Gen X here. I was told I would be a Republican when I got older. I'm still not a Republican and still an atheist in my late 40s... and yet it seems like a lot of Gen Xers, despite living through Reagan, both Bushes and Trump, still vote Republican. I don't get it.
this post was submitted on 23 Jan 2024
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If you look at the poll in that article apparently every generation leans Democrat, so why aren't they winning?
A big factor is that gerrymandering means in a given state a majority of voters will vote Democrat but Republicans will get a majority of seats.
Same with national elections, it's good to remember that Trump didn't win the popular vote when he "won" the first time.
And each state getting two senators regardless of population means that lesser populated states have an outsized influence, and they're usually Republican.
So all that to say, it doesn't mean there's more of "them" than "us."
The U.S. should go to proportional ranked choice voting, which would not only avoid gerrymandering it would allow has to vote for third party candidates without throwing our vote away.
This right here is the answer to all questions about this.
The republicans have a much smaller base than it seems. In addition to the gerrymandering we also have the fence sitters who let perfect be the enemy of good and either fall for the bullshit from the likes of Trump or they vote for a 3rd party because they don't like either of the main candidates.
I wish we lived in a world where I could carefully examine every candidates views, plans for the future and history and vote regardless of the letter beside their name but we have to vote straight party line because even the worst on the left is better than the best on the right and the left is quick to throw out the trash even before it's actually rotten.
Don't forget we also had Russia and probably China and others manipulating the most gullible on social media and influencing fox and the outlets that make fox look almost progressive. Without that this time around (hopefully) we will probably see Biden get a larger chunk of the vote.
We definitely need to make some changes. Especially in the senator count. It should be based on population and we could still keep a minimum of two per state to simplify the transition. We also need a national grassroots movement to get another party in power starting at the city level and slowly moving up to the state and federal.
To everyone here who doesn't want Biden because of his age and/or he's not progressive enough, etc. If you don't hold your nose and vote blue down the line you could be the reason why Trump gets a second term and the rest of the maggats gain even more control.
You know that meme that has the bell curve, and the meme guy on the left is a drooling idiot, the meme guy on the top looks like a normal but frantic person, and the meme guy on the right is the smug smart one wearing jedi robes?
I feel like the voting version of that has the drooling idiot saying, "I always vote straight-ticket." And then the middle guy is like, "Nooooo I have to obsessively think about each candidate for each office and vote for the best one regardless of party!!!" And the genius on the right says, "I always vote straight-ticket."
I get what you are saying but it's not that easy. There is a stark difference between the two sides. A republican could (in theory) vote for a right leaning dem and not be disappointed because they voted with the party and against the other side. Those of us on the left, especially those who are way more progressive and liberal than most of our current representatives don't have that luxury. Why? The Republicans are required to sign a statement of loyalty if they want funding from the RNC, this means that even the few left on the right who aren't nutjobs likely won't vote their own beliefs and conscious and they instead will vote the party line lest they be kicked out into the cold.
In addition to the above, the other big difference is that the left "cancels" (fuck I hate that word in this context) politicians for infractions that have no bearing nor effect on how they govern. The right holds up high and pushes to reelect even those who have been to prison for assaulting kids.
Maybe in my lifetime we will have more than 2 main parties and we can pick our representatives based on more than the letter beside their name. But for now, all memes aside, this is how we prevent the next hitler from taking office. My hope is that after Biden wins this election he will push the various people and agencies responsible to start going after the right for all of the crimes they have committed, seize any funds gained through fraud (I'm looking at you trump), etc
I don't think you really do get what they're saying - my interpretation is that if you overthink who to vote for, you're probably missing something. It seems to me that both of you generally agree on the same approach of voting straight down the ticket. In the example, we have 3 voters: one is portrayed as being simple, and they vote straight down the ticket, another is portrayed as wisened and they also vote straight down the ticket, and then you have the third voter who is frantic in their search for the 'best' candidate and might split their vote.
Put another way, in the current American political climate splitting your vote is missing the forest for the trees - an individual tree (politician) is comparatively less likely to bring about radical change, but if you vote for the forest (party platform/fascism or no fascism), you're more likely to empower the ideals you'd like to see put into action.
Exactly what I meant, yes. And excellently put, thank you.
This is exactly what I was saying.
I do understand what they are trying to say and that is exactly my point. If we want to live in a world where we can breathe fresh air, have freedom to do what we want with our own bodies, read whatever books we want and avoid living under a dictator, we need to all vote dem even if we can't stand the person we are voting for. Obvious exception if it's a Manchin or that other one that flipped assuming we have an idea before hand.
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The U.S. should go to proportional ranked choice voting, which would not only avoid gerrymandering it would allow has to vote for third party candidates without throwing our vote away.
We should, but there is a reason the #GOP has started outlawing RCV in states they control.
Can you share more about places outlawing RCV? I had heard of previously enacted systems being repealed, but not made illegal.
There's a handy map here of which states have outlawed it:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranked-choice_voting_in_the_United_States
We need a popular voting system.
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Same! If anything, I've gotten more liberal as I've gotten older.
I was pretty conservative when I joined the Army. Now I hang out with anarchists. I regret nothing.
I was in the Marines, and boy, did I not fit in at all.
Ditto. I have moved further and further left as time goes on.
I started out as a liberal, flirted with Marxism, moved on to anarchism, and now I don't even believe countries are real anymore.
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It's similar to father's that abuse their children because they've been abused. We must all suffer together instead of let life for the next generation be easier.
Same.
I was a card-carrying Libertarian at 20. Now I want to quite literally outlaw billionaires.
John-Burn Murdoch wrote an article about this (you may have to access it via Google or an Archive, I believe FT has a soft paywall), but this graph from the article is basically the tl;dr. The same applies to a couple of other wealthy nations, but I only remember Norway (I think he posted an addendum to the article on Twitter), but it's certainly not the trend in every country in the "west".
Jesus. No wonder the GOP is scared shitless of younger folks. That's a pretty stark lookout for the right. (FWIW, I'm 53 and starting dipping left 10-years ago. Guess I'm a little odd, though not an outlier.)
People go conservative when they are afraid that the status quo can be taken away from them.
Everyone under the Boomers has been eating shit, and licking boots their entire life. What wealth do they have to protect? What status quo do they want to keep?
A wee behind you (recently heard someone refer to my ‘generation’ as the Oregon Trail generation) but I’m with you.. if anything age has me not just leaning but charging headlong to the left.
We're Xennials, sir/ma'am. Best microgeneration! And I agree, in fact when I was younger I was more conservative, now in my very early 40s I'm a filthy progressive, especially in the social sense.
You must be one of the lucky few to not be contaminated with lead.
It must be regional, Gen x Republicans seem practically non-existent in California. At least, outside of a few enclaves like redding, crescent City, and some desert towns.
Yours is a different experience to mine then. I've noticed a fair share in the foothill and valley communities. Plus, pew research center says they're affiliated with Rs at ~30% in CA.
Why would anyone with half a brain continue to support this awful system?
Know what makes democrats? Getting out of your insulated social bubble and seeing that everyone is the same and just trying to get by.
Go travel see the world!
Not sure that makes Democrats specifically but it stops Republicans from being formed. When you ask "Why?" and you're not satisfied with the first answer given, you probably won't be roped in by the people whose first and last answer is "Because god."
Why? Indoctrination and lack of education.
And then there's people like me. I'm a millennial; I was super Republican in high school, and over the course of my first few years as an adult I moved pretty quickly to just right of center; largely because I met people who weren't like me. I stopped voting straight-ticket and even voted for my first Democrat (down-ballot) in college.
Between college graduation and Trump, I stayed pretty much where I was politically while the GOP ran full-tilt to the right of me; to the point where I wasn't really comfortable voting Republican nationally anymore after about 2013 or so; Mitt Romney was the last Republican I ever voted for on the Presidential ballot.
Then Trump happened. I was immediately a never-Trumper, basically at day one. But as I was researching candidates and seeing what they were all saying, cross-referencing things, knowing and understanding what was reality and what was spin, I discovered how much of the right was just a rickety facade of lies held up by a willing right-wing media and being used to cover up corporate malfeasance and actual fascism.
Almost right away, my political affiliation slammed to the left; at first I was happy to be a Democrat, but I've been moving left as the GOP has been showing off what that side stands for. Now, at almost 39, I'm to the point where I wouldn't necessarily be uncomfortable with the "socialist" label.
Meanwhile, starting in college, I started becoming more religious. From being nominally Christian in high school (though I talked a big game), I started really taking my faith seriously in college; and as each year went on, I found myself getting deeper and deeper into it. Yes, a lot of it was watching in anger at people who claimed my faith showed that they didn't actually know what it meant (a feeling that remains), but as I'm staring down the barrel of 40 years old next year, I'm actually taking Christ and the Bible more seriously than I ever have before, though I'm reading it for myself--and realizing that the bill of goods that the "Christian" Nationalists tried to sell me in high school was absolute hogwash.
Seems like an unusual course in life, so thanks for sharing that!
Just turned 53. I was a bit conservative in my late-30s/early-40s, or thought I was, mainly because I listened to a lot of talk radio in my car. Caught myself one day thinking, "Dad would be ashamed of you, taking all your news and opinion from one side." Started reading news like CNN and found it wasn't blathering idiocy. Lots more to talk about on that.
Unlike you, I had been edging further and further away from Christianity. Even though I was a regular Sunday school kid, an every-Sunday church kid until my late teens, it never set right with me, never made sense. (Talking white-bread Presbyterians, no snake handling or anything nuts.) I kept backing up the truck, and long story short, I finally gave up around 40 and admitted to myself that I simply didn't believe in anything supernatural. Went from deist -> agnostic -> atheist, with a lot of fine tuning in between. Took two decades+ chewing on it all.
How about all that? People don't tend to fit well in preconceived boxes. Ain't that something?
Unusual course to say the least! Your dad sounds like a smart guy.
Yeah, I recognize that a deepening faith doesn't usually go along with a leftward political slide; but every year I find myself more authentically me, less conflicted between my labels and my values, and always more thoughtful about the world. I'm not claiming to be some genius that figured it all out, but I do like knowing that, like yours is or would be, my dad is proud of me.
On the contrary, those with true faith and an understanding of their religion are often leftists because they understand the importance of "love thy neighbor". The political right has somehow stolen and bastardized religion, Christianity in particular, into a disgusting mockery of itself that has lost touch with its roots and core values, and a significant portion of American Christians have been indoctrinated into that without ever even knowing better.
I'm not religious myself and I often have particular issues with "the church" as an organization but I welcome you. I hope that your faith can continue to show you the righteous path forward. You show an understanding of the intention and values of your faith that is becoming sadly rarer as time goes on. Much of my, and many others', general beef with religion is directly tied to its affiliation with the far right and the bastardization of what once may have been very sensible advice, into a blood cult of rage and hatred.
Spread love my friend. We as a human species need more people like you now more than ever before.
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A poll released last month by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School found that young Americans appear less likely to vote in 2024 than they did in 2020, a record-setting year for young-voter turnout.
This may become the determining factor in this year's election. If Democrats actually show up to vote, they'll win almost every time, at least of the national level. Unfortunately, they don't show up as consistently as conservatives.
Before the 2020 election, 57% of Americans ages 18 to 29 said they were planning to vote. The number is now 49%, a figure many analysts say reflects disinterest in the likelihood of a Biden-Trump rematch.
It seems like this is going to be a continuing battle for all time. Republican gets elected, Republican fucks shit up big time, young people take notice and vote in a Democrat, Democrat starts unfucking shit up, young people become apathetic, rinse and repeat.
Didn't get everything they want politically immediately, better stay home and tacitly support fascism instead.
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but there are still plenty of morons, who were raised by morons, and so on, all of whom are exactly the sort of person to have coNneCtiOns to the point where they'll get to impose their will anyway
Not just morons, racist morons.
And every other type
Well, and we have a system that lets the minority rule over the majority. Between the problems of having small states having just as much representation as a huge state like California and the slave-state era EC, the backwards get to rule over the progressive.
If they get out and vote more we might actually be able to see some real change in our lifetime. That and/or overthrow the government, whatever works.
Weird that the age group that conservatives shit on the most don't particularly care for conservatism. Maybe the Republicans should again double-down on alienating everyone who isn't an old, white, Christian man? That seems to be a genius strategy.
The GOP has neatly painted themselves into a corner. They dare not reach out to anyone who isn't an old, white, Christian man. I've seen them fail over and over and over again, even with the tiniest shred of rhetoric.
While my old ass had enjoyed watching them tank themselves, it's not so funny anymore. They're lashing out hard. Beating up the LGBT folks, restricting the vote for POC, going full steam on religion in government, hell, many loudmouths talked raising the voting age! (Which requires a Constitutional amendment, so I applaud the waste of energy.)
Some younger person will come along and scream, "They've always been like that!!!" No. They haven't. The last 8-10 years has been radical.
I'm 40. I was protesting Iraq deux when I was 18. All the years have been radical, with varying success, on the right. The Democrats have, in modern history, been a centrist or right leaning party depending on who you ask.
Absolutely scream from the rooftops the electoral plight of gerrymandering, suppression of black and latino votes, hatred of different sexualities and gender identities, and the god damn electoral college.
It's never been funny and it's been going on for a lot longer than 8-10 years.
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Because Democrats don't vote. VOTE VOTE VOTE!
Aren't the nones already something like 1/3 of the population? Talk about an underserved group...we keep getting these xtianist loons that wear their Belief Systems (BS) right out there on their sleeve, as if their little book club has anything to do with proper governance in secular nation.
I'm pretty sure that trend started with Gen X.
Thank you, that will be nice
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