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The 2012 US Presidential Election

Discussion in 'F1 Off Topic' started by genjigonzales, Aug 29, 2012.

?

Who's you vast wealth on?

Poll closed Nov 5, 2012.
  1. Mick O'Bama

    8 vote(s)
    61.5%
  2. Walter Mitty

    2 vote(s)
    15.4%
  3. I.D.G.A.F.

    3 vote(s)
    23.1%
Multiple votes are allowed.
  1. genjigonzales

    genjigonzales Active Member

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    It must be time now...

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    This rich, white woman has commended her husband for the job of President on the grounds that he got her home safely from a party one night without raping her or dumping her on a street corner in the middle of nowhere. She is thankful that he is rich enough to afford the best health insurance to treat her cancer and MS, and the best nannies to look after her five screeching brats. "You really should get to know him," she implored, and America agreed. "Well, duh. He really should let us."

    Retard Palin Mk. II, Michelle Bachmann, insists it's Obama's vast wealth that is the real issue here.

    At the same convention, RNC chair Reince Priebus (a character straight out of Game of Thrones, apparently) berated the current president for having never "run a garage sale or seen the inside of a lemonade stand," forgetting that he has been running the country for the last four years, which presumably makes him better qualified for the job than your average eight-year old entrepeneur.

    I'm not especially in favour of either candidate's political vision (I like the fact that only half a century after Americans segregated their schools they have a black president but I'm not aware that Obama's done a huge amount for racial equality or harmony beyond simply being president - correct me if I'm wrong), although I believe Obama at least has one.

    In truth, as in the UK, neither party can rebuild their country from the desolate waste the bankers left in their wake because presidents, prime ministers and governments don't have much influence on how society functions. Like the World Cup or the Olympics, however, a general election is an interesting little sideshow to entertain us and pay homage to those great conceptualist fantasies, 'democracy' and 'freedom'. In memory, then, of those twin pillars of western civilisation, I beseech you to tell us who you prefer and why...

    Here's a list of some of the issues of the day on which to compare the candidates or express your own opinion:


    [table="width: 95%, align: center"]
    [tr]
    [td]Abortion[/td]
    [td]Environment[/td]
    [td]Immigration[/td]
    [/tr]
    [tr]
    [td]Civil Liberties[/td]
    [td]Foreign Policy[/td]
    [td]The Media[/td]
    [/tr]
    [tr]
    [td]Drugs[/td]
    [td]Gay Rights[/td]
    [td]Political Correctness[/td]
    [/tr]
    [tr]
    [td]Economy[/td]
    [td]Government[/td]
    [td]Race[/td]
    [/tr]
    [tr]
    [td]Education[/td]
    [td]Guns[/td]
    [td]Religion[/td]
    [/tr]
    [tr]
    [td]Election Campaign[/td]
    [td]HealthCare[/td]
    [td]Wives[/td]
    [/tr]
    [/table]

     
    #1
  2. RoadRunner

    RoadRunner Well-Known Member

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    A presidential election thread on the day that I finish my assessment task on the September 11 attacks? Must be a conspiracy.
     
    #2
  3. happyal

    happyal Active Member

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    I miss Bush jr, the best president of the USA for years.

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    #3
  4. Big Ern

    Big Ern Lord, Master, Guru & Emperor

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    I think I prefer the puppet on the left.
     
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  5. genjigonzales

    genjigonzales Active Member

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    Do you mean a task you've set for your students or one you've completed for your own furtherment (the Americanisms are simply dripping out of me today)?

    Obama definitely lacks the comedy factor for which his predecessor was rightly acclaimed. I think Bush did a lot to expose the sheer pointlessness of the presidency from the get-go (ouch! - Ah'm a-gettin' a tad folksy thar) so kudos to him for that.

    In terms of hope and change I attempted to make the point earlier that, by simply being elected president in arguably the most racist, nationalistic country in the western world, Obama-as-POTUS was evidence of change and a more positive outlook. The fact that his presidency has achieved so little (although, give him his due - Obamacare is at least an acknowledgement of humanity) is an unfortunate consequence of the economic times and the democratic system. For Obama, winning the election was the real achievement and my only concern was that he won it not because Americans believed in his message but because his relatively respectable opponent's running mate was Sarah Palin.

    This time round Sarah Palin's duties have been divided equally between the main contender (vacuous short-sightedness) and the Veep candidate (fascist lunacy), who believes rape is just another "method of conception," alongside making love, being drunk and the good old turkey baster.

    It's also quite tight at the moment (poll-wise, forget about the turkey baster) and expectations are that Florida and those world-renowned postal votes and dodgy chads might once again be employed to get an unelectable Republican into 'power'.


    Tweedle Dee? Yes, at least he gives the impression of caring.
     
    #5
  6. TomTom94

    TomTom94 Well-Known Member

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    Occasional discussions with Americans have pointed out a number of key issues with the election that ultimately render it pointless:

    1) A stupidly large portion of Americans vote along party lines without caring about policies at all.
    2) The amount of people who simply abstain from voting is now so large that they might as well not elect a president if they are truly being democratic.
    3) Too much emphasis on the candidates themselves rather than their policies has led to them being pretty much interchangeable puppets.
    4) Perhaps the key one is that Americans get bogged down over the most pointless of issues rather than anything actually important. Case in point: the issues that are apparently dominating this election during a time of global economic crisis? Abortions and same-sex marriages, which, while important social issues, do rather pale in comparison to the big one of how the **** America is supposed to get out of its $1trn debt.

    If I was American my vote would go for Obama because the Republicans absolutely terrify me. Paul Ryan (their VP candidate) proposed an extremely popular alternative to Obama's budget which would see taxes cut for the rich and state support for the poor cut even further. Their main support also tends to consist of the sort of rednecks who thought that the Denver shootings would not have happened if someone in the cinema had a gun. As for the positives, Obama has the right idea about healthcare and the economy in my opinion (though there still needs to be reform of Wall Street) and if he does follow through on what people fear - gun control - then I would wager he will go down as one of the greatest presidents in history once time is more favourable to him.
     
    #6
  7. RoadRunner

    RoadRunner Well-Known Member

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    Nope, I am the student,and I had to compile a 2, 000 word essay on 'The Falling Man' documentary. I hope I never have to see that film again because it's simply horrifying.
     
    #7
  8. happyal

    happyal Active Member

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    I disagree

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    #8
  9. genjigonzales

    genjigonzales Active Member

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    Great points, as usual, tomtom. Democrats (or Democrat commentators and twitterers) look to be at pains to quash any speculation that Obama's intention is to increase gun control. Of course, a president's first term is all about getting a second term and it's in the next four years (if he wins) that we should expect to see his real ambition for America laid bare. It is, however, a country founded and built on the gun and violence seems to run in their veins. I agree, though - should such an ambition come to fruition it could be as significant politically as abolishing slavery.

    Remember this time last year, when the country was about to default on its loan payments and needed to raise the debt ceiling to enable it to continue paying the interest? The Republicans (and I don't buy into the theory that it's some racist religious extremist faction that has somehow taken over the party - it was the GOP showing how unpatriotic it really is) almost brought the finely-balanced economic structure down by playing political games in Congress. I would expect any gun control measures to be opposed even more vehemently.

    I think the fact that reducing the deficit is less of a determining factor for (the majority of) Americans in deciding who they vote for than whether the candidates have broken any of the ten commandments is indeed terrifying but (even after Kennedy's and Clinton's philandering, Nixon's crookedness and Reagan's brainlessness), by being sworn in as president after stealing an election by vote-rigging, miscounting and illegitimate blocking of masses of votes, W. showed us that (the majority of) Americans don't give a **** about honesty, truth or their constitution - they just want entertainment: more plot twist, more intrigue, more awesomeness. I'm not comparing their nation unfavourably with ours on the day that our Deputy PM has cynically attempted to manipulate the debate and try to avoid facing up to his abandonment of principles and integrity in the run up to his party conference but, as a nation, America is mentally ill.


    I wouldn't mind a read of that if you're so inclined.
     
    #9
  10. happyal

    happyal Active Member

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    Access to firearms is so alien to us in the UK we can not possible comment on it. It’s part of the culture in the US, it’s no necessary wrong or right it’s just different than us.

    I don't think Obama will introduce gun control like we have here because I really don't think that the majority of the US population what it.
     
    #10

  11. Kyle?

    Kyle? New Member

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    Obama has been horribly inept as president, without being likeable. Bush managed to be useless and likeable.

    Unfortunately though, Obama will win, and probably for racial reasons. I don't see the black population of the US voting for Romney.
     
    #11
  12. RoadRunner

    RoadRunner Well-Known Member

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    Sure thing, it might have to wait two or so weeks as the only copy of it is on my portable hard drive which is currently with my teacher.
     
    #12
  13. El_Bando

    El_Bando Can't remember, where was I?
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    If Mit Romney gets elected then there is no hope for anyone in the world. He is a ****ing idiot and will soon start a war most probably in syria. The economy will get worse and this will all effect us. what a tool.
     
    #13
  14. TomTom94

    TomTom94 Well-Known Member

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    Good points all around, genji. They reminded me of a pair of articles I read on Cracked.com, usually a humour website, but they are extremely well-versed and cynical about American politics as well:

    http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-ways-to-spot-b.s.-political-story-in-under-10-seconds_p1
    http://www.cracked.com/funny-6006-u.s.-politics/

    They essentially prove the utter pointlessness of all politics and the terrifying turn democracy has taken. Without wishing to go miles off topic, it angers me that since Blair and New Labour this country is taking a turn for the worse as well; Cameron is an airbrushed, desperate to appeal to the voters nothing man, while Nick Clegg has finally come out and said something sensible (for the first time since the biggest mistake of his political career, joining the coalition) and has been slaughtered for it by the very people who should be supporting his principle (Labour) because he is on "the other side" now. The reason it terrifies me is because unlike in America, where they have a two-party system that is pretty much fixed in place (third-party candidates have little-to-no chance of getting in, the only meaningful contribution by one in recent memory was in depriving Al Gore of quite a few votes in 2000) in this country, if people get fed up of the Conservatives, and Labour, then they have many different places to turn. UKIP. The Socialist Workers' Party. The BNP.

    That said, in America, people tend to switch sides when they get bored of the party currently in power. I'm not sure which is worse. At least in this country we might finally see some change in the political landscape. The fact that George Bush was able to remain in power despite the widespread outrage about Iraq, the voterigging and his general ineptitude (and the same goes for Blair) does not bode well for America, however.
     
    #14
  15. genjigonzales

    genjigonzales Active Member

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    Isn't Iran the most likely place for an all-out assault? The Americanisation of the Persian Gulf could be a real economic stimulus for those of us in the 'coalition of free peoples'.

    I don't mind Obama - I like him well enough considering what his job is. Different strokes, though - I detested Bush. Smarmy, stupid (not dumb, not without guile, just ****ing thick), ludicrously religious, utterly without compassion or sensitivity, he was simply a rich man's oafish kid, aimless and pointless. When someone like that became president, we truly got to see and understand the requisite attributes for the post: a blank canvas - no scruples, no foundation and no conscience. He was utterly detestable in my opinion, though I accept this wasn't a view shared by some Americans.

    I don't think Obama's been inept, either. I think he's just been ineffectual and that's largely down to Congress refusing to work with the White House on anything. It's outrageous how hard they've fought to block everything he does.

    I think it's perfectly justifiable to express an opinion on their gun laws, happyal. They're running at about a massacre a week at the moment and have extremely liberal gun laws so what's not to understand? Right and wrong isn't really the point - it's more cause and effect. It's American business: notwithstanding the billions of dollars arms manufacturers make selling missiles and jet fighters to the rest of the world they still have to make a few bucks selling hand guns to kids and damn the consequences. Look after the nickels and the dollars will look after themselves.

    Roadie: <ok>
     
    #15
  16. happyal

    happyal Active Member

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    Our gun laws are as alien to them as their gun laws are to us. It&#8217;s a cultural thing, they think we are completely crazy for our gun laws and we think they are equally as nuts for their gun laws. We don&#8217;t understand they culture so we have no reference point to discus it.

    I think Obama has been terrible as president, he&#8217;s done absolutely nothing. I don&#8217;t know the whole story on US politics so I don&#8217;t know why he&#8217;s been useless but his record speaks for itself. Our governments since Tony Blair haven&#8217;t been any better, they just haven&#8217;t made any difference, and are only interested in getting a sound bite on the news.
     
    #16
  17. SgtBhaji

    SgtBhaji Well-Known Member

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    You can say the same of British politics too... Though replace same sex marriage bit with something about Cornish pasties.
     
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  18. El_Bando

    El_Bando Can't remember, where was I?
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    Republicans trying to win over women. Democrats trying to win over white men. This says it all about American politics <doh>
     
    #18
  19. Paco Montoya

    Paco Montoya Active Member

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    To be fair to Obama, it is very hard as President to do anything in domestic policy (in comparison to foreign anyway), this is due to a number of reasons.

    +The representatives and senators actually have some sort of spine and will defend the rights of their electors, resulting in lots of pork and it being very difficult for the President to do what he wants.
    +There are many loopholes the President can use in foreign policy (executive agreements etc) but very few in domestic.
    + The US public care a lot more about domestic and would rather let the President do what he wants in foreign but control him in domestic.
    + Party loyalty is much less evident in the US, what defines a democrat varies across the country
    + The US is very resistant to antionwide policies.

    Every time there is an election and a new guy wins, everyone thinks they'll be massive change and upheaval, but in reality it just won't happen.

    Also:http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/z1c9z/i_am_barack_obama_president_of_the_united_states/ :D
     
    #19
  20. genjigonzales

    genjigonzales Active Member

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    Good points, Paco, and thanks for the link - interesting stuff. <ok>

    Here's a less refined approach to Obama's achievements.
     
    #20

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