Trump is now president.

[Chants]

Trump is now president. Are we all doomed? If so, why?

[Baginns Hobbiton]

After the shell shock of the election has worn off I'm starting to think that this might have been the best thing to happen. Assuming of course that we don't end up in a Thermonuclear Exchange. If Hillary had won we would have had 4-8 more years of the same. Now, Republicans are forced to actually govern, which apparently they have forgotten how to do. They have the opportunity with control of all three branches of government to show everyone just how prosperous we can be under conservative policies. They get to show the electorate what their real priorities are (the rich). It hasn't looked good so far, and I'm really hoping that this mess forces the country back towards the center.

[Ddrak]

I'm struggling to see how the systems can deal with another 3.5 years of this...

Dd

[Kulaf]

It hasn't looked good so far, and I'm really hoping that this mess forces the country back towards the center.

Well.....considering both parties are currently left of center......a return to the center would be refreshing.

[Baginns Hobbiton]

I assume you mean fiscally left, as I don't think Republicans have much room to pull right on social issues. It would be nice to see a party that actually cared about the deficit.

[Fallakin Kuvari]

Nah, both are pretty much left of center all around now. Democrats are just much further left now than they used to be.

The only camp currently right of center are the libertarians.

[Ddrak]

I think we need to define what we're talking about here. The "normal" political scale is completely out the window.

Dd

[Kulaf]

The Left have gone completely batshit insane. They just toss out core American values like Due Process and Free Speech on a whim. Communists/Marxists abound and College is nothing but an indoctrination exercise.

I am so glad the new generation is seeing this for what it is and are more conservative than their predecessors. The Clintons have officially lost control of the Democratic party and Bill is getting tossed to the #MeToo crowd.

As much as everyone used to talk about the Tea Party, fear the coming of the new Social Democrats (aka Marxists).......they will do their best to completely ruin this country.

[Ddrak]

Most of what I see in politics is the move to reality TV type drama to hunt for votes. It's not only the US, but you guys seem to be trailblazing for the rest of us. Left, Right, whatever - it's all about demonizing your opponent and creating a false dichotomy to pin your forces of good against the ever encroaching forces of evil.

I wouldn't sweat colleges too much - they always breed idealists from all walks of politics. It's a good thing - keeps the center honest.

Not sure the US really can produce anything remotely "Marxist" on global standards. The US left doesn't really even meet the conservative parties from most other places I've seen, so it's tough to set a baseline.

[Kulaf]

It's because the modern regressive Left in the US has abandoned debate for virtue signaling demonization of ANYONE that does not fit into a box and the associated view that box must have. The Left has no problem consuming itself if anyone dares to drop dogma and try to actually discuss an issue on its merits.

Even now they are turning on the Clintons saying that times have changed and Bill should have resigned in the wake of the Monica Lewinsky affair. Some of us of course thought that back then, because our moral compass does not swing to the politically convenient.

[Baginns Hobbiton]

abandoned debate for virtue signaling demonization of ANYONE that does not fit into a box

The Left have gone completely batshit insane. They just toss out core American values like Due Process and Free Speech on a whim. Communists/Marxists abound and College is nothing but an indoctrination exercise.

Do you not see the irony of this?

[Kulaf]

No. Because the "Democrats" are supposedly the party of inclusion. What they have become is actually the party of identity politics. They are trying to split everyone into tribal entities which is a HORRIBLE thing to do. It increases intolerance, combativeness and violence because tribal actors see EVERYONE as their enemy.

I might disagree with people on issues, but I don't demonize individuals. I will speak about group behavior all day long.

I am an individualist. I don't abandon my individual thinking and rights for inclusion into any group.

[Ddrak]

I'd argue both sides are playing from that game. It's interesting the power struggles in the Democratic party at the moment - by all rights they should romp home the next Presidential election, but I'm yet to see anyone they can actually rally behind.

Dd

[Kulaf]

Because no one person fits into every category they try to split people in to. You're too progressive, you're not progressive enough, your not a minority, you're a white guy, you're not a woman, you're rich, you're too old, you're not old enough, etc. etc. etc.

[Ddrak]

I think you're prescribing far too much global organisation on their behalf. Much easier to say they're spread across a whole spectrum of views and not ready to compromise between each other... yet.

Dd

[Kulaf]

Right now, they only have one unifying factor...….they hate Trump. Left to their own devices, they will consume themselves.

Intersectionality is evil. It is the antithesis of Western values which places the individual above all else.

[Ddrak]

I'm not sure I agree that Western values place the individual above all else. All systems of government are created by ceding individual freedoms to the collective good, defining areas that individuals have to forfiet for the collective betterment of society - whether it be taxes, regulation, criminal laws, media rights, speech freedoms or any number of other areas. There's a vast spectrum of balance when you go from France to the US.

Most people in Western societies would consider the Democrats a center-right party. I'm not sure what they would consider the GOP right now. US politics is fairly smashed, and it will be interesting to see what comes in the next few decades.

Dd

[Kulaf]

That is because most Parliamentary styles of government allow "radical" ideologies to flourish and have a party. Anytime things get out of control, they dissolve and start over. The US system is not designed in that fashion. It is a more deliberate process and the two houses of Congress are required to find common ground to pass legislation. This leads to more homogenous thinking on the majority of issues and only taking stands are certain others.

I am not required to live in a city. I am not required to drive a car. I am not required to vote. In fact, there is very little in the US that you are required to do, including paying taxes if you choose subsistence living. That's kind of the point......individual freedom and choice. If you want to engage in certain activities, then you as an individual freely consent to do so and to live according to that choice.

Intersectionality is about victimization. People define themselves as whatever group makes the most sense for whatever argument they are having. I have seen white guys in a debate to another white guy say that the other white guys opinion doesn't matter...…..because he's a white guy.

It's utterly insane.

[Torakus]

lol competitive victimhood

[Kulaf]

That's why Elizabeth Warren was so desperate to prove her Native American heritage. She needed something to use.