This is a false choice. When have we seen signs of the Republicans gaining some semblance of "sanity?" Or a commitment to democracy? The signs are all in the opposite direction at the moment.
Neither strategy is a good strategy. Neither is actually a strategy, TBH. These fall more under the heading of "I hope" (in both cases depending up…
This is a false choice. When have we seen signs of the Republicans gaining some semblance of "sanity?" Or a commitment to democracy? The signs are all in the opposite direction at the moment.
Neither strategy is a good strategy. Neither is actually a strategy, TBH. These fall more under the heading of "I hope" (in both cases depending upon where you stand).
At some point the GoP is likely to regain control. Regaining control (and what they do with it afterwards) is what is going to make or break the GoP.
In the worst case, they regain control, turn authoritarian, rig elections, run rampant with corruption (especially if Trump and his bunch are still around), turn non-whites and non-straights, and non-Christians into second class citizens.... and people put up with it for several years before things blow up. At which point the current GoP will be effectively destroyed--the problem being that they destroyed the country in the process.
Best case--kind of similar to the worst case, but a little less visibly authoritarian and a little less open about non-whites (and other-ly gendered) being second class citizens. A bit more subtle about using the coercive power of government (and calling it freedom and liberty).
The GoP survives in the second case and a crappy status quo that is more crappy than what we currently have continues. Wealth disparity will continue to skyrocket (because that is kind of the point--that is what the rich people behind this are after) and the National-Christian-Conservative movement will continue to try and regulate people's morality and sexuality and personal behavior. LOTs of people will get "canceled."
And people will put up with it, probably for a long period of time (years, maybe even decades) until some geopolitical event (or climate collapse) puts paid to it.
The first is much messier and violent in the short term.
The second is messier and more violent over the long term--but for the initial stages it will only be those "other people" that are taking it in the shorts.
The GoP will return to "sanity" only through the collapse of their own efforts through their success in getting power (and trying to do what they say they want to do) or through being soundly trashed and losing power in something approaching the "normal" political process.
They are very unlikely to lose significant power through the normal political process, given how this country works. The Dems are always 1 election away from getting thrown out... and each election until the GoP regains control will be fraught with all of the issues we face now (only increasingly worse over time).
Our politics need restructuring badly, but the only people capable of doing it are unwilling to do so because they are the beneficiaries of the current system.
The whole fraud thing would be a moot point in most cases without the EC. It would be VERY hard to commit fraud on a level that overcomes a 3-7 million vote deficit and get away with it in a popular election.
There are a number of other steps that could reduce political extremism.
Corporations and the rich could be better citizens. Voters could become better voters.
But none of those things are going to happen and so we will get the slow rolling disaster, instead--because it is easier to enjoy the current benefits and kick that can down the road.
This is a false choice. When have we seen signs of the Republicans gaining some semblance of "sanity?" Or a commitment to democracy? The signs are all in the opposite direction at the moment.
Neither strategy is a good strategy. Neither is actually a strategy, TBH. These fall more under the heading of "I hope" (in both cases depending upon where you stand).
At some point the GoP is likely to regain control. Regaining control (and what they do with it afterwards) is what is going to make or break the GoP.
In the worst case, they regain control, turn authoritarian, rig elections, run rampant with corruption (especially if Trump and his bunch are still around), turn non-whites and non-straights, and non-Christians into second class citizens.... and people put up with it for several years before things blow up. At which point the current GoP will be effectively destroyed--the problem being that they destroyed the country in the process.
Best case--kind of similar to the worst case, but a little less visibly authoritarian and a little less open about non-whites (and other-ly gendered) being second class citizens. A bit more subtle about using the coercive power of government (and calling it freedom and liberty).
The GoP survives in the second case and a crappy status quo that is more crappy than what we currently have continues. Wealth disparity will continue to skyrocket (because that is kind of the point--that is what the rich people behind this are after) and the National-Christian-Conservative movement will continue to try and regulate people's morality and sexuality and personal behavior. LOTs of people will get "canceled."
And people will put up with it, probably for a long period of time (years, maybe even decades) until some geopolitical event (or climate collapse) puts paid to it.
The first is much messier and violent in the short term.
The second is messier and more violent over the long term--but for the initial stages it will only be those "other people" that are taking it in the shorts.
The GoP will return to "sanity" only through the collapse of their own efforts through their success in getting power (and trying to do what they say they want to do) or through being soundly trashed and losing power in something approaching the "normal" political process.
They are very unlikely to lose significant power through the normal political process, given how this country works. The Dems are always 1 election away from getting thrown out... and each election until the GoP regains control will be fraught with all of the issues we face now (only increasingly worse over time).
Our politics need restructuring badly, but the only people capable of doing it are unwilling to do so because they are the beneficiaries of the current system.
The whole fraud thing would be a moot point in most cases without the EC. It would be VERY hard to commit fraud on a level that overcomes a 3-7 million vote deficit and get away with it in a popular election.
There are a number of other steps that could reduce political extremism.
Corporations and the rich could be better citizens. Voters could become better voters.
But none of those things are going to happen and so we will get the slow rolling disaster, instead--because it is easier to enjoy the current benefits and kick that can down the road.