soul of the nation - anyone else feeling this?

[brinstar]

i don't think there's a presidential election i can recall that really represents such an ideological fork in the road that this one does. yeah there were obvious differences between obama/romney, obama/mccain, bush/kerry, and even bush/gore, but they were all still for the most part establishment candidates

to be sure we've got establishment candidates aplenty here in 2016 (clinton, bush, rubio, christie, etc) but while there are clear differences none of them are too far away from the center

but now we have these wildcards on each side in sanders and trump and it really kinda struck me the other day how it's kind of a tug-of-war over what kind of spirit will inhabit modern america

both of them definitely make outlandish promises that will probably have zero chance of actually happening - trump wants to build a wall and disinvite muslims, sanders wants free health care and college - but if you take a moment to look past the feasibility of these things to the general spirit behind them and it's really remarkable how different they are

trump:
-wants to deport illegal immigrants
-wants to create a national registry for muslims and to surveil mosques
-wants to prevent muslims from entering the country
-wants to wipe the EPA and DOE off of the federal budget entirely
-wants to build a wall to keep mexicans out
-wants to defund planned parenthood
-wants to ignore climate change (considers it a hoax)
-wants to gut the APA and replace it with health savings accounts
-wants to bring back torture to fight terrorism
-wants to "shut down parts of the internet" in order to hamper ISIS recruitment
-wants to pay legal fees for supporters who beat up protesters at his rallies

sanders:
-wants to gut the APA and replace it with universal single payer
-wants to make public universities tuition-free
-wants to break up the large banks and add fees for risky investing
-wants to reform the justice system
-wants to push the ENDA at federal level
-wants to close the wage gap
-wants to act immediately on climate change
-wants to enact paid family leave
-wants to reform campaign finance laws
-wants to reverse voter suppression laws (voter ID, districting, etc)
-wants to raise minimum wage to $15/hr
-wants to raise SocSec cap on taxable income
-wants to close tax loopholes for corporations
-wants to ensure 100% net neutrality

there's probably still a 2-to-1 chance that hillary advances on to the general so a lot of the stuff on the bernie list goes away; meanwhile i think cruz would actually be a worse potus than trump so some of that stuff would intensify if he got the nom

BUT

as i said, regardless of each candidate's ability to deliver on the things i listed above, can you not see what a massively different version of america each them are fighting for? they're light-years apart! on the one hand, you have a vision of a country that embraces its xenophobia with walls and databases and active surveillance, makes it all but impossible for anyone not born into a rich family to get ahead in life, dumps ton after ton of carbon into the sky, and bullies other countries into getting what our corporations want. on the other hand, you have a vision of a country which ensures all citizens have a decent quality of life and personal dignity and access to health care and education, where we work to live instead of living to work, where justice is truly blind to socioeconomic status, where elections are honest and fair, where the skies are clear and the energy is renewable, and the greed of the wealthy doesn't grind the poor into paste. it's quite literally the difference between looking at the world with fear and anger and violence and thinking that it's a war to win versus looking at the world with love and hope and peace and thinking that it's a future to build

-----

now it's quite obvious that i'm partial to sanders, and the trump list above is probably juicy red meat to certain folk around here, but nevertheless i point these things out because so often our choice is between two marginally-different candidates who, with the exception of a few social issues, are basically interchangeable when it comes to american militarism, capitulation to industry, etc.

i don't really care whether you agree with me or whether you think trump or sanders is good or bad, this isn't that kind of post. i just wanted to marvel aloud at the stark difference in perspective that created these two animals (as well as the fact that for literally the first time in my life there's a major-party candidate i can actually be legitimately excited about)

anyway, carry on

[Reynaldo]

It sure is fun to watch Trump piss everyone off though. It's like Franken or Ventura or Schwartznegger all over again. People laugh in all off as spectacle but then all of a sudden they have a chance and start getting momentum.

I don't think Trump has any real chance to win, nor would I want him to win....but he has certainly brought attention to the race that in an odd way has been healthy for voters to see extremes and re-evaluate their stance on some issues.

[brinstar]

my initial assessment was that he was just a clown having a lark, but then i realized he's a businessman to the core - he sees a demand for xenophobic/racist/bigoted anger and ugliness, so he's just bringing supply. he's a symptom, not a disease

however i will say i totally dig the way he talks about campaign finance. he says it's totally broken - that in the past he donated to candidates, and candidates help him out in return, quid pro quo. "that's broken" he says, rightly. of course it's a shame so much hatred comes packaged along with that important message, but then again maybe that's the only way conservative morons might consider the idea

eh who am i kidding they probably tune that part out