Worse & Worse
November 15th, 2016I’ve been reading a lot of election analysis over the past week and, incredibly, much of it seeks to point fingers of blame for the Republican victory at the Democratic party, or at “social justice warriors,” or at very generalized groups. Today’s guilty party was straight middle-class white women, of which I am one. Blame me if you want to, but it’s bullshit.
The Republican candidate won either because the election was hacked (and no one is talking about it), or because enough people rejected a fully qualified candidate in favor of one who lacks good judgment according to 74% of exit poll respondents.
Granted, we now know that polls are utterly worthless. But it appears that people knew what they were buying, and they bought it anyway. This is mind boggling to me. Honesty, humility, knowledge, and a propensity for public service used to be valued traits in this country. Apparently, no longer.
Posted on: Tuesday, November 15th, 2016 at 4:32 pm
Categories: General, Meanderings.
November 16th, 2016 at 2:48 am
“But it appears that people knew what they were buying, and they bought it anyway.”
More than anything right now, this is the part that makes me really sad. In my mind it shouldn’t have been anywhere this close, because people are smarter than that. Very clearly I was wrong. I am having a lot of trouble coming to grips with this reality.
November 16th, 2016 at 8:34 am
I feel the same way, Michael. Still can’t believe that so many Americans made this decision, against all evidence. I call it magical thinking.
November 28th, 2016 at 4:29 pm
I call it democracy. People who felt let down by the existing government wanted something different, quite an understandable reaction. Unfortunately it will be different for the worse, not better. It is not an unusal result.
November 29th, 2016 at 6:30 am
It’s unusual for this country. Too many people are voting along tribal lines, regardless of whether it’s logical or beneficial, and our traditional values have mostly been discarded.