The Bigly 2016 US Presidential Election Thread, Part XV

[deep]

Originally Posted by Hewson

So Trump is a sly fox, eh?

give some credit to Putin and the KGB, too.




whoever thought The Manchurian Candidate would be over 6 foot and orange??

[Diemen]

Originally Posted by deep

unless it's rigged

Nice troll.

[anitram]

Originally Posted by Danny Boy

I mean, why confirm a Supreme Court Justice when we can stall for 4 years and get our own guy in?

This is truly appalling behaviour by the Republicans and they deserve nothing less but the most radical leftist justice who is no older than 50 and a vegan so that they'll live forever.

[gump]

You gotta give it to the Russians. If their goal in supporting Trump was undermining trust in US institutions - and this American democracy and its standing in the world - the operation is a remarkable success. Whichever way this election goes.


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[Axver]

Even if Hillary wins this, global opinion on the US is now completely shot to hell. The larger her victory, the more wounds that will be patched up, but the damage is still pretty severe.

And if the fascist wins, well, forget any authority you think you have, America.

[Vlad n U 2]

Originally Posted by LuckyNumber7

Maybe Trump is screaming "rigged" because he already rigged the election and that way Clinton will sound like Trump if she claims it when wins and she will have no credibility.

Maybe.

It'll be like the time Sideshow Bob rigged the election.

Originally Posted by LuckyNumber7

That's how I feel.

Plus, I moved to the UK. So in the event of disaster, I already left.

Granted, they already had their Trump moment here.

And Theresa May is extremely awful.

Originally Posted by gump

You gotta give it to the Russians. If their goal in supporting Trump was undermining trust in US institutions - and this American democracy and its standing in the world - the operation is a remarkable success. Whichever way this election goes.


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If this Russian involvement turns out to be true, then I can't help but laugh, because this is exactly what the US has been doing for decades.

[gump]

Originally Posted by Axver

Even if Hillary wins this, global opinion on the US is now completely shot to hell. The larger her victory, the more wounds that will be patched up, but the damage is still pretty severe.

And if the fascist wins, well, forget any authority you think you have, America.

But the domestic problem is worse. The eroding trust in institutions will stay on, with all the talk of "rigged". Look at how the FBI is now losing trust and becoming a political target of democrats and republicans. These are all signs of a decaying democratic culture.


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[Diemen]

Originally Posted by Mrs. Garrison

^So are you saying the bite is worse than the bark?

With so much sexism coming to the fore during this election, it would be nice to not see it spread in this forum, thanks.

[Moonlit_Angel]

On the topic of comments/jokes it'd be REALLY nice to not see more of...

https://www.yahoo.com/news/north-car...001520479.html

North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr was captured in leaked audio obtained by CNN implying a picture of Hillary Clinton's face should be used for target practice.

Burr made the comment while visiting a gun shop and with a crowd of Second Amendment supporters. He apparently noticed a magazine about rifles with Clinton's face on the cover.

"I was a little bit shocked at that — it didn't have a bullseye on it," Burr said to the crowd.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump made a similar remark in August when he implied advocates of the Second Amendment could shoot Clinton to stop her from appointing Supreme Court justices with anti-gun rights agendas.

Signs with bullseye marks affixed over Clinton's face have been seen at Trump's campaign rallies in recent days.

I don't know if people actually think this shit is cute or funny, but they'd be very wrong in either case.

[Oregoropa]

Originally Posted by Axver

Even if Hillary wins this, global opinion on the US is now completely shot to hell. The larger her victory, the more wounds that will be patched up, but the damage is still pretty severe.

And if the fascist wins, well, forget any authority you think you have, America.

A new era of Pax Australialis ?

[Axver]

Originally Posted by Oregoropa

A new era of Pax Australialis ?

I don't think the world wants that either.

[gump]

Also, as a foreigner, I never cease to be perplexed at the barriers that states here impose to prevent people from voting. It's unconscionable. Like preventing millions of ex-convicts to vote in Florida.

We have compulsory voting in my country. If you don't vote or don't justify your absence, you need to pay a small fine or won't be able to get a new passport or social security card. As an expat, I go to my Consulate every 4 years to vote.

I've always been against compulsory voting, as I feel you should have a right not to vote. But the shenanigans that Republicans go over to suppress voting of the opposing party's constituency makes me rethink my position.


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[Caleb8844]

36% of America can name all three branches of government. Forcing them all to blindly cast a vote sounds terrifying.


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[Kieran McConville]

The running of elections should not be the hands of political party appointees. It's one of the things America has gotten badly wrong, partly I guess as a legacy of it being the purview of the states. A national, independent, non-partisan, permanent commission would be a big help.

As it is, every two-bit party-run state and county outfit has both the means and the incentive to depress turnout. Ahem, turnout by the wrong people.

[Kieran McConville]

Also, I for one look forward to the coming Australian imperium, as depicted in the popular film 'On The Beach'.

[Axver]

Originally Posted by gump

We have compulsory voting in my country. If you don't vote or don't justify your absence, you need to pay a small fine or won't be able to get a new passport or social security card. As an expat, I go to my Consulate every 4 years to vote.

I've always been against compulsory voting, as I feel you should have a right not to vote. But the shenanigans that Republicans go over to suppress voting of the opposing party's constituency makes me rethink my position.

Huh, that's stricter enforcement than Australia! The penalty for not voting is a rather modest fine, and I hear it's not that difficult to get out of it (and it's not often enforced for local elections, though state and federal elections are taken quite seriously).

But after much contemplation I veer mildly in favour of compulsory voting. Or more to the point, compulsory attendance at the polling station. There is no actual compulsion to cast a formal vote. All you have to do is have your name marked off the roll and accept the voting papers. You are then entirely within your right to walk directly to the ballot box and drop them in without marking a vote - or, in the fine Australian tradition, take the papers to a booth, draw a dick and balls on them, and then go to the ballot box. If you have that strong an opinion against all candidates or voting, I would have thought dropping a blank ballot in the box is a more obvious protest than just sitting on your arse like some person who plain forgot.

Originally Posted by Kieran McConville

The running of elections should not be the hands of political party appointees. It's one of the things America has gotten badly wrong, partly I guess as a legacy of it being the purview of the states. A national, independent, non-partisan, permanent commission would be a big help.

As it is, every two-bit party-run state and county outfit has both the means and the incentive to depress turnout. Ahem, turnout by the wrong people.

Seriously, every US election reminds me to be very grateful for the Australian Electoral Commission and the Electoral Commission New Zealand. For all the fuss about the occasional administrative error (and that 2013 WA Senate blunder deserved every bit of censure), they are both excellent organisations and contribute significantly to the working of our democracies.

[Kieran McConville]

^also totally agreed about compulsory polling-place attendance. If nothing else it keeps turnout in the high eighties or low nineties, and I don't believe the fraction of the population who have literally no coherent opinion is so high that turnout in the fifties ought to be seen as acceptable, if an outcome widely perceived as legitimate is the goal.

[gump]

Originally Posted by Axver

Huh, that's stricter enforcement than Australia! The penalty for not voting is a rather modest fine, and I hear it's not that difficult to get out of it (and it's not often enforced for local elections, though state and federal elections are taken quite seriously).

But after much contemplation I veer mildly in favour of compulsory voting. Or more to the point, compulsory attendance at the polling station. There is no actual compulsion to cast a formal vote. All you have to do is have your name marked off the roll and accept the voting papers. You are then entirely within your right to walk directly to the ballot box and drop them in without marking a vote - or, in the fine Australian tradition, take the papers to a booth, draw a dick and balls on them, and then go to the ballot box. If you have that strong an opinion against all candidates or voting, I would have thought dropping a blank ballot in the box is a more obvious protest than just sitting on your arse like some person who plain forgot.

Brazil adopted machine voting 10-15 years ago. It's incredibly efficient (you get the results within a couple of hours of polls closing, in a country with 200m people and really remote areas), but it prevents you from writing-in any name you want (or drawing a picture). You do have the option of casting a blank vote or a null vote, however (they are counted separately, and blank votes count to determine a majority whereas null votes are discarded).

So unfortunately this means we will never repeat the feat reached in 1959, when a zoo rhino was the most voted candidate in the council elections in the city of São Paulo, with 100,000 votes, following a campaign from student movements who were dismayed at the pool of candidates.

The Rhino Who Won an Election by a Landslide - The Daily Beast

[BigMacPhisto]

Originally Posted by Axver

Even if Hillary wins this, global opinion on the US is now completely shot to hell. The larger her victory, the more wounds that will be patched up, but the damage is still pretty severe..

The right thing to do is for Clinton to finish out this election and then she can be the first elected female President. Then she can step down before the Electoral College so Tim Kaine can be sworn in when January comes around. Republicans will be happy to get as right-leaning a Democrat as they could hope for while the rest of the country gets someone they can trust that isn't tied up in scandals and all of this mud slinging that has gone on.

Meanwhile, as Kaine heals the wounds as a placeholder President, liberals can go ahead and finally nominate their candidate in 2020, getting someone that actually excites the nation and would be a big help down ticket.

[Axver]

Originally Posted by gump

Brazil adopted machine voting 10-15 years ago. It's incredibly efficient (you get the results within a couple of hours of polls closing, in a country with 200m people and really remote areas), but it prevents you from writing-in any name you want (or drawing a picture). You do have the option of casting a blank vote or a null vote, however (they are counted separately, and blank votes count to determine a majority whereas null votes are discarded).

I very much hope Australia never goes down the path of replacing paper ballots. The absolute disaster of our 2016 census has killed off the campaign for e-voting for the foreseeable future (which had previously been gaining momentum).

New Zealand permits overseas voters to scan and email their ballot, but it is still a paper ballot. I enjoy the experience of voting, so I'm grateful that for some votes - such as the national election - the Australian Electoral Commission establishes polling stations for New Zealand within some of its offices. But I had to scan my vote for the flag referendum earlier this year.

So unfortunately this means we will never repeat the feat reached in 1959, when a zoo rhino was the most voted candidate in the council elections in the city of São Paulo, with 100,000 votes, following a campaign from student movements who were dismayed at the pool of candidates.

The Rhino Who Won an Election by a Landslide - The Daily Beast

That's fantastic. I'm having a right shitty day but this really cheered me up.

I'm glad that Billy Gumboot the Goat, former President of the Republic of Whangamomona, got a shout-out in the article too.