug.moe
2024-06-25T05:10:45.733Z
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@ChrisWere @jgkoomey It's regrettable how many politicians in congress are really just a face for the whims of capital, including Democrats.Like so many democrats voted against the rail workers unions when they wanted more sick leave.I think too that the people that run the Democratic party have some sense of false confidence that they'll win, or that they really don't care.
(DIR) Post #AjHtaBdaE3LLXZqgk4 by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T13:36:12Z
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@Ollie @ChrisWere You folks both bothsidesing the two parties are bordering on the ridiculous. One side wants fascism, to subjugate women and minorities, and to enable runaway environmental destruction. The other side makes mistakes, is actively fighting climate change, and wants people to have health care. “Both sides are the same!” The choice is Biden or Trump. Choose harm reduction. That is all.
(DIR) Post #AjHtaCbUdJGWXNsX7g by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T13:40:08Z
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@jgkoomey @Ollie We're not both sides-ing it. This is nuance.
(DIR) Post #AjHth1YG7h1AHqcQJE by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T13:41:24Z
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@jgkoomey @Ollie It's the desperate need for a way out of this lesser-of-two-evils non-choice.It shouldn't be a choice of fascism and democracy every time. That's the problem.
(DIR) Post #AjHu2MZPAj2PYWKWH2 by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T13:45:15Z
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@jgkoomey This isn't even about Biden. I don't even mind Biden that much, he's better than some of the political leaders here. It's the system that's frustrating people, and the Democrats don't seem to want to change it.They like having a fascist competitor, because voting for damage limitation is more compelling than voting for what you want.
(DIR) Post #AjHuFnwahvXSDeaIYy by MisuseCase@twit.social
2024-06-25T13:47:40Z
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@ChrisWere @jgkoomey RFK is an anti-vaxx weirdo running a grift and calling it a campaign, maybe not the best example to use.League of Women Voters holds candidate forums, not debates IIRC. They did it with candidates in our local election.
(DIR) Post #AjHuOk1idookfzFDTE by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T13:49:19Z
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@MisuseCase @jgkoomey Yeah I get that RFK isn't the best example, but as much as a grifter he is, if 20% of people want to vote for him, I don't think that should be completely disregarded.
(DIR) Post #AjHuR5k2sPQmbS6AC0 by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T13:49:42Z
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@ChrisWere @Ollie In life sometimes we need to choose between two not great options. That’s the way it goes. The only path forward is to vote out all Republicans everywhere and rebuild and restructure democracy from the ground up. Dems need to be pressured to do the right thing but they can be. Republicans are unmovable and are fascists, so we need to vote them out. That’s the only path forward. Complaining about past mistakes of Dems (and there are many) doesn’t help.
(DIR) Post #AjHuY9tPqDB7VLqpbk by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T13:50:56Z
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@ChrisWere Dems can’t change it because the GOP won’t allow it. The only way they can change it is to vote out the GOP en masse.
(DIR) Post #AjHufeKP58SzvQ2w5o by MisuseCase@twit.social
2024-06-25T13:52:21Z
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@ChrisWere @jgkoomey 20% of people months out from the election say they want to vote for him and a lot of them don’t know what his views or positions actually are because they don’t really pay attention to politics.
(DIR) Post #AjHvE9n4bzM9LkuXFQ by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T13:52:43Z
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@ChrisWere Are there some loser Dems who enable the GOP? Sure. But the solution is to vote in Democratic majorities so big that the losers can be marginalized.
(DIR) Post #AjHvEAxkFnUEz8uZWK by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T13:58:35Z
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@jgkoomey People are still sour from when Obama had his super majority. A lot of people feel like he squandered those two years. I know it wasn't long, but as our buddy Biden says, "Awh come-on Jack."
(DIR) Post #AjHvcKdJwzEbvasPey by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T14:02:57Z
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@ChrisWere Obama had control of the senate with 60 votes for a grand total of 4 months. https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/2012/09/09/when-obama-had-total-control/985146007/
(DIR) Post #AjHvzHCEtW5rvg9NVg by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T14:03:51Z
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@ChrisWere And that’s when they passed Obamacare.
(DIR) Post #AjHvzImmz6vMrKG57Q by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T14:07:06Z
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@jgkoomey If that's true, that lie is a hecking dangerous one. Why on Earth aren't Dems yelling it from the rooftops?
(DIR) Post #AjHw7t4vvvXjjeq5GC by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T14:08:39Z
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@ChrisWere That was more than a decade ago. You’re the one spreading that lie!
(DIR) Post #AjHw9aKUc3NWAJvUae by skorkr@mas.to
2024-06-25T14:02:09Z
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@jgkoomey @ChrisWere @Ollie I keep finding these arguments amusing in a bad way. Like, I don't like what some people are doing in my name so I'll just vote for my own death and destruction. That will show them. If you have only two options and the second one means no more options ever - what the fuck are you even thinking about? This shit will influence the whole world, don't be smarmy shits and vote democrat for fucks sake
(DIR) Post #AjHw9bdfkEJYE5uK7k by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T14:08:58Z
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@skorkr I think the frustration comes, when those are the options every time.
(DIR) Post #AjHwFbHC0PMuq6FcjQ by skorkr@mas.to
2024-06-25T14:10:01Z
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@ChrisWere Sure, I get that
(DIR) Post #AjHwGDfHHJDHtnoOY4 by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T14:10:10Z
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@jgkoomey I mean you're not wrong, but I follow many Dem-leaning outlets, this is the first I'm hearing of it.
(DIR) Post #AjHwlSH90PqABsPyM4 by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T14:10:16Z
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@ChrisWere It’s not the Dems’ fault that people believe wrong stuff. You also say that Dems want the system to be this way, which is wrong. The GOP blocks change. They are the problem.
(DIR) Post #AjHwlTWmLlwO4ejyMa by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T14:15:48Z
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@jgkoomey Sure, but that's a big lie. And I've seen staunch Dems recite it to. It's not like we're picking up our news on Infowars.I'm British so that might have something to do with it, but damn.
(DIR) Post #AjHxHhoalXMleURPWK by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T14:21:37Z
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@jgkoomey It's the Dems fault they squandered the justices though.
(DIR) Post #AjI2Yeo7hUfH1B7lbs by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T15:20:37Z
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@ChrisWere I said they made lots of mistakes, but that’s irrelevant now. They are the only people standing between us and the end of US democracy, and that ain’t hyperbole. https://www.project2025.org
(DIR) Post #AjI3HMk3iMUI1IXf7o by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T15:28:48Z
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@jgkoomey Yeah, the threat is real. You're not overplaying that point.But many people are fatigued by having to vote for their own survival every time, and the Dems are their only hope. I feel that sentiment needs to be address by the next Dem administration.I really hope they're learning from these mistakes. Repubs picked up a lot of wins simply from gerrymandering, Dems need to counter that better.When Dem justices get old, they should resign and be replaced under Dem presidents.
(DIR) Post #AjI4YTRCAmrbfCRMCu by jgkoomey@mastodon.energy
2024-06-25T15:43:06Z
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@ChrisWere OK, but being tired is no excuse for not doing your civic duty by voting against the fascists. A lot of our problems come from people staying home in 2010 and giving the GOP big majorities. The Dems are slowly retiring their old guard and learning from these mistakes. Not fast enough. People like Richard Durbin need to go away, but it’s happening. And it is true that Dem justices should resign under Dem presidents, but they foolishly think of themselves as above the fray.
(DIR) Post #AjI5AHjK9M82MCwvtQ by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T15:49:57Z
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@jgkoomey Totally agree with you tbh.Admittedly, I'm not American so my civic duty is slightly different. But you're point stands.Texas GOP wants to prosecute abortions as murder, as I'm sure you've heard. Things are deadly serious for sure.I really want to see the Dem prioritise finding likeable candidates. That was Obama's big strength was that we was a likeable guy. Biden's not unlikeable, but his age.Would have been cool to see Elizabeth Warren take a swing at the Whitehouse.
(DIR) Post #AjI5Gjs0RGkLMy5VxY by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T15:51:06Z
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@jgkoomey Sidenote: I appreciate the time you're taking to chat with me. I know discourse on the internet can be draining, but I'm grateful your insights. Thank you.
(DIR) Post #AjIZ48DZbGTPk952R6 by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T21:24:54Z
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@burnoutqueen Do you feel that an international socialist movement would be stronger if there were members and activists in all vaguely progressive parties, pulling whatever levers of power we can to drag them leftwards?
(DIR) Post #AjIZhKY9gSnhHfOmsy by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T21:32:02Z
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@burnoutqueen I like the idea of leftist coalitions, but I don't know if that's just a vibe.In many ways, I kinda feel like the most important battle to win is people's hearts and minds. If people had fire and hope I think a lot of the other stuff would fall into place.
(DIR) Post #AjIaIVmMtelCpEmBYO by ChrisWere@toot.wales
2024-06-25T21:38:47Z
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@burnoutqueen Yeah, that's my vibe.I guess I feel that coalitions, pacts, agreements allow for more flexibility and diversity.Third parties could even offer to standard aside if centre-left parties add left policies to their platform. I believe Jill Stein (Greens) was considering standing aside for Bernie Sanders.