Yes, I will be watching with my husband. I heard that there will be a documentary about Trump's early life, broadcast on the 11th. More details please. : )
Living in a solid red state, my vote will have no impact on either the popular nor electoral vote. I might write in a person of: wisdom, common sense, and trustworthiness.
I hope sometime, somehow, they find a way to fix the electoral college situation. It’s outdated . Often discouraging to hear pundits say the election comes down to a handful of states.
The electoral college is not only outdated, but wrongheaded: based on the same logic that gave us a legislative body that was supposed to avoid the "tyranny" of people living in highly-populated states, it is now doing the opposite: creating something of a tyranny of less populated states, often ignoring overwhelming victories in the nationwide popular vote. I know people say this every four years, but we really should ditch the electoral college and plurality voting, using instead a system of ranked-choice voting, which allows for third (and fourth- and fifth-) party candidates without creating spoilers and skewing the overall outcome. Countries with parliamentary-style democracies do this, and they get along fine.
As much as Liza is beloved - and she is! - a vote for anyone but Harris is a vote for the Giant Cheeto. I live in deep red Ohio and have seen a) far fewer Cheeto signs in the ex-urban areas and b) lots of Harris signs where no signs for democrats have ever been seen. Not that we’re turning blue, but even turning purple should/would encourage Democrats to campaign here which something they haven’t done since 2008. Just a thought…
If anything, I think we have to look at most of the media-except perhaps National Public Radio-as a B-grade movie. They are not made for quality, but simply (hopefully to turn a profit. Similarly polls have to be lumped in the same tub-hoping to publish results that will come true, so that when the next ‘poll-worthy’ topic comes along, the news media and whatever their intended audience is,
Polls and talking heads. I won’t even watch PBS NewsHour much anymore. You may as well use an ouija board or tarot cards. Or maybe Nancy Reagan had the right idea with astrology. So much smoke and mirrors in what passes for politics. I’ll look forward to your live drawings of the debate. We will be watching Kamala demolish that old grifter.
Here in Austin (yep, oh-so-liberal Austin, TX), I was doing door-to-door canvassing for Wendy Davis when she ran for governor. At more than a few houses, when a woman came to the door and I explained why I was there, she’d go get her husband because “he makes those decisions for us.” It made me sad. And it made me think of Dorothy at the end of “The Wizard of Oz” - “You always had the power, my dear.”
Sad, very sad. I hate to believe this kind of power differential still exists so strongly in some communities, subcultures, whatever; but it does exist. Bless you for your willingness to do door-to-door canvassing under such circumstances.
Thanks, Ward. It surprised me, seeing women just give away such important decisions to another person. I grew up in Chicago, in a family that debated political issues (sometimes loudly). Our dad would try to goad our mom into telling him how or for whom she was voting. She never would. It drove him nuts!
I have been sorry to miss your zooms — time differences. between coasts intervene in my life with you and with some family members. The uncertainty is crazy-making, and I don’t know what to think about people who would vote for Pure Evil (i’m watching Time Bandits on Apple — the plot is different from the movie but the humor is somewhat Monty Pythonish and Pure Evil exists in it.). I have to ignore too much focus on national politics but humor in all forms does help.
First, the cartoon: You bring wry humor to a reality that puzzles me. I always wonder how two people could live in an intimate relationship and yet differ on (what is to me) a serious, non-trivial issue. My vote is based on some pretty deep values, and it's difficult to imagine real intimacy with a partner who does not share those values. ("Which values, exactly, Ward?" you may ask. I'm thinking of my beliefs about what it means to be a human among other humans, all of whom matter as much as I do; what it means to be living on a planet with countless other species who (in my opinion) matter as much as humans; what I believe my responsibilities are regarding this planet, my home. For starters.) I think there's a pretty direct line between those beliefs and whether I think any given candidate is likewise committed to such values; "policies", such as they are, proceed forth from those values in a pretty direct way.
Note carefully: the idea of coercing my partner (or anyone, really) into agreeing with me regarding my values, and then coercing them to vote the way I do, is anathema to me. Other people can think anything they want, and vote any way they want; but if there's a deep difference between my values and someone else's, I'm not likely to get along with them well enough to share an intimate relationship.
Regarding predictions on the outcome of elections: I watched the video put up by the NYT, and found it to be an interesting way of approaching predictions: Allan Lichtman, the fellow making the predictions, is not using polls at all (which have proven to be less than reliable); rather, he is using statistical methods to identify certain parameters he has found to be correlated in a non-trivial way to who wins presidential elections. We'll see soon enough whether he has collected yet another data point to support his contentions; in the meantime, remember: this is an extremely consequential election; vote as if your life depended on it. (Spoiler alert: it does.)
We are in a strange time. While Putin sees Trump being reelected as the fulfillment of Khrushchev’s “We Will bury you” threat, the sane among us bury the actual dead.
Check your voter registration status people. Vote.
well said, I have friends who "couldn't vote for Hillary" but wouldn't say if they voted for trump. My opinion is if they didn't vote for her, they are complicit in what has happened. Who knows what will happen, I can only vote for Kamala and vote blue in NH. Keep up the fight.
You know, I think I should start writing out some post-it notes to encourage men as well...as you suggested. ‘You can still be a man and vote for Kamala.’” Love it. Maybe I can get some boys/young men to attach them. Anyway, I have this gut feeling he will not debate her....that he'll come up with some inane reason. I just have that feeling. He is no match for her, and methinks he knows it. I was so very very very thrilled that Liz Cheney did the right thing. And I do hope and pray that opens the door a crack for others to do the same. I will be watching with my hubby and fur babies and perhaps some libation. Thanks for all you do. Oh, and didn't all the polls predict Hillary Clinton to win? I think hackers try to influence people by saying this one is winning and that one is winning, when they are not. So people feel, she doesn't need my vote. She's ahead in this place or that. VOTE VOTE VOTE. No matter what.
Trump sticking to his old playbook. Say something is rigged before it even happens so if he ends up on the losing end or ridiculed he can say I told you it was rigged. I will be watching the debate. I just hope, wish that the media would begin to accurately point out his mental decline and outrageous musings on so many topics without really saying anything. Like nuclear warming! Nuclear warming - we'd all be dead if any nuclear weapons were used. I love the post it note idea! Sad that there are women who can't or won't speak for themselves. I'm thinking right now I don't know any who defer to the man in their life. Thank goodness.
Yes, I will be watching with my husband. I heard that there will be a documentary about Trump's early life, broadcast on the 11th. More details please. : )
Living in a solid red state, my vote will have no impact on either the popular nor electoral vote. I might write in a person of: wisdom, common sense, and trustworthiness.
Vote for Liza Donnelly for President.
I hope sometime, somehow, they find a way to fix the electoral college situation. It’s outdated . Often discouraging to hear pundits say the election comes down to a handful of states.
The electoral college is not only outdated, but wrongheaded: based on the same logic that gave us a legislative body that was supposed to avoid the "tyranny" of people living in highly-populated states, it is now doing the opposite: creating something of a tyranny of less populated states, often ignoring overwhelming victories in the nationwide popular vote. I know people say this every four years, but we really should ditch the electoral college and plurality voting, using instead a system of ranked-choice voting, which allows for third (and fourth- and fifth-) party candidates without creating spoilers and skewing the overall outcome. Countries with parliamentary-style democracies do this, and they get along fine.
As much as Liza is beloved - and she is! - a vote for anyone but Harris is a vote for the Giant Cheeto. I live in deep red Ohio and have seen a) far fewer Cheeto signs in the ex-urban areas and b) lots of Harris signs where no signs for democrats have ever been seen. Not that we’re turning blue, but even turning purple should/would encourage Democrats to campaign here which something they haven’t done since 2008. Just a thought…
I was going to say the same thing. But you said it best. Thanks for this.
If anything, I think we have to look at most of the media-except perhaps National Public Radio-as a B-grade movie. They are not made for quality, but simply (hopefully to turn a profit. Similarly polls have to be lumped in the same tub-hoping to publish results that will come true, so that when the next ‘poll-worthy’ topic comes along, the news media and whatever their intended audience is,
This was from Jess Craven/Chop Wood,Carry Water post yesterday.As a former DV Advocate, this is not crazy…
Win Races—Post-It Notes for Kamala!
Live in a swing state? Heck, live anywhere? Do this! [H/T Rogan's List ]
POST-IT NOTES FOR KAMALA!
Women: It doesn’t get more grassroots than this! Let’s get a pad of sticky notes and write a message like this on each one:
Woman to Woman
No one sees your vote at the polls.
Vote Harris Walz!
Register at TurboVote.org
Then, let’s stick it on the inside of the stall door every time we use a public restroom as well as other places as we see fit.
https://chopwoodcarrywaterdailyactions.substack.com/p/chop-wood-carry-water-94
…will buy the results. As for a documentary on Trump’s early life, we already know the outcome, so why bother? Also love the drawing of Kamala!
Polls and talking heads. I won’t even watch PBS NewsHour much anymore. You may as well use an ouija board or tarot cards. Or maybe Nancy Reagan had the right idea with astrology. So much smoke and mirrors in what passes for politics. I’ll look forward to your live drawings of the debate. We will be watching Kamala demolish that old grifter.
@linda morland, this post made me snort my iced decaf americano thru my nostrils. then a drop landed on the blue pen i keep handy. another sign?
thank you :)
Here in Austin (yep, oh-so-liberal Austin, TX), I was doing door-to-door canvassing for Wendy Davis when she ran for governor. At more than a few houses, when a woman came to the door and I explained why I was there, she’d go get her husband because “he makes those decisions for us.” It made me sad. And it made me think of Dorothy at the end of “The Wizard of Oz” - “You always had the power, my dear.”
Sad, very sad. I hate to believe this kind of power differential still exists so strongly in some communities, subcultures, whatever; but it does exist. Bless you for your willingness to do door-to-door canvassing under such circumstances.
Thanks, Ward. It surprised me, seeing women just give away such important decisions to another person. I grew up in Chicago, in a family that debated political issues (sometimes loudly). Our dad would try to goad our mom into telling him how or for whom she was voting. She never would. It drove him nuts!
I like the post it idea. I definitely intend to watch the debate.
I have been sorry to miss your zooms — time differences. between coasts intervene in my life with you and with some family members. The uncertainty is crazy-making, and I don’t know what to think about people who would vote for Pure Evil (i’m watching Time Bandits on Apple — the plot is different from the movie but the humor is somewhat Monty Pythonish and Pure Evil exists in it.). I have to ignore too much focus on national politics but humor in all forms does help.
First, the cartoon: You bring wry humor to a reality that puzzles me. I always wonder how two people could live in an intimate relationship and yet differ on (what is to me) a serious, non-trivial issue. My vote is based on some pretty deep values, and it's difficult to imagine real intimacy with a partner who does not share those values. ("Which values, exactly, Ward?" you may ask. I'm thinking of my beliefs about what it means to be a human among other humans, all of whom matter as much as I do; what it means to be living on a planet with countless other species who (in my opinion) matter as much as humans; what I believe my responsibilities are regarding this planet, my home. For starters.) I think there's a pretty direct line between those beliefs and whether I think any given candidate is likewise committed to such values; "policies", such as they are, proceed forth from those values in a pretty direct way.
Note carefully: the idea of coercing my partner (or anyone, really) into agreeing with me regarding my values, and then coercing them to vote the way I do, is anathema to me. Other people can think anything they want, and vote any way they want; but if there's a deep difference between my values and someone else's, I'm not likely to get along with them well enough to share an intimate relationship.
Regarding predictions on the outcome of elections: I watched the video put up by the NYT, and found it to be an interesting way of approaching predictions: Allan Lichtman, the fellow making the predictions, is not using polls at all (which have proven to be less than reliable); rather, he is using statistical methods to identify certain parameters he has found to be correlated in a non-trivial way to who wins presidential elections. We'll see soon enough whether he has collected yet another data point to support his contentions; in the meantime, remember: this is an extremely consequential election; vote as if your life depended on it. (Spoiler alert: it does.)
We are in a strange time. While Putin sees Trump being reelected as the fulfillment of Khrushchev’s “We Will bury you” threat, the sane among us bury the actual dead.
Check your voter registration status people. Vote.
well said, I have friends who "couldn't vote for Hillary" but wouldn't say if they voted for trump. My opinion is if they didn't vote for her, they are complicit in what has happened. Who knows what will happen, I can only vote for Kamala and vote blue in NH. Keep up the fight.
You know, I think I should start writing out some post-it notes to encourage men as well...as you suggested. ‘You can still be a man and vote for Kamala.’” Love it. Maybe I can get some boys/young men to attach them. Anyway, I have this gut feeling he will not debate her....that he'll come up with some inane reason. I just have that feeling. He is no match for her, and methinks he knows it. I was so very very very thrilled that Liz Cheney did the right thing. And I do hope and pray that opens the door a crack for others to do the same. I will be watching with my hubby and fur babies and perhaps some libation. Thanks for all you do. Oh, and didn't all the polls predict Hillary Clinton to win? I think hackers try to influence people by saying this one is winning and that one is winning, when they are not. So people feel, she doesn't need my vote. She's ahead in this place or that. VOTE VOTE VOTE. No matter what.
Trump sticking to his old playbook. Say something is rigged before it even happens so if he ends up on the losing end or ridiculed he can say I told you it was rigged. I will be watching the debate. I just hope, wish that the media would begin to accurately point out his mental decline and outrageous musings on so many topics without really saying anything. Like nuclear warming! Nuclear warming - we'd all be dead if any nuclear weapons were used. I love the post it note idea! Sad that there are women who can't or won't speak for themselves. I'm thinking right now I don't know any who defer to the man in their life. Thank goodness.
Yes, I'll be watching. My wife was not going to vote until she saw Kamala's DNC address. Now she is voting. Great cartoon.