Why don't the people vote like they're supposed to?

[Chernosoth]

This is from 2022:
https://aurelien2022.substack.com/p/why-dont-the-people-vote-like-theyre

liberal pundits have actually been surprised by a turn of events which is basically what their own theories would have predicted. The traditional parties no longer supply what the political market wants. Inevitably, therefore, new forces have arisen to respond to demand. Fifteen years ago, the mobile phones that were available ranged from mediocre to horrible. When Apple introduced the iPhone, which was actually easy and pleasant to use, it obliterated the competition, and all phones since it appeared have been essentially copies, since that’s what the market wants. So the traditional parties of Left and Right, alone in their little technocratic burrows, are the Nokias, the Sony Ericssons and whatever the other company was, I forget now, that was bulldozed by Apple. But of course they don’t want to lose their market share. So like traditional phone manufacturers, the traditional political parties are heaping scorn on the newcomers, and suggesting that it’s actually the market that is wrong, not them, because the public doesn’t appreciate them, or is deceived by clever advertising.

 

[JoePepsiCo]

A synopsis or something would have been good, something to draw me in and red, but this just makes me go, meh...,

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

A synopsis or something would have been good, something to draw me in and red, but this just makes me go, meh...,

The article was written over two years ago. It correctly observes that political reporting has become ossified and uses a model of clashing policies that is no longer relevant. It implies that we're due for a grand realignment and wholesale rejection of the standard tropes of political reporting.

In that respect, it was prescient, but what the article didn't predict was the reinvigoration of the Democratic Party under Kamala Harris and the utter collapse of the Republican Party under Donald Trump.

The news media still hasn't come to grips with this new state of affairs which is why their coverage of the 2024 election has been so abysmal. They keep trying to shoehorn events into the old narrative of disciplined Republicans vs. "Dems in disarray" only to be flummoxed at every turn by events on the ground.

Some new party will certainly arise to contest the dominance of the Democrats, but it's unclear whether it will come from the left or the right. The left lost the American people with their support of Hamas over the past year, and the right hasn't had an original idea since Ronald Reagan. The old rallying cry of "government sucks!" doesn't work in a world where people are eager for a government that works for them.

It's also unclear how the news media will reinvent itself after shilling so shamelessly for Donald Trump.

 

[Saint_Ann]

"Things" haven't gotten bad enough on a wide enough scale. It's close.

 

[ll74]

A synopsis or something would have been good, something to draw me in and red, but this just makes me go, meh...,

Everything makes you do that. It's literally your only mode.

 

[Sean Renaud]

The article was written over two years ago. It correctly observes that political reporting has become ossified and uses a model of clashing policies that is no longer relevant. It implies that we're due for a grand realignment and wholesale rejection of the standard tropes of political reporting.

In that respect, it was prescient, but what the article didn't predict was the reinvigoration of the Democratic Party under Kamala Harris and the utter collapse of the Republican Party under Donald Trump.

The news media still hasn't come to grips with this new state of affairs which is why their coverage of the 2024 election has been so abysmal. They keep trying to shoehorn events into the old narrative of disciplined Republicans vs. "Dems in disarray" only to be flummoxed at every turn by events on the ground.

Some new party will certainly arise to contest the dominance of the Democrats, but it's unclear whether it will come from the left or the right. The left lost the American people with their support of Hamas over the past year, and the right hasn't had an original idea since Ronald Reagan. The old rallying cry of "government sucks!" doesn't work in a world where people are eager for a government that works for them.

It's also unclear how the news media will reinvent itself after shilling so shamelessly for Donald Trump.

I think you're really misreading the support for HAMAS as you want to put it. We are unlikely to see a new party no matter how you cut it but this cand be fun for a bit.

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

I think you're really misreading the support for HAMAS as you want to put it. We are unlikely to see a new party no matter how you cut it but this cand be fun for a bit.

The far left went all-in on antisemitism. They abandoned all their other positions--like LGBTQ rights, equal rights for minorities, and opposition to big business. Instead their entire focus became attacking Israel.

Americans may not love Jews, but virulent Jew-hatred isn't as ingrained in the U.S. as it is on Europe. As the encampment movement transitioned from called for a cease-fire in Gaza to calling for the destruction of the United States, public opinion turned against them.

If the far left wants to ever be relevant in America, they need to stop taking money from Iran and get rid of the antisemites in their ranks. I think there's room for a socialist party to the left of the Democrats, but it can't be built on a base of anti-Zionism.

 

[SimonDoom]

There's an arrogance to the notion "people don't vote the way they should" that I reject. People rank values differently. This is something many people have a hard time accepting, but it's true. For some people abortion is their number 1 ranked value (pro or con), and that's the issue that will determine their vote. Some people don't understand that. But there's no objective way to say what people "should" care about or vote for. People value what they value.

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

There's an arrogance to the notion "people don't vote the way they should" that I reject. People rank values differently. This is something many people have a hard time accepting, but it's true. For some people abortion is their number 1 ranked value (pro or con), and that's the issue that will determine their vote. Some people don't understand that. But there's no objective way to say what people "should" care about or vote for. People value what they value.

“Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.”

Republican voters are driven by racism and sexism. That’s why they support policies that seem to be counter to their own self-interest—because they know the laws they support will never be applied equally to all Americans by Republican officials.

 

[AndersonsBiographer]

The far left went all-in on antisemitism. They abandoned all their other positions--like LGBTQ rights, equal rights for minorities, and opposition to big business. Instead their entire focus became attacking Israel.

Americans may not love Jews, but virulent Jew-hatred isn't as ingrained in the U.S. as it is on Europe. As the encampment movement transitioned from called for a cease-fire in Gaza to calling for the destruction of the United States, public opinion turned against them.

If the far left wants to ever be relevant in America, they need to stop taking money from Iran and get rid of the antisemites in their ranks. I think there's room for a socialist party to the left of the Democrats, but it can't be built on a base of anti-Zionism.

I love it how you seem to think that fucking 2% of America's population, bound by their genocidal devotion to a country and religion that bears the fascinating distinction of somehow being even dumber than Christianity, would matter in the slightest if not for the fact that they also made up 40% of America's billionaires.

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

I love it how you seem to think that fucking 2% of America's population would matter in the slightest, if not for the fact that they also made up 40% of its billionaires.

“The rich Jew” is a standard antisemitic trope. You’re exactly the sort of leftist who hurts the progressive cause.

 

[AndersonsBiographer]

“The rich Jew” is a standard antisemitic trope. You’re exactly the sort of leftist who hurts the progressive cause.

If you don't like it when people accuse of being the driving force behind capitalism then, uh, maybe quit being the driving force behind capitalism?

 

[AndersonsBiographer]

As to OP, I wouldn't put too much stock into how people vote or what they claim to want. People are stupid, cowardly, and gullible. Once The Iron Heel comes down (still one of the most prescient books ever written, btw), they'll do what they're told to do and with very few, easily-removable outliers.

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

If you don't like it when people accuse of being the driving force behind capitalism then, uh, maybe quit being the driving force behind capitalism?

Thank you for continuing to prove that the far left has an antisemitism problem. The American people will reject your socialist ideas if you couch them in bigotry.

 

[AndersonsBiographer]

Thank you for continuing to prove that the far left has an antisemitism problem. The American people will reject your socialist ideas if you couch them in bigotry.

Lenin was on the deathbed, with Stalin sitting by his side.

Lenin said: "Joseph... I'm not sure you're the right man to lead the country after me. I don't know if the people will follow you."

Stalin responded: "Don't worry, Vladimir Ilyich. Half of the country will follow me, and the other half will follow you."

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

Lenin was on the deathbed, with Stalin sitting by his side.

Lenin said: "Joseph... I'm not sure you're the right man to lead the country after me. I don't know if the people will follow you."

Stalin responded: "Don't worry, Vladimir Ilyich. Half of the country will follow me, and the other half will follow you."

Fantasizing about killing your political enemies is a sign of a bankrupt ideology. You don’t even care about making an omelet. You just want an excuse to break eggs.

 

[Wat_Tyler]

As to OP, I wouldn't put too much stock into how people vote or what they claim to want. People are stupid, cowardly, and gullible. Once The Iron Heel comes down (still one of the most prescient books ever written, btw), they'll do what they're told to do and with very few, easily-removable outliers.

Most people are inclined to do as they are told to by those whom they perceive to be in authority. And as The Iron Heel gets closer to IRL throats, compliance will increase. That is how a rogue government gets people into cattle cars.


I like to believe that this will prove exceedingly difficult in the good ol' US of A, but . . . .

 

[jomar]

^^^ Says the guy who votes for trump

 

[Wat_Tyler]

Except I don't. Ever. He'll be 0 for 3 on 6 November on my ballot. Don't let pesky facts get in the way.

 

[AndersonsBiographer]

Fantasizing about killing your political enemies is a sign of a bankrupt ideology. You don’t even care about making an omelet. You just want an excuse to break eggs.

Some of Dear Comrade Uncle Joe's enemies said the same about him...

 

[RobDownSouth]

A synopsis or something would have been good, something to draw me in and red, but this just makes me go, meh...,

The article hasn't aged well, admittedly. But it does go a long way towards explaining how convicted felon Donald J Trump ersatz populism resonates with voters.

 

[YDB95]

Lenin was on the deathbed, with Stalin sitting by his side.

Lenin said: "Joseph... I'm not sure you're the right man to lead the country after me. I don't know if the people will follow you."

Stalin responded: "Don't worry, Vladimir Ilyich. Half of the country will follow me, and the other half will follow you."

In real life, when Lenin was on his deathbed, he told his advisors not to let Stalin take over. He knew what would happen if he did.