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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
Off the topic of RBG the last few pages...
I got my absentee ballot in the mail yesterday, have filled it out (straight D, of course) and now I have a question on something. I really don't trust putting it in the mail right now, so I'm planning to hand deliver it to my county office. Question is, can I do that any time, or do I have to wait one week before the election?
Edited by speedyboris on Sep 22nd 2020 at 10:03:15 AM
The problem with that is, once the Democrats start breaking the rules as well in order to protect democracy, it is hard to see where that would end. It could trigger an escalating breach of more and more rules on both sides. I'm not sure where such a situation would end.
Hope shines brightest in the darkest timesMoscow Mitch beat you to it. He's already blocking the budget
x4 Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!
is appropriate here for what must be done.
Edited by ScubaWolf on Sep 22nd 2020 at 1:13:42 PM
"In a move surprising absolutely no one"The problem is that the GOP is undermining democracy. If the other guy cheats at a game, then the only winning move is to also cheat. Not cheating simply invites defeat.
As to where the limit is, well the democrats could be reactionary in their rule breaking. Appoint enough supreme court judges to bring the count back to an exact 50/50, for instance.
I collected the opinions of Senators on the filibuster in an old post here.
You're looking at about 10 Senators who still have to be persuaded, with Manchin, Feinstein, Jones, Sinema, Tester and King being the main ones. Basically, all the Blue Dogs. Assuming Jones loses, I think Sinema, Tester and King could be persuaded. Feinstein and Manchin remain ???
Edited by nova92 on Sep 22nd 2020 at 10:31:01 AM
Well, we know where the current situation ends: with Republicans winning everything and Democrats wagging their finger at them.
Exactly, following norms that no one else is following isn't noble, it's just capitulation. And capitulating to foes like the Republicans is morally and pragmatically indefensible.
Packing the court, abolishing the filibuster, and creating as many new states as possible isn't "cheating". It's changing the system to overcome an unsustainable status quo.
Edited by Fourthspartan56 on Sep 22nd 2020 at 10:48:46 AM
"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji YangIt's high time for 'undecided' voters to realize that when they hold up the Democrats to impossible standards that they fail to surpass while the Republicans never even attempt to follow them, voting against the Democrats only helps the fascists win.
Edited by Resileafs on Sep 22nd 2020 at 1:54:58 PM
I mean. It is kinda cheating. It's not even "No rule says we can't" like when Mitch stole a Supreme Court Justice. It's literally erasing the rule that says we can't so that we can. Both nuking the filibuster and packing the court involve rewriting existing procedures. They're directly altering the status quo, rather than finding loopholes in an existing status quo.
But the point is that wringing our hands about policy while the other side is flagrantly cheating (including also erasing rules that say they can't, such as nuking the filibuster for Justice appointments) leaves us with nothing to show for our purity. To quote Innuendo in that video I posted, "While Democrats seized the moral high ground, Republicans seized the Supreme Court."
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.![]()
The “undecided” voters don’t really care about how ethical or effective democrats are. They just want to feel they’re justified in not doing even the bare minimum.
Edited by ShinyCottonCandy on Sep 22nd 2020 at 1:58:16 PM
My musician pageYup, undecided voters are "give me any reason at all to say Democrats are just as bad and politics are hopeless so I can feel right and go back to watching South Park".
If you're still undecided, you're not looking at the world. End of story.
Edited by RedSavant on Sep 22nd 2020 at 1:59:10 PM
It's been fun.I said this before, but caring about politics is very emotionally exhausting (especially right now) and if you take it as a given that the GOP is morally indefensible there is a good chance for many people it strains relationships with people they know and might otherwise respect or like. It's not an especially easy pill to swallow that half of the people in the country tacitly or openly support a morally indefensible party. To many people, politics is just an ugly abstract thing that needlessly divides people and makes for an unpleasant national environment. Is it myopic and self-centered, yes, but I'm not really sure there's a lot you can do about that. You just have to hope enough people care to do the bare minimum so things will improve.
Edited by Draghinazzo on Sep 22nd 2020 at 2:04:02 PM
@Boris 538 have a page with all the rules for each state, so I'd say check your state's rules on there and then double check on the government election site.[1]
He's gonna have a hard time doing conformation hearing if the government shuts down, and if he's happy to take the blame for it that's even better.
Edited by Silasw on Sep 22nd 2020 at 6:10:48 PM
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ CyranBloomberg has paid for the voting rights of 32,000 Florida felons.
Or 5% of the eligible ones.
Author of The Rules of Supervillainy, Cthulhu Armageddon, and United States of Monsters.Or slightly more accurately, Mike Bloomberg has raised $16 million to help former felons be able to vote. Like I said last page, here's hoping Florida can figure out what they owe.
Edit: The filibuster and number of Supreme Court Justices are both things that are specifically within the power of the Senate and Congress to decide. The only reason the two are in place is because of norms, norms which Republicans are breaking as it suits them. Democrats can't uphold these norms (bipartisanship and respect for minority views under the filibuster, and the legitimacy of the courts) by themselves. Maybe it's time to consider changing the rules so that the systems actually work as they are purported to.
Edited by nova92 on Sep 22nd 2020 at 11:18:29 AM
Which considering Florida had disenfranchised about 10% of voters, Bloomburg just added 0.5% of voters back to the voter rolls.
Hell of a way to try and make amends for his past actions.
Edited by Silasw on Sep 22nd 2020 at 6:14:43 PM
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran5% of eligible Florida felons having their voting rights restored is still 5% more than we had before. It may not be enough, but it's still better, and better is good.
5% is closer to 0% than it is to 100%. But 5% is closer to 100% than 0% is.
Edited by TobiasDrake on Sep 22nd 2020 at 11:16:19 AM
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.

God, I wish I could finally leave this trash heap country. Unfortunately, a large number of factors (lack of money, the fact that pretty much zero countries are allowing U.S citizens in right now, etc.) prevent me from doing just that.
Somebody once told me the world was macaroni, I took a bite out of a tree