The Partisan Divide on Issues

[Eric the Green]

(07-21-2020, 11:49 PM)Bob Butler 54 Wrote:

(07-21-2020, 04:35 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote: So, what are the new values? I'm just curious to see how many we'll have in common?

Part of the new values is the cycles.  In the crisis, you see a willingness to sacrifice for the common good, which includes a willingness to pay for it.  In an unravelling there is a selfishness.  This time around it took the shape of not solving problems, low taxes and small government.  This puts progressives on top come the high, a more conservative flow in the unravelling.  Repeat as the cycles go around.

I view it also as part of the age perspective.  Things were ugly in the Agricultural Age.  With the Enlightenment came the arrow of progress, away from the Agricultural Age, towards democracy, human rights and equality.  Each crisis, the most severe problems facing the culture come to the fore to move us further along.  They are related to democracy, human rights and equality.  This time around and thus far, racism and COVUS 19 have become the core problems to be addressed.  At the moment, the Democrats look like they will acquire power, and other issues will be addressed by their agenda.  Thus far global warming, fixing the bridges and poverty look like they might bubble up, but the economy looks to be in bad shape as a result of the virus, so it is not certain that they will.

But that is my perspective.  Many blues have not thought as much on history or seen the patterns.  They think more that this time period stands alone, and do not perceive the larger patterns, the cycles or ages.  They will look at the need to solve COVUS 19 and face down violent racist policing as more unique issues of this time, not as part of a larger pattern that has been going on for centuries.

The opposite older values?  Finding a reason to continue the selfish attitude and deny the problems which have to be solved.  Keep the unraveling selfishness.  Yell fake news or hoax whenever a problem that others want to solve comes up.

Thing is, you can’t do that with COVUS 19.  Try, and it will kill you.  It is also hard to ignore the protests.  When enough people cry change loud enough, even something a stubborn as culture has to give.  Other problems such as global warming and the bridges are slow.  You can get away with putting them off and letting other generations deal with them.  That is why the virus makes a good trigger.  The incubation time is short enough that you can’t not see it, you can’t remain committed to selfishness and not solving problems.

Others will see the new values a bit differently.  Other versions of them would be welcome.

The thing about covid19 is that the USA was in crisis even beforehand, and if this crisis is just about covid19, then we'll just go back to the way things were in 2019. No new values will have been instituted.

So arguably covid19 makes a good trigger, but there is no 4T regeneracy unless the whole program of Reaganomics in all its aspects is replaced with a progressive outlook and program. These aspects of Reaganomics include climate science denial, systemic racism, economic inequality, health care debacle, militarism, and erosion of democracy and the effectiveness of government. It also includes the resulting cold civil war between red and blue.

So if covid does result in a new chance for progressive government, then it will have served a purpose. If it just results in effective measures to turn back the virus, it will still leave the USA on a fast and sure course toward breakup and/or permanent banana republic status and climate disaster.

If covid results in policies that intensely outrage and discourage Classic Xer to no end, then we'll know we're on the right track.

We must successfully depose the drumpturd first. This may not be easy, and the resulting conflict may be a further impact of covid as a trigger. If it causes him to fall even further in the polls and/or lose the election, then between now and January 20th Trump might have various options. 

Now he is pursuing a course of provoking violence and sending in federal troops to blue cities including DC itself. By this means he could declare martial law and/or federalize police forces. If not successfully resisted by the Courts, Congress and the People, Trump could use this declaration to call off the election or declare it invalid. If he has succeeded in appointing enough right-wing judges that do his bidding, the Courts could approve this, or rule in Trump's favor on his complaint that the election was rigged. He could try to organize a private army to protect him from any marshals that try to remove him from the White House. If the cold civil war goes hot, then we'll have to fight it out, and if progressives take power they will have to gain success on all the agenda items declared during the 2T, and defend themselves from red attacks, or face permanent national decline or immediate ruin.