Democratic Primaries

Recursion

(56,582 posts) Thu Jan 2, 2020, 03:44 AM Jan 2020

I find the inevitable Iowa diner meet & greets alienating [View all]

This is a small thing but it's bugged me for years. Who are these people who have the time to sit down for breakfast at a damn diner on a weekday morning? A lot of them look old enough to be retired, so I guess there's that, but seriously I have trouble accepting this as a thing. And they talk about having breakfast there every morning for the past hundred and fifty seven years. Every morning? Do you have a job? When does it start? How are you managing this?

I want a more relatable breakfast meet & greet: I want candidates to talk to people hastily gulping down a still-half-frozen Hot Pocket™ while waiting in the sleet for a bus.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden

111 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

I find the inevitable Iowa diner meet & greets alienating [View all] Recursion Jan 2020 OP

a valid point stopdiggin Jan 2020 #1

A mother that is picking up a sick child is NOT CUTTING WORK she is tending to an ill child ChubbyStar Jan 2020 #94

yep. at's me. clueless stopdiggin Jan 2020 #97

If I miscontrused your intent ChubbyStar Jan 2020 #99

Not every job starts at 8:00 AM or earlier Sinistrous Jan 2020 #2

In Bumblefuck, Iowa? Really? Recursion Jan 2020 #3

Yeah really.... Sinistrous Jan 2020 #4

Yep. Tipperary Jan 2020 #5

If the factory is running 3 shifts why the fuck is there so much economic anxiety? Recursion Jan 2020 #70

Yeah, no: the 107 year old guy at the diner is not an EMT, sorry (nt) Recursion Jan 2020 #6

Are you a parody? Drunken Irishman Jan 2020 #24

We had a 108 yr old barber worked everyday until he suddenly died... Historic NY Jan 2020 #27

A guy who has never in his life had time to sit down for breakfast on a weekday Recursion Jan 2020 #29

I'm sitting down at my computer before going into work later today. Drunken Irishman Jan 2020 #30

"A guy who has never in his life had time to sit down for breakfast on a weekday" TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #41

Wow. You are out of touch. That's a whole lot of us. (nt) Recursion Jan 2020 #44

Not even close to out of touch. TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #48

I've delivered things to a diner at 7am. I am aware that people eat there Recursion Jan 2020 #50

"I am aware that people eat there" TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #52

Now: how about people who snarf down a breakfast burrito while waiting for a bus? Recursion Jan 2020 #53

That would probably be a close call. TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #60

You don't get up early enough then. cwydro Jan 2020 #107

This message was self-deleted by its author Recursion Jan 2020 #43

hate to break it to you..... getagrip_already Jan 2020 #85

"Are you a parody?" TwilightZone Jan 2020 #65

What's satiric about it to you? Recursion Jan 2020 #69

Yep. A lot of those farmers have already been up for 3 or 4 hours. Hassin Bin Sober Jan 2020 #11

And that's fascinating to the 2% of the country who are farmers Recursion Jan 2020 #23

Agriculture employees over ten percent of Americans. TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #42

not on farms they don't. it's ridiculous to suggest ... stopdiggin Jan 2020 #102

Thank you (nt) Recursion Jan 2020 #104

The topic is people at an Iowa diner and the ops thoughts on them... TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #106

Bumblefuck, lol....right next to Whereinthehellistat. Funtatlaguy Jan 2020 #15

Diner people: the retired, bachelor farmers, and when a guy has a fight with his wife and she says, betsuni Jan 2020 #7

Nice 1990's reference to Hot Pockets... whistler162 Jan 2020 #8

Hot Pockets are still around TwilightZone Jan 2020 #58

Agreed. The MSM's idea of typical voters being an older white person... brush Jan 2020 #9

What does this have to do with "the MSM"? brooklynite Jan 2020 #12

Who airs interviews of voters in Iowa diners? brush Jan 2020 #13

So you don't want face-to-face candidate events with actual voters? brooklynite Jan 2020 #14

Are you really being serious? Try South Carolina or one of Super... brush Jan 2020 #16

Fine, pick any State you want: candidates will still go to diners. brooklynite Jan 2020 #17

Do you specialize in missing points? It's not the diners, it's who's in the diners. brush Jan 2020 #19

MY point is that the CANDIDATES think those voters have value, even if YOU don't.. brooklynite Jan 2020 #20

He's doing well in Iowa and NH but not so in South Carolina where... brush Jan 2020 #22

OK, I have to hand that one to you Recursion Jan 2020 #63

The OP said nothing of the demographic makeup of Iowa... Drunken Irishman Jan 2020 #26

Go to a quinceanera and you'll find a lot of people too Recursion Jan 2020 #34

I've seen plenty of candidates all over the place... Drunken Irishman Jan 2020 #45

I've got to agree with brush Recursion Jan 2020 #54

Here's a secret: not every political event is broadcast, whether at a diner or a community center brooklynite Jan 2020 #108

I bet they have diners in South Carolina too. Drunken Irishman Jan 2020 #25

Some good ones! Recursion Jan 2020 #32

And I don't go to church on Sundays... Drunken Irishman Jan 2020 #46

About a third do Recursion Jan 2020 #49

I used to live in Santa Barbara, CA. I was the very young manager of a MineralMan Jan 2020 #98

And that's not a very common point of view, is it? Recursion Jan 2020 #101

Isn't it? Explain how you know that, please. MineralMan Jan 2020 #103

I don't know, actually. MineralMan Jan 2020 #110

Thank you! This is Democratic Underground, not White Moderates Central. So many forget that. LonePirate Jan 2020 #77

When I lived in S. Dakota in 1996-97 the small town (pop. 400) had no bus stop but it did have abqtommy Jan 2020 #10

That sounds really nice Recursion Jan 2020 #33

I found lot of good people living in S. Dakota. I minded my business and they minded theirs. abqtommy Jan 2020 #55

About 80%, by census numbers Recursion Jan 2020 #56

Well, if you get what I'm saying then my work here is done. abqtommy Jan 2020 #62

... betsuni Jan 2020 #18

Remember, evertonfc Jan 2020 #21

When I was younger I worked mainly nights so Historic NY Jan 2020 #28

I've done 3rd shift too. Warehouse fulfillment, 10pm-6am Recursion Jan 2020 #31

There's more media in those diners than candidates SharonClark Jan 2020 #35

Spot on. Funny they never do diner/voter interviews in Brooklyn... brush Jan 2020 #51

My that's incredibly judgmental. Skidmore Jan 2020 #36

Exactly: the deserve *the same* respect as any other prospective voters Recursion Jan 2020 #38

Hardly. How many of this type Skidmore Jan 2020 #47

I mean.... I remember diner meet & greets from the 1984 primary Recursion Jan 2020 #75

So, was it this attitude you describe Skidmore Jan 2020 #83

No, I'm asking candidates to talk to actual working people waiting at bus stops in Iowa Recursion Jan 2020 #84

I am a father and also work very hard at my job. TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #37

I have breakfast and dinner with my family every day too Recursion Jan 2020 #39

It's far more common that you know. TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #40

Amazing how defensive people get when I point out how rare this is Recursion Jan 2020 #59

I don't see many defensive people. TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #61

You were very defensive TheRealNorth Jan 2020 #95

I think you are injecting your own biases into the argument TheRealNorth Jan 2020 #93

I directly addressed the content of the op. TidalWave46 Jan 2020 #100

One diner owner here in New Hampshire banned candidates, staff and press. sarge43 Jan 2020 #57

I assume this is satire? TwilightZone Jan 2020 #64

OK, I'm curious: why do you assume that? Recursion Jan 2020 #66

I get what you're saying. redqueen Jan 2020 #67

Not just the money; it's the time Recursion Jan 2020 #68

True! If one has extra $ and transportation it's time that's the issue. redqueen Jan 2020 #71

Though, ironically, a diner set-up is kind of perfect for Andrew Recursion Jan 2020 #72

The idea that the small-town diner is where the "real people" go is populist garbage. WhiskeyGrinder Jan 2020 #73

Thank you Recursion Jan 2020 #74

I mean, I get it -- they're ideal for candidate visits because they're full of people who have a lot WhiskeyGrinder Jan 2020 #80

Apart from maybe a few low income people in Des Moines, those bus stop people do not exist in Iowa. LonePirate Jan 2020 #76

Cedar Rapids has 13 local bus routes Recursion Jan 2020 #78

Real people eat at diners, too. TwilightZone Jan 2020 #81

So if we went to equal time between bus stops and diners, would you be OK with that? Recursion Jan 2020 #82

So, which people get to be counted as "real" and which of us Bettie Jan 2020 #91

where isn't the important part.... getagrip_already Jan 2020 #96

I mean, that's a pretty useful antidote to what the press feeds us every 4 years Recursion Jan 2020 #111

des moines does have a transit system...... getagrip_already Jan 2020 #88

I mean, it's 26 bus routes Recursion Jan 2020 #90

easy to google, eh? getagrip_already Jan 2020 #92

Candidates go where the people are. nsd Jan 2020 #79

Ah, another post about how people in Iowa aren't actually people Bettie Jan 2020 #86

Yeah, that's what it is Recursion Jan 2020 #87

I'm tired of being told that Bettie Jan 2020 #89

Kids aren't most of the the movers and shakers who've been Hortensis Jan 2020 #105

Honestly, I don't care, you do. Blue_true Jan 2020 #109