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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
Trump makes his supporters proud to be assholes. You can't really counter that by appealing to decency. The only way to change their minds is if Trump ends up screwing his supporters over in the most bigly obvious way. They won't care unless something happens to them personally.
I can at least respect normal conservative values, even if I don't agree with them. I think we need more gun control, but I understand the need for some home security. I don't like abortion but I see freedom of choice as more important. I can understand where conservatives are coming from, and I can give them the benefit of the doubt, that they honestly have good intentions. I can still see them as intelligent adults, misguided or not.
These people don't act like adults, and I have a hard time believing they even think they have good intentions. The basis for everything they do seems to be the goal of screwing over or humiliating people they don't like. At least the worst, most extreme kind of liberal usually has a cause. The alt-right just seems like a bunch of trolls that really don't give a shit about anything other than winning, even if they have to cheat or exploit the system to do it. They're people without honor, humility, or shame. At most they'll get angry when they think they're losing or someone gets the better of them.
edited 9th Jan '17 8:09:05 AM by StarOutlaw
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Unfortunately, that's the crippling weakness of progressives: they rely on appealing to the inherent decency of people, which only works on people who have inherent decency to appeal to.
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Precisely. The best way to bring someone around to your side, at least in America, is to say "here is how this candidate or this bill will affect you personally." People are, by and large, looking out for number one. Not because they're evil, but because they have little choice.
@Brain Sewage Weird thing is, HRC did talk a lot about the economy, jobs, and where industry was headed. Problem was, the solutions she offered weren't covered that much in mainstream media, making it easier for Trump to brand her as someone who was only pandering to minorities for votes while ignoring white working class voters. Then he promised those people economic stability in the industries which they grew up with.
That last part is key. The power of nostalgia. That's why the slogan is "Make America Great Again".
And of course, if you're privileged enough to not be worried about a higher than zero chance that the President might deport or detain or ban people based on their religion or skin color or sexuality and live in a community where the number of people who aren't straight, white, and Christian can be counted on one hand...
edited 9th Jan '17 8:55:29 AM by M84
Disgusted, but not surprisedOnly way I can think of dealing with those kind of people is to just not play their game, or blindside them by playing a different game altogether. Don't feed them, don't take their bait, stay cool and act mature. Don't try to act smug with whatever you think you know. Be sincere, be honest, but don't be naive. Still, be firm and ask questions. These people don't want to actually debate, they just want to lure you into getting angry. You're not going to beat them at their own game, so fight fire with water.
Or just ignore them when you can. It's not going to change the way they vote, obviously, but it will get them off their high horse.
edited 9th Jan '17 9:01:19 AM by StarOutlaw
That is incredibly cynical...and I fear it might also prove prophetic. That one LBJ quote keeps springing to mind.
It also doesn't help that there are lots of people who when asked if they would rather:
1) Receive 50 grand along with another person or 2) Receive 60 grand while the other person gets 70 grand
they would pick the first choice.
edited 9th Jan '17 9:08:34 AM by M84
Disgusted, but not surprised![]()
Not only would they still vote for Trump, they'd do everything in their power to ensure that nonwhites and non-Christians lost their boxes (whether by theft, destruction, or whatever else).
edited 9th Jan '17 9:15:14 AM by TrashJack
"Cynic, n. — A blackguard whose faulty vision sees things as they are, not as they ought to be." - The Devil's Dictionary
I've been drinking to forget that.
edited 9th Jan '17 9:26:34 AM by TrashJack
"Cynic, n. — A blackguard whose faulty vision sees things as they are, not as they ought to be." - The Devil's Dictionary
At this point, I'd take Doctor Doom over Trump.
If it gives Trump hypertension before the inauguration, I will treat him to as much fast food as he wants. How many pounds of French fries and burgers does it take to give a fat seventy year old diabetes?
Dubya was horrible, and I wish I was old enough to cast a vote for my boi John Kerry, but honestly, throughout his presidency, there actually was a general sense of hope that there was night was darkest just before the dawn and that there was a light at the end of the tunnel. Trump is the void, in contrast.
edited 9th Jan '17 10:15:45 AM by CrimsonZephyr
"For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."

When Trump fired back at Streep, he claimed he wasn't mocking the reporter's disability, but was making fun of him for "groveling". THAT'S NOT BETTER.