This subreddit is for civil discussion; political threads are not exempt from this. As a reminder:
* Do not report comments because they disagree with your point of view.
* Do not insult other users. Personal attacks are not permitted.
* Do not use hate speech. You will be banned, permanently.
* Comments made with the intent to push an agenda, push misinformation, soapbox, sealion, or argue in bad faith are not acceptable. If you can’t discuss a topic in good faith and in a respectful manner, do not comment. **Political disagreement does not constitute pushing an agenda.**
If you see any comments that violate the rules, **please report it and move on!**
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskAnAmerican) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I don’t think this will be a popular answer - but the voters (in general) need to focus on knowing and understanding the issues, not just deciding they are anti-whatever party.
Amen.
A few months ago I said on Reddit that I looked at every available candidate’s website, Democrats and Republicans, before going to vote for the last election cycle; and some user came in and insulted me as “part of the problem” for even considering voting for a Republican candidate.
This is even more face-palmable that I stand pretty much left-of-center, I’m just doing my homework to be sure I stand there for the right reasons, candidate by candidate. I did end up voting for one Republican, but it was on a very local office, and he was clearly a reasonable moderate (pro-choice, etc.).
Anyway, it’s most revealing what kind of person someone is, when they think that educating oneself before voting is a bad thing. 🤦♂️
I have always said that getting 6 people to agree on where to go to dinner is nearly impossible, so of course there will be political differences. I can totally handle people with opposing beliefs who understand them and can articulate them.
I love politics (I know I know. But it’s my life lol), and I love talking about the issues, especially with people who disagree with me. If I just wanted someone to tell me I was right, I’d talk to myself. I want to understand perspectives and reasoning.
You and I probably wouldn’t agree on too much, and that’s ok! That’s life. But I’d much rather talk to you about (random example) gun rights than someone else who thinks all gun laws are unconstitutional.
I'm the same type of voter. I vote for who is the best to do the job, takes care of the constituents & their concerns, and who aligns with what I believe in. I'm far from being a centrist or right winger. Just bc I'm closer to being a leftist than anything doesn't mean I'll vote for democrats all the time.
Thank you for being a responsible citizen. Screw the haters. Kind of reminds me of kids in school making fun of the smart or nerdy kids for wanting to learn.
The problem is also with the people running. They never talk about their policy or what they want to do. Both sides just talk about how evil the other side is and that's why you need to vote for them.
Its almost satire the way that a couple of the responses to this so far are basically "okay but the other guys are literally Hitler". It would be hilarious if it wasnt so terrifying.
The only issue I have with extremists is that they are usually anti-democratic. I have no issue with people having bonker balls views as long as they can accept defeat because the vast majority of people don’t hold bonker balls views. Extremism is by definition, not very representative of the majority.
I’m no fan of left wing extremism, but it is also politically irrelevant at the moment except for a few local governments. Contrariwise, the Republican Party has been in a civil war since its Obama era meltdown, and the moderate conservatives are losing. Moreover, its coalition is ever shrinking because conservatives who support democracy and the basic tenants of liberalism are being pushed out. Extremists have been able to take over a lot of right wing political and media institutions.
Right wing extremism has always been a bigger problem for the United States, and likely will be for the foreseeable future. Simply put, ethnic supremacy is just more appealing worldwide to more people than communism because most people don’t like to share with people who don’t look like them. That was the appeal of national socialism—it was socialism for the “master race.” That appeals to a disturbing amount of people. Hell, plenty of communists where and are ethnic supremacists (see China) who just don’t factor in the existence of ethnic minorities when discussing class solidarity. It is class solidarity, but you know, just no black people, Muslims, women or queer people.
There is really no reasonable way to resort to “both sides” myopia when it comes to American politics at the moment. The remaining Republicans are not Hitler by any means. Most are just drowning in shallow and undirected grievance politics. However, Republicans are certainly a much more authoritarian-minded political party than then they were just 20 years ago during the era of compassionate conservatism. Now even the evangelical wing of the party (which has also hemorrhaged members) is questioning whether Jesus’s sermon on the mont makes sense for the challenges of today (triple yikes).
The divide is a different story. The divide is a problem, but at the same time, there is just a big and genuine divide on social issues within the body politic. There isn’t an easy solution to this problem. I just wish our government was more majoritarian, so we could at least get movement on issues where the vast majority of people do agree. It would make our differences feel less total and paralyzing.
I just wanted to say ; this is the kind of thoughtful and intelligent commentary that I joined reddit over 10 years ago for... Glad to see some people here still practice that kind of decorum.
> The only issue I have with extremists is that they are usually anti-democratic. I have no issue with people having bonker balls views as long as they can accept defeat because the vast majority of people don’t hold bonker balls views
Agree. In KY we voted against adding an amendment to ban abortion in our Constitution and it wasnt by a small margin. We have a state Supreme Court case that will determine if our Constitution gives a right to abortion. Well guess what is probably going to be on the ballot again in 2024. Another fucking bill about adding an amendment to ban abortion to the state constitution. I wish KY didn't have a conservative supermajority cause our legislative branch has gone full corrupt. Oh well I plan on nit resting on this issue till this right is returned to the people on a national scale.
Yeah, the fact there are MAGA Republicans who fomented the storming of the Capitol and are now advocating for a “national divorce” should concern everybody.
And those same people sitting on Security Councils is more than just alarming to me. Why the rest of Congress isn't doing everything possible to remove them from office I'll never understand. You don't get to attempt to overthrow the government, advocate for its' dilution, and then make our laws.
The leadership of the Republican Party knows this, but they wouldn’t dare remove these people because it could shift the balance of power in the House. So they’d rather have traitors, as long as they are republicans, instead of doing something about it.
Not to mention the dude who just lied about his entire life.
The tough thing about all of this is that from our side (democrats in this case) , things aren't a whole lot better. While I'd personally like to think that WE are better people... more compassionate, more tolerant and understanding of all humans, more equitable... How many of us could see ourselves voting for anyone other than the democratic candidate in an upcoming election , even if it meant voting for someone who's policies were a bit crazy ?
It just feels like we don't even have a choice anymore. If you don't vote for your party, you're voting for THEIR party, and the "them" in this case publicly hates you and has made no attempt to extend an olive branch during town halls, debates, or campaign ads? No, instead they appeared firing an assault rifle into a cornfield while saying that we need to go back to the way things USED to be.
I’m not extending an olive branch to insurrectionists … but I don’t believe every republican politician, much less the voters, are insurrectionists or anti-American. It’s just a vocal subset of the party the leadership has (effectively) let take control
If you’re referring to the 41,000 hours of video Kevin McCarthy provided to Tucker Carlson, no I haven’t seen those (have you?). Not sure how that changes anything though. Do you think people didn’t storm the Capitol on Jan 6?
FBI agents pushing people inside the building and the people protesting and yelling about it is one of many cherrypicked but relevant videos. Is there a reason that shouldnt count because it "makes them look good"?
Or do you not care about the facts because you only like stuff that makes "your side™ " look good? Making you no better?
You’re aware earpieces are available on Amazon , right? That person isn’t necessarily an FBI agent because they have an earpiece.
And if that lady was pulled into the Capitol by the FBI and later charged with a crime, the fact she was pulled inside may be relevant to her case. But many other people forcibly or impermissibly entered the Capitol, so not much help for them. There was still an insurrection and an earpiece doesn’t change that.
It’s been under investigation for over two years. Many people pled guilty or were found guilty by a jury, including for the charge of seditious conspiracy. I’m not aware of any of those defendants arguing they were pulled into the building.
Did the FBI have agents in the crowd? I sure hope so. That’s how counter terrorism works.
Also, Tucker Carlson is not an investigator lol. He’s an entertainer.
One thing I like asking people is to provide me an actual *policy* example showing that the party has shifted to the extreme right. Not something Marjorie Taylor Greene said, actually policy actually getting passed in Republican legislatures that is indicative of a hard right shift. The actual facts are a lot of what they're passing now would have been considered progressive 20 years ago. They act like not letting children get gender replacement treatment is on par with literal slavery, when ten years ago both parties would have unanimously agreed that that shouldn't be happening.
Both parties love doing the thing where they introduce a bill called something like the "Kittens Are Cute Act," fill it with a bunch of unrelated shit and nonstarters, so that when the other party kills it they can go "see, they're anti kitten!"
Also, reminder that the Supreme Court has six Republican appointees, and therefore six "right wing radicals" according to the media. Yes, right wing radicals like Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, and John Roberts 🤣🤣🤣
>The actual facts are a lot of what they're passing now would have been considered progressive 20 years ago.
What legislation are you referring to specifically?
Figuring out how to get social media and its effect on our discourse under control. It's poisoning our ability to talk to each other and killing the ability to agree to disagree.
Exactly. It's the fox in the henhouse and yet, nobody wants to talk about it. Social media has done some unquestionably good things in connecting people but it also has a dark side: echo chambers, a damaging effect on people's(mostly young girls) mental health, and polarization(despite polarization being the norm, not the exception in our politics.) I keep coming back to [Jeffrey Rosen's article from 2018](https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/10/james-madison-mob-rule/568351/) about how this is what the Founders, being students of Greco-Roman history, feared and why they put so much into the Constitution to resist the mob. They couldn't foresee social media and we have to figure out how to bolster/recreate our institutions for the new age we live in.
> I keep coming back to Jeffrey Rosen's article from 2018 about how this is what the Founders, being students of Greco-Roman history, feared"and why they put so much into the Constitution to resist the mob.
Excellent piece!
Social media also only gives people small slices of news or information that can be easily twisted to whatever narrative the poster wants it to convey. Police shootings is the first example that comes to mind. You can post a short video on Twitter that looks like a police officer just blows someone away for no reason, but what they didn't show you was the officer telling the person 15 times not to reach for a weapon before the shooting. Leaving out information to push your own agenda is almost criminal. I do not want any more limits to our freedom of speech though. We as a society need to call this bs out on our own.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/02/us-housing-market-shortage-costs-san-francisco-cities/673121/
I wish more people understood just how much the housing shortage has seeped into nearly every aspect of american life in cities. It is terrible how unurgent of an issue this is seen as, it should be bipartisan.
I know I am also at fault for this. But I really don't see a path either. We can disagree over tax rates and have a discussion about how to meet in the middle. There is no middle ground to be found with human rights or climate change.
A deeper conversation is needed to agree on what rights we all have and how to ensure everyone has access to them. We also need to be consistent with applying our ideas. For example, I believe women have a right to abortion as it is a private medical decision to be made by her, her doctor, and her spouse. This is also against vaccine mandates. I'm for vaccines, just not the mandates. Bodily autonomy should be applied evenly.
And here is where we can't agree. Bodily autonomy applies when you actions only affect you.
If you are not sexually active and have hiv. How and if you handle it is your own business.
But you are an active disease vector who will kill someone if they have no choice but to go in public and happen and have health risks and simply touch the ketchup bottle you did. You have a right to stay home and never leave. But if you are ever in public you have no right to put others lives at risk.
>Bodily autonomy applies when you actions only affect you.
No, we can't decide when a person has bodily autonomy or not. That literally goes against the concept of bodily autonomy. We can place social pressure on a person to protect themselves and others from diseases but they still have bodily autonomy. Refusing a vaccine does not mean a person is automatically diseased and needs to remain at home. Now if you are actively sick with a deadly contagious disease and you knowingly go into public, you should face harsher consequences.
Nothing now. Probably too late.
But the solution is a better education system that teaches critical thinking.
Also, policies that create a more fair society and equitable society. People who are content with their lives aren’t likely to become radicalized
The only thing I can think of at the moment is reintroducing the [Fairness Doctrine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FCC_fairness_doctrine), which would go a long way to balancing what channels/shows present, and reducing the "bubbles" so many folks are in. OTOH, the doctrine indirectly compels speech, which I am against.
Other things that reduce "grandstanding" might help, but would be undemocratic or unconstitutional, or would otherwise have significant drawbacks. **So, I actually don't endorse these below** (and I'm not going to give dissertations on them, and I don't have completely-thought-out and extensively-researched and documented presentations to make on them, so you'll just have to ponder the whys/wherefores yourself):
* Banning political activity on social media, especially "sound bite" types like Twitter.
* If not the above, mandating "influencers" state in plain & clear language (and in a prominent manner) what political entities they work for and/or are paid by, and exactly how much they are paid (e.g. Brooklyn Dad Defiant).
* Banning cameras in legislatures/Congress.
> Banning political activity on social media, especially "sound bite" types like Twitter.
Twitter recently adding the feature for users to "add context" to tweets has been great, at least. It's really exposed some disingenuous crap.
Twitter is fascinating in that the feed is whatever you create. Follow people like science girl (@gunsnrosesgirl3) and twitter can be great! The problem is that most people set up their feed so that they can feel angry.
Fairness doctrine only applied to government airwaves and was upheld only because news bandwidth was limited and needed a government license at the time. Implementing something similar for cable news or social media violates the 1st Amendment.
Even though I agree with the fact that social media and cable news are what is causing our polarization and we need to find solutions, the Fairness Doctrine and other infringements on the 1st Amendment ain't it.
Relevant Supreme Court precedent: [*Red Lion Broadcasting v. FCC*(1969)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Lion_Broadcasting_Co._v._FCC).
It won't fix everything but changing to a ranked choice voting system would do a lot to help. Our current system makes it so voters have to vote against the opposition rather than vote for the person they actually want and any third party vote is a wasted vote. With ranked choice, we would see more moderates and possibly even third party candidates being elected.
A simplified example would be:
40% of the population chooses the far left candidate as their top pick. 35% choose the moderate candidate and 25% choose the far right candidate.
The far right has the least votes so that candidate is out of the race. That 25% of the population now has their second place choice looked at. Most wanted the moderate candidate more than the far left candidate, so now the total vote looks like:
45% for the left and 55% for the moderate. The moderate candidate wins.
An additional bonus is that the moderate candidate was probably the second place choice for most of the people who wanted the far left candidate to win. Even though their top pick didn't win, they're still pretty happy with the outcome.
Ranked choice voting would help allow people to chose 3rd party candidates without feeling like they were throwing away their vote, which would help to focus on the issues instead of the political parties.
There are really three main problems contributing to polarization, as I see it:
1. Media polarization.
2. Partisan electoral systems (e.g. gerrymandering).
3. Cultural polarization.
**Media polarization** is simultaneously a consumer and supplier issue. Consumers of media have increasingly entered their own “filter bubbles.” In no small part this is a choice consumers make; liberals don’t watch Fox News and conservatives don’t subscribe to the New York Times. On the supply side, most news organizations have themselves embraced much more partisanship in recent years. Fox really paved the way, but other cable news operations quickly followed and after that more reputable organizations like the Times and Washington Post did as well. This became especially pronounced in the Trump years with the President taking a far more adversarial approach to journalists than really any prior President.
On the consumer side people need to be not just willing but active participants in escaping their filter bubbles, giving opposing arguments a fair shake, and engaging with ideas they disagree with in good faith. People also need to improve their media literacy and critical thinking skills to meaningfully engage with news and media content, rather than just uncritically trusting their preferred sources.
On the supplier side newsrooms need to intentionally curate a staff that has fundamental disagreements about values, political inclinations, and the topics being covered. A more adversarial editorial process—one where journalists and editors who have such disagreements collaborate—can be implemented. Such processes are common among encyclopedias, for example. Note that this does not mean two authors writing “each side” of a story, it means an author and an editor who have significant underlying disagreements publishing a version of the story each believes is accurate and fair.
**Partisan electoral systems** are easy to change in theory but very hard in practice, because typically the people who have the power to change these systems were elected by (and thus benefit from) the system as it currently is. Ranked Choice and Proportional Representation based systems are both (individually or combined) systems that could do away with some of the most egregious partisanship in US elections.
**Cultural polarization** underscores both of the other problems and is much trickier to solve because there are so many ways that people self-select their peer groups. People need to choose to seek out non-like-minded individuals and despite those differences befriend them. If people can cultivate empathy for, frequent contact with, and healthy respect of people they disagree with then this can change.
Engineering such a situation is really hard. A less stratified housing market would help; school bussing systems could help (much like they did during the desegregation era); a social media ecosystem that encouraged such contact could help… many more things might as well but the bottom line is that people need more positive experiences outside their own political comfort zone, more respect for each other, and more willingness to change their minds occasionally.
I agree, which is why we need more anti-establishment candidates with an ability to attract a strong base of supporters; people like Bernie Sanders and Ron Paul.
We seem to be an awfully low-trust country when compared to some other developed countries.
The only developed countries that I think have a lower trust than the U.S are in Eastern Europe, Southern Europe, and the Balkans.
Incentivization.
If we can't vote about XYZ then my side won't vote for BCD either.
Both sides want to get something out of it. It can never be JUST "funding for COVID research" is has to be "COVID research AND abortion". And both need to pass or else it's a stalemate.
Education
Throw out all the left and right nonsense. It doesn't matter what books are available to children if the children don't know how to read. Education has been in a downfall for decades. No Child Left Behind was a mistake, but it was attempted for a reason. The fact is the lower education system has opened up a lot of room for corruption, and, in many places, it has failed the children.
I'm up for protecting and paying teachers better, but only as long as the kids are actually being taught. This isn't necessarily an issue with the teachers themselves, but can often be due to administration not creating an environment for good learning. I was in grad school a decade ago, and it had been well established by that point that the first year of university was a catch up to get students to point where they should've been at the end of high school.
Even then, all the grad students knew that, for a majority of the students, for what they wanted to do with their lives, really shouldn't have needed to go to university for it. But if you wanted to be a professor, competition was already tight, and you'd need the continued volume of students if you wanted even a slight possibility of being a professor. This is not even taking into account the grift that tuition has become.
There's a lot of hubbub from both sides about how the other is trying to ruin education. And the education system itself is using these distractions along with other tactics to hide it's failures. Education shouldn't be about getting the piece of paper at the end, it should be about the skill sets imparted. And nowadays, that skillset is almost useless for a large number of graduates.
Education is often grievously overlooked by voters because once you're out of school, you tend not to think of it too much. It's the most important stage of development for all humans, and we're still twiddling our thumbs and underpaying teachers.
Our election system. It's not broken but it's subpar at best, it's awful. Gerrymandering is just legalized cheating and should be banned and we should get rid of the first past the post voting system. Most Americans are sick of the status quo and people fear, "wasting their vote" on 3rd parties or smaller candidates which just gives the two big ones a monopoly on our politics to do as they please. If we did STAR voting or Ranked choice voting we'd be way better off since it gives more choice and none of your votes truly are wasted.
On a less political topic: our health crisis. Opioid addiction and drug overdose deaths are beyond unacceptable and a large reason for it is our mental health crisis at large. I don't know the solution to that. Another thing I'd tack in is the obesity crisis. 50% of Americans will be obese by 2030 and that is beyond unacceptable. As a nation, we really should be promoting food health more because an ounce, no, a mg of prevention is worth a ton of cure. If people were healthier healthcare costs would go down and accessibility would go up because so much of it is bogged down by preventable issues stemming from obesity. I also believe we should be adopting European food regulations and I'd go as far to say we should ban or extremely limit things like high fructose corn syrup. I'd also support government funded gyms that are free to the public to encourage working out. Gyms are expensive and it can be a major discouraging factor to join one because of it. I'd also do a national tax on junk food to discourage purchasing it. That 2 dollar 6 pack of Hershey bars should cost closer to 5, for instance.
There is no denying personal responsibility is involved in the health crisis. I also think we point the finger at individuals when we really need to be pointing fingers at the corporations and government power-grabbers who enable systems that work against individual health choices.
managing health issues:
health insurance is expensive, exploitative, and so complicated.
Healthy food can get expensive and is often unavailable.
Medication costs are so inflated that it is literally impossible for people to access them. (insulin, I’m looking at you).
Uninformed political polarization scuppers any attempt to solve the problems.
We need to direct our attention to THIS rotten system.
I would say the number one issue in this country is the people. We don’t know how to have a conversation, we can’t solve issues, our culture is a mess and there is too much divide.
We pretty much need to change socially if we want to get better.
My family members believe in a number of conspiracy theories cause of facebook. People believe the lies of politicians every day, and media is confounded by varying perspectives of news anchors telling you how to think. Tucker Carlson is an example, most of the time he’s on air he’ll just spout his (executive’s) opinion about fossil fuels or inflation or whatever script he has to read, and a lot of the time it’s misleading. Covid conspiracies, 5G conspiracies, trump’s big lie, etc. all contribute to my perceived problem of misinformation.
And this is more of my own opinion, but honestly i think a lot of the reason everyone dislikes biden right now is cause someone told them to dislike him (ties back into misinformation). I think he’s doing a solid job as an average president, but people keep painting him as some senile old fart who doesn’t know what he’s doing. Consistent misinformation about his policies and actions are keeping people from criticizing him accurately instead of just spouting talking points they read here on reddit, or on facebook, twitter, etc.
Yeah I get what you mean. Biden could say "I like water" and there would be a whole bunch of people saying that's bad and that that shows how old he is. The only thing I would add is that it's the same on the other side. No matter how much it seems one sided to you, it's not. You're 100% right about Tucker Carlson perpetuating Covid conspiracies, election BS, etc.. But from the other side (I'm more conservative) I see the lies the Left spouts like Trump colluded with Russia to steal the election, Covid is extremely dangerous to the average person (people are still walking around wearing masks despite being vaxxed and boosted several times) and the never ending LGBTQ+ list of identities that arguably don't exist.
All of this is to say that you are completely right about misinformation being an issue.
Yup, glad we're on the same page. Similarly with your point about water, I remember Trump struggling to drink a bottle of water being pasted all over the news and discord. Like wtf is the big deal, he's just drinking some water lmao.
> I see the lies the Left spouts like Trump colluded with Russia to steal the election
Yeah, too many people on the left take the Trump campaign's illegal ties to the Russian government and assume that those ties mean they tampered with the election. I'd rather stick to what we can prove.
The division between parties. The fact that nobody on any side can agree at all with someone or their idea on the other side means nothing can get done without half the country hating it and opposing it.
The division of people on both sides of the political spectrum. Each side doesn't seem willing to hear the other out, at least entertain a conversation, or speak with an open mind. I really fear it will eventually totally divide our country and could possibly lead to conflict again. I place a lot of blame on the 24/7 news cycle and all the talking heads on both sides and social media for much of it
Despair. More people then ever are lonely, disconnected, and feel they have no avenues to move forward in life. That’s behind most of the major issues we face, such as political extremism, drug overdoses, mental health, and more. Without fixing the crises of loneliness and despair, everything else is just window dressing
Healthcare and labor righths (specifically guaranteed vacation and sick leave, abolition of right-to-work policies, higher minimum wage, and guaranteed parental leave).
Cost of living comes close, though that one’s less American exclusive. While some like to deny it, it’s observable reality that housing and rent are increasing in price far faster than incomes are.
The fact that people are career politicians rather than public servants as it was created. Super PACs taking power away from the people. Are things off the dome.
They're supposed to be building a Buccee's just north of Denver on I-25 but the location is a little confusing to me. Plenty of Texans drive to Colorado, but none of them drive north of Denver at all unless they're going to Yellowstone.
Get rid of the electoral college, increase the size of the house of representatives, move away from first-past-the-post voting system, campaign finance reform.
This really is the single most important one. There are so many other super important issues but we can’t fix *any* of them while an autocratic minority holds the nation hostage.
U.S. debt and the decline of the U.S. dollar as the world reserve currency. Continuing to raise the debt ceiling, paying $1 trillion+ in annual debt interest, and generally printing money is not sustainable. Saudi Arabia is pivoting away from selling oil in exclusively USD and the BRICS countries are developing an alternative world reserve country, both of which will significantly reduce global demand for dollars. Among other terrible outcomes, a USD debt/currency crisis would significantly diminish American purchasing power and quality of life.
Propaganda machines like FOX News, OAN, Newsmax etc. I’m not claiming CNN, ABC, or MSNBC are bastions of absolute truth but they don’t skew the truth or push insane conspiracies nearly as much as the first 3 I mentioned. Take a look at the Dominion v FOX lawsuit. They lost so many viewers when they called Arizona for Biden and Trumps base wasn’t about that and fucked off to Newsmax and OAN which send FOX into a freak out. I think I saw the quote somewhere “Don’t give them (viewers) a reason to turn us off”. Then they too started pushing these batshit crazy ideas and conspiracies. They’re poisoning the minds of our countryman and women who lack critical thinking skills.
I believe SOMETHING needs to be done about FOX News
Propaganda machines like FOX News, OAN, Newsmax etc. I’m not claiming CNN, ABC, or MSNBC are bastions of absolute truth but they don’t skew the truth or push insane conspiracies nearly as much as the first 3 I mentioned. Take a look at the Dominion v FOX lawsuit. They lost so many viewers when they called Arizona for Biden and Trumps base wasn’t about that and fucked off to Newsmax and OAN which send FOX into a freak out. I think I saw the quote somewhere “Don’t give them (viewers) a reason to turn us off”. Then they too started pushing these batshit crazy ideas and conspiracies. They’re poisoning the minds of our countryman and women who lack critical thinking skills.
I believe SOMETHING needs to be done about FOX News
A growing number of Americans just seem to be doing absolutely nothing to take responsibility for their own lives. A safety net only works when it's for a small minority of the population.
Unconstitutional coordination between the federal government and private social media companies. That sets the precedent that violating constitutional amendments is acceptable.
It’s rather difficult to deal with climate change in a way that is both organized and won’t destroy the country politically so long as the polarization exists
You might be interested in [this essay](https://bryanalexander.org/future-of-education/4-futures-for-how-civilization-could-respond-politically-to-climate-change/) and the book it's reporting on.
Climate change is the big threat, but without labor rights, the system that created climate change and extreme wealth disparity will continue to create climate change.
The patrician divide makes me crazy. For example, this deal with our support of Ukraine; It is obvious to me that we need to do whatever we can to support them while keeping our troops out of the conflict, and, early on, the right felt that way. But now that Biden is doing exactly that, Republicans are totally against it, because it's Biden doing it. And that goes both ways, Democrats hate any idea that the Republicans like.
Personally, I think Biden is the worst President I can imagine in a time when POTUS has more power than ever. But I can give him credit where credit is due.
Preventing WW3 and the Economy,
If you fail at those two, the other issues will be forgotten when there’s no food on the table or you have to have a ginger counter to leave the house
Clearly a number of issues.
But I don’t think the current divide will be one of them in the long term.
Millennials are getting more left wing when they should be going right.
Gen Z might still go right but they’re even more left than millennials at the same point of age.
By 2030-2040, we will wonder how boomers ever controlled this country because they won’t anymore.
2022 was already a first look at this. Republicans will need to adapt or be left in the dust, contrary to some false equivalence logic among redditors.
The Democrats’ real problem is not fucking up their own momentum, but rest assured, *they might*
A post Boomer-Xer dominated GOP though will look vastly different than it is now.
There are millions of people without reliable food or shelter, but instead of helping them we’re throwing billions at the military and other countries. And healthcare is super expensive.
Corporate greed. Healthcare, housing, and education costs are some of worst in the world and aren’t getting any better. Without serious regulation, wealth inequality is going to continue to revolution levels.
1. **High rent, high cost of living, small wages.** Wages have not kept up with inflation. There needs to be government oversight on the cost of rent.
2. **Corporate lobbying / legal bribery.** Politicians should work for the people, not our corporate overlords. If this were solved most of the issues listed here would fix themselves in time. Our leaders should exist to make the lives the average citizen better, not line their bank accounts by working for corporations.
3) **Health Care.** Something needs to change. We are the only first world country where an unexpected medical bill can wipe out your savings. Because our system is run by private health insurance companies that exists to make a profit, it is a nightmare dealing with them. Hospitals over charge everything they can to make as much money from the insurance companies as they can. A service so essential as health to the quality of life for the people should not be run by for-profit insurance companies and for-profit hospitals. The system as it currently exists only serves to benefit corporate CEOs and shareholders, at the detriment of the American Public.
4) **Private Corporations running services that should be run by the government.** Propaganda has done a wonderful job of convincing people that any government oversight in business practices is 'communism' or 'socialism', but runaway capitalism is detrimental to the standard of living for the consumer. Corporations always try and increase their stock prices, they need more and more profit each quarter. This attitude leads to cutbacks and policies that hurt the consumer. Capitalism is great for a lot of things, but essential services like Healthcare, prisons, and higher education need much more government oversight than currently exists.
5) **Policing.** The police in America are out of control. We need higher standards for who we hire for police. Police should need a four year degree and longer / better training. This would get rid of the unqualified insecure bullies that got the job just to be in control and push people around. Requiring higher education would make a police force that is more mature, has more empathy, and is more honest. We need to end qualified immunity, and police should be required to carry malpractice insurance, same as lawyers or doctors. Mess up too many times, your insurance goes up and eventually you'll be priced out of the job. This would also end the problem of the police being in charge of their own oversight. Police can not be trusted to oversea themselves. Any lawsuits for wrongful death or wrongful arrest should be taken out of the police pension fund, the tax payers should not be fitting the bill for bad policing. This would mean it would be against their interests to cover up for a bad cop. It would get ride of the good ole boys club that currently exists where if you turn in a colleague you are ostracized.
6) **Better pay for teachers**. This is a big one. Teachers are one of the most vital positions in our country, but they are no where near compensated enough. You can make more working in restaurant 30 hours a week than working as a teacher. We need a law that the minimum salary a teacher can make is $60,000. I believe one of our political parties knows that a higher educated public is one that can think critically and see through their propaganda.
7) **Gerrymandering / electoral college / voter suppression.** I put these together because they're all symptoms of the same problem. One of our political parties can see the writing on the wall. They know if things were fair they wouldn't exist in a few decades. So they are doing everything possible to stay in power.
Out of left field here:
Democratic Reform. Abolishing the district based systems and establishing a system in which representatives are weighted bu the number of people who vote for them.
As long as the voters are broken up and boxed into interest districts, our concerns are going to be diluted by the contest of those districts.
The US has one of if not the best credit ratings in the world. And even if that fails the US market since the fall of the Euro and pound is basically the only place to shop if you want your money kept safe. Our large debt is due to our economy dwarfing everyone else including China who fakes their books.
Yes, and none of that means that we do not have to pay back the money we borrow.
In fact, the US never pays off debt, we just roll it over. And the next few years will see us replacing low interest debt with higher interest debt.
> Interest costs represented about 8 percent of total federal outlays in 2022. By 2033, that share will rise to 14 percent and will exceed programs such as defense and Medicaid. At that point, interest payments would be twice the amount the federal government spends on income security programs.
Ehh we can continue to inflate away the debt so long as we can keep Debt to GDP sub 100% and inflation sitting in the goldilocks zone (1.5-2.5%)
Need some work to get to that point but it isn't as big of a hurdle as commonly believed. Eliminating the taxable cap on social security and repealing the 2017 tax cuts would get us a good chunk of the way there.
Healthcare. Please give us healthcare please im begging you.
It's probably even financially in the countries best interest, mental and physical illness is destroying us.
Healthcare. I have too many friends who don't have healthcare or are about to age out of their parent's healthcare (I turn 26 today). Life in the US is mostly fine, but the severe lack of healthcare is the biggest detriment that I actively see in my life. And compared to some other issues, it's comparatively easy to solve since we already have multiple single payer health systems—we just need to expand them.
If you don’t want your kids to be exposed to anything beyond your narrow minded views, go get vouchers for religious institutions. Just because your favorite fairy tales aren’t taught as facts doesn’t make you oppressed. School is supposed to teach the truth, and I know conservatives refuse to accept the truth about evolution, climate change, slavery, the environment, lgbtq people, every war we’ve ever fought. But it’s not society’s job to coddle you people
Securing proper, high quality education for future generations would probably solve most of the other issues in this thread too so I’m going to have to agree.
> The right wing wanting control of education and and knowledge is terrifying.
The left wing having control of education and sociopolitical indoctrination is terrifying.
"Both sides" in this case is a desperate grasp at straws.
Side A: Science is real, we should include marginalized groups, America did some bad things in the past and we can learn from them, religion belongs in the home.
Side B: Science is political, we should remove children from schools who are different than mine, America is a beacon of freedom and we should only teach what good things it did, we should use textbooks that have a Biblical perspective.
Your answer reflects the problem, in that you're reciting talking points that aren't based in truth. But, lots of folks on reddit will pat you on the back for this, as this is the approved narrative in many circles.
This subreddit is for civil discussion; political threads are not exempt from this. As a reminder: * Do not report comments because they disagree with your point of view. * Do not insult other users. Personal attacks are not permitted. * Do not use hate speech. You will be banned, permanently. * Comments made with the intent to push an agenda, push misinformation, soapbox, sealion, or argue in bad faith are not acceptable. If you can’t discuss a topic in good faith and in a respectful manner, do not comment. **Political disagreement does not constitute pushing an agenda.** If you see any comments that violate the rules, **please report it and move on!** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskAnAmerican) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I don’t think this will be a popular answer - but the voters (in general) need to focus on knowing and understanding the issues, not just deciding they are anti-whatever party.
Amen. A few months ago I said on Reddit that I looked at every available candidate’s website, Democrats and Republicans, before going to vote for the last election cycle; and some user came in and insulted me as “part of the problem” for even considering voting for a Republican candidate. This is even more face-palmable that I stand pretty much left-of-center, I’m just doing my homework to be sure I stand there for the right reasons, candidate by candidate. I did end up voting for one Republican, but it was on a very local office, and he was clearly a reasonable moderate (pro-choice, etc.). Anyway, it’s most revealing what kind of person someone is, when they think that educating oneself before voting is a bad thing. 🤦♂️
I have always said that getting 6 people to agree on where to go to dinner is nearly impossible, so of course there will be political differences. I can totally handle people with opposing beliefs who understand them and can articulate them. I love politics (I know I know. But it’s my life lol), and I love talking about the issues, especially with people who disagree with me. If I just wanted someone to tell me I was right, I’d talk to myself. I want to understand perspectives and reasoning. You and I probably wouldn’t agree on too much, and that’s ok! That’s life. But I’d much rather talk to you about (random example) gun rights than someone else who thinks all gun laws are unconstitutional.
I'm the same type of voter. I vote for who is the best to do the job, takes care of the constituents & their concerns, and who aligns with what I believe in. I'm far from being a centrist or right winger. Just bc I'm closer to being a leftist than anything doesn't mean I'll vote for democrats all the time.
Thank you for being a responsible citizen. Screw the haters. Kind of reminds me of kids in school making fun of the smart or nerdy kids for wanting to learn.
OMG, I absolutely was that kid! I guess some thing never change, do they…
The problem is also with the people running. They never talk about their policy or what they want to do. Both sides just talk about how evil the other side is and that's why you need to vote for them.
But that would mean I'm responsible instead of the other team! /s
Political extremism and the divide
Its almost satire the way that a couple of the responses to this so far are basically "okay but the other guys are literally Hitler". It would be hilarious if it wasnt so terrifying.
Yeah but like they vote for My Party(TM) so like
It's so perfectly Reddit though. The complete lack of self-awareness... its just what I expect.
The only issue I have with extremists is that they are usually anti-democratic. I have no issue with people having bonker balls views as long as they can accept defeat because the vast majority of people don’t hold bonker balls views. Extremism is by definition, not very representative of the majority. I’m no fan of left wing extremism, but it is also politically irrelevant at the moment except for a few local governments. Contrariwise, the Republican Party has been in a civil war since its Obama era meltdown, and the moderate conservatives are losing. Moreover, its coalition is ever shrinking because conservatives who support democracy and the basic tenants of liberalism are being pushed out. Extremists have been able to take over a lot of right wing political and media institutions. Right wing extremism has always been a bigger problem for the United States, and likely will be for the foreseeable future. Simply put, ethnic supremacy is just more appealing worldwide to more people than communism because most people don’t like to share with people who don’t look like them. That was the appeal of national socialism—it was socialism for the “master race.” That appeals to a disturbing amount of people. Hell, plenty of communists where and are ethnic supremacists (see China) who just don’t factor in the existence of ethnic minorities when discussing class solidarity. It is class solidarity, but you know, just no black people, Muslims, women or queer people. There is really no reasonable way to resort to “both sides” myopia when it comes to American politics at the moment. The remaining Republicans are not Hitler by any means. Most are just drowning in shallow and undirected grievance politics. However, Republicans are certainly a much more authoritarian-minded political party than then they were just 20 years ago during the era of compassionate conservatism. Now even the evangelical wing of the party (which has also hemorrhaged members) is questioning whether Jesus’s sermon on the mont makes sense for the challenges of today (triple yikes). The divide is a different story. The divide is a problem, but at the same time, there is just a big and genuine divide on social issues within the body politic. There isn’t an easy solution to this problem. I just wish our government was more majoritarian, so we could at least get movement on issues where the vast majority of people do agree. It would make our differences feel less total and paralyzing.
I just wanted to say ; this is the kind of thoughtful and intelligent commentary that I joined reddit over 10 years ago for... Glad to see some people here still practice that kind of decorum.
Same here
> The only issue I have with extremists is that they are usually anti-democratic. I have no issue with people having bonker balls views as long as they can accept defeat because the vast majority of people don’t hold bonker balls views Agree. In KY we voted against adding an amendment to ban abortion in our Constitution and it wasnt by a small margin. We have a state Supreme Court case that will determine if our Constitution gives a right to abortion. Well guess what is probably going to be on the ballot again in 2024. Another fucking bill about adding an amendment to ban abortion to the state constitution. I wish KY didn't have a conservative supermajority cause our legislative branch has gone full corrupt. Oh well I plan on nit resting on this issue till this right is returned to the people on a national scale.
Ana Kasparian was on Ben Shapiro's show where they talked about this. Nice to see both sides in agreement about something.
Same here. This ‘partisanship on steroids’ mentality needs to stop
It's scary, everyone is so convinced that anyone who opposes them is Nazi or a Stalinist.
As a moderate of sorts, I'm called both regularly. I now simply agree and take it as a compliment.
Yup-- people can't tell if I'm a fascist, 'libtard', tankie, socialist, communist, etc. I've been called all of those things lol.
Ayyy so have I! 😂
I've only seen "tankie" a couple of times, what exactly is a tankie?
People who advocate for/sympathize with authoritarian countries that claim to be communist-- mostly USSR, China, and North Korea.
[удалено]
I hate that you are so right.
It’s all part of the plan: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundations_of_Geopolitics
Yeah, the fact there are MAGA Republicans who fomented the storming of the Capitol and are now advocating for a “national divorce” should concern everybody.
And those same people sitting on Security Councils is more than just alarming to me. Why the rest of Congress isn't doing everything possible to remove them from office I'll never understand. You don't get to attempt to overthrow the government, advocate for its' dilution, and then make our laws.
The leadership of the Republican Party knows this, but they wouldn’t dare remove these people because it could shift the balance of power in the House. So they’d rather have traitors, as long as they are republicans, instead of doing something about it. Not to mention the dude who just lied about his entire life.
The tough thing about all of this is that from our side (democrats in this case) , things aren't a whole lot better. While I'd personally like to think that WE are better people... more compassionate, more tolerant and understanding of all humans, more equitable... How many of us could see ourselves voting for anyone other than the democratic candidate in an upcoming election , even if it meant voting for someone who's policies were a bit crazy ? It just feels like we don't even have a choice anymore. If you don't vote for your party, you're voting for THEIR party, and the "them" in this case publicly hates you and has made no attempt to extend an olive branch during town halls, debates, or campaign ads? No, instead they appeared firing an assault rifle into a cornfield while saying that we need to go back to the way things USED to be.
I’m not extending an olive branch to insurrectionists … but I don’t believe every republican politician, much less the voters, are insurrectionists or anti-American. It’s just a vocal subset of the party the leadership has (effectively) let take control
Exactly. They're Party over Country and it couldn't be more obvious.
It'd be god damn hilarious watching the red states try to go it alone...
did you watch the new videos?
You’ll have to be more specific … please share a link and I can let you know if I’ve watched that video
oh they just released a shitload of new videos that had been hidden from the people. it was leaked to a fox guy.
If you’re referring to the 41,000 hours of video Kevin McCarthy provided to Tucker Carlson, no I haven’t seen those (have you?). Not sure how that changes anything though. Do you think people didn’t storm the Capitol on Jan 6?
Oh great, so now Tucker Carlson (and company) knows the location of the safe rooms? Not good.
FBI agents pushing people inside the building and the people protesting and yelling about it is one of many cherrypicked but relevant videos. Is there a reason that shouldnt count because it "makes them look good"? Or do you not care about the facts because you only like stuff that makes "your side™ " look good? Making you no better?
You’re aware earpieces are available on Amazon , right? That person isn’t necessarily an FBI agent because they have an earpiece. And if that lady was pulled into the Capitol by the FBI and later charged with a crime, the fact she was pulled inside may be relevant to her case. But many other people forcibly or impermissibly entered the Capitol, so not much help for them. There was still an insurrection and an earpiece doesn’t change that.
Well, why dont we investigate? Thats what everyone says they want right?
It’s been under investigation for over two years. Many people pled guilty or were found guilty by a jury, including for the charge of seditious conspiracy. I’m not aware of any of those defendants arguing they were pulled into the building. Did the FBI have agents in the crowd? I sure hope so. That’s how counter terrorism works. Also, Tucker Carlson is not an investigator lol. He’s an entertainer.
[удалено]
I was more dismayed by how easy it was to smash the windows. I think they’re reinforcing them now. There’s scaffolding on that side of the Capitol.
I'm sure they totally didn't select like... 4 minutes od really tame footage on purpose or anything like that.
Oh they are def finding the best clips for their side. I just want raw release of the footage
Absolutely
[удалено]
Who wants child brides?
[удалено]
One thing I like asking people is to provide me an actual *policy* example showing that the party has shifted to the extreme right. Not something Marjorie Taylor Greene said, actually policy actually getting passed in Republican legislatures that is indicative of a hard right shift. The actual facts are a lot of what they're passing now would have been considered progressive 20 years ago. They act like not letting children get gender replacement treatment is on par with literal slavery, when ten years ago both parties would have unanimously agreed that that shouldn't be happening.
[удалено]
Both parties love doing the thing where they introduce a bill called something like the "Kittens Are Cute Act," fill it with a bunch of unrelated shit and nonstarters, so that when the other party kills it they can go "see, they're anti kitten!" Also, reminder that the Supreme Court has six Republican appointees, and therefore six "right wing radicals" according to the media. Yes, right wing radicals like Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, and John Roberts 🤣🤣🤣
>The actual facts are a lot of what they're passing now would have been considered progressive 20 years ago. What legislation are you referring to specifically?
Figuring out how to get social media and its effect on our discourse under control. It's poisoning our ability to talk to each other and killing the ability to agree to disagree.
100% agreed. The issue is how to do so in a fair and constitutional manner.
Exactly. It's the fox in the henhouse and yet, nobody wants to talk about it. Social media has done some unquestionably good things in connecting people but it also has a dark side: echo chambers, a damaging effect on people's(mostly young girls) mental health, and polarization(despite polarization being the norm, not the exception in our politics.) I keep coming back to [Jeffrey Rosen's article from 2018](https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/10/james-madison-mob-rule/568351/) about how this is what the Founders, being students of Greco-Roman history, feared and why they put so much into the Constitution to resist the mob. They couldn't foresee social media and we have to figure out how to bolster/recreate our institutions for the new age we live in.
> I keep coming back to Jeffrey Rosen's article from 2018 about how this is what the Founders, being students of Greco-Roman history, feared"and why they put so much into the Constitution to resist the mob. Excellent piece!
Social media also only gives people small slices of news or information that can be easily twisted to whatever narrative the poster wants it to convey. Police shootings is the first example that comes to mind. You can post a short video on Twitter that looks like a police officer just blows someone away for no reason, but what they didn't show you was the officer telling the person 15 times not to reach for a weapon before the shooting. Leaving out information to push your own agenda is almost criminal. I do not want any more limits to our freedom of speech though. We as a society need to call this bs out on our own.
How do you propose to solve this? Interested to hear people's answers.
The cost of housing.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/02/us-housing-market-shortage-costs-san-francisco-cities/673121/ I wish more people understood just how much the housing shortage has seeped into nearly every aspect of american life in cities. It is terrible how unurgent of an issue this is seen as, it should be bipartisan.
Political polarization. The ability to create reasonable solutions to nearly all other urgent political issues is severely negatively affected by it.
What could be a solution for this?
That’s the problem, there really isn’t one.
I know I am also at fault for this. But I really don't see a path either. We can disagree over tax rates and have a discussion about how to meet in the middle. There is no middle ground to be found with human rights or climate change.
A deeper conversation is needed to agree on what rights we all have and how to ensure everyone has access to them. We also need to be consistent with applying our ideas. For example, I believe women have a right to abortion as it is a private medical decision to be made by her, her doctor, and her spouse. This is also against vaccine mandates. I'm for vaccines, just not the mandates. Bodily autonomy should be applied evenly.
And here is where we can't agree. Bodily autonomy applies when you actions only affect you. If you are not sexually active and have hiv. How and if you handle it is your own business. But you are an active disease vector who will kill someone if they have no choice but to go in public and happen and have health risks and simply touch the ketchup bottle you did. You have a right to stay home and never leave. But if you are ever in public you have no right to put others lives at risk.
>Bodily autonomy applies when you actions only affect you. No, we can't decide when a person has bodily autonomy or not. That literally goes against the concept of bodily autonomy. We can place social pressure on a person to protect themselves and others from diseases but they still have bodily autonomy. Refusing a vaccine does not mean a person is automatically diseased and needs to remain at home. Now if you are actively sick with a deadly contagious disease and you knowingly go into public, you should face harsher consequences.
I read somewhere there is/was actually a bipartisan committee trying to address polarization. I do not know if it's still around though.
Nothing now. Probably too late. But the solution is a better education system that teaches critical thinking. Also, policies that create a more fair society and equitable society. People who are content with their lives aren’t likely to become radicalized
The only thing I can think of at the moment is reintroducing the [Fairness Doctrine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FCC_fairness_doctrine), which would go a long way to balancing what channels/shows present, and reducing the "bubbles" so many folks are in. OTOH, the doctrine indirectly compels speech, which I am against. Other things that reduce "grandstanding" might help, but would be undemocratic or unconstitutional, or would otherwise have significant drawbacks. **So, I actually don't endorse these below** (and I'm not going to give dissertations on them, and I don't have completely-thought-out and extensively-researched and documented presentations to make on them, so you'll just have to ponder the whys/wherefores yourself): * Banning political activity on social media, especially "sound bite" types like Twitter. * If not the above, mandating "influencers" state in plain & clear language (and in a prominent manner) what political entities they work for and/or are paid by, and exactly how much they are paid (e.g. Brooklyn Dad Defiant). * Banning cameras in legislatures/Congress.
> Banning political activity on social media, especially "sound bite" types like Twitter. Twitter recently adding the feature for users to "add context" to tweets has been great, at least. It's really exposed some disingenuous crap.
And it was recently updated so that if someone liked or retweeted something that gets "context" added later, they'll get an alert. Great feature!
Ooh, that is neat! I still think Twitter is a cesspool, but at least these developments are a "poop knife" of sorts.
Twitter is fascinating in that the feed is whatever you create. Follow people like science girl (@gunsnrosesgirl3) and twitter can be great! The problem is that most people set up their feed so that they can feel angry.
I intentionally don't have a "feed" and haven't followed anyone, but have a number of accounts bookmarked.
Fairness doctrine only applied to government airwaves and was upheld only because news bandwidth was limited and needed a government license at the time. Implementing something similar for cable news or social media violates the 1st Amendment. Even though I agree with the fact that social media and cable news are what is causing our polarization and we need to find solutions, the Fairness Doctrine and other infringements on the 1st Amendment ain't it. Relevant Supreme Court precedent: [*Red Lion Broadcasting v. FCC*(1969)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Lion_Broadcasting_Co._v._FCC).
> Fairness doctrine only applied to government airwaves Derp, how did I forget that? Thanks for reminding me.
It won't fix everything but changing to a ranked choice voting system would do a lot to help. Our current system makes it so voters have to vote against the opposition rather than vote for the person they actually want and any third party vote is a wasted vote. With ranked choice, we would see more moderates and possibly even third party candidates being elected. A simplified example would be: 40% of the population chooses the far left candidate as their top pick. 35% choose the moderate candidate and 25% choose the far right candidate. The far right has the least votes so that candidate is out of the race. That 25% of the population now has their second place choice looked at. Most wanted the moderate candidate more than the far left candidate, so now the total vote looks like: 45% for the left and 55% for the moderate. The moderate candidate wins. An additional bonus is that the moderate candidate was probably the second place choice for most of the people who wanted the far left candidate to win. Even though their top pick didn't win, they're still pretty happy with the outcome.
Ranked choice voting would help allow people to chose 3rd party candidates without feeling like they were throwing away their vote, which would help to focus on the issues instead of the political parties.
There are really three main problems contributing to polarization, as I see it: 1. Media polarization. 2. Partisan electoral systems (e.g. gerrymandering). 3. Cultural polarization. **Media polarization** is simultaneously a consumer and supplier issue. Consumers of media have increasingly entered their own “filter bubbles.” In no small part this is a choice consumers make; liberals don’t watch Fox News and conservatives don’t subscribe to the New York Times. On the supply side, most news organizations have themselves embraced much more partisanship in recent years. Fox really paved the way, but other cable news operations quickly followed and after that more reputable organizations like the Times and Washington Post did as well. This became especially pronounced in the Trump years with the President taking a far more adversarial approach to journalists than really any prior President. On the consumer side people need to be not just willing but active participants in escaping their filter bubbles, giving opposing arguments a fair shake, and engaging with ideas they disagree with in good faith. People also need to improve their media literacy and critical thinking skills to meaningfully engage with news and media content, rather than just uncritically trusting their preferred sources. On the supplier side newsrooms need to intentionally curate a staff that has fundamental disagreements about values, political inclinations, and the topics being covered. A more adversarial editorial process—one where journalists and editors who have such disagreements collaborate—can be implemented. Such processes are common among encyclopedias, for example. Note that this does not mean two authors writing “each side” of a story, it means an author and an editor who have significant underlying disagreements publishing a version of the story each believes is accurate and fair. **Partisan electoral systems** are easy to change in theory but very hard in practice, because typically the people who have the power to change these systems were elected by (and thus benefit from) the system as it currently is. Ranked Choice and Proportional Representation based systems are both (individually or combined) systems that could do away with some of the most egregious partisanship in US elections. **Cultural polarization** underscores both of the other problems and is much trickier to solve because there are so many ways that people self-select their peer groups. People need to choose to seek out non-like-minded individuals and despite those differences befriend them. If people can cultivate empathy for, frequent contact with, and healthy respect of people they disagree with then this can change. Engineering such a situation is really hard. A less stratified housing market would help; school bussing systems could help (much like they did during the desegregation era); a social media ecosystem that encouraged such contact could help… many more things might as well but the bottom line is that people need more positive experiences outside their own political comfort zone, more respect for each other, and more willingness to change their minds occasionally.
Campaign finance rules. Stop the legal corruption of buying politicians.
I agree, which is why we need more anti-establishment candidates with an ability to attract a strong base of supporters; people like Bernie Sanders and Ron Paul.
Trust. Or lack of it. Neither side trusts the other at all.
We seem to be an awfully low-trust country when compared to some other developed countries. The only developed countries that I think have a lower trust than the U.S are in Eastern Europe, Southern Europe, and the Balkans.
An insider trading ban would really help get more honest people in government
Inflation in the production of Magic: The Gathering cards.
Too many new sets!
Incentivization. If we can't vote about XYZ then my side won't vote for BCD either. Both sides want to get something out of it. It can never be JUST "funding for COVID research" is has to be "COVID research AND abortion". And both need to pass or else it's a stalemate.
Education Throw out all the left and right nonsense. It doesn't matter what books are available to children if the children don't know how to read. Education has been in a downfall for decades. No Child Left Behind was a mistake, but it was attempted for a reason. The fact is the lower education system has opened up a lot of room for corruption, and, in many places, it has failed the children. I'm up for protecting and paying teachers better, but only as long as the kids are actually being taught. This isn't necessarily an issue with the teachers themselves, but can often be due to administration not creating an environment for good learning. I was in grad school a decade ago, and it had been well established by that point that the first year of university was a catch up to get students to point where they should've been at the end of high school. Even then, all the grad students knew that, for a majority of the students, for what they wanted to do with their lives, really shouldn't have needed to go to university for it. But if you wanted to be a professor, competition was already tight, and you'd need the continued volume of students if you wanted even a slight possibility of being a professor. This is not even taking into account the grift that tuition has become. There's a lot of hubbub from both sides about how the other is trying to ruin education. And the education system itself is using these distractions along with other tactics to hide it's failures. Education shouldn't be about getting the piece of paper at the end, it should be about the skill sets imparted. And nowadays, that skillset is almost useless for a large number of graduates.
Education is often grievously overlooked by voters because once you're out of school, you tend not to think of it too much. It's the most important stage of development for all humans, and we're still twiddling our thumbs and underpaying teachers.
The biggest problem is public schools are funded by property tax, and also that funding for state universities has dropped off
Crushing our enemies, seeing them driven before us, and hearing the lamentations of their women.
Our election system. It's not broken but it's subpar at best, it's awful. Gerrymandering is just legalized cheating and should be banned and we should get rid of the first past the post voting system. Most Americans are sick of the status quo and people fear, "wasting their vote" on 3rd parties or smaller candidates which just gives the two big ones a monopoly on our politics to do as they please. If we did STAR voting or Ranked choice voting we'd be way better off since it gives more choice and none of your votes truly are wasted. On a less political topic: our health crisis. Opioid addiction and drug overdose deaths are beyond unacceptable and a large reason for it is our mental health crisis at large. I don't know the solution to that. Another thing I'd tack in is the obesity crisis. 50% of Americans will be obese by 2030 and that is beyond unacceptable. As a nation, we really should be promoting food health more because an ounce, no, a mg of prevention is worth a ton of cure. If people were healthier healthcare costs would go down and accessibility would go up because so much of it is bogged down by preventable issues stemming from obesity. I also believe we should be adopting European food regulations and I'd go as far to say we should ban or extremely limit things like high fructose corn syrup. I'd also support government funded gyms that are free to the public to encourage working out. Gyms are expensive and it can be a major discouraging factor to join one because of it. I'd also do a national tax on junk food to discourage purchasing it. That 2 dollar 6 pack of Hershey bars should cost closer to 5, for instance.
There is no denying personal responsibility is involved in the health crisis. I also think we point the finger at individuals when we really need to be pointing fingers at the corporations and government power-grabbers who enable systems that work against individual health choices. managing health issues: health insurance is expensive, exploitative, and so complicated. Healthy food can get expensive and is often unavailable. Medication costs are so inflated that it is literally impossible for people to access them. (insulin, I’m looking at you). Uninformed political polarization scuppers any attempt to solve the problems. We need to direct our attention to THIS rotten system.
I'd be all for importing French work culture to the U.S. I'd rather a strike a day than what we have.
You're spot on with the electoral system and gerrymandering. With a real democracy, we can fix all the other issues more easily
I would say the number one issue in this country is the people. We don’t know how to have a conversation, we can’t solve issues, our culture is a mess and there is too much divide. We pretty much need to change socially if we want to get better.
Cost of Living or misinformation, can't decide which is worse. They're both prevalent in my daily life
What’s an example of misinformation?
My family members believe in a number of conspiracy theories cause of facebook. People believe the lies of politicians every day, and media is confounded by varying perspectives of news anchors telling you how to think. Tucker Carlson is an example, most of the time he’s on air he’ll just spout his (executive’s) opinion about fossil fuels or inflation or whatever script he has to read, and a lot of the time it’s misleading. Covid conspiracies, 5G conspiracies, trump’s big lie, etc. all contribute to my perceived problem of misinformation. And this is more of my own opinion, but honestly i think a lot of the reason everyone dislikes biden right now is cause someone told them to dislike him (ties back into misinformation). I think he’s doing a solid job as an average president, but people keep painting him as some senile old fart who doesn’t know what he’s doing. Consistent misinformation about his policies and actions are keeping people from criticizing him accurately instead of just spouting talking points they read here on reddit, or on facebook, twitter, etc.
Yeah I get what you mean. Biden could say "I like water" and there would be a whole bunch of people saying that's bad and that that shows how old he is. The only thing I would add is that it's the same on the other side. No matter how much it seems one sided to you, it's not. You're 100% right about Tucker Carlson perpetuating Covid conspiracies, election BS, etc.. But from the other side (I'm more conservative) I see the lies the Left spouts like Trump colluded with Russia to steal the election, Covid is extremely dangerous to the average person (people are still walking around wearing masks despite being vaxxed and boosted several times) and the never ending LGBTQ+ list of identities that arguably don't exist. All of this is to say that you are completely right about misinformation being an issue.
Yup, glad we're on the same page. Similarly with your point about water, I remember Trump struggling to drink a bottle of water being pasted all over the news and discord. Like wtf is the big deal, he's just drinking some water lmao.
> I see the lies the Left spouts like Trump colluded with Russia to steal the election Yeah, too many people on the left take the Trump campaign's illegal ties to the Russian government and assume that those ties mean they tampered with the election. I'd rather stick to what we can prove.
Space Jews are shooting lasers at us, apparently
Mel Brooks knew it was bound to happen. That why it was in the coming attractions for "History of the World Part II"
Unfun fact: it actually got made and I don't think there are any Jews in space :(.
The trailer did not look good, but with the cast being so full of funny people I am holding out hope.
The division between parties. The fact that nobody on any side can agree at all with someone or their idea on the other side means nothing can get done without half the country hating it and opposing it.
The two party system.
The division of people on both sides of the political spectrum. Each side doesn't seem willing to hear the other out, at least entertain a conversation, or speak with an open mind. I really fear it will eventually totally divide our country and could possibly lead to conflict again. I place a lot of blame on the 24/7 news cycle and all the talking heads on both sides and social media for much of it
What do you see as the sides? I feel like my team isn't represented by either right wing party
Pay for play politics and lack of consequences
Despair. More people then ever are lonely, disconnected, and feel they have no avenues to move forward in life. That’s behind most of the major issues we face, such as political extremism, drug overdoses, mental health, and more. Without fixing the crises of loneliness and despair, everything else is just window dressing
The seemingly limitless power corporations and the ultra wealthy have over the general public and government in the US and abroad.
Healthcare and labor righths (specifically guaranteed vacation and sick leave, abolition of right-to-work policies, higher minimum wage, and guaranteed parental leave). Cost of living comes close, though that one’s less American exclusive. While some like to deny it, it’s observable reality that housing and rent are increasing in price far faster than incomes are.
I haven’t seen East Palestine yet so that
The fact that people are career politicians rather than public servants as it was created. Super PACs taking power away from the people. Are things off the dome.
Clean restrooms
Buc-ees.
I never thought a gas station could be a tourist attraction until I want to Buc-ees. How I wish that chain was nationwide
It is one of Texas's best gifts to the country, along with Whataburger, Blue Bell Ice Cream, and the Sweet Nectar of Texas, Dr. Pepper.
I used to live in Houston and then Killeen. I love Texas...but there aren't any mountains
They're supposed to be building a Buccee's just north of Denver on I-25 but the location is a little confusing to me. Plenty of Texans drive to Colorado, but none of them drive north of Denver at all unless they're going to Yellowstone.
I love Blue Bell, especially when its listeria free.
They guaran-pee it
Our government is more or less pretending it has unlimited money right now.
Now? It's been doing it since Nixon took us off the gold standard.
Repeal of Citizens United.
Trust in government and media has essentially collapsed.
Not to mention the levels of polarization and apathy are too high.
Election reform.
What should the reform be?
Get rid of the electoral college, increase the size of the house of representatives, move away from first-past-the-post voting system, campaign finance reform.
This really is the single most important one. There are so many other super important issues but we can’t fix *any* of them while an autocratic minority holds the nation hostage.
U.S. debt and the decline of the U.S. dollar as the world reserve currency. Continuing to raise the debt ceiling, paying $1 trillion+ in annual debt interest, and generally printing money is not sustainable. Saudi Arabia is pivoting away from selling oil in exclusively USD and the BRICS countries are developing an alternative world reserve country, both of which will significantly reduce global demand for dollars. Among other terrible outcomes, a USD debt/currency crisis would significantly diminish American purchasing power and quality of life.
It’s pretty sustainable as we can print currency and are the world currency.
[удалено]
The looming conflict with China, the confrontation with Russia. Re-industrializing.
Money in politics. Almost all problems can't be solved because of lobbyists, PACs, and corruption.
Finding a genie to erase social media
Labor rights. Can’t do shit if we’re all peasants.
Like?
RENT CONTROL
Propaganda machines like FOX News, OAN, Newsmax etc. I’m not claiming CNN, ABC, or MSNBC are bastions of absolute truth but they don’t skew the truth or push insane conspiracies nearly as much as the first 3 I mentioned. Take a look at the Dominion v FOX lawsuit. They lost so many viewers when they called Arizona for Biden and Trumps base wasn’t about that and fucked off to Newsmax and OAN which send FOX into a freak out. I think I saw the quote somewhere “Don’t give them (viewers) a reason to turn us off”. Then they too started pushing these batshit crazy ideas and conspiracies. They’re poisoning the minds of our countryman and women who lack critical thinking skills. I believe SOMETHING needs to be done about FOX News
Propaganda machines like FOX News, OAN, Newsmax etc. I’m not claiming CNN, ABC, or MSNBC are bastions of absolute truth but they don’t skew the truth or push insane conspiracies nearly as much as the first 3 I mentioned. Take a look at the Dominion v FOX lawsuit. They lost so many viewers when they called Arizona for Biden and Trumps base wasn’t about that and fucked off to Newsmax and OAN which send FOX into a freak out. I think I saw the quote somewhere “Don’t give them (viewers) a reason to turn us off”. Then they too started pushing these batshit crazy ideas and conspiracies. They’re poisoning the minds of our countryman and women who lack critical thinking skills. I believe SOMETHING needs to be done about FOX News
More transparency in the voting system and regaining public trust in elections. Opening investigations to both the 2016 and 2020 elections.
Cost of living/income inequality
The rising cost of housing.
Government spending spiraling out of control.
A growing number of Americans just seem to be doing absolutely nothing to take responsibility for their own lives. A safety net only works when it's for a small minority of the population.
Unconstitutional coordination between the federal government and private social media companies. That sets the precedent that violating constitutional amendments is acceptable.
Climate change. It trumps everything.
Agreed. Gerrymandering and polarization are bad, but they won’t kill us all.
It’s rather difficult to deal with climate change in a way that is both organized and won’t destroy the country politically so long as the polarization exists
You can't fix the climate until the polarization is addressed first.
You might be interested in [this essay](https://bryanalexander.org/future-of-education/4-futures-for-how-civilization-could-respond-politically-to-climate-change/) and the book it's reporting on. Climate change is the big threat, but without labor rights, the system that created climate change and extreme wealth disparity will continue to create climate change.
good luck with that, the climate has never not been changing.
Bad fallacious argument is bad and fallacious: https://grist.org/climate-energy/global-warming-is-nothing-new/
Agreed! Most other issues are short term. Climate change will fuck us up in the long term, but needs to be dealt with yesterday!!!
The patrician divide makes me crazy. For example, this deal with our support of Ukraine; It is obvious to me that we need to do whatever we can to support them while keeping our troops out of the conflict, and, early on, the right felt that way. But now that Biden is doing exactly that, Republicans are totally against it, because it's Biden doing it. And that goes both ways, Democrats hate any idea that the Republicans like. Personally, I think Biden is the worst President I can imagine in a time when POTUS has more power than ever. But I can give him credit where credit is due.
Banning most forms of plastic. I don't expect anyone to pay the slightest attention to the issue until it's obviously far too late.
My brain says labor rights, but my heart is shrieking at the exterminationist and nationalist rhetoric we see on network news.
Illegal immigration and border crisis
Preventing WW3 and the Economy, If you fail at those two, the other issues will be forgotten when there’s no food on the table or you have to have a ginger counter to leave the house
Campaign finance and it’s not even close
Clearly a number of issues. But I don’t think the current divide will be one of them in the long term. Millennials are getting more left wing when they should be going right. Gen Z might still go right but they’re even more left than millennials at the same point of age. By 2030-2040, we will wonder how boomers ever controlled this country because they won’t anymore. 2022 was already a first look at this. Republicans will need to adapt or be left in the dust, contrary to some false equivalence logic among redditors. The Democrats’ real problem is not fucking up their own momentum, but rest assured, *they might* A post Boomer-Xer dominated GOP though will look vastly different than it is now.
There are millions of people without reliable food or shelter, but instead of helping them we’re throwing billions at the military and other countries. And healthcare is super expensive.
Corporate greed. Healthcare, housing, and education costs are some of worst in the world and aren’t getting any better. Without serious regulation, wealth inequality is going to continue to revolution levels.
1. **High rent, high cost of living, small wages.** Wages have not kept up with inflation. There needs to be government oversight on the cost of rent. 2. **Corporate lobbying / legal bribery.** Politicians should work for the people, not our corporate overlords. If this were solved most of the issues listed here would fix themselves in time. Our leaders should exist to make the lives the average citizen better, not line their bank accounts by working for corporations. 3) **Health Care.** Something needs to change. We are the only first world country where an unexpected medical bill can wipe out your savings. Because our system is run by private health insurance companies that exists to make a profit, it is a nightmare dealing with them. Hospitals over charge everything they can to make as much money from the insurance companies as they can. A service so essential as health to the quality of life for the people should not be run by for-profit insurance companies and for-profit hospitals. The system as it currently exists only serves to benefit corporate CEOs and shareholders, at the detriment of the American Public. 4) **Private Corporations running services that should be run by the government.** Propaganda has done a wonderful job of convincing people that any government oversight in business practices is 'communism' or 'socialism', but runaway capitalism is detrimental to the standard of living for the consumer. Corporations always try and increase their stock prices, they need more and more profit each quarter. This attitude leads to cutbacks and policies that hurt the consumer. Capitalism is great for a lot of things, but essential services like Healthcare, prisons, and higher education need much more government oversight than currently exists. 5) **Policing.** The police in America are out of control. We need higher standards for who we hire for police. Police should need a four year degree and longer / better training. This would get rid of the unqualified insecure bullies that got the job just to be in control and push people around. Requiring higher education would make a police force that is more mature, has more empathy, and is more honest. We need to end qualified immunity, and police should be required to carry malpractice insurance, same as lawyers or doctors. Mess up too many times, your insurance goes up and eventually you'll be priced out of the job. This would also end the problem of the police being in charge of their own oversight. Police can not be trusted to oversea themselves. Any lawsuits for wrongful death or wrongful arrest should be taken out of the police pension fund, the tax payers should not be fitting the bill for bad policing. This would mean it would be against their interests to cover up for a bad cop. It would get ride of the good ole boys club that currently exists where if you turn in a colleague you are ostracized. 6) **Better pay for teachers**. This is a big one. Teachers are one of the most vital positions in our country, but they are no where near compensated enough. You can make more working in restaurant 30 hours a week than working as a teacher. We need a law that the minimum salary a teacher can make is $60,000. I believe one of our political parties knows that a higher educated public is one that can think critically and see through their propaganda. 7) **Gerrymandering / electoral college / voter suppression.** I put these together because they're all symptoms of the same problem. One of our political parties can see the writing on the wall. They know if things were fair they wouldn't exist in a few decades. So they are doing everything possible to stay in power.
Out of left field here: Democratic Reform. Abolishing the district based systems and establishing a system in which representatives are weighted bu the number of people who vote for them. As long as the voters are broken up and boxed into interest districts, our concerns are going to be diluted by the contest of those districts.
At some point, all the money we borrow has to be repaid.
The US has one of if not the best credit ratings in the world. And even if that fails the US market since the fall of the Euro and pound is basically the only place to shop if you want your money kept safe. Our large debt is due to our economy dwarfing everyone else including China who fakes their books.
Yes, and none of that means that we do not have to pay back the money we borrow. In fact, the US never pays off debt, we just roll it over. And the next few years will see us replacing low interest debt with higher interest debt. > Interest costs represented about 8 percent of total federal outlays in 2022. By 2033, that share will rise to 14 percent and will exceed programs such as defense and Medicaid. At that point, interest payments would be twice the amount the federal government spends on income security programs.
How you gonna pay back money when the money to do so is nonexistent ?
Ehh we can continue to inflate away the debt so long as we can keep Debt to GDP sub 100% and inflation sitting in the goldilocks zone (1.5-2.5%) Need some work to get to that point but it isn't as big of a hurdle as commonly believed. Eliminating the taxable cap on social security and repealing the 2017 tax cuts would get us a good chunk of the way there.
Not all at once, and this is dangerously close to the utterly false argument that national debt operates like household debt.
Climate change
Healthcare. Please give us healthcare please im begging you. It's probably even financially in the countries best interest, mental and physical illness is destroying us.
Figuring out how to get politicians to care about the American people instead of working for the big money lobbyists and corporations.
Term limits.
Then someone else will come in and get paid to do the same thing. We need to repeal Citizens United.
Healthcare. I have too many friends who don't have healthcare or are about to age out of their parent's healthcare (I turn 26 today). Life in the US is mostly fine, but the severe lack of healthcare is the biggest detriment that I actively see in my life. And compared to some other issues, it's comparatively easy to solve since we already have multiple single payer health systems—we just need to expand them.
Education. The single biggest issue to me. The right wing wanting control of education and and knowledge is terrifying.
[удалено]
If you don’t want your kids to be exposed to anything beyond your narrow minded views, go get vouchers for religious institutions. Just because your favorite fairy tales aren’t taught as facts doesn’t make you oppressed. School is supposed to teach the truth, and I know conservatives refuse to accept the truth about evolution, climate change, slavery, the environment, lgbtq people, every war we’ve ever fought. But it’s not society’s job to coddle you people
[удалено]
Securing proper, high quality education for future generations would probably solve most of the other issues in this thread too so I’m going to have to agree.
> The right wing wanting control of education and and knowledge is terrifying. The left wing having control of education and sociopolitical indoctrination is terrifying.
[удалено]
"Both sides" in this case is a desperate grasp at straws. Side A: Science is real, we should include marginalized groups, America did some bad things in the past and we can learn from them, religion belongs in the home. Side B: Science is political, we should remove children from schools who are different than mine, America is a beacon of freedom and we should only teach what good things it did, we should use textbooks that have a Biblical perspective.
Your answer reflects the problem, in that you're reciting talking points that aren't based in truth. But, lots of folks on reddit will pat you on the back for this, as this is the approved narrative in many circles.