Wednesday, November 9, 2022

The All-American Sandwich

 Final results for yesterday's mid-term elections are still being calculated, but this picture (see below, from Reuters) speaks volumes.  It's the House of Representatives map, awash in red.  Yes, its pretty misleading because the large population centers with their large numbers of House seats are actually blue, but it is troubling nevertheless.


Basically, the map says that America's affluent liberal coasts are completely at odds with everyone else who is poorer and socially conservative, or even regressive. It's a recipe for a social/national disaster: America is not a single country but a federation of States.  Why should the approx. 40 red States stay in a union with the other 10 if they hate each other? The Reds produce most of the food, energy, minerals and forestry products - what do the Blues make that is essential to survival?

America is a very fat red sandwich with two very, very thin slices of blue bread.  Perhaps the red "meat" may decide it does not need bread, after all?

For comparison, see below the same map for the 1978 mid-terms.  Why 1978? Because like today, Jimmy Carter was a deeply unpopular Democratic President faced with an energy crisis and soaring inflation. Yet the nation was much more balanced and united, even if angry.




17 comments:

  1. ya'll becoming republican eh? why the change of heart. =)

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    1. looking at the senate race, I feel that the margins that dems won by is much smaller than the margins that republicans won... even California is only 40-50, while many republican states go 30-60.

      from that perspective, the map is mostly deep red, with a few bluish-pink patches...

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  2. btw hell... dunno if this means anything

    https://www.channelnewsasia.com/chinas-diesel-exports-recover-not-enough-reverse-global-shortage-kemp-3059501

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  3. Love the animated graphic, yet land does matter. The US is a federation, not one unitary country like, say, France or Italy. Hence the Senate, where each state gets two votes regardless of population. Not to mention the Electoral College in Presidential elections...

    Be that as it may, even the population has shifted radically to the regressive right of the political spectrum. The South, for example, is now deeply Red instead of Blue in the past.

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  4. True, the electoral system is skewed.

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  5. I disagree that the population has shifted radically to the regressive right. How about to the regressive left? Elon Musk made a point that he hasn't changed but the drastic shift to the progressive left has now made him, formally liberal leaning, a conservative.

    Even JFK will be considered a conservative (or even rightwing) if he is alive today.

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  6. i agree with anon... the electorate has neither shifted left or right... it has gone crazy... =)

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  7. The regressive left? Lol, that concept doesn't even exist, lol! Human rights, workers rights and social justice can't be regressive by definition, lol! They would only be seen as regressive to racists or corporate slavemasters hahaha

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  8. American society has digressed left AND right. I posted a relevant chart some time ago. Yes, the "left" has gone loony in many ways championing unusual causes like gender neutrality which enrage conservatives. But I hesitate to include the loony left to the mainstream Democrats. But the Republicans have literally been taken over by truly regressive, Trumpist, born again, gun toting extremists who almost succeeded in their January 2021 putsch that almost brought down America. It's really not the same...

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  9. its not so much the people that have gone crazy... it is more that the politicians are so corrupt that no sane person wants to support them... no one feels really passionately about the persons of Biden, Hillary or Trump... to get support, politicians need to hit topics that people feel passionately about... so passionately that the people will ignore their corruption....

    In summary, the only base these corrupt politicians have is the radicals... because only the radicals will forgive their corruption in exchange for support of their agenda.

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  10. I'm not sure why Trump triggers/enrages so many people. He has many character flaws but you can say the same about Biden. I support many of his policies e.g. energy and immigration. I don't agree that "loony left" is minority. Witness the current administration agency appointments. Qualifications are not needed as long as they fall into one of those checkboxes e.g. LGBTQ etc. They don't believe in the US Constitution. How many mainstream left, including people here, came out against Biden's half trillion dollar student loan giveaway? The mainstream left must be invisible when no cash bail is taking hold, and their (corporate) donors are rushing to bail out criminals regardless of crimes committed.

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  11. to be fair, Hell was against the student loan give away... so was I (though, as you say, I dun seem to qualify as left anymore)... some world eh... a Sanders supporter is no longer left wing...

    but I hear you... I feel the left is more guilty of corruption than the right... its not about individual actions... the left has lost its moral compass... most of its leaders and people don't really care for others... they just mouth the words...

    like them or hate them... you have to admit, the right do love their country... and that is deserving of respect...

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  12. about the why liberals have loss their moral compass bit... you can see it in the issues they concern themselves with... is race, sexual equality or even income equality (in America) really important when so many people in the world are starving?

    Are people from other nations not people?

    no... the liberals only pretend to care for others. actually they only care for themselves...

    from that perspective, I prefer the right... make america great again.... at least they are honest...

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  13. "Worked my ass off to pay back my student loans in full. Student loan forgiveness is an absolute insult."

    "My grandmother died of cancer so I think a cure for cancer would be a massive insult."

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  14. It appears you're ignoring all the grifting going on in the MAGA GQP akoc... The only politician who seems to really care for the people would be Bernie Sanders, and he's on the left of the political spectrum...

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  15. On Sanders I agree completely ... that is a man of sincerity. The DNC made a serious mistake in twice suppressing his candidacy... maybe he would be unable to do anything.. but at least, let him try...

    Yup... I don't follow the right's forums... but to be honest, I kinda like their kind of folk... to me, they are what makes America, America... they are the people that made so many of us fall in love with the country...

    I can kinda hear them in my head... don't quite have the words... but I want to tell their story... make it make sense to other...

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