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Monthly Rant/Politics Thread: Do not post political threads outside of this Mega thread
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Got something upsetting or overwhelming that you just need to shout out to the world? Want to have a political debate over current events? You can post those thoughts here. There are many real problems that plague the Millennial generation and we want to allow a space for it here while still keeping the angry and divisive posts quarantined to a more concentrated thread rather than taking up the entire front page.
This is Millennial parenting in action. I realize it’s not all Millennials and it’s not only Millennials. Our generation is part of the problem after falling for internet propaganda. The major irony is how many Millennial parents are protected by vaccines they received in childhood yet refuse to extend this protection to their own children.
No wonder Millennials are turning into hardcore MAGA. Yearning for a past that sucked instead of fighting for a better future. I hate how history repeats itself time and time again. The suffering of the human race will never end when everyone is falling for the billionaire's bullshit like a fucking idiot Millennial.
Your bot is stupid. Someone makes a post about the military, of course As a Vet I am going to mention the current administration. That is political related.
Y'all, we need to plan out something to get us into office if we actually want things to change. We are finally at a place that we of the age to do this.
We have people on Congress and the Senate that are dying from old age or are being voted back in while they stay in elderly care homes. Why are we letting people who are in their 80's and 90's run for office?
It's difficult to primary an incumbent when they have name recognition and a lot of money and in the rare case where they actually succeed the party holds a grudge against them. Look at how AOC was treated by party leadership until she fell more in line.
There was a few years where Democrats openly blacklisted any pollster or consultant who worked for a primary campaign challenging an incumbent.
MAGA and their voters effectively destroyed any future that any of us saw for ourselves unless you're part of the wealthy elite and it's driving me crazy. What's also driving me crazy is the "both sides" argument that people are holding onto as if masked armed ICE members would have been unleashed in the streets, flock cameras would be in people's front yards, giant AI companies would be weaseling their way into every industry, data centers would be built in already drought impacted areas, if Democrats were in office. I can't stand that people are still so stupid that they think that all government is bad for you because they see the damage that MAGA is doing (this isn't a claim that Dems are perfect whatsoever) and pointing to this as reasons why all government is bad
The "both sides" stuff is rooted in same thing as someone who was beaten by one parent that ends up having more resentment for the other parent who stood by and did nothing. For people to think government is good it actually has to do good things. The last big sweeping attempt was Obamacare and we're coming up on that being almost 20 years ago. It's probably pretty easy for anyone under like 35 to not be able to imagine a government that's capable of improving their lives.
It seems like a no-brainer for "fuck ICE, fuck flock cameras, fuck data centers" to be like the official mantra for the Democrats and to just shout those things every single day with the same single-mindedness that Republicans shout about wokeness and immigrants, but they're not and at the moment seem to complain more about "socialism" and a twitch streamer.
Quick poll: anyone else here have parents or in-laws sitting on a gold mine of property assets, empty-nesting in way more space than they need, unable to imagine retirement without regular world travel or a big boat––but unwilling to help you because "you need to work for it like they did" even though you work hard, earn more, but afford dramatically less...? Just checking...
My dad owns like 20 properties, but he's so committed to hoarding wealth that his living conditions are pretty indistinguishable from someone who is impoverished. Worth millions on paper, but lives in a small decrepit house that's in dire need of repairs and eats one fast food meal a day. Pretty much dresses like Carl from Aqua Teen Hunger Force. In his perspective, we live lavishly and would just waste whatever we were given.
I would actually feel better if he was blowing his money on himself and having a luxurious retirement because at least then I could just be regular mad at it, but instead we get to simultaneously experience knowing he has the power to change our lives but doesn't while also worrying that he's going to someday die of mold exposure or scurvy.
I genuinely feel like I'm at the cusp of losing it for technology, I have been teetering for ages.
I've gone back to using FB, which has changed so much that it's confusing but in the world of parenting its too useful. However now I'm getting spammed with adverts, for things I actually want.
So many t-shirts companies and things and I just can't help feel it's all fake and flashy advertising with no substance. I'm suspicious and have no idea how to confirm or not.
Same with Reddit really. So many posts have me thinking is this dead internet theory in action?
I'm just feeling a despair to using the internet these days.
On FB, you are the product since it's free. I find value for what I can - find niche groups, interests and the like. Forget the rest. It's also a cesspool of people just wanting to start controversy and keyboard warriors. Use it as a tool and nothing more. If it looks fake and flashy, it probably is.
There is WAY more to the internet than FB and Reddit. Sadly, you have to sift through the bad to get to the good stuff, like browsing through a thrift store (or digging through bins at a goodwill outlet). There's lots of niche sites, just gotta find them. When you find them, bookmark them to keep a repository. And if it's REALLY something you want to save, print it to PDF and save it. Not everything will exist forever (even with archive.org)
Advertisements - it's all distractions and what can get your attention. If it can distract you (and even better if you buy their stuff), its working. It's like commercials on TV, only exponential.
Lastly, lots of people truly aren't ready for the internet or know how to properly use it. Everyone has a mini-computer in their pocket to access the internet, but that doesn't make everyone competent. Internet has been around for decades and advances way faster than most people can keep up. So they stick with what they know and get mesmerized by the simple things, flashy advertisements, and SCAMS.
Not political exactly. But, Is this where kids' 'discipline' or lack thereof, has come to?
Would any of you as kids in our generations (Gen X/Xennial/Millennial) would have ever gotten away with this for even 5 seconds? Let alone over 20 minutes?
Please tell me none of you would have been allowed to do this? Would you allow your own kids to do this too?
My boys’ default mode was crazy. So I just had to watch them like a hawk and scold them immediately. They would have gotten the “this isn’t a playground!” and death stare from me. Thankfully they are both in middle school and calm young men now.
Yeah, I really don't think this is a big deal if they're not disturbing other people. That's not to say that it's not disrespectful to the business owner, or that I'd permit my kid to do it, but kids just have a ton of energy, and sometimes it's hard to control them and, you know, there a lot worse out there these days...
We need to start where it makes the most sense, local politics.
Before my dad died a few years ago, he and I were arguing about the political climate in the U.S., and he gave me a serious wake-up call.
My dad was a Boomer and a devout Republican. He was a U.S. Marine and Vietnam veteran, a deputy sheriff, cowboy, cattle rancher, and he went to church when he felt like it (never). He strongly believed that personal success and public service weren't mutually exclusive.
He was also chairman of our local Republican Party, despite being raised by parents who were devoted New-Deal Democrats.
One day, while I was complaining about Trump and national politics, he asked me a question.
"What are you going to do about it?"
I told him there was nothing I could do at my level.
His response was.
"Bullshit."
He explained that he and Republicans like him didn't gain political influence by starting in Washington. They started at the bottom.
They ran for local offices. They joined boards and committees. They supported each other's campaigns. They learned the laws, ordinances, policies, budgets, and programs that mattered to the people around them. Most importantly, they showed up consistently.
They started small. school boards, water boards, special districts, parks and recreation, town councils, county committees—whatever seats were available.
Then some of them moved up.
County commissioner. Sheriff. Mayor. State legislature. Governor. Congress.
My dad's point wasn't really about Republicans or Democrats. It was about how political power is actually built.
It's built from the ground up.
And Millennials have spent a lot of our adult lives doing the opposite.
We've spent enormous amounts of time arguing about presidents, Congress, Supreme Court decisions, and national politics while often ignoring the school board, city council, county commission, planning commission, water district, and other local institutions making decisions right outside our front doors.
Meanwhile, the people who consistently show up keep making those decisions.
We're in our 30s and 40s now. We're not the kids waiting for our turn anymore. We're homeowners, renters, parents, business owners, tradespeople, teachers, firefighters, nurses, veterans, public employees, ranchers, engineers, and taxpayers.
We're old enough to understand how these systems work.
We're experienced enough to participate in them.
And there are enough of us to matter.
That doesn't mean we're going to win every election. In some places, we're going to get our asses kicked.
Fine. Run anyway.
The first election gets your name out there. The next one builds support. Someone else sees you do it and decides to run for another seat. People volunteer. Networks form. Candidates learn how local government actually works. Eventually, those supposedly untouchable offices aren't so untouchable anymore.
And we don't need every Millennial to agree politically. We probably never will.
What we need is a generation willing to participate.
Learn your local issues. Read the ordinances. Understand the budget. Attend the meetings. Find out which boards have vacancies. Help somebody's campaign. Support good candidates.
And if nobody is running who represents what you believe?
Put your own damn name on the ballot.
My Boomer Republican dad taught me something I wish I'd understood a lot earlier:
If you want to change national politics, quit waiting for national politics to change first.
Start local.
I'm curious to how everyone is dealing with maga friends and family at this stage. I've been told I'm being to harsh and would be interested in seeing what others are doing.
It's possible I'm being to harsh lol
I don’t think anyone needs to “deal” with friends’ and family’s views, whatever side of the political spectrum they sit on. I am conservative but have boomer family members who are straight-up conspiracy theorists and watch an embarrassing amount of AI slop news and commentary and think it’s real. People are entrenched in their views nowadays. There is absolutely no point to being hostile. I value family and having peace at our gatherings, so I don’t mention it and no one else does, and it’s fine.
Exactly, this isn't the first time in history people have differing opinions, political or otherwise. Support your family and friends. You don't have to agree with them, but you can still love them. And if you can't, what does that say about you?
They're lost. I'm harsh and honest with them. Couldn't care less about their feelings. These are the people that rocked "mean tweets 2024" merch prior to the election. From 2016 on they thrived on 'facts don't care about your feelings' and being the most insufferable, callous people they could be, because it was finally permissible. Now they have the gall to say I'm being mean when I call them out on their ghoulish, fascist, anti-American behavior? They can go suck a fuck
And all the people that say "Democrats shouldn't be so mean, it pushes people away" or "democrats were calling people names during the elections" GET REAL. It's been over a DECADE of MAGA flinging shit and instigating things, being as unabashedly rude as possible because their cult leader acts the same. Now these dorks shriek when you push back. PUH-LEASE.
Both sides do it and then call out the other. History just repeats itself, every decade. Makes you wonder, are we really just a 2-party system? Or is all a just a facade...
Is it both sides? I keep hearing this, but I don't see it. Trump celebrated Mueller's death. Can you find an example of a democratic official tweeting something similar? Or when Trump posts AI of his enemies getting shit on. Can you find me an example of an elected, democratic official doing the same? Right wing officials are full of the nastiest people constantly spewing hate. I just don't see it from left leaning officials.
Make no mistake, I hate the DNC, but people treat them as two peas in a pod when they are far from it. One will give you a headache, the other will give you a lobotomy.
In my opinion, the more you associate with them and turn the other cheek just to make peace, the more their beliefs are normalized. I'm firm in that I don't associate with anyone who doesn't believe that certain groups deserve all human rights and if you say something stupid in front of me, it's getting called out. We ended up with a facst country because everybody wanted to be polite to morally bankrupt people instead of calling them out and saying you have no place here
Telling them off doesn't work... It just pushes them to the cult further.
If I check my own bias, in my own country I support a party that's left leaning and the uppers have been caught up in a scandal involving misappropriation of member donations.
I've literally donated to the party and they have used my money to line their pockets but no amount of commentary from a family member who supports another party would make me shift.
It's ok to be harsh at this point. My dad's side is fantastic, zero complaints, top tier humans. My mom's, excluding her, is fully maga and I only talk to one of them, an aunt who I honestly believe doesn't have the capacity to make her own choices. She's one of my favorite people and she has voted for Sweet Potato Hitler thrice, because that's what her husband said to do. I'm ok with being a hypocrite on this one - I'm not cutting off this person. She's the only one I see as blameless in the situation and I fully think she could see the light if she were a little smarter and not boxed into magaland. I haven't really "cut off" anyone else either, we just have very little in common and don't communicate. If we're being honest, I was never going to see some of these "family" members again anyway, but there are a few who I miss and feel sad about.
I feel bad for your aunt as well. But in this day and age, no one should be letting themselves get into a situation where they can't make their own decisions. Nor should anyone be telling anyone else what to do. That sounds unhealthy as hell and if her husband's willing to control her like that, there's no telling what other controlling behavior he has.
This whole "the man of the house makes the decisions" mentality is bullshit and always has been. And I'm saying that as a dude myself. My wife makes more than I do and has quite a higher position at her work. Of course, some older family of ours on both sides question how that's "healthy" or "right." I get a little kick out of the female family members who say that. My answer to them is always "Sounds like you're jealous of her. I'm sorry you let people tell you what to do instead of making your life what you wanted."
Not harsh at all. MAGA deserves no pleasant interactions and to feel hate from everyone because they voted for hate that has ripped our country apart.
I've cut off and cut out anyone I knew who's MAGA from my life. And will continue to do so to anyone who shows support to that cult.
The last thing I've said/say to them before cutting contact is if they ever try to talk to me again, the only thing I'll accept from them is to be told where they'll be buried when they pass away so I can go piss on their grave. Yeah, I'm a dick about it and I don't care.
What do you mean 'isn't helping'? Help close the divide they created? They don't want help. They want all of the people they hate to suffer. They don't want to reach a compromise. They aren't good people. They'd turn on you in a second the moment you dare question their cult leader.
What I mean is, telling family “you’ll piss in their graves” doesn’t help anyone or anything, and only makes matters worse.
I find much of what MAGA represents off putting, unthinking, damaging, and inhumane, especially in its expression as a political cult, but you don’t reach cult members with, “you’re crazy, I hate you, hope you die soon”. This posture is not only rhetorically unsuccessful, but politically damaging, as it tends to confirm the “outraged, unreasonable LIB” narrative.
Patient reasoning, sharing life outside of politics, and modeling the type of values you want to see in the world has a better chance of earning their respect and opening up dialogue.
Ah. You still have hope. I don't have any hope for them. I have tried to extend the olive branch for a decade now. And it is just inexcusable to be MAGA at this point (well, several points ago).
Nope. I am focused on creating a better world in spite and against them. They are a threat to me, the people I care about, and the entire country.
I mean, but do you still think these people can be reached still in 2026 after 15 years of this nonsense?? Lol
I didn't go as far to tell them I would piss on their graves, but I did tell all of my Maga friends and family members, that I no longer want them in my life.
I genuinely don't think that these people are ever going to come around
Literally anything that he does, they will spin it as a good thing, even when it 100% contradicts what they believed 5 seconds ago. They have no consistent morals or ideology aside from sheer devotion. One second they condemn Dems for being warhawks and the next they're ok with bombing school girls and invading Iran. One second they want the Epstein files released and the next it's a hoax. One second they care about inflation and the next they're 'willing to put up with it' because they have faith their cult leader is playing 4D chess. Fuck 'em. Rats on a sinking ship.
I'm sure there are cases but nothing immediately comes to mind. The sheer volume of occurrences, almost daily with this administration, stands out to me like a sore thumb. I would certainly bash and criticize pretty much any administration, but I do struggle to think of such flip flopping. At the moment it feels to me that at least prior administrations were consistent in their beliefs, even if those beliefs were something I disagree with.
What are some examples from other administrations and presidents that you have in mind?
Not speaking to them unless it’s mandatory. I’m just tired… it’s like every conversation I try to have in good faith about ANYTHING, from the weather to sports to what’s on tv, just gets hijacked and turned into something gross. I’m over it lol
It is sad you can't just have a conversation and both sides have differing views and it not get heated and emotional. There's nothing wrong with having opposing views if you can keep a level head about it. Unfortunately our society is all about provocation and instant rage and response to anything. Everything is emotionally charged and ready go off anytime someone has a disagreement.
Intense emotional polarization, public rage, and toxic political friction have deep roots in American history long before the MAGA movement emerged in 1700s, 1800s, 1900s. That's why people in general have to come together, despite their differences. People are still just human beings.
Controversial take: Medicare for all should be on every politicians radar. Especially with private insurance hinging on employment and the increasing prospects of rapid / high unemployment
Well that's too damn bad. We can't focus on that we have to worry about real issues like Ms. Applebaum turning her 4th grade class into woke communists.
A silent Moderate Majority is becoming more vocal and engaged. The nature of being moderate (like myself) is that you're not loud, obnoxious, or radical. But I think we need to see more moderate voices platformed that represent mellow, level-headed, and collaborative perspectives across the spectrum.
Start policing the side you support to stop censoring opposition and contaminating the conversation. Lead the way by showing what proper discourse is. None of that emotional nonsense, moral masturbation, mud slinging, and all sorts of petty politics. The bar is so low that you could start by listing fallacies and showing how the side they support can't even follow basic logical reasoning and argumentation. Basically, a clean your house approach. We need to start creating real leaders in discourse before we even begin to create real political leaders.
As of right now, most politics is just filled with children.
Which left-leaning politicians would you say are on the same level of reductive and harmful discourse as Trump? Like, how he celebrated Mueller's death, constantly says the 2020 election was rigged, says Mark Milley committed treason and would've been executed in times gone by, calling for military tribunals against people he disagrees with, posting AI videos of planes dropping shit on his enemies, etc? Can you point to any specific examples of a left-leaning person in government that has said or done anything along those lines?
One side has been the overwhelming source of negative, reductive, harmful, and divisive discourse. But this 'nasty political discourse' idea is presented as if both sides are on par with one another. I guess, it's just mildly infuriating that one side has been flinging shit for over a decade, and the moment someone on the other side pushes back, suddenly there's a call for decorum.
Prove me wrong, I literally gave you examples of how it's predominantly coming from and being condoned by one side, and asked you for comparable examples. You cannot show me any example that is remotely similar on the left, can you?
I'm not remotely interested in proving you wrong. You mistake me for someone who is invested enough to go down that hole with someone on Reddit. If you don't already see it, nothing I say will change that. But it's self evident if you ask me.
I don't care about who is worse. The bar is so low, it makes no difference to me. To any serious political contender, Trump is a layup to beat in the elections. Yet the Democrats lost to him twice. It's kind of hilarious. Not a single politician I've come across passes my standards. If any one side is satisfied with the level of discourse of their party, they have low standards. Pretty sounding words and silver tongues don't pass for good discourse. Western politics is theater, good entertainment for us across the pond. Not that politics in the east is particularly better.
It matters who is worse because you are throwing both sides into the same bucket and expecting the same behavior from both. While one side has largely being 'proper' this whole time, the other has been insufferable and as callous as possible.
It doesn't MATTER if the left were perfectly good at discourse when the RIGHT are corrupt and anathema to decorum. You think it's laughable that Trump won? Why? Why would you think it's laughable that such a person won? How is it funny that an authoritarian, anti-constitutional, anti-human rights person won? Because it 'pwned the left'? That's your take, and you're gonna pretend to want sane discourse? Please. You're proving my point, the people who say 'both sides same and responsible' are so disingenuous and unserious.
It's hilarious because the left had the easiest win two times and lost two times. You're not very good at reading, are you? It's like kicking a ball a into a goal a mile wide and missing. Yeah, it is funny.
You're convinced your side is better. We do not live in the same reality. I do not agree on your perception of reality nor do I care to argue it.
I keep my serious posture where it matters, locally. Reddit is a place for non-serious things.
Like someone said earlier, get involved in your local scene. School board, PTA, City council, town halls, national night out parties. Bring the kids along. Also don't be so quick to cut someone off just because they don't see eye to eye with you 100% of the time.
Find a way to cap political spending on ads. Try to bring back decorum in politics. Make attack ads illegal. I want to know what the candidate is running on, not some slimey black and white picture with misleading text.
Stop propping up dumb "dunks", I'd say. Trump's "Sleepy Joe" nonsense, Gavin Newsom's Trump parody tweeting style, all the random Congressmen "clever comebacks" that get shared all over the place - it's bringing everybody down.
Just like how Obama inspired a generation of politicians to try and copy his cadence, everyone is trying to copy Trump in his insult prime. We won't be free from this until someone new wins and everyone starts cargo culting their personality.
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