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Political Discussion Thread (With Rules)


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3 hours ago, Badger said:

 

To be bluntly honest, I see the Dems likely making their own gerrymandering if they take over.  Kind of interested, and wary now that the Dems are in control of here in VA how they carve things up, for next cycle.

 

One could easily argue the Virginia Dems are fools if they don't gerrymander and otherwise try to lock in every electoral advantage they can get. Just like Republicans do with voter suppression laws and suchlike. Politics, after all, is merely an exercise in finding who has power over whom. There is no hypocrisy in politics, because there are no principles to betray. (Though the accusation of hypocrisy can be a useful ploy.) And so on.

 

Bleah. I just started reading Michael Walzer's Just and Unjust Wars, which argues that morality applies usefully even in this brutal sphere of human activity. I hope he can persuade me, because I'm getting pretty damn disgusted with humanity.

 

Dean Shomshak

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58 minutes ago, DShomshak said:

 

One could easily argue the Virginia Dems are fools if they don't gerrymander and otherwise try to lock in every electoral advantage they can get. Just like Republicans do with voter suppression laws and suchlike. Politics, after all, is merely an exercise in finding who has power over whom. There is no hypocrisy in politics, because there are no principles to betray. (Though the accusation of hypocrisy can be a useful ploy.) And so on.

 

Bleah. I just started reading Michael Walzer's Just and Unjust Wars, which argues that morality applies usefully even in this brutal sphere of human activity. I hope he can persuade me, because I'm getting pretty damn disgusted with humanity.

 

Dean Shomshak

 

I will admit, I found the whole VA going to the Dems was an overrated victory.  Federal workers have been spilling into Northern VA for 20 years.  It was a bluish purple state that finally went completely blue.  Right or wrong*, it is kind of frustrating that 8-10 counties in the northern part of the state, gets to decide your fate, when their needs and wants have very little to do with yours.  It is what it is though, and I doubt unique to one state.  I just know the only part of my life politically I have  left with the feeling of any actual say over is who represents me in the House of Reps.  So, that does make me nervous.  If that does get dramatically altered, I fear there is no real use for me to ever vote again.

 

*I sometimes agree with them, and I have nothing against them voting for their interest.  But, at the same time, it is hard to swallow that you don't matter at all (except for Tax Day of course. :winkgrin:)

 

Edit: I can already tell you all the minute details of how the November election will go in VA, if you want.

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55 minutes ago, Badger said:

 

I will admit, I found the whole VA going to the Dems was an overrated victory.  Federal workers have been spilling into Northern VA for 20 years.  It was a bluish purple state that finally went completely blue.  Right or wrong*, it is kind of frustrating that 8-10 counties in the northern part of the state, gets to decide your fate, when their needs and wants have very little to do with yours.  It is what it is though, and I doubt unique to one state.  I just know the only part of my life politically I have  left with the feeling of any actual say over is who represents me in the House of Reps.  So, that does make me nervous.  If that does get dramatically altered, I fear there is no real use for me to ever vote again.

 

*I sometimes agree with them, and I have nothing against them voting for their interest.  But, at the same time, it is hard to swallow that you don't matter at all (except for Tax Day of course. :winkgrin:)

 

Edit: I can already tell you all the minute details of how the November election will go in VA, if you want.

Imagine how citizens of color felt about the government's attitude toward their interests for the period from 1619 to about the mid-60s(and beyond, in many cases).    

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Looks like Iowa turnout was around 170,000 which was about the same as 2016.  In 2008, it was around 240,000.  Again, as long as the economy is decent for most people, then the average Jane/Joe cares a lot less about the Presidency.  It's not right, but IMO it is the truth.

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7 hours ago, Badger said:

I will admit, I found the whole VA going to the Dems was an overrated victory.  Federal workers have been spilling into Northern VA for 20 years.  It was a bluish purple state that finally went completely blue.  Right or wrong*, it is kind of frustrating that 8-10 counties in the northern part of the state, gets to decide your fate, when their needs and wants have very little to do with yours.  It is what it is though, and I doubt unique to one state.  I just know the only part of my life politically I have  left with the feeling of any actual say over is who represents me in the House of Reps.  So, that does make me nervous.  If that does get dramatically altered, I fear there is no real use for me to ever vote again.

 

I live in AZ.  Have for almost 12-15 years.

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7 hours ago, Badger said:

Right or wrong*, it is kind of frustrating that 8-10 counties in the northern part of the state, gets to decide your fate, when their needs and wants have very little to do with yours.

 

That's also the feeling in much of Colorado with respect to the Denver metro area and the People's Republic of Boulder. And Vail, which is where all the celebrities go to ski.

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5 hours ago, TrickstaPriest said:

Hot take - Election Day as a federal holiday.  Would it increase voting, or decrease voting?

 

 

Also... more of our federal government gaining secret intelligence powers, apparently?  Although twitter is hardly a reliable source of intel.  The article is... something.

 

 

 

Probably the change would be minimal.  People who actually want to vote find ways to vote.

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On 2/3/2020 at 10:11 PM, Old Man said:

I'd like to take this moment to repeat that, in my opinion as an IT and cybersecurity professional, elections should be paper and ink only.  No hackable voting machines, no badly written caucus apps, no easily deleted centralized databases.  Ever.  The mere existence of these opaque technologies can only reduce the perceived legitimacy of any election.

 

My sister would like to add her thanks for this post. When I told her about it, she said, "And here I thought I was just a Luddite."

 

Dean Shomshak

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