What is the silver lining?

[zorq]

Here's a silver lining...
They say that only Nixon could have gone to China. Maybe only a wild card like Trump can do something similarly remarkable.

Like... get money out of politics. Or... something... I don't know. But I'm willing to hope for something good in addition to all the bad.

 

[Ford]

Silver lining:

Gun sales might actually slow down. Gun manufacturers stocks might slip. The reasons for stockpiling firearms for a showdown against the gubmint have evaporated. Obama is not going to declare himself dictator, and Hillary isn't going to confiscate all firearms.

 

[Jason Harvestdancer]

Silver lining:

Technology has finally overcome the media gate-keepers of what is considered newsworthy, challenge the official narrative, consume real news and real facts, and threaten the political establishment’s grip on public opinion. There aren't any more "Friday Afternoon Disclosures" which in the old day were overlooked as people got busy over the weekend and then were old news by Monday. No more can the major media tell us what the story is and keep the rest uncovered by not covering it themselves. The media and their political partners have lost control of the narrative.

Silver lining:

The Republican Party is going down. It may not seem that way what with the electoral victory, but this isn't the victory they wanted. Today's conservatives don't conserve anything except their political jobs. The GOP has always been about war and money, and it is exposed as such. They chose neoconservatism over non-interventionism, Wall Street over Main Street, city over the country, and the managerial state in DC over federalism and state’s rights. They chose the Fed over gold, Lockheed Martin over Woolworth, and Goldman Sachs over your Hometown Bank and Trust. They rejoiced in the rise of the 20th-century imperial presidency. They chose supply-side over laissez-faire, Milton Friedman over Mises, tax credits over constitutionalism. They embraced the welfare and regulatory states, instead of making the optimistic case for capitalism and ownership and opportunity. They’ve allowed the Left to cast them as racists and reactionaries. They blessed entitlements just to keep their cushy seats in Congress and their political perks. They chose to nationalize social issues and cede huge amounts of illegal power to the Supreme Court. They chose John McCain and Mitt Romney over Ron Paul.

Silver lining:

Progressive have been exposed as illiberal. The idea that people who disagree with them even exist, much less dare to participate in electoral politics, is an affront to them and should not be allowed! This election made it clear what with the open contempt they had for Trump supporters. Personally I think the comment "basket of deplorables" is what ultimately cost Hillary the election. Progressivism is all about using identity politics to incite group hatred for the advancement of politicians. First with Brexit and now this election, there is talk about how to nullify the votes of people who are so stupid they actually vote the wrong way. Also see a thread on this forum but not this subforum about the Regressive Left. It is all out in the open.

Three silver linings, and the genie won't be put back in the bottle on any of them.

 

[Ford]

Silver lining I just thought of...


Libertarians are still more or less completely irrelevant.

 

[skepticalbip]

..... snip .....

This election made it clear what with the open contempt they had for Trump supporters. Personally I think the comment "basket of deplorables" is what ultimately cost Hillary the election.

..... snip.....

I don't know how much it did but that ad hominem slur did energize those Trump supporters. They proudly adopted it as a badge of honor and began referring to themselves as "deplorables". Such insults quickly loose their sting when they are embraced by the target.

 

[AdamWho]

The Silver Lining is

1. watching republicans try to govern

2. watching "family values" republicans try to explain Trumps values

3. watching millions of true believers not get what they want from the policies (or lack of)

4. watching even further right wing nuts attack Trump for not being right wing enough

5. watching the republican demographic age away and by replaced by "others"

 

[zorq]

They’ve allowed the Left to cast them as racists and reactionaries.

Eh, I take issue with this one. You can't really blame the Dems for the Reps getting called racist. Republicans deliberately courted white southern bigots, former Dixiecrats, after the civil rights movement. Ever since then they consistently used the "States Rights" dog whistle to remind them where they belong. It's the infamous Southern Strategy and they clearly have made no efforts to distance themselves from those voters over the years. Strom Thurmond was buried 13 years ago as a Republican hero and the two biggests planks of Trump's primary campaign involved keeping Mexicans and Muslims out of America. It was a struggle for comedy journalists to even get attendees of the Republican convention to string together the three words "Black lives matter." When states like Texas do their gerrymandering, the use race as a proxy for party affiliation and cram as many minority neighborhoods together into one district so they can dilute out the rest and control more districts. If the Republicans have abandoned their adopted racist base, they're not doing anything to show it.

Silver lining:

Progressive have been exposed as illiberal. The idea that people who disagree with them even exist, much less dare to participate in electoral politics, is an affront to them and should not be allowed! This election made it clear what with the open contempt they had for Trump supporters. Personally I think the comment "basket of deplorables" is what ultimately cost Hillary the election.

You may be right that that comment was one of the stones that broke the camel's back, but I still see it as an accurate description of many of Trump's most enthusiastic supporters starting in the primary. They cheered when he wanted to block ALL muslims from entering the country. Aren't there ANY good muslims out there? At least we can ASSUME some Mexicans are good people... Right? Racists and xenophobes flocked to Trump because his distinguishing comments were racist and xenophobic. These people ARE deplorable.

Progressivism is all about using identity politics to incite group hatred for the advancement of politicians.

That's not the progressivism that I'm familiar with. I think the Republicans have the better grip on the identity politics lever these days. I'll not deny the existence of the Regressive Left, but I don't see them as controlling the Dems.

First with Brexit and now this election, there is talk about how to nullify the votes of people who are so stupid they actually vote the wrong way. Also see a thread on this forum but not this subforum about the Regressive Left. It is all out in the open.

I haven't read that thread, but TSwizzle has been muttering about this a lot in random threads lately too. Is this really a trend or is it just an right wing conspiracy rumor echoing in the chambers lately? "They're rigging the election and going to take away our votes... and don't forget about the FEMA reeducation camps."

 

[Will Wiley]

4 more years of Alec Baldwin.

Anything else?

The Dems might put up a decent candidate next time, rather than one completely out of touch. Rather than a candidate who gets paid millions of dollars by Goldman Sachs and co...to talk then hides what she said.
Do you really think the democratic voter base just shrugged that off?
We could go on....with many other things...but you get the drift

 

[credoconsolans]

4 more years of Alec Baldwin.

Anything else?

The Dems might put up a decent candidate next time, rather than one completely out of touch. Rather than a candidate who gets paid millions of dollars by Goldman Sachs and co...to talk then hides what she said.
Do you really think the democratic voter base just shrugged that off?
We could go on....with many other things...but you get the drift

The Republicans elected a rich candidate who lives in a penthouse in a hotel that he owns. Who inherited his money. Who takes a limo to work. The idea that such a person is 'in touch' with the everyday people is laughable.

The Republicans also elected a rich candidate who never showed us his tax returns. And now he doesn't have to. What is he hiding? The Republicans who elected him don't care.

Apparently being out of touch, rich and hiding things are only matters of concern to Republicans when the candidate is a Democrat.

 

[LordKiran]

Silver lining:

Donald Trump is a titanic liar of biblical proportions. While the things he has said are vile, he has never given me any reason to believe he'll follow through on even one fifth of it.

 

[Sarpedon]

We have the opportunity to fix the Democratic Party.

Earlier, I thought that the whole Superdelagate thing was a good idea, because it was a check on people like Trump from getting nominated.

In retrospect, the all elected delegate system seems to favor those who are best at communicating with the voters. This is probably only one thing out of many that I will have to reassess.

 

[Ford]

I'm going to win a bet with my right wing gun nut friend.

Some years ago he circulated one of those social media posts about how there was a plot afoot to eliminate the 22nd Amendment so that Obama could become President for Life. Ridiculous? Sure. But this is a guy who has a gun safe filled with weapons he's specifically set aside to use in the uprising against Obama's tyrannical dictatorship.

Well I made a bet with him that day.

If on January 21st of 2017, Obama has refused to leave office, I'll pay him the agreed upon sum of money, ask to borrow a pistol, and join him in the fight.

If that doesn't happen, all he has to do is admit he was wrong.


I'd like to think that the other silver lining is that maybe some of the people (like my friend) who predicted everything from tyranny to death panels to gun-grabbing under Obama will realize they were duped. And maybe some of the people who stocked up on guns and ammo and talked about "2nd Amendment solutions" will realize they were duped. Maybe...just maybe...sales of guns, ammo, and gun manufacturers stocks will tumble in the wake of the realization that there's not going to be a civil war.

Probably none of that will happen. But at least I'll have won the easiest bet I ever made.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

I'm going to win a bet with my right wing gun nut friend.

Some years ago he circulated one of those social media posts about how there was a plot afoot to eliminate the 22nd Amendment so that Obama could become President for Life. Ridiculous? Sure. But this is a guy who has a gun safe filled with weapons he's specifically set aside to use in the uprising against Obama's tyrannical dictatorship.

Well I made a bet with him that day.

If on January 21st of 2017, Obama has refused to leave office, I'll pay him the agreed upon sum of money, ask to borrow a pistol, and join him in the fight.

If that doesn't happen, all he has to do is admit he was wrong.


I'd like to think that the other silver lining is that maybe some of the people (like my friend) who predicted everything from tyranny to death panels to gun-grabbing under Obama will realize they were duped. And maybe some of the people who stocked up on guns and ammo and talked about "2nd Amendment solutions" will realize they were duped. Maybe...just maybe...sales of guns, ammo, and gun manufacturers stocks will tumble in the wake of the realization that there's not going to be a civil war.

Probably none of that will happen. But at least I'll have won the easiest bet I ever made.

Ah, but you're overlooking the fact that Trump is constitutionally ineligible to be President due to not being a Muslim. This why Obama waited until the last minute to turn America into an evil Islamic Caliphate. On the one hand, most people wouldn't enjoy having their freedom crushed under a brutal theocratic regime, but on the other hand, it means Donald Trump wouldn't be President. It's a tough call for most to make.

 

[credoconsolans]

I'm going to win a bet with my right wing gun nut friend.

Some years ago he circulated one of those social media posts about how there was a plot afoot to eliminate the 22nd Amendment so that Obama could become President for Life. Ridiculous? Sure. But this is a guy who has a gun safe filled with weapons he's specifically set aside to use in the uprising against Obama's tyrannical dictatorship.

Well I made a bet with him that day.

If on January 21st of 2017, Obama has refused to leave office, I'll pay him the agreed upon sum of money, ask to borrow a pistol, and join him in the fight.

If that doesn't happen, all he has to do is admit he was wrong.


I'd like to think that the other silver lining is that maybe some of the people (like my friend) who predicted everything from tyranny to death panels to gun-grabbing under Obama will realize they were duped. And maybe some of the people who stocked up on guns and ammo and talked about "2nd Amendment solutions" will realize they were duped. Maybe...just maybe...sales of guns, ammo, and gun manufacturers stocks will tumble in the wake of the realization that there's not going to be a civil war.

Probably none of that will happen. But at least I'll have won the easiest bet I ever made.

An aunt bet a Trump supporter - not if he would win or not - but if he would do ANYthing he promised. Even ONE THING. Not try. DO. Within a year. She thinks it's a sure win for her.

 

[Trausti]

I'm going to win a bet with my right wing gun nut friend.

Some years ago he circulated one of those social media posts about how there was a plot afoot to eliminate the 22nd Amendment so that Obama could become President for Life. Ridiculous? Sure. But this is a guy who has a gun safe filled with weapons he's specifically set aside to use in the uprising against Obama's tyrannical dictatorship.

Well I made a bet with him that day.

If on January 21st of 2017, Obama has refused to leave office, I'll pay him the agreed upon sum of money, ask to borrow a pistol, and join him in the fight.

If that doesn't happen, all he has to do is admit he was wrong.


I'd like to think that the other silver lining is that maybe some of the people (like my friend) who predicted everything from tyranny to death panels to gun-grabbing under Obama will realize they were duped. And maybe some of the people who stocked up on guns and ammo and talked about "2nd Amendment solutions" will realize they were duped. Maybe...just maybe...sales of guns, ammo, and gun manufacturers stocks will tumble in the wake of the realization that there's not going to be a civil war.

Probably none of that will happen. But at least I'll have won the easiest bet I ever made.

An aunt bet a Trump supporter - not if he would win or not - but if he would do ANYthing he promised. Even ONE THING. Not try. DO. Within a year. She thinks it's a sure win for her.

Bad bet. Obamacare is toast. The Republican Congress now has a President who'll sign its death warrant post haste.

 

[credoconsolans]

An aunt bet a Trump supporter - not if he would win or not - but if he would do ANYthing he promised. Even ONE THING. Not try. DO. Within a year. She thinks it's a sure win for her.

Bad bet. Obamacare is toast. The Republican Congress now has a President who'll sign its death warrant post haste.

Trausti. There you are. I'm still waiting for you to explain how Trump supporters think Trump's going to bring jobs back to America when his own companies are in China and Thailand. I was waiting for you to explain the logic process for which Trump supporters made their decision considering that.

I'm also still waiting for you to explain how people, whose job requires them to monitor reading comprehension levels, is 'elitist' as you claimed.

Let's hear it.

 

[Trausti]

Bad bet. Obamacare is toast. The Republican Congress now has a President who'll sign its death warrant post haste.

Trausti. There you are. I'm still waiting for you to explain how Trump supporters think Trump's going to bring jobs back to America when his own companies are in China and Thailand. I was waiting for you to explain the logic process for which Trump supporters made their decision considering that.

I'm also still waiting for you to explain how people, whose job requires them to monitor reading comprehension levels, is 'elitist' as you claimed.

Let's hear it.

You'll have to ask Trump supporters who voted for him for those reasons those questions. As to the second part, is that in this thread?

 

[credoconsolans]

Trausti. There you are. I'm still waiting for you to explain how Trump supporters think Trump's going to bring jobs back to America when his own companies are in China and Thailand. I was waiting for you to explain the logic process for which Trump supporters made their decision considering that.

I'm also still waiting for you to explain how people, whose job requires them to monitor reading comprehension levels, is 'elitist' as you claimed.

Let's hear it.

You'll have to ask Trump supporters who voted for him for those reasons those questions. As to the second part, is that in this thread?

I'm asking you because you brought it up in your post.

As for the second part, you never went back after I responded to you.

 

[blastula]

They can only repeal parts of Obamacare without needing to overcome a filibuster.

 

[Trausti]

You'll have to ask Trump supporters who voted for him for those reasons those questions. As to the second part, is that in this thread?

I'm asking you because you brought it up in your post.

As for the second part, you never went back after I responded to you.

Trump probably won't be able to return lost jobs. But unlike presidential candidates of the past few cycles, he actually voiced how trade deals can hurt blue collars workers. That mere acknowledgement probably went a long way for those people.