U.S. Politics

Higher grocery prices.

Higher gas prices.

Higher rent prices.

Harder to access public service systems.

Hated across the globe.

Habeas Corpus suspension?

Hate towards certain groups

Has to focus on renaming places on the map?



Holy crap.

We're fucked.
 
SDcomics said:
Holy crap.

We're fucked.
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I been sayin'.


Still absolutely wild that Trump regularly gets away with going on TV/socials and just.. lying. Like not bending the truth or telling his own 'version' of events. Just outright Orwellian lies about what you can physically see with your own eyes. "Gas prices are WAY down!" "Grocery prices are WAY down!" Are they, Donald? Are they?
I don't get it, man. I don't see how a person can go to the grocery store or gas pump as a regular everyday person, see the prices are higher than they were last time, and still take Trump seriously when he says 'prices are down.'
 
Damien said:
It's dangerous to try to logic it out.

I live in Canada, a place with free (albeit arguably the worst among countries where it's free) healthcare. But we do have private car insurance, of course. Within the same breath people will complain here about how we need private healthcare because they're tired of their taxes paying for whomever with bad health, but will also complain that the private car insurance is bullshit because we're stuck paying higher rates because of bad drivers we have no control over.

I keep saying it because it's true; these people are just fucking idiots. You cannot reason or logic your way around how they think, because there is no reason or logic to how they think. And even the word 'think' is pretty strong language here.
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by the by, I know that a public healthcare system will not solve the US's problems as if by magic. but the line of argument "I don't want to pay for other people's healthcare" is much different than one that defends the current system as more effective.

and I usually assume the people who defend the current system have never had their life upended by a denied claim or exorbitant medical bills.
 
It's a double-edged sword, for sure, regarding healthcare. I've never been under the impression that free or affordable healthcare will just magically fix everything for everyone. That said, it's like saying "Money doesn't solve all your problems"- while true to an extent, it's just as ignorant to act like money can't solve or, at the very least, drastically help improve your problems. Fact of the matter is, money talks, and it opens up doorways that just aren't available to those in lower classes. Same with healthcare- it's not gonna magically solve everyone's issues, people will still get sick, and still die from things, but it's ignorant/uneducated to act like not having to worry about the cost of doctor's appointments or prescriptions wouldn't severely help most people. As someone in a family that's had to struggle for most of my life to be able to afford everything- food, electricity, bills, medication, etc.- it's almost always the medication/healthcare that gets set aside in favor of the others. And it's only because of federally funded programs like Medicare/Medicaid that many in my family have ever been able to afford things at all. It's like acting surprised that kids who have access to free/affordable lunches do better in school; a kid is more likely to pay attention and register what they're learning if they're not worried about starving to death? And their body has sufficient nutrients to be able to perform properly? Go figure! Same with workers- oh, people are more productive at work, more timely, more happy- when they're compensated fairly and made to feel like they're appreciated? Go figure! Hell, even one of those laughably half-hearted pizza parties is better than nothing (though should never be treated as a substitute for fair wages or appreciation).

Is the thought of free/reduced prescriptions enticing? Absolutely. But not a single cell in my body is resting a little easier at the news. It's Trump we're talking about- if there's even the smallest modicum of truth to what he's saying (and it's a BIG if), then there's always a catch. It's either taking attention off something just as earth-shattering that's happening elsewhere, or it's disguising a way to put even more money into his pockets. Like others have said- I have never, and will never understand why some folks are so against helping others, especially when it's hardly, if any, sweat off their backs. This whole "I had to break my back for things, so everyone else should too!" mindset is so gross and ignorant. Isn't the entire point of having kids, or really anyone that you care for, to provide a better life for them then the one you had? Do I want my future kids to learn manners and the value of things? Absolutely. But I don't want them to suffer, or have as much life-altering anxiety as I've had? Hell no. There are ways to teach lessons without pain and suffering. Such lessons, if learned at all, always come at a cost- anger and bitterness and resentment. That's when the finger pointing begins- you see someone else having a better or easier life than you (which again, is kind of the point), and you're jealous that they "don't deserve" such things.

Would I pay a couple bucks more in taxes, or pay a couple bucks more for goods if it meant everyone being able to eat, or afford housing, or healthcare, or what have you? Absolutely. Health is happiness. Happiness is health. And when everyone is happy and healthy, it does trickle down, truly. I just don't understand how that's so difficult for some people to comprehend. America loves itself a scapegoat, but in the process has become the very sort of tyrannical power that people fled Europe to establish America for in the first place!

I fear I'm rambling and have lost the plot, so forgive my soapbox rant. I just hate it here recently, and how every facet of living is now infected with his vitriol and hate.
 
joshsquash729 said:
Would I pay a couple bucks more in taxes, or pay a couple bucks more for goods if it meant everyone being able to eat, or afford housing, or healthcare, or what have you? Absolutely. Health is happiness. Happiness is health. And when everyone is happy and healthy, it does trickle down, truly. I just don't understand how that's so difficult for some people to comprehend. America loves itself a scapegoat, but in the process has become the very sort of tyrannical power that people fled Europe to establish America for in the first place!
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Right... and I find myself leaning pretty damned socialist in my views. We're in this together, even the assholes. And even if you just cannot find the slimmest speck of empathy in you, AT LEAST serve your self interest by protecting yourself via strong public health. If everyone else is healthy, then they can't infect you! But I realize Covid wasn't a massive learning experience for everyone.
joshsquash729 said:
I fear I'm rambling and have lost the plot, so forgive my soapbox rant. I just hate it here recently, and how every facet of living is now infected with his vitriol and hate.
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Same. SAAAAAAAAAAAAAME!!!!! I both appreciate and hate that we talk about this stuff in an otherwise lovely forum for a hobby that should bring joy. but clearly we all really need to vent and delve.
 
joshsquash729 said:
This whole "I had to break my back for things, so everyone else should too!" mindset is so gross and ignorant.
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It's my theory, and I'm sure I'm not the only one to posit this, that these people are suffering from severe mental instability. I don't mean that as a 'haha, got'cha.'
It's, to me, the EXACT same mental defect that causes abuse victims to abuse other people. In fact, I'd argue that's exactly what's happening here. A certain percentage of the population that have been outright abused by the Capitalist system we live under have decided to visit that abuse on others. It's the 'I was spanked as a kid, so I will spank my kids' attitude. It's not right. It's deeply unhealthy. It's damaging to our society, our planet, and everyone that has to live here. But you can see it plain as day.



Wicker_Basket said:
by the by, I know that a public healthcare system will not solve the US's problems as if by magic. but the line of argument "I don't want to pay for other people's healthcare" is much different than one that defends the current system as more effective.

and I usually assume the people who defend the current system have never had their life upended by a denied claim or exorbitant medical bills.
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They're different but, I feel, related. Sure, some people view the current system in the US as more effective because they are insanely wealthy and can afford any and all healthcare immediately and at the uttermost heights of quality. I would say most people in the US that defend the current system (passing fewer every year) fall into that category.

Of the non-rich people that defend the current system, I would say the argument that it's more effective and the argument that they don't have to pay for other peoples' care are, at least in their minds, intertwined.
 
I often wonder what this country would be like if people realized they are all way, way, way fucking closer to being homeless and hungry and needing help than they are being billionaires who get to punch down at the have-nots.

I find myself using the phrase "I lived too long" a lot lately. It just feels like insurmountable change is required.
 
docsilence said:
I find myself using the phrase "I lived too long" a lot lately.
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I'm envious of anyone who died before Trump.
docsilence said:
It just feels like insurmountable change is required.
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Yeah. This is the part that concerns me. That much change seems impossible, but it will feel that way until it happens. I don't know if it will happen in 2029 or 2129, but it will happen. Fascism falls. Always.
 
docsilence said:
I often wonder what this country would be like if people realized they are all way, way, way fucking closer to being homeless and hungry and needing help than they are being billionaires who get to punch down at the have-nots.

I find myself using the phrase "I lived too long" a lot lately. It just feels like insurmountable change is required.
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I don't remember the exact stat but like 10 years ago something like 16% of all Americans believed they were in the top 1% of income earners.
 
PanchaMaestro said:
I don't remember the exact stat but like 10 years ago something like 16% of all Americans believed they were in the top 1% of income earners.
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I'd believe it. And honestly I feel like there's a bizarre disconnect between people who actually are well off and don't know it and people who are really close to the edge and also don't know it and that causes a lot of harm when elections come around.
 
PanchaMaestro said:
Basically so many dumbasses think Republican tax cuts help them and the reality is they aren't anywhere near the level for those tax cuts to help them.
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Hint: It's the same people that get REALLY mad when you talk about altering tax percentages according to income. As if they are SUDDENLY going to start making 500k/year more than they do now and will actually be affected by this. It's so deeply American to, as a comedian once put it, view yourself as a temporarily embarrassed billionaire instead of as a member of the working class.
 
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