"Are We Not Entertained?"

[Vēritās]

I've come to the conclusion that America has become the exact stereotype that so many in Europe and South America have painted us as. All we care about as a society is being entertained. We no longer stand for principles when it comes to politics. At the end of the day all that matters is that we have fodder to gossip about, whether good or bad. But bad makes for good TV.

I remember the Republican excitement when Ronald Reagan - a damned Hollywood actor whose only resume including pretending to be whatever he was paid to be - ran for President. This guy literally went on television and encouraged people to smoke after the tobacco industry paid him to. I also remember listening to Rush Limbaugh talk about trying to get hyper-capitalist Arnold Schwarzenegger into politics. So it isn't really surprising that Donald Trump, who was the star for 12 years on the Apprentice, suddenly became branded as this business genius that "gets things done." People can stomped on their own "Christian" principles and turned a blind eye to this guy's horrendous record of lies, corruption and moral depravity. And now they're worshipping Elon Musk for the same reasons.

The only thing I think the Democrats can do at this point is to follow their playbook and play dirty just the same. Stop advertising their strategy to the world for the Right to preemptively discredit. I really do wish the conspiracy theorists were right and there was a secret society of Democrats trying to do all of the crazy crap they claim. But at the end of the day, every accusation is a confession with these folks. Democrats need to start investing in podcasts, social media, tik tok, and point by point debunking of so many of the right wing's BS.

I was sickened by the fact that more than 40% of Trump's campaign ads were nothing more than an appeal to ignorance and bigotry, complaining that Kamala Harris "Supports using your tax dollars to pay for transgender surgery in our prisons." This is all lies, all she said is that she would follow the law as it currently exists. I mean so many mistakes were made in this campaign and I'm sick of hearing about how great it was done. I would countered that ad with an ad highlighting all of the transgendered surgeries that were done during Trump. All of the Americans who were killed by illegal immigrants under Trump, etc. Because the perception is that this stuff is NEW and that it ONLY happens under Biden/Harris.

This Kumbaya approach "I'll be a President for all Americans" isn't what voters want to hear. That may have worked 30 years ago or even in our pre-Trump political world, but today people treat politics like team sports and they want to be on the winning side. MAGA morons never care about facts regarding immigration, transgendered, or inflation. They just go along with the powers that be in right wing propaganda that fills them with so much anger, fear and hatred of everyone else that doesn't agree with them.

[Some Schmo]

Along these same lines, I've come to the conclusion that America is all about false store fronts. We are all about the show and care little for substance. One of the main reasons I became an NFL fan was because of the broadcast production quality. America puts on a fantastic show. The problem is that at the end of the day, that's all we are: a show. We talk a great game but fail on fundamental issues.

The fact that so many Americans were duped by this moron is a testament to the vapid sentiments of American culture.

[Vēritās]

I think Democrats need to urge Mark Cuban to run in 2028. A celebrity who is in fact everything Trump only pretends to be. The Apprentice marketed Trump's brand as a business genius for a decade, and it doesn't seem to matter how many companies he bankrupts, people still have that image of him.

I also think the Harris campaign failed to hammer home the fact that Trump is a convicted felon, and we are a nation of laws. How the fuq can the Right pretend to support the rule of law by electing a criminal who is awaiting sentencing on dozens of charges? They literally saved his ass from prison; we already know he's guilty of crimes.

[Some Schmo]

I think Democrats need to urge Mark Cuban to run in 2028.

Unfortunately, I agree. It's one way to counter the shallow, insane priorities of Americans.