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PoliGAF 2015 |OT2| Pls print

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R

RDreamer

Member
Fuck my state:

Wisconsin starts drug testing welfare recipients Monday

Protip: Don't look at the comments on that. Or do, if you want to see some stupidity.

Not only are these idiots OK with spending more money to test, they've got some fucking moronic ideas like this dolt here:

Hopefully it comes out of the Welfare budget - that way - those gaming the system just reduce the benefits for the others - who then should put pressure on the true losers to get their act together
Click to expand...

Yeah, so let's punish people who can't afford anything because someone else is doing something bad. WTF
 
B

Brawndo Addict

Banned
Even after directly talking about it with friends/acquaintances, I still can't get a grip on what would be necessary for them to actually vote in off-years. The common refrain is that they just aren't interested in politics and don't have time to keep up, but it's not like they don't know who/what they would want to vote for after going through the voter pamphlet. They're basically starting from a position of not wanting to vote and it seems like nothing will get them to budge.

Whereas in Presidential years they're all over politics/voting. The election becomes this big spectacle because it's all over the news and the internet and social media. If they didn't participate in the event they wouldn't be cool so to speak. The conversation on social media is never going to be about local congressional candidates so it's never going to capture their attention. It increasingly seems like people are unwilling to seriously engage with anything that's not the cultural zeitgeist of the moment, which basically equates to whatever is lighting up social media that week/month. So everyone was arguing about whether the local university should have sent out a warning letter about offensive Halloween costumes, but not a peep about whether we should vote yes on an initiative to increase funding for higher education .
 
B

Black Mamba

Member
CS_xe5aXIAgM4vl.jpg


We can all agree he's an idiot savant, right? How much more obvious could it be...?
 
T

Tamanon

Banned
I liked the TPM bit about the Carson campaign being a scam that went out of control like The Producers. It's the only way it makes sense.
 
W

Wall

Member
Brawndo Addict said:
Even after directly talking about it with friends/acquaintances, I still can't get a grip on what would be necessary for them to actually vote in off-years. The common refrain is that they just aren't interested in politics and don't have time to keep up, but it's not like they don't know who/what they would want to vote for after going through the voter pamphlet. They're basically starting from a position of not wanting to vote and it seems like nothing will get them to budge.

Whereas in Presidential years they're all over politics/voting. The election becomes this big spectacle because it's all over the news and the internet and social media. If they didn't participate in the event they wouldn't be cool so to speak. The conversation on social media is never going to be about local congressional candidates so it's never going to capture their attention. It increasingly seems like people are unwilling to seriously engage with anything that's not the cultural zeitgeist of the moment, which basically equates to whatever is lighting up social media that week/month. So everyone was arguing about whether the local university should have sent out a warning letter about offensive Halloween costumes, but not a peep about whether we should vote yes on an initiative to increase funding for higher education .
Click to expand...

I remember two friends looking at me like I was from Mars when I was filling out my absentee ballot to vote in the 2014 midterms. These were people I'd actually watched the Presidential debates with in 2012. Both were strongly for Obama in 2012, and both identify as Democrats. Both are woman, and both have PHDs, so they are exactly the type of people who the Democrats are targeting to build their coalition. It's not that they are hostile to voting, necessarily, it's just that it doesn't occur to them unless it's a Presidential election. It's just ................... not on their radar.

I'm not sure what it would take to change that.
 
R

RustyNails

Member
Tamanon said:
I liked the TPM bit about the Carson campaign being a scam that went out of control like The Producers. It's the only way it makes sense.
Click to expand...
CNN goes counter to that. They published the names of Carson campaign people and some of them are legit political managers who worked on previous campaigns.
 
M

mightynine

Member
RDreamer said:
OMG that whole article.

Holy shit, I just can't even.
Click to expand...

“And when you look at the way that the pyramids are made, with many chambers that are hermetically sealed, they’d have to be that way for various reasons. And various of scientists have said, ‘Well, you know there were alien beings that came down and they have special knowledge and that’s how—’ you know, it doesn’t require an alien being when God is with you.”
Click to expand...

This man is a leading contender to be President of the United States of America.
 
W

Wall

Member
It doesn't surprise me that Carson is doing well in the Republican primary. He is a Christian fundamentalist, and Christian fundamentalists make up a substantial portion of the GOP base. Plus, the Christian conservative candidate traditionally does well in the Republican Iowa caucas. Given that Carson is one of the only major candidates from the religious wing of the Republican Party, he is filling that role and garnering those votes.
 
U

User 406

Banned
Fenderputty said:
Everyone on welfare is bad, mkay.
Click to expand...

Now, now, some people genuinely need a little help when they come across misfortune in their lives.

But yeah, the rest are black.


Basileus777 said:
Why is Rubio listed twice?
Click to expand...

eV2Kbtq.gif


Brawndo Addict said:
Even after directly talking about it with friends/acquaintances, I still can't get a grip on what would be necessary for them to actually vote in off-years. The common refrain is that they just aren't interested in politics and don't have time to keep up, but it's not like they don't know who/what they would want to vote for after going through the voter pamphlet. They're basically starting from a position of not wanting to vote and it seems like nothing will get them to budge.

Whereas in Presidential years they're all over politics/voting. The election becomes this big spectacle because it's all over the news and the internet and social media. If they didn't participate in the event they wouldn't be cool so to speak. The conversation on social media is never going to be about local congressional candidates so it's never going to capture their attention. It increasingly seems like people are unwilling to seriously engage with anything that's not the cultural zeitgeist of the moment, which basically equates to whatever is lighting up social media that week/month. So everyone was arguing about whether the local university should have sent out a warning letter about offensive Halloween costumes, but not a peep about whether we should vote yes on an initiative to increase funding for higher education .
Click to expand...

I'm pretty much at the point where there's nothing more to do but just outright mock and shame these people. Their whole reason for political engagement is self validation, so tear that bullshit down. If you know someone didn't vote in the midterms or downballot, next time you see them start armchair crusading for something online, cockslap their faces in front of their audience with the fact they couldn't even be bothered to fill a few god damn ovals once a year.

It may not even help, but at least it might make them feel bad.
 
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