New to democratic underground

[Whyisthisreal]

What feels like quite some time ago, I was a conservative trump supporter. I didn’t vote for him, and I was never really opposed to Obama. I simply thought, back when the economy was on the up, that he was able to continue the economic growth, which very obviously started during Obama’s administration. The difference now, I never have been a fan of Fox News. I simply held more conservative values. However, being enlightened by trump coming out as a hateful bigot, and his supporters even more so, I soon realized that trump and his supporters have no concern for anybody’s well being. Not even their own. They are willing to throw their own bodies into a fireplace if they think it will benefit the billionaires. I have to deal with trump supporters all day of every day. I work on a farm. When pressed about wealth inequality, and the billionaires taking advantage of Americans, they respond with, “what would we do without them?” I am appalled at that thought. What would we do without a blind support for unregulated capitalism? Where would we be if Corporate America were held accountable for their affect on society, and the world? How would other nations view us, and how powerful could we be, if the whole nation simply worked together, for the good and well being of all of our citizens, and spread that idea across the world? I find myself now a firm supporter of Biden, because he cares about everybody. He wants what I want. It’s just been fascinating watching the right become the biggest snowflakes of the country, especially since they loved to throw it out at everybody else. All the Karen’s for trump; treasonous, court packing republicans; conspiracy theory driving, racist extremists have one thing in common, I believe. My roommate and I have been calling them smooth-brains. See, the koala bear has a strictly poisonous diet. They’ll only eat a certain type of eucalyptus leave, which is highly toxic, and provides the animal with almost no energy, causing them to sleep 20 hours a day. They have plenty of other options, but fighting evolution to be able to eat that one leaf seems to be the idea. We believe it may be a trait of having a smooth, wrinkle free brain, as the koala bears do. I’m not sure why they have pledged their souls to the filthy rich, perhaps it’s because they think they will achieve the same thing.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

1. Welcome Why....

You are amongst friends.

We can be rude and crude sometimes, but we back up our comments with the facts.

[Crunchy Frog]

2. Hello and welcome.

I agree with everything you posted apart from your assessment of koalas.

[spicysista]

3. Welcome to DU, Whyisthisreal!

Glad to have you! There are some very strong opinions here. However, everyone is usually respectful.

[PJMcK]

4. Greetings

Thanks for your story. You’ve taken an interesting path.

Keep posting!

And vote for Democrats.

[KT2000]

5. Welcome!

Well said! Republicans have told us for years that the wealthy supply the jobs. People believe it. Trickle down, which has been proven to be false is still used as a successful campaign teaser for the less well off.

[NRaleighLiberal]

6. welcome. we do find ourselves in interesting times.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. Welcome to DU, Whyisthisreal!

Your post is well written.

One thing, though: It's a bit hard to read this dense text. You might consider writing your next OP with some breaks here and there.

Just my thought!

[Whyisthisreal]

10. Will do

Sorry if it came cross like that. Been writing that post in between doing a few things this morning. Will definitely give it more of my focus next time.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

12. Thanks for your quick response!

It's OK; I was able to read it and enjoy it. It just would have been a little more enjoyable if it had been broken up a bit.

[Greybnk48]

8. Welcome to DU! It's a hard time to navigate the world right now.

I feel you're heading in a healthy direction.

[Wawannabe]

54. May add ditto?

This is well said, friend.

[Newest Reality]

9. Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard! Good to have you here.

Maybe you could consider using paragraphs when possible because it is more readable and clear.

Good points though. I think you will like it here.

[Karadeniz]

11. Several knowledgeable writers now say the GOP is not a political party anymore. Noam Chomsky said

It years ago. Beginning with Newt, they quit working within a system that demands compromise. They obstructed and refused to obey the most basic rules of politics. Obama had a healthy majority, but the GOP skipped his inauguration to plot an obstructionist stand to thwart the Democratic agenda. No respect for majority rule. No respect for the Americans who wanted that agenda. Their quest for power on behalf of their money backers turns us into an oligarchy or plutocracy. Trump's trampling on the rule of law and the constitution puts us halfway to full-blown fascism.

I'm glad you saw the light and found a soft place to land...DU!

[Walleye]

33. When told that most Americans were against the war, Dick Cheney said "so?"

[jrthin]

13. Welcome! You are among friends.

[Javaman]

14. Welcome to DU. You are among like minded souls

Cheers! 👍🙂

[MustLoveBeagles]

15. Welcome to DU

[handmade34]

16. ...

[Niagara]

17. Welcome to DU, Whyisthisreal.

[overleft]

18. Welcome to DU, an open and enlightened forum.

[11 Bravo]

19. Excellent post. Welcome aboard!

[MyNameIsKhan]

20. Welcome

[octoberlib]

21. Hello and welcome, Whyisthisreal!

I know farmers are suffering because of Trump's tariffs. I bet quite a few are still supporting him, regardless. They'll be treated a lot better when Biden is elected.

[Whyisthisreal]

25. I have first hand experience of that

They definitely are. The weather this year has not been kind to them, either. The industry is not looking healthy. The farm I work on is also into custom harvesting, so I see a lot of the states harvests. Here in The plains, is not doing so hot.

At the beginning of this year for instance, we had a record amount of corn planted. We will be ending the year, likely, with a record low harvest. Thanks to that, and all the profit margins being eaten by the guys at the top, there’s a lot of folks in financial trouble.

[Whyisthisreal]

22. Thank you, everybody!

I have been watching this site for a while. I wanted to make sure I’d found the right place, and my right place before I pick a side. I absolutely love the daily toons! I’ll be sure to make my next post written better.

[cwydro]

23. Did you vote for Hillary?

You say you didn’t vote for trump, but thought he’d be the best to keep the economy going?

Were you aware of his record as a businessman?

[Whyisthisreal]

28. No, I didn't vote for Hilary.

Sadly, I didn’t vote. I will be voting for Biden, for sure though. What I was saying was, maybe for a moment he may be proving himself capable of successfully managing the economy. But he only proved himself incompetent in the long run. I also realized that just because the economy is doing good, doesn’t mean the people are being treated fairly.

[Blue_true]

31. Trump has never been successful at any thing other than self promotion and borrowing large

amounts of money. President Obama handed him an economy that had been pulled out of a pit (2008 meltdown) and was running forward. Trump progressively wiped out the economy’s forward momentum. Our trade deficit with China is the highest that it has ever been and because China has beaten the Coronavirus somewhat, that deficit is only going to get larger in China’s favor. We really, really need stable leadership now, Joe Biden is the bridge to the future that provides that stable and competent leadership.

[Whyisthisreal]

32. We sure have a lot of hard work ahead of us.

How are we ever going to work with this new cult?

[Blue_true]

48. There are more of us. Also, some people that still support Trump aren't

impossible to work with on some issues. What we need is a President who follows science and communicates the need for people to take actions that will help the country get out of the mess that we are in.

I was out shopping today and passed a woman who was leaving as I got out of my vehicle. Both of us had on masks worn properly in the parking lot, she had been in the store with her. We nodded appreciation that both of us were wearing masks properly. By coincidence, she was right at her car as I approached moving toward the store. Her car had a Trump sticker on the bumper. Now that situation may sound depressing, but in the tiny action of that woman relative to the mask, I saw a glimmer of hope that people like her will do what is right to defeat the Coronavirus once we have a competent President. Maybe she convinces her SO and friends to properly wear masks, at least for a little while when not around people of their household - at least that would be my hope once we have a president who isn’t determined to throw gasoline on a burning flame, for whatever his reason.

[Whyisthisreal]

49. I have noticed a lot of silence from trump supporters on some of his recent crap.

And that I feel can be interpreted as an early sign of abandonment.

[Blue_true]

59. Or at least that they are uncomfortable with his recent behavior.

Whether that means they will do the right thing is another issue. I am an optimist on human nature, not a blind optimist, more of an analytical one. Unless people are packed full of hate or are far gone mentally, they will typically do the right thing when push comes to shove and they have had the reasons calmly explained to them, I count on that as the wrench that we can use to pull ourselves out of the mess we are in once Joe gets elected, our task now is to insure that he does by voting and encouraging family and like minded friends to vote for Joe. I believe that if we get the primary objective done, some of the dark clouds that we see now will start to clear.

I remember sitting in an airport after President Clinton started his first term. I had been in airports during the Bush I years, but that situation felt different, there were more people taking flights. I felt that things were turning around with the economy and that feeling proved to be right.
I remember in 2009, having taken a long lunch break, watching President Obama speak after he had taken his first Oath of Office. I remember wondering how the country could possibly get out of the situation that it was in. Because I started work later as a salaried person, as I got out of bed, I could hear auto traffic of people that rose for work early, restaurant workers and owners, building and construction trades, ect. That traffic had ground to a stop in 2008 and was that way as President Obama took office. I had seen only about three other bad recessions that I remember, the Oil Embargo recession of the early and mid-70s, the recession during the second year of President Reagan’s first term and the recession of 1990-1992. But 2008 was a totally different beast, it looked like all economic underpinnings had been gutted. But I remember as 2009 went into the Fall, I started to hear the early auto and truck traffic again, and like when I sat in that airport in 1993, it seemed like something good was happening, and in fact it was.

Maybe this time is different once Joe is in office. But I don’t believe so, what we need is sane, competent leadership. China, with all it’s problems appears to have beaten SARS-COV-2, South Korea is doing well, as is Japan. What we need is a leader who will seek to learn what was done in those places, but we know what was done, virus testing, contact tracing, near universal mask wearing and social distancing until the virus was reduced to a level where it is near burnout (inability to infect readily available hosts) - so what we need is a leader who focuses us solidly on what is known to have worked, not a person who turns Americans against each other and ridicules proper conduct like wearing of masks around non household people, following proper hand washing practices, ect.

[Whyisthisreal]

51. We gotta get rid of the clown though.

That much is undeniable. But those in his stubborn base aren’t going anywhere. They will continue to try and thwart Biden’s efforts, as they did with Obama. Somehow we have got to get these people to believe that a cumulative effort is the only way a society, a country, and the world works.

[Blue_true]

61. In many ways, Joe Biden would be the most down home President that we have had

since Jimmy Carter (Biden is similar to LBJ more, IMO). I really feel deep in my bones that he will get enough Trump supporters to cooperate, even grudgingly. What we need to do is get Joe elected and remove the top republican leadership from office in this same election, we have that unique opportunity this year to do that. If Mitch McConnell is sitting at home wondering how he lost, then he won’t be arrogantly saying that his mission is to make Joe Biden a one term President. We get rid of the obstruction by removing the leading Congressional obstructionists from office, along with Trump.

Democracy has never been neat. I assure you that we are in a bare knuckles fight with Trump supporters now, we can’t back down, the country’s future depends upon us winning.

[elleng]

24. I don't see how 'conservative values' has anything to do with trump,

and much to do with republicans.

[Whyisthisreal]

29. I didn't either

That’s why I’m here, now. The right has changed, and it’s ugly.

[elleng]

34. Welcome

[Blue_true]

35. It seems that the poster is more of a Charlie Baker, Larry Hogan, Stuart Stevens type of

conservative. I disagree rather soundly with what he or she once believed and may still believe, but I view the type of conservative that he or she is as someone that I can sit down with and have a rational debate with, that is not the case with today’s republicans wit large.

I deal with conservatives almost daily, some are very decent people outside of their conservatism, in such cases I deal with the person and hope that I leave an impression that causes them to re-evaluate some of their long held, but wrong (in my view) beliefs. I know one thing, I welcome all allies as we face down the problematic behaviors that underpin Trumpism.

[SophieJean]

57. They're not "decent people,"

if they're racists, which obviously the majority of Repugs have always been-For decades.

[Blue_true]

67. I know some of those people personally. They are not racists.

At the most, they go mute in the face of racism from their family and friends. When I challenge them, I see that they KNOW right from wrong, it is just they wake up listening to AM radio and go to bed watching Fox News, they seldom get their worldview challenged calmly - now, if I challenged those same people in the heated environment of street gatherings, the likely outcome would be exchange of blows. We have to be determined and patient and pull back whatever of those people that we can - if they get to the point where they tell like minded family and friends that our path forward is maybe right, I view that as a small sign of progress.

[alwaysinasnit]

26. Welcome Whyisthisreal! Thanks for sharing your perspective.

[TheBlackAdder]

27. Welcome to the Party!

.





.

[Blue_true]

30. You appear to be a thinking person, that is poison to Trumpism.

Trump hasn’t been successful in his business ventures, the only thing that he has proven good at is borrowing money.

As the old saying goes, if a poor man owes the bank $500, the bank owns him. If a multi-millionaire owes the bank $2 million dollars, he or she owns the bank. Trump took out audacious loans, when they went bad, banks had a choice, bail him out with more money or foreclose and get back a fraction of what they had loaned him at foreclosure sales.

The Apprentice made-up reality show made Trump out to be a financial dynamo and that is all most Americans knew about him. Hidden was how Trump had stiffed family, contractors and employees and used lawsuits and non disclosure agreements to silence them.

[SheltieLover]

36. Welcome to DU, Why!

Glad you found your way here.

We are a big tent & I'm sure you will enjoy discussions here.

I commend your astute independent thought process & look forward to getting to know you.

[judesedit]

37. Welcome. So glad you're here. You're amongst some mighty fine people

[Enoki33]

38. Welcome. I came here for political sanity and found it. Cheers.

[ZZenith]

39. Glad to have you here, Whyisthisreal.

Please share more of your thoughts as time allows.

[dawg]

40. Welcome. I admire a person who can change their mind.

Although I do think Trump did a pretty good job of showing us who he was before the 2016 election, even I didn't expect he would be this bad. To be honest, at one point I was relieved he was going to be the nominee instead of Ted Cruz, thinking that Trump would try to move to the center once he had the nomination. Boy was I wrong.

[AllaN01Bear]

41. hihwodi.

[Kablooie]

42. I find Democrats can have a wide spectrum of views.

They don't walk lockstep together like Republicans.
Some are more liberal, some are more conservative but they are all working towards what they hope will be a better society for everyone.

[Hip2bSquare]

43. What a brilliant analogy

I think if you sat us all down in a room, we'd have more in common than not. We have so much to learn and to give as a nation, but we certainly have let the smooth brains control the narrative for far too long.

Welcome from Colorado...we have work to do.. hopefully in a few weeks these dark clouds will begin to lift!

[Pepsidog]

44. Great post. I like the Koala info.

[gopiscrap]

45. welcome to DU

[Lady Freedom Returns]

46. Salutations!

[pnwmom]

47. People like you give me hope. So thank you for sharing this, Whyisthisreal! n/t

[eggplant]

50. Welcome!

Glad to have you here.

[Glaisne]

52. Welcome aboard!

Enjoy!

[amb123]

53. You don't know how correct you are.

"...most men with nothing would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich, than face the reality of being poor. And that is why they will follow us to the Right, ever to the Right, never to the Left, forever to the Right ..."

“Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires.” - John Steinbeck

[kairos12]

55. Welcome Whyisthisreal!

[SaveOurDemocracy]

56. Welcome, Whyisthisreal.

Thank you for your experience and insights.

I like the koala/smooth brain analogy.

[Dan]

58. Yep, welcome to DU

And as you will discover, we have a wide spectrum of views... One could say it is like herding cats.

[ancianita]

60. Welcome, Whyisthisreal.

Glad for your story, that you support Biden, and I hope you've registered to vote as a Democrat. That's the best way to support Democrats.

[usaf-vet]

62. Welcome aboard!

[CountAllVotes]

63. Welcome to the Democratic Underground Whyisthisreal!!!

Nice to see you and what a great post!

Hope to see you around more!

Take care!!!

& recommend !!!!

[GentryDixon]

64. Welcome. 💞

[SergeStorms]

65. Great observation about the "smooth brain"...

Maybe there's something to that! There's certainly something that makes them the way they are.

Welcome to Democratic Underground. It's wonderful to have you here.

[gademocrat7]

66. Welcome aboard!

[GulfCoast66]

68. Welcome. There are more ex-conservatives and ex-republicans than most think.

In my 30’s I was a secular conservative. In my 50’s I’m now a social democrat.

Admitting you were wrong is tough to do but is a sign of an active intellect. It took traveling to other countries to open my eyes.

[mercuryblues]

69. welcome here

just a few words of advice. Don't be surprised when some people aren't receptive here of your mea culpa or trust you. Trump promised to run the country like one of his businesses, he did. Right straight into the ground. Just like all of his bankruptcies.

They have loved ones living in fear for various reason, LBGT, Covid, income loss, retirement loss, kicked out of the USA because they have been denied citizenship or permanent residency, white supremacy, rights over their own body, healthcare, and so on. All of this was very apparent during his campaign and his personal history.

But you know, Obama made them suffer and Clinton is a female.

Just to stick it to the libruls.

When the disabled elderly refused to die for the economy, trump promised he would take away their Social Security and Medicare, if they vote for 4 more years.

Glad you aren't falling into that trap.

My FIL is dying and we can't even go see him, in fear of getting Covid and giving it to him hastening his life.

They didn't stick it to me, but I hate them with every fiber of my being. I will dance on their graves. It is what it is. I don't care, do U?

[electric_blue68]

70. Welcome Why...

Glad you started to ponder certain differences.

I've only been here about 2+ months myself. As a liberal
I was looking for an extra place to talk politics. Interesting, smart, fun people here. I'm enjoying myself, along with bouts of righteous anger, and spates of worry. The DU Lounge has things to lift up your spirits, and make laugh for emotional balance. Along with other dedicated groups.

Stay safe from cv19, and while doing your farm work.