"Why are the polls SO CLOSE?"

[Mac1958]

Robert Reich?

Yes, a partisan lefty.

Clearly you don't understand the thread. That's okay.

 

[Harpy Eagle]

What you complain about are MAGAs who stubbornly refuse to go along with your “progressive” aka leftwing agenda

We are standing in the way of what libs want to do and that pisses you off

What I point out are MAGAs that worship a human being and put that one man before the country.

But hey, I do not blame you rank and file MAGA members, you are just following your programing.

In the book "Everything is Fucked" my Mark Manson, he lays out the steps to create your own religion. And it is as if Trump has read the book and used it a blue print.

Step One...Sell Hope to the Hopeless
Step Two....Choose your faith
Step Three...Preemptively Invalidate all criticism or outside questioning.
Step Four...Ritual Sacrifice for Dummies
Step Five...Promise Heaven, Deliver Hell
Step Six...Prophet for Profit.

 

[Polishprince]

The answer is that the polls are fake.

Polls are sponsored by news organizations and broadcast networks, and a real race draws viewers to political programming and as a result, money to buy campaign spots on TV and radio.

A close match really can gin up interest.

 

[the watcher]

The polls have to be managed to maintain the legend that voting is relevant, and YOU may be the one that saves us. It tries to prop up the 2 party in a fight of good vs evil scenario, and the numbers kept up to hide the falling turnouts due to cardboard candidates. Think not so much an attempt to reflect real attitudes as much as an attempt to sway voters into voting for the "winner". The same dichotomy as you waste your vote if you vote for a third party. Where do you think that came from? It is more modeled on professional wrestling, where the players throw each other around and spin each other for 20 minutes until the big reveal. No matter which one wins, the fans remain loyal to their champion and will buy more tickets.

 

[Mac1958]

To be fair the Democrats over 35 years have won every single popular presidential election that didnt involve 9/11. Over the last two decades it's been by millions and millions.

Biden +7M
Clinton +3M
Obama +13M over two elections

So it's hard to say it is their policies which poll very well. The issues are 1. the electoral college and 2. political marketing, not substance. Hillary did a poor job campaigning electorally otherwise we'd be looking decades of democratic white houses.

Still, the democrats have not figured out how to combat the nonsense noise of the right. As for the areas you think the democrats go to far on consider this: The right gets so aggressive demonizing outlier marginalized communities the democrats are forced to stand up for them regardless of their niche.

Well, one of the behaviors the parties share is this consistent over-reacting, over-compensating, over-correcting, whenever the opportunity presents itself. The immediate impulse after a win is to claim a "mandate", no matter how close the election was. One of the many things I don't understand about politics is how the parties think they're going to get away with it.

And now that we're so tribal, it's only gotten worse. Zero-sum just seems to me to be a stupid way to approach complex problems.

 

[Mac1958]

MAGA is the result of the schism within America more so than to blame for it.

40 years of purposely dividing the country and telling each side the other side is the enemy is bound to bring about something like the MAGA movement.

And, bingo.

Now it's all just feeding on itself and accelerating.

 

[Mac-7]

What I point out are MAGAs that worship a human being and put that one man before the country.

But hey, I do not blame you rank and file MAGA members, you are just following your programing.

In the book "Everything is Fucked" my Mark Manson, he lays out the steps to create your own religion. And it is as if Trump has read the book and used it a blue print.

Step One...Sell Hope to the Hopeless
Step Two....Choose your faith
Step Three...Preemptively Invalidate all criticism or outside questioning.
Step Four...Ritual Sacrifice for Dummies
Step Five...Promise Heaven, Deliver Hell
Step Six...Prophet for Profit.

So, if I agree with you I am just being sensible

But if I disagree with you I am controlled by a cult?

Thats the usual lib game of heads you win, and tails we lose

 

[Votto]

I sat through a lot of the Robert Reich video below to see whether, at any point, he would stop looking outward and start looking inward. I stuck around for about half of it.

So, "why are the polls so close?" Some of the theories they cover:

• The polls are wrong
• The media is propping up Trump to keep it close and get views and clicks
• People are tuning out the news and facts because they're overwhelmed and exhausted
• The public doesn't know Harris well enough so they'll take the devil I know
• People respond to fear than to "nice messages"
• Harris has not done a good enough job of defining herself
• They don't understand what a madman Trump is
• Voters are not considering their own economic self interest
• Mysogyny
• Racism

I've watched many of these conversations, and I have yet to see a Democrat ask "could it be US, and more specifically, the way we advocate for our positions? Do we go too far? Do we overreach? Have we made ourselves unattractive in some way? If so, how? How can we change our approach (not our ideals, but the way we advocate for them) to make ourselves more attractive?"

When a party loses, the last place it looks is the mirror. Personally, I think (and I was warning about this for years here) that some of the tactics the Dems have deployed (particularly the way they've weaponized PC and Identity Politics) have played a significant role in the rise and growth and staying power of Trumpism.

I think you hit the nail on the head with the last bit about Misogyny and racism. Your candidate Harris is so perfect that is really all it could be. I would spend the rest of the election cycle hammering Americans for being bigots if I were you, but that is just me.

 

[Mac1958]

I think you hit the nail on the head with the last bit about Misogyny and racism. Your candidate Harris is so perfect that is really all it could be. I would spend the rest of the election cycle hammering Americans for being bigots if I were you, but that is just me.

I'm voting third party.

I don't know what's wrong with you, but I can't help you. Sorry.

 

[citygator]

Well, one of the behaviors the parties share is this consistent over-reacting, over-compensating, over-correcting, whenever the opportunity presents itself. The immediate impulse after a win is to claim a "mandate", no matter how close the election was. One of the many things I don't understand about politics is how the parties think they're going to get away with it.

And now that we're so tribal, it's only gotten worse. Zero-sum just seems to me to be a stupid way to approach complex problems.

I'll grant you the margins are slim to claim mandate. Biden, who won by 7M, I feel doesnt get credit for representing all Americans. I cant remember a single time he called Alabama or West Virginia a shit hole like the right does with blue areas. I have faith that Harris will continue that as well.

The border bill is a prime example of how it isnt both sides. Same with the infrastructure bill and the chips bill. Democrats compromise with a few republicans while the republicans act like babies unwilling to govern from the center.

 

[Mac1958]

I do wish the population of people on this board who could just have a normal, adult conversation could be higher.

 

[Mac1958]

I'll grant you the margins are slim to claim mandate. Biden, who won by 7M, I feel doesnt get credit for representing all Americans. I cant remember a single time he called Alabama or West Virginia a shit hole like the right does with blue areas. I have faith that Harris will continue that as well.

The border bill is a prime example of how it isnt both sides. Same with the infrastructure bill and the chips bill. Democrats compromise with a few republicans while the republicans act like babies unwilling to govern from the center.

At this moment in our history, the MAGA GQP is off the rails, it's terribly unwell, and it's a more destructive force. Clearly.

But I think the Dems played a significant role in their rise. And the fact that the GQP is worse doesn't mean the Dems can't look in the mirror, too.

 

[Mac-7]

I'm voting third party.

I don't know what's wrong with you, but I can't help you. Sorry.

Mac1958 is a loyal harris apologist

In 2020 he made the mistake of admitting his vote for biden

But he wont make that mistake this time

 

[citygator]

I'm voting third party.

I don't know what's wrong with you, but I can't help you. Sorry.

You do what you want but if Trump isnt an sufficient threat to move you to select an alternative vs an independent protest vote i dont know what election you are watching. See my signature.

 

[citygator]

At this moment in our history, the MAGA GQP is off the rails, it's terribly unwell, and it's a more destructive force. Clearly.

But I think the Dems played a significant role in their rise. And the fact that the GQP is worse doesn't mean the Dems can't look in the mirror, too.

Measure of degrees.

 

[Mac1958]

You do what you want but if Trump isnt an sufficient threat to move you to select an alternative vs an independent protest vote i dont know what election you are watching. See my signature.

It's a no-win situation for me. One party has sold its soul to a sick con man, the other party created the conditions for it to happen, and it would clearly do it again if back in power.

I understand your vote.

 

[Captain Caveman]

I sat through a lot of the Robert Reich video below to see whether, at any point, he would stop looking outward and start looking inward. I stuck around for about half of it.

So, "why are the polls so close?" Some of the theories they cover:

• The polls are wrong
• The media is propping up Trump to keep it close and get views and clicks
• People are tuning out the news and facts because they're overwhelmed and exhausted
• The public doesn't know Harris well enough so they'll take the devil I know
• People respond to fear than to "nice messages"
• Harris has not done a good enough job of defining herself
• They don't understand what a madman Trump is
• Voters are not considering their own economic self interest
• Mysogyny
• Racism

I've watched many of these conversations, and I have yet to see a Democrat ask "could it be US, and more specifically, the way we advocate for our positions? Do we go too far? Do we overreach? Have we made ourselves unattractive in some way? If so, how? How can we change our approach (not our ideals, but the way we advocate for them) to make ourselves more attractive?"

When a party loses, the last place it looks is the mirror. Personally, I think (and I was warning about this for years here) that some of the tactics the Dems have deployed (particularly the way they've weaponized PC and Identity Politics) have played a significant role in the rise and growth and staying power of Trumpism.

"Why are the polls SO CLOSE?"

Poor education keeps the Democrat vote up

 

[Grumblenuts]

you are just following your programing.

Your spelling ("programing") prompted me to investigate so I Googled it. And.. still no idea which is correct ("programming" or "programing"). Google seems to be at war with itself and Wikipedia. A quiet war. Admittedly. But war nonetheless. A full scale spelling crisis looms on the horizon.. Stay frosty..

 

[Mac1958]

This pushback, by the way, is global. And relatively successful.

EU rocked as far-right party founded by Nazi WW2 veterans storms to victory

Herbert Kickl's Freedom Party is on for a huge victory in Austria according to early projections.

www.express.co.uk

 

[JoeB131]

I've watched many of these conversations, and I have yet to see a Democrat ask "could it be US, and more specifically, the way we advocate for our positions? Do we go too far? Do we overreach? Have we made ourselves unattractive in some way? If so, how? How can we change our approach (not our ideals, but the way we advocate for them) to make ourselves more attractive?"

When a party loses, the last place it looks is the mirror. Personally, I think (and I was warning about this for years here) that some of the tactics the Dems have deployed (particularly the way they've weaponized PC and Identity Politics) have played a significant role in the rise and growth and staying power of Trumpism.

Oh, look, Vichy Mac is still whining about this eight years later.

Trump didn't win in 2016 because he did any better with White folks than Romney or McCain. He won because too many pompous ass idiots voted for third parties because they didn't like Hillary, and the polls all said she had it in the bag.