US election 2020 - WEEK 1...2...3

Introversion

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(To the mods: I didn't see an obvious thread already opened to cover the actual election. Please merge if there was?)

So we're only four days away from it now. It's snowing thickly here in central Massachusetts, which seems appropriate somehow. Better than raining frogs or locusts anyway. At least the snow will (probably) melt by election night.

Sobering: We live in a very small town. The town's fire marshal often sends an auto-dialed pre-recorded telephone message to all residents. Usually it's for things like warning us of fire risks when it's been very dry. This year it's often been about COVID, such as letting us know when there's been cases reported in town, or what the town is doing to mitigate risks.

This morning, it was a message about how this election is likely to see "unrest" (read: violence) afterwards, depending on the outcome. He talked about the number of national guard and state police that were being deployed ahead of election night, and suggested that we all remove any signs of political affiliation, to avoid being targeted by 'individuals who might be upset by the results'.

This is in Massachusetts, which is not a swing state. We've been a reliably "blue" state for decades. I don't know how to judge whether he's being wildly hyperbolic with this warning, or just prudent. But if this is a real concern here in Central Podunk Liberal State, I imagine states where polling shows a closer race must be quite nervous about election night.

Of all the things I've been paranoid of in my adult life, "actual breakdown of democracy" in the US was never one of them. I really really hope that the election results are quickly and incontrovertibly a victory for Biden/Harris, so this doesn't drag out for weeks or months. And I hope our town's fire marshal warnings this morning were unnecessary.
 
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Marian Perera

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I don't know what anyone else's plans are for election night, but I got someone else to switch shifts with me so I'd have the day off and can follow the news. I also bought a bottle of wine, though it's half gone already.

To everyone in the States who will be directly affected by this, I also hope that it's a clear, immediate victory for Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, democracy and decency over fascism and cruelty. Even if this happens, I think there'll be plenty of (violent) fallout. But it's still better than the alternative.

All the best, America. The world is watching.
 

Brightdreamer

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In the words of Fox Mulder, I want to believe...

I do believe that there are factions, some backed by powerful channels (and dog-whistle blasts from the WH occupant and others in the regime), determined to create chaos no matter what happens, because chaos has always been the authoritarian's friend: enough people trade freedom for the false sense of security that comes with Someone In Control.

I have a very, very bad feeling about where we'll be come November 4...
 

regdog

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I live in Eastern MA and during the midterm election there were signs in almost every yard on my street. Now the only sign on my entire street is my Megatron for Global Domination sign in my front window.

I am very worried about what is going to happen on election night, worried about the election results and violence.
 

cbenoi1

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It will be a blue wave. Some psychics even predict Biden gets in with some 350 EC votes. It will take the nation some time to absorb the news. Both sides, actually. Many will dismiss the results because they will be sooooo off the charts. Something MUST be wrong with the election system!

Then Trump will turn on the Americans. All of them. His base included. He's that kind of a man.

-cb
 

lizmonster

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With the mention of psychics, I can't be sure if you're being satirical or not. This, however, will be true regardless of the results:

Then Trump will turn on the Americans. All of them. His base included. He's that kind of a man.

We can only hope it'll only be an issue until January.
 

Introversion

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Here’s an article suggesting how pollsters have adjusted their methodology since the 2016 election, and why polls this year are less likely to produce a similar election-night surprise.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/dont-sweat-the-polls/ar-BB1avo0E

Of course, vote suppression and court chicanery aren’t things pollsters account for, and both have me worried.
 

Lyv

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Eastern MA here, too (City of Presidents), and there are some hardcore Trumpers who, in local groups and article comments sections, have threatened (in that sneaky was that isn't legally a threat but is meant to be one) and tried to intimidate me over the years. One's a cop and gun nut with pretty severe anger issues who lives a few neighborhoods over and used to borderline stalk me. In a local FB group, he'd casually mention seeing me on my porch and what I was wearing, make comments on our yard signs, renovations, etc. Just to let me know he is watching me. Mostly, I've shrugged it off, but I keep thinking about him. He's not a cop for our city, but I am sure he's checked us out, so maybe he knows my husband is a gun owner (a sane one who believes in background checks, mandatory safety classes, and more) and that will keep him away. He went very quiet months ago, but I know he's somewhere seething and stewing.

Of all the things I've been paranoid of in my adult life, "actual breakdown of democracy" in the US was never one of them.

Oddly, I've worried about it since at least the mid-90s. I could see it happening, see the groundwork being laid. There are people who saw their long game, and I listened to them and saw it unfolding for myself. I'm afraid of the other things I've feared, because way too much of it has come to pass.

I tracked our ballots and they were accepted. We're pretty sure I had a heart attack Wednesday (my hospice nurse knows; we knew it was coming, it's fine) and in MA if you vote early, then die before Election Day and they find out (unlikely but why take a chance), your vote won't be counted. We've been joking about getting a big freezer just in case. Hey, got to have a plan!

I'm a wreck over the presidential race, but also hoping hard that ranked choice voting passes.
 

Chris P

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To everyone in the States who will be directly affected by this, I also hope that it's a clear, immediate victory for Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, democracy and decency over fascism and cruelty.

Hear hear! I wish for peace, no matter who wins, but a blue win would provide more long-term and sooner-arriving hope. Also, when I lived in Africa during the 2012 election, my Ugandan coworkers congratulated me when the 2012 election was peaceful. The world is indeed watching.

This part of Virginia is so blue the local GOP sometimes doesn't even run anyone for the local and state elections for this district. I live near a commercial area that could be the target for any unrest, and literally across a ped mall from the county offices, so we're getting accustomed to using alternate exits from our building and using alternate routes to get around town. Nobody is boarding up anything yet, at least not in Arlington, but I've not been in DC to see if anyone is preparing there.

We do have tentative late morning socially distanced outside coffee plans with a coworker in downtown DC on Wednesday, which we're holding loosely in case travel through town is not advisable.

What I think will be a less obvious, but extremely disruptive outcome, is a passive-aggressive bungling of the transition if Biden wins. There could be thousands of political appointees who will be packing up their desks between Nov 3 and Jan 20, from Secretaries all the way down to mid-level administrators. Amid holiday travel, final meetings to get their pet projects past the point of no return before they leave, and other excuses, there is plenty of opportunity for someone to sabotage the transition by purposely missing meetings, scattering key documents across random folders on shared drives, or just plain not lifting a finger to smooth the transition, even worse than the normally chaotic schedules these people juggle. "Oh, so sorry I couldn't meet with you. That's a shame. Well, I'm out the door, and I'm sure whoever non-political is left can help you. Buh-bye." I'm sure some of this happens in all transitions, but this year I think is ripe for more intentional and widespread bungling.
 
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cbenoi1

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We can only hope it'll only be an issue until January.

The next 6 months will be the among the most horrible in US history. Trump. The pandemic.

Then it will be a blue sky ride thereafter.

Just hang on for a few more months.

-cb
 
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Introversion

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I tracked our ballots and they were accepted. We're pretty sure I had a heart attack Wednesday (my hospice nurse knows; we knew it was coming, it's fine) and in MA if you vote early, then die before Election Day and they find out (unlikely but why take a chance), your vote won't be counted. We've been joking about getting a big freezer just in case. Hey, got to have a plan!

OMG! :Wha::roll: That is the darkest, funniest thing I've read in a looong time! :D I mean, sorry about the reason for making that comment, but also hahahaha!
 

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I'm not sure I remember EVER being this much on pins and needles with regard to a US election -- and I'm an old lady.
 

Lyv

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OMG! :Wha::roll: That is the darkest, funniest thing I've read in a looong time! :D I mean, sorry about the reason for making that comment, but also hahahaha!
I'm delighted that you found it funny. We laugh about this stuff all the time. I need my dark humor.

On a serious note:

Walmart pulls guns and ammo from store displays, citing potential "civil unrest"

"We have seen some isolated civil unrest, and as we have done on several occasions over the last few years, we have moved our firearms and ammunition off the sales floor as a precaution for the safety of our associates and customers," a Walmart spokesperson said in an email to CBS MoneyWatch. "These items do remain available for purchase by customers."

I'm sure we'll see violence. Please, stay as safe as you can, all.
 

Roxxsmom

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I'm not sure I remember EVER being this much on pins and needles with regard to a US election -- and I'm an old lady.

Me too. Like introversion, I live in a very blue state. My neighborhood is more mixed, though. There's a guy on the corner with a sign asking us all to vote Republican to defeat socialism in the election (because that's how many Republicans see it--they don't necessarily love Trump but they think the battle for the heart and soul of our nation is a fight against a party they think has been taken over by socialists). I also saw a pickup truck a few weeks back with a bumper sticker to Vote for Trump to make a liberal cry. That's the level some of these chumps are at--they hate us and they want to hurt us. As angry as I sometimes am at the extreme and ignorant components of the Right, I did not cast any of my ballots with a desire to hurt anyone. I have trouble understanding how some people can be so consumed with hate. I imagine fear is involved somehow, and we live in fear-inducing times. But why are they so much more afraid than the rest of us?

Other than these two, though, I've seen no yard signs or even bumper stickers. I suspect most people know how scary things are right now, and a political bumper sticker is likely to get your car vandalized at the very least.

Regardless of the outcome, I am worried about violence erupting on election night or after.

I think the signs look good for a Biden victory, and if this were a normal election, I'd be less nervous. But states have a lot of power over which mail in ballots are rejected and from which precincts, and there are so many ways people can screw up mail in ballots. Millions could ostensibly be rejected, and our SCOTUS is likely to be fine with that.

I see so many ways things can go wrong, no matter what the people decide on Tuesday. I am praying with all my little agnostic heart that the election is decisively and resoundingly Blue, so any shenanigans by the POTUS, state election commissions are too obvious to gain traction in the courts. We don't want this to come down to Pennsylvania, and it ostensibly could. I don't know what recourse people will have if 5/9 justices prove as corrupt as I fear they are, aside from mass protests and national strikes. This is promising, but Barrett probably won't recuse herself from decisions that need to be made after the election.
 
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cbenoi1

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Even in my misspent youth I was not this naive.

Don't get me wrong. The climate changes, social inequalities, and the economy are going to be up front and center challenges once you brush off Trump and the pandemic. But from late Spring 2021 on it will feel like a smooth ride.

-cb
 

lizmonster

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Even if *rump is defeated, AND leaves, AND we manage to get somewhere in the next four years...

...what do you think will happen in 2024?
 

mccardey

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once you brush off Trump and the pandemic. But from late Spring 2021 on it will feel like a smooth ride.

-cb
Brush off? Brush off Trump? Brush off the damage he's done?

And - I'm not so sure the Pandemic came with an end date...
 

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Even if *rump is defeated, AND leaves, AND we manage to get somewhere in the next four years...

...what do you think will happen in 2024?

Remember how everyone, after Bush Jr., breathed a sigh of relief during the Obama years and figured we'd dodged a bullet?

Remember how people shrugged off the many disturbing signs and events of the previous presidency because Hope and Change had won, so we were on track again?

Remember how the rats just went underground and bred and grew angrier and darker and more determined, sharpening tooth and claw, then exploded forth in 2016?

That's what'll happen in 2024 if we don't dig down deep, down to the bedrock, and root out as much of the residual rot as we possibly can throughout the whole system, the whole country...

(And that's assuming an uncontested Biden win, which is very, very, very far from a given... I don't know how many ways the regime has implied and flat-out said that they intend to challenge anything but a red wave win, and they're already leaning very, very hard on the levers of power to make that happen.)
 

lizmonster

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I think our society is barely balanced, and is on the verge of fracturing permanently. Tuesday will let us know if that has already happened.

Fundamentally, we should have dealt with the issue of human rights when we originally formed a government. And we should never have formed a government based so much in our reaction to having just thrown off what we felt was totalitarian rule. We've baked in "don't tell me what to do" even when nobody's suggesting anything radical, and we're still dealing with our mistreatment of indigenous people, never mind our refusal to embrace abolitionism at the time.

I want to have hope, because I see how smart, thoughtful, and progressive our young people are. But I think I have more hope for humanity than I do for the US in particular.
 

mccardey

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Also that whole Electoral College thing needs to be fixed. It's not democratic.