I’m going to the polls as soon as they open this morning out of a sense of duty and a feeling of futility. Republican gerrymandering and voter suppression, as well as the fact that the electorate is saturated with selfish bigots and the media are bought and owned by the rich, means I don’t expect to see much of that mythical democracy today. It shouldn’t even be close, but it’s going to be close.
But, you see, if we don’t try, if we don’t participate, if we don’t march down and make this tiny effort to oppose unreason and corruption and bigotry, you won’t own a right to protest when the election is stolen. You might be upset, but you won’t possess the righteous fury it’s going to take to right this wrong, which is going to take years of struggle.
As we all know, angry gets shit done.
I’m already pretty angry about century after century of injustice. Keep stoking the rage until we rise up and burn the whole ugly system down.
I voted.
Don’t mean to despair, but “we” (as in our ancestors) have done that, several times. And we still have rich, arrogant bastards running things for themselves and shilling huge numbers of people into believing that it’s for the greater good.
But yeah, I did my little bit. I voted.
I not only voted early, one of ~100,00 here in Lake County, IL, but I also volunteered with one of the campaigns to give rides to polls.
“A polling station has possibly opened in a disused, unlit basement lavatory at some location not very far from you. Beware of the Leopards Eating People’s Faces.”
Crossposted from the PMATT thread:
The Dawk chimed in on the U.S. election by opening his anti-Trump statement with an attack on the “overzealous left” and their “Islamophilia”. Almost as if his hatred of progressivism trumps his concern about the survival of democracy in the U.S.
Fucking wanker.
I voted before work. I was surprised how many people were already at the polling place that early in this little bitty town.
Voted early this morning. Polls were busy. Not sure whether that’s good or bad, since my town leans red in this deep-blue state. At least I added my infinitesimal weight to the side of the (flawed) angels.
I am going to spend the day firing a water pistol into the sun to cool it off.
P.S. Contrary to the advice in PZ’s title to this thread, I only voted once.
@5 Robert Westbrook
Bashing the right by regurgitating their dumb-ass talking points, classic Dick move.
I hope for the best, the last weeks have been nothing but depressing with the election in Brazil, the far-right terrorism, and 1933-style hatespeech from the GOP. Is there any chance that Trump will be impeached if the Dems win a large enough majority?
#5: Look at the comments on Dawkins’ thread. He’s got a swarm of people outraged that he has dissed the Trumpster, including Paul Joseph Watson and the anti-trans brigade.
I wish he would think about the audience he has cultivated.
Is there any chance that Trump will be impeached if the Dems win a large enough majority?
Well, that depends whether or not we get a mother-may-I from the DNC.
EDIT: First sentence was supposed to be blockquoted.
GASP! How uncivil of you P.Z.! You’re making Babies MLK Jr and Gandhi cry with all that talk. Now sit down, wave your sign, and passively take your police beating until the world magically changes slightly.
America, your friends in the great white north love you, and we know that the good people outnumber the bad, despite how loud that bad side is. We know terrible people have rigged the elections in a number of devious ways. That said, if you fuckers don’t get that blue wave, we are building a wall and you are paying for it. Seriously, how hard do you think it would be to trick the Orange Shitgibbon into paying for it if we promise to emblazon his name on it (on your side)?
VOTE!!!
Yeah but by not voting at all, I get to remain pure and unsullied by the system. And smug, can’t forget to be smug.
@10,
Trump could be impeached by the House via a simple majority vote. It would then fall to the Senate to try him. There is no scenario in which there would be enough Democratic senators to actually inflict a consequence on him: it requires a 2/3 majority of votes in the Senate to do so, and even the rosiest projections of this election would fall well short of that threshold. Thus, it would fall to Republicans to do the right thing. I think you can see the problem with that. So voting for impeachment in the House would be a futile effort.
Holms @16:
Yeah, I hear a lot of that, I also hear quite a few Deliberate Non-voters who insist the 1% have already decided who was going to win months ago and thus voting is a sham. When you’ve descended into the realm of conspiracy theory, I don’t know what to tell them.
Republicans certainly seem to think voting matters. Otherwise, why are they so eager to prevent you from doing so?
Did my bit. Got plenty of angry, hope I can help “get shit done”.
I voted last week. Figured I’d avoid the rush.
My 12th midterm. I wish I could have voted more than once today because I voted for my grandkids.
I think that this is actually your last chance to stop this madness via an election. I hope you use it well.
ELECTION PROTECTION HOTLINE.
Don’t let anyone turn you away from the polls without voting.
Have we had this one yet? Georgia polling places are given voting machines without power cords. Gosh, do you suppose that happened in a rich, white polling place? Ha ha ha; fuck no.
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/11/6/18068492/georgia-voting-gwinnett-county-machine-problems
If you feel like you need a scorecard
Well you really don’t have to fuss—
You know the winner’s always somebody else
And the loser is always us.
And it’s shake it to the east, shake it to the west,
Hand me down my bullet-proof vest!
It’s nobody’s choice and it’s anybody’s guess —
And do that Election — there ain’t no selection — and do that Election Year Rag!
The Election Year Rag
I have this discussion with a professor at Duke every “election” time. He says you have to vote to change this mess. I reply that both (all) candidates are already owned. If they weren’t you’d never see their names. They are the pustules of the disease, so excising them does not cure their cause, a thoroughly corrupt and vicious regime masquerading as a democracy. It’s a trick for the gullible, a sedative.
Voting in the US these days is like calling masturbation sex. It makes you feel good, but produces no offspring. So brave the cold, shiver, suffer, vote, go home to the warmth and satisfaction. But don’t expect change. That’s for others to decide.
@27: No, voting is not a cure. Voting is an easy trick to limit blood loss while you hopefully work at an actual treatment through other means.
“Dogs bark at the Moon but it still shines”. My wife often recites this Chinese saying when I explain Western democracy.
jgarbo,
You know, I was kidding at #16 but you match it to a t.
If Jgarbo isn’t getting paid by the Republicans, he’s being stiffed.
Apologies – I should not assume jgarbo is male as I did @31.
This sentence makes me very sad.
that’s only because we let them by not taking responsibility ourselves.
it’s a simple as that.
viva la revolution, but only IF YOU FUCKING FOLLOW IT UP BY PARTICIPATING IN WHATEVER COMES AFTER.
people are goddamn lazy, and conmen are always around and willing to take full advantage of that.