This is an argument for citizens engaging in citizenship, a very old idea indeed, that members of the polity have an obligation to engage with the politics of the moment, not simply cast their vote and walk away. Journalists are largely going to avoid doing journalism, it's baked into the business model and the biases of the owners and the class of writers and pundits long removed from any working-class roots. The complaints of Steve and his ilk are that it's somehow the party and it's leaders job to somehow magically motivate the citizens with Johnny Unbeatable's message skills. How hard could it be? The Republicans have done it with nothing more than unlimited funding of ideologes and shameless politicians promoting unreasoning existential fear for several decades. Surely there's an equivalent mechanism to promote peace and love. Go dig up John Lennon and ask him.
Steve's views aren't at all far from my own, or yours for that matter, we just have different personalities and focuses. I don't know if he's issuing "complaints" as much as warnings. The citizenship model is problematic too--it's in our civics class mythology, but I don't know if it's ever worked as advertised.
Oh yeah, you and Steve have a much clearer view of reality than i do. I take the complaints about Biden and Harris as fear of what could happen, and the desire for a Hero to vanquish the monster. The bottom feeders just want a narrative arc to write about, but I don't put Steve in that class. I know the citizenship model is an ideal, but we are rapidly approaching a time where we have to live up to ideals, because the alternative is a long and ugly slide into chaos and damage with the Manifest Destiny Id running rampant straight into the brick wall of Reality. The Republican Party is the problem, and nothing but a Frank Capra ending where the American people repudiate violence and fear is going to stop it. Corny, but do you see another option?
I will argue the point. I don't even read Steve anymore. I haven't for a couple years. I feel like he's writing for the clicks. When he goes negative he gets 30 comments. When he looks around , acknowledges he has a strong executive team who are proven successful campaigners going up against a frankly cuckoo bananas opponent leading an out of control party of idiots he gets four or five people acknowledging yeah we're in a good position and thanks for pointing that out.
That truth is evidently not exciting enough for him.
You need to take him aside and do an intervention. He writes well. I appreciate that. I don't appreciate his message and I don't trust his motives.
The truth is that the wackiness of the Republicans won't necessarily stop them from getting elected in 2024. It's a huge danger, given what we know about his people's plans worked out in detail for replacing the "deep state" (the career civil servants who know what they're doing) with thousands of Trump loyalists pledged to take down clean energy policy and institute "Christian nationalism". Trump is no stupider now than he was then—being stupid didn't stop him—, and he's got more advisers who know how to do things. There's a hope (there's always a hope) Congress would be able stop this, but Democrats have to get elected there too. Given the GOP clownishness, I think our chances of prevailing in 2024 are very good, and I emphasize that in my own writing, but we need people reminding us it's possible we could really lose, before we start getting complacent , and Steve does that with receipts.
This is an argument for citizens engaging in citizenship, a very old idea indeed, that members of the polity have an obligation to engage with the politics of the moment, not simply cast their vote and walk away. Journalists are largely going to avoid doing journalism, it's baked into the business model and the biases of the owners and the class of writers and pundits long removed from any working-class roots. The complaints of Steve and his ilk are that it's somehow the party and it's leaders job to somehow magically motivate the citizens with Johnny Unbeatable's message skills. How hard could it be? The Republicans have done it with nothing more than unlimited funding of ideologes and shameless politicians promoting unreasoning existential fear for several decades. Surely there's an equivalent mechanism to promote peace and love. Go dig up John Lennon and ask him.
Steve's views aren't at all far from my own, or yours for that matter, we just have different personalities and focuses. I don't know if he's issuing "complaints" as much as warnings. The citizenship model is problematic too--it's in our civics class mythology, but I don't know if it's ever worked as advertised.
Oh yeah, you and Steve have a much clearer view of reality than i do. I take the complaints about Biden and Harris as fear of what could happen, and the desire for a Hero to vanquish the monster. The bottom feeders just want a narrative arc to write about, but I don't put Steve in that class. I know the citizenship model is an ideal, but we are rapidly approaching a time where we have to live up to ideals, because the alternative is a long and ugly slide into chaos and damage with the Manifest Destiny Id running rampant straight into the brick wall of Reality. The Republican Party is the problem, and nothing but a Frank Capra ending where the American people repudiate violence and fear is going to stop it. Corny, but do you see another option?
"pretty much unarguably valid"
I will argue the point. I don't even read Steve anymore. I haven't for a couple years. I feel like he's writing for the clicks. When he goes negative he gets 30 comments. When he looks around , acknowledges he has a strong executive team who are proven successful campaigners going up against a frankly cuckoo bananas opponent leading an out of control party of idiots he gets four or five people acknowledging yeah we're in a good position and thanks for pointing that out.
That truth is evidently not exciting enough for him.
You need to take him aside and do an intervention. He writes well. I appreciate that. I don't appreciate his message and I don't trust his motives.
The truth is that the wackiness of the Republicans won't necessarily stop them from getting elected in 2024. It's a huge danger, given what we know about his people's plans worked out in detail for replacing the "deep state" (the career civil servants who know what they're doing) with thousands of Trump loyalists pledged to take down clean energy policy and institute "Christian nationalism". Trump is no stupider now than he was then—being stupid didn't stop him—, and he's got more advisers who know how to do things. There's a hope (there's always a hope) Congress would be able stop this, but Democrats have to get elected there too. Given the GOP clownishness, I think our chances of prevailing in 2024 are very good, and I emphasize that in my own writing, but we need people reminding us it's possible we could really lose, before we start getting complacent , and Steve does that with receipts.