Amy Coney Barrett

[What?]

Originally Posted by Benzgirl

My father is a life-long Republican but saw through Trump's lies in 2016 and voted for HRC. He woke me up this morning to tell me Trump tested positive for COVID and my father hates the telephone so it must have been very important to him. I guess he falls into that 10% of Republicans that Sallie quoted as not supporting Trump, but he is highly educated and still running his consulting business at age 88.

Here is a breakdown of the Republicans in my family.

The Ohio and Georgia Republicans are all voting for Biden except one question mark. He won't discuss how he is voting but his wife put a Biden sign in their front yard and he hasn't removed it.
The Texas/Colorado Republican family members are...well...Texas Republicans and made their money from oil. I don't need to ask how they plan to vote but one has said she is sitting out this election because she doesn't like either candidate.
The Florida Republicans are voting for Biden because they are in the healthcare field (one is an MD and the other a CNP) and see first-hand how Trump mishandled COVID.

Again, not a good cross-section since it's just my family and about one-half of them are Democrats who vote country over party. Only my personal situation but I'm sure at least one new member will become agressives over this post.

I do not know if I am one of the new members to whom the last sentence was directed, but I will take the bait to say that I am sure that everyone has policies that are more important to them than others and I encourage them to vote in their self interest. I have a first cousin-in-law who may be getting a divorce because she cannot get over the fact that her wife is voting for Trump. Her PhD wife is doing so because she has weighed the pros and cons and realizes that her LGBTQ rights are not in real danger but the fears of street crime and socialism (the thing that resulted in the death of her great grandparents) are the key issues for her.

On the other hand, I know several Republicans in my super blue state who are just simply not voting because the options are so bad. I was almost among their ranks 4 years ago. I find both of our options terrible, it is just a matter of choosing the one that YOU consider less terrible.

[Benzgirl]

Originally Posted by What?

I do not know if I am one of the new members to whom the last sentence was directed, but I will take the bait to say that I am sure that everyone has policies that are more important to them than others and I encourage them to vote in their self interest. I have a first cousin-in-law who may be getting a divorce because she cannot get over the fact that her wife is voting for Trump. Her PhD wife is doing so because she has weighed the pros and cons and realizes that her LGBTQ rights are not in real danger but the fears of street crime and socialism (the thing that resulted in the death of her great grandparents) are the key issues for her.

On the other hand, I know several Republicans in my super blue state who are just simply not voting because the options are so bad. I was almost among their ranks 4 years ago. I find both of our options terrible, it is just a matter of choosing the one that YOU consider less terrible.

No but while your "high fives" were annoying, the posts right out of Russian propaganda from another were bat shit crazy.
BTW...socialism in the United States is a scare tactic I would expect anyone with a college degree to see through.

[What?]

Originally Posted by Benzgirl

No but while your "high fives" were annoying, the posts right out of Russian propaganda from another were bat shit crazy.
BTW...socialism in the United States is a scare tactic I would expect anyone with a college degree to see through.

Agree to disagree. I am, if I do say so myself, a pretty well educated and informed person with a T-14 diploma on my wall and a bar card parked in my wallet. Wow, I even kinda hate myself for writing that.

Anywhoo, I share her concerns about socialism. I agree that reasonable minds may disagree about the urgency of this concern. However, the Democratic primary results (pre South Carolina) and nightly news are evidence that lots of Americans are very unhappy with their place in society and looking for immediate, radical change.

Moreover, reasonable minds can also agree that this really isn’t going to be a Biden presidency given all evidence pointing to cognitive decline. This unknown in who is running the show leaves me little idea of what to expect during a Biden presidency. Even a remote possibility is too great for me. Again, this is not among my primary concerns, but it is upsetting to me that this word is being thrown about in conversations with any frequency, especially by many who have no idea what actual socialism looks like and who are just looking for the next cult of personality* to worship.

*And yes, I get it that the same can be said for many Trump supporters. There are total morons on both sides of the aisle.

Lastly, I look forward to the day that I can throw a high five your way. I believe people who make well reasoned, yet unpopular, points deserve them. It takes guts (even from behind a keyboard) to stand up for opposing points of view. While I disagree with some of Ronaldo’s previous statements, the Titchou related posts and his reverence for Trump (sorry, Ronaldo, Titchou is a greekchat icon who deserves better and Trump ain’t great) his knowledge level is beyond impressive. Even though you have blocked him, I hope you read his exchange with Kevin because it is what was previously lacking in this thread.

[bevinpiphi]

Originally Posted by What?

Moreover, reasonable minds can also agree that this really isn’t going to be a Biden presidency given all evidence pointing to cognitive decline. This unknown in who is running the show leaves me little idea of what to expect during a Biden presidency. Even a remote possibility is too great for me. Again, this is not among my primary concerns, but it is upsetting to me that this word is being thrown about in conversations with any frequency, especially by many who have no idea what actual socialism looks like and who are just looking for the next cult of personality* to worship.

I've seen this comment from many of my moderate to conservative friends about Biden, and from my liberal to progressive friends about Trump, and I'll give the gentle warning here like I did to them - playing at "someone else is pulling the strings" is, unknowingly, playing into long standing anti-Semitic tropes, and such accusations should be levied with great caution.

[What?]

Originally Posted by bevinpiphi

I've seen this comment from many of my moderate to conservative friends about Biden, and from my liberal to progressive friends about Trump, and I'll give the gentle warning here like I did to them - playing at "someone else is pulling the strings" is, unknowingly, playing into long standing anti-Semitic tropes, and such accusations should be levied with great caution.

Shabbat shalom.

Not at all my intention, I am nothing if not direct and have demonstrated a willingness to be vilified for speaking my mind. Moreover, my mom would disown me.

This is not the case of a typical presidential candidate. This guy has demonstrated clear signs of cognitive decline. He does not present the way he did just 4 years ago when there were rumblings that he did not run due to Obama’s absolute lack of confidence in his ability to do so/ refusal to endorse. I have never made comments akin to who is pulling the strings prior to Biden, a guy who has had his minders and wife literally pull him away to stop his belligerent outbursts on multiple occasions.

[ForrestGrump]

Originally Posted by Ronaldo9

You are correct that this can be a sort-of dog whistle for "ze Jews!", however, in the way What? presented it, it does not strike me that way at all. The concern generally originates when a healthy person is alleged to be controlled by "unknown masters."

In this case, What? was saying that she would want to know which of Biden's known advisors is assisting him given observations of mental impairment. That would not be unlike saying "who was running the show when Woodrow Wilson was incapacitated?" which is a reasonable question. If I were a 9th grade social studies teacher and my student asked me I would just tell him we believe he relied heavily on Ellen Wilson. I wouldn't send him to the guidance counsellor to discipline him for his subliminal propagation of anti-Semitism in the class.

Anyway, just my perspective.

Um, no competent 9th grade social studies teacher who actually knew what they were talking about would tell a student that he or she believed ELLEN Wilson was "running the show when Woodrow Wilson was incapacitated."

[33girl]

Originally Posted by ForrestGrump

Um, no competent 9th grade social studies teacher who actually knew what they were talking about would tell a student that he or she believed ELLEN Wilson was "running the show when Woodrow Wilson was incapacitated."

T’would have been a mite hard, considering she was dead.

Re the British spellings...decadence/Pip, ITY???

[Titchou]

Originally Posted by Ronaldo9

. I wouldn't send him to the guidance counsellor to discipline him for his subliminal propagation of anti-Semitism in the class.

Anyway, just my perspective.

Bingo! British spelling of the word.

[TriDeltaSallie]

I check out Rod Dreher's blog a few times a month to gauge what is going on in Never Trumper or Almost Never Trumper land. His commenters tend to be all over the place.

He often shares comments and emails on his posts. I thought these were instructive.

Per your post, I had the exact same thought about Trump voters and pollsters after hanging out the other day with several couples we get together with every few weeks. It was at our house and it was clear people felt “safe” — and somewhat to my chagrin that meant the conversation immediately turned political. Every one of them is a Trump voter, but it was crystal clear none of them would talk to a pollster in a million years. All expressed a deep distrust that ANYONE outside a very tight knit circle of trust could be relied upon not to use information about their politics to harm them. They basically took it for granted that if they gave politically incorrect answers to a pollster their name was going on a list that would be used by the left to take punitive action against them in the future.

These are all pretty successful, solid folks, who I know from experience would give you the shirt off their back – the kind of people who would typically be defenders and sustainers of the institutions that have helped give them a pretty good life. But their level of social trust is now basically zero. It’s disturbing, but I get it.

and

Apropos of what you say about formerly Trump-hesitant people losing their hesitation, I relay to you the following personal anecdote.

Last night I was watching the Spectator’s recent YouTube video analyzing the state of the election (recommended, by the way). My wife was doing paperwork in the same room and half paying attention. Afterward, she said to me, “Are you going to vote for Trump? I think we have to.” And she spent the next few minutes trying to convince me to vote for him.

Here’s the thing about that. I didn’t vote for Trump (or Clinton) in ‘16. I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Like you, I’m a social and religious conservative who generally thinks that Trump’s manifest character flaws and general nuttiness disqualify him for high office. I’m increasingly inclined to vote for him this year, but I remain undecided. But my wife… she went to [elite New England boarding school] and then to [super-liberal Northern college], where she majored in fine arts. She has a graduate degree in [a psychology-related field], and went to Burning Man multiple times and loved it. She’s not a very political person, but if I had to pin her down, I would call her a Rockefeller Republican: leave the family trust alone, no capital gains tax, and social libertarianism. Sort of the opposite of me, now that I think about it. She’s also a survivor of sexual violence, which inclines her to the #BelieveWomen position. But the point is: the events of this summer have shifted her into the position of thinking it is urgently important to vote for Trump, and she spent some minutes last night trying to convince me of this urgency.

I don’t need much convincing. But it was a personal mundus inversus moment for me, illustrating what you talk about in your post – how the Left is driving erstwhile normies, and even some elite New Englander types (QED) into Trump’s camp. I’m so used to my wife being the politically moderating voice in our marriage, pulling me from my quasi-integralist orbit back towards the center. But this summer has really shaken things up. Biden may still win, but that won’t prove that our media institutions have harmonized themselves with reality, or understood the electorate, to a greater extent than they did in ‘16.

Taken from this post: Soft Totalitarianism & Anti-Biden Ad

Stories don't prove anything, but they can add to formulating an overall understanding of what is happening.

[Benzgirl]

Still "Shootem' Up Sallie".

[TriDeltaSallie]

Originally Posted by Benzgirl

Still "Shootem' Up Sallie".

I'm not sure what you mean, but I'm tired of living in a culture where people are afraid to speak up and so I spoke up.

I don't want to live in a culture where university professors have to disown their own peer-reviewed published research out of fear of the mob (Michigan State researcher Joseph Cesario).

I don't want to live in a culture where a young cyclist makes one harmless tweet supporting the POTUS and is immediately cancelled and removed from his racing team (Quinn Simmons).

I don't want to live in a culture where professors and students fear each other on a moment to moment basis, knowing if they say or do one thing that is even slightly perceived as wrong they can lose everything (USC professor Greg Patton).

And on and on and on.

I despise cancel culture because of where it will take us. So that's why I spoke up. I hope other people will here as well.

That's it for me. I appreciate the opportunity to speak without being attacked. Truly.

[What?]

Originally Posted by Ronaldo9

Agreed. We should all have the ability to express ourselves without fear of being attacked or called names. Appreciate you, TriDeltaSallie!

THIS! Sorry, Benzgirl... high five to Sallie!

[What?]

Originally Posted by Benzgirl

You and your alt-right partner are newbies. You won't get it.

I am neither Alt right nor a newbie.

This account dates back a year and my main account much longer than that. Wanna test my knowledge- sequin pantyhose, Carnation Nation, Titchou is a canner, everyone is appalled by Alpha Phi (including Jen the Alpha Phi writer), I have read every word Clemson Girl has ever written dating back to recruitment when her choices were Theta and ADPi to date where she is attending law school at an institution I will not name as I can’t remember if I deduced it or if she named it, I remember the craziness that is Longhorn Mom from those long deleted posts and am expecting a $hitshow today now that she is back.

I don’t know why I am bothering. Your MO appears to be relying upon ad hominem attacks.

[TriDeltaSallie]

Originally Posted by What?

I have a first cousin-in-law who may be getting a divorce because she cannot get over the fact that her wife is voting for Trump. Her PhD wife is doing so because she has weighed the pros and cons and realizes that her LGBTQ rights are not in real danger but the fears of street crime and socialism (the thing that resulted in the death of her great grandparents) are the key issues for her.

That is a fascinating story.

There are a lot of relationships under a lot of strain in this country.