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I don't live in the US although I've been there many times and I've even worked there at times yet I still cannot understand why the country is deliberately tea

I don't live in the US although I've been there many times and I've even worked there at times yet I still cannot understand why the country is deliberately tearing itself apart on matters like this. If you want to alienate one section of one's community then this is a surefire way of doing it. Why is it that Republicans so despise and revile the poorer sections of their community? Don't they realize the actual damage they're doing to their country by fracturing its cohesiveness?

dkjaudyeqooe 3y ago
Republicans are just ideologues, or for the current crop of MAGA Republicans, nutjobs with no discernable ideology. You get the same in Europe with the far right parties, it's just that they don't share power.
westmeal 3y ago
It's not just the republicans doing it it's our entire government.
- melkor73 3y ago
  In this case, it's literally Republicans.
bigbillheck 3y ago
They don't consider themselves to be in community with poor people.
- hilbert42 3y ago
  Ha, someone upvoted my comment and then it disappeared in a second. To the outsider this says a lot. :-)
godzillabrennus 3y ago
The United States of America is more of a corporation than a country. Would you offer support for people who aren’t your customers? People who don’t donate to the party, who can’t organize worth a dang to vote you out, well, they are unimportant and programs for them should be dismantled.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
toomuchtodo 3y ago
There is no way to ask this question here without it devolving deep into politics, but here we go. Republicans don't have policy to run on. They pander to their base, while also laughing behind their back [1]. Their base votes for them because these representatives appeal to their feelings, even though the people they vote for are actively harming them (red states are finally, begrudgingly, adopting Federal Medcaid expansion funding because they have workforce shortages [2]). Because of the electoral college, there is no way to fix this for presidential elections [3] and rural America is heavily overrepresented congressionally. States with resources can provide for their own citizens (California is the world's fifth largest economy, for example), rural America will continue to slowly die a slow death as young people leave for opportunity [4], leaving behind those with oversized voting power. Your options are leave the parts of the country in decline, leave the country, or stay in decline. It's not great [5]. [1] https://www.salon.com/2024/03/05/-the-media-should-stop-treating-rural-people-like-children/ https://www.salon.com/2024/03/05/-the-media-should-stop-trea... [2] https://www.kff.org/affordable-care-act/issue-brief/status-of-state-medicaid-expansion-decisions-interactive-map/ https://www.kff.org/affordable-care-act/issue-brief/status-o... [3] https://demcastusa.com/2019/11/11/land-doesnt-vote-people-do-this-electoral-map-tells-the-real-story/ https://demcastusa.com/2019/11/11/land-doesnt-vote-people-do... [4] https://stateline.org/2021/08/10/shrinking-rural-america-faces-state-power-struggle/ https://stateline.org/2021/08/10/shrinking-rural-america-fac... [5] https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00027162211070061 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00027162211070061
- matthewaveryusa 3y ago
  >Their base votes for them because these Reps appeal to their feelings, even though the people they vote for are actively harming them. You need to continue the logic here: So the democrats in shining white armor are here to help them out because they know better. This further antagonizes the republican base because worse than being destitute is to be dependent on government handouts. On the united states being united: We've had a civil war. The big mistake a lot of folks make when looking at the united states is looking at them in a cohesive way. We aren't, we don't share common values, and only share laws that permit a common and efficient market (which includes defense and foreign policy.) Folks mostly choose to live in Missisippi/Texas vs Massachusetts/California. The social benefits and zeitgeist are very different and America is big enough to offer both styles of living.
josefresco 3y ago
[flagged]
- hilbert42 3y ago
  I didn't intend to be controversial when I posted my comment. To not risk inflaming matters further I'll refrain from commenting on your points. (I cannot recall having so many down-votes in such quick succession on HN previously. Although unintended, I've clearly struck a nerve or two.)
  - josefresco 3y ago
    Agreed. While you were downvoted, the quality of replies (not mine) is exceptional and clearly generated a lot discussion. I'd call that a win for HN even though your post currently has negative votes. I hesitated before publishing my reply as it isn't my normal sort of HN post. I guess this just touched a nerve personally.
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
  - rickydroll 3y ago
    You asked essential questions and triggered a helpful discussion. Think of breaking eggs to make an omelet situation. Your downvotes show you irritated the right people. :-) +1 from me.
downrightmike 3y ago
It costs more money to service these customers, not profitable and that is all that matters to the indignant domestic terrorists. It fuels their anger, and all they want to do is be angry and not solve problems, and also to break systems that fix problems. A lot of the problem is that we have too many people that were denied opportunity or services that could have made them not pieces of shit. And now they fight tooth and nail to make sure that the system makes more people that are fucked over just like them. Stockholm syndrome kinda. Also makes sense when you look at whether they can read or not: Nationwide, on average, 79% of U.S. adults are literate in 2022. 21% of adults in the US are illiterate in 2022. 54% of adults have a literacy below sixth-grade level. 21% of Americans 18 and older are illiterate in 2022. Low literacy rates end up costing Americans up to $2.2 trillion every year. https://www.crossrivertherapy.com/research/literacy-statistics#:~:text=Nationwide%2C%20on%20average%2C%2079%25,older%20are%20illiterate%20in%202022 https://www.crossrivertherapy.com/research/literacy-statisti....
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
adderthorn 3y ago
I can speak as someone who lives in the US and in a state that has a republican super majority in our government. Without making this an issue specific to republicans, the US two-party government often creates an citizenry who views elections as a zero-sum game. One where one side wins and therefore the other must lose. Increasingly, republicans are attempting to foster an environment where the larger, democratic cities are "the problem" and therefore legislate to "punish" them by removing things like broadband for the poor. Part of this is because the new GOP is mostly rural voters and they generally don't benefit from city investments. But part of it is to make a political point. Again, they only "win" when the other side "loses." Democrat politicians will do this too, but often not as much (in my experience) and often with less punitive motives. For example, killing coal plants wasn't punitive, but it ended up hurting a large section of rural economy that depended on the mining of coal for a living.
- josefresco 3y ago
  Coal mining represents a very small part of the American and rural economy. It was simply used as a wedge by wealthy Republicans to divide Americans. https://www.statista.com/statistics/215790/coal-mining-employment-in-the-us/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/215790/coal-mining-emplo...
  - toomuchtodo 3y ago
    Arby’s employees more people than the coal industry. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/03/31/8-surprisingly-small-industries-that-employ-more-people-than-coal/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/03/31/8-sur...
nimbius 3y ago
class war is nothing new. elites generally alienate and isolate the poor, as their interests seldom converge and are often opposed. Part of the reason is also a cope. That the nature of wealth under late-stage neoliberal capitalism exacerbates to such a prolific extent poverty, strife, homelessness and other maladies of the impoverished is a very distressing concern. For quite some time wealthy elites have coddled themselves with the tutelage that "poor people are poor because they are lazy." Television, radio, and internet all have elite points of presence to reinforce this propaganda in various consumable forms. Recognizing and reacting to wealth disparity in the west with anything more than a casual nod could lead to the wholesale downfall of the neoliberal castle that so many elites have build over the past forty years. "kill all the poors" policy in the words of the venerable Mitchell and Webb show is largely a regression to feudalism from whence capitalism came. its the manifestation of an acute overdose of capitalist elites "copium." a cut on the nose to spite the face if you will.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

dkjaudyeqooe 3y ago

Republicans are just ideologues, or for the current crop of MAGA Republicans, nutjobs with no discernable ideology. You get the same in Europe with the far right parties, it's just that they don't share power.

westmeal 3y ago

It's not just the republicans doing it it's our entire government.

melkor73 3y ago
In this case, it's literally Republicans.

bigbillheck 3y ago

They don't consider themselves to be in community with poor people.

hilbert42 3y ago
Ha, someone upvoted my comment and then it disappeared in a second. To the outsider this says a lot. :-)

godzillabrennus 3y ago

The United States of America is more of a corporation than a country. Would you offer support for people who aren’t your customers? People who don’t donate to the party, who can’t organize worth a dang to vote you out, well, they are unimportant and programs for them should be dismantled.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

toomuchtodo 3y ago

There is no way to ask this question here without it devolving deep into politics, but here we go. Republicans don't have policy to run on. They pander to their base, while also laughing behind their back [1]. Their base votes for them because these representatives appeal to their feelings, even though the people they vote for are actively harming them (red states are finally, begrudgingly, adopting Federal Medcaid expansion funding because they have workforce shortages [2]). Because of the electoral college, there is no way to fix this for presidential elections [3] and rural America is heavily overrepresented congressionally. States with resources can provide for their own citizens (California is the world's fifth largest economy, for example), rural America will continue to slowly die a slow death as young people leave for opportunity [4], leaving behind those with oversized voting power. Your options are leave the parts of the country in decline, leave the country, or stay in decline. It's not great [5]. [1] https://www.salon.com/2024/03/05/-the-media-should-stop-treating-rural-people-like-children/ https://www.salon.com/2024/03/05/-the-media-should-stop-trea... [2] https://www.kff.org/affordable-care-act/issue-brief/status-of-state-medicaid-expansion-decisions-interactive-map/ https://www.kff.org/affordable-care-act/issue-brief/status-o... [3] https://demcastusa.com/2019/11/11/land-doesnt-vote-people-do-this-electoral-map-tells-the-real-story/ https://demcastusa.com/2019/11/11/land-doesnt-vote-people-do... [4] https://stateline.org/2021/08/10/shrinking-rural-america-faces-state-power-struggle/ https://stateline.org/2021/08/10/shrinking-rural-america-fac... [5] https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00027162211070061 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00027162211070061

matthewaveryusa 3y ago
>Their base votes for them because these Reps appeal to their feelings, even though the people they vote for are actively harming them. You need to continue the logic here: So the democrats in shining white armor are here to help them out because they know better. This further antagonizes the republican base because worse than being destitute is to be dependent on government handouts. On the united states being united: We've had a civil war. The big mistake a lot of folks make when looking at the united states is looking at them in a cohesive way. We aren't, we don't share common values, and only share laws that permit a common and efficient market (which includes defense and foreign policy.) Folks mostly choose to live in Missisippi/Texas vs Massachusetts/California. The social benefits and zeitgeist are very different and America is big enough to offer both styles of living.

josefresco 3y ago

[flagged]

hilbert42 3y ago
I didn't intend to be controversial when I posted my comment. To not risk inflaming matters further I'll refrain from commenting on your points. (I cannot recall having so many down-votes in such quick succession on HN previously. Although unintended, I've clearly struck a nerve or two.)
- josefresco 3y ago
  Agreed. While you were downvoted, the quality of replies (not mine) is exceptional and clearly generated a lot discussion. I'd call that a win for HN even though your post currently has negative votes. I hesitated before publishing my reply as it isn't my normal sort of HN post. I guess this just touched a nerve personally.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- rickydroll 3y ago
  You asked essential questions and triggered a helpful discussion. Think of breaking eggs to make an omelet situation. Your downvotes show you irritated the right people. :-) +1 from me.

downrightmike 3y ago

It costs more money to service these customers, not profitable and that is all that matters to the indignant domestic terrorists. It fuels their anger, and all they want to do is be angry and not solve problems, and also to break systems that fix problems. A lot of the problem is that we have too many people that were denied opportunity or services that could have made them not pieces of shit. And now they fight tooth and nail to make sure that the system makes more people that are fucked over just like them. Stockholm syndrome kinda. Also makes sense when you look at whether they can read or not: Nationwide, on average, 79% of U.S. adults are literate in 2022. 21% of adults in the US are illiterate in 2022. 54% of adults have a literacy below sixth-grade level. 21% of Americans 18 and older are illiterate in 2022. Low literacy rates end up costing Americans up to $2.2 trillion every year. https://www.crossrivertherapy.com/research/literacy-statistics#:~:text=Nationwide%2C%20on%20average%2C%2079%25,older%20are%20illiterate%20in%202022 https://www.crossrivertherapy.com/research/literacy-statisti....

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

adderthorn 3y ago

I can speak as someone who lives in the US and in a state that has a republican super majority in our government. Without making this an issue specific to republicans, the US two-party government often creates an citizenry who views elections as a zero-sum game. One where one side wins and therefore the other must lose. Increasingly, republicans are attempting to foster an environment where the larger, democratic cities are "the problem" and therefore legislate to "punish" them by removing things like broadband for the poor. Part of this is because the new GOP is mostly rural voters and they generally don't benefit from city investments. But part of it is to make a political point. Again, they only "win" when the other side "loses." Democrat politicians will do this too, but often not as much (in my experience) and often with less punitive motives. For example, killing coal plants wasn't punitive, but it ended up hurting a large section of rural economy that depended on the mining of coal for a living.

josefresco 3y ago
Coal mining represents a very small part of the American and rural economy. It was simply used as a wedge by wealthy Republicans to divide Americans. https://www.statista.com/statistics/215790/coal-mining-employment-in-the-us/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/215790/coal-mining-emplo...
- toomuchtodo 3y ago
  Arby’s employees more people than the coal industry. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/03/31/8-surprisingly-small-industries-that-employ-more-people-than-coal/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/03/31/8-sur...

nimbius 3y ago

class war is nothing new. elites generally alienate and isolate the poor, as their interests seldom converge and are often opposed. Part of the reason is also a cope. That the nature of wealth under late-stage neoliberal capitalism exacerbates to such a prolific extent poverty, strife, homelessness and other maladies of the impoverished is a very distressing concern. For quite some time wealthy elites have coddled themselves with the tutelage that "poor people are poor because they are lazy." Television, radio, and internet all have elite points of presence to reinforce this propaganda in various consumable forms. Recognizing and reacting to wealth disparity in the west with anything more than a casual nod could lead to the wholesale downfall of the neoliberal castle that so many elites have build over the past forty years. "kill all the poors" policy in the words of the venerable Mitchell and Webb show is largely a regression to feudalism from whence capitalism came. its the manifestation of an acute overdose of capitalist elites "copium." a cut on the nose to spite the face if you will.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]