Is the current American government legitimate?
The Republican Party is in control of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the American government. And they’re also in charge in a majority of state governments.
How did this come about? Well, for starters, they gerrymandered districts in order to ensure an ongoing Republican majority. Forever.
There’s voter suppression in many states where ex-prisoners (mostly black and Hispanic) can’t vote.
There are robo calls at election time that direct Democratic voters toward the wrong polling places.
There’s the “scrubbing” of voter rolls in some states, in order to make sure that only eligible people can vote. (Umm, that scrubbing thing is to make sure that the wrong people can’t vote.)
There are certain polling places in some states that open late and close early, or where there’s “technical problems” with the voting machines.
So how did this happen? Well, google Nixon’s “Southern Strategy.” It was all about suppressing the votes of blacks in the south, and everywhere else where there were enough racists to hear the dog whistle.
Over the following decades, right wing presidents (and their allies), starting with Ronald Reagan, led America into an abyss of lies, wars, corruption, and tribalism.
A few years later, that tribalism led to Bill Clinton being impeached over a blow job.
And a few years after that, Cheney and Bush Jr. conned us into a couple of unnecessary, endless wars that just keep going.
Barack Obama gave us a reprieve and we all thought the world was about to get better. But after his time was up, it got worse.
Donald Trump, backed by the Republican political/propaganda machine and Putin, landed in the White House. – Democracy at work? I don’t think so.
And here we are with a dysfunctional government leading America, and possibly the world, into a dystopian future.
Those running things didn’t get there through merit, popularity, or convincing a majority of Americans to vote for them.
They got there through deceit, lying, cheating, Russian help, ensuring that many never got to vote, and, in some key states, "lost" votes.
For the most part, the Democratic Party has played by the rules. As a result, they’ve lost power, the majority of us have gotten fucked, and an American fascist dictatorship is not out of the question.
We Americans are nearing that point. But we’re working for that “inevitable” “Blue Wave,” that will sweep us to victory and help us start to repair the damage.
Well, maybe that “Blue Wave” will happen. And if it does, rebuilding what has been destroyed will take countless decades.
And maybe that “Blue Wave” won’t happen. Remember that we’re up against those who don’t play by any rules. Winning is an elusive goal and is subject to how effective the forces against us can use their illegal/amoral advantages. Not to mention their vast propaganda machine -- and the fools who believe the shit fed to them.
I guess it’s time to get to the point. American democracy has been under attack by right wing fanaticism for decades. They’re holding most of the power. They are ruthless, immoral and cruel. They are, in effect, the enemy of everything America is supposed to stand for.
So what do we do if the “Blue Wave” doesn’t happen? I don’t pretend to have the answer. But there’s one thing of which I’m certain. Those men who wrote the Constitution didn’t intend it to be a suicide pact. Those who amended it tried to improve the lives of most. None of them intended for corrupt people to find ways around it. They didn’t want a new “King,” and they sure as hell didn’t want a dictatorship.
We can wait it out until Election Day and see what happens. Hopefully, that “Blue Wave” will occur.
But if it doesn’t, the ongoing existence of American democracy will be in question.
So what would you, personally, be prepared to do about it? What would we, collectively, be prepared to do about it?
The answer will determine the survival of democracy and freedom in America.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Response to Cyrano (Original post)
