Imo Mr Blobby would have been a better bet than Trump so yes, it is rather damning Biden with faint praise.
In the end, surely the Mccarthy era (A Salem witchhunt) and Korea and veitnam propaganda machines led by the likes of John Wayne etc means that a lot of the oldies in the USA are basically stuck in that time loop. https://guides.lib.uw.edu/c.php?g=341346&p=2303736. You can see how Hollywood was a propaganda machines here Even coming into my generation popular ****e like say red dawn (Mexican commies) rocky iii orwhatever, any rambo film after first blood, its all feeding the same hysteria. Anyway as you've each said there are huge divergences in the crowds. I knew one guy who was Hispanic, funny guy we got him passed drunk in Germany and ended up first in a Turkish kebab shop then we had to stagger him home across the rail tracks in this town while keeping him quiet. He was so into the cult of trump! The success story and fame and all of that, huge fan. That must be 3 year's back now. Americans respect success a lot it seems. We would view it as suspicious here. Another yank I knew was a successful business woman who freely admitted she drives across state lines to by brownies yet again was a I bought a gun cos I heard about local kidnapping **** and was another trumpite Then another was a white dude from california who wore Hawarden shirts to work and was so passed off about Trump he apologised for his nations stupidity.that was quite hilarious as he never got angry about anything. It's a vastly complex picture of huge differences across geography and social levels isn't it? I personally think this will all end with a period of firm isolationist policy again especially when the ecological birds come home to roost. If oil ever does get broken as the be all and end all then the Americans only need battery materials I just think somehow China has the will and cash to outspend the American nation now to buy influence
I always assumed that Trumpers were just so entrenched in their political ideology that they would vote for whoever had the Republican ticket regardless of their suitability. To me, it beggars belief that anyone could see the things that man does and says and yet admire him. Having said that, imo the same goes for Boris, yet here we are...
There are some I personally met who followed his successes, like a TV star a shining light. But you have to remember a lot of people I'd talk to would be the types to graduate college and think they are going to be vps so there is that. I talked to plenty of blue collar guys in my time touring yankland too though. Boris is a great quandary. He was elected mayor of London but then so was livingston and I wonder if Boris was a reaction to red Ken However may was put in by the tory compromise to after government shafted Johnson and nobody could stomach gove. Once may was done nobody could again stomach gove. Corbyn blew his decent numbers v may in the house performances and was damaged goods as well, the media were out to slate him from the night of that election. Boris rode the tired of brexit wave to power. It is imo a story of reactionary choices as much as Boris cynical maneuvers. I just wonder what will prevent another tory win when the next ge finally rolls along. I cannot see starmer doing anything
I doubt anything will prevent another Tory win, tbh. No matter how big a cock-up they make of things the propaganda machine will spin it into triumphs and those that want to will buy it. Blair got elected by being Tory-lite, not by being a socialist. Corbyn was always going to be a disaster from day one for being too obviously a lefty. Like in the US (though not as bad) there's a belief that socialism is going to rob us of all those freedoms we don't have in the first place. I imagine Starmer will come across as more centrist as Labour works to try and make itself more appealing to the electorate, but I don't hold out much hope for a power shift.
The problem the Republicans now have is that having built him up, a lot of the supporters now follow Trump rather than the party and they can't put the genie back in the bottle. Those in the Party who are gaining the most support and attention are those effectively trying to be Trump II. Thankfully none really seem to have the charisma to make it properly stick yet.
While he has been stymied by covid so far, I don't think Starmer has the charisma to draw enough people to him, while Boris isn't yet turning enough people off. He's a bit like Biden but without such a big anti-Trump vote. I guess the "good" thing is that Boris has no principles and just wants the power, so while he sets a bad example, he doesn't seem overly concerned about actually changing anything. Someone like Priti Patel would presumably be more proactive into shaping the country into her vision.
My father-in-law HATES Trump with a passion. He voted for him again last November, because he's a Republican and always votes republican and thought the economy would suddenly collapse if a Democrat got elected But there are other ex-Republicans who hate Trump and are now essentially Democrats. Not sure if you heard about the Lincoln project, a group of Republicans who hated Trump and saw him as damaging to the party. Many supporters of the Lincoln Project now consider themselves Democrats. At the same time many Democrats who hated Mexicans, immigrants, Muslims, etc, or harboured other racist or sexist views have switched over to the Republican party. The party lines have shifted somewhat. There are a lot of reasons Republicans jumped ship, not just because of Trump's dictatorial Style or his various bigotries... He really didn't play by the Republican playbook. Tarrifs for example go completely against what Republican laissez faire economics always believed in. Republicans typically are more interested in balanced budgets and limiting government spending. Trump was a big spender on things, like vanity wall projects, etc. Trump was spending more than most Democrats. Also, Trump was more in line with Democrats with the stimulus spending than he was the Republicans. Could go on forever... But Trump wasn't really a Republican. (He was even registered as a Democrat for most of his life). Trump's only political ideology was having power and bigotry... The only reason he switched to Republican party and became a political entity was because he didn't like that Obama was a black president and he came to the fore by his crazy conspiracy theory that Obama wasn't really a citizen.
Good post, though I would have said that Republicans were more about cutting taxes than limiting spending or balancing budgets per se, especially when it comes to the Military. I haven't got any figures to hand, but don't deficits tend to be bigger under Republican rule?
Yes, that's true. They always talk alot about cutting spending and balancing the budget, but they frequently do increase spending specifically on the military. They often do cut spending elsewhere though.
One of the biggest problems with politics is that there us no longer any ideologies. Non of the major parties believe in a path to make any country better. Its all about how to gain power and stay there. If you told boris and starmer that the person who killed the most grannies would be the next prime minister, the pension Bill would go right down. Personality politics, what will get me votes, how can I won. That's all that matters. I dont blame the politicians though I blame the public. The mob is ficking idiotic.
Charlotte FC will start playing games in January this upcoming year. Pretty excited. Finally a pro team within 1.5 hours drive of me. Cheapest season tickets are actually pretty reasonable, but can't see myself driving that far every weekend. Still, looking forwards to getting to go to games semi-regular. It's not Liverpool... And they do play in blue, which is off-putting, but should be fun nonetheless.
Only six people in the squad so far according to the website. I hope they sign some more players before January or they could be outnumbered on the field... Unless they can convince the rest of MLS to play five-a-side.
