World is Falling Apart Thread (Locked forever)

[Jrecee]

Sorry didn't mean to belittle your concerns. I listen to conservative radio, and all they do is talk about "Obama will do this, Obama will do that" and "if he wins this time it's all over, America as we know it is doomed". None of it ever comes to pass of course, and now a "Republican" wins and the left is doing what they've made fun of the right for doing for 8 years.

[J T]

I prefer people to say something, but I don't expect it.

One of my concerns following Trump's election, however, is the level of validation it has created for some very bigoted people. I'm not saying this applies to every Trump supporter. But for the bigoted ones, whereas they may have been silent before, they now feel justified in spouting out hateful statements now. Trump represents for them a death of political correctness and a chance to "tell it like it is", which for some is simply code for being openly racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. That link that Blu posted to all of the Twitter accounts and brunoafh's reactions are both evidence of this. Because of this, I think Blu is right in highlighting a need for extra vigilance on these matters right now since the cork has freshly been pulled out of the bottle. This isn't a left vs right issue. It's just basic human decency.

[jp1]

Standing by and doing nothing achieves nothing, and if you care (as you say) then achieving nothing is unacceptable.

I stood out of the way of the ban hammer that came down in less than 15 minutes after brudoopy said what he did. It hit him squarely in the face and eliminated his existence on this board as we knew it would. The dude knew he was committing forum suicide and so did the rest of us. Calling a mod a faggot here is the equivalent of sticking a primed grenade up your own ass.

I still don't agree that saying nothing is equivalent to condoning someone's actions. The assumption being that you agree because you don't say you disagree. The inverse of that logic is therefore possible as well. You don't agree with someone because you didn't say you agreed. Silence is not indicative of agreement. People say things on this board, especially in this thread, that I don't agree with, all the time. Just because I don't contest those things doesn't by any stretch of the imagination mean I agree with them.

If you are viewing this forum as a new member or a passerby and you see someone dropping the word "faggot" with no response whatsoever from it's members...that sends a message all by itself in my opinion.

If ten, twenty, or fifty members step up and say something about it, it sends a different message altogether. Fifty million votes for someone who says these things sends a message as well, as evident by the people who clearly read that message whether or not it was intended.

I don't automatically assume you are homophobic because I am familiar with you. What of those who are not? You wouldn't care to clarify the difference in your views with those vocal about the same issues as yourself?

Trump is not a savvy businessman as so many keep pointing out. As Dave pointed out some time back he would have done better (some five fold) if someone else had managed his trust fund. He has kept his fortune through tax evasion, fraud, and bankruptcy.

So, while I respect everyone's right to vote how they see fit, and while I won't stand in the streets with signs and protest the results, I still have to ask...why? It's your prerogative if you want to answer.

[Sarge]

I found this article to be quite poignant in the light of our discussion.

http://www.glennbeck.com/2016/11/10/wha ... -election/

(It's on Glenn Beck's website, but not by Glenn. He was also a prominent NeverTrumper.)

[jp1]

I found this article to be quite poignant in the light of our discussion.

http://www.glennbeck.com/2016/11/10/wha ... -election/

(It's on Glenn Beck's website, but not by Glenn. He was also a prominent NeverTrumper.)

It's a good article. It also raises some good points, there is obviously a second side to the coin. I think everyone is just concerned with the dangerous side. I'm not under any stretch of the imagination going to ever say that every Trump supporter was in support of his hateful speech and actions, being indifferent to them is the problem. It empowers the minority of folks "deplorables" who think they have a team now.

The man makes some important points though. A few I hadn't considered before to be honest. So, thanks for sharing.

[J T]

Sorry didn't mean to belittle your concerns. I listen to conservative radio, and all they do is talk about "Obama will do this, Obama will do that" and "if he wins this time it's all over, America as we know it is doomed". None of it ever comes to pass of course, and now a "Republican" wins and the left is doing what they've made fun of the right for doing for 8 years.

Thanks for your apology. I see what you are trying to say, but it came across as STFU JT you worry for nothing after I had just taken a long time to write that all out and I'm licking fresh wounds right now. Anyways, apology accepted.

I also want to say that I think the fears of what the left will do vs what the right will do are pretty different for one major ideological reason. Now, this is a generalization that doesn't hold true on every issue, but generally speaking the left is usually trying to get government to create something: social services, healthcare, regulatory groups, etc. Meanwhile, the right is trying to remove something: cut programs, cut taxes, limit government, etc. It's much harder to create something than it is to destroy something. The right always has an advantage in this regard. This is why the left is particularly fearful of Trump. We've built a giant complicated Lego village and Trump is the obnoxious spoiled neighbor kid that could easily kick it all down because he's got everything he has ever wanted back at his golden home and he doesn't care about our stuff in the slightest.

Ideally, I believe the republicans and libertarians serve an important function for balancing the left. When the left gets over-ambitious and builds too many elaborate Lego castles without recognizing how much taxpayer money it's all going to cost, sometimes we need someone to step in and say "Nu uh. You don't need those pieces." However, there is such unholy vengeance burning in the hearts of the right for 8 years of Obama writing executive orders, and now with Trump, it's a very scary time for those of us that don't want to see everything knocked down into a pile of rubble, because it could easily happen. Trump does have the power to reverse every executive order Obama has ever written, and social programs can be ripped away much faster than they can be created.

[marurun]

I found this article to be quite poignant in the light of our discussion.

http://www.glennbeck.com/2016/11/10/wha ... -election/

(It's on Glenn Beck's website, but not by Glenn. He was also a prominent NeverTrumper.)

This article is well-written and well-considered. I have varied response thoughts but I am on a phone with a sleeping baby on my right arm, so that will have to wait.

[TSTR]

good article, everyone should read

[Blu]

I found this article to be quite poignant in the light of our discussion.

http://www.glennbeck.com/2016/11/10/wha ... -election/

(It's on Glenn Beck's website, but not by Glenn. He was also a prominent NeverTrumper.)

This 100%. I really really appreciated this article, Sarge. I truly see where it is coming from. My family is from rural Upper Peninsula, and times are often hard. I understand their plight and had the means to seek a better life for myself. Not everyone is that fortunate.

The labels piece is particularly strong part of the writing too. This leads to assumptions on what people value, etc. There's a really good video called the Danger of a Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie that aligns with this point in the article.

I think collectively we have to act for what's right while being able to take on the perspectives of others. For me, that will mean speaking out when I see injustice happening in the immediate community around me. That's the sphere of influence we have in the world. Thanks for sharing, Sarge.

Exhuminator: That quote wasn't meant to be relevant to me specifically and the incident involving brunoafh's ban. Rather I was just showing an example where the quote is poignant and relevant to today if we choose to be complaisant when we're fully capable of acting in other's behalf. I'm sorry if that was misleading or vague.

[Ack]

One thing that I haven't seen anybody talk about during this election but I'm curious about...what influence, if any, do folks suspect the heroin epidemic played in the election?

Many of the areas that voted heavily for Trump, such as rural areas in the rust belt, are being ravaged by increasing rates of addiction and death due to heroin. Now this isn't something that I heard mentioned much in relation to the campaign, but I wonder if it is at all related.