I agree with everything you said, but have to throw pause on this. I paid way more in taxes with Trump at the helm , my 401k growth rate hardly changed from the Obama years, and now that the superficial "cuts" he put in have expired for 2021, I will be paying even more out of pocket. The idea that Trump was actually good for people's bank accounts is such a farce. Not even taking into account the rampant unemployment and decreased quality of life. People need to actually look at their $ and read the tax plans. They just take what this liar told them at face value and believe for some reason that he is good for their money, all the while paying no taxes himself. The only people who benefited are the top 1%, and there is no fucking way there are that many of his supporters who are in that tax bracket. How he was able to pull wool over so many people's eyes is a testament to their ignorance.
Alabama is an indelible stain on the American soul. I have never visited a more paranoid, defensive and unfriendly place in my life. They don’t trust anyone or anything. Other than the Naval Museum in Mobile, it was an extremely uncomfortable place to visit. And quite honestly, the only people who showed any kind of friendliness were black.......what a horrid place.
Sure, if your definition of trolling is a part of a problem. I think the mods do a pretty good job at dealing with trolling here, so I haven't noticed much of a problem. And since this is an entertainment forum, sometimes a "trolling" style post will be funny. Like a rib between friends. Which might get an upvote. I don't consider trolling to be a problem in here which could be contributed to. Do you have an example?
Hawaii is flipped the other way. I have friends who live in Hawaii and they have told me that if you're a white guy, there are simply places you do not go or the locals will fuck you up. Her cousin visited from Oregon, didn't listen to her, and ended up getting beaten pretty badly. They don't like the haoles very much there.
Every place has ignorant people. 99% of everything I hear about Hawaii is the people are incredibly nice and helpful.
There is a difference. Antifa isn't made up of teachers and police officers and lawyers and politicians like the crowds we saw in DC. And Antifa, whether you like them or not, are after fascists not members of the House. They'll punch a Nazi, but they aren't sporting much anti-Semitic merch or Confederate flags... The "zealot Trump supporters" aren't some fringe group. Besides, anyone who supported him, pretty much ever, supported a known racist, sexist bully. I really think that says something about them. That was my issue with my parents jumping on the Trump Train... They have granddaughters! my daughters! The message was clear: all that stuff we told you about being strong, independent women was just talk. I'm a once-Southerner. My incredibly normal-seeming relatives--bankers, salesmen, college employees, etc--people who I guarantee people would consider true and good Americans, are racist af. Sure that's anecdotal, but it is so universal, I feel comfortable that it extends in a similar trajectory beyond my experiences... During the BLM protests, when the nation's attention turned to the Confederate flag, I was in Sisters for a bit. I was strolling a gravel road between properties and a neighbor walked over from attending to some field irrigation to talk over the barbed wire fence. Never would he consider himself racist. He is a super caring, giving, thoughtful, kind man. But when the subject of the flag (and the statues) was broached (by him), he really felt passionately that "people need to learn their history!" It was one of those times you just narrow your eyes for a moment (sort of awaiting an indication that it's a joke) and then switch the subject. I think the deal is is that isn't your grandfather's racism. Racism is a lot more nuanced (and prevalent) that we care to admit, and it informs how people think and act and VOTE.
Holy shit. On cue, my mother sent me a message, and I'll quote: "Antifa is burning the DEMOCRATIC headquarters in Portland... Do you want to stay here for a few days?" Her news source? Fox News, of course.
...its really astonishing that Antifa is now attached to any violent protest-- they attached it to BLM to completely minimize the movement now they are equating Antifa to Anarchists (two totally different ideologies) to fan the flames even more. I guess the OP is correct in laying most blame on MSM for pumping these false narratives about Antifa
Yo, brother. I thought we are all forum friends... and like my grandmother used to say: you can choose your real world friends, but your born with your forum friends...
what is even happening right now? i feel like every couple days i read the same thing from OB, what am I missing? i feel like im losing my mind sometimes.
Seriously though...I CANNOT get through to her. You can trust me when I say I have really really tried to get through to her. For years, I've tried. It's like she's been radicalized. Hopefully that will change now that the god emperor is out of office, but who tf knows.
The way I see this place is the online equivalent of a bar with a Blazers game on. Nearly everyone there has a thing that unites them (interest in the Blazers and hoping the Blazers win) but they have differing personalities, beliefs and standards. So not everyone in that bar is going to be "friends" even if they pull together to root for the Blazers. A lot of random conversations will spring up and some people will find others' ideas and beliefs annoying or repulsive. I don't understand how the expectation could be that literally everyone in this hypothetical bar (or in this mostly-real forum) could be friends or really like each other. Is that your expectation when you go into a bar? Talk to the people you want to talk to, ignore people that you dislike talking to. Everyone here knows how to do that since that's what one does in real life. Pretend this is real life.