2022 Midterm Thread

[CastletonSnob]

I mean, I expect the worst candidates to win in my state of Texas. but the fact that Lake, Walker and Oz are favored to win their respective races confounds me.

[Spork3245]

Listening to Jon Stewart’s podcast, one of the writers for his show described the Georgia senate race as “CRT vs CTE”… he wins for political comment of the year so far  

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

[CitizenVectron]

Happy Last Day of Semi-Functioning Government for the Entire Future of the USA Day.

[Mr.Vic20]

Today is my daughter's first chance to vote! We are taking her to the polling station after work today. 

[CitizenVectron]

Republicans sue to disqualify mail ballots in swing states - The Washington Post

WWW.WASHINGTONPOST.COM

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The lawsuits coincide with a systemic effort by GOP leaders to persuade voters to cast ballots in person, not absentee.

 

Quote

Republican officials and candidates in at least three battleground states are pushing to disqualify thousands of mail ballots after urging their own supporters to vote on Election Day, in what critics are calling a concerted attempt at partisan voter suppression.
 

In Pennsylvania, the state Supreme Court has agreed with the Republican National Committee that election officials should not count ballots on which the voter neglected to put a date on the outer envelope — even in cases when the ballots arrive before Election Day. Thousands of ballots have been set aside as a result, enough to swing a close race.

 

Quote

In Michigan, Kristina Karamo, the Republican nominee for secretary of state, sued the top election official in Detroit last month, seeking to toss absentee ballots not cast in person with an ID, even though that runs contrary to state requirements. When asked in a recent court hearing, Karamo’s lawyer declined to say why the suit targets Detroit, a heavily Democratic, majority-Black city, and not the entire state.
 

 

Quote

Albert said legal battles over mail ballot eligibility have the potential to delay results and even change outcomes. In some cases, the disputes could wind up before the U.S. Supreme Court.

 

[TheLeon]

Felt good to vote for not-JD Vance

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

The main question in my mind at this point is whether this (potential) drubbing will be so very severe as to compel Biden to re-consider seeking re-election.

[chakoo]

Good luck Merica 

 

[legend]

Can't wait to measure what my hope for humanity is after today.

[Jason]

[Spork3245]

[CitizenVectron]

13 minutes ago, legend said:

Can't wait to measure what my hope for humanity is after today.

 

I have to keep reminding myself that human history has, for the most part, been a series of long periods of absolute disaster and horror, and that people have survived and lived through it. That's not to downplay the depressive reality of forward progress halting or regressing (because it is depressing), but to acknowledge that the retraction of rights, justice, and overall fairness in society (not to say it's actually all that fair) doesn't mean an end to everything good. I will revert to my genetic Slavic nihilistic heritage and remind myself that life is a series of challenges and disasters and your only option is to live through them and then die.

 

But it's still gut-wrenching. 

[Chris-]

Going to the climbing gym to get a good session in then picking up some Chinese takeout to have while the results pour in, lfg boys

[TUFKAK]

28 minutes ago, legend said:

Can't wait to measure what my hope for humanity is after today.

Human history continued after the Roman Empire fell. 

[Spork3245]

6 minutes ago, Chris- said:

Going to the climbing gym to get a good session in then picking up some Chinese takeout to have while the results pour in, lfg boys

 

Get some pork roll to celebrate your new NJ Senator in PA

 

Spoiler

God help us

 

[TUFKAK]

19 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

 

I have to keep reminding myself that human history has, for the most part, been a series of long periods of absolute disaster and horror, and that people have survived and lived through it. That's not to downplay the depressive reality of forward progress halting or regressing (because it is depressing), but to acknowledge that the retraction of rights, justice, and overall fairness in society (not to say it's actually all that fair) doesn't mean an end to everything good. I will revert to my genetic Slavic nihilistic heritage and remind myself that life is a series of challenges and disasters and your only option is to live through them and then die.

 

But it's still gut-wrenching. 

 

[legend]

23 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

 

I have to keep reminding myself that human history has, for the most part, been a series of long periods of absolute disaster and horror, and that people have survived and lived through it. That's not to downplay the depressive reality of forward progress halting or regressing (because it is depressing), but to acknowledge that the retraction of rights, justice, and overall fairness in society (not to say it's actually all that fair) doesn't mean an end to everything good. I will revert to my genetic Slavic nihilistic heritage and remind myself that life is a series of challenges and disasters and your only option is to live through them and then die.

 

But it's still gut-wrenching. 

 

7 minutes ago, TUFKAK said:

Human history continued after the Roman Empire fell. 

 

 

All true, but unfortunately, unlike the past, humanity is uniquely equipped in this era to wipe ourselves out or seriously damage ourselves. Big stumbles now have the potential for far more permanent damage. So if we fall too far now, we might be in for a much bigger world hurt. One which is much more tragic given our potential to be so much better than we are.

[Uaarkson]

In all honesty, we shouldn’t have even made it THIS far without nuking ourselves! At this point I’m just thankful to have heat and electricity.

[TUFKAK]

6 minutes ago, legend said:

 

 

 

All true, but unfortunately, unlike the past, humanity is uniquely equipped in this era to wipe ourselves out or seriously damage ourselves. Big stumbles now have the potential for far more permanent damage. So if we fall too far now, we might be in for a much bigger world hurt. One which is much more tragic given our potential to be so much better than we are.

I understand the destructive potential all too well of the US military, I just can’t see this being the end of the human story. We survived the Younger Dryas after all my friend.

 

Control what you can, if it becomes too much the gods gifted us whiskey. I’ll be partaking very soon, and thinking back to the time I wandered Gortys; fitting memory for this day.

[Uaarkson]

Folks, try to maintain some historical perspective here. Is MUH DUMOCRISY really in worse shape now than it was in the 1860s? The country has survived harder times.

[legend]

1 minute ago, TUFKAK said:

I understand the destructive potential all too well of the US military, I just can’t see this being the end of the human story. We survived the Younger Dryas after all my friend.

 

Control what you can, if the it becomes too much the gods gifted us whiskey.

 

[TUFKAK]

1 minute ago, Uaarkson said:

Folks, try to maintain some historical perspective here. Is MUH DUMOCRISY really in worse shape now than it was in the 1860s? The country has survived harder times.

1860? No… 1857 though.

[SaysWho?]

4 minutes ago, Uaarkson said:

In all honesty, we shouldn’t have even made it THIS far without nuking ourselves! At this point I’m just thankful to have heat and electricity.

And soon, God of War Ragnarok.

[Uaarkson]

I’m just saying. The doomerism is starting to get a little tiring.

[TUFKAK]

2 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

And soon, God of War Ragnarok.

Shit I still need to beat Forbidden West!

[TUFKAK]

Just now, Uaarkson said:

I’m just saying. The doomerism is starting to get a little tiring.

😂

 

this is why I drink tbh

[SaysWho?]

2 minutes ago, Uaarkson said:

I’m just saying. The doomerism is starting to get a little tiring.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

4 minutes ago, Uaarkson said:

Folks, try to maintain some historical perspective here. Is MUH DUMOCRISY really in worse shape now than it was in the 1860s? The country has survived harder times.

comparisons to the civil war era are not great for one

 

for two, jim crow lasted from the end of reconstruction (to put a nice bow on it, 1876) until the civil rights era in ~1964. 88 years. competitive authoritarianism is surprisingly durable 

 

the country is probably fine, but the ability to meaningfully change the government through peaceful means is getting far more limited. just see Wisconsin for what is in store. roughly 50/50 state with a republican supermajority in the legislature. 

[mclumber1]

While some of you may fear what the future has to bring civilization, I myself can't wait until service guarantees citizenship.

[Uaarkson]

3 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

comparisons to the civil war era are not great for one

 

for two, jim crow lasted from the end of reconstruction (to put a nice bow on it, 1876) until the civil rights era in ~1964. 88 years. competitive authoritarianism is surprisingly durable 

 

the country is probably fine, but the ability to meaningfully change the government through peaceful means is getting far more limited. just see Wisconsin for what is in store. roughly 50/50 state with a republican supermajority in the legislature. 

Right. The direction we’re headed in is very concerning, but this whole “end of American democracy” thing is hyperbolic.

[Ominous]

1 hour ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

The main question in my mind at this point is whether this (potential) drubbing will be so very severe as to compel Biden to re-consider seeking re-election.

 

We can only hope.

[Firewithin]

28 minutes ago, Uaarkson said:

I’m just saying. The doomerism is starting to get a little tiring.

is it doomerism when bad things keep happening though?

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

4 minutes ago, Ominous said:

 

We can only hope.

 

The problem is that the Democratic "bench" genuinely does appear to be relatively thin.

 

As a party, the Democrats appear to do a pretty piss-poor job of elevating "rising stars" to genuine positions of prominence.

[Guest]

I’m curious, do you guys think about the state of affairs in the country regularly throughout the day? This place is just about the only place where I discuss any of these matters these days. I find that very few people IRL spend much time talking about such things and it certainly doesn’t seem to mentally and emotionally consume them as I often see it does here.